- Adorable art of Kira done by our very own puffpal7! -
Cole, Jay, Lloyd, and Kira travel by rooftop that night, stealing toward Kai's suite. Garmadon opted to stay behind and watch for any suspicious activity, meaning it's just them on their mission tonight. The fire ninja waits for his friends on his balcony. They all arrive around the same time, ducking quickly into the room before anyone can detect them.
"Wow, nice digs!" Jay exclaims, looking around the place in awe.
"I know! His room is so much nicer than mine!" Cole complains as he munches on a bowl of candy. "Look, chocolate-covered shell peas! I love these!" He shovels another handful into his mouth, then races across the room and flops onto the bed. "Oh, and look how soft your pillows are! Man, mine are made of rock. What a crock."
"You got a rock bed too?!" Kira cries. "What's with these people?"
"Well, I guess you could say that rocks," Jay quips with a wink.
"Very funny." Kira rolls her eyes, but she's grinning slightly.
"Okay, seriously, it was almost impossible to get here," the blue ninja continues. "This place is swarming with guards. Any ideas on how we search the island?"
"We travel by shadow. Cover every square inch of this place until we find him," Kai replies.
There's a swishing sound, followed by a shriek from Cole. The others turn to see him laying on Kai's bed, looking entirely disoriented. "Uh, guys? This bed is..."
"Cole, I get it! You like my bed," Kai huffs. "Would you stop playing around?"
Jay and Kira exchange glances, aware of how odd that particular statement sounded. Cole's eyes gleam. "I think I know how we can search the island. Everyone, on the bed now!"
"This is getting weirder and weirder," Jay mutters. Nevertheless, he and the others obey, piling onto Kai's bed and laying down side-by-side.
"Okay, I feel ridiculous," Lloyd says after a moment. "Is this a joke?"
"Wow, Cole was right. The pillows are soft..." Jay sighs. He closes his eyes, a look of bliss softening his features.
"I must've done something to trigger it," Cole mutters. "I was laying here, then I stretched—" He shifts, and the moment he does, the bed flips over. The five ninja yelp as they're plunged into darkness, clinging to the ceiling for dear life.
"Whoa, a secret passageway!" Jay breathes. "Cool!" Beside him, Kira shudders, more creeped out than amazed. They drop to the ground. Kai raises his hand, and his palm bursts into flames, effectively lighting up the area.
"Nice work, Cole. Maybe Zane's not on the island," Kira observes, "but in it."
"Well then," says the earth ninja, "let's go exploring."
The group sets off through the tunnels. Aside from the dim light of Kai's fire and the occasional torch, the tunnels are pitch-dark, and the air is dank and almost suffocating. Long shadows seem to crawl after them as they walk through the maze. Kira stares around anxiously, body tense and eyes wide. Lloyd, noticing her discomfort, moves closer and twines his fingers gently through hers. The gesture calms her nerves a bit and she grins at him.
"Dang, it's like a maze down here," Kai remarks. "Good thing Cole's leaving a trail back to my room."
"I'm what?" Cole blinks. He looks over his shoulder, noticing a trail of chocolate shell peas littering the ground. "Oh, yeah, heh. I meant to do that."
They keep moving until the Green Ninja notices something up ahead. "Everyone stop!" he hisses, pointing at a tripwire a few feet in front of them. "Booby traps."
"Haha! Booby traps! Even cooler!" Jay exclaims. Lloyd turns around slowly and glares at him. "Or, I mean, cool. I mean, they're totally not cool, you know, 'cause they're dangerous!"
"Okay." The blonde rolls his eyes. "From here on out, we'll have to watch our step."
"Wait!" whispers Kai. "Do you all hear that?"
They pause at the sound of voices up ahead. A group of Chen's guards comes lumbering down the passageway, muttering to each other. Said murmuring turns to screaming as half the group is ambushed by the Ninja, who jump out at them from behind a nearby rock. A quick beatdown later, the Ninja emerge, now wearing the guards' clothing and face tattoos made from Cole's chocolate. Kira's having a hard time, struggling to keep her new clothing from falling off her tiny frame.
"You good, Kira?" Cole whispers over his shoulder. "Oof, that uniform looks pretty big on you."
"Sometimes I hate being 4'8," she mumbles. "This is one of those times."
They keep moving, following the rest of the guards, until at long last they emerge into an enormous cavern. Torches bathe the space in an ominous, glaring orange light, and top of that, there's a chanting echoing through the chamber that does little to calm their nerves. The Ninja do their best to blend in, chanting and waving their arms with the others at the back of the crowd.
"Stop licking your tattoos!" Kai hisses at Cole.
"It's chocolate, I can't resist!"
Lloyd shushes them sharply and they both fall silent, continuing their chant.
Master Chen appears at the head of the cavern, striding down a staircase with some sort of staff in his hand. Kira squints, noticing a large blue crystal embedded in it. A strange energy radiates from it—this isn't like any crystal she's ever seen. The old master slams the staff on the ground, and the rest of the cultists drop to their knees, prompting the ninja to hastily follow suit.
"Bring out the loser!" he commands.
The Ninja suck in a collective breath as two of Chen's men drag Rose into the room by her arms. To everyone's surprise, she doesn't fight or resist; rather, her eyes are closed and her brows are furrowed, as if deeply concentrating.
"Excellent," Chen sneers as they force her to her knees. "You couldn't foresee this happening, could you?"
"No," Rose responds simply, eyes still closed. "But then again, you couldn't foresee this happening, either."
Quick as a wink, she twists around and lunges forward, butting one of the guards straight in the head with her own. He releases her and goes reeling backward, gasping, and Rose uses the distraction to wrench herself free of her other captor. She takes off for the exit without a moment of hesitation.
