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CHAPTER THIRTEEN
NEVER THOUGHT WE'D GET HERE
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HIRO COULDN'T STOP PACING THE room as Nya and Pixal worked to access a way to communicate with the Ninja. He didn't even understand how to use a computer, so he'd left it all up to them, since they seemed to have a better understanding. He moved in circles, just needing to move; part of him was tempter to take a run through the city, but he didn't want to leave when he might be needed, so he stayed put, nervously walking around the top floor of Borg Tower.
Garmadon glanced at him from the computer. "Can you relax, Avashiro?" he asked, irritable. Hiro scowled at him but stopped, going to stand behind Nya, who was furiously typing away at the computer. It was morning now, and they'd been working to contact the Ninja for a while.
"Wait— I think I got it," Pixal announced. "If we can access the Borg Satellite . . . yes!"
A static image of the Zane's face appeared. Nya passed out headsets with microphones as the image came into clearer focus. Hiro quickly put it on, eyes scanning over the screen for any hint of green clothing or blonde hair.
"Hello? Kai? Anyone? Can you read me?" Nya asked. For a moment, the image disappeared, and Hiro leaned forward more, glaring at the screen. The image reappeared, finally focusing to show Kai, Zane, Jay, and Cole close to the computer, with Lloyd floating in the background. Hiro smiled slightly, relaxing when he saw that Lloyd was safe.
"We read you loud and clear," Kai said, grinning. The group on Earth broke into cheers, though Hiro stayed silent, keeping an eye on Lloyd. Still, he couldn't help but smile at the sight of his friend, glad that he was safe and, more importantly, alive. Hiro would have felt better if he was there to ensure Lloyd's survival, but he knew that, for once, he'd have to rely on the Ninja to keep Lloyd safe. He'd kill them if anything happened to Lloyd.
(He'd like to think that was a joke.)
"Good to hear you boys," Wu said, smiling at the screen. "We're going to get you home safe. Pixal was able to find the blueprints for the rocket. You need to escape the cargo hold before it's too late. Near the front of the ship is an A2 storage compartment. Inside are emergency spacesuits," Wu explained, pulling up an image of the blueprints Pixal had found at the launch site. Hiro's eyes tracked Lloyd as he got closer to the group.
"That will be a doozy. We can't get the spacesuits unless we go outside," Cole said, moving his hand and accidently hitting Lloyd in the face, sending him spiraling back out of control. Hiro tried not to laugh at the image. "Problem is, we can't go outside without the spacesuits. Any other suggestions?" Cole asked, looking at the team.
Garmadon scoffed, covering his microphone as he whispered harshly to the people still on Earth. "They are completely out of their element. Even if they get through this, what chance do we have of getting them home?" he demanded.
"Oh, very encouraging," Hiro muttered, ignoring the sharp look Wu and Garmadon sent his way.
"Uh, we can still hear you," Kai cut in, sounding nervous.
"Yeah, we could really use some encouraging words right about now," Lloyd added, floating upside down. Hiro wondered what that felt like, having no gravity to hold your body to the ground. He was glad that he was stuck on Earth, as he's sure that the height that the rocket was at would literally send him into a spiraling panic attack that he couldn't escape from, but he was still curious to know what it was like to being suspended in the air with no gravity. At the very least, he wound try a simulation of the scenario.
"Zane, you're the only one who can survive outside the ship," Pixal informed, pulling Hiro out of his dazed thoughts. He blinked, looking back at the screen. He knew he had a limited time to see Lloyd, and he wanted every second to count. He didn't know when he'd see Lloyd next. It could be hours, days, weeks — Hiro refused to think it would be years.
"She's right. I'm the only one who doesn't need oxygen. I must go alone," Zane announced.
Hiro frowned at the screen. "Be careful," he muttered. Zane spared him a smile, then pushed himself away from the computer, heading for the back of the cargo hold, the team following him. Zane disappeared from view a few seconds later, and the rest of the team headed back to the computer, waiting for his return.
"So . . . why does a rocket ship full of Nindroids need spacesuits?" Hiro asked, catching everyone's attention. He raised his eyebrow at their confused looks. "Nindroids don't need oxygen. So, why the spacesuits?" he clarified.
