Zane woke with a start. He groaned as he was immediately greeted by the throbbing pain from his wounds. His vision was blurry and couldn't see where he was.
As his pain ebbed away, became aware of something covering him.
Confused, he reached up with his good hand. It was a blanket.
Zane rubbed his eyes and suddenly his vision came into focus. He looked around at his surroundings.
Zane saw that he was on a couch in the living room of a large cabin. A large stone fireplace sat in the center on the wall between two large windows that were covered by curtains. A coffee table sat in front of the couch. Beside him was a recliner. On the wall was a TV, and various trophy mounts of deer.
Grunting in pain, Zane struggled up and propped himself up onto his good arm to see the rest of the house.
Behind him was a kitchen, completely outfitted with essential kitchen appliances like a refrigerator, stove oven, and microwave. On the side of the kitchen it opened up into a hallway. Beside the hallway was a flight of stairs. Above the kitchen were a loft and another hallway. The lights cast a warm glow over the polished wood.
Zane heard footsteps behind him. He turned around and jumped when he saw Hailey standing at the end of the couch.
"Hey Zane." She said. "How are you feeling?"
Zane's arm gave out and he fell back onto the couch. He felt dizzy and fatigued. He groaned.
"I'm not sure..." He muttered.
Hailey walked over to his side. Zane smelled hot food and saw that she was holding a steaming bowl in her hands.
"You're really weak." She told him as she knelt down and placed the bowl on the coffee table. "I'm sure you haven't gotten a proper meal in days."
Hailey took a spoonful from the bowl. Zane accepted it gratefully. The warmth and heartiness of the food were welcome after days of being in the cold and a hot meal was one of the things he desperately needed.
Zane swallowed. "What is this?" He asked Hailey.
"It's elk and veggie stew." The girl answered. "My uncle made it last night."
Zane looked around the room. "Where am I?"
"You're at my house," Hailey told him. "We're keeping you here until you get better."
"And nothing else." Growled a deep voice behind him.
Zane grunted as he craned his neck. Above him was a man staring down at him. He seemed to be in his late forties. He looked similar to the Ninjago mailman, except he was older and his face was more grizzled and weatherbeaten. Gray peppered his facial hair and a pair of black square frame eyeglasses sat in front of his blue eyes.
"W-who are you?" Zane asked.
"That's none of your business right now," Samuel said flatly. He walked to the front of the couch next to Hailey. "I should be the one asking you questions."
"Uncle Sam, please," Hailey said. "I know you want to know how he got here, but he hasn't even eaten a good meal in days. Can we at least give him a chance to have a full stomach before y'all start interrogating him?"
Samuel rolled his eyes and huffed. "I suppose you're right..."
Hailey fed Zane the rest of the bowl of stew, as well as a piece of bread and butter.
"Okay, you've got your food," Samuel said. He got a chair from the kitchen and sat down in front of Zane. "Now start talking. And don't you even think about pulling a fast one on me. I ain't no damn fool." He patted his side, where a leather pouch holding something silver with a wooden handle. "I can take you out in a second if I want to."
Zane gulped and looked to Hailey, who nodded reassuringly.
"Tell him, Zane." She said.
Zane took a deep breath. "It started when my brothers and I got called on a mission..."
...
Samuel rubbed his chin.
"I see..." he said. "But I'm not buying the fact that you're an elemental master. How do I know you're not bullshitting me?"
Zane shifted. "I-I can show you if you'd like..."
Samuel chuckled. "Okay, sure." He said sarcastically.
With all the strength he could muster, Zane freed a hand from the blanket and channeled his energy to his hand. Hailey and Samuel went slack-jawed when a flurry of ice and snow briefly appeared around his fingers. After a few moments it disappeared and Zane's arm fell limp, summoning his element had completely drained him of his strength. He slipped out of consciousness, leaving Hailey and Samuel frozen in shock.
"Holy shit..." Hailey muttered after a long while.
"I guess he wasn't bullshitting me after all..." Samuel said. Hailey looked at her uncle.
"Hell no he wasn't!" Hailey said. She jumped up. "Uncle Sam, did you see what he did?! He made ice come out of his goddamn hand!"
"I know..."
Hailey sat back down, both of them staring at the sleeping ice wielder.
"What the actual hell have we gotten ourselves into?"
