The Badlands, Kryptarium Prison
One hour. It only took Ronin one hour to find everyone. It was almost as if he had a tracker on everyone, as if he were some sort of bloodhound who had everyone's scent. It wasn't long before we all were piled into the cargo hold of REX and flown to Krytarium Prison, where we were handed over and left behind by our former ally. I couldn't believe him. After all we've done, he does this to us. Ugh, this is why I feel I can't trust anyone anymore. But why did I even trust Ronin in the first place? He was a filthy liar anyway.
So now we walk through the loud halls of this prison, vengestone cuffs binding my wrists together, as well as everyone else's. My prison uniform is loose, and smells of permanent marker for some reason. I hate it already. At least they let me keep my bow in my hair. I'm afraid I'd have to kill someone if they took it. No one is to touch that bow except for me. No one.
I've started to miss Lilly even more, especially since our current situation would have been something she could have gotten out of easily, considering her powers weren't hereditary. She could have frozen the guards and broke us free, but no. Kai had to screw it all up. He just had to drive her away! He just had to lead her to getting captured by that stupid Djinn. Ugh, at least I have this voice in my head that's keeping me company, the one that tells me what to do. Though, I have no idea where it came from or why it tells me to do all these violent things, but I enjoy it's company. Maybe it's my mother. Maybe she's hiding in my head, telling me the right thing to do.
I watched Lloyd and Cole try to break the cuffs around their wrists as we walked, trying to pull them apart as if they were plastic toy cuffs. Hah, why would they even try that anyway? We'd just be shot down by the guards and it'd be the end of our days. As much as I admired trying to see if Lloyd would have any muscle bulging from beneath his prison uniform as he tried to break the cuffs, I honestly wished he would stop so we wouldn't get shot or something. Though, when he did stop, I wished he would do it again, since I didn't see any muscle...yet. I'll just have to wait until I see him shirtless someday then.
"I'll ask them if they have a water fountain," I heard Nathan whisper next to me. I turned to look at him, raising an eyebrow.
"What?"
"You looked a little thirsty, so I thought I'd ask them if they had a water fountain, since these cuffs won't let me use my powers," he explained to me. I was a bit confused. How did I look thirsty?
Suddenly, we were walking faster, the sounds of shouting prisoners drowning out the sounds of my friends talking. I was starting to lose what was left of my temper.
"Could you dinguses just shut up!? For God's sake! Can a woman hear her comrades for once!?" I screamed, glaring at the prisoners. Their shouting didn't cease though, and I could feel that I was gonna lose it soon. Could they just supply me with headphones or something!? We'll have to exterminate them once we're freed.
Our guide led us into a bigger prison room, hundreds of cells surrounding a circular floor with a watchtower in the middle. The smell of sweat and stone filled my nose as we entered, my nose crinkling in disgust. I had a feeling this was where we would be staying, and I already hate it. How dare they. The great thing though was that it was much quieter. I could finally hear my friends, and I wasn't really losing my temper much anymore.
Our guide now took us to the third level of cells, leading us down the walkway. A few prisoners spat at us, shouted obscenities, made rude gestures with their hands, or even creepily smiled. I didn't feel quite safe anymore, and I was even scared that something bad was going to happen to me or my friends. Oh, why did Ronin have to leave us here!? I feel like I'm in some level of hell right now, and I haven't even reached my cell. I hope they don't separate us.
"It's no problem, Warden," Lloyd spoke to our guide, "We'll do our time until all of this is straightened out. Like I said before, we were framed!"
"That's what they all say," the Warden chuckled as he began to look for the right key to the cell he stood in front of. I glared at him, a little peeved. Why does no one believe us!? Couldn't they have done an investigation!? Ugh, this is so frustrating! Why can't anything go our way!?
While I was ranting in my head, I didn't notice a hand wrap around my arm and pull me towards the bars. It was only when I hit the bars that I started screaming and thrashing. Whoever was on the other side continued to try and pull me through, tugging violently on my uniform and hair. The Warden immediately turned around with my friends and ran over, as well as a guard. The guard smacked the prisoner's hands with a metal staff like mine as the Warden pulled me away from the cell, my thoughts running amuck with panic. Kill it, Seiko! Kill it!
