A massive red and yellow temple stood against the massive basin around it. The structure sat upon a small island in the midst of a boiling lake, taking up nearly all of the space the landmass had to offer. The temple appeared as though structures had been built off of a central rounded main area, with large bridges extending from various heights out to large towers spaced seemingly at random around the structure. There were several small entrances into the main section, but overall, it appeared that there was one massive slope leading into the largest entrance. There was no bridge across the lake, and thus, there was nothing more to do than look without a way to cross.
Time, it seemed, had not been kind to the temple. Despite the shape being readily apparent, visualizing what it once looked like was somewhat difficult. The waters around it meant there were little plants clinging to the building, but the colors in the stone had faded, and what stones remained were weather worn and crumbling in several places. One tower had clearly fallen at some point, its bricks spilling into the boiling waters around it. The structure sat alone amidst itself, the area barren and void.
Atop the hill of the basin, a massive beast stepped forward. The dragon born first over all others, the Firstbourne, crested the basin. Her presence filled the area, her mass dominating the slopes. Upon her back rode a child, one wearing robes of gold. The beast stopped at the top of the basin, slowly settling down so she could rest.
"You think dad is waiting for us there, Firsty?" Lloyd asked as he slowly dismounted the dragon's massive back. The large dragon huffed at him and looked towards the structure, letting out a long little growl as she did so.
"I bet you're not taking me over there again, aren't you?" Lloyd asked the dragon. She let out a long growl and took a pace backwards from it, a look of disgust in her eyes. Lloyd, confused, blinked once before looking down towards the temple, "Well… alright then!"
Lloyd looked down to the slope, then brought his hands together. His concentration hardened as his eyes began to glow copper. Slowly, his form levitated from the ground, moving him directly away from the Firstbourne. His body floated through the air, freed of gravity's chains, carrying him towards the temple. The distance from him to the sloping ground grew as he continued horizontally. After thirty seconds, he let out a hard huff and his arms shook, trying to stay within concentration.
The effort failed, and gravity once more took hold of him. Lloyd yelped and thrust his hands down, firing a stream of wind from his feet. The action slowed his descent, giving him time to roll when he hit the ground. After several tumbles, his eyes went light blue, firing out ice from his hands. A makeshift ramp of sorts froze in front of him, carrying his form up and into the air. He thrust his hands out to force him to fly straight, seeing that the boiling lake was coming straight for him. Thinking fast, he froze the water under him, forming a bridge to the island. He slid across the bridge, landing with a hard slide against the dirt on the island.
"Phtfu!" Lloyd spat out dirt as he slowly stood up, trying to rub the dirt away from his uniform, "I'm okay! Totally okay!" He looked back at his ice, slowly blushing and reaching out to dispel it. Upon seeing the Firstbourne starring at him from now a far away distance, he shook his head, "I'm still learning gravity!"
Turning away from a disdainful glare from his dragon, Lloyd made his way forward towards the temple. He'd landed off to the right of the main entrance. Seeing the state of the building, he decided against using powers to get inside. Instead, he dusted his knees off and began walking forward towards the structure. The shadows cast by the aging structure loomed over him, blocking out the light of the setting sun. The yellow light bathed the structure, only revealing more of its cracks, and more of its age.
"Why did Firstbourne bring me here?" Lloyd muttered as he slowly ascended the stairs, "I mean, dad said that if we got separated we should meet up at a tribe… this is nowhere…"
Lloyd reached a set of two massive wooden doors. Time had torn one from its hinges, leaving it embedded partially in the rocks below. The other was slightly ajar, revealing a strange flickering light from inside. Lloyd, curious, slowly stepped forward, sliding his body through the open door. The light from inside shone from the end of a darkly lit hallway, framing a rectangular entrance at the other end. Slowly, Lloyd made his way to the light. As he approached it, he could see the hallway was sculpted with a high ceiling, with arches that reached up and converged into a strange web-like design at the top. The walls had indents with large bowls atop pedestals in each one. Several of them had been tipped over or cracked.
The boy emerged into the light. The light came from a massive room, one that at first felt barren and empty. All around, doors led off into darkness of various directions, likely out to the towers that Lloyd had seen outside. The light came from a massive pit in the middle of the room filled with firewood currently burning. The smoke rose up to a strange dark hole in the ceiling. The light illuminated several strange paintings along the walls, each one preserved despite the age of the stone around it.
A man sat beside the fire. As Lloyd approached him, he could make out what he was wearing. The man had on a strange headdress fashioned to look like a dragon's skull, framed with a mixture of deep red and yellow highlights around it. His clothes was a loose fitting yellow shirt with large strands of red fabric draped around his shoulders and then tied at the waist with a piece of glistening rope. He wore a large black cloak loosely around his shoulders. His pants were similarly colored, and following them revealed he was wearing tough looking sandals. His features betrayed him of middle age, with deep blue eyes and an angular nose. He wore a massive smile on his face that Lloyd saw when the man looked up to him.
