Cole was not officially the leader of the Ninja. Most people, including his own team, simply assigned him that position, without anyone having ever consulted him over the matter. It sort of naturally fell into his hands – which was why, when he was young and dumb, he had assumed he would be the Green Ninja. The Green Ninja was supposed to lead the team, so it made sense to him that it would be him, the team's "naturally selected" leader.

Only that Cole was not the Green Ninja. And yet, his role remained as (unofficial) team leader. It was a draining, thankless job, one that Cole wasn't even supposed to have… but sometimes, he understood why the role had fallen to him. Now was one of such times.

Everyone, including even Morro, had become despondent over the loss of Zane. From a team of six to a team of four within the space of one day; it was quite upsetting. That wasn't even including Pixal, the team's first loss. Apart from reclaiming the lamp, they seemed to be on a losing streak. And they weren't even sure if the lamp was of use.

It was leading them to an island, sure, but the information of said island had come from Lloyd Garmadon, hardly a reliable source of information. The team generally did not consider the teenager their enemy, but the boy sure considered them his. And here they were, on a wish and prayer, trusting the word of someone that hated them and had no reason to help them, but plenty of motives to want to stop them.

Naturally, the whole team was demoralized, but only Cole had the wherewithal to be concerned over the team's lack of morale. Which meant that it was up to him to push them forward. Ninja never quit.

At the same time, Cole harbored other concerns. Cole didn't think of himself as cold-hearted, but apparently, he was emotionally detached enough to analyze his team members' actions, instead of just mourning the losses.

He had two mysteries on his hands. One was why Zane had risked a confrontation with the djinn (which was the conclusion Cole had reached when wondering how Zane had disappeared). The other concern was Jay's slightly off behavior. The blue ninja put up a good front, but he had also never been a great liar.

He was jumpier. On edge. He was also frowning more, like he was acutely aware of danger. He had stopped talking so much since Zane's disappearance, which was also odd. Jay didn't deal with things by shutting up. He became a fountain of words, sometimes babbling too fast for anyone to understand.

When Cole had not been busy steering the ship or encouraging the team, he had been mulling over the two conundrums. By the time they had begun approaching Tiger Widow Island, he had concluded that the questions regarding Jay and Zane were connected, and that Jay must have met with the djinn before. And had then told no one.

That made Cole angry. He was hoping that this was not the case, that Jay would never be so stupid as to not tell anyone, but the more time passed, the more convinced he became of his theory. Nya and Morro were too concerned with losing team members, be they friends or family, to piece together anything beyond the things that needed immediate attention.

It was up to Cole to confront Jay. But he didn't know how. He vainly hoped Jay would confess by himself. But Jay did not.

They were preparing to drop into Tiger Widow Island from the Bounty's deck. Nya emerged from the kitchens below and handed the two ghosts a flask each.

"We're ghosts," Morro pointed out with mild irritation.

"I know," Nya answered, cocking her head to the side, confused.

"So why…?" Cole asked.

"They're empty?" she asked. "It's for getting the venom from the tiger widow spiders. I reckon the more poison we have, the better our chances of actually catching the djinn."

"Ah," Morro said quietly, now feeling a little foolish. Cole cleared his throat.

"That's a great idea, Nya… So, aside from that, we have everything?" he asked. Nya nodded.

"We're just waiting for Jay," she explained. "And there he is now." She sounded pleased to see him. This… was actually not good.

On one hand, anything to stop the relationship spiral of Jay and Nya. On the other hand, Jay was potentially hiding information that was vital to the team and if he was, it would undo any progress that had been made in the last few days.

Which could lead to another blow-out.

"Before we go in," Cole spoke up, deciding it best to deal with it now, rather than later. "Does anyone have anything to say. That might be useful to the team." Cole gave Jay a pointed look and Jay paled by several degrees.

"Don't get bitten by the giant spiders?" Morro flatly asked.

"Uh… I don't have anything," Jay added. Cole couldn't stop himself from scowling. Jay was definitely hiding something. Something very important.

"It's funny," Cole started, "that you knew Zane had been taken. You ran below deck pretty quickly, didn't you? You're not usually that aware of anything around you."

