jay

He'd been running for a long time now, and Jay generally hated running.

However, he needed to get somewhere safe - and that seemed to be at the Smith's house. Hopefully everyone else was there with a plan or something so they could get out of the city. Those people on the TV had specifically mentioned elemental masters more than once - and it seemed like they hated them. Really, really I-want-to-kill-you hate. The best solution, in Jay's opinion, was to run somewhere else.

Jay stopped outside the front door to the Smith's house and frowned. There was talking inside. He could make out Kai and Nya's voices, and then another pair. It sounded like their parents, but weren't they supposed to be away for work? You have to go in at some point, he pointed out to himself, but I could also wait here until they come out. Sure, I might starve since I haven't eaten since six thirty this morning and I really need water, and maybe a bed to sleep in-

But before Jay could continue his debate against himself, the door opened. Nya stood there, looking utterly exhausted but with a smile on her face.

"Jay!" she dragged him inside and then tossed him an instant noodle cup, pointing to the kettle boiling. "You need to eat."

"What?"

"I could hear your stomach grumbling from outside," she chuckled. "And we're all starving."

"All?" He said nervously, looking around with the expectation of getting ambushed.

"Me, Kai, my dad and my mum," Nya counted on her fingers, pouring water into her own cup. "They're upstairs getting stuff so we can leave."

"Great! Where are we going?"

"I honestly don't know," she shrugged and slurped the broth from her noodles. "But I'm trying to get them to wait for the others. We need to get all the other elemental masters we know out."

"You think this attack is directed at us? It seems like an awful lot of trouble to go to."

"That, and they seemed to want to put this mysterious person on the throne. Tea?" Nya offered him a cup of steaming tea, swirling with shavings of their Amnestone supply.

He accepted it gratefully and ate hungrily between sips of tea. "I can't believe they just...killed them like that." Jay gagged slightly as he recalled the maliciousness with which the SOG assassins had slit the royal's throats. And so easily, too.

As Jay was about to ask if he could have another instant noodle cup when a shout rang out from upstairs, followed by a crash and a scream. Nya and Jay dropped their food and sprinted up the stairs, Nya leading the way to the master bedroom. The door was wide open and barely hanging off its hinges, revealing a horrifying scene before them. The big window was shattered, and Kai, Maya and Ray were fighting off four masked assailants.

"You're outnumbered," Jay announced pompously.

Nya elbowed him in the stomach and hissed, "Great, now they know we're here. We could have used the element of surprise."

"Ha! That's funny, because we're...I'll shut up." He raised his hands and threw out two experimental punches. "Prepare to get shocked by our amazing—oh and you're—"

The attackers ignored Jay and went back to trying to kill his friend and his parents. Jay looked around the room and found a vase which was empty of flowers, but had medium sized rocks weighing the base down. He picked up two and began pelting the enemy with them. They seemed mildly annoyed by it, and that was all Jay needed. A distraction, which the other three Smiths took to get behind cover.

"Nice job," Nya grinned, and then picked up a rock of her own and hurled it perfectly to the back of an assassin's head. He flopped forwards, out stone cold and Jay stared at Nya in admiration. "What?" She snapped, though she had a proud smile. "We still have to help, don't just stand there."

Jay snapped out of it and resumed his aerial volley of attacks, inching closer to Ray to buy him time to get downstairs. The father was cornered by the slightest of the attackers against a dresser table.

"Duck!" he called, and Ray did so as Jay's rock spun through the air and fell to the ground, knocked back by a freaking sword. "Do you mind putting that away?"

The sword-wielder snarled and leapt forwards in an overhead swing. Jay whimpered to himself as he rolled out of the way, completely forgetting that Ray Smith was behind him with nowhere to go. Jay yelled out, stretching out a hand, but it was too late. The blade continued its murderous arc, but Ray's arm went under the dresser and pulled out his own sword, crossing against the sword just in time.

Ray jumped to his feet and began to parry the attacks coming towards him, exchanging a look with Maya. His wife rolled with the ease of an acrobat and yanked a shield out from the bottom of their bed and threw it to her husband like a frisbee. He caught it and continued fighting, looking extremely strange in a suit with a sword and a shield.

