Chapter Text
“Your son? You have a child?” His gaze flies down to the bundle of green in her arms, held protectively against the harsh night winds and rain by layers of wrapped blankets. Misako stands before him, the very woman he had lost to his brother, the woman he had fought wars for. Her expression, though aged from the years apart, remains firm.
“Yes. May I come in?” She asks, seemingly unbothered by the rain that soaks her clothes and hair, or the nipping cold that steals the heat from the hearth within the monastery. Wu stands still, unable to even comprehend the moment, before blinking away his shock. He ushers Miasko inside, guiding her to the crackling hearth where a contrasting warmth melts away the numbing cold. He doesn’t quite know what to say.
“Whose child is that?” He asks after a stretching silence. He had cast his brother to the Underworld nearly a year prior in a duel, and yet here Garmadon’s wife stood, with child. Misako nearly scoffs as if it were obvious, and he knows the answer. She maneuvers the bundle in her arms, uncovering the blankets that protected the babe from the heavy storm. The child, exposed, blinks and lets out a little yawn, a smile on his rosy cheeks. Misako holds the babe out carefully.
“Wu, I would like you to meet your nephew, Lloyd Montgomery Garmadon.”
Wu reaches out with with gentle hands and an expression of awe, grabbing the child as if he were made of glass. He nestles Lloyd in the crook of his arm and watches as his eyes adjust to the dim light of the hearth. A sunshine smile overtakes Lloyd’s little features at the sight of Wu’s sagely beard before him. His arms wiggle free from the loosened swaddle. He coos and giggles, his grabby fingers tugging at Wu’s beard. Misako chuckles lightly.
“He seems to like you.” She leans closer and runs a hand over her son’s blond wisp of hair. Wu can’t help but smile, he feels rejuvenated with such a precious life in his arms. This is his brother’s child? He can’t even imagine what a resemblance might be between the two, except for the eyes. He remembers a time when his brother seemed human, and it reflects in the child’s eyes; glittering emerald happiness, full of life and full of love.
“Does he know?” Wu asks, rocking Lloyd in his arms. He winces at the tugs on his beard, but he allows it anyways. Misako’s eyes flit away for a moment, the corners of her lips turning downwards.
“No.” Her tone is almost solemn. “That is why I came. I did not only want you to meet Lloyd, I need your help. We must discuss his future. There is no one else I can turn to.” She speaks, her expression pleading. Wu looks down at the child in his arms, falling back to sleep with a fistful of cloudy beard. Wu nods with a smile. They must protect him.
“I understand. What role will my brother play in his upbringing?”
“Wu, you must know that I discovered I was pregnant after you cast my husband to the Underworld. Your brother does not know about Lloyd, and I do not wish for Lloyd to know of him either. No one must know that Lloyd’s father is the evil Lord Garmadon. His father was once a great man, and I don’t wish to taint his image for Lloyd in knowing who he is now. It’s better that way…” She trails, and Wu nods. But there is something else, it is evident in the way that her gaze casts away in uncertainty.
“What would you like me to do? I can tell, Misako. You have a plan.”
“Yes, you are correct. I have reason to believe that Lloyd is... destined for something of utmost importance, though I’m not exactly sure what it is yet. I must leave him and conduct research on these matters. I fear that one day my husband will return for revenge, and we will not be prepared.” Misako leans forward, brushing a hand over her son’s hair with a look or remorse, as if it were for the last time.
“This is all… very much, Misako. Where will he go?” Wu looks at the child in his arms, settled and asleep. “Where will you go?”
“That is why I need your help.” Misako turns away towards the door, as if she were to flee right then. “I’m going to bring him to Jamanakai Village. They are good people there, they will take care of him. I want you to keep an eye on him, ensure that he is safe. Though I do not dare ask much more of you. His existence is not your fault.” Misako wrings her hands together, keeping her gaze averted from the pair.
“You’re going to just leave your child in the care of the villagers? Drop this poor child into a life of uncertainty, fatherless and now motherless to complete strangers?” Wu clutches the baby close. He’d never once considered adopting a pet let alone a child, but a certain protectiveness sweeps over him. This is the child of the woman he’s loved for his entire life, he would not--could not just allow her to drop this baby off at someone’s doorstep. Misako doesn’t even falter from his words, and her gaze becomes steely as she snaps back.
“It is what I must do, Wu. For the fate of the world, I must do this.” She clenches her jaw and reaches out to take her son back. Wu moves away from her touch, recoiling. If he were younger, his temper would have gotten the better of him by now. But now, at this age, he cannot find the strength to be angry.
“I understand, however his existence is no fault of his own either. I will raise him.” Wu settles, rocking the baby in his arms. Misako opens her mouth as if to protest, but closes it again. A certain relief washes over her, and she sweeps over the pair with widened arms. Wu and Lloyd are caught in her tight embrace, and it would be the last one for a very long time.
“Thank you.” She mutters.
She rests at the monastery that night, and by morning, she is gone.
~
When Lloyd learns to talk, it is both a blessing and a curse. He has so much to say, which is an amazing and precious achievement while also becoming an increasingly irritating tool. With added years, Wu soon discovers that Lloyd is the spitting image of his brother. It is just like when he was a child, but so much happier. He feels young again, and for nostalgia’s sake he cuts Lloyd’s sunshine golden hair just like he and his brother used to wear theirs. Lloyd says it’s old person hair, and the word he’s probably looking for is retro, but he likes it anyways.
