Michael Jackson - Beat It

Showin' how funky and strong is your fight

It doesn't matter who's wrong or right (Who's right)

Just beat it, beat it, beat it, beat it (Hoo-hoo!)

No one wants to be defeated

—

A/N: Logic? What's that? Side note, I have no idea what the heck that thing is above the Destiny's Bounty. Bear with me, 'cus otherwise, I will go crazy (love me some new lore tho). This chapter relies less on the episode, so enjoy some original work.

TW: Anxiety attack (brief), self-gaslighting (one paragraph), mention of blood.

Feel free to skip the part after Y/n turning to leave for the warnings above. Your mental health is much more important than fanfiction, believe me (I put them in just in case). <3

(P.s the ninja aren't invincible)

Within, floorboards creaked from phantom steps, seas still frothing against the wooden exterior. The Destiny's Bounty silently carved through the waters, a thick fog hanging in the damp air. No sounds or signs of life other than it presented themselves, an eerie silence trapping its occupants onboard.

No longer was the blimp that floated above the deck, deflated to ensure stealth as it was the priority. It wouldn't have made that much of a difference anyway; what with Stone Warriors patrolling the island, ready to shout for backup should the enemy be spotted.

Any hope of survival would've been shot down with the blimp if the idea was to stay on board with it. With that said, the last few days had been rather tiresome, of all the people on the ship, two were awake. And a third near to open their eyes.

Warmth was all you knew while you rested.

Though as night can turn to day, you have to wake eventually. Sleepily, you sat up and yawned with a stretch, blinking a few times before turning your eyes to your room.

Except, it wasn't your room.

Dust motes floated in sunlight that streamed through open blinds, the posters on the opposite wall making no sense, with jumbled words and smudged pictures of vague figures you couldn't even begin to make sense of. Alarmed, you rubbed your eyes. It made no difference.

You kicked aside the covers, the carpeted floor cozily soft to the touch. Something was off about it, though. Like the silence after the wrong string had been plucked and this was figuring out where to pick up from that. An uncanny feeling resided in you, and you weren't sure how to feel about it.

Not to mention this strange place... was it unfamiliar?

Or were you trying to deny yourself how familiar it felt?

A wooden table sat next to the wall of your bed, a few objects sitting on it. Only one out of the various bits and bobs stood out like a fresh brush stroke on an old canvas. A singular die, white on half of its sides with black dots, the other side's colours inverted.

Carefully, you picked it up, inspecting each of its sides.

One second, it was smooth as silk, the next, grainy like running your fingers over dry sand, and another like sharp thorns on a rose. Yelping out of surprise, you dropped the die, the small inconsistently textured object dropping onto the floor.

It stopped rolling, the surface changing, dots warping and thinning out, clarifying into a singular eye as it sat there. The room began to blur and shift around you, its colours fading, with posters flying in an unfelt wind, until all vibrant colours vanished, leaving the space dull and dreary.

The eye's pupil had turned magenta.

Around you, the blurred room worsened, the only constant being the singular die as it sat there unaffected by the chaos, the magenta eye seemingly staring back at you as every detail melted into each other, your confusing world leaving you teetering on your feet.

A creak and the door swung open. You rushed into it all too quickly. Surrounded by darkness, the wind whistled in your ears as it whipped around your clothes while gravity forced you to succumb to it. Deja vu overtook your mind and you fearfully looked down, fearing for the end of the fall.

It never came.

Almost knowingly, you turned your gaze upwards, gravity loosening its tug on you. A swirling purple mass hovered far above, tinged with flecks of metallic silver, like the colours you had seen on the infinity symbol.

This too, blurred and disappeared, leaving you standing in an expanse of inky black with nowhere else to go. Something hit your shoe, making you look down. There, on the ground lay the die, the eye still facing you.

And then, as if it were going down a hill, it began to roll.

On and on. Logically, you followed it, since there seemed to be no other way out.

''You're just a stranger in this place...'' A vaguely familiar voice came from out of the blue, accompanied by the ticking of clocks. Tick. ''Who are you, really?" Tick.

Still a question you wished you were able to answer yourself. The hairs on the back of your neck raised, the feeling of many eyes on you. Yet when you looked around, nothing other than you and the die existed.

A copper-eyed gaze burned holes into the back of your head, its owner deceitfully wrinkled. They briefly flashed chartreuse green.

The die stopped, the eye meeting your gaze.

It blinked.

And then you woke up.

Standing, leaning over the table in the control room. With no recollection of how or when you had arrived here.

'Didn't know you had a habit of sleepwalking.' Morro mused, snickering. 'How you didn't wake the others up remains a mystery to me.'

