Chapter Nine:

Ambush!

The ninja panted as they raced up the mountain. They had been climbing this mountain for about thirty minutes, and they were starting to wonder if they were ever going to reach the top.

“How big is this mountain exactly?” Jay asked, breathlessly.

“100 miles high” Zane replied, “We are reaching 60 miles.”

“Huh, I wondering why it was starting to get chilly!” Cole commented.

“Anything yet, Jade?” Kai called.

.

As he asked, Jade’s LT started to beep. Jade screeched to a halt, leaving the ninja to collide into each other and fell over. They all groaned and rubble their heads.

“The LT’s picking up something!” She announced.

“Could’ve warned us before you stopped!” Kai grumbled.

They stood up and dusted off their uniforms while waiting for Jade to respond.

“It’s picking up faint signs of life forms beyond the next cavern up ahead.”

Jade pointed to the end of the road, where it rounded the left corner to another side of the mountain.

“Alright, let’s go boys!” Cole announced.

In unison, they unsheathed their weapons, and continued walking. Jade walked behind, not desiring to get caught up in the mystical elemental fight between the ninja and their enemies. The ninja rounded the corner. The wind began to pick up, and the sun sat just behind the rocky cliffs. About five additional feet in front of them, was a cave entrance.

“There!” Jade hissed, “That’s it!”

The ninja exchanged glances, then started up to the cavern, ready for anything.

.

“Uh-uh-uh!”

Suddenly, a huge wave of water came crashing towards them!

“What the heck-?” Jay exclaimed, “Water!?”

“Get to higher ground!” Cole ordered.

Everyone scrambled to reach for a sturdy hunk of rock to jump on just as the water rushed passed them. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

“Everyone still here?” Cole called.

“Here!” Jay announced.

“Present!” said Zane.

“Here!” said Kai.

Kai was spread out like a sea star on the mountain wall, with his legs and hands stuck in the cracks. He slowly slid down.

“Where the heck did that come from!?” Kai cried.

.

They heard a giggle. A being emerged from the top of the cave entrance. It was a girl, about mid-twenties in age, with long red hair tied in a half ponytail, and tank top with a skirt. She frowned, disappointed.

“Aww! You were supposed to drown!” She exclaimed with extreme disappointment, “Oh well! Guess that means we can have more fun!”

“Where’s Kamara!?” Kai demanded, “What have you done to her!?”

“Oh, our sister? She’s fine!” The girl responded, “She’s just a little hard-headed, but she’ll be fine!”

As she finished speaking, she stretched out her hand, and more water rose from behind the mountain. The ninja were shocked. They weren’t the only ones with elemental powers!? Zane pulled out his shurikens and threw them forward. When the girl shot the water towards them, the shurikens of ice immediately froze it. Instead of a wave of water rushing towards them, it was a wave of snow. The pack of snow fell on top of the ninja, but quickly popped out.

“She is not your sister!”

Kai unsheathed his sword of fire, and lashed a ball of heat towards the girl to distract her. Just then, another girl appeared and shot ice at it and caused the water to melt. This girl had blonde hair and icy blue eyes.

“Come on Masuka! We’re supposed to eliminate them, not have a conversation with them!” The girl snapped.

Masuka frowned.

“Sorry Glacia!” She exclaimed forcefully.

.

Cole took his scythe of quakes and slammed it into the ground. The mountain shook and stones began to fall. Masuka lost her balance and fell off the top of the entrance. Glacia caught her in the nick of time. Glacia formed multiple ice spikes, and shot them down at the ninja. The ninja flipped and dodged, and raised their weapons so that the spikes shattered on impact. Kai a dash for the entrance. Suddenly, Glacia shouted:

“Ice wall!”

Suddenly, she shot ice at the foot of the cave and it raised into a thick wall. Kai growled. He turned to his sword-brothers.

“Cover me while I melt this, would ya?” he called.

“Gotcha!” Cole exclaimed.

He pointed his scythe and made huge boulders come out of the mountain’s walls. He grabbed them, lifted them up into the air, and threw them at the girls. Masuka and Glacia just narrowly avoided his strikes. Suddenly, from behind them, they heard a whirr of electricity, and Masuka was shocked.

“Masuka!” Glacia cried.

Masuka spazzed a little, before wearing out dazed on the ground.

“Ha! Shocked to see me?” Jay exclaimed.

Glacia scoffed. “Never heard that one before!”

She aimed at the ground underneath him, and ice covered the surface of the ground underneath him. Jay then slipped on the ice and fell on his bum. Masuka regained awareness and pulled herself up.

“Ugh. If Safrina and Shifter were out here, we’d have these guys no sweat!” she snapped.

“They’re with our sister, Masuka! If they leave, then she’ll escape!” Glacia explained.

