CHAPTER SIXTEEN

DEAREST NINJA

THERE WASN'T MUCH TO BE said after the death of Zane Julien. People went their separate ways—over the course of a few weeks, Lloyd would find himself seeing his friends less and less, and one of them not at all. It was difficult for the youngest Ninja to see his family leaving each other, leaving him, and it was even harder to come to terms with the disappearance of his best friend. It was expected for the three Ninja to begin to disperse following the death of their brother, but for Hiro to leave Lloyd after they promised to stay together hurt in a much different way than Lloyd expected.

He took his feelings out during training. He took out his frustration toward Hiro for disappearing by kicking the asses of the new security Nindroids; he took out his anger toward Kai by making sure the droids had to continuously be repaired; he took out his sadness over the team disbanding by helping Cyrus Borg make sure that the Golden Armor the Overlord had worn couldn't be stolen for anyone else to use, not that Lloyd thought anyone else would be able to withstand the power of the armor—just one touch could vaporize someone, no matter their species.

Lloyd sighed as the false armor disappeared from in front of him, the hologram making a pleasing sound as it blinked out of existence. He struggled out of the rope around his waist as Borg spoke, a door at the side of the simulation room opening to reveal Sensei Wu and the inventor.

"You got closer than I thought you would," Borg praised. Lloyd got out of the rope and moved toward the exit, pulling down the mask of his uniform. "But then again, I didn't think you'd be quite so rough on my security droids," the man added, nodding to the pile of sparking Nindroids. Lloyd felt an impulse of fear run down his spine before remembering that just because the Nindroids had the same look as their evil counterparts, it didn't mean they themselves were evil. Borg had reprogrammed them.

"If I can't steal the Golden Armor, I'd be surprised if anyone else could," Lloyd assured, moving around Borg to push the man's wheelchair forward. "It's secure, but where's the real one?" he asked, smiling lightly. He'd asked Borg the same question every time they ran through the security drill, and he never got a good answer out of the man. He supposed it was best he didn't know, anyway—with the new technology in Ninjago, his mind could be read in an instant, and then where would he be?

"Some secrets are best kept safe," Borg said, amused.

"Lloyd, where are the other ninja? I asked for all of you to take part in this test," Sensei Wu spoke up. Lloyd paused, turning to look at his uncle with a sheepish look.

"Uh, they, uh, they really wanted to be here, but they, uh . . . all had other plans," he stammered, his smile falling away to a frown as he turned around again, continuing to push Borg forward. A heavy feeling settled into his chest as he remembered the read but unanswered messages he had sent to the other Ninja, asking them to come down to the training session.

And the unread, unanswered message he had sent to Hiro begging him to home.

"I understand perfectly well. The loss of Zane has affected us all," Borg said gently. "I haven't even heard a word from my assistant Pixal since his memorial. It's heartbreaking." Lloyd nodded in agreement, a small sigh escaping him. It was difficult to hear Zane's name without his mood immediately becoming sour; Lloyd tried not to let Zane's death affect him, but how could you process your brother's death after only a few weeks? There just wasn't enough time in the world to grieve while being a hero.

"If we dwell too long on what's missing, we fail to see what can be gained. The absence of Zane will either tear you four apart or bring you closer together. The choice is yours," Sensei Wu said. He gave Lloyd a look. "As for Avashiro, it's imperative that you don't let his absence distract you. You know that he is safe, Lloyd—he is able to take care of himself. I don't like that he is missing, either, but you must be assured of the fact that he isn't in danger, especially now that his father is gone."

Lloyd frowned. "I know, Sensei. But Hiro— he's my best friend. I can't not worry about him. He's alone and he's never done well with being alone."

"He will come back to you when Destiny commands it," Sensei Wu assured him. Lloyd shrugged, not fully believing. Destiny was something that he had been taught from a young age, but . . . given everything that had happened to him and his family, Lloyd wasn't exactly Destiny's biggest fan. She had taken his dad away from him, then his mom, placed him in the wrong life for a child to grow up in, and forced him to think he might have to kill his dad. And now she had taken his brother and best friend away from him with no warning, giving him no time to prepare for their losses.

