I hope this chapter doesn't feel too rushed. I am just really excited to get to the stuff that's gonna happen in the next 2-3 chapters (especially with the new season coming up in just over a month) so I've kept this journey rather short and eventless, even removed a few things between the initial draft and the final version (like an encounter with the Serpentine in the sewers).

I might come back to edit this chapter at a later stage or include these events on the return trip instead 😄.

——-

On (and under) the Road again

"Mum, you can let go of me now." Nya mumbled into her mother's shoulder, slightly embarrassed to be cuddled like a little child in front of her teammates but secretly enjoying the comfort and actually not really wanting to let go either.

The Water Ninja still remembered how jealous she had been when Lou, Ed and Edna had seen off their sons – who had made it very clear that they did not appreciate it – for their first journey to the Dark Island, while her and Kai, as well as Zane, had no family outside the Destiny's Bounty at that time.

Also, Nya deeply regretted that she had not taken the time to say goodbye to Kai or Jay at Mystake's tea shop. And she was not going to make the same mistake again, who knew what was going to happen?

From the corner of her eyes, the girl saw Lloyd receiving the same treatment from his mother while Skylor and PIXAL were standing next to the van, watching the family scenes from afar.

Together, the seven survivors had driven the black and purple vehicle to a narrow and dark cul-de-sac on the outskirts of Ninjago City.

After spending two more very quiet days at Ray and Maya's house, the group had started to worry that it might be dangerous to stay longer at the Four Weapons and they had decided to set their by now well thought-out plan into action.

Which meant it was now time to say goodbye to Nya's parents as well as to Lloyd's mother, who had was going to join the blacksmith couple in meeting Jay's parents and Cole's father.

Having been the only adult on their team, Misako felt somehow responsible for what had happened to the boys – and by the hands of her husband – and that she needed to face their families.

"Our boat is here." PIXAL informed her teammates.

Skylor nodded. "We better get going then."

Maya reluctantly let go of her daughter, giving her husband the opportunity to embrace his little girl as well. "I am proud of you, sweetheart." He planted a kiss on her cheek. "Just come back to us in one piece."

"I will, dad." Nya promised. "I love you."

Maya pulled the other two girls in a hug. "Take care." She told them, with tears in her eyes. They had all become one broken little family over the past few days.

Lloyd had also managed to untangle himself from his mother's arms and, still weakened and without his powers, was now struggling to lift the manhole cover. For underneath them, the Destiny's Shadow was waiting for them. PIXAL had remotely called the amphibious craft to their current location.

"May I?" PIXAL asked. Using a grapple hook, the Samurai easily lifted the cover, granting the team access to the sewers.

"What about the van?" Nya asked. "Shall we just leave it here?"

Despite a lot of planning and preparation, the fate of the old noodle truck had never been discussed. From this point onwards, Ray, Maya and Misako were going to use the motorcycles that Nya had kept as emergency vehicles for herself and Kai in a storage unit in Ignacia. Although the previously red and maroon vehicles were now painted in the same black and purple colours as pretty much everything in and around the city. Which also included their outfits.

Riding a motorbike at high speed across the streets of Ninjago City had become the safest – or at least the least suspicious – way to cross the capital these days. Ray and Maya didn't have to carry many of their belongings with them anyway, they had only taken an old photo album that over the last year had been added to with more recent pictures of their extended family.

"The roads are full of abandoned vehicles." Skylor shrugged. "One more or less shouldn't make much of a difference."

"Yes, but most of them were damaged." PIXAL retorted. "And if the Sons of Garmadon inspect the van, they might be able to match your DNA or fingerprints."

Of course, the female robot was talking about the mysterious Nindroid on Harumi's team. Despite a good bit of research that had been performed by Zane and herself, they still had no idea about Mr E's background or his abilities.

Nya nodded. "I agree, we should destroy it. If that's okay with you that is..." She gave the Master of Amber a questioning look. After all, the truck still belonged to Skylor. And right now, it presented her last possession remaining from Master Chen's once proud noodle empire.

"You are right." The redhead finally agreed.

"Looks like it's time for a little fire then." Lloyd claimed, expecting for someone to do something. But, that didn't happen.

And he remembered.

Kai wasn't here.

And neither was Jay who had sometimes 'helped out' with these kinds of tasks, whenever the Master of Fire hadn't been around. But neither of them would ever be around again.

Lloyd awkwardly rubbed his neck. "Uhm, I guess we'll have to do it the normal way."

But doing it the 'normal way' turned out to be not that easy, for nobody from their group carried a lighter with them. They had always relied on their brothers' abilities.

Maybe they had relied too much on their powers in general. Well, Lloyd certainly had. And he felt incredibly useless without them now.

"I might be of assistance again." PIXAL stated. She opened a small hatch on her forearm, disconnected a tiny cable and sent a surge through the wire to create a little spark which she used to set a small piece of tissue on fire.

Nya silently watched as her boyfriend's and her brother's powers together gave rise to a little flame which had soon grown big enough to set the van on fire.

It was sad to know that a burning vehicle would attract less attention than a functioning one. And it was just one more reason to fight the Sons of Garmadon and their leaders.

Before Nya followed her teammates down the hole, she stopped and turned around to embrace her parents once more.

"I love you." She sniffed. "And please, tell Edna and Ed that I-I..." Her voice broke.