"Ah!" The man grinned, "Another adventurer? Come, come! Sit, sit. It's rather cold outside isn't it? A fire will warm you right up!"
"Huh?" Lloyd blinked, "But, it's warm outside. I mean the fire is nice, thank you!" He slowly walked up to the fire, sitting down beside the man.
"Oh, I meant this place, the entire area feels cold and desolate, yes?" The man giggled, "Such a sad place to be. What brings a young child like you to these places? You're far from any tribe, I can tell you that much."
"My dragon brought me here," Lloyd shrugged, " I don't know why though. I was on my way to the Form Tribe when we got hit by a storm. And, well, my dad and I got separated. So I guess I'm going to wait here until he finds me."
"Dragon, boy?" The man's eyes widened, "Wait, no! No no no, you can't be him! Forgive me if I sound rude, but, could you perhaps be the boy of legend, the one who rides the Firstbourne, master of all dragons, Lloyd Garmadon..?"
"Uh, yeah actually!" Lloyd beamed, sticking his hand out to the man, "I'm Lloyd, uh… well you kinda said what I am already!"
The man gasped, reaching out and shaking his hand. The strength was enough that Lloyd was jerked up and down before he managed to lock his shoulder. When the man let go, he continued to stare at Lloyd in awe, taking in the sight of him. After a good number of seconds of awkward starring on Lloyd's part, the man stood up, his cloak flourishing out behind him.
"I'm so happy to meet you! Ah yes, this is one of the happiest days of my life!" The man beamed, "You've become a legend around the tribes! The young boy in robes of gold, flying in on the beast of myth to learn elements from the strongest of masters! I can't believe it, I truly can't believe this! You're… you've graced me with your presence!"
"Heh, I'm not that special," Lloyd rubbed his neck, "I'm just doing what I need to stop the world from Chen, you know?"
"Ah yes… Chen…" The man sighed, "Yes, he truly is making a big mess of things, isn't he?"
"Yeah, rumor has it he knows every elemental power and he's trying to send out the Call of Dragons to destroy all the tribes!" Lloyd frowned, "So I'm learning how to use all the powers too! I'll stop him at his own game."
"Ah, you clearly hold some resentment for this Chen…" The man's expression fell, "I wonder what he is doing. My name is Ren, so you know. Chen used to be my friend."
"...What?" Lloyd cocked his head, "You mean, the Chen that's going around and… you know?"
"Yes… he was a man of honor, once," Ren sighed, "Very honorable! Very strong. Man of great power and wisdom! The cruelty of this world twisted him. It took my friend from me. I wish I could do something for him… but I am unable to. You wish to defeat him then, yes?"
"Yeah," Lloyd pulled his fists up, "Most of the world doesn't believe it yet, but he's pushing us all towards something dangerous. He knows every element and I have to show him up! Plus, you know, learning elements is good for me. I'm supposed to be the only one that can!"
"This world is a mysterious one!" Ren sighed, "A strange one, too. It masks the true faces of all in it! Like this temple," He waved his hand around, "I can here to explore this place! To learn more about it. Do you know where you are, boy?"
"Uhm… no, actually," Lloyd rubbed his head, fingers brushing through his hair, "Firstbourne just, kinda dropped me off here."
Rhen cocked his head, "What an odd beastie. Well then, allow me to welcome you! You're in the ruins of the Amber Tribe!"
"The what?" Lloyd blinked, "There's no Amber Tribe, what do you mean?"
"You've never heard the legend of the Amber Tribe?" Ren stepped towards Lloyd, "Never? Not once?! The tragedy that befell these people, so many hundreds of years ago?!"
"I, uh, no?" Lloyd almost felt like apologizing, "I mean, I've never heard of the Amber Tribe before. I mean… my dad never told me about them growing up?"
"Seriously?" Ren gasped, "Then… would you perhaps grant me the honor then, Lloyd, of teaching you the legend of the Amber Tribe? I promise I know everything about it! Down to the sssmmmaaallleessttt of details!"
"Uhm… sure?" Lloyd crossed his legs and leaned forward, "I mean, I should get to know everything about this world, right?"
"Exactly!" Ren grinned, "SKYLAR! LIGHTS!"
Suddenly, the room was illuminated by firelight. Previously unseen slots in the floor retracted, causing the light of the fire in the pit to fill the room from smaller fires in the floor. Lloyd snapped his head around as the room was fully illuminated, allowing him to see every single detail of the painting around him. Ren himself reached down to take a burning log from the pit, granting him a makeshift torch.
