Seabound

Unsinkable

Pixal lead the way to the Ninjago City Harbor. Turning, she offered Zane a small remote, "Zane, would you do the honors?"

He took it, skeptically pressing the only button on it. Within a few seconds, a massive submarine had surfaced.

We gaped in awe at the sheer size of the thing.

"How did you build this so fast?" Jay gawked.

Pixal shrugged, "I had been tinkering with it in my spare time over the past several years."

"It's amazing, Pixal," Master Wu praised.

"I am proud to say it is one of the most sophisticated vessels I have designed, and it is practically unsinkable."

I cringed at the comment. Cole seemed to be having the same thought. "You know what happens when you call a vessel 'unsinkable,' right?"

"You didn't have to voice it," I muttered, while the rest of the ninja glared at him.

Nervously, Cole attempted to recover, "It doesn't sink, or course."

We hopped up on top of the submarine, checking it out.

"This is great, Pixal!" Lloyd commented, "Just what we need."

Nya seemed very skeptical of the whole operation, "But how can you be sure that the underwater pulse you guys saw is causing my powers to freak out?"

"Ninety-seven percent positive," Zane reassured from the dock below.

"Sounds pretty positive to me," I added.

"But what if my powers go crazy on me while I'm down there?" Nya fretted, "Maybe I should sit this mission out..."

"That's exactly why you need to go!" Jay encouraged, taking his girlfriend's hands in his, "You're the Master of Water. There's no one more connected to the sea than you!"

"However you do make a point," Master Wu interjected, smirking slightly, "If you'd rather stay here with you mother?"

"No, no, no. Jay's right. I'll go pack!" Nya rushed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You want me to what?"

"I need you to stay behind, Celine," Master Wu repeated calmly.

"Why? Why can't I go to Merlopia with the others? That's not fair!" I protested.

Master Wu made a calming gesture with his hands, "It's not about whether or not it's fair-"

"You don't think I'm ready for a big mission like this." I couldn't believe it.

"It's not because I don't think you're ready. You're more than capable, believe me. Besides, you're not the only one staying behind. I need some of you to be around to protect the city if that energy pulse hits again, so Kai and Cole will be staying as well," Wu explained.

I let out a disgusted breath, plopping down on a chair in the monastery library, "I still don't like it."

"I never said you had to. But this is the way it's going to go. Besides, you could do with some training above water, and in all honesty, I could use someone else to ensure the monastery doesn't burn to the ground."

I slouched in my chair, arms crossed, "This is stupid."

Master Wu let out an exasperated sighed, "I'm sorry you feel that way, but this is how it's going to be."