Rise of Snakes and Heroes Chapter 2: Home
Previous Chapter / AO3 / Master List
Once again, Sensei Wu meditates within his room. And, as usual, the teens of the monastery are making plenty of noise outside.
"My turn! Uh, it's my turn!" Kai's muffled scream rings in the room, followed by the sound of someone punching something.
"Oh, you want a little more? Take this!" Cole shouts before there's another sound of someone hitting something.
"Yeah, how about a little of this!" Jay's shout and training follow soon after.
Sensei Wu, broken from his concentration, stands up and opens the cabinet behind his incense pot. He then grabs an old-looking wooden flute with an ovoid shape near one end. As the boys train, he takes it off its display and brings it to a much smaller cabinet to hide it.
"Monkey paw to the head!" Kai announces as Sensei Wu closes it up.
He then heads for the rest area to see what inane game the group is playing this time. To his surprise, they aren't in the living area. In fact, he can hear the sounds coming from outside.
Sensei Wu quickly moves to the doors leading to the courtyard and opens them. He then sees the astonishing sight of all five teens training in the courtyard. Zane is meditating. Jay is swinging his golden weapon. Kai is using one of the training course's machines, like a treadmill, while dodging obstacles. Cole is flipping through the air. Adrien, not wearing his suit, is running through the training course. And Corinae is practicing with her yo-yo. And Corinae is practicing with her yo-yo.
"Come on, kid. Put some backbone into it. Don't make me have to start poking you with something." Plagg threatens as he tries to pump Adrien up.
Adrien is huffing and sweating bullets, showing he's been at this for a while. He quickly ducks under one of the spinning log arms, only to get smacked in the chest a second later.
"Oh. Should have protected the body." Plagg winces.
Nearby, Kai has had enough of his current training.
"Ninja go!" Kai shouts as he jumps off the machine and uses Spinjitzu to do laps around the training grounds.
As he does, Zane suddenly looks up from his meditation, flips past Jay, surprising the ninja and stealing the Scythe of Quakes from Cole, using it to cut one of the training dummies in half. Cole stares at his now-empty hands in shock as Zane drops the scythe and moves back to the middle of the grounds.
"Ninja go!" Zane screams as he copies Kai's training.
However, his Spinjitzu is leaving an icy path everywhere he goes, causing the entire training ground to freeze over and for Kai, Adrien, and Corinae to slip.
"Hey! Foul!" Plagg shouts at Zane as the three pull themselves up, and everyone but Zane groups together.
"This roof isn't big enough for all of us," Kai says irritatedly, still feeling the sting from his fall.
"Correction. This roof isn't big enough for him." Cole states, motioning to the still-training Zane with his head.
"Don't you think that's a bit harsh? He's just as pumped as we are." Adrien tries to cool everyone down.
"It's like he's in his own world," Jay argues back as Zane stops his Spinjitzu.
The teens all look to see that Zane still isn't paying attention to them. It's like he doesn't even realize that they're there.
"I bet he can't even hear us!" Jay calls toward Zane.
But the white ninja doesn't react. Instead, he pulls out his weapons and starts practicing his throw.
"Well, you've got to admire his dedication," Corinae says awkwardly before dropping her transformation to give Tikki a rest.
As they converse, Sensei Wu walks over to them. When Kai sees him, he can't help but say something that's been on his mind for a while.
"Sensei, Zane's weird," Kai states, causing Sensei Wu's eyes to narrow.
"What is weird? Someone who is different? Or someone who is different than you?" Sensei Wu demands from his students.
"No, Sensei. He's weird, weird." Cole emphasizes as he cuts in.
As he speaks, he recalls a time he was using the bathroom.
-------------------
Cole is sitting on the toilet in the monastery's shared bathroom, reading a newspaper, one of the few forms of entertainment they have at their home. As he reads, Zane suddenly comes in and starts brushing his hair like Cole isn't there.
"Do you mind!?" Cole shouts in embarrassed anger as he uses the paper to cover himself.
-------------------
"And remember movie night!" Jay points out, looking at Nya and Tikki.
-------------------
Jay, Nya, Tikki, and Zane are all watching a particularly heart-wrenching movie.
"Goodbye, my darling." The man says, hugging his fiancée one last time before he has to leave.
Jay, Nya, and Tikki are sobbing, Tikki even dropping the cookie she was holding as she does so. Meanwhile, Zane is laughing like they were watching the funniest scene in a comedy movie, shocking the other three.
-------------------
"Then he did something a couple of nights ago," Kai adds.
-------------------
Kai, in his red pajamas, is heading to the fridge for a late-night snack. When he opens it, though, he jumps back in surprise.
"Holy balony!" Kai screams in alarm as Zane sits in the fridge, holding a balony sandwich.
When his mind fully registers who's in the fridge, he finally starts to calm down. Meanwhile, Zane gives him an impassive stare.
"I'm sorry, I consumed the last of the deli meat." Zane apologizes before looking at the cheese next to him.
"Cheese?" he asks, holding it out to Kai.
-------------------
"They all make valid points. But may I bring up the real elephant in the room?" Plagg adds, causing everyone to look at him.
"The guy can't see us. Like, actually can't notice when we're around him." Plagg states while flying next to Tikki.
"Has that ever happened before?" Plagg questions the other Kwami, causing Tikki to shrug in uncertainty.
"I don't think so. It is strange." Tikki can't help but agree.
Everyone then hears Zane cry out in pain, causing them to turn to see him looking at one of the training dummies wielding an axe.
"We like the guy. He's really smart. He's just, uh, a little off, sometimes." Kai says, his voice growing a little more awkward as Sensei Wu stares him down.
"Zane is a brother. And while I will admit that it's strange that he can't see Tikki or Plagg, brothers are often different." Sensei Wu explains sternly.
"I should know." He adds, his voice taking a solemn tone as he thinks about Garmadon.
-------------------
Meanwhile, as the group converses, someone is climbing the stairwell up to the monastery. It's the mailman, an older man with grey hair in a purple-white uniform. He's also wearing glasses and a straw hat as he carries a massive bag of mail on his back.
"*Huff* They *huff* need to *huff* swap *huff* to carrier pidgeons." He breathes out, always hating this part of his job.
He then takes a moment to stop to see how far off he is. Unfortunately, it looks like he's still a way away from the monastery. In fact, it almost feels like the distance is growing longer with each passing second. Seeing that, he lets out a sigh of defeat before pushing forward.
After a while, he finally reaches the monastery gates and sets his bag down. He then rings the doorbell, only to almost fall in shock since it sounds like a gong.
-------------------
"Mail!" All the teens shout joyfully before running to the front entrance.
They quickly open the door to see the tired postal worker staring at them.
"Let's see." He sighs before digging into his bag.
