Darkness from Within #7: A Promise Broken (Ninjago Fanfiction)

Chapter 15

The sun was setting under the horizon. Garmadon paced the front porch, Wu standing nearby.

"He must've escaped," Garmadon stated, stealing another glance at the courtyard gates.

Wu's voice was heavy with grief. "How could Kai have slipped the grasp of every single Baddie in the Bend? And what's worse: what if he ran into Lloyd? You know Lloyd would take any opportunity to destroy him. He's been trying for years."

"Kai's a ninja," Garmadon protested. "He knows how to stick to the shadows."

Wu heaved a sigh and didn't reply, only gazed out into the courtyard.

Garmadon's pacing got harder. "What if he escaped, but couldn't make it back to the monastery?" he went on. "What if he's stuck out in the forest—injured?"

"Brother, I don't think—"

"We have to send out a search patrol," Garmadon argued. "If we start by the treeline, we'll have to come across some sort of sign as to where—"

Creak!

The noise made the sensei's voice break off. With a gasp, Garmadon snapped his gaze toward the courtyard gates as someone stumbled inside.

His eyes widened in alarm. "Kai!" he gasped.

The red ninja met his gaze with a distant look in his eyes, and Garmadon immediately knew something was wrong. "Get Pixal!" he demanded.

Without protest, Wu raced into the monastery. Garmadon hurried over to the red ninja as Kai continued to stagger forward, face twisted in pain. When the sensei reached him, he fell into the man's arms with a sudden groan. Heart pounding, Garmadon put his arms around the ninja, allowing Kai to lean against his chest. Fear rained down on the sensei as he felt Kai tremble, gasping after every breath. Blood dripped onto his neck and Garmadon noticed a bruise across one side of the red ninja's face, along with a long cut from his temple to his lip, and another from his lip to his chin.

Garmadon felt panic rise inside of him. "You told me you'd be careful," he breathed, pulling the ninja closer.

Kai wrapped his arms around his chest. "I-I know," he grunted through gritted teeth, "b-but I couldn't—" He groaned again, staggering on his feet. Then he let out a hiss. "—couldn't l-let them take Cole." He gasped in pain and tightened his grip around himself, breathing heavily.

Garmadon's breath quickened and he stared down at Kai's chest, resting one hand on the ninja's. "Your...?"

Kai grunted, shutting his eyes. "Ribs," he rasped out.

He seemed like he wanted to say more, but Garmadon could see he didn't have the strength. "Don't worry," the sensei murmured, "we'll figure out what's wrong."

Just then, Pixal came rushing from the monastery, followed more slowly by Wu. The robot halted beside Kai, resting a hand on his shoulder. The red ninja gasped again and Garmadon gently shifted him to face her. "Help him," he told her.

Pixal turned to the red ninja. "Can you walk?"

Kai's glazed gaze flicked downward. "I-I think..." But as he tried to take a step forward, a moan escaped him and Garmadon had to catch him before he fell over.

"He just came all the way from the mountains, of course he can't walk!" Garmadon snapped more angrily than he had meant it. Struggling to calm himself, he turned his gaze back to the red ninja. "Here," he said, voice softening again. He reached down toward Kai's legs and scooped the ninja into his arms. Kai let out a sudden shriek of pain at the movement and Garmadon felt a flash of panic. "Kai!"