Legends of Ninjago: Book 3: The Four Fangs: Chapter 2 - A Meeting with Destiny

Jay’s arm twitched and suddenly he was awake.

The cave was still dark and he drew his blanket closer to his body, like a caterpillar wrapping itself in a cocoon. As he rolled over, he could feel something moving across his face and at first he was worried that it might be a bug or some other sort of undesirable pest, but when he swiped at it, he found water falling from his fingertips. Then he felt his hair and his blanket and, sure enough, there were dew drops everywhere. He groaned and started using the dry side of the blanket to clean off his face.

“Ahh!” He whisper-cried, and clutched his arm. While everyone else was still asleep, he pulled back his sleeve to look at it again, and traced the long scar there. It was a pinky-purple, lumpy line straight up and down his forearm, and there were little, dark-green veins shooting off from it, like some sort of poison. It hurt, too. A lot. Every so often it would flare up—get so bad that he would tremble—but most of the time he could manage. Eventually it would go away, so it was fine. He just needed to grin and bear it.

He laid down and his thoughts wandered back to the events of last night. The ceremony, the evacuation, the tripping over his own feet and stumbling into Nya. Yup. A magical night indeed. (This is sarcasm.)

He was falling behind in his training and he hadn’t made any progress with Nya. They were still just friends, if even that. The only times they ever talked were as part of the whole group around the campfire, so it felt difficult to really get to know her. But worse than that was the conversation he had accidentally overheard last night between Nya and her brother. She didn’t want to be here. In retrospect, it was obvious, but… up until now, Jay had been quietly hoping that sooner or later she’d get used to the whole ninja thing. Apparently not.

He sighed. What even was this whole ‘ninja thing’ these days anyway? Everything had gotten so messed up. Sometimes he would think back to their escape from Ninjago City, and it would just be a big blur of panic-stricken running. The one thing that had stuck with him was seeing his parents again for the first time in months. In particular, he had been thinking about his conversation with his dad a lot over the past month, trying to figure it out.

“I owe you an explanation, and you’ll get one some day…”

That’s what he had said.

An explanation… for what? For why he wasn’t shocked when Jay told him he had an elemental power? Did that mean… had he known about it all this time? Had he met Wu before, too? How far back did all of this go exactly? And where had his powers even come from? Neither of his parents seemed like a believable candidate. Then there was the fact that Jay didn’t even have a connection to his element until he used the Nunchucks of Lightning, and he didn’t know where to begin with that fun little factoid. What did it all mean? He could feel that there was something much bigger going on underneath the surface of all of this, but it was like trying to reach for a door knob in the dark, only to realise you’re about three feet too far away and then stubbing your tow on something.

It was actually kind of funny. To think that once upon a time he had been a scrawny, awkward kid reading comics and watching movies about heroes going on adventures… and now he was a lightning ninja, laying on a dirty cave floor, and he hadn’t bathed in days. It was a charmed life. (There’s that sarcasm again.)

Well now that he was awake, it was virtually impossible to get back to sleep. Wu had been working them nonstop and now he was practically wired to wake up early and start his training. It was better to do it now, especially, while everyone else was still asleep and no one could see him slowly lose his strength.

He shook off as much water as he could from his blankets and walked over to the corner where pale sunlight was starting to shine. The waves were much louder here, which was probably why he didn’t hear Nya’s footsteps.

“Oh, Jay! You’re awake,” she said as he nearly walked straight into her.

“Nya! You’re on watch?” He blurted, jumping back. “Right, of course you’re on watch, that’s… right…” He rubbed the back of his head, desperately trying to think of something to say that wasn’t completely stupid.

“Couldn’t sleep?”

Jay blinked. “Well, uhh, you know how us ninja get when we haven’t had a chance to save the day in a while, ha ha. You know?”

She breathed through her nose and watched the waves beat against the cave walls nearby. “No. Not really.”

He studied her, taking in her beautiful features, marred by faint lines of frustration and worry. Her cute, black hair was damp and stuck behind her ears and her blanket was firmly wrapped around her shoulders.

“So… you don’t want to be a ninja?” He asked.

