Legends of Ninjago: Book 3: The Four Fangs: Chapter 13 — Round One

It was another early night for the group, but an even earlier morning. They had their suits, props, and the dress all prepped the night before, and now they were driving toward the Performing Arts Centre for the second and final time as the sun just started to touch the clouds.

Everyone seemed to be on pins and needles, not just due to pre-performance jitters, but also because they were on the lookout for Serpentine soldiers. No official news had been leaked about yesterday’s debacle—it would seem that the people in charge didn’t want to cause a panic—but there were still quite a few more security guards present than Cole remembered there were in years prior. They would need to be in top form both in dance and ninjitsu.

Their first stop was the check-in desk, then the dressing rooms where they would drop off their things and freshen up, awaiting their turn to do a sound check. Everyone was still too groggy to make much conversation, instead looking for the comfiest seat they could find and nodding off in it.

Liu, on the other hand, was wide awake. He had his cellphone out and was staring at it.

“Everything alright?” Cole asked, lowering his cup of coffee.

Liu’s brow seemed to loosen. “Well… I’m sure it’s nothing. It’s fine.” He sure didn’t sound fine, but before Cole could ask any other questions, a woman’s voice crackled over the speakers.

“Spin Harmony, to the stage please.”

“That’s our queue. Let’s go!” Liu said with a loud clap of his hands that jolted Kai awake.

“Spparta sfforum huh?” He mumbled as his eyes adjusted.

“We’re moving, Spike. On your feet!”

With a few more yawns and a lot of heavy sighing, the gang made their way through the crowded halls, dodging stage crew carrying large lights and boxes full of micro phones, security guards who seemed to be watching them from underneath their thick sunglasses, and a million other contestants, all of whom looked like they were from another planet. There were very few acts who were alike, and fewer still that looked remotely “average.”

Cole felt his breath quicken just a tiny bit when he saw the stage lights shining from behind the giant red curtain. As he stepped out into the wide open world of center stage, hearing his shoes click-clack against the polished wood, he felt that sudden urge to… he wasn’t sure. Open his arms wide? Dance? Sing? Fly? Or simply perform? An empty stage was a world of possibilities. Like a blank canvas ready to be painted with the brightest colours. He turned and, through the blinding glare of the lights, could just make out the auditorium. The nosebleed section was harder to see, but he knew it was there. Every seat represented a pair of eyes that would be watching them that night, and suddenly he felt goosebumps rising on his skin. Perhaps it was just the fact that it was practically freezing in there.

“Alright, Spin Harmony? Let’s do a run through,” a stage hand said somewhere nearby. Cole blinked and plunged back into the familiar world of stage set-up.

Over the course of the next thirty minutes, they had tested everyone’s ear-mounted microphones, had shown the lighting crew where they would be moving across the stage, had tested the backing track, set up the canvas backdrop and taken it down again, and had done a lot of standing around while the crew fiddled with buttons and sliders. After all of that, they were free to go back to their dressing rooms and start preparing for the actual competition.

“Well that wasn’t too bad,” Ann was saying as they walked back through the halls.

Keaton gave a big yawn. “Yeeeah. It also could have been more fun.”

Cole smirked, then caught his dad glaring at his phone again. He would have asked about it a second time, but upon arriving at the dressing rooms, he discovered that he didn’t need to.

“Where is he?” Liu muttered as he walked in.

“Where’s who?” Ann asked anxiously.

“The stylist I hired. He was supposed to be here by now.” Liu got out his phone and dialled what Cole presumed to be said stylist’s number. The phone rang. And rang. And rang. Then it went to voice mail. Liu tried again, only to receive the same voice mail.

“What do we do if he doesn’t show up?” Jay asked cautiously.

“Our best,” Liu grumbled. “But don’t worry. I’m sure there’s a logical explanation. Perhaps he’s on his way right now and can’t answer because he’s driving.” Cole wanted to believe that… but this was also the first time any of his dad’s professional hired help hadn’t come through.

They ended up waiting for about twenty minutes, there in the dressing room, listening to everyone else outside getting a head start. Maybe it was just the coffee he had been drinking, but Cole started to feel a little jittery.

“Alright! That’s it!” Liu finally snapped as he began pulling out odds and ends from the cupboards and drawers. “Tardy, uncouth, rude—unprofessional, that’s what this is!” He sighed a very frustrated sigh. “There’s no time. We’ll just have to do it ourselves. I’ll speak with Monsieur Archambault later. Ladies, can you handle this on your own?”

