Legends of Ninjago: Book 2: Rise of the Serpentine: Chapter 4 — What is the Green Ninja?

The monastery was on high alert for several days after the attack and everyone seemed to be standing on pins and needles as they waited for the Prince of Darkness to make his move. Wu had sent Keaton out to investigate in the South, but she had yet to return, leaving the air feeling far too still and quite. Meanwhile, the boys’ training continued.

Amidst the fantastical weapons and element training which they received daily, they were also subject to regular academic subjects such as mathematics, history, and english & grammar. Zane always thought that this was primarily done for Kai and Jay's benefit, seeing as how they did not finish school, but while in the classroom he found himself learning all sorts of things which he previously did not know.

On one such day, after Cole had been released from the infirmary, they were all sitting together in a small room with Sensei Wu who was going over ancient Ninjagian history.

"But what many do not know is the existence of an ancient race known as the Serpentine who ruled over the Suiden, Taiyo, and Masshiro provinces from the year 85 to 1190," Wu was saying. "Half man, half snake, they came from five tribes: the Hypnobrai, the Fangpyres, the Constrictai, the Venomari, and the Anacondrai. However, following the defeat of the Anacondrai near the end of the second century, they were overthrown by humanity, sealed away in ancient tombs, and died out. You can see a great deal of Serpentine influence in these old tapestries and paintings dating back to..."

Interesting as this was, though, the legends of snake-people were fairly common in Ninjago and when Wu moved on to the third century it became harder to find any real interest in what he was saying. Zane attempted to be diligent in all of his duties, but his mind was still very much distracted. When they had all returned from their mission to the Underworld, he finally had a chance to talk to Sensei Wu.

He had come to his study late one evening and sat down in front of his desk.

“I suppose it’s been unfair of me to make you wait this long for one answer,” Wu had said, putting down his tea cup and looking up at his pupil. He sighed lightly before continuing. “Your father was a good man. I knew him as Dr. Julien. He was a scientist and an engineer, looking for a simpler life, which he found with his son.”

Zane looked down at his hands resting on his knees and tried to remember any such moments as his Sensei had described, but his farthest reaching memory was of him waking up in Sakana village all those years ago.

“I don’t remember,” he said, swallowing hard. Then he looked up suddenly. “Were we happy?”

“Yes,” Wu replied. “At least as far as I could tell.”

“And... what about my mother?” Zane asked. He could feel his chest tighten with dread, and Wu didn’t answer for a few seconds.

“I’m afraid I never knew her,” he said. “She wasn’t with you then.”

Zane looked down again. She was either dead or divorced, living somewhere out there, but there was way of knowing.

“And you don’t know what... happened to us?” He continued.

“I’m afraid not. I lost track of you for several years and no one has seen or heard from Dr. Julien for about as long.” Wu seemed reluctant to share this knowledge, probably because he knew that it might upset Zane, but the young man kept his composer, thanked his Sensei, and left the room quietly. The moment he was alone, however, he let a large gasp of air escape his lungs and his body felt so weak that he needed to lean against a wall. After all this time he finally had an answer... so why did it make him feel so... sad?

Now here he was, four months later, sitting in history class at the monastery mulling over this information. It wasn’t much to go on, which was probably why it bothered Zane so much. His first clue to his past and it only gave him more questions! Of course the most logical thing to do would be to find his old home and search for any more clues that might tell him more, but that would—

"And thus concludes today's lesson," Wu was saying. That was the signal to get up and go to the next training session or class. The other boys were quick to leave, but Zane trailed behind them at a small distance, not feeling in the mood to talk to anyone.

“Zane!”

Zane snapped his head up and saw Kai, Cole, and Jay looking back at him, staring.

“What, are you on another planet or something?” Kai asked.

“No,” said Zane, a little more than confused.

“We asked if you wanted to play Fist to Face 2 with us later,” Jay explained. “Bet you can’t beat my high-score!”

“Oh, please. A five-year-old with a broken hand could beat that score,” Kai said with a grin.

