Jay breathed in deeply and adjusted the thick blanket slung around his shoulders. His cup of hot chocolate was shaking in his hands and he was alone in a corner of the sleeping quarters, still on the ship. Ann, Keaton, and Zane were above steering them home, and everyone else was still in the hold.
The scenes from the iceberg were replaying in his mind over and over again. There he was, standing in the midst of the fog when suddenly six massive claws were sinking into his skin and he was being pulled up into the air, only to be dumped into a massive dragon nest and then taken captive by the Skulkens. He could still feel the steel of the Captain’s sword pressed against his neck. And there he was, like a complete idiot, begging for the others to save him. Kai had been calm. Kai had actually created a distraction so Zane could save them. Kai knew how to use his powers.
After the Caves of Despair, Jay had felt very confident, having braved an Earth Dragon, but at the same time the few minutes he had spent with Ann trying to activate his powers had only sharpened a certain point which had been pressing at his heart. And now his capture... He was beginning to wonder if he really was the Master of Lightning. Maybe Wu had made a mistake. It definitely seemed like it.
How could he have been so stupid as to think that he was some sort of special hero? He had never controlled lightning in his life, and he wasn’t anything like the others. He wasn’t tall, or strong, or even fit. True, Keaton was small, but she was only twelve. The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. He didn’t belong. This wasn’t right.
Suddenly his heart stopped with fear. If he wasn’t an elemental, then what would happen when he tried to grab the Nunchucks of Lightning later on? Wu had said that any mortal who tried to take a golden weapon would die from its overwhelming power. He almost dropped his mug entirely. He needed to get out of here as soon as possible. Besides, he had almost died several times already, and he wasn’t sure if he could take any more.
He needed to appeal to Master Wu. Surely he could see that there was a mistake. He needed to go home. He needed to see his parents again, and before he knew it, Jay had tears streaming down his face. He couldn’t handle this anymore. He needed to get away.
Jay stayed curled under his blanket until the ship pulled into the harbour and then, when they were all standing on firm ground once again, Jay looked around him at the others then at himself. The signs became even clearer now. He stood a good nine inches shorter than Zane, and next to Cole his arms looked like pale noodles.
“Next we head to...” Wu was saying, but it was hard for Jay to concentrate when all he could think of was getting away. They began to move forward, toward the stables where they had left their horses, and Jay followed in a daze.
His parents would be so disappointed in him when he came home. Wu would be disappointed in him too. Everyone would be. There was so much pressure on his shoulders, it felt like. But he couldn’t keep going or else he knew he’d die.
Every attempt he made that day to speak with Wu failed miserably. Since they were on a tight schedule, they were always moving, and since this was a conversation Jay would rather have in private, something they didn’t have very much of, he was forced to wait until that night when they made camp, but once again, Wu went straight to bed after dinner and there didn’t seem like there was any appropriate moment to approach him.
Jay was very quiet at dinner, but thankfully so was everyone else. When he went to sleep that night he unrolled his mat a little further away from the other boys and held his blanket tightly, wishing he was home. Then when morning came he didn’t want to open his eyes for fear of finding himself once again faced with all of the anxieties and dangers the day promised.
“Jay, come on, get up,” Cole was grumbling as he came over and nudged him. Jay didn’t know how to respond. Everything seemed different now. Cole and the others... they were something else.
“Jay, come on, before Ann starts nagging us.” Jay could feel a large hand on his arm as Cole forcefully rolled him over to face him. “Woah,” Cole said when he saw the bags under Jay’s eyes. He hadn’t been able to sleep very well the night before. “Are you okay?”
“I-I’m fine,” said Jay and he turned his face away as he got up.
“Boys, let’s go!” Ann called.
Cole sighed heavily with frustration before standing up and heading over to the horses. Jay breathed in deeply as he rolled up his mat and within the hour they were back on their horses heading south.
There was a new kind of silence in the air as Jay observed the countryside with very little regard for its stunning beauty. It felt as though he was the only one who could sense it; that no one else was even slightly aware of the obvious difference between them; it was as if his feelings were invisible.
Jay closed his eyes for a moment and breathed in through his nose. The cold air stung violently and he felt it fly down his throat. Then his stomach grumbled angrily and he regretted not eating breakfast that morning.
“How long will this take?” he heard Kai say.
“The journey will most likely take a few more days,” said Wu.
“And then I get my sister back.”
“You misunderstand. It will take us a few days to reach the Nunchucks, then a few days more to reach the Sword,” Wu continued.
“So we’re looking at—at the very least—two weeks? Why don’t we just condemn every prisoner of Lord Garmadon’s right now?” Kai grumbled.
“Don’t talk that way to your Sensei,” Ann snapped.
“Oh give it a rest, ice queen! It’s not like you’re in charge,” Kai snapped back.
“Dude, cut it out! Calling people names isn’t going help us get the golden weapons,” said Cole suddenly. “How about you do something useful for a change instead of complaining.”
“Excuse me?” Kai flared as he stopped his horse to look at Cole. “Oh, well I’m sorry if I’ve been forced to sit on the sidelines because of some stupid doctor’s note! Out of all the people here, I’m the only one who has a real reason to fight! Besides, it’s not like Jay’s been very helpful recently either.”
Jay’s head snapped up and his breathing turned shaky.
“Oh, picking on the little guy. Real macho!” Cole yelled, and he urged his horse forward.
“I believe Ann told you to stop!” Zane said, coming between them.
“No one asked you to step in, lickspittle,” Kai spat. As they continued to argue, the horses became more and more agitated.
“That’s a big word coming from a simpleton,” said Zane, eyes narrowing.
“Zane, butt out,” Cole snapped.
“All of you, enough! One more word and you’re all running from here to the Sky Temple!” Ann yelled as she attempted to break the three of them up.
