Enter The Ninjaverse

CHAPTER 81

I do not know, my only guess would be his obsession with me... but I do not see how attacking Ronin would help him procure me, The sword paused, Surely he would know you would not respond to kidnapping.

"Ronin and I have procedures about this," Monty used wind to lift up the broken bed and check for evidence, "If one of us is kidnapped, we don't go after each other. We track them and lay a trap for them instead. That whole 'give me the treasure or she dies' bit won't work on us."

Monty threw the broken bed aside. In turn, he saw that a small trapdoor had been opened up. He looked down, seeing the entrance into the storage closet, and more importantly, to the trapdoor below that led to where they stored REX underwater. Only that trap door wasn't open.

"...It looks like someone ambushed Ronin and he tried to escape..." Monty paused, "Doesn't explain why the shop was empty though. Or the safe was gone. It couldn't just be robbers, they'd have tried searching my room too. People in Stiix know to hide things under the floorboards."

Monty leapt down through the trapdoor. He landed amongst the various bits of clutter in the storage closet. He got down on his knees, then lowered his head through the trapdoor in the closet. He was several feet above the ocean. When he looked down, he expected to see nothing. Instead, he saw a shadow under the waves. A shadow of REX.

"...He didn't take REX," Monty pulled his head back up from the floor, "...Okay. So, someone attacked him and he got out without using REX. But for some reason he took the safe and emptied out the store and..." Monty shook his head, "This doesn't make any sense!"

I concur, The sword agreed, Perhaps we should search for him ourselves?

Monty exited the closet and walked out through the main shop out onto the pier. He raised his hands to his mouth, then blew out the simple three notes. His wind carried the whistle down into the waves. After a moment, the water under the shop lit up, and from it, REX slowly emerged from the waves. Water cascaded off of its sides, the armor along its sides retracting to show the cargo hold. Inside of it was none other than the safe, and nothing else. As soon as Monty saw that, his eyes narrowed.

"...Yeah," Monty walked over to the opening cockpit of REX, hoping inside and down into the chair, "Let's." With a tip of his shoulders, Monty phased into a possessed REX. A few moments later, and the two turned, flying off into the distance of Ninjago.

"Mhm," Garmadon nodded his head.

"...Mhm?" Lulloyd blinked, leaning forward, "A-After all that I just told you, t-the only response you have is... mhm?!"

"Yes, son, Mhm!" Garmadon grunted, "As in, 'Mhm, I'm trying to figure out the situation that I was just told and I have a lot of things on my mind right now so you should let your father figure out how to properly respond, Mhm!'"

"Oh... uh, sorry, dad," Lulloyd looked away.

"Don't be," Garmadon gripped his warlord staff, standing up with it, "I only learned that one from your mother."

Lulloyd stood up alongside his father, following him out of the small room inside of the volcano. The moment the two exited the small tea room, they were met with a catwalk over a massive vehicle bay. All around them, machines were being repaired and outfitted for battle. Shark Army staff were running about in every direction to try to chase them, some even leaping up to cling to them as they were carried on conveyor belts. More than one of them fell into the ocean water below and frantically swam towards the nearest ladder.

"What's, all this?" Lulloyd asked.

"Well, ever since that last skirmish, I've given the order for my forces to bulk up!" Garmadon grinned, "Like, we're getting all of the forces. All of them."