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"Iron sharpens iron. Brother sharpens brother."
~ The Ninja

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Kai glared at the door menacingly. The fire ninja was a short-tempered individual but living amongst the ninja and finding a family with them had helped curb the anger and heal the hurt buried underneath. The rage turned into irritation on most occasions. It was a lot easier to control annoyance and it was a lot easier for his friends to tolerate it as well. But every once in and while the old Kai shows through, and when that happens it's like there's a storm cloud over his head, thundering and roaring every scowl.

"Hey," Cole said, approaching him after a few minutes of watching the brunette cautiously from the other side of the room. "What's going on? Are you okay?"

"What?" Kai finally broke out of his staring contest with the door. His tone came out a lot sharper than he meant and Cole blinked in surprise. Kai felt a stab of guilt at the concern and he forced himself to speak softer. "I'm just... waiting for Lloyd."

"He's going to be out for a while. You know how he is with those comic books." Cole reminded him with a smile.

"Yeah, he could stay there for hours," Kai agreed grudgingly, rubbing the back of his neck. Lloyd did quite like his comic books. It was one of the interests he'd been able to keep after being aged up, given that there was a rather large age range for the hobby. Kai had never known how large the comic book fan community was until he'd gone to a sale with Zane in search of Christmas presents. He'd never seen so many crazy nerds in his life! He'd also never been trampled by so many crazy nerds in his life. Zane had to use his metal body to his advantage to shove his way through and rescue Kai.

Remember all those times Lloyd lost track of time because he was reading, Kai thought as logically as he could. There's no need to worry. Yet his gaze couldn't help but slide back to the front entrance.

"You think something's wrong?" Cole pressed. Dang
it. Kai shook his head, lips twitching upwards a bit. They all knew him too well.

"Not... wrong per se," Kai was hesitant to make assumptions. "Lloyd seemed off this morning, that's all."

Cole frowned. "I noticed that too. He was a lot quieter. But he gets nervous before every interview."

"You're probably right," Kai sighed, moving from his leaning position against the wall. "It's probably nothing."

The earth ninja raised his hand to stop him. "I didn't say that. You're one of the closest with Lloyd and if you think something's up I believe you."

"But I also can be paranoid," Kai reminded him. "You know I like to jump to conclusions. I just don't want anything bad to happen."

"Something bad is happening?" A voice cut in, alarmed. Both of the boys groaned and turned to see Jay joining them. His face was panicked even as he was reaching into a half-empty bag of potato chips. "Did someone die?"

"No one's dead, Jay." Kai rolled his eyes.

Cole raised an eyebrow at his friend. "Why is that the first thing you think when someone talks about bad news?"

The curly-haired boy scowled. "Dying is bad news!"

"Someone's dying?" Nya shrieked from the kitchen.

"NO!" Kai yelled back and he turned to give Jay a scathing look. "I was just talking about Lloyd, it's no big deal."

"LLOYD IS DYING?"

"Oh my god, Nya! If you want to join the conversation, don't be in another room!" Kai snapped.

"Wait, I'm confused! Lloyd is involved in someone dying?" Jay questioned, tugging on Kai's sleeve.

First spinjiztu master, Kai smacked himself in the face with his palm and let his hand slide down his cheek.

"There is no death," Cole soothed. "Kai and I were just thinking Lloyd was acting a little off today."

"Oh." Jay tilted his head to the side. The movement made him look like a confused puppy. "I didn't notice anything."

"That's not surprising," Kai muttered under his breath.

"Do you think he's having another 'Blah Day'?" His tone was gentler now, with more understanding and less panicked interrogation.

"Maybe, it's hard to tell with him lately." Kai struggled not to let his frustration show. A "Blah Day" was their oversimplified way of saying their mental health wasn't doing that well. That could mean trauma was coming up, general anxiousness, other negative emotions stemming from the things they were dealing with, or other various reasons. It used to be easy to see when Lloyd was having a Blah Day. He'd been a recently made teen struggling to process emotions. He'd worn his heart blazingly in his sleeve and it almost felt like he'd left his book out in the open for all to read with how much the kid would give away in one look. But lately, Lloyd had been keeping things a lot more private and close to the chest and Kai had always been good at cluing into the younger's tells it had become rather difficult to pin down what was going on in Lloyd's mind.

"He'll come to us if he needs help though, right?" Jay looked sad now.

"Yeah," Kai forced some confidence into his tone. He wasn't sure if he was convincing Jay or himself. "He will. He knows we all have his back. It's probably nothing anyways... maybe he's just tired from working so hard."

Jay nodded, brightening some before he ran off to go finish his snack. Cole and Kai exchanged a look, something uncertain passing between them before the earth elemental wandered away as well. Kai stuck right by the door, his feet seeming to be rooted to the ground. He checked his phone, hoping to see a complaint about Gayle's pushiness or a dorky text about the newest comic Lloyd'd found. He was met with only a few messages from Zane adding to their grocery list and a greeting from Dareth with a horrifying selfie.

