Keres smirked, watching from her hiding place. She'd honestly expected the window sill to be less comfy than it was.

She stopped thinking about how she'd like to take a nap when distant footsteps echoed through the hallway, getting closer with each step. The night watchman (aka the guy Morro was possessing) led the Green Ninja into her room, closing and locking the door behind him.

"I was knocked out," the 'night watchman' said. "When I came to, I found only two things were stolen, and neither of them were even on display. Just some old play script and a worthless, old armour breastplate they call the Allied Armour of Azure."

"Why would a thief leave these priceless artifacts and just take those?" Lloyd frowned and inspected the boxes that previously held the script and breastplate.

Keres grinned and shoved the script further into her pocket. She didn't know why her cousin had been adamant on retrieving it, since the power it gave wasn't even that helpful, but whatever. As long as she got her revenge, she was happy.

Happy. Ha. If she wasn't on a stealth mission, Keres would've laughed at the notion. Haven't felt that emotion in years.

"Oh, I don't know about the script, but as for the breastplate..." The man approached Lloyd turned back, the hammer Keres laid out for him earlier in his hand. "Maybe it's because when you're in trouble, they say it's got the power to summon allies, whether they be friends, foes...even spirits from the Cursed Realm."

"The Cursed Realm?" Lloyd frowned. "I know some people who went there recently..." He turned and gasped at the sight. He ducked as the watchman swung his hammer, completely missing the ninja.

Morro turned and swung again, narrowly missing an ancient vase in the process. Meanwhile, Keres jumped down from the top of the window. "Nice to meet ya again, Green Ninja."

"Keres!" Lloyd gasped. He glanced down at what she was wearing. "The Allied Armour! The police were right! You did break in."

Keres's laughter rang through the room. "The police didn't make that call. They never woulda put two and two together. No, I was the one on the other end of the receiver. Your mother's a real delight, ya know?"

The possessed man swung at Lloyd again. Instead of dodging this time, he grabbed the hammer and used the momentum to swing the watchman into the wall.

Keres giggled. "Feisty, huh?"

"So Wu chose you to be the beloved Green Ninja?" Morro questioned from inside the man's body, stalking closer to his prey. "I bet Stella wasn't even the one in the prophecy."

Keres rolled her eyes. Not the talk about Stella again. The ghost was obsessed with her, for some reason. The look on his face when she told him the actor had died forty-something years ago was so pathetic, she almost laughed in his face.

"Who?" Lloyd frowned, backing away from him. "Wait, how do you know Sensei?" He shot a burst of his power at Keres, who easily avoided the Energy sphere. "And why are you working with her?"

Keres had grown bored. She sped behind Lloyd and knocked down a stack of boxes with a single punch. The boy was swift, however, and ran out of the way, causing the possessed watchman to be hit instead. His expression of anger switched to one of fear as a dark shadow--Morro--exited his body.

"Are we done toying with him already?" she questioned, crouching as Lloyd threw a box at her head. It soared harmlessly above, crashing into a picture of some sorcerer and shattering the canvas.

"Wh-what's going on?" the watchman asked. His entire body was trembling like a leaf. "Someone was in my head!"

Pathetic. Don't know how anyone could ever feel bad for a coward like him. He deserves what's coming.

Lloyd threw a bit of his Element at the ghost. He merely chuckled darkly as it passed through his form. "Your powers are useless. You think you can hurt a ghost? There are exactly four people alive able to come in contact with me, and you are certainly not one of them."

Keres exhaled loudly. "Why'd you tell him that? Also, don't forget the Balance Trio. That makes seven."

"Why'd you tell him that?" Morro groaned in frustration. "Whatever. It's not like he wouldn't be able to read my thoughts later, anyways." He entered a pile of sand. Keres got the hint and used her power to raise the grains up in the air until his wind could catch it, making a small dust tornado. 

"I saw his thoughts," the annoying watchman cried. "I heard his conversations with her. The world! It's gonna be cursed! They'll destroy it!"

"Oh, shut up." Keres sighed. She idled forward and grabbed his arm. With a whoosh of air, all the oxygen left his lungs. She watched as he squirmed, trying to gulp down air. Keres waited until his eyes rolled up into the back of his head before releasing her power. Where was the fun in killing people right now when she'd be more powerful and ultimately better at it later on?

"The armour!" Morro shouted. He'd taken a form Lloyd could see: a sand-human. 

