==I got it done! It took a lot of time and thought but I figured it out. Although I feel really bad for Jay XD A part of me think he didn't deserve it, but I was laughing while writing it so I guess it'll be okay. I also had to cut this chapter short because the main focus shifts too much to continue, but I believe y'all can guess what happens next after reading this. It's not the happiest moment in Season 1, but I hope I can make it even more heartbreaking for the next chapter. I'm also trying to get beta readers to read and give me feedback on the story's quality so far, so if you're a beta reader or want to be a beat reader, feel free to help me fix mistakes I might've made in earlier chapters :) I hope everyone is enjoying it all so far :D Please enjoy!==
Marshmello - "Ritual" feat. Wrabel
Oh, I never knew love, never knew love, never knew love living without you, living without you. Oh, I don't feel lost, I don't feel lost, I don't feel lost now that I've found you, now that I've found you.
Haunted: Collapse into Caliginosity
Chapter 33:
Woman Of Many Wonders
I managed to retrace my steps from above. Ninjago City has been behind us for some time, and now the dunes of the Sea of Sand were the only things guiding us back to the Bounty.
"We're not lost, are we?" Macca asked.
"Of course not. It's just far from Ninjago City. I'm searching for a crimson mountain."
"What would you do if we werelost?"
"Well, your safety and wellbeing would become my first priority. I would either return to Ninjago City or try to locate a village somewhere. Ninjas need help, too, sometimes."
A great red mountain soon came into view ahead of us.
"Is that it?" she asked.
"Yes. We will arrive in exactly four-point-seven minutes."
Its peak began to rise from the curve of the planet. "It's wayout here. Why live so far from civilization?"
"I followed the bird and found the Destiny's Bounty. We're nearly done setting everything up to make it our new headquarters."
"Oh. Um…What was so special about the bird?"
"It danced for me."
There was a pause. "…Zane, do you drink?"
Her question confused me. "Of course I drink. Water is necessary for the human body."
"No, not water. I mean do you drink liquor?"
"Of course not. Are you inferring I was intoxicated when I saw the bird?"
"Well you were either drunk or the bird was trying to mate with you!" she laughed.
"That's preposterous and illogical."
She laughed again. "What's 'preposterous and illogical' is the fact that you followed it!"
"But it led me to good fortune the day before with the same dance."
"Oh my gosh. If I see that bird, I'm calling it your girlfriend, because this dance it did is starting to sound like a lap dance."
"But what if I think it's a male?"
Her laughter increased. The sound of it made me smile.
"The bird is gay?!" she laughed.
An idea came to mind. "Animals are not homosexuals. If they were, then the plants would also be. Maybe I would be, as well, and do you know what would happen to me?"
"What?"
"I'd get a sore butt."
Just as I expected, her laughter reached its limit. Forced silence from her inability to breathe in had her nearly roll out of my hold.
"You're going to fall off Shard if you don't breathe, Macca!" I warned her, tugging her back.
She squirmed and screamed, apparently because I tickled her.
"Breathe, Macca, breathe!"
Her laughter went silent again. All my attempts to calm her down weren't working. The only time she started showing signs of decrease was when she rested a hand on her stomach and complained of her aching diaphragm. By then, though, Shard was making his decent to the arch he was sleeping under earlier.
His feet made contact with the sand. I waited until he was comfortably settled in his place before I brought Macca down.
"Shard looks…exhausted," she commented.
"I agree," I replied. "I'm afraid he's getting ill."
She turned to look at the other three, who were sleeping while heaving in breaths. "They all are," she added, concerned.
"I'll talk to Sensei Wu about it. Surely there's an explanation."
I began to walk away, but Macca didn't follow. She pressed her ear against Shard's side to listen to him breathe.
"Macca?"
She didn't answer. Instead, she went over to his head and stroked his snout. He slowly opened his eyes and sniffed her.
"You're going to be okay," she said in a soothing tone.
He lifted his head from the ground, pressing his nose into her torso. His sniffing quickened as he examined her, but then he relaxed again.
Knowing there was nothing to do to help right now, she left him and came over to me. "He'll be okay," I assured her.
She nodded and gave me a hopeful smile. "Ready to show me your headquarters?"
"Of course." I glided my hand down her arm to feel our palms touch. A short and silent walk led us over a small incline. She gasped as soon as the Bounty came into sight. It was built out of a mixture of red, yellow, and brown wood. A dragon's head was carved as the bowsprit of the ship. A single mast towered over the main deck with two sails that would spread out like wings of a bird when ropes were pulled. There was a level under the insolated quarterdeck, and the quarterdeck had a pushed out window so whoever was steering the ship could see.
"It's a boat?!" she squawked in surprise.
"I suppose you could say that. Truthfully, it's an ancient pirate ship. I believe this was where it wrecked into the mountain back when the Sea of Sand was the Endless Ocean–"
I paused. An unfamiliar object was beside the Bounty. My immediate reaction was to investigate, so I ran towards it.
"Oof!" Macca grunted when I pulled her a little too hard. I nearly dragged her the whole way. It became clear that this was an old vehicle. Two big red seats were the most noticeable features aside from the vintage look the front had.
There wasn't a single sound to be heard. Nobody was out in the open. I was suddenly afraid that our worst fear had just occurred.
