Zane woke up that morning, in an actual bed, staring up at a ceiling. A roof over their heads was something they had not had in a while; he was almost frightened when he saw dark wood instead of stars.
He knew he was the only one awake, given how his teammates never willingly woke before 8, and it was six o'clock in the morning. Or at least, that's what his internal clock said the time was. And of course, his internal clock was never wrong. Blinking a couple of times as his eyes focused in the dark room, he fully let it sink in that he was safe. The ceiling was a testament to that, after weeks on the run, trying to save the world with everything he had. There was no need to worry about a future of a world run by the malicious Overlord, an ancient evil that had sought to make the land of Ninjago his own after escaping imprisonment. There was no need to worry about Lord Garmadon, the Sensei's brother and one of the teammate's own father.
The day before had been the fight of their lives. They had all been so close to losing, so close to succumbing to the evil that the Overlord sought to spread around the world. The entity had gotten so close to taking over everything Zane and his teammates ever stood for; there was a terrifying moment when all but one of them had been consumed by the Overlord's malice. And Nya, Kai's sister… She had been brainwashed for days… There was no guessing the splitting headache she would be waking up to.
If not for Lloyd, the fabled green ninja and wielder of Energy, the world would have become the Overlord's throne. But Lloyd, so young and horribly forced into the whole ordeal when it was prophesied, he would have to defeat his own father, had saved them all. And in a way, the prophecy had come true. Not only did the defeat of the Overlord free them all of the evil's brainwashing, but also depleted all the venom that had turned Lord Garmadon into the villain of Ninjago at the young age of nine.
Lord Garmadon had been their adversary for so long, it was hard to imagine a world in which they didn't have to constantly try to foil the man's plans. And now that he was supposedly "good," how would that look for the team? Would they be expected to immediately put their trust in the older man? Or would the divide between the team and the ex-Lord forever stay unamended?
Whatever the relationship would be between the two previously opposing sides, there was no doubt that, for now, there was peace in Ninjago. Something Zane could have never said before. There was no big bad, no secret stories left to tell from their ever-cryptic Sensei, no surprise legends of ancient villains to be sprung upon them; life was now to be silent as it had probably ever been.
Of course, Zane knew this wasn't going to last. Their job was to help the country and the people in need, to fight the evil and keep their home safe. Without chaos, they would all be fresh out of work. Luckily for them, fighting enemies was a seemingly never-ending profession. Or maybe, that was unlucky for them.
He threw the covers off his body, now fully awake and unable to fall back asleep. Of course, Zane Julien never fell back asleep after he woke up at six o'clock each morning; maybe a slight fault in his programming that he was destined to never enjoy the relaxation that his teammates so lovingly called 'naps".
Zane sat up in his bed, and looked across the room, high on-top of the bunk he shared with Jay. Cole and Kai slept on the other bunk across the way, still fully dressed in their uniforms and sprawled on their backs, as if they had fallen asleep as soon as their bodies hit the mattress. Both Cole's black uniform and Kai's red one were heavily wrinkled, and would most definitely need a wash. If not for the horrendous wrinkles, then most certainly for the grime and soot that still hung on their clothes from the days prior.
Kai's brown hair was stuck up in so many angles that, truthfully, looked roughly the same as it did during the day. However, Kai would most likely moan how messy and unkempt it was (even though that's always how it looked). Although his suit was wrinkled and covered in soot, his tan skin did not have a single speck of ash on it. As the elemental master of fire, things such as soot and burns never scarred his skin; almost as if he were made of fire, and the marks of the flame could not taint his skin.
As for Cole, his windswept black hair was frizzy and knotted. To be fair, none of them really had time for a shower in the past couple of days, so there wasn't much to blame him for. Dirt was streaked across the bridge of his dark-skinned nose. Not uncommon for the elemental master of Earth, seeing as how he liked to garden vegetables and spent his free time when they weren't fighting evil tending to his plants. It wasn't uncommon to see soil streaked across his cheek.
