Jay was running down the road as fast as he could, throwing his feet with so much force he thought that he would have bruises the next day. He had to get home—he had to get home right away! Something was wrong, very very wrong.
He had been going down the same road for ages, it felt like. That lonely stretch between the junkyard and Ninjago City stubbornly stretched out further than it had any right to, but it wouldn’t stop him. Finally, the junkyard came into view and he doubled his speed, hoping that he wasn’t too late.
The gate whizzed by him, and now he was standing in front of his house, positively drenched in sweat.
“Mom!? Dad?!” He shouted. No reply.
Up to the front door he raced and shoved the door off of its hinges to get inside. He was about to call for his parents again but was silenced by the towering figure of Lord Garmadon. He grew bigger and taller, filling up the room—wait, the house was gone now, replaced by pools of lava and sulphur and smoke. Garmadon laughed coldly, emitting a fear so great that Jay felt that he couldn’t breathe. He had done away with Jay’s parents, surely, and he was next! Where were his parents?! Why weren’t they protecting him?!
“MOM!”
A wave of static electricity went over his whole body, ricocheting off his sheets and leaving goosebumps all over his skin. Jay was sitting up, in bed, breathing heavily and feeling cold beads of sweat trickle down his chest, neck, and back. He threw off the blanket he had over him and started wiping away the sweat over and over again, while the dream replayed in his mind.
‘Why can’t I ever just GO TO SLEEP?!’ He would’ve shouted if there wasn’t anybody else nearby. Instead, he forced his thoughts to remain inside his head, releasing only an occasional whimper of anger. ‘Why do I always have to have nightmares?!’ His heart was aching from an over abundance of misery, his back was sore from tossing and turning, his eyes were heavy and stinging from overuse, and his temples were throbbing from a massive headache he had coming on. ‘Why?’ he silently asked again. ‘I didn’t ask for this...’
His shirt was practically drenched, so in a fit of frustration, he pulled it off of his body and threw it against one of the walls. Why, oh, why did this keep happening night after night? Sometimes it was fine. Sometimes the dream wasn’t all that scary. Sometimes he didn’t dream at all. But more often than not, the nights were like this. Miserable. When did sleeping become such a chore?
As he reached to hug his knees, he could feel his jaw tighten and his eyes water.
‘No!’ he told himself. ‘I won’t cry!’ He swiped at the tears vigorously, making sure not one slid down his face. He was probably the only ninja who was still acting like a kid... crying for his mommy in the middle of the night. The other guys were much braver, he thought. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t shake his anger or his tremendous feeling of sadness which was brought on by the dream. He hadn’t dreamt about his parents before now, and it revealed to him a deep-rooted fear he had never known he had: the fear of his parents getting hurt while he was away. If anything like that happened... he’d never be able to forgive himself.
His room was smelly and messy, like it always was, and the moon wasn’t in the window so it was even darker than usual. The odd shapes of furniture and clothing seemed to grow and shorten in the minimal light, leering this way and that. He found himself jumping at even the slightest notion of movement he caught in the corner of his eye, only to find out that his mind was playing tricks on him.
The other boys were still in their beds next door, and from the sound of their snoring, they were all still sound asleep. They didn’t know how lucky they were.
After a few minutes of sitting on his bed, feeling awful and jumping at shadows, Jay figured that he’d have a slim chance of getting back to sleep, so he decided that he would take a walk around the monastery. He had never done this before, and he was very unsure about the idea, but he didn’t want to just sit alone all night. He needed to get up and do something to get the jitters out.
Slowly, he got to his feet, careful not to make a single noise, and slid his door open. The hallway was brighter than his room, but not by much, and the stairwell, he noticed, was pitch black. It was practically screaming: “There could be anything down here! You never know! A monster could spring up and get ya!”
‘It’s just the stairs,’ he told himself. ‘There’s nothing down there. Everyone’s asleep. It’s just the stairs. There’s nothing down there. Everyone’s asleep.’
