So sorry for not getting this out yesterday, despite I had said so. My mom had the computer under lock-down so I wouldn't get on it (like I could if I was too busy rearranging my closest and cleaning my room), so that's why I didn't update yesterday. I had all of this typed out, too, so yeah. Anyways...
Here it is. The epilogue (and the last chapter) of Zane's Fate. I felt weird writing this, especially the last few paragraphs.
Anyways, before this turns sappy and emotional and I go cry in a corner because I just absolutely loved writing this and I don't want to see it end, I just want to say thanks to everyone who reviewed, faved, followed, and supported this story. It means a lot.
Confession Time: I had no idea what I was thinking during some parts. Like all the way in the beginning, whenever Cole had told Emily what he and the guys were thinking, yeah, I kinda forgot about that, so you can just scratch that out if you ever want to go back and reread this. Another thing is that I actually had a completely different ending in mind whenever I first started this, but I confused myself with it, so I just discarded it.
Now, presenting the Epilogue for Zane's Fate.
I do not own Ninjago, just my OCs.
(Kai's POV)
Three years. That's how long it's been since we fought against Cryptor…and since Jen died. Even after all this time, the memory of it is still like an ugly wound that will always be open. Whenever one of us brings it up, we start to cry. We can't help it. The memory is still so sour, still so fresh. But her funeral…
*Flashback: 3 Years Earlier*
Sam's eyes were red and swollen as she looked miserably up at me. I wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her closer to me as she buried her face in my chest, sobbing quietly.
"Now, Cole?" Josh's voice was thick, and he raised a hand to wipe the ever-present tears away. Jordan looked up at him, and slid her hand into his other one. He smiled sadly down at her, and she blinked once, staring at him straight in the eye. I didn't even make a comment about it.
"Might as well," Cole sighed. He opened the doors, and he began leading us down the aisle to the front of the room, Emily standing by his side. Not knowing what other formation to do, we followed suit, Sam and I right behind Jay and Nya.
Everything was silent as we walked towards the front. My jaw began to quiver and my eyes began to sting and blur with hot tears that threatened to spill down my cheeks, but as hard I struggled to keep them from falling, they still managed to leak out of my eyes and began to fall silently down my cheeks. And then, her coffin came into view. And it took all my self-control (plus some) to not break down and start bawling like a little kid.
Her hands were folded neatly over her stomach, her fingers lightly laced together, with the hilt of her elemental blade tucked up under her palms. Her eyes were closed, and she looked like she was only asleep. Her hair was braided, with the end draped over her left shoulder, and a sea blue ribbon was threaded through it. Next to her lay the Silver Bow of Water, the quiver full of arrows. She looked so peaceful that it was hard to imagine that she truly was dead. We weren't sure what outfit she should be buried in, but Emily suggested a simple sea blue silk gown with an image of her dragon tattoo stitched onto the front and side, and so that's what Jen was dressed in.
We did nothing but look down at our fallen sister, and then after a few moments of just standing there, unable to breathe, we went and sat down in the place reserved for us and those who had also known Jen quite well (so our dragons were there in human form, along with a group of people that I had never met before, but yet at the same time I knew them).
Of course, standing behind the podium, was the President of Ninjago, President Wendy Riess.
"Citizens of Ninjago," she began in a mournful voice, "today we mourn the death of one of our longtime protectors." She then started giving a speech on how Jen had died, which was so far from the truth that I was tempted to stand up and yell to the whole world exactly how she had died. She didn't die by the sheer numbers of the enemy (as Riess put it), but instead killed by Cryptor because of her decision to save Zane.
I didn't even realize exactly how wet my cheeks were from continuous tears until Sam nudged me gently with her elbow, offering me a tissue. Blinking my thanks at her, I took it and dried my tear-stained cheeks and blowing my nose as quietly as I could.
For the next forty-five minutes, I wasn't paying that much attention to whatever the president was saying, because frankly, I couldn't concentrate all that hard, so whenever Sam nudged me again, I realized that we were heading outside for the actual burial, so I rose numbly to my feet and followed her like a lost puppy.
There were no heavy, dark rain clouds, so the sky was a light blue bowl with a lighter blue around the edges, and the sun was a yellow ball inching to greater heights in the sky.
"Let there be a tornado or a hurricane for all I care!" I wanted to scream to the sky. "Just not sunny and pleasant! Don't you care at all that our sister died?"
Right before they lowered her into the ground, they had us come up with items that were special for the dead person.
