Wanted
Wanted
"Wah!" a tiny child's voice shouted throughout the Garmadon Palace. The woman holding the baby coaxed him in her arms to quiet him. His little green eyes, blond hair, small teeth was all she needed in life. This woman was named Misako, wife of Lord Garmadon. She sat on her bed, lying young Lloyd down for his resting period. Lord Garmadon was a ruthless ruler of darkness, inflicting pain and misery on the people of Ninjago. But he refused to do this on his wife and son. They were the only people he truly loved in life. Queen Misako was the exact opposite of her husband: kind, loving, sweet, generous and loyal to her people. Her husband, on the other hand, was always taxing and rude and evil, in her and the people's eyes. He always had parties for the other evil rulers to come and abuse the slaves he captured in battle or raised from the ground. But, the people who disagreed with his actions were called the Rebel Order, led by a man named Cole Brookstone. Cole was an evil man in Garmadon and the other evil king's eyes, always stealing slaves and setting them free somewhere after he tortured them to death (or so the people say). Most people loved Brookstone for what he did to lower the taxes, feed others instead of himself and freed the enslaved people of the kingdom. Cole was a hero in the kingdom, and he intended to stay that way. Queen Misako walked through the halls, waiting to meet the man that would raise her son in the ways of the light. This man was named Wu, Garmadon's brother. Wu had long been banished from the kingdom so his brother could have rule for as long he lived, leaving at the early age of thirty. Wu promised that he would keep Lloyd safe from the evils of the darkness, and his father. Misako slipped outside into the garden, where Wu stood waiting in a green cloak. She gently placed her son in his arms, sneaking a kiss on his forehead on the way. "Take care of my son. Please, keep him far away from this side of the world." Misako whispered as Wu smiled. "I will, Queen Misako." Wu sad as he walked off into the bushes. 'Now will be the hard part.' Misako said to herself as she raced back up the palace steps and dove into her husband's room. "Husband! They have taken him! They have taken my son!" Misako cried as Lord Garmadon jumped up in shock. "Brookstone!" Garmadon shouted at the top of his lungs. Ten years after, Lloyd was still missing. "Cole! Get in here!" a man hissed as Cole snook up to the Rebel Order Campground. "I had to go check on Annie. She's worried that the guards will catch me soon." Cole said as he walked into the tent, followed by the man. People of all kinds were coming to the meetings: peasants, slaves, townsfolk, warriors of old and many more. People came here to seek help for what Garmadon has done to their families. "He's here!" another gasped as Cole walked up to the stage. "Tell us what to do!" another man gasped from the back of the crowd. "Sorry I'm late tonight, guys. I had to check on Annie again. She thinks that Garmadon is still going to catch me. I don't think like that. He's too lazy to even get close. Anyway, Garmadon is still on the hunt, but he won't catch any more of us. We're sick of him, but we must bide our time until we get the chance to get close enough to kill him. Remember, try to keep the children and the women away from the sites located near the palace. We've got a few more nights to go, so I expect that those blacksmiths will get t work and build some good swords and arrows for these men." Cole finished. "Why do they still blame us for what happened to his son?" one man in the back asked. "I do not know. He is a man of grief and misery. We will put an end to him soon, widowing his wife, if she is still living as well." Cole said, stepping down the stage. The tents cleared out, leaving one man behind: X. X was a man of secrecy, sworn to kill whoever might cross his path. "You can stay at my place if you'd like." X said inside his large samurai suit. "No, but thanks for the offer, X. I'm happy to have you on our side." Cole said as he walked by and into the forest. Meanwhile, back at the palace, a slave was rising for his day of work. His name was Zane. He was the oldest living slave at Garmadon's palace, living at just twenty years old. He was skinny, tall, slouched over, spiked white hair (now turned brown from dirt), big sharpened icy blue eyes, pearly cold skin, and bare feet. If you looked at him from a faraway distance, he looked like