“I’m on it,” Nya said without hesitation.

“Excellent. You take care of Ann and her sister, Cole and I will take care of the boys. Now let’s get moving!”

Three minutes later, Cole and Liu were helping the other boys into their tails and spats, then, while Cole was busy tying Jay’s bowtie, Liu was trying to tame Kai’s monstrous hair, much to the fire ninja’s chagrin. The girls were in the dressing room over and as his mind flashed to the image of Nya and Ann locked in a small room together, Cole began to pray that they wouldn’t tear each other’s throats out.

“So, generally the preliminaries weed out about half-or-so of the contestants,” Cole was explaining as he combed his hair back. “Then there’s the second round, and the finals. We have to score near perfect tens if we wanna make it that far. So that means no getting distracted, no getting nervous, and whatever you do, if you mess up, keep going and don’t let it look like an accident. And Kai? Remember to—“

“To stop after the first chorus, I know, I know,” he said, fiddling with his stiff collar. “We only practiced it, like, a million times.”

* * *

Over in the girls’ dressing room, things were a bit more hectic. Ann was already in the white dress and Nya was doing her hair as fast as she could while Keaton tried hopelessly to tie her bowtie.

“Hold still!” Nya chided, tugging on a lock of Ann’s hair.

“I am holding still!” She snapped back. “And would it kill you not to rip out my hair?”

“You’re welcome to do it yourself, if you can.”

Ann suppressed a growl.

“Guys, I can’t remember how to do it,” Keaton complained, her tie a knotted mess.

“Then go ask Cole,” Ann said simply.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, just make sure to knock first.” Ann kept her eyes up on Nya in the mirror as Keaton slunk out of the room. She could hear the hustle and bustle out in the hall from both faculty and performers alike, rushing from room to room. It didn’t do anything to calm her nerves. “Ah!” She cried. “Careful!”

“There was a knot!” Nya fired back, bringing out yet another type of comb. “Do you ever condition?” Ann rolled her eyes. “While you’re sitting there, you might as well get started on your makeup.”

“Makeup?” Ann repeated, staring down at the counter, a sea of bottles and tubes and powders covering every square inch of space.

Nya froze, horrified. “Don’t tell me… you’ve never done your own makeup before…”

“Yes, I always do myself up before I bash in the skulls of my enemies,” Ann said with a false grin.

“Unbelievable,” Nya muttered, turning her attention back to the perfect bun she was trying to form.

Ann watched her comb the hair straight, wrapping it up and pinning it in place, before unleashing an entire can of hairspray on it. She had to close her eyes to keep the chemicals from stinging them, and her nose felt all tingly afterwards.

“You sure you used enough?” She asked sarcastically, rubbing her sinuses. Now her whole head felt like it was made of plastic. She couldn’t move her eyebrows without pulling on the tight, solidified hairs.

“Leave this to the professionals, sweetie,” Nya quipped in a very snotty tone as she finished smoothing down the last of the flyaways.

“I’m back,” Keaton called, her tie in a perfect bow. “How’s it going here?”

“I’m gonna need your help in a sec,” said Nya, inspecting her handy work and reaching for the curling iron.

“What is that for?” Ann asked, eyeing the tool suspiciously.

“Your bangs, obviously,” Nya replied with another eye roll. She spent the next minute or so styling them so that they wouldn’t look like a scattered mess, then sprayed them down with more hairspray. She finished off the look with an ornate, flower comb that she stuck directly on top of Ann’s bun. “Viola,” she said, taking a step back. “Your welcome.”

Ann had to admit, it was a far better job than she could have ever done on her own. It really did look professional.

“Alright, Keaton, I need you to grab a sponge, some primer, foundation, eyelash curlers, and blush, stat!”

Ann watched the two of them frantically gather supplies with an uneasy stare.

* * *

“Woah, dude, no! I never agreed to this!” Kai blurted, backing away from Cole.

He grabbed Kai and forced him over to the mirror. “Stop being such a baby,” he groaned, reaching for the setting powder. “Hold still.”

“Do all dancers have to look like clowns before they go on stage?” Kai asked, spitting out loose bits of dust.

“Yes, and you should know that,” Cole said through gritted teeth, eyeing his father in the mirror. “Fellow Marty Oppenheimer student?”

Kai begrudgingly calmed down and let Cole finish applying the stage makeup as two strands of his hair suddenly popped out of place.

