Ninja Apocalypse

20: On The Move (edited)

Once again the team was on the move, back the way they had originally walked. Cole had healed well and was pumped, ready to roll and get the show on the road, though his stoic enthusiasm hadn't quite spread to his other teammates. 

Kai was still in recovery, his wounds had been extensive and even with Cole in command of the blade and its powers, he seemed to have stopped healing. 

Jay was generally in anguish from his disastrous actions and it seemed that his mere existence was fuel enough to keep Kai permanently angry. 

Zane acted as if his logic circuits had decided that there was no hope and was quiet and restrained, even more so than usual.

Between them, their shared need to find Nya was equal but Cole could not find a way to inject any positivity into them, and without it, the journey to the desert would be long and arduous.

The Shaman would journey with them, then part ways to return to Ouroboros. The Serpentine warriors would remain, working together as an allied force to face whatever fight came their way. The fate of Ninjago was theirs to share.

As they readied themselves to leave, the subject of transport had arisen. No Mechs had survived the impact of the island when it crashed to earth so Jay suggested they should try summoning their dragons. With their powers limited, Jay admitted that the pull within him was weak and he found he could not find the links between their realms. Zane was concerned; he wondered if losing Lloyd would have lasting consequences for their powers.

Cole refused to believe what Zane deduced, and felt that out of them all, he would be able to make the summoning. He had not let the Blade leave his side and he felt his power to be stable and his health restored. With the blade he was strong and perhaps he could prise the threads free from the first realm to weave his dragon into this. If he could do this, one dragon would be more than able to transport them all.

The team left him to concentrate on his task. He never normally had to work so hard to call his Dragon but nonetheless he could feel the subtle strand that linked his soul to its realm. All it took was a little pull and the thread should release the dragon to its rider. But that was on a normal day and this day was anything but. He felt his will slip away from the thread as if it were slick with oil and it took all his concentration to grasp it firm. The pull was slow and agonising, but slowly the shimmering creature unfurled its form like petals; opening layer upon layer of iridescent scales, stretching and settling into its gloriously earthy form. Cole smiled. Every time he summoned her he felt a part of him to be set free and he leant in to the rocky creature that gently butted heads with him. If they could ride his dragon it would make the journey so much easier and then perhaps Kai would stop moaning and they might start believing that there would be a future for them again! 

Cole took a test flight around the area to stretch its Rocky's wings. Leaping up on to the Dragins back, the Blade of Ouroboros became heavy and when they took flight it almost yanked him down off of the dragons back. Pulling the blade to him Cole won out, but still it felt like a magnet trying to reach the earth by pulling him from its back. As it glided through the sky Rocky was grumpy and on edge. She bucked and writhed sporadically, disrupting Coles' concentration. It got to the point where they could not initiate any form of lift and the dragon groaned and lost altitude. Cole knew the blade was responsible, he could feel the constant tug to earth and he finally conceded with a heavy heart, that he and his dragon were no longer compatible. He was master of Earth alone, not air.

So they departed on foot. Kai walked as much as he could, but the warriors bundled him onto the stretcher whenever they felt he needed to rest. Kai hated this and protested the whole time 'goddam snakes! Give me some dignity please!' But they continued to pick him up when they felt it necessary and deposited him on the stretcher and moved on. While Jay trudged along like a wounded puppy the sight of Kai being mothered by four burly snake warriors was more than he could bare and could not contain his laughter. He wasn't exactly in Kai's favour and was rapidly becoming Kai's enemy no1 and had to dodge fiery comets on numerous occasions.