a living ghost. "Zane!" a voice called down the hall, snapping him from his thoughts. Zane raced for the throne room, opened the doors and sank to his knees, respectfully, as was the slave's position. Lord Garmadon sat on his throne, growling at the boy. "Yes, master?" Zane asked innocently. "Go fetch General Kai. I have some important business to discuss with him." Garmadon growled. "As you command, master." Zane said as he rose to his feet and turned towards the door. Zane raced from the hall in search of General Kai, who had his own matters to tend to. Meanwhile, in the training room, General Kai was training a new recruit. "No, no, no! Do I have to show you again?" Kai growled loudly as he picked up his sword. "No, General." the recruit said weakly as he swung his sword hard and brought it down on the training dummy's head. "Get out of my sight or you'll be the next training dummy around here." Kai huffed, sending the recruit racing from the room, leaving his sword on the floor. "Ugh. Do these recruits have any idea what they signed up for around here?" Kai asked himself as he picked up the sword and sheathed his own. Kai's sword was magical. It's long golden blade caught on fire when he wished it so, its sharpened blade never grew dull and he could use it all day without scratching its bright surface. "I really need to sleep." Kai said once he noticed that his energy had gone. He went into his room and lay on the bed, leaving his sword on the banister next to the bed. After a couple of minutes, a soft knock on the door woke him. "General Kai? Are you there?" Zane's voice said through the keyhole. "Go away, Frosty!" Kai shouted back. "I would not advise that." Zane said back in his icy voice. Kai came to the door, still in his pajamas, and opened the door. "What do you want?" Kai grumbled. "Master Garmadon requests your presence in the throne room." Zane said. "Tell him I said no." Kai snapped, half-closing the door in Zane's face. "That would not be advised! No matter how far up you are, Lord Garmadon still has rule over you!" Zane half-shouted through the crack in the door. "Fine! I'll get dressed! Go away now, Frosty!" Kai shouted at the slave, slamming the door the rest of the way closed. Zane sighed and bowed, even if Kai could not see him, respectfully walking away. Kai pulled on his clothes and made for the throne room, hoping to have not taken too long in making Garmadon wait, and opened the door. "Ah, General Kai, you seemed to show up, as I requested." Garmadon said as Kai stood in front of the lord. "The slave woke me up. Do I look happy?" Kai snapped as he stood from his bow. "No, you do not." Zane said, not stirring from his position of kneeling on the floor. "Thanks for your honesty, Frosty." Kai grumbled back as Garmadon straightened himself in his throne. "I have a job for you, General." Garmadon said, grabbing Kai's attention. "What is it?" Kai asked. "As you know, Cole Brookstone stole my child, Lloyd, from my wife's hands. Recently, he has been sighted in the Village of Rockridge, just east of here. Go find him and bring him back, alive." Garmadon said. Suddenly, he pointed at Zane. "And take him with you. Do what you wish with him afterwards." Garmadon said. Zane's eyes widened. 'No! He'll kill me!' Zane screamed in his mind as Kai grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him to his feet. "Let's go, Frosty." Kai grunted as he led Zane outside onto the road. He pulled out his sword and waved it in the air, watching as it turned into a golden motorcycle. "Get on." Kai grunted again as he jumped on himself, Zane following close behind. Kai winced as Zane's cold hands wrapped around his stomach. Meanwhile, Cole was walking through the town, trying to get back home. His black clothes made it easy to creep through the darkness, leaving him unseen. Suddenly, an alarm went off, making him run for an alleyway. Angry people came flooding after him, carrying torches and weapons of all kinds. After a couple seconds of running, he found himself cornered in a dead-end. As the torch-light came closer and closer, a door swung opened and a hand grabbed his wrist, pulling him inside. The door swung closed quietly, leaving no evidence to where he was. A small light turned on, revealing a smaller man with red hair. "Hi! I'm Jay! You're Cole Brookstone, right?" the man asked as he led Cole through the cellar door. "Yeah. Why are you helping me?" Cole asked as they entered a small home, much alike