Yeaaah, Nova didn't completely recover from the attack on the Dark Island...
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*The Kabuki serve the fighters food.*
"Try the horned wasp eggs. Delicious!" said Chen.
"Uh, I think I'll pass." said Lloyd.
"Oh, lighten up, Green Ninja. This isn't a trick. This is a feast to celebrate the nine of you making it to the second round." said Chen as the Kabuki laughed. "And I must congratulate the master of shadow's defeat over the master of poison. She was a bit hard to swallow, am I right?" The Kabuki laugh. "Laugh harder! Hahahaha!" They force a harder laugh.
"Creepy." Nova thought, sitting at the farthest side of the table because as much as she liked the ninja, she did not want to be part of Lloyd's little outburst that was coming up soon.
"You can relax, Lloyd. Even if there was a fight, now that we told the others about Chen's dirty plot to steal our powers, we're safe in our secret alliance." said Kai.
"I tried to enlist Shadow, but that dude's throwing some serious shade." said Griffin.
"Damn the roast." Nova kept eating while trying not to look at anyone.
"Well, if you plan to stop Chen, you'll need everyone on board. Each fighter that loses gives him strength. Soon he'll be too powerful for even all of you combined to overcome." said Garmadon.
*A Kabuki retrieves the fortune cookies.*
"Ooh, fortune cookies! Bring them to me!" said Chen.
"But they are for your captured—I mean, honored guests." said Clouse.
"I'm not gonna eat them, Clousey Clouse. Just read the fortunes. They're my favorite part." said Chen.
"Might I warn you our guests are fond of whispering, and I don't think it's about your food. I've heard word they have allied themselves. The ninja have told them about our secret ceremony." said Clouse.
"Do they know about the spell?" Chen asked.
"Not yet, but we must get ahead of this." said Clouse.
Chen puts the cookie back, which the Kabuki brings to the Masters. "It has come to my attention that there are rumors floating about that I am stealing everyone's power. I am." The Masters besides Nova gasps. "But it's all for this staff." He claps, and the Kabuki waves their hand fans.
"No, no. Not you, staff. I mean my real staff." Everyone gasps as the staff is brought to him. "The Staff of Elements. It holds the power of your fallen foes, and soon it'll hold all but one. For the last standing in my tournament will win this prize and be the greatest fighter ever in the history in Ninjago!" Everyone whispers.
"And here comes Lloyd's outburst, thank the First Spinjitzu Master, I'm sitting farthest away on the table." Nova thought to herself as she kept eating.
"You lied. What about the spell?" said Lloyd.
"Spell? What spell?" asked Chen.
"Don't believe him, it's just another trick. Neuro read Clouse's mind and saw it. Tell them what you saw, Neuro." said Lloyd, now standing up and looking over at Neuro.
Clouse stares at Neuro. "I—I don't remember. Truthfully, I'm a bit more interested in knowing more about that staff."
"And why should we be so quick to believe everything you say? How do we know you're not lying to get the staff for yourself?" Skylor reads Cole's message and gasps.
"It worked. Their alliance is crumbling." said Clouse.
"So much for the alliance." said Garmadon.
"They believe him over us? Even Delta?" said Lloyd as he noticed how far away she was sitting, along with how she hadn't said a single thing since everyone sat down to eat.
A Kabuki starts fanning too close to Jay. "If we're gonna convince anyone, argh, we need proof. Ugh. We need too, oh, find that spell. Would you cut it out!?"
Nova tried to hold in a giggle when she heard Jay's complaint, since she wasn't wearing the lower part of her mask because she was eating, and if she let out a sound they would hear her real voice which she didn't want.
"Jay, it's me." Nya whispered.
"Nya?"
"Lower your voices. I'm undercover. And to be completely honest, a bit out of my element. And I heard what happened to Cole. That was big of you both." whispered Nya.
"Love is like war, Nya. Everybody gets hurt." whispered Jay.
Nova chewed the inside of her cheek for a moment when she heard him say that, old her would have found that weird to say. But after finding out she herself had a crush on Lloyd, and couldn't get herself to reveal who she was, she actually believed more in his words.
"Is it just you, sis?" Kai whispered.
"Dareth's also on the island." whispered Nya.
"Oh god why Dareth." Nova thought, shaking her head a little.
