Harumi's POV

     Death is a funny thing. I had never put much thought into what the Departed Realm was like, so I didn't know what to expect. All I saw after the fall was darkness. All I felt with nothing. There was no heat nor cold. Everything was just not there. Slowly, my senses started to return. I could feel the presence of my body, but it felt different. It felt colder. It felt lifeless. Then, I opened my eyes.

     All I could see was blurred. Everything seemed like a grey mass around me. The smell of smoke drifted through the air. I stirred, uncomfortably, every bone in my body ached like they had been twisted in thousands of different ways. I let out a low moan, wondering if I had imagined the whole spine-cracking scenario and I had actually survived. But, no one could survive that fall right?

     Could they?

     Things began to come into focus. I was in an alley. A burnt alley. It was like a fire had come through and stripped the alley of anything that resembled life. The brick walls were deteriorated, and the paint was peeling off. The buildings made of brick piled high three stories tall, identical in both structure and color. I would expect to see graffiti in a place like this, but no bright colors caught my eye. The only thing outside of the buildings in this alley were a pile of dislodged bricks and a sewer lid.

     I was lying on the rocky ground between the buildings. In front and behind me the alleys continued; it seemed like there were more identical structures in congruent rows. The potent smoke smell was coming from the sewer lid a few feet away from me. The sky was dark and clouded with bundles of grey smoke. Everything was quiet, except for a hissing noise coming from the sewer.

     I pulled myself to my feet, ignoring the aches and pains in my body. I was not lying on top of building remains. Could this be Ninjago City? If it were, then I would be in a part of town I didn't spend too much time in. I never remembered seeing such symmetry in the buildings. The last thing I remembered before I woke up here was falling. Falling with a twenty-story apartment building. If I were still in Ninjago City, wouldn't I be on top of the building's remains? I guess it was possible that someone moved me. I shuddered at the thought.

     A scream echoed from the sewer. I jumped at the sudden sound. I heard the sound of chains being scraped across concrete, more hissing, and a low moan. I backed slowly away from the sewer lid, which was being slowly opened by a very large set of claws. Smoke billowed from the sewer in large clouds, making my eyes water and my throat itch. Through the clouds I saw horns rising out of the sewer. Survival instincts kicked in, and I squashed the visceral human nature to scream. I scanned the alley desperately, my eyes finding the discarded brick pile almost immediately. It was a small pile, but some shelter was better than none. I reached for the dagger I usually kept in my belt, surprised that it was still there.

     The white horns were followed by a white head. It was like looking at a monster. The horns reminded me of the ones that came out of the Mask of Vengeance, the face reminded me of an ox. It had a strong jaw, long, glistening teeth, and beady, black eyes. The head was followed by a muscular human torso, that was as white as the head. It had no legs, only wisps of white smoke that came from where the legs were supposed to be.

     I shrunk back at the sight. The monster floated up out of the sewer, its claws grasping many chains. On the end of those chains, there was a man. The man looked starved, with his ribcage peaking through the thin robes he wore. The clothes were soaked red as the man bled out onto the concrete. However, his blood was not the rich scarlet of normal blood. It was like his blood partially dried and frozen; it was a darker red that looked unnatural. The chains were bound to his wrists, ankles, waist, and neck. They looked far too tight for comfort; in fact, a lot of the bleeding was coming from those places. He was dragged along by the monster as it floated into the alley's center. More monsters followed the first one, each of them holding spears that they poked at the man with. The helpless man turned and caught my eye from far away. I shook my head in desperation, but his bloodshot eyes showed no remorse.

     "Take her!" He screamed. It was like listening to a cat drag its claws down a blackboard. The man's throat was hoarse from so much screaming. "She's a much more precious morsel to you! Look at her crimes! They outweigh mine by so much..." He broke down into sobs.

     The monster that held his chains yanked him forward. None of the monsters looked back at me. I held my breath in fear.

     "Your time has come."

