Hello! I know it's sorta been awhile, but don't worry, I'll try my best to update semi more often.
This chapter is really long and kinda drawn out, but I'll try my best to be shorter next time and more to the point. Also tell me more of the POV's you want to see! I tried to include everyone so you could see what everyone's up to. It's kinda hard for me to write with multiple characters while having them all say something useful and still be in character, so please excuse me if it seems Zane, Jay, Cole, or any other characters don't seem to say much in a certain point of view.
Special thanks to ForeverDreamer12 for sending in a review! Thanks to all my readers as well!
Warning:Possible OOC-ness from canon characters; Story universe is AU
Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago...is saying this really necessary?
Kaia
"This Lloyd kid got you good, Blue," Della laughs as her fingers weave through my hair.
"I told you, my guard was down," I protest, resisting the urge to shiver as the cold water runs through my hair. I am definitely a fan of hot showers and baths.
After showing me the mural, Della took me to the area near the waterfall where the Tunnel Snakes swam and bathed.
Della didn't want me to be in the water (in case it was lethal for me) so she's had me sit on a nearby rock and dip my head backwards towards the water. Della and her long nails (which really hurt when it scratched my scalp, by the way) attempt to scrub the hair dye from my normally brown hair.
"Done!" Della announces after a while, pulling herself out from the water. Her black pants are sopping wet and drip onto the cold grey stone. "Well, as much as I could manage to get out."
"Now your clothes are wet," I comment, feeling embarrassed that I made Della feel like she had to help me get the hair dye out.
I pick up the bangs framing my face, examining it. It's still entirely blue, but I'm grateful that at least my hair's mostly back to normal.
"No big, fleshie," Della waves me off as she twists the fabric of her pants to get the excess water out. "Not like the water will kill me. It's only possibly lethal to complete humans."
Complete humans…that phrase reminded me that I wasn't one-at least not truly. I have "divine bloodlines" running through my veins. Bloodlines that were probably the reason why I hadn't perished from the supposedly toxic air of the cave.
Damien and Della think that Lani and I are just regular humans, which is why they were so concerned with how we were able to go into the tunnels. If regular humans could walk right to their underground home, they wouldn't be safe anymore. So...if the Tunnel Snakes were to think we weren't humans and that we could be trusted…would they let us go?
"But I'm not human," I calmly respond after deliberating.
I could give myself away. I trusted Della after spending two weeks with her. Besides, with her, it seems that she likes any other species over humans.
Della's purple eyes stare silently right at me for a few moments. Then she bursts out laughing, "No? Then what are you, Blue?"
"I am a descendant of the water goddess, Amphitrina," I declare with all the straight-faceness I can muster.
"Descendant?" Della snorts. "Not likely. Though…" she gives me a contemplative look.
"I'm dead serious," I'm not sure whether to be offended by Della's refusal or not. "I can prove it to you."
"Okay," Della decides after a moment, "Prove it."
Please, please work this time. I need you to.
I take a breath to steel myself before my hands move to summon the water out of Della's boots. Without any anger, I couldn't summon the power. Calm and focus worked at times, but it was always hard for me to achieve.
Okay, Kaia, just feel the water. You need to prove this to Della so that maybe the Tunnel Snakes will let you go. A LOT of things are riding on this.
"Holy-" Della's purple eyes widen as she looks at me in shock.
I bring the water closer to me, forming it into an 's' before breathing on it. The water hisses and coils up before snapping at Della.
"How did you do that?" Della demands as I drop my arms and let the water fall back into the lake.
Thank you, water spirits or whatever you are, for not making me look like a complete fool.
"One of my ancestors was Amphitrina," I fold my arms. "like I just told you. Now do you believe me?"
"That was so freakin' cool," Della blinks, still shaking her head in slight disbelief. She purses her lips in thought, "I can't think of anything else that'll explain what I just saw other than what you just told me."
"So…?" I prod, nodding my head.
"I'm taking you to Damien," she decides, taking me by the hand and dragging me behind her. She runs so fast that I almost struggle to keep up with her.
It doesn't take long for her to take me to Damien. We run into him on the pathway back to the city. Surprisingly, Damien smiles and laughs loudly. I briefly met him, but I had gotten the impression that he's usually serious and stoic.
"Della," Damien blinks in surprise at Della's sense of urgency. The bright smile on his face dims a little. Behind him, a previously laughing Lani watches the interaction between the two humanoids solemnly.
"Damien," Della answers, casting a suspicious look at the new hair pin in Lani's dark hair. "I need to talk to you."
She lowers her voice, "Without your new human companion."
Damien casts a side glance to Lani. In that moment, I knew.
Lani's working her people magic.
He raises an eyebrow at Della, "And without your new friend as well I presume?"
Lani stiffens as she catches onto who the 'friend' and 'human companion' are.
"I'll go back to the meadow," Lani says quietly, smiling slightly in reassurance to Damien. "And I'll wait for you there."
She gingerly reaches up to touch the shiny silver hair pin with a purple flower gem in the center. The Japanese style hair pin sticks out from her black hair that she had pulled back into an elaborate bun. With the hair pin and her emerald amulet, Lani looks every bit like a regal princess.
