Regression

Zane leaned over the edge of the ship, looking down below him at the vast expanse of water. His white cloak caught the breeze and lifted it gently, sending a thrilling chill down his spine. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, allowing himself to forget his problems, at least for a few minutes.

They had been over the ocean for about a day now. Cole said that once they reached the water, the trip would take about four days.

Three left. He still did not have any answer for Cole, and his heart was torn. He had allowed himself to be captured so he could be a companion for Kai. He was going to be that, no matter what the personal cost may be. And, of course, he had his sister to think about as well. Her presence on the ship had certainly skewed whatever plans he had made for escape.

The problem, Zane decided, is being able to discern if I would be able to help them better by being the one with the keys in my hand instead of shackled alongside them.

Zane opened his eyes and looked into the direction of the wind. The sharp, dry sea air brought tears to his eyes. He had no clue what he would do.

"Zane?" Kai's voice sounded behind him. "You okay?"

The Northern nobleman turned to face his companion. "No," he said with a sigh. "No, I don't believe I am."

"You want to talk about it?" Kai asked.

"No."

"Why not?"

"You should not concern yourself with the problems of other people, Kai."

"Says the guy who is risking his neck to get me off of this ship in one piece."

"He would have captured me anyway, you know." Zane shot back.

Kai threw up his arms in defeat. "Hey, you don't need to get all snappy. I was just asking. What's up with you?"

"Nothing," Zane said. "Nothing is wrong with me, Kai."

Kai crossed his arms over his chest and rolled his eyes. "Ever since that conversation with Cole yesterday afternoon, you've been all snappy."

"Your point?"

Cole came up the steps, staggering slightly as he held the railing. "Hey, back off." He glared at Kai. "Leave the man alone."

"Make me," Kai said.

"Kai," Zane's tone was low and commanding. "Stop being the rock in our shoes. You don't need to argue with him." He sighed slowly. What's wrong with me? He asked himself. Stress is no excuse for this kind of behavior, Zane. Stop it.

Cole snorted and walked across the deck, keeping his eyes on the floor in front of him as his cloak caught the wind. He refused to look over the edge of the ship and confront the shiny water below. He reached into his pocket and drew out a key, then pushed it into a slot in the wall.

A closet door opened, and Zane watched with mild curiosity as the Dark Knight grabbed a sword. He turned and tossed it suddenly to Kai, who caught it easily.

The Southern nobleman grinned as the sword landed in his palm. "So we're going to fight?" He asked, swinging the sword casually to test its balance.

Cole grinned cruelly and drew his own sword, which hung at all times from his hip scabbard. "Isn't that what you wanted?" Now his eyes were on Kai and the blade in his hand. Still not on the water, Zane noted.

Cole nodded to Kai's blade. "You're move," he said. "This is just practice. We are not going to purposely hurt each other."

Kai's eyes lit up excitedly as he walked to the center of the deck, where Cole stood. "Understood," he said.

Zane watched as they patiently sized each other up for a long moment, both holding their swords in a casually defensive stance. Kai was the first to move. He leapt forward, going with a wide sweep of his blade for Cole's left side.

Cole blocked easily, taking a step to the right and tilting his blade down, so it was parallel with his body. The two swords clashed, and he turned his blade upward in a quick slice, nicking Kai's sleeve.

Kai jumped backward, surprised. He stood still for just a moment, watching Cole's face as the green eyes regarded him cooly, patiently, practically begging him to strike. To do his worst, and not hold back.

So that's what he did. Leaping into a series of dangerous combinations, he backed Cole up until the darkly tanned man was a step away from the wall.

Then Cole suddenly went from defensive to offensive, charging forward with the force of a raging river, thrusting and swinging with uncanny skill, all done while not taking his eyes off of Kai's. His lips stayed straight, and his face showed no emotion.

Kai was starting to get unnerved. Sir Cole had been drinking, and had not been in a clear state of mind since yesterday. And yet, through some cruel joke of chance or fortune, he was able to best Kai without even glancing at either blades. It was as if Cole could read his mind, and was drawing the information he needed right out of Kai's brown eyes.

