At the bogs
Cole and the rest of the ninja and elemental masters headed to the toxic bogs. Sensi Wu disguised as Bree rode with Cole and a shrunkin and disguised Lloyd. Cole thought if the hair was blond this was probably not too far off from what Lloyd really did look like. The other disguised ninja and various elemental masters hung back and crept in on foot. Staying out of sight.
Cole could see some ghosts waiting for them and could see some dark shapes move around in the water nearby. Dark kappa no doubt. However at their current proximity the kappa should have been boiling out of the water already. With a smirk he dropped his dragon. Bree was right that all the kappa they had left wouldn't last too long. Dragging the fake Bree and boy he gave them a jerk and came to a halt.
"So you green bunch of douche canoes. Where is my dad?" Cole snarled out.
The fake Bree that was actully Wu was appraising the number and size of their enemy's. Lloyd was ignoring him and watching some of the Ghosts moving around in horror. They most definitely had possessed some people. Trust Lloyd would catch onto that first.
One of the figures moved foreword to speak. Mr Brookstone no where in sight. He looked weary and worn down, With a reluctant sigh he spoke.
"Clouse says you can't have the old man until he is sure that Brianna and the child are unharmed" the person stated.
Cole, Lloyd and especially Wu knew that voice. Wu tensing up before working to hide it.
"What the hell? Krux! We all thought you were dead. And why on earth are you working for Clouse?" Cole ground out.
"Clouse has his ways of making you do whatever he wants. And if you don't he has no problem with cruelly punishing you" Krux answered. His face awash with tiredness and frustration.
"And we can assume that you and your brother had something to do with Hana's death as well. No way Clouse alone could jump back in time like that" Wu disguised as Bree said with anger creeping up in the voice.
Wu speaking up caught Krux's attention. He glared at the three standing there.
"That is something I regret. But it was no longer a choice for me. At any rate give me the woman and the child and you may have your father back" Krux answered.
"My dad first or no deal" Cole spat.
This was the point were they had preplanned for the rest of the ninja and elemental masters to move in closer. But Coles dad was still nowhere to be seen. The Ghosts that had been waiting started milling around more.
"Somethings wrong" Llyod murmured quietly.
Cole sensed it too. But didn't know what. And why Krux was waiting around. And where his brother was.
"I don't think you have any intention of bringing my dad here do you?" Cole spat out.
From the side another figure floated into view. With purple and magenta magic oozing from it. Cole, Wu and Lloyd swirling to meet the new threat. Clouse had come out to play himself.
"No more than you ever had any intention of bringing the real Brianna and her daughter to me" Clouse answered in a sickening voice.
"You said boy" the disguised Wu snapped.
"Of course I know its not a boy. A master of magic can sense another master of magic if they were taught how. I knew the instant they both were born. However the other ghost I sent after Brianna does not know that. Lets see if he can actually get the right people or if he is as stupid as you lot" Clouse laughed.
The three in the clearing pf the bogs tensed.
"What did you say?" Cole ground out.
Clouse rolled his eyes as best as his wraith like form would allow. If wraiths even had eyes and not just glowing orbs in their greasy and gaunt faces.
"I sent someone else after Brianna and her daughter while you three fools are trying to trick me with this fakes" Clouse answered him with a slimy grin.
Cole didn't hesitate or wait but drew up piles of granite and launched it at Clouse's hovering form.
The wraith dodged out of the way floating up higher. Narrowing his eyes...Glowing eye holes? at Cole.
"You are going to regret that dirt bag" Clouse snarled viciously.
With that he sent several bolts of magenta purple magic at Cole and the ghosts that were milling about attacked the three. The other ninja and elemental masters dropped out of the sky and trees and all hell broke loose. With a few Kappa crawling out of the bog waters around them. Crawling and slower but still with deadly sharp talons and teeth. Cole thought it was super weird to watch his friends use their respective powers in the guise of Brees form.
"Get down here and fight you coward!" Cole yelled as he watched Clouse reel back and up higher away from his onslaught.
"No, I don't think I am going to try and take on another master of earth in this half life form. In fact I don't really want to pick a fight with any of you until my Brianna helps me acquire a new body. So for that I think I am going to have the lot of you incapacitated for now" Clouse answered back.
With that Clouse pulled a few tattered raggy looking papers from within his cloak. And started reading off them.
"STOP HIM!" The Bree that looked like Zane from the ice powers blasting yelled across the marshy battle ground. "Those look like they are out of that dam spellbook!".
"Fuckkkk!" Another disguised Ninja yelled from across the bog. That might have been Kai.
Cole and a very small Lloyd both blasting in Clouse's direction. It only served to make Clouse hover higher as he continued reading the spell.
"Need a boost tiny?" Cole asked smirking.
"Wait what?" Lloyd answered in confusion.
Not bothering to waste time explaining Cole grabbed Lloyd by the ankle with a quick sweeping motion. And then threw Lloyd up high into the air, higher than anyone of them could airjitzu quickly. Lloyd got the idea and lobbed green energy balls at Clouse. He didn't look happy but Lloyd had the idea before he started crashing back down to the ground. Before Lloyd hit a snapping sound went thought the bog, followed by several more. Friend and foe paused momentarily to see everyone shift back to their original form.
Not believing for a second and awestruck momentarily Cole then knew something had to have happened to Bree for the glamour to fail so spectacularly. In anger Cole grabbed several Kappa by the limbs like he had Lloyd. Throwing them to smash them into each other and the ghosts.
