A.N: I know, I know, how could you do that to us making us cry blah blah blah. I'm aware, and planned for it to be an emotional chapter despite the fact I had a deadpan expression the whole time I was writing it. *shrugs*
Ah heck I still love you guys! :3
The First Spinjitzu Master has arrived! XD I imagine him with a slight sense of humor and sarcasm, as well as wise. (Duh, he created Ninjago! Of course he's smart!)
Okay, this is the second to last chapter. Whoa. This is so long! Ack.
Hope you enjoy!
The Spinjitzu master gave a knowing smile. "That is correct my son."
Garmadon was still at a loss for words as he continued to hold Lloyd tightly. "But…how are…you were…"
Wu smirked at his brother's antics. "What he's trying to say is, how are you here?"
"Well, I saw what was happening, thought you might need some assistance." He looked at Lloyd with a saddened expression. "Also, I didn't want to formally meet my grandson when he's passed away. That wouldn't sit well with me."
The dark lord raised an eyebrow. "What are you suggesting father? My son is dead. There's no reversing that."
It was true that earlier Garmadon felt his pulse slow, and then completely stop. The poison took its toll about five minutes ago. Garmadon just didn't want to say it. It would've made it more real.
The elder smiled softly and knelt so he was level with his grandson. "Actually, there is. After all, I created lives, who says I can't restore them?" He patted the child's blonde hair. "Ah, he takes after me. Got my looks, eh?" The man chuckled to himself quietly.
Garmadon's heart soared as he heard this. It was as if two large weights were lifted right off his shoulders, but still hung precariously above, waiting to drop back down.
"Whoa whoa whoa," Kai said, taking a step forward, "Um, sir, this seems too good to be true. What's the catch?"
Cole elbowed him in the ribs. "Kai!" he hissed, "You're being rude!"
The elderly man held up his hand. "Please, just call me Kazuki*. That is my actual name, use it well."
Jay however was hardly able to contain his excitement, jumping in place as he stared at the master. "This is so cool!" he whispered quite loudly.
Kazuki shook his head, promptly ignoring Jay and looking at the ninja as a whole. "Well, I see that these are the ninja my son has trained. I can see that he has trained you all well."
Kai blinked and leaned over to Cole. "He still didn't answer my question."
Cole stepped on Kai's foot, causing him to yelp and bite his lip.
"Kai is correct, Cole, and he does have a right to be curious. You don't need to treat me as if I'm infinitely higher than you. I am still an adult, more or less. However, I would hope you were taught to respect your elders." The martial arts master gave a pointed look to each of the four ninja, causing them to gulp.
The fire ninja cleared his throat awkwardly. "Um, how did you know my name, and Cole's?"
"What, you don't think I keep an eye on the land I created? I know what adventures you four have had. As well as whom all of you are. And before any of you say it, no, I am not being a stalker or a creeper, or anything of the sort."
The ninja all stood there in shock. Kazuki shrugged. "I keep up on the lingo these days."
His ancient eyes rested on Zoe, who was standing next to Cole while fingering the hilt of her dagger. "Ah, and who might you be young lady?"
Zoe blushed at being observed by someone at such high status. "My name's Zoe, I'm Cole's sister."
Kazuki nodded in understanding and studied her with a sense of curiosity. "You seem quite strong; I can tell you will grow up to be a fine young woman. But first, get your man." He winked as she turned a darker shade of red.
His attention turned to Nya, who looked a little miffed at being disregarded. "And you as well Nya, you are quite the fighter. I'm very impressed. Great things are ahead of you my dear."
Nya nodded, pleased.
Garmadon sighed loudly. "Can we move on to bringing my son back? I like that part."
Kazuki turned back over to the father and son. "Of course. Hold him steady now."
The elder son shifted his own son's body so the wound was facing the master. Kazuki closed his eyes and muttered an incantation in foreign tongue, sweeping his hands across the gash. A faint golden glow appeared under his hands, as traced the wound, smiling in satisfaction as it slowly closed like a zipper.
Zane watched with captivation. "Fascinating. Does Lloyd have abilities like this?"
