Jack stands at the edge of the North pole watching the chunks of ice float away. North paces back and forth next to him. For the past few days, they have seen a global rise in temperature. The temperature is rising slowly, but it is enough for the guardians to notice. The pole had begun to break apart, small chunks of ice randomly floating across the Atlantic Ocean. Luckily, the workshop is nowhere near the melting ice. Sandman tries to comfort North but to no avail.
Sandman grabs Jacks attention, making the shape of a snow cloud above his head. Jack shakes his head in disappointment.
"I've already tried, Sandy," Jack sighs, "Nothing I do is working. Summer is right. Heat will always beat the cold."
Jack plops down on the side of the ice, pulling his hoodie over his head.
"Once again all of this is my fault," Jack shakes his his head. Sandman puts a hand on Jack's shoulder.
"This is what she wants! She wants us to give up," North says with a hand on his chin, "We have to do something! Anything! Where is she now?"
"Tooth and Sandy have already tried to find her. She's gone off the grid." Jack says.
"What about the high school? You said she was undercover, right? Check there!" North says with hopeful eyes.
"I already have," Jack stands to his feet, "She isn't there. Her foster parents even called the police, I saw them the other day. She's just… gone."
"Jamie must know something," North says.
"No," Jack counters, "We are not bringing Jamie into this! He's already been put in danger once. What do you think is going to happen when he finds out one of his best friends is an immortal psychopath?"
"We don't have any more options!" North says, "We have to get Summer back into exile before she burns the whole world!"
Sandman flashes sand in their faces to grab their attention. He points to the top of his head where a picture of a cave and a stone are present.
"The Underground," Jack whispers, "North, you have to take me to the Underground."
"But, Jack—"
"I've said it before," Jack glares, "I am the king of tricks! I know how mischievous minds work! Let me see the Underground. Let me look around for anything that could have gotten her out. This is one of our few options."
North and Sandman exchange looks before nodding in agreement. North pulls out his snow globe from his jacket pocket and mutters the words Underground. The scene inside changes and North tosses the snow globe in front of them. Together, they all step through to the other side. Once they pass through, North pulls the globe back into his pocket.
Jack's jaw drops as he stares at the entrance to a cave. Jack is careful where he steps, pieces of rock scattered across the ground. The entrance looks misshapen as if it had been attacked. Sandman picks up a piece of broken rock, giving it to North. Wherever in the world North had taken them, it is night time and only the sound of crickets and owls can be heard.
North, Jack, and Sandman approach the entrance. Sandman opens his hands, letting orbs of light flow from him. The orbs of sand light the path and together, they enter the cave. Jack fingers the top of the cave. There are markings scattered seemingly in a pattern.
"Egyptian hieroglyphs," North marvels, "Where did she learn these?"
"Is that bad?" Jack raises his eyebrow.
"She specialized in African markings. I don't know where she could have learned all of these hieroglyphs. The guardians were banned from learning them." North shakes his head as they walk.
"Why aren't we allowed to learn about ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs? Not that I'm interested," Jack rolls his eyes.
"They are said to contain powerful magic. The Egyptians were known for messing with powers that they didn't understand. They worshipped the sun god Ra. Of course, he is just a myth. But somehow, they were able to channel energy into the hieroglyphs, creating magical articles."
"So, basically, they created something they shouldn't have?" Jack says, tracing his finger over the markings, "What, did she use fire to burn the hieroglyphs into the walls?"
"That's precisely what she did," North says as they walk deeper, "I can feel the disturbance the deeper we go. She's turned the Underground into a labyrinth."
Jack stares at North and Sandman's disheartened faces. Jack can't even fathom the type of pain they must be feeling. This is a former guardian they are talking about. By the sounds of it, Summer used to be an amazing girl.
Jack! Jack you are going to get us caught! Jack hears a voice call in his takes his staff and whips around behind him, his heart beat racing. There isn't a soul behind him, but the voice sounds like it came from somewhere close.
"Jack? What's wrong?" North asks.
"I thought… I mean I had…" Jack stutters on his words, "That voice…"
"What voice? I didn't hear anything!" North says exchanging a glance with Sandman. Sandman shrugs his shoulders, a question mark appearing above his head.
"Never mind, let's keep going," Jack shakes his head.