Maya's search for weapons hadn't stopped there though, and while Jay was covering her with his supply of rocks (which, worryingly, was running out fast), she pulled out a trident from nowhere and joined Ray in battle. The three kids stood gobsmacked at the two parents and how easily they were fighting off three experienced attackers. They worked in instinctive unison with no verbal communication between, but incredible intuition.

And then Jay caught it.

The falter in Ray's attack that allowed his opponent to sneak through his defences.

The sword slipped through the gap between the shield and the sword, aimed for the unprotected area of his abdomen.

Looking back, perhaps Jay should have jumped in front of the blade.

Because there was nothing more sickening than the squelch of when the blade had driven through Ray's stomach. The sword drew a spray of blood, and then withdrew and Ray staggered back. Nya and Maya screamed in anguish and he fell to the floor, they rushed forwards as the wound began gushing blood. Kai just stared at the attackers, particularly at the one who had maimed his father. The ends of her white hair lay on her shoulders, unconcealed by the hood she wore.

She seemed to be in command, because she jerked her head and the rest of them followed her out of the window, nimbly leaping to the next roof.

Jay felt like he was intruding on something personal. Nya was whispering to Ray, tears streaking her cheeks as her hand was over his stab wound, coated in bright red blood that kept coming. Maya was next to her husband, shaking as she held his hand. Kai sat down, his jaw clenched.

"Why? Why?" he demanded furiously. "You could have—"

"We came back for you," Ray murmured, barely audible. "Garmadon...is...coming."

That was when Jay somehow sensed the new presence of someone behind him. Three people, all dressed in black and with masks and hood, stood behind him.

"Doesn't look good, Obi." One of them muttered.

"Look good?" Nya yelled, "He's been stabbed you blundering idiot. Get the hell out of here before—before I—"

The newcomers looked at each other and adjusted their masks to ride higher up on their noses. Jay vaguely wondered why they weren't coming back to finish off the job of killing them all. The one of them brought out what looked like a fire extinguisher, but was smaller and black. The nozzle began spraying a light, chamomile smelling gas over them.

Jay yawned sleepily, realising that he hadn't slept in a long time.

"That's it," whispered the one who had commented on Ray's current state of bleeding out. "Close your eyes."

"Everything will be okay," the third person finally said.

Even on his way to sleep, Jay could tell they were lying.

zane

The streets were filled with unorganised chaos. Several shops had broken front windows, ransacked insides and a sobbing owner out front. Zane wished he could help them, but he needed to find Evan and his father. Logically, they would be at home, ergo that was where he was headed. However, he had been delayed by the cars that had been stolen by rioters and driven down the streets recklessly, swerving to avoid a bomb crater that had just been activated.

Zane was afraid.

He kept reminding himself that really, he couldn't feel afraid, because that was a human emotion and he was an android. Yet the more he puzzled over everything, and saw destruction that had wrecked the city, criminals, gang members, and even citizens who had grown tired and angry of life joining in on the catastrophe of the situation, he realised he was feeling fear.

Perhaps that was what scared him the most.

Realising that even a person of metal could tell that this was all wrong.

Eventually, he made it home and began searching the house. He found his father in the basement, still working on a project with precise care. A few minutes later, Evan came stumbling into the workshop with his backpack and a harried expression. Zane hugged his brother tightly and used a newly discovered feature, switched to droid mode, to scan for any injuries. The result tested negative and he heaved a sigh of relief.

"Father, we must leave and travel to the Smith's house immediately, the elemental masters and I have communicated and they are all meeting there, and we must be somewhere safe if they start looking for us."

"What?" Dr Julien lifted an earmuff of his ear. "Do you know why the walls have been shaking, Zane?"

At his words, the walls shook again. The Sons of Garmadon must have deployed another bomb.

"They're bombing the city, father. Everything is in chaos, and elemental masters were directly called out—"

"But...my tools?" His father frowned. "Ignore that. It's all right, I will take what is needed. Zane, you and Evan pack what you need. We'll leave in five minutes."

Zane was proud of his father for taking charge in such a dangerous situation - he really was being the father he promised to try and be, even though it took him a nudge to get started. Evan was already in his room packing what he needed, and Zane moved to his. His school bag was barely holding together so he changed it out for a duffel bag and carefully packed some clothes, his phone and a book inside.