Kai turned suddenly, spinning on his foot in a last second attempt to best the man. He began to thrust and swing his blade with frighteningly fast slices. Cole was unprepared for this sudden move, and was left backing straight up against the guardrail.

Zane watched with fascination as Cole seemed to lose his head completely. The green eyes went wide with alarm, and his hands began to shake as he stared at the ocean water below as if it were cursed.

Kai saw his opening and swung his sword straight for Cole's arm.

Zane was barely able to process what happened next. Cole, instead of lifting his sword to block the hit, turned his body away from Kai and dropped his sword to the floor with a loud clatter.

Kai had been expecting a block, and was unable to pull back his blade in time. It clipped Cole's shoulder, and the injured man fell to his knees with a sound somewhere between a whimper and a subdued cry of pain.

Kai dropped his sword with a gasp. "Sorry," he said quickly. "Are you all right?"

Cole was breathing heavily, both palms flat on the floorboards as he continued making the strange noises, cowering like a beaten dog.

Zane rushed forward and touched the man's wounded shoulder. "Let me look at that," he said.

Cole was nearly paralyzed with fear as Zane gently helped him to his feet. "Kai," Zane said calmly as he watched the trail of blood run down Cole's white sleeve. "Run and find some bandages."

"No," Cole said in a shaky voice. "Don't touch my wounds." He extricated himself from Zane's grasp and grabbed his sword from the floor. He sheathed it and walked with unsteady strides to the dining room.

Zane followed quickly, watching as Cole grabbed a bottle off of the shelf and slumped down on the bench, pulling out the cork and dropping it to the floor without looking at it. He drank straight for the bottle, not even bothering with a cup.

"What happened?" Zane asked, sitting down across the table from the perturbed man. "You were doing good until you hit the railing."

Cole slammed the bottle on the table and glared at the Nindroid. "Yeah, I noticed." He said in a voice that betrayed his true emotions. He was not angry, but extremely overwrought and frightened.

Kai sat down next to Zane and sighed. "Look, I didn't mean to hit you. I'm sorry."

Cole waved his hand dismissively. "Not the first time I've been cut, believe me. I don't even feel it." He took another long drink out of the bottle.

"Do you want some water?" Zane asked.

Cole shook his head quickly, then reconsidered. "Y-yeah," he said. He see the bottle on the table and reached down to pick up the cork. "Please, I need a different drink." He shoved the cork back into the bottle neck and handed it to Zane.

The Northern nobleman took the bottle without hesitation and stood up. He took the bottle into the kitchen and returned an moment later with a large glass of water.

Cole took the glass and drained it while the other two men watched with concern. He set down the empty glass after a long minute, his fingers slightly more steady than before. "Look," he said slowly. "I'm sorry about that, you two."

"No," Kai said. "I'm sorry. Let's not have one of those sword fights again. You sure that you're okay?"

Cole stood abruptly. "Look, I'm fine." He snapped, eyes nearly glowing in his sudden anger. "Ask again and you won't be." He turned on his heel and left the room, sliding the door shut behind him with a bang.

Kai looked at Zane with wide eyes. "Please tell me that I didn't do that."

Zane shook his head and let it sink into his crossed arms on the table. "No, Kai. I don't think it had anything to do with you."

"Then what was that? He totally freaked out on us!"

"This goes beyond anything we did, Kai." Zane said with a muffled sigh. "Can't you see?"

"Apparently not," Kai said.

"The false escape," Zane said. "When we neared the river, his fingers began to tremble, and his face lost its color. He wouldn't follow you to the riverbed, and did not try to rejoin us until we were a good distance away from the water again."

"Yeah, but-"

"And before that," Zane interrupted, voice muffled by his sleeves. "When he entered our cell that night, holding the lantern as if the flame was actually an evil spirit. And just a few minutes ago, when you backed him up against the railing. He looked down at the water below the ship, and he had a panic attack." He closed his eyes and shook his head slowly, rubbing his forehead against his arms as he sat slumped on the table. "Kai, how many times did you cut him?"

