✯Stars Don't Cry - Arc 1 - Part 1 - Chapter 1 - A Ninjago: Dragons Rising AU✯ ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ TW: Mentions of bl00d, severe trauma, threats ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ In the Crossroads, life was never supposed to be boring. At least, that was Astrea's opinion. Other people might have other opinions. But for Astrea and her sister Lavender? Life was one chaotic thing after the next, most of them Astrea's fault in the first place. It wasn't her fault she was creative and had a knack for causing chaos wherever she went! No, if anything, that was Lav's fault, for taking her anywhere in the first place. Lav disagreed, though, saying that she caused chaos intentionally. Which was... maybe true, but still. Astrea wasn't about to take the blame for anything. Which was the current problem. Lav had left that morning for her job at a new bakery, leaving Astrea in the small apartment that they rented, completely and utterly bored for the first time in a while. "Damnit, Lav, why'd you have to leave me?" she whined, pacing. Astrea checked their watch. Twelve o'clock. Still two hours in Lav's shift. Which meant Astrea had to find something to do, and fast. Preferably /before/ she died of boredom. And preferably before she caused another -- 'No. Stop. I can't think about that.' Astrea thought, shutting her eyes. Constantly checking herself was a thing she'd grown used to. She had to, in order to keep her powers in check. Her powers that she shouldn't have ever been allowed to have in the first place. Now she /really/ needed to get out of the apartment. Grabbing her key and satchel, she slung it across her shoulders so it rested on her hip, and exited the apartment, locking the door behind her. Lav would have her key. She always did. That was Lav, always hyper-prepared. Now, she had several choices. Go visit Lav in the bakery and get some food, just walk around, find an arcade, or go to the Mech Master 5000. Automatically, Astrea chose the Mech Master. Sora and Arin were competing, and Astrea loved the chance to watch Sora's tech abilities in play. It seemed almost magical, her ability to build anything in a short period of time. Astrea glanced at her watch. 12:25. Five minutes before the race started. Silently cursing, Astrea raced through the busy roads of her home, trying to make it in time to the race to cheer on and trash-talk her friends. She made it, just barely, and sat down, waving down to Arin and Sora. Five years. Five years since the Merge had happened. Five years since she'd left her hellhole of a house. Five years since she'd found a home, and a new life, in the Crossroads, with the one person that mattered to her the most in the world. Arin spotted her and nudged Sora, waving back at her. Astrea smiled. She liked him and Sora. They were amazing, kind, and never thought to see her for anything other than their friend. Lav slid into the seat besides her just as the race started. Astrea hadn't even seen where she'd come from. "I /told/ you to stay home," Lav whispered in Astrea's ear. "I know. I was bored, okay? Don't judge me." Astrea whispered back, gently punching her twin in the arm. Lav rolled her eyes, but there was a smile on her lips. "Gotta get back to my shift. Cause any trouble and you're de tonight, got it?" Astrea nodded innocently, eyes wide. Lav narrowed her eyes, then rolled them with a smile, before turning around and walking off, back in the general direction of the bakery she worked at. Astrea turned back to the race just as Arin and Sora reached the straightaway. Then, naturally, everything went wrong. There was a bang. And coming up from underground, there was a tiny, baby dragon. Astrea froze, panicked. What was a dragon doing in the Crossroads?! It shouldn't have been there. It should be with its herd! So why was it there? Her question was answered as several people in silly looking uniforms and armor came up on anti-gravity vehicles. She silently cursed. Of course. Dragon hunters. The worst kind of people. Astrea jumped up, racing through the stands just as Arin and Sora went after the hunters. She leapt onto the mech they were in, clinging to the outside. "Thought I'd drop by!" she shouted, and Sora rolled her eyes. "Who are they?" she added. Sora opened the hatch to the mech just enough to shout, "The Claws of Imperium!" Astrea blinked. The Claws of the what-now? "Sorry, what?" she said. Sora sighed loudly. "The Claws of Imperium! Y'know, the place where I'm from?" she snapped, voice carrying an exasperated tone. "Ooh, yeah. Rings a bell!" Astrea said. "We have to help that dragon!" Sora stared back at her, looking like she was regretting her life's choices. "No, really? I thought we had to help the Claws!" she replied, voice thick with sarcasm. Now it was Astrea's turn to roll her eyes. The mech hit the bridge where the dragon lay, motionless, with some guy with terrible hair standing over it, stun-sword sparking.