"Come Lloyd, come!" Ren giggled, "Come, listen to the tale of the Tribe that never came to be. Listen to the legend, of the Amber Tribe…" Ren paused, "SKYLAR!"
From one of the many dark hallways, a girl rushed forward. From the look of her, she was perhaps only a year or two older than Lloyd was. She had beautiful flaming red hair that was tied off in braids down her back. She wore a set of robes similar in outfit to Ren, with the notable exception being the massive sword she had strapped to her back. As she laid eyes on Lloyd, those eyes narrowed and she scowled.
"Lloyd, this is my daughter, Skylar! Skylar, Lloyd and Lloyd, Skylar!" Ren waved his torch back and forth to them and turned towards the wall, "Be nice to him, Skylar! He is the legendary grandson of the First Elemental Master!"
Skylar said nothing. Instead, she turned back to Lloyd and walked around him, making her way to the entrance Lloyd had come in from. She stood there in front of it, keeping a harsh eye on Lloyd. Lloyd tried to smile at her and gave her a cheerful expression, but she didn't budge.
"The tale of the Amber Tribe begins with the First Elemental Master," Ren moved in front of Lloyd, the torchlight casting his features in harsh lights and shadows, "You know the tale of them, yes, yes?"
"Yeah!" Lloyd nodded, "In the beginning, the First Elemental Master was born of the dark and light of this world. Upon seeing how the world was unfit for life, he made a pact with a young dragon hatchling called the Firstbourne to one day make the world right for people just like him. The two grew up together until they were strong enough to defeat the evils of the land, and with their combined power, they harnessed the magic of this world to transform the world into what he now live on today."
"Correct! Correct in all senses!" Ren nodded, "The First Elemental Master absorbed the magic in this world and used it to give the Firstbourne the power she needed to transform the world. With that magic, she separated it into the powers of nature, and the two created the two species of this world in their images."
Ren danced over to a massive painting. The drawings depicted a man surrounded by gold but painted in shadow standing underneath the massive face of the Firstbourne. Around them, several beams of the gold branched out, depicting colored eggs at the end of each of them. Around each egg, small dotted figures converged around them.
"The First Elemental Master created us humans in the image of what he believed was the face of all nature in this world. To protect them, the Firstbourne separated that magic into the form that the natural world took around them and birthed a dragon of each of those forms," Ren raised his torch to each egg, "These forms are the very tribes you know today. Fire, ice, lightning, earth, water, metal, mind…"
"Nature, time, wind, form, speed, light, shadow, smoke, poison, gravity…" Lloyd continued.
"Sound… and Amber," Ren let his torch drift to the smallest of the eggs, "The element of adaptation. The evolution of the world, responding to the forces it could not control. An element to embody the adaption of the world itself!" Ren brought a hand over his chest, "The youngest of the dragons… and the first to meet its end."
Ren drifted over to another painting. This one showed a series of bubbling lakes, much like the one they were in the middle of now, each inside of basins. Each had islands within them that were filled with people and buildings of the same coloration of the temple they stood in. Above them all, a small Amber dragon looked to be chasing the clouds above the groups.
"The Amber Dragon took those imbued with its element to this very place. Nobody knows why it chose a place so isolated from the world, on lakes in which none could reach them," Ren lowered his head, "The young Amber Tribe was isolated from the world even as the other tribes grew and prospered. They remained on their island within the boiling lakes, unable to expand, unable to thrive. That was… until the day a traveler came to their islands.
"The traveler held the power of fire within her hands, and with the flame inside of her, no scald the waters could give her would stop her. That traveler made her way into the tribe, and in a way, this was the single event that sealed the Amber Tribe's fate," Ren drifted his torch to the only figure painted in red in the middle of the tribe, "For when she touched the hand of their leader in greeting, the leader was consumed in flames!"
The fire in the pit behind them suddenly flared up, becoming a pillar that shot up into the room. Lloyd yelped in shock and turned around, eyes going red as he pushed the flames down. As he did, Ren frowned at him.
"No, no no, you're ruining the tale!" Ren reached out and swatted one of Lloyd's hands, "The flames are fine, they cannot hurt you here! Listen to the story, listen!"
"The Amber Tribe's power was one unlike any other: they could mimic the powers of any they could touch," Ren drew Lloyd's hand towards him, "A single itsy-bitsy touch, and they could use the powers of the one they touched… but only that of the one they touched…" Ren looked down, "The power and mastery over the element was dependent upon the one who wielded it. You practice to master your abilities, yes?" Ren grinned, "If you could produce only a single flame, and I was of the Amber Tribe, I could produce only a single flame as well."
