I always loved the sky. I hoped someday I could fly, even. Not with some hang glider like my cousin, but actually see the sky. Touch the clouds. Breath in the thin high-altitude air and just...fly.
But for now, I seem to be on the ground. Or, not exactly. I'm on my bed, staring into my bedroom mirror; lightning-struck hair that just couldn't seem to be tamed, bright blue eyes dulled by loss. You see, not long ago, my beloved cousin started breathing rapid-fire, gatling-gun style, and then just dropped in front of me. A stretcher carried him to the hospital. Since then he hasn't been here, at least not that I know of. I've been trying to live his legacy. Well, I look like him, sort of. A younger version, more freckles, a name ripped straight out of a video game he would love.
I run a finger through my hair. Static tickles it for a moment, and I figure it's just from the carpets.
Yeah, definitely the carpets. Except I'm not wearing socks at the moment.
Zap.
"Augh!" I recoil, my hand throwing itself away from my head, my eyes flashing with shock. (They tend to do that.) "What!?"
I let my hand come to my face, and I see a faint, blue glow. Panic wells up in my chest. I thrust my head into my pillow to muffle such a loud reaction.
When I come to, I rub my fingers together. A spark.
"I...inherited his powers?" An oh-so-familiar lump shows up in my throat, an uninvited guest. Now I know he's gone, unless he just decided to....give them away. Pfft...a likely story.
"No. No crying. My cousin wouldn't cry. He'd...laugh it off." A chuckle escapes my larynx, unintentionally sarcastic-sounding. "Tell a joke. Not just cover up the pain...replace it, right?" A diagonal smile showed up in the mirror, just like his cousin's. I chuckle again. A quivering "heh heh." Then I laugh. The sight of me laughing is just so funny, I can't stop.
I recollect myself and walk out. "Sora," my mom, Seiko, starts. "What is it, is so funny that you are laughing like some kind of, like...Joker? I can hear you from my room, you know." I look down a bit, trying to come up with a logical answer. "Are you...again thinking about Jay?"
"Sorry, Mom."
"Do you expect me to blame of you? You are just like him."
I always loved the sky. I hoped someday I could fly, even. Not with some hang glider like my cousin, but actually see the sky. Touch the clouds. Breath in the thin high-altitude air and just...fly.
But for now, I seem to be on the ground. Or, not exactly. I'm on my bed, staring into my bedroom mirror; lightning-struck hair that just couldn't seem to be tamed, bright blue eyes dulled by loss. You see, not long ago, my beloved cousin started breathing rapid-fire, gatling-gun style, and then just dropped in front of me. A stretcher carried him to the hospital. Since then he hasn't been here, at least not that I know of. I've been trying to live his legacy. Well, I look like him, sort of. A younger version, more freckles, a name ripped straight out of a video game he would love.
I run a finger through my hair. Static tickles it for a moment, and I figure it's just from the carpets.
Yeah, definitely the carpets. Except I'm not wearing socks at the moment.
Zap.
"Augh!" I recoil, my hand throwing itself away from my head, my eyes flashing with shock. (They tend to do that.) "What!?"
I let my hand come to my face, and I see a faint, blue glow. Panic wells up in my chest. I thrust my head into my pillow to muffle such a loud reaction.
When I come to, I rub my fingers together. A spark.
"I...inherited his powers?" An oh-so-familiar lump shows up in my throat, an uninvited guest. Now I know he's gone, unless he just decided to....give them away. Pfft...a likely story.
"No. No crying. My cousin wouldn't cry. He'd...laugh it off." A chuckle escapes my larynx, unintentionally sarcastic-sounding. "Tell a joke. Not just cover up the pain...replace it, right?" A diagonal smile showed up in the mirror, just like his cousin's. I chuckle again. A quivering "heh heh." Then I laugh. The sight of me laughing is just so funny, I can't stop.
I recollect myself and walk out. "Sora," my mom, Seiko, starts. "What is it, is so funny that you are laughing like some kind of, like...Joker? I can hear you from my room, you know." I look down a bit, trying to come up with a logical answer. "Are you...again thinking about Jay?"
"Sorry, Mom."
"Do you expect me to blame of you? You are just like him."
I sigh and stretch my back. "Mom, I need some air," I say as I make for the door.
