Darkness.

That's what Jack Frost had first remembered. That was his first memory of a Guardian was. The darkness, surrounding him as if it were the only matter to exit, as if it intended to engulf him. He had been so cold, so deathly cold and afraid, that he thought that if there were a feeling of death, that was it.

But then there was the Moon, beaming through the darkness as a sword of light. The Moon made the darkness flee in fear, made it release him. The coldness did not leave, but it became as familiar as walking. He did not notice it.

And the darkness, it was still there, it was still present. And when they battled the seeming personification of darkness and fear…well…he thought it was gone for good.

But no, it would stay forever.

And it was coming for them.

To be honest with himself, he was terrified. Jack's heart did not beat, though it actually never did. It was frozen, excuse the pun. But if it were beating, it would be breaking his frosted ribs with each impact. He could not sweat, either, but he felt frost gathering on his cold, snowy skin. His grip on his staff was tight. He couldn't think of anything else to do with his hands.

To his chagrin, he was not the only one afraid. The others were nervous, too, even the Russian warrior. Even he did not know what was coming. Their only hope…was nowhere to be found…

But still, Nicholas Saint North stood tall and solid. He refused to sit in the large red chair made just for his bulging frame. "The hour draws close," he told them in his thick Russian accent. His blue eyes were icy. "There is no time for hesitation."

The Guardians nod in understanding. Cottontail was uncharacteristically quiet. He had not complained on his delay in Easter-preparation progress. Jack went as far as to call him 'The Easter Kangaroo', but Bunnymund didn't bat an eye. It was almost as if he hadn't heart him.

To be fair, there were only seven of them present.

There was supposed to be nine.

North leans forward, his massive hands pressing into the mahogany of the grand table. "Fear is not affordable. Sandy, are you ready?"

The Sandman nodded without an image appearing above his head. He had always had the habit of drifting to sleep at random times, but he was wide-awake now. The images above his head were scarce and only generic.

"Cupid, are the cherubs prepared?"

The Guardian of Love nodded. In his crimson tailcoat and snowy slacks, his eyes the color of rosebuds and his hair as dark as hickory, he wasn't anything like Jack had imagined him to be. Though, to be fair, the Easter Bunny wasn't a small widdle rabbit the color of marshmallows, and the Tooth Fairy wasn't a glittery ballerina with a magic wand. So he wasn't too surprised that Cupid wasn't a pudgy baby in a diaper with tiny wings. Not even his cherubs resembled such things. They were tiny, pink things, with fluffy red feelers on the sides of their heads that fluttered as wings. Cupid didn't like to talk much.

"Bunnymund, the portal. Attend to it."

"Aye, mate." The six-foot-tall rabbit bounded out of his chair and darted for the doors. His role would be vital.

"Then we are ready." North unsheathed a sword from his belt. He took a deep breath. "If anything happens tonight…it has been an honor serving with you all. Tooth, come."

"…"

"Tooth!"

The fairy's head snapped up in response. Jack was worried for her the most out of the others. Toothiana, the giddy, cheery, never-frowning queen, was as quiet and as dull as rain. She had not smiled in days. She solemnly spoke out of the boundaries of business. Even her wings were out of balance, constantly stuttering and allowing her to lower occasionally. As worried as Jack was about her, he was shocked—and amazed—when she appeared today with twin swords as sharp as razors. Even her Mini-Fairies sported copies of them, as small as needles. Baby Tooth fluttered close to her queen, placing a tiny hand upon her cheek. Toothiana gave her a sad smile before turning to North with a curt nod. "Let's go."

"Jack, come."

Jack stood so quickly he had to tell himself to calm down. He was too jumpy for his own good. He was sure he'd start a blizzard if he were not careful.

And when Jack turned, he turned to an eleven-year-old boy with chocolate eyes and chocolate hair, who reminded him of his sister, who he knew was taking a staggering risk, who he knew was undoubtedly terrified.

"C'mon, Jamie."

