Chapter 181: title tbd
Lloyd yawned on his way through the Bounty. No one else was awake at six in the morning, dead tired from the misfortunes of yesterday. But he wanted to check on Harumi, who had been exhausted from her hidden Oni powers. Surely, she would be feeling better now..?
His feet carried him to her door. Pushing it open, he poked his head in the crack.
"Ruuuuumiiiiiiii....are you awake?" he chuckled, then his eyes dilated.
He ran inside, staring at the empty used bed, white sheets laying crumpled and pressed down.
Panic surged through his autopilot mind, and he immediately burst into the common cabin, slipping a little on the smooth wood.
"GUYS! HARUMI'S GONE!" he shouted, distress written all over his face.
"WHAT?" Garmadon was the first to react, and they all filed quickly out to the deck.
"How....where?!" Lilla stammered, watching Lloyd try to trace the location of her earpiece.
"Why..." Jade mumbled to herself. She thought they wouldn't lose her again like this. She thought she had known Harumi.
Cloud and Nix stayed silent behind them, watching the scene.
"Status update," Lloyd called the others, who hovered around him and looked at the mainscreen. "I do not have her precise location, but it's showing up somewhere downtown by Borg Tower."
"Let's do it," said Kaitlynn, who ran towards the railing of the deck, to where the anchor chain was. She jumped off without hesitation, sliding down the chain, landing on the rooftop of the building the anchor rested on. The others shrugged and followed her, and they finally descended to ground level, before dispersing to find Harumi.
Each small group had been searching for over two hours, and still, there was no trace of her.
Their past encounters with these situations had taught them that finding Harumi would be no easy task; she could be virtually unplottable if she really wanted to be alone and away.
Lloyd was worried for her; truthfully, he always had been. He liked to call them phases: being the Jade Princess, the Quiet One, a major backbone in the Resistance, and now an Oni warrior. He still loved her as much as the day it all started; he would never forget the words she said as they fell from the sky on the Samurai X mech...
"NO, I NEED YOU!" she yelled furiously, a desperate fear in her voice.
Lloyd looked at her sadly.
And he needed her---he really did. He needed the only person who could read him like an open book, the one person who would always be there to guard his back in a battle. The ninja were his family, of course...but this was a different kind of love---the love that can fill voids and end wars, change lives and change the world.
And they deserved it. So he kept going, through the chilly evening air jostling against their shoulders. Jade, Garmadon, and Lilla were behind him, and they proactively scanned the streets, oblivious to Lloyd's wandering mind.
He just wanted it to be over with---they all did, of course! Zephyr had ruined everything. Everything.
So many plans had been put on hold, Harumi was suffering yet again, everyone's mental health dropped once more, and it was a headache that they all wished could have been taken care of sooner if someone had just believed her about the nightmares.
Definitely, Lloyd was still disappointed in himself for that, especially after he vowed to always trust his Yang. It was all pointless if he couldn't be there in the real times of need.
"You know, it's not completely your fault," Jade sighed, slowing down so she could walk next to him.
"Was I saying all that out loud?" he grimaced.
"No, your expression says it all," she muttered. "Why the face, Lloyd? I know it's not just because Harumi went off; you and I both know we will see her again. So tell me."
"Look, it's just...I feel like this could have been better, y'know?" he forced out the words. "This wouldn't have happened if we'd just believed about the nightmares. If we'd just supported her. If we'd just...saved her family and all others who died that day because of my selfish dreams and dumb decisions!"
He was yelling hoarsely now, and his eyes stung with tears amplified by the cold.
"It wasn't all our fault that day," she said, with a sort of defensive tone. "You tried...and you've apologized and made up for it many times over, from what I hear."
"Apologies don't change the past," he monotoned. "And in the future, I will make sure she is never lost like this again."
"That's the spirit," cackled a cold voice.
They halted sharply, rounding a corner. Zephyr and his gang were guarding Harumi's unconscious form, lying in a heap past them, white hair blowing with the cold wind.
Zephyr stood over her, an indigo crystal glowing in his palm.
Nadakhan, Krux, and Clouse stood as a barrier, blocking the group from reaching them, along with the zombie ninja, as the rest of the Resistance came sprinting within a minute.
"Oh, you little-"
Jade lunged forward, and so did Garmadon; they knocked the villains aside, and Lloyd took over Jade's spot as she worked her way towards Zephyr, who had his back turned to them.
Cloud couldn't help herself, and she eagerly bit their ankles, enjoying the howls of pain.
Jade heard distant humming and the outline of a glow from behind Zephyr's ody, and as soon as she reached him, she pulled out her bat.
One strong hit from Greta made Zephyr drop the fragile crystal---the cloth he used to hold it fell away easily, and it landed, shattering onto Harumi's body.
(A/N: Welllllppp hello all. I really did try to get this done on time but I failed T-T This was an interesting chapter to write. What do you all thinkkkkk? ~Ash)