"You should speak with the Ninja, have them come by for training," Sensei Wu advised.

"I'll do what I can, but it won't be easy," Lloyd told him.

"The greatest lessons never are," Sensei Wu mused. He gave Lloyd a sad smile. "Now go home and rest, Lloyd. You will need your strength if you are to speak with your friends." Lloyd nodded, though he knew he wouldn't be doing any resting. The second he was out those doors, he was going to find the Ninja and remind them of who they are. He knew that Zane would be disappointed in them if they gave up on the team because he had died. He would want them to keep fighting.

Lloyd had to honor that.

The statue of Zane, placed in Capital Park, hadn't been visited since Zane's funeral, at least not by anyone on the team. There were spots of bird poop, and the metal had become faded since it sat under the beating sun every single day, a mold having grown from the melted snow. There were weeds growing on the steps. Being completely alone, only surrounded by the memory of Zane, made a chill run down Lloyd's spine. He wrapped his jacket tighter around himself as he looked up at the statue, swallowing thickly. He wasn't sure he was ready for this. There was a reason he hadn't come to visit the memory of his brother.

". . . You would know what to do." His voice trembled, lower lip quivering. Behind all the awards, behind all the power, behind the green, behind being a hero—Lloyd Garmadon was a child who had grown up too fast.

But nobody can outgrow grief.

"I'm sorry, Zane. I'm so, so sorry, you didn't deserve— you deserved to live. The team deserves to have you here." He looked down at the cracked ground, angrily wiping at his eyes as he felt tears prick them, irritating. "You would know what to do to get them back together. You would know how to find Hiro, you would know how to save the city— hell, you already saved us. And we didn't deserve it, not really. Humans, we're fucked up, you know." He chuckled bitterly. The first time he's sworn in a while, and Hiro wasn't there to tease him about it. "You should've seen the sunset that day, Zane. It was beautiful."

He cleared his throat, shaking his head. It wasn't going to do him any good to cry over somewhere that wasn't even Zane's gravesite.

"I'm going to get the team back together. We're going to keep saving the city because that's what you would have done. No one will ever replace you, but I promise you, Zane, we will fight on. I'll bring them home. I'll bring everyone home," he promised, looking up at the statue.

His gaze was drawn to a figure standing below the statue, covered in a long, black cloak that had the hood up, concealing their face. Lloyd frowned, hurriedly wiping at his eyes so he didn't look like he had been crying. The stranger tilted their head, staring at him. Lloyd didn't feel threatened by their presence—they didn't seem like they were there to hurt him, but the way they were watching him made his skin burn. Was this a fan, someone who had caught him during a vulnerable moment? Why were they wearing that cloak? It was hot out today, the sun shining down.

The wind blew past, the person's hood moving back slightly. A flash of pale skin, dark eyes that Lloyd couldn't tell the color of—black, maybe, but sometimes if you looked at him in the sun, it was like onyx mixed with purple, catching in the light and making him seem so much more dangerous than he actually was.

Lloyd's breath caught in his throat. "Hiro?" he questioned, voice breaking.

The stranger went tense, quickly turning around and disappearing behind the statue.

"Hiro!" Lloyd shouted, running after him. He reached the spot that Hiro—had it even been Hiro?—was at, but found nothing more than the statue's shadow, no sign of the cloak-wearing stranger that had caught his interest. Lloyd rested his back against the metal statue of his brother and let his legs give out from under him, sitting down on the floor and covering his face. He was imagining things now. Hiro wasn't there. He was gone, missing, and Lloyd had to find him and get the team back together and grieve for his brother and—

Lloyd choked on a sob, and the wind that blew by caused goosebumps to appear on his skin.

( BIRTHRIGHT — TOURNAMENT OF ELEMENTS )

He was getting too close.

An old book in his hand, his blood pounding in his ears.

