Welcome!
This story is the third in my series, first was Reformation and second was Revelation. If you haven't read those, you should do so before reading this as it follows both of those stories.
This is where things start to pick up. It is also where I will need a lot of reviews to know if y'all are enjoying the direction of the story/series. Hint.
Also, Alabama defeated Oklahoma in the College Football Playoff Semifinal yesterday, December 29th, and advances to the National Title Game against the Clemson Tigers. Anyone else tasting that eighteenth National Championship? Roll Tide!
And now, without further ado, I give you the third installment of the series.
The Green Ninja's World
Chapter I. A New World.
The Realm of Madness was a place from which very little information came. It was a place with which the other Realms had little interaction. However, to one person, it was home. Born from a human but conceived by a djinn, a woman made the Realm her home after her dreams of power and glory were denied her. In her rage and despair, she created a force that would one day give all of Creation to her rule. Her name was Rikayla Auxil.
A figure stood before her Army of Eternal Darkness and addressed them in response to her vision.
"He has surfaced, he has found three of the Guardians, and he leaves for Earth when the sun rises. When he has amassed a great power, he will bring his family and fight us, and he will win. So we will take one of his family and keep them here, so that he cannot bring all of them. Without his family, the Green Ninja falls. When the Green Ninja falls, then fall Ninjago to our order. All creation will fall to the Order of Rikayla, and all the Realms will be one Realm under one rule. The Green Ninja threatens my vision of a glorious future, and must be thwarted in his attempts to squander my gift of unity to the Realms. We must not allow this, my sons and daughters of Darkness. As from this moment, we are at war."
It was time.
The sun was rising on June first, and the family were preparing to depart Ninjago and go to Earth, where the Golden Weapons were waiting for them.
James, the Green Ninja, advised the ninja not to think about the war that he told them was coming, and to focus on finding the Weapons. He explained that they would have to blend in and live with the community from which he came until October 29th. In that time, the Weapons would be revealed to them. On November 15th, the ninja would return to Ninjago to begin fight for the fate of all the Realms.
When the whole of the sun could be seen above the horizon, all waiting was over. The Green Ninja closed his eyes in concentration and stretched out his arms. Moments later, a portal opened in front of him.
"I can only do that one time," said James. "Until we find all the Weapons."
Sensei Wu had decided to stay behind and take care of the house, so everyone said their goodbyes to him. He wished them his best, and the ninja all went through the portal without hesitation, but not without fear, for on the other side of the portal waited a Realm unknown to all but two of them.
Only Garmadon and James knew anything of Earth. To the rest, the Realm was a new and strange land that offered unknown dangers.
When the ninja exited the portal, it was dark. The ninja realized they were in a cave and walked out. When they did, it was no longer dark; the sunlight bathed the ninja and each of them knew they were no longer in Ninjago.
"So..." remarked Jay.
"This is Earth?" asked Cole.
"More specifically, Billingsley Community Park," answered the Green Ninja.
A quick look around proved that they were, indeed in a park. There were swings, little-league baseball fields, and a basketball court. There was also a concession stand in the park. None of these things were being used, however, as the park was closed that day.
"Gosh," exclaimed Nya. "It's so bright!"
"That's the good ol' Southern summer sun," said James, cheerfully.
"Do you mean to say this is a binary star system?" asked Zane, intrigued.
"What? No. We only have one sun, it just happens to be really hot and bright here in the South in summer time," James explained.
"So, this is the southern part of the Realm?" asked Lloyd.
"Well, no." said James. "It's the Southern United States."
"United States?" asked Kai.
"Oh boy... we're in Alabama. That's a State. The country we're in right now is formed by fifty States that are united. And they're on the American continent-a continent is a large part of the world. So this country is called United States of America. And Alabama is a State in the Southeast of the country."
"Ohhh..." replied the group, except for Garmadon, who chucked quietly to himself.
"Now that we know where we are," said Garmadon. "Why don't we see where we are supposed to go?"
"Well," said James. "We're supposed to go to my house; I was hoping the portal would open a little closer to there. But it's okay. I'll call my dad, he's got a truck. We can all fit in the back."
A brief phone call and a short wait later, a black 2018 Tacoma pulled up at the park's gate.
"Everyone," said James, addressing the group. "This is my dad."
"Call me Ryan," the man in the truck insisted. "I remember Montgomery there, how's it going?"
"Well, thank you. Yourself?"
"I'm good. Who are the rest? And are those two ghosts?"