Underneath Zane slept Jay, who was wearing blue flannel pajamas and cuddling his favorite teddy bear under the covers. Jay had always hidden his bear from view, and still believed the bear was his secret to keep. Even after having lived with all of them for so many years, the elemental master of lightning thought he had done well in keeping it hidden. No one had the heart to make fun of him and his teddy bear, and so as far as Jay was concerned, he was the sneakiest and most clever of them all.
In the corner of the room lay a temporary air mattress, on which a boy with tousled blonde hair slept. This was Lloyd, the Green Ninja of legend. He wore nothing but a green pair of pajama bottoms, the top of the pajamas laying a few feet away on the floor, as if he had fallen asleep before he could finish putting his pjs on. But Zane couldn't blame him for passing out so quickly. Not only had Lloyd watched his father's body taken over by the Overlord, his friends turned into brainwashed, evil slaves, and his own Sensei lose hope, but he had almost seen his life flash before his eyes. There had been a very real moment where the idea of survival was non-existent. There was a moment where it looked as though the Overlord had won. Zane could barely remember the moment himself, the memory cloudy and dark as he had viewed it through the eyes of his infected self.
But then, Lloyd had released a power like he had never done before. Releasing all of the mana he possessed, purging the City of all evil, Overlord and all. Lloyd had never wielded so much power before. Whether it was because of desperation of impending death, or some type of found enlightenment, Zane would never know. But they would all be forever grateful for it.
All of Zane's teammates were very clearly asleep, and would not be waking up anytime soon. Very carefully, Zane left his bed, descending down the bunk bed ladder. There was no creak to the ladder rungs as their last monastery had, and so, there was no risk of waking someone by getting out of bed. Sometimes, Zane missed the old monastery, where they had all learned to train with each other, before it had burned down. But he didn't miss the times, back when he didn't know who he was. He would rather be in the now, than stuck in the past.
Once he made it to the cold wooden flooring, he tiptoed over to the dresser, pulling out a change of clothes before locking himself in the bathroom to change and assess the damage from the succession of weeks prior.
When the door clicked to signify no one would be interrupting him, Zane took off the white t-shirt he had been wearing, dropping it on the floor, to land in a pile with his black pajama bottoms. He now stood in front of the mirror that was above the off-white sink, dressed in nothing but his grey boxers. Gingerly, he began to assess the damage that he had accumulated from the battle. He ran his fingers along his arms, and met several minor dents in his skin. Fortunately, there were no tears or gashes to be found; only disfigured metal. Nothing his father couldn't fix in a quick couple of minutes.
His external damage was almost non-existent. This was good, as it meant less work for his father. Zane then moved on, to his least favorite part of running diagnostics.
The part of him that he sometimes wished didn't exist.
Zane ran his fingers down his side and along his ribs until he found the catch he was looking for. He sighed in disappointment, bowing his head in the defeat that found him every morning when he checked himself for any injuries. One time, Zane had a dream where he couldn't find the latch, and he had wailed out in joy, what humans would call "happy tears" streaming down his face. It was his favorite dream that he had ever had. There was always a silly hope that he would never find the catch. As if some magical thing happened, causing him to turn human overnight. Although he loved his father dearly, and appreciated the many positives of being an artificial being, he still wished to be human. To have a human brain and heart, to not wonder whether he was truly "alive" or not. To be real.
Zane quickly dismissed his feelings, as he always did when he began to overthink his existence. It almost felt like a betrayal to his father, to wish he were something else. Zane didn't want to seem ungrateful for his creation, nor did he want his father to think he had created something that wasn't happy to be alive. It felt only right to stop himself from thinking such thoughts. He dug his fingernails into the catch, opening it when he got a good grip.
The hatch swung open without a creak. Inside was a mechanical masterpiece. His body was an intricate assortment of wires, buttons, switches, and cables, all of which helped him function and move. There were switches that stood in for the functions that a human brain would execute, such as emotions, reactions, and thought process. Large cables acted as connections from integral pieces of processing between the input via his senses and the various other parts of his body that needed to receive and respond to such input. There was a large variety of buttons, some of which held non-essential functions, while others determined whether his limbs would move correctly or not. Each and every wire was critical, whether it was to send artificial nerve responses to the processing system, or to pump adrenaline-like substances into the necessary systems. And there were of course many things Zane still did not understand within his body. It was complicated, making an artificial being with the purpose of defending those who could not defend themselves.