Lloyd is a child of questions. Can you teach me spinjitzu? Can you train me to be a cool ninja? Those are cool powers, do I have powers? Can we go outside now? I hate meditating, why do we meditate so much? Can we go to the village today? Are you my grandpa or something? That question in particular earned him an extra hour of meditation.
Raising Lloyd becomes an integral part of Wu’s life, filling a gap that was otherwise ever-present. It reminds him of his old student, Morro, who he had taught before Garmadon had been cast to the Underworld. He promises himself on Lloyd’s ninth birthday and like every birthday before to do better this time. He wouldn’t live in regret like he had for years after his old student never returned, Lloyd’s presence alone is proof enough that even he deserves a second chance.
Wu is ripped from his reminiscing and meditation by a loud crashing from beyond the sliding shoji doors. He remains seated, unfazed at this point by Lloyd’s antics.
“Sorry Sensei!” Lloyd’s small voice calls from the other room. Wu cracks a smile. Another crash. With a heavy sigh, Wu rises and opens the door, finding Lloyd tangled among a knocked over table and chair.
“Lloyd Montgomery, now what might you be doing?”
“I was trying to do Spinjitzu! Like you!” Lloyd smiles, a wide grin that shows off the gap where he’s recently lost a tooth. His clean pressed robes are dirty and wrinkled from his playing, though it isn’t much different than usual. He doesn’t keep clean very well.
“Oh, well of course you were.” Wu chuckles and moves to help Lloyd up. It looks like the table was nicked in the fall, but Lloyd seems fine.
“You’ll teach me how you do that someday, right?” Lloyd hops back on his feet, his expression that of hopeful excitement. He looks at Wu with bright eyes, and the sensei only gives a sighing chuckle.
“Perhaps one day, but for now you should get cleaned up. Dinner will be ready shortly.” Wu shakes his head and folds his hands behind his back. Lloyd nods and flashes a bright smile before running off down the hall. Wu sighs fondly as he slides the door closed again, padding back to the center of the room. He lowers himself slowly onto the mat and closes his eyes to resume meditation. Soothing incense fills his lungs on a deep inhale, sandalwood and sage smoke billowing from the sticks and cones.
His thoughts drift away as his body relaxes, mindful of his even breaths and the world melting away around him on an exhale. An cold and unmistakable fear grips at his heart, and his eyes snap open.
He is no longer in his father’s monastery, but in a greyed and desolate city. Ninjago City?
The streets are empty and dark; broken. Wu stands, his body tense and alert as he scans the streets. Before he can register his surroundings much further, a piercing roar or scream fills the air, fills his head and the sound reverberates through his entire being. He gasps, his knees buckling onto the street as the unending white noise shrieks in his mind and images flash in his vision like a harsh intrusion. A dragon. He clutches the pavement for support, the screaming making his stomach twist. A sickening evil. He gasps for breath. Garmadon. Wu tries to stand, but his legs fail to support him. Green. His gaze trails wildly around the desolate city, to the skies. The Overlord. His breath escapes his body on a single exhale and he knows exactly who’s presence he is in.
“Ninjago is mine.” A voice cuts through the sound, low and rumbling. Threatening.
With a gasping inhale, Wu’s eyes snap open and he finds himself back in the monastery, back in the incense-filled room. His breathing is quick and he can feel the lingering aching fear from the simple proximity of such evil. The Overlord’s words ring in his mind, he can still feel them reverberating through his entire body, and he knows that what he just saw was a vision of a dark future. One that will come to pass if he doesn’t take immediate action.
Lloyd’s young laughed echoes from somewhere down the hall, his little feet thumping on the wooden floor. Wu looks down, his heart aching for the boy he’d raised. He may not have been the best parent, but he’d done his best to care for his brother’s child and had learned to love him as a son. But now… No, he couldn’t allow himself to put Lloyd in danger by keeping him at the monastery. As he mulls over his options for a moment, he realizes. There’s a boarding school in the nearby village.
Wu sighs as he stands, his old bones protesting the action. He reaches for his bō staff from where it leaned against the wall. He needs to keep Lloyd safe, and he needs a team.
~
“This isn’t fair, Sensei! You’re supposed to teach me how to be a ninja, not send me off to some dumb school by myself!” Lloyd huffs, though he still walks close to Wu hand in hand. He’s always loved visiting Jumanakai but he doesn’t like being away from Wu very much. Lloyd’s cheeks puff up in an attempt to accentuate his anger, and Wu’s face softens.
“All ninja go to school before they start their training, Lloyd.” He says. Lloyd’s eyes brighten at the thought of ninja training, and he decides that he likes the idea of school a little better now.
“Well if that’s the case then let’s go to school!” He drags Wu ahead, a skip in his step. They pass a man selling candies on a food cart. Lloyd can’t help but falter at the sweets.
“Ah, good morning Sensei Wu! And if it isn’t little Lloyd Montgomery! If I’m not mistaken, you look taller than the last time I saw you!” The man at the cart says with a grin. Lloyd gasps and draws himself up, snatching his hand away from Wu’s. Big kids don’t need to hold their guardian’s hand.
“Of course I am! I’m a big kid now, I’m going to school!” He says with a grin, and the gap between his teeth is more prominent in the sunlight. Wu hands the man a coin, but he shakes his head with a laugh.
