A heavy silence blanketed the room as Edna silently wrapped up Kai's broken wrist.

"Now I don't want you using this for at least a week," She told him, guiding his arm into a sling around his neck. "And we'll check it then, okay, dear?" Kai dipped his chin in a nod.

"Yes, Mrs. Walker."

"Oh, you can call me Edna, dear."

"What are we gonna do about the map?" Jay kicked at a crumpled piece of paper on the floor. "And Kai's sword?"

"Maybe we can sneak in again?" Cole suggested weakly. "Now that Pythor is imprisoned..."

"They'll be looking for you." Lloyd shook his head, hands shoved in his pockets. "It'll be much harder now."

"Well, we can't just let them have it!" Jay protested. "That's a golden weapon of Spinjitzu!!"

"At least they probably don't know how to use it," Nya suggested glumly. "At least, not as anything other than an actual sword."

"Still, it will be dangerous in their hands." Wu spoke from where he was sitting down. "And the map more so. Lloyd, what do you think they will do with Pythor?" The blond looked up, sighed.

"I don't know. They hate him, so if they don't kill him they'll probably keep him locked up."

"I see." Wu nodded. "And what will they do with the map?"

"I don't know that, either. In the original timeline, I stole it from them before they kicked me out, and Pythor got it from me."

"I see." Wu rocked back in his chair. "It is unlikely that they will use it to free the other tribes, correct?"

Lloyd nodded. "They don't like the Constrictai or the Venomari either."

"Very good." Wu nodded slowly. "Then we have time. Kai, absolutely no use of that arm." The fire ninja scowled, plucking at the sling.

"Well, what am I supposed to do until then?"

"Train in ways that do not involve your right arm."

"Fine."

"Should we continue circling the junkyard?" Jay asked, gaze straying to the control panel. "At a distance, to keep an eye on them?"

"Yes, that seems wise." Wu looked around at his ninja. "I urge you not to trouble yourselves over this matter. Take this time to recover, do not let your anxiety consume you." His gaze strayed a bit longer on Jay as they murmured their assent.

"Right, Sensei." Cole headed over to Kai, guiding him out onto the deck. "Let's work on some kicks."

—

Pythor gripped the bars of his makeshift prison cell, beady eyes studying his captors as they milled around the camp. Near the center of the junkyard was the Sword of Fire, which had been mounted on top of a broken robot while they tried to figure out what to do with it. To his left, the Fangpyre and Hypnobrai generals were speaking in low tones as they pored over the map. How curious. Pythor had been of the impression that the other tribes loathed each other.

It had taken a great number of the foot soldiers to take him down, and the assistance of their generals to get him locked up. Even here, in this crude prison, Pythor was fairly sure he could escape by brute force if need be. But Pythor was never a great fan of using force to get what he wanted. Not when he had the opportunity to do it nonviolently, anyway.

"Fangtom!" He called out, catching the two-headed snake's attention. "It's been a while."

"Silence, anacondrai." One head hissed, and the other chimed in with "Your pretty words won't work on us. Not after your actions-" "-during the war."

"Pretty words?" Pythor pressed a hand to his chest in offense. "I mean no harm, I merely wish to speak with you for a moment."

"As you can see," The general gestured to the Hypnobrai. "I am speaking with Skales."

"How convenient! I was hoping to speak to you both." Pythor leaned against the bars. "Just indulge me for a moment, if you will." The pair of serpentine exchanged a glance, but reluctantly slithered towards his cage. "Now," Pythor began, holding out a hand through the bars. "I haven't introduced myself. Pythor P. Chumsworth, at your service."

Neither of them accepted his hand. "What does the 'P' ssstand for?" Skales asked.

"Pythor, again." Was Pythor's response. "Now, I don't believe we need to be enemies."

"You broke into our camp." Fangtom shot back. "Tried to steal our map."

"And a very good thing that I did, eh?" Pythor raised his brow. "Otherwise the ninja would have." Skales and Fangtom exchanged a glance.

"Ssstill." Skales said firmly. "That does not excussse you from trying to rob us."

"Ah, but you have yet to consider my motives!" Pythor lifted one finger. "I attempted to steal that map for one reason, and one reason only- I wish to see the Serpentine rule like we were always meant to." A moment of silence.

"Explain." Fangtom ordered.

"It has been many years since the Serpentine Wars." Pythor slithered as far as he could go to the right, then to the left. "The humans, those terrible, loathsome creatures, divided us into individual tombs in an attempt to make us hate each other. And it worked, did it not?" Skales and Fangtom looked at each other, frowning. "My plan," Pythor continued, "is to free every tribe of Serpentine, and to mold them into the greatest army that Ninjago has ever seen! And then," His pink eyes narrowed with glee. "We will unleash the Great Devourer."

—

He had really screwed things up this time.

