Steep Wisdom.
The Tea shop that Wu had opened up, Lacey thought as she walked back to the front. She had been organizing the tea boxes while her boyfriend and her brothers were all out hunting something.
It's been a few months since they had stopped Chen.
It was bittersweet, knowing that Sensei Garmadon was gone. She had grown to like him, especially because he was her boyfriend's father. But the two had grown close over the months during the Tournament of Elements.
After the whole fiasco and Anacondrai battle, they had decided to keep in touch with some of the other Elemental Masters. And Wu, he had decided to open up a tea shop.
How refreshing.
"Hmm, 'Steep Wisdom.' Not a bad name for a tea shop." Wu chuckled as he stood at the entrance, he was holding a bucket filled with water.
The front had a desk with a cash register and a book. The walls were stocked with tea boxes of different tea's, this was almost Mystake's tea shop, only there's wasn't more popular. Or older. Or ancient with a hint of mystery and unease.
Nya sighs, looking around the large but open room. "I thought saving Ninjago was difficult. Try starting a small business!" She says, letting out a huff.
Misako smiles, nodding. "Wu can't be a Sensei forever. It's about time we all help out with his retirement. Speaking of which, Nya?" She gestures to the old man.
Nya walks up to the old sensei. "Oh, here, let me give you a hand with that." She tries to take the bucket from Wu, but he juggles it to his other hand.
Wu stares at her before walking past her. "I am old, not weak." He says, sounding almost offended.
Misako looks up. "You look after ninja, I look after you." She tells him, smiling awkwardly at her brother in law.
Lacey smiles in amusement, hiding her snigger.
Nya looks around, letting out a breath. "Well, Steep Wisdom is staring to look like a real tea house, except for one thing."
"Yeah, customers." Lacey chimes in, leaning against the ladder.
Wu looks between them. "Good things come to those who wait." He tells them, a patient smile on his faceas folds his hands.
Lacey pursues her lips, staring at him.
Kai's voice is heard from outside, meaning he and the others were back. "I'm just saying, it was big but, I've seen bigger." There dragons land with a small thud.
"As big as your ego?" Jay laughs, letting out a loud scoff.
"Right." Zane is heard agreeing.
Wu's smile is wiped off his face, looking impatient and giddy. "Oh, who am I kidding? I'm tired of waiting. I'll put the ninja to work." He picks up a box before walking outside.
Lacey rolls her eyes. "Figures," she mutters, sharing a look with a grinning Nya.
Jay frowns, staring at the old man. "No "hello, how's it going, glad to hear you saved the day...again?"
Cole sighs, looking exhausted. "Yeah, Sensei. We're all a bit tired. You mind if we handle this tomorrow?" He asks, gesturing to the box before he spares a glance at the shop.
"We all have a share if this business succeeds. How else do you expect me to be able to afford all your new uniforms?" Wu puts down the box and opens it. "Which reminds me, your new ones arrived."
Kai smiles happiy, looking eager. "What do they look like now?" He asks, stepping towards the old man.
Zane walks forward. "New suits?" He questions, looking intrigued.
Jay grins, perking uo from where he was feeling tired. "Sweet!" He steps closer to the box.
"I bet they're off the hook." Cole laughs, walking towards the box and joining his brothers.
They see the outfits as Wu pulls out a nude colored shirt but it's a shirt with the Steep Wisdom logo on it. With many more folded in the box, carefully stacked.
"Huh?"
Zane furrows his eyebrows, his eyes narrow in suspicion. "Those do not appear to be ninja uniforms. They resemble work attire." He states.
Wu nods with a smile. "Very observant, Zane. We must focus on furthering brand awareness. And here are the fliers I want each of you to pass out in the city." He hands them each a thick pile, with information of Steep Wisdom.
Jay groans. "Ugh, If I have to pass all these out, I may be the one passed out!" He looks annoyed, glaring at the fliers.
The phone rings.
Misako turns to it, walking towards the counter. "Oh, that could be our first order! Shh!" She picks up the phone. "Steep Wisdom, how may we serve you?" She asks politely with a smile.
"Aren't we going to look kind of dorky flying up on our Power Dragons with these things on?" Kai spoke up entering the room with the others.
