Chapter Text
Kai slashed at his opponent with his katana over and over, ignoring the growing ache in his muscles. He had to buy Jay and Cole time to find the Book of Curses from Ronan’s hideout, in the hopes that they could obtain some kind of insight into the Cursed Realm from it.
He swore under his breath and leaned to avoid an arrow cutting through the air. When the three of them had shown up, sent by Wu, the last thing they had expected was for a group of bounty hunters to be waiting for them. They’d walked straight into an ambush, and Kai had decided it was imperative Cole and Jay search for the book.
So, he’d stayed behind to defend them.
Kai kept swinging and dodging. Slash, stab, dodge, fire. It was a cycle he’d become accustomed to. Until it was one against four, that was. He hated fighting against unfair odds. It clouded his judgement and interrupted the rhythm engraved into muscle memory.
It was clear that Kai’s muscles were beginning to fail him when he attempted to dodge a mean looking dagger, but was a bit too slow and his leg paid the price for it. The serrated dagger slashed easily through his crimson Gi into his thigh flesh. Kai hissed in pain and fired a beam of flame at the culprit. The hunter just grinned and rolled out of the way.
Kai lunged, bringing his katana down where it met with the serrated dagger and a clang echoed around the clearing as steel met steel. Growling, the hunter spun and kicked at him, where Kai leapt back and swiped outwards to prevent the hunter from jumping after him.
His victory was short lived though, as another thug came at him waving an oversized hammer around like a baby with a rattle. Kai fought the urge to snigger. He evaded the hammer’s swing and watched it slam into the ground instead – it cracked beneath the grass, just where his feet had been. Where blood had now dripped down onto, creating small pinpoints of red against the green.
Now Kai was pissed.
“Bit bulky for your liking, isn’t it?” Kai taunted at the hunter, who he had realised did look like an overgrown baby – with beefy arms and a squashed face. He hissed and stepped back to raise the hammer again, now flanked by two others who had seemingly materialised out of nowhere, faces hard and weapons gleaming. But they were quickly dispersed by a familiar frazzle of blue electricity, as Jay leapt down from Ronan’s shack next to him.
“Kai, the book isn’t here. Let’s finish this up.” Jay twirled his nun chucks around to face the last opponent. A crash from the far-left confirmed the Earth ninja had taken down the other two bounty hunters. Cole was probably having a blast.
Literally.
He sighed inwardly. This injury was starting to annoy him, and all he wanted to do was fall into bed and ignore the fact that they had yet again failed to find the book. Kai watched Jay send his opponent flying backwards at an impressive height across the glade, who fortunately didn’t attempt to rise again. He hated failure - hated the feeling of disappointment and the fact that this had all been a massive waste of time. Even if it was just a small setback, it made the fire ninja feel weak.
But from looking at Jay’s beaming face, maybe it wasn’t so bad. His brothers were safe; in the end that was all that really mattered. Kai stashed his sword across his back and tried to ignore the uneasy feeling swirling around in his gut.
Jay wiped the dust from his gi and fisted the air. “Take that ugly! Gosh, am I in the mood for some-”.
Unfortunately, Kai’s brain didn’t register Jay’s next words, or Cole’s shout of warning that came too late. The only thing he became aware of was the dagger now embedded in his side.
And his world flashed abruptly to black.
Jay registered Cole’s yell of alarm and spun around to watch the fire ninja drop like a stone, blood beginning to stain his already crimson gi. He fell to his knees to catch Kai’s head before the fire ninja ate dirt, and cradled it in his shaking hands. There was a sudden whoosh of air, and Jay scanned the area for the danger, but the hunter was already dead.
Cole’s beautiful scythe embedded in his back now gleamed in the moonlight.
Shakily, Jay pressed two fingers down on Kai’s wrist and bit his lip. His pulse was there, but it was weak and thready. They needed urgent backup, now. Like right now.
Cole’s face was one of horror as he raced over to them.
"Is he breathing?" He knelt down beside Jay.
"Y-yeah, I've got a pulse, but he - its-" Jay trailed off, glancing down at the growing patch of red.
Cole put a hand on Kai's shoulder and hastily lifted a finger to his ear to contact the others over the comms. The earth ninja could only watch as Jay ripped off his scarf and pressed it against the wound. Kai moaned in pain and squirmed slightly. His complexion was pale and waxy, and his breathing laboured.
“...Jay?” He mumbled. “Y’okay?”
Jay felt like crying. “I’m fine, Kai. Just keep talking to me”. But Kai’s head was already lolling back, dark eyes rolling up into his head. Jay cursed inwardly and pressed his scarf down harder onto Kai’s side. The scarf wasn’t really blue anymore.
He felt sick.
“Nya, Zane, come in! It’s Kai. We need the bounty over here now!” Cole paused to listen to the static reply crackle through the radio. Jay didn’t think he’d ever seen him so distressed. It was Cole, after all - bold and brass and a steady anchor that kept the team together. He provided strength and stability, but most of all, he was their best friend. Their rock.
“Yeah, it's bad Nya. Just...be ready.”
Kai groaned again, and with a jolt of alarm, Jay realised his usually tanned skin had taken on a slightly green tint. It wasn't like Lloyd’s emerald green though; more of a sickly green. Jay nervously glanced back at the serrated weapon, realisation beginning to mount in his gut.
“Hey Cole? Pass me the dagger.” Cole's distressed face contorted, but he wordlessly reached over and pried the weapon out of the dead hunter’s hands. It was stained red, the blood beginning to dry already.
Kai’s blood.
With a morbid look on his face, Cole took over applying pressure as Jay examined the bloody weapon. There was something off about it – it looked almost too slick and too shiny, as if it had been dipped in something. Tentatively, Jay brought it up to his nose and sniffed it.
Underneath the coppery scent of blood, a putrid scent wafted its way into his nostrils. It smelled awful; like a mixture of rotting leaves and oil. But hauntingly familiar.
Poison.