"She knows where the meadow is?!" Della hisses, her voice still low. "You need to explain yourself, oh great and mighty leader!"
At this point, Della drags Damien a bit away from us, enough so that we're out of earshot. Della makes angry gestures with her arms, while Damien stays composed.
Lani and I stand side-by-side one another, not speaking. Clearly, she and I have had different experiences down here with the Tunnel Snakes. While I'm glad she's safe and unharmed, I'm envious that she was clearly deemed trustworthy before me.
"I don't-" Lani starts to murmur, raising a hand to her temple. Her face is pale, and she begins to take labored breaths.
"Lani," I place my hand on her shoulder in concern, "what's wrong?"
"The air," her grey eyes look at me in a slightly glazed manner, "it's getting….too thick."
The air is the same to me. I don't feel any different.
"I can't…" she stumbles and sways, catching the attention of Damien and Della, "…breathe…"
"Lani!" I exclaim in panic as she collapses. I manage to catch her by the arms.
Cole
"So this place you're taking us to," I start skeptically after we've been walking in silence for quite a while. "How do you know it's safe?"
Other than my voice, the only sounds made are the footsteps of Kai's new friends and the wildlife in the marsh around us.
"We've been there before, and we're alive, aren't we?" Aaron shrugs.
At least, I think it's Aaron. The two aren't next to each other, and I can't tell who's the taller one. The main thing that distinguishes the two twins from one another besides their personality is their height, according to Kai.
"Yes," I agree impatiently, "but you're also descendants of-"
"Up-up-up!" Jay laughs nervously, putting a hand over my mouth. "What he means to say is, uhh…are you sure it didn't change?"
"Positive," the blond brother answers curtly. He's the one who punched Kai, and I can't help but be wary of him especially.
Jay apparently doesn't trust them either despite them being also descendants of the water goddess. I guess out of their family, Kaia was the most trustworthy. She didn't start up fights like the blond one had or look like she was up to something like the twins.
Eric-or Aaron…whichever the other one isn't- rolls his eyes. "You've never been here, stick-in-the-mud."
"Umm…guys?" Jay says weakly, suddenly stopping in the swampy forest. I nearly bump into him.
"Watch where you're going," I scowl at the ninja of lightning.
"What?" Kai asks in irritation, annoyed that we stopped walking.
"What…is that?!" Jay freaks out, pointing to an odd creature crawling in front of us. It has a black furry body and several beady red eyes, as well as multiple spindly legs. So far, it hasn't noticed us.
"It appears to be an arachnid of some sort," Zane notes, looking at it observantly. "Though I think it will also behave hostilely towards us."
"There's more of them coming," the blond one notes grimly.
"Stay back," Kai blocks them with his arm. "We can handle them."
"So can we, Fire Boy," Eric flicks Kai in the head, causing the former to scowl lightly.
It doesn't take long for the first arachnid to notice us, hissing at us and probably telling the others with the gross little 'clacks' it makes. We prepare to fight, bringing out our golden weapons. Kaia's brothers pull out swords, and when Kai sees them he flinches slightly.
"The tunnel's a bit further up ahead," Aaron clenches his teeth. "If we want to reach there, we're going to need to get these little buggers out of the way."
Kai doesn't hesitate to rush towards the creatures at those words. "Ninja-go!"
"Wait!" I shout after him. "We need to plan things through first!"
"I see Fireboy's still a hothead," Eric comments, shaking his head as he gives his twin a look.
"When it comes to fighting and Kaia, yes," I pinch the bridge of my nose in annoyance. "Zane?"
Zane nods as he heads after the Fire Dork.
The dirty blond guy seems surprised at my words.
"Heh," Aaron grins, "I suppose you're right."
"Hehe," Eric's face takes on a matching grin, "glad to know that Kai hasn't changed too much."
"Now you two are just being slightly creepy," Jay shakes his head.
"Creepy?" Aaron looks mock-offended.
"We believe that we're being trolls," Eric grins.
"Kai has a weird taste in friends," Jay says to me as we both pull the cowls over our heads and run off to join the other two member of our team.
"Tell me about it," I roll my eyes. I'm half tempted to tell Jay that he's one of Kai's friends, making him weird, but I guess that would mean I'm weird too.
Kaia
We need to act fast. Lani's fading pretty quickly, and I'm almost afraid that if she spends more time down here, she'll…
No, Kaia. Don't think such morbid thoughts I chastise myself.
"I thought she was immune to the air," Della says in confusion, but, after all the time I spent with her, I see she is concerned too. "I thought the air wasn't even toxic anymore since fleshies could come down here."
"But Kaia's not completely human," Damien reminds her. Obviously Della's already informed him of who-or rather what- I am.
"Which begs the question on whether this one is a descendent too," Della folds her arms as she looks at me.
"She is," I confirm, nodding my head. "She's a descendent of the goddess of air."
"Apheliaurai," Damien murmurs. "That would explain some things. Still, while descendants could last longer than humans, they usually would perish within one week down here."
