Nicki's Story
86
Jay tried waving at Nya as REX headed out over the desert, but either she didn't see him or she was ignoring him. He sighed, annoyed.
"We haven't even been back for a whole day and she's already mad at me…" he grumbled. Zane patted his back.
"I'm sure Nya will come around."
"After everything we've been through….she better."
Zane, Jay, and Pixal were seated in the back of the bus as Ed drove it towards Ninjago City. Dareth was standing nearby, eagerly awaiting the time he could get onboard the laser-gun seat.
"It would certainly help if any of you had been willing to share the circumstances of what happened in the first realm. You were under mind control…she will understand." P.I.X.A.L pointed out. Jay looked up at her in surprise, and then over at Zane accusingly.
"Wait…you told her?"
"Of course," Zane said, unapologetic. Jay facepalmed.
"If Nya finds out that you told Pix before I even told her…"
"Jay…I am afraid that there are more pressing matters at the moment," P.I.X.A.L cut in once again. "We have nearly entered the city…and based on the information I have, there is a large group of S.O.G blocking the way to Borg tower."
"Right…" Jay turned to look out the window. "You guys should get off here, then… we'll see how well that S.O.G blockade holds up once we ram this tour bus into it…" He looked over at Dareth.
"Um…why is it that we even have a tour-bus? I don't think that anybody actually explained that…"
"We built it ourselves!" Ed called from the front seat. "So we could tour Ninjago in disguise…"
"Oh." Jay blinked. "Well. I guess that makes sense. Nothing says discreet like a flashy purple theater bus…"
"It actually worked pretty well…" Dareth cut in. "Uh…until we got caught, that is."
"I believe this is our stop." Zane said, and the tour bus pulled to a halt as the two droids hopped out. Jay gave a quick wave.
"Good luck…um…hope you find Borg…"
"Good luck to you as well." Zane said with a quick smile. A few moments later he and P.I.X.A.L had disappeared down the street.
"Ok….pleeeease tell me it's laser gun time now…" Dareth said, readying himself to pull the lever. Ed had started driving again and it wasn't long before they could hear the revving of motorcycle engines. Ed looked back at his son, who gave him a nod.
"Alright…let's do this."
Nya
"I mean, it's bad enough that they had everyone thinking they were dead…but they can't even talk about where they've been?! What's that about?!"
Ronin rolled his eyes as he piloted REX across the desert. Nya was in the co-pilot seat, but she was doing more venting than navigating at the minute.
"They probably just didn't want to talk about it…maybe it was traumatic…" Misako chimed in from the backseat.
"Traumatic? Traumatic?! We're the ones who thought we lost everyone…"
"We could keep talking about this… or we could actually focus on what the heck we're going to do when we reach Ninjago City." Ronin cut in. Nya turned and glowered at him, but he ignored the look as he continued.
"I for one vote for the latter….seeing as the second we get there we are going to get swarmed. What exactly is our role, here?"
"We're supposed to be the air support for Jay and Kai." Misako reminded. "We aren't sure why the S.O.G have pulled all their forces into Ninjago city or what Garamdon's plan is…but if we can make sure that as many thugs are out of commission as possible it will give Wu and my son the added help they need to defeat Garmadon and Harumi, as well as protect the citizens of the city…"
"That's another thing!" Nya said, launching into her venting once again. "Why is it that everyone seems totally fine about having an Oni onboard with this plan? I mean, she and Garmadon are probably related, and no one's worried that she's going to just switch sides?!"
"Wu said he trusts her…and I trust Wu." Misako said sternly.
"Well….I for one trust Murphy's Law." Ronin said grumpily. They had nearly reached the city now. "What do we do if all of this goes south? If the plan fails? What's our next step?"
Everyone was quiet as they passed over the first few buildings of Ninjago City. Misako was the one who finally spoke.
"There are no next steps. The plan must not fail."
Wu
The Ultra Dragon paused as Wu drew back on the golden harness.
"Is he at Borg Tower?" Lloyd asked softly. There was a strong possibility that his father and Harumi would be holed up there, but Zane and P.I.X.A.L were adamant that they needed to get Borg. Lloyd just had to hope that they would be able to get him undetected.
Wu was silent, eyes closed. Gold aura shimmered around him and Lloyd felt a small pang; Wu had discovered new powers…would he ever be able to rediscover his own?
Wu opened his eyes.
"No…he has left the tower…"
"Do you know where he is now?"
Wu's brows furrowed in concentration. "It's hard to tell…"
Keyda looked down across the city…it was like nothing she had ever seen. Were those buildings? How did they make them so tall?
"He could be anywhere." she said softly. There were miles of buildings, how would they ever find him?
Lloyd sighed, frustrated. "Why would he hide? That doesn't seem like him, or Harmui…"
"They are not hiding. They are waiting for us." Wu said, matter-of-factly. "It has to be somewhere they knew you'd think of.
Lloyd frowned. Like what? His gaze drifted across the cityscape. All at once it hit him, and he turned to his uncle.
"Try the temple of resurrection."
Kai
"Looks like we've got our work cut out for us…" Skylor called over to Kai. He shrugged in reply, as if not worried. Their entrance to the city was firmly blockaded, and a large Purple man could be seen waiting with a large weapon that looked like a huge baseball bat.
"I think we can take 'em…" Kai said, nonplussed. Skylor rolled her eyes.
"That big guy…Killow…he got shot in the right calf not that long ago. We can use that to our advantage."
"You shot him?" Kai asked, surprised. Skylor smirked.
"Technically, Harumi did…"
"What? You guys have fought with Harumi since we've been gone?"
"Several times…" Skylor said distractedly, trying to figure out their best option for getting into the city. "Ok…I take right and you take left…."