Intruders, I thought.
"What's wrong?"
I kneeled down and placed both of my hands on the sides of her arms. "Macca, your safety and wellbeing is now my first priority," I explained. "Whatever I do, it's only for your own benefit."
"Why? What's wrong?"
"Please, just stay close to me and keep quiet. I don't want to lose you."
Before she could say anything else, I pulled her onto the Bounty and led her down below deck. None of the lights were on. As we ventured deeper, I held her against my back. If we were to be attacked, I would receive the first blow. As long as she was safe, it wouldn't matter.
Voices could be heard in a training room. My pace slowed. I knew if I controlled the situation first, nobody would get hurt.
I stopped right next to the doorway. The voices were muffled, so I couldn't decipher who was talking. But the door suddenly opened, and as soon as I saw a body, I threw a punch.
My fist collided with Jay's jaw, making him fall to the floor.
"Jay!" Kai yelped, quickly bursting through the door. He went to tend to Jay, but looked at me with a wide-eyed expression. "Zane! What the heck, man?"
"Jay! Sweetie, are you okay?" a middle-aged woman said as she went to Jay. She had aging brown hair that was put up in a bun and wore red reading glasses with a pilot's jacket over her shoulders. A ring of keys jingled from her pant pocket as she got down next to him.
A white-haired man quickly followed. He wore a dirty blue button-up shirt with filthy green overalls on top. His worn out brown boots were just as bad, if not worse.
Nya, Cole, and Sensei Wu also came out to find Jay on the floor, who let out a hurt moan.
"I-I'm sorry," I said. "I thought there were intruders."
"Intruders? Jay's parents just came to visit. He didn't even know they were coming," Kai said.
"It was merely a misunderstanding, Kai," Sensei Wu said. "But Zane, you should be aware of knowing who your enemy is before attacking. Look before you act. Have patience."
"My apologies, Sensei. I was only thinking about…our other visitor."
Macca poked her head out from behind me. Sensei curiously looked at her, but then Kai gasped and approached her, completely forgetting about Jay. "No way– You actually brought her?!" he skipped around, not thinking straight. "I can't believe this is happening!"
She giggled. "Hi, you must be a fan?"
"You have no idea," he excitedly replied.
"Um…" Nya butted in. "Aren't you worried about Jay in any way, Kai?"
"He'll be okay," he quickly assured her. "Please, come show me something!" Next thing I know, Kai was dragging Macca away. She went along with it, but threw me an unsure look over her shoulder before they disappeared around the corner.
Jay soon came to his feet, disoriented and in pain. I formed some ice from my shuriken and pressed it to the affected area to help soothe the pain. Even though he was now not in the best mood, he insisted on continuing with a tour of the Bounty for his parents. Everyone followed, but I didn't.
Instead, I went around the corner to see where Kai and Macca went. My senses detected two presences in the weight room. Kai's muffled voice could be heard from outside of the door. When I opened it, I saw Kai investigating Macca's blue headphones as she put weights on a bar. They carried on a casual conversation, but the first thing I sensed was danger. Macca was putting sixty-five pounds on each side of the bar.
She glanced up at me when I opened the door. "Oh good, I'm glad you're here," she said to me.
"Are you sure those weights are adequate?" I asked her. "I would recommend to lift a fraction of what you've put on already."
"Relax, Frosty. She does this stuff all the time," Kai assured me.
Macca positioned herself under the bar before lifting it from the rack. Seeing it left me speechless. She had the bar on her shoulders as if it were just a thin tree branch. What scared me the most was when she threw it over her head and held it high with her arms completely extended, her legs in front of the other, and her back not arched at all. A perfect form. Then she brought it back down and repeated.
"Hold it like that," Kai told her.
She paused without hesitation.
He approached her and lifted her top to reveal the toned muscles working in her abdomen. I could feel my face getting warm from watching. "See that, Zane? That's what happens when you exercise for dancing," he said.
"Why dancing? Dancing shouldn't require this form of physical training."
She lowered the bar back onto her shoulders and returned it onto the rack.
"How would you demonstrate dancing to Zane, Macca?"
"Um…I guess…" She walked away from the rack and suddenly did a full backflip, landing perfectly on her feet and everything.
I gave her a shocked expression from what she just did. It was much unexpected from a person like her. From the outside, she didn't appear to have the ability to do such things, but lifting all that weight caused her blood flow to increase, making the muscles in her arms to swell up. I've never seen anything like it.
Kai gave her a high-five. "I've always wanted to see that in real life!" he energetically claimed.
She smiled and pulled a marker from her pocket. "Then I suppose it's time to get signed." She signed her signature on the side of his neck.
Seeing both of them getting along so naturally made me feel insecure. Yes, I wanted Macca to meet my family, but something like this wasn't what my plan accommodated. This was only the beginning to something that would develop for them. Suddenly, I was frightened that Kai was going to make her happier than I do.
I think this is the first time anyone has ever experienced Zane feeling jealousy XD Shoutout to Star-The-Writer, The Mayor Of Ninjago City, and My Sacred Promise for reviewing! Thank you for three new followers: My Sacred Promise, Star-The-Writer, and TombRaiderNinja! And thank you for enjoying this story so much My Sacred Promise :) All of this makes me sooo happy :D