He kept repeating the words over and over and over again, desperately trying to believe them, but even as he approached the dark staircase, he could feel his body tense. One, two, three, four, five steps down, and nothing bad had happened. Seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, and everything seemed fine. Near fifteen steps he saw the light of the next hallway and was relieved to be able to see his surroundings once more.
The monastery was spooky at night. The old, wooden building creaked and groaned every so often, making it seem as though anyone could be hiding just behind the next wall or pillar. Perhaps there was someone... after all, the Skulken assassins had found their way here twice. THAT certainly didn’t make him feel safe! Not one bit! Maybe he’d better turn around now?
‘No!’ he told himself. ‘You’re not a baby! Besides, you’re already down here, might as well go for that walk.’ It was decided. He had talked himself into it, despite still being reluctant.
He was on the second floor, passing by classrooms, bedrooms, and game rooms that he knew were totally empty, making him feel awfully alone. Every item was left idle and unwanted, every candle had been smothered and forgotten, every door had been shut. Where did he go now? He thought about it for a moment. There was a large room not too far from here with a great view of Ninjago City. That would be the perfect place to unwind.
Off he went, gingerly tiptoeing through the shadows toward the big room with the good view. All the while, he had a terrible feeling that someone was watching him, and maybe even following him, but every time he looked around, all he saw was his brain playing tricks on him. Then, something creaked behind him and he bolted for the big room. Reaching the door, he opened and closed it as fast as he could with his shaky hands. He only breathed a sigh of relief when he paused and didn’t hear footsteps in the hallway. There didn’t seem to be anybody standing in the room with him, either. He was alone now.
Jay walked passed some sort of flower arrangement on the right wall and stopped at the window, opening it slowly. The moonlight and streetlights poured in through the glass and filled the room enough to relieve most of Jay’s nerves, and he sat down to watch the tiny cars go along the streets of the city. This was nice—even though he had nearly wet himself on the way down here. What a good way to relax his mind after that dreadful dream.
Speaking of that dream, Jay wondered if perhaps it had manifested because of how homesick he had been feeling lately. It was definitely possible. He didn’t know much about dreams, but this wouldn’t be the first time his thoughts had influenced what he dreamt about at night.
Looking out over the city, he tried to make out where the junkyard would be. It was impossible to actually see it, what with all the trees and then the buildings in the way, but he imagined that it was just northwest of here, sitting quietly on its pitiful plot of land.
Hmmmm.... how were his parents doing? How was business? Did they miss him as much as he missed them? Their separation seemed to deepen the more he thought about it. Then something hit him: he hadn’t spoken to his parents in over five months... nearly half a year... when would he see them again?
“Out for a late night stroll?”
Jay actually screamed and jumped to his feet, lighting blinking at his fingertips, ready to attack whoever had just snuck up on him, but found the smiling face of Wu staring back in utter calmness.
“Sensei Wu!” Jay realised, a little too late. “I’m so sorry, I-I—“
“At ease,” the old man said gently. “The mind can often play tricks on you in the dark.” Jay was relieved at how understanding he was and turned back to look at the city. His chest still ached as though a dagger of adrenaline had pierced him, but he tried to steady himself, and eventually the feeling faded.
He swallowed and said, “Yeah, I’m just out to clear my head.” He tried to seem casual and turned his attention back to the sparkling lights, awkwardly shuffling his feet and trying to cover his bare chest with folded arms. Wu seemed to be just as encapsulated by the lights, and the two of them stood in silence, watching the night grow dim.
“Are you still having bad dreams?” Wu asked suddenly.
Jay looked up and stared at his mentor for a second. “Oh, uh, well, depends on what you’d call a ‘bad dream.’ Is, like, a two-out-of-five-star dream considered bad?” The weak joke had no effect on the old man and Jay was left inwardly cringing.
“And what have you been dreaming about?” He went back to looking out the window and Jay could feel that the conversation was ever so slightly turning serious.
“Just regular dumb stuff,” said Jay, shuffling his feet again. Wu probably expected more of an answer. “You know, like... people chasing me... falling forever... that sort of thing. What do you dream about?” Jay turned to look at Wu as he spoke and felt his insides freeze when he gave the young ninja a strained glance. As if he were saying, ‘Really?’ Jay gave a nervous cough.
