Note: starting in this chapter, the story (and future ones) will occasionally contain Christian themes, but that is not a major driving point of the plot. May do one-shots around it later, but that's another subject.

Thanks for being here!

WAR OF DARKNESS CHRONICLES

Book One: Changes

Part One: Second Chance
Chapter III: Reunions part 1

It was a bright new day in Ninjago as the sun began to show itself on the eastern horizon.

The ninja pooled their resources and purchased new land on the outskirts of Ninjago City the day following the incident in Stiix, and on that land they used the Tornado of Creation to build a new house/dojo. Cole, Kai, Nya, Jay, Zane, Lloyd, Misako, and Sensei Wu all called the new structure home.

In addition to a bedroom for each occupant of the house, there was a training wing that included an armory for storing weapons and armor and a courtyard for training. It reminded the ninja of the monastery where their journey began a long time ago.

There were also several extra bedrooms, included on the hunch that their team might grow in the future.

It was hard to believe that only three days ago, Ninjago and the other Realms were in imminent danger. The ninja were still recovering from the ordeal, especially Lloyd from the trauma of being possessed and watching his body used to hurt his family. There was a long way to go.

But today, the sun was bright.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Lloyd walked down the hallway of their new home clanging on a gong to wake his fellow ninja. Doors opened and annoyed faces poked out of them to greet the team leader. Kai's usually chaotic hair was smooshed down into a uniform brown blob over his face.

"I thought we would get a break from that for a few days," Jay grumbled.

Lloyd shook his head, "Just because Sensei went out of town yesterday doesn't mean we can be lazy today."

Clang!

Lloyd hit the gong right next to Jay's head, which rattled in response. Everyone groaned.

"Come on," Lloyd prodded. "Sensei put me in charge while he's away on business—"

"He's literally buying stuff to make his weird teas," Kai interjected.

"Whatever," Lloyd huffed. "If he gets back and sees that I didn't do everything he asked of me, including getting you guys up when the sun rises, he'll be disappointed."

"Lloyd has a point," Zane reasoned. "I also wager that Sensei would only wake us earlier if he discovered we slept in late in his absence."

The other ninja groaned again but began getting ready for the day.

"Alright, team," Lloyd called after them. "On the lawn for sunrise routine in five minutes!"

Suddenly, the ninja heard a loud crash outside.

"What was that?" Cole exclaimed.

"It came from the front yard," Kai responded, heading down the hallway.

"Come on," Lloyd led the way to the front door.

When they reached the house's entrance, they were surprised to see Misako staring out the window, looking stunned.

Lloyd approached her, "Mom, what is it?"

"Just… just look," she directed Lloyd toward the window that looked into the front yard.

Misako stepped aside so the ninja could see out the window.

"You've got to be kidding me," Lloyd said.

"He could've set me down easier," Morro grumbled as he dusted himself off.

Morro was standing in a green yard, and before him was a large building that appeared to be part house and part dojo. He knew immediately that Lorands had sent him to the right place.

Before he had a chance to make a plan for speaking to the ninja, the house's door came open. The ninja came out single file: Kai was first, followed by Nya, Cole, Jay, and Zane (Morro knew their names from his limited access to Lloyd's memory during his possession of the latter). Lloyd came out a moment later, as if there had been some hesitation.

The ninja came down the stairs to their front porch and onto the lawn, and they fanned out in a loose semicircle, Lloyd in the middle.

Defensive formation, Morro thought, remembering his lessons on military strategy with Soul Archer and Bansha.

The ninja began to close in slowly, glaring daggers at their enemy.

"What are you doing here?" Kai growled.

"And how did you get here?" Zane inquired with no less intensity than his fiery brother.

Morro almost stuttered, "I don't want to fight, I just—"

"Why else would you come here?" Kai snapped.

"Answer our questions," Cole commanded sternly.

"While you still have a choice," Nya added darkly, starting to condense some water between her hands.