"Something wrong, master of darkness?" asked Clouse who had noticed her acting a little weird without even talking to anyone.
Nova looked up to see Clouse before pressing something on her mask, causing the lower part to turn back on. "No Clouse, just listening to some music." [robotic] She said, pointing to the parts that were covering her ears. Even though she wasn't really listening to music, it was a good cover up.
Clouse still gave her a skeptic look. "Very well, then I shall not disturb you from your music." He said walking back to Chen.
"He is so creepy, it was a good last minute idea I came up with, otherwise I might be screwed.....but then again. I might in some way be able to still lie my way out of it." Nova thought to herself.
"A spy? Who do you think it is?" questioned Jay looking at the others.
"I have my suspicions." Lloyd looks at Shade.
*Later the elemental masters are in Kai's suite.*
"Like I said, I ain't joining your little alliance. I'm gunning for that staff." said Shade.
"Hey, this isn't about an alliance. This is about finding out who is the spy. No one leaves this room until we find out who is passing information to Chen." said Lloyd.
"Why are you looking at me, Greenie? I'm not your spy. If anything it should be the little thief here." said Shade pointing at Nova, leaning against the wall in the shadows.
Nova sent him a glare when he called her little thief.
"Perhaps I can help." Neuro uses his mind on him. "I don't know who, but two people here isn't who they say they are."
"What! Does that mean we have two spies!" said Jay.
"How do we know we can trust you? Maybe I should use your power and see inside your head." said Skylor.
"I'd like to see you try, power hoarder." said Neuro.
"Can we just get this over with?" [robotic] said Nova.
"This is what Chen wants, for us to fight. But we don't have to. There has to be a more civilized way around this." said Kai.
"There is. Everyone who's ever worked for Chen has the Anacondrai tattoo on their back. Find the tattoo, find the spy." said Garmadon.
"Anyone object?" Lloyd asked.
Neuro shows his back without the tattoo. "Can I go now?"
"Not until we check everyone. Who's next?" said Lloyd.
"Let's get it on." Griffin shows his back.
Nova looked to the side as she was a little nervous to show her back.
*Later at Kai's suite, the ninja checks everyone except Shade, Nova and Skylor.*
"Well, only three left." said Lloyd.
"Uh, I hate to do this, but it's your turn. Can I see your back, please?" said Kai walking over to Skylor.
"How could you not trust me? I came to you with the fortune cookie—" said Skylor.
"I'm sorry, but we have to know." said Kai.
"Wait. Where'd Shadow go?" asked Lloyd.
"He disappeared through his own shadow." said Jay.
"There he is. Get him!" said Griffin as he pointed at Shade who was at the door.
"I ain't your spy, and I ain't your friend either. That staff will be mine." said Shade as Lloyd uses his power on him, but a portrait of Kai falls on Jay instead.
"Aah! My leg! Ugh. Get Kai off of me!" shouted Jay.
Nova let out a small giggle watching this.
Garmadon goes on to try and stop Shade. "You cast a long shadow, old man."
"It was Shadow. He must be the spy." said Neuro.
"Ow! Oh." Jay freed from the picture, but suffered a broken leg.
"Skylor, look, I'm sorry." said Kai.
"Don't. And if you still think I'm the spy, watch me walk out that door." Skylor shows him her back without the Anacondrai tattoo.
"Del, we need to see your back too sorry." said Lloyd coming over to Nova.
Nova let out a small sigh. "Let's just get this over with." [robotic] She said showing her back. She didn't have the Anacondrai tattoo, but what they could see was her two skin colors along with a few scars.
"What's happening with your skin!" asked Jay, surprised.
"And where did you get those scars from?" Kai asked.
Nova sent a cold glare at Kai and Jay. "Where the fuck do you guys think I got those scars from!" [robotic] She growled angrily at them.
"Are we done here, because I don't wanna talk about this anymore." [robotic] said Nova before walking out, slamming the door behind her.
"What happened to our alliance?" Jay asked.
"What alliance?" Lloyd asked, feeling a little sorry for Nova after seeing those scars.
Nova went back to her room, closing the door behind her before slowly turning her mask off. She went to her bed and hid her face in her pillow so no one could hear her silent sobs.
Since that day when the ninja attacked her when she was in her shadow-like form, she had gotten a few scars on her body that hadn't fully gone away, and just the thought of that day still terrified her.