Oh boy, I've been wanting to write this for awhile. Morro's character seems so underdeveloped, and it's annoying that the writers made him a really bad guy, then just kill him off. He's got so much more potential. His past, that's the problem. It's so general, nothing really makes you feel bad for Morro. It's just "he's and orphan that wanted to be the Green Ninja." Well, why did he want to be the Green Ninja? And how did he become an orphan in the first place?
Here's the answer.
Rated T because mentions of abuse, death, and minor suicidal thoughts. Plus a bit of Greenwind at the end. Don't own Ninjago.
He was a broken child. That was for sure.
It started when he was only four years old. No child should ever have gone through what he had.
But he still remembers walking in to see the man with the knife, blood on it. And his parents pale and dead. Gone was his loving mother whom of which possessed the ability to manipulate wind. But he hadn't known that. Gone was his caring father that tossed him in the air and had a laughter that constantly rang through the house.
They were gone.
He was immediately sent to a foster home for a year, but things only turned for the worst.
His "mommy" and "daddy" hated him. (Why he was sent to such a place, he didn't know.) "Mommy" constantly complained and yelled of what a waste of space he was. A nothing. "Daddy" was even worse. "Daddy" hit him when he was bad. By hand. By a glass bottle that made him seem even madder. By belt. By wooden spoon. Or by whip.
One of the worst memories is when he had a nightmare of his past. He subconsciously crept into "Mommy" and "Daddy's" bed.
He was then chained outside for the night. "You can't sleep in your own bed?! Fine! Don't sleep in a bed at all!"
It was the same cycle of abuse and hurt. He thought he'd never get out.
So, when he was five, he ran away.
He lived on the streets, hoping it would be better.
But it wasn't. Kids, older kids would bully and beat him up because he was weak. He would spend the nights crying, weak and frail and hungry and cold. He was their slave. He would do what they say and get nothing in return except for a lighter abuse. He would have to fetch them food and wasn't allowed to have anything for himself. Half the time he wasn't even clothed to do it. His hair grew out, and the boys like to pull on it and call him a girl. They liked to hurt him.
They nearly left him dead. He usually got away with at least one broken bone, if he was lucky. On worst days, he didn't even want to think about. They would lock him in a trash bin, or give him no privacy when he needed to use the bathroom. He'd be bleeding badly and smelling and humiliated. They would sometimes tie him to a trash can or drain pipe, unable to move in fear of straining himself.
It was like this for two more years.
One day, when he was able to at least get a small apple in the morning, they told him to walk up all the steps to the "crazy man's" house. They gave him a bloody nose and told him if he didn't, it would end up worse. Two boys accompanied him to make sure he didn't do anything behind their backs.
After an hour of climbing the steps, the two boys laughed as he tried to find something suitable. They gave him a couple hits to "encourage" him. Then they looked in the can for something better to push him with.
When the man came, the boys ran. But he was scared. Scared to come back empty-handed. He was then scared the man would hit him. Send him back into that cycle.
But the man, Wu, didn't. He gave him food. Shelter. Love. Love. Wu became a father figure. No, Wu became his father. Wu adopted him, and gave him training to protect himself. Become a ninja and learn a technique called Spinjitzu. He loved Wu with all his heart.
Of course, there were days he was a bit scared of Wu. Like one night, when he had yet another nightmare.
He was petrified to realize that, no, that was not sweat from between his legs. It had happened back when he was with his "parents." Memories of being shoved onto the toilet seat and then being whipped flashed in his mind as he in vain tried to wash the sheets and hide the evidence. Boys his age shouldn't be wetting their bed. He was seven years old! Tears rolled down his face when Wu found him. He ran up to his room and grabbed a belt, preparing for the worst.
Wu had a heartbroken face when he handed him the belt. The boy in front of Wu had tears pouring as he turned around.
"D-do you want me to take off my pants?" He asked quietly.
Wu dropped the belt, and approached his adopted son carefully, trying his best not to scare the boy even more.
"I don't do that. I would never hurt you. Now, let's get you out of these and in some new pajamas, then I'll give you some tea to ward off nightmares. You can sleep with me the rest of the night if you want," Wu replied softly. His heart broke again at the dumbfounded and amazed look on the young boy's face.
He nodded and took off his pajamas. Wu nearly let a tear slip as he saw the scars on his back. Whip marks, belt marks. The boy's lower part was no better. When he was finally dressed, Wu gave him a sweet tea that immediately cleared his mind of the bad memories.
It was a sweet relationship that seemed to last forever.
Then when Wu told him he could become the Green Ninja, he got excited. He would never again be left in that trapped room and able to help get others out of it. He'd make the world a better place.
But Fate decided he wouldn't be the Green Ninja. He was terrified that Wu would abandon him, discard him for the next. Leave him to go back into that dark place of hurt.
He had to become the Green Ninja, or risk losing everything to just be in the abuse cycle again.
After months of searching, he gave up and tried to end it all. He wandered into the Caves of Despair and welcomed death with open arms.
Sadly, his story didn't end there.
He was sent to the Cursed Realm, and forced to be teased by all the ghosts that lived there.
But then he found Soul Archer, Bansha, Ghoul Tar, and Wrayth.
Bansha and Soul Archer were like parents, but a thousand times better than "Mommy" and "Daddy." They took care of him, acting caring after they learned his story. (They were horrified when he told them he was merely eight years old.) Ghoul Tar was the silly uncle that made everyone laugh no matter what he did. Wrayth protected the boy from dangerous ghosts. He loved them nearly as much as he did Wu.
