In Wildwood forest, Just south of the Monastery of Spinjitzu.
"What gods good green fuck is this shit" Lloyd spat in disgust.
"Its not green Lloyd, its purple" Jay said laughing.
"Knock it off Lloyd" Sensi Wu growled.
The ninja, Sensi Wu, Harumi and Morro had taken the bounty to the place on the map. It was in central Ninjago. About a 15 min flight by dragon or air jet from the Monastery of Spinjitzu. The bounty had been stopped and everyone was starring at the gigantic glowing purple barrier. It started down in the woods and loomed high into the clouds. The vaguest of shapes could be seen within. It looked like a foot hill of a mountain. But without the barrier coming down or betting more translucent it was impossible to say.
Leaning her head to the side and contemplating the domed barrier just ahead. Harumi stood beside Morro on the deck. All the ninja but Zane stood with them. Zane was in the bridge still piloting the bounty. After a few passed around with no viable entrance they were at a stand still.
"Is it possible there is an entrance down below in the tree's that we can not see from up here?" Nya asked.
"My scanners and the bounty's have not found any. But there is a old derelict road that appears to lead in. Or at least up to the edge of the dome." Zane answered. Pixal and little Cyrus had stayed back at the Temple of Air Jitzu with the healed elemental masters keeping watch. It felt weird to have backup to most of the ninja. But it was a welcome feeling to Zane so his beloved Pixal and Cyrus could stay safe and not have to join them on a dangerous mission. Nya and Skyler did note that Pixal had repaired her mech in case of emergency and updated it so she could carry Cyrus with her in the suit.
"I don't know about an entrance, but getting down inside the woods, with cover everywhere sounds like a good way to get ambushed" Morro interjected. Remembering the last time they were on the ground getting chased through the streets of Ninjago by Kappa.
"Morro is correct. Don't land the Bounty. Hover above the edge and use the ropes to swing down, that way we can leave in a hurry if we need to" Wu instructed.
Zane brought the Bounty down to the edge of the barrier and set it on auto pilot. Slowly Lloyd peered over the edge. Nobody wanted to head down first. Lloyd jumping back when Kai gave him a nudge. That was about to turn into rough housing. Wu hit them both with his staff and then went down the rope grumbling to himself.
On the ground all that was visible was forest and the domed barrier. Still glowing purple. When any one of the ninja would get close to it it would shimmer. The road in hadn't been used in years. And even then it had degraded to mostly a trail. Just beyond the barrier they could see the bridge.
"So now what?" Jay asked.
"Given that it looks a little like Bree's shield spell, or at least the same color I suggest we knock on it and see if she hears us" Harumi surmised.
"Knock how Harumi? Lloyd said in annoyance. "Its not just like I can throw a ball of magically energy at it and have that work" Lloyd said lobbing a ball of green elemental power at the barrier for emphasis.
Except it did. The shield brightened into a swirl of colors and a hum that was so loud all present could feel it in their chests. The colors and hum then dimmed and the barrier shield looked like it went down. Wu gently poked where the edge should be. The shield still existed but the only resistance was a slight ripple and low hum.
Kai decided to prove he was braved and jumped in and then jumped back out with nothing stopping him or any ill effects.
"So foreword? Morro asked again. "Id still rather not be down on the ground." With that he called up his elemental dragon and offered a hand to Harumi. She said something too low for the others to hear and that send Morro laughing as they took off with a gust of wind.
In the fortress
Bree had been taking a nap with Alana. Both leaning against Cole's chest. Bree shot up, then paused with a hiss. She hadn't totally gotten over the broken ribs or the sprains yet. It had only been a few days since she had tripped and fallen. Cole pushed for her to use her elemental magic again. But she wanted it to start healing naturally to give her powers a chance to heal as well. Cole had taken Bree and Alana back down to talk to Elias and a few other long dead elemental masters. Cole could not even try and pretend it wasn't super weird to him. But Bree could ask more questions and find answers a thousand times faster than she could reading through all the books in the library.
"What did you do" Cole asked her.
"I didn't do anything. That was Lloyd and the rest of your ninja" Bree told him in shock.
"Really? We can get out of here? That's great!" Cole shouted jumping up.
"Quiet Cole time to sleep" Alana said rolling back over and into the warm spot Cole had just vacated.
"Come on lets go out and see them!" Cole said still thrilled.
Bree hesitated and looked less than thrilled. Cole seemed not to notice and Alana was just being a grump now that she was woken up from her nap. Bree grabbed a sweater for herself and then put a coat on Alana. Then they walked out to the courtyard behind Cole.
"Are you freaking skipping?" Bree asked in annoyance.
Cole skidded to a stop and turned to look at her.
"What's wrong? Aren't you happy the barrier is down?" Cole asked her in return.