"Just— don't question our luck, okay?" Kai snapped. Hiro rolled his eyes. Lloyd elbowed Kai, sending the red ninja floating away. Hiro grinned, and Lloyd smiled back.
"Hey, wait— Zane's moving away from the ship," Cole interjected, pulling up an image on the computer that showed a large, blinking red dot moving away rapidly from the ship. "What's going on? Did he slip?" Cole questioned worriedly.
"How is he going to get back?" Nya asked, running a hand through her hair.
Moments later, the dot moved back to the ship, and everyone let out a breath of relief. The Ninja came back onto the screen, crowding around it.
"How much longer until the cargo hold is gone?" Garmadon asked.
"Less than a minute," Pixal informed, leaving a bad taste in Hiro's mouth.
The seconds ticked down, and everyone became increasingly more nervous as the Ninja continued to stay in the cargo hold. Hiro bounced from his heels to his toes nervously, scratching at his arm to distract himself. Surely the Ninja weren't going to die to something as simple as a disengaged cargo hold, right?
"Come on, Zane, where are you?" Lloyd muttered as the time continued to tick.
The screen went dark. In the headphones, Cryptor's voice was heard, sending a chill down Hiro's spine. Technically speaking, if the Overlord had been the cause of the creation of the Nindroids, did that make Cryptor and Hiro brothers in the same way it made Hiro and Kuzo brothers, back when Kuzo was alive? That was a depressing thought.
"Booster separation on my command," Cryptor ordered. "Five . . . four . . . three . . . two . . . disengage."
Hiro held his breath.
The room went still.
Lloyd's voice filled his ears.
"We made it!" Lloyd announced. Hiro sighed, running his hands through his hair in an attempt to calm himself down. It was frustrating, not knowing what was happening at all times. Any second of not knowing could mean that the team was in danger. Hiro wished he was there with them, at least then he would have known what was happening. He could have helped! He wasn't beyond saving!
"All right, to commandeer the ship, you have to get to the cockpit. You'll find an access hatch just ahead of you," Nya explained.
Hiro took off his headphones, setting them on the desk. This was the part where he went to get water — he had no idea what Nya was saying, and he knew he wouldn't be any use to the team anyway, not in their current situation, so he might as well try to stay energized. Nya had confiscated his coffee rights after they got back to Borg Tower, and now he was hungry, thirsty, and tired, but she wouldn't budge, wanting him to get more rest.
How could he rest when Lloyd was in space?
Wu approached Hiro as he filled a paper cup with water. Hiro straightened, eyeing the older man wearily as he got closer. Wu nodded to him. "Avashiro," he greeted.
"Wu," Hiro said awkwardly, shifting nervously. "Shouldn't you be, uh, helping?"
Wu shrugged. "An old man like me isn't so great with computers." He tilted his head. "I'm sure you feel some of that sentiment." Hiro hummed, glancing down at his water cup. His throat suddenly felt dry. Wu sighed. "I sense that you aren't my biggest fan as of late, Avashiro. Is there anything I could do to make you feel more comfortable?"
Hiro felt bad. Truly. Wu was an old man, he was under the control of Pythor and the Overlord, he never would have stabbed Hiro if he had been in his right mind. But he had stabbed Hiro, and now Hiro was stuck on Earth, in pain, unable to be useful. He knew he shouldn't blame Wu, but he did, and he felt terrible about it. It wasn't Wu. It was Pythor. It was the Overlord. But Wu had done it.
". . . It's not your fault," Hiro muttered. Wu frowned. Hiro placed a hand on his side, and Wu's eyes widened slightly.
"I'm the one who hurt you, Avashiro?" Wu questioned, which, fuck, made Hiro feel so much worse. Wu didn't even know?
"Pythor ordered you to while you were under his control. I know you wouldn't have done it if you had been yourself, but—" Hiro sighed heavily.
