CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE — AFTERMATH
darkness shall rise — part one

"And, uh, what about me?" — lloyd garamadon

WITH THE GREAT DEVOURER GONE FOR GOOD, THE PEOPLE OF NINJAGO WERE SAFE ONCE MORE, BUT THAT DIDN'T MEAN THE NINJA HAD A DAY OFF. Because from the moment that the giant snake had been slain by Lord Garmadon and the now missing golden weapons, the ninja had been put to work to try and clear up the mess. So much destruction had been left in the Devourer's wake so everyone had to pull their weight to restore the city to what it used to be — and that included the ninja.

Iris sipped on her steaming cup of tea, smiling at the feeling of the warm liquid travelling down her throat. She stood in front of the ninja as they worked together to put one of the many fallen signs in Ninjago back onto its stand. Every inch of her body absolutely ached from her contribution to the fixing of the city, so this calming tea was well deserved.

"How come you're not helping, Iris?" Questioned Jay as he helped lift the pole upright.

After Iris swallowed a mouthful of delicious tea she went to respond, but Zane replied first. "Because she has been teleporting all over the city all day. She's tired." Explained the ice ninja who glanced back over his shoulder to offer an exhausted Iris a kind smile.

"He's right." Nodded the yellow ninja. "I'm taking a well-earnt break." Then she took another sip of her tea.

"Fair enough."

The others nodded and hummed in agreement and shared smiles of gratitude with their young Sensei. It seemed they had underestimated how much she had helped already — which wasn't uncommon for them. So, they paid her no mind as she continued with her steaming beverage and returned their focus to the sign in their hands.

As the pole finally slotted back into place, Cole sighed contently. "Ah, finally. All fixed up and Serpentine free."

Kai attempted to summon his elemental power of fire so they weld the post back into position, but only a few sparks managed to emit from his fingers before fizzling into nothing. A small cringe formed on her face on his behalf. Because ever since her Uncle had disappeared with the golden weapons of Spinjitzu, things had been very different.

The fire ninja groaned in annoyance. "Aw, this is frustrating. Our weapons are gone, and most of our elemental powers are gone — apart from Sensei Iris's it appears." He cast her a look but she didn't meet his eyes. Although she knew it wasn't her fault, she couldn't help but feel bad that she had her abilities whilst the others didn't. "I mean, we can still do spinjitzu, but..." He tried to summon his flames again, but to no avail. So Zane pulled out a torch and started to weld the sign back upright — the old, non-elemental powered way. Kai hung his head and sighed. "I just feel so, I don't know, limited."

"Power is never truly lost, Kai."

The yellow ninja did not elaborate but it seemed the fire ninja wouldn't even have given her the chance as he quickly piped up. "And thanks to the Devourer, our tank's out of commission, our Dragon's hurt, and now that the Bounty is destroyed, we don't even have a place to sleep."

Zane lifted his welder's mask and turned to the fiery warrior. "No one ever said being a hero is easy." Iris matched the ice ninja's smile as they tried to reassure Kai that things would all turn out okay. "Though our good deeds may never make us rich, they make us rich in other ways."

"That was beautifully put, Zane." Nodded Iris as she finished the last of her tea.

"Thank you."

In response to his frosty brother, Kai just groaned. "Yeah, well, I don't feel rich."

"At the moment, perhaps." Pointed out Iris who then hung her teacup on her belt. "But if you give it time, things will seem much better and richer for us all."

The others smiled softly at her words and shared a content look as they finished up with fixing the sign. Sure, they did not have much in terms of money or possessions any more (two of their homes were destroyed and it wasn't like being a ninja paid the bills) but they still had each other. And considering what they had just fought against, they were lucky to come out with that at all.

"I, for one, enjoy pitching in." Said Jay who then reached down and grabbed an old and broken TV. He carried it towards the nearest bin to discard of the destroyed piece of electronics. "I've always wanted to feel part of a community. Ah, speaking of which, has anyone seen Nya?" Casting her eyes around, Iris quickly realised that their favourite Samurai was nowhere in sight. And her Father wasn't around either. "She said she was gonna help."

And in perfect timing, Nya was heading straight towards them onboard her motorcycle.

"And I have." Proclaimed the girl, waving a sheet of paper in the air. And as Iris looked over at the incoming vehicle, she realised that her Father was next to her in a side-car. "I may have found us a place to live." 

She sped across the road to pull up by the pavement they were on. 

"Now that is some good news." Smiled Iris at Nya who quickly returned the beaming grin.

"Really? But there's a waiting list a mile long to live in Ninjago City. How did you do that?"

As per usual, the older of the two Sensei's was sipping on a nice cup of steaming tea. So, Iris removed her cup from her belt and as soon as she offered out the cup, her Father poured some of the delicious liquid into it. "Thank you, Father."

