Jack's world slowly swirled into focus as he regained consciousness. His wrists were sore and his muscles ached; he discovered that he'd been bound by tightly tied ropes. He was laying on his side on the cold ground, and with a pained grunt, turned himself to look at his surroundings. The air smelled wet, damp, and tasted stale… He could make out a faint light not too far from him, and could just barely see a figure standing within it…

"You know," a voice hissed. Jack's head was pounding, and before he knew it the figure he thought he saw disappeared. Instead, he could hear slow, concentrated footsteps… "For one as worthless as yourself… You become useful at the oddest moments…" It was Chase… Jack would know that cold, emotionless voice anywhere… As well as those predatory footsteps… The circling, pacing, stalking footsteps that, to this day, made him shiver. "Pick him up."

Jack's body still felt as though it were stuck in slow motion. He heard more footsteps, heavy ones, approaching, and soon afterwards, both arms were captured into vice-like grips. He sluggishly looked from side to side. As he thought, it was two of Chase's "pets" in their long-lost human forms. Their skin was gray, cold, and foul, and dark rings encircled their sunken in eyes. He winced; their eyes lacked the shine which once made them warriors…

The shine which Chase had robbed from them….

"Do you know why you've become useful to me, worm?" Jack shuddered; the voice came from behind him. He felt a swift rush of wind, and through squinted eyelids, the dark, smirking face of Chase Young stood only inches from his own. Jack bit back a gasp; those eyes…. It felt like his soul were being burnt from the inside out. "I'll tell you why." A gloved hand harshly gripped his face, applying unrelenting pressure to his jaw. "You are going to lure the Xiaolin monks right to me, and I'll destroy them once and for all."

Jack yanked his face away. "Good luck," he growled defiantly, his eyes downcast. "They won't come for me. I've tricked them so many times, they'd be stupid to come to my rescue."

An acidic laugh echoed through the cave. "That's just it, Spicer. More often than not, heroes are blindly bound by their bleeding hearts. If you fall into danger, evil or not, their ecstatic crusade for justice paints their path before them.. And in this case, it will lead them straight to you." He backed away from Jack, keeping his eyes on him. "Too bad, really. The one time you develop a backbone, and it is going to aid in the destruction of those who pity you enough to come to your rescue. In all honesty, you would have been better off remaining the worthless coward you've always been." With that, Chase melted back into the darkness once more. "Bring him out. You can't have a trap without bait."

Jack hung his head in defeat… Shame… Self-loathing… With a sobbing breath, he uttered only one word… A name, the name of the only person who made him feel like he belonged…. "Omi…….."

Chase Young's citadel always had a distinguishable atmosphere to it. It was as though Mother Nature herself shunned it, and any form of light cowered away from it. The summit had a devilish crown of swirling black clouds, a never-ending tempest composed of hatred, coldness, and fathomless darkness. An aura of wrath cloaked its jagged peaks, swallowing all life which entered the vicinity whole. Lightning, red with malice, shattered the sky as thunder rumbled all around like a covert beast waiting to strike.

Omi was the first to dismount from Dojo, staring toward the looming iron door illuminated only by burning torches and the distant flashes of lightning. He flinched as a hand clapped onto his shoulder. It was Kimiko. They made no eye contact, but he knew the contact was for the sole purpose of voicing unsaid support.

Rai gulped and approached the iron door warily, getting into his fighting stance as the heavy door began creaking open by itself. "Be ready for anything," he said, though he barely heard his own words over his heartbeat. He was scared beyond belief, and, even as Clay gave him a reassuring glance as all four of them entered, none of his fear was alleviated.

Kimiko felt herself physically cringe. It felt as though they were being swallowed by some unseen entity, by pure darkness itself. Her hand instinctively rested upon her pouch containing her Arrow Sparrow; she was not going to be caught off guard.

