Ninjago Dragons Rising: the Off-Screen Moments

Bonfire

In which Lord Ras experiences the first of Empress Beatrix's careless, demanding nature.

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For many it was a night of celebration and praise, but to Lord Ras, it was preposterous. A bonfire burned fiercely in the middle of the city square, hundreds of citizens dancing and chanting ancient Imperium songs around the fire in honor of their new Empress. He glared with disdain upon the seemingly joyous sight, wincing at the slightest thing he thought weirdly foreign to him.

Closer to the fire were soldiers throwing books, newspapers, brochures -- any document that spoke against the Empress and her accomplices -- into the fire. Even little children helped in tossing some of the smaller flyers into those violent flames. Empress Beatrix was impressed by how naive the citizens were when she announced the outrageous accusations against her in those documents. She gazed on with an evil satisfaction: finally, her record is clean.

"This is utterly ridiculous." Lord Ras growled in disgust, which the Empress was not fond of.

She scoffed, a hint of aggravation in her voice. "Promoting my cause?" Turning to him, she continued, "You are indeed blind to how much this will benefit your. . . plans."

"I don't see how dictatorship will get what I want," the tiger replied.

"You didn't even tell me the whole of your plan with the Source Dragons," Empress Beatrix countered. "How will I know this--" and she motioned to the Imperians surrounding the fire, "-- is what you want?"

Lord Ras refused to be called out, but he remained determined to conceal the details of his Master's plan. "Remember that it was I who emptied the throne for you," he quickly changed the subject. "You owe all your trust to me."

"Watch your mouth, tiger," the Empress seethed, closing the distance between them. "One word of truth openly and I will most gladly behead you."

Lord Ras could feel her breathing down his throat, the darkness in her eyes all the more consuming. Her golden tattoos shimmered from the light of the crackling bonfire, her white hair hidden in the black of the night. He despised the self-centered girl, yet he nonetheless needed her for a purpose more important than providing him Source Dragon energy. The tiger kept his ground, appearing unwavered by the Empress' threat.

The corners of her conceited frown turned upwards into a proud sneer. "Good," she replied, taking his silence for submission. "I expect your undying allegiance from now on." Empress Beatrix faced the bonfire again, its flames burning brighter than before.

By now the sun has disappeared from the horizon; darkness engulfed the kingdom of Imperium. The throng of citizens seemed to grow ever larger as they gathered around the fire and danced and sang for their Empress, ignorant of her exploitation of their blameless ignorance. Blindly they worshipped her, blindly they exalted her, blindly they trusted her, and Lord Ras hated this show of their confidence.

"But this is still--"

"Don't make me repeat myself!" The Empress roared at him. Lord Ras squinted his eyes shut, irritated yet strong against her demand.

She exploded at him, "You will obey every single one of my commands, and I command you to shut your goddamn mouth!"

The elegance in her voice has long since left her, his ears ringing from hearing her words reverberating in his head. Maybe you should shut your goddamn mouth, he wanted to spit back, but in the end he figured she was right. Perhaps manipulating your victims like a puppeteer might benefit his plans, especially in recruiting members for his clan. He saw how she persuaded her subjects with lies and deceit and baseless promises that, when broken, would shatter the soul enough to gain full control over every part of their whole being. The victim would then be reluctant to disobey, even when they must sell their soul. It was perfect, he thought. With this strategy he can conquer the merged lands and rule it with a renewed doctrine -- a doctrine that has long been practiced, just in different forms. The Dojo in which it has first been taught would be the capitol of his empire, its first teachers the heralds of his expected loyalty.

What he is most excited about? The citizens of the empire in his head. Every person brought together by the Merge, living under the same sun, would fall to their knees in obedience to their Master.

He would create the perfect puppet show for his Master to watch.

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A/N: It's been a while, so I decided to work on this incomplete draft that was sitting around, collecting dust. After adding some paragraphs, I decided to post it, even though I wanted to add more to the complex mystery that Lord Ras is. But I decided to leave this drabble the way it is. I'm too much of a perfectionist to criticize myself for writing about a character that is at the beginning of their development. I hope you've enjoyed this short story and maybe, once we get more insight on Lord Ras, I can add more to this story ✨