"I am not sure," he frowned, "but he will discover all his capabilities in due time. In the meantime, let us focus on this one particular battle."
Zane nodded in understanding. Kazuki pressed his index finger and thumb on Lloyd's forehead, whispering a slightly different incantation, a stronger glow emanating from his hands. After a few seconds, he let go, stepped back, and oversaw his work.
Sure enough, a golden aura was around the blonde's body. Color slowly returned to his cheeks, and a shuddered breath erupted from his mouth. A low groan escaped his lips, and finally, a pair of blue eyes was welcomed back into the world.
Lloyd slowly sat up with his father's assistance and took in his surroundings, blinking uncertainly. His right hand rubbed his eyes. "Stupid…ugly dude…" he muttered.
Garmadon gave a choked laugh and squeezed his son tightly, and Lloyd gladly accepted the embrace. The pair eventually separated, and crimson eyes stared intently into blue ones. Garmadon tucked a strand of blonde hair behind his son's ear. "Don't you ever scare me like that again. You hear me?"
Lloyd giggled. "No promises Dad."
The green ninja finally noticed Kazuki standing over him. He cocked his head. "Who are you?"
The grandfather smiled kindly and got back down to his level. "That depends, who do I look like to you?"
Lloyd furrowed his eyebrows in thought. It was quite cute. He looked at the master's clothes, his beard, and finally noticed how much he looked like his own uncle. His eyes widened in realization.
"You're…you're the First Spinjitzu Master."
Kazuki chuckled and nodded. "Yes, you are right, but what does that make me to you?"
Lloyd looked back and forth between Wu and Kazuki, comparing their ages and appearances. "Are you, like, my great-grandfather or something?"
Kazuki widened his eyes in mock horror and laughed lightly. "I'm not that old! No, I'm your father's father, your grandfather, in other words."
The green ninja blinked. "Oh. Um…nice to meet you?" The last part sounded more like a question than a statement.
The elder laughed and smoothed down his hair. "You look exactly like Wu and I did as children. Except those eyes are all your own."
Lloyd's cheeks turned slightly scarlet and he looked at his feet and smiled a little. Kazuki gave the child a warm embrace. The smaller mumbled a barely audible thank you, and the master just nodded slowly and closed his eyes briefly before letting him go.
At that point, Kai promptly walked right up to Lloyd and smacked him upside the head. "Do you have any idea how much you scared me?!"
Lloyd smiled sheepishly.
Kai shook his head and gave the kid a bro hug.
The ninja followed Kai's example in suit. Cole clapped the child's shoulder, causing Lloyd to wince, and Zane gave a kind smile with a quick hug. Jay whooped and shouted, "Back from the dead! That's my guy!"
Cole gave him a weird look. Jay shrugged and continued whooping and hollering to the point of Lloyd blushing from embarrassment.
Suddenly, Zoe marched right up and shoved her brother and Jay aside. Lloyd backed up uncertainly as his crush continued to storm over.
A hard punch in the shoulder was his greeting. "OW! What the heck was that for?!"
"You and I both know that's an incredibly stupid question."
Lloyd raised an eyebrow.
Zoe sighed in exasperation. "I swear, you're lucky you're cute."
The green ninja blushed as the ninja snickered. The First Spinjitzu Master sighed and shook his head as he looked at the two young fighters. Wu was smiling at the children, as Garmadon was chuckling at his son's cluelessness.
"That was for scaring me dunderhead."
"Oh."
More snickering, especially from Kai.
Zoe smiled briefly, before lurching forward and kissing him on the cheek. After she broke apart, Lloyd was redder than Kai's ninja suit.
Jay wolf-whistled, along with the rest of the ninja following his example, except for Zane, who was looking at them oddly.
And then a vicious cackle pierced their eardrums. Lloyd and the rest of the heroes looked up to see Venom, wide awake, free of his chains, his deadly sword dripping with poison.
"Ah, it's good to be back!" His voice echoed across the chamber, a large step up from when he was barely whispering in his previous state.
