Wu and Misako sit in the dining room at the monastery. Misako is feeding some food scraps to the pig. She lets out a deep sigh.
"Are you ok?" asks Wu, "It can't be easy, learning about Ella."
"No." she says solemnly. "I knew what I was getting into, marrying a man like Garmadon. But it's still hard. I know he has been different since Harumi brought him back, but to think he was altered down to his DNA?" She shudders.
"He hasn't had a straightforward life." says Wu, "But he is trying, and even as he is now, there is capacity to change."
Misako shakes her head. "If he did something like this now, I wouldn't even be surprised. It's not like we are even living with each other anymore… but her age, she is Lloyd's age. I always thought he at least loved me back then."
Wu puts a hand on her shoulder. "He did." he says with confidence. "He never spoke to me of anyone else, I am just as surprised by this as you are."
"I think, I need to go see him." says Misako looking up at Wu, "Will you come with me?"
"Of course."
The ninja park a large vehicle outside Skylor's apartment. Lloyd knocks on her door and Skylor opens it. "Thanks for coming." she says seeing Nya, Jay and Zane clustered behind.
As they enter the apartment Cole sits up wobbly, "You throw the best parties." he mumbles before lying back down.
Jay goes over to him. "You don't look so good.." He says.
"I look amazing!" Cole disagrees, slurring his speech.
"What happened to them?" Asks Lloyd.
"Venemari gummies." says Skylor holding up the half eaten packet. "Do you think Pixal could run an analysis on this?" she asks.
Zane takes them from her and has a quick look with his robotic vision. "She does have more accurate scanners back at the monastery." he says.
"Great," says Skylor. "I'll come too."
"Aren't you meant to be resting?" asks Kai.
"I thought you said they were both affected?" asks Nya.
"I'm fine." snaps Kai.
"Kai only had one." says Skylor, "Ella isn't at the monastery any more, so I will be just as capable of resting there as I am here."
"Ok." says Lloyd. "Let's get these two home."
"Party's over." says Jay to Cole as he and Zane help support him to his feet.
When they get back to the lair they find Pixal still working at a console.
"Find anything?" asks Zane.
"Yes." she says solemnly, "And this makes things much worse."
"How could things possibly get worse?" says Nya who is trying to lead Kai who pushes her away.
"Why would you say that?" Says Jay as he lowers Cole into a chair. "If you ask how things could be worse, they always manage to get worse!"
"I am now almost certain that Ella did not run away." says Pixal. "She was captured."
"What?" say a few of the ninja.
"Here." Pixal pulls up the security footage of the corridor outside of Ella's room. "i was eventually able to restore the corrupted footage from the damaged camera. Between midnight and when Lloyd found her missing, the room door was opened twice." She shows the footage of the door sliding open, and then shut. Both times no-one is seen to pass through.
"So, they must have looped the footage?" asks Jay.
"I don't think so." says Pixal. "A thorough analysis showed enough minor differences to make a straight loop improbable."
"Even if it is looped, Ella does not have the technical knowledge to do such a thing." says Zane, "so it would indicate she had outside help."
"Anacondrai can become invisible for brief periods." continues Pixal. "In order to prevent Pythor from sneaking in here, the cameras are also fitted with infrared detectors." She makes the display a split screen with normal lighting on one side and heat vision on the other. "These timestamps are synced." she says as the footage is played. Two figures, one holding a sack approach the room stealthily, open the door and enter. Then after a while the door opens again, one of the figures closes it quietly then they both leave quickly. The figures are clearly humanoid, and fully grown.
"How are they doing that?" says Jay. "Not even Borg can turn people invisible."
"So the sack has the pig, and then they swap it out for Ella." says Zane.
"This still doesn't prove she was captured." says Nya. "They could have been working together to sneak her out."
"The shop was attacked." says Lloyd. "Someone was after her… I was meant to protect her… This is my fault." He is starting to get worked up.
"We didn't know she was being targeted." says Zane. "Your approach to treat her as a guest with minimal security was the right one for trying to win her trust."
"I got her mother killed, and I let her be captured right out from under my nose!" Lloyd's eyes start to glow purple. "She's my sister! I'm just as bad as my father."
"We'll find her." says Jay. "Together." He reaches out a hand to try and calm Lloyd.
Lloyd shrugs him off roughly. "They better not have hurt her." he says with a threatening tone.
"Where is Wu and Misako?" says Nya, "They should be hearing this too."
"They went to visit Garmadon." says Pixal.
"They what?" says Lloyd, finally shaking off his purple eyes. He holds up the journal. "They don't know yet, I have to go tell them." Lloyd sprints off and jumps on his motorcycle.
"Should we be letting him go alone?" asks Jay. "I'm not the only one who saw those eyes right?" He looks around the group, but no one looks super keen to chase after Lloyd.
