I just want to apologize in advance for this.
"You cannot win, Golden Ninja! Where there is light, there will always be shadow!"
"Unless my light is bright enough!"
"Ninja, GO!"
Pain. That's what had dragged him from his peaceful unconsciousness back to the world of the living.
Lloyd forced himself to open his eyes, to lift his head and look around. Where… where was he? Did he win?
But no, the sky was still dark, and he could hear the groans of the civilians of Ninjago City, infected by dark matter. There was the tower, the one he had fought the Overlord on. Had he fallen? He was lying in a shallow crater, he must have. It was a wonder he wasn't dead.
A sense of urgency filled him, an urgency to run, find the others, do something. He pushed himself to his knees, then tried to stand, but crumpled with a pained gasp as he was reminded harshly of his broken leg. Oh no.
Despair clouded his mind as he came to a horrible realization: He was helpless, and alone. At least three of the ninja were infected, as well as Nya, and his Mom and Uncle might have fallen by now as well. Kai… there was only a bare chance that Kai was still himself. He had no idea how long he had been out.
Tears began to gather in his eyes, threatening to fall, but he quickly dashed them away with his sleeve. He didn't have time to cry. He had to do something, he was the green- he was the Golden Ninja. He could fix this. Somehow. Destiny said so.
Behind him, a soft tinkling noise caught his attention.
The bedraggled boy turned, straining into the darkness to try to find the source of the sound. Finally, he spotted it, something lying on the ground a couple feet behind him, sprinkled around which was shattered glass. It looked… familiar, somehow. Carefully, the blond scooted closer, leaning over and picking it up to get a better look.
It was his mom's glasses, coated in blood.
Lloyd's eyes widened in horror as the meaning hit him. His mom- his mom was dead. Or at least badly injured.
Maybe – maybe it was a trick, he tried to tell himself. If she was really dead, her body would be nearby… Against his will, his eyes shifted up to a lump about fifteen feet in front of him. A lump shaped like a body.
Heart pounding, Lloyd let go of the broken frames and began to crawl towards the body. There were thousands of people in Ninjago City, there was an incredibly slim chance that the body was his mom's. Still, he couldn't help the fear that was building up inside him.
His hand hit something wet, and he tore his eyes away from the body to look down at the ground. Dark matter. Quickly, he jerked away, but soon realized it couldn't hurt him. His fingers kept starting to turn grey where he touched it, but they glowed gold and turned normal again a moment later. His golden power canceled it out. That was… good to know.
It was getting darker. It must have been daytime, and now night was falling. He reached the body, but his eyes wouldn't quite focus, and he couldn't tell who it was in the growing- well, increasing – darkness. So he lifted his hand, summoning a ball of light. As soon as it lit up the body, it fizzled out, his breath catching in horror.
It wasn't his mother.
It was Sensei.
His uncle's body was soaked with blood, still flowing lazily from the deep cuts on his arms and chest. His eyes were half open, staring sightlessly into space. Lloyd covered his mouth with his hand, unable to stop the tears that flowed down his cheeks. He- he couldn't be dead. He was- he was Sensei. Sensei was… Lloyd started to sob, clutching the sleeve of his uncle's bloody robe. No, no, no…
He didn't even notice the other two bodies until what felt like at least an hour later, when he finally lifted his eyes from Sensei's body and looked past him at the other two forms on the ground. After staring at the dark images on the ground, not wanting to look to see who they were, he finally created a light.
One was his mother, killed in the same way as Wu. He barely recognized her without her glasses – and with the deep cut across her face. He hadn't thought he could possibly have any more tears to shed, but somehow he managed anyway. He had barely even known her for a week, and she abandoned him, but… he still loved her.
A soft cough drew his attention away from his mother's cold body, causing him to look up in surprise. He created another light, finally looking at the third body. It was a man, with curly, grey hair, and soft age lines on his face.
He was still alive.
Immediately, Lloyd crawled over, eyes wide. The man was badly injured, he must be on the brink of death. Why was he here, with his mother and uncle?
"Hey." He whispered. The man shifted, eyes fluttering open and darting around for a moment before settling on him. Hs mouth, twisted with pain, curved into a smile.
"Son…" He murmured, eyes falling closed again.
"'Son'? Who are…" Lloyd trailed off as it clicked. He had seen a picture once, a picture of his mother, father, and uncle when they had been younger. His father – he had looked just like this. Only younger. This man…
"Dad?" Lloyd whispered, his voice shrill. The man's smile widened.
"Yes… yes, it's me."
"But you were- how did you-" the blond stammered, eyes filling with tears again.