Destiny has told me of a boy . . . who better to pass on the darkness to . . .

He was getting too close.

( BIRTHRIGHT — TOURNAMENT OF ELEMENTS )

Lloyd knew that his friends had left the team to 'pursue other passions.' But he didn't know how far it had gone until he was looking at Jay hosting Most Ultimate Extreme Ninja Challenge Ever, a challenging show that had been on its final legs until Jay became the host. Maybe that wasn't so bad, but it was the fact that Jay, who wouldn't be caught dead in makeup—not that Lloyd thought there was anything wrong with wearing makeup, but, like, it's Jay—applying concealer in his dressing room. Lloyd figured that Jay would be the easiest to convince to come home—he was still pining after Nya, who still spoke about him, and once he'd relayed that information, he was off to find Cole.

Cole was the most logical in his next career choice. Lloyd found him chopping wood in the Blackwood Forest, making use of his super strength to climb trees and cut them down. Out there, no one knew who he was—Cole seemed to like the simplicity of the life, managing to blend in with the other lumberjacks. Cole claimed to be tired—that, at least, Lloyd could understand. He was exhausted, physically and emotionally. Still, when Cole had to reveal his powers to save some falling logs, causing rocks to jut out of the ground like a monument to Earth, Lloyd smiled and told him where to find him, knowing Cole would find his way home.

Kai was harder to find, Yang Tavern being was an underground bar that moved locations every other day. Lloyd remembered the Slither Pit and all it entailed, and while he was already enthralled by the event, when he saw Kai in the ring he knew he had to stop and watch. Kai was unbeatable, using his Spinjitzu against opponents, which Lloyd would think was unfair if not for the fact that Kai was going against monsters that the Ninja had defeated before.

After his victory, Kai took a seat at the bar, and for a moment Lloyd was afraid he'd have to confront a drunk Kai fresh out of a fight. He was relieved to see Kai drinking juice instead, especially since Kai was underage.

"You shouldn't drink too much juice. It's filled with more sugar than you realize," Lloyd told him, coming to stand at his side.

"Oh, it's you," Kai said, sounding almost disappointed. Lloyd wondered who he wanted to see.

"The team needs you now more than ever," Lloyd told him, the same words he'd said to Jay and Cole. The air had been tense around them, awkward—with Kai, there was lingering anger and resentment, a silent accusation in Lloyd's words—You drove him away. Fix it. Lloyd wasn't sure if he would ever forgive Kai for what he'd said to Hiro, but he knew it wasn't his place. Hiro had to decide if he forgave Kai, and Lloyd would follow his lead no matter the choice.

"Who says the great and powerful Green Ninja needs a team?" Kai deadpanned. Lloyd narrowed his eyes at him. "You seem to be holding down the fort on your own."

Lloyd scowled at him. "I get it, Kai. You've run out of bad guys to fight out there, you've got to come to a place like this. But where's the honor in that? Where's the Master of Fire?" he asked, giving Kai a sharp look. There was too much anger here. Lloyd shouldn't have come.

"It's the Red Shogun now. And where's the Master of Ice, huh? He's gone, but I'm still here. Who cares about honor? It should've been me. I should've been the one—"

"You always thought you should've been the one," Lloyd cut in, speaking over Kai. "First it was being the Green Ninja, now this. You drive people away, you force them to conform to your wishes, you say things without thinking and don't stick around to deal with the consequences," Lloyd snapped, the last expression on Hiro's face still present in his mind, the look of a kicked puppy who had been yelled at before he disappeared. "When are you gonna start thinking of someone other than yourself?" He sighed, turning his back on his once-brother. "If you change your mind, you know where I'll be."

He found himself on the sidewalk, standing under a streetlight, taking in the warm afternoon air that surrounded him. He had a few hours until he needed to be at Chen's Noddle House, so he figured it was time to get started on the second part of his day.

