Discovering Destiny
I can't believe it guys. This story have reached the 50th chapter. I know not a lot happened but this story isn't all about action but it's still important. Enjoy.
Chapter 50: A New Hope
Master Wu had some of his students take another trip into the wilderness on their own and this time, he chose Luna and Heather. The two kunoichi seemed to be on good terms but only because they still don't know enough about one another to have any animosity between them...
"It's kinda strange he's making us do this. We already started hanging out more ever since we joined this whole ninja stuff." Heather remarked.
"But I still don't know a lot about you or anyone else besides Cole and Iris for that matter." Luna said with a flustered blush on her face.
"I heard from Iris that you're part of the music club and it kinda makes sense since I work at the flower shop after school."
"Oh yeah. Zane mentions it sometimes."
"I still don't get why Master Wu wants us to learn more about each other this way. Isn't the breaks we get good enough?"
"We should know by now how Master Wu is. He might have some other plan up his sleeve."
"So he's using us..."
The kunoichi of nature felt uneasy hearing Luna mention the possibility that their mentor might have some ulterior motives for creating the Secret Ninja Force and even more so for believing the kunoichi of sound. Master Wu was already an old man full of secrets, many of which he may never reveal, even if they may prove vital to the ninja's progress to save their home. The more the teal kunoichi thought about it, the more plausible it felt to her.
"So he thinks we're just a bunch of tools for him to play around with?" Heather subconsciously curled her fists.
"I'm not saying he is," Luna tried to alleviate Heather's suspicions, "I was probably being paranoid."
The teal kunoichi remembered she was here to learn more about her teammate, not grow suspicious because of a silly hunch.
"There's no evidence that Wu has some other plans for us," She said, perhaps to ease herself, "It can't be helped, I suppose."
"Yeah..."
"But if that's what you think, then why did you join the Secret Ninja Force in the first place?"
"I gotta be honest, I don't really know either… I see everyone in school striving for a great career such as a doctor or scientist but me… I only want to be an idol, which isn't much compared to what the rest of the teens and knowing that… it's still all I want… Is that a bad thing…?"
"I was content just working at the flower shop so I'm probably not one to judge."
"So what made you join the ninja?"
"Don't get me wrong. I do like my job but I wonder even before this whole ninja business, I sometimes wondered if there's other things I could be doing, almost like I'm not utilizing my full potential."
"I can see that, though I can't say the same for myself."
"Yeah. I remember you saying you were scared when we joined."
"And Master Wu let me in because of that. I still don't understand why he did. I'm still not that good at this ninja stuff, at least not as good as the rest of you."
"Don't say it like that. Learning how to fight, especially at our age now, will take a long time. Nobody's good at anything in an instant."
"I guess..."
Silence fell over the two kunoichi for several moments. They still didn't know each other very well and they had no idea what else to talk about.
"We should probably head back." Luna suggested.
"Right."
The pair hurried back to the hideout. They still had more things to work out as ninja but it will take a lot of time before they can find their inner peace.
Breaking news interrupted whatever shows were airing on the TVs of Ninjago the moment the Shark Army made their next move.
"Are those losers ever gonna learn?" Nya sighed in exasperation watching the Shark Army.
"You know what this means," Lloyd started, "Looks like we'll have to stop them… again."
The ninja waited for their teacher to pick out who will go and who will stay.
"Zane, Jay, and Cole shall accompany you…" Master Wu began picking out who'll be going today.
"Anyone else?" Iris prodded him to continue.
"Heather and Iris will go too." He selected two more ninja for today's mission.
"You can count on us!" The green ninja accepted the task and led his allies out to the city.
No sooner had the designated team arrived that they made it on the news. The remaining ninja were glued to the screen as they saw the beginning of the battle draw out like those in anime.
Zane fired his arrows at the Shark Army's weaponry and Jay would use the sickle of his kusarigama to yank them away, making way for Cole to crush them into useless pieces with his massive warhammer. Heather and Aria used direct confrontation when dealing with the Shark Army. The minions with blunt weapons dueled the kunoichi of nature with her mace while Iris with her sword and shield. While his teammates fought off his father's lowly henchmen, Lloyd saved the latest General #1 for himself. The leaders of the dueling factions faced off in a one-on-one battle. With both of them wielding swords, it was a classic sword duel between them.
"You just never learn, do you?" The Shark Army leader talked down at the green ninja.