"But my face is the one that stabbed you," Wu finished. Hiro nodded. "I apologize, Avashiro, sincerely. I never would have hurt you had I been myself, you're correct. I hope that one day we will be able to move past this, but for now I shall give you the time you need." Wu smiled at him. Hiro forced a smile back, watching Wu walk back to the desk. He still felt bad, but . . . less so, now. Wu wasn't mad at Hiro for not wanting to be around him. He was going to respect Hiro's boundaries. That was something Hiro could live with.
Hiro went back to the desk, picking up his headphones and taking a deep breath.
Hiro grimaced as a wave of pain rolled over him, taking in a sharp breath. Wu frowned at him, but Hiro ignored it, pressing a hand against his side to quell the throbbing pain. He startled when Nya took him by the arm and led him back over to the cot by the window, but he didn't complain. Sitting down didn't sound too bad right about now.
He sighed, sitting at the end of the cot furthest from the window — he wasn't sure how he hadn't noticed it, but there was a large hole in the window just a few inches away from the cot. Nya sat down at the other end, crossing her legs underneath her. Hiro copied the position, frowning as he tried to get comfortable. Nya waited patiently, then smiled when he finally looked at her. "You okay?" she asked, eyes flickering down to his side. He shrugged. "The stiches aren't undone, are they?" He shook his head. "Alright. It's probably because you breathed in too deep, try not to do that again." He nodded.
"Thanks. When can I get these out?" he muttered, placing a hand on his side gently. It helped to distract him from the pain.
"Mm, five, six more days I think? I'll ask Pixal when she isn't busy. Hopefully Zane will be back by the time it's ready to take them out, unless you want to go back to the village and see their doctor," she added. Hiro shrugged. He didn't really like the idea of anyone messing with his stiches, but he knew he wouldn't be able to do it himself, so he figured he'd see how it was when the time came.
"Are you okay, Shiro?" she asked. He frowned at her. "With everything that's going on. I know that Lloyd being in space can't be easy right now, but he'll come back. We aren't going to let those boys die in space." She chuckled, but it felt humorless. Hiro's brows furrowed as he looked at her, mouth pulling down as he looked her over.
"You look . . . sad," he noted. She sighed, looking away as her smile dropped, never having reached her eyes. "Is everything . . . alright?"
"I'm fine, Shiro," she agreed.
He frowned. "Don't lie to me, I don't appreciate it." She looked surprised by his blunt honesty. 'What's going on?"
She hesitated. "It's— it's nothing, Shiro, really. Just boy trouble."
He shrugged. "I'm a boy. I'm trouble. Maybe I can help," he offered. She smiled, somewhat amused, before shaking her head. "Come on Nya, I'm bored, there's nothing to do, I want to help. I need to do something before I go crazy," he pleaded. She pursed her lips, looking so close to telling him what was going on. He sighed. "I can keep a secret, you know. Just tell me what's going on, please? I want to be helpful. It sucks not being able to help the team right now just because I got hurt. Please?" he begged, giving her the most innocent look he could muster.
Nya sighed, running her hands over her face. She looked exhausted. "When the school went on the field trip to Borg Tower, the day everything went wrong? You and Lloyd were at the museum." Hiro nodded in understanding. "There was this . . . machine, I guess. It was supposed to tell you who your perfect match is. Some of the girls convinced me to use it, we all expected it to be Jay, you know? Because I'm dating— because I was dating him." Hiro's brows furrowed as he nodded. "But it wasn't. When I stepped onto the machine . . . it was Cole. And I guess I realized that while I really like Jay — he's sweet, he's funny, he's completely in love with me . . . Cole presents other qualities. And now I'm finding it difficult to chose what I want, you know? Because now it's clear that Cole likes me, and I might like him, but I don't . . . I don't know," she finished.
Hiro frowned, not knowing how to help. ". . . To be honest, I thought one of the guys was giving you trouble and I was offering to beat him up," he admitted. Nya giggled. "That's . . . yeah. I don't know." He shrugged.
"Who do you think I should pick?" she asked, lightly teasing.
Hiro hummed. "Mmmm . . . Jay. He was your first choice, right? You never thought about Cole until a machine told you to. Considering what's going on around us, I think it's best to listen to your instinct and not, well, a machine."
She smiled sadly. "It's not that simple, Shiro."
