HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! January 2020 marks the second year anniversary of when I first started working on Project Rebuild. if you've gotten this far, thank you for sticking around. I genuinely wish I could be more productive with my story but 2019 has been a very busy year for me and I can only do so much. Here's to hoping I finish this by the year's end! In the meantime, here's a helpful recap:
Previously on Ninjago...
We see the GREEN DRAGON MECH that Lloyd built. Cole is frightened by it and cowers behind Zane. Zane turns to Cole and makes robotic movements indicating that it is a robot, not a real dragon. Cole laughs sheepishly. – Chapter 2
Cole does not comment his thoughts on his mother. Instead, he takes a shiny black rock out of his pocket and looks at it wordlessly before placing it back. It is shard of ONYX. – Chapter 5
"Why do wanna stop me so badly?" Garmadon asks. "Really, once I recreate Ninjago in my image, I'd be doing everyone a favor and releasing them from the troubles of free will."
"No! You just want to make everyone be like you! Look like you! Act like you! Be angry all the time!" Lloyd replies. – Chapter 10
A flashing light catches Terri's attention. She looks at the computer screen as it finishes loading, flashing the sign "GOLDEN POWER EXTRACTION COMPLETE". The Brick Separators have been completely drained of Golden Power. They are now just regular orange brick separators.
Terri gasps and runs off to Garmadon. She bursts in through the doors, slamming them open. "Sir, Project Separator is complete. Your Megaweapon is ready."
Garmadon turns to General Fang and asks. "How would you like to join me on my next attack?"
General Fang instinctively clutches at the faded scar on his abdomen. He gulps audibly, looks back at Garmadon and concedes. "Assss you wisssshhhh." – Chapter 12
"But you must promise to walk a different path..." Master Wu speaks in a voice over.
Cole picks up a training scythe but as he continues practicing, we still hear the voice of Master Wu speaking.
"...One that only a son of Garmadon can walk..."
Cole angrily slashes the dummy in half. The shot is framed in such a way that it is similar to when Garmadon used the Megaweapon to smash the wall of his volcano lair. – Chapter 14
Lloyd passes by the same Omakase Sushi restaurant that a young Garmadon used to frequent. Inside the shop, is a gray-skinned lady with a ponytail, wearing violet biker clothing and gang tattoos. She eats her sushi using daggers.
Garmadon is busy admiring the large buildable figure statues of the THREE ONI WARLORDS wearing their respective Oni masks.
We see the other statues that were not visible in Lloyd's video chat. They are statues of YOUNG GARMADON and YOUNG LADY IRON DRAGON young Lady Iron Dragon in battle poses. If Lloyd had seen the statue of young Garmadon, he would have noticed the resemblance to Cole immediately. – Chapter 16
The poster on the wall reads "KILLOW'S UNDERGROUND FIGHTING TOURNAMENT". Beneath the text is the looming image of a burly gray-skinned Lego Bigfig character with tattoos all over his body. The camera pans down to the text on the lower half of the picture, which reads "Defeat the reigning champion, Mr. E, and win the cash prize." The image accompanying this text is that of a Lego minifig whose face is hidden behind a black helmet and a red visor. He wears a black biker's outfit with red accents. Kai does not notice how the insignia on Mr. E's jacket is identical to Cole's Black Ninja symbol.
We see a handful of waiver forms meant to be signed by the Ninja absolving Master Wu of any legal liability, should they be injured. The names on the forms read "Lloyd Garmadon, Zane Julien, Jay Gordon-Walker, Kai Smith, Nya Smith, and COLE STEELE."
"Wait! Lloyd Garmadon really is the Green Ninja! You have to believe me! I saw it with my own eyes!"
The balloon kid trips on the tangled up balloon strings and falls to the ground. We go to his POV as he looks up. A girl with white hair approaches him. Aside from the white hair, she looks exactly like a young version of Lloyd's mom, Koko. The girl helps the balloon kid up.
"I believe you." HARUMI says as she helps the balloon kid up. - Chapter 17
EXT. OPEN OCEAN. – NIGHT
The Sacred Koi sees the Green Dragon Mech flying away from Ninjago City. As it moves further and further away, she looks concerned as though she knows something bad is about to happen. But she does not know what.
We then shift our focus to Kai and Lloyd. Kai yawns to signify that it is getting late.
"You go ahead and sleep, Kai." Lloyd says as he maneuvers the Green Dragon Mech. "I'll take the first shift."
Too sleepy to give a proper response, Kai mumbles and makes himself comfortable behind Lloyd.
"Mmmmkay..." He leans forward and rests on Lloyd's back, embracing the Green Ninja.
