Archive of Our Own

"I'm sorry. I tried to talk to Lloyd, but... I don't think he remembers me." Kai trailed off, slowly letting go of his gi, the ice digging into his neck. 

It always seemed to ache, seemed to pulse unnaturally... That's one of the things he was beginning to hate about the cold; It always seemed to aggravate any pain in his body. 

"You don't have to apologize, Kai. You really tried..." Nya said softly. She tried to look over at him through the cell doors, but there wasn't much room. 

"But why do you look so out of it? What did Zane say to you?" Cole asked.

Kai froze like the words just sucked out any shred of defiance he had inside of him. He backed up from the door, the stone floors too dusted with snow to make any loud sounds. He hit the back wall, feeling his body tremble. Not from the cold, but from something more... Unnatural. And not to this scale...

"You... Are like the other traitors. Meant to overthrow my rule. However..." his voice trailed off as he watched the red ninja staring up at him.

"You, in particular, may prove to be quite useful."

What? 

Kai didn't know what that meant. He tried to get up, only for Lloyd to force him back to the ground. He grunted a little, feeling the ice digging into his skin. 

"You restored the Hearth's Fire, correct?" the Emperor questioned, pointing the staff directly at his chest. Kai tensed up, but quickly schooled his expression to glare up at the Emperor. 

"He holds the fire element, my Emperor." Lloyd began. 

"I am aware of that." The Emperor said, moving his staff away. Kai exhaled in relief, only for the staff to end up pointed underneath his chin, right at his throat. He felt his heart stop, then rapidly thud against his chest as he looked up at the Emperor. 

"What do you plan to do with the prisoners, my Emperor?" Vex asked, coming to his side. The Emperor frowned, staring Kai down for a long moment. 

"By the dawn of the next day, we shall bring the prisoners here. The traitors only, the Formlings are simply trophies to my rule. But the rest..." The Emperor stared at Lloyd, their icy blue eyes meeting in the throne room. 

"The rest shall be as useful as this one. The same treatment is required." the staff blew off some ice right at Kai's throat, lingering sparks hitting his chest. He hissed, reaching up to tug at the ice, only for it to not budge. 

Great FSM, it was hard to breathe with this stuff. How did Lloyd survive with these sort of conditions? 

"Of course, my Emperor." Vex agreed. "You two, take the prisoner to the dungeons. And don't let them escape while you do so."

Kai forced himself to his feet, ducking underneath his little brother trying to grab him. He took off running as fast as he could, only to collapse to the ground as he wheezed. The ice... It hurt so much... He could barely keep up physically. 

"... Hm. Good point of contact." Vex hummed, tapping the ice around the fire ninja's throat. A simple placement, but one that was doing wonders to stop a runner. 

The samurai dragged him to his feet, escorting him out of the throne room. Everything ached, but he couldn't give up... He couldn't... 

But instead, all he felt was something he was never used to feeling. 

Fear.

"The Ice Emperor said we have until tomorrow morning before we're all just like Lloyd." his voice came out almost hoarse, like the words were painful to say. 

If the cold wasn't threatening to suffocate all of them already, fear would've done so instead. Unfortunately, it was now both.

"Couldn't you have just led with that?!" Jay exclaimed. "Now we're all doomed because we're stuck in these dungeons with NO WAY OUT-"

"No one is going to figure out how to escape unless we calm down!" Akita ordered. Jay clamped his mouth shut, but it was pretty clear he was still on edge.

"What else did the Emperor tell you?" she turned to Kai, watching him closely. Kai pulled back from the door again, fidgeting with the ice around his neck.

"He just asked if I brought back the Hearth's Fire... That's really it. They were just discussing what to do with us in front of me." Kai mumbled.

"That... Does not help our case, does it." Cole said flatly.

"No."

"Of course it doesn't..."

"Well, we obviously can't stay here. Let's see if there's some way to break out... Something, anything! We have all night to figure out something, so come on!" Nya urged, trying to find something through her supply bags. Unfortunately there wasn't much besides some old snacks, a tiny Clutch Powers survival book she completely forgot about, and some hair ties.

She frowned, closing her bag up. Nya's gaze shifted to the outside of the dungeons, the wind and snow howling as the sky remained cloudy overhead. It was growing dark out there, and fast. 

They needed to figure out some way to get out... And soon.

"My lord, are you truly planning on waiting until morning to preform your spell?" Vex asked once the Emperor returned to his throne.

"Yes..."

"But you have the power of the scroll to aid you! You can do it right now, not waste time for them to rebel!"

"If you need, I'll watch over the dungeons so no one breaks out." Lloyd spoke up.

"That would be wise, yes." Vex agreed.

"Then you shall, as a direct order from the Ice Emperor." the Emperor commanded, pointing his staff at the door. The ex-ninja simply bowed in command. 

"I'll be sure to do so." he said before heading down the steps, pushing open the gates and moving towards the dungeons.

His footsteps were soft, measured. 

Ḻ̵̖͗̾e̴̝̣̞̼̰̎̿ṱ̶̈̀̑̕͜ ̶̢͚͕͙̾m̶̭͍̮̆́͘ĕ̸̖̣͙̎̾ ̴̝̭̲̻͚͌̆̊̂͠ģ̵̦͓̟̂̓͜o̸̠̱̠̩̽̋͊̆.̴̧̳͎͍̹̆̉.̶̤̥̾͛̈.̵͍̗̝̲̟̋

... Lloyd stopped, staring at the ground like his body was refusing to move. He didn't even notice his eyes shifting to a soft mint green before he shook his head, letting them sink back into cyan. 