All of a sudden, he felt a familiar tingling sensation near the back of his head. Boy, that brought back memories. He hadn’t felt this since he first met Wu, but now that it was back it continued to work its magic and calmed him down a bit.
“I’ve been dreaming about things.... bad things...” he started, his throat tightening. “Sometimes I see... the torture chamber in the Underworld... sometimes... I see a Skulken face... following me... other times I see Garmadon, or a dragon...” Wu was listening intently now. “Recently, though, I’ve been dreaming... about the accident... falling into the river... and... my parents...” There it was, the ugly truth. Laid out for his sensei to see. “But, you know, it’ll probably go away sooner or later.”
“Any other dreams?” Wu pressed.
“Ummm...” Jay had to really think for a bit. “There’s one I’ve had a few times, but it’s really weird and stupid, so, you know—“
“What was the dream?” Wu was giving him his full attention now, and Jay was getting a little uncomfortable.
“Nothing—nothing at all. Forget I mentioned it.” The dream he had been thinking of was the one where he could hear people talking about him from behind the mirror, but it was too weird to talk about. Wu seemed to let the matter go and they both went back to their window staring.
“I used to have nightmares, too,” said Wu. “When I was young... a long time ago now.” It was hard to imagine a young Sensei Wu, especially for Jay. What would he even have looked like? Then Wu lifted his hand and golden energy began to spin in his palm. “This tonic saw me through many rough nights. Perhaps you would like to try it?” The energy cleared away and what it left behind was a tiny cup filled with a deep blue liquid. It reminded Jay of a small cap full of medicine.
“What does it taste like?” he asked, eyeing it suspiciously.
Wu chuckled. “Blue raspberry,” he said, and he lifted the cup for Jay to take. He grabbed it carefully and swirled its contents around just a little bit. Bringing it up to his nose, he gave a quick sniff and frowned. It didn’t smell like anything. Again, there was silence.
“Hey, um, Sensei?” he asked after a while. Wu turned and smiled at his student. “Did you, uh... did you ever have a crush on a girl?”
Wu breathed in a decisive breath. “You are young. Feelings come and go. Some feelings can be a distraction.” He gave Jay a very serious look. “Perhaps it would be best to relieve yourself of such distractions and focus on your training?”
Jay looked down at his feet and felt his stomach drop. Not quite the answer he had been looking for. He should have known better than to ask his Sensei about crushes.
“Yes, Sensei,” he mumbled.
“I hope that tonic works for you. Goodnight,” and Wu left the room.
Everything was all business these days, huh? Never a moment for a laugh anymore. Well, maybe not entirely. Tomorrow was Nya’s birthday, after all, so he was gonna make sure she had a great day. Nothing was gonna stop him.
With the tonic in hand, he felt much more confident about returning to his bed, so he started tiptoeing his way out of the room and back up the stairs. The dark seemed less frighting in this direction, and he managed to get back to his room without so much as one jump-scare.
His room also seemed less menacing now that he was back, airing out his sheets and making himself comfortable. He sat down on his mattress, blankets pulled up over his thighs, and he held the small cup in front of his face. Whatever the experience, he was going to drink it and get it over with. One... two... three! Down the hatch it went, sliding over his tongue and down his throat.
He gave a terribly gagged cough from the bitter taste of the blue syrup, and he scrunched up his face, feeling it linger on his tastebuds. That was by far the... the most...
His head rolled back and he fell onto his pillow with a PLOP, completely passed out. He hadn’t even had a chance to put his cup down.
* * *
‘Woah... what is this..?’ he wondered, looking about the void. ‘Where am I?’
He thought that maybe he could see faint dreams trying to push through, but there was this thick haze blotting out everything. Time shortened and stretched, his thoughts wandered this way and that, and he could feel his tension slip away from his brain. Then, all of a sudden, it began to clear away, slowly giving in to sunshine and morning.
