Brief AN- Should I use the exact Ninjago script, or just write what I can remember? Please tell me. And I'd also like to thank SlushyGoo for her constant reviewing and support! I'm also going to be writing longer chapters, but that means updating will be slower. Sorry!

*Nya*

They had been orphans for two long years, and Hotaru's offspring were no longer children. Even 10-year-old Aster had been forced to grow up and mature earlier than the children her age. Tragedy had changed them all, though it was Kai who had developed the most. Kai had become suspicious and reckless, and harsh towards anyone but his family. Nya often worried about how he would rub off on Aster, who was rapidly becoming more stubborn, although Nya herself knew she wasn't as gentle as she used to be. In an effort to make sure that they would never lose each other in combat, they had all trained hard, and were now hard-pressed to find anyone in Ninjago who could beat any of them in a duel. Most villagers stayed away from them, as there was no longer any need for weapons or armour, and Kai generally scared them all off.

"To forge the perfect weapon, you first need the right metal and plenty of heat." Kai informed Aster, who was working on her own sword on an anvil a few meters way. "Cool it off… And presto!" Kai lifted a spiralling, useless sword.

"You made it too quickly, Kai," Nya laughed. "Be patient. If father were still here, he'd say-"

"I know," Kai sighed. "'No matter how much fire you have, experience isn't something you learn overnight.' That may work for you, Nya, but I'm gonna be a better blacksmith than Dad ever was."

"Not if I get there first," Aster announced, wielding a well-proportioned broadsword. Kai made a face at her.

"Show-off," he muttered.

Nya couldn't remember much from the day her father had died, except that she'd been woken up by Kai, who had been shaking on the sofa beside her, to an empty house which smelled strangely of tea. She had woken her siblings up, and they had proceeded to move the bandits' corpses to the other side of the road, and buried her father next to their mother. The funeral had been filled with people from a war their father had participated in, and Nya didn't recognise any of them, even though she had caught again the vague scent of tea.

She was reminded of the funeral when an old man smelling of oolong, which her mother had loved, walked in. Nya wasn't surprised when Kai's eyes narrowed in suspicion, although she was slightly startled to see Aster tense as well. Note to self- Talk to Kai about how he behaves in front of Aster.

"Your metal is loud is loud and heavy," the old man commented. "Useful to slow one down. Useless in the art of stealth. All tools for a samurai, but nothing for a ninja?"

"Ninja? Hmmph. You're a long way from finding a ninja here, old man," Kai retorted. "And the shop is call 'Four Weapons', not 'For Browsing'. Either buy something or go pedal your insults somewhere else!"

"Too bad," the man shrugged. "Thought I'd find something special here."

Nya glared at Kai, who glared back. They had precious few customers already, and his attitude wasn't helping matters. After a few seconds, Kai looked away and cleared his throat.

"Let me show-" Kai began repentantly, before coming to a confused halt. "He was just- Forget it," he said dismissively, before letting out a yelp as Nya elbowed him, frowning.

Aster hadn't moved since the old man had left. Her eyes were wide with fear, and Nya turned to look at the darkening horizon.

"What are they?" Nya asked, squinting at strange, approaching black dots.

"I don't know," Kai admitted, buckling on armour. "Stay here- Both of you," he added as Aster reached for her sword. With an exasperated huff, Aster folded her arms before smirking at Nya, as Kai swung his sword at the skeletal creatures.

"We're not really going to listen to him, are we," Aster said, grinning. Nya shook her head.

"Not a chance," she laughed, grabbing a bamboo staff as Aster swung her katana experimentally.

They set off towards the battle, and decapitated a few skeletons who were giving Kai a hard time.

"I thought I told you to stay back!" Kai grunted, swinging his broadsword at a nearby skeleton.

"You did," chirruped Aster, who playfully pushed aside a few leering skeletons.

"You can't have all the fun, you know," Nya chided, lopping the head off a skeleton. Kai sighed, but didn't object after that, and they soon made short work of the army.

Their triumph was short-lived, though, as the skeletons' leader approached them, sneering. Kai drew his sword, and in response, the skeleton drew four blades of his own.

"Oops," Kai murmured, retreating cautiously. The skeleton laughed, disarming him and knocking him down. Nya tried to run to his aid, but was soon surrounded by the remainder of the army. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the old man run in, and take out the leader.

"Nya! Heads up!" Aster yelped as she cannonballed into the crowd of skeletons around Nya, who let out a grunt as she was knocked to the floor.

"You need to work on you aim," she grumbled, rubbing her head as she got up. Aster mumbled an apology as the leader, who appeared to be retreating, barked out an order.

"Lord Garmadon says to take the girl!" A giant hand of bone descended from the air, and before Nya was aware of what was happening, she was lifted into the air and being driven away from her home in a foreign vehicle filled with grotesque, grinning skeletons.

*Kai*

No… No… No, no, no… "They took Nya," Kai said quietly. Aster stood still, looking as shell-shocked as he felt.

"I told you," Sensei Wu, as the skeleton had called him, whacked him on the head with his bamboo stick. "Useless."

White-hot anger boiled in his stomach. "You could have done something!" he roared, his hands curling into fists. "You could have used your Twistitzu, or your…"

"Spinjitzu," Wu corrected, remaining irritatingly calm.

"But you did nothing!" Kai spat. "I'm going get our sister back!"

"So will I," Aster took Kai's hand, and he felt her small form shake with fury.

"Where they go, a mortal cannot," Wu informed them. "That was Samukai, king of the Underworld. And if he's carrying orders from Lord Garmadon, then things are worse than I thought."

