I am so tired this chapter is so long
so um... I'm leaving on vacation Thursday morning, so I'm trying really hard to finish the final battle before I leave. The chapter is, so far, 21 pages long on paper. A typical chapter is 6 pages. So... I decided to split it in half. This is the first 11 pages.
Review replies:
The Mayor of Ninjago City: HI! Did you uhh... did you notice I named Gray's dead gf after your Emma?
Entity: THANK YOU! And yes that's Emma.
KitKat: He had a weird childhood xD
Ms. Cipher: Give me the hecking cookies
Ebony: Thank youuuuuu! :'D "and everything's fine", yeah, not for long :')
Nicktastic: Hi!
MNM: Oh mood.
I apologize in advance.
"I don't get it." Morro 2 muttered, his arms folded as he glared at the Preeminent and her army. "The Preeminent is not this dumb. What the heck is she trying to do?"
"Maybe she's trying to bait out the trap by sending her army a little bit ahead?" Nicole suggested. "If she really got every single detail from Kai, she'll know that our water reserve is pretty much single-use."
"If she knows that much, she'll also know that we're manually setting it off, which we won't do lightly since we have one shot." Lloyd 1 shook his head. "No, she must have some other plan. I just... can't imagine what it might be."
"You and me both." Morro muttered. "Oh- she's stopping, I think." Indeed, the Preeminent was slowing and stopping, just outside where the trap was set. "****. She really does know every detail."
"Is she... sending her army in for another round?" Lloyd asked with a frown, noting the army still approaching. Clearly she had noticed that the first time she tried that, it didn't work out.
"I dunno. Should we break Gray's bridge?" Nicole asked, gesturing to the strangleweed bridge spamming the gap between Stiix and the mainland.
"Wait and see if they get close." Lloyd held up a hand in a 'wait' gesture. "If they do, we can have Kai 1 set it on fire."
"How will we keep it from spreading to the rest of Stiix? It's all pretty flammable." Morro asked with a frown.
"Zanes can keep it under control. Though, it might make more sense to just have the Zanes freeze and shatter it. I doubt strangleweed will burn well anyway." Lloyd shrugged. "Whatever, it's not important if they-"
"I just received a message from the Nyas!" Zane 2 yelled. "They're under attack! The Preeminent's army has converged on their position! They're holding them off for now, but they're quickly being overwhelmed. They need help!"
"I'm going." Lloyd said immediately, heading for the bridge.
"Me too." Morro followed, and so did Nicole.
"And me." The determined voice made Lloyd turn in surprise to see his double following him. When he noticed the others staring, he said simply, "They're my friends too."
"Alright." Lloyd shrugged. "Anyone else?"
"I'll go." His father called, running to catch up with him. "You might need a meat shield."
"Yeah." Lloyd grinned, more at the prospect of his father joining them than what he had said, and began to run towards the bridge again. "Hurry, everyone."
"Should we take the dragons?" Morro 2 yelled, following him.
"Yeah. Take Nicole on yours, everyone else has one." Without slowing down, Lloyd summoned his dragon ahead of him, swinging himself into the saddle and taking off towards where the others were waiting, a pocket of land dug by the Coles out of the cliff.
The flight over there took only about a minute, but to Lloyd it felt far longer. He could see the ghosts swarming down the side of the cliff, some slipping and falling into the sea but most making it to the ninja's hiding place. He could see sprays of water coming from the opening, the Nyas fighting back. Though they obviously hadn't been overwhelmed yet, Lloyd could see ghosts packing the entrance tunnel, clotting the passage as they threw themselves to their deaths at the hands of the water masters.
When he finally reached them, Lloyd dispelled his dragon and launched himself into the fray. He summoned a huge orb of energy as he landed, killing every ghost unlucky enough to be caught inside, then hurled it at the ghosts just entering the tunnel, either killing them instantly or forcing them off the cliff into the sea below. A spray of water hit him from behind, and he whirled around just in time to see a ghost's weapon disappear in a puff of smoke, and, beyond that, his friends, apparently safe and sound so far.
"Guys!" He yelled, hurrying to join them as the rest of the backup arrived. "What happened? They weren't supposed to know about this place!" His eyes then fell on Kai 2, who looked crestfallen, and he remembered. "Oh. Right."