Venom's cold dark eyes rested on Lloyd. "I thank you for your soul, dear child," he hissed, not sounding very grateful. "However, now I will have to destroy you and your friends, before Ninjago is rightfully mine."
Lloyd was growling deeply, his anger causing crackles of electricity to form around his hands. His blue eyes were turning gold and green as the charge got stronger. Garmadon had a protective hand on his son's shoulder, glaring daggers at the enemy.
"How are you here? After all, Lloyd's alive." Jay pointed to the youngest ninja as he said this fact.
Venom sneered at the wielder of lightning, a tuft of black hair falling in his eyes. The irises flashed red in annoyance before going back to black. "Well, poor child was gone briefly. That alone was enough for me. Being the personification of shadow itself, I am very silent and swift." He spread his hands. "Now, here I am, in the flesh. Unfortunately, with some business to take care of."
The deity jumped from the platform and studied the ninja. Lloyd was notching an arrow pointed at his ugly head, Kai's sword was ignited and ready as well as Cole's scythe, Zane's shurikens were poised in his hands, and Jay's nun chucks were spinning right above his head.
No one moved. There was a standstill. The only sound was of Jay's nun chucks buzzing, and the serpentine's occasional hiss or snarl. The entire cavern was holding its breathe, anticipating the impending battle. Lloyd's heart was pounding like a drum, his hands starting to shake as he struggled to hold the bow steady.
A flash of white was in the corner of Lloyd's eye. Without breaking his stance, he flicked his gaze over to the white, to see Xander slowly making his way over to his father.
At first, shooting his arrow came to mind. Then, the young ninja felt a tremor under his feet.
Earth.
Instinct overpowering, Lloyd shifted his feet and shot his hand forward. "GET AWAY FROM HIM!"
A chunk of rock sprung from the ground, nailing Xander right in the skull. The apprentice howled in pain and sank to his knees. "You will pay for that you little brat!"
Garmadon blinked and looked down at Xander, realizing how close he was to him. Then the dark lord looked back up in shock at his son.
Cole was grinning. "Yeah! That's my guy!"
Lloyd meanwhile was surprised he managed to connect. He glanced at his hand as if he just saw the eighth wonder of the world, and then beamed. He put his bow behind him and got in a fighting stance as Xander struggled back to his feet.
"I got Xander! You guys get Venom!"
Sensei Wu nodded at his nephew, and Lloyd took that as a cue to start fighting.
Meanwhile, Venom was watching in amusement. "Yes, yes, two elements down, two to go, blah blah blah.
"You're pretty cocky Venom, for one who just woke up from his nap," Cole spat with acid in his words.
Venom raised an eyebrow. "Well little earth ninja, perhaps you would like for me to prove just how awake I really am."
A shadow poked out from behind his pale and maniacal body. It wasn't like the ones from his army, but instead, it was Venom's own shadow. It crept along the walls of the cavern, slowly slinking along, when suddenly it brought out its sword and sliced at the earth ninja.
Cole dodged quickly, taking a defensive stance. "Whoa! This guy's got some tricks huh?"
Venom smirked. His shadow again started towards Cole, but he sliced his scythe right through its chest. Normally it would've been toast, but it didn't even flinch.
"Aw, what?"
"It appears that Venom's shadow can harm us, but we cannot retaliate!" Zane shouted.
A loud BOOM was heard from the other side of the area. Lloyd just landed another blow to his opponent, sending him crashing into the wall. However, based on how ticked off Xander looked he now wasn't going to hold back anymore.
Cole turned his attention back to Venom, who was looking quite smug as he watched them converse.
Finally, the leader of the ninja turned around to face his allies. "Sensei, Garmadon, Kazuki, take on Venom's shadow. The rest of us will handle Venom."
The father and sons nodded and refocused their attention on the little bother, who was bouncing back and forth taunting them, daring them to give their best shot.
He turned to his sister. "You too Zoe."
The sister of earth grinned deviously. "My pleasure."
Nya's hands closed slowly on her throwing stars. She and her brother met eyes. Kai gave a short nod, indicating she should shoot, to start the fight.