Lloyd sat on the floor of the room he shared with the ninja, wrapping strips of cloth around his wrists to brace them. The ninja would be going to bed, soon, so he needed to hurry. He couldn't let them catch him doing this. His body was weak, sure, but it had strengthened in just a couple weeks since he had arrived here. He couldn't fight, but at the very least he could probably get away if need be. All he needed to do was be small and quiet, something he was very good at.

He was going to steal Kai's sword back.

He was done putting the others in danger for his mistakes. By himself, he would be much stealthier, and if he got caught, hey, he did in the original timeline anyway. The Serpentine had never been too cruel to him, he would probably be fine. Especially since Pythor would be locked up now.

Kai disliked him more than ever, now, Lloyd could tell by the way he looked at him. Kai was obviously struggling with the loss of one of his arms, and his missing weapon weighed heavily on him as well. If Lloyd hadn't insisted that they open Pythor's tomb, this mission would have gone off without a hitch. It was his responsibility to fix it.

Lloyd pulled his black hoodie over his head, frowning at the white lines painted onto it. Still better than the t-shirt. Satisfied with his attire, Lloyd slipped out of the ninja's room and found a corner to hang out in until the rest of his family had gone to bed.

The Bounty had landed in the desert about half a mile from the junkyard, allowing them to stay close without the Serpentine knowing they were there. While it would be safer to stay in the air, Jay was concerned about depleting the ship's power reserves too much, and insisted they give it a break at least every few days. Lloyd was glad. There was no way he could get off the ship if it was a hundred feet in the air.

The sun went down, and the lights on the Bounty dimmed as its inhabitants went to bed. Only then did Lloyd scramble over the edge of the ship and march off in the direction of the junkyard.

Kai had said he had lost it while in Ed and Edna's trailer, but it probably wasn't there anymore. Worst case scenario, one of the serpentine was carrying it around, but could probably stall it out until they put it down. Once he had the sword he could use it as a weapon- he was the green ninja, after all. But he needed it in his hands first.

Apprehension was beginning to rise in his stomach as the lights of the junkyard came into view - shouldn't they be sleeping? Maybe they preferred to sleep with the lights on. That would make it more difficult for him to infiltrate, but... he'd be fine. Probably. Lloyd focused instead on how much more Kai would like him for getting his sword back.

As he got close, Lloyd could tell that the serpentine were definitely not asleep.

He could hear the shouts from 200 feet away, the music playing from the center of the junkyard. Were they having a party? Why?? To celebrate getting the golden weapon, maybe? Did they know of its importance?

Lloyd hurried up to the junkyard wall, glad that there didn't seem to be many, if any, sentries on the outside of their base. He was able to squeeze through a gap in the slats of the makeshift fence, huddling up behind a small structure as he got his bearings. At least all the noise would keep him from giving himself away. Where was the sword?

Unfortunately, it was very easy to find. As soon as the center of the junkyard came into view, he saw it, laid carelessly on one of the serpentine's banquet tables.

That wasn't good, Lloyd mused as he peered out from behind an old refrigerator. He would have to either wait until the festivities ended, or create some kind of distraction to get them away from it. But there were a lot of snakes, throwing a tin can wasn't going to cut it. He scanned the crowd again. He could see Skales and Fangtom... and what looked like a hastily cobbled-together prison cell behind them. It was empty. Was Pythor still here...?

Lloyd glanced around, looking for something that would make a suitable diversion. Luckily enough, he was in a junkyard - and, after a moment, he found what looked like a car that would run. Hurrying over, he forced open one of the back doors and crawled up into the driver's seat, slipping down into the footwell to access the wires. They were obviously old and corroded, but he still recognized the starter wires, and mentally thanked Jay for teaching him how to hotwire vehicles once.

Lloyd tapped the wires together, and the engine sputtered to life. Grabbing a chunk of metal that had ended up in the passenger seat, Lloyd pushed it onto the gas pedal, then opened the door and threw the car into drive before launching himself free of the vehicle. As he had predicted, the car shot forward, whizzing across the main lane of the junkyard before slamming into a tower of precariously-balanced metal and sending it crashing to the ground.

Lloyd held very still, chest heaving, as the music stopped and the Serpentine flowed towards the accident to see what was going on. He scrambled back behind shelter again, moving around to where he could see the sword most clearly. Some serpentine remained, and swallowed, preparing himself. Once he had the sword, he could get out, he just needed to get there before they caught him. Planting a foot in the sand, Lloyd charged out of his shelter, arm outstretched as he dashed for the Golden Weapon.

A hand seized him by the back of his hoodie and he was yanked off the ground, flailing for a moment before Pythor's face appeared in front of him.

"Ah-ah-ah," Pythor wagged a finger in front of his face. "Now where do you think you're going?"

"Pythor??" Lloyd's voice cracked. "How did you- what are you doing here?!"