     The monsters said the words in unison. Something about their voices sent a chill through my spine. The man stopped yelling for help at their words. He simply sniffled as he accepted his fate. One by one, the monsters disappeared around the alley corner. All except for one. It looked back and met my eyes. I was too frightened to gasp, scream, or run. It didn't chase after me or bind me in chains like the man. Its eyes were unfocused, as if it couldn't see me. It still lifted its head, a wicked grin crossing its face.

     "Your time will come."

     It left after that. I slumped against the wall of the building behind me, heaving for air. I found myself breathing in the potent smoke, which caused me to collapse into a coughing fit. After it passed, I wiped the tears I didn't remember shedding from my eyes. I was frightened out of my mind with the events of what just happened, but a lingering curiosity stayed in the back of my mind. Why did the monsters want the man, but not me? Especially when they knew I was there. I found I had a new resolve. To find out where I was, I had to follow them.

     The alley had stairs on the side of the buildings like every normal alley. I climbed to the top of the structure next to me, scanning my surroundings. The symmetrical city seemed to go on forever, all I saw were more buildings and alleys. All the streets crossed perfectly in parallel and perpendicular lines. Every building was the same height. Every alley was the same length. It was all the same. Smoky, grey, silent, dead. If this was Ninjago, then something terrible must have happened to the vibrant city to make it look this way.

     I peered over the edge of the building I stood on. The monsters were floating together, five in all, with the sobbing man between them. I took a quick breath, prepared myself, and leaped to the next building. I had practice at this, thanks to my adventures in Ninjago. The thought nearly stopped me. I shook my head.

     Ninjago was constantly being attack by strange things. Maybe I just woke up to the Oni invasion.

     That couldn't be though. I had seen what a full-blooded Oni looked like. Father told me about the Oni. He told me how their army was held back by his power. If he was defeated by the Ninja (unlikely), then maybe the Oni came.

     Oni can shape-shift.

     Maybe they made themselves look this way to terrify people more. The Oni liked to destroy. It was in their very nature. Maybe that was why the city looked so broken. This line of thinking comforted my doubts, so I continued my leaps across the buildings.

     The monsters floated for a while. My whole body ached more with every vault. Too many more and I knew I wouldn't make the jumps. But that didn't seem to an issue. The next leap was to a building that had no more in front of it. That's when I stopped. Right in front of me, was a huge chasm.

      My jaw dropped open in wonder and horror. All thoughts of the monster/Oni creatures were banished from my brain. The chasm was deep, wide, and breathtakingly enormous. A bloody red, a rusty orange, and a lifeless black smoke drifted from the depths of it, extinguishing my view of the other side, if there even was one. It glowed with hateful colors, screams echoed in full from the bottom. It sounded like a thousand people being tortured at once in the most unimaginably horrible ways. If looks could kill, I'd be dead.

     But, what if I'm dead already? This doesn't look like Ninjago.

     I tried to calm myself. The looming possibility of this being the aftermath of death creeped into my mind. I had fallen from a twenty-story building. Even with the wreckage to cushion my fall, it was unlikely I could have survived that.

     Your time will come.

     The way the man had screamed. The way the monsters dragged him away. The sound of millions of people yelling in agony. The monsters knew I was there, yet they didn't take me.

     Your time will come.

     The monster had said that to me. Could it have been a warning? Trembling, I peeked over the edge to see where the monsters had gone.

     They stood at the edge of the chasm. The man was yelling for help once more. The monsters did not respond to his screams. At first, I thought it was just the five monsters prodding him towards the edge. Looking up a little though, I saw hundreds of black monsters rise from the smoke and fire, all of them chanting the same thing.

     "Your time has come."

     "Your time has come."

     "Your time has come."

     After three chants, the white monsters threw the man into the chasm's inferno. I could hear his screams echoing as he fell. Immediately, all the black monsters pulled out torture devices from who knows where and, dived down after him. I will never forget the glee in their faces.

     Your time will come.

     "My, my, what do we have here?"