"Yeah, everything's going to be okay. By tomorrow, my Dad will be as good as new and we'll never have to worry about him attacking the city ever again." Lloyd assures himself as he pilots the Green Dragon Mech into the night sky.
INT. GARMADON'S THRONE ROOM – NIGHT
A loud "thud" echoes throughout the throne room as General Fang places the statue of an Oni Warlord in position. A wide shot reveals that the statues of the other Oni Warlords, Young Lady Iron Dragon, and Young Garmadon have all been moved from the secret statue room to the throne room. General Fang's strained condition and heavy panting imply that he did all the heavy lifting.
On the other side of the throne room, Garmadon's generals, except the fired General # 2, all stand attentively in front of a blank screen. Calm and confident, Garmadon strides in wielding the Megaweapon and addresses his generals. His entrance is accompanied by menacing background music.
[SONG: Slither Pit by Jay Vincent]
"My loyal generals, tomorrow, we attack Ninjago like never before! It will be a monumental occasion, seeing as General Fang has agreed to join our attack for the first time in many years." Garmadon speaks in a an almost sneering tone as General Fang slithers to his post near the other generals and bows submissively. "The last time he joined me on such an attack, we were working on a special project."
We focus on the large scar on General Fang's torso.
"It was supposed to be a surprise for my son, Luh-loyd and my then-wife, Koko." Garmadon continues. "But now that I finally have my Megaweapon and I have recently learned that the Green Ninja is my own son, the timing couldn't be more perfect to resurrect my old project."
As Garmadon continues speaking, the screen in front of the generals flickers to life. The words "Project S.O.G." appear on the screen.
""S.O.G." stands for "Sons of Garmadon." They are my children, the children I have always wanted to have with Koko. Each one has been chosen for their connection to sacred artifacts of immense power and with General Fang's help, I have imbued them with aspects of my own personality."
As if on cue, Terri the GPL Tech enters the throne room wheeling in a cart of said sacred artifacts. She is still wearing a black Batman shirt under her labcoat. Terri stops at the far end of the room, opposite General Fang and the other generals.
Garmadon gestures towards the artifacts. "These are ancient relics from the First Realm: three Oni Masks to represent the three Oni Warlords responsible for the very evil that flows through my veins and two Dragon Shards to represent Koko and myself."
We pan across the relics and see that they are arranged in the same order as the statues of of the Oni Warlords, Young Lady Iron Dragon, and Young Garmadon. There is a conspicuously empty spot where the artifact corresponding to Young Garmadon should be.
"If my lead scientist would be kind enough to demonstrate..." Garmadon prods Terri.
Terri puts on a purple Oni Mask. Its eyes glow purple and her body becomes covered in gray armor with purple veins running through it.
"The Mask of Hatred!" Garmadon exclaims.
The screen in front of the generals shows the image of the gray-skinned lady in a purple biker's outfit previously seen in the Omakase restaurant. Beneath her are the words:
NAME: Ultra Violet of the Shadow Oni Clan
DESIGNATION: Bearer of the Mask of Hatred
POWER: Magma Stone Skin
"It grants its bearer an impenetrable armor of magma stone skin, rendering them completely impervious to any damage."
THWACK!
At 1:14 of the "Slither Pit" soundtrack, the thwacking sound coincides with the beat of the music, initiating the battle.
Without warning, General Fang slithers towards Terri and uses his mighty tail to slam her on to the wall of the throne room in a demonstration of the Mask's power. The attack causes a crater to form on the wall area around Terri. But true to Garmadon's words, Terri remains completely unharmed. She deftly drops down to the floor and lands with a grace and skill uncharacteristic of a typical GPL Tech scientist.
However, General Fang is not done with her yet. He hoists a flick-fire bazooka over his shoulder and fires a payload straight at her. The rocket detonates in a massive explosion around Terri. But as the smoke clears, she remains entirely unscathed, still rooted in the same spot.
One final test. General Fang aims the bazooka at the ceiling above Terri and fires. The rocket hits its mark, creating a gaping hole in the ceiling. A cascade of bright orange non-Lego molten lava gushes out of the hole, burying Terri underneath.
The generals let out a collective gasp as they behold a petrified lump of cooled and blackened magma in the shape of Terri. We focus on the intense faces of Garmadon and General Fang as they wait in anticipation. Suddenly, cracks begin to form on the human-shaped mass of molten rock. The cracks spread until finally...
BAM!
Terri emerges from the rubble without the slightest injury. Garmadon smiles, satisfied with the demonstration. When the generals give no visible reaction, General Fang worriedly mimes the act of clapping. The generals notice him and follow in a full round of applause.