"Then how did we manage to last two weeks?" I question. Did that mean that I would be soon to follow after Lani?
I inwardly shudder at the thought of the inevitable. I always thought death would come later in life, when my hair is full with grays and after I finished doing all I wanted. To be so close to it…
"How did she manage to last," Della corrects. "You…it's explanatory."
"Well," I snap, beyond irritated that we were just talking while Lani's unconscious and possibly dying. "I don't know. Care to explain to me sometime?"
"Later," Damien brushes me off as he bends down to pick up Lani in his arms. He lifts and carries her so easily, he makes it seem like she's as light as feather. Maybe she actually is.
"I'll go bring Lani to a healer," he states, his gold and red eyes looking at the two of us with authority. "Go before the congregation, Della, and discuss both matters. I'll return when I'm able to shed more light on Lani's condition."
He leaves quickly, running at an inhumane speed-which I suppose is normal since he isn't human.
Della takes me back to the city afterward, telling Balius at the gate to assemble all tunnel snakes in the circle. As the tunnel snakes all file in, they give me weird looks.
Della, ignoring their gawking, speaks in the same low tone that she did before, except a little bit louder. She mentions Lani briefly, seeming to talk to about me more. She does not mention me by name, but says the name Amphitrina a lot, so I'm guessing she's telling them I'm a descendent of the goddess.
"Hail!" Della shouts, rallying the tunnel snakes with her hand extended into the air with a fist, "Hail the return!"
Without hesitation, they all kneel and put their fist to their foreheads. Some don't do this, but bow instead.
"What are they do-" I start to whisper to Della, only to notice that she is kneeling before me as well.
"We serve you and only you, My Queen," Della states solemnly, fist to her forehead and still speaking in that low tone. Other tunnel snakes in the crowd loudly repeat the sentiment.
Confusion fills me, and I gawk at all the bowing Tunnel Snakes before me.
Queen? I'm no queen. I'm nowhere close to royalty or nobility. Is this because they worship Amphitrina, and- as her descendent- me? I want to tell them that all this is not necessary and that I'm not someone to worship, but I have a feeling that they won't take me seriously.
My mouth opens to let words out. Words that my mind quickly sent before I could stop it.
"The gods are on the side of the stronger, and we shall seize the day. If we wish for peace, we must prepare for war. Do not be afraid of what destiny holds for us, as what I have written, I have written. They have underestimated us, letting the mist fog their vision. That is their downfall, and for that we shall rise, and we shall conquer!"
What the Agni did I just say? Most of the phrases sound odd and jagged to me and totally something I'd never say…yet, I just said them.
The Tunnel Snakes seem pleased with my words, if not slightly surprised and relieved.
"Hail, hail," they chant. "hail, the Queen of the Serpentine!"
Nya
I hate this helpless feeling. I grit my teeth in frustration as I aim a high kick at the training bot before me.
When Kai became a ninja, I thought that'd mean endless adventures and fun. I wanted so badly to be like my older brother too.
In a way, that did come true. But that was only for Kai.
For me, it was 'Stay behind, Nya. It's just for us guys' or 'Nya, you're just a girl'. It irritated me beyond anything else. I could fight just like they could! Yeah, I'm a little bit physically weaker because of my gender, but that's biology!
Even Lloyd has it better than me. He's treated like I am because he's a kid, but when he gets older, he'll be able to follow and help the ninja. Me? I'm the sidekick maid that stays behind and 'defends' the home base.
"Boys are stupid," I grumble.
They fight with strength, while females fight with their intelligence. Brains over brawn any day.
"Are they back yet?" Lloyd walks out onto the deck, watching me curiously. Interest sparks in his eyes as he watches me take my frustrations out on Jay's poor training bot.
Eh, I'll fix it later. Jay won't know the difference.
"No," I admit, stopping. "I haven't heard a word from them since about an hour ago."
Kai had contacted back to the ship, saying he had a lead on Lani and Kaia's whereabouts. He didn't go into more detail on that. Probably to 'protect' me.
Lloyd frowns, "They should just come back already so we can leave."
I bend down so my head is level with Lloyd's, "That's nice of you to have so much faith in them that they'll find Lani and Kaia."
The son of the Lord of Evil scowls, "I do not! And, besides, we don't need any more girls. We have you."
Why that little-
Holding back words not meant for children like Lloyd despite how foul they are, I force a smile, "What do you mean? I know you don't like Kaia, but that doesn't mean you have to-"
I don't even get to finish before Lloyd rudely cuts me off.
"I don't trust either of them," Lloyd grumbles, "I have a feeling that they're both hiding something. I like Lani better because she's nice."
"Kaia's pretty nice to you too," I protest on behalf of my childhood best friend.
Well, she is pretty nice considering all the things he's done to her. If it was me having to suffer through that, I would have given Lloyd the beat down a long time ago. And it's surprisingly out of character for Kaia not to do the same.
"I just have a feeling that she's not to be trusted," Lloyd insists, "The moment I saw her, I had a bad feeling."
"How do you know if it was a bad feeling?" I counter. "You grew up being bad. Maybe you're confusing good and bad right now."
