🌱 Unfair 🌱
⚠️ Rated T for blood and stuff
[Please watch this (even if you know it by heart), either before or after the chapter. It's... you'll see. It's incredible. I'm obsessed.]
https://youtu.be/tQwVKr8rCYw
Knowing Chen, Cole didn't think that he'd just let them fake a fight and call it a tie. He knew there would be a loser. And he knew what he had to do.
He was sure that horrible things happened to Chen's prisoners. He wasn't sure what, but he had his guesses. And he could never let Jay go through anything like that.
🌱
After his mom died, it was always Cole that did the work. Not even necessarily because his father told him to, but it just needed to be done. It felt like, bit by bit, it was becoming his burden to carry. Maybe it was his father slowly edging away from home responsibilities, all absorbed in his singing group.
Even after he became a ninja, Cole still felt that same weight. Be the mature one, the responsible one. Responsible for everyone and everything. It was his nature to silently suffer and sacrifice himself for those he loved. Especially after losing the closest person to him, now he didn't want to risk losing anyone else.
It wasn't easy, though.
After Cole decided what he had to do, he felt burdened underneath the weight of sorrow. Bittersweet. Knowing what's going to happen to you next, and it's not gonna be fun. But, oh, was it worth it.
🌱
Half an hour before the battle, the ninja and Garmadon were meeting in Kai's room. Garmadon was calmly sitting on the bed with Lloyd standing near him; Kai was furiously pacing the room; Cole was standing tensely, tightly hugging his crossed arms; Jay was ringing his hands, and of course, rambling.
"Ugh, why does it have to be us?" he jabbered. "Why did he target us? Maybe we shouldn't have always been together, looking so much like a team."
Lloyd and Garmadon exchanged a look.
"Of course he's going to target us!" Jay continued. "Break up our team. Who knows. I mean, it's not like he wants to stop us from saving our other teammate that we thought was dead and that he probably happens to have locked up somewhere."
Kai rolled his eyes and started nervously biting his hand.
"Or stop him from stealing everyone's elemental powers and doing First Spinjitzu Master knows what with them- oh my gosh, what if he takes my powers. What if he takes any of our powers? And- and- I'm gonna lose against Cole. Obviously. Chen's totally gonna steal my powers when I lose."
"Jay," Cole said, taking a couple steps to stand in front of him, and placing his hands softly on Jay's shoulders. "I don't want you to lose," he said, looking him straight in the eyes.
Kai stopped pacing and listened to what Cole was saying.
"And I don't want to beat you. I want both of us to win, and I want Chen to lose. Got it?"
"Yeah," Jay nodded slowly.
"And Jay, I promise I will not hurt you, and... everything will be ok."
Kai thought he felt some underlying meaning in Cole's words, but he didn't know what...
Oh. It hit him.
"Thank you, Cole," Jay smiled, "and I promise I won't hurt you either." Then Cole was pleasantly surprised when Jay hugged him. Cole hugged tightly back.
As they pulled away, Garmadon said, "Remember who your true enemy is, and who your true friends are."
After that, Kai pulled Cole aside where the others couldn't see them.
"What are you planning to do?" Kai demanded, and it came out sounding aggressive, but its heart was concern.
"What do you mean?" Cole tried to play dumb.
"Like, when you're gonna fight Jay. What did you mean, 'everything will be ok'? You usually plan about this stuff, and I can tell. You're planning something, and it's not treating you well. It shows." Kai motioned to Cole's face.
"Oh," Cole looked down and nervously rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, umm..."
"You're gonna lose on purpose," Kai interrupted his mumbling.
"Yeah," Cole's countenance fell.
"I need you; Jay needs you. We all do. You can't just leave us like this! Do you know what they could do to you down there?"
"Yes," Cole whispered.
Kai understood. He suddenly wrapped his arms around Cole. "I hate this so much. I- I wish-"
"Kai. We're doing this for Zane." Cole would have cried but he didn't want Kai to see how hard this actually was for him. He's the strong one.
"You're right," Kai said, backing away from the hug. "Maybe you can find him."
Cole nodded. "Maybe."
🌱🌱🌱
The gates rattled open. Master of Earth and Master of Lightning rushed out to meet each other.
"Okay, Jay, how 'bout this," Cole called, "training!"
"Huh?" Jay stopped and put a hand to his ear.
"Training. Ya know, like we used to. Brother sharpens brother."
