Ch 13
After a few days of constant working (and more nightmares), Alex and the boys had finally finished repairing Ninjago City. As fulfilling as it was, the ninja now had to worry about finding a place to live, and Kai wasn't making things any easier.
"Ugh this is frustrating!" he groaned angrily as the group was working on setting a pole in place. "Our weapons are gone; most of our elemental powers are gone. I mean we can still use our Spinjitzu, but I just feel so... limited." He tried to shoot a fireball from his hand, but only produced a small spark.
Zane looked up from where he had finished welding the pole in place, "No one said being a hero is easy. Though we may not be wealthy, we are rich in other ways."
Kai still maintained his grumpy look, "Yea, well I don't feel rich."
Surprisingly, Jay wasn't complaining about the situation. "I've always wanted to feel like part of the community," he smiled as he threw away some trash, "Speaking of which, has anyone seen Nya? She said she was going to help."
"I sure have!" A cheery voice sounded as Nya and Sensei drove up to the group in a small motorbike with a side cart. "I may have found us a place to live."
"Nice job, Nya," Alex said, "But how did you find a place? There's gotta be a pretty long waiting list to live here."
"I know a guy who knows a girl, and she knows this girl who knows a guy. Well this guy knows a real estate agent who can help you find a place."
"Yea, but where are you guys off to?" Jay asked.
"We have to find a couple of components to fix the Ninja Tank, and the dragon ointment has finally arrived," Sensei explained, "It's a day's trip, but once we get back, he'll be flying once again. Also, I love scenic rides," Sensei chuckled childishly, "Punch it Nya."
"Aye aye Sensei!" Nya responded, and soon the two were off.
"This is great! Once we find a place to stay, we can begin training Alex." Jay exclaimed.
This news brought Alex out of her sleepy stupor and planted an excited smile on her face. These past few days had been grueling, with work in the day and more torturing nightmares in the dark. She luckily never disturbed the others after Cole's visit, but still woke up with sweat and terrible visions of what had occurred. Now with a new home, she could finally live up to her potential as a ninja.
Scratch that. With the current option Patty Keys had been showing the group, Alex was surprised that they all managed to fit in the tiny space.
"This lovely one bedroom one half bath is a cozy dream," the real estate agent bubbled, "Who needs extras when everything is in arm's reach? Now wait until you see the lighting!" She flipped a switch that caused a small bulb hanging from the ceiling to flicker before going out and falling to the ground.
"Umm well who needs lights when you have this view?" Patty lifted the blinds on a solitary window that merely revealed the concrete wall of the next door building.
Lloyd looked around, "Umm why do I smell old people?"
The agent turned to him, "Look kid I'm trying to work around your budget! This is all you can afford!"
Alex sighed, "Well I guess this looks... promising."
"Right. Remember guys; Sensei told us our main objective is to train Alex," Cole added, "If this is all we can afford, this is all we can afford."
"Whoa whoa whoa! Let's not rush into any decisions!" Jay interrupted, "If this is about Alex, then shouldn't we be somewhere that will make her training easier?"
In this case, Alex found herself siding with Jay. As much as she didn't want to push the idea of a better living style, she really wanted to have the chance to train and be out with the others on missions. Not to mention, she did want some privacy.
Kai also agreed with Jay, and before Zane could interject, Jay turned to the realtor. "We're only thinking about our friend here and the kid." Patty smiled, "I do have one apartment that you'll just love!"
In just a short drive, Alex found herself in a stunning suite that seemed to measure all of her needs in just one look. And she wasn't the only one that was amazed.
"Now this is the eight bedroom hero suite, floor to ceiling windows, digital wall television, state of the art game console..."
"This seems a little out of our price range," Cole interjected over the agent's pitch.
"Oh sure it costs a little more, but you deserve it! I forgot to mention, there's also the dragon keep on the roof," Patty pointed out.
"Hey, maybe we can get a hero's discount, after all we are the ninja who saved the city," Jay butted in.
"I thought Lord Garmadon saved the city," the realtor said.
Jay looked upset at this misconception, but soon Kai chimed in, "We can get day jobs for the extra expenses."
Zane agreed, "We always said we needed the extra responsibility."
Alex nodded, "Just one problem: not only do you have Lloyd to worry about, but who's going to train me?"
That's when the agent sealed the deal, "Did I mention the indoor training facility?"
And with that, the ninja found their new home.
When Alex got done with a quick workout, she walked out to find the ninja leaving. "Whoa, where are you guys going?"
Cole turned to her, "The only way we're keeping this place is with jobs, so we're going out to find work."
"I remember that, but I did offer to help you guys with the pay. I can go out to find a job too."
Zane ushered the others out the door before walking up to Alex. "You need to train more than anything; a job will only slow you down. Plus it hasn't gone unnoticed that you are lacking sleep."
Alex wanted to retort, but couldn't object to the nindroid's reasoning. "All the same, I wanted to help out."
Zane shook his head, "Just concentrate on your training; don't worry about us. If anything, worry about yourself. And if you need someone to vent to about this sleeping problem, you can ask me for help."
Alex gave a small smile, "Thanks Zane. Now you better get going."
He nodded and waved as he ran out the door, leaving the house to her and Lloyd.
"So... wanna play me in video games?" Lloyd asked Alex.
She looked to the young boy and smiled, "After my training, kiddo."
And the days worked themselves out similarly, at least for Alex. She would train, play with Lloyd, train, eat, and train. But despite the training course, she felt as though she wasn't learning anything useful. Alex knew she needed guidance, but she didn't dare to ask the ninja.
Every day of work, the four became more and more tired and worn out. Each day, the money jar donations were less, and the jar itself didn't fill like it had the first couple days. However at this rate, Alex was more concerned for her friends' wellbeing.
She walked in on the boys today as they were planning overtime shifts for them to make rent tomorrow. "Work again huh? Well what about us?"
Cole looked to her from where he was icing, "You could be a great help by fetching more ice for my feet."
She sighed and refilled his ice, and was about to leave for more training when Cole stopped her. "I'm sorry we can't be there to train you, but I promise that once we make rent that we'll help train you, ok?"
She gave a small smirk, "Deal. Now you guys better leave soon. And don't worry about me and Lloyd. I'm sure we'll be fine."
Another long chapter, mostly long due to what I had to look up for this episode. The next part of the chapter will be to conclude the episode, so bear with me on this.
Thank you so much for giving this story a chance, check out my other story if you want, and I'll see you guys next update