Rachel was the first one up. She knelt down on the ground and used her Extra Fast Miracle-Gro powers, and a lotus flower rapidly grew from where she had gently brushed the ground with her fingertips, going from sprout to bud to full blossom in a matter of a few short seconds. She plucked it, waved her hand over it, and it seemed to glow for a second, before she placed it on top of the closed oak lid. She retreated back to her place in the line that we had unconsciously formed.
Cole and Emily were next and they carried something in between them, covered in a white cloth. Once they reached the front, Cole gently pulled the cloth off, and he and Emily carefully placed the framed painting right next to Rachel's lotus.
The painting was of Jen (otherwise they wouldn't have brought it), and she had her Silver Bow out, an arrow nocked on the string and pulled back. She had her right foot tucked up high on the inside of her left leg, and she seemed to be spinning around on the tips of the toes on her left foot. A fierce look was on her face, and there was a fan-shaped wall of water behind her.
They set the oil painting down, and Jay took their place. He had crafted a mechanical fish using nuts, bolts, screws, and other small metal scraps. The eyes were crystals, and they seemed to glow with a soft, pulsating light.
"She always liked fish," he whispered under his breath, and turned his head away in an attempt to hide the tears that I knew were coming.
Jordan had found an abandoned hermit crab's shell, so that's what she brought, while Josh had composed a poem, and he titled it Our Fallen Sister (because it's true), and so he placed that on top of Jen's coffin lid.
Sam went up after Josh, and she had a picture of all the Kunoichi and Nya with their arms around each other's shoulders, laughing and smiling at the camera.
After Sam it was me, and I had one of the ice arrows that she used with at the Battle of the Nindroids, whenever she had joined me and the others as Cryptor's robot army had their swords pointed at our throats. It had fallen out of her quiver, and I was going to study it (I know, I'm sounding like Jay), but then this came up, and I just decided that it would be the thing for me to give.
Lloyd had a piece of ice in the shape of a water drop; and Nya had engraved a plaque that said a whole list of what Jen was and how much she meant to us. Finally, it was Zane.
He waited a few seconds, and when he reached Jen's side, he seemed to hesitate before pulling out his elemental blade, and everyone could hear him say in a soft voice, "I won't need this anymore." And when he came back, his eyes were dull and clouded. I reached out and gently placed a hand on his shoulder, and he gave me a weak half-smile.
Jen's coffin disappeared into the ground, and the thud of the dirt could be clearly heard as the gravesite workers began to shovel it onto the top of it. It was difficult to watch, and when they patted down the last bit of dirt, our eyes closed and our heads dropped to our chests as one by one we sank to our knees…
*End of flashback*
"Toby! Where are you?" Jay's sudden yell jerked me out of the past, and I smiled and rolled my eyes. It hasn't always been sad around the Bounty. Actually, the past three years have been fairly good to us.
Jay and Nya were now married, and I had to remind Jay one last time that if he hurt Nya in any way, then I would hunt him down and send him to the Underworld (keeping his head as a trophy and having it mounted on my wall). But then he pulled me off to the side two months later after their wedding and asked me if it was okay if he caused her labor pains. It took me a second to realize what he was saying, and I was the first one to find out that my sister was pregnant. And they weren't the only ones.
Cole and Emily also got married, but it's only been about ten months for them. Emily's expecting twins, and is due any day now, actually. For the past seven or so months, she's been nagging Cole constantly to get her more apple pie (preferably warmed-up and with cinnamon ice cream and whip cream), but also the occasional bag of Sun Chips, chocolate milkshakes, spaghetti, and other stuff. Where she puts all that food, though, I'll never know.
Another major thing is that Josh and Jordan are now officially dating (shocking, isn't?). Not to mention, Josh actually convinced Jordan to convert, so now she's in the RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults), and, to say the least, it's been interesting.
"Having trouble looking for him again?" I called as Jay ran past me, searching for his son.
"Nya put him down for his nap, but he's escaped from his naptime prison again!" Jay looked frustrated as he added, "And how a toddler can escape that thing, I'll never know."
"I'll help you look for him." I grinned at Jay, and we began the search for Toby…for probably the tenth time that day.
We searched under things, behind things, up and down, left and right, but no sign of Tobias 'Toby' Jaidon Walker. Typical little kid.
"Maybe he's in the kitchen," I suggested, "you do know how much he loves that place."
"Of course! The cupboards!" Jay dashed down the hall, me following close on his heels.
"Hey, Jay, since you're over there, can you warm me up a slice of apple pie?" Emily asked from where she was lounging on one of the chairs in the kitchen, looking bored and tired. Her belly was extremely swollen, and I remembered some time last week whenever she was complaining of how much her back hurt. Carrying twins can't be fun.
"I'm trying to find Toby, Sis," Jay sighed, and Emily nodded once.