Lacey burst out laughing while Nya snickered, staring at her brother.
"Shut up," Lloyd gave her a glare.
"Aww," Lacey pouts, moving towards him to stare at him. "You look so adorable." She shakes her head at them, giving all of them a baby look.
Lloyd snorts. "You mean embarrassing, these outfits are the worst." He rolls his eyes when she starts laughing again.
"Yes, I see; and you need him right away?"
Wu stares at them sternly. "You won't be flying on anything. We're selling tea, not magic. Besides, you all have been relying a little too heavily on your Elemental Powers lately. Real powers come from the inside." He nods firmly, giving each of them a knowing look.
"It would be our honor, Sensei." Lloyd nods deeply.
Misako nods. "Thank you. I'll let him know right away." She puts down the phone with a worried expression on her face.
"Is it a big order?" Nya asks simply, leaning against the counter.
Misako shakes her head. "It's the police. They've asked for Lloyd. There's been a break-in at the museum." She frowns, looking over at her son.
Everyone but Wu and Misako gasp. Lloyd frowns.
Cole looks at him. "Go on, I'll take your share." He grabs the pile of posters the green ninja was holding.
Lacey, all of sudden, felt sick to her stomach. It twisted uneasily, and she was having that feeling again. The sense of something was gonna happen.
She always hated that feeling, despising it. She had ignored it many times before, but it had proved futile as it always came back to bite her in the ass.
"Thanks. I owe you one." Lloyd nods, turning around to leave.
Misako grins. "Aren't you going to kiss your mother goodbye?" She spoke up with a teasing smile on her face.
Lloyd groans. "Mom, we've...we've talked about this. I'll catch you on the way back." He said, looking embarrassed.
Everyone laughs.
"Remember, no powers."
The ninja all groan.
"Lloyd! Wait!" Lacey runs out just as Lloyd manifested his green dragon.
He turns to look at her. "What? Are you gonna ask for a kiss? I don't have an objectection to that," he chuckled, smiling with mischief in his pretty green eyes.
Lacey bites her bottom lip nervously, getting a weird feeling as if something wasn't right. "No, it's not that. I just, please be careful." She states nervously.
Lloyd furrows his brows. "Lace, are you okay?"
The Sorceress nods. "Yeah, it's just-um, just please be careful. I'm having a real weird feeling. Please, come back safely." Her hands intertwine together, playing with her fingers nervously.
Lloyd stares at her for a few moments before nodding. He moves closer and wraps his arms around her, kissing her forehead gently.
"I'll be back," He whispers before pulling away and getting on his dragon. The Green Dragon roars before taking off and into the sky, growing distant with each passing second.
Emerald meows as she walks up next to Lacey, her black fur sleek and clean, and her green eyes bright.
The Sorceress glanced at her familiar. "You feel it too, huh?" She asks quietly. She turns back to look at Lloyd, seeing him dissappear in the distance.
She let's out a sigh.
Something was seriously wrong. She was getting that same feeling, that same wrong feeling she got before something good or bad happened.
She didn't want to ignore it, but at the same time it could be nothing. There had been dire consequences of her ignoring her gut feeling.
It was almost like she had the sixth sense.
The wind blew in her direction, the fresh breeze cool against her face and body. She let out a sigh, glancing up at the beautiful blue sky.
She might as well have the sixth sense since she had future dreams. She might as well sense when something big was gonna happen.
Oh, First Spinjitzu Master.
What was gonna happen now?
................................
Kai looks around the City of Ninjago. Or Ninjago City. It was bustling with people walking all around, crowds of laughter and conversations, tall buildings and stores.
Advertising billboards were all around, with the tall skyscrapers glinting because of the sun rays. The wind blew uneasily, startling a few people.
"Uh, Steep Wisdom. Enlightenment in a cup!" He calls out as he and the guys all pass the fliers in the middle of town square.
A women looks at it confused. "Steep Wisdom? Never heard of it." She then proceeded to throw away the flier, walking away.
Cole smiles tightly, looking around the small park where they were at. "Best little tea shop in Ninjago."
"First cup is free, with a flier." Zane says politely.