"Excuse me," he said, getting the attention of an older woman, "have you seen anyone who looks like this?" He handed her a flyer, Hiro's face printed onto the paper, an image from the group photo taken after the death of the Overlord. Hiro was smiling, eyes crinkled with delight. He'd been caught mid-laugh after Lloyd told him some horrible joke that he couldn't remember. You couldn't see the rest of the group, but you could see Lloyd's arm in the frame, wrapped around Hiro's shoulders, Hiro leaning into him.

She gave him a sad smile. "Sorry, no idea. Good luck," she said, handing him the flyer. Lloyd gave her a tight smile in response, watching her walk away. He sighed, looking down at the paper in his hand and resisting the urge to crumple it into a ball.

Hiro's last expression wouldn't leave his mind, but the feeling of kissing Hiro wouldn't leave his entire being. He swore that he could still feel the shock of Hiro kissing him running through his veins, promised himself that he could still feel Hiro's lips against his. He could feel everything and nothing at the same time, the desperation to have Hiro back with him and the dawning acceptance that he might never see Hiro again. Hiro was like the wind, there for only a moment before leaving the next, able to knock down entire lives if he so wished, or just being a gentle breeze passing through.

Lloyd was like the ground on Earth, rooted in place, barely able to move. He felt the wind pass by and wished he could be as reckless and free, but he had responsibilities that kept him in place, a family that kept him rooted. He could be reckless sometimes, but he would never be free of expectations. Hiro was lucky like that.

And yet not a lot of people hated the ground as much as they hated the wind.

Hours later, when the sun was beginning to set, Lloyd settled himself into a booth in Chen's Noddle House, taking the corner next to the conveyor belt. The people inside the restaurant were quiet, leaving Lloyd alone with his thoughts.

Cole was the first to arrive, sitting across from him. He glanced down at the table, brows furrowed, and Lloyd followed his gaze to see that he hadn't put away his flyers for Hiro. Face burning, Lloyd quickly shoved them inside of his jacket. "Sorry," he muttered.

Cole shrugged. "Can't fault you for looking for him." He sighed, looking at the food on the belt. "I'd give anything to just know that he's safe, y'know?" Lloyd nodded in agreement, though honestly, he'd give anything just to have Hiro by his side again. Knowing that Hiro was safe would ease some worry, but nothing would compare to having Hiro back with him. "You haven't found anything?" Cole guessed.

Lloyd shook his head. "Everyone I've asked hasn't seen him. Hopefully, that means that he's moving around, hiding. It means he isn't dead."

Cole nodded. ". . . You don't think he went back to the island, do you?" he asked gently.

Lloyd's brows furrowed. "I— I haven't thought about it. Should I check? I— I can get a boat out there and—"

"I doubt it," Cole cut in. "When he, uh, when he had that panic attack? When I found him? I doubt he'd ever want to step foot on the island again. That's a lot of trauma to get over just to go into hiding."

"He's strong," Lloyd protested.

"Stubborn," Cole corrected. Lloyd sighed, knowing he was right.

Jay was the next to arrive, hesitant at first before his expression hardened at the sight of Cole. He sat down beside Lloyd, arms crossed, and Cole turned his body to face the conveyor belt. "Hey," Lloyd greeted carefully, trying to see how Jay was feeling. Jay scowled at him, so Lloyd let the subject drop, shaking his head. It wasn't worth the trouble, he decided.

Now all they had to do was wait for Kai to show up. Lloyd didn't really have hope for the hothead to show his face, considering how their last interaction had gone, so he was pleasantly surprised to see Kai enter the Noddle House, looking around for him. Lloyd stood, waving his hand to catch Kai's attention.

"Kai! Back here!" he called, waving him over. He noted that Kai was wearing a red jacket the same color as his ninja suit. It was rather strange, wearing his own ninja suit while the other three wore regular clothes, and he wondered just how out of place he currently looked.

Kai got to the booth within a few seconds. He glanced at the other two with semi-wide eyes. "Jay? Cole?" he questioned.

Cole snorted. "You too?"