"Look up," she suggested, and Jay and I tilted our heads up to look at the ceiling. Sure enough, there was Toby, perched on top of the cupboards.
He looked down at us with a cheeky grin, his dark blue eyes shining as he swung his feet back and forth. Even though he's got his dad's eye color, as well as the narrow shoulders, the shape of the nose, and the naturally slightly skinny look, it's easy to see Nya in him: the shape of the eyes, the same black hair (although it's as thin as Jay's), and the overall same shape of the face and features.
"Toby, get down here right now," Jay said through gritted teeth, looking slightly angry.
Toby giggled. "Nu-huh!" he squeaked in that adorable three-year-old voice.
"Toby, I'll let you have two cookies." Emily lifted the plate of chocolate chip cookies as if going to give a toast using the plate, and Toby's eyes brightened at that.
He somersaulted off the cupboards, and Jay reached up to catch him, but Toby soared right over his father's fingers, never losing altitude until going in for the landing, right in front of Emily. And, true to her word, she let him have two cookies.
"Nya! We need to find a way to keep Toby on the ground!" Jay hollered to his wife.
"Is he still doing that flying thing?" she sighed as she poked her head around the corner. Jay nodded, and then Emily said, "Pie, please?" Now it was Jay's turn to sigh.
"When are you going to stop with all the cravings, Em?" Cole whined as he appeared right behind Nya.
"Whenever I'm done being pregnant!" Emily answered around a large mouthful of warmed-up apple pie. "Which will be any day now, Cole, so just hold your horses!"
"Actually, your water breaks in approximately five minutes." We all froze at the sound of that voice….a voice that we had not heard in three years. Slowly, we turned around.
Standing in the entryway, her face hidden underneath the face of the arctic wolf skin cloak that wrapped around her, a quiver strap going across the front of her body with the fletchings peeking over her right shoulder with a silver bow in her left hand. She raised her hands and pushed the hood down, and I pinched myself really hard on the inside of my forearm, and it hurt very badly, so I was not dreaming in any way.
"Guys! Get your butts in here now!" I yelled as Jay, Cole, Emily, Nya, and I gawked at her. She moved quickly inside the kitchen to avoid the stampede, and Jordan, Josh, Lloyd, Rachel, Zane, Sam stared at her as she pushed her wolf head down. Out tumbled a long beach blond ponytail and her sea blue eyes glimmered with amusement as Rachel fainted and she landed on the ground with a thump, because no one tried to catch her.
"I'm assuming that you guys missed me," Jen said, looking at Rachel's limp body before looking at the rest of us.
"Oh, boy did we ever!" That was Lloyd.
"Jen! You're alive!" That was me.
"Someone, slap me quick to make sure that I'm not dreaming in any way…Ow! That hurt!" That was Josh.
"Then you're not dreaming." That was Jordan.
"I can't believe it!" That was Sam.
We dived onto Jen, nearly burying her alive in a flurry of hugs. She was squashed in the middle of it, and she had to yell, "Careful! I've got fragile stuff with me!" We broke apart, and she walked over to the counter, taking off the satchel that I didn't notice hanging down from her shoulder.
"Who are you?" Toby cocked his head to the left as he stood directly in front of her, his feet apart and his eyes wide as he stared up at her.
"Toby!" Nya said, obviously flustered. "That is Jen." A second after that, he said what a three-year-old would no doubt say:
"Aren't you supposed to be dead? 'Cuz that's what Mom and Dad told me." Ahh, kids…
"Toby! Where are your manners? I'm sorry, Jen, I thought I taught him better."
"It's fine, Nya," Jen said. "Besides, it's sounds like you want me to be dead?" There was a teasing note in her voice, and Nya quickly added, "No! Not at all!"
"I'm just kidding, Nya. Actually, I'm here on an important mission. Toby, could come over here for a few moments?"
Intrigued, Toby hopped up onto one of the barstool chairs, his eyes wide and shining with curiosity as Jen opened her satchel and began pulling out large, oval-shaped things.
There were eight, and each one was rough in texture. But it's their colors that had me curious.
The first one was a smoky pale-white color with small gold flecks scattered across; the second was jet black with gold patterns; the third a honey gold color with cream swirls; the fourth one was a mix of colors (white, dark blue, black, and yellow); number five was a creamy white with other flecks of color so that it basically looked like an opal; the sixth was steel gray, and I could have sworn that I saw flecks of metal in it; the seventh was a solid dark gray; and the last one seemed to act like it couldn't decide on what color or pattern it wanted to be.
"What are these?" Toby asked Jen, leaning on his elbows.
"Dragon eggs," Jen said. "Extremely rare and hard to find, unless you know dragons personally."
