(Lloyd lays out their map.)
Lloyd: And if we do this right, we can find Master Wu, save Cyrus Borg, rescue everyone who was kidnapped, and stop Krux and Acronix. But it'll take stealth, concentration, and precise execution.
Jay: And where does the slug fit in?
Lloyd: What slug?
Cole: Aah! That one! (He tries to get the slug off his shoulder.) Ew! Ew! Ew! It's so big! So gross! (Lloyd and Jay laugh.)
Nya: Hey, guys. What'd we miss?
Jay: Hahaha! Cole freaking out over a slug.
Zane: And Lloyd laying out the plan of attack.
Jay: Hehe. But mostly Cole freaking out.
Lloyd: As I was saying, Zane will use his sensors to locate Cyrus Borg while Jay and Cole rescue the workers from the warehouse. I'll get Master Wu, who's probably in the holding cell. Kai and Nya, you have the toughest job: locating Krux and Acronix. So you take the map.
Nya: We can do that. Right, Kai?
Kai: Barracks, holding cell...
Nya: Ahem. Kai?
Kai: That's the mess hall and...what's this—
Nya: Kai!
Kai: What? Yeah, yeah, we got it. Let's go.
Lloyd: Remember, stealth is key. Everyone knows what they're doing?
Cole: On it.
Jay: Yep.
Nya: Yup.
Zane: Affirmative.
Kai: Oh, yeah. I know exactly what I'm doing.
Lloyd: Good luck. No pressure, but all of Ninjago is depending on us.
(Wu fights a Vermillion.)
Wu: Your numbers are great, but they won't be enough. The Time Punch has reversed. My strength has returned. I will save Ninjago. (Misako emerges from an egg wearing Vermillion armor.) Misako?
Misako: Wu, why did you fail me?
Wu: I-I made a mistake. An error of judgment. I should have told you I loved you before you went to—(Garmadon also emerges from an egg wearing armor.) Garmadon?
Garmadon: You let me fall to the darkness, brother. You failed me too. (Morro does the same.)
Morro: And me.
Wu: Morro? I-I don't understand.
Morro: You don't understand how instead of your greatest success, your student became your greatest failure? You've made many mistakes, Master.
Acronix: Many mistakes. I'm but the latest. The monastery. You never should have come by yourself, old man.
Lloyd: We could have helped, Master.
Kai: You didn't have to face him alone.
Ninja: You didn't have to be alone.
Acronix: Your arrogance has left you—
Wu: All alone. I'm all alone. (After it's been revealed it's a hallucination, Blunck paces outside his cell.)
Blunck: Ha! What a joke. We are commanders. Guarding this guy is totally beneath us. How could Acronix and Krux put Machia in charge? They ignored our courage! Our dedication! Our singular focus.
Raggmunk: I'm starving. What? I missed breakfast.
Blunck: Machia told us never to let the prisoner out of our sight. You're just going to have to go hungry.
Raggmunk: Unless…
(Zane walks through the Vermillion Swamps.)
Zane: P.I.X.A.L., scan for Borg's biometric signature. P.I.X.A.L.? C'mon, Zane. She's still offline. Deal with it. Do your own scanning. Target acquired. Locking in.
(Cole and Jay hide behind a rock.)
Cole: Hm, I don't think we can go in the front door.
Jay: Well, you know, we can, but I doubt fighting half the Vermillion warriors is good for Lloyd's stealth plan. (They climb up a grappling hook, but it was loose.) Not good, not good, not good, not good. (Cole saves him before they are caught.)
Cole: Ugh! Gotta love skylights. Nobody ever thinks to guard them.
Jay: Whoa. (They watch as the workers make armor and weapons. They fall down.) Shh! We're here to rescue—(Karlof hugs him.)
Karlof: Ninja! We are rescued!
Cole: What are you doing here?
Karlof: Snake warriors kidnap Karlof!
Jay: Can't...breathe...
Cole: Krux and Acronix are rounding up the Elemental Masters?
Karlof: Retired Elemental Master. Until snakes grab Karlof, cuff him in Vengestone to control his power—
Jay: Ugh, come on!
Karlof: —and make him forge. (He finally lets go of Jay.)
Jay: Oh, man. You're strong.
Karlof: They force us to build armor, vehicles, weapons. All in Ninjago who know how to build, they take.
Jay: Now I get why they Vermillion grabbed all that metal.
Cole: And why they took who they took.
