A/N: Okay.
Another song to suit this Kai (WDC Kai) is Chameleon Circuit's Nightmares. Well, the opening verses are about Doctor Who - it is a Doctor Who song - but everything else is so like WDC Kai. Go listen to it?
When you find out how the killer/captor/insane guy is, you'll find out the whole story with names instead of just pronouns and not so many gaps.
This means everything - what happened to cause the apocalypse, how the leader died, what happened afterwards, how Neuro got amnesia, how everyone got their place in the hierarchy, etc.
Just saying. So it may be a while, so please be patient.
For an apocalypse, they have a good living style.
Well, until they die.
Sorry.
Anyway, thanks for the reviews, and I can't say shit because it will ruin the story.
Silence.
He stared at his attacker, fists clenched, breaths slighly quickened, trembling. Tears gathered in his eyes and he watched their next movement.
They glared up at him, but a smile was upon their face, eyes shining with a scary spark. "You... You think you're the only one suffering?!" They roared, striking him across the face, nails slashing his cheek. "You aren't! We lost too! Just because you we-"
"You're upsetting him!" One of his brothers stepped out in his defence, but he couldn't tell who over the tears and wracking sobs he and his attacker were making.
"HE UPSET ME!" The hands appeared around his neck and he felt them push him, or slam him, against the wall and then bash his head and he could feel his consciousness depleting before someone pulled them off.
"STOP IT!"
"I WISH HE WAS GONE! I WISH HE WAS DEAD!" He heard someone being thrown to the floor and someone storming out, slamming the door and the vibrations hurt his head even more.
He curled up and cried.
They were gone... Their leader was gone and dead and he couldn't save them and now he was alone.
"It'll be fine Kai..." He heard Zane whisper, pulling him up and holding him in his lap.
No.
Nothing was going to be fine.
Nothing was all right.
He failed as a Ninja.
They were dead.
He didn't mean to say it, he really didn't mean to, but the confession flew out before he could stop it. Neuro was staring at him with an expression which was changing from confused to... he didn't know what to do.
Clancee was standing behind Neuro, pulling his fist down and mouthing, 'get in'. He would glare or shake his head but he was so scared of mockery or denial.
Neuro didn't smile, that was scary, and without turning around, he calmly said, "Clancee, stop it." He stared at Kai. "You... Love me?"
Kai stammered an explanation, only giving up and nodding when Neuro raised an eyebrow.
He expected laughter, he expected mockery, he expected confusion.
He didn't expect the bloody telepath to squeal happily and kiss his cheek, blushing red and stammering out a confession that was the same as the one he accidentally blurted out.
"Wait... what is happening?" Kai asked with confusion.
"The feeling's mutual." Neuro grinned and giggled like a schoolgirl and hugged him.
"Are we... dating?" Kai looked to the side, remembering the last time he'd dated someone or came close to kissing them - it was well over a year ago now yet he remembered it clear as day. Now the idea of such a thing disgusted him more than before - people changed, he knew that, but to think that he'd want only one person and a guy at that, whereas after the Tournament he'd refuse to consider males as a possible partner.
"I guess so." Neuro hugged him tightly. Kai smiled and hugged him back.
"So..." Kai pulled away. "I'm going to make dinner. Then I, and I alone, am going to visit Karloff and Neuro, Clancee, you up for visiting the infimary and helping out since two of their employees are out of commission for several reasons?" He smiled warmly at his now boyfriend - he loved saying that word - who shrugged and nodded.
"Sure. Might do me some good to help them out." A smile crossed the telepath's face. "What's for tea?"
"Might try a good old pizza."
Neuro frowned. "A what?"
"You don't remember pizza?"
"Amnesia? Remember?" Neuro pointed to his head and huffed, pouting a little.
"Irony," Kai chuckled. "When you're an amnesiac you don't remember..." He shook his head. "Anyway, I'm pretty sure Karloff does pizza. I'll go down to his. You and Clancee could get to know each other a bit better, seeing as you're is the only one who hasn't had previous conversation with him that remembers it." Kai smiled. "Be back in a few. Love you!" He blew a kiss and hurried off.
He calmly walked to Karloff's with a quick pace, the pizza of course not the only thing he was going there for.
He entered with a knock. "Hey, Karloff."
