Chapter 1

A long, dusty road stretched out in front of a weary traveling party, and a longer one behind them. Four people, boys no older than 16, pulled a wooden cart behind them.

Cole tried to focus on just his feet, one step in front of another, and another, and another. But he couldn't since his head was buzzing full of thoughts. Last night had been quite a bit to process, and now they had been walking for at least three hours since dawn, going who knows where. If nothing, he was ready for a nap.

But Sensei Wu's words were still echoing around his head. Cole… The Ninja of Earth. Somehow, it sounded right, but still off. How could he, a runaway teenager, possibly be the prophesized Black Ninja? And never mind the Golden Weapons, that was something else entirely.

But what intrigued him most was the person who was huffing along right behind him. His name was supposedly Kai, and was meant to be the Fire Ninja. Yet he barely looked like he wanted to be there, and was always lost in thought, face scrunched up in worry. Cole presumed that he was thinking about his sister. He pitied the guy, but he still seemed a bit off. Always angry, and didn't talk much. Besides that, Kai was just a stranger to him.

Jay seemed to be absolutely done with this impromptu hike, and burst out, "'Sign me up', huh?" Cole sighed and tried to tune out what was going on behind, just trying to focus on his feet, one foot, then the next.

"Well, where did Sensei find you guys?"

Cole turned around, surprised to find Kai talking on his own accord. He actually seemed like he wanted to know. Well, maybe the guy didn't despise them all that much.

"Well, let's just say I was testing my limits…"

— — —

The trees swayed and rustled about in the wind, dancing in the stars. The fire had long burned out and left the campsite dark and cold. Cole tried getting all of the dirt out of his cot, but he was tired, and at this point couldn't care less. He flopped onto it with a sigh and closed his tired eyes, only to open them again with a start.

It was quite cold, and Cole wrapped his arms around himself and shrunk further into his cot. But it helped little, and he didn't want to have to get up to get a blanket from the bag. Honestly, he should've done that before he went to bed. But as a second chilly breeze left him shivering, Cole forced himself out of his warm cot and headed to their supplies.

He almost didn't see Kai in the darkness. He was sitting by the fireplace, once again staring off into the distance. His arms crossed, but he didn't seem to notice him, nor the cold.

Cole tread lightly as he edged over to the bag, and pulled out 2 blankets. He wrapped one around his shoulders and relished the warmth, but instead of going back to his cot, he headed to the fireplace.

"Hey," he said softly to Kai, handing him the other blanket, "You look cold."

Kai jumped at Cole's voice, and eyed him wearily before taking it. Once he had it though, he suddenly seemed to be more aware of the chill and wrapped it around himself as well. He then settled back down next to the charred remains of the fireplace and resumed staring out into the trees. He seemed very different from how he was earlier that evening.

Sighing, Cole sat down next to him. He didn't know what to say. All he knew is that here is someone who had his life turned upside down, and needs some company. Kai must be worried sick about his sister, and not having heard from any of his family in weeks must not be helping. Cole turned to check if anyone else was awake before speaking up again.

"You're worried about her, aren't you,"

Kai only nodded slightly.

Cole knew that this was more than just worry, yet he couldn't find out what. Why was he so closed off, he was only trying to help! But then again, they had only met, what, 2 weeks ago? And Kai didn't seem like he cared all too much for 'sticking together', as shown in the Caves of Despair. Still, Cole was determined to at least try. He knew how it felt to lose someone, but Kai still had a chance to get his sister back.

"Look, I know that she's who knows where with Garmadon and those Skulkin, but we're going to try and get her back. You'll see her again. Besides, she might've already escaped! Bashed in their flimsy skulls and is just waiting for you to get there."

While he knew that might not be true, he did earn a smile from Kai.

"Yeah," the fire ninja said quietly, voice full of fondness, "But I don't think Nya would wait around for me."

Cole smiled, stifling a yawn. It was getting late. "C'mon let's get some sleep." he said, standing up stiffly as he clutched the blanket tighter. "Can't be half asleep when we finally get the Sword of Fire."

Kai murmured something, then shook his head. "No, I have to keep watch."

Cole patted his shoulder. Whatever this guy was trying to accomplish by staring into the forest all night, he didn't think it was going to work. All it gave was more time to blame yourself, which was obviously not going to help his mental state at the moment.

Cole decided to try again. "We'll get Nya back, and you'll be able to go home, see your whole family again. But for that, we need to be ready. Get some sleep, if someone comes, we'll hear 'em coming." He sidestepped a scattered pile of leaves and twigs as he headed to his cot.

Turning back to see if Kai followed, Cole saw something flash across his face. But as soon as it came, it disappeared, leaving behind an unreadable expression.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." He muttered, and finally got up from the fireplace. He trudged over to his own cot, doing his best not to wake the others.

Cole felt a bit warmer as he got into bed, not just because of the blanket. He must've hit some other soft spot in Kai's defenses with his last attempt, but he couldn't expect him to tell Cole everything. People were just like that. He just hoped they really could find the Sword and his sister. Soon, he let his eyelids droop down and take him away into the darkness.