̶͉͙̖͎̠̒̍̂͌
̶̰͗͑̀Ȉ̸̘̪̦̻̔̎̔̇ţ̷̦͊̍͐͝'̵̱̕s̸̼̦͕̒͐̀̎ ̷̝̜̦̣͌̅̕t̶͇̻̼̼͚̽ǫ̵̹̭̠͇̇͆o̴̲͍̺̘̔́̌ ̷̟̫͋̓͝͝͠c̷̩̤̻͉͌͝ͅȯ̴̲͓̞l̴̪̩͉̃͋̾d̷̮́̒.̶͙͈̍.̷̛̝́̐̾̑.̷̯͎̖̲̈́̄

No. The cold welcomed him. It's always welcomed him. There's no reason it wouldn't. 

He kept walking, each step more forceful and deliberate than the last. He had a purpose. The Emperor gave him a purpose. He wasn't going to fail the Emperor this time. 

̷̯̆͋
̵̢̘̱͈̓̚ͅÌ̷̗̞̪̦̜͝'̵̦̝͉̋̓̑͝m̸͇͙͛ ̴̹́̽̕͝t̴̙̐̈́̈̚į̶̣̐ŗ̸̈́e̶̪͕͇̯͂͊͝d̶͚͋͊̏̋͘.̷̳̍.̵̳͉͕͇͕̌͊̾̚͝.̶͚̰̞̇͠ ̷̤̍͑

He was not tired. That's what a fool would say. This place was the only area where anyone truly cared and welcomed him, after all. 

He's devoted to his Emperor and his rule. Why should he believe otherwise these deceitful thoughts?

As quickly as they had surfaced, they died out within the quiet abyss in the back of his mind. Like a gentle Arctic River, the cold keeping him right where he wants to be. 

Welcomed. Safe. 

He's safe. 

There's no reason to fear. 

He's always safe.

He caught up to the gates, immediately halting Grimfax from opening up the doors. The ice general stared at him, wide eyed. 

"You're prohibited from entering the dungeons." Lloyd said, pulling him away.

"Oh, right. My apologies." Grimfax quickly said.

"Leave. It is my duty to watch over this door to prevent intruders." he ushered him away, standing right at the door like a guard.

Grimfax stared at him for a long moment before turning back, turning a sharp corner and out of sight. Lloyd hummed, watching as he left. 

"... Vex. I'm aware you can hear me through the ice board." he started slowly.

"I believe we have a traitor in our ranks."

The doors were refusing to budge. They had been at this for the last... However many hours!

Cole first tried to slam into them, then Kai started after he had gotten too winded. Jay wasn't having much luck with breaking the chains either, snapping them off just wasn't happening. 

Corrupted ice... Whatever the hell it was, was absurdly dense and strong. And it was giving him a headache just trying to take it off of him.

Nya dug out her hair pin from her hair, jostling it into the lock. It snapped under the pressure, the broken plastic clattering to the ground. 

"... And there goes my only sane option. Are you guys having better luck?" she asked, grasping the frigid bars to look out towards her friends.

"No, unfortunately." Cole grumbled, falling back from the door.

"Ugh! Of course there's no luck! We're stuck in an ice jail and we're all being planned to get turned into popsicle ninja or something!" Jay snapped.

"Well, I don't see you having any better ideas!" Cole yelled back.

"BECAUSE I DON'T HAVE ANY!"

"Shouting will get them nowhere..." Akita muttered, leaning on the wall closest to Kataru.

"You're right. It won't." Kataru quietly agreed.

Kai tried to flick on his fire, only for ice to flare up underneath the cuffs and onto his wrists. He hissed, forcibly extinguishing the flames.

"Nya? I nearly got a fire... But then the ice came back." he felt his voice trail off as he slumped down on the wall. He suddenly felt so tired, but... That didn't make any sense. The ice wasn't vengestone, it shouldn't hold similar properties to it.

"Kai?" Nya called, trying to look over at him.

"Ah, sorry sis..." he pushed his hands through his hair, trying to steady himself. It was like his body was trying to sleep off the cold, which never happened to him before. It was strange...

He exhaled, trying to relax. Maybe it wasn't so bad... He could just stay here. The cold was growing much more onto him than he was expecting... It was weirdly nice. 

Kai stopped. He sat up, blinking harshly at the feeling. What the hell? That wasn't normal. He hissed, flexing his fingers for anything else that felt strange.

"Kai!" Nya called again.

"Yeah?" Kai turned to her voice.

"You... You went quiet for a moment. Are you okay?"

"Me? I..." he grasped his gi tightly, feeling the cold dig into his hands again. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just needed to sit down for a moment."

He slowly stood back up, steadying himself. He needed to focus, not... Not lay down and deal with it. "How's the escape attempts going? Any luck with... Well, anything?"

Nya frowned, slowly lowering her hands from the bars. "No... But are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I... I'm fine. I have to be fine, I'm the elemental master of fire. I should be able to burn through this stupid ice but I just can't!" he pounded his fist on the wall, trying to spark more of a fire in his hands.

He had to be useful. He had to help. He had to help his Ę̷͛m̵͉͘p̵̠̌e̶͋ͅr̴̞͠o̸̖͗r̸͍̐ friends.

He shivered, shaking his head again before he buried his face. What the hell was happening to him? He shouldn't be thinking like that... Feeling like that.

A loud bang cut him out of his thoughts. Cole fell back again, preparing to ram up to the door for yet another try. 

"Oh, give it a rest! These doors aren't coming down anytime soon!" Jay yelled.

"What other option do we have?! The chains are practically indestructible and we don't have any keys! We break down the doors or do absolutely nothing, and I'm not doing nothing!" Cole yelled back, yanking on the bars as hard as he could.

Nya paused, slowly taking out the Clutch Powers book before flipping through it, trying to find anything relating to escaping dungeons without keys.

