Happy Tuesday to you. As I update this I am rolling out of bed and really dreading heading out to my math class that starts in an hour. Enough about me though, that's not why you're here. Time for a new chapter. Please enjoy.
Chapter Nine: Unknown Foes
With great difficulty, Kai managed to pry open his eyes. Everything surrounding him was blurry and disorienting. He propped himself up on his elbows, attempting to get into a sitting position. The dull thud of an oncoming headache was beginning to make its presence known. Giving a small groan, the red ninja sat up and scanned the room with his light brown eyes.
It appeared that everyone was still in bed, sleeping soundly. What time was it? Kai squinted, barely able to make out the time on the digital clock that sat on the table next to his bed. It was eight o' clock. Why would Sensei allow them to sleep so late? They were all usually awake at the crack of dawn, preparing to train for the day. The events from last night flooded the red ninja's mind and he frowned. Maybe Sensei Wu felt that they were all a little shaken from the news that had been divulged. Of course, Laurie had to have been shaken the most. He had fallen asleep before she had come back from wherever she went to last night.
Kai spotted Laurie, slumped down in a wooden chair that was pulled up close to Lloyd's bed. Quietly, he threw his legs over the side of his bed and crept towards the two siblings. Laurie's right hand rested gently on her brother's chest as she slept soundly, her own chest rising and falling steadily. A small smile crept upon the red ninja's face. He was reminded of himself, keeping watch over Laurie after she had been attacked by Belinda in the apartment.
A small whimper escaped the orange ninja's lips and Kai felt himself tense up. Cautiously, he walked around the right side of the chair, attempting to get a better look at the sleeping girl. Laurie's eyes were shut tightly, the thin skin on her eyelids crinkled. Her breathing quickly changed from a normal rhythm to one that was more erratic and Kai could see the small beads of sweat that were beginning to form on her brow. She seemed frightened and extremely vulnerable, but what could he do? Absolutely nothing.
Sighing, the Ninja of Fire made his way back across the room. He wondered what Laurie could be dreaming about, but decided that it was best not to pry. She would most likely withhold any information from him anyways. The two were not as close or open with each other as they used to be. Feeling a sudden emptiness overwhelm him, Kai rested his gaze on Laurie's bed, watching as the light orange comforter moved slightly up and down in time with her breathing.
Wait a second…
Kai turned back towards Laurie who was still beside Lloyd's bed. Then he focused on the bed in front of him once again. There was no denying that there was someone underneath of the covers. With a slightly shaking hand, the red ninja grasped the edge of the thick, orange material and pulled it downwards.
Light blue hair was visible, sprawled out across the white pillow. Rhea's shorter hair was sticking up at odd angles while the longer portions trailed downwards, almost touching the wooden floor. Kai narrowed his eyes, furious at the fact that she obviously thought it was okay to get comfortable. "Hey" he growled through his teeth, trying to keep his voice down to a loud whisper. "What do you think you're doing?" Rhea twisted her body around in the bed, her left leg kicking slightly at the covers, but did not awaken. "What do you think you're doing?" Kai repeated once more, leaning over the girl slightly.
Rhea felt an uneasiness consume her. There was something near, but that something was not necessarily malevolent. She gave a small breath in her semi-conscious state. The presence felt closer, seemingly hover over her. Feeling slightly nervous and a little instinctual, the young girl rolled over quickly in bed and punched. Rhea's small fist actually made contact with something and she opened her eyes to see an extremely unhappy ninja glaring at her. Frightened, she removed her hand from Kai's cheek and shrank lower into Laurie's bed. This was not going to end well.
He felt his face turn bright red, not from the unexpected attack, but from pure anger. Kai wanted to take the little brat and just tie her back up; then he would not have to deal with her anymore. As he stared down at Rhea he noticed a quality about her that seemed different. Instead of the defiant gleam in her eyes that he had noticed when Nya initially brought her back, Kai saw fear and sorrow. The red ninja let out a long breath, taking a few seconds to collect himself before he spoke. "Nice punch. Now, can you tell me why you're sleeping here? Last time I checked you weren't Laurie."
Feeling her heart rhythm slow, Rhea crawled out from underneath of the covers and pushed them towards the end of the bed. Kai looked utterly ridiculous. His right cheek was a dull shade of red and his dark brunet hair was flattened, sticking downwards instead of spiked up; even in this state though he seemed ready to jump into action at a moment's notice. Rhea did not even want to think about what she looked like right now. Rubbing both of her eyes with the backs of her hands, the young girl gave a yawn and stretched slightly before giving the ninja a shrug.
Kai closed his eyes, trying to keep his temper in check. Rhea was obviously getting way too comfortable around here. Maybe she had forgotten that she was the equivalent to a prisoner, but he had not. "Don't get used to that okay?" he challenged, narrowing his light brown eyes. "You're not here to lie around and feel comfortable. Last time I checked you're here because you tried to hurt someone and we're keeping a close eye on you until we can figure out why."
