Nothing is as fun as getting bitten by the inspiration bug. Totally was on a roll the past 2 days! Not only have I written a ton for this but I might have sort of...started the sequel. The idea bug hits hard and when it does I either write what I picture then and there, or I lose it, so...

Chapter Ten

By the time we stopped, the moon was high in the sky, and Skylor looked horrified as we stood on the sidewalk, rubbing her arm. "I at least owe you guys food. It's the least I can do after how much you've helped out…" She gave a weak smile, but it was strained. Can't imagine how she must be feeling, considering what she told us about Lloyd, and how they'd even met to begin with. "Anyone here not a fan of noodles?"

Cole smiled at her, touching her arm. "We'll find him. It's just a matter of time before whoever took him slips up. For now...noodles sound good. We need to recharge...You got a place to stay tonight?" She nodded, and walked down the sidewalk, leading us towards one of the few places still lit up.

"Yeah...have a small apartment in the city." She turned and walked backwards, so she could keep talking to us. As we kept walking, she eventually turned back around, moving out of the way of two guys, but apparently not fast enough to keep one from body checking her. "Hey, watch it!" She said, frowning, eyeing them as they walked away. "Worst part about the city, rude people like that." There was something in her pocket though, hanging out. She kept walking after shooting one last nasty look at the people, and as I glanced back, they were long gone.

"What's that?" I asked, pointing. "Love letter from someone?"

She seemed surprised, looking down at the folded up piece of paper hanging out of her pocket. "I...I don't know." She pulled it out, unfolding it as she slowed down. "...You're gonna want to see this." Skylor held it out, the carefully folded piece of paper was smudged with ink, and was scrawled out in nearly illegible handwriting, and in the corner there was something brownish-red that had fallen onto the page in small circular splotches.

"Is that…?" Kai let the question hang in the air.

Zane nodded. "Blood, and most likely Lloyd's...It's been awhile since this was written."

If you want to see me

Come to the docks

Tomorrow at 11.

Alone.

No Weapons.

Please.

She seemed to be in a state of shock, holding the paper with shaking hands. "They made him write this...that's his handwriting, when he uses his right hand." She chewed her lip, and I could see worry on her face. "Those thugs...they had to have been involved."

"We can talk while we eat. There's not much we can do now, not until tomorrow…" I nodded, walking in beside Cole. The noodle house was pretty much empty, just a few people scattered about in different booths. "He's strong enough to survive whatever's happening."

Skylor nodded, sitting down. She folded and unfolded the paper. "I promised him he would be safe…" She looked at us, tucking it away in her pockets. "We need to save him. I don't know who has him, or what they might do...but from what he told me, it could be more than just his safety at risk."

"We'll do everything we can." Kai reached across, touching her hand. "He's got all of us looking for him. We'll find him, and we'll kick the asses of anyone who hurt him." He grinned, and I rolled my eyes. Now was so not the time for Kai to be Romeo. Right now, we had noodles to eat, and we had a kid we had to save.

Dreaming about those nights, those were always the worst. They were nights I felt the least in control about myself, about my life. I'd wake up in a cold sweat, gasping for breath, and would find myself unable to put myself back to sleep for the rest of the night. I'd wake up screaming, and someone would usually come check on me-most of the time, it was Skylor. She was always close by.

Just...not tonight.

The shakiness wasn't subsiding, I couldn't breathe. Even with the lamp on, it wasn't enough to get rid of the shadows of what happened in the past.

Skylor used to tell me I was a fighter, that if I wasn't, there would've been no way I'd have survived this long. We had a bond closer than any friends could. Stomach still lurching, I knew what I had to do. Getting out of bed, I snuck towards my door, into the hallway. It was silent. Good. If anyone caught me calling her, I might not be able to get the answers to the questions I needed from her, considering how Clouse was all too quick to cut her off earlier.

Nearing my father's office, I heard someone behind me, and whirled, pressing myself against the wall behind a pillar. Had they seen me? Was this game over before it began?

"Master Lloyd…?" It wasn't a guard, or Clouse, just one of the Kabuki. She walked towards me, holding a candle. "Are you alright?" There was a look of worry on her face as she stepped closer. "We heard you scream earlier, and when we saw you weren't in your room…"

"I...I'm fine." There was a sour taste in my mouth. No one waited that long to check on me usually. No one. "Just had a bad dream...was taking a walk to clear my head." My body was shaking, and she frowned, touching my shoulder, leading me back towards my room. "H-hey I can do this myself!"

