It had been a week. A week of Morro learning Airjitzu with Lloyd's tired aching body. A week of Lloyd struggling, resisting, looking for an opening, because surely Morro would tire eventually? A week of scheming with Morro's ghost friends, building a mech in preparation for their upcoming mountain adventure. And a week of nightly drinking, either for enjoyment, or simply to frustrate Lloyd.
Morro had stopped talking to him directly, which was a form of torture all on its own. Lloyd wasn't even sure how much (if any) of his internal screams and curses could be heard by his captor, but it was all he was capable of. He longed for Morro to snap at him, insult him, just acknowledge that he was still here! That his consciousness wasn't slowly being erased by his continued possession.
Lloyd was exhausted. By now fairly certain that ghosts did not in fact need to sleep. He hated leaving Morro unsupervised, the one thing he could do right now (apart from screaming at Morro) was gather intel, listen to their plans. What if he missed something important? But he couldn't stay awake forever, and frequently fell into the most restless naps he had ever had. Jolted awake by his moving body, or nearby voices.
Finally, it is time for the mission. Time to climb the mountain, and make their way to cloud kingdom. The ninja are there, hot on their tails, filling Lloyd with a small spark of hope. Maybe they'll be able to rescue me.
Getting Lloyd's physical body up the mountain was causing Morro some difficulty. Lloyd practically melts with satisfaction hearing Morro declare "Lloyd's spirit continues to fight my possession, he's getting stronger." So I am having an impact, you piece of shit! His joy is short-lived as he catches sight of Cole in his mech. It was hard to tell at this distance, but he seemed to have that greenish glow that Lloyd had become so familiar with. Surely he wasn't… surely Cole couldn't be a ghost? Was he possessed too? But he was fighting with the ninja, so that couldn't be it.
Morro sends the ghosts to deal with the Ninja, not getting too close himself. He continues to drag them up the mountain. They finally reach the top, just in time to see the ninja use Airjitzu to make their way into the blind man's eye, Lloyd is able to see Cole much more clearly. There is no mistaking Cole's ghostly form.
What happened to you?
Lloyd's heart breaks, knowing it must have happened because of him, because they were trying to save him. Because they were fighting ghosts. Morro's frustrated screams offer little comfort.
Lloyd had managed to wrestle control back from Morro at just the right time, used it to give Kai the sword of sanctuary. He hadn't gotten away, he wasn't able to get himself captured by the ninja, but he had done something to help the team.
He delighted in this thought as Morro used his wind powers to slow the descent of their damaged vessel as it fell off the cliff, hit the slope, and continued to make its way down the mountain. Eventually it came to a stop, colliding with a patch of dense trees that they were unable to navigate through.
Morro growls in frustration, kicking right through the damaged mast, then jumping off the vessel and pacing angrily in the snow. "We had it, it was right in my hands, and you let it get away!"
"Um, boss, it was you who…"
"I wasn't talking to you!" Screams Morro at the other ghosts. "Lloyd." He spits the name with such anger. Lloyd is enjoying seeing his little meltdown, knowing that he did something worthy of such outrage.
"You are going to learn your place."
Morro walks them up to one of the trees, grabs it and slams their head into the trunk. Pain bursts through Lloyd's temple.
What the fuck? He needs me right? That has gotta hurt him too?
Morro yells, and slams their head once more, hitting the same spot, amplifying the pain and making their ears ring.
"I want to make something very clear to you Lloyd." He snarls, watching blood drip into the snow at their feet. "While I have a use for your body, I have no use for your brain. Ghosts can possess objects if necessary, and a bit of pain does not bother me in the slightest." The words slip out of his mouth, sharp and precise.
Lloyd tries to suppress his panic, Morro doesn't seem to be done with him, rage still boiling away.
Surprisingly Morro choses that moment to vacate Lloyd. Lloyd collapses to his knees, pain bursting through his body as he tries to remember how to move it. He leans on the tree, head ringing from the blow, body freezing and fatigued from climbing the mountain. But he is free, he doesn't have to struggle to move his fingers, to use his voice.
