Lloyd is on thin ice with Nova.
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*The Land Bounty bursts out of the portal and bounces around on the mountains until they come to a stop.*
"Ahhh!" They land upside down.
"Everyone... okay?" Lloyd asked.
"Unh. Great, now I know how my socks feel in the dryer." said Cole.
"I feel like throwing up. I don't think I can take another ride." said Nova, using a hand to cover her mouth as to not vomit.
"I think I swallowed my teeth." The ninjas take off their seat belts and jump down. Jay lands on his back, bumping into Kai and knocking him over too. "Whoa!"
"Ow. I'm not liking this Realm so far." said Jay.
"Me... Ugh. Neither." said Kai.
Nya jumps up and presses the screen for the map. "We're off the map. Coordinates unknown."
"Looks like we made it." said Cole.
"From what Master Wu said, getting here isn't the hard part. It's getting home. The Traveler's Tea?" Lloyd looks around until Cole picks it off the floor. "Good. Whatever happens, don't—" The Land Bounty suddenly tilts slightly.
"What was that?" Jay asked.
Lloyd runs to the window to check, and finds they are on the edge of a cliff. "Oh, no."
"What? What is it?" Jay walks towards Lloyd, but Nova acted quickly by using her grappling hook to wrap around Jay and pulling him back. "Are you trying to kill us!"
"Thanks Nova, that was too close." said Lloyd.
"Too close to what?" Kai asked, walking over to Lloyd.
"No, don't!" shouted Lloyd and Nova. The Land Bounty starts tilting over the edge. "Gah!"
"We have to get out of here! Now!" Nya runs off, passing by a screen, and presses for the door. She jumps out, with the rest of the ninjas following. "Cole!"
"Hey! Grab my hand!" Kai pulls Cole up. "Come on!" They look down to see how far the Bounty fell.
Jay scoffs. "Worst parking spot ever."
"Yeah, whoever parked it will get a complain from me." said Nova, taking a look over the cliff.
"Wouldn't that be us?" Jay questioned.
Cole sighs, patting himself. "I thought for a sec." Gasps. "Oh, no!"
"What?" Jay asked.
"The Traveler's Tea." Cole checks himself again. "It's... It's gone!"
Jay scoffs. "Well, that's just great! That's awesome! Now we're stuck on a mountain in the middle of a blizzard with no vehicle, no supplies, and no way back!"
"Ugh. How could you drop it?" said Kai.
"We nearly fell over a cliff! I had other things on my—" Cole tried explaining.
"Enough!" shouted Nova, getting between them. "I'll take a look."
"What! You can't be serious, do you even know how far down it is?" asked Kai.
"No, but I at least are able to get more around, then you guys." said Nova, walking closer to the cliff. Getting ready to jump, but was stopped by Lloyd, who had gone on to grab her hand.
"We can't risk you doing that, when we don't even know what's down there." said Lloyd, before turning to Nya. "Nya, anything on the tracker?"
Nya pulls out the tracker. "Nothing. No signal."
"No. Of course not. That would be too easy. That would give us hope." said Jay.
Nova rolled her eyes, walking away from the cliff, or more so being dragged away by Lloyd.
"So, what do we do?" Cole asked.
"We need to get off this mountain before we all freeze to death." said Lloyd.
"Couldn't Nova, just use the shadows to help us down the mountain?" Jay asked.
The ninjas looked over at Nova, hoping at least she could make it easier for them.
"Can't do it, if I don't know the area well." said Nova, not wanting to take any risk with her powers.
*With a heavy sigh, the ninjas start making their way down the mountain. They get caught in a blizzard, slowing them down. They throw off their hoods and stare into the woods.*
Nova went on to turn on her mask, so she at least could see something without the blizzard blinding her view.
"Finally!" said Jay.
The ninjas continue walking until they reach a forest, shivering.
"Gah, I'm so c-c-cold." said Cole.
Kai tries to use his fire power, but it fails. "If I-I s-still had my powers, I could whip us up a f-f-fire."
"It'sss not your f-f-fault." said Lloyd, until they turned to see growling Frost Wolves approaching them.
"Oh yeah, f-f-forgot about t-t-those." said Nova.
Jay gasps.
"Run!" shouted Lloyd. The Frost Wolves chase down the ninjas as they run away. They jump over a fallen log. Lloyd looks behind him and runs into a tree. "Agh!"
