4. Tales Of Eternal Darkness

"I don´t even know where to start ..." Private murmured softly. It happened so much after Skippers death. Terrible things that the little penguin would like to delete for ever from his memory. "Everything from the beginning, Private." Skipper said sympathetically, and pressed Private more firmly on his body, because the little penguin was trembling with fear and cold.

Private sighed and looked around anxiously, as if he would be attacked any moment. "Don´t be afraid. I'm with you. I will protect you ..." muttered the leader Penguin gently to encourage Private a bit. "Okay, so ..." murmured the little penguin sad because it was so hard for him to talk about all his pain and grief again. "After you died, nothing like it used to be. They were all very depressed and didn´t even wanted to make a show for the humans in the zoo. Alice quickly realized that you were gone and assumed that you just escaped . She looked after you, for days. But then she gave up going after you and came to terms with the fact that we only had three penguins in the zoo. Kowalski somehow tried to bring a little everday life back to us, but he failed.. .. " Private said with a faint whimper.

Skipper sighed, because he missed the rest of his team very much. But he did´t want to interupt Privates story. "One day, after we were ready again to face the people I saw sudden black clouds on the horizon. Kowalski said that probably teased a storm, but the clouds were approaching too fast and covered the whole city in darkness. No one knew what that meant, until the shadows came. "

"At first it looked as if scraps of the clouds would start to attack us. But there were no scraps. There were many big bats who attacked us suddenly. They bit almost each of us and they changed... or killed us ..." murmured the little penguin, swallowing his tears. He could still remember very well that day. This darkness hasn´t disappeared since that day.

Private watched as his friends fought against the bats. Many died in this fight, some were abducted and some were turned suddenly into the bodily horror. "Hold that thought, Private. You were bitten by bats?" Skipper asked incredulously, looking at the little penguin boy. "Maybe there were other animals among them. I don´t remember exatly, because it all happened so fast. Then these strange figures came with their cloaks and hoods, and took us into captivity. We fought, but they were much stronger than we were. Like they had unnatural forces. Powers from another world . I don´t ever know if they were animals at all, not because they didn´t show their faces. " declared Private and shuddered as he felt the same pain with which they have forced him to come along again.

"Where did they take you at?" asked the leader, burning with curiosity. "We were led into the city, but everything was already deserted. No one was there anymore. The people who survived this massacre, have left the city and fled. We were taken to a large building and then herded into a room . Then they came for us. One by another. All this happened within two days and since I haven´t seen Kowalski and Rico as well. I don´t even know if they are still alive ..." Private wept and buried his face in his flippers.

"Shh, Private. What happened then?" Skipper muttered and hugged the little penguin to comfort him. "They got me out of my cage just after a few days. We were given nothing to eat or drink. I was taken to a kind of underground chamber. As in the Middle Ages. They made me the offer to join them and spent my life as a blood-sucking monster. Otherwise, they would force me to do so. I refused of course and was brought back into the chamber, but now I was alone. several days. I kept hearing desperate screams, which suddenly turned into silence and I assumed that they killed us one by one. "

Private interrupted again in order to wipe his teary eyes. Skipper didn´t even want to imagine what had happened to Rico and Kowalski. The leader received a painful stab into the stomach, just as that they might be dead. Private continued. "They came to get me after I was almost starved to death, and brought me back into another room. There I was tied up and they offered me again to surrender. But I refused again and they began to whip me. Oh Skipper, that was so awful but I continued to provide resistance and they brought me back to my prison. There, I thought I would die in pain ..." sobbed the little penguin and gently rubbed his wounds.

Skipper was shocked, because he couldn´t imagine this magnitude of violence. They whipped Private just to impose their will. But the leader was incredible proud of Private that he had done resistance despite agony. He did´t even know if he would have been even as strong like Private himself.

"What happened then? How did you escape them?" said Skipper, who wanted to get to know the whole truth now. "They tortured me for days and I was really about to die. I wanted to die because I couldn´t bear this pain any longer, but then I got an idea. I pretended to be dead so they brought me out of there and it worked. They just threw me on the street and since then I´ve been hidden in the underground, so they couldn´f find me again. And since then I live here. Leave alone in the dark. Several months. I had hardly anything to eat and no one was there who could help me. I havn´t slept for days because I was afraid they might find me and bring me back to this hell on earth..." told Private and Skipper just understood.

Now he knew why the little penguin was in such a poor condition. His wounds had never healed properly. "Every day I prayed that you would return. Because I thought if there would be such monsters on the world, then perhaps miracles would happen too. This was the only spark of hope to me every day I had clung to survive. And my wish has come true, you're back. Now everything will be all right. "murmured the little penguin and snuggled up to Skippers chest, who was paralyzed from listening to this story.

"What exactly are these creatures?" Skipper asked softly and stroked Privates back. "Blood-sucking monsters. Vampires ..." Private replied wearily. "They transformed the whole city into a land of darkness and they are absolutely ruthless. I don´t know who is their leader, where they come from or what they actually want. I think many of us have become such a monster and were now driven by insatiable thirst for blood. But I hope that Kowalski, Rico, Marlene and all our friends have been spared somehow. " said the little penguin exhausted.

Skipper groaned. "Marlene is already one of them. They attacked me just before I found you ..." muttered the leader sadly. "No!" cried the little Private and startled. Skipper nodded quietly and said nothing anymore. He wished that this world of darkness would just disappear and they could have a normal life again. But nothing was normal, since he died. Skipper didn´t even know why he had returned to life. Perhaps he was the one who had to fight the darkness to save his friends from eternal suffering and pain.

The leader heard the small Private yawning. He was just exhausted. "You should get some sleep, Private." Skipper said softly. "But I can not sleep, what happens when they come back and get us?" Private asked anxiously, but the leader pressed him gently into his bed and covered him with his old blanket.

"Don´t worry, I will watch over you while you´re sleeping. Just don´t worry. I´ll always by your side, son." Skipper said softly, stroking the little penguin´s cheek. Private was so happy that Skipper was with him again and had protected him from all the danger outside his shelter. "I'm so glad you're with me, Father ..." Private muttered.

The little penguin snuggled into his old, dusty pillow and closed his eyes. He felt Skipper gently stroking his back and Private fell alsleep soon. The leader was happy that the little penguin had finally got some rest from all the hardships and pain, he suffered without him. "Nothing´s gonna harm you, not while I´m around..." Skipper murmured and hummed a song that he had once seen in a movie. A song of comfort and hope. "Nothing´s gonna harm you, not while I´m around..." Skipper sang Private into a quiet deep sleep...

Note: That song, Skipper sang for Private was taken from ´Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Tim Burton. One of my favourite movies. In that scene Mrs. Lovett tries to comfort the little Toby because he thinks that Mr. Todd was evil. I don´t know if you know that movie but it´s so awesome and I thought this song really fits into this chaper. Please