As he, the boy, and her royal Majesty followed the Russian soldier out of the hall, Jack turned to Toothiana wordlessly. Her amethyst eyes were downcast to the floor ahead. If she noticed him looking at her, she did nothing of it. Her Mini Fairies' eyes were locked onto her face.

"Tooth."

Her eyes finally rose to his. Usually glittering like gems, they were now as solid as stones.

"Are you okay?" He asked in a whisper.

She paused for a long moment. The corner of her mouth twitched, and for a second, Jack thought that she'd smile her usual sweet smile and say "Yeah" or "I'm fine". But the movement was gone as quickly as it occurred, and she muttered, "No."

He wanted to ask her what was wrong. He felt that this did not pertain to the danger at hand, felt that it wasn't out of worry for the Mini Fairies that were awaiting her at her palace. It was as if something else were bothering her. The others had said nothing, and when he attempted to approach her, Bunnymund had pulled him back and said, "Don't, mate. She needs her space."

"If something happens," he whispered, and her head rose at attention, "I should let you know…" He glanced up at North. "…I liked you the most."

She did smile that time, momentarily, and a glimmer of it reached her eyes. But it was only for a beat, and she returned to her silence.

"Jack."

He turned to Jamie, who was frowning in concern. "Yeah?"

"Is she going to be okay?"

"…I don't know. Will you?"

Jamie pulled his vest tighter around his frame, and shrugged.

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Cupid kept his back straight as the cold winds of the Antarctic valley blasted against him. The icy pricks of the sharp snow stung his cheeks, and his dark locks whipped around his head. The tails of his coat whipped around in the breeze. He walked off the edge of the deck, and invisible steps fabricated at his feet. Cherubs approached him at once, fluttering anxiously.

He approached side-by-side with the small golden man sitting upon the cloud of sand. The shimmering whips in his hands, he knew, could cut through steel.

"Well, old man," he said in his thick Greek tongue, "Good luck."

Sandy said nothing, but nodded.

And as the darkness—in the form of thick, black smoke, bubbled over the horizon, engulfing the blizzard storms as if it were a beast—Cupid's sleek black bow and heart-headed arrow materialized, ready for battle.

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The Guardian of Wonder, the Guardian of Memories, and the Guardian of Fun entered the room stiffly.

Bunnymund stood at attention. The middle of the room was cleared, not a crumb left on the floor. The Guardians approached in the formation of a diamond, and they froze when the blasting winds outside of the thick windows stilled. It was here. It was time.

"Now, Bunnymund."

Bunnymund reached into the satchel at his side and pulled out the key element. What seemed to be a large pearl was taken out, and he snapped it open easily. A tiny vial was inside, and within it, a small golden droplet of liquid. A quiet singing voice emitted from the vial when he opened it.

One of Bunnymund's legs thumped against the floor. It sunk inwards, leaving a gaping pit in its wake. Bunnymund cast a look around the others before raising the vial and dripping the one droplet into the pit.

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Cupid knew it was futile, but what was he to do?

Every arrow he fired, every swing he took, it did nothing. The darkness was not smoke; it was a mass of spindly black arms and hands. The arrows exploded into red blasts on impact, and that held it back, but only for a second at a time. It returned as determined as ever. It clawed at him with thin hands, tearing his coat and pants. The cherubs were handling themselves, but just barely.

The Sandman fared better. He was actually withstanding their attempts of harm, and his whips made them recede. But his whips could only go so far.

As a hand latched around his arm, Cupid knew that they were not defending the others; they were just giving them time to escape.

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The pit was engulfed in a blinding light.

Jack winced as his eyes stung with the force. When he opened them, he saw that what was once the pit was now a void of…well, he couldn't tell what it was. He wanted to say wisps of blue light, but they were not quite blue, not quite white, not quite silver or gold. It just seemed to be an endless void. Jamie was gaping at the sight of it, awed beyond comprehension.

The Guardians said nothing for a moment. They seemed too…scared? Worried? Anxious? Someone was going to have to go first, but they didn't know who. This was a risk too great to comprehend. On one hand, they could emerge safely, on the other, they may not emerge at all.