"Maybe I'm not as self-absorbed as everyone accuses me of," Jay bitterly retorted, becoming as stubborn as Cole. "Is this what this is about? I show some awareness of everyone around me and now you're annoyed you didn't realize you'd sent Zane to get taken by N- the djinn?" he demanded.

"Guys, like with Kai, this is no one's fault," Nya argued, getting between the two. Her mind flashed back to when she was still dating Jay, the nostalgia of her current position hitting her full force. Momentarily, she remembered the escalating arguments between Jay and Cole, Jay knowing about her stupid crush, Cole oblivious and unable to understand why his best friend was suddenly hostile towards him…

She shook her head.

"We shouldn't have sent Zane below deck, but what other option did we have?" Nya asked. "He was attracting lightning! Uncontrollably! It was chaotic and decisions had to be made quickly. Besides, Zane… He should have known better than to make wishes, especially after we lost Kai."

"Yeah. Almost makes you wonder if something happened that made Zane think he could risk it," Cole answered cryptically, glowering at Jay. "Maybe someone did something that made Zane think he could beat the djinn."

Jay's mouth fell open and did not shut. It was dawning on the blue ninja that he had once again made a mistake. Last time, Kai had paid the price. This time, it was Zane. Everyone was paying for his mistakes.

"Cole…" Jay breathed out, almost pleadingly. He was hoping it wasn't true, that Zane had not disappeared as a result of his actions. Cole realized then that Jay had not known what the consequences of his secret-keeping would be. It did not soften the master of earth's anger. Kai was by no means Jay's fault. But Zane? Absolutely.

Sure, Zane should have told them what he had deduced. But Jay should have been honest from the start. FSM, they were supposed to be best friends and not once did Jay consider confiding in him?! Not that… that was relevant.

"What's going on?" Morro asked, leaning forward curiously. He was grinning, he could smell the oncoming discord. Nya had backed off, now looking at Jay in confusion.

"What is Cole talking about, Jay?" she asked. Jay's eyes darted between his team members, but no sound came out.

"Are you going to tell them?" Cole challenged. Jay's eyes focused on him, face stricken in horror, but he continued to say nothing. He then broke off eye contact, head hanging in shame. Cole slammed his fist down hard against the ship's side. "For FSM's sake, Jay. Just own up to it!" Silence. Jay refused to speak. Cole glared at him. Then he turned away, breathed out deeply and pressed both hands against the ship's side. After a few tense moments of silence, he muttered "Maybe - Jay - Zane would be here, if you had told us that you've already met the djinn."

Morro's stupid grin dropped at that. Nya's eyes widened, and her forlorn expression faded into anger and frustration. She turned on Jay.

"Is this true?" she demanded. Jay still had not looked up from the deck.

"I don't know the whole story," Cole continued. "But it's a bit coincidental that Jay finds out he's adopted just as we're dealing with a wish-granting enemy. The only thing I can't figure out is why Jay is still here, while everyone else isn't. Zane probably knows, it's why he risked making his wishes. And that's why Zane isn't here. Maybe Zane was too desperate. Maybe too confident. I don't know. But I'm right. Aren't I, Jay?"

All three ninjas looked at Jay expectantly. Jay, who had suddenly become absolutely obsessed with the color of his shoes. Jay, who had yet to make eye-contact with any of them.

Jay breathed out deeply.

"His name is Nadakhan," Jay spoke softly. "He takes people on their third wish."

And suddenly, it was like his team was repelled by him. Cole was back to leaning against the ship's side, looking at the jungle below. Morro and Nya both took a step away. Morro looked at the deck, fists clenching and unclenching as he resisted the urge to throw a punch, while Nya just looked at Jay with disappointment.

"Why didn't you tell us?" she asked. Jay finally looked up. He looked uncertain.

"I… I'm sorry. I just… I couldn't," he said, and he looked so sincere and torn up about it. Cole was looking at the two of them over his shoulder and finally, the last piece of the puzzle clicked.

"It was about Nya, wasn't it?" There was no question in Cole's voice. "You wished away immaturity. All because you saw a future where you two end up together."

Jay's eyes darted to him, as if to silence him, but Jay did not deny it. His cheeks flushed in embarrassment and shame.

"What?" Nya asked, frowning. "Jay…?" she then asked, turning to him again. Jay looked like he didn't want to say anything, but then it bubbled out of him anyway.