“Um, thank you, but no,” said Zane, just as Jay was ready to turn on Kai, and he went back to his walk.

“All right, suit yourself,” Cole sighed as he, Kai, and Jay left in the opposite direction.

The other boys typically used their time after classes to play mindless video games on Jay’s E-Boi which he had snuck into the monastery--Zane wasn’t even sure if Sensei Wu knew of its existence--but Zane didn't really understand video games all that much, so he was generally left out.

Sunlight from outside a pair of doors caught Zane’s eye and he opened them to reveal a warm autumn sun shining down on him. Pleased with the weather, he stepped out and closed the doors behind him, then walked slowly through one of the many courtyards enjoying the last rays of sun they’d be getting before winter set in.

He looked up at the sky, dotted with clouds, and continued to think about his parents and where he might have come from when suddenly he spotted something moving on the roof. He looked over and saw a small black bird—a falcon—sitting on the highest point of the dark shingles overhead. It appeared almost as if the creature was looking at him, but a moment later the bird was flying away.

In any case, if Zane was to actually investigate the disappearance of his father, he’d need to take a brief leave of absence, and that wouldn’t do. He had to keep focused on his training for now, especially with Lloyd Garmadon out there doing who knows what. He was silently envious of Kai in that his parents were prisoners of war and needed to be found as soon as possible, with people like Wu actively searching for them. Meanwhile Dr. Julien was a case that could be easily handed over to the police and would likely not bear any fruit. If he wanted to really look into it, he would need to wait until after the war was officially over and his training was a little farther along.

All this thinking of parents was making Zane more than a little homesick. Then, out of nowhere, his nose caught the scent of dinner being prepared in the kitchens a short distance away. Perhaps he could make himself a little dessert to cheer himself up.

* * *

“Mind your footing,” said Sensei Wu.

Zane adjusted his movements accordingly but never took his eyes off of his opponent. His arms were raised defensively and he was looking for the best way to take Cole down. Cole was a few inches taller than him and far stronger. He would need to move as little as possible and take him down before he could react. Already the ice wanted to break free. Zane could feel his breath becoming colder, but he tried to swallow it back. This was hand-to-hand combat, not elemental training.

The two of them were staring each other down in a large training room, analysing the situation, awaiting the perfect opportunity to strike. They had their hands and arms up, protecting their bodies and faces, and Zane didn’t so much as blink when suddenly Cole broke his stance and swung his left leg up at him. Zane moved back before Cole’s foot hit him and while Cole was gathering himself again Zane moved in and tried to land a hit on Cole’s left shoulder. Cole immediately blocked and attempted his own strike, which Zane deflected, and so it went, back and forth, both of them throwing their arms and legs at each other in a flurry until finally Cole slipped up. He had his hand out too long and Zane grabbed his wrist, pulling him over his shoulder and onto the soft floor where he finally landed a punch on Cole’s chest.

“First round goes to Zane,” Wu said from the sidelines.

“Eh, I let you win,” said Cole as he sat up.

“Sure you did,” Zane replied. He extended his hand for Cole to take and lifted his brother up to his feet.

After Cole was up again, he and Zane moved to switch places with Jay and Kai who would fight the next round.

“Begin,” said Wu, and as the match went on, the pounding rain outside grew more intense.

“How is your head feeling?” Zane leaned over and asked.

Cole looked up at him and answered, “It’s all right. I don’t really get dizzy too much anymore. But... I do feel kind of slow. You know?”

“I’m sure your reflexes will come back in time,” Zane reassured him.

“They’d better,” said Cole. “Or I might actually lose a match by accident.” The two of them chuckled.

“Second round goes to Jay,” Wu’s voice boomed. By the time the words reached Cole and Zane’s ears, Jay and Kai were a tangled heap of limbs on the floor.

“Get off of me!” Kai growled, shoving Jay’s legs away from him. He rose angrily, much to Jay’s surprise, and was heading toward where Cole and Zane were sitting when Wu stopped him.

