Thursday

The next day, as Lloyd walked to school, he ate some of the candy Jay had given him. It tasted as good as it had yesterday, and he made sure to savor it for as long as possible. He hadn't told Uncle Wu about the candy, afraid that he might take it from him and ban him from eating it, saying something about it being poisoned. Well, he wasn't dead yet, and so Lloyd assumed that it was safe to eat. At the back of his mind, something said 'Keyword, YET'. He ignored it. The candy was too good, and with his parents kidnapped, it was at least something good.

The day dragged on, Lloyd still unable to pay attention. At lunch, Kai, Cole, Jay, Nya, and Zane invited him over to their table again. Today, Jay had brought pizza for him to try. Lloyd had been cautious, but had accepted the pizza slice. It was delicious. He wondered what else he was missing out on.

When he arrived home, Lloyd and Wu went out searching for Garmadon and Misako. There was still no trace, and Lloyd was starting to think that it was hopeless.

The next day, Friday, Lloyd went to school again. He was still miffed that he had to come here instead of helping Wu search for his parents. But, at least tomorrow and the next day he could help Wu search for them all day long, as there was no school on Saturday and Sunday.

Friday went a little better than Wednesday and Thursday, but only because he knew tomorrow he could search instead of going to school.

At lunch, again, Kai, Cole, Nya, Jay, and Zane invited him over to their table for lunch. Today, Jay had brought a "Game Boy", whatever that was.

"This is a kind of video game, except that it's completely hand held, with no TV screen or any of that," Jay was saying. Lloyd was holding the "Video Game", and Jay was leaning over behind him, explaining how it worked.

"So, you use that button—no, the plus looking one, to scroll through the different games. You push that A button to select it." Jay pointed to said buttons.

"Okay…" Lloyd said, confused. He selected a random "game". He was still fascinated by the glowing "screen", and to him, it seemed like magic. He had never seen anything like it, at least not that he remembered.

Music started playing, and the screen changed to a bunch of lines. It was maze, Lloyd realized. He had heard of mazes before, and when he was little, he would sometimes make ones of his own on paper.

"Okay, so now you move the plus looking button to move around. But you gotta be careful, because those things—" Jay pointed to a red blob looking thing with claws and white teeth, "—can kill you, and then it's game over. This is the first level, so it's super easy!"

Lloyd nodded, moving the purple circle around the maze using the plus button. The purple circle, as Jay had explained, was supposedly him.

"Since this is the first level, the red monster won't move, but in future levels, it'll move around, making it harder to win," Jay said.

Lloyd beat the first four levels pretty quickly, especially when he started to get the hang of it. On the fifth level, there were two monsters, and they both moved around. Lloyd expertly avoided them, and beat the fifth level.

Suddenly, the school bell rang, signaling that lunch was over and that it was time to get back to class.

"Aw…" Kai moped. He, Cole, Zane, and Nya were also behind Lloyd, watching. The rest of them had forgotten all about lunch, but Cole had already eaten his and was now eating everyone else's lunch.

Lloyd gave the video game back to Jay, and then they all reluctantly went back to class.

When Lloyd got back to the monastery, he and Wu set off for the Outcast again. A few hours later, they came upon three other half breeds. Lloyd and Wu hurriedly hid in a tall tree before they were spotted. These types of encounters happened a lot, but this time something seemed… odd. Lloyd wasn't sure what felt… off, about it, but he was certain that something was going on here.

"What do you think the boss is planning?" one of the guys asked.

"Don't know," replied one. "But it's something big, that's for sure. He's been kidnapping other hybrids for weeks now. I, personally, think that he's building an army."

"Definitely an army," the last guy said. "I heard rumors that he's planning on taking over the humans."

Oh, no, Lloyd thought. The humans included Jay, Kai, Cole, Zane, and Nya, and he was beginning to like them. He wouldn't call them friends yet, but he still cared for them, as well as the rest of the humans, even if they wanted to murder his kind.

"We should probably head back to camp," the first guy said. "I think we've scouted enough."

"Yeah, back to home sweet home, Bane Bete Noire," the third guy said.

The three men then turned right, disappearing into the foliage. Lloyd heard their voices slowly fade into the distance.

"Bane Bete Noire," Wu murmured quietly to himself.

"What?" Lloyd asked, looking at him questioningly. "What is 'Bane Bete Noire'?"