"We just were worried, especially after what happened earlier this week…We were afraid the ninja had come after you."

"How would they even know?" I smirked. "We played them, they thought they were going to get me, but for them to find me, it'll be nearly impossible. No one outside of our family knows about this island. It's a total secret."

She nodded, lips pursed. She wasn't buying this, and to be fair, I wouldn't either.

Calling Skylor was just going to have to wait, I suppose.

I was almost out when I heard a floorboard creak. I didn't have to turn around to know who was responsible for it. None of the ninja could have possibly been capable of being that stealthy for that long.

"Brother," He said, and I could already see his expression, even without turning around. "What brings you here this late?"

I turned to face him, he looked weak the way he was leaning on that staff. Stress and age were going to put him in an early grave. I gestured back at the table, where the stack of envelopes sat. "Delivering a message. It was just part of a deal."

He didn't say anything, lips pressed into a thin line. He knew exactly what kind of a deal it was without being told. When he had told me about what happened to Lloyd, I knew I needed to join the search. Plans be damned, there would be nothing worth ruling in Ninjago if my son couldn't be at my side. "From who?"

I didn't want to say it. After everything that happened when we were young, I didn't want him to know I had considered it at all. "Nobody important, just someone who said they might have a lead." I turned towards the door. "Goodbye, brother."

"Wait!" He grabbed my sleeve, pulling me back. "Garmadon, we need to fill you in on what's happened today. The ninja went to get Lloyd, they've seen him. He's alive, and doing alright from what we saw."

"This better not be a trick, brother." My eyes narrowed and I watched him carefully. He didn't seem to be lying.

He led me to where his teapot was, pouring me a cup. "They were meeting up with someone who they said was helping him escape from somewhere, but they were ambushed, and Lloyd is missing once again. The ninja are on their way back, they can tell you more."

I took the cup, looking at the tea. "...I want my son back, Wu. I don't care what your ninja have to say. Every second they're here blabbering is another second we are losing Lloyd. What if something happens to him, something we cannot fix. There are so many threats out there to him, Wu…" My heart felt like it was stopping, the idea that something could happen to Lloyd, something that none of us would be able to fix, it had tormented me for years. "Your ninja need to look harder."

I heard the door creak as it opened, the ninja's chattering spilling in from the hall. "They need to be taking this more seriously." I set the tea cup down, stepping away. "Give them those messages. I'm going to-"

"...Uh...what did we walk in on?" It was the blue blabbermouth himself. I looked at the ninja, and they were taking in the scene. "We have...some not so great news."

"Whose mail is that?" Kai asked, gesturing at the thick pile. "Thought mail came by earlier..."

"I was filling him in on what you told me earlier. He said someone told him to deliver those." There was a certain stare Wu exceeded at giving me, and I could still feel it. "I believe there is one for each of you."

They descended upon the pile like vultures, grabbing one each. They didn't have names on them, which made it easier, I supposed. "What news do you have?"

They paused, Kai halfway into his envelope. His eyes looked between his sensei, the others, and myself. "...Jay can tell you."

"Ahbababa-WHAT?!" He shrieked. "Don't put me on the spot like that!" He eyed the others, glancing at me with fear in his eyes. "Don't freak out."

That was never a good start. "What happened."

"Okay, so this is toooootally a long story, yeah?" He circled to the far side of the room, leaning against the wall, fidgeting. "This girl, Skylor, she rescued Lloyd from someone something like a week ago? Yeah? I think." He got fidgety-er, and he sped up. "Well she was helping us search for Lloyd after that fireworks cart exploded and when we were wrapping up for the night these thugs ran into her when we were walking to get some food, and they slipped a note into her pocket. Was hard to read, but she said it was Lloyd's handwriting, and it said something about come to this place at this time, yadayadayada…"

"Guys…" Kai was reading the letter in his hand before it caught fire, going up in smoke quickly. "Open yours, fast! It's about Lloyd!"

My eyes went wide and the ninja opened theirs at impressive speeds, Jay talking fast, reading it out loud before his could go up in smoke too. "Master Chen invites you to his tournament of elements, with the prize you can't refuse, the safety of little Lloyd…"

The room went silent, and in turn, each of their papers went up in smoke as well.

"Then I guess that settles it, boys. We're going to go compete, save Lloyd, and get back before anyone knows what's happened."

That's all I have for this update, but by the time I upload this, I should be done with chapter 11 too. I'm currently figuring out how much I plan to change, so...

Please let me know how you feel about this chapter!