Chapter 7: Wand Heist
After dinner, I ran up to the Owlery to spread the good news. I also sent one to Nya and Cole, so we could all meet together in Garmadon's hut tomorrow. It seemed like a good place to start, since we could either work on helping Lloyd or fixing up our new meeting place.
I sat down at lunch and waited for the others to arrive. We had a lot to talk about. I watched Zane, Nya, and Cole walk in through the door, but Jay hadn't arrived yet. I didn't want to start planning without him, so we all started eating. Ten minutes later, Jay shuffled into the library, his head down. I noticed he was clutching his left hand, and my heart sank.
"Jay!" Nya cried.
Jay lifted his head and his eyes looked red and puffy. "Hey," he said weakly.
I swallowed a lump in my throat. This is why we needed the Resistance. So no one gets tortured by that monster again.
After classes, we walked down to Garmadon's hut, talking about the name of our rebellion. I smiled. It was nice distraction from everything going on around us. By the time we reached Garmadon's hut, all of us (except for Cole) agreed that we weren't naming our resistance after random TV shows, but were no closer to an actual name. We spent the day improving his hut, making it larger, fixing all the holes, and by the end of the week, it actually started looking like a home. Soon, I'd be proud to hold the first ever resistance meeting here.
As we got ready to head back after a long afternoon, I could hear fevered muttering coming from inside the hut. "Garmadon?" I called. "You okay?"
No response. None of us had seen the warlord the entire time we were making repairs, and I was started to get a little worried. I pushed open the door and Garmadon was bent over his table holding a flame in one of his upper hands.
"Can we come in?" Nya asked.
"What?" Garmadon turned his head sharply, but when he saw it was just us his gaze softened. "Yeah, sure. Go ahead." Then he turned right back to his table.
"What are you doing?" Jay asked.
"Trying to get my wand back," Garmadon replied. "But my old mentor hasn't made it easy. There are traps everywhere."
We all glanced at each other. I was hoping at this point the warlord would have at least made a plan to help Lloyd. Maybe we could help speed things along.
"We could help you," I offered.
Garmadon shook his head. "No, no. I can do this myself."
"But we can use magic, and you can't," Cole pressed. The warlord growled, but didn't reply.
"Please?" Nya asked.
"This is my wand. I should be the one to get it back," the warlord answered firmly. "Besides, you kids would just get in the way."
"We have defeated the Overlord, the Great Devourer, the Dementors and helped Lloyd survive the Tri-wizard Tournament. We can do this," Zane said.
"We want to help Lloyd too," I added.
Garmadon stiffened. Then, after an eternity, he stared at each one of us in turn.
"Alright," he said at last.
Yes!
"So where do we start?" I asked.
Garmadon turned back to his table and grabbed a sheet of paper. "This is Chen's office. We have to get in, avoid his traps, find my wand, and get out before he finds us."
"It's huge!" Jay cried. Huge was an understatement. Master Chen had taken over all of Takai Tower, the largest structure in the school, and turned it into his own personal lair. There were hundreds upon hundreds of rooms to explore, and no doubt that all of them were booby-trapped.
"Your wand could be anywhere," Cole said.
"I know." Garmadon answered. "But, I suspect my wand is here," he pointed to the very top of the tower. "That's where his greatest treasures are kept."
"How do you know?" I asked.
"I helped move them," he replied, shuddering at the memory. "I hate being that man's janitor."
"So now we just got to get to the top of the tower and get the wand back," I thought out loud.
"What about all the traps?" Jay demanded. "I do not want to fall down another trap door."
"Trust me," Garmadon said, "falling down a trap door is the least of your concerns."
And from the look on Garmadon's face, I didn't want to know what kind of unspeakable horrors lay in that tower. Jay gulped.
"What about the outside of the tower?" Zane asked.
Everyone stared at him. "What do you mean?" Nya asked.
"Yeah, Zane. The Takai tower is way too tall to climb," Cole said.
"No, wait!" Garmadon said. "The android might be on to something. You guys learned how to fly a broomstick right?"
I thought back to my first year. Nope. Never learned. In fact, I think I've had nothing but the same seven classes for the past five years. Kind of sad now that I think about it. We all shook our heads.
"I read a book on the subject, but have never ridden one myself," Zane replied.
"Seriously?" Garmadon shook his head. "What has my brother been teaching you? It doesn't matter. You can learn on the go."
"You sure?" Jay asked, fiddling his scarf all the while.
Garmadon waved one of his hands. "Of course. It'll be easy. Now, back to the tower." He pointed to back to the blueprints. "Chen only has a few curses on the top window, so we'll stand a better chance of getting in."
"Only a few curses?" Cole repeated.
Garmadon nodded. "With your wands, it'll be easy to disarm them, get in and get out."
