Sprouting Evil
The monks were playing chess. The game pieces were as big as they were and they were shaped like the animals of the Chinese zodiac. Everyone was supposed to be taking turns, but Omi made all the moves using their Shen-Gong-Wu, not letting his friends play as a team.
Their game was stopped when they were called to the temple greenhouse to tend to the plants. After all, time for play is followed by time for learning. "A warrior must first learn to control his patience before he can learn to control himself," Master Fung told his students.
"I bet he writes these things on the bottom of his palm," Raimundo whispered to Max.
His teacher heard him and remarked, "No, Raimundo, I write them inside my eyelids. That is why I blink so often."
"B-U-S-T-E-D," Dojo spelled out to Raimundo.
"These aren't riddles, Rai," said Emily. "They're lessons. And he's right. Where do you think the metaphor 'patience is a virtue' comes from?"
"Indeed, Emily," said Master Fung. "And I can tell you have developed a great deal of patience in your years."
"Yes, but it wasn't easy," Emily said. "When I didn't like the crude and undisciplined behavior my classmates at school displayed, I thought I could improve myself as a student by not acting like them."
"You were wise to do so," said Master Fung. "And since you and your friends desire something more challenging, it is time I introduce you to your greatest responsibility." He activated a switch, moving the statue and revealing a secret passage. "For over 1500 years, monks just like you have been guarding the contents of this vault. It is now time for you to assume the task."
It was bringing tears to Dojo's eyes. "You couldn't ask for a greater honor. You're all growing up so fast."
They came to another door with the image of blossoms on a tree. To open the door, the blossoms had to be watered in a certain pattern. Master Fung did just that. Beyond the door was a room with a dragon statue securing a black chest. From inside the chest was a dangerous component known as the Heylin Seed. The monks looked and saw that it was as small as a grain of rice and assumed it couldn't possibly be so dangerous.
Master Fung said differently. "Small it may be, but the Heylin Seed is possibly the most dangerous force in this world. It is not to be trifled with. It is not to be planted or near dirt, water or sunlight."
"So all we have to do is leave it in the box," said Raimundo.
Curious, Kimiko asked, "Has the power of the Heylin Seed ever been unleashed before?"
It has been once before, 1500 years ago, and almost destroyed the world. When it was stopped, a vault was built underground to keep the Heylin Seed safely hidden and under guard. The monks were children, but they were also warriors, so it was appropriate that they would be given the responsibility of guarding the Seed. After all, there's always going to be lessons in discipline and responsibility and this task was right for them.
Wuya was gone, but not missed. It didn't bother Jack that she left him for Chase Young. He was tired of her constant nagging. Instead, he built a robotic version of Wuya, capable of detecting Shen-Gong-Wu. At that time, Vlad, his old friend from Russia came by to see him. He looked on the website for villains and saw everyone's post on how Wuya left Jack for Chase.
But that wasn't Vlad's purpose for stopping by. He wondered if Jack had any knowledge on the Heylin Seed. As a matter of fact, Jack remembered reading about the Heylin Seed in a book about evil and vicious plants. Vlad told Jack that the Helylin Seed was under guard at the Xiaolin Temple and advised that they should team up and steal it. If they could bring the Seed to life, they could use it to dominate the whole world and be known as the greatest villains ever. They could even be feared and respected and even become famous.
The monks were supposed to be guarding the vault, but Raimundo wanted to go to the lake. He decided to take the Seed along. They would be relaxing and doing their job at the same time. Without asking for their teacher's permission, the monks took the chest out of the vault and brought it with them to the lake. Jack and Vlad were tunneling their way to the lake, where they detected the Heylin Seed was. From underground, they grabbed the chest and began making their way back to the Spicer residence.
When they got back, Jack and Vlad put on the same impression when they saw the Heylin Seed. Thinking of it as a joke, Jack tossed the Seed near the fountain. The Seed fell into the dirt and water from the fountain splashed on to it. The sun was also out in the sky, exposing the Seed to its light. Now that it had what it needed, the Seed sprouted in less than a second.
Jack saw that his house was covered in vines. From one of the flower pots emerged a colorful flower with the face of a Frenchman. He even spoke with a French accent and greeted Jack. "Bonjour! I am at your command, Master. You don't mind if I call you Master, do you, Master?"
Jack didn't mind at all. "I like it. And I'll call you Jiji." That was when he realized this was the Heylin Seed. "You're going to be my new evil plant."
The Heylin Seed was flattered. "Oh, I am a very lucky plant." He started purring like a cat and rubbed himself against Jack.
The heroes returned to the Xiaolin Temple and confessed their mistake to their teacher. Master Fung reprimanded Raimundo since it was mostly his idea. "Only time will tell how your error in judgement will impact us all."
Raimundo apologized. "If I crawled into a hole, I couldn't feel any lower."
Dojo came outside feeling sick to his stomach. He hadn't felt this way since the Heylin Seed was last unleashed. That was when he understood why his insides felt like they were twisting.