"If you say so," Kai said eager to finally get some fighting in. Seeing everyone in the Samurai X cave had been fun and all….but all that planning had given him an itchy trigger finger.
"Well, well, well…" Killow's voice bellowed as their bikes drew nearer. "Looks like you should have brought a few more friends…"
"Who says we didn't?" Kai said, pushing a few buttons on his bike. A few torpedoes launched, blasting a few S.O.G off of their motorcycles. Skylor aimed her bike straight for Killow, who posed ready to strike with his bat. She leapt off as he swung the bat down, hitting her bike into the crowd of thugs. She aimed her leap towards his right calf, delivering a nasty kick in a weak spot. Killow howled and went to grab the red-head, but she had already flipped back into the crowd. A few blasts of fire came from her left and soon she found herself back to back with Kai.
"So…heard a funny rumor…" she started. She leapt into the air as a few thugs came into attack, kicking one in the face and swinging the other back into the crowd.
"Oh yeah?" Kai blasted a few bikers backwards. "Look…if it was from my sister and had anything to do with my hair….I'm telling you now it's a lie…"
"Nah…though she might have mentioned that you hung my picture up in the bounty…"
Kai froze and would have been hit in the head with a bat if Skylor hadn't pulled him out of the way. Kai snapped out of it and used Skylor's pull as momentum to spring up and hit Killow in the face.
"Ah…well…Misako thought that having pictures of all our friends would…you know…help morale…"
Skylor grunted as she punched out another thug. "Oh…so you had pictures of all your female friends…"
"Look, maybe we should just focus on the task at hand?" Kai panted. Killow had grabbed him and he was struggling against the large man's grip.
"Are you avoiding the topic?" Skylor asked, using Killow's bat to knock out a few more thugs before three more grabbed her from behind.
"Maybe just…postponing it?" Kai gasped as Killow laughed.
"Like I said…you both should have brought more friends…"
Lou
"I found it!" Lou said, coming around the corner, song book in hand. "I must have misplaced it after…"
The sound of soft snoring broke into his thoughts and he looked up. He sighed, smiling, at the sight of Cole sleeping in the monitor chair. He walked over and sat next to his son, chuckling. He pulled out a pencil and flipped to a blank page.
His own eyes were growing heavy when Cole started groaning, waking him up. He rubbed his eyes and looked over.
"Son? Everything alright?"
Cole started calling out, breathing hard. His arms and scar flashed as he yelled out in fear.
"What's wrong? Wake up, son!" Lou grabbed Cole's arms just as he went limp. Lou's heart was pounding as he tried shaking him awake.
"Cole! Wake up!"
87
"Not again…." Cole muttered, facing an endless gray void. He was sick of this nightmare…there were more important things going on.
"We do not have much time…"
Cole turned to find Garmadon—the good one—behind him. He looked a lot more haggard than when he saw him last.
"Are…are you ok?"
"It's been hard enough to forge this connection…don't waste time with stupid questions…" Garmadon growled. Cole blinked as Lloyd's father continued.
"I've realized that you were saved through aura connections…both Dragon and Oni. I need to know who made those connections…"
"Uhh….it was Wu. Wu and an Oni named Keyda,"
"An Oni?" Garmadon looked troubled. "But that doesn't make any sense."
"They're on their way to do the same thing to you, actually." Cole pointed out. "So…hopefully you won't have to hold on for much longer…"
"Aura connections are incredibly tricky…they only work with people you have a close connection to." Garmadon cut in, sounding a little frantic. "Oni or not, your 'friend' will not be able to make the connection with someone they've never met." His expression turned suspicious. "In fact, it doesn't even make sense that they were able to connect with you…"
"Yeah…weird." Cole said, flushing a bit. "But…it has to work, Garmadon…there's no one else that has the power to make the connection."
"Of course there is." Garmadon countered, sounding defensive. "My brother and my son have both Dragon and Oni within them. No one else will be able to do it…understand? You have to make sure that it's them…"
"But…Lloyd doesn't have…"
Everything suddenly grew hazy; Cole realized he must be waking up. Garmadon gave him one last harrowed look.
"The connection is breaking… and I won't be able to last here much longer. Pass on my message…to my brother…"
Cole woke up.
S.O.G
Mr. E had eyes on about half of the ninja. He ran a few more diagnostics, but he couldn't seem to locate earth or ice. They seemed to have all planned a simultaneous attack…but it seemed strange for them to go straight for the largest groups of S.O.G. Were they creating a distraction? Or looking to defeat the biker gang once and for all?
He turned his attention to the scanners that were scouring the desert. He was pretty confident that their base was somewhere out there, since that is where the ninja reportedly disappeared after leaving Borg Tower. In addition, it seemed that all three of the attacking groups had come from the desert. He zoomed into what seemed to be an anomaly in the scanner. A sudden idea came to mind and the nindroid did a deep level scan. There were a lot of different cave and cavern systems in the desert…but the space under the anomaly seemed far too uniform. Bingo.
He sent the coordinates with instructions to Ultra-Violet, who was only too happy to oblige. One thing taken care of, then. Now all he had left on his to-do list was quickly and efficiently crushing the ninja. He swiveled his chair to type into a machine behind him. He finished typing and flipped a switch on the side, leaning back in his chair in a satisfied way. No doubt the ninja were connected via com links…but the frequencies now being put out by Borg Tower should disrupt any electronic communication in the entire city. That should make things a little harder on the colorful rebels.
A ping came up on the security monitor behind him, and he swiveled for a better look. It seemed that Borg tower had a few uninvited guests. He stood and pulled out his two red katanas; it looked like there was something else on his to-do-list after all.