The group continued to close in. They were less than ten feet from Morro now.

"No, please," Morro reasoned. "I want to make things right."

Lloyd shook his head and called his team into action, "It's a trick—rush him!"

The ninja pounced.

Morro was master of many fighting styles, but his preferred style favored lightning-speed counterattacks that were designed to exploit an opponent's openings after they attempt an attack. However, this was a fight Morro had no interest in fighting. He reverted to a completely defense-oriented fighting style.

Kai attacked first with a wide high kick. Morro ducked underneath Kai's sweeping leg and momentum did the rest; Kai went flying and landed hard a few feet away.

Cole and Jay rushed next, Cole taking the left and Jay taking the right. Cole went with powerful arm swings while Jay used fast punches. Morro caught Cole's arm and swung him away, and he blocked Jay's fast attacks and swept his feet out from under him.

Zane came at Morro from behind and prepared to land a big kick, but Morro saw Zane at the last minute and made himself incorporeal. Zane faceplanted in front of Morro.

Morro was smart enough to keep his distance from the water ninja; Nya never got close enough to attack due to the gale keeping her away from her target. Any water she threw ended up in her face.

Finally, Lloyd came in for a straight punch at Morro's face. Morro caught the punch and threw Lloyd back and to the ground.

"Enough, please!" Morro shouted.

The other ninja, catching their breath and footing, stood wary.

"I told you I didn't want to fight. I don't want to hurt anyone."

"Why should we believe you?!" Lloyd shouted.

Morro hesitated. "You shouldn't," he said, almost inaudibly.

"You have no reason to listen to me, but I'm praying you will."

"Sorry," Lloyd said. "But sometimes prayers don't get answered."

"N-no, wait!" Morro pleaded, dropping to his knees.

"Nya, blast him," Lloyd commanded.

"Just wait a minute Lloyd," Nya replied.

Lloyd was exasperated. "What do you mean, 'wait?' We finally defeated him and he just hunts us down again?"

"We can't trust him, sis!" Kai added.

"Maybe…" Nya looked at Morro with pity. "Maybe we should just hear him out. For five minutes."

Lloyd looked between Nya and Morro, the last person Lloyd ever expected to see begging for anything from anyone.

Yet here Morro was, begging for the ninja to listen to him.

Lloyd bit his lip and sighed, "Five minutes."

Morro stood up and gathered himself.

"Well," Lloyd said, crossing his arms. "We're waiting."

"Listen… I don't know how it's possible, but the Cursed Realm still exists. The Preeminent is alive, though only in spirit… and, Lloyd, your father is exactly where you left him in the Mount of Anguish."

Lloyd's tough, hard façade shattered, his eyes welling up instantly.

"M-my father? Alive?" he stuttered.

"Yes," Morro confirmed. "He helped me.

"I woke up in the Cursed Realm with a second chance. I decided I would make things right, but I knew I had to escape first. I figured you must have spoken to your father while you were there, so he might know how you escaped. I found him and he pointed me toward an imprisoned djinn who granted my wish to escape and find you all.

"You could save Garmadon by using Traveler's Tea to enter the cursed Realm and make a wish with the djinn…"

There were a couple minutes of silence as the ninja took this in.

"But…" Lloyd spoke up. "Why didn't you just wish for yourself and my father to appear here?"

"I had no right…" Morro answered with his head down. "I thought you should be the ones to save him."

Lloyd realized he had been too hasty in attacking Morro, but he had no inclination to apologize. Morro deserved it, didn't he?

"Look, I also have no right to say this," Morro began again, still keeping his head down.

"I'm truly sorry, for everything. Everything I did before our paths crossed, and everything I did after. I'm not asking for your forgiveness; I just want you all to understand that I regret everything I've done. Especially you, Lloyd. I violated you in an incredibly violent and cruel way. I'll never forgive myself…

"If…" Morro paused, sniffling and shaking slightly. He took a deep breath and continued: "If you'll just bring S-Sensei Wu out here so I can apologize to him," Morro looked up at them. If ghosts could shed tears, they would be rolling down his face in force.

