Chapter Text
All around Kai, everything was magic. The air he breathed, the solid, wooden surface underneath his back, even the words spoken in a foreign language.
After everything Kai and his friends did over the last nine months, he had learned to recognize the shape and feel of the magic that surrounded them. The air felt charged in a certain way. The wood beneath him buzzed with an invisible sort of energy. The words spoken by headmaster Wu were especially laced with it, so much so that Kai nearly felt suffocated by the force of it.
And yet, inside him there was nothing. Only silence and the suffocating feeling of dread. The magic that had burned so bright within him now felt like a ghost, an echo of its former self.
Above him, headmaster Wu continued to speak words in some foreign and possibly ancient language. Was it Latin? Potentially. Kai may like history but he wasn't big on linguistics. Besides, he was too focused on trying to feel the magic to pay much attention to the actual words that were leaving Wu's mouth.
The words reached inside of his very being, trying to grasp hold of something that wasn't there. Was it truly gone or just locked away deep down within him, so deep that he might never find it again? It was hard to tell.
The magic around him felt like it was banging on invisible walls inside him, but no matter what they wouldn't budge. At the same time, it felt like it was trying to pull something out of him but it just couldn't get a good enough grasp of it, despite its efforts.
Sweat was beading across Kai's forehead. He soon started seeing white spots beneath his closed eyelids. Exhaustion seeped into his very bones. He wasn't even the one performing the spell, so why did it seem to take so much out of him?
Wu's magic wobbled around him, growing unsteady for just a moment and Kai felt his heart skip a beat. Wu's voice wavered and broke ever so slightly. What did that mean? Should Kai be worried?
He didn't have time to worry about it because the next moment the magic increased in intensity as Wu said the last pieces of the spell out loud, using all his remaining force to do so.
"Impellle et trahe… Vis Interna… Revelatio…"
The magic, unable to find what it was searching for, pushed and pulled on Kai's insides. It felt like it was trying to pull out his organs. The force of it was almost too much for him to deal with. His consciousness was slipping…
And then… nothing.
Kai gasped as he came to. His eyes flew open and immediately began to dart around the room. The air was still thick with magic, even if it was starting to dissipate a bit. His labored breathing made his chest burn and he had to take a minute to recover from the force of the spell.
Finally, he pushed himself up onto shaking arms until he sat upright on the wooden table they had placed in the middle of the room. Wu claimed that a solid surface a bit off the ground worked best for these kinds of spells.
Speaking of Wu, the old man sat hunched over in an armchair in a corner of the room, still trying to catch his breath. His hair stuck to his sweaty face and he had these huge dark circles under his eyes.
It wasn't just exhaustion from the spell either. Ever since Kai and his friends defeated the demons and repaired the barrier a little over four months ago, Wu seemed a lot… older. Probably because he was no longer under Faith's spell, the same spell that stopped his aging until his brother had been defeated. It made Kai wonder… How long did their headmaster have left?
However, no matter how tired he undoubtedly was, he still took the time to help Kai and the others. He was always on their side, until the very end. Kai just hoped the end wouldn't come too quickly. He had grown fond of the old man. Besides, he had a feeling they still needed his help; at least he did.
From the worried crease between Wu's brows, Kai could already draw his own conclusions about the results of the spell. However, a part of him still clung to hope.
Maybe it was naive, Kai's hope that is. Every time, that hope lingered, no matter how many times he had been disappointed. However, the constant let-downs were starting to take a toll on him.
"Still no progress, huh?" he asked. One look from Wu was all it took for Kai's heart to sink in disappointment. He wasn't surprised, not really. He had felt the lack of magic within him as Wu used his spell too.
"I'm sorry, Kai. I can't for the life of me figure out what happened to you that day. And… sadly that means I'm no wiser about how to fix it." Wu sighed in defeat.
Kai tried not to let it get to him, he really did, but it was hard… He hadn't realized how connected he was with his magic. Whether he used it or not, it had always been there, he just hadn't always known how to reach for it.
