Ronin was back in Stiix, he turned back to his pawn shop. Entering, he found it decorated by Bansah and Soul Archer. Ronin walked in and the door closed behind him by Ghoultar.

"Heh, I like what you've done with the place. Pretty gusty making your hideout right here in Stiix. With this much water, they'd never come looking for you here." Ronin said, handing the sword to Soul Archer. The ghost inspected it. The real blade.

"Kid." Soul Archer said. Neran raised his head from sitting near the wall. Ronin took notice of the young boy sitting with an awake, but exhausted Morro. He would barely have strength to walk here.

Soul Archer threw the sword to Neran, the boy catching it with his left hand.

"Are you ever going to say--" Neran caught the sword.

"Never mind." He said.

"Does he still have the scroll?" Bansha asked. Neran looked at Morro.

"Like he'd ever get rid of one." Neran took the scroll of airjitzu out of Morro's sling bag he carried around. Laying it on a table, the backside of the scroll held a map of Ninjago. Neran switched his grip to back hand and stabbed the blade in the wood.

Slowly on the blade, the mark on where the tomb is placed showed up in the reflection of the sword. At the West coast of Ninjago, in the ocean. Morro propped himself up a bit to see. The ghosts raised their weapons at him. Being in a weakened state, Morro wouldn't dare move any more.

"Now what about my soul? The deal was you'd remove the curse and free me." Ronin said.

"You can have your soul, but the deal has changed. I want the ninja too." Soul Archer said.

"What?!" Ronin, Neran and Morro all exclaimed.

"Whoa, now hold on. A deal's a deal but what so you care about the ninja? I thought you said you weren't afraid of them." Ronin said.

"I'm not. But our Preeminent requires certain...safeguards." Soul Archer said Bansha and Ghoultar laughed.

"Forget it. I'll keep my cursed soul. The sword's one thing but my friends are another." Ronin said.

"Since when do you have friends?" Bansha insulted, making Ronin turn to the door. Ghoultar grabbed his shoulder.

"Hey--" Neran got cut off.

"This isn't your place to speak, child." Soul Archer said.

Neran stepped back.

"You're not going anywhere, Ronin. We still have a need for you. The Realm Crystal belongs to us." Soul Archer said.

"No, you leave him out of this." Morro said, sounding out of breath.

"I don't care for him much. But you've used him enough."

"M-Morro." Neran said, turning to the ninja. Morro grabbed Neran's left hand. The ghosts turned to Neran.

"Kid." Soul Archer called. Neran froze. Morro narrowed his gaze. This angered him. What is Neran doing?

"Why can't you chose?" Morro whispered.

"We have a task for you." Soul Archer said. Morro let go of Neran's hand as the ghost turned around.

. . .

"

Well, he obviously took the sword to the ghosts!" Jay shouted. They all gathered in the tea shop after... The incident.

"But where are they? Anywhere in Ninjago..." Zane said.

"Look, Nya, I know you're not a ninja yet, but if you're gonna be one of us--" Cole started.

"I'm sorry. I should've told you when I first suspected Ronin would steal it." Nya protested.

"Enough! We all knew the path to save our faimly was never going to be a straight line." Wu intercepted.

"We were all fooled by Ronin, but that doesn't make us fools. At a time like this, we mustn't butt heads, but put our heads together." Wu said.

"I'm sorry. You said butt heads." Jay giggled.

Everyone stared at Jay.

The falcon cried out and started to project a message. Everyone stepped back. It was Ronin.

"I can't talk loud, but I wanted to let you know, Nya, you were right." Ronin turned to the girl.

"Soul Archer didn't hold his end of the bargain. And Misako was right too. The scroll and sword did reveal the tomb." Ronin said.

"I know where it's located. I know you don't have the sword, but I know you can beat them to the tomb." There was a noise.

"They're coming."

"Where is it? Where's the tomb?" Jay asked.

"... The caves of despair."

"No, no!!"

The ninja saw Ronin step aside and Morro raise his hand in distress. The video ended.

"Morro!" Nya shouted.

"The caves of despair. We've been there." Wu said.

"There are unexplored caves." Misako said.