"Whoa." Cole breathes with huge eyes. "That was impressive." The others nod in agreement, shock painted on their faces.
Two more of Chen's warriors charge at Rose, but the girl slides between their legs with ease, causing them to crash straight into each other. Another pounces at her and she swerves out of the way, sending him flying into the nearest wall.
"You fools!" Chen roars, almost red with anger. "STOP HER!"
Another pack of cultists gives chase. Rose keeps running, almost to the exit. Unfortunately, she doesn't realize how much they're gaining on her.
"Ros—" Kira starts, reaching for her, but Lloyd clamps a hand over her mouth with a warning look.
Rose turns, hazel eyes blazing, but she's not fast enough. She yelps as the cultists seize her, dragging her back to Chen's throne and forcing her to her knees once again.
"Finally," the old man grumbles. "Took you bumbling idiots long enough."
"I knew something was wrong about you!" Spits the master of fate. "Who are you really? What's going on? And what's all that chanting for?"
There's a hungry look on Chen's face as he gazes at her. "The first two questions are none of your concern, girl. But as for the third..." he raises his staff, a wicked grin slithering across his face, "they're saying 'only one can remain'. Like I said, use it or lose it!"
He points his staff, and a blast of silvery-white—undoubtedly ice—explodes from the crystal inside it. Rose screams as she's struck. The guards release her and she collapses, body convulsing and face contorting with pain.
"What's happening?" Jay squeaks. There's absolutely no hiding the fear in his tone.
"It's the crystal in the staff," Kira hisses. "There's something about it. I think he's using it to..." The realization hits her and she sucks in a breath. "...steal her power."
"And he used ice!" adds Cole. "That means he must've already stolen Zane's power, too!"
Rose's screams fill the room for a few more moments before they finally cease. Her face glistens with a sheen of sweat, hair sticking to her skin. "Wh...what did you do to me? What happened to my power?" she breathes. Even after having her power drained, there's still strength in her voice, and the fire in her eyes refuses to die.
"Your power? Oh, it's mine now." Chen tells her gleefully. "But now, I will let you go...to the factory! Guards, take her away!"
"You'll pay for this." Rose stares him straight in the eye, not a trace of fear on her face. "You can lie and scheme all you want, but you can't escape your fate."
For a moment, Chen might've looked spooked by her words, but he hides it quickly. "Bold words from a powerless little girl. Hope you enjoy my factory!"
The Ninja watch as Rose is dragged away into the dark tunnels. Kira bites her lip, fighting the urge to cry as horrified tears start to well in her eyes. I'm so sorry, she says silently.
"Um, Jay?" Lloyd whispers, momentarily distracting them. "Your face..."
"My face?" Jay gasps. "All of our faces! The chocolate's melting!"
The Ninja's hearts all drop to their stomachs as the other warriors take notice of them, giving them odd looks. Confused murmurs ripple through the crowd. Chen squints, and the moment he sees them, it's all over.
"INTRUDERS!" he shrieks. "Stop them! They must not escape!
"RUN!" shouts Kai.
He doesn't have to tell anyone twice. The five Ninja take off, fleeing into the tunnels as fast as their feet will possibly carry them. Chen's warriors give chase, shouting and grunting all the way. Cole yelps and trips over the tripwire from earlier. Something snaps and groans, followed by rumbling as a door crashes down between them and their enemies.
"Yes!" Kai shouts.
An axe suddenly comes bearing down on them, followed by another, then another.
"Oh no!" Kai shouts.
The group keeps running, just barely managing to escape the falling axes as they skid around a corner. Just when they all think they're safe, a low grumbling noise catches their attention. Everyone looks down, and Kira screams. An an enormous purple serpent lurks just below, staring up at them with glowing, hungry eyes.
"That has got to be the second biggest snake I've ever seen!" Kai shouts. The serpent roars and charges toward them, jaws gaping, and the Ninja flee the only direction they can—up. They scramble up the walls like a group of terrified spiders, narrowly dodging the jaws of the beast as it snaps at them. They quickly find themselves cornered, inches away from scaly purple doom, but Kai manages to find the bed switch just in time. The five of them fall back into Kai's room before they can become snake food, landing in a colorful pile on the bed. The serpent gives a final roar before the hole they fell in through promptly closes.
Everyone lays there for a second, processing what's just happened.
Kai sits up slowly. "Are we...?"
"Yeah," Lloyd mutters. "Barely."
"Okay." Jay is shaking from head to toe as he and the others get to their feet. "No offense to Noodle, but I never wanna see another snake ever again."
"Okay," says Kai, "so we may not have found Zane, but we found something just as important. This tournament isn't about glory. It's about Chen stealing all of our Elemental Powers!"
"But why?" Lloyd asks with furrowed brows. "What is he planning?"
"I don't know, but if we're gonna find out and find Zane, we have to play by his rules. So no more sneaking around, agreed?"
"Agreed," the rest of them chorus.
"Good thing we weren't spotted," Cole sighs with relief. "That was close."
"Yeah, too close," Jay groans. He turns around, showing them a piece of his disguise that the serpent tore off. The boys cringe.
Lloyd looks around for Kira, spotting her huddled in the corner of the room, "Hey," he murmurs, moving to her side. "Are you okay?" Up close, he can see that she's trembling, her eyes red and moist with tears.
"That...that was awful," she sniffs.
"Tell me about it. I thought I'd never have to see another giant snake in my life."
"No, I mean...what he did to Rose. She didn't deserve that, not at all." Kira's voice quivers and she looks to her boyfriend desperately. "We have to stop him, Lloyd. We can't let him do that to anyone else."
"We will." The Green Ninja pulls her close, stroking her hair as she cries quietly into his chest. "I promise."