~Who are you Really~

~Mikky Ekko~

Who, who are you really?

And where, where are you going

I've got nothing left to prove

'Cuz I've got nothing left to lose

Who, who are you?

Liz breathed slow as she looked around a black abyss. In front of her, she noticed two flowers: a white lily and a red Lycoris Radiata.

Life and death.

Liz's mother always talked about the symbols these flowers held. Liz thought they were a myth.

Then appeared a large white wolf with dead white eyes.

"Watch," it commanded.

Then with the blink of the wolf's eyes, Liz jumped up and she was back. In the desert...

Damn, I can't believe I passed out again.

Liz pushed her hands into the warm sand and brought herself to keep walking. She needed water badly.

It had been four days since she ran away and has found that might not have been the best idea. She was barley prepared and she expected to see Ninjago by now but she was very off course.

That's what I get for not paying attention in history class.

Liz shuffled her bare feet as she continued to truck along in the hot heat of the sun. It had been a tough four days and she was drained but she was also determined. Determined to reach her full potential that her parents never could. Ninja Hunters were something to be kept a secret and to not become a Power Holder but Liz didn't care. She'd move to Ninjago and she'd become the better version of herself.

Despite only being 10 years old, Liz was a hard working assassin. However, most aren't surprised that a 10 year old has killed people. It was actually very common and almost a shame if you hadn't.

That's the world Liz grew up in.

Liz felt her side start to cramp and she franticly held the other side to ease the pain. Suddenly, she stopped. She squinted at the sight of a tall mountain with what looked to be non other than the Monastery of Spinjitzu.

Liz leaped for joy and jumped towards the ground taking the form of her wolf. Her black fur brushed the wind as she ran with all she had despite the weakness. Her blue eyes glowed with desperation as her paws found their footing in the yellow sand where she felt the charm around her neck bounce along with her running.

She came to a stop as she saw the stairs leading up to the Monastery and begun the climb. She huffed as she kept walking up step after step.

Ugh, how much longer?

Liz walked for what seemed like hours but she didn't stop, not even once.

Finally, she made it to the top. Her wolf form was quite small, maybe the size of a small dog. She wouldn't be full size until she was 16. So instead of shrinking, Liz grew back into her Sunblood form and took small steps towards the open doors. She found it odd that no one was there.

She continued walking through the open space straight across to the doors that lead inside as she quickly hid her enchanted neckless, responsible for keeping her wolf in check as well as what allowed her to keep her clothes.

Liz could feel her heart pounding as the adrenalin in her system only seemed to get stronger. She reached her hand to the door, knocked, and waited.

She knocked again and the doors opened. The old man that greeted her had a long beard and a long bamboo staff that he walked with and he was wearing white robes and a big hat.

His eyes widened when he saw Liz. Liz could feel her body wanting to shrink, she didn't care for being started at, not that there was much to look at. Liz was quite small, had short brown hair, blue eyes, and wore ripped black jeans and a giant black hoodie and a purple benne she never went without.

After what seemed like too long, the man spoke.

"May I help you?"

Liz swallowed and took a breath.

"Yes, I'm in need of training," she said. "I'm..." she hesitated. She didn't know this man. And even if she did, she could still be told on and killed by Sunbloods who wanted her head. The man seemed to notice her uncertainty.

"Young one, I won't hurt you."

Liz breathed in and exhaled slowly. It was the only think keeping her from running away.

"What's your name?"

"Lizabeth," Liz replied. "Lizabeth Wolfadeer."

"Wolfadeer?" the man repeated.

"Yes, sir."

"You wouldn't happen to be the daughter of Foxstorm Wolfadeer would you?"

Liz hesitated again. "Yes..."

The man hummed. "You're a Ninja Hunter then."

Liz was taken back. Yes, it was safe to assume that a Moonblood was a descendent of a Ninja Hunter but after the Sunbloods came into settle in Molotoke, most Ninja Hunters were wiped out and matted with the Sunbloods causing the race of the Ninja Hunters to slowly disappear over the years.

Liz's family was one of the last full blooded Ninja Hunter families.