Karlof: Carpenters, construction workers, tailors, Master of Metal, and—
Lou: Revenge will be mine.
Cole: Dad? But you guys are just called The Royal Blacksmiths. You're not, you know, actual blacksmiths. (The band finish singing and the crowd cheers.)
Cole: Shh, the guards. We gotta be stealthy.
Jay: How do we get 'em outta here?
Cole: By leaving the same way we came in.
Jay: Oh sure. Great idea. Everyone can just fly up there, except—Oh, wait! They can't fly!
Cole: No, but we can. (Jay gasps.)
Both: Airjitzu!
(The Vermillion and Time Twins check up on Cyrus.)
Krux: Time grows short and I grow impatient. Are you finished yet?
Cyrus: Yes. I'm finished. It will supply all the power you need.
Krux: Magnificent. Your effort is appreciated, Cyrus Borg.
Cyrus: Hmm. Like I had a choice.
Krux: Hmm. Impressive craftsmanship. All the more so when one takes into account your inferior modern training. Time for a demonstration. (He inserts the Slow-Mo Time Blade.) Argh! It doesn't work! I withdraw my compliment.
Cyrus: I told you. The apparatus won't activate unless all four Time Blades are in it.
Acronix: Speaking of which, the third is arriving any minute now, brother.
Machia: And my ship awaits.
Krux: Ugh! I've waited decades. I suppose I can wait a little longer.
Machia: Attempting sabotage?
Cyrus: Uh, no. no, no, no. Of course not.
Machia: Wise decision. But just to be safe, you're coming with us. Take the apparatus to the Iron Doom. Krux and Acronix want it ready to connect when the time comes.
(Zane gets closer to Cyrus but loses the signal.)
Zane: I-I've lost the signal. No Cyrus Borg. No P.I.X.A.L.. No good.
(Lloyd barges into the cell.)
Lloyd: Empty? Where's Master Wu?
Raggmunk: He was out to lunch.
Blunck: Kind of still is. Had to watch him, but wanted to eat. Thanks to me, we did both.
Lloyd: If you hurt him...
Raggmunk: Him? I'd be worried about you.
Blunck: Yeah. You and your ninja buddies are gonna pay for getting us stuck on this lame babysitting detail. (Lloyd makes him drop his food.) Ugh! Now you're really in trouble.
Lloyd: Didn't your mother teach you not to fight with your mouth full?
Raggmunk: Stop him! I'll watch the geezer.
Blunck: Hey! How come you get to—Whoa! (Lloyd runs past him.)
(Jay and Cole try to save the builders.)
Jay: Okay, you first, Karlof. (He grunts from his weight.)
Karlof: Why does Dirt Ninja smile?
Cole: Oh, just getting déjà vu saving you for a second time. Go, Jay.
Jay: You got extra metal in your pockets or something?
Karlof: Oh, Karlof almost forget. Hehe. Car keys. (He takes it out, but he's still too heavy.)
Jay: No. This isn't gonna work. And unless the new Samurai X does his thing and shows up out of the blue again, we gotta come up with something else. Fast!
Cole: Hmm. Wait! We have builders and we have scrap metal! So...
Jay: Right! Anyone here know how to design, construct, and independently power a 200-foot industrial-grade cargo elevator in three minutes? No?
Cole: I was thinking ladder.
Jay: Right. Ladder. Haha. Good call. Anyone? (Everyone starts to build a ladder.)
Lou: Good thinking, boys.
Cole: Thanks, Dad. Hey, I've got a question. All the armor and stuff you forged. Where did all the designs come from?
Lou: I overheard one of the generals say they came from a master blacksmith.
Jay: Master blacksmith…
(Kai and Nya still haven't found the twins.)
Nya: Kai, I don't see anything. Give me the map. Hm. What even makes you think Acronix and Krux are around here?
Kai: I honestly don't care if they are.
Nya: let's see, we came across from the east...which means we're here, in this clearing. Down this path is a—(Gasps.) The blacksmith shop! Our parents! Wait! Kai!
Kai: (He opens the shop's door.) I knew it!
Ray: Who are you? What do you want?
Kai: I want justice! (They duel, with Kai wielding the Dragon Blade.)
Ray: You're red like a Vermillion Warrior. But you're no snake!
Kai: No, but you are. Traitor!
Ray: You've messed with the wrong blacksmith, my friend.
Kai: I'm not your friend! (He shows his Fire.)