... Nothing. Of course there was nothing, this was a book on boobytraps not prison escapes. She tossed the book at the wall in frustration, slumping down on the wall. Nya curled up on herself on the ground, feeling the cold trickle in despite the winter gi's attempts to keep them warm.

Oh, why did everything have to feel so hopeless? After everything that's happened, they should've been better than this. Better to... Handle situations like these.

... 

... Maybe Wu was right. They weren't ready for this... 

They should've just listened to him. 

S̸̜̬͒͝h̶̙́̾ě̷̢̹̙ ̸͖͋d̴̯͂̓̕ī̶͔̠͒̅d̶̝̐͌n̴͙̔̐'̵̳̗̇t̵̼̏̚ ̸̤͇̻̈́̐͝ñ̷̗̹͝ͅo̸̠̐̕͠t̵̜͎͔̿i̴͚̟̍̋͠ç̴͇̑́͘e̶̝̊̓̈́ ̷̥̈̇͜͠t̸͈͉̺̾̌h̷̟͑́͠e̵̳̜̥̓̋̉ ̸̠̄i̴͈͋̌c̸̡̦̺̔̓͘ȇ̵̦ ̵̢̍c̵̫͒r̸̬̲̪͆̕e̴̩̪͔̋͒͒ē̵͈p̴̗͑ǐ̴̻̺̊̅͜n̶͕̆̕g̸̡̍̉ͅ ̴̙̉̏ū̵̜͈̀̚p̴̧͔͝ ̷͕̂̄̚h̶̻̾e̷̹͒̽̌r̶̛͚̆ ̷͚̅̋̚s̸̬͂ḧ̶̤̝̊̈́ȏ̶̙̦͝u̶̞͗͒̿l̷̹̰̟̇d̴̖͍̕e̸̞̽͠ṙ̸̘̔̍ś̸̱̩͉̽,̴̞̽ ̷̰͕̋̒d̴̛͉͍̹̈͊i̸͕͗g̸̡̬̹͑̍g̷̳̐ͅḯ̵̡̧̄͝ņ̴̝̫̽g̸̗͔̟͊̏͝ ̵̠̌̂͝i̶̙͓̍ṋ̶̠̀̈́̄͜ț̶͎̰́ŏ̶̧͎ ̴͓͉̩́͘͝h̷͇̺́̿̚e̸̼͈͐r̶̦͝ ̷̠͛ŝ̵̩͈̝͌k̵̘̬̭͛̋i̵͓̩̙̿̅̇n̷̫̬͆́.̷̡̰̎ Everything ached. She hated how much everything hurt.

... 

She exhaled slowly, trying to relax. Stressing herself out wasn't going to help her in formulating a plan... She had no clue how to control ice, sure she could draw water from her body but that could potentially kill her or at the very least severely dehydrate her, and who's to say it'd even work? 

They were out of options and she knew it.

The Emperor remained on his throne in the silence, Vex heading down the halls to the sleeping quarters for the very few ice allies that they had that were still... Human underneath. 

"Grimfax." he knocked on the door. 

The ice general opened up the door, staring at him. "Yes?" 

"Why were you attempting to go to the dungeons? You are not allowed down there." he started. 

"I have no idea what you're talking about." 

"Lloyd saw you. I saw you through the ice. What was your purpose going down there?" 

Grimfax frowned, staring down at Vex. Oh, how he loathed him. How he made the Ice Emperor take over when this wasn't his land to rule. 

"To check in on the prisoners." he said carefully. 

"With the cellar keys?" Vex asked. 

Grimfax stopped, trying to mask the shock on his face, though he was doing a terrible job at it. 

"W-what...?" 

"Lloyd has sharp eyes. You had the keys on your belt. He was the only alibi that I... Reluctantly trust. Because he is loyal to the Emperor."

"Everyone is loyal to the Emperor." Grimfax said. 

"Indeed. As they should be. But what makes you so suspicious is that you're the only person I've seen on my ice going down to the dungeons to talk to the prize of the Emperor."

Grimfax felt himself go rigid as Vex stared down at him. 

"If I find out you've been trying to overthrow the Emperor, then you will have more than just the dungeons, do you understand?" he threatened. 

"Y-yes, Vex." 

Vex stared at him for a moment too long before silently nodding. That was all he needed to get across. 

No one was tearing down the Ice Emperor on his watch. Not the traitors or the former king or the last formlings. No one would ruin his rule. 

"Good."

The wind howled outside the dungeons, the moonlight seeping in like a warning light. 

Kai couldn't sleep. He had no idea if the others were awake either, but he wasn't bothering to ask. 

The ice seemed to chip away at his will the longer he remained trapped in this cell. He just wanted out... T̴͉̋h̷͓̆ḛ̴̢̄̐ ̵̩͂͑͘c̶̦̐̅͜o̵̧͔͐͝l̶̜̣͕̎d̸̤̯̗̄ ̶̡͇̓̊̓w̷̧͎͇͒â̵͖ś̸̤̫͑̚ ̶̛̙̣̥̏͐ś̸̜̹͊o̵̠̭̓̽͝ͅ ̶̧̖̬̋w̷̰̍̚e̶͖̫̘͐̽͌l̵̜̥͍͗ĉ̶̪͖̇͠o̵͖͐m̴̨̱͓̋́i̴̗̚̕ņ̶͉̈́g̶̺̠͎̉̒̋,̴͓͉͌͝ ̵̪̥̫̑s̷̨̝̅ọ̷̞̞̉ ̷̠̏͋̋g̵̬͉̙͋e̴̢̝̯̋̀͐n̶͚̰̍t̷̡̥͗̃͘l̶͚̄̕è̶̖̫̯,̸̫̖̤͗̄ ̶͖͇̜̾̔s̷̪̬̗̃o̷̤͕͐͛̃ ̴̖̥̹̊͝f̵̼͌͘̚r̶̀́ͅę̷͚̉̃̒e̸͍̅́̕í̸̭͌n̶͍̭̑g̷̣̃͝,̸̡̖͕̂̂͝ ̶̢̂̈́̑ŵ̷͉ḧ̷̨̺͚́̉̋y̵͈̘̅ ̷̯͘̕ĉ̷͓̻̠͒ǫ̷̭̉͒͑ǘ̷͎̳́l̶̠̣͑̇̀d̶̝̄̍̓ṇ̷̭̒'̸͈̘͇̓̓t̷̤̦̆̒ ̷̺̕h̵̥̘͈͆̈͝e̴̠͈̽̓-̸̛̫͆̒ NO!

