Finding Jay ⚡️

Chapter 37- Video Games

       Nya smiled from her spot above the ship's deck as she watched Jay and Cole spar. It was so surreal to see him training again with the team, and in moments like this it was easy to believe everything was back to normal. Jay landed a blow to Cole's knees, and the earth ninja crumpled to the deck. Jay smirked and held out a hand to help Cole back up. Cole glared at him before reluctantly taking the offered hand.
    "I don't like this," she could hear Cole complaining. "Since when have you been better at fighting than me?"
    "Since always," Jay retorted, shooting him a wink. "I must've just been going easy on you." Cole scoffed. Jay was a lot stronger since he got back. Nya could feel the pride swell up inside her as she thought about how brave he must've been to keep going despite all he had been through. Not only did he stay alive and manage to find his way back to her, but the years of loneliness and abuse somehow had made him stronger instead of breaking him.
    "Hey Nya!" Cole called, noticing her for the first time. "Is Zane making cake? I feel like a smell cake." Nya rolled her eyes and bounded down the steps towards them.
    "You're always smelling phantom cakes Cole," she teased.
    "Hey! We don't talk about ghosts remember?" he shuddered, and Nya laughed. Jay looked at them with a confused smile.
    "Oh buddy, we have so much to catch you up on," Cole said, a hint of sadness crossing his face as he noticed Jay's confusion. Suddenly, Zane burst through the doors from the cabin onto the deck.
    "Zane! Are you making cake?" Cole yelled excitedly.
    "No, but I have a lock on the last Medallion," Zane announced. The other ninja that had been training on deck began to gather around them.
    "Where is it?" Lloyd asked, looking at Zane expectantly.
    "It is somewhere within Hiroshi's Labyrinth. I was able to locate its approximate location using old maps as well as GPS data. It is not exact, but I believe it is in a long forgotten temple of some sort," Zane explained.
    "Good work Zane!" Lloyd praised. "Nya, can you set the Bounty on a course towards Zane's coordinates? We need to get there before Lord Ras." Nya nodded and followed Zane up to the navigation room, where she set the ship on course for Hiroshi's Labyrinth.
    "We should get there in about three days," she told the group after she had finished.
    "We have to be ready for confrontation as soon as we land," Lloyd warned them. "Lord Ras will do whatever it takes to make sure he can accomplish his goals." Nya glanced over to Jay, whose face was grim. She knew that he had been friends with Jordana and Cinder, and as much as she hated them for manipulating his mind, she knew it would be hard for him to fight against them.
    "You don't have to fight them," Nya assured him quietly. "You've already helped us enough by telling us what Lord Ras was after." The team looked at him expectantly, and she could see Jay's discomfort. He straightened his shoulders and shook his head.
    "No it's fine," he told her firmly. "Whatever they're doing needs to be stopped." It didn't escape her notice that he refused to meet her eyes. Ever since that night on the deck, he had been trying to distance himself from her. It hurt so much to have him right there but so emotionally distant. All Nya wanted to do was kiss him and be in his arms and tell him how much she had missed him, but she knew that wasn't realistic. He needed time and space to process everything that had happened. After all, he didn't remember everything they had been through together. To him, she was just a girl he had met a week ago.