Jay scowls, looking annoyed as he follows someone. "Take... Why won't you take the flier? JUST TAKE THE FLIER!" He snaps before letting out a sigh.
Kai groans as they all meet up, the cars racing down the road. "I see no one else is having any luck." He says, looking at the others. Car horns honked, with casual conversations filling the streets and sidewalks.
Jay scoffs. "Oh. It's as if they think I'm passing out a communicable disease. I mean, sure, I have a cold sore, but it's hardly contagious." He shakes his head.
Cole yelps. "Aah!" He, Kai and Zane back away from the lighting ninja.
Jay frowns. "What? What?" He asks, looking at them.
Cole pursues his lips. "Maybe if we use our powers, we can get this over with." He shrugs, looking around the vast city.
Zane shakes his head. "But Sensei gave us strict instructions not to use our Elemental Powers." He states, reminding them of the rules.
Kai rolls his eyes. "Well, Sensei's not here," He than smiles and gives them a look. "and what he doesn't know won't hurt him. I'm in. Is everyone else?"
Cole nods."Yes!"
"Yeah!" Jay cheers happily.
They all let out a cheer, nodding at each other before they turn and dart away.
Cole smiles. "Aah! Huh?"
"Hey, young man. Watch it!" A man says, before Cole lifts his car. "Whoa! Oh, no. Oh, no. Put, put, put me down! Put me down, I say!" He panics, squirming in his seat.
Cole smirks. "Feeling tired? Out of strength?" The Crowd cheers for him. "Yeah! Then get a pick-me-up at Steep Wisdom!"
Kai walks over to a man breathing fire with his stick, a crowd around him. "Care to pass the torch?" He states smugly.
The Fire Breather nods. "Sure, let's see what you've got there, Mr. Teapot."
"If this isn't your cup of tea, how about this?" Kai grins. He blows Fire on the road to form a teapot shape. The crowd gasps. "Steep Wisdom. The hot new place!" He yells to the crowd.
Jay scoffs, happy to use his powers. "Ha! You think that's a crowd? Check this!" He uses Lightning to change all the electronic billboards to the Steep Wisdom logo. The crowd cheers. "I know, it's shocking, right?" He laughs.
Zane shakes his head. "If we're going to use our powers, you may as well do it right!" He summons his Ice Dragon and makes an Ice sculpture of a teapot.
The crowd cheers again, but a Wind sweeps away the fliers, extinguishes Kai's fire, and changes the billboards to its original state. Kai tries to blow on his torch, but fails.
The Fire Breather scoffs. "You're such an amateur."
Kai frowns in confusion. "My powers. They're not working!" He panics, looking around the city to find the others.
Jay's eyes widen. "Mine either!"
Cole furrows his eyebrows. "What do you mean? My powers are-Uh-oh." He mutters. The car falls on him, and he groans. The crowd laughs. "Ow. ouch. Somebody give me a hand." Kai and Jay help him up out, moving towards him quickly.
Kai's eyes widen when he realizes...."If our powers are gone, that means..." They all look up at the Ice Ninja.
Zane's Dragon disappears in midair, He screams as he starts to fall in midair, getting closer to the ground.
Kai tilts his head, a casual tone in his voice. "He's kind of fast." Zane falls and smashes a hole in the ground. "Whoa. I think he just broke the sound barrier."
Zane groans. "I told you we shouldn't use our powers." He gets out of the hole.
"What powers? Where did they go? We have to see Wu!" Jay yells, his eyes wide.
.......................
It's an hour later when she starts feeling weird. Really weird.
Lacey gasps, her breathing turning rapid and heavy. Sweat began to glisten on her body, she could feel her body turn rigid. She felt so....tired.
She felt exhausted, pain began to prod in her, like something foreign had just entered her. The feeling was awful, like she had been set on fire.
"Ahh," She let out a painful moan, she looked at the mirror and frowned deeply. She was deathly pale. No, she looked like she was dying. Tears began to stream down her face.
"Lloyd..." She whispers in realization. No, no, no, no, no. She could feel something foreign, so...alien and weird. It was cold, she shuddered as a small scream erupted from her mouth.
She quickly ran to the front, breathing heavily. She immediately spotted the guys and their worried expressions.