"You're very welcome, Iris."

With her new tea in hand, Iris turned back to the Samurai who was replying to Jay. "I know a guy who knows a girl, and she knows this girl who knows a guy. Well, this guy knows  a guy who's a real estate agent, and she can help you find a place, if you catch my drift." Now that.... was a little confusing. 

Iris's head hurt a little from that, so she drunk some more tea and suddenly her nerves were calmed and her confusion vanished. Her Father truly made amazing tea.

After taking the real estate agent card from Nya, Jay then inquired. "And where are you off to?"

"Yes." Hummed Iris as she lowered her cup. "I am curious to know that too, Father."

"We have to find a couple of components to fix the Ninja Tank, and my Dragon Ointment had finally arrived." Wu started to explain to his pupils. "It's a day's trip, but once we get back, he'll be flying once again."

A small smile tugged at Iris's lips at that. "It'll be great to have that dragon back in the skies where he belongs." Then she cast her Father a look. "And I know that you're only going too because you love scenic drives."

"Guilty." Grinned Wu. Then the old Sensei turned to their Samurai. "Ha, ha. Punch it, Nya."

"Ay, ay, Sensei!"

Then the two pulled away from the pavement and zoomed away towards an exit of Ninjago City. Iris quietly chuckled at her Father's enthusiasm as they sped off on their little adventure. He may be older than anyone in Ninjago, but that man still had the soul of someone young. It was wonderful.

Looking down at the card in his hands, Jay read off it. "'Patty Keys, Real Estate Queen'."

"It's catchy." 

Jay nodded at Iris's words before he continued. "Ha, this is exactly what we need. Once we get a roof over our head, we can start properly training Lloyd." 

Well, Iris had already started the young green ninja's training but the others hadn't joined in yet. It seemed it was about time they did and they knew it. Because if Lloyd was going to fulfil the prophecy and be the one to take down his Father, then he had to be trained by all of them. 

"Good," Nodded Cole as he agreed with his blue friend. "'cause if we know Lord Garmadon, he's not going to be taking any breaks. And let's not forget, the Serpentine are still at large."

A thoughtful hum escaped Iris as she contemplated their earth ninja's words. "They are, but after the defeat of the Devourer, I doubt they would show their scaly faces for a while. So at least we have some peace." The others seemed to nod in agreement.

But that still left her Uncle, Lord Garmadon, and he had the golden weapons of Spinjitzu on his side. So they had to hope that they could retrieve those precious instruments of creation before the Dark Lord could do anything with them they couldn't fix.

AFTER FINISHING UP THEIR DAILY CHORES FOR NINJAGO, THE FIVE NINJA — PLUS LLOYD — CALLED PATTY KEYS FOR HER HELP IN FINDING A PLACE. And as it turned out, it was much harder than they thought. The first place she took them to was in their small budget but it was a tiny, one roomed establishment. Everything  from the beds to the kitchen were all next to each other. The floorboards also seemed to be rotting away and the only thing you could see out of the small window was more brick.

But after showing them the worst Ninjago had to offer, Patty Keys showed them the complete opposite. And it was the absolute dream place for ninja and ninja-fans alike. There was even an individual training course and an area on the roof for the Ultra-dragon once he could fly again. But... it was way too expensive. 

And Iris was a little outvoted on what place they should keep so now they had an incredible apartment that they could not pay for. The others decided it would be best to acquire jobs to help pay the rent and considering how she didn't want to be homeless for a third time, Iris Wu complied. 

So, now she was currently wandering around Ninjago City to find a job to help them keep their new home. 

Iris knew exactly where she would go first to ask for a job but she wasn't exactly sure if we would want her back. After all, he came to depend on her work so much and then she left. It was on good terms, as he understood that she had to leave and continue her journey, but Iris believed he would have still been upset by her departure. 

But considering how their rent was already drawing near, Iris didn't have much of a choice. So she turned down the next street and headed for where her old job once was. And when she saw the building, she gasped. It was still in the same place, but it had changed drastically.

Even the exterior looked modernised with its larger windows and metallic theme. The sign above what used to be a wooden door was now electrified with lights and at least twice as big as it used to be. When you looked at the building, you truly did feel like you were seeing into the future. And Iris smiled, proud of her old employer, as that was what he had always wanted.

She stared in awe at the remodelled premises and even though she had worked there for months, it was hard to try and picture what it used to be compared to what it now was. What a transformation indeed. It seemed Cyrus Borg had truly started to go up on the world. Good for him.

Iris then took a deep breath to collect herself before she pushed open the door and entered.

The inside was different also. What was once more old-fashioned and warm was a cold, bright and futuristic layout. And Iris Wu didn't dislike it. She thought that it truly represented what Cyrus Borg wanted to bring to Ninjago: the future.