P.I.X.A.L
P.I.X.A.L paused at the door. What if he was not in there? Or what if he was, but…
Zane put a hand on her shoulder and she looked over at him.
"I cannot scan through the door…" he noted. She nodded absently.
"He did like his privacy..." she sighed. "Zane…I am afraid of what we will find."
"Would you like me to go first? To…to verify…"
"No." she cut him off. "I need to do this. I am the one who left him behind." She hacked into the security code on the door and grasped the handle. Closing her eyes, she pushed open the door.
She wasn't sure what she had been expecting…but she was faced with what looked to be an empty office. P.I.X.A.L felt a shoot of panic; what if they hadn't been holding him here after all? Or perhaps they had already gotten rid of…
"I'm picking up something from over here…" Zane said softly, pointing at a large storage closet. P.I.X.A.L nodded and Zane went to open the closet door. Before he could actually get a grasp on the handle, however, the door burst open and Zane and P.I.X.A.L found themselves being attacked by various office supplies.
"I won't go down without a fight…you monster!" Cyrus Borg yelled, picking up a notebook. He froze mid-throw as he saw who had actually entered his office prison cell.
"P.I.X.A.L? And….and Zane? I thought you were...well…all the evidence showed…" he trailed off as the notebook fell out of his hand and P.I.X.A.L rushed to his side.
"You are alive!" she said, relieved. She took in his gaunt appearance and quickly began a body scan.
"Yes…barely…I've been waiting here since you left for Garamdon to come finish me off. Luckily, it seems he has had other things to occupy his time. Well….considering that it's Garmadon anything he spends his time on is probably bad news for us in the end…but still…" Borg was rambling and P.I.X.A.L scanned his temperature.
"You are running a fever…a high one. It seems like you were able to remove the bolt?"
Cyrus Borg made a face, as if recalling an unpleasant memory.
"Ahhhh….yes. Had to be done."
"How did you stop the bleeding?"
"Well I'm no doctor, but there's enough electronical stuff in this office that I was able to cauterize it. Again…had to be done, but I do not recommend it."
P.I.X.A.L turned to Zane, who hadn't really said much since their arrival.
"We have to get him to a hospital…"
He nodded his agreement, though he still looked troubled. She stood.
"What is it, Zane?"
"It seems my com link is down…something is interfering with our communication with our friends…"
"That evil red robot, no doubt." Borg wheezed, disgusted. "If you can make it to the control room you can override the scrambler…."
"The most important thing right now is to get you to medical attention," Zane responded. He walked over and began pushing the wheelchair. P.I.X.A.L led the way down the hallways. Zane had frozen over the security cameras on the way in, so they traveled quickly as she navigated their way to a secluded exit. She was searching her files for information on the nearest hospital when she suddenly had the feeling she was being watched.
"Get down." she instructed, and Zane took a fighters stance, pushing the wheelchair up against a wall and positioning himself in front of it.
They waited a few moments in tense silence. Suddenly, a security fire door slammed closed behind them. Another slam echoed down the hall; based on the security network she was connected to, P.I.X.A.L could see that someone had boxed them in. Scanning revealed a single figure making their way towards them. Her eyes narrowed; she could guess at who it was.
"It's two against one…" Zane voice was low behind her.
"But he will not hesitate to target Borg…" she pointed out as worry gnawed inside as she aimed an arrow at the turn in the hallway, where a red figure would no doubt be emerging soon.
"Then we won't let him get that far…"
Cole
"But…how do you know it wasn't just a dream?" Lou asked again as his son typed furiously into the Samurai X-Cave mainframe.
"Wu…Lloyd…can you hear me?" Cole spoke into the microphone once again, but all he was getting back was static. He groaned in impatience and pounded the desk.
"Kai…Zane…Jay…Ronin?" he tried, but each connection seemed to have the same problem. He shut off the com link with disgust.
"That is not a good sign…." he muttered.
"You could be getting all worked up for nothing…" Lou tried but Cole shook his head.
"This was different than my typical nightmare…plus, what Garmadon said made sense. But If I can't even get through to Lloyd and Wu then it's hardly going to make a difference." He dry washed his face. "Not that it would make a difference anyways… because Lloyd doesn't have any powers at the moment, let alone Oni ones…but I can't even warn them that their plan isn't going to work …."
"It's…going to be ok, Son." Lou patted his back. "Wu's a smart man, I'm sure he's thought this plan through."
"Without the com links…how am I even supposed to know everyone's alright? What if they aren't alright?!" Cole had pushed himself up out of the chair and was painfully pacing around the cave. He turned and nearly tripped over a pile of clothes on the ground.
"Ugh…really Jay?!" Cole grunted. "I swear some things never change." He bent over and picked up the blue gi. After their time in the first realm, their clothes had been in a sad state. For reasons unknown, Ronin had a few of their ninja suits stashed in REX...no doubt he had stolen them awhile back with plans to sell. At any rate, the ninja had all taken some time to change after getting to the cave.
"Well…he and the others were in a bit of a rush…" Lou pointed out from where he was still seated by the monitor.
"Hardly an excuse to…" Cole started, but he trailed off as he saw something poking out from behind Jay's sash. What did he have stored in there?
"You ok?" Lou asked. Cole's sudden quietness worried him; he hoped he wasn't on the verge of passing out or something. He watched as his son pulled two black gloves out of the dirty blue bundle. Cole looked at them, confused.
"These….aren't Jay's. Where did he get these?"
Lou stood and walked over, looking at the gloves.
"May I?" he asked, and Cole handed him one.
"Interesting material… I don't recognize it. But they do have a classy look to them…I could see myself wearing them onstage. Maybe with a top hat or a monocle…"
It hit Cole like a ton of bricks.