Keres almost laughed at the ridiculousness of it. He's literally Sandman. She took the brass breastplate off and threw it to him, frisbee-style.

"Much better." Morro chuckled and put the Allied Armour on his sand body. 

"You can't have the armour!" Lloyd shouted.

"The armour's nice, but there are a few other things I want," Morro drawled.

"Like what?" Lloyd backed to the door and fumbled the doorknob, only to realize it'd been locked.

"How about we strike a deal?" Keres offered.

"Never! I'd rather die than trust the likes of you," Lloyd spat. He looked around for other exits and laid eyes on the window.

"Okay, then. Morro?" Keres strolled in front of the window, guarding it, and gestured for the ghost to take over.

Morro's sand-body disappeared and he reappeared in full ghost form: fully green and highly transparent. "Bring me to the Master of Art," he demanded. "Or you'll wish you were never born."

Lloyd's eyes widened, and he paled. His hands slowly clenched into two tight fists. "What do you want with her?"

"Oh, don't worry. We're not gonna hurt her...just yet." Keres smirked.

"If she goes along with the plan, we won't ever hurt her," Morro corrected, causing Keres to scowl. He turned to Lloyd. "But that's besides the point. She's not the only thing I wanna...possess."

Lloyd opened his mouth, but no words came out. Pathetic.

"You see, I also want you." 

With that, Morro's green form molded into Lloyd's. He let out an agonized scream as their souls merged--or whatever happened when someone was possessed. Keres wasn't quite sure what the exact process was, but she didn't really care. Their powers mixed together, creating a gust of green wind so powerful, Keres was knocked off her feet. She scrambled up and grabbed the hammer, ready to fight if Morro somehow failed.

When the ninja's head snapped back up, he was no longer Lloyd Garmadon. His face was already turning grayish green and his eyes slowly dulled and darkened.

"I hate this hair colour, but he's--" Morro winced. "He's fighting hard. I'll have to reclaim my black hair later on."

"I dunno, I think blonde is the only colour he can pull off," Keres mused. "Anything else would make him washed out. Pale, even."

"Almost like he saw a ghost." Morro grinned and slowly took a step, testing out his new body.

"Almost." Keres cackled maniacally. 

Just then, the night watchman shakily stood up. He glanced from the possessed Green Ninja to Keres, eyes wide as he realized what had happened.

"Boo!" Morro shouted.

That was all it took for the man to scream and run out of the room, crying for his mother.

"I still want to hurt her," Keres brought up their recurring argument. "For revenge."

"And I told you, she's powerful. If we get her on our side--"

"One chance," Keres decided. "If she doesn't agree, I'm killing her."

Morro thought about it for a moment. "One month. If she doesn't switch sides by October 21st, you can go crazy."

Keres laughed. "I've been crazy since the moment I was born, Wind."

~I~

Delila pulled her hood further over her head, hiding her black hair completely, and adjusted her sunglasses. Was it a bit suspicious that she was wearing sunglasses when the sky was full of clouds? Maybe. Would she get more looks from strangers if she took her disguise off? Most definitely.

That's just the life of a princess, I guess. She frowned and crossed the street. It really sucks, doesn't it? Can't even get out of the palace half the time, even though I'm legally an adult now. Kinda wish I said no when the Emperor and Empress offered to adopt me.

Instead, she had just gone along with it. She knew she was only adopted by them because Harumi, who'd been her best friend in foster care, wouldn't agree to their adoption unless they adopted Delila, too. Delila also knew she should be happy she was chosen. She was the heir apparent, for crying out loud! But being the next Empress...well, it wasn't exactly appealing. 

For one, Delila couldn't speak. There was already a whole hate page dedicated to how she'd be a terrible ruler if she wasn't able to communicate with them. Delila was following the group and even read their daily updates. It was very disheartening. Most people just assumed it was selective mutism--which, as dumb as it sounded, many citizens believed wasn't even a real condition--and kept on waiting for her to be "cured" of it. Even though that wasn't how selective mutism worked! Delila didn't know how to break it to them that she just couldn't speak without her head feeling like it was being split in two. Eventually, they'd realize she was permanently mute, and they'd hate her for it.