"With my friends, the Hypnobrai and the Fangpyre?" Pythor looked around himself. "Hm. Well, we seem to be having a party." Lloyd gaped at him. No. How had Pythor gained their allegiance?! "I could ask you the same question." The anacondrai continued. "What are you doing here- all alone, I might add?" He looked around, searching the dark corners of the junkyard as the rest of the serpentine approached again. "Though, surely your little bodyguards aren't far. Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

"They're not here." Lloyd growled. "It's just me. No one's coming."

"Surely not." Pythor studied his face for a moment. "Oh, you're serious. Well isn't that just delightful. Now what would the son of the esteemed Lord Garmadon be doing here, trying to steal our lovely golden sword?" The snake looked back at the Sword of Fire where it rested on the table. "It's not important, is it?" Lloyd struggled weakly, glaring at him instead of answering.

"Who's thisss brat?" Skales called out as he approached.

"This brat," Pythor hoisted him higher, causing Lloyd to scrabble at his hoodie where it pressed against his throat. "Is the son of Lord Garmadon." He glanced back and forth between the two generals. "Any familiarity?"

Fangtom shook his heads. "A lord Garmadon, no." One said, followed by the other. "But we did know a Garmadon who fought-" "-in the Serpentine Wars."

"Is that so?" Pythor glanced back at Lloyd. "Well, no wonder he doesn't like us."

"We should get rid of him." Skales ordered, sounding anxious. "Seemsss more trouble than he's worth."

"Oh, don't fret. No one's coming for him." Pythor's narrowed eyes met Lloyd's green ones. "I'm sure he'll have his uses."

"PYTHOR!!" A shout caused them both to jump, and Pythor swiveled around, still holding Lloyd, to find Kai standing at the far end of the clearing. In his left hand was a regular, metal katana. "You're wrong about that." He snapped as Lloyd's eyes widened. "I'm coming for him. And you'd better let him go if you know what's good for you."

—

Kai held his breath as he eased his room door open, slipping through the narrow gap and shutting it behind him. He paused to listen for any sound from inside - nothing. Good, they must all be asleep.

The fire ninja tiptoed out onto the deck, sliding the sling off of his shoulder as he did so and setting it aside. Trying to train with Cole hovering over him had been infuriating - injury or not, he needed to keep up his strength and skill. Kai grabbed a metal katana from a rack, holding it in his left hand as he headed for a training dummy on the deck.

As he took a fighting stance, movement caught his attention, and he looked over to see a small figure jogging through the sand away from the ship. Kai frowned, momentarily wondering if someone was spying on them, before he recognized the figure and his face morphed into a scowl.

Lloyd. Where was that brat going so late?? A moment later, it hit him, and Kai was hurrying to the railing to get a closer look. Sure enough, Lloyd was heading for the junkyard. Clutching the katana tightly, Kai climbed over the railing of the ship and followed.

All sorts of ugly theories swirled through Kai's head as he followed Lloyd at a distance. Had Lloyd betrayed them? Was he going to join the serpentine? Or had he already joined them, and had only been with them to spy on him? Had he secretly been working with Pythor since he met him at the tomb, and now came to share what else he had learned? That would explain how everything went so perfectly wrong in the serpentine's favor. Kai's wrist was broken, and it was his fault!

Kai wouldn't stop him. No, he'd catch him in the act, let him know he was busted, and drag him back to face the wrath of the other ninja. Even Sensei would have to be disappointed in him after this.

Consumed by such bitter thoughts, Kai followed Lloyd to the junkyard, where he watched him- instead of walking right in, sneak in the back way. Huh.

Thrown for a loop, Kai followed. He watched as Lloyd scrutinized the serpentine's gathering, then hotwired a car to use as a diversion, sending it crashing into a pile of junk. Taking advantage of their attention elsewhere, Lloyd dashed into the center of camp, straight for... Kai's sword. Was that why he was here??

Kai also saw when an invisible form picked him up off the ground, Pythor hissing threats as he struggled. Heard Lloyd tell him that he was alone, no one was coming to save him. He didn't try to bargain, or argue, just glared at his captors, accepting his fate. He had come to take back the sword of fire, and he'd failed.

Kai grimaced where he crouched behind an old truck, gripping the old katana he still held in his good hand. He had assumed such awful things about Lloyd, when the kid was just trying to help. Sure, he had gotten himself caught and caused even more trouble for the ninja, but wasn't it the thought that counted? Lloyd had put himself in real danger to do something for him, and Kai had only thought of it as a means to get back at him.

Straightening up, Kai set his jaw and stepped out into the light. The least he could do was make sure Lloyd didn't have to endure this alone.

"PYTHOR!" The snake spun around, and Lloyd's eyes widened in shock. "You're wrong about that." Kai snapped. "I'm coming for him. And you'd better let him go if you know what's good for you."