"I think these are the Baron's. Why does Jay have the Baron's gloves?"
"Uh…I….don't know. Which Baron?"
Cole's brow was furrowed as he tried to remember back. They had said that the Baron had been defeated…but why keep his gloves? Some kind of weird momento? Or was there something special about them? He tried to remember back to the last time he had seen the Baron. He was pretty sure he was wearing gloves…and he was lobbing giant purple Oni powerballs around.
We take objects and mesh them with Oni magic to accomplish certain tasks…
The Oni masks gave their wearer's power…the Baron's staff had had power as well. Cole shuddered thinking about it. Could it be that these gloves had a similar power?
"I need to talk to my friends…if these gloves are what I think they are, then I have to get them to Lloyd…" He made it to the monitors and spent the next few minutes trying to connect with his friends. Once again it was in vain.
"Ok, that's it." He turned to his father, who was standing nearby looking worried. "You stay here. I have to make a quick run to the city…"
"NO, Son… you're in no state…"
"I can't get ahold of them any other way! Dad, this could change everything…"
"Then let me go…"
"No way,"
Their arguing was becoming heated as a sudden alarm began blaring. Both turned to the monitor in time to see a handful of red dots closing in on their location.
"Oh dear…" Lou said softly as Cole turned to him.
"Well…looks like our minds are made up for us. We're both going."
88
Jay decided that Dareth's war cry truly was a thing to experience. For some reason, seeing the overweight, brown-clothed man taking out motorcyclists with a laser gun made him feel proud. Good Old Dareth…he had come so far.
He turned his attention to the bikers on the right side of the bus, firing lightening out at the vehicles. The thugs yelled out as their engines overheated, a couple jumping off as the engines actually exploded.
"Man…I hope this gang has insurance…" Jay chuckled as he took out another bike. "Cuz they sure are going to need it…"
"What's that, son?" Ed called from the front. Jay sighed.
"Just a joke, Dad!"
"What Joke, hun?" his Mom called from the passenger side, turning to look at him.
"I just said that I hope these guys have insurance…"
"Insurance? I'm not sure that being in a bike gang grants any kind of insurance, honey…" Edna called back, confused.
"That's why it was a joke!" Jay called back, shaking his head.
"Watch out, Ed!" Edna cried suddenly, and Ed swerved to avoid a large barricade that the thugs had set up. A few wheels left the ground as the bus took a sharp turn down a narrow ally.
"Oh…I don't think we wanted to be down here, Ed…." Edna pointed out.
"Well…I know dear…but I had to avoid that barrier…"
"But we nearly lost Dareth off the back!"
"I'm fine…." The Brown Ninja called from where he was hanging onto to his armrests for dear life.
Jay looked behind them in time to see another barricade being put up. He had a sinking feeling about all of this…
"They're boxing us in!" he called frantically.
"Ed….you need to find somewhere to turn!" Edna said, turning to her husband. His eyebrows were knit in concentration.
"Oh gosh…I don't think I can! There's nowhere wide enough…"
Jay activated his com link. "Zane! Zane, I need a favor: can you pinpoint our location and tell us how to…" he trailed off as he realized his com link produced a static response. He moaned and tried REX.
"Nya?! Ronin?! Can anybody hear me?!"
"ED!"
Jay looked up to see a huge blockade with a dozen S.O.G on top of it. Were those…rocket launchers?!
"Not…good…"
Kai
"Normally, I'd bag the two of you up…but the bosses aren't playing so nice anymore." Killow said, smiling cruelly as he continued to squeeze Kai. "In fact, our orders are a little more on the extermination side…"
Skylor grunted as she fought against her many assailants. She called up to Kai.
"There weren't supposed to be this many of them at this entrance!"
"Well….I guess….we were wrong…." Kai wheezed, trying to activate his elemental power. This brute was about to have some nasty hand burns!
Skylor managed to wrench a hand free and activated her com link.
"We need some help…" she called into it, but all she got in reply was static. Two more thugs grabbed her arm and she yelled out in frustration.
"I think you perhaps waited a bit too long to make that call…" Killow taunted. He turned back to Kai, who was turning an interesting shade of red as he struggled for breath. "Don't worry…I'll try to make this as painless as possible…I may even keep that over-gelled shag of yours as a momento…."
"SHAG?!" Kai gasped. No one….no one insulted his hair. And he wasn't about to let it become some trophy either. He yelled and managed to ignite his fists. Killow yelled out in shock, his hold instantly loosening. Kai took a much needed breath and the fire at his hands grew bigger. Killow dropped him.
"Someone kill them already…" he ordered as he looked at the burns on his hands with disgust.
Kai heard the sound of several crossbows clicking as S.O.G. took aim at him and Skylor. Hands still lit, he prepared for the assault. Then something exploded, sending S.O.G flying in multiple directions.
Skylor took advantage of the distraction to deftly kick her assailants off of her. She managed to get next to Kai as the two of them looked around to see who had fired on the biker crowd.
"There!" Skylor called, pointing up at the airship headed their way.
Kai laughed in relief. "I love my little sis!"
Cole
Cole revved the engine of the bike and looked up at where his dad was standing.
"C'mon, we've gotta get out of here…"
Lou looked less sure. "There's only the one entrance…and they're already almost on us. Son…I'm not sure we would make it out…"
"We have to go now!" Cole insisted. "Hurry and get on!"
"This place has its own security system. If we stay here it should protect us from them," Lou argued, stubbornly refusing to come any closer. Cole glared back.
"We don't have time for this…if we stay here then we'll never get the gloves to Lloyd!"
"They have a plan…they're going to be fine. I'm not leaving,"
"Well I'm not leaving you here with them," Cole gestured to the monitor showing red dots that were nearly onto their location. "So get. On. The. Bike."
