Birthright | Ninjago

𝐗𝐗𝐕𝐈𝐈. FAULT

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

IT'D BEEN A WEIRD DAY, Kai decided as he looked around his room.

They'd been forced to compete in Thunderdome at five in the morning; he and Hiro had formed a reluctant truce to help Lloyd win; Hiro had been dragged off after taking a nasty hit to the back of the leg; then, he'd shown up at Kai's door an hour later perfectly fine and they'd made another truce, somehow; Chen hosted a feast to celebrate the Elemental Masters that remained; and, of course, Nya had shown up on the island, working undercover, because his sister just couldn't stay out of trouble and loved giving Kai grey hairs before he was even twenty.

They all had their missions. Cole had been able to get a message to the team in a fortune cookie: he was going to save Zane. Nya and Hiro were going to find Clouse's spellbook and find out what he and Chen were planning. Which left the Ninja and Garmadon to find the spy Nya had suggested was in their alliance—which made sense, given that Chen and Clouse knew about their secret team-up.

Somehow, Kai was sure, they had been given the harder of the three jobs even though the other four were at more risk.

Kai scowled as he surveyed the room. Garmadon guarded the doors. For some reason, Neuro and Shade were sitting on his bed like they owned the place. Across from him, Jay paced the room, no doubt worried about Nya; Lloyd looked similarly agitated, most likely because Hiro was at risk, too. Skylor, Turner, and Mr. Pale stood across from the bed and, though he couldn't read Mr. Pale's face, Kai had a feeling the Master of Light was just as disgruntled as the rest of them.

It had been a quiet few minutes. Kai was surprised anyone had even shown up, except maybe Turner—that guy seemed to love a gathering.

Finally, Shade spoke up, breaking the tense silence by adding even more tension. "Like I said, I ain't joining your little alliance. I'm gunning for that staff," he announced.

"Hey, this isn't about an alliance," Lloyd argued, crossing his arms as he gave Shade a once-over. "This is about finding out who the spy is." He glared at the other Masters. "No one leaves this room until we find out who is passing information to Chen."

Everyone cast distrustful looks around the room; Kai had his suspicions, as did everyone else. He agreed with Lloyd on this one—it had to be Shade. There was no way it was Garmadon, Jay, or Lloyd; Kai just didn't get the sense Turner and Mr. Pale would work for Chen; Neuro was a coward, but Kai doubted he would reveal Clouse's plans if he was on Chen's side; and he trusted Skylor, who had come to him with Cole's message. That left Shade, who was more prickly than Hiro, which Kai didn't think was even possible.

Shade's eyes narrowed as Lloyd's gaze settled on him. "Why are you looking at me, Greenie? I'm not your spy," he stated, affronted by the mere implication even if nothing was said out loud.

Neuro held out his arms in a calming gesture. "Perhaps I can help," he suggested. He closed his eyes; like in the courtyard before Jay and Cole's fight, Kai felt an electric tingle race down his spine as Neuro used his powers. He grimaced, trying to shrug the feeling off. Neuro opened his eyes and frowned. "I don't know who, but someone here isn't who they say they are," he revealed.

"How do we know we can trust you?" Skylor demanded, stepping forward. "Maybe I should use your power and see inside your head."

Neuro jumped to his feet, pointing an accusing finger at Skylor. "I'd like to see you try, power-hoarder!"