5. Dark Sides: The Mega Weapon

Chapter 1 - Awakening

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System Reboot in 3...

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Zane's eyes flicked open and the words across his vision disappeared. His body seemed to be moving of its own accord. His fingers and toes twitched, his eyes flicked all around, and it took a minute before he inhaled deeply. Then his body relaxed and he was in control again.

He bolted upright.

Where am I?

Just a moment ago he had been in the Corridor, under attack from the ninja's Ultra Dragon. Now, he suddenly found himself in a room he didn't recognize. It had been constructed in a traditional style, with wooden walls but no windows except for a dim lamp on the bedside table.

He must have lost consciousness, but he had no idea what could have happened while he was out.

He took another glance around the room. Too simple for Chen, he thought. Had Chen won the battel? Were they still allies with him? More and more questions began to pile up, but he pushed them aside to focus on the matter at hand. Right now he needed to figure out where he was.

Zane's chest tightened with the horrible realization that he may have been captured. However, the quaint little bedroom didn't look like a prison. Either way, he couldn't sit there and wait to find out.

He remembered losing his shurikens before he was knocked out, and they were nowhere to be seen, now. Zane slipped out of bed and crept towards the door. Kneeling beside it, he pressed his ear against it to listen. No sounds came from outside. When he tried to slide the door open, it was locked shut.

Prisoner, he decided.

He fashioned himself a lockpick, unlocked the door, and silently crept into the hall. As he closed the door behind him, he saw the corridor, too, was surprisingly more home-y than he had expected. Whoever had taken him in clearly wasn't prepared to hold captives. Lucky for him.

With footsteps as soft and silent as falling snow, he slunk down the hallway, clinging to the shadows at all times. Even in the hall, there was no light coming from outside, indicating that it was late in the evening. He didn't have to travel far before he heard voices from further in. They sounded happy, their laughter drifting through the hall like a summer breeze. For a moment, he felt a slight glimmer of hope that it would be his brothers. But as he drew nearer and the voices grew louder, he recognized that the voices were different. Ahead, he could see a patch of light that spilled into the hall from an open doorway.

Trying to remain cautious, Zane slid next to the doorway. From the sound of it, his captors were too preoccupied to be watching for escaped prisoners, so he took a risk and peeked inside.

By now, he wasn't surprised in the slightest by what he saw. It was apparently dinner time, as Garmadon was seated at the head of a long table with his wife and son on either side of him. Quickly, he scanned over the others, wondering if one of Garmadon's ninja would be guarding the grounds. He saw Seliel, gesticulating wildly as she told a story that held everyone's attention. He was surprised to see Skylor, apparently no longer affected by her father's spell, but completely human again. Again, he wondered how long he must have been out.

He recognized Kai's sister, Nya. And across from her was another man that he did not recognize. He had dark hair and wore thick pair of glasses, as well as a glove on one hand. A moment later Zane realized that the man was sitting in a wheelchair. Not a ninja, not a threat.

Just then, the man sat back in his chair, and Zane's breath caught in his throat.

Pixal sat amongst her friends, wearing a smile that radiated light and joy. And, quite literally, the warm evening lights gleamed on her silver skin so that she appeared to be glowing. She was so calm and demure next to her companions that most might overlook her amongst the commotion. And yet, that was precisely what made her stand out. She carried herself with such elegance that she couldn't help but turn every eye to her.