Chapter 17: Cardboard Box
As the sun fell beyond the horizon, the ninja found themselves in completely new surroundings: a jungle. Unlike the gradual transition that would be found in nature, here in the Departed Realm, the change was abrupt and jarring in the way that death can often be. One moment, there was endless sand; the next, a lush jungle split the two worlds with an unnatural precision. The boundary was stark: not a single grain of sand bled into the dense undergrowth, and no roots dared to creep into the barren wasteland behind them. The only constant between these distinct biomes seemed to be their capacity to consume anyone who would dare enter— by shifting sand or by grasping vines.
Asking the inebriated Morro why this was, however, led to an intense lecture about endangered rainforests, and they did not receive an answer to their question.
Now, they were gathered around a flickering fire, its warmth offering a small reprieve from the desert's biting chill as night fell. The campfire danced like a beacon in the darkness, casting jagged shadows across the landscape, highlighting the edges of nearby sand dunes. Occasionally, the wind would stir, sending small dribbles of sediment trickling down in powdery clouds that mixed with the drifting embers.
Though the cold was intense, they had carefully weighed their options and decided it was far better to endure the frigid air than risk the suffocating humidity and treacherous jungle floor. No one was eager to sleep among the tangled undergrowth, where the scorpion's smaller, venomous spawn—or worse, the creatures Morro only referred to as "scallywags"—could easily creep upon them.
Kai, weakened from his injuries, had been carefully settled on the ground beside the fire he had made for the group, his face pale but peaceful as he drifted in and out of sleep. Lloyd sat cross-legged at his side, his green eyes sharply scanning the horizon for signs of movement. Occasionally, his gaze would soften with worry as it fell on his brother.
Zane and Nya sat huddled together, their voices low as they debated better treatments for Kai and Nya's wounds. Zane was meticulously cataloging options while Nya nodded, wincing as she jostled her arm.
Cole had claimed a spot further than the others and leaned against a rock. Morro had latched onto him again, both arms wrapped possessively around Cole's waist as he slept with his head resting in his lap. Cole bore the position with good-natured resignation, though he had endured plenty of teasing from the others for it. He hadn't had the heart to move the ghost.
Jay lingered on the edges of the camp, fidgeting nervously as he observed the scene. Finally, he worked up the courage to approach. Cole noticed him as he drew closer, his eyes flicking up briefly in acknowledgment before returning to the fire. Jay hesitated, then leaned against the same rock Cole was propped against and slid down to sit beside him. For a moment, neither spoke, the distant crackle of the fire filling the silence.
"Hey, Jay."
"Hey."
"I've been meaning to talk to you."
Jay started as the words he had been trying to get out of his mouth for the past few minutes came out of Cole's instead.
"Uh, yeah," he replied, nodding. "You can talk to me about anything."
"Well, I wanted to go over this with you before I brought it up to everyone," Cole said, purposely looking straight ahead instead of at Jay. The lightning ninja tried to negate the anxiety roiling in his stomach as he waited for Cole to continue. Cole's hand was rubbing Morro's back, most likely just an instinct, but Jay felt a familiar pang of jealousy. "Kai almost died. Nya broke her arm. We could've been hurt or a lot worse. And, it's all for my Soul Stone. It's all because of me."
Jay sighed, shaking his head, "Cole, we've been over this multiple times. We're-"
"No, it's more than that. I think, maybe, I should," he hesitantly raised his eyes to Jay's. "stay here."
"St-stay here? In the Departed Realm?"
Cole shrugged, already regretting his suggestion. "Yeah." He took a deep breath. "It's just… I'm basically already dead, and I remember who I am while I'm here, so it's not like I'll be lost like I was at home. Apparently, Gem can't make me her slave as long as she only has half my Soul Stone, so we don't have to worry about that. You guys could go home right now where you'll be safe instead of losing all your souls to Gem- or worse!- and I could probably get Morro to teach me more about being a ghost and existing here, so-"
"Cole!" Jay interrupted, horrified. "Why- why would you ever think that was a possibility? We came here to save you, not send you away forever! Besides, you never died!"
"Might as well have," Cole grumbled. "I'm not going to let you guys risk your Soul Stones for mine."
Jay put his head in his hands. "Why do you have to be so stupid?! Don't you see why I had to keep you trapped in my body? You won't let anybody help you! This is what family does for each other, Cole. Why can't you accept it?" He looked up, staring hard at the ghost who was still glaring at some far off spot. "Are you afraid you'll look weak if you're not constantly being 'the strong one?' Do you just not care about life anymore? About us? Because, we-"
"It's because I deserve to be here."
Jay gaped, drawing back like he'd been burned. Seeing his best friend look so miserable suddenly made it all the more tragic that ghosts were incapable of crying.