his own. "I like what you're doing. So do most of these people. They want to be free of the taxes and robbers that plague these streets. I would like to help you in any way I can." Jay said as he sat next to Cole on a blue couch. "I'm not too keen on trusting people I just met." Cole said. "You can stay with me for as long as you need to. They're guarding Annie in the Garmadon palace, just for you to know." Jay said. "What? How can that be? I just talked to her about two hours ago!" Cole exclaimed. "I know, it hurts. Garmadon killed everyone I knew a long time ago. If you don't get her back, I will help you. Would you like something to eat or drink?" Jay asked as he reached for the kitchen door. "Yeah. Do you have any bourbon? I feel like I need to drink something like that to shake these emotions." Cole said as Jay disappeared into the kitchen. 'This man won't let me leave. If I stay too long, Garmadon might hurt Annie.' Cole said in his mind as Jay returned with the order. Meanwhile, Zane was shaking by the time they reached the town, just past nine o'clock in the morning. "What? You're cold?" Kai asked stupidly. "Yes, I am, General Kai." Zane said slowly, rubbing his arms. They pulled up to a house with a blue roof made of steel, walking up to the front door. Kai rung the doorbell once, then again, then again. Inside, Jay jumped up from the bed, as did Cole, and made for the door. "Hide! It's General Kai!" Jay hissed in Cole's direction. Cole raced into the guest room, closing the door behind him. "Open the door!" Kai's voice shouted through the door. "Can I help you?" Jay asked. "Where is he? Where is Cole Brookstone?" Kai growled at Jay. "Frosty, search the place." Kai growled at Zane. Zane took a few steps forward, passed Jay and went into the house. Kai pushed past Jay, shoved him aside and began to look around the house. "You won't find him here, Kai." Jay hissed, pulling a box from his back pocket. "What did you just call me?" Kai hissed back, watching carefully as Jay pressed a button on the box and shoved it into his chest. Kai hit the floor, unconscious, dropping his sword in the process. "I just knocked out General Kai! I'm going to be arrested and killed! Oh man, oh god, oh man, oh god!" Jay yelped quietly. Suddenly, he heard a squeal come from the guest room. He grabbed a baseball bat and raced into the room, busting open the door. The slave was standing on one side of the bed, Cole on the other. "Hey! You're buddy is out!" Jay shouted, grabbing the slave's attention. The slave moved his lips as if asking for permission to speak. "Uh, yeah, you can say something." Jay said awkwardly. "What do you mean by 'out'?" Zane asked. "He's unconscious in the next room." Jay said, watching as Zane's mouth went firm and neutral. "I do not mean to frighten anyone, or be harmed myself. I would come to the meetings, but I am usually called upon by master Garmadon." Zane said, sinking to his knees. "There is no need for bows here. Get up, for all you want." Cole said. "Aren't you going to kill me?" Zane asked, confused. "Now, why would we want to do that?" Cole asked as he helped Zane to his feet. "Because I have frightened you." Zane said. "That's a dumb reason to kill someone for." Jay said grumpily. "But, that is the natural way for a slave alike myself to be killed for. I would come to your meetings, Mr. Brookstone, but I am called upon so much that I haven't the time." Zane said, nodding towards Cole. "What about General Kai?" Jay asked. "I shall deal with him. You must escape if you wish to leave this place without binds on your hands." Zane said as he turned to walk out into the living room. "Thank you, for helping me." Cole said as he and Jay hid in the room. Zane slowly walked over to Kai's form on the floor, bending over him with his icy eyes. "Master Kai? Are you well?" Zane asked in his slightly monotone voice. Kai opened his eyes with a groan, looking up into Zane's eyes. "I apologize, but Cole Brookstone and the man who electrocuted you have escaped." Zane said. Suddenly, Kai's hand wrapped around Zane's throat, pulling him down to the floor. "You shouldn't lie, Frosty. It'll only bring death to you." Kai smirked, standing up and holding Zane in the air. "Please, master Kai, I cannot breathe!" Zane gasped, his face beginning to turn a slight blue. Cole and Jay came around the corner, arms crossed. "What do you want? Aren't you going to save this precious little slave?" Kai snarled at the