Daughter of Darkness: Legacy of the Green Ninja

by The_Pink_Ninja

Summary:

The matter of the Green Ninja has been resolved, Rose’s real identity come to light, and new bonds of trust formed, not to mention she’s begun to recover from Morro, and has discovered new feelings for another friend, who feels the same way. But now that Lord Garmadon has the Five Weapons, and they have to train little Lloyd to become the Green Ninja, the Ninja have to find a way to protect Ninjago and train the previous wannabe dark lord without a home, and Rose still has not figured out what the strange purple mist was that would surround her Weapons before she lost them. What’s more, a dark figure from her past is returning and growing stronger.

Chapter 1: Darkness Shall Rise

Summary:

The Ninja struggle to find a home to train Lloyd, and shenanigans ensue (not the good kind, unfortunately)

(Cole’s POV)

I help Jay lift up a fallen street light and hold it in place, “Ugh, finally.  All fixed up and Serpentine free.”

Kai tries to use his Fire but can’t make more than a spark, “Aargh.  Ugh, this is so frustrating!”

The street sign tips over, Jay jumping back as I lunge to catch it, “Aah!”  I push it back in place and sigh.

“Our weapons are gone and most of our elemental powers are gone.  I mean, we can still do Spinjitzu, but…” Kai grunts, trying to make a flame again but it still doesn’t work.  Zane shrugs and puts a mask over his face as he kneels by the street sign, using a blowtorch to weld it in place.  The Red Ninja continues, “I just feel so, I don’t know, limited.  And thanks to the Devourer, our tank’s out of commission, our Dragon’s hurt, and now the Bounty is destroyed, we don’t even have a place to sleep!”

“Are you done ranting?” Rose asks, walking over with Lloyd, who must have convinced her into letting him support some of her weight, her ribs and leg not fully healed after one day.

Kai glances at her but nods, “Uh, I think so.”

“Great,” she smirks slightly.

“No one ever said being a hero is easy,” Zane pitches in, his voice echoey from the welding mask.  He lifts it, “Though our good deeds may never make us rich, they make us rich in other ways.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t feel rich,” Kai remarks sarcastically as he folds his arms.

I move over to Rose, putting an arm around her shoulder to help her stand and give Lloyd a break.  She smiles, “I’m just glad that no one was killed.  We may have lost another home…but we’re all still together.  We never needed a load of money before, and we can find a way now.”

Jay wipes his brow, stretching, “Ugh.  I for one enjoy pitching in.  I’ve always wanted to feel part of a community.  Uh, speaking of which, anyone seen Nya?  She said she was gonna help.”  He rubs the back of his neck.

“I think she was doing something with my father…” Rose recalls before both of them drive up on a motorcycle.  Well, Nya’s on the motorcycle, Wu’s in a sidecar.  That’s new.

Nya grins under her helmet, “And I have.  I may have found us a place to live.”

“Really?  But there’s a waiting list a mile long to live in Ninjago City.  How did you do that?” Jay asks.

“I know a guy, who knows a girl, and she knows this girl who knows a guy.  Well, this guy knows a girl who’s a real estate agent and she can help you find a place, if you catch my drift,” Nya hands Jay a pamphlet.

“Not really,” I whisper to Rose, who muffles a laugh, shaking her head.

“And where are you off to?” Jay points to her and Sensei Wu.

“We have to find a couple of components to fix the ninja tank.  And my dragon ointment has finally arrived.  It’s a day’s trip, but once we get back, he’ll be flying again,” Sensei Wu explains, before looking actually excited as he adds, “Also, I love scenic drives.  Haha, punch it, Nya!”

“Aye aye, Sensei!” Nya grins and revs the cycle, speeding away.

“Yee-haw!” we can hear our sensei cheering until the next block.

Rose raises her eyebrows, “Well....even I didn’t see that coming from him…”

Jay looks at the pamphlet Nya gave him and reads out loud, “‘Patty Keys, Real Estate Queen.’  Huh, this is exactly what we need!  Once we get a roof over our head, we can start properly training Lloyd.”  Rose ruffles the young blond’s hair fondly at that.  Lloyd laughs slightly and moves out of her reach.

“Good,” I look at the team, “‘cause if we know Lord Garmadon, he’s not going to be taking any breaks.  And let’s not forget, the Serpentine are still at large.”

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(Rose’s POV)

We all follow Patty Keys into a worn-down building, up some stairs, and into an apartment.  “This one-bedroom, one half-bath is a cozy dream.  Who needs extras when everything is in arm’s reach?  Now, wait until you see the lighting!” the woman turns on the light.  The bulb flickers, goes out, then falls to the ground and shatters.  We look at it.  “Uh...Who needs lights when you have this view?” she smiled and opened the window blinds to reveal a brick wall, at which her smile grows strained.

“Uh, why do I smell old people?” Lloyd questions, eyeing the space.  I sigh.

Patty looks at him in annoyance, “Look, doll, I’m trying to work around your budget.  This is all you can afford.”

The dark haired boy at my side smiles slightly, “Uh, this looks...promising.”  He grows serious and looks at the others, “Remember, guys, Sensei told us our main objective is to train Lloyd, not kick our feet up in some swanky suite.  If this is all we can afford, this is all we can afford.”

Jay’s eyes widen considerably in obvious horror, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, let’s not rush into any decision.  I mean, if it’s really all about Lloyd, don’t we need to live in some place that’ll make training easier?”

“Yeah, Jay’s right,” Kai pitches in, at which I give him a look.  He spoke too quickly.  “If we have to get Lloyd ready to save Ninjago from his father, shouldn’t he at least have his own room?”  I share a weary look with Cole.  That was a horrible excuse.

Zane looks puzzled, “Technically, that does not matter, he only-”  Kai punches him gently.

“We’re only thinking about the children, hehe,” Jay gives Ms. Keys an innocent expression.  I purse my lips, shaking my head in exasperation.

She just smiles, “I do have another property that you’ll just love !”  Aaand here we go.   As the others file out, Cole takes a look at my tired expression and simply lifts me up.  I don’t bother arguing.

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Ms. Keys takes us to a skyscraper.  We ride up via an elevator and walk down the hall.  She inserts a key into a door and opens it to reveal the fanciest living room I’ve ever seen.  It’s painful.

“Whoa…” the boys stare at it as Ms. Keys leads us inside.

“Oh man,” Jay’s eyes seem to be shining; I think he’s already in love with this place.

“Now, this is the eight-bedroom Hero Suite.  Floor-to-ceiling windows, digital wall television, state-of-the-art game console-”

“Uh, it seems a little out of our price range,” Cole says hesitantly.  I internally breathe a sigh of relief that he has retained his common sense.

“Oh, sure it costs a little more, but you deserve it!”  She smiles brightly as she points to the ceiling, “I forgot to mention, there’s also a Dragon keep on the roof.”

“Nice,” Kai comments.  Okay, I admit...it would be a lot nicer for Cloud and Ultra to have that instead of just sleeping on top of the apartment building’s roof...It could even speed up the healing process, I muse.

“Maybe we can get a hero discount?” Jay suggests hopefully, “After all, we are the Ninja who saved the city.”

“I thought Lord Garmadon saved the city,” Ms. Keys glanced at him in confusion.

He crossed his arms, “Hmph.”

I look to him, “She’s not completely wrong, Jay, my uncle did help save the city.”

Ms. Keys turns to me, “You’re his niece?  Oh, well that changes some things.  Maybe just a small discount.  Maybe.”

Jay looks happy, “We should mention you’re Garmadon’s niece more often, Ro.”  I shake my head.

“We could get day jobs to pay for the extra expenses,” Kai offered.

“We always said we could use a little more responsibility,” Zane agreed.

I snort, “Correction: I always said that.”

“But we have to train Lloyd,” Kai remembers, rubbing his head.

Ms. Keys clicks a button which opens a wall to reveal a training course, “Did I mention the in-house training facility?”  Okay but how does this place have a Dragon keep and a training course that looks almost identical to the one we used to have?  I didn’t even think anyone thought Dragons were real anymore.

“We’ll take it!” the boys chorus immediately.  I sigh, Well, it could be worse.

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Since I’m still somewhat injured, though definitely better, I don’t need help getting around and Cole hasn’t worried about me hurting myself quite as much as he did the first day or two, I was voted to stay with Lloyd while the boys got jobs to pay for the place.  Which I have no problem with, exactly, someone needs to supervise him and his training at least, and I was never really into anything other than my actual job of being a ninja, and I never really had any other skills that would come in handy for a different job anyway...well...come to think of it I could probably be an okay babysitter but I’m literally already doing that with Lloyd, just no pay.

Jay had gotten a job delivering pizza, Zane as a chef (we all saw that coming), Kai a party entertainer, which I guess there’s a point there since according to Nya he was never really good at his last job, a blacksmith, and he hasn’t had any experience in other areas.  I guess that would work since he’s a ninja.  And Cole is a security guard for a bank.  He admitted to me that the reason for that was because he still wanted to help people.  Honestly, there isn’t anything about this that I can particularly think is bad, so I don’t know why I don’t like it.  I guess I feel uncomfortable with all the fancy stuff.  I’ve always been used to the Monastery and Bounty, where everything was simple and home-like, not to mention we’re in the middle of Ninjago’s biggest city, where I never felt quite at home.

That evening, the guys come back, clearly tired out as Zane goes in search of something after a simple, “Hi,” Jay collapses on the floor, Cole sinks into a chair, and Kai falls onto the couch.

Cole rubs his ankle, wincing, “Oh…”  I take a guess and go get him some ice.  When I come back, Lloyd hits a punching bag, but it swings back and knocks him over.

I catch him with one hand and push him upright again, “Try with your foot braced against the ground, like this.”

I adjust his heel, and he grins at me, “Thanks, Rose.”  I nod and smile before heading into the living room, catching something about Cole saying he can’t feel his feet.

“There were so many of them.  And they wouldn’t stop,” Kai puts his hands over his face, his voice dazed.  I wince, beginning to wonder if being a ninja is actually an easier job than I’d thought.

Zane returns with an oil can, pouring a little on the gears inside his arm, “Ugh, my gears locked up several times.  I didn’t even know my gears could lock up.”

Jay reaches for a controller weakly, “I don’t even have enough energy to play video games…”  He sighs and gives up, his head and hand falling back to the ground.

“That’s something I never thought I’d hear,” I admit, walking over to Cole.  He gives me a grateful smile when I hand him the ice.

Lloyd pauses and steps in the room, looking at the four, “Oh.  But I thought you were going to train me when you got home.”

Cole winces in apology, “Sorry, champ, but we can’t until we make rent.  How close are we, Jay?”

Jay raises his head enough to see the jar, “Huh, is this jar getting bigger?”  He wiggles it slightly, “We’re not even close!”

Zane puts more oil in his arm, “And our rent is due tomorrow.”

Cole sighs, before speaking up, “I can pull a double shift.”

“And I can do overtime,” Zane follows, nodding.

“Maybe, I can sling a few more pizza pies?” Jay shrugs.

“What’s a pizza pie?” I look at him.

He sighs, “Don’t worry about it.”

“And maybe I can make a little extra if I do the human piñata,” Kai pitches in, like everything about that sentence doesn’t imply bad things.  The other three all stare at him incredulously.  He grimaces, rubbing his head, “Ugh, don’t ask.”

“Great…” Cole turns back, “Then our priorities are set.  Tomorrow...we make rent.”

“And, uh, what about me?” Lloyd asks.

Cole looks at me, unsure, and I pat my cousin’s head, “You’ve been training for a while, why don’t you help me with the guys?”  Lloyd looks hesitant but nods.

After a few minutes, Cole looks at the sky and groans slightly, standing up, “If I’m gonna do a double shift I’ll have to get going.  Bye, guys.”

I wave as he leaves, the other ninja simply nodding silent assent.

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The next day, I’m guiding Lloyd in his training while the guys are out working.  Lloyd attempts a sidekick and slips, tumbling to the ground.  I smile slightly, helping him up as he complains, “I’m never gonna get it!  I’ve been trying to nail that thing for days, and I still can’t do it!  Silly kick!”  He rambles, hitting a punching bag in annoyance.

I shake my head, “You have to be patient, Lloyd.  It took me a long time to learn these things too, here, let me show you.”  I stand in the middle of the room, taking the stance as Lloyd watches.  I turn, lashing out with my foot, then return to the stance.  I wince, feeling a small bolt of pain shoot up my leg.

I rub it as Lloyd comes up, “Are you okay, Rose?”

“Yeah, just tugged the muscle a bit.”  I smile at him, “It’ll be fine in a couple minutes, now, why don’t you take a break?  That always helped me regain my focus when training.”  Lloyd nods and walks into the living room.

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(Cole’s POV)

We wait above the subway until the train the Serpentine are taking passes under us, then we jump onto one of the cars.  I frown, glancing around as we crawl on the roof to avoid getting blown off, “Ugh, isn’t there an easier way to get inside?!”

“Not without a ticket!” Kai says, right before a black hand bursts through the ceiling, grabbing his leg, “Huh?”  Before any of us can react, Skalidor pulls him through the roof, making a wide hole in it.

I blink slowly, “What?”

“I believe Kai just found it,” Zane remarks, smirking under his mask.

I shake my head, “Nindroids first.”

“Oh, you are such a gentleman,” the White Ninja jumps into the train.  I jump down after, landing on his back.

Literally the first thing I see and hear is Kai struggling in Skalidor’s grasp, yelling in annoyance, “Let me go, snake!”

I blink, “Huh?”

Skalidor sneers at us, “Welcome to the part-”  Kai punches him in the face, “Unh!”

Acidicus slithers closer, “Care for a drink?”  Before we can respond, he sprays Zane with venom.

“Ugh!” Zane tips, making us tumble over, him landing on top.

He sits up as I look at him, “Sorry about that.”

“That’s quite alright,” he waves it off.  “Venom can’t hurt-”  Fangtom slithers over and smashes his staff into Zane’s face, laughing.  Zane frowns at him, “But that stings a little.”  He stands up and grabs the General, “Let me have this dance, snake.”  Before Fangtom can react, he throws him past me, the Serpentine yelping.

I stand up, “One down, two to go.”  Fangtom gets up, punching me in the face.  I stumble back as he advances, grinning wickedly.

“These Serpentine are a lot harder to defeat without our Weapons,” Kai struggles behind me.

“And with less people,” Zane adds.

“Just keep fighting,” I duck under a swing from Fangtom’s staff.  “We’re not gonna let these guys get away with this.”  I spot an opening and punch the snake, throwing him against the side of the subway, his head cracking a hole in the window.

“Get away?” he asks, smirking, I glance to Zane to see he’s struggling to get out of Acidicus’s chokehold.  “We aren’t trying to get away.  We’re jusssst trying to disssstract you long enough sssso that Sssskalessss can kidnap Lloyd.”

Kai’s eyes widen, “What?”

“We could care lessssssss about the money.  We jusssst wanted the boy,” the red snake sneers at me.  The Generals let out evil laughs as I realize just how grave our situation is.  The Generals aren’t about to let us get away, who knows where Jay is, and Skales is probably already at the apartment.  Lloyd would never be able to hold his own against the Hypnobrai General, and Rose is still recovering, even if she is stronger.  If he hurts her, she won’t be able to help Lloyd.  This isn’t good.  This isn’t good at all.

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(Lloyd’s POV)

After Rose let me have a break, I started playing video games.  Don’t judge me.  Rose not being interested, I gave up trying to get her to play a multiplayer game with me and played on my own.  As I play, the light from the window makes a glaring reflection on the screen, so I have to squint to actually make the game out.

Then I actually recognize the reflection, “Wha-”

I turn to the window to see Skales knock on it, “Hello, little boy.”

Leaping up from the couch, I back up, calling for Rose, “Help me!”  I run to the apartment door and try to open it.

“Door is locked,” a robotic voice says.

“Ugh, I know !  I want it open !” I yell at it.  Glass shatters behind me; I turn around as Skales slithers through the window.  “What do you want with me?”

“You ssseem to be the only thing your father caresss about,” Skales hisses at me, a triumphant gleam in his eye, “but with you asss my hossstage, he’ll have no other choice but to let me lead the Ssserpentine!”

“Hyah!” a purple blur kicks him in the chin, standing between us.

Skales rubs his face and narrows his red eyes at my older cousin, “Ugh, I sssee one of you hadn’t left him alone.”

“We’re smarter than that,” Rose retorts, glaring at him.

“Well, we’ll sssee who’sss ssstronger then,” Skales swings his staff at her, but she jumps on top of it lightly, then jumps up again, grabbing hold of the ceiling and kicking him in the face again, then drop kicking his staff out of his hands.  Skales shakes his head and tries to hypnotize her, but she sees it coming and closes her eyes, doing Spinjitzu.  He’s thrown back against the wall but sees a vase.  Before I can call out a warning, he hurls it at her and it cracks against her skull.  Rose slumps onto the ground, unconscious, a small trickle of blood running down her face.

Skales then turns to me with an evil grin, “Let’ssss train.”  I gulp nervously.

There’s a knock at the door and I hear my uncle’s voice, “Hello?  What’s going on in there?”

“HELP!” I scream.

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(Cole’s POV)

Zane manages to get out of Acidicus’s grip and runs up and over him before punching him to the ground.

I’m locked in combat with Fangtom, “We have to save Lloyd!”  I block one of Fangtom’s punches, then a blow from his staff.  The snake throws himself at me, knocking me to the ground, where I struggle to avoid getting bitten.

“Give me a weapon and I’ll take care of these snakes!” Kai pushes at Skalidor.

Zane looks up and then climbs onto a seat, taking a pole out of the ceiling and grabbing a ring, throwing it at the Constrictai and freeing Kai, “Who needs weapons when you can make your own?”

I get up and kick Fangtom away, “Ha!  Smart thinking, Zane!”  I tug a metal pole out of its socket and throw it to the Red Ninja, “Here, Kai!”

Kai catches it and turns, swiping at Skalidor, who quickly begins slithering away.  Kai hits him into the wall and he falls onto his back to stare up at the Master of Fire.

He blinks, stammering as he straightens up, “Uh, uh, uh...Thisss wasss all a big misssunderssstanding.”

“Oh, really?” Kai asks sarcastically.  I look out the window while the Serpentine are occupied, trying to see ahead.  A blue and silver figure catches my eye down the track, making my stomach drop.

“Guys, I think I found Jay.”

Zane looks at me, then runs to the next car.  I follow him as my stomach churns.  Lloyd’s in danger of being kidnapped again , Rose could get seriously hurt or worse, and now we’re on a course to run over Jay with a train .  How much worse can this day get ?!?!?!   I mentally freeze and beg destiny to not answer that question.  We race through the train until we reach the front and burst through the door.  Already we’re much closer to Jay than before.  I can see he’s tied up now, trying to hop away from the train as fast as he can, but that’s not going to do much.  Problem is, there’s no driver.

“Where’s the driver?!” I yelp.

“The train appears to be automatically controlled,” Zane tells me.

“So it’s not gonna stop?” I stare at my friend worriedly.  I just asked you to NOT tell me how things could get worse!   In response, Zane grabs the brake and pulls on it desperately.

The subway walls move by just as quickly as before, “It’s not slowing down!”  I reach around him and grab the brakes as well, pulling back as hard as I can.  The train slows down a bit, but not nearly enough.

“Ugh, we’re not strong enough!” Zane grunts.

“I’m coming!” Kai calls, running in a second later.  Ahead of us, Jay trips and falls over.  I try not to look at his terrified expression as Kai puts his hands on the brake.

“Together!” I order.  We all pull on it and a few seconds later it finally stops.  Dread fills my limbs with lead as I straighten, terrified to look out the window-  The front of the train barely touches his feet.

Jay laughs nervously, still visibly shaking, but in one piece , “Ha ha!  Hey, there you guys are!  Ugh.  Um, I could use a little hand here, heh heh…”  My shoulders sag in relief even as I share a mildly amused glance with the others.  But Lloyd and Rose are still in danger, and if anything happens to them…it’ll be our fault.  I don’t know what I’ll do if Skales succeeds.

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(Wu’s POV)

“HELP!” my nephew screams after I knock, turning my blood to ice.  Nya doesn’t hesitate to kick the door open.  A familiar Hypnobrai General is advancing on Lloyd, whose young face brightens in relief at the sight of us.  Glass shards litter the floor, and my daughter is knocked out cold and bleeding from her temple.  The boys are nowhere in sight.  I see red.

I barely register myself using Spinjitzu on the suddenly terrified snake as Nya runs to the security system and calls the police.  I whirl to a stop, Skales lying on the floor, too dizzy and beat up to do anything.  Lloyd is already by Rose, shaking her shoulder worriedly.  I kneel next to her and gently nudge him out of the way, pulling a roll of bandages from my robe and carefully wrapping her head up.  I lift her up as the police come in.

“Will she be okay?” Lloyd asks in a small voice.

I smile at him and nod, “She’ll just need some rest for a while.”  I look at Skales coldly, “At any rate I know someone who will be getting plenty of it while he’s in jail.”

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(Cole’s POV)

When we get back, the suite is empty and there’s a huge circular hole in the window, glass scattered over the floor where the pane had been pushed in.  What really scares me is the blood stain on the floor.

“Lloyd?” Kai calls.

“Rose?” I look in the training room to see it’s empty.

Zane looks crestfallen, “They’re not here.”

“Oh, we shouldn’t have left them,” Kai groans.

I look at the others, my chest feeling heavy, “We shouldn’t have taken those jobs in the first place.  What were we thinking?”  What was I thinking? “Losing Rose and Lloyd was by far our greatest loss.”  I look down.

“But it could be your greatest lesson,” Sensei’s voice says behind us.  We turn to see him and Nya standing behind Lloyd and Rose, who’s leaning against the doorway, a bandage around her head, contrasting her shady hair starkly.

“You’re okay!” Kai smiles in relief.

I don’t say anything, going to Rose and hugging her tightly, but gently.  She returns it.

“We weren’t going to be,” Lloyd says, “until Nya and Sensei showed up at the last moment.”

“I go away for a day , and everything falls apart!” Nya puts her hands on her hips, giving us a glare.

“I guess you could say we learned we don’t need all the fancy stuff.  We just need each other,” Kai rubs the back of his neck.

Rose raises her head, smiling weakly, “You have no idea how glad I am to hear that.”

“You want us to help you clean up?” Sensei questions.

“Well, we are a team,” Kai says hopefully.

He turns to Nya, “Nya, I think it’s time for another road trip.”

“Hold on,” I interject, putting my arm around Rose’s shoulders.  “I got a better idea.”

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(Rose’s POV)

Apparently Cole’s idea was to move into the small apartment.  Honestly?  I’m perfectly fine with that.

“It’s not much, but this one-bedroom, one-half-bath is a cozy dream.  Who needs extras when everything is in arm’s reach?” Cole grins.

I tiredly punch his arm, “I feel like I’ve heard that before.”  He chuckles.

Lloyd knocks into Jay with a chair, who was helping Kai carry a heavy box.  Jay drops it, “Hey!”

The box lands on Kai’s foot and he yelps, hopping, “Ow, ow, ow!”

“Ha, feels like home to me,” Jay chuckles at Kai.  “Hey, at least we get to stay in Ninjago City for a little while.”

I hum, “That I could do without but…”

“And now without the distractions, we can put all of our energy into training Lloyd,” Zane smiles.

“Who’s there?” Lloyd asks from behind the chair.  Zane shakes his head as he turns and helps the younger boy.

Kai sighs, “I know the Serpentine Generals got away, but you never told us: Whatever happened to Skales?”

“Oh, he found a home too,” I smirk, leaning against Cole.

My father chuckles, “But it’s not quite as roomy as here.”

“Not nearly,” I smile in agreement before yawning.

Cole looks at me in amusement, “Okay, I think that’s bedtime.”

“Whatever,” I mumble, smiling a little as I sink down on a bedroll with a sigh.  “Night.”

There’s a chorus of ‘goodnight’s as the others all get out their cots and settle down except my dad, who stays up to meditate.  I smile, the soft glow from his candle casting gentle shadows on the walls and lulling me to sleep.

Notes:

HAPPY NEW YEAR'S EVE, EVERYONE! Hope you all have a good one.

This will not be updated again until spring break, but it is not being abandoned.

Chapter 2: Pirates vs. Ninja

Summary:

The gang searches for a better place to train Lloyd and fights some…are those pirates?

(Rose’s POV)

I watch sitting on my bedroll as the guys do their best to train Lloyd in our small apartment.  Lloyd is practicing his punches and kicks on Kai’s hands, covered in cooking mittens.  It’s actually kind of amusing to watch.

“Good.  Keep it up,” the Red Ninja smiles encouragingly right before Lloyd jumps in the air and forcefully kicks one of his covered hands.

Lloyd has an expression between a grin and a smirk as he pauses, “Ha!  Fists of fury!”  He begins punching Kai’s hands and pauses again to continue, “You can’t even see ‘em move, I’m so fast!  Ha!”

He sends another punch to one of Kai’s hands before Kai lowers them, “Save the gloating.  It can only be used against you by your enemy.”

“Oh, please .  I’m ready to face whatever you throw at me,” my cousin leaps into the air and kicks at Kai.  He raises his hands to block and is thrown against the wall.

“Whoa, grasshopper,” Kai laughs.  “You’re not even ready to face my pinky toe.”  He wiggles it to emphasize his point.

My father looks oddly amused at that, “I see the student has become the teacher.”  I feel like I’m missing a joke…   Lloyd turns and smiles at his next words, “You will learn fast, Lloyd, with lessons from the five Ninja.”

I cough, “Correction: Four.  At least until some people decide that I can actually get out of bed .”  I send my father and Cole a pointed look.

My boyfriend ignores my remark, but I can see that grin on his face, you are not subtle, mister-   “Great, now that lesson is over, how about some target practice…” he smirks at the Red Ninja, “...on Kai?”

Kai suddenly looks very worried, and I can’t hold back my laughter.  My father smiles, a twinkle in his eye, “You’ll each get your turn, but first, I don’t want you to be late for your next lesson with Nya.”

Lloyd moans dramatically, “Awww, but when will I learn Spinjitzu?”

My father sighs, “ Patience .  It will only be unlocked when the key is ready to be found.”

Lloyd groans and walks out of the room.  I lean back against the wall, “I’m getting deja vu.”

“Ha,” Cole grins as he looks around the room.  “Sounds familiar much?”

“I wasn’t that whiny,” Kai protests.

“No, you were worse,” Zane smirks.

I giggle, “You really were.”

“Heh heh,” Jay’s smile fades slightly, “Guys, I know we’re trying to prepare Lloyd for the future, but it’s hard to give him the best training in these conditions.”

“Jay’s right,” Cole glances at the door, “I miss the Destiny’s Bounty.  Too bad it’s gone.”

I stand up and walk over, punching him gently in the arm before slipping my hand into his with a squeeze, “I feel like our roles have been somewhat reversed.”

He cocks an eyebrow, “Monastery?”  I hum affirmatively.

My father nods slowly, considering their words,  “Hmm, I see your point.  Perhaps we could find somewhere else to aid his journey.”

“Can I actually come along?” I ask hopefully, half expecting a chorus of ‘no’s.

A silent exchange passes between the boys, then Cole says, “Just so long as you don’t do anything that could aggravate your head.”

“I don’t plan to,” I reply drily, even as I feel myself perk up, “I much prefer Not Dizzy Me.”  They laugh, and I smile slightly, It’s hard to believe that I used to be so against there being more people in my life.  Now I can’t imagine life without them.

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An hour or two later, we go outside, bringing Lloyd with us.  My father comes out a second later, “It’s time we search Ninjago City for a more suitable place to train Lloyd.”

“Oh, but Sensei, Ninjago City is huge ,” Jay reminds him.  “It’ll take us all day to find it on foot.”

“And without our Golden Weapons, we have no Spinjitzu vehicles.  How are we going to get around town?” Zane inquired.  Really, I thought they had more sense than that.  I’m a mountain recluse and even I have more sense than that.

“You’ll learn to travel with these,” he holds out some bus tokens, his eyes twinkling.

“What are those?” Cole asks dumbly.  I sigh, I give up with these guys.  I actually give up...For real this time!

“They can transport you anywhere you want to go in the city,” my father informs them.  I have to hold in my laughter at the mischief in his eyes.

“Like a magic portal?” my boyfriend says excitedly.

“Ooh!  Or a Spinjitzu vortex?” Jay guesses as my father drops them into Cole’s hand.

The dark boy examines them more closely, “Hey, wait a minute, these are bus tokens.”

My father chuckles, and I giggle, “You boys seem to have forgotten there are other ways to get around.”

They mumble silly excuses as my cousin looks up at me, “Sometimes I don’t know what to think of them.”

“Neither do I, Lloyd, neither do I.”

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Well, we took the bus.  Jay also had the bright idea of looking for dojos on the computer so we just stopped in front of one which we probably wouldn’t have ever found without the internet in this gigantic thing of a city.

I look up at the wooden sign reading ‘Grand Sensei Dareth’s Mojo Dojo’ incredulously, “I...have no words.”

“ This is where Lloyd is going to train?” Cole questions, raising an eyebrow.

“Heh heh, it’s better than our dumpy apartment,” Jay points out cheerfully.

We walk in and a man in a...rather unprofessional...brown gi comes through a doorway with a beaded curtain.  “Welcome to Grand Sensei Dareth’s Mojo Dojo,” he says with the most over dramatic movements known to man, eyebrow perpetually raised in a smug look, “I am Grand Sensei Dareth, and I Dareth you to join my dojo.  Heeyaughl!”  He strikes a weird pose, throwing his arms in the air with his hands drooping down, leg sloppily kicked in front of him, wobbling uncontrollably.  …Is he for real?

“Uh…” I blink, sharing the same uncertain expression as my friends.  Dareth then does a bunch of weird ‘karate’ moves ( -cringing, cringing so hard, I’ve never cringed this hard before in my life - ) while spinning around and making a bunch of incomprehensible noises.  Next thing he knows, he’s tangled up in his bead curtain, entirely unfazed.

We let out a collective sigh before he untangles himself and walks over to a table of trophies, “Face the wall of karate trophies.  If you look closely, my name is on all of them.  That is because I am a highly skilled karate machine.”

I look at Cole incredulously, He can’t possibly be serious.   The black haired boy grimaces in response.

Kai steps forward with Lloyd, cutting the guy off, “Look, Dareth, we’re wondering if we could share your dojo.  You see, we’ve been put in charge of training this little guy to become the greatest ninja in all of Ninjago–”

Dareth clasps his hands behind his back, a proud expression on his face, “Not possible, for I am the greatest in the land.”  He walks forward, smugness apparent in every inch of his face, “How many trophies do you have?”  Trophies.  Honestly .  Could you get more materialistic than that?

Jay’s brows lower, “Look, pal, we’re the guys that just saved the city from that giant snake-”

Dareth scoffs and leans closer to Jay, “Am I looking at Lord Garmadon?  Because unless I’m stupid, and I’m not,” -debatable - “Lord Garmadon destroyed the Devourer.”

“Ah, actually, he had some help,” Jay pushes me forward; I give him my best ‘Why are you bringing me into this?’ look, which he completely ignores, the little– “And this is his niece.  And that’s his son.”  He points at Lloyd.

Dareth pauses for a second, then folds his arms, “I’ll let you train here, but only on one condition.  You can defeat me.  If you succeed, we will share the dojo.”  He strikes a ridiculous pose, “That’s right.  I, Grand Sensei Dareth, master of all animal fighting styles, challenge one of you,” he dramatically points at us before placing his hands on his hips, “to a battle.”  He gets down on all fours and makes a weird sound, “I know the tiger.  The python,” he stands up and waves his body around, and I promptly tune him out as he continues with his antics.

“Okay, who’s dealing with him?” I ask boredly.  I get the feeling even Lloyd could defeat him at this point.

“Me,” Kai flicks his mask on, punches his hand twice, then whirls into a bright red tornado that sucks up Dareth in half a second flat.  The guy screams wildly before they both whirl to a stop, Kai standing, Dareth splayed on the ground.

He lifts his head, eyes wide and dazed, “How did you-”

Kai cuts him off, mildly imitating one of Dareth’s poses; I huff a laugh, “You might know animals, but we know Spinjitzu.”  He puts his hands on his hips.

Dareth stands up and bows, “You can train in my dojo anytime.”  We all share a grin.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I watch as Jay and Lloyd balance on some poles, eyes closed.  Lloyd opens his eyes, slowly shifting his stance, then lunges at Jay.  Jay easily jumps back, opening his eyes after he lands on two other poles.  My cousin lands with one foot on the pole Jay had been standing on, wobbling slightly before regaining his balance and looking at Jay.

Jay smirks and jumps, kicking at him, “You must be light on your feet.”

Lloyd jumps back, avoiding the kick easily.  I smile proudly as he grins.

Cole stacks some boards on a table, “When you strike with your fists, concentrate.”  Lloyd hops off the pole he was on and walks next to him, looking at the boards.  “You may be small, but you’re strong.”  He steps back so Lloyd can focus. 

Lloyd closes his eyes for a moment, then steps back and jumps in the air.  His fist comes in contact with the board and the next thing I know, the wind is knocked out of me and my back slams into the wall.  I fall down with a gasp and wait for the ringing in my ears to go away, then look up at Lloyd, stunned.  He’d cracked all the boards and the table.  It didn’t even end there but cracked straight through the floor and the dojo’s foundation.  Kai’s shaking his head dazedly, tossed against the trophy rack and nearly breaking them, Zane is lying on his back, and Jay’s shakily standing up, his hand on a post.  Cole drops to the floor from where he’d been blasted against a punching bag and rubs his face.  Shock writes itself over everyone’s faces except my father’s, who is calmly drinking his tea.

“That was the power of the Scythe of Quakes,” Jay says breathlessly, “and you did it without the Golden Weapon!”

Zane stands up, “That must be why you have the potential to be the greatest Ninja.  You can harness all of the Elemental Powers.”  I smile weakly as I stand up, Maybe not all of them…

Lloyd’s eyes widen and he looks at his hands, “Really?  Cool!”

My father speaks up, “With this power, you must be careful.  You must control it before it controls you.”

Dareth walks through the beaded door, “I have to admit, not bad for a kid.  But instead of ten boards, how about fifty?  Stack ‘em, boys.”  A couple kids walk through the door, carrying twenty five boards each.  My father sighs, shaking his head.  As the boys stack the boards on two stone blocks, Dareth continues, “And perhaps if I, Grand Sensei Dareth, can break through them all, you will allow me to join your team and become…”  He spins and pulls a ninja hood over his face, “the Brown Ninja!”

I raise an eyebrow, stepping next to Cole as Jay snickers, “The Brown Ninja?  You gotta be joking!”

“Sorry, pal,” Cole chuckles slightly, “Club’s already full.”

“Okay, okay.  Then maybe this demonstration of my superhuman strength may persuade you.  Jeffy, Phil, are we ready?” he addresses the two kids.

Both bow, “Yes, Grand Sensei Dareth.”

“Observe,” Dareth strikes a pose, and we all exchange amused glances, “I call upon the greatest animal to give me strength, the Dragon.  HEEEEYAH!”  He slams his hand down on the boards; it turns bright red.  A second later he throws his head back, “YYEEEEEEAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!”

He starts jumping up and down, cradling his hand as he continues yelping in pain.  I can’t hold it back any longer and double over, laughing, as everyone else, even my father, does the same.

“Oh man, ow,” Jay laughs, wiping his eye.

Once I get my laughter under control, I walk over to the boards Dareth had epicly failed at trying to split, scanning them once.  I take a stance and then bring my hand down on them, cracking all the boards effortlessly.  I wipe my hand on my gi, only feeling a slight sting as Dareth gapes.

I simply grin at him and go over to stand by Cole, who puts an arm around my shoulders.

“I have to say that was pretty impressive,” Cole whispers with a grin.

“It’s nothing you can’t do,” I elbow him gently.

“That’s because I have super strength!”

“Mhm, and I have years of training,” I shrug.  “Honestly, I just wanted to do something.”

Cole gently squeezes my shoulder, “I get it.  We just don’t want you getting hurt.”  Before I can respond, he gives me a smile and rejoins the others as they continue Lloyd’s training.  I smile slightly, I know.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After we’ve finished training for the day, we say bye to Dareth and head outside.  Next thing I know, Jay’s pointing up at the Bounty, “Oh, that’s our ship!”

My jaw drops, “But the Devourer crushed it!  How…?”  The question is chased out of my mind when I spot the pirates causing havoc from its deck because where did they come from-

“ Pirates ?” Lloyd questions.

Cole shakes his head, “Pirates haven’t been around for centuries.”

“I sense Lord Garmadon is somehow behind this,” Zane states.  I sigh heavily, Here we go again…

“How are we gonna follow them?” Lloyd asks.

Kai holds out a bus token, “Perhaps this can be of some use.”

I roll my eyes, “ Now you use your one brain cell.”  The Red Ninja huffs at me before a bus pulls up and he jumps on, the rest of us following.

He puts the token down by the driver, “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but follow that ship!”  I stumble when the driver nods and takes off, chasing the Bounty.  I lean against the wall for a second, then stand up when I’ve regained my balance, pulling on my hood with the others…including Lloyd.

Kai knows what I’m thinking as he looks at the young ninja and then at us, “Ugh, I don’t like the kid coming along.  It’s too dangerous.”

Lloyd hops slightly clasping his hands together, “Please please please!  I’ll be super good!”  He looks at me with puppy eyes.  I groan, covering my face with my hands.  I want to be able to let him come so bad……

Zane kneels down to be at eye level with him, “The powers inside you are still too great, too uncontrollable.”  Lloyd’s shoulders sag, and he hangs his head.

“One of these days you’ll be able to join us.  Sorry, kid,” Cole apologizes.  Lloyd groans and plops on one of the seats.

Kai gives the driver a second token, asking him to drop Lloyd off at home once we’re gone.  Then we open the door and climb onto the roof.  I keep low to it to avoid being blown off while the boys crouch in fighting stances.  Kai tries to grab hold of the anchor so we can get on the Bounty, but just as we start to jump on, I feel the bus stopping as Kai unsheathes his sword and sticks it in the bus, catching Zane’s wrist as we tumble over the edge.  Cole manages to grab hold of the katana’s handle and Jay is hanging from his waist.  Zane grabs my hand.  We all look down to see an old lady slowly crossing the street.  Very…slowly.

“Come on, people, we’re trying to save the city here!” Jay shouts in annoyance.

Cole looks up at the Bounty, “It’s getting away!”

The bottom of the woman’s paper bag rips open and the fruit in it spills out all over the street.  The boys heave a collective sigh.  I shake my head and let go of Zane’s hand, dropping to the street behind the woman.  I don’t say anything through the wave of awkward self-consciousness, but I bend down and help her pick up her fruit, taking my hood off and offering it to her instead of a bag.  At least it won’t rip open on her, and I don’t exactly need it.  Even so, we lost the Bounty.

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After about five or ten minutes of fruitless searching, we finally spot it at the end of another street.

A scream comes from it, “OH! PLEEEEEAAASE!  HEEEEEEEEEEEEELP!”  There is literally no mistaking that voice.

Kai facepalms, “Ugh, really, Dareth?”

“We need to get onboard that ship,” Cole frowns.

Jay turns around, “Ah-ha.  There are other ways a Ninja can hide in plain sight.”  I decide I don’t like his tone of voice as we turn to see a costume shop.

“Oh...no…” my shoulders sag.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

We come out in pirate outfits.  Not completely sure how, but we also succeeded in color coding the costumes to our normal colors.  Though I guess that’s a good thing, since it’ll make the gis under the costumes less noticeable.  I don’t deny though, that I feel awkward in the boots, hat, and dress.  As in, extremely awkward.  So awkward that if we’re caught before we can do anything then it’ll probably be because I looked unconvincing.  That’s why I’m hiding behind Cole as we climb onto the ship.

The captain laughs at a tied up Dareth, “How about we have him walk the plank?”  The pirates laugh in eager anticipation.  I cringe and scoot closer to Cole.

As the captain forces Dareth to walk out on the plank, the guy stammers nervously, “You’re making a big mistake.  Don’t make me call upon the Dragon.”

Jay looks at Kai, “We have to save him.”

“We can’t get close enough without blowing our cover,” Kai whispers back.

“I thought you were the one who would jump at the chance to do that,” I hiss from where I’m peeking out behind my boyfriend.

“Ha ha, very funny.”

“Who here wants to see him go splat?!” the captain raises his sword in the air, and the pirates cheer.

Jay covers his mouth with his hand and yells in a questionable accent, “Who here wants to see him live?!”  The pirates cheer again for a second before they pause in confusion and exchange glances.

The captain looks puzzled for a moment before he shrugs it off and continues to force Dareth along the plank, “Heh heh.  The plank’s getting shorter, huh?”

“We don’t need to do this, fellas.  I’m a lousy martial artist.  What I do, I wouldn’t even call it an art.  I know I’m a brown belt, but I painted it.  And my trophies, they’re all fake.”  I groan right alongside my blue and red teammates, right before the captain gets tired of Dareth’s rambling and shoves him off the plank.  I tense as he plummets out of view, screaming wildly, but a familiar roar and even more familiar cheer cut him off as the Ultra Dragon swoops down with Lloyd on his back, catching an ecstatic Dareth.  I exhale.  That fixes that.

With the pirates standing in shock, the rest of us whirl into Spinjitzu, removing the pirate disguises and revealing ourselves as ninja, “Ninja, go!”

The captain stares with his mouth open, “ More pajama men?”  His gaze lands on me, “Pajama...woman?”

A pirate with two eye patches and a parrot shades his eyes, looking around, “Where?  I can’t see.”  I shake my head, laughing under my breath.

“Ninja versus pirates,” Kai remarks.  “Who will win?”  The pirates raise their swords with cries of ‘argh’.  Kai unsheathes his sword, pointing it at them, Cole pulls a scythe out from behind him.  I half wonder how he’d managed to hide it, cause I didn’t even realize he was carrying one on him, as I whip my sai out from my belt, twirling them in my hand.  Zane takes a stance and Jay reveals his nunchucks.

Before the pirates can attack, Cole and Jay glance at each other, then Cole jumps on Jay’s nunchucks, Jay giving him a boost, and he jumps over the pirates.  He cuts the feather from the Captain’s hat, getting the point across that we won’t be as easy to defeat as Dareth.  The pirates watch the feather flutter to the ground with shocked expressions; I don’t need to see Cole’s face to know he’s smirking at their surprise.  Zane takes out two smoke bombs and squeezes them to block the pirate’s view, then throws two shurikens through the mist, pinning the Captain to the mast.

I high-five him, “Looks like your aim’s improved on that move.”

“We all know I had help,” he replies.  Next thing I know, we’re all in battle.

I block a sword between two of the prongs on my sai.  I smirk and twist my weapon, knocking the pirate’s out of his hand and seriously bending it out of shape.  He glares at me and sends a punch, which I easily block, flipping down a sai to shield my arm as well, which makes him recoil in pain.  I elbow him forcefully, knocking him over.  I twirl my other sai behind my back and hear a grunt of pain.  I turn, seeing a pirate falling over as he holds his stomach.  I slam my fist up and another pirate falls down behind me.  Several others approach me and I take a stance, narrowing my eyes at them.  When they charge at me, I do a split kick in the air, knocking two away.  I throw my sai at another, and his arm is caught between the prongs.  He falls back and the sai embeds itself in the wood, despite not being sharp.  I flip my other sai down, blocking a sword aimed at my arm, then turn and punch the pirate in the cheek.  A second later I feel something small and round under my feet.  Everyone on the ship looks down to see gumballs rolling all over the place....and everyone slips.  We raise ourselves to glare at Jay, the only one other than Soto still standing up.

“Ugh, Jay…” Cole looks annoyed.

Jay realizes his mistake, and I can practically see his sheepish expression under his mask, “Oops…”

We stand up and return to fighting, when I see the Ultra Dragon fly past the ship.  The small green figure on it stands up, then jumps off, grabbing one of the ropes, and swings down onto the ship, around the mast.  Bright side: he knocked the pirate captain over.  Not bright sides: He knocked Zane over, and...he’s here.  Hm, cons outweigh the pros.

“Lloyd, what are you doing ?” I back up next to him, kicking a pirate near him towards the mast.

“Uh, helping?”

The captain stands up and raises his sword, glaring at my cousin, “Pirate, go!”

Before I can block it, Kai does instead, pushing back with his own sword, “You’re not supposed to be here!” he looks at Lloyd.  The captain comes back, and I block his sword.  Behind me, Kai takes the chance to glance around.  Seeing there’s nowhere really convenient to hide Lloyd, he picks the younger boy up and stuffs him in a barrel.

I kick the pirate captain back and give Kai a look, “Really?  That’s the best you can do?”

“Could you think of anything better?” he retorts, flipping over and hitting a pirate down.  The barrel shakes as Lloyd kicks his legs.  I try to stop him, but the barrel already tipped over.  He then finds his footing and charges at the captain.  I stare, honestly, my mind is kind of blank as to what my reaction should be other than laughing.  It’s a walking barrel attacking a bewildered pirate captain, what am I supposed to do?  Lloyd trips and knocks the lever for the anchor.  I dart forward, trying to reach the lever to pull it back, but a pirate jumps on me.  Barrel Lloyd gets back up and knocks another pirate away, then stumbles back and falls over, rolling towards Kai, who tries to flip over him, but when Lloyd rolls back, Kai ends up landing on top of the barrel anyway.  He struggles to keep his footing and jump off, but Lloyd rolls to the side of the ship, and as I rip the pirate off my back, slamming him into the ground, Kai trips and falls over the side with a scream.

“ Kai !”  I rush to the rail, but metal sings through the air.  I turn, blocking the blade.  I couldn’t grab my teammate.

I grit my teeth, shift the weapons in my hand, and lock onto the blade, yanking it to the side and headbutting the pirate.  I blink away the double vision as he stumbles, then Kai’s voice drifts up to the ship, “I’m okay!  Just hanging from the anchor...which somebody should really pull up by the way!!”  I breathe a sigh of relief, but elbow another pirate out of the way in an effort to get to the lever controlling the anchor.

That’s when I see the captain attempting to slice Lloyd, who continually keeps hopping to the side.  The captain growls in frustration and raises his sword again, “Come here, you blurry little munchkin!”  In my distraction, a foot connects with my torso, sending me down.  I roll away from the incoming sword and look up to see Lloyd start spinning rapidly.

“Ninja, go !” he yells before the barrel explodes to reveal a small, bright green tornado.  My eyes widen as I shakily stand up.  There is absolutely no way I am seeing this, right?  Lloyd just did Spinjitzu …

Lloyd whirls to a stop, his eyes wide, “Whoa, Spinjitzu!  I just did Spinjitzu for the first time!”  The pirate captain clobbers him in the back, annoyed.  Lloyd topples over by the anchor lever, switching it back.  I breathe a sigh of relief when Kai climbs back on a second later, pulling his sword back out.  How that hothead had the presence of mind to sheathe it instead of drop it, I’ll probably never learn.  Each side regroups and faces each other.  Green light hums next to me; I turn my head to see Lloyd creating a ball of energy, growing till it engulfs him.  I don’t need to be any sort of elemental expert to recognize how unstable it is.

“Lloyd!  Don’t!” Kai yells.

“Your powers are too uncontrollable!” I add.  Lloyd sends the ball forward and it expands, then bounds back, away from the pirates. Creeeeaaaak.   Everyone turns as the mast tilts dangerously.  For a moment, time feels frozen as it hovers there.  Then it resumes, the wood tumbling down as screams fill the air, Ninja and pirate alike rushing to escape.

I tackle my cousin out of the way, simultaneously slamming my com on, “ Nya, we need you !”  A cloud of dust blocks my vision.

I grit my teeth, squeezing my eyes shut and resisting the cough reflex with all I have.  Lloyd coughs weakly into my hand, firmly pressed over his mouth and mask.  The dust clears.  I blink it out of my eyes, shifting ever so slightly to peer around the crates we landed behind.  The boys crawl out from under the mask; the pirates stand over them.

“You lose, pajama people,” the captain and his crew point their swords at them, “Now you’re walking the plank.”  Thump.   The Bounty shakes.  Thump.   I breathe a sigh of relief, Nya heard my message.   The captain pauses as he does a head count.  “Where pajama girl and kid?”

I push Lloyd back in his hiding spot and pray to God he understands the severity in my lowered brows for the love of everything good please stay there , Lloyd- then come out, “Here, Captain.”  At the same time, Nya climbs onto the ship in her mech.  Several of the pirates run away from her, screaming like children.

I smirk and take the disoriented pirates all out with Spinjitzu as Nya raises the mast, freeing the boys.  Nya slams the mast into the deck’s center, sending the pirates who’d recovered tumbling right back down.  Then she places it firmly back in its place, hopping out of her suit and sliding down the sail as I use Spinjitzu to pull all the pirates together and tie them up.  We grin at each other, sharing a fist bump as the boys stand up and Lloyd comes out of his hiding spot.

Jay looks around before shaking his head, “Who wins between pirates and Ninja?”  He huffs a laugh, gesturing to us, “The girls do.”

We both chuckle, and I stand next to Cole, taking my mask off and placing a hand on Lloyd’s shoulder.  Jay sighs dreamily, looking at Nya.  I smirk at her knowingly.  Kai rolls his eyes but doesn’t comment.  Cole chuckles at our antics.

A few minutes later, the police show up, Nya apparently alerted them, and they put the pirates in their cars.

One of the policemen comes up to us.  “Good work, team,” he compliments with a smile.

“Don’t forget to include this guy,” Kai ruffles Lloyd’s hair, making my cousin laugh.  I smile, seeing the brotherly way Kai grins at the younger boy.  I haven’t missed how the two have grown nearly inseparable since the volcano incident.  My late nights have let me witness Lloyd climbing into bed beside Kai after a nightmare more often than not, the two sharing whispered conversations in the dark as everyone else dreams around us.  And in the day, they naturally gravitate to stand together.

Part of me misses when I was the first person Lloyd looked to for approval or protection.  The rest of me rests peacefully knowing the hothead has the little gremlin under his wing.  There’s no force quite like Kai Smith when his sibling is threatened.

“Uh, that your ship?” the policeman questions, bringing me out of my musings.

Jay proudly puts his hands on his hips, “It sure is.”

Just then, the Bounty’s thrusters turn on and it flies up, out of reach.  Several Serpentine and my uncle appear at the railing.  “Sorry, you snooze, you lose.”  Ah of course.  Why not?

Kai’s eyes flash, “Lord Garmadon!”

“Dad!” Lloyd reaches up.  I rest a hand on his shoulder

Uncle Garmadon’s gaze fixes on Lloyd, “You’re becoming stronger, son, but you’ll never be strong enough to defeat me.  Give up, before it’s too late.”  The words of a man who’s afraid, I watch him, a twinge of grief in my chest.  Dead and the Devourer still haunts our family.  Lloyd looks down, unsure, then at us.  We all smile encouragingly.  The uncertainty in his eyes settles.  He looks back up at his father, moving closer to stand with us.  “Have it your way,” a flicker of the same grief I feel passes through my uncle’s red eyes, “Another day, Ninja.  Another day!”  The Bounty rises higher into the sky, my uncle covering the waver in his voice with maniacal laughter.

“Ah, great,” Jay stamps his foot on the ground in annoyance, “Lord Garmadon is back, and now he’s got our ship.”

“Well, at least we’ve got this little guy,” Cole fondly pats Lloyd’s back and the blond boy smiles up at him.  I find myself smiling as well.  Gone are the days they viewed Lloyd as a nuisance.  How was that only weeks ago?

Nonchalant whistling wafts through the air as Dareth strolls up behind us.  We exchange amused glances as he stops behind Jay and tries to sneak attack him.  Jay just grabs his wrist and flips him over his shoulder.

The guy slumps on the ground, “Oh, come on, guys.  I Dareth you to forgive me.”  We all laugh, and he grins.

I close my eyes in a smile.  Sure, my uncle may be back with our ship and a Serpentine army at his command, but we have something better.  A united team.  And a prophecy on our side doesn’t hurt either.

Notes:

Happy Easter week, everybody!
Once again, the fic won’t be updated again until summer break starts.
IT IS NOT BEING ABANDONED OR DISCONTINUED.
Tis merely a schedule.
<3

Chapter 3: Double Trouble

Summary:

Evil clones.

(Rose’s POV)

I watch my cousin with the others as Jay tries to train him to use Lightning.  He holds a bulb in his hand and watches it, visibly straining.

Jay smiles encouragingly, “Focus, Lloyd.  Control the power inside you.  When you feel a surge welling up, harness it.”

“I understand,” he nods before looking back at the bulb, “I am in control.”  His brow furrows as he starts struggling.  The bulb starts to light up.

“Come on, Lloyd,” Jay winks, “You can do it.”

He grits his teeth and suddenly the lightbulb explodes, Lloyd yelping.  I shield myself with my arms as pieces of glass fly everywhere.  He grunts in frustration, “Silly lightbulb!  You’re putting too much pressure on me.”  He looks at us and the boys frown slightly.  “Let me have one more try.”

Kai shakes his head, “Ugh, sorry, Lloyd.  That was the last lightbulb.”  Lloyd looks down at the shards of glass surrounding him.

Cole takes a broom and holds it out to Lloyd, “Clean up, Lloyd.  We’ll continue training tomorrow.”

Lloyd yanks it away, surprising him, then walks over to a punching bag and repeatedly hits it with the broom.

Jay sighs, watching him, “What am I doing wrong, Sensei Wu?  I can’t seem to teach him to control his power.”

Lloyd jumps in the air and whacks the punching bag, but the broom bounds off and hits him in the face.  He hops back up and walks up to the bag, glaring at it, “You dare to defy the Green Ninja?!”  I hide a slight smile.

My father stands up and moves to stand beside the Blue Ninja, “Patience, Jay.  Sometimes, the greatest opponent we face is ourselves, and that’s especially true of Lloyd.  Remember where he came from.  He’s the son of Lord Garmadon.  It’s going to take time for him to embrace the light.”  He glances at me, something flickering in his deep, grey eyes, and I find myself wondering, not for the first time, if there’s something he hasn’t told me.  I mean...there’s the whole mystery about my powers.  I never told him who my parents were.  Yet he knew I had my elemental powers, even with what little I understood about them back then.

I walk up to Jay’s other side and gesture to my little cousin, “Besides, he’s just a kid.  It’s going to be hard for him to adjust to all this.  Just a couple months ago he never would have dreamed he’d be training to be the Green Ninja.”

Jay nods, “Good point.”

Nya walks in, wearing her sequined kimono, “Hey, guys.”

“Hey, Nya!” we chime, smiling at her.

Her cheeks turn slightly pink as she walks over to Jay, “Hey, Jay.  Uh, wanna come by the auto body shop later?”

“Uh, the auto body shop?”

“Yeah.  I got a part-time job.  Thought I could fix up the Ultra Sonic Raider in my off time.  Maybe if you come over, I can show you what I’ve been working on,” she draws a tiny circle in the floor with her foot.  I grin, watching my two friends.

“Uh, sure, heh,” he looks at a piece of paper in her hand, “Uh, what you got there?”

“Oh, um, this letter came for Lloyd,” she hands it to my father, who looks at the sender.  I move behind him, looking over his shoulder.

“Hmm.  It’s from Lloyd’s old school.”  I blink in surprise, Really?

Cole and the others walk up as well, “The Darkley School for Bad Boys?”

“ Formerly Bad Boys,” Father corrects him, “Since the last time we were there, they’ve changed to the Darkley School for Great Children.”

“Heh, wait.  They’ve turned good?” Kai looks at him questioningly.

My father takes the letter out and unfolds it, “Hmm, it says here there’s going to be a ceremony.”

“I love ceremonies!” Cole elbows Kai with a grin, “That means there’s going to be cake.”

I grin at him teasingly, “You and your cake.”

“Whaat?” he shrugs, smiling, “It’s good!”

“Lloyd’s change inspired them.  Now they’ve invited Lloyd to give him an honorary degree in excellence.”

I glance back at my cousin as he breaks the broom’s handle over his knee, throws the two pieces back, and jumps, head butting the punching bag before falling on his face.  He hops back up immediately and begins pounding the bag until I wince in sympathy for it.

The others look at him as well and Kai’s grin stretches awkwardly, “Are we sure we’re talking about the same Lloyd?”

---

(Garmadon’s POV)

I stand above the Serpentine on the Black Bounty, waiting for them to quiet down a bit, “Squeeze in tight.  Can everyone hear me?”  Their chatter stops as they look up, “Okay, so let’s brainstorm on how to use my Mega Weapon to destroy the ninja.  Remember, the Weapon can only create, never destroy.  And I can only use it once a day, as it drains all of my strength.  So, no such thing as a bad idea.  Anyone?”