     I screamed, collapsing on my knees. I didn't care about my dignity, my honor, or my pride. I would do anything to escape that inevitable fate—anything. It was too late now. They had come for me. I sobbed, letting the tears ruin my face paint. Why was I always so foolish?

     "I never knew I was that scary."

     Shaking in fear, I weakly turned and raised my head.

     "Then again, after seeing that, I'm sure anyone would be frightened out of their mind. Especially someone so new here."

      The figure in front of me waved his arm at the sight behind me. I was filled with anger, a terrified anger. The worst kind. Who was this kid and why did he think he had the right to remorselessly scare people?

     "I'm Morro, by the way."

     He was tall, lean, and wearing dirty rags like the man from before. His short, black hair was neatly kept, with a distinctive, mucky green stripe running through it. I got to my feet and stomped right over to him.

     "I am the Quiet One, your princess, and I will have your head for doing that to me!" I yelled, jabbing a finger in his face. He smirked, holding up his hands.

     "I know exactly who you are, Harumi, and I know exactly what you've done."

     "How dare you!" I hissed, pulling the dagger from the folds of my belt. I held it dangerously close to his face, the threat ringing clear in the air.

     He took a step back, the amused smile never leaving his face. "You can't kill me. Just like you can't kill anyone here, so don't even think I'm threatened by that insignificant dagger. It'll be useless to you before long." He lashed forward so fast I was the one taking a step back. "You want to know why, Princess Quiet One? It's because I'm dead. Just like you. Just like everyone in this realm."

     "Dead?" I whispered, the inevitable truth washing over me. The fight drained out of my bones.

     "That's right, princess, dead. And if you want to escape that," he gestured at the chasm, "Then I suggest getting far away from it. Stay too close and the demons just might change their minds about letting you go free for a year."

     It was all too much for my mind to process. I am dead. I was going to be dragged into the chasm. I wasn't in Ninjago. Those creatures weren't Oni. I was dead. He was dead. Everyone was dead. Everything was dead!

     Breaking down, I bent over, taking shaky breaths. To my surprise, the boy—Morro—didn't mock me. Then, I felt the sunlight. I heard singing. Warmth, a comfortable warmth, not at all like the heat of the flames from the chasm, washed over me. I felt forgiven. I felt loved. I felt pure joy.

     Where?

     I got back on my feet in an instant, fueled by the fuzzy feeling, and looked around.

     In the sky!

     The smoky clouds of doom had parted, sunlight shined through. Tears of joy escaped my eyes, just at the sight. Then, I saw him. Another man. He was well kept and strong. He was rising on the glorious rays of sunlight; he was being lifted into the world beyond. I saw the clouds beginning to close as the man disappeared, the gentle rays of sunlight fading once more.

     "No!" I yelled, starting towards the remaining rays. The clouds closed again, and the joy was gone. Someone grabbed my arm and yanked me back.

     I turned in fury, my knuckles turning white with my grip on the dagger. Morro's eyebrows raised. "You'd rather fall?"

     Slowly, I turned to see the edge of the building. If I leaped forward, I would have fallen and attracted the attention of the white demons, which were still standing at the edge of the chasm. Shaking, I turned back to Morro.

     His face twisted in several different ways before he finally sighed. "Come with me," He said plainly, his tone layered with hesitation. "You'll be living a better life with others by your side."

     "But, I'm not alive," I drawled sarcastically.

     He yanked me closer. "Listen to me. The demons will let anyone who comes here stay for one year before things get messy. After that year is up, they find you and take you to the chasm. If you had been lucky enough to be good during life, you would be rising into the clouds of light like the other fortunate people. I did too many evil things to count. My year is up. I'm continually on the run, trying to escape the fate that awaits both of us. I know your crimes pile high. I know what fate is coming for you. So, I'm giving you a choice. You can come with me. I will protect you, like I've protected my friends. When your year is up, you will have a better chance of outrunning that fate. If you don't come with me, you can live the rest of your year like you want and be captured at the end of it. Your choice." His voice wavered a bit at the end, like he was lying about something. Insignificant plebian probably thought he could betray me with false information. Well, if there was one thing I was good at, it was telling when people were lying. There was probably a threat hidden in his little message.

