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Oct 27, 2021 19:01:24 GMT
Post by LordTigress on Oct 27, 2021 19:01:24 GMT
Unexpectedly, a little sneer curled her lips. “The sorcerers need something to do—something entertaining.” She smiled coldly at the other cat. “And I think I know just what will cheer everyone up.”
* * *
Clouds shimmering in starlight drifted by the small circular window. The Bounty was on the move. By morning they would reach Ninjago City and warn the people of the incoming attack. Cole wondered if panic would flood the streets, or if everyone was so used to it by this point it’d be like an unwanted regular fire drill to them.
Breathing a sigh, he removed the gauntlets, shoulder pads, breastplate, boots, belt and the rest of the attachments from his uniform. He slipped out of the outer gi covering so that he wore only his sleeveless shirt and pants. Lowering himself gently into bed, pricks of pain ached from his collarbone. The bite needed either a better bandage, more medicine or both; the breastplate had been chafing against it all evening, especially while he’d been fighting.
With all that had been happening that day, Cole felt that his mind should have been on anything else: Talon returning to the good guys’ side, Lou getting more involved in the mission, the incoming attack on Ninjago City, or their recent victory in Oxstone. Yet, despite all that, the one oddly persistent though plaguing him in the past few days has been none other than the thought of Liana.
It was odd… She could be out of sight and he could be doing something that should in no way remind him of her, yet an image or abstract idea of her would pop up in his mind. This happened several times during the day, along with random flashbacks of memories involving Liana: that night in the snowy field where they fell asleep, talking together in his room, escaping the flooding tunnels, the conversation in the kitchen the morning after they’d escaped the bandit palace, holding her hand last night in Shiro’s attic, and more… Sometimes he would simply conjure up her face in his head.
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Oct 28, 2021 15:23:15 GMT
Post by LordTigress on Oct 28, 2021 15:23:15 GMT
The picture of her that most often came up was when she was wrestling with him in the snowy field; laughing, gasping for breath, cheeks flushed pink while her hair fell messily around her face. He kept remembering how he’d hugged her around her slim waist as they’d tumbled down the hill and how she’d clung to him… then waking up and finding her snuggled up against him in his embrace—sleepily tucking her head beneath his jawline, her hand resting on his chest, and her breath warming his cheek—
Knock it off, man. Cole’s face burned. There, it had happened again—he had fallen into the daydream. Yet he couldn’t help it. It was almost like a Dark Sleep itself, persistently tugging him into the visions—although these kind of dreams gave him an almost alien sense of pleasure. Comfort, even. Even now his mind wanted to keep thinking about her.
He burrowed beneath the covers of his bed. She’d been exceptional that night, fighting all the werecats beside the ninja. It was amazing how, with the help of Cyrus Borg’s technology, she could shoot her enemies with that longbow. Her face set in a strange combination of determination and fierce joy as she threw herself at her opponents haunted him…
Before he knew it, he’d dozed off.
* * *
Screaming.
Liana was screaming.
Cole was jolted out of the comfort of sleep. He sat up, dazed and gasping. He blinked through the darkness—
“Help! Someone help!” Nya. The screaming was coming from her room. That’s where the girls were sleeping.
He stumbled out of bed—the blankets entangled his legs and he tripped. Shaking them off, he snatched the weapon closest to him—one of the sai knives sitting on the bedside table—slammed the door open and raced down the hall. He nearly collided face-first into Zane.
“What’s going on?!” Cole could barely see his friend through the dark, but a pale shade of white against the night told him he was still in his PJs.
“I do not know! Something is wrong!” Zane ran. Cole followed and they both stopped at Nya’s bedroom door.
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Oct 29, 2021 15:36:43 GMT
Post by LordTigress on Oct 29, 2021 15:36:43 GMT
Before they could do anything, however, it slammed open: Little Leaf stood at the entrance. Her ginger hair, usually up in a high ponytail, was in disarray and fell in long curls around her ashen face. “Help her!” she cried. “It’s Liana—I think she’s having another nightmare, and it’s hurting her real bad!” The pupils of her feline eyes had shrunken in terror.