A Constrictai soldier waves his hand, Chokun, if I remember correctly, the others step away from him, “What if you made more piratessss?”

I point at him, frowning, “Over the side!”

One of the Fangpyre, Fangdam, walks up behind him and grabs him, pulling him to the side of the ship, “No, no.  I-I wassss kidding.  Wait!”  He’s tossed over the ship, “Aaaah!”

“Anyone else?  Don’t be shy.  No bad ideas,” I fake a smile.

“Oh, what if you recreated the Devourer?” Lasha waves his hand in the air.

“Over the side!”

“DwaAAH!” he’s tossed into the sea.

“Instead of things that have already failed to destroy the Ninja, how about something new?” I look at the Serpentine, noticing Chokun had climbed back on board.

“Can you create a giant ham sandwich?” he asks me eagerly.

I tilt my head, trying to figure out how that would help, “A...poisoned giant ham sandwich?”

“Oh, I would hope not.  I’m sssso hungry,” he rubs his tummy.  I’m surrounded by idiots.   I jab my thumb at the sea and one of the other Serpentine kicks him off.  “AAh!”

“Aargh!  This is impossible!” I pace back and forth, frustration boiling up inside my chest, “Those pesky Ninja always come out on top.  How can I defeat Ninja who so rudely refuse to be defeated?”  I glare at the Mega Weapon, “Weapon, answer me!”  I notice my reflection in the gold as a dark aura briefly takes over the weapon in my hands as an idea sparks in my mind, “Wait...that’s it.”

“Hm?  The giant ham sandwich?” Mezmo pops up behind me.  I turn around to look at the Hypnobrai with an unamused expression as a few Serpentine perk up and pull out plates and utensils.

I kick him off the ship and chuckle, “Better.  No more brainstorming!  Gather me any Ninja belongings left on their ship!”

Five Serpentine run inside below deck and come out a moment later with five differently colored gis.  One for each of the Ninja.

I walk down the stairs and stand in front of the gis on the ground, “Ninja, today I wish for you to finally meet your match!”  I hold the Mega Weapon in front of me and it starts emitting sparks of the elements that make it up as I point it at the gis firmly, the Serpentine gasping and backing away as I narrow my eyes in concentration, feeling my energy growing less even as I use the Weapon.  A blue bubble envelops the gis and raises them into the air as they spin slowly.  Then there’s a blinding gold and white flash and five ninja nearly identical to the originals flip onto the deck.  The only differences being their paler skin and red eyes.  Though come to think of it, my adoptive neice’s skin was already sort of pale.

I fall to the ground, shaking slightly, then look up at them, “I have made you...to be equal to the Ninja...and loyal only to me.”

“Yes, Lord Garmadon,” they bow simultaneously.

“Then I command you to find and destroy the Ninja!” I order them.  They straighten and begin to go away when I stop the clone of Rose.  She looks at me, her bright red eyes starkly different from the real Rose’s dark purple.

“You,” I pant, still winded from the spell, “won’t kill Rose.  Bring her to me instead.”

“Yes, Lord Garmadon,” she bows briefly before taking after the others.

---

(Rose’s POV)

Jay whoops as we soar over the clouds and mountains towards Darkley’s Boarding School.  Lloyd is sitting in Ultra’s saddle, the boys all sitting behind them with their hands gripping their shoulders tightly.  I’m riding on Cloud next to them, laughing as she does a barrel roll, excited to be doing this again.

“Now that we can ride the Dragons, we should get to Darkley’s in no time!” Jay yells happily.

“If Lloyd can get us there in one piece,” Kai remarks.

Cole leans forward slightly, looking at Lloyd, “Just be gentle.  Any sudden moves can cause him to-”

“ANY SUDDEN WHAT?!” Lloyd looks back, leaning towards Cole as he yanks the reins.  I grimace right before Ultra dives straight down, the guys screaming.

I quickly have Cloud follow, but I can’t really do anything to help in this situation if I can’t get close enough to get on.

“THE REINS!  LET GO OF THE REINS!!” my boyfriend screams at Lloyd over the wind and sounds of the others’ yells.  Lloyd abruptly drops them and Ultra pulls up, circling before landing as the boys let out sighs of relief.  Cloud and I smoothly swoop down and land much more gracefully.

Lloyd hops off as the boys look at me.  I take off my hood and I must have been smirking cause Jay says, “Yeah yeah, don’t rub it in.”

They hop off and take off their hoods as I slip my legs over one side of Cloud. “Heh heh.  At least I’m getting better,” Lloyd grins.

“All the same, I’ll take the reins going home.  Just to be safe,” Cole sighs.  I slide down and find that Cole had caught me, smiling slightly.  I roll my eyes but smile as we all start walking toward the school’s entrance, his arm slung across my shoulders.

Lloyd looks up at the sign as we come in until a young voice says his name, “Lloyd?”

We look down to see a boy Lloyd’s age standing by the school’s entrance, next to some flower bushes.  Lloyd pauses, “Uh, Brad?”

Brad runs toward him and hugs him, “You came!  So good to see you.”

I notice Lloyd doesn’t return it as Brad pulls back, “It is?  You put fire ants in my bed.”  I grimace.  That must have hurt so much…

“Please forgive me.  I wasn’t myself and have learned the error of my ways,” the boy looks at us and brightens, “And you must be the Ninja!”

Lloyd looks at us, “Uh, guys, meet Brad Tudabone.”

“Such a huge fan!” Brad grins widely, but as he comes closer and shakes our hands, beginning with Cole, and going down to Jay, I notice something about his smile and effort seems a little...fake.  “Go good!  Ha ha.  Uh, please, will you not follow me to see the principal?”  He turns and we follow him.

Cloud rumbles behind us and I look back and smile, “Don’t worry, girl.  We’ll be back in a while.”  She settles her wings and I turn back to Cole with a smile as we go inside, but I can feel it dim slightly as we start following Brad through the halls.

Cole glances in a classroom and I notice they’re all empty.  No students or teachers in sight.  A chill runs down my spine and I shiver a little.  “Uh, shouldn’t you all be in class?” my boyfriend questions, rubbing my shoulder slightly.  He must have noticed my shiver.

“Actually, today is a new Darkley School tradition: Ninja Day,” he gestures to the empty rooms, “We stay out of sight to honor the way of the ninja for showing us the light.”

“Huh, this is a good school.  I’m impressed,” Cole remarks.  I just glance at another disturbingly empty room and rub my arm uncomfortably.

Brad opens a door and calls into a room as we file in past him, “Principal Noble?  Lloyd and the Ninja are here for the ceremony.”

“That and the cake.  By the way, do you know what kind it is?”  I roll my eyes and gently elbow Cole, forgetting my nervousness briefly.  He grins at me and I realize he did that on purpose.

“I’ll be with you in a moment!” an adult voice calls from the office.

“I should get back to the flowers,” Brad backs out of the room quickly and closes the door behind him.

Jay rubs the back of his head, “Um, heh, has anyone seen a teacher yet?”  I shake my head, my doubts returning again.

Zane looks troubled, “Indeed, their absence is most strange.”

“I’ll see you now.  Come in, come in,” the voice says.

I hesitate, “Guys, I don’t know about this…”

Cole takes my hand, “Hey, don’t worry.  I’m a little unsure too, we all are, but we’re a team.  If something turns out to be off, we can handle it.”  I nod and we all file in the office.

A lamp clicks on to reveal a boy with glasses standing on the desk, “Welcome back, Lloyd.”

“Uh, Gene?” Lloyd tilts his head as I put a hand on his shoulder, not liking the confident smirk on the other’s face.

“And welcome, Ninja, to the new Darkley’s School for Worse Boys!” a bunch of boys come out from behind the desk and Gene cuts a rope.

I look up right before a heavy sandbag slams into my face and I fall to the ground, my vision going black as the others fall around me.

---

I open my eyes to see the blurry faces of people bent over me, then my vision clears and I sit up, groaning.  The guys are all waking up as well as they weakly sit up.

“Thank goodness you’re here!” a man exclaims.

“What happened?” Kai rubs his head, “Where’s Lloyd?  And who are all of you?”  Only then do I realize my young cousin is absent and frantically scramble to my feet, only to trip and fall backwards.  Cole catches me and places his hands on my shoulders, steadying me.

“We’re the teachers, and we’ve all been taken prisoner.  We tried to teach the boys how to be good, but they overthrew us.  They’re monsters!” an older lady throws her hands in the air.

Jay’s brow furrows, “But I thought Lloyd was getting an honorary degree.”

“Oh, that was just the boys’ trick to lure Lloyd here and convince him to be their leader,” the first man says.

“What?  There’s not gonna be cake?!” Cole yelps.  I snort at his sudden outburst and he pats my head.

I slap him slightly, “Why do you keep doing that?”

---

(Lloyd’s POV)

I shift in annoyance, knowing the students are in here with me.  I’d woken up to find myself tied to a chair and surrounded by them.

Brad turns on a lightbulb, “Welcome to your ceremony, Lloyd.  Or should I call it an evil intervention!”

I strain slightly before looking at him, angry, “Where are my friends?”

“Aw, they’re better off without you,” Gene steps forward and smirks, “With friends like you, who needs enemies?”  I look down, a knot forming in my chest as I recall letting the Serpentine loose from the tombs and pranking them after they took me in.

Brad walks towards me and I look at him, “You may have forgotten, but we’re your true friends.  And we want to help you undo the damage you’ve done to yourself and our school’s reputation.”  He walks around me and leans closer, smirking, “Be honest.  Doesn’t a part of you miss being bad?”  The knot tightens as I blink and look away.  Yeah, a part does, but I can’t say that.  And I can’t be bad anymore, I’d be betraying my friends, my uncle, and Rose.  I can’t do that to them, not after everything they’ve done for me...can I?

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

I stalk down the street with the others, or rather, I stalk, and they swagger, while laughing about some silly joke.  We’d found some sunglasses to hide our red eyes, and no one suspects in passing that we’re not the original Ninja.

“Oh, Ninja.  Thank goodness!” an older lady cries out to us and points at a cat in a tree, “Can you reunite me with my dear Pebbles?”  I cross my arms and glance at the boys.  Bizarro Kai and Zane look at each other and nod.  They walk over to the lady, who looks relieved, but then she gasps, startled, when they pick her up, climb into the tree, and stick her there with the cat, before hopping down and rejoining the rest of us as we start walking again.

A couple minutes later they catch sight of a street light and start messing with it.  I stand behind them, folding my arms and impatiently waiting for their craziness to be done.  Several cars crash as a result before they finally move on.

In passing an ATM, Bizzaro Zane breaks it, making money fly out of the machine, and Bizarro Cole steals a cotton candy from a skeleton.

“Remember, we must find the Ninja,” Bizarro Kai tells us all.  I roll my eyes, I need no reminders.   I gaze straight ahead, focused on one thing and one alone, find the real Rose and bring her to Lord Garmadon.

---

(Wu’s POV)

I see the Ninja and my daughter enter the dojo after I finished cleaning up the glass from Lloyd’s lightbulbs.  Two things that I notice make me wonder what they’ve been up to.  They’re all wearing sunglasses, inside.  Now, my students I could see possibly doing that for fun to seem ‘cool’, but my daughter has never been inclined to that sort of thing.  And my nephew isn’t with them.  I wonder why Rose would leave him behind.

“You’re back.  So, how was it?”

“It was great,” Kai says, the other three boys looking around interestedly.  My daughter stands next to him, arms folded.  “We were having so much fun we forgot where we were.”

I stroke my beard, “Hmm.  I bet Lloyd had a blast.”

“Lloyd?” he glances at Rose briefly before nodding, “Uh, yeah, sure, yeah.  He’s still there.  He wanted us to tell you he thinks you should go.  Like, now.”  From the way my daughter is holding herself I suspect she’s trying not to slap him.  She said nothing at the mention of her cousin.  Odd .

I step closer to them, looking at their sunglasses to see that I can’t catch sight of their eyes behind them, “Hmmm...Interesting.”  I hear slightly distorted laughter as we turn to see the rest of the ‘Ninja’ playing around on the training equipment.  I raise an eyebrow at the two next to me in suspicion, “Mega Monster Amusement Park is no place for an old man.  I’d just slow him down.”

“Mega Monster Amusement Park?” ‘Kai’ questions, as if to himself, before stumbling over his words, “Uh, oh, yeah, right.  Ha ha.  Huh?”  I slip away from him as the other ‘Ninja’ slip off the training equipment and stand by ‘Kai’ and ‘Rose’.

I take a stance, glaring at them, “Lloyd is not at the amusement park.  You are not my students!”

“And you are not our master!” ‘Kai’ growls.

“Ninja, go!” ‘Jay’ uses Spinjitzu and comes towards me but I smack him into a punching bag with the broom I was holding, then run towards Dareth’s trophies and grab two, throwing them at ‘Cole’ and ‘Kai’ knocking them over, then grab two more and throw at ‘Zane’ and ‘Rose’.  ‘Rose’ dodges it easily, sliding under and closer to me before jumping up and aiming a kick at my face.  I catch her foot and throw it down, sending a punch to her shoulder.  She catches my fist in her hand and twists around.  I stumble back, grabbing another trophy and tossing it at ‘Jay’ who had just stood up.

I run to the wall, grabbing a katana and unsheathing it, “Whatever you are, you all could use a lesson!”   ‘Zane’ pulls out his shurikens and throws them at me, pinning me to the wall before I can react, making me drop the katana.

They approach me and ‘Kai’ takes off his sunglasses, revealing glowing red eyes instead of warm brown ones.  I gape at him, Brother, what have you done now ?   “Teach us then.  Where are the Ninja?!”

“He’ll never talk,” ‘Jay’ grumbles.  ‘Rose’ folds her arms and watches me silently.

Then I hear Nya’s voice.  It takes me a second to realize she was calling a phone, Jay’s phone, and had left a message.  “Jay?  Are you back yet?  Can’t wait to see you at the auto body shop.  See you then!”  ‘Kai’ picks up the phone and they look at each other before going out the door.  ‘Kai’ pauses to put the sunglasses back in place, hiding the red eyes, before smirking at me and following the others.  ‘Rose’ hadn’t moved from her spot.  She walks up to me, a slight smirk growing on her face, but not the kind that she uses with the others when being playful.  I feel a chill.

“We’ll find the Ninja, ‘ Father ’.  Don’t worry about that,” she puts her hand on her hips, “I’ll make sure your daughter is just fine .”  Before I can ask what she means, she strides out of the door.

I sigh, My Father in heaven, please, keep watch over the Ninja and Lloyd.  Whatever happens, please don’t let them be hurt.

---

(Rose’s POV)

Zane flips a few switches inside his arm and abruptly stiffens as a robotic voice says, “Battering ram activated.”  I watch dubiously as the guys pick him up and ram his head into the door.

I rub my forehead, “I’m sorry, how do we think that’s going to work again?”

“Ugh!  We’re never gonna open that door!” Kai groans in frustration as they set Zane back on his feet, “I hope they haven’t turned Lloyd.  I don’t think things can get much worse…”

I look down slightly, “I doubt they have...Lloyd’s little, but he’s strong.  He wouldn’t break that easily.”  I ignore the voice in my head saying that I’m trying to convince myself as much as them.

“Look, don’t worry, guys,” Jay turns to us, “I told Nya I’d meet her at the auto body shop and since I’m so punctual, if I’m even one second late, she’s gonna suspect something’s wrong.”

“Hope you’re right on that point, Jay,” I glance around the room, “Cause I feel like we’re not getting out of here any time soon.  We could use her help.”

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

Bizarro Jay drives around the corner in the vehicle he swiped from that girl.  From the smirk on his face I can guess it was easy.  These people really are less smart than I’d expected.  How could they possibly keep beating our master?

We hop in the vehicle and take off, heading straight for Darkley’s Boarding School.  The boys make us speed through a red light and I find myself actually mildly enjoying the resulting sounds of chaos behind us.

Lord Garmadon’s face appears on the screen, “Did you find them?”

“They’re at Darkley’s,” Bizarro Cole informs him.

“Excellent!  Now destroy them!” he orders, “All of them but the purple one.”

“It’ll be our pleasure,” my boyfriend says with a dark chuckle before our master’s face disappears from the dashboard.  I look ahead, narrowing my eyes.  This should be fun.

---

(Rose’s POV)

The boys try to pry the door open using a long ruler, but it breaks.  I’d already tried to kick the door down numerous times, but now my ankle’s sore.  Kai looks frustrated as he speaks aloud what we’re all thinking, “If we don’t get out, they’re going to brainwash Lloyd and undo all the lessons we tried to teach him.”

“Not to mention never taste cake again.”

I throw my hands in the air as I fall back into the wall, “Cole, seriously, what is with you and cake today?”

“I don’t know.”

Zane walks over to the teachers, “Principal Noble, how well do you and the teachers know this building?”  I perk up slightly, wondering if the nindroid had realized something.

“We barely know it at all, actually,” he informs the White Ninja, “We’re new.  The old teachers were highly committed to teaching evil and quit in protest when the school went good.”

“So if the school building was originally built for evil, don’t we have to assume there are hidden passages, which none of you would even know about?” Zane questions.

“Hey, you’re right.  It just wouldn’t be an evil school without hidden passages,” Cole says, glancing around the room.

“Not sure I follow your logic but what do we have to lose?” I stand up, smiling slightly.

“Okay, everyone, look for a hidden switch,” Kai says, “It could be anything, a book, a tile, a fixture.”

I begin testing on the ground to see if I can find a loose board or tile.

“I found it!” Jay says.  I hear a grinding above us and look up to see the ceiling lowering.  The teachers gasp and I sigh.  So we probably should’ve expected booby traps too…

“Wrong switch!  Keep looking!” Kai hurriedly says as everyone begins moving faster with the threat of being crushed.

Cole pushes something, “Aha!”  Spikes appear in the ceiling.  I feel my eye twitch.  “Oh that is just so evil,” Cole complains as the others gasp.

Zane tilts a lamp and I see the wall in the fireplace open to reveal a tunnel.  “This way!” he gestures to it and everyone runs inside.  I look back to see we’d come in just in time as the spikes reach the ground.  I sigh in relief.

Suddenly Jay starts laughing as he gasps, “Stop tickling me!”

“I’m not tickling you,” Cole tells him, confused.

“Zane, can you give us some light?” Kai asks.

Zane’s head lights up to reveal a bunch of tiny Spykors.  One hangs on a web right in front of my face as the boys scream.

I cut the web the Spykor was hanging on and redeposit it on a solid surface before looking at them, “It’s a dark tunnel.  Did you really expect there to not be spiders?”  They laugh nervously and awkwardly.

---

(Lloyd’s POV)

“Ha ha.  Come on, you can untie me.  Really, this is just a huge relief.  I couldn’t stand being good.  Ha.  Thank you for saving me,” I force myself to smile at the others, hoping they’ll believe my fib.

Brad looks suspicious, “How do we know you’re not lying to us just to escape and help the Ninja?”

“Well, if I am truly good, I wouldn’t be able to lie, which I’m not.  But even if I was , wouldn’t lying make me evil?  Thus giving you assurance that you can release me,” I reason, still hoping they’ll fall for it.

They look at each other, puzzled.  Gene looks down, frowning, “Uhhhh....”  He points at me with a glare, “He’s trying to trick us with mind games!”  Well there went that idea…

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

As we approach Darkley’s I activate the grappling hooks, launching us up to the school.  I ignore the fact that we broke the yard’s wall as Zane shoots a cannon at the entrance before we get out and start going towards it.  I hear an angry roar and turn to see a dark colored dragon standing outside the school.  I smile darkly, She should make a nice getaway if all goes to plan .  I turn and follow the boys inside as they break things throughout the school, laughing.

I hear a little boy’s voice around the corner, “Someone’s coming.”  I signal the others and we jump out, taking fighting stances.

A crowd of boys had gathered in the hallway.

Their leader gasps, “The Ninja escaped!  Execute Doomsday formations!  TO GLORY!!” I shake my head as they cheer in agreement, These kids need to be taught a lesson.   “Spitball brigade, step forward.”  Four boys form a line, holding straws to their mouths, “Fire!”  They all obey and we easily dodge the little balls before Bizarro Cole grabs a locker and uses it as a shield for us to briefly duck behind.  When they stop, he pushes it back.

“Smoke bomb brigade, step forward,” the leader orders, and several new students take the first ones’ places, “Fire!”  They all throw little gray smoke bombs at us.  One hits my cheek and explodes into smoke, stinging my eyes as the little boys laugh.

I growl as we all use our Spinjitzu simultaneously to clear the smoke, “Ninja, go!”

The boys frown as the leader motions, “Dodgeball brigade.  Ready, fire!”  They throw all their dodgeballs at us, which we catch, Bizarro Zane doing a flip to catch four at once.

“Our turn,” Bizarro Kai declares.

“RUUN!” the boys’ leader screams as they turn and race down the hall.  The guys throw the balls back at them, hitting the students more often than not.  I grab three and toss them in the air before jumping myself and kicking all three, sending each speeding toward their mark.

One of the boys, the leader, turns around again and screams, “RETREEAAT!” right before one of my balls smacks into him, knocking him down.

Bizarro Kai grabs him, “Where.  Are.  The Ninja?!”  The boy shakes, staring at us with wide, terror-filled eyes as we group around our comrade.  I fold my arms.

---

(Lloyd’s POV)

“Oh, why do I always get tied up?” I grumble after the others leave the room, “Think I’d be pretty good with knots by now…”

I look up to see the light bulb that was the main source of light in the room.  I recall my training earlier today with Jay.  Maybe if I can get it to break, I can use the shards to cut myself out!   I glance back down, “Okay...you can do this, Lloyd.”  I breathe out and focus on the bulb, trying to get my powers to respond as I will a surge of electricity to break it.  The light flickers slightly as I squint my eyes shut, pushing to get the power out and in the lightbulb.  Suddenly there’s a bright bluish flash and I hear glass shattering.  I open my eyes to see the lightbulb’s remains scattered on the ground in front of me.

I feel myself break into a grin, “Ha ha, yes!”  I hop in place on the chair, trying to get it closer, before I lean over to one side and get it and myself to fall onto the shards.  I wince slightly as a few cut through my gis fabric and into my skin, but ignore it to wiggle, getting the ropes to move around until I feel them loosen and I jump up, excited.  “Ha ha!  Finally !  I’m free!” I throw my arms in the air.  The door bursts open and I see Gene and the others glaring at me.

I groan, “Aww, no way!  I escaped fair and square…”  Then I wonder why they’re pushing desks and chairs against the door, barricading it.  I mean...if they did that on the outside it would make it hard for me to get out but…

“Heh,” Gene looks at me with a grin, “Your friends are pure evil .”

“What?” I blink.  That’s not possible, right?  They’ve been trying to teach me to be good ever since I came to the Bounty.  They’re good.  And Rose could never be evil!  She wouldn’t have it in her even if she tried…  They’ve gotta be lying.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

The kid points us to the room the Ninja are in and Bizarro Cole opens the door only for the room to be completely empty, “What is this?  Some kind of joke?”

“Uh, that’s where they were.  Honest!” the boy stammers.

“Time for another noogie,” he raises his fist and the kid squirms.

“No, no!  Anything but that!” he covers his head at the same time that I hear a locker open behind us.  I turn to see the Ninja walk out of it.

“Ah, finally.  A way out,” the original Cole sighs before they all notice us down the hall.

“Guys…” the real Kai blinks rapidly, “why are we staring at ourselves?”

I smirk when I see Rose looking at me and my team with wide eyes.

“Uh, this is kind of too weird for us.  We’re gonna stay in here,” a random guy closes the locker door quickly.

“Ha.  Those who don’t fight, teach,” Jay says awkwardly.  I reach up with the others and remove my sunglasses, not having any reason to pretend we’re not the real Ninja anymore.

“Drop the boy-” Cole pauses, pointing at our Cole, “uh...me!”

My boyfriend complies, literally dropping the boy, who runs away, terrified, “He’s of no use to us anymore.”

“Who are you guys?” Kai asks.

“Your doom,” ours responds with a glare.

Rose returns my level gaze, coldness clear in her deep purple eyes, but a faint curiosity and compassion shimmering behind it.  I feel something snap inside me and narrow my eyes at her, hate welling up for this creature who is kind even in dislike.

“My early assessment tells me this must be Garmadon’s doing.”

“ My early assessment tells me you will be destroyed,” Bizarro Zane punches his fist.

“Ninja, go!” both teams let out the same cry as we race toward each other.  Rose and my fists collide and I glare before attempting to sweep her legs out from under her.  She smoothly dodges it before attempting to counter my attack.  I block and we continue fighting, neither landing many hits.  I smirk, knowing there’s only one difference.  I don’t run out of energy.

---

(Lloyd’s POV)

I watch from down the hall as my friends and cousin fight their doubles.  I look at Gene, “See, I told you my friends wouldn’t turn evil.  The evil Ninja must be my father’s doing.”

He watches the battle with a strange glint in his eyes as he taps his chin, “Fascinating.  It’s like fighting a mirror where the reflection countermoves in perfect sync and no one appears to be able to land a blow.”

“We have to help them,” I say with a frown.

“Just to be clear,” he looks at me, narrowing his eyes, “which ‘them’?”

I back up a couple steps, “Uh, my friends, of course.”  Gene grins in triumph and starts towards me, the others following his lead as I realize my slip up, “Uh, I mean, uh, the evil Ninja.  Mwahahahaha!”

---

Seriously?  Why do I always.  Have.  To.  Get.  Tied.  UP.

I struggle to get them off again, “Ugh.  Ugh.  I am Lloyd Garmadon, evil son of the super evil Lord Garmadon, and I demand you release me!  Mwahahahaha!”  They ignore me and turn to Gene, who’s standing on the desk by the chalkboard.

“Eh,” he turns his attention away from me, “Here’s my theory on how to help the evil Ninja destroy the good Ninja.”  He climbs onto a rolling ladder and begins frantically writing on the chalkboard, raising a cloud of chalk dust.  “Look what happens when positive energy connects with negative energy.  So, if an evil Ninja manages to connect a single blow against his or her opposite, that same spark should be so powerful as to eradicate the good Ninja.”  He finishes writing as the cloud dissipates and turns around, “Trust me.  I’m like, an evil genius.”  I internally start to panic as I realize that my friends and Rose won’t stand a chance if they tell the evil Ninja this, and they clearly aren’t falling for my attempts to make them think I’m evil.  I frown slightly, knowing I’m running out of time and tactics, and then I remember something.  I’d been just like them once, the reason I changed was because the Ninja, Nya, Uncle Wu, and Rose decided to befriend me.  I recall, though I can’t remember ever hearing them before, the words ‘Make your enemy, your friend’.

I look at them, “Ugh, alright, you win.”  They turn to look at me, “I’m good.  But guess what?  So is Brad.”

Brad gulps, “That’s a lie!”

“Is it?  Then explain why on the day we first met, you were nice to me.  When I arrived here on my first day, I didn’t know how things worked around here and everyone made fun of me.  Brad even put fire ants in my bed.”  The others smirk, recalling it.

“Heh heh heh.  Yeah, I remember that,” Gene grins, “That was evil .”

“ But when everyone was gone,” I continue, “he said he was just trying to teach me how things go.  And after that, he took me under his wing, and he taught me the art of revenge.”

Gene looks at Brad weirdly, “Why would you do that?”

“I wanted to get in good with his father,” he shrugs.

I shake my head, standing up as I laugh slightly, “No.  It’s because deep down, he’s not all evil.  And Brad’s not the only one.  Face it,” I look at all the students who used to be my classmates, “all of you have a secret good side that stays quiet out of fear, because it thinks it’s alone.  But it’s not.  And I’m living proof.  So, who’s with me?”

Brad sighs, “It’s true.  And I love planting flowers.”

“You what ?!” Gene shrieks.

“Also, the Ninja saved my life,” he smiles, walking around me and untying the rope, “A kindness I plan to return.”  The rest of the boys gather around us, wearing smiles as I feel a joyful surge through my body.  I actually did it...I actually did it!

Gene groans, “Aw, my dad is gonna be so mad.”

I grin, an idea forming in my mind, “Yeah, join the club.”  He walks over next to the rest of us and I look around at them, “Now then, I have a plan.  Who here can sew?” I hold up a needle.

The boys gasp and Brad looks horrified at the idea, “ Sew ?”

After I explain, they seem much more willing and we all take out bolts of cloth in five different colors.  Red, black, purple, blue, and white.  We cut the cloth and sew the pieces together to make some simple ninja gis, each of the boys donning one and putting on the masks.

I pull my own on and jump into a kick, “Ninja, go!”

---

(Rose’s POV)

I duck under a punch from my double and turn to see her red eyes glaring at me, a loathing shining behind them.  It honestly scares me to see it.  It’s like seeing a mirror of myself, but in the mirror, it’s showing what I could become.  She growls and takes a stance as I back away briefly.  Movement draws my eyes down to her fists, only for me to see wisps of darkness swirling around them.  My heart skips a beat as I look back at her eyes, a jolt of fear stabbing through me.  H-how does she have my power?

She lunges at me and I lean back to avoid the blow.

“Ugh, we’re so evenly balanced- ugh -this fight could go on-” Jay blocks a hit from his double, “-forever.”  I grimace at the thought, but realize that it actually could.

“We can’t give up,” Kai pants, “Keep fighting!”

A second later I hear a bunch of younger voices call out, “Ninja, go!” and turn my head to see a crowd of students dressed in ninja gis led by Lloyd charge towards the fight.

“Hey, it really is Ninja Day!” Cole jokes as they mingle among us, swarming the our doubles.

“Oh, I see what they’re doing!  They’re trying to confuse them!” Kai says.

“Yeah, but it’s confusing me too,” Jay grunts.

“Keep your focus,” Zane uses Spinjitzu to throw his counterpart into a locker and it disintegrates.

“It works just like Gene says.  If you can land a punch, they’ll be defeated!” Lloyd yells as I find myself back to back with him as he dodges a blow from Jay’s double.

“Nice work, Lloyd,” I tell him before rolling away to avoid a kick from my own double.  As I stand up I feel something wrap around me and struggle.  I start to ask what’s happening before another thing wraps around my mouth.  I look down to see tentacles of pure darkness.  My counterpart stands in front of me and uses her power to shadow us as she grabs my arm and drags me away, chuckling darkly.  She forces me outside where I see Cloud.

She rears on her hind legs, roaring in fury when my double pushes me to the ground.  A dark knife materializes in her hand as she holds it close to me.  “Obey me, and she doesn’t get hurt,” she threatens, fixing the dragon with a glare.  Cloud calms down after a second but watches me with fear in her dark eyes.  My double climbs onto her and tosses me on behind her before making Cloud take off and angling her in the direction of what I’m guessing is the Bounty.

---

(Cole’s POV)

I manage to land a punch to my copy with some help from some of the kids.  “Aargh!” I glare at the mist floating to the ground, “Good riddance!”

Jay screams something in fury and the next thing I know his counterpart is disappearing in smoke.  I give him a look and he crosses his arms, his eyes stormy, “He kissed Nya.”  Ah...Okay so...that would make a lot more sense...I think…

Kai punches his blinded double into a wall and puts his hands on his hips, “Ain’t so bad.”  The students all cheer as Lloyd takes off his hood, a big smile on his face.

“It worked, Lloyd!” one of the red ninjas takes off his hood to reveal Brad as he puts a hand on his friend’s shoulder, “You did it!”

“No, we did it,” Lloyd’s grin widens as his eyes sparkle.

They cheer again and I see the teachers come out of the secret passageway a short ways down the hall and approach us all as the students turn to them.

“Normally, we’d punish you for holding us captive, but I guess since we all learned a valuable lesson, I suppose it’s cause for a celebration,” the principal is saying, but by now I’ve missed a certain purple ninja.  The only ones I can see are all students, and I feel a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I’m brought out of my thoughts by the sound of laughing.  I look around and finally remember what’s going on.  I put a hand on Lloyd’s shoulder, “Lloyd, where’s Rose?”

Lloyd looks at me, confused, “I thought she was behind you or something again.”  I bite my lip and look at the others as it sinks in.  Rose is missing...and so is her double.   I push past the kids and run through the halls until I burst outside.  Ultra is held in place by dark tentacles wrapping around his legs, roaring and straining, desperately trying to get away.  I take out my scythe and cut through them.  Ultra calms down slightly, but I notice his restless behavior and the missing Darkness Dragon.  There’s only two things this can mean...either Rose’s doppelganger kidnapped her and took Cloud to escape...or she- I swallow, No, she didn’t beat Rose...she didn’t.  She would’ve stayed around to finish her mission.

I cover my eyes with my hands and feel myself sink to my knees as Ultra rumbles, What now…?   I hear the others coming out of the school behind me.

“Cole?” I feel Jay’s hand on my shoulder and manage to raise my head to look at him.  The others had removed their masks.  “We’ll get her back.”

“Garmadon’s not gonna get away with this,” Kai punches his fist in determination, and I stand up, nodding at them.  God, please keep Rose safe.  Take care of her.

---

(Rose’s POV)

When my copy lands Cloud on the Bounty she chains her to the ship’s deck with the same tentacles I’m tied with.  She jumps off, dropping me on the ground.

I look up to see my uncle with an evil, triumphant light in his red eyes, “Lock her in the brig.”  Two Serpentine grab me and make me walk into the Bounty, down to the lowest part of the Bounty and tie me up tightly, the dark tentacles then disappearing.  I strain against the ropes until they’ve left and locked the door behind them, plunging me into darkness except for a single lantern swinging from the ceiling.  I lean my head back against the wall as a tear squeezes out from under my eyelids as fear grips at my heart.  I hadn’t expected this.  I thought that our doubles were sent to destroy us, and when Zane destroyed his, I’d grown hope we could win, so when I realized that there was a different plan, I could feel the fear creeping up on me.  Then I saw my double using my powers, and aspects of it, what’s more, that I’d never known or would’ve guessed existed.  Then I saw the evil in my uncle’s eyes, sending a chill through me.  I’m far away from my family, friends, team, and Cole, the only other person I’ve ever cared for gone as of years ago, with no idea if they’re safe, or what Garmadon’s plans for them are, or if they even know I’m missing.  And finally, in here, for the first time, the darkness around me adds to my growing terror, pressing in and closing around me.  By now the tears are streaming freely, but quietly.  I open my eyes slightly and look at the ceiling, dimly aware of the deafening silence around me.  I swallow, blinking away another tear and feeling it roll down my cheek before being absorbed by my now damp mask, a strand of hair falling in my eye.

But you’re not alone.  I blink again, my vision sharpening slightly as the moisture is pushed away, and that’s when I realize I can see as well in the dark as I could when I had powers.  You’re not alone.   I feel a whisper in my heart and lift my head slightly, the fear ebbing slightly as I realize how weary I am.  I’m not alone , I realize, God is always with me.  He always will be.  I’ll never be alone.

I take a shaky breath as a simple song from my childhood plays in my mind.

Do not fear, for I am with you.  Do not be dismayed, for I am here, I am your God, I am here.  I will strengthen you, I will help you.  Uphold you with My steady hand.  For I am here, I am your God, I am here.

So take courage for I am with you.  I will never let you go.  For I am here, I am your God, I am here.  I’ll defend you and protect you, from those who wish to cause you harm.  For I am here, I am your God, I am here.

So rejoice in the Lord God.  Rejoice, I am your God.  Rejoice, I am with you, I am here.  Do not fear for I am with you.  Do not be dismayed, for I am here, I am your God, I am here.  I will strengthen you, I will help you.  Uphold you with my steady hand.  For I am here, I am your God, I am here.

I am your God, I am here.  I am your God, I am here.

“You are here,” I whisper to the darkness, my heart lightening as my fear slowly but surely is chased away by the comforting presence in and around me.  I smile waveringly, “Thank you, God.”

---

I look up when the door opens.  My double walks in and closes it behind her before walking up to me, removing her mask to let her shadowy hair tumble free.  A brief stab of terror shoots through my heart when I see the hate in her eyes.  I push it away and focus on my anchor in the Lord.  He won’t let me become her.  This is just because of Garmadon.   I return her gaze levely until she speaks, “Well, because of your friends my team has all been killed.  Happy?  Your team isn’t harmed.”

“That doesn’t mean they’re safe from you or my uncle,” I remind her.

She frowns, “I suppose not.  But I just thought you would like to know that.”

I tilt my head, “Really?  You’re not down here for something else?”

She grumbles under her breath, “I can’t do anything to you without Lord Garmadon’s permission and the Serpentine are poor conversationalists.  I would much rather be somewhere else, trust me.”

“Oh,” I glance down.

She folds her arms, “I’d also like to know if you would be willing to tell me anything about our enemy.”

I give her a look, “Your enemy or mine?”

She grits her teeth, “Mine and Lord Garmadon’s.  The Ninja and your adoptive father.”

“I think not,” I look away.  Looking into her red eyes is unsettling, even with the reassurances I whisper to myself from the Bible.  It is literally looking at an evil version of myself, and what I see scares me.

“You destroyed my family,” she tells me after a second, “I’m going to destroy yours.  That’s a promise.”  She turns and leaves the brig.

I find myself breathing a shaky sigh of relief when she’s gone.  God, please please please don’t let her get to the others...just my uncle is bad enough.  Now he has an army of Serpentine and her...Please keep them safe.   I sigh again as I wonder how long I’m going to be here.  It could be any number of days.  I close my eyes, seeking faith in God and quietly start singing simple songs and hymns into the dark.  The encouraging reminders of his presence with each new verse and song help me to forget my fear of becoming something else.

---

(Lloyd’s POV)

I turn over on my sleeping mat for the hundredth time as I wonder for the millionth time where Rose is.  Is she okay?  Why did my dad want her?  What’s going on?  What about Cloud?  Ugh… I sit up and put my head in between my knees.  Why does it have to be so hard to get to sleep...I just want to forget this.

“Lloyd?”  I wince and look across the room to see Cole looking at me.

“S-sorry...did I wake you up?” I bite my lip.

He shakes his head, “No, Lloyd.  Is everything alright?”

“I’m just worried about my cousin…” I look down and fiddle with my blanket.

“Me too,” he sighs, “But I’m trying to trust God to keep her safe…”

I nod, not meeting his eyes, “It’s just...it’s just sometimes it’s hard for me to believe in him…”

Cole moves around and then I feel his arm around my shoulders, “I have trouble with that sometimes too.  I usually pray for help when that happens.”

I look up at him and nod, “I think I’ll do that…”

He smiles slightly, “You want me to stay up with you until you can get to sleep?”

“Sure,” I return it and sigh as I internally take Cole’s advice and pray for help and safety for my cousin.

Notes:

Bizarro Rose has entered the ring!

I do not own the song in this chapter, it's I Am Here by Scripture Lullabies

Note about chapter updates:
From here on out the updates are not going to be weekly like the other school breaks. I have a lot of projects I'm working on outside of this fanfic as well as a lot of major life changes happening, so the updates are going to not be as often.
I've decided that updating once or twice per month is something I can handle. I ask for your patience with me, and it really means a lot whenever I see a new kudos alert or comment. I'm glad that you've all been enjoying this story. <3

(Also, HALLELUJAH I HAVE FIGURED OUT LINE BREAKS :D)

Chapter 4: Ninjaball Run

Summary:

So Rose was kidnapped last we left off.
Yes, Bizarro Rose was not killed.
I'm actually very excited to finally have her in here.

That out of the way
Summary!
The Ninja are not doing so great mentally/emotionally. Neither is Rose.
Garmadon likes frisbee-golf, for some reason.
We enter a race to earn some fast cash because if we don't the dojo is going down.

(Rose’s POV)

It feels like forever since I was locked down here, but there’s literally no way for me to tell the time.  It doesn’t help that whenever my double, uncle, or one of the Serpentine come down for whatever reason that they never tell me what day it is or how long I’ve been here.

I just hope that everyone is okay.  I’m not sure if my uncle is more the type to gloat over a victory or more the type to keep me in suspense, but considering I’ve had no actual news, not even from my double, who comes down here most often, though from what I can tell she’d be perfectly willing to not come down if the Serpentine were actually ‘competent creatures’.

My uncle had come down only once, but that apparently was just to make sure the Serpentine had actually made it so I couldn’t escape instead of simply plopping me in here.  The only times the Serpentine come in are to give me a little bit of food and some water, but the amount of times they do that are so few that I could be getting food only once a day or even once every two days, so I didn’t bother trying to count.  They took my mask off so I could actually eat, which is something I’m grateful for, it being really humid down here.

My damp, tangled hair sticks to my forehead and cheeks as I open my eyes.  I’m still disturbed that while the light in here is only a little lighter than when my eyes are shut, I can see perfectly fine, as if the full moon was shining in here, bathing everything in silver.  The only times I could see so well in the dark was when I had the Sai of Night, otherwise it was as hard for me to see as every other human.

I inhale deeply as I shift, propping my back more firmly against the wall as I feel the Bounty sway, waves lapping against the hull.  The door creaks open and I turn my head.  My uncle comes in.  If my sight wasn’t acting strange, I probably would have been frightened at seeing his black, four-armed form entering the dark brig, red eyes glowing as he clutches the Mega Weapon in one of his hands, but as it is, I’m calm, not feeling as if I’m seeing him enter a dark room like something in a nightmare, instead of simply my uncle stepping into a bright room.

He frowns slightly as he glances over my face, but it smooths over into his toothy, malicious grin.

“Uncle,” I nod at him, grimacing slightly at my hoarse voice.

He appears unsure how to take my greeting, but shakes it off as he places his unoccupied arms behind his back, his tone almost mocking when he asks, “How have you been?”

“Not the best,” I reply truthfully.  I’ve been stuck pretty much in the same position for who knows how long, so my legs have completely fallen asleep, my neck and back are extremely sore, I can’t push my hair out of my face, so that’s kind of uncomfortable, and then there are the ropes...none of them are actually touching my skin, but I can feel them rubbing against it through my sleeves and tabi.  Then there’s the overall dampness and warmth in here and the fact that the last time I ate and drank (a little bit of food, as in like, one slice of bread and half a cup of water) must’ve been...actually, at this point I have no idea.  I just know that my throat is the driest it’s been since before I met Wu and...well...and Morro, and my stomach is empty and hurting the most since the same amount of time, though it’s definitely not as much, considering back then I’d probably gone a week straight with barely more than a tablespoon of water, and maybe a few berries for food.  I should probably stop thinking about that.

“Hm.  Missing anyone?”

I press my chapped lips together, “Leave my friends alone.”

“I think not,” he chuckles, “I’m going to shut down that dojo they’ve been training Lloyd at and replace it with a frisbee-golf course.  Without it, the Ninja will have nowhere to train him.”

I can’t keep back a slight snicker, “Really?  A frisbee-golf course ?”

He doesn’t look appreciative, “Whatever.  But without a place to train, Lloyd will never reach his full potential, and the Final Battle will never happen.”

“You cannot fight destiny, Uncle,” I tell him, narrowing my eyes, “We will always find a way to prepare him for the Final Battle, no matter what you do.”

My uncle gives me a long, burning glare, “And if there is no one left to prepare him, what then?”  When I don’t respond, a lump forming in my throat at the thought, he seems pleased, “You’re alone, Rose.  I can do whatever I like to your friends and you can’t help them.  I will find a way to prevent the Final Battle, and if I have to destroy all the Ninja and my brother to do it, I will do so.”  He turns on his heels and storms out.

I sag against the wall weakly, closing my eyes as a tear manages to squeeze out from under my eye.  He can’t kill them.  The prophecy states that Lloyd will defeat him.  God won’t let them die.  I have to trust him.   Even with that constant reminder, I curl my legs closer slightly, ignoring the resulting sensation of pins and needles poking at my skin as a stronger pain shoots through my chest, worry for the safety of the people I love.

---

(Wu’s POV)

It has been almost a month since the Ninja returned from Darkley’s without my daughter, and we haven’t been able to figure out where Garmadon could possibly be, which means we have not been able to get Rose back, I notice her absence is taking a toll on the team.  I know they have grown aware of my silence lately, and I know I’ve drawn into myself a bit more than is normal, but I cannot stop worrying about my daughter.  She never took up a large role in Lloyd’s training, but he appears to be missing her comforting presence and encouraging words, even with the boys trying to be as supportive as they can.  Nya has been a little too cheerful these past few days as she tries to keep everyone’s spirits up.  Kai, Zane, and Jay have been restless, and seem ready to beg for a Serpentine invasion of sorts to keep themselves busy.  And then there’s Cole.  He is the only one acting semi-normal, continuing to hold the place of a supportive and strong leader, but when he thinks no one is watching, he looks empty.

Despite her seeming uninvolvement with the team due to her remaining in the background, her quiet strength seems to have helped to fuel all of them previously, even myself, and she often played the voice of reason when the team lost focus.  Small things, like little chores left undone that everyone suddenly realized she used to do, the uncanny silence that fills the room that had always been penetrated by her humming a soft tune, her calming presence, they’ve all realized how important she was to them.  When someone was injured, they realized she was not there to help like she would usually step forward to do.

I recall myself from my wandering thoughts as I feel Cole shift under me.  Lloyd is doing a one handed handstand, Zane standing on his feet, Kai and Jay sitting on both his arms, holding onto Cole, and Cole standing on Zane’s head as I sit on his shoulders.

“Focus,” I say aloud, as much for Lloyd’s benefit as my own as I pour some tea, “In order to bear the fate of Ninjago on your shoulders, you must first learn to bear the weight of all of us.”  Our human tower sways slightly and I sip some tea before repeating, “Focus.”

“Sensei, I’m starting to think this was a bad idea,” Jay says nervously.

“Yeah, Sensei, he’s just a kid,” Cole glances up at me before hurriedly adjusting his weight to avoid tipping everyone over.

“In order for him to succeed, we must all trust one another,” I inform them simply.  I ignore the sounds of machinery outside.  That was a plus to training on the Destiny’s Bounty.  There were no distractions except for the ones my students might think up.

The next thing I know, something crashed through the window behind us and I’m lying facedown on the ground, my students scattered around me.

I push myself up, shaking my head as they groan and stand up.  Cole blinks, “What was that ?”

I turn with my students to see a builder and foreman walk up to the gaping hole in the wall and then pause, staring at us in shock.

“WHOA WHOA WHOA!” Dareth bursts in the room and runs up to them, “This wasn’t supposed to happen until tomorrow !!”  What?

The foreman rubs his head, “Tomorrow?”  He looks at the builder, “Let me see that order.”  The builder hands him the order slip and he reads it over, then forces an awkward laugh, “Oh, yeah.  My bad.  Sorry about that.  We’ll be back in the morning.”  They both leave and soon the sound of machinery starts up as they begin to drive the wrecking ball and other things away.

Dareth moans, then picks up one of his trophies, which is now bent.

Cole steps forward as Dareth turns around, “Uh, Dareth, what is this all about?”

“Well, I fell behind on some of my payments and some developer named Darnagom Enterprises,” he gestures to a billboard across the street, “is buying the entire block to put in some stupid frisbee-golf course.  They say if I don’t come up with fifty thousand by tomorrow, the dojo is gone.”

“But we already lost the Bounty,” Jay protests, “We can’t lose the dojo now!”

“My trophies.  Oh, my fake trophies!” Dareth cradles his trophy and sobs hysterically.

Zane frowns at the billboard in concentration, “Wait a minute, ‘Darnagom’?  When you rearrange the letters, it spells-”

“O grandma?” Jay’s brow furrows.

“No!” Kai seems exasperated, ”Garmadon!”  Lloyd looks at the floor.

“Right…” the Master of Lightning rubs the back of his head, “That would make more sense.”

“Um...my dad is behind this?” my nephew raises his head to Kai, who just looks at him sadly in return.

Cole turns to me in concern, “If he destroys the dojo, where will we train Lloyd?”

Before I can answer, Dareth points at my teapot, “Any chance you got fifty thousand in that teapot of yours?”

I shake my head, “Worry not, Dareth.  You’re not in this alone.  We’re all with you.”

Nya appears in the doorway, “Did someone say fifty thousand-”

Jay gasps, “You didn’t happen to win the lottery?!”

“No,” she walks over, “but I heard about Ninjaball Run.”

We all look at her in confusion, “Ninjaball Run?”

“It’s the biggest road race in Ninjago, with a prize of one hundred thousand big ones, and it’s tomorrow!” she smiles brightly.

“I thank you, little lady fighter,” Dareth wipes his eye, “but you’re talking about the most dangerous race known to man.  Only the most serious of racers even stand a chance.”

“But didn’t you just do a few upgrades on our Ultra Sonic Raider?” Kai asks his sister, who nods, “Maybe we might stand a chance.”

“And I can enter with my Dragon!” Lloyd pipes up, suddenly appearing a lot more cheerful at the prospect of being able to help, and looks at Kai as he adds, “You did say I needed the practice.”

“So it is agreed.  You will all enter this ‘Ninjaball Run’ to save the dojo,” I confirm.

Dareth sniffs and wipes away a tear.  Nya briefly puts a hand on his shoulder, “Are you still crying?”

“Yes,” he wipes another away as he puts his own hand on her shoulder, “But these are happy tears.”

Cole brightens, “Wait a second.  If Garmadon realizes we’re trying to save the dojo, wouldn’t he try to stop us?”

“Um...yeah, but...why is that a good thing?” Jay blinks at him.

“Because it means we’d be able to figure out where Rose is,” he elaborates, “It’s not likely, I know, but it’s the best lead we’ve had since, well…”  He gestures helplessly.

Lloyd looks around at us and then grins, “Well, maybe for once I might be looking forward to seeing my dad!”

---

(Cole’s POV)

The next morning, we get to the Ninjaball Run.  I breathe out as we wait for Nya to finish something up on the Raider before she goes to take her place in the bleachers, listening to the announcers talking.

“Welcome, everyone, to the 14th annual Ninjaball Run!”

“The Grand Prix where it doesn’t matter how you get there, as long as you get there first.”  I glance up to see Sensei Wu, Dareth, and a couple of his students sitting down in the bleachers.

“Well, let’s take a look at the racers.”

“I see the starters’ line.  We have a few familiar faces.”

I hear powerful wings flapping and look up as Ultra and Lloyd land at the line next to the Postman, who falls off his bike as a result and glares up at the Dragon, “Watch it, you big oaf!”

I shake my head and look up at Lloyd, noticing how he’s fidgeting with the reins, shoulders hunched, “You look nervous, Lloyd.  You okay?”

“N-n- nervous ?” he laughs, putting on his I-don’t-get-scared voice as he laughs, “Maybe for you guys.”  I have to smile a little as I look back at the guys and Nya when she hops off the Raider.

“One final thing: I installed a pretty cool upgrade so if you’re ever in a really tight spot, pull that lever because what it does-”  The school bus next to us revs their engine, drowning out Nya’s voice.

Kai puts a hand to his ear as he tries to hear her, “WHAT?”

“Pull that lever, because if you pull that lever-”

She’s drowned out again as the announcer’s voice comes on the loudspeaker, “Alright, the race is about to start.  And officials are saying pit crews must take their places.”

“-only under those circumstances and no other .”  I share confused looks with the boys before we shake our heads.  None of us were able to actually hear her.

“We’re about to begin!”

“That’s my cue.  Gotta go!” she salutes at us as she runs to the bleachers, “Good luck!”

“Huh?  Wait, Nya, we couldn’t hear you!” Kai protests, but she doesn’t hear him as two more racers pull up.  Captain Soto and his pirate crew in a van, which makes me wonder how they got out of prison, and the Royal Blacksmiths in a modified pick-up truck with a driver, all four singing in harmony.

I glance at the others, “Look, it’s my dad.  They entered too?”  Then a familiar jalopy pulls up next to them.

Jay puts a hand on his forehead as he groans, “Oh, no…”

“JAY!  JAY!” Edna waves happily before saying something to Ed.

Jay looks at us in exasperation, “Oh, is there anyone we don’t have to compete against?!”

That’s when a portal from the Underworld appears and two familiar Skulkin generals pop out in one of their vehicles, landing next to Soto’s van.  We all gape at them.  Great job, Jay, you jinxed it.

“Wait a minute, is appears some skeletons have crashed the party.  Is this against the rules?”

“Rules?” the first announcer laughs, “There’s only one rule in Ninjaball Run, and that is cross the finish line first!  Let’s take a look at the course.  The first gruelling leg starts on the streets of Ninjago City and empties out into the treacherous Sea of Sand.  Racers, look out for the dangerous crater way known as Crash Course Canyon, where the slightest mistake can be your last!  The next two legs of the race take us into the winding maze known as the Birchwood Forest, and then through the perilous and icy Glacier Barrens.  Finally, in the fourth and final leg, racers must beat the desert heat in the badlands, which then takes us back to the finish line here in the heart of Ninjago City!”

As the announcer talks, we put on our masks and take our places in the Raider.  I try to focus more on what the announcers are saying instead of the painfully empty seat behind me.

“I don’t know, guys,” Kai sighs, “if we’re gonna save the dojo, we’re gonna have to beat some pretty stiff competition.”

“One final word: Let’s have a good, clean race!  So good luck to everyone.”  A red light appears on a screen in front of us.  Kai starts up our engines along with the other racers.  Lloyd adjusts his grip on Ultra’s reins, squaring his shoulders.

A yellow light appears next to the red one.  “On your mark, get set…”  I tighten my grip on the controls in front of me.  The green light pops onto the screen.  “Ninjaball GO!”

“Come on, boy!” I hear Lloyd scream a little as the Ultra Dragon takes off along with us and the other racers.  We barely get past ten feet however before the Raider skids and we’re thrown against the seats.

“What happened?” Zane asks at the same time that I look out the window.  The Raider’s left traction belt had come partially off.

“We’ve been sabotaged!”

---

(Lloyd’s POV)

I grasp the reins tightly, wobbling.  I try to keep my eyes on the road ahead and steer in the right direction, but the jostling flight makes one of my hands shift before I can turn in the other direction and I yelp as Ultra makes the turn down an empty street, “Wrong way!  Ohhhh, we’re going the wrong way…!”  I try to turn Ultra around but the street is too narrow and the buildings too close.  Unless I can get above them, we’d just crash into them.  I groan loudly, Now would’ve been a good time to have had Rose or one of the guys with me…

---

(Cole’s POV)

We quickly climb out of the Raider and gather around the damaged part.  Before I can even properly assess it, the first announcer starts talking, “Ooh, things just got interesting.  And it seems some new competitors have entered the race.  Meanwhile, the Ninja remain at the start in dead last!”

“Oh, great!  We’re already out of the race!” Jay complains.

I turn to him with a frown, “We can’t quit now, not with everything that’s on the line.  Help me lift this thing.”  I kneel down and grip the traction support.  They nod and do the same.  I strain to pick it from the ground along with my team.  Once it’s in the air, Jay straightens the top part of the traction belt and Kai pulls the bottom part up.  We drop it to the ground and I jump onto the Raider, then flip into my seat, the others doing the same.

As we pull on our masks and close the windshields I hear the crowd’s cheers getting louder.

Kai’s voice comes on the comm, “So that’s how this is gonna go.  Alright, boys, let’s do this!”  As soon as my screen flashes that Kai turned the engine on I start the Raider after the rest of the racers, practically holding my breath.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

I stand next to my master, hands held behind my back as he speaks, “Now that the dojo will be destroyed, we’ll crush them before Lloyd ever becomes a true ninja.”

“We’re here live at the fourteenth annual Ninjaball Run,-” I turn to glare at the TV.  Why didn’t some Serpentine turn the wretched thing off?  This.  Is.  A.  Meeting!  For Lord Garmadon’s sake!  Is there nothing those imbeciles can do?!   But the announcer’s next words arrest my attention fully, “-where it looks like the Ninja are back in the race and now have a long shot at winning this year’s massive cash prize!”  I glower at the Ultra Sonic Raider as it drives down a street.  They never give up, do they?

My master facepalms, “They’re trying to save the dojo?!  Will they ever quit ?!”  He growls, “Set sail for the race at once!  We can’t let them win!”  The Serpentine run to their positions and I soon feel the Black Bounty shift under my feet.

I look to my master, “Lord Garmadon, we will not allow the Ninja to win.”

He presses his lips together in a thin line, then sighs, rubbing his forehead, “If we cannot prevent the Final Battle…”

“You will not face your son,” I say firmly.  “One way or another, we will find a way to keep that from happening.  It is my sole mission now that your niece has been captured.”

As we near Scattered Canyon I hear the announcer exclaim, “Ouchy, Mama!  Pirates are out of the race!”

“How long until we catch the Ninja?” Lord Garmadon turns to me.

“We are approaching them now, Master.”

