Chemistry was as boring as always. Not to mention that I had to fight my way through all the people that were lined up to see President Clinton in order to even get to class. I don't understand why there are even classes today considering there was practically no one there except me. Rant, rant, rant. Here's a new chapter as promised. Please enjoy. :)
Chapter Ten: Voices in the Wind
Kai sat at the opening of what used to be a holding cell. He remembered watching his sister emerge from within a few months ago when Pythor had arranged a battle. That was the day he had learned that Nya was, in fact, the samurai that he had come to despise. Sighing, he glanced down at Laurie. She had been unconscious for, at least, two hours now. The sun was rising higher into the sky. "They sure are taking a long time" Kai sighed, leaning back on his hands. "I sure wish you were awake, Laurie. It's pretty boring with no one to talk to."
The girl groaned in her sleep, turning from her back to her side, laying her head on Kai's right leg. The ninja blushed and cleared his throat, his heart hammering a mile a minute. Not too long ago he had detested Laurie's presence, sensed nothing trustworthy about her. Now, Kai realized he actually, sort of, liked having Laurie around. He felt protective of the teenager, even though she was the daughter of the man who had changed his life forever.
"Spread out and find them!" hissed Pythor, emerging from the cave. The other Generals followed behind him, each heading off in a different direction, preparing to traverse the scorching desert.
Kai grabbed Laurie underneath her arms and pulled her backwards, concealing both of them in the shadows. Cautiously, he looked around the corner. Acidicus and Skalidor were talking in hushed tones and Kai strained to listen.
"It's going to be difficult to find the ninja and the girl" the Venomari leader sighed. "Maybe we should stay back to guard the prisoners…"
"Prisoners?" Kai whispered to himself, confused.
"They'll be fine" replied Skalidor. "If we don't aid in the search for the last ninja Pythor will have our heads." Silently, the two Serpentine split off and left Ouroboros.
Kai's heart was pounding. "The others didn't get the staff. Lloyd isn't safe yet". He backed into the stone wall and slid down. "This whole situation is hopeless!" he growled, his head in his hands. Laurie stirred slightly in her sleep, eyelids fluttering. Kai noticed this and placed a hand on her arm. "Laurie, are you awake?" The orange ninja did not move again.
The sun seemed to travel farther across the sky as Kai gazed out at the empty arena. "I need to help the others, but…" he argued with himself for a while, pacing back and forth across the cell. "Leaving Laurie vulnerable isn't fair to her". Kai stopped in front of the girl, pounding on the wall behind her. "This is so frustrating!" he shouted, looking up at the ceiling.
A scaly hand covered Kai's mouth while a tail wrapped around his arms, binding them to his sides. "Hush, ninja" a voice hissed, "you may wake the girl". Kai tried to call out, but the sound was muffled. He wanted to hide his identity, but the red mask was tucked away in his belt. His captor remained a mystery as he struggled against them. Laurie remained motionless on the floor, oblivious to what was happening.
The tail around Kai's body tightened, the snake forced his head back. Skalidor gazed at the ninja, his eyes shining. "Pythor will be pleased that I have found you". The red ninja wriggled in the Constrictai's grip, his body growing limp. Kai closed his eyes, his strength gone, and his head fell to one side. The General snickered, releasing the ninja from his grip.
"Laurie, wake up now!" shouted Kai, getting to his feet. He did not think the reptile would truly believe he had lost consciousness, but he was glad that his plan had worked. Quickly, he lunged towards the sleeping girl and tried to scoop her into his arms. The tail returned, wrapping itself around his neck. "Laurie" Kai choked, his hands trying to pry the Constrictai's tail off of him. "Wake up, I need your help"!
The orange ninja yawned, her eyes opening slowly. When she saw Kai falling to his knees, she grabbed her bō staff from her belt. Without even thinking, she jumped behind her struggling friend, whipping the wooden stick around behind her back before bringing it down on the black snake's head. He called out, his tail releasing Kai who fell forward onto the stone. Laurie swung the staff in a low arc, knocking Skalidor on his back before giving him a blow to the chest with a blunt end.
Laurie was surprised at all the maneuvers she had just performed. Even when she was teaching herself Spinjitzu vigorously she never managed to move her weapon around with such grace and precision. Her gaze lay on Kai who was coughing and trying to catch his breath. "Oh my gosh are you okay?" the orange ninja knelt down next to her friend, frantic.
"I'm fine" Kai coughed, giving a smile. "You sure took care of that snake. The only other time I've seen you fight back like that was when you were attacking us back in Ninjago City".
