I'm alive! Sorry that this chapter is short, but I just want to prove that I'm still here and I'm sticking to my promise of finishing this story!
Edit of May 24th, 2020: Just added one line to continue the fix for the plot hole.
"He's being sent to Kryptarium with Cole and Kai as we speak." The calm voice of Zane permeated the tense air aboard the Bounty. It was only us, as the others didn't want to stay, nor did they have the ability to negotiate as well as Zane. Four days of negotiation since Lloyd's admittance to the hospital was not particularly interesting. However, the sparks and quick welding skills that Nya displayed during the creation of the necklace armor was impressive.
"Good. I'll give him a day to adjust." I nodded, my plans remaining unspoken but understood.
"Garmadon will be leaving later today in preparation." A slight tone of concern flowed through his voice, but I didn't care for it. I was ready to fight them.
"Then all is well."
"Shall we review our agreements?" Zane suggested, knowing that the topic of Lloyd was a touchy one.
"Yes. Then I would like to end our meeting today and begin later in the Cursed Realm. There is a cleanup process going on, and I must prepare for tomorrow."
"Of course. First, we have agreed to become allies, in which each realm will help another should there be war. This alliance can be broken by the will of the Preeminent as spoken through at least five delegates and a common light message from the Preeminent to confirm. Ninjago is also allowed to cut such ties through declaration of the royal family. Due to the current state of relations and the economic status of the Cursed Realm, trade and travel will be restricted to those of high importance, which is defined as…" A short few definitions later, and the small agreement was made.
Shaking hands, the meeting was adjourned and I left to find Morro. Eventually finding him up on the deck, I saw his vacant stare.
"Something's bothering you." I pointed out, knowing it wasn't even worth it to waste my breath by asking. The truth was already laid out before me.
"It's a lot to process." His quiet reply danced along the wind, slow and melancholy.
"What I did was terrible. It was horrible. It likely breaks every basic law of every land I've been to. 'A lot to process' is certainly an understatement." I agreed, leaning against the rail and staring down at the land below. When the air became nearly still, I understood that it wasn't just me that was causing this.
"There's something else, isn't there?"
"Yeah." Morro kept his response short and snippy, but I knew this was a sign that this was bothering him more than I thought.
"Does it have to do with him?" A long pause hung heavy in the air, weighing us down with the burden of our sins.
"I don't want to be him anymore." Another round of silence followed as I remained quiet, waiting for him to continue.
"Every day of my life I did nothing but train to be the 'Green Ninja,'" Morro spat out the name as if it were water, "and in the end, I died. Then, I spent every moment of my afterlife planning to take the green gi and become him myself. There was nothing more in the world I wanted than to be the destined chosen one! Then I met you." The wind picked up slightly, his emotions leaking out through his elemental power.
"And in the next moment, you were taken away. Used as a slave to fulfill his desires! You were never yourself, constantly forced to bend to his rules and requirements! Being the 'chosen one' didn't seem like it was that good anymore. There was a lot I would've done to become destiny's hero. But mind-bending slavery that erases the soul of the victim? That was going too far." Morro growled, the air continuing to fly faster, yet remaining as a light breeze.
"Now every time I think about being him, all I want to do is throw up my non-existent insides. Nothing disgusts and disturbs me more than what he's done. Yet, it scares me. I've been chasing after this dream for all of my existence. When I finally get there, all I find is that it was a waste of my effort. All of the dangerous stunts I pulled, my death, the years I spent planning, every second was thrown away in hopes of becoming a monster. What am I supposed to do now?" He sighed, and I shrugged.
"That's up to you. You can let go of it and rise above the burden it weighs on your shoulders, or you can try and hold onto it and fall prey to the desperation; to cling to something that you think is a part of you."
"How do you propose I do that?" Morro went slightly on the defensive, likely finding the end of my comment to be distasteful.
"You can say the dream isn't worth it. Look at what it brings and decide that you deserve better. Otherwise, you can keep scrabbling at it and hope that every glance at anything that remotely looks like the green gi gives you that old rush of ambition, of hope to become something you're not. Whether you choose to look back or look forward is something that I can't change."
