Alright, just cause eI love you guys and I can't sleep, I'm posting ANOTHER CHAPTER! Yaaay! I think, lol. Anyway, I already hugged you guys, you just didn't feel it cause I'm a ninja. Anyway, you ready for this? Are ya? I hope so cause I just worked AGES on this, so I BEG OF YOU to tell me what I'm doing wrong or what you like! And, warning, I did throw in some more of the horror characters. But II think I suck at defining them, so I'll tell you who I've used already/using in the chapter. The demon clown was the clown form the movie It, the machete-man was Jason, leatherface is Leatherface(I think that's what he called) from texas chainsaw massacre, the guy with the melted face was Freddy Kuger from Nightmare on Elm street, the red haired doll is Chuckie from whatever movie he's from, and then I will use a chick named Mary. She's Bloody Mary, a girl from a myth or whatever. If you don't know her story, I'll tell the version I know at the end. I think that's it. Thanks to Becky for the support, and to everyone who's supported me along the way! I love you all!(don't take that in any creepy way, unless I know you. The think of me saying that with a scary face. Cool.) So, enjoy the fourth installment of Alone in the Dark!
Jack grinned, and bounced up and down in joy. He gave Tooth a hug, The yelled, "Let's go then!"
In the Dark Realm, Ximena was finally losing. She had never lost once in her whole life, but she had come close to it before. But now . . . Now she kew this was it. She had only managed to get rid of the dude with the claws, and machete man, but the centipede was too fast. That, and a creepy doll was clinging to her back, trying to kill her with his kitchen knife. She finally managed to grab the thing's curly red hair, and threw it aside, managing to chop it's head off. It dissolved, with a shriek of fury.
So far, she had only managed to get a few, and she was slowing down. Any second, her body would give in, and she would fail. She could see the Orb, seeming to throb with it's power. She scowled, and tried to make her way closer. Then a guy with a pale, scarred face, wielding a long knife, lunged for her. She dodged to the side, and plunged the machete(stolen from that big guy) into his side. With a roar, he dissolved. Rasping, she turned to see who was next.
Nothing rushed forward, and nobody tried to surprise her. Instead, she was suddenly alone, in a ring of monsters. She didn't feel afraid, despite the look leather face was giving her. He wore a strange, misshapen mask, made of a strange kind of leather she had never seen before. She snarled back, wishing she had the energy to Stare. But she knew that she would probably die from the effort, or at least pass out.
Her legs shook from exhaustion, and she wished her second wind would blow up soon. Like, right now soon.
Suddenly, a woman appeared. She had spiders crawling through her hair, and her pale, grey eyes gleamed with a poser that worried Ximena. She smile evilly, showing long, sharp daggers for teeth.
"My dear, just what do you think you're doing here?" her voice screeched, sounding like nails on a chalkboard. And yet, it seemed hypnotizing too. "Why do you think you need to Protect the children? Do you think that they'll ever know you? Wish for you to come help them when we haunt their thoughts? Do you think anyone will want your help?" She threw head back and cackled.
"What are you talking about?" Ximena sneered, thinking that this chick was way off base. The only person Ximena cared about was Jack, right? No, that wasn't true. But it's not like she wanted to be accepted like that. Right?
"Why, I'm talking about how not even Jack asks you for help anymore. You've been replaced. He doesn't care about you! Now, he's totally focused on the Tooth Fairy." The woman didn't see Ximena's eyes widen, or at least she didn't show it. "You see, dear, Jack was never going to love you! I had hoped that you would be to smart to see that. Instead, you were foolish to think that he would fall for someone with such messy black hair, and the creepiest green eyes ever! Oh, no, no, no." she tsked scornfully.
"Jack wouldn't!" Ximena spat. "He doesn't care about the Guardians! He only wanted to be my friend, and be believed in . . ." Ximena was on the verge of despair, and couldn't help but whisper, "Right . . ?"
