==Well talk about a late chapter. Sorry, guys. This Spring Break hasn't been very fun for me. We had a soccer tournament up in Gatlinburg and I had an ID camp at East Tennessee State University right after that. Then I came home and cried every day since because of my mom. She prevented me from writing, which was bad, especially since I've been trying to figure out how to make this chapter better than how I originally wrote it. I hope my homelife gets better soon. I'm just tired of listening to my mom gripe at me, yell at me, insult me, embarrass me, and make me feel like I'm not worth anything. As of right now, I have to focus on this upcoming Tuesday because I'm taking the ACT again and I have an important exam to study for. I honestly don't know when I'm updating again, but I'll try to get my schedule figured out over these next couple of weeks and try to find time to write. I promise I'll get stuff done!==
The Crystal Method - "Play For Real (Dirtyphonics Remix)"
Don't play with me when you should be saving me. Making me feel your pressure, pressure. Don't play with me, and just taking me to a place. I can feel pressure, pressure. You gotta be mad. Stone cold crazy. Out of your mind. If you wanna play with me. What are you sick? Or maybe just straight up ill? You gotta be crazy as fuck if wanna play for real. So, honey, don't play.
Haunted: Collapse into Caliginosity
Chapter 47:
No Biz Like Snow Biz
The room was hot with sweating bodies, spontaneous lights, deafening music, and dancing. I moved around behind my turntables on the stage with headphones covering my ears. The music coming through was difficult to hear, but I had been practicing the mix so much that I knew exactly when to manipulate the sounds and rhythms coming through.
The chorus of one song transitioned to the bass drop of another. Every change had the dance floor begging for more. Feeling their adrenaline radiate into the atmosphere gave me passion to ensure they had an extraordinary experience at the Orb of Glass Dance Club.
"Who here's drunk as fuck?!" I asked through the microphone.
A lot of people responded with slurred screams. I laughed and made the music louder.
Strobe lights illuminated the entire room. The smoke machines lathered the floor with mist. The dance floor flashed all kinds of colors. A giant screen behind me played around with animations and flashed my logo in various shades of purple. I went from the turntables to the laptop, and occasionally said something through the microphone. This was my life every weekend; I partied hard for hours at a time.
A huge thud caused me to jump back from my equipment, my headphones getting ripped from my head. On top of the table where my equipment was, a man wearing a blue suit stood with golden nunchuks in his hand.
"Jay?" I voiced over the noise. "What're you doing here?"
He hopped down and threw me over his shoulder. Before I had the ability to comprehend what was happening, we were traversing the ceiling above the dance floor. He grabbed framework and swung himself like a monkey to grab the next. Confused people watched us go as the music fell apart without me controlling it.
"Jay! Put me down!" I angrily protested, trying to strike him.
He let go, and I could feel myself plummet. A scream of fright came out of my mouth.
The force of his weight interrupted my falling sensation. People began loudly complaining. Jay kept me safe as he hit the floor without making a sound. I was back on his shoulder when the room suddenly filled with light. A set of doors whizzed by. Another set flew open. A blinding light made me shut my eyes. The outside noises of Ninjago City were muted. A muffled roaring sound remained. When I opened my eyes, I found myself to be in Jay's lap and inside a vehicle.
"Sorry, Mac, but we have a situation-"
"Situation?" I heatedly yelled, looking outside to see the skyscrapers sinking out of view. "Situation?! You can't just take me from work! I'm going to get fired! I'm already under the bus, Jay. Take me back now."
"I really can't. Sensei ordered it."
"Listen to me! I can't lose my job. It'll turn into a huge mess throughout the media–"
Jay suddenly pulled his jet up at a steep incline and made it roll over and over and over again. The cockpit filled with my screaming and had me bouncing everywhere because there wasn't a place for me to buckle in. When it came to a stop, I desperately clung onto the Ninja of Lightning.
"Look, I knew you'd be upset, but there's a village reporting fighting Serpentine wandering into the premises. They're scared it'll get bad. Sensei Wu wants you to come with us so you can help us get Lloyd and Hannah."
"Don't you remember what happened last time I was involved with Serpentine? What about the time before that? I'm no help whatsoever with these kinds of things."
"Hey, luck can change, y'know. Besides, we're going to protect you. You're not required to fight. Trust me."
I stayed hunkered down against him. Uncertainty ravaged my train of thought. I had a bad feeling about the rest of today.
