Children of Destiny
Wow! It's finally here! The last chapter of Children of Destiny! But it's not over yet, there's still the epilogue left. First, I want to say I'm really sorry for the extremely late update, I'll explain more in the end. I also couldn't be more grateful that you've stuck by this story by this point & I want to thank you all by finally putting up this chapter! Please enjoy!
Chapter 80: Dawn of a New Age
The ninjas saw nothing and felt nothing.
'Am I… dead…?' Leon thought to himself.
"Many wounds sustained… Heartbeat detected…" A robotic voice echoed in the void.
Leon's green eyes fluttered open and he was greeted by Haukka. The robot falcon simple stood on his chest and stared at him before flying off to find Zane and his family.
The green ninja got up despite the pain and examined his surroundings. The ninjas both old and new laid around him and they were in the now at ground level. He could feel new grass growing beneath him and the gentle breeze revitalized him. He can even hear birds chirping and leaves rustling but a groan not too far away made the young hero jump.
Much to Leon's relief, it was only Akira who also regained consciousness.
"Leon…" Akira groggily opened his eyes and noticed his already awoken ally.
"What… what happened…?" The red ninja sat up and also took in his surroundings.
"I don't know… The Overlord is gone but I'm not too sure…"
The fiery young man looked for his family but caught sight of another person important to him.
"Liana!"
Even with much of his strength gone, the fire ninja ran towards where Liana laid. He gently held her and checked for any signs of life. Her skin was frighteningly cold against his hand instead of the refreshing coolness her aura gave off and he truly feared she was gone until she stirred.
"…Akira…?" Cool greyish-blue eyes fluttered open and Liana recognized her lover.
The couple looked around them and saw that peace was restored in Ninjago… for now…
"Are you hurt?" Akira checked for any wounds on the white kunoichi.
"E-Ei... What about you…?"
"I'm fine. I wanted to make you were too."
"Akira…"
Their faces grew closer to one another and their lips were just millimeters apart when Forrest and Alex interrupted the moment.
"Oh, come on! Just because we survived doesn't mean the first thing we have to see is you two sucking face!" The brother of ice complained.
"You know this isn't exactly the right setting to make out!" Alex added.
"Dammit! We were having a moment!" The fire ninja yelled at the duo.
Rather than being annoyed, Liana happily embraced her brother and the kunoichi of wind. She was just happy that they were also okay and wanted to keep her bond with them.
"What's going on?" An adult's voice asked from the distance.
The Pyrrhus and Julien children turned around to see their parents waking up.
"Mom! Dad!" Alex rushed over to hug her parents.
"I knew you could do it!" Kai beamed with pride.
"We're so proud of you!" Aria kissed her children's brows.
The Pyrrhus twins allowed their parents to shower them with the sort of attention that usually embarrassed them, just wanting to share such a poignant moment with them.
"My children! I'm so glad you're safe!" Zane held Liana and Forrest in a cool yet kind embrace along with Heather who shed a few tears of happiness.
"It's all over now… We can finally move on…" The former kunoichi sighed.
While both families rejoiced, Akira and Liana's eyes met one another and they knew that after all they've been through, their bonds with their family and friends never broke.
It was their hearts that can never be changed or altered by the tests of time, no matter what.
Amy felt her consciousness return and her sight soon cleared up and the first thing she saw was her sister's prone body and her sisterly instincts kicked in yet again.
"Melody!" The black kunoichi made a beeline for her sister and gently shook her awake.
"Sis! Stop! I'm fine!" The kunoichi of water squirmed out of her sibling's grasp.
"I'm sorry, I was really worried." The elder Charbonneau sister sighed in relief.
"But what about Mom and Dad?" Melody reminded her of their parents.
Just as luck would have it, Cole and Luna also awoke and reunited with their daughters.
"Amy! Melody! You're both safe!" Their mother cried tears of joy and kissed them nonstop.
"My daughters! We're so glad you're okay! We thought we lost you!" The earth ninja held Amy and Melody in yet another herculean hug but this time, they didn't mind.
They made it through together and they always will.
Chris and Kyle awoke at the same time and not too far from them was their sister and rushed to her side in a flash.
"Sayuri! Wake up!" The brothers cradled their sister like a newborn baby.
"…W-what…? What's going on…?" The youngest Walker child awoke, all discombobulated.
"We beat the Overlord. We couldn't have done it without you." Kyle said.
"H-h-how…?"
"Back when the Overlord cornered us, he would've destroyed us if it weren't for you distracting him. You proved yourself at that moment and we owe you one."
"Kids? Kids!" Two familiar voices called to the Walker siblings, interrupting their moment.
