Can you believe we're on chapter 45 already
Hello yes I am alive
and I'm writing on a regular basis again I just haven't found much motivation to actually... type it in.
It doesn't help that my computer time is being taken up doing driving practice. :P
Review Replies(I'm pretty sure I didn't reply to these in the A/N or something):
NinjagoMLP: Mira... is going to get herself in a lot of trouble.
Ebony: Morro is a good friend, but he's not perfect. He has abandonment issues.
Pastelninjamonile: Something bad is always going to happen.
EntityEndDragon: The keyword there is "may". They "may" be happy.
Draconis: Indigo is eternally salty.
Windy: Yep, that one. Sneaky Indigo makes another appearance next chapter :)
Samantha: Indeed.
"Stop." Kai hissed, lifting a hand to warn those behind him. None of them moved as the patrol passed by, then Kai lowered his hand and they continued farther into the alleys. They had entered Ninjago City early this morning, and had spent the next hour sneaking towards Bansha's castle. So far, it hadn't seemed like they'd been spotted. And they were almost there. It seemed like security had gone up, since Bansha knew what had happened to Morro and was trying to avoid the same. Too bad she wasn't gonna succeed.
Before he knew it, the wall around the courtyard loomed up in front of them, and they made their way in with their usual strategy: the Nyas jumping in and murdering everyone. Once the guards were gotten rid of, the rest headed through and began to make their way towards the throne room. Kai felt confident. They had done all of this before, and they had more allies this time. How could they possibly fail? Of course, thoughts like that were only going to jinx it, so he moved his thoughts elsewhere.
Whatever happened to that pair that captured Morro and Lloyd 1? Lloyd had said Morro 2 had promised them a reward, but then he had gone back with them to their base, so probably he hadn't gotten around to doing that. Were they still around? Maybe they had gotten really mad when Morro failed to reward them and now violently opposed him and those who took his place. But it was unlikely. So they'd have to watch out for them.
The group stopped in front of the throne room door, and Mira snuck inside, cloaking herself with her powers, to check it out. When she came back a minute later, she reported in a whisper,
"Bansha's on her throne, giving orders to a group of about 20 ghosts. There's a group of 6 guards on each side of her throne, and Reena is standing on her left. The 20 should be gone in a few minutes, should we wait?" Kai nodded.
"Might as well. If we can grab her, the Sword of Sanctuary, and the Realm Crystal, then skedaddle before reinforcements come, we'll be in good shape." Mira nodded, and they quieted to wait for the guards to leave. After a few silence minutes, they were startled by the door in front of them opening and the group of guards flooding through. Crap. Nya 1 killed them all in an instant, but their cover was blown.
"What?" Bansha 2 exclaimed from inside the throne room. "Call for reinforcements! Go!" She ordered as Kai ran through the open door, beckoning for the others to follow. The sorceress rose from her throne, drawing her staff as they approached her. "NOW!" She yelled. Suddenly, dozens of ghosts appeared, either appearing out of nowhere – dropping invisibility – or phasing through the walls.
"WHOA!" Kai yelled, jumping back. "Nyas, get them!" The two water mistresses attacked, shooting the army with jets of water.
It went through them.
"Oh. Oh no. Bad bad bad." Jay 2 mumbled, eyes wide as he backed away in alarm.
"Illusions?" Dyana suggested, backing away with the rest. Mira, who was standing at the front of the group, yelped as a ghost punched her in the gut, knocking her to the ground.
"Mira!" Lilia exclaimed, running forward to pull her to her feet.
"Okay, not illusions. Run!" Kai ordered, turning around to lead their retreat. He heard footsteps following them, and glanced over his shoulder to see the ghosts giving chase. He had to get them out of here. "Andreea!" he yelled. "Blind them!" Nodding, the diamond master spun around and flashed a white light at those chasing them, making them exclaim in shock and run into each other. That would buy them some time. As they passed a doorway, a flash of light caught Kai's eye, and he turned to investigate. In the room was, to his shock, the Realm Crystal, sitting unguarded on a pedestal. Glancing back and forth, the fire ninja dashed forward and snatched it, then ran back out to join the others. "I got the Realm Crystal!" He yelled. "Once we get away, we can teleport back to the base!"
"Why not just do it now?" Nico yelled back.
"I don't want any invincible ghosts following us in!" The red ninja replied, speeding up until he was at the front of the group again.
"Oh. Yeah." The group hurried out into the courtyard, then quickly scaled the wall and ran into the slums. The army didn't seem to be following, but he would wait until they got out into the desert to use the Crystal. He didn't know how they were resistant to water, but they couldn't have them getting anywhere near Stiix. If they did, that would be it. The war would be over, and the Preeminent would be the winner.
And they just couldn't have that, could they?