The Bounty was in mid-flight by the time Jay and I arrived. He dove down below it and pulled it upwards to flip us upside down. After a flash of light, the outside noises returned. I landed in Jay's grasp, and he quickly headed below deck. His muscular arm threw me over his shoulder again as he ran.
"Good grief, Jay," I said. "I hope you're aware that I'm not paralyzed."
"Sorry!" he replied, leaving the open air behind.
As he continued his journey through the maze of hallways, I rested my elbow against his shoulder blade and tucked my palm under my chin out of sheer boredom. When he entered a room, I heard Kai speak.
"Good, you're back with the merchandise."
Jay turned around to present me to the three other Ninja in the room. I sarcastically grinned and waved my fingers at them.
"Are you mad?" Kai asked, knowing it was probably a stupid question.
"No, I'm not mad," I insisted. "I'm pretty pissed."
They all cringed at the sound of my voice. Zane held up a stack of white clothing when I got put down. I laid my eyes on the golden dragon stretched across what was visible. "But this is yours," I said.
"It was until we let Jay do the laundry. It should fit you well enough," he explained, trying to suppress an emotion.
I took the stack curiously and went into the adjoining room to change. While pulling my arms through the sleeves, I realized what he was talking about. It was clear that Jay severely shrunk it somehow. Even for me, the suit was tight, but it was still too long to wear properly. I had to roll up the waistline a few times before tying it up securely.
Zane seemed surprised when I emerged with it on. "It fits better than I anticipated," he stated, approaching me.
"What the heck did Jay do to it?" I asked as he rolled up the sleeves and slipped black gloves onto my hands.
"Nobody knows, but now I'm glad he did it." He turned his attention to the others. "What's something warm she can wear?"
"Nya's got stuff," Kai informed him, leaving the room. "Come with me."
I followed him, wondering why I need to be warm, and feeling how tight the suit was around my butt as I walked. We went to Nya's bedroom and investigated her closet. A thick red coat caught my sight quite easily. "You and Nya have similar physical builds," he concluded. "It should fit."
"Why do I have to wear that?"
"Do you want to freeze to death?"
"What? Where are we going?"
"To Glacier Barrens. There's a bad blizzard going on right now."
"I dragged from work to be thrown into a blizzard? I don't think so."
"Hey, I wouldn't do it if it was my choice, but we have to obey Sensei." The Bounty came to a halt. "Guess we've reached our destination," Kai observed, pulling his mask over his face.
All of a sudden, a mass of fire engulfed me. The flames threatened to burn every part of me, but I was distracted by the feeling of Kai touching me. When the room became visible again, I found that I was wearing the thick red winter apparel of Nya. Black boots covered my feet and a turtle neck only revealed my eyes. Kai pulled the furry hood over my head and pushed me out the door. Out in the hallway were the other three ninjas, bundled up in their color-coordinated winter clothes like I was. I got shoved into Zane, who caught me as I lost my balance.
"Easy, Kai," Cole warned as the Red Ninja went into their room to change. Shaking his head, Cole knelt down and pulled my leg closer to him. I felt him strap something around it.
"I really don't wanna go," I said to Zane, nervousness seeping into my voice.
Pain filled his eyes. "It wasn't my choice."
Desperation came over me as I gripped his coat. "Please! I don't like the cold!"
Kai emerged with his own red apparel on. "Let's head out," he indicated.
Zane picked me up and took me where heavy snow flurries and harsh winds crashed into us like a solid wall. All that was visible was the maroon floor beneath us. Beyond that was nothing but a shade of blue with specks of white pelting everything in sight. He stopped walking when we reached the edge. Golden light hinted that Cole was gone. Jay and Kai followed him by jumping off the Bounty.
My fingers clenched the fabric of Zane's coat, realizing what he was about to do. "Please don't do this to me," I whimpered, already feeling the cold affecting the feeling of my toes.
"I'm sorry," he responded. "I have to."
He jumped.
My stomach rose to my throat as the bottom of the Bounty vanished out of sight. Wind rushed by to pierce the exposed skin around my eye sockets. We seemed to be falling for more than a minute, but we were prepared to land with the sudden appearance of Zane's vehicle. He raised the front end of it very sharply. A hard thud gave me slight pain between my legs. We were rested in deep snow.
"Are you alright?" he asked me, prying my arms off him.
"I think so."
He repositioned me to where I was sitting behind him. The engine revved before we drove onward to find the others. This must've been where Zane's sixth sense became a useful tool. It didn't take long to find at least one ninja. His black suit had frost on it as he stood in at least two feet of snow, shivering, with his golden scythe in hand.
