We get a little fluff and teasing. :3
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"I still don't get how you got that group of nutjobs to do everything you say." Kai questioned.
"Uh. The League of Jays aren't "nutjobs." They're fans. And they're awesome." said Jay.
"Just 'cause they're fans, doesn't mean they're not nutjobs." said Cole.
"Oh, you're just jealous because—" said Jay before being cut off.
Nova was shaking her head just watching these guys, but still smiled. "This is gonna be an interesting adventure."
"What makes you say that, Nova?" Lloyd asked, standing next to her and watching the others.
"When is it never an adventure, when the team is together." said Nova, going on to lean against his side.
"Hmmm, true." said Lloyd with a small growing on his face. "So, any thoughts about my deal?"
Nova's face started turning red. "S-still thinking about it, now can you please drop it, Lloyd."
Lloyd chuckles at her growing a little shy. "Okay, I'll stop mentioning it for now."
"Can we focus for a second on the reason we're here? To get one of the three keys, we need to unlock the final arcade cabinet and get into Unagami's temple?" said Nya, getting the others' attention.
"Right. What were they called again? The... the key things?" Kai asked.
"Key-Tana." They look over and see Okino.
"Oh. Hi." They remove their hoods and Nya steps forward. "Who are you?" Nya asked.
"I am terrible. I was a guide. It was my duty to lead adventurers such as yourself through this land." said Okino.
"Uh, it's not anymore?" Jay questioned.
"I have failed too many masters." Okino looks over at the swords of lost masters. "To my endless shame." The ninja look at one another.
"Well, we would be honored to have your help, humble samurai." said Nya.
"Yeah, because we really have no clue what we're doing. I mean like none." said Kai.
"Don't worry, buddy, we've lost plenty of fights too. But you can't let it get you down, right?" said Cole.
"I'm Lloyd. What's your name?" Lloyd went on to introduce himself.
"I... am Okino." said Okino.
"Awww, he is so cute." Nova whispered, with a big smile.
Lloyd glanced over at Nova with a raised eyebrow. As he clearly heard that.
Nova rolled her eyes and just kept smiling.
Lloyd shook his head and turned his attention back to Okino.
"Nice to meet you, Okino. That's Cole, Kai, Nya, Jay and Nova." said Lloyd, while gesturing to each of the ninja.
"I am honored. Allow me humbly to pledge my service." said Okino.
Okino bows, offering his sword.
"Oh, gee, that's really not-" said Nya.
"I, Okino, samurai, pledge to serve you, and do all in my power to protect you and guide you to the Key-Tana." said Okino.
Okino bows on one knee.
"Thanks, Okino. That's-" said Lloyd.
Nova let out a soft giggle, watching this, but didn't want to say anything that might get Lloyd's attention.
"Just out of curiosity, when you said you failed all your previous masters, how many are we talking here? Two? Three?" Kai asked.
"Damn it, Kai." Nova facepalmed.
Nya whispered. "Kai..."
"What? I can ask that, can't I?" Kai questioned.
Okino sighs and gestures to the large amount of swords in the ground.
"Oh... Yeah..." said Jay.
"Okay, so a few. But this time will be different. Right, Okino?" said Lloyd.
"Why does it look like something from the keyblade war, from kingdom hearts?" Nova questioned, getting the others' attention.
"It's a game, where I come from." Nova simply answered.
They turned their attention back to Okino.
"Yes, I swear it." said Okino to Lloyd's reply.
"Lead on, Okino. We trust you." said Lloyd.
Okino picks up his sword. "This way. Into the Forest of Discontent. And then beyond, past the Cliffs of Hysteria. And finally, the Maze of the Red Dragon."
Okino and the ninja head into the Forest of Discontent. When they enter, they stop.
"Forest of Discontent? Why do they call it that?" Kai asked.
Spikes start shooting out of the nearby bushes. Okino blocks them with his sword.
"Did that answer your question, Kai?" Nova asked.
"What was that?" Cole asked.
"Thorns of Discontent." said Okino.
"It came from those bushes." Lloyd pulls out his weapon. "Let's spread out. Seven targets are harder to hit than one."
"Good idea. I got the bush in the middle." Cole pulls out his weapon and his mask comes on.
"I'll take the one on the left." Nya pulls out her weapon and her mask comes on.
"I'll take the one on the right." Jay pulls out his weapon.
"I'll take the top, you never know what hides in the trees." Nova summoned her sword as she watched the trees closely.
"I'll hang back and make sure no bushes are following us." Kai pulls out his weapon. Everyone looks at Kai.
"What? I have one life left, remember?" said Kai.
