Lloyd POV
I felt Zane's cole hand grip my shoulder as he shook me awake, his face full of concern. "He's calling you," Zane whispered, barely audible over the background noise of the gymnasium.
Blinking away the grogginess, I turned to see Mister Glasses smirking at the front of the room. "Lloyd. Lloyd, it's your turn. You can sleep after doing the growth exam."
I rubbed my face, realizing I must have dozed off during the roll call for the last names starting with B. Great, just what I needed- falling asleep at the worst possible time. Smoothing out my jumpsuit, I stood up and jumped down from the seventh row to the ground. My mind was still foggy from the dream about my past. A past that sucked and left me feeling depressed just by recallling it.
Making my way to the center of the gym, I tried to push the memories aside and focus on the present. The gymnasium was silent, all eyes on me. I could feel the weight of their expectations, their curiosity about what I would show off.
I stood there, staring at the teachers of the school who sat lined up in front of me. Their stares were intense, practically boring holes into me as they glared, undoubtedly hoping to find a reason to make me suffer. For once, I felt nervous. I had been so exhausted from trying to catch up on paperwork that I had slept through the first six letters of the alphabet. Now, I needed to impress the people who disliked me the most. My eyes drifted to Mister Glasses, who looked amused by the situation.
"What will you show us this time, Lloyd Garmadon?" Mister Glasses asked, his voice dripping with condescension.
I was not too fond of his cheekiness or dumb smile, but a memory resurfaced while I was asleep. I never thought I would be doing this again, but here I was. Bowing to show respect to the strangers I never really knew, I took a deep breath before answering the question they all had been waiting for.
"I am going to create a rift through reality before sealing it."
I could see the shock and surprise on the teachers' faces, as well as a few gasps from the crowd. To be honest, I hated using this ability considering that it caused more problems for me than I could handle. But I was going to use it once and that was it. I looked at my hand, recalling that back then, I could only open rifts and could not close them. Noah, on the other hand, could seal them, but that was Noah in the past. Now, I could do both just by using Energy Manipulation.
"That is such an idea. Why don't you show us?" Mister Glasses leaned forward, his voice laced with mock curiosity. "I find this fascinating, considering that you are just a first year."
My lips thinned. Mister Glasses always said something that pissed me off. I nodded at him, giving him a mean glare. "I will."
"Stop! Right now!" Ms. Asiya's sudden shout stopped me dead in my tracks. What does she want?
My homeroom teacher stood up, looking extremely angry. "Who do you think you are? She screamed, slamming her fist into the desk where she and the other teachers were seated. "Do you know how dangerous that could be? You could put all of us in danger!"
The room fell silent, the tension thickening like a storm cloud. I could see the concern in the eyes of the students and teachers alike. Ms. Asiya's outburst was unexpected, and it threw everyone off balance.
"Ms. Asiya, with all due respect, I have control over this ability," I tried to explain, keeping my voice calm and steady. "I wouldn't put anyone in danger."
"Control?" Ms. Asiya scoffed, her eyes blazing with fury. "Do you even understand the magnitude of what you're doing? Creating a rift through reality is not something to be taken lightly! You could unleash forces we can't even comprehend!"
Her words struck a chord. I knew she was right to some extent. The power to create and seal rifts was dangerous, and I had experienced the consequences firsthand. But this was my chance to prove myself, to show that I had mastered my abilities.
"I understand the risks," I said firmly, meeting her gaze. "But I also understand my capabilities. Please, let me show you that I can do this safely."
There was a moment of silence as Ms. Asiya seemed to weigh my words. Her eyes softened slightly, but the worry was still there. Her gaze shifted from me to Mister Glasses. She attempted to hit the back of his head, but he dodged her attack with ease, moving his head just in time. She pointed at him, her voice dripping with venom.
"You are irresponsible and unfit to be a teacher, you with all your favorites!" Ms. Asiya's words hung in the air, cutting through the tension like a knife.
Mister Glasses smirked, clearly unfazed by her outburst. "Favoritism, you say?" he replied smoothly. "I simply recognize talent where it exists. If Lloyd here can create and seal a rift, it proves he's more capable than most of you give him credit for."
"Capable? Or reckless?" Ms. Asiya shot back, her eyes blazing. "You constantly push these students beyond their limits without considering the consequences. It's irresponsible and dangerous!"
