Lloyd couldn't help but smile and laugh all through breakfast, despite his previously foul mood.
First of all, his father was a god when it came to French toast. He didn't even think Zane could do better. Second, Kai put on a show, and started slapping Cole, who was sitting next to him, with his pieces of toast. Cole just sat in shock for a moment while the rest of them cracked up, but then grinned widely and began to slap Kai back. Soon, everyone was slapping each other, except Garmadon, who was complaining about the waste of his French toast. But that all changed when Lloyd said "Come on, father," and hit him full in the face.
"Oh, it's on, son!" And just like that, all members of the Destiny's Bounty were engaged in the Great French Toast Slap War.
When most of their breakfast was all over them instead of eaten, the Ninja all filed out on to the deck to begin training.
"Alright, pupils," Sensei Wu called. "Today, my brother will be teaching your lesson."
Lloyd stood straight. This was going to be interesting.
"Today, I am going to be teaching you the Art of the Silent Fist," Garmadon said. "To fight, without fighting."
"What the heck is that supposed to mean," Kai questioned. Everyone else looked confused, too, including Lloyd. Garmadon just smirked.
"I'll demonstrate, if one of you would volunteer." Lloyd rolled his eyes when none of the other four did.
"I'll go, father."
Garmadon smiled. "Thank you, Lloyd. But please, no powers. We don't want to blow ourselves out of the sky."
Lloyd stepped forward. "So, uh, what do I do?"
"Attack me."
"Wait, what? But I don't want to–"
"Attack me, son."
"Okay, if you say so." He charged his father. It worried him when Garmadon didn't move out of the way, but he didn't slow. He'd just have to trust him.
Just when he was about to punch the former Dark Lord, he moved out of the way at lightning speed, and Lloyd's momentum nearly sent him straight over the railing.
How did he...?
Determined not to give up, he tried again, this time using a flying sidekick. Just like before, Garmadon ducked just in time, and he crashed into the mast.
The Green Ninja was starting to get really frustrated. How is he doing that? He flew at his father, using every move he knew, and every time, Garmadon dodged at the last second, smirk still plastered to his face.
Lloyd finally lost control. He skidded to a stop after another of his kicks was avoided and turned to face the older man. In his hand, a giant, bright green energy sphere formed, that, six months ago, would have been very difficult for him to achieve. It encased his whole body before Garmadon called out, "Easy, son. It is only a lesson."
Lloyd let the sphere dissipate into the air. He looked down in shame. "Sorry. I don't know what got into me."
Garmadon walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder. "You let the anger take over." His tone darkened. "I know that feeling well."
His father walked over to Wu. "May I borrow our father's staff for a moment, brother?" Wu handed it over wordlessly. "You see," Garmadon said, walking back over to the five Ninja. "The key is balance." He placed the staff on its end, and it stood straight up, not wobbling one way or the other. "Let your opponent fight himself. Let the enemy tire himself." He grabbed the staff and handed it back to Wu. "Now you try. Pair up. Nya," Garmadon called up to the Bridge, "Would you like to join us and put the Bounty on autopilot for a while?"
"Sure thing." A second later, the six of them were in pairs. Nya versus Jay, Cole versus Zane, and Lloyd versus Kai. Once the teams were set, Garmadon shouted "Begin!" Then they were off.
"I'm not going to go easy on ya, kid," Kai said.
"I don't expect you to," Lloyd replied, smirking back at the Fire Ninja.
Kai lunged at him, shouting a battle cry. The Green Ninja waited patiently, resisting the urge to charge as well. Just before Kai landed his punch, he twisted out of the way, copying his father. The Red Ninja skidded to a halt and quickly spun around to try and kick him, but again, Lloyd avoided the attack.
Their sparring match went on for a long time, Kai throwing punches and kicks, and Lloyd weaving through every blow. It ended when Kai kicked off the mast and tried to kick him in the head, but he just ducked and Kai, surprised, twisted in mid air and landed flat on his back. Lloyd walked over and planted a foot on his chest, preventing the Fire Ninja from getting up.