"When Morro was possessing Kai, we saw our futures in the ice labyrinth. And when I looked into mine, we were together! But- but you've made it very clear that you don't see me like that anymore! So I tried to forget, but I couldn't- forget what I saw, the image was just always there- and- I thought- maybe these wishes were the very thing that would bring us together! I- I had to try…"

Nya's eyes widened, like she was seeing him for the first time. Like she was seeing all his flaws and insecurities, like she had never seen them before. Her head slowly shook as she stepped away. Then she took another step away. Finally, she turned her back on him completely, walking over to the other side of the ship. To get away from him.

Cole sighed deeply. Maybe he should have challenged Jay after they had got the tiger widow venom. Not right before the mission. But it had been bothering him and the information was important: Nadakhan the djinn took people on their third wish…

It did seem that making mistakes was currently the team's forte. He should have challenged Jay in private…

"One hour to cool off," Cole announced. "Then I want everyone's head back in the game. Jay, you and I are gonna have a little chat. Then, when we go down to the island, I want all of you to put whatever bothers you aside. We've got friends to save, and we are not going to let Nadakhan stop us."

Deep down, Cole sensed however, that it was already too late. If Nadakhan's goal was to destabilize the team from the inside out, he had certainly succeeded. He didn't see how he was going to get his team back to working as a unit. Morro had never liked Jay much to begin with. Nya and Jay's relationship seemed to be in a worse place than when they had just broken up. And Cole's trust in Jay was damaged, perhaps broken.

And that, that thought was pushing Cole towards his own breaking point. But Cole's resolve meant that no one would know. He had to stay strong for his team. Throwing an arm around Jay's shoulders, he led them below decks, so Jay could tell him what exactly went down between him and Nadakhan.

Jay did not put up a fight. He felt too defeated for that.

Once the hour was over, Cole had revised his plan. With much deliberation, he had concluded it was wisest for the two ghosts to collect the venom, since it couldn't kill them. Nya had argued that Jay should be sent instead, but Cole had shot that possibility down… Although he would be lying if he said he hadn't been tempted.

Still, that didn't mean Jay was completely off the hook. It had been decided that Jay would miss out on all the action. Seeing as the master of lightning currently hated the idea of being left alone, Cole had cruelly assigned him to guarding the Bounty while all three of them were away.

"But we shouldn't be alone!" Jay argued.

"Well, unfortunately, Zane's not here anymore, so we don't have the luxury of pairing off. But don't worry. You've been alone with Nadakhan before, so you'll be fine," Cole coldly informed him.

"You don't all need to collect the poison! Can't someone stay behind?"

Nya was already abseiling downwards into the jungle, with Morro not too far behind. Cole huffed.

"Three is better than two, is better than one. We need as much venom as we can collect, but we also really need someone to stay on the Bounty and keep it safe."

Jay whimpered, his eyes becoming big and glossy.

"The kicked puppy trick stopped working when you turned eighteen," Cole informed him. Then, feeling his anger melt because darn it, it did still work, he added reassuringly "Nothing will happen to you. Nadakhan doesn't know where we are and doesn't have the map to Tiger Widow Island. We'll be back before you know it. And then…" He leaned in, grinning at his friend. "We're gonna make Nadakhan regret ever messing with us."

Jay smiled weakly.

"Ninja never quit."

"You've got that right. Sit tight, buddy," Cole replied. He then jumped over the side, sliding down the rope with an elegance and speed he wouldn't have had, had he still been human. Jay watched him disappear into the jungle. He waited a few moments, before he activated his communicator.

"So, guys. How's it going?"

"Shut up, Jay. Only contact us if something's up. Otherwise, KEEP THE LINES FREE," Morro snapped back. There was some faint mumbling (probably Morro being told off), and then the communication line cut off. Jay pouted, leaning against the side of the ship. The only people that used this line were the ninja. So he could clog it up as much as he liked, he wouldn't stop any important information from getting through. He was the important information.

But he got the message and wasn't going to ask how things were going every ten seconds.

Sighing, he rested his head in his hands and looked at the blue horizon in the far distance. Cole was right. This would be over soon. Nadakhan would be a distant memory, and everything would go back to normal.

Jay remembered Nya's face. Her expression. Her disgust.

Well, almost back to normal anyway.