For two, she'd be the first Black ruler of Ninjago. Not many people cared about that, as racism was a thing only super old people still really believed in, but it still got comments from time to time. Most of the time, it was other Black people either saying they supported her or she was a disappointment to their entire race, which was--once again--extremely disheartening. Sometimes, though, there'd be the occasional debate over whether the Emperor or the Empress, who both had very pale skin, should've adopted her at all, since they were obviously different races.

For three, her eyes creeped a lot of people out. The bright magenta irises were said to be unnatural, and some claimed they'd even seen them glowing before. Some weird citizens were in love with them and even wrote explicit fanfictions about how the hazel ring around the pupil was her "tether to humanity" or whatever. It absolutely grossed Delila out. Why was her inherited eye colour so sexualized? To make things worse, she was allergic to colour contacts, so she couldn't properly hide the pink. If she became Empress, there'd only be more fans trying to get with her, both for the power/wealth and for their weird fetishes.

For four, some journalists had found out about her mother's condition. How insane she was. They theorized that it was genetic, or that it affected Delila's growth and caused lasting trauma that would make her a terrible ruler. Delila wasn't even sure if they were wrong about that.

One thing about those reporters that scared her was how they seemed to be everywhere. No matter where she was, there'd be pictures taken of her. She couldn't even go to her favourite bakery without being interviewed, for crying out loud! 

Delila was pulled from her thoughts as she bumped into someone. Her glasses fell onto the ground and the poor boy's papers dropped from the impact.

"Oh!" The boy, who looked like he could be any age from sixteen to twenty-five, looked down at the dropped fliers in surprise. "I'm so sorry! I just got lost in my thoughts and--" He looked up, straight into Delila's eyes.

Shoot, my sunglasses fell off. Delila turned her head, hoping he wouldn't see her eyes. Since nothing could ever go her way, he did.

"Princess Delila?" he questioned. "I--"

Delila shook her head and put a finger to her mouth in a shh gesture. Now that she thought about it, the boy looked familiar. His brown skin, huge build, and fluffy black hair reminded her of someone, but she wasn't sure who it was. The off-white shirt with a teal teapot in the centre really threw her off, not to mention the teapot hat he was wearing. It was...an interesting fashion statement, to say the least.

He's kinda cute, though. Even if it's a bit dorky. 

"Sorry," he whispered. He bent down and grabbed her sunglasses for her, then grabbed his fliers as Delila quickly fixed the glasses on her face. He handed one of the fliers to her. It had the same logo that was on his shirt. "Steep Wisdom."

Delila slowly took it from him, reading the information. She nodded in thanks, pointing to the paper and giving the guy a thumbs up.

"My name's Cole, by the way. I gotta get back to handing these out, but," he scratched the top of his head awkwardly, which was impressive because he still had the teapot on, "uhh...do you wanna help? Oh, shoot, that was probably a dumb question. Because you're a princes--"

Delila made a violent shh gesture again.

"--party!" he covered. Then he frowned, realizing what he'd said. "Party princess. But you must... be busy with all your jobs! So, uh, I'll just..."

Delila put her hand out, silently telling the man to stop, as he'd just tried to turn around and leave. She had finally recognized him: the Earth Ninja! 

"I've been investigating a strange wind-power-thing that I felt last night," she signed, hoping he'd understand.

Cole frowned. "I'm sorry, I don't know sign. I've been meaning to learn for a while, but with my ninja dut--I mean work--I haven't had the time."

He doesn't realize I recognize him, Delila thought. How do I tell him?

Just then, her phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out. It was just some news report on a huge fish that was captured recently. Staring at her screen, Delila realized what she could do. She started typing her sentence out into her phone. Cole thankfully waited patiently for her to be done, even though it took a while because she kept on misspelling things.

SCREEEEEEEEEECH.

Delila froze, staring at the oncoming vehicle. She noted that it was a silver SUV, it was on the sidewalk, and it was hurtling towards her at a speed way higher than the city's road laws permitted.

Cole acted fast, pulling the princess behind him--but still keeping an arm tightly wrapped around her--and holding another arm out as if to stop the vehicle. Delila made an embarrassing, half-hearted scream and hid into the boy. She squeezed her eyes shut and tensed her muscles, preparing for impact.

It never came. Cole chuckled, his shoulders shaking from the throaty laugh and hitting Delila's head. "You can open your eyes again."

How does he know my eyes are closed? Delila unscrewed her eyes and pushed the sunglasses, which had slipped halfway down her nose, back up. Oh. That's how. Wait, HOW AM I ALIVE?