At his words, you sat down on the nearest chair, looking out the front window of the Destiny's Bounty. The ship seemed to have stopped, perhaps now it had arrived at its destination: the Dark Island...

'I had the weirdest f'ing dream...' You sat back in your chair while dragging your feet along the floor. 'There were so many things, and then there was this weird eye? I don't know, it probably was familiar...'

The door to the control room remained open, thanks to what Morro told you it was no mystery either now who opened it first. A whistle came through and Nya walked in, holding a steaming cup of coffee mid-sip. When she finally put it down, her gaze darted over you in surprise.

''Didn't think you'd be in here.'' She chuckled, trying to ease the immediate tension. Placing her coffee down, she sat on a chair, crossing her legs whilst facing you. You met her gaze with a warm smile.

''Thing is, I didn't actually plan to be here. I'd rather be asleep right now.'' You pulled up a chair, sitting in front of her. Leaning back, you attempted to recollect what you had seen before all the memory you had left of it faded. An idea popped up in your mind and frantically, you began looking around for some paper, spotting some on the table.

You whipped out a pen and leaned over, having to excuse yourself as you reached for it. Though, Nya went to grab it as well, seeing as you needed some help. Your hand landed on the paper just as her warm hand landed on top of yours.

''Uh.'' Awkwardly, you yanked the paper towards yourself, Nya retracting her hand and watching as you began to jot down notes of the dream, especially the singular die.

She averted her gaze.

Arguing came from outside the control room, coming closer as the pair of voices grew in volume. Both of you looked over as your mother and Misako entered, the latter carrying her scroll bag.

''...What does that matter now, Tess? Both of the prophesied ninja scrolls are ruined!'' Misako wearily told your mother, taking her bag off her shoulder and opening it. ''I can't say for sure, but I remember there being something else laying around. I only took a glance at it and-''

Misako stopped short upon seeing you, or rather, what was in your grasp. Her eyes widened a considerable amount. Confusedly, you lifted an eyebrow. Nya's gaze snagged onto what was on the other side, her jaw-dropping.

'Don't tell me.' Morro groaned.

Sheepishly, you flipped over the paper. Golden and green scales decorated the parchment, along with orange and white-tipped tails decorated with flecks of bronze. Rising from the bottom of the parchment, a tower of shadows pierced the stormy skies, with purple light seeping through the cracks in the clouds.

Then, the realisation dawned: you just drew on a scroll. And an important-looking one too.

Lines rippled into existence at your touch, gasps coming from the others in the room while you froze on the spot, watching as they trailed across the paper in elegant strokes and curves.

And there, it read:

A light in the sky will reveal the one, showing that the path to infinity has begun.

You quickly read it aloud for the others, furrowing your eyebrows in confusion. ''What's the path to infinity?" Was your first question as you stared at the parchment.

In the corner of your eyes, a spark of recognition flickered in your mother's gaze. She cleared her throat, turning to leave when the others entered. Zane looked at her as she promptly left, excusing herself. He turned his gaze to you questioningly.

''Woah, what's that?" Jay questioned, approaching you. You shrugged, putting the scroll flat on the table.

''Knock yourselves out.'' You followed out after your mother, making sure to keep your steps light and stealthy, using a bit of your levitation power to help.

Listening out for her, you went below deck, finding her in the tv room with your father laying on the couch. She sat beside him, her back turned to you.

Briefly, you considered leaving them both alone, seeing as your father didn't seem well. The lights had been turned off and the blinds shut, keeping them in darkness- if it weren't for a small candle steadily burning away in the corner of the room, stretching out your mother's shadow and casting half of her face aglow.

When you turned to leave, though, your breath hitched in your throat when your gaze caught on something. There, on her back, a tattoo- you shut your eyes before it could set in, pressing yourself against the doorframe.

Air forced itself out of your lungs, everything becoming distant as your heartbeat thumped in your ears.

It could just be all your imagination, not everything that was seen was always what it seemed to be.

It could just be a coincidence.

It could just be an eye tattoo.

One alarmingly similar to the one you saw in the dream.

Just a coincidence. Just a coincidence.

Normal people like Terry had tattoos like that, right?

Your mother's gaze snapped over to where you stood only seconds ago, out of sight and only centimetres away from her line of vision. Why did this feel so blown out of proportion? You were just being dramatic. Sure, that's what it was. But it didn't feel right. Not at all.

Tossing a glance over your shoulder, the threshold remained empty, so you bit back a sigh and trudged back to your room. There, you plopped onto the bed, snatching your pillow up and using it to sandwich your head and cover your face. You screamed, letting the pillow muffle the sound.