"Oh, sweetie . . ." The woman purred, sweeping closer to Ximena. She put her arm around Ximena's shoulders, and leaned her spidery head sympathetically on the young girl's shoulder. "I know what it feels like to be scorned, to be left behind like that."
"Who are you anyway?" Ximena was tense, trying to gather the strength to move away. But she was tired and weak, and the womb seemed two understanding, just like . . . a mother.
"My name," the woman purred, "is Mary." She gentlely stroked Ximena's hair, her voice lifting and falling like a lullaby. "You see, sweetheart, I know what you're going through. Disbelief, hurt, anger, the need for vengeance. But, you can't believe it. So, I'll show you." Mary waved a hand, and an image formed in the Orb, clear as day.
Jack was standing on a patch of ice, with the Tooth Fairy putting her hand on his shoulder. Then they were alone in a bedroom, and Jack was smiling at her. Then they were on a billboard, talking. Whatever was being said, Tooth seemed to be bursting to the seams with excitement. Then, finally, Jack was jumping up and down in excitement, and threw his arms around her in a huge hug. He yelled something after he pulled away, and the images disappeared.
Ximena could've sworn that her heart was torn out and pierced with thousands of arrows, rocks dropped on it, then stomped on repetitively. Her breathing became short and ragged as grief and depression welled up, threatening to overwhelm her.
"It hurts, doesn't it?" Mary whispered pityingly. "I know, darling, I know. But I had to show you, or else you would have returned to be scorned and forgotten.
"You know what'll happen for them, though, don't you? Now, they'll live just like a fairy tale. Happily ever after. Maybe a few babies, long centuries of laughter, the companionship of the other Guardians, while you remain in the shadows. Rejected, alone, working to kill monster after monster, and for what? To be ignored, for them to take all the credit, and leave you to rot?!" Mary snarled, and Ximena's own temper flared up.
"Of course." Ximena snarled bitterly. "That's how my whole life will be. Who'll forget me next?!"
"I would imagine the Moon!" cried out Mary, despairingly. "No one will ever remember the Huntress, the Protector, the one who saved lives, countless times, and never even received a glance thrown her way! Why, I bet soon only we will know you!" Mary shook her head, shame filling her expression.
Ximena roared, "I deserve more! For hundreds of years, I've fought against the bloody dark, and not a soul knows my name! The only one who did went and abandoned me! He left me alone, alone in the dark!" She was seething. The darkness that she'd fought against for hundreds of years in her mind was finally overwhelming her, all because she'd had her heart broken.
"Of course!" agreed Mary, smiling darkly.
'I deserve recognition! Every child should know my name!" Ximena screamed.
"Obviously!" Mary snarled, pacing around the Huntress. The monster grumbled in agreement.
"Those foolish Guardians should honor me! I could crush all of them like a bug!" Ximena showed that she had regained her full strength by bellowing like a dying buffalo.
"Damn right!" shrieked Mary, fueling Ximena's fire. The monsters bellowed their approval.
"And I'll tear apart that stupid boy and stupid fairy! I'll make them both pay!" Ximena had never known more fury and pain than now, and she relished that she had company to support her.
'But how?" pondered the Protector. "How am I going to accomplish this?"
"That's simple . . ." Mary's voice was suddenly deathly calm as she stood by the Orb, a small, welcoming smile on her face. "Join us. Become our leader. Together, we can achieve all you desire, even more! Join us." The monsters let out a welcoming rumble.
Ximena hesitated. What did she have to lose? All that she had ever loved had turned against her, replaced her, forgotten her. So, why not? She knew that if she touched the Orb, the dark side of her would overwhelm her, and her powers would become one with the Orb's, and she would be invincible. All she had to do was just rest her fingers, and give in to the dark. Just . . one . . little . . . . touch.
No. She paused, her fingers inches from the surface. She remained frozen, although her mind was racing faster than Bunnymund, and she thought back two years.
