Oh wow, I just got back from vacation and didn't have any time to write during the downtime. Sorry…

-DaStonekeeper

Chapter Ten

Cole snorted. "The Purple Ninja? You're joking."

"So? What about it?" Jay snapped back.

"I'm sorry, I was just expecting a name that was a little more… well, menacing." Cole replied with a shrug.

"Yeah… that doesn't sound real evil," Kai said.

"Whatever his-"

"Or her!"

"-Name is they belong in jail with the other villains." Lloyd said, pounding his fist on his open palm.

"Did you know about this?" Zane asked Jay.

Jay bowed his head, not saying anything. Technically, he still couldn't talk about it. He swore on an oath. But his silence was enough to give his fellow ninjas a definite answer.

"I can't believe you! Why didn't you tell us? You're supposed to be our brother!" Kai said angrily. Jay was taken back.

"Kai, he is your brother! Now stop yelling at him!" Nya responded.

"Well, he should've said something." Cole admitted, not daring to meet anyone's eyes.

"I think we are all getting a little out of hand here!" Lloyd shouted above the now arguing voices. When they didn't go silent, Zane whistled very loudly. They all became quiet.

Lloyd flushed red when they all- minus the white ninja- glared at him. He turned to Sensei Wu. "Sensei, as you were saying?"

Wu nodded gratefully. "Thank you, Lloyd. The Purple Ninja was an old ally of the elemental masters. Unfortunately, he turned to the side of evil. Now he has become the most dangerous being ever known."

"You say being, as if he is not human." Zane pointed out.

"He's not. At least, not anymore." Wu continued. The ninjas shared nervous glances.

"So is that who the Light was? The Purple Ninja?" Nya asked.

"I'm afraid so."

They were all speechless. Kai spoke up.

"Oh c'mon, he can't be that dangerous. No worse than Lord Garmadon!" He said enthusiastically.

Lloyd looked away.

"Oh, uh, sorry Lloyd." Kai apologized quickly. After the green ninja mumbled his forgiveness Kai continued. "He can't be anything that a nice, hard hit can't fix!" Kai reassured.

"I'm afraid that it will take much more than a 'nice, hard hit' to even affect The Purple Ninja." Sensei Wu explained rubbing his temples.

Kai crossed his arms defiantly.

It took all Jay had not to roll his eyes at his brother.

"Well, whoever this guy is, we can get him. Right team?" Lloyd encouraged hopefully.

The other ninja all mumbled words of agreement, even though they did not believe it themselves. In the pit of Jay's stomach, a growing dread formed.

He had a very, very bad feeling about this.

When the ninja returned to the Temple of Airjitzu, snow began falling lightly on the grounds. Even if it still took some effort, Jay now understood how to breathe like the wind.

Around lunch time, while he was minding his own business by gazing longingly at the ruins of his Lightning Bike prototype, he heard footsteps behind him.

Jay turned around. "Oh, hey, Sensei." He said when he saw him standing in the doorway. "Is something wrong?"

"Over time you learn that there is always something wrong, no matter how perfect things may be. But that is not why I am here." Wu replied. "Earlier this morning, at the village, you explained to me that you have learned to gain control of the wind."

Jay returned to staring at his broken creation. "Oh, I did, didn't I?" He said distractedly.

"I would like for you to demonstrate those powers for me once again, if you can."

That snapped Jay back into reality. After quickly remembering where he was and what the heck is happening at the moment, he nervously said, "W-Well, of course I can."

"Then show me."

Jay slowly stood up and swallowed. Okay, you can do this. You did it before, shouldn't be that hard. I mean, it can't be. This is you we're talking about. He quickly pushed the feelings of anxiety away and calmed himself, relaxing every muscle in his body, including his mind.

They were inside the melted and charred workshop of the temple. Although most items were ash, the roof and walls were still intact. Never in his life had Jay tried to summon wind from indoors.

Wu was staring patiently at him, waiting for Jay to begin. The said blue ninja felt a little anxious and rushed. Lightning flickered in his hands and buzzed through his hair. Jay took a deep breath and forced the electricity away.

Jay slowly inhaled through his nose. A gentle breeze swept through the room, ruffling the blue ninja's light brown hair. When he cracked open one of his eyes, Jay could see the impressed face of his sensei. Jay exhaled. The wind blew a little harder in the opposite direction.

Okay. You've gotten this far. Don't get too excited. You can't lose control now. STAY CALM, Jay thought to himself. Wu was stroking his beard in amazement.

Jay risked trying to focus and direct the wind. And so he did. The ashes of the room that was once in flames swept along the walls and a spiraling formation. Jay willed the wind to blow harder. The dust seemed to form a tornado around the two, but none strayed towards them.

Then the part of Jay that was hyper, excitable, and certainly not calm broke through his mental barriers. Energy fueled by excitement flooded Jay, and his mouth formed into a wide smile as he restrained himself from jumping up and down. Lightning crackled between his fingers in bright blue arcs. Static electricity violently flickered through his hair, and Jay's eyes began to glow the bright blue they did when excessive amounts of elemental energy was finally breaking out of the prison that was his body.

He was losing control of the wind and his lightning, which was something that Jay thought would never happen again.

Ash suddenly flew at their faces, covering their body with soot. Just as quickly the fierce wind blew it off, stealing their breath away and leaving them gasping for air. Lightning exploded off of the walls.

The ash was stinging Jay's eyes, and he could barely keep them open enough to see the silhouette of Sensei Wu covering his mouth and nose with his hands.

Jay wasn't even sure how this dust and lightning storm was still continuing. He wasn't doing anything to will it. Lightning struck again, creating an earsplitting boom of thunder.

Jay wasn't sure how he could stop this, or how much longer they could stand there until they suffocated to death or got electrocuted.

Moments passed until an icy chill suddenly went up Jay's right arm, then another on Jay's left arm, making them both feel heavier than they should be. The whole room became as cold as the dead of winter, and the indoor storm ceased.

The particles of dust and ash slowly drifted to the ground as if it was snow. And with the glittering frost that was forming, they certainly looked the part. That's when Jay realized that both of his arms were covered in a thick layer of ice.

And standing at the front of the room with the door closed behind him was the ice ninja himself.