    Jay tried to ignore what the end of their journey would mean. If it came down to it, would he hurt Jordana and Cinder in order to help the ninja? That wasn't a question he could answer right now. The group began the disperse on deck after the flight course was established. Cole turned to him, opening his mouth to say something, before taking in Jay's expression and quickly shutting it.
    "Heyy you know what we haven't done since you got back?" Cole said cheerily, obviously deciding to ignore whatever inner turmoil was going on inside of Jay. That's something Jay had grown to appreciate about Cole. He didn't push for answers and tried to lighten the mood when he noticed Jay spiraling. It was easy to be around him, fun almost. Jay shook his head, and Cole grinned. He suddenly began to bolt towards the cabin, and Jay followed him out of curiosity. They ran through the hallway before Cole stopped at a door and threw it open. Jay almost gasped when he saw what was inside. There was a huge flatscreen tv, with dozens of games lining the shelf below it. Cole beckoned him inside and handed him a blue controller almost reverently.
    "This one is yours," he informed Jay, a huge smile lighting his face. Jay looked down at the blue controller with lightning bolts. It felt so familiar in his hands. "Don't worry, I didn't let anyone touch it while you were gone," Cole boasted. Jay saw something flash on Cole's face, a mixture of old grief and pain that was replaced by a huge smile once more. Cole turned on the tv and Jay sat down on the left side of the couch. Cole's eyes widened when he saw where Jay was sitting.
    "That's where you always sat," he whispered, and Jay felt suddenly uncomfortable. The earth ninja took in his expression and quickly turned back to the tv to put a game into a fancy looking system. The game's graphics flashed onto the screen.
    Would you like to enter Prime Empire? Jay's thumbs automatically hovered into position as Cole dropped down beside him. He felt the well-worn controls and a pain began in the back of his mind. Cole pressed yes and the game started. Jay didn't even have to think, his fingers flew over the controls wiping out enemies easily.
    "Not even amnesia could make you forget Prime Empire," Cole laughed as they flew through the first level. Jay was so absorbed he didn't hear him. Suddenly, the dull pain in his head grew piercing, and he winced, dropping the remote.
      "Are you okay buddy?" Cole asked in concern, turning his full attention towards his friend. Jay cradled his head, the buzzing in his ears blending with the game's noises. His vision grew hot and bright, and all the sudden he was looking at a different version of Cole, a younger one that had a strange hat with straws on his head.

      "Suck it!! I finally beat you at Prime Empire." Cole bragged, taking a sip from his hat.
      "I was distracted," Jay felt an echo of himself say. "It's not good sportsmanship to throw chips at your opponent. Plus, remember who beat this game in real life?" Cole scoffed, throwing another chip at him.
     "No one like a sore loser motormouth."

The pain stabbed him again and suddenly Jay was in another moment of time.

       "I'm going to ask Nya to be my Yang," he felt himself say as his hands flew over the controls.      
      A version of Cole even younger than the last turned to him in surprise.
     "About time!" Cole quipped, slapping him on the back while continuing to blast bad guys. "That's awesome Jay, when are you going to do it?"
     "I don't know yet," he admitted. "Whenever the moment's right."
      "Well I better be your best man," Cole teases, turning to him with a big smile on his face.
      "Duh! No matter what else happens you'll always be my best friend," he promised, smiling back.

      The pain intensified once more, and Jay felt himself sucked into memory after memory of playing games with Cole on this couch. It was too many moments. Too many memories overwhelming him at once. He felt himself scream as his head throbbed. He could barely make out Cole frantically screaming his name, yelling for the others to come quickly. The room was filled with figures anxiously crouching over him as writhed with pain on the floor.
      "What do we do??" he heard someone yell desperately.
       "Hey, you're okay," he heard someone whisper, gently stroking his forehead. But he wasn't okay. His skull was going to split open and spill all his brains out here on this carpet. Eventually, the memories slowed, the pain subsiding slightly. The room came back in focus and he saw the team's worried faces looking down at him. His head was still hurting, but it was just a bad headache now instead of skull splitting agony. As he returned to his senses, he realized what had happened. He remembered! Even if it was just random moments of playing video games, he had gotten part of his life back. He glanced up at Cole and a genuine smile split his face for the first time since he had gotten onto this ship. Cole looked mildly concerned at the manic looking smile that suddenly appeared on Jay's face.
       "Jay?" he asked hesitantly, before his words were cut off by Jay who launched himself into a hug. Cole looked at his best friend in shock, before slowly hugging him back.
       "Are you okay buddy?" he asked, concern in his voice.
       "You're my best friend, no matter what else happens," Jay smiled, echoing the words from his memories. Cole's eyes widened and filled with tears. He hugged Jay so hard that he began to feel lightheaded.
      "Alright....okay, I need air you know-" he gasped, and Cole released him. The room was looking at him in shock.
       "You... remembered?" Nya asked, taking a hesitant step towards him. He winced at the hope in her features.
     "I remembered some things," he told her quickly, before she could get too excited. "I remember playing video games with Cole." Her face fell for just an instant before she smiled again.
       "Of course that's what he remembers first," Kai laughed, ruffling Jay's hair. "That's the most Jay thing I've ever heard."
      "This means you might be able to remember everything eventually," Lloyd said excitedly, his face lighting up. For the first time, Jay believed that. He might be able to become the person the remembered, the one that Nya loved.
     "Rematch?" he asked Cole, pointing to the screen. Cole broke out into surprised, happy laughter, the sound of it making the room warm and full of life.
      "Oh, you are so on Zaptrap!"