Chapter one- A dark new world
Naomi pulled at the mask of her brother's old ninja outfit, allowing it to cover only half of her small face, leaving her shining purple eyes and thick wild hair unveiled. The cloth hung loosely against her body, tightened only by the black belt pressing against her hips. She moved forward, the dark outfit allowing her to blend in with the abundant shadows. The smell of her brother still clung to the black fabric, and Naomi had to blink a couple of tears away as she inhaled.
I'll bring you back Cole. I'm not letting the evil take you away from me
"You're getting good. But you still can't sneak past me." A soft whisper sneaked into Naomi's ear, causing her shoulders to twitch in surprise. She turned, her eyes meeting with the features of a blonde-haired young man, with remarkable green eyes. A green mask covered his lips and nose, accompanied by a green ninja suit that fit him perfectly.
"Don't try and stop me. I'm going to find a cure for my brother."
"Of course I'm not stopping you Naomi, I'm going with you." His green eyes shone brightly, and Naomi knew his lips were curving upward into a smile she could not see. "By the way, looking nice in your brother's outfit."
Naomi blushed, the shadows barely able to hide the red glow. "I . . . I thought he wouldn't need it anymore. I just needed something to-"
"Hey, it's okay," He smiled, "Now what's the plan?"
"I . . . I was thinking we could go to Casey's. Try and see if she wrote about the ring. . . How to destroy it. . . anything."
"Alright. . ."
She took a deep breath, trying to wash away the crazy thoughts and worries circumnavigating her fuzzy mind. Naomi closed her eyes, trying to focus again, trying to not think about Cole, trying to keep her tears in check. "Well we need to get moving before-"
A loud high-pitched screech trembled through the buildings. Overhead a large shadow streaked past the moonlight. Naomi and Lloyd pressed themselves against the crumbling wall behind them, using the darkness to be hidden from the creature that flew past. Naomi's eyes studied the monster, one of the countless monstrosities that had been liberated by the ring Casey had given her brother.
Its face was dark and plastered with scales of different shades of black and gray. The head elongated into a sharp beak, from which razor-edged teeth skewed in different angles. Its body was covered in a combination of scales and feathers, a pair of large wings emerging from its back. Arms and feet both ended in blood-covered claws.
"Trespassers. . . I smell trespassers." The creature's voice was high and raspy, saliva spewing out with every word.
"I hate those things. . . " Lloyd whispered, praying that it would simply fly past.
"I don't think it saw us," Naomi followed the monster with her eyes, relaxing her pose as it glided towards another building. "Or should I say smelled us?"
Lloyd chuckled, following Naomi through a path of shadows. " Well I did shower this morning,"
"Ah what a miracle,"
"Hey I alw-"
The green ninja's voice was cut short by a terrified, blood-curling scream.
Naomi and Lloyd's head snapped towards the sound. It was emanating from the exact position where the creature had flown. The scream was followed by a spine-chilling growl. "Found you!"
"Someone's in trouble!" Lloyd shouted, instinctively running towards the sound. "Why would someone come out at night!?"
"Well we're out at night," Naomi pointed out breathlessly, trying to keep up with Lloyd's long strides.
They both emerged into Ninjago city's dark abandoned street, easily spotting the creature, which was now towering over a young boy. Lloyd ran forward, shooting a beam of light at the monster, to get its predatory attention away from the shivering child.
"Come on you ugly thing. . . Come and get me!" Lloyd shouted, loving the thrill of the fight.
The monster tilted its head, neck bending at an awkward angle. "I smell the boy. The boy master searches for frantically. . . The murderer!"
Lloyd flinched at the words, flashes of Nadya's unjust death flipping through his mind. But he couldn't regret his actions. If Casey had been allowed to live, good would have been vanquished for good. Yet, Nadya's face still haunted his nightmares, layers of guilt pressing down on him everywhere he went.
"Well he can keep looking! " Naomi growled, unsheathing her sword and hacking at the creature's wings, rendering them useless. With another burst of energy, Lloyd destroyed the creature, its body disintegrating into a stinky pool of black ooze.
Shaking the word murderer from his head, Lloyd smiled at Naomi. " You're definitely getting better with that sword."
"Well it does help that we have Kai back,"
It had been a relief for everyone when Kai finally awoke from his coma. His timing couldn't have been more perfect either, as the ninja of fire returned to reality the same day that Cole had finally made his move against Ninjago. The day that all the rules had changed. Cole became the undisputable ruler of Ninjago, as the ninja had no chance at defeating their former leader. After that day, Lloyd became the most wanted 'criminal' of Ninjago city, with a large bounty tagged on his head.
Not that any of the people in the city would ever think of turning him in.
Naomi turned back towards the small kid, who stood in the sidewalk, gaping openly at Lloyd. "Hey little guy. . . You know you shouldn't be out at night. It's against Cole's rules."
The little boy gave no sign of having heard her, he simply stared at Lloyd. "Green ninja!"
"You got that right," Lloyd chuckled, tugging down on the mask that covered half of his face. Naomi rolled her eyes. " Now how about you tell me where your house is, so we can take you back?"
The young boy pointed up the street, then trotted forward, leading Naomi and Lloyd to his house. The little boy knocked against the window, where candlelight flickered against the curtains. Seconds later a gray haired woman with wrinkled brown eyes opened the door, slightly at first, then widely when she spotted the small boy.
"Thomas! You had me so worried! You can never leave the house, remember?" The woman picked the boy up, holding him tightly against her chest. Her eyes then flickered towards where Lloyd and Naomi stood. "Thank you for bringing him back. . ."
"No problem," Lloyd smiled, looking like a charming young hero.
"I'm so glad to know Cole hasn't captured you. . . "The woman continued. " You're the last hope this city has."
"Well, It's official, the whole city has idolized you now." Naomi said, a soft bitter tone in her voice. She walked fast, staying a few paces in front of Lloyd as they entered the forest.
"Is that jealousy I hear Naomi?" Lloyd snickered, his green eyes glinting mischievously.
"Maybe," Naomi shrugged. " I just think some of us deserve a little credit too,"
"I agree, though I can't really control what the people think Can I?"
"Yeah yeah I know."
They arrived at Casey's old treehouse, which now stood as a pile of ashes covering a square shaped trap-door. Naomi opened it, throwing the small door against the ashes. Slowly, she made her way down the small wooden steps.
Lloyd's hand shot up to his neck, and he stroked a thick scar that still stood fresh against his skin. "This place brings back bad memories."
"Never want to see you bleeding to death again. . ." Naomi pushed away cobwebs, squinting her purple eyes against the darkness. She pushed useless artifacts and strange herbs out of her way.
"You won't," Lloyd promised. "Now what exactly are we looking for?"
"I don't know, A diary maybe?"
"Yeah why would a witch keep a diary?"
"Or a journal. Anything she wrote on like-" Naomi froze, her eyes clicking upon a small book, bound with leather, crooked pages sticking out in odd directions with scrambled writing upon the white pages. " Something like that!"
She stepped towards the book, shoving everything else aside. Her small hand reached out, the edge of her fingers coming into contact with the cold, aging leather. Pain exploded through her arm, reaching upwards, clawing at her brain. A small squeal escaped her dry lips, just as the world faded away into darkness.
(What better way to start off than with a gorgeous cliff-hanger? I'm sorry, I really am addicted to those things. Anyway. . . This is the last story in my little trilogy. Hope you guys enjoying this! And thanks for following me this far!)