“I don’t know. I mean—no, I do know—and no.”

Jay blinked again. “Umm, should I take that as a ‘no?’”

She gave an awkward smile as she rubbed some sleep out of her eyes. “Yes,” she laughed.

“Well, which is it, yes or no?” Now Jay was smiling too.

“Look,” she sighed, recentering herself and leaning against a wall of jagged stone. “As much as everyone thinks me becoming a ninja will be a significant good… I’m not comfortable with taking those oaths. And beyond that, I don’t think I’m the only one who feels like the past year has been more than a little…”

“Stressful?” Jay offered.

“Insane. I mean, one minute I’m sharing pocket pals with my friends during lunch, the next, I’m riding dragons and trying very hard not to die every five seconds. Is it so much to just want things to go back to normal? To not have to sleep in caves and… have nightmares all the time?”

They stood and listened to the waves. Some seagulls ‘cawed’ outside. The wind cut through their clothes like a frozen knife.

“Well…” Jay started, looking at her. “I for one am glad that all of this happened. Cause if it didn’t, then I wouldn’t have met…” she was watching him carefully with those big, hazel eyes of hers and he felt his heart skip a few beats. “…all of you guys,” he finished with a pathetic chuckle.

She smiled and stared at the ground. “Thanks. You’re really sweet.”

And all of a sudden, that wind didn’t feel so cold anymore.

“But at the end of the day, I think the best thing for me to do is stay as far away from the action as possible.”

“Eh, well, you don’t really need to,” he said casually. Instantly she turned to him, confused. “Not when you got such handsome ninjas to protect you,” and he combed his fingers through is hair in a very dramatic fashion.

She burst out laughing, but it took Jay a second to make sure it was the good sort of laughter.

“Yeah, well… I don’t have any doubts about Kai. No one could ask for a more protective big brother.” She turned to him. “Do you have any siblings?”

He shook his head. “Nah. I’m an only child.”

“That’s too bad. You never got to experience the joy of siblings rivalries,” she said with mock enthusiasm.

“What? Sibling rivalry? You mean with ol’ sizzle fingers? No way, he’s definitely not the confrontational type, not at all.”

Nya busted up again, this time almost doubling over. They way the light from the cave entrance was framing her face just then… Jay desperately wished he had a camera.

“You better not let him hear you say that,” she wheezed. “Or those ‘sizzle fingers’ will go right up your nose!”

Now they were both laughing, so loud that Jay was worried Kai himself might wake up and pound his face in. Of course, he might do so anyway if he saw the two of them talking together by themselves. Or just if he was in a bad mood. Or any reason, really. Kai was just very moody in general.

“Why is he like that, by the way?” He asked without thinking. “So… angry and moody, I mean.”

Nya’s smile faded and her eyes seemed to cloud over.

“The war, mostly. You’ve gotta understand… the pressure put on him when… when are parents were taken… and then when I was taken… I think he blames himself for a lot of what happened. Maybe this is just his way of coping with it. He’s not the only one.”

Jay looked up. “And how about you? How are you coping?”

She seemed to really think about it for a while. “I’m not sure. I just feel… scared, I guess.”

“About what?”

“Well, about… what’s gonna happen to us.”

* * *

Breakfast ended up being a handful of granola bars around a pathetically cold fire. Everyone was wet, tired, and there was not a smile to found there in the hidden cave but it only got worse when Wu began their little “conference.”

“We all knew that this situation was more than likely going to happen sooner or later,” he began bleakly. “But we cannot stay here indefinitely.” He looked around at his students, all stone-faced and cold, and he sighed. “I know of a place where we might be more comfortable, but it is a long journey—almost the southern-most tip of Ninjago—and the path there is dangerous on foot.”

“What about the Serpentine?” Cole asked in a low tone.

Wu stroked his beard very slowly. “I believe that Ninjago is now acutely aware of the threat they face. With the proper application of their forces and weapons, they should be able to—“

“With all due respect, Sensei,” Kai blurted. “These monsters are way too dangerous! We can’t just leave!”