Ren let go of Lloyd with a push, causing Lloyd to spin. Ren caught Lloyd's shoulders and guided him towards the next painting, this one of far less intelligible. Two strange symbols, both deep green and black, were mingled between one another, and in the border from where they touched a sliver of amber was painted. At the bottom of the symbols, a flame seemed to be starting to consume the painting from below, like cloth held over an open fire.
"The Amber Tribe, freed from their isolation, grew out into the world faster than any other. With the ability to mimic any power they saw, they grew to a civilization that the tribes could never hope to keep up with!" Ren threw his arms out, "The very temple we stand in now was the sight that all members of the Tribe used to greet the outsiders! The tribes now are so stuffy, keeping to themselves and trading only when needed. The Amber Tribe, however, they were as apart of the world as the world was of them…"
"Then, their fall began," Ren's smile fell to a deep frown, and Lloyd felt a cold breeze blow over his neck, "A member of the Earth Tribe, so sad, was mistaken for a thief sneaking into the Wind Tribe. His unfortunate death would send the two tribes into conflict. The Earth Tribe struck first!" Ren smacked the painting, and the floor rumbled, "But the power of wind is not to be underestimated. The strong and powerful earth was no match to the overwhelming speed of the wind! And soon, the Earth Tribe was near their limit. Many men died to defend their borders, but the Wind Tribe would not back down!"
"Then… a gambit," Ren let a finger trace the yellow line on the painting, "A wandering warrior, a member of the Amber Tribe seeking glory, was hired to infiltrate the Wind Tribe. With a change of clothes and a mission in hand, the man walked past all guards, all safeties, and soon had captured the leader of the Wind Tribe herself…" Ren sighed, "And thus, the Earth Tribe won the day, but at a cost none could ever have seen coming…"
Ren slid his hand along the symbols and moved to a painting of the very temple they stood in. The painting was the least preserved of all of them. The painted figures were clearly meant to be citizens carrying several items into the temple. Some carried bricks, others books, and others items Lloyd did not know. Ren's tone became quiet.
"The Amber Tribe entered an age of prosperity. Their soldiers became the most in demand aspect of their society. Men and women, able to master whatever they are shown? It was a power that was feared throughout the land. They built temples and grand cities, they grew to have their influence across the world! The Amber Dragon rejoiced, seeing its people had grown as intended. But, as they grew, a horror began to brew within the world…" Ren lowered his torch.
"Fear prospered in ways that none could ever have imagined. What if a spy, an enemy, was among us at any time?" Ren shook his head, "They have our powers, could they truly be one of us? What if they were in deep? What if the leaders were meeting with them? What if a child was born of an Amber member without knowing? The terror of this power spread through the land, and with it, the leaders came to meet."
"The tribe is too powerful!" Ren shouted, his voice booming in the hall, "They will swallow us whole! They'll destroy our way of life! They have grown so fast, when will their growth come to bury us underneath it?" Ren ran his hand in the air, "They must be checked, must be stopped!"
"But… why?" Lloyd blinked, "They… they were just living and, doing what they had to?"
"Oh young boy, people do not think with the naivety of children," Ren lowered his head, "They fear what they have being stolen, and what can be done for it. For you see, a piece of territory along the border of the Wind Tribe was given to the wandering warrior for his efforts in that war long ago. His family moved in, then his family's families, and soon they grew to turn the area into an Amber Tribe hub in the world. This fear and anger came to rest within a young appointed leader of the Wind Tribe, and in his hatred, he made the choice: take back the land that was taken from them so long ago!"
"... They failed," Ren stated solemnly, "The overwhelming might and speed of the Amber Tribe was far more than any of them could have ever thought of! And when the demands of peace were given to the Wind Tribe, the world was broken by fear. The demands would cripple the Wind Tribe for their actions. They demanded the leader be removed, even if he had been ordained by the dragon. And thus… the world made its move."
Ren moved over to the last painting. It was one that had hardly been finished, one that barely had anything painted. It appeared to show soldiers marching out to battle, a proud formation marching down from the cities. The fact it was unfinished sent a cold dread into Lloyd as Ren began to finish his tale.
"A plan was made. A lie was fed to the Amber Tribe, a lie that they fell for without a single moment of thought!" Ren looked down, "The soldiers marched out of the cities to intercept an army of the Wind Tribe heading for them. They mobilized their forces, intending to show their strength. But when they arrived, it was not just the Wind Tribe. All of the tribes had sent their men to fight. A force of thousands to a force of hundreds was on the field that day. It was less than an hour before every last soldier of the Amber Tribe was routed and put to the blade."
"What?" Lloyd gulped, "But… but, why? Why would they do that?"