"Okay. On three." Lloyd's mask comes on. "One, two, three!"
Kai's mask comes on. The ninja run to the bushes to attack. While Nova goes for the trees.
"Ninja versus Bushes! Attack!" shouted Jay.
Thorns of Discontent start shooting from the bushes. The ninja dodge them and slice them with their weapons. They deflect the thorns with their weapons and destroy the bushes.
"Nice going guys." said Nova as she had gone on to destroy some glitched bushes she had noticed in the trees.
Cole's mask comes off.
"Cole! What out!" Nova shouted, but it was already too late.
"Wow! These new weapons are really awesome! That was-" A Thorn of Discontent hits Cole in the back. "Ahhhhhhh!"
Cole regenerates behind Okino. "Ahhhhh! It got me!"
One of Cole's lives disappears.
"It got me! Aww, I just lost a life." said Cole.
"I did try to warn you." said Nova.
Everyone's masks come off.
"You must be careful. In this place, all things, any flower, tree, or beast, seek to you. Even the ground beneath cannot be trusted." said Okino.
"No surprise there, pretty much nature is the enemy." said Nova, putting away her sword.
*The ninja continue on. Later on, the Forest of Discontent is completely dark.*
"Wow, it's dark in here!" said Cole.
"Hang on a sec." Jay opens up his pause menu and generates two torches. "There, that's better." He passes one to Cole.
"Nice thinking, Jay." said Nova as she went on to do the same.
Cole turns his on to reveal a huge flower with teeth. "Great. Now I can see what I'm looking at, and it's even worse!"
The ninja continue on.
"So tell us about the Key-Tana, Okino. You said it's in a maze?" said Nya.
"Hai. Guarded by a fearsome beast. A dragon." said Okino.
The ninja look at each other, less than impressed by this.
"We've faced plenty of dragons before." said Lloyd.
"Yeah, I've had enough dragon problems." said Nova.
Lloyd glanced over at, Nova and gently took one of her hands in his to comfort her a bit, even if she didn't seem bothered by that fact.
Nova gave him a small smile, and didn't mind holding his hand as she gently squeezed it.
"Not like this one. They say its teeth can rend any armor, its breath can melt steel, and its scales are impervious to even the sharpest blades!" said Okino.
The ninja continue on. Nya hops over a tree root into a puddle of quick sand with teeth. She screams, and Okino looks back at her. Jay and Cole rush to help her.
"Nya!" shouted Jay.
"Hang on!" shouted Cole.
Nya sinks lower into the sand, and Cole and Jay lose their grip.
"Get me out of here!" Nya is completely swallowed by the quicksand, and regenerates next to Lloyd and Nova.
"What the heck was that?" Lloyd asked.
"Swamp-teeth." said Okino.
"Swamp- teeth!?" shouted Nya.
"Even the ground cannot be trusted." said Okino.
"I'll say one thing. Milton Dyer has a twisted imagination!" shouted Nya.
"Maybe I should just use my hoverboard to move around, at least I wouldn't be touching the ground." said Nova.
"No." said Lloyd.
"Aww, why not. It wouldn't hurt anyone." said Nova, rolling her eyes.
"Because I say so, Nova." Lloyd glanced at her.
"Fine." Nova pouted, and began fidgeting with her necklace under her gi.
Lloyd shook his head but gave a small smile. "I see you kept the necklace I gave you."
Nova started blushing. "W-well, I like it, and it makes me feel safe..... because it reminds me of you." She avoided his gaze.
Lloyd chuckles at her honesty, which wasn't often. "Then I guess it was a good thing I gave it to you, butterfly."
Nova gave him a shy smile with a slight nod. While thinking about their future date, wondering when and where they should do it. "Should it be after this season or the next one, I don't wanna rush things too soon. But if I don't find out a time and place, Lloyd will just keep asking."
The ninja continue on. They come across a cavern with vines hanging above it. Okino stops them.
"What is it?" Lloyd asked.
"Those vines. I think they are Strangler Vines." said Okino.
"I don't like the sound of that." said Jay.
"Strangler Vines? Great." said Lloyd and Nova in unison.
"Lloyd, you should check it out. It's your turn! Look, I already lost three lives, and Cole got hit by thorns, a-and Nya fell into the hole-" said Kai.
"Okay, okay." said Lloyd.
Lloyd pulls out his sword and continues to the vines. He slices one and nothing happens. "They're just normal vines-"
"Watch out!" shouted Nova.