"I'll explain the ghost part later," answered James. "We have a lot to catch you up on when we get home. But as for their names, these are my brothers-and sister. This is Morro, Master of Wind. This is Lloyd, Sensei Garmadon's son and the Golden Ninja, master of the Energy of Creation. Cole, master of Earth. Jay, master of Lightning. Nya, master of Water. Kai, master of Fire. Nya is Kai's sister and Jay's girlfriend. Zane, master of Ice-and yes, he is a robot."
"Nindroid!" shouted Jay.
"Whatever, and this is Misako, Sensei Garmadon's wife and Lloyd's mother. Wu, Garmadon's brother, stayed in Ninjago to look after our place."
"Ninjago, that's the other world, right?" asked Ryan.
"Right."
"Well," said Ryan with enthusiasm. "Welcome to the South, y'all!"
"Our home is your home!' said James.
After a 5-minute drive through the rural community, the truck reached a one-story house.
"Are we all gonna fit in there?" asked Kai.
"Oh, don't you worry about that." replied the Green Ninja. "Now, look over here."
James showed the group a white 2007 Chevrolet Silverado, complete with bulleted rims and a factory-installed bed cover.
"Wow," said Jay. "She's a pretty one."
"Ain't she? This pretty thing and I have been all around Autauga and Chilton County together."
"Autauga and Chilton County?" asked Lloyd.
"Don't worry," said Ryan. "Y'all will get to learn the area as time goes on."
"James, forgive me." said Morro. "I've been trying since we met to figure out what that accent of yours is, and just when I had decided it was unique to just you, we meet your father and he talks the same way. Help?"
After laughing, James responded, "It's the talk of the South, brother."
"Get used to it," added Ryan, also laughing.
"Let's go in," said James. "So we can show our guests where they'll be staying."
The house only had three bedrooms and one bathroom. The three bedrooms were already occupied by James, his parents, and his younger brother. The ninja wondered if they would all have to share a couch.
"I know, I know. There's not any rooms open. But watch this."
The Green Ninja walked down the hallway, touching the walls at close intervals as he walked. When he had turned around and came back to where the ninja were waiting and watching with confusion, he looked at them with a satisfied smile on his face. Eventually, Jay spoke up.
"Watch what?"
"What is all that noise?" called a female voice from the living room.
A woman came around a doorway at the end of the hall and nearly jumped out of her skin when she touched the wall. As she touched the wall, several more doors appeared in the hallway, so many that the doors touched side by side.
"What was that?!" asked Jay.
"Now you've got rooms! Hey Mama!"
"Uh... hey James... and your friends," she responded, still shaking.
"Everyone, this is my mother, Shannon. Mama, meet... everyone."
"Hey..."
"She never got used to me having powers and stuff... so anyway, now you've got rooms."
"James," said Kai. "Those doors are touching; there's no way those rooms have enough room for us."
"Did anyone else stop to think about the fact that we didn't bring any stuff with us except for the clothes on our backs and some weapons?" asked Cole.
"Kai and Cole, just check out your rooms. I think you'll find that there is plenty of space and that you have all you need."
Kai and Cole, apprehensively, picked the two doors closest to them and went through them. What they beheld shocked them. There was, indeed, plenty of space; and they, indeed, had all they needed. The closets were full-of their own clothes!- and there were even snacks for them stocked in the rooms. Additionally, when the rest of the ninja had looked at their rooms, it was discovered that there were decorative carpets laid out in each room that corresponded to that person's color.
"Nice, right?"
"James," said Cole. "I'm sorry I doubted you."
"Me too," said Kai.
"It's alright; I've got something very important to show y'all."
The Green Ninja led the group into his room, which was actually built into the house and was much simpler than the others' rooms, and went to the north wall.
"Morro, Nya, Cole, Kai, Zane, Jay, and Lloyd. Touch this wall, in that order, anywhere you want. Just touch the wall."
As Morro touched the wall, the symbol for Wind appeared where he had touched and moved to the top of the wall. The pattern continued as each Master touched the wall. When Lloyd touched it, the other symbols formed a circle, with Lloyd's to the left of the circle. Then, James touched the middle of the circle and his symbol moved to the right.
Immediately after that, the symbols vanished and the wall faded away; but instead of the adjacent room, a long hallway was revealed-much longer than the length of the house.
"This is the Elemental Temple, a place for us to find knowledge and peace. It is where we will train, and it is where we will discover the locations of the Golden Weapons. We are to leave this temple alone for today, and begin our searchings in the morning. When nature begins to act up, we will come here and interpret the meanings of any unusual events."
The wall reformed and was back to normal.
"Any Elemental Master can enter the temple simply by pressing a hand to this wall and focusing on his or her element. Now, let's get some rest and prepare."
For all of June, there were no events that pointed to a time of disclosure of an Elemental Entity, as James sometimes called the Weapons.
