Thursday

Lloyd had been in school, listening to the teacher prattle on, when the siren suddenly went off. Everyone in Lloyd's classroom immediately jumped up, all talking incoherently to each other in a panic.

The last attack had been two weeks ago, which was pretty strange. As Lloyd had heard, they usually attacked every week. The last time had been a half breed attack. The oni had attacked twice. As Lloyd had also heard, the half breeds attacked more often than the oni, but so far, there had only been one half breed attack since he had started school.

The students all made their way to the gym, where they always went during an attack, and Lloyd headed for the back of the school. Exiting the building, he almost started in surprise at the other ninja standing there, his friends. He had forgotten that he would be getting help this time.

"Ooh, this is so exciting!" Kai said, eyes gleaming eagerly.

Jay fiddled with his hands nervously, looking like he disagreed.

"Yeah, it's even a half breed attack," Cole said, eyes glinting dangerously.

Lloyd sucked in a breath, then said, "Okay, guys. Listen. You will all follow my lead, alright?"
Jay nodded, as did Zane.

Kai pouted. "Why do you get to lead?"

"Because I have more experience, and Master Wu said so," Lloyd replied. "Now, come on." Lloyd spun into spinjitzu, changing into his ninja gi, and then led the way to the center of the city, where Borg Tower was. Lloyd awed at the tall building and at the other skyscrapers, before he mentally shook himself, trying to focus on the mission.

Half breeds held torches, lighting things on fire, and waving katanas around. People from Borg Tower and the surrounding buildings ran every which way, trying to get away.

"Kai and Nya, you're with me. Cole, Zane, and Jay, get the people to safety," Lloyd ordered.

"What?! But I want to fight!" Cole argued.

Lloyd gazed at him sternly. "Take it up with Master Wu later." Then he ran off, Kai and Nya following him.

Cole debated disobeying him, but then decided against it. He didn't want to mess up his first mission.

Lloyd blasted two half breeds, and then turned to blast three more. Kai and Nya fought near him, using their katanas, since they couldn't use their powers yet.

Kai looked like he was having a great time, calling out insults and making sarcastic jokes directed at the half breeds, who looked enraged. Nya also seemed to be fine, enjoying the fight as well, but wasn't calling out taunts, unlike her brother.

"Kai, don't get them mad! You'll only make it worse!" Lloyd scolded him.

"What? It's fine! See? Making them mad makes them reckless!" Kai swung his katana at two of them.

"Ha! Just like you!" Nya laughed.

Kai didn't reply, probably scowling.

Soon, Cole, Jay, and Zane had led the civilians to safety. Then they too joined the fight.

Cole, once again, swept through the half breeds with a vengeance. Jay was timidly on the defensive, blocking blows, and Zane calmly avoided their attacks, swiping back quickly and efficiently.

Lloyd realized with relief that they seemed to be winning. The half breeds hadn't expected him to have help. Well, they were winning untilmore showed up. Lloyd felt a pit of dread form in his stomach. There were at least thirty half breeds, meaning five half breeds to every one of them. Loyd knew that he had experience fighting multiple enemies at once, but his friends didn't. This was only their first battle.

A few minutes later, and he had lost track of his friends. He blasted a half breed back, and then another, trying to spot them. Another few minutes later, and he had defeated his bunch. Looking around, he spotted Jay cornered to a wall of some building. Lloyd quickly hurried over to help him.

Someone watched them from the shadows, frowning. The green one knew spinjitzu, and the fighting technique they were using was… familiar. The figure shook his head, scowling. So he has students now… All probably oblivious to what he is. Just like I was.The figure turned to go, glancing behind to see the mysterious ninja beat the attackers.

"Let's pay him a visit, shall we?" he whispered quietly to himself, smirking.

Wu was at the monastery, waiting for his students to arrive. He sat on the steps—the ones leading into the monastery—drinking tea.

Suddenly, a soft breeze blew. He didn't think much of it at first, until suddenly, someone jumped down in front of him from the roof. Wu jumped, startled, and leaped to his feet—and of course was careful not to spill his precious tea.

The someone was clearly a teen, with black hair and… a green streak through it. Wu's eyes widened in surprise; in recognition.

"Morro?"

"Hello, Wu," Morro replied, his eyes glinting darkly.