"A letter from Jay's parents." He says, holding a letter out to the blue ninja, who takes it.
"Kai has a fan letter." The mailman holds the letter to Kai, who grins as he takes it.
The mailman then digs into the bag again and is surprised to pull out a rather thick letter.
"Oh, a letter from Cole's father." He says in surprise, usually not giving Cole anything.
Cole narrows his eyes at it for a second before staring down at the mailman.
"What, no package? I'm expecting something from Creatures, Beasts, and Beyond!" Cole states aggressively as the others walk off.
"Hmm." The mailman says, digging into the bag.
"No, nothing from uh, oh!" The mailman mumbles before finding a package for Cole.
"Here it is." He quickly gives it to Cole, who happily takes it over the letter.
"Ha! Rocky's going to love this!" Cole grins before running off, leaving Adrien, Nya, and Zane.
"Next, we have some fan letters for Nya." The mailman says, pulling out some letters from the occupants of Jamanakai Village.
"Aw, thanks," Nya says happily as she takes them, then walks off.
"And finally..." The mailman says before pouring out the rest of his bag.
"Hundreds of fan letters for Adrien Agreste." He says as a pile of letters pops out.
"Several offers for potential modeling gigs." The mailman says, shaking the bag again to drop another stack.
"And a wheel of Camembert and a magazine from Camembert monthly." The mailman announces, performing one last tug, and drops both items, causing the cheese wheel to roll into the training ground.
"Woohoo!" Plagg cheers distantly inside.
"Nothing from my father?" Adrien asks in disappointment, causing the mailman to shake his head.
"Nope. Sorry, kid." He tells him, causing Adrien to look down sadly.
"Cheer up. At least you're away from the weird fans here." The mailman tries to reassure Adrien before walking off.
"No one will want to come up here unless they have to!" He calls back as he treks down the stairs.
Adrien sighs before closing the door and walking over to the group.
"Nothing from your old man again?" Jay asks Adrien, who nods.
"Unfortunately." He says.
Feeling bad for his friend, Jay notices that Zane didn't get a letter either.
"Hey, Zane. How come you never hear anything from your family?" He asks curiously, causing Zane to look up.
"I don't remember my parents. I've been an orphan all of my life." Zane reveals sadly.
His answers cause the group to look at each other in surprise.
"You mean you never had a home?" Kai asks in surprise, since he and Nya at least had something when their parents left.
Zane shakes his head dejectedly before Sensei Wu interjects.
"The monastery is your home, now." He promises Zane, but the white ninja walks away sadly.
Sensei Wu watches him go, and he can't help but look on in pity as Zane enters the house.
-------------------
Meanwhile, Cole is in Rocky's pen, opening his package for the dragon.
"Liver and toads, Rocky. Your favorite." Cole calls as he pulls out a brown, dead toad.
Rocky pants excitedly, and the black ninja quickly tosses it into Rocky's mouth, and Rocky happily chomps on his treat.
-------------------
Unknown to him, Skales is watching his every action through their secret connection.
Right now, Skales is watching Cole's movements in a massive treehouse fortress that the Hypnobrai are building under Lloyd and Slithraa's orders.
"I can't believe you hypnotized one of the ninjas." Rattla, a human-faced Hypnobrai, is astonished by Skales.
Skales smirks at his tribe member as Rattla continues.
"Does the general know?" Rattla asks somewhat nervously.
"Of course not. He's been put under the control of Lloyd!" Skales snaps in annoyance.
"And I plan to use it for my best interest," Skales reveals to Rattla before the other Hypnobrai's eyes widen and he runs off to get back to work.
Slightly surprised by the action, Skales quickly hears slithering and turns to see Slithraa sliding up to him.
"Everyone works while you two ssssssslack," Slithraa notes angrily, glaring at Skales.
"As my second in command, I expect more from you, Skales!" Slithraa shouts into his commander's face.
Instead of getting angry, Skales smiles and bows.
"Yesssssss, General." He acknowledges before watching Slithraa leave.
"General, you know I am most loyal to you," Skales calls in a honey-sweet voice as he quickly walks toward Slithraa before he can leave.
Slithraa turns back to Skales as the commander continues.
"But I must question this childish agenda. The ninja have stolen our staff. Yet you instruct your army to make this playhouse for Lloyd." Skales explains, looking at all the construction around him.
Slithraa seems to be growing angry as he glares at Skales.
"Snakes don't belong in treesssss." Skales reminds his superior, but Slithraa glares down at Skales, rising to his full height.
"You know better than to question my judgement, SSSSSSkales!" Slithraa fires back at Skales as he leans closer.
"I'll pretend you didn't ask-" Slithraa states.
As he's about to continue, their conversation is suddenly interrupted by Lloyd's shouting.
"Hey!"
The two look down to see Lloyd on a platform, glaring up at them.
"If we plan to rule Ninjago from here, this elevator needs to have a trapdoor!" Lloyd shouts at the duo while stomping on the platform that acts as an elevator up to the tree base.
"I want more booby traps!" He screams like a spoiled child.
"As you wish, Young Garmadon!" Slithraa calls back, his tone taking a much more polite turn.
He then waves Skales off, ordering him to get to work. Inwardly, the snake growls. But on the outside, he bows.
"As you wish, General," Skales says while leaving, hissing the last part out angrily.
-------------------
Back at the monastery, at sunset, the occupants are all preparing to enjoy the fresh dinner Zane made.
"Mmmm~ I love it when it's Zane's night to cook," Jay says joyfully as he finishes one of the starters Zane put down for everyone.
"Hey, I didn't hear any complaints about my duck chowder last night," Cole argues with a playful smile.
"That's because it glued our mouths shut," Kai tells him, causing Cole to look down.
"You really thought Jay and Adrien were speechless all throughout dinner?" He jokes, causing Cole to look at the two in question.
"It was a little gummy," Adrien tells Cole awkwardly before looking to the kitchen.
"But Jay's right. Zane's cooking is even better than what I had with my father.
"Oh, so we're eating rich people's food then?" Cole asks with a grin, causing Adrien to laugh.
"I wouldn't say that. Father kept me on a strict diet to ensure I could stay a proper model." Adrien chuckles.
"Man, the more I hear about how strict your old man is, the more thankful I am, Nya, and I didn't grow up with parents," Kai states, causing Nya to glare.
"Kai!" She snaps.
"What? You know you thought it too." Kai argues back, causing Nya to groan.
"Yeah. I'm with the hot head here." Plagg states while lying on the table next to his wheel of cheese.
"I'm glad the kid got to move here. It means I can be out as much as I want." Plagg states with a grin as he takes another piece of cheese.
"It is nice to move around." Tikki acknowledges.
"And my father isn't that bad. He's just been... protective, since Mom died." Adrien says awkwardly.