"I've heard of it," Wu said. "It's one of the most powerful gangs in the Outcast."

The Outcast was made up of a bunch of gangs, some big, some small, some popular, others no one had even heard of.

"Bane Bete Noire is somewhere to the south, but no one knows it's exact location," Wu explained. "They are said to be ruthless and cunning, killing their enemies swiftly and quietly. Few have seen them and lived. Thankfully, we live in the western side of the Outcast, and so we have escaped Bane Bete Noire's attacks. However, it seems that they have now expanded their territory. I fear that Garmadon and Misako are being held by them."

"So what do we do?" Lloyd asked.

Wu shook his head, frowning. "I don't know what we can do. Bane Bete Noire's leader is not someone to mess with. I don't know if it's possible to free your parents."

"But—but, there has to be a way! We can't just give up!"

"I know," Wu replied, finally facing Lloyd. "But we can't just rush in, either."

"Then we make a plan!"

Wu nodded. "Yes, and thankfully, we have two days before you go back to school." Wu climbed down the tree, jumping off of the last branch. "Come. I want to follow them."

Lloyd followed Wu as he hurried after the three men.

They both made sure to walk silently, and to stay well behind so that they were not discovered.

About thirty minutes later, the men came upon a jeep. In the back of the jeep was a tarp hanging over the back, probably concealing hidden cargo. After the three men had climbed into the jeep, Wu and Lloyd silently crawled into the back, hiding behind crates and boxes. The jeep started up, and then started heading south. The road was very bumpy, as it wasn't paved, and it was one of the few roads that existed in the Outcast.

"What do you think is in these crates?" Lloyd asked, peering at one next to him.

"I don't know," Wu replied. "Possibly weapons."

Lloyd looked at a box beside him, and he carefully opened it. Inside was a bunch of fruit things Lloyd didn't recognize. "Well, this one has food."

Since the road was bumpy, and they were driving at about thirty miles per hour, it was very loud, and so Lloyd and Wu could talk and not fear about getting spotted.

Lloyd opened another box, and inside were a mix of fruits. "More food."

"Lloyd, close those up and stop snooping around. We don't want anyone to think that someone has been going through it."

Lloyd reluctantly obeyed. "But what if one of them has weapons?"

"We are only trying to find out where their base is," Wu said. "We aren't freeing Garmadon and Misako today."

Lloyd frowned. "Fine."

A little while later, the jeep pulled to a stop. Wu and Lloyd immediately hid in the back, behind the boxes and crates. They heard the three men's voices, plus some others'.

"Unload the cargo there," a new voice said, sounding commanding. They were probably in charge.

Wu and Lloyd glanced at one another, alarmed.

Wu quickly went to one of the bigger crates, prying it open. Inside were a bunch of black outfits, and Wu quickly motioned Lloyd to get in. When they were both in, Wu pulled the top back on, and then they both hid under the clothing.

They both heard the cargo being taken out, and men giving orders, and Lloyd held his breath, hoping that they wouldn't be discovered. Then he felt a jolt as their own crate was lifted up and taken out of the jeep.

"I thought this was supposed to be clothes?!" one man grunted.

"It is!" another replied.

Lloyd gulped.

"Yeesh, who knew clothes were heavy…" the first man grumbled.

Thirty seconds later, their crate was set down. More like dropped… Lloyd thought. They both heard retreating footsteps, and the voices were now farther away.

"Now's our chance," Wu hissed, carefully removing clothes from on top of them to reach the cover. He cautiously poked the lid up, and Lloyd blinked from the sudden light in his eyes. "We have to move quickly."

Wu lifted the lid completely off, and Lloyd saw seven people over by the jeep. Four of them were helping lift cargo out. The jeep and the people were outside, but Lloyd, Wu, and other boxes and crates were inside a warehouse type thing.

Wu climbed out of the crate, Lloyd following him, and Wu carefully put the lid back on. Then they both dashed for cover behind some more crates. The two of them carefully went deeper into the warehouse, before Wu finally stopped. The men's voices were echoing through the warehouse, and Lloyd could hear them clearly.

"Don't put that there, it's goes over there!" someone bellowed.

"Okay, okay, sheesh!" someone else grumbled.

