Taking Control. (a Ninjago fanfic)

Chapter 49- Explorers Club

C O L E

I knew the battle wasn't going well the second Lloyds voice crackled through the intercom.

"Cole, I have a bad feeling about this," he panted, his voice barely audible over the chaos in the background—lightning crashing, something crumbling, and people shouting and screaming. "We just found Nya. Out cold. I'm taking her to somewhere safe, but Kai and Rue are with the Overlord. We need something. Anything to help."

My stomach dropped.

He was just too powerful.

He was the fucking Overlord, after all.

The very embodiment of darkness itself.

Whose ultimate goal was to plunge Ninjago into eternal darkness, and rule over it as a tyrant.

But his goal right now seemed to be making us suffer.

A burst of static. Then, a sharp intake of breath.

"The Scroll. We need the Scroll of Forbidden Spinjitzu."

Zane and I exchanged a look.

I gripped my communicator tighter. "Lloyd—what? That thing's too dangerous! We agreed—"

"We don't have a choice!" He snapped. Another crash sounded, and I could hear Kai shouting something in the distance. "If we don't get something that can match him, we're done for! I don't know what happened to Nya—" His voice broke off, and I didn't want to think about what that meant.

I clenched my jaw. The Scroll of Forbidden Spinjitzu.

The last time we'd used it, it sent Zane to the Never-realm. It was locked away for a reason.

But if we didn't do something fast, there wouldn't be a team left to protect.

Heck, there wouldn't be a city left to protect.

I guess it was the only way. And as hesitant as I was to use it, it was our only option.

The only way to face him without being defeated.

Zane caught my eye. His face was laced with uncertainty, and I could see the way his hands clenched into fists. He didn't like this plan either. But like me, he knew we didn't have a choice.

I exhaled sharply. "Fine. Where is it?"

"The Explorers Club," Lloyd answered immediately. "It's still locked up there. Just—just hurry. I'm not sure how long they can last."

The connection cut out.

For a second, neither of us spoke.

Then I ran a hand down my face. "I can't believe we're doing this."

"Neither can I," Zane admitted. "But we must."

I sighed, rolling my shoulders back. "Alright, then. Let's go steal a forbidden artifact."

~~~

"Well, we can't exactly pretend to be Clutch again, since his membership got suspended. So I guess the only way..." I started, the propellers humming loudly on Zane's helicopter.

"Is to break in. Again." The ice ninja finished, gritting his teeth. I nodded.

~~~

The night was cold, the wind tearing at my clothes, and pulling on my hair. The shadows in the alleyways seemed to stretch on forever, like gnarled hands reaching out to grab me.

I shivered.

Ninjago at night was creepy.

I walked along Zane, his footsteps falling into a comforting rhythm that put me at ease. Our footsteps were then muffled by the soft crunch of gravel as we made our way to the Explorers club entrance.

We were here for a weapon.

A weapon that could help us defeat the Overlord.

Save Jay.

A weapon to help us trap him in the mirror before he destroys everything I cared about.

I couldn't believe we were actually doing this—let alone doing it again.

Sure, I wasn't there the first time, but that's besides the point-

We crouched low in the shadows, the cold stone of the pavement making me shiver as Zane and I made our way to the back entrance.

The whole city felt so silent- the people were probably scared, hiding in their homes. Actually, most of them were most likely at the festival. Half of Ninjago, basically.

My heart hammered messily in my chest, the only sound louder than the consistent scrape of my boots against the pavements.

"This is insane, Cole," Zane muttered quietly, adjusting his Gi nervously and glancing over his shoulder. "Breaking into a secure facility in the dead of night—there has to be another way."

I shot him a look, trying to stifle a chuckle. "Trust me, Zane. If there was another way, I'd take it. But Lloyds voice on the intercom was enough to make it clear—we need this. Now. The Overlord's too strong. We don't have a choice. We have to stop him."

He nodded. He knew that if we didn't get the scroll—the only thing powerful enough to counter the Overlord's dark power—the others might not make it out alive. The city might not.

"Plus, we've done worse." I grinned, and he smiled back. It lightened the mood a bit, but not enough. Tension hung thick in the air, the importance of our mission weighting heavy on our shoulders.

The Explorer's Club was like a treasure chest, full to the brim with all kinds of ancient artefacts.

"They've definitely upped the security since we'd last broken in." Zane remarked, glancing at the barred windows and sighing.

We were going to have to be quick, and we were going to have to be smart. There was no room for mistakes.

I reached for the small pouch at my waist, fingers brushing over the things I had quickly prepared for this mission—climbing ropes, a couple of lockpicks, and a few explosive charges... just in case things went south.

I knew the scroll we needed was hidden somewhere deep inside the building, but it shouldn't be too hard, right? The others claimed to have done it regularly easily last time.

But then again, that was years ago..

And I'm not really the stealthy type.

Too loud on my feet, Jay says.

I glanced up at Zane, his blue eyes gleaming even in the darkness. "We stick together, got it? No matter what happens, we don't split up."

"Understood," Zane replied.

We moved forward, slipping into the shadows, approaching the back entrance. The air felt heavy with anticipation, like the entire city was holding its breath—waiting for us to succeed. Or fail.

I wasn't sure how I felt about what we were about to do. Stealing an extremely dangerous scroll, breaking into one of the most delicate and fanciest places in Ninjago... we weren't exactly on the high road here.

But if it was the only way to protect our friends—and stop the Overlord from taking everything we cared about—I was willing to risk it.

Zane lifted his hand, pointing to the roof. "That's how we did it last time. Through the vents. But it.. didn't exactly work out. I suggest we try and break a window. Quietly, of course."

"Ok. Let's do that then. Quickly. We have no idea how the others are doing right now."

I could tell he wasn't feeling entirely confident. Neither was I.

I just hoped we weren't too late.