"Yeah, let's not get into this topic." Cole quickly tells the others.
"Good. Because I still want to say how you shouldn't make that dish again." Jay tells Cole annoyedly as he remembers last night's dinner.
Before the conversation can continue, Zane opens the kitchen doors and comes in with a whole roast turkey.
"Dinner is served." He announces happily as he sets down the turkey, revealing he's wearing a pink, flowery apron.
Upon seeing it, everyone releases boisterous laughter and bangs on the table. Jay even goes so far as to point at Zane while laughing. Meanwhile, Zane looks on in confusion, unable to find what everyone is laughing at.
"What's so funny?" Zane asks in confusion.
"Zane. You're wearing a- even I wouldn't wear that." Nya breathes out as she tries to regain her composure and points toward the apron.
"You laugh because I take steps to ensure I am clean after cooking?" Zane asks in bafflement as he walks toward his seat.
"Haha, no. We laughed because you came out wearing that ridiculous outfit." Kai states as everyone keeps staring at the apron and him.
"This was a thank-you gift from Mr. Dupain when I went with Cole to visit Marinette. I guess we don't share the same sense of humor." Zane states, causing Jay's eyes to widen.
"Her dad wears that?! He's huge, though!" Jay shouts, spreading his arms out to emphasize Tom's size.
"It was apparently something his daughter made him," Zane explains.
"How about we don't get into this conversation?" Adrien quickly cuts in, not wanting to think about this during dinner.
"Sure. Instead, how about we test Zane's sense of humor?" Cole suggests, before suddenly slamming a plate of shrimp starters into Kai's face. Kai glares at Cole when he rips the plate off, but everyone else but Zane and Sensei Wu is laughing their heads off.
Cole looks toward Zane and notices he's not laughing.
"How could you not find that funny?" He demands between chuckles.
Unfortunately for him, he didn't notice Sensei Wu get up. Or the fact that Sensei Wu grabbed the bowl of soup on the table. He soon finds himself wearing the bowl as a helmet, and soup falls from his scalp.
"Wh- hey!" Cole shouts in surprise.
Sensei Wu chuckles as he walks past Cole while Kai smirks and laughs at the karma. After Kai finishes, Sensei Wu places a hand on both Cole and Zane's shoulders and smiles.
"Now, you are brothers." He tells the two ninjas with a smile.
His action causes everyone to start throwing food at each other. Even Plagg is willing to waste his cheese by throwing it at Adrien. Who quickly follows this by grabbing a food pocket and stuffing Plagg in it.
Meanwhile, Tikki flies next to Sensei Wu's head worriedly as she stares at the chaos.
"Are you sure it's okay to do this?" Tikki asks worriedly.
"It is fine, Tikki. Everyone has been stressed since Lloyd and the Hypnobrai vanished. Let them enjoy themselves." Sensei Wu tells her with a smile, then grabs some fruit from another soup bowl and throws it at Kai while laughing.
As he laughs, Tikki looks around and notices that Zane isn't joining the fun. In fact, he is confusedly looking at the chaos around him. There doesn't even seem to be any sadness despite the ruined meal and the food covering his clothes.
-------------------
Later at night, Zane carries out the trash to the trash bins kept outside the monastery's front gate. As he walks, Tikki flies next to him.
"Don't feel too bad, Zane. The food you made was delicious. Everyone loved it after they had their fun." Tikki promises the ninja as she looks at him.
But Zane still isn't acknowledging her presence. No matter what Tikki does, Zane doesn't react, like she's completely invisible to him. Tikki even goes so far as to poke at him curiously as he puts the trash in a bin. The touching does get a reaction. Zane immediately smacks where Tikki is poking. Tikki only dodges it by instinctively phasing through him.
Zane then looks at his hand in confusion, having felt something poke at his cheek but not finding the insect.
"I suppose it got away." He mutters, then takes off his dirty apron and looks at the stars.
As he looks, he suddenly hears a bird cry. Caught off guard, Zane looks around and sees a dark blue-black falcon. It's resting in the tree near the monastery entrance.
Zane tilts his head in curiosity as he looks at it. To his surprise, the falcon tilts their head back. Zane raises an eyebrow at the falcon, but quickly shakes off his curiosity, only for it to resurface when the falcon shakes its head back at him.
Jaw-dropping in surprise, Zane's curiosity is piqued. He quickly does a small dance to see if the falcon will mimic it. And they do by flapping their wings and moving their claws.
"Wow. It seems to really like you." Tikki notes as she watches the two.
But Zane still can't hear her. Despite that, he continues to smile happily toward the animal. Meanwhile, the falcon looks around on the branch before moving to its end. The falcon then flies off.
Zane watches them go for a moment before hearing the others' laughter inside. Seeing that everyone is having a good time, Zane decides he wants to follow the falcon and see where it takes him.
As he goes, Tikki panics and desperately calls for Zane.
"Wait! Zane!" She calls out before chasing him.
"You can't just leave. I know dinner wasn't great. But everyone still cares about you!" She desperately tries to reason with Zane.
The white ninja isn't giving her any attention. He continues to chase after the falcon without hesitation. Tikki has to stop following and stares anxiously at his retreating figure.
"Sensei Wu! Nya!" She calls in a panic as she runs back inside.
-------------------
It's been nearly an hour since Zane left the monastery. He's now running through a dark, misty forest while the falcon flies a bit ahead of him.
It finally lands a bit ahead of him, atop a tree near a cliff. Zane, struggling to keep up after the marathon he ran, finally stops and tries catching his breath. And when he looks over the cliff, he's met with a shocking sight.
Nearby is the Hypnobrai's tree base, illuminated by paper lanterns hanging along it, bathing it in an orange glow. Zane gasps at it before hearing cries behind him.
"Zane!"
The white ninja quickly turns and instinctively reaches for his weapons. However, he doesn't have them on him, having forgotten to grab them in his rush and not carrying them when he made dinner.
The white ninja tenses but soon relaxes when he sees his friends appear from the foliage. Nya and Adrien are in their transformations, and the others carry their weapons.
"What the heck, man!" Jay shouts angrily as he stares at his friend.
"How did you know that I was here?" Zane questions in confusion, having thought they were distracted when he ran off.
"Tikki told us that you were running off," Corinae states while pointing at her earrings, causing Zane to sigh.
"So, she was near me." Zane questions.
"That's not important right now. Why did you run off, dude?" Cole demands, causing Zane to rub his head.
"I was following that falcon. It seemed to want me to chase after it." Zane explains, pointing to the tree where the falcon is resting.
"A falcon wanted you to chase after it?" Kai asks in disbelief, causing Zane to nod.
"Yes. And it led me to that." Zane states while pointing at the tree base.
"What is that?" Jay questions, it still being too dark for him to see properly.
