"We're surrounded!" A Water Tribe soldier shouted, raising his spear up. Water surrounded the tip as he bared it towards the encroaching Raiders

The two had their backs to a wall, having been forced away from their post at the front of the bridge to the Water Tribe's floating village. The bridge was beginning to fill with Raiders heading towards the buildings. Several Raiders surrounded them, wordlessly slashing and jabbing at them with their swords. Broken vehicles lay around the two, a sign of the struggle the two guards had already undergone. The other guard growled as she raised up her sword in one hand and water in the other.

"Get ready!" The female guard shouted, rearing her arm back to swing the blade, "Run as soon as I open up a gap! You have to warn the tribe!"

The male guard was about to protest, but suddenly the entire area began to rumble. The warriors stopped in confusion and turned towards the sound. The two guards watched with widened eyes as the waters underneath the bridge began to rapidly swirl together. When they stilled, for a moment all was calm.

The water then rapidly spouted into the air, lowering the water level under the bridge as someone pulled it into the air. The two guards watched in awe as a golden flash thrust his hand out towards the bridge. The waterspout smashed into it, sweeping across the surface and sending the warriors upon it flying backwards to solid land. When the figure landed, he thrust his hand forward, causing the water to fire forward and then freeze solid to block the bridge entrance. The figure ran forward and flipped over the barrier he created, landing and sending his arm out in a circle around himself. Any warriors still on their feet were sent to the ground as lightning shot out and electrocuted any metal it touched.

"D-Dragon Lord?!" The female guard shouted, only to grunt as she was forced to block an oncoming sword from a warrior that hadn't gotten the message.

Mage grinned and suddenly turned into a blur, racing forward using speed and appearing in the air by the warrior. He delivered a fierce kick to its head, sending it to the ground. Out in the open, nothing came out at first. Mage shoots flames to flick the armor, the unbearable heat causing snakes to flee out of the armor. As the guards revolted at the sight, Mage reached out with Nature, eyes green, and the grass grew to wrap around the armor and drag it apart. For the other warriors, he strained and reached out with his other hand, blasting them apart with wind.

"Yep!" Mage grinned, releasing both elements and smacking his hands together, "Get back inside the city and protect the entrance! I got out here!"

"But… you froze the bridge…" The male guard slowly pointed to the ice barrier.

"Oh… right!" Mage blushed, waving his hand and causing it to melt into water that poured back into the ocean, "Okay, now go! I got this!"

The two guards obeyed instantly, rushing back. Mage covered their retreat by standing directly at the bridge entrance. The warriors that Mage had blasted apart began to perform, hissing at him and rushing at him. Mage grinned and stepped on the ground, causing it to rumble and shake them off their feet.

"Alright you… snakes!" Mage grinned, drawing his hands apart and summoning fire in his hands, "Let's do this!"

"Let's do this!" Lulloyd beamed as he set the last chess piece down on the table.

Harumi on the other side yawned, doing her best to stay awake. After consecutive days of pouring over reports, she'd finally gotten some sort of schedule of the Raiders/Vermillion attacks. After she'd nearly collapsed just trying to eat, Lloyd had insisted she sleep and then take a long break. Given that it was already the evening but too early to sleep, and after protesting she didn't have anything else to do, Lulloyd had suggested they play a game to keep her up.

"Do you have chess in your Ninjago?" Harumi yawned, slowly straightening herself out, "I never took you as the chess type. I'd have thought this place wouldn't have it, but," She gestured to the uniquely styled but clearly rendered pieces, "Let's throw this as a universal constant down."

"I love board games!" Lulloyd beamed, "My mom would play them with me all the time. We got into the habit of playing a lot of them. And, uh, eventually that led me into tabletop roleplaying stuff. But, my mom and I always played games when we could! That, or puzzles. Puzzles are cool too."

"Any reason chess in particular though?" Harumi leaned forward.

"Uh… I've been hanging around you guys in your whole, planning room and all that," Lulloyd chuckled, "And, uh, I've been working on strategy. You two are coming up with so many plans I wanted to see if I could, outthink you! Cause, uh, you're kinda really smart."

"Really now?" Harumi sat up in her chair at full attention, "I should warn you, the only one that ever beat me at chess was Somnan, and even he had to use mind to do it."

"Well, I've been training at it and, thinking of strategies," Lulloyd leaned towards the table, "I'll do it! Come on, let's play!" Lulloyd set Harumi up with the pieces and waited for her first move.

Seven moves later, he no longer needed to wait.

"What…?" Lulloyd blinked at the board, his king somehow in chess with his queen gone, rooks in disarray, pawns split up, and his king in checkmate to Harumi's queen, a knight and rook.

"You left your left side wide open," Harumi shrugged, "I saw you were going for my knights, but you made it too obvious."