With the speed of a cracking whip, the star flew from her hands, right into a chink in Venom's armor. The shadow deity cringed ever so slightly, and then looked to see a thin trail of blood trailing down his armor. He looked up and locked gazes with Nya. "A good shot." He plucked the star out and dropped it on the ground. "But you'll have to a bit better than that my dear."
His sword swung out from his back, deciding to take on Kai. The swords crashed together as the opponents met eyes. Venom growled and shoved the sword at Kai's shoulder, but he jumped out of the way and attempted to force it down to the ground. The older slammed the blunt edge of his sword on Kai's lower legs, causing him to wince and step backwards.
Kai huffed and decided to take a different approach. As Venom charged again, Kai ignited his blade, sidestepped as Venom came within striking distance, and crashed his burning sword against Venom's torso.
Venom roared in pain and shot an angry glare at the fire ninja. His murky blade started to drip the mysterious poison once more, and Kai cast a wary look at the liquid.
No way am I touching that, Kai thought.
Without giving the ninja much time to think, Venom dissolved in shadow and appeared again right behind Kai. Sensing movement behind him, Kai flipped backward to land a few yards away, with his right leg sticking out and his left leg bent down low to the ground. Quick as a flash, Kai got back up and shot a torrent of fire straight into Venom's chest.
He howled in agony and shouted, "AGH! You annoying little pest!"
"Yes?" Kai asked.
Venom roared and threw what looked to be a bola straight at the fire ninja. Kai didn't get enough time to react, and he was then restrained by the projectile instantly. Kai yelped and looked down to see that the bola was now tied around his torso with his hands behind his back.
The enemy smiled wickedly and thrusted his hand forward, making the red ninja shoot backwards into the wall. Kai vaguely heard his sister scream his name, but the only thing he could comprehend was that he lost.
It was really ticking him off.
Venom turned back to the others, who were staring in disbelief. Cole was calculating all the possibilities. It wouldn't be wise to take him on at once, with the bolas and long distance attack they would be toast. One on one combat was their best bet.
Cole took out his scythe and turned to face him. He turned to his friends and whispered quietly, "As I fight him, try and land some more blows when he's not looking. Be careful of his bola."
The others nodded and stood back.
Venom grinned. "Ah, a real challenge."
"HEY!" Kai shouted from the other side of the room, greatly offended.
Venom waved his hand dismissively, causing the bola to curl around his mouth. Kai looked down in shock and rolled his eyes, his muffled voice sounding like "Mm cm mm!"
Meanwhile the Garmadon family, minus Lloyd, was struggling against their little nuisance. Kazuki was handling actually getting some blows, apparently his power could actually hit him, but only a few moments later the blow was repaired and the little shadow would go right back to jumping up and down and taunting. The two sons of the master were trying their best to distract it and use Spinjitzu to get it down, but it just wasn't working. Then again, it wasn't helping that Garmadon kept looking over at his son to make sure he was okay, even though he was handling the fight pretty damn well.
Cole let out a defiant yell and sliced his weapon through Venom's torso, then growled in frustration as his opponent disappeared from view, over and over again. His friends were attempting to take some shots, but their efforts were proven fruitless as he flashed all over the battlefield.
"Stop running away and fight me! Coward!" Cole shouted, incredibly annoyed.
After a pause, as nothing appeared, Cole turned around and discussed with his teammates, realizing his current plan wasn't nearly as effective as he had hoped.
When he was deep in conversation, Venom materialized behind the earth ninja, shimmering like a precious diamond. He crept towards the ninja as he kept his back turned. No one turned their heads. No one gave a glance. No one noticed.
Except Zoe.
She was intently listening, waiting for a part of the plan she could participate in. But when she sensed movement, she lifted her head incredulously. Her eyes turned as big as saucers. Venom was only about two feet away from her brother. They just didn't notice because he was only half there, transparent like a ghost.
Venom however didn't notice Zoe. He was too engrossed in his triumph. He did certainly get quite a shock when Zoe shouted, "COLE!" and shoved him out of the way.
Venom paused in his strike and looked to the black ninja. In the confusion the cross guard of his sword slammed on Zoe's forehead. She winced and fell to her knees, half conscious.