I glanced at everyone. We'd been through worse before, but I didn't want to risk anyone getting hurt if I could help it. They all nodded at me.
"Alright," I said to Garmadon. "Let's do this."
"Meet me back here at midnight," Garmadon said. "Chen should be asleep by then."
Hours later, I slipped out of my bed, grabbed my wand, and snuck out of my dorm. Once I was sure no one was around, I lit my wand and made my way out of the school. Before long, I arrived at Garmadon's hut. Zane was already there, of course, and so was Nya, but we were still waiting for Cole and Jay.
The minutes dragged by, and the night air was starting to get to me. I snapped my fingers and summoned a small flame to warm my hands. What could be taking so long? Did they oversleep?
"What time is it?" I asked.
"12:19 AM," Zane replied.
Garmadon growled, "If those two don't show up with the next five minutes, we'll leave without them."
"I'm sure they'll be here soon," I said, both to reassure myself and Garmadon. I peered as far as I could into the darkness. "Come on guys," I muttered. "Where are you?"
Finally, I caught a glint of Jay's scarf, and as he got closer, I could see Cole was with him too. I breathed a sigh of relief. Both of them were out of breath, but otherwise they seemed fine.
"Jay!" Nya cried, and she gave him a big hug, but I was so happy to see both of them here that I decided to let it slide.
"What, no hug for me?" Cole joked. "I'm here too you know."
Nya let go of Jay. "I know, sorry, Cole." He stepped forward eagerly, and Nya embraced him too, though I noticed that Cole's hug was a lot shorter.
"What took you guys so long?" I asked.
Cole and Jay looked at each other. "Clouse found us in the halls," Cole started.
"And then he sent a giant purple snake after us!" Jay cried.
"But not as big as the Great Devourer," Cole put in.
"It was still huge!" Jay said.
"How did you escape?" Zane asked.
"We ran down the halls, but it wouldn't give up. You know that passage by the Potions Wing?" Cole asked.
"The really creepy one?" Jay added.
I nodded. I remembered it from when we went through there while looking for my sister during our second year. We came out on the other side and found a message written in blood. That was something I'd never forget.
"We ran down there, and it was so narrow, the snake couldn't fit. We lost it after that," Cole explained.
"And then we sprinted over here as fast as we could," Jay finished.
Nya smiled. "I'm just glad you're okay."
Garmadon glowered at them. "But now Clouse knows what we're up to."
I didn't like the look in his eyes. "We don't know that," I said quickly. "He just saw them up past curfew, they could've been doing anything."
The former warlord just shook his head. "You kids have a lot to learn. Clouse wouldn't have sent his 'pet' if he didn't suspect something was up. Guaranteed we'll have a nasty surprise waiting for us at the top of the tower." He pushed past us and started marching.
"We're still going?" Cole asked.
"If we don't, Chen will move my wand. It's now or never."
"Even though it could be a trap?" Jay asked.
"That's why all of you are here," Garmadon replied. His back was still to us, so I couldn't tell if he was joking or not. I swallowed hard, but I followed him. This was for Lloyd, I told myself.
A few minutes later, we were at the base of the tower, where several broomsticks were waiting for us. In the dim wand light, it was hard to see, but I could tell these were old and dusty. I picked one up and cringed. There were cobwebs in the tail, and I think one of the spiders was still living there. Zane had to shake several bugs out of his.
"We're going to fly on these?" Nya asked.
"They were the best I could find," Garmadon said. "They haven't been used since I was in school, but they'll get us to the top."
"And when were you in school?" Cole asked, eying his broom nervously.
"Over a hundred years ago," the warlord replied while mounting his broom with practiced ease.
'Great,' I thought to myself. I was nervous before, but now, I decided to keep my feet firmly on the ground.
"I don't think this is a good idea," I said. Everyone else nodded in agreement. There was probably a reason Wu took flight out of the curriculum.
"You'll be fine," he assured us, and flew a lap above our heads to prove it. "Just a little dusty. Mount up, we don't have all night."
I held the broom in front of me and to my surprise it started levitate. I just swung my leg around, when:
"No! Don't hold it like that! Reverse your grip, no, the other way. There you go. Now push with your legs, not too much though, you just want to hover for now."
I took a deep breath, and then I was floating. I felt like I could fall at any minute, but I was really doing it! I looked around at my friends. Jay tried to copy me, but instead, he slipped off the back and fell hard on the ground.
"No, no, no!" Garmadon growled. "Sit in the dip in the broom! That's what it's there for! And you!"
I followed his gaze and I noticed a blur charging straight toward me. I ducked, and a cold wind whipped through my hair. "Hey!" I complained.
"Sorry!" A voice yelled. I looked back and Cole was zooming all over the place like he was riding a wild horse. He leaned one way and started heading for the ground, and then he jerked the other way and nearly slipped off the back. "I can't control this thing!" he cried.