"Go to hell." Lloyd stammers, trying to push himself back up, hating how weak he sounds.
"Oh I've been there," snarls Morro, "it's about time you made the trip." He holds out his hands and air swirls around Lloyd's head. Lloyd gasps, suddenly unable to breathe.
"Let's play a game. We see how long you can hold your breath before passing out. I let you come to, then we try to break the record."
Lloyd slips further down the tree, raising one hand to his throat, futilely searching for the cause of the obstruction. He looks up at Morro seeing a sickening grin as his vision starts to blur. His lungs burn, and he keels over now lying on the ground. It takes time, but Morro is patient, eventually black spots start taking over Lloyd's vision as everything slips away.
Lloyd wakes with a start, taking a gasping breath as pain radiates through his head. He coughs, rolling onto his side, trying to push himself up on a trembling arm. At least he still had control of his body.
Morro's foot pushes him back down onto his back, holding pressure on his chest.
"You will not defy me again." He snarls. "Say it."
Lloyd lies there trying to catch his breath, chest aching as he takes in as much air as possible. Morro isn't happy with his stalling, briefly increasing the pressure on his foot. "Say it!" He commands.
Lloyd looks up at him with determination. "I will defy you, every chance I get." He spits, voice hoarse.
Morro's smile turns into a frown. "Wrong answer." He lifts his arms towards Lloyd's head, and the air becomes thin once more. Knowing what to expect doesn't make it any easier, body gasping, lungs burning. Shit. He's actually going to kill me. "Time to beat your record. Come on Lloyd, you're the green ninja! Surely you have more fight in you than this?"
Lloyd squirms under Morro's weight, maybe if he got away? But he was trapped, and outnumbered, the other ghosts watched from a distance, not daring to interfere. It's hard to tell, but he's pretty sure the black spots come quicker this time, forcing him out, showing him who's really in control.
Lloyd wakes again, still lying on the ground, body still his own. His head pounds. He's dizzy, the world is taking its sweet time to come back into focus. This can't be good for him, he wasn't sure how much more he could take. He doesn't bother trying to get up this time. Morro would just push him back down. Right now he needs to endure, give him what he wants. Make this stop.
"Lloyd, that was pathetic, even shorter than the first time. I thought you were trying to break your record? Do you want another go?"
Rage coils through Lloyd, as he tries not to react.
"Speechless? I thought you would want to take advantage of this brief freedom? Or have you learnt your lesson?" Morro's tone changes from the sickly soft taunting, to a rough yell. "You will not defy me again!"
Lloyd feels the pressure of Morro's foot increase upon his chest. "I will not, defy you…" he stammers weakly, before coughing, still struggling to put out the fire in his lungs.
Morro chuckles. "You think you're so clever? Lying to me like that? That I wouldn't see through it? You really are quite stubborn." He raises his hands once more.
"No, no, not again, please!" Lloyd begs, still gasping, fear leaking into his broken voice.
Morro grins as the air starts to swirl. "You are not in control. You don't get to tell me when to stop."
Tears form in Lloyd's eyes, head still pounding, panic gripping his soul.
"The beautiful thing about asphyxiation is that it can easily cause brain damage, while leaving the body mostly intact."
Morro's words are fuzzy, not sounding right from beyond the sphere of thin thin air, either that or he was already starting to pass out again. Lloyd tries to turn his head away, clawing at the ground. His lungs burn, the spots are coming faster this time. Before they can completely overcome him, Morro stops. Lloyd takes a gasping breath, relief flooding through him for but a moment, before he feels the familiar icy shiver as Morro possesses him once more.
Their body trembles with laughter. Morro closing their eyes as they catch their breath. "That's much better! I wanted to feel your fear, while it was still fresh. Now stay out of my way, unless you'd like to play again."
For once Lloyd doesn't fight Morro, taking a backseat in his own mind. Relishing the fact that he can breathe, thankful that he was still alive. Shame grows inside him as he realises how quickly he had turned, how easily he had been broken. He wants to go home. He wants this to be over, but Morro had reminded him, he was not the one in control.