She made her way to where the reception desk once was and still found it there. It seemed some things didn't change. The woman behind her desk was smartly dressed with her hair pinned up in a tight bun. She definitely looked like she meant business. But Iris had to see her old employer so she stepped towards the desk.

"Excuse me, I'd like to see Cyrus Borg, please."

Despite her politeness, the receptionist gave Iris a cold look. "Do you have an appointment?" She inquired, eyebrow raised behind her glasses.

"Well, no, but—"

"No appointment, no seeing Mr Borg." 

She understood. Cyrus had really gone up in the world since Iris left and now he had to schedule appointments to better his time. And she couldn't blame the woman in front of her for her bluntness, it was her job after all and Iris suspected that they have had multiple people try to come in to see Cyrus Borg, all for the wrong reasons. 

Still, Iris was disappointed and so the yellow ninja exhaled deeply. "Alright. But could please just tell him that Iris Wu is here?" The receptionist seemed to consider it for a moment. Because what harm could telling Mr Borg this woman was here have? She couldn't think of anything.

"Alright." Nodded the woman which made Iris smile suddenly. "Wait here."

 And so she walked away into another room and Iris waited for her to return. Then after a minute of waiting, the receptionist returned and she had Cyrus Borg in tow. And he looked incredibly happy to see her.

He wheeled his chair closer towards her and Iris was surprised to see his arms spreading out in a welcoming manner. "Iris! Oh, my dear, it is so good to see you." He exclaimed and then grasped her hand in his and offered the young woman a kind smile. 

"You too, Mr Borg." 

"You should know by now, Iris, that you can call me Cyrus." The genius amended. Then he spun around in his chair and face back towards his office. "Now, lets talk in my office." He stopped momentarily to glance at his receptionist. "It's alright, Natalie, you can leave us." And so Iris Wu followed after Cyrus Borg as he led her to the same office he had had when she was here the first time. Once inside, he gestured towards a chair so she could make herself comfortable. Then, as soon as she was sat, Cyrus began. "What can I do for you, Iris? Oh, and before you answer that, how was your trip?"

Iris let out a nervous laugh. "Um, yeah, it was great." She ran her sweaty palms up and down her trousers as she faced her old employer. "But I did end up going home a few months after I left here."

Cyrus Borg frowned. "But you were so set on staying on your own feet." He recalled.

"Yes, but I heard my Father had recruited some new students and I had to do something. He's getting a little too old to be training ninja alone. Just don't tell him I said that."

The man in front of her was staring at her in surprise and amazement. "Ninja? That's what you've been up to?" He grinned, rather impressed by his former employee, and asked. "Anything else I should know?"

She thought about it for a moment and considered her options. Then, she hummed and replied. "Well, I am the yellow ninja." Iris watched as the entirety of Cyrus' face lit up in wonder. A bashful look blossomed on her face and she grinned awkwardly at the man.

"That's incredible! You saved Ninjago!"

Quick to correct him, Iris piped up. "Actually, it was more my Uncle. He was the one to destroy the Great Devourer." She informed him. But Cyrus Borg would not have it and shook his head at her words. He knew Iris and if she was one of the ninja who were involved in taking down the Great Devourer, he was certain that she had done everything in her power to stop it. 

"So, what can I do for, my dear?" He inquired as a warm smile etched itself onto his lips. 

Iris took a deep breath. Then, she began. "The Great Devourer ate our home. So, now, the ninja and I are living in the city. And, uh, we're looking for jobs." She revealed with a tentative tone. Her eyes met Cyrus' as she wanted to seem somewhat confident in front of her old employer. "I was just wondering if you had anything available. I know that I left, but I will take anything—"

The business man cut her off before she could continue rambling. "Of course you may have a job, Iris." Grinned Cyrus. A relieved smile spread across Iris' face at his announcement. Cyrus Borg was taking her back even after she left to continue her quest. "You were the best assistant I ever had. In fact, your old position is available if you'd like to return to it?"

Back when Iris had first entered Ninjago City, she had decided to stay a while which meant she was looking for a job. Then she met Cyrus Borg. He saw great potential in the girl and took her under his wing and within a short time, she became the best assistant he had ever had. Sure, using computers was new for her, but Iris quickly picked it up and was soon excelling. Iris and Cyrus started to care about each other in the way family would. And that just made her departure even harder for them both.

Iris lit up at his offer. "Of course!" 

"Well, then, my dear, when can you come back?"

IT HAD BEEN A LONG DAY FOR THEM ALL. After her meeting with Cyrus, Iris had gotten straight to work in the job she once had before this entire Ninja/Serpentine/Great Devourer situation. It felt nice for Iris to return to some version of the life she had when she was out on her own and free from anything that could chain her down. Not that she thought of her boys as burdens. It was just, this job was something she could do on her own. It was breathing space.