“Uuuuuuugghh, what the heck...?” he muttered as he reached up to scratch his head. He was in exactly the same position he had fallen asleep in and his body was sore from not moving for several hours, but at least he felt well rested. He hadn’t had such a good night’s sleep since... gosh, the junkyard maybe? But yikes! Was that tonic powerful or what?! What time was it anyway? He leaned over to his bedside clock and read the tiny screen.
9:18
Holy cow! He needed to get moving! He pulled on a shirt and pants then bumbled out into the hallway but stopped when he saw Zane standing at Cole’s door. Zane looked up at him as he came into the hall.
“What’s wrong?” Jay asked as he finished adjusting his pants.
Zane sighed. “He won’t come out.”
“What?” Jay looked from the door to Zane and back again. Was Cole still upset from yesterday? “Are you gonna... stay here then?”
“For a bit. Breakfast is downstairs,” said Zane, putting his hands in his pockets and turning back to the door.
Jay shrugged and followed his nose downstairs where a plate of warm French toast was waiting for him in the kitchen. He topped the beautiful bread with plenty of syrup and powdered sugar and headed for the dining room, but he froze when he saw Kai and Nya sitting at one of the tables. He suddenly didn’t want Nya to think he was lazy—waking up late and eating a big plate of sugary breakfast. Instead, he ate in the kitchen as quickly as possible then threw his dishes in the sink.
The next thing on his mind was Nya’s birthday. There had to be decorations here somewhere, right? Drawer after drawer after cupboard revealing nothing but pots and pans and knives and cutlery and appliances. Perhaps in the storage room? Bingo! There was old box filled with half-opened bags of streamers and balloons. He grabbed the colours he thought Nya would most like along with a step stool and headed for the dining room.
One step into the eating area and he was already panicking. What was he going to do again? Oh, decorations, right! Just like how his mom used to do. But how should he say hello to Nya? Oh, and Kai, too. He’d need to be discrete around him as well.
“Good morning, guys!” he blurted as he got close. Nya smiled and said hello, while Kai glared and munched angrily on his toast. “Happy Birthday, Nya!”
“Thanks,” she said happily.
Jay gestured to his arm full of supplies and said, “I thought a special day called for special treatment.” For a moment, he thought that maybe she blushed, and then he felt his own cheeks grow warm.
“That’s really sweet of you,” Nya said. She turned back to her brother who was still glaring. Jay could’ve sworn that Kai had made some sort of gagging noise and then Nya playfully swatted at him.
Jay didn’t waste a second on the decor. He wasn’t going to do anything fancy—he couldn’t even if he tried—and stuck with a simple frame around the door of three coloured streamers and two sets of balloons at the corners. That should do it.
He was right in the middle of pinning the last balloons when Sensei Wu walked in. The sudden appearance made him jump and he lost his footing on the step stool. Down to floor he fell with a PLOP. Well that wasn’t very manly, he thought. And right in front of Nya, too.
Either way, Wu had come in to deliver a gift for Kai and Nya, but Jay never saw what that gift was as he was shooed away by Wu. First attempt at birthday celebrations: failed. Off to one of the training rooms they went.
* * *
That day’s training turned out to be cleaning every single floor on the first level with a grumpy Cole and a tired Zane. They didn’t really talk much and by lunch time they were still rather ill-tempered.
Everyone helped in the kitchen to the boil the rice and cook the beef for he noon meal, and by the time it was twelve-thirty, Jay thought that they’d never get to eat. Thankfully, about five minutes later, they were stumbling out of the kitchen and into the dining room where Kai and Nya were waiting, trays of food in hand.
Cole made sure to sit as far away from Kai as possible and he still didn’t say much. No one did, actually. They just sat in relative silence munching on their rice for quite some time. But soon, Jay noticed that Nya’s expression was somewhat dismal, and he concocted a plan.
“How about we all play a game?” he suggested.
Zane looked as though he was about to protest when Nya suddenly said, “That’s sounds like it could be a good idea.” Yes! Score one for the blue ninja! And since it was her birthday, everybody would have to go along with it. Or at least, he hoped so. “What did you have in mind?”
Oh, whoops. He hadn’t thought that far ahead. “Uuuhhh.... twister?” he asked hesitantly.