"I'll go." Says Kai with a slight wobble.
"Oh, no you won't." Says Nya sternly. "Lloyd will be fine, I don't think he wants us butting into his family issues, and if he does go Oni, Wu and Garmadon are more likely to be able to help than us."
"We also have more pressing issues." Says Zane while looking at Cole who tried to stand up and promptly fell off the chair.
"Right." Says Jay. "Come on boulder brain, let's get you upstairs."
Zane helps Jay with Cole, and Nya tries to help Kai again, but he stubbornly pushes her away, so she gives up with a huff and joins Skylor and Pixal.
Skylor approaches Pixal, "I was hoping you might be able to help analyse this?" She says while holding out the half eaten pack of gummies.
Pixal holds up one of the gummies to a light, "Hmm, a full chemical analysis would require a different sort of laboratory, this is more of a workshop." She calls up Borg on the computer, "Hello Cyrus, do you have a laboratory where we can analyse this? We believe it is a gummy manufactured with venemari spit."
Cyrus pauses to think. "Biology was never my strong suit, I wonder if Normatech would help?"
"Normatech?" Asks Nya.
"Bill N. Ayre, head of Normatech was my mentor back in the day. Helped coach me in the ways of research and development. His company used to be more technology based, but has since focused on biological advances. They are the primary manufacturer of blasting jelly used for mining, as well as a few medicines that were discovered from plants, but are now made completely artificiality."
"I'm surprised I haven't heard of them." Says Nya.
"Yes, well, not everyone can be as flashy as Borg Industries." Chuckles Borg.
Lloyd weaves the streets on his motorcycle, breaking a few road rules in his haste. Eventually he makes it to Garmadon's building and runs up the stairs pounding urgently on Garmadon's door.
Garmadon answers with a stern look on his face. "This is exactly why I didn't tell you I was out of prison." He says with a hint of frustration. "I may never know peace again."
Lloyd pants trying to catch his breath from all the stairs. "Is my mother here?" He asks.
Garmadon sighs. "I suppose you want some tea too?" He asks gesturing for Lloyd to enter the apartment. As he does, Lloyd sees Wu and Misako sitting on the sofa each with a steaming cup of tea.
"You're not fighting?" Lloyd asks, confused about how calm everyone is. He had been catastrophizing on the way here imagining yelling matches and his mother in tears.
"We just got here." Says Wu. "My brother is being most hospitable." He takes a long sip of his tea, letting out a satisfying sigh.
"I made it in time then." Says Lloyd, "we found something at the tea shop, look." He opens the diary to the relevant entry and passes it to Misako.
Misako's eyes go wide as she reads it. "Well that explains a few things." She says before passing it to Wu.
"Explains what?" Says Garmadon who returns from the kitchen and passes a cup of tea to Lloyd.
"How it is that Ella is your daughter." Says Misako.
"This again?" Says Garmadon, "as I already told Lloyd, that is impossible."
"The DNA results were a match." Says Lloyd before taking a sip of his own tea.
"No!" Says Garmadon frowning.
"Yes." Says Wu who passes the diary to Garmadon.
Garmadon continues to frown as he reads the passage, then turns the diary over looking at the covers. "Who wrote this?"
"Mystake." Says Lloyd.
"That Oni woman? Hmm, that does explain a few things." Says Garmadon. "There were a few days where I thought you were acting a little strange."
Misako scoffs. "You want me to believe you didn't realise she was Oni? I've seen you two sense each other from halfway across Ninjago city." She gestures to Garmadon and Wu.
"That was different." Says Garmadon.
"How so?" She asks.
"He's my brother." Says Garmadon matter of factly. Misako crosses her arms, not satisfied with the answer so Garmadon continues. "And, at the time he was in the body of a toddler who was not particularly skilled at masking."
"Masking?" Asks Lloyd, suddenly interested.
"Masking. Where you suppress your Oni abilities and aura." Says Garmadon before turning to Lloyd. "You are actually pretty good at it."
"I am?" Says Lloyd with surprise. "Is that why you had trouble finding me at the TV building?"
Garmadon shrugs, "More like why it was so hard for you to learn Oni form, you mask reflexively. Sensing is not always so precise, in the TV station I knew you were close, but only once you were in the building. I could sense Wu from much further away."
Wu took a sip of his tea. "I have never really had a need to learn how to mask my Oni aura. There are not many in Ninjago who are even capable of sensing it."
Misako uncrossed her arms, "You are saying Mystake was a master at masking?"
"It makes sense." Says Lloyd, flicking to the front of the diary. "She originally came to Ninjago to spy on the first spinjitsu master. She wouldn't be very good at that if she could be found so easily."
