Cole gazed at the locket he was holding in his hand. His fingers traced the engravings on the back as he stared into space. It was the last thing his mother gave him before she passed on. She always used to tell him not to forget about his gift to keep it safe, and that it would bring good luck. Cole thought back to those words now, staring down at the locket in his hand. He smiled at the memory of how much his mother loved to play with his hair when they'd be sitting together while they hung out. Cole ran a finger along the engraving, tracing over a small picture of him and his mother smiling at each other. He couldn't help but smile even bigger, tears falling nonetheless. After giving the pendant another look up and down, Cole tucked it away safely into the inner pocket of his gi. He'd make her proud. He knew he would. That was all that mattered.

"Hey, Cole!" Kai called out as he walked up to the raven-haired earth elemental. "Is there any reason you're hanging around here so long?"

"Just reminiscing. I miss my mom, y'know." Cole replied as he turned to Kai, who had stopped in front of him.

"Oh yeah. My mom would have adored you." Kai smiled. "She sounds really cool, too. You two must get along well then."

"We do. She's...she's really great Kai." Cole smiled warmly as he looked back to the sky. "But she has her own life. She's gone already. And...I guess I've just never quite gotten over it. I'm okay though, don't worry. I think she would have liked you too."

"Thanks, man. Well, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm right here for you." Kai placed an arm around Cole's shoulders. "You're one of the coolest guys I know, and trust me when I say that I know what you mean."

"It's alright, Kai," Cole said as he moved from under Kai's arm. "Really. Now go do something useful like sparring with Zane again. Your brother is probably dying to get your attention."

"Yeah okay," Kai laughed as he jogged off toward his fellow elemental. "See ya later, man!"

Cole took a few deep breaths to try to clear his head. What had just happened? He was just being completely honest with Kai. About how much his mother meant to him, and how he missed her. The past few days felt kind of bittersweet since he didn't see her anymore and it hurt knowing that he might never do so again. He sighed heavily. It's not like he was going anywhere anytime soon. The ninja were his family now. They wouldn't let anything bad happen to him, no matter what. Cole knew he could count on them for support, no matter what happens. No doubt he would find a way to cope with all of this himself. For now, he decided he would take advantage of his friends' hospitality until his mind was able to heal and move forward. With a newfound vigor in his step, Cole made his way over to Zane. Maybe if he kept moving everything would work itself out somehow.

Cole found himself standing by the tree where his friend had been meditating earlier that morning. He sat down across from him and leaned back against the trunk, crossing his legs as his eyes trailed to the view before them. All he could see in front of them were a few trees that seemed to be blocking their view. He would take down the Oni if it was the last thing he ever did.

But first, he needed a plan. He glanced over at Zane again, seeing he was still focused on his meditation, before turning back to the horizon. He'd start thinking of some ideas once Zane finished. Just like old times, huh? If only they could stay like this forever. Cole shook his head to dispel the thought of what would happen next. He had to keep pushing forward because if he dwelled on the past too much, it would just lead to more pain. Even if it does end up being worse than the present. Besides, nothing ever lasts forever. Even pain. That's what his mom told him whenever he wanted to feel better.

A warm feeling washed over Cole. Maybe it was time to finally follow her advice. As much as he missed her, he had people who truly cared for him now. They would help him get through whatever was left to come. He would just need to keep moving, keeping positive thoughts running through his head to keep the dark clouds at bay.

Lloyd felt his chest clenching at the thought of his father possibly leaving him. He wasn't sure how he felt about that, but it hurt to think about. He knew what being alone was like and he had never wanted it for himself.

He just didn't want anyone else to be left behind either. They were all so nice to him, it would break Lloyd's entire spirit to lose them. They shaped him into the person he was today. But there was one thing he was certain on—he hated when they were sad, or even just a little bit hurt. It made him want to make their lives better.

"Lloyd Ryuda? My son, are you alright?" A soft voice, his father's, rang through his ears. "You've been standing here for quite some time now. I'm getting worried."

His heart fluttered in his chest before stopping completely as he turned towards the man walking towards him. He felt himself trembling slightly, tears springing up from the corners of his eyes at the thought of losing this person who seemed so understanding.

Before he could stop them, tears slipped down his face. His vision was becoming blurry with everything going on around him. As he began sobbing openly, he felt the arms wrap around his small frame tightly, rubbing circles onto his back slowly. He buried his face in his father's neck, trying his best to keep silent.

"I know you're scared, my boy, but…" He felt his dad gently rub up and down his back, "I promise I will never leave you again… I love you too much to let that happen… We'll take the Oni down and we won't allow them to hurt us anymore."

Lloyd nodded in response as his father kissed his forehead gently. He wiped away the remaining tears from his face, pulling away slightly to look into his eyes.

"Can I ask you something?"

Lloyd nodded.

"Why don't you ever tell me if you're upset? Even if it's over something silly like having dinner without us, I'd still wanna know."

Lloyd sniffled slightly before wiping his nose with the sleeve of his gi.