A figure tackles Lloyd. Lloyd kicks him off of him. The figure slams into a rock and starts scratching himself furiously. Everyone grabs their weapons as their masks come on and advance toward the stranger. More enemies appear from the trees. One throws a bomb near them. The enemies appear to be rats. The rats come down from the trees and attack the ninja. The ninja fight them, and the rats run off, scratching themselves.
"Christ on a stick! I was kidding when I suggested rat people." Nova groans. "I swear, if I see a frog or snail next. I'm gonna have a lot of questions."
"What were those things?" Cole asked.
Nya has tied up one of the rats with a vine.
"Lloyd, are you okay?" Nya asked.
"I'm fine." said Lloyd.
"You sure?" Nova asked, coming over just to check.
Lloyd rolled his eyes playfully. "Yes, I'm sure, moonie." He gave her a smile before he walks over to the rat.
"Who are you?" Lloyd asked.
"I am from the Brotherhood of Rats, and I am sworn to silence. Do your worst, you'll get nothing out of me, nothing!" said Ritchie.
"So, you're working for Unagami?" Lloyd asked.
"You're trying to trick me into giving away that Unagami ordered us to ambush you. Well, it won't work!" said Ritchie.
"This is kind of sad look." said Nova with a blank face, watching how bad he was at lying and were just spilling out everything.
"Yeah, he's not the brightest, is he?" said Cole to Jay.
"So Unagami's cheating. To make sure we don't win the game!" said Jay.
"Oh, that makes me mad!" said Nya.
"It's a game guys, of course there will be cheaters. This is why we can't have nice things." said Nova, shaking her head.
"Uh, game?" Okino asked.
"Yeah. Prime Empire? Oh, wait. You're an NPC. You're part of the game. Nevermind." said Cole.
"Dude!" Nova elbowed Cole. "At least be more nice about it."
"What...game?" Okino asked.
"Okino, I know it's hard to believe, but this world, the forest, the traps, all of it, it's. . . it's just. . . it's only a game, Okino. It's not real. We're all stuck inside a game, and Unagami is the guy calling the shots. He's the one who made this whole place." Lloyd tried explaining.
Okino laughs. "Game! You are testing Okino! You think I am so easily fooled? Ha ha!"
"No, Okino, we're telling the truth." said Kai.
"Uh, he's not programmed to understand that kind of stuff, Kai. He's part of the game." said Jay.
"Yeah, whatever you told him a lie, or the truth, he wouldn't be able to understand. But it still is kind of sad to know." said Nova.
"Hahahahahaha! Game." Okino kept laughing.
"So what do we do?" Nya asked.
"This doesn't change anything. We already knew Unagami was trying to stop us. Now we know he's playing dirty. Let's keep moving!" said Lloyd.
Ritchie struggles. "Oh no! No no no no no! I got an itch! You gotta help! You gotta do something! You gotta, you gotta scratch it!"
"Give me one reason I should!" said Lloyd.
"Ooh, ooh, okay, okay, I can help! I know, a glitch!" said Ritchie.
"A what?" Nya asked.
"A glitch, it's like a shortcut or something you can use to get further in a game. Or just simply cheat." Nova explained.
"Yes! Yes! What the sketchy girl said! A glitch! A glitch in the game! A shortcut! Oh geez, it itches, to get past the forest! Oh come on, you gotta help! You gotta cut me down! Oh, get it!" said Ritchie.
"I'm not sure if I should be offended or see it as a compliment." said Nova.
"For our sake, take it as a compliment." said Lloyd, not wanting her to lose her temper, which she hasn't really done since she sent a lightning chicken after him.
Nova gave a small shrug. "Okay."
"Huh. What do you think?" Cole looked over at Lloyd.
"He could be telling the truth. Games have glitches sometimes." said Lloyd.
"Told you so." said Nova, rolling her eyes.
"Oh yeah! Like Fist to Face! Remember that game? Where you can step right through the wall?" said Jay.
"If he's telling the truth, this could save us a lot of time." said Kai.
"What means this word, glitch?" Okino asked.
"Um, it's hard to explain." said Jay.
"If we let you down, you will have to promise to lead us to the glitch." said Lloyd.
"Ooh hoo hoo, yes! Yes, I promise! Just get me down! Come on, come on, let me down!" said Ritchie.
Lloyd pulls out his sword and cuts the vine. Ritchie immediately starts scratching the itch furiously.
"Ah, ah, that's it right there! Ah..." said Ritchie.
*The ninja continue on with Ritchie, leading them to the glitch.*
"Come on! This way! Hurry!" said Ritchie.
"You sure this is a good idea?" Nya asked.
"What do we have to lose?" Lloyd asked.
"Time, and lives." Nova asked.