“Not again,” Cole grumbled.

“I’ll fix it,” said Liu as he opened up another can of hair gel.

Kai was glaring at the mirror, hard, his frown practically reaching the floor as more and more gel was smeared through his hair and the last of the makeup was applied to his nose and forehead.

“Aw, you look so pretty,” Jay commented, coming over and leaning on the counter.

Just before Kai could respond, Cole stood up, powder box in hand. “Yeah, and you’re next, wise-guy.”

Jay squirmed and wheezed as Cole went to town on his face, covering up every blemish and trying to make him show-stopper ready.

“I hate you, you know that?” He said with no small amount of snark.

“Well, I do now,” Cole replied absentmindedly as he finished up.

There was another knock on the door. If it was Keaton again, Cole was gonna—

“Spin Harmony?” A stage manager called as he opened the door. “The show will be starting in one hour. You’ve been slated for act number five.” Then the door clicked shut and everyone resumed their work.

Cole swivelled his neck until his eyes found the wall clock. 1:00pm already? Honestly, these things felt shorter all the time.

“Figures that we’d be one of the groups slated to go first,” Liu grumbled, still wrestling with Kai’s hair. “Does anyone have a bobby pin?”

“Maybe ask the girls if they have any leftover hairspray,” Cole offered, half joking.

“At this rate, I just might,” Liu said thoughtfully.

Cole noticed Zane standing rather quietly at his end of the room, making minute adjustments to his coat and tie in the mirror. They caught each other’s eyes in their reflections and Zane made a subtle gesture with his hands.

‘Reconnaissance?’ He signed. ‘Serpentine?’

Cole glanced at his dad, then nodded slightly.

“I need to use the bathroom,” said Zane, walking toward the door.

“Make it quick!” Liu cried. “We still need to lint roll the suits!”

The door swung closed and Liu, in a fit, got up and started after him. “I’m going to get that hairspray,” he muttered. Cole capped the powder box as he watched him leave.

“So what do you guys think about the stylist going missing?” He asked in a hushed tone.

“I mean… it could just be coincidence, right?” Jay asked, rubbing his face some.

“Could be… or…”

“You think it was the Serpentine?” Kai asked, raising an eyebrow. Cole nodded, but Kai simply scoffed. “No offence, Buddy, but they don’t strike me as the type of guys who would steal someone else’s makeup stylist.”

Cole rolled his eyes. “I know it sounds a little stupid, but trust me, this has never happened to my dad before. All I’m saying is that it wouldn’t surprise me if those scaly jerks had something to do with it.”

“Got it,” Liu said as he came back in and grabbed Kai’s head. “Now hold still, close your eyes, and hold your breath.”

Kai grimaced as Liu attacked his hair once more.

* * *

Twenty minutes later: forty minutes till showtime.

Zane had just returned from his walk about the premises but he didn’t look alarmed. ‘Nothing,’ he signed to Cole as he came back into the dressing room. Well, that was a relief. Still, that didn’t completely erase the possibility of them being somewhere nearby, waiting for the perfect time to strike. They knew that the ninja were here now, so maybe they were being extra cautious.

“Here,” said Cole, handing Zane his stage mask. It was a glossy half-mask dotted with plastic diamonds and silver swirls. “Remember to tie it extra tight.”

Speaking of which, he needed to do the same, and brought his distinct, white mask up to his face. Then he caught his reflection in the mirror. He looked like some sort of cartoon character… or maybe someone he’d seen in a play before. Still, it did add dramatic flare to his ensemble.

Liu was going around passing out lint rollers now and Cole went to town on his suit, wiping up every last little tiny bit of dust, hair, and more. This was always the part he hated the most because it took forever to get every last little thing.

Cole glanced at the clock again. Thirty minutes to go.

“Come on, come on, we can’t afford to be late!” Liu was saying, but once he realised that everything was going perfectly fine, he decided to dash out the door and check on the girls.

“So you didn’t see anything?” Cole asked Zane.

“I don’t think so,” he replied as he finished lint rolling his own suit. “But then again, I didn’t really get the chance to look around much. Security is unbelievably tight.”

“Can’t imagine why,” Kai quipped as he reached up to touch his hair. Cole slapped his hand away.

“Well, we can’t afford to take any chances. From now on, everybody sticks together. If you see anything, and I mean anything that looks suspicious, say something,” Cole went on, adjusting his mask and making double, extra sure it was tied tight.

