#𝐍𝐈𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐑𝐎𝐈𝐃. independent roleplay blog for LEGO Ninjago's 𝐙𝐀𝐍𝐄 𝐉𝐔𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐍. Semi-Selective. Crossover/AU Friendly. Not fandom-affiliated. Coded by Shiba. 27 yrs. She/They/He.

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If only the other knew the small side deal made for this very special occasion. It was always a strange thing to do. With no real guidance on what sort of thing to say that didn't feel so out of pocket, he just inhales and sharply says the first curse word that comes to his mind.

" Fuck ! "

" Perfect ? "

A hand rests upon the other's shoulder, raising a brow towards the other. There's a smile apparent on his face. Not one of smugness, but one of understanding.

" I have no choice but to state that your claim is quite false, " Zane replies as a smile begins to form. " My programming allows a faster assessment. Even then, I did still require a few tries before reaching success. Two more failures than the average from what I can assess from my own performance. "

" I think you are not giving yourself the credit you deserve. Or the grace you need in this moment. Now, before the next attempt, I would advise to visualize the previous time. Visualize what was different that got you further than the last, and what kept you from reaching your goal here. You have this, Cole. You are very close ! "

Well. To say more than one phrase of profanity felt like a bit of a stretch now. There would have to be a stronger enticement to force those words out again. Now he's curious. He's already got one afternoon off with a promise of no chores to do on whatever day he chose. Maybe he can up the ante on it.

" What do you have to offer ? "

Just the thought alone was enough for the room to drop a degree or two. Memories he has long since acknowledged for some time now... but still holds a level of resentment to it. Directed only towards himself. It was not a thought that he wasn't already thinking as he quietly listened to Jay's lament. However, where they landed left a bitter taste in his mouth. There's a distinct moment where his focus on Jay disappears, looking past him, then a second later, right back to the topic at hand.

" That is... You're overestimating me, Jay, " Zane hesitantly replies. Though, he understands that they did have some commonalities with mistakes made in the past. All through deception, now having to admit the choices made were theirs. Even if back then, the choices made sense with what little grasp they had on the true circumstances of their situation. " As much as I would like to have as many answers as I had questions back then... I'm afraid it took me a very long time to come to terms with what I had done. "

Zane quiets as he thinks to himself. What could he say to help him ? Soon enough, his head lifts to speak once more. " I think you have to understand first that this is not something that can be resolved in a day. Given your nature and history, it may take longer than you would like for it to take. You have to learn to be patient with yourself. ...If I had to give advice on where to begin. " He could only hope that would continue to give him the desire to restore that balance within him. " We will be with you every step of the way. I promise you that. "

Zane, by nature, is pretty much a rule follower. He'll pretty much be compliant to all demands and laws so long as they seem logical to follow. However, if there is a more pressing issue that would involve rules to be broken, he does weigh the outcomes of following/not following and any potential loopholes where they could get away with their plan without trouble rounding the corner for them.

As for any undercover operations, especially ones where he is part of a criminal group, he will go for whatever the persona would choose without second thought. For the sake of the arrest of their targets.

I don't necessarily know if he'll literally kneel, but metaphorically so, he'll kneel to Wu and Dr. Julien only. Those two would be the people he would object to the least. Lloyd would be up there but Zane would be more comfortable raising objections to help gain a more objective perspective across the board.

Zane would like to think that his mark would be his legacy as one of the ninja that protected ninjago (and the merged lands later on). That he is meant to protect others, even if the odds seemed bleak. He doesn't give up and doesn't want others to feel hopeless in times of peril.

As for reality... The most common thing he hears as a comment from others is that they're surprised that Zane can act so... human when there's not a single biological or organic component to him. Showing care or concern to them when they expect something else. It's kind of a backhanded compliment to Zane, but his very existence tends to leave quite the lasting impression on others. Whether he likes it or not.

" I'm afraid that list is confidential and not need to know information. "

Though he won't say it, I will say this: With the current list of people that he knows by the end of Dragons Rising S4P1, Lloyd & Pixal/(Significant Other of whatever ship I have him with) are the highest in priority. Next would likely be Wu, the rest of the OG Ninja (yes that includes Nya), and then the ninja students. As for specifics of where they are on the list, he nor I will say. However, he also is fully aware that the very people on his priority list are very capable of taking care of themselves, so there isn't too much conflict in his programming if the situation doesn't pose the threat to be lethal to them. However if he had to choose who to save first in a situation... yeah, that list will come into play vs. the most logical option.

Under usual circumstances, he'd decline this offer. Not out of some sort of prudish principle, no. Just a simple preference against it. However, there's deliberation in his expression, a flickering of those cyan hues for just a moment before his head lifts up to the other.

" Your proposal has been accepted. Please hold. "

At the end of the day, Zane wants to try and save as many people as he can. However, that doesn't mean they don't have a certain priority order to the kind of people out there. (No, Zane will not divulge his prioritization among his friends because he doesn't wanna start a fight- /hj) Just know his family/friends are very much on highest priority, despite his programming usually being set to put everyone on equal footing until proper analysis.

People aside and trying to think more abstractly, I think Zane tries to protect himself from swaying too far to one side between human and machine. While he can understand the value of thinking impulsively or relying/using emotions, he also knows that leaning hard into facts and statistics also has its benefits. He is ever-learning on it, finding emotions (especially the negative ones) are hard to understand for him. Yet he still feels. He just has to learn what to do with them depending on the circumstances.