Chapter 31. The Departed Realm
{Location: Look at the chapter title}(Katara's POV)
"You." I blink twice. My memory struggles to recall, I was in Ninjago, at the Golden Peaks, in Jezzie's camp. Garmadon was going to kill Morro, luckily I was small and snuck in via Kai and......."Oh my word. Am I?"
"Dead?" A little girl with red hair in pigtails smiles kindly in front of me. She has lightish skin with a bright smile and a small rag doll in her arms.
I am about to say Kit when my mind clicks into place. "Molly?" I feel shame. For what happened did to her.
"It's ok. I'm not angry at you, I knew what was going on. Come on, there's someone you need to see." Molly turns and walks away. I follow her but am distracted. It's just endless sky, stars and clouds.
"Where are we?" I ask as I watch two people, one has bright blond hair with a light blue tunic and seemingly electric transparent wings, the other has a white tunic, light blonde hair, and sky blue eyes, they step off the edge and fly down while talking with each other and giggling.
"This is the Departed realm. I'll explain more later, for now," Molly stands in front of a large door for a small hut that's roughly the size of the Bounty. While still holding her ragdoll in one arm she pushes open the doors are red and blue with heavy golden handles on it. The doors swing open and my eyes widen as my jaw drops. "Go say hi."
There's a 13 year old boy standing in the middle looking back at me. His once short black hair has gotten longer and his skin seems a little more tan, "Katara." Roberto's steel grey eyes sparkly back at me as he smiles as I charge in and squeeze the afterlife out of him.
"I thought I never see you again." I almost grip his back as my mind wonder to Morro.
"And I'm happy to see you again." Roberto lets go and looks hard into my eyes, "There's something I need you to do for me."
"Anything." I almost cry tears of joy.
Roberto swallows. "Let me go." His face shows that he's been planning the next words for a long time.
"What?" Confusion sets in as Molly closes the door behind me. Roberto holds up his left hand in front of me, a red chain with my name etched on it reaches from here to the hut's wall. Along the wall is a grove with a ball bearing in the slot and attaches to the chain.
"This has held me in this place for fifteen years. I've managed to still interact with people but I'm held here. By your love."
I step back, "I don't understand why that's a bad thing."
"The departed in this realm can travel to their realms and spent time watching their families, not like a ghost. It's more like a spirit walk." Roberto smiles with understanding and rubs my cheek with his right hand.
"And I held you here." I hold his hand with shame. Even after someone died, I somehow still managed to hurt them.
"Please understand, I will always love you as my first girlfriend. But I don't want you to miss out on something...someone truly special for my sake." Roberto guides my eyes to the floor. An image of a room with a small bed and no other furniture was there, a silvery vase is in the middle and a boy with long black hair was crying appears. Morro's eyes are puffy red, his Gi is wet from tears as he leans on the wall.
The door opens and Zane walks in with steaming hot food. "Morro, I have brought you lunch." Zane places the food next to him as Morro curls up tighter. "Please causam something." Zane sighs deeply as the wind begins to whistle loudly outside, "You are no longer a ghost and therefore need substance." Morro doesn't respond as the food cools.
"For your sake Katara, let me go." Roberto smiles as the picture fades.
But you...weren't my one. I sigh as the chain falls off.
"Thank you." Roberto smiles kindly and holds my shoulders. "Now come on. There's someone who has something for you." Roberto leads the three of us through a small park. It's actually more of a fairly large garden with the dirt walkways and white picket fences. The people here look happy but restless, little children help at the forges in the distance, couples with wedding rings stroll together, a woman with magenta hair and a stethoscope is talking with a white-haired man in a lab coat. They see me and wave.
Then I see them. A man and a woman with simple white and brown tunic stand in my path. Out of everyone here, they probably bring me to heartache fastest. Both have brown hair and light brown eyes. The man has a weathered face as he comes to talk with me, "So. You're our Willow's twin sister?"
I look down as Roberto and Molly walk around them but wait for me, "Look. I'm sorry. I wasn't myself. Please don't-"
The woman shuts me up by hugging me. "I know that I should be mad at you. Furious for taking me and my husband away from Willow and Katherine," She lets go and looks me in my eyes. "But you look so much like Willow." The woman gently touches my cheeks like I may disappear, "And I couldn't bring myself to hate my daughter."
The man gently smiles but increased my confusion, "We watch Willow and Kit grow up without us. And while no child should have to grow up like that," He holds my right shoulder as I feel tears swell up, "No one should have to live with what your father put you through."
"So," I'm stunned. This has to be a dream, no one forgives so easily. No one forgives their killer....right? "You're not angry at me?"
Willow's adopted mother holds my hand, making wish I had a mother of my own who did that for me, "My dear. You went through a terrible thing. I'm not justifying what you did, but if I lost my husband the same way, I may have done much of the same."