     "Is that a threat?" I asked, clutching my blade. It was best to be direct to let him know I wasn't buying his falsehoods.

     "It's the truth." He responded, looking nervously over my shoulder.

    With that, he let go and sped off across the rooftops. I hesitated, anger piling in my chest. He found out I was onto him and he ran away. How cowardly. Suddenly, ten white demons flew over my head, after him. I squeaked in surprise.

    Stay too close and the demons just might change their minds about letting you go free for a year.

    I never submitted to anyone. I controlled my own fate. I could lead, I could take care of myself. I would not accept help from lying boys in dirty rags who thought they could deceive me.

     I faced the chasm once more, the screams of tortured souls still ringing in my ears. The destiny of it loomed far too close. The demons would take me there eventually. Was there pride in submitting to it? Was there pride in trying to escape it? Father would want me to fight, and I wanted to fight.

     I had to outrun that fate. I had to endure. I had to swallow my pride and, even against my better judgement, ask for help. I had to submit.

     Clenching my teeth, I raced off after Morro.

>(<>)<

Morro's POV

     Losing the demons was never easy. For one, they can fly, for another, they can smell you about a mile off. Then again, I can fly too. Just because I'm dead doesn't mean my elemental powers stopped working. I have that advantage against everyone else. Since everything is located by smell, destroying or scattering that scent with wind is a very useful thing to be able to do.

     I raced across rooftops, sailing easily from each one to the next by creating gusts of wind to propel myself forward. The demons aren't only smart, they were fast. I hear their chains clattering against each rooftop as they pursued me. They were right behind me.

     I tried to relax. The demons are deaf and blind. They heavily relied on their sense of smell to catch their victims. There was no smell here in the Departed Realm that doesn't come from smoke. When inhabitants started getting strong feelings, they would release a visible emotion smoke. The demons could determine the inhabitant's exact location from far away by being able to smell these emotions. That was how they caught all their victims.

     Not me.

     I broke into a grin; my whole body being pushed with a regular routine. I was different; I had an advantage. I knew their weakness. If I stopped giving off strong feelings, my body would stop giving off emotion smoke. Then, combined with my wind scattering the last of the smoke, the demons wouldn't be able to find me. Most people never figured out the demon's weakness since no one seemed to interact in this realm.

     The demons slowed behind me. My wind was pushing the remaining emotion smoke away from me, making it harder for them to trace my scent. I continued to run, since they still had some trace of my scent in the air. I wasn't safe yet.

     Buildings passed by as I propelled myself forward. The Departed City was huge, since so many people from different realms came here every day. There was plenty of room run and stay away from other people. It was fun for me to fly, and it was even more satisfying to know you were winning. I was the cheeky enough type to fly backwards and mock the demons, but I'd surely run into something. I slowed my breath and started to hum a tune to clear away any last emotions.

     The demons came to a stop behind me. My carefree facade had driven away all my emotion smoke, leaving them with nothing to find me with. I was nonexistent in their eyes. I sat down on one of the flat rooftops to watch them in their confusion. This part was always my favorite. It was the part where victory was mine and I had succeeded. I needed to succeed after a lifetime of failure.

     The demons circled around the building before mine, trying to figure out where I went. I heard screaming beneath them as inhabitants realized there were demons in the vicinity. They were probably afraid of being taken before their year was up. All ten of the demons stopped after circling a few times. They sniffed the air, trying to catch my trace. But there was none to catch. They surveyed the area one last time. As seconds turned into minutes, I refused to feel any fear. Fear would get me caught.

     The demons finally rose higher into the sky and began to fly back to the chasm. They had lost at my game again. I laughed in victory.

     What about Harumi?

