Flames of the Past #5: Lost Souls (Ninjago Fanfiction)

Chapter 19

After observing the Shadow Stone a minute longer, Beech tossed it back to Skylor. The princess fumbled with it a moment before catching it in her hands. She gazed down at it in wonder. "What's so special about it?" she asked.

Beech stared at the Stone on her palm. "The Overlord revealed it to us during the Elemental War," she said. "It was created by the Entity he was formed from. We did not know he was concealing it. It is an evil stone. It contains dark magic that even Clouse can't master on his own. I'm not sure of its limits, but it is safer out of the Sons of Darkness' hands."

Kai smirked. "So you're saying it was a good thing I stole it from them?"

"Save the celebrating for after I find out just how many gang members are now on our trail," Beech spat back. Then she pushed through the team and talked to a few nearby Guardians.

Skylor was still staring down at the Shadow Stone, although with what Beech had shared, she hesitated to put it around her neck again. She didn't seem to want it, but she didn't seem to want to give it up either, and after a while she looked down at her pants and stuffed it into one of her several pockets.

"Hey, what's this?" Jay wondered.

The team turned to see the blue ninja had skipped over to the next table. They followed him, and observed the digital map displayed on the table's surface. It seemed to be a blueprint of some sort, with multiple red dots spread across it.

Skylor gazed down at it and found she recognized the building's structure and placements. "It looks like my palace," she breathed.

"It is," Phil answered, hopping onto the edge of the desk. "This is something Chief wanted to discuss with you, too."

"What are the dots?" Lloyd inquired.

Phil glanced over at the map. "Those are where each of the bombs were planted," he responded. "We've been studying them, and they didn't seem to be placed in any strategic manner. The goal wasn't to take down the palace as fast as possible, or to make sure every inch of it was destroyed. We think they had specific targets."

Sliding off the table, the Guardian moved to the other side of the map. "For example, the library and the king's quarters were completely demolished," he went on.

"Where the most evidence was," Kai realized.

Nya tapped a cluster of dots on the far end of the palace. "Where are these?" she asked.

Phil's expression turned grave. "Those are where we believe they weren't targeting places, but specific people," he murmured.

"Those are the bedrooms," Skylor observed.

"Yes. You know there were bombs planted in Kai's and Lloyd's rooms. But they also went off in Garmadon's, Skylor's, and Laurie's. Thankfully, Garmadon, Skylor, and Laurie hadn't been in their bedrooms at the time, or they probably would've been killed, since, supposedly, they're not as strong as Lloyd and Kai."

The team murmured to each other as Kai rubbed his chin. "Let's see," he began thoughtfully. "Lloyd makes sense, since he's the green ninja and everyone wants to kill him."

Lloyd grunted in agreement.

"Sleete never liked me, probably because of the time I spent with Skylor and encouraged her research."

"He thought I was getting too smart, too," Skylor added in a mumble.

"And Garmadon had a lot of information," Kai concluded. "But Laurie..." His voice trailed off and he glanced at Lloyd.

The green ninja crossed his arms, gaze hardening. "I think you're wrong," he claimed. "There's no strategy to the bomb planting. It's all random."

"Yours and Laurie's rooms were right next to each other," Cole reminded him. "Why would the Sons of Darkness place two bombs that close together without a reason?"