The year is 2025.
On a tall mountain overlooking a bright and bustling city, a figure dressed in green and black stands in the sunlight, perching his blade over his right shoulder.
Today is just like any other day in the high-tech and futuristic world that this warrior has begun to call home. Citizens all over the city are driving their borg-cars to work, some in the bustling financial business district, and some in smaller jobs in the market.
The warrior allows his piercing emerald eyes to glance to the right, and then to the left a moment after. Placing his blade in his sheath, this great martial arts master takes a leap of faith and simply walks off the edge of the mountain, making it look easy. That's his specialty.
As his body goes barreling towards the city below, the warrior clenches his fists tightly, and they begin to emit a bright green glow. In only a few meer moments, the glow transforms into a large spherical shield around the warrior, and a large green dragon appears to take the place of the shield.
The beast lets out a loud and ear-piercing roar, yet the warrior at the reigns barely makes a flinch. He causes the dragon to softly glide down towards the city, and as he reaches about 15 feet above the road below, he expertly backflips off of the dragon, landing on the ground with an impressive dismount. His feet make contact with the ground, and his entire body moves into a relaxed position.
Despite the green hood over his face, the warrior still manages to breathe in the crisp morning air, the cool wind bristling against his robes. He begins a slow walk down the street, attempting to be as discreet as possible. Fortunately, most of the people that live in this part of the city are already at work. Easier for the warrior, I suppose.
He breaks into more of a speed walk, his feet quickly sweeping across the sidewalk, so silent that you'd think he was gently floating above the ground. As he nears a corner, he sneaks into an alleyway, and resumes his slow walk.
As he nears the midway point of the alley, the warrior can't help but feel a tinge of a smirk as he approached the green and gold vehicle that sat only a few feet away from him.
He loves this car.
Hopping in, he breathes in the new car smell, and turns the ignition. The almost silent roar of the engine serves well for stealth operations, which is something that this warrior is never short of. In only a few quick movements, the warrior belts himself in, and the car begins to drive out of the alley.
As rubber meets the road, as the warrior would often put it, the sleek car zooms down the street, and into the busy metropolis. Street after street, corner after corner, the warrior expertly makes every turn and stop look like a catwalk.
Nearing his destination, the warrior keeps his left hand on the wheel, using his right to dig through his small pouch that he had clipped on his hip. He pulled out a simple-looking watch out, strapping it onto his wrist, and parking the car. He opened the cockpit of the vehicle, hopping out and looking up at his destination.
Chen's Noodle House.
As the warrior nears the entrance, he turns a dial on the side of his watch, and a hologram shapes around him, disguising his features. In the place of his masterful robes are a bright green T-shirt and grey jeans, completed with a dark green leather jacket. Sat gently on his head is a sand color fedora, attempting to hide his emerald eyes and golden-blonde locks.
As he approaches the door, it opens automatically, just as almost any other door in the city does. Technology sure does make life a lot more convenient.
The disguised master walks through the entrance, and into the restaurant. It is busy and full of life, as usual. Several groups of people sit at a corner table, deep in a light conversation, sharing a laugh over a steaming bowl of ramen.
Ramen sounds nice, but it isn't what the warrior is here for. He walks over to the long line in front of the cashier, and he allows his piercing eyes to examine just how many people he has yo wait behind. About sixteen, he estimates. He lowers the fedora just a bit lower on his head, and glances down at the watch on his wrist, checking the stability of the disguise hologram.
98%. Should hold out for about an hour or so, he supposes, glancing away from the watch and back to the line. He notices that the line has gotten smaller, and he feels a hand on his shoulder.
"Hey, buddy, you gonna move up or what?" A man behind him says, who the warrior estimates to be about 40 years of age.
The disguised master blinks for a moment, turning to the man. After a moment, he quietly speaks, the word expertly rolling off his tounge. "Sorry."
He then turns back to the line, and counts the number of customers ahead of him.
Only three more. Almost there.
As the final customer before the warrior orders his meal, he walks over to his table, allowing the warrior to step up to the cashier.
"Welcome to Mr. Chen's Noodle House, how can I help you?" The redhead at the register says cheerfully, a kind glow in her blue eyes. Her lips are curled into a warm smile, and she has her small, delicate hands folded in front of her on the table.
The warrior says nothing, but simply rests the fedora a bit higher on his face, exposing his emerald eyes, which gave the message.
The cashier's eyes widen for a moment, then relax, and her smile grows even more. "Come with me to the kitchen," she says simply, and turns toward the kitchen, leaving another worker to take her place at the register.
The disguised master gives a small nod, and follows closely behind her, his footsteps as quiet and light as the morning dew.
