Welp, it's been a long time since I updated this (and even longer for my other multi-chapter fic, oops, lol), BUT I finally managed to work out the kinks in this! I've made some good progress with the next chapter which is, I will admit, a Jay POV.

I will also admit that there are some fantasy references and that one is super obvious and the other two, maybe not so much. Particularly since they aren't as popular as the third reference.

I also want to thank everyone who has faved, followed, and reviewed this fic! It means so much to me!

Anyjay, it's fic time!

Cole POV

"Oni." Kai mumbles, but I can still hear him clear as day.

Probably because my every sense is amplified. I can almost feel my every skin cell, the fabric of my gi against my skin, my chest moving up and down, and the sound of my friends' breathing is almost too loud.

Ahead of us stands a line of about fifty Oni.

They aren't in the same forms as they were last time, yet, everything about them screams Oni. They stand as slender figures whose backs are to the sun, making them backlit, so I can't make out most details. However, based on their shape, I can tell that they're more humanoid than last time. From what I can tell, they're slender but muscular, and their faces seem to be sharp and angular, wild yet cold and calculating.

We're frozen, even Lloyd, the one who told us we needed to get out of there.

We only have two options: run and hope everyone's evacuated or stay and fight. The idea of fighting the Oni makes me feel queasy. We only defeated them because of the Tornado of Creation, and we're missing people for that. We have no chance without the Tornado of Creation.

But the rest of the team is stuck, paralyzed, staring at the advancing army. No one is stepping up, taking the lead, and if I don't, then we'll stay here until they get here. It's clear that Lloyd or Kai, the other two who take charge, aren't going to make the decision, so I do.

"We need to fall back," I say, breaking everyone out of their trance.

"What?" Kai asks, before adding, "No, we need to fight. We can't let them push us up against a wall. Besides, they aren't just going to let us walk away."

I glare at him, raising an eyebrow. Really, can't he think something through before he says it? His patience has been getting better, but stuff like this…really? "That's why we're going to run."

"We must make a decision quickly; they're getting close. Since we are severely outnumbered, I have to agree with Cole on this one. We should fall back and regroup. Then, perhaps, ambush them," Zane throws in.

Lloyd nods, and we all, even Kai, though reluctantly, jogs away.

That's when the Oni charge.

Poor planning, on my part, I guess.

Luckily, there's enough distance between us for us to get to a building and climb up it, flipping from fire escape platform to fire escape platform. It's clear the Oni army hasn't been trained to deal with Ninja, because they gather at the base of the building, staring up at us.

I hear some shout words up to us, but they're lost to the wind. We're stuck on the roofs of buildings as the Oni army, which I can see as a force of two hundred (but I'll wait for Zane to tell us, he's much better at math).

"Congratulations," Kai hisses. "We're stuck."

"Give Cole a break. While the rest of us were…well, if he hadn't said anything, they would've destroyed us," Lloyd snaps.

"Thanks, Lloyd, but Kai's right," I sigh and turn to the edge of the building, the base of which is surrounded by Oni. "We're stuck."

"But we're not dead," Lloyd insists, "Where there's life, there's hope."

"Why attack the city?" Zane asks no one in particular, interrupting what Kai's response would have been, which probably would have sparked a fight between us. "To draw us out, remove any potential allies, and strike while we are distracted looking for those who may possibly trapped? Where did they get the crystals? And perhaps, most importantly, why?"

"Oni are smart. They must be after something and Ninjago City is just collateral damage," Lloyd replies.

"'Collateral damage' implies that the damage is unwanted. This" — Zane gestures at the ruined buildings, some of which had completely shattered — "was done intentionally. It has to serve some purpose."

"What purpose? The Oni are evil. Last I checked, evil doesn't need a 'purpose' or reason to hurt people," Lloyd retorts, crossing his arms and turning away.

I turn from the sight of the gathering of Oni, who have by now arranged themselves into rank and file, and face Lloyd.

"But —" I start, planning to use his words against him even though it would only provoke him. He still isn't the hugest fan of Oni and while I am, too, I'm also not a fan of believing that an entire species is evil. It isn't right to condemn them for something we've only seen in a few. For all we know, the Oni that had attacked Ninjago the first time could've been a tribe that wanted to take over the realms, and this one could be the same tribe or another tribe with a similar goal. Well, that doesn't matter because as soon as I get the first word out, I'm interrupted by a clearing throat.

But not by one of us, and not by someone. Rather, a hologram of an Oni that's coming from a small square thing that the Oni below must have launched up here without any of us noticing. The hologram itself is of what must be an Oni, most likely an Oni with the clearance to contact us, a high-ranking member of the army or maybe even a diplomat. Who knows? Anyway, the Oni stares at us for a few seconds with large, purple eyes, a dark orchid with slits for pupils. I notice skin the shade of a gray with a tint of lavender, short cornflower blue hair with feathers from exotic birds threaded into them, and an embroidered tunic and trousers. The Oni holds himself with a kind of condescending confidence that deep in the part of me that I allow myself to crack and crumble for the sake of my teammates not having to deal with me if I shatter, makes me want to shrink away from its gaze.