Karloff looked up and smiled, bags under his eyes, and, with a yawn, replied, "Hello Kai."
"You okay?" Kai frowned slightly, gesturing to his eyes. "You got... a little something there, buddy."
Karloff rubbed his eyes and nodded. "Karloff fine. Karloff just wake up early."
"I see..."
Karloff changed the subject. "Karloff think he know why Kai here - weapon, right?"
"Yeah, how's the making going?"
"Good, good. Nearly done." Karloff smiled. "How Neuro?"
"Oh! I meant to tell you - Neuro and I are dating." Kai then shrank away. "You aren't homophobic, right?"
Karloff chuckled and shook his head, continuing with the telepath's future weapon, a smile on his face as he gazed down at the weapon, liking how it was forming into Kai's design. "No, course not. Can't be, not in this Ninjago."
Kai sighed with relief and stepped toward him, wanting to catch a glimpse of the weapon; Karloff, with a smile, covered his eyes, and teasingly tutted and stated, "Uh, uh, uh, no peeking."
Kai laughed. "Karloff, c'mon, I wanna see how good it is."
Karloff rolled his eyes and removed the hand; Kai's amber eyes widened and his mouth morphed into a smile. "He's going to love it! At the moment he has a gun and sword and the weapon Beatrix and Ezekiel bought for half price when his broke and Ezekiel's weapon, but he doesn't like using them because of the bad memories..." He continued talking, clearly happier due to the new relationship he was in, and it pleased Karloff to see Kai so happy.
He'd never forget the two months Kai had spent here after the Fire Ninja had left the Ninja, where Karloff and Shadow and even Neuro for a while (when he wasn't out on a job) had to force-feed him and care for him because Kai just wanted to die so no one would suffer.
Karloff cared too much to let Kai die, but now he wondered if he made a mistake - it was horrible to consider but Kai had been on his weak knees, begging for mercy, not for himself, but for everyone.
He remembered something Kai had said to try and convince him to kill him - it nearly worked:
"If you won't do it for the citizens, do it for your brothers. You've lost one... Don't lose them too."
He looked at Kai and suppressed a sigh - he continued with the weapon, a thoughtful look on his face, but not in the good way.
Techinally, he'd lost Neuro. Heck, Shadow might never come back.
And Griffin, he was either a robot roaming the streets or a robot's corpse left there, unnoticed and certainly staying forever unburied - no one ever was.
"Karloff?" Kai poked him.
"Uh?"
"Can you sell me some pizza? I mean, if you have it that is."
"Course Karloff have pizza!" Karloff forced a smile, walking away from the weapon and going to the kitchen. "How many?"
"Three, I guess."
"Any special toppings?"
"You know what Neuro likes, right?"
"Yup." A simple cheesy pizza with a couple of mushrooms, tomatoes and ham.
"Can one have extra cheese, pepperoni and BBQ sauce? Ooh and a few tomatoes?"
"Done."
"And I'm not sure what Clancee likes so just cheese."
Karloff wrapped up the pizzas for him and shoved them into a carrier bag and handed him the bag. "Usual price be 10.97 but for Kai it 5.48."
Kai looked visibly shocked. "Won't you not have enough money?"
"Karloff be fine." He waved it off, taking the money Kai handed him, smiling gently, before looking back up at Kai. "Kai stay safe. Kai look after Neuro and, if need to, let Neuro look after Kai." Kai nodded, and was about to leave, but Karloff grabbed him by the shoulders and forcefully turned him round. "Karloff mean it, okay?"
"Okay." Kai nodded.
He was pulled into a hug by Karloff, who whispered in his ear, "Please don't die. Please no let Neuro die."
"I promise."
Okay.
This was new.
"Sensei, Kai's bleeding!"
He'd seen his blood before. He'd seen a shitload of blood before.
But he'd never seen a shitload of HIS blood before, and now he was emptily gazing into the sky, as if dead, but his mouth was moving to try and make noise, but it was as if he were paralysed.
"What happened?" Wu asked, calm despite one of his students near death, looking at Cole who was carrying Kai.
"We were so close to defeating him, Sensei! But then one of his minions, he got close to Nya and Kai protected her with his body and told her to run."
They'd slit the side of his mouth open and nearly cut off his tongue but they'd soon rendered him unable to yell for help as Nya ran toward the four struggling boys. They'd stabbed through his stomach and he'd began to fade then.