Soon, the voices stopped, and Lloyd heard the jeep drive away. Wu cautiously started towards the entrance to the warehouse, Lloyd following him. When they arrived, two guards were standing there, rifles in their hands.

"We're trapped!" Lloyd whispered, dismayed.

"No, we're not," Wu said. "Wait here."

Lloyd glanced at him, confused, but Wu was already gone. Lloyd blinked in surprise. Where'd he go…? Then he saw him sneaking up behind one of the guards. Suddenly, moving as fast as lightning, Wu knocked the guard out. The other guard turned in alarm, his gun raised, but it was too late. Wu knocked out the other guard as well. Lloyd, seeing that the coast was clear, joined Wu. Wu and him then pulled the guards deeper into the warehouse, behind some crates.

"Now what?" Lloyd asked, looking around.

"Now we find out where we are," Wu answered. Wu started walking along the side of the building, keeping behind trees and bushes.

Lloyd followed him.

Soon, the warehouse ended, and Lloyd blinked in surprise at what lay around the corner. There were about five warehouses more, and further along, was a tall concrete wall. Barbed wire ran along the top of it, and what appeared to be katanas. On the side of the wall were a bunch of nails, making it seem impossible to climb it. There was also a giant, thick metal gate. It seemed to be the only way in, or out.

Guards were everywhere, barking out orders.

To Lloyd's right, there was a similar wall, with a large thick metal gate. They were trapped, Lloyd realized.

Wu quietly turned around, going back the way they had come. Lloyd swallowed, feeling uneasy, and followed him. A little ways Wu stopped.

"Um, why are we stopping?" Lloyd asked. It was still a ways to the warehouse opening, and right now Wu was looking up the side of the warehouse. Lloyd followed his gaze. "Are we going to climb this?" Lloyd asked, sounding skeptical.

"Yes," Wu replied.

"How? We don't have a rope."

"I know. We'll have to find another way up," Wu said, already walking again.

They reached the entrance to the warehouse, but Wu continued past it. When they reached the other side of the warehouse, Lloyd saw the concrete wall going along the side of the warehouse, and it was about two yards away from the warehouse. Next to the warehouse sat a pile of junk; metal, rubber, concrete, the like. The pile was pretty high, about halfway up the warehouse's wall.

"We can climb this; we'll pile up more junk as we go," Wu said, starting up the pile. Lloyd followed him. Eventually they reached the warehouse roof, and Wu and Lloyd flattened themselves down onto the roof. From his vantage point, Lloyd could see all the way across Bane Bete Noire. He could see what lay on the other side of the second concrete wall, and what he saw sent chills through him. There was a large palace looking building, looking to be made out of metal and it was very rusty. Soldiers or guards, whoever they were, were patrolling the area and looking to be giving out orders. There were other smaller buildings, too, that looked to be made out of scrap metal. But that wasn't the worst part. Down below, there were other half breeds, but they didn't seem to be there willingly like the soldiers. Their wrists were chained, and they were being forced to carry metal junk around, distributing it into piles; others were cleaning stuff, and some others were gathered around in another area, and Lloyd had a harder time seeing them. They were chained, too, but they seemed to be… training for something. They all held guns, and Lloyd wondered why they had them if they were prisoners.

"Alright, we can go now," Wu declared, "before we're spotted."

Lloyd nodded, and the two of them climbed down.

"So where are we?" Lloyd asked.

"I'm not sure. But we should head back to the monastery," Wu said.

"But how are we gonna get out?" Lloyd asked. "There's a huge wall! And we can't climb it because there's nails or something coming out of it!"
"We'll have to sneak aboard another jeep," Wu replied.

They both walked back to the warehouse to wait. Thankfully, another jeep was parked outside the warehouse, being unloaded. Eight people were there. When the jeep was unloaded, five of the people left, and three of them got in the jeep.

"Let's hope that it's destination is outside," Wu whispered.

Together, Wu and Lloyd boarded the jeep silently, hiding in the back again. The jeep started up, and started driving. Lloyd wished that he could see where they were going, but the back of the jeep was covered in a tarp, and the back—the way out—was zippered shut. About thirty-five minutes later, the jeep stopped. They both heard the three people talking for a few minutes, and then get out, their voices fading away.

Wu got up, and they both exited the jeep. It was night now, and Lloyd could see millions of stars in the sky. Around them, Lloyd saw that they were still in the jungle/forest, and so that was a good sign.