"She- she tracked me here, or something..." The fire ninja stammered. "I don't know-"
"It's okay. We can hold them off." Lloyd interrupted as the others landed inside and began to fight the oncoming ghosts. "The Preeminent can't do anything to all of-"
Lloyd was cut off by an ear-shattering scream.
"Bansha!" Morro 2 choked out, pressing his hands to his ears. Lloyd, doing the same, managed to look up and see Bansha outside, about fifty feet away, suspected with chains between two ghost dragons. Apparently she had gotten the same fate Morro would have if he had not been saved by the ninja when he failed the Preeminent.
Only Lloyd's father seemed to be unaffected. Invincibility really was handy.
When Bansha finally stopped shrieking, Lloyd cautiously uncovered his ears, opening his eyes just in time to see a small, black object bounce past him towards the water reserve. What was-?
"Get down!" Lloyd's father tackled him to the ground, shielding his body with his own, and moments later an explosion rocked the tunnel. Lloyd heard screams, but from his position of squished between his father and the wall, he had no idea what was happening. After a moment, the older man moved back, and Lloyd looked up to see that, to his horror, a huge hole was blown in the side of the water reserve, and the water they had spent hours filling it with was draining out into the ocean.
The Coles and Kai looked unaffected, the blast had done nothing to them since they were ghosts, but both Nyas were on the ground, one unconscious and the other looking dazed. Neither looked like they were badly hurt, but this was no longer a safe place. Their main source of damage against the ghosts was gone.
"We need to get out of here!" Lloyd yelled, scrambling to his feet. "Coles, get the Nyas! Bring them back to Andreea, I don't know how badly they're hurt! Everyone else, just get back to Stiix as fast as possible!" The others began moving to obey immediately, Morro and Lloyd 2 working together to keep the ghosts from reaching the opening into the cave as the Coles, Kai, and Nicole helped get the Nyas onto the backs of the Coles' dragons. Once they were secured, the Coles took off, Morro and both Lloyds laying down cover fire for them as they escaped back to Stiix.
As soon as they were gone, the ghosts stopped coming.
"That's a bad sign…" Morro 2 muttered, floating up to see why the flow of ghosts had stopped. "She's coming!" He yelped in alarm a moment later. "The Preeminent and her army are heading towards Stiix!" Lloyd hissed under his breath, trying not to curse. The Preeminent had obviously been trying to destroy their trap with the bomb, but had also managed to take out their water masters, and Lloyd wasn't sure when they would be back in action. She'd done a lot of damage.
Now she could just storm the city.
"Get back to Stiix, now!" Lloyd yelled, jumping off into midair and summoning his dragon. "We have to come up with something else!"
"That plan took us days to come up with!" Morro 2 protested, summoning his dragon and helping Nicole onto its' back. "How are we going to come up with something new in the half-hour it takes for her to get to us?!"
"I don't know. But we have to try!" As the others summoned their dragons and took off after him, Lloyd flew as fast as he could back towards Stiix.
At this point, giving up was not an option.
TheDarknessReturn
Morro didn't like this situation at all.
The wind master watched the Preeminent as she crossed their so carefully-laid trap, having rendered it useless with whatever explosive she had been able to procure. He had been, unfortunately, right. The Preeminent was too smart to run – or float – headlong into danger. And now their great plan had, almost literally, blown up in their faces.
Luckily, the Nyas weren't badly hurt. One was still unconscious, but was expected to wake up soon, and the other had a mild head injury that had been quickly healed by Andreea. Lloyd had been the closest the bomb when it exploded, but his father had protected him. They really had needed a meat shield.
Lloyd was barking orders behind him, sending the ninja every which way to do damage control. He was staying remarkably calm, in that he wasn't freaking out. He sounded angry, but he seemed to have a pretty good handle on things.
The Preeminent's army was hanging behind her now, using her as something of a shield. What was her plan now? Just charge in and start breaking things? She was getting pretty close…
Abruptly, the city's foundation shook, and Morro looked up in surprise to see Gray's bridge sinking into the sea. Lloyd must have ordered it removed so the Preeminent couldn't just cross over. But… the Preeminent could just float across the gap. The ghosts could just float around her. It wouldn't do much to slow her down, but, something was better than nothing.