Ray: Fire power? No, you're certainly not a guard. You're...my son. Kai? You've inherited my Elemental Power.
Kai: And that's the only thing I will ever inherit from you!
Nya: Kai, no!
Kai: He's a traitor!
Ray: Traitor?
Nya: He's still our father!
Ray: Nya? Son, whatever it is you think, I can explain.
Kai: Yeah. I bet you can. (Nya extinguishes his Fire.)
Nya: Kai, let him speak. There's no harm in hearing him out.
(Lloyd trips Raggmunk.)
Lloyd: I'm coming, Master! (He heads toward a cliff.)
(The builders leave the ladder.)
Jay: Nice. And those Vermillion never knew what we were doing. Look at this bad boy. Solid.
Karlof: No, wait, ladder is not done! (The ladder falls, making a loud noise.)
Jay: Oops.
Cole: Oh! So much for stealth.
Jay: Well, maybe they didn't hear it. (Buffmillion comes in.) No. They did.
Cole: Showtime!
(The twins, Machia, and Cyrus reach the top of a mountain.)
Krux: You said Borg's temporal scanner would pinpoint the exact location of the Blade's arrival. (The temporal vortex opens up.)
Acronix: Oh, it should be here in a...moment. (The Pause Time Blade lands, causing everyone to freeze temporarily.) There we go. The BorgWatch works perfectly.
Cyrus: Of course it did. Everything I make works perfectly. (whispering to himself) Sometimes it's a curse.
Acronix: You see? Easiest one to obtain yet. Now will you admit that not all modern technology is bad?
Krux: Not until we find the final Blade. A task for which that little trinket has been utterly useless.
Acronix: Mother always said he was stubborn.
Jay: Ugh! Did you feel that for a moment ago? That was weird.
Cole: It was like time stood still. Well, they're not standing still. (Cole Earth Punches them.) Now they're standing still. (They see more warriors.)
Jay: Uh-oh. Tunnels, everyone. Now!
(Lloyd brings Wu to safety.)
Lloyd: Safe. You're finally—(He gets kicked.)
Raggmunk: Gotcha!
Lloyd: Oh, come on!
(Kai continues to fight Ray.)
Kai: It ends here. Now!
Maya: Kai, you don't know what you're doing.
Kai: I do, Nya. I absolutely—
Maya: I'm not your sister, son.
Kai: Huh? Mom? I-I don't believe it.
Maya: That makes two of us. Nya, my baby girl, how you've grown.
Nya: I've—I-I missed you. (They embrace.)
Kai: Why? She's just as guilty as he is. They've been helping Acronix and Krux for years! They're the enemy!
Maya: Is that what you think? We are not the enemy.
Kai: Then how do you explain this? (He holds up the helmet.) Dad's blacksmith stamp on every piece of Vermillion armor.
Maya: They forced us to work for them. Part of their revenge.
Kai: For what?
Ray: For creating the Time Blades. It goes back to when Acronix and Krux were Elemental Masters.
Past Wu: I have an idea. And it requires your skills. Masters of Fire and Water, come.
Ray: We forged four Time Blades from Chronosteel to absorb the powers of the Hands of Time. Chronosteel is incredibly strong. We were physically and mentally drained.
Past Wu: Thank you. My brother and I will deal with Krux and Acronix.
Ray: The Time Blades stripped Krux and Acronix of their powers. Then Wu and Garmadon created a temporal vortex to lose the Blades forever. When Krux and Acronix foolishly went after the Blades, it appeared they too would be lost to time. Later, we learned that before Acronix disappeared, there was a sign that foretold the exact time of his return. Forty years in the future. Wu saw it.
Kai: So that must be how Master Wu knew when Acronix was gonna return to the Monastery. He saw the blimp.
Maya: And so did Krux.
Ray: What Wu did not know was that not only did Krux see the blimp, but he wasn't sent forward with his brother. Now he knew he had decades to plan. He assumed a false identity and decided to use eggs from the Great Devourer to create a great legion of warriors. His warriors would need armor, weapons, vehicles. And he knew just who could design them.
Maya: Pretending to be kindly Dr. Sander Saunders, Krux took his time and earned our trust. We thought he was our friend.
Ray: Until Saunders betrayed us. Told us how he had a plan for his brother's eventual return. Forced us to work for him, or else.
Kai: Or else what?
Maya: Or else he would go after you two. It was his ultimate revenge.
Kai: Okay, but that still doesn't explain the stamp.