"No idea...except its not something we can get out of easy..."
Silence stretched between the two. Hailey turned to her uncle.
"Hey Uncle Sam, you don't think Zane..."
Samuel from her niece to the nindroid.
"He who is from a land unbeknownst..." He began.
"With skin like the moon and the eyes of a ghost, who yields an element of nature a power will signal Mt. Horn of the darkest hour!" Hailey finished. "His eyes are blue, his skin is silver like the moon, and he's the elemental master of ice! It's really...him!"
Samuel was so shellshocked he couldn't even form words.
Finally...
"We can't let them get him."
Hailey turned to her uncle. "What?"
Samuel looked at her.
"The authorities."
"What about them?"
"We can't let them take Zane. If he's really who we think he is, and if they take him into custody, god knows what will happen to him and how it'll affect the future. They won't listen. Besides..."
"Besides what?"
Samuel sighed. "You were right. He doesn't want to be here, he just wants to go back home..."
Hailey nodded and looked at the clock on the wall. She got up. "I'm gonna go feed the horses."
"Alright. I bought a bag of beet pulp, add a scoop to Gunsmoke's ration."
Samuel walked over and picked up his phone, dialing a number. It rang a few times before there was a voice on the other end.
"Hey Samuel." said a man. "What's up."
"Christopher, hey." Samuel said.
"You good? You sound pretty rattled."
"Look, something happened last night..."
"Is it Hailey? Is she okay?"
"No. I mean, yes, she's fine, but I just need you and Tony over here. There's something I need to show you.."
Hailey had slipped on her boots and walked outside. As she came to the fence, there was a whinny as a black and white horse ran up to greet her. Hailey smiled.
"Hey, Ranger." She said to her horse as she scratched him on his neck. "Ready for dinner?"
Opening the gate and closing it behind her, she walked over to a shed by the stables. She grabbed two rubber feed pans and scooped feed into each before taking them back out.
"One for you," Hailey said as she set the pan down. Ranger pranced up and ate his evening meal.
"And one for you."
A big blue roan horse with a black mane, tail, and legs lumbered over to his feed. She gave him a pat on the neck before walking back to the house.
"Christopher and Tony will be over shortly," Samuel told her. Hailey was startled.
"W-what? Why?" Hailey asked. She pointed to Zane. "What about him?"
"That's exactly why. They need to see him in the flesh, and we may need their help. And don't worry. I'll make sure they won't tell. I know they wouldn't if I asked them not to."
A few seconds later there was a knock at the door. Samuel walked over and opened it. There in the doorway stood two men. One was as tall as Samuel, with reddish-blond hair and green eyes and a prosthetic leg. The other was shorter, had black hair with a mustache. They both stepped in and greeted Samuel and Hailey. They were Christopher and Tony, Samuel's friends and battle buddies from his time in the Mountain Guard.
"So what did you call us here for, amigo?" Tony asked.
Samuel heaved a sigh. "Like I told you. Something happened last night, and you need to see. But promise me that no matter what it is you hear me out."
Tony and Christopher glanced at each other suspiciously before nodding. "Okay..."
Samuel led them over to the couch and gestured to Zane, who was still out like a light. Their faces paled at the sight.
"What the hell..." Christopher said. "What is that?!"
"His name is Zane," Hailey explained. "He's from Ninjago, and-"
Suddenly Christopher's hand flew to his belt and he drew the handgun he carried before pointing it to Zane's head. Hailey and Samuel gasped and jumped in front of Zane protectively.
"Wait!" Hailey cried. "You didn't let me finish!"
"Hold your fire!" Samuel said to him. "If you harm him you can bet all of Ninjago will come storming in on us!"
Grudgingly, Christopher shoved the gun back into his belt. "What the hell are you doing with an outsider in your house?!" Christopher demanded. Tony rested a hand on his shoulder.
"Christopher, allow them to explain."
"Thank you, Tony," Hailey said. "I found him while hunting a few days ago. I didn't like him either, but the more I got to know him the more I realized he wasn't a bad person-"
"Person?! Do you call that a person?! It's silver! It's a machine!"
"In the flesh, yes, but in his heart and soul he's just as human as anyone." Samuel told him.
"Well, what makes him so important that you have to break the one law that's kept us safe for centuries?!"
"He's part of the prophecy."
"The what?"
