A/N: Karl does not belong to me. My good friend on Instagram crunchy_toast201 is the owner of Karl, and I am grateful to her for letting me use him in this NG story and timeline!
Brook and Paige sprinted, looking for Seth and Homura. There was a loud bang, and the two jumped for cover. When the dust settled, there was a boy around their age standing in front of the rocks the ice and lightning wielders hid behind. A beam of what appeared to be energy appeared in front of the boy as he shot at some of the soldiers. He turned, a smile on his face.
"Hey guys! I heard there was a fight and thought you could use some help!" He exclaimed. He came over and offered Brook and Paige a hand. They took them, inspecting the boy in front of them carefully. His hair was all fluffed up and two colors; charcoal and snow-white. "Oh! I completely forgot! Name's Karl, and I can control both dark and light matter!"
Karl chuckled and ruffled his hair. Paige and Brook looked at each other before turning back and looking at the matter wielder in front of them. He patted the links of boxes that the two assumed held ammunition, then tightened the tie on his belt of his black and white gi.
"Since you came down here, did you see a small red-head and a tall, muscular guy who wears black?" Brook asked. Karl shook his head, scanning the room. There were no more soldiers at the current moment, and Adekave was retreating with his right-hand man. "Wait! We can't let him escape! He'll just run and remake his machines that'll be used against us later!"
Paige tugged Brook's gi from behind. The lightning wielder turned to Paige shaking her head. "We can stop him later when we regroup and are stronger; Homura has been malnourished and held hostage, so her condition is at our disadvantage. We also do not have enough training under our belt to take down the entire army plus Adekave. We should focus our efforts on finding Homura and Seth."
Brook took one last glance towards the retreating Adekave and then back at Paige and Karl. Reluctantly, he sighed. "Fine, let's go find them." The three started back towards the heart of the cave, looking around, trying to spot where their missing friends were. After what seemed like an eternity, Karl moaned.
"Are you both positive they're still in the cave? We've searched every nook and cranny, and they ain't nowhere to be seen!" He whined, dramatically placing his hand on his forehead. He looked at the lightning and ice wielders, and noticed the deadpan looks on their faces. "What? We have done all the looking we can. It's just rocks and more rocks! No humans!"
"Karl, calm down. Not all hope is lost. Look," Paige calmly stated and pointed to the rocks that led closer to what appeared to be a rock formation. The nindroid scanned, picking up two heat signatures, one stronger than the other. "Instead of panicking like a chicken with its head cut off, take a minute to observe. Brook, lead the way."
Brook nodded his head and began to follow the small rocks. They had begun to get larger in size the closer the three got to the fortress. The light got darker, and soon, they were engulfed in complete darkness. Brook had to use his lightning powers to illuminate enough light so they could see where they were going. Time ticked by slowly, making every second an eternity. Silence hung around the trio like storm clouds; a warning that they may not find their missing friends and family.
"We aren't going to find them…" Brook wailed after a few minutes of following the rocks. Paige sighed and scanned again. The heat signatures had disappeared from the fortress made out of rock, but the fortress did leave a clue behind for the others.
"Seth and Homura were here. Seth made this fortress, you can tell by the texture of the rocks. The ones that call this cave home have a rough texture, while the ones here in this fortress are smooth," Paige explained, running her hand across the smooth rocks. She closed her eyes, producing a small amount of frost that covered the fortress. Karl and Brook looked on in amazement, then confusion dawned on their features. "That is to show that we have already been here. If we pass it again, it means we have gone in a circle."
Brook and Karl nodded their heads in understanding. The nindroid stood up and scanned once again. She motioned with her hand for the lightning and matter wielder to follow her lead. They followed, examining the cavern. Bodies were thrown around from the battle prior. Karl and Brook cringed whenever they hit the body of a deceased soldier occasionally, but they kept quiet as to not blow their cover.
It seemed like another eternity as they traveled deeper, towards the heart of the cavern. Water droplets could be heard the more the trio wandered. Paige scanned once again, concluding that the earth and fire wielders were where the water began. She beckoned the two boys to continue their march down the corridor. The sound of rushing water grew louder and louder.
Karl looked around, his breathing becoming restless. It was just darkness at every turn, the only light was Brook's electricity that threatened to shock him if he got too close. He trailed observing the looming walls of the cavern that seemed to reach out, trying to grab him. Warily, he peered around again, whimpering as the last faint bit of light vanished.
"Where would they be?" Karl whined. Brook and Paige turned, seeing the matter wielder on the verge of a breakdown. Brook stepped back and placed a hand on Karl's shoulder. A whimper escaped the matter wielder's lips as he looked around in the dark and then at Brook. "W-We haven't found them yet…! Surely we would've found them by now! I-I don't want to give up hope, but the more time we spend looking, the less likely it seems."
"We're ninja," Brook started. Karl looked up, meeting the lightning wielder's gaze. "We don't just call it quits and throw the towel in. They're still out there, alive. Wipe that moping look off your face and come on. If you don't, I'll have no choice but to shock you until you get rid of that fear. Fear helps no one. It only holds you back from achieving your true potential."
Karl nodded his head and looked past Brook, seeing Paige waiting on them to finish. He shook his head, trying to push the fears and doubts of not finding the others from his head. Karl looked back up, seeing Brook and Paige beginning to walk down the corridor once again. Darkness surrounded the young elementals as they started their descent down to the waterfall.