two. "Think, Kai. There is no real reason to be hurting him. Let him go, Kai." Cole said calmly and Kai's grip relaxed a bit. "He lied to me! Why shouldn't I kill him? He's just a slave, nothing more!" Kai shouted, bringing a knife up to Zane's forehead. "Please...let me...go." Zane gasped and fell limp against the grip. Kai growled once more as a huge figure came crashing through the window. It was X! X slammed into Kai, pinning him to the ground. A golden phoenix was imprinted on the uniform X was wearing, tripping Kai's memories. "Kai?" a small, girlish voice asked from inside the suit. "Nya?" Kai asked as Nya let him up. X removed his helmet to reveal a girl's face. It was Nya, Kai's lonely sister. "You could have sent more than one letter a year, you know." Nya hissed at her brother. "I don't have the time anymore. Uh, what do you want to do, now?" Kai asked as Cole bent down and gently lifted Zane's head from the floor. "First, you need to apologize to this slave, after you learn his name." Nya said, crossing her arms and turning to Zane. "Is his neck broken?" Jay asked as Zane's neck gave a quick snap. "No, but it feels like it's all boney. I need to get out of here, X. Do you have a place we can stay?" Cole asked as Zane coughed and sat up slightly. "Yeah, I live in an old village outside the town, a few miles from here. Think he will make it until then?" Nya asked. "Yeah." Cole said as Kai went outside and called for a wagon. Silently, the five comrades slipped down the road and towards their own freedom. After a few hours of riding, they came to another village. Kai pulled the wagon up next to a house large enough to hold twenty or more at a time. "We used to live here when we were little." Nya said as they slipped into the back door. "I will prepare dinner. You four should get a bath. Zane, we might have extra clothes for you in my room. Kai will show you to your rooms." Nya said as Kai turned towards a long hallway. Kai turned to a room on the right, pointing to Cole and Zane. "Cole, Zane, this is your room." Kai said, walking farther down the hallway. "You're with me, Jay. And if I catch you hitting on my sister again, I'll kill you." Kai threatened. Jay shrugged, placing his beloved taser next to his bed and heading towards the one of the three bathrooms out in the hall. Kai and Cole were already showering, brushing dirt from their bodies. Zane sat on the bed, waiting for his turn to take a bath for the first time in his life. "What does a bath feel like?" Zane had asked Cole before he had gotten in. "It's nice. If you focus, you can feel all the tiny droplets of water sliding over your skin." Cole had responded as he slid into the bathroom. Now, Zane waited on the bed, his eyes glazed over with a trance. Suddenly, he fell to the floor, gasping as foam came out of his mouth. "Nya...he..lp." Zane gasped, attracting Nya's attention. "Zane? Are you alright?" Nya called out into Zane's room. She saw Zane on the floor and shouted for the others, causing them to come running out of the bathroom, half wet in their clothes. "Zane!" Cole shouted, sliding to the floor to help his fallen comrade. "What happened?" Cole asked as Zane gasped breathlessly, choking on his breath. Suddenly, Zane's face began to glow a bright gold, a yin-yang symbol forming on his cheeks out of light. "He's-he's a Guardian!" Kai exclaimed, grabbing Zane's neck and flipping him over. A golden dragon was climbing down his back, slithering its way into his skin. "Give it a few moments, and he'll be fine." Kai said slowly, lifting Zane's back from the floor. Suddenly, Zane spit up more foam, coughing loudly. "Sh, calm, calm. Be calm, Zane. You are only being marked by the dragons of the elements. Calm, breathe slowly." Cole said, causing Zane to calm himself down. After a few more minutes, Zane slowly relaxed, looking into Jay's eyes. "Is it my turn?" Zane asked, making everyone laugh. "Yes, it is your turn." Cole said, helping Zane stand up. Cole walked into the bathroom with Zane, assisting him in his bath. As Zane dressed, Cole went outside into the kitchen. "I wanted to thank you, X, for giving us a place to stay." Cole said as he leaned against the counter. "Please, call me Nya. I have a great respect for you, Cole Brookstone. You started this rebellion. And everyone expects you to finish it for them. So, what's the plan?" Nya asked as Jay turned towards them from the couch. "I have a plan, but I'm not so sure it will work. We need a way into