Ten minutes till two o’clock, Liu poked his head back into their dressing room.

“It’s time, gentlemen. Move your tails,” he said briskly.

Cole tugged the string at the back of his head taught one last time as he walked into the hallway and watched as his dad knocked on the girls’ dressing room door. As soon as they were all together, they would head to the stage where they would wait for their queue to perform live in front of the audience and all the other people watching at home. Speaking of which, from the hallway, Cole would suddenly hear the thunderous sea of voices booming through the walls. The auditorium must be full.

Nya came out looking extraordinarily frazzled, Keaton followed in her half-suit-half-dress and top hat, and then…

Cole had thought that his first view of Ann in the dress had been a sight to see, but this… he almost didn’t recognise her. What she had been before was a duckling, and this was a swan. A tall, slender, graceful swan. Her eyelashes were thick and dark beneath her white, feathery mask, her lips were plump and glossy, the dress cascaded around her bare legs in feathery waves, and two glittering, silver water drop earrings dangled from her ears. And through it all, there was that ghost of his mother smiling back at him. Immediately, he felt his mouth go dry.

Then, Ann nearly fell flat on her face. It looked as though her leg had wobbled in her dancing heels and the only thing that caught her was her innate sense of balance and Liu’s arm.

“Careful, now,” his father urged, his eyes wide. “Make sure not to step on that skirt. You look beautiful, darling. Now let’s move before they disqualify us!”

Cole could feel his feet lingering at the back of the group, his eyes still locked on Ann as she floated through the hall, her bun bobbing gently.

‘No,’ he thought suddenly. ‘No, no, no. This can’t be happening. I made up my mind that day on the beach, I’m supposed to be moving on!’ And yet, every time he looked in her direction, his chest felt so, so tight. Perhaps he would never be able to coexist with someone so pretty. Perhaps this was just how it was going to be. The sight of her taunting him forever.

But maybe… there was still chance that the two of them…

No. No. He wasn’t going to do this to himself again. There was no point in giving himself false hope. So he tried to breathe and ignore the fact that in a few minutes he would be dancing with possibly the most beautiful girl he had ever met in his entire life—

“Hey!” He cried as some punk shoved passed him. The stranger, who must have been a performer, judging by his crazy get up, didn’t say a word as he walked by. He was following about four other friends of his, all of them slowly walking on in the same sort of dazed way. Cole straightened his jacket and shook his head. You met all kinds of… interesting people at these events.

They made it to the stage with three minutes to spare, and Cole felt that familiar rush of excitement fill his chest as he looked around and saw all the other people, quietly waiting and whispering with one another while the audience waited just out of sight.

“This is so cool!” Keaton squeaked as she bobbed up and down on her tip-toes.

Cole smiled, but then everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at the sliver of light beyond the outer curtains as it started to fade and the audience subsided. The stage crew were still scrambling to set everything up for the first act, who appeared to be a group of flutists, and then a single spotlight illuminated that gap in the curtains again.

“Hello Brookeside!” An announcer called, his voice bouncing through several large speakers. The audience clapped their approval. “On behalf of the Ninjago Performing Arts Association, I would like to thank you all for coming…”

He went on a bit more, but Cole suddenly felt someone tugging at his sleeve. It was Keaton.

“Hey, what’s up with those guys?” She whispered into his ear. Cole followed her pointed finger until he found that same group who had shoved passed him before. They were sort of swaying where they stood, several instruments in hand. By the looks of it, they were some kind of rock group; not exactly the type of people you generally found at an event like this.

“I don’t know,” Cole replied. Then he thought back to his warning in the dressing room and added, “You wanna keep an eye on them?”

She gave a grave nod as the audience sounded another round of applause.

“So without further adieu, ladies and gentlemen… it is my great pleasure to introduce to you… The Sakura Company Flutists!”

Suddenly, the outer curtains lifted and the first group was left to stare into the endless abyss of the packed auditorium. As they began to play their classical piece, Cole ran through his mental checklist of everything they needed to do. Their outfits were perfect—especially one in particular—the stage crew had taken care of everything else, and they wouldn’t be on until after this and the next three acts. They didn’t have anything else to do but wait.

If he leaned over just a bit, he could see out behind the curtains—the large cameras zooming in on the performers and the Blade Cup glinting on its pedestal in a tucked away corner of the room, flanked by two security guards. Ann had been right. There was no way they were getting close to that thing unless they could somehow pull off a win.