The Southern nobleman hesitated, feeling that the question was a bit off subject. "Only once," he said. "And it was an accident. I seriously thought he would block-"

"I know, Kai." Zane assured him. He was silent for a long moment. "You may have noticed, he told me not to touch his wounds."

"So?"

"Kai," Zane lifted his head from his arms and stared at his companion. "He used a plural. You only gave him one wound."

"He's been drinking, Zane. Anyone would have made a similar mistake, if in his boots."

"It was no mistake," Zane said in a low tone. "He has more than one wound. I could see it in his eyes. He is hiding something."

"He got hurt on a raid or something, Zane. I don't see what the fuss is."

"Kai," Zane said, his throat constricting. "He's been tortured. Don't you remember?"

Kai blinked once in the silence that followed Zane's bold guess. "You got all of that from your observances over the last day and a half?" He asked incredulously. "Just because a man looks at a flame with an unsteady gaze, doesn't mean he's been tortured."

"Kai!" Zane said loudly, banging his fist on the table. "You swung a sword at the most feared man on the island, and he cowered in fright! Does that not seem strange?"

Kai sighed and ran his fingers through his dark hair. "Yes, you are right. I'm sorry, I argue too much. Yeah, it's strange. Yes, your theory is plausible. But you don't have anything to back it up."

Zane pursed his lips and rubbed his fingers over the blond fuzz on his jaw. "Actually," he said slowly. "He told us himself that he's been tortured. I just didn't realize the full extent of the damage it did to him until now."

"So..." Kai's voice was gentle and subdued. "What do we do now?"

The Northern nobleman moved his hand to his forehead and rubbed it gently. "I don't know."

Kaytake ran down the path, Lloyd and Jay close on his heels as they traveled through the woods between the stables and garden.

"So you hid the maps here?" Lloyd asked.

The Southern lord came to a stop before a large pine tree and nodded. "Right here," he pointed at the tree. "Who's the best climber?"

Lloyd shrugged. "I'll give it a try," he said. "Unless you want to, Jay."

Jay shook his head and ran the toe of his boot through the leaves. "Naw, you go ahead." He said.

"Suit yourself," Lloyd said. He scrambled into the tree and began to climb.

"Now remember, Lloyd." Kaytake said. "Go up about eighteen, twenty feet. There should be a cylinder hidden in a hollow part of the tree."

Jay watched as Lloyd climbed with a strange smile on his lips. It was a little pitiful, because the prince couldn't seem to find a place to put his feet while he pulled with his arms. "Um, Lloyd?" He dared to speak up.

"Yeah?" Came the breathless reply.

"Go for the branch by your left foot." The thief said. "Then you can reach the one above your right arm, and then maybe-"

Lloyd let out a loud cry of frustration and jumped down. He was only about five feet from the ground, and landed on his feet easily enough. He whirled around and gave Jay a short, annoyed grin. "Why don't you do it?"

Jay shrugged. "Sure," he said. He jumped into the tree and began to climb. His foot slipped about ten feet up, and he was left dangling by his arms for a moment before his leg found purchase on a branch.

Kaytake spoke up with a laugh. "Not as easy as it looks, huh?"

Jay scrambled up a little further, wishing he had taken off his cloak before he started the climb. It seemed to catch on every branch and threatened to choke him. "I never said it was easy," he called down. "Lloyd looked like he needed help, so I thought I'd give him some advice. Then he snapped at me."

He reached into a small hole in the trunk, and his fingers fumbled for the cylinder. "Is it metal or wood?" He asked.

"Metal," Kaytake answered. "Did you find it?"

Jay sat precariously on a branch and dug into his pocket. "Not yet," he replied. He grabbed a small gadget and pushed a button. The tiny contraption suddenly took flight and left his palm. A moment later, it began to glow.

The man guided his floating light into the hole and rummaged again, getting his head and an arm inside. The hole was filled with leaves, dust, and other miscellaneous debris, and smelled dank.

He was about to give up when he caught the glint of metal in the corner of his eye, and he brushed away the leaves in that area. His fingers touched cold metal, and he gave a triumphant whoop. He regretted it immediately, because the sound reverberated through the hole and filled his head about ten times louder than when it had left his mouth. He seriously needed to learn to be more quiet.

