The Resistance had hunkered down in the basement of a citizen kind and brave enough to offer assistance to the struggling rebels. They were even generous enough to provide a meager amount of food for them.
"So... uh, whaddya think, Skylor?" questioned Lloyd as he finished proposing his plan. He nervously picked at the bandage around his shoulder and stuttered, "I—I know it's a lot and really risky. I'll give you time to think it over, but you're one of, if not the most powerful Elemental Master. You're the only person capable of matching Garmadon for power."
Skylor shut her eyes, considering her options. She sighed after a long moment and opened her amber eyes to meet Lloyd's in an unwavering gaze. "I'll do it."
The Resistance broke out in relieved applause.
A high-pitched whoop came from the corner, "Yes! Show those rats what for!"
Curious, everyone in the room stared at a large rat that was apparently talking. They all went wide-eyed and slack-jawed.
Nya gritted out to Lloyd with comically wide eyes, "Uh, is that rat talking to us?"
Lloyd gritted back, "Yes. I believe it is."
Dareth, who was nearest to the creature, destroyed the tense silence with a piercing shriek as he panicked and fell out of his chair. He began clattering around for a weapon of some sort while repeatedly chanting, "Ah! Rat, rat, rat, rat. Rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat, rat."
He located a mop while the rest of the Resistance still stood frozen in shock. As he brought the mop down to crush the creature, the rat suddenly morphed into the familiar form of Mystaké who caught the mop midway with her hands and flung it off to the side.
The elderly woman had a displeased expression as she began berating the Resistance, completely disregarding their utter bewilderment. "First you leave me in Hiroshi's Labyrinth, make a whole plan without my guidance, then you try smashing me?! And right after I saved your tails too. Whatever happened to respecting your elders? Hmph."
Lloyd, whose brain was still stuck trying to comprehend the situation, simply squeaked out, "Um... I'm sorry." Aw man, he knew something had been off on the return trip.
This seemed to abate Mystaké's anger slightly. "Very well. I suppose your apology is accepted. Now, you all quit staring and close your mouths. I don't need to see the back of your throats, thank you very much."
Their jaws all obediently shut.
Griffin was the first to pipe up, "So... you related to Chamille or something?"
"Chamille? Never heard of her!" waved off the woman in full Mystaké fashion.
Lloyd scratched his head, beginning to question, "Then—"
He was cutoff by Mystaké barking out, "I'm an Oni, my dear boy!"
By now, everyone was even more stupefied.
"Bu— what?! How?!" spluttered Nya. "Why didn't you tell us sooner?!"
The old lady tilted her head and blinked owlishly at the Water Ninja. Her tone made it seem as if the answer was the most obvious thing in the Realm. "You never asked."
Nya let out a frustrated growl. "Well, why would we ask something so specific like that?!" Her scalding gaze swept the room. "Does anyone else wanna admit they're an Oni or some other weird creature? Speak now or forever hold your peace!"
Lloyd actually appeared thoughtful and shrugged. "I'm something."
Mystaké gave a short and mildly unsettling cackle. "Oh yes, Lloyd. You are definitely a few somethings. From brat to Green Ninja to Resistance leader. I wonder what you shall become next." She rubbed her hands together eagerly. "Okay, but down to business. Tell me about this great plan of yours."
She was met with silence. Her face went from expectant to grumpy as she groused, "Just mention that you're a magical, ancient being from the dawn of the Realm, and then no one wants to tell you anything."
"Actually, I'm pretty sure you've got a lotta explaining to do before we can talk," commented Mr. Pale. His voice wasn't accusatory, but it did drip with suspicion.
"Hmph, as if you didn't have your own dark secrets, little invisible man," huffed the old woman, putting extra emphasis in her wording. "Flashing lights can be just as blinding as the darkness."
This seemed to strike a nerve with the Master of Light who seemed to self-consciously shrink away and tip his hat to cover his unseeable face.
Lloyd's head was spinning and on the brink of exploding. There were... a lot of things to keep up with. Nya placed a steadying hand in his shoulder, helping to ground him.
He pressed curiously yet with an air of wariness, "Mr. Pale?"
The invisible Elemental Master answered quickly, though true sincerity still rang through his voice, "I swear, it's nothing that will affect the Resistance."
He stole cautious glances from underneath the brim of his hat, marveling at the seemingly omniscient woman and wondering just how far-reaching her knowledge was. Was there any more precious information that she was withholding from them that could turn the tide of the battle?
The leader of the Resistance gave a short nod to the Master of Light, choosing to accept his simple reply and not press the matter further as there were more dire revelations to deal with. He seemed to be running along the same though pattern as Mr. Pale as he bluntly questioned Mystaké, "Is there anything else you need to tell us?"
The gray-haired lady paused in thought. Her more chaotic instincts were suggesting toying with them and giving a playful answer, but she chose to reply honestly, shaking her head.