"Stop texting me," Kai huffed, deleting the messages. As he went through his apps his eyes were immediately drawn to the Find My Phone widget. Though all the ninjas were too lazy to set the app up it reminded Kai of the trackers they all had for when villains randomly attacked and tried to hurt, murder, or kidnap them (if the villains really wanted to make things spicy they'd go for all of the above). Suddenly it was a whole lot easier to move. The fire ninja was running to the secret room behind the television before he even knew it. Pixal was there, as per usual, tinkering away at one of their mechs. She greeted him half-heartedly, not really paying attention, and Kai barely even acknowledged her in return. There was stirring uncomfortably in his gut that he couldn't shake off. He swiftly went through the security procedures on the main computer and tapped to where he could view their trackers. The map lit up, little coloured dots blinking away reassuringly. Kai could see Jay and Nya in the kitchen, Cole in the living space (most likely playing video games and devouring slice after slice of cake), and Pixal and himself in the base. He pressed for the voice receiver, the satisfying ding sounded and a microphone appeared on the screen.

"Expand view." He commanded. There was a clatter as Pixal put down her things, sliding out from whatever project she'd been working on to watch him curiously. Kai went to explain to her when the screen flashed and a message appeared in red.

Error: could not understand 'Stand blue.'

Kai groaned, suddenly understanding why Wu liked to go on and on about the struggles of the technological world.

"EX-PAN-DUH VIEW," Kai repeated, raising his voice and enunciating each sound.

A little animation of a spinjitzu tornado spinning showed that the computer was loading and Kai pressed his lips together, tapping his fingers impatiently on the keyboard. After a few seconds of waiting the computer flashed green but before Kai could celebrate the screen was filled with a live cam from the zoo of the panda exhibit. Searched for: 'Panda view.' Kai let out a string of curses and gave the thing a good kick for a little extra satisfaction before he typed out what he wanted into the bar. At last, the computer understood and the monastery map became smaller, the individual rooms marked out fading away as the city appeared. Kai's brow furrowed as he slid along the streets, not seeing the glowing green dot anywhere. He even specifically looked for him at the comic book store and the NGTV building.

"Stupid piece of-!" Kai hissed, continuing his previous cussing so he could insult the computer's mother. Pixal came up behind him quickly, seeming to sense something that she should step in before he got too personal. She gently nudged him aside so she could access the controls and he reluctantly stepped away.

"Find Lloyd," Pixal said easily, not even looking up as she typed in additional controls. The computer automatically understood with no problems, only adding to Kai's irritation as the map moved, widening even more and following where Lloyd's tracker is. They both frowned as it dragged away from the city, all the way to a remote area far from where Lloyd said he would be.

"Where is this?" Kai demanded, leaning forward. "Hey! Computer! WHERE IS-"

"It is an unidentified area of the forest below Mount Nüwa." Pixal interrupted. "Did Lloyd have a mission out there?"

"No," Kai said grimly. "He didn't."

- 🌸 -

It was very unfortunate timing for Lloyd when he was pinned on the ceiling, hiding from the people roaming below, that his comm decided to buzz insistently in his ear. There was a button he could press to turn it off but unfortunately, he'd need one of his hands for that and both of them were currently occupied with keeping his body flat against the roof like an insect. The blonde pressed his lips together as he tried to ignore the vibrations tickling his ear and focused in on the investigators below. They weren't particularly exciting, mostly they just poked at things, took pictures, placed stuff in bags, etc. Lloyd tried not to roll his eyes as they picked up a rock that had been most likely been kicked on someone's boot and treated it like it could be a magical stone.

Just as Lloyd was questioning if his sanity could take any more nonsensical bustling, the door opened to reveal a very young girl. She was short and stocky and looked to be around twelve to sixteen with big round glasses and rosy cheeks. Her hair fell just above her shoulders and it was very curly, springing in various directions without much care. The person in charge of the investigation, who Lloyd had learned to identify as Margaret Russo, stepped towards her and welcomed the teen, along with the officers who'd brought her there. The whole search team stared at the newcomer with the same surprised, almost incredulous, curiosity Lloyd felt.

"Why'd you bring a kid here?" One older man demanded. He narrowed his eyes at the girl and she shrunk under the room's scrutiny.

"This is Abigail Allen, she's a student at the Ninjago City University," Russo introduced her, guiding Abigail forward.

So, most likely above sixteen, Lloyd grimaced a little. Apparently, he's not very great at estimating ages. Either that or Abigail just has a very youthful look to her.

"She's been studying the supernatural since she was very young and already has completed a lot of very successful research." Officer Russo continued. "Some even more extensive than our best scientists and historians." Her coworker let out a snort but he didn't add anything to it, only turning his nose up with a little huff.

"We were hoping you could offer your input on the area itself before you look closely at the evidence we gathered." Russo encouraged her with a smile.

Abigail moved forward, somewhat awkwardly, and began studying the worn cottage-like walls, the overflowing shelves crowding up the space, the tiny lab built around the even smaller fireplace, and the bed messily made in the corner, an I.V pole beside it. Her interest only seemed to grow as she stepped farther into the room, sliding right under where Lloyd was tucked between the roof and a shelf. He sucked in his breath, staying as still as he could despite the strain his arms and legs were starting to feel. He had been beyond lucky that none of the investigators had started searching around his hiding area but it would take a miracle to get that lucky again, especially when all she had to do was look up and peer a little more closely at the shadowed corner. The buzzing started up again and Lloyd tried not to scratch at his ear with the unpleasant feeling, praying to his grandfather that whoever it was would hang up.

