When his anger had reached its peak, that was when Kai’s hands burst into flames. The fire lit up the night for a few yards with a roar, startling everybody. The soldiers holding him down cried out with shock and pain and staggered back. Gesber squealed something unintelligible and, suddenly unbalanced in the middle of a swinging blow, stumbled back to get away and fell sprawling on the grass. Everyone stood stock-still and gaped at the young man whose hands were suddenly blazing. Elation erased most of the physical pain he felt. Triumphantly, Kai jumped to his feet, stood in a traditional ninja fighting stance, and cast a cocky grin at his audience of Pawreles peasants and Pingous soldiers. “I don’t know how you do things here in Pawreles,” he declared. “But where I come from, villains like you are put in their place!” Everyone was staring at him like he had grown four arms. Then a voice cried, “Keep back! He must be a mage!” A mage, huh? Kai smirked. Can a mage do this? “Ninjaaaa-go!” With the signature battlecry from his home, Kai whipped around and created a Spinjitzu vortex. The bright orange light of it lit up the entire clearing in a warm glow. Startled shouts and cries echoed into the night. No one could take their eyes off of the unearthly spectacle taking place before them. First things first: Kai made a point in ramming into Gesber. From his dim line of vision outside the vortex, he could see the young private being flung up in the air and away into the trees. The girlish squeal it elicited from Gesber was more than satisfying for Kai. Then he turned on the rest of the soldiers. Like pins before a bowling ball they fell before him, as his Spinjitzu whipped one way and zipped the other across the ground. Men by the dozen were flung in and out, flailing and screaming in terror. None of them had ever heard of nor experienced Spinjitzu before, and this introduction to the art was far from a gentle one. Kai had a little too much fun flinging his enemies around like limp rag dolls.
He let the vortex evaporate within a second and surveyed the scene. Pingous soldiers lay strewn about here and there, stunned and groaning. The few who had been far enough away from the skirmish now retreated a few steps backward, eyeing Kai warily. Meanwhile the Pawrelesers stood still and stared at him in utter and blatant astonishment. “That’s what a ninja does, Jukeni.” Kai grinned at the other boy’s slack-jawed face. General Daigsohn’s rumbling cry broke the too-short silence. “What are you standing around for, you idiots?!” The big man snarled at the soldiers cowering away from Kai. “He’s just a boy! Quit acting like sniveling little sholohs and get him!” Spurred on by their irate leader, the soldiers gripped their spears and swords, glared at their young adversary, and in a bumbling group, charged at him. Kai couldn’t have asked for anything better. He kicked the first and second men in the stomach, where their armor wasn’t as thick, and send them falling away with the breath knocked out of them. The third came at him with his spear bared and aimed at Kai’s torso. The ninja snatched the spear below the head, wrenched it out of the soldier’s grasp and used his other hand to deliver a smart uppercut, followed by another kick to the stomach. The third one joined the others on the ground. Movement caught his eye from the side, and he saw a younger man coming at him swinging a straight-bladed sword. Swiftly, Kai ducked backwards on his feet as the blade sliced just inches above his head. Within two seconds he straightened up, leaned forward, grabbed the off-balance man by the collar of his cuirass, and shoved him aside to the ground. “Holy cow,” Jukeni mumbled. Beenthina, mouth gaping open at the spectacle taking place before her, took a moment to glance up at her brother and ask, “Can you do that?” “Holy cow,” was his only response.
Another Pingouser came. Kai delivered another kick, this time to the chest that sent the other man reeling back with an expression of shock and pain. Kai had one moment to regain his fighting stance and keep his fists into balls before another of the red-clan opponents lunged at him with a spear. He grabbed the spear again, wrenched it away, and leaned forward in the soldier’s unprotected area of the body and punched him thoroughly in the stomach, then two more to the face. A challenging cry sounded from behind him. Kai whirled around in time to see another spear swinging his way. He ducked its blow, and raised one arm up to block the second blow. Then he shoved himself forward, catching the man off guard and folding his arm into himself and swinging his elbow around to hit the man on the side of his face, resulting in another fallen adversary. Two more came at him at once, one from each side. One was swinging his spear in an overhand blow, intending to hit Kai in the head. Kai ducked low on his knees, letting the first man accidentally hit the second man, then using his place on the ground to hit his legs. They both stumbled with loud groans, and Kai jumped to his feet to deliver several more blows, taking turns between hitting each man before they both slumped to the grass with faint moans. “Holy cow,” Jukeni said once more. This went on for another thirty seconds more. It took that much time for the Pingousers to get it through their heads that they were in a little more danger than they had previously thought, and the survivors now regarded Kai with wariness. There was a lull in the battle due to the hesitant warriors. Kai found himself standing alone in a circle of bodies, with wane-faced people edging away from him and staring in horror. “Fight back! Fight back, you cowards!” Daigsohn cried out furiously (from his safe distance of ten yards away from where Kai stood). Kai felt a surge for disgust for the Pingous officer. He turned toward him and curled his lip. “Ah, go pick on someone your own size, Egg-head.” “‘Egg-head’?” Daigsohn sputtered. “What—?! Oh, is it because of the shape of my helmet—?”
