Ninjago:Rising

CHAPTER TEN

After that first mission, the team fell into a rhythm. Every day brought more training, more challenges, and more moments that pushed them closer as a team—and closer to something bigger than they realized. But beneath all that progress, there were cracks forming. Cracks that were hard to ignore.

They spent most days either at Jay's lab or out in the field he had found for them, practicing with their new gear. Jay, ever the genius, had rigged up a police scanner in the lab, so whenever something happened in the city that required their attention, they would hear it first. In between those alerts, though, it was all about training—perfecting their skills, building their teamwork, and trying to make sense of the chaos that had become their lives.

Harumi and Lloyd had started spending more time together, often working on their powers side by side. There was something easy about being around her—like they didn't have to pretend to be stronger than they were, like they could just be. Their powers complemented each other too, which made their training feel... natural. She'd use her telekinesis to control objects, moving them in sync with the energy Lloyd produced. It was seamless, like they were on the same wavelength. And the more time they spent together, the more Lloyd found himself wanting to protect her, to keep her safe from everything—including the darkness creeping up on Lyra.

That darkness, though... it was getting harder to ignore.

Lyra had grown quieter since that day in the field. She trained with the rest of them, but something was off. She'd push herself too hard, and when her powers would flare out of control, it was like a shadow fell over her, something darker and more dangerous lurking just beneath the surface. The rest of the team noticed too, but none of them knew how to help her. Not really. Lyra wasn't the type to talk about her feelings, and even Kai, who had grown closer to her recently, struggled to break through her walls.

Kai and Lyra had been spending a lot of time together. It seemed to help her, knowing that Kai wasn't afraid of her powers or what she could become. He saw the person beneath the darkness, the strong, resilient girl she'd always been. They'd train together late into the night, and while Kai would often walk away grinning like he'd just won some unspoken competition, Lyra would look... drained. Like something inside her was slipping further away each time.

But things came to a head during one of their usual training sessions.

They were out in the field again, working on their combat techniques. Zane was practicing precision strikes with his throwing stars, while Nya and Jay were testing out some new tech that could enhance their elemental abilities. Cole was sparring with Harumi, her telekinesis matching his strength in an evenly paced match. Meanwhile, Kai and Lloyd had just finished another round of sparring, their fists glowing with energy and flames as they circled each other, trading playful insults between punches.

"Come on, Lloyd," Kai called out, grinning as he ducked under one of Lloyd's energy blasts. "You're getting slow. That girl distracting you or something?"

Lloyd rolled his eyes but smirked back, charging up another blast. "You're just getting cocky. Want me to remind you who won last time?"

Kai laughed, but before he could respond, a shout cut through the air.

Lyra.

She was on the far side of the field, training alone. Or at least, she had been. Now, her dark energy was spiraling out of control again, swirling around her in jagged, chaotic pulses. She clutched her head, her face twisted in pain as she fought to contain it.

"Lyra!" Kai shouted, rushing toward her.

But before any of them could get to her, she let out a scream, and her energy exploded outward, cracking the ground beneath her feet and sending a wave of decay surging through the field. Trees withered, grass turned to ash, and a dark aura surrounded her like a storm.