"What are you doing here?"

"I see you have some new students." Morro glanced around the monastery nonchalantly, ignoring his question.

"Yes. What about them?"

Morro turned back to look at him. "I see you trained them to fight off the half breeds."

"Yes, and the oni."

Morro narrowed his eyes at him. "I want to fight them as well."

"Morro, I cannot teach you to fight someone out of revenge."

"I don't think you understand me. Teach me to be a ninja, or else I'll reveal what you are to your precious students."

Wu was about to respond, when Morro continued. "They'll turn on you, like I did. When they know what you are, they'll all reject you." Morro glanced away casually. "And, you'll probably get executed." He looked at Wu, smirking. "An added bonus."

Wu felt a twinge of fear. He remembered what he had told Lloyd, that Lloyd was afraid that if his friends knew what he was, that they would reject him. Wu had seen it in him because he himself held that same fear. When he had said that he would educate the ninja on half breeds, he had never planned for them to discover what he was, no matter what his brother thought.

"Well? I don't have all day. What's your answer?" Morro growled.

Wu was silent for a few minutes, thinking. Then, he shook his head. "No. I cannot train you to fight just because you want revenge on the half breeds." He would not run away from his fear. He would have to face it. He couldn't train Morro. That would lead to disaster.

Morro scowled. "What, you don't care if your students know what you are?"

Wu was silent for a few moments. "I do. But I cannot train you. It would lead to disaster."

Morro glared at him silently, thinking of another way to convince him. Suddenly, he remembered the one in green. He had followed the Green Ninja back to the school the last time, two weeks ago. Then, it hadn't clicked who had trained him. He had thought that the Green Ninja was just some vigilante, wanting to get revenge on the half breeds as well. But now that he thought about it… he had had some sort of green power. Elemental power. And Morro knew who had that power. He smiled evilly. Bingo, he thought.

"You wouldn't want something to ever happen to your nephew, would you?" Morro asked nonchalantly.

Wu's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"What if the whole city suddenly knew what he was?"

Wu felt a jolt of shock, and then fear, course through him. "You wouldn't."

"Yes, I would." Morro grinned at him, knowing that he had him now. "If you don't train me, then I'll tell the authorities what he is. They'll arrest him, and then execute him. You wouldn't want that, now, would you?"

Wu's mind raced, trying to find a way out of this, but was coming up empty. He knew that if Morro told his students what he was, then that would be his problem, and his alone. But if Morro told the city about Lloyd… then this was about more than just him. It was about Lloyd's safety. Wu knew that he couldn't put Lloyd's safety at risk.

Sighing reluctantly, he finally nodded.

Morro smirked. "Great! You will train me while the other ninja are at school. I don't want them knowing about me, or any of this. Got it?"

Wu nodded.

"I don't want anyone to know about this," Morro clarified, narrowing his eyes.

Wu nodded again, not liking this one bit.

When the last of the half breeds had been defeated the ninja all regrouped, congratulating each other on their victory.

"That was so cool!" Kai exclaimed ecstatically.

Jay laughed nervously. "I thought we were all goners when those others showed up…"

"Yeah, me too," Cole agreed, "but we beat them!"

"Yup. They'll think twice before they try messing with us again!" Nya said.

Lloyd grinned, happy that they had won the battle and that none of them had been hurt—and because his friends cheerfulness was infectious.

"I wonder why the half breeds attack in the first place?" Zane queried.

Kai shrugged. "Who knows?"

"Maybe because they're all evil?" Cole said, making it sound more like a statement.

"No. They're mad at the purebreds for casting them out," Lloyd told them.

They all looked at him in confusion.

"What's a 'purebred'?" Jay asked.

"Um… someone who isn't a half breed," Lloyd replied, surprised that they didn't know this.

They all blinked in confusion.

"So that's what they call us?" Kai asked.

Lloyd nodded. "Uh, yeah?"

"Weird. I didn't know that." Kai shrugged, and the matter was dropped.

They all started for school, until they realized that school by this time was now over, and so it would be pointless to go back. They instead turned in the direction of the monastery, so that they could train. When they arrived, Master Wu stood in the courtyard, with a teacup in hand. His gaze had been distant, staring off to the side. He turned his head when they walked in.