Kai snickered. “Not likely.”
“Oh, right, yeah. Umm... how about Two Truths and a Lie?” Jay suggested.
“What’s that?” Nya asked.
“It’s really simple,” said Jay. “I tell you three things about myself, you have to figure out which is the lie. Here, I’ll start the first round.” He seemed to have gathered everyone’s attention, for the most part, not that they were in a particularly fun mood. “Let’s see... I used to be homeschooled... I invented my very own working jet pack... aaaand I used to own a dog named Scruffy. Which one’s the lie?”
“Jetpack? Seriously?” Kai said irritably. “Even I can lie better than that.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, panda boy! I’ve never owned a dog in my entire life! Scruffy was the lie!” Jay was doing his best to entertain the group, but it seemed to be having very slow progress.
“Wait, you really did invent a jetpack?!” Nya cried.
“What I lack in strength, I make up for in brains,” said Jay with a flourish.
“Wow, you must have a really big brain, then,” said Kai as he reclined in his wheelchair. That got a few snickers from the group.
“All right, then, your turn Mr. Snarky.” Jay leaned over the table and put his chin in his hands in anticipation. "Show us how it's done."
“Pfft, fine,” Kai sighed. “Umm... I’m allergic to cherry blossoms, I don’t like wasabi, and I made my first sword when I was ten.”
"I know this one," Nya said with a playful grin.
"I know you do, shut up," said Kai in an equally playful tone.
"Is it the wasabi?" Zane asked.
Kai rolled his eyes and Nya nodded excitedly.
"Beautiful lying, oh great con master," Jay jeered, bowing in a dramatic way.
Nya looked over at Zane and asked, "How did you know?"
"Logical deduction," he replied. "Hay fever is common enough, and I know he's a blacksmith, so there was only one other possible option."
"Okay, your turn, Sherlock," said Kai, in snarky sort of way.
Zane paused to really mull over his options. He seemed incredibly deep in thought for a while before suddenly brightening up and saying, "I know how to cook a whole turkey, I am the godfather to three children, and I have the entire collection of the Natalie Clue book series."
As one might expect, there was a moment of stunned silence after this. Jay thought that perhaps it was the book series he was lying about. Kai and Nya seemed to be leaning more towards the godfather thing and Cole was now watching with a small grin on his face.
"It was the turkey," said Zane. The table erupted in muddled cries of agony and confusion.
"How can you be you and not know how to cook a turkey?" Jay asked.
"Do you honestly believe that the need for a full sized turkey has ever arisen in my life?" Zane countered.
Jay was about to come up with a retort, but his mind blanked. "Yeah, okay, I guess that makes sense."
"Me next!" Nya piped up. "Okay, umm... I used to take dance lessons, like, a long time ago now, umm... I've never been to the beach or the ocean, and... I am a fabulous baker."
“Okay, I know this one,” said Kai. Nya smiled and shoved him a little.
Alright, this was the big moment. Jay really had to put all his effort into it. Nya looked as though she could be a good dancer, and the way she phrased that answer made it sound very likely. Never going to the beach was common enough, just depended on a few variables. Either way it’d be impossible to know for sure. Then there was the baking. He’d never seen Nya bake, but it was still possible. Which one was the lie?
“I’m gonna say... going to the beach,” Jay finally decided.
“Baking,” said Zane.
“Dancing,” Cole piped up. Alright, everyone was in now. They all turned to Nya who looked somewhat disappointed, but enjoying herself.
“Zane got it,” she said.
“She is a terrible baker,” Kai deadpanned. “I mean, she’s just... awful.”
Nya rolled her eyes again. “Oh, please, you could get lost in a sauce pan. At least the food I make is edible.” Kai made a face as if to say, “well, it’s kinda edible,” and everyone had a good laugh.
“Okay, Zane’s two for two now. We’ve gotta step up our game,” said Jay. It finally seemed like everyone was starting to get into it. “Cole, how about you?” This would be the tricky part. Cole appeared reluctant to reply, but sighed and eventually mumbled,
“Alright.” He took his time to think, probably longer than everyone else, but perhaps it was just building up the suspense. “Well... I guess... I’ve traveled most of Ninjago... I used to collect Pocket Pets cards when I was a kid, and... I have a soft spot for... certain sweets...”