Zane inspected the connections with the mirror in front of him, touching several wires to make sure they weren't frayed in any way. But nothing was ruined. He had half been expecting some sort of gruesome mess when he had opened that hatch; there was no telling how the condensed evil that the Overlord filled them with affected a robot, much less a human. But everything was where it should have been, and there wasn't any weird gunk to clean, so he closed the compartment, locking it back into place with a tiny "click".
He put on his clothes for the day; nothing fancy, like his ninja uniform. Just a simple, light grey sweatshirt, a white t-shirt, and a pair of comfortable jeans. Unassuming, yet breathable, if the occasion arose where he needed to move quickly.
Zane unlocked the bathroom door, turning off the bathroom light as he did so. He carried his pajamas with him, and stuffed them in the hamper. Usually, the hamper was full of their clothes. However, after being on the run for a couple of weeks, it was lacking the lived-in feel. Zane then proceeded out of the bedroom, shutting the door behind him as quietly as he could. For a temporary, somewhat old monastery, it wasn't as creaky and loud as it could be.
Zane looked up and down the hallway, unknowing what to do next. There were the kitchens, but he didn't feel very hungry. And there wasn't any training equipment; this was a peaceful monastery, after all. But there was a small pond in the courtyard, with lily pads, cat tails, and a rainbow of koi swimming within it. A quiet space, perfect for some morning meditation. He definitely needed it, after the chaotic life they had been living before yesterday.
He began his walk towards the courtyard, passing by several rooms to get to the courtyard door. However, just when he was about to reach the exit, he heard voices coming from the mess room that stopped him in his tracks. This was an odd occurrence, seeing as Zane was always the first one to awake (although Sensei Wu sometimes beat him to it, when the old man was feeling especially troubled).
Now, Zane didn't usually eavesdrop on people, seeing how it was immoral and rude. If it was necessary to listen in on someone's conversation without them knowing, then the conversation wasn't meant for him. But this could easily be considered something like an accidental hearing of voices; he hadn't intended on spying. At least, this is what he told himself while he snuck over to the double sliding paper doors of the mess hall, listening.
As he heard each person speak, his gears whirred, recognizing the voices with his state-of-the-art recognition software. He couldn't see who was talking, of course. He didn't have x-ray vision, or anything like the robots in kid cartoons had.
"-Would this new advancement do to the culture and people of Ninjago? More importantly, what doors would be opened that could jeopardize the people?" A woman asked. Misako's voice was instantly recognizable, of course. Not only had she been travelling with them for the past weeks, but she was also Lloyd's mother. An integral part to one of their teammate's lives, and therefore, integral to them all. She was a wise woman, and had loved Lord Garmadon until he could not be loved any longer; Zane had a decent amount of respect for her.
"I assure you, these technological advancements to the city are meant to help, not hurt. All changes lead to possible negative outcomes, but I don't think that would be really necessary-" Cyrus Borg began, before someone cut him off. Zane had only ever heard this man's voice on the television; he was an up and coming inventor, much like Zane's own father. And apparently, Borg was grasping to help the development of the city after the wake of destruction by the sounds of it.
"I think," Sensei Wu said, "what Misako meant was, what new enemies could sprout from the advanced technology?"
"Evil robots?" Another man interjected excitedly, as if he would enjoy battling robots. Zane smiled a little to himself, forever enjoying Dr. Julien's antics. Of course, only his father would find evil robots to be a good thing.
"I highly doubt there will be any-" Cyrus began, nervously laughing, before he was stopped once more.
"Sorry to interrupt you yet again, Mr. Borg, but I believe we have an eavesdropper among us," and this voice was one Zane did not know, but he didn't have much time to figure it out.
The doors flew open with a gust of wind coming from inside. Five people sat on the cushions placed around the table on the tatami mat. All eyes were on the now-exposed Zane, who was standing in the doorway, eyes wide with surprise. Sensei Wu smiled at his student, whose gaze was now darting around, pinging off of each person and assessing the situation.