“Don’t speak that way to your brother,” the Sensei said firmly. “Apologise at once.”

Kai turned around sharply, took a shallow bow, muttered “Sorry,” and plopped down a few feet away from Cole. He seemed grumpier than usual today, and Zane wondered what might have put him in a bad mood.

The next fight would be between Zane and Jay, and they were already up and in their stances, but just as Wu was about to start the match, a door on the far side of the room flew open with a loud THUD. Everyone turned quickly to see Keaton standing in the doorway, sopping wet and pale-faced. She rushed inside and bowed respectfully to Wu.

“Sensei,” she said. “We found him.”

Keaton’s paleness spread to everyone else in the room, and Wu started toward her in a very grave manner.

“Training is over for today,” was all he said and he followed Keaton out of the room.

Instinctively, Zane got to his feet and trailed behind his Sensei, which prompted the others to follow too. They walked down several hallways before stepping into a war room with a map on a large table which took up most of the space. Ann was waiting there, pacing, and seemed a little surprised to see the boys behind Wu. Her shocked expression seemed to alert the Sensei and he turned around to see what she was looking at.

“The four of you, return to your rooms,” he said suddenly, urging them out of the room.

“But—“ Kai was cut off, however, by the door closing in front of him.

No one seemed to know what to do at first, and Kai looked like he was about to rip straight through the door. Zane started slowly walking away and, thankfully, that got them all moving in the same direction.

“What was that all about?” Jay asked quietly.

“Wu doesn’t trust us,” said Kai, getting grumpier by the minute and clenching his fists.

“No, we simply don’t belong in a confidential war room yet,” Zane retorted. It seemed quite obvious to him that boys such as themselves with so little experience would have to wait years until they were ready to help plan battle strategies. Still, being shut out like that had stung a little.

“ ‘Don’t belong’ ?” Kai repeated. “We’re a part of this war just as much as they are. They could at least let us listen!”

“Does the word ‘confidential’ mean anything to you?” Zane asked.

“Like we aren’t already keeping secrets,” Kai went on.

Zane could tell this conversation was going nowhere and Jay and Cole seemed anxious to be done with it, so Zane didn’t respond to Kai’s last remark. Thankfully, that seemed to be the end of the discussion and everyone went to their own rooms as instructed, waiting patiently for a messenger or the dinner bell; whichever came first.

After an hour, four servants came upstairs and brought each of them their dinner with explicit instructions to go straight to bed once they were finished and to commence with their usual activities in the morning. Zane thanked his servant and he was once again left alone in his room.

He didn’t like this new feeling. There was too much uncertainty and unease floating around. No doubt Sensei Wu and the girls were planning a mission to stop Lloyd Garmadon, meanwhile they would be here trying to go about life like normal.

After every last grain of rice was devoured, he organised his tray neatly and then lied down on his bed expecting to fall asleep within the next half hour. However, expectations can be easily challenged or even shattered, for Zane did not fall asleep. In fact, not five minutes after he had turned out the lights and closed his eyes, he heard a small noise outside in the hall. He lifted his eyelids just enough to see the wall to his right (the wall where the door was) and as he listened, he was sure that someone had opened their door and was sneaking out. The floor gave the tiniest creak with every step they took, leaving the impression that whoever was out there did not want to be noticed.

Zane pulled back his covers and tiptoed to his door, opening it only after the footsteps began to fade away. He peeked into the hall and caught a glimpse of someone in red pyjamas going down the stairwell. Kai. What on earth was he doing now?

There was no time to lose. Zane ventured out and started following his hot-headed companion as stealthily as he could, bearing in mind his ninjutsu training. Kai continued past the stairs and he seemed to be heading in the direction of the north wing of the monastery.

The further they both went, the more of the bustling temple astounded Zane. There were servants and soldiers running around with great urgency, and many lights were still lit. The boys’ rooms were cut off from everything else, it seemed, and Zane now realised that he had never been downstairs at night before. However, the more pressing thought was avoiding the aforementioned servants and soldiers.

