Roots of Earth ~ A Ninjago Fanfiction

Chapter 13: Who Says Cats Can't Swim?

Slowly, Misako blinked open her eyes. She felt sore and stiff all over.

The last thing she remembered was being dragged away from her son's frantic cries at the burning teashop, and that enormous cat dragging her into the shadows of the forest. She had struggled desperately, but to no avail. The enormous cat had murmured unintelligible words as it dragged her away, and she had suddenly fallen asleep.

Now stirring, Misako realized that she was in a small, dark room that looked like an underground cave. The only light came from a fiery torch flickering dimly from its place on the stone wall, casting dancing shadows across the room.

She shivered in the darkness, then tried to stand up. Something clinked behind her and pulled back on her hands. She turned around to see her wrists trapped in iron bonds, attached to a line of thick chain connecting to the wall. She tugged on her bonds, but she already knew that the chain and cuffs were thick and sturdy.

Misako suddenly had the sensation of being watched. Slowly, she turned her head and stopped to see a man standing several feet behind her. Her eyes grew wide as she gazed at him.

His hair was golden and scraggly, a little long, and he wore a thin beard of the same color. Animal skins clothed his tanned, muscle-bound body, and a dark cape was draped behind his shoulders. Around his waist was a thick belt, equipped with a couple of pouches and a leather sheath carrying a katana. A dainty silver necklace adorned his neck, and the pendant was an odd, transparent crystal ball. His yellow eyes gleamed with cruelty.

Misako gasped quietly. The sight of the man summoned old memories of years past—ones of grief and anger, betrayal and fury. Her face blanched, then fell into a furious scowl. If Lloyd had been there, he would have been startled to see such uncharacteristic hatred in his mother's eyes.

"Lion Claw," she spat.

The man tilted his head with a mocking sneer. "Misako." The motion of his head revealed that one of the tips of his ears was torn down the middle. Slowly he approached her. "I've waited a long, long time for this moment."

She watched coldly as he drew nearer, his gaze never leaving hers. He murmured, "You have no idea how many times I've ached to have you trapped in my paws so that I could take revenge for what you did to me."

"What I did to you?" Misako exclaimed angrily, "You killed my sister. You destroyed my village! You destroyed my life!"

"And you destroyed mine!" Lion Claw spat angrily. "Do you know how long it took to regain the trust of my tribe after they found out I'd been with humans? Some of them today still won't accept my loyalty!"

"Serves you right for working with mountain bandits," Misako sniffed. "I'm surprised they let you live." She eyed him coldly. "How did you survive? I threw you off a cliff."

"They say cats always land on their feet," he sneered. "Though I survived not without injuries, I can assure you." With that, he pulled back his hair to reveal a grotesque scar etching across the back of his neck and several inches down his spine.

She ignored the ugly mark. "What exactly are you planning to do with me? Haven't you had enough yet? What more can you take away from me?"

"Hmm, good question." A nasty smile spread across his bearded face. "How about your mate's brother? Or that young, green-pelted tom? He's your kit, isn't he?"

Misako's face paled in the dim light of the cell. "Don't you dare lay a single claw on my son. You've done enough to make me suffer... you don't need to do more!"

"Oh, but I will." Lion Claw purred, drawing closer. "I will. I will make you writhe in a thousand pains. I will make your heart tear apart all over again. I will make you scream for mercy. You will want to join your mate and die to end the dream, but it will never end." His yellow eyes glowed eerily in the torchlight. "Only after I've had my fun with you, after I've exacted my vengeance on you and your only son, after you are cold and still beneath my claws, only then will I be satisfied."