"Hey, Master Wu! We fought the half breeds off!" Kai told him excitedly, practically bouncing up and down.

Wu smiled proudly. "Good."

"What are we doing today?" Cole asked.

"Cole, you will go back to that place I showed you yesterday. Keep practicing to move the rocks. Kai, you will meditate again."

"What?" Kai groaned. "Again? Why?"

"You still need to learn patience," Wu replied. "Now, who would like to learn how to use their elemental power next?"

"Me!" Nya exclaimed, raising her hand excitedly.

Wu nodded. "Alright. You will come with me. Lloyd, Zane, and Jay, you will practice the training course."

They all nodded, and Cole started down the mountain, Kai went inside glumly, and Lloyd popped up the training course and the three of them—him, Jay, and Zane—started training on it. Nya waited patiently for Master Wu, who stood by the door of the monastery, seeming lost in his thoughts again.

"Um, you do know that your teacup is empty, right?" she asked. It had been empty since they had arrived, and she was starting to wonder if he had even noticed.

Wu glanced at her, then down at his teacup. "Oh, yes. Right. I'll be right back."

Nya frowned as she watched him enter the monastery. He obviously was distracted by something, but she wasn't sure what. About ten minutes later, he came back out, teapot and teacup in hand.

"Follow me," he told her, and then headed down the monastery's steps.

Nya followed him obediently, wondering where they were going.

They soon arrived at a small creek that flowed over rocks and stones, heading down the mountainside.

"Look," Wu said, pointing to a large boulder that stood halfway in the creek. A small trickle of water flowed down the middle of the stone, dripping off of it and into the rest of the creek like a waterfall almost. "I want you to try and reverse the flow."

She looked at him in confusion. "Reverse the flow? How?"

"You'll figure it out," Wu told her unhelpfully, sitting down on a dry boulder and sipping his tea.

Nya turned back to the rock, still confused. After about twenty tries, she glanced at Wu. He was pouring some more tea into his teacup.

"You knew this would take forever, didn't you?" she asked him, slightly annoyed.

He nodded, sipping his tea. "Learning to use one's elemental power usually takes a while."

Nya groaned, trying again. Like her brother, she was not the most patient person. Sure, she was more patient than Kai by a lot, but that was because she was more mature than him.

After Nya's turn, Wu decided that Jay was next.

Jay gulped, and then nervously followed Wu inside the monastery.

"Uh, so… what are we gonna do?" Jay asked, fiddling with his hands.

Wu led him into the kitchen, opening a drawer, and then took out a light bulb. He handed it to Jay, who took it in confusion.

"Um, what do I do with this?" Jay asked.

"You have the elemental power of lightning," Wu told him. "Turn it on."

Jay looked down at the light bulb. He felt a flicker of doubt, wondering if he truly possessed the power of lightning. "A-are you sure I have this 'elemental power'?"
Wu nodded, smiling encouragingly. "Yes. Your mother had it before you."

Jay looked up at him in surprise. "You knew my mother?" Jay's biological mother had been murdered by half breeds when he had been a baby, along with his father. Jay didn't know anything about either of them.

Wu nodded.

"What was she like?" Jay asked curiously. He glanced down, frowning. "I don't remember her… She was murdered when I was a baby. I don't even know her name…"

"Her name was Libber. She was a lot like you."

Jay glanced up again. "So… she had elemental power, too?"

"Yes, the power you now possess."

Jay bit his lip, still uncertain about this whole thing. To him, to be able to control lightning… it was scary. All of that power coming from his hands…

"Try to light up the light bulb," Wu instructed him.

Jay nodded, looking down at it. He clenched it in both hands, trying to concentrate.

Nothing happened.

"Um… I think I'm doing something wrong. Nothing's happening…"

"Be patient. No one else has been able to make any progress, either. It takes time," Wu replied.

Jay nodded again. He kept on trying for what seemed like hours, but was probably only fifteen minutes. He felt his distress grow. He suddenly wondered if when the lightning shot out of his hands, if it would burn him, as lightning tended to do.

Jay glanced up at Wu, who was still calmly watching him. "Will it hurt?"

Wu gave him a confused look. "Will what hurt?"

"Well, when the lightning comes out of my hands. Lightning burns."

"Of course not! Not unless you shoot the power at yourself, that is."