"I'm not," Lloyd protests, but a slightly uncertain expression takes over what little of his face I could see under his dark hood.
He continues, "Whenever I sleep, I always see Kaia, and then a voice says to 'beware the ultimate deceiver'."
Ultimate deceiver? Kaia's downright terrible at lying…at least, to Kai and me. Sure, she could hide something, but it wouldn't take long for someone to know that she was. Kaia, whether she is aware of it or not, has this blunt and straightforward way of speaking and acting.
"Kaia?" I laugh lightly, "I don't think so, Lloyd. I know her."
"How well do you really know her?" Lloyd questions me. "Would you be able to say one hundred percent confident that she's not hiding anything from you?"
"People are entitled to hold some of their own secrets," I say dryly. "I'm sure you're holding some of your own as well."
"Dreams often tell the future," Lloyd holds up his comic book, "that's what Starfarer says."
"Uh huh," I continue training again, "sure they do."
"It's the truth!" Lloyd protests a little angrily, throwing his comic down onto the table. "Look!"
"No thanks," I decline politely jabbing the training robot in the face.
"Just look," Lloyd says before leaving.
Bewildered by his lack of pursuit, I turn around, only to see the book opened to a page that Starfarer has about a mysterious samurai warrior.
…..a samurai, hmmmm?
Kaia
After the assembly is over, the Tunnel Snakes scatter, though none leave until bowing before me several times. Balius comes up to me and apologizes for disrespect, practically begging for my forgiveness.
Della, stifling laughter, allows me to tell him that there was no offense he had made before she practically kicks him out.
"Why are they worshipping me?" I ask her on the way to the infirmary where they've put Lani. Tunnel Snakes bow to me as they pass. "And please don't start worshipping me too."
"You are the Queen," Della simply answers as she stops in front of a large tent, "I don't know why I wasn't sure of it before. I had suspected, but…"
Della doesn't get the chance to finish. She's interrupted by the hacking sound of someone from inside coughing. The person sounds more like they're struggling to breathe.
"How's Lani?" I rush into the infirmary, and the medic attending Lani hastily bows to me, much to my dismay. I don't think I can handle being treated like royalty.
"She's not doing so well," the medic bites her lip. "I don't think she has much time left."
Damien, who has been by Lani's side with his head bowed, suddenly snaps his head back up, "There must be some way."
"You have to let her go, Damien." Della scowls. "I told you. That's the only way."
"The only way," Damien repeats, clearly thinking. He nods- though to himself or to Della and I is unclear.
"Della," he stands up and commands her, "go retrieve the maps we have of the Southeastern Caves. We're going to be passing by Arachnidae territory."
Della bobs her head up and down at his orders, though she pales a little when he mentions the arachnid territory.
As Della runs off to complete his order, Damien turns to me and begins to actually talk to me since our first meeting fifteen days ago.
"Come with me, Your Majesty. There's much to for you to do."
Damien takes me to a place that I can only assume is the meadow that Lani had mentioned earlier before passing out. There, he instructs me about fighting and pressure points and about using stealth to my advantage, all of which Della had already been instructing me about in the weeks I've been underground.
Damien also teaches me about my powers and how to use it as both a deadly force and healing touch. Admittedly, he couldn't go much into detail, not having any power over water himself, but he had scrolls brought in that were written by early Serpentines who had observed Amphitrina's powers in action.
"It took me several days," Della grumbles when she finally returns. "but I've managed to find and compile the information into a detailed map."
"Good," Damien nods in approval before disappearing back into the infirmary.
Della and I wait for Damien in silence, though Della does look at me several times before turning away and tapping her foot impatiently.
"Here," she thrusts a water pouch at me, avoiding looking at me. "this contains some of the mystical lake water. I thought it'd come in handy when you go up against the Arachnidae and future opponents."
"Thank you, Della," I say in awe as I attach the pouch to the belt on my hip. Thanks to Damien, I'd be able to use Della's gift better.
"Take care of yourself," Della uncharacteristically hugs me. "I'm going to really miss you, Blue."
"Me too," I smile at her, touched by her concern. She doesn't act like it, but Della really does have a kind heart. "You're an awesome friend, Del."
We've certainly come a long way in the three weeks. I don't think I've ever transitioned from enemy to friend so fast.
"Don't die, okay?" Della tells me. "And don't be afraid to wipe those stupid Arachnidae out. I despise them."
"Let's go," Damien returns at this point, with an unconscious Lani in his arms. Nodding to Della as he passes by her, the two of us get ready to leave.
We end up walking through countless tunnels, only stopping when we need a break. Damien and I come across countless cave creatures, and while some let us diplomatically through due to Damien's status as leader of the Tunnel Snakes, others continue to pose as threats to us. When that happens, I take the threats out, with minimal assistance from Damien in terms of offense.
With him, though, it's easier to get through the tunnels with an incapacitated Lani. Damien's presence makes it so that I don't have to worry about protecting Lani-or even myself- during battle.
"We're in Arachnidae territory now," Damien tells me as I walk alongside him. "Be on your guard."