"Nope." The green-eyed vigilante retorted and then pushed his opponent back with a sudden burst of strength. It still wasn't enough as the crab-themed minion didn't yield.
Back at the ninja stronghold, the remaining team members watched the whole thing.
"Come on Jay, you can do it!" Nya tried to rally her teammate, even if he can't hear her.
"Dammit! It should be me fighting the Shark Army!" Kai fidgeted in his seat. The ninja were doing well but they'd be doing much better if he was there.
"Do you think the ninja will beat them?" Luna asked, concerned for her teammates.
"Of course they will! It's TV!" Aria exclaimed, earning herself strange looks from the others.
Right at that moment, the ninja began to gradually beat back the Shark Army.
Back at the streets of Ninjago City, the dueling faction of ninja refused to give up and their persistence was finally starting to pay off. The Shark Army's forces were becoming exhausted. The ninja didn't give up and kept pushing forward.
"This is it!" Cole rallied his teammates, "This is the final moment! Don't hold back!"
Lloyd continued dueling General #1 and as luck would have it, the latter's sword started to chip. Seems like Lord Garmadon cheaped out on the materials for his lackeys' weapons. The green ninja overcame his opponent with a burst of energy and the Shark Army leader's sword shattered into tiny pieces.
"Looks like you're done for." The leader of the ninja stared down at his defeated opponent.
With the Shark Army subdued, police sirens buzzed and several cops arrived.
"Where the hell have you guys been!?" Iris was more annoyed than anything that the cops chose this time to finally get off their asses and do something about the Shark Army.
"You're under arrest!" The cops were prepared to send the Shark Army to jail.
"Let them go." The green ninja intervened before the cops can even handcuff the sea creature-themed underlings, letting them run back to the volcano lair of their overlord, much to everyone's confusion.
"Look, kid… young man… or whoever you are, the Shark Army are criminals and according to the laws, they must face repercussions for their actions from the city justice."
"No. Knowing Lord Garmadon, he's already doing the punishing." The green-eyed vigilante answered.
"Welp, in that case, our work is done. We'll leave you guys to everything." The police force somehow knew they would be of no help to the conflict as long as the ninja were involved and drove off.
"It's happened…!" The reporters gasped seeing the outcome of today's skirmish, "The ninja defeated the Shark Army yet again! They seem to be finally showing some promise!"
"They did it!" The other ninja at the base also cheered for their teammates.
"See? I told you!" Aria boasted once it was clear the battle was won by the Secret Ninja Force.
Master Wu watched silently in the back. He was pleased with his students' victory but he knew it will not last. The path to becoming a ninja will only grow more difficult after each victory or defeat. A time will come when everything they learned and even their bonds will be put to the test.
"Luna, let me show you something!" Iris rummaged through her backpack for a bit until she found her sketchbook and flipped through the pages until she reached her newest sketches at school.
Luna assumed they were most likely designs for her mech since they all appeared to be large animals with mechanical details such as gears on the limbs and rough sketches of their inner compartments.
'Even Iris is making more progress than me...' The kunoichi of sound thought to herself with envy.
"Well?" The violet-eyed girl implored her friend to have her say over her ideas.
"I'm not good with any of this elemental associations and mech stuff but I think this might be a good match." The purple kunoichi pointed at what looked like a tiger.
"Really? I have a bit of a soft spot for this one." Iris showed her a different sketch resembling a wolf.
"When it boils down to it, those two are essentially the same."
"But I still can't decide which one to choose. I gotta make my choice before I can start building it."
"This is your mech after all. If there's anyone who should choose, it's you."
"Gee, some help you are."
"Don't blame me. I'm not good with this machinery stuff."
"Should've expected as much. I'd have better luck talking to Jay or Zane about this." Iris packed up her sketchbook and walked out, leaving Luna in the dust.
The kunoichi of sound was left feeling awkward. She didn't say anything offensive nor insult the pink kunoichi. Knowing from experience, Iris can be a little careless at times underneath her cutesy Sweet Lolita dresses. The warning bell interrupted her thoughts and she headed off to her first class. There's plenty of time to think about other stuff later.
Cole and Zane wandered through the streets of Ninjago City together. They often chose to spend time with each other more than anyone else and they still have yet to deduce why but dismissed it. All that mattered now was that they can make more moments to cherish. Zane was simply content being with someone who saw him as another person and Cole probably wanted to indulge in some good food.
"Cole..." The android was the one to initiate a conversation.
The black ninja let out a small 'hmm', letting his friend know he was listening.