"It your powers are gone...." Wu trails off, he turns to the Sorceress with concern. "Lacey!"
"Lace!" Nya immediately runs towards her, catching her right before she falls. Misako quickly rushes to her, a concerned frown growing on her face.
"What's wrong with her?" Jay frowns, walking closer to her. His eyes flickered between the Sensei and Sorceress, worried.
"Lloyd...." She whispers, groaning in pain in Nya's arms.
She felt so...gross. Her whole body felt weak, so weak as if she couldn't move a muscle. She could feel herself, but not everything. It was like everything had gone numb.
It was like her body was exhausted, like a foreign force had taken control but all it did was causing her to get sick.
Suddenly, a harsh wind blows, causing the doors to slam open, showing a figure in the distance.
"It's Lloyd!" The little girl yells.
Wu's heart leaped with fear. "I know that wind...That's not Lloyd." He says, his eyes flashing with something akin to recognition, he grabs his hat.
The Ninja all quickly rush outside, Lacey watching them go with concern.
"Step aside."
Jay frowns. "Lloyd! What's wrong with you?" He questions, noticing the differences in him. He looked...more built and buff.
"I want a word with your master." His voice was....different.
Jay blinks, noticing his voice got deeper. "Whoa, Lloyd's gone through puberty." He states.
Cole furrows his eyebrows. "What's gotten into him?"
"I sense some kind of foreign entity has taken over his body. So the question isn't what, but who's gotten into him?" Zane explained to them.
Kai glares at him, stepping forward. "Whoever you are, whatever beef you had with Sensei, you have with us. Give us back our friend!" He exclaims angrily, his fists clenching.
The entity just cracks his neck and chuckles darkly, his eyes lidding with arrogance.
"How are we supposed to fight a friend?" Cole asks, a worried look on his face.
"Let me show you!" Lloyd's skin turns green, his hair turns black and he attacks the ninja, laughing. He grunts, using his wind powers to force them back.
Jay groans. "Great, we don't have powers, but he does?"
Everyone charges at him, but he easily fends them off.
Cole grunts. "We may not have powers, but we still know a little thing called Spinjitzu! Ninja, go! Whoa! Ugh." There all propelled back harshly by the strong wind.
"So not only does he have powers, but he can control the wind, too?" Jay huffs, getting up.
Wu turns to Misako. "Take the truck! Get them out of here now! Nya, we need to leave too. Get Lacey on the Bounty, now."
Nya frowns, helping Lacey to stand up. "But this is our place. Tell me, Sensei. What's happened to Lloyd?"
Wu shakes his head. "There's no time."
"Lace, can you get to the Bounty?" Nya asks, wanting to help the others.
Lacey pants, her whole skin a sickly pale and white color. Her cheeks had no color in them and her usually bright blue eyes were dull.
"Yeah." The Sorceress breathes. "I can go."
Nya nods. "Good. Go to your room and lock the door. Stay there," she orders sternly.
Lacey nods, whimpering.
Emerald stares at her, letting out a worried meow. A weak but green aura surrounds Lacey that helps her towards the Bounty, her cat following.
Nya smiles. "Thank you, Emerald Lloyd." She chuckles.
"Ninja, Go! Aaaahhh! Whoa." Jay yells as he falls back.
"Our Spinjitzu is worthless against the wind." Kai snaps over the harsh wind, his gaze glaring at the figure in green.
"Shurikens? Cute. Try this on for size! He breaks off the propellers of a windmill.
"Ugh." Kai and the others groan when they're all pushed back with force.
"Get up." The girl whimpers. "Please. Ninja never quit." She says from her the corner. Her mother brings her in her tight embrace.
Kai gets up, but Misako evacuates with the daughter and her mom. The ninja scream as they are tossed around.
'Lloyd' enters the shop.
Nya glares at him, her face deadly. "Get out."
"Go stock some shelves before you get hurt."
Nya scoffs. "I'll take you on anytime." She stood behind the counter, her eyes narrowed.
Wu walks forward. "Stay back, Nya. It's me he wants."
"Not you. Just your father's staff."
Wu stares at him. "I see you've found the Allied Armor, Morro, yet you haven't summoned your friends."