The rest of the big man’s words were drowned out by the roar of fire summoned from Kai’s hands. A smoking fireball the size of a watermelon flew through the air, over Daigsohn’s head, and smashed headlong into one of the rectangular vehicles. The fire bounced on the metal for a moment before a loud explosion shook the air. Nama shrieked and grabbed Beenthina as she fell low onto the ground. Everyone else ducked their heads and shut their eyes against the burst of light and the wave of heat. A few soldiers standing close to the vehicle cried out in terror and stumbled away from the smoke and fire. The tall trees were now illuminated brightly against the burning wreckage, and a thick cloud of smoke rose in the night sky. Kai couldn’t resist a happy chuckle. “That’s what you get for messing with the Master of Fi-yah!” There was a strange moment of quietness, in which the flames roared and everyone stood still where they were, stunned into silence. Then, Kaeden stirred. He blinked and looked between Kai and Jukeni. “We need to run.” Kai frowned. “Why? I just—” “I don’t care what you are—a mage, a ninja, a pixie,” Kaeden responded with uncharacteristic ferocity. “But it’s not going to take long for them to realize that they still outnumber you a dozen to one, and we’re not going to help matters by staying here.” “He’s right.” Nama spoke up unexpectedly. She was standing up now, and clutching Beenthina to her skirt. Her long, dark, disheveled hair stood out against the massive flames behind her, shadowing her face. “You need to go, now. Into the forest. Most of the soldiers will be too afraid to follow you in there, but that doesn’t mean you can slow down. Join the rebellion.” “Mum?” Jukeni spoke up hesitantly. He looked at her uncertainly, biting his lip. “Are— are you mad?” Nama looked at him quietly for a moment, then responded, “I don’t like that you’ve been lying to me, or that you’ve put your family in danger by joining the rebellion. But I love you. That’s why you need to go.”
Some of the Pingous soldiers who had scurried away were now drawing near again, eyeing the flaming vehicle and the Pawrelesers standing on the lawn together anxiously. General Daigsohn lay in a heap a few feet away from the wreckage. Kai couldn’t tell if he was alive or not. During Jukeni and Nama’s exchange, Kaeden was gazing over at the hulking canine figure of Enazsohn, who stood a few feet away with his back to them. Now he spoke, softly. “Uncle Drugu…?” Enazsohn whirled around and snarled. “You wretched liar. How dare you eat and sleep under my roof, lying to me while you work working for traitors and terrorists?!” His thick brown fur bristled menacingly. “I ought to punish you here and now, and send you to join your pathetic parents! You should never have been born!” Kaeden flinched back as if he’d been struck. “Uncle—” “Don’t call me ‘Uncle’! As far as I’m concerned, you’re no relative of mine! I’m ashamed to have to been the one to be stuck with you.” His lips curved into a sneer. “You’re better off gone. At least if you turn yourself in now, it’ll be easier on you.” Kai’s anger flared. “Hey, watch it, big guy!” He flicked his hand, summoning another flame. “Keep talking like that, and I’ll do the same thing to you like I did to that little truck-or-whatever over there—” “Get them!” Gesber’s voice cried a few feet away. The young man gestured a sword at Kai and the Pawrelesers. “We outnumber them! All together, in a group!” The jumbled string of troops hastily scrambled to form into some kind of line of order. Nama cried out, “Now! Go now!” “But what about you—?” Jukeni gaped in dismay. “We’ll be fine! They can’t hurt us if there’s no legal proof your sister or I were involved. Go!” She shoved both Jukeni and Kai away. “Go, go!” Kai could see the enemy army beginning to gather itself. Already they had a string of soldiers in the front, with Gesber leading them, and they were nearing their prey with growls and mutters. Kai yanked on Jukeni’s arm. “It’s now or never, Jukeni!”