But that's not a problem for Cat Noir. His eyes give him perfect night vision. They also let him see things further off. Which is why his eyes widen the second he sees the structure, because he can see who is on it.
"There are Serpentine on it!" he shouts in alarm, causing everyone to tense.
"What?!" Jay shouts in alarm before Cole covers his mouth.
"Keep it down, Motor Mouth. Do you want them to spot us?" Cole demands, causing Jay to wince.
"Sorry," Jay whispers.
"So, the Serpentine are building a base out here?" Corinae asks, causing Cat Noir to shrug.
"I guess, kind of weird. Snakes don't belong in trees. At least, not cobras." Cat Noir notes, remembering the features of the Hypnobrai.
"Worry about that later. Right now, we gotta keep Lloyd and his pets from getting a foothold in Ninjago." Kai cuts in as he draws his sword.
"So, what's the plan?" Jay asks as he and Cole draw their weapons too.
"We can probably sneak up and look around since it's night." Cole points out before Cat Noir cuts in.
"Hold on. We don't need to do anything like that." He tells them with a grin, causing everyone to turn to him.
"What do you mean?" Jay questions with a raised eyebrow.
"Did you guys forget what I can do?" Cat Noir asks, raising a palm.
"Cataclysm." He says, causing black, corrosive magic energy to envelop his hand.
"One quick touch with this and their base will be a catastrophe." He jokes with a grin, causing Kai to groan.
"Come on, dude." He sighs while shaking his head at the joke.
"Good plan, though. Take it all out in one go. It'll probably scare them into not doing this again, too, if we get rid of it from under their feet." Cole says, putting his weapon away and punching a fist in his palm.
"That's the plan." Cat Noir says before looking at the base.
"Cover me." He tells the others before running for the base.
"Wait, hang on," Corinae calls after Cat Noir, but the cat boy isn't listening.
Ahead of them, Lloyd is standing on some wooden planks that the Serpentine are carrying with a proud grin.
"If I see one girl in here, I'm going to lose it." He shouts at the Serpentine.
"Who said that!?" Lloyd demands, turning and stomping his foot angrily toward the speaker.
Only to fall on his butt when Cat Noir jumps over him and continues charging straight for the base.
"Here's your guys' first taste of my Cataclysm!" Cat Noir exclaims as he slams his palm into the tree base.
From the point of contact, the wood that makes up the base begins to become brittle and fall out of place. The destruction quickly expands to hit the entire base. It's moving so fast that the Serpentine around and in the base can barely react in time as the place begins to come down.
"What's happening!? Scaly screams in panic as the tree base shakes under him and the others.
They Hypnobrai near the edges find themselves being thrown off the base while everyone else tries to hang onto whatever they can. But that doesn't help much, as the material begins to break in their grips and they start falling too.
"I've heard of it raining cats and dogs, but I've never heard of it raining snakes." Cat Noir jokes as he watches all the Hypnobrai falling with the pieces of the destroyed base.
"My tree fort!" Lloyd screams in horror as he looks at his crumbling base.
Anger soon overtakes him, and he screams.
"Get them!"
"Claim the Miraculous!" Slithraa screams, causing all the Hypnobrai who could hear him to look for the source of the destruction in the chaos.
Some soon spot Cat Noir and charge at him with hammers and other makeshift weapons.
"Cover Cat Noir so he can get away before his Miraculous times out," Cole calls out to the others.
"Ninja go!" The ninjas announce, performing Spinjitzu and charging in.
Meanwhile, Corinae uses her yo-yo to swing into the trees and get an aerial view of everything. She looks down and searches for anyone to pick off.
The ninja charge straight through the Serpentine in their way, then make a wall between Cat Noir and the Serpentine when they reach him. They then drop their Spinjitzu and get into fighting stances.
"We got your back," Jay tells Cat Noir, swinging his weapon while glaring at the Hypnobrai.
"Why do you guys always need to ruin my things!?" Lloyd screams while stomping his foot in anger.
"Sorry, Little Garmadon. Guess we like messin' with your family." Kai calls over to Lloyd.
Lloyd growls at that and screams even more.
"Don't let them get away! I want them to pay for ruining my base!" Lloyd screams at the Hypnobrai, causing some to hiss in annoyance.
"As you wish, Young Garmadon." Slithraa nods as he slithers next to Lloyd.
"Don't allow any of them to escape!" He orders his tribe while pointing at the boys.
"Right away, General." Skales agrees, staring at the group.
More specifically, Cole.
"It's time for you to obey," Skales states, his voice through their connection, causing Cole to wobble slightly.
"Cole, you alright?" Jay asks worriedly when he notices the ninja acting up.
"I must obey," Cole says in a hollow tone, then suddenly slashes at Cat Noir's head.
"Hey!" Cat Noir screams in surprise, his enhanced reflexes and senses being the only reason he ducked in time.
"What are you doing!?" Kai snaps at Cole in surprise and anger.
"Must get the Miraculous," Cole utters in a zombie-like tone before charging at Cat Noir.
"When were you hypnotized?" Cat Noir screams as he sprints to get away from Cole, only for the black ninja to grab his tail and hold him in place.
Before Cole can do anything, Jay comes in and kicks him off Cat Noir.
"You better snap out of it quick, buddy. Because we don't have time for this!" Jay snaps at Cole as Cat Noir makes a break for it.
A Hypnobrai tries to attack him from behind, only for a yo-yo to wrap around their waist before pulling them into the trees.
"What the heck is going on down there?!" Corinae shouts after throwing the Hypnobrai into a branch and activating the yo-yo's cellphone mode.
"Cole's mind controlled! He's trying to get my Miraculou- watch it!" Cat Noir begins to explain before ducking under a slash from a Hypnobrai.
"Great. And the anti-venom is back at the monastery." Corinae groans as she realizes they're in trouble.
"What are we supposed to do?" She questions before remembering something Tikki mentioned to her.
-------------------
It was the night after the group first dealt with the Hypnobrai. Nya was getting ready for bed while talking to Tikki.
"I still can't believe the legend was real." She tells the Kwami.
"Many legends are shrouded in truth," Tikki informs her.
"Well, it's a good thing we got their staff then. It means we can use it whenever we need it." Nya adds, recalling seeing Sensei Wu put it away.
"Yes. But you don't actually need it." Tikki reveals to Nya, causing her to look at the Kwami in surprise.
"What do you mean I don't need it?" Nya questions in bafflement.
"With my Miraculous, you can cure people yourself," Tikki states with a slightly proud smile, flying to Nya.
"Wait. That thing Marinette used to send everyone back can work on the Serpentine?" Nya questions in surprise, causing Tikki to nod with a smile.
"Of course. Miraculous Ladybug is meant to heal and fix what the user wishes. It's supposed to be used to fix what your enemies have hurt." Tikki explains.
