Review Replies:

LucyBrick123: Haha, thank you. Updating can be very hard at times. I don't really know when the sequel will be posted. I mean, the plot isn't entirely finished, although it's getting there. And Echo will be with the Ninja at the start of the sequel, but I'm not saying anything else.

Anonymous7: Here's ya update!

Isabella camovic: Nope. No spoilers. And I don't see why I couldn't put Build-A-Bear in, this is only FanFiction after all. Besides, I've seen things like the Simpsons and stuff being mentioned in published books. But it's only an idea. And yes, I do hope to write more Ninjago fanfiction ::)

TheAmberShadow: I like your headcanon and shall now headcanon it myself. And yes, I have seen the Ninjago bloopers reel, but I much like their new surnames better (Smith, Walker, Brookestone and Julian). And yeah, it does seem to be a mix, doesn't it? And you'll see.

Ariza Luca: Things'll be getting exciting next chapter!

Chapter Seventeen:

Timer

Nya didn't like how things were going.

Her dragon skimmed across the sky, water swirling in its core, little droplets flying backwards every now and then. Seamus sat perched behind Zane, holding onto the nindroid for dear life. He looked liked he was freezing, which probably meant Zane wasn't in complete control of his emotions. She didn't blame him.

Even with Seamus with them, Nya's gut churned in agitation. She didn't like going into this without Kai, and she was sure the others would agree with her. But her brother could hardly sit up. If he had come with them- and she hated to admit this- he'd more than likely slow them down.

Nya shook her head, turning her attention to Lloyd. He'd struggled for almost a full minute to form his dragon. She wasn't certain he was as fine as he said he was.

She shook her head. She shouldn't be thinking about this.

She couldn't afford to be scared.

They landed a mile away from Stiix, dragons deforming and returning to their owner's cores. Lloyd stumbled, head pounding and vision swimming, bile rising in the back of his throat. He pushed it down, ignored the concerned looks shot his way, and began to walk.

As they got closer to Stiix, it began to get colder. It got so cold that they began to shiver, wrapping their jackets tighter around themselves. There was crunching underfoot, and when Lloyd looked down he was startled to find snow all over the grass.

"Snow?" said Nya, "Why is there snow?"

"Stiix must have really long winters," muttered Jay.

They'd put civilian clothes on over their gi, and Lloyd pulled his hat lower over his head to hide his face, wrapping his jacket tighter around himself. Stiix's main bridge loomed before them, workers hammering away at the boards. The water was laced with a thin layer of ice, frost swirling in it, and some parts looked thich enough to stand on. The bridge, snow having been swept off it and into the lake, was much more repaired than the last time they'd visited- or did that count? It was in a different timeline after all.

Lloyd's head hammered. Those confusing thoughts were quickly pushed away.

"It shouldn't be snowing," said Zane, frowning, "Stiix doesn't usually have winters that last this long."

"Great, a freak snow storm," Cole muttered, "Just what we need."

Some people glanced at them, but soon returned to their repairs. A lot of them were barefoot, toes blue from the cold, clothes shredded and damp, skin filthy from sleeping on the streets. Lloyd felt a pang in his chest. They had a point to hate them, he supposed.

"Let's split up," whispered Cole, not looking at them, "Text us if you find anything."

"What are we even looking for?" asked Jay, seemingly hesitant with the idea. Cole shrugged.

"Anything suspicious."

Reluctantly, the went their sperate ways. Lloyd kept his phone on hand in case they found anything, or something went wrong and they needed help. They didn't want to reveal they were the Ninja until absolutely necessary.

Many people looked his way, suspicious of the stranger making their way through their destroyed down. Children were ushered away as he approached, and people avoided him as though he were the plague. He was either ignored or avoided. Lloyd wasn't sure which one he preferred.

His phone buzzed and he switched it on, immediately regretting it as the screen lit up and assaulted his eyes, sending his brain into one of the worst headaches he'd ever experienced. Lloyd gasped, swaying on his feet, automatically raising a hand to press his fingers to his forehead as though it would send the pain scurrying away.

He stood there for a long moment, swaying on his feet, fingers to his forehead, eyes clenched shut. He took deep, steadying breaths and, ever so slowly, the pain was reduced to a dull throb above his left eye.

Lloyd opened his eyes slowly, squinting down at his phone, wincing as his head began to pound again. It took him a moment to read what it said.

Cole Find anything?

Nya Not yet. Jay?

He had to look away again, temple throbbing. He stood with his eyes closed again, before forcing himself to return to the screen as his notifications buzzed.

Jay Nothing.

Zane Neither have Seamus and I. What about you, Lloyd?

Lloyd shook his head, massaging his temples. There was a pounding pain behind his eyes, and dread began to settle in his stomach when he realised he'd have to answer. His phone buzzed again.

Zane Lloyd?