As the two figures slip into the kitchen, the redhead leads the warrior to a small closet in the back of the kitchen. After he walks in behind her, she closes the door and locks it. With a flick of a switch, the small room is filled with light from a small lightbulb on the ceiling, and two figures take a moment to take each other in.
The redhead smiles for about the hundredth time that day, glad to be finally seeing the face of one of her oldest friends after so long. After he removed his fedora, and sat the leather hat on the ground, she could really take in his features. He had done something new with his hair, and his stature was much more muscular and well-built than the last time they had crossed paths. But behind those piercing emerald eyes was the same teenage leader she had known for so many years.
"Its good to see you again," the redhead speaks first, brushing a small lock of her bright red hair behind her ear.
It was quiet for a moment, before the warrior gives a small sigh and then forms a small smile back. "I was about to say the exact same thing." His words ring true, he is also glad to see a familiar face, especially one that belongs to a friend.
"I had almost lost hope that I would see any of you six again, after what happened between you and-" the redhead begins but stops as the warrior holds up a hand.
"I know." He speaks simply, a tinge of sadness in his eyes. "To be honest, I haven't seen any of the others since then either." He lets out an almost shaky breath, folding his hands together.
"I missed you all," the redhead assures him, placing a small, yet warm hand on his. "This place really isn't the same without you guys around. Can you believe how busy this place has been lately? And here I was thinking the place was on the verge of getting taken down." She smirks, and he can't help but give a smile back.
A long silence follows after, and the two friends look away for a few moments, before the redhead turns her head back towards the warrior.
"Why are you here?" She asks simply, in a kind tone.
"Hmm?"
"Of all times, you come now? There has to be a reason," she pushes.
He smiles a bit, talking a bit lighter than before, "Can't I just stop by to visit an old friend? Or were you just happy to get rid of me?"
The redhead let's out a small scoff, rolling her eyes. And yet, she can't help but smile at his behavior. "I would never be happy to be away from your presence. Come on, something's up, right?"
The warrior shuts his eyes tightly, his brows furrowing and his smile disappearing. He let's out a sigh once more, and speaks, keeping his eyes closed.
"I need your help, Skylor."
Skylor frowns a little, concern evident in her eyes. The warrior can not see this, for his eyes are closed. "Anything," she says kindly.
The warrior opens his eyes, looking at his old friend. "I-I just..."
"Yes?"
"I haven't been the same. Not for a long time. This world is a peace now, and I don't have much to handle these days other than small operations. But I think what's bothering me the most is...I feel so...different...like I don't belong here." The warrior looks down at the floor sadly, a frown on his face.
"What do you mean?" Skylor asks kindly, resting a hand on his shoulder.
"Look around, Skylor. This world is nothing like it used to be. My team isn't anything like they used to be...I'm not anything like I used to be..." The warrior holds back tears.
Don't you dare cry, he tells himself. A true Master never cries.
"Oh, Lloyd..." Skylor says sadly, sensing the pain in his voice.
"I just don't know anymore," Lloyd continues. "For the first time in my life, I'm truly alone..." He sniffs, his golden-blonde locks shining softly in the light.
"Lloyd Montgomery Garmadon, don't let me hear you ever say that again," Skylor began, clutching his palms. You are not alone, you hear me? You are never alone."
Lloyd raises a brow, his action speaking for himself.
Skylor, seeing as she has to explain, continues. "I understand being a Master means you teach others so much. But I think being the teacher so much has made you stubborn enough to refuse being taught yourself." She smiles kindly. "Its about time the teacher be taught a very important lesson." She looked into his eyes, and he looked into hers. "No matter what you do, and no matter where you are, or who you are, you are never alone. I want you to know that, Lloyd. I want you to know that."
After a moment, Lloyd slowly nodded his head, and smiled lightly. "Thank you," he almost whispered.
"What?" Skylor jokes. "I couldn't hear that last part. Are you too stubborn to say thank you as well?" She stands up, placing a hand on her hip.
Lloyd stands up as well, saying it more clearly, "Thank you."
Skylor embraces the Green Ninja in a hug, surprising him for a moment. Then, he relaxes and hugs back.
"You're welcome," she whispers back. As they stood in an embrace for a few moments, Lloyd finally feels at peace. He's gonna get the team back, he promises himself. And he was going to do it the right way.
"So," Skylor begins, smirking. "How about some 'welcome back' noodles?"
Lloyd lets go of the redhead for a moment, smiling at her.
"Sounds good to me."
Wow. I'm literally so proud of this oneshot. It took me about 2-3 hours to write, including breaks here and there, but its finally finished. I feel like I'm really improving, and I'm really glad about that.
And also, NO, this is NOT a Lloyd X Skylor fic. This is more of a friendship between the two characters, that I may one day introduce in another fic. We'll see. ;)
Until the next fic,
-EnergyBlast