I stood there, feeling like a spectator in a battle of wills. The room was deathly silent, everyone's eyes darting between the two teachers. The atmosphere crackled with tension, and I could feel the weight of their words pressing down on me. I sighed before covering my entire hand with pure energy. The green glow danced all over, leaving a tingling sensation. I repeated the process with my other hand before raising my arm to perform a karate chop. My hand cut the air like scissors cutting through paper. A thin line appeared, shimmering with raw energy.
Ms. Asiya stopped harassing Mister Glasses as she stared at the rift in horror. I looked at the thin line, knowing that I was supposed to close it but suddenly curious about what might be on the other side. I forced it to widen and peered inside. I was expecting to see another realm, but to my surprise, what I saw was Ninjago in ruins. A giant crater dominated the center of Ninjago City, overrun with shadow-like zombies. What on earth happened here?
I was about to get a better look without getting inside, but a head suddenly emerged from the rift, startling me. I tripped over my own feet in an attempt to create distance, falling hard on my bottom. I knew there might be a chance that something could come out, but I didn't expect it to be this quick.
The figure's head looked around, its two red orbs for eyes glowing with an eerie light. It seemed to be scanning the gymnasium, its presence sending chills down my spine. It had no facial features and was covered in purplish-black smoke. It didn't make any attempts to go through the rift; instead, it just stared at me. I slowly got to my feet, realizing I must be careful considering I didn't know how strong this being was.
The smokey tendrils that formed its head shifted and swirled almost hypnotically. The red orbs seemed to pierce through me, analyzing, judging. I felt a cold sweat break out on my forehead, my heart pounding in my chest. The gymnasium was deathly silent, everyone holding their breath, waiting to see what would happen next.
"Who… or what are you?" I managed to ask, my voice trembling despite my efforts to sound confident.
The figure tilted its head slightly as if considering my question. It then began to speak, its voice a low, echoing whisper that seemed to come from all around rather than from itself. "I am a shadow of what could be," it intoned, the words reverberating through the gym. "A glimpse of the darkness that lies ahead."
My hands twitched with the urge to close the rift immediately, but I needed to understand what I was dealing with first. "What do you want?" I demanded, trying to project authority.
The figure's eyes seemed to narrow, and for a moment, I thought I saw a flicker of amusement in those red orbs. "You don't have very long to live; you are on a time limit," its eerily distorted voice made me freeze on the spot. "You are going to die soon."
It pulled its hand out of the rift before forming a large floating bronze hourglass. It magically rotated as the sand began to flow through. I couldn't find it in myself to move. I'm going to die again? Is this a prophecy or a cruel joke? Who is going to kill me? Is it going to be Noah and his stupid friends? No, he is too weak for that, but some people could do the job just fine. Even after everything I've done, I'm going to die again.
The hourglass disappeared as the being looked at my pale face. I didn't know if it was amused by the situation, but since it didn't have a face, let's just assume that it wasn't. The being spoke again, its voice even more sinister than before. "I am going to come when the world is full of chaos. Good luck."
I couldn't move, even though every part of my brain was screaming at me to get out of the way. The being's hand, wrapped in these weird smoky tendrils, crept closer to my face. I felt frozen like Doom was about to smack me in the face. I was screwed, and deep down, I had this gut feeling that whatever was coming next was gonna hurt way worse than anything I'd faced before.
But just before the thing could touch me, out of nowhere, a sword swooped in, slicing through the air straight at the creature. It reacted fast, swatting the blade away with this powerful move that sent shockwaves rippling through the gym. Me and the being both looked surprised at the sudden twist. We turned to see who'd pulled the stunt.
And there he was, Mister Glasses, rising all dramatic like bathed in this dim light. He looked annoyed as hell at the creature. The sword he'd chucked was lying there, snapped in two, still glowing faintly from whatever magic he'd put into it.
The being seemed pissed off, and honestly, I half expected it to jump through the rift and go after Mister Glasses. Instead, the rift just started closing up on its own, swallowing the creature back into that smoky stuff it came from. The whole gym went quiet, everyone trying to wrap their heads around what happened. Me? I just stood there, staring at where the rift had been. Suddenly felt light-headed, like I had to get out of there fast.
So, I bolted outside into the cold air, hoping it might clear my head. But even with the fresh breeze on my face, I couldn't shake the creepy echo of the shadowy figure's words: "You're gonna die soon." Those words hung over me like a dark cloud, making every breath feel shallow against the cold brick wall of the building.
Questions raced through my mind. Was there some kind of time limit? What did it all mean? Had I come back to the past for good, or was there something I still needed to change before I could go back to my timeline? The uncertainty left me unsettled, especially given the grim fate that seemed to be looming over me.