"Unfortunately, young Master, I cannot give much guidance on how to defeat this foe. Though I have gained much wisdom over the centuries, I've told you, my knowledge is not infinite. I'm bound to as much as you all know. The only advantage I have is understanding the true terror of what will happen if Garmadon succeeds in his goals."
She let out a wistful sigh, "I'm not in my prime and my power is a fraction of what it once was." She glared warningly to make sure no one dared to voice agreement to that statement.
"I cannot supply much aid, only remind you as I have all along, endure and rise. It is difficult to defeat an opponent who never gives up." She firmly held his gaze. "Lloyd, Element or not, you are bright young man and a skilled leader." She looked over at Nya. "As are you."
Ronin was antsy as he nervously eyed the door as if expecting a whole gang to come bursting through at any second. "Look, I know we've got a lotta new stuff to talk about, but we need to leave before the Sons of Garmadon catch onto our trail."
"Is that not the purpose of the plan? Lure them to us?" questioned Pixal.
Mystaké raised both her arms in the air in mild exasperation, "What plan?!"
Griffin, who was eager to get a move on, summarized quickly, "We're letting Skylor get captured by the Sons of Garmadon, so she can touch Garmadon and absorb his Element. Then, boom, now she can fight Garmadon, using his own power against him."
Mystaké raised a judgmental eyebrow and stroked her chin thoughtfully. "It's a bold, reckless move. Probably bound to fail. Ever heard of fight fire with fire? It hardly ever ends well."
Lloyd's shoulders slumped. He was so tired and now his next idea was being shot down. The doubt was not misplaced though. He knew that numbers were dwindling within the Resistance because of his previous mission failures.
The old woman surprised him by suddenly giving a sharp clap and decisively declaring, "I like it, even if it'll likely end in disaster. Stick it to that rotten Emperor!" She offered a few tweaks to the plan. "Why can't I just bring her to Garmadon myself? I am a shapeshifter after all."
Nya's eyes brightened. "She's right. She could bring Skylor straight to Garmadon if she disguised herself as Harumi."
"But won't we run the risk of the real Harumi ruining the ruse?" fretted Misako.
"Not if we take her out first," stated the Water Ninja with a mildly terrifying grin.
"By capturing her," clarified Lloyd quickly.
Ronin eyed the Green Ninja. "And we've got the perfect bait too." When he was met with multiple unhappy glares, he revised his statement and pointed towards Lloyd's pocket. "I meant the Realm Crystal shard!"
"But both would work," pointed out Mr. Pale. He shyly went translucent when displeased expressions were aimed in his direction.
Nya took a protective step in front of Lloyd as she firmly asserted, "No. Lloyd's not going to risk his life anymore than he needs to."
The Green Ninja stepped forward, gently nudging his sister-in-arms aside. "It's okay, Nya. Sacrificing ourselves is what Ninja do."
The somber underlying message 'It's what our brothers did' went left unsaid.
There was more discussion until it was decided upon that only Skylor and Mystaké would be the ones to confront Garmadon under the guise of Skylor being a prisoner and Mystaké being Harumi. Mr. Pale would accompany them as unseen backup.
It pained Lloyd to separate the Resistance once again. Last time, he had done that, he'd lost a good number of his already small band of rebels. To send them straight into the Dark Lord's lair to absorb his power was practically a suicide mission. Any number of things could go terribly wrong.
What's worse for Lloyd was that he was not the one to be risking himself in this plan. If anything, it would ease his nerves in knowing the consequences would come crashing down on his own head rather than anyone else's.
All he had to focus on was to capture the founder of the Sons of Garmadon herself. Easier said than done but definitely less risky than coming face to face with Garmadon. Fortunately, Pixal figured they could literally call the Sons of Garmadon to them by linking directly into their radio channel.
They departed from the citizen's home, greatly thanked them, and returned to their unofficial headquarters where they set their plan into motion.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Harumi was caught off guard when Ronin's sly voice sounded from her walkie talkie as she patrolled the streets with her gang. "Hey. How much would ya pay for some intel on the Green Ninja?"
Immediately, Harumi's mind blared at her 'trap!' Still, she was curious to where this was headed and demanded, "Who are you and how did you get this channel?"
In an infuriatingly condescending tone, the man said, "Baby, you aren't exactly using top of the line tech. Any criminal with half a mind can cut in. I'm just one who happens to have a brilliant mind along with valuable info on the whereabouts on your elusive Ninja."
On the other end, Pixal resisted the urge to roll her eyes at Ronin's comment on his "brilliant mind." She was the one who had tapped into the radio. Not him.
Ronin along with some others among the Resistance were holding back chuckles at the mercenary's sass. It was surprising Harumi hadn't recognized his voice yet.
"If your information is true, you will be rewarded handsomely," assured the Quiet One.