The Alarm was getting more intense as a P.I.X.A.L-like voice came on.
"Engaging assailants in 30 seconds…"
"Cole…"
"DAD."
The performer threw his hands up in frustration.
"Do not take that tone with me! I am still your father!"
"I'm not 13 anymore Dad! And the world is at stake!"
"10 seconds…"
"But what if I lose you again!?"
Cole sighed and suddenly the only sound in the room was the blaring alarm.
"5 seconds"
"Dad…this is it…this is where either we defeat Garmadon or we all lose everything. There is no in between…and we won't win if we don't get these to the city. Ok?"
"Engaging now."
Lou looked over at the monitor and back at his son. He sighed heavily and started making his way over to bike. He hadn't made it far when the entrance to the cave exploded, the jolt of it knocking him to his knees.
Cole nearly fell off the bike, but seeing the figures coming into the cave he dismounted and hurried to help his Dad up.
"C'mon…" he muttered, eyes still on the figures coming out of the dust.
"What'd I tell you?" a screechy sing-song voice cut in. "Nothing a little blast sap couldn't fix…"
Cole had gotten his father to the bike and they managed to board it. Cole's mouth went dry as he saw how many S.O.G were blocking the entrance. How was he going to get them out of here?
Ultra Violet emerged from the dust and rubble and spotted the pair on the bike. She chuckled.
"Oh ho ho…look who we got here? A couple of renegades guarding the nest?"
"Hold on Pop…." he muttered, still looking for an opening. There were too many of them, and he doubted he could fight his way out of here.
"You might as well get off that thing…there's no way out of this one…" UV had pulled her knife and was walking closer.
The Bike shot forward and Ultra Violet jumped out of the way to avoid being run over. Cole wove through a few more bikers, but then the back tire exploded and threw him and his father off the motorcycle. Cole coughed and struggled to his feet, making sure to keep his father behind him as more bikers approached. He glanced over to see a three-pronged dagger sticking out of the tire of his bike. His mind raced to formulate a plan.
"Wait…" the purple villain raised a curious eyebrow. "You're the earth ninja….aren't you? Well, isn't this your lucky day…you're on the nab list; turns out Emperor Garmadon has a few questions for you…"
"Son…" Lou breathed from behind him. Cole tried to decide if he could pull off an earth punch.
"Come quietly, and I'll even spare your old man," Ultra Violet cackled as a few S.O.G launched at them. Cole fired up his earth punch and knocked them away, wincing, but then Ultra Violet was right next to him with a knife to his ribs.
"In case you were wondering…I don't consider that coming quietly… Now I'm afraid I'll have to…"
Whatever she was about to say was cut short as Lou's cane broke across her head. The purple villain slumped to the ground and Cole looked at his father in surprise.
"C'mon son, now's our chance!"
Cole nodded, using his earth punch to knock away a few more thugs before reaching one of their bikes. His father jumped on with him and he hit the gas hard. Lou yelled out as he almost flew off the back and wrapped his arms around his son to avoid doing so again.
"Not so tight on my ribs..." Cole grimaced as he steered around a few more S.O.G members. Then, miracle of miracles, they burst out of the decimated entrance and into the sunlight.
89
"Wait…" Lloyd whispered. Wu pulled back on the Dragon harness and looked over at his nephew. The green ninja looked concerned.
"Are we sure this is a good idea, going in alone? I mean…the last time I saw my dad…" he trailed off, jaw clenched. "Maybe we should have brought everyone… or at least have taken a more secret way in,"
"I know it seems foolish to rush in; my brother will have the upper hand. But just as I can sense him in this temple of resurrection, he can sense my whereabouts. Keyda and I have the best chance to make an aura connection if we go in on the offensive. If we had to rely on brute force to defeat him, we would have brought more allies…but as it is we only need a few minutes to complete the connection, and more people would have just given Garmadon more to target."
Lloyd nodded absently. "We will have to be on the lookout for Harumi as well. No doubt she will be here somewhere…"
"Indeed. I'm afraid keeping an eye out for her will be your task, Lloyd. As well as steering the Ultra-Dragon." Wu said. Lloyd looked up in surprise as the Dragon Master continued. "Making the aura connection will take my full concentration."
Lloyd nodded and switched Wu positions.
"Are you sure he's even here? This place looks deserted."
Wu turned and looked at Keyda as she spoke for the first time in a while.
"Do not be deceived…my brother is not far. Keyda…we will not have much time to accomplish our task, and all of our friends are depending on us to accomplish it."
She swallowed. "But…but what if I can't…"
"Now is not the time to entertain doubts. You've done it before; clear your mind and I know you can do it again."
She sighed. "Alright."
Wu looked over at Lloyd, who nodded his readiness as well. Wu signaled onward. The Ultra-Dragon soared over the deserted-looking temple. The three figures were tense as they scanned the area.
Lloyd's stomach flip-flopped. The last time he had seen his father, he had beaten him within an inch of his life and claimed to have no son. This monster would show them no mercy…he had to trust in whatever it was that Wu and this Keyda said they were able to do.
"We can both sense each other…it is pointless for either of us to hide…" Wu finally called out, trying to draw out his brother. A few more moments ticked away in silence. Keyda spotted some movement in the shadows…and what appeared to be Oni aura. She blinked in surprise.
"I haven't been hiding…" Garmadon's cruel voice echoed through the temple grounds as he slowly made his way out of the shadows. "I believe it was you, little brother, who has been hidden away in another realm…" He lobbed a ball of power at the dragon, and Lloyd yanked on the harness. The Dragon dove out of the way, each of the heads growling angrily at the Dark figure.
