Authors Notes: Oh poor Kate and Echo...FYI this chapter takes place at around 5am

Frozen Timepiece

Chapter 22

Rain

Zane slowly turned his head when the door to his cell opened. He had tried countless times that night to fall asleep, but that program wouldn't let him. His processor kept trying and trying to figure out a way to get out of this mess. He attempted to use the wifi, but it was completely encrypted and he couldn't even get onto it.

"Good morning Zane. I'd ask if you had a good nights sleep, but I'm sure Raya insured that you didn't." He said patting the nindroids helm. Zane shook his head and glared at him through a sleepy gaze.

"Well it would seem that I've gotten everything out of you that I could have, unless their is anything else I can take willingly. But what will happen next is a bit of a…" The roof began to slide aside.

"Damn it Raya close that before he opens a communications channel!" Sanza yelled. Into which Zane did take this opportunity to do so. Zane tried his best to call Pixal. Oh how he wished he could communicate with her. He wanted to hear her sweet voice, even if it was in his head.

"Gotcha." Sanza smiled down at the nindroid who gasped when he felt someone once again in his mind. He tried to close the channel before he found Pixal, but thats not what was being done. It was a physical clamp to keep his communications hub opened and able to locate any numbers to the others.

"No no NO!" Zane yelled hitting his head on the metal slab of a bed attempting to knock himself out. He knew Sanza wouldn't be able to keep communications open if he was unconscious. Raya grabbed hold of his head and kept him still.

"Now be a good boy...and behave."

Lloyd looked at the map on the wall they had been talking about whats going on for some time now. Kate and Echo had retreated some time ago to get some sleep since they had been up well past the time they normally went to bed, and this as ninja business anyways. Cole had assumed his position at the bridge when 3am rolled around, but it was he and Lloyd on the bridge waiting for any information. They both sat down at the table and had a group of cards scattered in the center. Cole threw a hand down and looked at Lloyd and smiled. Lloyd sighed slightly disappointed and threw his cards on the table. Cole looked baffled for a moment.

"You are the best player at poker I've ever seen."

"Don't tell mom though. She'd flip if she realized I was playing poker."

"Oh?" Cole smiled evily at him. "I do have her on speed dial." Cole said holding up his phone. Lloyd just rolled his eyes.

"Oh just take the pile. Its not like we're playing for money anyways." cole pulled the pile of monopoly money toward himself and giggled.

"Money money money." He whispered and jumped when the lights began to flash red and the alarms started to go off.

"Master Lloyd!" Pixals voice echoed in the room. "I've picked up a beacon from Zane. Its in the center of Ninjago City. I wasn't able to pinpoint where it was. He probably had enough time to show us he escaped, but those men must be after him." Pixal said frantically. She was really worried about her boyfriend. The ninja ran from the room and out of the Bounty. The clouds thundered with the promise of rain.

Zane struggled once more trying to get this intruder from his processor. The man had just notified Pixal that he had escaped, but he hadn't. He couldn't even pull himself away from the metal table, much less get out of the horrifying room. He looked over at Raya who smiled and looked at her father.

"I found something." She said. Sanza looked up at her and saw something in her hand.

"Its an AI!" He said running his fingers over the back of his neck.

"No! No leave her alone!" Zane really began to panic now. His thrashed around against the bindings. One came free and he started to pull the other one.

"Alright Zane you've forced me to do this and I really didn't want to." He activated the magnets in the table forcing his hand back down. His mind once again feeling weak, but he was denied rest again.

"I think its time we located your brother shall we?" He said fiddling with something in his hand and then smiled when he found Echos communicator masking it as if it were pixals for a moment. When Echo answered it wasn't Pixals voice that he heard.

"Listen closely Echo. I have your brother...ah who is this beautiful woman your with? Answer me within your head, we don't want her realizing your having a conversation." Sanza said looking at the monitor read out from Zane.

"I'm listening."

"Ah you didn't answer me. Whose the girl?"

"Her name is Kate, my girlfriend."

"A nindroid who has a girlfriend. How...gross." He said shaking his head at this knowledge. "Well we can't have her following you now can we. Ditch her."

"I can not! She is with me, I can't just leave her alone in the middle of the city." Echo said not really expecting what was about to be said.

"Either you ditch her or your asking her to come with you...if she comes with you...she'll die." Echo began to panic.

"Kate...I want you to do something for me." Echo said looking down at her. Kate turned and smiled up at Echo. Oh that beautiful smile. How he loved to see it. But this was to protect his brother. The rain began to fall on them in full force. Like someone had dumped a bucket on them both.

"Sure Echo whats going on? Did you get another…"

"I want you to head back to the Bounty. I have...to go somewhere." Echo said. Kate looked a little bewildered for a moment. She reached her hand out and touched Echos arm.

"But what...what about you Echo? I can't just leave you out here alone." Truth was Kate felt naked without Echo being with her, she actually panicked a lot if she couldn't see him. She knew it was a bit stupid and childish of her, but Echo was her constant. She needed him.

"Just dump her already! She's no use to you anyways! Dump her or I'll kill her myself, her and your brother."

"Dump?"

"Break...up...with...her." This caused Echos heart to skip a beat. He didn't like the feel of this, but the words spilled out of his mouth before he could stop them.

"I'm breaking up with you." He said. Kates face looked like it had just been slapped. Which Kate would have rather been slapped. She would have rather been stabbed in the heart a million times then to hear what she just heard.

"Echo? What...What…" She couldn't get the words to fall out of her mouth. Echo looked frustrated.

"I can't stand you and your clinging all the time, and your pawing, even your laugh is annoying." He was repeating everything Sanza told him to say. Each word looked like a solid slap to her face. He was glad however...that it was raining. Or she wouldn't have believed him. The tears would have been a solid give away. He however saw the turmoil on Kates face. The look of utter defeat on her features. She held herself, and looked down at the ground.

"Father was right…" She whispered turning away from Echo. "No one...could ever love me." She took the ring from her finger and held it to Echo. She put it into his outstretched hand. "I'm sorry I was such a disappointment to you." He could hear her voice clearly she was crying. "I'm sorry I wasted your time." She walked down an alleyway.

Echo couldn't take anymore, he just turned and walked away from that spot, he hated that spot, he'd never go back to that spot again. He kept walking till he spotted the black car that was described to him.

"Its not like you could have loved her anyways. Your just a machine."