"Then… let's try again!" Lulloyd shook his head, "I know your strategy now!"

Nine moves later, he was once more staring at the board with a confused expression.

"You didn't notice my rook going into your back line," Harumi pointed out, "Try again."

This time, it took eight moves for Lulloyd to be stunned again.

"You sacrificed your queen, never sacrifice a unit that powerful that early on," Harumi pointed out.

Thirteen moves later, Lulloyd had his head against the table.

"You lasted a lot longer that time," Harumi smiled, "You even noticed my using my knight to distract you."

"How…?" Lulloyd lifted his head up, "I, I thought I'd at least, have a fair game…"

"I've been playing a lot longer than you have," Harumi sighed, "Dad taught me how to play this when I was four. Don't get down. You said you want to learn about strategy, right? Well this is a good practice."

"I'm not upset, I'm just… disappointed," Lulloyd sat back in his chair, "I thought, I was learning something."

"If you're referring to all of this stuff we're doing here, that's battle strategy," Harumi leaned on one elbow, "That isn't anything like chess. Chess is about guessing your opponent's next move, the move after that, and all the possible moves at once. You have to imagine all the possible combinations at any time and play to the most optimal move you can use and find ways to intercept their own moves. You can't learn it in a day."

"I... wanna have something to show my dad when I get home, though," Lulloyd shook his head, "I wanna, you know, show him I'm learning how to be a warlord."

"Why do you want to be one?" Harumi asked curiously, "I thought you said you were a ninja."

"I am, but, my dad really, really wants me to be one," Lulloyd paused, "Which, I uh, I guess sounds like I'm doing what he says. I mean, I just wanna show him I'm learning things and, I know he really appreciates warlords. So, that's what I'm focusing on, you know? I wanna get better at everything."

"Hrm…" Harumi paused, "Well, if you want to, keep shadowing us. You'll see practical battle strategy from that. In the meanwhile, I can give you some pointers on chess. How does that sound?"

"You'd… do that?" Lulloyd asked.

"Lloyd banned me from the planning room for the day," Harumi groaned, "So I don't have anything else to do until it's dark enough out to sleep. And I'm happy to help a friend."

"Really? Thanks, Harumi!" Lulloyd beamed, "Really, thank you, I mean it!"

"Don't mention it," Harumi waved her hand, "Go get me some paper, I'll start telling you about basic strategies in chess and predicting moves."

"Sure!" Lulloyd hopped up to his feet, "Oh, by the way, do you know where Lloyd is?"

"I think he said he's practicing his Spinjitzu and Airjitzu on the roof," Harumi was about to say more, but the sound of something thudding above them made the two look up, "That would be him, I bet."

"Heh… Spinjitzu is kinda cool," Lulloyd sighed, "I wish our Spinjitzu was more than just… I don't even know what it is."

The next day, Lulloyd got up early; rather, it was later than he normally did, but earlier than most. His mom -and later dad- had recently impressed upon him the importance of getting up early to train. Granted, it seemed for Lloyd and the others seven-thirty was apparently not early enough at times, but then again Lulloyd didn't have a clock in this world so he let his body naturally decide when to wake up. Having been given his sword and Mechdragon back from Lady Nya after they'd started their plan, he'd decided to go outside the building to train.

As soon as Lulloyd stepped outside, he heard a gunshot. Without even thinking, he flipped his hood up, drew his sword, and quickly leapt into the air. Bringing his fist down into the dirt, he broke it apart into bricks he used to build a plank on top of a small pile; throwing a chunk of bricks on the other end flipped him forward into the air at a faster rate than he could run. When he landed, he quickly shot forward around what looked like excavated dirt and leapt over them.

"Monty, I heard gunshots!" Lulloyd shouted, "And, uh, you're the only one that uses guns, so!"

Monty stopped and turned towards Lulloyd, a look of confused annoyance on his face. The area around him had been carved out by what looked like wind ripples, making a makeshift firing range. On the other end were stands of empty boxes. None of them were filled with holes. Monty's gun back, currently open, was missing two shotguns Monty held in each hand.

"You know, they normally tell kids not to run onto a gun range," Monty sighed, "Guess that's not common knowledge anymore."

"You… were, training, right…" Lulloyd stood up, sheathing his sword, "Uh… sorry."

"I figured I made this place far enough away from the Summit it wouldn't bother anyone," Monty groaned, throwing the shotguns in the air and catching them on his shoulders, "What do you want?"

"Oh, uh, I was just, coming out here to train and, uh, stretch, I heard the sounds and…" He paused, "...Those, boxes don't have holes in them."

"I'm using blanks," Monty scoffed, "I wouldn't waste ammo when I physically can't get in this universe, and I'm not going to waste time trekking all the way back to Dareth's place just to teleport out of here."