It wasn't until his magic was gone that Kai realized just how much he relied on it just to feel normal. Now he felt almost empty without it.
It could all be traced back to that fateful day when Kai and his friends fought Garmadon and the demons, sealed the barrier and saved the world from destruction.
Kai had used every last ounce of his magic to fight off the demons, being attacked by them in return, all so that his friends could seal the rift. However, that ended up costing him a lot more than he realized at the time.
After the battle, Kai fell unconscious for a full day. When he finally woke up, he was completely drained. He spent five whole days in bed, unable to muster enough energy to even go to the bathroom on his own. However, as time passed he got better little by little. His strength gradually returned and about a month after the battle he was fully recovered - at least physically.
The one thing that hadn't seemed to recover in that time was his magic. Since he woke up, Kai hadn't been able to use any magic, not even a spark. In fact, he didn't even feel it anymore. Before the fight it had burned like a hot flame within his chest. Now all that remained was a void.
It wasn't like he had no connection to magic anymore. He could still feel it all around him, especially when someone nearby was using it. In fact, he felt it a lot more clearly now than he did before, as if his senses had been heightened. However, it didn't help much when his own magic was nowhere to be found.
Kai hadn't brought it up at first. The first month after their battle, while he had been recovering, he barely even noticed it himself. He did feel a strange emptiness within himself but it took a while before he connected it to his missing magic.
Once he became more active, it became more apparent that he could no longer use his magic. A short while later, he brought it up with Nya and shortly after with Cole. Both of them had tried to be supportive but it was hard with how confused they were by it all. Kai could tell that they didn't know how to help him, no matter how badly they wanted to.
After so long, how come his powers still had not recovered from their fight? Everyone else had already regained their full strength… What was so different about Kai?
When nothing changed after another couple of weeks, Kai brought it up with the others, who encouraged him to go speak to Wu, their headmaster and mentor, about it.
Which was how Kai got to where he was now.
For the last two months, Kai had gone to Wu every weekend to try and figure out what was wrong with him and if there was a way to fix it. Wu had tried a myriad of spells and healing rituals to see if he could help, or at least try and figure out what it was they were dealing with. However, so far they had found a whole lot of nothing.
It seemed like today was no different.
Kai sighed and jumped off the table, landing on trembling legs. It took all he had just to keep himself upright. Today's spell of choice had been one that was supposed to allow Wu to reach inside and forcefully kickstart Kai's magic. It had taken a lot out of both of them - Wu for performing the spell and Kai for trying so hard to call forth something that seemed like it wasn't there.
"Do you… really think it's gone? For good?" Kai asked, his voice small. He hated how vulnerable he sounded but he was tired, so tired. He just wanted answers, even if that answer was that he had to live the rest of his life without magic.
"It's hard to say for sure," Wu answered. As he said it, his eyes shifted away, like he was unable to look Kai in the eyes.
Kai's jaw tensed. "Don't try to spare my feelings. If you know something, I want you to tell me all of it, even if it might be bad."
Wu sighed. Once again it became obvious just how old he really was. He looked tired, but not the kind that a good night's sleep would fix. It was the kind of tired that came from carrying an enormous responsibility for a very long time.
"The truth is that I don't know anything. I've never encountered anything like your case before. To survive an encounter with the demons, only to loose the ability to use magic while still being connected to it… It doesn't make sense," Wu said.
"Would it make more sense if I couldn't even sense magic anymore?" Kai raised an eyebrow in question.
"In a way," Wu answered. "It would suggest that you had been completely cut off from the magic of the world. But this… I don't know what to make of it."
"But if you had to come up with a theory, what would that be?" Kai pushed desperate for answers.
Wu hesitated, but only for a moment. "Well, one possibility is simply that you drained your powers and that they will come back in time…"
"But it's been over four months already!" Kai complained.
"I know, which is why I'm not sure how plausible this theory is," Wu said.
"Got any more?"
