Chapter 34 - The Golden Master's Plan
The Great Devourer's body was thrown back. The violent jolt flung Zane, Jay, and Cole against the chasm's wall. Jay coughed, gasping, trying to take in as much oxygen as possible. His lungs and throat were burning, and a pounding in his head spread a nauseating feeling throughout his body. Yet, as he pulled himself up to his feet, the puppeteer couldn't help but smile.
"Thanks, Lloyd," Jay said, his voice soft and a bit raspy.
"It's not like I destroyed it. . ." Lloyd was looking at the snake's body, which slowly turned back to face them, looking momentarily dazed but very much alive.
Cole shook his head, slowly standing. While slowly regaining his breath, he looked forward, studying the snake's movements as it recovered. Then he turned his gray eyes back to the rest of his team. "You did a good job, Lloyd. But you're right. It's not over. We all need to attack its weak point at the same time. Just wait for my signal."
Zane nodded, standing on Cole's left. "It is time to get rid of Ninjago's pest problem once and for all."
"Couldn't have said it any better myself, Zane!" Jay smiled, standing to Cole's right. The Great Devourer was gaining speed now, and soon it would be right over them. The puppeteer's hands were cloaked in small sparks, his whole body shaking in anticipation. He risked a glanced at Cole, wishing he'd allow them to attack.
Kai limped forward, ignoring the pain in his leg and focusing all of his feelings into calling forth the fire within him. Lloyd came to stand beside him, offering an encouraging smile.
Cole bit his lip, watching the snake's body grow closer and closer. Its eyes were burning with anger, mouth half open to reveal its sharp teeth. The merchant breathed in and out, trying to stop his knees from shaking. And then. . . There! The glowing spot imprinted on the serpent's head was clearly visible.
"Now!"
The air around the group quivered with energy as a barrage of elements went flying. Kai grit his teeth in pain as he used his injured leg to brace himself against the recoil of his power. He held both hands out in front of him, feeling the intense heat from the flames licking at his hands, but not being injured by them. He had never really taken the time to wonder just how extraordinary his power was. Kai was fireproof. And now that he thought about it, everything made sense. Even when he was younger and his dad was showing him how to work with the metal in the shop, he had never been burned by any of the hot tools or weapons. But that was the least of his concern now. The blacksmith pulled his mind out of the past and focused on the beast before him. The Great Devourer was what mattered right now.
Jay felt his breathing turn shallow yet again as he stared at the creature that had killed Nya. It had been so close to taking his own life too. His blue eyes prickled with the start of tears, but he blinked them away. The Great Devourer did not deserve his sadness. It was a creature of pure animosity and chaos. The stream of sparks that flew from the puppeteer's hands grew stronger as his resolve hardened. He was not going to let the serpent beat them. "Keep it up," he heard Cole say from somewhere off to his left. Jay turned his head slightly towards the merchant, watching as he hurled an infinite amount of rocks and dirt straight towards the Great Devourer's head, and smiled.
"Lloyd, feel free to join us as soon as you can," Zane said, his eyes never wavering from his target.
The cool air that wafted outwards from his stream of ice sent a chill down Lloyd's spine, but it was almost immediately balanced out with the blistering heat from Kai's fire. Being in between the masters of such different elements was a bit disorienting, but Lloyd closed his eyes for a brief moment to focus better. He could feel his strength flooding back, giving him the ability to release another ball of golden energy. The boy clapped his hands together and slowly spread them apart, opening his eyes and seeing the phenomenon before him. When he held the swirling ball of golden energy, his eyes grew wide with realization. He really was the Golden Master. And it was such an incredible feeling to know that he was solely bestowed this power by the Creator. Lloyd was not going to let Him, or his friends, down now. With a small smirk playing on his lips, Lloyd pushed the energy forward and watched as it hit the Great Devourer straight on, joining the colors and elements from all of his friends.
The moment Lloyd's energy came into contact with the serpent's scales, a powerful explosion threw the five friends back. Where the Devourer had once stood, now lay a thick puddle of green goo. Bits of it dripped down everyone's clothes, covering them in a strong bitter smell. Lloyd tried to wipe away as much as he could from his body, and the others mimicked his actions.
"I guess. . . I guess that's that's done, huh?" Jay said, kicking a bit of goo off one of his boots. "That was. . . more messy than I imagined it would be."
"Well we did it," Kai forced a smile, doing the best he could to stay upright. With the threat of the Devourer gone, there was nothing standing in between them and a battle with whatever Pythor had become. "Now how do we get out?"
"Well. . . I'd been thinking about it." Cole placed his hand upon the side of the chasm, molding the stone into a handhold as if it were no more than clay. "And. . . I feel pretty stupid. I'm the master of earth, aren't I? I could just. . . make us a path to climb up."
"Wow, you are stupid. Jeez, Cole." Jay shook his head. "I mean, really? You've just now realized you can do that? You could've-"
Cole slammed the palm of his hand against the puppeteer's mouth, then proceeded. "But I don't think its a good idea for me to do that. Not now. We need to find the cave again and get some rest. Come up with a plan. Whatever is going on up there is definitely the strongest thing we've dealt with so far. We can't rush forward blindly."
"We can't just wait here!" Lloyd shook his head. "We've been wasting time here long enough. We need to find a way to stop this now. The longer we wait the worse it will be. It'll just grow stronger. By the time you think it's okay to attack, it'll be too late."