No, Kai stop it. He had to stop that. The cold... It was doing something to it, it had to be doing something, what was it trying to do to him to make him so... Calm towards it?

"The rest shall be as useful as this one. The same treatment is required." the staff blew off some ice right at Kai's throat, lingering sparks hitting his chest.

... 

... No. 

No no no. 

Did he...? 

Kai tugged at his gi, pulling enough of it open to check underneath the layers. It was a frosted blue... The same shade that came from the ice samurai and... Lloyd.

Cold.

It was cold. 

W̷̰̍̚e̶͖̫̘͐̽͌l̵̜̥͍͗ĉ̶̪͖̇͠o̵͖͐m̴̨̱͓̋́i̴̗̚̕ņ̶͉̈́g̶̺̠͎̉̒̋.

Shut up.

He needed his brain to shut up. His heart was beginning to ache, and he had a terrible feeling it was relating to the corrupted ice.

He tugged at his gi again, feeling his hands dig into the fabric. He faintly heard the footsteps coming down the stairs... It was probably Vex. It was always Vex who lingered down in the dungeons, wasn't it? He just seemed like the type.

"Fire Maker."

Kai froze, whipping his head around to see Lloyd on the other side. He was leaning close to the bars, but not outright touching them. 

"Lloyd?!" Kai scrambled to his feet, staring at his little brother on the other side. Oh, it hurt him to see him like this. His skin having gone pale blue and his eyes...

A mint green?

"Lloyd..." he kept his voice quiet, staring at him as if he could hear him through the cold. "Please..."

"You'll join us soon." his eyes shifted back to cyan. Kai's breathing hitched as he stared at the ice soldier. He felt his limbs go slack just... Staring into his eyes.

Icy cyan... To i̶̼̳̮̽͆c̵̨̯̥͌y̵̡̫̻͆̆ ̷̯̠̗̌c̴̥̀̄ỳ̶̢͇ã̵̠͙͖̀ň̴̡̯̝̜̄̐.̵̛͎̯͋͜͠.̷̨̣̱̑.̸̺̥̆̍̅

"We will welcome you when it's time, Kai."

Kai snapped out of it, feeling the rush of his body coming alive in an instant. He gasped, stepping back as he stared at Lloyd. His body was shaking... Why was it shaking? The ice was meant to be n̵̳̗͇̍í̸̧̨̕c̷̢̽͜ę̸͕͒̈́, wasn't it? 

Its... It's n̵̳̗͇̍í̸̧̨̕ce. It's supposed to be nice... 

... Its calm. He's calm. He felt the frostbite tingling at his fingertips, but he was so calm.

Lloyd turned to leave, stepping away from the cell door. He couldn't h̸͍́͐̚e̴̡͇̬̓͐̕l̷̢͇̐̍͑́p̵̛̪̗̤͘͜ ̶̠̗͆̕͝i̷̫̐͗̔̒t̷̪̃̇ͅ,̷̰͕̻̟̕ ̴͚̉̆̊͝h̸͙̮͕̉̎͘ͅḭ̷̤̽́͂͝ś̴̨͎̟̯ ̵̭͔̓̉͘c̸̝̾͂́o̸̡̡͍̬̿m̸̫̥͐͗́͜f̸͙̜̩̆́̋͝o̷̳̱̬͑̑̈́r̷̥̕ţ̶̻̲̃́̂ ̵̫̭̫̍̚ń̸̲͖͎̱͗̆ë̶̡͕̰́̎t̵͚͇͔̄͛ͅ ̶͔̿̎h̴̻̑͋̾ͅi̷̛͔̮̥̅̏s̷̞̈̎͘ ̷͔̦͒͊b̴̘̀ę̵̎s̴͖̰͎̈́t̵̥̅̈ ̸̢͎͗̒̓̾f̶̡̗̫̱̈͐ŕ̷̡̯̯i̶̛̜̮̦̦̿̕è̶̗̥̈ṅ̴̨̮̟̓̋͘ḓ̷̼̫͍̆̐̅̕ ̴̫̊̓̑̌h̴͈͗͂i̶̢͔̣͚͋s̷̮̔͑̌ ̶̡̮͚̠̊́̈l̸̼̈́i̶̹̫̓̈́̚̚t̴͔̝͂́͑͝ͅṱ̵͛̾̀l̷̰̜͗͊̉ë̵͓͍̾ ̸̯̤͆̎ḇ̷͓̹̆ͅŗ̴̼̞͙̾͊̀o̸̢̻̦͎̓t̵̡͖̮̉̂͛̔h̷̞͊̅͠ë̵̬̘̳̘́r̵̪͈͕̖͒ ̷̛̳̾̓͂ḥ̷̓̈͜͜ḙ̷̐̆ ̴̞͕͔̅̆w̷͉͇̺͉̿͌͘ả̸̙͓͎̃̏s̴̈̍ͅ ̷͉͕̣͌̀̊l̷̺̻̞̪͑̽ȩ̸̞̼̳͒̅a̸̡̺͚̅̑͌v̵̭̣͓̼̀̌i̸͚͌̈̍̚n̸̹̍g̶̤͑͗̿͊ ̸͚͚̗̖̈́w̸͈̩̌̾̔́h̷̼͖̤̤̀̄̆̿ỳ̴̳͓͔̳ ̸̨͎̰̌́̅̐w̷̨̺̝̺͋͂à̷̪̜̬̗̈͊s̴̱͉̚ ̷̟͕̞͇͛̕h̸̙̝̏̈̾͗é̵̜̖̽ͅ ̵̩̠̤̎͑͘l̸̻͂́ẹ̴̥̀̚a̶̡̭̙̹͑̓̿́v̴͉̼͑̈ì̸̜͕͋̃͘n̷̨͋̆̀͝g̸̩̥͇̪̔͐ ̶̲̠̊̇͌̕ͅW̶̦̑̓͜Ḧ̷̙̗́̐Ỹ̴̖̺̪͖͑̂̌-̶̼̻́̿́̾