In the kitchen, he grabbed non-perishables that were of small size and snack quality and added them to his bag, as well as three bottles of water. He was looking through the kitchen drawer when he found a pocket knife. His gaze lingered on it, unsure for a second, and then a barbaric yell in the distance prompted him to take it.

He ran down to the basement to check on his father, who surprisingly had his two bags of belongings and tools packed and ready. Dr Julien gave Zane a sharp, determined nod and marched up the stairs with him to the front door. Evan was already waiting there, hopping from foot to foot impatiently.

The Juliens set off at a reasonable pace, and Zane used his internal GPS to keep them using back alleyways leading to the Smith's house. They were at the house in fifteen minutes, though Zane was aware that something was wrong. The lights on the second floor had been turned on, but not on the bottom floor. The front door was also open and had not been shut.

Zane left his father and Evan in the kitchen, noting the abandoned instant noodle and tea cups with suspicion. Although this confirmed his friends had been there, where they had gone worried him more. When he went up the staircase and stopped to scan the hallway, his systems picked up the presence of three life forms sleeping. It confused him why Nya and Kai would be sleeping in a dangerous time like this, and who else would be there but he pushed open the door and found out why.

The expressions on their faces indicated they were pleased to be asleep - perhaps an outside source had done this to them? The only relatively relaxed face belonged to Jay, of all people to be there, yet a frown was still on his face in slumber. Zane began shaking his friends awake, and they roused slowly, yawning and stretching as their brains sharpened out of a sleepy haze.

He frowned as he examined the room. The big window wall had two vaguely human shaped holes in them, shards of glass decorating the floor by the window. Over by the dresser, there was a large puddle of blood that was caked, half dried, and a trail of splatters leading to it. A deserted katana, shield and trident lay on the floor, all tipped slightly with blood.

"Wha—where are those bastards I need to—" Kai jumped to his feet and leaned out of the window, growling in frustration at something missing. "Wait. Where's...?"

Nya blinked as if clearing her mindi and looked around. "Those people must have taken them. We have to go after them right now! Oh, they messed with the wrong family."

"What happened?" Zane said gently, leading Nya and Kai away from the cracked window. "Why is there blood on the floor?"

Kai and Nya both froze, staring at the splotches of blood painting the floor. Jay saw neither of them was in a right state to speak and turned to Zane, even he was reluctant to speak.

"Ray...was stabbed by a Sons of Garmadon member."

"It was her again," Kai spat. "White hair, two knives and a sword."

Nya remained quiet, but bent to pick up the fallen metal trident from the floor. A real weapon, with sharp points and a glinting body. "They took them."

Zane was shocked at the sibling's unusual syncrasy fueled by anger, but it seemed reasonable. If his father, Evan, or Pixal was hurt he'd be just as angered. It seemed this person had come in contact with them before, and had endangered them previously. The silence was unnerving, the siblings tense and Jay weary. A ping from Zane's phone interrupted them.

Heaving a sigh of relief, Zane read the messages aloud. "Cole says he's on the way. Pixal is en route as well, however, Skylor still has not responded, and Lloyd said he has something to care of."

"We have to wait for them," Jay said softly, looking to Nya. "We all have to be together, and then we can look for Wu. Wu can solve this."

"He said...Garmadon is coming." Kai muttered vaguely, beginning to pace around the room. "What exactly are the Sons of Garmadon planning? They've already started these crazy riots, they've so called 'nullified' our fucking powers, what are they gonna do, put someone on the throne?"

There was silence.

"Oh my god they're going to put someone on the throne," Kai shrieked to himself. Zane watched, slightly concerned for the mental state his friend was in. "They killed the Emperor and the Empress on live television, of course they're going to want to replace them—"

"PUT HIM ON, PUT HIM ON, PUT HIM ON, PUT HIM ON—"

"What on earth is that racket?" complained his father, having appeared from behind Zane. "What are they saying?"

"Put him on," Nya said. "Put who? On what?"

"PUT HIM ON, PUT HIM ON, PUT HIM ON, PUT HIM ON!" The shouting continued, growing louder and louder, accompanied by the steady thrum of footsteps. "WE DON'T WANT LIARS TO LEAD US."

"Garmadon," Zane breathed, having connected all the pieces of the puzzle. "Wu said it himself, Garmadon wants power. He's taken everyone out, incited rebellion and outrage, he's planned this chaos perfectly."