Jay's eyes widened. "What if I accidentally zap myself?"

"You won't. If anything is getting zapped, it will be the light bulb."

Jay's eyes widened further. "What if the light bulb explodes?!"
Wu blinked, hesitating. "Well… in all honesty, the light bulb probably will explode."

Jay stared at him in silence for a few moments. "Shouldn't I be wearing safety goggles, then?"

"Technically, yes. But, I don't have any… Besides, your mother trained the exact same way, blowing up countless light bulbs. She never got seriously injured."

"Seriously injured?! Does that mean she did get injured?!" Jay squeaked in alarm.

Wu was silent again for a few moments. "Well… it was only a few cuts, and it rarely happened. She was fine, as you will be."

Jay gave him a terrified look, and then laughed nervously. "Um, you know, I think I'm gonna… uh… I think it's time to go home. Um… Bye!" Jay sprinted away.

Wu watched him go, still confused, and not knowing what was wrong with a few cuts.

When the other ninja had all gone home, Wu and Lloyd started for the Outcast.

"So, how did Nya and Jay's training go?" Lloyd asked, looking curiously at his uncle.

"Nya didn't make any progress yet, which isn't surprising, as it takes a while to learn. Jay… I'm not really sure. He seemed reluctant to even try."

"Well, Jayiskind of timid. I'm surprised he even wanted to be a ninja."

"Hmm. Perhaps I'll pay him a visit."

Lloyd looked at him in surprise. "A visit? But I thought you couldn't go in the city? And tonight?"

"Jay doesn't live in the city. He lives in the Sea of Sand. And yes, early tonight. Probably after we get home."

"The Sea of Sand?" Lloyd asked in disbelief. "But, that place is almost as bad as the Outcast!"

"I know… It is quite odd."

"But why tonight?"

"Because I decided to go tonight."

Lloyd shook his head in confusion.

When they arrived home, Wu immediately set off for the Sea of Sand. He arrived in about one hour.

Wu climbed over the wall that was around the junkyard, since the gates were closed. He spotted Jay by one of the junk piles, rummaging through it.

Wu approached him, wondering what he was doing. "Hello, Jay."

Jay jumped, startled, and whipped around. "Master Wu! What are you doing here?"

"I came to talk to you," Wu replied.

Jay gave him a confused look. "About what?"

"About your elemental power. I—"

"Do you think I don't actually have it?! Or, or, it skipped a generation?! Or I'm not actually the master of lightning, and you got me confused with someone else?! Or—"

"Jay!" Wu snapped, trying to get him to stop panicking.

Jay shut his mouth obediently, still looking distressed.

"It's not any of that."

Jay sighed in relief, but then looked worried all over again. "Am I not going to be a ninja anymore?!"
"Of course not. I came to talk to you about what happened earlier."

"Oh…uh… Did I fail?"

"I was wondering if you would like to practice again, here."

"Oh! Uh, sure, I guess…" Jay glanced back at the junk pile. "But uh… Let me find this first." Jay started rifling through the pile again, mumbling to himself.

"Find what?" Wu asked.

"Uh… Ah ha! This!" Jay turned around triumphantly, holding a pair of safety goggles. "I knew I saw this in here a few weeks ago!"

"I see…"

"This will make it so that I don't go blind if a shard hits me in the eye from the light bulb! I just have to wash them first…" Jay glanced towards the trailer. "Uh, I'll be right back." He rushed off into the trailer, and then came back out a few minutes later, goggles still in hand, and a light bulb. When Jay reached Wu, he put the goggles on. "Okay…" Jay held the light bulb with both hands, concentrating on it.

An hour later, Wu headed back for the Outcast. When he got home, Misako and Lloyd were already asleep, as it was midnight. Garmadon stood outside.

"How's their training coming along?" Garmadon asked.

"They have yet to actually figure out how to generate their powers, but their ninja training in general is coming along quite nicely. They had their first battle today, against some half breeds. They did well," Wu said.

Garmadon nodded, looking a little worried. "Alright. Just be careful. I don't want any of them to turn on you one day…" His brother turned, heading inside.

Wu frowned, knowing that his students were not the ones to worry about. It was Morro. And, Wu remembered, he couldn't tell anyone about what had happened. Sighing quietly, he headed inside as well.