There were several moments when Zane had to duck behind a wall or swing up into the rafters to avoid being discovered, but thankfully they reached a dark, deserted section of the building. It took Zane a few moments, but he soon realised that this was where Wu’s office was, which did not reassure him in the slightest. He ducked behind a wall and watched as Kai moved toward the entrance to the office and put his ear up against the wood. Not a single sound penetrated the quiet, and then Kai slowly opened the door and slipped inside.

A million thoughts whizzed through Zane’s mind, but the most dominant one was ‘get Kai out of there now!’

It didn’t seem like there was anyone nearby for a few rooms, and there was a good chance that Wu was still preoccupied with the war meeting or had gone straight to bed, so they probably had some time. Still, that didn’t rule out the all-too likely possibility that someone would eventually come this way. If Zane was gonna act, he had to act now.

He stepped forward, inching closer and closer to the door, hoping that maybe this was all just a dream. If anyone found him out here—

Someone’s hand suddenly touched his shoulder and Zane whipped around like a flash, heart racing, to see Cole and Jay looking just as startled as he was.

“What are you doing here?” Zane whispered.

“What are you doing here?” Cole asked.

“Kai,” Zane replied. Then, feeling his strength return, he moved back to the door and turned the handle ever so carefully.

The door itself opened very quietly and the three boys slipped inside, sealing the entrance behind them. The room was pitch black and eerily silent, with every knick knick and book looking so delicately still. The windows were closed, but even if they were open, the crescent moon that night wasn’t giving off enough light to see anything. Despite his lack of vision, Zane still tried to find any movement in the room to indicate where Kai was.

“Kai?” Zane whispered. “Kai, where are you?”

“Go away!” Kai whisper-hissed as he poked his head out from behind a bookshelf. “You’ll only make things worse!”

“What the heck are you doing?” Jay breathed.

Kai slowly came out into the open and walked over to Wu’s desk.

“I’m getting answers,” he explained. Then he opened a drawer and started rummaging through its contents.

Zane’s jaw dropped instantly and he could tell that the others did the same.

“Are you crazy?!” Cole nearly said at normal volume. He walked closer to Kai and looked him dead in the eye. “Do you want Wu to punish you for digging through his personal belongings?!”

“That’ll only happen if I get caught,” Kai said frankly, and he moved to one of the bookshelves again, prying through the cabinets close to the floor. “So you’d all better leave now!”

“No,” said Cole, his demeanour darkening. “None of us are supposed to be here.”

“I said, leave,” Kai reiterated, turning his head around to face Cole.

“Kai, don’t,” Zane warned.

“Or what? Are you gonna make me leave?” Kai barely had a moment to think before Cole replied, “Yes,” and tried grabbing him by the collar which only made Kai try hitting Cole to let him go, and one second later they were on the floor wrestling.

“Let go!” Kai groaned.

“Make me!” said Cole.

Zane attempted to intervene, but the two of them were dead set on strangling each other by this point.

Then, Kai accidentally kicked the bookshelf and something made of paper fell on top of them. Cole and Kai stopped for a moment, fearing that they had caused damage to the shelf, or had made any other objects fall, but in the silence that followed, Jay’s voice broke through in a hoarse whisper.

“Somebody’s coming!!!” He squeaked.

Faster than humanly possible, Kai and Cole were off of each other and heading for the window, with Zane and Jay close behind them, trying to cover up their existence by closing cupboards and scooping up the small scroll which had fallen during the fight. Zane was last to exit the window, and as he leapt out he grabbed the handle and shut it as quickly and as quietly as possible. He had no idea where any of them were jumping to, and in the next moment he found himself tangled in leaves and tree limbs. He didn’t fall, thankfully, because Cole, who was also in the tree, had managed to grab his arm in time, but he didn’t pull him up out of pure fear. The lights had come on inside Wu’s office and everyone was holding their breath to keep as quiet as their adrenaline would allow.

A shadow moved across the window very slowly and seemed to stop in front of where the bookshelf ought to be. It was hard to tell who the shadow belonged to, but the natural assumption would be Wu.