Cole shoved past Zane and Little Leaf. A bedside lamp had been turned on in the bedroom, illuminating two figures crouching on the floor. Nya looked up when he entered. “A nightmare,” she gasped. “But it’s worse—”
A scream—this one male—rose from down the hall. Little Leaf whimpered and inched closer to Zane.
Nya’s lips quivered. “Jay.”
Another female cry rose from a different portion of the Bounty. “Misako,” Zane murmured.
“It’s the Dark Sleep victims.” Cole’s stomach clenched. “Something’s happening to them. Go to Jay,” he ordered Nya. “I’ll take care of Liana.”
She nodded and stumbled out of the room. Zane joined her, probably going to see Misako. Little Leaf stood uncertainly at the threshold, shivering.
Cole crouched over Liana; she had fallen off the bed, and now lay on her side, tangled up in the sheets. Face turned away from him, her shoulders shook. Her eyes were closed and pained groans kept coming from her gritted teeth. Every so often she kept clutching her left arm—where the Dark Mark had been scratched—and rubbing or scratching at it.
“Liana.” He grabbed her by the shoulders and had her sit up. “Liana, listen to me. Can you hear me? You’ve got to wake up. Whatever you think is happening, it’s not real. You have to wake up!”
She flinched back from his touch with another cry, as if he’d burned her. She struggled, but he held her firm, snatching her by the arms.
“Wake up!” he pleaded, shaking her. “Please, wake up!”
“What’s going on?”
Cole turned to see a pair of pale green orbs floating in the dark. It was Eagle Talon, bearing his knife.
“It’s the Dark Sleep!” Little Leaf replied. “We don’t know what’s happening, but—it’s hurting all the victims! Especially Liana.”
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Oct 29, 2021 20:22:36 GMT
Post by LordTigress on Oct 29, 2021 20:22:36 GMT
Eagle Talon stared at her, then Cole, then Liana. Face tense, he slipped his knife back into its sheathe and approached them.
“Do you think you can mind-bend into her mind?” he asked above Liana’s groans.
“Mind-bend?” Cole hesitated. “I— I can try. But Liana’s the best at it.”
“You don’t have to do much. Just get in there and help her resist the force. I think the sorcerers are trying to weaken her and the others by fear.” Talon took a deep breath, then placed a hand on Liana’s forehead. “The longer they stay in her head, the more susceptible she’ll become to any future attacks—or worse, they’ll literally drive her insane.”
Cole clenched his jaw. He copied Talon and set his hand upon Liana’s forehead. “I am not going to lose anyone else,” he growled.
Talon met his gaze. “Neither am I.”
Cole stared down into Liana’s face. Beads of sweat lined her brow, and her expression was contorted with pain. He tried to cradle her as gently as he could while saying, “It’s gonna be OK, Liana. We’ll get you out of there.”
Talon’s eyes had already glazed over. Cole hesitated, then concentrated, recalling Matilda’s instructions. Liana’s body kept quivering and twitching in his arms, and he pulled her closer. Feel the energy coming off her, he reminded himself. Everyone has energy in them. Connect yours to hers.
He imagined he could already feel the pulse of her mind. His hand was pressed over Talon’s. He closed his eyes.
It came like some sort of brain-freeze; a cold hand seemed to clutch the back of his head and squeezed it hard. Cole cried out, mostly out of shock than pain. There was a force, and it didn’t want him there.
Resist it! Talon’s voice wafted into his head—this time as if he were calling from far away. Don’t get trapped in it, too! If we can fight off Raven Frost long enough, we can free Liana from the nightmare!
Raven Frost. Astonishment, then anger surged through Cole. Can he hear us?
No idea. Black Blood only taught me how to fight off invasions to defend myself, in case kitsune witches tried to trick me while I was out on missions.
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Oct 31, 2021 16:41:38 GMT
Post by LordTigress on Oct 31, 2021 16:41:38 GMT
Cole gritted his teeth. Well, Frosty, if you can hear us, I’ve got a message for you. He hoped the anger would come across here as clearly as if he’d spoken out loud. Get away from Liana. She’s not yours, and never will be. And if you don’t watch out, someone’s gonna pay you back for taking our eyes!
The icy hand pulsed strongly for several moments. Cole waited in tense silence. Was he resisting hard enough? Talon wasn’t saying anything.
