"Oh Lloyd." (Ninjago)

Chapter 2

"B-But Sir, this is a pretty bad head wound! And...He's not like snakes, we're not sure he'll make it completely."

"If he dies, ALL THREE OF YOU WILL END UP ON MY DINNER PLATE!! YOU WILL FIX HIM TO THE BEST OF YOUR ABILITIES!!"

"Y-Yes, King Skales..."

...

Before he even awoke pain gripped at his head. His body curled up and his hands moving to hold his head. It scratched at his skull and pulled on his hair, refusing to let him relax any longer.

"Careful, Lloyd. You're healing, just relax." A clawed hand came over his side, causing him to flinch with a gasp as it dragged down his body.

Despite the pain, Lloyd forced his eyes open, and his body onto his hand and knees, keeping his left hand on his head. His eyes caught the sight of Skales moving away, but turning back to him.

"You're okay, Lloyd! You're a little hurt, but you're fine now!" Skales told him carefully, but was still weary of his injuries.

"W-Where am I?!" Lloyd attempted to move backwards and stand on his feet.

"You're with me, Lloyd! Don't you remember?"

Lloyd looked around with a panic, beginning to breathe unsteadily as he stumbled in the darkness. But Skales quickly slid over, wrapping his arms around the boy's chest. "Please calm down!"

Lloyd brought his arm in a swift strike against Skales' chest, forcing him back and quickly turning to face the large, blue snake. "W-Why am I here? Where's the others?!"

"Just calm down! You're hurt, and my men have fixed you up!"

Lloyd looked around the room, though it was mostly empty, he saw a door not far from his left. He was about to run off until Skales grabbed one arm, pulling him back and latching the other on his side in a painful grip.

"You aren't running away! You're going to stay with us!" He shouted at Lloyd with a snarl.

"LET GO OF ME!" Lloyd yelled back to him, turning out of Skales' hold and reaching for his pocket knife, which was gone. And his entire ninja uniform as well, replaced with something more thin. He looked back up to the snake, his eyes opened with panic.

Skales watched him with angered eyes, but he did not attempt to grab him again.

"...Where am I..?" Lloyd asked again, his voice more shaky than before.

"You're at a Venomari base, it's closest until we get to the actual kingdom."

"...Why are you taking me? Why me?"

"Because, we...I want you to help us."

"...Help? W-Why would I help you of all people?"

"Because your friends are at risk." Skales moved closer to tower over the boy, his red eyes narrowed. "We have your friends next on the list if you don't comply. They can easily be put to waste at my command."

"Like you could ever kill them. We kicked your asses several times, why wouldn't we do it again?"

"...Tell me, Lloyd. What happened to Wu again?"

"...He had a bad accident..? Why are you asking?" Lloyd turned his head skeptically at Skales' question.

"It wasn't just an accident. That was me." He leaned in closer to the boy, his breath warm against his face as he hissed dangerously.

Lloyd froze for a moment, then his eyes widened in fear. "...You're lying..."

"I'm not." Skales smirked as he pulled away. "Maybe you could believe the other generals did, but it was truly me. I needed to weak you all so that I could get you out. And here we are, that leads you to now."

"...How? H-He wouldn't just...Why would he lie about that..?" Lloyd's voice began to crack uneasily, and he felt his eyes start to sting with heat.

"He didn't want to worry you all. But he talks to Nya constantly. Ugh, constantly! He might have told her, but not the rest of you, clearly. It's pathetic how easy it was."

Lloyd looked around the room once again, feeling panic begin to stir in his stomach. His eyes locked onto the door, and he slowly made his way over with shaky, uneasy steps. Skales came to his side and followed beside him, not pulling him back like before.

He took the doorknob in his hand, then opened the door. Looking outside, he found himself in a barren, empty forest. The trees were either chopped down or dead with no leaves. This wasn't like what Ninjago was. And it was the middle of spring!

"...What is this..?" Lloyd asked shakily.

Skales put his arm around Lloyd's shoulder, holding him close to his side. "I said before, it's a Venomari base. We'll be leaving once you've eaten something. Just wait here for me, alright?"

Skales began to slither away from him, but Lloyd didn't follow. He was usually brave enough to try and do something, maybe an attempt to escape, but here, he wasn't the same. He couldn't remember some things, and he felt scared of nearly everything. All the snakes seemed to glare at him as they walked by, and he stayed by the door until Skales would come back with something to eat.

...

The bus they were riding on hummed lowly as it drove through the dead forest. Only the conversation of the generals could be heard as well, but even they stayed mostly quiet.

Lloyd was still dizzy and weak, feeling more tired than afraid anymore. He wondered where his friends were. What were they doing? Why hadn't they found him and broke him out? Why...Why hadn't he broken himself out? What was he waiting for? His friends must be worried sick about him. Why wasn't he fighting back? Did Skales hypnotize him into staying? What was happening?

More importantly...What were they going to do to him? What were they going to use him for? He couldn't wait for his friends forever. Whenever they stopped next, he was going to try and escape. He needed to at least try if nothing else.

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