Cole had come at that point and he'd attempted to say he was scared, but Cole had knelt down and hushed him, lifting him into his muscular arms and had called off the attack.
Sensei hummed in thought before commanding Cole to lay Kai down on the bed and took some Tea. He waved it under Kai's nose and he struggled to stay awake.
"Shush... Sleep..."
They'd had little conversation, the telepathic amnesiac and the pirate snake, and now Neuro was staring at the clock wistfully.
"Hey, wanna go to Ezekiel and Beatrix's shelter? The beret has a map inside it marking where it is." Clancee offered to the telepath. "We can leave a note to Kai."
"Um... Okay?" Neuro shrugged, writing the note and sticking it on the door.
The two left with the weapons that the two partners had once owned and with their own, Clancee holding the late partners' weapons and Neuro holding the rest. "Shame, isn't it? They were lost too soon."
"Mm hm." Neuro simply replied, checking around the corners and checking he had ammo.
"Here!"
The two looked up at it, it being a two storey house with cerulean blue paint peeling off the front and broken in windows. There was a door that was hanging onto its frame, that was aegean blue, and the carpet, or what was left of it, was apple red with berry red roses as a decal. Clancee took a deep breath and stepped inside, Neuro following.
This was the house of dead people.
This was the house of two pirates.
This was the house of two lovers.
This was the house of his family.
He wiped a small, singular tear from his eyes and looked around the area, walking into the living room while Neuro went upstairs.
In a living room, you'd expect a TV, a sofa, maybe an armchair or even a rocking chair, with a nice carpet and maybe a rug and some sign of life - a plate, shoes, dog food - and maybe some possessions on the floor.
That was before the apocalypse. Now all electronics had been thrown away and the carpet was concealed by weapons strewn across it and the rug was torn and no sign of life was there aside from maps, weapon designs and strategies.
Not that it would any use to them now since they were... Dead. He picked up the maps and any other pieces of paper that seemed to be of use to them whilst muttering an apology to the recently deceased and then took the weapons in a bag he'd taken with them. He strolled into the kitchen and took all the food that wasn't rotten or near rotten and did the same with drinks.
Meanwhile, Neuro was opening doors and checking them, eyes narrowed slightly and lips pursed a little. He came into the bedroom Beatrix and Ezekiel had shared, the beds made (presumably by Ezekiel) and pressed together. He saw a white stain on the sheets and frowned with confusion. He took some of the stuff that would be useful to them - including the blankets and pillows - and decided to buy an axe from Karloff's to cut up the beds for wood.
He then saw a rope for an attic door and pulled on it, said door opening and a ladder collapsing on the ground. He put it up, leaning it and climbed up it. There was no light switch or even a light bulb - however, there was a lighter nearby some candles so he lit them and took one in its holder. He gasped and looked around to see papers strewn about, all written on in neat handwriting.
He picked one up, sat the candle somewhere he could read the letter without squinting and began to read:
My dearest dead sister,
Though I was young when you were shot, I am proud to have a fragment of your memory, our dearest Rae, who brings me the delight I so desperately need, and is now one of the few reasons why I force myself to wake up and live another day - another being that you would want me to live a long and blessed life, though blessed is not a thing in my life.
Rae woke me up with a purr, eyes shining down at me with a childlike mischief, and I fed her and combed her fur down, for Step Father and Step Mother wish only for perfection, which justifies why they beat me so - I am not of their standard and thus must be punished, however brutally they desire.
I must admit, despite being only twelve, I often wonder of how you are. I remember your stories of Heaven and Hell, how you assured me that I am not bad, how it is Step Father and Step Mother who are the wrong-doers, and that I would surely go to Heaven. I remember, as a young child of four, nodding and agreeing and repeating it.
Oh they hurt us that day for I, as a young child of four, repeated before their ears, and I remember the anger in their eyes as they beat us near to death.
I apologise, sister, for being a disappointment, and I hope you are in Heaven, rejoicing with Him, and that despite everything, you do not view yourself as anything better than my sister, whom was forced to leave me.
With love, my dearest dead sister,
Ezekiel.
The words were haunting, and more letters were written to this dead sister of the now deceased, and Neuro realised that maybe it was not only Beatrix's death that triggered Ezekiel into killing himself.