"Morro!" Morro jumped at the sound of his name being called, and turned to see Lloyd facing him. "Go find Maya. With Nya 2 down, we need her." The wind master nodded, hurrying off towards the base in search of Nya's mother.
After a minute of searching, Morro found her and her husband in one of the back rooms, their backs to the open door. After a couple seconds of debating how to announce his presence, he called out,
"Maya!" When she turned towards him, he continued. "They need you outside, the Preeminent's coming." The couple exchanged worried looks, then Maya nodded, hurrying out of the room. Morro started to follow her, but Ray's voice made him stop,
"Wait." And turn back to face the man. "I'm sorry, but who are you? You look so familiar, but I just can't out a name to your face." Morro hesitated, averting his eyes. He didn't know what his reaction would be to finding out who he really was, and if his relation to Kai affected it in any way, it would probably be bad. But, he'd find out either way eventually, and this way he could guarantee an escape route if things went south.
"I'm Morro." Ray's eyes widened, and he quickly went on. "Lloyd… Lloyd B, from the other timeline, got me to join your side. It's a long story." He was afraid the older man's silence was a precursor to a violent reaction, but instead Ray just slowly nodded his head.
"I see. You should rejoin the others." Morro nodded, relieved at not having to continue the conversation, and hurriedly left the room. Anyone that didn't trust him could easily be a danger.
The Preeminent had gotten alarmingly close in the two minutes Morro had been away.
The huge creature towered over the city, blocking out the moon and stars. The closer she got, the more obvious it became that they were hopelessly overwhelmed. Without the trap, what were they going to do?
"Morro!" Lloyd's voice made him tear his eyes away from the Preeminent. "Come join us. We have to keep the Preeminent busy."
"Busy?" Morro echoed, wandering towards him, his double, and a few others. "For what?"
"The fewer people who know, the better." Lloyd tapped his head, then gestured to the Preeminent. Right. Mind reading. But the fact that Lloyd had a plan at all lifted his spirits, and he stood next to him, staring up defiantly at the Preeminent.
He still nearly jumped out of his skin when the Preeminent's voice filled his head.
"A brilliant plan, really." The others stiffened – they heard her too. "Let me take Ninjago City, make me think I've cornered you, then lure me here and kill me. It might have worked, too, if not for Kai." Lloyd's face hardened. "Morro." He winced as he felt her focus on him. "You look good. So healthy. New tan?"
"Shut up." Morro snapped, trying to calm his pounding heart at the sound of her voice.
"You act so tough for being such a coward. Everyone knows how scared you are." She goaded, and Lloyd stole a glance at him.
"I don't care." Morro shot back. "The ninja- well, some of the ninja – they care about me. I don't need to pretend in front of them."
"If that's what you think." No smug answer for that, huh? "Regardless, I will win this battle, and you will die. Enjoy your last few moments of being alive – and not being alone – because, as soon as you're in my hands, I'll change that." Morro bit his lip, glaring at her. Lloyd had a plan, right? He wouldn't let her kill him. "It is not a matter of what Lloyd does or does not 'let' happen." Lloyd gave him a curious look. She was still talking to everyone. "None of you can stop this." With that, she started to cross the gap.
As Morro predicted, her and a healthy number of ghosts could just float across the expanse between Stiix and the mainland. She also spit out a ghost every couple seconds, which would continue when she got to Stiix. With about thirty ghosts coming out of her a minute, the Preeminent's being a living portal would seriously tip the scales of the battle in her favor. This wasn't good at all.
"Nya, Maya!" Lloyd yelled, and the water masters ran to the front of the group, lifting up the ocean in a huge wall in front of Stiix. The Preeminent didn't seem to care. The ninja watched through the stretching, shifting wall of water as she floated towards them, closer, closer…
As soon as one of her tentacles touched the water, Kai 2 crumpled to the ground, screaming.
"STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" Lloyd ordered as Kai's mother and sister dropped the wall of water, starting towards the fire ninja. "Keep the Preeminent back! That is our first priority!" Hesitantly, the two obeyed, lifting the ocean again. Once he was sure they were staying, Lloyd ran to Kai's side, who was gasping and shuddering on the ground.
"Kai, what's going on? What's wrong?" He demanded, but Kai couldn't seem to choke out a response. Unfortunately, Morro knew.
