Chapter Text
Clay counted as he did his morning push-ups in his room. As he counted up to eighty five, he reflected on everything that happened a few months ago. He remembered how his best friend Jestro was manipulated into teaming up with the dreaded book of monsters and how it was really some sort of vessel containing the soul of Monstrox the arch necromancer. He remembered when he risked his life to rescue Jestro when Monstrox was going to use him as a vessel and take over his body. He remembered how Merlok sacrificed himself again to save them and destroy the book for good. But Clay also reflected on all the good things that came after. He and the Knights were able to do different things thanks to Monstrox being gone and Merlok was up and running again thanks to Robin and Ava. Clay began teaching at the Knights academy, Aaron was working as a stunt performer, Axl was working as a tv chef and Macy was going around to different towns to teach people how to defend themselves from future monster attacks; though it wasn't really going as she planned. One thing that made Clay happy was that the king and queen gave Jestro another chance when they realised that he was just misguided and under Monstroxs' evil influence. They let him decide if he want to stay as the royal jester or change his job to something that did not involve being laughed at or humiliated. As Clay counted to his one hundredth push-up, he made a mental note in his head to go see what everyone was up to today, including Jestro; seeing as he was doing his new job as the weatherman again today. As soon as Clay finished his morning exercises, he jumped up and got dressed; putting on his armour and equipment. He looked at himself in the mirror and nodded at his reflection.
"It's a new day." He whispered with anticipation before making his way out of his room and ready to start his day.
"Good job; but keep your stance strong."
Clay was teaching a class with Robin as his assistant. The children in his class were copying every one of his moves; though some of them were a bit difficult to follow for the youngsters. After a few minutes, Clay decided that was enough and let the students take a break. The blue knight took his helmet off and wiped the sweat off his forehead as Robin came over.
"You're a great teacher, Clay." Robin complimented as he wrote down something on his tablet.
"And you're an excellent assistant, Robin." Clay complimented.
While the students all rested and rehydrated, one of them looked up to the sky; noticing coming towards them.
"Sir Moorington! There's a drone coming this way!"
All the students looked up; pointing and shouting excitedly as they spotted the flying state-of-the-art contraption. Clay and Robin looked up. The boy recognised it when it got closer.
"Hey, isn't that one of the camera drones they use the Knighton news network?" He questioned to the knight beside him.
Clay went wide eyed when he realised something. He was supposed to be doing an interview with Lance for his new show today.
"I forgot all about that." He muttered as he fixed up his appearance a bit.
Clay never really cared about what he looked like, but as a knight, he still had to make himself look presentable. Robin quickly got out of the way as the camera drone stopped in front of Clay and started recording.
"Good Morning, Knighton! I'm everyone's favourite knight, Lance Richmond!"
Clay sighed and rolled his eyes with a smile when he heard Lance announce himself on the Knight and Morning show.
"With my co-host and biggest fan, Alice Squires!" Lance continued. "Alice, don't I look wonderful today?"
"You sure do, Lance!" Clay heard Alice on the other line. "I'm just so happy to be in your presence!"
"I know."
Clay shook his head in friendly disbelief when he heard Lance being Lance on the other line.
"Now first up on our shoe this morning is the Knights code kind of Knight and the guy who was lucky enough to attend the Knights academy with me, Clay Moorington!"
Clay quickly responded as seen as he was introduced.
"Nice to see you, Lance!" Clay greeted in his friendly tone. "How goes it on hollow vision?"
"Oh, the celebrity life style agrees with me. Hope they're treating you right at the Knights academy." Lance ended his sentence with a slight chuckle. "Say; has that old helmet crusher, Brickland finally retired?"
Clay was about to answer the question when principle Brickland appeared right on the mention of his name.
"Hello, Richmond." Principal Brickland greet harshly; making Lance jump. "Slacking off before a national audience I see?"
Lance sounded like he was having trouble finding his words.
"Why, principal Brickland! So good to see that you're still involved with the training of our young future Knights." Lance tried to sound happy to see his old principal.
"STICK A GAUNTLET IN IT, RICHMOND!" Brickland replied in a harsh tone.