"Right!"
They lightly attacked each other, using moves they already knew and anticipated. A little zap of lightning here, a little blast of earth there. Of course, Chen got bored.
"Ah, what is this? Pattycake?" he complained. "I'm bored. Release the Condrai Crushers!"
"I got your back," Cole said, as they faced the Crunchers that were now driving around them.
"And I've got yours."
"Ah, they fight together," Garmadon said, up in the stands. "Good work, son."
"Yeah, I do listen to you every once in a while," Lloyd chuckled.
Kai was leaning forward, grasping the rails in front of him, watching. Waiting for what Cole would do next. He was inwardly crying because he knew it would be the last time he saw his brother... for how long, or if ever, he didn't know.
The two ninja stopped each of the Crushers, infuriating Chen.
"Enough!" he screeched. "I know what you are trying to do. If neither of you will win, then both of you will lose!" Pushing some buttons, he opened trap doors all around the arena floor. The ninja dodged the holes, trying not to fall in.
"Cole!" Jay yelled. "It should be you! You and I both know I'm lucky to have even made it this far. You take the Jadeblade," he pointed to the top of the pole where it was.
Cole, heart pounding, climbed up it and grabbed the blade, then immediately threw it to Jay. The blue ninja was stunned, but Cole just smiled weakly at him.
"Winner! Loser!" Chen bellowed. "Master of Lightning moves on."
"Jay," the black ninja said, pulling down his mask. "I want you to know...she's yours. I'm sorry. I should've bowed out sooner. Win this thing."
Jay reached out his hand towards Cole, but his heart dropped as his best friend fell into the trap door with a scream that pierced Jay's heart.
"About time," Chen smiled sinisterly.
🌱🌱🌱
That night, Cole was brought before Chen.
Later, it was all a blur in his memory.
He vaguely remembered arguing with Chen, defending himself and his friends.
Did he try to fight the guards?
They chained him down.
Then...
He could feel other powers enter him, but it was not a powerful feeling. It felt intrusive, sickening. They dragged something out of him, ripped out what was his very being, his essence, his life.
It pulled away, and left him empty. He felt drained of every single particle of life.
Falling to the ground, he couldn't even hold his head up.
The guards grabbed him and he felt his legs dragging against the rocky floor as he slowly lost consciousness...
🌱🌱🌱
How long he had been in the factory now, Cole couldn't tell. But he knew that now was the time to break out.
Well, not break out. Just get the keys. That way, he could save Zane!
The previous day, he had just seen his brother in jail. He was... different, but it was still so good to see him. Now he'd found what he came here for.
Cole waited for the perfect moment, then sprinted around the factory, eating all the food he'd been craving for the past few days. Guards chased him, of course, but he dodged their attacks and threw food at them. It was so fun. The other prisoners were cheering for him.
At one point, he snatched the keys from one of the guards, just before they all were upon him and pinned him down. They put him in handcuffs and escorted him out of the factory, and not in a very gentle manner either.
The prisoners gave him confused looks as he was led out, but he just smiled at them.
"Chen won't be happy when he hears about this," one of the guards drawled.
Cole didn't reply. He was just happy that he got the keys.
"Now wait in here," the guard told him as they chained him up in a cell.
His hands were behind his back, and he couldn't get the keys. He wondered what was going to happen next. Knowing Chen, Cole figured it was gonna be bad...
About 15 minutes later, guards arrived, along with Chen and Clouse.
"What do we have here?" Chen taunted. "Someone tried to escape from my factory? No one gets away with that!" He nodded to the guards, and they chained Cole to the wall, his back facing them. "Ooh, this'll be fun," he cackled.
Honestly, Cole had anticipated this.
He didn't see who did it. But once it started, he couldn't have looked back to see.
He clenched his jaw, shut his eyes, and his whole body tensed in preparation.
The first stroke.
He felt tears forming.
He bore the next few well, but once the slashes got deep enough, the pain was too much.
Trembling, taking shaky breaths, he shrank from the blows.
Ominous laughter from Chen.
It ripped his flesh open, going deep...
So deep...
He didn't even realize that he had been screaming or how hard he'd been crying until after it was over.
There was blood everywhere, flowing down his back and legs, pooling up on the ground.
He couldn't move, and when he did, it burned like hell.
It felt like he'd never recover.
Was it worth it?
The keys.
He still had them.
Somehow they hadn't found them.
It was worth it.
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