"Dragon eggs?" we all repeated, and she nodded.
"It's one of the only legit ways to see if they have powers," she explained, "it's basically like a matching game: You have to match the correct element with the corresponding dragon. Now, Toby," she said as she turned her head back to look at the little tyke. "Put your hand over one of the eggs and see if it'll hatch. If it will, then that determines your element. If not, then try another. Got that?"
Toby nodded, and he gently laid one hand over the multicolored one, waiting a few moments to see if it would hatch or not. When it didn't, he looked slightly down, but he went on to another egg.
He tried five out of the eight, and by this point I was actually starting to worry. Since Nya doesn't have an element, did that affect Toby? I was proved wrong when he tried a sixth.
Four seconds after he put his hand on it, it began to rock back and forth.
"Okay, Toby, you can remove your hand now," Jen said, and he obliged. No sooner than he did than the shell exploded, and a large gust of wind rippled through the air.
The pieces of eggshell floated around the tiny dragon, and it was the smoky pale whitish one. It blinked its golden colored eyes up at Toby, and rose unsteadily to its feet. It cocked its head to the left before taking a few unsteady steps to him. Before long, it wanted to be picked up, and more than happy to, my nephew did so, holding it eyelevel to examine the little beast.
"So, what powers do I have?" Toby looked at Jen for a second before returning his attention to the baby dragon, who was sniffing his hand before happily scampering up his arm and snuggling up to his neck, perched on his shoulder.
"Wind," Jen answered. She glanced at Jay and Nya and said, "That might explain his flying habits."
"Very much," Jay answered. Suddenly, Emily gasped, her eyes widening like an owl's. Her face became a pained expression, and she bit her lower lip while her hands turned into fists, her knuckles becoming white.
"Don't just stand there and gawk!" she hissed, "I kinda need a little help here!"
Josh leaped forward, as well as Cole and Jen.
"A word to the wise: Get out of here," Josh advised us, "because it won't be pretty." With nothing else better to do, we did what he instructed.
(Jay's POV)
I paced back and forth, waiting for it to end. I was so sick and tired of waiting that I couldn't keep myself focused on anything.
"Jay, just relax," Sam said as I continued to pace back and forth. "Emily's a tough one. She's not going to let a little bit of pain bother her." As soon as she said those words, a loud shriek echoed around the Bounty, and we all cringed at the sound.
I turned my head to look at Sam, and she amended her statement. "Of course, there are always the painkillers and whatnot stuff to dull the pain." Thank you, Sam, for that little lovely reminder…
I resumed pacing, and then Cole came darting in through the door.
"She is doing fine, and is currently blaming me for putting her through this situation," he announced. "Other than that, she's doing great. Josh kicked me out because I was just getting in the way."
I put a hand on my brother-in-law's broad shoulder. "He kicked me out as well, bro, so you're not the only one. By the way, how much longer do you think she'll be?"
Cole shrugged. "Josh estimated probably five more hours, which isn't too bad, actually."
"Beats twenty hours," I muttered.
(Nya's POV)
Toby was playing with his dragon, happily unaware of what was taking place.
"Mom, what's a good name for my dragon?" he asked.
"Well, what do you think is a good name for her?" I answered. He paused for a second before answering with, "Sora."
"That's an interesting name," Kai commented from where he was lounging on the couch, looking disinterested, but the constant flickering of his eyes gave away exactly what he was thinking. "But I like it."
"COLE! GET IN HERE!" We all jumped at Josh's sudden bellow, and the Earth Ninja dashed out the room. We waited for five intense-filled minutes, and then Cole came staggering back into the game room.
He had a dazed look on his face, and he said in an amazed voice, "I'm a dad." To say the least, we (kind of) exploded into cheers.
(Cole's POV)
Everyone came streaming towards me, pounding me on the back and shouting their congratulations.
"Another battle fought and one," Jay said while Lloyd commented, "She always was a tough one."
"How are they?" Rachel, Nya, and Sam leaned in, their eyes wide as they waited for an answer.
"Beautiful," I answered.
"COLE! IF YOU DON'T GET YOUR REAREND IN HERE, I WILL NOT LET YOU HOLD THEM…FOR THE NEXT THREE YEARS!"
"Coming, dear!" I hollered before shrugging slightly and then turning around and then heading back the way that I just came.
(Josh's POV)
Emily looked exhausted, yet proud at the same time. In her arms were a boy and a girl.
The boy had no hair, but his eyes (which were open already) were a firm gray color. He was refusing to stay still, which obviously frustrated his mother.
