1. The Dark Side of Destiny: Beginnings

Chapter 18 - Achievement Unlocked

The Underworld had taken some time for Zane to get used to, but now the dim light and gaping caverns didn't seem so strange to him anymore. Either way, it was home now, and he couldn't complain. There was still so much about this place he didn't understand, and maybe he never would.

But he didn't think he'd ever get used to the creatures that lived there, though. Skeletal beings that seemed to be more brawn than brain, harmless, as Wu had reassured him. And indeed, they weren't half as menacing as they had seemed when Zane and his friends had first stumbled upon them as children. It didn't take long for Zane to realize that Wu held some sort of authority over them. When he asked about this, Wu simply stated that he had won their loyalty shortly after being banished here. Zane mostly tried to stay out of their way and kept to himself.

One perk to living here was that Zane got a lot more one-on-one training with Wu. His brothers envied him for the extra attention. But there wasn't much else for him to do, and Wu insisted that he keep up a regimen to keep from becoming idle. Wu was more strict in the extra hours, but this didn't bother Zane He appreciated that his teacher expected only the best from him.

However, there were many occasions when Wu would disappear for long periods of time. Recently, he'd been doing this during training sessions as well. There were days when he would be late or show up for only a few brief moments. Zane wondered where he could possibly be going if he was banished.

"My physical body is trapped here," Wu had explained. "But I can visit Ninjago as an intangible observer, a shadow, if you will. You may not have realized that was my form on the day we first met. When I leave here, I go to find my brother. I have told you how dangerous he is. Now he has hidden the weapons, and I must find them and take them back, before he uses them for evil."

"And what if he does?" Zane asked. "How can you stop him?"

But Wu had shaken his head. "That's not for you to worry about. Not yet."

. . . 

Though it had been a long time since their first meeting with Wu, the boys had not forgotten his impressive display of Spinjitzu. Wu made sure of that. He would use it occasionally during practice fights, just to remind them of their ultimate goal. And after years of begging, years of honing their skills in all other aspects of their training, Wu had finally agreed to begin teaching them Spinjitzu.

The problem was, it wasn't as clear cut as the other moves they had studied so far. Master Wu had constructed a course for them and had them practicing on it daily, promising that it would soon help them unlock the power that they each sought. To them, it didn't seem much like of method to forming a colorful tornado of "butt-kicking awesomeness," but they had learned by now not to question their teacher's instructions. Well, not directly at least.

"When are we going to learn some actual Spinjitzu?" Jay whined in the absence of their Sensei. "I'm so sick of this obstacle course. I could do it backwards if I wanted!"

"I'm sure that Sensei Wu would not have us do anything that did not serve a specific purpose," Zane said, trying to sound more confident than he felt. He trusted Sensei Wu as a teacher, but he couldn't justify this exercise with what they had seen. Still, he knew that there had to be some purpose to the course. "If we keep practicing, I truly believe that we will achieve something worthwhile."

Cole glanced at the door as if he expected their teacher to return at any moment and hear them complaining. "Zane's right. Just because we don't understand the point of it doesn't mean that there isn't one."

"Can we at least take a break?" Kai asked.

Cole thought about it briefly and nodded. "Sure. A break would be nice right about now."