He looked to his friends in despair at the foreboding realisation.

"Garmadon will be the new Emperor."

lloyd

What the hell was he even doing here?

He kept watching the drain cover in the alleyway like he was expecting an elevator to pop out of it. But nothing did. Lloyd looked at the only message his father had sent him.

unknown number: behind murray's. macarena three times on the cover

Admittedly, Lloyd did feel he'd looked a little stupid stomping on a manhole like a little kid throwing a whiny tantrum, but there was less of the crying and more dancing. He wouldn't have been here for any other reason, except he'd been messaged by his mother to follow his instructions.

Here he was, trying to contact his father.

By doing the macarena.

Reluctantly, he walked over to the manhole cover and stood on it, making sure his back was facing the open end of the alleyway so no one would recognise him. No one was going to though, people were too busy torching their city and destroying it. Lloyd sighed, closed his eyes and imagined the tune playing in his head, doing the movements so fast it almost looked as if he was possessed by a ghost.

After performing the dance three times, Lloyd stood on the cover expectantly and stared at his feet. One second the metal cover was there, the next he was plummeting down into the sewers. His shout of surprise was tangled in his throat, and the strangled sound that came out was echoed by a sploosh as he landed ankle deep in murky water.

There was a dark figure standing opposite him, silent and unmoving. They set off without a word and Lloyd trudged through the water to the raised walkways on either side to make pace with the agent scout. It felt like forever in which Lloyd was walking in silence with a mysterious scout who had two swords crossed over their back in a dangerous X shape.

If he tried to run, he had a feeling that he wouldn't make it out of these tunnels alive.

He was intrigued, however, to find that they stopped along at three other posted scouts, and his 'babysitter' exchanged low talk - probably code phrases or something with them. After the third guard, there was a set of thick iron doors that hissed as they slid aside.

"Okay, how the fuck is it fair that I was blindfolded when I was brought in, but this guy waltzes the Swan Lake like he's got nothing better to do?" Someone was shouting loudly and his guard shook his head.

"Lord never shoulda started recruiting young. First comes Reaper, and before you know it I've got ten kids to babysit."

Lloyd kept quiet, wisely, he realised, as the ruckus from the girl was getting louder and all attention was drawn to her. They were standing in a gigantic hall, designed like the inside of a massive warehouse, but ten times more efficient. To his left was a massive training course, taking up half of the area. The areas were sectioned with different types of flooring.

The path Lloyd was on was of a smooth black material, leading to a door directly opposite him. The right side was sliced into half, another black path running through the middle to divide it. The floor inside the sections were like gym mats, less stinky, but the people training there weren't using it for highschool gym. They were sparring ruthlessly, fighting dummies or going through training.

Lloyd knew the Sons of Garmadon were organised, but this level of perfectly structured ranks and training was beyond what he'd ever thought capable of a street gang. The girl, he saw now, was actually sparring and yelling at the same time. Her voice vaguely rang a bell, but Lloyd couldn't pinpoint where he knew her from.

"You couldn't tell me they still had a hit on me? It's not that hard Troya!" The girl stepped up her series of attacks, but it was obvious who had more experience on their side.

"Well, I didn't tell you that they didn't not have a target for you. Really, you should have guessed it yourself. Did Thorn not teach you to always be aware of your enemies?"

"Thorn didn't teach me that some asshole from school knew who I actually was, and would try to kill me and my friends! You think I wanted to come back here? I don't even know if I can trust you anymore!"

"Actually? Who is she? What school does she go to?" Lloyd felt he was obliged to a few questions to answer his curiosity. Additionally, he had to find out where his father was to see what his mother had sent him to parely over.

His babysitter looked at him and then shrugged. "You know, it's ironic. We finally have an actual son of Garmadon here."

"You didn't answer my question," Lloyd whined, exasperated.

"Didn't have to. Hey, Troya! Can Reaper take Garmadon up to see the Lord?"

Finally! Lloyd cheered internally. We're getting somewhere.

"He's not in," 'Troya' replied, stripping off her boxing gear and leaving the sparring area. "Rea and her little gang of misfits can keep him company in her quarters until we decided what we're going to do with them."

