1. The Dark Side of Destiny: Beginnings

Chapter 2 - What Now?

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. . .

Wu hit the ground with a back-breaking THUD and he gasped as the air was knocked out of him. Every muscle, every bone, every cell in his body was screaming with pain. Still, he gritted his teeth and rolled onto his side, heaving himself to his feet. Wherever he was, it was very dark; he couldn't see more than a few feet around himself. It reeked of death and decay, and the cold air stung against his marred skin.

However, Wu barely noticed any of this as he turned his face skyward and yelled to the heavens, "I curse you, Garmadon! All of you! I swear I will return one day, and there will be no one to stand in my way! The Weapons of Spinjitzu will be mine!"

While he spoke, an army of skeletons was amassing in the shadows around him, creeping nearer and nearer without hardly a sound. One in particular, larger than the rest, approached Wu from behind. On his head, a black helmet glinted in the dim light, denoting him as the leader. The skeleton crossed his four arms in contempt at the sight for the intruder. "Well, if it isn't Wu."

Wu turned, and upon seeing him, realized just where he had landed, in the Underworld. And these Skulkins weren't going to take kindly to his spontaneous arrival. He eyed the soldiers that surrounded him. Realistically, he wouldn't be able to fight all of them, especially not on their own turf. He'd have to think of something else.

"My, my, how you've changed," The general commented, taking in the blackened hair and skin. "Where's your pathetic brother?"

"He is not my brother!" Wu retorted.

"Even so. I've been waiting for you to stop by for a visit." With a toothy grin, the Skulkin drew four knives from their sheaths. "It's payback time!" he growled.

"You're quite right," Wu said, an idea forming. "It is payback time."

"Is that a challenge?"

"That it is," Wu answered with a wry smile.

"You fool!" Samukai swung one knife and Wu nimbly dodged it. "I will crush you!" the general vowed as he swung again, and again – but Wu was too quick.

Even with four hands, Samukai couldn't keep up with the intruder. Wu managed to get behind Samukai and landed a kick to his crooked vertebrae. The skeleton stumbled and his helmet clattered to the ground. Another kick sent Samukai down with it. He quickly regained his footing. "It's time to end this!" he shouted.

Wu smirked. "I couldn't agree more." Summoning all his strength, Wu launched into a tornado of Spinjitzu. It was dark in color, with swirling shards of ice. Samukai couldn't touch Wu. The Skulkin was swept into the vortex and Wu hit Samukai square in the nasal cavity. As Samukai hit the floor, his weapons, too, were ripped away by the tornado. With a wave of his hand, Wu sent the knives straight for Samukai. The general shut his eyes in fear as the knives embedded themselves harmlessly in the wall behind him. He gasped, shocked to find that he had been spared.

Having proven his point, Wu let his cyclone dissipate, then knelt down to pick up Samukai's fallen helmet. He couldn't help but chuckled as he placed it on his own head, thinking of all he could achieve with his own personal army. "Payback, indeed."

. . .

"Garmadon?" Misako had found her husband in the weapons room, staring at the golden weapons intently. They had been restored to their original place on the display. The wall to the right, however, still had a gaping hole. It was covered by a tarp which was constantly flapping in the wind. Garmadon had promised to fix it, though Misako didn't think that would be good for him, as it would force him to relive the memories of that night.

Of course, no matter what he did, he still couldn't shake them. Garmadon sighed as Misako walked up behind him. "They can't stay here. He's not going to give up so easily." At times, Garmadon seemed to mourn his brother, as if he was dead, and at others he spoke as if he knew that Wu would return.

Misako placed a gentle hand on her husband's shoulder. "What will you do?"

He shook his head. "They can't stay here."

"The safest place they can be is with you," Misako assured him.

"Maybe," he said, avoiding her gaze, but she could see the guilt written in his eyes.

"Where else would they go?" she asked, feeling very cynical about the idea.

But he could only sigh as he ran his fingers through his chestnut hair and answered, "I don't know."

Misako was silent for a moment as she considered it. The wind continued to flutter through the tarp, chilling the air inside and causing her to shiver.

Garmadon was probably right. Though the monastery was pretty well fortified, it might be wiser to move the weapons to a place where Lloyd would not be in danger if Wu attacked again. "Well, we could hide them with someone, a guardian. Maybe one of the other Masters would be willing to help us."

Garmadon nodded. "I've been thinking about that, but I'm not sure who would be the best qualified. I wanted to ask Ray, but . . . ."

Misako shook her head solemnly. "Ray has made it clear that he wants to leave the world of the elements behind."

"I can't blame him," Garmadon mumbled.

"But you know if you asked him, he would say 'yes.'"

Now it was Garmadon who shook his head. "No, you're right. Ray and his family deserve their shot at a quiet life after everything they've done already."

"Well, you can think more about it later. Right now dinner is ready, and you need to come and eat with your family."

Garmadon finally looked her in the eye and a bit of light returned to his features as he broke into a smile. "Alright, alright. But you get to feed Lloyd this time. He could be the Master of Mashed Foods the way he throws his meal around." He followed Misako out of the room, but paused at the door to give the weapons one more regretful glance before turning away.