Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
~~~~
"Lloyd is the Green Ninja!"
Lloyd looked at the golden weapons that hovered around him. Brilliant, shimmering green light, flecked with a myriad of other colours, filled the air around him, bathing his face in a soft emerald glow.
As the sparkles faded, Lloyd looked up to see all the Ninja and Nya still staring at him.
So he was the legendary ninja they had all wanted to be. It was kinda cool actually, at least now he wouldn't be left behind on missions.
But wait...
As his uncle came to stand behind him, Lloyd looked up at his father, who was already looking at him.
Emerald orbs met red as they locked gazes.
"That means..." Lloyd's father trailed off.
"Yes brother," His Uncle Wu continued. "The battle-lines have been drawn. Our family has only become more divided. First, brother versus brother and now, son versus father."
Lloyd felt his world crash down around him as he gazed up at his father in utter despair.
Garmadon's face was the picture of heartbreak as he met the eyes of his son.
Wu's words, regretfully stated, echoed in Lloyd's mind.
Son versus father.
~~~~
"Father don't!" Lloyd cried as he, Wu and Misako reached the beach.
His father froze and turned around, his hand still hovering over the button.
The rasping, wicked voice of the Overlord sounded, urging Garmadon to activate the weapon.
"So!" The voice of Lord Garmadon rang out throughout the beach. "The balance has sent my son, my brother and wife to try to stop me?"
Lloyd stared up at the massive vehicle as his mother and uncle tried to reason with Garmadon.
Didn't he see what he was doing? How much chaos and heartbreak he was causing? Lloyd had to put a stop to this. Here and now.
"I don't wanna fight you but I will if I have to!" He declared, glaring at his father.
Lloyd listened as Garmadon ranted, about how he was incapable of doing the right thing, incapable of fighting the venom, incapable of being good.
"I am Lord Garmadon! Destiny took my family from me, and the only way for us to be together is to turn everything in this world into my image! You'll all see what I see, feel what I feel!"
Misako spoke up, pleading, "It is not too late-"
"You made your decision. I have made mine." His father's tone was final, as he turned back raising one hand.
"No!" The three of them cried in unison, as Garmadon's hand slammed the button.
The machine started to warm up and Lloyd felt a flutter of hope - there was still time!
He tried valiantly and failed, watching helplessly from where he was being held back by the stone army general as the countdown reached zero. Garmadon turned, a triumphant smile plastered across his cruel face.
Emerald orbs met red as they locked gazes.
Overhead, the Overlord cackled with glee, relishing in the delight of his victory.
A flicker of doubt passed over Garmadon's face, swiftly followed by realisation and then rage as the Overlord gloated over his triumph, his master plan of controlling Ninjago. It wouldn't be Garmadon, but the Overlord calling the shots.
Lloyd felt his world crash down around him as he gazed up at his father in utter desperation.
Garmadon's face was the picture of hesitancy as he met the eyes of his son.
Wu's words, sorrowfully declared so long ago, echoed in Lloyd's mind.
Our family has only become more divided.
~~~~
Lloyd was happy.
The evil was cleansed from Garmadon who was tearfully reunited with his family. Garmadon and Lloyd had built, or rather repaired the bridges between them and Lloyd finally had the chance to make the most of everything Garmadon could be: A mentor, a guide, a friend, a confidant - a father.
Though they had once stood on opposite sides of the battlefield, now they were close enough to touch. They were no longer Lord Garmadon and the Green Ninja but Sensei Garmadon and Lloyd Garmadon. Father and son. It was like a truce of sorts, no matter how temporary it could be. Lloyd was glad for if only that, and he lost himself in the lull of things. The peace was blissful.
He should have known it wouldn't last
~~~~
In hindsight, Lloyd should have known it was a bad idea.
He was hopelessly, hilariously outmatched and the other ninja, the only people who could help him, were the same people he had locked in the bounty, giving them no chance to find him in time.
He should have never challenged his father alone, he should have listened to the others. The regret came too late.
Lloyd felt the air leave his lungs in a swift exhale of breath as Garmadon lifted him by the throat to bring Lloyd to eye level. His legs dangled in midair as the green ninja struggled but all his effort was in vain.
"You wouldn't hurt me." Lloyd gasped out, desperately clinging onto his last shred of hope. "Your son." His eyes and tone were pleading as he looked up at Garmadon.
Emerald orbs met red as they locked gazes.
"I have no son."
At those words Lloyd felt whatever hope he had left shatter as Garmadon stared him down with those oh-so-cold eyes in his oh-so-cruel face. The man, the father he once knew was gone and he was left with this hollow, unfeeling replica of the person he had held so dear.
There was no denying it, no escaping destiny. They were doomed to fight, to always be on opposite sides. This was their fate and they were irrevocably, irreversibly bound to it.
Lloyd felt his world crash down around him as he gazed up at his father in utter devastation.
Garmadon's face was the picture of hostility as he met the eyes of his son.
Wu's words, solemnly uttered what seemed like a lifetime ago, echoed in Lloyd's mind.
The battle-lines have been drawn.
A/N:
Hope you enjoyed! Tell me what you thought in the comments. Hope to see you soon in the next chapter...
