Ninjago: Ripped World 2

Final Destination

Greeted by Jewel, the troop filed past her and into the small house, the Nightingale floor protesting every step like a herd of elephants had come to visit. Kai waited back with Skylor. She took in the twinkling façade of the house and moved towards her grandmother who looked down to her from the veranda. The floor became calm again, chirping happily at the single steps until it fell silent awaiting the first words to be uttered between a grandmother and granddaughter in over 22 years.

What was there to say? What could be said in this one moment after so many years? Jewels face betrayed her thoughts.

'Hello' said Skylor.

'Hello granddaughter' Jewel replied. She raised her palm to Skylors cheek 'You are beautiful' she said.

'Oh, well uh... I don't know about that' she turned to Kai, looking nervous. He nodded in agreement.

'I like him' Jewel said.

Skylor leant into her grandmother and whispered 'I do too...' They both giggled.

Kai watched the two whisper and could instantly see them mirroring each other 'Pea's in a pod' he thought to himself.

Jewel beckoned to Kai 'come on Hot Stuff, we have things to attend to' she took Skylors arm and walked her into the house.

Skylor looked back at Kai a wide grin on her lips 'Hot Stuff' she mouthed. He rolled his eyes, tapped his fist on his heart and released a small flame for her.

Once inside, Jewel left Skylors side and went to Wu, who placed the box on the table. Jewel, after looking at it in silence for a long moment, picked it up and left the room through a door at the far side of the kitchen, she looked back and indicated that Wu should follow her. The rest of the team, Misako and Skylor looked at each other with questioning eyes.

The room Jewel and Wu entered was a studio, a wooden workbench ran the length with multiple workstations. Each workstation had its own specific task, a complex series of clamps, magnifying glasses, weighing scales, and drills pivoted and cantilevered out from a bar spanning the length of the bench. As Wu examined the room, more unusual objects baring no relation to any standard carving or etching tools sat like valuable objects in a lit display.

She switched on a lamp and placed the box on a small platform. Jewel opened the box. She pulled out two retractable wires from a panel on the wall, her fingers holding a delicate handle on each. She positioned one and then the other inside the box. Pressing a button on the panel a light shone from the interior and a screen powered up showing the insides of the box.

'Aaah' Said Wu 'This is wonderful technology, I believe this is what Jay was doing before they came with the box' He looked over at Jewel, expecting some kind of reply. A taught, serious expression had passed across her features 'Jewel?' asked Wu.

She leant a hand on the work surface as if to support her, then sat back heavily onto a stool. Her eyes closed, she worked through her thoughts.

'Jewel?' again Wu questioned, this time with more urgency.

'This is mywork' she said 'well some of it' Wu waited for more. She stabbed her finger at the screen. 'Those amber cubes are my work'

'How can you be sure?'

'Well, apart from the fact that I am the best amber craftsman in Ninjago and possibly the only one able to carve that many cubes to such precision... that and the fact I took an order for about this amount...18 years ago'.

'From who?'

'Clouse'.

'Why? Why would you have accepted that order? It could only have been for a bad cause'