"I see that you have left your students behind, Wu. You trust too much in your new armor…it will not be able to protect you against me. And I see that my son has yet to learn his lesson…"
Lloyd's hands shook as he pulled again at the harness, dodging another attack of Hatred. He suddenly remembered he was supposed to also be on the lookout for Harumi. He tried to block his father from his mind as he looked around for the former Quiet One.
"But it is the other passenger of yours that intrigues me the most." Garmadon said, fixing Keyda with a blinkless, red stare. She shuddered. "It seems you have brought both Dragon and Oni back from the first realm. How fortunate for me…"
As soon as Garmadon had appeared, Wu had closed his eyes and started to emit golden aura. Garmadon stopped speaking suddenly as he felt Wu's aura link finally hit home. He blinked, confused for a moment, then yelled out in rage and began throwing more dark purple orbs at them. The Ultra-Dragon ducked and weaved, and Lloyd grunted as he tried to keep the Dragon close enough for Wu to continue his connection. The Green ninja looked over at Keyda; her eyes were closed and she appeared to be meditating as well, but the expression on her face made it seem like she was running into some trouble.
She exhaled, trying to settle her nerves as she clutched firmly on the bucking dragon. She tried to push away the panic inside as she searched once again for something to connect her aura to…but there was nothing. Who was she looking for?
Wu was struggling to maintain his own hold, his face contorted in concentration.
"Keyda! You have to make the connection!" he said, straining.
She could sense the monster's Oni power. She reached out towards it mentally, but even then she could find nothing and no one to connect to. She was shaking as she tried to remember how she had done it before. She had been able to find Cole…she had sensed his familiar aura within the emptiness. But all she could sense now was darkness.
"I can't…" she said, panicking. "I…I don't know who I'm looking for!"
"You have to!" Wu's voice was taking on a tone of desperation.
Lloyd felt his own panic rising as he dodged another assault from Garamadon. Their plan wasn't working…whatever it was that was supposed to bring his father back wasn't happening. The Ultra Dragon fired a round of lightening and Garmadon dodged out of the way. Wu yelled out as his aura connection thinned even more.
"Wu…" Lloyd started, wondering if it would be better for them to leave and regroup. Their plan had failed…they needed a new one.
"We won't…get another chance at this…" Wu interrupted, jaw clenched. Keyda desperately reached out again and again, but her fear and frustration was interfering and she soon found she was unable to meditate at all.
Lloyd saw a sudden blur of movement above them and tried to call out a warning, but it was too late. A weighted net made of vengestone chain knocked the Dragon out of the sky, trapping the three figures on its back as well. They yelled out as they plummeted to the earth. Garmadon stepped out of the way as they crashed, taking out the altar. Wu's connection was lost completely and he slumped forward, exhausted. Keyda pushed on the chains, trying to force her way out with her power. Her eyes widened in surprise…her power had no effect on the chain; in fact, she found it difficult to summon it at all as the chain touched her.
"What…what is this?" her voice betrayed panic and anger. Garmadon shook his head, and his cruel laugh was joined with another. A pale-haired woman had joined him. Lloyd closed his eyes, angry at himself for not spotting her and her trap sooner.
"Harumi…"
"I don't know what your plan was, Lloyd…but its execution was pathetic, even for you." she gloated. Lloyd activated his com link in an effort to report their predicament to their friends, but all he got was static. Harumi tutted at him.
"Oh Lloyd…your friends can't help you…in fact, last I checked in, they all were in need of some help. It's over; it won't be long before they're all destroyed…just like your pathetic desert base."
Keyda looked up at that as Lloyd continued to glare at her.
"The three of you would be dead as well…if my emperor didn't have a greater need for you…" Harumi continued, turning towards Garmadon. His smile was chilling as he approached them.
"Let us begin…"
Zane
Mr. E came running around the corner, dodging both P.I.X.A.L's arrows and Zane's shurikans. He charged at them, using his katanas to swat any weapon that came too close.
"P.I.X.A.L! Step Back!" Zane called. She moved out of the way and the nindroid froze the floor. Mr. E hit the ice and slid towards them, and P.I.X.A.L aimed another shot. He slammed a red katana into the ice, stabilizing himself as he dodged the arrow and then kicked P.I.X.A.L out of his way. She hit ice and slid down the hall a bit before grabbing and arrow and stabbing it into the ice to stop her slide. She looked up to see Mr. E launch himself at Zane.
Zane dodged the katana swings, using spinjitzu to defend himself. P.I.X.A.L pushed herself up and aimed an arrow for Mr. E's back, but he sensed her movement and threw a katana in her direction and knocked the bow out of her hand. As P.I.X.A.L chased after the two weapons, Zanes' spinjitzu hit home and threw the villain into the wall. However, Mr. E sprang back into the offensive as if nothing had happened.
"It seems even two outdated droids are no match for today's technology…" the villain mocked as he landed a swing on Zane's arm with a metal clang. He winced and managed to kick Mr. E backwards.
"Zane!" P.I.X.A.L called out and he looked over as she threw him the other katana. He caught it and was able to block the next blow, which was aimed for his torso.
"You are outnumbered…surely you can calculate your odds in this…" Zane tried, straining against his assailant as P.I.X.A.L aimed another arrow.
Mr. E chuckled darkly and suddenly jumped out of the way. P.I.X.A.L's arrow missed hitting Zane in the face by a few millimeters, sticking into the wall instead. The near-miss had startled Zane enough that Mr. E had enough of a window to knock him out of the way. But instead of heading towards either droid, he moved towards Borg.
"NO!" P.I.X.A.L cried as Mr. E put a blade to Cyrus's throat. The inventor looked both terrified and annoyed that he was being used once again.
