Ninjago City, Borg Tower.
Diplomacy. Such a distasteful lifestyle, in Skylor's opinion. She preferred sweating in the kitchen to strutting about in elegant garb and the sizzling of puffy potstickers to the clinking of thin glass. Such pomp and dazzle, she sighed, reminded her too much of home, and of her father.
"Skylor, how are you tonight," Cyrus Borg asked.
"Fine, I guess," Skylor sighed, jiggling the contents of her glass.
"Why don't you come inside, out of this wind," Cyrus Borg gestured.
"I'm not that introverted," Skylor laughed. "I was just checking out the view."
"Beautiful, isn't it," Borg smiled. "The skyline of this city always stirs me, even if it constantly changes with each passing day."
"I know," Skylor nodded.
"Come now. Let's head in. Zane has finished cooking dinner, and the mayor is about to speak."
Skylor nodded, following Cyrus Borg inside to the banquet room. There, she took her seat beside Borg, noticing that Master Wu was on her other side.
"Master Wu, I wasn't expecting you here," Skylor whispered.
"Neither did I expect you," Wu winked. "And yet, here we are."
"I'd rather not be," Skylor sighed. "Banquets of this sort, well, aren't really my thing."
"I myself feel the same way," Wu smiled. "My brother, on the other hand, reveled in fancy feasting and pomp, back when he was…you know…still tolerable to the elites."
"I didn't realize Lord Garmadon to be an entertainer," Skylor's eyes widened.
"He was, and a good one at that," Wu chuckled. "He often frequented the palaces of elites, and he had many friends among them. Alas, those were the days, when Ninjago was much simpler and more tranquil."
"I appreciate your memories, but the mayor is about to speak," Borg interrupted.
"Thank you, Wu," Skylor smiled.
"No problem, my dear," Wu whispered as he turned toward the podium, where Ninjago's recently elected mayor stood to address the table.
Bank of Ninjago, rooftop, next door
Darkness descended, and the time to strike drew near. Atop the rooftop of the Bank of Ninjago, a lone nindroid unbuckled his backpack, then unloaded its contents. Scope. Cartage. Muzzle. Silencer. Trigger case. The complete package. He clicked each piece together, then adjusted the nozzle.
He sighed. This wouldn't be easy. 200 yards straight across, plus another 1000 yards upward. That'd put his nozzle at a sixty-degree angle, almost to the point of tipping completely backwards. Plus, he had to hit a target in a crowded room, and only the target. Or else this whole hike was for nothing.
His commlink buzzed. He sighed, then clicked it on.
"Code Blue," he stated.
"Copy that, Red," the voice replied. "Lower your guard."
"Captain Salvo, reporting," he said. "In position and prepared to fire."
"Excellent," the voice answered. "Ready for target?"
"Yes sir."
"Ambassador Dorin."
"The ambassador? Our representative?"
"Yes, captain. Orders come straight from high command, maybe the head honcho himself. Terminate the ambassador."
"Copy that. Won't be hard to miss that show-off playboy."
"Don't miss. Order 13 requires our embassy eliminated, to the last man. One escapes, and the whole mission is compromised."
"Copy that. Over and out."
Salvo sighed, then squinted his eyes. He gazed through the scope. Yep. The room was crowded, as expected. He activated the DNA scanner on his muzzle. Duke Louis. Cyrus Borg. Skylor. Master Wu. Duchess Marie. Lord Buckner. Ambassador Nina. Ambassador Dorin…wait, Ambassador Nina?
"Code Blue," he said, activating his commlink again.
"Copy that Red," the voice answered. "What's up?"
"What's the mission status," Salvo asked.
"Twenty minutes in, two ambassadors neutralized."
"I got two in my sight."
"Two? Ambassador Dorin was reported alone."
"Ambassador Nina spotted also," Salvo stated.
"Nail both if you can," the voice ordered.
"I'll try, but I have ninja present," Salvo stated. "Probably will get at max two shots."
"Make them count."
"Copy that. Over and out."
Salvo zoomed in his scope. He tipped his muzzle slightly to the right. Perfect. Nina was in sight. He sighed. Then he pulled the trigger.
Borg Tower, conference room.
Skylor sighed. The mayor droned on and on. Talk about the budget. Talk about trade. Talk about this. Talk about that. Nothing but political talk and boring business stuff. Only her pending contract with the city mattered. That, at least, affected her. Win it, and trade between Chen's Island and the city would triple. Lose it, and her window of opportunity would slam shut.
She noticed the nindroid ambassadors next to her. They were listening, but they weren't looking up. Instead, they stared at their commlinks. She glimpsed around Nina's shoulder. Her commlink was jammed full of messages, most too faint to make out. But the ones she did read troubled her.
"Mayor, excuse me," Nina interrupted, rising to her feet.
"Ambassador Nina, what merits the interruption," the mayor asked, clearly annoyed by the interruption.
"My apologies, sir," Nina sighed. "But I must depart with Dorin. Our embassies have been compromised from within, and I fear our government has…."
Crash! The window behind them shattered, spraying glass everywhere. Nina's head lurched forward, then she collapsed onto the table. The other guests gasped, jumping to their feet in fright. Skylor gasped. The back of Nina's head no longer existed; it had been replaced by a two-inch hole full of sparking wires and fried circuit boards.
"Get us out of here," Dorin shouted, jumping across the table.
Several followed him over, while Skylor and Master Wu walked around the table toward the doors. Then they helped the mayor escape, while the room of thirty-some elites emptied quickly.
Crash! Another window shattered, and this time, Duke Louis collapsed, his leg bleeding profusely. Skylor and Master Wu grabbed ahold of him, and with Dorin's help hauled him out into the living area. Then Skylor slammed the doors to the conference room shut and collapsed to the floor.
"Skylor, are you alright," Wu asked.
"Just a few minor scratches," Skylor sighed. "You?"
"I'll be fine," Wu nodded. "Others, though, won't be so calm for a while.
He gestured to Duchess Marie, who wept over her husband Duke Louis as medical droids rushed in and carried him out. Cyrus Borg was consoling her, with limited success. Other ambassadors were making emergency calls. Dorin and the mayor, though, approached them, their faces grim.
"Are you two alright," Dorin asked, helping Skylor up to her feet.
"We're fine," Skylor smiled. "Just a bit startled, that's all."
"I'm glad to hear it," the mayor grumbled. "To think that someone had the audacity to assassinate an elite. I don't understand it."
"I do," Dorin proffered. "I think that this was the doing of my own associates."
"Why would one of your own assassinate Ambassador Nina," the mayor asked.
"Nina, before she died, mentioned something about her embassy being destroyed from the inside," Skylor noted. "Perhaps this killer, whoever he is, is connected to those guys as well."
"We'll find out soon enough," the mayor asserted. "Skylor, Master Wu, will you two join me and Borg in my quarters in five minutes?"
"Yes, as soon as I change," Skylor nodded. "These heels are killing my feet."