He cringed and drew his head from the hole, holding the cylinder up for inspection. It was about a foot long, two inches in diameter.

"Got it!" He shouted down to the men below. He held the container between his teeth and grabbed the floating light out of the hole, pushed the button again, and shoved it into his pocket.

He shimmied down the tree with relative ease, and presented the cylinder to his companions. "Is this it?" He asked, taking it from between his teeth and holding it out to Kaytake.

The Southern nobleman took it with a pleased look. "Well done, Jay." He twisted off the cap and and carefully pulled out two parchments, rolled in on each other. He unrolled both papers and handed one to Lloyd.

"So these are the maps." Lloyd said it as a statement rather than a question. He examined it a moment. "It looks like a map of Ninjago Island."

Jay looked at the aging parchment in Kaytake's hands. "So, am I right in assuming that this is the Dark Island?" He adjusted the cloak on his shoulders so it would lay right and not pull on his neck.

"Yes," Kaytake said with a nod. He rolled up the paper and handed it to the thief. "Guard these with your life, Jay. They are irreplaceable."

"Yes sir," Jay said as he took the map.

Lloyd handed his paper to Kaytake. "How does it feel, Jay?" He asked, slinging an arm over the man'a shoulder. "The fate of the Islands rest on our shoulders."

The thief shrugged himself out of Lloyd's grasp. "It's heavier than I imagined," he said. "Let's get over to the Dark Island, so we can unburden ourselves a bit on the other three guys."

Lloyd snorted. "Your enthusiasm is a little overwhelming," he said sarcastically. "Come on, I know you have a sense of humor. You don't have to treat us all regally. We've been over this."

"Yes, your majesty," Jay said with a grin.

"There, you see?" Lloyd said triumphantly. "Congratulations, Jay. You officially found your sense of humor."

"I never lost it," Jay said. "Are you done yet?"

"Gentlemen," Kaytake said. He took the map from Jay and rolled both papers together. "We have about thirty minutes to get you two on the ship that'll take you to the Dark Island." He slid the maps back into the cylinder and screwed the lid back on. He held it out between the two men, waving it in invitation. "Who's going to take it?"

Jay grabbed the cylinder without hesitation. "You shouldn't trust such sensitive information with such a terrible crook," he said with a grin. He twirled the tube in his fingers, and it disappeared suddenly.

Lloyd's eyes went wide. "How did you do that?" He asked.

Jay grinned and twirled his fingers again. It reappeared, and he set it in Lloyd's palm. "Trade secret," he said it with a sky grin and a wink.

The prince slid his fingers across the cold metal, and he smiled broadly. "Honestly, how cool could a guy get?"

Jay's face flushed. "It wasn't that great of a trick," he said quickly.

Kaytake waved his hand in the direction of the mansion. "Stop embarrassing the poor guy, Lloyd." He said. "You guys can hang out for a few more minutes while I talk to the girls. I'll be right back."

Lloyd gave the Southern lord a grin and saluted. "Yes sir."

{Water... Water everywhere... Cold, relentless, and oh, so noisy. It's loud gurgle echoed off of the stone walls, almost drowning out his mother's weak, dying whispers. She had been chained to the floor, ensuring that she would not swim to the surface. He had been left unchained, because they wanted him alive.

...But just because the body remained alive, that did not mean the mind would be half as fortunate...

"Cole..." Her raspy voice was weak, and the rising water around her small, frail body crimson and warm. "Be strong...for me, my son."

Cole stroked her wet face tenderly, his thumb running over her bruised cheek as he held her head on his lap. "I can't." He whispered, unable to expel the lump from his throat. "I'm not."

Her cracked lips curved up in a faint smile. The last smile she would ever make. "You can become that, then." A raspy breath, another inch of water. "Become strong, continue being brave. Don't let Kozu strip you of that."

"I won't...I promise..."

