After walking for several days, Lloyd, Garmadon and Anirei continued with Lloyd's training to not only balance himself, but to increase his strength to face the Overlord once again. Lloyd stood on a large boulder, several rocks placed in a tower on his shoulders as he tried to balance them with all of his strength.
"We underestimate the importance of balance." Garmadon said.
"When it's there, we are at peace." Anirei added, being the ninja of Balance, it was best for her to be a second teacher for Lloyd. Not that he minded in the first place.
"If something is off, everything falls." She continued as Garmadon placed yet another stone on the already tall tower.
"Ninjago is no different." Garmadon said, "It put too much faith in technology, allowing the Overlord to return. And because of your friends, now the world is without power."
"When one relies on something too much, we become weak, vulnerable, imbalanced." Anirei said. She smiled and looked up after hearing Zane's falcon crying through the air. Anirei couldn't help but wonder what the others were doing, as her dreams said nothing about them the last she slept. But she had to have faith in her elder brothers, after all, they did not become Ninja by mere chance.
"In order to find your full potential and unlock your true power, you must find your own balance." Garmadon said, breaking Anirei from her thoughts.
"I'm already the Gold Ninja." Lloyd said with a straining voice, "How much more power do I need?"
"You've only scratched the surface of your power, Lloyd." Anirei said with a small chuckle, "I have had many visions of the Gold Ninja through my dreams before I returned. Lloyd, there is so much more power in the palm of your hands, and yet like grains of sand, you are unable to grasp is without it falling through. You have the potential to move mountains. The power of the First Spinjitzu Master."
"The Ninja destroyed the power substation, essentially destroying the Overlord and his Nindroids." Lloyd shot back, "Why can't we go back?"
"Essentially?" Garmadon repeated holding a very large rock in hi arms, "Until the Overlord is fully erased from the system, we must not go back, but forward."
Garmadon threw the large rock onto the tower of stones, but Lloyd was not ready to handle the weight and fell down the tower of stones all over him.
"If you can't move mountains, I guess we'll have to move over mountains."
Lloyd screamed as he spun around, ridding himself of all the fallen stones, "Oh, yeah?"
Garmadon and Anirei jumped down to the stone pillar Lloyd was standing on.
"And this next one looks particularly steep." Garmadon pointed to the large mountain in front of them. Lloyd sighed and walked with his father and friend to the foot of the mountain.
Together, they began their climb up the mountain, but as the fog became more prominent, Anirei could feel a sense of darkness rising through the air. She stopped for a moment, turning around and looked in the same direction as New Ninjago.
A heavy feeling weighed down on her her heart, but she jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned back around to see Lloyd and Garmadon with concerned looks on their faces.
"Rei, you okay?" Lloyd asked.
Anirei shook her head, "Something is wrong. There's a larger sense of darkness that is weighing me down." She said, "Please, Master Garmadon. I understand that Lloyd's training is important, but my mind will not rest until I see what has happened."
Garmadon was hesitant, but because of the dimming sunlight, he agreed for the three of them to rest for the night. They quickly found a cave for them to safely rest until morning. Immediately, Anirei sat down and crossed her legs.
"Rei..." Lloyd said concerned.
Anirei smiled at Lloyd and Garmadon sweetly before she gestured for them to sit down, "You are in for quite the show. It has been some time since you've seen the lights, has it not, Lloyd?"
Lloyd nodded as he and his father sat down in front of Anirei. She took out a piece of paper from the pocket in her gi and placed it on the rocky ground. She closed her eyes and began. The two quickly saw something they didn't expect. Lloyd has seen the lights of her being balanced during their meditation sessions before, but this was far more beautiful.
Unlike her previous lights, which were clashing colors of white and black, her new lights were a beautiful shade of silver that seemed to light up her entire form. Her face was serene, like she was at absolute peace. Lloyd smiled as the silver lights filled the cave with a sense of peace that spread throughout all of their hearts, but as he looked back at her face, he could feel his heating up once again.
He had never seen her in this kind of light, and Garmadon could see how his son smiled at the young girl. He recognized that look from whenever he looked at Misako. The look of a man who had fallen for the one he cares for the most.