Cole on the other hand was shaking his head, trying to regain his bearings. Groaning, he sat up and looked back to where he was originally standing. Then his eyes widened in horror.
"ZOE!" he screamed, and rushed to her aid. His sister was shaking her head and blinking dizzily, but there seemed to be no mortal wounds.
"Cole, Cole relax, seriously, I'm fine. Cole lay off," she mumbled as her brother kept fussing.
The black ninja sighed but reluctantly agreed. Being a little too careful, he helped his sister to a secluded part of the chamber and told her to stay put. Zoe on the other hand wasn't happy about this and crossed her arms, glaring at the floor.
Cole glared at Venom after he was sure his sister was fine. Not moving his eyes away, he grabbed his scythe and swung it in front of him, stepping forward.
Before he could get the chance to strike, a blinding flash beat him to it. Whatever the attack was, it was powerful, since Venom howled in pain and staggered backwards.
Kazuki jogged towards us, his ancient eyes twinkling with humor. His two sons followed behind him, along with Lloyd, looking tired but determined.
"I sense Venom's shadow friend is gone?" Zane inquired.
Sensei Wu nodded. "It took all of our combined efforts, but we won't be bothered by him anymore."
"Xander's unconscious though. He's next to impossible for me to kill, but he shouldn't be a problem for a while," said Lloyd. Sure enough, the apprentice's body was slumped against the wall of the cavern.
"ENOUGH!"
The room fell silent.
Venom's voice quavered with rage, his hands slowly clenching and unclenching into fists. "I…have had enough…of you ninja…constantly getting in my way. I...am done…messing around."
He put away his sword, causing confusion, and melted into a shadow on the ground.
Jay blinked, and then asked, "Can I step on him?"
The shadow crept onto the wall, and reached out his hand, to create a small shuriken out of pure darkness. With incredible speed, the weapon was thrown at Lloyd, but he quickly jumped out of the way, with the weapon following. In desperation, Lloyd shot a small fireball the size of an orange, as his eyes flashed green, and the shuriken dissipated.
Venom grunted, and then raised a large group of throwing daggers. They each took aim at a ninja, slicing through the air and curving around their weapons. Lloyd's bright blue eyes widened, and then narrowed.
He's gone too far. Nobody messes with my friends but me.
Heart pounding and breath shuddering, the green ninja quickly shot fireball after fireball, at all the weapons, as his fellow ninja avoided them in a slightly panicked fashion. His eyes began to flash green and gold as he produced more fireballs, and when the weapons were gone, Lloyd stopped and his eyes went back to blue.
The enemy hollered in annoyance, and sent more weapons flying in all directions. It was like some freaky boss level for a video game. The sound of knives cutting through the air and the shouts of ninja were echoing throughout the room, until Cole yelled, "Everyone! Over here!"
Cole was frantically pointing at a large boulder big enough for everyone to hide behind in the corner. The team rushed over and crammed in the tight space, panting and gasping for breath as the sounds of Venom's cackles pierced their eardrums.
"Okay. Now what?" Cole asked.
"What do you mean now what? We never really had a plan in the first place," Kai pointed out, now free of his bola thanks to Jay during the fight.
Cole glared at him. "Well, now's our chance to make a plan. So, any ideas?"
Zoe's eyes lit up. "We could hit him when he wasn't a shadow. We just need to get him out of the wall."
"Yeah, but how would we get him outta there long enough so we can defeat him? He'll just go back to the wall," said Jay dejectedly.
"I can help with that."
The air in front of them shimmered, and there stood none other than Pythor P. Chumsworth.
Kai glared at the snake and slowly reached for his weapon. Garmadon slid closer to his son, who held his hands up. "It's okay guys, he's cool."
"What?!" Kai exclaimed. "Lloyd, are you crazy?!"
The green ninja's father frowned and glanced at Pythor. "Son, are you sure about this…?"
Lloyd nodded confidently. "Of course I'm sure. Pythor told me while I was in the prison cells that he wants to help us. I trust him."