"But, Morro... He- he wanted to stop the message? Was it because staged to make it look like Ronin's telling us, or what?" Jay asked.

"He was worried about the location." Wu said.

"Morro has without a doubt come to his senses. He's warning us." Wu said.

"But is this a trap? Can we trust Ronin?" Nya asked.

"No scroll, no sword, no Morro elaborating on what he means. This is our best bet." Kai said.

"We're in." Cole nodded with the other ninja.

"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. What good will it do us if it's all just a setup?" Nya asked.

"Morro would not be so distressed otherwise." Zane said.

"My son is cautious. And he still cares about us. If we were going into danger, he would warn us." Wu said.

"Especially with certain locations."

"We cannot afford to do nothing. The ninja will go. As for Nya, you're still not ready." Wu shook his head. Nya sighed. Zane held her shoulder in comfort before the ninja departed.

. . .

Ronin kneeled down and fell as Neran hastily stepped back.

"Why would you say there?!" Morro shouted.

"I- I don't know. It's the last place I remember standing in, it just came to my head!" Neran yelled back. Morro paused.

"So both of us..." Morro said.

"No. Stop." Neran said.

"Both of us went there." Morro continued.

"Stop it."

"And that's where you--"

"I said stop it!!" Neran shouted, turning back and running at Morro. The ninja raised his hands in defence, Neran grabbing one either his left hand and his right arm headed towards Morro's neck.

"Kk-" Morro grunted as his breath was quickly limited. Neran slammed Morro into the wall, hitting his head and knocking him out. Neran jolted away, pulling his hands in. The ghost hovered his hand over his mouth.

"That kid..." Ronin muttured under his breath.

"You're not thinking of stopping now, are you?" Soul Archer said. Neran yelped.

"Ah! No! No, no!" Neran shook his head, messing his hair up even further.

"Good. We'll move soon." Soul Archer said.

Neran exhaled deeply and dropped beside a passed out Morro. Ronin saw Neran lean over with his arms out, hugging Morro before Ronin had to shut his eyes.

. . .

The ninja arrived at the caves.

"The Caves of Despair." Kai said, gazing at the orange rock.

"This is where we first came for the Golden Weapons. It's like everything has come full circle. Even with Morro not being here." Cole said.

"Don't say that. Full circle means it's coming to an end, and I don't want to hear that before I go into the Caves of Despair, one of my least favorite words!" Jay exclaimed.

How do we even know the tomb's in there?" He asked.

"Scanning." Pixal said. She found something. A mark on the rock.

"The third symbol." Kai said.

"Good enough for me. Let's go." Jay said.

At a distance Ghoultar carved another skull. It was a trap.

"There's another symbol." Jay pointed.

"Huh. Looks like it only gets darker the deeper in we go." Cole sighed.

"Then it's a good thing we have a little light." Kai said, turning to four lit lanterns.

"Wait! What if this is one of the tests?" Cole warned.

"Yeah, Sensei said the tomb was gonna be protected by three deadly tests. Maybe if we pick the wrong lantern..." Jay trailed off.

Kai carefuly grabbed a lantern.

"Ha! Nope, just a lantern." He said as nothing happened. Cole and Zane took ones two. Jay cautiously took one.

"Like I thought, just another lantern. Wait!" Jay ran up.

"Looks like there was a cave-in." Kai said pointing to an opening on the side. Red light emitted from it.

"Ugh! What's that smell?" Jay asked.

"My sense pick up traces of Kethanol, a highly flammable gas released from deep well mining." Zane said.

"Sure. Bet that's what all Nindroids say." Cole said.

"If you're implying that smell came from me--"

"Look! Some of these rocks appear to have been recently moved. Maybe they've already been through here." Kai said.

"Well, time to take up Jay's old lesson and be aware of our surroundings." Cole said, taking a step.

"Alright. Don't die, people." Kai said.

"Inspiring." Jay said dryly.

"I know. I'm great at speeches."

The ninja flipped on their hoods.

"Ash." Kai touched the ground.

"Deffinetly some fire involved here. One of the traps?"

"Look." Cole stood in place. The others joined him. A skeleton.... A dead one. Gray shirt. Shorts. Red scarf.

"Is... That?" Kai asked.