"Where are we?" Lloyd asked.

"I'm not sure," Wu replied. He pointed up. "There's the north star, so we should head this way." He turned left.

Three and a half hours later, they both made it back to the monastery. Lloyd was exhausted, as was Wu, and they both immediately went to bed. Lloyd guessed that it was about 1:30.

Zane crept along the palace wall, hidden in the shadows and the foliage around him. He was on his way to see P.I.X.A.L, a fellow android. No one knew that Zane himself was a nindroid, and Zane intended to keep it that way. Nindroids were slaves, as it was the law. Zane did not intend to reveal himself ever.

P.I.X.A.L had been hidden herself for a while, but had been discovered. Her creator was Cyrus Borg, who was known for his technological expertise. Borg had created P.I.X.A.L to be his personal assistant, and in that way had not broken the law. But Borg had kept P.I.X.A.L a secret, since he knew that the Emperor sometimes took androids to use for himself. Somehow, news reached the Emperor about the android, and the Emperor had been impressed with her design, wanting her for his own. And so, in secret, the Emperor forced Cyrus Borg to sell her to him. He did it in secret so that the people wouldn't think poorly of him. Zane scoffed quietly. He knew that the Emperor did similar things to others, he just wasn't sure what.

Zane had met P.I.X.A.L a year before she was stolen by the Emperor. Since then, they had become close friends, and had known each other for three years.

Zane stopped, finding the vines he had been searching for, and quickly climbed up and over the wall. He found himself in the palace garden, where he and P.I.X.A.L usually met up. He waited silently in the shadows so that he wouldn't be spotted. A few minutes later, a female android came out a door leading into the palace. The moon's light glinted off of her silver skin.

"Zane?" She called softly.

Zane stepped out of his hiding spot. She smiled.

"It's good to see you again," P.I.X.A.L said.

"I would have come sooner, but some of the guards were already suspicious," Zane replied.

She frowned. "I know. Were you seen?"

"No, but our next meeting should be two weeks from now, just to be safe."

P.I.X.A.L nodded in agreement, looking sad. "I wish we didn't have to sneak around like this."

Zane sighed. "Someday, androids will be free, and we won't have to sneak around anymore. I'll make sure of it." A pause. "Any news?"

P.I.X.A.L's mood immediately dropped. "I'm afraid that it's only getting worse. I overheard that the Emperor is planning to attack the outcast. He wants to kill all of the half breeds. And after that, he'll attack the Oni, and then the Dragons."

Zane looked worried. "I understand wanting to attack the hybrids and the Oni, but the Dragons? That doesn't make any sense. The Dragons are peaceful creatures, and rarely attack anyone."

"I know. He wants to get rid of all of our enemies, so that he can rule all of Ninjago. He's getting greedy, and more evil everyday."

"We must stop him," Zane said, suddenly looking determined. "This can't go on."

"I agree. But, I have even worse news." P.I.X.A.L pulled out a piece of paper that was wrapped up like a scroll. She handed it to Zane, and Zane took it, frowning.

Zane unrolled it, and realized that it was a blueprint. His eyebrows rose in surprise. "What is this?"

"It's something I found. It's a device that can detect androids and half breeds. The Emperor is planning to have it installed in a bunch of buildings."

"Oh, no…" Zane murmured, a feeling of dread coming over him.

P.I.X.A.L sighed. "I know, it's horrible. I've halted their progress a little though, since I destroyed most of their other blueprints and deleted a bunch of files. But… eventually, they will get around to it, and then you will be in grave danger. You must be careful, Zane!"

Zane nodded mutely. He wasn't sure how to react to this. If he was caught…

"Zane, I'm sorry, but you must go now," P.I.X.A.L said. She glanced around nervously.

Zane nodded. "Thank you, P.I.X.A.L."

She smiled. "Be safe."

"You too," Zane replied. He hesitated, though. "How are they treating you?"

P.I.X.A.L frowned, then shrugged nonchalantly. "The same as always, I suppose… but… they have gotten meaner."

Zane nodded. "I will get you out of here. I promise."

"I know," P.I.X.A.L replied, smiling again.

"Are you sure you don't want to leave now?"

"Who else is going to spy for you?"

Zane knew that she was right, even if he didn't want to admit it. "Alright. Goodbye, P.I.X.A.L."

"Goodbye."