"May I ask what your residence is like?"
"What makes you want to know about my place?"
"Forgive my intrusiveness but I am aware that you have visited my residence twice while I have never been to your abode, much less even seen it."
A long, loud sigh escaped from Cole's lips. He never liked to talk about his background but with Zane, he felt compelled to make today an exception.
"All I'll say is that it's… different from your apartment to say the least..."
"Can you give me an example?"
Cole knew Zane was far from stupid and if he tries to be subtle, the robot will most likely connect the pieces together with little effort. It'll be pointless wasting time with subtleties and he wasn't even one to sugarcoat the truth to begin with.
"Before I say anything, make sure you'll never speak of this to anyone." The black ninja started.
"Do not worry. I will have the topic locked from my speech mechanisms." Zane promised.
Cole let out yet another sigh and paused for several moments before revealing his home life for what may be for the first time.
"My dad is a member of the famous barbershop quartet, the Royal Blacksmiths. That means my family is very wealthy."
"I assume your residence is in the affluent upper districts of Ninjago City?"
"Yeah..."
"You do not seem happy about it."
"Being rich isn't all it's cracked up to be. Being surrounded by snobs who don't even try to understand you and won't accept anyone or anything that doesn't fit their ideals pretty much sums up life in high society. At least those are my experiences. If that's what being cultured and sophisticated is all about, then I might as well be a hick."
"That is… very different from the descriptions other inhabitants have of the wealthier parts of Ninjago City..." Zane felt terrible for his friend who seemed to dislike his social standing.
"Let me guess, they think it's all glitz, glamour, and luxury?" Cole asked dryly.
"Whenever I hear locals speak of any topic concerning the upper society, their voices contain a certain sense of reverence, admiration, and even at times, envy." The ice ninja
"Really?" Cole mentally scoffed at the naive locals who don't know what life of the rich and famous is really like. At least with someone like his dad as their only family.
"I sense speaking of this subject is causing you stress. I am sorry."
"You don't have to apologize for everything."
"Even if I initiated it?"
"Look, I'm not good with lectures and that sort of stuff. Go to Master Wu for that sort of stuff. But take my word for it. Never apologize for being who you are."
"I wonder where you got your beliefs."
"Honestly, I don't know. It's kinda like they were imbued into my very being since the day I was born. I don't believe in traits being inherited and I'm certainly not like my dad. Maybe I only believe them to go against him."
"And your mother?"
"I can't say anything about that. She died before I could remember her."
Cole suddenly felt a sharp pain in his head and saw… a face…?
He wasn't even sure if it was a face. The image in his head disappeared as suddenly as it came and he didn't even get a good look at it. At least the piercing headache left with it.
"Cole!" Zane immediately checked his vitals. The earth ninja's body temperature was healthy and his breathing and pulse were stable.
"Cole, are you in need of medical attention?" The ice ninja's voice snapped Cole out of his daze.
"No," The black ninja brushed him off, "I just thought of something. That's all."
The android sensed his teammate's unease and didn't voice the many questions he still had. Still, his sense of closeness with Cole didn't diminish. Maybe both of them will find the answers one day.
Garmadon grew more and more frustrated by his minions' ever growing string of failures no thanks to the Secret Ninja Force. Production for his plans are slowing down and the Shark Army's morale started to plummet. The dark lord won't let the ninja or even his own minions sabotage his ambitions to take over Ninjago City and obtain what he's really after.
As much as he avoided being with him, the dark lord still yearned to be the father he could've been for Lloyd, which planted the seeds for the ominous feeling deep in the heart he concealed from all but the only person he ever truly loved.
Judging from what little of NTV News without his interference he had watched, the Secret Ninja Force is starting to gain at least some admiration from the locals, especially the youth. Lloyd may be around his teen years now but he could still be swayed by the populace into looking up to the ninja. The dark lord found himself dreading that will come to pass.
Even if he was never there for his son, that didn't mean he doesn't care for him… right?
Despite his conflicting thoughts, Garmadon still planned to take over Ninjago. If he were to take over, he'll make sure no one will ever say or do anything out of ill intentions to his son. If only there's a way to make Lloyd know that then maybe he can finally be the father he almost was.
If only the ninja will stop getting in the way of his true ambitions...
After surviving a hellish bus ride to school, Lloyd was greeted by even more glares by even more teens at Ninjago High, that is until he finally saw a face that didn't give him any dirty looks.