"The First Spinjitzu Master?" Jay said.

"Where's the realm crystal?" Kai looked around.

"This does not appear to be him." Zane kneeled down.

"This body structure is too small. And look at this scarf." Zane carefully touched the fabric.

"This is Neran."

"He... He died here? How?" Kai asked. Zane turned around to see a hole with lava at the bottom.

"That, I assume. If it was blocked up, this area would fill with smoke, the heat would take all the oxygen. No air." Zane said.

"Suffocation." Jay implied.

"And after that, he still wasn't able to breathe. In the Cursed Realm 'cause he wasn't supposed to be there!" Kai exclaimed.

"He barely got peace after." Cole said.

Jay kneeled down and clapped his hands together. The others did the same. They wanted this to be over. For this kid to rest.

"We'd better hurry. The Kethanol geyser might ignite once more." Zane warned. Kai looked to the side. A belt.

"What the." He picked it up.

"What's that?" Jay asked.

"Looks like it belongs to a ninja gi." Kai found the end of the belt and gasped.

The symbol of wind.

"This... This is Morro's!" Kai exclaimed.

"This is where he was endangered. Where he cried for sensei's help!" Zane exclaimed.

"No wonder he didn't want to come with us to get the scythe of quakes here." Cole said.

"Both boys came here. Only one had help to get out." Jay said in sorrow.

"But Neran never came back. He's here that mean..." Kai started.

"It is trap!!" Ghoultar shouted.

"Now you suffer same fate as child!!" Goultar swung his scythe into the ground and the area started to crumble. The ninja threw away the lanterns. The exit was blocked off. They coughed the dust.

"There's no way out!" Kai shouted.

"If this was a test, I think we certainly failed it."

"And all this gas is making me a little lightheaded." Jay said.

"This cavern is a virtual oven. If those geysers decide to ignite, we'll be cooked." Cole exclaimed.

"Pixal has located an opening. The cave-in must have created a gap!" Zane exclaimed.

"Oh, but a gap to where? For all we know, it could be a dead end and for the record, that's another one of my least favorite words. Dead end." Jay said.

"Too late!" Cole grabbed a boulder and placed it over the geyser.

"Cole, no!" Zane cried.

"Ha, solved that problem."

"Correction, you made it worse. Now the pressure will compact the explosion, multiplying the damage tenfold." Zane said.

"Oh, what are you trying to say?" Jay asked.

"When that rock goes, every cave in a 10-mile radius will be filled with a wall of fire so hot, it'll incinerate everything in its path." Zane implied.

"Guess we better get hot on our heels." Kai looked up.

"Cyclon-do!" Jay shouted as the ninja airjitzu'd their way to the opening.

The geyser exploded. The cave filled with lava. Neran's body was gone. No going back. Especially for the ninja 'cause they were gonna die.

The ninja reached a hole in the path.

"Go, go, go!!" Kai shouted. They jumped down and landed in a mimecart. And it started moving.

"Great." Jay said.

"How do we stop this thing?" Jay shouted.

"Obstacle." Pixal analyzed ahead. Jay almost fell out. Kai helped him back up.

Ghoultar was up ahead and heard the sound of teenage boys screaming. Jay threw his Aeroblade and finally got rid of the ghost. Thank you Jay.

Jay caught his blade.

"I caught it guys!" He exclaimed.

"Looks like we're coming to a dead end!" Cole exclaimed.

"Oh, there's that word again. Never say that word! Aah! What do I do? What do I do?" Jay screamed.

"Use the Aeroblade for brakes." Zane suggested.

The ninja used the blades to try and slow their movement.

"It almost feels like we're going faster!" Jay screamed. The end of the rails up ahead. And down to a pit of lava they went.

In the moment, a ladder dropped down from Ronin's airship and the ninja grabbed on quickly.

"HAHA! I COULD KISS RONIN! RIGHT AFTER I DECK HIM IN THE FACE!!" Cole shouted. The ninja climbed up. And... Autopilot again.

"Hey, ninja. If you're getting this message, I'm sure you have some choice words for me." Ronin said on a screen.

"Ha! You got that right!" Cole exclaimed.