Morro smirks, his eyes sharp. "You're pathetic students haven't given me a reason to." He scoffs, glancing back outside.
The ninja pant and groan as they are defeated, their bodies laid on the ground in exhaustion.
Jay glares at him, annoyed. "Hey, hey, hey! No one calls me pathetic!" He yells.
Wu raised an eyebrow. "You want the staff? Try to take it." He states, getting in position.
Morro grunts. "You've gotten old. You used to be a great Sensei. Now you're just a petty shopkeeper." As the two continue fighting, the staff rolls away.
"With age comes wisdom." Wu gasps suddenly. "A secret message engraved on the staff."
Morro stares at the staff. "The staff of the First Spinjitzu Master." He uses Wind to grab the staff, but Nya knocks him down with a shelf. "I do more than stock shelves." She spat.
Wu catches his staff. "Yes. Now we leave." He tells her.
"To the barn!" Nya yells, the other ninja running behind her.
Kai stands up, stubborn. "I am not running away from Lloyd!"
"We will not win this fight today." Wu tells him as he followed the other ninjas. They arrive on the Bounty as Nya lifts it in the air, turning it on.
"Give me the staff!" Morro yells, growling as he storms out of the shop.
"Oh, is he crazy?" Jay says, leaning against the railing as he stared down at the Fire Ninja.
Morro glares at them. "Foolish ninja. Why would you try to take me on all by yourself?"
Kai stares at him wuth hatred. "Because I promised to look after Lloyd." He states firmly.
"Where's my brother?" Nya asks as the Bounty starts, the engine turning on. She heads towards the others, grabbing the railing.
"He's fighting the Green Ninja." Jay says, stood near the railing with the others.
"Alone." Jay, Cole and Zane say in unison.
Kai jumps on him. "I know you're in there, Lloyd. Fight him!" He grabs ahold of Morro.
"We gotta do something." Nya panics for her brother.
"The staff is getting away. Let go of me!" Morro screams as he sees the Bounty starting up, moving away.
Kai grunts."Only when you let go of Lloyd!"
"Kai..." Lloyd's voice is heard.
"Huh?"
"Help me..."
"Lloyd? Is that you?" Kai asks, his eyes wide. The Bounty's anchor latches onto him. Lloyd is left there coughing weakly as Kai has been taken away "Wait, let me go!" He yells.
Cole chuckled amusement. "Perfect wedgie!"
Kai struggles to get free. "I saw Lloyd!" He says as Morro regains his possession. "Put me down! Let me go!"
"You won't get away that easy." Morro growls before he uses Wind to pull the Bounty back.
"We have to go back." Kai says as he climbs up to the bridge, standing by his sister.
Nya grunts, holding the wheel. "Sorry, brother. That's what I'm trying to avoid. Oh, no!" They're all blown back by the wind.
"Give me your hand!" Kai yells, he tosses Nya back to the wheel.
Nya grabs it. "I've got it!" She pulls a lever, making the Bounty fly faster away, the boosters turning on.
"NOOOOOOO!" Morro is heard yelling.
Nya sighs. "Whew, that was close. The coast is clear."
Jay turns to Wu, his gaze serious. "Spill it, Sensei. What just happened back there, and what have they done to my friend?" He steps forward, worry clear on his face as he swallows hus fear down.
"Yeah, Sensei. Who was that?" Cole steps forward, his gaze filled with concern and frustration.
Wu sighs, his gaze heavy. "You four were not my first pupils. There was one before you."
Kai frowns. "Huh?"
"What?" Cole murmured.
"Morro, the Master of Wind." Wu states.
Nya panics, her eyes widening. "Okay, now those lights scare me. We got something on our six. Looks like your Master of Wind just caught his second wind."
Morro, on a Dragon, plunges at the Bounty.
...............
Lacey had reached her room with a struggle, her whole body and mind weak. She could feel Lloyd's internal struggle.
Emerald had helped her to her room, using what magic she had.
And right as she hit the bed, Lacey was asleep, her nightmares plaguing her with horror shows.
*****
Athena ⚜️
Yay! First Chapter is up!
Morro is here!
Oh no, Lacey is weak.
What else is gonna happen this season?
Discord Server is ready to join! I posted the link!