The ninja became closer to James's family and friends, met his girlfriend Diana, and blended in with Billingsley, just as they were supposed to do. The ghosts learned from the Elemental Temple how to make themselves look human. The ninja enjoyed the community and became a part of it. They fell in love with Southern cooking (of course) and made new close friends. One day, in mid-July, Morro even surprised himself.
James and Morro were in Walmart, picking up a few things for James's mother, when James lightly elbowed Morro to get his attention.
"Look, over there!" he exclaimed.
"What?"
"Oh, you gotta meet her. One of my best friends. Hey, Zee!"
"James!" the girl replied excitedly.
The two ran over to each other and began to chat excitedly.
"I just cannot go anywhere in Clanton without running into someone I know," said James.
"Who's this?" asked Zee.
"Oh, this is my all-but-blood brother, Morro. He's not from around here."
"Ooh, well it's good to meet you Morro!"
"Nice to meet you too, Zee is it?"
"That's right."
"Well," said James. "I've got to get to the Garden Center for some lighter fluid. Let's all hang out soon?"
"Sounds great! Bye y'all, great to meet you, Morro!" said Zee.
When James and Morro had reached the Garden Center, Morro voiced his thoughts.
"I think it might be time to try and find a Weapon."
"Why is that, Morro?"
"I think I sensed an elemental disturbance, a strong one. But it didn't last long. I just know I really felt it."
"When did you notice it?"
"About when you started shouting at Zee. I stopped noticing it just now."
"Hmm... Morro, have you ever felt an elemental disturbance before?"
"Well, no..."
"Then how do you know that's what it was?"
"Because it's not like anything else I've ever felt."
"I see... well, we'll definitely keep our eyes open. I felt a little something too, but not much."
"I felt it pretty strong... you believe me, don't you?"
"Morro, of course I believe you. I know you would only say that if you meant it. Look, this is something we have to be very careful about. Everything hangs in the balance; and the balance is atop our heads. We'll meditate on this tonight."
"Okay; now, let's get that lighter fluid for the wings tomorrow. Who knows, maybe it wasn't a disturbance after all. Maybe I just had a chill or something."
After laughing, James teased Morro with, "Yeah, or maybe you just fell in love."
"Oh come on-have we even met?" asked Morro, both laughing. "Fell in love, right here in Walmart-that's funny. And I don't even know her!"
The two found the lighter fluid for the grill and made their way to the checkout. As chance would have it, they met Zee again. Morro felt the "disturbance" again, but it was different-he paid attention to it this time. The feeling was unlike anything he had felt before today. The sensation made him feel good inside, but also very afraid.
Do I... like that girl? Is that what having so-called "warm and fuzzies" feels like? No... that's impossible...
Morro was too lost in his thoughts and James was too busy talking with his old friend to notice a policeman, looking quite terrified, watching them from the door of the supermarket. He suddenly ran out of the store.
In a place of darkness, all was quiet until a voice broke the silence.
"Master," addressed a dark figure. "The human is back. He says he brings news."
"I know what news he brings," sighed the woman of shadow whom the figure addressed. "Bring him before me."
Two dark soldiers brought a human police officer before Rikayla, the fallen Elemental Master and self-proclaimed but all-adored Queen of Darkness and Madness.
"My queen..." quaked the human.
"None of that-on his knees, now," Rikayla calmly ordered. Her soldiers responded by forcing the human down on his knees in a beggar-like position.
"I did as you told me, my queen!"
Rikayla lost the last of her patience and yelled at the human.
"I told you to get there BEFORE they reached the town! Because of your failure, now they have found one!"
"Mistress Rikayla, your portal did not transport me there until they were already on their way to Clanton."
"YOU CROSS ME?!"
"No! I only meant to beg your mercy!"
"Commander Tenebris, get this human swine out of my sight. Fetch my hammer, and ready the Imperia. We'll need them. We're taking a trip."
"The time approaches?" inquired the creature of pure darkness. He was tall and looked deadly; he wore impossibly black robes and carried two black swords on his back. His face was covered with a black garment and none of his features were visible.
"Faster than you know, my dear Tenebris. Quickly, send this human back from whence he came and prepare the Imperia for close contact."
Reference for some of the terms in the story that may be unfamiliar:
Rikayla Auxil: auxilium is Latin for "help" (will be explained later in the story or a later story in the series).
Autauga and Chilton Counties: Counties in Alabama.
Billingsley: rural community on the border of Autauga and Chilton Counties.
Clanton: small town 12 minutes away from Billingsley; in Chilton County.
Commander Tenebris: tenebris is Latin for "darkness."
Imperia: Latin. plural of imperium, which means "strength."
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