TheDarknessReturn
"Your Majesty!" A voice echoed through Morro's small cell, and he flinched as pain shot through him upon his waking. Who was bothering him? "Your Majesty, wake up." He heard keys clinking, then his cell door opened, and a hand grabbed his shoulder, giving him a shake. Instantly, he let out a pained snarl, clutching the pillow tighter to his chest.
"I'm awake." He hissed. "Who… who are you?" He demanded, his voice as threatening as he could manage.
"My name is Charlie. I'm here to free you." Charlie? That name was familiar… "Are you hurt?"
"Badly." He mumbled. "I can't move… at all."
"Oh." Did he want to leave? Even if he could? No… out there, he would be locked up by Bansha or killed by the commoners. It was better to stay here, with the one person in the world who actually liked him. "How badly?"
"My skull is cracked."
"How did that happen?"
"I was… beaten. By the other me."
"Oh."
"And, even if I could, I… I don't want to leave." He said haltingly.
"What? You're a prisoner!" Charlie exclaimed in confusion.
"But the Preeminent… is done with me. She's shunned me. If I leave, she'll… lock me up."
"How is that worse than here, where you're beaten?"
"Because… because of Lloyd."
"What?"
"Lloyd made him stop. Lloyd is kind to me… more than anyone else I've ever met." Except maybe Wu. "When I get better… he'll let me out. Let me join him." He wasn't sure, but he hoped he would. "Wait, that's… that's where I remember your name from. You threatened to shoot him!"
"Of course I did. He's the enemy!" Her voice was cold. "So that's how you're going to be, huh? Get captured and join the enemy, no matter how badly they treat you?"
"The side I was on betrayed me!" He hissed. "Where else could I go?"
"You could have accepted your fate and let the Preeminent punish you!"
"And just give up? Do you really think I'm that kind of person?"
"I thought you had more honor than this!"
"I haven't done anything honorable since I was a child! I had no honor at all until I joined Lloyd!"
"Betrayal isn't honorable."
"You're right. But I wasn't the one doing the betraying." Before he could say more, a foot connected with his head, and he let out a scream as pain exploded through him.
"You're a filthy betrayer who should have done what his master ordered!" She hissed as he clutched his head with his good hand. "I don't care how bad you had it, you should have just stayed in line!"
"No!" He bit back through the pain. "The Preeminent is a h-horrible creature, and I w-won't do what she says!"
"Then you can suffer!" She kicked him in the head again, and he let out a choked scream. Then the door slammed open.
"Charlie?" Lloyd's voice. "Seriously? In the middle of the night?" Morro heard a thud, and a grunt from Charlie. He heard the sound of keys again, then the door of the cell next to him slammed shut. He heard her scream in frustration, then a hand touched his shoulder lightly. "Did she hurt you badly?" Lloyd asked softly.
"Kicked… kicked m'in the head… twice."
"Oh no." he felt Lloyd prod gently at his head, and a pained hiss escaped him. "Sorry. I don't think she injured your head any more, you just… will be in a lot of pain for a while."
"It hurts… hurts a LOT, th-though…"
"Oh stop acting so weak." Charlie scoffed. "Lloyd may not see through it, but I can. You're obviously just trying to get pity."
"You just kicked him in his cracked head. Twice. I'm amazed he can still speak." Lloyd snapped. "Just shut up. You did this to him."
"And he did this to me." She replied smoothly. "I don't think so."
"You know what? Fine." Lloyd's arms slid underneath him, and the pillow he had been clutching slipped from his grasp as he was lifted up off the floor. "He'll be better off with a real bed anyway." Leaning him against his chest, Lloyd carried him out of the room, carrying him through the base. After a minute, he was lowered onto a soft mattress, then the blond left again. Where was he? He started to move to lift his head, but quickly decided against it as pain stabbed through him again. Some bedroom. It was more comfortable than his cell, so he wasn't complaining. After a few minutes, he heard footsteps, then a gentle hand lifted his head, sliding a pillow underneath before lowering him down onto it. A few moments later, a pair of shackles fitted around his wrists, snapping into place. He felt a pang of disappointment. Lloyd didn't trust him not to run, not even in this state.
"I'm sorry about the cuffs." Lloyd said softly – he must have reacted visibly. "I know you won't do anything, but… the others will never let you stay out of jail without some sort of restraint." Oh. That made him feel a bit better. "I'm gonna stay here, okay? I don't know what the others would do if they found you here alone."
"M'kay." Morro murmured. He felt the bed shift, then Lloyd's hand began to rub his shoulders. Those, at least, weren't injured, and he managed to relax a bit despite the pain. "Thanks…"
"You're welcome." Lloyd was smiling – he could hear it in his voice. He was happy. That he had pleased him, or something else? He was too tired to overthink Lloyd's emotions. After a few minutes of the blond's treatment, Morro passed out, fast asleep.
Lloyd 1: so is this the part where morro gets a break from being beat up
me: *sweats nervously*
~FFF