"I suppose another possibility is that the barrier itself absorbed your powers. It does take magic like yours in order to both close and tear open the barrier so it's not impossible that it somehow absorbed your powers when you used so much of it. However, that should have also taken away your ability to sense magic, so maybe that's not the case after all…"
Kai hadn't really thought about the possibility of it being the barrier's fault until now. However, Wu's theory made some sense, if not for that final detail. There was always something that had to complicate things. It was why they were still stuck months later…
"It could also be because of the demons," Wu continued. "You said it yourself. Though it was only for a brief moment, they latched onto you with their powers. It's possible that they damaged or took something from you when they did that. Even after all this time, we know so little about the extent of their abilities. The part about this theory that confuses me is that you were still able to use your powers for a split second after you dislodged their powers."
Now this theory had crossed Kai's mind before. In fact, it was the first solution he came up with. But Wu was right in that he had still been using his magic for a short time after pushing the demons back. Could it be a delayed reaction? Or did this mean that it wasn't the demons' fault after all?
However, Wu wasn't done yet. It seemed he still had one more theory to share.
"Finally… I suppose it could be some kind of block that you yourself has created. It's possible that there is something inside of you that is making you unable to reach your magic. However, I feel like the spells we have been using should have helped you with that, and yet…"
Kai sighed. "The spells have had no effect, so that might not be the case either," he said dejectedly.
Wu nodded. "I'm sorry, but I can't think of anything else at the moment. However," he walked up to Kai, put his hand on his shoulder and forced a smile, "it is too soon to give up yet. I still have at least another dozen spells that might be of use."
Kai wanted to scream. He wanted to break down right then and there and tell Wu that he'd had enough. He had already been let down every week for two months straight and he wasn't sure how much more of this he could take. However, he forced a smile anyway and nodded.
"Then I guess I'll see you back here next week?" he said.
"Of course. And Kai?"
Kai hummed, his eyes finally meeting Wu's. This time, Wu's smile was more genuine, honest care radiating off his kind eyes.
"I know this is hard but don't give up hope yet. The answer may have eluded us so far but it is out there and sooner or later we will find it. I promise I will do everything in my power to help you," Wu said.
Kai's heart clenched painfully in his chest and he fought to hold back tears. He had already been unusually open and vulnerable with Wu. There was no need to let him see him cry on top of all of that.
"I'll try," Kai promised, just barely managing to keep his voice steady.
"Good," Wu said, looking pleased. "Now, you leave the cleanup to me. I know the others are probably eager to see you. You should go down and join them."
Kai nodded and, without further ado, he left Wu's office, which doubled as a ritual room. However, he didn't immediately head downstairs, where his friends were waiting for him. Instead, he leaned his back against the wall, pressed the palms of his hands against his eyes and just breathed.
He could feel himself coming apart at the seams, the stress of these past couple of months having chipped away at him slowly but surely. Kai wasn't sure how much more of this he could take. But for the sake of not worrying his friends, he would pull himself together. He needed to pull himself together.
It was all for the sake of his friends. They were already starting to move on from the ordeal they went through. They looked happier and less haunted by the day. They were finally starting to find a new normal. Kai refused to be the one who held them back.
After he finally got his limbs to stop shaking, Kai pushed himself away from the wall. He wiped away some of the sweat from his forehead and frowned. He desperately needed a shower but that would have to wait. He shouldn't leave his friends hanging for longer than he already had.
Feeling a bit more composed, Kai finally descended the stairs. The other five waited in Wu's living room while Kai and Wu did their thing, since having them in the room with them would have been a bit of a distraction. Kai was both relieved and upset about this.
On one hand, Kai didn't want them to see all that he was put through during his and Wu's sessions. On the other hand, he hated having to relive everything as he explained it all to them afterwards. It was part of the reason why he always needed to take a moment and compose himself before facing them.
Kai knew what awaited him once he entered the living room and yet he felt his shoulders tense up the moment they all crowded him. Cold sweat beaded along his back and the dread of having to share bad news crept up on him.
"You're back!" Nya exclaimed, practically jumping into Kai's arms, her face filled with concern.