Delila looked up. Cole was carrying the SUV. He didn't even look strained. He grinned down at her, lessening his hold around her shoulders but not completely letting go.

That would've been an embarrassing way to die, she thought, pulling away from his hold completely so she could dust herself up and gather her dignity again. Wait, if he was holding me, who was holding the car?

He was, it appeared. His singular hand was balancing an entire freaking SUV. Cole smirked when he noticed her glance from him to the car, then back again.

I knew he was strong, with super strength as a part of his Element and all, but dang...Delila found herself not-so-discreetly staring at his muscled arms and looked away.

Delila dusted her jeans off again and glanced around for her phone, which she'd dropped in the chaos. Meanwhile, Cole spun the SUV around in his hands as if it were a sign, calling to the nearby pedestrians, "Steep Wisdom! Getting tired? Out of strength? Get a pick-me-up at the coolest tea shop in Ninjago!" He threw a handful of fliers at the steadily growing crowd.

Spotting her phone, Delila knelt down to pick it up, only for it to disappear into the fray as more people surrounded the pair.

The driver, who had dark brown hair and brown eyes, rolled down their window and screeched at Cole, telling him to put them down. 

Cole scowled. "You almost killed Deli--" he froze, realizing he'd almost revealed her name.

Delila almost facepalmed. That makes me sound like a literal piece of meat.

"Who has a name like Deli?" the driver scoffed. 

"Shut up!" Cole spun the car really quickly. "Who drives on sidewalks? If I had to choose between going past the speed limit and trying to kill two people or having the name Deli, I'd choose the name." Cole made eye contact with someone nearby and dropped the SUV. He forced the driver out of their vehicle and explained the situation to a cop who'd wandered over. 

The cop, appalled at what the driver had done, took them with her.

At the sight of the police officer, the crowd had disappeared, not wanting to get in the way of official business. Delila was the only one still around, other than a small group of people surrounding the Earth Ninja, whom she recognized as the rest of the ninja squad (sans the Green Ninja). They were also wearing the weird teapot hat. Cole glanced around for her, smiling when he spotted the girl half-hidden in the shadows. He waved her over.

Delila reluctantly complied, waving to the ninja and slinking toward them.

"This is..." Cole raised his eyebrows, silently asking if Delila wanted his friends to know who she was. She shook her head. "Deli."

"Like the meat?" Jay, the Lightning Ninja, blurted.

"It's nice to meet you, Deli." Zane offered his hand to shake.

Delila reluctantly shook it back, forcing herself not to retract her hand immediately. His hand was freezing. 

"Okay, cool, hi Deli, but that has nothing to do with what we were talking about," Kai told Cole. "Sensei said not to use our powers!"

"Yeah, but the SUV driver was about to kill Deli, so I kinda had to help," Cole pointed out. "And now that everyone knows we're ninja, we may as well use our powers to drum up some business."

The ninja thought about what their friend said before eventually agreeing to use their Elements. They rushed away in different directions, ready to show off. Cole was the only one who stayed on the sidewalk.

"What were you gonna tell me earlier?" he asked.

Delila reached for her pocket, trying to grab her phone. Her eyes widened. She checked her other sweater pocket, then both pockets of her jeans. I never picked it up, she realized. With a quick look at the street across from them, where her phone previously lay, she could tell someone had already stolen it. Stupid Ninjago City. Good thing I don't have anything personal on it.

"You lost it?" Cole guessed. "Here, use mine." He patted each of his pockets, just as Delila had before, frowning when they each turned up empty. "Shoot. When I changed into this uniform, I must've forgotten to grab my phone."

How do I tell them about the weird thing last night that's probably tied to an Elemental Master now? Delila scowled.

"One sec, I'll be right back," Cole promised. He ran across the street to the SUV, which was placed in the middle of the road and causing a small traffic jam. 

He easily moved it to the side of the road, giving Delila another chance to admire his muscles. Not that she took that chance. But she totally took that chance.

He's hot, she decided. It's not even an opinion or anything. Just a blatant fact.

Cole spun the car around a few more times, handing a couple more fliers to passers-by. He sent a wink to someone in Delila's direction, but she hardly registered the movement.