One of the men sitting around the table was in a wheelchair. He seemed to have a crippled leg, naturally having been crippled since birth, from Zane's calculations. This was most likely Cyrus Borg.
His eyes fell onto the other familiar faces, until his eyes landed on a grey-haired man, sitting next to Sensei Wu. The unknown man wore respectable Sensei attire, probably pulled from Wu's closet, seeing as how it slightly hung loosely on his frame. Suspiciously, he was avoiding eye contact with Zane. Clearly, he did not want to interact with the ninja that had just walked into the room.
"Good morning, Zane. I thought you'd be awake soon," Dr. Julien said, his glasses a tad skew on the bridge of his nose and crinkles forming under his eyes from his smile. Zane walked over to his father and received a hug. Hugs from his father always felt nice. When he was first hugged by his father, he didn't know how to feel. He knew his father loved him very much, but his mind always traveled into darker places. He used to worry he was just a project to his father, nothing more. He used to be afraid he was loved because he was a success. Zane knew better now, though.
Zane sat down next to Dr. Julien, and grabbed a doughnut from the center plate piled high with sugary breakfast treats. He took a bite out of the powdered pastry and began to chew, when he noticed the man in the wheelchair's eyes were on him. Zane's chewing slowed to a stop, watching Cyrus and his unnerving stare. Zane swallowed and spoke, not talking with his mouth full, due to the automatic manners encrypted in his software.
"What?" He asked plainly, watching Cyrus Borg curiously, who's eyes widened as Zane spoke.
"This, Mr. Borg, is my son Zane. Although he is technically a robot, his friends call him a 'nindroid', due to his physical skills and robotic interior," Dr. Julien said, smiling as he talked. Cyrus's mouth fell open.
"Fascinating… What can it do?" Borg questioned, staring at the nindroid with such an intensity that Zane desperately wanted to look away from. He shifted uncomfortably at being called "it", and spoke up before anyone could answer.
"You could ask me yourself, Mr. Borg. I am perfectly capable of answering any questions you may have. I would also like to be addressed by my name, if it wouldn't be too much of an inconvenience." Zane said coolly and flatly. It did not bode well with him to be seen as a machine.
Cyrus's mouth opened, and then closed, and then opened once again, in a loss for words. A slight twinge of satisfaction coursed through Zane at the look of the man's discomfort.
"He can do everything you can do, Cyrus. Probably a bit more," Sensei Wu said, smiling slightly.
Cyrus composed himself, nodded, and turned back to Zane.
"Do you have any feelings?" Cyrus Borg asked, looking at him with a new curiosity that, this time, held respect.
"Yes," Zane replied with a simple head nod.
"Really? Can you feel love?" Cyrus questioned, watching Zane's eyes focus with each tiny movement he made.
"I love my father," Zane said. However, the man chuckled and shook his head, as if this was the wrong answer.
"No, no, no. I mean, have you ever loved someone?"
Zane's eyebrows pulled down in confusion at this. "I'm afraid I don't know what you're-" he began, before his father interrupted.
"Zane wasn't programmed to have any emotions that were unnecessary to situational problems. However, it seems that he has developed his own feelings over time. Zane hasn't been exposed to the type of emotion you are talking about, but I hope he does someday. He deserves that kind of love in his life too," Dr. Julien said, sounding genuinely happy as he said this. Sensei nodded and smiled in agreement, neither of them explaining to Zane what they were talking about. Zane sighed from the lack of information he was being given, and crossed his arms in front of his chest.
Mr. Borg tilted his head in curiosity, turning his attention back to Zane.
"How old are you?"
"Nineteen-" Zane began.
"Your real age, please."
"Seventy-four," Zane replied automatically.
Cyrus Borg's eyes widened, and he immediately turned to Zane's father, who had a nervous smile on his face.
"That makes you about one hundred years old!" Cyrus exclaimed.
"I'll be celebrating my one hundred and first birthday in two months," Dr. Julien responded, laughing nervously. Sensei Wu and the unknown man joined in on the timid laughter, quite aware of their own old age.
"Cyrus, you are the youngest one in this room, I'm afraid," Misako said, each person laughing at this.
