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He should've known better than to think it was over.
They'd freed Riyu from the draining cage and escaped Ras with the help of Sora's elemental powers. They'd run from the palace, defeated the guards on the outside, and disabled the photacs that had just broken through the gates of the weird temple that randomly burst through the ground, effectively saving the Ninja and dragons inside. They'd won, but it wasn't over.
Arin had let himself feel victorious as he ran down the temple's steps, only to stop in horror when he saw Lloyd.
If they'd won, why was his teacher limp in Zane's arms, pale as a ghost, barely breathing?
Why did victory have to come at the cost of his hero?
Arin had read about their adventures; even experienced some himself. The Ninja had always emerged on top and okay—though sometimes less than others. He'd been too young to remember exactly what happened during Emperor Garmadon's takeover. Still, he did remember a bunch of dragons taking down a stone giant while Lloyd single-handedly defeated his father.
When a flaming serpent attacked the city, the Ice Ninja froze her in ice and sent her to prison.
When a videogame tried to take over, the Lightning Ninja Jay reminded the game of his true colors.
They’d interrupted a vengestone black market and liberated the Ivory City of Shintaro from its two-faced king.
They’d vanquished Wojira, even if it cost them one of their own.
They’d destroyed the Overlord for the third time, though there was no record of exactly how they’d managed this accomplishment.
Arin remembered these happening.
This was different.
The news never showed how each battle affected the Ninja—they kept it well hidden, and for good reason. Who would want to see their heroes defeated and pessimistic? He’d always known them as fearless protectors who bounced back after every hit. He’d never seen just how long it took them to come back, or what happened in the meantime. He had managed to press Lloyd into telling him about the Never-Realm and how stressed and awful they’d felt after returning, but that was just one of many adventures—and by the sound of it, one of the better ones.
Now, fighting side-by-side with his heroes, Arin realized that things were not okay.
“What happened?” He demanded shakily, unable to stop his hands from vibrating with anxiety as his eyes pinned on his teacher. Why wasn’t he moving? He should be—he needed to be okay. Arin couldn’t afford to lose him, not after he lost his parents in the Merge. Lloyd had to be okay.
He felt Sora put her hand on his shoulder, her normally calm expression pinched with worry. Her touch was grounding, bringing his reality back into focus. He noticed then that the dragons had vanished, and the giant doors on the opposite side of the temple were open, with a glowing golden stone thing above them. “Where are the dragons?” Sora voiced his thoughts.
“They went that way!” Nya pointed at the doors, already turning towards them. “Where we should be going right now!”
Arin flinched as a loud and very angry voice shouted from behind them, demanding victory. As the other Ninja turned and ran towards the gate—what did it do, anyway?—Arin and Sora followed closely.
“No one escapes from Rapton!” The shout of the Claw echoed behind him. When Arin risked a glance back, he let out a startled noise and ran faster. Rapton was right behind him.
Then the doors slammed shut in the inches between the two and Arin exhaled with relief, his heart pounding.
That was close.
The relief quickly turned to cold horror when he reminded himself why he’d been so worried.
“Lloyd,” he gasped without thinking, chasing after the Ninja carrying Lloyd to safety. “What happened?”
They emerged into a huge stone cavern, with several circular alcoves in the sides and a modern-looking door on the far end. The dragons paced around restlessly, growling and trying to fly in the limited space. One of them, the blue and yellow lightning dragon, made a deep rumbling noise and bent its head to sniff Lloyd. Zane walked past, ignoring the dragon, who watched them leave with an unreadable expression.
Kai followed Zane closely while Nya put out her hand for Arin to stop. He looked up, eyes wide, and she gave a small shake of her head.
“He’ll be fine,” she said softly, though worry shone in her blue eyes. “Zane and Kai know what to do.”
“But—” Why couldn’t he go make sure? Lloyd was unconscious, for FSM’s sake. How could he be ‘fine’ when he looked a few shallow breaths away from the Departed Realm?
Nya’s gaze softened. “He just needs rest,” she assured. “This isn’t exactly the first time this has happened.” She looked away, gaze clouding. “Though maybe the most intense.”
“What—what do you mean?” Arin managed. “What happened? At least tell me that.”