"We're right here!" Lloyd and 'Rea' indignantly choroused in unison. They both scowled at each other, the younger girl packing away wraps and gloves into a locker. Her face seemed familiar, and Lloyd was trying to remember where he'd seen her before. Her face had very distinct sharp features, dark eyes and a scowl still on her face.

"Wait a minute, I know you — you're Astra Harlow. You disappeared from Jay's english class for like, three weeks!"

"Finally caught on, have you?" She said dryly, looking to Troya. "Do I really have to babysit him?"

"No one has to babysit me!" He insisted loudly. "She's basically my age! How is that fair?"

"She has training," His previous guard said. "I mean, not a lot of it, but she's been trained."

"Gee thanks, Ty." Astra narrowed her eyes, and then switched her gaze to Lloyd. He was feeling very attacked right now. "What Typhoon said is true. I have more training than you have right now, and trust me, I don't want to babysit the Lord's kid."

Then she grabbed him by the arm and dragged him out, all the while muttering under her breath like she was about to hex him with some magical power. Lloyd considered pulling back, but every few metres a new SOG member would walk by and call some greeting to Astra, shooting confused looks at Lloyd which he reciprocated.

"Who the hell did they bring in? Bleeding all over the place, it's like they're trying to kill me." She shuddered, scowling heavily.

Suddenly, she stopped and whirled around.

"Riptide?"

Lloyd slowly turned in a circle. No one was there.

"Fuck." She swore and then rubbed at her temples. "Keep moving, Garmadon Junior."

Lloyd would have opted not to - after all, he could probably use some of the weedy strength to overthrow her and run. However, she had two daggers sheathed at her side, a katana on the other, a bow slung across her back and a quiver of feathered metal arrows.

Why was everyone carrying weapons that could skewer him at any moment?

He did notice that sometimes she'd stopped and looked around, but that lessened as she slowed her pace outside an unmarked door. She pressed her fingers to the door and the handle unlocked itself, opening slowly. Lloyd slipped in and she followed behind. The room was filled with bunk beds and curtains to be sectioned off for privacy, along with closest separating the beds.

Three of those lower bunks were taken up by three people who also stirred memories in the back of his mind.

Astra dropped her bow and quiver to a bed that looked messier and more personalised than others, nodding to each of the randoms in the room.

"Kade," The blonde kid waved at him. He looked like a twelve year old on steroids, who was still awkwardly growing.

"Annabella," A petite girl with a notebook she was sketching in, nodded at Lloyd in greeting.

"And Zander." The last guy waved, though it was more cautious than Kade.

"Who's that?" Lloyd noticed a lump on a fourth bunk, clearly unconscious. Whether it was voluntary or not was another question.

Astra scowled. "Jake."

"The guy from the football team?" Lloyd cocked his head at the lump.

Annabella nodded. "He tried to kill us, so I knocked him out and trussed him up like a turkey. If only I could actually cook him alive. Bitch."

"More, specifically, Astra," Kade said. "She hasn't told us a lot of stuff, like how a Serpentine gang member is after her, so we didn't expect getting shot at in the middle of the Woodlands."

Astra shot Kade an accusatory glare. "Don't start on that. You didn't tell me that you were the elemental master of healing, or that you were on the football team, or—"

"Well you didn't tell me you were running around with the Sons of Garmadon or that you were an elemental master too! How was I supposed to know you were one so I could tell you?"

"Then it applies to me as well! How would I know if‚—"

"Wait, you guys are elemental masters too?" Lloyd spluttered. Can they actually use their powers? He couldn't help the bitter, jealous thoughts spinning through his mind when he'd never even seen a sign of Energy.

"Yeah," Astra raised an eyebrow. "Except Kade's the only one that can actually do something with his power. What's your element?"

"Energy." Lloyd mumbled, barely audible. He kicked at the ground and tried to assume an aloft, mysterious persona of his element. "Yours?"

"Death," Astra muttered with equal reluctance. "I know it sounds kooky, but I don't even know how to use it."

"Join the club," He laughed hoarsely, feeling his spine relax now he was in a more comfortable situation. "Do you know where my father is?"

Astra shook her head. "I've been on the run all day, but he hasn't logged in at all since last night. Why?"

"My mother sent me to—" Ping! Lloyd frowned in confusion and took out his phone, gasping in surprise at the activity on a new groupchat.

music man: lloyd where the hell are you???

