Ninjago - Heart of Stone

Chapter Twelve: The Celestial Clock

It had started out small, just a tiny ache in her arms, a tension in her chest. Her muscles were sore, and she wanted to rest, to lie down, to sleep. She was running, her heart hammering against her chest, and she didn't know what from. She couldn't rest. If she did, the unnamed, faceless shadow looming behind her would overtake her, and she would be lost.

But the pain had grown, and Lexi had found herself paralyzed with it; paralyzed yet still running. She couldn't stop. She physically couldn't. Her legs were ablaze with pain, and her lungs were empty and flaming, but she couldn't stop.

Lexi emerged from the tent, checking to make sure she was alone. The others were gathered on the shoreline, talking loudly, skipping stones, enjoying themselves. She straightened up, reminded herself that she didn't have anything to fear, and went to join them.

Cole noticed her immediately, but he averted his gaze as quickly as he'd sent it her way. Lexi did the same, feeling warmth spreading through her body, tickling her cheeks. Jay, Kai and Lloyd were having an animated argument about something to do with Star Wars, but Lloyd broke away when he saw her coming.

"Hey, Lex," he said, jogging over to meet her half way, "Are you feeling better? You looked pretty tired when we arrived."

Lexi nodded, cursing herself for not checking to make sure she looked presentable. For all she knew, she could have dark circles under eyes, or her cheeks could be so pale they glowed. "I'm okay," she said, in as cheery a voice as she could manage, "how about you? I don't think any of us got any decent sleep last night."

"Oh, we all took a nap," Lloyd said offhandedly, "you were just the last to wake up."

Inexplicably, a jolt of fear shot through Lexi. "What time is it?" She asked, alarm bells going off in her head, panic threatening to take over. She didn't want to seem weak to the ninja. Liability was not flattering. Lloyd noticed none of this and simply replied, "oh, I don't know... almost five? It's hard to tell." He shrugged. "Don't worry, we'll probably all sleep soundly tonight anyways; we need to be at full strength if we're gonna find the Celestial clock."

"The what?" Lexi asked, frowning. It had taken her a moment to get past 'almost five', but now she was realizing that no one was suspicious of her long nap. So far, her secret was safe, and no one need know of her nightmares. "What clock?"

"Oh, right, you didn't hear." Lloyd pursed his lips, thinking a moment before continuing. "Mom said it's this clock— or, something like a clock, I don't really know— that the Overlord will use to count down until he can leave. It's... when reaches zero, the island will be ready, and he can go— as long as he has the power, that is."

"So..." Lexi frowned. "We have to find the clock... and stop it? That's it?"

Lloyd shrugged. "If you have any questions, ask Mom. She seems to know everything about everything to do with history."

Lexi's chest tightened and her heart throbbed at the way Lloyd said that so easily. 'Mom' rolled off his tongue as naturally as if he'd been saying it his whole life, as if he'd always had Misako with him. "Okay," she heard herself say, and she willed her feet to carry her away from Lloyd and towards the only person she wanted to talk to. Unfortunately, Zane appeared to be enthralled in a conversation with his father, and even Lexi wasn't selfish enough to interfere with that. Wu and Misako were sharing a hushed conversation that Lexi wanted no part in, and the rest of the guys were continuing their debate about Star Wars. 

Lexi wandered down to the shoreline, standing on the damp sand, sliding off her shoes and letting the tide roll over her bare feet. The water was cool, calming; like a massage, almost. Lexi smiled, wiggling her toes and burying them under the sand, where it was even cooler. The tide was gentle, lapping over her feet like the the rising and falling of a breathing chest, cool water sinking into the darkened sand.