"The prophecy. You know, the one that goes 'He who is from a land unbeknownst, with skin like the moon and the eyes of a ghost, who yields an element of nature a power, will signal Mt. Horn of the darkest hour?"
Christopher's eyes narrowed as he looked from Hailey and Samuel to Zane on the couch. He still was skeptical.
"You have to trust me," Samuel said. "We've been keeping an eye on him. If he really was a threat he would have already made his move. We can't tell the authorities about this, otherwise, they'll never let him go and Four Legends knows how it will affect the future."
Christopher heaved a sigh. "Fine." He huffed. "I'll keep your secret."
"As will I," Tony said. "I know you two know a threat when you see it. If Zane was really a bad person you wouldn't take him in like this."
"Thank you," Samuel said.
"You're keeping him here?"
"Just until we can figure out a way to get him back home," Hailey told the two.
...
After passing out from using his powers, Zane had slept soundly through the night and well into the next day. It wasn't until early evening the next day that he came to.
Hailey had just come back inside from feeding the horses when she heard Zane stir and groan. She kicked off her boots and walked over.
"Hey, Zane," Hailey said as he came to. "Feeling alright?"
Zane grimaced as pain wracked his body. All of his injuries throbbed, his legs ached, it hurt just to breathe.
"N-no." He managed to say. Hailey nodded.
"I see. I'll be right back."
Hailey left the living room and returned. Zane heard some things being set down on a table. He felt a hand on his forehead.
"Yikes, you're pretty feverish. Here..."
A wet rag was laid across his forehead, the coolness bringing some comfort. Hailey gave Zane some pain medication and a glass of water. When he was finished with that, she made a glass of water mixed with electrolyte powder.
"Lots of fluids will help you recover faster." She told him.
"Thank you..." Zane mumbled.
Hailey nodded. "Of course. It's all a part of good old fashioned southern hospitality."
"It's best you lay off using your powers for now," she said. "You need to focus your energy on healing and getting your strength back. You don't need your powers to protect you, you have us now."
At Hailey's words, it finally dawned on Zane for the first time that he was truly safe now. He gave her a weak smile.
There were footsteps behind them. Samuel appeared from behind the couch.
"How is he?" Hailey's uncle asked.
"I mean, he seems okay." She replied. "He felt pretty hot so I gave him a wet rag to cool him down and I've been giving him fluids."
Samuel nodded in approval.
Thanks to the food, water, and medicine, Zane felt some of his strength come back.
"How long will I be here? I don't have much time. My brothers need me back..."
"Um, that's the thing, Zane..." Hailey said as she changed his rag. "We don't know..."
"But I need to go back..."
"Well, look, Zane," Samuel began. "One, your entry into Mt. Horn territory whether intentional or not has you already in a heap of trouble. If anyone finds out we have you here, they'll take you away and us too and neither of us will see the light of day again. And two, you're in such bad shape, there's no way you could make the journey back. You can't even feed yourself."
Zane's eyes narrowed with determination. "But I must try..."
Then before Hailey or Samuel could stop him, Zane threw the blanket off and tried to stand. No sooner had Zane set both feet on the ground, his knees wobbled and a wave of nausea came over him. He swayed and fell to the floor. He landed on his broken arm after firmly knocking his head on the edge of the coffee table. Zane cried out in pain.
"WHOA! Stop! You're gonna hurt yourself!" Hailey yelped. Samuel and Hailey helped Zane back onto the couch.
"She's right, buck-roger, you have to let yourself heal before you can go back."
Zane sighed as the blanket was laid back over him as he realized they were right.
Hailey lay a hand on Zane's forehead. "You'll be okay, Zane." She said reassuringly. "But your body needs rest."
"Okay..." He answered.
"Hey Uncle Sam," Hailey said, turning to her uncle. "What time does the game start?"
"Five. We have awhile." He replied.
"Uh-game?" Zane asked, confused. He had no idea what they were talking about.
Hailey grinned.
"Oh yeah, a football game! It's a popular sport here. Maybe watching with us can help get your mind off things?"
Zane thought. "I suppose..."
...
As it turned out, Zane found this sport called "football" very interesting and entertaining to watch.
From what Hailey and Samuel told him, it was a sport played by thirty-two teams and one team would have to score a touchdown by throwing or running the ball past the other team's defense or kicking the ball through a goalpost.