She was more occupied by the sudden roaring of the wind. It was so strong, it took her breath away. The gust felt like it came directly from the middle of winter, as opposed to the end of summer. That wasn't what worried her, though. What worried her was the green tinge it held. The petrifying shriek and maniacal laughter it carried. The fact that her migraine, which had been strangely absent that day, returned.

And it wasn't her usual headache. No, this was much, much worse. Delila could hardly see. Tears swam in her eyes, though the wind quickly picked them up. She felt as if a million daggers had stabbed her head.

Above the mess of stray fliers that'd been stolen by the wind, Delila heard Kai's voice.

"My powers aren't working!" he yelled. Last time Delila checked, he was about a street down, creating teapot shapes out of fire. He seemed much closer now, his loud voice piercing her brain.

"Mine neither!" Jay reported.

Delila gasped--which only hurt her head more--and looked in Cole's direction. He seemed to be fine. The SUV was still in his hands.

"What do you mean?" Cole frowned. "How are they not--"

He was cut off as his arms folded. The vehicle fell on top of him.

Delila pursed her lips and stumbled towards him, almost falling as she tripped over the curb. She helped drag him out as Jay and Kai lifted the SUV off of him.

"Thanks, Deli," he panted, leaning on Delila's shoulder. She staggered under his bulk. "Oh, shoot, my bad."

Delila waved his concerns off, then frowned and pointed to the sky, where the Ice Ninja was still flying high on his Elemental Dragon.

"If our powers are gone, then that means..." Kai whispered, staring at Zane.

They watched as the nindroid's dragon disappeared into thin air. He hurtled toward them, flailing around wildly.

"He's going fast," Jay noted, stepping out of the way.

Zane landed in the ground with a thump. His robot body made a large crater in the sidewalk.

"Whoa," Cole murmured. "I think he just broke the sound barrier!"

Delila snorted. Cole glanced over at her, surprised at the noise, then grinned.

Her headache was already fading, thank the Second Spinjitzu Master. The cracks in her skull made by the imaginary daggers closed over, leaving only a faint throbbing as a reminder of the pain.

Zane crawled out of the hole in the ground. He groaned. "Ugh. I knew we shouldn't have used our powers."

"Yeah, but where'd they go?" Jay questioned. His voice was raised an octave or two. "Where'd they go? We gotta go see Wu!"

"How will we get to the shop without our Elemental Dragons?" Zane asked.

"Yeah, it's not like we can just walk there," Kai added.

Delila looked around, trying to find what the ninja could use. She was certain the wind was the same thing that'd happened the previous night, and she needed to know why. She needed to help the ninja. Her eye caught the silver SUV, causing her to grin and head toward it. The boys didn't even notice her go.

Though she struggled for a moment, she eventually managed to open the door and climb into the driver's seat, smiling when she noticed that the keys were still in the ignition. She turned them and loudly honked the horn, causing the ninja to stop mid-discussion to stare at her. After a moment of awkwardly staring at each other, Delila waved them over.

Cole was the first to arrive. He slid into the passenger seat. "Ha ha! You're a genius, Deli!"

Zane clambered into the back. "This is highly illegal."

"The driver was a criminal, so I think we're fine," Cole retorted. "Plus, it's an emergency."

Delila picked up a stray flier that'd flown in through the window and pointed to it, raising an eyebrow. 

"Yes, that's where we need to go," Cole confirmed as Jay and Kai got in.

Delila buckled herself in and glanced at the address. It wasn't too long of a drive; only about two or three hours. She'd been around there before, actually. One of her previous foster parents had family in a village nearby. 

Ah, memories. That foster family had been Delila's favourite until she found out they were secretly drug dealers. She turned them in, because duh, and still kind of regretted it. They were the most chill people ever--yes, that was because they were high 24/7, but still.

Delila stepped on the gas, not bothering to check if anyone else had their seatbelts on yet. They were ninja. They'd definitely been in more dangerous situations than speeding whilst not being buckled in.

Yeah, she was speeding. Delila was always on high alert, so she didn't have to worry about hitting anyone. Plus, it was an emergency situation. They were practically first responders. They needed to get to the tea shop as quickly as possible.

Before it was too late.

~I~

Keres dismounted from her gray Elemental dragon. Beside her, Morro did the same. They started to walk up the last few steps leading to the tea shop.

"I can't believe you wanted to stop for something as dumb as ice cream," she muttered.