LLOYD?????

kai the fry: LLOYD ANSWER US RIGHT FUCKING NOW

Me: what's happening?

punchy girl: lloyd where are you? we need to regroup and get out of the city to wu after we find my parents

Me: wait what happened to your parents?? arent they supposed to be out of town?

noodle lady: is lloyd not with you guys??

pixxxal: sky that is very hypocritical since you aren't with us right now either!

Me: wait are all of you at home?

punchy girl: yeah, everyone but you and skylor! pixal and cole got here ten minutes ago. now where the hell are you???

Lloyd grimaced as he typed.

Me: i may or may not be with the sons of garmadon?

mrbulletcar: that is so incredibly stupid...but also fritz donnegan worthy. respect man

kai the fry: LLOYD THATS LITERAGLY THE WORST PLACE OT BE RIGHT NOW

DO YOU KNO WWHERE GARMADGON IS RN??

Me: noooooo apparently hes 'out'. why?

kai the fry: BECAUSE HES TRYING TO TAKE OVER NIJAGO CITH BY BEIANG EMPEROR AND PROASBALY THE MAYOAR TOO

Me: well thats not good

kai the fry: OF COURSE ITS NOT GOOD YOU NEED OT FINS HIM RN BEFORG HEA CAN DOB ANYTGTHING SINCE HE GOB RIW OF EVERONY

Me: ok

Lloyd looked up and winced. Probably not a good idea to tell his friends' theory to a literal agent of the SOG, but he needed someone on the inside who could get him to his father. Make him stand down or something.

"So, apparently Garmadon is trying to take over the city?" His voice quirked up at the end, followed by a nervous chuckle and Lloyd wringing his hands. "And I really need to talk to my dad...for some reason. Also, it would be kind of bad if he took over Ninjago, so, do you mind helping?"

Astra crossed her arms and snorted. "That's believable."

"Is she being sarcastic?" Lloyd whispered to Zander. He shook his head, tilting it and shrugging like it was the norm. "So you'll help me?"

Astra paused, and then nodded, beginning to strap on her weapons again. "I have some beef to settle with Big G, anyway. He killed Riptide."

"Who's Riptide?" Annabella said, voicing the question Lloyd really wanted to know the answer to.

"He was my friend. Not like, ew, hell no, Za, stop looking at me like that. He was like a brother to me, but he was killed by someone — and right now, I'm sussing that Garmadon had someone do it, in the school gym."

"He was the history teacher?" Lloyd didn't know what else to say. "I'm sorry. I know that does absolutely nothing, but—"

"Let's just go find Garmadon." Astra was already at the door, looking back to her other friends. "Do you...wanna come?"

Lloyd looked down to his phone, seeing his friends babbling madly to him. "It doesn't matter. We have to go, now."

Kade, Zander and Annabella jumped to their feet, looking nervously confident in their friend. Astra led the way out from the dormitory, pausing before every corner to scout ahead. Lloyd followed closing behind, all the while trying to figure what he was going to say to his dad. Perhaps something along the lines of, father, maybe you, a crime lord with plans that certainly can't be good, after murdering about five incredibly important rulers and people and trying to kill my friend's dad, shouldn't try to take over the city? Please? S'il vous plait?

Too focused on his big speech, Lloyd hadn't realised Astra stopped to look at her watch and bumped into her. She turned to swear extensively at him, finishing off with, "Garmadon just logged back in, but he's set something to leave for in five minutes. And he's taken out a bike."

"Where do you think he'll be?" Kade whispered, extremely agitated as he looked over his shoulder again.

"Okay, okay!" Astra suddenly snapped, jabbing a finger at the air in front of her. "He's in the media room."

"How do you—"

"I think I'm talking to the ghost of Riptide, it's either that, or my imagination is running wild. Pick it up." She was already running down another corridor and Lloyd picked up the pace as suggested.

When he levelled with Astra, she looked at her watch again, and then to the space around her. "I really shouldn't be telling you this, but our media rooms have access to all television networks, billboards and TV's in Ninjago. The only reason I think he's in there is if—"

"He's planning to announce it publicly," Lloyd finished as Astra held back a hand to halt them.

"We're here." She announced in a stage whisper. "Hold tight, I'm going to get back up."