It really wasn't that long ago, especially to an immortal such as herself. and she was visiting the Sahara Desert for once. She was flying over some dunes, when she saw something that made her freeze. There was an old, abandoned village, with four or five kids, all alone and starving, rummaging around. For some reason, she floated closer for a better look. The leader, in her eyes, was a small girl with ragged black hair, and sad brown eyes. She couldn't have been much older than nine or ten. She was holding a little boy's hand, who looked so much like her he had to be her little brother. She pulled him forth, saying, "Come on, Kalko. Maybe Derah and Elisa have found something to eat."
"But Serenity," protested Kalko, who was maybe five or six, 'there's nothing to eat anymore, is there."
"Of course there is, silly!" Serenity tried to reasure him, but even she was doubtful.
Another pair of kids(so there were only four) walked over. Both were girls, the only difference between them their eye colors. They seemed to be Serenity's age.
"Derah, Elisa, did you find anything?" Serenity called, waving. Ximena could tell that they hand't before the blue eyed girl shook her head.
"Oh," Serenity's spirits dropped, but only for a second. "Are you sure, Derah?" she asked again.
Derah, the golden-eyed one, shook her head. Blue-eyed Elisa said, "We looked everywhere. There's nothing left."
The despair in the voice of a child so young made Ximena angry. How could this have happened? Who could let these children suffer like this?! Then she saw something that caught her eye. She drifted over to it, and saw that it was a fruit basket. She smile, and looked back at the kids. They were hungry, and very small from their lack of food. They couldn't see the shiny apples that were stacked high on some boxes. Smiling wider, she knocked the basket over.
The kids jumped at the sound, and then gaped at the fruit. To them, it seemed to good to be true. Then little Kalko looked right at her. He squeaked a little "Thanks" before snatching up two. It touched Ximena's heart that his first thought was to offer it to his sister, and then take a bit out of his. Elisa and Derah didn't hesitate to grab their own.
It wasn't until she was sitting cross-legged in the sand that she realized Kalko had spoken to her. She looked closer at the little boy, with juice running down his chin, and saw that he was still looking at her.
"Can you see me?" she asked curiously. "Can you hear me?" When the boy nodded twice, she smiled. It surprised her that being seen felt so good.
"Who did you thank, Kalko, when you grabbed the apples?" Serenity asked her brother, wiping her mouth.
"I thanked the nice lady who knocked them down for us." Kalko replied, reaching for another.
"What nice lady?" asked Elisa warily, eyeing the small boy.
"That one." Kalko pointed straight at her. "What's your name?" he asked her.
'Ximena." she replied, leaning back against the strong crates behind her. She crossed her legs at the ankles, waiting two be written off as an imaginary friend.
"Uh, oookkaaayy . . ." Derah said, shrugging. She looked at Serenity, and mouth out 'imaginary friend, right?' Serenity nodded, and she waited for her friend Elisa to agree. But Elisa wasn't listening, or looking at them. Instead, she was gazing at the spot where Kalko had pointed, where Ximena was waiting. Slowly, her pale blue eyes widened, and she gaped openly at Ximena. Ximena was mildly surprised, and she just grinned crookedly at the kid.
"Hey. You can see me, huh?" Ximena asked nonchalantly. Elisa nodded, and Ximena wished that Jack were her to be seen as well.
It wasn't long before the other two could see her, and she was helping them. Every night, while they slept, Ximena paced, keeping a close eye on her charges. She protected them as they crossed through the desert, and they loved to tell her about their lives.
Serenity and Kalko had lived with their loving parents when some people had invaded their village, and tore everything apart. Their parents had tried to flee with them, but the children had been separated in the chaos of the fleeing villagers. Ever sense, they had been trekking through the desert, trying to survive.