the palace, from the ground up." Cole said as Zane came out of the bathroom. Zane's eyes gave off a slight blue glow, his skin whiter than snow itself. Zane had fixed his hair so that it stuck straight up, like grass. His lips were free of dirt and cracks. "How do I look?" Zane asked as all eyes turned towards him. "You look like a walking snowman." Kai said with a musing smile. "You look…..wonderful." Cole said, making Zane's cheeks turn a deep red. "Please, I do not think I am worthy of affection." Zane squeaked, embarrassed. "Everyone deserves the least bit of affection." Cole said, hugging the slave. "Dinner's ready!" Nya said, earning all the boy's attention. Zane sat down at table, staring down at the food for several minutes before finally taking a bite. "It's rice and chicken, Kai's favorite. Do you like it, Zane?" Nya asked, Zane nodding happily. After dinner, Zane helped do the dishes as Kai and Cole started speaking about the plan. "What do we do?" Kai asked as they sat on the couch, reviewing the castle plans. "I say we go through the main gate, overthrow the guards and storm the castle from the dungeon up. What I can't figure out is how to get me inside to give the signal to do so." Cole said, pointing to a map with a door on the bottom of the dungeon. "Simple. I drag you in as a prisoner. Zane will come with me as a witness. But I think he'll collapse by the time we get there." Kai said as Jay, Nya and Zane sat down alongside them. "So, what do you have settled?" Nya asked. "Kai and Zane will get me into the castle as a prisoner, take me down to the dungeon, where I'll give the signal to the slaves already in the dungeon, allowing them to storm the castle. I've already set up an advance attack for the main party to kill the guards as they sleep. Then, after they start storming the castle, me, Nya, Zane and Kai will go find Garmadon and kill him. Got it?" Cole asked. The group nodded quietly, Cole watching as Zane's eyes grew wide. "Zane? What's wrong?" Kai asked, following Cole's gaze. Zane shook his head, smiling softly. "You'll need weapons. Follow me." Nya said, opening a door in the wall. The tunnel led down to the basement where stocks of huge weapons lined the walls. "Wow." Cole said as he gently touched a large weapon on the wall. "That's a scythe. You'll like it, Cole. It's heavy and hard. Hard enough to crack a skull in half, that is." Kai laughed as he grabbed another sword off the wall and dusted it off. "Our father was a blacksmith for the local village. Sometimes he let us do some crafting ourselves in his shrine." Nya said as she handed Jay a pair of nunchucks. Zane walked around a bit, staring at several different kinds of knives, whips and throwing stars. "I do not feel the need to fight as you do." Zane said as Cole handed him a small dagger coated with leather. "Zane, I can't stop worrying that you'll get yourself stabbed at some point. And at that point, I want you to be able to defend yourself." Cole said as he placed the small dagger in Zane's hands. That next morning, the five set out for the palace. They assembled the troops, waited for the first group to kill the guards and raced into the dungeon to gather the rest of the slaves in the cold cells. Kai, Zane and Cole went to the edge of the village, renting a wagon to take Cole in as. Kai had given Cole a few bruises in advance, as did Cole. Zane had been reluctant to put his slave clothes on, but he did it, under Cole's order. Kai wrapped thick ropes around Cole's wrists, tight enough to look painful as an act. Zane whimpered slightly as they pulled up to the walls. "You're back? Already?" one guard asked, taking a good look at Kai's blackened eye. "Shut up and let me pass. He's in the back with the slave." Kai hissed back. The guard took one look at Cole and let the wagon pass, Cole giving a slight smile on the way in. Kai dragged Cole all the way to the throne room, throwing him roughly to the floor in front of Garmadon. "Here he is, my lord." Kai grunted unhappily. Garmadon looked at Zane and smiled. "So, you chose not to kill him? Very good, Kai. Zane, take him to the dungeon and lock him up tight. He deserves to rot in a cell for killing my son." Garmadon ordered, watching closely as Zane stood and grabbed Cole by the ear, leading him out of the room. "Kai, you're dismissed." Garmadon said as he turned to look at some new battle plans. Kai turned and smiled broadly, walking out and following Zane and Cole to the