Just then, Kai muffled a snort. “More like ‘a soft spot for a certain girl.’”
“Do you have a problem?” The words were so sudden and they came from Cole’s mouth like a sword being unsheathed and pointed in Kai’s unsuspecting face. The game was forgotten as all eyes turned to Kai.
“No,” he said. He seemed calm, but Jay could see his jaw clench and his body stiffen. Oh boy, here we go again! This was SO not the time!
“Oh, give me a break!” Cole was getting up now, and so was everyone else. “What is your problem? Huh?” He inched closer to Kai in a very intimidating way. If it hadn’t been for the wheelchair, Jay’s was certain there would have been another wrestling match.
“I dunno, what’s your problem?” Kai countered.
“YOU are my problem!” the black ninja cried. “You little smart Alec! Always breaking the rules because you think they don’t apply to you!”
“Well, who died and made you chief, you control freak?” Kai was leaning out of his seat just a little bit, an inch away from attempting to stand.
“Here’s a bright idea: don’t break the rules and maybe people won’t have to save your sorry butt! Huh? Would it kill you to just shut up and do what you’re told for once?!”
“I don’t have to listen to a whiny rich boy who doesn’t out-rank me just because he thinks he’s better than everyone!”
“When have I EVER made it seem like I think I’m better than anyone else?!”
On and on and on it went, back and forth, shouting over one another, and butting out anyone who tried to step in and break it up. They were like two bucks with their antlers locked, determined not to leave their opponent standing.
“You’re an intolerable ego-freak!” Cole was shouting. “You think you can just do WHATEVER you want and not have to pay the consequences!!!”
“YOU DON’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT CONSEQUENCES!!!” Kai shouted back. “YOU NEVER HAD TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR SISTER WHEN ALL YOU HAD TO EAT WAS A SINGLE LOAF OF BREAD!!! YOU NEVER HAD TO WORK FOURTEEN HOURS A DAY, EVERY DAY, FOR TWO YEARS NOT KNOWING WHERE YOUR PARENTS WERE OR IF THEY WERE EVEN ALIVE!!!”
“OH, YOU THINK YOU’RE SOME SORT OF SPECIAL SNOWFLAKE?!? NEWSFLASH!! EVERYBODY’S GOT PROBLEMS!!!” They had now reached a decibel so loud that Jay was beginning to wonder if Wu could hear them from every corner of the monastery. “YOU’RE NO DIFFERENT THAN EVERYONE ELSE IN THIS ROOM!!!”
“OH, BECAUSE YOU KNOW EVERYTHING, RIGHT?!?”
“I KNOW ENOUGH!!!”
“WELL, YOU DON’T KNOW WHO’S GONNA BE THE GREEN NINJA!!! BUT I KNOW IT’S NOT GONNA BE YOU!!!”
“OH, SO NOW YOU KNOW EVERYTHING?”
This was starting to grate on Jay’s ears, and he had lost track of the conversation a long time ago. He couldn’t even tell what they were talking about anymore.
“I KNOW THAT I HAVE A BETTER SHOT AT BEING THE GREEN NINJA THAN YOU!!!” Kai was screaming.
“SAYS WHO?!?”
“I say, enough!!!”
Amazingly, the shouting stopped long enough for everyone to turn and see Wu standing in the doorway, his staff in hand and a scowl on his face. He walked over to the group with the intensity of a father about drag his child by the ear to their room and used his staff to whack both boys on the head.
“You should be ashamed of yourselves,” he said, staring them down. “Both of you will be locked in solitary confinement together until you can resolve your issues.” He stopped for a moment to let the words sink in. “To your rooms,” he said. “Now.” They shuffled stubbornly away and out the door in a terrible moment that still felt unresolved. “You two, come with me,” said Wu, gesturing to Jay and Zane. “And Nya, to your room as well.”
‘Well this can’t be good,’ thought Jay.
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