Just then, Anirei's peaceful face turned to one of distress. Lloyd wanted to go and snap her out of her trance, but he knew better than to do so. It would ruin the vision. The silver light slowly formed a small tornado over the paper in front of Anirei, like sand falling onto the paper to create a picture.
A few minutes passed before Anirei snapped out of her trance and the picture was completed. She opened her eyes and took the paper in her hands before looking at it with confusion.
"What's wrong, Anirei?" Garmadon asked.
"This makes no sense." She said, showing off the picture to Lloyd and Garmadon, who were equally confused.
The picture was drawn in silver ink, but it was also drawn in black as well. The picture showed off a hand grasping another, one hand drawn in silver ink while the other was in gold, but both were surrounded by darkness and what looked to be bits of white surrounding them.
They didn't know what to make of it. The gold and silver had to mean Lloyd and Anirei, but what was the darkness surrounding them? What did those little white dots mean for them? Why were their hands holding each other so tightly? And why did it fill Anirei with such a heavy sense of dread?
"What does it mean, Anirei?" Garmadon asked.
Anirei shook her head and turned the paper back around to see the picture again, "That I cannot say. My vision was clouded with shadows, something was blocking me from seeing the rest of it. But from what I could see in my vision, it has something to do with me and Lloyd, and I can't see when or what will happen."
She dropped the paper on the ground and sighed, "This makes no sense at all. I am always able to see the future and it always comes true. Perhaps this is a sign that my powers of perception are beginning to wane."
"Maybe you will feel better after a night's rest." Garmadon said as the daylight was fading fast. They all decided to sleep in that very cave, but Anirei was too restless from her vision, for she had lied just a little to Lloyd and his father.
"You should get some rest, Rei." She heard Lloyd say as he rose from his own restless sleep, "We've got a long day tomorrow."
Anirei sighed and gently placed her fingers on the jewel embedded in her forehead. Doing that always calmed her down, even just a little. She had been doing it with her mother's gemstone, as Anirei always wondered when she could have one of her very own.
"You know, I've been meaning to ask." Lloyd said as he scooted closer to Anirei, "That gemstone in your forehead. It wasn't there when you were a kid, but when we were hit with the tomorrow's tea, it just appeared. What's up with that?"
Anirei smiled, almost kicking herself for not explaining to her friend about the gemstone she had.
"It's a special stone that began with my mother." Anirei said, "My mother told me that when the Overlord created her, he placed a piece of dark matter in her forehead in order to control her more easily. However, when my father purified her, the stone changed from black to a rich amethyst color. It represented her soul, as she was tranquil, wise and balanced."
"But why that color though? Since she was the Ninja of darkness, shouldn't she have had a black gemstone to represent her power?" Lloyd asked.
Anirei chuckled and shook her head, "No, I believe the color amethyst is the perfect color for my mother. Amethyst inspires and protects, just like my mother did all those years ago. For what is the light without the dark to inspire the glory of the morning sun? What is the sun without the moon to protect us from the darkness of the night?"
Lloyd slowly began to understand why Anirei adored her mother as much as she did. It wasn't only because she was her mother, but also because she could see so much within her mother's soul.
"So what does yours mean? What does the color of your jewel say about your soul?" Lloyd asked.
Anirei took in a breath, "What do you think it means, Lloyd?" She asked.
Lloyd didn't even have to think about it for very long.
"Well, you're a very kind person who always thinks about others before yourself. A selfless person that always sees people for who they are and not for what they were told to be. You protect everyone whether they're from darkness or from light, and bring good fortune to all of us. You bring hope and install faith to everyone you meet. It's almost like your an angel, bringing everyone peace wherever you go."
Anirei was stunned to hear this from Lloyd, but even more stunned to feel her cheeks becoming much warmer than normal. She had never heard someone ever say these kinds of things to her other than her mother and father.
She smiled, "Well, my jewel is a very special one. It is a sapphire, a symbol of the heavens. It is seen as a symbol of a guardian of innocence, bestower of truth, joy, bringer of peace, good fortune and protects all no matter who you are. My mother and father said that one day, they hoped that I would have a sapphire."