“Who’s Shifter and Safrina? Who are you guys!?” Kai demanded.

“Oh don’t mind us! We’re just another group of dangerous villains!” Masuka replied, “Not anything different than what you fight every day, I’m sure!”

“Well every other groups aren’t stupid enough to kidnap Kamara!” Kai shouted.

“Ooh, touchy, touchy” Glacia taunted.

She looked at Masuka.

“How about we give them a little…cool down?”

Masuka grinned. “Oh yeah! Let’s do it!”

.

“Ninja! To the dirt!”

A round object flew into the air and landed in front of the Kurai Kodomo members. The ninja ducked. Glacia and Masuka stared at it for a moment, confused.

Then, Glacia cried, “It’s a bomb!”

But it was too late, the bomb exploded, and purple gas poured into the mountainside. They hacked, and coughed on the gas and backed out of view. The ninja were protected with their masks as they stood up.

“What was that!?” Jay exclaimed.

They heard someone chuckle. They snapped up the opportunity and ventured into the gas. Even though they couldn’t breath in the gas, it still stung their eyes. They searched for the Kurai Kodomo members, but could find nothing. The gas thickened the atmosphere.

“Uh, is anyone else finding this unsettling?” Jay wondered.

Kai looked around. “I can’t even see the entrance! They could’ve fled inside!” he observed.

Just then, Zane saw a shadow out of the corner of his eye.

“What was that?” he asked.

There was no answer. They raised their weapons. There was another chuckle. This time, it sounded more devious.

.

Suddenly, a surf of water thundered towards them and splashed in their faces. They found themselves losing control and flying away with the current. Cole scrambled to grab something until he managed to grab the edge of the cliff. He quickly grabbed Jay, who grabbed Kai, who grabbed Zane. Cole grunted as he struggled to see through the water in his yes.

“Is everyone alright?” He called.

“Ugh, soaked but alive!” Kai called.

Cole began to swing the chain of ninja back and forth.

“Brace yourselves!”

He then swung them upwards so hard, that they flew back on top of the cliff. Zane landed on his feet and helped Cole up, while Jay and Kai fell stomach first onto the ground. As they stood up, they could hear the chuckle again, which turned to psychotic laughter. They saw Glacia and Masuka in front of the entrance. Kai jumped up and grabbed his sword of fire. He was about to run towards them with eyes of fury.

“No, Kai! Don’t!” Cole warned.

Masuka and Glacia stretched out their hands, and shouted together in unison:

“Teijō tōketsu!”

.

Masuka let out another wave of water. This time, it was two smaller waves, colliding against each other. The ninja were slammed by both. Glacia lashed out the coldest force she had ever used, and froze the waves in mid-motion! Layers and layers of ice were created, packed tight and strong.

.

When the horrifying phenomenon ended, Glacia and Masuka laughed hysterically. Masuka walked up to the frozen waves. All four ninja were in mid-motion, frozen in time, with all eyes widened with shock. Masuka playfully knocked on the ice. Only tiny shards came off from the impact.

“Ha! At least now you can take up a new career as popsicles!” she called.

“Shifter can cut them out later and keep them permanently frozen. I’m sure some sick person will want them as trophies”

Glacia observed eerily calm, “But for now, we need to return to Safrina and let them know what’s happen.”

Masuka giggled. “Okay. Ooh! This is too exciting!” she squealed.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

Kamara’s eyes widened in horror, heart racing, and breathing rapidly. She heard the horrifying crash of the waves and freezing water. She lowered her head, dangling helplessly with her hands and feet still stuck in the rock. Safrina turned slowly to Kamara, and chuckled.

“You see, imouto? Your presence here has led the ninja to their demise. Now, there’s no one left to save Ninjago from its inevitable take-over” she exclaimed, deviously.

.

Kamara squeezed her eyes shut. She didn’t care about saving Ninjago at that moment. She could only think about the ninja. Her sword-brothers: frozen to literal death, all because of her.

.

Shifter slinked his way into the room.

“There are likely dozens in the criminal underground that would love to have the ninja” He explained to Safrina, “We just have to make sure they stay frozen. Unlikely as it is, they could be unaffected and eventually escape.”

Safrina smiled. “Let’s make sure that they don’t, Shifter.”

“No…”

They both turned to their ‘sister’. My face was pale with anguish.

“They…Are not…Trophies you can buy and sell as you please!” Kamara shouted, “They are people! They were just boys! They had so much to live for! and you just…killed them!”

Safrina cocked her head, with her lip hanging out, in fake poutiness.

“Oh, but whose fault was that, hmm?” she asked.

Kamara stared at her for a hot minute, clenching her teeth, then hung her head in despair. Once Safrina and Shifter exited the room, a few droplets of tears hit the ground below her.