Chapter Fourteen

To Garmadon's Monastery

Amari's Point of View:

So there we now stood in front of the towering red, rose- wood door; repeatedly knocking harshly on to get his attention. Finally, the wooden doors give out a loud, lulling creak and a young, ten year old boy with chestnut hair going a bit past his ears, curiously peeks his head around the corner of the door, then instantly shifts his expression to utter excitement.

"Oh my gosh!" he exclaims. "The ninja of lightning! I can't believe it's really you! You're like the best ninja ever!"

"Well, at least somebody appreciates me!" Jay brags. "Hey, is that a Prince Donagen bracelet?"

"Yeah! Isn't he the coolest? You know that episode where he was stranded on another planet and he had to fight off those intergalactic space squids?" the boy asks.

"And then he takes parts of his broken space ship to make weapons and fight them off?"

"I heard that the producers of the show are going to team up with the original comic book authors to make a full-length movie just based on that one episode!"

"Uh, excuse me? Fanboy and Chum-Chum? We still have a bit of business to take care of." I interrupt.

The boy then takes a break from his "fan girl" self and reverts his attention to me, "Oh, sure. What can I help you with?"

"We're kind of looking for my dad, Sensei Garmadon." Lloyd explains. The boy's ambitious eyes gleamed with even more brightness and pure energy as he finally seemed to calm himself down and give his small statement.

"Sensei Garmadon is out of town, and he won't be back for another two weeks, but his wife Misako is here, she could probably help with whatever it is you need."

"That would be great! Thank you." I say with relief.

"No problem, just follow me inside."

We finally make it to a small room at the end of the corridor, where the boy knocks on the door in a rhythmic style. The door then slowly swings open and a women with a neat gray braid appears in the door way.

"Lloyd!" she cries enthusiastically. "So good to see you! What brings all of you here?'

"We need to ask you a very important question," I emphasize.

"Sure, sure! Come on in!"

The lot of us manage to calmly squeeze through the door frame into Misako's room. Before she shut the door behind us, I managed to see the boy grab Jay's arm and ask, "Can I show you my collection?" Jay turns to me as if unsure how to respond. I smiled and gave him a small nod, then watched the both of them scurry excitedly down the hallway.

"So, what did you need to ask?" she asks while sitting down slowly on a wooden stool behind her. I take a deep breath before I answer her.

"We need you to tell us what you know about the Underworld." I describe.

"Oh, well, obviously it is a place where the skeletons live and where Garmadon used to rule." She answers politely.

"Not that one," I say. "The second one; the one referred to as The Unknown."

Misako's eyes widen in shock and surprise, "Oh no—no. I'm not the one you should be asking about this! Not at all!"

"Mom, please." Lloyd assures.

"Misako, we really need your help. There must be something you know; anything!" I insist. For a moment she refuses to make eye contact, but continues to talk and tell us what she knew.

"Like I said before, the Underworld is a the place where all the skeletons live and where Garmadon used to rule, but the second world of darkness of which you speak of, is the one that is—like you said—commonly referred to as The Unknown. It is said to be a place that no mortal of any sort can pass through. The place itself is just how the name describes it to be; unknown."

"We need to know how to get there. Is there, like, some portal we can take? A certain wormhole?" I plead.

"I'm sorry, but The Unknown is a place that should NOT be toyed with. There isn't anything else that I could possibly tell you. The chances are indescribable!"

"I'm begging you! There HAS to be a way we can get there! This is the only chance I have to save Cole, Jay, Zane, Kai, and Lloyd: even your own husband and brother in-law—most likely the rest of the world. You HAVE to help us!"

Misako's wide and terrified eyes gazed sharply into mine; deciding as whether or not to make the correct decision, but she looks away from me for a moment and slides open a rice paper door that led to another room. My eyebrows relaxed in despair as I assumed that Misako had decided not to help us after all, but I soon saw her come back with a tiny glass bottle holding fine yellow powder inside and sealing it in with a black cork.

"I found this in Garmadon's belongings the first time I went to the Underworld. I did a bit of research on it and realized that it was a rare teleportation potion found near the trees of the Yuka jungle. It might just be able to help you." She said while placing it in my hands.

I looked up at her and let my feelings overcome me as to wrap my arms around her and give her a hug that lasted for about a minute.

"Thanks a bunch." I said while moving away.

"The only downside to it is that it only lasts for thirty minutes, so be quick and cautious." She warned.

"We will." I assured her while getting ready to leave. "Thanks again, Misako!"

"Anytime."