[continued] "Get away from that dragon!" Astrea yelled, leaping off of the mech and landing hard on the bridge. It hurt a little more than expected, and Astrea winced. The dude with terrible hair looked at her, saying, "This dragon is now the property of Imperium!" Astrea blinked a few times, before eyeing his hair. "Says the dude who's never seen a comb before," she snorted. "Hey! No one insults Raptons hair!" he yelled, and Astrea looked around. "Who's... Rapton?" she asked. "Me! I am Rapton!" he yelled, lunging at her. Astrea panicked for a brief second, before sidestepping. Just then, Arin's voice, from the mech, said, "Astrea! Come on! We've got the dragon!" Astrea stuck her tongue out at Rapton and smirked, before hopping onto the mech. Sora pressed the turbo-boost button, but nothing happened. Arin and Astrea looked at each other. "C'mon, Sora! Press it!" Arin said, voice growing anxious. "I am pressing it! Nothing's--" Suddenly, the boosters of the mech exploded, blowing the Mech off of the bridge. Astrea screamed, terrified. She really hated heights. In her manor- No, she couldn't think about that. If she did, she might lose control. She might destroy them all. Astrea glanced over at Sora and the little dragon. And suddenly, the little's dragons eyes glowed, and a beam of light shot out of his chest, feeding into Sora, whose eyes and hands glowed a bright pink. "Uh, Sora? What's happening?!" Astrea shouted. Sora turned to the mech, and suddenly, it reassembled, becoming a flying Mech. Sora reached out the hand of the mech from the inside, catching Arin and Sora and hovering. "Wow! I didn't know you could do that!" Arin said, staring at Sora. "Yeah. Neither did I." Sora replied, flying the mech up. Arin used his wonky Spinjitzu to take out some drones, and Astrea had to laugh. She knew him well enough to know that he hadn't meant to do it the way he did, but it'd worked, and that made it funny. They landed back on the bridge. Sora used the boosters to blow the Claws back, but just as they were about to leave, something--or someone--fell out of the sky, landing in front of the mech. The force knocked the Mech over, and Sora stood it up and turned. Astrea didn't know what she was seeing at first, until her eyes focused. In front of them stood a tiger-guy, and he did /not/ look happy. He knocked the mech over with one blow from his war hammer, and it broke, with the cockpit spinning and landing farther away from Astrea and Arin. The tiger-guy knocked out the little dragon with a stun sword, and when Arin tried to use Spinjitzu, he caught Arin's leg and spun Arin around, throwing him back and knocking him out. Then, he lunged at Astrea, who was frozen in fear and shock, before slamming her back, and then everything went black. The Imperium train was fast, moving many miles a minute. Astrea sat with Arin and Sora in a compartment, trying to break the cuffs that were on her wrists. "What was that back there, Sora?" Astrea asked, still concentrating. "Yeah, I'm wondering that too. What happened with the Mech?" Arin asked. Sora looked down at her cuffs. "It was that little dragon. I could feel it. It's like he gave me a.... spark, and, I don't know, I could do that!" Arin had a thoughtful look on his face for a second. "Like an elemental power?" he asked. Astrea nodded, having been thinking the same thing, but Sora shook her head. "I never had one in Imperium. No, it had to have come from that poor little dragon!" she said. "I wonder what'll happen to us." Arin said quietly. Sora's face had a cold look on it. "Whatever happens, they'll do worse to that dragon." Sora replied, pulling her knees up closer to her chest. "Hey, what the-!" Astrea sat up. So did Arin and Sora. "What--no! It can't be!" Sounds of a commotion. And then, suddenly, the hatch burst open. Someone, dressed in all green, peered down at them. Arin gasped. "The Green Ninja!" --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Characters: Astrea [she/they] Lavender [she/her] Arin [he/him] Sora [she/her Unnamed dragon [he/it] Lloyd [he/him] Rapton [he/him] Unnamed tiger guy [he/it] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is a fan creation. I did not produce Dragons Rising, nor did I have any part in it. This is just a fan AU creation.