"Lloyd!" Of course. Leave it to Kai to make going through a school day unnoticed next to impossible.
"What do you want?" The green ninja greeted him belligerently. Even after all these years, there were times Lloyd didn't fully trust Kai.
"I just wanna hang out with my best pal. What's wrong with that?" The naive fire ninja answered.
"Why do you even bother?"
"Bother with what?"
"Why do you insist on hanging out all the time? I'm probably dragging you down."
"You're not dragging anyone down!"
"Oh yeah? Then how come I don't see a lot of people talking to you?"
"That's cuz… you know..."
"Lloyd, you're nothing like how everyone else assumes you are. You're nothing like your father."
"And what if I am?"
The red ninja was mortified the moment Lloyd seemingly gave in to the moronic masses' opinions of him. He knew Lloyd for years and he never saw this spawn of evil everyone else assumed he was. No, Lloyd was his own unique person. He may be the most cynical person in Ninjago (which is justified) but nobody's perfect. Other than that, Lloyd was much more than Ninjago City's designated punching bag. He liked candy just as much as he did when they first met, he was just as much of an avid anime fan as the fire ninja himself, and he clearly had a penchant for building new things and anything of that sort. Lloyd was nothing like his father.
"Since when did you let anyone else decide what kind of person you are?" Kai questioned him.
"And how do you know I'm not like my dad if you don't know what he's like?" Lloyd retorted.
"You're not your father! You don't have black skin, red eyes, and four arms! I never see you try to take over Ninjago City! No two people are ever alike! Lloyd, you are you!"
"If that's so, then tell me who I am."
"Look. This isn't for me to decide. That's for you to find out but what I do know is that you'll never end up like you father."
Lloyd still doubted Kai… and he felt a slight discomfort in his chest. It was probably the stress he faced on a daily basis so he dismissed it as such. Besides, there are much bigger things to worry about than chest pain...
Jay gulped when he had to face Aria in battle.
'Focus, Jay!' He reminded himself, 'You survived several battles with the Shark Army! You can do this!'
The blue ninja stretched the chain of his weapon but didn't do anything yet. He wanted to know what Aria was planning to do before taking action.
Jay swung his kusarigama, the chains surrounding his opponent. Aria couldn't decide what to do fast enough and in her confusion, the rings of cold metal wrapped around her, escaping her attention. The blue ninja yanked his weapon again and the chains tightened around the kunoichi of wind, ensnaring her. Aria struggled to free herself but with her arms also incapacitated, she maladroitly fell on her face and she felt a pit in her stomach when she felt her daggers slip from her grasp. Before she could take out the chains and retrieve her blades, the lightning ninja managed to snatch them in a flash.
Much to Jay's surprise, Aria was not above using her own body to attack. Still wrapped in chains, she threw herself at him, causing the dueling pair to tumble on the ground for a bit and the lightning ninja lost the daggers in the process. Once both of them overcame their dizziness, they fought in a frenzied scramble for the blades. While Jay was faster, Aria tried every trick in the book to beat him even as she struggled to free herself from the chains. Once she was finally freed from Jay's weapon, the kunoichi of wind lunged at her opponent to reclaim her daggers.
Aria pushed Jay again and the momentum made him lose his grip on one of the daggers. The orange kunoichi finally retrieved her weapon and grabbed the other blade. The dueling pair were locked in a childish game of tug-of-war. Jay and Aria seemed evenly matched in terms of physical strength and it felt like forever as they kept tugging until...
"That's enough." Master Wu put an end to his students' match.
Both ninja let go, sending them tumbling backwards.
"Uh… who won…?" Jay asked after getting up.
"Does it really matter who is victorious if you're on the same side?"
The blue ninja fell silent, thankful that his orange scarf hid his embarrassed blush.
"No one should ever be ashamed of asking any sort of question. It is only by asking them that we gain the answers we seek."
"I gotta say using your kusarigama like that is a pretty smart move." Aria complimented Jay's intellect that was often overshadowed by his timidness.
"Thanks, I guess..." The timid blue ninja was as flustered as ever.
Master Wu continued observing his students. They were making progress not only in training but also developing various relationships with one another.
The ninja were growing up and before they know it, the plot will start to thicken…
And it is indeed. As the ninja continue their adventures, we will not only explore their bonds but also their past. Also, that chest pain Lloyd felt… it will be important later. But as always, all the ninja's secrets will be revealed much later so in the meantime, please review.
