Taking Control. (a Ninjago fanfic)

Chapter 12- The discovered

N Y A

The snow was falling harder now, each flake stinging as it hit my face. But I didn't slow down.

I couldn't. Kai was in danger, and we had to help him.

We'd been searching the grounds outside the building for what felt like an eternity. Each second that ticked by only seemed to tighten the knot of dread in my stomach.

The snow crunched under my feet as I hurried through the woods, my breath forming small clouds in the freezing air. The wind whipped around me, biting my clothes, but I didn't slow down. In fact, I sped up.

I'd just seen a figure—just a hint of someone up ahead, slumped over in the snow. But I knew, with a deep and horrible certainty, that it was Kai.

That red Gi stood out like a sore thumb.

"Kai!" I yelled, breaking into a run, my heart racing as I reached him.

He lay limply in the snow, his body motionless. A dark stain of blood was spreading across his chest, staining the snow around him a horrible crimson.

A katana was sticking out of his fucking chest.

His skin was pale, his face slack, eyes shut. I dropped to my knees.

No, no, please. No.

He's not dead. He can't be.

He's not allowed to be dead.

No, no. This can't be happening- this isn't happening-

"Kai." I choked out, scrabbling to his neck and putting two fingers on his cold skin.

My hands were shaking so much I couldn't even tell if there was a pulse or not.

Tears started rolling down my cheeks, and oh god- I can't do this. "Kai, wake up." I begged, shaking his body gently.

"Please." I cried.

"He isn't dead." Zane's voice broke the silence, speaking softly. "Watch."

I froze, staring at the pale body of my brother. And Zane was right- there was a faint rise and fall of his chest.

I almost cried out in relief.

He wasn't dead. FSM, thank god.

"Nya."

I didn't reply. I could stop looking at his mangled body. So much blood-

"Nya." Zane repeated firmly.

"We need to stop the bleeding. He's lost too much."

I nodded weakly.

"What can we do?" Lloyd asked, worry etched into his face and his eyes wide and haunted.

I watched, barely breathing, as Zane moved carefully over to Kai, his eyes narrowed with focus. The katana was still lodged in his side, a slick, horrible line of red where it had pierced right through. Right fucking through. Poking out of the other side.

Just looking at it made my stomach churn, and I had to fight the urge to not throw up. But I wouldn't leave Kai like this—I couldn't. We had to save him. He had to be ok.

"Alright," Zane said, his voice steady but tense. "Luckily it's missed his vital arteries. I'm going to pull it out on three. Nya, take the fabric Lloyd is going to give you and keep pressure on the wound as soon as it's clear."

I swallowed hard, nodding, trying to prepare myself for what was coming. My hand hovered, ready with the torn green fabric of Lloyds sleeve, but my heart was racing so fast it felt like it was throwing itself against my rib cage, again and again, threatening to break free and burst out of my body.

I could feel each beat pounding in my head, in my throat, reminding me of the precious time slipping away with every drop of blood.

Zane looked at me, his expression calm but full of urgency. "Are you ready, Nya? We don't have much time."

Was I ready? Could anyone ever be ready to watch their brother suffer like this, to watch the blade pulled from his body, knowing every inch it moved would send him back into unimaginable pain?

Sure, we were Ninja. It's what we do.

But that doesn't justify the pain I was feeling. The pain he was feeling.

I took a shaky breath, forcing myself to meet Zane's eyes. "Yes," I whispered, more to myself than to him. I had to be ready—for Kai. He needed us to be strong. This needed to work.

Zane's gaze dropped back to Kai, and he placed a hand on his shoulder, holding him down. "Lloyd, hold his legs down." He ordered.

I braced myself, my mind swirling with every horrible thought that had been clawing at me since we found him. What if it's too late? What if we lose him?

"One...two..."

The fear tightened around my heart like a vise, but I shoved it down. Right now, all that mattered was getting through this.

"Three," Zane said softly, and in one smooth motion, he pulled the katana free.

Kai's body tensed instantly, a pained scream escaping from his throat as the blade left his flesh. His eyes flew open, wild with pain, and I could see the agony flashing in them as they locked onto mine. Horror crept through my body, squeezing my heart with its pointed claws until I thought it was going to burst. This was so wrong. Kai should never feel this kind of pain. This wasn't right-

I pressed the sleeve hard against his wound, trying to stop the blood that just seemed to flow faster now, hotter, as if it were rebelling against our efforts. He struggled weakly, thrashing his limbs in an attempt to free himself from the pain, but gave up quickly.

"Kai, stay with us," I whispered, my voice barely steady.

"Please. Don't leave me."

I felt his hand weakly reach for mine, and I gripped it tightly, willing him to hold on. Please, Kai. Don't give up.

He winced, his jaw clenched, and he forced out a small, pained smile. "I'm... I'm not going anywhere," he managed, but his voice was faint, and I could see how much strength it took for him to even say that.

Zane set the katana aside, the blade sinking slowly into the rising snow, his face grim. "The worst is over," he said, his voice a steady anchor in the storm of my thoughts. "We just need to stop the bleeding now. Nya, keep the pressure steady."

I nodded, pressing harder, watching the way the blood seeped through the sleeve, turning the green fabric a deep red. I hated how helpless I felt, kneeling here, unable to take his pain away. Every grimace, every rasping breath he took was like a knife twisting in my own heart.

"Hang in there, Kai," I whispered, though my voice shook as I said it. My vision blurred with tears, but I blinked them back, focusing on him, on the rise and fall of his chest, on the warmth of his hand still weakly holding mine. We're going to get through this, I told myself. We have to. And- and the Overlord will pay.

"We have to get to the bounty. Otherwise he won't make it." Zane ordered grimly.

We nodded, and I hooked my arm under his armpit to hoist him up, Lloyd on the other side. Kai let out a yell of agony, and I winced in sympathy.

"I'm sorry, but it's the only way. Hold on for a bit longer and you'll be ok. I promise." I tried to reassure him.

There was no time to lose. We had to make it.

If we didn't, Kai would die.