"Uh… do you know if we can just, open a portal, anywhere?" Lulloyd asked.

"Rumi said Fenwick told you guys doing it rips holes in the universe, so I figured our joyride around back to Lloyd's place was enough damage already to not try again," Monty shrugged, "One of us has to pay attention to those things."

"Yeah…" Lulloyd paused, "Wait, if, you're using blanks how are you training..?"

Monty suddenly spun, planting his foot on the ground and causing a burst of wind to slam up towards Lulloyd. As he stumbled backwards, Monty leapt forward and pushed the barrel end of a shotgun to Lulloyd's face. As Lulloyd stared down the barrel, he yelped out and fell backwards onto the ground. Monty lowered the shotgun in turn.

"Bang," Monty rolled his eyes, "Like that. I'm training my hand-eye coordination with lining up my shots. Since I don't have to feel recoil I have to make sure I can still aim the guns right."

"I was… wondering about that," Lulloyd gasped out, slowly getting to his feet, "I, uh… you, have rules as a ghost… what are they?"

Monty turned around and fired a shotgun. He did a backflip in the air and threw the just fired gun into the air to cock the one he'd aimed at Lulloyd. He fired that one, then spun around and caught the other shotgun behind his back. The entire action was only a few seconds.

"Got a few," Monty shrugged, "Rule one: only water and another ghost can kill me. Two: in order to hold something or stand on something I have to make those parts of my body solid. I stop focusing, then they go incorporeal. Three: whenever I'm solid, objects will hurt me like anything else. For example, if I get stabbed I will feel the pain of getting stabbed. But if you cut through my hand, it won't come off, but I'll feel it. So when using my guns my hands are most vulnerable. And four…"

"Uh… four?" Lulloyd asked.

Monty threw both shotguns at Lulloyd. Lulloyd caught them in each hand, only to see Monty had raced forward and leapt towards him. Monty kicked off the two guns, pushing Lulloyd to the ground and making him drop them. Monty landed, caught the shotguns, and then pointed them at Lulloyd again.

"Four: the only reason I'm telling you this is because I like you, so don't go telling the others," Monty sighed, "If we were caught, you're the only one that wouldn't tell the Twins. Lloyd would blurt it out accidently, and Harumi doesn't look like she's been tortured before."

"Uh...thanks?" Lulloyd asked, slowly reaching up. Monty groaned and grabbed Lulloyd's hand to pull him up. Monty turned around and placed the shotguns down and instead picked up a pair of pistols.

Lulloyd stepped back, watching Monty fight. Watching him was… oddly satisfying. Everything he did, he flowed his hands from one pose to the other. He threw his guns in the air to spin and catch them, whipped one out and spun it until his hand was in place. His body almost looked like it was snapping into place each time he fired a blank. It was… like his father.

"Monty!" Lulloyd stood up, "I, uhm. I want to ask a favor?"

"A favor?" Monty turned, raising his eyebrow, "I'm not teaching you how to shoot."

"No, I don't want to learn how to shoot! But, uhm… I want you to help me train!" Lulloyd requested, "I, uh, want you help!"

"...Why me?" Monty turned back around, firing again without looking at Lulloyd.

"Because… because everyone else here is so smart," Lulloyd looked aside, "Lloyd is just, he's a better leader than me. Harumi is so smart it's kinda scary. And… then you're over here throwing guns around like, bricks. I'm… I'm not that smart. But I can fight. If all I can do is fight, then I want to get stronger at that. And… you're doing all these crazy things!" Lulloyd gave a determined glance, "Help train me!"

Monty stopped, turning towards Lulloyd and looking him up and down. He put his guns away and the drew the SoS from his side. Lulloyd barely had time to raise his sword to block it as Monty threw it like a javelin right towards him. As it went spiraling in the air, Monty reached out and sucked it back into his hand. He sheathed the blade, then turned back around.

"I don't have time right now to give you full on lessons," Monty grumbled, "But I can point things out as we go along. If you wanna help me out with training, live targets are more fun. But we're not in a high school saving the world, we're on a mission to literally save multiple worlds right now. So don't expect me to devote time to you, got it?"

"Yeah, thank you, Monty!" Lulloyd smiled wide, "Really, thank you!"

"Don't thank me, I didn't do anything," Monty continued to pose before firing the pistol rapidly into the end of the SoS. As the blanks fired off, and Lulloyd took several steps back, "Huh. So you can shoot bullets off this thing and it won't get damaged. That'll be useful…." Monty turned to Lulloyd, "Go stand over there. I'm going to try to shoot you. Dodge."

"Uhm… not with real bullets, right?" Lulloyd drew his hood with a nervous smile.