“Good…” he moves to the door, “Come.”  I follow him out to the higher deck and look down to see our shadow fall on the Ultra Sonic Raider.

“Lord Garmadon, are you going to usssse the Mega Weapon?” Spitta asks.

“What’s the point?  Look at them: They’re trapped like rats,” my master gestures down at the Ninja, a slow smile spreading over his face, “Set all cannons to fire.  Now that they’re in our sights, they have nowhere to run.”  The Serpentine quickly load a cannon and aim it at the Ninja, then light it.

“Goodbye, Ninja,” Lord Garmadon cackles, red eyes shining.  I find a smirk growing on my own face as I fold my arms and watch the trapped Raider.  Then a high-pitched scream reaches my ears and a second later the Bounty lurches.  I grab onto the railing with a gasp.  WHAT IN THE REALMS IS HAPPENING?!

---

(Lloyd’s POV)

I’d finally gotten Ultra high enough for us to turn and head straight to Scattered Canyon.  Well...sort of straight.  I manage to make him dive into the canyon at an angle and rejoin the race, but the first thing I see next is a giant flying ship right in front of us that looks weirdly like the Bounty but thatdoesn’tmattercauSEWEAREHEADINGRIGHTTOWARDSIT-

I scream, “OUT OF THE WAAAAYYY!!!!”  I yank on the reins so hard they slip out of my hands and I frantically grab the saddle thing as Ultra ducks and rams into the ship.  He doubles back, shaking his heads, and then more slowly flies around the ship that I vaguely catch the images of my dad and some Serpentine on as I carefully stand, eyes still wide from the shock until some sand gets in my eyes and I blink.  I give myself a shake and start looking for the reins.  They’re lying about two feet away.  Great.

I faintly hear Kai’s voice cheering, “Nice going, Lloyd!”

Slowly standing up, I grab the back of the saddle and reach for the reins.  Ultra bucks and both me and the reins go flying over his head as I release another surprised scream.  I frantically grab for them and feel a shock of relief as my loosely gloved hands come in contact with the colder metal, then my arms are nearly jolted out of their sockets as I bounce, trying to orient myself.  Next thing I know I’m staring at Jay.

“You saved us!” Cole waves.

I shake my head, “I did?”  I blink and then realize the ship I’d crashed into actually was the Bounty, “I mean, yeah, I did!  Hey, what do you say we work together?”

“Yeah, I say let’s show ‘em what we Ninja are all about!” Jay pumps his fist.

I grin as Ultra flies up, flicking his head back so I fly back over and land in the saddle as we all let out the now familiar cheer, “Ninja, go!”

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

I shakily stand back up and see the Ultra Dragon flying ahead of us.  Ugh, that little nitwit , I internally grumble in irritation.

“They’re getting away!” Lord Garmadon screams in frustration.

“Uh, why don’t you usssse your Mega Weapon?” Mezmo suggests blindly.

Lord Garmadon’s fists tighten, “ Because I can only use it once before it saps all of my energy.  Then who’s going to slap you around to get this ship moving?!”  He turns and slaps Mezmo across the face before yelling, “Get this ship moving !!!!”

The Hypnobrai quickly backs away and turns to his fellow Serpentine, “Okay, you heard the Evil Lord.  Full sssspeed ahead!”

The Bounty starts moving faster as I take my place beside my master again.  He grips the Mega Weapon tighter, “No one shall defeat me, even in competition.  I will win this race.”

---

(Cole’s POV)

We make it out of Scattered Canyon, leaving the Bounty and Garmadon behind, and reach Birchwood Forest.  Gotta admit, I had mixed feelings about seeing the Bounty.  There’s no doubt Garmadon has Rose on there too, but we can’t exactly just stop in the middle of the race to try to get her back.  I just hope that we’ll find a way, some way, to get her back before this day is done.

I look ahead to see the back of a pickup sticking out of a mound of snow, just as my dad and his quartet pop out of the snow, still singing.  I facepalm as we pass them, “Oh, man…”

Kai grunts in frustration, “We’ll never get through those trees to catch up.”

“I’ll find a shortcut!” Lloyd shouts, “Up, boy!”  I blink when Ultra’s shadow shrinks and glance upwards to see them.  “Whoa!” his voice comes over the comm link as he laughs, “You actually went up!”  I grin a little before Ultra suddenly swoops down in front of us, “Follow me!”  I turn the Raider sharply along with Lloyd and Ultra and I realize we’re on a separate path.  Ultra glides smoothly ahead as the little ninja cheers, “Whooooo-hoo!”

Jay laughs, “Wow, he’s getting the hang of it.”

I look to our left and see the other racers on the opposite side of the trees, “And it looks like we’ve made up the lost time!”  I push forward on the joysticks, sending the Ultra Sonic Raider racing forward.

The announcers’ voices come onto Jay’s speakers, “Oh, a nasty crash.  More racers are out of the race.  Hope they’re okay.”

“Yeah...But if they’re not, stay tuned for the slow-motion replay!”

“What happened, Jay?” I ask.

I can hear the grimace in his voice as he watches the replay on his screen, “Lloyd and Ultra.  The Skulkin took them out of the race and then crashed themselves as well.”

“Are they okay?!” Kai asks, panic evident in his voice.

“It looks like it.  Ultra’s just a bit tangled up and Lloyd’s walking around fine,” Jay sounds relieved.  A pause.  “You were asking about them, right?”

“No, of course not, I was asking about the Skulkin!” Kai says sarcastically, “Of course I was asking about Lloyd and Ultra!  What do you think?!”  Jay laughs awkwardly.

The announcers’ voices turn on again and I sigh, half wishing they would stop so I could just concentrate on the road ahead.  “Excuse us, but you’re all friends of the boy Dragon rider, aren’t ya?  Tell us how you feel.”

Dareth’s voice is the next one to come on, “Oh, I feel terrible.  This is all my fault.  The only reason he and the Ninja entered this race was to save my dojo.  If they don’t win, developers are gonna tear it down, leaving all my poor kids without a training center to help enrich their tiny little lives.”

A unanimous ‘awwww’ from the crowd before they all start chanting, “Dojo!  Dojo!  Dojo!  Dojo!”

“I don’t know if you can feel it up there in the booth, but down here, it appears the crowds have found their favorite racer: The Ninja!”

“Oh, I feel it, alright!  But they better buckle their seat belts because up next is the most dangerous part of the race: the Glacier Barrens!”  Even as the announcer says that, we burst out of the trees and into a snowy wonderland.

I hear a click behind me and glance up in time to see Jay buckling his seat belt.  Jay looks up at all of us staring at him and shrugs, “What?  He said to buckle up!”

“You weren’t buckled up before?” Zane questions.

I see several igloos pop up and quickly try to steer out of the way.

“Finally!” Kai breathes out, “Nothing can stop us now.”  I take that to mean all the other racers are behind us.  At any rate I don’t see any in front of us.  But it’s hard to say with all the snow.

A frantic beeping turns on and I feel the Raider lurch slightly, slowing.  What’s going on?   Zane’s upset tone catches my attention, “Oh no...we’ve used up all of our fuel.  We’re not gonna make it to the finish line.”  Way to go, Kai, you jinxed it!

As the sounds of the other racer’s engines grows louder, Jay moans, “Oh, I don’t want to say it, guys, but I think our goose is cooked.”

A loud honking makes me turn my head to see Jay’s parents drive up alongside us.

“You guys look like you could use a hand there!” Ed shouts over the noise, “We heard on the radio that you’re all trying to save Dareth’s dojo!”  Okay, so maybe the radio wasn’t such a horrible thing after all.

“Oh, yeah, we’re so proud of you, son!” Edna gushes.

“Oh, thanks, Mom, but we’re out of gas!”

“Ooh, then take ours!”

“Huh?  But how?!  If we stop, we’ll lose the lead!” Jay points out.

Ed pulls out a fuel hose from nowhere, “Well, then we’ll just have to do this the hard way, son!”  He scoots over and lets Edna take the wheel, then moves to the filler cap on their vehicle, opens it, and puts the hose in.  Bending down carefully, he picks up the other end and holds it out, “Take this end, son!”

I feel a whoosh of cold air as Jay gets out of his seat and makes his way to the back.  After a second I hear his voice, “Keep it steady!”  I just grunt in response, trying to avoid any unnecessary bumps in the snow ahead.

“Here you go, son!”

“Ready, Dad!”

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

My master is glaring daggers at the racers ahead of us, in particular, the Ninja, “We’re not fast enough.  We should be pulling away!”

“But we’re up to maximum sssspeed!” Mezmo tells him.

“Then get rid of the excess weight!”

“What excessssssss weight?” the Hypnobrai asks dumbly.

Garmadon smacks him off the side of the ship and then uses Spinjizu to knock all the rest of them off as well.  He turns to me and I bow, then flip onto the railing and leap off, landing smoothly on the top of the Fangpyre bus while the Serpentine all clumsily land face first on the bus or buried in the snow behind us.

“I order you to slow the Ninja down!” Garmadon yells above us.

I lean into the wind and walk forward to the edge of the bus, the Serpentine doing the same.

Narrowing my eyes I look at the Ninja’s Raider and see Cole’s head pop up out of the windscreen to yell back at them, “We’ve got company, boys!”

Lizaru trips slightly and ends up looking upside down into the bus, “Sssskalessss?!”

“Get off the windsssshield!  I’m trying to win a race!”  The windshield wipers are turned on and Lizaru flies off the bus with a scream.  Useless Serpentine… I grumble.

I leap off and grab onto the back of the Raider.  Snike and Fang-Suei do the same, but jump farther to confront Jay.

“Ninja, go!” he knocks them both off with Spinjitzu, “Need some help, guys!”

The other Serpentine start jumping on as Zane and Cole come out of their seats and get on top of the Raider.

“We’ve got your back,” Zane says, using Spinjitzu to knock off some random Constrictai who I didn’t catch the name of.  “Ninja, go!”

Cole looks down and does Spinjitzu to knock a Fangpyre off where the fuel hose is, “Ninja, go!”  I smirk and flip down in front of him, cracking my knuckles.  His eyes widen in shock, then narrow in fury and he takes a stance.  I feint left and then flip around to the right, reaching for the hose.  He pulls me back and pushes me away.  I grab onto the Raider to keep from flying off and concentrate my energy into using Darkness tentacles to root his feet in place.

He looks down, “Wh-what?”  I smirk and stand, then use Spinjitzu to knock him off balance and over the side.  He grabs onto the vehicle with a grunt.

I chuckle darkly, “What, too afraid to fight your own girlfriend?”

“You’re...not...Rose,” he glares and flips back up, turning into a kick to knock me off.  I spread my arms wide, letting him hit me.  It just knocks me back into the fuel hose, breaking it off of the Ninja’s vehicle.  I grab onto the underside of the gold things and laugh, watching as the Blue Ninja frantically grabs it and reinserts it.  The pair make snowballs and throw them at Rattla, up by Zane.  The White Ninja kicks him off and onto the other car at the same time as I use Darkness to yank the two Ninja down.

Cole growls, “I thought you fell off!”

“I think she’s more skilled than the Serpentine, Cole!” Jay waves his arms around before grabbing onto something frantically as the vehicles go haywire, “Rose trained with Wu for years!  She’s technically the same level!”  He shuts his eyes tightly, letting out a scream as another vehicle crashes into us.  I feel my body jar and, ignoring the terrified screaming coming from literally everyone in the race, pull myself up again, relieving just a little of the strain in my arms.  Yanking the hose out of its socket and leaping onto the older couple’s vehicle, I dive off and into the snow.  No way am I going to get crushed today.

---

(Cole’s POV)

The Raider finally skids to a stop, so I let myself breathe.  Glancing around quickly, I decide we left Rose’s double behind.  I’d almost forgotten she existed.  I quickly jump back beside the windshield to get back in my seat.

“Wait!  Stop!”  I look up at Jay questioningly.  My friend runs over to his parents, who are getting out of their car.  I can’t hear what they’re saying, but then Jay takes a loose headlamp before running back up to us.

He jumps up near Kai’s cockpit and inserts the headlamp in a hole, and then hops back into his seat, pulling his mask back on, “Let’s go.  We’ve got a dojo to save.”  I nod and press the joysticks forward, making the Raider take off towards the finish line.  Hopefully, nothing else crazy will happen.

We shoot out of the snow and make it to the Badlands, I turn sharply to get us on the road back to Ninjago City.  Just up ahead I can see the Black Bounty.

“Looks like it’s just us and Garmadon,” I remark, a grin twitching at the corner of my mouth.

“This time, let’s make sure the good guys don’t finish last,” Kai says.  The Raider suddenly shoots forward.  He’d taken over driving.  I find myself smiling when we pass under the Bounty and shoot ahead.

Then I hear Garmadon’s faint voice screaming at us from the ship, “You think you can beat me, Ninja?!  This race is mine !!”

I glance up at the others, wondering what on earth he could mean by that.  I hear Kai’s voice on the com, “Huh?”  I look back at the road and gasp.  The ground is splitting open completely to create a giant chasm.  The Raider lurches and starts skidding sideways.  I feel it come to a stop just before we fall into the canyon.  Above us the Bounty shoots past and toward Ninjago City.

Kai starts driving away from the chasm as Jay complains, “Oh, that’s totally cheating!”

“Guys, it’s impossible to cross that divide,” Zane says.  If Zane doesn’t think we can make it…   I sigh, Great.

As Kai straightens the Raider out, facing Ninjago City again, Jay keeps talking, “Oh, we’re not gonna win now!”

“Wait a minute.  This ain’t over,” Kai tells us.  “Everybody, hang on!”  Next thing I know, we’re driving straight towards the cliff, and fast .

“Uh, you do know we’re heading straight for that cliff, right?  You sure that’s a good idea?!” Jay questions him.

“I haven’t had time to think it through,” the Red Ninja tells him, “Oh, what was it that Sensei said?  You gotta have trust.”

I turn as far as I can to give him a look, “Yeah, in each other, not in miracles!”

“Oh, Nya, don’t fail us now.”  Nya?  Wait a sec, is he gonna pull the lever?!  But we don’t even know what it d-!  “Alright, NOW!”  The Raider suddenly comes to a stop and a shadow starts to go overhead.  I look up to see the part of the Raider Kai was in turned into a jet.  Thinking quickly, I open the windshield for the rest of us.

“Ninja, go!”  We use Spinjitzu and jump after Kai, landing on top of the jet.  I grip to it tightly and look back at the Ultra Sonic Raider.  I cannot believe we just did that.   Then I realize the chasm is behind us and we’re catching up to the Bounty.

The Raider jet just catches up to the Bounty when the finish line comes in sight.  Come on… I duck my head and tighten my hold on the jet to keep from falling off as Kai pushes its speed to the max.  Both vehicles cross the finish line and everything jolts as the jet skids on the ground before coming to a stop and we flip off.

The next thing I know, the crowd that was previously sitting in the bleachers chanting ‘Ninja!  Ninja!’ came up to us and we’re now sitting on their shoulders.

I pull off my mask and look at the others with a slight grin, but my gaze travels beyond them to the Bounty, where Lord Garmadon just came out of and is standing on the street, glaring at the crowd and us, saying desperately, “I won.  I won!  Clearly I passed the finish line first!”

“Ladies and gentleman, we have a winner!”  Everyone falls silent as our heads jerk toward the screen.  The picture shows the Bounty and the Raider jet crossing the finish line, a small circle around the Jalopy’s headlamp that Jay had inserted into it.  “THE NINJA!   The Ninja have won!”

We’re set down as the crowd erupts into cheers.  Jay takes the headlamp out and holds it over his head with a giant grin, “Yeah!  I knew it would bring us luck!”

“No!  That’s not fair!” Garmadon protests, “That wasn’t even part of the vehicle in the first place!  It’s not even street legal!  My ship was-!”

“ Your ship?” Lloyd’s voice calls out.  I turn my head to see him and Ultra standing on the Bounty’s deck.  Garmadon pales slightly.  “I believe this belongs to us .”

“No, no, no!” the evil lord practically starts crying in anguish when a police car pulls up and several officers start walking towards him.

“Alright, Garmadon, you’re coming with us.”

The Fangpyre bus pulls up between the officers and Garmadon as Skales sneers, “Look who needssss who now .”  Garmadon hurriedly jumps on and the bus takes off.

“Somehow, Sensei, I don’t think that will be the last we’re gonna see of him,” Nya sighs.

Dareth gazes at the giant trophy full of money, “We did it!  We did it!  Ooh-hoo!  We saved the dojo!  Oh, look what I can do.  CANNONBALL!!!”  He leaps into the trophy, making some of the money shoot out.

I just smile a little before looking back at the Bounty, “Guys…”

Nya gasps as she realizes, “Rose!”

Everyone looks at each other and then we race onto our ship.

“Look in the brig,” Sensei Wu orders, “I feel that’s where he would keep her.”

None of us really wait to question it and just run down to the lowest part of the ship.  I reach the door first and barely wait long enough to unlock it instead of practically bursting it down.  I’m not the only impatient one either, I can practically hear the others humming with energy before I finally get it open, having fumbled in my rush.

Nya must've grabbed a lantern, because the first thing I see isn’t the dark.  The light falls on a dirty, shadowed form sitting against the wall.  Rose raises her head wearily, then her eyes widen in pure shock.  We all run in and gather around her, I pull off the rope around her arms and pull her into a tight hug.  Lloyd unties the rope around her ankles as well before launching himself at her, creating a group hug that Sensei Wu kneels down to join.  It’s less than five seconds before the entire team is on the ground in a giant group hug, everyone both crying and laughing.

I open my eyes enough to see disbelieving tears rolling down Rose’s cheeks as she tightens her loose, weakened hold around me and Lloyd and leans her head into Sensei’s shoulder.

Once we’ve all managed to calm down a bit, we acknowledge her rather ragged state and Nya lays claim of her for about two hours time and bustles her off for some serious freshening up.  I just can’t believe that in one day we saved Dareth’s dojo, got our home back, and most importantly, got Rose back.  And she barely even looked hurt.  Just tired, dirty, and hungry.  Which of course, I am not exactly happy about, but I’m glad that was all.

That night, she’s the one who finds me outside.

She just leans into me slightly as we watch the land go past under the Bounty, claiming she’s not tired, which is obviously a lie.  I’m pretty sure I'm wearing a real smile for the first time since she left.

Chapter 5: Child's Play

Summary:

Uh.
The Ninja get turned into kids, and chaos ensues.
And there's a few new points of view...

(Lloyd’s POV)

I lean on the Bounty’s railing, watching a group of kids in Jamanakai village play with a ball, laughing and calling to each other cheerfully.  I don’t think I’ve ever even been able to do that.  At Darkley’s I’d never had any real friends, I’d always been on my own, and had never gotten to actually play.  Pranks were the closest thing.  Hence the reason I’d waged a prank war on almost everyone for several weeks when I’d first joined the Ninja.  It was really the only thing I knew how to do right.  Now, watching the other kids my age play...I just...I just want a break .  A break from being the son of Lord Garmadon.  A break from being the destined Green Ninja.  A break from being a kid who really never gets to be a kid .  I just-  I just want a b.r.e.a.k.   Like, is that so much to ask?

“Lloyd?  Lloyd!” Kai’s voice breaks into my thoughts, “Concentrate!”  Apparently it is.  I just look at him.

Zane steps forward, wearing a smile, “Now that the Bounty is in our possession again, we can train you more effectively.  But you’ll have to focus.  One more time.”

“Oh, but we’ve been training all day ,” I groan, not bothering to hide that I’m upset anymore.

“It’s all to get you ready to face your father,” Cole reminds me, “Now, in position.”

I sigh and walk into the middle of the deck, the Ninja putting their hoods on.  I yawn when I take my battle stance.

They take theirs much more energetically and I just sigh, “Whatever…”

Kai charges at me and jumps.  I punch him in the stomach, knocking him back.  I yawn again before Zane and Jay leap at me, coming down.

“Ninja, go!” I use Spinjitzu, jumping into the air and knocking them both away and to the ground.  That’s the only actual nice thing about this training.  I’ve finally gotten to master my Spinjitzu, and it feels nice to know that maybe one day I can share in the team cheer.  When I land, I see my cousin in front of me.  She sends a punch and I block it, trying to sweep her feet out from under her.  She just flips over my head.  I quickly turn and catch her foot in my hands, pushing it away and simultaneously making her lose balance.  Nevermind.  Maybe there’s one other thing I like.  Being able to actually properly spar with Rose is nice sometimes.

Suddenly I feel my feet leave the ground, Cole slide kicking me into the air from behind.  I flip over several times till everything’s a blur and then something hard smacks my entire body, including my face.  The deck.  Right, I landed.  I push myself up a bit to see the others clustering around, masks off, and their expressions displaying concern.

“That was fun.  Are we done?” I ask hopefully.

“Oh, come on.  You’re better than this!” Jay frowns a little, “What’s on your mind?”

I stand up, thinking.  I might as well tell them, but I don’t know if they’ll understand.  “Well...The latest issue of Starfarer just came in at Doomsday Comix, and it’s a limited run, so if I don’t go out and get it, it’s going to sell out.  Last they left off, intergalactic rogue Fritz Donnegan was surrounded by the imperial sludge, and if I don’t find out if he gets out alright, I think I might have my own doomsday!”

“The fate of Ninjago rests on your shoulders,” Cole says, “As the Green Ninja, you have a giant responsibility to hold.  I’m sorry, but you don’t have time for such childish things.”  Rose gives him a reproving glance.  Kai seems pained for some reason.

“Other kids get to play and have fun.  All I ever do is train,” I grumble, hanging my head and slowly walking back to the railing, putting my hands on it.  A second later, a gentle gloved hand is resting on my shoulder.

I look up to see Rose quietly smiling at me, “Hey, maybe this evening I can take you out for a bit.  That sound okay to you?”

My frustration fizzles out slightly and I manage a small, half-hearted smile and nod, “I guess so…”

Running steps catch our attention and we turn as Nya runs up from below deck, “Guys, there’s been a break-in at the Ninjago City Museum of History, and the security cameras picked up you-know-who.”

“Garmadon,” Cole’s eyes narrow.  Ever since the whole thing with their clones, Cole seemed to grow a deeper dislike for my father.  Possibly deep enough to rival Kai’s.

“We have to stop him before he uses the Mega Weapon to start another one of his diabolical plots!” Jay rambles, waving his hands around.

I move closer, hopefully, “Um…”  They all turn to look at me.  I sigh heavily, “Yeah, yeah, yeah.  I can’t go and it’s safer if I stay here and train.”

All the Ninja, including my cousin, simultaneously nod.  I fold my arms and look down, trying to act mad.  Internally, though, I’m just disappointed.

A few minutes later, we’ve landed outside Ninjago City and the Ninja had gotten in the Ultra Sonic Raider.  Rose takes her place behind Cole’s seat for the first time since she was captured.

Nya and I stand at the railing as Kai looks up, “We’ll meet up at the Bounty as soon as we’re done.”

“We’ll be waiting for your safe return,” Nya replies.  Something flicks over her expression as she looks at her brother and he nods before turning to the controls and lowering his windscreen, then the Ninja drive away and towards the city to thwart whatever my dad’s up to this time.

I sigh, “Too old for comic books and too young to fight.  When are they gonna make up their minds?”  The constant contradiction is seriously getting on my nerves at this point.

Nya leans against the railing with a smile, “Come on, pint size.  Show me what you got.”  Normally I’d like training with her.  She and Rose make it fun, and even though she’s a lot older than me, I kind of consider her the closest thing I have to a best friend, especially since we kind of had to hang out more than the others since the Ninja always had to go on missions.  But now...All I really want is a chance to play and have fun…

I yawn and walk back to the deck’s center, Well...more training…

---

(Rose’s POV)

Wow, it feels so good to be going out on missions with the guys again , I find myself beaming under the mask.  Several times during the drive to the city, I notice Cole glancing back uncertainly.  Like he’s making sure I’m actually still here.  The thought lends some warmth to my face, and I internally thank my stars that I'm wearing a mask.

When we reach the museum, we get on the roof and Jay lowers a rope in front of a window.  We all climb down and edge across to the window, clinging to the wall as Jay pushes it open and climbs inside, the rest of us following silently.  We make our way to the main room, crouching behind the railing as we look down.  The Serpentine Generals slither inside, Skales holding a flashlight.  Jay shushes us, making me lightly slap him.

Skales shines the flashlight onto something out of our line of sight.  He seems horrified, “Boy, did they get that wrong.”  They keep moving until Skales shines his light on a sarcophagus.

“Why would we come to a musssseum if we weren’t going to ssssteal anything from it?” Acidicus hisses.

“Becausssse Masssster Garmadon-” Fangtom’s left head starts, then cuts off as the second finishes, “-hassss another plan to desssstroy the Ninja.”

“‘Masssster Garmadon’?  Ha!”  Skales scoffs, “He’ssss no masssster of mine ssssince his sssso-called Mega Weapon hassss failed every time.  I don’t ssssee why we don’t call our own sssshotssss.”

“Because this time I will not fail!”  I jump a little when I hear my adoptive uncle’s voice.  Skales quickly turns, shining the light right on the warlord, then fumbles, dropping the flashlight where it shines directly on him, my double, and the skeleton of some prehistoric beast.  The boys gasp.

Three of the Generals frantically bow down, “Yessss, Lord Garmadon!”

Skales reluctantly does the same, “Yessss, Lord Garmadon…”  The four rise and slither closer, then I notice the Serpentine warriors behind them and wince.

“Behold,” Uncle Garmadon raises his Mega Weapon to present the skeleton, “Dromaeosaurid Theropod Grundalicus, otherwise known as the Grundle.”  I cover my mouth to muffle a gasp, He’s not planning on bringing it back, is he?!?!  “Although now extinct, in its time it was the most feared and dangerous creature in all of Ninjago, with claws that could slice through steel, heightened senses that could detect its prey from miles away.  It could track the stealthiest of Ninja, and once it had picked up your scent, there was no hiding from it.”

Jay moves to look at us, a nervous expression and chuckle under his mask, “The Grundal?  I heard about them.  Boy, am I glad we live in an age where we don’t have to deal with those things.”

“Unless he brings it back,” I say solemnly.

Jay’s eyes widen in terror, “Du-uh, the-the Mega Weapon can’t do that though.  ...Can it?”  I just look back down when Skales starts speaking.  Jay gulps.

“Thankssss for the hisssstory lesssssssson,” Skales slithers up to my uncle with a sneer, “but what are we going to do with a pile of bonessss?”

“I am going to make it so the beast shall walk again!” Uncle Garmadon sneers right back, making Skales back away slightly.

“Yeah, right.  Well, sssshow ussss then!” the snake glares at him.

My adoptive uncle turns to the skeleton and raises the Mega Weapon.  My double silently steps down and stands behind him again, “Rise, Grundal, and feel the strength of the Mega Weapon!  I wish to create the power to make you young!  Turn back the clock so that you are no longer extinct-”  Dark energy starts to come out of the Mega Weapon and envelop the Grundal’s skeleton.  I feel my heart skip a beat in fear, He’s actually doing it…   “-but hungry.  Hungry for the Ninja.”

“Oh, no.  He is bringing it back?!” Jay looks at us wildly.

“Not if we have any say in the matter,” Zane declares.

We pull out our weapons and jump onto the railing.

My double turns and glowers at us, red eyes burning into me, “The Ninja!  Stop them!”

We start to run along the top to get around to the Grundal and my uncle.  The Serpentine throw their weapons at us but, let me just say, they have terrible aim.  My double mutters something and then shoots out two tentacles of darkness that wrap around Kai and Jay’s ankles.  The two boys start to fall with shocked yelps when Cole grabs Kai’s arm and I catch Jay’s wrists, pulling them back up and yanking them out of the tentacles.

“Rise, Grundal.  Rise!” my uncle orders.  We come up behind the Grundal’s skeleton.

“We can’t let him finish!” Cole yells, “Go!”  He jumps onto the skeleton.  I pause, hesitating, then jump on as well after Jay and Zane.

“Stop them!” my clone screams.

The Serpentine crowd around the skeleton, thrusting their spears up at us.  “This is not a solid plan, Cole!” Zane leans back to avoid the spears, then I feel my own feet lose purchase.  The breath’s knocked out of me just as I see a red blur on the top of the Grundal.  Then everything clears and I realize all four of us fell off except Kai, who’s struggling to keep his balance.

“I feel pretty alone up here!” he yelps.  The Serpentine keep jabbing their spears and javelins at him and he tips.  Then he turns and throws his sword as he falls, landing squarely on Zane and Jay.  The katana hits into the Mega Weapon and knocks it out of Uncle Garmadon’s hand, interrupting the spell.  The weapon clatters to the floor and slides away.

“Not again…  Not again!” my uncle shakes with fury.

“And you ssssaid it wouldn’t fail,” Skales comments loftily.

“Retreat!” my uncle runs over to pick up the Mega Weapon.

Jay laughs as we all stand up, “We stopped them!”

“It didn’t work!” Kai cheers.

My uncle turns, locking eyes with me, “Curse you, Ninjas!”  He, the Serpentine, and my double, after one last burning glare, retreat out of the museum.

Jay chuckles, “Well, I thought we handled that well.”  He turns his head and his eyes widen, “H-hey!  They’re trying to steal the golden sarcophagus!”  We all turn.  The four Serpentine Generals are lifting the sarcophagus in the air.  When they notice us they hurriedly slither out of the museum through the back door.

We run outside and Kai yells, “After them!”  We all chase after the Generals, but they slowly seem to be getting farther and farther away.

I frown as my breath starts to grow slightly heavier.  Running was never hard before...I should’ve been able to run much longer before starting to run out of breath.

The Generals make it around the corner, and by the time we also peek around it, they’re gone, and the golden sarcophagus is leaning against the wall.

Jay groans, the squeaks, “I can’t believe we couldn’t catch up to them.  I’m usually faster than that.  It’s as if my legs were half the size.”  I blink, Woah, Jay, that was really high pitched, did you just breathe in a bunch of helium?

Kai looks at the sarcophagus, and I do a double take when his voice is also higher, “I don’t remember it being that big.  Did it grow?”  Now that I’m actually looking at the sarcophagus, it actually does look a lot bigger.  My stomach knots.  What’s happening?

“Or did we shrink?” Zane questions, his voice also alarmingly different.

I finally use sense and look across the street at a door that shows our reflections.  We’re all about half our previous heights.  “Uh, guys?” I point at the glass door.

They all turn their heads and look at our reflections for a moment before Jay gasps, removing his mask and screaming, “WE’VE SHRUUUUUUUUUNK!”  Then I realize how much younger he looks.

The rest of us all take off our masks and look at each other before Kai yelps out, “We’re-we’re kids!”  All the boys scream as the realization sinks in.  I clasp my hands over my mouth, eyes probably wider than they’ve ever been before.  HOW IN THE SIXTEEN REALMS-

“Oh, this is bad.  This is bad on SO MANY LEVELS!” Jay panics, not that the rest of us aren’t doing the same.  Even me.  I mean, I didn’t even know it was possible to be turned back into a kid and now???????  How did this even happen???

“Oh, it’s impossible!” I jump a little at Cole’s high pitched voice.  Actually, I think his is almost as high as mine compared to the others.  “We must be dreaming, Zane!  TELL ME WE’RE DREAMING!”

“Uh, uh, yeah, a dream…please...” I breathe hopefully.

“Nindroids don’t dream.  Perhaps Garmadon succeeded in turning back the clock, but instead of reviving the Grundal, it only affected us!”

“Yeah, but Nindroids don’t turn into kids!” Jay, whose voice I realize is the closest to before, points at the tiny Zane.  “Explain that, genius!”

“I’ve extended my logic parameters, but nothing is coming up!  This...does not...compute!”  His right eye twitches and his face sparks.

“And now you’re breaking,” I groan, holding my head in my hands.

“Okay, fine, I-I get it.  We’re all in this together,” Cole says nervously, then walks over to the sarcophagus, “Oh, but I can’t be a kid again, I hated being a kid!  You can’t drive, nobody listens to you…” He pauses, then a look of panic crosses his face, “Oh no, BEDTIMES!”

I slap the back of his head, “Bedtimes are the least of our problems right now, Cole!”  He rubs where I hit him and winces.

“I told Nya we’d meet back at the Bounty,” Kai says, strangely calm after the initial shock wore off.  It makes me wonder why.  I mean, I’m usually one of the calmest people on the team and this is freaking even me out.  “I’m sure Sensei will know what to do.”

I see flashing lights around the corner and then a police car with a siren blaring speeds into view and pulls up right in front of us and the sarcophagus, the headlights shining directly in our eyes.  We all instinctively wince and cover our eyes.

Two police officers get out of the car, the first one laughing, “Well, well, what do we got here?  Looks like we’ve caught our culprits to the museum heist.  Who would have thought it was just a bunch of brats?  What have you got on, Apple Dumpling Gang?  Pyjamas?”  They both laugh.  It kind of gets under my skin.

Jay sounds offended, “These aren’t pajamas!  We’re Ninja!”

The second officer rolls his eyes, “Yeah, yeah, and I’m Santa Claus.”

“Ninja, go!” Kai yells, and I frantically throw my hands up to warn him not to but he uses Spinjitzu anyway.  “Whoa!”  His fire tornado wobbles and the next thing I know it’s tossed us all onto the hood of the police car.  With me at the bottom.  I gasp and hear Kai’s worried tone, “My Spinjitzu doesn’t work.  We’re too small!”

“Easy, kiddo,” the second officer picks up Cole as the other one lifts Zane and Jay.  I slide off the hood and press back against the wall, not really seeing any way out of this mess, “You’re coming with us to the precinct.”  He grabs the back of Kai’s shirt.

“Look,” Kai chuckles nervously, “officers, this has been a grave misunderstanding.  My friends here and I are simply trying to help out.”

“Hey, you can tell all the stories you want when we return to the museum tomorrow to explain why you stole this,” the officer starts to sound annoyed.

“But we didn’t steal it!” I blurt out.

The officer’s glare turns to me, “Zip it.”  The two officers shove the boys into the police car and then he comes over to me, picks me up, and shoves me in.  Even as a kid I probably could’ve fought him off, but that would have done nothing to help our situation, so I don’t bother, just quietly sitting where I’m pressed against Kai, wishing there was more than one backseat because we are all very squished together.  Actually a couple of us are half sitting on someone else’s lap at this point.

“You have the right to remain silent,” the officer tells us sternly.

The first officer laughs, “Kids…”  Then they close the doors.  Okay now that’s even more uncomfortable now that I’m being pressed into the door.   I find myself reaching up to brush my hair out of my face.  My finger rubs against a tiny scar and I pause.  I’d forgotten about it.

I look out the window silently, wondering what in the sixteen realms we’re going to do now.

---

(Lloyd’s POV)

The next day, while I’m reading my Fritz Donnegan comic book (and supposed to be reading the lesson book Uncle Wu gave me), I catch something Nya’s saying.

“Oh, they should be back by now,” her voice is filled with worry.

My uncle speaks up, “Oh, I fear something horrible has happened to them.”  I glance at them.  They’re standing at the railing and looking out over Ninjago City.  I turn back to my book and keep reading.

“Lloyd,” I bite back a startled gasp and quickly switch my comic out for the lesson book and turn to my uncle, “you’re in charge of the Bounty while Nya and I have a look around town.”

“Uh, yeah.  Sure thing,” I reply, holding the book up to my face so it hides the small smile I couldn’t hold back.  Wu and Nya walk away and I return to the comic book.  “Okay, Fritz Donnegan, looks like it’s just gonna be you, me, and the imperial sludge.”

---

(Rose’s POV)

The officers bring us back to the museum and take us to the curator.  Kai, Jay, Cole, and I respectfully kneel in front of him, “We’re sorry for stealing.”

Zane watches us in confusion, “But we didn’t.  I don’t understand.”

Kai shushes him, “The quicker we get out of here, the faster we can figure out how to return our bodies back to normal.”

Zane hurriedly kneels as well, “I’m sorry for stealing, too.”  I try to muffle a snicker at his quick change.

“Thank you, children, for returning the sarcophagus.  You did the right thing.  But, what about the bones?”  Uh, what?  …   Oh.  Oh dear.  He doesn’t mean-

Jay looks up in confusion, “What bones?  We didn’t steal any bones.”

“The Grundal bones,” the curator points to the empty exhibit.

“The...Grundal bones?”  We all stand up and turn to look at it.  Then Jay yelps, “They’re gone!”  He turns to us, lowering his voice, “You don’t think-”

“-it just walked out of here,” Kai finishes.

“Yeah, I think that,” I say nervously.

“Theoretically, it is possible that if Garmadon successfully reversed the years on us, he reversed the years on the Grundal and brought it back to life,” Zane reasons.

The boys gasp and Jay quickly walks up to the curator and police officers, waving his hands around in his panic, “You guys have to believe us!  The Grundal’s been brought back to life and it’s on the loose!  Its sole existence is to hunt Ninja and as long as we’re here, EVERYONE’S AT RISK!”

The three grownups just laugh.  I frown.  Even as a kid, whenever I talked to my father, he took me seriously.  But these grownups don’t believe a word we say.  It’s aggravating.  The officers pick us up again and toss us all onto a tiny bench.  I find myself squeezed between Cole and Jay.  That just makes me feel even smaller than before!  And what’s with them and tossing all of us onto tiny spaces?!

“Well, we’ll keep a good lookout for anything that goes bump in the night, okay?” the second officer says with an amused smile, “Now, you five sit still until we call your parents to come pick you up.”  Parents? I glance at Zane, wondering who they’d call for him since he doesn’t have any parents.  Then I notice Kai start at the mention of calling parents and look at us with an indecipherable emotion in his eyes.  Huh?   I find myself thinking back over the time I’ve known him and Nya.  Neither of them have ever mentioned their parents, and none of us have met them either.  That, coupled with Kai’s reaction, makes me wonder what their old lives were like.

The officers laugh, walking across the large room.

Cole turns to us, “We’ve gotta get out of here, like now !”  I frown slightly, the chatter of a group of kids passing in the hallway behind us clouding my thoughts.

“Follow my lead, guys,” Kai suddenly says, and hops off the bench, running quietly after the group of kids.  Jay jumps off only a split second after with a smile.  Zane, Cole, and I share a look before following them both.

They catch up to the kids and we walk behind them.  I can’t see what they’re doing until they turn around, holding some clothes.  “Quick, put these on,” Kai hisses quietly, shoving two small piles of clothes to me and Zane and keeping some for himself.  Jay had notably gotten much less, only enough for himself and Cole.  Kai shoves me into a random room and then pulls the boys into another.  Well okay, this works , I figure, and switch outfits.  It’s a simple, short black dress with short sleeves.  Kai had also somehow managed to grab me some flats and some ponytail holders, so I take off my tabi, exchanging them for the simple black flats, and then pull my hair back with a purple ponytail holder, slipping the others onto my wrist.  I keep my gi’s leggings on, but hide the rest of it behind a stand.  Then I go back out in the hallway just as the boys come back out.  They also kept their gi pants, but each are now wearing tennis shoes or sneakers.  Zane has a white and light blue shirt with the number thirteen on it.  Jay’s is a blue shirt with a butterfly, and he has a gray hat on his head.

Kai got a red hoodie, and Cole….is wearing a purple shirt with stars and looking very annoyed with it as he grumbles, “ Jay , why did you have to grab us girl clothes?”

“Because, Cole , I couldn’t get any others!” he whines.  “You think I like this shirt?  Huh?”

I can’t keep back a giggle, and Cole makes a face at me, unamused.

As we hurriedly catch back up to the group of kids, Jay groans a little, “Oh, this is so humiliating.”

“I’m afraid if we can’t use our Spinjitzu, we’ll be no match for the Grundal,” Zane whispers.

“Then we have to get back to the Bounty,” Kai determines.  Seriously, how is he being so calm?!

As soon as we get outside, all five of us break into a sprint and run away from the museum, ignoring when the man leading the kids yells after us, “Huh?  Where are you going?  Come back!”

---

(Jay’s POV)

We get to a payphone and I grab it, then dial the Bounty and hold it to my ear, “Collect call, please.”  I look down and whisper at Cole and Kai, who are holding me higher so I can actually reach the phone, “Hold me steady.”  Outside the payphone, Zane and Rose are keeping a lookout.

After three rings, I hear someone pick up and a slight clatter and faint, “Whoa!” from Lloyd.  Then I hear his voice, more clearly, say, “Destiny’s Bounty.”

“Lloyd, it’s Jay!  Let me talk to Sensei!”

“Jay?  Where are you?  Why haven’t you returned?  Sensei’s out looking for you.”

I groan, “Apparently, you need parental permission to take the bus and we can’t seem to get out of the city!”

“Uh, what?”

“Oh, never mind, it’s a bit complicated.  Just meet us at Buddy’s Pizza in ten minutes.  And bring our weapons!” I add quickly.

“Weapons…?”  there’s a dull thud and an ow, then the line goes dead.  The time must’ve run out.

Cole and Kai put me down and we squeeze out of the payphone.  Then Cole looks at me with a sigh, “Buddy’s Pizza?”

“Hey, don’t judge me,” I shrug, “We should go.”

---

(Lloyd’s POV)

I walk into Buddy’s Pizza, carrying the Ninja’s weapons as I look around for them.  Strangely though, I can only see two grownups or teens.  The cashier at the counter, and a weird guy in a gopher mask.  Everyone else is around my age.

“Really?  Of all places we could meet, you pick this place?”

“What?  I like their pizza.”

“Ugh, why is it that I’m always getting squashed on short benches?” someone complains.

“Sorry, Ro.”

“Psst, Lloyd.”  Someone whispers.  I turn to see a kid in a red hoodie and messy hair looking at me.

I blink at him, “Beat it, brat, I’m on a mission.”  I turn to keep going and the kid grabs my arm, pulling me back with an annoyed expression.

“It’s me.  Kai.”

I frown, then pause, looking closer at the five kids at the table.  He definitely looks like Kai, and then the boy in the purple shirt and shaggy black hair looks kinda like Cole.  Then there’s a reddish-brown haired boy in a blue shirt who looks like Jay.  The boy in blue and white with the straight blond hair looks pretty similar to Zane, and the black haired girl in the black dress looks like-

It finally sinks in and I gasp, dropping the weapons.  “Whoa!  What happened?!  You’re, uh, uh...SMALL!” I point at them, not really sure what I’m seeing.  This must be a weird dream, right??   Everyone in the restaurant turns to look at us in confusion.

They all cringe, and Kai whispers, “Keep it down.  We’re trying to lay low.”  Once everyone goes back to what they were doing, he stops whispering, “Your father’s Mega Weapon not only turned us into kids, but unleashed a creature whose sole purpose is to hunt down Ninja.”

“Typical Garmadon,” Cole complains.

“And now,” Jay starts one of his rants, “every time we try to tell someone,” I pick up the weapons I dropped, “they won’t believe us, cause we’re kids!”

I can’t help but start laughing at the end of that.  Oh man, I-that’s priceless.

“What’s so funny?” Kai snaps.

“Well, I guess now you know what it feels like to be treated differently,” I toss the weapons on the table.  My cousin takes her sai and slips them behind her.  Suddenly I realize that while all the boys look my age, she looks kind of...younger. Or at least she looks shorter.  Even than me.

“Look, this is serious.  If we don’t turn big so that we can use our Spinjitzu, we don’t stand a chance against the Grundal,” Zane tells me.

“Well, what about me?  I know Spinjitzu,” I remind them.

“Yeah, but you don’t know the Grundal,” Kai points out, “We all need to be at full strength.  What we need to do first is find someone who might know more about how to defeat one of those things.”  I let my gaze wander until I catch sight of a kid at the table behind them reading a Starfarer comic.  An idea starts to form in my head.

“Lloyd, focus,” Cole hisses.

“I am,” I grin at them, “I think I know just the guy.”

Rose shrugs, “I’m willing to try anything at this point…”

I frown a little at that, That’s not really like her…   But I shrug it off and wave for them to follow me, “Come on.”

---

(Rose’s POV)

Lloyd leads us to a store and we go inside to see shelves of comic books.

Cole looks at Lloyd doubtfully, “You brought us to a comic book store?”

“Well, yeah, didn’t you see the sign that said Doomsday Comix?” I ask him.  Cole doesn’t respond.

“Trust me.  If there’s anyone who knows how to defeat a monster that doesn’t exist, I know just the person to talk to,” my cousin starts walking ahead of us.  I feel weird around him now.  If I’m guessing right, my physical age is ten right now, and Lloyd is...well...he’s eleven.  Even though it’s not much difference, it feels weird that he’s sort of older than me at the moment.  I can’t wait till things go back to normal so I don’t feel weird about talking to him.

Kai grabs Lloyd’s shoulder and turns him around, “We’re not coming to pick up your comic, Lloyd.  This is serious business.”

Behind me, Jay gasps and we turn to see him holding a comic book, “Oh, look!  A first edition Daffy Dale!  I used to love that growing up!” he laughs weirdly before clearing his throat and straightening his expression, “So juvenile…”  Cole facepalms and Kai and Zane look unamused.  I find myself holding back laughter at Jay’s outburst, but it dies in my throat when Lloyd walks behind us and starts herding us forward.  This just feels so, so weird.

Pushing us up to the register, Lloyd gestures to a man with a brown ponytail and beard, “Guys, meet Rufus McCallister, AKA Mother Doomsday.”

“Well, if it isn’t Lloyd Hemorrhoid Garmadon.”  I look at my cousin in confusion but decide it’s some kind of inside joke.  Jay catches up to us.  “Sorry if you came looking for the latest Starfarer.  I’m all sold out,” the man shrugs.

“Wh-Sold out?!” Lloyd screams, then pauses, remembering the mission as everyone in view turns to look at him.  “Oh, a-actually, Mother Doomsday, we need help.”

“Well, color me intrigued.”

“We have a problem,” Lloyd walks closer to the counter, “There’s a Grundal on the loose and we need to know how to deal with it.”

“Ah, a theoretical question,” Mother Doomsday, as I guess I’m supposed to call him, replies.

“Yeah, theoretical,” Lloyd nods, “Can you help?”

Mother Doomsday lowers his seat and hops off, then comes out from behind the register, going up to a shelf, “Dromaeosaurid Theropod Grundalicus.  Phew.  Although extinct, there has been a plethora of film, television, and comics exploring the mythology around the primordial predator.”  He grabs one of the comics and shows us a picture of the Grundal.  “Supposedly, they always get their prey.”

Kai nudges Zane, whispering, “Sounds like he knows his stuff.”

Lloyd pushes between them, “Can it be stopped?”

“First thing you need to know is its thick shell-like hide is invincible to swords, scythes, nunchucks, throwing stars, and sai.  So your cheap imitations will do nothing to slow him down.”  I bristle.  Cheap imitations?!

“Swell,” Cole slumps, his tone sarcastic.

“Second of all, it’s nocturnal and will only hunt at night.”

Jay brightens and points at the window, “Oh, good!  It’s still daylight, so we can relax for a bit?”  Mother Doomsday looks at the window, then gives him a weird expression.

Kai clears his throat and gives Jay a meaningful look.  Jay takes the hint, “Uh, I meant theoretically.”

Mother Doomsday seems to take his explanation and continues, “And the only way to defeat it is with light.”  He puts the comic book back and starts walking across the room, “Like a vampire, with enough of it, it could potentially destroy him.  If I had my weapon of choice, may I recommend the Illuma-Sword?”  He opens a display case to show five swords with purple blades.  Well, the blades look more like rods.  “These are authentic replicas that would come in handy were you to live long enough to actually face a Grundal.  And if swords are your thing,” he points across the shop to a different display case that, I realize with a start, holds our gis, “maybe i can interest you in an authentic ninja gi, signed by the very Ninja that saved the city.”  Oh yeah...I remember we signed those…   I cover my mouth to hide a snicker, If only he knew that we are the Ninja.

The boys just stare at the gis for a second before Kai moves towards the Illuma-Swords, reaching out, “Uh, we’ll just take the light swords.”

Mother Doomsday grabs his wrist to stop him, “Not so fast.  This Starfarer combo pack can only be won in the Fritz Donnegan Trivia Battle Royale.”  He points to a kid wearing a costume who’s chatting with some cosplayers.  “You have what it takes to be the best?”

Jay puts a hand on my cousin’s shoulder, “You can do this, Lloyd.”

“Sign me up,” Lloyd smirks.

---

(Wu’s POV)

When we get back, Lloyd is nowhere to be found, and the phone is hanging down.  “Great,” Nya picks up the phone and puts it back, “Now Lloyd’s missing.  What’s next?”

The phone rings and she presses the voicemail recording.  Lloyd’s voice comes on, “Sensei, we’re at Doomsday Comix.  Dad’s turned the others into kids and we’re about to face a real life Grundal.  If you get this message, this isn’t a prank!  Come quick!”

“Oh, dear…” my shoulders slump.  “Well, there’s only one person who could help return the Ninja back to normal.”  Nya looks at me questioningly.  Mystake.   “I’ll explain on the way.  Come, there’s no time to lose.”  I quickly walk out of the Bounty and back to Nya’s motorbike and my sidecar.

---

(Mystake’s POV)

I’m checking the shelves when I hear my shop’s bell ring.  “Hello, Mystake,” Wu’s voice says in greeting, “We need a special tea.”

“They’re all special, you old fool!” I turn to glare at him.  A dark head of hair catches my attention behind him.  What?   I look at the girl again and keep back a sigh.  It’s just that Samurai girl.

I’ve been wanting to ask Wu about Dominique so, so badly, every time he comes in for my teas.  But I know I can’t.  It’s never the time, nor the place, but at least I know she is in good hands.

“But this one can turn someone…” the ravenette glances at Wu and clears her throat, “older.”

“Ah, you seek Tomorrow’s Tea.  I only have one in stock in back.  Follow me,” I turn and walk into the back of my shop, Wu and the girl behind me.

I climb onto the ladder and pull the light cord to see the teas as I scan the shelves, “It should be here somewhere.”

“It’s gone?” the girl’s voice is laced with horror.

“Just misplaced,” I reassure her, “I know it’s here somewhere.”

“We need to find that tea before it’s too late!” Wu declares, walking up to look at the shelves as well.  Too late? I frown slightly and redouble my efforts.  Whatever it is those children have gotten into this time, I don’t know if I want to know or not.

---

(Rose’s POV)

We’re watching as Lloyd and a different boy face off on a small, raised platform.  Mother Doomsday gestures to them, “It’s down to the final two!  This question is for Lloyd.”

The kids around us and the boys chant, “Lloyd!  Lloyd!  Lloyd!”  I just stand there in confusion, really not understanding what’s going on, but if it can get us the swords honestly, I’m all for it.

“What is Fritz Donnegan’s famous catchphrase?” Mother Doomsday asks.

Lloyd thinks for a second before replying, “‘Fair?  Fair is not a word from where I come from.’”

“Correct!  We’re all tied up.”  Everyone cheers while the boy looks at Lloyd with a frown.  My cousin just smirks at him.

Zane glances out the window and then leans in towards us, whispering, “It’s getting dark.  The Grundal will be on the prowl soon.”  I involuntarily shiver.

“Don’t worry,” Kai tells us, “I got faith Lloyd can win those Illuma-Swords.”  All four of us hear someone eating and turn to look at Jay, who’s eating cotton candy.  Kai appears doubtful, echoing my thoughts, “Is this really the best time to be eating cotton candy?”

“It makes me feel young,” Jay informs him, “Deal with it.”  Well, isn’t that ironic?

“Final question,” Mother Doomsday announces, “The first person to answer this will win.”  He turns to the competitors, “In the latest issue of Starfarer, how did Fritz Donnegan escape the imperial sludge?”  Oh.  Oh no.

Lloyd pales, “But...I haven’t read the latest issue!”

“By reversing the polarity of the ship’s gravity transducer,” the other boy answers promptly.

“We have a winner!” Mother Doomsday declares.  All the kids around us jump into the air with cheers as Lloyd looks at us sadly.

Suddenly everything shakes and the lights turn off.

“Who shut off the power?” Mother Doomsday asks, looking up.  We all look up at the glass ceiling as the sign out front sputters and goes off, then falls down.  The people inside with us yelp slightly.

“It’s here…” Kai whispers.

Mother Doomsday looks down at us warily, “What’s...here?”

“You know that theoretical discussion we had earlier?” Jay laughs nervously.

A large head appears above us on the roof as Mother Doomsday looks up in fear, “Not the…”  The monster steps on the glass, making it crack, and then it looks down right.  At.  Us.  “GRUNDAL!”

Everyone around us screams as Zane runs forward, “We’ve got to get out of here!”  We all run up to the door and try to force it open, but the sign had fallen in front of it.  “The door is jammed, we can’t get out.”

The sound of glass creaking makes us turn to see the Grundal walking along the roof toward us.

“Look!  It’s coming!” Jay yelps.

One of the Grundal’s feet breaks through the roof, then its whole body falls in, completely crashing through the roof and knocking over several bookshelves.

Jay screams, his voice unnaturally high pitched, “We’re doomed!”

“Doomed as Britts Subskian in Phoenix War page 15!” Mother Doomsday yelps.  The Grundal swings its tail at him and the kids, making them all duck and scream.  Hearing the screams, it turns its attention from us and turns its head to look at them, its tail swinging around and breaking the glass in the display case holding our ZX gis.

“Quick!  This way!” Jay yells, running to the left.  We all follow him until we reach the gis.  I understand and quickly grab my own as he and Cole grab the boys’, Zane and Kai running across the store to get to the light swords.  We pull our gis on over our clothes and each grab an Illuma-Sword as the Grundal turns back to where we had been a minute prior.

“Hey, McNasty, I thought Ninja were on your menu!” Cole yells to grab its attention.  The Grundal turns around to face us and the boys promptly switch on the swords, holding them out.  The Grundal cringes away slightly.

“It’s working!” Jay yells gleefully.

I flick the switch on my own sword, but it fizzes out.  I frown and flick it again, but nothing happens.  I shake it, Please tell me this isn’t broken!   A dark tendril curls around my finger and I stare.  More dark clouds slowly move up, encircling the Illuma-Sword.  My...my powers...but I don’t have the Sai!!!   I drop the sword as the shadows start to encircle me as well.

The Grundal flinches away from the light and its pale blue eyes focus on my pocket of darkness, widening.  I stand frozen, I-  Oh no.

The monster lunges forward but suddenly I’m shoved backwards and a bright pink light enters my vision.  Cole had yanked me behind the boys.  Lloyd pulls me behind the register as the other four move forward, waving the Illuma-Swords in the Grundal’s face, forcing it to back away.

“What’s that?” he asks with wide eyes.  I open my mouth to reply that it’s the Grundal what does he think when I realize he’s looking at the shadows swirling around my hands.

The words stick in my throat and I just shake my head, not having any idea and not completely sure if I want to have one.

I look out from behind the register when I hear Jay yell in time to see him attack the Grundal and hit his sword on its face.  The sword breaks, its glow extinguished.

Kai leaps at the Grundal, trying to kill it, but his sword also bends out of shape and loses its light.  Cole hits its leg, but while his sword doesn’t break, it doesn’t do any damage either.  Zane jumps on the monster’s head and hits at it, but his sword also breaks, leaving only one working Illuma-Sword.  The team regroups and stares at the angered Grundal fearfully.

“We got a problem, guys!” Jay screams.

The Grundal claws at them and sweeps them all into the register, making Kai, Jay, and Zane drop their broken Illuma-Swords.  It comes up to them, growling and starting to open its mouth as all four scream.

I don’t realize my cousin is standing on the seat and raising it to face the Grundal until he speaks, “Not to worry, I’ll take care of this.”

“Lloyd!” all four boys yell, whether in reproach or relief I can’t even tell at this point.  Probably both.

Lloyd places his hands together and forms a ball of energy.  It glows a bright neon green and shines into the Grundal’s face, forcing it to cower back.  I blink in the sudden light and shrink back.  Wait, why am I backing away from it?  The light is safety!   I open my eyes again but choke on air when it almost blinds me, hurriedly shutting them again.  What’s happening to me?!

Then something hard slams into my chest and the Grundal roars.  My back hits into the ground and I hear someone groan, then realize it was me.  The light’s gone, so I open my eyes.  The Grundal towers over us and the downed register clear as day and I stifle a scream.

“Oh, gross!” Kai yelps nervously as the monster opens its jaws, green slobber or venom dripping from its dagger-like fangs.

“This is the end, isn’t it?” Cole’s voice quakes.

The front door is kicked open to reveal Nya and my father.

“EVERYONE OUT!” Nya shouts at the civilians trapped in the store as the boys stand up.  I shift and crawl slowly next to my cousin, trying not to attract the Grundal’s attention, and shake his shoulder.  The crowd minus Mother Doomsday runs out the door and my father holds up a jar.