Ray: It was a message. I stamped all my work, hoping one day someone would figure out where we were. So that together we could stop Krux and Acronix's plan.
Nya: What is their plan?
Ray: (Sighs.) To control all of time.
(The twins return to the swamp.)
Zane: I've got a read on Borg again.
(Blunck and Raggmunk return Wu to his cell.)
Blunck: Safe. Thanks for leaving me to fight the kid all by myself,
Raggmunk: Someone had to look after sleeping beauty here. Think of how much trouble we'd be in if Krux and Acronix knew you lost him.
Blunck: Me? You're the one who—
Machia: Fools!
Blunck: Supreme Commander! Hey, uh, how's it going? Um, we've been here the whole time.
Machia: I know you disobeyed me. I know you lost the prisoner. I know all of it. Even the sliders.
Raggmunk: What? How could you possibly know—Right. Stupid hive mind.
Machia: Clearly, I cannot trust you nitwits to do even the simplest things.
(Zane senses someone in the bushes but it's Lloyd.)
Zane: Lloyd?
Lloyd: Zane? Have you seen Wu?
Zane: No. I was tracking Borg, but I lost the signal. Then it reappeared.
Lloyd: Unh! I had Wu but lost him...again.
Zane: I sense Jay and Cole are nearby.
Lloyd: Yeah? You sure?
Jay: Bring it on, you Vermillion doofs!
Zane: Yup. Pretty sure.
Jay: Oh! Haha! Hey, guys! I know it looks like we are totally outnumbered, but that's only because we are. Haha!
Lloyd: Our friends need our help.
Zane: But what about Cyrus Borg and Master Wu?
Lloyd: I'm afraid they have to wait. As Master Wu says, "Never put off until tomorrow what must be done today."
Zane: True. Let's just hope we are not putting off the wrong thing.
(Ray finishes telling the flashback.)
Kai: I'm sorry. I didn't know.
Nya: You said Krux and Acronix want to control all of time. How?
Ray: They made me design Iron Doom, a transport to carry the Vermillion throughout time. With all those troops, they would be unstoppable.
Kai: You built a time machine?
Ray: Just the shell. Time machines are a little outside my skill set.
Maya: But Cyrus Borg was forced to design a power source to power the Iron Doom. It draws temporal energy from the Time Blades.
Nya: Oh, no! I just realized...that pause we felt earlier? It must have been the third Time Blade!
Kai: If Krux and Acronix found it, then there'd be only one left. And if they get that, their time traveling mega armor would be fully operational. Sorry, fully operational is good news?
Ray: Heh. They'll never get it. Master Wu found it shortly after Acronix disappeared. Turns out it has the power to reverse time. Wu knew it was too dangerous to keep. Under his orders, we hid it. Buried deep in a location that only the combined Elemental Powers of Fire and Water can reach.
Maya: And since you inherited our powers…(Gasps.) You must leave. Now.
Ray: She's right. If the Hands of Time knew all this, they could—
Krux: Could force you to retrieve it for us? Excellent suggestion.
Kai: No way. We will never do your bidding.
Nya: You tell 'em, brother!
Krux: You will, or your parents will face the very fate from which they tried to protect you.
Ray: Never! We're done serving you, Krux. Bring your worst.
Krux: With pleasure. (He pauses Ray and kicks him.)
Kai and Nya: Dad!
Maya: Ray!
Machia: Look who I found. (She brings in Wu.)
Kai and Nya: Master!
Maya: Wu!
Raggmunk: Uh, technically, she didn't find him. We had him the whole time.
Blunck: Yeah. We didn't lose him because we took a lunch break or anything.
Acronix: You know, it occurs to me that the Reversal Blade is the only way to undo the effects of the Time Punch. (Ray is freed.)
Ray: I'm-I'm afraid that's true.
Krux: If you want to save your Master, you will retrieve the fourth Blade. And I'll take that. (He grabs Kai's Dragon Blade.)
(The ninja finish off the Vermillion.)
Cole: Yeah! Haha!
Jay: Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! That's what I'm talking about. Vermillion done. Workers saved. Ninja in the swamp!
Lloyd: Now we can return to search for Borg and Wu.
Zane: I'm afraid I found them. (He points to a ship.)
Cole: Okay. So let's Airjitzu after them.
Vermillion: No, ninja, you will stay. I'm afraid we've reached...the end.
(End of the episode. For more information, click here.)