-------------------
"Well, here goes nothing." Corinae thinks as she looks at her yo-yo.
"Miraculous Ladybug!" Corinae exclaims as she throws the yo-yo up.
An army of ladybugs appears from the yo-yo and quickly coats the battlefield. The Hypnobrai are caught off guard by the sudden flood of glowing insects. But Skales easily recognizes them and what they'll do.
"Oh no." He mutters in anger and worry.
When the ladybugs envelop Cole, the black ninja suddenly finds his mind back online, looking around in confusion as the others stare at him in worry and caution.
"You alright, buddy?" Jay asks, causing Cole to look at them with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah. Why?" He asks curiously.
Skales growls as he feels his mental connection with Cole get cut off, but soon calms down.
"It doesn't matter. The plan is still going well." Skales utters as he taps into another connection.
During all the chaos, he ordered some Hypnobrai to leave the battlefield and head in another direction. He plans to head that direction himself.
"What do you mean it doesn't matter!? They destroyed my tree base!" Lloyd shouts angrily at Skales, causing the Serpentine to groan.
"Your treehouse isn't my concern right now. What is important is to regain what the ninja and Miraculous users stole from us." Skales growls at Lloyd.
Slithraa is nowhere to be seen. The general also charged at the ninja with his soldiers.
"How dare you talk to me like that. I am your leader!" Lloyd shouts angrily, causing Skales to hiss.
"Not for long." He warns the boy before motioning for the other Hypnobrai to grab Lloyd.
"Wh-hey!" Lloyd shouts in alarm as they get closer.
They happily do and quickly tie him with some vines left over from the construction.
"Let me go! Slithraa isn't going to let you get away with this!" Lloyd screams at Skales, causing the snake to chuckle.
"He won't have a choice soon," Skales says ominously before walking away from the chaos.
Meanwhile, the ninja continue to fight off any Hypnobrai that are still around under Slithraa's command.
"Today, you shall pay for the humiliation you have wrought," Slithraa states before swinging his tail into Kai, sending the ninja flying.
"Jeez, can't you calm down, Snake Eyes?" Cole questions before slashing at Slithraa.
"My name is not Snake Eyes. It is Slithraa." Slithraa growls in annoyance as he ducks the attack and uses his tail to grab the scythe once it passes over him.
Slithraa then spins around and throws Cole into Jay as the blue ninja prepares to launch some lightning at him.
"Wah, hey!" Jay shouts as the two crash into the ground.
"Ninja go!" Zane shouts, using Spinjitzu to charge at Slithraa.
He manages to slam into the general, knocking him to the ground before dropping the Spinjitzu and getting into a fighting stance.
"You have already lost this battle, thanks to Cat Noir destroying your base." He warns Slithraa, glaring down at the Serpentine.
"The battle is far from lost, ninja," Slithraa growls, sweeping Zane's legs with his tail before pulling himself up.
Zane looks up to see Hypnobrai heading toward him.
But before he or they can do anything, the sound of a flute is heard in the forest. When the Hypnobrai hear the flute's tune, they all scream in pain and hold their ears to try to block out the noise.
"What's happening?" Kai questions, staring at the Hypnobrai army's state in surprise and confusion.
Soon, Flame appears above them and lands next to everyone. Atop him is Sensei Wu, holding the flute he put away earlier.
"Quickly, you must get on!" Sensei Wu shouts at the teens.
"Sensei? What's happening?" Cole asks in surprise, remembering Sensei Wu chose to stay behind to watch the monastery.
"There's no time! Where's Cat Noir and Corinae!?" Sensei Wu shouts at the ninja while motioning for them to get on.
"I'm over here!" Adrien shouts as he comes out of the forest while waving an arm.
Everyone quickly gets on as the Hypnobrai try to recover. They then fly toward Corinae and let her jump on.
"Good timing," Corinae utters as she lines up with the others.
"What is that flute, Sensei?" Zane asks curiously as the teens stare at it.
"It's something as old as the Serpentine, used to weaken them and their powers." Sensei Wu explains.
"But that's not important right now. We must hurry. The monastery is unguarded." Sensei Wu explains before having Flame speed up.
-------------------
Far away from this chaos, Marinette lies in her plain room, looking at the ceiling with a blank expression, wearing pajamas and trying to fall asleep. Her mind is a mess, but for a different reason from what it was for the last couple of years.
"I almost wish I could have my memories erased." Marinette can't help but think as she turns in her bed and remembers her journey with the others.
She does not really regret quitting the team, especially after Cole and Zane told her how happy Adrien is there. However, she can't say that a part of her doesn't miss the connection she had there, even if it wasn't entirely great. She hasn't been able to enjoy being in a group like that since everything with Adrien happened.
There's a knock at her door, and she turns toward it before calling out for them to come in. Tom comes into the room with a smile and looks at his daughter.
"Is this a good time? I didn't want to wake you." He promises his daughter gently.
"It's alright, Dad. I wasn't asleep yet." She tells him with a smile.
"That's good," Tom says before walking over to Marinette's bed and sitting down next to her.
"Can we talk for a moment? Father to daughter?" He asks, making Marinette nod.
"Sure." She says, her expression turning to a worried frown.
"Don't worry, you're not in trouble," Tom promises with a comforting smile.
"I just want to talk to you about your friends," Tom explains to his daughter.
"My friends?" Marinette questions in confusion.
"The ninja, of course. They love coming over here. And I see how they keep coming to talk to you." Tom tells her with a smile.
"Oh... them." Marinette nods.
"Yes. Your mother and I are happy that you seem to be making friends again, especially with people who will keep you safe." Tom explains with a proud smile, making Marinette uncomfortable.
"I'm glad you guys are happy." She tells him with a forced smile that she hopes he'll buy in the dark.
"We are. It's been so long since we've seen you so happy." Tom says jovially.
"That's why we'd be happy if you ever want to go and visit them yourself," Tom promises his daughter as she looks at her with eyes full of care.
"You want me to visit them?" Marinette asks, some horror slipping into her tone.
"We're not forcing you." Tom quickly reassures his daughter, raising his arms.
"We just think it would be nice if you tried going out with people your age again," Tom explains to his daughter as his tone softens again.
"I-I don't think that's a good idea." Marinette stutters out nervously as she averts her eyes from her father.
She really doesn't want to mention that Adrien is there. She feels like it will make the situation more awkward.
"And we don't think it's a good idea to force you, especially since they're people who go on dangerous missions," Tom reassures his daughter before placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Just know, if you ever want to hang out with your friends, you can. Just let us know beforehand." He tells her before getting up.
"Sleep well." He says before kissing her head and heading out.
His words unknowingly left Marinette with even more to think about. She can't help but wonder how the group is doing and what they're up to now, though.
