The First Chapter: I 've Lost A Battle But The War's Not Over Yet.

Daddy!

What is it, sweet-heart? Did you have a bad dream?

Yes. I-I'm scared.

Don't worry, it was just a nightmare. There's nothing to be scared about them.

How do you know that, Daddy?

It's simple.

They aren't real.

As long as he had known, nightmares had been Pitch's only company. He wouldn't use such words as a friend or a partner, which were filled with so many positive feelings that he felt as if he'd puke. They were his source of life, without Nightmares he'd wither away and die, like a common living being. As long as the Nightmares were around, he was immortal. But it wasn't all fun and games for him. It was also an endless torture. Even if he was their king, it didn't make him invulnerable against fear.

Oh, how he longed the days of the Dark Ages, when he had been the most powerful one in the whole world. In those days, almost everyone had a cloud over their heart, one without a silver lining. People would whisper his name, praying that he wouldn't bring misfortune to their village. Mothers would tell stories of how un-named beasts would take away the children, who'd in their turn try to stay awake the night, stiff from thinking the stories would become reality if they closed their eyes.

Despair. Suffering. Anguish. Grief. Hatred. A loved child has many names. A feared creature has many, many more.

Almost delicately, he had planted those seeds inside naive human minds. With care he had watched over them, until the seeds had grown to a full-blooming trees of lost hopes and rotten dreams, with fruits ready to be picked. One could say both Pitch and human race got their benefit from this one-sided deal – after all, fear keeps you alive. Pitch knew that very well. He was the perfect example, wasn't he?.

But nowadays, in the every sense of the word, Pitch was only a shadow of what he had been. The shining globe of believers reminded him of his defeat every day. His army of Fearlings had shrunk to contain only the familiar fears to Pitch, his own fears. If he stepped out of his dark caverns even for a moment, Pitch had to be always on guard to be sure no one would notice him and decide to get rid of him, this time once and for all.

To think the Boogeyman himself, the King of Fear and Nightmares, was afraid of something. Ridiculous, isn't it? The truth can be often ridiculous, but it will not stop being the truth.

Those cursed Guardians always found a way to mess up with his plans. Last time he had been so close to success, but that pesky Jack Frost had to stick his nose in other people's business. Had he just stayed still in Antarctica or joined forces with Pitch, and Pitch might've let the boy live. But Jack had refused, even defeated Pitch as a one of the Guardians. There'd be no more mercy left for the boy or for any of them, for that matter.

"Soon, my darling", he whispered as he patted his Fearling, " We'll have our revenge. They will understand how foolish they were, trying to oppose a strength like I."

How would he do it, was still a mystery to Pitch, but he knew he'd come up with something.

When a familiar creature stumbled to Pitch's lair, he saw the chance to make his dream of revenge come true.

"Well well, hello there Doppel", Pitch greeted the creature, " It's been awhile since we last met...700 years, give or take?"

Doppelgänger wasn't pleased at all to meet Pitch Black. Foolishly it had thought that the Boogeyman was gone for good, and the lair would've been empty for a next resident to arrive. It knew the prize for its mistake would be high, and cautiously answered:

" Y-Yes, long time no see, P-Pitch. I-I was just pa-passing by a-and y-you must be busy and actually I-I'm quite busy as we-well so I'll b-be on my..."

" Leaving already?" Pitch circled around Doppelgänger, " Please, stay a little longer, you're my guest now...and I don't want to disappoint my guests. That'd be very bad manners."

While continuing the circling, Pitch smirked sinisterly: " And I'm willing to bet that you and I'll have a lot to discuss, isn't that right?"

He stopped behind the poor Doppelgänger, who visibly shivered in fear. " I-I don't think I-I'm catching w-what y-you're talking about", Doppelgänger gathered the shreds of its courage, " I-I don't want t-to get mi-mixed in th-this quarrel be-between you and th-the Guardians. "

" Poor Doppel, you are already too deep in this. It's impossible to back away now", Pitch started almost gently, suddenly grabbing the Doppelgänger and roughly turned it to stare directly in to his golden eyes, and hissed:" But get your facts straight: This is no ordinary fight. This is war. And you want to be on the side that wins, don't you? "

" Y-yes", Doppelgänger's last line of defense was crushed. " That's a good boy", Pitch said (even though he wasn't sure was it boy at all) and let go of the creature. " All I want from you is only a one, simple task. That's all. "

Doppelgänger grunted disbelievingly. After all, there had been reasons why it had avoided The Nightmare King for hundreds of years. When Pitch described the idea he had formed in his mind while confronting Doppel, it grew terrified and shrieked: " N-no! T-that's so-something imp-possible for m-me t-to do! A-and i-if th-the Gu-Guardians wo-would fi-find out it was m-me, I-I'd be do-done for!"

" I believe that'll you do just fine. Think carefully, which fate will be worse for you: the Guardians or I? "

A moment of silent hesitation before the final decision.

" I-I'll do it."

" I knew you would."