The mercenary grinned. He could tell he had her attention even though she was suspicious of him. "I'll accept my payment in cash only. You can drop it at Buddy's Pizza."
"Tell me where the Green Ninja is and we'll discuss payment later," snapped Harumi.
"All right, all right. A little birdie told me they're hiding out at the Ninjago Museum of History. I hacked into the security cameras and can confirm. I also saw him with some sort of shiny gem. I'll be waiting for my payment," relayed Ronin before abruptly cutting off the connection.
"Where are you going?" questioned Dareth as Ronin made for the exit.
"To Buddy's Pizza. I wanna see if they'll actually pay up," answered the mercenary simply.
Misako and Pixal shook their heads. Of course, he couldn't pass up the opportunity to make money.
The Samurai assured Dareth and Misako as she followed after Ronin, "I will make certain he does not find trouble."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mr. E spoke as soon as the voice dropped from the channel, ".part a ylniatrec tsom si tI"
"Obviously," hissed Harumi. She pointed to her scanner. "That android's nowhere near the Museum."
She pointed to Ultra Violet. "Go check it out. Just in case."
"But I'll miss all the fighting," whined Ultra Violet.
The leader of the Sons of Garmadon was bone-weary and had little patience for any opposition. She barked at her most injured general, "Just go!"
Although she was harsh, this was her actively trying to have a care by making sure one of her very few friends was kept out of harm's way in her beat up state (though she would never admit it to the raven-haired woman's face).
The purple general rolled her eyes and huffed but obediently took off towards the museum as Harumi and the rest of her gang hounded after the Samurai's signal.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mystaké, Skylor, Mr. Pale, Lloyd, and Nya were lying in wait at the Ninjago Museum of History. They all felt their hearts sink when they noticed only one of Harumi's generals limp through the entrance and idly survey the darkened building. Already, the plan was going awry.
Lloyd let out a low hiss. "Man, I thought Harumi would come."
Nya just frowned. They had absolutely zero luck. She felt a pang in her heart as she thought of some things Jay might hilariously shout out in frustration at their situation.
"Should we get her?" asked Skylor, slowly rising from her crouched position.
"Not yet," whispered Lloyd, stilling Master of Amber's movements.
Ultra Violet's loud voice echoed throughout the museum as she radioed Harumi in a frustrated tone. "No one's here. I'm coming back."
"Fine. Hurry up. We're in pursuit."
The Resistance made no move to stop her as the general exited. Once they were certain she was gone, they stood up fully and looked at each other in bewilderment. It was clear Harumi had taken the bait, just not fully in the way they had hoped.
"In pursuit of who?" wondered Nya aloud, hoping Harumi wasn't going after innocent civilians.
Her question was answered a moment later when Ronin's harried tone crackled through their radios. "Guys, we're in trouble. They're after me and Pixal."
Lloyd's eyes almost bugged out of his head. It would've been an extremely comical expression if the situation hadn't been so dire. "How?!"
"I don't know! They just appeared outta nowhere," replied Ronin, huffing as he fled.
Pixal's determined voice broke in, "Lloyd, continue with the mission. I will keep Harumi occupied while the others infiltrate the Tower."
"But—"
The Samurai's voice was more desperate. "Lloyd, please."
Lloyd inhaled sharply. He motioned to the infiltration team. "You heard her. Go. We'll help her and distract Harumi."
As the Green Ninja raced through the streets on foot, anxiety settled like a brick in his stomach. Of course he most certainly cared for the safety of his team, but the issue of Harumi going after Pixal was increased a hundred fold with the fact that Lloyd had given the Realm Crystal shard to the Samurai for safekeeping! He thought it would be more safe with her, but apparently not.
Worry pulsed through Nya as well. In that moment, she sincerely wanted to be the Master of Speed. With adrenaline pushing them forward, the two Ninja came to Ronin and Pixal's aid in record time. Just as they feared, they heard the horrid boom of the occasional gunshot amid the sounds of battle.
The Sons of Garmadon were so preoccupied with sinking their claws into the Samurai X Mech that they were caught unawares when the Ninja came tearing through their ranks.
"Ninja go!" Nya cleverly kicked open a fire hydrant (what was one more thing to rebuild amidst the chaos) and used her Element to unleash a torrent of water so strong that it knocked a third of the bikers off their feet.
They didn't have a chance to rise again as Pixal, having ejected from her downed Mech, instantly froze the streaming water, locking the gang members in place.
Behind her mask, Nya gave a sad smile as she thought, 'Zane would've been proud at how quick she's adapted to his Element.'
Over the din of battle, she heard Lloyd yell for them to fall back. Though it took much effort on her part to ignore her instincts to keep fighting, she followed after him, but not before sending one last furious wave to bowl over the Sons of Garmadon. She took particular satisfaction as she noticed Harumi wringing out her sopping hair as her forces regrouped.