"Sit up straight! Leaning steers the broom," Garmadon commanded.
Cole sat up, and almost immediately, he leveled out and slowed to a stop. "Phew!" he said.
"And," Garmadon paused, looking at Zane. "Well, I guess you're fine," the warlord admitted. Then he turned to Nya. She had watched all of us before getting on her broom, so a minor grip adjustment later, we were all ready to go.
"Lean forward a little to make the broom go, and pull up with your hands," Garmadon instructed. "Like this." Soon, he had his broom up in the air following the wall of the tower.
This is it. Time to fly.
"Come on!" Garmadon called. "We don't have all night."
I tightened my grip. "Here goes nothing," I muttered. I leaned forward a little, and the broom began to carry me toward the wall. My heart pounded, and I yanked up with my hands, and the handle started pointing up. Suddenly, I was staring at the stars, and I realized that if I let go…well, better not think about that. Besides, all of my friends were all around me, so even if I fell, one of them would catch me. Hopefully.
Garmadon glanced behind him, and noticed we were starting to lag behind. He pulled up and waited for us to catch up. "You guys are no fun. It's like flying with snails. Lean forward more, like this." He bent down till he was almost level with the handle and shot ahead.
I didn't want to get left behind, but I also didn't want to fall. But, I reasoned, if I went faster, the sooner I'd reach the top and the sooner I could get back on solid ground. I pushed myself forward till I was level the broom. The wind rushed in my face as raced faster and faster until I finally started to gain on Garmadon.
My heart pounded in my chest, and my fear turned into excitement. This was absolutely amazing. It was like going down a roller coaster and you could almost feel yourself falling out of your seat, but I was flying, really flying. It was like a dream come true. I wondered why Wu had never taught us. I pulled along side Garmadon and I smirked.
"Race you to top!" I shouted.
The former warlord flashed me a toothy grin. "Now that's more like it!"
I urged my broom to go faster. Wind stung my face, but I kept going. I looked back and Garmadon was right on my tail. I turned around and pushed myself to go even harder. I was going to make it. I was almost to the top when Garmadon whipped out in front of me.
"Sorry, kid," he said. "I got a reputation to maintain."
I frowned and sat up, coming to a stop next to him. "I was so close too," I muttered. I glanced down the tower, and everyone was still far away. It'd probably be another five minutes before they caught up.
Garmadon glanced back at me. "You're not half bad flyer," he said, almost kindly, but then he cleared his throat, "But of course, I've got more experience, a lot more tricks up my sleeve."
I sighed, and the warlord's eyes softened. "You know, kid, if you really want to fly sometime, I wouldn't mind teaching you some of my secrets."
I stared at Garmadon, not quite sure if I had heard him right. I had seen him be kind to Lloyd, but he had always seemed kind of aloof to the rest of us. But I had really enjoyed flying; it was exciting and made me feel alive.
I smiled and nodded. "When this all over, sure."
Garmadon smiled back, and then the others began to pull alongside us.
"How do you stop this thing?" Cole cried.
And just like that, Garmadon went back to being a commanding warlord. "Sit up and level your handle," he barked.
Cole did as he was told and soon we were all staring at the top window of the Takai Tower.
"So now what?" Jay asked.
"Now, we break into the tower without being detected," Garmadon answered.
"Or cursed," I added.
"Or cursed," he amended.
"So how do we do that?" Jay asked.
"Well, we should probably check for spells before we do anything," Nya suggested.
Garmadon urged his broom to the ledge, and we all followed.
"One of you know the revealing charm?" he asked.
Zane pulled out his wand. "Specialis revelio!" and he tapped the window. Nothing happened.
"I guess Chen didn't think to guard the window," Cole said.
Garmadon frowned, but didn't say anything. It was a little suspicious, but I trusted Zane. If he didn't reveal any spells, then there probably weren't any. I grabbed at the latch, but it wouldn't budge.
"Locked," I muttered.
"Oh! I got this!" Jay cried, zooming to the front of our little group. "Alohomora!" He yelled pointed his wand at the window.
I tried again and this time the window slid open easily. I hopped off the broom and landed with a soft thud in the room. It was pitch black, and I couldn't hear anything, so I waved everyone else inside.
Then the window snapped shut behind us. Jay banged on the window, but it didn't budge. "We're trapped!" he cried.
A loud cackle filled the room and the lights snapped on. Clouse had his wand raised and aimed straight toward us. Garmadon was right, it was a trap.
Then, Master Chen stepped out of the shadows, still laughing like a madman.
"Oh, Garmadon," he said, shaking the warlord's wand right at him. "You didn't think it'd be that easy, did you?"
AN: Oh snap! How are they going to get out of this one? See you next week!