"You look pale. Are you okay?" Cole asked as he grabbed Kai by the shoulder and started massaging the tense muscle.
"Did the spell work? Did uncle manage to figure something out?" Lloyd asked eagerly. He walked up to Kai with Jay and Zane in tow until they were all surrounding him.
However, before Kai even got a chance to answer their questions, he saw how their faces fell. It must have been obvious in his face how today's session had gone down. Maybe he should have stayed in the hallway a bit longer after all.
Kai sighed. "The spell didn't work. Or, I guess it kind of worked. I could feel it working. There just wasn't anything for it to grasp on to."
"So there's nothing new then?" Jay asked, his usual chipper smile nowhere to be seen.
"Nope. Just the same old theories, none of which really make sense," Kai answered.
"But there are still more spells to try, right? Uncle said he had a lot of stuff he could use to try and help you. Surely he'll figure this out sooner or later," Lloyd said, his green eyes sparkling in a way that told Kai that he really believed Wu would figure this out sooner or later.
Kai wasn't so sure anymore. Still he forced a smile and reached out to ruffle Lloyd's hair. "Yeah! Just because today was another bust doesn't mean there's no solution out there! I'll come back next week to try again," he said.
"We'll all come," Nya assured him. She even made sure to reach out and grab his hand, in spite of how clammy it surely felt. "Until we figure this out, we're all here for you."
"And afterwards too," Cole added. "We stick together."
"Yeah! We didn't go through hell together for nothing!" Jay agreed.
"If headmaster Wu thinks this is an issue about healing, I could always try helping out as well. I've come a long way in my practice and my powers are naturally stronger than his, on account of me being a Chosen One. There is also the possibility that my connection to you could make a difference," Zane speculated. He was always a step ahead of the rest of them.
Kai smiled, this time more genuine than before. Their care for him really was touching.
"If you think it might make a difference, bring it up with Wu and see what he says. If he allows it, you might be able to join the next session," Kai agreed. At this point, he was willing to try anything.
Zane looked relieved and that was enough to make some of the tension leave Kai. This was always a lot easier once his friends had been assured that there was still a next step, that they weren't giving up. Their enthusiasm was contagious and it helped Kai keep motivated.
"You must be hungry!" Nya exclaimed suddenly, startling Kai with how loud she spoke. "Jay and I will go order pizza for everyone! We could all use some food!"
Then Nya was out the door, dragging a flustered Jay with her. He seemed just as startled as everyone else. So it wasn't something they had discussed earlier?
"I promised Pixal I'd give her an update once we were done. Be right back," Zane said once Nya and Jay had left. He held out his phone as he said it and then he also left the room.
Now only three remained. Kai looked at Cole, who looked like he had something to say but was holding himself back. Then Kai looked at Lloyd, who immediately started fidgeting under his gaze. His cheeks were tinted a light pink as he looked between Kai and Cole self-consciously.
"I, uh… I guess I should probably go check if uncle Wu needs any help?" Lloyd said, awkwardly starting to creep towards the door. "You two just… carry on."
Then he was out the door, leaving Kai and Cole alone in the living room.
Kai glanced at Cole, who glanced right back at him. They stared at one another for a moment before they couldn't hold their laughter anymore. Kai felt it bubble up inside him and when Cole burst, so did he.
Slowly but surely, his worries started to seem more insignificant. Cole tended to have that effect on Kai.
"So, how many of them actually needed to leave and how many left just to give us a moment alone?" Cole asked, crossing his arms as his lips stretched into a wide smile.
"Does it matter?" Kai responded, his own lips forming a lopsided grin.
Cole chuckled lowly. "I guess not," he admitted. Then he uncrossed his arms and held them out in offering. "Want a hug?"
Kai didn't answer, instead he stepped right into Cole's open arms and felt them wrap around his back in a secure hold. Kai buried his face in Cole's neck and just breathed, feeling some more of the tension leave his body.
"How are you really doing?" Cole asked, his voice barely a whisper as he spoke into Kai's hair.
