Taking Control. (a Ninjago fanfic)

Chapter 6- Possession

J A Y

"Why did you-" I started, backing away from the smoking figure grinning crazily by the door. "What do you want?" I demanded, trying to sound tough and scary. It didn't work. It never does. My voice wavered, and I took a step back.

He laughed, and opened a crate nearby, pulling out new gadgets and a new robotic arm. "What- so you weren't damaged? You were holding back?" I managed to mutter.

"I only need one of you." He chuckled, flexing his new arm menacingly and staring at me maliciously. Something was wrong here. Very wrong. The feeling put me on edge, and I glanced around uncertainly.

I need to fight him. I'm a ninja godammit! What am I doing? Clenching my fists, I got into a fighting stance. "And you'll do just fine." He finished, and lunged for me with his arm. I barely managed to get out of the way in time, his hand slamming into the wooden wall and leaving some contraption in its path. It beeped, twice, and glowed a faint green. What the hell-

I yelped as the arm came for me again, hitting the spot where I was milliseconds ago before I jumped out of the way. I didn't have time to think. I barely had time to react.

Powering up my fist, I shot electricity at the man, but he activated a shield with a single press of a button on his wrist, absorbing the blast as if it were nothing, the sparks just fell off of him uselessly. How- how is he doing this? How is he immune to lightning?

I yelled in pain as his arm clasped around mine, pinning me to the wall. I was too busy lost in my thoughts I didn't anticipate the move. Come on Lloyd, where are you...

He relaxed his arm, and I tried to move mine but it was stuck in place. With a confused look, I glanced over at my right. My arm was attached to the wall with a metal claw, its jagged ends digging deep into the wood, trapping me. I tried to move my arm, but it just sent ripples of pain through my body as the sharp points dug into my skin. It was a machine, so surely it could be broken with electricity? Stay calm, Jay.

Reaching over with my other hand, I charged the lightning up. But before I could shoot it, another claw grasped my wrist and pinned it to the wall. I screamed in pain. The claws didn't place correctly and dug right into my skin, deep. Only one side was into the wall, the other embedded into my flesh. I could see the blood pouring out, and my vision swam.

Stay conscious, Jay. You can escape. It's loose, you can break your arm free and- I grunted as another claw wrapped around my bicep and attached me firmly to the wall. There was no chance of escape. I was trapped. Completely vulnerable and helpless to the mechanics plans.

This was all planned. Every single aspect. It was a trap.

He pulled out a glowing purple crystal from a nearby desk drawer. My stomach lurched. It reminded me of the ones that adorned the crystal armies armour when we fought the overlord a couple months ago. Could it be?

My heart raced like crazy, and I could barely breathe. Everything around me was blurring together—noise, lights, all of it just too much. I can feel the sweat on my palms, and my hands won't stop shaking. The pain was so intense, a constant throbbing all through my arm.

Okay, Jay, just calm down, breathe... But the more I tell myself that, the harder it gets. My mind's spiraling, flashing between worst-case scenarios faster than I can even think, and I can't shut it off. What is he going to do to me? What's his evil plan? My chest feels like it's caving in, and I'm sure any second now I'm just going to fall apart completely. Stay calm Jay, you'll be fine.

You'll be fine.

You'll be fine.

The crystal glowed so brightly I had to squint. When I opened my eyes again, there was some sort of... spirit in the room? It stood before me, purple smoke curling and twisting to form the familiar shape of-

Oh no.
Oh, no.

The overlord.

Oh no, oh no, oh no. This is bad—really bad. My heart's pounding like it's trying to break out of my chest, and I can't even tell if I'm breathing. How am I supposed to calm down when everything's falling apart?!

I can't do this. My head's buzzing, my chest feels like it's being crushed, and I can't move, can't think, can't... anything. I felt like a trapped animal, cages and vulnerable. I couldn't move.

"Master of Lightning." The voice boomed, examining my body.

I couldn't speak. The words wouldn't come out. And even if they did, I wouldn't know what to say. I was speechless, my thoughts racing a million miles an hour, trying to figure out how the overlord was back so quickly. How he was even back at all.

"He will do just fine." Laughter erupted from the wispy figure-a deep, thunderous sound that filled the air and seemed to shake the walls. It was powerful and unrestrained, echoing in waves that rolled outward, impossible to ignore. The sound vibrated through the ground and lingered in the air—loud, confident, and filled with a raw energy that demanded attention. Each laugh seemed to grow, building in volume and intensity until it felt like the whole room was pulsing with it.

I winced in pain as the sound wouldn't leave my ears, even when he had stopped. That evil laughter, constantly ringing.

I needed to get out. I needed to escape. Cmon Jay. You can do this. You need to do this.

With a cry of fury, I yanked on my arms. The force was enough to remove the claws from the wood, and I bit back a cry of pain as the points dug even deeper into my skin.

I ran. I couldn't fight him alone. I had to find the others. I was outmatched, and they knew it.

I gasped in shock as I felt something crash into me. It was cold, and it felt horrible, like cold fingers creeping across my skin, taking root somewhere deep inside.

The last thing I heard was the mechanics snickers before everything went black and I fell to the floor.