Jack studies the Underground for any ways she could have escaped. No matter how hard he tries, he can not find anything. There should have been no way for her to get out. The stone at the front of the cave had been shattered, which should have been physically impossible. There are no holes leading into the outside world.
After about five minutes of walking through the Underground they come to a clearing. Jack's jaw drops as they come to a large, circular room. In the center is a table made of stone and a single hieroglyph etched out of fire.
"Looks like someone has been busy," Jack says studying the large piece of rock, "Please tell me you guys know at least something about hieroglyphs."
"Not a thing," North shakes his head, "This is something Man in Moon never wanted us to learn."
"What if she learned these hieroglyphs while she was a guardian?" Jack raises his eyebrow.
"What?" North says peering over at Jack.
"Think about it," Jack says pacing around the rock, "You had this place sealed from top to bottom, inside and out. There is no way she could have learned these hieroglyphs from just anywhere. What if the reason Man in Moon wouldn't help her is because she was studying these hieroglyphs?"
Sandman lights up and flashes a symbol of a pyramid and the sun.
"Africa is home to one of the largest deserts on the planet. The pyramids are located near a desert. Summer's powers turned from nature to fire! It almost makes too much sense. What if none of this was an accident?" Jack asks.
"But that makes no sense! We all saw her being poisoned by the branch," North says.
"The branch had to have gotten there somehow," Jack shrugs, "My guess is that she found the something that the Egyptians shouldn't have made."
"Her pendant," North gasps, "I had never seen her use that pendant before. I'm not even sure when she got it."
"But this is a start, right? We've got a lead. Man in Moon saw darkness in her, but maybe it wasn't from the poison in her. Maybe it was her act of rebellion."
"She did used to spend a lot of time away towards the end of her reign," North puts his hands on his hips, "This is big. Grab Tooth and Bunny. We're going to Egypt."
Jamie walks along the sidewalk with Sophie in tow. Sophie had insisted on a walk today. Of course, Jamie doesn't mind. He needs a walk after the bad few days he's had. Summer has ran off again without telling him or her family where she was going. Jamie has been worried sick, texting her, calling her, and sullenly gazing out of his window. If there was a way to get in contact with Jack, Jamie would have by now.
They walk in silence as the sun begins to set. Jamie sighs, looking around as if Summer would appear and assure him it was all just a practical joke. Sophie stares up at Jamie and smiles.
"She'll show up soon," Sophie says grabbing Jamie's hand.
"I just wish I knew where she was," Jamie looks down at Sophie with sad eyes, "She's been so distracted lately. I didn't know what was going on with her. She's been so distance since she spotted Jack Frost."
"I miss Jack. He was nice. Cold, but nice," Sophie laughs, "Maybe the other guardians know what's up?"
"I doubt the guardians would want to concern themselves with something like a runaway. I wish Summer would have believed me when I said Jack was a guardian. I'm sure if something was going on, she could have asked Jack for help when she saw him." Jamie shrugs.
"Maybe," Sophie responds, "Your girlfriend is weird."
"She's not my girlfriend," Jamie shakes his head.
"But you want her to be," Sophie says, "I can see it every time you look at her or talk about her."
"Maybe I do," Jamie groans, "But she doesn't like me back."
"Did she tell you that?" Sophie raises her eyebrow.
"No, but I can tell. Every time I try something she pulls away. It's like she knows I'm into her and she is purposefully distancing herself. It's really letting the oxygen out of my tank."
"It's okay Jamie. There will be plenty of other girls," Sophie gives Jamie a reassuring pat on the back as they near the entrance to their house.
"Yeah, but none like her. There's something magical about her. A fire in her eyes that I will never be able to understand," Jamie takes a deep breathe, "I just hope wherever she is, she isn't in danger."
"It's Summer," Sophie laughs, "How much trouble could she really be in?"
Summer leans against a lamppost on the sidewalk across from Jamie's house. She watches him disappear into his house with Sophie.
"I would love to ask what guys see in you, but not even I can deny the attraction," Pitch's voice sneers from behind her. Summer's eyes glow red and she hears Pitch jump in surprise. Summer crosses her arms, watching the house intently.
"I know I'm awesome," Summer scoffs, "However, I never expected to get so close to anyone."