     My thoughts turned back to the white-haired girl. Harumi. The Quiet One. Her crimes piled up could reach the heavens. She was another villain who had hoped to conquer Ninjago, only to fail and die. It was the fate of so many villains. She must have been so scared underneath the masks she wore. She was like me, in a way. I wore masks to cover up my inside emotions, but that didn't mean I had to threaten people with knives to get what I wanted done. I got to my feet and created wind under my fingertips. It was time to see her choice. She probably wanted nothing to do with me, as most people did, but I had to at least try to help.

     There was something special about her. I saw her crimes in Ninjago through the magic of the Departed Realm. Broken as a child, she committed herself to hurting the green ninja and bringing chaos to Ninjago. It sounded strangely familiar to my life story. I thought, like myself, she perhaps had a deeper layer. If someone could only heal the cracks in her soul, she could be good.

     I was broken once. Broken by a dream of becoming the fulfiller of a prophecy. Master Wu healed me. He wanted to save me, even though I'd done so many horrible things. He showed me it's not what we are that matters, it's what we choose to be. Meaning, we decide our own paths. Just because I'm not the green ninja doesn't mean I can't act like one. I feel if I can help Harumi, maybe she'll be good too. Maybe healing her will make up for everything I've done wrong here.

     If I can't help her and she's the one being asked to kill people when the next Rift of Return opens, then whoever she's assigned to kill will be in trouble.

     I flew across the city easily. Using my powers now was a bit more exhausting than it had been when I first arrived in this realm, but they still worked nicely. It just took a bit more effort to create wind since the Departed Realm had no weather. Harumi was easy to spot, her white hair contrasting with the grey buildings. She was jumping across the rooftops, searching for something or... someone. I watched her stop as she gasped for breath. No matter how fit you were, scaling a city this big would exhaust you. I landed quietly behind her. She was unaware of my presence, trying to gain enough energy to make the next jump.

     "I don't know how they call you the Quiet One, if you're always being so loud."

     She turned in an instant, fear then disgust flashing across her pretty features.

     "Morro," she replied coldly, putting her hands on her hips.

    "Long time no see." I said, nonchalantly. "Have you made up your mind?"

     "How—how did you outrun them?" Harumi panted, the sharpness in her blue gaze never dwindling.

     "Your answer first." I said simply, smirking. I had to keep lighthearted; I couldn't risk giving off emotion smoke again.

     "I-I..." She paused, swallowing. She looked like she wanted to tear out her hair rather than say what she did next. "I will come with you."

     I didn't show any surprise. Placid emotions were the key to survival, after all.

     "Why is that? I thought you were powerful."

     "You must be crazy if you think I can defeat them," Harumi waved her arms wildly.

     I chipped slowly at her shell, as the lesson settled in. She needed to truly want this, otherwise she would ditch us and turn us over to the demons. "Is the great Princess Harumi really going to rely on the help of a dirty boy?"

     "If you're trying to annoy me, it's working." She said with a glare.

     I didn't answer, raising an eyebrow.

     Harumi paused and then sighed. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that." Her tone stated that she was not sorry, but at least she was trying to be civil.

     My plan seemed to be working. Her instinct to survive was making her demean herself to be kinder to me, because I knew how to keep her alive.

     "You were saying..." I said.

     "I don't want to go to the chasm. I am willing to work together if it means I can escape that fate." She hissed through gritted teeth.

     "Very good," I replied. "Follow me, and I'll show you how to survive."

     "Fine."

     "I'll let you come on one condition: you'll have to condescend to listen and take orders from me or my friends. Basically, submit to your fate as a follower. We know how to survive, and you do not. We can keep you alive if and only if you listen to us."

     She looked very much like she did not want to be in this situation. She clenched her fists, frustrated. "I'll do it."

     "Very good." I repeated, smiling at her. Harumi glared at me, her glare like a sharp sword in my back. I made my way over the edge of the building, looking for the bars that would provide a way for me to get down to the street. Our hideout wasn't far away, and Harumi was too exhausted to jump much further. As she begrudgingly followed, I couldn't help but feel better that I might be able to protect one more person from the chasm. Maybe she would turn out different.

     "You will do just nicely, Harumi. I think you have a shot here."