“Use this!” he throws it at us.

Jay catches it, “What is it?!”

“It’ll turn forward the hands of time, turning you old and reducing the Grundal back to dust and bones!”  The boys jump back onto the fallen register in front of us as Lloyd wakes up, “But be careful, there’s no turning back!”

Jay holds up the tea, “Grundal, prepare to be extinct!”

Cole jumps in front of him, stopping him, “No, wait!”  He holds up his sword at the Grundal, “What will happen to Lloyd?”  The boys look back at us, “He’ll grow old too.”

“Just do it!” my cousin yells, his tone sure.  My eyes widen slightly as I look at him.  This can’t be happening.

“You’ll miss out on the rest of your childhood, dude!” Jay protests.

“We can’t do that to you.  It’s not fair!” Kai adds.

The Grundal roars and knocks the last Illuma-Sword out of Cole’s hand, “Oh no!”

The Grundal chomps at them, making them jump backward.  Zane and Jay land partially on top of me, stunned, Cole and Kai landing on the other side of Lloyd.  The Tomorrow’s Tea flips through the air and lands right on Lloyd’s chest.

I slowly look up to see the Grundal roar at us, sure of its victory.

“Fair?” Lloyd asks slowly.  I look at him.  His eyes narrow at the monster, “Fair isn’t a word from where I come from.”  He grabs the tea and stands up.  No non ononononononono!

“LLOYD, NO!” I scream at the same time that he throws it at the Grundal.  The jar breaks in a cloud of purple mist as the Grundal screams in pain, cringing away from us.

“He used it!” my father gasps.

The Grundal spins, still screaming, as the purple mist envelops it and us, its skin dissolving away to reveal it’s bones as Nya adds, “And it’s working!”

The Grundal returns to a skeleton, a blinding light shining from inside it.  I shield my eyes, then the bones clatter to the ground and the light fades away.  After a second, I raise my head.  The boys are standing up slowly, no longer kids.  I look down at myself and find myself relieved that I’m back to normal.  I stand up with them and remove my hood as well.

“What happened?” Cole looks around, “We’re not kids anymore.”

“It worked!” Nya cheers.

Mother Doomsday is covering his mouth, eyes bugging out of his head, “They are the real Ninja…”

I look around, but don’t see a green gi or blond head of hair, “Wh-where’s Lloyd?”

The boys look at me unsurely, then some of the Grundal’s bones move and Lloyd stands up.  I freeze, not believing my own eyes.  He’s as tall as the guys, and his hair is longer and tousled, no longer in a bowl cut.  His gi actually fits him, the pants no longer wrinkled around his legs and tabi, his unrolled sleeves actually covering his arms.

“I’m…” my cousin looks down at himself and I do a double take at his deeper voice.  I’m not sure how fast my heart is beating right now, but I might have a heart attack if it doesn’t stop.  My little cousin is suddenly a teenager and most likely older than me and this isn’t right he should’ve had a chance to be a kid .  “...older.”  The boys all look at him and each other in shock.  He looks at my father.

“The time for the Green Ninja to face his destiny has grown nearer.”

The boys walk up to Lloyd and I slowly follow, still in shock.  Lloyd glances at us, then smiles.  Even his face looks older , I realize, a pang shooting through my heart.

“I’m ready,” my...cousin looks back at my father.  It feels like this isn’t my cousin.  I know it is but my cousin was a little kid who loved pranks and candy and just wanted to be able to have fun, this is...this is a teen who looks and is acting more mature than I’ve ever seen him…

We file out of the store and start to walk back to the Bounty.  I didn’t realize Lloyd had stayed behind a minute until he runs up, stumbling slightly.  Kai looks at him and he rubs the back of his head sheepishly.  I keep watching Lloyd the whole way back to the Bounty, trying to get this overwhelming sense of this being wrong out of my head, but it doesn’t go away.

---

When we get back to the Bounty, we realize all of Lloyd’s clothes minus his gi are too small for him now, so Kai lends him a pair of his pajamas, since Lloyd is closest to him and Jay in size.  I try to avoid Lloyd as he gets used to his new body.  Too much happened today.  Way, way too much.  First the Grundal, then my powers returning and acting up, me unable to control them, then Lloyd growing older and skipping five years of his life, yes, Zane scanned him and confirmed that he’s now sixteen, a whole year older than me, which is beyond weird and creeping me out .  And now I can’t get over this feeling that something is very very wrong, and I’m starting to wonder if it’s just Lloyd or if it’s everything that’s happened or even just something I don’t know about yet.

I escape to the deck and sit on the edge of the Bounty, letting my legs dangle off the side.  My powers are swirling around me in the form of dark, pitch black shadows.  I can almost feel them brushing against my hair and making it float along with it.  How can something feel so comforting and so terrifying at the same time?  It makes no sense.  Scratch that nothing makes sense anymore.  Part of me wonders where my dad and Nya even got that magic tea that made Lloyd, little Lloyd, my cousin, skip five years of his life .  The rest of me is just freaking out over this.  I honestly don’t know how I’m supposed to respond anymore.

The hairs on the back of my neck prickle.  Someone’s watching.  I jump up and take a fighting stance.  Cole throws his hands up and backs away, “Whoa, easy there, tiger.”

“O-oh,” I lower my hands sheepishly, “Cole.”

“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you,” he looks at me carefully, “Are you feeling alright?”

“Yeah, I…” I sigh, “Just a bit overwhelmed.  None of this makes sense.”  I notice his eyes traveling to the shadows messing with my hair and spinning around my hands.  I look at the Bounty’s floorboards and turn away, sitting back down.

“Do you…” he hesitates, “Do you need some time alone?”

I look up at him, then nod, “Yeah...I just...need to get all of this straight in my head.”

Cole nods and puts a hand on my shoulder, “Alright, just, if you need anything, we’re here.”

I smile a little, “I know.”

After he goes back inside, I look back over Ninjago.  The feeling of someone watching me doesn’t fade away after he leaves, but I shrug it off as nerves.  At this point, it’s probably gonna be a while till I feel normal.

---

(???’s POV)

Something tears through me, a little window opening in my vision, clouded by shadow, but that doesn’t matter to me.  A girl sitting on the deck of a ship, wearing a purple gi, shadowy hair swaying not with the wind, but with tendrils of my power that is floating and gathering around her.

“My daughter...is ALIVE?!”

Notes:

hehehe~

Chapter 6: Wrong Place, Wrong Time

Summary:

In which we repeatedly break the laws of space and time.

(Rose’s POV)

I stand a bit behind my father, watching the boys train Lloyd.  My cousin had taken a break from training for a couple weeks to actually get used to his new size so he wouldn’t end up injuring himself in training, and when we started up again, we’d all decided after a while that I should stay on the sidelines till we can figure out what in Ninjago is going on with my powers.  I sigh slightly, feeling a little thread of darkness wrap around my wrist.  I’m not sure how I feel about them being back yet.  On the one hand, it feels nice to have something that’s a part of me back, but on the other, I can’t control it.  At all.  I’m worried I might accidentally hurt someone at some point.

“Your new body is a fighting instrument,” my father reminds Lloyd.  “Listen to it.”

Cole swings his scythe at Lloyd.  My cousin doesn’t turn around, just leaning over and kicking back, knocking the weapon and Cole away.  Jay runs at him at the same time and Lloyd straightens, grabbing hold of Jay’s nunchucks and hurling him at the wall.  Zane throws his shurikens at Lloyd and my cousin leaps into the air, spinning as the weapons pass harmlessly under him.  Well, not so harmlessly as they make their home in the watermelon Nya just walked up holding.  She stares at them for a beat, then glares at Zane dangerously.

The White Ninja gasps, horrified.  And they’re just training with weapons...man, if it was powers, I wouldn’t want to be in here.

“Since he’s grown, he’s learning faster, Sensei,” Nya comments, her glare melting into a smile.

“But will it be enough to challenge Lord Garmadon?  Only time will tell,” Father turns back to the boys.

Kai edges his katana out of its sheath slightly.  Lloyd’s head whips around and Kai pulls it the rest of the way out, pointing it at him.  Lloyd faces Kai just as the Red Ninja lunges forward.  The blond catches the blade’s tip in his hands, straining to keep it at bay.  His brow furrows and a small ball of green energy begins growing in his hands and around the katana’s tip as the pair push against the weapon between them.  I shade my eyes against the light, painfully aware that I’m the only one doing so.

A smirk slips onto Kai’s face a half second before he suddenly steps to the side and pulls the katana away.  Lloyd tumbles forward and lands on the ground, panting.

Kai laughs, walking forward and giving him a hand, “You’re getting pretty good, but that move you fell for was basic one o one.”

“Yeah,” Lloyd grimaces, “if I had focused more when I was little, I would’ve seen that coming.”  My heart throbs at the phrase ‘when I was little’.  When you were little was two weeks ago!   I swallow and look down.  How is he so used to this already?  There’s...no way.   I glance at the picture on the wall.  It shows all of us minus Nya and Father grouped around Lloyd after he started training as the Green Ninja, and before the Tomorrow’s Tea turned him older.

“We cannot change the past, but we can improve for the future,” Father tells my cousin.  “Again.  And this time, do not hold back.”  That was holding back ?!?!

---

Zane runs into the bridge, the falcon on his arm.  “The Falcon has returned with troubling news.”  He quickly opens the panel on the bird’s chest and takes out a chip, then plugs it into the main computer, “What did you see, my mechanical-feathered friend?”

The screen flickers to life and shows Ouroboros, then zooms in to reveal the Serpentine training in the center of the Serpentine city.

“The Lost City of Ouroboros!” Nya gasps.

“Garmadon has returned to the Serpentine home base,” Kai frowns, “but why?”

Cole steps forward, brow furrowing in concern, “Looks like they’re preparing for a final battle.”  The words send a chill through my spine.  Please tell me the Final Battle isn’t already beginning…

“Nya, change course,” Father orders, “We’ll head straight for them.”

She runs and turns the Bounty around, setting its destination to Ouroboros.

We all run to prepare, getting our weapons ready, a couple of us training.

I go in my room and open my wardrobe.  I bend down and pull out a box.  Removing the lid reveals a pair of silver colored sai.  They were the first pair I’d ever owned, but I haven’t used them in years.  The cloth wrapped around their handles is black and purple, and there are little glyphs engraved on their prongs.  I run my hand along it, able to feel the coolness of the metal even through my gloves.  A wisp of darkness jumps from my finger to the sai before it evaporates.  I sigh heavily.

“Ro?”  I look up.  Cole’s standing in the door, his scythe strapped to his back firmly.  “We’re almost there.”

I look out the window, at the darkened sky.  “Alright.”  My hair lifts from my neck slightly, the darkness weaving through and around it.  I shake my head and pick up one of the sai.  My hand is engulfed in a purplish-black substance and it spreads over the sai, turning it dulling its colors into grays.

I pale and drop it with a clatter, stepping back.  Cole puts a hand on my shoulder, “Rose?  What is it?”

I stare at the sai for a minute.  Then I shake my head and breathe nervously, “N-nothing.  Just...my powers keep acting up and…” I bite my lip, “What if something happens?  I can’t control them and...well...it scares me.”

Cole rubs my shoulder reassuringly, “Hey, you’re one of our best.  Maybe your powers are acting weird, but you’ll push past that.  I know you will.”

I smile at him waveringly.  Cole gives me a smile as well before he leaves to join the others.  I bend down and pick up the corrupted sai, and the uncorrupted one as well.  Holding them next to each other makes the contrast even more clear.  I breathe.  I shift the corrupted sai in the hand with the evil substance emanating from it.  Just...be careful not to touch anything with that...Right.

I grip the corrupted sai tightly, putting the other in the holder on my back and walking out.  I join the team on the deck a moment before the Bounty stops.  Nya drops the anchor into the sand.  We all climb down the chain.  God, please help us stop Garmadon again.  Please.  Something tells me we’re really going to need you on this one.   Maybe it’s just nerves, but Cole’s comment earlier about a final battle keeps echoing in my head.

We all skirt across the sand, reaching Ouroboros without any sign of someone noticing our presence.  We weave through the city till we reach the center and wait.

Father appears in front of my uncle and double in a burst of Spinjitzu, “Ninja, go!”

“Oh, brother!” Uncle growls, glaring at him.

“It’s time we finished this,” Father declares levelly.  All of us minus Lloyd leap out of hiding and take stances around him.

“Bring it on, fools!” my uncle grasps the Megaweapon.  Behind him, Bizarro Rose pulls out her own sai and takes a stance mirroring my own.  Deja vu.

Lloyd yells, jumping in front of us and freezing the Megaweapon in one smooth motion.  Uncle Garmadon growls, looking at it, then raises his glare to the person who did it.  Shock flickers over his black face as he takes a sharp breath, “Lloyd?  Is that you?”

“Yeah,” my cousin replies, “I’ve grown a little since the last time you saw me, Dad.”  I grimace and shake off the sense of wrong, trying to focus and raising my sai again.

My uncle steps back, shaking his head and visibly struggling.  He looks at the Serpentine, “Stop him!”  They look at each other as the Dark Lord turns and flees into a chamber.

“You heard him!  Keep them busy !” my double barks, going after him with a shout of, “Master!”  It’s barely a fight against the Serpentine now we’ve battled them so many times, and we quickly run after him.

Nya kicks the door open and we run in.  The sight of a white glowing spinning vortex alerts us to the fact that: “He used the Mega Weapon again!” Cole grumbles.  I cover my eyes, squinting at the light.  It shouldn’t even be that bright to me, the others are hardly bothered.

“Oh swell!” Jay throws his arms in the air, “Every time he uses that thing, something bad happens!  Now what?!”  As if in answer to his question the ground begins rumbling.  I stumble around as dust rises from the ground and sand pours into the room.

“What’s going on?” Kai asks nervously.

“Is the city sinking?” Jay’s eyes widen.

“Worse,” Zane breathes, “The city’s returning back into the desert, as if it had never been found in the first place.”

“Uh, what?  What does that mean?” Kai frowns.

“What’s happening?!” Nya cries as the sand reaches up to our waists.  I can barely keep my feet, much less walk.

“Garmadon’s gone back in time to make it so Lloyd never turns into the Green Ninja!” Zane yells.

“He what ?!” I yelp, whipping my head around to stare at my cousin fearfully.

He looks at his hands, blinking slowly as if he can’t think straight, “I can’t...I can’t feel my hands.”  He looks up at me.  This is bad this is very very bad.

Kai grunts as the situation’s gravity sinks into us all, “We have to go in!”  I don’t like where this is going but I don’t think I have a choice anymore…   I grip my sai tightly, pushing up from the sand somewhat so I can move more freely.

“If he changes anything, he changes everything!” Father warns.  “Protect the future, Ninja!”

We all lunge forward into the portal.  I squeeze my eyes shut, the light blinding as the boys yell.  Air, or something like it, brushes past me, the sensation of falling disturbingly sharp.  I have decided I do not like time travel.

Suddenly wind whips against the part of my face not covered by my mask.  Then I hit the ground.  If you can call extremely muddy liquid ground .  I slip, pitching forward, and catch myself with my hands before I faceplant into it.

The boys straighten, mud splattered on their gis.  I sigh heavily and stand up, looking at my own mud-covered gi.  Jay sighs, “Remind me to pack a helmet next time we time travel.”

“I hope there won’t be a next time,” I try to scrape the mud off my sai.

“Where are we?” Cole asks, looking around at the surrounding hills and rice fields.

Zane shakes his head, “You mean when are we?”

I turn in a circle, scanning the area, then shake my head, “I don’t know.”

“Four Weapons…” Kai mumbles.

“What?” I look at him in concern, “You okay there?”

He rolls his eyes and points up the nearest hill, where a little shop stands, “No.   Four Weapons.  My parents’ shop.  Nya and I used to work there.”  Oh.   “Hey, wait a minute...this is the day Garmadon ordered the skeletons to take my sister.  W-we need to warn them-!”

“Whoa, whoa!” Cole waves his hands, cutting the Red Ninja off.  “You heard what Sensei said: We change anything, we change everything.”

“Yeah, I was confused by that too…” Jay remarks.

“What he means is, our world is the result of past events that have already happened.  If for whatever reason events in our past fail to happen, then the future could radically change,” Zane explains.

I nod, stepping forward and putting my hand on Kai’s shoulder, “As much as I wish I could change some things in the past...it’s better left alone.  Even the tiniest of mistakes that you could’ve changed...they can snowball into huge things in the future.  We’re here to keep the past from getting changed, not to change it more.”

“Uh, so what you’re saying is we gotta stop Garmadon from changing anything?” Jay raises his eyebrows.  “But of all times, why did we land here?”

Kai turns to us, his brows furrowed, “Cause this is where it all started.  The day I met Sensei Wu for the first time and I began my training as a Ninja.  Somehow, Garmadon is gonna try to prevent that, but how?”

After a second of unsure silence from us all, Cole sighs heavily, “If only Sensei were here to guide us.”

Jay starts, then points at the path leading to Four Weapons excitedly, “Oh look, there he is!  Maybe we can!”  I turn to see the past version of my father walking on it up to the blacksmith.  Uh, haha, no.

“We gotta tell him what Garmadon has done,” Cole declares with a frown.  Wait what?

“But we can’t let the old Kai and Nya see that we talked to him, or else it will affect the future,” Zane reasons.

I cut in, “Uh, guys , if we talk to him in the first place then the future will be affected anyway!”

“Hmm…” Kai turns back to the shop, deep in thought.  Suddenly he looks up at us, “I know exactly what to do!”

They nod and the four start running up the hill, hiding behind the rocks scattered up it, “Wait-  Guys-!  N-”  I groan and quickly race after them, sheathing my somewhat clean sai.

They get behind the shop just as I hear my father’s voice saying, “Ha!  Too bad.  Thought I’d find something special here.”

Kai waits a second, then suddenly bursts out of our hiding place.  “Kai!” I try to grab him back but he’s already wrapped his arm around my dad and covered his mouth to keep him from yelling.

“Sensei, we need your help,” he drags him behind the shop.  I groan loudly and bury my face in my hands.

“Whoa whoa whoa!  Wait a minute!” Jay removes his mask, and we all do the same.  “If we’re trying to stop Garmadon from changing anything, wouldn’t talking to Sensei kind of be like altering the past, thus changing our future?”

“That would be correct,” Zane states.  “I believe a big ‘uh oh’ is in order.”  YEAH NO KIDDING-

“THAT’S WHAT I’VE BEEN TRYING TO SAY!” I burst out exasperatedly.  “You guys never listen to me!”

“Uh…” my past father looks around at us in a bewildered daze.

“Well, we can’t undo what we’ve already done.  Sensei, we really need your help,” Kai tells him insistently.

Past Father stares at us in shock, “All five of you...you...you…” he trails off, still staring at us, but at me the most.  Which kinda makes sense cause last he checked I was planning on pretending to be a boy and well...at the moment…

“Traveled back in time to warn you of impending doom?” Cole offers when he doesn’t finish his sentence.  I elbow him sharply, producing a pained yelp from him and a glare, “What was that for?”

“Way to be blunt, Cole…” I deadpan, looking at him.

Kai shakes his head impatiently, “Yeah, but we don’t have time to explain,” he turns back to Past Father.  Wow I really need to figure out what to call him , “Can you help us?”

“I don’t understand…” Past Father turns to face us properly, “but I can try.”

“Okay,” Kai puts a hand on his shoulder, “Any moment now, the skeletons are going to attack and we think Garmadon may try to hurt me-”  He pauses then clarifies, “I-I mean the past me.”

“Garmadon?” my father’s eyes widen.

“It’s a long story,” I tell him.  “One we don’t really have the time for.”

“Did you just make a pun-”

I step on Jay’s foot, “Not now .”

“Owow, okay okay…” he grumbles, wincing.

“We have to do everything in our power to protect my past self,” Kai frowns.  A moment later the sky darkens as bluish black clouds race across it.  A bunch of skeleton-like vehicles jump up a hill past the rice fields.

My past father starts to walk forward but Kai puts an arm out to stop him, shaking his head.  Not yet, got it.

“ATTACK!” Samukai yells.  The ground trembles as the vehicles roar down the hill and toward the little village.  He pulls out all four daggers and grins at the villagers, “Boo!”

They scream and scatter as the vehicles thunder past.

Kai-  I mean, the past Kai, not our Kai Oh goodness this is getting so confusing- approaches the Skulkin wearing armor and holding a sword.  We watch as he fights them.  Not gonna lie, he’s a lot better now, but even without his training, in the past apparently he was good enough to hold off several of the Skulkin.  Not like they’re hard to fight anyway…

“Well, can we help or not?” Kai-  Present Kai...turns to my past father.

Past Father blinks uncertainly, “Don’t look at me.  I’m wise but not that wise.”

“Uh, technically, since the past has already been altered, I don’t see why we can’t fight a few skeletons,” Zane reasons.  “Just as long as your former self never sees you.”

“Ha, you made my day, Zane,” Cole comments, probably grinning.

I frown, “But-”

“I miss beating these guys up,” Jay pulls out his nunchucks, facing some skeletons approaching us from behind the shop.

“Will you just-” I start.

Jay leaps towards the skeletons and kicks them off balance before whirling into Spinjitzu, “Ninja, GO!!!”  He stops, successfully having taken them out, and laughs.

“Why won’t you ever listen to me…?” I mumble, annoyed.

“Watch for when Samukai throws his daggers.  And don’t forget to save me,” Kai says quickly.

“Huh?” my past father blinks and looks at me.  I just shrug.

“Uh, it’ll all make sense when it happens,” Kai looks back at the fight that happened in the past.

I see Nya skirt around the skeletons surrounding past Kai and knock a couple away.

“I thought I told you to stay back!” past Kai gasps.

“And what?  Let you have all the fun?” Nya inquires, continuing to fight.  Yep, that’s definitely Nya.

Past Kai faces off with Samukai, but the general pulls out his four daggers and chuckles darkly.  Past Kai takes a step back, “Oops…”  Oops indeed.   Samukai strikes at him several times and he parries, but then Samukai traps his sword in his own four daggers and throws it out of his grasp, kicking the boy down.  He approaches past Kai, starting to spin his daggers.

“Sensei!” our Kai hisses fearfully.

“I’m on it,” my past father nods and rushes out of hiding, whirling into his golden tornado.  “Ninja, go!”  He knocks Samukai away from past Kai.

Samukai shakes his head dizzily and glares at past Father, “Sensei Wu, your Spinjitzu looks rusty.”

“Nothing like bone to sharpen its edge, Samukai,” my father retorts.

Samukai glances at past Kai, then chuckles and throws all four of his daggers at my past father with a yell.  Oh so that’s what Kai was talking about-

My past father dodges, leaving the daggers to embed themselves in the leg of a nearby water towe-  oh.  It collapses in past Kai’s direction, the boy unable to get out of the way in time.

“Oh no,” he grunts, trying to move backward.

“Ninja, go!” my past father uses his Spinjitzu to push past Kai out of the way and to safety.  Next to me, Kai relaxes, releasing a tiny breath.

“Lord Garmadon says take the girl!” Samukai shouts, leaping onto the main truck.  The bony hand on its back launches off and misses Nya- Wait-  Is that right?

“Fools, you missed!  Retreat!”  UH YEAH PRETTY SURE THAT’S WRONG-

Kai tenses up all over again, confirming my suspicions.  “That...that wasn’t supposed to happen was it?” I whisper.  The only response is a tiny shake of his head.

Behind the fallen watertower, past Kai and Nya hug in relief.

On the flip side, with us, Kai shakes his head, eyebrows drawn together in worry, “Oh...this isn’t good.”  The boys exchange confused glances.

“Why?  We saved you and your sister,” my past father tilts his head.

“No, the skeletons were supposed to get away with Nya,” he tries to explain and groans.  “The only reason you convinced me to become a Ninja in the first place was to get her back .”

“Oh, I see…” my past father frowns slightly, nodding.

Zane finally understands the gravity of the situation, “Sensei, no matter what, you need to convince Kai to go with you.”

“Why?” Jay asks obliviously.  I kinda want to smack your head right now, Jay…

“Because if Kai doesn't become a Ninja, the world as we know it won’t exist.  The five of us will never unite.  We’ll never train Lloyd to become the Green Ninja.  And Nya will never fall head-over-heels for Jay.”

I don’t understand why he had to add the last part until a split second after when Jay gasps, turning white, and grabs my past father’s arm, shaking him violently, “NO MATTER WHAT, YOU NEED TO CONVINCE HIM TO GO WITH YOU!”  I want to laugh so badly-

My past father stares at him blankly, “Uh-”

Footsteps approach the water tower and he covers his mouth, eyes widening.  My past father quickly points to the top of the fallen watertower and we jump up and behind it, peeking over the top as past Kai appears.

“Thank you for your help,” he smiles at my past father, “If it wasn’t for your Twistitzu or your Tornadzu-” we all start, then simultaneously glare at Kai, who grins awkwardly and rubs the back of his head nervously, “my sister might have been taken.”

“Spinjitzu,” past Father corrects him, “Uh, come, we must train.  You must become a Ninja.”  Oh goodness this is so hard to watch.

Past Kai laughs, “Sorry, but I got a blacksmith shop to help get back on its feet-” Nonononononono- “so I-”

“No!” my past father bursts, then awkwardly amends, “You must come.  It is very important that you become a Ninja.”  Yeah, a lot more important than you know…   “Because, uh…” he pauses, then quickly continues, “we must harness the fire within you.”  Past Kai frowns uncertainly.  Oh come on, this is really not how things should be going…

“Hold on, Kai,” Nya interrupts, walking up to him, “Maybe there’s a reason this man came into our lives.  Father always said the world works in mysterious ways.”  Father...they’ve never mentioned anything about their father…   “I think it sounds kind of exciting!”  Yes, convince your brother, Nya, pleeeeeaaaasssseeee!

Past Kai releases a slight laugh, “Okay, if you wanna become a Ninja, fine by me.”  Oh thank goodness.   “But I’m only going cause you want to.”  Well great.

“Oh great.  He’s going.  We saved the future!” Jay cheers quietly.

“Not so fast,” Zane shakes his head, “We still have to make sure he becomes a Ninja in order for everything to get back on track.”

“Yeah, no kidding…” I sigh, then turn to Kai and slap the back of his head, “But seriously, Twistitzu ?!”

He laughs nervously, “Um...sorry?”

---

(Bizarro Rose‘s POV)

“Do you see two trees or one?” a skeleton asks, pointing at a pair coming up ahead.  I growl under my breath, Boneheads.  They’re even worse than the Serpentine.

“Two, you imbecile!” his companion snaps, just as annoyed.

“Stop fooling around!” Samukai growls at them, “We failed our mission and now Lord Garmadon is really going to let us have it.”

“Well, I just wanted to know if I was seeing double,” the first Skulkin protests, “I thought I saw the same Ninja twice back there.”  I pause.  What .

“Double?” my master hisses under his breath, coming to the same realization, “So the Ninja followed us here and they think they can stop me?  They are as annoying as they are troublesome.”  Behind his Skulkin mask a dark smile spreads across his face, “Well, two can play at this game.”

“If I may ask, Master, what are you planning?” I venture quietly.

“We’ll just have to get some help from an old...friend,” he chuckles, turning back to the road ahead with gleaming red eyes.

I do the same, We must succeed.

---

(Rose‘s POV)

We followed my past father, Kai, and Nya back to the Monastery, which is honestly really nice to see intact again, even if it's just in the past.  So the good news was we got Kai to go with my father.  The bad news…?  He is not interested in training at all .  Nya is doing great, I’m more and more impressed with my friend as she trains.  But her brother…….not so much.  Past him lazily punches a bag, making it swing.

My past father walks up behind him, “You must harness the fire deep within you, Kai.”

Past Kai turns to him, but when he’s distracted, the punching bag swings back and hits him, knocking him down.  “Ow!”  He rubs his head, standing up with a bored expression and starts wandering away, “Yeah, yeah, yeah…”

Present Kai looks desperately ready to hit his head on everything in sight, “Oooooh, I’m worthless!”

“Yep,” I agree wholeheartedly, watching as past Kai walks away from my past father.  Kai groans again, hiding his face.

“It’s like you don’t even want to be a Ninja,” Jay says dumbfoundedly.

“Look, I told you the only reason I became a Ninja was to rescue my sister,” Kai looks at us, brows drawn together.

“If Kai doesn’t learn to be a Ninja, our future will be destroyed,” Zane states in worry.

“Ugh,” my boyfriend grumbles as past Father whacks past Kai’s head, “Even when Garmadon does something good, it’s always evil!”

“And you’re realizing this now ?” I turn to raise my eyebrow at him.

Cole just shakes his head, watching past Kai slump against the poles, completely ignoring my past father, “Sensei ain’t cutting the mustard...Guess it’s up to us to get things back on track.”

“I thought you said not to get involved,” Jay protests.  “‘Change anything, change everything’?”

“ Now you listen to me?” I exclaim in a hissing whisper.  “ After it’s too late for that?!?!”

Cole sighs, “That was before Garmadon altered the past and changed the future.  Now we gotta clean up the mess.”

“He’s right,” Zane nods firmly.  “The only way to save our future is for Kai to find his fire.”

“But-  What are you trying to say, Zane?” Jay blinks.

“I’m saying we have to give Kai his motivation back.”  Past Father knocks past Kai on the head again.  “We have to kidnap Nya and deliver her into the hands of the skeletons.”

Kai sighs heavily, looking at his sister, then at his past self, “If that’s what it takes.”

“I think it is but wow, I can’t believe we’re doing this…” I breathe, rubbing my eyes.

Kai thinks for a second, watching his past self ‘train’, past Father poking at his feet with his staff, “Okay, but if it’s alright with you guys, I got an idea on how I could talk some sense into myself.”

“Oh great here we go again…” I groan.

---

“Okay, this plan is gonna work, it has to,” I say, then look at the boys sternly, “b ut there’s a catch here…”

“What?” Cole asks obliviously.

I give him a deadpan look, “I’ve lived in this Monastery my entire life before it burned down, Cole.”

All four of the boys still give me blank stares.

I sigh heavily, “ Me .  I’m the catch, guys.  My past self is here.”

“But we never saw you when we were training,” Jay blinks.

“That’s cause I stayed out of your way.  What, did you think I camped outside the entire time?”  I shake my head, “No, I was still here.  If past me catches you guys, I won’t hesitate to knock you out.  And by I, I mean her.”

They look at each other, “Oh yeah…”

I sigh, “Alright, look, I’ll show you guys how to sneak into Nya’s room, and Kai how to get to his behind the walls.  But past me also knows about those ways, so you’re all going to have to be quieter than a falling snowflake .  While you guys are doing that, I’ll keep an eye on her and warn you if she gets suspicious.  Or maybe knock her out, but I’d prefer not messing with the past any more than we absolutely have to so please don’t do anything to alert past me,” I beg.

“Got it.  We’ll just be quiet,” Cole breathes out.

“Alright…” I sigh, rubbing my forehead.  “Come on.”

Cole hands me a skeleton mask, “Here.  I know we all know they’re horrible disguises, but they’re the best we got.  And if your past self does accidentally see you, maybe it’ll confuse her long enough for you to get away before she can recognize you.”

“For once you make a good point,” I comment, taking it.  “Thanks.”

“Uh……” he blinks slowly, confused.

“I’m kidding, boulder brain, now you guys need to get moving,” I roll my eyes.  “Go along the top of the roof till you’re just over her room.  We’re lucky she got that one cause there’s a little trapdoor hidden in the shingles there.  The latch is the loose one three up from the edge, it looks a bit redder than the rest, but not much, so you’ll have to be careful not to miss it in the dark.  Drop onto the rafters from there once you open it and close it behind you quickly but quietly.  A draft might wake Nya up or catch past me’s attention.”

“Um, why do we go on the rafters?” Jay asks slowly.

“ Because Jay, then it’ll be quieter than dropping the extra height straight to the floor right from the start.”

“Oh…”

“You can drop to the floor afterwards, but remember, don’t make a sound .  You’re going to have to do this fast though, because even if you’re super quiet, Nya probably won’t be if she wakes up.  Me and Kai will keep our past selves busy and distracted as long as possible but you’re going to have to be careful.”

“We will be, thanks,” they all nod and take off for the roof.

I turn to Kai, “Come on.”

“Okay…” he blows out, “Lead the way.”  The two of us slip inside the Monastery.  I lead him inside what will be the game room in the future before the fire, then swing up to the rafters, motioning for him to follow.  He copies my movements, and we slip through the roofing till we reach outside past Kai’s room.  I motion my head at the gap between the walls, and he nods, then quietly hops down.  I quickly slip through the Monastery till I reach my past self’s room.  Sure enough, I see myself just finished putting on the black gi- Oh.  Oh no.  This is the day that Cole, Jay, and Zane came for Kai’s final test-  Ohononononononononononono that’s bad that’s very very bad.   I faintly catch Kai’s, not sure which’s, voice talking.  My past self seems to hear as well and sighs, shaking her head.

She tucks her black hair back and pulls the gi’s mask over her face, mumbling, “I really do not get how Father thinks he’s the Master of Fire…”  I grimace slightly.

Then I tense.  Nya’s voice, above us on the roof, is yelling, muffled, but all too obvious, “Unhand me, skeletons!”

Past me straightens abruptly and looks up.  Oh dear.   Jay replies indistinctly.

“How’d you know my name?!  Oh, when my brother finds out about this, you’ll be sorry!!”

Zane says something about ‘company’.  Oh great this is the exact time their past selves showed up.   Past me dashes for the door.  I quickly follow, leaping down and pulling my mask over my face.  The current of air from my movement alerts past me and she whirls, lashing out with her fist.  I expected it from myself though (I mean, when you’re fighting yourself you know what you’re gonna do), and catch her fist, then tighten my grip on it, grabbing her arm with my other hand, and hurl past me into the wall.  She slips and falls on the ground with a gasp.

Sounds of fighting float in from outside.  Past me flips back up and kicks me down the hall.  I land next to the door and can see outside.  Jay is fighting his past self in the courtyard until said past Jay jumps up to the roof.  Past me charges, unsheathing her sai.  I remove my own and catch her thrust between the prongs in the corrupted sai.  What I can see of my past face pales as she looks at it.  Oh.  Oh no.  I just-  that was a bad move I admit-

I quickly push her back and take a stance, painfully aware of how the shadows bend toward me.

“Kai, HEEEELP!” past Nya screams.

Kai’s voice, “Nya!”

“HEEEEELP!”

Past me looks up, then starts for the door.  I lunge, grabbing her from behind and jumping backwards.  She slips out of my grasp and turns to bring her sai on my head.  I catch her wrists and strain against her.  She jerks backward, dropping her sai, and runs out to the courtyard.  No, wait-!

A shadow curls around her foot, freezing her to the ground.  She stares at it, then at me, eyes widening in confusion and fear.  Sorry, past me, don’t know how my powers work anymore, didn’t want to traumatize you but…

I run out and tackle her to the ground at the same time that our Kai races out, pulling on a Skulkin mask and catching Nya as she falls off the roof, “Oh, why does time travel have to be so complicated?” he gasps.

A flicker of shock passes through past me’s eyes.  Aaaaaaand our cover’s blown isn’t it-

I push her to the side as Kai calls out, “Guys, uh-” he deepens his voice, “let’s get out of here!”

I look up, catching the boys’ eyes.  We all simultaneously use Spinjitzu, the past guys’ falling off the roof into the courtyard, and past me knocked into the training course.

I flip up to the roof and we all hide as past Father runs out and past Kai appears, wearing a panicked expression.  “That could’ve gone better,” I breathe, wide-eyed.

“Agreed,” Zane nods.

“They took Nya!” past Father gasps.

Past Kai whirls, staring at him in horror, “Huh?  They took my sister?  NOOOOO!”

I put my chin in my hands, “Aaaaaaand he’s back.”

The boys muffle relieved laughs.  Our past selves stand up, looking at each other.

Past Father places a hand on past Kai’s shoulder, “We’ll get your sister back.”  He raises his head and sends us a small nod.  Our Kai pulls off his skeleton mask, wearing a relieved smile, and returns it.  We push up our own as past Father gestures to our past selves, who remove their masks minus me, “But first, I want you to meet your team.”

The guys smile, recalling when we’d all met in our own memories.  I grimace slightly though, recalling my very untrusting nature back then.  Now?  I don’t even know anymore...

Kai looks at us with his signature smirk, “Looks like the fire returned.”  We leave the Monastery and make our way down the steps at a running pace.

An idea smacks me in the face so hard I gasp.  Cole looks at me, “What?  What is it?”

“I know what to call our past selves!” I cheer.

“Wow, Rose…” he raises his eyebrows, laughing.

“So what is this stroke of genius?” Kai asks sarcastically.  I whack the back of his head.  “Owww….stop doing that!”

“No.  Anyway, from now on, I’m abbreviating the term past and your names!” I declare, “Like...instead of past Nya I say PN.  PK, PC, PJ-”

“Why am I PJ?!” Jay yelps, mortified.

“Because that’s what the first letters of past and Jay spell, Jay ,” I deadpan.

“Yeah but that makes me sound like I’m pajamas!”

“Even better,” I send him a teasing look.

He recoils in fear, “Who are you and what have you done with Rose?”  We all burst into laughter.

---

Once we get down the mountains and to the forests we take to the trees, leaping between them to quicken the pace.

“All we gotta do to get everything back on track is to deliver Nya to the skeletons,” Cole states, relief underlying his voice.

“I have to admit, I can’t wait till all this time traveling is over,” I groan.  “It’s so confusing.”

“Yeah, no kidding,” Jay agrees.

“Probably one of the most complicated missions we’ve had,” Kai sighs.  “Just really hope we don’t fail this one.  Otherwise none of those will ever happen.”

“Yeah…” I frown, landing on another thick branch.  Though now I’m also wondering...when this is all over, how do we get back?

The sound of harsh laughter floats to my ears from up ahead.  The boys stop and gaze down through the branches and trunks at the red glow from fire and the almost indiscernible sight of smoke curling up from it, blending into the night.  We all fall silent and climb closer until we’re right outside the ring of their camp.

Most of the Skulkin are laughing around the fire.  Samukai strides up to Kruncha and hits him, making his head literally spin around till it's looking at him, “Hey!”

“This is no time to celebrate,” Samukai growls, “we didn’t get the girl.  How would you like to go back to the Underworld to tell Lord Garmadon that we failed?”

Kruncha stands up and walks away, grumbling mockingly, “‘How would you like to tell Lord Garmadon that we failed?’  Mimimimi.”  He sits down under the trees we’re in.

Kai looks at us, then down at the skeleton and drops Nya into his lap.  Nya screams a bit during the drop.  Kruncha starts, staring at the bag with wide eyes, “Huh?”  We all scatter to hide before he looks up.

Once we’re all a safe distance I give them a thumbs up, “The future’s safe.  At least for now.”

“Wait, for now?!” Jay whines.  “I thought we were done now!”

“I wish,” I shake my head, “but as soon as my uncle realizes that the future’s been put back in order, he’ll try something else.  That much I know for certain.”

Cole sighs, “Yeah, I wish you weren’t right about that but…”

“Same,” I shake my head.  “Come on.  We should catch up with past us.”

---

(Bizarro Rose‘s POV)

As soon as we get to the Underworld, Lord Garmadon and I slip away and remove our masks.

“Follow me,” he hisses, and leads the way through the Underworld till we approach a throne room.

Samukai’s rasping voice sounds through the caverns as we near it, “Master, we have the girl.”

My master’s voice, but darker and more echoey, responds, “Good.”  A low chuckle follows.  Lord Garmadon steps behind a pillar as Samukai leaves the throne room.  As soon as Samukai is gone, he steps out from behind the pillar, motioning with one of his four hands for me to follow, and approaches the middle of the room.

A giant shadow looms overhead, red eyes narrowing at us as the past version of my master shouts, “What is the meaning of this?!”

“It is I, your future self!” my master declares.

“How can it be?” the shadow breathes.  I stare up at him.

“I know you are searching for the Golden Weapons, and it is because of them that I have gone back in time and stand before you now,” my master tells him, walking over a bony bridge.  I follow more carefully, unaccustomed to this place.

“I don’t understand…” the shadow looks between me and my master.  “You have...uh, I have four arms.  And…” he gestures to me.

“Yes,” my master grins darkly, “and I need your help to get rid of the Ninja once and for all.  Listen carefully.”  The shadow of my master bends down and he whispers something I don’t catch.

While I can’t see it, I can imagine a slow smirk spreading over the shadow’s face as it straightens up, “That is truly evil.”  They both begin to laugh evilly, the laughter echoing through the Underworld ominously.  I smirk, The Ninja won’t know what hit them.

---

(Past Rose's POV)

I hang back while we walk through the Forest of Tranquility, looking for a good place to set up camp.  While the boys chatter I look around the place on high alert.  Ever since those weird...I highly doubt they were skeletons at this point, but I’m still not completely sure who they were (ignoring the one had Dark Matter and shadow powers like me which was more than not okay or normal)...anyway that’s off my train of thought, ever since they kidnapped Nya and we set out for the Golden Weapons, I’ve had the feeling that we’re being followed.  I mentioned it to the guys once, they shrugged it off as nerves cause of the Skulkin, several times to my father, he seemed unconcerned.  But I’m sure that someone is stalking us, and I am determined to catch whoever it is.

I walk right into Zane, making him stumble forward, “Oh, sorry, Zane.”

“It is quite alright, Roan,” he assures me, straightening.  I look around to see the others beginning to set up camp.  Zane joins them.

I start to walk over as well when a sound arrests my attention.  Indistinct voices a little distance through the trees and bushes.

I silently move away from the camp and crouch behind a bush, unsheathing my sai.

“Ugh, why are we still here?” someone’s whining.  “I thought everything is back on track.”

“Yeah, but we have to stay and make sure all goes as planned,” someone else replies.  Their voices sound disturbingly familiar.  I move closer until I can see the backs of several people as they talk in low voices.

I step out from behind a tree and point my sai at them threateningly, “Who are you?”  They tense, then whirl around.

I blink, looking between my teammates’ startled faces, my sai faltering slightly, “Guys…?  But-  You were just…” I scan their unfamiliar gis then look back at the camp to see my actual teammates still there.  I whip my head back around and send them all a burning glare, “ Who are you ?!”

The four gulp nervously, crowding together and glancing back nervously.  As if they’re hiding something.

“I asked a question,” I stalk closer, not wavering, “ Who.  Are.  You. ”

“Look, R-Ros- Roan !”  I falter a bit at not-Cole’s slip-up.  “We’re not-  This isn’t-  We’re here to help you guys not-”

“Yeah, and what was all that about things going as planned?” I question sternly, shoving the side of a sai against his chest threateningly.  “Didn’t exactly sound friendly to me.”

“I- what-  No-” he struggles, clearly panicking.

“What he’s trying to say is-” not-Kai cuts in nervously, “-that, uh……”

“We are...fans?” not-Jay asks uncertainly.  Everyone looks at him.  “What?”

“I’m going to give you one more chance to answer me before I attack,” I give them all a level stare.  “Who’s gonna answer?”  They all exchange ‘we’re in trouble’ glances.

Suddenly someone pushes them from behind, “Okay, that’s it, everyone just STOP .”  A girl wearing a purple gi with long curly black hair pushes between not-Cole and not-Zane and looks up at me and-

I drop my sai with a dull thud.  What.  Is.  Hap...What.

I stare at myself, with my mask off, in front of the guys, in an unfamiliar purple gi, holding a corrupted sai, shadows swirling in my hair.

“I……” I trail off, unable to form a coherent sentence.  “What…but…I...”

Me…? Not-me? steps forward, holding out a hand calmly, “Don’t worry.  We’re not enemies.  We’re just-”  She sighs and shakes her head, “We’re from the future.”

“The... what …?” I breathe, still in shock.  This can’t be happening…   I gesture to me-her, “But...you….I….they...they know…?”

“They know.  Now anyway.  They didn’t used to.”  The blood drains from my face, and she hurriedly adds, “We hide it for a while, don’t worry!”  I slowly nod, looking at the boys unsurely.

Future me sighs and grasps my shoulder with her free hand, looking me in the eye, “Look, just...don’t breathe a word about us to the boys’ past selves.  Your teammates.  We came back in time to prevent our uncle from changing it to prevent-  Well, long story short, the world will be destroyed if we can’t keep things the way they were supposed to happen.”

“Nya...that was...you?”

“Yes.  She was supposed to be captured in the first place.  Just don’t worry about any of this.  Act as if none of this ever happened.  Act like you would if you didn’t know about any of this, please.  If there are any changes in the timeline,” she shares a knowing look with her team, “we’ll take care of it, okay?”

I nod slowly, “...okay.”

She breathes a sigh of relief and releases my shoulder, stepping back.  I bend down, picking up my sai, then bow to them before turning and leaving.

I hear future Jay blow out a tense breath, “I forgot how scary you can be, Rose.”  An audible slap.  “Ow.”  Is that how I’ll really be in the future…? I wonder, rejoining my team and looking around at them, Right now they still feel like...well...strangers.  Will I really ever get to the point where I can be... friends with them?

Jay says a joke I don’t really catch and Cole and Kai burst out laughing.  Zane tilts his head in confusion as Jay tries vainly to explain the joke to him.  It seems as though I’m watching through a window.  There, but not really.  I sit down on one of the logs one of them pulled up to the fire, probably Cole, deep in thought.

I look back at where I’d seen the future ninja.  They must have moved cause-  Oh wait.  Future Jay pokes his head out from behind a tree and gives me a tiny wave before slipping back out of sight.  They’re all there, just hidden and watching to make sure that the future they know is supposed to happen remains unaltered.  For some reason that makes me feel secure, even though I don’t really know any of them at all.  Though...I suppose they know me.

“Roan, you okay there?  You seem a little...distracted,” Cole’s voice breaks through my thoughts.  I look at him and the boys for a second, all watching me with some concern.

I smile a bit under my mask and shake my head, “I’m fine, thanks.”

I’m not ready yet to tell them anything much…..but maybe I don’t always have to be closed off.

---

(Rose‘s POV)

Our past selves have all gone to sleep by now, the fire burning low.  We perch in a nearby tree with my past father, keeping an eye on things.  PJ sleeps on his side with his head resting on his hand.  How he managed to fall asleep in that position, I’ll never know.

“So what exactly happens next?” my past father asks.

“Our former selves have most of the Golden Weapons.  Shadow Garmadon now should have my sister,” Kai recaps, “And in about one minute, I get woken up and tricked into taking the Sword of Fire that will eventually unleash the greatest nemesis unto Ninjago.”

PK suddenly raises his head and looks into the forest.  He stands up, then rushes into the trees, “Nya, wait up!”  We look at Kai for confirmation and he nods, so we hurriedly follow his past self at a safe distance.

We slip inside the Temple as PK approaches the Sword of Fire, looking around, and hide behind some boulders.  Kai sighs, “This is when I steal the Fire Sword and cut my sister down.  Then I get attacked by my own shadow.”

“I’m sorry, but you got what now?” I stare at him doubtfully.

He shrugs, “That’s what happened, I don’t know how it works…”

I look back at PK, then realize PN is hanging from a chain over the lava across the Temple.  She’s suddenly lowered closer and she screams slightly.

“Nya!” PK runs forward slightly, then stops, torn.

“Tick tock, tick tock…” my past uncle’s taunting voice echoes through the cavern menacingly.

Past Kai bows his head, then looks up, face set in determination, and flips over to the Sword of Fire, jumping over it and pulling it out, simultaneously bursting into Spinjitzu, “Ninja, go!”  He slices the chain holding PN and catches her in his Spinjitzu, they whirl to a stop across the Temple from us as my past uncle laughs.  PK stands and helps PN up, “Stay close.”

“Trust me,” PN’s voice trembles as she stays right behind her brother, “I’m not going anywhere.”

My past uncle’s shadow looms over them.  PK glares at him, raising the Sword of Fire defiantly, “You can’t hurt us!  You’re only a shadow!”

“This time, I’m actually much more!” 

Kai freezes up, paling, “Wait, he never said that before.  Something’s different.”  Of course it is.  It’s never that easy for us, I sigh, starting to get fed up with all this.

Something dark moves between two rocks, then I see the gold gleam and the red eyes.  Oh great.   My uncle steps out, gripping the Mega Weapon and smirking at PK.

PK takes a step back, shock written all over his face, “Garmadon?  But you’re supposed to be trapped in the Underworld.”

“Oh, there’s so much more you don’t know,” my uncle sneers.  They each take battle stances.

“Go, future me.  Destroy him!” my past uncle clenches his fist.  My uncle and PK charge at each other and clash their Weapons.

“Ugh, we have to do something,” Kai watches as Uncle Garmadon slowly begins to overpower PK, PK straining to push back.  “I don’t stand a chance against Garmadon’s four arms.”  He pauses, eyes brightening slightly, “Wait, that’s it!”

“What’s it?” I ask.  My uncle thrusts PK back and then charges at him, laughing at PK’s terrified expression.  PK deflects the blows from the Mega Weapon, stepping back.  Then my uncle charges.  PK raises the Sword and Uncle swings his Mega Weapon around and into it, knocking it clean out of his hands and into the stone next to-

“Oh ya gotta be kidding me,” I stare at Kai, who’d come out of hiding and is now looking at the Sword.  Uncle Garmadon advances on PK and PN as Kai pulls it out of the ground.  Then he jumps over the lava and lands between my uncle and PK and PN, gripping the Sword of Fire and glaring at my uncle(s?).

Past Uncle does a double take, “Two Kais?”

After the shock wears off, PK grins widely, “Yeah.”

“I guess I have four arms too,” our Kai comments.  Both Kais start working together to fight against my uncle when Zane starts forward to help as well.  There’s a snarl and my copy jumps down from the roof.

I groan and turn to Zane and Cole, “You two, help out Kai,-”

“Which one?” Cole asks, blinking.

“BOTH!” I glare at them and they quickly flip over the lava as I grab my double’s arm to keep her from following.  “Jay, you go to past me and get the other Golden Weapons, now .”

He nods and races out of the cave.

Bizarro Rose growls and tries to punch my shoulder with her free hand, “I’m not letting you stop my master!”

I catch her fist in my hand, straining, “And I’m not going to let him change the future!”

---

(Past Rose‘s POV)

Someone grabs my shoulder and I hear Jay’s voice, “Rose, Ro, ya gotta get up!”  I shoot up and lash out with my fist.  The Blue Ninja lies on the ground holding his face, “Ow….”

I do a double take and look at his gi, Future Jay.  Whoops….   “Oh, sorry, I thought...nevermind, what’s happening?”

He sits up, rubbing his eye, “We need the Golden Weapons, stat.”

“Wait, what?”

---

(Rose‘s POV)

She sweeps my feet out from under me, “Aren’t there some things you’d like changed?  If he succeeds, your powers will never go outside of your control.”  She touches a wisp of shadow floating up from my hair and curls it into her hand with a dark smile.

I straighten, glad for my mask hiding my expression, “My powers don’t matter.”

She shrugs carelessly, “Your loss, my gain, but are you sure there’s absolutely nothing?”  She begins walking backwards.

I flip over her and push her back, “I’m not letting you tip the balance.”

Ignoring my comment, she continues, lunging at me, “Wouldn’t you like your little cousin to have stayed little?”  I falter at that, giving her the chance to pull me into a chokehold, “You know you would have.”

I grimace and push my arms up over my head, ducking my head as well and turning out of her grip, thrusting her arm down, “Everything happens for a reason, no matter how much I’d like to believe otherwise.  I can’t change God’s plan, and neither can you.”

She raises her eyebrows and pulls out her sai, leaping forward.  I barely unsheathe my own in time to catch the metal in the prongs, both of us straining against each other with our sai locked together.  “If that’s the case then there must have been a reason for my master to travel back in time so that the future can be changed.”

I scoff, “Yeah, his own reasons.  If we’re playing that game, then what reason do you think the portal was open long enough for us to realize what was happening and follow him here?  Why have we been succeeding to keep the future what it is?”

She growls, red eyes darkening, and abruptly pulls back, making me pitch forward and almost into the lava.  I gasp, hitting the ground, then turn and jump back up, knocking her to the ground.

She shakes me off and flips away, landing at my uncle’s side as both versions of them laugh evilly.  I then notice the boys lying on a slab of rock with worried expressions.

“It could be possible to erase the events that have transpired so far by destroying the Mega Weapon that brought us here in the first place,” Zane says.

“You mean if we destroy that Weapon, everything goes back to normal?” Kai gasps.

“Uh, theoretically,” Zane nods.

“But nothing can destroy the Mega Weapon,” Cole groans.  “Only a Weapon of equal power has any chance of stopping it.”

I hear Jay’s laugh, “Haha, like maybe the Weapons forged to create it in the first place?”  I breathe a sigh of relief and turn to see him holding the Nunchucks of Lightning and the Scythe of Quakes.  My past self stands next to him, holding the Sai of Night and the Shurikens of Ice.  She sends me a tiny nod.

My uncle turns and sees them, “NO!”

“The Golden Weapons!” Cole gasps, standing up.

“Yeah, we thought these might come in handy,” Jay winks at me and throws the Scythe to Cole.  Past me throws the Shurikens of Ice to Zane and the Sai to me.  I sheathe mine and catch them in the air, suddenly feeling the shadows around me curl towards the Weapons in my hand, a sense of control entering my chest.

“Okay, no time to find out how you guys got these,” Kai picks up the Sword of Fire again.  “We have to destroy the Mega Weapon once and for all.”  He jumps onto a stone in the lava, pointing the Sword to the Mega Weapon, “Fire!”

“Lightning!” Jay twirls his Nunchucks again and zaps the Mega Weapon as my uncle struggles to hold onto it, gasping.

“Darkness!” I shout, channeling control of my Element through my Weapons and sending it to the Mega Weapon.

“Earth!”

“Ice!”

“No!” my uncle yells.  “What are you doing?!”

“Ninja, go!” my past father yells, thrusting his staff upward and knocking the Mega Weapon out of his hands.  It floats, shaking violently.  The Sai in my hands tug towards it.  I release them reluctantly as the ability to control my powers vanishes again.  The others let go of their Weapons and they all float up to the Mega Weapon and spin around it, light and sparks shining from them all.

With a blinding flash, the Golden Weapons disappear and the Mega Weapon shoots out of the volcano, then explodes, sending what looks to be a giant meteor shower raining down over the night sky until the sparkles dissolve.  Inside the volcano, the lava rises drastically, giant boulders coming loose and crashing down into the liquid fire.

PN fades away, PK paling as he tries to grab hold of her, “NYA!  What’s happening?!”  A second later he blinks away as well.  Then my past father.  Past me unmasks herself and smiles at me, then fades into nothing as well.  Everything darkens as a giant splash of lava fills my vision, I’m spinning, falling, then nothing.

---

Light enters my vision and suddenly I’m in the training room with the guys.  They’re holding their weapons, standing around the room.  Outside the window the sky is dark.

“Did we just...uh…” Jay trails off.

“Return to the future?” Kai questions.

“This feels familiar, but weren’t we training Lloyd?” Cole suddenly asks, panic lacing his tone.

“The future was altered, and there is no Green Ninja,” Zane pales.

“We failed…?” I breathe, putting my head in my hands.  We can’t have.  No matter how much I hate it, my cousin Lloyd is the Green Ninja and he’s the one who has to face Uncle.

Suddenly I hear panting and Lloyd runs in the room, closing the door behind him.  He’s wearing the green gi, he’s older...he’s here … I don’t think I’ve ever been so glad to see him as a teenager.  “Sorry I’m late guys.  Are we ready to get training?”  The boys break into smiles of relief.

“Ha!  You’re still here!” Kai pulls him into a hug and we all join in.

“Uh, yeah,” he laughs awkwardly, looking around at us with a confused smile.  “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“So when we went back in time and destroyed Garmadon’s Mega Weapon, that didn’t change anything?” Jay asks him.  I facepalm.  Kai picks up a watermelon lying on the ground nearby.

“My father has a Mega Weapon?” Lloyd blinks rapidly.  Wait, if the Mega Weapon was erased from time and doesn’t exist anymore, how is he still older?

“Oh, wait a minute, you’ve never heard of it?” Kai asks, throwing the watermelon in the air and cutting it into five equal slices that land in our hands.  Show off.

“I-I think I would’ve remembered that ,” Lloyd frowns, looking around at us.  “Why?  What is it?  Should I be concerned?”  We all burst out laughing.  “Hey, what are you guys laughing at?  What’s so funny?”  He takes Kai’s katana and smirks, then throws his watermelon slice in the air and rapidly cuts into it with his katana, making little chunks of watermelon fall on the ground.  When it lands in his hand it’s in the shape of a dragon.  How did he-  Oh goodness never mind you’ve been spending too much time with Kai.