Muttering a quiet swear, and receiving a glare from a nearby woman, he braced himself and began to type. It took him nearly five minutes to respond, and he had to turn away every few seconds because of the pain in his head. Blindly, he pressed send.

Lloyd I've got nothing.

Jay Why'd it take you so long to answer?

Deciding that it wasn't worth typing another response, Lloyd switched off the screen and leant against one of the half-built buildings that wasn't under construction, grimacing as frost soaked the back of his jacket. He had to stand there for a long moment, eyes closed, before the pain in his head had reduced enough for him to think properly.

He tucked his phone into his pants pocket and began to walk, looking around in search of anything that could be linked to Basilisk, hands buried deep in his pockets in an attempt to keep them warm. But the town was just as gloomy, wet and destroyed as the last time (did that count? Nevermind, his head was too sore for that) they'd visited. The only real difference was that it was half destroyed and covered in snow.

He wondered if it had anything to do with Zane.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted two people, clothes so ragged that he wasn't sure they'd ever been clothes in the first. He came to a stop, pretending to inspect one of the buildings under current construction, watching as the two slipped away into an abandoned pub and out of sight.

Brow furrowing, he made his way over to it. He pressed his back against the partly demolished wall and peeked through one of the many holes. But the two were gone, as though they had never been there in the first place.

Attention officially captured, Lloyd slipped into the pub, snow and glass crunching beneath his shoes. Broken beams were spread across the floor; holes in the floor led straight to the water; there was hardly anything resembling a proper wall; the roof was a mess of jagged splinters; parts had caved in from the weight of the snow. He made a mental note to send Stiix help.

But that would have to wait.

Glass, snow and chunks of concrete crunched beneath his feet as he walked further into the pub. There were signs of people walking about, he could tell that even with his pounding head. The glass and concrete were broken in certain places, forming an almost distinguishable footstep to the eye that knew of its existence, and the snow was crushed and squelched to form undistinguishable tracks.

Lloyd checked behind the counter- the only thing in the entire pub that was in any way intact- but the two people he'd seen entering were nowhere in sight. The only thing there was an abandoned tool box, have buried in snow.

He leant against the counter on one of the few dry spots, careful to not cut himself on the glass. Raising his hand, he squeezed the bridge of his nose, trying in vain to chase away a migraine looming around the corner. Where had they gone? They'd been right there.

"Lloyd!"

He jumped, leaping away from the counter, green energy sparking to life between his fingers. Jay jumped down from the roof, landing a few meters in front of his startled friend, a look of relief dancing on his face.

"Jay?" said Lloyd, shoulders relaxing. He clenched his fists, squelching the green energy out of existence, "What are you doing here? We were supposed to split up."

"We'd thought something happened to you," Jay explained, moving to stand in front of his brother, "Why didn't you answer your phone?"

Lloyd blinked, pulling out his phone and turning it on, wincing at the light. Seven missed calls, five from each of his siblings. How hadn't he noticed? This wasn't like him.

"I... I didn't realise," he rubbed at his head, putting his phone away perhaps just a little too quickly, "Sorry."

Jay frowned at him, concerned, "Are you sure you're okay, Lloyd? You don't look so good."

"I'm fine, Jay," he sent him a smile that seemed forced even to his own lips, "Really."

Jay sent him a sceptical look, obviously far from convinced. Instead of persisting, however, he pulled up his own phone and began to text the others.

"What're you telling them?" Lloyd asked, trying and failing to come off as casual. Jay sent him a look, but answered anyway.

"That I've found you. You scared us half to death, pal," he lowered his phone, turning his full attention to his younger brother, brow furrowed, "We'd thought Basilisk had gotten you."

Guilt clawed at Lloyd's gut, reaching up with a hideous hand and squeezing all the blood out of his heart. He wasn't sure what to say, so he turned his eyes to the glass and concrete decorated floor, Jay returning to his phone.

"I saw two people come in here," Lloyd said, finally breaking the silence, "But they were gone when I arrived."

Jay turned his attention back to Lloyd, interest now perked. He looked around, properly taking in the room for the first time, "There's diffidently signs of people walking about. It wasn't you?"

Lloyd shook his head, but was quick to stop when it sent pain flaring up his temple, "No."

"We better not be dealing with more ghosts," muttered Jay, Lloyd cracking a small smile at the statement, "I wonder if-"

"There you two are."

They turned to face the front entrance, where Nya, Cole, Zane and Seamus were slipping through, Nya having spoken. Lloyd's face heated up.

"What happened to splitting up?"

"Why didn't you answer your phone?" asked Cole, ignoring the question, "We'd thought something happened!"

"I just spotted some guys coming in here, so I followed them," said Lloyd, head starting to throb again, "But they've-"

Metal arms wrapped around him, pulling him against a titanium chest. Lloyd stiffened, surprised. He stood stock still for a long moment, before slowly returning the sudden him, still rather startled.

"Zane?" Jay said, "Are you okay?"