"He is right," Nya interrupted, as they continued their march. "Jay would clog up the lines."

"You can't blame him for being nervous," Cole objected.

"More nervous than us, facing down the tiger widow spider?" she retorted.

"We haven't met Nadakhan. All we know is that he's taken our friends and family from us," Cole argued. "I think that's a bit scarier than some dumb beast. You can't tell me you'd rather be alone on the Bounty."

"In this heat, I wouldn't be complaining," Nya remarked. Cole looked back to glare at her. Nya didn't understand why he was suddenly annoyed, then she remembered: Ghosts didn't feel heat or cold. They felt nothing. He thought she was mocking him. "It's really humid down here, I can't help it," she mumbled sheepishly.

Cole looked away, awkwardly, realizing she hadn't meant to antagonize him.

"We're here," Morro announced. He pointed out towards a cave at the bottom of a ravine. "The nest." Without any caution, he then jumped down and began inspecting the cave opening.

Cole jumped down as well, also not hesitating. The two approached the mouth of the cave, but then looked back when they didn't hear a third pair of feet following after them. Nya was still standing at the top of the dried riverbank. She looked nervous.

"What is it?" Cole asked.

"Well, now that we're actually here…" She shuddered. "Just give me a moment." The two ghosts looked at each other than back at her. After she let out another full body shudder, she slid down the slope and joined them.

"Ah. Yeah, being a ghost does make some things easier," Cole admitted. Nya just pursed her lips.

"Let's just get this over with."

They moved further into the cave, their footsteps silent. It was dark and gloomy, but Morro and Cole acted as almost bioluminescent light sources. Too weak to shine any light, but bright enough to be visible. After some careful navigation through mazes of stalagmites and stalactites, they found a large spider sitting in the heart of its web, surrounded by cocoons of its victims. Some, to the Ninja's great concern, looked vaguely human.

"It's so big," Nya whispered.

"I've seen worse," Morro muttered, unimpressed. They looked at him surprised. "Cursed Realm. You see things," he cryptically explained and the two didn't really feel much better about that. They looked back at the spider.

It was gone.

"Uh…" Nya stuttered out.

"Where is it…" Cole began saying. He fell silent, when he saw a long strand of venom appear right in front of his eyes. He looked up and sure enough, there was the spider. It screeched and snapped at his head. Nya and Morro screamed as they ducked out of the way. Cole had enough wits about him to turn intangible before the damage could be done. The other two were scrambling away. Cole still stood frozen, then. He collapsed to the ground.

"Spider insides, spider insides!" he shrieked, wishing he'd had the mind to close his stupid eyes too. He had witnessed the functioning internal organs of the giant spider, its tongue, its heart, its blood...

Nya slammed water into the spider, and it hissed angrily.

"Cole! Trap it between rock slabs!" Morro yelled across the cavern. When Cole was still mumbling about the inside space of spiders, the master of wind irritably blew the spider against the wall, forcing it in place with the pressure of air itself.

"Careful! You might kill it!" Nya warned, as she joined him.

"Then snap Cole out of it!" Morro barked back. Without time to spare an exasperated look at Morro, Nya slid her way through cobwebs to Cole's side.

"Cole, we need you to trap the spider! Snap out of it!" She snapped her fingers in front of his face. He stopped his mutterings and his eyes focused on her. He grimaced. He suddenly turned away and gagged loudly. Nothing came out, on account of being a ghost, but it still helped him feel a bit better about

Spider insides…

No. Not gonna think about it. Stop.

Nya helped him to his feet and Cole held out his hands, commanding rock to form around the spider's legs. The rock chained the spider to the wall, pinning it in place. Morro let the winds dissipate and the large spider hung against the wall with its vulnerable sides humiliatingly exposed. With its legs fanned out like that, it wouldn't look amiss in a display case.

"I thought being a ghost made some things easier?" Nya asked Cole, as they walked over to Morro.

"You would freak out too if you got a first-person perspective of what it's like to be eaten by a giant spider," Cole argued with a sulky, embarrassed tone. He shuddered. He hoped maybe one day he could forget what he'd seen. Spider insides…

He raised some rocks to form a stair up to the spider's fangs.

"This will make collecting poison easy as pie," Cole claimed, smiling. "After you," he said to Nya, mockingly bowing. Nya simply rolled her eyes and calmly began collecting venom from the angry and very flustered spider.

