AN: *pops out of manhole and waves* Hey. Sorry for the unexpected hiatus, life got busy, lol. I'm not quite back to my regular posting schedule, but I thought I'd toss out a chapter just to let y'all know I will be back soon, I swear. ;)
WARNING: THERE IS BLOOD ON THIS CHAPTER. In case anyone has a phobia or trigger or something, I'm going ahead and letting you know ahead of time.
Review Replies
phetiamwantip: Oh, trust me, there's more where that came from...
2240713356: *nervous side-eye* UM~
FirstFandomFangirl: Hittin the highlights here~
- Chapter 16: Hehe, with the amount of fluff and tension I write between Morro and Abby, you'd think I had it too, but by the power of denial, I've been safe so far...
- Chapter 18: This was one of my FAVORITE CHAPTERS. XD
- Chapter 19: Hmm...
- Chapter 21: Lol, my excuse is that I don't like writing angry/grudgy Kai because it makes me want to smack him. So basically my version just has a quick temper and a quick defuse, if that makes any sense. :/
- Chapter 22: Yeah, I don't have the time or patience to deal with Ronin's shenanigans, lol. He's pretty much just here for comedic relief.
- Chapter 23: I think Jay specifically asked that exact question, and from what I gathered from Nadakhan's explanation, he didn't alter reality, he just revealed the truth. They built on this by giving Jay's birth mom a cameo in season 7.
- Chapter 24: LLOYD'S GOING TO BE FINE, I SWEAR~
- Chapter 25: Don't worry, there is more pain on the way. It's my favorite thing to write. :)
The door nearly flew off its hinges when Morro kicked it open. He stalked inside, dragging me behind him despite my faint protests. His grip practically crushed my wrist, and my arm was already sore from being yanked around. There was a group of small, dirty children huddled inside the building we just entered, but they scattered the second they saw Morro. The wind master waited until they had all fled through various windows and doors before he dragged me to the middle of the room. My heart thudded against my chest, and I didn't bother fighting as Morro stopped.
"Where are the Ninja?" he demanded, his eyes fierce as he squeezed my wrist in warning. My throat closed up, but I mustered the bravest face I could and stayed silent. When I didn't answer immediately, Morro threw me on the ground.
"Tell me!" he snarled.
"No!" I shouted back, though my voice quavered. His expression contorted, and I swallowed as I pushed myself back against a large crate. Morro glared at me for a moment before he made a frustrated noise. He cast a brief glance to the side before he dropped into a crouch, putting us on the same eye level.
"I know your secret now, Abby," he said, giving me a nasty smirk, "How you knew I was coming… Thanks to Lloyd, I know everything."
"Big whoop," I snapped, surprising myself, "So does everyone else. What does it have to do with anything?"
He shrugged, "Just thought you should know. Now there's no secrets between us. You know my story; I know yours. You should also know," he added, and his gaze darkened, "That I'm not some television character. I'm not going to play games with you. Either tell me where the Ninja are, or things can get much worse for you very quickly."
My chest tightened at the threat, but I only clenched my jaw. I wouldn't give in to him; I refused (though how long I would be able to refuse remained to be seen). When I again didn't respond, Morro's face hardened.
"Fine," he gritted out, his tone sharp and icy, "We'll do this the hard way."
I yelped as he snatched my wrist, yanking my arm toward him. I wasn't sure what he was planning until he held up his other hand, and a small, semi-transparent green knife appeared. I hissed in a breath as a bolt of panic shot through me, and my blood ran cold. Frantically, I tried to twist my arm out of Morro's grip as he brought the knife down.
"Morro," I gasped, a note of desperation entering my voice as he pried apart my fingers and set the blade against my palm, "Please don't..!"
"Last chance," he said, pressing the knife down so that it pinched my skin, "Where are the Ninja?"
A lump rose in my throat, and my eyes stung as I tried to push Morro away with my free hand, but he shook me off. My heart raced, and my breathing grew short and quick. What was I supposed to do?! I couldn't tell him where the Ninja were even if I wanted to! Would he believe me if I told him?
Abruptly, I felt the pressure on my palm relax. I lifted my gaze to his face, only to find that he had his eyes screwed shut, and he looked to be in pain. He grunted, and the knife vanished as he brought a hand up to clutch his head.
"Shut up," I heard him mutter, knocking the heel of his hand against his temple, "Shut up, you little brat..!"
"Lloyd?" I blurted out as I finally realized the cause of Morro's discomfort. His eyes opened, and for a moment, I saw Lloyd's brilliant green.
"Abby…" his voice was garbled and pained, but unmistakably Lloyd's, "I'm… s-sorry. I'm not…"
His eyes slammed shut again, and he groaned, his head falling forward as his whole body shook. Without thinking, I reached out with my free hand and squeezed the boy's shoulder.
"It's okay, Lloyd," I assured him gently, "You have nothing to be sorry for. You can fight him, do you hear me?"
If the boy could hear me, he didn't respond. For a second, his body trembled slightly, and the hand on my wrist loosened… Then it tightened. The shaking stopped, and when he looked up, I saw his eyes had darkened again; Morro was back in control.