Elisa and Derah had only one parent, a father, who treasured them both more than his own life. That had been proven when their home had been raided(they hadn't lived in a village), and their father distracted the invaders so that they could escape. They had seen their father die for them, and tried to survive in honor of his sacrifice.
Ximena nearly died for the kids several times, when coyotes had attacked, or when the monsters tried to come after them. Once or twice she had to cover them with her own body during sandstorms, and each time had left her eyes, ears, mouth, and nose unbelievably clogged with the gritty sand.
They were lucky that they survived until they reached the outskirts of some town. That night, since they decided to wait till morning to enter the town, Ximena enjoyed telling them one of her many stories of the Guardians.
"And, nowadays, the Tooth Fairy still sends out her tiny little fairies to collect teeth of the children all over the world." Ximena finished, watching their sleepy eyes close. Only Serenity stayed awake later than usual.
"Mena?" she asked, using the nick-name the kids had come up for her.
"Hm?" Ximena replied, ready to start her nightly watch.
"Why aren't you as famous as the Guardians?" she asked, sitting up.
"Why do you ask?" Ximena asked, sitting next to the little girl.
"Because," Serenity explained, "you've saved our lives, and you guard everything that the Guardians do, and you do it every night. That, and you make us brave. We were one really shy, and would have run hiding from everything that had happened, what with the coyotes, and those monsters. But, you helped us be strong, even when you didn't say anything." She paused, considering, then said, "And that's what the Guardians do. So, why aren't you one?"
"Because, I was chosen to be the Huntress, the Protector, instead. "Ximena told her firmly, hiding the side of her that agreed with the little girl. "But," she couldn't resist adding, "it might happen, one day."
"Can you promise me something?" Serenity asked.
"Depends.' Ximena was wary of being forced to promise to become her personal Guardian, or something crazy. She wouldn't have minded, but she knew that she'd be hurt when the kid became to old to believe in her, and she didn't want to go through that. "What is it?"
"Promise me that, one day, when you're forced to go through the final challenge, your greatest challenge, that you'll do this one thing." Serenity said, dead serious. "You'll remember that you're our Guardian, and that you have to become a real Guardian. Okay?"
"Okay." Ximena said, not really believing the kid that that'll happen.
"Say it!" she pushed firmly.
"Alright, alright!" Ximena relented. "I promise that I'll always remember that I'm you Guardian, and that I'll do whatever it takes to become an official Guardian. Now, go to sleep."
The next day, they had said their good-byes, and the four went off into an orphanage with a kind-hearted woman. Secretly, Ximena had hung around a few days, just to make sure that the kids would be okay. She smiled fondly when she saw that Serenity and Elisa told everyone about the Guardians, Jack Frost, and even herself. Derah and Kalko firmly backed them up, and even the orphanage owner smiled at their tales.
Now, deep in the mountain, Ximena wondered how she could have forgotten that promise. How could she have forgotten brave Serenity, sweet Kalko, strong Elisa, and determined Derah? She shook her head slowly, backing away from the Orb.
A new fury filled her, and with it a strength that shocked her. She would not become a feraling, especially not the ruler of them!
"No." she growled. "I won't." Mary shrieked in fury, and the beasts bellowed in response. "I will not join you!" Ximena roared over the noise, her fury outmatching that she heard in the monsters around her.
She heard a shout echo in the tunnel behind her. Wait, when did she suddenly have nothing but the tunnel behind her? Then she saw something theta made everything, even Mary, freeze. Nicholas St. North, E. Aster Bunny, Toothiana, and Jackson Overland Frost came racing down the tunnel, fully ready for battle. Ximena smirked, knowing that it was Jack who dragged them there, and that she hadn't been left alone by her friend. She just hoped that they'd have enough courage to face these Nightmare.
When they'd come racing through the tunnel, following Xi's scent trail(the Bunny smelled out, not Jack), Jack had no clue what to expect. More clowns and spiders? Some Nightmares? Whatever he thought, he could have never thought up what they found.