"I'm okay, I'm just getting really tired of being let down week after week. The worst part is that we can't seem to find a reliable answer. At this point, I just want to know what's going on. I'm so tired of wondering if my powers will come back or… if they're really gone. I feel like I can't move forward with my life until I know."
Opening up about his real feelings always came easier with Cole, especially since they got together. Growing up, Kai had always tried to seem strong and composed. As such, it had been a bit of a journey learning to open up and be comfortable. But Cole made it seem easy. He never judged Kai or made him feel self conscious about his reactions.
He still became a bit closed off at times, especially if a lot of things piled up on top of each other. But he was trying and he told himself that was what mattered.
At this point, Cole had heard Kai complaining about his lack of powers and how they were still so lost on what to do about it that he was surprised he wasn't tired of hearing it. But every time, Cole was right there to listen. In fact, he seemed to bask in it. Maybe it made him feel like he was helping rather than just standing by.
"If they were gone…" Cole started. It was evident by the tone of his voice that he was hesitant about asking his question and Kai couldn't help but tense up as he imagined it. Still, Cole pushed through. "Would you be okay with that?"
Kai sighed. "I would have to be, wouldn't I? I mean, no matter how much I hate it, some things are just out of our control."
Cole nodded, a dejected look on his face. However, he shook it off a moment later and smiled, then leaned down to place a quick kiss on Kai's forehead.
"Well, we're not quite there yet. As long as there might still be things we can do to help, we'll do it. We can't give up. I sure as hell am not giving up on you. Not now, not ever," he said.
Kai smiled. For once when someone told him not to give up, he didn't feel tired. If Cole was there, keeping up hope, maybe Kai could do the same. He could hold on a while longer. Sure, this would probably not be the last time he was disappointed but he could live with it. If he got to return to Cole's arms afterwards, he could do it.
He reached up and gently cradled Cole's face in his hands. Kai's whole body relaxed and his lips formed a small smile as he looked up at Cole, at this man that he loved more than he thought possible.
Then Cole smiled back and Kai couldn't resist any longer. He reached up and planted his lips firmly on Cole's, having to stand on his toes in order to reach him comfortably since Cole was quite a bit taller than Kai.
Cole responded to the kiss in kind, his arms wrapping tighter around Kai's back as he held him close. He tilted his face just so, letting Kai kiss him more comfortably.
Kai's entire body filled with warmth whenever he kissed Cole. Without his magic, it was the warmest he ever felt inside and Kai chased that feeling. He could have spent the rest of his life kissing Cole, easily. His lips were full and warm and every touch of them against Kai's spoke of love and affection.
Kai almost felt like he was drowning in it but not in a scary way. It was all-consuming in the best way possible.
They stayed like that, wrapped around each other with their lips locked, until eventually they heard the others starting to return. Only then did they reluctantly part. They may be out to their friends but Kai still wasn't used to showing too much affection in front of them.
However, Kai stayed close to Cole even as all their friends returned. He wasn't so bothered that he was going to give up his own comfort just to not seem like he was clingy.
Jay and Nya were first, carrying several boxes of pizzas between them. Zane was second, a big smile on his face as he saw the food. Finally, Lloyd and Wu joined them too and for a while they all forgot about Kai's missing powers as they indulged in the food.
At some point, Cole leaned into Kai, a warm hand on his thigh as his breath ghosted Kai's ear, making him shiver. He glanced around but no one was paying attention to them.
"Do you wanna come to my place after this? You could stay the night," he suggested.
Kai smiled before quickly schooling his expression. Then he turned to Cole and nodded. "I'd like that. Is your dad okay with it?"
"Of course he is. He adores you so he's always happy to have you over," Cole assured him.
"Then yes. Besides, I think Nya was going over to Lloyd's place to work on an assignment after this so I would have been alone with Mrs. Grumbmiller. No offense to her, but she's not exactly the most riveting company," Kai said.
Cole chuckled. "Cool," he said. "Then we'll go to mine once we're done here."
Kai smiled and this time he didn't bother to hide it. Let them see how giddy Cole made him. He was too excited to worry about that now.