"Don't!" Zane added, powering up his ice. Mr. E added pressure and Borg yelped a bit. The red nindroid laughed.
"You are pathetic…both of you. In a way you are like me…such a keen grasp on logic and knowledge…and yet you throw your potential away at the whims of your intrusive emotions. Your compassion for this crippled inventor will be the biggest reason for your downfall."
Zane glanced at P.I.X.A.L, who couldn't take her eyes off of Borg. Both were trying to analyze a way out of the situation, but neither could think of anything. Mr. E seemed to be enjoying the power he had over them.
"You…Ice-Master…you consider yourself to be some kind of hero. But I say your programming has been bogged down with philosophical nonsense. You and your friends should have stayed in hiding…this death will not be one that any of you will escape from."
Zane's jaw clenched, still processing. Mr. E then turned to P.I.X.A.L.
"I had hoped to turn you… but it seems you are not what I thought. You are nothing but a burned copy of him…all your hopes, ideals, thoughts…none are original. If you were going to be controlled by the thoughts and whims of someone else…why not choose to be on the winning side?"
"You are wrong…" Zane said icily. P.I.X.A.L said nothing.
"Now you have both been deemed useless…my instructions were clear that you are both to be terminated."
P.I.X.A.L's mind was whirring, trying to come up with some way out of this. Mr. E couldn't move to kill them without letting go of Borg…but they couldn't dispose of him without Borg being put in peril. She stared at her maker, hoping some idea would form.
"Drop your weapons, and kick them to me…" Mr. E ordered. P.I.X.A.L hesitated, but Mr. E's grip tightened on his katana and she obliged. Next to her Zane did the same. The red nindroid looked down at the weapons and then back up at them. "If you want your dear little inventor here to live…I advise you do not dodge my next shots… and do not try to pull off anything heroic; to underestimate my reflexes would be a mistake."
"How do we know you will let him go after you get rid of us?" Zane asked. Mr. E chuckled again as he picked up the bow and arrows.
"Once you are dead…there is no reason for me to threaten him. Now the true question…which of you defects should I dispose of first?"
Mr. E aimed the arrow at Zane, but then slowly swung his aim so that it pointed at P.I.X.A.L instead.
"Last chance…" he said, and Zane glanced over at her. P.I.X.A.L shook her head.
"Have it your way…" he said. He released the arrow.
P.I.X.A.L dodged out of the way just as Zane released an ice blast towards the red nindroid. Mr. E stepped out of the way of the attack, shaking his head at Zane as if he was disappointed as he stabbed toward's Borg's heart with an arrow. But rather than ending the inventor, he felt the arrow head hit into something hard. He looked over in surprise and realized that the Ice-Master hadn't been aiming for him at all…he had frozen the inventor!
P.I.X.A.L was grateful that she and Zane had come to the same conclusion. By this point she had reached Mr. E and kicked him out of the way. Then she grabbed Borg's wheelchair, moving him out of the way as Zane moved in with a katana to take care of Mr. E. The red nindroid had recovered his other katana and soon they were embroiled in a battle once again.
"You have miscalculated…" Zane said as he blocked blow after blow. "We are stronger than you think…and our emotions are not a weakness,"
"Droids are not meant to feel…we are meant to accomplish that which logic dictates. That is why you will never be able to perform at your full potential.
"Logic can only take one so far." Zane was starting to move into the offensive position, and Mr. E found himself taking a defensive step backwards. "You consider emotions…compassion…to be something that keeps me from my potential. But I learned long ago that my true potential is standing for what's right and standing by my friends. And it seems you will never know what that feels like."
Mr. E shook his head and attacked once again.
"And you are wrong about P.I.X.A.L as well…she did not learn compassion from me…it is something I learned more fully from her. And you were foolish to think that you could ever take that away from her."
"What a sweet sentiment…" Mr. E growled. Zane glanced up at something behind him and smiled slightly. The villain went in for a last attack and Zane managed to knock the katana out of his hand and knocked his legs from under him. As Mr. E hit the ground, the Ice Nindroid kicked him and sent him sliding across the ice. Suddenly, a security wall dropped and landed on his middle, crushing the villain and pinning him to the ground. He lashed out but could do nothing against its crushing weight. P.I.X.A.L knelt down next to his head, looking for the switch to power him down.
"You and your friends will fall…while you have all been distracted, the real plan is in play…" Mr. E yelled, still straining. Suddenly his body went limp and his red eyes winked out as P.I.X.A.L found the switch she was looking for. She looked up at Zane, who was smiling.
"You hacked into the security-wall access…" Zane said, impressed. She shrugged.
"It was my tower before it ever was his."
"It was never his tower…" Borg said, indigent. He was still half covered in ice but P.I.X.A.L had managed to free him from the shoulders up. She and Zane worked to free him the rest of the way.
"I must say that I don't enjoy being frozen…" the inventor said as they worked. "But it was an ingenious move just the same. Um…how did you know it would work? And how did you know Zane would know what to do?"
P.I.X.A.L turned and gave the Master of Ice a smile.
"Because we make a great team."
He smiled back and nodded his agreement. His face became more serious as he remembered something.
"Mr. E mentioned a bigger plan…I can only assume that he shut down our com-links for a reason…"
"You take out the scrambler, Zane. I will get Borg to a hospital." P.I.X.A.L cut in. He nodded and she told him where to find the security room. He turned to go and then glanced back at her.
"P.I.X.A.L? Please be careful…"
"I will…just as long as you promise to come back to me in one piece."
90
"How did you know we needed help? The com-link was down…" Kai asked. He and Skylor were aboard REX, having been successfully rescued. Nya turned to face her brother.
