Wow it's been such a long time. A whole week! Ya, um... yep. Wow the days passed so quickly. But this weekend we had another cheerleading competition and we won a bid to The Summit! (Prestigious cheerleading event btw). Woooo! It was a hard competition too. Anyways, this was a little rushed, hopefully the quality didn't drop. Enjoy!
Lloyd circled the metal table that Zane lay on, awaiting repairs from the still unconscious Jay. He sighed running a finger along its metal countertop. They had bandaged Jay up and done everything they could to help me heal as quickly as possible. Although they had done a lot to help Jay, none of them had been able to help Zane, who still lay in the current condition he had been left in. Nya had taken a look but she hadn't wanted to do anything to Zane lest she messed up, as the technology that Zane used to create his body was well beyond that of any mech she had previously built.
He thought back to the chaotic afternoon when they had brought both of them in when he had laid Jay down in his bed. Lloyd's hands had been soaked in blood, along with his gi, which still hadn't been able to be washed out, staining it forever like the memory in their minds.
He questioned choices, decisions, and moments, wondering what would have been had he taken a different path. Had he been faster in the Museum, had he not lost the fight to the newly possessed Zane, had they been able to stop Morro in the first fight at the tea shop. So many choices, so many decisions, so many moments that he felt like he failed.
His mind switched back to the bloody afternoon, his brain crammed with thoughts and indecisive on which one to think about. He had been crying, Nya had been crying, Kai was trying not too, trying to be the strong backbone for them to lean on in the difficult time. He shouldn't have been crying, he should have been the strong backbone like Kai, he was the green ninja after all. Instead, he clutched Kai's gi, sobbing into his shoulder, while Kai had been patting his shoulder reassuringly, telling him that it would all be okay and that they would look back on this and laugh.
Cole had been standing or really floating, his gaze shifting from Nya to Jay, obviously wanting to comfort Nya, but her watery tears would be his grave and they didn't need any more tragedies. Cole couldn't have cried even if he wanted to. Ghosts couldn't cry, therefore he couldn't cry.
Jay had laid still on his bed, eyes closed, unseeing, unhearing, unknowing of all the sorrow around him. He actually looked quite peaceful, a faint glimmer of a smile on his face.
The Bounty had been silent for such a long time. Even though it had only been 3 days, the silence was starting to wear on the remaining team. This time they had promised that no matter what happened, the team would stay together. But here it was, falling apart. They had lost 2 members now, and everyone had a different way of grieving. A few wanting to always be in the presence of others, but most of them preferring to be left alone. While Zane was gone again, Jay had made sure that they didn't drift away. Now the team was struggling once more to stay together, the loss threatening to drive them apart.
Sensei Wu preferred to be left alone, his meditation allowing him to ease the pain. Misako was the same, only she preferred to bury herself in her studies, occasionally checking in on Lloyd to see how he was doing. Kai and Nya actually could never be found apart nowadays. Especially after the loss of their parents, they had learned to lean on each other and found comfort in each other. Cole liked being alone, he could usually be found floating through walls or completely through people, lost deep in thought.
Meanwhile, Lloyd was here, wishing to be alone but with someone at the same time. He wanted to lean against someone's shoulder and be comforted but at the same time, he didn't want to be talked to at all. That left him in a tricky situation. The two conflicting feelings often canceled each other, but sometimes he leant more toward company when he was sad, and he wanted to be alone when he was angry.
A flashing green light caught Lloyd's eye from the angle he was at. Lloyd tried to get a better view of it, but it was trapped inside Zane's exoskeleton. He gripped the side of the compartment door and gave it a tug but it didn't budge. Lloyd tugged again, increasing in strength as it didn't give.
Suddenly it popped open, letting Lloyd fall onto his butt. Lloyd picked himself up and dusted off. He peered into the complicated mix of wires, trying to see where the light came from, but the wires prevented him from seeing the source. Lloyd carefully pulled sections of wires aside, until finally, he was able to uncover a silver box. On the box, there were little lights, one of them blinking, others gray. Lloyd carefully studied them, and soon was able to make out the fine print.
"Reboot, On, and sleep." Lloyd read aloud.
Lloyd looked at the lights, but there was one extra. Lloyd shrugged and dismissed it. Reboot kept lighting up once and a while, it's green light flashing, getting periodically quicker.
"Zane's trying to turn himself on!" Lloyd realized.
Lloyd started to panic. "He's not supposed to turn on! He supposed to be shut down!" Lloyd thought frantically, "Jay hasn't had the time to fix you yet!"
"Rebooting...turning on." Zane blurted, slowly sitting upright.
His eyes were still gray, and the On light was now flickering green too.
Lloyd stared in horror as Zane's gray eyes stared right at him.