Chapter 13: He's Back
I sat on the edge of my seat. It hadn't quite been an hour yet, but it felt like forever since Lloyd had disappeared into the hedges, and the plants were so tall there was no way of knowing what was going on. Red sparks had gone up early on, but then it turned out it was just Fleur.
I tapped my foot. How long was this going to take? And why couldn't they make this thing more spectator friendly? I waited and waited.
Suddendly, Lloyd appeared on the field, the cup clenched in his hand.
"Yes!" I shouted and the crowd roared, but as I looked closer, my joy faded away. Lloyd was lying face down on the ground and he wasn't getting up. Something was wrong.
I pushed through the crowd, and sprinted over to my friend. I turned him over. He was still breathing, thank goodness, but he didn't look so good. His legs were covered in dried blood and dirt, and his eyes remained firmly closed. I shook him, gently at first, then harder and harder. He didn't wake up.
"L-loyd!" Garmadon yelled. I had no idea when the warlord had gotten next to me, but together we tried in vain to wake Lloyd up. We tried everything. My other friends joined us, but even Zane was at a loss. Then Wu joined us. He checked Lloyd's pulse, and then the professor checked his forehead. Then he waved his wand over Lloyd's body. Wu frowned.
"What is it?" Garmadon snapped. "Is my son alright?"
Wu sighed. "Something has drained Lloyd of his elemental power."
I gasped. "He is going to be okay?"
Wu frowned. "It'll take time, but he will recover. For now, Mistaké will brew Lloyd some tea so he can wake up."
I let out a sigh of relief. Now all we had to do is wait. The crowd murmured behind us. This wasn't how the tournament was supposed to go, and there was still no sign of Cedric. We glanced up at the crowds.
"It'd be better if we went inside," Mistaké said, and we all agreed. In the quiet of the infirmary, the potions professor began to brew tea while everyone else sat and waited; except for me. I had enough of sitting. I paced the floor back and forth. It didn't help. After a bit, Mistaké opened Lloyd's mouth and began to drip the healing liquid into his mouth.
He looked so weak. I wish there was something I could do for him beside just watch him suffer all alone. I hated not being able to do anything.
"Who did this to him?" Cole asked behind me.
Garmadon growled and we all stared at him. "There's only one person who could have done this," he said.
"The Overlord's back!" Lloyd suddenly gasped. His whole body flailed as he tried to sit up. I ran to his side and laid him back down on the cot. The second year must be delirious. My friends and I had stopped the Overlord twice already. He couldn't be alive.
"You need to rest," I said.
"He's back!" Lloyd cried again. "He killed Cedric and he almost killed me!"
I had never seen my friend so upset; he looked like he could break at any moment. I glanced at Wu for help.
"I believe you, Lloyd," the professor said, and that seemed to calm him down.
"But how?" I asked.
"Yeah? Didn't we defeat him?" Jay added.
Wu shook his head. "The Overlord's spirit has always been around, even after my father defeated his physical form. He's been biding his time, plotting to try and re-enter the physical realm, and Lloyd's power has given the Overlord the chance he needed."
"So the Overlord planned all this?" Nya asked.
Wu nodded. "I'm afraid so. I had hoped by leaving Ninjago, we could have left the Overlord behind us, but I was wrong."
Garmadon snorted. "I told you so."
Wu lowered his head, causing his hat to cover his eyes. The old professor almost looked…ashamed.
"The Overlord's reach has extended further than I thought, and there's no telling what he'll do next."
"What he's always wanted to do," Garmadon answered. "Cover the world in darkness."
I clenched my fist. We worked so hard to destroy the clock, and the Great Devourer, and now, after all this time, the Overlord was back in physical form, probably even stronger than before. He hurt my friend and stole his power, and now he wants to do the same to everyone else. I couldn't let that happen.
"So we beat him," I said. "Just like we did before."
"But this is the Overlord we're talking about!" Jay cried. "And he's in physical form! Won't that make him more powerful or something?"
Wu nodded. I sighed. Jay literally said my fears out loud, and from the looks on my friends' faces, they felt the same thing. I looked down at Lloyd, who was now resting fitfully. The Overlord had tried to kill him, and I wasn't going to let anyone get away with hurting one of my friends.
"But that doesn't mean we can't try!" I said. "We can't let the Overlord take over the world! We have to stop him. We've done it before, and we can do it again!"
"How do we do that?" Cole asked. "We're just fourth years."
"Yeah! We're just going to get ourselves killed!" Jay said.
"You won't have to do it alone," Wu said. "My brother and I will be there to help you."
Garmadon nodded, and Nya stood up. "Count me in."
Then Zane slid next to her. "Me too," he said. And Cole and even Jay stepped up too.
"We'll finish this together." I told them, and they nodded. I could still see fear in their eyes, mostly in Jay's, but that was okay. If I'm honest, I'm scared too. But one look at Lloyd told me this is what I needed to do. There was no other option.
"The world is going to change," Wu warned us. "This is not going to be easy."
I know. But I don't care. "We'll be ready," I replied.
AN: That's finishes this book series! Next week will be the start of the next book called "Ghost of the Past." I appreciate all your support! You all are great!