"You know, it's probably female," Morro commented.

"How come?" Cole asked.

"When it comes to spiders, females are way bigger than males."

"If that's the case, I sure hope it's a female," Cole agreed.

"Pass the next one up!" Nya ordered, passing down a flask filled with the deadly poison. Cole gave her his.

"You gotta agree, Nya," Cole said up to her. "This is a lot easier than sending Jay alone, right?"

"Sure, sure," Nya replied dismissively. She rolled her shoulders back. "I'm… yeah. This is better. He would have probably gotten himself killed." She handed Cole his flask back. Morro handed his.

"From my experience, you're all pretty tough," Morro softly argued. "He woulda been fine."

"Aw, you warming up to us?" Cole asked, teasingly. Morro didn't respond to the teasing, merely shrugging. Once the last flask was filled, the three returned to the cave's entrance. As they were leaving though, Nya hesitated and looked back, biting her lower lip.

"What?" Morro demanded.

"It's a bit cruel to just leave her there, right?" Nya asked. Morro cursed under his breath.

"She called it a she!" he bemoaned. Cole looked back into the darkness that hid the imprisoned spider.

"You're right though. Let's free it. I think she's too exhausted to come after us anyway," Cole agreed, raising up his hand. They felt the earth shake as rock retracted, liberating the large spider. Nya smiled, pleased, then headed toward the Bounty again. Morro glared at Cole.

"What?" Cole asked.

"I bet the next human that ends up its meal will be grateful you set it free again," he bitterly pointed out.

"Fine. Then go back and kill it. But it's a rare species, possibly at risk of extinction," Cole argued. "Don't be a monster," he then added, as he passed by Morro. Morro looked back and forth, between the Bounty and the cave. He then once again cursed and ran after his teammates.

Once they reached the ship's ropes, they began climbing up, with Nya the last one to begin the climb (she had needed a break to quickly drink some water).

Cole was pleased. So far, this had been nice and easy. The next step would be to locate Nadakhan, use the poison on him and then… That next step would have to be planned too. In advance. It should involve getting Kai, Zane and Pixal back, somehow.

Cole hauled himself up to the Bounty's side. He didn't haul himself over. He froze in place.

Locating Nadakhan was not going to be an issue. Cole couldn't stop Morro from getting a look over the side too, but Nya was climbing up on the rope between them. He reached down to her with one hand, pushing her shoulder back. She stopped, confused.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the Ninja. Is this not a pleasant surprise," Nadakhan greeted. "The master of earth and the master of air, hm? Where is the master of water?"

Nya tensed. She was hanging too low to be seen from the side. Morro and Cole kept their eyes locked on Nadakhan, pretending Nya wasn't sandwiched between them.

"None of your business," Cole replied. The master of earth observed the scene before him. While certainly not all the sky pirates were present, it was still enough to outnumber them. They had made themselves very comfortable on the Bounty too, lounging around the place like they already owned it, eating their food, playing their games…

Cole's eyes narrowed when he spotted Jay. The master of lightning had an injured shoulder, it was still bleeding out, if the steadily growing red stain was any indicator. He was on his knees, hands behind his back, breath short and ragged.

Nadakhan was holding Kai's sword to Jay's neck. Jay seemed mostly focused on breathing but his eyes darted between Nadakhan and his teammates. It wasn't hard to tell that Jay was angry. Not at them, but at his own position. A hostage. An injured hostage. The sky pirates had got the jump on him.

"I do not believe we have met yet," Nadakhan spoke. "I am Nadakhan. And you are the ninja that destroyed Djinjago," he continued.

"What are you talking about?" Morro demanded.

"When you destroyed the Cursed Realm, you also destroyed its sister realm. I am here to avenge my people," Nadakhan coldly explained. That made the ninja's blood run cold. Morro opened and shut his mouth, trying to say something, anything, but nothing came out.

"It's… Not true. We didn't…" Cole stuttered. Drowning the cursed realm had been a high price to pay. One they thought was worth it. They hadn't known another realm would be killed too. Wu hadn't… warned them…

"I don't want to hear your excuses," Nadakhan angrily interrupted. "Now, as you see, your friend is in a precarious position, yes? I wouldn't try anything," he lowly threatened, pressing the blade into Jay's neck. A small trickle of blood escaped. "Where is the master of water?" Nadakhan demanded. "The one that destroyed my people?"