Kai laughs, putting his hand on Lloyd’s shoulder, “I think some things are best left in the past.  Come on.  Let’s just prepare for the future.”  Lloyd nods.  We all share a grin, then burst out laughing.

My cousin looks around at us with a bewildered expression, “I don’t get it…”

“We know you don’t, Lloyd,” I giggle, leaning my elbow on his shoulder.  “You don’t have to.”

He gives me an awkward smile in return, “Um...okay.”

---

I walk outside, searching for my father, then catch sight of him on the top of the Bounty’s roof, over the bridge.  I climb up and sit next to him, following his gaze.  A bright, golden star seems to shine brighter than all the others.  When I smile, realizing what it is, it flickers and brightens briefly, as if acknowledging us.

“Hello, daughter,” Father smiles at me gently.

I smile back and lean into him, putting my head on his shoulder, “Hi, Father.”  I smile at the star, “We did it.”

“What?” his eyebrows lower slightly.

I just shake my head, remembering Kai’s words earlier, “Nothing, Father.  It’s in the past.  Let’s just prepare for the future.”

Chapter 7: The Stone Army

Summary:

The Ninja are called to deal with an unusual incident at the museum.
Lord Garmadon and Bizarro discover a strange island.

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

“We’re approaching the City of Ouroboros, Master,” I inform him.

Lord Garmadon nods, “Good.  Chokun!”

The Constrictai starts, then quickly turns around, “Yessss, Lord Garmadon?”

“Do you have everything?” he eyes the snake disapprovingly.

“Uh, yessss, Lord Garmadon!” Chokun stammers.  I shake my head.  The Rattlecopter lands in the Ouroboros arena and the door opens.  Chokun runs out, kicking a carpet out and holding a chair, umbrella, and what looks like some kind of drink.

“Yup.  Ready!” he yells a second later.  Lord Garmadon stands and walks out of the copter and down the carpet.  I follow him, hands clasped behind my back.

My master sits in the chair and takes his drink from Chokun, taking a sip, “Ah.  It’s so bright.”  He shades his eyes with a wince as I stand behind and to the side of him.  “I never understood how your kind could live in such heat.”

“Lord Garmadon,” Skalidor hisses, “what brings you to our humble dwelling?”

“The Ninja may have destroyed my Mega Weapon,” my master starts, “but I have an ingenious new plan.”  Skales whispers something to Skalidor.  I narrow my eyes at the pair, but stay silent.  “Earlier, when pirates mutinied our ship and locked us in the brig, Captain Soto’s journal mentioned they had been looking for a fabled dark island created out of evil itself.  Once we find it, its concentrated dark powers will help me-  I mean, us!  We could rule Ninjago together!”  I try not to let a smirk slip onto my face.  Yes...together...as if he would actually work with these bumbling idiots any longer than he had to.

“Oh, pleasssse ,” Skales rolls his eyes, “You’re having ussss chasssse after fairy talessss now?”

“Not fairy tales,” Garmadon declares, “but a real place that existed long before any of us were around.  A place full of untold power.”

“Untold power?  Count me in!” Skalidor grins widely.

“A place dripping with evil!”

“Evil.  Ssssoundssss nice!” the Constrictai General agrees.

“I’m looking for a few brave snakes.  Who’ll join me?!”

“I!” the Fangpyre, Venomari, and Constrictai all shout.  Skales just groans, but follows as we return to the Rattlecopter, Chokun packing all the stuff up and running back to the copter with them and jumping in, then making it take off.

---

(Rose’s POV)

My alarm goes off right next to my ear.  I sigh heavily and turn over, slapping the ridiculous thing on the snooze button.  Next to my room the boys’ alarm clock continues.  I stubbornly ignore it and the bumps and yelp from Jay.  Then there’s a bang and the gramophone in their room starts playing as well.  The boys groan in frustration and I slam a pillow over my ears.

Suddenly there’s a loud blast and the noise stops, minus the sound of something falling.  Oh thank the Lord, quiet…

My father’s all too cheery voice comes from the boys’ room as well as...the sound of him banging a gong.  The boys groan again.  “Ah.  Good morning, morning, morning!  Up, up!  It’s a new day, students!  Before we begin sunrise exercise, I noticed the Dragon made another mess outside.  It looks like a two-person job, hehe.”

Chaos ensues and I can hear them rushing all over the place.  There’s a knock on my door, “Get up, daughter!  Wednesday, sunrise exercise!  Up up up!”

I groan and sit up, accepting the fact that I, in fact, am not getting an extra five minutes of sleep today, “Okay, Father…”  I get up and dressed, then go searching for the guys, who had disappeared from their room.

Heading outside to the roof of the building below the Bounty, I see them by the Dragon, Lloyd wearing goggles and holding a bag that probably smells horrible up close at arm’s length.

I walk up behind them, rubbing my eyes and catching what Cole’s saying in response to what was probably Lloyd complaining.  “Hey, having a pet Dragon requires a lot of responsibility.”

“Morning, guys…” I yawn.  Cole pats my head, and I sleepily swat his hand away.

“Didn’t your mom ever let you have a pet?” Jay asks Lloyd.  That makes me snap out of my morning fog.  Oh dear.

Lloyd looks down, not meeting the boys’ eyes, “I don’t remember my mother.  She abandoned me when I was really young.”

“She just...left?” some kind of spark, memory?, flickers in Kai’s eyes as his face instantly grows full of concern, “Who took care of you?”

“I spent my whole life at Darkley’s Boarding School,” Lloyd shrugs.

Before any of us can say anything (or ask any more questions), “Hey, I have a mission for you guys!” Nya slides down the Bounty’s anchor, “It’s the Museum of Ninjago!  They’ve asked for you guys!  Something really strange has happened.”

“What?” Kai asks.

“You’re gonna have to see it to believe it,” Nya points to the Bounty.  Fully awake now, I rush past her and climb up the chain along with my team.  Sorry about leaving you with the Dragon, N.

---

As soon as we burst in the museum doors, we’re greeted by the curator, “Oh, thank heavens you’re here!”

“We heard there was an emergency?” my father questions.

“Yes, come, come.  Quickly, this way,” he ushers us down a hallway.  We walk behind him as he leads us through the museum.  “The Stone Warrior exhibit opens to the public tonight,” I blink and shake my head, Stone...Warrior…?  No.  That can’t be right… “-and this couldn’t have come at a worse time.”

“Uh, what couldn’t have come at a worse time?” Kai raises an eyebrow.

“Ninjago City appreciates your help in destroying the Great Devourer some time back,” the curator smiles briefly, but it fades at his next words, “but it appears its toxic venom has seeped into the city sewer system and has had the most unusual after-effect.”  We pass some janitors cleaning up what looks suspiciously like-

The Great Devourer’s venom.  On the floor.  Steaming.  Great.  The smell of what must be rotting things floats up from it and I choke, waving at the air in front of my nose and walking faster.  The others make equally disgusted expressions, also quickening their pace to catch up to the curator and pass the putrid stink.

“Ugh, it stinks!” Kai grumbles.

The curator opens some doors to reveal a gift shop.  Or, well, what was a gift shop and is now a playground for a bunch of teeny tiny toys?  “The toxicity in the venom somehow brought our merchandise to life!  They’re so unruly.  I just didn’t know who else to call!”

One of the toys giggles and leaps at Zane, who catches it in his fist.  Wait-  those actually look like tiny Stone Warriors- It punches him in the eye.

“Ah!” Zane hisses in pain and glares at it before crushing the lower half of the toy, making it drop its swords and tossing it on the ground.

“We’ve got this covered,” Jay walks into the room, us behind him, “I think we can handle a few toys.”

“And please, could you contain the fighting to the gift shop?” the curator requests as he starts to close the doors, “The doors to the new exhibit will be opening soon.  Thank you.”  He closes the doors.

Jay hits a few of the living toys with his nunchucks and Lloyd fights a few with a bit of difficulty, tripping and sitting down when two of the toys push over a Stone Warrior...mantelpiece? onto his head.  “Whoa!” he frowns as four of the toys jump onto him and throws them off, “Stupid little guys.”  Several hop onto my shoulders.  I punch several off and grab one, looking more closely at it.  Yeah that’s...that’s definitely an alarmingly good Stone Warrior imitation.   The figurine swings at me.  I shake my head and toss it at a wall.  A couple of the bobbleheads pour a container of marbles on the floor, making Cole and Kai slip.

Kai stands up and glares at the figurines, “Alright.  Playtime’s over.  Ninja, go!”  He uses Spinjitzu.  Of course he did.

“K-”

“Ninja, go!” Jay, Cole, and Zane do the same.

“No, wait- guy-guys-” I break off, ducking under a wayward vase.  It shatters on the wall behind me.  When I raise my head, the gift shop is already ten times more wrecked than it already was.  My father, cousin, and I share identical weary looks.

The boys finish dealing with the toys and stop their Spinjitzu.  Then they notice they caused more damage than the bobbleheads.

“Uh…” Zane blinks slowly, “oops.”

“Oops indeed,” I comment dryly.

Cole looks around the destroyed gift shop, “Um...I’m gonna take a wild guess and say that they’re not gonna be very...uh...happy with the damage.”

“Congratulations, you used a brain cell,” I clap slowly, “Now if only you four had used your brain cells before wrecking the shop, cause I’m pretty sure we can’t just glue shattered vases back together.”  The four laugh nervously.  Lloyd sighs, dragging a hand down his masked face.

Then he glances up, “Wait, where’d Uncle go?”

I look around, then notice the slightly open door, “Um...out.”

The guys minus Lloyd quickly file out of the room.  We share an annoyed glance.  Lloyd pushes up the shelf they’d crashed and I put a couple of the undamaged merchandise back in place before sighing, “Let’s catch up.”

We leave the gift shop and follow the guys, pulling off our masks.

Walking up behind them in a hallway, we catch what Jay’s saying, “-you gonna introduce us?”  Introduce…?  What does that mean?

My father clears his throat, “Uh, yes.  This is Misako-” I freeze, “Lloyd’s mother.”  The boys gasp and turn around, looking at Lloyd, whose expression is frozen in shock.

“My- my mother?” he stares at the gray-haired woman standing near Wu.  I blink, glancing between her and Lloyd, genuinely not sure what to think of these new waters.

Aunt Misako gasps at the sight of Lloyd, “Lloyd?  My little boy...You’re so much bigger than I remember.”  Yeah, no kidding, one side of my brain sarcastically remarks, while the other groans, Don’t remind me.

“Yeah, well,” Lloyd’s brow furrows as he steps away from her outstretched hand coldly, “it’s been a long time.”

“I didn’t want us to meet like this,” she frowns slightly, “I have a reason why I’ve been away.”

“Well, I don’t wanna hear it,” Lloyd snaps, then turns on his heel and stiffly walks away from her.

“Lloyd, wait!  Please!” my aunt protests, but Lloyd slams the door behind him.  She looks down, eyes dimming slightly.

I bite my lip, glancing between her and everyone else, then edge toward the door, “I’m, uh, I’m gonna see how he’s uh...doing.”  I push the door open and slip through before anyone can say anything.

---

(Bizarro Rose‘s POV)

“The Endless Sea,” Lord Garmadon lowers his spyglass with a frustrated frown, “I don’t get it.”

“It’ssss becausssse there issss no land outsssside of Ninjago.  We’ve been ssssearching all day,” Skales hisses.

“The Island must be out there,” my master declares, “We’ll do another lap.”  The Generals whisper together as he turns to the front of the copter.  I narrow my eyes at them, What are you up to…?

“Turn around,” Lord Garmadon orders Snike, the pilot, “We need to find the Island today!”

“Yessss, Lord Garmadon.”  The Rattlecopter turns around and begins circling the outside of Ninjago again.

“Ooh, there!” Skales points excitedly.  A little too excitedly for someone who doesn’t even want to be here.  “Issss that the Issssland?”

“Where?” my master looks where he pointed and holds up the spyglass to his eye.  Before I can react, Skales shoves him out of the copter and Lord Garmadon screams.

“MASTER!” I want to send the Generals a few well-aimed hits or even just a glare, but there isn’t any time for that.  I dive out of the copter and into the ocean.

I close my eyes just before hitting it, then open them underwater.  The saltwater stings them and for a second, everything is too blurry to make out.  But then my vision clears and I spot Lord Garmadon a little away, unconscious.  I swim over to him and pull him to the surface, where I pull one of his four arms across my shoulders to keep him afloat while I tread water.  I send the briefest of glares after the retreating Rattlecopter, then look around.  There’s no land in sight.

---

(Rose‘s POV)

I follow Lloyd into one of the exhibit rooms.  He sits past some ribbon barriers and at the edge of a very deep looking pit in the middle of the floor.

I carefully slip under the barriers and sit down next to him, glancing inside.  It’s so dark and deep I can't see the bottom.  I turn my attention from the pit to my cousin, “Hey…”

Lloyd hugs his arms, “What?”  His tone is still bitter.

“Just wanted to know...you know...if you’re okay,” I say cautiously.

“Okay?” Lloyd huffs a very forced laugh, “I’m supposed to be okay, apparently…”

“That doesn’t answer the question.”

“I know,” his shoulders slump, “But...she really expects me to just be okay with everything after she left me at that school my entire life, like, ever since I was a- a toddler?  Young enough I don’t have any memories of her anyway.  And then she never writes, never calls, never visits, and when she does show up, she expects me to just be okay with that?”  Lloyd glowers at the pit.

“I’m...not saying what she did was right,” I agree, following his gaze, “It’s not okay to just leave your kid.  And she definitely could have at the least kept in touch with you.  But she did say she had a reason too.”  I sigh.

“So what?  You expect me to just listen to her give a bunch of excuses, hug and make up, then it’s all sunshine and rainbows from there?” Lloyd snaps.

“No, I don’t,” I reply softly.  “But...maybe...now that she is here...maybe just try to give her a tiny chance?  I’m not saying you have to go out of your way to make it seem like everything’s fine because I know it’s not, but, maybe don’t just push her away before you can hear her side of the story as well.”  Lloyd bites his lip.  I put my hand on his shoulder, “Lloyd, you have a chance to get to know your mother, don’t you want to at least try?”

Lloyd doesn’t respond for a second, then looks up at me searchingly, “...did...did something happen...to your mother?”

I blink, not expecting that question, then look down, “I don’t really know.  I never knew her.  I don’t remember her at all.”

“If...if she came back...would...would you want to...give her a chance?” he asks quietly.

I think for a moment.  As far as I know, she just abandoned me and left me with my biological father.  Though admittedly, there could have been another reason.  I tap my feet together, I’m not sure if I want to meet her or not.  I guess it all depends on what kind of person she would turn out to be.  But if I ever did meet her, and she seemed...at least a little nice, or at least not hateful, and said there was a reason she left and never came back...I think I’d listen to her at the least.

“...I guess that depends on what she seemed like and if the reason was a good one,” I sigh.  “I...I’m not completely sure.  I don’t even know if I will ever meet her, and in the future my feelings toward all of it could change in some way…”  I look at Lloyd, “But this isn’t about how I’d react to meeting my mother, this is about how you’re going to react to meeting yours .”

Lloyd looks down, appearing like he’s thinking very hard about something.

“Lloyd?” my aunt’s voice calls, “Lloyd!”  My cousin hunches over slightly, closing his eyes.  I put my arm around his shoulders.  Ever since the Tomorrow’s Tea happened and we all got used to Lloyd being older, or at least, sort of used to it, it’s been beyond hard to tell which of us is actually older, and the fact that we keep seeming to switch in that respect doesn’t exactly help.  Right now it’s my turn again, apparently.

 Soft footsteps enter the room. “I’d watch your step,” Aunt Misako advises gently, “That sinkhole doesn’t have a bottom, son.”  I glance up at her as she puts her hand on one of the barriers, “It’s where I found the ancient Stone Warrior.”  Of course she did.  Of course she couldn’t just leave it there and bury it right back up.  My life is never that easy.

“Uh, ‘son’?” Lloyd gives her a closed off glance before turning away again and putting his cheek in his hand, “You’ve been gone my whole life!  There’s nothing you can say…”  I sigh slightly.

“Well, I’m going to talk anyway,” Aunt Misako declares, “You wanna know what I’ve been doing all this time?”  She starts to walk to his other side and Lloyd turns his face away.  “Long before Sensei Wu ever knew who would be the Green Ninja, I knew it would be you.”  I blink and stare at her, Wait, she knew?   Lloyd turns away from her again.  “And I knew you would eventually have to fight your father.  I dropped you off at the Boarding School so I could go learn everything I could about the prophecy, in hope of one day preventing the Final Battle of good and evil.  All this time, son, I’ve been trying to save you and your father.”  Lloyd raises his head enough to look at her.  I hear the others enter the room.  “Long before time had a name, Ninjago was created by the First Spinjitzu Master-”

“Yeah, yeah,” Lloyd rolls his eyes, “We’ve heard this story a hundred times.”

“But you’ve only heard half of it.”  I swallow and look down, fiddling with the hem of my gi.  “In Ninjago, there has always been balance between good and evil.  So you know about how the First Spinjitzu Master created Ninjago, but what if I were to tell you in order for there to be light, there must be shadow, and within shadow, there is darkness.”  A wisp of my power brushes against my cheek.  I try not to flinch as a couple more tendrils gather around my hands and hair.  “The blackest of darkness that existed from the very beginning.  An evil spirit called ‘The Overlord’.”  I grip my arms tightly enough that they start to feel numb.

“Did you know about this, Sensei?” Zane asks.

“I had hoped if I’d kept the secret, that name would never be spoken again,” my father confesses.  D-does that mean that-  he knows?   I squeeze my eyes shut as my aunt keeps talking.

“The balance was at stake, and their battle could have gone on for eternity.  Each side powerful, neither could conquer the other, until the Overlord created his indestructible warriors: the Stone Army.  The Spinjitzu Master did what he could, but he knew he would soon be defeated.  So instead of losing the war, he divided Ninjago in two.  And lucky for us, since then there has been no trace of the Overlord or his Stone Army, until my recent discovery.”  Yeah, no trace at all, I think bitterly, glaring down at the darkness curling around my hands.  And why couldn’t you have just left that... thing down there?

“So that’s why the battle has yet to be decided,” Kai realizes, “It was never finished.”

“But where is this Dark Island?  I’ve never heard of it,” Cole remarks.  I bite my lip so hard I taste a little blood.

“Disappeared, I presume.  But the legend states that so long as the balance between good and evil remains even, the Overlord shall remain trapped from this world,” Thank goodness for that, “I have always feared your father’s ambition will ultimately lead to a shift in the balance.  That is why he must be stopped,” Aunt Misako explains.  Oh, yay, so I could end up meeting him again…

“We have each felt the power of the First Spinjitzu Master, passed onto us in the form of the Elemental Weapons,” my father states, “But now that power has been inherited by the Green Ninja, which is why only Lloyd can defeat the ultimate evil, or else all of Ninjago will fall prey to its darkness.”

“Leaving you was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do,” my aunt tells Lloyd softly, “But faced with saving you and the world, I had no other choice.”

Lloyd gives her a tiny nod, and I feel the weight of tension in the room leave.

“Have you discovered a way to prevent me from facing my father?” he asks after a second.

Aunt Misako sighs, “I’m sorry, not yet.  But I have reason to believe there’s still hope.”  Something bangs on the door behind us.  She gasps.  The door shatters to bits behind us even as we all turn in shock.  I feel faint.  A giant Stone Warrior with four arms and blades stands in the doorway, green eyes scowling straight at us.  It growls something in ancient tongue.  For half a second I feel like I can understand the words, then another second the guttural language slips through my fingers.

“WHOA!!!!!!!!!!  EXCUSE ME?!?!?!?!?!  Would somebody please tell me, WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THAT ?!?!?!?!?!” Jay screeches.

“The Stone Warrior,” Misako puts a hand on Lloyd’s shoulder nervously.

“The Devourer’s venom has awakened him!” Zane realizes.

“Oh, great!  Kai, take care of him,” Cole points at the Warrior.  Uh, what.

“Um, me?” Kai blinks.

The Stone Warrior points its swords at us, narrowing its eyes and saying something that I could’ve sworn sounded like, ‘This will be too easy’.

Kai pulls on his mask.  “Okay, Blockhead,” he unsheathes his katana, “Take this!”  He charges at the Warrior and leaps in the air, slashing at the giant samurai.  The Warrior counters with one of its swords and a giant plume of flames where did those come from flares into existence as Kai’s sword shatters into tiny bits.  He lands on the ground clumsily, “Well, in my mind’s eye, I saw that playing out entirely differently-WHOA!”  The Stone Warrior picks him up by his foot and dangles him upside-down in the air.

“The Overlord created his Stone Army from an indestructible material only found on the Dark Island!” my aunt shouts.

“Ah, great,” Kai strains, “You could’ve mentioned that earlier!”  She did, you crazy flame brain of a person!

“Put him down!” I yell at the Stone Warrior.  It starts, looking at me, then nods and actually throws Kai behind him, the Red Ninja screaming and then something breaks.  “That’s...not what I meant but I’ll take it.”  My friends stare at me weirdly.  “What?” I frown.

Jay fidgets with his nunchucks nervously, “Uh...you sort of just…” he glances between me and the Stone Warrior, “Talked to it.”

I stare at him with a deadpan look, “No, really, I thought I was talking to that post over there.”

“I mean in its language!” he bursts, slapping head frustratedly.  Wait WHAT.

I step back, “You’re joking.”  They all just look at me.  “You’re not joking.”

The Warrior grumbles, “Elemental Masters fight.  No talk.”  I take another step back, head spinning.  No.  No this can’t be happening.

The Warrior raises its swords and roars at my friends.  My father looks at my cousin quickly, “Lloyd, use your powers.”

My cousin steps forward and summons a ball of energy, gritting his teeth, then shoots the energy at the Warrior.  There’s a blinding flash of light that is-  Okay it is actually blinding, I can’t see, where’s everything-

I can hear the others cheering.  I blink rapidly, trying to clear my vision.  After several seconds it does.  What.  Is.  With.  My.  POWERS -!!!!

As if on cue, our current big problem at the moment stomps through the green flames again, completely unharmed.  “Must destroy the Elemental Masters,” his voice booms and echos through my mind.  Of course that’s what he’s fixated on of course it couldn’t be something like gently playing with kittens and WHAT IS UP WITH MY SARCASM LEVELS TODAY-

“Wait a minute, how are we supposed to destroy this thing?!” Cole yelps.

“You can’t,” Aunt Misako steps back, shaking her head.

The Warrior thumps on the doorframe, trying to make it big enough for him to fit through.  The guys pull on their masks and charge just as the Warrior breaks through.  Zane throws his shurikens but the samurai easily deflects them.  Cole tries to catch one of the swords in his scythe but misses and the Stone Warrior kicks him across the room.  Before I realize what happened he just crashed into me and we both fall backwards.  Cole groans and sits up.  I stare at the ceiling dazedly, This is...not my day.

Jay screams, then laughs nervously, “Easy, big guy, maybe this is a sign you need to lose a few pounds, hehehe-” he’s cut off by the Warrior kicking him.

“You talk too much,” the Warrior growls.  I slowly sit up, I need help.  I can understand what he’s saying.  I can actually understand what he is saying...WhY dO I HaVe To UnDeRsTaNd WhAt He’S sAyInG?!

The next few seconds I can barely keep track of what’s happening, but suddenly everyone’s been tossed out of the room except me.  The Stone Warrior turns its green gaze to me.  I flinch.  It just nods its head and turns to walk out.  Well that was...anticlimactic…

“ RUUUUUUUNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ” Jay screams.  Forget I said anything.   I jump to my feet and sprint out of the room, managing to catch up to my friends after scooting around the Warrior that is decidedly not targeting me which is actually more creepy than not .

“The guy’s got a pair of sneakers on him!” Lloyd interrupts my thoughts, “Pick up the pace, go, go, GO!”

We race up some stairs and down another corridor.  “Oh man,” Kai groans, “He’s pretty fast for a big guy!”

“Get in there!” I yell, shoving Lloyd into the room ahead.  The boys slam the doors shut.  The Warrior crashes into it, breaking a hole into one of the doors.  He grunts something, but this time I can’t understand it.  I blame my powers for being on the fritz.  The Warrior moves back, then slams into the door again, making dust fall from it and the ceiling above it.

The guys quickly step back, Cole grimacing, “This thing is unstoppable!”

“Indestructible, to be precise,” Zane corrects.

I sigh, “Now is not the time, Zane.”

Kai steps forward, tone nervous, “That door ain’t gonna hold him forever.”

“Then let’s settle this like men.  With rock, paper, clamp,” Jay declares, putting his fist out.

“You have to be kidding,” I stare at them with wide eyes.

“Loser has to face him, so the rest can escape,” Jay adds as the others also hold out their fists.

Lloyd starts to put his fist in the circle as well, but Jay pushes his hand out, “Nu uh uh, not you, Chosen One.”

I guess we’re really doing this then… I blow out and put my fist in the circle, These guys are so weird.

Kai sighs, “On three.  One, two-”

“Wait a minute, that’s it!” Lloyd pushes in.

“What’s ‘it’?” Father asks.

“If you guys can keep him busy, I think I know how to stop him,” my cousin explains.

We share a look before Cole speaks up, “I say we give the kid a shot.”

“You’re just saying that ‘cause you’re too afraid to face him,” Jay accuses.

Cole gives him a deadpan look, “Do you wanna face it?”

Jay looks at the door, which the Stone Warrior is steadily pummeling, then turns back to us, “I say we give the kid a shot.”

I blow out and nod, “Go on, Lloyd.”

Lloyd runs towards a vent and takes the grating off it before crawling inside.  Aunt Misako folds her hands worriedly, “Be careful, Lloyd.  And good luck.”

“Thanks, Mom,” he replies before turning and going farther into the vents.

“I can’t believe that’s Lord Garmadon’s son,” my aunt breathes, shaking her head.

“Hm, you should’ve seen him before we realized he was the Green Ninja.  The resemblance was stronger then,” I joke half-heartedly, leaning against Cole’s shoulder.

Aunt Misako smiles slightly and glances at Wu, “He’s had a good teacher.”

“You mean ‘teachers’,” my father gestures to all of us.

“Yep, even if I will never completely understand these guys-”

“Hey!” Jay frowns.

“-they are capable of teaching some things.”

“Oh, um…” he leans closer to Kai, whispering unsurely, “Was that a compliment or not?”

“It was a compliment, Bluejay,” I walk over and hit his head.

“Ow!  Hey!” he rubs his head and glares at me as the others laugh.

---

(Bizarro Rose‘s POV)

I’m not sure how long I’d been swimming before I saw land.  For a second I’d actually bobbed under the water with Lord Garmadon, I’d been so relieved I’d accidentally stopped swimming.  I pull him onto the beach and collapse, not proud of how hard I’m shaking, even if it is just from fatigue and the cold water.

I close my eyes for a second, and I must have dozed off because when I wake up, the sun is just a bit lower in the sky than before.  I weakly raise myself onto my elbow and turn my head to look at my master.

One of his hands twitch, then he raises his head.  He blinks at the treeline, then looks around and sees me, “Ah...uh...where…”  He shakes his head and stands up.

I sigh and push myself into a sitting position, “I...don’t know.”  A twig snaps in the forest.  Lord Garmadon looks up at the trees sharply.  I quickly stand up, stumbling slightly, but take a stance nonetheless peering into the trees as I try to see what’s there.

Something makes the leaves move, then a strange, scratchy, but deep voice speaks, “Ah...I’ve been waiting for you...”

My master gasps a bit and I tense, What?   “Who are you?” Lord Garmadon shouts, “Where are you?  What is this place?  Where are we?  This isn’t Ninjago!”

“It is the place you were always meant to find,” I hear the voice inhale, “Destiny brought you here.”

“This...this is the Dark Island!  The one mentioned in Captain Soto’s log!” my master picks up some sand and lets it run through his fingers before looking at the trees again, “But...who are you?”

“I go by many names...but you may call me…Overlord,” some trees to the side move, but I still can’t see the source of the voice.

“I...I order you to give me the power to defeat the Ninja!” Lord Garmadon shouts, “Give me the power to turn Ninjago into my own image!”  The Overlord laughs as the moving trees shift to the middle.  My master scowls, “Why do you laugh at me?!”

“Soon, you will have everything you desire...but first...there is something you must do for me…”  The trees move slightly and a floating, glowing red ball of plasma, or something like it, comes into view.  The sight sends shivers down my spine as I wonder if that’s what a disembodied voice looks like.

“And what would that be?!” my master demands.

---

(Rose‘s POV)

There’s a crash, then heavy footsteps as the Stone Warrior slowly walks in, surveying the ‘empty’ room.  We peek out from behind one of the wall things on the second floor.  Well, technically third.  The Warrior turns and walks backward slowly, still scanning the room.  He gets under the skeleton hanging from the ceiling.

Jay signals to Cole that the Warrior is in position, my boyfriend salutes, then flips onto the wall, unsheathing his scythe, flips back off of it to gain momentum and jumps over the railing, landing squarely on the skeleton as he slices the ropes holding it up and running across to the other side, where he jumps off and grabs onto a post, sliding down.  The skeleton falls straight onto the Stone Warrior, burying it as it yells something almost unintelligible.

“WHOA!  Direct hit!  Haha!” Jay cheers.  We come out from behind the wall and jump over the railing onto the spine of a stegosaurus, sliding down as Jay whoops, “All right!”

“Hey hey!” Cole laughs, joining us.  We walk up to the pile of bones and he asks, “Did we get him?”  After a second of silence, a giant red arm and black fist bursts out of the debris as the Warrior roars.

“He’s still here!” Kai screams

“You think Lloyd’s ready with his plan?” Zane asks nervously as we step back.

“I hope so,” Cole looks at the Stone Warrior, then we run.

Behind us the Warrior bursts out of the skeleton, “AAAAARGH!”

Aunt Misako trips, then quickly stands back up, “I may not be a Ninja, but I can look after myself!”  She jumps over the railing on the side and slides down a banner, jumping off half way down and waving for us to follow.

We share a glance and nod before climbing over the rails and sliding down the banners for the Stone Warrior exhibit.  We turn and run, then the Stone Warrior suddenly leaps down from the second floor.  The force sends me and the guys flying.

“Now you die,” the Warrior growls threateningly somewhere above and to the...somewhere of me.  My head spins as the ground shakes under me, then the thudding footsteps fade slightly.  Ughhh…..   I slowly raise my head and wait until the room stops swimming to do a headcount.  We’re missing my aunt.  The Warrior roars dimly.  I stand up shakily, then start to run to the door.  Footsteps behind me tell me the others are here too.  I skid to a stop when I spot the last destroyed doorway and look in.  My shoulders sag in relief when I see no Stone Warrior and just my family.  Aunt Misako hugs Lloyd, who returns it.

She pulls back, resting a hand on his arm as she smiles, “I’m so proud of you.”  Lloyd removes his hood, revealing a genuine smile.  “I feel like the balance has brought us together.”

I breathe a sigh of relief and walk in behind my father with the guys.

“Stay with us.  Help us fight the good fight,” Father strokes his beard.

“If that’s okay with my son,” my aunt turns to Lloyd.

Lloyd grins, “Hey.  The more, the merrier.”  The two embrace again.  I remove my hood, smiling at them.  Maybe a bit wistfully.

Cole throws his arm around my shoulders, I laugh slightly.  Even if I never meet my own mother, at least I have these guys.

---

(Bizarro Rose‘s POV)

Lord Garmadon pushes some leaves and branches aside as the Overlord leads us into the heart of the island, “How much further?”  I maneuver around a tree, sighing and leaning against it briefly to rest, then double my pace to walk behind my master again.

“Until I say so,” the Overlord alternates from leading us to floating behind us, “You do want to turn all of Ninjago into your image…” his voice softens sickeningly, “right?”

“Of course,” Lord Garmadon pushes under a low hanging branch, I do the same, “it’s all I’ve ever wanted!”  We leave the trees and walk out onto a strangely plantless and cracked hill.  It barely even has moss.

At the top stands a boulder, four handles carved into its surface.  I look around, then at the boulder.

“Four hands...is that a coincidence?” my master turns around, looking at the trees.

They all rustle as the Overlord speaks hoarsely, “I told you...it is destiny.”

“Whatever,” Lord Garmadon grumbles, turning back to the stone and grasping the handles with all four hands.  He turns them, then the stone sinks into the ground as the island shakes, the sky darkening.  I whirl and gaze out towards the ocean as giant jagged spires of rock and mountain rise from it.  The ocean turns gray as it steams, the mountains and land rising for miles in every direction for almost as far as I can see, most of the mountains have trickles or rivers of lava falling down as they rise into the air.  The clouds swirl, turning purplish and charcoal gray above us while the water churns.  I cover my mouth, eyes wide.

My master steps back from the hole the boulder had sunk into as the shaking stops.

“The ultimate battle between good and evil has been foretold…” the Overlord rises out of the trees, “and with your help, we...will rule this WORLD.”  His voice mixes with a power-hungry growl at the end, making me shiver and look around again at the land risen out of the sea.

Lord Garmadon’s frown turns into a toothy smile as he begins to chuckle, then laugh as the wind blows and his laugh echoes through the mountains.

---

(Rose‘s POV)

As we enter the Bounty, my vision suddenly blacks out for one too many seconds.  I stumble back, one of my hands finding the railing.  My breathing grows shallow as my heart thumps wildly.  Someone’s talking.  Several someones.

A hand grabs my shoulder, a dim voice calling from far away, or...are they close?  “Rose?  Hey, Ro, listen to me.  What’s going on?”

A dull ache in my chest spreads through my body until I numbly feel my face contort in pain, then it suddenly switches off, leaving me without feeling and sense for a second.  My vision slowly returns, my hearing switching back to normal and my sense of touch slowly returns, making me feel like pins and needles are pricking all over my body.

“Rose?!” Lloyd’s asking.

“C’mon, talk to us,” Cole pleads, “What’s wrong?”

I blink and raise my head, finally able to see my team’s worried expressions.  Cole releases some of the pressure on my shoulder as he sees I’m present again.  The sense of dread in my chest doesn’t ebb away like everything else does, however.  Deep down, I know that our problems are far from over yet, and are only worsening by the minute.

In my mind’s eye, I can see an island shrouded in darkness.  My first home.  A place I’d hoped no one would ever find.

I slowly let out a breath and reach up to Cole’s hand, gripping it to find some stability, still feeling like the floor was just swept out from under my feet.  “I’m...I’m okay.”  I breathe.  The others exchange uncertain glances.  “I’m okay.”

I am not okay.

Chapter 8: The Day Ninjago Stood Still

Summary:

The Stone Army officially strikes; Ninjago City has to evacuate.

(Cole’s POV)

We may have the Bounty back, but sometimes we still train at Dareth’s.  Like today.  Lloyd stands in the middle of the room with a blindfold covering his eyes, the rest of us around him in a circle.  Except for Rose, who’s just watching by the wall.  Lately she’s been skipping out on training Lloyd even though she’s uninjured.  I’m not completely sure why, but she looks uncomfortable every time I hint at it, so I decided to stop bringing it up.

“Don’t rely on your eyes,” I caution Lloyd, “Use your ears.”

“Uh, guys, I’m teaching a class later, so I’d appreciate a clean dojo.”  We ignore him and jump at Lloyd simultaneously.  Lloyd leaps over our weapons and kicks Zane’s hand and Jay’s Nunchucks as he falls back down, landing on his feet.  I swing my scythe at him but he catches it and yanks it out of my grasp, using the handle to block a slash from Kai’s katana.  He plants it on the ground and swings around it, kicking me in the face.  I quickly step back, ignoring the sting on my cheek as I wait for an opening.  He kicks Zane back, then Jay, and- Ow that hurt.   I stumble back into Dareth and shake my head, then charge at Lloyd, who’s lying on the ground.  He jumps up, making me land across my scythe’s staff.  Oof.

I wisely keep my head down as Kai and Jay run up, aiming at Lloyd.  He avoids the weapons and lands dangerously close to my head, kicking Jay in the stomach.

“Aah!” Jay yelps, crashing into Dareth’s fake trophy collection and knocking some of the trophies over.

I take the chance to stand back up, lifting my scythe as we ignore Dareth’s constant ‘Nononono’s.

Lloyd backflips back into the room’s center as we all take stances again.  Zane and Kai run at him.  Lloyd meets Zane in the air with a headbutt, knocking the White Ninja back again, then landing as Kai slashes, barely missing.  Lloyd spins and kicks him away.  Jay and I charge, but I’m hit backwards with his hand and Jay is also kicked straight for the windows.  Dareth opens one and Jay flies through with a scream, then Dareth closes it again.

The rest of us stand up.  Lloyd activates his elemental power, green flames engulfing his hands as he holds them up.  Dareth screams and stamps out a tiny patch of fire as Jay yells something outside.

Rose suddenly cuts in with a laugh, “Okay, guys, I think that’s enough for the moment, let Dareth keep his dojo…not further messed up.  She walks over to the door and opens it, “Jay, there is a door for a reason, you know.”

“...Oh,” he replies weakly, coming back in.

Lloyd shakes the remnants of flame off his fingertips and removes his blindfold, shaking his head, “Phew.  It’s harder than it looks to fight without your eyes…”

“It does take some practice,” Rose nods, “But you’re getting really good.  The guys actually didn’t beat you this time.”

“Ugh, yeah, I think it was the other way around,” Kai rubs his arm, wincing slightly.

I start to laugh when the ground suddenly shakes.  Everyone looks at me with raised eyebrows.  I hold my hands up, “Hey, it wasn’t me.  I don’t even have my powers.”

Lloyd frowns, “Well it wasn’t me…”

“I don’t think this is either of you…” Rose says quietly, moving to the TV and turning it on.

“NGTV reporter Gayle Gossip on the scene of what appears to be an earthquake rocking the city of Ninjago.  But it’s an earthquake like no other, as scientists have yet to pinpoint the cause.  And more frightening still, the aftershocks are getting stronger.”  On cue, the dojo shudders again.

“What do you think this could be?” I ask.

“Wouldn’t be surprised if it was Garmadon,” Kai remarks, “We haven’t seen him for a while.”

“He would never,” Misako claims, “Lloyd’s father is evil, but he would never do anything to put his son in harm’s way.”

“Misako’s right,” Sensei nods, “He only tried to thwart his training.  This is something else.”

“But what is it?” Jay repeats frustratedly.

Zane whistles and the Falcon flies down from the rafters, landing on his arm.  The Nindroid walks to the window and opens it, “My friend, be my eyes and look for danger in the streets from above.”  It takes off as we watch.

Rose shifts next to me.  I look at her questioningly.  She glances at me, then looks down, “I’m…not sure what it is.”

“But you think you might?”

“It’s only a hunch…I’d prefer not to say unless I have to,” she rubs her arm nervously.

I nod slowly, “...alright.”

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

I follow my master as he climbs up through the mountains jutting out of the ocean.  He pulls himself onto a ledge, me right behind him, then he growls, “This is madness!  You test me, Lord Garmadon?!  Ninjago’s rightful ruler?!”

“Patience, Garmadon,” the Overlord’s voice whispers around us, “All will make sense in time.  For now, follow my instructions.”

“To what end?” Lord Garmadon demands, “What is so important at the top of this cliff?”

“The key to the greatest army ever seen.  And the means to the greatest weapon ever known.”

“What good will these things do for me, marooned on this uninhabited island?  How will I return to Ninjago?!”

“My master plan has been in the works since the beginning of time.  Every piece moves in perfect harmony like the gears of a clock, slowly shifting the balance of power back to darkness.  Every piece, that is, but you.”  I hold my arms behind my back, trying not to show how the Overlord’s response disturbs me.  He or it speaks as though my master is just a pawn in his/its own plan.  I don’t like it.

“All right then,” he narrows his eyes at the opposite cliff, then leaps across the divide and catches hold of one of the ledges, but struggles to find a foothold.  I use darkness to swing over, then cling to the side of the cliff and grab my master’s hand, ignoring that my fingers are barely sticking in the crack, and pull him where he can find purchase for all eight limbs.  If the Overlord isn’t trying to kill him or something……..

---

(Rose’s POV)

As the earthquake gets stronger and sinkholes start forming, we decide we can’t wait for the Falcon and race out into the streets to help the people.

I spot a dog barking at the edge of a pit in the street as a woman screams, “Help!  Help me!”

We race towards it, Lloyd leading, “Ninja to the rescue!”  He jumps into the pit, “Go!”

Zane follows his lead, “Go!”

Kai: “Go!”

Jay: “Go!”

I lunge, managing to grab Jay’s ankles as Cole holds onto me, “Why are you guys yelling go?!”

Lloyd grunts, “Few more inches, guys.”  I get down on one knee, feeling very much like my arms are about to fall off.  I’m not sure I can feel them.  I’m yanked a bit more downward when there’s a new weight added.  I strain back up as the dog barks at me and Cole.

Cole’s voice is strained, “Appreciate the support, doggy.”  Suddenly the ground under us gives way.  Cole leaps back.  Suddenly all that’s under my feet is air.  The guys yell slightly and I gasp.  Thankfully Cole hadn’t actually let go of us.

Cole pulls back away from the hole as much as he can, “Ugh…could have…thought this plan through a little more…”  The dog keeps barking.  “No more help, please!”

“Could you just pull us up?” I look up at him.

“What do you think I’m trying to do?!” He starts walking back carefully, still visibly struggling to hold onto all of us, but we’re all finally out of the hole.

“Oh, thank you!” the woman gasps as we stand up.  Except Cole, who collapses.

Lloyd waves a hand, “No sweat.”

“Speak for yourself.  I did all the work,” Cole gasps.  The poodle suddenly jumps over his head and lands on his stomach, then runs up to its owner, leaping into her arms.  “Ugh!” my boyfriend gives up and lies on the ground, exhausted.

I laugh slightly, “You sure your strength isn’t tied into your powers?”

“Ha ha, very funny,” he comments sarcastically, catching his breath and sitting up.

“These things keep coming with no warning!” Kai exclaims while my father and aunt run up.

“That’s it.  A warning,” Aunt Misako rolls one out on the hood of a nearby car, showing cracks in the earth with dark hands rising out of it.  Please no…

“Far worse?  What could be far worse?!” Jay demands.

Cole looks at me.  I try not to betray anything, but his eyes flash with realization anyway before he turns to my aunt, “Misako, the indestructible Stone Warrior we fought yesterday.  Where did you find him?”  Am I that easy to read?

“He was buried under the city,” Aunt Misako tells him.

Jay gasps in horror, “You don’t think there’s more , do you?!”  I don’t think…I know.

“Be on guard, Ninja,” Father orders, “We must be ready for whatever comes our way.”  He glances at me.  I look away, guilt churning in my stomach.

---

(Cole’s POV)

Zane suddenly lowers his shurikens, “Sensei, it’s as we feared.  Another Stone Samurai Warrior is loose on the streets.”  Rose freezes up.  Aw, you have got to be kidding me, I internally groan.  Suddenly a stone, black fist breaks out of the ground next to us.  We leap back, staring at it.  Rose stumbles backward, then more fists burst through the street in a line.

“No.  No,” Kai shakes his head.

Everywhere, more Stone Warriors pour out of alleyways and break out of the ground.  “No!  No!” Jay grabs his head, panicking.

“We’re under attack!” Sensei shouts.

---

(Rose’s POV)

We double back to the dojo, saving as many people as we can on the way.  This is bad this is bad this is very very bad this is anything but good and I’m stuck in a circle but I don’t care because this is the worst thing that could ever happen-

Zane kicks a Stone Warrior attacking Gayle Gossip and catches the reporter, “You seem in need of assistance.”

“Thanks, Mr. Ninja…” she gasps.

More Stone Warriors advance toward us as Zane puts Miss Gossip down.  We take stances in front of her and Dareth.

“Stay strong,” Cole warns us, “Show no weakness.”  I shift slightly, trying to do so.  But I’m pretty sure by now that the fear inside me is a bit clear for all to see.  The Ultra Sonic Raider suddenly sweeps around the corner and bowls into the Warriors approaching us.

Father and Aunt Misako jump over it.  “We have to protect the people,” my father shouts, “Gather as many as you can and get them to our evacuation point.”

Inside the Raider comes Nya’s voice, “We’ve got problems with that evacuation point, guys.  I can’t find a safe place to land!”

“The NGTV office building has a helipad on the roof,” Gayle suddenly speaks up.

“Yes.  Higher ground,” Father turns to the Raider, “Lloyd, tell Nya to head there!”  Lloyd nods and turns to the controls.

Dareth turns the camera to focus on Gayle, “Citizens of Ninjago who have yet to evacuate the city, head to the NGTV building rooftop.  Our heroic Ninja will evacuate you from there!  But hurry, we’re running out of time.”

A bunch of Warriors run towards us from in front and we take stances, waiting to meet them.

Lloyd suddenly shouts, “Uh oh.  There are more of them!”  I turn my head to see more Warriors closing in behind.  Ultra swoops down and knocks them out.  “Yeah!  Haha!”  Cloud circles overhead, making me smile.  Ultra flies ahead and blocks the other Warriors’ way briefly.

Father turns to my cousin, “Lloyd, did you practice your Elemental Quakes?”

“Who needs to practice when you’re a natural?” he asks cockily.  He flips over our heads and Ultra’s and slams his fists into the ground, making the street break apart and rise higher into the air, blocking the Warriors’ way.  The others jump into the Raider.  I grab Cloud’s chains as she swoops low and flip over her head and onto her back.

“Thanks, boy!” Lloyd tells his own Dragon, “Now see if you can help us find a way out of here.”  He backflips back onto the top of the Raider.  Ultra freezes the oncoming Warriors, simultaneously creating an ice ramp, and flies into the air.  The others drive up the ramp and away down the street as Lloyd yells back, “Good!  Now save yourself!”  Ultra roars in response and flies away.  As for me and Cloud, we swoop down to fly over the Ninja.  I stroke her neck as we fly, the familiar motion a bit soothing.

“You know what’s happening…right, girl?” I ask quietly, my voice quavering.  Something in my chest tightens around my heart.  Cloud doesn’t reply, but she glances back with a knowing eye.  I lie flat on her back, hiding my face in her dark scales, “I’d hoped…this would never actually happen.  I guess Father’s plans are coming true after all.”

Cloud sighs.  I breathe in, her calm air seeping into me as well, “Thanks…I guess we just have to do our best…”  I raise my head and look up at the fast approaching office building.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

We manage to haul ourselves up and over the mountain’s edge.  I lie for a second, catching my breath, then I raise myself up and look at a giant contraption sitting on the top of the mountain.

Lord Garmadon gazes at it as well, “What is this?”  He slowly walks up to it.  I notice a helmet in its center.  He steps onto the outer edge.  I stand up, brushing my gi off, then the Overlord speaks.

“This clock was created to count down to the Final Battle.  Once one takes the Helmet of Shadows, the clock will start.”  My master starts toward the helmet.  “But be warned, though he who wears the Helmet of Shadows can travel between the Islands at will, once it is removed, the countdown cannot be stopped.”

“Any more warnings?” Lord Garmadon snaps.

“No.”

My master grabs the Helmet of Shadows and switches his own for it, laughing evilly as the Overlord’s mass…body…form…thing, floats between me and him, seemingly gazing at the clock.  Lord Garmadon backs off the clock as it starts to move.

“At last…the countdown to the Final Battle has begun.  This helmet is your birthright.  With it, you have control of the army.”

“What army?” my master frowns.

“ My army .”  Lord Garmadon laughs, his red eyes brightening in anticipation.  I look at the clock, unsure.  I am bound to serve him only…and he started the clock.  But at the same time, he told me my mission now was to help him find a way to prevent him having to face his son.

---

(Cole’s POV)

We reach the NGTV building and jump out.  Rose lands Cloud and says something to her.  The Dragon nods and rises back into the air, flying away.  As soon as the last of the people are inside we run in as well.

“Barricade the doors!” I tell the others, closing said doors.  I grab a vending machine and start pushing it in front of the doors.  Kai and Rose do the same, Jay pushes one of the couches over, and the mailman and Dareth grab some large pots as well, placing them in front of the doors and on top of the other things.

Zane throws a chair on the pile as well, “Now we head to the stairway.”

I place my hand on Rose’s back, pushing her up them slightly, “Go on.”  She glances down, probably doing a headcount, but seeing as there’s basically no one but Dareth left, she nods and runs up.

Dareth stares up at the stairs, “Stairs?  It’s twenty floors.”  He presses the elevator button, “Let’s just take the elevator, guys.”

“It’s unwise to take the elevator during an emergency, Dareth,” Zane informs him.

“Well, I think I’ll take my chances.”  The doors open to reveal a Stone Warrior, who growls and comes out, but steps in a bucket of water, spilling said water, falling, and slipping back inside the elevator.  Dareth quickly presses the down button, “Okay, stairs it is.”  I roll my eyes and start up them with Zane as he comes behind, “Let’s get climbing, everybody!”

He falls behind after a couple floors.

Then I hear him scream, “SECOND WIIIIIIIIIIIIND!”  I quickly flatten against the railing as he zooms past, then share a bewildered look with Rose and Jay.

A minute later, we’ve reached the top.  We wait for all the people to pass, Kai and Zane the last to reach the top.

Zane looks back down the stairs at the Warriors pursuing us, “We must buy time for our getaway.”

“Ninja, go!” we Spinjitzu down the railing, or they do, and I just Spinjitzu into the first Warrior.  I hit him in the face and he falls back into the ones behind him, causing a domino reaction.

Kai and Zane use Spinjitzu to knock them all over the railing before they can get back up.  Below us, the other three toss the second wave over the railings as well.

“Not so tough,” Lloyd laughs.  The warriors land on the ground, then stand up and growl, completely unharmed, “Whoa.  So tough.”

“They’re indestructible, Lloyd, what did you expect?” Rose smacks his head.

“Let’s hope we bought enough time,” Zane looks at me.  I nod in agreement.  We wait for the others to reach us before going back up to the top floor.  Just as we come out, I can see Nya landing the Bounty on the helipad.

The people run up it as Lloyd yells, “Hurry, they’re coming!”

I hurry onto the Bounty and wave the people below deck with Kai, “Now, now!”

Lloyd grips the railing, “They just keep coming!”

“Go, go!” I urge the people to move faster.

Nya gasps on mic as the last of the people are inside, “Oh no.  This is bad.  We have everyone?  We’ve gotta get out of here.  Our only remaining booster won’t last much longer.”

“We have to wait for my mom!” Lloyd protests as the engines start up.

Rose looks at him, “What?  She’s not here?”

“She went back inside to get her research,” Lloyd’s brows draw together in fear and worry.

Nya starts to take off, not hearing him.  Sensei Wu runs to the railing and flips off, pushing the Warriors aside to get to the door.  The Bounty lifts off as Lloyd screams for him, “SENSEI!”

“FATHER!” Rose races to the railing, nearly tumbling over the side in her haste, but he’s gone inside.  I quickly pull the pair back to keep them from falling.

Rose jerks away, “No, my father-!”

I place my hands on her shoulders and turn her to face me, “I know.  But we can’t go back that way, we’ll be risking the lives of everyone on this ship if we do.”  Rose looked like she was about to argue with me at first, but then her head droops and her shoulders slump.  She nods faintly.

I pull her into a hug, trying in vain to relax, but I’m still tensed from worry for Sensei.  Even he won’t be able to last long against the Warriors…

I tug her up to the top deck where Lloyd’s standing, hood removed.  I pull off my own just as the Bounty descends rapidly.  Rose raises her head, confusion written on her face.  Two figures leap out of the NGTV news building.  I recognize our master’s white robes and Misako’s scroll bag, then they land on the Bounty’s deck.  Rose starts, then slumps in relief.  Lloyd’s face brightens with a smile.  But then we all look out over the smoking city, the air filling with about every kind of alarm invented.  We look at each other.  Now what?

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

We’ve done so much climbing I think I’m going to fall apart right here as I pull myself onto another mountain top.  My master suddenly shouts out, “Garmadon is back, baby!  Garmadon…is BACK!”

I let my head fall back onto the rock, too exhausted to even worry.  Well, perhaps a little bit.

Chapter 9: The Last Voyage

Summary:

The Ninja venture onto the ocean in search of the Dark Island and answers to the whereabouts of the Stone Army, and Garmadon's plot.
Rose wages an internal battle.

Or

Rose catches a case of 'Ninja, there's something I haven't told you', Round 2.

(Rose’s POV)

I stand behind my father and Zane as they look out over the ocean to the misted crags we can see across it.  I do not have the vision of a robot, or my father’s telescope, but every sense in my body is hyper aware of the Dark Island’s presence.  It feels like adrenaline is being poured into my body by gallons.   I don’t like how something inside me pushes toward the Island and simultaneously shrinks away.

“Hmm, most peculiar,” Zane remarks, his brow furrowing.  “Yesterday there was just ocean, but now there is an island.”

“The Dark Island, Zane,” my father corrects him, looking through the telescope at it, “and what I find more peculiar is after Ninjago City was attacked by the Stone Army, today they have vanished.”

“Do you think they are on this Dark Island?” Zane inquires.  “Garmadon may be responsible.”

“I fear that too,” Father admits, “but what’s most important is we have to find out what is on that island.”  He lowers the telescope to give me a searching glance.

My chest tightens as I hold his gaze for as long as I am able, but eventually I have to look away, swallowing.

Zane watches the silent exchange with undisguised confusion and curiosity, but doesn’t remark on it, instead offering, “Perhaps my Falcon can have a look.”  It gives a call in response to the White Ninja, then takes off, flying towards the Island.

I watch it, but soon enough my eyes drift below it toward the faint dark mass.  The sight sends ice creeping along my bones.  I hug myself, shivering, and look away, trying to ignore how my heart is racing and really should not be.

My father gives me another glance, but doesn’t inquire about my reaction, instead saying, “Come.  Let us rejoin the others.  They could likely use a helping hand or two.”

We climb down from the stone pillar to the sand and start walking back to the Bounty.  The sand moves under my feet, giving me an unsteady feeling, and starts to close back over my feet when they stop sinking into it, making it seem like it’s trying to suck me in.  I shudder, trying to will the dark thoughts away.  But ever since the first Stone Warrior showed up and I felt the Dark Island’s return, I can’t help but feel that something terrible is going to happen soon.

As we near the others standing on the scaffolding they put together to work on the Bounty’s boosters, I can catch what Kai is saying.

“We just got our tails handed to us, and we couldn’t even stop one of them,” he groans.  “I hate feeling helpless.”  Same, Kai.  Same.

“We mustn’t give up hope, Kai,” my father admonishes him.  I let out a silent sigh.

Lloyd frowns, “But the Stone Army is indestructible.  You saw it.  At best, all my powers could do was slow them down.”

“That’s not entirely true,” my aunt interrupts, walking up with a scroll of parchment in her hands.  “There is a way to defeat them.  And it is told within the scrolls.”

I share a glance with Zane before the others climb down from the scaffolding and we head inside the Bounty, going into the bridge.  Aunt Misako rolls out the scroll on the table for us to see.  Around the edges is drawn what looks like a temple, inside of it are five Ninja.  On the bottom are four of them, red, blue, black, and white, sending their powers up to a green ninja with a golden light emanating from him.  Behind him is the symbol of a dragon.  But above and behind that is a purple ninja with glowing eyes, surrounded by shadows and disconnected from the others.  I decide that I really don’t like the look of that.

“The prophecy reveals that the power to defeat the Stone Army lies within the Green Ninja,” my aunt starts to say, but my cousin interrupts.

“I tried .  I gave them everything I had,” his expression seems defeated.

“Yes, but you are stronger than you think,” Aunt Misako smiles mysteriously and touches the scroll.  “Look.”  As she speaks, the images seem to change slightly, the streams of color coming from the four ninja pulsing toward the green ninja, where the golden light coming from him seems to actually brighten, but the shadows around the purple ninja seem to darken.  “The true power of the Green Ninja can only be unlocked when his four protectors find their own pure elemental powers.”

“Are we the protectors?” Cole asks uncertainly, looking between the four ninja at the bottom who clearly represent Kai, Jay, him, and Zane, then at me.  Yeah, I don’t like the numbers either.

“Pfft, silly question.  Of course we are,” Jay laughs, then pauses.  “Right?”

“If we are the protectors, then we’re doomed,” Zane states.  “Our elemental Golden Weapons no longer exist.  We cannot tap into our Elemental Powers without them.”

“But the powers do exist within each of you.  And there is a way to unlock your powers on your own.  We must go to the Temple of Light.”  I start, then lean closer to the paper, studying the pattern of the temple decorating the edges.  It definitely resembles the hazy image in my mind.  But all I know about it is that my biological father had ordered me to never go there.