He shrugged. "Fine. Then don't date either of them. If Jay and Cole are going to fight over you like you're an object, neither of them deserve you."
Nya was quiet for a moment, looking at him. Hiro shifted uncomfortably, wondering what she was thinking about. It was easy to tell what Kai and Jay were thinking about, they weren't the best at hiding their feelings; Cole was a little more stoic, but if he thought no one was looking, he was easy to read; Lloyd wasn't a mystery, he wore his heart on his sleeve; Zane was a little more difficult, but his lack of social filter made it so he just said what he was thinking, meaning no effort was needed. But Nya? Nya was always guarded, only showing the emotions she wanted others to see. She was stronger than Hiro thought he himself would ever be.
"Are you alright, Shiro? You seem . . . lost," she noted.
Hiro sighed, running a hand through his hair. He pursed his lips, looking from her to the cot, then back to her. "Nya, why is romance so important?" he asked softly.
She raised her eyebrows, surprised by the question. She quickly composed herself, looking thoughtful. "Well . . . it depends on the person. For some people, romance is their entire life. For others it's only a small part. And then there are those who don't need romance in their lives at all. It's a spectrum," she explained. Hiro nodded slowly. "For me, romance means that I feel loved in a different way than platonic or familial love, you know? Platonic is for friends, familial is for, well, family," she added. "Romantic love is like . . . I get to kiss someone, or call them mine. I know that I have a different type of love with them than I do with other people. Romance is— it's complicated, Shiro," she tried, not sure how to explain it.
Hiro nodded. "Okay. And . . . kissing. How is that different?" he asked.
She smiled. "Well, familial kissing could be on the forehead, cheek — same with platonic kisses, if you and your friends are comfortable with that. Of course, there could be kisses on the lips from family and friends, but it's more reserved for romantic partners. Romantic partners can kiss anywhere, really, as long as you're both comfortable with it," she explained. Hiro's brows furrowed. "Like . . . I kiss Jay, right? That's romantic. If I were to kiss, uh, Kai, it would be on the forehead and would be familial. For platonic, I might kiss . . . Pixal on the cheek," she decided. "Do you understand?"
"I . . . think so?" Hiro said hesitantly. She smiled. "Um. Okay. Yeah. That— that makes sense. Thank you," he muttered.
She smiled at his expression. "Shiro. Is there anyone that you want to kiss?" she asked softly, glancing at the others to make sure they weren't listening in.
Hiro frowned, looking at her. He opened his mouth to object, then closed it, lips pressed together. He looked down, tears gathering in his eyes. "Can . . . can friends kiss each other romantically?" he asked, voice barely above a whisper.
Nya hummed in confusion. "Sorry? I didn't hear you," she said honestly.
Hiro sighed, refusing to look up at her. "Can friends— am I allowed to— . . . to think about him like that?"
Nya smiled softly, resting a hand on his arm. "Who, Shiro?"
Hiro looked at her, and she'd never seen him look so scared.
"Nya!" Wu called out worriedly. Nya quickly got to her feet. She paused, looking at Hiro.
"We'll talk about your feelings for Lloyd later," she whispered, winking at him before hurrying over to the computer. Hiro stared after her, mouth agape, before quickly getting up as well, ignoring the burn in his side as he went to stand at the computer by Pixal's side.
"They can't hear us because of the asteroid shower," Wu informed. Hiro bit the inside of his cheek, frowning.
"They must be preparing to land," Pixal noted.
"But we have to warn them about what else is on that comet," Garmadon insisted.
"What else is on the comet?" Hiro asked, glancing between everyone.
Uh, yeah, we're not alone either," Nya cut in before anyone could explain. Hiro moved closer to her, looking over her shoulder. On screen, an army of Nindroids was advancing on Borg Tower. There were golden shields surrounding the bottom of the tower, but when Nya switched to a different camera on the first floor, the shields were blown open and the entrance was uncovered. Hiro gripped the back of her chair, looking between the screen and Pixal, wondering what to do and looking to the smartest person in the room.
