Departed

Chapter 22: Mystery

Lloyd's POV

     I slammed the striped suitcase in front of me shut. "Why did you have to do that?"

     Cole didn't move from his position across the room. "I can handle Morro if he tries anything—"

     "And I can't?"

     "—and you two have a bit of a past. He might be less likely to do anything evil around me."

     "You've left me with Harumi. Do you even realize how hard I've been trying to avoid her?" She left me too vulnerable. I didn't have the energy to deal with Harumi and try to save the world. On one hand, the idea of spending time with her again brought back so many wonderful memories of sweet smiles and warm blushes. On the other, all I could hear in my head was her cruel voice making me watch my life fall apart over and over and over.

     Cole zipped up his duffel bag. "You are the one who has been the most affected by her. You'll be able to see it if she tries to manipulate you again."

     I tore my hands through my unbrushed hair. "I'm stuck with her for days, Cole, days. I can't do this."

     Cole looked sympathetic. "She is a girl, which means she can't be a 'son.' You'll have more time to devote to your past."

     "This is a vague prophecy we're going off of. 'Son' could mean anything." I huffed, looking around the room to see if I forgot anything.

     "Okay, but her ancestors were probably a bunch of farmers. That means you can knock her out of the equation early."

     "Fine." I zipped up my suitcase, letting the noise fill up the silence. Cole made some really good points. I couldn't let my eagerness to get away from Harumi stop me from doing what was necessary. I felt like a little kid being resistant, but Harumi made me feel like I was going soft. I didn't want to let my guard down just so she could tear me apart all over again.

     Somewhere within me, I knew they weren't lying.

     I was just too afraid to open up.

     The pounding in my chest started up again, making me flinch. I ignored the pain and prepared to leave the room. Cole had noticed my discomfort and crossed the room to put a hand on my shoulder. He was a comforting older brother, always knowing when any of us needed support.

     "It's not going to be that long. Perhaps you'll find out something useful about the First Spinjitzu Master." Cole said quietly when I refused to talk about anything that was bothering me.

     "Yeah," I shrugged, gingerly rubbing the ache once again. I don't think it was going to go away any time soon.

     Out in the monastery's training area, the Ninja were saying goodbye. I looked at my friends, all packed and ready to go. Despite their injuries, they were going to pull through to make this journey. The stale air of the monastery was suffocating when I realized how important the success of this mission was. We had to find answers within this short period of time, or all of Ninjago would fall to the master of shadows.

     I had wished for a normal life for as long as I could remember. Even when I told myself nothing could convince me to drop this life that I loved, there was still a part of me that wished that one day we could live a life where we didn't have to fight to keep the peace. A day where when we parted, it was with smiling children and promises of another playdate instead of a cold, bitter morning, with the fate of the world upon our already aching shoulders.

     "Just update me if you find anything," Kai said to Nya as I limped into the swarm of bodies. "I'll look into our past so you can help Jay out. The guy's got so much mystery in his past it's probably going to require him to raid the Cloud Kingdom for answers."