"Don't worry," I reassure him confidently, "I've got this. This time, they won't know what hit them."
The Arachnidae were the creatures that had attacked Lani and I upon our entrance. Lani had quite literally blown them away, and we had fled, only to be surrounded by multiples of them. We hadn't known the tunnel, and we got quite easily separated for a while. During that time, there was a cave-in of part of the tunnel, resulting in my sprained ankle and an unconscious Lani.
This time, I am stronger. I will protect myself and my teammate. I've gotten a little bit of a better handle on my powers, but my physical strength and prowess has increased under the tutelage of Damien and Della.
"We can't waste any time," Damien says, a concerned look in his multi-colored eyes as he looks down at Lani. "We need to hurry."
Lani- though it appears the closer we get to above ground, the healthier she's getting- is fading fast.
"She won't die," I say firmly, "You and I both won't allow it."
I wouldn't be able to stand for anybody's death, much more Lani, who had been nothing but a sweet friend who followed caution-less me into a cave with poisonous air.
"She should've never came down here," Damien looks down morosely at her, "She doesn't belong here."
"It's my fault," I say, biting my lip in guilt. "I should've never come down here. She followed me here because she was being a good friend."
Homesickness for Ignacia had driven me to grasp on tightly to something connected to my brothers. How could I be so selfish and reckless?
Even consumed by my guilt at the moment, I didn't overlook the tender look Damien gave Lani.
"You really care about her, don't you?" I ask, my small voice echoing slightly through the cave.
Damien nods slowly in affirmation, "It's hard not to. But someone like her…a creature of the light….she's not meant to be in the darkness."
A star-crossed love then. I guess that means Lani's over Cole?
No, that's not right. I have a feeling that while Lani may have possibly clicked with Damien, she treated it as purely platonic because of Cole.
"Shadows are strongest when basking in the light," I encourage him, feeling bad about his misfortunate one-sided romance.
That sounds totally like something Sensei Wu would say. Dang, I sound like a fortune cookie.
Damien gives me an odd look that I can't interpret.
"You will grow into that ancient artifact one day," Damien finally says, his red and gold eyes landing on the new aqua-turquoise amulet around my neck. "I am sure of it."
Zane
We're not going to last much longer against the hostile arachnid creatures. They swarm like ants towards us, and it feels like every time a comrade or I knock out a whole group, an even bigger group replaces them.
I calculate that there is less than a 49.87% chance of all seven of us getting out unharmed.
"There's too many of them!" Kai shouts, as he sends a large fire arc at six or seven of the arachnids. He spins and manages to take out two more, but stops afterwards, swaying slightly.
There's only so much spinning we could take.
"How do we even get rid of these buggers?" Cole scowls as he splits the ground between a large group of them with his golden scythe. A few fall in.
"They're everywhere!" Jay's voice is tinged with the usual amount of panic. "Gah, I hate spiders!"
"I don't get it," Eric-I believe- states in disbelief, "they weren't here last year."
"A lot can happen in a year, Eric," Will grits his teeth as he swings at an arachnid. "You should know that firsthand."
Kai watches, mesmerized by Will's sword gleaming in the sunlight that trickles through the umbrage.
"Is something else the matter, Kai?" I ask him in slight curiosity as I throw my two shurikens and watch them cross and freeze the arachnids they encircle.
"Nah," Kai shakes his head, as if to clear some thoughts from his mind. "just seeing some old ghosts, I guess."
We continue to fight, and just when we think that we're finally outnumbered, a large blast of water erupts from the cave entrance, blowing the arachnids sky-high. A large gust of wind follows shortly afterward, wiping out any remaining arachnids.
"What," Cole says in disbelief as he lowers his golden scythe, "was that?"
Kai
As we wait across the clearing, ready at the sign of any threat emerging from the cave, we hear the faint sound of hissing.
To my surprise, however, it's Kaia that comes out from the cave entrance, looking slightly disheveled, but perfectly okay. Relief hits me.
At the same time, Kaia raises her eyes and locks eye contact with me. For a brief moment, she merely stares at me in disbelief. Less than an eye blink later, she breaks into a run across the clearing and throws herself into my arms.
"Kai!" she holds onto me tightly as I stumble back from the surprise hug. What could've happened down there that'd make Kaia so happy to see me? Especially after the fight we had?
After a few moments of silence and strange looks from Jay and Cole to me, Kaia finally detangles herself from me.
"I can't believe you guys are here," Kaia states in disbelief, her icy blue eyes widening.
"We're most glad that you're safe," Zane smiles at her.
"I've missed you guys," Kaia looks around at all of us, happiness clearly evident.
I follow her gaze, waiting for her to notice her brothers…
…except she doesn't, because they're nowhere to be found.
That's weird. Where did they go? I thought they wanted to take Kaia back to Ignacia.
…well, I'm not going to kick a gift-horse in the mouth. If they're not going to show up to take her back, then I won't send her back…unless…they're trying to test me and see if I hold up to my side of the deal?
Agni, this is difficult.
"Your face," Kaia tilts her head to the side, gazing at me and assessing me. "You're hurt."
