4. Dark Sides: Rise of the Anacondrai

Chapter 8 - Far From Over

On their way back to the alliance's headquarters, Kai and Skylor swung by to pick up Zane from where he'd had his accident. However, they were surprised to find that the pit was empty when they got there. The wrecked truck was nearby, but there was no sign of Zane. 

Kai stood next to the hole and gazed around the jungle, scratching the back of his head. "Huh. I guess he already went back."

"I'm sure he's fine," Skylor said. "We might even catch up with him on the way."

Kai hoped she was right. The last thing they needed was for another one of their friends to go missing.

Kai and Skylor arrived back at the palace close to sunset. Kai followed as Skylor stepped through the front gate at the top of the steps leading to the dock. From the looks of it, Kai and Skylor were some of the last to return from the search party. Garmadon, Seliel, Nya, and Neuro had already made it back and were gathered at the bottom of the stairs. As Kai and Skylor came through the gate, Skylor waved and shouted, "You miss me?"

Seliel and Nya gasped, running up to meet her with shouts of joy and warm hugs.

"No more remote island vacations," Seliel said, squeezing her tight. "I've had enough jungle to last me a lifetime."

Skylor laughed. "Alright. Next time you can pick the location"

"Let's just agree to never split up again," Nya suggested. "And maybe don't enter any more underground fight tournaments."

"Sounds like a great idea to me."

It warmed Kai's heart to see Skylor reunited with her friends. He could see how happy and relaxed she already was just by being with them. His attention shifted when Jay and Cole approached. 

"Where's Zane?" he asked, surprised to not see him with them.

Cole frowned. "They said you were going to pick him up."

"I was, but –"

"I'm here," came a quiet voice from behind.

Kai turned, relieved to see Zane approaching. He was cradling his injured arm, followed at a distance by Pixal.

"You okay?" Kai asked him.

"Yes."

Kai eyed his wounded arm. His sleeve was ripped above the elbow, exposing a bandage that was stained with blood. "Are you sure? That looks –"

"I'm fine," Zane snapped. He stalked away, brushing past Cole and Jay.

Kai was shocked. It was rare to see Zane act so brusquely. He rounded on Pixal. "What happened?"

Pixal didn't flinch. "He was injured, but I cleaned the wound and led him back here."

"And?"

"You saw him fall."

"I mean why is he –"

"Hey, leave her alone!" Nya jumped between them. Kai was startled at the sight of his sister. He had almost gotten used to her ignoring him.

Seliel appeared beside her. "She said she doesn't know anything about it, so back off!"

Skylor came between both sides now, putting one hand on Kai's shoulder and another on Seliel's. "Let's not let this truce fall apart as soon as we're all together again. We still need to find my father and put an end to his plans once and for all."

Kai took a step back. He was certain that Pixal was hiding something. Zane wouldn't act like that simply because he was hurt.

"I'm sure that if it was important, she would tell you," Skylor said firmly. Kai hesitated, still not satisfied, but he finally backed away and rejoined Cole and Jay, who had watched the argument in tense silence.