Maybe the death of the females he loved was too much to bear, and the male friends he had and perhaps held dear would never fill that hole.
Then he read another letter, though it seemed more modernly written with better handwriting:
Upon coming back, no longer mute and perhaps not a Sky Pirate no longer (seeing how my appearance mirrors that of the appearance I possessed prior Nadakhan granting my wish), I must say that the state of Ninjago has changed very much - one notable change being that we seem to be in the middle of an apocalypse.
There's an assassin going around, stories of him being passed around, and no longer am I able to sort the rumours and untruths from the evidence and truths, though I suppose unless he hunts myself or Dogshank, it in no way affects me.
Still, it unnerves me, dear sister, and I shall be more cautious. I hear there's a blacksmith's in town, perhaps we can purchase some weapons there.
Dearest sister, I still miss you. Dogshank is unaware of your demise and our past. I wish Rae was by my side still, though it is proven impossible.
Oh sweet sister, I wish you and Mother were alive and with me.
Ezekiel.
Neuro rubbed his eyes and then realised something - there'd been an assassin.
Who was this assassin? Why hadn't Kai told him about them? Had they been dealt with?
He broke himself from his chamber of thought and took out a carrier bag, filling it halfway with folded but crammed letters and maps and whatnot. He then slid down the ladder, giving him lots of but not unbearable pain, and the telepath entered one of the unsearched rooms.
Newspapers (why were there newspapers in the apocalypse?) dominated the floor, all strewn about everywhere and anywhere in the room - Neuro stepped on one when he opened the door and he nearly couldn't enter.
He picked the one he'd stood on up and skimmed through it before a headline screamed out at him:
ASSASSIN TAKES ANOTHER LIFE
And as he skimmed through, a name shot out at him:
GRIFFIN TURNER
His fists clenched despite him still holding the newspaper and he blinked away infuriated tears that stung. This bastard assassin killed his brother... How dare they?! He continued reading:
In the midst of this apocalypse, there are many assassins for differing reasons - desperation, pleasure, money, the list goes on - but this assassin is the most famed of all, as the killer of nearly twenty and the presumed kidnapper of Neuro Piento, aged 14, who has recently gone missing.
His victim of choice today was Griffin Turner, aged 15, who was the adoptive brother of Karloff Kröstove, aged 18, Aaron 'Shadow' Prinz, aged 16 and Neuro Piento. The two elder brothers mourn the loss of their brother but shall continue their search for Neuro.
The Ninja wish them luck and have promised to take out the assassin as quickly as possible.
He went missing? Was there a newspaper article about his discovery? If so, was it before or after he became an amnesiac?
What had happened to him?
His head spun and he felt sick; in mere minutes he was on his hands and knees, threatening to throw up but he didn't. He filled the rest of his fifth (since four of his carrier bags were filled with the pillows and blankets), his six and three quarters of his seventh with the newspaper, crushing them a little.
He searched the other rooms and filled most of the carrier bags he'd brought and then trudged downstairs to greet Clancee.
The snake had finished too, he gave him a nod to say that, and, without a word, they returned to their shelter.
Kai was lying in his sleeping bag, asleep, the pizzas on the table beside him, three of them, pieces of paper saying which one was which. They were all uneaten.
Neuro stepped over Kai and knelt to wake him up, but decided against it when he saw the bags around Kai's eyes and kissed his forehead gently. He smiled quietly as Kai murmured in his sleep and looked to Clancee.
"Shall we eat?"
He was underwater, but strangely it was fine, he was sinking, knees to his chest, eyes opened and looking at the surface calmly, breath barely held and he made no movement to swim up, despite being surrounded by his worst fear.
Someone dived in, he let go of his breath and now it was harder to keep his eyes open as he breathed in water. Strong hands grabbed his wrists with the tightness of hanging from a noose without a surface under your feet, and he saw blonde hair dancing in the water, pleading green eyes before he succumbed to the darkness but could still feel and hear - he felt Lloyd pulling him up from the water, heard the gasping breaths, felt hands pumping on his chest, heard the pleading murmurs, felt the lips on his giving him oxygen, heard the sobbing...
And then saw Lloyd with tears in his eyes and coughed out water after turning on his side and looked up at him, forming a small smirk. "Was that your first kiss, kiddo?"
