(scuttles into view) (places this down) (sprints)
Nya stepped back from the console to gaze up at the screen, a frown on her face as she folded her arms over her chest.
"It's the same as yesterday." She said dejectedly. "I can't find a single serpentine signal in all of Ninjago City."
"Well, that's good, right?" Jay piped up. "Sort of, anyway. It means they won't be attacking the people."
"Yes, but it means we have no idea where they are or what they are up to." Zane interjected. "Unless Lloyd knows." All eyes turned to the green ninja, who was sitting at the table with his cheek resting in his palm.
"I dunno." He said. "I've been trying to think."
"Well, until then, I'll expand my search." Nya turned back to the console, hitting a few keys with practiced precision. Lloyd heaved a sigh.
First he'd been responsible for releasing Pythor, then he was responsible for them losing the sacred flute. These things happened in the original timeline, except that in his version they were worse. He was pretty sure Kai never broke his arm the first time. He was starting to get a sinking feeling that someone in Cloud Kingdom was playing catch-up, which was bad for him if he intended to try and save his father. Was it even worth it for him to try to force destiny?
Whether or not it was possible, it weighed on his mind, which he suspected was one reason that he was struggling to remember where the timeline went next. Sometimes soon, the serpentine were going to go after the Fang Blades, but hadn't he already been kidnapped at that point? The thought made him shudder. Last time he'd been in Pythor's hands, the anacondrai had tried to kill him.
"Hey, Lloyd." Nya's voice caught his attention. "Why don't you come up here and talk us through what happened the first time? Maybe that'll help us figure out where the serpentine are now."
Lloyd shrugged helplessly. "I've been trying to remember."
"Well, maybe it'll jog your memory." Kai slugged his shoulder gently with his non-splinted arm. "Give it a shot." Morosely, Lloyd nodded, sliding out of his chair and heading up to study Nya's map.
"So, the Constrictai were imprisoned here, and the Venomarai here." Lloyd pointed to each one in turn. "You guys lost the sacred flute to Pythor when you were overwhelmed at the toxic bogs, and they almost finished you off before you were rescued by Samurai X."
"Which is Nya!" Jay cheered, causing the girl in question to flush and look away. Even though the reception to her secret being revealed had been overwhelmingly positive, she was still a bit shy about the whole thing.
"Right," Lloyd agreed. "And it had been the first time you'd seen her. After that, the serpentine gathered under Ninjago City, and you guys went to intervene… and got away scott free, thanks to Zane's suit being pink."
"What an odd turn of destiny." Zane murmured thoughtfully.
"You did successfully separate the serpentine in the original timeline, so- Ouroboros!" Lloyd cut himself off. "That's where they are, almost certainly!"
"Oro-what-now?" Cole echoed. "I've never heard of any place with that name."
"That's because it's sunken under the Sea of Sand." Lloyd had to stand on his tiptoes to point to the map. "It's where the Great Devourer is imprisoned."
"Oh." Kai snapped his fingers. "You mentioned that. What exactly is a 'great devour-er', anyway?"
"Ah. Well…" Lloyd shrugged. "It's a huge snake that grows bigger when it eats. It eats anything, and everything, and all it wants is to consume all of Ninjago." A moment of stunned silence.
"As I sensed." Zane nodded wisely.
"Also," Lloyd went on. "The Great Devourer is responsible for my dad being the Dark Lord that he is today. It bit him when he was young, and the venom corrupted him." Another bout of silence, and this time Wu was the one to break it.
"Lloyd is… correct." His voice was heavy with sorrow. "Garmadon was not born… evil. When we were young, he and I were very close, but he was bitten by the Great Devourer when it was still a mere serpent." Lloyd's gaze lowered to the floor. Though it was a tragic tale, if not for the Great Devourer's bite his parents never would have been married and he would not exist. Who would be the Green Ninja, then? Would there be one at all?
"Huh." Jay voiced. "Never would've come up with that on my own." Wu sighed.
"Garmadon and I were close friends when we were young, even after he was bitten. Over the years, he changed, and he eventually left me to train under another master. But that is a story for another time." He caught his nephew's gaze. "So they are at Ouroboros. Why?"
"Well… originally, Pythor has failed until this point to unite the serpentine." Lloyd said. "I can't say for sure what his progress is now. But his goal now is likely the same, to fight the four serpentine generals for their staves and their allegiance."
"Fight them?" Cole echoed. "I know he's strong, but surely they're stronger together."