A whole cavern, bigger than what the mountain even seemed to be, filled with the worst nightmares of every human, and animals too, it seemed(judging by a giant vacuum in the corner, accompanied by a rolled up newspaper). Jack shuddered at the sight of most of them, but he didn't let his fear take control. None of the Guardians did, but they all hesitated, fearful to act.
Then Ximena stepped forward. She smiled at them, her beautiful green eyes gleaming. "'Bout time, Frostbutt." She smirked as she used an old nickname for him, one he detested. "I was kinda impatient."
"Hey, hey, hey!" Jack protested. "The kangaroo held us up!" How could she be so calm in the face of such a frightening army? He was terrified, until he looked at xi. She just seemed to radiate courage, like it was a mist, just waiting to wash over you and reassure you. He smiled as he felt his own courage reawakened by the sight of his dearest friend.
The Guardians eyed her uneasily, and she met their gazes calmly. "So, I see you finally get to see what I've protected you and your helpers from for hundreds of years. You're welcome."
She turned to face Mary, who the monsters parted to let through. "What were you saying, Mary? What was that about me being alone in the dark?"
"They are only here to-"
"Kick. Your. Ass." Jack spat, stepping forward. Ximena smirked, giving him a glance. Since when was her old friend so daring? She liked it.
"Why you arrogant, little . . ." Mary started, but Ximena stared her down.
"Do you really want me to use you know what? Especially now?" Ximena asked,tilting her head to one side and giving the monsters a meaningful look. As one, all of the monsters shielded their eyes of looked away.
Mary, with her eyes covered, cried out, "No! Please, not that. Anything but that."
Ximena smirked. She drew her daggers, and gestured to the Guardians. "Go!" she roared, leading the way to the attack. All throughout the cavern, fighting exploded. The first few were killed without a skirmish, having literally not seen it coming. The rest, however, were ready to fight.
Alright! There you go! Please tell me whatchya think!
The Legend of Bloody Mary(as told by Vaname'sGurl):
Once, in Ohio, a young woman named Mary lived happily with her soon-to-be-husband. She loved him with all her heart, and she thought he loved her too. Instead, he would sneak out at night to meet with a different girl, her best friend. When she found out, she went into a fit of rage. She insulted him, accused him, and threw some things. Finally, he had had enough. He took a knife and slit her wrists and stabbed her stomach. While lay there, dying, he abandoned her to go meet with his mistress. She dragged herself to the bathroom, and tried to stand by the sink. The police found her dead, laying by the sink. On the mirror, in her own blood, she wrote;
Pretty Mary, Pretty Mary, Pretty Mary
She was fair, fair as a fairy.
She had long, fair, dark hair,
And eyes that saw him everywhere.
In her bedroom, in the street,
Even in the places where they meet.
Lonely Mary, Lonely Mary, Lonely Mary
He loved another, not his fairy.
She was sad, and very mad.
So she did something very bad.
Angry Mary, Angry Mary, Abgry Mary,
Dead now, long gone, no longer scary.
She shouldn't have screamed, shouldn't have raged.
She should have obeyed, and stayed engaged.
She shouldn't have fought, she shouldn't have beg.
She should have given in and gone to bed.
Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary.
The officer in the bathroom didn't get to see the morning of the next day. He had gone to the bathroom, and never come out. Three weeks later, after word of Mary's death had spread, a young boy and his two friends had gone into the bathroom to try and talk to her. They tried saying Bloody Mary three time, and then the boy's mother heard the screaming. The police found the three boy dead, their stomachs stabbed and wrists slit. Now, if you go into the mirror, with lights off, and at night, and you gaze into the mirror, and you dare call her three times, you shall not live to see the sun once more.
Thanks for reading this far! If you have heard it told differently, I'd love to hear how! Please, scare me, I love being scared XD! Anyway, please review, and I'll they to get the next chapter ASAP! PEEEEAAAAAACCEEE