Kazuki raised an eyebrow and studied Pythor. His younger son was peering out from under his hat, his ancient eyes watching Pythor closely as he slithered towards his students.
The Anacondrai cleared his throat. "Yes, ah, I have an idea, but I can't do it alone."
There was a silence, the only sound being the occasional boom of weapons being thrown by a very angry Venom. The eyes of the ninja flitted over to Cole, who was glaring at the ground under his feet. Finally, he exhaled. "Alright, what's your brilliant plan?"
Ignoring Cole's sarcasm, Pythor spoke. "If you can get him out of the wall somehow, I can appear behind him and restrain him. Lloyd can use his arrows to take the final shot."
Lloyd shrugged. "Works for me."
Zoe smiled a little. "I'm in."
Garmadon sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm in too."
Nods floated around the safe haven.
Pythor nodded. "Okay then. Now, how are you going to get him out of the wall?"
"Provoke him, I guess," Zoe said nonchalantly. "Make him angry enough that he wants to take us on full force."
"He wants something to shoot at," said Lloyd, "so, we'll give it to him."
"I'm starting to dislike this plan very much!" Jay shouted.
The ninja were weaving through throwing daggers and other arsenals of weapons as Venom was cackling with glee. One could say he had gone mad. Lloyd was trying as best he could to destroy the weapons as they were thrown, but he was quickly tiring. His eyes were a blazing combination of gold and emerald green.
"Well it's either that or the end of the world! Which do you prefer Jay?!" said Kai as he jumped away from a sharp shuriken.
"I'm just pointing it out Kai!" said Jay, dodging a very large throwing knife.
"Well stop!"
Cole rolled his eyes as he ducked to avoid getting turned into a hunk of meat on a stick by a flying spear.
"We need to provoke him more!" yelled Kazuki.
"Leave that to me!"
Zoe ran forward. "Hey ugly! With a face like yours I wish I was blind!"
Venom growled and turned to the girl. "What?"
Lloyd grinned as he disintegrated another flying sword, his eyes a brilliant green. "I get what she's doing. Hey Venom, if I had a dog with a face like yours I'd shave its butt and teach it to walk backwards!"
The shadow growled deeper and looked at Lloyd. "Why you little-"he seethed.
"Yo mama's so fat she broke the stairway to heaven!" Kai shouted, beaming ear to ear.
"I've got to disinfect my eyeballs after looking at you!"** said Jay.
"You're so ugly," Cole started, "that Hello Kitty said goodbye to you."
Even Garmadon got into it. "Do you still love nature…despite what it did to you?"
Venom roared. "ALL RIGHT THAT'S IT!"
And the shadow warrior stepped out of the wall…
…only to be choked by Pythor P. Chumsworth.
"Quick! Lloyd, take the shot!" Pythor shouted, struggling against Venom's squirming.
Without hesitation, Lloyd notched an arrow, carefully aimed at Venom's chest, and smiled deviously.
Venom coughed. "You'll regret this! I'll get you!"
"Yeah, no thanks."
Lloyd let go of the arrow, and Venom was no more.
There was a stunned moment of silence. Then cheering echoed across the cavern.
In a battle for good and evil, good had triumphed once again. With the help of a little green hero, that didn't feel so little anymore…
A.N: My brain is too fried to do much of an author's note…
That ending...*kicks brain* UGH I HATE IT SO CHEESY AND ANNOYING AND UGH! I couldn't think of anything better…but tell me if you guys like it.
One quick thing. The thing with Lloyd's eyes turning green and gold is just a headcanon I have when he uses his powers. Nothing more. But do you guys like that idea? Do you wish for me to continue using it?
Next chapter is the epilogue. Hope you guys enjoyed! Thanks for reading as always. ;)
*Kazuki is a common Japanese boys name, meaning one or harmony, combined with radiance, shine or hope. I did some research. ;) Google, what would I do without you…
**This is actually a Shakespearean insult; I just tweaked it to make more sense in the context…and the century. Here's the actual one:
"Out of my sight! Thou dost infect my eyes." (From Richard III)
I came across it when looking through good insults for that particular part of the chapter.