"When someone's sick or has done something wrong, I'm always scared that they're gonna leave because they don't care about me anymore and they can't stand seeing me cry. And when I say things like that, I don't mean to sound rude, but I feel so helpless. And I know if you heard someone telling you those kinds of things, I couldn't blame them."

The older man nodded his head before placing his hands on Lloyd's shoulders, looking into his son's eyes.

"I see…" He leaned forward softly, pressing a kiss to Lloyd's temple. "But, Lloyd, my son, I'm not going anywhere. Ever. If you feel the need to cry or yell, I'm right next to you every step of the way. You're my son and nothing is ever going to change that. You'll never be alone. Not ever."

Lloyd nodded once again, leaning further into his father's embrace. He pulled him closer to him, resting his head against his father's shoulder.

He knew his father would keep saying these exact words for years to come. He knew for a fact that Garmadon would never stop loving him.

And that's what really mattered.

He knew that.

Because no matter what happened, no matter how far apart they got, no matter how far apart they stayed, he knew he wouldn't be lonely ever again. Because his father loved him. No matter what.

"Zane?" Cole stood in front of him, waiting for a response.

"Yes, Cole?"

"What are your thoughts? Have you reached a solution yet?"

"No, unfortunately not." Zane replied as he continued to look at the ground. "As you mentioned, Cole, there does not seem to be any obvious signs of this mysterious black fog. I do not know which direction it comes from. I fear there might be no sign of it anywhere on Ninjago."

"Yeah...but, I'm sure something will turn up. Right? There has to be some clue somewhere."

"We cannot rule out all possibilities, however. If anything, Yakunan is the most knowledgeable about this situation."

"Right…so, we just gotta wait it out then, right?" Cole shrugged as he looked up toward the sky. He sighed softly and smiled lightly, hoping it would bring him some form of relief.

"We should continue our training session," Zane suggested as he closed his book and set it on the bench beside him. "You have improved significantly. Call the others to join us."

Cole nodded and quickly ran off after calling Kai, Jay, and Nya, who came running over to them within a minute. He plopped down on the log next to Cole, panting heavily.

"You okay, dude?" Cole asked, glancing over at Kai.

"Mmmm…" Kai mumbled, closing his eyes for a moment. "It feels like I just ran three miles. It took a whole minute."

"That's probably how long you ran last week," Zane stated with a chuckle.

"What?! No fair!"

Lloyd and Cole both laughed as they watched the two bicker.

Once they stopped laughing, they settled back into training. The group practiced fighting together for a while before Kai called for a break.

They sat around, chatting as they ate some snacks Zane brought over. They didn't bother to mention their conversation from earlier, as they knew Kai would definitely pester them about it later, if he remembered it at all, if they hadn't already told him. They all had different opinions on what they found.

But, at least for now, they decided to focus on enjoying themselves. After all, they were still in this fight against the Oni and they had plenty of challenges ahead of them. But for right now, they could simply relax.

They just hoped everything would work out eventually. Because no matter how many battles they fought against the Oni, or how hard they trained, or how fast they fought, they weren't ever going to defeat them. The ninja needed to find a new way. They knew they would, and they would find it.

Yakunan gazed out the temple window at the storm outside. The lightning flashed across the sky with each rumble of thunder making the building shake. He couldn't help but worry, though. He felt so powerless knowing his son's family was out there. This battle was far beyond him. He wasn't equipped to win it alone, at all. So, all he could do was sit here, praying for this all to end. For the Oni to finally go away.

But he doubted that would happen anytime soon. He was sure they were coming back with more. What would he do when that came? How could he save everyone if he wasn't able to do a single thing to stop the enemy?

He sighed sadly as he leaned back against the pillar, wrapping a woolen blanket around his shoulders. He couldn't afford to show weakness to the enemy right now, especially since he knew everyone was counting on him to spill the beans on the Oni's strategies.

"Father?"

The voice made Yakunan jump in surprise and glance up quickly. His heart stopped momentarily before beating wildly. His eyes softened. "Xenudah! You scared me! What are you doing here? Are you alright? Did something happen?"

His son looked hesitant to continue. "You look very tired, father. Are you okay? Have you been resting well?"

He nodded and then forced a smile that he hoped didn't look too strained. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just that some storms are getting worse every day and we haven't gotten any rest in awhile. I'm worried about what we're going to find out there. I'm scared I'm going to lose you."

Xenudah's expression turned sympathetic immediately. He moved across the room, stopping before Yakunan, reaching out to place a hand on his arm. "Don't think like that father. We have each other now. I promised you that I wouldn't let go. We can fight by each other's sides if the time comes. But, we've both seen what happens when one of us is injured or ill. Our only hope to survive is to stick together as a team."

Yakunan's gaze darkened as he lowered his eyes. "I know. I just… I wish I could do something else to help. Anything. I just want to keep you safe."

"Oh, don't worry about that." Xenudah assured his father, squeezing his arm. "Your work isn't done until we stop the evil that threatens everyone here."

Yakunan's expression fell a bit, nodding as he closed his eyes. "That makes sense..."

Xenudah smiled softly and nodded as he placed a hand on his father's back, rubbing circles to comfort him.

"You can rest now, Father. Everything is going to be okay. I promise."