"After revisiting the S.O.G scans on REX's scanners, we realized that you and Skylor might be a little outnumbered…"
"Maybe just a little," the redhead smirked slightly. They looked out the window where they left Killow and the other goons tied up.
"What's stopping some other S.O.G from freeing them?" Ronin asked.
"Technically nothing…" Misako said. "But we don't really have anywhere to put them. This is the best we can do."
"Is your com-link working? I couldn't get mine to connect," Skylor asked. Nya shook her head.
"Something's scrambling the signal. No doubt the work of the S.O.G. I've been trying different frequencies to try to get it to work, but so far, nothing!"
"So we don't know how anyone else is doing…" Kai summarized. The water Ninja shook her head.
"Let's hope they're doing better than the two of you were," Ronin added. "Not sure why we decided to split up all over the city…"
"The S.O.G were terrorizing the citizens! We couldn't just sit back and let them. Besides, the more thugs we can distract, the less there are guarding Garmadon. That way Lloyd and Wu have a better shot at defeating him." Nya's tone made it clear that this wasn't the first time she'd explained this to Ronin.
The thief opened his mouth to answer, but he was interrupted by sudden static that began emitting from REX's speakers. Suddenly, the static passed and they could make out Jay's voice.
"The com-links are back on!" Misako said.
"…West and ninth…..Need help…..DARETH, GET OUT OF THAT SEAT ALREADY…stupid com-link…anyone hear me?! WE NEED HEEEEEELP"
Everyone in the airship looked over at each other, and Ronin changed course.
Zane
Zane turned from the scrambler, confident that he had shut it down. He tried his com-link.
"P.I.X.A.L?"
"Yes, Zane?"
He sighed in relief. "The com-links are back up…did you manage to get Borg to the hospital?"
"Arriving now. Zane…the S.O.G seem to be moving positions…"
Zane turned to face the monitors behind him. He noticed that most of the screens seemed focused on the various areas that his friends were supposed to attack. It seemed that Kai and Skylor had managed to incapacitate Killow and his group of thugs…but Jay looked to be in trouble.
"They were watching all our points of attack…they were expecting it…"
"Mr. E said that it was a distraction…it is likely they lured us to different points in the city so that we would not be able to get involved with Garmadon's master plan…"
Zane frowned and tried to connect to Lloyd via com-link.
"Lloyd…Lloyd come in..."
For whatever reason it seemed that connection was still down. That was not a good sign…
"Nya? Can you hear me?"
"Loud and clear…I take it you took care of whatever was scrambling our system?"
"Yes…I'm currently in Borg tower. Jay seems to be…"
"…in trouble. We're headed there now."
"Good. After you secure them, make your way to the top of Borg tower. I will meet you there; we need to regroup…and I can't seem to connect with Lloyd. I am afraid that something has gone wrong with the plan."
"Ok…see you soon…over and out."
Jay
Jay had managed to pull his parents out of the bus before the first rocket launchers hit. He turned on his com-link as they fled from the scene.
"Can anyone hear me? Come on...Somebody!? They've blockaded us between north…no, wait, west and ninth…we need help…" he heard yelling and turned and realized that Dareth was still stuck on his laser gun chair—it appeared he was struggling with his seatbelt.
"DARETH, GET OUT OF THAT SEAT ALREADY!" he fired lightening at the rocket-launching thugs who were taking aim at the panicking man in the brown suit. He still hadn't heard anything back from his friends and looked down at his com-link in disgust as he ran to help free Dareth.
"Stupid com-link…can anyone hear me?! We Need Help!"
He and Dareth were finally able to get the seatbelt off. Jay shot another bolt of lightning at a few approaching thugs as he and the brown ninja escaped from the laser-gun seat.
"Uh…Jay…I think we have a situation…" Ed called. With the tour bus on fire behind them, he and Edna had started running the other direction, but more thugs were blocking their exit.
Jay looked around, finally looking up.
"Ok, Mom, Dad, this way!" he ran over and used a garbage can to jump up onto a fire escape stairway attached to one of the buildings. He kicked the ladder so that it would drop down to where Dareth was and his parents were headed.
"Keep climbing!" he yelled as his parents and Dareth reached the first floor of the staircase. They headed up the second ladder as something crackled and caught Jay's attention.
"Nya? Is that you?!" he called into his com-link.
"We're almost to your position…hold on…"
A few thugs were closing in on the ladder and Jay pulled it up.
"Oh, no you don't…"
He glanced up to see that Dareth and his parents had made it about halfway up the building. He felt something grab his foot and realized that the S.O.G were using the garbage can to reach him. He kicked the thug in the face and powered up his lightning…only to power back down.
"Metal staircase, Jay…so lightning is a no-go unless I also want to electrocute my parents…" he muttered to himself. He began climbing the staircase; all he could do now was hope that Nya and Ronin made it to them in time.
One of the rocket launchers hit home, and the stairway a floor above the Walker's exploded. Edna and Dareth screamed as they fell off the ladder onto the platform below. Ed's leg got caught in between rungs and soon he was hanging upside down, frantically trying to free himself.
"OH GEE…OH GOSH..."
"DAD!"
Jay leapt up the platforms and scurried up the ladder to his father. He helped him untangle himself and looked down in time to see another rocket launcher pointed up at them.
"Down! Climb down Dad!" he ordered as he pulled out a shurikan and threw it at the rocket launcher. He hadn't really brought that many…he'd run out soon.
"Get down!"
The order came from his com-link and Jay immediately jumped down to the platform with his parents. A few moments later REX breached the apartment building and fired down on the S.O.G.
"You know…I'm getting pretty fond on that airship…" Dareth said as Skylor lowered the rope-ladder.
27
