Jay ruffled his blankets in an attempt to make himself feel better.They twisted round his leg like a coil of rope and tightened as he turned over.His eyes shot open and he sat up abruptly,panting heavily from the stifling heat crawling up his back.Or the blood-curdling nightmares.
He hissed as a fiery ached ebbed through his shoulder.But it was a dull ache.A wound which was healing.
He rubbed his bleary eyes with his hand that was uninjured and his vision adjusted to his surroundings.
A coal-shaft black was creeping around the room and tendrils of darkness broke into the small shaft of light produced from a lantern on the bedside table.Which wasn't his.
His heart fluttered for a second but relaxed when he noticed the beckoning door which was open.The blanket was a hospital blue and he found that there was a lot of junk in the room.
He tripped.He yelled as the ache spiked through his body and it felt like an eternity before he moved.Someone helped him up.
The blood was pounding in his head and he could hear multiple voices talking at once but they were all mixed up and he couldn't place them.He wasn't with the enemy,he told himself with trembling reassurance,they wouldn't bring you a balloon.
The only thing he noticed was a starling yellow balloon floating at the end of the bed before his setting changed completely.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Jay's finally awake!" Nya yelled excitedly,her face lighting up after two weeks.Cole and Zane were already with her and helped Jay back onto the bed and he began reciting a string of questions.Kai ran to the door wondering about all the commotion,bring Wu along with him first,and a small smile stretched across his face.They were finally back together.
Cole had opened up and told them the story and only a slight limp remained of his injuries now.Kai slumped his shoulders and leaned against the doorframe as sensei told the others to calm down and not make the confused blue ninja feel worse.
"Are you better now brother?"
Zane was standing next to him,away from the bursting chatter.
"Yeah...almost"
All the panic and anxiety was slowly being sucked away as he saw the rest happy but there was still him....
"I noticed too,"he replied and his pinning gaze left him and to the hall.
"Lloyd,come on!"Cole said,as he saw a flash of green pass the door.
The footsteps became louder till the ninja stood there with a forced smile on his face.It didn't reach his eyes,Zane watched as he went over to Jay.
In his joy,the blue ninja continued with his array of questions all directed at the bedraggled green ninja.He could barely stand without wanting to sink into despair but he made himself answer.
Not everyone had noticed the uncomfortableness however the fiery ninja directed the words away to Cole who was more then happy to recite his heroic actions.
"There's one thing I don't get though.What happened to the cake?"Jay asked.
"Yeah,Zane I thought it would have been better considering you are the best at baking,"Cole said.
"Me?I was not the one who baked it.I assumed it was Kai since it was not that nice apparently,"Zane added.
"Hey!My baking isn't bad.Plus if it wasn't you then who made it?"
Lloyd slipped away unnoticed.
Except by Zane.
Zane followed.
They didn't catch the answer either.
"The video footage shows that someone snuck aboard the ship and added something into it therefore it had a negative effect,"Nya said.
"It was a wolf.They knew about us long before we did."
Lloyd didn't even shiver as he stepped out into the crisp winter night air.The sky wasn't visible,notorious grey clouds cogged up the night and he walked slowly to the edge of the deck.As if he was in a trance.As if someone was calling him.
Zane slipped through the closing door before it slammed shut and was about to approach him when he stopped.
He heard voices.
Voices.
But everyone was inside...
"So you finally came..."
It was another voice,deep and heavy with mystery.
Zane retraced his steps until his back was against the door.Lloyd couldn't see him.
Hopefully.
"I need to know.The dreams I've been having.Are they true?"the ninja asked.
Zane peeked around the side but his view was blocked so he couldn't see who was being spoken to.
Lloyd drew his hood up of his jumper.It made him feel better.Less of a threat.Less of a danger.Less of a burden.
Dreams weren't the best way to describe what he was seeing.A light drizzle splattered at his back but he didn't feel a thing.
He kept visualising himself.As that 'crazy evil wolf freak'.What he did,who he was and what he looked like.The events were horrifying.Especially when all the wolves had been defeated.He had also seen himself ,too many times, in that shimmering black state.Clearing the wolves works in a sweep.
It was wrong.He though the golden power was dangerous that was the reason he had divided it and given most of it to his team.He wasn't alone.He kept on telling himself.
It wasn't working.
"You are destined for so much more then this..."
He snapped out of his continuous staring at the floor and focused back on the voice.On the person.On his father.
He still couldn't believe that his father was here.He was sure this was another dream.Like all the others he had had since they had returned.Each and everyone ending with a ghostly image of Lord Garmadon beckoning him to meet him.
The evil Lord Garmadon,whose name had caused fear in the most fearless of souls.Now,gone.But how was he here?
The rain was pelting down now.Thunder growling and roaring across the endless horizon.
"Things are changing.The things you have experienced in the past few weeks have been destined to happen.The time is close.The sun can never sink forever and neither can..."
Zane reacted without thinking and grabbed the shoulders of the younger ninja and shook him.There was a ear-shattering screech and the essence had dissapeared.
"I feared this would happen,"Zane spoke though he wasn't really listening.
Lloyd had learned something.
This would change everything.
Not just Ninjago.
But much,much more.