The Realm Crystal
The Destiny's Bounty II roared over the bay area, its rotational thruster's bringing its hull down to hover in the space where the Portal had been. Pixal threw the rope ladder down to the remaining Ninja, who rapidly scaled the rungs to jump over the rails.
'Is it here, do you have it?' Kai asked before his feet touched the deck.
'It is and I do' Pixal replied. She motioned to a robust box, securely fastened with multiple metal straps, with individual locks on each surface.
'Aaargh' Jay leapt in 'it'll take forever to open'. Grappling with the locks, he was getting nowhere, but his panic over Nya's disappearance was evident and controlled him completely.
Lloyd intervened. He grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him once, sharply making Jay look at him. 'Stop, Jay. This is no help. The box will open, just not like that. Centre yourself, you will be more help to Nya if you can be calm.' Jay pulled away and grabbed the rails of the Bounty, bent double, trying to contain his fear and frustration.
Kai came over to him and leant his head down next to Jays. 'Lord knows, I'm freaking out Jay, but it'll be ok. We will get her back. We just need to make a plan. Cole is with her and they'll be safer together at least'.
Pixal and Zane had begun to unravel the complex security system encasing the box, a necessary requirement for a powerful object.
'This Realm Crystal was created, as you know by the First Spinjitsu Master, my Father'. Sensei Wu had come from the control room. His voice stern and clear, ushering the crew to stop and listen. Zane and Pixal paused at their work. Jay and Kai rose from their pained reflection of the current situation. Lloyd moved to stand with them.
'It was not however, the first'.
The sense of shock was palpable amongst the crew.
'Another Crystal?' Zane asked?
'Yes and no, Zane. This Realm Crystal is useless to us, save your efforts Pixal.
The confusion on the Ninja's faces was apparent, but none dared question further. What Master Wu had to say was of vital importance and all prayed it would lead them to a solution.
'In the early years of my fathers enlightenment he created a Realm Crystal. Before he created Ninjago, he created a Realm.'
'The First Spinjitsu Master, was once like you'. Wu gently indicated to his pupils, with a glide of his long fingers. 'Young, hotheaded, excited, impatient. But unlike you, he had no Master. A pupil with no Master or guidance is a dangerous thing. A hotheaded and impatient pupil with a newly created Realm Crystal, even more so.'
'He overstretched himself with the thought of the infinite possibilities that lay before him. He imagined a new realm to link the 16, a Gateway of communication across the worlds. An ambitious design, a self sufficient system, creating and nourishing a Caretaker and Gatekeeper.'
'Suffice to say, he was not ready. My father was an elemental not a God.'
'Not far off though' Jay said incredulously.
Lloyd elbowed him in the ribs. He was in thrall to the tale. This was his descendent, his history and a part of his life. 'Please Uncle, continue.'
'The power of creation he held was spent wholly on building the structure of the world. As the Caretaker and Gatekeeper evolved, his destructive powers, which should have remained in balance, were stronger and sowed the seed of disaster. Where the entities should have been a guiding brace, to welcome all the realms, they became a danger to them. The world he created was not complex enough nor had the vital ingredients to sustain the powerful Caretaker and Gatekeeper.
The world began to die as the entities stripped it so they could live. They required sustenance and saw the Gateway as their route to richer and more fertile worlds, to keep them alive.
My father realised he had crossed a line and decided to cut his new realm off from all others. He destroyed the Realm Crystal and created a new one, with one less facet.
NEXT: CHAPTER 12 – The Caretaker and The Gatekeeper
Where Nya and Cole meet their abductors, which raises an important question.