"Back off, Barry! You're not chopping anyone up today!" the guard yelled, smacking the prisoner's hands again. I saw Lloyd run over as the guard did this, checking my arms and face.
"Are you alright?" he asked, looking worried. I was still panting from the attack, but I nodded, not wanting to make him worry. He looked at the prisoner's cell as though he were ready to shank the guy, then he looked back at me, still looking a little worried. Then, despite the cuffs binding his hands, he looped his arms around me, pulled me close and placed his chin atop my head. I sighed.
"If only that stupid Djinn hadn't decided to ruin our week, huh?" I said, still shaken from the attack. I felt Lloyd's chin move on my head, signifying that he nodded. I honestly ashamed now of those slightly perverted thoughts from earlier now. Why should I care how his body looks? Why are you focused on this!? Why didn't you use the Dark Arts to free yourself from the prisoner's grasp!? the voice shouted in my head, making me cringe. Well, I can't always activate the Dark Arts on a whim! I gotta put my mind to it, and at that time I wasn't thinking, I was panicking! My mind can only do so much!
The Warden herded us all into our cell and shut the door, locking it once he made sure we all were in.
"Enjoy your stay, Ninja," he said with false politeness before walking off. It wasn't long before we heard someone hit the bars of the cell next to us and yell "Barry you've got to be kidding me! I'm gonna chop your hands off if you don't stop!" The Warden being caught by Barry like I had was pretty funny, but I wasn't laughing. I just laid my head on Lloyd's shoulder, sighing as we all sat down in the cell. I was already more exhausted than anything and it's not even the end of the day! Is this what prison does to people? I have to admit, I'm missing the freedom to move my wrists where I please. I actually felt like one of those dolls who's movements were limited. Like, you couldn't bend my knees and elbows or something.
"Well, at least the Djinn can't get us now," Sammie smiled nervously, most likely trying to lighten the mood like she usually does.
"Yeah, but we can't stop him now either," Cole sighed, phasing through the only bed in the cell. It just looked like a slab of bedrock with a lumpy, beaten, stained pillow lying on top of it. I was sure I saw bloodstains on that pillow.
"Wait, Cole, if you can phase through that, can't you just phase through the bars?" Nathan asked, trying to get comfortable. I could tell the hard walls and floor were already making his back hurt. Cole sighed.
"Yeah, but that guard in the watchtower is watching us, and I know he's got a water gun up there. You can see the neon gun from here!" he told us, pointing at the watchtower. Surely enough, there was a glimpse of a neon pink gun up in the tower, and the middle aged guard glaring down at our cell. I looked down at my sneakers then, losing bits of hope.
"I kinda wish Lilly were here. We could have broken out," I admitted. I thought I saw Kai look up.
"Yeah, but we don't know if vengestone affects her powers too, since she gained them from the Elemental Forge. Even so, breaking out wouldn't be an easy task," Nya replied, shaking her head to move some hair out of her face. She was right. Though, when have we ever known anything about Lilly? It was enough that when they were checking out identities they called for "Lillian Janvier" instead of "Lillian Genisis". I've had a suspicion that she isn't telling us the complete truth on everything. I should probably address that when I see her again.
I found myself staring up at the cell's ceiling now, fatigue taking over my body. The voice in my head wasn't talking to me now, but I couldn't help but be curious. Is the voice really my mother? I proceeded to ask it through my thoughts, though it took a minute before it answered me. Yes, yes I am. I'm surprised you figured it out so quickly, Seiko, the voice didn't quite sound like her, but it was close. Maybe the line of communication from the afterlife to the mortal plane altered voices. I was overjoyed though. My mother is speaking to me again! Remind me, if we ever see that orange-haired boy again, we give him the same treatment he gave me, the voice told me, sounding a bit angry. I nodded. Of course. If I ever saw that slimy dingus again, I'd kick him into the center of the Earth!
