The Child of Silver

21

Anirei and Lloyd stood in the center of the other four ninja as they prepared for their training. Since the two had grown, they were still getting used to their new bodies and needed more training in order to become in-tune with them.

"Your new bodies are fighting instruments. Listen to it." Sensei Wu said.

Cole struck first, taking his scythe and swinging it at Lloyd. But Lloyd was quick and used a back kick to push Cole away. Jay came in for another attack on Lloyd, but Anirei stopped him before he even had a chance to get close to him. She grabbed his nunchucks and swung him across the room. 

Zane threw his ninja stars at Anirei, but Lloyd picked her up and threw her into the air to make her avoid them. He jumped to the side to avoid the ninja stars as well, and the weapons stuck themselves into the watermelon that Nya was holding. 

"Since they've grown, Anirei and Lloyd have been learning faster, Sensei." Nya commented.

"But will it be enough to challenge Lord Garmadon?" Sensei Wu asked, "Only time will tell."

"Yeah!" Kai shouted as he unsheathed his sword and charged at Anirei and Lloyd.

Lloyd grabbed the sword with his bare hands and tried to use his powers to attack, but he lost focus and was defeated in an instant. Anirei however was able to jump over Lloyd and land behind Kai, holding her short swords close to Kai's neck.

"You may have defeated Lloyd, but I have defeated you, Elder Brother Kai." She chuckled and sheathed her swords.

"You two are getting pretty good, but Lloyd, that move you fell for was basic 101." Kai chuckled.

"Yeah, if I had focused more when I was little, I would've seen that coming." Lloyd said as Kai helped him stand back up.

"We cannot change the past, but we can improve for the future." Sensei Wu said, "Again. And this time, do not hold back."

The ninja continued to train Anirei and Lloyd for a couple more hours until they felt the need to rest. As they were having their resting period, everyone looked over at Anirei, who was meditating during their break.

"I don't know why, but Anirei seems a lot more... mysterious now that she's grown up." Jay said.

"Indeed." Zane agreed, "She did not seem to be surprised by her and Lloyd's sudden growth, and she had an outfit prepared for her age."

"And I wonder what the gemstone on her forehead is." Cole wondered aloud, "Don't you guys remember that picture of her parents? Her mom had a stone on her forehead, too, but hers was a deep purple color."

"Yeah, and Anirei showed no signs of having a gemstone before she grew. It was as if it had just appeared out of nowhere." Zane said.

"Well, gems don't just grow out of people. She must've gotten it from somewhere." Jay turned to Lloyd, "Hey, Lloyd, did she ever talk about her family before?"

Lloyd shook his head, "Nah, she never said anything about her parents other than that they were dead. I tried to ask her about them a lot, but she just said that spirits will continue to roam as long as they are mourned. I think she's trying to make it so that her parents will rest in peace or something like that."

Suddenly, Anirei stood up and looked out into the sky. A crying caw sounded through the air as Zane's falcon flew down to Anirei's outstretched arm.

"Elder Brother Zane, it is your falcon!" she shouted. Zane ran up to Anirei and took the falcon onto his arm before they all ran to the Bridge of the Bounty.

"What have you seen my mechanical-feathered friend?" Zane asked, opening the falcon's chest and taking out a usb before inserting it into the main computer.