"Cole," he said gently, but now the black ninja seemed determined to ignore Jay's attempts to get him to make eye contact. "Cole, where is this coming from? If anyone deserves to be here, it's me. You've done nothing wrong."
"That's not true." He rubbed his arm over his face, more out of habit than a need. "I killed my mom."
Jay was silent for a moment as a sob escaped Cole.
"Tell me what happened."
Cole shook his head. "She was an alcoholic. A good-for-nothing drunk. But, I didn't understand that. I thought that helping her hide it from dad was like… like a game or a secret. I was five."
Jay felt a stab of pure, fiery rage at Cole's mother. "She got drunk while you were around?"
"Only when I was around." Another sob. "I was the one to find her body. She died of alcohol poisoning."
Jay tried to imagine finding his own mother's corpse but couldn't without tearing up.
"If I had told my dad sooner, he could've saved her," Cole insisted. "I knew it was wrong- or, I could feel that something was off, so if I had just!…," he shook his head with a rueful chuckle. "He always told me it wasn't my fault, but deep down, my dad blames me for her death. Whenever he sees me, I can tell he thinks it, even if it's just for a second. And he's right."
"No, Cole," Jay answered immediately. "We all see how your dad treats you. He thinks the world of you. That's him blaming himself for not seeing it sooner- or, maybe not wanting to see it. And, not being there for you when you needed him…It wasn't your fault. It wasn't."
Cole wordlessly shook his head, shutting his eyes tightly.
"Cole," Jay grabbed his best friend's shoulder and squeezed so tightly he was afraid his hand would phase through him. "It was not your fault. You were five. You didn't know any better. You can't blame a child for doing what his mother told him to do."
Cole still had his eyes shut.
"At some point," Jay whispered. "You have to forgive yourself."
And then Morro laughed, shattering the moment.
"Parents are the worst," he announced, sitting up, eyes squinted and red with exhaustion and sudden anger. "Mine left me in a cardboard box… Baby in a box. They should sell those at the mall."
Suddenly, an intense wind howled through the dunes, the fire dangerously close to sputtering out. Jay shivered as the camp dimmed, and Cole reached out a hand. "Morro-"
Morro stood, his breaths turning erratic to match the weather. "Don't call me that! They sure didn't! They never called me… anything!" He shouted, drawing the attention of the others. The wind's howl upgraded to a roar. "You want to know how I got my damn name? I begged. I begged on the streets for scraps and every time I got something, I'd ask for just a little bit 'more!' I was just trying to get by, but they didn't get it. The shopkeepers and all the other kids teased me until 'more' became 'Morro' and THAT became my NAME!"
Nya stepped toward him. "Morro, please calm-"
But, the wind drowned her out.
"And I LOOKED for them!" Morro laughed hysterically, and the others shied away. He didn't even appear to be aware of the fact that the wind was responding to his emotions. He just wanted to scream for the sake of screaming. "When I died, I looked for those bastards, and you want to know why I couldn't find them? Because they're still alive. They're alive somewhere, sipping martinis and not even sparing a thought to the child they left in a fuckin' box, and I just wanted to make them pay for what they did to me, what they helped me become—"
Kai, who in spite of his wound, managed to push himself into a standing position and limp over to the ghost through the wind rushing around him, hugged Morro.
"I know," he whispered as the wind raged on, leaning more on Morro than he meant to. The ghost went as stiff as a board in his embrace, unable to respond. "I know, Morro. And they deserve to be punished for it, but you're more than what they did to you. What you choose to do now is what defines you."
Slowly, the wind began to die.
"What I do…" Morro repeated, trembling.
"Yeah," Kai reassured, pressing gently down on Morro's shoulders to urge him into a sitting position. He complied, settling on the ground with Kai kneeling beside him. "So, what are you going to do now, Morro?"
The ghost thought about it before looking at Kai. "Be better?"
As Kai guided Morro into laying down, the wind dwindled until it matched the natural state of the desert. The ghost didn't resist. Only looked up at the fire ninja. "That's good, Morro."
"Be good…," Morro confirmed, eyes falling shut.
Then, he was asleep, and the night was as calm as it had been mere moments before. Lloyd slid to catch Kai as he keeled over, fresh blood appearing on his makeshift bandages.
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah, yeah…," Kai answered, embarrassed as he tried to ward off Lloyd's concern.
"Kai, how did you… how did you know how to calm him down?!" Jay exclaimed, shifting closer to the central scene.
"We know how it feels," Nya said quietly.
"But, how do we know all of that stuff is even true?" Cole asked.
"The venom appears to lower Morro's inhibitions, not heighten them," Zane explained, observing the slumbering ghost in wonder. "I am not sure he has the ability to lie, let alone the desire to lie in this state."
"So… he really wants to be good?"