-------------------
The group returns to the monastery as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, it's far too late for that to matter.
From above, the group sees the night sky being illuminated by an orange glow emanating from the monastery as flames envelop it. The flames are so strong and have been going on for so long that the home atop is practically a skeleton, the inside completely visible from above and highlighted in the flames.
"No," Adrien utters in horror as Nya puts a hand to her mouth.
"We're too late," Kai utters, staring at his burning second home with a pained expression.
The shock and horror the teens feel soon turn to rage as they growl.
"Those snakes!" Kai grits out as everyone glares at the damage angrily.
While the Hypnobrai lost a base almost none of them liked, the heroes have just lost something they've grown to love.
As the flames grow, the remaining three dragons try to force their way out of their pens to get to safety.
"Rocky!" Cole utters in horror.
He quickly jumps off Flame and heads down the stairs, toward the pen. Meanwhile, the others jump off after him and look at the destruction around them.
"This is horrible," Adrien utters before hearing Plagg scream.
"My cheese wheel?!" He cries as he flies into the house.
"Plagg, wait!" Adrien calls as he's about to chase after the Kwami, but Nya grabs him.
"You can't go in there! You'll get burned!" She desperately warns him before Tikki flies in front of Adrien.
"And Plagg will be fine. Fire doesn't affect us, Kwami, as it does you, humans." She promises Adrien in an urgent voice.
Hearing them, Adrien stays back. But he looks reluctant and worried as he stares into the fire.
As the others look at the chaos, Cole quickly flips the lever to release the dragons and watches them fly off in a panic. Seeing them safe, he lets out a sigh of relief and runs back upstairs as Kai removes his mask to stare at the carnage.
"Our home," Kai utters in despair.
The three freed dragons fly around the monastery, and soon Zane sees his.
"Shard, put this out!" Zane commands.
The dragon quickly hovers over the monastery and shoots an icy wind from their mouth that begins to put out the fire, freezing part of the monastery in the process.
With the primary danger now gone, the ninja are left in the wreckage of the flames.
"The training equipment. Gone." Zane says in horror, finally causing the tension to boil over.
"Our video games!" Jay cries in pain as he runs over and hangs on to Zane in despair.
"They stole their staff back." Sensei Wu notes, not seeing the item in the wreckage but knowing this wouldn't be enough to destroy it.
"What do we do now?" Cole asks before Rocky suddenly nuzzles against him for comfort.
Cole looks at his dragon before sadly petting him. As he does, Kai picks up a pebble from their destroyed home, and his despair quickly gives way to anger, smashing the stone in his palm.
"Ugh, if you hadn't followed that silly bird, none of this would have happened!" Kai shouts in Zane's face.
"Kai." Sensei Wu starts in a warning tone.
But Kai's outburst gives way to the others' anger being targeted at Zane.
"No. Sensei, he's right!" Jay shouts as he stomps toward Zane and gets in his face.
"Because of you, my high score has been deleted!" Jay shouts directly into Zane's face, but the white ninja maintains a calm expression.
"This is a teaching moment. We must learn from this." Zane tries to reason with the others in a surprisingly blank tone, his words causing Cole's anger to boil over as well.
"A teaching moment!?" He demands while getting into Zane's face as well.
"What's wrong with you? Don't you get it? EVERYTHING IS GONE!" Cole screams while throwing his arms out for emphasis as he motions to everything around them.
"Wait. Let's all calm down!" Tikki shouts as she gets between the boys and Zane.
But the boys don't seem willing to listen to her. They still glare at Zane angrily.
"Enough!" Sensei Wu shouts in a stern, forceful tone, causing everyone to turn toward him.
"We are all at fault." He tells the group firmly, glaring at them, seemingly daring them to speak against his words.
"Zane is your brother. Apologize at once." Sensei Wu orders the three.
Hearing his order and feeling their emotions cool into regret, the three turn around.
"I'm sorry, Zane." Kai apologizes as he turns while the other two are silent.
However, when they turn toward Zane, all they see are the remains of the broken monastery. Zane is nowhere to be seen.
"Zane?" Jay calls out worriedly.
Even Sensei Wu is surprised and looks around for the white ninja, only to see that Shard is gone as well.
"Where's Tikki?" Nya calls out in worry as she realizes Tikki is gone, too.
But soon, at least one of their questions is answered when they see Shard, with Zane, flying off.
-------------------
As the ninja mull over what they've done, Skales leads the Hypnobrai army down their tomb, carrying their staff.
As the Hypnobrai around him talk and grumble, Lloyd nervously keeps close to Slithraa as a Hypnobrai pulls him down the tomb with a rope tied to one of his wrists. Scared, he looks to Slithraa and nervously whispers.
"Do something, General." He orders before his face grows anxious.
"Yo-you're still under my command. R-right?" He asks as Slithraa looks down at him.
Slithraa blinks a couple of times, causing Lloyd to grow worried when he doesn't immediately help. However, those worries soon drop when Slithraa begins shouting.
"Enough!" Slithraa calls to his tribe, his voice echoing in the icy caverns of their tomb as he glares at everyone.
"I am the general!" He announces while pounding his chest for emphasis and pointing at Skales.
"You will return my sssssstaff, at onccccce!" He orders his subordinate in an angry, hissing tone.
Skales looks at the staff for a moment before glaring back at his general.
"No." Skale hisses, throwing his arm out and leaning toward Slithraa for emphasis.
His refusal causes some of the tribe to gasp and discuss, while others grin in anticipation.
"You dare challenge my command!" Slithraa demands angrily, causing Lloyd to grin, believing Slithraa will get revenge for him.
Only to drop it and look around in confusion and worry as the Hypnobrai grow excited.
"Slither Pit, Slither Pit, Slither Pit." They all chant and hiss in excitement as they look at their two leaders.
"I guess we will have to fight for it." Skales grins, caressing the staff while grinning at Slithraa.
"In the Slither Pit," Skales announces, raising the staff, getting cheers from his tribe.
Slithraa looks at his cheering tribe while Lloyd looks worriedly toward Slithraa. Meanwhile, Skales glares at both of them before one of the Hypnobrai walks toward him and takes the staff. After the warrior takes it, he walks up a stairwell that leads him into a giant snake sculpture's mouth. Inside the mouth are two control levers.
Meanwhile, Skales and Slithraa move to the center of the cave, where the ice sculptures holding the ice weapons hang above them. Lloyd watches anxiously from his spot tied up under the pedestal as the two stand together, looking up at the staff holder.
"Winner gets the staff and leads the tribe!" The staff holder announces in a gruff, authoritative voice.
"You know the rules!" The Hypnobrai states as Slithraa hisses in annoyance while Lloyd looks up in confusion.
"There are none! But in the Slither Pit, whatever I say goes!" The Hypnobrai shouts as he points at himself.