"It wasn't just that," Morro snarled. "It was--"

"Yeah, yeah, it was the restaurant the girl's sister worked at. Whatever. She wasn't even there," Keres pointed out.

"The girl has a name," Morro said. "It's Lyra. Lyra Soun."

"And I don't care," Keres retorted. She stayed on the second last step, hidden from view of anyone in the tea shop. "It's Soun-Chen, by the way. Don't go tying her to your precious Stella Soun. And don't fail this task as much as you almost failed possessing Lloyd. It's embarrassing."

Morro merely rolled his eyes before climbing up the last step and walking into the courtyard of the shop.

"It's Lloyd!" a kid in the shop yelled. "Wow! He's so cool! And, like, the strongest!"

Not a single one of those things she said were true, Keres mused. She crept up higher, sneaking around until she found a nice bush to hide in.

The four ninja rushed to talk to their friend. They must've noticed that Morro cut their Elements off. Apparently, the Green Ninja had the power to do that because it was his power that his protectors' Elements stemmed from in the first place, or something. Keres hadn't really paid attention to her cousin when he was explaining it.

"Step aside," Morro commanded. The wind around them was growing stronger, ripping leaves off branches. Keres had to use her power to stop her bush from whacking her in the face. 

"Lloyd, what's wrong with you?" Jay asked.

"I want a word with your master," Morro announced.

Meanwhile, the old man, Wu, was staring at the Master of Wind. His eyes were wide with horror. "No," he whispered, dropping his mug. It shattered on the floor, a million tiny shards of ceramic. "It can't be! He's supposed to be gone! How'd he return?"

Keres was glad that the air carried the sound of his panicked whimpers over to her, because they were quite amusing. 

"Whoa, Lloyd's gone through puberty!" Jay exclaimed.

Buddy, that's not how puberty works, Keres thought. Ha, I wish it were that easy. Getting possessed for a few days sounds better than having your fucking period for the rest of your life. Usually, I love blood, but not in that form.

"What's gotten into him?" Cole frowned.

Just then, Keres noticed a girl behind the Earth Ninja. She was wearing sunglasses and had a hood up, but it'd been whipped off her head from the strong wind, revealing a magenta gemstone on her forehead.

She looks around the same age as the rest of the ninja, she noted. Maybe she's a new addition? If she has an Elemental power, this could get quite messy.

"I sense some form of foreign entity has taken over his body," the robot-ninja announced. "So the question isn't what, but who?"

Keres always forgot his name. Zade, maybe? Zen? She didn't really like him. He was supposed to be dead, yet he wasn't. It made her mad. People--even though he wasn't exactly a real person--shouldn't just be able to avoid death. He should've come back as a ghost, like a respectable guy.

"Whoever you are, whatever beef you have with Sensei, you have with us!" Kai yelled. "Give us back our friend."

Meanwhile, the strange girl was frantically making hand movements, trying to gain someone's attention. It took Keres a few moments to discern that she was using sign language. Not that Keres knew any sign language; she just recognized it.

Morro cracked his neck and chuckled darkly. Keres was reminded of how ecstatic he was when he tested out his new body. It was strong, apparently.

"How are we supposed to fight a friend?" Kai screamed.

"Let me show you!" Morro raised his arms. His hair darkened to black, signifying that he'd finally gained full control over Lloyd. 

Keres used her Element to lift her cousin into the air until his wind could properly hold him. He sent a small, insignificant gust of wind at the group that immediately took them all out.

Well, all of them except the girl. She'd dropped to the floor when the wind blew past, and was now slowly standing up and reaching for something in her pockets. 

Is she seriously about to fight the Green Ninja? Keres wondered. How stupid can one be?

The girl wasn't, in fact, stupid. The thing in her pocket turned out to be a flashlight-pen. It would've been useless in any other situation, but, in this particular one, with Morro leaning directly over her, it was very useful.

Morro flinched back as the girl aimed the beam directly into his eyes. The ghost was sensitive to the bright light he hadn't seen in literal years.

"Deli!" Cole cried. "Get out of here! It's dangerous!"

Why the fuck would anyone ever name their child after a section in a grocery store? Keres wondered.

Deli merely shook her head at Cole before ramming her knee into...well, into Morro's groin. He immediately collapsed, his hands covering the area a few seconds too late. That's when Deli chose to flee, running back into the shop before Morro could catch her.

She's got spunk, Keres admired. And that was admittedly funny. I wish she'd replace the Master of Art. I'd love to have her on our team.

