If anyone still reads this, I thank you. Thank you for your unending patience. I just decided I don't want to give up on these stories. No matter how long it takes, for myself as a writer, I want to finish these.
Also, I apologize because this chapter was really hard to write. I wanted to give y'all some backstory to the war, but I didn't have a lot of time to develop it, so I hope it's sufficient for now.
Cole's POV
We finally got Kai into bed with the coaxing and stubborn concern of Nya and Skylor.
I, and my three healthy brothers, hovered in the bedroom door. Kai was given Lloyd's bed, the only standalone bed. He was upset he couldn't take his normal bed, but no one was letting him climb a ladder or risk him falling off the top bunk.
Kai was lying away from us, resting on his good side. Skylor sat down on the bed next to him, talking to him softly. It didn't appear she was getting a response, but as Nya turned towards us, we all got the idea that we should give the couple some space. We'd been Kai's support for long enough now; might as well see if his girlfriend could comfort him in a way we couldn't.
"Come on, guys," I gestured them away from the door and headed to the living room. I was exhausted. We were all exhausted.
Each one of us sank into the couches, some silently, some with loud sighs (looking at you Jay). No one moved for a while. Then Lloyd, who'd been sitting next to me, slowly leaned into me, cuddling into my side. I wrapped an arm around him, smiling tiredly down at him. I looked at Jay, cuddling with Nya on the other couch, Zane sitting near them as well, looking contemplative. Time to count blessings.
Four of my siblings were okay. I had my motormouth, my brains and fellow mature team member, my little sister, baby brother...my stomach dropped. I didn't have my right hand. Kai lost his.
Skylor's POV
I stared at the Bounty's ceiling, listening to Nya's breathing. She wasn't asleep, I knew, but she was trying hard so I didn't want to bother her.
The others had enthusiastically let me stay the night, and I was glad for it. I would be resting even less easily at home, not being close to Kai when he needed me so.
It'd been hard enough the many days where I couldn't visit the hospital. Everyone had been fighting a war. I couldn't leave. The Aryans. My face contorted in rage and disgust at the thought of those warriors. They were a vile and brutal group from an island hundreds of miles off Ninjago City's shore. No one had ever heard of them until they tried to take over all of Ninjago. Typical villain.
Every known elemental was called in to face these warriors, the police force of Ninjago as well.. We had many battles, but the one where we almost lost Kai was the worst. I didn't even know he'd been hurt until the Aryans randomly retreated. That's how brutal the battle was. It was bloody. We lost many soldiers.
I still remember the choking, blinding panic as I tried to find him after the battlefield thinned to only allies.
I tried not to scream his name at first, but the desperation of not finding him after seeing face and face, none of them his-
"Kai! Has anyone seen, Kai?" Several people stared back at me, shaking their heads, unknowing.
I remember the moment my somehow-still-working communicator buzzed, and Jay's voice came over the line. He was breathing heavy, but it didn't sound like exhaustion. It had been uneven, like tears.
"Jay? Jay! Where are you, are you okay? Where's Kai?"
"I-I'm okay, Skylor. Are you still on the field? What-what's the status with the Aryans?"
"They-they're gone."
"Gone? Just gone?"
"Yes, I don't know why or how but they retreated. Don't pose a threat at the moment. But Jay, just tell me where you are, I can't find Kai!"
"Nya and I are on the way to the hospital, Zane and Lloyd behind us."
My heart dropped into the depths of me. Breath sucked out of my lungs, but I had managed, "Jay, who's at the hospital…please don't tell me…"
He sucked in an uneven breath; it sounded like a sob. "It's Kai, Skylor. Skylor, it's bad. Cole's with him, and he's-just...he wanted me to tell you-don't come. Don't come, okay, because he doesn't want you to see because it's bad, it's bad and he needs you to lead the others if the Aryans come back."
"What?! Is he crazy, Jay if Kai is dying I have to come!"
"Those are my orders, Sky. You're the only one we trust to lead them. If they come back and we have no leader, Ninjago will fall.
Every inch of my body had screamed no, but I did it. I trusted the ninja; trusted Cole and his leader's instinct. Every inch of my body wanted to be with Kai if this was it, but if he was that bad off, then he wouldn't even know I was there, would he? Ninjago City would've fallen if I hadn't led our army to a barricade. We had worked tirelessly to keep our borders safe. The Aryans had come in small groups, forcing us to fight small sided battles day after day.
Then one day, they just stopped coming. They retreated like they had the day of the fateful, brutal battle that had almost taken Kai. I knew they weren't gone, but they were for now, and that was enough.
At the moment, I didn't care about the mystery of their disappearance; besides I had people on the case already. I just cared that they were gone, and I could now properly care for my wounded boyfriend.