~ Part 15~ | The Interview

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** If You're Out There (John Legend)**
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"No more broken promises
No more call to war
Unless it's love and peace that we're really fighting for
We can destroy hunger
We can conquer hate
Put down the arms and raise your voice
We're joining hands today

Oh I was looking for a song to sing
I searched for a leader
But the leader was me
We were looking for the world to change
We can be heroes"

~John Legend

This chapter is dedicated to voidinthewater  . Thank you for the sweet PM! I'm glad you like my story! :)

(comment or PM if you'd like a shoutout!)

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Jay's hands wouldn't stop shaking. Stop. He told them. But they wouldn't listen. Of course, they wouldn't. Hands don't respond to telepathic messages. To make things worse Kai disappeared somewhere. Nya was trying hard not to appear stressed but the strained smile and twitching right eye were clues enough to her mental state at the moment.

"Er..." Jay stuffed his hand in his pocket and rooted around. He had hoped to find a mint or maybe some random mechanical parts for her to busy herself with but he came up with a half-chewed stick of gum. Jay hastily shoved it back in. "Do you want to take a walk outside for some fresh air?"

Nya shook her head. "I'm okay, Jay. But thank you." She gave him a sweet smile. "It's almost time for the interview and I need to be here."

Jay felt happiness swell in him. Nya was willing to stay with him through this whole thing. Having someone willingly give up their own time to support him gave him an odd feeling inside. One that made his head dizzy and his tongue feel numb. Jay tried not to appear too giddy as he swung his feet around under his chair but the goofy grin probably gave it away.

"Why does Jay have that stupid look on his face?"

Nya jumped up at her brother's voice, looking half-relieved and half-annoyed. "Kai! Where were you?"

"Just getting Lloyd," Kai replied smoothly, an arm casually over the boy's shoulder as he led him to a chair. "He wasn't interested in watching Zane and Pixal make goo-goo eyes at each other so I went to get him."

Nya gave her brother a funny look. Both Jay and her were thinking the same thing: since when did Kai want to go out of his way for Lloyd?

After a beat of silence Jay couldn't help but blurt out, "Did Cole bribe you or something?"

Kai squinted at him. "No! Why would he do that?"

"Is it blackmail?"

"No."

"Death threats?"

"No."

"...hair threats?"

Kai rolled his eyes up to the ceiling and mumbled something the sounded eerily like a prayer.

Jay saw Nya staring at Lloyd, eyes narrowed in suspicious. Jay followed her gaze and tried to figure out what she saw. Girls were always so much better at noticing things. Unless it was Zane. Zane trumps all. Sort of like some super powered euchre card. Which was a tricky game., Cole won last time they played. Jay will have to get a new partner because Kai sucks at playing euchre.

Wait- what was he thinking about again?

"Are you okay, Lloyd?" Nya asked gently, walking over to her friend. She gave Kai a glare, he in turn raised his hands in defence.

"I didn't do anything!" Kai protested.

Jay looked towards the youngest of the group. Lloyd's nose was a bit to red for a nice warm afternoon like this one. Lloyd gave Nya a smile, his hand fiddled with the bracelet she gave him as he spoke. "Actually... I'm really good." He assured her. "It's just some allergies."

Lloyd paused for a moment and looked down at a piece of paper in his hand. After a moment of thought, he turned to Kai. "Hey, can I borrow your phone?"

Kai shrugged. "Sure." He passed it over, rather carelessly but Lloyd managed not to drop it.

"Uh, what's you're password?" Lloyd asked, tapping at the screen.

"Hot stuff. All caps. No spaces." Kai didn't miss a beat, looking unashamed.

Nya rolled her eyes. "What do you need Kai's phone for anyway?"

"I'm trying to start a new chapter." Lloyd replied vaguely, eyes glued to the screen. "Don't worry about it."

Nya didn't look convinced at all but she left it when Cole and Zane came bursting in.

"Oh good, you're alright-" Cole exclaimed joyful but he broke off his sentence when Nya narrowed her eyes at him. "-tttt... Uh... Just like you always were- when I last saw you at Borg Tower."

"Nice save." Kai said sarcastically.

The girl rolled her eyes but she didn't have time to yell at him when a tall women came striding in. She carried herself confidently, her brown hair was bundled up on top her head and she wore smart looking glasses that matched her superior expression.

"Move it people!" The lady clapped her hands. "We're going on in ten and you're not even in the studio! If you want me to give you an interview then you better be there on time!"

Jay scrunched up his face. "Who are you?"

Cole nudged him with his elbow. "Ahem," Cole coughed. "That's Gayle Gossip? One of the biggest news reporters on NGTV? Don't you watch the news?"

"Why would I watch that?" Jay said in confusion.

"To stay updated!" Cole said like it was obvious. Gayle rolled her eyes, snapping her fingers at the rest of the group until they got up.

"Wow, Cole. You not only drive like a grandpa but you watch T.V like one too!"

Cole let out a high pitched gasp and jaw dropped. He went to retort when Gayle shoved them aggressively forward. "Save the drama until we're filming. We need to get this all on live!"

