Back to the Beginning - A Ninjago Lavashipping Fanfiction [COMPLETED]

Chapter 16

Catori

      Fire. Fire and blood was all she could remember. It was definitely not a good sight for a five year old, but the memory was stuck deep inside the back of her mind.
      A war. A civil war between her father and mother, and their second hand.
      Seven year old Chaska wrapped his arms around Catori, looking at their surroundings with fear. The second hand stood guard in front of the chief's daughter and son, waiting for their arrival. They climbed the tallest mountain on the island, the high cliffs falling down to the ocean on every side.
     Catori had no idea what happened that day, but I costed many lives, but one important person in particular. Someone who passed a secret that should never be revealed.
    Her parents finally arrived, battle cuts and scars all over their bodies. They panted from exhaustion, using their spears as posts to lean on.
     "What do you want?" her father asked staring daggers at his former second hand. He took a deep breath and stood taller, showing his dominance.
     "Oh you know what I want." he smirked, skimming his skinny fingers over the thin, curved blade of his dagger. His voice was inky and deep, like his soul.
    Catori's mother stepped forward. "Give us our children. We will gratefully give you our lives instead." her mother's voice always soothed Catori.
    "No! We cannot risk the tribe!" Chief Akecheta hissed and threw his arm in front of his wife protectively.
"What about our children?" Catori looked at her mother's forest green eyes, full of fear. Chaska squeezed her tighter, and she sank deeper into his chest.
Her father's second hand stopped flipping the blade and advanced forward.
"Well, if you can't make up your mind, then I shall take all your lives!" he lunged forward, but his blade was met with the handle of the chief's spear. Her father thrust him backwards and lunged to attack, but his lithe body was able to avoid it, easily sidestepping.
While being occupied, Catori's mother ran over to her children and wrapped her arms around their small bodies.
"Don't worry loves, we will defeat him. But it is best to get you out of here; you are not safe." her mother looked approvingly at her brother and smiled. "well done my son."
Chaska beamed at his mother.
Somewhere from behind, Catori heard her father grunt in pain and fall to the floor.
"Mama!" Catori pointed to the second hand advancing forward. But it was too late.
He grabbed her neck from behind and chocked her. Catori's mother gasped for air and dug her nails into his arm that clasped around her neck.
Farther back, her father struggled to get up, clutching his side as bright red blood trickled from the creases in his fingers.
Catori's eyes widened.
      The blade that the second hand held against her mother's neck had fresh blood smeared on its surface.
"I'll give you ten seconds. Back down and I will release your children. Resist, and your bloodline will be no more." he whispered sickly. Her mother took a shuddering breath in and out. Catori looked deep into her mother's eyes that glistened with pools of tears. She mouthed the words, "I love you." and released her hands from his arm. A tear fell and hit the rocky floor with a splash as the evil man smirked, sharp teeth gleaming in the red light. Before he pushed the blade deeper, Chaska shielded her eyes and wrapped his body around hers, closing his eyes tight. Her gasp seemed to echo through the cliffs, a soft thud hitting the floor soon after.
"No!" Chief Akecheta bellowed.
"Mama?" Catori looked up at her brother with eyes full of tears. He looked back, his electric blue irises blurred.
"Mama is... she's," his eyes closed releasing water. "she's... gone." Chaska started to sob. 
       The second hand smiled victoriously at the dead body, but was unaware of the chief steaming towards him. Her father radiated power, like he was never stabbed in the first place, walking towards the enemy with passion.
       "How dare you kill my wife!" her father's thundering words sounded through the cliffs. The former second hand turned around only to get met with the chief's strong hand to the neck, hovering him over the two hundred foot drop towards the crashing waves. He eagerly gasped for air and looked into Akecheta's eyes with sudden fear. He stopped flailing, his legs coming to a slow stop, arm dropping lifelessly to his sides. With a final thrust, the second hand was gone for good, and thrown into the foggy abyss below, taken by the Endless Sea.
      Catori finally gave away and let her tears fall. She didn't understand what happened, but all she knew was her mother was no longer with them.
      Chief Akecheta bend down towards her mother's limp body, cold and unmoving. He touched her forehead with his and closed his eyes.
      He whispered in a tone almost too soft to hear. "I will never forget you. Goodbye Aiyana."