Vision of Ninjago

Child's Play

Taking a few deep breaths, I try to calm the whirlwind of emotions inside of me. That's when I hear something in the room.

Removing my hands from my face, I stand and scan the room. My eyes almost instantly spot bright red fabric under the bed. Walking over, I cast an unamused frown at Kai, who sheepishly smiles at me from under his bunk.

"Who else is hiding in here?" I groan to the room, rolling my eyes.

"Me, I'm in the bathroom," Jay says embarrassed, opening the door ever so slightly.

"I am also under the bed," Zane's voice comes from behind me. Looking back, I watch him hesitantly slide out from underneath his bunk.

"I'm in the closet," Cole's muffled voice comes from the small wardrobe in the corner.

"We accept you Cole," Jay smiles.

"No, I'm literally in the closet."

"Love is love."

"This isn't a joke," Cole says, the door shaking slightly, "I can't get it opened." I sigh and pry open the small door, impressed Cole even managed to fit in the first place. As soon as the door opens he spills out and onto the ground. "Thanks..." he mumbles, a heap on the floor.

Before anything else can happen, Nya frantically runs in, Lloyd hot on her heels. "There you guys are," Nya pants, "there's been a break-in at the Ninjago City Museum of History and the security cameras picked up you-know-who."

"Garmadon," Cole says, clenching his fist.

"Good," I add, crossing my arms, "I have some aggression I need to work out."

"We have to stop him before he uses the Mega Weapon to start another one of the diabolical plots," Jay mentions, his voice growing louder for emphasis.

Lloyd takes a step towards us, a hopeful smile on his face. Just as quickly as it came, his smile disappeared. "Yeah, yeah, yeah," he complains, mimicking the others, "I can't go and it's safer if I stay here and train."

Everyone nods to the boy, who just crosses his arms, "I know you guys want to keep me safe, but the only way to do that is to wrap me in bubble wrap forever," he slumps.

"Believe me," I tell him, kneeling to his level and mustering a small smile, "We've thought of that." I plant a kiss on the top of his head, which his joking tries to wipe away.

The setting sun makes the sky a soft pink. The Bounty is stopped just outside the city, Lloyd and Nya on the deck while the rest of us climb aboard the UltraSonic Radar.

By the time we arrived at the museum, it's already dark. From the roof, Jay tosses a rope over the side of the building. One by one, we slide down and climb through a second story window. Silently racing down the halls, the five of us crouch at the railing, overlooking the exhibits down below.

Skales enters through a door, flashlight in hand and the other generals in tow. Slithering further into the room, I spot other Serpentine following close behind.

"Why would we come to a museum if we weren't going to steal anything from it?" the Venomari General questions Skales, who is shining his flashlight greedily on a golden sarcophagus.

"Because Master Garmadon..." begins one of the Fangprye's heads.

"...has another plan to destroy the ninja," finishes the other.

"Master Garmadon?" Skales repeats. "Ha! He's no master of mine," he complains "since his so-called Mega Weapon has failed every time. I don't see why we don't call our own shots."

"Because this time I will not fail," Garmadon booms. I flinch at the new voice. In the darkness, Garmadon had managed to sneak in, startling not only the Serpentine, but also us ninja.