Clay heard Alice speak on the other line.
"Ya know, Clay; people are questioning the need to train since you lead the Knights to defeat Jestro and the monsters that attacked the kingdom." Alice reminded with a giggle.
Clay was about to say something in Jestros' defence when Lance interrupted him.
"I wouldn't say lead; it was more of a team effort. With lots of me involved."
Clay and Brickland shook their heads in disbelief before the blue knight spoke again.
"Might I remind you that when that book and his monsters showed up, we were ill prepared to fight them." Clay reminded Lance of their experiences with the lava monsters. "It's imperative that we stay sharp as Knights."
"I agree." Lance replied. "But the Knights I'm more interested in are nightclubs and staying out all 'knight'."
Principle Brickland grabbed the camera and pointed it in his direction.
"If you don't train hard Richmond, you'll nothing but a shiny, crushed and mashed up blubbering pile of goo the next time trouble comes knocking!" The hard principal gave Lance a reality check. "Why I remember in freshman year when you wet your armour and-"
Clay heard what sounded like dial tone on the other. Brickland rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed in frustration when he realised Lance hung up on them.
"Clearly he's not getting any influence from you, Moorington." The principal shook his head lightly in disappointment.
"Trust me; he's a lot better than he used to be." Clay reassured.
Principal Brickland just sighed in frustration and walked off. Robin watched the principal leave until he remembered something.
"Isn't Jestro doing the weather forecast on Lances show?" The boy asked the knight.
"Yeah, he is. I'll have to ask him how it goes." Clay reminded himself.
Jestro played with his sleeves as a makeup artist freshened him up for today and tonight's forecast. The formerly evil jester should have been used to being on hollow vision by now, but he still felt queasy every time he stepped in front of that weather map. The makeup artist looked at him and tilted her head to the left.
"You nervous?" She asked.
"Yeah." Jestro answered with a nod.
The makeup artist nodded and gave the jester a reassuring smile.
"If it makes you feel better, I think you're doing a good job at this." She spoke in gently tone.
Jestro felt his cheeks turn pink as he heard the kind comment.
"Thanks. I'm not really used to positive feedback. Everyone keeps saying that my weather reports are confusing." Jestro admitted with a nervous smile.
The makeup artist smiled back before running to the side when she heard Lance announcing that Jestros' weather report was up next.
"But just to be sure, let's check on tonight's weather with our weatherman; Jestro!"
Jestro quickly got into position with the pointer he used for the map; putting on a friendly face for the camera.
"Aw thanks Lance!" Jestro greeted with a small wave. "Now let's look at the weather around Knighton for today."
Jestro turned to the map and tried reading the marks that showed the forecast. He wished someone told him what they all mean, but he tried to figure it out.
"Well it looks like a muggy high pressure system with... uh... high pressure!"
Jestro turned back to the camera with a slight smile on his face.
"Let's say it everybody! Hi, pressure!" He made a joke.
Lance and the camera man gave Jestro a weird look while the makeup artist giggled; finding Jestros' joke to actually be funny. Jestro laughed a little himself before getting back to work.
"And the cool blue loopy drop here from the Iron Mountains here will bring a chilly-"
Everyone watched as Jestro suddenly stopped. He froze in his spot with a blank face. Lance and the cameraman raised an eyebrow while Alice and the makeup artist watched with confusion.
"A chilly what, Jestro?" Lance questioned when Jestro was not moving.
But everyone gasped when Jestro dropped face first on the floor. The makeup artist quickly responded and ran over to him. The cameraman came over and held his wrist to check for a pulse. Lance and Alice watched as the man went wide eyed and pale.
"I can't feel a pulse!" He shouted in fear and worry.
Alice gasped in fear while Lance told someone to turn the camera off.
"Ok, everybody calm down!" Lance tried to take charge without panicking. "Alice, call an ambulance, right now! Makeup lady, go find someone who knows CPR!"
"I know CPR!" The cameraman responded; getting ready to preform it on the unconscious Jestro.
