The Reign of the Oni

Chapter Six- In Which Lloyd Talks With an Old Friend

Lloyd's POV:

I strolled past the different buildings lined up against each other on each street. Garmadon was being moved today. He was going to be held in a prison designed specifically for him. He would be detained, and the Sons of Garmadon would be unable to communicate with him. But that didn't mean they weren't still a threat. My objective was to head back over to the outskirts of town and see if I could get any more information about the now reinstated Sons of Garmadon. If I could find out how long they'd been up and running again, we could better evaluate how soon they would strike.

But first, I had to stop by a friend.

I turned the corner and sucked in a breath, preparing for the worst. But instead of being flooded with bitter memories upon seeing the tea shop, I was stopped in my tracks. I cocked my head, my mind buffering as I tried to understand what I was seeing. Mistake's tea shop was not boarded up or torn down. In fact, it looked better than it had in a long time. The new coat of paint shined in the sun, and sakura flowers climbed up the walls.

I hesitantly stepped inside the shop, the bell above the door announcing my presence. There were couples sitting on metal tables all throughout the place. The counter had even been redone as a bar with stools. It all looked so. . . modern. It still had all the elements of when Mistake had run it, just with an extra spruce. She would have hated it, I thought with a smile.

"Lloyd!"

I turned my attention to the man behind the counter, pouring tea. My mind reeled, trying to understand what I was seeing.

"Dareth?"

"What are you doing here?" the middle-aged man asked.

I walked over to the bar and pulled out a stool. "I could ask you the same thing," I said, grabbing the cup of tea he offered me.

He shrugged. "I didn't want Mistake's tea shop to come to ruin. She tried to help me unlock my Ninja powers," he said, striking a dramatic pose. "I owe her."

I sipped my tea to keep myself from laughing. Mistake, ever the prankster, had convinced him to down a four foot jug of who knew what, telling him it would give him the ability to do Spinjitzu. I thought again to how much she would hate that he was now running her tea shop. I could almost hear her groaning when she found out.

"Dareth!" a woman called from behind the shelves of tea. She walked out from the door behind the counter and stormed over to Dareth. "You never ordered the lilac tea bags, did you?"

Dareth scratched his head nervously. "Uh, I might have forgotten."

The woman shook her head in disappointment. "If it weren't for me, this shop would fall apart."

I looked closer at the woman, trying to figure out where I knew her from. "Gayle Gossip?"

She turned to me with her most news-worthy smile. "Hello, Green Ninja."

"You can just call me Lloyd," I said, shaking the hand she held out.

"And you can call me Gayle." She turned back to Dareth. "I would love to stay and chat, but someone has to fix this man's mistakes." She turned on her heels and walked back over to the swinging door.

I turned to Dareth, my jaw hanging open. "Since when were you and Gayle together?"

He shrugged. "I don't really know if we're together, per say. She offered to help me out with the tea shop, but in all honesty, she kind of runs the place."

I laughed and shook my head. Gayle Gossip, the news reporter, working in a tea shop. Mistake's tea shop, no less. So many things had changed since Garmadon was brought back. I held my head in my hands and sighed. Since his capture, everyone I knew had found ways of settiling down. All except for me. I doubted I would ever be able to relax with my dad still alive and out there. I wished we could go back to when our biggest problem was Pythor, or Krux and Acronix. Why did we never get a break? Whenever we defeated a villain, it was only a few weeks later that another one would crop up.

"Oh!" Dareth jumped, nearly dropping the teapot in his arms. "I almost forgot." He walked to the room behind the swinging door. A few minutes later, he came back out with a letter in his hands. "This is for you," he said, sliding it over.

I looked at the name on the envelope. It had my name written in loopy letters that I assumed was Mistake's writing. I ripped open the envelope and unfolded the paper inside. I could almost hear her high pitched, nasally voice as I scanned the paper.

Dear Lloyd,

If you're reading this, I am either dead, or you are a nosy snoop.

I am going to continue this letter assuming the first option has come to pass.

If I am really truly dead, I hope that you can find someone worthy of taking care of my tea shop.

I am going to avoid all the sentimental nonsense you probably expected from this letter and move on to what is important.

You have seen for yourself the power your father possesses. The power of the Oni.

As his son, you must know that you too possess that power.

Harnessing the power of the Oni may be the only way you can defeat him. But be forewarned.

The Oni's power is corruptive. If you let it, it will ruin your life and everything you hold dear.

You must only use it if there is no other way.

This power is more than you have ever experienced before. You must not become addicted, or it will consume you.

Your old friend,

Mistake.

I folded the paper back up and shoved it into my pocket. I stood up and placed a few coins on the table and waved goodbye to Dareth. I needed to speak to Sensie Wu right away. But when I got to the Monastery, none of the other Ninja were there. I finally found Pixal and Wu in the basement, looking at the screens.

"What's going on?" I asked, walking over to Sensie Wu.

He sighed, his expression grim. "Lord Garmadon has gone missing."