Hailey liked the Packers. Samuel liked the Bears. And apparently the teams had a huge rivalry with each other.
"I'm so nervous." Hailey said. "If we lose our undefeated streak…"
"I am too." Samuel said.
Tonight's game was the Packers against the Broncos. There was an areal view of the stadium and footage of players on both sides rallying themselves. The commentators were going through the plays of both teams and comparing their stats before the game began.
Zane watched with interest throughout the whole game, as he was intrigued as to how sophisticated the games were. Hailey clarified something whenever he was confused, such as the first, fourth down, touchdown, interceptions, and penalties. "A perfect night in Mt. Horn underneath a starry sky and there is much star power on the ground as the Packers clash with the Broncos." A reporter said. Hailey cheered when the Packers made a good drive or sacked the Broncos quarterback, and was frustrated when the Broncos intercepted the ball or sacked the Packers quarterback, or when the Broncos made a touchdown.
"I knew I had bad vibes about this game." She said when it was over.
The final score was 10-29. The Packers had their winning streak broken.
"It's weird," Hailey said as she got up. "I'm not happy, but I'm not itching to punch the TV either."
"Well I'm disgusted. I thought that would be a closer game. Might as well be a shut-out." Samuel said. He didn't look too happy.
Hailey got up and went upstairs and came back down soon after in a pair of pajamas.
A gust of wind howled outside, rattling the window pane. A storm was brewing outside.
"You brought the horses in, right?" Samuel asked Hailey. The girl nodded.
"Of course I did."
The wall clock chimed. Hailey looked at it.
"It's getting late." Hailey said. "I'm gonna be heading off to bed."
Samuel nodded. "Okay, me too."
Hailey went up the stairs and came back down a moment later. Samuel was confused as Hailey walked over to the recliner, lay back in it and throw the blanket on her.
"But I thought you were going to sleep?"
Hailey gave him a look.
"Uh, yeah?"
"Sooo...why are you in my chair?"
Hailey shrugged. "I'm staying down here with Zane tonight in case he needs anything." She said. "If something were to happen to him I don't want him to be alone."
Samuel sighed and turned out the hallway light. "Okay, that's fine. Goodnight, love you."
"Love you too."
Soon the house was dark and quiet. Zane closed his eyes with a sigh. He knew he would be able to sleep in total peace because he knew that Hailey and Samuel were there to help and not hurt him. He fell asleep peacefully, knowing that he was safe now and wondering where his brothers were and if they had the slightest idea where he was.
...
"Come on, now," Kai growled, jabbing a small button for about the thirtieth time. "He's got to be somewhere."
The ninja had searched to every corner of Ninjago possible to find Zane, but with no such luck. They stopped by every village, every town, every city, always asking everyone they saw the same question. 'Have you seen Zane come through here?' But everyone said they hadn't, otherwise, they would said so weeks ago.
So now they were at Borg Industries as the last hope, trying to track Zane down with his beacon (thanks to Jay who remembered about it).
Cole, Jay, Kai, and Sensei Wu were gathered in front of a large screen in Cyrus's headquarters which showed a full-scale map of Ninjago, longitude and latitude, and the scale for kilometers per inch onscreen. Whenever they pressed the button to find Zane's signal, it would jump around the map for a few minutes, but then come up with nothing. They were on the thirty-fifth round when Jay started assuming the worst.
"It's still not coming up. Do you think he's-" Jay started, but Kai quickly cut him off.
"No. Zane isn't the one for quitting. He's still out there, and I know it." Just then the sound of an elevator opening caused everyone to turn around.
"Is there any sign of him yet?" Cyrus asked, his voice panicking and edgy. He wheeled in the room. The ninja all shook their heads. He sighed.
"This is really bad. I broke the news to P.I.X.A.L; she's devastated." He cast a helpless look at the screen. "And the fact that we can't contact him at all. I just really hope he's alright, losing him a second time would be horrible."
Just then Kai felt something vibrating in his back pocket. He pulled out his cellphone. It was Nya.
"Hello?" Kai said.
"Any sign of Zane yet?" She asked. Her voice was also pretty scared. She started crying when they told her about Zane. Although she was back guarding the Bounty, she still called every five minutes to see if they found him.
"No," Kai sighed. "We've been trying about forty-two times."