"She transfers damage done to her to any of her subjects." He explained as quickly as he could, running closer. "That's why she's so hard to kill. Look!" He pointed through the wall of water, where they could see pinpoints of green light falling from where they floated around the Preeminent into the sea. "Ordinarily, they die in a couple seconds, then they come back through the portal. Why isn't she killing Kai…?"
"Maybe so she can be a distraction?" Lloyd 2 yelled. "She's breaking through!" Lloyd's head jerked up from Kai's shuddering form to see more tentacles snaking through and over the wall of water, and his face fell.
"I'm sorry, Kai, we can't help you." He said quietly, clasping Kai's shoulder. "We have to fight her." Kai managed to give him a single nod, and Lloyd gave his shoulder a squeeze before standing up, plastering a cold look on his face, and running to rejoin the others. Morro gave Kai one more, sad, look before following.
The Preeminent didn't seem to be bothered at all by the water as she passed through Nya and Maya's wall. Many ghosts fell from around her, most vanishing in a puff of smoke before they hit the sea below. Morro also noticed them gathering at the top of the Preeminent's body – higher than the wall could reach. The ghosts were absorbing her damage, but they could still be externally killed, and water killed ghosts with little more than a touch, so-
"Lloyd!" Morro yelled. "Nya, Maya! We need to get the water higher! If we can kill all the ghosts at once, then we can do damage directly to the Preeminent!"
"Ah! Like a boss!" Nya exclaimed, snapping her fingers. "The ghosts are like a regenerating shield, and it's too strong to do damage to the boss health bar. We have to take out the shield first!" Her mother gave her a quizzical look, and she shrugged. "I play a lot of video games with Jay."
"Alright… but how are we going to get the water that high? It's a LONG way up, and we don't have enough power to lift the water and maintain a dragon at the same time." Maya protested, gesturing to the Preeminent towering over their wall.
"Then you can ride on someone else's dragons. Zanes!" Lloyd called, taking control. When the two nindroids got into earshot, the blond gave them a brief explanation of their plan, as well as taking one of the Zanes aside for a moment to whisper something in his ear, then the two summoned their dragons and the girls climbed on behind them. As they took off, the Preeminent whispered,
"That isn't going to work." Morro stiffened. "Even if you do managed to take out my 'shield', you still do not possess enough power to damage me- assuming, of course, you can pull this off at all."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, like we're gonna take your advice." Lloyd 2 yelled back at her. "What're you gonna do to stop us?"
"Wouldn't you like to know?" As she spoke, tentacles shot through the slowly-rising wall of water, trying to grab the Zanes' dragons. Though Nya shifted her attention to them, shooting water from her hands at the tentacles, it did nothing except send more ghosts falling into the sea. Fortunately, the Zanes seemed to be able to dodge them for now. The Preeminent was fast, but not fast enough to beat a computer's reflexes.
A flash of movement caught Morro's eye, and he spun around to see more tentacles slithering over the edge of the bridge. The others hadn't noticed yet, focused on the water masters struggling above them. One tentacle moved up behind Lloyd 2, poised to grab his ankle.
Morro didn't think. He just ran across the bridge, tackling Lloyd out of the Preeminent's path.
Morro caught the look of terror in Lloyd's eyes right before he hit him – he was still afraid of him. They still weren't on great terms, and him charging at him could definitely look like an attack. But Lloyd didn't attack him back, regardless of what he thought, and the two of them thudded to the ground.
Lloyd immediately started to struggle out from under him, but froze when he spotted the tentacle, apparently realizing what Morro had done, and the wind master pushed himself off, glancing over his shoulder to make sure the tentacle wasn't pursuing them yet. He didn't see anything, but as he turned back, something cold wrapped around his ankle, yanking him back, and Lloyd lunged to grab his hand to late. Too stunned to react in time, Morro was dragged off the bridge into the sea.
Morro half expected to disintegrate upon contact with the water, but, of course, he didn't. He wasn't a ghost. Still, this was really, really bad. The Preeminent had let go of him, but had dragged him a few feet under first. The churning water was tossing him back and forth, and his metal fingers were dragging him down.
And Morro couldn't swim. He was going to drown.
Remember last July when I went on vacation right after murdering Kai? Is this better or worse?
I will TRY to finish the last chapter of the final battle before I leave, I swear. I'll try.
~FFF