"Then I'll be on my way. You'll never see me again," Morro finished.

"He's…" Nya hesitated. "He's out of town, shopping for tea ingredients."

Morro's head dropped again.

"I see," he said. "Serves me right…"

He walked up to Lloyd, who tensed up but did nothing to stop the ghost.

"That's close enough," Kai said when Morro got within a foot and a half of Lloyd.

Morro spared Kai a glance but returned his focus to Lloyd.

"I don't deserve this favor," Morro began, his voice thick with emotion. "But would you be kind enough to tell him I was here and that I'm sorry for hurting him?"

Lloyd studied Morro's face, sizing up just how much Morro meant the things coming out of his mouth.

"It would mean a lot to me… and to him," Morro finished.

The master of wind turned away and began walking down the hill that would lead to the street that went into Ninjago City.

Nya and Zane looked at Lloyd, empathy in their eyes. Lloyd shook his head. Cole and Jay joined Nya and Zane with expectant faces. Kai looked indifferent.

Lloyd sighed deeply.

"Hey, Morro!" Lloyd called out.

Morro, about thirty feet down the path at this point, turned back toward Lloyd.

"Come on back up here."

When Morro had gotten back to where the ninja still stood, Lloyd hesitated before saying, "You can stay with us until Sensei comes back… I'm sure he'd rather see you himself than hear about it from us."

"Are you… are you serious?" Morro asked, puzzled.

Lloyd nodded, his face severe.

"It doesn't mean we forgive you or trust you," Lloyd said. "But we can't just leave someone to the streets… even you."

Lloyd could have left out those last two words, but he had to throw in one more jab to remind Morro that they were still enemies.

"Come," Zane said, taking Morro by his arm and leading him into the house. "We'll show you to an open room."

Morro gave Lloyd a last look—Lloyd's words hurt—and let Zane lead him inside. The other ninja followed. Morro felt their eyes bearing into the back of his head.

When they got inside, Misako was nowhere to be found.

"Mom?" Lloyd called. "Where'd you go?"

"In the hall!" Misako called back. "Getting one of the open rooms ready!"

"You guys wait here," Lloyd said as he went down the hall to meet his mother.

"I saw Zane leading him inside through the window, so I figured he'd be staying with us," she explained, carrying with her a bundle of bedding.

"Mom, you don't have to do that," said Lloyd. "He's only staying so he can apologize to Uncle Wu and say goodbye to him."

"Oh," Misako replied. "I see."

"And why do you have those pillows and blankets?" Lloyd asked.

"For the bed in the spare room, of course—there's nothing on it right now," Misako answered, surprised at the question.

"He's not a guest; we don't need to make him comfortable."

"Lloyd Garmadon!" Misako scolded.

Lloyd backed down but stayed defensive.

"Mom, don't you remember what he did to us—what he did to me? He doesn't deserve our hospitality."

"Do you remember the havoc you caused in Ninjago before the ninja took you in? Did you deserve their hospitality?"

Lloyd was bewildered and offended at the idea of being compared to his enemy.

"How can you compare me to him? I was a kid!" Lloyd sputtered.

"And he was lost." Misako retorted. "He still is, and you can help him be found again. Perhaps you could exercise a little patience and compassion?"

Lloyd had no answer for his mother's words this time. He bit his lip to keep tears from welling up.

"Lloyd," his mother said in a soothing voice instead of her stern one. "Life rarely gives people second chances. Morro seems to have a chance to right his wrongs. I know it's hard to forgive those who hurt you, but the rewards for doing so are unparalleled."

Lloyd closed his eyes and lowered his head. Misako pulled him into a hug.

"Be kind, son," she whispered. "It's what your father would have wanted you to do."