"We love you too, honey." Maya gently rubbed her crying daughter's back. "And we will."

——-

Down in the sewers, the three Ninja and one Samurai climbed on board the small boat. Slightly – but really only slightly – more knowledgeable than during his first attempts, Lloyd took the controls and stirred the Destiny's Shadow through the dark tunnels and, as he hoped, towards the open sea.

Not much was spoken for the first part of their journey.

The Green Ninja was too focused on his task of keeping the craft under his control, and the other three didn't want to risk distracting him.

Also, they were all deep in their own thoughts.

Nya was on her own at the rear of the boat, secretly using her elemental powers to stabilise the ship and obviously missing and worrying about her parents.

"They will be fine." PIXAL finally approached the girl, giving the Water Ninja a comforting smile. "Considering what they have made it through before, there is a very high probability that they will successfully complete their mission and safely make it to their hiding place."

The Samurai carefully avoided mentioning any precise numbers, well aware that her predecessor in the armour hated being given the odds of anything. Thus, this would have to do.

And it did.

"Thanks." Nya smiled back. "I know I have to trust them. Just as they trust us."

"Ugh." Skylor groaned from the front of the boat.

The Master of Amber was sitting at the bow, her eyes fixed on the tunnel ahead and fighting the strong feeling of nausea – which was actually less related to Lloyd's poor driving skills than rather to the unpleasant surroundings.

Unlike the others, the orange Ninja had never been down in the sewers before, and although Skylor hadn't had the highest expectations for this place, the smell was even worse than she had feared. "This is almost as bad as Tox's poison cloud."

Lloyd, who had once encountered the Master of Poison's elemental power, burst out laughing, causing the boat to sway sideways. "You mean the one at the roller skating derby? Poor Kai went straight through it." He chuckled. "That was one of the few moments that he was actually upright on his feet – although he might have wished he wasn't."

"Speaking about straight, would you mind keeping the boat a bit more stable?" Skylor mumbled, leaning of the side of the Destiny's Shadow to empty the contents of her stomach.

Nya got up and walked over to her. "My brother really had a history with smelly places, do you remember him after he got spit at by the Venomari at the Toxic Bogs?" She chuckled, comfortingly rubbing her friend's back.

Lloyd sighed. "I really hope the Serpentine are not going to turn on us again... especially as we are not too far from the old tomb right now."

"I would not expect us to have anything to fear from them, considering their history with Lord Garmadon." PIXAL stated.

"And I truly believe that they don't care about taking over Ninjago anymore. They really just want to keep their families safe and out of trouble." Nya added. Smart snakes. She thought.

"But how can they live down here?" Skylor wondered. "I always thought snakes have an excellent sense of smell..."

"The Serpentine were locked away in underground tombs for quite a long time. Maybe their physiology has adapted to this stuffy air." Nya suggested.

"But I haven't..."

"Do not worry. We will soon be out in the open sea." PIXAL reassured the red haired girl. "And, as people like to say: 'The coast is clear.'"

Still in Ignacia, the Samurai had managed to re-connect to Zane's Falcon and had sent him ahead to watch out for any activities by the evil biker.

"Well, that's some good news." Nya sighed. "Not that I am happy about Garmadon destroying Ninjago and hunting down our friends, but at least all his attention is still kept on the continent for the moment and not on the sea or the islands."

Let's just hope it will stay this way for a bit longer.

Luckily, the Nindroid was right. And as soon as they were out of the sewers, Skylor was starting to feel better, despite the rather strong winds and high waves.

"We should take turns at the helm." She suggested, noticing that the still ailing Green Ninja was starting to get tired.

Lloyd vigorously shook his head. "I am fine." He insisted, not wanting to look weak in front of his three female teammates.

"Just stop that macho shit. Or, if you prefer, stop being a gentleman" Nya exclaimed, remembering the last time she had been in these waters, how Jay had insisted on rowing their little boat. "You may be Master Lloyd but you are still sick. And you are obviously tired. Admit it, you would not have refused this offer, if it had come from one of the guys. But they aren't here. We are a team now. And you'll have to get used to being outnumbered."

As the raven haired girl used her water powers to propel the boat forward, Skylor and PIXAL nodded in agreement.

Finding himself dealing with three strong and headstrong girls, Lloyd understood that he didn't have much of a choice. With a sigh, he let the orange Ninja take over the console and curled himself up on the floor, and sleep immediately overtook the exhausted Ninja.

When he opened his eyes, the coast of the Dark Island was already in their view. Only that, coming from a different Ninjago, it didn't appear as dark as it used to.

"Good morning, Lloyd." PIXAL greeted him, as he stretched his aching body. "Be careful, please. Nya and Skylor are still asleep."

"Good morning, PIX." Lloyd smiled at her. "Looks like you've made it."

"No, we have made it." The Samurai corrected him. "Remember, we are a team."

"We are a team." The boy repeated. "And we've made it."

Although Lloyd was wearing a confident smile on his face, he knew that this statement couldn't be any further away from the truth.

Sure, the four of them had safely arrived on the island, but they hadn't actually achieved anything here yet.

And, while he appreciated having his new team with him, Lloyd dreaded his first visit to the Temple of Light without his old team.

And without his brothers around, things might not even work at all.