So sorry for the longer wait in between chapters. As we all know life has been crazy with this virus. My spouse and I are essential employees and working jobs that put us at high risk on top of everything at home with and starting the garden up for the produce. At any rate I hope you are all doing well and safe at home. Reviews or even comments to tell me what you're up and how you are doing are more than welcome.
In the library.
The ninja and all elemental masters had reconvened in the library. Some were staying with Bree and the aforementioned Zane to watch the children and protect their family's. Zane was absolutely not thrilled about being left behind and Pixal putting herself in any danger. He could only be consoled with her saying she would go with Cole and Lloyd on the literal not figurative milk run.
"So everyone has their plans. Where they are going. What they are doing?" Lloyd asked.
"For most of you this is little more than instigating to draw attention. For the groups checking out the bogs again and going to cloud kingdom we need to exercise extreme caution. If they figure out what we are really doing then we will not be at full strength for a fight. But in small groups. As that is, I am going with Morro, Harumi and Paleman to the cloud kingdom." Wu told the group.
"But sensi? Shouldn't you stay here where its safe" Jay asked.
The withering look from Wu really should have shut Jay up. A smack upside the head from Kai was helpful.
Each of the groups took off at a blistering pace.
Bree stood with Zane watching them go Zane holding Cyrus and glowering. Bree watching him do so.
"She is going to be fine Zane" Bree told him.
"My logical calculations agree with your consensus. However there is residual fear still present. I do not approve" Zane answered her.
"She is going out with Lloyd and Cole on a literal milk run. They are going to get groceries and make them selves seen and then be right back" Bree told him soothingly
"The seen part is causing the problem" he replied.
Bree sighed and then picked Alana up.
"This place, for all its magic and mine, isn't infallible either. Someone managed to get in and kill my grandmother and a whole lot of other people and get away without getting caught." Bree said sourly.
At the bogs
Kai, Nya and Skyler had taken several of the elemental masters with them to the bogs. First lighting up any of the buildings that would catch fire. And then Nya hitting as many ghosts as she could with water. That worked excellently. However it didn't seem like there were as many Ghosts and dark kappa hanging around.
"I thought that Bree and Lloyd said this was the main base" Nya yelled over the sound of water gushing.
"They did. I don't think this is all of what was here yesterday" Skyler yelled back
"So they moved them? Or set the rest of the adult Kappa loose?" Nya questioned.
Skyler shrugged as she burnt down another shack on her way to see what Kai was doing staring at some of the ghosts. More accurately at one of the ghosts. They ghosts taking off and puffing out left and right at the sight of the water ninja.
"Did you see that one?" Kai called, half in confusion and astonishment.
"See what?" Nya answered him.
"That one ghost looked super familiar, I just can't place him" Kai told her.
"Well we done what we planned to do. We need to get out of here!" Nya yelled. Kai and Skyler agreeing and heading off with the rest of the elemental masters.
In the cloud kingdom
Morro and Harumi had stealthily snuck in the back door of cloud kingdom leading the others in. A little easier for Paleman than the others. It was hardly necessary. It seemed as abandoned and as desolate as the last time they were here. Not a flying boat to be seen. No monks or little family's to be seen out shopping or coming home from market.
"This isn't what this place looked like last time is it?" Wu asked.
"Actually its a little bit more desolate than before. Wait when have you been to cloud kingdom?" Morro stated then asked in slight confusion.
Wu didn't answer at all, but instead raised an eyebrow at Morro. Harumi walked past shaking her head. He could have his secrets. He always has and always will. Harumi thought it was very likely that Bree's mother Rowena had taken him to some of the other realms when they were still married.
The group moved quietly through the though-fares and then into the main temple. Beautiful, but empty. Here they could hear some voices and the visible three clung to the shadows. Morro could sense Paleman was still with them via the way the breeze moved around them. if they weren't trying to live through yet another world ending bad apocalypse Morro thought he could love living here in the open air all the time.
Hiding in the shadows and then heading up into the beam work the four watched and waited. While others were making themselves annoyingly visible this group was attempting to gather information first before wrecking things. Down below a few older monks and a handful of ghosts moved around the computers and then the cages...? In the very center of the room. Cages was perhaps not the best explanation. Podiums holding glass enclosed glowing red orbs. The red colors flashed dully beating. Both going ever more slowly. With one of the glowing orbs beating irregularly.
Paleman became half visible and with a gesture made the others know that he would go make a noise down the hallway to draw the monks and ghosts away so the others could see what was really going on down below. A clanging noise a handful of minutes later drew them all away nicely.
"What the fuck is this?" Morro asked half in amazement and half disturbance.
"Does the beating tempo remind anyone else of something?" Harumi asked.
"I was hoping I was wrong. But these appear to be crystallized hearts" Wu said evenly. Only his years of training and patience was able to hold back the horror he felt inside.
"Were they...? They aren't human hearts?" Morro asked hopefully.
"I believe they are, or were" Wu answered him in disgust.
Harumi had walked up to the computers and was busily clicking away. Wu and Morro heard her gasp before going quite again.
"I think I know what these are for?" Harumi said unevenly. Tucking a strand of her white blond hair behind her ear again.
Wu waiting patiently and Morro gesturing for her to hurry up.
"Using these human hearts, potions and spells. Someone could jump back and forth in time. These beating hearts once belonged to the elemental masters of time." Harumi said.
"Clouse is using humans as potion and spell components?" Morro asked in in abject horror and disgust.
Even at Harumi's most indecent she had never even considered doing something so awful.