"If you ask dumb questions like that a live round might just go in the chamber," Monty drew a large rifle, "Let's get started."

Lloyd stood on the roof. He panted hard, sweat pouring down his face. He had just taken a hard landing from losing focus of his Airjitzu, leaving his left leg with a noticeable throb. Despite that pain, he bit his lip and put his hands together, focusing hard as he did.

"Alright, come on, Lloyd!" Lloyd gripped his hands together,, "One more… time!"

Lloyd pushed his power out through his body. Slowly, the cyclone formed around his body and pushed him up into the air. The familiar feeling of soaring into the sky took him. Once he had gotten up a good twenty feet above the roof, he began to push himself, trying to continue the force putting him into the air. As his body began to strain, he focused harder, trying to push past his limit. Just as he felt he was about to hit that limit, his breath escaped his lungs and his cyclone flashed. He fell towards the roof, forcing himself to go into Airjitzu at the last second to minimize the impact. He still hit hard, and his left leg told him that a third impact would be the last for the day.

"That sounded painful," From the hatch Lloyd had taken to the roof, a familiar voice rang out, "You should perhaps be more careful."

Acronix smiled as he calmly made his way over to where Lloyd sat. Before Lloyd could say anything, he reached his right hand out, the clock appearing and the hands turning left. Lloyd's leg suddenly turned blue as time slowed around it, causing the pain to dull as each throb took far longer than normal.

"Thanks," Lloyd smiled awkwardly, "I uh, probably shouldn't push so hard."

"Training hard is a good tool, but pushing to the point of exhaustion can do more than you would know to you in the long time," Acronix chuckled, "I'm pretty sure everyone in the building can hear you training. What in the dragon's names are you doing?"

"Airjitzu," Lloyd replied, and when Acronix stared at him blankly he continued, "It's a technique that allows me to fly for small periods of time. It requires a lot of focus though, and I didn't exactly learn it the same way my team back home did. So, I'm kinda weak in it. I'm working to make sure I can use it more often."

"I see," Acronix nodded, "Your abilities and those of your friends are incredible. I wish we had more like them in this world."

"I would say being able to control time is better than flying," Lloyd stretched himself out, "You can do far more with that than I can do with Airjitzu."

"True, but I must be thinking constantly about what I'm doing. One cannot rest when manipulating the fundamental thread of reality," Acronix explained, looking off into the distance. Lloyd did the same, unsure what to say to that. As the two sat in silence, the wind blew against them.

The view in front of them was both boring and incredible at the same time. The immediate area was barren and dirt filled, leaving little to look at. But in the distance, glimpses of the wonder of the world could be seen. The massive jungles that the Nature Tribe inhabited, was a dot in the distance, and the rivers that led to the ocean of the Water Tribe was just barely visible. The mountains of the Ice and Form Tribes stretched out across the horizon like jagged teeth. Behind the two on the other side of the building, he'd be able to see the volcanic chain the Smoke and Fire Tribes called home, and the path that would lead to the open areas of the Mind and Wind Tribes. The world was a wonder to Lloyd, and one he both wanted to know more, and nothing more about to preserve the mystery it held.

"It must be hard for you," Acronix broke the silence, "Talking to versions of people you know from your own world, and the enemy that you've been chasing so desperately down, isn't it?"

"Uh… yeah, it kinda is," Lloyd admitted, "But I've also already done this four times now, so it's not as bad by this point."

"I see," Acronix shook his head, "Still, knowing what you do about your opponents, I can only imagine talking to someone like me. You make them sound almost… deranged."

"It's a little easier to separate your two," Lloyd pointed out, "You actually seem like a leader and have a way better vocabulary than my Acronix does. You also don't show the same traits as him."

"I would like to hope so," Acronix sighed, "I have to lead my people, I would hate to think that they're being led by an insane dictator."

"They've both always been like this," Lloyd admitted, "The Twins didn't show any remorse for their actions. I at first thought maybe we could at least try to save them but… it didn't work that way."

"That is preferable for the moment," Acronix admitted, "It will be easier if I must come face to face with him to fight someone so different that they might as well be a stranger. To fight someone that has a reasonable goal and motivations, is perhaps the hardest thing a leader can bring themselves to do. If it were to come to that, I would have to worry about the strength of my own conviction, let alone the strength of my element."

Lloyd wasn't sure how to respond to that, and Acronix gave him a small smile in apology for rambling. Once more silence seemed to dominate over them. It filled Lloyd with a slight pang of guilt, of all things. Was not wanting to talk to Acronix simply proving his point of him relating him too much to the other and showing how hard it was to distinguish everyone?

"Your… brother," Lloyd decided on, "I know that you must not want to talk about it but... I'd like to know a bit more about him."