"Well, that is kind of rude," the Oni says, crossing his arms, "We do not make assumptions based on your siding of dragons."

"Why are you here?" Kai demands, stopping Lloyd (though probably unintentionally, this is Kai we're talking about here) before he can say something like, "At least dragons are good" and anger the Oni enough into attacking us. "Who are you?" he says, then adds, "And don't say 'Oni' because we know you're an Oni."

"You may call me Omega Dae and I am your only chance of survival — if you cooperate," the Oni replies.

Lloyd, Kai, Zane, and I exchange looks, trying to determine who'll be continuing as our "diplomat." Lloyd's out of the question because while he has been better at accepting his Oni side (that I know of), some potentially unresolved conflicts with his father who he associates as an Oni, and bad experiences in general with the Oni might make it hard for him to be…fair, I guess. Kai shakes his head and steps out of the circle, quietly saying that he doesn't want to risk it with his temper, even if he's been making progress. That leaves Zane and me, and judging from the look on Zane's face, he wants to observe Omega Dae and his answers, so I guess I'll be doing to talking.

We turn back to the hologram, who seems to be observing his nails. When he notices that the whispering has stopped, he looks up with a bored, unimpressed gaze.

"So, you'll hear us out?" Omega Dae asks.

"After a few questions," I reply, looking to the others for encouragement. All I get is a thumbs-up from Kai and a nod from Zane.

Lloyd is too busy glaring at the Omega to notice.

I guess any progress he's made with his Oni side is instantly dashed when he's face to face with the same Oni who had covered Ninjago in a cloud of darkness, forced him to work with his father, and then exploded Ninjago City just as it was finally starting to get back to its feet after the whole Crystapocalypse thing. Well, in any case, at least he hasn't lashed out at the hologram or summoned that Merged-Dragon-Oni-Form that he had used to defeat the Overlord.

"Are you the same Omega?" I ask, not quite sure why, but feeling the need to. I figure we need to know as much about the Oni as possible, including any political and military information as we can.

"No. The one you have met before was Omega Ciku, one of the oldest Alphas, but we're not here to talk about our political system," Omega Dae says.

"Then what are you here for?" I demand.

Zane sucks in a breath like I should have tried harder to get more information out of Omega Dae before asking that question. Well, if that's the case, he should have been the one asking the questions, not me. I don't like to play around. I like getting straight to the point.

"Him," the Omega says simply, pointing at Lloyd. "Give us the hybrid and allow us to take a handful of essentials for his training and we'll be on our way. No reason to hurt anyone else. We'll even leave some of our own to help rebuild the damage we have caused."

"Uh, how do I put this politely? No," I respond, crossing my arms, "Lloyd is our brother, not one of you. Not to mention, it should be up to him, not us. And by 'us,' I mean by everyone but Lloyd." I look to the Green Ninja, whose face has paled, and stares unblinkingly at the hologram. His hands, white-knuckled from gripping at the sides of his gi too hard, shake and he seems to only be focusing on breathing.

"Lloyd?" I ask, taking a step towards him.

Suddenly, whatever spell that is over him seems to break. Color, or as much as there was before the Omega announced the Oni's "request," returns to his face and his hands release his gi. His eyes dart around for a bit, his gaze settling on one person for a few seconds before moving to the next. He takes a deep breath like he is trying to draw courage from somewhere. Then he asks, "And why do you want me? What are you going to do with me?"

"You're actually considering this?" Kai cries incredulously. "You're actually going to go through with this?"

"If they restore what they've damaged and leave Ninjago alone," Lloyd says, looking at the Omega.

"We will," Omega Dae promises, "I know previous encounters with our kind may make us look like monsters, but we understand the value of life."

"But you're willing to put aside that understanding and value to attack a city full of innocent citizens?" Zane counters.

He doesn't seem to be buying this for a second, and this is Zane we're talking about. The guy who fell in love with P.I.X.A.L. at first sight, then defended her even after she attacked him. The guy who followed a bird because it danced. The guy who grew the most attached to the concept of us being his "brothers." The guy who likes giving the benefit of the doubt and still at least considers someone's words before deciding to trust them or not.

Or maybe he draws the line at "people who attack a city to get what they want."

"A test of your leadership skills and organization to evacuate a city. In any case, those who were unable to evacuate before detonation were protected by our elite force of infiltrators…the same Oni who took the form of the agents two of your own fought just a few hours ago. Taking the form of those agents allowed them to remain here prior to the explosions. There will be no deaths. Injuries, perhaps, but no one has died or will die as a result of the explosions," the Omega says.

Kai looks at the Omega in disgust. "Then you should have found another way to grab our attention or isolate us or whatever, because deaths or not, that's still too high of a price for innocent people to pay."

Lloyd nods in agreement, but says, "I'm willing to consider, but you need to answer my questions and you need to stop lying."