"Not just any humans, but elemental masters. I can't imagine that these were given up willingly. However... they are still beating. But not well. Maybe the owners of them are still alive somewhere." Wu said.
"Nobody is walking around without a heart" Harumi said rolling her eyes.
"This is the darkest magic I have ever seen used... But perhaps all is not lost. Brianna might know... or the other elemental masters of magic in the crypts below." Wu told her.
Morro contemplated what Wu said. Bree did know a lot about magic. And she might be able to say for sure if the owners of these hearts were alive or dead. He could feel that Paleman had come back in the room.
"So maybe we grab these and run? It might set up some sort of alarm or ruckus. But I don't think we should chance leaving them here for anyone else to use." Morro stated.
"Agreed. However Harumi can you take Paleman and pop in and out? Morro and I will use airjitzu to catch up with you then" Wu asked kindly.
A look back and forth between Morro and Harumi. Wu smiled to himself. He didn't exactly know the status of their relationship but it made him happy to see them both no longer making a mess out of their lives.
Harumi grabbed Paleman, who startled a little at her accuracy even while he was invisible and gasped. With a puff of burnt orange smoke they were a good distance away and with just one more Morro could sense via the wind that they had already landed back at the bounty just outside cloud kingdom. Bree was right that Rumi's skills were growing by leaps and bounds.
Facing Wu again Morro readied himself to take off. Wu cautiously reached forward to grab both slow beating heart crystals. Snatching his hands back more quickly once he had them. And nothing. Both froze in place. Just like stealing the book back for Bree nothing happened. No alarms sounded. No guards came running. This place really was not being well guarded at all. Oh well better for us Morro thought as they headed quickly back to the bounty.
Over Ninjagi city
If Cole kept laughing he was either going to fall off his dragon or drop several bags of groceries. They had gone into Ninjago city and quickly picked up some groceries and checked on some friends and a few family members of people at the temple who hadn't come alone. Not everyone has elemental power and now for the most part with the elemental masters and close kin out of town the kappa were leaving people alone. The trip was quick because Cole worried if they lingered that they would draw Kappa in to bother the local people so they got in and out. However on the way out Pixal decided it would be a fabulous idea to tell Lloyd that she saw a Kappa behind him. In Lloyds half asleep state he screamed and jumped. It was amazing. According to Cole anyways.
"That was friggin awesome Pix!" Cole laughed. " I am so glad that you pick up on humor more quickly than it took Zane to learn".
"I video recorded it for Zane. I am hopeful it with raise his spirit and lower his anxiety levels" Pixal responded. She attempted to sound as clinical and even toned as possible. But her mirth was barely kept in check.
"Must we do this bullshit? Our world is nearly ending and I haven't slept in a day and a bit. Can we just go back now?" Lloyd asked after he swore under his breath at Cole
"Before we go back shouldn't we stop to check on Cole's father as well?" Pixal asked.
That got Cole to stop laughing. Cole and his father were on better terms. But not great terms. Plus he hadn't seen his father in more than a year. Well for Cole anyways. In regular Ninjago time it had been a few months. And he hadn't even explained to anyone else his and Bree's relationship. Or that Alana existed. That one will throw his dad for a loop. Aside from being Cole's future daughter Alana was technically his only other living relative other than his father. And his father as far as he could remember was never on good terms with any of his mother's family. He never knew why as a kid. As an adult he could only wonder how much his dad really knew about his mom, who and what she really was. Cole couldn't remember his mom ever using her elemental powers. But she must have had them at that point. Bree could remember Beverly using her powers. Different than Coles. But she had definite Earth elemental powers.
"Do we wanna just head straight home?" I know Bree has got to be worrying about us being gone so long" Cole said to the others.
"Come on Cole. You've got to talk to your dad and check on him sometime. And you gotta tell him alllll about your girlfriend and Alana" Lloyd laughed.
"Yes Cole, We already checked on my father while we were out. We should make sure your dad is doing well" Pixal said while banking left to avoid Lloyd swooping his dragons in closer to Cole.
Lloyd smirked and laughed again. Cole was very sure that his dad was gonna get told about Bree and Alana. He wondered how pleased Bree would be with that considering she said ask her that very specific question again in private.
Heading a little further north of Ninjago city they made it to the Brookstone's house. Well now it was just his dads house. The lights were off and they couldn't see a car outside or anything. Something however... Cole tossed the grocery bags to Lloyd who barely caught them. Dropping his dragon he knocked on the front door. It swung open then snapped off its hinges with a clang. Pixal and Lloyd came in behind him.
"This place has been wrecked" Lloyd said in surprise.
"No shit green bean" Cole growled.
"Well this is a new development" Pixal said. Holding up a large but crumpled paper. Crudely written it was a note specifically for Cole.
I have your father. Bring Brianna Stone and her son to the bogs to trade. You have 12 hours before I feed him to my pets.
"No" was all Cole said. Low and viciously.
"We can't possibly hand over Bree and Alana to that monster, even for your dad" Lloyd said.
Cole didn't answer but headed straight back out the door. His arms glowing a bright and deep shade of orange. Almost red in his anger.
"Why does it say son? I am very certain Alana is a girl" Pixal asked in confusion. This didn't stop her from grabbing the grocery bags with the mech and taking off with Cole and Lloyd.
"Because Bree has done a good enough job of hiding Alana and Rumi with her realm jumping. Clouse must not know" Lloyd yelled over the wind.
And Clouse is never going to find out because he is never going to set eyes on either of them Cole thought. He would save his dad one way or another. But not at the expense of his girls.