The hairs on Clay's neck were standing on end. He was normally a brave person, ready to take on anything… But this was the first time his gut nagged him to get out of there. His eyes searched the darkness calmly, though he constantly felt as though they were being watched from all around…

Omi halted abruptly, his black eyes searching the room solemnly. "We…. Are not alone here…" Indeed, he'd begun to feel that cold, suffocating presence once more, and his apprentices did as well. They slowly began to huddle close, not one of them leaving their backs exposed to the seemingly enclosing entity of darkness. "Show yourself, serpent… And release Jack Spicer to us immediately…"

There was a hiss in the darkness, followed by haunting laughter. "Well…. It appears that you came after all…" There was a slithering noise and a rush of chilling wind, and the form of Chase Young slipped through the darkness as though it were a curtain. An icy smirk spread across his face as he surveyed the Xiaolin monks; as much as they tried to conceal it, he could sense their fear, practically smell it in the air. He raised a hand and snapped his fingers, and almost instantly, the pale, corpse-like forms of his warriors stepped out of the shadows. He snapped once more, and two more warriors carrying Jack appeared behind him, throwing the red-head rudely at the ground just next to Chase. "Look worm, they came for you."

Omi's eyes flickered with anger as Chase grabbed Jack by the neck and held him up, as if to display him. The crimson eyes mirrored the spirit of one whose will and self-worth had been destroyed. "You shouldn't…. H-Have come…." Jack's voice came almost inaudibly, but even so, the pain in his words was apparent. "I-I'm not…. I'm not worth it…"

"You see? He admits his worthlessness himself. And even so, it is quite admirable of all of you to come and try to rescue this pathetic creature… Hard to believe that, by simply existing as a living embodiment of worthlessness, he has garnered so much sympathy." His grip on Jack's neck tightened, and the broken boy genius only whimpered.

Omi slid a foot forward, glaring daggers at Chase as he slowly moved a hand towards the Eye of Dashi in his pocket. Just listening to Chase's relentless verbal assault was setting him off, but knowing that Jack had to endure this…. "How dare you talk to him like that, after how much he has followed and idolized you…"

"That's the joy of having henchmen," Chase hissed. "I'm not obligated to care about them; they serve me because that is the only thing that gives them purpose. I did not make them expendable; they already were expendable when they came to me. Isn't that right, insect?"

"Let him go," Clay growled vehemently; he was starting to feel more empathy for Jack than he'd initially felt. "He doesn't deserve that."

Chase only chuckled darkly. "Nonsense, my burly friend. With the witch gone, he needs something to cling to; by himself he's nothing and he knows it. No matter what, he returns to me; he is my property now. And… If you wish to separate me from my property… You must persuade me." He snapped his fingers and, all around the Xiaolin monks, hundreds of pairs of eyes glowed and Chase's undead warriors leapt from the shadows.

At once, the air became filled with the symphony of battle. The sky rained with fire as Kimiko launched an Arrow Sparrow assault, bathing the interior of the cave in a warm, red light. Launching himself with a well-calculated Wudai Star-Wind, Raimundo sent himself airborne and scooped up Clay as he soared. The cowboy's Third Arm Sash made short work of the monstrous, soulless warriors as it morphed from simple fabric into a solid, rocky fist. Clay then leapt from Rai's grasp, slamming his Fist of Tebigong into the ground and sending slabs of rock airborne. Rai took the initiative and launched gale force winds from the Sword of Storms. The slabs of earth were swept into the wind, and Rai directed it towards more of Chase's minions. With the wind inhibiting their orientation and the rocks slamming into their bodies, the warriors unfortunate enough to be in their path were knocked unconscious in only moments. Brilliant bolts of lighting shot from the Eye of Dashi as Omi flipped and dodged with the help of the Mantis Flip Coin, every so often making eye contact with Chase, who was only standing by and smirking.

"S-Stop…." Cold reptilian eyes slowly glowered down at Jack, who'd spoken up in a broken voice. The pale boy trembled in his rope binding, struggling to comprehend what this meant… They were fighting for him…. Risking their lives for him… "Ch-Chase…. Make it stop….."

"What's that, worm?" Chase said coldly. "Finally proving to me that you care for those four? Well then…" A fangy smile spread across his face. "It looks like it's my cue to intervene…" He grinned inwardly at the sudden look of worry on Jack's face.