"It's nothing," I wave her off, just as I had to Nya. "I had it coming to me anyway."
"Don't say that," Kaia chides as she glides in closer to me, gently putting her fingers on the bruising of my jaw.
I hiss slightly in pain. My jaw still feels awfully sore.
"Whoever did this to you really wanted to hurt you," Kaia comments as she turns to the water pouch on her side.
To my amazement, a small water stream follows her finger tips and encases it. Kaia then carefully rests those fingers against my jaw, and the water glows a little brighter as it comes into contact with my jaw.
My shoulders relax as I feel the soreness slipping away, and I stare at her in amazement, "Where'd you learn that?"
"It's just something I picked up," Kaia explains nonchalantly, though she looks slightly uncomfortable. She's slowly getting used to her powers, but I guess my comment may have unintentionally unsettled her all over again.
"Well, it'll certainly come in handy," I attempt to assure her.
Kaia cracks a smile.
"Especially the next time you decide to tick someone off," she teases.
"Hey," Jay says, reminding me and Kaia that we weren't alone, "was that you who sent that water blast through the tunnel?"
Kaia gives a slow, hesitant nod, "Lani helped a little by sending a large wind gust after it though."
"Where is she anyway?" Cole crosses his arms gruffly, but for some reason, I sense some small concern.
"She's back over there," Kaia gestures to the other side of the clearing. "She's a little weak from the cave air. Don't worry; she'll come over here when she's ready."
Nonetheless, Cole walks off in that direction, "I'll go get her."
"By the way," Kaia turns back to the three of us after looking at Cole in confusion, "how did you know we'd come out through here?"
"We actually had assistance from-" Zane starts.
"Lucky guess," Jay interrupts, giving me a meaningful look.
Thanks, Jay.
"You guys are so strange sometimes," Kaia shakes her head, but she's still smiling. "But you have no idea how much I missed you guys."
"It's been a long day and a half," I agree.
"It's been three weeks technically for me," Kaia says, not thinking really about what she's saying, "time moves more quickly underground."
So she's spent more time without us than we have. Several things could've happened to her underground.
A sudden movement over the top of Kaia's head catches my attention. Will, Eric, and Aaron are watching Kaia and I from behind the trees. Will frowns at me before Eric and Aaron drag him away, waggling their eyebrows at me in the meanwhile.
Were they just doing this to give me a last goodbye to Kaia or something? I guess I should've known since Eric and Aaron always liked messing with me.
Seeing the worried expression on my face- and completely misinterpreting it, Kaia attempts to quickly reassure me by squeezing my arm, "I'm fine though. What matters is that Lani and I are back safe."
Now that she's back, what am I supposed to do with Kaia? Tell her to go back with her brothers to Ignacia? And what would she do? Would she gladly return home or would she stay with us?
Cole
My boots crunch against the twigs lying on the ground. Where is that girl, and what could she possibly be doing all the way over here instead of following Kaia to us?
I had let my feet snap the twigs underneath me as to not startle her, but I guess even then those in the clearing aren't aware of my presence. Either that or they are too immersed in something.
Confused why I said "they", aren't you? So am I.
Because, there, cradling an unconscious Lani in his arms, is some pale guy whose skin almost...sparkles in the sunlight peeking through the trees. He reminds me a bit of this vampire romance series that is popular back in Ninjago City; that series is pretty much a joke to every single guy.
He brushes her dark hair from her face before gently brushing his lips against her temple.
Who is this guy?!
"Step away from her," I say lowly, taking out my scythe and pointing it at him threateningly.
I don't believe in the paranormal, but whatever he is, it's probably best he steps away from my teammate…wow, I can't believe I just acknowledged that.
He looks up at me, not blinking at the threat. It's weird, but he has one red eye and one gold.
"I said 'Step away from her'," I growl.
"You must be the fearless leader then," he gives me a mocking bow, "Apologies."
"What are you?" I demand, still in a fighting stance.
"I," He smiles somewhat sardonically at me, "am an ally."
Then, quick as a flash, he disappears back into the foliage.
I lower my scythe and slide it into the case on my back.
Tch, the 'friends' this girl makes.
I make my way to Lani, who looks much more like she's sleeping rather than being unconscious. I bend down to pick her up, expecting much more weight to carry.
I'm not sure whether it's because I'm more than used to easily lifting things several times my weight or because Lani's just a really light-weighted person. Maybe both. But either way, when I pick Lani up, I'm extremely surprised at how light she is. What had been intended as carrying ends up as me holding her above my head like a Lion King moment.
"Whoops," I mutter as I lower her. I didn't think anyone could ever be as light as a feather, but if Lani isn't light, I don't know what is.
As I carry her back to where the others are, the large emerald pendent of her necklace shines brightly, catching my eye and reminding me of the previous miscommunication between us.
I feel bad now, recalling how I had continually brushed off any of her attempts to talk to me or get to know me better as a teammate. I hadn't even been half as worried as any of the others when she fell off of the Destiny's Bounty. I am the toughest out of the ninja, but tough doesn't necessarily mean heartless.