“I don’t even know,” Nya replied heavily, suddenly looking so tired—but not the kind that came from skipping sleep. It was the kind of fatigue that came with seeing too much. Arin felt guilt swarm in his gut at putting her in that position. “Zane went with him to find a power source to charge the gate. When they returned, Lloyd was glowing and hovering with some crazy power boost. When it faded, well…” she gestured at the door where the other Ninja had disappeared through. “He’s just drained,” she added, but it sounded as if she was trying to convince herself and not Arin.
Arin, for his part, was not convinced.
Nya suddenly straightened. “We need to get these dragons a place to stay,” she declared, all trace of her previous weariness gone. “Come on.”
“Okay,” Arin agreed sullenly. Maybe working would keep his mind from replaying the image of Lloyd in Zane’s arms over and over.
Maybe it would be okay.
***
Building the dragon stables did not clear Arin’s mind. Nor did the fact that they finished and Lloyd was still unconscious.
Zane explained to them how the Source Dragon gave some of its power to Lloyd, and how it ‘could change his life forever.’ And despite the pale complexion of the Green Ninja, he was stable and simply needed rest.
That was six days ago.
Now, without building the stables to keep him busy, Arin could only train and train and train until the thoughts of Lloyd never waking up were pushed to the back of his mind, where he couldn’t think about losing his teacher—who was more than that, really. As much as Arin tried to avoid it, Lloyd reminded him of his parents. He couldn’t lose him.
Punch. Stop thinking about it.
Kick. Lloyd lying perfectly still in his bed, the only motion the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed.
Shove. How the Ninja’s breaths came shallow and too slow.
Punch. The fever that tore through Lloyd a few days ago, which Zane had caught early and beaten back.
Kick! His ghostly face that Arin knew he’d never chase from his memory.
Punch! The thought that kept coming back—Lloyd might stop breathing at any point, never again open his brilliant green eyes or give Arin the grin that made him feel warm inside because he’d made his hero proud. It was irrational, he knew, to think that everything could come crashing down because of some dragon’s power—
“Arin?”
The teen jumped, blinking, and realized he was panting heavily with one fist pressed into the wooden dummy. He unclenched his fingers, wincing as he flexed them and reminded himself not to train that hard. He looked guiltily behind him, where Nya watched with concern.
“Hey,” he greeted glumly, turning back to the dummy and giving it another kick.
Nya sighed and gently pulled him away, and he followed without a word. “Lloyd wants to see you.”
Arin’s head snapped up, eyes wide. Lloyd wanted—he said something? He was awake? Cautious hope spread like wildfire as Arin realized what this meant.
Lloyd was awake. He’d be okay. Right?
“N-now?” He managed, suddenly nervous.
Nya smiled and nodded.
Arin tried not to run as he beelined for Lloyd’s room, heart pounding. He slowed as he neared and paused at the door, hesitating before giving a light knock.
Inside, Lloyd and Zane both glanced at him. Zane spoke once more to Lloyd and exited, dipping his head at Arin as he passed. The teen watched the nindroid leave before turning back to Lloyd.
The Green Ninja smiled tiredly. “Hey, Arin,” he said gently. “Are you okay?”
Arin blinked. Was—was he okay? “M-me? I-I’m not the one who was out for days,” he stuttered, feeling a pressure at the back of his eyes.
Lloyd frowned slightly and beckoned for him to enter. Arin stepped forward warily, afraid that any motion would cause him to wake up and realize it was a dream. Lloyd extended his arms, and suddenly Arin was pressed against him, sobbing, shaking with relief as he realized this wasn’t a dream; Lloyd was okay.
“Hey, hey,” the Ninja soothed quietly, rubbing Arin’s back. “It’s okay.”
Arin managed a small nod, his face pressed into Lloyd’s shoulder. He soaked in the moment, making sure to relish in the Ninja being awake and healthy, and never forget what his protective embrace felt like. He focused on the steady and strong thumping of Lloyd’s heartbeat.
(Above him, Lloyd frowned with worry as he gazed down on his shaking student—who suddenly looked like the young teen he was.)
“Now are you okay?”
Arin inhaled shakily and sniffed, nodding. Lloyd shifted so they could sit side-by-side on the bed and continued to rub circles on Arin’s back as the younger fumbled for what to say.
Words died in his mouth and he simply leaned against Lloyd, who gave him a gentle squeeze.
He was okay. Lloyd was okay. The dragons were safe in the stables; Lloyd was safe and awake.
They’d won, and now it was over.