Once everyone settled down, Wu stood up, smiling at the people around the table and putting a hand on Cyrus's shoulder.
"Well, the boys will be up soon, and I wouldn't want you to see the famous heroes in their zombie state," Sensei said, Cyrus Borg chuckling at this.
"It was nice to meet you all," the man in the wheelchair said, shaking everyone's hands, including Zane's (which was a little colder than everyone else's), before wheeling out of the room, the unnamed man guiding him on the way outside. Sensei and Misako left the room, heading towards the bedroom of the elemental masters. Zane turned towards his father, as they were now alone.
"Father… What if you become too old…? I mean, what happens if you die?" Zane asked, looking down at the hands. There was a time in his life where Zane had no idea he had a father. His memory switch had been turned off by Dr. Julien himself in an effort to free Zane of the attachment to his father, in order to do the protecting job he was made to do. Only when Zane stumbled upon his old home by chance, only when he found the blueprints that answered why he was so different from his teammates, did he remember what it was like to have a father. He didn't want to live his life again without his creator. It had never occurred to him that his father was indeed mortal, and could die, never able to return again.
Dr. Julien grimaced slightly, and put his hand on his son's shoulder.
"Zane, someday, I will pass on. I don't know what will become of me after I die; People say many different things and have many different theories about that. But there's one thing for certain; I will always be in here," Dr. Julien said, pointing at Zane's chest.
"Where?" Zane asked, looking blankly down at his sweater where Dr. Julien was jabbing him with his crooked finger.
"In your heart," his father said as Zane looked up at him.
"I don't have a-" Zane began.
"Yes, you do. You may not have a physical organic heart, true. But you have a heart," Dr. Julien said, patting Zane's shoulder and getting up. Dr. Julien grabbed a doughnut from the center of the table, and exited the room, leaving Zane to ponder this alone. His father was making no sense. He didn't have a heart, but he did? It was too confusing. Zane did not have a heart. He had seen his own blueprints. So why did his father insist that the blueprints were wrong? It seemed everyone was intent on being cryptic that morning.
Zane looked up from his pondering when he heard a sad groan coming from the hallway. He watched as four, stumbling teenagers entered the room, looking much like Sensei described them; zombies.
"Good morning, friends," Zane greeted, smiling slightly. The closest thing Zane got to a response was a lazy head nod from Lloyd, who proceeded to sit down and face plant into the wood table, as if thinking it was his pillow. The other three followed his example at their own pace, each of them face planting into the table with a loud "thump", one after the other.
Sensei and Misako followed behind the four, trying desperately to wake them up.
"Up and at 'em, Jay. Come on. Wake up. Big day of hard work and building to be done," Misako encouraged, shaking Jay's shoulders gently. He groaned, and swatted at the empty air in front of him, as if it would stop the shaking.
"Work and building?" Zane asked over Lloyd's groan of unhappiness, "what are you talking about?"
"Cyrus Borg has been put in charge of remodeling and building Ninjago City," Misako explained, "and has enlisted the help of you all. He believes he needs some extra, unorthodox help to get a head start on rebuilding the city as fast as he can."
"Can't we just… Do it tomorrow?" Cole yawned, while rubbing his eyes, trying to wake up as he looked around lazily. However, when Cole's eyes fell on the plate of donuts, he immediately woke up. With ninja speed, he snatched a doughnut off the plate, and began nibbling on it. Zane rolled his eyes. Cole and his infamous sweet tooth.
"Never put off tomorrow-" began Sensei Wu, about to teach his pupils a lesson, when Kai interrupted.
"-What can be done today, yeah, we know. You've only said it about twenty times," Kai grumbled, yawning and running his fingers through his brown, messy hair.
"Which is why it surprises me that you have yet to learn from it," Sensei countered, raising an eyebrow. Kai opened his mouth, and then closed it, for it was not a good idea to argue with Sensei. Instead, Kai took a doughnut from the plate on the table.
Zane watched the four slowly wake up, until they were all finally sitting up straight in their spots. Cole and Jay, even though fully awake, did not look the least bit rested. They both looked sickly pale, with dark bruise-like circles under their eyes. Clearly the mark of the dark matter that had brainwashed them all. And they had only been turned in the last few moments before the Overlord's defeat. Zane couldn't even imagine how Nya looked, having been under the control of the Overlord for a full two days.