“Temple of Light?  What’s that?” Nya asks.

My aunt takes out a red scroll and unrolls it next to the first, “The gold in the Golden Weapons was from the Golden Peaks, but they were forged in the Temple of Light, a powerful place I thought only existed in legend.”  At the top of the scroll is drawn a mountain with a pinprick of light at the top that seems to actually glow, beneath it is a circle with a square and diamond pattern inside.  In the middle of it is the symbol of a Dragon, at the edges of the circle are four other symbols.  The symbols for Lightning, Earth, Fire, and Ice.  I scan the scroll again, but can’t see mine.  But there was a purple ninja on the other scroll, there must be something here… I frown.

“It’s on the Dark Island?” my father questions, glancing at me.  I resume my study of the scroll hurriedly.  There are times I wish he didn’t seem to know everything.

“I think our only choice is to find out,” Aunt Misako nods.

“So we get our powers back?  Alright!” my boyfriend cheers.  I feel the corner of my mouth curve up in a smile at that.

“But there’s still one big problem,” Nya points out with a sad smile, “the Bounty can’t fly.”

“It’s a ship right?  Can’t it sail?”

“Silly question.  Of course it can!  Haha…right?”  I roll my eyes at Jay, Good grief.

The others start to go out of the room, and I start to follow, but then I stop.  I glance back at the two scrolls lying on the table, then back at the door.  I slowly walk back to the scrolls and look at them, hesitating, then I pick up the red one.

As soon as my hands touch the parchment, something changes.  Underneath the glowing spark at the top of the mountain appears a swirl of shadow, then the circle with the symbols starts moving, changing.  The colors darken to purple, black, and gray, and the five symbols disappear.  In their place is just one.  The symbol for Darkness.  I feel myself drawn into the image, the faint sounds of my friends’ voices muffling so that they’re muted.  Something else seems to take their place, a faint hissing or slithering of some sort.  A whisper?  I can’t take my eyes off the parchment, each beat of my heart seeming louder or stronger.  Above the circle at the base of the mountain, on each side of it appear a pair of eyes that I recognize all too well.  Now my heart is beating wildly, I feel a drop of sweat roll down my forehead, unable to control my breathing.  Distant laughter seems to echo in my ears.  I try to let go of the parchment, but can’t, frozen in place, unable to tear my gaze away from the eyes.

Just as it feels like I'm about to be suffocated, a voice breaks through my trance and haze of panic, “Rose?  Hey, Rose, aren’t you coming?”

With a gasp, the air rushes into my lungs that didn’t seem to be there before even though I was panting heavily, and the scroll falls from my hands.  Once it does, the images change to what they were before.  I press a hand to my chest, feeling my heart trying to beat out of it and take a long breath, my feet still frozen to the ground, head spinning.

“Rose?” Cole appears in the door, then his brows lower.  “Are…you alright?”

“Huh?” I look at him, then at the scroll, then at him.  I let out a breath and tuck my hair behind my ear, shifting my gaze to the window so I don't have to look at either, “Y-yeah.  I’m fine.”

He approaches me and puts a hand on my shoulder, looking at my face intently, “You sure?  You look…”  He trails off uncertainly before continuing, “You look like you just saw a ghost.”

I shake my head, forcing myself to laugh.  It falls short and very empty and it’s painfully obvious to the both of us, “No, no ghosts.  Just…thinking…”  I falter, then shrug, “We should catch up.”

Cole’s mouth forms a thin line, but he nods and lets his hand fall from my shoulder.  I almost reach out to stop it, but then restrain myself, even though I really feel like I could use his steady confidence right now.

Even when we step out into the sunlight, I feel like there’s some kind of mist or haze in front of the sun, or like I’m watching my friends interact distantly, detached.

I feel cold.

---

Once we get everything for the voyage ready, it’s time to say goodbye.  Away from the crowd by the docks, where most of the others are saying bye, I lean against Cloud as she nuzzles into me.  My eyes water a bit.  I swallow the lump in my throat to smile at her, “I wish you could come with us, girl.”

She rumbles, pressing her cheek against mine and closing her eyes.

“There’s no room on the Bounty for you I'm afraid.”

She huffs.

“One more flight before we go?” I ask.  She nods.  I climb up onto her back, pressing myself against her neck as she takes off.  I wipe my eyes and gaze at Ninjago island.  Something swells inside me, so strong that I have to cling to Cloud tight enough that my knuckles are probably white under the gloves.  Ninjago has been my home for years.  I’d never thought-  I’d always hoped I would never have to leave it and go back…back there.

I shiver as the wind brushes past my face, closing my eyes.  The chill does nothing to curb the overwhelming sense of foreboding in my heart, just the opposite.  Without knowing how, I know that something is going to happen on the Dark Island.  And not something good.

If I could, I’d change destiny’s plan so we didn’t have to go, but I can’t.  So I just hug Cloud’s neck as she starts to circle down again.  Once she lands, I don’t let go until I hear my father’s voice.

“Pupils, it’s time we set sail!”

I pat Cloud’s neck, sliding down from the saddle.  She groans softly and nuzzles against me one more time.  I kiss her cheek and smile, “Take care of yourself.”  Then I turn and jog toward the docks.

I join the others and walk onto the Bounty.  For once I don't like the feel of the ship’s wood planks under my feet.  The rocking of the ocean makes me feel unsteady, and it doesn’t help that I’m leaving Ninjago for only God knows how long.  But I force a smile onto my face and wave at the shore with the boys as they call out their last goodbyes.  Jay and Cole then raise the sails as the rest of us pull up the anchor.  Nya steers the ship away from the dock and out to sea in the bridge, and we walk up the stairs to the back of the ship to wave.

Edna cups her hands around her mouth, her shrill voice easily traveling the slowly growing distance between the Bounty and the dock, “JAY! DID YOU MAKE SURE TO PACK CLEAN UNDERWEAR?!”

“YES,” Jay grits his teeth slightly as he facepalms, “MOM!”  The boys laugh, and I smile slightly, but then look back at Ninjago.

I sigh heavily, gripping my arms as I whisper, “Goodbye…”

---

Later that day there’s almost no land in sight.  Sure, we could faintly see the black mass from Ninjago, but now the ocean is creepily empty.  Or maybe that’s just me being paranoid.  I wouldn’t be surprised.  As we grow closer to the Dark Island, something in my chest continues to constrict, knotting itself up until it begins to grow difficult to take full breaths.

It’s sunset by now, all of us but Zane are at the ship’s front, looking forward.

“We still have a long journey ahead of us,” my father strokes his beard.  I put my chin in my hand, wishing there was some way I could vent this unnatural energy that keeps filling my body at the very mention or thought of the Dark Island.

“Still no word from your Falcon?” Cole asks.  I start, then turn to see Zane came out, his steps heavy as he climbs up to us.

He shakes his head, clearly affected by its absence, “Not yet.”

It’s quiet for a second, then Kai sighs, “I wonder what’s on the island.”

“An entirely new ecosystem?” Zane suggests.

Cole shrugs, “Never before seen creatures?”

Jay gasps excitedly, “Oh, vegetables that taste like dessert?!”

I snort.  You wish.

“I hope the Stone Army is there,” Kai declares.  “They may have gotten the best of us once, but never again.”

“You said it,” Cole smiles.

“Hear hear,” Jay agrees.

“I wonder if this is the end of our destiny,” Lloyd comments heavily.

I sigh, turning to them, “I’ve…been wondering that for some time…”

“If it is, there isn’t anyone else I’d want by my side,” Kai states, his voice firm.

“Hear hear,” Jay repeats.

“You said it,” Cole nods.

Zane’s eyes suddenly glow, “My Falcon has arrived at the Dark Island!”

We share looks, then race to the bridge.  Or, they do.  I have absolutely no wish to see anything before I have to.  But I follow anyway, entering the bridge just as Zane pulls the Falcon’s sight onto the screen.

Sand and trees fill the screen, tinged indigo by the camera and the dying light.  The Falcon looks down, showing a Stone Warrior.  It throws a boomerang at the bird, then the screen shuts down.  Zane hurtles back with a gasp.  I cover my mouth.

Zane sounds like he’s in shock, “He’s…he’s gone.”

“We don’t know that,” Father reminds him softly.

“Oh, Zane,” Nya and Kai help him stand up, “I’m so sorry.”

“Well, he was our friend too,” Kai tells the White Ninja, “so we’re not gonna let him go in vain.  If the Stone Army wants a fight, they got one.”

“Well, that’s going to have to wait, because right now we’re sailing straight for a storm,” Aunt Misako points out the window at giant menacing clouds as thunder rumbles.  “All hands on deck!”

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

Garmadon and I go down to where the Stone Scouts are collecting Dark Matter.  The closer I get to it, the more the power in my fingertips itches to be let out, to control it and send it into something pure.  I’m not sure if the feeling scares me or not.

“This is foolish,” Garmadon spits, “I have an unbeatable army to conquer Ninjago, and yet we waste time playing in the mud?”

“What you call ‘mud’ is concentrated evil,” the Overlord rasps, “A Dark Matter that with one drop could make a man’s heart turn as black as night.  Have patience, Garmadon.  The Celestial Clock ticks backwards to doomsday and cannot be stopped.  Your time will come,” a part of the Dark Matter starts to bubble and glow orange, but then I realize it’s the plasma ball that the Overlord takes as his form partially submerged in the lake of pure evil.  A chill runs down my spine at the sight.  “-but we must prepare.  We must build a superweapon the likes of which has never before been seen.”

“Hmm.  A superweapon?” a slow grin spreads across my master’s face.  “I like the sound of that!”  He begins to laugh, the menacing sound echoing around the deep chasm.

---

(Rose’s POV)

I’m straining to hold onto the rope with the others minus Jay, trying to stabilize the Bounty.

“Hold the line!” Cole shouts over the sound of the waves.

“The winds are too strong!” Lloyd yells.

“We need everyone’s help, Jay!” Zane grunts.

“But I don’t wanna get wet!” Jay protests behind us in the safety of the Bounty, “I-I only have one pair of underwear!”

“Get your priorities straight, please!” I beg, gritting my teeth.  “They’re kind of out of order!”

“Jay, this is no time to be making jokes!” Kai snaps.  “The Bounty can only take so much!”

“You think I’m trying to be funny?” Jay grumbles.  High pitched creepy laughter rises around us.  “Okay, laugh all you want, but we’ll see who laughs last when I have to go commando!”

“Jay, will you please stop it and just help?!” I shriek, trying to block out the laughter.

“Who’s laughing?” Kai shouts.  When no one responds he repeats nervously, “Uh, guys, why is the sea laughing at us?”

“And why do I have a feeling we’re not gonna get the joke?” Jay adds.

What looks like shimmering orange starfish jump onto the ship.  Cole blinks, and lets go of the rope, “Hey, what’s that?”

“Whoa!” the sails pull the rest of us forward several feet.

“I’m coming!  I got it!” Jay runs out of his sheltered spot and grabs onto the rope as well.

“About time, Jay!” Kai looks at him pointedly.

A wave splashes over the deck, getting the blue ninja soaked, “Oh, perfect.”

Cole walks over to the starfish creatures, “It looks like some sort of a…hmm…fish.”

“Congratulations, you found a brain cell!” I strain against the wind again.  “We could really use your super strength over here, Cole!”

Cole picks up the starfish, revealing a circular mouth filled with sharp teeth underneath.  His eyes widen in surprise.

“WAIT!” my aunt runs outside, “We must not let the Starteeth on board.  They devour ships and won’t stop until we sink!”

“WHAT-”

My shout is cut off by Cole yelping and shaking the Startooth off his hand frantically, “Ow! It bit me!” then I see the ripped cloth and clean cuts on his hand.  He grimaces, then looks at the Starteeth as they hop away from him and onto the rope.

Aw man… The rope snaps in two, sending all of us but Cole to the deck and leaving the mast unstable as it creaks, swaying dangerously in the wind.  The Bounty lurches to one side, making us tumble over to the railing.  A bunch of Starteeth ride the wave onto the ship; others just leap onto it.

“Huh?” Kai stands up.  “Get these things off the ship!”  We nod and run over to them, picking them up at arm’s length and throwing them off.  A couple launch themselves at Kai as if to get him back for ordering them off the ship, one landing on his knee and another on the side of his forehead.

“Aargh!” he throws the one on his head back into the sea with a wince, “I’m starstruck!”  I feel a snort escape me even though the situation isn’t all that funny.  He pulls the second off his knee and hurls it into the ocean, “Unh, good riddance, water vampires!”  I get the feeling some of us are gonna need some bandages after this is over.

“Faster!  Or we’ll sink!” Lloyd shouts, throwing two over the side.

Jay’s ripping Starteeth off the mast as the rest of us deal with the deck, “Get off there!”  He suddenly gives a strangled gasp, “Oh my!”  I look over to see four Starteeth hanging onto his back.  Ah-  That-that looks painful.   He looks back, sees them, and shrieks, “AAH!  Get them off!  Get them off !!”

“Use your Spinjitzu!” Kai shouts at him.

“Ninja, go!” Jay does so, successfully getting them off his back, but ends up throwing them onto the sail.  He stops and looks at them, “Okay, bad idea.”  I see the ripped cloth on his back and streaks of blood and wince.  These things are savage …   I use Spinjitzu to suck several up and send them out to sea.

“Ninja, go!” the others do the same, clearing the deck.

“Sink your teeth into this!” Kai quips.

Jay gasps in horror, staring at several latched onto the anchor chain, “They eat through metal too?!”

“Uh, guys?!  I think we have a bigger problem!” Lloyd shouts, looking down at the ship’s side.  A bunch of Starteeth are chewing away at the ship’s side, leaving a gaping hole.

“Oh, I should have brought an extra pair of underwear…” Jay moans, covering his face.

I ignore the comment and just run below deck and into Misako’s room.  I rip a couple of the starteeth off and throw them in the water, trying not to lose my balance as the ship rocks and I continually get drenched in icy cold water.  One of the Starteeth bites my wrist before I can throw it.  I cry out, wincing at the feel of its teeth sinking into my skin, then rip it off and hurl it out to sea before holding my bleeding wrist.  Ugh.  I hate these little monsters.

---

(Cole’s POV)

The next day, we’re all scooping out water from Misako’s room.  Several of us got bandages and Jay had to use his spare gi.  I’m wearing one of my extra gloves, trying to ignore how weird it feels brushing against the bandage underneath as we use a couple buckets to get the water out.

“Ah, this is hopeless!” Kai finally bursts out.  “Now that we have no rudder we’ve been drifting aimlessly, and we’ll never get to the Dark Island.”  Rose shakes her head, a strange look in her eye as she passes a bucket to Jay.

Misako’s holding her salvaged scrolls, “We only know what is foretold will happen, not when it will happen.”

Zane drops his bucket, eyes unfocusing.  Sensei Wu looks at him, “What is it, Zane?”

“I sense something,” the blond walks over to the hole in the Bounty.

“Is it the Falcon?” I ask him.

“Is he alright?” Jay adds.

“No.  It’s…something else . ”  His tone grows urgent, “Brace yourselves!”  I tense a half second before the Bounty crashes into something.  We all stumble back, miraculously keeping our feet except for Rose, who tumbles onto Misako’s bed.  I hold my arms out for a second, then straighten.  What was that ?

I glance over the others, everyone just seems startled, so I join Zane by the hole to see we crashed onto a very desolate looking island.

The others recover, and we step out onto the sand, looking up at a large tower standing on a small mountain/cliff.  Lloyd’s brow draws together, “Who would build a lighthouse way out here?”

Zane shakes his head, “It’s not a lighthouse.  It’s a prison.”  We start walking up the steps.

Halfway up the stairs a deep moaning growl comes from the sea.  “Oh,” Jay whimpers, “I should have brought an extra pair of underwear.”

“We get it…” Rose replies irritably.  I glance at her questioningly.  She just looks at the ocean, face stoic.  Her fist is held close to her chest.

“Mysterious…” Sensei Wu mutters.  “We better keep going.”

At the top of the steps, we stop in front of the door.  A camera above it looks at us.

“Uh, should we smile?” Jay asks.  Rose elbows him.

The doorknob rattles, then the door pops open to reveal an old man with white hair wearing glasses and a lab coat.  His entire expression looks almost as though it’s glowing, “Zane!  Is it really you?!  You found me!”  He gives Zane a big hug.  Zane seems rigid with shock; his jaw drops.

“Uh, do you know him?” Lloyd asks slowly.

“Of course I know him!  I built him for heaven’s sake,” the man adjusts his glasses, smiling at Zane widely.  Wait-  that means-  this is Zane’s creator?  His father?

“But,” Zane stammers, eyes wide in shock, “my memory tells me that you have passed…”

“Ahh, you found your memory switch,” the old man says fondly.  The sea groans again.  The man’s eyes widen slightly, his tone changing from overjoyed to urgent, “Hurry, it can’t know that you’re here, or else there’ll be dues to pay.”

Jay gulps, “‘It’?”

“I’ll explain everything inside, including why it is that you thought I was dead,” Zane’s father ushers us inside.

“Well, the Bounty’s sailing days are over…” Nya says sadly.

“Come, Nya,” Sensei reminds her gently, and the two follow us inside.

“Locking, barricading, hand checking…” Mr. Julien locks the door, barricades it, looks at the camera screen, then sighs in relief.  “I think we’re safe.  This way.”  He puts a hand on Zane’s back, and starts up the stairs.  We follow him to the top, where there’s a small room filled with tools, blueprints, contraptions, and a few other things.  He smiles warmly, “Please, please, have a seat.  You must be thirsty.”

“Seat?  Where?” Zane scratches his head with a puzzled smile.

Mr. Julien pulls a lever.  The lighthouse light retracts into the ground and a table and mats pop out in its place.  “There of course.”

“Wow, that’s pretty smart,” Nya compliments him.

We sit around the table, and I add to it, “A technical wizard.”

Mr. Julien presses a switch, activating a little robot, who rolls around us, hops up on the table end next to Rose, and places tiny bowls in front of each of us before hopping back off and going to Mr. Julien with a short series of muted beeps.  He gives the robot a teapot, then the little guy jumps back up to the table and pours some tea in each bowl till he reaches Jay.  Jay moves his bowl around, forcing the robot to continually adjust until the robot just pours tea on the Blue Ninja’s lap.  Jay screams in pain and jumps around.  We burst out laughing as the little robot finishes serving tea and hops off the table one more time.

Zane seems distracted as he looks at a particular blueprint, “Father, I don’t understand.  I-I saw you pass.”

“Yes, you did, and believe me when I tell you, I thought I was kaput,” Mr. Julien affirms, “but as you know in Ninjago, the past is the past.”

“And the future-”

“-is the future,” Misako and Wu finish.

“Yes,” Mr. Julien nods and continues, “but after I turned off your memory switch, what you didn’t see is bonehead Samukai reviving me with a special elixir.  He wanted me to create state-of-the-art war machines for their army.  He said if I did, then I would be able to see my son again.  And to make sure I didn’t escape, he chained a Leviathan to keep guard.”

“A Leviathan?” Rose’s eyes widen.

“That’s what we heard in the ocean?” Lloyd adds.

“Yes,” Mr. Julien confirms.  “When Samukai didn’t return, I thought I would never see you again.  But as so much time has passed, I started to question if you would ever want to see me again.  I was afraid if you found out what horrible things I’ve created, you would think I was a…a monster,” he admits, looking at Zane sadly.

Zane puts a hand on his father’s shoulder, “We will get you out of here, Father.  Now that we are together, perhaps we can invent a way off this rock.”

“Could you repair the rocket boosters on our ship?” Jay suddenly speaks up excitedly.

“That sailing ship has rocket boosters?” Mr. Julien grips the edge of the window with a wide smile akin to a kid who just met Santa.

“Well, the rotors and gears are shot…” Nya shrugs.

“Eh, pish posh,” Mr. Julien waves his hands.  “No matter!  I’ll have your ship airworthy by dawn!”

The ocean lets out a rumbling roar, the island shaking.  Kai grabs one of the emptied tea bowls to keep it from falling and breaking as I hold onto the table, “It’s an earthquake!”

“No, it’s much worse,” Mr. Julien turns to us, rushing to act normal.  “He’s here.  Everyone hide!”  Everyone scatters for hiding places.  Zane, Nya, and Lloyd hide behind some of the cabinets, Sensei and Misako go partially down the stairway, Jay and Kai climb up to the rafters and press against the wall.  I quickly do the same, Rose right behind me.  Just as we press up against the wall, a blue tentacle-like thing with three giant yellow eyes appears in the window behind Mr. Julien.

“Nobody make a sound,” he whispers under his breath.  I find myself holding mine.  Rose’s hand finds mine and grips it tightly.  I glance at her.  Her eyes are closed, her face expressionless, but she’s pale.

“Aha, if it isn’t my old chum,” Mr. Julien greets the Leviathan.  It moves to the window next to him and looks at the tea bowls on the table.  Rose stiffens.  I squeeze her hand slightly.

Mr. Julien notices the problem and quickly flips the bowls over, grabbing some chopsticks to tap them like a makeshift xylophone.  “Hehe, just marching to the beat of my own drum.  You know, doing whatever I can to pass the time.  Since I’m so, you know, heh, alone.”  The giant eyes blink, but then it slithers out of view.  Mr. Julien goes to the window to watch it sink back into the ocean.

We climb out of our hiding places with muted sighs of relief, gathering around the window.  Kai’s eyebrows lower, “If we’re gonna make something and get out of here, we’re gonna have to hurry before it comes back.”

---

(Lloyd’s POV)

We all work on fixing the Bounty.  At first I’d helped Nya find planks we could use to fix the hole, once that was done, I joined Cole and Rose sewing up the sails.  And I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t surprised Cole was sewing.

And…whistling, apparently.  I glance at him and notice everyone else looking at him questioningly as well.

He pauses and looks at us, “What?  It’s catchy…”  Rose goes back to sewing without a smile or laugh.  Cole glances at her, then keeps sewing up the sail as well.

After a second he seems to come to a conclusion and looks at her out of the corner of his eye, “Rose, is something wrong?  You’ve been acting…off.  Ever since the Stone Warrior.”  So…that wasn’t just my imagination then.   I look up at her as well.

She studiously doesn’t look at us, “What are you talking about?”

I shake my head, “Cuz…we can tell.  You seem troubled by something.”

“You know you can tell us anything right?” Cole asks her, putting a hand on her shoulder.  “That’s why we’re a team.”

Rose’s hands still, “It’s…it’s just…I…”  After a moment, she just shakes her head and continues working, “Nothing.  It’s nothing.  I’m fine.”

I share a look with Cole.  Neither of us want to force her to say anything, but we don’t want to leave her struggling with whatever is going on on her own either.  I hate this...

---

(Cole’s POV)

An echoing growl that’s now all too familiar rises from the sea as we hop off the Bounty.  Zane and Dr. Julien (as he asked we call him), run out of the lighthouse prison, “Everyone aboard!  It’s coming!”

Kai turns and takes a startled step back, “It’s here !”

I turn my head to see giant tentacles rising out of the ocean.

“Get us out of here, Nya!” Jay shouts.  We race up the plank and onto the Bounty, Nya going into the bridge.

The Bounty rises into the air as we try to keep our feet, Nya starts to drive it out of the mess of tentacles, but then the Leviathan grabs hold and pulls down.  I fall backward against the Bounty’s wall, Jay behind me, then I fall to the deck, Jay falling on top of me.  Ow.

The Bounty levels out, then tilts the other direction as more tentacles latch on, sending all of us sliding towards the prow.  And several of us, including me, onto the stairs leading below deck.

“Lloyd!  Use your Elemental Powers!” Sensei orders.

“As you wish, Sensei!” Lloyd gets to his feet and summons a ball of energy, throwing it at the tentacles and making it grow to encompass the whole ship.  “Release us, you monster!”

The Leviathan’s tentacles slip off and the Bounty starts to move again.  “Well done, Lloyd!”

The victory is short lived, the Leviathan latching on again, and stronger than before.  It starts pulling us into the ocean, most of us grab the railings to keep our feet.

“It’s chained!” Zane shouts, climbing onto the Bounty’s railing.

“Zane!  What are you doing?!” Dr. Julien gasps.

“The Leviathan won’t let us leave.  I think I know a way I can help.”

“But you can’t jump in.  These oceans are filled with Starteeth,” his father protests.

“I know,” Zane dives off the ship.

“Zane!  No!” Dr. Julien grabs the railing as the White Ninja falls into the ocean.  I bite my lip, tightening my hold on the Bounty’s rail as another lurch shakes the ship.

“Zane has an idea…” Rose murmurs under her breath, but looks unsure as the Bounty’s hull touches the ocean.

Lloyd screams for help, but who would even hear in this place?  A moment later, just before water can start running over the deck, the tentacles loosen.  The Bounty begins to rise into the air as the Leviathan relinquishes its hold on us.

“It let us go…” Kai breathes, eyes wide in confusion and surprise.

“What happened…?” Dr. Julien stands up, Lloyd helping him.  Rose just slumps against the railing with a relieved expression.

“Zane released the Leviathan, and now it’s letting us go,” Lloyd explains.

“But where is my son?” Dr. Julien asks, distress painfully clear in his face.

Lloyd looks past him.  Zane climbs into view and over the railing, “I’m here, Father.”

Dr. Julien whirls around and breaks into a smile, “Zane!”  He embraces the Nindroid, “Zane.”

“How did you know if you freed it from captivity it would let us go?” Sensei Wu asks.

“Because no one deserves to be held captive,” Zane responds with a soft smile.  “Not even a monster.”  We look over the side of the ship at the three eyed tentacle sticking out of the ocean.  It blinks, then disappears and begins to swim away, causing large ripples in the sea.

“Farewell, creature from the sea,” Zane smiles.  “Enjoy your freedom.”

The Bounty begins to fly away and toward the Dark Island once more as the sky begins to lighten.

---

The others all went below deck except Nya, who’s still piloting the Bounty.  Zane and Dr. Julien went to one of the spare bedrooms to talk and get him settled in, Misako and Wu to look through her scrolls again, and Kai, Jay, and Lloyd were training.  I was too for a while, but I’m a bit too concerned about Rose to focus, so after a bit I go up above deck again.

Standing by the entrance, I watch her restlessly move around the deck, sometimes fidgeting with her hands or gi, sometimes absently checking on the sails or anchor, sometimes just standing at the railing or prow, staring into space blankly.

I approach her after a while, but don’t say anything, leaning on the rail next to her.  I feel her look at me, then back at the sea.

The silence between us stretches until I have to fight the urge to fidget.  But then Rose sighs heavily, bowing her head, “I have this feeling…like something’s going to happen.  On the Island.  I can’t shake it.”

I look at her, waiting.

She takes a while to gather her thoughts, but eventually speaks again, “I don’t know how to explain it.  For a long time now, I’ve just…felt awful.  Like something horrible is going to happen, but I don’t know what or when.  I’m afraid that…that I might lose you guys.  Or one of you.  We don’t know what’s going to happen.”  She hesitates, then adds, “As we get closer, it grows stronger.  Sometimes it’s hard to hear myself think because…I’m terrified.”  She hangs her head, shoulders slumping.

I sigh and glance downward, “I’m…not the best with words.  But…there’s a reason you have a team, Ro.”  I turn to her.  “It’s okay to be afraid.  I’m pretty sure we all are.  After all, we don’t know what’s going to happen any more than you do.  But hey, we’re a team, and that means we’re going to stick together.  No matter what happens.  We’re all facing this together, and none of us are going to be alone.”  Reaching up to her face, I tilt our heads together, gently pressing my forehead against hers.  Something my mother used to do for me.  It always grounded me.  I can hope it will ground her too.  Assure her it will be okay.

“But what if something happens to one of us?” Rose whispers shakily.

“I’ve…been wondering about that too," I admit.  "And if something does…then the rest of us just…do what we can, and leave the rest to God.  If it’s His will that some of us make it through this and some of us don’t, then it’s probably for a reason…you’ve said yourself nothing happens without one.”

“I know it’s just-  I don’t think I could handle losing any of you.  You’re my family…” Rose takes a deep breath.  “Thinking about it…it makes me feel both sick and empty at the same time…”

“I know what you mean…” I murmur as apprehension swells and spins in my own heart.

“Cole…what if-what if something happens to you?  Or me?” Rose asks.

I sigh, “I’m not completely sure.  I don’t know everything…but sometimes I wish I do.”

“Not knowing hurts,” she states.

I nod in agreement, then pull back a bit, though only to put my arm around her shoulders, “I guess…we’d just try to find a way to keep going.  I’d want you to.”

“Same…” Rose leans into me.

I swallow the lump in my throat and hug her tightly.  She does the same.  I know it’s true.  If anything does happen, the rest of us will have to move on.  But I also know that none of us could ever forget, and that at least is comforting.

Notes:

I have a tumblr now!

You can find me at https://www.tumblr.com/the-real-pink-ninja

Chapter 10: Island of Darkness

Summary:

The Ninja find the Temple of Light, and Rose's choices come back to haunt her.

(Rose’s POV)

As I help dig earth over the Bounty to hide it from unfriendly eyes, I pause to catch my breath.  Normally, I wouldn’t have broken a sweat yet, but since our arrival at the Dark Island, my chest has felt so constricted that it’s increasingly hard just to breathe normally, and it’s incredibly painful.  I shake my head wearily and pick up the shovel again to resume working.

Kai runs up to the boys from where he was looking out below me, “This whole island is swarming with Garmadon’s indestructible Stone Army.”

“Ha!  Good thing we’re Ninja and we know how to hide,” Jay smirks.

Cole drops his own shovel in frustration, “Who wants to hide when you can fight?  I’m getting tired of having our heads buried in the sand.  I wanna fight these guys.”

Zane pauses in his own digging, “But Cole, they have no apparent weakness.  It would be unwise to start a fight we cannot finish.”

“Zane’s…right…Cole…” I pant slightly, pausing briefly again and leaning heavily against my shovel.  The pain in my chest flares up again, then fades slightly.  The guys look up at me in concern.  I just hold up a hand reassuringly, “I’m…I’m good…”

My father comes out, “Zane is correct.  That is why we must find the Temple of Light.”

We share glances, then drop our tools and head inside.  I rub my chest a bit, sitting down around the table with the others thankfully.

Aunt Misako rolls out the red scroll depicting the Temple of Light.  I lean away from it slightly, eyeing it distrustfully.  “The scrolls say there is a hidden temple on the island.  If you find it, it will give the Ninja pure Elemental Powers, powers that can destroy the indestructible army.”

“So you’re saying we get to fight?” Cole visibly brightens, “Whoo-hoo!  I’ve got happy feet!”

I snort, “You are so weird sometimes.”

“Eh, you love me,” he jokes.  I don’t respond, too occupied with trying to quench the sudden heat in my cheeks.

My aunt seems amused, but then looks at Lloyd, returning to the topic, “And you, my son, here it is written, ‘For once the Green Ninja finds the instrument of peace, he will strike it and know the power of the Ultimate Spinjitzu Master.’”

Lloyd’s eyes widen, a smile spreading over his face, “Ultimate Spinjitzu Master?”

“It means you will be able to invoke the power of the Golden Dragon, an ancient fighting style only practiced by the First Spinjitzu Master,” she explains with a smile.

The boys’ jaws drop in disbelief.

Lloyd gives them a smug grin, “Hahaha.  Jealous?”

Kai hurriedly changes the subject, “Uh, wait a minute.  This all sounds too good to be true.  What’s the catch?”

“The catch is, the Temple could be anywhere on the Island, and all we have is this,” Father holds out a gold medallion with three holes.  Under them is the carving of a dragon.

“The medallion,” Dr. Julien takes it and adjusts his glasses as he looks at it, “It’s like a compass.  When the three holes match up, the medallion will reveal where the Temple is hidden.”

“Uh, how’d you know that?” Jay questions.

“Oh, I did a lot of reading in my spare time,” the elderly inventor chuckles, “Adventure stories were my favorite.”  He hands the medallion to Zane.

“Then what are we waiting for?” the blond smiles.  The rest of us stand up and start towards the door, including my cousin.

Father holds his hands up to stop him, “Not you, Lloyd.”

Lloyd’s eyebrows lower in annoyance, “Aw, seriously?  Are we still doing this?”

“Wu is right,” my aunt speaks up, “If you were to come across your father, it could prematurely start the Final Battle.  We need to be at full strength before we take any risks.”

“Hahaha.  Jealous?” Jay copies, putting his hand on his hips with a smirk.  Lloyd glares at him.

“Well, I could use some help around the shop,” Dr. Julien offers Lloyd kindly, “We should get working on vehicles that might help give us a fighting chance.”

“Remember,” Father turns his attention to us, his expression stern, “Garmadon doesn’t know we’re on the Island.  It is imperative that you stay out of sight.”

“Of course , Sensei,” Jay waves a hand dismissively.  “Don’t worry .  Have you ever known us to veer from a plan, huh?”

Lloyd, Father, Aunt Misako, and I all give them identical unamused looks.

The boys start to shout: “Ninja-”

Wu hastily holds up his hand, “Shhh!  Not so loud.  Are you trying to get us caught?”

“...go,” they whisper.

Well, all I have to say is that these boys are most definitely going to get us all caught.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

A Stone Swordsman walks into the tent, bearing a box filled with Dark Matter.  I can feel my power sprint to life in my fingers and curl towards it, as though it is a magnet.

“Un chawa ta,” he growls in the Warrior’s ancient language, speaking to General Kozu.

“What did he say, General Kozu?” my master asks.

“The mining, they’ve dug to new depths and have struck Dark Matter,” he takes the box from the warrior and brings it to Lord Garmadon.

My master takes it, red eyes gaining a new glow as he gazes at it, “Amazing…The most powerful Dark Matter.”

“He also says they have lost many Stone Warriors down the Mouth of Eternal Shadows just to obtain this one piece,” the general adds.

“Then tell him I’ll throw him down myself,” Lord Garmadon orders, “because I need one thousand more just like this one to make my ultimate weapon.”

The two Warriors bow, “I will see that it is done.”

As they leave, the Overlord floats in, “They respect you.  This is good…but I feel a shift in the balance.”

“Huh?  Should I have shaken my fist more?  Maybe dramatically thrown over a table, or kicked over a-”

“NO, you myopic mortal!!” the Overlord snaps.  “The Ninja …I cannot see them…but I sense their presence…”  I straighten a bit more.

“Here?  On the Island?” Lord Garmadon draws in a sharp breath, “I will alert all the warrior bikes.  If they are here, we’ll find them!”

---

He alerts Kozu to gather the Warriors who patrol the Island, explaining about the Ninja.

He looks pleased as they start to make plans amongst each other, “They would be fools to set foot anywhere near my camp.”

“Master, with all due respect,” I clasp my hands together, bowing my head.  “They have shown to be fools before.  Perhaps-”

The Overlord approaches, interrupting me.  “The Ninja are not all I wished to tell you of…” he begins slowly, “I can sense someone with them…”

Lord Garmadon looks at him in worry, “Who?  Who is it?”

The Overlord takes a long, wheezing breath before replying, “My daughter…She would make…a most valuable asset.  All that would be required is…a little persuasion.”

“I will tell the Warriors, if they see her, to bring her here-” my master starts, but is cut off.

“No…I will see to it personally that she joins us,” the Overlord’s voice takes on a new tone that I can’t recognize, and don’t like.  “Do not concern yourself about her.  All will come to pass in due time.”

---

(Rose’s POV)

The farther inland we go, the sharper the pain in my chest becomes.  It grows to the point that I lag disturbingly far behind the boys.  I’m not sure if they noticed or if they just decided I wouldn’t welcome questions.  Most likely the latter.

I struggle to climb up the giant rock they’re on top of, barely able to draw a breath because of how tight my chest feels.  When I reach the top, I collapse, I…am never…climbing again…in my entire life…

“Look, this must be Garmadon’s camp.”

“No, you think?  I thought it was a take-out restaurant,” Kai replies to Jay sarcastically.

Aw you have to be kidding me… I raise my head weakly to see Garmadon’s camp, indeed, is right in front of us, and teeming with Stone Warriors.  What feels like icy claws grip my heart, forcing me to draw a sharp breath, but that only sends a stab of pain through my lungs.

“It looks like he’s building something,” Kai observes.

“Building what?” Jay wonders.

“Quiet, you bozos,” Cole whispers.  “We still need to find what the medallion matches up to.”  He pulls out the medallion.

“Let me see,” Zane takes it and looks through it.  “Hmm…nothing matches.”  He pauses suddenly, “Wait-”

Jay gasps, “You found the Temple of Light?”  He grabs the medallion and looks through it.

“No, but look!” he points.  I follow his finger to…the Falcon.  It lies motionless on a table in a little structure.

“Your Falcon,” Kai breathes.  “I thought it got shot down and was lost for good.”

Zane stands up, “Not if I can retrieve it and get the pieces back to my father.”

Cole looks up at him quickly, “Wait, Zane.  You’re veering from the plan.  We’re supposed to be finding the Temple of Light and staying out of sight .”  Thank you, for using common sense for one time in your life… I internally say, kind of wanting to say it out loud, but the sharp pain caused by my next breath reminds me how futile that would probably be.

“If I were any of you, I’d do the same.  I have to get my friend back,” Zane jumps across the boulders in the ground, then over the wall and out of sight.

Cole reaches for him, starting to stand up, but Kai grabs his arm and pulls him back down, “The more of us that go, the more chance we’ll get caught.  We just have to stay here and hope he doesn’t get seen.”

“Aww, I wanna fight…”  The hothead being the one with the braincell, I internally sigh, I don’t get to see that every day.   I feebly shake off the distracting…everything, and look up, searching for Zane.  He’s hiding behind a giant spiked boulder, waiting for an opening to get closer to the Falcon.

---

“I spy, uh…another tree!”

Cole looks at him in irritation, “Jay, how did you ever become a Ninja?  Seriously.”

“Ugh, will Zane just get his bird already and get out of there?” Kai stands up, exasperated.

I’m just about to fall asleep if it wasn’t for a certain something keeping me awake.  I just want to get away from here.  Guess you can’t always have what you want.  I sigh heavily, rolling onto my back and closing my eyes.  At least it’s a little easier to breathe in this position.

“Guys, look!” Jay suddenly gasps, standing and handing the medallion to Kai.

“It matches up…” Kai breathes, looking through it.  “That must be the Temple of Light!”

Cole laughs, “Jay, I take back everything I said.  You are a fine Ninja.  Not finer than me but a fine-”

“NINJA!” a gravelly voice shouts.  My heart sinks, Why… I stand up, following the guys’ gazes to Zane, cornered by Stone Warriors and cradling his Falcon protectively.

“Oh…” Jay sighs.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

A Stone Warrior suddenly raises a shout, making us turn to see what’s going on.  The White Ninja backs up against a boulder, surrounded by our Warriors.

“A Ninja, here?” Lord Garmadon mutters darkly.  “Seize him.”

At the order, the Warriors start to close in on him.

“Master, where there is one, all the rest are sure to be nearby-” I start, but he shakes his head.

---

(Rose’s POV)

Cole clenches his fist, “That’s it, I’m fighting.”

Kai holds an arm out to stop him, “We can’t, they’re indestructible.  If we go in there, they’ll know we’re here too.”

Cole just flips onto one of the rocks Zane used, then turns to look back up at us, “Yeah, and if we don’t, we’ll regret it for the rest of our lives.  Come on, it’s Zane .”  Jay and Kai share a glance, then follow him into the camp.  I sigh heavily, Guess we’re doing this…   I jump after them and inside the fence.  I nearly collapse when I land, the claws around my heart squeezing hard.  I ignore the tiny voice screaming warning bells and follow them.

We commandeer one of the vehicles while the Army is distracted and drive over the ones surrounding Zane.  Flipping back out of it, we start to run to the fence.

Cole looks at Zane who’s standing still, blue eyes wide with surprise, “What are you waiting for, a red carpet?”  That snaps him out of his stupor and the White Ninja runs after us.

“They’re getting away,” my uncle shouts.  “NOOO!  Do something!!”

With my power glitching, I can only make out a few of the words the Stone Warrior says, but I can understand enough to know that he’s ordering the Army to follow us.

Remember when Sensei asked to stay out of sight?” Kai gasps.

“Yeah, that was good advice,” Cole agrees as we reach the fence.  I hop onto Kai’s shoulders, the others jumping up as well to make a human ladder.  I gasp, straining.  Zane tries to grab the top of the fence to climb out, but suddenly jumps off, narrowly avoiding getting speared.  At the same time, I crumple, falling over Kai’s shoulder and sending Cole and Jay tumbling to the ground.

“Rose, are you okay?” Kai blinks rapidly after catching himself.

I stand up, using the fence for support and ignoring Cole’s glance, replying as shortly as I can that, “I’m good.”

“Why didn’t we listen to him?!” Jay shouts, then ducks, two spears embedding themselves in the fence above his head.

“Why don’t we ever listen to him?” Zane inquires, he and Cole ducking as well as two more spears soar through the air and barely miss their heads.

“Look!” Kai suddenly points.  “The gate!  The way out!”  The Stone Warriors by the gate are quickly trying to close it.  We make a break for it, me stumbling slightly.  Cole grabs my arm to keep me from falling behind.

We file onto the narrow rope bridge, then start running across.  Kai yelps, making the rest of us stop and turn.  He’s staring down with wide eyes.  The plank he’d stepped on had broken.

“Hurry up.  We’re halfway there,” Cole turns to keep going, then freezes.  I look around him only to see that the Stone Army is closing in from both sides of the bridge, us trapped smack in the middle.

“We’ve been in situations like this a hundred times,” Kai starts.  “Quick, who’s got an idea?”

“Uh, we jump into that hole!” Jay points downwards about a hundred and probably more feet at-  Dark Matter.  I open my mouth to protest, but am cut off by a gasp of pain as the claws dig in again.

“Next idea!” Kai thankfully doesn’t like the look of it.

“I say we fight!” Cole holds up a fist.

“With what?!  We don’t have powers!” Kai points out, then looks at me.  I struggle for a brief second, then shake my head helplessly.  He sighs and turns to Zane, “What about you, Zane?  What do your computers say?”

Zane looks at the advancing Warriors, the gap where a plank used to be, then up at the crane over our heads, “I got us into this mess.  I know how to get us out.”  As more and more Stone Warriors file onto the bridge, it sinks below the weight, then breaks.  “Grab a plank!” he yells.  I flail, then feel something wood smack my hand and I close my hand around it, my eyes snapping to him like a magnet.

He uses Spinjitzu, “Ninja, go!”  Once he starts heading upward, I realize why and whirl into my own Spinjtizu, copying the others.  Once right above the crane and hurtling towards it, we stop, slipping the planks under our feet and landing on the crane, sliding over it and shooting out over the trees, still using the planks to slide above them smoothly.  Well, not completely, because things start to get bumpy as we loose momentum and start going down.

“We’re falling!” Jay yells.

“Use your hood as a parachute!” Zane calls out.  I quickly grab mine off and spread it above my head.  The wind catches it, slowing our fall as Jay whoops.

---

Running all the way back to the Bounty, I nearly fell behind again.  Multiple times.  But the claws eased their grip around my heart, so there was that.  Even so, Cole had had to grab my hand after the fifth stumble, and I get the feeling he’s gonna bring this up later.

The Bounty comes into view through the trees, I can see Dr. Julien and Lloyd turn to look at us.  The elderly man brightens, “Hey, they found the Falcon!”

“Why are they running?” my cousin questions.

“Prepare for battle!” Zane puts the Falcon on the table.  “We’ve got company!”

Father and Aunt Misako approach with worried expressions, “You were spotted?  By one?  Two?”

“How about…” Kai tries for a weak smile before giving up and dropping it, “all of them?”

“Did you locate the Temple of Light?” my aunt asks.

“It’s at the top of the mountain.  I hope those vehicles are ready because we could sure use them now.”

In response, they walk towards a large, black and gold vehicle resembling a race car with a sealed cockpit and a large, golden-colored drill on the front.  Dr. Julien smiles at Cole, “Guess you’re gonna have to figure this baby out on the fly.”

He grins and jumps into the driver’s seat, Kai and Zane flipping into the vehicle as well.  I climb in a bit less exuberantly behind Zane, “Don’t get us killed.”

“Thank you for the vote of confidence,” is Cole’s sarcastic response.

“We’ve also packed another surprise in the back,” Nya adds, “Perhaps it can be of use.”  Before Jay climbs into the vehicle, she grabs his shoulders and gives him a peck on the lips.

He grins, “Another Nya surprise?”

“You’ll have to go too,” Aunt Misako tells my cousin.  “Be safe.”

“We will,” he reassures her before climbing in after us and sitting next to Kai.

“Whatever you do, do not stop until you get to the Temple of Light,” Father warns us.  “Our survival depends on it.”

“This time, we’ll stick to the plan,” Kai agrees.

“You better,” I admonish from the back.

“Good luck, Ninja.”

Cole starts the vehicle and drives away from camp.  Just in time as well, because a moment after we’ve started down the beach, a Stone Warrior gives a battle cry behind us, “ATTACK!”  I look back, seeing the Army in hot pursuit with its own vehicles.

“You do know how to steer this thing, don’t you?!” Jay yells at Cole.  In response, the vehicle moves faster around the beach’s curve.  But even so, two of the Warrior’s vehicles get ahead of us and skid to a stop, blocking the path.  Our own turns sharply, tires screeching as I’m thrown against the window, then it accelerates and launches off a rock, heading right for the third vehicle with saws ready to cut through us.  I’m not entirely sure I didn’t scream, but I did hear Cole whoop, and I know I’m wondering why on earth is he trying to get us killed before next thing I know we’re burrowing under the ground.

I continue to grip the back of Jay’s seat so tightly that my knuckles are probably white, but otherwise I relax out of pure relief.  A few blessedly Stone Warriorless moments later, we shoot out of the ground, land in front of a mountain, and stop.  I fall back into my seat with an exhausted sigh.

“Well, that’s about as far as this baby will go,” Cole says.  “We’ll have to do the rest on our own.”

“But we’ll never make it up the mountain before they arrive,” Lloyd points out.

Kai reaches forward, pressing a button that makes the windshield go back and stands up, “Well then, let’s see what my sister packed.”

I stand up to watch as he goes to the back of the Driller and presses something.  A large box shoots over his head and lands behind him, then unfolds into a red and gold mech.  Kai gasps, “Oh, I love my sis!”  A laugh escapes me before I can stop it.

Kai climbs into the mech as the Stone Warriors appear in the distance, “Leave this to me.”  He turns the mech around and starts it into a run, then it gives a giant leap that takes it all the way to the Stone Warriors.

I blink, “Huh, Nya’s really good at building stuff.”

“Yeah, she is, now come on.  Kai’ll slow them down, but we still need to get to the top,” Lloyd reminds us, getting out of the Driller.  We follow him out and jog to the mountain’s base to wait for Kai.  A second later, I see him starting back.  But then the Warriors drive forward too.

Jay takes a stance, “These guys just don’t stop.”

The mech walks up behind us and we turn.  “Climb on!” Kai orders.  We flip onto the mech, holding on tightly as Kai makes the mech straighten, turn, and start leaping up the mountain.  Unfortunately the Warrior’s bikes can climb up just as easily if not more so.

By the time we’re in the clouds, Jay looks down and groans, “Ugh, they’re still coming!”

“One of these days we’re gonna have to fight,” Cole grumbles.

“We know, Cole,” I roll my eyes, “but right now we need to climb faster !” the last two words being directed at Kai, who obeys.

Zane looks down, “We’re still not climbing fast enough!”

Alarms suddenly go off in the mech’s cockpit.  We look down to see a Stone Warrior clinging to its foot.

“I’ll handle it!” I say quickly.  “Keep climbing!”  Kai nods as I carefully inch down to the foot.  The Stone Warrior struggles to hold onto the foot due to the movement, and I’m not having any easier of a time.

I risk letting go, grabbing my sai, and shoving it under the Warrior’s iron grip, then swing down with the foot’s momentum, prying the hand off, then swinging back up and kicking it in the crook of the elbow, forcing it to lose its other grip before it can regain its hold.  It falls down with an aggravated roar, but now my attention turns to myself.  I’m only holding on with one hand.  I try to sheathe my sai and grab hold with both, but the Fire Mech suddenly jolts, and I lose my purchase with a scream.

A hand catches mine, gripping so hard that for a brief second I can’t feel my hand.  I inhale sharply, staring down the mountain, then I look up.

Cole pulls me back up to a safer spot, “We’re not losing you today.”  I just nod.

“Activate hook!” Kai pushes a button, making the mech shoot a grappling hook out of its hand and up the mountain.  The rope grows taut and we start ziplining up the mountain ahead of the Army.  Kai climbs over the ledge, and stops, letting us climb off.

Jay suddenly yells next to my ear, “OH!  WE MADE IT TO THE TOP!”

I clamp a hand over my ear, “Ow…Jay…”

“But where’s the Temple of Light?!” he ignores me, suddenly realizing that there’s nothing here.

“Are you sure you used the medallion right?” Lloyd gives him a look.

“Oh, of course I used it right!  It said it should be right here!”

“Well, until we find it, I’ve got to find a way to slow them down,” Kai comments, turning to look at the fast approaching Warriors.  He pounds the ground with the mech’s fist, making this part of the mountain shake, but the Warriors keep coming.  He looks at a boulder, then shoots it.  It falls off and right onto the Warriors, making them fall down the mountain side.  “That should buy us a little time.”

We start climbing farther up the mountain.  I hear Lloyd gasp and look at him, he’s staring up at a beam of light shining down.  We all share a glance, then hurriedly climb up the cliff towards it.

Lloyd reaches the top first, “The Temple of Light.”

I pull myself over the edge and stand up, looking at it.  An ache in my heart grows, but it’s not the kind from before, that was suffocating.  This one just makes me aware of something inside me that is…well…missing.  I hold my fist against my chest, gazing up at the Temple.

We walk up to the gates and push them open, then go inside.  I stare around at the murals covering the walls.

“Guys, check this out,” Jay notices them too.  “It’s…us.”  I look at the murals again, then realize he’s right.  Each and every mural shows us and our journey as a team.

“Impossible…” Kai stares at them.  “It’s everything we’ve ever done.”

“Finding the Bounty, facing the Devourer, even right now,” Cole suddenly points at one.  We all look up at it to see…us looking back, each in the exact same spot and position as where we are.  Including Cole pointing.  Speaking of which: Cole suddenly looks at his hand and then quickly puts it behind his back.  I smile slightly, then walk past that picture to the next.  I blink as I realize it’s of one of Cole and me having one of our many late night talks, his arm around my shoulders as we look at the stars.

I feel a presence behind me and glance back to see Cole, “Recognize that?”

He rubs the back of his neck, “Yeah…hope the guys don’t see that one.”

I muffle a laugh, “Yeah…”

“How could it all be here?” Zane asks a bit away.

“Destiny,” Lloyd replies softly.  He looks at the center mural, “I-I think I know what we need to do.”  As the others gather around him, I sense more than feel their voices tuning out, as well as a soft, but irresistible pull in a different direction.  In spite of myself, I follow, my friends voices suddenly hushing.  The pull leads me to a column.  Slowly reaching out, I trace down the smooth stone till my fingers catch on something.  I push it.  The column in front of me opens up to reveal a tunnel going down, unlit.  The pull comes again from inside.

I slowly walk inside and down the shadowed steps.  Either I don’t hear anything, or there’s something muffling the sound of my steps, because there’s absolutely no sound.  It feels soft, comforting, and somehow lessens the ache in my heart and simultaneously makes it grow.  Reaching the steps’ bottom, I step out into a room identical to the one I just left the others in, except that it’s not lit and is void of color except for the darkest shades of purple accenting the shadowed gray and black.

Drawn by the gentle pull, I step forward slowly, reaching the middle of the room.  A strange mist seems to be rising or pooling from the room’s corners, numbing the details of the room.  A bell rings distantly.  The room darkens in response, completely muffling the sound as soon as it rang out.

Said darkness slowly curves forward in a circle, approaching me.  I don’t move, waiting for something.

It gathers together until there’s nothing but blackness that I can see, then I feel something akin to a brush of air, or more like breathing in air, but I’m not breathing, and there’s no air.  I can tell the darkness is entering me.  The ache begins to numb, filling up the space in my heart, then it’s full, and still the darkness keeps coming.  It feels like it is filling up everything in my body, giving me power that I can suddenly acutely feel at my fingertips.  It’s there, and I can use it if I wish, it’s completely under my control.  I don’t know how long it takes, but I know that it’s not fast, and I know that I’m not breathing during any of it, too still to even do that, but it’s fine.  I don’t feel the need for air.

When it’s finally done and I feel the robes I’m wearing change, shifting into something new, I know all my powers are restored and strengthened to their peak.  I’m subconsciously aware that I resume breathing.  I walk to the steps and climb up, out of the hidden room, then out of the column and into a world blazing with light.  As if to counter it, the darkness in me spreads out, behind it.  After a moment, the light and shadows fade, retreating, and I see my friends.  Each one is wearing a robe similar to mine, but more suited to their own elements, and each except for Lloyd is holding a sword with a blade made entirely of their element.

Deep down, I know that the prophecy is being fulfilled in a way none of us expected.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

Something rushes inside me, or out of me, I can’t tell which, making me gasp.  Something inside me throbs as my powers diminish to the point where I can’t feel them at all.

My master, grumbling as he approaches his tent, looks up and starts violently when he sees me.  I just frown slightly, not understanding his reaction, then I look to the side and see my reflection in a blade set by the tent.  My skin is an unmistakable ashen gray.

---

(Overlord’s POV)

I chuckle as I see the cloud behind the four Elements and the Golden Dragon, the sense of my daughter’s presence growing acutely accurate.  It is time.

---

(Rose’s POV)

The guys having defeated the Stone Warriors who came to the Temple to stop us, we’re free to head back to the others.  None of the guys asked where I’d gone, so something tells me they hadn’t fully realized my presence was missing, but considering I hadn’t even originally intended to leave, I’m not going hold anything against them.  Lloyd nearly falls asleep on the way back, reminding most of us how he’s younger than he looks, but something happens to prevent his much needed rest.

A split second after a searing pain splits through my chest and head, feeling very much like some kind of laser is piercing me, the vehicle harshly flips upward and over, crashing.  The windshield flies back, someone must’ve accidentally hit it, and everyone flies out and lands on the ground roughly.

Jay gives Cole a glare first, “What in Ninjago are you trying to do?”

Cole seems offended, “It wasn’t me!”

“ You were driving-”

“It wasn’t him,” a raspy voice whispers.  Everyone is instantly up and in a circle, pulling out their weapons and taking fighting stances.

“Who’s there?” Lloyd calls.

“I don’t want trouble,” the voice returns.  I lose my sense of touch, every single nerve in my body going ice cold.  I should’ve known.

“Get away from us!” I hear myself shout.  He just chuckles, the leaves rustling around us.

“What’s going on?” Kai mutters. “That’s not the Stone Army…”

“No…it’s not…” I whisper under my breath.  “Leave us alone!” I shout aloud, gathering darkness to my fists.  Not that it would probably affect him, on second thought.

“Why, I’m disappointed in you,” a glowing orb that looks similar to pure energy, but the dark kind, lowers from the trees, “I thought you would have been glad to see your father again.”  I hear the boys’ heads turn, and feel them looking between me and him.

“You are not my father,” I grit my teeth.  “You gave up the right to that title when you tried to kill me.”

“Like it or not, we are still blood,” he growls, “and we will always be that way.”

“What do you want?” I spit at him.

“Your services.”

“I am never obeying you again,” I shout.

“Not even for your friends’ sakes?”

“Rose, what is this?” Lloyd asks. “What’s going on?”

“Rose?” my father laughs, making the trees around us sway as if in a storm.  “She told you her name is Rose?”  If he had a face, I know he’d be sneering, and right now, I can feel myself quail slightly.  “So they don’t know anything about what you are…”

“Rose, what is he talking about?” Cole puts a hand on my shoulder.

“I…” I falter, “I never told you where I was…from…”

“She was born here,” my father states.  “I was her father.  She was named...Dominique.”

“ Don’t call me that,” I hiss, whirling to face him again.  “It’s Rose now, and you can forget the idea that I’ll help you.  I would never leave my friends.”

“As you wish…” the trees rustle, and suddenly my friends stumble back, coughing.  I look at them in panic.  Little glimmers of purple surround them.

“My powers may be weak…but when need be…I can still put them to good use,” my father informs me darkly as I watch them struggling to breathe through the mist.

“Stop it…” I growl at him, “Leave them alone.”

“Only if you transfer your powers back to me and join us.”