"I win," Lloyd said, the same smirk from before they started still on his face.
"Yeah, yeah," Kai said, not even trying to get up, panting and sweating, "It's your turn now."
"How about you take a break first." Lloyd helped the worn-out Ninja to his feet, and they both walked over to where Garmadon and Sensei Wu were surveying the rest of the group.
"Good job, son. That was very excellent for a first attempt," his father praised.
"yeah, but you gotta hand it to Kai," he replied, throwing an arm around the Fire Ninja. "He's stubborn. Wouldn't give up till I pinned him down."
Garmadon chuckled, then resumed watching the others. He finally called Nya and Jay's match when the Samurai pinned the Lightning Ninja against the railing.
"Who was on offence," Lloyd questioned when Jay came over.
"Nya. We've had three matches and she's beat me every time. It's not cool."
Kai laughed. "Jay, that's so embarrassing. You were beaten by my sister three times?"
Jay's face turned bright red as Nya walked over. "Well, if you're so confident, Kai, why don't you fight me?"
Kai shook his head at his sister's request. "I couldn't possibly fight you. You're my little sister. I couldn't hurt you."
"Who says you'll be able to hit me?"
Now Kai's face turned red. "Oh, it's on."
Within five seconds, though, Kai was on his stomach with Nya on top him, screaming "Ow ow ow ow ow!" while Lloyd, Jay, Garmadon, and Sensei Wu laughed. Kai trudged slowly back over to the group, holding his shoulder as Nya bounced proudly over.
"Congratulations, Nya," Cole said. While the two siblings were 'fighting', the Black Ninja and Zane's match had ended in a tie, both Nindroid and man panting hard. "I've never seen someone put Kai in his place so fast. You should train with us more often."
"I do try." Her words were smug, and Kai glared at her before complaining loudly.
"I'm hungry. How long were we training for?"
Sensei Wu glanced up. "Quite a while. The sun in almost right above us. I guess it is time for lunch."
"I'll go whip up some sandwiches real quick." As Nya wandered off to the kitchen, the Ninja all began to talk idly about anything on their mind, while the two older men listened with amused expressions.
"Okay someone is going to have to come in and help me clean this mess up. There's French toast all over the dining room," the Samurai called.
Everyone immediately looked to Kai. He was the one who started it, after all. A moment later, Kai sighed and stood up from his place on the deck. "I'm coming, Nya!"
After the quick lunch of sandwiches, the Ninja quickly resumed training. To Lloyd, this new technique was very interesting.
"Alright, Kai," he said, getting back into formation. "Now it's my turn."
Before the Fire Ninja could reply, Lloyd was coming at him with a kick. Kai barely had time to dodge. Blow after blow, both Ninja moved at incredible speed, Lloyd attacking with all he had, and Kai avoiding each one thrown at him.
They had barely begun when something happened.
Lloyd charged Kai, fist raised high, and the Red Ninja twisted his body to avoid being hit. As the Green Ninja passed, Kai's hand grazed his back, right over his scars. He stopped dead, face draining of all color.
"Ha! Take that, Lloyd! You haven't been able to hit me yet!" Lloyd didn't move. Kai's smug expression melted into one of worry. "Hey, kid. You alright?" It was then Lloyd's whole body seized up, and he collapsed to the deck. He barely heard Kai shouting his name. He curled into himself into a ball, shaking violently. His back burned. It felt like Scales was cutting into him all over again.
In the back of his mind, he knew that he was okay, that this was all in his head. The scars were healed; the only remains were pale white lines across his skin. But it felt so real. He ignored the tiny voice telling him he was alright, and instead chose to writhe around on deck, the unbearable pain only existing in his mind. He was only slightly aware of the crowd around him. It was when he finally passed out did he relax.