"Mom…" Lloyd choked out. "Morro says Dad is alive."

Misako pulled back from the hug with wide eyes.

"What?" she gasped.

"He's alive," came a voice from behind Lloyd.

Lloyd whipped around to see Morro standing in the entrance to the hallway. His eyes were cold.

"I said wait there," said Lloyd.

"It wouldn't have done any good—everyone heard everything."

Lloyd was about to respond but could not find the right words.

Morro walked past Lloyd and addressed Misako.

"I can take those," he said referring to the bedding.

Misako handed Morro the bedding and Morro gave her a small nod and smile as gratitude. He turned to Lloyd.

"I never asked for your friendship, and I won't. But I will ask this: next time you need to talk about me, do it to my face."

With that, Morro entered the spare room and shut the door.

In the living room, the ninja gathered to discuss what to do about their houseguest. They completed their morning training and it was around 10:00 am, but Morro had not been seen since he shut the door to the spare room that morning. Nya had offered him breakfast (her omelets were not to be missed), but he refused, saying he was in no mood to eat.

Misako had retreated to her room to ponder the fact that her husband was alive, but she also joined the ninja gathering in the living room.

"Okay," Lloyd began the impromptu meeting. "I'll be the first to admit, I crossed a line this morning the way I treated Morro."

"No one blames you," said Cole. "We understand Morro popping back up like this opened up wounds that are still healing."

"And it is suspicious," Kai added.

"You don't believe Morro?" Lloyd asked.

"About your father being alive? Yes," Kai replied. "About wanting to make everything right or be better? I'm not sure about that part yet."

"If he had no desire to be better," Zane reasoned, "why tell us about Lloyd's father being alive—why not just let him stay in the Cursed Realm and suffer?"

"Why come to us at all?" Nya added.

"Precisely," Zane agreed.

"I mean, if he really wants to be better," Jay continued, "he would have nothing to lose coming to us. In his mind, we're the only ones who can forgive him."

"Or help him," Cole added.

"Hmm…" Lloyd pondered. "Do you really think he wants help from us?"

Kai scoffed. "Does it matter?" he asked.

"Yes, it matters," Lloyd snapped, standing up. "It matters because if he came to us for help on his path to redemption or whatever, it means he wanted to trust us."

Lloyd sat back down in a huff. "And I threw it in his face."

"Lloyd," Cole soothed, "we all attacked him."

"Because I ordered it," Lloyd retorted.

"I still kinda want to hit him," Kai grumbled. He had been especially irritated that he could not land a hit on Morro during their skirmish earlier that morning.

"Come on, Kai," Nya snickered. "No one else got to hit him either—I couldn't even get close."

"Yeah, whatever," Kai sighed. "I just don't know if I trust it… what reason does he have to turn a new leaf?"

Lloyd stood up again. "More than I had," he said. Misako, sitting silently and listening intently to the conversation, nodded at her son with a knowing smile.

"It's not like you guys haven't seen this thing before," Lloyd added, looking at each member of his team—his family.

"Look, I'm not making excuses for him and I'm not at the point of forgiving him," he continued. "But I think we can at least try to be a help to him instead of how we've—I've—been acting toward him."

The ninja exchanged looks with each other. Some eyes were stern, some were empathetic. All were unsure.

"Lloyd," Kai stood up. "My destiny is nothing more or less than to protect you. If you want to give Morro a chance, I'm behind you."

"I'm with you too," Nya joined them standing in the middle of the living room.

"Me too," Cole, Zane, and Jay voiced their agreement, joining the standing crowd.

"You know I'm with you, son," Misako said, also standing. "Your sensei will be proud of you all."

"He should be back in the morning," Lloyd stated. "Do you think he'll be happy to see him?"

"I'm sure of it," Misako replied.