"I'm Master Wu," said the man. "I fought along side your mother many years ago. She was a hero."

A hero? Hell no. Never in a million years.

"Why don't you come inside and meet everyone?" Wu suggested.

After that long journey all Liz could do was nod, but before she could move, her eyes caught the sight of a white lily floating down towards the ground in front of Liz. Wu's eyes widened as he took in the sight of the flower.

"It was just like the one in my dreams," Liz whispered.

"Mine too," said Wu.

Liz's gaze shot up to Wu's and he nodded.

"I had a dream and the white wolf told me that there will be life and there will be death. The last thing she said was 'watch'."

"That what she said to me too."

The voice was so familiar to Liz, she thought she might have imagined it but she wasn't sure who it could be.

"Come," he said. "I think you'll fit in just fine."

Liz felt the nice cool air from inside as Wu opened the doors. Liz clutched the lily she picked up and she followed Wu inside. The wood felt cool and smooth against Liz's feet as she made her way through the hall.

She was lead to a room with a girl who looked to be 15 or so. She wore a long red dress with yellow markings and her hair was short. Liz's hair was a little above her shoulders but this girl's was just under her ears.

"Nya, this is Lizabeth. Liz, this is Nya."

Liz's ear twitched as she met eyes with Nya's. They were blue and soft and caring and curious. She felt safe.

"I'm going to grab the boys, I'll be right back." And with that, she was alone with the mysterious girl.

"It's nice to meet you, Liz," Nya said.

"You too. I haven't talked to anybody in a while, it's nice to see people again."

That was only partly true. The truth is, she was terrified. She didn't dare admit it though.

"Where did you come from?" Nya asked.

"I came from Pawstocious. A community in Molotoke." Liz responded.

"Was it a tough journey?"

"Yes it was. But I made it."

"Yes you did."

Nya shifted her gaze to Liz's side. She must have noticed the daggers.

"How old are you?" she asked.

"I'm 10 years old," Liz responded.

"Is it a dangerous place where you come from?"

"Depends on where and when you ask." Liz responded. She definitely saw the daggers.

Liz reached her hands down to grab her two daggers and pulled them out. They were quite old but they did the job.

"These are my daggers. Most Moonbloods my age have them or some sort of weapon. Not necessarily because it's dangerous but because we've been trained to be assassins our whole life in order to keep Pawstocious for ourselves and avoid losing it to the Sunbloods."

"Sunbloods?" Nya questioned.

"Sunbloods are you and most people who live in Ninjago. They are not us."

Before Nya could say another word, Wu entered and following him were four boys, each wore their own color. They looked to be around the same age. Maybe 16 or 17.

The red one looked Liz up and down with a disapproving look on his face.

The blue one looked the same, clutching the drink in his hands.

The black one was more curious.

And so was the white one.

"Boys, meet Lizabeth Wolfadeer."

The red one spoke first.

"What is it?" he asked as he continued examining Liz.

The blue one slapped the red's arm.

"Kai," he said.

The white one stepped forwards.

"Are you a Moonblood, may I ask."

Liz was shocked this boy knew the term. "I am."

"A moon what?" questioned the black one.

"A Moonblood. Those of the heritage of Moon Lin. They're not fully wolf and not fully human but their own type of creature."

"Thanks for the lesson, Zane," said the blue one.

"Liz, these are my students that will aid in your training."

"Training?" Kai said, cutting Wu off. "Why would we be training her?"

"Because she wants to find her true potential." Wu responded. "Unlike you, she's willing to put in the work necessary to accomplish this task."

Wu looked at Liz before he continued. "And... she's a Ninja Hunter."

The blue boy spat out his water. "A Ninja Hunter?" he yelled.

"She's not a hunter hunter it's just a way of saying that she's hunting elemental masters to be able to train her." Wu explained.

The boys scoffed as Wu turned back to Liz. "Liz, my students. The one in red is Kai, Nya's brother. The one in blue is Jay, the one in black is Cole, and the one in white is Zane."

"Nice to meet you," Liz mumbled.