With a short growl, the wind master summoned the knife. I didn't have time to pull away before he sliced the blade across my palm. I gave a small yelp at the sharp pain that shot through my hand, and my eyes watered as blood began oozing from the gash. Morro finally released me, and I drew my hand toward me, curling my fingers lightly over the wound. Blood dribbled between my fingers, staining my whole hand red, and a few, pained tears squeezed out. I didn't look at Morro as I sucked in a shuddering breath, wiping at the salt water clinging to my face.
"That was a warning," Morro hissed, his voice seething—whether his rage came from my defiance or Lloyd's, I didn't know, "You resist me, Abby, and you will get hurt."
I bit my lip and didn't reply as I slowly opened my hand to study the wound. It didn't look deep, though it was difficult to tell with all of the blood. I wasn't the squeamish type, but the sheer amount of red on my hand made me feel nauseous. I kept my hand carefully angled away from my body so the blood didn't get anywhere else on me.
"I couldn't tell you where the Ninja are even if I wanted to," I spat out, still not looking at Morro, "I suck at directions; I was lost when you found me."
The wind master made a disgusted sound, "Are you serious? Unbelievable. You really are completely helpless, aren't you?"
I didn't deem the comment worthy of an answer. A moment of silence passed before Morro crouched again. I flinched as he snapped his fingers in front of my face, "Look at me."
Annoyed by his tone, but afraid of his retaliation, I looked up. If he noticed my glare, he chose to ignore it as he asked, "Would you be able to recognize the place if you saw it?"
"Maybe," I mumbled, "But I'm not taking you there either."
He sneered, "Do you still not get it? You don't get to tell me no."
"I'm not a child," I retorted, my blood boiling, "I'm a free person. I'm capable of making my own choices despite what power you think you have over me! You can do whatever you want to me; that's your choice. It doesn't change the fact that I'm not helping you."
It was a bluff, of course. I had no idea how well I would hold up if he decided to do something worse than cut my hand. I only prayed I could last long enough for the Spinjitzu brothers to arrive.
By some miracle, Morro didn't see through my false bravado. Frustration flashed across his face, and he let out a growl as he surged to his feet. I shrank back instinctively, but he only stalked a few steps away and stopped, glaring at the wall. I watched him warily from the corner of my eye as I assessed the building. It looked to be some kind of warehouse similar to the one the Ninja and I had holed up in, though this one was less dilapidated. I noticed some of the windows were still open from when the children had fled. Would I be able to make it while Morro was distracted?
Immediately, I sighed and dismissed the idea. He was faster and stronger than me. Even if I managed to catch him off-guard, he could catch me easily. Of course, this train of thought led me to wonder if I was just being cowardly. What was braver; sitting tight and waiting for Morro to turn his attention back on me, or attempting to run with only a small hope of escape?
I didn't have long to debate the issue before Morro snapped around on his heel and came back to me. He knelt again, one arm propped against his knee as he said, "How about a deal, then? Bad at directions or not, I'm sure you have some way to regroup with the Ninja. You bring me the Scroll of Airjitzu, and I'll leave you alone, special knowledge and all."
I pressed my lips into a thin line before I replied shortly, "No."
"You're running low on options, Abby," the wind master said, his voice growing sharp, "And I'm running low on patience. I'm being generous here. You'd be much more useful to me if I can have you at my disposal, but I'm willing to compromise. Just get me the Scroll."
I stared at Morro for a moment before I dropped my gaze to the floor. I understood what he was offering; in exchange for the Scroll, he'd leave me alone, despite the knowledge and insight I was capable of providing him. But I also knew I couldn't do it. Even if the boys had already learned Airjitzu, we needed that map. The only way I considered it worth a trade was if…
The idea struck me out of the blue, and I sucked in a breath. Would it be worth it? We needed the map, but if I asked for something in exchange… Something that might cripple Morro and strengthen the Ninja…
"Tick tock," Morro taunted, his sarcastic tone breaking through my thoughts, "What's it going to be?"
I took a deep breath and held it briefly before I exhaled. Lifting my eyes back up to Morro, I said, "I can get you the Scroll, but on one condition."
He frowned, regarding me warily, but he only said, "I'm listening."
"Let Lloyd go."
He snorted dismissively, rolling his eyes, "You should know I can't do that. I need a Spinjitzu Master to navigate the tomb."
"Actually, Spinjitzu is only required for one of the challenges," I countered, "And it's only really needed to reveal the answer. Release Lloyd, and I'll get you the Scroll and explain the answer to the challenge."
The wind master narrowed his eyes, and I returned his gaze steadily. I noticed his eyes seemed to pulsate strangely, brightening and dimming in odd fluctuations. I wondered if it had something to do with Lloyd and Morro's internal battle for dominance.
There was a heavy pause, and I crossed my fingers behind my back as I held my breath, praying Morro would accept the bargain. Finally, his suspicious expression relaxed.
"All right then," he said, holding out his hand, "You've got yourself a deal."
I hesitated at first, but tentatively returned the gesture.
"You better hold to it," I warned grimly as we shook. His face twisted into a smirk. In a mocking gesture, he reached up and traced an X over his chest.
"You have my word."
Me: Let's try and make this fic fairly mild. It's supposed to be humorous, not angsty.
Me to me: Have Morro cut Abby's hand.
AN: My dark side likes to taunt me.
Anywho, y'all send me some nice reviews, and I'll be back soon with another chapter for ya. :)