Lloyd chuckled, closing his eyes and letting the tears stream down, but then Nya pushed past him and tightly hugged Kai, forcing him to shakily get up and kneel.
"DON'T EVER DO THAT AGAIN!" She sobbed, burying her head into his soaking clad shoulder. He ran a hand through her hair, small smile on his face, but then remembered that he'd accepted the death - he was willing to leave her behind.
...
He never forgave himself.
Kai opened his eyes slowly to see Clancee and Neuro doing different things - Neuro was washing the plates and Clancee was setting down the pillows and blankets that Neuro had obtained from Ezekiel and Beatrix's shelter - and sat up with a yawn.
Neuro turned to see Kai, smiled and chuckled to himself. "Good nap, Sleeping Beauty?" Kai pouted a little to which Neuro laughed more.
The Fire Master stood up and grabbed Neuro by the waist, spinning him around once and then hugging him. "It was a lovely nap, kiddo." He teased, pressing his forehead against Neuro's, and then set him down. "You guys like your pizzas?"
"Yes, it was soooooooo good!" Neuro grinned. "Thank you for getting it! The taste was really familiar!"
"It was n-nice, thank you Kai." Clancee grinned. "Just the way I liked it."
"Oh thank Wu..."
"What?" Neuro stared at him before shaking his head. "Kai..."
"Mm?"
"We raided Ezekiel and Beatrix's shelter earlier and I found some newspapers."
"Yeah..."
"And one says that an assassin killed Griffin. Why didn't you tell me?" Neuro frowned at Kai, wanting immediate answers, and his boyfriend froze and looked away.
"Neuro, I'll tell you later."
Neuro crossed his arms and glared at the older teen with a huff, pouting just that tiny bit. "I want to know NOW." He stomped his right foot down as if a toddler demanding something, Kai not meeting his eyes. His expression fell from annoyed and curious to sad and confused. "Kai?"
Kai shook his head and gave Neuro a forced smile. "Don't worry bout it, Neuro. You'll find out one way or another." He kissed his forehead and sat down at the table to eat his own pizza, the shelter being thrown into an uncomfortable silence as Neuro continued washing the plates and Clancee continued on with setting down the collected food and any other possessions they'd discovered in their raid.
"We're lucky it's hard to find their shelter." Clancee mused. "We had to travel to Ignacia Village to find it, and it was just behind the old blacksmith's."
Kai was silent, munching on the pizza with an empty look in his eyes, and then gave a hum of thought.
"Looked deserted, Ignacia. Well, there are people there, but they said the blacksmith hasn't been used since the Water Master became a Ninja."
Neuro frowned. "So there are how many Ninja?"
"Well, before the incident, there were six - five males, one being Kai, and one female, Nya."
"Oh."
"Yeah," Kai forced a smile. "Nya and I are brother and sister, but after I left the team, I lost touch with her."
"Is that so...?" Clancee frowned before having a glare shot at him by the Fire Master. "All right, sheesh."
Neuro frowned in confusion but a look from Kai made him shrug it off. "We gonna go to the infirmary now?"
"SHIT!" Kai finished quickly and nodded. "I forgot, shit, shit, shit, shit!" Neuro chuckled and Clancee shook his head with a smile. Kai ran about, chucking on a jacket, throwing Neuro a hoodie that was way too big for him (they fixed that by rolling up the sleeves and the bottom) and throwing Clancee a jacket.
They walked out, Neuro throwing his hood over his face and looking at Kai, making them both erupt into laughter. Clancee smiled fondly at them and tutted, pushing them toward the bunker as they continued to laugh.
A middle-aged man with platinum blonde hair, artic blue eyes and fair skin passed them, giving them a dirty look, but then pausing at the sight of the snake.
Clancee paused too, but the man simply thrust his hands in his jacket pockets and strutted away with a huff, leaving Clancee to wonder.
How many of the Sky Pirate crew were back to their original state?
Later, they finally reached the bunker and walked down. It was near empty, only some doctors and nurses there with a maximum of seven patients out of forty beds. Blood was all over the walls and the patients looked very still - too still - and only one of the nurses and only one of the doctors were pacing around the room.
"What's wrong?" Neuro stepped forward, reaching out to comfort the nurse after seeing their tear stained face.