"Lord Garmadon? Underworld? What's so important to them that they would take our sister?"

"What's so important? How about Ninjago itself? Long before time had a name," Wu began, "Ninjago was created by the First Spinjitzu Master, by using the four weapons of Spinjitzu- The Scythe of Quakes, the Nunchucks of Lightning, the Shurikens of Ice, and the Sword of Fire; Weapons so powerful that no one can handle all of their power at once. When he passed away, his two sons swore to protect them, but the oldest was consumed by darkness and wanted to possess them. A battle between brothers broke out and the oldest was struck down, and banished to the Underworld.

"Peace returned, and the younger brother hid the weapons, but knowing his brother's relentless ambition to power, he placed a guardian to protect them. And for fear of his own demise, a map for an honest man to hide. That honest man was your father. The older brother is Lord Garmadon, and I need to find those weapons before he does."

"You're the younger brother?" Kai guessed, his resentment thawing a little.

"Did you come for the map?" Aster frowned. "I think the skeletons took it."

"I came for you," Sensei Wu answered softly. "Not the map, which the skeletons certainly did take. You are both powerful, and I have not forgotten you, Aster. But it is Kai who I have come for, and Kai who I need right now. Ninjago needs your fire. I will train you to harness it, and you will be a Master of Spinjitzu."

Kai snorted. "I don't need your help. I need to save our sister." He tried to walk away, but Wu knocked him down before he even got a few paces away.

"You are not even ready to face my pinky toe," Wu cackled. "If you want to retrieve your sister, you must control the fire inside. Only when you have done so, will you be ready to face Lord Garmadon.

*Aster*

She'd known from the minute he had walked into the shop that Sensei Wu would bring bad tidings to their lives. Aster had seen it in the unusual wiry strength under his skin, the sure and steady way in which he carried his staff.

And she was right. Now she and Kai were following a senile old man, climbing up a steep mountain, while their sister was somewhere in the Underworld in the clutches of evil Lord Garmadon.

Fantastic. Thanks a lot, Wu. On the other hand, she was enjoying this trip a lot more than she would have cared to admit. Up here in the mountains, there was more wind than she had ever felt in her life. Even as a toddler, she had loved everything about wind- its gentle caresses, its cool touch, even the howling gales that frightened Kai. She admired its strength and ferocity. Maybe this won't be so bad, if this weather keeps up.Aster shook her head and slammed it into the mountain. Idiot, she scolded herself. You're here to support Kai in his training, not to admire the breeze.

"Ow!" she yelped as Kai's foot upset a shower of pebbles, which landed on her head.

"Sorry!" Kai apologised, and continued climbing on.

Every few minutes, Kai's hands or feet would slip, and Aster would be showered in rocks. By the time they were halfway up the mountain, Aster swore she would kill Kai as soon as they got to the top, training or no training.

As Kai tired, the showers became more and more frequent, and at last, Aster snapped. Don't you dare, she glared at the rapidly approaching rocks. The wind roared in her ears briefly, and she braced herself for the impending sting of the sharp grit.

But the rocks never touched her face. Her eyes opened in confusion. A little batch of pebbles hung suspended a millimetre away from her nose, and were slowly floating away from her as if the wind were pushing it away. Huh. Weird. She decided to try again, the next time Kai kicked rocks down. Unsurprisingly, she didn't have to wait long.

Once again the wind suspended the pebbles, although this time further away from her face. Move it to the right. Obediently, the pebbles shifted over to the right. In a spiral. The rocks spun, wobbled, and fell on her forehead. Wincing, she climbed on. Okay, maybe I should work on that.

"Slowpoke!" Kai panted when Aster finally reached the top of the mountain.

"Your fault," Aster growled at him. "I would have come up faster if you hadn't dumped an entire junkyard worth of rocks on me." She punched him in the shoulder, which was as high up as she could reach. "A monastery?" Aster looked around their surroundings in surprise.

"You expect me to learn to fight in a place of peace?" Kai tilted his head in confusion.

"Not fight, train." Sensei countered, walking into the monastery. "Kai, your training begins now. Aster, the monastery is yours to roam. The rooms with open doors are free, choose one." Aster nodded in acknowledgment as Kai followed Wu into the monastery. Well. This is boring. She began to walk into the monastery, but stopped in her tracks when she caught a flash of red. No way. Blood? Here? Kneeling down, she picked up a bright red kite. Grinning sheepishly, she padded in, to find an angry Kai punching a wall.

"That bad?" Aster patted his shoulder sympathetically. "I found something, here you go." She offered Kai the kite, but he shook his head.

"You can keep it. I gotta train." He jumped onto a log and flapped his arms desperately before falling off. "I'm working on it."

Aster spent a few minutes walking along the corridor before she found a room she liked. It was small, dusty, and fairly undecorated, but for a few faded pictures that were scattered across the room. What appealed to her was the large window, which she promptly opened. As she had expected, a gust of wind drifted in, and Aster stood there for a few seconds, before walking over to an armchair and inspecting her newfound kite.

It had no strings, but it might serve the purpose she had in mind. That night, she couldn't sleep. She'd always fallen asleep to Kai's rumbling snores, and in its absence, she found herself restless. Dragging the kite with her, she tried to climb onto the top of the monastery. Come on. Jump. Now. No. Wait!

She moved over to a nearby tree, and climbing that, she launched herself at the roof. Yes! Out on the open rooftop was where she could feel the night's breeze best. Aster let go of the kite, which soared out into the sky. Come back, she willed. Come back. To her immense satisfaction, the kite came back to her. What had Wu said? You are both powerful. If Kai supposedly had "fire within", was it possible that she could control the wind?