The atmosphere was particularly cheerful that morning. The sun was shining warmly down across the land, and fluffy white clouds were floating lazily across the azure sky. Mirroring the breeziness of the world around them, four teenage boys were happily chattering away as if nothing could ever make them upset. They had a lot to talk about, since they hadn't known each other very long. Cole and Jay had known each other the longest, since Sensei Wu had recruited them first. Then Zane had joined, and lastly, Kai. Even though they bickered a lot, mostly about who would become the destined "green ninja", they still enjoyed hanging out.

Talking was getting dull, though, since they were running out of interesting topics. So Kai, the hot-headed one with the shortest attention span, had suggested that they play a game. Sure, they were grown men, but.. okay, no they weren't. They were immature kids. But anyway, now they were discussing which game to play.

"There isn't much to do out here, though," Cole was saying thoughtfully as he gazed across the open field surrounding them. They had come out for a picnic. He supposed Sensei Wu had let them escape just so they would be out of his hair—or beard—for an hour or two.

"Yeah, but we can make up our own games!" Kai argued. He was grinning, which Cole usually took as a bad sign. It was better than him grumbling about everything, though. Cole never complained about good moods.

"Like what, Kai?" Jay asked as he twiddled with pieces of grass he had torn out of the ground. He looked up from his project long enough to give Kai a toothy grin. "Throw dirt at Sticker-Bush Head?"

Kai just rolled his eyes. "No, I mean like... I don't know... Tag, or something..?"

"Tag?" Cole laughed and flopped back into the grass before staring up at the blue sky. "That's for little kids, dude."

Kai shrugged helplessly. "I just said I don't know! I don't see you giving me any ideas."

Zane broke in, which was a little surprising since he had been quiet for awhile. "Why don't we just take in the scenery? It is rather beautiful here, wouldn't you say?"

Jay blew a raspberry. "No way! That's so boring, Zane. Only you could just sit around doing nothing and have fun."

"On the contrary, I do not understand how you can recklessly prance around, and call that 'having fun'," Zane replied, crinkling his brow.

Cole laughed again from his spot in the long grass. "Have you seen Jay when he hasn't been moving for more than roughly point two seconds? He turns purple!"

"I do not!" Jay exclaimed incredulously.

"Oh really? Let's see you sit still, then."

Jay gave Cole a murderous glare and took in a deep breath. Sure enough, he made it about three seconds before he groaned and threw up his hands. "Fine, you got me."

"See what I mean?" Cole managed to say with a straight face. If Jay thought Cole was laughing at him, his only reward would be a sharp punch to the arm.

Jay rolled his eyes. "Maybe tag isn't such a bad idea, anyway.."

"Well, you sure are a little kid—"

"Shut up, Cole."

"Okay," Kai broke in, "how about baseball?"

The other three turned to stare at him, and he raised an eyebrow. "What?"

There was a short silence, and then Cole grinned. "I think that's the first good idea you've had since we met you, Kai."

Kai sighed, but managed a small smirk. "Yeah, but we still need a ball."

Jay's head was whipping back and forth almost immediately. "We can use, uh.. um.. Oh, we can roll these empty wrappers up!" He grabbed their previously emptied chip and sandwich bags and started forming them into a crude ball. "See?"

The others grinned, and they began to form their own rules. Kai and Zane would be on one team, since Kai's spontaneous nature went well with Zane's intelligence and strategy. Or, at least, that's what Jay had told them. Cole and Jay would be on the other team, mostly because they were best friends, and they always knew what the other was thinking.

One person would be at bat, while their teammate stood behind to throw the ball back to the pitcher if the batter struck out. Another person would be the pitcher, and their teammate would be behind them to catch a hit ball and get the batter out. They laid their golden weapons out to act as bases, and found a heavy stick for the bat.

"Guys, don't forget that there's a cliff back there," Cole was telling the other three, gesturing to the very end of the large field. "It's sorta hard to become the green ninja if you fall off and kill yourself."

"Yeah yeah yeah," Kai replied, grasping the stick and waving it around impatiently. "Just pitch me the—"

Cole whipped the ball as fast as he could, and it shot straight past Kai before he had even finished his sentence.

"What the—? Dude! Not fair!"

"Seemed fair to me. Strike one!"

The two teammates starting giggling hysterically, and even Zane was unable to keep back a small smile as he threw the ball back to Cole. The laughter made Kai scowl, and as the irritated teen sent Jay his best death glare, Cole pitched the ball, which once again flew past Kai's head.

"Strike two! You know, Kai, you're supposed to hit the ball."

"Shut up!" Kai shouted as he angrily kicked the ground. Zane threw the ball back, and Kai clutched the stick like he wanted to hit more than just the ball.

"Hey Kai!" Jay called sweetly. "How come you aren't as good looking as your sister?"

Cole pitched the ball again as Kai let out an enraged cry, and the ball went past untouched.

"Strike three! You're out!"

Kai screeched and flung the stick towards the ground so hard that it broke in half. Jay and Cole were literally rolling in the grass, laughing like it was the funniest thing they'd ever seen. Zane looked like he was about to say something, but he then shut his mouth and wisely stayed silent while Kai stewed.

It only took an hour to calm Kai enough for them to continue playing, and after wrapping the broken stick with Jay's duct tape and playing four more innings, the ninja were becoming more and more competitive. Cole and Jay were winning, but only by one point. Kai was at bat once again, and looking slightly insane. His two rivals had somehow distracted him at his every turn, and he hadn't even swung his stick yet—except at the ground. Determined to hit the ball, he narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth. He couldn't be distracted anymore. His gaze didn't leave Cole's arm, and he was finally paying attention when the ball was pitched. Letting out a crazy laugh, he swung the stick as hard as he could.