"We're over here!" Chris waved to his parents who came to him and his siblings in a flash.
"My babies! Are you hurt?" Jay fretted over his children's safety like most parents would.
Nya gazed at her children and with just one look, she knew they fulfilled their destiny and they have matured. Their eyes had that same spark she and her husband had when they knew they conquered their external and internal obstacles to answer destiny's call. Just one look from her told her children that she knew how they felt and what they were experiencing.
They have overcome their deepest fears and turmoil to become the ninjas they truly were.
"Dareth!"
The old brown ninja awoken upon hearing his name and was quickly greeted by his wife Elaine, who was restored to her normal self along with their son Darrell.
"How did you get here?" He asked, bewildered yet pleasantly surprised.
"I don't know. I just woke up here and I found you." His wife answered.
"We all found each other." The aging brown ninja embraced his family, cherishing them just as much as his friends did with theirs.
Leon still wandered around, looking for his family but as it turns out, they found him.
"Leon!" Willow found and greeted her brother with a tackle-hug.
"Sis!" The new hero laughed, happy to be with his sibling for good and bad.
"You're both safe!" Iris was close to bursting to tears over her children.
Lloyd maintained control over his emotions but his smile showed he was overjoyed to see Leon and Willow having fully matured into the true heroes they've become.
"I'm so proud of both of you." He smiled down on his grown children.
"We actually did it!" Willow cheered but her joyous reaction quickly dissolved into a realization of the high price of victory. Lloyd gave his daughter a look of understanding but everyone saw in his eyes that he was also heartbroken at the cost.
"We've fought for the future. You did what you could…" He tried reassuring her but his children and his wife can tell he was also saying it to himself.
"I've always had faith in you," Iris began, "I knew you could do it because I love you."
Willow instinctively reached for her neck and took out her necklace but to her disappointment, the crystal heart was shattered during the battle and only a tiny shard was attached to it.
"Oh no… It's broken…" The kunoichi of time was downtrodden at the single fragment.
"Nothing lasts forever and it's probably for the best. The past is in the past." Iris consoled her.
"But- "
"The necklace, as important as it was, is just part of my past but my time is over. Now it's your time and I want you to be your own person."
"Mom…"
Iris wrapped her arms lovingly around her daughter and beckoned Leon to join in.
"Mother!"
Lloyd found his mother and Misako, helping them off the ground. Since they weren't caught up in the battle that ensued mere minutes ago, they were relatively unscathed, much to the green ninja's relief.
"Are you both okay?" He checked to make sure they didn't suffer any serious wounds.
"I'll recover… and it appears Ninjago will too…" Misako observed.
"I don't care. You're safe and that's all that matters." Haruka embraced her son.
The ninjas finally noticed that Ninjago Tower was restored and there was not a single piece of evidence that the Overlord conquered the city.
"Is the Overlord truly gone or is he just sealed like last time…?" Kai pondered.
A pile of gnarled rusty armor laid not too far from the ninjas and their predecessors as the only piece of evidence that the dark lord existed but they still weren't sure…
"I don't sense any malevolent energy within…" Willow examined the remains.
"How can we be sure of it?" Kyle asked.
"My daughter is correct. I feel no evil radiating from the remains." Iris answered.
"So it really is over…" Luna felt both joy and sadness over their victory and its cost.
Lloyd still felt a hole in his heart knowing his father and uncle sacrificed themselves and at the same time, a slight feeling of resentment but shook it off. Just as they described, both light and darkness dwelled in everyone's hearts and both sides brought balance. Even as the first hero of Ninjago, he still wasn't perfect yet that's what made him human.
"Mother…" Lloyd turned to his surviving parent as well as Misako.
"Is it over…?" Haruka asked, still in a daze over the events that just transpired.
"I can feel it… The world is at peace yet there are some lingering shadows but nothing evil… It's the balance we all strived to achieve…" The old scholar said with both relief and slight sadness.
"Even if the battle is won and the Overlord's gone for good… I still…"
Haruka broke down in tears over her lost husband and Misako also wept as she still cared very deeply for the men she shared feelings for and it was difficult to live in a world without them.
Some of the ninjas also mourned the loss of Wu and Garmadon. They may have been victorious but even the sweetest victories still leave a bitter taste behind…
Days after the eradication of the Overlord, the citizens of Ninjago have become somber at the memorial for the sons of the First Spinjitzu Master held by Lloyd. The people have yearned for a future where they won't have to live in fear of the Overlord's return but was the price worth it?
The people mourned at the assembly at the ruins of the monastery directed by the grandson of the First Spinjitzu Master.