He watched in horror as the water covered her face. He was helpless, unable to do anything but watch as her body made its last attempt at breaking the iron chains. Such a delicate flower, beaten so mercilessly by the waves, suffocated by the many weeks of darkness in Kozu's dungeon.

"I'm so sorry, mother..."

The bubbles eventually ceased to rise from the blood red water, and the flower withered.}

Cole awoke with a start, sweat beading at his forehead and dripping into his eyes as he blinked in the darkness. He rubbed his face dry with the back of his arm and slowly got his breathing under control.

His head felt like a hammer was pounding in his skull. He decided that he would have to lay off on the alcohol for the rest of the day. He had overstepped his boundaries the day before, and had most certainly payed for it when he spoke to Zane about the test. As much as he needed the drink to keep his nerves from fraying, he needed to keep his tongue wound up tight. No more mistakes, no more overdoses. It had made him look weak.

He swung his legs over the side of the bed and let out a stiff groan as a ripping pain went down his back and shoulders. He stood up and turned on a lamp, refusing to look at the flame. He turned away from the lantern and examined his back in the full length mirror.

His skin was pale below the neck line, because his shirt never left his body unless he was in his bed or in the dungeons.

He concealed the wounds and hid the pain by wearing a shirt at all times. He would not provoke anyone to pity. Looking at the condition of his back and shoulders was enough to bring the strongest man to tears. But of course, he had always looked like that. The pink, lumpy scars were as much a part of him as the tense jaw and the cold green eyes. He was used to it. Adaptability on the Dark Island was what kept him alive.

He moaned deep in his throat as he examined the newer ones. They were becoming inflamed, and hurt as if fire was burning beneath the skin. He grabbed the bottle of ointment and cursed under his breath. He was almost out. He should've grabbed some before he left Ninjago. He had no idea how long he would have to live without it, after this final jar ran out. It could be weeks before he'd be able to go back to the Northern realm.

He opened the jar and carefully applied the sticky medicine to the fresh cut on his shoulder, then reached to his lower back and treated the more infected ones. He mumbled under his breath angrily as he tried to reach the marks on his upper back. They were the most painful, mostly because he could not get any of the ointment into the cuts that high.

"You want some help?" A voice asked behind him.

Cole jumped and whirled around to face the owner of the voice.

Kai stood there, leaning against the door frame, arms crossed over his chest. His face was pale, as if all the color had been drained out.

The Dark Knight turned his back away, so his prisoner couldn't see. But it was too late. Kai had obviously seen. That was what made the man so pale. As was said before, the sight was enough to make a man cry.

"What do you want?" He asked sharply, setting the jar down on the table.

Kai shrugged, not moving from his spot in the doorway. "I heard a noise, and was wondering if you were dead."

Cole raised an eyebrow. "You heard a noise, and thought I might be...dead?"

"Okay, so that wasn't the best excuse I could have come up with." Kai said in an exasperated tone. "Look, I wanted to make sure there were no hard feelings about what happened earlier."

"You...you're apologizing again?"

"Yeah."

"Stop it." Cole snapped. "I don't need your sympathy."

Kai snorted. "Who said I was sympathetic?"

"Get to the point, prisoner."

"I heard a noise," Kai said. "I wanted to get you in private, so you could know I wasn't just apologizing because Zane was watching. So I knocked on the door and got no answer, I walked in, and I saw..." He frowned. "I see a mangled body that really needs some help. What happened to you?"

Cole instinctively took a step backwards and grabbed a shirt from his chair. "Just leave me alone," he said. "Honestly, that sword wound doesn't bother me a bit. It's the least painful of the cuts on my body."

"Let me see them," Kai said. "I am a healer. We could go to the kitchen, and I could clean the wounds with-"

Cole balled up the shirt and threw it in Kai's face. "Go away!" He shouted.

Kai caught the shirt, an angry glint in his eyes. "Do you want me to fight?" He snarled. "I will start a fight so fast your head will spin."

Cole clenched his fists and took a deep, calming breath. He needed Kai alive, unharmed. Hurting Kai would be asking for another lashing. "Alright," he said through clenched teeth. "Will you please go away? And don't tell Zane what you saw."