"I suppose you mean specifically why he isn't here with me right now," Acronix frowned, "Well. I'll start from the beginning. Most tribes only have one leader. You have heard each tribe has a patron dragon, yes?"

"Yeah, is there like, a literal dragon that lives near your tribes?" Lloyd asked, "We saw the name Muto on one of your maps."

"Yes, these dragons are descendants of the first clutch the Firstbourne laid, those that blessed the tribes with the ability to manipulate the elements through years of studying," Acronix raised his hand up to let the Time Matrix form on it, "It is through our connection to them that we retain our powers. It's said that the stronger your element, the closer your bond with them is. The dragons mainly live in peace, but when it comes time to choose a leader, the tribe will send its candidates up to the dragon, and the dragon decides."

"My brother was the one that was sent," Acronix opened his fingers to the sky, "He was always the stronger one. But when he and the others went before Muto… Muto said he wanted both me and my brother to lead," Acronix's fingers tightened, "We were always special. Both of us could control two of the four powers. I have mentioned that most people in our tribe can only control one, and to a tiny extent at that, yes?"

"I've seen how long it takes a guard to reverse injuries," Lloyd nodded.

"Well, Muto took my brother and I off into the wilds beyond our tribes for years and had us train with one another," Acronix smiled sadly, "I learned how to fight against him. We learned everything with each other. Muto said that together, we would form the strongest tribe. We'd be the ones to make all other tribes respect each other. After we learned to fight with only our fists, we moved to weapons, then our powers. When we returned… we were indeed the strongest in the tribe."

"Now… when Chen came, the war was already beginning," Acronix frowned, "We have close relations with several tribes. I could see where the war was heading and said we would not fight. My brother disagreed with me. He said that as our allies, they were everything. We got into a big fight. When it was over, I had beaten him just enough to keep us out. It was just a sibling scrap. But Chen came in, right after that, and he convinced Krux simply that he should go and help regardless. A few days later, almost a third of the soldiers we had were gone, and Krux was off to battle."

"He went to help the Earth Tribe," Acronix's tone began to waver, "And while there he… it seems the Wind Tribe thought it was an ambush worthy to send their leader, Morro, out. When Morro arrived, they attacked. When the dust cleared, my brother was… standing over Morro's corpse, and claimed he'd killed him. That was enough to make everything… fall apart."

Acronix gripped his fists, "He said… said he did what he had to do. That he was letting the truth take hold of everyone. Muto was so enraged he stripped Krux of his powers and ordered him killed. I defied Muto's orders and locked him away. He wouldn't talk to me, or anyone. The troops that followed him came back to the city, but nobody wanted them. You must have been in my tribe, yes?"

"Yeah, we were saved by someone named Teran when people thought we were with those 'supporter' group," Lloyd paused, "Who is he..?"

"Teran is my cousin, and formerly a captain," Acronix pointed out, "He has been working to get this situation reversed ever since the Raiders began to escalate things. I'm sorry you missed him during his stay at the Summit. I'm leaving him in charge to keep the peace."

"That explains a lot," Lloyd nodded, "Especially why he helped us so, easily."

"There are many good people left in this place, even after the flames of war have died down and claimed the lives of many of them," Acronix turned his head forward, "I will defend those people as best I can. They need someone to stand in front of them. I'll move time itself to protect my people. Even… even if it means one day I must fight my brother again."

"You don't wanna fight him though, do you?" Lloyd asked, his tone turning sympathetic.

"Of course not, fighting family is perhaps the hardest type of opponent," Acornix grit his teeth, "It's… It would be nearly impossible for me to raise my time or my blade against him. I would sooner lay back and allow him to take my life from me, than to fight him once more."

Acronix stood up, his eyes distant and his fingers curling into his palm, "If you will excuse me, Lloyd, I must return to some of my own preparations. I simply needed a rest from the proceedings. Thank you for allowing me to vent some of my frustrations, however dull they may be."

"It's no problem," Lloyd began to say, but Acronix turned the hands on his clock down and sped forward in time, leaving Lloyd alone on top of the roof.

Lloyd sighed, leaning forward on his knees. Part of him wanted to try to discern the position that Acronix was in. He knew what it was like to face a family member, his father's defeat still fresh in his mind. Yet at the same time… he still looked to Acronix and saw Acronix. It was something he hated himself for, especially seeing how different they were, yet they looked so similar, talked with the same voice, and even had the same eyes. It was like talking to a painting of someone, painted by a completely different artist. He wanted to give Acronix the benefit of the doubt, but he couldn't!

The anger eventually got to him enough he wanted to go inside, but then he remembered Lulloyd saying Monty had been training on the grounds around the Summit building. Needing to practice Airjitzu anyways, Lloyd took a deep breath and then ran forward, leaping off the roof. As he let gravity take hold, he spun into the cyclone. As he approached the ground, he simply let the art slow his descent until he landed on the rocky terrain unharmed.