But when she returned from her day, she found the boys at loss for breath. They must've have gotten themselves jobs as well. 

And that was how the next day went. And the next. And the next. Iris would return home to find the boys exhausted, Lloyd untrained and the rent jar still not meeting the requirement. Even with her steady job and pay check, it wasn't enough to pay for the swanky apartment the other ninja had decided on. Part of Iris knew they weren't going to make enough money before the deadline but she wanted to hope that that wouldn't be the case.

When Iris stepped through their door on that particular evening, she found Cole groaning in pain and Lloyd once more in the training room. Kai looked a mess, all dishevelled and muddy from whatever gig he just returned from. Iris kept one eye on her young cousin and her other on the drained ninja. She cringed when she witnessed Lloyd being knocked over by the punching bag. Quickly the Wu girl walked over to heave the prophesised future saviour to his feet and once upright, Lloyd rubbed his chest where the bag had impacted him.

In the other room, Cole was staring down at his sore feet submerged in the bucket of icy water. "My feet..." Bleated the Earth ninja. "I can't feel my feet."

Kai just collapsed on the sofa, utterly enervated. "There were so many of them. And they wouldn't stop." 

With one eye still on Lloyd, Iris slowly made her way back into the room as Zane sighed and started to oil his robotic joints. Now that was something they've never seen before. "My gears locked up several times. I didn't even know my gears could lock up."

Iris just watched as Jay made a weak attempt to reach the video game console. "I don't even have enough energy to play video games." Then he collapsed to the floor.

You didn't hear that, like ever, when it came to Jay. These ninja were most certainly incredibly tired.

"But I thought you were going to train me when you got home."

The saddened face of Lloyd Garmadon walked into the room at to share his disappointment with his so-called 'trainers'. Iris glanced at him with a sympathetic look. "Sorry, champ," Cole said. "but we can't until we make rent." The yellow ninja placed a gentle hand on her cousin's shoulder and he leant into her touch. Turning to the master of lightning, Cole inquired. "How close are we, Jay?"

Coins shaking made Iris turn to see Jay shifting their rent jar in his hands. They had not yet reached the red line, even with Iris' money. And hers made up a lot of what was already there. "Is this jar getting bigger? We're not even close."

"And our rent is due tomorrow." The ninja then exchanged panicked looks.

From the corner of her eye, Iris spotted Zane struggling to reach a spot with the oil can and then left her cousin's side to take the container from him. She then raised the spout to where he had been attempting to apply the oil and did it for him. Once she was done, she handed the can back to him and he smiled at her gratefully.

"I can pull a double shift."

"And I can do overtime." 

Jay added. "Maybe I can sling a few more pizza pies."

"And I can make a little extra if I do the human pinata..." They all shot the fire ninja horrified and concerned looks. He just waved them off and put his head in his hands. "Ugh, don't ask." 

Cole then turned his attention to the group. "Great, then our priorities are set." He announced as they all wordlessly agreed not to ask Kai any further questions. For their own sanity. "Tomorrow... we make rent."

His positive declaration did not clear the doubt in Iris' mind as her eyes darted to the not yet full jar. Although she liked to hope Cole was right, and that the following day the ninja would make enough for rent, she honestly didn't think it was possible. And she had no idea what Patty Keys would do to them if they didn't meet their target. 

Then Lloyd spoke up. "And, uh, what about me?"

"Perhaps," Iris quickly began before the others could say a word. "perhaps you could come to work with me tomorrow and I can do some training with you in my breaks. And give you exercises to do whilst I'm busy." 

Now that put a smile on her young cousin's face.

The ninja seemed to agree that Iris' plan was a good one for their situation — although it was not ideal. So they nodded their heads in agreement and the plan was decided on. Iris knew Lloyd had to be trained and she wouldn't allow the ninjas' mistake of choosing an expensive apartment to stop him from becoming the Green Ninja he was meant to be.

Because all of Ninjago would depend on it.

Welcome to Act Two!!!!

So excited for this act as me and dorkiest_nerd will be collabing and her character is introduced properly in this season. You have no idea how excited I am for this! This is gonna be so fun!

Also, wanted to break down sobbing once I finished this chapter. It took me SO long to get past the Cyrus Borg scene (yes, she met Cyrus on her years away and he became a father figure for her) and it was just painful. But I dragged myself through it then I was good to go. So, if that scene is shit, it's because it was such a pain to write.

Iris is doing the best she can for her boys, as always, but she did get outvoted on the whole apartment thing. Still, she's trying to earn as much as she can to help them pay the rent. And, of course, Cyrus is generous with his payments. 

Also, I made the banner above recently and this is the first time it's being published with a chapter. The previous chapters have it because I went back and added it. But this is the first chapter being PUBLISHED with it! I adore it!

Anyway, thank you for reading!!!

Sincerely Rosie aka Winter326