"Everyone in this town adores you," Pitch says joining Summer at her side, "They see you, they believe in you."
"And they will believe in you too," Summer responds without taking her eyes off of Jamie's house, "Your problem is that you challenged the Guardians."
"And what do you call your little soirée when you first met Jack Frost?" Pitch snickers.
"Testing the waters," Summer shrugs, "I refused to believe that Man in Moon had chosen another guardian. But you and your brilliant brain had to go and mess that up."
"Excuse me for not wanting to live in the shadows anymore," Pitch glares.
"No matter," Summer says grabbing Pitch's arm and dragging him into a sea of trees, "Because with our power combined, we'll get back everything that was taken."
The duo hide as a yellow sand passes through the streets. Summer watches the sand flow into the houses, lulling children and adults alike to sleep. Pitch takes a step forward but Summer holds him back. Sandman passes by, not noticing them hiding in the thick of the trees. Once Sandman has passed, Summer and Pitch emerge from their positions.
"Is this really going to work?" Pitch asks as Summer touches her hand to her pendant, transforming into her winged form.
"Did Woman in Sun tell you what I am?" Summer smiles, her eyes starting to glow red. With the glow of the sand still lingering in the air, she looks more intimidating than ever before.
"Not necessarily. Only that you used to be a nymph," Pitch says.
"I'm not a nymph anymore," Summer says extending her hand. Her hand begins to burn and from it, lava pixies emerge, circling summer, "That ship sailed long ago when I touched that stupid branch."
"Which was not my fault," Pitch says, "Woman in Sun told me all about how I supposedly poisoned you."
"Your magic is powerful, but not that powerful," Summer nods, "The branch was only partway your fault. All you need to know is that I now take on the form of a—"
"Demon?" Pitch chuckles.
"No," Summer smiles, extending her wings into full view, "An angel."
Summer's eyes turn red and she turns to face Jamie's house. Her pixies stand ready on either side of her. She points a finger, drawing three small circles.
"Sand," Pitch mutters, his jaw dropping as her fingers leave behind traces of gold. Summer closes her eyes, drawing another hieroglyph, this one in the shape of a discombobulated hammer.
"Night," Pitch says moving closer to Summer. Summer looks over at Pitch and nods.
"It's time," Summer says. Pitch smiles and pokes his finger on the remainder of Sandman's sand. The sand turns black and the sand withers and fizzles. They turn to gaze down the street, watching as a few lights turn on in some of the houses.
"I fail to see how a little insomnia is going to do any good," Pitch says.
"You want people to believe in you?" Summer says, gesturing towards the golden hieroglyphs, "Then make them believe. Make them believe in the boogie man."
Summer holds out her hand and lets her staff come to life. She quickly draws the hieroglyph for serpent and sends it flying towards Pitch. Pitch stumbles backwards as he feels a jolt of power rush through him. Pitch smiles and laughs out loud.
"Now this is what I call power!" Pitch shouts.
"What are you waiting for? Go show them the monster in their closet," Summer chuckles. Without another word, Pitch disappears, blending into the shadows. Summer stares again at Jamie's house and sighs.
"I'm sorry Jamie," Summer shakes her head. She turns her attention to her flurry of burning pixies.
"Alright listen up," Summer addresses them, "We've got some damage to do. This world is full of reckless people who could care less about what they do to the environment. Their behavior is going to catch up to them eventually, but I say we speed this process up a little bit! We need to be subtle about this. You guys worry about raising the temps slowly, and I will worry about the guardians. The more efficient we execute Woman in Sun's plan, the faster we get this done. It's time to go to work!"
Summer watches her pixies leave and she takes to the sky. Summer hovers just above the tree tops, studying her work of art. Summer turns to stare up at the moon. She can feel Man in Moon watching her, but Summer refuses to speak. There is nothing she wants to say to him. He hasn't spoken to her since the incident. Summer shakes her head, flying in the opposite direction of Sandman. With Pitch's power, he should be able to repeat the process as Sandman circles the globe. As long as he can keep up there shouldn't be a problem.
Step one is a success, Summer thinks to herself as she glides through the sky, A new dawn is about to begin. Woman in Sun will rise once again, and Man in Moon will feel her wrath.