"The Overlord cast me out." His father reached up, stroking his cheek. "The evil in my veins, he took with him. I am free of it."
"But you're d-dying!" Lloyd exclaimed. "I-I have to get you help!"
"No. Lloyd, it's too late." His father brushed away a tear that quivered in the corner of his eye. "Nothing will save me now. I'll only last a few minutes longer, if that."
"B-but you can't!" Lloyd grabbed his father's wrist as he tried to lower his arm. "I-I just got you back! I can't-" He let out a sob. "I can't lose you t-too…"
"I'm sorry, son…" The elderly man stroked his cheek again with his other hand as his son clutched his arm, sobbing. "I love you."
"I love you too…" Lloyd whispered.
His father went limp.
"NO!" Lloyd screamed into the darkness. "NO!" He reached down to clutch his father's body, hugging his bloody form tight as he sobbed. His father had been cured. He had been good. And now he was dead. He barely had a chance to say goodbye.
A series of soft thumps sounded around him, and he forced himself to look up. He was surrounded. Five figures stood in a circle around him, each a person infected by dark matter.
They were his friends.
Cole, Zane, Jay, and Nya stood around him, their faces cold and emotionless. They were unarmed. They knew he wasn't a threat.
And Kai. Oh Kai… he must have lost his battle with Nya. After he was defeated, the last remaining of his brothers was taken down as well. Lloyd tore his eyes away from them, pressing his face into his father's shoulder. He couldn't beat them. He couldn't do anything. The only thing left was for them to kill him.
But they didn't kill him. They only took him away, silently ripping him away from his father's body, despite his thrashes and screams, and dragging him towards the Overlord's castle. Lloyd struggled, their treatment jarring his broken leg, but they ignored it. They were too strong.
They dragged him into their master's throne room, dropping him unceremoniously on the ground in front of him. The Overlord was… not a dragon? He had the body of a man, with huge, crooked teeth and jet-black skin. He sat casually on his stone throne, smirking as his enemy was tossed down in front of him.
"The Golden Ninja." The demon rasped, his tone condescending. Lloyd didn't answer. "You must be wondering why I haven't killed you." He continued. Again, the blond refused to speak. "You are an icon, boy, a symbol of hope. Simply killing you would not be enough. No… I need to make you my slave." He meant to infect him. But he couldn't, his golden power canceled it out.
"But I can't do that, can I?" Lloyd froze. He knew? "No. Not with the Golden Power coursing through your veins. But, of course, I have another way." The Overlord held up a chunk of crystal. "Do you know what this is?" Lloyd just stared. "Of course you don't. This is a rare crystal, only found in the caves of a small island miles off the coast. Its unique property is that it absorbs elemental powers, taking them from the original owner. Permanently." He stopped. "Well? Don't you have anything to say, boy?" Lloyd was silent for a few, long, moments. Finally, he licked his dry lips and spoke.
"I hate you."
"I do not find that surprising in the least." The creature of darkness snapped his fingers. "Chain him up." He ordered. Cole and Jay grabbed him, dragging him over to a wall and locking up him with cuffs on his wrists and ankles. He struggled weakly, but the chains were far too strong. The Overlord stood up and approached, slowly, casually, twisting the crystal thoughtfully in his hand.
"Knife." He ordered, and Kai handed him a long, curved blade. Reaching out, he sliced a long cut down Lloyd's arm, causing him to jerk away with a gasp. "There are two ways to collect an elemental power." The Overlord explained as the blond clutched his bleeding arm. "One is to use an already-stolen power to absorb it. The other is with direct contact with the host's blood." Stepping closer, the demon pressed the chunk of crystal to the wound, and Lloyd was unable to bite back a whimper of pain.
What's worse, though, was the horrible feeling of his element being sucked out of him. The blond gasped as a feeling like the wind being knocked out of him hit him, and he slumped forward with a weak cry. It lasted about ten seconds before the crystal was pulled away, glimmers of golden light dancing inside. Lloyd managed to look up as the Overlord knelt on one knee in front of him, setting the crystal to the side.
"Goodbye." He said simply." Then he reached out and touched his foot. Instantly, a cold numbness spread through him, and he looked down in alarm to see that his foot was turning grey. Oh no.
He had failed. He had failed his family, failed Ninjago. He hadn't been strong enough, light not bright enough.
He looked up with hazy vision, focusing on the other ninja standing in front of him. Soon, he would be like them. A mindless slave. A tool for the Overlord. A fate worse than death.
The effect of the dark matter crept up his arms, numbing them completely. As if they weren't part of his body anymore. Soon it would reach his head, and his mind wouldn't be his either.
Before he was taken over completely, he could only manage one final thought.
I'm sorry.