After a few minutes, the lights were still on and Cole’s arm was beginning to fatigue. Zane looked up and knew that he couldn’t hold on for much longer, but any movement would result in noise, so Cole bit back the pain and strengthened his grip, even though his body was positively shaking from the stress.

Their eternity of waiting finally came to an end when the shadow moved again, then vanished, and finally the lights were out. Cole immediately dropped Zane who fell only a short way before he caught himself with an ice tower, meanwhile the others were scrambling to get down from the tree. They were all on the wet ground within a minute and, not knowing what else to do, they started running into the forest.

This was idiotic, this was insane, this was... this was... Zane wasn’t even sure what his was.

Finally, they stopped running and collapsed on the ground, panting and shaking from the cold night air.

“What in the name of The First Spinjitsu Master were you thinking!?” Cole yelled at Kai who seemed all too eager to start another fight.

“We could have died!” Jay cried. “Falling from a FIVE STORY BUILDING?! Not exactly what I call a fun night out!”

“Well why don’t you go crying back to Wu?!” Kai retorted.

“Put a sock in it, Kai,” said Cole. “You’re the reason we’re in this mess!”

“The only reason you’re here is because you stuck your big, fat nose where it didn’t belong!” said Kai, getting up in Cole's face.

“That’s exactly what your big nose was doing!”

“That’s enough!” Zane finally shouted. With one motion he created several large ice stalagmites—about four or five pointed at each of the other boys. Suddenly, no one seemed too eager to argue. “None of us should have been in that room! Now, there’s no point in insulting each other like five-year-olds, so knock it off or I’ll knock you out!” He went on, waving his hands in the air for effect. “We’re supposed to be asleep anyway.” Zane’s sudden outburst seemed to turn everyone mute, but after a moment Jay looked down at one of Zane’s hands.

“What’s that?” He asked quietly.

Zane followed Jay’s line of sight and lifted his left hand slightly. In his palm, somewhat crumpled, was the scroll he had snatched back in the office. Assuming that it was probably something dull, like tax papers or an old photo, Zane gave in to his curiosity and opened it up to see the contents for himself. What he found was decidedly not dull, and after a moment too long of staring at the paper, Kai came over with a fire ball to read it for himself. Cole and Jay came closer as well, but they were all baffled by what they saw.

The entire page was littered with old fashioned illustrations of ninja; five figures dressed in red, white, black, blue, and in the center, green.

“What is that?” Kai asked, pointing to an assortment of odd penmanship running down the side of the paper.

“Looks like chicken scratch,” said Jay.

Zane looked and instantly recognised it. “It’s not chicken scratch. It’s ancient Ninjagian.”

“I don’t suppose you’re fluent?” Cole asked.

“Well, I do know a little,” Zane admitted, although he hadn’t had much practise recently.

He poured over the old text, finding words that looked familiar and trying to sort it all out in his head, as well as using the pictures for some context.

“I believe it’s some sort of prophecy,” said Zane after a little while. “This part here talks about a mighty warrior... who will rise... a ninja.”

“Is it talking about us?” Jay asked. Zane was thinking the same thing. It was hard to argue that the colours of the ninja on the scroll were just a coincidence.

But Zane went on, “He will be a... I don’t know that word... darkness... incredible powers... the... Green Ninja.” Zane looked up at the other boys’ faces and they stared back in awe.

Did this mean that one of them was going to become some legendary warrior with untold powers, prophesied by wise seers long ago? Had it been their destiny all their lives to come here and meet and train as ninjas?

whiiiiiiiiiiiiiz!

thud!

All of a sudden, Zane felt something hard and sharp hit the side of his neck and he began to feel awful. His vision became sporadic and he lost all sense of balance. He managed to see the others looking disoriented too and falling down on the ground. Once Kai fell, his fire went out and Zane couldn’t tell if it was the darkness, or his mind loosing consciousness, but either way his body collapsed under its own weight and he fell into a deep dreamless sleep.