Ninja Apocalypse

7: Solo (edited)

Leaving at first light he had flown into the desert and then walked the sliding sands till he could barely see the jet. The Sea of Sands was one of the loneliest parts of the world and standing solitary in the never-ending expanse, Lloyd understood why and felt truly alone. Squinting through the sun he looked back towards the City, to his friends and his life, though he wasn't quite sure what his life was anymore. He came here alone, to test himself. He had to work out who and what he was and out here in the desert wasteland he would be the only person at risk.

Since the heat of Ouroboros he had been blissfully free of the ants that crept under his skin. His fear that he might turn again had subsided and he had been able to consider what was happening with his power. Was it like a poison that seeped into his mind? Was it building up inside him and needed to be released? Whatever was happening, he had little reason to use his powers recently as life had been quiet. He did not want to go looking for a fight just to release the pressure. That was absurd. So here he was, in a safe place to carry out an experiment. He had mentioned this to Nya and she had wanted to come as 'An impartial observer' she had said, but he could not risk anyone's life... and he felt a mild panic at the thought of hurting Nya. He would never wish anyone harm... especially not her.

'I wish Wu were still here' Lloyd thought to himself 'though would I really tell him what's happening, truthfully?' He cringed at the thought of his altered behaviour; telling anyone else other than Nya, was never going to happen, that had been difficult enough and he knew he would not be able to tell Wu either... but he still wished him back.

He took a deep breath, calmed his runaway thoughts and looked around at the vast emptiness and felt safe in his solitude.

Yes, I am truly alone... Good.

He planted his feet as firmly as possible in the soft sand and felt the weight of his body root into the sand below. Closing his eyes, he released his thoughts to focus his mind through every fibre of his being. He needed to feel his power and push it further. In training, he would use a targeted, useful approach, practicing short, sharp bursts of focussed power, akin to shooting a gun, but there was no subtlety in that. Lloyd knew there was more, a lot more.

As he concentrated, it felt as if his mind hummed and a sensation reverberated through him. The grains of sand at his feet began to dance and a green aura grew from him. It shimmered and blackened, turning to languid, smokey  tendrils that wound their way around his body. Pulsing outwards his energy grew, creating a swollen sphere around him. Oblivious to what he was creating he pushed his mind further, searching his inner power and the orb pulsed and stretched, expanding larger and larger until Lloyd felt a barrier within him, as if his mind wanted to escape. He tentatively pushed against it, but from his place of inner calm, the boundary invoked uncertainty, he didn't know what he was capable of and this knowledge scared him.

The split second of doubt broke his concentration and the external sphere ruptured. The energy exploded free and suddenly he was fighting to stand upright as a great crater was blown into the desert that collapsed beneath him. Regaining his wits he propelled himself free of the swirling sand that threatened to engulf him, to hover above the crater in a haze of energy. Shaken and breathless he took in its extent. In the distance just beyond the edge of the crater he could see the Jet having only narrowly avoided sliding down into the crater's edge 'that was close' he thought before contemplating what he had achieved. He had not realised his internal search was creating something tangible and felt thankful he had come to the desert alone. Glancing back momentarily at the sand, still sliding  and sinking below him, he moved away to return to the temple. The Team would no doubt be wondering where he was and once again, he knew he would not tell them.

Back in the jet he propelled himself into the distance, leaving the the centre of the crater to continue its slide into a spiralling sinkhole that released completely to a void below. The stale air of thousands of years was released and the bones of the underworld creaked into consciousness once more.