"Any takers?" Bunnymund inquired. It was meant to be a source of last-minute humor, but it was dry and dull.

North stepped forward and paused to turn to Jamie. He patted the boy's head gingerly, causing him to smile. North did as well, in a last attempt to comfort himself. All would be well. Jamie would be fine.

But as he stepped forth into the void, the gray and blue air outside the windows became pitcher than black.

And when a cold filled the room—an unnatural cold, an unearthly cold, colder than Jack but without feeling—North turned to Toothiana and said, "Tooth, now! Go!"

Toothiana paused, and Jack's stomach plummeted. Toothiana was terrified. She was scared for her life. And her Mini Fairies buzzed with protest, but she pressed her lips together, nodded, and darted out of the room without a word.

Jamie stepped forward, but Jack spoke first. "You can't send her out there alone!"

North said nothing.

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Toothiana's grip on her sword hardened to the point of blistering.

She told herself to breath, and she did. She told herself to go forward, and she continued. She told herself to refrain from looking back, so she did.

She told herself not to be scared, but she was.

When she entered the Globe Room, she felt sick.

The Room, which was once so full of life and energy, was lifeless. Toys were not whizzing through the air. Yetis were not running to and fro in work. Elves were not hustling about, their bells jingling. Everything was silent and stale and even though the Mini Fairies were at her ears, she felt so overbearingly alone.

She could only hear her breaths and the flutters of wings. She pushed forward and steadied herself—

And she felt it.

She did not hear it or see it, she felt it. The cold feeling of nothingness ripping through her chest and the hollowness it left behind. She could not breathe any longer. Her wings halted, and she dropped to the floor in a crumpled heap. The fairies fell limp, too small to bear it. Tooth felt the instinct to scoop them up and hug them close, but she couldn't. Instead, she stood, swayed, and steadied herself.

But when Toothiana raised her swords, and she felt them collide with something only for a moment, she knew that this was her end.

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Toothiana's scream ripped through the air.

The Guardians jumped in shock. Jack felt as if he were going to vomit. Jamie seemed to be teetering between screaming himself and crying.

Tooth…it got Tooth…No…no, no, no! It wasn't supposed to be like this! It wasn't supposed to be her!

"Bunnymund, let's go!"

Bunnymund did not hesitate for a moment. He and the Russian darted for the doors, and as Bunnymund disappeared from sight, North turned to the ice elf. Jack's mouth went dry. He felt like crying, something he rarely did.

"North, you can't go!"

"Jack—"

"No! It wasn't supposed to be like this!"

"Be brave Jack. You must. Be. Brave. All will be fine, but Jamie must leave."

The boy's eyes widened in shock.

"Remember your center…"

And North was gone, the colossal doors slamming shut behind him. The large wooden block came down between the locks. North would not be returning, nor would Bunnymund nor Tooth nor Sandy nor Cupid.

Jack pulled Jamie to the portal. Jamie froze at the edge. He was about to cry, Jack knew it. His eyes were already watering. He pulled on Jack's blue hoodie, and when he spoke, his voice was as broken as glass. "Jack."

"Jamie, we have to go."

"But what about—"

"They will be alright, Jamie. But we have to go now."

"Jack, I'm scared."

"…I know. But we're…"

And in that moment, the doors burst open.

Time seemed to slow. The mass of black arms entered at the speed of sound itself. It surged forward, grappling for them, reaching for them. Jack felt no emotion in that moment, no fear nor sadness. He felt nothing.

And in that moment, Jack turned to the boy…the last hope, looking up at him with frozen terror and blearing eyes…and shoved his staff to his chest. With one last statement, Jack pushed Jamie with his last strength.

"Find us."

Jamie fell backwards into the portal.

It engulfed him, and he was gone.

The darkness took hold of Jack.

It engulfed him, and he was gone.

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And there it is!

Would you guys please help and send me lists of mythological creatures? Not fairy tales, like Rapunzel or Cinderella, but things like Baby New Year and whatnot. I need it for the story.

~iamconstantine.