"Wait!" he called out, reaching through the bars to grasp his sleeve. Lloyd stopped, slowly turning to look at him.

"Lloyd... Don't leave..." he sunk into the bars, holding onto them. "Come back to us..."

"No. The cold is much more comforting." Lloyd mumbled. He looked away at the doors for a moment before shifting his gaze back to Kai.

"Would you like to join me?"

Kai felt like his heart had stopped. Then everything started ringing, it felt too fuzzy, like his head was full of cotton, and it hurt. It hurt so much to feel, to think, to... To be cold...

J̵̨̟͑o̷̥̓î̶̦͍ñ̷̞͌ ̶̳̅̇͗u̴̪͂̍̊s̵͉̍̇.̷̰̬̎͋͂
̸̭͓͎̏̚
̶̡͙̰̇̒͠T̶̯̟͙̿͛̾h̶͖̕e̸̼͝ ̴̫̰̙̀̀c̴͙̓̈o̶̡͉͋͛͗l̵̨̫̮̊͐͠d̶̰̅͐̕ ̷̡͈̠̑̑ï̸̟̖͙̂ș̷̝͛̉̾ ̷̞̻̥̎ĥ̷̨̛̦̻͠ẽ̴̜̭̺̔ř̶̪̬͎ȅ̶͉̹͍ ̵̖̱͇͐f̴̦͆͠o̶̜̣̊̆ͅr̵̢̤̐ ̵̧̳̮̽ỵ̶͆́͑o̷̼̕u̸̝͎̇̊̊.̵̨̨̳͑͋̇
̵̨̲͇̕͝
̴̻̟͂̎́Ỷ̶̯̺͍͋̌o̶̙̹̣̔͒u̵̩̦͛̑́ ̸̡͉̫͝m̴̡̼̈̃͆ì̶̳̂͗s̴̟̖̣̿s̷͍͊̓ ̶̜́̈ḩ̸͓̈͗͋ȋ̵̱̪͉̇̋m̷̭͇͆ ̸̢̗̹͆s̷̡̺̓̈̐o̴͔͕̾ ̵̧͑͗m̴̨̱͔̐͋ü̷̟̖̾͠c̶͓̳̣̀̐h̷̪̏.̵̙̦͐̉̑
̷̢͎͙̇̾̚
̸̼̱̓͌̓Y̵̲̝̿͂ȍ̷͔̬u̵̺̐͂̃ ̵̨̹̈͒͝m̸̙͙̘̚͘ȉ̷̝̗̀s̶͍͒s̷̡̠̅ ̶̂͜ȳ̵̨͚̱̉̚ö̷̘̹͇̕ŭ̷̦̪͇ȓ̷̦̮́̓ ̵̖͆ḟ̵͙̝̗͗̏ả̴̞͎̈́̍ḿ̴͎̂̋í̴̩͇͒l̷̓ͅȳ̵̨̺̪͌.̸͙̦̞͌̾̀
̵͙͖͌
̴̙̟̌͛̕C̵͕̓̅̚o̶̹͚͎̕m̵̫̈̈́̅ễ̶̩͛ ̵̥̝̠̓͘b̴̖̾͐ä̷̬́͜c̸̢̅ḵ̴̩͊̄ ̶̰̞͛ṫ̸̗̺̼͐͌o̴̜̺͚͂͑̄ ̴̲̮͆͐̈́ÿ̶͇̣́̈́̏ŏ̵̼͠ů̴̞͒r̵̞̋̉ ̴̡͛͒͑f̸̢̛͔̠å̸͔̟̦͆̍m̵̰̓͑̅ͅi̷̪̲̊͆͝l̸̳̣̐̂̇y̶̨̡̡̎̓͐.̵̧͖̭͑̓̒
̵̞̈̅
̵̡̣̾̂̽Ċ̴̨̧͍̈́ŏ̶̡̙͆m̷̰̄̂́ḙ̶̡̿͗̍ ̷̢̘̍͐ͅt̸̫̜̭̓o̷͖̱̙̾̒ ̶̬̬̞̅t̷͓͉̋̾̆h̸̛͔̎é̶̗ ̷̥̘͋̎̈c̶̡̛̬͎͆o̶̧͝l̷̬̞̈́͐ḑ̵̮̮͊.̶͖͓̓̚͠
̶͓͇͋͋͂
̸͍̞͌̈͗Ẉ̷͐ë̶̺̖́̽̍ ̶̬̔̎̾ạ̴͋̎̃r̶͎̓̈e̸̦̋͗ ̶̹̣͗͐͘s̶̛͓̠͙̐à̴̮͚̃f̸̨̦͉̉̉ë̵͈͓͖.̶̩͌ͅ
̷̨̹̓̍͆
̸͈̍̒̃͜Ẅ̴͍̗̕e̴̢̪͖͐ ̴͔̎̓w̸̛̦i̵̪͕̩̍͂l̶̯̺͆̎l̷̠̭̄̍ ̴͓̼͆́p̸̢̣͉̓͊r̴̖̲̮͗̀͒ȍ̵͉̫́̑t̵͙̤͔͂̍͊e̷̮̿̚c̸̥̣̹̈͐ṱ̷̌͐̓ ̶̡̖̠̒y̵̥̕ỏ̸̡̨ȗ̷̖ ̵͔̺̌́f̷̘̈͆̈́͜r̵͖͇̪̍̌̌ǫ̷͚͙̑͌m̵̥̓ ̸̝̒̄ͅp̸̜̈̄͜͠ǻ̴͍i̷̟͍͌n̷͉̙̄̇͠.̴̢̿̊
̴̪̫̱̚
̵̢̛̺̞̒̀K̶̤̅a̸̞̜̒̀ī̴͙͙ͅ.̸̬̼̈ ̴̝͎̔̄