Morro shakily stood up, using the wind to support him. By then, the ninja had surrounded the boy.

"We may not have powers, but we still know a little thing called Spinjitzu," Cole announced. He spun around. Dirt materialized around him, creating a small Spinjitzu vortex.

Morro just shot a gust of wind at him, throwing him into a wall and breaking the tornado.

"Not only does he have powers, but he can control the wind, too?" Jay cried.

"Take the SUV," Wu ordered an old woman, Deli, a child, and a younger woman. "Get them out of here now!"

Deli shook her head. She must be insane to want to stay there after she'd enraged the most powerful boy in the world. Keres kinda liked her. She was feisty.

"Deli, go!" Cole shouted. "Tell your parents! They need to know!"

Deli nodded to him, hesitating for a nanosecond before hopping into a silver SUV that Keres hadn't noticed. The other three civilians must've already gotten in, because she immediately turned around and made her way to the exit.

Can't let that happen, Keres thought. She leapt from her step to the road and spread her arms out, blocking the path. She stared down the girl. Oh, she's considering it, she noted. She wants to just run me over. 

"I dare you," she hissed.

Deli rolled down her window. "What are you--"

The second Keres moved to the side, ready to jump through the open window, Deli punched the gas. The SUV shot forward, almost grazing Keres's side in the process.

"Shit," she murmured. She ordered the air to carry her next sentence over to Morro. "I'm going after them."

His reply was instantaneous, travelling through the wind. "Don't bother. I'll get them sooner or later. Right now, we need to focus on getting that staff."

Keres sighed, knowing he was right. She darted forward into the chaos, sticking to the shadows so the ninja wouldn't notice her. However, she shouldn't have even bothered. They didn't once glance in her direction, too distracted by how Morro was absolutely destroying them.

The only one who spotted her was a girl who looked vaguely familiar. "Get out!" she screeched as Keres set foot in the shop. "Wait, you? You're working with--"

"Ohh, you're the Samurai X gal," Keres realized. "Nice to meet ya again."

"We've imprisoned you once, and we'll do it again," Nya claimed.

Keres scoffed. "Go stock some shelves before you get hurt, little girl."

Nya banged her fist on the table. "I'll take you on again. It's not like it's hard."

"Stay back, Nya." The Sensei put a hand on Nya's shoulder. "It's me that they want."

"Why do you think everything's about you?" Keres questioned. "Like, you're not the main character. Ki-i-i-nda selfish, if you ask me. We just want the message, that's all."

Behind her, Morro entered the shop. He wasn't even panting from the fight.

"I see you've found the Allied Armour, Morro." Wu gripped his staff tightly. "Yet you haven't summoned your friends."

"I tried," he growled. "The only friend I wanted won't listen to my call, all because you manipulated her into hating me."

"I did nothing of the sort," Wu scoffed. "You did that to yourself. She had a happy life without your influences. She married a very nice man and had two lovely children, both of which grew up to be very successful without the likes--"

"Ugh! I hate you!" Morro shrieked. He stalked closer. "Where is Lyra Soun? If you give up her and that staff right now, I'll grant you mercy."

"Nya, call her. Tell her to flee to somewhere that someone who can read Lloyd's thoughts wouldn't be able to find," Wu ordered. He jumped up on the table, staff in hand. "You want the staff? Try to take it!"

Nya rushed to the back, her phone in hand. Keres didn't bother to chase her. Instead, she ran to the doors of the shop and closed them in the ninja's faces, quickly turning the locks. She summoned her power and knocked a few vases off high shelves. Upon catching one, she chucked it at Wu.

The old man just barely dodged it, jumping off the table and getting Keres's knee to his face in the process. She and Morro toyed with him for a while, allowing Wu to believe he was beating them for a minute before slamming him against a shelf.

"You used to be strong," Morro hissed. "Now you're just an old shopkeeper."

"With age comes wisdom," Wu proclaimed. He jumped over Morro's head and swung his staff at Keres, causing her to back up to avoid the weapon. He used too much momentum, though, and accidentally threw the staff away from the three of them.

They watched as it clattered to the floor and rolled away. A magic pattern was revealed, leaving bits of colourful powder on the floor as well as on the staff.

"A secret message engraved on the staff using Iris's power," Wu gasped.

"The staff of the First Spinjitzu Master," Morro added.