"It's difficult." Morro mumbled, turning away.
"It's always going to be difficult. But change never stops."
"I wish it would." I only sighed in response, not wanting to push him too far.
We stood in silence as we stared out to the horizon, the bright sky hugging the earth in an intense light.
"I miss the clouds."
"But there are clouds." Morro spoke, but I shook my head.
"Not the right clouds. On a day like this, I'd be able to see clouds that would streak across the sky in a straight, small line. That meant there were planes in the sky, people travelling across the windy highway towards wherever they wanted to be. Here in Ninjago, many planes are smaller and don't fly nearly as high. None of them make the clouds." I explained, staring up into the nearly empty blue of the atmosphere. Morro remained quiet, understanding that this was my attempt at showing that change never stops.
"How do you deal with so much pain?" He whispered, the air falling still.
"There were many times I sought a permanent solution. However, I have failed in all attempts. My methods of coping are most likely unhealthy." I admitted.
"It has to be better than feeling this way." Morro mumbled as he combed a hand through his hair.
"No, it's not."
"Then how would it help you cope?" He spat, failing to see how terrible it was to think like me.
"It's constant self punishment. I tear my emotions apart from myself in hopes that they don't come back, that I can ignore what tells me right and wrong. When they don't go away, I force myself to do things for others, a constant hunger to fill an obligation that will never be finished. No matter what step I take, it's overshadowed by the guilt I have everyday. You recognize that the pain is horrible, that you don't deserve it. But for me, agony is almost always a welcome companion." I hissed back, hating to admit the truth.
Once again, the silent surroundings took over, our words left behind in the dense air.
Many would think it was dishonorable or immoral to fight someone who had only come out of the hospital a few days ago. In most circumstances, I would agree. Becoming the monster you swore not to become was definitely a poor decision.
Today though, my emotions were raging beyond my own control and were desperate to find some sort of release. There was no substitute for the revenge my heart craved. I wanted retribution, a chance to fight against the pain that I believed unjust.
And there, standing right in front of me, was the subject of all of my rage. The fiery fury held behind those eyes were not dampened by the obvious tiredness of his body. Next to him was his father, Sensei Garmadon in all his protective glory.
Jeers and cheers echoed through the prison, eager to watch our battle take place. I did not come here for them though, and focused on the two I was about to fight.
"What are your terms for our arrangement?" I requested, barely keeping myself from hitting him as hard as I could before the battle even began.
"You're letting me choose? Are you stupid?" Lloyd giggled, and I frowned. It seemed that he had gone insane, or at least more unhinged, in my absence. Garmadon only looked concerned.
"I want a fair fight. It would be unsatisfying if I were only able to just hurt you in a second." I switched my frown for a smile, expressing my hatred proudly.
"Fine then. No powers for any of us, only fists, and we finish when the other yields." He smiled, and I spent no time worrying about what game he could be playing.
"I agree to your terms. May the battle commence at your command." I spoke as my feet touched the ground, submitting to the laws of gravity.
"Then let's begin!" Lloyd screeched as he raced towards me, his father trailing behind him.
I was no fighting expert, despite my experience with violence time and time again. The best I could do was dodge the attacks as well as I could, forced to adapt to my lack of weaponry. My pen had often been my greatest shield and sword, a threatening tool more powerful than just my hands alone. Fighting two experienced ninja with no such assistance was not made any easier with this handicap.
Step, step, step, roll. Jump, twist, step, step, roll. Every punch and kick they made were always keeping me on the defensive, Lloyd bellowing with laughter as I kept moving to keep myself from being hit. Though as I kept watching, I saw this was going to be his downfall. His confidence in himself kept him distracted from how tired his body actually was. The movements were just a tad too slow, he had sloppy footwork, and a dazed stare to top it all off.
Garmadon did not have this problem though, and his attacks were far more dangerous than Lloyd's. I needed to get Lloyd to slip up and hurt his father accidentally. With such reckless power held within those punches and kicks, Lloyd could easily knock his father down.