Making his way around the building, he soon came across the area of dirt that Monty had excavated to make his shooting range. The telltale sound of gunshots going off as he approached meant Monty was all but revealing himself to all those around him. As Lloyd crested the dirt, he looked down to see the ghost standing with an assault rifle in hands, aiming down the sights before muttering and reaching up to adjust the scope he'd attached to it.

"Monty," Lloyd called out, "You busy?"

"Lulloyd went inside, so not really," Monty called back, smacking the scope in frustration, "What do you want?"

"Lulloyd was here?" Lloyd blinked, "Well, I mean, we never got a chance to pick up my shooting lessons… think we can now?" Lloyd slid down the small slope of dirt to Monty, "Or at least something?"

"Sure, actually this is a pretty good opportunity," Monty pointed to the gun bag, "You're going to learn how to reload all those guns and throw them to me."

"Just… throw them to you?" Lloyd asked as he walked over and withdrew a set of large pistols from the bag, "Why?"

"In battle, the biggest drawback to guns is close range combat and reloading. I can't change the first thing but I can use you all to get rid of the second," Monty gave up on the scope and slung the rifle onto his back using a strap, "Since I'm not going to wait around for you in battle to do things for me, I need you to be up to my speed. Better I have all of you be able to reload guns and throw them to me so I can cover myself than we all be out of luck."

"But, that can't be too hard, right?" Lloyd crossed his arms, "My team back home knows how to trade weapons in battle and use them."

"I'll be using wind at the same time," Monty narrowed his gaze, "I'll be moving fast. You'll have to get good at throwing. Let's start with pistols. I've made due with blanks, but right now, we'll just get you used to the action of reloading and throwing. Stand down by the targets and get ready to throw."

"You aren't going to shoot at me, are you?" Lloyd asked, even as he walked downrange.

"That's why they're not loaded," Monty rolled his eyes, "Though if they were I might want to see how close I can put a bullet by your head before you tap out. Ronin and I did that with paintballs. His record is a centimeter. Mine's half of one."

"You're a ghost though, that's not exactly a fair challenge," Lloyd held the pistols up dramatically, "Alright, just tell me when to throw!"

"Hold them like a normal person first," Monty rolled his eyes, "We're not on a movie, these will be actual fights. Just because I've trained to be able to look cool doing cool things doesn't make you cool by comparison. Now throw them."

Lloyd felt the weight in hands and threw them as he would shurikens, angling them just slightly upwards to account for their shape. They were slightly short, but Monty didn't take them standing still. He ran forward and then spun in the air horizontally, grabbing the two guns and a burst of wind from his chest pushing him up into the air. When he landed, he stuck the guns out to either side and then threw them back to Lloyd. The action was so fast Lloyd ended up not registering the guns were thrown until he'd already ducked out of the way.

"That's how fast I'll be using them," Monty stood up, brushing his hair back even if it didn't move from his actions, "So get ready to grab them fast and reload even faster. I'll do that again, don't dodge them this time."

Lloyd didn't say anything, instead quickly rushing to grab the guns and nod. Monty once more caught the thrown pistols, striking a pose and mimicking firing them before flinging them back. Lloyd this time was able to catch them. When he hesitated with what to do with that, Monty groaned.

"I'm using semi-autos, when I get done firing, the slide on top will go back," Monty pointed to a small tab on the side, "That's the magazine release. Push that down and pull the clip out the bottom. I'll give all of you an extra clip. You press the clip back in there until it clicks, pull the slide back and let it go forward, and then you throw it back. Give the magazine a small tug before you throw it back. If that magazine isn't pushed all the way in it'll tear up the gun if I try to fire it. Once you get used to it, it'll be one motion. Do it."

Lloyd used the tip of his hand to pull the release down, and with his other hand he slid the clip out. Monty nodded in approval. He put the clip to his belt to mimic grabbing another clip, then slid the clip hard up into the pistol until he heard the click. Monty pointed, and Lloyd gave the clip one tug to make sure it wasn't coming out. Once it was, he reset the slide by pulling it back until it stopped and let it jerk forward. He quickly threw the guns again to Monty, who caught them and aimed them again.

For nearly ten minutes, Monty forced Lloyd to repeat the motion. Lloyd started to see why it was Monty called it a fluid motion; once he got a second empty clip and exchanged them on his belts, he started to see how he could reload the gun with just one hand if he worked it right. Monty was patient for the moment, even if Lloyd's arms got tired during it all.