"It does not end there, young Lloyd, in fact it is even worse," Ren growled, the flames in the room dimming until his torch was the primary source of light, "Those men on the battlefield, they were not all. While the slaughter happened, the killings turned into a massacre. The tribes fell upon the Amber Tribe's cities and killed all. Man, woman, child and baby in the blankts, all were put to death," Ren slid his hand over the wall, "Fear consumed the world, and the world decided to take action. The Amber Dragon was dragged from its cave and strung up for proof that they would no longer exist. In one night, thousands were killed."
"T-That's…" Lloyd felt sick to his gut, "...N-No, you can't be telling the truth. How, how would I not know of this?"
"That is a simple answer, young Lloyd. The Firstbourne, upon seeing the horrors that her children had allowed happened, decided to retreat from this world. She flew to the edge of the world where none could reach, and with her, she took the two young children of the First Elemental Master. She took them, and there, she rested, allowing the years to go by, allowing the world to change, without so much as a single look back."
"But… but that means…" Lloyd gulped, "T-The First Elemental Master said that, I wasn't to be shown to the world until they had need of me… was… was that…?"
"Oh yes, boy, your life is tied to that of the Amber Tribe!" Ren's smile began to return, "Your life in isolation was due to the sins of the world? You were never to see the evils that had been committed. It was the same reason that the brothers stayed from it themselves; they could not allow for themselves to expose you to the world until you were ready."
Lloyd continued to feel sick. He felt hazy as well. This couldn't be true. None of this could be true. Ren had to be lying, he had to be telling him some made up story using the paintings on the walls, but… but they were inside a temple. In an island in the middle of a boiling lake. The Firstbourne had taken him here, hadn't she? Was… was that because…?
"Of course, humans often miss the obvious," The lights in the room began to rekindle as Ren loomed over Lloyd, "A member of each tribe felt horrified at the acts they were to commit. They found an injured girl among the corpses, one that was just barely clinging to life. They knew they could not hide her, for if she were found, her life was forfeit. And thus, they healed her and sealed her away. With their powers combined, they sealed her away for as long as their powers would allow, praying she would emerge in a time where the tribe's sins would be forgotten. Do you know what happened to that young girl, Lloyd?"
"No…" Lloyd shook his head, "I-Is she…?"
"That woman came into this world almost thirty years ago, and found herself in the care of a few stray merchants…" Ren shook his head, drawing his cloak over his body, "That was, until her powers returned to her. A girl that could copy the powers of others? They cast her out as soon as they felt she could survive. And survive she did, survive she did for years and years. Do you know what then happened to that young woman?"
Lloyd shook his head, making Ren grin, "That woman became Skylar's mother!"
"What?" Lloyd turned to where Skylar was standing. Skylar had a hand outstretched, and in that hand was flame. The fire in the room grew once more, lighting up the entire room once more. When she put her hand down, her expression of anger towards him only seemed to deepen. Lloyd looked from her to Ren, his own gears turning, "Then you… married her?"
"Marriage?" Ren scoffed, "You believe that anyone would marry a freak like her?" Ren crossed his arms, "No. In fact, she only found love with another freak! And that freak loved her more than anything could! They raised a child together, giving her one spark of happiness in this world. One thing for her to look upon and feel hope for her future. And then it was all taken away."
Ren's hand tightened, "You master the elements, young Lloyd, but do you truly control them? The weather moves upon its own, time will flow no matter how you manipulate it. The elements took her away from her. She died in a flood, protecting the one thing that she cared most about. The world, so cruel to her and her people, took her away from the thing that brought her joy. And thus, I was left to raise Skylar, alone."
Lloyd turned to truly stare at Skylar. The girl had lowered her hand of flame and instead, she stared at Lloyd with her own hate filled eyes. Lloyd was forced to turn his sight away from her after a few moments. Those eyes, they were eyes he had never seen before. He'd seen hatred, rage, and even seen some scary things in people's faces, but nothing like that. Nothing like the smoldering intensity that she forced upon him.
"I'm going to let you in on a lllliiittttttttttlleee secret now, Lloyd," Ren leaned forward, "I have no powers of my own."
"What?" Lloyd blinked, snapped out of his trance by Ren's comment, "But… everyone has something! Everyone has even just a little power in them!"
"Correct, but I am an exception," Ren inhaled, "Skylar's mother loved me for that reason. We were both rejects of this world. We both were things that could never be accepted. And we birthed a daughter that was the same. The world would never allow for her to exist in it.. And so, we're changing this world!"
Skylar walked around Lloyd, pushing him aside as she did. She stood in front of Ren, who reached out to place a hand on her shoulder. Skylar slowly reached up onto her back and drew the sword on her back, revealing to Lloyd that it was no ordinary blade. It was a sword that looked to be made of some sort of bone, fashioned into a point at the top but jagged and rough down the sides. The hilt was metal that looked fiercely melted into the bone itself. As she held it towards him, her eyes began to go navy as her blade was consumed with lightning.
