6 | BLACK AND SILVER

ON A NORMAL, PEACEFUL MORNING IN JAMANAJO VILLAGE, MUSIC WAS PLAYING INSIDE THE BROOKSTONE HOUSEHOLD AND TWO CHILDREN WERE HOLDING EACH OTHER'S HANDS WHILE SPINNING AROUND THE LIVING ROOM. All the furniture had been pushed to the sides of the room and the happy parents of Cole and Emma were clapping their hands to the beat of the music that their kids were joyously dancing to. Everything was perfect in the small village and no one would have suspected that one person would ruin their day. But that's what happened.

Something went horribly wrong and destroyed the Brookstone family. Someone had barged through the door to the house and stomped straight towards the couple that had rushed their kids into the nearest bedroom. No one would know it at the time, but the person - the thing - that destroyed their family was after May Brookstone - the mother of two precious children, and an earth elemental. The person that grabbed the woman and dragged her away from her life, who fought until My couldn't stand was only doing his task, and his task was to capture the elemental master of earth before her powers grew too strong to wipe out his race.

While the kids were trapped inside their parent's bedroom, they heard shouts, glass breaking, and weeping. Cole had mustered all the strength he could as a ten-year-old and smashed the door open. While escaping, Emma had cut her chin on the splinters of wood - though, through suppressed memories, her family would tell her it was a fire.

When the two kids raced into the living room, they found their father in the doorway with blood streaming down the side of his face. He was crying and shaking over the love of his life being torn away from him - and as only a dance coach he could do nothing about it. The children ran to their father, and he only told them that their mother would not be returning home. That was the day the Brookstone family shattered, and the day that Cole - at ten years old - vowed to protect his family. His eight-year-old sister was scared and confused, and a year later she remembered nothing of the incident, only what her family told her. And that was that there was a fire where she got the scar on her chin, and her mother had died from it.

Her whole life was a lie, and no one stopped telling it. As long as Emma Brookstone had her innocence, there would be hope in Ninjago.

Gasping for air, Emma lurched awake in her bed, small pants of her breath escaping her mouth. She was covered in goosebumps from the dream that she couldn't tell was real or not, but after pondering for a moment she knew it wasn't a dream, it was a memory she suppressed inside of her finally coming back to reveal itself. The brunette glanced over at her brother who was peacefully sleeping in his bed and she heard the vow playing in the back of her head. Her brother had promised to protect her and her father, and it was finally starting to make sense why he had become a ninja without hesitation. How he had left home so willingly even after their mother had already been torn from them. It was starting to make sense why even with a tiny scar, no one dared to mention the fire that caused it. Because in truth, there was no fire. There was a kidnapping by someone - something. And though it must have been difficult, Lou and Cole Brookstone refused to acknowledge the truth about Emma's mother's death to protect her.

Everything had been done for Emma, and for years she had believed Cole left for himself, and for selfish reasons. But he had left for her and her father, and it couldn't get more noble than that. And of course, she didn't know it, but the reason her father was reluctant to accept that Cole was a ninja was because he knew of his wife's elemental abilities and feared something tragic would happen to his son like it happened to his love.

And the phone call Emma had with her father the previous night didn't help the situation. She had explained everything, including that she wasn't returning home, that she was going to be training to become a ninja for the new threat that loomed over Ninjago. That she was sorry for disappointing him and not carrying on the Brookstone legacy. Her father needed time to understand that not only was his wife an earth master, but his son, and also his daughter. But he was assured that Cole was going to protect her, and watch after the only innocence he had left in his life. He was proud of his daughter, and those were the only words Emma ever wanted to hear.

But now she knew the truth. She knew that her father and brother lied about the death of her mother. She knew that there was no fire, but there was loss. She was confused and angry. She wanted to know who would take away her shining light and tarnish it so quickly.

And it was that one thought that fueled her fire and motivated her to train harder than she had the days before. It was that encouragement and fire that made her tell Cole that she knew the truth, and she had figured it out on her own. It relieved her brother to know that he didn't have to lie about fire anymore and that now he could freely try to discover what happened to May Brookstone. He could openly discuss the matter with his team, and together maybe they could uncover the mystery.

All it took was one dream to start building a path, and Emma was slaving away to construct it faster. She was tired of people pushing her around, she needed to do this for herself. And she would because she wasn't letting anyone get in her way. Not this time.

•••

With the sun beating down in the courtyard of the tea shop and sweat dripping from Emma and her opponent's faces, the strong brunette gripped a metal staff tightly in her fingers. Her feet were shoulder-width apart and planted firmly on the ground as she looked forward, staring her target straight in his green eyes. Emma's yoga pants were sticking to her legs and her sports bra was basically drenched because of the heat, but no matter, she kept training.