Kai uncrossed his arms and took a step toward Cole. "You need help," he said. "Please, let me make it up to you."

"You wanna make it up to me?"

"Yes!"

"Then go away."

"No," Kai held out a hand. "Give me the jar, and I'll get that spot you couldn't reach."

Cole examined Kai's face suspiciously. "Why do you care?" He asked. "What happened to the guy in the woods who ran off because I insulted his parents?"

"He decided to stop letting it get under his skin." Kai said. "When one gets into a predicament like he is in right now, it's best to just let it bounce off of a hard shell." He twisted his lips into a grin. "I'm sure you understand that better than most."

Cole could not argue. He tried to find something to say, but his tongue was glued to the top of his mouth.

Kai saw this as an opportunity to make his move. He walked over to the table and picked up the jar and lantern. "Come on, we're going to the kitchen." He said.

Cole crossed his arms over his chest and scowled at Kai, but he did not object again. He followed the nobleman down the hallway, up the stairs, and into the dining room.

Kai set the jar down on the table and disappeared into the kitchen. He appeared a moment later with a rag, a bottle of wine and a glass of water.

Cole looked at the bottle with a deep frown. "I'm not drinking right now," he said.

"I know," Kai said. "It isn't to drink." He picked up the cup of water and poured it slowly onto Cole's back. "This'll hurt a bit."

Cole grunted in pain and ground his teeth. "Easy," he said. "Just because I'm drugged, doesn't mean I can't feel pain."

Kai took the rag and rubbed away at his pink, scarred skin. "What is all of this?" He asked, almost too afraid to touch the ridges. There must have been at least a hundred of them, gained over the span of the two years since his capture. Some were high up, almost at his scalp. Kai saw that many of them also went down his hips, partially concealed by his black pants.

"Isn't it obvious?" Cole snapped. "Those new ones are from the day I left the Dark Island. I spoke without thinking, and got three lashes." Why was he talking to Kai? He had no clue.

Kai grunted. "Pretty harsh," he remarked. He opened the bottle of wine and poured some of the Burgundy onto the cloth.

"Eh," Cole shrugged. "He was having a bad day." He gasped when the reddened cloth pressed into the first cut. "What are you doing back there?" He exclaimed. "Are you helping or poisoning me?"

"Helping," Kai said simply. "I said it would hurt, suck it up and be a man."

"Don't push your luck, prisoner." Cole shot back. "Just because I'm letting you do this, doesn't mean you can walk all over me."

Silence reigned for several more minutes as Kai wetted the cloth and rubbed it into the wound, then wetted the cloth and did it all over again. When he had the three whip marks on Cole's back and the one sword cut on his shoulder cleaned up, he rinsed the wounds again with water and rubbed a meager amount of the ointment on the stripes.

All the while, Cole stared at the far wall and tried to zone out the pain, arms folded on the table before him. "Honestly," he said when Kai began putting away his supplies. "Could that have been any more painful?"

Kai frowned at him and put the mostly full bottle on the shelf. "Sorry if I disappointed you," he said tartly. "I could have pushed harder with that rag." He picked it up and pursed his lips. "Where do you want it, by the way?"

Cole flicked a wrist in the direction of the closet. "There's a basket for the soiled rags in there," he said. "The slave women will get them clean as soon as we get to the island."

For some reason, Kai was repulsed by the way Sir Cole said 'slave women.' But he did not feel like delving further into the matter. So he turned around and tossed the rag in the direction of the basket. It landed half in, half out.

"Kai," Cole said with sudden ferocity. "All the way in. Do you want me to beat you?"

"Do you want me to ever help you out with that mangled back of yours again?" He snapped back.

"No!" Cole shouted. "No, I do not want you ever touch me again!" He stood up abruptly, strode over to the closet, picked up the rag, and threw it angrily into the basket. He glared at Kai for a long moment before stomping out of the room and slamming the door loudly behind him, making his prisoner flinch.

Kai turned to the table and let out a heavy sigh as he looked at the mess he had made. He grabbed a fresh rag and went to the table to clean up the bloody water and wine mess.

Oh, how he despised Sir Cole.