Lance quickly took his phone out of his pocket and clicked on another Knights contact number; waiting anxiously and worried about how he would take this.
"Left swing!" Clay shouted out to students.
The students did as Clay said; swinging their swords to the left. Robin watched before he heard a ring tone. Clay heard it as well. He reached into his pocket and took out the phone that Aaron got for him as a present. The blue knight raised a brow when he saw an incoming call from Lance.
"Lance?" Clay answered to the other line.
"Clay! How are ya pal!?" Lance greeted rather loudly.
Clay pulled the phone away from his ear to recover from Lance and his yelling. When he brought it back, he heard some commotion coming from the other line.
"Lance, what's going on?" Clay questioned when he heard someone on the line say doctor.
"Well, you know your friend Jestro? The guy who got roped into taking over the kingdom by that book Merlok blew up?" Lance asked; sounding like he was slightly panicking.
"Yeah?"
Clay heard Lance take a deep breath before talking again.
"I think he might have had a heart attack!" Lance said in real panic now.
Robin watched nervously as Clay went wide eyed; dropping his sword to hold the phone.
"What do you mean!? What happened!?" Clay questioned in panic.
Lance tried to explain on the other line.
"I don't know! He was just standing there reporting the weather and then he just-... wait hang on!"
Clay put his hand through his hair in worry when Lance stopped talking into the phone.
"He just came too. But Alice already called an ambulance." Lance told Clay what just happened.
Clay should have been relieved, but he had to make sure.
"I'm coming over there right now." The blue knight said before hanging up.
Clay turned to Robin.
"Clay, what's wrong?" Robin asked in worry.
"Emergency! Everyone is dismissed!" Clay vaguely explained as he ran off.
Clay rushed straight to Lances' workplace in his vehicle; getting there around the same time the ambulance did. The knight ran into the building and asked for directions to the studio where the knight and Morning show was filmed. Clay somehow got inside an elevator with the trio of paramedics and their medical stretcher used to carry patients. As soon as they reached the desired floor, Clay followed the paramedics to the Knight and Morning studio. The paramedics bursted into the room like a band of superheroes.
"Where's the patient?" One of them asked.
"He's right here." The makeup artist pointed them into Jestros' direction.
Clay ran into the room to see Jestro. He was sitting on a chair; being given a glass of water by a squirebot. The paramedics rushed over.
"Didn't you say he fainted?" One of them asked as he opened his case of medical equipment.
"He did! He was just reading the weather, and then he just fell to the floor!" Alice recalled the events from earlier.
"I checked him for a pulse and I couldn't find it. Thought he was having a heart attack of sorts." The cameraman explained.
Clay watched as Jestro looked up to the paramedics.
"I don't remember what happened. I was just reading the map, and then suddenly everyone is hovering over me with worried looks. Not that I'm complaining or anything." Jestro added to report.
One of the paramedics grabbed a blood pressure reader and a stethoscope.
"We're just going to check your blood pressure and see what your heart rate is." She reassured; wrapping the blood pressure reading band around Jestros' arm.
Clay came over as the paramedics did their work. Lance looked up and saw the blue knight coming over. The rich white knight smiled a bit before turning to the jester.
"Hey Jestro; someone's here to see you!" Lance called out.
Jestro looked from up from the paramedic examining him to see Clay coming over.
"Clay!" Jestro smiled as he tried to stand.
"Please hold still, sir." The paramedic examining Jestro gently put him back in the chair.
Clay stood beside Jestro as he was being checked on.
"Lance called me and told me what happened. Are you alright?" Clay asked in concern for his friend.
"Everyone says that I fainted, but I feel fine." Jestro answered in mild discomfort because of the arm band.
"Well according to this, your blood pressure is on the ideal level." One of the paramedics grabbed a stethoscope. "But I should still check your heart rate to make sure."
Clay kept Jestro calm as the paramedic lifted up Jestros' shirt and put the stethoscope against his chest; making him shiver from the cold metal. The paramedic raised a brow as he listened to the Jesters' heartbeat.
"Well I doubt you've had a heart attack of any kind. It's a bit fast, but your heart's beating at an ideal pace, and your blood pressure is fine." The paramedic explained.