The camera showed Pythor, Cyrus Borg — turned evil, like Wu had been — and the army of Nindroids, some of who were carrying a large black cylinder between them. Hiro frowned, leaning closer to the screen to get a better look at what was inside, before quickly leaning away, realizing what it was.
The Overlord was alive.
The Nindroids began racing for the stairs.
"We must go," Wu announced gravely.
"But the team," Hiro protested.
"We have to warn them," Garmadon agreed. "We can't just leave them without telling them what else is out there!"
Wu sighed, eyes flickering around. "Grab everything you can," he ordered. Hiro grabbed a keyboard, monitor, and a couple of wires that he thought was necessary. The others grabbed whatever they thought was important before looking around, everyone lost on where to go.
"This way," Nya said, nodding to a hole in the window. They all climbed out, one at a time. Nya helped Hiro out, then Hiro helped Wu, who helped Garmadon, who helped Pixal. They stood on a window cleaning platform, and Hiro kept his eyes on the team, refusing to look down. His body already felt weightless, and he could feel anxiety crawling up his throat, making him feel sick.
The elevator dinged.
"Huh. The cowards have fled." Hiro shrunk down, recognizing Pythor's voice and hating the way it send a chill down his spine. He understood Lloyd's fear of snakes now.
The elevator dinged again, and there was the distinct sound of Nindroids marching across the room, then something heavy being set down. "But Arcturus has landed. Prepare the factory. The Golden Master will rise on their return!"
Hiro shut his eyes tightly, a whimper almost escaping his mouth. Nya shot him a worried look, but he shook his head. He could recognize his father's voice from anywhere, and now his limbs felt like they were made of jelly, unable to be used. His breathing picked up just a little bit faster.
"He's vulnerable. We must fight him now," Garmadon whispered.
"No," Wu argued. "Not until we get the ninja home safe. We must get back in contact. We need to find somewhere we can't be found."
Hiro wasn't so sure about that. Despite how scared he felt, he wanted to— he needed to fight his father. He needed to let out all of his pent up emotions, and killing his father felt like the perfect way to do just that. But he understood that it would be impossible — he couldn't fight off Borg, Pythor, the Nindroids, and kill his father at the same time, and he doubted the people he stood with now would be much help in his vendetta, except for maybe Nya, who actually seemed able to fight.
"I know just the place," Garmadon agreed.
The platform began shaking. Everyone looked up to see Borg beginning to cut the platform ropes with his laser eye. Hiro's breathing picked up, and he finally looked down, regretting it immediately. His vision blurred.
"They found us! Don't lose those computer components! We need them all!" Nya ordered. The first rope snapped, sending the platform sideways. Hiro fell against the rails, somehow managing to keep hold on what he needed. Everyone practically fell against him, making him grunt in pain, Nya's elbow hitting his bad side. She sent him an apologetic look.
"Hurry, use our momentum," Wu commanded as the platform swung sideways. "Together. Now!" Another rope was cut. As the platform swung to the left, the team jumped off. Hiro managed to land on his uninjured side, no doubt giving himself a bruise in the process. Nya pulled him to his feet. Hiro held onto her, then looked past her to see Garmadon diving to the ground to save Wu, grabbing him just before he fell too far to save.
"I've got you, brother!" Garmadon grunted, pulling Wu up. Hiro hurried over, taking Wu's other arm and helping Garmadon pull him up. As soon as Wu was safely on, Hiro stood up and collected the computer components that he'd dropped. The Nindroids began shooting at them through the hole in the window, Borg and Pythor watching with glee. The team gathered behind Nya, who pulled out a reflective fan, hitting away the lasers.
"Great. Now we'll never get out of here!" Nya exclaimed.
Pixal raised her hand to her temple. "Leave that to me," she promised. The Nindroids continued to shoot at them. Hiro frowned, shifting so he was able to hold the components in his arms instead of his hands. He closed his eyes, letting his power crawl over the helipad, up the side of the building, and latch onto one of the Nindroids. It was a little awkward to move his hands with all the stuff he was holding, but he managed to jerk his hands to the right, sending the Nindroid he'd attached to flying out of the building. He opened his eyes and grinned, glad that he was finally being useful.
