I'm not going to lie. This isn't the most exciting chapter, but I thought it was necessary for story development. Hope you enjoy.
Chapter Four: Family Reunion
"Is she dead?" asked a black ninja, staring down at Laurie with wide eyes. His bushy eyebrows were furrowed in confusion.
"She is not dead, Cole" Zane repeated for the third time, laying a damp cloth across the girl's forehead. "I believe she passed out due to the strain placed on her lungs and heart from Skalidor's grip."
"How did you guys manage to find her in time?" a red ninja asked, walking over with a plate of eggs. "You two were up earlier than usual, but why?" He handed the plate to Jay who was more than happy to have food.
"I had a dream last night, Kai" Jay recounted with a full mouth. "We were all surrounded by an army of Serpentine and we couldn't fight our way out."
"So?" Kai asked, crossing his arms. "Big deal, you had a nightmare."
"Well, I woke up and Zane was staring out the window. He turned around and told me his falcon had seen Serpentine in the city, so we decided to go bust them."
"I don't know about this" Cole, the black ninja, said. He sat down next to the tatami rug that Laurie lay on. "There are Serpentine spotted in the city and then another ninja shows up. I thought Sensei said there were only five ninja. Six is too many."
"We had to bring her with us. She is a fellow ninja and she had just been attacked by the Serpentine" Zane defended, staring at Cole in disbelief. "I would have not left you there had you been attacked by any of the tribes."
Cole looked at Kai who gave a shrug. "If Fangtom had turned her it would have been another enemy to fight" Kai said, leaning against Dareth's trophy case. "That's the kind of attitude I always have when I'm suspicious about something and I agree with you, Cole. Something about this girl is off. I've never seen Skalidor practically torture someone, let alone almost kill them."
"I beg to differ" rebutted Cole, remembering a time when he and Zane were ambushed in the Constrictai tomb.
"I say we just go to Sensei and tell him all of our concerns" interrupted Jay, his plate now devoid of any breakfast items. "We should go now so we can decide what to do with the girl, maybe even before she wakes up." He pulled his mask over his face and gestured to the rest of his friends. "Does anyone else agree with me?"
Kai rolled his eyes while pulling his mask down and walking out of the door. Cole followed his lead silently, leaving Laurie alone on the floor.
"I do not understand why they do not trust my judgment about this ninja" Zane frowned, pulling his mask down. "What do you think, Jay?"
The blue ninja looked at his friend. "You're usually right about stuff like this. Sometimes the guys get touchy, ever since the tree house incident." He turned towards Dareth who had just entered the room. "We're going out for a little while, but Lloyd should be showing up to train any minute now. Will you tell him that we're running some errands?"
"No problem" replied the dojo owner, ignoring Laurie and returning to his office.
Jay left the building with Zane following close behind. The dojo was absolutely silent when Laurie came to. She groaned, sitting up slowly and feeling her neck. No puncture wounds. With a sigh of relief, Laurie pulled her mask on and went to sit on a bench near the dojo entrance. "Where am I?" she asked herself.
A bell attached to the door went off and Laurie jumped off her seat. "Hello?" called out a young boy dressed in green. "Kai, are you here? Cole, are you ready to train me?" He stepped past Laurie who just stared up at him from the floor. Her breath caught and she blinked rapidly.
"Lloyd, is that you?" she asked, standing. Her head pounded and she swooned slightly, but a pair of arms caught her.
"Who are you?" Lloyd demanded, gripping Laurie's arms tightly. "I know there is not an orange ninja so fess up! Who are you?"
"Take my mask off" Laurie faltered.
"You're probably a Hypnobrai scout sent to hypnotize me and bring me to Skales. No, I'm not going to remove your mask." He pinned Laurie to the ground and sat on top of her. Slowly she started to wriggle her one hand free and ripped the mask off herself.
"Lloyd, it's me, your sister, Laurie."
He stared at the red hair that was sloppily pulled back in a hurry. Lloyd stood up, allowing Laurie to get to her feet. She smiled at him, her blue eyes gleaming with happiness. "Laurie…how…what are you doing here?" he managed to say. His heart was beating so fast. The last time he saw his sister had been four years ago before he was sent to boarding school.
"Dad told me that you were kidnapped by the ninja. I'm here to save you, Lloyd." Laurie smiled and pulled her brother into a hug. "You don't have to worry anymore, brother. Your sister is here for you."
"Wait" Lloyd pulled back, fighting his sister's grip, "you've spoken to Dad?"
"Yes" she nodded, somewhat confused. "He told me you were kidnapped by the ninja."
"I wasn't kidnapped by the ninja!" Lloyd scoffed, somewhat offended. "They're my friends, Laurie!" He stared at his sister for a few seconds. "You called him 'Dad', but you've always called him 'Father'. Is there something wrong with you?"
"No, nothing's wrong with me."
"You didn't run into any dark blue snakes with red eyes or anything on your way here?"
"No, but I was attacked by a black snake and a red snake this morning". Laurie recounted the encounter with disdain. "I'm not sure how I ended up here though. I passed out right before the red snake was about to bite me."
"I bet my friends saved you! Zane and Jay were already gone this morning when I woke up and Kai and Cole were just about to leave to come here." Lloyd looked pleased with himself, though he had done nothing. "I'm happy you're safe, sis".
"She is your sister, Lloyd?" asked a familiar voice. Zane stood at the front door, a look of puzzlement on his face. "I did not know that you had a sister. Why is she here?"
"My Dad sent me to take Lloyd back, you kidnappers!" Laurie growled, lunging towards Zane. She became dizzy suddenly and crumpled to the floor. "I feel horrible" she groaned, trying to pick herself up.
"You should not move around so much. Skalidor really did some damage this morning. I am glad that I found you before Fangtom could inject you with his venom" Zane explained, kneeling down to help the sick girl. "I can also assure you that we did not kidnap your brother…"
"Laurie" she breathed, actually grateful to have Zane helping her up. "I'm Laurie Garmadon."
"Alright then, Laurie" Zane smiled, "we did not kidnap your brother. Who filled your head with such false information?"
"It was my Dad" Laurie said, though her tones made it sound more like a question than a statement. "My head hurts" she managed to say before she passed out once more.
Zane tossed Laurie over his left shoulder. "I came back because I felt bad about leaving her here alone with Dareth. I did not know she was your sister, but she seems a little confused. Perhaps she is under the control of the Hypnobrai Tribe."
"No, I asked her if she ran into any snakes and she told me she ran into two this morning" Lloyd informed Zane. "So, did Skalidor and Fangtom really try to turn her into a Serpentine?"
"Indeed" nodded Zane solemnly. "Perhaps they knew she was Lord Garmadon's daughter and were going to try and blackmail your father. Either way I would have come to her aid, though it does feel odd saving yet another one of Lord Garmadon's children." He looked at Lloyd who looked nervous. "I promise not to tell anyone else that she is your sister. It may cause the others to doubt me. They say I should not have saved her in the first place…"
"Let's go home" Lloyd frowned. "I don't feel like training anymore."
So Zane knows Lloyd has a sister. How will the others react when they find out? May or may not update tomorrow. Wednesday's are always really busy and, of course, there is a new Ninjago tomorrow. If not tomorrow, expect an update on Thursday. Still hope you all are enjoying this story. Please R&R, it means a lot to me. Thank you. :)