"W-What are you doing?" Lloyd raised his hand, instinctively drawing up wind in his palms, "...Y-You're not really Ren, are you…?"
"Righty-o!" Chen giggled, "I'm the Chen that you're trying to stop! You know, the big bad that you're learning all these powers for! I bet you're wondering right now why I told you all this, hmm?"
Skylar swung her sword at Lloyd. The action was fast enough that he hardly had enough time to counter it with the burst of wind. While he dispersed the electricity, the sheer force of Skylar's strike sent him to the ground. As he collapsed onto it, Skylar moved to point the blade at his neck.
"Y-Yeah, of course I am!" Lloyd shook his head as best he could, "You're, you're trying to send this world into war! Do, do you know what you're doing to people? The pain you're going to cause just, everyone?!"
"Of course I do!" Chen grinned, "Do you know the pain that Skylar's mother faced being rejected like that? The pain that Skylar felt, growing up without her mother? The pain I felt, growing up with any powers to call my own?" Chen only smiled even wider, "The world is so rotten, it stinks! All these tribes have covered up so many corpses and lies that all it takes is a little push to roll back the sheets to show it all. Everyone is so easy to turn against one another. You aren't apart of this world, Lloyd. You're just some child that is running around getting stronger to throw a punch at an enemy that isn't really there!"
Lloyd tried to sit up, but Skylar pushed the sword down further on his throat to let her dad continue, "It's as easy to destroy the world as it is to kill you, right now! Hehe! Imagine that, when the war is all over, I can walk to the survivors and that I was the one that killed their savior. And then Skylar here can kill them before they have too long to grieve!" Chen laughed, "A child such as yourself has no business here. I think that we should perhaps take one of your hands, then that way you'll only be at half strength! Hehe, what do you think, Skylar?"
"Whatever you say, dad," Skylar charged her sword with lightning again and jabbed it into Lloyd's arm. The boy convulsed and shrieked as the pain shot through him, seemingly melting through all him at once. When it was over, he saw that his left arm was completely limb. Skylar moved the sword tip towards his wrist.
"I'll make this quick," Skylar stated coldly, moving to lift her sword up and bring it down.
Lloyd let out a cry of terror as the sword came down. He shut his eyes, expecting to feel the pain as his hand was lobbed off. Instead, nothing came. When he opened his eyes, he turned to see a wooden staff was holding back the sword from his wrist. Holding said staff was the face of his father, who looked down at Lloyd with an insistent expression.
Seeing his chance, Lloyd sent a burst of ice out from his other hand, striking Skylar's blade and pushing her back. He scrambled to his feet quickly, panting as he held onto his still numb arm. Garmadon quickly leapt in front of his son, holding his staff defensively.
"Lloyd, did she hurt you?!" Garmadon spat angrily.
"N-No, dad, she didn't get the chance…" Lloyd spoke quietly.
"Get outside and get back to the Firstbourne, now!" Garmadon growled, "Go!"
Lloyd flinched away from the harsh sound in his father's tone. Quickly, he got up and began to scramble his way back to the door he'd come in from. As soon as he was gone, Garmadon looked to the two and let out a long sigh.
"Garmadon!" Chen giggled, "So glad you've come to join us! You weren't supposed to send away the last act before you started, though."
"Enough with the nonsense, Chen," Garmadon growled, "You just tried to hurt my son. Give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you right now for that?"
"One? But there are so many!" Chen paused and tapped his chin, "Oh! I know! I have two! One: my daughter here is the best bodyguard I could ever hope to have. So good luck getting past her! And two is even more simple!" Chen grinned, "Lloyd knows about the Amber Tribe now!"
"...What?" Garmadon tensed up, "Why… why would you tell him that?!"
"It's a father's responsibility to impart knowledge on his son," Chen shrugged, "But it seems you were a little lacking in that department. So I took the chance to step in for you!"
"He's a child, Chen!" Garmadon lowered himself further into his fighting stance, "We are only doing what we must to combat your ways. The world is going to go to war and we have to stop you."
"Hmm?" Chen raised his ear to Garmadon, "Oh, I'm sorry, I think you are forgetting that children have a little bit more intellect than you give them credit for? And little Skylar here learned it even younger than your little prodigy!" Chen laughed darkly, "...Whether she wished to or not."
"Silence!" Garmadon looked to Skylar and slowly inhaled, "Well then Chen, are you to say that you are a better parent than I? I'm sure we can discuss parenting techniques."
"Certainly!" Chen giggled, "I think first of all we should talk about the openness a parent should have with their child?"
Garmadon gave Skylar a long look. The two slowly lowered both of their weapons, an understanding between them a fight would lead to nothing. Chen reached out and patted the top of Skylar's head as she put her sword away. Skylar didn't seem to react much to the touch, keeping her eyes focused on Garmadon. Slowly, her angry expression shifted to that of simple ambivalence towards him.
