Dragon, whose beard is now short again, moves along the swamp before a Vermillion Warrior charged at him, sword raised, but he quickly blocks it, forces it down and jabs it, knocking it back. "Your numbers are great, but they won't be enough." He said. "The Time Punch has reversed." He looks at his reflection in the swamp water. "My strength has returned." Two Vermillion Warriors immediately charge at him, but he knocks one into the swamp water and jabs the other, knocking it back before sighing. "I will save Ninjago." A Vermillion egg soon opened up and Dragon was shocked to see who it was. "Misako?"
Misako was wearing Vermillion armour as she came to him. "Dragon, why did you fail me?" She asked.
"I- I made a mistake. An error of judgement. I should have told you I loved you before you went to-" Another egg opens, revealing Tania, also in Vermillion armour. "Tania?"
"Why didn't you stop me?" She asked as she came to him. "You should have stopped me from getting on that boat."
"I... wasn't fast enough."
"Fast enough? Yeah right. You hated me the moment I came across the monastery."
"I never hated you. You were a great student."
"Well, you failed me."
Another egg opens, revealing Oni, also in Vermillion armour. "Oni?"
"You let me fall to the Darkness, brother." He said as he came up to him. "You failed me as well."
"And me." Morro's voice was heard as Dragon looked to see him emerge from an open Vermillion egg, also wearing Vermillion armour.
"Morro?" He asked. "I- I don't understand."
"Don't understand that how instead of your greatest success, your student become your greatest failure?" He slowly moves up to him along with the others. "You've made many mistakes, Master."
"Many mistakes." Acronix was heard, causing him to turn to see him and Krux coming up to him. "I'm but the latest. The monastery. You never should have come by yourself, old man."
They all hold out swords to him before an image of Lloyd's head appeared. "We could have helped you, Master." He said.
An image of Kai's head soon appeared along with Jay's, Geoff's and Blake's. "You didn't have to face him alone." Kai's head said as the rest of Ninja's heads appear, through images.
"You didn't have to be alone." They all said.
The loved ones he failed, Krux and Acronix soon struck the images, causing them to fade. "Your arrogance has left you-" Acronix was immediately cut off.
"All alone." Dragon said. He sighed as he had his eyes closed.
It turned that the whole thing was a dream as Dragon still had the long beard. "I'm all alone." Presently, he was in a holding cell, sitting in a wheelchair and tied to it with Blunck and Raggmunk guarding him.
Blunck immediately scoffed as he paced. "What a joke." He said. "We are commanders. Guarding this guy is totally beneath us. How the hell could Acronix and Krux put Machia in charge? They ignore our courage! Our dedication! Our singular focus."
Raggmunk's stomach soon growled. "I'm starving." He said with Blunck glaring at him. "What? I skipped breakfast."
"Machia told us never let the prisoner out of our sight. You're just going to have to go hungry."
Raggmunk's stomach growled again. "Unless..."
Outside, Zane and Geoff move along the path of Vermillion eggs. "P.I.X.A.L., scan for Borg's biometric signature." Zane said before stopping as Geoff turned to him. "P.I.X.A.L...?"
"Zane, is she still offline?" Geoff asked.
"I'll have to deal with it and do my own scanning." He looks around before stopping. "Target acquired. Locking in..." He soon takes off before Geoff moves to follow him.
"Wait up."
Outside what appeared to be an armoury, Jay, Cole and Gewuji hide by some rocks as they look at the entrance, guarded by Vermillion Warriors. "Hm, I don't think we can go in the front door." Cole said.
"Well, you know, we can, but I doubt fighting half the Vermillion Warriors is good for Lloyd's stealth plan." Jay replied before they soon took off and come over to the side of the building.
Gewuji gets out a grapple, attached around some rope, swings it and throws it up to the roof, sticking to a tree root. She tugs it a couple of times before turning to Jay and Cole. "Let's go." She whispered before they start climbing up it, narrowly avoiding a couple of giant warriors, making Jay briefly stop before resume climbing up as Gewuji gets to the top and Cole follows suit. But as he climbed up, he suddenly farts. "Eugh, Cole! Light a match."
"What?" He asked as he came up next to her. "I had curry for lunch." They don't notice the grappling hook coming loose until it passes them and they turn to it.
"Shit!" Jay whispered as he fell with the rope. "Not good, not good, not good..."