Lloyd didn't think, his hand moved all on its own, gently placing his fingers on the blue stone that entranced him so. Anirei stayed still, her stone now warmer than normal. Was it because of her now warmer cheeks? Or was it because of Lloyd's touch? She didn't know.
When Lloyd realized what he was doing, he quickly retracted his hand and turned his head away to hide the blush that blossomed on his cheeks.
"S-Sorry. I didn't mean to do that." He stuttered.
Anirei didn't push him away, like he thought she would. Instead, she closed her eyes and leaned against his shoulder. They stayed like that until the night grew its darkest and their breathes became that of peace as they slept peacefully through the night.
The next morning, the three continued on their journey up the mountain. Eventually, they came across a broken bridge that had fallen apart with the passage of time.
"Hey, who needs a bridge when you can manifest a Golden Dragon--"
"You rely too much on your golden power." Garmadon said to his son.
"Your father is right, Lloyd." Anirei agreed, "Let this begin as your first lesson to finding your inner strength. Center yourself, and move the mountain with your mind."
"What?" Lloyd exclaimed, "Move that? Are you kidding me, Rei?"
"Find your balance." Anirei said.
"Concentrate." Garmadon added.
Lloyd sighed and focused as hard as he could. Slowly, pieces of the mountain became divided and moved across the ravine in which they needed to pass over. However, the rocks were out of form, unable to make a stable bridge. Eventually, they simply fumbled under the pressure, much like Lloyd with his frustration.
"This is pointless! Especially when I can do this..." Lloyd said as he manifested his dragon and used it to create a much more stable bridge for them to cross. He dismissed his dragon and landed on the golden bridge.
"I'm not the First Spinjitzu Master, and I never wanted to be. I'm the Golden Ninja."
Anirei and Garmadon sighed, "Ninja of frustration, perhaps." Anirei muttered.
"I know, I was once like this too." Garmadon said as he and Anirei followed his son across the bridge, continuing up the mountain.
They panted and gasped as they went from using their feet to climb, to using their hands instead. The rocks were slightly unsteady, but stable enough for them to climb towards the peak of the mountain.
"Wish you still had four hands?" Lloyd joked to his father below, "It would've come in handy."
"Your potential is great... not your sense of humor." Garmadon said as Anirei chuckled beside Lloyd.
"I don't know, Master Garmadon. That was slightly humorous. A little rough, but not everything can be quite so refined."
Garmadon chuckled and Lloyd pouted beside Anirei. but his pout slowly turned a happy grin as they continued to climb.
"Still won't let me use the Golden Dragon?"
"Still won't." Garmadon answered, climbing higher to meet Anirei and Lloyd.
"If you want to harness the power of the First Spinjitzu Master, you must focus on your balance... and find your center."
"Can't Rei help me with that on the ground?" Lloyd asked.
"I can help you in many ways, Lloyd. But I will not always be there to hold your hand as you take the next step towards spiritual balance. The most fruitful trees are grow when you put in the work to make its branches flourish, and that is not always with help from others." Anirei answered.
Just then, they heard something squawking nearby. Lloyd looked around and saw a large nest sitting atop one of the nearby ledges. He climbed over to the ledge and found inside the nest was a baby ravture with bright blue feathers and large eyes.
"Uh, Dad?" He called out to his father who stood on the peak of the mountain with Anirei by his side.
"A Ravture youngling." Garmadon gasped, "Don't touch him. It needs to learn learn to fly on its own. Keep climbing. Slowly."
Lloyd ignored the bird and began climbing once again, but all of a sudden, the youngling fell off the side of the nest and Lloyd jumped into action without hesitation. He caught the youngling before it could fall too far and brought it back to the nest.
"What have you done?" Garmadon said in a panic, "It's going to know someone has touched its young."
"It? Who?" Lloyd asked just as a oud cry rang through the clear blue skies above.
There in the sky was a large Ravture, a protective male. And he was none too happy to see his young in the arms of another.