I could try justifying that it was because deep-down I already had a hunch on who-or rather what- she is. But I also know that that would be the easy way out, cleaning the blame and guilt away from me.
"Mmmm," Lani suddenly begins to stir gently in my arms, "Cole…"
I freeze when I hear my name. Why is my name the first thing on her lips?
I lean my head closer to hers, her breath tickling my ear.
"I..ish ooh ew," she mumbles, words hardly coherent.
"What?" I mutter, "What are you even saying?"
But her next words come clearer than anything, "Darkness comes upon us."
Jay
"You're back!" Nya smiles happily as she comes towards us, Lloyd and Sensei Wu in tow.
"Welcome back, Ninja," Sensei Wu strokes his beard as his mouth crinkles into a smile.
"And girls," he adds when his eyes land on a slightly limping Kaia and a lethargic Lani.
Lloyd, ever the son of the lord of rainbows and butterflies, looks ever so pleased that Kaia's returned. Sarcasm there.
"What happened to you?" Nya's eyebrows crinkle in concern as she stops in front of Kaia, who leans on Kai's shoulder.
Nya's so nice and wonderful. She's always concerned about others and-
Snap out of it, Jay! Before you embarrass yourself!
"I-" Kaia starts sheepishly.
"She sprained her ankle," Kai says flatly, "then she over-exerted herself on it while it was still healing. We almost didn't even know until she started to lag behind on the way back."
"Reminds me of someone," Nya says wryly, raising an eyebrow at her brother.
"Are you talking about that nasty looking bruise on his jaw earlier?" Kaia asks, suppressing a smile as she attempts to stand on her own.
"Stop that," Kai scowls as he pulls Kaia back into his shoulder "And, it was not a nasty looking bruise."
"Speaking of which," Nya leans in closer to her brother's face for inspection, "what happened to it? It's gone."
"Kaia healed it," Cole answers, training his eyes anywhere but below him, where Lani still rests in his arms.
"Hey!" I snap my fingers in realization, "If Kaia can heal Kai's bruise, is it possible for her to heal her own ankle?"
Nya smiles widely, nodding her head, "Yeah, that's a really good point, Jay."
She turns questioningly to Kaia while I inwardly do a celebratory fist pump, "Kaia?"
"Maybe," Kaia shrugs, "I'm still kinda new on the powers thing, remember?"
"Still, your powers have gotten so cool!" Nya smiles in excitement, looking extremely cute…
…as always.
"Where's Zane?" Lloyd butts in, looking annoyed at the attention Kaia's getting.
"He's still out in Andria. He said something about finding something. Pretty sure it was finding himself or something deep like that." I give Lloyd and Sensei Wu a shrug, as if to say, 'Hey, it's Zane. What can you do?'
"Well, if he's still out there, I'll go back out and pick up some new shampoo," Kaia says as, for the millionth time, she tries to stand by herself.
Kai immediately reaches for her arm again, an even more worried look in his eyes.
"Relax," Kaia laughs, "I'm sure I can walk by myself. I won't do something stupid like go monster hunting again. It'll just be a trip to the market and back."
"We can com Zane and ask him to pick it up on his way back," Kai insists, ever the stubborn hothead.
Cole gives him a weird look before heading back inside with Lani still in his arms. Sensei Wu follows, probably to help Cole with Lani. Lloyd reluctantly trails behind his uncle when Sensei Wu calls for him.
"Nah," Kaia shakes her head, "I can get it myself. Zane clearly needs time for himself right now."
"Oh…" Kai seems to deflate a little, looking slightly disappointed, "right."
Kaia punches his shoulder playfully, "It's not like you'll be able to get rid of me that easily, Kai. I'll be back. I promise."
"Right," Kai says distractedly. "Uh, Kaia, I have to tell you something before you go."
"I'll take care of myself," Kaia rolls her eyes good-naturedly as she turns to walk down the plank, "Honestly, you get lost in underground caves once."
Kaia shrugs at Nya and I as if to say, 'Hey! It's in the past now.'
"It's important," Kai follows her to the ship railing.
"It can wait till I get back, right?" Kaia dismisses cheerily. "It'll take me fifteen minutes tops."
"It really can't wait!" Kai cups his hands around his mouth as he shouts after her.
"Too late!" At this point, Kaia is out of view, but her shout can still be heard.
"That girl," Kai shakes his head as he walks back to us.
"Okay, what was so important that you needed to tell Kaia before she left?" Nya asks her brother, putting a hand to her hips.
"Jay will explain it to you," Kai brushes her off as he heads back inside, "I've got to go pack."
"Pack?! Pack for what?" Nya calls after him before turning back to me. "Okay, Jay, what's going on?"
Oooh, boy. I have no idea where to even start.
Kai
I haul the bag out on my shoulder before plopping it unceremoniously on the deck. Packing hadn't taken long at all. I'm still surprised by how little was taken out. The room was practically bare even before I packed.
I grip the railing of the ship, looking down at the docks of Andria, where fishers and merchants are gathered and discussing shipments and sales. Tourists walk by and get on board a cruise ship docked across from Destiny's Bounty.
