▬promise of particles▬lloyd x FEM!reader▬

Deserts don't provide much stealth -112-

Jay shook his head, wiping his brow. "Nothing too important. But could we have something to drink? The desert is.. oh it's hot."

"Go grab a cold one then! I got some nice new liquors and ice cubes in ta' back."

Walking into the shop, you were immediately hit by a fan. How much did cooling cost all the way out here? Walking to the fridge, you were thinking of grabbing a can of cider, but voted to just grab water instead. Scanning the shelves for something to munch on, you could overhear Lloyd explaining the makings of his plan.

He was explaining how once they figured out who was next, someone could pose as them, and infiltrate the council. A bad feeling warbled in your stomach at his mention of disguising. What was wrong with his plan? Jay eventually reduced the villains down to the Mechanic, guessing that he'd be next.

Sirens.

Everyone turned towards the door, watching the two ever approaching vehicles. Fuck.

You slid into the back room, pulling Lloyd in with you. Zane and Cole crouched behind the counter, Kai was in the rafters, while Jay and the pigeon were behind a shelf. Worst place possible.

Stepping back against the dark cupboard, you could basically feel your heart beating out of your chest. This was it. You were gonna get caught again, and get punished even worse this time. You were going to-

Lloyd grabbed your hand from beside you, pushing against your body in the tight room. It definitely wasn't big enough for 2 people to be hiding it.

If you could focus on anything other than how loud your heartbeat must've been, maybe you could've heard what the police were saying; but no. You did manage to hear shelves falling though. And Fugi-dove yelling.. in pain?

Jay ran through the backroom, pushing you both out of a door you hadn't seen before. "What- I- I don't even know what to feel anymore!

Rushing out, Kai blasted one of the cop cars to bits, while everyone else piled into the second one. Just barely escaped. And Fugi-dove had sacrificed himself. Maybe that bird brain was okay.

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Wincing, you listened to the chain crash to the floor. Now with the lock out of the way, the team could get into the abandoned arcade.

The place smelled like rat shit and old smoker, which was reasonable for someone like the mechanic. It was dark and dingey as well, just as a villain lair should be.

"Creepy arms? I'd say the guy is still here.." Kai announced, tapping the hanging robotic arms, causing them to sway with small creaks.

Kicking a bolt on the floor, you watched it roll in a circle, settling at the foot of an arcade cabinet. The stillness in the air seemed odd.

Glancing up, a giant, red robot claw shot towards you, and threw you to the ground. You definitely needed to get checked for a concussion, this many blows to the head could not be healthy.

The guy laughed, standing in the shadows up high. "Well, if it ain't the Ninja, dropping by unannounced! You should've called ahead, I'd make appetizers!

The Mechanic lifted the claw up, giving you enough time to roll out from under before he swung it towards Zane, pinning him against the wall.

Rolling to your feet, you went to pull out your sword, but realized... You weren't exactly sure where it even was? Was it still at the monastery? Had the cops taken it? Had Aspheera taken it? You shook it off, sliding to the left just in time to not get hit by another claw.

Reaching for your belt, you wrapped your hand around the gun the police had left in the car. You'd used something like it before... Right? Archery was close enough, definitely.

"-This is a good opportunity for some payback!" The Mechanic cheered, holding Cole and Jay mid-air.

You nodded to Lloyd, who kicked an arcade cabinet down, which fell onto of the man. Stepping up, you made sure the gun was on safety, pointing it towards the Mechanic. "Stay there or I will blow your brains out." Hopefully he ignored your shaking arm.

He sighed, surrendering under the gun's watch. Cole and Jay tied the guy up, and took him outside. Seeing them throw him into a noodle truck, you turned to watch Lloyd.

The blond looked lost in thought, staring at a mechanical arm. "I'm gonna pose as him." He looked at you, expecting you to argue back.

While you really wanted to fight about how he didn't need to go sacrificing himself for the 50th time, you were busy making up your own plan. He was still recovering. He needed someone to look after him. "Alright. Skylar's is down the street, so I'm gonna pick up food real quick." Skylar's was a few blocks across, but he didn't need to know that.

He frowned, watching you turn to leave. "Are- are you upset about something?"

Furring your brow, you glanced back and forth. "No? I'm sorry- I just am trying to understand what's been going on these past few days. I love you, and I promise I'm not upset.. I think it's a great plan."

Lloyd smiled, grabbing a fake mustache from the side table. How many people were wearing fake facial hair??

Walking out, you turned the corner into an alleyway, and began messing with the tiny buttons on your sleeve. "Pix?"

Her voice crackled in your ear, worried. "Is everything alright Y/n?"

"Just peachy.. you implemented that color shifting thing into our suits, right? It feels the same. How do you do that?" You asked, tapping through various settings.

You could hear a rolling chair, and an engine starting through the comms. Pixal rose her voice a little louder so you could hear. "Press the right middle button twice. It'll activate the color correcting. Tap the top or bottom middle buttons to select a color and hue. Does that help?"

Tapping it the buttons she said, your suit began to 'morph' under you, changing through various colors. "So much, thanks Pix." You mumbled, turning the connection off. Settling on a black, you sighed. You were gonna do this, weren't you?

Getting a good grip on the pavement, you leapt onto the wall opposite the arcade, and used that to help you push through the window, into the upper area. Pressing a button you discovered earlier, soft padding adjusted around your feet, causing your fall to be dead silent. Treading carefully over the various bills and papers, you snuck down the staircase, and opened the secret wall hatch.

With a small wince, you clicked the door locked again, sliding along the shadows, making sure you were out of view from Lloyd.  Crouching down behind a shelf, you watched him put on all the right accessories. It'd look half convincing if he was bald instead of having bright, beach blond hair.

A pink light suddenly emerged from the ground, and a large hole was cut into the floor. Just like Pythor, a small, crystal spider crawled out. It stared at him for a second, as if it was judging if Lloyd actually was the Mechanic or not. But it eventually lit up with a purple light, a hologram appearing out the top.

"You are invited to join the Council of the Crystal King and have your revenge upon those who have wronged you." The same masked figure from the prison announced to Lloyd. Hopefully it was just a recorded video and they couldn't actually see Lloyd. "Do you accept?"

With a cough, Lloyd deepened his voice (although it still seemed pretty high pitched). "What took ya so long?!"

"Good. Follow the spider. It will bring you to me."

Fuck maybe it was a live video... Or maybe you were just being too nitpicky about Lloyd's disguise since you knew him. His features were exclusive for you to love. Maybe that's why he looked so off in disguise.

The spider launched down the same hole from earlier, the hologram now off once more.

He pursed his lips, glancing from the window to the hole, and then lept inside. A small thump sounded as he fell into the subway tunnels.

Pulling your now-black mask up, you took a deep breath, and jumped into the hole, crouching as you landed. You just had to make sure he was going to be okay.

Just to make sure he was going to be okay.