"At least have breakfast first," my mom tells me. I can see the wrinkles of concern on her forehead get deeper. "I will make eggs or..."
"No need to exert yourself, Mama. I can cook." She nods and lets me through. I decide to surprise her by making omelette rice for both of us. When the omelettes are done, I write on them with ketchup- a heart for my mom and something vaguely like a lightning bolt for me, unsure exactly what I'll like. We carry our food to the table and eat quietly, and I slip on a light cardigan and my brother's scarf to step outside.
As I adjust the bright orange scarf around my neck, I feel a tingle of static. I try my best to ignore it. I don't feel like panicking on an anti-stress walk. I cross the road as my thoughts take over, as they usually do.
"It's hard to imagine life without you, Jay," I had told him one day. We were hanging out at Mega Monster Amusement Park, as he was off duty and wanted to see his favorite cousin while he was at it. "Imagine not...hanging out like this and just...talking about stuff." I chuckle at remembering how thick my accent was back then- Ninjagian isn't exactly my first language, but my fluency has improved a lot, to the point where it's almost like a second first language, so remembering myself still being somewhat new to it is a little funny.
My older cousin raised an eyebrow, but sighed. "You worry too much, Sora. Don't worry about me being gone. Let's just think about having fun while we're both here. The power of positive thinking, as I say." His face looked a tad wearier though.
"Yeah. Silly, always worried. Let's play some more."
The stuffed bear I won from that trip still lays on my bed, a bit worn from love, though it's been a bit neglected after it became a reminder of Jay. Sometimes I hug a pillow instead. Heh...it's stupid though. I'm always thinking about Jay anyway. My mom even considers taking me to a therapist for it.
I mean, I could also take some medicine for it, but that's...
Not paying attention, I walk straight on, and only the faint glow of headlights alerts me. I begin to run, but the car is faster. Footsteps follow, possibly help, but my life still flashes before me as my heart speeds up. And then I'm shoved into the sidewalk, closing my eyes and bracing for impact.
I hear a gruff voice. "What is that driver, blind!?" I turn over painfully onto my back and look up. Once my vision clears, the black blur before me turns into a tanned, muscular young man with shaggy black hair. "Are you OK?" he asks. His breath smells a bit dusty for some reason, as if he inhaled sand or something.
"I'm fine. I'm...I'm sorry." I prop myself up on my elbows for now.
"It's not your fault," he replied. "Some people just can't drive." As he looks to the side, I notice that his eyes are a very dark brown, almost black. They give his otherwise strong, imposing appearance some softness, some...earthiness.
"I really am sorry. I...I wasn't paying attention and..." I sigh. He steps back for me and I get up.
"I'm Cole, by the way," he says and extends his hand. I shake it. It's rough, calloused, the hand of a hard worker.
"I'm Sora," I almost whisper.
"Sora?" Cole raises his eyes a bit. "Sora, uh...Walker?"
I chuckle. "Sora Namimura-Gordon. Or Sora Cloud. I was adopted for a while."
"Jay told me about you. He was...an old friend of mine."
"That's a bit funny," I add. "I remember him mentioning you too. He's my cousin, by the way."
"So...I haven't seen you guys in action since Jay...left," I inform Cole. "What broke up the band?"
"Our master died," Cole replies. "Losing Master Wu and Jay, we felt like there were pieces missing, and we had trouble getting the motivation to even continue being ninja. Even if we get back together as ninja, it's not gonna be the same."
I feel bad for him, so I decide to confess. "Well, I've been noticing, er...stronger static than normal, so...maybe I could be your Master of Lightning?"
Cole sighs, but says nothing.
"Is that a maybe?"
Cole is silent. Have I annoyed him? I stop for a moment, and Cole looks back at me. "Huh? Why'd you stop?" he asks.
"I...just feel like I'm bothering you right now. I mean, I probably shouldn't be following you..."
"No, it's fine." Cole turns around. "Wanna go to the old arcade? We can talk some more there."
"I love the arcade," I confess. "I wouldn't mind..."
We play some of the original Fist to Face as Cole fills me in on the other former Ninja's locations. According to him, Kai went back to being a wrestler, Lloyd patrols alone,and he himself returned to school at Ninjago State University.
"I'm glad you're doing useful things, at least," I say. "It's not like Ninjago's had much more crime rate these days. I guess Lloyd's been taking care of things, huh."