Zane didn't answer. He gave Lloyd one last squeeze, before pulling away, leaving the green ninja standing there a tad awkwardly.

"What was that about?" he asked.

"Nothing," said Zane, sending him a strained smile, "I'm just... glad you're okay."

Something like realisation churned in Cole's eyes, and he swung a casual arm around the nindroid's shoulders, "Everything will turn out alright. So," he turned back to Lloyd, "You said you saw some people coming in here? Where'd they go?"

Lloyd shrugged, "Not a clue."

"PIXAL," said Zane, "Scan the place."

There was a short buzzing sound, then a tiny ding, "Scan complete," came PIXAL's voice, "There's no one else here."

A hand was laid on his shoulder, and Lloyd turned to see Nya, a light frown creasing her forehead.

"Lloyd," she said, hesitantly, "Are you certain you saw someone?"

"What?" said Lloyd, "Of course I'm certain."

Nya shared a look with the others, but they said no more. Lloyd looked from her to Cole to Jay to Zane, his heart slowly plummeting to his stomach. He was being abruptly reminded of when he was little.

"What makes you think I didn't see anyone?" he asked, struggling to push away his annoyance. His head felt like it was close to exploding.

Cole shook his head, "We're just making sure, bud."

"Yeah," said Jay, leaning against the wall, "I mean, you did just-" He gasped, falling backwards as the part of the wall he'd been leaning against caved in, looking dangerously close to collapsing but somehow holding firm.

Jay hastily pushed himself away from the wall, almost tripping over a fallen beam. There was the sound of stone grinding against stone, wood creaking and gears turning. Six heads snapped towards the far wall, as the bottom half slid open to reveal the darkest, most narrow staircase Lloyd had ever seen.

The silence that followed was startling. Zane's mouth opened and closed in speechless shock.

Ignoring the pounding in his ears, Lloyd sent his brothers and sister a pointed look.

"I told you so."

The sensation of being watched followed Echo for what seemed to be hours- but it was, of course, impossible to tell. He may have been clockwork, but he wasn't a clock.

He considered pointing it out to Kaze, but decided against it. He was probably just being paranoid. Or maybe Soren messed with his brain. Could he have done that? Could he have permanently damaged him? The thought sent his heart ticking, loud enough that Kaze sent him a concerned glance.

"What is it?" he asked, his voice a whisper. Now that they knew they weren't the only ones in the corridors, they'd adopted the habit, "Is something wrong?"

"I'm not sure," Echo whispered back. His throat clogged. "Kaze, I wanna go home."

A quiet sigh, "Yeah," Kaze muttered, "Yeah, me too."

They fell into silence. Kept walking. One foot in front of the other. Left, right, left, right. Echo wasn't sure how long they'd be able to keep this up. Was this it? Was this what they'd been sentenced to? An eternity of just wandering, bodies churning with pain, down empty corridors in an impossible darkness?

Did he deserve this? He wasn't sure.

Maybe he did.

"Do you have a family, Kaze?" asked Echo, if only to break away from his terrible thoughts. Kaze hesitated for a long moment.

"I... do," he said, still appearing hesitant, "But..."

Kaze's steps slowed, but he didn't come to a complete stop. Echo looked at him expectantly.

"I hurt him," Kaze said, his voice so low that Echo almost didn't catch it, "Badly."

"Oh." He wasn't sure what else to say. He glanced at his feet. "But you still love him?"

Kaze was silent. They came to a stop at the corner. A long moment passed, with Kaze staring down at the floor. Finally, he spoke, voice still hardly audible even in the silence of the corridors.

"Yes."

A light abruptly shone on them, and their heads snapped down the corridor. A figure, unseeable, shouted something in a language Echo didn't understand, and was joined by four others.

"Oh no," Kaze said, backing away and dragging Echo with him.

"Kaze?" he said. There was the pounding of feet, more yelling, the light getting brighter and brighter as they got closer and closer, "Kaze?"

"Run."

"What?"

Kaze hoisted him up, although he was too weak to carry him properly, "Run!"

They spun around and began to run- left, right, left, right, in a never ending cycle of agony and stumbling and near misses. The pounding of feet behind them never vanished nor dulled, nor did the shouting, and Echo's ticked and tocked in his ears, leaving his head a muddled mess of confusion and terror and he just wanted to go home.

They rounded the corner, coming dangerously close to falling over. Don't stop. Can't stop. He wanted to collapse. His leg was a white hot rod that had been thrown into a blazing volcano. The ticking was so loud, so frequent, he couldn't decipher one tick from another.

Like a bomb running out of time.

Oh, look, another cliffhanger. I'll just leave this here.

Things are finally starting to pick up again. Think Echo and Kaze will be able to escape? Where do you think the staircase leads? Recognise the pub? Do you know what's wrong with Lloyd?

I guess, for some things, you'll just have to wait and find out.

Feel free to review! I'll lova ya if ya do ::3