“Not too big for candy though, right?” He asks, reaching down for some lollipops and chocolates. Lloyd’s eyes light up and he gasps, reaching for the sweets. He hesitates for a moment and looks to Wu, who nods.
“Can I really just take some?” He asks the man, who only laughs.
“Of course! The whole village loves when you come to visit us. It’s on me, go ahead!” He says. Lloyd smiles gratefully and takes the sugary sweets with two hands.
“Thank you so much!”
“Yes, thank you. I apologize for the hurry, but we must be off.” Wu nods to the man appreciatively, steering Lloyd away from the cart by his shoulder. They walk for some time through the village, pausing to to greet familiar faces. Many people stop to talk to Lloyd and squat down to his stature to ruffle his hair or give him more treats and compliments. He beams from the affection, and Wu has to drag him away from the villagers before they’re late for school. Lloyd fills the air with idle chatter as they carry on, a beam of sunshine skipping along in white robes.
As they come upon the steep hill that leads to the boarding school, the persistent smile on Lloyd’s face melts away into a look of uncertainty. He frowns, and Wu grips Lloyd’s shoulder with a sigh.
“Raising you has been a great privilege, Lloyd. It is important that you stay here and do your best, okay?” He says. Lloyd looks up at Wu with a small smile, though his eyes are watery.
“You’ll come back, right?” He says, his voice wavering. He fights the urge to sniffle and clutches his stash of candies and sweets for support. Wu was the only family he’s ever known, and he’s never been away from him for very long before.
“I will visit as often as I can.” Wu nods, patting Lloyd’s shoulder before giving him a gentle push. “Now, you must get going or you’ll never leave.”
Lloyd gives a determined nod, wiping at his nose with his sleeve. “See you, Sensei! I’m gonna do the best at school so I can be a ninja!” He tucks the candy under one arm and wraps the other around Wu’s waist, giving him a tight hug. Ripping away, he turns and races up the steps towards Darkley’s, as if it’s the only way he can convince himself to leave for good.
Wu stays at the bottom of the hill for a few moments, watching Lloyd’s back as he bounds up the steps. He turns away with a sigh.
~
The village of Jamanakai is not far from the monastery.
A few times a week, one of the villagers leads Lloyd down to a nearby tea shop to sit and wait for Wu. The villager leading him down always has a piece of candy or a new cheap toy stashed away, and they always love to see the young Montgomery light up. Though his teachers encourage him to be spiteful, he’s always grateful for the villagers and even if he gets punished for his kindness, he still lets them know it. The days Wu comes to visit are his very favorite, after all.
He never waits long before Wu comes in with a kindly smile and orders tea for them both and settles down at their table.
“How has school been?” Wu asks. It’s always the first question he asks, and though Lloyd has been going to the boarding school for a few months, he shifts in his seat.
“The kids are really mean to me.” He says quietly.
“I’m sure it’s only because you’re new. Kids can be mean, but that’s how some of them show they like you. Give them time to get used to having you around.” Wu tells him with a pat on his hands, and Lloyd frowns.
“The teachers are mean to me too.” He shakes his head. Wu waves it away and takes a long sip from his mug.
“Teachers giving you homework does not make them mean, Lloyd. I’ve told you a dozen times. Remember what it takes to be a ninja?” He says.
“No, but they-”
“Now there is something I must speak with you about.” Wu cuts him off, his tone serious. Lloyd looks up, his lips splitting into a grin.
“Is it about my ninja training?” He asks, bouncing in his seat. Wu chuckles, but shakes his head.
“I’m afraid not, Lloyd. I have an important journey to make on my own, and I won’t be able to visit for some time.” He says, and Lloyd sinks down in his seat.
“So… so I’ll be all alone? For real?” He asks with a small voice, his brows drawing together. His expression is uncertain; fearful.
“Of course not. I’m more than certain you’ll make friends soon enough, and I’ll be back to visit you as soon as I can. I won’t be able to think of anything but your safety while I’m away.” Wu says, sipping his tea once more. Lloyd’s stomach is in so many knots, he doesn’t know if he can drink anymore. The pastry in front of him remains cold and half-eaten.
It is upwards of a month before Lloyd is brought back down to the tea shop, though it feels like so much longer. He waits for Wu more than he normally might, and when his sensei finally walks in and orders their tea and asks how school’s going like nothing is wrong, Lloyd can’t help but lash out.
“You left me alone for a month!” He shouts, his little fists banging on the table. His eyes are wet and even though big boys don’t cry, he doesn’t care. Wu’s expression is that of remorse, and Lloyd feels bad, but he was just so lonely and all of the teachers and kids were so much worse to him with the passing weeks.
“It couldn’t have been a month.” Wu says, and Lloyd shakes his head defiantly.
“I counted every day.”
Their relationship is strained after that. Lloyd tells himself he doesn’t need to count on Wu anymore to be his guardian, and eventually he comes to terms with the fact that he really is alone. He doesn’t understand why he needs to go to this school for bad boys, and maybe his teachers and peers are getting to him, but he feels as though he can’t even do that right.
Wu doesn’t visit every day anymore, and Lloyd is lucky if it’s even once a week. Though he still feels lonely more often than not, he convinces himself it’s just something important that’s keeping Wu from visiting.
“I apologize for missing last week Lloyd, one of my students thought it pertinent to-”
“Students?” Lloyd interrupts. Wu blinks.
