Ninja Apocalypse

1: The Way of the Ninja (edited)

Wu stood amid the burned out ruins of the Monastery of Spinjitsu. He had taken his time to climb to the pinnacle. Once upon a time he may have attacked the climb, but no longer.

No longer would he see his students.

No longer would he see his nephew.

No longer would he see... Misako.

Surrounded by the ruin of the magnificent Temple he felt relaxed and at peace in his home. He could get no closer to his maker than here and here is where they would be re-united in the spiritual home he was created to.

'Father...'

He slowly sank to one knee then lowered himself to sit cross-legged. He had felt this coming on for years. Ever since his fate was propelled to a closer tomorrow. The Masters of Time should never have been created. Time itself should never have been given the chance to be a malleable, changeable force. It should have been the one constant in this world of magic and fable.

'I should not be here now. If it weren't for the Time Blades I would have at least another 80 years...'

The first battle for time when he was grazed by a time punch had started his years slipping away; he had felt like a leaky tap that could not be tightened. Then the Time Punch from Acronix had ripped the faucet from the wall and he now found himself here. He had lived his age over again from small child through to old man in the space of a few years.

'If time were as it should be, I would survive the ones I love, which I could not bear. It is better this way. I am ready. I AM READY' he shouted into the eternity of night 'whenever you're ready...' he added sarcastically and muttered to himself 'Masters, if I see you in the Departed Realm we will have words'

There was still enough shelter from the monastery's ruins to use in the making of a shelter and he made a comfortable place to bed down.

He attempted sleep with Misako and Lloyd in his thoughts and wondered when his end would come... because it would come.

A green light flashed across his closed eyes. He felt his mind draw apart from his body 'was this it?... No, no, it was something else'. He opened his eyes. The monastery was bathed in a sharp green light. A figure stood still across the courtyard; acidic eyes stared at him as smoky, green tendrils billowed and snaked across the floor before the apparition dispersed in a sudden flash. Shielding his eyes from the intense light, he lowered his hand to see the suns soft glow rising behind clouds stretched thin across the sky. The night had passed him by.

'A vision... I am here in my final resting place, waiting for peace and now I have a vision. Well that's just typical' Wu muttered and surveying his surroundings he walked to the once great gateway now collapsed and prised a fire-blackened piece from the great lintel; the remnants of gold paint just visible beneath the soot.

A new light shimmered behind him and he turned to it. 'Old friend' he said and motioned a small bow to the great dragon that materialised before him 'Take this message to my students' and he placed the burnt fragment of wood into the dragons jaws 'alas I cannot come with you, I can only sustain your presence in this realm long enough for your journey alone; I am very weak. This will tell them where I am' The dragon gently held the delicate timber and bowed his head to Wu before rising into the air as if drawing gravity into its great wings. Wu closed his eyes and willed the dragon to its destination.