"I don't know," the nindroid looked down. "Just as I did not know that 'Morro' was not really his name. How tragic."
"Yeah," Lloyd said shortly before easily picking up Kai, who protested that his image was quickly becoming unsalvageable. Everyone ignored him. "Get some sleep. We might face Gem tomorrow, and we'll need to be well-rested."
Jay looked at Cole sharply. The black ninja swallowed and gave a small nod in return.
Lloyd placed Kai by the fire in his original spot and set about replacing the bloodied bandages with his and Zane's belts.
"And, what are we going to do when we run out of belts?" Kai challenged to cover up a hiss as his sticky bandages were removed and the wound was exposed to fresh air.
"Once we see a sign of civilization, hopefully we can find some real gauze," Lloyd replied distractedly. He inspected the gash and found no sign of infection yet.
"And why would ghosts be selling gauze?" He bit the inside of his cheek to redirect some of the pain as Lloyd helped him sit up so he could wind the fabric around his midsection.
"We'll figure something out, Kai," he snapped, knotting the "bandages" with a vindictive tug.
"Wow, okay, that was uncalled for. Hey," he grabbed Lloyd's wrist and squeezed, forcing the Green Ninja to look at him. "What's gotten into you?"
Lloyd scoffed, turning away, "Why don't you ask Morro? Since you're suddenly best friends."
A smile grew on Kai's face. "What, are you jealous? Of Morro?"
"Whatever. It doesn't matter," Lloyd tried to pull out of Kai's grasp- and Kai immediately sobered upon seeing actual tears in the Green Ninja's eyes.
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry. It's not funny." Kai admitted, causing Lloyd to at least stop struggling to escape. "I said what I did because I knew I could get through to him, and… I hate things being left unsaid," he explained quietly, thinking back to the last time he'd seen his parents. "You know my whole purpose in life is to protect you. Morro isn't even a blip on my radar." He moved to try and meet Lloyd's eyes, which were pointed at the ground and still half-full with water. "So, what's the real problem here?"
Lloyd glanced at him before looking around to make sure no one was listening. "Here, you should probably lay down," he instructed, helping Kai to keep pressure off his abdomen. He suspected the red ninja only complied to hear Lloyd's answer, but he was grateful for the lack of complaint nonetheless. "There's something I haven't told you guys about the time I was alone with Morro.
"Before we were attacked by the scorpion, he told me that one of the favors he wanted to ask for was my forgiveness," Kai stiffened with shock, but Lloyd continued. "I… I was angry, so I slapped him and told him I would never forgive him for what he did to me. But then when the scorpion came he saved my life. I was about to be stung, and he pushed me out of the way."
Kai waited.
"Then he goes and reveals his whole, tragic backstory, and how he doesn't even know his real name and hunted for his parents and all that, and… usually that means you should forgive them, right?" Lloyd shook his head. "But I just can't. I know it's complicated, but it just sounds like excuses to me… One act of selflessness doesn't absolve him of all the evil he committed, especially if he only did it because he wanted me to forgive him instead of out of a true desire to be good, so I just don't know what I'm supposed to do."
"Lloyd," Kai placed his hand directly on the Green Ninja's face to get him to stop talking. "It's simple. Don't forgive Morro just because you think it's the right thing to do, but don't withhold forgiveness out of spite."
"But, you did," Lloyd whispered. "You forgave him. It seems like the others have too. Does it make me a bad person because I haven't?"
Kai ruminated on this for a minute before responding. "No. And, well, I'm not sure I have forgiven him. Trying to understand him is not the same as forgiving him, but it's a step towards it. Besides, it's different for you, Lloyd. He… he violated you in an unimaginable way. You don't owe him anything. If you believe Morro is telling the truth and has done enough to redeem himself in your eyes, then forgive him. But if he hasn't, or never will, then don't."
Lloyd nodded, though an ambivalent expression remained on his face.
"Alright, c'mere," Kai grabbed the front of Lloyd's gi, pulling him down into a hug.
"Kai, I don't want to hurt you!" Lloyd reprimanded, though he squeezed the red ninja in response.
"Well, I have to make sure my little brother knows his spot isn't going to be taken by a certain ghost anytime soon."
"We're the same age," Lloyd huffed, moving to lay down beside Kai. He had to put on a good show, but, really, ever since he experienced the Bone Keeper's eerie, nightmarish future, he needed all of the reassurance he could get.
"Well, technically you're not," Kai argued. "Face it, Lloyd. To us, you'll always be 'baby brother.'"
"Oh, joy," Lloyd grumbled sarcastically, but he had to admit… here, in the arms of a brother who expected nothing from him, who didn't expect complete and utter selflessness and nobility from the prophesied Green Ninja, who only expected him to be human, "baby brother" wasn't the worst title to have.