Onyx and the Rise of the Snakes

All of Nothing

Onyx and the older ninja chased the Venomari through the streets of Ninjago. Jay, Kai, and Cole herded him down an alleyway, where Onyx and Zane were lying in wait. They leapt out in front of the snake as he came their way, drawing their weapons and stopping him in his tracks. "Sorry, are we in your way?" Onyx asked innocently, spinning her katanas. The snake's expression grew horrified as he realized that he was trapped.

"Thought you could joyride through town and not be noticed, eh? Where's the last Fangblade?" Jay asked harshly. The Venomari shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said. "Yes, you do. The fourth and final blade that Pythor needs to unleash the Great Devourer," Onyx said. The Serpentine smirked. "Oh, that Fangblade. You're too late. Pythor is already there. He's probably digging it up now. If I were you, I'd prepare for the worst, because when the Great Devourer is awakened, there's nothing it won't consume!" He said. Onyx laughed. "Well then, I guess we'll see each other in Hell," she said. With what she had learned... it was entirely possible. The snake took a moment to absorb her statement.

His eyes widened, and he grabbed Onyx's collar. "Ahh! Please, you have to stop him, that snake is crazy! I don't wanna unleash the Great Devourer, I'm a snake, not food!" He cried hysterically. Onyx pulled his grimy hands off her collar. "The tell us how!" She exclaimed. "Is it really too late to stop Pythor?" Kai jumped in. "You're days behind him. Please, there's gotta be something you can do!" The Venomari wailed. "How about you tell us where Pythor is. Then we'll do everything we can," Cole said. The snake immediately told them everything. Once they had milked him for all the information he held, the five let him run off. "Onyx, don't talk like that," Cole chastised as they prepared to return to the Destiny's Bounty.

The ninja, Wu, and Nya looked at the map displayed on the screen in the bridge. The five had reported everything the snake had told them, and now they all had concerned looks on their faces. "The Venomari's right. By the time we sail clear across Ninjago, Pythor will have already beat us to the last Fangblade," Nya said. "Come on, guys. This is the last one, we've got to think of something," Jay said. Onyx frowned and held her chin, thinking. Then a hazy thought popped into her head.

"Wait, what if we've been thinking about this all wrong?" She murmured. "Hey," Lloyd said. Everyone looked to him. Onyx looked at him. His ideas usually weren't half-bad. "What if, instead of looking for the last Fangblade, we just take the other three? Pythor probably won't risk having them all on him at once. He's probably hidden the others while he looks," Lloyd said. Onyx blinked. How had they not thought of that?

"It's so simple," Kai said. "Why didn't we think of that?" Cole asked. "Wait, it can't be that easy," Jay said. "Easy? My algorithms suggest taking the other three would be far more dangerous. Pythor will undoubtedly have the other blades protected by his top generals," Zane said, getting the conversation back on track. Kai punched his open palm. "Finally, I don't have to hold back," he said.

"Even if you could steal the other three, you still don't know where they are," Garmadon said. "He's right. For the past few weeks, there have been almost no Serpentine sightings. How are they moving? It's like they're ghosts," Wu agreed. "Or just snakes. Bridge, give me a sonar sweep of Ninjago," Nya said, giving the computer an order. It paused for a second, then displayed a view of Ninjago. There was nothing out of the ordinary. "Nothing. Just like Sensei said," Kai sighed. Onyx frowned, thinking. Then her eyes snapped open. "What if they're not traveling aboveground? I mean, they are snakes," she said. Nya grinned. "Exactly what I was thinking. Snakes burrow. Bridge, scan again, but this time twenty feet belowground," she said.

The computer displayed a labyrinthine web of interlocking tunnels and passageways, snaking around under the entirety of Ninjago. Everyone stared at the maze, awed at the sheer size of it. "All the tombs have been connected," Kai said. "To make one massive underground fortress," Cole finished. "All this time, right under our noses," Jay said. "Or rather, feet," Zane corrected.