"Father, should I go?" Skylar asked, "I don't think he wants me around here right now."
"Hmm, sure, sure, go run outside and play!" Chen looked to Garmadon as he spoke, "Just stay away from that little boy you saw, alright?"
"He doesn't look that fun anyways," Skylar shrugged. With that, Skylar lowered her hands and her hands began to move in a strange fashion, causing her body to suddenly zip away with the mimicry of speed going through her body.
"A member of the Amber Tribe should never have been able to hold so many powers…" Garmadon shook his head, "How can she..?"
"Her mother spent decades sealed away absorbing the powers of those around her," Chen smirked, "At least, that's that I guessed!"
"You have a way with your words, Chen," Garmadon slowly raised his hand, a purple flame crackling at the palm, "I am not above showing you the power that you are trying to take from me."
"Take from you? Never!" Chen laughed, "No, I want you and Lloyd to be around! I want you to know everything I give you! Come now…" Chen opened his hands, "We wouldn't want harm to come to that dear child's mother, would we…?"
"...You do not know his mother," Garmadon shook his head, "She swore never to speak of Lloyd or myself."
"Oh yes, you were a naughty little boy… sneaking over the temple walls, getting yourself into all sorts of trouble…" Chen placed his arms behind his back, "I forget, didn't the Firstbourne tell you both to stay inside? Oh yes… I bet little old daddy would give you quite a punishment for having a child…"
"Do not act like you know anything about me, or anyone else, Chen," Garmadon sighed, "You tire me just by speaking."
"Then let me tire you more," Chen grinned wide, "I've heard the tales of you, Garmadon. The man clad in armor, wielding powers none has ever been able to truly see. A man that fights in wars and then vanishes the next. Granted, there haven't been any wars as of late, but I think I might be changing that!" Chen giggled for several seconds, "I think you know far more about this world then you should, Garmadon. Why… I wonder how long until Lloyd becomes just as knowledgeable…"
"You speak far too much," Garmadon shook his head, but before he could talk, Chen had rushed up in his face and grinned at him.
"I think you complain too much! Bah, old men act like they can shut down everything!" Chen threw his hands out and spun about, "You know nothing Garmadon, and yet you try to own me? You will hurt Lloyd far more than you will hurt me by doing that! How long, exactly, were you planning on waiting to tell him about the Amber Tribe?"
"It didn't matter to him now," Garmadon shook his head, "When it became important, I would have told him. Is that not how it works for everyone?"
"Oh yes, wait until the corpses are stacked over the walls to tell the people they're under siege!" Chen rolled his eyes, "You play a dangerous game raising a child, Garmadon! You need be more careful!"
Chen danced his way over towards the wall, standing there and looking up towards it. As he did, he reached up to his chest and slowly reached to pull something from it. A piece of rope was clutched in his hands, and tied to that rope was a small jewel. The jewel was sparkling yellow, clearly sculpted by careful hands. As Chen slowly held it in hand, he spoke without turning around.
"They gave this to all of the members of the Amber Tribe that reached their initiation, you see," Chen ran his fingers along it, "It was the last thing that she ever got from her family. That family was killed in front of her. Actually, when I met her, she refused to buy new clothes, even though the ones she had were stained with blood. The people of this world did that, Garmadon, and I made the promise I would keep Skylar safe until the world was ready for her. Well… she won't live long enough for that to happen on its own. So here I am, ready to create one she can truly prosper in."
"You can try to tell me that you have pure motives, but you talk of worse than what they did to your wife," Garmadon shook his head, "You are even-"
"Wife? Oh please, you think anyone would marry two freaks willingly?" Chen turned to face Garmadon, "Call me crazy, in fact I probably am! I'm simply doing what I think is right. I'm not crazier and monstrous than you are. I mean, what do you intend to do with Lloyd when this is all over? Return to a tiny temple? I think you should really prioritize your own ideals, Garmadon."
Before Garmadon could talk, the entire room began to suddenly violently shake. Chen gave a massive grin to Garmadon and laughed, slowly backing up. Right on cue, a massive chunk of the temple ceiling fell between the two. Garmadon leapt backwards, putting distance between him and Chen. As the room began to crumble around them, Chen simply shrugged.
"And my ideals aspire to tear this entire world down!" Chen cackled, "Including this temple! No reminders to what Skylar's people suffered should remain! And that means you too, Garmadon! Bye bye!"
Chen casually began to walk out, the rubble falling around him in a perfect path. Garmadon narrowed his gaze and ran forward to try to leapt and intercept the man, but as soon as he did, another massive chunk of the ceiling fell directly towards him. Garmadon shouted and thrust his hands upwards, loosing purple flames from his fists, blasting the rocks apart as best he could. He raised his arms to cover his body as the shards still fell towards him as he tried to back up.