"But I want to tell you, that wasn't me who sent you to this trap. I was under the control of... The ghosts. I know you think I'm a crook by taking the sword, and I wanna make things right by offering my airship, R.E.X., as a peace offering. I know it's not what you had in mind, but I've remotely entered the location of the tomb. The real one this time." Ronin said. A map of the endless sea showed up.

"Look at that. The reason Misako never found the tomb in Ninjago was because it was never there in the first place. It's under the ocean." Kai said.

"The ghosts got a head start, but R.E.X. should get you straight there in a jiff. And if it's any consolation, this'll be the last you see of me. If Nya wants to know a reason, tell her it's because I care. Okay. Good luck. And go save those brothers." The message shut off.

"Looks like we're headed to the tomb. Time to buckle up." Kai said. The ninja strapped into the airship. It rose out of the caves. That place was far destroyed by now. But the ninja were on their way to get their team back home.

~ ~ 助けて ~ ~

"How did I even get here? I just woke up and everything started hurting. I can't breath. Everytime I open my eyes, it's just dark and fog. Everything hurts. I want to get out of here.

How long has it been? I feel taller. I think I look the same. My body hurts. I can't breathe. My lungs feel like they're going to rip apart. I want to cry. But everytime I do, it burns.

My hand's on my chest now. I can move. Okay, right one still hurts. Oh? It's not there anymore. Did it fall off? How do I get it back? Let me leave.

"You are allowed to leave."

Really? That's great. I can leave. Who said that? Such a nice voice. Like the sun.

Kh-- that's cold. Chains? Even colder in this place. I can't move again. My arm hurts. Please stop squeezing it. I want to go outside and breathe.

"You can't leave yet."

That's a different voice. It scares me.

"You have to do something for us if you want to leave."

What? Why? I don't want to.

"You won't leave until you find something for us. A crystal. You should get it no matter what. It starts with the staff that belongs to the son of the First Spinjitzu Master."

The son of the First Spinjitzu Master? Is he... I might know him.

"You need a chest plate too. The allied armour. Then use it to bring me, and others with you."

Allied armour. I don't even know where to find that.

"And you'll need a master of spinjitzu. The whole time."

A master of spinjitzu. I know someone who practices that. I wonder how he's doing. I wanna see him again. I turned my head.

"Give him the green ninja this tea and have the other guy you get have some too."

I felt a tea bag in my hands. What in Ninjago? How did that get there? Why do I have it? I don't want it.

"You won't leave, kid, if you say no. You will have to do this if we let you go."

Why. Why can't I just leave? I want to leave. Please, let me leave. I JUST WANT TO LEAVE, PLEASE! This is torchure. I can't take breathes. I can barely move here. And it won't even end. Why can't it end?

"Yes or no, kid. Your destiny depends on the answer."

I can run away maybe. What if I say yes? I'm gonna have to say yes. I can't stay here. It hurts. I can't even talk. I guess I nod my head.

"Great! Don't forget, we'll be watching. So do what I told you first, then go find it."

The chains are gone. It's not cold. I can breathe. It still hurts to, though. Hey. I'm back here. It is still here. Good thing it's not burnt. Guess it did fall off. I grabbed it and noticed my hand. It's see through. I can see through my hand. I don't like this place.

So, I ran for a bit. I'm at the tree. Wow. I am taller. The marks on the wood say that. I used to mark my height. Where do I go now? His home?

What? Why is this place burnt down? What happened?

A boat. That's him. I guess I'll get on.

~ ~ ~

Underground again. There's someone comming.

~ ~ ~

This place is pretty big. Very white. Museum, it said at the front. I can't see my hands. Can other people see me? I don't think so. No one's talked to me. Oh. Sorry to the people to take care of this place. I just went through the walls. Hey. Allied armour. That's what I'm looking for right?

Hey! The forest! I can meet him there for the first time in a while! Hehe! I can't wait for the look on his face. I still wonder how long it's been. He's so tall. And his hair is longer. Why can't he just tie it back already? And that streak is still there. That's weird. Guess it is natural.

~ ~ ~

This tree. The branches are so close to my face now. Come to think of it. This is where my arm broke. It still hurts. That's... That's him. He's right there.

~ ~ 助けて ~ ~