Onyx and Rebooted

The Curse of the Golden Master

"It was his fault!" Jay and Cole both shouted simultaneously, pointing at each other. Nya responded by pulling out a glowstick and activating it, lighting up the tunnel enough to see. "Let's keep our eyes peeled. Our mystery suspect could be anywhere down here," Zane said, carefully stepping between Jay and Cole. Kai sighed as they all started down the tunnel. "Serpentine. Never thought I'd see them again," he said. "I don't think any of us did," Onyx agreed.

After about fifteen minutes of walking, they came upon a huge door engraved with figures of stone warriors. "Tomb of the Stone Army. It's been sealed since the Serpentine were trapped here," Kai said. Zane ran a hand along a crack in the door that had light shining through it. "It appears the seal has been opened," he remarked.

Before anyone could say anything else, the sound of nonchalant whistling reached their ears. The ninja turned to see Skales approaching. When he caught sight of them, his whistling stopped and he dropped the bag he was holding. "Aah! Not you again!" He exclaimed. "Skales. Something told me you'd be behind this. Search his bag!" Cole ordered, he and Jay grabbing the Serpentine's arms while Kai snatched up the bag and began riffling through it.

"Hang on, guys! We don't know if he's actually stolen it," Onyx said. "Yeah, what she said! This is harassment. I've done nothing wrong!" Skales snapped, wresting an arm free. "We know you did it! Where's the harddrive? What are you hiding?" Jay exclaimed. Nya rolled her eyes. Kai held up a package of raw chicken. "He's hiding...groceries? And the latest issue of Ninjago Times," he said, confused. Skales snatched his items back. "What can I say? I'm a sucker for the crossword. Sorry, you've got the wrong snake," he said.

"Daddy? Are you okay?" A squeaky voice asked. Onyx glanced behind her to see a tiny Serpentine peeking out of the door, which had opened a bit more. "Stay inside, Skales Jr.!" Skales said, quickly slithering over to the door and blocking the ninja's path. "Skales Jr.? Uh, you have a son?" Kai asked. Skales crossed his arms. "We've been busy since you left us. And we prefer to keep it that way," he said firmly.

Onyx put her hands up. "I'm not going to hurt a kid," she said. "Is this about the Golden Master? Is he going to hurt us?" Skales Jr. asked, his tiny voice quivering. "That is only a story, son. They were just leaving," Skales said firmly, glaring at the ninja. "Golden Master? Is this about Lloyd?" Zane asked, jumping on the familiar title. Skales worked his jaw. "Like you, we have our own legends. But I guess in ours, you are the bad guys," he said finally. "What legend?" Nya asked. Onyx had to admit that she was curious herself.

"They have a right to know. If we're going to shed a new skin, we must open our home to others," a female voice said. A pink serpentine stepped out of the door and up to Skales, leaning her head on his shoulder. It didn't take a genius to put two and two together. Skales sighed and jerked his head at the door. "Oh, all right. Let's go, surface dwellers. If you'd like to hear of the Curse of the Golden Master, follow me," he said, leading the way into the old tomb. Onyx hesitated for a brief moment before following.

"After a rather humbling scrap with those indestructible Stone Warriors, we've made amends with our warring past and found ways to help better ourselves," Skales narrated as he led the ninja through the tomb, which was surprisingly less grim than Onyx had expected it to be. Bioluminescent plants provided enough light to allow a soft layer of moss to blanket the floor, and starry glowing rocks dotted the cavernous ceiling. As they walked, Onyx noticed serpentine children playing with a ball, and one paused in their game to give her an awkward wave, which she returned.

"So you got a few snakes to go straight. Doesn't mean there's not one bad apple. Fangpyre have white scales, don't they?" Kai asked, not quite ready to let go of his aggression. "A few. Is this about the missing harddrive?" Skales asked with a frown. "This is about the Overlord," Cole corrected. Skales faltered a bit. "Ah, the Overlord. Glad we weren't around for that mess. No, we have no desire to meddle in the affairs above. As you can see, we stick to our own. We only want what's best for the next generation. Have a seat. You could learn a thing or two about your beloved Golden Master," he said, waving his hand at a fire surrounded by particularly squishy patches of moss.