''(Y/n)?'' A small voice questioned. Your hands tugged at the sheets before removing the pillow and tossing it aside. Sitting up, Remo looked up at you, a worried look in his eyes. ''...are you okay?"

''I don't know.'' You quietly answered. Everything and nothing made sense. It didn't feel like so black and white, only in varying shades of grey without much of a compass to point you in the right direction to the answers you so desperately needed.

Curiosity almost always got the better of you, and it was no different now. Scales brushed against your fingers, making you look at Remo. He nudged your hand again, a whine dragging itself out of his throat as he awaited your response.

Your fingers dipped beneath his jaw, lifting it so he knew you were responsive. He squirmed himself out of your grasp, loosely coiling around your arm as he made his way up to your shoulders.

''Boop!'' Remo's snout bumped into your nose, the little snake tilting his head when he didn't get a response as he had expected. You allowed yourself a small chuckle though it came out forced. ''There we go!'' His tail wagged excitedly.

Unfortunately, Remo wasn't always good at reading the room. He still made mistakes, having to learn how to socialise unlike how most of everyone else somehow knew them from childhood. You plastered on a smile that he didn't see through, the small snek satisfied with himself and thus beamed at you.

Though this did nothing to still your racing thoughts as they spiralled endlessly with no answer to each and every one of them.

—

Misako smoothed out both of the prophesied ninja scrolls, the others watching with Kai peeking over her shoulder. Ink, thick as slimy goop dripped from the side of the Orange Ninja scroll, staining the aged parchment a deep violet and covering most of the fox. Jay gagged behind her.

The old woman swallowed the hard lump in her throat, turning her gaze to the Green Ninja scroll which didn't seem to be affected as badly as the other one, the goopy ink thinning out on the parchment but still forming marks similar to four tendrils branching out in different directions.

She buried her face in her hands, not quite knowing what to do about it, even if that meant the weird ink goop ended up in her hair. Sighing, Misako looked at both of the scrolls. ''How did this happen in the first place?" Her gaze scanned the row of ninja as she turned around, each as clueless as she was.

No response came.

Lloyd's jaw clenched when his gaze met hers.

—-

Tess silently watched over her husband, deep in thought. He slowly opened one eye, the ghost of a smile flitting across his tired features. He shuddered, Tess quickly taking his hand in hers and giving it a quick reassuring squeeze.

''Just rest, please.'' She softly pleaded, leaning over slightly to kiss him on the forehead. Puffing, he gradually closed his eyes though Tess knew sleep would not easily come to him with the migraine he currently had.

The hairs on the back of her neck lifted, a small frown growing on her face. Tess risked a glance over her shoulder, furrowing her eyebrows when no one stood in the doorway. She had been expecting someone to be there yet she didn't wish to get up and find out.

Tess' gaze flickered to parts of the room, first back to Jake still trying his best to rest despite the small occasional groan of pain, shifting ever so slightly as he lay there. Though, oddly enough, he became still, as if sleep had finally taken him into its gentle hold. Again, she looked around.

The candle's flame froze in place the moment she looked at it.

A chill trickled down her spine, and the woman attempted to take deep breaths to calm herself. Unexpectedly, a paper plane flew out of nowhere, the sharp tip almost scratching her eye though she moved quickly enough for it to hit the middle of her nose.

Unfolding it, she was met with the childish drawing of a yellow smiley face and an arrow pointing up.

And so, she glanced up.

Casimir sat upside-down on the ceiling, the purple-clad man smiling innocently down at her as if this was all normal (which it wasn't). Like him, his clothes didn't exactly follow the rules of physics to a T. He opened his mouth to speak. ''Before you start screaming and sh**, I must say you're quite committed to your interests. Going behind Wu's back? Now, that I like.''

He snickered, covering his mouth with a hand. Casimir dropped from the ceiling, his high-heeled boots barely making any sound. Tess glared back at him as their gazes met, though his grew dark.

''What's the reasoning behind you coming here?" Tess inquired, staring him down.

''I only came to deliver a message. She said the deal's off if you veer from the plan.'' He calmly stated. ''If there's anything you're upset about, I'm sorry, but I'm not the person to complain to.'' The man shrugged and fixed the cuffs of his sleeves. ''Toodles!'' He brightly smiled, falling back, vanishing instantly into the floor's shadows before anything could be asked of him.

Silence.

''What the f**k.'' Tess managed to breathe out.

—

Misako put aside the ruined prophesied ninja scrolls, turning back to the others who crowded at the table, a different scroll unrolled for all to see and fortunately for everyone, this time not ruined.