Cole quickly grabbed hold it the grappling hook before it could come completely off the roof. Soon, he and Gewuji pull it up as Jay stayed motionless, hoping the warriors don't turn. Luckily, they don't and continue moving on. "Gotta love skylights. Nobody ever thinks to guard them." Cole opens one of the windows and they look down.
"Whoa..." Inside was every builder the Vermillion Warriors came across, forging weapons, armour, helmets and vehicles.
Gewuji attaches the grapple to the edge, grabs hold of the rope and jumps down with Jay and Cole sliding down it before landing on a table, surprising everyone. "Shh!" Gewuji said as they took their hoods off. "We're here to rescue-" She was cut off when someone jumps onto Jay.
"Ninja!" It was Karlof, who is now embracing Jay's head before Cole and Gewuji came up to him. "We are rescued!"
"What are you doing here?" Cole asked.
"Snake warriors kidnap Karlof!"
"Can't...breathe..." Jay gruffly said due to accidentally being chocked by Karlof.
"Krux and Acronix are rounding up the Elemental Masters?" Gewuji asked.
"Just two retired Elemental Masters." Someone replied as they look to see it was Patrice. He was wearing some sort of graduation ceremony robe over a green sweater, blue jeans and black sneakers. "Until they grabbed us, cuffed us in Vengestone to control our powers and made us forge." As he spoke, he raised his left leg, showing a Vengestone cuff and pointing to Karlof's. Karlof then immediately lets go of Jay, who pants.
"Oh, man, you're strong." He said.
"They force us to build armour, vehicles, weapons." Karlof said, beckoning them to follow him and they do so. "All in Ninjago, who know how to build, they take."
Jay soon sighed. "Now I'm starting to get why the Vermillion grabbed all that metal."
"And why they took who they took." Cole said.
"Carpenters, construction workers, tailors, graduating students involved in forging, Karlof, myself and-" Patrice was soon cut off as Lou soon came in front of them and started doing acapella, along with his bandmates as Karlof and Patrice smiled while Jay, Cole and Gewuji were shocked.
"#Revenge will be mine#" Lou sang before sliding on his knees.
"Dad?" Cole asked. "But you guys are just called the Royal Blacksmiths. You're not, you know, actual blacksmiths." They keep singing acapella as the workers started cheering for them and Jay, Karlof and Patrice look at them. The Royal Blacksmiths soon took some canes as they kept singing, grabbed some helmets with them, swung them in the air and they land on their heads before finishing the song and the workers keep cheering. "Shh, the guards." Jay, Cole and Gewuji try to get them to shush. "We gotta be stealthy."
"Sorry." Patrice said as the workers soon stopped cheering. "They're the only source of entertainment we had since the warriors kidnapped all of us."
"How do we get 'em outta here?" Jay asked.
"By leaving the same way we came in." Cole replied, pointing to the open skylight.
"Oh sure." Gewuji sarcastically said. "Great idea. Everyone can just fly up there, except- Oh, wait! They can't fly."
"No, but we can."
Jay soon gasped. "Airjitzu!" He and Cole said at the same time.
"Ain't gonna work." Gewuji replied.
In the main building, Krux and some warriors look at Cyrus as he works on the Apparatus. "Time grows short and I grow impatient." He said. "Are you finished yet?"
"Yes, I'm finished." Cyrus replied, putting the screwdriver down. "It will supply all the power you need."
"Magnificent. Your effort is appreciated, Cyrus Borg."
Cyrus grumbled a little. "Like I had a choice."
Krux soon looked at the Apparatus. "Impressive craftsmanship. All the more so when one takes into account your inferior modern training." He soon held up the Slow Time Blade. "Time for a demonstration." He inserts it into one of the slots, but nothing happens. "Gah! It doesn't work! I withdraw my compliment."
"I told you. The Apparatus won't activate unless all four Time Blades are in it."
"Speaking of which, the third is arriving at any minute now, brother." Acronix said as he and Machia come in.
"And my ship awaits." Machia said.
Krux growled. "I've waited decades." He replied. "I suppose I can wait a little longer." He removes the Time Blade from the slot and they all leave.
Now with a chance, Cyrus opens a panel before feeling a hand on his shoulder. "Attempting sabotage?' It was Machia.
"Uh, uh, uh, no." He lied. "No, no, no, of course not." He closes the panel.
"Wise decision, but just to be safe, you're coming with us." She places a hand on her head. "Take the Apparatus to the Iron Doom. Krux and Acronix want it ready to connect when the time comes." She soon wheeled him out as some warriors head in to take the Apparatus.