Rhea felt her face turn warm. She swung her legs over the side of the bed and was pleased when Kai gave her a wide berth. With determination, she procured her windbreaker from underneath of Laurie's bed, grabbing the pen and paper from the right pocket. Last time I checked I saved Lloyd from being taken by those snakes or whatever. That wasn't you, that was me. Rhea handed the paper to Kai who immediately became flustered as he read it.
"You think just because you helped out Lloyd that means we're going to forget about what brought you here in the first place?" the Ninja of Fire scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest. The very air of the room seemed to grow heavier as the animosity between the two grew. "That may be the way you want things to work, but it's not going to happen." Losing his self control, Kai threw the pad of paper down on the wooden floor before grabbing Rhea's left arm. She tried to pull away from him, falling to the floor in the process. Her karambits were barely visible underneath Laurie's bed and the young girl tried to stretch her right arm out to grasp them, but Kai yanked her away. "Stop struggling" he said tiredly, bringing Rhea over towards the dining room table. "We should have never let you loose to begin with."
The palpable darkness was fathomless. Laurie blinked her eyes, attempting to have them adjust to her unfamiliar surroundings. Unfortunately, this did not happen. She nervously scanned the area around her, utterly blind, before mustering up the courage to take a step forward. Solid ground met her feet, easing her frazzled nerves. "Hello!" she called out, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify the sound. "Is anybody here?" Her voice echoed off of invisible walls before disappearing into nothing. Where was she?
"Feeling a little lost, are we?"
Laurie felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end and she slowly turned around, reluctant to meet the individual whom the voice belonged to. Belinda now stood in front of the teenager, her lips pulled up into an awful smirk. "What are you doing here?" Laurie asked, her ice blue eyes narrowed with pure hatred. "I thought I killed you or something." The Serpentine goddess' small chuckle made Laurie blush bright red. "I don't understand what's so funny."
Belinda leaned lazily against Laurie's shoulder, deciding to stand on her own accord when the orange ninja abruptly pulled away. "Perhaps you forgot more than I bargained for" she laughed, enjoying the bewildered expression on the teenager's freckled face. "You didn't kill me. You banished me because you couldn't have killed me even if you had wanted to."
"Well trust me, I did want to" Laurie growled. She could feel Belinda's smug attitude emanating a sickening aura. "I know you're not just here to gloat though" the orange ninja continued, attempting to keep her loathing secured firmly within herself. There was no need to give Belinda the satisfaction that she was making Laurie feel uncomfortable and angry. "So, why are you here?"
Belinda sucked on her teeth before smiling, her two fangs contrasted greatly against the darkness. "Always wanting to get right to the point" she sighed, tossing her lavender colored hair over her right shoulder. "Some things just never change, do they? Speaking of change, how is that boy of yours? I'm assuming that he's distraught after what you did to him." The wily grin that was plastered on the Serpentine goddess' did not fade as Laurie pondered the posed questions.
"I don't understand what you're talking about" the red head answered. These questions just seemed to be a string of words that had no relevance to one another. They jumbled up in Laurie's brain, giving her a headache. She closed her eyes, trying to alleviate a sudden pressure that was building up behind her forehead. What was happening to her?
There were two hands on Laurie's shoulders and her eyes snapped open. Belinda stood behind her, humming some tune that was unfamiliar to the orange ninja. "There, there" the goddess cooed, her voice dripping with false compassion. "I was only referring to your love. Kai, he is distant from you now isn't he? Not like how the two of you used to be."
Laurie shrugged the deity's hands off of her shoulders. "What do you know about Kai and me?" This was becoming tedious and tiresome. She wished that Belinda would just go away and leave her alone. Had she not ruined her life enough already? The scar along Laurie's abdomen tingled as she attempted to push all of the awful memories to the recesses of her mind. "You don't know anything about us."
"On the contrary, my dear" Belinda hissed, materializing in front of the orange ninja. "You did this to him. You did this to yourself. I was going to end your miserable little life, but you had your own ideas. It was you Laurie; you exchanged all of your memories of Kai for your own well being. How selfish of you." She watched with great pleasure as tears began to well up in Laurie's eyes. "Don't cry now though, you're alive just as you wished to be." The utter disbelief plastered across the red head's crying face made Belinda smile wider. She was, of course, withholding the entirety of the story. Laurie had not only saved herself, but the others as well, preventing chaos from creeping its way over the land. Kai's life too had hung in the balance and her decision had saved him as well. Where was the fun in letting Laurie know that she had actually accomplished something? No, it was better to let her think she had messed up.