“Have I not told you? I’ve begun training four ninja. I should bring them down sometime to meet you, I’m sure you would love them. I know how much you loved stories of my previous student, Lloyd. They too are elemental masters...” Wu begins, readying himself to tell stories of his newest additions to the monastery. His words trail as Lloyd stands abruptly, the scraping of his chair dragging harshly against the floorboards. The action and stricken expression on Lloyd’s face is so much different than the rapt interest Wu had been expecting from the boy. Wu’s eyes widen.
“You just wanted to get rid of me!” Lloyd shouts, and he can’t help the tears that spill onto his cheeks in anger. “I hate it here! I hate you! I bet your dumb new students didn’t even have to go to school!”
Lloyd storms out, not even sparing a glance back at the tea shop.
The very week afterwards, a villager is sent to the school to bring Lloyd to the tea shop. He refuses to go down to meet Wu and makes sure to apologize to the kind woman who had come all that way. The week after that, the villagers stop coming.
“You are not fit to attend this school, Lloyd Montgomery.” The Headmaster folds his spindly fingers together. Lloyd fidgets in his seat, his gaze cast downwards. “If you are not gone from the premises by dawn, you will be… forcibly removed.”
Lloyd doesn’t need much more than that to nearly run back to his dorm and begin packing his meager belongings. His entire body feels battered and bruised, and it is. Though he’s used to the harsh hands of his instructors and peers by now, it never gets easier. Without much thought, he slings his pack over his shoulder and sets for Jamanakai before sunrise. He considers for a moment returning to the monastery, but the thought of seeing his old sensei and those new happy ninja students makes his heart ache. He’d rather die from the cold. Wu hasn’t visited in months, he would surely be disappointed to see Lloyd kicked out of school anyways. Besides, his new students were more important.
Lloyd stays in Jamanakai, where the villagers are kind and patient and actually care for him. There are more than a few kind souls offering to take him in full time, but he kindly declines. He can’t burden other people, he’s a big boy now. Many villagers let him in for dinner and to play with their children, and some let him sleep their barns or even indoors on cold days. Sometimes a storm catches him by surprise and he wonders if he might die, the freezing rain soaking through his ill-fitting sweatshirt right through the bone. Many people make sure he is fed and clothed with hand me downs from their own children, and they bathe him once he really needs it.
Lloyd is revered as the town sweetheart, because even though times can be rough for him that sunshine smile never falters and he is always kind to the villagers and other children. Sometimes, he finds that he’s happier than when he was confined to the halls of Darkley’s.
One day a villager greets him with a handful of sweets, and more approach him bearing gifts and wide smiles. Before long his arms are spilling over with homemade treats and sweets and even some toys, and he realizes that it’s his birthday. When the it hits him that he’s been on the streets for almost a year, he feels hollow. Until that point he had held tightly onto the hope that Wu would come back with open arms and rescue him from the streets, but now he just resents the idea of his old sensei’s return if he ever would. Lloyd feels abandoned and alone, and not quite like himself anymore.
Nobody talks about his old caretaker, Sensei Wu. He hasn’t been seen around the village almost a year, and the speculation is that his age simply got the best of him and he left the young boy without family.
Lloyd knows where he is though. He knows he’s at the monastery, and if he ever came looking for him he didn’t know. He didn’t know if Wu even remembered he existed. If Lloyd cries alone some nights, that’s for him and him alone to know anyways.
~
“Who is this kid anyways?” Kai wonders aloud, his hands shoved deep into his pockets as they walk along the village streets. Master Wu had sent them down the mountain to Jamanakai, at first they thought it was to fight off some cool evil, but no. It was only to check up on some kid they’d never heard of before at a boarding school for bad boys of all places. After defeating Lord Garmadon, this is what they were sent to do? Errands? When they arrived at the school, they were told that this Lloyd kid no longer went to school there. So they walked along the streets, eyeing the shops and restaurants while they were there.
“Beats me.” Cole shrugs.
“Oh! What if Sensei Wu has a secret kid?” Jay pipes up, and Cole rolls his eyes.
“I doubt it. Sensei doesn’t seem like the absent father type, though he is mysterious.” Kai shrugs.
“What do you think, Zane?” Jay turns to the white ninja, who trailed the rest of the group in content silence. Weird guy.
“Sensei Wu did tell us before we left that he was a previous student of sorts. I am sure that there is a good reason for us to have been sent here.” Zane says, and Jay frowns.
“I like the idea of Wu being a secret dad better, that sounds way less fun.” He huffs. The rest of the group laughs.
“Why would Sensei send us here if the kid isn’t even here anymore?” Cole opens the door to a noodle shop in the center of Jamanakai.
“Maybe he doesn’t know?” Kai shrugs.
“Or maybe-” Jay starts, but is cut off when something collides with him. “Oof-!” He topples to the ground along with what turns out to be some scrawny street rat. The kid stands up and holds his hand out apologetically.
“I’m so sorry!” The kid’s eyes are wide as he helps the ninja up. Jay stands and dusts himself off.
“You should be careful and watch where you’re going, kid.” He grins, ruffling the boy’s hair. He draws his hand away, slightly put off by the lingering grease in the boy’s dirty blonde hair. Maybe it’s just the dirt that makes it seem darker than it it. The kid is thin, but not thin enough to be seriously underfed, and he could definitely use a bath. His smile is bright enough to overlook his dingy appearance, though.