Garmadon turns to his generals. "Any questions?"
General # 1 raises her hand.
"Yes, General # 1?"
"Sir, with all due respect, you call this Project the "Sons of Garmadon" but the Bearer of the Mask is clearly female..." General # 1 points at the image of Ultra Violet. She does not notice Garmadon beginning to growl in response and tightening his grip on the Megaweapon. "I think..."
Thankfully, General Fang picks up on the cues and wildly flails his arms while shaking his head in a "No, don't mention THAT" gesture. Noticing General Fang's panicked state, the female crab general suddenly changes her tone.
"... that "Sons of Garmadon" is a perfectly suitable and gender neutral name for your project."
"That's what I thought you said." Loosening his grip on the Megaweapon, Garmadon nods at General Fang and Terri to resume.
This time, Terri dons a yellow Oni Mask. There are no visible changes in her appearance while wearing this mask.
"The Mask of Deception!" proclaims Garmadon. "It allows its bearer to move objects with only the power of their thought."
The screen shows an image of a hulking gray-skinned Bigfig character with tattoos all over his body, the same one previously seen on the poster for the underground fighting tournament. He is clad in a black biker's outfit with orange accents. Beneath his image are the words:
NAME: Killow of the Berserker Oni Clan
DESIGNATION: Bearer of the Mask of Deception
POWER: Telekinesis
General Fang throws two axes at Terri, just like how Cole previously did with the training dummy. Terri stretches out her arm and the axes harmlessly boomerang around her and back at General Fang.
General Fang ducks down to avoid the axes. When he pops back into frame, he is holding three aeroblades in each hand with his arms crossed. He expertly throws the aeroblades at Terri as though they were shuriken. Terri gestures with her hands and the aeroblades stop in mid-flight, while still spinning. The GPL Tech then makes flinging motions and one by one, the aeroblades hurtle back toward General Fang, who scrambles to avoid them.
One stray aeroblade flies toward Garmadon, who nonchalantly swats it away. For the final test, General Fang grabs a barrel of swords and hurls it toward Terri. Dozens of swords fly out of the barrel. Terri gestures with her hand and the Lego swords fall harmlessly to the ground around her.
We then cut back to General Fang who gets hit squarely on the head with the returning barrel. Garmadon is pleased. General Fang is not.
"Next..." Garmadon demands.
Terri then wears a red Oni Mask. This causes her to grow taller and sprout an extra pair of arms.
"The Mask of Vengeance!" says Garmadon. "It gifts its bearer with two pairs of arms and the skills of a master swordsman.
The screen shows the image of the same black-clad, helmeted individual also previously seen in the poster for the underground fighting tournament. Beneath his image are the words:
NAME: Mr. E of the Nameless Oni Clan
DESIGNATION: Bearer of the Mask of Vengeance
POWER: Four Arms
Terri picks up four of the fallen swords, one in each hand. She takes a defensive stance, ready for whatever General Fang has in store for her. The beleaguered Serpentine General lobs several Lego bottle pieces in her direction. Without breaking a sweat, Terri gracefully slashes right through the bottles, creating tiny plastic shards in her wake.
Not to be outdone, General Fang creates a makeshift slingshot using a normal rubber band and some Lego Technic pieces. He uses this slingshot to shoot several 2x4 Lego bricks at her. Terri expertly "slices" the 2x4 bricks into smaller 2x2 Lego bricks.
We then run back to General Fang and see him activate a Lego chainsaw. Using the slingshot, he launches a volley of chainsaws at Terri. In a flurry of well-executed strikes, Terri manages to slash away at the chainsaws, which whir to a stop near her feet. Swords in hand, she delivers a respectful bow to Garmadon. Garmadon claps in satisfaction but General Fang, being the snake that he is, sticks out his tongue and hisses.
"Next..." declares Garmadon.
Terri places the last Oni Mask back into her cart and loses her extra arms. After shrinking back to normal size, she takes out a shiny white Lego rock. It looks like a white version of the rock that Cole has.
"The Dragon Shard of Heaven!" Garmadon explains. "It bestows upon its bearer the ability to defy the limitations of gravity with a pair of ethereal dragon wings."
The screen shows an image of a white-haired girl who looks like a younger version of Koko. She is the same girl who was previously seen helping up the balloon kid and believing his claim that Lloyd was the Green Ninja. Beneath her image are the words:
NAME: Harumi Jade of the Iron Dragon Clan
DESIGNATION: Bearer of the Dragon Shard of Heaven
POWER: Dragon's Flight
Terri holds aloft the Dragon Shard of Heaven, drawing power from it. A pair of ethereal wings that appear to be made of pure energy sprout from her back. Terri flexes her wings tentatively.