Cole's grip on Nya slipped and Nya pushed herself into view, expression fierce and defiant.

"I'm here," she said. Most of the sky pirates jeered at her, but Nadakhan and some of his crewmates looked horrified when she appeared. As if they were seeing a ghost. Then something else appeared in Nadakhan's eyes. Something neither Cole nor Morro liked. Nya didn't notice. Jay couldn't see.

"Well…" Nadakhan purred. "Isn't this a surprise." Both Nya and Jay did not like what they heard.

"Delara?" one of the sky pirates weakly asked, clearly taken aback.

"Nya," Jay quietly corrected. Nadakhan ignored him, throwing the injured ninja like a ragdoll to Dogshank. He flew up to Nya.

"You look… just like her," he informed her. Nya didn't back down, staring fiercely back at Nadakhan. "This changes things," he continued, grinning.

"What does it change?" she challenged. He just let out a low chuckled and backed away a little. "I was just going to force you to be our prisoners, but Delara gives me hope," Nadakhan admitted.

Morro and Cole shot each other looks. They didn't like the sound of that. And if they did not want to know what that meant, they couldn't risk hanging around for much longer. Cole looked down to the ground far below, then back at Morro. Morro gave a very slight nod. A plan of action, they silently agreed.

Cole grabbed Nya's hand, pressing it gently. She got the message.

"Hand over the poison," one of the sky pirates (the first mate?) demanded. "Or your quartet becomes a trio," he threatened, head tilting to Jay. Dogshank tightened her grip on Jay, to make clear how easily she could crush him between her hands. Morro took out his flask and flung it across the deck. Nadakhan grinned and motioned for one of his crew to pick it up. The monkey did, pouring it out over the side.

"Now…" Nadakhan began speaking. He didn't get to say much else. The three ninjas looked at Jay one last time. He didn't move, no nod, no anything. But his eyes were clear. They were accepting. They were sad. He understood what they were going to do and why. They wished they could have said something. Maybe their eyes told Jay everything he needed to know.

No one had time to stop the three ninjas from letting go of the ship's side and falling back to the ground below. The sky pirates all shrieked in a wild mix of surprise, horror, confusion and delight. They raced to the side of the ship. Jay fell to the deck, forgotten.

The djinn looked at the falling trio of ninja.

The three of them ignored everything around them. They had practiced this maneuver for short distances, and it had always worked. This was the first time they were trying it for a long-distance fall. Morro and Cole had discovered that if they combined their ghostly essence, they could temporarily give a non-ghostly creature ghost-like qualities, such as invisibility or intangibility. They could let a third party survive a fall uninjured.

But the move required both of them, or there was a very real risk of fading away. Cole and Morro both held one of Nya's hands. They braced themselves, as the ground quickly rushed towards them. Cole could feel Nya's pulse through her hand. Her heart was beating fast, but her face was steeled and prepared.

As they reached the first layer of trees, Cole and Morro turned intangible, Nya along with them. They fell through the ground, then stopped, sort of floating in the earth. They emerged to the surface again, feet back on solid ground and both ghosts let her hands go, exhausted. Nya breathed in deep gasps of breath. Humans couldn't breathe while intangible.

Cole knew his role was not over yet though. Slamming his fists against the ground, they became engulfed in rock, protected and hidden from the sky pirates. Now they waited.

They didn't wait long. A loud laughter tore across the sky.

"Very clever, little ninja! But I'll be back for the rest of you. I have your ship!" Nadakhan roared. "And since you can't get off the island, I'll know exactly where to find you! So much for the greatest heroes Ninjago has ever known!"

The three remained silent in Cole's cave. They listened to the Bounty leave, Jay aboard. They waited a while longer after that. They could hear nightfall and they continued to wait.

They had to. Cole had stopped moving.

He was lying on the ground. It wasn't quite sleeping – ghosts could not sleep – but it was a form of resting. It was all that was stopping him from fading away. The shared intangibility, followed by the use of his powers had left him abnormally drained.

Neither Nya nor Morro dared observe it, but Cole had become more translucent.

He would mostly recover, but...

A part of him had faded away for good.