“What’s going on out here?” A man comes out of the shop, an apron tied around his waist. His eyes trail over the ninja and then to the dirty boy, and his eyes brighten upon seeing him. “Lloyd! You’re just in time! These guys haven’t been bothering you, have they?”
Lloyd shakes his head. “It’s my fault sir, I bumped into them. My hair’s too long and it’s getting in my eyes.”
“Alright then, hey maybe I’ll talk to my wife and have her get you a haircut. Until then, I messed up an order earlier and saved it for you. Why don’t you come inside?” He says, gesturing in the shop. Lloyd beams.
“If that’s okay with you. Thank you so much!” He hops up and moves past the ninja to get into the shop.
“Wait, Lloyd? Isn’t that…?” Kai starts.
“Hey kid, what’s your full name?” Cole asks, his brows furrowing. Lloyd turns and sticks a small hand out.
“I’m Lloyd Montgomery. It’s nice to meet you!” He smiles. No one takes his hand.
“Do you know Sensei Wu?” Cole asks. Lloyd’s eyes widen, and his hand drops. His grin melts away and the rosy hue in his cheeks does as well. The man ushering Lloyd into the shop freezes. He gives the ninja a sharp look.
“What about him?” Lloyd asks with an icy tone, his expression drawing into a frown.
“He sent is to check on you at Darkley’s boarding school, but…” Kai trailed, his voice uncertain. They weren’t expecting tears to well up in the boy’s eyes.
“You’re his students aren’t you? The ninja?” Lloyd asks with a sniffle, his voice wavering with the threat of tears.
“That’s us!” Jay says proudly, as if that might make the kid feel better. Lloyd’s frown deepens.
“I hate ninja! I hate you, and I hate Sensei Wu!” He balls his hands into fists and darts out the door, away from the ninja. They all stand there, dumbfounded. Just who is this kid to Master Wu?
~
Lloyd sniffles, pulling his too-big sweatshirt tighter against his body. The cold of the frozen wasteland bites at any bared skin and he has no idea where he is, but he trudges on through the snow. It seeps through his worn sneakers and pants, but he can’t feel his feet anymore anyways. He had run from the village in anger and ended up losing his way, only becoming more lost. He thought perhaps if he climbed to the top of a mountain he could see the village again, but it had already started snowing heavily by the time he reached the top. The storm blocks his view and only serves to confuse him further as he aimlessly wanders the mountainside. He doesn’t know how long he’s been walking but he can feel the icy fear gripping in his chest. What if he never makes it back? He could freeze and die, and no one would even care.
“Maybe then Master Wu would come down from his stupid monastery.” Lloyd says to himself quietly, his words carried away by the harsh winds.
He sniffles again and tells himself it’s from the frozen air of the Glacier Barrens, and that the tears forming in the corners of his eyes are from the winds whipping in his face. He’s cold and scared and he doesn’t really know where he’s going, but he isn’t about to give up just yet. He kicks at a rock and keeps walking on.
“Stupid ninja.” Lloyd pouts, holding his sweatshirt close to his body. It doesn’t help very much. He kicks at another rock. He huffs, and he can see his breath. He kicks hard at the snow again in frustration and sends a rock sailing further than the other ones, furrowing his brows at the metallic clang it makes.
“Hey, what is…” Lloyd trails off as he follows the direction of the sound. He finds what seems to be a golden lever in the shape of a… snake? He wipes some of the snow away and reveals swirling serpentine designs on the ground beneath, a snake carved into the face of the mountain.
He has a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach, like he shouldn’t touch it, like he should walk away and focus on finding Jamanakai. A stronger, more childishly curious part of him reached for the lever with wide eyes. As he pulls at the lever, the earth seems to open up on itself, greenish smoke billowing from the gaping ground as if it hadn’t been touched in a very long time.
Lloyd loses his footing as he peers down into the abyss, slipping on a patch on ice beneath the snow.
“Ahh-!” Fear grips at his heart and he reaches his hands out to grab at something, anything, but he only finds himself falling down into the seemingly endless earth with a drawn scream. He lands on his side on a slope of ice, knocking the wind out of him and slipping further into the winding tunnels on an icy slide. After an eternity, the ice beneath him disappears and he falls hard onto a patch of ice.
“Oof-!” Lloyd groans, gasping in the cold air that stings his lungs. Blinking, he looks around where he had fallen with deliberate slowness, a small gasp escaping his lips as he stands. He rubs at his surely bruised side as he gazes around, an open cavern of sorts filled with stalactites and stalagmites. He stares in awe at the sheer beauty of the cavern, his eyes lingering over a large crystalline snake emerging from the ceiling with a sword carved from ice hanging from its jaws.
Lloyd wanders in awe, stepping carefully to avoid slipping but unable to look away from the natural beauty of the hanging fractals. All he had ever known was the monastery and Jamanakai Village, and neither of those places were anything like the cavern. It was cold and imposing, like the Glacier Barrens themselves but also so unimaginably different.
A low hiss from behind that makes the hairs of his neck stand breaks Lloyd from his reverie, and he turns at the sound with wide eyes.
“You are out of your mind,” a voice hisses from the shadows. A form slithers from the depths of the cavern, a towering snake with glowing red eyes, azure and imposing. It’s posture is regal with a golden serpent staff in it’s clutch. Lloyd takes one step back, recalling stories of the race of snakes, the serpentine, from Master Wu. “Out of your mind to venture so far away from home, little one.”