Shock and pain pulsed from Talon’s consciousness. Then heat seemed to scorch Cole’s brain. He hollered out loud from the burning sensation and nearly let go of his connection. Raven Frost was fighting back. He could feel the hate and wrath coming from him, somewhere miles and miles away.
Let go of her, boys, a man’s voice purred snidely in his ears. She’s blind and useless. She’s not worth anything to you.
Shut up! Rage made Cole’s blood pound with adrenaline, as if he were back in the middle of a physical battle. He pushed harder than ever, searching for Liana’s consciousness. Liana!
Some strange sucking sensation coursed through his body, like he was falling through a wet, slimy hole of squirming flesh. Then he plummeted and landed on solid ground. Light blinded him momentarily; he was no longer in the dark, and he found himself in the middle of Liana’s nightmare.
An old-fashioned town set on the shores of a dark ocean was being attacked. Fire blazed from the rickety wood rooftops and black smoke blanketed the sky. Villagers were fleeing from enormous people snake people—Cole’s stomach lurched.
The Anacondrai attack. Master Chen’s army. This was one of the towns the Elemental Masters hadn’t been able to cover during the surge of Chen’s warriors spreading across Ninjago. The snake men hissed and chortled mockingly as they chased people away from their homes.
Where’s Liana?
A shriek answered his unspoken question from one of the piers. Cole turned to see Liana crouching on the ground while an Anacondrai warrior had her pinned down, pressing the blade of his sword to her throat. Liana’s face was ashen with terror.
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Oct 31, 2021 21:36:39 GMT
Post by LordTigress on Oct 31, 2021 21:36:39 GMT
Cole was about to call her name when someone shoved him out of the way. Startled, Cole looked up to see a lanky young man with curly brown hair throwing himself at the snake with a rusty sword. The blade swung through the air clumsily, but managed to stab the snake’s side; it stumbled to the ground with a pained groan.
“Liana!” The man shouted, “Get out of here! I’ll catch up!”
Cole’s throat clenched. Philip. Her brother. His friend.
Liana staggered unsteadily away. She wasn’t more than a yard away, however, when the Anacondrai got up again and slashed at Philip. The young man managed to parry the blow, and their swords rang in the air.
Before Philip could jump back, the snake man pulled back his sword and stabbed him in the chest. A raw gasp and groan came from Philip while the snake hissed in laughter.
Liana stopped running. She was almost beside Cole.
“Liana!” Philip groaned. “Don’t stop! Keep running!”
A strangled sob broke from Liana. “No! I know what happens! This is when I was too helpless to save you!” She started toward the scene.
“Liana!” Cole snatched her by the shoulders and yanked her back. “Wake up! It’s just a nightmare, I promise! This isn’t happening!”
“Let go of me!” She struggled furiously, face twisted. Her nails scratched his forearms.
“It’s me, Cole!” he cried. “It’s just a nightmare! You have to fight it, Liana. Fight Raven Frost!”
Her movement slowed, then stopped, as if she could feel realization hitting her. “Cole… it’s not real…?”
“I promise. You have to fight it. Me and Talon will help you.”
Her face twisted again, lips quivering, but this time with an overwhelming emotion. “I’ll try.” She threw herself into Cole’s arms. “I won’t let him get me.”
A roar of rage shook the ground. The scene of fire, death and terror dissipated and darkness surrounded them once more. Cole gripped Liana tightly. He was half-afraid some force would rip her out of his grasp.
“I always get what I want, little kits,” Raven Frost’s voice growled around them, like a distant echo of thunder. “You won’t be able to hang on for much longer.”
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Oct 31, 2021 23:12:34 GMT
Post by LordTigress on Oct 31, 2021 23:12:34 GMT
“He’s just talking trash now,” Cole realized. “We’re doing it—we’re resisting him.” He raised his voice. “Why don’t you come and fight us like a real man, you coward?”
Raven Frost roared again—anger and frustration much more apparent this time. Wind suddenly whirled around them, lashing at their clothes. Liana trembled violently and clutched her head.
“Time to go, guys.” A hand landed on Cole’s shoulder and he looked to see Eagle Talon looking at him. His expression was grim, but triumph couldn’t help but glint in his eyes.
