Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Mystake was worried.

This didn’t happen often. Her status as Onigami, along with the rest of her family’s as Kami, meant that there wasn’t a lot that could happen to her or the people she loved. And well, she didn’t care as much for other things. But it had been six months since the High Court of Destruction’s newest general – Mizuki – had made their way through the small portal Feiyu had connect Eien’no and Ninjago with to warn her that the Fortress of Destruction had lost track on the Omega and their army, and there had been no news of their whereabouts since.

Thus, the worrying.

When the Omega and their followers had first been banished to the far corners of Eien’no they had vowed revenge upon the one who had made it so; Feiyu, the First Spinjitzu Master. The problem with that was that Omega, while incredibly powerful, was still only a lesser Onigami, and had an almost zero chance of actually killing Feiyu, let alone surviving Mystake if she felt the need to intervene.

But Feiyu had a number of emotional weak spots (because that was what they were, even if Mystake had come to learn that it was important to love); the realms and sanctuaries they had created, the people they had created, and their family. And there was only one place where the Omega could hit all three: Ninjago. So, while no one knew where the rogue Oni were, she had a pretty good guess of where they were heading.

Mystake huffed as she looked over to where the Ninja and Pixal were training. Well, supposed to be training. They were actually just watching Wu and Garmadon gently spar with their powers, their heads going back and forth with each new burst of energy. With Wu having finally finished growing up, and Garmadon recovering well from his soul being split in two, they were both slowly regaining control over their powers. And, of course, as soon as they realised that they could, they had taken to blasting each other with them.

Mystake shook her head. She had no intention of stopping them, it was good for them. And they knew each other’s limits better than their own. It would be fine. Probably.

She watched as Garmadon shook his head and made to sit down against the wall. “I’ll stop now, I think, “he said. “It’s still draining my energy quickly. Don’t want to fall asleep in the middle of the afternoon.”

“I think you would do that anyway, given your advanced age,” Wu countered with zero hesitation.

Garmadon made to stand up again, looking ready to pick a fight. That wouldn’t do, Mystake decided, he had had enough fighting for the day. Besides, she needed to begin preparing the Ninja for a potential invasion.

She quickly strode across the courtyard, smiling benignly at them all. “Sit back down Garmadon, I am going to teach the Ninja since they can’t be bothered to train by themselves today.”

There was a mix of affronted and awed looks at that statement as they quickly clambered to their feet, chattering loudly. Good, they should be in awe of her.

“You’re going to train us!” Jay said excitedly, practically vibrating on the spot. “This is so cool!”

“Does this mean we get to see you fight?” Kai looked down at her with hope in his eyes. None of the Ninja had seen her fight or even use her powers since that fateful day at Kryptarium prison, though that would probably change soon.

Mystake grinned at their enthusiasm, “Not today. I’ll be showing you how to deflect a Destructive attack from an Oni.” She turned and made her way to the centre of the courtyard, cane rhythmically clacking in time to her steps.

“But why would we need to know how to do that?” Lloyd questioned, trailing behind her with a slight frown on his face.

Mystake span on her heel and raised her eyebrow, “Why?” she deadpanned, pointedly looking over to Garmadon and then down at herself.

“I-I just mean why would that be the first thing you teach us…” his voice faded away as he sheepishly stared at her.

“Hmm, you ask a good question, young Garmadon.” Lloyd sagged in relief. “Your father, uncle, and grandfather have no shortage of enemies that would target you and your friends in hope that you would be easier to exact revenge upon, including among the Oni. While Firstbourne, Feiyu and I have mostly put a stop to the eternal war between the Dragon and the Oni, there are many who would see it continued, and so you must learn how to counteract their attacks.”

She paused, looking at the line-up of ninja, debating how she should go about this. It had, after all, been centuries since she had taught any humans, let alone ones with elemental powers. But she remembered that they often worked better when they knew why they were doing something. They had, after all, inherited Feiyu’s curiosity. Yes, that is where she would start.

“During the war, we Oni developed a way to take out entire flocks of Dragons without ever needing to fight them. A few of us would combine our powers to create an impenetrable black fog of almost pure Destruction that would spread out far beyond our ranks, poisoning and petrifying any non-Oni being that fell within it.

“The only way to banish it and cure those affected by it is with pure Creation. The more Oni as the source, the more Creation needed to stop it.”

“But Mystake, none of us can do that.” Cole stepped forward and gestured to the rest of them. “I get that knowledge is power and all that, but you said you were going to teach us how to fight an Oni, not tell us about battle tactics.”

Mystake sighed, “Patience Cole. You’re only half right. Not all of you can do that. Nya, Pixal,” she turned to them, “I cannot teach you how to fight the black fog. It is simply not within your abilities.” The young women looked slightly put off, but that simply wasn’t Mystake’s problem. “The rest of you,” she continued, “well, that is another matter.

“Have any of you ever wondered why fire, earth, lightning, and ice are known as the Elements of Creation?” She looked at the Ninja seriously. “It—”

“Uh, literally never,” Jay interrupted, still bouncing on his feet. “Wait, is it because of the Tornado of Creation?”