Jay scowled. "The runt tricked us all," he complained, causing Lloyd to frown. Oh, how he wished Hiro was there at that moment to get the others to shut up and listen to him. Hiro had a nice habit of speaking his mind and telling others when they needed to be quiet, versus Lloyd's more soft nature when it came to leadership.

Kai sat down beside Cole and immediately went to reach for some of the sushi off the conveyor belt. Lloyd was quicker, grabbing his arm to stop him. "We talk first, then eat," he ordered, putting on his most serious expression. He let go and Kai sat back with a skeptical look.

Cole groaned. "Trust me, do you know what kind of restraint I've had to have, staring at all of this noodle goodness?" he asked, turning to look at Kai. "You're late!" he added with a frown and a scowl.

Kai rolled his eyes. "Make it quick," he muttered.

Lloyd took a deep breath. He knew what he was about to say wouldn't go over well with them, but maybe they would do him a favor and think it over. "I know without Zane things have been different, but we have to move on," he started, internally wincing at his own phrasing. "The reason I brought you all here is because . . . maybe we should add someone new to our team."

The response was immediate, everyone shouting at him for the mere suggestion. Lloyd wanted to smack them—they certainly didn't seem to care about Zane enough to visit his memorial site, but they cared enough to say adding a new team member—which Zane would most likely approve of, if it meant helping Ninjago—was crazy of Lloyd to suggest? Maybe I wouldn't have to suggest it if you hadn't made Hiro run away, Lloyd thought, glancing at Kai before shaking his head, knowing he needed to focus. "I cared for him too, but now it's time to care about this team!" he exclaimed with frustration.

"Maybe without Zane, there is no team!" Kai snapped, crossing his arms and turning away. Lloyd turned his gaze down onto the table, not wanting to admit that Kai might have had a point. Zane was the glue that held them together, and now that he was gone . . . what use was the team to Ninjago without something to keep them from separating?

The door to the Noddle House opened, but Lloyd didn't pay the new customers any mind until Jay spoke up in a hushed voice, saying, "Oh. Don't look now, but we've got trouble." Despite Jay's warning, Lloyd allowed himself to look, spotting three rather villainous-looking men harassing the restaurant owner. From what Lloyd could see, they were wearing makeup and torn clothes, probably to add to their aesthetic, but Lloyd didn't exactly appreciate the appeal when they were currently putting the restaurant owner on the conveyor belt and laughing at the poor old man.

"All right, now they're our problem," Cole decided, jumping over Kai to get out of his seat. Kai, Jay, and Lloyd shared a look before rushing to follow him. "Excuse me, it's not polite to touch someone else's food," Cole said, crossing his arms and he glared at the offenders.

"I'd listen if I were you," Kai advised. "He's no fun to be around when he's hangry." Lloyd barely had time to smile at the realization that the team was unwittingly coming back together before the supposed leader of the thugs let his fist fly toward Cole, who blocked it with a pair of unused chopsticks. The man tried to kick at Cole next, but that was also blocked.

A fight broke out, Cole against the leader, while Kai jumped up onto the conveyor belt to take on the other two men. Food was flying, but for the time being, Lloyd let himself watch the fight with Jay, seeing that Kai and Cole didn't seem to need any help at the moment.

Cole pushed the leader onto the conveyor belt, and with Kai's push, the two minions fell onto him. Kai leaped onto the pile and then jumped off the conveyor belt, ending up with the rest of the group.

"How can you walk away from this?" Lloyd asked, smiling brightly at the team. For a moment, the other three smiled back, and Lloyd could almost imagine Zane and Hiro with them. His smile faltered at the thought, but a scream from across the restaurant pulled the team's attention. The gang was running out the back door, the leader sending them a challenging smirk that Lloyd knew wouldn't go unanswered.

"Let's get them, guys!" Cole exclaimed, and the four took off running after the group of offenders. The doors opened into a dimly lit alley, seemingly completely closed off, with trash spread throughout. It seemed that the alley was once meant to be an outdoor section to eat at the Noodle House, but had been long since abandoned and now housed trash.