Both awaiting Hypnobrai make no sounds of disagreement. Seeing this, the staff holder nods.
"All right."
In the next second, he glares down at both of them and shouts.
"Fight!"
At the go-ahead, both tribe leader hopefuls pull away from each other and begin circling each other, watching to see if the other will make a move while keeping their eyes on the body of their opponent. The spectators around them cheer them on as both size each other up. Suddenly, Slithraa spins and tries to trip Skales with his tail. But Skales backs away in time, seemingly anticipating it.
Skales then charges forward and tries to punch Slithraa. However, the tribe general grabs Skales' arm and pushes it down, glaring down at Skales' head, being almost a head taller than Skales. Sure of his grip, Slithraa winds up his fist before throwing it forward. However, Skales slips out of Slithraa's grip and performs a spinning backfist to dodge and counter his opponent.
Lloyd watches as Slithraa tries to recover from the strike, anxiety growing with each passing second. He looks around for anything that might help him or Slithraa. Unfortunately, he doesn't see anything he can use to cut his bind. However, he spots a map near him.
Curious and hopeful, Lloyd pulls himself toward it and reaches for it while watching to ensure any Hypnobrai near him are distracted by the fight. Unfortunately, it's just out of his reach. But the Hypnobrai at least don't seem to care about him.
"Two weapons!" The staff wielder suddenly announces before pulling a lever, causing the snake head armories to drop into both combatants' reach.
Slithraa takes a pickaxe and shield while Skales takes a katana and dagger. The spectators around them cheer even harder as the fight intensifies. As Skales adjusts his grip, Slithraa suddenly throws his pickaxe with surprising strength, sending it flying at a speed comparable to when Zane throws his weapons. Skales barely dodges in time and is shocked at the strength.
The spectators also barely manage to avoid the flying pickaxe. It ends up embedding itself into the wall, leaving massive cracks that continue to grow. Part of the cave shakes, and a stalactite falls from the roof toward Slithraa. The general looks up in shock, then uses his shield to block it, breaking the stalactite into pieces.
"Sidewinder!" The staff holder announces before pulling the second lever, causing the platform the combatants are on to tilt back and forth.
The sudden movement and lack of traction on the ice cause both combatants to lose their balance. Meanwhile, Lloyd manages to pull himself further and finally grabs the map. Smirking, Lloyd puts it under his hoodie with a smirk before watching the fight.
"Go, general! Go!" Lloyd calls out to Slithraa, causing a Hypnobrai to turn to look at him in annoyance.
Slithraa's tail shakes as he uses his eyes to try hypnotizing Skales after the commander makes the mistake of looking at him. But Skales quickly realizes what Slithraa is doing and quickly performs a spinning kick, slamming his foot into Slithraa's face. Surprisingly, though, the general is only slightly stunned by the full-body attack.
Skales isn't done, though. He charges at Slithraa, his weapons raised, and slashes at the general. Slithraa blocks each strike with his shield, though. Seeing that Slithraa's defense is solid, Skales decides to change things up.
He starts shaking his body in slow, purposeful movements, getting as much movement as possible but keeping it controlled. His movements cause Slithraa to pause in shock as he struggles to keep up with Skales' strange movements.
Seeing his chance, Skales charges at Slithraa and uses his chest as a springboard before slamming his other foot into Slithraa's chin. The general shouts in pain as Skales spins in the air, landing and preparing his weapons for another attack as Slithraa falls backward. As he crashes, Slithraa's shield falls into a crack, out of his reach, and the spectators watch in anticipation or shock.
"He used Fang-Kwon-Do!" A Hypnobrai shouts while pointing at Skales in amazement.
Skales grins and slowly stalks toward Slithraa. Meanwhile, Lloyd stares at this situation in horror.
"Get up! Get up!" Lloyd begs the general desperately.
Slithraa groans as he tries to pull himself up. But the repeated attacks to the head have left him barely conscious and unable to move. Finally, he falls back down, no longer having any energy.
Seeing one combatant down, the staff holder quickly rushes down and toward Skales.
"We have a winner!" They announce, raising Skales' arm in victory, causing the tribe to cheer.
The staff holder soon gives the item to Skales, and something surprising happens. A golden glow envelops Skales as the staff shakes in his hand. Skales stares at it in shock as the golden glow grows brighter. Spectators watch in amazement as Skales' legs slowly morph into a giant snake tail, similar to Slithraa's.
Meanwhile, Slithraa's eyes widen in shock as a light blue glow envelops him. He gasps as he can feel his snake tail vanishing, legs replacing them.
Soon, both Serpentines find their roles reversed. Skales now has Slithraa's long tail, while Slithraa has legs like the rest of his tribe. Skales grins ecstatically at his new appearance while Slithraa stays on the ground in defeat.
"Skales, Skales, Skales, Skales!" The tribe cheers ecstatically for Skales' victory while Lloyd glares in anger and worry.
Skales bathes in the cheers of his tribe before glaring at Slithraa as the former general rises.
"You will be loyal to me now!" Skales commands, pointing the staff at Slithraa.
The Hypnobrai around them cheer as they wait for Slithraa's response. Meanwhile, the former general remains on the ground before bowing his head in submission.
"I will do as you command." He makes the promise in a respectful tone, causing Lloyd to stare in horror.
With one issue for the tribe now taken care of, Skales turns and glares at Lloyd.
"You!" He shouts at the tied-up boy, causing him to tense in fear and unconsciously take steps back.
"Leave and never return!" Skales announces, showing mercy despite the headaches Lloyd caused him.
One of the Hypnobrai cuts Lloyd's binding, and the boy quickly runs off while the Hypnobrai either laugh or cheer for their new leader.
-------------------
A day later, the ninjas take refuge at the Four Weapons Blacksmith shop. Everyone other than Zane is sitting at a rather cramped dining table while the dragons rest outside.
"Sorry, guys. But this is all we had left in our old food storage." Kai apologizes to the group as he and Nya bring out some cooked rice to act as their dinner.
"Ah, man." Jay groans.
"Just deal with it until Tikki's strength is recharged so Nya can use Miraculous Ladybug again." Kai sighs as he eats with chopsticks.
The original Miraculous Ladybug Nya used to help Cole didn't work for the monastery because it was destroyed after she used it. However, the monastery's loss meant they didn't have the resources to help Tikki and Plagg recover quickly. So, it became a waiting game.
"Ugh." Jay groans as he eats some of the plain rice.
He sets the bowl down and is about to lean on the table. Unfortunately, he wasn't paying attention and accidentally leaned it on the side of the bowl, causing it to flip.
Luckily, Jay's reflexes let him save the bowl and spill only a little. Seeing it, Jay lets out a slightly broken laugh.
"Ha. New high score." He jokes with a forced smile.