They fell in a whirlwind—wind howling in their ears—Cole opened his mouth to call for help—
—and promptly had the breath knocked out of him as he fell back on the floor of Nya’s bedroom.
Silence. He blinked and saw the lamp sitting on the bedside table. Otherwise the room was still dark. They were all lying on the floor as if they’d been dropped from the ceiling.
“You two all right? Liana?” Talon was sitting up already, panting.
Cole sat up shakily. A headache was pulsing painfully against his skull, and it took several moments before he could breathe easily again. “I— I’m OK,” he gasped.
Liana sat up, trembling from head to foot. Her pale hair looked white against the lamplight and fell scraggily around her sweating face. “Are we— I mean, is he— is he gone?” Her voice croaked.
Pity made Cole act on impulse and pull Liana into a hug. Her shoulders shook as she burrowed her face into his chest, clinging to him like a frightened child. “Thank you for coming for me,” she said in a small voice.
“Couldn’t have done it without Eagle Talon.” Cole cast his brother a grateful look. Talon returned it with a tired smile.
Liana pulled away from Cole and sat up. With shaking hands she wiped at her eyes and attempted to smooth her hair. “Thanks, Talon,” she murmured.
Talon gaped at her, surprised for a moment, before nodding. “Sure.”
Cole could now hear low groans and voices coming from down the hall. He peered into the darkness. “Maybe we can help Jay and Misako, too.”
Liana’s face tightened. “They’re having nightmares, too?”
* * *
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Post by LordTigress on Nov 1, 2021 4:47:34 GMT
It made Jay want to vomit, how Cole was holding Nya so close to him. She was giggling and murmuring something in his ear—like she often did with Jay. He gagged and turned away from the sickening sight.
“What’s going on?” he demanded, as if some invisible presence could hear him. “I shouldn’t be having these visions anymore! They’re— they’re not real! Right?” His hands crept up the sides of his face, and he grabbed his own hair like an anchor. “Right? No— no, no, no, this can’t be real…!”
He was on the verge of hyperventilating when he abruptly noticed a little red fox sitting nearby, observing him with keen brown eyes. He stared at it.
The fox winked and flashed a toothy grin. “The cat wizards and witches don’t like you one bit, no sir!” It cackled as a flash of light blinded Jay. He blinked blearily and looked at where the fox had once been standing. In its place an old woman wearing colorful rags and scraggly red hair was grinning widely at him.
“Kohuru!” Jay gasped. “Is this— is this your fault?” He didn’t care about the accusation creeping into his tone.
The kitsune huffed, still smiling. “No, silly! Isn’t it neat? The sorcerers hate you, they’re acting the Dark Sleep!”
“That doesn’t make sense! Our Lifesources were broken! We shouldn’t be having this problem anymore!” Jay protested.
“Don’t worry! This is costing the sorcerers a lot of energy, trying to revive the curse. It will probably be the only time it happens, although you might get recurring visions during the day.” Kohuru sat down and started playing with some of the gold and jeweled rings on her shriveled fingers, like a small child would.
Jay gaped at her incredulously, then groaned. “Gah! How long is this going to go on? What is it going to take for me to stop seeing— that!?” He gestured behind him, unwilling to look at the picture again.
“Until you stop fearing it. Fearing it only makes it stronger, Son of Lightning.” She spoke lightly.
“Kinda hard to not fear this stuff when it keeps coming back to you in visions,” he retorted scathingly.
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Post by LordTigress on Nov 1, 2021 12:05:28 GMT
“Hm, so what all do you fear?” Kohuru tilted her head, tapping one finger on her nose thoughtfully. “Let’s look back at your previous nightmares, when you were really in the Dark Sleep. Being alone… being humiliated… losing your mate… losing your friends… pain… ooh, and attics. Those are scary—”
“All right, that’s enough!” He could feel himself flushing angrily. “What’re you doing here in my nightmare, anyway, if you’re not causing it?”
“I just came to tell you that only one of those things from your nightmares will happen. Remember?” She looked at him keenly. “In one of them, first you were running down a dark hall, then you had a blade run through your hand, then a creature dragged you into a dark abyss, and of course, your friend Cole and your pretty little Nya—”
“Yeah, yeah, I remember!”