"I am happy the barrier is working properly, its not down. We can come and go as we please. But nothing dangerous or harmful can get through. In fact the way it feels..." Bree trailed off raising her hand as if she was feeling the barrier itself.
"The way it feels if something truly dangerous or evil tried to get through I think it wouldn't end well for them" She finished.
"Makes sense. I mean this is supposed to be the home of hundreds of elemental masters. Makes sense their family's would be safe if they went out" Cole mused.
"It was suppose too, but things happened here that changed that" Bree said without explaining, her face growing angry. Cole knew she had talked to some of the other long dead elemental masters of magic while he sat down with Elias to talk about his mom Beverly. Bree had told him she would talk about that when everyone was here.
Cole looked up as he heard another elemental dragon in the distance. Grinning he pulled up his earth dragon. Alana was still looking sour but perked up at the thought of going out for a flight. Bree naturally stepped back away from him.
"Come on Bree what are you waiting for?" Cole asked laughing.
"Aside from your dragon doesn't like me, what if we go find them and not all of them are still alive? Its been a year, more than a year. And when we got stuck here we were in the middle of a war for our lives" Bree said hesitatingly.
Cole sighed as he knew what she said could be true. Offering a hand he stepped up on the dragon pulling Bree up behind him with Alana in her arms. With some squeals from Alana they took off to go see the others.
Cole didn't get far, the others had left the Bounty and flown in past the barrier. A gust of wind from above then blew past them. Morro with Harumi holding on beside him had gotten to the fortress base first and Cole and Morro dropped their dragons on the new repaired road that went up to the fortress drawbridge. Bree jumped down quickly as both vanished their dragons. She went to hug Harumi only for her to hold her stiffly in shock looking at Bree. No looking at Alana. The rest of the ninja and Wu reached them. Jay dropping his dragon so quickly upon seeing them that it forced Nya to catch him. They all just stood starring in gobsmacked horror.
Cole jumped forward to hug Jay and Kai and they were still so horrified they backed away from him.
"What the hell guys?" Cole asked in confusion.
"What the hell is up with the beard? And just how long have you been stuck here?" Jay sputtered.
"No shit Cole shes huge!" Kai said pointing to Bree.
"Excuse me?!" Bree snarled at Kai.
"No it is not Bree that Kai refers to, but Alana. Hold old is she now?" Wu asked calmly. Well more calmly than he felt.
"Im two" Alana piped up. Her tiny face scowling at the ninja in intimation of her mother.
"Shes talking?!" Harumi said with a gasp.
"Oh no" Bree said rubbing her eyes with her free hand. She realized that exactly had happened. Cole reached over to hug her and Alana. Kissing Bree on the forehead.
"It appears this barrier was not on the same timeline as outside of it." Wu hypothesized.
"Its been a year and what two weeks, Right Bree?" Cole asked. She nodded in response.
"It has only been two weeks in total for us, but the better question is time still unequal in and outside of this barrier" Wu asked. A quick flight by Kai and Skyler checked and proved that now at least it was moving equally.
"I don't understand? Time was moving... faster in here. What were you guys doing here for so long?" Nya asked.
"We've been trapped like rats in a cage" Bree answered with a dramatic eye roll at Cole.
"Well it might be better to show you guys" Cole answered. Turning and walking up the newly laid cobbles of the road. Cole and Bree said something quietly to each other before Bree walked over to Harumi.
Harumi and Bree quickly fell in step with each other, Alana was a little less freaked out by Harumi than the Ninja. She could barely remember Harumi. Much longer and she would be a total stranger to her. Speaking in hushed voices so the others couldn't hear. Mostly couldn't hear. Occasionally an exclamation or a curse could be heard from one of them.
"I wonder what those two are talking about" Jay said as he slide in next to Nya.
"So Cole. You and Bree seem to be getting along better" Wu stated.
"Yeah. Well its been a rough year and we only had each other for help and to take care of Alana" Cole answered.
"So you're dating now, or married?" Zane asked. His view of relationships was decidedly skewed because of him and Pixals nindroid status. They didn't seem to be concerned as much on ceremony as much as what they felt was right.
"Ah no" Cole answered his face going red.
"So you've just been sleeping together for a year and you call that nothing?" Skyler asked dryly. She picked up on his embarrassment and egged him on a little.
"What?! No. Well yes. But literally, not figuratively" Cole stammered.
"So you've been literally sleeping with my daughter for a year?" Wu asked. Catching on to Skyler's teasing.
Cole tripped and stopped in his tracks. Much to Kai and Jay's amusement.
"No, no, not like that. We live together, before we had more rooms fixed up and we were sure it was safe here we stayed together at night" Cole managed to eek out.