"Forty-five." Jay corrected.
"I just hope he's okay, I don't want Zane gone again." Nya almost whispered. "There are some ghosts terrorizing the east side of the city, you guys should go before they do any serious damage."
Kai looked at the screen. He didn't want to go on any missions right now, he wanted to stay and find Zane. But they had to go, it was their job.
"Alright. We'll be quick. Bye Nya."
"Bye, Kai."
Kai turned to the other ninja. "Ghosts on the east side." Everyone else nodded and Jay and Cole ran after him to the elevator. They were right in front of the doors when they opened and someone stepped out. Kai almost barreled into Ronin.
Kai skidded to a stop and everyone behind him almost smashed into each other.
Kai stumbled over Jay, who caught him and helped him back up.
"What are you doing here?" Kai said, almost at a spit. He didn't know why he was agitated, probably he was annoyed that he had to break from the search and then he shows up.
Ronin shrugged. "I thought I would come to help you since I have nothing else to do."
"Well we don't need your help. Sensei's staying back to-" Kai began, but was interrupted by Wu.
"I am going with you," he said, walking up beside the ninja. "I do not want a repeat of what happened with Zane with any of you." Sensei looked at each and every one of his students. "If you need saving, I'll be there."
Kai looked at Ronin, annoyed. He could stay back and watch for any signs of him.
"Fine." He grumbled. "Stay here and watch for Zane's beacon. If anything comes up, call us right away."
Ronin brushed past Kai and made himself comfortable on an office chair (one of those swivel chairs that spin I forgot what they're called).
Kai cast an irritated look at Ronin before leading the others to where they needed to go.
...
No signal found. A message popped up on the screen.
Ronin leaned over and pressed the small green button again. He completely lost count at how many times he pressed it.
"This is hopeless." He said, taking a sip from a cup of water he got earlier. "Absolutely hopeless."
He took another sip. Then he heard a blipping noise, and looked up, and saw something that almost made him spit out his water.
There on the map, was a red dot. It was weak, but it was there.
Ronin looked at the coordinates, but they were all scrambled and the dot was surrounded by white instead of a satellite map. But that still didn't stop him from reaching for the telephone next to him. He dialed a number. The phone rang several times before someone answered.
"Hello?" Jay's voice came over the phone. "Who's this?"
"It's me, Ronin. Listen, I found Zane's beacon, but the coordinates are scrambled and it off the map. You might want to come over, quick."
"YOU DID?! We just finished and were on our way back. We'll be right there!"
"GUYS! RONIN FOUND ZANE'S BEACON!" Jay yelled at the top of his lungs to the others.
Kai and Cole needed no second telling. They sprinted back to the Bounty as fast as their legs would carry them. They ran to Borg Industries, hurtled through the front doors, took the elevator to the 100th floor, and almost trampled each other alive, with Sensei hot on their heels.
"Where is he?" Cole asked, panting, once they sorted themselves out in front of the screen.
"I don't know." Ronin said. "Like I told Jay, the coordinates are mixed up."
"Well, at least tell us where he is, we don't-" Kai began but looked at the screen a second time. "Wait...why is he off the charts?"
"I don't know." Ronin said for a second time.
"At least we know he's alive now," Cole said. "Now we know we can get him."
"But how are we supposed to do that?!" Jay exclaimed. "He's off the map!"
"Where there's a will, there's a way." Cole said simply.
"But he's-"
"Listen, Jay!," Cole cut Jay off. "I don't care where he is! If he's alive, and he's out there, I'll do anything and everything in my power to find him. I don't care if he's off the map. I'll go out looking for him. We need him back at all costs." Cole cast a serious look at everyone around him. "We've lost Zane once. And there's no way we're going to lose him again."
So, now Uncle Sam will be formally known as Samuel now, unless Hailey calls him, and Zane got his first look at football. That game was a total fail ? (Yes I'm a Packers fan). Also, thank you Imortalice for saying something that helped end this chapter smoothly, go check her out. Oh, and I repeat, NO ZANEXOC I. THIS STORY OR IN ANY OF MINE! And thanks to the people that tell me to keep going, it's really heartwarming to see that. Tips and advice welcome, they help make my stories better, and comment on anything that you could make this story more awesome. STAY AZOME! ~ENDERREX, Master of Darkness and Dragons