''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.'' The woman explained, gesturing to each of the symbols that correlated to most of the ninja. Zane glanced around, noting you weren't present.

''So you're saying we get to fight? Whoo-hoo! I've got happy feet!'' Cole cheered.

Misako turned her gaze to Lloyd. ''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".''

''Ultimate Spinjitzu Master?'' Lloyd questioned in confusion.

''It means you will be able to invoke the power of the Golden Dragon, an ancient fighting style only practised by the First Spinjitzu Master.'' The old woman answered.

The other ninja stared at him in surprise. Lloyd laughed at their faces. ''Jealous?''

''Uh, wait a minute. This all sounds too good to be true. What's the catch?'' Kai inquired, sensing there was more to what was being told.

''The catch is, the Temple could be anywhere on the island, and all we have is this.'' Sensei Wu told him, handing a medallion with three holes over to Dr. Julien who inspected it.

''A medallion. It's like a compass. When the three holes match up, the medallion will reveal where the temple is hidden.'' Zane's father informed.

Quietly, you entered whilst the others talked, standing behind Cole and Jay, careful to not let your shadow fall on the latter. Unaware of your presence, Jay asked: ''Uh, how'd you know that?''

''Oh, I did a lot of reading in my spare time.'' Dr Julien chuckled. ''Adventure stories were my favourite.'' He admitted.

You tapped Jay on the shoulder and he jumped into the air out of fright with a short-lived scream. Cole looked like he were about to burst into laughter at the sight. Jay shot him a glare which made the Earth Ninja reconsider that idea.

The Ice Ninja gazed over at the two, mainly Jay before facing his father. ''Then what are we waiting for?'' Zane grabbed the medallion from Dr. Julien, prompting the other three boys to prepare themselves, getting up.

Green Bean went to go join them but his uncle stopped him before he could. ''Not you, Lloyd.''

''Ah, seriously? Are we still doing this?'' Lloyd irritatedly questioned.

''Wu is right. 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.'' Misako reasoned. The Green Ninja narrowed his eyes, looking past his blood-related parent and his uncle, to where you stood.

''I don't see (Y/n) being held back.'' The blond gremlin pointed out.

''Hahaha. Jealous?'' Jay asked, smirking. Lloyd faced him, hands on his hips with a grumpy look on his face. Rolling your eyes, you silently considered staying behind or going with the others.

''Well, I could use some help around the shop. We should get working on vehicles that might help give us a fighting chance.'' Dr Julien suggested.

''Remember, Garmadon doesn't know we're on the island. It's imperative that you stay out of sight.'' Wu reminded them.

''Of course, Sensei. Don't worry. Have you ever known us to veer from a plan, huh?'' Jay tried reassuring him though he only earned unamused stares from Lloyd, Wu, you and Misako.

''Ninja—'' Jay, Cole, Zane and Kai shouted.

''Shh! Not so loud. Are you trying to get us caught?'' Wu scolded them in a hushed whisper.

''...go.'' The four ninja finished in a whisper.

On their way out, you grabbed Cole's arm before he could leave. ''I'm staying back with Lloyd.'' You told him, the Earth Ninja's eyebrows lifting slightly. ''Good luck out there.''

Cole's hand landed on yours before he pulled away with a smile. ''Good luck with the gremlin.'' He quietly laughed, swiftly exiting alongside the others before Lloyd could have a go at him for the nickname.

—

One by one, the four ninja disappeared into the shadows of the trees, Lloyd's envious gaze pinned on their backs. When all of them had vanished he looked back at the rest who stayed back at the camp.

''Someone looks a little... green with envy, huh?" You leaned on the exposed side of the half-buried Destiny's Bounty. Lloyd frowned when his gaze briefly met yours, walking away towards the adults (or well, Wu, Misako and Dr. Julien).

Back in the Bounty, Tess sat beside the couch, nose buried in a book. Something tapped her leg and she lowered it to check out what was happening. Remo stared up at her, never quite meeting her gaze. Once he knew he had her attention, he quickly hopped up onto her knee.

''Hey, Remo, how's it going?" Tess warmly smiled, keeping her voice low so as to not wake the sleeping man near them. Remo shifted uncomfortably on the spot, and she recognised the look in his eyes as something of guilt. ''What troubles you?"

''I'm sorry!'' Remo blurted out rather suddenly. Tess blinked owlishly at the answer, then decided to furrow her eyebrows.

''What are you sorry about?" She questioned.