"Not all dragons have physical wings but all dragons can fly." says Garmadon.
With a mighty flap of her new wings, Terri ascends to the high ceiling of the Throne Room. She spreads out her wings and they radiate a bright, blinding light.
We cut back to Garmadon and his generals. Garmadon is already wearing a pair of protective sunglasses, while his generals struggle to avert their eyes. "The wings are made of the Radiant Light of Firstbourne, the Mother of all Dragons." he says.
We cut back to General Fang who is now wearing a pair of specialized goggles. He twirls a bladed staff in hand and moves in to attack. Terri swoops in to meet him.
General Fang goes into an offensive stance, like a coiled spring. The tension is released as General Fang pounces and makes a forward thrust. In a flash, Terri catches the blade with her wings. The staff's blade tip hovers dangerously close to Terri's torso.
Unphased, Terri unfolds her wings outward, whacking away the staff and General Fang along with it. Terri takes on a more angelic appearance as she ascends and her wings glow with a different light. She flexes her wings and spins in mid air, causing the wings to shoot out iron shards in General Fang's direction.
The snake General defends himself by twirling his bladed staff to block the shards. It works at first until the shards finally knock the bladed staff out of his hands. To add insult to injury, General Fang receives a final shard right in his snake butt, or whatever passes for a snake's butt. General Fang hisses at Terri, annoyed. Terri giggles innocently.
We turn back to General Fang and see that he is now wielding a chain gun. He takes aim and shoots the gun at Terri. The claw projectile flies through the air and grabs the Dragon Shard in Terri's hand. General Fang begins to reel back the chain, yanking the Dragon Shard away. An energy wisp leaves Terri and withdraws to the Dragon Shard. her wings fade away, With the little power she has left, Terri double jumps her way back to the Dragon Shard. She may not be able to fly, but she can still defy gravity to a certain extent.
Just as the Dragon Shard is within General Fang's reach, Terri double jumps in and grabs the Dragon Shard, yanking it away. She then jumps on General Fang's head in one fluid motion. Her heavenly wings return and Terri flies off.
Not to be deterred, General Fang now wields a Lego kusarigama, a sickle and chain weapon. On one end is a one-handed scythe and on the other, a blunt weight. Both sides are connected by a long chain. General Fang swings the weighted end dramatically and attacks Terri.
The weighted end loops around Terri, entangling her in the chains and forcefully closing her wings around her. In response, Terri draws more power from the Dragon Shard of Heaven. This time, she manifests an ethereal dragon made of pure white energy. The Power Dragon emanates from Terri's body, breaking her free from the chains. The Dragon then charges at General Fang.
Panicking, General Fang throws the sickle end at the Power Dragon. It catches the sickle end with one of its claws and changes direction. Instead of barreling straight into General Fang, the Dragon now flies around him. As it circles around General Fang, the Serpentine General tries to bite back. Unfortunately, he only succeeds in sinking his bare fangs into thin air as the Power Dragon fades out existence, evading his bite.
In his confusion, General Fang does not realize the chain of the kusarigama has wrapped itself around his body. To top it off, once General Fang is completely ensnared in his own weapon, Terri lands a finishing blow by kicking him in the head and knocking off his goggles.
BAM!
Soundly defeated, General Fang topples to the floor. Terri lands gracefully on General Fang's body, her heavenly wings once again unfurled in a dramatic fashion.
General Fang waves his tail in surrender. A white flag is attached to it.
Garmadon slowly claps with all four hands. Terri returns the Dragon Shard of Heaven to its place in her cart. There are no more sacred artifacts left.
"And lastly, the Dragon Shard of Earth..." Garmadon continues speaking to his generals.
The screen shows an image of a very young Cole who does not yet look like the young version of Garmadon. His hair is parted in a different direction and he still looks full of innocence and wide-eyed idealism.
Beneath him are the words:
NAME: Nicolas Brookstone of the Onyx Dragon Clan
DESIGNATION: Bearer of the Dragon Shard of Earth
POWER: Lava Arms
Garmadon breaks into an angry and impassioned rant. "... is MISSING! As is its bearer, which is the greatest tragedy of all since he was meant to resemble a younger version of myself and lead my other sons to victory."
While Garmadon is speaking, General Fang narrows his eyes at the memory of his failure.
"The Dragon Shard of Earth would have given him Lava Arms powered by the Righteous Strength of Firstbourne..." As Garmadon says this, General Fang wordlessly slithers near him. "...enabling him to destroy nearly anything in front of him with a single PUNCH!"