And a strange alter, two candles lighting up a golden, tall plate with fortune cookies and drawing attention to a drawing pinned to the wall.

"Where did they go?" Kai questioned, but Lloyd was already moving toward the altar. "Huh? Lloyd, what are you doing?" Lloyd ignored him. Within seconds, the other three were at his side, looking at the alter with him.

"What's this?" Lloyd wondered out loud.

Kai gasped as he looked at the picture. "It's Zane!"

"What does it say?" Cole asked.

Lloyd pushed his way forward, grabbing the picture that had been pinned to the wall with a silver knife. His eyes quickly scanned the text, growing wide as he processed what was written next to Zane's face. "It says . . . he's alive." Despite his suspicion, Lloyd felt himself grin as everyone gasped.

"I don't think those thugs were delivering a message to the Noodle House. I think they were delivering a message to us," Kai murmured in thought. Jay leaned over Kai's shoulder to look at the paper, pointing at it.

"What do you mean it says he's alive?" Jay asked.

"Hey, I'm just telling you what it says," Lloyd said, shrugging. He wasn't sure if he believed the paper or not. Zane being alive . . . that would be the first step on the road to recovery for the team, having a common goal once again—to get their brother back. But what reason did Lloyd have to believe a random paper that a group of thugs led them to? There was no proof. There was no way. If Zane was alive, why hadn't he contacted them himself?

"You know, this has to be some cruel joke, and I'm not laughing!" Cole exclaimed, scowling with his hands on his hips.

Lloyd shook his head, pointing at the fortune cookies. "Look. I think this was meant for us too," he said. "Should we?" Cole reached forward, grabbing one of the cookies and shoving it into his mouth before anyone could blink. Lloyd frowned at him.

Kai picked up one of the cookies with a smirk. "Uh, you do realize there's a fortune inside, right?" he asked, snapping the cookie in half and pulling out the fortune slip.

Cole swallowed. "Oh, so that's why they're called that," he said with a grin. Lloyd rolled his eyes, opening his own cookie and glancing at the slip of paper inside.

"Listen to this. 'Master Chen has personally invited you to participate in his Tournament of Elements,'" he read out loud, ignoring Cole who began rambling about Mr. Chen, the Noddle House founder, and the Master Chen connection. Lloyd was more focused on the idea of a Tournament of Elements. What did that mean, exactly, and what did it have to do with Zane?

"'Secrecy is of the utmost importance,'" Kai continued. "'Tell no one, or suffer the consequences.'"

'"If you ever want to see your friend again, meet on the pier at midnight and leave your weapons behind,'" Jay finished. With a puff of smoke, Jay's fortune exploded in his hand. Kai's followed, then Lloyd's, and the three worriedly looked at Cole. It was quiet for a moment before Cole flinched, nearly jumping into the air with a squeak. Smoke exited his mouth, but for the most part, Cole didn't seem to be injured from the exploding fortune inside his stomach.

Cole groaned. "At least I know I was invited," he muttered. Kai and Jay chuckled, but Lloyd looked down at his hand where the fortune had been.

"You don't think . . ."

Kai looked at him, seeming to catch on to what Lloyd was thinking. "It could be a trap. A lie to lure us in," he advised. Hiro would say the same thing, but more bluntly. It could be a trap. If Zane was alive, he would have come to us. Unless he was kidnapped. Then let's go kick some ass and get that robot back. The thought alone almost made Lloyd smile until he remembered the severity of the situation at hand. Zane might have been alive, and here Lloyd was thinking about Hiro. He needed to get a grip.

"Yeah, but what if it's not? What if Zane's alive?" Jay asked.

Lloyd looked down at the paper again. The drawing of Zane stared back at him, covered in a faint drawing of a snake. "The Tournament of Elements. I'm starting to think this Master Chen makes more than noodles," he muttered.

"You can forget bringing in a new ninja, Lloyd. Let's go see about an old one," Kai said, and with that their choice was made.

They were going to bring Zane home.

And one day, Lloyd would bring Hiro back as well.