''I-I went into the control room early and I was hungry, I didn't mean to do it! I hope-'' Remo's stammering stopped when Tess pressed her thumb against his snout gently. Quietly, she took out the bag she had retrieved from the control room, pulling the box out.

Remo watched her as she had some difficulty opening it, a small bit of dried ink staining the side, and a jar was taken out. She thumbed the edges of the jar, smearing the moisture that had collected on the rim, down to where a crack nearly split the glass in two.

''I don't even know how I can begin to thank you. I've been puzzling over what to do with it until you had your happy little accident.'' Tess cheerfully informed. Remo confusedly lifted an eyebrow- or well, if he had a visible one that is.

''Excuse me? ''Happy little accident''? What do you mean by that?" He questioned, unsure if he should be worried or not.

''A wise man once said: 'We don't make mistakes, we just make happy accidents'.'' Tess quoted, her smile turning sad for a moment.

Remo saw an opportunity to change the subject, sensing what her expression implied. ''(Y/n) wanted to stay back with Lloyd, maybe you can spend some time with them. I'm sure they're willing to let you do that.'' He hopefully suggested.

''Who'll look after Jake?" Tess inquired. Remo simply curled his tail so the end pointed to himself.

''You need a break anyway.'' He reasoned.

Tess wished she could object, after all, he was only young and having to look after someone didn't seem to be a good option. Then again, he was trying to look out for her even after the 'small' museum event. It could be a way for her to make him happy.

In a place like this, he needed that before all hell broke loose.

''Okay then.'' She patted his head with her thumb, the little snake leaning into her touch eagerly. ''Thank you, Remo.'' The little snake dipped his head with a grin. ''I wish you luck.''

Tess grabbed the bag and promptly walked out.

—

Today, your mother wore pants and a long-sleeved shirt with a camouflage pattern, a similarly patterned sunhat that covered most of her face in shadow, along with the backpack she brought slung over her shoulder. She also had small earrings shaped like orange slices yet oddly enough, they lacked any colour.

''What's with the getup?" You asked once she got close enough to hear. Not that she couldn't hear you. Right? Lloyd stood near Dr. Julien, helping him with whatever he was doing.

''That's something we'll get into, concerning this place.'' Your mother flashed a bright smile, setting the bag down and beginning to unpack it.

''What exactly do you mean by that?" You watched her unpack the bag, a drink bottle one of them which she tossed to you out of nowhere. Practically snatching it out of the air, you uncapped it and downed half the bottle thirstily.

''The Dark Island is typically the last place to go to for a reason. It is no vacation spot-'' Your mother began.

''That I know.'' You chuckled, wiping off a few droplets. Your mother shot you a brief glare, continuing.

''Mainly due to the high concentration of dark matter present on the island, it should come to no surprise that its presence brings negative effects.'' She explained, taking a rather lengthy stick and drawing a rough diagram of the island's layout, jabbing the stick into one area in particular. ''Unfortunately, this mainly affects us, it has an effect on the elemental masters as well albeit to a lesser extent. Though Misako is free of it due to her being a human. Lucky bi-''

''And what would that be?" You looked the diagram up and down as if hoping it alone would explain.

''Long story short, our abilities get nerfed.'' Your mother explained with a deadpan face. ''Short story long, illusions are harder to conjure, they're not entirely gone yet it requires more concentration than usual to make them. The same would go for your electricity, but ignore my advice back on Ninjago. It's crucial to keep every last watt you have in case of emergency.''

In case of emergency. That can't be good to hear.

Your mother grabbed another item from the bag, this time something with three wooden sticks connected by chains, which she then moved each into place until they formed one long stick. Noticing your confusion, she held it out for you to inspect.

''Unless you want a different weapon of your own, I've decided that this will fit for the time being. It's usually called a sansetsukon, like san-set-soo-kon. It has other names like three-part whip, but since a bearded fellow who likes tea told me an interesting detail, I found someone who specifically designed it so it can form a staff, which from what I know, is what you're more familiar with.''

''Be quick and hit 'em with a stick.'' You quietly laughed at your own joke, taking it for a closer look.

''Grandpa Tim would love to watch you use it, actually. He suggested it, after all.'' Your mother took it back from you, putting it into the three wooden sticks connected by chains and into the bag. Wait. That was your grandfather's name? Huh. ''But since you're not experienced with it just yet, we'll have to hold off on the lessons until we get off the island unless certain issues arise.''

''Okay.'' You nodded, taking in all of this new information. A random thought surfaced. Grandpa Tim-Tam- okay, now you were getting distracted.

'Damn, you're making me hungry now. And I don't even have a body of my own.' Morro's voice popped into your mind, grumbling. He fell silent, almost like he was lost in thought. 'Could I tell you something real quick?'