"They would be, but he has the Sacred Flute." Lloyd said grimly. "And he's not above using it against his own kind."
"Ugh." Kai grimaced. "What a snake. No pun intended."
"Lloyd, do you think he has already united the serpentine?" Zane asked.
"I… I don't think so." Lloyd frowned. "I think it was a few days in between their meeting under Ninjago City and their fight in Ouroboros."
"Then we must go at once." Wu announced. "Jay, find your parents and set a course for the Sea of Sand." Jay saluted and scurried off to obey.
"What are we gonna do when we get there?" Cole sat up straight, folding his arms on the table. "We need a plan of attack."
"Right." Lloyd headed over to the table, sitting back down in his seat. "Okay, so they have an arena called a 'slither pit'..."
"Yep," Nya reported, lowering her binoculars. "That's a lot of snakes."
"We'd better back up. We're pretty visible from the air," Lloyd cautioned, and Nya nodded, heading back to the bridge to change their course. "So the tribes are gathered. We can't say for sure if Pythor's united them yet, though."
"Either way, our plan remains the same." Cole said, leaning against the railing beside him. "Get their staves. Without them, they can't make the map to get the fang blades, right?" Lloyd nodded, pleased that Cole had been paying attention to his info-dump.
"Without Kai, Nya's gonna be helping to back you up. The snakes really didn't seem to like her the first time- Pythor's the only one who wasn't intimidated. She'll serve as a diversion while the rest of you round up the staves."
"And Kai will be on the ship." Kai cut in morosely, laying flat on the ship's deck. "Letting his arm heal."
"Oh, you bet you are." Edna called from somewhere nearby.
"Alright!" Nya exclaimed as she hurried back out to join them. "The course is set. We'll be landing about a mile away, behind that dune over there. We should be completely out of sight of the city and any scouts."
"Good." Cole gave an approving nod. "We'll get ready to leave. Where do you, uh, keep your mech?"
"Somewhere." Nya shrugged vaguely. "I'll go and get it. We'll be landing in about half an hour." With that, she walked off.
True to her words, the ship set down on the sand within thirty minutes, and Nya appeared shortly after with the Samurai X mech. Jay, Cole, and Zane suited up, and they headed off towards Ouroboros. Ed and Edna coaxed Kai off the deck by promising him tea, leaving Lloyd and Wu to watch as the ninja grew further away.
"You're worried." Wu spoke up quietly. Lloyd glanced up from where his chin was resting on his arms.
"Yeah." No point in denying it. "I'm the one sending them out there, so I'm responsible if they get hurt."
"Would they not be doing the same thing if you were not here?" His uncle asked. "Did they not go to Ouroboros in the original timeline?"
"They did, but the situation was different." Lloyd huffed a sigh. "Kai was with them."
"But now they have knowledge of the future to assist them."
"All my knowledge from the future so far has just made stuff worse." Lloyd buried his face in his arms. "Kai's injured, the serpentine are closer than they should be to being united, Zane got his true potential before he learned of his past- and the Time Twins are loose somewhere!" He pinched his eyes shut, feeling a rush of helplessness go through him. "It's like destiny is thwarting me at every turn."
There was a moment of silence in which Wu didn't answer, before he finally laid an aged hand on his nephew's back.
"It seems to me that you are interpreting every change as being bad, only because it is a change." He said quietly. "But Zane reaching his true potential is not a bad thing. Perhaps the other things will not be, either."
"But- the serpentine uniting, the Time Twins, Kai being hurt- how can any of those things be good?"
"If your efforts for good bring about bad, can not their evil intentions bring about good?" Wu countered. "Your existence alone makes for a convincing argument. My brother may be evil, but his union with your mother brought you into the world." Lloyd couldn't fight back a half-smile. If only Sensei knew how true his words were.
"I do not know the future." Wu went on. "Not as you do. But I know that you are wise beyond your years, and you will do whatever you can to protect this world. And the ones you love." Lloyd lifted his head just enough to look after the ninja again, now just specks in the distance.
"What if it isn't enough?"
"It will be." Sensei gave him a small pat, and Lloyd exhaled softly. His uncle's words didn't assuage his worries, but they made him feel… seen, at least. "Now," Wu straightened up. "why don't we see if there's any tea left?"
"Sure." Lloyd picked himself up, turning and following his uncle back into the bridge. Neither of them were there to see it when the rope ladder shifted, pulled taut, followed by a small thump when an invisible foe boarded their ship.