Keres used her power to collect the bits of powder on the floor. She placed the runes back on the staff then got the air to carry the staff into her awaiting hand. Her Element whirled it around, testing it out.

Unfortunately, she didn't notice the whoosh of air as a warning until it was too late and a shelf of tea knocked into her, forcing the staff out of her hand. Keres and Morro fell down, sandwiched in between the ground and the shelf.

"I do more than stock shelves!" Nya yelled. She'd obviously been the one to knock the shelf onto them.

Wu grabbed his staff. "Yes. Now, we leave."

They ran out of the shop, locking the door behind them while Keres ordered her Element to gently pick the shelf off of her. It was surprisingly difficult, because she had to keep a firm hold on not only the huge wooden shelf but also all the different teas stacked on top of it.

By the time they were free, the ninja's flying ship was high into the air. Thankfully, the Fire Ninja had a death wish or something and was still standing in the middle of the yard, staring Morro and Keres down.

"Give me back my friend!" he screamed.

Keres stood back and watched, intrigued. I'll never understand how people can be so stupid, they decide to face up against two of the most powerful beings on this planet for something as meaningless as friendship. Sounds like the plot to a fucking My Little Pony movie. 'Friendship is magic' and all that. Someday, he'll realize just how dumb the concept of friends is, anyways. What's the point in trusting anyone with your secrets? They'd obviously just betray you.

"Foolish ninja," she snarled.

"Why would you try to take us on by yourself?" Morro laughed, grabbing onto Kai's shirt.

"Because I promised to look after Lloyd," Kai said. His voice was surprisingly even. He was so dumb, he didn't even realize how much danger he was in.

"Don't you realize promises mean nothing?" Keres questioned. "They're just words. That's it."

Kai ignored her. "I know you're in there, Lloyd. Fight him!" He put Morro into a chokehold.

"The staff is getting away, Keres!" Morro yelled.

"We can catch up later. This is much more entertaining," Keres smirked.

Suddenly, Morro stopped struggling. His voice changed to be less deep, less full of anger. "Kai, help me!"

"Lloyd?" Kai asked. "Is that you?"

"This is where I step in," Keres decided. She gripped a broken shard of glass in her hand that she'd found on the tea shop's floor and raised it high.

As she lowered it, she caught nothing but air where the ninja was supposed to be. Looking down, Kai was nowhere to be seen. She glanced up.

The ninja had caught Kai in their flying ship's anchor. He was being dragged up there against his will.

"Wait!" he protested while his friends cheered. "Let me go! I saw Lloyd! I saw him!"

"Do they seriously think they're gonna get away that easily?" Keres asked.

Morro didn't answer her question. He merely commanded the wind to stop the ship from escaping. Keres helped him out, making the air around the Destiny's Bounty jump weirdly to cause turbulence and make them lose control of the boat.

The ship started to move backwards, toward the cousins. Morro grunted in exertion as he summoned a huge gale of wind.

Another engine turned on. Keres watched the ship fly away, too strong for either of their powers to stop it.

"NOOOOOO!" Morro shrieked. He fell to the ground, breathing heavily. The use of his powers must've taken a lot out of him.

Keres raised an eyebrow. "You do know that we can still get it, right? Like, we're not done here."

"Yes, you are," a voice called.

Keres looked up in the direction of the voice. The speaker wasn't there. Someone tapped her on the shoulder, and she whirled around.

Lyra Soun-Chen waved to her. Her face was stony and determined, with her eyes a dark blue shade that sent shivers down Keres's spine. "Fuck you." 

She punched Keres in the face, her Element detaching from her knuckles and gathering around Keres's eyes. The impact made her fall to the ground, clawing at her face as she experienced a building, burning sensation building in her head.

Keres couldn't see anything. Any and all sounds seemed to come from every direction. She looked around, trying to make out any of her surroundings, but all she could sense was a purple void. The wind had settled, leaving her in an eerie silence.

Then all her remaining senses disappeared, as well as her consciousness.

Word count: 6.6k

Sorry for the long wait lol. I've been somewhere else for a bit but I'm back noww

QOTD: What's your favourite shade of blue?

A: Either royal blue or a bluish periwinkle 

Please do comment and vote because, once again, it helps with motivation and motivation=writing often

Remember to drink water, eat food, and get an appropriate amount of sleep for your age please<3

~Aspen