“Don’t-” Lloyd breaks off, inhaling sharply.  “Don’t do it!”

I sense the panic pooling in my stomach more than feel it, everything tensing like a bowstring.  A couple of the Ninja collapse on the ground.  I try to push the mist away with my powers, to no avail.  I can’t go inside the little bubble either.  I don't have the skill.  Compared to him I've barely had time at all to use my powers.

“Join me, and I’ll let them be, Dominique.”

“Don’t call me that !” I shoulder the mist but stumble back, springing off as if it's a solid object.

“You’re born from darkness, and to the darkness you will always belong.  You cannot avoid it.”

“Don’t listen to him, Rose!” Cole struggles to his feet.  “You’re a good person!”

“Evil runs through your veins,” my father whispers next to my ear as I try to break through.  “All you have to do to end this is give yourself up.”

The sounds and the two different voices war in my head, taking on the shape of my father versus my friends, the one urging me to give up, the others protesting I’m not what he says.

The only problem is…

He’s right.

The darkness presses in, and I can sense my friends struggling not to give into the pressure.  I feel like I’m being tugged back and forth both inside and outside, so that nothing makes sense and nothing can break through.  I feel like I’m drowning.  My father’s whispers and my friends’ cries mingle together in my mind till I can’t stand it anymore.

“Stop it, just STOP IT!!!! ” I scream, clamping my hands over my head, squeezing my eyes shut.  The mist dissipates and silence falls.  I slowly lower my hands, breathing heavily.  Out of the corner of my eye, I can see my friends lying on the ground, catching their breath.  They start to get to their feet, but I turn away, facing my father.

I take a deep breath, trembling, “I’ll…I’ll join you.”

“Rose, no!” Lloyd gasps behind me.

I ignore him and close my eyes, pushing the power inside of me towards my father.  I can feel it leaving, feel myself growing cold, empty, as he laughs, drinking it in.

I know Lloyd’s trying to rush forward and stop it behind me, and I also know the others are holding him back, afraid something will happen to him.  But I don’t turn.  As soon as the power is his, I feel something begin to swirl around me, wisps of darkness.  And this time, when the pain comes, it’s unbearable.  I scream, falling to the ground as it feels like something is tearing me apart on the inside.  Something shoves me back, not physically.  I feel like I’m seeing through someone else’s eyes.  I’m falling, falling…I hit something hard and lie there.  I slowly stand, looking around.  Where I am, everything is pitch black.  What I’m standing on looks like black glass or marble, I can see my reflection in it.  Faint light shimmers behind me.  I slowly stand up and turn, then something flashes.  I can see the Overlord.  Hear my voice speaking, but I’m not the one talking.  I try to look for my friends, but the sight doesn’t change.  I give up and just watch and listen.

“Father,” my voice says, dark and empty, my voice but at the same time not.

“What’s happened to her?” Jay gasps somewhere behind me.  At least, I think it’s behind me, because I can’t tell which way is what.  Something burns against my chest, something warm.  I cling to the feeling, afraid I’ll slip away if I don’t.

“What have you done to my cousin?!”

“She was never your cousin, boy.”

“Rose?” Lloyd’s voice is pleading.

I try to protest, say that’s not true, he’ll always be my family, no matter what…the voice I hear instead, the voice that’s mine and yet not…says something different, a biting tone making each word seem as sharp as a serrated dagger.  “My name is Dominique.  You are not my family.”  No!  No that’s not true!

The vision switches, looking towards my friends.  Each one is staring at me with different expressions.  Lloyd’s eyes shine with hurt, sending a pang into my heart.  Zane looks bewildered, completely unsure how to react.  Kai’s eyes are burning with fury, his hand protectively holding Lloyd’s shoulder.  Jay shrinks back, fear clashing with confusion and anger.  Cole just stares at me, his expression slack except for the horrified look in his eyes.  And somehow, that hurts the most.

The vision turns away again, and I feel my body begin walking after my father.

Cole’s voice floats after me, “Rose, wait-”

The vision snaps back and a poisonous voice hisses the words, “There is no Rose anymore.  You can stop worrying about your little friend because she no longer exists.”

Before I can see their reaction, or even cry out that she’s wrong, I’m here, I’m right here- , the vision turns away again and they’re gone.  I fall to my knees and cry.

I'm here.

I am...

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

The Overlord enters the tent again.  Not long before, I’d felt my powers and appearance return to normal, and I couldn’t tell why, but no matter, as long as it does not happen again, all is well.

“It appears your indestructible army isn’t as tough as it appears to be,” Lord Garmadon hisses, his eyes narrowing at the glowing orb.

The Overlord chuckles, “The Ninja may be getting stronger, but so are we.”

Behind him, a familiar and simultaneously unfamiliar figure approaches.  It’s my original but...not.  Her needle straight hair looks as sharp as a blade, her eyes glowing purple.  Her skin is pale as ever, but at the same time looks off, and her lips are blood red.  I don’t recognize the gi she’s wearing, the darkest shade of purple to exist, accented with black and occasional hints of bright violet.  The hilt of a katana shows above her shoulder.  When her pupiless eyes meet mine, I suddenly feel colder than ice.  If the Overlord could do something like this …but Lord Garmadon abruptly looks beyond pleased, so I say nothing.

“When the Celestial Clock reaches zero, the ultimate weapon will be complete, and then there will be nothing the Ninja can do to stop you from turning Ninjago into your image!!”

---

(Wu’s POV)

The Ninja took longer to return than we’d expected, but they did return in time, the Earth Driller suddenly coming up from the ground by the Bounty.  We start forward to congratulate them but…

When the windshield moves back and they climb out of the Driller, the only expressions I can see are all levels of somber.  Lloyd looks like he’s been crying or trying not to, Kai looks infuriated, at who I cannot tell, Zane is grave, Jay a mixture of confused and sad, Cole is unreadable, and-  I stop, doing a mental headcount.

“Where’s my daughter?” I ask.  Lloyd looks down, Kai mutters something under his breath, clenching and unclenching his fists, Zane and Jay look just about everywhere but at us, Cole just returns my gaze, looking like he’s searching for words he doesn't know how to say.

“Where is my daughter?!” I repeat sharply.

Cole’s brow furrows, opening his mouth, then closing it again.  After a second he finally speaks, “Sensei…she…left.”

“What do you mean she left?” Nya blinks, startled.

“On the way back…we were intercepted,” Cole shakes his head.  “There weren’t any Stone Warriors but…”

Fear makes my blood run cold.  “Cole.  What happened?”

He winces, “There was…I’m not sure what he was…he called himself her father.”

No.

“He threatened us…he forced her to go with him.  We tried to convince her to stop, but…she’d changed somehow.”

No…   I pass a hand over my eyes.  I’d hoped nothing like this would ever happen.  I’d hoped she’d never have to call herself the daughter of the Overlord again…

“Sensei, what happened to our sister?” Zane asks, his brows lowering.  “I do not understand.”

I sigh deeply, “It…is a long story…and I do not know as much of it as I would like.  You all know she was thrown away by her father and abandoned by her mother, that she’d lived on her own for a year before Morro and I found her and I adopted her…you never knew who her biological father was however.”  Everyone is looking at me now.

“Who was he?” Nya asks nervously.

“The Overlord,” I grimace.  “Her father was the Overlord.”

“What?!” Jay’s eyes widen.  “You mean the Overlord guy Misako told us about in the museum?!  But-”

“Yes.  I am afraid that he is the very same one,” I tell him, heart sinking.  “There was no other possibility.  I suspected she’d grown up on this very island.  Her father threw her away because if she inherited his Elemental Power, he himself would be unable to wield it to its full extent.  I always deemed it better Rose’s power remain with someone like her, who would never use it for ill, but if she’s under her father’s control…”  I sigh.  “...I wish I could have prevented this from happening…she was always mortally afraid of her past father, and never spoke of him even to me…The only reason I know who he is is because Elemental Powers are hereditary.  The only explanation for her having the Element that she does was if she was his daughter.”

“You mean this entire time, she’s been the daughter of an evil spirit who wanted to take over Ninjago and she never told us?!” Kai throws his hands in the air.

“I think she’d hoped that if she’d pretended her past did not exist, it would never come back to haunt her again…” I inform him wearily.

“That…sounds like Ro…” Cole sighs.  “Isn’t there a way to get her back?”

“Please tell me there is, Uncle,” Lloyd pleads.

“That…I do not know…” I shake my head.  “I believe all we can do for the moment is pray that God will show us a way to save her…”

Notes:

*blinks innocently*

Chapter 11: The Last Hope

Summary:

It's a race to prevent the Final Battle, with the Ninja doing everything in their power to stop the Celestial clock, and Dominique and the Stone Army trying to stop THEM.

(Garmadon’s POV)

I stand on the mountain’s top, watching the Celestial Clock counting down.  Behind me stand Bizarro Rose and Dominique.

“The clock is only hours away from finishing its countdown to the Final Battle between good and evil, Garmadon,” the Overlord floats into view from behind the clock, “Why so sad?”

“Me?  Sad?” I force a smile, “Ha!  Nonsense.  I couldn’t be happier.  It’s just…” I feel my facade fade away as Lloyd’s face appears in my mind, along with a heavy dread in the pit of my stomach.

“Lloyd?” the Overlord draws out my son’s name.

I’m that transparent, huh?   “I still have to battle my son in order to transform Ninjago into my image.”

“Battle and defeat,” the Overlord’s voice suddenly harshens, “if evil is to prevail.”

I look from him to the clock for a second, then turn and begin the trek back down the mountain.  Bizarro Rose follows me, sticking to my side.  Dominique stays on the mountain top a moment longer before she begins to follow us.

---

(Cole’s POV)

I dig my Elemental Blade into the ground, making it crack open till it reaches a boulder, which splits apart.  Then I pull it free and deactivate the blade.  I look at the handle in my hand and bite back a sigh.  I haven’t joined the others in their celebration of getting their powers back.  Sure, I’m glad that we have them back, it feels good to feel the earth beneath my feet and be able to control what it does.  But this victory doesn’t quite feel right without Rose being able to share it with us.  She had briefly, on the way back.  Before her father intercepted us and took her away.  I recall struggling to keep strong so she didn’t have to worry, urging her not to go with him.  She’d looked so desperate and lost and confused and angry and scared all at the same time.  And then she’d just given in, and just…disappeared.  It was still her, but it wasn’t at the same time.  Not really.  It was like someone completely different had taken over her.  We won a victory only to lose a vital member of our team.

Wu’s annoyed voice snaps ‘Enough!’ at my teammates a short distance down the beach.  I shake my head, surprised he hadn’t gotten after them sooner.  Though on second thought, if I hadn’t been so worried about Rose, I’d probably have been with them.

“Cole, what are you doing?” my sensei’s voice asks behind me.  Figures.

“Practicing using my Elemental Blade,” I summon it and run my fingers along the cool, stone-like material.

“That is not what it looked like to me.”

“Well, I was practicing,” I amend.

“God will show us a way to bring her back to us,” Sensei Wu tells me, looking out at the ocean.

“I hope you’re right…” I mumble under my breath.

“Truthfully…” he sighs, “I am not sure what the future will bring.  None of us ever can be.  But I know that her heavenly Father will take care of her.”

I nod slowly.  My eyes travel along the beach to Kai, Jay, and Zane laughing and joking around.  “I wonder how they’re not bothered…”

“They are.  They just cope in a different way than you,” he sends me a glance under his bushy white eyebrows, “Similarly to when you lost someone else, I believe.”

I recall the first conversation I ever had with him and manage a slight smile.  “I guess.  Thank you, Sensei.”

“Let us see what Lloyd is up to, shall we?”

I just nod and follow him back to the Bounty.  Dr. Julien is repairing the Falcon while our youngest-  well, technically youngest member watches.  “Every cog, every gear is important.  If one piece is missing or out of place, the invention won’t work,” Dr. Julien closes the Falcon’s panel, “Come now, little one.  Time to fly.”  The robotic bird takes off and flies over the sand dune in the direction of our other teammates.

“It is like you ninja,” Sensei Wu speaks up, “You each serve very important roles, and are key parts to a magnificent fighting force.”  Leave it to Sensei to make a lesson out of just about everything.

“If we’re all gears, what if I’m the gear that doesn’t work?  What if I don’t do my part?  What if I can’t defeat my father?” Lloyd suddenly asks, expression troubled.  I, on the other hand, am not worried that he’s the ‘gear’ that won’t work.  I’m more worried that problems will be caused because of a different ‘gear’ who’s missing.

“What if there are no more ‘what if’s?” Sensei counters.  “The Final Battle is almost upon us.  When that time comes, we will know the answer to what ifs whether we like it or not.”

Nya approaches, taking her welding mask off and shaking out her hair, “I know you don’t want to face your father, but there is no other choice.”

“But perhaps there is,” Misako interrupts, joining us, “I used to think it was inevitable, but then I found this.”  She places a red scroll on the table.

“You mean Lloyd doesn’t have to fight?” I ask, startled.  “This I gotta hear.”

Misako rolls out the scroll, “The scrolls say that when the Helmet of Darkness is bequeathed to its rightful ruler, the Celestial Clock will count down to the activation of an unspeakable weapon.  The first sign that the Final Battle between good and evil has begun.”

“Did you just say ‘unspeakable weapon’?” Kai’s unnerved voice cuts in.  I jump, only just realizing the other three joined us.

“Uh, I’m still stuck on what ‘bequeathed’ means,” Jay admits.

I shake my head, looking back to the older woman, “Go on, Misako.  Don’t let us interrupt you.  How do we stop the Final Battle?”

“There is nothing here that explains what would happen if the Helmet of Darkness is returned,” Misako reveals meaningfully.

“Interesting.  Remove the helmet, the clock starts.  Put it back, the clock stops,” Sensei looks at Lloyd, who realizes at the same time.

“And the Final Battle never starts,” his face lights up.

“Bequeathed, anyone?  Is anybody gonna help me out with that?”

Kai ignores Jay along with the rest of us, “Uh, that sounds great and all, and I know we have our new powers, but you expect us to get past his whole army of Stone Warriors, Bizarro Rose, Dominique, the Overlord and pluck the helmet off his head?”  I try not to flinch at the mention of the girl Rose turned into only last night.

“My brother’s right.  They’re good, but they’re not that good.”

“I know.  And that is why I am going to do it.  I’ll just need a little help.”  Misako gestures for us to come to the side.  “In order to get past their guards, we need to first get control of one of their vehicles, and you’ll need to disguise yourselves as Stone Warriors.  Pretend to tie me up and take me into the camp like you caught me, then wait for me to rejoin you with the Helmet.  From there we will have to get to the Celestial Clock as fast as we can, because by then, the Army will be alerted and will try to stop us.  If we can get the Helmet on the clock before they catch up, the Final Battle will never start.”

“But what do we do if Bizarro Rose or Dominique is there?” Kai points out, “They’re a little too smart to fall for some disguises.”

“If you see them, you’ll just have to keep a safe distance,” Misako says firmly.  She glances at me, “I know you all probably want to get Rose back, but we can’t do both missions.  We don’t have the time.”

I nod, “Understood.”

---

We manage to hijack one of the Stone Warrior vehicles and get to the camp.  Misako pretends to struggle as if she really had been caught by some warriors, “Unhand me, you fiends!”

The four armed general who I remember seeing from our last visit to Garmadon’s camp approaches us, “Unt tin klata vu!!”  Well now would’ve been a great time to still have Ro.

I glance at the others sideways and whisper, “Uh, what did he say?”

“I don’t know.”

“I believe it is an ancient language.”

I resist the urge to slap my forehead, “Well, somebody say something!”

Nothing happens.  I start to panic and blurt out the first random thing that comes to mind, “Uh, bada-bada, bing-bong!”

“Cheep, cheep, tita-ta-ta!”

“Tick tock, uh, tick tock!”

“Bequeath, bequeath, bequeath!”  Okay I think we actually do deserve a slap on the head this time, this guy’s never gonna buy that.

The general growls.

Thank goodness for Misako: “That’s right, you caught me.  But I’ll never tell you where our base is.  And you won’t hear another peep out of me, unless you take me to Garmadon.”

The general glowers down at her for a moment, then grunts and points his swords at her, taking her to a tent.

I don’t let myself relax till the general is out of earshot.  Then I breathe a sigh of relief, “Let’s never do that again.”

“Good idea,” Zane nods.  I watch as Misako and the general approach Garmadon’s tent, then freeze, noticing the two girls standing on either side of the entrance.  Bizarro Rose steps forward, holding her arm out, probably questioning what is going on. Apparently whatever the general’s response is satisfies her because she steps to the side and lets him and Misako through.  Dominique on the other hand is as still as a statue, the only sign she’s aware of anything being her empty violet eyes watching Misako coldly as she passes.

As soon as Misako is inside the tent, both girls look forward again.  I suddenly realize Bizarro Rose is making eye contact with me.  I hurriedly avert my gaze, straightening.  Her eyes narrow, but other than that she does nothing.

“We need to move away,” I whisper to the others.  “We don’t want them getting suspicious.”

“Can I just say that evil versions of Ro are super creepy?” Jay whispers back as we walk to the side, stopping behind some large boulders where they can’t see us.

“I can get behind that,” Kai nods.  I shift slightly, wondering why all of a sudden the stone feels like it’s digging into my back.

Jay coughs, “So…anyone come up with any new witty quips on the way here?”

“How about this?” Zane suggests, “It’s ‘ice’ to see you.”

“Uh, I don’t know.  I feel like you could do better,” my best friend muses.

“I swear I’ve heard that before,” I agree, relaxing slightly.  Thank you, Jay.

Kai groans, “Ugh.  I feel like a clunky mule in this thing.”

“Tuzo tong!” the four armed general appears from nowhere, glaring at us and pointing at a giant…thing.

“Uh, is he talking to us?” Kai asks uncertainly.

Zane lowers his voice to a whisper, “I think he wants us to get working.”

“ TUZO TONG!!!!! ” the general roars.

We hurriedly leap forward, running to the object.

“Bequeath, bequeath, bequeath!”

“Tick tock, polly wock!”

“Pop-pop, peep-peep-pop!”

“Wee-woo, wee-woo!”

---

We end up carrying creepy glowing purple stuff up ramps to the giant building thing, the other three carrying trays of it, me pushing a full wheelbarrow.

“Aw, man!  No matter how many bad situations we get ourselves out of, we never seem to be able to escape chores!” Jay whines.

“What is that thing?” I ask, tilting my head at it.

“It must be the unspeakable weapon Misako was talking about,” Zane observes.

I glance to the side and pause, seeing a Stone Warrior step inside a lift and press a button before rising to a higher level.  “Look, guys.  An elevator.  Sweet!”

We start heading to it when Mr. Four-Arm General blocks the way, crossing his swords, “Tuzo… tong !!”

“Ah.  Relax, relax.  Forget it,” I mumble under my breath, leading them to the ramps.  “Sheesh, what’s wrong with these guys?”  We walk past a giant, metal, hollow barrel tube thing.

“I don’t know about you, but that just looked like some sort of massive cannon,” Kai declares.

“What do you suppose it’s for?” Zane inquires.

“Oh, I don’t know.  How about to destroy us ?” Jay hisses.

“Tun meta!  TUN META!” a short Warrior walks up to me and hits me with his staff, knocking my helmet so I can’t see.

I readjust it, glaring at him, “Hey, why don’t you bonk someone your own size, half-stack?”

“Tun meta!”

I kick him off the platform.  He falls headfirst into a barrel at the bottom and rolls away.  Two Warrior’s gazes snap up to us.

The guys look at me.  I put my hands on my hips, “That guy seriously had it coming.”

They accept the explanation and we all use Spinjitzu to throw off the stone warrior armor, “Ninja, go!”  Of course, nearly every Stone Warrior in the camp is now heading straight for us.  Not that I mind.

---

(Dominique’s POV)

A commotion by the Garmatron catches my attention.  I follow the lines of Warriors swarming to a certain point at the top and spot four bits of color.  Familiar ones.

Eyes still locked onto the Ninja, I snap at Bizarro, “Tell Lord Garmadon it’s a ruse.  A trick.  I’ll deal with the intruders.”

“But-”

I turn my head, fixing her with my eyes, “Do as I say, clone.”

The red eyes flash; I struck a nerve, but she doesn’t argue.  So I turn and run to the Garmatron.  I easily flip up the platforms and land with a thud on top of a pile of barrels.  The Black Ninja, standing up, freezes when he spots me.  I unsheathe my katana and point it at him, “Let’s dance.”

He backs up a bit, reaching for his sword hilt, “Rose, please, wait-”

I flip forward, forcing him to cross swords with me, “I am not your friend, ninja.”

“Guys!” he calls out.  “We have…company!”

“No really, Cole?!  I didn-  Oh, you meant that kind,” the Blue Ninja amends after glancing over.  I shove ‘Cole’ back, drop to the ground, and sweep his feet out from under him.

He recovers quickly enough for me to know I’m gonna have to be harder on them.  I bare my teeth and swing my katana at him, forcing him to leap back.

“Use Spinjitzu to knock the Warriors off the platform!” the White Ninja calls out, “We have to meet up with Misako!”

Before I know it, I’m the only one besides them on said platform.  Before one of them can throw me off as well, I smirk and whirl into my own pitch black tornado, pushing their own back.  I stop and leap at the nearest downed Ninja.  Blue covers his head before an earthen blade blocks mine and the Black Ninja shoves me away.  The other two quickly get between me and them.

“I’ll keep her busy, you guys get down!” the Red Ninja orders, pulling out his Elemental Blade and letting it burst into flames.  Unfazed, I flip forward and engage him in a furious battle of blades.

Blue and White quickly do what Red told them to do, but Black hesitates.

“Just get down, Cole!”

“Don’t hurt her,” the Black Ninja cautions before flipping down.

Red’s eyes narrow, “I’m a bit more worried about her hurting me.”

“Wise choice,” on the next strike I suddenly change, tilting the blade away from him and leaning my head back to avoid his blade swinging out in an attempt to block me, slamming my elbow into his chest.  Red falls backwards, teeters, then tumbles over the side of the platform.  Unfortunately, he’s caught by Black before they run to meet-

Note to self: Do not trust that Bizarro idiot with even the simplest of jobs, I narrow my eyes at the silver haired woman joining the ninja with Lord Garmadon’s helmet.

---

(Kai’s POV)

“You got the helmet!” Zane observes as Misako runs to us.

“And you got spotted,” she eyes us sternly.

“Cole gave us away!” Jay points at the ninja next to him.

“All right,” Cole puts a hand on Jay’s shoulder, his tone growing annoyed, “I’ve had a rough day.  Can we stop laying blame and focus on what’s in front of us?”

The ground shakes as something large approaches from behind.  “Maybe we should worry about what’s behind us!” I turn with my teammates to see Lord Garmadon in a large, gray, red, and orange humanoid mech roughly thirty feet tall with four arms, a horned helmet resembling the Helmet of Shadows, and large, green, glowing eyes.  Why can’t things ever just be easy?

“Cut them down to size,” Garmadon laughs and makes the mech swing a giant sword at us.  We quickly leap apart in time, leaving the sharp blade to be stuck in the ground.  Garmadon yanks on the controls and gets it free.

“If we do not return the helmet before the clock strikes zero, we won’t be able to prevent the Final Battle!” Misako shouts to Jay who’s still in the open.

“Don’t worry, I’m on top of it!” he leaps up at the mech, “Yah, whooo!”  The flat of the blade hits him up into the air, then one of the hands catches him upside down and hurls him at the ground, Jay screaming.  He dizzily raises his head, “Oh, maybe not.  Ugh.”

Cole pulls out his Elemental Blade, “Didn’t mama ever teach him the bigger they are, the harder they fall?”  He summons the rocks around us and sends them flying at the mech.  Garmadon deflects them, laughing.  “Oh, apparently she did.”

The mech stomps forward, so I quickly run out and block its path with a giant wall of fire…which Garmadon walks the mech right through, cackling as he looks down at me.

“Oh great,” I stare up at the giant vehicle.

“Bye bye!” Garmadon taunts.  Next thing I know, my vision is filled with dots and I’m pretty sure I just broke every bone in my body as I’m kicked back.

“Ugh, well,” I groan, “we better think of something fast, because…I’m out of lines!”  Something breaks out of the earth right above my head, making me leap to my feet despite the pain, “Hey!”

The Earth Driller bursts into the open, my sister at the wheel.  Jay’s eyes widen, “Whoa, it’s Nya!”  Yeah no kidding.   She drives the Driller through several Stone Warriors, then slams into Garmadon’s mech’s legs, tripping it backward.  She drives right up next to us and waves, “Hey, guys!”

“How did you know we needed you?” Jay asks.

“Look up,” she points at the sky.  I raise my eyes to see the Falcon flying between the trees.  “Get in!” my sis orders, opening the windshield.  We hurriedly leap in, Nya closing the windshield the second after.  “Hang on,” she drives the Driller forward into the tunnel she made to get here.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

I don’t know why I didn’t just go in the tent and tell my master that Misako had some kind of trap in mind.  I had gone to get the Stone Army Mech for him though, which he seemed pleased by.  But now with the Ninja escaped with the helmet, Dominique seems to be holding a grudge based off the seething looks she keeps sending me.  And the only reason those even bother me is because it’s creepy with her pupilless, glowing violet eyes.

“Don’t just stand there!” Lord Garmadon shouts at the Stone Army, “Get them!”  Several of the Warriors leap onto one of the vehicles as it roars down the tunnel after the Ninja.

“ You fool !   You let them get away with the helmet ?!   Don’t you realize if they put it on , they will control the Army ?!?!” the Overlord appears in the air, infuriated.

“I’ll see to it personally,” my lord assures him, tone dark as he curls his hand into a fist, “It’s my turn.”

---

(Zane’s POV)

Jay, having taken the helmet from Misako, puts it on, “Heh, cool hat.  I wonder if it’ll make me look more menacing.”

“Is that really wise?  If that helmet turns you evil, we’re kicking you out,” Nya states dryly.

“Uh, is that possible?” Jay quickly removes the helmet, “Uh, it’s probably got Garmadon cooties anyway.”

“Did we get the helmet?” I hear our sensei’s voice over the radio.

“We did, and we’re all accounted for.”

“Then let’s rendezvous at the clock.”

“It’s so dark in here,” Jay complains.  “One of these have got to be a light switch.”  A Stone Warrior roars and jumps onto the windshield above my head.  Jay screams.

“Uh, sis, can we go any faster?” Kai asks urgently.

“We’re going as fast as we can!”

Cole raises up slightly and glances out the window behind us, “We’re definitely not going fast enough.”  Something bumps into the back of the Earth Driller, jarring us as it struggles to dig fast enough.

“Okay!” Nya’s determined voice cuts through our grunts as we’re jostled around, then we’re going up.  Sunlight hits my eyes when we come above ground and speed through the forest.

Jay turns in his seat to look behind us, “We’re losing them!”

“Whoo-hoo!” Kai whoops.

“Excellent,” I smile under the mask.

“Awesome,” Nya breathes in relief.

Thuds sound behind us.  Cole and I share an apprehensive look then simultaneously turn to see Garmadon running after us in his mech.  “Uh…oops,” I comment eloquently.

He’s close enough I can hear his growled declaration, “You won’t get away from me again, Misako.”  The woman in question bites her lip.

“Hang on!” Nya swerves the Driller around sharply, plowing through some bamboo and jerkily weaving it through the forest, “Have we lost him?”

“Not quite!” Kai gasps out, Garmadon still right on our tails.

A giant mechanical hand clamps around us and lifts us into the air, shaking us violently before hurling us into a tree.  The Driller falls to the ground and rolls over several times as we’re all tossed around before finally landing upright.

Nya slams her fist against the glass, then her elbow, trying to break it, “Ugh!  It’s stuck!”

Garmadon’s mech grabs us again and lifts us up in front of him.  Cole grips the chair back in front of him tightly, “I think I’m gonna be sick-”  Please don’t be.  That will not help matters.

Garmadon’s leering face comes into view, “I finally have you Ninja in the palm of my hand.”  He cackles gleefully.  At least someone’s enjoying this , I glare at him, trying to hold on.

“Let them GOOOO!” Lloyd’s voice cuts him off.  A beam of energy blasts into the mech’s cockpit, knocking the mech away and sending us flying through the air to land precariously on a giant fallen tree trunk.

“Ow!” Jay yelps.  The windshield finally opens.  We stand up to see the mech lying motionless on the ground, sparking with electricity and smoking slightly.  Then we turn in the direction the beam had come from.  Lloyd runs through the foliage and under the trunk, looking at the mech.

“Lloyd, be careful!” Nya cautions.  Lloyd glances at her, then looks back at the mech.  Garmadon stumbles out of the mech, holding a couple arms and breathing heavily.  Lloyd starts forward.

“Holy cannoli,” Jay straightens, eyes widening, “Lloyd and Garmadon in a face-off!  Take the shot, Lloyd!”

“He’s vulnerable!” Cole shouts.

“Do not hesitate!” I remind him as well.

“Strike now!” Kai adds.  Lloyd looks back at us for a second before turning back to his father.  Garmadon coughs, looking at Lloyd.  Lloyd starts to charge up an energy ball, but at the last second it vanishes and his shoulders slump.

“No!” Jay slaps his forehead.  “What is he doing ?”

The Stone Warriors come into view across the clearing.  “They’re coming,” Misako’s voice carries apprehension.  Lord Garmadon laughs a bit.

“Lloyd, we need to move!” Misako yells.

“The clock is not too far from here!” Nya adds quickly.

Lloyd looks at the Stone Army and the two dark ninja holding onto a couple vehicles, red and purple eyes both trained on him.  He quickly turns and races toward us, “Okay!”

Nya drives the Driller off the trunk onto the ground, “Better hop in, Lloyd!”

He leaps over the side and Misako, landing in the last empty seat, “GO!”  The windshield closes over us and Nya digs out of the clearing, leaving the Army and Lord Garmadon in our dust.

---

(Cole’s POV)

We come out of the earth at the top of the clock’s mountain.  I stare at the giant contraption in shock.  Nya seems completely awed, “Wow…This clock is a mechanical masterpiece …”

She opens the windshield and we climb out, joining Sensei Wu by the clock.

“You’re welcome to dismantle it once we stop it,” Misako smiles at her.

“There’s only a couple minutes left!” Jay suddenly screeches, pointing at the hands nearing the top.

“Everyone, look for the helmet’s perch!” Misako orders, “It could be anywhere!”  We spread out, scanning the clock for anything that could be it.

“You don’t know how to return the helmet?” Sensei questions in disbelief.

“It has a resting place somewhere,” she tells him, placing it on a part of the clock.  Nothing happens.  “Oh, that didn’t work.  Maybe here.”

“Perhaps I found the perch!  Ugh, no.  Wrong place.”

“Oh, what about here?”  Still the clock continues to count down.

“Could this be the place?” Sensei Wu asks.  Jay throws the helmet down to him, but before he can catch it, he’s pushed to the side by the four armed general, “Oof!”

“NO!” Kai shouts.

“There’s only thirty seconds left,” the Warrior gloats.  “I believe it’s time to die-” A pole yanks the helmet out of his hands and throws it up the clock.  “NOOOO!”

A dark purple blur leaps onto the clock, heading for the helmet.

Misako points at it, “Get the helmet!”

“Right!”  I jump onto the clock and start climbing.  I jump from one spot onto the pole below the helmet, almost slipping, but managing to keep my grip.  I look up to realize the one who’d gone for the helmet first was Dominique.  She reaches for it, leg hooked over the part of the clock the helmet is stuck on.  She slips slightly, but grabs back on.  I climb closer and swing myself up to the part right behind her and the helmet.  She stands up carefully and reaches for the Helmet of Shadows.  I climb up the last metal pole between us and jump.

Dominique whirls and catches my fist in her hand, struggling to keep her balance.  She looks up at me with a snarl.  I sigh, “Sorry for this, Ro.”

“W-”  I push her off the narrow spot, sending her back towards the ground.  She grabs a pole, swinging around it before standing on top and glowering back up at me.  Ignoring her, I grab the helmet, but before I can throw it to the others, the part of the clock I’m standing on tilts.  I flail my arms, trying not to fall, but end up throwing the helmet aimlessly.

Both my teammates and the Stone Warriors race to grab it.  Jay knocks it away and Zane tries to grab it, but only sends it flying into the air again.  It falls into the middle of the clock among the gears.

Misako gasps, “The helmet’s perch!”

“There’s only ten seconds left!” Sensei shouts.

“I’ll get it,” Misako runs forward.

Dominique jumps in front of her, blocking the way, then Sensei Wu kicks her away, “Hurry, Misako!”

“Okay!”  She runs into the clock as Sensei prevents Dominique from following.  Misako grabs the helmet and places it on the perch.  The clock abruptly stops moving.  I leap down, breaking into a relieved grin as the general shrieks, “NOOOOO!!”

Lloyd straightens, his eyes shining, “Ah, it worked!!”

“We did it!” Nya screams, hugging her brother, who returns the embrace.  We all cheer except for the Stone Army, who growl angrily, and Dominique, who lets out an enraged screech.  Abruptly, with an ominous sound of gears turning, the clock shudders and begins to move again.  I freeze, staring at it in horror as a horn blares.

“No,” Sensei breathes.

The four-armed general chuckles.  Dominique’s lips curve into a slow, wicked smirk.  Misako’s eyes widen, her voice sounding like she’s about to cry, “The Horns of Destruction.  We were too late.”

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

Horns fill the air, akin to a wailing siren.  I straighten from my kneeling position to look around, tensed.  Lord Garmadon raises his head, “Overlord, what has happened?”

“It…has started.”

My master takes in a sharp breath, red eyes widening.  Something in my chest sinks.  I failed him.  Now he has to fight his son.

---

(Dominique’s POV)

The clock shoots out a beam of orangish gold light that bounces around the clock, growing in strength until it shoots out over the island.  I turn to the Ninja slowly, unsheathing my katana and smiling at their defeated and horrified expressions.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

A beam of light shoots overhead, coming from the clock and heading toward the camp.  Lord Garmadon looks up at it too, “What is that thing?”  I’m not sure I want to know, I don’t say out loud, not with the Overlord nearby.

---

(Cole’s POV)

Dominique points her katana at us.  The Stone Army takes their cue from her and advances toward us.  We pull out our Elemental Blades and activate them, backing up.  But the ground underneath us shifts and slides down the cliff.  Nya screams, but the scream comes from above us.

Jay shakes his head and looks back up, “Nya!”

“Jay!” she reaches down, but we’re all too far away.

“Sis!” Kai gasps.

The four-armed general grabs her, making her scream.

“Let her go!” Jay shouts, waving his sword angrily.

“Or what ?” Dominique appears, letting out a laugh that echoes through the mountains.

“You will make a big splash?” the general asks tauntingly.

The ledge tilts backward, dust filling the air.  “The ground-!” is all I can get out before it breaks off the cliffside completely, sending us all tumbling toward the ocean.

“No, NOOO!” Jay screams.  I see the water coming up and suck in a breath before I fall into it.

We manage to get to shore and stare up at the cliff above us.  Nya’s scream echoes down as the Stone Army appears on the cliff.

Lloyd groans, “This is all my fault.  I should’ve taken the shot!”

I turn and put my hands on his shoulders, “We’re all at fault, kid.  It’s just the way the way the cookie crumbled.”

Jay scoffs, “Are you still making jokes?!”  I turn to see his furious expression, “They have Nya, and you’re making JOKES!”  He leaps at me, knocking me to the ground.

“It wasn’t a joke, it’s a saying that means there was nothing we could’ve done to prevent this!” I frown at him, pushing back.  “And don’t give me that.  When they took Rose you were making a million puns only a few hours later.”  I push him off and stand up, looking away.

Jay fumes, standing and looking just about ready to attack me again when Sensei interrupts, “ENOUGH!   We have lost enough!  We don’t need to lose our focus.”

“Forget focus!” Kai’s eyes are burning.  “We have to get my sister!”

“By the time we get back up there, they’ll be gone,” Misako tells him.  “We will get your sister, but the clock has reached zero and the Final Battle could start at any moment.  We must head back to the Bounty to get prepared, so that next time, you will not hesitate,” she ends, looking at Lloyd.

Her son nods, crestfallen.

“Come on, Lloyd,” Sensei Wu puts a hand on the Green Ninja’s shoulder.  “Let’s go home.  You will get your chance.”

I wait for a second, looking up at the cliff.  The Stone Army moves away from sight, leaving only one figure left.  A distant pair of purple eyes send a victorious, gleaming smirk toward us, then disappear.

Jay sighs next to me.  I put a hand on his shoulder, “Come on…We’ll get them back.”  I hope , goes unsaid.  Jay knows anyway.  He nods and we follow the rest toward the Bounty.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

We walk back to the camp, following the beam of light in the sky.  The Overlord floats down from the treetops as it comes into view, “Behold, the ultimate weapon.  I give you… Garmatron !”

We go into the camp and cross the bridge.  Where the building for the weapon was there is now an orange-golden sphere moving around the weapon, the silhouette of the tank-like vehicle inside.

“It’s more beautiful than I could ever’ve imagined!” Lord Garmadon begins to laugh, the Overlord joining in as well.  I just gaze at the ultimate weapon as their triumphant laughter fills the ending day, feeling very much like my blood just turned to ice.

Notes:

For those of you who haven't read my other fics and didn't know about this already, I'm currently working towards publishing my original work(s). Is there anyone interested in reading them? (Aside from Cultured_Spaghetti, I know you're interested already XD)

Chapter 12: Return of the Overlord

Summary:

The Final Battle begins.

(Rose/Dominique’s POV)

On the way back to the base, Nya constantly struggles against the two Stone Warriors holding her, as if she could actually escape.  No matter that she’s a samurai, with so many of us, she would never make it far even if she did break free of their hold.

What is increasingly annoying, though, is how she keeps directing pleas at me. ( ‘No, please!  Just let me out, she’s right!  I’m right here !’ )  Yes, I suppose Rose used to be her friend, but I am not. ( ‘Stop it, I am your friend, Nya, I’m here, this isn’t me, just-  Let me out !!  Please let me out!’ )

I imagine the (nonexistent) owner of the (imaginary) voice inside my head in front of me, then imagine her disappearing entirely.  From time, from memory, from everything , simply…no longer there.  The voice (that was never there) seems to be subdued at the image, sending me a twinge of satisfaction.  And stay quiet. ( ‘Ninja never quit, and neither do I!’ )

I huff, not caring.  Even if she wasn’t completely destroyed from the start, I can feel her presence sinking farther and farther down, diminishing with every second.  And that is something I can truly take pleasure in.

“Rose, I know you’re in there, so snap out of it and help me out here!” Nya shouts behind me.  I sigh and turn, fixing her with a glare.  She falls silent, but continues to return my hostile expression.

“You fail to comprehend,” I speak slowly and deliberately, “that the girl you called ‘Rose’ never truly existed.  Now if you don’t mind, I would highly appreciate it if you would stop tempting me to kill you here and now, because if I did then my father would not be pleased.”

“Why don’t you?” she hisses.  “If Rose is really and truly gone, prove it.”

Burning heat rises in my chest and throat; I grit my teeth and walk forward to her, unsheathing my katana.  The ravenette glowers at me, a clear challenge written on her face.  Something pounds in the back of my head.  ( ‘Stop it!’ )  I look down at Nya, itching to just dispatch her.  My fingers curl around the katana’s handle, tightening my grip.  A sort of pain, the sense of someone repeatedly hammering my skull prevents me from it, however.  ( ‘I said STOP IT !!!!’ )  I release a low growl, ignoring the triumphant gleam that entered Nya’s bronze eyes, turn on my heel, and continue forward, resheathing my blade.  The pounding lessens, but even so, I bend all my loathing towards that one spot, smothering that tiny, insignificant voice until I can’t feel her protests anymore.  Good.

I lead the Stone Warriors across the bridge and into the camp in time to see the completed Garmatron emerge from a gold ball of energy.  My father, Garmadon, and that filthy clone marvel at it.  I move to stand beside Father as Kozu speaks.

“We’ve retrieved your helmet, and a prisoner, my Dark Lord.”

The three turn, noticing Nya trapped between two Stone Warriors and struggling, “You’ll never get away with this!  My friends will put a stop to you!”

Garmadon just laughs at her, walking forward and putting a finger under her chin, “Red doesn’t seem to be your color.”  He shoves an apple into her mouth before she can retort.  “I think it’s time we try in a darker shade.”  ( ‘No!’ )  “Hand me the Dark Matter.”  ( ‘Stop this!  Don’t let them-’ )  I slam black hatred down on the squeaks of protest.  “I believe we’ve found our first test subject.”  The pounding returns as the Stone Warriors spin Nya around, Kozu bringing forward a tray of Dark Matter, and begin pushing her head into it.

I smirk, the urge to laugh at the girl samurai’s attempts to fight back growing in my chest, but the unrelenting person inside my head sort of takes away from my amusement.  LET HER GO!!!!!   My hand begins moving towards my katana against my will, the presence inside me pushing harder to break free.  For a moment I wrestle for control with her, but when the apple in Nya’s mouth turns gray, and then, as if it is a disease, it spreads to Nya herself, slowly consuming her and removing all traces of light, of goodness, Rose seems to weaken in despair, allowing me to easily shove her into a corner and regain control.

The clone of her stares at the corrupted version of Nya that straightens, a snarl escaping her lips.  Rose’s clone’s red eyes flash with an emotion.  Fear, uncertainty.  She glances in my direction; our eyes meet.  I sneer at her.  She’s going to be trouble, I just know it.   The clone looks away quickly, back at the shell of Nya, then bows her head.  I resist the urge to shake my head in disgust, instead choosing to begin preparations to invade Ninjago.  Weak.

---

(Cole’s POV)

We return to our base under the cover of the jungle, all of us silent as the ominous sound of the horns fades away.  The Final Battle could begin at any second and we’re two team members less than we were only twenty-four hours earlier.  I’m not going to lie to myself, the odds aren’t exactly in our favor.  But we’ve been able to beat the odds before, I just hope we can do it again.

The beach appears between the trees a little ahead of us, so we quicken our pace.  Dr. Julien is standing a few feet from the ocean, his back to us, but clearly tense.  He turns his head, looking at us with wide eyes, “What was that sound?  The horns?”

“The Celestial Clock has reached zero.  Garmadon’s ultimate weapon is now operational, and the Final Battle between good and evil has all but begun,” Sensei tells him.  We all glance at Lloyd.  His head is bowed.

Misako puts a hand on his shoulder, “Now Lloyd must face his father…”  The Green Ninja glances at her.

Dr. Julien scans us, “But where’s Nya?”

Lloyd looks down again, as well as Jay.  Kai places a hand on the Blue Ninja’s shoulder.  I share a glance with Zane and sigh.  We have definitely been in better situations…

“She’s been taken by the Overlord,” Sensei Wu is telling Zane’s father, “but we’ll get her back.  At the moment, there are bigger things at stake, including all of Ninjago itself.

Jay throws off his mask, upset, “Who cares about Ninjago?!  Nya was my-  uh, my-” he casts a glance in Kai’s direction.  “...You know!”

Kai however, is not bothered by the mention of Nya and Jay being together, instead he removes his own mask, “And she’s my sister.  I know her being captured is tough, but she’s tougher.  Tougher than most of us.  We’ll see her again.”  Zane and I pull our own masks off.

Sensei turns to his nephew, “Lloyd, your focus gives strength to invoking the power of the Golden Dragon.  You cannot lose faith now.  Everything rests on your shoulders.”

“But Sensei, you saw what happened when I tried to face my father,” Lloyd’s face contorts, “I-I froze .  I can’t fight him…”

“You must.  It is written in the scrolls.”

“Remember, your father is just as scared,” Misako adds softly.

“Then the battle will be decided by who is willing to fight,” Sensei concludes.

“You won’t be alone,” Kai suddenly speaks up, holding out his sword, “I’ll be right behind you.  You have my Fire.”

I pull on my mask and activate my own Elemental Blade, “You have my Earth.”

“And my Ice,” Zane follows suit.

“ And Lightning,” Jay adds.

“We’re all in this together, kid,” I tell Lloyd.

Lloyd’s uncertain expression is replaced by a confident smirk as he pulls on his own mask, “What are we waiting for?  Let’s suit up.”

We all prepare for battle, practicing with our blades and Spinjitzu until Lloyd quietly declares, “I’m ready.”

---

We run through the jungle towards Garmadon’s camp.  The Island is eerily silent.  Even when Garmadon’s camp comes into view, there’s not a sound.

Lloyd suddenly drops to the ground, hissing, “Get down, now.”

We hit the dirt next to him, staring at the giant gates.  Nothing moves.

“They won’t know what hit them,” Kai’s eyes narrow.

“Time to chop wood,” Jay adds.

We return to our feet and run to the gate.  “Ninjaaa, GO!”  With all our force combined, the wood splinters...but the campsite is completely abandoned.

Jay pulls off his mask to reveal a highly confused expression, “Uh, where in Ninjago is everybody?”

“Ugh,” I grumble, “and here I was all ready to release the thunder.”  Couldn’t we have just…I don’t know, gotten this all over with?  I hate all this suspense…

“The ultimate weapon is gone,” Kai points out, “We’re too late.”  He starts crossing the bridge, “Nya?”  We follow him across, “Nya!”

The female samurai apparently isn’t here either.  A screech from above alerts us to the presence of Zane’s falcon.  It swoops down over us.  “My falcon friend wants to show us something,” the White Ninja confirms as it flies to another part of the camp.  We follow at a run only to find the largest tread tracks I’ve seen in my life leaving it and going into the jungle.  Entire trees that had been in its path are knocked over, broken roots sticking in the air.  That’s kind of…worrying, to put it lightly.

“Whoa.  That’s one big weapon,” Lloyd breathes.

“It appears to be heading toward the coast,” Zane observes.

“But why?” Lloyd’s brow furrows, “Wouldn’t he try to use it on us?”

“Not on us,” Sensei interrupts, “On Ninjago.”  I notice the blood draining from several of my teammates' faces as they realize what that would mean.  I swallow my own nervousness as our teacher continues, “He always wanted to turn our world into his own image.  Now we know how it will be done.”  All our friends are there.

“But if he starts turning things evil, the balance will shift and allow the Overlord to cross over into our world,” Misako worries.

Lloyd turns back to the jungle with a new expression, “Then we have to make sure that my father never fires that weapon.”

He starts following the tracks; the rest of us hurry behind him until Zane stops, “Father!”

We pause and turn as he walks back to the older man, who’s panting heavily.  “You go on without me,” he sighs, “I’m an inventor, not a fighter.  I’ll only get in the way.”

“But what will you do?”

“I’ll be back at the Bounty waiting for you to return in one piece,” his father reassures him, “But don’t worry, a part of me will always be with you.”

“Be well, Father,” Zane smiles as the Falcon lands on his arm.

While the White Ninja catches up with us, his father responds, “Be safe.”  Zane waves to him before we all resume running, leaving Dr. Julien behind.

As we make our way through the jungle, it gives my thoughts time to catch up to me completely.  In the last twenty-four hours, we got our powers back, the Overlord took Rose from us and now she doesn’t even seem like the same person, the Celestial Clock reached zero, completing Garmadon’s ultimate weapon and signifying the Final Battle that could quite literally start at any second and most certainly will, which means that Lloyd is absolutely going to have to fight and…none of us ever mentioned it aloud, but we all know he may end up needing to kill Garmadon to finish this, Nya was captured as well, and Garmadon is currently about to try to fire the weapon at Ninjago, and if he does, thus shifting the balance, the Overlord himself could cross to Ninjago and none of us want that to happen.  Ever.

That was a dizzying amount of impactful information, I wearily decide.  And the fact that the Final Battle is about to happen in itself…this is something we’ve been preparing for ever since we learned about the prophecy.  Something Lloyd’s been preparing for.  And at the start, I’m not going to lie, we kind of looked forward to the idea, but as we grew closer we all slowly began to realize just exactly what this meant, and now …I wonder if the ‘Final’ part of it is truly going to be…well…final.  For all I know, in a few hours I may never see some of my friends again.  Or any of them.  This could all be the end of the Ninja, and now that I’m here, now that I completely understand…I wish that…this will never have to end.  My team isn’t just my team anymore, they’re my family, and I need them.  Now more than ever I want to just go back in time and relive some of the moments we’ve shared.

What makes this harder though, is that we’re not complete.  I told Lloyd that we’re all in this together but…we’re really not.  We haven’t been ever since Rose went with the Overlord.  Dominique.  And then Nya…I just wish that we really could all be in this together, instead of split apart.

“Um…” Jay’s voice breaks the silence that had fallen over us all, “is…anyone else thinking about how this might be our final fight together?”

“Yeah.”

“Of course.”

“It’s all I’ve been thinking about,” I admit.

“We’ve come a long way,” Kai comments, “It wasn’t that long ago when Sensei first found us.”

“Hey,” Jay suddenly chuckles, “you remember that time Kai thought he was the Green Ninja?”

I snort, everyone else also laughing, except for Kai, who just shakes his head.

“That was quite the memory,” Zane agrees.

I glance at the Red Ninja teasingly, “He was so not .”

“Or what about when the Hypnobrai hypnotized Cole, and we had to fight him?” Zane’s voice carries painfully obvious amusement.

I chuckle slightly along with the others.  I’ll admit it wasn’t one of my better moments when Skales hypnotized me.

“We should’ve just beat him up,” Kai returns my earlier teasing.

“Ha,” Lloyd joins in.  “You had to destroy my treehouse.”

“Or how about that time Sensei came out of the guts of the Devourer’s belly-” we all cut Zane off with simultaneous groans, “-drinking tea?”

I half laugh, half grimace, “Oh, that was so gross!”

“Yeah.  I thought he was a goner,” Jay declares.

A familiar bamboo stick smacks the top of the Blue Ninja’s head, “Wrong again, Mr. Emptyhead.”

The resulting laughter breaks off suddenly when a shadowy blur sprints across the path in front of us.  We skid to a stop, pausing.

“Whoa-”

I frown, scanning the jungle where the figure went, “Something is wrong here.”

“Where?  Where?” Jay frantically spins in a circle.

“Did I just see…” Kai trails off.

“I sense an evil presence.”

“Where?  Where?”

A gray figure moves in the trees.

“Above us!” Sensei gasps.  We all group together, staring up at the trees warily.

As I’m looking up, a black tornado breaks into my vision a split second before a fist connects with my face, sending a sharp pain to my skull.

“Ow, my jaw,” I grimace, glaring at the black Spinjitzu.  “That hurt!”  But then I remember who has Spinjitzu that color.

She breezes by Lloyd, still using Spinjitzu and knocking him over, “Whoa!”

“No one does that to the Green Ninja!” Kai glowers a split second before everyone else seems to recognize who it is.

Two other figures leap from the trees on either side of the Spinjitzu at the same time that it disappears, leaving Dominique in its place.  Bizarro Rose straightens into a battle stance with their companion, who I have to do a double take to completely register who she is.

Nya is also evil, her skin and clothes turned into gray shades, her eyes orbs of violet.

“Nya!” Jay gasps, both he and Kai starting forward but being held back by Wu.

“That is no longer Nya.”

“What did he do to my sister?!”

“He must’ve used the ultimate weapon to turn her into his own evil image,” Misako realizes as all three of the girls blocking our path pull out weapons, Bizarro Rose a pair of sai, Dominique a katana, and Nya a flail.

“Garmadon must’ve sent them to slow us down.  We have to stop them from firing that weapon!”

“Well, what are we supposed to do?!” I demand.  “Use our elemental powers on them?”  I’d have no qualms with that plan if it was just Bizarro Rose, but the other two are- were our teammates.  And I’m certain that they’re both still in there.

“No!  I don’t want to hurt he-them,” Jay stammers, hiding behind me slightly.

“Jay’s right.  We just have to find a way to keep h-them from-”  Kai is cut off by a flail to the face.  “-hurting us…” he croaks out, lying on the ground with a dazed look in his eyes.  I resist the urge to sigh.

“Well, we should think of something before Garmadon fires that weapon,” Zane frowns.

“Lloyd, you go up ahead with Sensei and Misako, while we take care of them,” I order, thinking quickly.

“But…you said you’d always be behind me.”

Recovered, Kai responds, “We will be.  We’ll catch up as soon as we can.”  Jay uses Spinjitzu to go behind a rock, then tries to circle back behind them, only to get caught in the stomach by Nya’s flail, which he grabs onto.

“Oof.  That hurt…”

The other two girls turn their attention to him, but before they can attack him, Zane and I jump between them.

“The Ninja are right.  We must go.”

“We’ll still be behind you, son.”  The three run past and ahead as Nya knocks Jay to the ground and sends her flail after them.  Kai intercepts it, yanking it out of her hands.

Zane and Bizarro Rose engage as Dominique slashes at me.  I unsheathe my own sword, crossing blades, “Not so fast, sweetheart.  This dance ain’t over.”

“You want a dance?  Let’s dance ,” she hisses, twisting both our swords around.  I deactivate the blade to prevent it from getting knocked away, hurriedly sheathing it and leaning back as her own katana slices the air.

I eye the three girls as they line up again, my friends regrouping opposite me.  It’s a long shot.  But we’re in a tight spot.  “Triple Tiger Sashay!”  I leap forward but Nya releases some kind of sonic thing from her bracelet, freezing me midair.

Like I said, a long shot.

I barely manage to register the next few blows exchanged before I’m kicked in the back and I have to tuck into a roll to keep from breaking my neck.  Then I end up slamming into the others.

We stand back up, exchanging identical glances that say ‘This is going to be a lot harder than ideal’, before looking back at the girls.  Nya growls, Dominique smirks, and Bizarro remains neutral.  We charge at them, quickly engaging in a fight again, but it’s not long before they beat us again .

“Split them up!” I order, jumping back up.

The others nod, jumping between Bizarro Rose and Nya.  I tackle Dominique away from Rose’s clone.

She growls, throwing me off and rolling back onto her feet into a springing position.  I take a stance, seeing my brothers fighting the other two out of the corner of my eye.  Dominique leaps; I dodge.  She tucks into a roll, stands, turns, and lunges again.  This time I block her fist, then try to trip her.  She flips over my head and kicks me in the back.  I roll forward and turn as I stand back up to catch her hands when she attacks again.

“Why did you join them?” the words slip out before I can stop them.

Dominique jumps up and kicks out, forcing me to back away.  She draws her katana, “Because I am loyal to my real father, and I always have been.”  She throws the blade.  I lean to the side, narrowly avoiding it finding a home in my face.

“I know that’s not true, Rose,” I straighten, “I know this isn’t you.”

Dominique grits her teeth and runs forward.  I swerve, forcing her to stumble.  I quickly kick her in the back before she can turn to attack again.  She rolls over, then leaps back to her feet, “I am not Rose.  That girl was just a mask, she never truly existed.”  She throws a punch.  I catch her fist, throwing it away, but her other arm collides with my chest, knocking me to the ground.  Her dark smirk returns, "I almost pity you for believing she's real."

I jump back up, simultaneously lashing out with my foot.  It connects with her shoulder, sending her to the ground and successfully switching our positions. "The Rose I know wouldn't ever hurt her friends.  You're right, you're not her, but I know she's still in there."  I make eye contact, "I know you're in there."

Dominique hisses, "You deceive yourself.  It really is impossible for you Ninja to accept truth."  She twists.

"Is not," I jump back, narrowly avoiding getting tripped, but the space lets her get back up.

"You make no sense, Black Ninja."  She blows out sharply and lunges.  I catch her hand and wrist, leaving us straining against each other.

"Look, Rose, we kinda need you right now," I grunt, hoping to break through to her, "Lloyd needs you.  Nya needs you.  I need you.  We all need you.  You gotta stop this."

Dominique's eyes flash strangely, she yanks back, "That's it!"  My shoulder hits the ground, jarring me for a second.  I roll back onto my feet when black suddenly fills my vision and my face burns in pain.  I stumble back, blinking rapidly as I try to get my sight back.  It does in time for me to register a gloved fist coming into contact with my shoulder at a bad angle.  If it didn't just leave its socket, I'm lucky.  I grasp my shoulder quickly, gritting my teeth slightly.

"I'm done with you," Dominique growls, the glint of metal telling me she retrieved her blade.  Her foot connects with my chest, knocking me back and down into a tree.

I catch her arm as she attacks again, keeping the katana away, "Ro, fight her.  You can do it, just please snap out of it and help us out!"

Dominique's eyes flicker, revealing the much more normal eyes I recognize as Rose's.

The katana trembles as the two different people fade in and out.  "N-no-..." Rose's voice breaks through in place of Dominique's darker and more demonic tone.

I falter slightly, "Rose-?"

"Stop it-" Dominique gasps out.  "You are nothing-  Nothing-!"