"Have I ever mentioned how much I hate snow?" Cole greeted, climbing on behind me. I felt his arms reach around me to hold onto Zane. Finding Kai and Jay turned out to not be as bad of a trip because of the extra heat I was receiving from both of them.
"You're not even c-cold, are you?" Jay asked Zane, shivering next to Kai.
Zane looked over at him. "Cold? I find these conditions quite pleasant to be in," he replied.
"You're like the only person on this planet who thinks like that!"
"Oh, shut up," Kai interrupted. "We need to hurry."
The two of them loaded up behind Cole, leaving barely any wiggle room for anybody. I was comfortably snuggled up against Zane's back as he drove his vehicle over hills of deep snow. We trusted him to take us to the right place.
Minutes passed by, and Zane violently stopped, almost throwing us off. He stared up ahead without blinking.
"Geez! Zane, a bit more warning next time you do that!" Cole griped.
The White Ninja didn't reply. His focus was aimed in the general vicinity ahead of us. Not a single muscle in his body moved.
"Zane?" I said, tapping his coat.
Suddenly a hypnobrai slammed into us. Zane lost concentration and his vehicle disappeared from under us. Kai immediately got up and went to strike the snake with his sword, but was interrupted by a fangpyre tackling the hypnobrai with a dagger in hand. Blood soaked the snow. Kai killed the fangpyre before it had time to attack us next.
"Where's the village and can you sense the whereabouts of the battle?" Cole asked Zane.
Zane pointed in the direction where the two Serpentine came from. "The battle is getting dangerously close to the village. We must hurry."
We all struggled to arrive for the mission. The snow made our legs sink in about knee-height, causing us to barely make any progress as we all became tired from putting in so much effort. Zane tossed his shurikens at more Serpentine that we passed. Jay shivered as he swung the loose end of his nunchuks over his head and shot lightning bolts at Serpentine. With the force of the wind beating down on our ears and thunder booming every time Jay attacked, things became chaotic.
And it only got worse when I noticed a mysterious figure looming over us. "Uh, guys, do you see that?" I alerted over the wind. It moved towards us. Something big smashed into the snow.
Oh, no, I thought, thinking of the junkyard.
The reptilian machine swung its arm and released the wrecking ball to kill Serpentine that didn't belong in the Fangpyre tribe.
"Lloyd and Hannah are controlling the Fangpyre," Cole said. "They're the core of this battle. We capture them, the Fangpyre will retreat, and this battle will end. Zane, take Jay and find the village. Keep the Serpentine from getting to it as best you can. There's a chance that some may already be fighting in it, but go for as long as you guys can. Macca's coming with me and Kai to get the little brats. You'll know we have them when the Serpentine retreat."
Both of them nodded. Zane eyed me, promising to see me soon.
When we split into the groups, Serpentine from the Hypnobrai and Fangpyre tribe came into view all around us. They were fighting the opposite. Fangpyre were being hypnotized by Hypnobrai. Others were wrestling with weapons in hand until only one remained standing. Zane took Jay on his vehicle for the village. The rest of us had to travel on foot.
In addition to the wind and sounds of Serpentine dying, the other snake-bitten vehicles became loud enough to hear, but couldn't be seen. Our terrain also became more of an uphill battle than we expected. Cole and Kai killed any Serpentine that seemed to be a threat towards us.
I continued to curse in my mind about hating my life right now. I've never been is such cold conditions before, and I didn't want to ever be in them again. Me being here was a completely idiotic idea. I was no help; I was a burden. The thought angered me even more with the feeling in my feet and hands slowly disappearing. The crunch of the snow underneath me was my only indication that I was still moving. My pace, however, was slowing down. The hot breath coming out of my lungs told me how tired I was becoming. Soon the exhaustion transferred into my bones. It felt as if ever part of me ached.
"What happens if we're too late?" Kai asked Cole.
"See, that's the problem," Cole answered. "I don't know if Lloyd and Hannah will give up that easily. They're so reckless. If we don't stop them before they cause even more trouble in Ninjago, I don't know what'll happen, but I know it won't be good–"
A snake-bitten helicopter flew over us. I could feel the vibration from the propellers hit me.
"Let's hurry!" Cole said.
We quickened our pace toward the sound of angry hisses and yowling carried by the wind. Serpentine from both tribes soon surrounded us. Some laid in pools of blood, others barely stood because of injuries. I was thankful they weren't focused on us so we could pass by easily. Dying was not on my bucket list today.
