Heroes in the Shadows

Chapter 3 Water Rusts

Later that same day, night soon fell on the city of Ninjago. The streets were nearly cleared of any cars. The only people out at this hour would be brave souls or criminals. One of those brave souls could be seen walking down an alley. The street light barely revealed any part of the shadowy figure. The figure soon came up to the side of an apartment building and pulled down the ladder to the fire escape. They climbed up fast before pulling the ladder back up. The figure continued their quick but silent movement up the case of ladders until they stopped about four floors up. They reached for the already opened window and crept inside. The figure took in a slow breath of relief before shutting the window behind them.

"Have a nice time?" a voice asked in the darkness of the room. The shadowy figure jumped at the sudden noise and stood ready to attack. The lights soon flashed on to reveal a teen by the light switch. He wore red, stripped pajamas to go with the tired expression he wore. His brown, spikey hair was ruffled from the long day he had. He leaned on the wall with his arms crossed. The teen stared down at the figure, by the window, with a narrowed gaze. The figure was revealed to be someone dressed in armor with a helmet and mask to conceal their face. The armor was similar to that of a samurai.

"Uh, I was just passing by and..." the samurai stated in a deep voice.

"Drop the act, Nya. I know you've been sneaking out," the teen spoke harshly. His tired gaze quickly grew to annoyance. With no way out of it, the samurai took off the helmet and mask to reveal a young girl with short, black hair.

"How did you find out?" The girl, now known as Nya, asked.

"You forgot to lock your door a few nights ago," the teen replied shortly. His patience was quickly running thin. Nya noticed the anger in his tone and started walking closer to him.

"Kai..."

"What I want to know," the teen, Kai, spoke completely cutting off Nya. "Why of all Ninjago would you dress up like a samurai and go out at this hour? What? You fighting criminals or something?" Nya looked away from him as she set down the sword that was around her waist. Kai stood up straight in horror. "You are! What are you? Crazy?!" Kai shouted in shock. Nya quickly shushed him as she drew closer.

"Do you want to wake up Aunt Lilly?" She asked with a stern tone.

"I don't care if I wake up the whole city! I want to know why my sister is fighting criminals like she's Batman!" Kai exclaimed but lowered his voice a bit more. The spikey haired boy soon realized something as his face grew more dread. "You didn't use your powers, did you?". The mention of her powers brought an angry look in Nya's eyes, before she turned away.

"Nya, you know no one can know that you're--"

"I'm a what, Kai?! An elemental master? A monster like the rest of them in this city? I'm so tired of being afraid of using my powers just because those guys ruined the image for all elemental masters!" Nya exclaimed as she stood her ground. Her fists began to shake from finally letting out what's been on her mind. She then held up her hand. Water soon formed all around it as she began to play with it.

"How can anyone be afraid of water?" She asked while staring at her hand.

"Someone like me," Kai muttered in more annoyance.

"You're someone who's weird, Kai," Nya remarked. She finished taking off the last of her armor before sitting down on her bed. Kai noticed the defeated look on his younger sister's face and sighed. He strolled over to her and took a seat on the bed.

"I'm sorry for being so hard on you. I... I just don't want you to get hurt because someone might get the wrong idea about you," Kai stated. Nya glanced over to see her brother's weary and tired gaze. He always looked like that. A frown formed on Nya's face as concern grew for her brother.

"I'm... I'm sorry too for worrying you. I don't use my powers out there. I can take down criminals with just my fighting. Since I can't use my powers, I thought I could help out the city in a different way," Nya explained while pointing over to the samurai armor.

"You shouldn't be out there fighting criminals, Nya. That's insanely dangerous. What if you run into those elemental masters? What would you do then?" Kai questioned.

"I make sure to listen to the news before I head out, so I know the places they're at. I'm not stupid, Kai. I know I can't take on that group all by myself. I just thought that this city could use a hero that could help out with the little stuff. You know, ease their shoulders abit. There's so much crime in this city," Nya answered before pulling her legs up into a criss-cross position on the bed.

"It's not your job to ease their shoulders, Nya! That's what the police are for! You got to stop this! You're only 14!" Kai exclaimed again.

"Yeah but I'm not a normal 14 year old, Kai! I've realized that I have a greater pain tolerance. I'm quicker, stronger, and it's not from eating all the takeout that we get! I think elemental masters are naturally stronger than the average human. That would explain why the elemental masters are so unbeatable."

"Nya! Stop! I can't listen to you trying to throw reasons at this! It still doesn't change the fact that you're 14! When are you going to realize that this is crazy!" Kai shouted before standing up.

"I know it's crazy, Kai! But I have to do it!" Nya spat while standing up too.

"Why!? So you can give me a heart attack!?" Kai exclaimed.

"Because I want to protect people!" Nya shouted once more. Kai stopped to see tears spilling from his sister's gaze. "You and Aunt Lilly are all I have left. I need to protect you, and I want to protect those like us who need a hero to save them from trouble. We couldn't escape trouble, but I can help others escape. I was given these powers and abilities. I want to use it to make a difference, Kai. I need to do it," Nya answered slowly before falling back down on her bed. Kai watched as his sister wiped tears from her face. He sighed once more before taking a seat next to her again. He wrapped her in a small hug and gave a warm smile.

"Who would have thought that my super powered sister would also be the most selfless person ever," He complimented. Nya gave a small smile back as she continued wiping away tears. "So, let me guess, I was given the looks in the family while you were given the powers. Sounds fair enough,". Nya let out a chuckle before shoving her brother off the bed.

"You wish, spikey hair."

"Hey! It takes a long time to make hair look this fabulous," Kai remarked before flaunting his hairdo. Both of them began to laugh until they fell back into silence. "I know I can't stop you from going back out there. But, could you at least promise me you'll be safe? You say you need to protect us, but it was never your responsibility. You can't keep putting the weight of the world on your shoulders." Nya let out a sigh this time as she took in her brother's words. She gave a slight nod in response before turning back to him.

"I promise I'll ease up on playing everybody's hero if you promise me the same thing. You act like the adult of this family, Kai. You work two jobs and still find time to take care of me and do homework. You're stretching yourself too thin. Please promise me that you'll take time for yourself too, okay?" Nya asked in a serious tone. Kai thought about her request and soon nodded in agreement.

"Deal," he spoke with a smirk.

"Great! Now go to bed! I know you stayed up all night waiting for me. You have a math test tomorrow, don't you?" Nya questioned as she crawled over to the other side of her bed.

"Yeah yeah yeah, good night, sis," Kai remarked before getting up to leave. Nya let out a yawn; she pulled her blanket over herself.

"Night, Kai," Nya answered. She layed her head down. Kai turned the light off and opened the door only to be greeted by an older woman. She had black hair wrapped in a loose bun, and she wore a purple nightgown. Her eyes were half open as she looked at the two.

"I heard shouting. Were you guys arguing?" the lady asked with concern.

"Yeah, but we're fine now, Aunt Lilly. Sorry to wake you," Kai stated. The woman, known as Aunt Lilly, yawned loudly before giving a smile.

"It's alright, Kai. I was just worried. Night, guys!" Aunt Lilly spoke lightly as she strolled off to bed. Kai shook his head before shutting his sister's door and walking off to his own room.

A/N: Hey guys! Two more chapters will be published soon. I just need to edit and write abit more of chapter 4. See yeah then!