"Th-They were d-doing our jo-job when these sa-savag-vages a-attacked! They were wo-working for H-HIM!" The nurse stammered out, tears like a river on his face, before letting the short teen hug him comfortingly. "They killed everyone! Me and Clouse were just lucky to be late!"
"Clouse?" Neuro had to stand on the tips of his toes to look over his shoulder and saw the man with the black, greying, hair in a ponytail pacing the room, biting his fingernails. He looked to Kai who took over comforting the nurse so the younger could go see Clouse.
"Hey." Clouse jumped at the voice and looked down with an expression that was none to pleased to see him. "That nurse-"
"His name is Invizable."
"... Riiiiiight, Invizable then, he told us what happened."
Clouse went silent. "She was so young..." He pointed to a young woman, perhaps a little older than Kai, who was lying in the bed, eyes wide open and dull, one arm hanging limply off the side and hand gripping a pen.
Neuro couldn't help but feel he recognised her somehow, but Clouse pulled him away and shook his head. He just held Neuro close and rested his chin on his head.
Neuro let him, quiet, and hugged him back. "Too many are dying."
"We can't help that Neuro."
"Yes we can. I want to stop him. I want to get rid of him." His voice scared him - he sounded angry, wanting to avenge everyone who'd been wronged by this mystery man.
Beatrix, Ezekiel, that girl, the patients, the doctors, the nurses, everyone who'd fallen to his blade...
He sounded like a murderer. A murderer killed people.
If he killed him, he'd be a murderer - but the one who started it was a murderer too. None of this was morally right, true, but morals didn't matter in this - people were dying and he was going to stop it.
He began to cry into Clouse's body, his own body trembling with tears, and he felt Clouse pull him down and kneel down. He whimpered and let the older man run a hand through his hair.
"Neuro?"
"M-Mm?"
"Do you know who I am to you?"
"N-No..."
"Do you want to?"
"Y-Yeah..."
"I'm your father."
Ronin and Ash held onto each other as if they were each other's lifeline, Ronin near sleep when the door opened.
Ronin sat up immediately and saw his boss, the platinum blonde hair and artic blue eyes and fair skin that was scarily familiar, and he stuttered up an explanation.
"Ronin..." His boss tutted, Ash being asleep so he could do nothing. "What did I say about Ash?"
"I'm sorry, sir! I tried to stop him sir but..."
"You gave in?" They cruelly suggested, a smile on his face.
"He was persistent." Ronin muttered before he was forced out of the bed by his boss, who pulled the man to his face and let out a hiss of warm, sickly scented breath before dragging Ronin into the next room.
"Persistent or not, you are not to see him - not while you live with me!" He smacked Ronin around the face. "I don't do romance around here Ronin, you know that, dontcha? Remember her, huh?"
Ronin nodded, all remains of his former confidence only a memory that he could barely remember, looking away.
"Hey. Hey, hey, hey... Don't look so sad... We agreed on this, Ronin - my turf, my rules."
"Yes sir."
"Ah, ah. Call me by my name."
"Yes Wretch."
A/N: So. This took AGES. Ugh. Not writer's block - I had TOO MANY IDEAS. UGH.
Anyway, so Ronin's boss is Monkey Wretch! :D
I remember writing a scene where I said Clouse was Neuro's dad but Neuro didn't know that so yeah.
Anyway, some memories of Kai being in danger and being saved and some newspaper articles! YEAH!
But who wrote the newspapers...?
I really need reviews. Feed me, feed me.
Lol.
I finished a book today. I started it yesterday! :D It's called Pig Heart Boy by Malorie Blackman! I read her series of four - 1st is Noughts and Crosses,
2nd is Knife Edge, 3rd is Checkmate and 4th is Double Cross. I think my favourite character is... Jude. I don't know why.
You should read them. I want to read some of her other books too - SHE'S AMAZING.
Oh! And check out my Tumblr blog - ihavenosoul12 (13 WAS TAKEN AND I USE 13 BECAUSE 13 IS MY LUCKY NUMBER).
Ooh! Also check out crappiestartblogever (Tumblr) and their web-comic Humanish (they gave me permission to write a one-shot with the characters so I'm kinda saying thanks)! It's awesome and the characters are so cool.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this long ass, boring ass, hardest-to-write chapter and my rambling!
Bye.