"Lloyd!" Nova quickly turns back, running over to him as she summoned her new weapon. Though it was still a prototype.
(her new weapon/prototype of it)
(image)
"Back off! you mutts!" Nova growled, pointing her sword at them. The Frost Wolves approach them, growling, but they look up and start walking backwards.
"Why aren't they attacking?" Cole asked.
"I don't know. That's really creepy." said Jay, as the Frost Wolves run away.
Nova narrowed her eyes at them, letting out another growl. Until she felt a hand on her shoulder, looking over to see that it was Lloyd.
"Let's go, before they come back." said Lloyd, giving her a small smile.
Nova rolled her eyes, and pushed his hand off her shoulder, while still keeping her sword ready.
As the ninjas walks away, they don't realize a frozen Frost Wolf at the top of a nearby tree. They come to a clearing with people frozen in ice.
Everyone but Nova gasp.
"What happened to them?" Kai asked.
"Whoa." Nya listens closely to one of them. "I can hear a heartbeat. Looks like they've been frozen."
Cole tries to break the ice with his Earth Punch, but fails. "Frozen by what?"
The tracker starts beeping. "Lloyd! I just picked up a faint signal. From the Mech!" said Nya.
"Where?" Cole asked.
Nya checks the tracker. "That way. Due east."
"But what about these people? We can't just leave them like this. They're still alive!" said Jay.
"There's nothing we can do for them now. We don't even know what happened." said Lloyd, but snuck a glance over at Nova.
Nova ignored his glance, as she kept a watch out for those wolves again.
"We have to keep moving. It'll be dark soon. We can come back and help them when we figure out what happened." said Nya.
Jay nods and they follow the signal.
Lloyd walked over to Nova, as they followed the signals. "Are you still mad at me, for blaming you for what happened to Zane?"
Nova stayed quiet, not talking nor looking at him. Just giving him the cold shoulder while looking for any wolves.
"Ocea, please say something." said Lloyd, trying to place a hand on her shoulder. But she quickly slapped it away, and gave him a cold glare before looking away again.
"Stupid Lloyd, you're such a big idiot... the one thing I didn't want. Was for him to lose trust in me because I knew what was gonna happen, I thought the moment we had in the ShuriCopter, meant something... clearly not. This is why I didn't wanna tell anyone, anything, about what was gonna happen. Because the moment I give off any important information, I'm to blame for the fucking outcome." Nova thought deeply to herself.
"The signal's very faint. Must be some interference or something." said Nya, snapping Nova out of her thoughts.
"Maybe it's the cold." said Cole.
"Or the beacon on the Mech is—" Jay was cut off as the Frost Wolves appear again, growling.
"Oh, great!" said Nya.
"I'm getting a little tired of this!" said Kai.
"Yeah, I think I'm done running. What do you say, guys?" said Cole.
"Here they come!" said Jay.
The ninjas throw on their hoods. The wolves leap toward the ninjas.
Nova had her weapon change mode, but she was having some trouble getting it to work. "Stupid prototype, I'll need to do some adjustment to it later."
"Let 'em have it!" Lloyd strikes down one of the Frost Wolves with his Energy, while the other one leaps at Nova. Lloyd quickly gets in front of her, and throws it off against a rock. The other wolf runs toward Jay and Nya.
"You okay Nova?" Lloyd asked, looking over at her.
"..... I'm fine..... thanks." said Nova, as her weapon finally changed to its blaster mode. "Looks like hunting season has arrived early." She began firing at the wolves, even one that tried sneaking up on Lloyd.
"I thought you would be happy after I just saved you. And why aren't you using your powers, it clearly looks like your new weapon isn't ready yet." said Lloyd.
Nova once again gave him the cold shoulder, and wasn't giving him any answer.
"Ha-ah!" Jay blasts his Lightning at it, and it rolls away, electrified. The other leaps toward them and knocks them down.
"Unh!" Nya gets up as two wolves surround her.
"Nya. Use your powers!" shouted Kai.
Nya tries to use Water, but fails. "I'm trying, but nothing's happening!"
"We're surrounded by water!" shouted Kai.
"It's all frozen!" shouted Nya. Suddenly, arrows fly, scaring the Frost Wolves away. They run off, barking. The ninjas look up to see three mysterious people. They beckon the ninjas to follow them and take them to across a frozen lake to their village. They enter a cabin with a fire burning and a woman sitting inside.