When I snapped out of my thoughts, I noticed that Lloyd was no longer next to me. Instead, he was standing at the cell's bars, communicating with a man who had a large, mechanical arm. One of his eyes was replaced with a piece similar to a cyborg's cybernetic eye. The master of energy had quite the friendly smile on, but this man he was talking to didn't look so friendly. I was instantly alarmed and had my guard up.
"I'm the Mechanic, and I've got a bone to pick with you," he claimed, introducing himself. I could see a few prisoners behind him. How did they all get out of their cells!? Why isn't the guard in the watchtower doing anything!? I started inching closer to the bars.
"Well, that's one more bone than what you've got in your entire arm," Lloyd's friendly smile faded, and I could tell he was trying his best to look serious. "Let me guess, you don't have much of a spine either."
"I used to repair noodle trucks for Master Chen and his underground orginization," he informed us, before flicking Lloyd on the chest, "When you put him out of business, you put me out of business."
I reached the bars, standing up and glaring at the Mechanic. Who does this guy think he is!?
"Then, by my calculations, that was your own error. Working for a crime boss isn't a very reliable career choice," Zane told him, walking up to the other side of Lloyd. Hah, you don't say, Zane. My uncle didn't really think about that.
"Well, by my observations, actions have consequences," the Mechanic said, glaring at us. This guy was getting old fast.
"Yeah, maybe you should have heeded those words instead of getting the short end of the stick!" I smiled. I heard the voice in my head make a disappointed sigh as the Mechanic just gave a confused look.
"What's with this lost child?" he asked. I glared at him. Excuse me!?
"I'm not a child!" I shouted, "I'm the niece of one of the most powerful Dark Arts users in the history of Ninjago!" Okay, now I was just bluffing. I had no idea if Uncle Clouse was the most powerful or not. God, I hope this guy doesn't have his history smarts.
The Mechanic blinked. "Well, you kind of look like Chen's little dog. The man with the ponytail who supervised us all and stuck by his side constantly." The description oddly enough fit Uncle Clouse. I was ninety percent sure he was talking about my uncle. "But as I was saying, you have to pay."
His cybernetic eye fell on Zane. "This nindroid...it's got spare parts. I could use a few in a place like this."
Lloyd's eyes narrowed. "And I could turn you into spare parts right now, but as you can see I'm refraining from that."
The Mechanic chuckled, a smug look on his face. "I like this kid," he smiled, showing decaying teeth. I recoiled in disgust. God, don't they supply them with toothbrushes here!?
"Hey! Back to your cells!" a guard shouted as the Mechanic and his accomplices ran off. "Go on! You don't need to be aggrivatin' anyone else!"
Lloyd, Zane, and I returned to where we sat in the cell, Lloyd letting out an exhausted sigh and resting his head against mine. Great to know we have to keep Zane from dropping the soap in this place. What next? We have to protect Cole from people who want to catch him or something?
"Well, at least we know who to avoid now," Cass said. I nodded. Suddenly, we all heard Hunter giggling. All of us turned to look at him.
"What's so funny?" Kai questioned. Hunter continued to giggle. The orange ninja moved his leg, revealing weird doodles scratched into the floor.
"Whoever did this scratched a picture of some dude as a chicken and another guy as the egg. It's beautiful," he continued to laugh, then pointed at a scratch doodle of a lumpy shirtless man in a speedo and a really terrible looking horse. "These are great! I must meet the artist behind them!"
I smiled, giggling myself at the doodles. I guess the prison life does have it's ups.
A few hours later
After receiving a cake that Cole ate whole and having a brief visit with Dareth, to which we found out the cake was our only way out, we headed to the cafeteria. I was disappointed, knowing how close we were to escaping. If only Cole hadn't have eaten it! Yet, if he didn't eat it, Cass more than likely would have eaten it, knowing her love for cake. I watched the cafeteria lady plop some foreign substance onto my tray, the substance smelling like mashed potatoes. I doubted it was anything of the sort though.
I moved along, allowing Kai to move forward to get his serving of the gross substance. The lady dug deeper into the bowl that held it all though, giving Kai more than any of us.