"Hey, calm down, Lloyd," Kai started, wondering why he was trying to be rational at a moment like this. The Golden Master had a point, and part of Kai was willing to comply with him without hesitation, an attempt to make amends for everything he had spouted out in anger back at the castle. Cole, on the other hand, made a fair point too. The blacksmith's leg throbbed with pain and he sucked in a deep breath. "Maybe Cole's right. If we just rush into a fight against Pythor now that he's. . . changed, we might be killed before we even know what's happening. Let's just take a little bit of time to get our bearings and regroup before we head out of here."
The green eyed boy clenched his hands into fists. Why did no one ever seem to listen to him? Just because he was the youngest of the group, it did not mean he was completely inexperienced. "If we wait that long, we won't stand a chance at all. Come on, guys. We need to get out of here as soon as possible." Seeing the looks of doubt etched onto his friends faces made him angry. Lloyd turned to face Zane, a faint glow still dancing off of his skin. "Zane, what should we do?" Tell them I'm right.
"Cole is clearly right. None of us are in shape to face what awaits us. We must rest, then formulate an efficient plan. We do not know how to destroy Pythor now that he has blended his soul with that of the evil entity. It would be suicide to return now."
The more Zane spoke, the more the sick feeling in Lloyd's stomach grew. This was all wrong. They couldn't wait. There was no time. It had to end now. He looked around his small group of friends. They were all wounded and tired. If they returned to the cave. . . they'd be out within seconds of laying down. Lloyd tried to hold back a smile.
He cast his green eyes low, fearing they would give away his plan. "Fine. Let's listen to Cole then. We'll wait."
"We'll fix everything in time, you'll see!" Jay smiled, fluffing up Lloyd's blonde hair. "Then we can all find some real beds to sleep on. And we can take a bath. . . And eat good food. . . "
As they walked back to the cave, the master of lightning continued to run his mouth about the commodities they'd gain back after their mission had been accomplished. Kai stayed closed to Lloyd, watching the small boy with suspicion upon his brown eyes. He'd agreed far too easily. The pipsqueak had to be planning something. When they walked in the cave, the master of fire once again created a small flame, barely bright enough to pierce the thick darkness.
"I'm so beat," exclaimed Jay, finding his way to one of the smooth, stone walls and sitting back against it. The coolness of the rock was comforting, and the puppeteer closed his eyes for just a second and reflected on what they had all just been through together.
The merchant followed Jay's lead and took a seat near him, letting out a sigh. "We need to figure out what we're gonna do about that. . . that thing waiting for us up there." He ran a hand through his hair, grimacing when it caught some left over residue courtesy of the Great Devourer. With disgust, Cole quickly shook his hand, hearing as the goo hit the ground with a squishy sound. "So does anyone have any ideas? Anyone at all?"
Lloyd stayed quiet, his eyes shifting around the room. He glanced to his right and saw Kai staring straight at him. Lloyd focused on his feet, feeling a chill run down his spine. "We could always just run up there and attack him," the boy settled on, still feeling the blacksmith's gaze boring through him.
"That is very reckless," Zane rebutted, a faint glow from his irises the only discerning feature that stood out in the dark. Kai's flame was growing smaller as the minutes passed by, allowing the darkness in the room to steadily grow. "We will have to work together to weaken Pythor, but I believe that only Lloyd can truly defeat him."
"I guess we can always try to distract Pythor so Lloyd can get a good shot at him," Cole said before he yawned, the sound filling the room. "Aw man. . . I really think we should all rest for a little bit. We aren't gonna do any good by stumbling into a fight completely exhausted." He rested his head back on the wall behind him and stared blindly up at the low ceiling. "We'll definitely settle on a plan when we're all a little more refreshed."
"Agreed!" Jay answered, still refusing to open his eyes. He turned on his side and allowed his body to slide down slightly, trying to find a comfortable position. Nothing felt too good against the cold rock, but after a few seconds, sleep claimed him. Cole did the same. Zane sat down, closing his blue eyes, sending Lloyd and Kai back into the darkness. Kai sat down by the entrance of the cave, making sure that his out-stretched legs blocked anyone from exiting without having to wake him.
Lloyd stood still, waiting for his eyes to acclimate to the dark around him. He could hear everyone's breathing slow down into an even pace, sometimes briefly altered by soft snoring. His teammates were asleep. It was time to go. He walked forward as fast as he dared, making sure the earth beneath him did not betray the sound of his footsteps. He could see Kai's body blocking the entrance to the cave, but he easily jumped over him, using a bit of wind to boost him higher. As he landed, Lloyd couldn't help but smirk with satisfaction.
You can't stop the Golden Master.
Mimicking Cole's actions, Lloyd began to make handholds against the side of the chasm. The climb would be tiring for sure, but he couldn't wait any longer. He had to put stop to this. It couldn't-
"What are you doing?"
Kai's voice stopped him in his tracks. Lloyd didn't move for a few seconds, then he finally turned, facing the blacksmith. "I'm going to put a stop to this. . . I can't fail again. Its now or never."
"No." Kai shook his head. "You're going to come back into the cave and rest. This is stupid, Lloyd. You'll get killed."
"I know what I'm doing, okay? I have a plan. I. . . I'll be okay." Lloyd turned back to the chasm's wall. Kai limped forward, tugging on Lloyd's shoulder, forcing him to step down.
"You're not going anywhere. Not without us."
"Yes I am. I'm. . . I'm sorry okay, Kai? But I need to do this. Cole can help you later. . ." With a flick of his hands, Lloyd raised stone around Kai's legs, keeping the blacksmith rooted to the spot. "I'm sorry. . ."
"Dammit, Lloyd! Don't do this!" Kai lunged forward, but the stone kept him in place.
The Golden Master began to climb.