The Master of Water listened carefully to Lloyd's instructions over their staticky comm system.
"Split up guys. Keep them on the move."
Even as he said that, Lloyd grimaced. He knew they were weaker apart, but it would make them smaller, harder targets to capture. If they could just outlast the Sons of Garmadon and keep them occupied, it would greatly benefit the entire Resistance. He trusted the others to do their part.
And, if he played his cards right, perhaps the opportunity to cut off the former Jade Princess from her gang would present itself. It would be a game of cat and mouse with neither side being truly the predator or the prey.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Too tight?" questioned Mr. Pale as he tied Skylor's hands together.
The Master of Amber tested her bonds. Believable, but loose enough for her to break free at a moment's notice. "It's good."
They peered at their Oni companion. It was hard to believe she had been around since the dawn of Ninjago.
"Are you ready?" asked Skylor, questioning her companions just as much as she was questioning herself.
Was she prepared to absorb such a dangerous, dark Element? Would the power drive her mad? Corrupt her like it did with her father?
Though she had obviously chosen the good path long ago, she couldn't help but wonder if there was a bit of her father still prowling within her: a deep, insatiable hunger for power inherited by him.
Logically, she knew this notion was idiotic. It would be hypocritical of her to assure and place unquestioning belief in Lloyd's goodness despite who his father was, and then turn around and condemn herself for the exact same thing.
In a way, the young Green Ninja acted a lot like Kai. No surprise there considering he had been raised by him, but it was bittersweet to see the passionate fire in his eyes—so much like the Red Ninja—as he fought and fought so hard for what he believed in.
The Master of Amber had most certainly taken note at how Nya had swooped in and taken the viciously protective role of the Green Ninja's older sibling, but she could see their strength was faltering. The struggle of surviving while holding back their obvious emotional baggage and managing the Resistance all at once was definitely taking its toll on them.
Lloyd, Nya, and Pixal were practically babies when comparing their ages to hers!
Growing as an only, lonely child, Skylor didn't particularly consider herself the nurturing, sociable type; but oddly enough, she had found herself supporting and mentoring Griffin through this traumatic chaos. She was determined to do the same with Lloyd and defend the blonde squirt. If it meant facing Garmadon one v one, then so be it.
Lloyd should not have to take on this great burden if she had the ability to face the Emperor herself. For him, Skylor resolved, she would wield the Element of Destruction and hopefully not fall prey to its shadowy clutches.
Unknowing of Skylor's wild, inner thoughts, Mystaké stood silent for a moment, trying to recall every last detail of the young, white-haired girl. The Masters of Amber and Light stared as she morphed into a perfect duplicate of the Quiet One, right down to a leering sneer etched on her face.
"Do you think this'll really fool Garmadon?" questioned Mr. Pale. He knew that sometimes, it wasn't just about how good something appeared that counted. A solid performance was just as crucial. Seriously, people bought into anything as long as you could really sell it to them.
The Harumi copy shrugged and spoke. Her two companions were deeply off put by the raspy voice that came from the youthful face. "I doubt it'll fool the Dark Lord for long, but it'll fool him long enough to let us do what needs to be done."
After letting out an awkward cough, Skylor commented, "Uh...I think your voice may give you away."
Mystaké began hacking like a cat trying to spit up a hairball. "Maybe it will sound more convincing..." Her voice changed dramatically, adopting Harumi's smooth yet devious tone. "If I talk like this."
Mr. Pale nodded in approval. "Yeah, that'll do."
"Time to go," announced Skylor in a low tone, stepping out into the open.
"Harumi" followed close behind, keeping a tight hold on her "prisoner," while the Master of Light disappeared and silently trailed behind them.
The three guards at the entrance of the Tower snapped to attention when they caught sight of the Quiet One.
"Ma'am. We didn't expect to see you return so soon."
"I thought this particular prisoner would catch the Emperor's interest," lied Mystaké smoothly as she slipped calmly through the entrance.
Skylor easily maintained the aura of dangerous rebel as she kept an unnerving glare trained on the gang members. Onboard the elevator, she checked to make sure they were all still together. "Mr. Pale, you there?"
The Master of Light's nasally, disembodied voice simply replied, "Yep."
Having a bad sense of impending doom, Mystaké piped up. Her words added to their already crushing anxiety. "This will be a last stand. But live or die, the Phoenix will rise."
The rest of the ascent was spent in tense silence until the elevator dinged. The doors slowly opened, and the three passengers mentally braced themselves as they stepped out onto the rooftop and into the throne room of the enemy.
A rough, chilling voice greeted them. "What prize have you brought me, Harumi?"
Haha! Another fun cliffhanger! The next chapter that visits Ninjago will be very, very interesting!
"Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." - 1 Corinthians 15:58 NIV