Lloyd takes another step back with a gasp, his eyes widening. And not for the first time he longs for home, for a safe place, but he doesn’t really know where that is anymore. He feels the sting of tears as he backs up against a wall of icy stalagmite, and he thinks about the monastery where he had spent the majority of his youth. And as he stares into the snake’s hungry gaze, he thinks about Master Wu. All of Lloyd’s pent up anger balls up in that moment, and he just misses him, the only family he had ever known. The gripping fear in his heart persists and he can only want for comfort and familiarity in what must be his final moments.
“Look into my eyes, give up your mind. I will control you.” The serpentine speaks, his voice commanding, hushed and silky. Lloyd’s back presses against the cold wall. There’s no escape and he knows that, but his foot catches on a patch of slick ice and he falls to the ground. The serpentine stares at its own reflection in the stalagmite and stills. Lloyd jumps to his feet, desperate for escape while the snake is distracted. His little fists ball at his sides, and he inhales deeply for strength.
“No.” His voice isn’t as strong as he would like it to be, it’s shaky and scared but he makes himself continue on. “I will control you from now on.”
The serpent bows his head slightly, and Lloyd’s eyes widen.
“What shall you have us do, Master?” He asks.
“Us?”
Without warning, serpent after serpent emerges from the shadows, an entire clan of snakes surrounding them in moments as if waiting for their encounter. Lloyd feels small and scared, but above all he’s safe. He’s the one in control now.
“An army of snakes?” Lloyd asks, the quiver in his voice dissipating.
“What are your orders, Master?” The serpentine leader looks up.
“What’s your name?”
“I am Slithraa, Master.”
Lloyd blinks in awe and stares around at all of the serpents. He has no use for an army but...
“Can… you make Master Wu feel bad for what he did?”
~
“He’s gone? What do you mean?” Wu asks upon the return of his students, who offhandedly inform him that Lloyd is no longer enrolled in school and that they found him in the village by chance.
“He asked us if we were ninja and then got mad and ran off.” Cole shrugs. “Then the owner of the noodle shop wouldn’t let us in.”
“He has always been rather well liked by the villagers in Jamanakai.” Wu sighs. “You said he wasn’t enrolled in the school there?” He asks. The ninja shake their heads in response, all curious to know more about this mystery child. Wu sighs again, and he seems completely defeated. His shoulders sag.
“Why didn’t you go yourself if this kid is so important?” Jay asks. Cole looks back at him with a hard stare; they’re all curious about the little street rat but their sensei is clearly distressed by the news.
“I’m afraid he was rather angry with me the last time we met. It was my intention for him to finally come home now that the threat of Lord Garmadon is no longer looming, and you have all proven worthy ninja. But now…” Wu sighs again and shakes his head, trailing off. “I have something I must do. Please, continue your training.”
The ninja agree readily, and Wu only partially listens to their chatter as they leave the monastery with golden weapons in hand. Wu allows his mind to wander as he sinks back onto the cushion for meditation. While he worries for his new students and their newfound obsession with the prophecy of the green ninja much like his previous student so many years ago, he worries more for his young charge. His charge who had been left alone to wander the streets of Jamanakai at such a young age.
Set to meditate to this troubling news, Wu lights the sandalwood incense and lowers himself carefully onto the floor. His breath evens and he clears his mind, the spirit smoke filling his lungs with clarity with each drawn inhale. He knows there is something else to come, some other bad omen, and he can only hope that he has not harmed Lloyd with his careless actions. He knows he has.
When Wu opens his eyes, it is to a sight he hoped he’d never face again. Waves of Serpentine soldiers approach the monastery, troves of Hypnobrai forces marching forwards. The thought alone sends a striking fear through him, but his body freezes when he sees who stands beside the commander. Lloyd, young Lloyd, dirtied and thin, but unharmed. Lloyd’s expression is that of uncertainty, but the serpent leader defers to the boy.
“Lloyd…” Wu speaks on an exhale, the vision fading away to the plain room within the monastery. There was a sinking regret in his stomach and a weight on his shoulders, and he knew he’d made a grave mistake, one that he could only hope to right. Standing quickly, Wu hurried to the courtyard. He may have left Lloyd in troubling times, but he knew he could save him from the wrong path. He had to.
“The Serpentine are back!” He opens the door, exasperated. His students pause in their sparring and collectively give him strange looks. Wu nearly huffs, but the importance of the situation keeps his tongue at bay. “They are on their way here right now, we must prepare!”
“Calm down, Sensei, isn’t that just a children’s story to keep kids from going off into places they shouldn’t be?” Cole says, his expression skeptical despite the frantic look on his master’s face. Wu gives him a leveled look.
“The Spirit Smoke does not lie! An ancient evil has been released!” He says, grabbing his staff in preparation for what is to come. The ninja follow Wu into the monastery and stand guard at the main entrance, readying their positions despite not knowing when or why a supposed attack is to take place. It is quiet for awhile, all waiting in anticipation for something, anything to occur. The stillness of the air is stifling. The ninja glance between one another, each silently wondering if their old sensei has finally gone mad. Before long though, the door creaks open slowly. The ninja draw their weapons, eager to strike, but Wu’s hand stills them. Lloyd walks in alone, so meager and weak compared to the boy Wu once knew. He is surprised to see how dirty he is, how tall and thin he’d gotten since he’d seen him last. Lloyd’s expression was stricken, caught between sadness and anger. He seemed so much older than he was. The ninja lowered their weapons, shoulders drooping. Wu wasn’t about to let his guard down, however. The spirit smoke was never wrong.