"I was not lying, but very well. We 'want' you because you are one of us and you need to learn to harness your Oni side rather than suppress it. Suppressing your Oni heritage is…dangerous. Even more so than our crystals, for you will become something known to our kind as an Obscurial. It is not a matter of if but a matter of when you will perish if you develop this, Lloyd Garmadon, and who you will bring down with you.

"Do you honestly think you are the first to be at risk of developing an Obscurial? Our run-ins with these always end in a staggering number of casualties. We are trying to prevent another, especially one of your…other heritage. Your Dragon side will empower it, which will make it even more dangerous and potentially cause damage untold. And it will slowly eat away at you. You won't have any control over it, over what you do or who you hurt.

"Do you want to hurt your brothers and sister? Your uncle? Your parents? Even more innocent victims than the ones touched by our detonation?" the Omega finishes.

"So…you're just going to teach me how to harness it?" Lloyd questions.

"I will not be handling your education. I was sent to retrieve you. And retrieve you, I did," the Omega says.

"I never agreed to anything, though," Lloyd points out, "I was just hearing out your offer."

"So you will not cooperate?" the Omega asks.

"I need time to consider," Lloyd says, glancing at us. He's acting like we'd be mad at him for listening to the Omega or something. Honestly, I have no idea what to feel.

Everything the Omega has said could be a lie, including the one about his identity, but what if it's true?

What if Lloyd really does develop that Obscurial thing the Omega talked about? The one where he said that would have the clock run out on Lloyd? I feel sick to my stomach, my thoughts turning sour, as I remember the doctor…

"...it's only a matter of time before it takes…"

Maybe Lloyd should go. I don't like Oni all that much either, but if they have what can keep him from having an hourglass on him, then maybe he should see what they can do.

"...before it takes her life."

I can't lose another person to something like this, something that kills someone from the inside. Not Lloyd. It can't take Lloyd.

But I also don't want to force him to do something he doesn't want to. What if it ends up hurting him even more? What if they're actually lying about the Obscurial thing?

"Unfortunately, we are on a tight schedule," the Omega says, "And it is imperative that we train you. You must make your decision now."

Lloyd glances at all of us, then at the Omega, "And how do we know that my father can't just teach me what you think I need to know? He's Oni, too."

"He has managed to survive off of pure luck and perhaps the venom of the Great Devourer stabilizing his genetics," the Omega replies, "And he does not know how to teach what you need to survive the threat of developing an Obscurial."

"And how do I know that this isn't a lie? That this isn't some kind of a trick? Oni are shape-shifters. You're literally masters of illusion," Lloyd says, then shakes his head. "I don't trust you. I'm not coming with you."

"You belong with us," the Omega warns, "Not with these humans and a machine."

I indignantly cry out wordlessly, Kai's face hardens, and Lloyd yells, "That 'machine' is Zane" — when I look over, I see that Zane is fiddling with the top half of his gi, where I know that under a panel is his emotion meter. Is he regretting turning it off? Is that making his resolve that he's a person waver? — "And I said no! If you want me, you'll have to take me by force and we will fight back. We'll fight back and win!"

"We'll see about that," the Omega says, pointing to something behind us.

I'm tackled almost as soon as I turn to face them, my head hitting the ground painfully hard.

"Oof!" Kai grunts as he too is thrown to the ground, thrashing almost immediately.

I try to follow his example, but my vision blurs and it's hard to focus enough to get myself to move. I raise my arms weakly, but they're pinned almost as soon as they're a few inches off the roof we're on.

I try to turn on my side, hoping to somehow shake the Oni that's holding me down off, and when I do, I spot Kai going limp, some cloth thing being pressed to his mouth and nose. Then the Oni holding me down tries to do the same. I kick and flail but I can't seem to actually fight. Something's wrong. Something's wrong and they're going to do something to me.

I need to get away.

I need to get away.

But my panic is making me lash out illogically, clouding my judgment even more than the hit to the head. That's how the Oni finally manage to pin me down and place the cloth over my mouth and nose, damp to the touch. The sweet, chemical scent makes my head spin even more, the struggle to stay conscious tripling in difficulty.

I…

have to

stay

awake

or…

"COLE!"

How many of you saw that coming? Not the ending, but the Oni?

Anyway, as for the references...let's see...

In order, the first reference was... when I had Lloyd say, "Where there's life, there's hope." This is from a book series but since IDK what the series is called, you get the name of the first book it was mentioned in, which happens to be book one: An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir. Fantastic book, though a little mature at times.

The second is the description of Omega Dae's physical appearance, which was inspired (and maybe even based off of, I can't remember for sure, I haven't read it in ages, lol) by the description of a Folk Mage in Hunter by Mercedes Lackey.

Finally, the most obvious one, the Obscurial bit, which is from the Harry Potter universe. I'm super excited to write a Ninjago Oni version of this simply for the fact that I think it's absolutely cool (if a little bit scary).

Anyway, thanks for reading! Hope you had fun and let me know how I'm doing!