In an Alternate World (NINJAGO)

Chapter 12

"I believe everything is coming back to me now." Zane breathed, touching his face and running his gloved hands against the smooth metallic surface. "Thank you, Sensei Wu."

Sensei nodded. "Of course. There's something else, as well. Do you have any access to your element?"

Zane scrunched his brows before lifting up a hand. "I... think so. Do you mean this?" Small shards of ice formed at his palm, twinkling gently.

"Yes." Sensei answered with a smile. "And your memories of my brother and the other generals?"

"I remember, before I left to apprehend Jay, Lord Garmadon and the Skulkin Army were plotting to steal the Sword of Fire. They knew you three were after it and close by, so they sent me to stop you. I believe they are a day's journey away, so we are all still ahead."

Sensei exhaled slowly, stroking his beard. "Thank you, Zane. You are a great help in our time of need."

Zane smiled at the three of them. "I was built to protect those who cannot protect themselves. I strongly believe that also means I shall stand by those who swore to protect Ninjago, not those that wish it harm."

Jay stepped forward nervously. "Zane, I know what I did to you was wrong. I should've never taken those orders. I'm so sorry."

Zane's smile remained. "I forgive you, my brother. We have all made our mistakes in the past, and I apologize for my actions earlier as well." He turned to Nya. "Which reminds me, I also owe an apology to you, Miss Nya."

"Just Nya is fine." Nya chuckled softly. "And it's no big deal. I knew you were a big softie underneath. Just like Jay." She nudged him playfully, causing Jay to nudge her back.

Zane watched the two and smiled warmly, turning to Sensei. "I sense we should be setting up camp soon, if we are to wake up early enough to retrieve the weapon."

Sensei nodded, waving them along. "We'll stop three quarters of the way. We must avoid any other obstacles."
-
Nya curled up by the dying fire, shivering in the cold. Although Jay had donated his coat to her once again, she was still freezing on the forest floor. Everyone else had fallen asleep, but something was still keeping her up. Grumbling, she rubbed her eyes and got up to walk around for a minute.

The forest was tranquil and almost comforting, despite being ice cold. She wrapped Jay's coat around her body tighter, glancing around at the blackened scenery. The multitude of stars and full moon were the only light to her path.

She swallowed and turned around anxiously after a few minutes, having the awful feeling that she wasn't alone. "Hello..?" She called out uneasily, slowly making her way back to the camp. Why didn't I bring a weapon along? God I'm so stupid...

She spotted the dim light from the fire a few feet ahead of her when she suddenly felt rough hands grab her from behind. She opened her mouth to scream, only to have it quickly covered by a large hand. This is familiar...

Nya growled, biting into her kidnapper's hand and kicking them repeatedly. She winced, feeling as if she was attempting to beat up a boulder.

"Give it a rest, sweetheart." Her kidnapper hissed, tightening his grip on her. "Soon you'll find yourself in a better place, far away from those traitors."

Nya kicked as hard as she could before she began to feel lightheaded. He's squeezing the life out of me! I'm- I'm gonna pass out!

"That's it, easy now. Don't worry, I'm not gonna kill you." He was carrying her somewhere now, tossing her weakened body over his shoulder as if she were weightless. "The less you fight, the happier the boss'll be."

Nya blinked slowly, seeing stars. After a moment, she groaned and tried to call out for help, only to realize much more time had passed than she had thought. They were far away from the camp now, aboard a large truck of some sort. She was tied up and placed in a cage, her mouth covered by a black bandana.

Her kidnapper stared at her for a moment, squinting his eyes and scrunching his bushy brows together. "You don't really look like him. Well, maybe you do, when you wear that coat." He laughed, starting the engine. "I bet Jay gave that thing to you. What a dumbass, thinking he could run away without anyone tracking him down."

Nya growled, struggling in her restraints. This must be Cole. She thought, remembering the night in the shop. God, that seemed like a year ago. She watched nervously as he sped up, sending them flying into a violet vortex. Nya gasped, closing her eyes before opening them again.

They were somewhere much colder and darker than before, this time the only source of light being an occasional purple flame burning in a mounted torch. Nya felt her heart pound as she slowly began to realize she was in the Underworld. She shivered, scooting closer to the back corner of the cage as Cole parked the truck. She assumed he had hopped down to meet with someone when she heard murmuring between him and another person. She leaned in close to hear their conversation clearly.

"You're kidding. You really brought her?" An almost-familiar voice hissed.

"Yeah." Cole answered. "She's in the cage. You were definitely right about her; she didn't go down without a fight."

"And I assume Zane failed to complete his task. God, what a simple assignment. I can't believe a highly-skilled android fell to that damn sensei."

"He also failed to take out Jay." Cole added. "Enough of that, though. Let's get you acquainted with our special guest."

"Don't you fucking tell me what to do." The other person snapped, hopping onto the truck.

Nya's heart sank when her eyes fell on him. No... it can't be...

He gripped onto the cage, the bars glowing red-hot and melting in his clutches, dripping down his hands. A slow grin crept across his scar-ridden face, his amber eyes glittering wickedly. "Hey, Nya." Kai spoke slowly, each word piercing into her heart like daggers. "Welcome to your new home."