The sound of whirling drew his attention away. Hiro turned, seeing a Hover-Copter headed toward them. Nya closed her fan. "Good thinking! You're still linked into the security forces!" Nya praised, picking up the monitor she'd brought.
"Now let's get out of here," Pixal said. Wu and Garmadon hoped into the Hover-Copter. Pixal followed. Nya went next, helping Hiro in when he jumped, steadying him so he didn't fall. Hiro sat beside her, practically collapsing against her. She wrapped an arm around his shoulders as the top of the Hover-Copter came down on them, closing the team in and getting them out of the city.
"I hope the city can survive without us," Garmadon muttered.
"So too the Ninja, I pray," Wu agreed.
Hiro lowered himself to whisper to Nya. "I'm scared," he admitted, voice so soft that he wasn't even sure if she heard him.
She smiled grimly. "Me, too," she agreed and, somehow, that made everything okay.
( BIRTHRIGHT — REBOOTED )
Misako welcomed them with tea and warm hugs, both of which Hiro made desperate attempts to avoid. He understood, of course, why Garmadon had brought them there — the monastery was empty, secluded, dark. No one would find them there in time to stop them from helping the Ninja and, besides that, Garmadon probably missed Misako after the quick goodbye they'd had days prior. But that didn't mean Hiro was happy with being coddled like a toddler.
"It should be working," Nya announced, handing everyone their headphones. "Ready?"
Wu nodded, tapping the microphone.
"Ninja. Do you hear me? Lloyd? Do you read me? You must not disturb the alien life. They are very dangerous. Can you hear me?" Wu asked.
"I couldn't make that out, Sensei. What did you say?" Kai asked, and Hiro had never been so happy to hear his voice.
"The alien life. They're very dangerous," Wu reiterated.
"A few years ago scientists studied a meteorite that had fallen to Ninjago. It most likely came from the same comet you're on," Nya jumped in, reading from a book. "Inside the meteorite, there were the fossilized remains of some kind of parasite that feeds on metal alloys." Hiro could faintly hear Zane say something, and then he and Jay began to laugh. The sound kept cutting out, giving Hiro something very creepy to listen to, distorted laughter and cut off words. "Do you hear me? Whatever you do, don't come in contact with the parasites. They eat through metal!" Nya exclaimed, shutting the book.
The Ninja began to shout, voices overlapping each other, which told Hiro everything he needed to know — the Ninja had come into contact with the parasites, and now they were fucked. Unsurprisingly, Hiro wasn't, well, surprised. He expected it, honestly.
The team turned off their side of the connection, most likely accidently. Nya sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. Misako attempted to hand Hiro a cup of tea, but he shook his head, not wanting to be a bother. She frowned but nodded and moved on, shooting him a few worried looks.
Hiro began to pace, moving in a small circle around the room. His stomach twisted, but from nerves or hunger, he wasn't sure. Hiro wasn't even sure when the last time he actually ate was — two days, or five? A week? More or less? He was thirsty, too, and he didn't want tea, but he didn't know how to ask Misako for coffee without her and Nya stepping in to scold him for drinking it so late and on an empty stomach. There were always too motherly to him — it was annoying. He could take care of himself.
"Avashiro, stop pacing," Garmadon ordered.
"Oh, fuck off," Hiro muttered, his brain feeling like it was buzzing. He quite literally couldn't think.
"Excuse me?" Garmadon asked, not surprised by his language, but shocked that Hiro had directed it toward him directly.
"Sorry," Hiro dismissed, perhaps the most surprising thing he'd said to Garmadon that day. Misako and Wu shared a look.
"Avashiro, can you come with me?" Misako asked gently. Hiro hesitated, glancing at Nya; she nodded. Hiro shrugged and followed Misako out of the room, into the hallway. He took off his headphones and hung them around his neck so he didn't lose them as he faced her, stopping outside of the main room. He didn't want to stray too far from the computer in case the Ninja called them again.
"Are you feeling alright, Avashiro?" Misako asked.
Hiro scowled. "Why does everyone keep asking me that? I'm fine," he snapped. Misako frowned.