"N-No…. Chase you can't…." Jack cried desperately, but it was too late. Armor began morphing into smooth, ivy green scales. A long, reptilian tail sprang forth from his spine and whipped about wildly as human hands morphed into razor sharp claws. A reptilian hiss filled the air, saliva dripping from a mouth filled to the brim with long, jagged rows of fangs. The Xiaolin monks didn't notice the monster until the soulless warriors backed off into the darkness once more in respect to their master's wish to join the fray.

The dragon hissed again, surveying the Xiaolin monks with a cold glint in his eyes. They were winded, covered in bruises and minor lacerations. "Well well," he growled, slowly making his way around them in his usual stalking method. "This is quite a treat; your destruction is imminent, and you all only have your empathy for that lowly insect over there to blame." His eyes glowed eerily in the darkness as he paced.

"Your words are false," Omi panted, struggling to stay on his feet. "You demean Jack Spicer, but to me, he is important even though he is our enemy."

"You are fools…" The voice came from seemingly all around them, followed by a heartless laugh. "Coming here to save that spineless coward? How do you know he will not turn on you? How do you know this wasn't a set up all along?"

Clay, Rai, and Kimiko cast worried glances at Omi. The young monk's eyes faltered, and he felt a swell of disgust at the idea that Chase had a high probability of being right. "That may be," he began. "And I may be naïve, but I know that Jack can be trustworthy when he wants to be…. And in my heart, I trust him as we speak."

"Very poetic, Omi," Chase hissed, "but eloquent words will not save you from the truth, from deception, or from me."

Jack watched with unbelieving eyes as the massive dragon launched himself at the monks and once more, the fury of battle was unleashed. 'I'm….. I'm important to them….?'

No…

No, there was no way he was worth this….

A blanket of shame seemed to blanket him, suffocate him as the realization of his own cowardice forced itself into his mind. 'Would they….. Have fought for me like this before….. If I hadn't sold them out…?' Shredded cloth and a pained yell filled the air as Clay was stricken by Chase's whip-like tail. However, the cowboy didn't stay down for long and, ignoring his wounds, leapt into battle once more. 'Why…. Why do they do this…?' Rai grunted as he hit the ground, wincing and launching a tempest from the Sword of Storms. The attack barely phased the dragon, who laughed as he reached out and snatched up the startled Brazilian. 'But more importantly…. Why didn't I see they cared before…?' A burst of flames erupted from Kimiko's hands as she launched a Wudai Mars-Fire attack, striking Chase's arm and releasing Rai. The dragon became enraged, swinging back at the two of them with powerful force and sending them flying. 'Why didn't I see…..?' Omi and Chase erupted into a fury of artistic yet deadly martial arts, but Chase's strength continued its supernatural streak as Omi's began to wane. The dragon's eyes flickered as Omi's punch pulled to the left as a result of his fatigue, and with a vicious swipe, he knocked the monk clean across the room.

It was then that Chase turned his eyes toward Jack, and an eerie grin curled upon the reptile's lips.

Jack knew that look.

That animalistic, murderous look.

Jack felt the color leave his face as Chase turned that look upon Omi, who was struggling to get to his feet. 'Omi…..' He glanced at the other warriors. Clay was almost motionless on his side not too far from where Jack lay. Kimiko's arm was clearly dislocated, and Rai, his gi now in shreds, was only a breath away from losing consciousness. Yes, even now, Chase's look burned into all of them, surveying their damage with morbid glee.

'He's going to kill them….' Jack could barely contemplate the words, they scared him so much. No…. No…. He wasn't going to watch this…. He wasn't going to let this happen, not to them… Not to Omi….. "Don't you touch him….." Jack whispered low to himself, struggling to get to his feet even though his body seemed to be working on his own… Chase raised an arm high, his black claws gleaming in the dim light. He held a struggling Omi down with his other arm, that murderous gleam in his eyes still. Jack suddenly felt numb, and suddenly, his body began carrying itself forward.

It was running, running toward the dragon as he prepared to deliver a fatal blow.

Jack heard himself shout something as he flung himself forward, just as Chase's claws came down. It sounded like "Leave him alone!!"

Omi closed his eyes.

So did Jack.