...

... The cold was so nice to him.

He felt himself dull internally, his vision growing hazy as the cold spread up from his chest towards his head. The door creaked, he could make out footsteps, but everything was growing so stuffy. So soft...

Let him sleep...

He felt tired...

He felt arms grab his waist, pulling him to his feet. Everything felt loose, dull... Hard to feel. Hard to think.

"The Ice Emperor would appreciate your presence, Kai."

The sunken feeling still remained. Jay could barely sleep for an hour before his nerves forced him awake again. 

He winced, covering his ears with his elbows as he curled up on the miserable excuse for a cot, the soft squeaking of the doors open trying to get forcibly drowned out. 

... Wait. 

He sat up, bolting to the door before slamming into the bars. He grasped them tightly, looking out to the hallway, only to see Lloyd holding onto what looked like a withering away Kai. His warm brown hair looked... Much duller now, the ice having drawn some blood which was now crusted onto the surface, his body limp in Lloyd's hold. And his eyes... They were faintly cyan, glassy, like he wasn't entirely there.

"HEY!" he yelled, which probably woke up everyone else. But who cares about that right now!

"LET GO OF KAI!" he pointed to the outside of the bars, the chains clinking to the metal.

"Wait, who has Kai?!" Nya forced herself awake, running up to the door. She spotted Lloyd holding onto her brother, carrying his dulled body away.

"LLOYD!" she slammed into the door, but it refused to budge. "Cole! Lloyd's taking Kai away!"

"LLOYD!" he felt his lava arms charge up underneath the cuffs. This was probably going to backfire from the already growing ice on his arms, but it was their last option.

"Stand back!" he took a step back before punching the door as hard as he could, breaking it off it's hinges. He stumbled out, the freezing numbness in his arms making them hard to move.

"I... I need a key. I don't think I can do the lava arms again without effectively amputating my arms!" he reasoned, trying to catch his breath.

Akita perked up, rattling the doors carefully. She frowned, if only she had her formling abilities, she'd be able to maybe pickpocket the door using her nails. 

"... Brute force it. BRUTE FORCE IT!" Nya yelled, ramming her shoulder into the door, kicking it as much as she could. Jay slammed his heel into the hinges, hearing them creak and crinkle under the pressure before he finally snapped the first off.

Jay shoved the door open, stumbling out. He caught himself, the chains still fastened tightly around his wrists. 

"Nya! Break the hinges!" he called over to her. She nodded, punching the hinges of the door until they cracked and splintered, snapping them off before trying to force the door open again. She stumbled out into the halls, looking to the exit doors of the dungeon.

"What do we do about the chains?" she asked.

"Worry about that later. We need to stop Lloyd and get Kai before Zane carries out his threat!" Cole urged.

"Come on!" Jay was the first to run ahead of the others, forcing the doors open. The ice samurai surrounded the trio at the gate, pointing their spears at them.

"Okay... You two leap over them." Nya moved in front of them, positioning herself.

"Ninja... GO!" she spun into her tornado, throwing the samurai away from them as Jay and Cole moved over her, landing a short distance.

"Go! Stop the Emperor!" she urged, trying to force the samurai from going after the two. Jay and Cole nodded, taking off running down the halls and out of sight.

"You and your friends must go." Akita forced herself into the crowd, throwing the samurai back. Kataru followed right beside her, the two working on pushing away the samurai.

"But what about you two?" Nya asked.

"You must get to the Emperor and stop him. Now go!" Kataru urged, pushing her back. Nya stumbled a little, but quickly refocused. Even if everyone in their small resistance had their wrists chained together, they could still fight.

She could still fight.

The turned sharply on the stone floors, taking off running after Jay and Cole. She had to catch up to them, she couldn't fail her family again. Not now... Not ever. 

Zane, Lloyd, Kai... They were coming. They were going to save everyone. They had to. 

They had to.

Lloyd had brought Kai to the throne room in silence, his footsteps soft underneath the smooth stone floors. He knew the other traitors were coming to save their friend... But don't they know that this is what he wants? 

Kai clung onto his ice shoulders, his frostbitten fingers lightly digging into his clothes and ice, his eyes still hazy.

"Hm." Vex came up to the two, inspecting the fire ninja closely. Kai slowly blinked, the cyan hue seemingly becoming lighter than before.

"My Emperor, did you do this?" Vex turned to the throne. The Ice Emperor stood up from his seat, slowly descending down the stairs up to the three.

"Yes. That fire needs to be contained." the Emperor pointed his staff at Kai. He slowly moved the point away from the ninja, letting the cyan fade. Kai gasped, coughing harshly as he staggered back, pushing himself away from Lloyd.

"You... Y-you..." he stared at the Emperor, horrified. "What... What did you do to me? I felt like I was suffocating."

"The cold is not meant to suffocate you, Kai." Lloyd took his hand, his frigid hands making Kai hiss, but he didn't pull back.