“Only one of those things will happen.” She eyed him. “Don’t let the sorcerers make you believe your worst fears will come true. They’re only predicting an insignificant event—one that will be painful, but non-consequential compared to what you truly fear. If you believe it’s your worst fear that will happen, it will happen because of your own fear and choices, not because the sorcerers said it would happen.”
Jay stared at her, trying to make sense of her cryptic words. “Why should I believe anything you say?”
“Perhaps it’s because I am the one of the only yōkai willing to help you, Blue Ninja.” She chortled, “Don’t be like your mama. She let fear get the best of her, and that’s how she lost you.”
The words took a moment to sink in. Jay reeled back. “What do you know about—?”
“Tooda-loo!” The kitsune jumped to her feet and waved one arm in a circular motion. A wave of fire blazed from her hand and swallowed her body up. She cackled and vanished in a plume of smoke. Jay found himself left alone in an empty, colorless void.
“You little—!” he started to shout furiously, but was interrupted by the fact that he woke up.
* * *
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Post by LordTigress on Nov 2, 2021 12:11:03 GMT
“Owwww…” he groaned and sat up, blinking blearily. He squinted against the blaring light in his bedroom. Several people were standing over him, he realized. He edged backwards into the wall as he attempted to make them out. “Wha—?”
“You’re awake!” Nya gasped as she knelt beside him. “We thought you’d be stuck in your nightmare like Liana was!”
“L— Liana…?” Jay surveyed the scene dazedly. He realized that Cole was standing over him, too. He felt his face burn when he realized that he’d tumbled out of bed, sheets half-draped over his head and shoulder. Hastily he yanked them off.
“You OK there, buddy?” Cole placed a comforting hand on Nya’s shoulder.
Wait—why does he have to put his hand there? Why’s he in here with Nya? Jay felt himself stiffen—sleepiness forgotten, he stared at the big hand resting on her shoulder. Does he think she can’t take care of herself without being there to help her?
“Jay?” Nya’s voice interrupted his rising anger and panic.
“I— what?” He stared at her. Suddenly, his brain worked again. “Oh! Yeah, um— just a weird dream. Must’ve eaten something bad earlier—heh, heh.”
Cole shook his head. “It’s not just you. Zane just reported that Misako woke up from a nightmare, too. She dreamt that Black Blood destroyed Lloyd.”
“That’s cheerful,” Jay muttered.
Cole cast him a sharp look—perhaps surprised by Jay’s lack of empathy. Nya, on the other hand, still gazed anxiously at him. “What was your nightmare about?”
“Uh—” Jay glanced rapidly between Cole and Nya. “N— nothing! Heheh, just, some— weird, weird stuff, uhh— I can’t remember, ha-ha…”
Cole didn’t look satisfied, but his hand left Nya’s shoulder—much to Jay’s inward relief—and headed for the door. “Well, that’s good, I guess. I’m going to go check on Liana again.”
“She had bad dreams, too?” Jay questioned.
“Yes.” Nya answered him. Her mouth was set in a grim line. “But hers isn’t like yours and Misako’s. She needed Talon and Cole to mind-bend and help her resist the sorcerers.”
“Whatever’s going on,” Cole’s voice drifted from the hallway, “Liana’s Dark Sleep is definitely getting worse.”
* * *
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Post by LordTigress on Nov 3, 2021 11:41:05 GMT
Liana wished Cole would come back. She could hear the voices of the ninja and the adults murmuring from the hallway—there was Misako’s voice shaking, Wu and Lloyd attempting to comfort her, Cole and Eagle Talon’s dad asking worried questions, and Cole, Jay and Nya speaking in low tones from another room. She shivered and pulled the sheets tighter around her shoulders. She was sitting on the floor—her legs felt too wobbly to get back into bed.
“Anything we can do?”
She jumped. Eagle Talon had been so quiet, she’d almost forgotten he was sitting nearby. It took a moment for her to find her voice. “N— no. No, I don’t think so.”
Talon let only a couple moments of silence pass before venturing in his low rasp, “I know how this feels.”
A flash of familiar anger returned. “No, you don’t.”