Trying to catch a glimpse of a black sweatshirt and a pink sweatshirt was met with futile outcomes. Besides the fact that eyesight was limited, there just seemed to be no end to the amount of Serpentine we saw. At one point, I glanced over my shoulder and saw blue coming after me. "Jay?"
Jay crashed into me without slowing down. It was the fangs in front of my face that made me realize that it wasn't Jay, but a hypnobrai. I screamed in fright. It all just happened so suddenly.
Cole stabbed a giant hole through the hypnobrai's back with his scythe. With a single sling, the snake was lifted and thrown to the side. He and Kai helped me up. "They're starting to notice us," Kai panted.
We started climbing up the incline faster. I could hear the Serpentine all around us, hissing. It was like a wave effect was going on. I would hear distant hissing behind us and then it would slowly make its way ahead, where visibility was nonexistent.
Cole paused at one point. "What was that?"
Kai and I also stopped.
He slowly continued forward, getting ahead of us. "I hear something." Then he halted. Getting closer, Cole and I saw that the Black Ninja came across a scaly vehicle that had huge red eyes and a long tail that curved over like a scorpion's tail. The discovery assured us that we were now in the core of the battle. The only strange aspect about the surroundings was how we didn't see very many Serpentine.
"Stay down," Cole instructed us. "We don't know what the Serpentine are planning." We followed him, inching past more unmoving vehicles, which were curiously watching us, until snakes jumped us without warning. Seeing both of the ninjas get taken down by red and blue Serpentine made me freeze out of sheer panic. "Run, Macca!" one of them yelled. "Find a place to hide!"
Without thinking twice, I reverted around and tripped, narrowly avoiding the grip of a hypnobrai. Adrenaline and fright rattled in my beating heart as I stumbled away. I could hear the creatures chase me as I made my way around the abandoned battle scene, desperately finding a way out. Every time I glanced over my shoulder, they were there, reaching for me.
I dodged in and around anything. My only idea was to confuse them and create distance between us so I could find Lloyd and Hannah by myself.
"Get him!" one of them angrily hissed. The crunching snow behind me increased, and fingers grabbed my shoulders.
"No!" I yelped, running faster.
More hands took hold of me, pulling me to the ground. "You're coming with usss."
I kicked and screamed, using everything I had to fight them off. What couldn't be denied was how much stronger they were compared to me. Two of them held me from under the armpits to drag me away. My only defense was going limp to slip away, but it was useless. The punch to the back of the head I received was enough to make me stop.
Eventually, in the middle of the roaring wind, crying became audible. It drew nearer and nearer. The Serpentine threw me into the snow. Picking myself up, my eyes found silhouettes: a hypnobrai and a fangpyre standing side by side on a scaly vehicle. The long tails indicated they were the Generals of the two tribes.
"I could turn them into one of usss," one of the Fangpyre General's heads suggested.
"No, the little tykesss are pretty uselessss," the Hypnobrai General replied.
The Fangpyre General laughed. "Well, how about you hypnotize them and make them think they are pigsss?"
"That would be pretty funny!"
Both General's laughed at the thought.
Lloyd and Hannah were in front of them. They were on their knees, shivering, as a hypnobrai and a fangpyre held them captive. Hannah was the one who was sobbing. Lloyd just stared into space, defeat across his face.
"Generalsss, we have captured one of the Ninja," a snake addressed.
As they both turned to look, my hood got pulled from my head, and curly hair fell around my face.
Hannah gasped, recognizing me.
The Fangpyre General's heads gazed at each other.
"I remember her," one reminisced.
"Indeed," the other agreed. "What shall we do with her, Skales?"
"I sssay we let her freeze to death with the little bratsss! Let them perisssh in the cold asss punissshment for trying to control the Hypnobrai and Fangpyre tribesss!" the Hypnobrai General declared.
Hannah screamed when she was lifted up. Lloyd worriedly made eye contact with the Generals. I watched helplessly as they were tied up and placed on the tail of the reptilian vehicle. I didn't fight back as the same was done to me.
"Macca!"
I frantically spotted Kai and Cole fighting their way through Serpentine with weapons in hand. For a moment, I was hopeful for a rescue, but it was short-lived. The tail of the vehicle suddenly launched us into a frozen oblivion. Pain shot through my spine like a spring. Cole and Kai were gone. Lloyd and Hannah were gone. It was just me, flying through knifelike pellets of snow, until my head collided with the ground.
I hope the content is exciting enough :) It turned out much better than I hoped. Shoutout to Kai4Ever and The Mayor of Ninjago City for reviewing!
MNC - I'm actually not experienced at all XD I just did some research!