A nice breeze lasted for a second and gave the team a cool relaxation before it disappeared and reality sank back in. Standing four feet from Emma was Lloyd, who had his eyes narrowed and filled with determination. In the same exercise - spar - Emma had beat Jay, but she came to the conclusion that Jay was already tired from his warm-up against Kai and went easy on his new sister.

Interrupting the silence was Lloyd who decided commentary was as good as anything as long as it taught Emma how to really use her untapped skills. "Never let your guard down," he announced. "Keep your grip on your staff tight."

"You may be small, but you're fast," Cole added in.

"You'll be able to overpower your enemy if you focus on your agility, not just your weapon," Jay told her, eyeing the staff in her hands. Kai cleared his throat and nodded in agreement, "Make sure you keep your eye ahead, don't look back. Your staff is just as capable as a katana, you just have to maneuver the right way."

"If you use your timing wisely, you are able to dodge Kai's attack, and counter it from behind." Zane lectured, motioning for her to attack. Emma refused to take the first move, as she had studied her brother's movements and knew that it was easier to be on defense than offense. So she waited for Lloyd to make the first attack, and she didn't wait long.

As Lloyd was advancing, Emma spun around twice on the balls of her feet, the staff in her hands following through with her body movement and flipping over her head. Power grew as she slammed the staff down onto the katana that Lloyd weld and the metal clashed together, creating a battle of strength, not mind. Lloyd started to push back with greater force but Emma realized she was an earth master and had super-strength, she just needed to use it. You may be small, but you're fast.

Emma yanked her weapon away, and ducked under Lloyd's weapon before her head was chopped off and then thought to herself that she didn't even need her strength because clearly her opponent was blinded by his own judgment and she had easily outsmarted him.

As Lloyd slipped forward, Emma kicked her left foot out and stood from her crouch to again face her sparring partner. She swiped out her foot and linked it with Lloyd's, successfully pulling him to the ground. She backed up, keeping her eyes ahead like Jay had recommended and waited for Lloyd to make to his feet before planning her next attack. Knowing not to get too cocky from watching Kai fight, Emma decided to spin her staff in her right hand and let Lloyd make the next move.

Lloyd lunged forward, flipping to the side and attacking Emma from behind. She immediately whipped around with her timing being a bit too late as his blade swept across her arm, cutting a thin layer of skin. Wanting to finish the battle and not deemed as weak, Emma tried to ignore the pain and thought of another attack. She flipped backward, landing her hands on the ground and pushing up, just narrowly avoiding a spinning kick from the green ninja. She landed on her feet and leaped into the air as Lloyd raced towards her, flipping over his head to distract him. Something she had learned from watching Zane battle anyone was that it was best to tire your opponent, and since Zane was a robot, he was always the one tiring his partner out.

As Lloyd was still in confusion from seeing his partner practically disappear, Emma kicked him from behind, forcing him to the ground. She shoved her staff onto his chest and prevented him from getting up. Their eyes met and Lloyd let out an airy chuckle, clearly impressed by her progress. "Wow, nice job," he congratulated, accepting her hand to help him up.

She shrugged, "Thanks. Guess I just had some extra motivation today."

"I'll say. Well done, sis. Today you're taking down the green ninja, tomorrow you'll be taking down a samurai," her brother laughed, slinging an arm around her should. "Actually, tomorrow I'll be letting my arm heal. Lloyd caught me off guard," she admitted, looking at the cut on her arm that was small but not incredibly.

"Good idea," Kai spoke up, jogging over to his team with Zane and Jay following behind. "Well, someone has to say it," Jay jumped in. "I think Emma is improving and in no time we'll be able to get you into a gi."

Zane nodded, "I agree, but what color will she harness?"

"You mean wear?" Lloyd asked with an eyebrow raised. Zane shrugged and looked back to Emma. "All I wear is black," she told the team. "But clearly, that color has bee taken by the one who possesses the color as the shade of his heart," she joked, patting Cole on the shoulder.

He rolled his eyes, "As cold-hearted as you are, I would say an icy blue, but between Jay and Zane, we have that covered."

"There's always pink or purple," Kai suggested. Emma whipped around and glared at the fire ninja, raising his staff so it was jammed at his chest, "Put me in pink or purple and I'll drown you in Sensei Garmadon's pond."

Kai raised his hands up in surrender and the brunette smirked, dropping her weapon. "What about silver?" Lloyd recommended. Emma looked at him with pursed lips and tilted her head as if she were considering it. "Where'd that come from?" she asked.

Lloyd shrugged, "I don't know, I guess we all wear silver or gold armor, what's the harm in making it a gi?"

Emma smiled and wrapped an arm around his shoulder, then leaning her head against his, "I think silver is the winner."

"So our Brookstone siblings are black and silver?" Jay laughed.

Emma grinned, "Black and silver."