A huge shoutout to LuckyBugBooks for not only making the amazing cover but leaving lovely comments!

His freckled hand reaches into the toolbox and pulls out a wrench. Dropping down next to his invention, he latches the wrench onto a bolt and turns it, pushing the bolt into place. Pushing his auburn curls out of his face, he glances up. Piles of scrap materials stretch to the sombre, cloud-filled sky, the sun camouflaged in the clouds. The trees sway scarcely, almost completely hidden behind the scrap.

Grabbing another bolt, he screws it in on the opposite side. Opening the wiring panel at the back, he makes sure all the wires connect in the right places and none of them is touching the metal casing.  Checking around him, he hovers his hand over the small power box. Pressing his hand flat against it, he emits a bout of electricity from his palm and into the box, the gizmo immediately coming to life. Smiling to himself, he slams the panel closed before standing up.

The silver gizmo turns left and then right before it settles and beeps quietly. Zipping forward, it brings it's metal claws/arms forward and latches onto his leg. Smiling, he gently pries the gizmo off his leg and picks up the discarded wrench. Dropping it into the toolbox, he goes back to his previous workspace and begins to pick up the discarded parts.

The door of the bright blue trailer slams open, the door proceeding to crash into the side of the trailer. Jumping at the sound, he whips his head around to see a man with grey hair and dirty brown clothes waving to him. His father.

"Did it work Jay?!" He calls out, jumping down the steps and walking towards the teenager.

"Yes, Pa!" Jay calls back, bending down to pick up the discarded bolts he dropped when his father opened the door.

"That's excellent, your Ma has made your favourite for lunch."

"Lasagne?!" Jay bounces lightly on his toes.

The gizmo lets out a loud beep. Jay giggles and grabs the toolbox from the sandy ground. His father smiles before letting him inside. Placing the toolbox on the floor, he sniffs the air.

"It smells great Ma!" Jay calls as he darts into the kitchen, almost crashing into his mother, Edna, on the way.

She smiles and sets the plates down, turning to see Jay picking up the tea towel and drying his hands. Dropping the tea towel onto the white counter, he slides onto the bench and sits next to his mother. Picking up his knife and fork, he digs into his lasagne.

"What does your new gizmo do dear?" Edna asks, picking up her cutlery.

Jay swallows his mouthful and places the cutlery back down, "helps with the cleanin'."

Jay turns his head to the gizmo, who picks up a cup from the coffee table and whizzes into the kitchen. They watch as the gizmo struggles to reach the sink.

Jay bites his lip, "maybe he needs to be taller."

Edna smiles and ruffles his hair, "you still did a wonderful job dear."

"Thanks, Ma."

☮︎︎☮︎︎☮︎︎

"Again!" Lou orders, clapping his hands together.

The group of girls sigh and get back into their original positions. Lou sits down on the seat and watches them.

Behind him, the wooden door slips open and a mop of raven hair pokes around the door frame. Slipping inside, he silently closes the door and pulls his hood down to the back of his neck, his dark brown eyes scanning the room. Leaning against the wall, he watches the dancers. Shrugging off his coat, he hangs it on the coat stand, his eyes staring at the painting on the wall.

"Hi, son."

His head snaps to the left to see his father coming towards him. A faint smile comes across his lips and he pushes something into his pants pocket. Lou's smile turns faint.

"I know you miss her Cole. I do too."

Cole bites his lip and nods, glancing away as his vision blurs. Lou sighs and places a hand on his shoulder.

"I know how hard it is...I really do."

He pulls Cole into him, letting the teen rest his head on his shoulder. Cole's fingers wrap around a silver chain. Sliding it out of his pocket, he rubs his finger along the silver heart pendant. Lou watches as Cole opens the necklace and traces the picture of the three of them when Cole was an eighteen-month-old baby.

"Where'd you go?"

"The forest."

"Doing?"

"Practicing," Cole murmurs, keeping his eyes on his necklace.

"Cole..."

"I know! I know," Cole pulls away and turns to his father, "but...they drove mom out for her powers! They-they can't just-"

"Cole, I know. And I agree that what they did to your mother was awful but I can't lose you too."

Cole's eyes avert to the ground, refusing to look at his father.

"I don't want them to do the same thing to you."

"I can look after myself!"

"Cole-"

"Leave me alone!"

Cole sprints up the stairs and slams his bedroom door shut before sinking to the floor and crying into his knees.

☮︎︎☮︎︎☮︎

The Walkers sink into the battered blue sofa, eyes glued onto the TV screen. Gayle Gossip, Ninjago's news reporter is stood in front of the Overlord Government Building, a microphone in her hand.

"And we have news that there has been a sighting of an elemental master, almost twenty-five years after we forbade them from our city."

Jay's heart hammers in his chest, his breathing shortening. A soft hand lands on his shoulder, making him jump and whip his head around to Edna.

"Breathe Jay. We're far enough away from the city for them to know about you."

Jay's head bobs shakily, his whole body tense.

The screen changes from the Government Building to the forest. Jay can tell instantly that the video was recorded from a phone. The phone shakes a little bit before zooming in. The person has long black hair covering the back of their head and neck. Black clothing covers their muscular build. The camera diverts towards a rock on the left, zooming closer as it floats a couple of centimetres off the ground. The person has their hand extended, aiming it towards the levitating rock.

Jay's eyes widen while watching the other elemental master. So there are more elemental masters here.

The teenager turns around, their dark brown eyes wide in fear.

Why do we have to live in fear?

I'd love to hear your thoughts and feedback about the first part of chapter one! I enjoy reading your comments and it really helps my writing to see what you think about my story! Thank you!

What do you think is going to happen next?