"Daddy." Anirei gasped as the Ravture dove down to attack Lloyd.
"He was gonna fall. I was trying to help." Lloyd tried to excuse himself.
"Unless you speak Ravture, there's no use trying to explain." Garmadon said, he and Anirei jumping down to the nest, "Hurry! We need to climb to shelter!"
He pointed to another ledge nearby and began climbing down against the wall of the mountain, but Lloyd and Anirei stayed in place.
"You're not gonna fall on my watch." Lloyd said to the Ravture youngling.
"Your compassion is not helping." Garmadon shouted.
"Lloyd, he needs to fall to learn." Anirei tried to say to Lloyd, "What good is a child who needs to walk, if he does not stumble on the journey?"
The Ravture father screeched through the sky and tried to capture Garmadon, but the bird missed the old sensei, sending Garmadon tumbling down the side of the mountain.
"Dad!" Lloyd shouted, but Garmadon grabbed the side of the mountain just as Lloyd and Anirei began to climb down to help him.
"I take it back." Garmadon grunted, "I do want my four hands."
Lloyd prepared to use his powers, but Anirei stopped him from doing anything more.
"No! Do not use your power as a crutch, Lloyd." She said, "It will only weaken you."
"He's circling back." Garmadon shouted, but it was already too late. The Ravture grabbed Garmadon in his mouth and flew away.
"Dad! No!" Lloyd shouted, using his power to shoot down the beast, releasing his father but allowing him to fall through the clouds out of sight.
Lloyd in his panic, set down the Ravture youngling and focused on saving his father. Suddenly, a large piece of the mountain rose through the clouds and caught Lloyd's father. Anirei beamed in happiness and wrapped her arms around Lloyd's, neck, congratulating him with her laughter.
"You've just moved a mountain. son." Garmadon said full of pride.
As Lloyd smiled seeing his father safe and sound, the baby Ravture squawked as he fell off the ledge Lloyd and Anirei were standing on. Lloyd tried to save the youngling using his power, but it wasn't needed. A moment later, the baby flapped its wings and flew higher into the sky.
"Looks like you're not the only one who's grown up." Garmadon commented.
After getting his father back onto the side of the mountain, Lloyd used his power to create stairs that led all the way down to the foot of the mountain.
"After you two." He said.
By the time they made it a little bit down the stairs, Zane's falcon appeared with its eyes blinking a bright blue color, signifying a message that had yet to be relayed.
"Hey, the ninja have sent a message." Lloyd said, hoping that it was good news, but Anirei could feel that it was just the opposite.
A hologram of Nya appeared in front of them, her face saddened and distraught.
"Lloyd, we've got some bad news." She said, "We had a run-in with a mysterious someone who found a new way to power nindroids."
Jay appeared, his expression just the same as Nya's, "And he turned Sensei Wu evil! He had a black beard!"
Nya appeared again, "We have a suspicion that this person may have stolen the hard drive containing the Overlord and has reawakened him."
Kai appeared, "And now that the hard drive has gone missing, we can't reboot the system. Our Techno Blades are useless!"
"But the stranger left a clue." A white scale appeared in the hologram, "A white scale. That's right, we think it may be Serpentine. We're heading to New Ninjago City to get to the bottom of this but though you should know so you can keep your distance. Hope you're faring better than we are. We'll stay in contact if we learn anything new. Over and out."
The message ended, instilling a new sense of worry within the three.
"Serpentine?" Lloyd questioned.
"We must not go back, but forward." Garmadon said, gesturing to the vast jungle that lay at the bottom of the mountain.
"Hiroshi's Labyrinth. Miles of jungle so dense, all who enter are never found. we must not rest."
"Okay. Let's get lost."
Lloyd, without thinking, took Anirei by the hand and led her down the mountain along with his father. She was surprised by this gesture, but she was happy nonetheless. However, all small bits of happiness had to end at some point. When would hers end was the greater question.
Would the Overlord find his granddaughter and Lloyd and suck away their power for his own deeds?
Or would their light prevail in the end?
The answer lied within the power of the Silver and Golden Ninja. And it would not be an easy answer to find.