Your mother held out her hand and you put the half-empty bottle into it so she could store it in the bag's side pocket for later.

'Sure. Go ahead.' You hummed to yourself, hoping you didn't seem like you were weirdly staring off into space. Sitting down, you cleared a small spot in the sand for yourself as your mother did the same, using a finger to mindlessly doodle in the sand.

'You know about yesterday, and how you saw that being in the water?' Morro questioned. 'There was something else out there.'

'Elaborate.' You furrowed your eyebrows.

'In the water's depths, there was this pull. And I tried doing it back, you know, like a tug-of-war. Except... it was powerful, whatever was on the other end. I had to let go before it could drag me under.' His voice quivered slightly. 'It came so close to doing it as well.'

'Why didn't you tell me this earlier?'

'You have your own things to worry about, as do I.'

'It's a pretty big deal for you to keep quiet about it.'

'Trust me, Wu's kept worse secrets. He could even be hiding one related to you right now and you'd have no idea about it.' Morro pointed out. 'Even if that's not true, after all this time, he hasn't even spoken of me.' You cast a wary glance in Wu's direction.

Lloyd's gaze caught yours and gave you a questioning look as his uncle walked off with a pair of buckets, one in each hand and disappeared off into the forest. Though a few minutes after he did, Misako's gaze snapped over in the direction of where Wu entered.

The Green Ninja rushed into the forest with his mother behind him. You went to hear what made them run into the forest, though a weird static-like sound came through instead, almost earsplitting like how someone would leave a radio on, too far from any station. It tore through every other noise you heard, blocking them out.

Your mother rushed to your side, pressing her palms down on your ears. The noise stopped and a dull headache followed. While you groaned, she pressed the water bottle into your open palm and you drained the rest of its contents.

''Eugh.'' Rubbing the side of your head, the pain slowly ebbed away. ''We are so not loved.'' You muttered to yourself.

''I can agree with that.'' She quietly said.

—

When Lloyd, Wu and Misako all returned safely, everyone resumed what they were doing, though a few footfalls coming closer and closer caught your attention.

All four of the ninja ran towards the camp, Zane holding the broken mechanical bird in his arms while in the back, Jay clutched one of his arms, the fabric of his gi stained dark at the edges with a jagged tear running down its length.

''Hey, they found the Falcon.'' Dr. Julien brightly smiled.

''Why are they running?'' Lloyd confusedly questioned. Your gaze landed on Jay's injured arm, the Lightning Ninja noticing it and tucking it behind his back.

''Prepare for battle. We've got company.'' Zane warned, setting the Falcon on the table.

''You were spotted? By one? Two?'' Wu questioned as he approached them.

''How about...all of them?'' Kai admitted.

''Oh, that's great. Awesome, actually.'' You grumbled. Thank goodness no one heard what you said.

''Did you locate the Temple of Light?'' Misako inquired.

''It's at the top of the mountain,'' Porcupine answered. ''I hope those vehicles are ready because we could sure use them now.''

''Guess you're gonna have to figure this baby out on the fly,'' Julien said as you and the other ninja hopped into the Earth Driller, quickly finding a seat.

''We've also packed another surprise in the back. Perhaps it can be of use?'' Nya inquired, her gaze drifting over to you momentarily with a smile.

''Another Nya surprise?'' Jay excitedly questioned, still hiding his injured arm behind his back.

''You'll have to go too. Be safe.'' Misako told her son, who briefly looked away, unclenching his fists.

''We will.'' He tried to look at her before climbing into the vehicle.

''Whatever you do, do not stop until you get to the Temple of Light. Our survival depends on it.'' The old master advised the ninja.

''This time, we'll stick to the plan,'' Kai informed his teacher.

''I sure hope you do.'' You told the Fire Ninja, shaking your head.

''Good luck, ninja,'' Wu said before the cockpit sealed itself shut.

The Earth Driller sped off, your mother waving you goodbye and when Misako looked away, she quickly did bunny ears behind her head. You laughed, a few of the others turning their eyes to you, confused (most notably Lloyd who hadn't been a witness to your mother's 'misdemeanour').

''Don't worry about it.'' You dismissed, everyone else going back to focusing on what was at stake.

Out of the trees, one of the Stone Army's vehicles shot forward along with two others, giving chase right behind the driller.

Jay glanced back at the pursuing vehicles. ''You do know how to steer this thing, don't you?'' He asked Cole. Ahead, two of the vehicles stopped in front of the driller, the Earth Ninja deep in concentration as he drove.

