Taking Control. (a Ninjago fanfic)

Chapter 92- Just a little crispy

K A I

I was burning.

Didn't matter if my eyes were open or shut, the fire was everywhere—clawing at me, tearing at me, pouring into me like I was a hollow shell whose only purpose was to hold it.

It wasn't my fire.

That was the worst part. Mine always hummed, always carried a rhythm that matched my pulse. But this stuff—

it hurt.

Every time another wave slammed into me, it ripped something loose inside. I couldn't breathe, couldn't move, couldn't do anything but grit my teeth and swallow the pain as it forced its way down my throat.

And around me—FSM, around me—I could still see the forest. Branches snapping and curling into black ash. Creatures shrieking, trapped in the blaze. I'd never heard so many voices screaming at once, and no matter how much I tried to pull the fire inward, no matter how deep I dragged it into myself, I couldn't keep up.

I caught flashes—Rue clutching her arms. Nya, water crashing around her, eyes wild with panic. The kids we'd seen yesterday, all those little faces staring at me like I was supposed to save them.

But I couldn't. I wasn't fast enough. Wasn't strong enough. The fire laughed at me as it burned me from the inside out.

The heat got worse, unbearable, choking out everything else. My knees buckled. My arms shook. The flames I'd been so familiar with turned against me, wrapping around my throat.

I was going to fall.

I was going to let them all down—again.

~~~

I jolted awake with a gasp so sharp my ribs screamed.

My breathing was irregular, my heart thumping so loudly in my chest I was surprised that nobody could hear it.

Calm down.

I didn't know where I was. The ceiling above me was made of woven wood. The air was thick with herbs and smoke instead of ash. But the pain—that stayed. My whole body throbbed, deep and raw, every muscle twitching like it had been roasted over a pit.

I didn't move until my body calmed down. It was just a nightmare.

We won.

I know we did, because I watched Nya save us all.

I tried to sit up, and immediately regretted it. My chest burned like someone had shoved a sword straight through again, and every breath rattled like the fire still lived in my lungs.

Maybe it did.

I gently leant my head back on the pillow.

Nya was beside me, hand just off of mine, curved like it had held mine a few hours previously. Cole was sitting on the floor, Jay using him as a pillow, Zane shut down in the far corner with Lloyd and the lumine...thing in his lap.

Everyone's ok.

Everyone's fine.

I'm fine.

I looked down at my hands. They were clean, bandaged up. The wrappings crept all the way up to my biceps, tied neatly at the top. Zane's work, no doubt.

My chest hurt.

Was the fire still inside? How much did I take in, and how would I release it? What if—

"...Kai?"

The voice was soft.

I turned my head—slow, heavy—and saw Nya, awake at my side, dark circles under her eyes. She looked like she hadn't slept in a week.