"Not helping, Ocea." said Lloyd.
"Wasn't trying to." Nova teased by sticking out her tongue.
Lloyd rolled his eyes. "You're an ass."
"Says the person dating this ass." Nova threw back his line from when they were on their date.
"Seriously, moonie? Using my own words against me?" Lloyd raised an eyebrow.
"Don't start something you can't finish." said Nova.
"Wanna repeat that." Lloyd narrowed his eyes.
"Nevermind, let's focus on the glitch." Nova quickly picked up the pace.
"There. See it?" said Ritchie.
Ritchie points to a glitch near a large rock. The ninja approach it.
"That's it. Jump in. Like this." Ritchie jumps into the glitch and disappears.
"What devilry?" Okino questioned.
"It's okay Okino. You don't have to follow us. This is the glitch. We can go it alone from here." said Lloyd.
The ninja run into the glitch and disappear as well. They are transported into a purple room with purple blocks scattered around it, some floating, some in the ground. Soon after, Red Visors appear with their guns, ready to attack. Ritchie can be seen hiding behind one of the blocks.
"Look out! It's a trap!" said Lloyd.
"No, really? I hadn't even notice." said Nova.
The ninja draw their weapons and their masks turn on. They are now surrounded by Red Visors. The Red Visors begin to shoot at them. They block the shots with their weapons.
"Ha ha! Suckers! Long live Atta the Ratta!" shouted Ritchie.
Nova glared coldly towards him.
Ritchie runs back into the glitch, already sensing the rage coming from Nova.
"You lousy rat!" shouted Cole.
Cole gets shot and regenerates. The Red Visors continue their attack. Both Lloyd and Jay get hit. The ninja continue to deflect the laser shots with their weapons, hitting some of the Red Visors. Jay gets hit again, along with Nova.
"Fuck!" Nova growled.
"Lloyd! There's too many!" shouted Nya.
Both Nya and Lloyd get shot and regenerate.
"Hi-ya!" Okino comes into the fight, hitting some Red Visors with his sword.
"Okino!" shouted Nya and Nova.
"Go! I will hold them off!" said Okino.
"After the rat!" shouted Lloyd.
"Already on it!" shouted Nova, using her speed boost to get to the glitch.
With less Red Visors surrounding them now, Lloyd and the rest of the ninja manage to break away from the fight.
"Patch the glitch!" said a Red Visor.
"No!" shouted Kai.
The ninja run through the glitch, but Lloyd stays behind. He watches Okino fight.
"Okino! Come on!" shouted Lloyd.
"Go! Save yourselves!" shouted Okino.
"Okino! I'm not leaving without you. Now run!" shouted Lloyd.
Okino runs towards the glitch. He pushes Lloyd in right before it's patched. The ninja appear to be at the exit of the Forest of Discontent.
"Ugh-we made it. We actually made it!" said Kai.
The ninja cheer. Lloyd looks back to see Okino with his back turned to the ninja, kneeling on the ground.
"Okino. Thank you. You saved our lives back there." said Lloyd.
"Uh, most of our lives." said Cole.
"Are you okay, Okino?" Lloyd asked.
"You told me the truth. This world, my world, is a glitch?" said Okino.
"A game. Yes." said Lloyd.
"And I am part of it. A pawn." said Okino.
Nova was watching from the side with a heavy sigh. "One of the reasons I'm never mentioning my side."
"No. If you were just a pawn, you wouldn't have helped us. You decided to save our lives. You made that decision, not Unagami. Okino, we wouldn't have made it without you!" said Lloyd.
"If I cannot trust in what I see, in what I believe, what should I trust?" Okino questioned.
"You're a good person, Okino. How about you trust in yourself? And in your friends?" said Lloyd.
"My friends?" Okino asked.
"Yeah. Us." said Jay.
Jay offers his hand to Okino to help him up. Okino takes it and gets up.
"Because we're gonna to need all the help we can get." said Jay.
The ninja show how many lives they have.
Lloyd looks over at Nova, and notice she seems a little lost in thoughts, so he walks over to check on her.
"Nova, what's on your mind?" He asked.
Nova snapped out of her thoughts and looked up at Lloyd, giving a small smile. "Nothing for you to worry about."
"Moonie?" Lloyd crossed his arms while raising an eyebrow at her, not believing it.
Nova groans with a heavy sigh. "Just..... thinking about your deal." She started blushing.
"Hmm, how about you give me the answer after all of this." said Lloyd, giving a soft smile. "That way, you don't have to worry about that until later."
"Sure..... I wouldn't mind doing that." Nova smiled at him.