They all glared at her for a few good seconds, but she glared back with such firm resilience that even Kai felt somewhat defeated. Jaws still clenched and nostrils stilled flaring, all of the boys returned to their positions in the horse train and they continued on.
Jay wasn’t much help....
Picking on the little guy....
They did see it. Everyone could clearly tell that he was the “little guy.” Scenes from his memories began to play before his mind’s eye and he remembered the first day he had arrived at the monastery. Ann was a fairly intimidating person to meet, with her being six feet tall and her steely eyes, but now that he thought about it, had she been glaring at him? He seemed to recall a moment when her faced appeared almost shocked to see him and then her brow furrowed and she seemed eager to leave his presence. Yes, it was so obvious now.
Zane never liked to be around him either—well, truth be told he never seemed to hang around anyone—and he always looked at him with little regard, Jay could tell.
Kai obviously thought very little of him, but what about Cole? Up until now Jay had thought that he was a reasonably good guy, and perhaps he was, but there was still a divide between them.
The situation only worsened from there. Every time a comment was made, or a task to be done, Jay was sure that it only carried negative connotations toward himself. Why hadn’t Ann asked him to gather firewood? Was it because she thought he was too weak even to do that? Why had Zane decided to move forward in the horse train, farther from him? Was it because Zane disliked him or thought he was weird and different? Why did it feel like Kai was always grumbling about him in some way? Why did Cole’s smiles suddenly seem fake?
“Why are you sitting by yourself?”
“Leave me alone!” Jay blurted, then froze. He opened his eyes wide and stared out into the darkness of night while Cole stood next to him, perplexed. He hadn’t meant to lash out, but it was too late to take it back now.
“I was just asking a question, there’s no need to get all worked up,” Cole was saying as he moved back to the campfire, leaving Jay by himself under a maple tree.
“What’s his problem?” he heard Kai ask.
“I don’t know. Maybe he’s just tired,” Cole replied.
Jay felt resentment rise in him. “I’m not tired,” he grumbled.
“What?” Cole asked.
“I said I’m not tired!” Jay cried.
“Okay, you’re not tired, hooray for you,” said Kai sarcastically, and he took another bite of dried pork.
“Knock it off, Kai,” Jay went on, his heart reeling.
“Jay, calm down,” Ann said smoothly. She didn’t even look up at him as she said it, but contented herself with her dinner plate.
Jay felt like there was so much he wanted to say, but if Ann didn’t want him to act like this, then maybe he just shouldn’t be around. He muttered something under his breath and then rose to his feet.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Ann inquired.
Jay rolled his eyes. He didn’t owe her an explanation whatsoever and kept on walking, his back to the firelight.
“You’d better be back here in fifteen minutes or less,” said Ann firmly.
Jay heaved a frustrated sigh but said nothing. He didn’t know where he was walking either and stomped off into the dark forest completely aimless. He thought about leaving at that very moment, but quickly came to his senses. He didn’t have a map or food on him and he probably wouldn’t get far on foot anyway. But what if he did have all of those things, not to mention his horse? In theory he could wait until everyone else was asleep and then saddle up Butterscotch and disappear into the night. No uncomfortable talk with Wu and no more pressure from anyone. It would be so easy.
“Hey,” said Cole as he came up behind Jay. “What’s up with you? You’re all pins and needles lately.”
Jay shoved his hands into the pockets of his blue ninja garb and looked away. “It’s nothing,” he lied.
“It sure doesn’t seem like nothing,” Cole pressed.
“Nothing’s wrong, okay? I’m fine.” He silently prayed that Cole would leave him be, but he showed no intention of heading back to camp.
“Okay, so you’re on edge for no reason?” Cole continued.
Jay grumbled, “Just leave me alone,” and started walking faster.
“I’m sorry, did I do something to offend you?” Cole asked, tension rising in his voice. Jay didn’t say anything. “Was it Kai?” Still no answer. “Ann?” Silence. “Dude, you have to tell someone what’s going on, because—“
Jay clenched his jaw and couldn’t bear to hear another word. “It’s all of you!” he shouted. “You all—just....” He was failing to find the right words and ended up in silence again.
“Jay?” Cole said quietly.
At that moment a new thought came into Jay’s mind. “How old were you?” he said. “How old were you when you discovered your powers?”
Cole didn’t say anything for a second. “About eight, maybe a little younger. Don’t tell me this is about your powers?”
“Why can’t I use them?” Jay said as he turned around to face Cole. “You can’t tell me it doesn’t look weird. Out of all of us I’m the only one who’s different. There’s no way you haven’t noticed.”
“So what?” said Cole, perhaps a little unsure. “I mean, Wu said that all of our powers are different, so—“
“Oh, come on! That’s a load of baloney! How long has Zane been using his powers? All his life, right? And what about Kai?” Jay went on, feeling his throat grow tight.
“Kai said he’d never used his powers before we met. Jay you’re jumping to conclusions.” Cole took a few steps closer to him, but Jay turned around and started walking away again. He should never have said anything. Cole didn’t understand. But he was also relentless, and a few seconds later he was running up to his side. “Hey, there’s always a chance that—“
“Just leave me alone, Cole,” Jay said firmly. This time Cole didn’t follow him and Jay wandered the forest for as long as he could before Ann came looking for him demanding an explanation. She monologued to him about “protocol” and “discipline” for a solid five minutes after that.
Soon everyone went to bed ill tempered and uneasy. Jay tossed and turned under his blankets and starred up at the starry sky until he was certain that everyone else was asleep, then sat up very slowly. He looked around and didn’t see very much besides the dwindling fire and darkness. Fear kept him sitting there for several minutes but in the end he got up and tiptoed over to where the horses were sleeping.
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