The flutists finished their piece, the audience clapped, and the curtains dropped, prompting the stage crew to swoop in and completely rearrange everything while the announcer came back out and introduced the next group. Cole wasn’t too worried about the musicians who were now stowing their flutes in their padded cases. It had been a nice performance, but it wasn’t likely to be a threat to them.

The second act was a ballet group, doing an original piece composed by their professor from some private university that Cole had never heard of. The girls were talented, no question, and the choreography was bold, but it lacked a sense of cohesion, or so Cole thought. The music might have had something to do with it. Once more, the act ended, the curtains fell, the audience applauded, the announcer returned, and the next group frantically got into place.

The third act was an excerpt from a kabuki play, with several actors done up in traditional costumes and masks, performing one of the most well known plays in probably all of Ninjago. Still, the classics tended to score higher; it all depended on how well they could pull it off. The downside to doing a traditional piece is that the judges would know exactly what it’s supposed to look like, so if you have even one hair out of place, they will know. By the end of their act, though… Cole was gritting his teeth. That had been pretty good.

Then it was time for the fourth act. The one just before them. A crew member guided them to the standby area and Liu and Nya told them to “break a leg” as they left. Cole could only manage a half smile. Especially as the group ahead of them started juggling flaming pins from their unicycles.

He thought he heard a slight noise next to him, so he looked down and saw Jay clutching his stomach and looking a little green.

“Hey. Hey!” Cole whisper-hissed. “You hanging in there?”

“Who, me? Oh I’m fiiiine. Just… dandy…” he replied, trying to smile.

“Breathe, Jay, breathe. With me now,” he said, helping his friend through it. They could not afford to have anyone getting cold feet. Or worse yet, upset stomachs. Jay was starting to look a little bit better now, but not by much. “It’s just like rehearsal. Just keep your eyes on us.” It was probably the best Jay was going to get.

Then… it was time.

With that fluttering feeling in his stomach reaching its apex, Cole watched as the curtain fell and the jugglers peddled away, leaving the stage open for them.

He led his team forward, taking the center position just like he had a million times before, and heard the others get into their places behind him while the stage crew wheeled in the massive noir canvas. Then he turned to look at Ann and—

She wasn’t there.

Instead, he found her in the shadows, on the sidelines, like a ghost, watching them. Oh no. This would be a very bad time to discover that she had stage fright.

He took a step over to her and mouthed, “Are you okay?”

She grabbed her hands and started wringing them ever so slightly.

With his heart beating at a million miles per hour, he reached out his arm for her to take. “Come on,” he said gently.

As if she were a missile locking in on its target, her eyes were set on him and she glided over. Her hand was shaking as it grasped his tightly, like a porcelain tea cup about to shatter. He brought her over to the center of the stage as the announcer began to call their group name.

“Right hand in mine, left on my shoulder,” Cole ordered in a whisper. “Don’t overthink. Just follow my lead.”

Her eyes still locked onto him, she took a breath through her nose and set her jaw. She was ready.

“The one, the only, Spin Harmony!” said a voice over the speakers.

When the curtains lifted, Cole had never felt more exposed. There was nothing separating him from the blinding lights and the scrutiny of thousands of people. He counted three breaths as he stared intently at Ann’s perfect face.

Then the music started.

* * *

“And this could be the start of something big!”

Cole kept his stage smile on the whole time, but inwardly he was cringing as the others landed their final poses with less-than-stellar grace. He could see the judges scribbling something down on their clipboards through the glare of the stage lights.

The audience clapped and that was their queue to leave. Cole gave a quick bow and then the curtains fell and brought them back to safe refuge. He was breathing hard and could feel beads of sweat threatening to break through his skin as he led his friends over to the waiting area. That performance had been like dancing on a knife’s edge between failure and success from start to finish. Their timing had been off on more than one occasion, Kai had fumbled with his top hat during one of the prop sections, and Keaton had nearly missed an entire move, to name a few of the things Cole had been able to see. Worst of all, though, was his mask which had come off during the performance. It looked as though one of the strings had snapped or unraveled or something, and right near the end of the routine, it went flying. Ann caught it, thank goodness, and they kept on going, but who knows how much the judges would take off for that. There was also no telling what it had looked like from his father’s perspective. He and Nya were waiting for them back stage.