The girl, on the other hand, had a head covered with light blond peach fuzz, with eyes that were the exact same black as Cole's. This one was perfectly content in the crook of her mother's arm, and when Cole came in, Emily handed him the girl.
"Cole, we should have more children," she said, gazing down at the red face of her son.
Cole looked startled at that, and he gave me a look that read, "Whoa, how does that happen?" I gave him a small smile and shook my head slightly.
"Twins born of storm and earth are going to be interesting to watch," Jen said, looking thoughtful. I still hadn't recovered from the fact that she was alive, but I knew she had died.
"I would have to agree with that, Jen," Emily replied. "Do you have an idea on which element will be theirs?"
"Not until they're around Toby's age," the Water Kunoichi answered. "Just keep an eye on them, and soon enough, they'll be revealing what powers they have."
"Hey, guys, come watch the sun set," Kai said as he and the others bounded down the hall to the deck. "It's weirder than normal."
Emily looked at me hopefully, and I sighed before grabbing a wheelchair. Carefully helping her into it, I pushed her onto the deck, following the others.
"Jen, how did you come back?" I asked her as we walked side by side.
"I actually don't know," the Water Kunoichi answered. "But I think it has something to do with my parents." She gave me a knowing look, and I smiled, rolling my eyes.
"Did Shard tell you that he almost ripped my throat out the day you left, shortly before the battle?"
Jen shook her head before saying, "He wasn't thrilled about me leaving the Bounty; said that that was the only place where I could be safe." She snorted. "Yeah, and look what happened in the end."
"True," I said. "So very, very true." Then, we made it to the deck.
Wow, Kai was right; the sun was setting in a more interesting fashion than normal.
It was a pure golden color instead of a fiery red shade. It seemed to have a halo around it, and it seemed to be rising instead of setting.
And, as one family reunited, as a family who had overcome struggles, defeated enemies, and had been more than once in very difficult situations, we stood side by side, basking in the evening warmth of the setting sun.
And as we stood there, I felt a sense of peace roll over me. This was something that I had not felt in years, and in my heart, I heard the words of Yang, softly spoken, say:
"Your destinies are completed; you have fulfilled your duties to Ninjago. Now, it is time to let go of being a ninja, and pass down the responsibilities to your children, who will safeguard Ninjago and protect it like you all once did. Your names will never fade; instead, they will be carved into stone for future generations to know of the brave Ninja and Kunoichi who defended their land in times of need.
"Train your children well, and watch with pride as they rise to the glory and power you all have. As long as there is trouble, there will always be a need for a team of Ninja and Kunoichi. Although the path may be hard at times, never lose heart, and never give up.
"I believe Wu once said that the size of the ninja in the fight doesn't matter, but the size of the fight in the ninja does. Keep that in mind, Josh, and brace yourself for the future."
I close my eyes and slowly lower my head so that my chin gently touches my chest, a smile touching my face, and I know he's right.
One stage of the journey may be complete, but a new one is just beginning, and I, as well as the others, await it with eagerness…
Now, Question Time for the first time in ages! :D
1) Should I make a prequel?
2) Should I make a sequel?
3) Should I rename this Jen's Destiny since it seems like it focuses on her more than it does Zane? (Which was not intentional, by the way.)
4) Does anyone else feel like crying right now, or is it just me?
5) How was this?
Whenever you review, please say whether this was awesome using the following:
0=Why did you bother writing this? This was a load of crap.
5=Eh, it was alright.
10=THISWASSOAWESOMEILOVEDEVERYBITOFIT! XD (Or something along those lines.)
Here's a few more things that you should know:
-Unless I do a sequel to this, Jen is not actually the daughter of Kori and Mizu (unless you absolutely want her to be). In my other stories, she's just a plain ole Kunoichi with normal parents.
-The Kunoichi have always been able to do the elemental bending.
-Syber is the name that I will use to refer to the falcon (otherwise it just screws things up if I don't; besides, it's a nice name).
-And, though you may want to kill me for saying this spoiler, Josh and Jordan will get their wings back (?) whenever they receive their true potentials in the series that I'm going to start in a few weeks, called The New Prophecy, with Book One being Emily.
Now, a change in subjects.
samuraiafan282 is beginning a Ninjago Awards thing on her profile. Here's what it is: It's where you can nominate your favorite author or story for different categories, like humor, romance, hurt/comfort, so on and so forth, so if you know someone that you really like their writing style of, then PM samuraifan282 to nominate that person. Ask her for more details.
Okay, so this was a long Author's Note, but not as long as compared to this story.
And so, with that being said, review, tell me what you thought of this, have a good day/night, and have a good week.
Now, I'm signing off so I can get started on Book One of T.N.P.