“It is the other way round, Jay,” Zane calmly spoke, putting his hand on his shoulder. “The tornado is called that because it is made of the Elements of Creation.”

“Oh yeah, and how do you know that?” Kai pointed accusingly at Zane.

“Because I asked Master Wu,” he replied with an air of superiority.

Mystake put her head in her hands. She had forgotten how annoying it was to teach teenagers. Although teaching pups was a highly respected craft amongst Oni, and one she enjoyed, it was still a tiring endeavour.

Looking up again she banged her cane on the ground. “Yes, anyway, moving on,” she interjected before an argument could break out. “The Elements of Creation are named that for when they are combined, they form pure Creation.”

Looks of understanding crossed the Ninja’s faces.

“So, if we combine our powers—” Cole began.

“We can make creation!” Jay cheered, pumping his fist up and down.

“Indeed,” Mystake agreed. “Now, Nya, Lloyd, Pixal, if you would please sit off to the side and observe, the other four are going to try it out.”

Waiting until they had placed themselves suitably out of the way, she then gave her next set of instructions.

“You four, stand there.” She indicated with a sweeping gesture for them to stand opposite her.

They quickly got into place, looking excited to test out a new aspect of their powers.

Once they were ready, Mystake took a deep breath and started to gather her powers – reaching within her very being and then slowly expelling them outwards.

She raised her arms and black mist seeped from her body, dripping from her arms and spilling onto the pavement. It swirled around her feet, spreading out from them, and she felt her consciousness go with it. She breathed out, no matter how much she enjoyed masquerading as human, it always felt so freeing to release her powers like this.

A chorus of wows sounded up from the Ninja, as their stared at her with amazement. Mystake smirked at their reactions. A little bit of admiration could go a long way.

Carefully, she guided the fog front of her, creating a large target out of it, before stepping out in front of it.

“Now, when I say so, you will aim your powers to where I am standing now,” she instructed. “When fighting this type of attack, it is essential that you combine your powers before they reach your target. Otherwise, you won’t form Creation, and your attack will be useless. Got it?”

“Yes Mystake,” the four facing her said in unison, shifting into more stable stances.

She studied them. “Very well,” she decided, and moved off to the side. “Begin.”

As one they shot their elements at the spot she had indicated, combining them into a brilliant, shining gold sphere that in turn shot a bright beam at the wall of black fog.

The fog reared back like a frightened animal as it was hit and tried to twist around the beam. Dark tendrils tried to shoot towards the ninja, reaching towards them in hopes of stopping them. But before they could, the gold overtook them and burned them up, the entire structure dissipating into thin air.

The beam of Creation stopped as the ninja whooped at their success and hi-fiving one another with glee, Pixal, Lloyd, and Nya clapping in celebration off to the side.

“That was awesome!” Kai cheered, playfully shouldering Cole.

“Very cool,” Zane agreed with a smile on his face.

“Ooh let’s do it again!” Jay exclaimed.

“Yeah!”

“Woohoo!”

Mystake smiled at them gently, “Yes, it’s very exciting, but in an actual battle it will be a lot harder to disperse the fog, so Jay is right, you will be doing it again until you have perfected your technique against this strength of attack.”

The ninja looked significantly less happy at that idea.

Mystake’s smile grew, she had missed teaching.

Chapter Text

Lloyd wandered through the halls of the monastery, sometime after lunch, looking for Mystake. She had spent that morning teaching the Ninja how to use creation against an Oni — Jay, Kai, Zane, and Cole that is. And that was the problem, she had said explicitly to Nya and Pixal that they couldn’t fight the black fog, and the others had all been taught how to do it, but she hadn’t mentioned him at all, had barely even looked at him beyond answering his one question!

He turned into the hallway containing Mystake's room. He had so far checked everywhere else in the Monastery, hoping to find her somewhere that wasn't her room. There wasn't a rule specifically about disturbing Mystake when she was in her room, but the thought scared him a bit more than he would like to admit. Mystake was, in Lloyd's opinion, super cool and actually quite kind, but she could also be quite frightening. Not to mention her room always had creepy grey smoke billowing out from under the door. Nevertheless, he really needed to ask her about this, so he could brave knocking on her door to see if she was there.

As he approached the door, he began to pick up the voices of his father and uncle talking urgently to Mystake through it. He stopped dead in his tracks; he didn't want to disturb their conversation. Maybe he would come back later, whatever they were talking about sounded important.

On the other hand, what they were talking about sounded important…

Lloyd tiptoed the rest of the way to the door and crouched with his ear up against it. The walls in the Monastery were a lot more soundproof than most traditional style buildings, and they had been even before it had been rebuilt with modern materials. But his hearing had always been better than most, and so it was without much trouble that he could clearly make out what was being said.

Not that it was very helpful. They were speaking in an Oni language, something that the three of them rarely did for anything other than a few (what sounded like) snide comments. But whatever they were speaking about, it seemed that his dad and Master Wu were trying to convince Mystake of something; a debate bordering on an argument if the quickly rising volume of Garmadon's voice was any indicator.