Cole glared at Jay over his shoulder as Gayle pulled him ahead. "This isn't over!" He hissed.

Jay stuck out his tongue in retaliation. Nya took the boy by his forearm and shook her head. "Honestly, you guys have more important stuff to worry about right now."

Jay gulped when they approached the door marked: STUDIO THREE. His heels dug into the ground and caused Nya to jerk in surprise.

"You know, I'm suddenly having a really bad allergic reaction to...everything. Better go get that checked out-" Jay tried to turn and leave but Kai grabbed him by then shoulders.

"Nope. No backing down this time." Kai spun him back towards the door and rested his chin on his shoulder so he could speak into his ear. "Think of all those bullies, Jay. Taunting you and waiting for you to yield to their words. This is our turn. We gotta rise up."

Lloyd's head turned at his last sentence, a small smile on his lips as he met eyes with Kai. He gently patted Jay on the shoulder.

"You don't have to go out there if you don't want to." Lloyd told him gently. "But think of the impact you could make. So many little girls, boys, and other genders are feeling so scared and alone right now. It's up to us to stand up for what Wu has created."

"And also humiliate Brad on live television." Kai put in.

Lloyd nodded gravely. "Yes. That is very important."

Jay nodded, bouncing on his toes and taking deep breaths. "You're right, I can do this. I got this-"

"Five minutes until we go live!"

Crap, crap, crappity, crap, crap.

Jay was about ready to yeet himself out a window. So, Kai took that chance to shove him into the studio and plop him into a chair. Nya, Zane, Lloyd, and Cole all waited backstage and raised enthusiastic thumbs up in encouragement. Well, Zane couldn't figure out the action so he ended up doing awkward finger guns. It was better than the hand gesture Kai did in return.

"Alright," Vinny the camera man yelled. "Going live in five...four...four...three....did I already say four? Two...-Oh wait it's on."

Gayle's lips pinched in annoyance but quick as a flash it was replaced with a huge, fake, television smile. "Hello, I am Gayle Gossip and this is NGTV News where we bring you the biggest scoop in the smallest amount of time!"

Kai scoffed at the slogan but a nudge in the door from Jay made him hold his tongue with a scowl.

"Here we have Kai Smith and Jay Walker. Two of the young men involved with the brawl by the shoe store just outside of Hegner Road!" Gayle Gossip continued. She turned towards the two boys and shoved a microphone in their faces. "You two are both apart of Master Wu's School for Self-Discovery, one of the most controversial topics in all of Ninjago City, is that correct?"

Jay tentatively took the microphone, his lips getting to close to the top as he awkwardly spoke into it. His eyes flicked to the camera locked in on him. "Is that a rhetorical question?"

Kai quickly grabbed the mic, giving the camera a quick wink. "Yes, that's correct."

"Was it Wu's teachings that encouraged you to attack the boy that day?" Gayle glanced at the screen behind them. Pictures from the scene appeared. Jay winced at the visuals. Kai's furious face, Brad's sneer, Jay's terrified expression. It all was way too familiar. But it felt weird to see it from another perspective.

"No, of course not." Kai ripped his gaze from the images. Jay tried to do the same and focused on how Gayle's hairstyle made her forehead look gigantic.

"I believe you told me that the attack was provoked, isn't that right?" Gayle scanned the next question on her list. "Would you be able to tell me exactly what Brad told you that made you hit him?"

"He was insulting me and my family." Kai told her simply. "Both my biological one and the one I have made at Wu's school."

His eyes dragged to Nya in the background. She made a 'go-on' gesture and through clenched teeth Kai reluctantly spouted out what they rehearsed.

"Though I regret resorting to violence in the situation I think that this points to why Wu's school is so important." Kai watched as Gayle flicked into the next slide, one of the beautiful building itself.

"All these problems in society, all these struggles people have, all the pain in the world all leads back to discrimination. Against gender, race, sexuality, everything. Even going down into mental disabilities, physical disabilities, and even any sort of person who may need help. Whether it be physically, mentally, or emotionally. This makes it hard for people to be able to reach out. This causes damaged people to go out into the world. And this causes the damaged people to make mistakes, do horrible things, and create more damage." Kai heaved a deep breath, body slightly shaking at the weight of his words.

Gayle sat there, stunned. After blinking rapidly for a few seconds she straightened and turned back to the camera. "Thank you, Kai. That was a very wise insight on the world we live in now. Now that we heard these beautiful words from these two boys I think it's time we bring in the opposite side of the coin."

Jay's heart seemed to plummet as the curtains drew back to reveal someone standing on the other side.

"Here we have Garmadon himself, ready to have a civil- or not I'm totally good with that- dispute over these two opposing sides." Gayle motioned for the man to take the chair beside her.

Jay and Kai just stared stunned at the tall man. He ignored them, simply giving a nod to the camera and shaking Gayle's hand. He sat down, sitting diplomatically with his hands folded over his lap. Kai swore softly under his breath and Jay was tempted to do the same.