In a sloppy and ungraceful twist, I flung myself in front of Garmadon as Lloyd followed through with a kick. I dodged his attack, but so did the Sensei. I huffed as I skidded across the rocky flooring beneath, ready to try again.
Every attempt failed, and I knew Garmadon started to see a pattern after the third try. He would slide out of the way before I got close, "coincidentally" putting his feet near my own in an attempt to trip me while obeying his peaceful mindset.
Lloyd on the other hand, did not. Every attack held his full force, his laughs quieter now and a more annoyed expression began to settle on his face. It was my chance before he would exhaust himself and pass out before I could get at least one punch in.
When I accidentally put my foot in the wrong spot, Garmadon took it as a sign to move, but he did so too early due to my helpful blunder. With a kick to the face by his own son, Garmadon was pushed back with enough force for him to hit the wall and leave a few small spider cracks.
Lloyd gasped as he realized what he had done. I wasted no time in retaliating, punching and scratching at my enemy with no remorse. Every expression of pain was a visual and auditory symphony, the beautiful indicator that I was doing any damage.
I tried my best to break something, any part of his body that I could reach. Unfortunately, without using powers, it was quite difficult. It was not impossible though, I certainly heard a glorious crack and a yelp of pain when I pulled Lloyd's hand-claw backwards toward the floor in one quick and forceful movement.
"I YIELD!" He screeched after this crack, realizing that I wasn't going to stop if he didn't say anything. I let go without any questions and let him nurse his hand while he stumbled towards his father. As I stared at his retreating form, I felt good. I got what I wanted. Perhaps I could've gone farther, but the rules were rules.
Slowly, I began to fly away, the cheers of the prisoners fading away as I made my way back to the Bounty and Morro, ready to finally head back to the Cursed Realm and resume managing the portals and whatever else was going to be thrown my way.
What really surprised me as I flew back was that my satisfied feeling didn't fade. Often I would hear that revenge never felt good afterwards. Somehow though, this felt right. I didn't feel like I had done something wrong!
I enjoyed the feeling while it lasted as I flew, knowing that wouldn't be long until I would be under stress again.
When I finally arrived back at the Bounty, I landed on deck with a smile. Morro turned to face me, Realm Crystal in hand. He seemed surprised, and I assumed it was due to my smile.
"Looks like it went well?" Morro asked in confusion, and I shrugged.
"I won, probably broke his fingers or something. For some reason, I feel great!" I laughed, and Morro raised an eyebrow.
"This kind of behavior isn't normal, I know. But there's something so satisfying, so freeing about finally getting some sort of payback! I can now exist without feeling the urge to punch him into the planet's core." I sighed happily.
"Whatever you say…" Morro mumbled as he held the Realm Crystal to the sky, opening a portal.
"Are we leaving the crystal here?" I asked just before Morro began to jump.
"No, we're taking it with us. That is, under the condition that you're not allowed to use it without an escort or partner. Both you and Lloyd were considered to be too dangerous to keep the crystal around, but you were the lesser of two evils." He admitted, then dashed into the Cursed Realm.
I followed behind, and then was shocked by the sight that greeted me. Portals were forming everywhere in an insane fashion, appearing faster than the residents of the realm could erase them.
"Oh no." I muttered, dashing off as fast I could to begin helping. Picking up piece by piece, I frantically scribbled at the edges of portals and sealed them shut. By some miracle, when I scratched at the edge of spacetime, the holes through universes would seal faster by my hand.
However, it was all hands on deck for an operation this size. The massive amount of portals worried me greatly, even as I began to close them. The spacetime continuum was obviously suffering extreme damage, looking more and more like swiss cheese every moment. How they had managed to stave off complete destruction was amazing.
Grabbing a rag that had fallen through a portal, I continued to scrub frantically. I was pulled in for the long haul.
Yeah, it's been a while since I've posted. I know this chapter is really lackluster compared to what I usually pump out, but this is all I have written right now. I wanted to get something out to kickstart my motivation for longer than just a day or two. I hope you enjoyed what little I had to offer today!
Review, favorite, follow, share, whatever. Have a great day!