Bored, I watch the small figures and try to think of what they're saying to one another. My favorite one is probably this rather sassy looking girl with bright red hair who seems to always be saying something sarcastic to the energetic blond kid next to her.
I'm so distracted by the tourists that I almost don't hear the soft sound of feet on the gangway of the ship.
"Hey," Kaia greets quietly, a few bags in hand, "Did Zane come back yet?"
"No," I shake my head, watching these people for the last time, before turning to Kaia. "Not yet."
Kaia opens her mouth to say something but stops, her blue eyes focusing on something by my feet.
"What?" I raise an eyebrow at her.
"Is that…" Kaia's eyes widen as she looks at me, "Is that my bag?"
Oh, right. I brace myself for what I'm about to say. And for the inevitable slap or punch following since I didn't take the chance to tell her right away.
"Kaia," I pick up her bag and hold it out to her, "the thing I needed to tell you was that…"
I trail off. This is harder than I expected it to be.
"That…?" Kaia prods, nodding her head.
"Your brothers are here," I blurt out, "in Andria."
Kaia stares at me in silence for what feels like the longest time.
Then she says quietly, "I know."
"You…you know?" I ask weakly, slightly confused as to how.
"I saw them," Kaia shrugs. "But I really do appreciate that you told me, Kai."
"Did you talk to them?" I gently put her bag down in the space between us, maintaining eye contact with her all the while.
"Of course," Kaia gives me a weird look, "but I don't see how that has to do with you packing my bag…?"
"You're leaving now, aren't you? That's part of the deal."
"That deal? I'm not part of it." Kaia seems irate, "Serves you four right for making it without my consent."
I fall silent, slightly confused by what Kaia means by all of this. Does that mean she's…staying?
"Kai," Kaia sighs impatiently when I fail to say anything, "I promised you I'd come back before I left, remember?"
Wait, so she knew even before she left? And then to make me feel better she promised to come back and say goodbye? Why couldn't she just be straightforward about the whole thing?! Girls. Nope, never mind. I'm pretty sure this is mainly a Kaia thing.
"It's my choice," Kaia picks her bag up from the deck, "And I already made my choice a while ago. You should know by now that nothing can change my mind."
"I'm sorry," I croak out, reminded how clear Kaia made it that she missed Ignacia.
"Don't be," she smiles at me, "it had to happen at some point, right?"
In the back of my mind, I remember that Sensei Wu told us we needed the three descendants. And here is one about to leave, but I'm doing nothing to stop her.
Kaia beckons her head forward, "Now are you going to help me unpack?"
Confusion drops onto me like an anvil. "What?!"
"Well, you went through my room and packed all of my stuff without my permission," Kaia explains, slightly amused, "the least you could do is help me put things back."
"You're…staying?" I say slowly, mentally clinging onto the words like a life line. Once she denies this, there'd be no hope. I don't want to hold anybody hostage on this ship, much less a childhood friend.
"Of course I am," Kaia frowns in confusion, "Or are you seriously sending me back to my brothers?"
"No," I quickly shake my head, "I'm not. It's just that…don't you miss Ignacia?"
"I do," she shrugs nonchalantly, "but I'll admit that I'll miss you guys more. I haven't been away from Ignacia for even a month, but I haven't seen you two in over four months."
"But I made a deal with your brothers," I persist, "They get to take you home without any protest from me."
"Your deal says nothing about protest from me," Kaia laughs, "And I do intend to kick up a storm of protest if my brothers do change their mind and come back here."
"So, you're staying…by choice?" I question, still in disbelief.
This time is different from the second time. Because this time, she had a definite way home. Her brothers were here, and that'd serve as further temptation to leave.
"I'm staying here," Kaia affirms, "by choice."
"Now," Kaia tugs gently at my arm, "can we go? Or are we going to go over this ten more times?"
"Hey!" I protest, "How was I supposed to know you decided to stay?! I'm not a mind reader!"
"Well," Kaia smiles up at me, "for future reference, Kai, I'll always be on your side."
I've resolved to keep my end notes shorter, so all I'm going to say is, yes, I know the ending is sappy. Just remember this moment because it may give you some foresight on things (sorta). I know it's not the same as the original ending, but I'll have some of that in the beginning of the next chapter.
Anyway, I'd appreciate it if you tell me your favorite part, or favorite point of view, or even your favorite character in this "episode" of sorts. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!
Next time: Finally, after the few weeks of relative peace, the Ninja and the rest of the Team find themselves back into action when the Serpentine tribes are all finally unleashed and united. The girls find themselves in their first mission, but also soon discover that their purpose does not quite lie in fighting. The ninja, on the other hand, discover what seems to be both a potential rival and ally in the mysterious Samurai X, who suddenly appears in their lives.
Meanwhile, in the aftermath of the underground cave incident, Cole attempts to learn more about the newest member of the team, Lani, in order to erase the remaining of his misgivings against her, as well as to find out exactly what she had meant. Zane continues his search for the third descendent with the aid of Jay, while Kaia struggles to get closer to an unexpected person-Lloyd.
Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!