“That is exactly why we must. They almost took Cole away from us. We almost lost Ann Jing. Clearly, you are all not ready to face them yet.” No one said anything, but they didn’t need to. Their eyes were all narrowed with steely resolve. “And with the IBI getting closer to finding us each day, we can no longer afford to be reckless. We will go to the new safe location, and then I will return to help defeat the Serpentine and rescue my nephew if I can. Is that understood?”

After a pause came a mumbled “yes, Sensei” and then the meeting was over.

“Rest today. We move out at dusk,” said Wu, rising to his feet. “I will take the next watch.”

They watched him leave and then sat around the fire, mulling over the same thoughts. Most of them—baring Kai and Nya—had never even been to the south before. It was no short distance, either, which meant a lot of blistered feet, bivouacking, and freezing to death as winter continued to set in. Plus, it would mean that Cole never got the chance to repay Scales for all the wonderful time they spent together. (MmmMm! Gotta love that sarcasm.)

When glowering at the fire became insufficient, Kai got up and started walking further into the cave.

“And where are you going?” Cole asked.

“Just walking,” said Kai, annoyed.

“I’ll go with you.” Nya stood and trailed after him, followed by a hesitant Keaton, and then Jay and Zane. When Cole realised he was about to be left alone with Ann, he quickly joined the group, leaving Ann Jing no choice but to follow the exposition Kai had inadvertently started.

The cave was rather unremarkable as caves go. The only one who found the various, oddly-shaped rock formations vaguely interesting was Cole, but even he had to admit that he’d seen better.

Not long after setting out, however, the group of teens suddenly found themselves at a dead-end. The largest of the tunnels, which they had been following, abruptly stopped at a wall of large, chunky rocks where no light nor water seemed to be able to break through. They wandered around a bit, and Kai had to make his fire ball a little bigger so that the whole group had light, and generally it was just a really moody, boring time for everyone.

“Why is he doing this?” Kai finally asked. It was the question on all of their minds. “He knows we’re the only ones powerful enough to stop them.”

“Yeah, but Kai, we’re only teenagers,” said Nya in a matter-of-fact sort of tone.

Kai looked ready to throw a half-baked argument at her, but before he could get another word out, Ann stepped in. “When you all took the oath of the ninja, you didn’t just make a promise to him; he made a promise to you and your parents.” Her tone was even and calm, almost sad, and she kept her eyes on the ground as she spoke. “It’s his job to make sure nothing bad ever happens to you.”

“Still,” said Cole, “Don’t the needs of the many kind of outweigh the needs of the few in this case? I mean, we’re talking about all of Ninjago here.”

“I concur with Cole’s assessment,” Zane joined in. “It’s the most logical line of reasoning.”

“Yes, but some things aren’t about logic.” Ann folded her arms. “It’s just about doing what you feel is right. Or in this case, something you feel honour-bound to do.”

“Well I feel honour-bound to protect the people of Ninjago,” said Kai with more than a little bitterness.

“Again, might I point out that we are still, in fact, teenagers,” Nya said, growing more and more agitated. “There are some things we just can’t do.”

“Yeah. Like make our own decisions,” Cole mumbled, and he leaned against the wall of rocks. “Woah…”

“What?” Ann asked, looking concerned.

Cole had turned toward the wall and was feeling one of the small boulders. “It’s this wall… I dunno, I just felt…” He stared at it a moment, almost like he was trying to see past it. “I think there’s another cave behind all of this.”

“How do you know?” Keaton asked.

“Just a feeling,” said Cole. “Hey, would you guys mind standing back? I wanna try something.”

The group hesitantly backed up and watched Cole closely as he began to use his powers. At first, nothing happened, but then little by little the rocks began to shake and move before finally there was an explosion of sorts, sending dust and pebbles flying everywhere. The group was left coughing their lungs out afterwards.

“What was that?” Nya cried.

“I think it was me moving the rocks,” Cole said in-between gasps for clean air.

“Wait… do you hear that?” Ann asked.

“I hear it too,” said Nya.

Kai raised up his fire ball again and tried to look around. “Hear what?”

“A waterfall,” Ann said distractedly.