"I think you'll get it right half the time now, so shotguns," Mnnty tossed the guns aside and went over to pull out a shotgun, "Now, I normally quad-load, but I'll have you two-load. Break actions are ones that you probably are used to," Monty held up one and 'broke' it open to show the two barrels, "These are easy. When you open the gun up, it'll eject the casings. Just put the casings in, close it up, and throw it. Pump actions, though," Monty tossed that gun aside to pick up another, "Turn it upside down, open the slide, and shove them in one by one until you can't. Close it, and then toss it."

Lloyd picked up the break action and began taking empty casings Monty pointed to. Just as he went to load them, Monty shook his head towards him.

"Safety," Monty pointed, "You aren't familiar with these guns. When you catch them, put the safety on. I'll take it off when you throw it. Once you get familiar, you can do it without the safety, but right now I don't trust you not to accidentally shoot yourself."

Lloyd paused to find the safety and memorized the position. Once he loaded the gun, he tossed it to Monty who mimicked firing it again and tossed it back. Again the two rotated through the process, letting Lloyd get used to it all.

"Rifles," Monty held one up, "Bolt action. Simple. Rotate the piece up, pull it back, and load in a round. Push it in, throw it. They're good for long range but bad for when you have to take on a bunch of people. Go."

Lloyd soon got his arms into the rhythm of loading and unloading the gun, throwing it to Monty, and repeating the process. Monty nodded and then picked up something more militant like. The gun was sleek and black, and looked far more dangerous than anything so far.

"Semi-auto rifles," Monty held his hand under the gun, "Eject the clip," He hit something to cause the clip on the bottom to pop out, "Grab a new one, jam it in, release the action and then throw it. It's easy to reload, probably the easiest. Just don't mess up the clip. Got it?"

As Lloyd found, it was actually easy to do with another clip on hand. It was as simple as ejecting, stuffing it, cocking and then throwing. He knew Monty would likely cringe at those terms, but it was how he got used to it. Of all the guns, he was able to master it in the shortest amount of time.

"Now we get to the fun part," Monty pointed to the guns, "I'm going to throw random ones, you do it. Let's go."

Over the course of another hour, Lloyd found his arms burning with hatred for repeated motions and continual catching. Monty wasn't letting up on him, constantly cycling through firearms and making Lloyd always check the safety when he did so. The sun had moved in the sky when Lloyd stopped, panting and covered in sweat as Monty finally gave him a small clap.

"I don't get it," Monty rubbed his forehead, "You were able to throw the guns at me nearly straight. You clearly get how to adjust for shape and weight when throwing. How come you can't understand how to aim a gun?"

"Because throwing a shuriken is easy," Lloyd sat on the ground, panting as he got his breath back, "Aiming is hard. Plus you usually aren't throwing from so far away."

"Well, you seem to be decent enough I can count on you to not get killed," Monty nodded, "Next time we go into battle, you'll carry two rounds of reloading for me on your belt. Do it as we practiced and we'll be good. If I have to stop and reload in battle I weigh us down. So just remember that."

"Yeah…" Lloyd groaned, "I think I'm gonna go inside and… just try to get some water."

"Oh, you want me gone that badly?" Monty shrugged, "Didn't know the Green Ninja had murder in his toolkit."

"To drink, Monty," Lloyd groaned out, standing up and walking his way up the dirt mounds, "If it's anyone that you need to worry about poofing you, it's Harumi."

"I know, she really has anger issues," Monty drew the SoS and began slicing it through the air, "Tell Lulloyd when you see him to come out and train once he gets done with some lessons or whatever he's getting from Harumi."

"Sure, it's not like I have anything to do now that the squads are out and about," Lloyd frowned, "It feels like we should be doing more than just sitting around."

"No, and don't think about doing anything. This plan only works if the Time Twins think it's just this world doing this to them," Monty pointed out again, "You'll get your chance. Right now, let's just focus on winning."

"I know, I know," Lloyd frowned harder, "I was saying anything I could do now, I already know that. You've been very apparent about this."

"Well it makes it so you have less room to blow me off," Monty shrugged, "Now go tell Lulloyd what I said."

Lloyd sighed and began to walk off, leaving behind Monty. While he felt exasperated again from talking to him, he felt as though he'd gained a slight bit of experience with him. At the very least, he knew next time this would only strengthen them for when they went to confront the Twins once and for all. For hopefully the final time.

"Hey, Monty!" Mage shouted as his body appeared in front of the ghost.

Monty looked up from the corner of the planning room. The map of the World, as Mage called it, was currently covered in various little figures, items across the table, and smaller maps pinned in certain places. Harumi and Lloyd were in the room, with Harumi still staving off exhaustion while Lloyd was currently reading over what Mage briefly skimmed to read was a report of recent battles. Upon seeing his own name on there, he beamed hard as he recalled the memory of defending the Water Tribe entrance from the warriors for nearly three hours. It'd been wonderful practice for him!