"So you literally have had a beautiful women all to your self for a year and its nothing more? If I had the most beautiful women in the world all to myself for a year, boom pregnant" Kai said laughing and winking at Skyler.
"You've been dating Skyler for how long and boom nothing" Bree quipped back laughing.
Wu shaking his head and making the attempt not to laugh.
"Dude, you have to be inclusive. Maybe he just you know, likes dudes" Morro said. While catching up to Harumi. This did get a laugh from everyone but Cole this time.
Cole was going to respond when Bree cleared her throat. Now visible was the fortress. Standing imposingly tall among the clouds.
"This is what we have been doing the whole time. Fixing the fortress of the first spinjitzu master and the original elemental masters" Bree told them.
"What in heavens name is this place?" Wu asked.
"Some time after the First spinjitzu master created ninjago he also gifted the original clans of elemental masters their powers. This was their first home. This place took almost a whole generation of hundreds of people, most with powers to build. It runs on our elemental powers. When whatever happened and threw us here the magic was fading and the fortress in disrepair. Strong enough to protect us and keep evil out, but trapping us inside. We found as we fixed broken parts the protective barrier starting fixing itself too. This week Bree fixed the earth crystal set deep inside the catacombs. Lloyd using his powers on it was the very last step" Cole explained.
"I had no idea such a place existed" Wu said in wonder.
"You should, you were born here" Bree told him.
Taken aback Wu didn't know what to say.
"There is a whole lot we need to talk about. And some people down in the catacombs that you all need to meet. They especially would like to talk to Wu and Lloyd" Bree said.
"I thought you said you were all alone here" Lloyd questioned.
"We are, they're not exactly... alive" Bree responded.
"Ghosts? This place is haunted?" Jay asked anxiously.
"No nothing like your air temple. When a elemental master is buried here and one of their kin needs guidance they can temporarily come back for advice" Bree explained.
"I thought you said the Temple wasn't haunted Cole!" Jay yelled this time.
Bree snorted and rolled her eyes at him.
"Oh its only the one nice one. He's been in the attic a lot because he doesn't like how crowded it is, I believe Mr Yang called it a frat house of half assed ninjas" Bree answered before waving her hand to have the drawbridge chains come down.
"There is no such thing as a nice Ghost!" Jay sputtered.
"Hey! I was nice" Cole interrupted.
Bree turned to look at them both like they were nutz. Her response however was cut off by radio chatter from several coms.
Speaking into his com device Zane answered first.
"Pixal what's wrong?" Zane asked rapidly.
"If you could return quickly that would be advantageous. The temple is being attacked again." Pixal answered. The back ground a din of noise, people shouting. Powers and mech blasting and children screaming.
Zane didn't wait for any further response or even orders from Sensi Wu. He called up his elemental dragon and took off. The other Ninja and Wu looked to be right behind them.
"Wait!" Bree called loudly. Searching her visions quickly. Her eyes going flat white and back to gray again.
"Take the Bounty. You'll need it. And me" She grumbled.
Turning to Harumi and Cole she tried searching her visions again. Then handed Alana to Harumi.
"Ok pumpkin doodles, you make sure Rumi stays in side with you ok?" Bree said kissing the toddlers forehead.
"What the fuck? Why do I have to stay here?" Harumi said.
"Because if you don't Morro will follow you and he dies" Bree answered with a shrug. "That and I need you or Cole to watch Alana and you and I can't frigging fly" She told Harumi.
"I take it that means your riding with me?" Cole asked.
"On that, unfortunately" Bree said referring to his elemental dragon.
Back at the Temple of Airjitzu the elemental masters and Pixal were holding their own. But most everything was on fire. And there were Kappa scrambling everywhere. Whoever was behind this had watched and waited for the Ninja to leave. Thinking their home was unguarded.
Looking up from her mech Pixal sighed in relief as she saw Zane come into view. Blasting ice he used it to put out some of the fires before dropping down to find Pixal and Cyrus. A blast of Purple magic from Bree knocked several Kappa out of the way for him to get to them. Zane smiling in thanks.
Between all the ninja and the other elemental masters it wasn't much of a fight. And the rest of the invasion was destroyed or turned away.
"Lloyd a little help please!" Bree called from somewhere behind a charred hunk of building.
Getting to her quickly Lloyd slide to a stop.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Lloyd yelled in confusion.
Bree had used a shield spell to snag a kappa and someone else. And was holding them aloft.
"I need a live kappa to test a theory back at the fortress. And that human was flying one of the air ships. Kai and Skyer knocked it out of the sky and it crashed before he had a chance to eject" Bree answered. Huffing with effort.
"I get what you're thinking. Hey Karloff, can you bend some metal chains around these two and help me throw them in the brig of the Bounty." Lloyd said. The ninja putting out the rest of the fires and kicking dead kappa off the side of the courtyard.