The Preeminent then forced him to grow up, look eighteen instead of eight. He was then filled with dark, murderous ideas. Bansha and Soul Archer desperately pleaded their Mistress to leave him alone, but then they too, along with Wrayth and Ghoul Tar, were forced to take out her evil ways.
He hated it all.
He nearly killed all of them. Getting Airjitzu.
Sending them into Yang's Temple where they would surely never get out.
The Earth Ninja didn't make it, and became a ghost as well. It was saddening, he didn't want to hurt anyone. The poor teen had to learn how to live translucent and intangible.
The Cloud Kingdom. He locked the Ninja away with a giant monster. And he got the Sword of Sanctuary. Why to bad guys always hurt the good ones?
He sent them to the Caves of Despair (which brought back more memories. He had to stay in his room for an entire day. It was humiliating.) Where they nearly died. And he nearly killed them. His fault.
He attempted to find the First Spinjitzu Master's Tomb.
He remembered possessing the Green Ninja and seeing his childhood. He was the son of an evil overlord and could barely see him father. He was forced to fight him, fight him and grow up. Childhood stripped away.
They were so similar.
He was afraid the Master of Energy would see his memories, so he desperately tried to keep them hidden. He shoved on a thick mask and didn't let anyone see past his sharp tongue and meaningful lies. He became what his Mistress wanted. Evil.
But it wasn't enough, he sometimes felt himself cracking.
When that Fire Master, Kai, came and tried to help the Green Ninja. Someone cared about him so much. It reminded him of Wu, and the ghosts when they weren't like him.
The ghosts.
When they were alone, the tiny unhurt part of his consciousness watched in sadness as they worked to bring his Mistress to Ninjago. It was heartbreaking.
He felt bad for the Green Ninja, for they had similar pasts. Forced to grow up. But his was worse, way worse.
He had to find the Realm Crystal. He went underwater and found the First Spinjitzu Master's Tomb. But he had to race the Ninja to it. He nearly killed the Masters of Energy, Fire, and Earth.
He found the Realm Crystal, but was then left dying.
Sinking under the waves. The Preeminent was dead. As was his family. He felt tears build up at the thought of them dead. Forever.
Suddenly, something pulled him up.
He sat on the dock, shaking and crying. Why was he alive? The Ninja would surely just kill him again, send him through all that pain and misery. Plus his family that cared for-dare he he say love-him, were all dead. Why was he alive? Why?
Strong arms wrapped around him, and his first thought was Sensei.
But they were not Sensei's hands.
He looked up to see the green eyes. Those eyes, he was terrified of. He tried to squirm and wiggle his way out of Lloyd's grasp, fearing he would be hit and punished.
Tears were spilling out of his eyes uncontrollably. Lloyd held him to his chest.
"It's okay, you're going to be fine now. I won't hurt you. No one will hurt you, I promise."
That was all he ever wanted to hear.
Afterward...
Lloyd brought an insomniac Morro back into his room on the Bounty. He cried and didn't seem to really notice Lloyd at all. The Master of Energy slowly peeled off Morro's tattered and soaked clothes, bracing himself from what he knew was already there.
Scars. They still caught him off guard. Lloyd gulped before dressing Morro in a pair of causal jeans and a dark green shirt with a lighter hoodie. He slowly rubbed the Master of Wind's back until the cries subsided into sniffles.
Grey-green eyes widened at him, scooting back on the bed. "D-don't hurt me. P-please," Morro pleaded. He hugged himself, tears spilling once more.
Lloyd brushed away Morro's long hair, and brought him in an embrace. "You've done nothing wrong. Remember, I saw all of your memories when you possessed me? I'm not mad at you, and I never will be. It wasn't your fault, okay? You shouldn't have gone through any of that. I'm going to make sure that never happens again."
"You forgive me?" Morro squeaked. "B-but, I've done so much wrong, you don't hate me for it?"
"It wasn't you fault, okay? I already said that. I forgive you. I really do. Now rest, you need to calm your mind. I promise I won't hurt you."
"Can you stay? I can't trust the others," Morro admitted sheepishly.
Lloyd smiled. "Of course." When Morro fell asleep, Lloyd silently placed a small kiss on his forehead.
"I swear you will never go through anything like that again," he whispered.
And thus, the broken child soon learned that no matter how dark the tale, every story deserves a happy ending.
No regrets. Heart shattered in a million pieces.
Sorry if you cried at all. I hope I got Morro some justice. These are literally the vibes I get from the villains:
Kozu: REVENGE! FOR WHAT I HAVE NO IDEA!
Samukai: SAME AS KOZU!
Lord G: I was bitten by an evil snake! And basically have a son that plays Luke Skywalker!
Overlord: I'm your worst nightmare.
Cryptor: I'm Zane's evil clone!
Chen: BUTTONS BUTTONS BUTTONS!
Preeminent: I will curse all the sixteen realms!
Nadakahn: I am an evil jinn that will rule the world.
Hands of Time: We want to rule the world with our power over time!
And finally...
Morro: I have been an orphan my whole life, then was given a chance to be a hero. That chance was stuck down, leaving me depressed and I died. After, I was forced to do an ugly beast's will and died (again) as a hero. Then I was revived for a night and helped the Ninja remember one they forgot.
So you can see why I like Morro...
Plus I NEEDED some Greenwind in there before I die because there are barely and fics!
But yeah, I will get back to my other story Your Not Alone, I just really wanted to do this. Sorry if it's a little OOC, and very unrealistic, but it was an idea that brought out my artistic side.
Tootles!