“Yes, actually, I do.” His voice hardened. “After I— after I betrayed you, I started having these nightmares. I dreamt—” He paused. “I dreamt some really bad stuff. They— I guess they kinda helped me realize what I did to everyone was really despicable.”
Liana fell silent. Is Talon actually opening up to me?
“The point is… I’d wake up in the middle of the night, like this—cold and sweating. Feeling like someone—or something—was right behind me, watching me. I always saw people pass away in my dreams. And when I woke up, I couldn’t remember if they’d actually gone in real life or not.” He spoke quietly. “I know how you feel. Like you’re trapped in this never-ending cycle, that the visions will always come back. Like something’s after you, wanting to tear you up from the inside.”
Her voice wobbled. “Yes. That’s exactly what it feels like.” She gritted her teeth. “I’m so sick of it. I’m so tired of being scared to fall asleep. I’m so sick of Raven Frost haunting me.” She didn’t realize she was struggling not to cry until a tear spilled over her cheek. She wiped it away hastily.
“At least your friends are looking out for you. They care.” She heard the floorboards creak. “At least when you wake up, you’ll always wake up to them. And like what me and Cole did tonight—they’ll help you fight it. You’re not alone.”
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Post by LordTigress on Nov 4, 2021 15:19:34 GMT
Speaking to Talon like this felt so bizarre—just hours before, she had been spitting contempt at him. Now, however, she heard herself say, “Neither are you. You’re on our side now. You have friends, too.”
He was quiet for so long, she wondered if he actually planned on answering. She was attempting to think of an awkward way to pick up the conversation when she finally heard, in a strangely choked voice, “Thanks.”
“It’s all right.” They fell silent. A part of Liana was reeling from the fact that she was speaking not only cordially, but warmly with Eagle Talon all of a sudden—but when he’d said what he had about his own nightmares, and comforted her about having friends to watch out for her—
“Had any more sleepovers since I was gone?”
“Huh?” What was he talking about?
“Y’know. You and Cole.” The tone of his voice had changed; she could hear the wryness in his voice. “I mean, you didn’t seem to complain about any nightmares that one night, in the field. If that’s the cure for your Dark Sleep, I just wondered—”
Liana felt her face burn. “Shut up. That’s stupid, and none of your business, anyway,” she blustered. “And just when I thought you were going to be nice to be around…”
“Are you guys still fighting?” Cole demanded as he walked in.
“More like exchanging witty banter,” Talon remarked wryly.
“Better than nightmares, I guess,” Cole sighed. “You doing OK, Liana?”
“I— yeah.” She tried to pretend she wasn’t blushing so hard. “Yeah, I’m doing better now.”
“Good…” She thought he was about to say something else, but hesitated. “What happened to your ear?”
“Huh?” She reached up and touched her ears.
“No, Talon,” he hastened. “It’s got a long cut down the middle.”
Eagle Talon sounded uncomfortable. “Oh, that? I just— cut it on a rock.”
“Some rock.”
Cut ear… Liana stiffened. Wait.
She muttered, “I had a dream like that the other night. I saw Talon, and we fought.”
“Was that the night you hurt your shoulder?”
Surprise made her sit up. “What? How—?”
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Post by LordTigress on Nov 4, 2021 21:29:32 GMT
“I can see the scratches on your shoulder, Liana. They looked like cat scratches, but that was before the battle tonight, so…” Cole’s voice trailed off uncertainly.
“Yeah, it was. I dreamt— I dreamt that when we fought,” she stammered. “I— Talon scratched my shoulder, and I… hurt his ear.”
She thought she heard Talon inhale sharply. Cole didn’t say anything for what felt like minutes. Her heartbeat picked up.
“What did you dream last night, Talon?” he asked quietly.
Talon rasped slowly, “The same thing she did.”
Another long silence.
“Are you telling me,” Cole’s voice shook, “that you and Talon shared the same dream… and— and you two could actually hurt each other? That’s how you got those scratches?”
“I’m not ‘telling’ you anything.” She reacted defensively out of habit. She heard her voice quiver. “That was just my dream—my nightmare. I’ve been having a lot of those lately, remember?”
“So have I. But I’m not cursed with the Dark Sleep. I can’t be,” Talon protested.
