Zane tried to fight back tears as he thought about her upset about his disappearance. He hated to see her cry, and when he did he always cheered her up, but now there was nothing he could do.
The man in grey didn't seem to notice. Zane swallowed thickly. He needed to stay strong, especially for her. He would get home to her.
They continued to ride in silence. Zane looked at the mountains around him for any signs of Bansha or Ghoultar. He saw none.
Zane decided he would try to make small talk to get to know this man better.
"Where do you come from?"
"Here." The grey ninja said. "This mountain range and all it encompasses is my home."
"Do you know where Ninjago is?"
"Yes."
Zane brightened up as his chest filled with hope. "Can you take me there?" The grey ninja shook his head.
"Unfortunately, I cannot. The land of Ninjago is beyond the border of my territory."
And just like that, Zane deflated like an old balloon. But he still asked questions.
"How did you find me?"
The grey ninja shrugged. "As fate would have it, I assume. I was riding along when something told me to go. And that's when I found you."
"Thank you for rescuing me. I would not have survived back there without you."
"No need to thank me. It's my duty as the Dark Archer, protector of these mountains."
Zane cocked his head. "Why do you care about these mountains so much?"
The grey ninja sighed. "You will see in time, Zane. And you will grow to love them too."
"Wait, what do you mean?"
"As I said, you will see in time."
Zane was confused. Was there something that the grey ninja knew that he didn't? And why was he being so vague with his answers?
The slope had opened up into a long, winding gorge that horse and riders descended into. They rode along on its floor, the clopping of hooves echoing through its walls. Zane still had more questions, but with the Dark Archer's answers so vague, he doubted he would get answers.
They rode up and down a few more mountains. The farther they went, the lower in elevation they descended, the warmer it got, and less snow covered the ground.
As they reached the top of a hill, the grey ninja's horse came to a stop.
"This is as far as I can take you." He told Zane. "Are you well enough to get off on your own?"
Zane slid out of the saddle, landing awkwardly as waves of pain shot through his body. He clutched his injured side.
"Thank you, master of dark fire." Zane said to him. The grey ninja nodded.
"Again, no need to thank me." He said. A cold wind blew. He turned his horse's face.
"I cannot stay long, so I must go. I wish you well on your journey beyond."
He spurred his horse and rode back down the hill before Zane could thank him. He watched him go.
Zane turned back to see what lay ahead of him.
He was standing at the edge of the mountains. Below lay the foothills. Beyond the hills stretched miles and miles of forest for as far as the eye could see. The range expanded both ways out to the horizon.
Zane was in awe. This place was so huge, but he had never heard of it or seen it before. In fact, no one in Ninjago probably ever had. Why had this place remained hidden for so long? What lived in the trees of this forest? New creatures? Maybe even people?
Zane looked over his shoulder where the Dark Archer rode off, but there was no sign of him. Not a glimpse of him, not a hoofprint in the snow. It was as if he had vanished into thin air. He scanned the ground, but there was not a sign to be seen.
Zane shook his head. A new elemental master? That was impossible! Sensei knew everything about them, he would have had to mention a master of dark fire at least once. But he never had said a word.
But Zane saw it with his own eyes. He'd seen how the fire sprouted from his hand. There was no way he could have made it up.
Suddenly his sixth sense alerted him, and he turned around. Two ghostly glows could be seen at the bottom of the hill.
Zane began his descent down the final mountain and into the foothills. He had no idea what was in this valley of forests, but there was nowhere else to go. Little did he know that his arrival into this strange land would make him become a part of something bigger than he could have ever imagined and that he would be thrown into a whole new adventure unlike any he had been in before, and one that he would soon not forget.
As he ran across the plains that lay at the bottom of the foothills and into the forest, his life would be forever changed.