"Remember. We must be thankful for what we still have. We are fortunate that we have Tikki here to fix what was destroyed and this place to keep us warm until it's repaired. Others aren't so fortunate." Sensei Wu tells the group as he holds up a bowl of rice.
"But what are we going to do if they keep attacking us? And what'll happen if Nya loses Tikki? We're just going to end up losing everything all over again." Cole points out after scarfing his bowl of rice.
"He's not wrong. And if my father finds out about all of this, he'll probably lock me back up in my house, and I won't be able to help you guys." Adrien says worriedly.
"I don't really care about the monastery anymore at this point. What I really miss is Zane." Kai interrupts the others while looking down, causing all the other teens to look down as well.
"Yeah. I miss Zane." Jay agrees while looking at his bowl and remembering Zane's dinner.
"Zane?" Nya asks in surprise, causing everyone to look at her in confusion.
"Yeah, Zane. You know. White ninja. The smart, strange one." Jay lists, doing some strange gestures to emphasize the last adjective.
"No, Zane!" Nya shouts while pointing at the window.
The others turn toward it to see Shard landing on the front lawn.
"Zane!" The boys shout joyfully before jumping up and running out to the lawn.
They see the white ninja smiling at them and immediately run to him. Jay is the first to talk, letting out a breath of relief before smiling at Zane.
"Zane, we're so sorry for everything we said. We're a team, and that means we're all responsible." He tells the white ninja, looking at Zane with an expression full of relief for Zane's safety.
"Yeah. And everything is going to be okay now. Nya can use Miraculous Ladybug to fix the monastery. Everything will be back to normal soon." Adrien promises Zane with his own smile.
"You don't need to apologize to me," Zane promises the others in a kind tone.
"But what about all those awful things we said? Kai questions with a guilty expression.
"Isn't that why you left?" He questions in confusion.
"Of course not. I saw the falcon again, and I followed him." Zane reveals, causing the others to smile.
"That's our Zane." Cole chuckles before the group pulls the white ninja into a group hug.
"We're happy to have you back," Nya tells Zane as they hug.
"Even I am. And you can't even see me." Plagg says as he hugs the top of Zane's head.
"Why? Is it my turn to make dinner?" Zane asks with a smile after the others release him.
His words cause everyone to laugh as they stare happily at the ninja.
"Yes, Zane. We would love for you to make dinner." Sensei Wu kindly tells his student, thinking it was a joke.
"But I already made it," Zane reveals, surprising the group as he gets back on Shard.
"Come. I want to show you what I found. I think you will all be pleased." Zane says, waving them to follow him.
Everyone looks at each other in confusion before deciding to listen to Zane.
-------------------
The group now finds itself within the desert, shifting through the sand as Zane leads them forward. No one voices any complaints, though, believing Zane deserved a chance to show them what he found.
Soon, Zane stops in a massive rock-filled area and turns to the group.
"I can't explain it, but I feel a strange connection with the falcon." He tells the group with a happy smile.
"I think he's trying to help show us the path we need to take," Zane adds, causing the group to look at each other in uncertainty.
Zane then continues forward, the group following close behind, and reveals an old ship wreckage lying in the sands after they pass a certain rock. The ship has a dark brown hull with a red stripe running horizontally along it. On the front is a giant red dragon head figurehead with sharp yellow teeth and yellow eyes. The ship's sail is folded like wings, with red markings. In the back of the deck, there seems to be an old house-like structure similar to their home in the monastery, with two white flags at the back corners. Attached at the bottom back corners, covered in sand, are ornate circular devices, like fins. They're likely the devices that propel the ship when it's in water.
"I was going to suggest this as our new home after we lost the monastery. But if it can be fixed, I suppose it will work as where we eat tonight." Zane states, motioning to the ship.
Everyone's eyes widen, and their jaws drop in surprise at the ship.
"My goodness." Sensei Wu utters in amazement.
Soon, Jay's shock turns into curiosity and hope as a certain smell comes from the ship.
"Do I smell pie?" He asks hopefully, causing Zane to smile.
"Cobbler berry," Zane states before his eyes widen.
"Oh, and I made myrtleberry and apple. And-" Zane lists, but soon, the others aren't listening, only focusing on the amazing smell of Zane's cooking.
Jay even goes so far as to let out a happy tear before everyone cheers and runs inside. Zane watches them go happily while Sensei Wu stands next to him.
"I am proud of you, Zane." He tells the white ninja before placing a hand on his shoulder.
"One day, I promise. We will find your family." Sensei Wu promises him, but Zane's expression doesn't shift.
"But I already found them," Zane tells his teacher, causing Sensei Wu to smile at how the white ninja still considers them this after everything.
"I feel there's more to you than meets the eye. There's something special about you, Zane." Sensei Wu tells Zane as he takes his hand off Zane's shoulder and motions to the ship.
"Sensei. Will I become the Green Ninja and see the Kwami?" Zane can't help but ask, causing Sensei Wu's expression to cool slightly while still being kind.
"It's too early to tell. But if it's in your path, you'll know." Sensei Wu promises before giving Zane a warm smile.
"Come now. It would be a shame to let them eat all that pie." Sensei Wu jokes before the two walk to the ship with a smile.
The group soon finds itself enjoying a dinner similar to what Zane made last time, but with more dessert than before. And also, unlike before, everyone is laughing and having a good time. Even Zane is enjoying the humor, going as far as to start a food fight by throwing some food at Cole.
The last couple of days may have been rough, but it seems it's brought the group closer together after they feared almost losing one of their own.
Meanwhile, Lloyd watches the happy family moment only a fair bit away before walking away, alone in the desert, both angry and sad.
And that's it for this chapter! I know I said updates might take a while. But school hasn't started up, and I've been really motivated with this story and a couple of other ideas! I hope you all enjoyed it and would love to see you comment; it always helps with my motivation.
On the subject of motivation. I had two ideas I might want to try later that could get in the way of me writing this, along with my other story, Phantom Nights, Daily Search.
The first one is a Power Rangers x Miraculous fusion fic, where the season 2 Miraculous heroes (with some personality differences) become Power Rangers and have to stop The Kingdom. I've had the idea for a while and am almost done with everything I need for it.
The second one is a Miraculous Ladybug au where Marinette doesn't have a Miraculous (The Ladybug possibly going to Zoe) and uses superpowers she was born with to help the Miraculous heroes. I thought this could be a fun au to write and see where it takes off. But we'll see. My motivations can shift or drop on a dime sometimes.
Besides that, I hope you liked the emphasis on the Miraculous abilities in this chapter. They can be real game changers when used properly. It actually made me debate using Destiny's Bounty. However, I figured they'd prefer to use a moving base after the first attack on the monastery, even if Nya and Tikki can fix it.