Without missing a beat, General Fang instinctively holds out a flat 4x6 reddish brown Lego piece so that Garmadon can punch through it, breaking it into several reddish brown shards. General Fang doesn't even complain when he some of these shards hit him in the face.
"He was the final piece to the puzzle but now, he is beyond my reach because General Fang lost him years ago..." Garmadon continues.
We go to a shot of General Fang looking very very submissive, bowing his head in shame. He subconsciously clutches the scar on his abdomen.
"... forcing me to abandon my project! He has failed me once and in my infinite mercy, I am granting him a second chance." Garmadon flashes one of his classic demonic smiles.
General Fang does not flinch at his humiliation in front of the other generals. He has important work to do.
"Tomorrow, he will find my lost son, just as the rest of you will bring me the other four. You will know them by their gray skin, tattoos, or red eyes." As Garmadon says this, the ever dutiful General Fang is already busy passing out dossiers marked "S.O.G." to the other generals.
"Familiarize yourselves with the files. I have special tasks for each of you and I can't wait to see the look on Luh-Loyd's face when he sees the surprise I have planned for him. SO DON'T MESS IT UP! Is that clear?" Garmadon shouts threateningly.
"Yes, Sir!" The Generals all reply and salute.
"Dismissed. We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow, so get some sleep. Pleasant nightmares!"
All the Generals bow respectfully. General Fang then leads the other generals out the throne room. Garmadon goes back to admiring the statues. He gazes upon the statue of his younger self and becomes lost in his musings. Suddenly, a meek voice interrupts him. Garmadon turns toward the voice.
"Sir, I've secured the sacred relics, but what should I do with the remnants of the of the Four Golden Weapons?" Terri asks.
Garmadon takes up the Megaweapon and looks at it thoughtfully, pondering his next move.
"Prepare the volcanic forge! We have work to do, my clever little blacksmith. Tomorrow, we rebuild Ninjago City in my image and when I am through, everyone will either love me or be just. Like. Me!"
Garmadon breaks into a fit of evil laughter. The laughter continues as we slowly dissolve to...
EXT. NINJAGO CITY – NIGHT
We see several shots of Ninjago City. Garmadon's evil laughter echoes on as we see the busy city. Its citizens are unaware of what is to come. We end on a shot of Koko's apartment building.
A/N: My favorite bit in this chapter is how General Fang doesn't have a single spoken line but he has such a presence.
Yes, you know I'd bring in Cole's Earth Punch/Lava Arms. Garmadon's whole aesthetic is lava. The Earth Punch destroys things. It was a perfect match.
It seems Lord Garmadon and Master Wu have very different ideas on what Cole's full name really is. Whose truth do you believe? Brookstone is a common fan surname for Cole I often see. "Cole" also sounds like a nickname for "Nicolas." Now, the question is why is Cole afraid of dragons? And does it have anything to do with his missing mom and General Fang's scar?
Aeroblades are from season 5. Firstbourne and the anti-dragon chain gun are from season 9.
The Power Dragon is a reference to the elemental dragons the Ninja could summon in seasons 4 to 7. The ethereal wings are inspired by the Dragon Flyers sets, particularly set 70648. The spinning attack that shoots out iron shards is a reference to Fugi-Dove's attack in season 11.
I just HAD to put in the reddish brown Lego brick Garmadon destroys as a reference to how notoriously brittle reddish brown Lego bricks are in real life.
General Fang's offensive stance, like a coiled spring, is meant to evoke Aspheera's fighting style from season 11.
You can trust that EVERYTHING will come together at the end. That's why it takes me so long to write. All the pieces are there. I just need to put them together. It'll take a while so please be patient. Tune in next time for Chapter 19: Spiders in the House.
Long Overdue Replies:
Bookkeeper2004: Oh, you have good reason to be worried for Cole and his backstory. Yes, I will include references to more recent seasons as long as I can fit them in. I might take long writing chapters but that is one nice advantage.
StoriesAreMagic: It's a connection but not THE connection. But yes, Cole is a Son of Garmadon. Not biological but he was chosen by Garmadon. Oh Harumi, I regret not introducing her earlier on in the story but now she's going to make life very difficult for the Ninja. Cole had better enjoy that cake. It's the last one he'll ever get. Fowl-mouthed Master Chicken indeed. Lots of MAJOR uh-oh coming soon.
Zach Greenwood: I wish I could have gotten this chapter up sooner but oh well, here you go. It might take me a while but don't worry, I won't give up.