Nova went on to unsummoned her weapon, as they were finally safe.
"Come. Come. Warm yourselves." said the woman.
The ninjas goes over, and sits down by the fire.
"Thank you! thank you!" said Kai.
Jay sighs. "That feels good."
"Thank you very much ma'am." said Nova, giving a smile.
The ninjas stare at each other. "She actually knows manners?" They whispered.
"Who are you? What is this place?" Nya asked.
"Oh, this is my home. I am Sorla, of the People of Great Lake. Who are you? Where do you come from?" said the woman.
"Far away." said Lloyd.
"Beyond the forest?" Sorla asked, to which Lloyd nods. The three Ice Fishers gasp. "Beyond the mountains?"
"Yes." Lloyd stands up.
"Oh! Beyond the mountains?" the Ice Fishers asked.
"We come from...from a place called Ninjago. We're looking for a friend of ours. His name is Zane." Lloyd explained.
"Oh, we have seen no one for many years. We are the last tribe on the ice. The others have fled south, and soon, we too must go. The cold grows too strong. The ice, too thick. But perhaps, Sorla can help. Look, come. Look into the hearth fire." Sorla throws ashes of spirits into the fire. "Tell me again of your friend?"
"Zane." said Lloyd.
"And the place from which he came?" Sorla asked.
"Ninjago" answered Lloyd.
"Show us, spirits of the earth, spirits of the lake. Show us the fate of Zane from Ninjago." The fire bursts into flame, showing an image of the Castle of Ice.
"Whoa! Wow!" said the ninjas.
Uthaug gasps. "The Emperor!"
"The Castle of Ice!" said Boma.
"I...I am sorry for your loss." said Sorla.
"What do you mean?" Lloyd asked.
"You cannot save your friend. He has been taken prisoner by the Ice Emperor. For decades, he has ruled this realm, crushing all who stand in his way. His Ice Castle is on the other side of the mountains. A bitter, foul place where the ice is corrupt. A place we do not go." Sorla explained.
"Zane is there? In this Ice Castle?" Lloyd asked, and Sorla nods, sadly. "Can you show us the way?"
"You cannot! It is too cold! The ice there is evil! Dark Ice! No one goes there but the Emperor and his Blizzard Samurai. And they are inhuman. Only a fool would go there. Your friend is lost." said Sorla.
"No. I refuse to believe that. Zane is strong. I know him. And he would never give up on us, and we're not going to give up on him!" said Lloyd.
"Yeah!" said Kai.
"Yeah! And if you think we're not fools, you've got another thing coming." said Cole.
"With everything we've been through, you'll be surprised how crazy we'll go to save a friend." said Nova.
"Ninja never quit." said Nya.
"All of you speak as one?" Sorla asked.
"We speak as one." said Lloyd.
"Your friend is very fortunate. But be warned. The Emperor's General, sees many things. The Dark Ice serves him. If he knows you are here, he will warn the Emperor." said Sorla.
"Vex?" Lloyd asked.
"He will send his Samurai. They feel nothing. They fear nothing. They will come for you." said Sorla.
"Might as well get ready for them." said Nova, summoning her prototype weapon from behind her back. And began working on it.
"What is that?" Sorla asked.
"A weapon, I'm working on." Nova asked.
"I am not sure how useful it will be against his Samurai, or even the Emperor." said Sorla.
Nova just shrugged at that, but went on to working on it.
"Where did you get tools to work on that?" Cole asked.
Nova looked over at him with a raised eyebrow. "I think you guys already know."
"When did she steal them?" Jay whispered.
"Where did she steal them from?" Kai whispered.
"How did she steal them, without us noticing it?" Nya whispered.
"Nova, can we talk for a moment?" Lloyd asked.
Once again, Nova was giving him the cold shoulder, and at this point the ninjas could feel the tension growing slowly between them.
"Nova must be really upset at Lloyd, if she is acting like he isn't here." Jay whispered.
"I thought she had forgiven us, after what happened." Cole whispered.
"Maybe us, but probably not Lloyd." Kai whispered.
"I think I liked it better when they were fighting out loud." Nya whispered.
"You guys do know we can hear you, right?" said Nova, still working on her weapon. While Lloyd was glaring at them with his arms crossed.
The ninjas let out a nervous laugh, and looked everywhere else to avoid making it worse.