It was done. The weapons were hidden, the guardians were set, and now, at least, Wu wouldn't be able to get the four Weapons of Spinjitzu without a fight. There was only one thing left to do.

Garmadon walked up the gentle slope of the hillside, following the well-worn path up towards a little house. The air rang with a rhythmic beat as metal struck metal. As he approached, the air grew steadily warmer with the heat of a large fire until it was sweltering. Garmadon paused a few feet from the house and called out, "Still trying to replace your old sword, Ray?"

The man at the forge turned to him, and his face lit up when he saw his old friend. "Garmadon! What are you doing here?" Ray put down his tools and came out to greet him with a hug. "Good to see you again. It's been too long!"

"It's good to see you, too. I would have stopped by more often, but . . . I've had a lot going on. Even now, I wish this was a personal visit. However, I've come to ask you a favor."

Ray's features darkened as he realized the implications. "What do you need?" he asked without hesitation.

Garmadon heaved a sigh. "After all these years, my greatest fear finally came true. Wu tried to steal the golden weapons, and he nearly succeeded. But he was banished to the Underworld, and since then I've been hiding the weapons all across Ninjago. I know he'll return for them one day, and when he does, I want to be ready."

Ray nodded, thinking he understood. "You need help protecting them?"

"I will. When Wu returns, I may have to ask for your help to defend them. But for now, I've stationed the elemental dragons at each site to keep an eye on them for me. I need you to protect this." Garmadon pulled a rolled up piece of parchment from his robes and handed it to the blacksmith.

"What's this?" Ray asked, taking it.

"A map to the weapons. If they are ever needed again, if something happens to me, this will show you the way."

"Of course. I'll keep it safe for you."

"Thank you, Ray. I hate to drag you into this, but I knew I could count on you."

Ray shook his head. "Don't apologize. It's my responsibility to protect the Sword of Fire, as well as the rest of the weapons. I'll do whatever I have to."

"Thank you," Garmadon said, feeling genuinely relieved to have him on his side. He hesitated before continuing, "I also wanted to say . . . I heard about your wife. I'm so sorry."

Ray lowered his gaze and sighed. "Thanks. It's been hard, but . . . we're managing." His eyes darted up again and he asked, "How's Misako?"

Garmadon sighed. "Anxious, but in general we're all happy. She and Lloyd made the journey with me. He's growing up to be a strong boy." He didn't want to tell Ray about the prophecy. Talking about it only made it seem more inevitable. For now, he would rather watch his son grow up in the normal way and pretend it didn't exist. "How are yours?"

Ray chuckled to himself. "Kai's getting a bit of an attitude, but I guess I should have seen that coming. He's been pestering me about letting him try his hand at the forge. He's a popular kid, too, always running off to play with his friends. I hardly ever see him these days. And Nya's got a magnificent brain, she's always building something new. You know, if you've got a moment, you could come inside. It would be nice to catch up with an old friend."

Garmadon thought about it. Surely Misako wouldn't mind if he took just a little bit longer to get back to her. "I would like that very much." It would be nice to relax after his long journey. Now that it was finally done, he could have some sense of peace. The weapons were hidden and well protected, and the map was in safe hands. Soon, he could return home to the monastery, and then maybe have a normal life with his family. Just for a little while, at least.

. . . 

Ever since they had first begun their training, the boys had grown closer and closer to one another so that by now they had become good friends. They had learned to accept each other, to trust each other, and Wu was proud to call them a team – his team.

Over the few years he'd had with them, he had begun planting the seeds of vengeance in their naïve minds, letting slip small details about his past and the struggle between him and his brother. One day, he would tell them the "whole truth." But not until they were completely committed to him, not until he had won their full trust. That day it seemed, was drawing nearer.

It was a chilly afternoon, even in the Underworld where there seemed to be a constant nip in the air. One by one, the boys arrived at their usual time. They were always so quick to change and grab their weapons, eager to begin. On this particular day, Wu started them off with one-on-one sparring in order to assess their progress. They started out alright, but it seemed that Zane wasn't able to keep up.

"Focus, Zane! You should have easily been able to block that. You must fight back."

His friends started noticing, too, so great were his blunders. Kai had to wonder what was going on with him as Zane continued missing obvious opportunities and leaving himself exposed while they sparred. Then, during the lesson, Zane seemed to miss half the instructions and did not perform with as much precision as usual.

Wu was quickly losing his patience with him, and finally seemed to have had enough.

He stopped the boys in the middle of their lesson just as Zane nearly tripped trying to follow directions the he had barely listened to. Kai got into place beside his brothers as they lined up in front of Wu. Their sensei slowly paced down the row, stopping in front of Zane. "Something on your mind?" Wu asked, though his tone was hardly one of concern.

Zane's gaze was focused on his feet. "I apologize, Master. Lately, I've been considering . . . well . . ." Zane hesitated. Kai and Cole and Jay were watching intently, curious to know what was troubling their friend so much. "You see, I don't really know where I come from. I don't remember my parents. I've been an orphan my whole life."

Kai remembered Zane saying something about this when consoling Kai over his own troubles. "You mean you've never had a home?" he asked.

Zane shook his head. Kai couldn't believe it. He'd known that Zane was an orphan, but he hadn't realized that meant that he didn't have anyone to care for him.

"This is your home, now," Wu said solemnly.

Zane looked up at him with a slight smile. "Thank you, Sensei. I do consider this a good place. I feel welcomed here. However, the village where I live is not the same. The people have tried to help me, but more recently, they have become less understanding of my situation. I've tolerated my difficulties there because I hoped that someone would come for me. But over the years it has become less and less likely that anyone is looking for me and now . . . now I think that it may be time to face the truth."

"What are your gonna do?" Jay asked.

Zane lifted his head bravely. "Find a new home. Learn to take care of myself. It has become apparent that I should not depend on others, but rather find my own way."

"But you'll still come and train with us, right?" said Cole

Zane tilted his head and looked to Wu. "That depends, I suppose."

Something flashed in Wu's eyes, the spark of an idea. He placed a hand on Zane's shoulder and became more sympathetic as he said, "There's no need for you to take such extreme measures. I meant what I said, Zane. This can be your home. There is plenty of room, you will be able to roam freely and come and go as you please, and I will take care of you." Now Zane gave him a puzzled look and Wu continued, "You are welcome to stay here if you like."

"Sensei, I . . . I don't know what to say . . ." It was a rare thing to see Zane at a loss for words, and Kai couldn't blame him for being so. He was shocked, too.

Zane went quiet and furrowed his brow as he considered it. Kai didn't think he, personally, would have agreed to the offer, but maybe if Zane was really all alone, he would be willing to accept it. They didn't know much about this place that their sensei called "home," or about the strange beings that seemed to live there as well. They couldn't even be certain about living arrangements and accommodations.

Sensei Wu had been banished to this place, so he didn't have much of a choice. Kai had always got the impression that he would have left if he could. Still, Kai didn't want Zane to have to leave. He'd grown to like the guy over the past couple of years, and he would hate to have to say goodbye. Maybe this wasn't an ideal sort of home, but if he was with people who cared about him, Kai supposed none of that mattered.

Zane seemed to reach the same conclusion. He nodded to Wu with a slight smile. "Thank you, Sensei. I would be honored to stay with you."