"I'm givin' you a lil' extra 'cause yer my favorite," she smiled before withdrawing a folded piece of paper from her pocket and handing it to him, "Name's Trisha, but you can call me anytime, sweetie. Here's my number."
Kai nodded, trying to not look disgusted as he set the paper down on an empty part of his tray. When he tried to scoot to the next server though, she placed a hand on his.
"Watch yourself in the showers, boy," Trisha winked before smiling, her cat-eye glasses sliding down her nose. Kai looked disturbed and a bit creeped out now.
"Move along, Karma. Quickly," he whispered to me. I nodded, moving over so he could get as far away from that woman as possible. I'd probably do the same if I was in his situation.
"Well, you did say you wanted 'special treatment'," Nya reminded her brother as we all moved along. Kai made a disgusted noise.
"Not like that though. I know I've probably got some really bad karma right now but I didn't want it to reach this level," he whispered, shivering. Hah, damn right you have bad karma, Kai. Maybe you'll think twice next time before letting your anger control your actions. The only thing I wouldn't permit is that lady touching you though. She's creepier than Yang's Temple!
"Ugh, all the bad guys are out there, and all the good guys are in here! This is ridiculous!" Jay complained, pieces of his food dribbling onto the floor as we walked to a table.
"What was it your favorite movie character would say?" Cole asked, levitating over to Jay's side. " 'Fair isn't a word where I come from!', right?"
"It's 'fear isn't a word where I come from'," Lloyd corrected him, "He used to say it a lot in the comics. Honestly, the movies aren't as good as the comics."
"Now's not the time for movie criticism, Lloyd!" Jay snapped, looking grumpy. Cole tapped his muffin against his tray, making a disgusted face when it made tinging noises when it hit the tray.
"Is this even a muffin!?" the ghostly ninja inspected the muffin. Cass shook her head.
"It's probably a rock covered in styrofoam or something," she commented. Hunter nodded.
"That's believable, considering where we are."
Suddenly, a man who looked similar to a chef shoved himself between Jay and Cole, looking peeved. He must have heard their comments.
"Earth Ninja, no one likes you," he claimed, before spitting on him. The black ninja cringed, possibly being burned by the spit. Cass shuffled up to the chef.
"No one asked for your opinion, idjit!" she shouted, looking just as peeved. The chef narrowed his eyes at her.
"Who are you even supposed to be?" he questioned. Cass's gaze narrowed as well.
"The person who's about to shove that filthy spoon of yours up your a-" she was interrupted by the chef just walking away like she was nothing. The female master of wind balled her hands into fists.
"The idjit just walked away because I just scared him," she smiled, looking proud of herself. I saw Cole smile as well.
"Don't worry about him. He's a Jay fan," Trisha's voice and presence startled us all. Kai immediately scooted away as far as he could, avoiding being seen by the lavender-haired woman.
"Still doesn't give him an excuse to hurt Cole like that," Cass still sounded peeved, glancing at her friend's arm.
"Let's just move along..." Nathan said, looking a bit frightened of the woman. He pushed us all gently, making us all move forward. Looks like he's just as scared of her as Kai is. Lloyd proceeded to a table where many older prisoners sat. He put on his best friendly smile.
"Hey guys, care for some ninja company?" he asked in a cheery tone. The men grumbled and moved, leaving the table to ourselves. I immediately took a seat, staring down at my disgusting mush.
"I guess not all can be fans," Zane said, taking a seat next to Hunter. The orange ninja shrugged as he bit into his mush. It wasn't long before he turned around and spat it back out onto the floor. I found myself zoning out from my friends' conversation as I looked around the cafeteria, scanning the area for any signs of the Mechanic. I could only find dozens of worn and exhausted faces, up until my eyes fell on an odd, but mysterious person. His fiery orange hair almost touched his shoulders and he had vengestone cuffs on his wrists. It was when one of his eyes looked in my direction that I recognized who he was. I could recognize those navy blue eyes from anywhere. He must have recognized me too, though, because he flashed one sinister-like smile at me before turning back to his food. I couldn't believe it.
Alex is here. My mother's killer is here.
