Garmadon's P.O.V.:

I was following Lloyd all the way to wherever he was headed, but his mech was so fast I lost track of him. As I was flying around, I eventually spotted him sitting in front of the now burnt up monastery. He hasn't seen the place since it was destroyed.

I flew down and landed next to him, changing back to my regular form. I noticed he was holding the medallion he chose for Kira in his hand.

"Oh, there you are." I said walking up to him.

"Go away Dad, I want to be alone." He said, not looking at me.

"Yeah not happening." I sat down next to him.

"How did you find me?" He asked.

"I figured you'd be here, you grew up in this monastery after all."

"Yeah, lots of memories here." He sighed. "Did Kira say anything after I stormed out?"

"She said that she hoped you were safe."

"Yeah, well I don't feel like anyone is safe around me right now." He looked at his hands.

"You feel safe around me, don't you?"

"Only because if you attacked me I know I can take you." He scowled.

"Oh can you now?" I asked and he nodded. "Ok, prove it."

I charged up my powers and I attacked him head on. He jumped up to avoid the blast.

"Hey! What was that for?" Lloyd yelled.

"You said in your own words, if I attacked you, you could take me. You have proven yourself wrong." I said. "Guess you're not as legendary as everyone says you are, ha?"

"Yes I am! I just... wasn't ready that time." He said.

"The Overlord will not wait until you are ready. He will attack you the first chance he gets."

"I know." He sighed.

"So, let's go again. Shall we?" I sparked up my powers.

Lloyd immediately jumped out the way, leaped over me and hit me with his powers from above. He rolled and landed, then kept attacking me again.

"How's that for legendary?" He bragged.

"Impressive, but the overlord will see that coming. You must reach deep down inside and release your anger inside until it's seething to come out through your body. Now, try again."

"Wait, are you just trying to teach me Oni form again?" He rolled his eyes.

"Do you want to save Ninjago or let it fall to the Overlord and Harumi?"

"Fine, fine, at least my friends can't see it this time." He sighed and got in his fighting stance.

"Now, there's enough of the courtyard left to learn it here. Let's run it again." I said.

"Ok." He said reluctantly.

He restarted the routine and I guided him through it. I guess he was annoyed with me and the situation with his girlfriend, he was finally able to do it. By the end of his routine, both his hands and eyes were glowing purple with rage. He aimed a blast right at me, but I managed to jump out of the way. He left a scorch mark that burned a new window in the already charred wall.

He took a few deep breaths and calmed down, toning down his powers.

"Was that ok?" He asked out of breath.

"Not quite Oni form, but I must say you are improving." I said.

"Thanks Dad." He said exhausted.

We took a quick breather and then we saw a large ship approaching in the distance. It was the Destiny's Bounty.

We saw it drop its anchor outside. Nya and Pixal come down the ladder.

"Lloyd!" Nya yelled.

"Nya? Pix? How did you find me?" Lloyd asked.

"You seem to have forgotten to disable the gps in your suit." Pixal said.

"Oh, right. I always forget that." Lloyd sighed.

"Anyway we don't have time for chit chat. Look." Nya said, pulling up a news alert on her phone.

It showed Gayle Gossip in the middle of Ninjago City. That was never good news.

"The moment we've all feared is here. The unidentified floating crystal structure has reached downtown, and it has brought with it, a crystal army!" Gayle said to the camera.

The footage showed a guy who tripped in the street where the crystal army was marching. He got tackled by one and turned into a crystal zombie.

"Vinny did you get that? It appears the crystals spread by infecting others!" Gayle said. "Citizens are advised to stay indoors and not engage. I'll be here as we get more updates."

"We need to go stop them." Lloyd said.

"Cole, Kai, Jay and Zane are already on that." Nya said.

"They're in Ninjago city right now holding them off, but they will not last long." Pixal said.

"Lloyd, have you mastered the Oni form yet?" Nya asked.

"Not even close." I said.

"I'm still working on it." Lloyd said. "I just need a little more time."

"I'm afraid if the temple is now over the city, we are out of time." I said. "Lloyd, remember when I told you that the Overlord will not wait for you to be ready?"

"Yes." He nodded.

"Well I was correct. The battle is about to begin."

"Ok, here goes... everything." Lloyd gulped.

"Come on, we'll take you on the bounty." Nya said.

"Ok, let's go." Lloyd said.

Lloyd and I climbed up the ladder with the other two and we took off towards Downtown Ninjago City. We met my brother up in the Bounty. Hopefully Lloyd was ready for what was to come.

Lloyd's P.O.V.:

We were in the bounty while the others were down on the ground taking care of the crystal army. Thanks to Zane and Pixal, they were able to use the temple's energy to charge their vehicles and give them a temporary power boost, which was helping a lot.

Wu walked up behind and was wearing the golden armor, now that it looked thinner and not as bulky.

"Master Wu, is that the golden Armor?" I asked.