"What do you want?" Monty sighed, leaning into the corner, "Weren't you on a patrol?"

"I was, Firstbourne insisted on picking me up, so I got back really early!" Mage smirked, "You hear about how I beat those warriors down?"

"I did," Lloyd responded from the table, "The fact they're now willing to attack openly is a big improvement. It means we're on track."

"They were so scared of me!" Mage threw his fist into the air, "A little water here, then a little stomp here, oh and don't forget me giving a really hard punch filled with gravity! You know when you punch someone with gravity, it basically triples your power?!"

"Good to hear," Monty muttered.

"Still, why haven't we seen bigger forces yet?" Harumi looked over to the table, "We're still encountering the smaller Raider groups, even after all of this time."

"Maybe, they're gearing up for something?" Lulloyd hopped off his seat, walking up to look over the map, "Like, they're getting ready for something?"

"But why would they do that?" Lloyd asked,"They have Vermillion, they could easily just make one big move on one tribe and end us."

"Uh… what's going on here?" Mage asked, walking up to the table and peering over, "I thought you said it's going to plan?"

"It's going to the first part of the plan, where we draw them out and make them attack in the open," Monty sighed to Mage, "But they haven't been doing big attacks. Nothing massive. We're still basically in the opening shots of a battle, and they're taking too long to call in the bigger guns."

"I… what's a gun?" Mage asked.

"You haven't seen one?" Monty blinked, then pulled out a pistol from his armor, "They're basically-"

"Heeeyyyy!" Lulloyd quickly snatched the pistol from Monty and put it on the table in front of him, "So, what you're saying is something is up?"

"Not yet, but we might have to start rethinking out strategy if this keeps up," Monty looked over, "Where exactly would they be hiding?"

"Somewhere big," Lulloyd muttered, "That Iron Doom can't just fit into a normal place. We have to think of what places are even big enough to hide it."

"Iron Doom?" Mage leaned over the table, "Uh. Well, if you want to know big places I can tell you that!"

Mage reached out for some pins Harumi had in a pile. Mage manipulated them using metal -his eyes turning gunmetal- and hovered them over certain tribes. When he placed the pins down, he had six tribes labeled.

"Only six places are big enough to hide something like that!" Mage explained, "The Form Tribe lives in the mountains, so they could hide there. The Time Tribe lives in mountains too, so it's kinda the same! The Sound Tribe lives in a remote place so they could hide around there. There's the Wind Tribe, they live on this huge MASSIVE plateau that gets winds through it like crazy, they could hide somewhere around there. There are a lot of unexplored places in the Amber Tribe region where Skylar lives… Oh! And the Ash Tribe, the area is totally filled with sinkholes."

"So, you're saying the other tribes wouldn't hide something big?" Harumi asked.

"Well not exactly," Mage shook his head, "I've been all around the World. All the tribes could hide it somewhere. But these tribes they're the ones that will hide them the best! Like, they could sneak in and out from those places and not get caught! I figured that's what you meant."

Monty scoffed and nodded his head to the boy. Lloyd began to pour back over his pages, getting lost in them once again. Lulloyd would lean over the table and stare at what Harumi was doing, then look across the table. Mage watched it himself for nearly two minutes before his boredom set in. As he turned to leave, something began to fall out of his pocket. Once he felt it, he quickly perked up and turned back around.

"Well," Lloyd stretched, "For now, this is all going to plan. Let's just hope it stays that way."

"Mhm!" Mage gripped his fists and nodded his fists, "Don't worry, we know this world! It'd take a lot to throw us off our game! We'll have this place saved in no time!"

"Do you know what we're asking of you?" The elder voice asked.

Krux looked down to the blade he held in his hand. From what he'd been told, it was some sort of 'Time Blade' that let him use one of the four powers of the Time Matrix. It didn't fit perfectly into his hand, a bit tight for his liking, but just holding it up to see the power flowing through it told him he was holding an immensely powerful weapon. He leveled the blade towards the sky and activated it.

When he reappeared, Krux was behind the two speakers. He panted heavily, his heart racing from pulling it off. He'd just used a power that only his brother had held. He looked back to the two figures, who were both grinning madly at him. He swallowed hard, lowering the blade to his side.

"You've done an amazing job of giving us information and directing our forces," The younger voice crossed his arms, "But now, these shifts in our plans need… correction."

"Can you handle it?" The elder voice asked, "You will be going up against him."

"...The hardest thing to do, is to raise your blade against family," Krux inhaled, "I said that I would stand against him. And this is me showing that I do intend to stand against him. I said I would fight for you. Do not doubt my loyalty."

"Then you have your task," The younger voice pointed, "Go, and send a message to everyone in this world. Those who dare to defy the will of Time…"

Krux raised the Time Blade, "...will fall."