It swerved in an almost perfect half-circle, going in the other direction and onto a rock that served as a ramp.

''Whoo-hoo!'' Cole cheered, time slowing down as the third vehicle approached. He activated the front drill, digging underground, leaving the foes behind. On the other side, it burst out of the ground near a mountain. ''Well, that's about as far as this baby will go. We'll have to do the rest on our own.''

You gazed up at the mountain, as far up as you could see, yet nothing, in particular, stood out to you.

''But we'll never make it up the mountain before they arrive.'' Lloyd worried.

Kai opened the cockpit, jumped out and headed to the back of the vehicle. ''Well, then let's see what my sister packed.'' He activated a medium-sized box-like object, which sprung out, unfolding into the Fire Mech. ''Oh, I love my sis.'' He happily said. ''Leave this to me.''

Now in the mech, he rushed forward at the oncoming Stone Warriors in their vehicles. He dealt with them fairly well, throwing one into the thick of the jungle and destroying most, but not all of them. When Kai turned his back, more arrived.

''These guys just don't stop.'' Jay got into a battle stance.

''Climb on.'' Kai made the mech kneel a bit to make it easier to get on. Grinning, you grabbed onto one side, Cole on the other side and holding on tight. Everyone else took their places and Kai began ascending the mountain in the mech.

''Ugh. They're still coming.'' Jay told Kai, looking at the stubborn Stone Warriors below.

''And they don't stop coming.'' You sighed.

''One of these days we're gonna have to fight,'' Cole replied, trying to convince the others.

''We're not climbing fast enough.'' Zane urged.

The mech began making leaps, grabbing onto rocks and jumping up, though a Stone Warrior got close enough to jump off their vehicle, landing on the leg of the mech, too close to you for comfort. Kai took a moment to shake them off the foot, continuing up.

The vehicles were on the mech's tail now, any closer and it'd be all over.

''Activate hook!'' The mech's hand shot out a grappling hook, attached to a ledge at the top. It zoomed all the way up, leaving the Stone Warriors in the dust, for now. Once it arrived at the top, everyone got off.

''We don't have much time.'' You reminded the others, walking to the front of the group to scan the area.

''Oh! We made it to the top! But where's the Temple of Light?'' Jay's excitement quickly turned into confusion, not seeing it anywhere.

''Are you sure you used the medallion right?'' Lloyd questioned him.

''Oh, of course, I used it right. It said it should be right here.'' Jay insisted, pointing ahead.

''Well, until we find it, I've got to find a way to slow them down.'' Kai turned the mech back towards the cliff's edge, the Army advancing up the steep slope. He brought the mech's arms down, pounding the rock. The Warriors were hardly phased, so he shot a part of the cliff that resulted in hefty rock chunks getting sent tumbling down. ''That should buy us a little time.''

Everyone began to climb, but you noticed Jay in particular struggled. You headed to his side, your gaze brushing over the wound on the arm that lacked the armour, crimson blood leaking from it. ''You doing alright there?" You softly questioned. His shoulders tensed.

The Lightning Ninja seemed to be figuring out what to say since he remained silent.

''If it makes you feel better, I can just let you piggyback until we get there-''

And that was how he ended up clinging to your back like a koala, one arm loosely wrapped around your neck. His chin perched on your shoulder, the occasional warm breath he let out when you nearly slipped and sometimes a sigh of relief when you saved yourself.

The whole experience for you, well, that wasn't anything you'd tell the others about anytime soon. Though Cole seemed to have a bit of fun with it when he noticed Jay clinging to your back. Coping with it wasn't easy, especially when Jay was literally breathing down your neck.

What seemed like ages was in reality only twenty minutes when you arrived at the summit with the others. Jay mumbled an apology, seeming to take his time getting himself off you and quietly excused himself, heading to the furthest part of the group.

The Temple itself though, might as well have been a magnificent wonder of Ninjago. As worn-down as it appeared, the light it gave off made it easy for the place to catch one's eye. Though now was not the time for admiring the ancient temple, so you headed in with the others.

Drawings of different scenes decorated the walls, soon becoming familiar once you recognised what they depicted.

''Guys, check this out. It's us.'' Jay pointed to one wall, in particular, everyone following his finger to the drawing.

Then, your eyes turned to the rest of the drawings that were present, finding one of you, laying on the ground, wide-eyed and bewildered, your legs at an unnatural angle.

''Impossible. It's everything we've ever done.'' Kai breathed out in amazement. You followed along as they walked to a few walls that stood out to them.

''Finding the Bounty, facing the Devourer, even right now.'' Cole pointed to the wall in front of him where his drawing counterpart did the same oddly enough, he put his hand behind his back sheepishly.