:c Talon...What he has to go through these past several chapters is just so unbelievably painful and cruel. Poor dude needs a break
Matilda is awesome! xD I love how even Black Blood, this almighty Moon Tribe Queen with a thirst for familial vengeance and destruction of all humanity, can get startled by something so small so easily
Me, knowing what else happens to Eagle Talon in this episode: *nervous sweating* OwO'
XDD We all need a little Matilda in our lives.
Tigress, no- (but also yessss?) xD
That's so true! Who doesn't love having a magical, wonderfully sarcastic and honest Matilda by their side? Life would become so much more interesting and fun this way~
Thank you! To be honest, writing these chapters I found myself more interested by what was going on in Ninjago rather than Kai's isekai adventure, but I tried to make his parts as interesting as I could.
I'd say you did a great job balancing between the isekai worlds and Ninjago! Seeing Skylor and Kai's adventures gives a nice little breathing space among the sibling fights and revenge battle business, and it's so interesting to learn how differently these worlds function too
When his anger had reached its peak, that was when Kai’s hands burst into flames. The fire lit up the night for a few yards with a roar, startling everybody. The soldiers holding him down cried out with shock and pain and staggered back. Gesber squealed something unintelligible and, suddenly unbalanced in the middle of a swinging blow, stumbled back to get away and fell sprawling on the grass. Everyone stood stock-still and gaped at the young man whose hands were suddenly blazing. Elation erased most of the physical pain he felt. Triumphantly, Kai jumped to his feet, stood in a traditional ninja fighting stance, and cast a cocky grin at his audience of Pawreles peasants and Pingous soldiers. “I don’t know how you do things here in Pawreles,” he declared. “But where I come from, villains like you are put in their place!” Everyone was staring at him like he had grown four arms. Then a voice cried, “Keep back! He must be a mage!” A mage, huh? Kai smirked. Can a mage do this? “Ninjaaaa-go!” With the signature battlecry from his home, Kai whipped around and created a Spinjitzu vortex. The bright orange light of it lit up the entire clearing in a warm glow. Startled shouts and cries echoed into the night. No one could take their eyes off of the unearthly spectacle taking place before them. First things first: Kai made a point in ramming into Gesber. From his dim line of vision outside the vortex, he could see the young private being flung up in the air and away into the trees. The girlish squeal it elicited from Gesber was more than satisfying for Kai. Then he turned on the rest of the soldiers. Like pins before a bowling ball they fell before him, as his Spinjitzu whipped one way and zipped the other across the ground. Men by the dozen were flung in and out, flailing and screaming in terror. None of them had ever heard of nor experienced Spinjitzu before, and this introduction to the art was far from a gentle one. Kai had a little too much fun flinging his enemies around like limp rag dolls.
Me, knowing what else happens to Eagle Talon in this episode: *nervous sweating* OwO'
XDD We all need a little Matilda in our lives.
Tigress, no- (but also yessss?) xD
That's so true! Who doesn't love having a magical, wonderfully sarcastic and honest Matilda by their side? Life would become so much more interesting and fun this way~
Tigress yes. XD
It's like having- uh- a magical grumpy aunt! Or something...
Thank you! To be honest, writing these chapters I found myself more interested by what was going on in Ninjago rather than Kai's isekai adventure, but I tried to make his parts as interesting as I could.
I'd say you did a great job balancing between the isekai worlds and Ninjago! Seeing Skylor and Kai's adventures gives a nice little breathing space among the sibling fights and revenge battle business, and it's so interesting to learn how differently these worlds function too