Willow's adopted father smiles and steps onto the grass, "Understanding a mistake that someone else made is a step in forgiveness. But understanding why you made a mistake yourself is a sign of humbleness," His lips twitch upward like he wanted to say this to actual children, "But wanting to repent and ask for forgiveness is a sign of maturity."
I hold my hands over my mouth. This is impossible. No one should give me grace but yet here they are.
"Oh my dear," Willow's adoptive mother smiles and lets her husband embrace her, "We didn't mean to bring you to tears. But you need to know that you don't have to carry this burden any longer."
Willow's adoptive father holds her, he has an eye conversation with Roberto then nods, "We must let you pass by us now." He smiles as his eyes tell me he is seiner, "Tell Willow and Kit that we love them."
I nod, still stunned as they walk around me. Reminiscing about how they first found their child.
Molly grabs my hands and pulls me, "I know that was hard. But not every horrible thing you've done doesn't quite matter here."
Roberto smiles a little as Molly lets go and I walk on my own, "That's the key to getting into the departed realm. Knowing that someone first forgave you."
I turn and watch them jump through a hole in the clouds, "I...But..I."
Roberto leads me to a section in the middle of the park with runes written on the floor. A man with a bamboo hat and a Black Sensei Gi with golden letters sits there, unlike everyone else, he has huge golden eagle wings.
No, not an eagle. An angel I bow slightly as the man rises.
"Welcome child." The man sounds like Wu as he bows back.
"Katara, meet the first spinjitzu master." Molly smile as I look up. The First spinjitzu master has Lloyd's nose, Wu's wise eyes and Garmadon's stress lines, despite that he looks at peace.
"Don't let the title intimidate you. I've been watching you." The Master has a calming presence about him despite his incredibly huge importances. "And my sons and grandson. Needless to say, I'm proud of all of you."
"I don't know what to say." I swallow as he smiles more.
"You do not have to say anything. As you many have noticed, there are not many people in the realm right now. Can you figure out why?"
"It's because of the final battle isn't it?" I reply. Despite the importance surrounding the Master, the final battle's mention seems to carry more weight.
"Yes. Many people are comforting their families now as the Overlord moves his Queen." The Master frowns a bit a the Overlord's mention.
"And there's nothing we can do about it?" I sigh. Even if I can return to Ninjago like Roberto claims, I can't help. Only watch.
"Not exactly." Molly walks to the further end of the circle and grabs a red sphere out of a wooden chest with red and golden swirls decorating it.
"Long ago, when I first came to the Departed realm, I heard a voice telling me to protect this. And to wait for the one to die for their true love." The Master comes to me and places me in the middle of the circle. Right above the symbol for rebirth.
Roberto walks to my right and Molly slowly walks to the Master as she carries the red sphere like a baby. "Supposedly, this power can take someone back to the life."
They were expecting me..for how long?
"It is very important." The Master takes it from Molly and stands in front of me. Molly rises and walks just off to my left. Now a decent sized triangle is formed around me
"So why are you giving it to me?" I look down. I have done so many horrible, unforgivable things in my life. Not my father, not Jezzie, no one in all of extinction would have forgiven my many, many sins if they truly looked at them.
"My dear," The Master picks my chin up with his free hand, "There's no such thing as too far gone. Look at you, You helped your sister save my son's students, you protected young lives from evil, you died for someone deeply in love with you."
"Katara, you are strong. It is your destiny." Roberto smiles.
"And you need to be a full strength in order to vanquish the Overlord." The Master lets go of my chin and steps back. And stands over the symbol for forgiveness. "And besides, you can not refuse a gift given freely."
"I accept it with honor then." I stand straighter as pride swells in me. "Is there anything message you want to give?"
"Tell Willow we say hello." Molly smiles as blue energy lights up the runes for acceptance around her.
Roberto calmly says as red energy surround him. "You can tell everyone that we are behind them." He looks ready as the symbols for peace glow
"Tell my sons and grandson, that I'm very, very proud of them." The Master holds out the red sphere. "This is a Phoenix Power. After you come back, you will have two more shots. After that last one, I can't guarantee that you'll go back to the living world." The Master tells me as golden energy lights the ruins of life around me up.
"This is a second chance, Katara, you'll have many old talents back." Roberto directs his red energy at me.
"And a few new ones. Good luck." Molly aims her blue energy at me.
"Just do your best and live life to it's fullest." The Master smiles once more, then aims a golden beam at me as the red ball floats inches from my face. I reach out and hold it in my right palm as a cool fire races up my arms. I feel different as the sphere melts into my hand. Fresh life pumps in my veins, new hope fills my heart and a calm takes me as I feel something grow along my torn skin on my back.
"You can do it." I hear many deceased voices cheering me on as my spirit races back to Ninjago. To my family. To my friends. To my really one love.
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