Their only chance against the Heylin Seed was a Shen-Gong-Wu called the Moonstone Locust. It stopped the Heylin Seed before and the heroes hoped it would reveal itself soon. They hurried to the vault, but Jiji was already on the roof. Clay and Raimundo hurried to close the door to the vault so Jiji wouldn't be able to get in and steal their Shen-Gong-Wu. Kimiko decided to burn the plant using her Judolette Flip. The fires of her acrobatic technique did burn the stems, but Jiji grew new stems in a heartbeat. Raimundo tried to use his Typhoon Boom to blow the stems away, but they remained intact. Omi was about to use his Tornado Strike, but his friends stopped him. They knew water would only make the Heylin Seed grow stronger.
Emily tried to attack with her Luminous Wave and Max tried to attack with her Shadow Blitz, but Jiji absorbed their attacks and turned them back on each other, canceling each other out. Clay used his Seismic Kick to throw stones at Jiji, but the plant caught them in his vines. He used the stones to break down the door, then he reached into the vault and began taking the Shen-Gong-Wu.
The monks tried to climb the vines. From the vines grew smaller flowers. They exhaled at Kimiko, Clay, Emily, Dojo, and Master Fung. They fell and landed in soil-filled garden pots. The effect of coming into contact with the fumes also turned them into plants.
They Heylin Seed returned to the Spicer residence and presented Jack with the Shen-Gong-Wu he stole. At that point, Jiji decided to no longer be a servant, but his own master. He put Jack and Vlad in soil-filled garden pots and exhaled his fumes at them, turning them into plants as well. "It is time to rearrange the order of the food chain," Jiji said as he watered his subjects. "From now on, this plant king will be on top!" he cackled.
Since Max, Raimundo, and Omi weren't the only ones who were turned into plants, they had to tend to their friends by trimming their leaves, cutting their weeds, and making sure they had plenty of water and sunlight. Dojo began shuddering, meaning he sensed a new Shen-Gong-Wu. Roses also bloomed from his hands and around his head. The Moonstone Locust had finally revealed itself.
Since Dojo couldn't alter his size and fly in his condition, the heroes needed another mode of transportation. Max activated the Crouching Cougar and the boys harnessed the others in a cart.
Jack's robot sensed the Moonstone Locust as well. Terrified of its power, Jiji knew he had to find this treasure and claim it before the heroes would. He commanded Jack and Vlad to lead him to the Shen-Gong-Wu. Reluctantly, they did so. They didn't want to become plant food.
The Moonstone Locust was hidden in the wetlands. Max saw it hidden under a tree. It was a stone shaped like the crescent moon with a locust on one end. Their path was blocked by vines. No doubt Jiji was trying to stop the heroes. Omi cut the vines, making a path for him and his friends to cross. They continued running until Omi and Max got caught in the vines and came into contact with Jiji's fumes.
It was up to Raimundo now. He managed to grab the Moonstone Locust, but so did Jiji. It was time to settle this in a Xiaolin Showdown. Raimundo decided to wager his Falcon's Eye against Jiji's Thorn of Thunderbolts. They Heylin Seed called for a Shen-Yi-Bu Dare, wagering his reversing Mirror against Raimundo's Gills of Hamachi. The Moonstone Locust would hide underwater and the first player to find it would win the game.
Raimundo used the Falcon's Eye to search for the prized Shen-Gong-Wu. Jiji tried to attack using the Thorn of Thunderbolts, but Raimundo activated the Gills of Hamachi and jumped into the water. Now finding the Moonstone Locust would be easier for him. He found it and was about to claim it, but Jiji used the Reversing Mirror to cancel the effect of the Gills of Hamachi. Now Raimundo couldn't breathe. Seeing his air bubbles, Jiji knew where to attack him.
Jiji used his vines to grab Raimundo and pull him out of the water. The Moonstone Locust got caught in Raimundo's flipper and he kicked it in the air. He also freed himself from Jiji's grip and got him to let go of the Reversing Mirror as well.
Jiji was about to grab the Moonstone Locust. "Looks like it's game over," he taunted. He used the Thorn of Thunderbolts to attack.
"Oh, it's over, all right," said Raimundo. He used the Reversing Mirror to send the attack back at the Heylin Seed.
"No! Sacre bleu," Jiji screamed.
The Moonstone Locust fell from the tree and Raimundo caught it, ending the game. They Heylin Seed wouldn't give up. He came back more monstrous than he was before. Raimundo wasted no time and activated his Shen-Gong-Wu, unleashing a swarm of stone locusts to consume the evil plant. All that was left was the Seed itself. "C'est la vie, salad breath," Raimundo sighed, placing the Seed back in the chest. Now that Jiji was gone, Raimundo's friends would be back to normal. Even Jack and Vlad were human again.
Raimundo promised everyone he would challenge himself to be more disciplined and be mindful of his responsibilities. Of course, no one believed him. They knew he would continue to be reckless and carefree.