Wu's calm voice interrupted Garmadon's, and he quickly stopped ranting. Garmadon sighed, and Lloyd could practically see him pinching his nose in frustration. "You need to tell them," he said.

"All in due time," Mystake replied ominously. "All in due time." Huh?

"No, you need to tell them n—"

"I believe your son has come to talk to me. Do as I have said and we might discuss this later."

Footsteps moved towards the door and Lloyd quickly scrambled back as it slid open, attempting to gather himself and place a neutral look on his face like he hadn't just been eavesdropping.

"I wasn't—" he began.

"Yes, you were," Mystake deadpanned, staring into his soul.

"I mean— well— yes," he stuttered, running his hand through his hair.

Mystake hmphed at him, a sour look on her face, as the door slid open further and Wu and Garmadon filed out of the room, both looking incredibly put off.

They smiled and offered polite greetings as they passed Lloyd — Garmadon reaching out to ruffle his hair as Lloyd swatted at him — but gave no further indication of what had been happening within Mystake's room. Instead, they strode down the hallway and out of sight, leaving Lloyd alone with Mystake.

"Umm," he said eloquently, taking the opportunity to stare at a very interesting point on the wall.

"Very well, what did you wish to speak with me about?" she said, leaning on her cane.

Lloyd froze for a second, feeling like a deer caught in headlights. How did he go about this without seeming rude? "This morning, when you taught the others how to use Creation, you didn't mention me, like, at all," he said, feeling a bit like a petulant child. Now that he had said it out loud, it really did seem like such a juvenile issue.

Mystake hummed and tilted her head, studying him. "Walk with me," she directed with a wave of her hand. She started walking down the hallway back the way Lloyd had come, not stopping to see if he was following.

Lloyd quickly hurried after her, easily falling into step beside her.

"Have you considered, young Garmadon, that there was a reason for that?" she asked, a small smile on her face.

He had, in fact, considered many reasons, each more terrifying than the last. Was it because she didn't think him capable? She had, after all, had to save him from certain death at the hands of his half-resurrected father.

But he didn't feel like voicing that. Instead, he mumbled, "Is it 'cause you're mad at me?" He knew it wasn't right but felt the need to answer her question anyway.

Mystake cackled. "No"—she wiped the smile off her face and looked him in the eyes—"you would know if I was mad at you." Her smile returned just as quickly as it had left.

Lloyd blinked. "Okay?"

She gently but firmly guided him into a small indoor training room, often used for warmups when the courtyard was too cold for anyone but Zane, and sat down cross-legged in the middle. She indicated the spot in front of her. "Sit, sit, and I shall explain."

Lloyd placed himself on the mat — firm enough to properly execute any ninja moves but soft enough to prevent injury — and waited.

"I cannot teach you Creation," she said bluntly, the words like a blow to his head. So, she really did think he was incapable of it, but then why hadn't she just told him that in the first place? Maybe it was to spare his feelings? He guessed he wasn't often he was told he couldn't do something; he was the Green Ninja for crying out loud, but still, he wasn’t a child! "Not because you are incapable of learning it," Mystake continued, throwing Lloyd's internal dilemma out the window, "but because I am incapable of teaching you."

Lloyd wrinkled his nose. "What? Why?" After seeing Mystake effortlessly fight and resurrect his father, she could probably tell him she was the one who put the moon in the sky, and he'd believe it.

"Creation and Destruction are two necessary sides of the same balance, but they are still very different," she explained. "I cannot teach you to wield your uncle's element because I do not understand it, as much as it pains me to admit it. If you wish to learn it, you will need to learn it from him."

That… made a lot of sense actually. She was a manifestation of Destruction, of course she didn't know how to use Creation. Lloyd felt a bit stupid.

"So then what are we doing here?" he asked. Surely, she hadn't relocated them to a training room just to tell him that one piece of information.

"Ah, yes"—Mystake grinned, mouth filled with sharp teeth and eyes glinting pure black—"I am going to teach you Destruction."

Lloyd blinked and then grinned back. This was going to be so cool!

Mystake silently entered her dark room and sat on her bed, not bothering to turn on the lights, she had never needed them anyway.

She was rather satisfied with the progress the young Garmadon had made in learning Destruction. He hadn't quite caught on as quickly as his father had, or even herself, but few would. Nevertheless, the sheer strength of his power would likely make up for any skill he was lacking when it came to facing the Omega and their army.

And the reality was, even if they were headed for Ninjago, traversing the realms through the natural pathways was no small feat. There was every likelihood that they would get lost or fall into the space in between the realms. She had no need to worry the Ninja with an invasion that might not happen, no matter what Wu and Garmadon said. They were still young; they did not know everything yet.

A small golden flash appeared in the corner of her eye and Mystake whipped her head around as a small piece of paper floated onto her desk.

Sighing, she stood up and walked over to it, already knowing who it was from; there was only one kami who passed notes like that, and they rarely brought good news.

She peered down at the familiar, untidy scrawl on it. It read only one thing:

They're coming