''How could it all be here?'' Zane questioned.

''Destiny,'' Lloyd answered. He gazed at a diagram with him and the boys. ''I think I know what we need to do.'' At the centre of the room, he wiped the dust off the floor, revealing his Energy symbol. ''Look.'' The four boys not including Lloyd did the same, finding their own symbols on the floor. ''Okay, now what?''

Outside, the Stone Warriors approached, no static-like sound blocking off most of the noise now, which was ironically a bummer with the fact they were yelling battle cries at the top of their lungs.

''Why does everything have to be so hard?'' Cole asked. Don't say it, don't say it, don't say-

'That's what she said.' Dang it, this wasn't the right time or place. Lloyd perked up, seeming to remember something as he looked up at the giant bell above him.

''The bell. It's an instrument. You guys ready for this?'' Lloyd asked the awaiting four in their spots. You stood off to the side, anxiously listening to the Stone Warriors as they grew closer.

''Bring it.'' Cole answered.

The Green Ninja rushed at Cole's pillar, jumping off it and striking the bell hard. Falling back onto the centre, light surrounded him, almost blindingly. ''Whoa! What's happening?!'' He yelled.

''No one move!'' Zane ordered.

A beam of light descended onto Lloyd, ricocheting off him and multiple crystals, hitting Kai's pillar and giving him a new gi and an elemental blade. The light then reflected through more crystals, giving the others new gis and elemental blades, seemingly repairing Jay's old one once he got his.

Lloyd was lifted into the air, as the others watched. Soon, the blades themselves appeared in flourishes of the Element they carried.

''Guys, send him your powers!'' Kai shouted, the Green Ninja spinning in the midst of the light. Each of the holders of the elemental blades immediately used them to send their respective Element at him. The light faded and Lloyd fell. ''Lloyd!''

You went to check in on him but he got up, holding himself up by a hand. ''Let 'em have it!'' He yelled as the Stone Warriors entered the Temple.

''Now we get to fight!'' Cole cheered.

Kai used his blade to block an oncoming strike from a Stone Warrior's sword. Surprisingly, it didn't break. ''Cool.'' He commented, striking his blade into the ground and creating a trail of fire, using it to surround the Stone Warriors. ''Whoo-hoo!'' He ran through the cluster he trapped, kicking them.

A few attempted to attack Jay though he leapt onto their spear blades. He brought his blade down, lightning sparking along the length and shocking them.

Some rushed at Zane, who climbed his pillar and when the Stone Warriors stacked themselves on top of each other to reach him, he leapt down, using his elemental blade to freeze them in the process. He kicked the ice and split it in half, crumbling the tower.

Stone Warriors faced Cole, the Earth Ninja digging his blade into the ground and making a crack appear in the floor, heading towards the Stone Warriors who watched in confusion and were quickly buried in a mound of dirt.

The Earth Ninja laughed, turning around to moonwalk. He jumped on three Stone Warriors and landed in the middle. ''Hee, hee!'' He spun and landed on his toes.

''Look out, it's Micole Jackson!'' You exclaimed with a wide grin. Cole looked your way and shot you a wink.

More Stone Warriors came your way, having been frightened by the other's blades, seeking out an easy fight. Electricity arced between your fingertips, tingling with possibility. No way would you let them go without a bit of a shock.

A deep breath in, and sparks danced between your interlaced fingers, gathering up power. Briefly, worry flickered in your foe's eyes. You paid them no mind.

You laughed maniacally as a shockwave unleashed from you in full force, the hunger for power fuelling your want for battle, for conflict. No, a need. This felt so good. So addicting. Albeit, the show wasn't over yet, far from it actually.

''My turn,'' Lloyd announced.

He brought his hands together, a sphere of glowing vibrant Energy growing within the gap, its light turning golden as it brightened. Upon unleashing it, the Golden Dragon had been summoned, roaring. Kozu screamed for a retreat, falling back with the Army as they fled.

The Green Ninja pulled off his hood, a bright smile on his face while watching the enemy flee. Two green-gold protrusions sat in his bed of blond hair, coloured ivory at the ends. Lloyd noticed you staring and stopped in his tracks. Your eyebrows shot up.

You went to pat his head to reassure him, but strangely enough, two bumps sat beneath his hair.

That day, you hadn't been imagining things.

They were horns.

Deep in the recesses of your mind, spoke a voice, not of Morro's, but of someone who you knew.

''You don't have that much time left.''

Is anyone concerned for (Y/n) or what?

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WriterAgreste, over & out!