"I-it can't be true" Laurie sniffed, feeling her knees give out. She collapsed to the invisible ground feeling completely cold and shaken. "I couldn't have just decided to save myself." Her thoughts drifted back to her moment with Rhea on the roof. She had wanted the young girl to kill her then, an easy way out of death at a later date so Lloyd would not have to be present to watch it occur. That had been entirely selfish of her. Perhaps that truly was her nature: concerned only for her own well being. She felt the warm, salty tears drip down over her cheeks as the realization washed over her. Kai was distant from everyone, a completely different person, and it was all because she decided to give up her precious memories to save her own skin. Laurie was an awful person.
Belinda felt an odd chill run across her body and she hugged her arms around herself. "Well I believe I am going to head out now" she stated plainly, casting her judgmental eyes down upon the broken ninja. "Now tell me you don't feel even a little better knowing how this all happened to you. Don't worry, Laurie, you'll get used to it in time, but maybe you won't. You don't have too much longer to live from what I gather…" She gave a small chuckle before dissipating into a black cloud. Within seconds she was gone, leaving Laurie alone in the dark.
"Sis, are you alright? Wake up."
Laurie felt her muscles tense up and she opened her eyes slowly to see Lloyd gazing at her curiously. A dull headache was pounding behind her eyes and she gave a low groan. "I'm alright" she managed to say, stretching out her stiff limbs and attempting to stand up. Creaking pain seemed to radiate down her neck, making Laurie instantly regret staying by her brother's side all night. She caught herself suddenly, biting on the inside of her lip. Why would she even regret something like that? She really was a selfish person…
There were several voices filling the room that the orange ninja had not previously heard. She craned her neck around to take a look at the dining room table and instantly regretted the decision. Her muscles gripped painfully and she sucked in a deep breath. Well, she was definitely going to be sleeping in her bed tonight. "What's going on?" Laurie asked Lloyd, bewildered at what was happening.
"I'm not really sure" the boy answered, throwing his bed covers off of himself. Lloyd stretched before hopping down off of his bed and padding across the wooden floor in his bare feet. His emerald eyes rested upon Rhea who seemed even more melancholy than usual. She sat down in one of the chairs next to the dining room table, tied up once more. "What's going on?" the green ninja questioned, crossing his arms over his chest.
Kai and Cole halted their heated conversation to turn towards the sudden voice. "I'm not entirely sure" the leader answered, brushing his black bangs out of his face. "Maybe you should ask the hothead that question." Cole gazed down at the young girl who sat next to him. She seemed tired and scared. "Well, Kai, are you going to explain what's happening or not?"
He could feel his temper flaring up inside of him once more, his hands balling up into fists at his sides. Why was it that he was always the one who was acting irrational or out of line? "She's not our guest, guys" Kai finally stated, his tone harsh and loud. "Maybe you don't remember this, but Rhea tried to kill Laurie and now she's just walking around the apartment like she owns it. I found her sleeping in Laurie's bed this morning. Maybe I'm just being a 'hothead', but usually captives don't get treated this nicely."
Laurie approached the table quickly, ignoring the disgruntled sounds coming from Jay as he finally rolled out of bed. She stood next to her brother, placing a protective hand on his right shoulder. "I told her she could sleep there, Kai" Laurie spit. The air in the room seemed to grow heavier as tension crept over everyone. "You shouldn't jump to conclusions so quickly. Besides, she saved Lloyd yesterday in case you had forgotten. Sure, maybe that doesn't make up for the stuff she's done, but if you think about it Rhea hasn't really done anything." Her ice blue eyes met Rhea's brown ones and the young girl gave a small nod. "Untie her, Kai" the orange ninja finished.
Rhea looked up at Kai and gave him a condescending smirk. She could feel the hatred radiating off of him like the flame from a candle. Reluctantly, the Ninja of Fire made his way around the back of Rhea, using his fingers to slowly undo the knots that bound the young girl. Minutes later the ropes dropped down around the chair, circling the floor. "There" Kai frowned. "Is everyone happy now?" No matter how hard he tried he was always in the wrong. Kai left the others where they were and made his way towards his bed. Angry, he procured a red sweatshirt from off of the bed post and threw it on over the top of his t-shirt. "If you need me I'll be out" he complained, running a hand through his spiky hair. The door was growing closer when there was a hand on his shoulder.
"Brother, there is no need for you to leave" Zane stated, the glint his dark blue eyes was serious. He could feel Kai's muscles tense at his touch. It was obvious that the red ninja wanted to leave, but he had the right to be here just like everyone else did. This was his home too after all. "We can all calm down and discuss the situation. Everything is going to be fine, you will see."