"You'll be safe here, with us. Forever... You want that, don't you?" Lloyd offered his hand. Kai stared at it, then back at Lloyd. He wanted to take a step back, to pull away to... R̸͎̠͐́ȩ̷̜̑̊͜͠s̶̖͈̱̯̿͋̓͂i̸͙̒̋̇̉ş̸̦̦̙̈͗̈̈t̵̬̲͍̃̉̑̋.̷͎̐͐̚͝ To just not be a part of this.

But...

"KAI!" Nya threw the doors open, Jay and Cole right beside her. Kai froze, staring at the three, horrified.

"No! You guys need to leave!" he yelled back to them.

"No!" Jay moved past the other two. "Kai! The ice is probably messing with you! You need to get away from them!"

"Guards!" Vex barked. The ice samurai surrounded the three, spears raised up to their faces.

"My lord. These traitors are attempting to prevent the inevitable. What shall we do with them?" he turned back to the Emperor.

The Ice Emperor stepped forward, raising his staff up to Kai's chest. He locked eyes with the three traitors before pulling his staff back harshly, letting the sparks hit him before he collapsed, his body dulling again. Lloyd immediately caught the ninja, holding him up. His eyes returned to their hazy hue, leaning into his shoulder. 

"KAI!" the three yelled, immediately trying to push through the ice samurai blocking their path.

"If you wish for him to live, then come forward." The Emperor commanded, pointing his staff at the three. Nya looked between Jay and Cole before pushing past the spears.

"What are you doing to my brother?" she asked. "I need to know that, first."

"Well..." Vex stepped forward. "I'm sure you're aware of vengestone, yes? Lloyd had told us about that."

Of course he did. Cole shook his head, trying to snap himself out of those thoughts. "Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?"

Nya's eyes widened at the thought. It wasn't too hard to connect the dots... She knew how vengestone affected her brother. It was rather harsh; feeling so cold that he could barely function-

No... 

No. They didn't. 

"... The cold is like a poison to his body." she mumbled. "Is... Is that why? You're weakening his fire like how vengestone does to him!"

"Ah! So you've caught on!" Vex smiled. "And if you wish for your beloved fire maker to survive, I suggest you give yourselves up. You don't have many other options in this place."

The three exchanged a look. On one hand... They were surrounded on all sides, Kai was in danger, and they already had Lloyd and Zane capable of fighting them off.

But on the other hand... They had to save their friends. All of them. Akita and Kataru, Zane, Lloyd, and now Kai...

And ninja never quit.

"We don't give up easily. You should probably know that by now." Nya spoke up finally. Even with the chains, she positioned herself to fight.

"Are we sure about this?" Cole hissed.

"Yeah! We can't exactly use our powers and if we do, the ice is gonna spread." Jay agreed.

"We reach the staff and smash it." Nya whispered. "That's the plan. And hopefully... Things go back to normal."

"Without us getting frozen solid in the process?!" Jay yelped as quietly as he could.

"Then you've made your choice." The Emperor cut into their conversation. He pointed his staff at them, more ice samurai forming in place.

"We need to get a weapon! NOW!" Nya forcibly shoved a samurai back, yanking their spear from their hands before jamming it into one of the ice soldiers, shattering it.

Cole punched another samurai, grabbing two spears before tossing one to Jay. "What about spinjitzu? Can we use that?"

"Not a good idea!" Jay quickly said, spinning the spear before throwing it into three of the ice soldiers. "I hope Nya knows what she's doing because we're at dead ends otherwise!"

"Then we gotta make it count!" Cole smashed into more of the ice samurai, throwing the others who weren't ice into each other.

Nya leapt between the samurai before throwing her spear at the Emperor. Lloyd immediately let go of Kai, letting him hit the ground as he caught the spear, spinning it before launching it back at Nya. She ducked from the attack, redirecting her momentum as she scooped up Kai, skidding to a stop to readjust her hold on him. 

He was growing so much colder... She could feel something inside her crack. Something wrong... Kai looked up at his sister, his eyes glassy, like he wasn't entirely there. 

'Come on, Kai... Fight it...' she mentally pleaded before readjusting her hold. Breaking the staff, rescuing Kai, she seriously needed to figure out her priorities here.

... Not getting turned into an ice soldier was one of them. 

But so was rescuing Zane and Lloyd. 

So was protecting Kai. 

"Cole! Jay! You guys have to-" she tried to move, only for her legs to feel stuck. Nya tensed up, tightening her hold on Kai as she looked down.

There was thick ice encasing her legs up to her knees. She couldn't move at all. She frowned, trying to strain her legs out to get out of the ice, but she wasn't budging. 

"Nya!" Jay ran from the fight and towards her, ducking underneath the ice spears and incoming samurai, moving past them all.

"Nya! Hold on, I can break you out." he started to charge up the lightning in his hands.

"No! Don't, just take Kai and get out of here!" she tried to hand Kai over to him.

"And leave you here, with them?!" Jay reached over for Kai, only for ice to encase his hand. He spun around to look at the Ice Emperor, who was pointing his staff directly at them.

He tapped the point of the staff on the ground, ice latching around his legs from the ground, planting his feet in place. 

"There. No more fleeing-" The Emperor started, only for Lloyd to move in front of him and block Cole from touching the staff. The fallen green ninja swiftly yanked him back, throwing him right into Jay.

Jay lost his balance, barely catching himself as he clung onto Cole. The earth ninja forced himself upright, making sure Jay was okay before moving again. Lloyd once again deflected, yanking Cole away from the Emperor, and forcing him down right beside Jay. 

Jay yanked Cole to his feet, only for the ice to encase his legs too. Cole stiffened, trying to pry his feet out from the ice, but they refused to budge. 

"Excellent. Now, my Emperor. Finish this." Vex commanded.