"Kai" Laurie started, sighing, "Where are we? The last thing I remember…" She trailed off, thinking. "Pythor was summoning a portal to talk to my father. I blacked out right after that. What happened, Kai?"
"Laurie, you don't need to worry about it, alright?" Kai argued, getting to his feet. "You're free now and I need to get you to Ninjago City as quickly as possible".
The girl's eyes widened in horror and she ripped her mask off. "I did something terrible, didn't I?" Kai avoided Laurie's gaze, pushing past her to exit the cell, when something knocked him off of his feet. Back on the ground, the red ninja stared up into the face of a crying teenager. "What did I do, Kai?" she demanded, banging her bō staff on the ground for emphasis.
"You didn't do anything" Kai sighed, sitting up. "Skales ordered you to kill Lloyd, and you almost did, but Zane was able to release you from his control before you could".
Laurie was happy she had decided to hold her staff vertically because she now leaned on it for support. "I…I tried to kill my b-brother?" she sniffed, her knees feeling weak. The past four years she had been training, loathing her father, and missing the one person in her life that actually mattered to her. She had tried to kill that very person. "I'm a danger" Laurie muttered, a hand over her eyes. "As long as Skales can control me I'm of no use to anyone."
"That's just it" exclaimed Kai, "he can't control you anymore unless he places you into another trance."
"You mean I'm actually me again?"
The red ninja nodded, getting to his feet. "I told you that Zane released you from Skales' control before you killed your brother. You're cured, but your brother isn't." Kai pulled the mask down over his face. "The others decided to forge on ahead and retrieve the Fangpyre Staff while I watched you, but I have a feeling they weren't very successful."
Laurie pulled down her mask too, the material sticking to her moist skin. "Lloyd is still turning into a Serpentine then?" she asked cautiously, fearing the answer.
"Yeah" Kai sighed, looking to see if Laurie needed help supporting her body weight. He could see her eyes dim with the confirmation of her brother's fate. "It's going to be alright, Laurie. We'll find the Fangpyre Staff in time to save Lloyd. I promise."
Slowly, Laurie stood up straight, gripping her staff tightly in both hands. "Alright" she breathed, calming her frazzled nerves. "Let's go get that staff". The pair crept out into the blinding light of the sun, Ouroboros virtually empty. "I guess we have to get going somewhere before Skalidor comes to" stated Laurie. "I haven't the slightest idea where the Generals could be."
"I know they all split up earlier, but I didn't pay attention to which snake went where." Kai cupped a hand over his eyes, attempting to block out the glare. "If I was overhearing correctly, they're all out looking for me." A strong wind whipped through the city, twisting sand around in a small tornado. "They could be anywhere though!"
Go west.
Laurie turned towards Kai who was looking away from her. "Did you just say something?" she asked curiously.
"Nope" the red ninja replied. "Maybe we should head towards Ninjago City. They probably think I would go back there for Sensei Wu". Kai began walking east, Laurie following close behind. The wind was starting to pick up more.
Wrong way; go west.
Rubbing her arm, Laurie looked around the barren landscape. There was literally nothing in the desert besides Ouroboros. And there was that voice again, she was positive she was not imagining it. The air was blowing around her, flowing in the opposite direction of her travels. "Kai" called Laurie, stopping at the edge of the city, "I think that we should check somewhere else."
"Where do you propose we check then?" Kai snapped, frustrated. He did not turn to look at his traveling companion.
"I feel like we need to travel west."
Kai gave a sound of disapproval. "Do you know what is west of here, Laurie?" he asked condescendingly. The girl's silence was enough to confirm his suspicions. "Scatter Canyon is west of Ouroboros. Why would you want to start our search there?"
"It's just that…" she started nervously. Laurie did not feel comfortable divulging the fact that she was hearing voices. That seemed suspicious, possibly even residual energy from Skales. "I have a gut feeling about this, Kai" she settled on. "Do you trust me?"
Something about the way Laurie had hesitated made Kai feel slightly unsettled. He remembered back to the night they had briefly shared in the desert, the apology she had never gotten the chance to hear. Perhaps he was jumping to conclusions like he did so often. Kai could not find a reason to distrust Laurie. "I trust you" he sighed. "Let's go to Scatter Canyon." The two ninja re-routed their course as the strong wind died down to nothing.
This seems to be a little strange. If I heard someone that no one else could I would be severely freaked out. Who, or what, could the voice belong to? Updating again tomorrow after Biology. Thanks for reading, as always! :D