"Dad!" Lloyd's voice shouted from the hallway. As Garmadon turned, Lloyd brought his hands together, his eyes turning deep brown as he shot his hands out. He caught several chunks of falling debris in the air, his body quivering as he felt the weight of them suddenly feel as though they'd been placed right onto his shoulders.
Not wanting to waste his chance, Garmadon picked up his staff and quickly shot forward, running through the falling temple. Lloyd threw the chunks he had aside and redirected what he could away from his father. Garmadon spun his staff and knocked away the smaller pieces his son couldn't focus on. He slid his body across the ground underneath the arch into the main hallway, letting Lloyd focus on running with him.
Without waiting for his father's call, Lloyd grabbed Garmadon and his eyes flashed silver before their bodies were wrapped within the power of speed. Garmadon shut his eyes just in time upon seeing the color to prevent himself from feeling the effects of his world accelerating around him. The two raced out from the temple doors and towards the small patch of ground around the boiling lake, racing as fast as their bodies could carry them.
Just before they hit the water, Lloyd canceled out of his power, feeling lightheaded from switching between them so fast. Garmadon, seeing this, sent his staff out into the ground to halt their momentum, ending with them lurching forward over the surface of the water. Lloyd sank to a knee as Garmadon turned to watch the main structure of the temple crumble in on itself. As it slowly crumbled away into nothing, Garmadon looked further up.
As some of the towers were dragged down along with the main center, Skylar hovered in the air. The girl was floating using gravity, and using earth to forcibly rip the temple apart. As she laid eyes on them, she let go of the power of earth, allowing the rest of the temple to crumble in naturally. As she slowly raised her arm to summon something else, a figure appeared behind her.
"Now now, Skylar, we've made our point," Chen, seemingly walking on nothing in the air, slowly lowered her arm, "They know what they are facing, let us go and get someplace with baths now, yes? Those temples are filthy!"
"Yeah… a bath would feel nice," Skylar looked down to the temple, "I need more practice with some of this though. I didn't get the temple fast enough…"
"We weren't trying to kill them, dear. If we did, they'd be martyrs!" Chen laughed, "Wait until we have an audience to do that. Now, come, they've seen what they need to, let's go!"
With that, Chen began to walk on the air away. Skylar turned to Lloyd and slowly turned with him, making her way away from them. The two began to step down the air until they disappeared behind the temple. As Lloyd stood up to go towards them, Garmadon put a hand on his shoulder.
"It's not worth it, son," Garmadon groaned, "Chen has this planned out. If you attack him now it will only cause more problems. We need to wait for the best time."
"The, best time… right…" Lloyd looked down, "She… she's so much better than me at that, Dad. I could barely lift things in the air and, she's using multiple at once!"
"That is the trick of the Amber Tribe, son. They can do only what they copy," Garmadon put his hand on Lloyd's shoulder, "She can only use her powers to the extent at which she took them. You, you can grow beyond her in ways she could never hope to reach."
"That… right, that must be the amber thing… dad," Lloyd looked up slowly, "...Was what Chen said, true? That, that the reason I wasn't, allowed to see the world was because, they murdered all of them?"
"..." Garmadon looked down at the ground. He didn't respond.
"Dad?" Lloyd blinked, "Dad please… tell me. Is, is Skylar really the last member of the Amber Tribe?"
"She, is, yes son…" Garmadon sighed, "Normally a member of the Amber Tribe would never be able to hold powers more than a day at most, but she can hold them far longer. I don't know how long until she loses her mimicry but, it is safe to say she is dangerous."
"Am… am I going to have to fight her?" Lloyd bit his lip, "She, she looked so sad, dad. Like, like she was hurting really badly. I think that she's, she's worse off than anyone we've ever met."
"With a father like Chen, anyone would be," Garmadon scoffed, "Let us return to Firstbourne, son. We have a long journey ahead of us. You need to learn more elements before we can even think of fighting Chen."
"Y-Yeah, of course…" Lloyd stood up, "She's right over the hill, she, led me here."
"Did she now…" Garmadon looked over the hill to see the tips of Firstbourne's horns peeking the horizon, "I see. Let us use fire to cross this lake, and we will leave this place."
Lloyd slowly sparked his powers, still feeling slightly woozy as he did so. Slowly, he brought his hands down and gently grabbed his dad's wrist, flooding them both with the flame. The two stepped forward, sliding into the water together. The boiling temperatures were no more than a simple dull heat as the two began to swim their way across, away from a broken history, now laying in even more ruins.
Lloyd could only wonder more of what he would see, and what lay behind those sad eyes of Skylar.