"I highly doubt that, Avashiro. Your father is back, the team is in space, you were stabbed — if you felt okay after everything that had happened, I would be deeply worried for you." She laid her hands on his shoulders. Hiro tensed. "It's okay to not be okay, Avashiro. What's not okay is neglecting yourself to the point where you could die. When's the last time you ate something?" Hiro opened his mouth to respond, then closed it. "Slept?"
"I—"
"Slept a full night without passing out from being exhausted in body and mind," she clarified. Hiro feel silent. Misako sighed. "That's what I thought. We're worried for you, Avashiro," she said, taking her hands off of him. "I know it may not feel like, considering how stressed everyone is with everything else, but if they knew the extent of your suffering, they would feel guilty, Ava—"
"Shiro. Just call me Shiro," Hiro cut in, hating the sound of his full name. Misako raised her eyebrows.
"They would feel guilty, Shiro. You're part of the team, of their family. You need to think about how they would feel if you were to die."
"Yeah, and how about how I would feel?" Hiro asked, wanting to believe he was joking. The way his voice cracked assured him it wasn't a joke.
Misako frowned deeply. "And how would you feel, Shiro?" she asked gently.
Hiro crossed his arms, clenching his jaw. "Don't— you are not a therapist, and I am done with this conversation," he muttered, turning around and heading back inside the main room. He heard her sigh and begin to follow him. Hiro put on his headphones again, coming to stand beside Nya, who gave him a questioning look. "Anything from the team?" he asked. She shook her head, doing nothing to quell the sickness twisting his stomach. It was definitely nerves.
It took a few more minutes to hear anything from the Ninja, of which Hiro spent nervously bounding on the heels of his feet, his brain buzzing with spiraling thoughts. Kai's voice was the first that Hiro heard through the headphones, and Hiro was positive that he was never going to feel so happy about hearing Kai for the rest of his life — until he heard what Kai had to say, that is.
"They got— failed— repeat, they got— Golden Weapons," Kai said, voice cutting in and out, but his message was clear. Hiro's heart dropped.
"Are you on the rocket? Can you stop them?" Nya asked desperately, realizing how bad the situation had become since she'd last spoken to them.
"No. The ship is destroyed. We're not coming home," Kai announced.
Silence settled over the room, heavy. Hiro felt like the room was spinning beneath his feet.
They'd lost?
Hiro stepped away from the group, his heart racing, throat dry. Nya turned to look at him, brows furrowing with worry as she reached out to grab him. "Shiro," she warned, voice soft. "Come on, come sit down, it's okay, it'll be okay." Hiro didn't know if she was trying to reassure him or herself.
"Hiro?" Lloyd asked. "Hiro, it's—" Hiro ripped off his headphones, dropping them onto the ground and turning to run. He ignored the group still on Earth crying out for him to stop as he ran into the hall, down the stairs, outside—
How did he get outside so fast? One moment he was just going down the stairs, and the next moment he found himself in front of the monastery, standing in its shadow. He shook off the dizziness and ran, moving into the woods as fast as he could, ignoring the fact that he couldn't breath, he couldn't think, all he could do was look up at the sky and wonder if he would ever see Lloyd again, if the Ninja had any chance of getting home. The stars offered him nothing.
It wasn't home without them, without Lloyd. Hiro couldn't pretend it was.
Hiro collapsed behind a tree, the shadows surrounding him, his breath caught in his throat. Everything hurt, every part of his body screamed at him to calm down, but he couldn't breath, think, move, breath, breath, breath—
He was hungry and scared and so fucking exhausted, tired of everything spinning, tired of losing and crying and not being able to breath. He was tired of the panic, of the expectations, of his powers, of not being able to use his powers, of not being able to help. He was tired of Garmadon's hatred, he was tired of being near Wu, he was tired of sympathy and praise and friendship and— and whatever he had with Lloyd. He was tired of it all.
Hiro shook as he curled his hands into fists in the grass, trembling all over. He covered his mouth as a wave of sickness washed over him, vision blurring. The sky was dark. Hiro could pretend that the dark didn't scare him anymore. He could pretend he was okay. He could pretend he wasn't scared.
He could.