Clouse finished off reading the spell and it came crashing through the bog with a bang. Out of no where chunks of stone came out of the ground, hitting ninja, ghost and kappa alike. It actually finished off a few of the kappa. Clouse laughed at that and the ninja and elemental masters hitting the ground in pain. With a purple glow the stones magically altered and changed themselves into chains and manacles. They held all in the group fast to the ground. Grunts of rage and effort. And a smattering of choice words and everyone stopped and waited.
"Take them all to the dungeons with the earth elemental's father. I have to await the arrival of my special girls up stairs" Clouse instructed the remaining ghosts and a world weary looking Krux.
Far fewer ghosts to Coles count. And that at least made him grin a bit.
"Id wipe that off your face. You aren't going to like whats going to happen later" Krux said bluntly. Following along and giving Morro and Lloyd both a shove.
"What is going to happen?" Wu asked. A very small flicker of humanity crossing Krux's face when his old old friend turned enemy spoke.
Krux sighed and continued to push the ninja along. Apparently there were some large caverns under the bogs. Moving through some different rooms and tunnels.
"Krux please, why are you doing this? You know who Brianna and Alanna are to me. While you lusted after power you were never a monster like this. He is going to hurt my daughter and granddaughter. When have you ever desired to hurt innocent women and children" Wu asked.
"I don't want to do this, now or anything I have done in the past or him. But like you said, its all about who is what to me. You are worried about your family. How do you think I feel about mine?" Krux asked in annoyance.
"Your brother can take care of himself from what I've seen" Wu scoffed. With Krux snorting in diversion.
They had reached the dungeon. It was as dark and dank as one would assume. Chained up on the wall Cole could see his father and perhaps a few others. If they were alive. It smelled so bad down here it would be impossible to tell if they were alive or gone off for a few days. The remaining ghosts chained them as quickly as possible before coasting out of sight back down the tunnels. It was too wet for the ghosts to be comfortable down here. Krux did not leave with them, but checked on two of the chained up individuals. A man and a child it looked like.
No one else could hear what was said between the three. Aside from the child bursting into tears.
Not turning back Krux spoke over his shoulder.
"If your daughter is who Clouse says she is then she is capable of preforming great magic. Yes?" He asked.
"She's the current elemental master of magic, part djin and part Sensi Wu. She can magically mop the floor with your dumb ass." Morro pipped up from his place chained to the wall.
"Can she hold her own, injured, against another master of magic?" Krux asked. Turning to glare at Wu and Morro both.
Cole held his temper and his mouth. Waiting for Wu to speak.
"It is a possibility, but why do you care if you are working with Clouse" Wu snapped.
"Clouse found us where we had gone to be at peace in another realm and time. Without our fully working elemental powers he killed my brother, my wife, my daughter in law and magically tore my son and grandsons hearts from their chests. Some ghost or another has been walking around with their bodies as portable meatbags. And if I don't get Clouse what he wants, if I don't do what he wants, if I don't kill who he wants then he will simply crush their crystallize hearts and kill the rest of MY family. So sorry to tell you Wu, there isn't much I wont do at this point to see them survive." Krux snarled lowly and dangerously.
"If we can get them out of here I have reason to believe that Bree has every chance of fixing them, between her powers and her mothers spell book and asking the other masters of magic for advice there isn't much I don't think Bree can't do" Cole answered for Wu. Not mentioning that the very hearts Krux spoke of were now very safe and sound at the fortress.
"Oh yea right, Cole. Rowena was a bitch and a total self serving brat. Like Brianna or little Alanna could have grown up to be any different from her mother. Even if they have enough elemental magic and power to blot the dark island off the map. Why would they care." Coles father Lou spoke up from his place chained to the wall.
Coles arms glowed orange in anger. Almost but not enough to break the vengestone chains on him. The group turning with utter looks of what the fuck.
It was Lloyd who interjected and spoke before Cole. "Bree is kind and brave and smart. She has helped everyone of us, protected everyone of us. Uncursed everyone of us. You don't get to say shit about her" he snapped.
There was a few minutes of cursing back and forth. Before anyone sat in angered silence. Now Krux's turn to stand and stare at this in confusion and disgust.
"If I help you get loose... my price would be saving my son and grandson" Krux stated.
"An uneasy truce is one made with a former foe" Wu stated. Looking over the rest of the Ninja and elemental masters for their consensus if not consent. Most nodded in agreement, the ones that were conscious anyways. They might not like it, but it could be their ticket out of here.
"So did anyone else aside from me pick up on the fact that Lou knows who Bree and Alanna are and... Rowena too. Not just who they are, but what they can do... Without any prior explanation" Nya said piping up for the first time. Both her and Skyler looking back and forth at each other in understanding.
Cole didn't look up at either his father or the women. He knew exactly what Nya was talking about. And a rage burnt up inside of him, white hot. But externally the glowing orange of his arms crept up onto his chest and neck before calming down.
"Babe. What are you talking about? Because aside from everything else. I would really like to get out of the creepy dungeon right now." Jay asked. A bit of high pitched whine to the end that he usually produced when stressed.
"If my father knows that Bree is the elemental master of magic, then he knows who she was married to. He knows Alanna's biological dad was Slate, the elemental master of earth in between mom and me. He knows very well who Rowena was. What she was and what she could do." Cole ground out. Taking a deep breath before continuing. "Then my dad has known my whole life that my mom was the former elemental master of earth and that I would be too.".
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"This is just the kind of gossip that Rumi would have loved to hear about and make fun of you for. I kinda wish we would have brought her" Morro said with a laugh.
The round of groans, complaints and shouts of shut the fuck up Morro did nothing to lighten the mood in the room, err, dungeon.