"Don't listen to her," I push back.

They stumble, the katana held loosely in one hand, the other gripping the raven head, "Argh-"

"No-"

"Let me out-"

"You don't exist-"

I stare in disbelief as her entire form seems to flicker between Rose and Dominique as they wrestle for control.

But then Dominique stays in control for one second too long.

"I'- sorr- c-can't-"

"RA AGH!! "  The silver katana, now held very firmly, slashes towards me.  I spin out of the way and push her across the clearing.

She's barely recovered before she's back on her feet.  Glowing violet eyes enter my vision before I'm knocked back.

" REGROUP, " her voice echoes in the clearing.  I leap to my feet, registering my brothers gathering around me at the same time that Nya and Bizarro Rose double back to Dominique.

Nya flies toward us.  I block her fist as Bizarro Rose throws her sai at Kai and Jay, who both roll out of the way.  Zane catches Nya's flail; I don't see where Dominique went.  Nya pulls, swinging the White Ninja into the trees.  Before I can lunge, cold metal chain wraps around me, throwing me off balance.  There's a slicing sound, a tree wavers unsteadily.  Bizarro Rose jumps, bounces off a tree trunk, and slams into the tottering trunk.  It falls as if in slow motion toward Kai and Jay, who just barely avoid getting crushed.  Dominique sheathes her sword with a smirk.  The chain around my legs yanks tight and I suddenly find myself hanging upside down.

I grimace, trying to figure out how to free myself, "This is not good-"

Jay and Kai roll over, "We have to help them!"

"Tell that to them ," I retort.  "It's four against three, and I think they're winning!"

"You mean we've already won," Dominique laughs.

"Perhaps we can use our Elemental Powers, but without hurting them," Zane calls, running forward and unsheathing his sword.  A blast of ice cuts through the chain of Nya's flail, sending me to the ground.

I stand up, Fighting them one on one did not work, neither did it work with us as a team, maybe using our powers to tilt the balance will.  "I like it.  Let's do it!"

We regroup, facing off with the girls, who take stances as well.

Nya throws some darts at us, Jay leaps in front, using his power to make an electric field, deflecting them.  Bizarro Rose and Dominique charge at us.

"Cole, can you blind them for a sec?" Jay looks up.

"Thanks to you, sure thing," I dig my Elemental Blade into the ground.  Dust flies up from it in every direction.

"My eyes!" Nya screeches.  "I can't see!"  Bizarro Rose just hisses in pain and wipes at her eyes in vain.  Dominique growls, blinking as she turns her head.

"Kai, quick.  Cut that tree!" Jay shouts, pointing at a palm next to them.

"No problem!" a burst of fire slices through its trunk, sending it tilting over to the girls.

"I know where you're heading," Zane interrupts before Jay can say anything, freezing the tree's leaves and successfully trapping all three in a dome of ice.

"Sorry, sis," Kai shouts as we hurry past.  "This club just became boys only."

I glance back long enough to add, "We're going to fix this, promise!"

I'm not sure, the ice made it hard to see, but for a moment it seemed like Rose's eyes flashed back to normal.  At least she's still there.   I turn back forward and run faster.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

I growl, slamming at the ice with my sai and powers.  It cracks slightly, but doesn’t break.

“Give me your katana,” I snap, holding out my hand to the Overlord’s daughter.  Her eyes flash menacingly, but she shoves the handle into my grasp.  I dig the blade into the ice, channeling my powers into it, then the ice explodes.  Without waiting for either of the other two to recover, I start running.

“Hey, give me back my sword, clone!”  When you catch up, maybe I will.

As I near the beach, hoarse laughter fills my ears.  Not my master’s.

“Stop laughing now!  This is my victory!  What’s happening?”  I feel my heart start thudding against my chest faster than I was running.  I push harder and break out onto the sand in time to see what’s going on, the clouds above swirling with gray, purple, and white.

“ YoU’ve helped offset the bal a -NCE,” the Overlord cackles, “Because of you , I can now cross over into your wor Ld.  I’m finally… FREE!! ”

“Wait a minute!” my master growls as thunder crashes overhead, “You stole that from my playbook!  Well, you can forget about it.  Ninjago is mine !!”

“ No ….It was never going to be yours …”  I distantly feel myself simultaneously shrink back, paling, and step forward, eyes narrowing.  “ It .  Is.   MINE!!! ”

Light shoots from the center of the clouds, enveloping my master as he suddenly screams.  It echoes around the beach and jungle, repeating in my ears over and over.  With a growl, I start to leap forward.  The katana in my grasp is ripped from my fingers and two people grab my arms, holding me back.  I’m dimly aware of Dominique’s triumphant sneer as she watches, Nya’s snarling expression as her hands grip my arm to the point of stopping my blood flow.  The wind whips around us all, making sand get in my eyes as my master continues to scream.

The Ninja ( slowpokes ), enter my field of vision by Lloyd, Wu, and Misako as Lord Garmadon’s screams start changing more into gasps and strangled grunts and snarls, struggling as he slowly starts to change.  “ What is happening to me ?!”

I yank against the two corrupted shells holding me back, but my efforts remain fruitless.  “ Something is very wrong here- ”

The Overlord’s voice cuts him off, this time coming from my master’s body, “ The metamorphosis has BEGUN. ”  He- They- my (not) master- The Overlord stands on the weapon’s rim, laughing diabolically.

“Ninja, go!” five Spinjitzu tornados go towards the Stone Army, Lloyd stopping and shooting green flames between them and the Ninja.  The other four run right through and start to attack.

Dominique hisses frustratedly, releasing my arm and charging into the fray as well.  I yank my arm away from Nya and race forward.  She suddenly lands in front of me and tries to hit me.  I grab her fist, intending to throw her out of my way, but her free hand catches my arm.  Wu and Misako attack the Warriors before they reload the cannon.  I grip her shoulder tightly, both of us straining to gain control.  Jay hits the Dark Matter toward the Endless Sea.  I start bending her sideways, forcing her to kneel, then tumble onto the sand.  General Kozu gets hit into the cannon, and the Overlord fires him into the sky, making the Ninja laugh.  Before I can push myself up and run, Nya’s hand grasps my foot, bringing me down, and she jumps on top, fist aiming at my face as she snarls.  I roll out from under her, righting myself, but when I raise my head, she springs and tackles me again.  Kai takes out a Stone Scout and takes control of the blasters.  Nya and I end up grappling at each other, the control shifting between us until I manage to kick her off, leaping to my feet and unsheathing my sai to slam into her head.

Nya’s hand shoots out at the same time, grabbing the weapon’s prongs and twisting it out of my grasp.

“This.  Ends.  Now !” Lloyd’s voice rings out over the sounds of battle.

The Final Battle , I kick Nya in the stomach, sending her flying back, and try to get to the two.  Barely a second later, however, her hand grasps at the back of my gi, yanking me away.  I jerk, turning sharply and forcing her to let go, simultaneously aiming my sai to hit her in the face.  She ducks, narrowly avoiding the blow, but grabs both my arm and my gi, hurling me back toward the treeline.  I land on my back, the breath whooshing out of me.

Not waiting to regain it, I scramble to my feet.  Nya’s charging at me.  Behind her is the Overlord and Lloyd trying to overpower each other.  The Overlord constantly flickers between himself and my master as Lloyd screams words I can’t quite make out.  Nya growls and lunges forward, grasping wildly.  I spin away, tripping her at the same moment, and start running.  Something thuds into my back, knocking me to the ground.  Someone screams.  I raise my head, blinking sand out of my eyes.  Lloyd flies through the air, landing not that far from me, and lies motionless.  Wu and Misako run to him.  Nya’s gray figure leaps over me and runs to join the Stone Army.  As I stand, a Dark Matter missile shoots straight at the Green Ninja.  Before I can do anything, the Bounty flies straight between it and him, taking the hit.  As it crashes, an elderly man leaps off and sits up dizzily.

“ ENOUGH !” the Overlord finally shouts, “ We don’t need to waste our time with their pestering.  We’ll go to Ninjago City to finish this.  Once, and for ALL!!!! ”  A pink, blue, and white portal flashes into existence just over the ocean, Ninjago City visible in the center.  The Stone Army races to it.

“If they leave, that means we’ll be stuck here with no way to get back!” the Red Ninja shouts, “Get to the vortex, now !!”

Nya and Dominique leap onto Garmatron.  Nya turns her purple eyes to the others with an insane cackle, “Bye-bye!  Forever !!”

I channel all my power and energy into myself, shooting forward, past the Ninja as the last Stone Warrior makes it through the portal.  I leap, white light flashes, leaving me blinded.  The sensation of something akin to water washes over me, quenching all sound.  I spin wildly, my head starts to ache, then I slowly start to fall, as if something below me is drawing me down faster than gravity itself.  I open my mouth to scream; nothing comes out.

My world falls into darkness with a crash like thunder.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Lloyd’s POV)

I slowly grow aware of someone stroking my hair gently.  I blink my eyes open slightly; several blurred faces hover over me.  Then they clear and I recognize my mother, uncle, and Zane, who offers me a slight smile.  My whole body feels drained.  I place my arms under me and manage to sit up slightly, Mom grasping my shoulder supportively.  The rest are also around me, watching with worried faces.

I grimace, then look up at my uncle, knowing the answer before I even ask the question, “Did I-Did I win?”

“No.  But you’re alive,” he steps back as Jay comes up behind me, letting him and Mom help me stand.

“But the prophecy…” I hold my arms out to try to balance myself, attempting to take a step and instead faceplanting, fire shooting through my leg as soon as I move and try to stand on it.  I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to ignore it.

Jay and Mom run up again and help me back to my feet as he admonishes me, “Easy, kid.  You’ve been through a lot.”

“My leg…” I half say out loud, being more careful this time to put less weight on it, and limp a couple steps, looking at the horizon, “Did we lose the Final Battle?”

Uncle Wu joins me, “What’s important is: we didn’t lose you .”

I look to the side.  A piece of broken plank lies on the ground.  I limp to it and pick it up, looking at the circle with rays coming out from it.  “The symbol for destiny… Destiny showed us who was stronger today…but destiny also wanted us around to fight another day.”  The others all gather around me, Kai and Cole placing their hands on my shoulders.  “We didn’t lose the Battle,” I say quietly, breathing in.  “Today, we just lost the fight.”

Notes:

Happy St. Nicholas Day! For those of y'all who celebrate it.

And also here is the link to my blog, where I post both writing tips and my original stories, for anyone interested :) :
https://abigailfredrickson.com

Chapter 13: Rise of the Spinjitzu Master

Summary:

The last stretch, last resort, and the last battle.

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

I’m still falling, but I’m brought back to consciousness by lights flashing past.  I blink them open, then cover them with my hands for a second so they can adjust to the blinding flashes that are becoming more and more frequent.  Below me Garmatron and the Stone Army are falling through the vortex as well.  I suddenly realize that the speed we’re falling at is increasing, a pure white swirl glowing beneath us.  Garmatron and the Army disappear into it.  I brace myself for impact as it fills my vision, then for a brief second there’s nothing.  Nothing but staticy noise and light.  It’s a miracle I am not blind and deaf yet.

Something hard presses against my feet, or maybe it’s the other way around, and the light flickers out.  In front of me is the Stone Army and Garmatron, the Overlord perched on top with Nya and Dominique standing behind him on either side.  Now I may be a good fighter, but even I know when I’ll be overpowered.  I’m gonna have to hide and wait this out until I have a chance to get to the Overlord.

That in mind, I slip to the side of the street, ducking in an alleyway to keep out of sight, but peek out to watch.

A rather fat man in a brown gi that looks more for show than anything else and weirdly styled hair stalks to the center of the street, glaring at the Overlord.  …It’s official.  People in general have no sense whatsoever.

“Oh…All right!  You will have until the count of three to leave here before I unleash the power of…One!  Hee-yah!  The Dragon,” the idiot flaps his arms, “Two!  Penguin!”  He chatters, walking like a penguin and trying to look menacing but honestly just looking kind of stupid.  I resist the urge to bang my head against something.  Even if I’m not on his side, that is just painful to watch.  The Overlord presses some buttons, making the cannons on each side of the Garmatron come out and level to aim at the guy, who suddenly looks much more unsure of himself, “Two and a half…”

“ Three …”  The cannons fire; the man takes a flying leap out of the way, screaming, and lands on the pavement as the Dark Matter spreads over the spot he was just standing in.

His face lights up as he looks back at the Overlord, “Ha haa!  You missed!”  The blaster just locks onto him again.  “Oh no.”  It fires repeatedly as he jumps to his feet and runs away, barely avoiding each blast while screaming his head off, the Overlord laughing.  He takes cover behind a building before peeking out again with a glare, “We shall meet again!  This, I swear-!”  He’s partially cut off by another Dark Matter hitting the corner barely an inch away.  He squawks in terror before running out of sight, hollering: “WHERE ARE THOSE NINJA?!?!?!”

The Garmatron begins moving forward, each blast of Dark Matter helping to infect the city with the essence of evil, filling the air with a bitter, smoky scent as the Overlord’s laughter rings in my ears.  The Stone Army marches right behind him, and as I watch in horror, dark, bat-like wings riddled with holes show above the vehicle, stretching and beating as they grow.

Somehow, saving my master suddenly seems a much more difficult task.

---

(Cole’s POV)

Most of us are sitting or standing at the water’s edge.  Ninjago is visible from here now, but only because it’s been enveloped by looming purplish-black clouds.  Dr. Julien is bandaging Lloyd’s leg behind us.

“Can I still fight?” his strained voice asks.

The doctor’s is apologetic in response, “Hmm, I’m sorry.  That leg will take weeks to heal.”

“We don’t have weeks,” Lloyd grunts in pain.  I look down.  Things really are not in our favor.  The only thing that makes me hope we can somehow change the tide is that we have God and a prophecy on our side.  If we didn’t, things would definitely be pretty hopeless.

“The battle between good and evil will be decided today,” Wu states gravely.

Kai picks up a rock, brow furrowed, “And we can’t even get to the fight.  Much less get off this island.”  He throws the stone into the ocean in frustration.

Jay sighs, putting his hands on his knees, “I wonder if I’ll ever see Nya again.”  I glance at him, but decide not to acknowledge that he didn’t mention our other absent teammate.  He didn’t see what I did after all.

“Perhaps it’s best to think of our friends as we remember them in our hearts, not as they are now,” Zane advises, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Lloyd and Dr. Julien walk up behind us, Zane’s father supporting the younger boy, “But I don’t remember my father any other way.”

“Your father loved you,” Misako insists firmly.  “It was the evil of the Great Devourer that corrupted him.”

“Sensei, I don’t understand,” Kai speaks up.  “The prophecy said the Green Ninja would defeat the Dark Lord.”  He throws another rock over the ocean.  This time instead of plopping into it, it skips several times.  “Why didn’t we win?”

“I…don’t know,” the older man admits wearily.

“ Don’t know ?” Jay gapes.  “You’re Sensei !  You always know!  You have a long white beard!”  Yes, Jay, because the long white beard is the source of his knowledge.

Kai flounders slightly, “There must be some message to learn.  A lesson.  A word of wisdom.  Just a word?  Something .”  He looks at our sensei pleadingly.

“For once, I’m afraid there is nothing to learn,” Wu looks at Ninjago sadly, “only that evil has won.”  A heavy silence falls as we follow his gaze to the clouds resting on the horizon.

Lloyd breaks it, “If Sensei doesn’t have a lesson, then I do.”  We look at him as he removes his arm from over Dr. Julien’s shoulders and limps away, “I used to be nothing but trouble, but then I met you guys.  You took me in.  Showed me the importance of being brave, the importance of being strong.  And most importantly, being good .”  He places his bad foot down firmly for a second, hissing quietly in pain, then turns back to us, “When this battle first began, when the First Spinjitzu Master fought the Overlord and his back was up against the wall, and he knew it was all over, did he quit?  No .  He found a way to keep the fight going.”  He takes Jay’s and my arms, prompting us to stand up.  “He passed his Elemental Powers to us .  Of all people, a bunch of kids .  But there must have been a reason he chose us.  I’d like to think it’s because he knew we’d never back down, we’d never give up.  We’ve learned the ancient ways of the Ninja.  And Ninja never quit.”

“He’s right,” Kai states.  “If that means we have to swim the sea to get off this island, then so be it.”  He wades into it with a determined expression.

“The entire ocean?” Jay groans.  “But I didn’t bring my floaties…”

“Ugh,” Kai glances at him, hand skimming the water’s surface.

“Well, if you got a better plan…” I shrug.  Jay’s face falls.  That would be a no…

“I don’t, but he may,” Zane points to the Falcon soaring over our heads.

“Ooh, the Falcon.  He must have found something,” Dr. Julien smiles.  Well, if there’s a chance he found something that’ll let us get back to Ninjago…I say we take it.

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

It’s become quite a monumental challenge simply to avoid being caught by a Stone Warrior or corrupted citizen, not to mention avoiding being seen by the Overlord and given a not-so-healthy dose of Dark Matter.  Not impossible however, I’d learned once I’d started taking back streets and alleys, sometimes even finding shortcuts through buildings.

I turn a corner and freeze, staring at the mountain of white scales.  The Ultra Dragon turns, spotting me, and stands just as still.  The soft sound of wings beating against the air enters my ears, then the ground shudders ever so slightly and warm breath blows my hair forward.  I turn to meet the Darkness Dragon’s eyes.  Cloud, I believe her name was.  Her eyes narrow at me, and she bares her teeth, emitting a low growl.  We were never on…how to put this delicately… friendly terms ever since I abducted her and her mistress for my own master.  I don’t move, either to back away or to attack.  I know if I did then I can consider myself as good as dead, stuck between two hostile Dragons.

Then I realize something.  While our goals are ultimately quite different, these Dragons (and the Ninja) and I do have a common enemy at the present moment.  On top of that, neither these Dragons nor I can take him down on our own, and the Ninja cannot because they are trapped on the Dark Island.  I straighten slightly, steeling my resolve.  As much as I hate to do it, for the time being it would be a smart decision to work with the Ninja, rather than against them.  If I continued to do so, I would merely remain stuck between a rock and a hard place, whereas if I attempt to ally with them briefly…at least we can get closer to taking the Overlord down.

But before I can do that, I need to get to them.  And to get to them, I need some help.  Said help probably wants to rip me limb from limb, but it’s better than going up and knocking on Garmatron’s door and hoping everybody will have a change of heart.

I hold my hands up in a surrendering motion, looking Cloud hard in the eye, “Look, if you guys roast me, you won’t be able to find the Ninja, and you can’t take on the Overlord or his army without them, not even counting Nya and Dominique.  Same for me.  I need help and so do you, so for now can we ignore the fact that I despise you as much as you can’t stand the sight of me and work together to get the Ninja over here before things get worse?”

Cloud eyes me doubtfully, and I can hear a hesitant rumble from the Ultra Dragon as well.  “If you want to get your friends back do you have much else of a choice?” I raise an eyebrow.

Cloud finally exhales and gives a single nod.  That went better than expected.

---

(Cole’s POV)

We end up following the bird with Kai’s mech, most of us clinging to the outside while the Red Ninja makes it climb the mountain.  When it stops, we’ve returned to the Temple of Light.

“You brought us back to the Temple of Light?” Zane voices our thoughts.  “I do not understand.  We’ve already been here.”

“This location, I’ve seen this before,” Misako looks at one of her scrolls depicting the layout of the temple, “I just never understood it.”

We all head inside and fan out.  I find myself looking at the murals covering the walls.  Each time one of the girls is in one, it’s another reminder of how loud their absence feels, even if neither of them was ever a chatterbox like Jay.  I pause by a column, looking at its opening curiously.  It’s the only one visible, and it seems to go down into nothing.

Kai’s intake of breath catches my attention, “I think I found something.”  I glance over to see the Red Ninja pointing at a slot in the pole that my elemental symbol rests next to.  “It’s just like the map.”  He slides his blade into it, then light leaks out from the edges.

“There’s one more over there,” Sensei points to where Kai had stood on our last visit.

“And here,” Dr. Julien adds, looking at Zane’s spot.

“And over here,” Misako finishes with Jay’s.  That’s when I realize that Rose actually had been missing when we’d regained our powers, but was with us afterward.  Something tells me that the strange opening I saw had something to do with it, but we have more pressing matters.

I unsheathe my Elemental Blade and activate it along with Jay and Zane, walking to the nearest pillar and inserting it into the slot, watching as white light pools out from inside.  The second all four blades are in place, the room trembles.

Kai turns, frowning slightly, “What is it?”  Our elders and Lloyd quickly back away from the Temple’s center as the floor starts moving beneath them, the circle where Lloyd had been last time lowering and sliding out of sight.  Something begins rising into view as we all gawk.  A golden and white mech, rust keeping the metal from shining brightly and clouds of dust floating off of it.  Even so, it’s impressive.

“Cool,” Jay breathes.

Misako smiles, “It is the fighting suit the First Spinjitzu Master used when he battled the Overlord.”

“You mean the First Spinjitzu Master once sat here?” I ask, climbing onto it. “Haha, get out of here!”  I study the inside curiously, “How do you make this thing work?”

Dr. Julien sighs in disappointment, “Sadly, I think time has done her in.  She’s only a relic now.”

Sensei brushes the mech’s hand with a couple fingers, “If it worked for the First Spinjitzu Master, perhaps it will work for the next Spinjitzu Master?”

“It’s worth a shot,” Lloyd shrugs, walking forward and starting to climb up it.

I get out of the seat so he can occupy it, standing on the shoulder and looking down at the others, “Hey, watch out.”  I jump off once nobody’s near enough for me to bump into.

Lloyd moves one of the levers with a slight frown, “Hmm…nothing.”  Right after he says that, the mech glows gold, shimmering with the power emanating from it.  “Whoa!”

I grin, echoing the Green Ninja’s surprised exclamation, “Whoa!”

“Looking good!” Kai pumps his fist, smiling.

Jay laughs, “Killer!”

“Amazing!” Zane adds in awe.

“How does the leg feel now?” Sensei Wu asks his nephew.

Lloyd looks down, the mech’s leg that corresponds to his injured one lifting, then coming down with a thud that makes the ground shiver, “Stronger!”  For the first time since yesterday, a real smile beams on his face.  The mech lifts its sword into the air, making it glow as sparks and embers swirl around it.

“Well, I know how he is getting to Ninjago,” Misako hesitates, “but what about us?”

A faint roar floats in from outside; Jay turns to the entrance with a giant smile, “I know that sound.”  They roar again, louder.  I recognize it as Rocky’s, making me grin in relief.  “It’s our Dragon!”

“I believe we just found our way off this rock,” Sensei Wu states.

I share a glance with my brothers, then we run outside with the rest on our heels.  Sure enough, the Ultra Dragon thunders overhead with a third mighty roar, Cloud on his heels.  But when they circle back to land, I know I’m not the only one who notices the figure perched on the smaller Dragon’s back.  Appearing exactly like Rose but with red eyes and (somehow) paler skin, I recognize her clone.

As the two dragons land on the mountain, she holds up a gloved hand to cut us off before we can say anything, red eyes narrowing, “I know what you’re thinking, and yes, I am trying to help you get back to Ninjago.  Right now, we all have a common enemy, and I think we all know I’m talking about the Overlord.  As much as I hate this, I can’t get rid of him myself, and I need your help.”  She cocks an eyebrow, “And I believe that if I didn’t show these two the way here, you would not have a way back.”

“What are you getting at?” Kai asks, suspicion clear in his voice.

“I just think it may be better for us all if we join forces while we have a common goal,” she returns his glare levelly, “After all, two enemies are much harder to fight than one.”

“She is correct,” Zane reasons, “It would be much easier to take down the Overlord with help, and we do owe her, in a sense.  She was not required to help us.”

The Red Ninja huffs, crossing his arms, “I hate when you’re right.”

“Come, there is no time to waste,” Sensei urges, climbing onto Ultra’s seat and taking the reins.

As the rest of us climb on as well, Kai sighs and does as well, grumbling something before looking at Bizarro Rose, “Alright.”

She gives a single curt nod before guiding Cloud to take off, the two turning sharply to fly away from the Dark Island.  Wu makes Ultra take off after them, and Lloyd activates the mech’s boosters to fly next to us.

At first, all I can think about is how much I missed this .  Riding Dragons.  Even though I started out with Rocky a bit wrong compared to the others, after a while flying with him became one of my favorite things to do.  A bit ironic considering I’m the Master of Earth, but true.  And it feels like forever since we’ve ridden Ultra instead of Lloyd.  But after a few minutes, my mind turns to the pair ahead of us, leading the way back to Ninjago.

From the back, she almost looks like Rose, even though I know she’s not.  It looks right, but it feels so wrong seeing her in my girlfriend’s place.  I shake it off for the moment, After all, Bizarro Rose is trying to help us out…somewhat.  Now’s not really the time to judge her for something out of her control.  And besides, if everything works out, Rose will be back with us soon enough.   I take a deep breath as we dive through a thick cloud, closing my eyes.  It clears my head a bit, and a twinge of relief loosens my chest somewhat.

As we shoot out of the cloud, Lloyd whoops, laughing as we weave through the other wisps and pockets of cloud now gathering closer and closer together.  “We’re getting close!” Bizarro Rose shouts over her shoulder as the clouds grow darker.  It’s not long before it feels like they’re the only thing around for miles.

“I see Ninjago!” Kai suddenly gasps behind me, pointing at a faint purplish light leaking up from underneath the mists, “We’re not far away!”

I squint at it, “Oh, you sure that’s Ninjago?”

“It is,” comes Bizarro Rose’s grim reply from in front.  “I suppose it’s only fair to warn you, what you see down there is not going to be the Ninjago you remember.  The Overlord has corrupted everything, and everyone serves him now.”

“Wow…” Jay says eloquently.  As the two Dragons pull into a hovering position, Lloyd sends his mech into a dive, straight through the clouds and towards the island of Ninjago.  Ultra roars and dives down after him.  Cloud follows on our heels.  The clouds thinning as we get closer to the earth, I can see buildings cloaked in darkness.  Ninjago City.  Except that now it’s entirely silent, and nothing seems to be moving for miles.  At least, nothing that we can see.  To say it’s creepy would be an understatement, when this city always used to be so loud and bursting with life.

We break through the clouds and pull up to hover, staring at a giant, smooth tower right in the city’s center that most definitely had not been there previously.  It seems black as night itself, but for an eerie purple glow emitting from its roof.  I can’t see any way in, and there’s only a staircase spiraling up and around it to reach the top.  At its base there’s a stone wall surrounding it, and the Stone Army illuminated by fires packed between the wall and tower.  A deep horn sounds, but other than that, the world remains utterly silent.

“What is that thing?” Kai breathes, his voice barely above a whisper.

“Garmatron,” Bizarro Rose spits out, her red eyes filling with bitterness.

“It’s…turned into a fortress?” Misako asks, her tone just as soft as everyone else’s.

“But where’s the Overlord?” Dr. Julien questions.  That’s when I realize he’s right.  The evil spirit that possessed Garmadon is nowhere to be seen.  From the suspicious glare Kai is sending Rose’s clone, I can tell he’s wondering if she just led us into a trap.  And I’d think she did if it wasn’t for the fact that she serves Garmadon and Garmadon alone, and, well, the Overlord sort of possessed her master at the moment.

“This way,” she guides Cloud down and away from the tower.  Lloyd follows without hesitation, and we do as well a second after.

We land behind some buildings, the space large enough to hide in until we can tell no one saw us.  When nothing happens, we dismount from the Dragons to peek out.  The street the alley opens into is empty, but when we look around the corner of the building, I count somewhere around ten to fifteen people wandering around it, skin ash gray, eyes a luminescent violet, and clothes all dulled to shades of gray and black.  There’s no life in any of their expressions, they all look empty.  There’s not even any of the ferocity that Nya had shown.  I don’t doubt it would if the Overlord ordered them to attack however.  Then I recognize my father among them, expression just as slack as the rest.  I swallow thickly.

“He’s turned everyone evil,” Kai murmurs.

“Oh, just like Nya,” Jay whimpers slightly.

“And now they’re helping his cause,” I frown, pulling back out of view with them and clenching my fist.  “I can’t wait to see the look on the Overlord’s face when he gets a load of us.”  The same horn as before blares ominously, followed immediately by what is unmistakably the roar of a dragon.  This one, however, is not Ultra’s or Cloud’s, and it seems different in a way that I don’t know how to explain, more ominous, closer to a wailing cry than a thundering roar, it sounds like a creature from another time or planet.  A chill runs down my spine as we all raise our eyes to its source.  The ghostly purple glow on the tower’s top flares up as it illuminates a creature that looks similar to Cloud but at least five times larger and nothing short of ugly rearing on its hind legs, massive wings spread against the dark sky.

“Oh…my…goodness,” Jay’s eyes widen, the pitch of his voice growing higher at the end.  The Overlord spouts a stream of darkness into the air, which flies toward us like a magnet.  “Oh sweet mother may I.”

“Look out, Jay!” Kai cries, the Blue Ninja turning away and shielding his face from the dark plume.  Bizarro Rose tackles him out of the way and the substance goes into the street, which absorbs it.

“Is that the look you were hoping for?” Zane inquires.

“Zane-” Jay struggles, then just looks at him.  “No.”

Rose’s clone stands, helping him do the same as she speaks, “At any cost, do not let those touch you.  It’s made of Dark Matter, that’s what turned Nya and everyone else evil.”  She holds up a hand, a little bit of the same misty substance the Overlord had launched in our direction floats up from it before she closes her fist, making it vanish.  “Even a small and short bit of contact is enough for it to corrupt you.”

My best friend shudders, “Good to know…”

“The metamorphosis is complete,” Misako observes, frowning up at the Overlord as he releases another screeching roar.  “The Overlord’s changed into his original form.”

“But we can’t fly up there,” I frown.  I mean, we could try to, but it would not be subtle in any way.

“We have my father’s Golden mech,” Wu gestures to his nephew.  “We have to draw their fire to help Lloyd use the mech against the Overlord.”

“We hear you loud and clear,” I state, sending a glare up the tower.

---

We climbed back on the Dragons and started flying towards Garmatron.  I grip the side of the saddle, “Everyone, hold on tight!”

Drawing closer to the tower’s outer wall, it looks like fire, heavy and black plumes of smoke rising from it.  A couple black figures standing on the wall are framed by the light, one large, the four arms evident, the other smaller, hair blowing in the wind as the glowing eyes slit.

The overall dead silence makes it easy to hear the stone general’s commands, “Wait…”  We’re close enough now to make out the red of the general’s armor, the paleness of Dominique’s skin, and the glint of metal on their blades.  “ Wait …”  I can see the pale shine of weapons and the dim figures of the rest of the army behind the wall.  “ Wait …”  Then I see where the fires are from.  Large catapults are poised and ready to fire giant serrated disks, some of them in flames.  I set my jaw, If even one of those hits us…I sure hope Sensei knows what he’s doing.   “NOW!” Kozu roars.  Instantly the catapults are launched and balls of fire fly up from behind the wall.

“Look out, Sensei!” I shout just as he pulls the Ultra Dragon into a sharp barrel roll, several of the flaming projectiles passing too close for comfort.  I’m suddenly very relieved that I decided holding onto the saddle would be a good thing.  A line of red appears on top of the wall as we return right side up, then a hail of flaming arrows is launched into the sky.

“Pull up!” Kai yelps.  “Quick, pull up!”  Sensei does just in time, the arrows falling barely short of us.

“The Stone Army is protecting its master,” Misako frowns.  “They will never let Lloyd get close.”

“Then we have to get close,” Wu states.

A roar catches my attention as Cloud swoops down over the Army, breathing plumes of darkness at them.  They scatter, the ones not lucky enough to get out of the way getting bowled over.

I blink, “I think Bizarro Rose just did.”

---

(Bizarro Rose’s POV)

I start to make Cloud go back up, but she roars, shaking slightly as she obeys.  I look down.  Pupilless purple eyes meet mine.  Dominique smirks as she latches onto Cloud’s leg.  I let go of the reins, unsheathing my sai, “You’re gonna have to drive now, Cloud.”  The Dragon rumbles in response, curving up and away from the ground as Dominique flips onto her back, holding her katana in front.

“I never thought you could be trusted,” she snaps.

“I serve Lord Garmadon and no one else,” I growl, standing cautiously.  I can feel the serpentine body moving beneath us.  Just keep flying steady…

“Yet you have joined forces with the Ninja,” she comments, raising a brow.

“That doesn’t mean I serve them,” I toss my hair out of my face and lunge.  My blow is blocked by her katana, then she spins, pushing me back and aiming for my side.  I flip a sai and block, the blade glancing off the prongs, then I leap up, lashing out.

She ducks and rolls under my foot, then smirks, hand hovering over the limp reins.  I blow out slightly, narrowing my eyes and angling my weapons toward her.  She picks it up and jerks it left.  Cloud screeches, rolling over and barely missing crashing into a building.  I drop and cling to her scales as tightly as I can.  I think I just lost my stomach…   Dominique laughs, sharply pulling up.  I grit my teeth, raising my face to glare at her.  She seems entirely unbothered by it, continuing to force the Dragon into nearly impossible stunts.  It’s obvious she’s trying to get rid of me.  Well, I hold onto the scaly back stubbornly, it’s not gonna be easy.

Suddenly, Cloud begins to scream, roaring and bucking in pain.  I squint, fighting to keep my eyes open, despite the wind stinging them so that tears start to blur my vision.  I blink them away forcefully to see that dark matter is creeping along the chains in Dominique’s grasp, or something like it at least, it’s slipping over the Dragon’s scales.  Cloud squeezes her eyes shut, shaking her head viciously and releasing another roar.

The thrashing stops.  I continue to keep my grip, panting slightly.  The scales under me pale and darken to a sickly purplish gray.  I slowly raise my head.

Cloud’s eyes snap open, a violet film covering them.  She roars and dives sharply.  I clench my teeth, closing my eyes and fighting to stay on once more.  She suddenly changes direction and is hurtling upward just as quickly.  The force makes me lose purchase.  I find that the ground is rushing to meet me.  I reach up, shooting a dark tentacle out of my hand.  One end wraps around the tower and the other my wrist as I hold on, swinging over the Stone Warrior’s heads.  I end up bowling several over and bumping into a large golden-  Oh dear.  I raise my spinning head and force my vision to clear enough to see I’m lying on top of Lloyd’s downed mech as Nya’s laughter rings through the air.  Lloyd is crawling out of the mech, wincing.

I keep back a hiss of annoyance, “Can you Ninja not do anything right?”

He frowns slightly, “In case you haven’t noticed, all I had was a thousand year old mech and a broken leg to fight these guys.”

“...Fair enough,” I conclude after a second.  Stone Warrior battle cries sound as they race toward us.  I whip out another dark rope, then another, and another, trying to create a barrier.  The blades cut through it easily, but I keep making more.  Even so, I don’t know how long I can keep it up.

“Ninja, go!”  Four differently colored figures land in front of us, Elemental Blades activated.

“It’s about time,” I grumble.

Lloyd gets up and elbows me slightly, “We’re okay!”

“Yeah, but are we?” Jay asks as a blast from Cole’s sword sends the advancing Stone Warriors back.

The Overlord roars, another horn sounding at the same time.  More Dark Matter snakes down from the tower toward us.

“Ice!” Zane shouts, creating a shield that curves over our heads just in time to block the evil substance.  I can see it slowly spreading over the slippery surface.

The Overlord releases another angered roar as Jay claps his teammate on the back, “Good job, Zane!”  It shudders slightly as Nya shoots at it from the other side, then shatters, large blocks of ice falling toward us.  I use my power to knock them away.

Kai raises his sword, sending a giant plume of flame at his sister, “Fire!”  She shoots at the same time and the two forces collide with an explosion that makes my ears ring and lights up the whole space.  Nya growls and retreats up the tower as Stone Warriors advance on us, growing too close for comfort.  I blast a couple away before pulling out my sai again.  Metal clangs on metal as the Army attacks.  From my estimations, I’d say we’re outnumbered about…twenty to one.  Not good odds.  But then again, when have they ever been?

“I know we’ve always drawn a crowd,” Jay grunts, disarming a Warrior, “but this is ridiculous.”

“How can you be making jokes at a time like this?!” Kai exclaims in disbelief, voicing my thoughts exactly.

“Hey,” he shrugs, knocking another soldier off and putting his hand on his hip, “if I’m going down, might as well go down laughing.”

“That makes no sense,” I state.

“If this is how we’re going to go down, I’m proud to be fighting alongside my brothers,” Zane kicks a warrior away.

“Hear, hear,” is Cole’s simple reply.  I will never understand these people.

I summon a huge ball of dark energy stubbornly.  “We…are not…going down…today!” I send it at the warriors, blasting most of them back.

Cloud roars, she and Dominique diving out of the sky and towards the fight.  Dark Matter pours from the controlled Dragon’s mouth and toward us.  I cut it off with a beam of purple energy.

“Oh, come on, they take our teammates, they take all Ninjago, and now they’re taking one of our Dragons!” Jay complains.  “ What more do they want?!?!?! ”

They come for another pass, this time I control a tentacle of darkness to wrap around Cloud’s leg.  The abrupt stop sends her rider flying, and as another tentacle grabs hold of her wing, she comes crashing down on a section of Stone Warriors.

“Keep fighting!” Lloyd yells, punching away a warrior.  “Never give up!”

“Ninja never quit!” Kai backs him up.

“Ninja, go!” a green glow comes from behind me, I glance back to see Lloyd using Spinjitzu.  Okay so maybe not all their ideas are useless , I admit as the rest of us do the same.  I hear Nya firing her blasters, then white fills my vision along with a blast of heat and pain.  The ground collides with my back.  I open my eyes only to see the Stone Warriors advancing.  I quickly catch a blade with my sai and glance around.  Everyone else is in the same predicament.

“We’re doomed, guys!” Jay’s voice is strained.

The Army raises their swords as one and starts to bring them down.  I close my eyes, bracing for the pain…but it never comes.  I carefully open my eyes again and stare at the Stone Army.  They’re all absolutely still, swords stopped mere inches from our faces.

The others shift as well, uncertain.  Then Kai stands up, removing his hood, “What happened…?”

We do the same, still staring at the motionless army.  “They are frozen,” Zane observes, puzzled.

Kozu raises his swords, “All hail the Brown Ninja!  What do you command?”  I nearly choke, I’m sorry what?  He did not just say that.

Jay sheathes his weapon, raising an eyebrow, “ Brown Ninja?”  The Ultra dragon flies toward us, the Army backing up to give it space to land.

The man who’d defied the Overlord before is standing there with the others, the Helmet of Shadows perched on his head, “Hehe, what’s up, fellas?  Looks like we all know who’s in command now .”

“You’re joking,” I breathe.  “You have got to be joking.”

“The helmet controls the Army,” Cole realizes.  “Well done.”

“Oh,” Jay gasps, “that means we now stand a fighting chance!”

“I need to get to the top of that fortress,” Lloyd points to the tower.  “I may not be able to get there by myself, but with your help, I can face him.”  I bite my lip slightly.  That’s the one part of this plan I’m not so sure about.

The Ninja activate their Elemental Blades and clash them together with a cheer, “Ninja, go!!”

The weird guy who is apparently now in charge of the Stone Army gazes at the blades with round eyes, “Where’d you get those?  I want one.”

Kai looks at his sword, smiles, then turns to him, “You too, Brown Ninja.  Today, you’re one of us.”  He holds out the blade.  The ‘Brown Ninja’ takes it, his eyes lighting up like a kid on Christmas, “Shall we do it once more, just for old times’ sake?”

“Ninja, go!” the guy happily shouts, raising the sword in the air as the Overlord lets loose another shriek high above.  “Army!  Abooouuut face!”  The ranks line up, facing the stairs.  “Stone Armyyy…GO!”  He points the sword up the stairs, and they release battle cries, charging up the steps.  They’re stopped by Nya at the first corner, who cackles as she shoots them off the building.  The ‘Brown Ninja’ returns the blade to Kai, “You better get this back.”  The brunet gives him a grin and we start climbing the steps.  Suddenly, so close to reaching the Overlord, my heart seems heavier than it did when our goal seemed as far away as ever.  Because I know that while I merely want to stop the Overlord …the Ninja want to stop him and my master both.

“Let’s help them out,” Misako says behind us.  The Ultra Dragon takes to the skies, flying alongside the tower steps before there’s a blood-curdling battle cry.  Cloud suddenly flies into their path with a snarl and a dark figure leaps off and lands on the stairs ahead of us, unsheathing her katana.

“ You will not reach my father if it is the last thing I do ,” she growls, Dragon cries echoing through the sky as Cloud engages the Ultra Dragon in a fierce battle.

Cole activates his Elemental Blade, raising it, “I’ll hold her off.  Go on without me.”

“No wait-” Lloyd starts to protest, but Kai interrupts him.

“We need to move now , Lloyd.”

Cole runs ahead and crosses swords with Dominique, forcing her to the side, “Go!”  We all hurriedly run past, a furious growl from Dominique being the last thing I hear of the fight.  

The heavy silence that follows and the repetitive motions of climbing the stairs allow me to easily sink into my thoughts.  At first, this (rather unstable, I admit) alliance was good.  I’ve already gotten closer to the Overlord than I ever could have on my own.  But I know when we reach the top, that the Ninja will attack not just him, but my master as well, even if we find a way to stop the Overlord’s possession of him.  I can’t fail him again.

My train of thought is interrupted when I bump into Lloyd, who Jay had suddenly pushed away, and half a second later I know why.  Dark Matter envelops the Blue Ninja.

“JAY!” Lloyd screams, reaching for his friend.  I hold him back.  Kai and Zane whirl, their expressions showing horror, and they quickly run back.

“Get out of the way!” Jay snaps, shaking as he tries to suppress the evil I know is trying to take control.  The other two Ninja quickly support Lloyd to help him climb faster.

“Don’t look!” Kai orders.  “Just keep climbing!”

“From my calculations, with the distance remaining to the top, the odds are that only one of us is going to make it,” Zane grimaces as we round the corner.  I look up.  Maybe to him it seemed like a long way, but I’m struck by how much nearer it was than before.  And I suddenly know that if only one of us is going to reach the top, it had better be me if I don’t want my master to be killed.

“Then let’s beat the odds!” Lloyd says, “Let’s-”

I cut him off, flipping up and over their heads and pulling out my sai.  Kai’s eyes narrow, “I knew we shouldn’t have trusted you.”

“As much as I’m grateful that you’ve trusted me up till now and helped me get this far, I can’t let you fight my master,” I state coolly.  “My mission was to prevent the Final Battle, and if I die doing it, then so be it.”  I lunge.

A white, cold blade catches between the prongs of my sai, and Zane hurls me to the side, “Go on.  I’ll hold her back!”

As the last two Ninja hurry past, I push off the tower with all my strength.  The White Ninja stumbles backward, nearly falling over the edge.  I start to run after Kai and Lloyd, but a wall of ice grows in my path.  I grit my teeth and prepare to break through it, but more ice encases me.

Zane moves to face me, “I can’t let you stop my friends any more than you can let them reach Garmadon.”

“So I’ve noticed,” I hiss, using my powers to break free.  As the shards of ice tumble over the edge or down the stairs, a feral growl catches both our attention.  Jay appears around the corner, his normally bright expression twisted into a snarl as he raises his Elemental Blade.  Just like Nya and every other person in Ninjago, his skin is now an ashy gray, and his blue eyes have turned a luminous violet, gi dimmed.

Even though we’re on opposite sides at the moment, Zane and I share an apprehensive glance.  A three way battle.  This will be…something else.

Jay sends a bolt of lightning at me, I block it with darkness, and when the sparks and mist clear, I see he and Zane have locked swords.  I try to run past them, but both ice and lightning block my path.  I try to knock one away, honestly not caring which, but I receive a blast of cold and a bit of a shock for my efforts.  I wreathe the area in darkness, hoping to tilt the odds in my favor, but a flicker of lightning reveals a corrupted Jay smirking at me, then comes the pain as the electricity courses through my body.  It’s majorly cut off when Zane appears, but the electricity remains in me for a moment.  I can’t keep myself from shaking at the sensation of it coursing through me until it finally dies down.  Jay throws Zane back; I shoot a stream of darkness around the evil Ninja’s leg and pull, making him fall backward and hit his head on a stair.  He lies there for a dazed second, then starts to get up.  I face Zane and throw a beam of energy in his direction, but he counters it with ice.  Suddenly a dark cloud falls from the sky and envelopes him.

He falters, shivering, then the Dark Matter takes over, removing color and turning his eyes purple.  Well great, now they’re gonna be working together.

A golden light suddenly spills over the tower’s top, and an angered roar fills the skies as the Overlord is thrown off and hovers in midair.  No, the Final Battle… I summon my powers, making the darkness rip the Ninja’s swords away and wrapping them up as I start running up the steps.  A blur lands in front of me and a blow sends me flying backward, sand getting in my mouth.  Sand?   I sputter, ignoring the pounding in my head from hitting it on the edge of a step, and look up.  Cole’s standing there, but he’s also been corrupted by Dark Matter.  Cold metal touches my neck.

I growl under my breath and look up at Dominique’s glowing smirk, “Going somewhere, clone?”

Suddenly two dragons fall down the tower in a flash of black and gold, grappling in the air.  The force sends us crashing against the wall, a second after they come back, flying up and above the tower.  The fighting pauses as everyone stares up at the Final Battle unfolding before us.  I squeeze my eyes shut and bow my head, I failed you again, Master…I’m…I’m sorry.

A shadow falls on me, I look up to see a sphere of pure and utter darkness spreading out from the spot where the two enemies had been a second before.  A moment later we’re enveloped in it as deep and sinister laughter echoes over and over around us all.  I can’t see anything even a millimeter from my face.  I feel like I’m choking on something, like there’s no more air in this pocket of black.  I don’t dare move for fear of falling over the tower’s edge.

The laughter stops abruptly, leaving everything in silence.  Until a horror filled cry of denial fills it, “ No.  No!  NO!  NOOOOO- ”  It cuts off just as I’m blinded by pure white.  The stairs underneath me disappear.  I’m falling, then the world snaps back into black.

---

(Rose’s POV)

Tears, hopelessness, darkness. Then light: bright, shining, searing light.  It burns my eyes, forcing me to squint as I stand up.

For once, there’s no vision of what is happening outside, of what Dominique is seeing.  There’s no oppressing, overbearing weight shoving me to the ground and squeezing my throat until I suffocate.  There’s no tangible malice bent entirely towards me in an attempt to smother me from existence.  The burning warmth at my collarbone finally dims to a cool relief.

The light dims, thank God , and I can finally look around myself without fear of blinding myself.  I can’t see too far; whatever lies beyond ten or so feet is obscured by a thick fog.  The floor is blacker than night, and yet clearer than water.  I stare at my reflection.  While my hair has almost never been truly neat, now it looks like a wild bird’s nest, wispy curls sticking up in every direction, sticking to my skin, falling over my shoulders in knots and matts.  My eyes are tinted red, and dark circles carve into my skin below them.  My cheeks are stiff underneath crusted tear tracks.  I look haunted .

I suppose I am haunted.

Behind me there’s a faint, muffled groan.  I turn sharply, eyes landing on a curled up figure.  Long, straight hair cascades to the ground, pale skin is reflected in the mirror.  A twisted, dark version of my own gi, bearing our father’s symbol, stares me in the face.  Bright violet eyes, void of expression, rise and meet my own.  Dominique is kneeling on the ground, arms hugging her stomach, face twisted in agony and wrath and fear .

When our eyes make contact, she inhales sharply and scrambles to her feet, throwing her shoulders back and raising her chin.  Not a single hair out of place, all sharp edges and strong stance.  Yet despite the defiant front, there’s a subtle tremble in her frame.

“You,” she hisses.  “You’re supposed to be dead.  Why are you not dead?”

“I have a track record of being difficult to get rid of,” I murmur.

Her face twists into a silent snarl at that, but otherwise she doesn’t reply.

“Who are you?” I ask.

“I’m who you were supposed to be,” she replies with a proud tilt of her chin.  “Strong.  Powerful.  Loyal to our real father.  Not a weak, sentimental traitor like you turned out to be.”

And yet, as she speaks, she seems to fade…or shrink.  I can feel the warmth of life humming in my chest as she does, flickering stronger with every second…

And the pain from my father’s presence is fading.  He’s…weakening.

And so is she.

I tilt my head, watching her smirk.  Watching her shake.  “No…you’re what he wanted me to be.  Before he disowned me.”

“You’re weak,” she spits.  I take a step, and her form shudders, flickering oddly.

“If you’re so strong, and I’m so weak,” I ask, “then how have I not died like I was supposed to?”

“I…don’t…”

Before me stands a child, I realize suddenly.  A child, with jaggedly cut hair, violet eyes, bruised, covered in sluggishly bleeding cuts, and a mantle too big for her.

She’s shaking, staring up at me, eyes wide and unseeing.

Somewhere during our conversation, what little strength she had waned dangerously.  Even as I watch, she continues to fade from sight, from existence.

I kneel in front of her.

“I have a real family,” I whisper.  “I have a father who took me in and loved me unconditionally.  I have friends who have stuck by my side from day one.  I have a cousin who had a heart too big for him, an aunt who has made mistakes but cares deeply all the same.  I have someone who has never once given up on me or doubted me since we met, who has fought for me every step of the way, and who I barely deserve when I’ve done so little for him in return.”

The Overlord doesn’t love me, and never has.  He doesn’t love this shadow of myself either.  The day she ceased to be useful to him would be the day that he threw her away.

Just like he threw me away.

The shadow flickers as I watch.  I know that’s all she is; a shadow.  She has no soul.  She had no real birth, no real life.

You’re supposed to be dead , she cries, clawing onto what semblance of life is left, defiant and fighting to the end.

What would have happened to her?  If I had died like I had been meant to do?  Would she be fading now?  Would my body have become hers?

Would she have gained a soul of her own?  Become real?

Instead of pupilless, glowing, empty eyes, would they look natural?  Would she feel more than just a ghost of emotions?  Instead of my father’s puppet, would she be able to recognize her own existence as a pawn and break from his control?  Or would she remain loyal to the person who granted her life, despite his disdain?

She’s barely even a shadow now, and the world is brightening.

I reach out, brushing against her shoulder.  I can barely feel her.  Even as her mouth opens in a silent wail, I lean forward and hold her fading form in my arms the best I can, hoping to provide some form of comfort to a being that only existed for a few days.  To something that was thrust into a form not its own and has nothing to look forward to.

As Dominque vanishes, the world goes white.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Cole’s POV)

I blink, light filling my vision.  I shield my eyes until they adjust, and I can see the blue, sunny sky above me.  For a second I just stare, then the importance of that everyday sight hits me, and I jolt up.

Kai and Jay are crying out, “Nya!”  Zane is pushing himself up next to me, disoriented.

I break into a grin and help him up.  “Come here, you tin can,” I hug him, ignoring the fact that he’s made of metal.

“Brother,” he smiles in relief, wrapping his arms around me in turn.  Ultra lands behind us, roaring happily.  Another one rings out as a restored Cloud swoops down, and the two Dragons nuzzle.

Our elders dismount, Dr. Julien gasping in disbelief, “Is this really happening?  We did it?”

“We did it!” Dareth cries, walking into view.  “You did it!  I did it!  HA, who didn’t do it?!”

“The Overlord, that’s who,” a mirth-filled voice replies.  I freeze, then whirl around so fast I think I got whiplash.  Zane’s face brightens.

Rose is standing only a few meters away, a beaming smile on her face.  Her gi from the Temple of Light has returned to its former coloring, and her purple eyes are normal and twinkling with joy.  Her skin is still pale, but no longer sickly, back to its normal shade, and her hair is back in curling waves, no trace of Dominique remaining.

“Sister,” Zane smiles, “you’ve returned.”

“I never left,” she points out playfully.  “Not really anyway.”

I stride across the short distance and pull her into a tight hug, “Don’t you ever do that again.  You scared us out of our wits .”

She laughs and pats my back, “Not planning on it.”

A groan to our left catches our attention.  Bizarro Rose shakes her head, wincing, then shakily stands up, looking around.  Her eyes are dazed, uncertain, lost.  They land on us for a second, but don’t lose any of their disorientation.  I can’t find it in me to muster any of the dislike I’d grown towards her.  Not when I’ve worn that same expression before.  Once at the news of a passed mother.  Again at a bus stop, sent away by my father.

Rose watches her sympathetically, “Well…um…if you need anything…you can always ask.”

Her clone just nods dully.

“Yeah,” Kai comments, glancing around distractedly.  “But where’s Lloyd?”

As if to answer his question, a gold Dragon flies down from the sky, Lloyd perched on its back.  It dissolves and he jumps down, landing perfectly.  It seems like his leg is all better.

“Lloyd!” we chorus.

“You were brilliant, son,” Misako beams.

“Because of you, Ninjago was saved,” Sensei tells him.  “Because of you, there will be a tomorrow.”

“Speaking of which,” Kai smirks, “if the Overlord should ever decide to show his face again around here, we’ll be ready.”

“And next time, we’ll be a little more humble,” I comment, smiling slightly.

“ And a little more wise,” Zane adds.

“ Aand with better catchphrases,” Jay jokes.  We all start laughing.

Rose wipes her cheek, “I think that defeats the point.”  But she’s smiling.

Lloyd smiles a bit as well, but his face falls pretty quickly.  Misako places a motherly hand on his shoulder, “We will all miss your father.”

A few rocks fall, then I hear a familiar voice that I think none of us expected to hear ever again.  “Lloyd.”  We turn, staring as an elderly man, hair gray, skin a very much normal color, wearing a robe similar to one Sensei had worn once, limps toward us, looking around, “What…what happened?”

“Garmadon,” Misako’s eyes widen, “is it really you?”

“Dad?” Lloyd’s face brightens even as his voice shows his disbelief.  “Oh, DAD!”  The Gre- Golden Ninja races forward and embraces the purified Garmadon.

Misako walks forward as well, sounding like she’s about to start crying from joy, “Every ounce of evil and venom is… gone .”  She joins the hug.

“I feel…good,” Garmadon gasps laughingly.  “It’s been so long.”

“Good to have you back, brother,” Sensei smiles.

“Wu!” Garmadon places a hand on his brother’s shoulder, Sensei doing the same.  “Good to be back.”

Rose smiles slightly, “I almost forgot what you looked like before you were corrupted.”

Her uncle chuckles, “I did too…And I apologize for…everything.”

“I’d already forgiven you.”

Bizarro Rose hangs back a bit, a strange look in her eyes.  First she seems relieved, then ashamed, and then just uncertain.  Garmadon notices her and beckons her forward.  She approaches him, bowing her head, “Master, I-...I apologize…I was not able to…do what you had commanded me to…”

“There is no need.  It is better this way anyway.”  The worried gleam in her red eyes dies away, and she manages the tiniest of smiles.  Garmadon returns to his son and wife, putting his arms around their shoulders.

The others climb up, Jay grinning, “Aww, would you look at that?  Who would have thought we’d ever see the day?  You think we should dogpile them?”

Kai’s voice carries the trace of a laugh, “Let’s give them their moment.  They earned it.”

“It’s been quite a ride, fellas,” I comment, releasing a breath as it finally sinks in that we’d done it.  Rose slips her hand into mine; I give it a tiny squeeze as she smiles.

“You think there will be others?” Zane questions.

“I hope so.  I liked being a ninja.  It’s not like we have many other skills,” I joke.

“Ha!  Speak for yourself,” my best friend starts listing things off, “I’m looking forward to doing a little inventing, maybe some model-building, dabble in poetry-”

“You forgot the ‘touch of cooking’,” Rose smirks.

He gawks at her, “Wait, you remembered tha-”

Kai chuckles, “Jay’s right.  We’ve come a long way, and there’s no reason why we can’t use what we’ve learned in our everyday lives.  And who knows?  We may have gotten the balance right today, but there’s always tomorrow.  There’s no way of knowing what’s around the corner.  But as long as there’s something worth fighting for, there’s always a need for a ninja.  And we’ll be ready.”  He puts a hand on Sensei’s shoulder, who gives him an unfamiliar look.  But I get the feeling that he’s proud.

Rose smiles, “Truer words were never spoken.”

We all turn towards the setting sun.  For the first time in what feels like forever, Ninjago is finally at peace.

Notes:

And thus ends Daughter of Darkness: Legacy of the Green Ninja!

I can't wait to start posting Rebooted, guys, y'all are gonna be in for a ROLLER COASTER >:D

(Also credit to my friend who inspired the scene with Rose and Dominique. Originally it was never going to exist, so you can thank her for that!)

Happy New Year, everyone!

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 3 of Daughter of Darkness