She and Nya moved over to where Cole was standing: right in front of a huge open cavern. That wall had to have been the result of a rockslide or some other incident, sealing away this massive underground space. Kai’s fire could only reach so far, but from where they were standing, they could not see the other side.

“Woah,” more than one of them breathed. There were vines and moss growing along the cave ceiling, salt water filling up the space beneath them like a massive fish bowl, and all the while the sound of pounding, rushing water came to their ears with no waterfall in sight.

“It’s like a hidden pirate’s cove!” Keaton cried, and her voice boomed back at them in a crystal clear echo. “Cool!”

“ECHO!” Jay announced to the whole underground world.

“How far do you think goes?” Ann asked Cole as they began to explore.

“Hard to say. There’s a lot of other stuff in here too.”

“Like the water?” Nya asked.

“And the plants?” Keaton piped up.

“Or like a fourteenth-century pirate ship?” Zane asked, completely serious. The others stopped and stared at him. “Look,” he said, pointing off into the darkness.

“Look at what—“ Kai started, but as he marched over to where Zane had indicated, his fire began to light up what appeared to be, to Zane’s credit, a fourteenth-century pirate ship. “Holy Spinjitsu…”

Keaton gasped. “It is a pirate’s cove!”

“What is this thing even doing in here?”Ann wondered, fingering the wooden planks that made up the bow. It appeared to be beached on the shore of this underground lagoon with its stern mostly sunken in the water, collecting barnacles. But as far as antiques go, it was surprisingly intact, only missing the most obvious of things, like ropes and sails, which naturally decayed a long time ago.

“Better question,” Nya interjected, “How did it get in here? There’s no entrance.”

“Well, I mean, obviously the cave wasn’t always like this, it had to have changed over time,” said Cole.

“Right. Obviously.” Jay quipped, looking around one of the holes in the ships hull. “Ow! Splinter!”

“Well, should we check it out?” Nya was eyeing a potential way up to the top deck.

“What about booby traps?” Keaton asked, suddenly sounding worried.

“There’s no such thing,” Zane said flatly.

“What?”

“It’s just a myth created by modern films to make certain scenes more exciting. There’s no historical evidence of anyone ever ‘booby trapping’ their old homes or tombs, and even if they did—“ A piece of the ship suddenly fell into the water with a loud SPLASH!

“Heh heh… my bad!” Jay called.

“They wouldn’t have survived this long without some serious dilapidation,” Zane finished.

All of a sudden, the ninja thought that maybe they could hear something off in the distance. It had a rhythm to it, like someone banging rocks together, or maybe like footsteps. It was growing steadily louder and louder, to the point when Ann’s combat instincts were about to kick in. Then all of their concerns were completely washed away.

“What in Ninjago’s name is going on?” Wu cried from the entry way.

“We found a boat,” Jay blurted.

“Sensei, come and see, it’s incredible!” Ann cried, rushing over to him. “It’s remarkably still in one piece.”

“Well, more or less,” Kai added as he peered through a small hole in the bow.

Wu was more than a little shocked by this unexpected find, and they spent the next twenty minutes or so just examining the beautiful ship. The stern was incredibly waterlogged, as one might expect, but other than that, there were very few signs of rot, and no signs at all of termites or any other sort of pest.

“Ramswood…” Wu muttered after a certain point. “They don’t make them like this anymore.”

After Cole lifted the ship out of the water and stabilised it, and after determining that it was safe to explore the inside, Keaton spearheaded an expedition into the bowls of the creaking tub where she hoped to find pirate treasure, but instead found an entire year’s worth of pirate ale.

“It smells so bad!” She whined after getting just one tiny whiff of it.

“It’s not the only thing,” Nya added. The sea scum was almost palpable, and there was also just a hint of black powder and a smidge of rat droppings in the air.

While Keaton’s group had gone to the cargo hold, Zane, Ann, Wu, and Cole had gone looking for the captain’s quarters. Wu held a small ball of light in his right hand and led them to a fairly large room (well, large by ship standards) with a desk, what appeared to be an old bed, and in the far most corner, still clutching his large hat, was the captain himself, now reduced to a pile of bones. Ann and Cole recoiled at the sight and smell of it, but Wu in particular did not seem to mind. He simply led everyone out of the room with a solemn look on his face.