“Alright, alright, good job everyone,” he said in a strained voice. “We may not be the Royal Ensemble, but I really do think we still have a chance.” Cole felt his eyebrows go up as he listened to him actually complimenting them. “Of course, there are still several things we need to address.” There it was.

Liu jumped into a laundry list of things they did wrong, but halfway through his speech, the stage lights went dark. Cole turned around and saw the glint of instruments in the dark, only for his retinas to be bombarded with multicolored effect lights and his ears to recoil from the sound of shredded guitar strings.

The group behind them started wailing away on some sort of rock ballad with an impressive amount of spectacle, but a near tone-deaf approach to what was typically a refined competition. There was no way the judges would approve them, they had no class at all.

Either way, Liu led them somewhere a little more secluded so that they could finish talking. He pointed out all the obvious stuff, and gave them all advice about how to correct themselves, but Cole was already mentally checked out. He knew exactly what he needed to work on, and he also knew there was very little he could do about it, unless someone had invented a device that stops you from feeling nervous in front of your crush.

After that, there was nothing much left for them to do except watch the other acts. There was an opera singer, a team of ribbon dancers, a hip hop group, an entire choir, and of course, his father’s personal favourite, a barber shop quartet, among many others. There were some notable performances, both good and bad, but overall, the competition had Cole nervous. Only after everyone had gone on stage, about two hours later, was the first leg of the journey completed and the auditorium released for an intermission. But while they all milled about the foyer making small talk, the performers were waiting anxiously in the green room where the results would be posted and they would all know who would be advancing, and who would be leaving.

“Hey, Cole?” Said Kai as they sat on one of the couches there. “I’m sorry about the hat thing. I wasn’t paying attention, and it fumbled, and—“

“Don’t worry about it.” He clapped a hand on his friend’s shoulder reassuringly. “You recovered well enough. Besides, we couldn’t have done any worse than that rock group.”

Kai snickered. “Yeah. Talk about tonal clash.”

A stage hand entered the room just then, and Cole snapped to attention, watching her close the distance between her and the billboard on the far wall. Everyone was suddenly crowding around to see the results she was pinning up.

“Please be there, please be there,” Keaton was saying with her fingers crossed.

There were too many heads in the way, Cole couldn’t see anything at first. Then some people started moving, either in celebration or defeat, and there was the list of names who would be advancing, for all of them to see. Cole started at he bottom, figuring that’s where they’d be, and scanned over each name. Midtown Boys Choir—Cherry Regional Theatre—The Flying Firebirds—where was it?

Then there it was, Spin Harmony, at number eight on a list of about nineteen. How had they that?

“Yes!” Keaton whooped. “We did it!”

“Up top, short stack!” Jay cried, reaching up both hands for a double high five.

“Unbelievable,” Kai breathed.

“I knew you could do it!”

Cole turned to his left and saw his father cheering him on and congratulating him. He just stared back. Where had this supportive, enthused, caring man come from? He wanted to throw himself into the thrill of the moment, but… he couldn’t help but wonder if Liu was using them all to reclaim the glory days he had lost when he injured his ankle. That had to be the only reason why he was acting so nice… right?

“What the cream puffs?” Nya blurted.

Cole saw her staring at the top of the results board and followed her gaze.

“How on earth did those guys score second place?” She went on, and now Cole could see who she was talking about. It was the rock band—Demon Scream. Now that was a trick. Perhaps their act should have been about how to score high with a below average talent.

Speaking of the rock band, they didn’t seem to be in the green room. They had probably already seen the results and were now back in their dressing room.

“Well, so long as we can get out stuff together, they shouldn’t be a problem,” Ann said confidentially.

“Yes! Onward to the second round!” Jay cried in a loud voice.

Cole felt his dad jostling his shoulder and turned to see him beaming at him. “We did it!”

“Not yet,” Cole reminded him. “Not until we get that trophy.” Then he paused as he realised what he had just said.

“That’s my boy,” Liu gushed. “Now, hurry up, let’s get back to the stage.”

Cole swallowed hard as he and the others followed Liu out. He had very nearly told his dad the truth. Lucky for him, it had sounded like he was just invested in the competition, but sooner or later, they would be grabbing the dagger out of the Blade Cup and making a break for it. He looked at his dad and felt his heart grow dark and heavy. After everything he’d helped them with these last few weeks… whether he was doing it for genuine or selfish reasons… what was about to happen would no doubt crush him. His son, Cole Becket, stealing the Blade Cup.