"Yes, with a few enhancements thanks to Pixal." He answered. "You didn't think I would sit out the most important battle of our time? A battle against the very forces of darkness?"

"Hmm, if you think the golden armor will protect you from the power of the Overlord, you are mistaken." My dad said.

"Do you have anything positive to say?" I asked.

"Hmm?" He thought about it. "I am positive we will lose."

"If you're so convinced we're doomed, why did you even come?"

I pushed him and was about to walk out of the room, but Wu stopped me.

"Lloyd, do not let my brother's pessimistic attitude affect your confidence. It is imperative your mind is clear for this battle." Wu said.

"You're right Master Wu." I took a few deep breaths.

"We're approaching the temple." Nya said.

"Hey guys, we could use an extra hand down here." Kai said through the coms.

"Do not worry Kai, I will assist." Pixal said before running outside to grab her Samurai X mech.

"Attaching tether." Nya said hitting the button.

It sent a rope that attached to the temple and we started dragging it away from the city. I'm guessing the Crystal King didn't like that very much because he sent an army of his crystal creatures to attack the bounty.

My dad went full Oni and started warding them off. Nya tried to get her powers to work, but wasn't having any luck. Wu and I were able to hold our own, but we weren't able to stop them from attacking the ship itself. One of them sideswiped our ship and took out the left thruster.

"The thruster is gone!" Nya shouted. "Hold on!"

I saw Harumi flying on one of those creatures on its back.

"Harumi, you have to stop this!" I yelled.

"She is a lost cause Lloyd." My dad shouted as he landed next to me. "The only way to stop this is with the Oni form. Do it, and we might stand a chance."

"I... I can't." I froze.

I saw Wu jump off the bounty and land on the temple walls. Apparently his armor allowed him to fly for a short period of time. Didn't know he could do that.

"Lloyd! Focus!" My dad screamed, punching a monster that was about to attack me.

"Oh, right!" I said continuing the fight.

While we were looking at the temple, Wu managed to jump off and use his winged armor to slow his fall. The overlord started surrounding himself with purple balls of light.

"What is he doing?" Nya asked.

"Gathering his power." My dad said.

All of a sudden, a giant purple beam came from the temple and covered the city in crystals. If that wasn't bad enough a giant purple blast came straight from the temple and hit the ship on the port side, causing the haul to catch fire. Nya was on the head on one side and my dad and I were on the other.

"The air breaks." Nya yelled. "Hit the air breaks it's our only chance!"

I fought the gravity keeping me down and was able to hit the button. The breaks slowed our fall a bit, but unfortunately the head of the ship was separated from the haul, with Nya on it. I didn't see where she crashed landed, but we had bigger problems. I saw a clear section of road and aimed the ship towards it. It crashed into the ground and both of us passed out...

Narrator's P.O.V.:

While the bounty was going down, the ninja on the ground were not doing well. Jay saw the bounty crash and, being overly concerned for his yang, lost control and crashed his bike into a crystal. Kai's vehicle was flipped upside down and put on top of Cole's from one of those crystal creatures, causing them to crash as well. After Wu was knocked off the temple, he was then caught by a creature and taken for a ride.

Zane however, had his own plans. He was in the sky during the temple blast, but since he was determined to make it to the temple and save his brother, he overused his power boost and crashed his plane into the temple walls. Luckily Pixal saw the unconscious Zane falling from his jet and was able to catch him. She used her grapple to grab hold of the bottom of the temple and pulled herself up, Zane was still in her arms.

Lloyd's P.O.V.:

I woke up and I was stuck under the wreckage of the Bounty. My arm was stuck in between some boards and I couldn't move it. It really hurt.

"Lloyd? Lloyd?" I heard my father shout.

"Father!" I yelled.

He came over and picked up the trash can I was buried under.

"Lloyd are you hurt?" He asked.

"No, I think I'm alright, just stuck." I answered.

"Here, take my hand." He gave me his hand.

"No, I can do this."

I kept struggling to get free, but my arm was still stuck. It only hurt more every time I tried to move it and now that I could see, it was bleeding pretty bad too. I knew this was more severe than I realized.

"Lloyd just let me..."

"No! I don't need your help!" I snapped. "Just run off and abandon me like you always do."

"You're going to loose that arm if you're not careful." He said as he jumped down to help me.

"I told you I don't need your..."

Before I could finish my sentence, I screamed as my dad pried the planks apart so I was able to pull my arm free. He dropped it and got me out of there before the pocket collapsed. He sat me down in the street and took a look at my arm. It was covered in blood and it really hurt. He touched it and I flinched.

"It looks broken. We need to get you to the hospital." He said.

"We can't, we're running from the law remember?" I reminded him.

"Then we need to find Kira."

"We can't. The Counsel of the Crystal King will be on our tails any minute. The last thing I want is for them to be after her too, plus after what I did she probably doesn't want to see me anyway."