"Did you know she was Oni?" Asks Misako to Wu.
"I had my suspicions," answers Wu, "but never sensed anything when I saw her in the tea shop."
"Ok, so I'm innocent," says Garmadon, "mystery solved, everyone can go home now." He starts walking to the door.
"One mystery solved," says Lloyd, "but we still need to find Ella. Pixal thinks two people broke in and kidnapped her, using some sort of invisibility cloak. The tea shop showed signs of a struggle, she could be in danger."
Garmadon sighs. "You already lost her? And I suppose you want my help?"
"Well she is your daughter." Says Lloyd.
"Fine." Says Garmadon, "what do you want me to do?"
"Her powers have been out of control lately, I doubt she is doing a good job at masking them. When she lost her cool at the police station, I felt something, like a connection to her… Please, teach me to sense her, and help us search the city."
"You're assuming she is still in the city." Says Misako solemnly.
"It's a good start." Says Wu. "We will head back, start mapping out search areas with the team. Join us as soon as you can."
Back at the monastery Jay and Zane get Cole and Kai up the elevator and help Cole to the couch in the game room. Kai makes his way to the door unassisted, but keeping a hand close to the wall to steady himself if needed.
"I'm going to go sleep it off." He grumbles before heading off to his room.
"Should we leave him unattended?" Asks Jay to Zane.
"He is only mildly impacted." Says Zane, "and doesn't seem to be a danger to himself, unlike Cole." They both look down to Cole.
"Shhh!" Says Cole, "this is my favourite movie." He goes back to staring at the broken TV screen, still damaged from when Ella threw a controller at it.
"So, what do we do with him?" Asks Jay.
"I'm sure you'll figure something out." Says Zane as he walks to the door.
"Hey! Where do you think you're going?" Asks Jay.
"I have an idea, someone else who might know how to find Ella, or why she was taken."
Jay sighs, "Fine, I guess I can watch over him for a while."
"Thank you Jay." Says Zane, "you are a good friend."
"The best." Mutters Cole, still staring at the TV.
The first few hours go by easily, Cole is mostly off in his own world needing only minimal supervision. Jay fetches him some snacks and a glass of milk in a cup with a straw top that is harder to spill. He passes the time by playing a hand held video game, as the TV is still broken. Sometimes Cole stands up and tries to go somewhere, but Jay is able to calmly redirect him back to the couch. When it happens for the third time in 10 min, Jay has a thought. "Are you trying to go to the toilet?" He asks Cole who is trying to stand again.
"A quest for waterfalls.." says Cole.
Jay assists Cole to the bathroom, and decides that helping Cole with this would be less embarrassing than helping him change out of pee soaked clothes.
Once they are back in the lounge it becomes clear that Cole is starting to come down from the drugs. His babbling is much reduced.
"How are you feeling Cole?" Asks Jay, "do you want to go have a nap like Kai?"
"I don't like this movie." Says Cole, still staring at the broken screen. "Dad, can you turn it off?" He turns towards Jay.
"Um, sure thing." Says Jay while picking up the remote from the coffee table. He points it at the off TV. "Beep, movie stopped!" playing along with Cole's hallucinations had been working well for him so far.
"It was her movie…" sobs Cole, tears forming in his eyes.
"Her?" Asks Jay, while shifting closer to Cole and starting to rub his back. "It's ok, I got you, and the movie is stopped."
"I just miss her so much!" Cole turns and rests his face in Jay's shirt as his crying gets more intense.
"Oh, right, you mean Lilly." Says Jay while doing his best to comfort his friend, pulling Cole closer, and holding Cole while tears soak into his shirt.
"I don't like this part." Sobs Cole, words a little muffled. "Make it stop."
Jay wasn't sure how to help, it sounded like Cole's 'movies' was him reliving different memories, and he was trapped in one somewhere near the death of his mother. "Skylor said you were in for a rough time…" he mused. "No matter what happens, I'm here for you, I won't leave you to go through this alone."
"Dad…" Cole holds on tighter as he continues to sob while Jay realises the double meaning of his words.
They stay like this for a while, Jay speaking words of comfort, rubbing Cole's back and holding him tight. Cole letting out years of suppressed grief through tears, wails and incoherent mumbling. Eventually the wails turn to whimpers, Cole's breathing becomes more even. "There, see?" Says Jay. "You will get through this."
Cole shifts his weight to be lying down, resting his head on Jay's lap. "I love you dad." He says.
Jay hesitates for a second before saying "I love you too." It's what Lou would say, for sure. And he did love his friend, but saying it so bluntly… people could get the wrong idea. He sighs and starts playing with Cole's hair. After a couple of minutes he realises Cole has fallen asleep. Probably the best thing for him right now, but unfortunately that meant Jay was stuck playing pillow.