“See, Sensei? No Serpentine, just that homeless kid.” Kai says, but Wu hushes him.
“He is not alone.” Wu answers quietly. He raises his voice again, unwavering and stern. “Lloyd, what brings you here?”
Lloyd worries his lower lip, his expression twisting as Wu addresses him. He looks to the door behind him nervously, and Wu knows the Serpentine army is there, separated only by the walls of the monastery.
“I… I thought you cared about me, Sensei. But you left me all alone!” Lloyd’s hands ball into fists at his sides, his voice quivering. “So…! So you gotta pay!”
“Lloyd, you don’t have to do this!” Wu reaches out to grab Lloyd’s arm, his expression falling. Lloyd recoils, shaking his head feverently.
“Get them!” He yells, his voice thick with tears. The doors burst open without a moment’s notice, Hypnobrai soldiers prepared to fight.
“The Serpentine? They’re real?!” Kai shouts in surprise, drawing his sword up again.
“Get the staff!” Wu directs them as the serpents close in on the group. Lloyd stays on the sidelines as his army battles his old sensei and the ninja, shifting in his spot. He knows they deserve it, but he also knows it’s wrong to have brought the Hypnobrai here. Lloyd takes the opportunity to slip into the direction of his old bedroom but is stopped when he slips on a patch of ice from Zane’s shurikens. His inner moral conflict is already making his stomach flutter sickly, and his backside hurts from the ice. With a deep breath, Lloyd musters his strongest voice.
“C...consider this a warning, Ninja!” He shouts, glaring at Wu. The sensei shakes his head.
“You don’t need to do this, Lloyd.” He says. Lloyd lifts his chin.
“You’re the only reason I need to.”
With that, he turns to the Serpentine. “Retreat!”
“Retreat!” Slithraa repeats, and all of the Hypnobrai immediately lower their weapon and turn, the ninja following after them. Wu stands at the open monastery doors until he can no longer see that familiar blond mop of hair.
~
Lloyd bounces on his feet in excitement from seeing the treehouse come together in its full glory. He’d never had one before, and now it would be his new home, something he wasn’t able to have for two long years. He wasn’t able to have that, and it was all Wu’s fault. Lloyd looks out the window, seeing the Hypnobrai continue to build, currently on the elevator that would give better access to the house. The snakes could be his new family, Lloyd had already decided. He doesn’t need Wu if he has his own home, his own family, what more could Wu give him?
“...Snakes don’t belong in trees.” Lloyd hears someone say from behind him. He turns to find Slithraa in another argument with his second-in-command. Lloyd’s expression drops in sudden guilt, he hadn’t considered whether or not his new friends would like being in trees or not, he just knew that he thought it was fun.
“You know better than to question my judgement, Skales. I’ll pretend you didn’t ask.” Slithraa replies, his tone icey. Lloyd approaches with a sunshine smile.
“Ask what?” He asks, and both the Serpentine turn towards him.
“Nothing of concern, young Montgomery.” Slithraa replies. Lloyd purses his lips, worries, but he smiles brightly anyways. Smiles make everything better, he knows.
“We’re all family now, and families don’t fight.” He says. “Don’t you think the elevator should have a trap door? More booby traps to keep ninja out?”
“If you so wish.” Slithraa nods and bows, glaring harshly at Skales and gestures towards him. Skales gives Lloyd a sharp look and bows reluctantly, turning back towards his leader.
“As you wish, General.” He says, standing straight and walking away. Lloyd looks to Slithraa after Skales departs.
“Is he okay?” Lloyd asks.
Slithraa hisses, his gaze falling sharp over his second-in-command’s back. “He will be fine.”
Lloyd spends several more hours overseeing the construction of his treehouse, and though he’s not really sure about what he’s overseeing exactly. The Serpentine seem to be doing a good job of following general orders, and he doesn’t know much about building anyways. When Lloyd settles down for the night in a pile cold-bodied snakes, he finds that he’s happier than he’s been in a long time.
~
“It’s almost finished! Soon, our home will be complete! And look at this great sign I made!” Lloyd says happily, holding up a sign that reads ‘No Girls, or Ninja, or Wu.’
“It’s wonderful, young Montgomery.” Slithraa tells him, hands folded patiently behind his back. Lloyd gives him a wide grin.
“Should we nail it up right here?” He asks, holding the sign up against a wall in the treehouse, right near a window. “Or wait, maybe it would be better-”
He’s interrupted by a loud crashing noise, and the treehouse lurches to one side, throwing everyone off their feet. The treehouse remains tilted, and Lloyd stands quickly. He’s unsteady on his own feet, but he tries to help the other Serpentine up anyways. His eyes are wide and he looks around wildly, in hopes that none of his friends are hurt. What could have happened? He knows the treehouse was reinforced well… a flash of red crosses his vision from the window and he knows it was one of Wu’s students.
“Ninja aren’t allowed here! They’re trying to destroy the treehouse!” Lloyd shouts.
“Everyone, retreat!” Skales calls out, and the Hypnobrai around him begin flooding from the treehouse. Skales had the black ninja under his control, but there’s not enough time for that. Everything is too frantic and rushed, the treehouse collapsing from underneath the serpent clan. The ninja rush in and steal away the Hypnobrai staff, fighting off the Serpentine already on the ground.