"I would like to thank you all for paying respects to Wu and Garmadon, the last remnants of our world's past." Lloyd began his obituary.
The ninjas of both generations as well as their family and friends also attended the memorial. It was the least they can do in return for the sacrifices they've made so they can live without fear of the Overlord returning.
"Sacrifices have been made to build a bright future for Ninjago but none was greater than Wu and Garmadon's. They have given their very lives to become the balance so they will live on as a part of Ninjago alongside their father. We must look ahead to the future but we'll never forget our past as well as their noble sacrifice." Lloyd gave his speech to the audience. Some cried and others bowed their heads in respect for the sacrifices made to save their world. The ninjas were no exception as they too mourned the loss of the ones who guided them to their destiny.
"The monastery that served as home to the First Spinjitzu Master and his descendants stood on these grounds. But just like how time moves forward, it is time to let go of the past. However, that doesn't mean our history will be forgotten. Instead, a monument will be built in memory of Ninjago's beginnings. Again, I want to thank you all for honoring the memories of the past. We will never forget the sacrifices that were made to ensure a bright future for many generations to come. May the First Spinjitzu Master and his bloodline continue watching over us."
Some of the spectators applauded in respect once Lloyd finished his speech while others were still crying but one thing they all knew was that what was lost will never be forgotten. Instead of rebuilding the monastery, a new shrine dedicated to the creator of Ninjago himself along with his sons were to be constructed atop its remains.
Leon and Willow took their time to think over how far they've come and what they've gained… and what they've lost…
While Willow wept, Leon stared up towards the heavens, wanting to think Wu and Garmadon were up there with their own father, continuously guiding him and everyone from beyond the grave. They didn't want their surviving relatives to mourn but they needed some time to come to terms with all the changes in their lives before moving on…
"We figured that you'd be here." A familiar voice greeted the siblings.
"Are you sure you'll be okay…?" Amy asked the Garmadon siblings.
"I know Grandpa and Gruncle wouldn't want me to be sad forever…" Willow sniffled, "There's still some tears I have left to shed…"
"Let it out. We won't judge you." Alex goaded her.
It still pained the ninjas to see one another in pain and they were hurt too. In a twist of irony, it was this loss that brought them together. They shared the same joy, sadness, and pain and that was in itself a testimony to the bond that held them together as a team. It was not mere chance that they and their parents ended up being ninjas. Somehow, it was as if the greater forces or whatever's out there knew they had what it took to work as a team and fulfill their destiny.
Perhaps that was why they were chosen in the first place…
"Girls! There you are!" Cole caught up with his daughters, followed by the original ninjas.
"What on earth are you doing out here?" Heather asked her children.
"We were just thinking…" Liana replied.
"About what?" Aria questioned them, expecting an answer.
"Just all the things that happened since… well… since Ninjago was created… We know we can't have everything and Wu and Garmadon were right when they said that order and chaos comes from within us…" Akira said.
"True… But that won't hinder us from fighting for what is right and protecting Ninjago from any threats." Kai said.
"But what if there's another source of evil still out there? What if there's a time where there's more ninjas and chaos will destroy the balance?" Leon pondered.
"And what if there's someone who'll willingly end up like the Overlord's minions?" Kyle asked.
"We won't know for sure… but no matter what, we will always be ready…" Nya answered.
"It's true. Order and chaos originate not from an outside source but from within each and every one of us." Zane added.
"And when that day comes, we'll be ready to protect this world once more." Jay said.
"The most important thing to know is that a ninja never quits." Lloyd echoed the motto that has rung true in every hour of need for Ninjago.
Both ninjas old and new stared over the horizon at the start of a new age for Ninjago.
Nobody knows what will happen or if this peace will truly last but they knew they'll be ready for it, whenever that day will come to pass. They were ninjas and a ninja never quits. Yet it was the unknown that fascinated them all the same. The future is full of endless possibilities and having experienced so much already, part of them were anxious to see what the future holds but now, this was a time of peace and they wanted to seize any opportunity they have to simply rest and rejuvenate themselves for a new day.
Knowing that the dearly departed will continue watching over them, they were ready to greet a new day and a new beginning for Ninjago.
I can't believe it. This story is almost over. I'm literally crying.
As for the long delay, my laptop, which is getting on in years, started having problems & while working on this chapter, it crashed & the original chapter got deleted. It also had problems connecting to the internet & I had to do it all over again. It's one of the most frustrating things ever & I apologize if this chapter fell short. Again, I'm very sorry for making you guys wait for so long.
I hope you'll still stick around for the epilogue so until then, reviews are always appreciated.