"What did she say?!" Jay yelled into Kai's ear.

"She said 'it's nice to meet you,' douffos," Kai said, pushing Jay off his arm.

"We are very excited to train with you," Zane said.

"I'm excited too," Liz said with a fake smile.

This might take a while.

"Boys, why don't you take Liz with you and show her around," Wu offered.

Kai's foot tapped. "Sure, why not."

Liz watched as the boys followed Kai as he turned on his heal and walked down the hall.

Mother would have had his head if he talked like that to her.

Then again, her mother was nowhere near her now so she can say what ever she want.

"Keep up, pup," Kai grunted as he turned the corner and into a room.

Liz flattened her ears at the nickname as she followed the ninja into the room.

Liz had never seen one quite like it. It was a smaller room with a large black thing on the wall with boxes and lots of weird things Liz had never seen before.

In the middle of the room was a large red couch with pillows on it that could fit probably 8 people on it.

This isn't so bad.

Liz watched as the boys sat on the couch and turned the black thing on. The young Moonblood squinted her eyes as a bright light shone onto the mysterious device.

Liz's ear perked as she heard the soft pat of a hand on the couch. She looked with her piercing blue eyes to see Kai looking at her with a somewhat softer expression as he patted the couch. Liz cautiously sat next to the red ninja and warped her tail around her bare feet.

"You don't know what this is, do you?" he asked.

Her confused face must have been more noticeable than she realized.

"That," Kai said, pointing at the black thing, "is a TV."

"A TV?"

"Yeah!" Jay interjected. "You can watch movies like Fritz Donegan or play really fun video games! Have you played any video games?"

"Jay, back off," Cole said, roughly. " You'll scare the poor thing."

Liz's ears flattened, her tail bristled, and her gaze sharpened. "You don't know what I've been through, what I've seen."

The images flashed in her head. The blood, the dead bodies, the screams. It haunted her every day, every night. Liz tried to breath. Her body shook as she heaved past the memories, past the faces of the lives that she took. It was all too much for her to handle. Her body was numb, she didn't notice the tear that cowardly fell down her cheek until she tasted the salt.

Ugh, why now???

Liz didn't move. She didn't dare let another tear of shame fall from her red eyes no matter how much it hurt her head to keep them in.

"Oh gosh!" Jay gawked. "He didn't mean to make you cry! Cole's sorry, right Cole?"

Cole huffed. "Yes, Liz, I'm sorry and you're right, we don't know what you've been through."

Liz bit the inside of her cheek as she slowly calmed down. Her ears relaxed as she stared at the stained carpet.

Embarrassing. I can't wait to leave this place.

"Hey guys, do you think you could maybe give me and the squirt some time to talk?"

Liz stiffened. What is this about?

The boys agreed to give them space and each of them exited the room swiftly, one after another.

Liz could feel the burning gaze of the red ninja as she slowly turned to face him.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked, softly.

Liz pulled her bushy tail closer towards her body as she hesitated.

Can I trust him? What if he makes me leave? I need to get my power unlocked!

And what a better way to do that than to be a little vulnerable.

After a few seconds, Liz nodded. She shifted her body towards the red ninja and crossed her legs.

"I... don't really know where to start," Liz confessed.

"Start at the beginning, where do you come from?"

"I'm from a place in Pawstocious."

"Do you have any parents?"

"I have my mom but my dad died a year ago."

"I'm sorry to hear that, squirt."

Kai's tone was soft, his gaze was not. Liz made a mental note of that for later.

"It's whatever, it wasn't your fault."

Kai shifted in his seat. "I lost both of my parents when I was about your age."

Liz's heart sunk.

Curse empathic abilities.

"Had to take care of Nya and keep the blacksmith running." Kai sighed. "Then Master Wu found us. When Nya was captured, he told me I needed to step up and become the Fire ninja I was supposed to become." Kai chuckled. "I didn't believe the old man at first but I worked hard and I met the guys and together we beat the shit out of Lord Garmadon and we got my sister back."