“It doesn’t make sense!” Cole burst. “This is getting so convoluted—! How could you two share the same dream and hurt each other in the waking world? How?”
“If I knew I’d tell you, Cole, really,” Liana dryly remarked.
Talon spoke up grimly. “It has to be a trick of theirs—the sorcerers. I don’t know how, but since this is related to Liana’s curse, it’s got to be another manipulation trick. To make us think we’re losing our minds? To turn us against each other?”
Cole groaned, “Gah, this is way too confusing to think about at this time of night!”
“We’ll tell Master Wu and the others in the morning,” Liana suggested. “He doesn’t need to know now, what with everything else going on.” The commotion from the hallway had quieted by this point, save for the occasional murmur from some conversation.
“I guess not.” Cole sighed. “Will you be OK? Nya and Little Leaf will be back to keep you company.”
“Yeah, I’ll be fine.”
“Good.” That was Talon. He was standing up. “Now let’s try to catch up on some lost sleep, if we can.”
“Be right there.”
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Post by LordTigress on Nov 4, 2021 23:36:34 GMT
Talon grunted and walked out. Liana’s heart skipped a beat when Cole stooped down beside her and laid his hand on her shoulder. “If, uhh,” he stuttered, “if you, um, get any more nightmares… don’t— don’t be afraid to— um— just, call if you need us.”
“Thanks. I’m sure Nya and Little Leaf will take care of me,” she responded gently.
“Uh— right. Right, yeah.” Did he sound embarrassed? What else would he have meant?
He helped her up and she crawled back into the bed, sitting up. However, on impulse, she grabbed his hand, just as it seemed like he was about to walk away.
“Liana?”
She opened her mouth, but no words came out. How could she articulate how scared and lonely she felt, even with other people taking care of her? Was it wrong that she only wanted Cole with her right now? Should she feel guilty for holding his hand, like she had last night?
Please stay with me, she wanted to say. Don’t leave me, like everyone else in my life has.
She finally forced words to come out of her mouth. “Just— uhh… I— I really—” She sighed. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight.” He stayed standing there a moment longer, his hand lingering in hers. Then she let go, and he slowly walked out of the room.
She could feel her heart thumping strangely. She felt almost sick to her stomach yet wished desperately he would come back and stay with her.
Locked in silence, she screamed, Why do I feel like this?!
* * *
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Post by LordTigress on Nov 8, 2021 12:43:02 GMT
Chapter 97: Ninjago City
The flight to Ninjago City was taking longer than everyone had planned, probably because all the crew members woke up the next morning sleep-deprived. Those who had suffered nightmares the previous night were none the worse for wear, aside from the obvious lack of sleep—although Misako in particular seemed skittish. Jay noticed she also kept finding excuses to be in the same room with Lloyd, whatever he was doing. Master Wu often attempted to distract her with tea or idle conversation. Liana seemed to be doing all right, but then, she had Nya and Little Leaf keeping a close eye on her. He could never tell what was going through the head of that blind girl, anyway.
Work in trimming the sails of the Bounty, cleaning up and getting dressed served as a blessing to Jay. Anything to distract him from the memory of his nightmares. At the moment, however, he found himself standing idly in the cabin while Zane and Lloyd typed away at the monitors, readjusting the ship’s coordinates to the city. Little Leaf hovered by Lloyd while Misako and Master Wu shared some tea at the other side of the room on a couple of cushions. Jay wondered if he had dark bags beneath his eyes like Misako did.
Looking around, he realized that he wished Nya were there with him. Some sense of uneasiness had been clinging to him all morning, and he felt that she was the only person who could drive it away. Wondering where she was, he stuck in his hands into the pockets of his gi unmindfully. One hand found a stiff piece of paper.
He pulled it out and recognized the watercolor portrait of the blond woman he’d found in Cliff Gordon’s mansion weeks earlier. The only one I ever loved, read the scrawled handwriting on the side.
Don’t be like your mama. She let fear get the best of her, and that’s how she lost you.
He tried to shake off the memory of Kohuru’s taunting voice. Dumb fox. What does she know? He huffed and stuffed the picture back into his pocket. Where’s Nya?
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