“This is officially the coolest thing we’ve ever done,” Jay was saying as he and his group came up from the cargo hold.

“Eh, it would’ve been cooler if there had been treasure,” Keaton pouted.

“Well then, I suppose we’ve lingered long enough,” Wu sighed, and he began to move toward the top deck.

“Woah, woah, woah, that’s it?” Jay exclaimed.

Nya stepped forward. “Yeah, I mean… shouldn’t we at least turn this thing over to a museum or something?”

“That would be a lot easier,” Wu said, coming back to face them all, “if we were not currently being hunted down by the IBI. Someone else will find it eventually, and I’m sure we will be able to read all about it.”

“But Sensei—“

“No ‘buts,’ Keaton,” the master replied. “You all need your rest for the journey tonight.”

The teens looked around them one last time as Wu began to leave again, and Jay in particular spotted the door which led to the barracks, with more than enough room to fit all of them. Plus there was an actual kitchen and four walls and a roof, which was far more than the forest cove had.

“Wait!”

Everyone stopped and stared at Jay, who had a certain look in his eye, like he was up to something. “Sensei, we’re heading for this new ‘safe location’ to make sure that the IBI will never find us, right?”

Wu nodded. “Yes.”

“Well, what better place to hide,” said Jay, throwing his hands around for emphasis, “than inside a ship no one has been able to find for centuries!?”

Everyone’s eyes seemed to perk up at the idea. All except Wu’s. “Jay—“ he started, but was unceremoniously cut off.

“I can repair the damage, with some help. It’s hidden, it’s got a real place to sleep, and a place to cook. It’s not the ritz, but it’s better than sleeping in the dirt.” Jay kept eye contact with his Sensei, hoping that he’d be able to stare him down if all other methods failed. The others were quick to follow suit, seeing Jay’s idea as a brilliant way to both avoid walking all the way down to the bottom of Ninjago and as a way to stay close to where the Serpentine were last seen.

After about half a minute or so, it looked like Wu was starting to give in.

“You’re sure you can fix this?” He gestured around at all the old planks and kegs of ale and rotted ropes.

“It might take a while, but yes, I’m sure I can at least clean it up, if not make it seaworthy before the winter’s over,” Jay said confidently.

Wu looked around one last time and sighed. The final nail in the coffin.

“Alright,” he relented. “We may use this ship. But,” he added before anyone could celebrate, “no one sleeps here until it is throughly cleaned, do you understand?”

Each ninja nodded enthusiastically and then watched their master leave.

“Quick thinking, weather boy,” Kai said, leaning against the rafters.

Keaton came up to him and put her hand on his shoulder. “My feet thank you.”

“Well, we’re not out of the woods yet,” Jay said, taking in the old ship a little more critically now. “We’ve got a lot of work to do.”

* * *

Somewhere deep within the northern mountains, a group of scaly, slithering creatures whisper together in the darkness. They are searching for something.

“No, no, it must be here,” one of them says, and he presses his purple hand against a stone embedded in the wall.

It begins to shake, slowly peeling away from its ancient seal and releasing the nightmares that lie within. A pair of amber eyes glow in the darkness.

“Brothers!” The purple snake cries. “We have set you free from your would-be tomb! Join us and we shall lay waste to Ninjago forever!”

A roar of cheers erupts from inside, and it crashes upon the ears of a young boy like a tidal wave of noise. He clutches his head and tries to hide from it, but the ground cannot swallow him, nor can the air carry him away. He is a prisoner here, in both body and mind.

“What’s-s-s wrong, boy?” A slimy, treacherous figure sneers. “I hope you’re not feeling tired, becaus-s-se we’ve only jus-s-st begun.”

He tries to block him out, but something had wormed its way inside his brain, telling him to listen to the alpha—the Chief—and the urge was frightfully compelling.

As he rises, he looks down at his hands and sees the body of a green, scaly stranger, half mutated and burning up inside.