0.0 Thank you! I was worried about balancing out well, so that's great to hear.
Jukeni looked at him—then bolted. Kaeden and Kai joined him, and together the three boys ran away from the assembling soldiers and toward the inky silhouettes of the dark forest. “Don’t let them get away!” Kai heard Gesber’s voice cry furiously. He whipped around for one moment to send a fireball spinning. The Pingousers shouted in terror as the ball of heat flew toward them, and all jumped and stumbled out of the way, barely in the nick of time. The fire hit the ground with a loud roar, but only succeeded in singeing the grass. It was enough to stall them for a moment, and he continued running. Within seconds, Kaeden, Jukeni, and Kai burst through the foliage and darted through the black trees. They were shrouded in near-complete blackness as they fled further away from the orange glow of the fires by Nama’s home. They tried to ignore the enraged cries behind them and ran. Dark shapes of trees and bushes flashed by Kai’s vision. He stumbled on hidden roots and rocks several times, but never slowed. Jukeni was close behind him, with Kaeden taking the lead in long, bounding strides. “Where are we going?” Kai gasped. “Anywhere that’s away from them!” Jukeni retorted. Behind them, branches snapped and brash voices shouted and swore. Kai risked a glance over his shoulder, but he could not make out any sight of their pursuers. Somehow hearing them but not being able to see them through the thick blackness of night made his heart pound harder with tension. “We can’t run forever!” he called. “Oh, so do you have a better idea?” was Jukeni’s scathing response between ragged gasps. “I don’t suppose your magic fire powers can summon some— some giant phoenix to fly us away, do you?” That’s it. Kai came to an abrupt halt. “No.” He felt a broad grin spread across his face. “I’ve got something better.” Kaeden slowed, and Jukeni stumbled to a stop beside Kai. He leaned forward with his hands on his knees, panting, “What do—you think—you’re—doing?!” “Kai, we’ve got to keep running.” Kaeden look gravely at him. “There’s a river nearby. If we can get there and hide under some of those logs the fishermen use—”
“Wait!” Kai held up his hands to stop him. “Guys, I’ve got a better idea. Watch this.” Jukeni and Kaeden wore identical expressions of puzzlement and barely-suppressed impatience as Kai walked a few paces away from them, choosing a somewhat-wide spot that was clear of trees. There, he took a deep breath, held his hands out, and once again summoned fiery energy within him. There was a flash of blinding light. Jukeni and Kaeden stumbled back with startled shouts. Within a second the light faded to a lower red glow—and a rumbling growl shook the air. Kai couldn’t stop the grin on his face growing wider. “It may not be a phoenix, but it should get us to where we want to go.” Kai’s elemental dragon stood before him and the Pawreles youths, towering over their heads, at least twice as tall as Kaeden was. Its massive, scaly body shimmered a dark crimson color, with a few pale silver scales standing out against its snakelike neck and the two hind legs it balanced on. Smoke flew from the beast’s nostrils. Its tail twitched and lashed slowly over the grass. Kai felt a familiar thrill of excitement when the great beast opened its bright amber eyes and looked at him. It was not alive—made only by the ninja’s own energy of his power—but the illusion seemed to move and breathe like any other animal. There was a moment of stunned silence before Jukeni squealed, “Wha— what is that thing?!” “My dragon.” Kai turned to smirk at him. As if his movement prompted him, the dragon’s head twitched toward where Jukeni and Kaeden stood, and its long whiskers trembled as it sniffed the air. Jukeni stammered, never taking his eyes off the glowing animal. “A— a dragon? What’s a dragon—?” “Whatever this is, it looks like a way to get out of here,” Kaeden remarked tersely. “You can control it, Kai?” For an answer, Kai ran and took a bounding leap onto the dragon’s back. “Come on! Those eggheads will be here any second!” He settled into his familiar place atop the dragon’s neck and gripped the chains that always seemed to come out of nowhere whenever the elemental dragons were summoned.
Kaeden didn’t need a second prompting. The dog-man bunched his hind legs under him, lashed his tail once, then jumped up and swiftly joined Kai. Jukeni, on the other hand, had a little more trouble getting on. It took several clumsy hops and frantic scrambling before Kai and Kaeden were able to lean over, snatch Jukeni by one arm and the collar of his shirt, and drag him on. He breathed in short, uneven gasps, and couldn’t stop staring down at the dragon upon which he sat and the distance that was between him and the ground. He sat behind Kaeden and gripped him tightly around the torso. “It’s like a boonca…” he murmured faintly, “but smaller and more lizard-y…” “What now?” Kaeden demanded. A harsh voice cried, “There they are!” Gesber burst out from the foliage and into the clearing, closely followed by the rest of the Pingous soldiers. When they caught sight of the enormous, shimmering creature standing before them, they all froze in their tracks. “Now,” Kai declared smugly. “We fly!” The red elemental dragon threw back its head and voiced a thunderous roar that made the air itself tremble. It shifted on its two feet with a birdlike movement, and, on either side of the three riders, spread its dark, leathery wings. Gesber started to shriek, “Shoot it! Someone shoot it! Shoot it, shoot it, shoot it!” The dragon snarled and took a running start toward the soldiers. The men scattered with terrified yelps, some dropping their weapons. Kai laughed when he felt Kaeden and Jukeni involuntarily stiffen behind him. “Hang on!” The dragon ran past the spot where the dozen warriors had been before, took a flying leap, and lifted itself up into the sky with booming thrusts of its wings. Another roar split the air. Kai leaned forward in his seat and gripped his ride’s neck with his legs. He couldn’t stop the wide grin he knew was planted on his face. Feeling the wind whip through his already-wild hair, he lifted his face up and let out a happy whoop. The dragon growled in response. In the background, Kai could faintly hear Jukeni screaming. His insides leapt as they burst into the sky.