Well then, he just needed to make sure that he never found out. He was a ninja, for crying out loud. His dad never had to know.

The second round began when the auditorium lights dimmed and the din subsided. This time around, the group had a longer wait time, since they had scored so high, apparently. Either way, it gave them enough time to repair Cole’s mask and this time he made absolutely certain that it wouldn’t fly off. Jay was also looking noticeably better this time around. Cole supposed that he got all his nerves out during the first round, but he did sort of look just the tiniest bit green still. Well, as long as he wasn’t puking, it was fine.

Rather unfortunately, Demon Scream was going on right at that moment, and Cole watched them from behind his mask very carefully. They really were an odd group. They never spoke to anyone, or even each other, they never took refreshments from the catering table back stage, they just stood around, slightly swaying, and waiting for their chance to go on. It was actually kind of creepy.

Something about the word “creepy” stuck with him. He was sure that it was nothing, but as the curtain lifted, he took a few steps closer to the stage so he could see them perform properly.

“Cole?” Ann whispered. He put up a hand to reassure her that he wouldn’t be long. He just wanted to look.

Just like in the first round, the lights dimmed and there was silence. Then the bright effect lights came on, the guitar ripped through the air, the drums and bass made the walls and floor vibrate, and the lead singer started belting his solo. He just didn’t understand what was so special about this group that they had placed so high. It didn’t make sense.

Then, the lights changed. They turned red and white, flickering on and off, creating black shadows wherever they weren’t shining. The whole thing seemed to be pulsating in a very familiar way. He could feel his heart rate start to climb as the music got faster. Then he saw it. A dozen or so red eyes lowering themselves from the ceiling by their scaly, teal tails. The red light was so powerful, so mesmerising, so terrifying. Before anything else could happen, Cole dragged his head down as his knees began to buckle. He was on the floor, gasping for breath, trying to tune out all the red.

“Cole!” His father called, his hand instantly on his shoulder. “What is it? Migraine? Headache? Do you need an aspirin?” He could sense others gathering around him.

“What happened?” Ann asked.

The others kept trying to talk over the blaring music while Cole was fighting the image of Scales laughing in his mind’s eye.

‘Stay out of my head!’ He mentally yelled. He wasn’t going to get in a second time. There was no way. Not again. Never again.

Little by little, the red began to clear from his vision, and he could speak again.

“Dad, could you get me some water,” he said weakly. Liu was on it faster than a golden retriever on a sugar high. While he was gone, Cole grabbed a hold of Kai’s shoulder and looked around at his friends. “The Serpentine are here,” he said breathlessly. “In the stage lights. I think they’re trying to hypnotise the judges.” The others snapped their heads toward the stage, but Cole remained thoroughly invested in the back stage area. He couldn’t risk looking out there again.

“Those sneaky little…” Kai grumbled.

“What do we do?” Jay whisper-shrieked.

“We can’t run out there, the cameras will see,” Ann said solemnly. “I think that’s what they’re banking on. They know that so long as people are watching, we won’t attack.”

“Trapped by societal convention,” Zane muttered.

“Well, the rafters aren’t,” said Ann, but before she could start moving, Cole stopped her.

“We can’t fight them up there. Do you have any idea how much noise that’ll make?”

She stared at him for a moment, and he felt his cheeks flush again.

“Well, we have to do something,” said Keaton. “They’ll win the competition and get the dagger if we don’t.”

Liu reappeared, walking as fast and as quietly as he possibly could without spilling the cup of water. Cole gratefully took it and downed the thing in one gulp. That had actually helped some.

“Thanks, Dad,” he said, and he found himself genuinely meaning it.

“Are you alright? Do you think you can still perform?” He asked, his face lined with worry.

“I’m alright,” Cole said, standing up, his back to the stage. “And ready to kick butt.”

Liu made a face. “A little crude, but I agree.”

Cole looked over his team and breathed in. “Let’s worry about them after we make it to the finals. Until then, we’ve gotta perform like our lives depend on it.”

“Aye aye, sir!” Keaton said with a confident grin.

“We’re with you, Mole,” Kai nodded.

Liu was beaming again. “Oh, this is so exciting!”

Cole’s eyes finally landed on Ann, still stunning in that white dress. If this was going to work, they needed to have synergy and trust. They couldn’t afford Cole getting nervous. This time, he was really playing to win, and he wasn’t going to let anything get in his way. No matter how hard his heart pounded.