"Well," Abigail started. "You should check the contents of the bag hanging on the I.V pole. It could have remnants of healing substances still inside it." Officer Russo looked a little surprised but she nodded.

"Alright. Jackson? You handle that." She jerked her head to the person who'd objected before. He scowled but did as told.

"I also want to get a scan of this place," the girl extended an arm across the room. "With the right technology, we could pick up signs of elemental powers, as long as it hasn't been too long since they were last used."

Lloyd's hand slipped in his shock and he had to quickly recover. The investigators below stared at Abigail with jaws slack and open.

"Do you know where we could get that technology?" Russo asked slowly.

Abigail nodded, blushing slightly. "I collaborated with a friend and we were able to do quite a few successful prototypes. We're fine-tuning it currently but if we got some professional help I'm sure we could come up with something more streamlined than what we have."

"That would be very beneficial indeed." Russo tilted her head thoughtfully. "An invention like that could start some truly... innovative tech."

Abigail was practically glowing from the praise. "Some of those artifacts look familiar as well. I'd like to compare them with some of my notes before I confirm anything." She said with forced professionalism, despite the fact she was bursting with excitement.

"Well, choose a few things from our current evidence and we can help you get what you need," Russo concluded. She turned to the rest. "Okay everyone, time to pack up for today. Don't forget anything that needs to be brought in. We'll return tomorrow for further investigation."

They all nodded seriously. In far less time than it took to arrive, they all swiftly put away the evidence they'd packaged and any equipment brought with them. Abigail hand-chose a few things from the pile: a smooth purple stone, an amulet forged to look like a lotus and a tiny clay statue with figures carved into it. Lloyd squinted, trying to get a closer look at the items but she'd tucked them away before he could see them. Then with one last glance behind her, Abigail exited the room and Russo shut the door behind her.

One second... two seconds...

Lloyd remained in his spot, his eyes glued to the door and his ears listening to the retreating footsteps.

Three seconds... four seconds...

Still, Lloyd did not budge, only the small inhale and exhale of his breathing could be heard.

Five seconds... Six seconds...

It wasn't until five minutes had passed that Lloyd slowly levered himself down the ground, a small grunt escaping his lips as he rotated his shoulder and bounced on his toes. His muscles twinged in protest and his fingers were blistered slightly from holding on for so long but he'd held on well. The ninja sighed and decided he'd take a nice soak in the hot tub when he returned to the monastery. Wu would complain but Lloyd was willing to ignore the pointed remarks to lessen the ache in his spine. He gave one last stretch before he turned to survey the room, an eerie feeling creeping up his spine as he looked at the dark, cramped space. He'd only taken one step further when his communicator signalled to him for the third time and with patience wearing thin Lloyd jabbed into the button that answered the call.

"This better not be about Jay getting his head stuck in the stair rail again." Lloyd grouched loudly, nudging at a tapestry with the dull edge of his katana. The fabric fluttered back to normal without
much happening.

"No, it's nothing like that!" Nya said a little too sweetly, the same voice she used when Jay had blown a good chunk of money on something nerdy. Lloyd froze, all too familiar with the dangers of that voice.

"Is... everything okay?"

"Of course! Why wouldn't it be?" Nya laughed, a scary high-pitched sound. "We were just wondering how you were doing! Read any good comics?"

"Comics?" The boy was so thrown off by her that he'd forgotten about where he said he'd be. "Oh yeah! Uh-totally! Lots of good stuff. Tell Jay there's an all-new edition of Princess Cupcake I picked up for him."

"THERE IS?" Jay's voice shrieked through the speaker. Lloyd winced and turned down the volume. It had sounded strangely close to him. Maybe Zane had made an update to them. The theory was completely demolished when the door suddenly slammed open. Lloyd raised his sword, preparing to have to fight his way through a bunch of armed officers when familiar, furious faces greeted him.

"Crap." Was all Lloyd could say as Jay tackled him to the ground with a slightly strangling hug, babbling something about death and comics. The green ninja struggled to shove the boy off and heaved himself into a sitting position. When he looked up he was met with a steady glare from both of the Smith siblings boring into him.

Crap indeed.

NOTE****
Oof sorry, this got a whole lot longer than I intended. Someone commented previously that they liked shorter chapters. What does everyone else want? Shorter, around 1000 words, more in the middle where I've been currently aiming for close to 2000, or where I am now around 3000? Please comment your thoughts!

Anywho! Finally got the ninja in this! Sorry that there's been little action from Harumi, I promise she's coming in soon! I'll try to drag out the slow burn a little less.

A third apology for how long it took me to update this damn thing lol. I had some REALLY bad writer's block and it came back to me at 11:30 at night when I was trying to get to sleep early for school.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and are having a super fabtabulous day!

Happy reading!

LuckyBugBooks 🐞