All characters belong to Michael Hegner, Tommy Andreasen, and Michael Svane Knap, the creators of the Lego Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu TV series.
Chapter 8
Chilled to the Bone
They sat there for hours. Cole watched as Jay mourned for his mentor. A deep sadness consumed him, sitting like a lump in his throat. The pain was old, stale. He knew it for what it was, but said nothing. Tears pricked his eyes, but, just like that day, he refused to let them fall.
"Get the doctor! Hurry! We can still save her!" Cole paled, white as death itself. The room became cold around him as he watched his father's frenzied movements. "Quickly, boy! Go, NOW!" Cole bolted, rushing out into icy rain and sleet. He tripped, throwing himself into the mud. He wept as the rain soaked his mud-stained frame, chilling him to the bone. An image of his mother, cold and white, came unbidden to his mind. Groaning, he pushed himself to stand. Heart thumping in his ears, he didn't stop as he ran to the doctor's house. Nothing else mattered as he pounded on the door, awakening the physician.
"What is it, boy? Don't you know what time it is?" Cole's lip trembled.
"It's my mama. Please! She's- she's-"
"All right, all right." His face softened at the boy's distress. "Where is she?"
Back in the warmth of his home, Cole watched as the doctor worked. Turning to the boy's father, the doctor spoke, hushed whispers filling the silence. His father turned, pain etching deep lines into his pale face. Cole's blood ran cold.
He shivered now at the memory. Cold once more, he curled in on himself, arms wrapped around his raised knees. He shivered, the cold rain of that night soaking him to the bone. He had run to the woods, tripping over a rock buried in the snow. He remembered hitting the ground, hard, the impact increasing his pain. Tears had flooded from his cheeks, his face red from crying. The one thing he couldn't remember... was how he'd gotten back home. His father had said it was a young boy, about his age, who had saved him. Cole wondered...
"What... What happened?" Cole jumped. Turning, he saw Zane's face, horror-stricken and... worried. His eyes scanned the room. Cole turned; they had noticed the inventor's disappearance not an hour after discovering Wu. "F-Father...?"
"I'm sorry," Cole said solemnly. "He was gone when we got here." Jay sniffled, breaking the silence.
"And now... Sensei's gone. What are we gonna do?" His broken whisper brought tears to Cole's eyes. He had no home before Wu had found him. Now, it looked like they were all doomed to a life on the streets.
"He's not dead." Cole and Jay turned.
"That's not funny, Zane." Jay stated.
"No; I mean he is unconscious." Cole and Jay looked at each other. Zane went over to their sensei. Pressing his fingers to the man's throat, he felt a faint pulse pumping blood through his veins. "He is alive, but barely. We have to get him to a hospital. Help me lift him!" Shock widened their eyes as they helped Zane lift their Sensei off the ground. A faint trickle of blood stained the floor, long-since dried. Cole shivered. He faced forward. As the tall birch bunker shrunk in the landscape behind them, a deep sense of dread made Cole's spine crawl.
This was just the beginning.
Author's Note:
Sorry for the scare, but I told you it'd get better :D I knew I couldn't kill Wu without killing the story. I also hope to keep cranking out chapters before I start school - I want to create as much content as possible. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Have a great day, and God bless!