My dad looked around the wreckage and found an old towel and a first aid kit. He grabbed them, helped me up, and we ducked into the sewers below. Once we were out of the streets, my father got the bandages and wrapped my arm to stop the bleeding. Then he used the towel to make a sling and tightened it. It still hurt, but at least now it wouldn't get any worse.

"Why did you do that?" I asked.

"Because you were hurt." He said.

"No, I mean why did you save me?"

"Was I not supposed to?" He frowned.

"Never mind, let's just get going. Maybe we can find some of the serpentine that still live down here and see if they can help us."

As I stood up I realized how much pain I was in. My arm really hurt, but I was trying not to let my dad see.

"Are you sure you're alright?" My dad asked.

"I'm fine, not that you care anyway." I griped. "Let's just keep going."

We kept walking north towards the serpentine dwelling. We eventually reached their library.

"Hello? Scales?" I shouted, then I noticed a sign on the desk. "Sorry, closed due to overload attack. Will reopen soon."

"I wouldn't bet on it." My dad said.

"We needed their help." I stated.

"The serpentine wouldn't have made any difference. The only thing that can destroy the overlord is the power of the Oni. The Oni form."

"There has to be another way."

"There isn't. Why do you persist on denying your heritage? Embrace your Oni side! Let your anger loose! Let it make you stronger!"

"I... I can't." I said.

"Why not?"

"Because... Because..."

"Because what?!"

"BECAUSE I DON'T WANNA BE LIKE YOU!" I snapped. "That's my greatest fear, that I'll end up like you. Because you don't care about anything or anyone!"

"Lloyd I... I don't want you to be like me."

"What?"

"I went through things that no person should have to, and I did bad things and hurt a lot of people. That's the last thing I wanted for you. I want you to be better than me, and I couldn't be prouder of the young man you've become."

"Then why do you want me to learn the Oni form so badly?"

"Unfortunately you learning the Oni form is only thing that will defeat the Overlord for good, and because you are part Oni, you are the only one who can. It doesn't mean it's the ideal solution, it's just the only solution."

"Oh, I didn't think about it like that." I frowned. "But it still scares me. What if I go full Oni and end up hurting someone I care about like I almost did with Kira?"

"That's why I want to help you control it, so that doesn't happen."

"Ok, fine." I sighed. "Let's find our way out of here and locate the others. Once we make sure that they're safe, I'll go back to practicing the Oni form. Deal?"

"Deal."

I wrote down a message on the chalk board for the serpentine and my dad and I started walking back the way we came. I didn't want to believe it, but was it possible my father was actually trying to change? Master Wu always said accepting change is easier with the support of people around you. Maybe I should try to change my opinion of him too, no matter how hard it was.

In any case, I hoped the others were doing better than us, and that everyone was ok.

Zane's P.O.V.:

I woke up slowly and saw Pixal in front of me. I sat up and realized my exoskeleton was scraped and scorched in multiple places. We were in a small alcove on the outside of the temple that was hidden from view of the Crystal King.

"Zane! Thank the first spinjitsu master you're back online." Pixal said relieved.

"Pixal? What has happened?" I looked around.

"You flew your vehicle too close to the temple and your plan crashed. You passed out and I was able to rescue you."

"Thank you." I smiled. Then I remembered what I came here for. "My brother, I have to save my brother!"

I stood up and immediately realized how damaged I was. My left leg was the most damaged. I could barely move it. Pixal pulled me back into the alcove as some crystal guards walked by.

"Shh, there's guards everywhere." She whispered. "I promise we will help your brother, but first I must repair you."

"Ok." I sighed.

Pixal got out her tools and began to repair the large gash on my leg. I tried my best to remain silent, but I was so worried about my brother.

I stayed still while Pixal finished most of the repairs. She did all she could do, but my auto repair would have to do the rest. I stood up again, but my leg was still not functioning properly.

"Zane, your auto repair system needs time to correct your internal damages." Pixal said.

"I am aware, however we do not have time. We must locate my brother before the overlord takes over him." I said, keeping my leg off the ground.

"Are you certain of this?"

"Yes, I must help him."

"Alright, then I will assist." Pixal smiled. "Does your cloaking device still work?"

"Affirmative." I said.

"Ok, luckily I was able to repair the prototype that Lloyd used during his mission." She put it on the back of her neck. "I have a plan. We disguise ourselves as those crystal warriors and find your brother. Then we can try to get through to him."

"Good idea." I nodded.

I changed my device to look like a Crystal zombie and then Pixal changed hers. We peaked around the corner to make sure the coast was clear. We walked out and started searching for my brother.

Hopefully the others got out of this ok.

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This chapter is dedicated to the staff and students of Apalachee High School. Whatever your situation, you are not alone and our hearts are with them while grieving this tragedy.

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In case you don't know, my fiancé and I are studying to become teachers. We both are from Georgia and live in the same school district as Apalachee. We don't have any relatives that go there nor did we because we lived in a different part of Georgia in High School, but we were still within an hour of Borrow County. So do me a favor, take threats seriously, stay safe out there, and stay awesome.