"Hello, Kai and Jay." Garmadon said smoothly.

"H-hi." Jay stuttered.

"Sup." Kai said back. There was a small slapping sound as Nya facepalmed.

"You are representing Wu's school, are you?" Garmadon leaned back so that he could get a better view of the group watching from the wings. "I don't see him with you. I would think that the headmaster would be the one pushing his views."

Kai smiles tensely. "Unfortunately, something very sudden came up. It was a personal emergency of our headmaster and he's very sorry he couldn't speak for himself."

"Which is why we are here." Jay cut in, looking pointedly at Garmadon. "To say the things he can't."

Garmadon raised an eyebrow but Gayle stepped in before they could argue further.

"So, Garmadon what is your opinion on all this?" Gayle asked.

Garmadon sighed like it was a hard question. He contemplated for a moment before he spoke. "Society works on rules. Routines. In an ecosystem a disruption of that simple balance can lead to catastrophic consequences. We must all remain balanced in order to keep the scales from tipping to one side or the other."

Jay couldn't believe his ears. "But you're not talking about a carefully crafted food chain, you're talking about repression of people's needs!"

"I am not repressing people's needs. I'm simply putting out different ways to fix the problems. A little therapy, a few good lessons on how the world works, then continue on as usual." Garmadon blinked calmly. "You cannot shove a bunch of children into one special needs school. It places an even bigger target on their heads and makes it harder for them to integrate back into society."

Kai shook his head. "You're making it sound like that is what people need. But it's not. People need to feel like they're heard. We need the world to adapt. Rules can't be set in stone anymore. The world is changing."

"Are you suggesting that people of religion erase the writings in their books? The messages from gods and prophets themselves? That we let all the murderers and robbers out of their cells and let them run free? Rules are made for a reason. You will find that this is what people need. As well as what they want." Garmadon's eyes darkened. He searched their gazes with a steady expression.

"Many powerful people share my view, little children." Garmadon's voice was level but there was an underlying edge. "I'm not aware that you have any organizations, leaders, or supporters other than yourselves."

Jay went to open his mouth but no words came out. He was right about one thing. They didn't have any supporters. Just a couple of teenagers, some splat in the middle of puberty, an old man, maybe a grouchy woman, and the occasional analytical friend-that's-a-girl. When it came to numbers, Garmadon had them by thousands. If this was the right thing and no one stood with them could they really make much of a difference?

But then a small ding was heard.

At first no one thought much of it. Occasionally people forgot to turn off their phones. But another sounded. And another. And another.

Gayle scowled at the noise. The obnoxious pings bounced off the tall ceilings like a tennis ball. Gayle gave the most polite smile she could towards the crew. "Can someone deal with that?" She called as another spew of a ringtone was set loose.

"Ah. Sorry, I must've forgotten to turn my ringer off."

Jay spun around to see Lloyd walking calmly onto the set. Kai's phone was in his hand, it was shaking like crazy, the screen lit up with notifications. Garmadon watched his son approach. His face was unreadable but Lloyd let the stare unflinchingly, chin high.

He looked different then when Jay first met him. The boy had been sitting alone by a door, hood drawn up, eyes guarded. But as Jay watched him now he was confident, he looked freed, his eyes holding some sort of light in them.

Gayle's own gaze danced between them like she was watching a ping pong game. She looked excitedly at what would unfold.

Lloyd glanced at the phone screen when another message popped up. "You think we're alone?" Lloyd cast a smirk at his father. "Why don't we all take a look outside."

Jay and Kai glanced at each other, silently trying figure out what the kid was doing as Gayle hissed at the camera crew to follow them out of the studio. Nya appeared between Kai and Jay looking anxious as she bent to whisper to them.

"What is he doing?" Nya asked through the corner of her mouth.

They all shrugged and wordlessly walked after the blonde. As they drew closer shouts were heard in the distance. Jay's eyes widened as they grew louder and louder the closer they got to the front door.

Lloyd strode forward, glancing back at the large group behind him. He looked directly into the camera. "Let's see exactly how alone we are."

The doors were pushed open and Jay's jaw dropped at the voices grew louder and louder. Thousands of people stood outside of the news station and every one of them were here to support them.

authors note****

Thank you so much for 5K reads!!!! We're half way to 10 thousand!!! That is so amazing!!!! I can't believe it!

We're nearing the big moment I've been leading up to and I'm so excited!!!! I have so many plans for this story and it makes me so happy to share it all with you!

Of course not all things go according to plan. Often I write something and then decide I don't like it so I delete the scene or the entire chapter! But it's hard to delete something that's perfectly good but doesn't work well with the story. So, I decided to make a new book just for what could have happened! If you're interested in seeing some of the moments I took out of Fractured then you shoulder check out my Deleted Scenes book. My friend Ravens_Graphics  made the beautiful cover for me!

Sorry this turned into a bit of a commercial lol. I'm going to get working on the next chapter as soon as I finish editing this! So stay tuned! Have a wonderful day and I hope everyone is doing well!

LuckyBugBooks 🐞