CRACK!

The ball flew into the sky, and everyone was so bewildered that nobody moved at first. They were completely quiet as they watched the ball soar. In the distance, the faint cry of an eagle could be heard. A gentle breeze tousled their hair. Then, suddenly, Kai burst into action, laughing like a maniac as he raced towards first base. Jay let out a shriek and started running after the ball. He turned his head backwards as his short legs worked overtime to carry him as fast as possible. Soon he was panting as he raced through the grass.

"I got it! I got it!" he exclaimed, turning his whole body to run backwards. The sun was in his eyes, and he squinted hard to find the ball. Unfortunately, he was so focused on catching it that he didn't hear Cole yelling a warning or see him running after Jay. The blue ninja had completely forgotten about the cliff.

For a terrifying, heart-stopping moment, there was absolutely nothing underneath his left foot. He let out a strangled yelp and flailed his arms as he fell back into the empty air. Then a figure suddenly jumped forward and grabbed Jay's hands just in time.

"Jay! Hold on!" Cole shouted, desperately holding onto his friend as tight as he could. He didn't know where the others were. Kai was probably busy celebrating, and Zane would be with him. His throat was closing up out of fear. He didn't think he could call for help even if he tried.

"Ah!!" Jay cried out, frantically scrabbling at the cliff side with his feet. His wide, tear-filled eyes were fixed on the ground that looked a thousand miles away. "C-Cole! Ahhh!"

Cole's eyes widened. He couldn't breathe, but he had to help Jay. He couldn't lose his best friend. "J-Jay!" he stammered, unable to keep his voice steady. "C-Calm down, just— stop moving, w-we'll think this through—"

The auburn-haired teen was beginning to hyperventilate. His sweaty hands gripped Cole's as his whole body trembled uncontrollably. He couldn't tear his gaze away from the ground beneath him. "D-Don't drop me! P-Please!"

Cole took in a deep breath. "Jay. Look at me... No, not down. Look at me."

Jay looked up, terror in his eyes.

"You're going to be fine," Cole told him in the calmest voice he could muster.

"B-But—" Jay began to protest.

"I'm not going to let you go."

His friend hesitated. "Cole... I... I can't... I can't hold on..."

He was fighting against the panic threatening to overwhelm him. "Jay, no, y-you have to—"

"I'm... I c-can't..."

He gasped as Jay's grip began to loosen. "J-Jay, y-you're not going to—"

Jay's hands slipped out of his. Cole could feel himself screaming, but he couldn't hear anything besides the blood rushing in his ears.

***

It felt like hours before Cole finally reached the bottom of the cliff. He had run all the way down the side of the hill that wasn't as steep, and was panting so hard he felt like had to throw up. His head whipped back and forth as he frantically searched for his friend. Then he spotted him. A mangled lump of blue on the ground.

Panic rose in his chest as he hurried over to his friend. "Jay?" he asked shakily, terrified that he wouldn't answer. He knelt down next to Jay and hesitantly brushed his fingers through his auburn hair. "...Jay...?"

For a scary moment, nothing happened. Then Jay's chest rose once, and he let out a couple weak coughs. Cole tried to ignore the blood beginning to leak from the side of his mouth.

"C-Cliff... h-hanger..." Jay coughed out quietly.

Cole wanted to laugh. But he couldn't. Not when Jay was like this. "Jay, d-don't... please..."

A flicker of panic went through the blue ninja's eyes as they opened slightly. "C-Cole...?" He lapsed into another small coughing fit, and his hands grabbed at the empty air. "Cole?"

"H-Hey... shh... I'm... I'm not going anywhere..." he whispered, gently gathering Jay into his arms and holding him close. "I promise..."

Jay was struggling to breathe now and beginning to freak out. "Cole, I— I d-don't want to die..."

Cole inhaled shakily. "Shh... y-you're not..."

"B-But—"

"No," he interrupted softly. "J-Just calm down... Just... just try to breathe... don't talk..."

"I... I can't..."

"No, shh... you can... just hold on to me... "

Jay broke into quiet sobs as he weakly clung to Cole. He could tell how much pain his friend was in. His body was broken and battered, and it was a miracle he was still breathing now. He didn't know what to do. He felt unbearably helpless. The best he could do was calm Jay down and keep him warm until... until... It took him a moment to swallow down the lump in his throat.

"Y-You're going to be..." His voice cracked as Jay's grip started to grow weaker. "...F-Fine... N-No, you... you have to stay awake..."

Jay's eyes began to close.

"Jay... d-don't you dare... " The mounting panic in his chest was threatening to throw him into a hyperventilating fit.

"Cole... " His voice was barely a whisper now. "I... love... you..."

He nearly choked, and he couldn't hold back the tears filling his eyes. "I love you too, you moron..."

Jay smiled faintly, and then went limp.

"...Jay..?"

No response. Cole couldn't breathe.

He could barely hear two figures come up behind him. He could barely hear them calling out his name. Everything was wrong. This couldn't be happening. It was just a nightmare.

He snapped awake when Kai gently shook his shoulders. "Cole? Cole...?"

He didn't know how to respond. He couldn't open his mouth. His teeth were clamped together in a weak attempt to keep back the screams that were threatening to boil out of him. A shiver went through his entire body, and it was a full minute before he forced himself to reply.

"He's... gone..." Cole finally croaked out. He didn't bother to hide the tears streaking down his face.

"What?" Kai gasped.

Cole looked up at him angrily, a furious agony in his gaze. "He's gone."

Kai stared at him, and then at the motionless body of Jay.

He was gone.