Clay did not really show it, but he was quite relieved that Jestro was fine. Lance was a bit weirded out though.
"But why did he faint?" The rich knight questioned. "People just faint for no reason?"
"And he didn't have a pulse when I checked him." The cameraman added.
"You won't always find a pulse by checking someone's' wrist. The best thing to do is put your ear against their chest and listen to their heartbeat for any irregularities." The paramedic who checked on Jestro explained as he packed away the equipment.
"And people can faint for a lot of reasons. Hunger, low blood sugar, blood pressure, nervousness or sometimes just no reason at all." One of the paramedics explained.
Jestro looked down at the floor as his cheeks went pink in embarrassment.
"Sorry I wasted your time." He apologised.
Clay looked down at him with worried eyes. He hated it when Jestro blamed himself for things that were never his fault.
"Don't apologise; you all thought something was wrong and you responded. That's no reason to say sorry." The paramedics reassured.
As the paramedics left with their equipment, one of them stayed back and gave Jestro a bit of advice.
"Another cause of fainting can be stress. I think you should take some time off and relax if it helps."
Jestro blinked as the last Paramedic followed and left with his workmates. Jestro stood up out of the chair as Lance took a breather.
"Well that was something." He smiled and looked around the room. "And we got a bit of it before we turned the cameras off."
Clay raised a brow at Lance.
"Are you seriously thinking of ratings because of Jestro having a health scare?" The blue knight questioned.
"What!? No! I just have a feeling people might call and ask what happened." Lance clarified. "But if it does boost ratings, I won't complain."
Clay just rolled his eyes away from Lance as he lightly shook his head. He turned to Jestro with a concerned look.
"You feeling okay, Jestro?" He asked his friend.
"Yeah. But I don't really know how that happened." Jestro admitted.
"Have you been stressed recently? They said that's a reason why people faint." The makeup artist added her opinion to the matter.
Jestro looked down as he thought about it.
"I have been thinking about what happened a few months ago." He answered as honestly as he could. "About... that book."
Everyone looked at each other in concern. Hearing Jestro say this made Clay worry a bit. But Lance was not going to let the jester go down in the dumps.
"I think I know what you need." The rich knight reached into his pocket.
Clay and Jestro blinked as Lance took out some small bits of paper and handed them to Jestro. Clay and Jestro read them and blinked in surprise.
"Two tickets to Lavalands amusement castle?" Clay questioned.
"An extravagant three hour spa treatment for one?!" Jestro questioned with surprise in his voice.
"Well, I figured that since the paramedic said stress might have made you black out like that, you could use a bit of relaxation." Lance explained. "I had a few extra tickets to that new lavaland park since my dad owns the place, and a few free spa treatments; so I figured you could go to the grand opening tonight then you can have a nice relaxing treatment tomorrow."
Jestro and Clay gave Lance a strange; thinking that someone replaced him with a polite and generous clone.
"That's... quite nice and generous of you, Lance." Clay said in genuine surprise. "Why?"
"I don't know. I just felt like it." Lance vaguely answered as he started to leave.
"But who's the other ticket for?" Jestro called out to Lance in question.
"That's Clays' ticket!"
Clay and Jestro looked at the tickets as everyone else left the studio; giving Jestro the keys and telling him to lock up. Clay put a hand on Jestros' shoulder and smiled at him.
"Are you going to go?" He asked the jester if he was going to the grand opening.
Jestro looked down at the floor and rubbed his sleeve.
"I don't know." He tried to answer honestly. "That place is like a bad memory to me. I don't like thinking about him or... my former HQ."
"Jestro, it's okay." Clay knew what Jestro meant by 'him'. "He's not coming back. If he ever does, we'll stop him like last time. And he won't get you."
Jestro looked up at Clay curiously.
"Are you going?" He asked.
Clay just shrugged with a slight nod.
"It wouldn't hurt." He held his hand out to the jester. "Call it a date then?"
Jestro nodded and took the Knights hand; leading him out of the studio to lock up for tomorrow and go enjoy a night out later.