As if on cue, Kai's sister walked in, all gazes quickly snapping to her.
She looked, quite honestly, like absolute shit. The circles under her eyes were so dark, they didn't even look quite purple anymore. Her skin seemed whiter than snow, almost translucent looking. Her cheekbones were gaunt, as if she hadn't eaten in a very long time. Her eyes looked dead, as if they were saying, 'I haven't had sleep in weeks and have seen more despair than you ever will.'
"How are you feeling?" Jay asked, which Zane thought was a clearly stupid question. Jay patted the cushion next to him, inviting her to sit.
"Not so good," Nya replied as she sat next to her boyfriend, rubbing her temples, "I've got a headache, and my body really hurts."
Jay reached out in a comforting touch to her cheek, and although he put on a smile that could have fooled anyone, Zane knew the man well enough to know Jay was deathly worried.
"Do you remember any of it?" Cole asked, turning Nya's attention to him.
"Only glimpses, thank god. I don't think I could live with myself if I could remember everything I had done…" Nya said, earning a grimace from her brother, who was obviously in pain, seeing her so defeated.
A sudden noise in the doorway caused everyone to look away from Nya. The unnamed man from before stood rigid, stormy grey eyes filled with anguish like Zane had never seen before. If Nya looked horrible, this man had died at least five times already. He was thin, haughty, and was living with so much on his shoulders, it was a wonder how he was still standing. His mouth opened as if to say something, eyes shifting to Sensei Wu, and Zane suddenly recognized the man standing in the doorway. He looked completely different, of course. Garmadon did not look like himself, as Zane had come to know him, without the sharp teeth, or the red eyes, or the dark midnight skin. Without the venom in his veins, he looked like Sensei Wu's older, quiet, unassuming brother.
But unfortunately for Garmadon, this was not their first time meeting him. They knew so much more, so many horrors the man had inflicted on the world; he was, truthfully, unwelcome to sit at the table.
Garmadon's horror-filled eyes flitted between each and every one of them, until his gaze rested on Nya. He took in her deathly appearance, and Zane watched in surprise as the man's eyes filled with tears. It was certainly a surreal experience, to watch the enemy they had been fighting for years show remorse and shed tears, due to their pain.
"I'm… so sorry…" Garmadon managed through his tears, his voice tight, "I've caused so much pain… Death…" his gaze looked to each of them yet again, taking in the rage on Kai's face, the disgust on Jay's, the hatred on Cole's face for the man that had brought pain to his team; to Garmadon's own son, Lloyd, whose face was blank in an unknown emotion.
Misako began to move towards Garmadon, as if to try and comfort him, but Garmadon left his place in the doorway hastily without another word, dashing down the hall and out of sight. Misako left in a rush, turning down the same way her husband had, presumably to follow him.
Lloyd sprung out of his seat and ran after his father and mother. For what purpose, Zane could not say. The relationship between all of them was strained at best. Misako had been an absent mother, and Garmadon had been a horrible father. What Lloyd's sense of purpose was to his parents was anyone's guess. But he left the room to be with his family, and no one could judge him for that.
The room was quiet for an uncomfortable amount of time, the air feeling too somber to speak. Sensei Wu was finally the one to break the silence, watching his students grapple with the situation at hand.
"My brother is going through some... Difficult times at the moment. He'll be leaving tomorrow morning to a secluded, far away monastery with Misako. Hopefully he will be able to heal himself there," Sensei explained. The ninja looked quietly down at their laps. They wanted to feel sorry for the Sensei's older brother. However, they had been enemies for too long to feel any sympathy yet, "On a different note, we'll be leaving soon for Borg's construction site. I suggest you get something on besides your pajamas."
The other ninja nodded, and left the room, leaving Zane by himself once more. He sighed, and picked up one last doughnut, believing this morning to be one of the most emotional and confusing mornings he had ever had in his life. It wouldn't be getting anymore worse than it already had.
If only he had known how wrong he was.