The Ice Emperor's gaze shifted to the three of them, the trio tensing up as Nya held onto Kai as close as she could.

He raised up his staff towards them, approaching Nya and Kai first. He placed the staff up to Kai, letting the cold fully settle into him as his skin turned pale and blue, his colors washing out.

"Kai..." Nya tried to say, but the words caught in her throat as the piercing cyan eyes stared back at her. The staff pointed itself up to her chest next. She felt the cold wash over her immediately, like all of her water was getting rapidly frozen over.

She hissed, shivering slightly before her body snapped into place, feeling her mind drown in an abyss that she couldn't claw herself out from. Nya slowly set down Kai, letting him stand up and walk over to Lloyd's side.

"Nya...?" Jay lightly shook her shoulder. She didn't respond, staring towards the ground in silence.

"Nya, please wake up..." he pleaded. She looked over at him for a moment before looking back at the ground. At the ice. The comforting, pleasant ice.

Jay's heart stopped the moment he noticed the staff at his chest as well. He pulled away from Nya, trying to shield himself. The cold washed over him immediately, making him shiver. 

No, he couldn't fall... He can't... Everything in his body felt like it was shutting down, and not in a good way no it was... Was... 

... It was good. It felt gentle. Like a hug calming down his nerves. He didn't notice that his body went slack, the darkness drowning out any negativity into... Peace. 

There was peace. He liked that... 

The blue tinge in his skin didn't pay him any mind. He looked over at Nya, who looked back at him... How did she look so much prettier than before? How did he not see it sooner? 

"... They're just staring at each other?" Vex stared at them, confused. What were their new allies even trying to accomplish? He turned to the Emperor, unsure. "My Emperor, do you wish for me to seperate them?"

The Ice Emperor glanced over at the two before shaking his head, pointing his staff at Cole.

"That appears to be normal for them. Pay it no mind."

"Ah, of course, my lord."

The cold washed over Cole. The earth ninja seizing up at the feeling. He hissed, feeling himself stiffen as he tried to force himself away from the cold. But the earth tended to absorb such forces...

It was like his body locked up, feeling himself relax despite it. He exhaled slowly, the ice and frost no longer digging into his skin, making him feel... Better. Normal, even.

He felt... Alright. Better than alright, actually. He felt like he was at peace... It was amazing. He never wanted to leave.

The ice receded from the three's feet, letting them move freely again. Vex slowly clapped, looking between the Emperor to their new allies.

"Fantastic work, my lord. I'll help our new allies adjust." he said, ushering the former ninja to follow him. Lloyd lingered behind, staying right beside the Emperor.

"You may follow your friends." the Emperor said. Lloyd silently nodded, exchanging one more look with the Emperor before following after the others.

They needed help adjusting to their new roles, right? This wouldn't be too important in the future, it was simply to avoid any further confusion down the line.

Exactly what the Emperor wanted. 

J̵̙͉͆̔̊u̴͍̙͌s̵̥̭̱̃̋̀t̶̮̻͙̼̐͊ ̸͚͒͋͐͘l̴̜͈͓̂̎͑͝i̸̥̱̎̀̏k̵̼̣̳̱̋e̶̺̠̥̔̀ ̴̖̖̺͖́̾̇͒á̵͉͓̭͑l̷̩̰̿̇w̵̤͈̙͚͊ä̴̧̹̗̥́̈́͘ÿ̴̯̤͎́̓͝š̸̻͔̫̟.̸̢͉̠͊

Kai gasped, heaving as he clutched his gi, the dark red and grey fabric standing out from the cold. He sat up, running his hands through his hair as he tried to steady himself.

Another nightmare... He kept hearing them. He kept feeling them. But they were the only thing making his body react instead of being under the ice. 

It was the only thing keeping him sane. And he hated that. He hated how weak the cold made him feel. 

How it changed his friends. 

Changed him. 

The voices were always too loud for him, though... 

... He tried. He tried to stop the cold. But every single time he felt distant, it was like he was drowning. He kept trying to claw himself back into control but it was like there was a wall blocking him.

All he could do was watch... The awareness was breaking him inside. The fact that his friends thought this was okay.

He wanted them to run. He wanted them to leave without him, even if he couldn't say it. Just to save themselves. He could handle this, they didn't have to...

They didn't have to suffer like this. 

The cold felt like it was holding him hostage. 

He wanted to leave this state. But he just couldn't. 

Kai slowly got up from the bed, his feet touching the ground. He just felt numb...

He felt someone cling onto him behind him, holding him close. His breathing hitched, slowly looking over to see his little brother holding onto him.

"Go back to sleep, Kai..." he said numbly, resting his head on his shoulder. "We have work tomorrow."

Kai exhaled. He was right... Again. It had been a few weeks, the memories back then were too fuzzy... Why was he awake again? 

"Yeah, you're right... Goodnight, Lloyd."

"Goodnight Kai." Lloyd let him go, returning to his sleeping quarters. Kai let the door click shut before he laid back down again.

Another day, perfect to serve the Emperor. 

L̸̛̖͇͗̓̅í̸͇̈̀ḱ̸̞͇é̷͇̱́̓ ̸̰̗̑͂̈́i̸̝̟̤͐̽̃̐͜t̶͔͖͑͒̅͝'̸̧̈́̊̓s̴̞̍̓ ̷̹̜͔͍͛̔̔̓ǎ̵̹͓͚l̷͈̦̓̈w̷̢̘͋͗a̸̡̰͛̏́ͅẙ̵̘̦͑̓͠s̴̡̺̃̓̑͘ ̵̡̦́̔b̷̲͕͈͚̿̉̽e̵͇͛̚ê̴͉̓̓̀n̵̢̨͎̳͒͗́͘.̷̩͈͍̋͛̍͂