Still by Your Side -||Lloyd x Reader||-

44

" Ah, Another cup place, Misako." Wu said as he sat on a chair inside the Temple of Airjitzu. He was drinking tea and had just downed the cup Misako poured him. "Okay, but drink it slower this time. Healing Tea doesn't work on a burnt tongue." She poured him another cup and Wu drank it. "Sip! You are quite impatient." Misako walked behind him. " The same could be said of them." Wu gestured to us ninja in front of him.

"Okay, Master Wu, you've had your tea. Now can we talk?" Cole asked.  " Ask any question you wish." Wu bad choice because we all bombarded him with questions while Jay asked who ate his pudding cup. We all just stared up what. "What? He said ask any question. I put my name on this. Just because we're in a new dojo doesn't mean we disobey the refrigerator rules!" Jay said. " Jay. You're a moron." I sighed as we all stared at him some more. "Right. Sorry. Guy in monastery. What's his story?"

"Well, to answer that, I must begin at the end. It was forty years ago, shortly after the Serpentine Wars. When I was a much younger man. As you know, we fought valiantly, but our enemies were strong, and our powers alone were not enough. It was the discovery of the magic flutes that allowed us to finally defeat the Anacondrai. Their leaders were banished. And peace was returned to Ninjago." Wu explained.

" It is done, brother Garmadon," Past Wu said to his older brother, putting his hand on Garmadons shoulder. " Indeed, Wu." Past Garmadon looked at him. "Today, Ninjago is finally at peace. A great victory. And one we could not have achieved without each of you, the Elemental Masters. Smoke, Metal, Lightning, Shadow, Fire, Water, and Time!" Wu spoke to the other elemental masters.

" Hold on a sec. So that guy at the monastery is an actual Elemental Master of Time?" Cole asked. " No. Acronix was an Elemental Master of Time, like his brother, Krux." Wu sipped his tea. "After helping us win our hard-fought peace, they betrayed me, Garmadon, and the others. The so-called Hands of Time felt they controlled the most powerful Element, therefore entitling them to rule all of Ninjago. " What did you do?" Nya asked. " We had to stop them. And it would take all of us. Garmadon, myself, and every Elemental Master." Wu said. " Even our parents?" Kai questioned.

" Of course. Kai, Nya, your mother, and father were great fighters, but it appeared even they had met their match. Acronix was a skilled warrior, one of the best I've ever seen, but his real power was his ability to control the forward movement of time. By sending himself forward, he was always ahead of the action, as if he had super speed. However, a slow progression can be just as dangerous. Different power, but equally effective. One Master of Time was bad enough, but like the hands on a clock, there were two. Krux's power was the opposite of his brother's. He could reverse time. It's a huge advantage in combat. Know your opponent's next move, know how to counter it. He could even control time to the point of halting it. Of course, he didn't halt himself."

" They're unbeatable, brother!" Garmadon panted as he and Wu held up the previous Master of Ice. " How do we stop them?" " I don't know. Time is the thread that sews the fabric of the universe." Wu stated. " And it appears that they have all the needles," Garmadon uttered. " Control time-" Past Acronix started. " -Control everything!" Past Krux finished as the twins laughed.

" We knew we had to prepare. Fearing that next time, we would not be so lucky."

"The wait is over! The future has arrived! The BorgWatch. Launching today." Borg appeared on television as he was revealing his newest product. "Incredible. A wall-mounted window for display thirty-second dramas!" Acronix was amazed by a Tv. Krux shut off the Tv. "Those dramas are called commercials. Cynical films playing off of consumers' insecurities to convince them to purchase that which they do not need." Krux was annoyed.

" So cool. I am jealous, brother. You got to experience the last forty years of progress. Hot beverages at the touch of a button, a beadless abacus, instant communication." Acronix was such a fanboy. "Worthless! All of it!" Krux sighed. " I absolutely despise modern life." "But it's filled with wondrous things we couldn't have even conceived of forty years ago! Like this amazing thing." Acronix held up a Borgpad.

" A BorgPad. Vile contraption!" Krux hissed. " I got it at the museum gift shop! A piece of glass that performs music." Acronix pressed on the BorgPad as the Weekend Whip started to play. "Creates a permanent visual record of any event" Acronix took a picture of Krux which hated it. " There's even games!" Acronix was way too excited. "I hate those infernal devices most of all! Everyone perpetually plugged in, distracted like infants by bright lights and sound." Krux was angry as Acronix was distracted by a game. " Yes! Smashed all the candy!" Acronix said happily as Krux growled.

"You said the Hands of Time were unbeatable, yet you beat them. How?" Lloyd asked as we listened to Wu. " The way one often defeats an enemy, by taking away their weapon." Wu answered. " But their weapon was Time." Zane stated. " Indeed. Our only hope was four blades, hastily forged from Chronosteel...the Time Blades. Chronosteel is the only metal that can absorb Elemental Energy. Stripped of their powers, Acronix and Krux were just two ordinary men, easily subdued. But the ability to control time is too great for anyone to possess. Garmadon and I knew the Time Blades themselves were a threat that had to be eliminated. Forever. We created a temporal vortex to dispatch the Blades in time, where they would be lost to the ages. But Acronix and Krux refused to admit defeat. They thought they were more powerful than time itself." Wu explained

" So, what happened to them?" Cole asked. "Krux disappeared into time itself, and I knew Acronix was going to return yesterday, so I waited. He was the remaining loose end to tie. Now he is no more." Wu said. " So like, permanently or?" I asked. "Never my intent, but it was his fate. Now Acronix is gone forever, along with that Time Blade. It took four decades, but the Hands of Time will never again threaten Ninjago." Wu answered.

"Oh, one question. How did you know Acronix was going to return to the monastery at that exact moment?" Lloyd asked as Jay asked why he didn't ask for help, Zane asked how many elemental masters were there, Cole asked if they can make Time Blades, and Kai asked about his parents. But Wu fell asleep like an old man. " No more questions for today. Your Master fought a powerful enemy. He needs time to recuperate." Misako told us and we left the room.