She took off and Lloyd stood awkwardly with her friends. He didn't really talk to anyone outside his friend group but Harumi, really. Harumi! Lloyd startled himself, and took out his phone to send her a million messages. The delivered icon underneath went through, but she hadn't read any of them yet.

When it was truly getting awkward, Astra came jogging back, this time with another person. A lanky boy who was about Lloyd's height, but carried a metal duck in his arms.

"This is Titanium, Master of Metal. Kade, Master of Healing. Lloyd, Master of Energy, and Annabella and Zander."

Lloyd nodded to him, gaining some understanding as to why he was carrying a metal duck in his arms. There's so many more elemental masters than I thought.

"Garmadon's been using us for his dirty work, and he's trying to take over the city. We think he's going to use our systems to hack into the video network of Ninjago to announce it." She jerked her head over to the door on the right. "That's the viewing room, next to where the studio is. I say we go in, wait until he's filming and then ambush him."

"With what, exactly?" Zander raised a brow and waved a hand to Titanium. "This guy's duck?"

Astra nodded. "Exactly that."

She had a habit of not waiting for other people, Lloyd noticed. It wasn't a pro at all, as she slipped into the room with the gait of a wraith in the shadows. He and the rest stumbled in clumsily, Titanium nearly dropping his duck. What exactly Astra's plan for that was, remained unexplained.

The viewing room was literally one long couch and a gigantic TV. The screen was black, for now, but everyone was anticipating Garmadon to come on the screen right now. It went unsaid that you kept quiet - after all, it was obvious his father was in the room to the left and if their cover was blown, the announcement would go on.

Astra was fiddling with her weapons, carefully placing her bow and her quiver on the floor, leaving her with her swords and some knives. Lloyd really wished he had some sort of defense in case his father blew up, but he'd have to rely on Astra and Titanium to cover his back while he talked/ambushed his father. Astra was nodding to herself, tightening the ends of her braids.

Lloyd watched as she looked to Titanium, nodding before motioning for everyone to stand up. Her right hand was already on the hilt of her sword, her left hand forming a three with her fingers. She counted down, putting each finger down until she reached one and her hand crept to the doorknob.

In a flash, she had opened the door and tumbled forwards in a roll, her katana raised.

The thing was, there was no one to fight against.

"Where the fuck is Garmadon?" Astra snapped, circling the room to check for any hiding places.

It was clear his father wasn't there - he was a tall, broad shouldered man who wouldn't have fit in any of the nooks or crannies. The cameras and spotlights were all set up to face a chair backed with a green screen fabric.

"Guys..." Kade called them over from the other room, his jaw hung open slightly as he stared at the screen.

An old-fashioned timer was counting down from ten, the screen flecked with white speckles and flickering slightly. Lloyd glanced at his phone to see if Harumi had replied - but instead, the exact same counter was there. Zander, Kade and Annabella all checked their phones with the same result.

The counter ticked to three.

"But...if Garmadon isn't here, where is he?" Annabella, once again, uncannily voiced their questions.

The screen, for a split second, went black, before revealing a wall of white. Lloyd held his breath as he waited, expecting his father to stride on screen with someone's bloody body slung onto his back.

Instead, Morro walked into view.

His father had roped Morro into this too?

Morro still had not spoken, and stood to the left of the single black chair the camera was focused on.

"Ninjago," He began slowly, the lock of green hair falling forwards. "We have plundered you to make you clean again. Ridding the streets and fancy mansions of the people who have lied to you, to help you. We have heard your chants, your protests and your call for a new, honest, ruler. One that has true claim to the throne. To cleanse this city for the new emperor, the new supreme ruler of Ninjago."

NO! Lloyd wanted to shout out against his cousin. How can you let a murdering snake like my father gain power?

"Citizens, please meet your new ruler, Emperor Garmadon."

In walked a cloaked figure, posture a little more stooped and height shorter than Lloyd remembered his dad. Perhaps it was just the camera angle. His heart hammering in his chest, Lloyd watched as the figure sat down, and pulled back their hood, and he, along with everyone else in the room gasped.

The 'Emperor Garmadon' his cousin had been talking about wasn't Lloyd's father.

It was Wu Garmadon.

A/N:

-dommie out

-OKAY BUT THANKS FOR 5K READS AND 600 COMMENTS POG