"What are we going to do?" Pixal asked quietly. "There is no way we can fix this quickly, nor can we possible keep this many people on the bounty".
"The temple will be rebuilt. But not today" Wu said. Looking at the charred destruction of the building. "I believe that destiny has another place for us to be right now".
"The fortress?" Lloyd asked sadly. Loosing home after home was hard for him.
"I think the whole reason destiny trapped us there was to repair the fortress knowing this home would be destroyed" Cole answered placing a hand on Lloyd's shoulder.
"A little advance warning would be nice" Lloyd grumbled.
"Life doesn't even give you warning when you can see the future" Bree said sourly. Picking up burnt chunk of wood from the temple. She held it out in her hand before pocketing it.
"So lets go see what you were talking about with that kappa and the pilot" Lloyd answered his chin lifting in defiance.
Outside the barrier of the fortress.
"So what was this plan again?"Kai asked. Leaning away from the chained but snarling and now drooling kappa.
"Drop it" Bree answered.
"Wait what?" Nya asked in surprise.
"This is suppose to be our fortress of safety, if not solitude" Bree answered her referencing the overly crowded bounty. After a year of just her Cole and Alana the large grouping was mildly overwhelming. "I need to see what happens when something dangerous or harmful to us hits it."
"Gladly" Cole said. And with a nod to Karlof they pushed the angry kappa off the edge of the bounty. It fell freely till it hit the shield. Then with a powerful zap as it touched it disintegrated into pieces. Green slime oozing down like a broken egg thrown at a house.
"Neat" Bree said gleefully. Jay and a few others looking at her in disgust.
"Now for the pilot" Bree instructed.
The man perked up at that, he had sat sullenly the whole trip here not saying a word. Now envisioning his sudden demise he protested.
"You can't just kill him Bree" Wu said sternly.
"The hell I can't. It would be as easy as a flick of my wrist to drop him. Or I could just tear him limb from limb with my magic" Bree said. Pulling up a purple glow.
"Maybe he'll talk, tell us who sent him, why and for what purpose. If he doesn't I guess dropping him on the shield in the name of science works for me" Lloyd answered with a shrug.
"Ok Ok, I'll talk, just don't kill me!" the pilot shrieked.
"Go on" Bree gestured.
"The bosses want you all dead, well all but you" He said to Bree.
"Who? Where? Why?" Bree asked scathingly.
"The master of Fate, in cloud kingdom. Because hell if I know, Im just doing my job." the Pilot answered.
Bree Wu and Lloyd looked at each other. This information they already knew. They needed more.
"Cole could you be a dear and take everyone down to the fortress and get them settled in" Bree asked very sweetly. Sweetly enough it was frightening. Cole rolled his eyes at her before offering a hand to Jays parents. Most if not all the elemental masters could summon their own dragon. But they had plenty of family here that couldn't.
Soon all that was left on the Bounty was Wu, Bree and Lloyd.
"Can I just drop him already?" Bree asked bored now.
"Who is the master of fate, who else does he have working for him, and who put some sort of spell on all the kappa" Sensi Wu asked.
"You know I am ok with dropping him too" Lloyd added.
"His name is Fenwick. He offed the other two fates and took over. Started working with this dark magician guy and a couple elemental masters. But I haven't see those guys in a while. They used some sort of spell book and some creepy magic to turn those little froggy turtle things into monsters. They set them loose on all you ninja and people with powers" the man rushed.
"And were is this all happening? Building an army takes time and space" Lloyd questioned.
"Cloud kingdom and some more in the toxic bogs. That's where they make the kappa and we pick up and drop off those things. They gotta make new ones all the time cause they don't last long even when we try and keep them wet" The man answered.
This was exactly what they needed to hear. Wu had been holding a cup of tea and not sipping it. He poured it on the deck and a portal opened. Bree tipped the pilot in with a wave of her magic and he vanished as the portal closed.
"So where did ya send him?" Lloyd asked. Handing Wu his real tea.
"The dark island Cole told me about. That'll hold him or anyone else till we can get a handle and deal with the leaders" Bree told him.
"You two can hold the pretense of apathy well. But we must head down. Id like to see the rest of this fortress and my family" Wu stated.
Bree and Lloyd watched him spinjitzu his way off the Bounty.
"Apathy my ass. He would have helped kill my whole family like it was nothing. I would have done way worse than drop him if I had too" Bree said quietly.
Lloyd nodding in agreement. Sensi Wu had been raised to be entirely good. Bree and Lloyd had seen enough bad in their short lifetimes to know everything was not totally black or white. Good or evil. They might not admit that directly to Wu. But it was there. Lloyd turned the Bounty and headed in to the rest of their family and friends.