Liz let the story sink in. Elemental masters were interesting to Liz, how they were kind of just born with these powers. It was interesting.

Liz suddenly jumped to the sound of a door bursting open, the handle most likely leaving a dent into the old monastery's wall.

"Sorry to interrupt," Nya said, breathing heavily.

"Nya? What is it, sis?"

Nya's eyes met Kai's as she caught her breath. "It's Garmadon."

"Shit."

"Kai! Language!"

Kai ignored Nya and he quickly scrambled off the couch as Liz followed his move towards the corner where a shiny sword laid. Liz started the feel the weight of her dangers as she realized what was happening.

"Guess we didn't beat enough shit out of him," Kai said, glancing back at Liz with a small smile.

Liz chuckled once as she watched him pick up the golden sword.

Suddenly, all hell broke loose as the other boys ran into the room like they were chickens with their heads cut off.

"Shit man!"

"Jay, pass me my other shuriken please?

"Move!"

"I'm trying!"

"Would you just stop yelling?"

"Would you just stop yelling?!"

It was pure chaos.

"Boys!" Nya bellowed. " Get your shit together and GO!"

The boys continued to yell at each other as they gathered their things and left the room.

Wu watched behind Nya and sighed as he watched them move their sloppy asses out into the hallway.

"Just get to the stables!" he called out after them.

Their stomps became distant footsteps soon enough and Liz could finally breathe again. However, Liz didn't have much time to recover when Wu moved with a purpose towards her.

"Lizabeth, I know you just got here, but with that lily, I think you are crucial to my plan."

Liz's ears perked. "What?"

"I have a nagging feeling Garmadon not's the worst thing we have to worry about."

"What do you mean? Just get to the point!" Liz snapped.

Wu stayed calm. "Surley you've heard of Princess Phantom, the Cursed Realm Queen's daughter?"

"Sure I have bu-"

"Perfect, because I think she might be a part of this."

"How? Queen Darkness wouldn't let Phantom get away with anything, she'd always stayed out of our way!"

"Yeah well she's been surprising us lately."

Liz stiffened as her gut dropped.

Ever since the Serpentine War that happened years ago in Ninjago, Queen Darkness said she and the dead would stay out of the overworld. But what happens when your daughter starts pulling the right strings? Will she ignore the deal?

"I need you to go with the ninja."

"What?" This time, Nya spoke up.

"Do you think you'll be small enough to fit into the storage compartment on the back of one of the Ninja's dragons?"

Dragons???

"I-I'm sure I will-"

"Excellent. Hide in there and don't let the boys see you. I need you to be a spy on the inside. We can not let the Cursed Realm get into this mess and take over Ninjago like they've been so close in doing before."

"How the hell do I do that?" Liz questioned.

"You'll figure it out, your mother was smart, I'm sure you are too."

Why do I have to do this?

Then again, Liz knew what these dragons in the cursed realm could do. She couldn't let them take Ninjago. If they took Ninjago, what would stop them from taking Molotoke too?

"I'll do it," Liz mumbled.

"Perfect. Now quick, before they leave."

Liz's heart pounded faster and faster as she raced down the hall. She let her hair grow and her muzzle grow as she shrunk into her wolf-self. Her pads pressed along the cold cobblestone as she easily followed the sounds and smells of the boys towards the stables.

Liz halted as she gained up on Jay who apparently forgot his water bottle. She quietly stalked into the stables and her eyes widened at the sight of the big dragons.

Now or never, Liz . Whispered a voice in her head.

Shaking the still semi-familiar voice, Liz hid in the shadows with her dark pelt as she closed in on Kai's dragon. Kai was distracted by trying to reach his dragon's reigns and climbed unnoticeably into the very cramped storage compartment. She hoped it wouldn't be a long ride to this village.

Liz braced herself for the take off as she heard the Ninja holler and howl as the doors opened to the sky.

All Liz could do was sit, wait, and pray that whatever they found in this village that Phantom wasn't a part of it.

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There's the first chapter! I hope you liked it so far! The plot might be a little confusing right now but please let me know if you need any clarification! That's all for right now!