“Wait! Please don’t go! We have to protect our home!” Lloyd calls after them. Skales pauses amidst the chaos and turns towards the boy.
“Our home?” He scoffs, a pitying expression falling over his features. “You have good intentions, but that isn’t what the Serpentine need. It’s about time we did this!”
He grabs a lever and twists it sharply, and Lloyd falls through the trapped floor. His eyes widen and he suddenly regrets all of the hidden booby traps.
“Now, to get the staff!” He hears Skales call.
“Help! Please!” Lloyd grabs the bamboo bars of the cage, feeling the tears well as his only friends turn their backs on him. His cries are drowned out by the frantic shouts of the Serpentine. His voice is hoarse and he’s choking back sobs by the time he hears the loud pitch of a flute and the faint voice of Sensei Wu.
“We’re getting outta here because this whole place is coming down!” Lloyd hears a girl yell, and the treehouse lurches again. Lloyd jumps up frantic, his mind running in overdrive.
“Please! Slithraa! Skales! Wu! Anybody, please save me!” He cries, shaking the bars of the cage. The treehouse… it was going to fall right on top of him! Fear gripped his heart as the structure lurches again to the side, and he heard the crack of the final rope snapping.
By a stroke of luck, the cage itself kept the rubble from crushing him as the house came crashing down from above. Though he was a mess of tears and gashes by the time the Serpentine uncovered him, he was alive. They tied him up and led him back to the Hypnobrai tomb.
“Uh… Why am I tied up? General?” Lloyd asks, stifling his sniffled. Slithraa takes one look at him and turns to Skales.
“Enough! I am the general! You will return my staff at once!” He says, taking command once more. Lloyd looks to Skales and realizes he does in fact have the staff back from the ninja, and wonders if they’d managed to steal it from the monastery.
“No.” Skales answers simply, and the entire clan pauses in their tracks, a collective gasp ringing out from the Serpentine.
“You dare challenge my command?!” Slithraa yells. There’s an excited murmur in the crowd, and Lloyd shifts in nervousness as they begin chanting ‘slither pit.’ He doesn’t know what it means, but he doesn’t think it sounds very nice by the menacing glint in the serpents’ eyes. Slithraa and Skales begin to encircle each other, and before long it’s clear that they’re in a fight of sorts. Lloyd gasps.
“No! What are they doing?” He shouts, fighting against his restraints. His voice is drowned out by the excited cheers of the Hypnobrai, and it’s clear after a few moments more that Slithraa is losing. He can’t look, that’s too violent, he doesn’t like to see friends fighting. So he looks away, and something catches his eye. A piece of paper, no a map, and curiously, he takes it.
After the fighting and a swift kick to the head, Slithraa falls to the floor.
“Get up! Get up!” Lloyd balls his fists, worried, but Slithraa only groans. He doesn’t stir.
Skales, the new general of the Hypnobrai, turns swiftly to Lloyd.
“You! Leave and never come back!” He commands.
Lloyd shrinks back and clutches the map hidden in his sweatshirt pocket. Once again, he is alone.
~
His plan had been to return to the monastery; there was nowhere else to go. He’d felt enough misery in the last few years, wandering the streets alone and afraid, always looking forward to his next meal. He wasn’t happy with how Wu had left him by any means, but Lloyd couldn’t help but miss him and miss a sense of home. The Serpentine had been a stand in of a family for a short time, but they didn’t love him. He could pretend they did, but he knows they didn’t. He misses his clean pressed robes, he misses having a room, a hot meal, he even misses meditating with Wu.
The sight he finds where the monastery once stood isn’t what he’s expecting. The monastery, his home of nine years, is burned to the ground, smoke and ash still lingering in the air. A strangled sob tears itself from his throat before he can stop it, and he falls to his knees in the ash. He cries for his home, heaving in gulping breaths, eyes stinging hot with tears.
He doesn’t know how long he sits there, but he eventually hears voices carry over the fires and over his own sobs. He stands and approaches the noise, and upon investigation, finds that Wu and the ninja are there and camped out away from the monastery’s remains. Lloyd presses his lips together, contemplating approaching them. A certain nervousness washes over Lloyd, and his feet stay planted behind a crumbling wall for ages, long after they stand to pack the campsite. Lloyd follows them from a distance, still unable to face his Sensei. Not like this.
He follows after them long enough for the sun to begin rising, long enough for them to stumble across a ship in the Sea of Sand. He sees Wu place a sagely hand on the white ninja’s shoulder, a strange action for the man who Lloyd had always known for little physical affection. Lloyd moves close behind some rocks, not daring to go any further.
“I’m proud of you, Zane.” Master Wu says, and Lloyd freezes. He feels his heart constrict. “One day I promise, we will find your family.”
The ninja, Zane, turns to Wu with a smile. “But I’ve already found them.”
Lloyd doesn’t hear the rest of the conversation, a dull roar filling his ears as he slides down the rock face that shields him from view. Tears prick his eyes as he watches the pair join the others for a warm meal. Lloyd’s stomach growls at the prospect of food, but he refuses to leave his hiding spot. He couldn’t make his legs move if he wanted.
Wu had given Lloyd up and replaced him with these new, better ninja.
Lloyd retreats from his spot and sits at the edge of the cliff for a while, just watching them from afar and only wishing to be apart of a family like that. He sighs, and turns away. Wandering aimlessly through the desert is better than staying here and watching the life he could have had, anything is better than that.
His small hands grip the map tighter.