Rise of the Overlord

Chapter Fourteen

Hey guys! Sorry I haven't been able to update anything, my house doesn't have internet so I have to go to the local library for Wifi. Sorry for CLC not updating, I'm a little stuck on that one... And can you believe this story is over 1K reads??? Holy shit! I was so excited when I saw that! I can't thank you guys enough for it! 

Kai stared at the ember red of the Fire Temple, the volcano behind it bubbled and gurgled, occasionally spitting out lava and smoke into the dawn sky. Wisp, Shard and Rocky had changed back into the forms of the ninja and stood beside him.

Rocky turned to Kai, "Are you ready to start your training?"

Kai nodded, "I believe so, but after training is done where am I going to sleep?"

"There are rooms on the second floor that you will be sleeping in, Shard can create some ice blocks to lower the temperature if it is needed," Wisp said, Shard nodded next to him.

"Then let's do this."

The group of four walked inside the temple and were greeted with a sudden blast of nauseating heat and the gurgling of lava, Shard immediately started to sweat and pant softly.

Kai gave her a nervous glance and said, "You don't have to be in here, it's too hot for you. I'll be fine." She sighed and looked over at the other two elemental masters, they nodded in agreement. Shard turned and left the temple, immediately cooling down in the morning air. Kai asked Rocky, "Will she be alright?"

He nodded, "Yeah, she'll be fine. She just wants to be a strong teammate but due to the conflicting elements she cannot remain in here for a while. We tried to warn her but she can be very stubborn." The remaining masters walked to the center of the temple, surrounded by the streams of lava and visible waves of heat. Kai sat down on the center island, the former resting place of the Sword of Fire, as Rocky and Wisp stood across the stream from him. "Flame is going to lead you through your training, once you've mastered her teachings you'll move onto our lessons, alright?" Kai nodded, the masters of earth and lightning left the temple. As the door closed, a sudden wind circled through the temple, catching lava, fire and smoke until it formed into a figure of Flame, Kai shuddered as he felt her leave his body. Flame opened her eyes, glowing red with gold irises, as she gave a soft sigh.

"Are you ready to start training, Master Kai?" she asked.

He nodded, "Yeah. Let's do this."

Flame said, "Let's start with your breathing. Close your eyes and focus on the breaths you take. In... out... in... out..."

Kai closed his eyes and took in a thick breath, the heat warming his lungs before exhaling into the overheated air. Deep breath in, listen to the bubbling magma and the crackling of Flame's energy, deep breath out. Deep breath in, try to not choke on the smoke, deep breath out. Kai could see the bright reds and golds of the Fire Temple's lava through his closed eyelids as he continued to concentrate. But then his concentration started to slip, the reds and golds faded to black as his stiff body began to slack.

"Kai...Kai...KAI!" He felt a sharp sting on his cheek as he jolted awake, his wide eyes glanced around before seeing Flame's disapproving and slightly worried look. "Stay awake!" she scolded. "You almost fell into the fire!"

Kai felt his face heat up from embarrassment, "Oh, I'm sorry Flame."

Her gaze softened, "It's alright, just...please focus. If you need something to think about, think about your friends, before all of this happened." Kai nodded and closed his eyes once again, he started to think about Nya and her bright smile, the grin she would make whenever she talked about Samurai X's adventures or the latest training skill she mastered. Then he heard a familiar laugh as Jay entered his mind. The cobalt blue Gi stood out in his mind as he thought about how happy Jay made Nya and all of the crazy inventions they made, including upgrades to the Samurai X mech.

"In...out...keep going Kai," Flame said. "You're doing great."

Hearing the encouragement made him think about the Earth Ninja; all of Cole's teachings and ways to get him and the others to train better, like threatening to make them lunch if they didn't start to work harder (it definitely worked, Kai hadn't sweated that much since he started blacksmithing years ago), to creating challenges and rewards and competitions between them. A small smile grew onto his lips until he felt his stomach growl, a strong craving for Zane's cooking overtook his thoughts, his mouth watering at the thought of Zane's buttered mashed potatoes and his katsudon. Oh how Kai missed his delicious cooking and the occasional food fight between the team, the laughter filling the Destiny Bounty as they were covered head to toe in food.

"Keep focusing Kai, don't lose your concentration."

The last person to enter his thoughts made his heart ache the most; his beloved Green Ninja. How he missed those sparkling emerald eyes, that radiating smile, his adorable chuckle, his blond hair that shone like the rays of the sun. His heart ached as he thought about training with him, taking him for rides around Shihon in the Ultra Sonic Raider during their free time, his excited smile when he would get a piece of candy from Jamanakai Village. Tears started to brim under his closed eyes as he realized he will never see Lloyd again, that he would never get to tell him how he felt about him, how he would never hear his laughter or see him again. The Overlord killed him. He killed Lloyd. He killed him and I wasn't there to save him. I was right outside that door, I could've saved him. I could've helped him. I could've stopped him. I could've saved all of them. The salty tears were now evaporating in the suffocating heat of the Fire Temple, sobs racked through his body. I can never tell him I loved him. I can never tell him how much he meant to me. I failed him, I failed them, I'll fail everyone.

"Kai! Open your eyes! Look at me!" Kai felt his shoulders burning as he was shaken frantically. "There's nothing you could've done! You haven't failed him, you haven't failed your team! Look at me!" His eyes flew open, his vision blurry as he frantically blinked away the evaporating tears. Flame was staring at him, her red and gold eyes filled with worry as her hands held onto his shoulders. She glanced at her hands and yanked them away, staring at the blackened handprints on his shoulders. 

Flame opened her mouth, hesitated, closed it, then said, "You haven't failed them, Kai. I can feel that sadness within you. It breaks my heart to see you like this, to see those memories you have with your team..." To hear you confess your feelings. The words, though unspoken, echoed through the temple. "Kai, your team is still alive. Yes, it is true that they are under the influence of the Overlord, and it will be much harder to save them without Lloyd's power, but it is still possible. You must have faith that we can win this war and save them. Do you understand?" 

Kai felt his dry throat close up, more sobs threatening to choke themselves out as he nodded. Flame sighed and said, "I believe this is good enough for now, we can continue this later. Shall we see what Rocky, Wisp and Shard have planned for you?" Kai nodded again and shakily stood up, Flame's smoke and fire body dissipated as she returned to his body. They quietly left the temple and closed the door behind him, the magma continued to boil and bubble as silence filled the air.