dungeon. "Okay, I'll give the signal to the others." Cole said as Kai handed him the keys and walked away. Cole whistled loudly, signalling the others to begin storming the castle from underneath. Cole watched as Nya, Jay, peasants and slaves came screaming from the ground, killing every guard they saw and freeing all the other slaves. Jay and Nya let him out and they started for the rendezvous point in the main hall for their hunt for the king. Kai met them there as they waited for Zane to come alongside him. "Where's Zane?" Nya asked. "He was right behind me. Maybe he got swept away in the crowd?" Kai offered. "Give him a few more minutes, he'll be here soon." Cole said as they watched the murderous onslaught continue. Meanwhile, Zane was locked in a room, hands tied behind his back and a large gag in his mouth. Garmadon came out of the darkness, holding a bottle of Dark Matter in one hand and a sword in the other. He took the gag off, holding the sword against Zane's throat. "Please, let me go. I have done nothing to anger you, master." Zane whimpered softly, making Garmadon smile. "Anger me? Anger me? Oh, you have lived far too long to not have angered me! You need to die now, Zane. Remember what happened to your father the last time you saw him?" Garmadon smirked, making Zane grow confused. "I do not remember my father. Who was he? What did he do to anger you?" Zane asked, his eyes growing wide. "He talked to me like I was a slave. He begged for your life to be spared, twenty years ago. I took you anyway. Why? Because I saw obedience in you. I raised you to be what you were supposed to be. I treated you to be a slave. And now, you have disobeyed me. And you owe me your life. Your life is nothing to me. You mean nothing to me." Garmadon growled, holding the knife against his jaw. "What are you going to do to me, master?" Zane asked weakly. Garmadon called for a single guard at the door to hold Zane's mouth open. Suddenly, Garmadon shoved the bottle deep into Zane's throat, forcing him to swallow it. "Let him go. The poison in the Dark Matter will kill him soon. Let's go." Garmadon hissed, watching as the guard smashed Zane's head into the floor. Suddenly, the door opened to reveal Cole, Jay, Kai and Nya holding their weapons, facing away from him. "We have to find him." Nya said. "But he could be anywhere!" Kai exclaimed, watching as a dark figure slipped from the room. Zane was still lying on the floor, black liquids pouring from his mouth as Garmadon lifted him up and held a knife to his chest. Cole slowly opened the door and stepped inside, spotting Garmadon with Zane. "Let him go, Garmadon. You have nothing left to fight for." Cole hissed. "Oh? I do have something that you feel the need to fight for, don't I?" the lord hissed back ever sharply. Kai, Nya and Jay slunk into the room to join them, weapons drawn. "Drop your weapons, let me go, and I'll give him back." Garmadon said, pointing the end of the knife at Zane's heart. "No, don't hurt him. Why hurt him? He's been hurt enough already." Nya said as she put down her golden knives. Jay placed his nunchucks on the floor by his side, close enough to grab if need be. Cole looked at his scythe and gently placed it on the floor with a grunt of hatred. "Good. Now, leave this room and I'll let him go." Garmadon said. Cole turned and walked out the door, waiting outside to wring the lord's neck as he walked out. The others followed, watching suddenly as Garmadon slammed Zane down on the floor and jumped out the window to the ground. "Zane!" Cole shouted, sliding in to pick Zane up. Nya pulled a blanket from her waist and wrapped it around Zane's body, trying to warm him. Zane's lifeless eyes stared up at Cole, empty of all spirit possible. "Zane." Cole repeated over and over, pressing down on Zane's chest gently. After a while, Zane's eyes turned a bright shade of purple and gave life into his body. "Cole? Where are you?" Zane asked, his temporary blindness fading quickly. "I'm right next to you. I'm right here." Cole said, wrapping Zane's hand in his rough skin, rubbing softly. Zane opened his eyes and sat up, wrapping his arms around Cole's neck, crying. "I-I died! I died in front of you! I'm so sorry!" he cried, Cole patting his back. "It's okay. You're alive. But, your eyes are purple. Is there any difference with that?" Cole asked. "All the darkness looks like light. And the light looks like normal sunglasses." Zane said, standing up on his wobbly legs.
THE END