From the spare room, Morro heard the entire conversation (after making the bed, he had sat on it and meditated while the ninja were having breakfast and then training, but he discreetly cracked the door open when he heard the ninja gathering in the living room). But he would keep that to himself. For now, he would just reflect on the fact that maybe, just maybe, he had found the path to making up for his mistakes.

He abandoned his meditative position and hugged his knees to his chest.

"Thank you," he whispered to whatever power out there must be looking out for him.

He shut his eyes tight and could remember Sensei Wu dragging him to study sessions to learn about a God who cared about people and offered forgiveness for their mistakes. Morro never really believed in those sorts of things—never found it to be practical.

But today was one of those days that got him thinking…

Later that day, the ninja were sitting around the kitchen table talking while Misako prepared lunch. Morro stepped into the kitchen, and everyone stopped and looked at him like a lost puppy.

"Hey…" Morro greeted lamely.

"Morro, listen," Lloyd stood up and walked over to him.

"I'm sorry, for how I treated you this morning. The things I said were unkind and uncalled for."

Morro gave a small smile that did not resemble his malicious grin Lloyd had seen in his nightmares the past couple of nights, and shook his head.

"Don't sweat it," Morro responded softly. "I understand; I'm sure my being here isn't easy for you.

"Besides, I'm in no position to accept an apology from you."

Lloyd nodded slowly, so did Morro.

It was a start: a mutual understanding.

"Can I…" Morro hesitated. "You know, if you don't—"

"Morro," Lloyd interrupted, "lunch is almost ready; would you like to join us?"

Morro looked to the other ninja around the table, who all gave Morro inviting smiles (except for Kai, who continued to scrutinize the Master of Wind).

"Sure," Morro accepted the offer, "I'd be glad to."

"Here's lunch!" Misako called, bringing the large pot of pasta around the table and serving each of the ninja a helping.

She brought Morro a plate and served him as well, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary to serve pasta to a former enemy. The ninja thanked Misako and dug in.

Morro thought he would have a hard time fitting into the conversation, but the others seemed determined to include him in their jokes and banter.

Towards the end of the meal, he even cracked a joke of his own.

Jay had been defending one of his recent inventions that was less successful that he would have liked. The day before Morro arrived, he had finished a robot designed to be able to paint a wall unassisted, but when he tested it, the robot's paint storage tank exploded and sent different colors of paint flying all over his inventing room. Jay had spent the rest of that evening cleaning it up.

When the ninja told Morro the story (much to Jay's embarrassment), Morro responded without skipping a beat: "A colorful explosion? Seems like you could've just used fireworks."

Roaring laughter ensued. Even Kai had a good laugh.

"It wasn't even that funny!" Jay pouted.

"But it's the fact that Morro said it!" Cole bellowed between fits of laughter.

Morro cracked a smile—he was well aware that the joke was not all that funny, but it had been a long time since he had made someone laugh. It was much better than causing pain, he decided.

The experience of bantering over lunch helped the ninja begin to warm to Morro. There was still a distance between Morro and Lloyd, but the hostility from that morning had faded away.

That evening after sandwiches for dinner, Morro joined Nya, Cole, and Jay at the kitchen table for a few hours of poker (no actual gambling involved, the chips only represented bragging rights). He was perhaps not as fearsome in a poker game as he was back in his day, but Morro stood his ground and came in second, losing an intense bet with Jay.

They were the only ones left in the game and both had gone "all in" with their chips. Morro had four aces so thought he was a sure win, but Jay pulled a Royal Flush and won the game.

After a hearty laugh and handshakes, the ninja bid each other good night and retired to their bedrooms.

Morro had a hard time getting to sleep, because the ninja had told him that Sensei Wu was expected to return home tomorrow morning. Morro had no idea what to expect; he only hoped Sensei Wu would not throw him out immediately as he felt he deserved.

Phew, that was a loaded chapter! Some of them will be long, some will be short… I try not to make one chapter a lot longer than "normal," but it just didn't feel right to break this one up.

Hope you enjoyed!