With a frown, Kai shook Zane's hand off of his shoulder. "No, I just need to get out for a while to cool down. I just need to be by myself. You can all just stay here and have a good time with the murderous brat." He eyed each one of his friends closely before finally resting his gaze on Rhea. She gave him a small wave and then crossed her arms over her chest in triumph. So that was her plan. Rhea was trying to get in with everyone's good graces. Well Laurie and Lloyd might have fallen for it, but he would not. "Don't wait up" Kai finished, pushing open the apartment door.
"Oh, Kai, you scared me!" Nya's eyes were wide as the door flung open in front of her. "I was just coming to get you guys. Something's up in the city and Sensei thinks you guys should check it out." She walked past her brother, entering the apartment. "Well, let's get a move on. Evil waits for no one."
Laurie glanced warily around the room. "Is it the Serpentine again?" she asked, her hand lying protectively on her younger brother's uninjured shoulder. It seemed odd that they would try to attack so soon after being defeated. The others were rushing around, spinning into their Spinjitzu tornadoes. Laurie sighed, running back towards her personal chest of drawers and grabbing a light orange gi. "I mean, we can take care of them. It'll be no problem." She shut the bathroom door tightly behind her as she went to change.
A large grin spread across Lloyd's face as he spun into his uniform. "Alright, we get to fight!" he shouted, pumping his left fist into the air excitedly. Gripping pain shot through his shoulder and upper arm, causing him to grit his teeth. He had almost forgotten about the injury he had received from Rhea. It reminded him of a previous injury he had received quite a while back, but that had been in the other shoulder. The click of a lock sounded and the blonde boy whipped his head around to see his sister emerge from the bathroom, dressed for battle. "Come on, sis. Let's go beat up some snakes!"
"You shouldn't be coming with us" Laurie sighed, reaching up above her bed to grab her weapon. She twirled it quickly before resting one end on the floor and leaning on it. "You're hurt, Lloyd. Stay here while we're gone, okay?"
Cole stowed his scythe in the holster on his back before turning towards the orange ninja. "We might as well bring him with us. He'll probably just get out again anyways like he did yesterday". Ignoring the disapproving glances of Lloyd's sister, the leader turned towards the door. "At least this way we can keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't get hurt anymore." Lloyd smiled at his friend who just shook his head slightly. "This doesn't mean you get to fight, Lloyd. You're coming for your own protection. We aren't going to let the Serpentine lay their hands on you."
"I never said that the Serpentine were causing the problems" Nya stated, crossing her arms over her chest. The room fell silent, all eyes trained on the samurai. "We're not really sure what we're up against. Sensei hasn't seen anything like it before, but there aren't many of whatever these things are." With a quick hand, Nya checked the sash around her waist, feeling relieved when she felt the familiar cold metal of her crescent moon knife against her hand. "These things are kind of like people, but they aren't. It's like they're made of stone."
Rhea felt her heart skip a beat. A small trickle of sweat made its way down the side of the girl's face and she quickly rubbed it away. Feeling extremely uneasy, she made her way over to Laurie's bed, kneeling on the wooden floor. She grabbed her two weapons from underneath the bed and quickly tied her hair back with them. The pad of paper Kai had thrown still lay on the floor and she procured that as well, shoving it deep into the right pocket of her windbreaker. Feeling slightly prepared, she walked over towards everyone else and waited.
"You're coming too?" Jay inquired, holding his nunchucks down by his side. The girl nodded, hiding both of her hands in the pockets of her lavender jacket. Her dark brown eyes were narrowed slightly, seemingly full of determination. There was something else though that Jay could see: anxiety. Rhea seemed a little on edge and nervous, but he did not know why. "Alright then" he continued, glancing at Cole for approval. "It'll make it easier for us to keep an eye on you anyways if you're with us."
A sudden expanse of energy was coursing through Rhea's body. Jittery, she nervously drummed her fingers against the rough material that lined the pocket of her windbreaker. The noise was slightly audible, but she did not care. Rhea knew exactly who these enemies were and she was not happy about their current presence in Ninjago City. Not only were the ninja in for a fight, but she was as well. Time was running out. She caught Lloyd staring at her, one eyebrow raised in confusion. Shaking her head slightly, the girl averted her gaze and watched as everyone else started heading towards the door. "Alright, let's head out" Cole announced, leading the group out of the apartment.
The slightly chilled morning air hit Rhea's cheeks and she felt them grow warm. Everything around her seemed to be heightened. The sky was a crisper blue color than normal. White, wispy clouds slowly floated above. All the sounds of the city seemed overwhelming: honking of car horns and the chattering of people. Her heart was beating faster as the group made its way down one of the main streets. There was definitely a possibility that no one was going to make it back to the apartment today.
Well, at least not alive.
Well, that's all for today. Thanks to everyone who reviews, follows, and just reads my stuff in general. There is no way to thank any of you enough for the continued support. Thank you. :3