Then—they stopped going up. The whoosh of flapping wings paused for a moment, and they glided smoothly. Kai opened his eyes and saw that they were flying hundreds of feet above the dark mass below that was the forest. The sky was dark, sprinkled lightly with pale stars. The air was cool and moist. Kai inhaled deeply. His heart was swelling with jubilance. “It’s good to be doing this again,” he murmured. “My word… my Star Guards…” Kaeden’s voice quivered behind Kai. He could feel the dog-man’s huge hands gripping his shoulders tightly. “This is… incredible!” “It’s nuts!” Jukeni whimpered. “Wha—? How can you—?” “I told you, Jukeni. I’m the Master of Fire.” Kai responded smugly. “I do this kind of thing all the time back home.” Kaeden breathed, “You’re a mage.” “No,” Kai corrected. “A ninja. The Fire Ninja.” Kaeden cast his gaze across the trees they glided over. “You really aren’t from Pawreles—or anywhere near it, for that matter… are you?” Kai didn’t reply. The dragon tilted and turned. Where the thick rows of trees ended was the clearing where torches flickered daintily. The boys looked grimly at the dark figures scurrying about as they passed over the clearing. Jukeni muttered, “Be safe, Mum.” The dragon flew on. With an occasional flap of the leathery wings it carried its passengers away from the scene in the clearing, away from the nearby village, and away from danger. They drifted higher into the sky, nearing the few pale clouds floating by. The sky opened up all around them, as if they were slipping from one world into a different, more surreal one. A strange hush enveloped them, and in the open globe of both darkness and moonlight, the stars were the only companions to the fugitives. “Where to now?” Kai finally broke the silence. He tried not to shiver now in the chilly air. Barefoot and in a thin nightshirt was really not the best attire for dragon flying.
“Just set us down by the river.” Kaeden gestured to the left, where Kai caught sight of a thin silver line weaving through the thick of the forest. “You shouldn’t get involved in this. There’s not much we can do to make it up to you, Kai, but we can at least point you to the harbor where a ship might—” “What are you talking about?” Jukeni had stopped screaming when they had been gliding gently, and now he spoke normally with a note of incredulity. “Kai is involved with this. He wasn’t meant to be, but he is. Gesber and all the rest totally think he’s with us. They want to catch him just as much as they want to catch us.” “That’s right,” Kai added. “I’m stuck with you two.” “I’m sorry,” Kaeden protested earnestly. “This is our fault. If we hadn’t—” “Hey, don’t sweat about it!” Kai retorted loftily. “I was getting bored, anyway. It’s about time some action happened around here. Look,” he added when he heard Kaeden taking a breath to protest. “The Pingousers suck. That’s pretty obvious to anyone. I like the sound of this rebellion, and from what hear of it, you guys could use an extra fighter on your side.” He turned his head to cast them a little smirk. “If you want some help taking down King What’s-His-Face, I’m your guy.” Jukeni stared at him incredulously for a moment before his freckled face broke into a wide smile. “You’re serious?” “Of course! Least I can do for you picking me up in the woods.” Kaeden, on the other hand, looked at Kai thoughtfully. “Is there another reason you want to help us?” Kai hesitated, trying to find an excuse. Then, he shrugged to himself. Why lie? Might as well… “I want to get into Lord Hälogen’s castle.” Kaeden and Jukeni shared a puzzled look, then stared back at Kai. “Why?” Kaeden asked.
Matilda is awesome! xD I love how even Black Blood, this almighty Moon Tribe Queen with a thirst for familial vengeance and destruction of all humanity, can get startled by something so small so easily 
![[derp]](http://storage.proboards.com/6672327/images/YqNTPqyQUocVMYXZgUAI.png)
Tigress, no- (but also yessss?) xD 
Life would become so much more interesting and fun this way~
To be honest, writing these chapters I found myself more interested by what was going on in Ninjago rather than Kai's isekai adventure, but I tried to make his parts as interesting as I could. 
![[y]](http://storage.proboards.com/6672327/images/WYWPH2VRo26pOFDid7QZ.png)
Tigress yes. 
a magical grumpy aunt! Or something... 