Disclaimer: Once again, I don't own Rise of The Guardians
Chapter 7: In which Jack has a conversation with the Moon
Jack looked out of the crack in the prison again, at the moon that remained as silent as ever. Somehow this moment he just wanted to be under the gaze of the moon though it wasn't full and as bright as usual. There was still a spark of hope inside of him that refuses to be extinguished even though the thought of the guardians not bothering about him grinds Jack's soul like sandpaper. He knew, he was going to escape someday.
The moon's penetrating light became unnaturally eye piercing and forced Jack to squint up at the moon through the crack. This strange change gave him a simple signal: man in moon is directing towards him.
"Look," Jack started and stood up and stepped nearer to the small gap, " there must be a reason why this snow queen is doing all this to me right?" He didn't let disappointment soak him when there was no response, but continued," Since you seem to be listening to me right now, why not you answer my question? It's not like I'll freeze you, you big lump of rock"
Jack had expected man in moon not to reply his demanding question, but to his surprise, a different beam of light penetrated through the crack and he stepped back in surprise. Within the beam of light was a strange ball of images that flashed and every time before Jack could process the faces in the ball, they blurred together like smeared paint. It just stayed, suspended in midair.
Jack looked around, there was no one and he turned back to face the aura of images, unsure whether to touch it or not. to Jack it seemed to be beckoning, the albino found himself stupid for being afraid just because of it, it wasn't as though MIM would literally hurt him just because he called him a big lump of rock right? After mustering some courage, Jack allowed his fingers to brush over the ball.
Silence.
A furious thumping of Jack's own heart.
The ball instantly engulfed Jack in a swirl of colors. Gasping in utter shock and surprise, he shut his eyes, afraid to be dizzy. After what it seemed like eternity, he opened his blue eyes, Jack realized that there was no more cell walls that trapped him, no more cold stone, no more pressurizing darkness, but an entirely different place.
The first thought was that maybe Man In Moon transported him out of the cell, but as Jack looked closely, he realized that it felt different. Occasionally a few winter spirits would fly past, they weren't dazed-looking or clumsy, but light light-footed and smiles were hung on their face. He gasped as one of the younger spirits went through Jack. His heart raced for a moment when he understood what Man In Moon was doing, he was answering his demanding question.
The albino knew this feeling before, it felt like this when he brushed his fingers over the memory box when Pitch threw him down the crevice, the feeling of being surrounded in the realm of warmth. But this isn't a memory, is it? Jack thought, though three hundred years was a long time, he could somehow remember almost every important detail. He didn't remember knowing this palace before. The thoughts were halted when he caught sight of a young woman that was sweeping through the halls, all the spirit that passed her all bowed to her and stopped to start talking to the bundle in her arms.
The frost spirit was all the more curious to see the bundle and young woman, he jogged closer and jaw dropped as he looked at the young woman. Isn't that the evil queen? She looked so- different. Jack looked at her closer, noting that her eyes were a warming blue, even her movements were swift and graceful, she was just an entirely different person in compared to the present queen.
He moved closer and peered at the bundle she was holding and jumped when the fabric fell away,revealing a baby, the big wide pool-sized eyes gazed up in wonder and curiosity at the other winter spirit that was admiring the child. Jack didn't know how to react and looked at the queen, from her wide smile Jack could tell she was basked in happiness. Sighing, he still shouldn't get what man in moon was trying to tell him.
"What have you named your baby, my queen?" the other winter spirit asked.
The queen looked up, then back at the baby, smiling.
"Jack Frost."
Instantly the frost spirit's eyes widened and looked at the queen in utter shock.
"Are you serious?" he asked loudly.
But still, he knew that Man In Moon was trying to direct him a message, something that was related to him. But there was no way, no way he was that baby. It was impossible that he was the queen's son. Unless that wasn't the present queen, there was much of her personality that proved so. She was entirely opposite of the present queen. But to Jack this small proof wasn't going to help much. As though Manny can read his thoughts, the scene swirled once again and displayed another scene.
Immediately his attention was on the young boy that was about the age of four that was clinging to the same young woman whom was trying to put him down teasingly. Jack smiled as she tickled the giggling boy and tackled him to the floor, it was a heart-warming sight. Suddenly, the door slammed open behind him and Jack yelped when another spirit went through him again. It felt weird for him and he grumbled annoyingly before looking up to widen his eyes, the spirit that went through him looked alike the young woman.
"Why did you arrive to my palace without announcing?" the beautiful young woman asked coldly.
"Why is there a need for that? We are sisters! There's no need to be so cold!" the other smirked, she examined her nails then continued, "who were you playing now?"
Jack then realized that the young boy had disappeared, had the queen hid him? Why? Why are both sisters so cold to each other? That was when almost everything seems to fit like a puzzle, it was possible that the sister of the young woman was the present queen that locked him up in that be damned prison. Her snarky comments and piercing gaze told him so, it felt familiar in a bad way, every time he was forced to look at the evil queen she would direct him that cold piercing look.
"No one." the other whispered back, eyes firmly on her sister.
"Oh Cylienne, that's very unconvincing. I swear I heard childish giggles emitting from the room along with yours, there had to be another presence in here. Is it true that you have a newborn son?"
So the young woman is called Cylienne. Jack thought.
"It's just a rumour. I did have a son, but he died soon after. A weakling, unfortunately." Cylienne replied stiffly.
Her sister looked unimpressed and frowned, "well, then I must be hallucinating those childish giggles." she then gave the room a sweeping look.
"A pity, losing a child, well then, I shall leave."
Jack looked at the retreating back and when the door snapped, there was a moment where there was no movements made in the room, the albino and Cylienne was looking down at the door gap where the two shadows were retreating away from the door. Obviously checking if her sister could be still lingering outside the door. However after a few minutes she seems to deduct that her sister was gone and magically materialized her son and hugged him.
"Who's she?" the young boy asked.
"Just your aunt, but stay away from her, okay Jack?"
The other Jack in the same room flinched, it felt weird that someone had the same name as him.
The scene swirled again and dissipated like smoke.
The minute he processed the scene before him, Jack knew that something bad was happening. The entire palace was in a mess, spirits flew around, screaming and howling, cries could be heard. And it was obvious that the palace was being attacked. By whom Jack didn't know, but he knew he was about to find that out soon enough.
Among the chaos, a young boy caught his eye and he had to sprint to catch up. Jack then realized that the boy was the other "Jack" that seemed to be running away from a giant herd of spirits that brandished weapons, threatening to take the young boy down. But he was nimble, ducking and jumping past each obstacle lightly. Why they were chasing Cylienne's son, he had no idea but decided to catch up in the series of events that was happening.
It was then when the smaller Jack halted and turned to face the pressing crowd, the other frost spirit realized that the younger "Jack" was standing at the edge of the cliff, looking troubled and scared. Just standing before him, was the queen. Jack frowned, was this Cylienne or the her sister?
"Who are you? Where's mother?" he asked, voice trembling.
"Oh, you clever child. Finally realized that I'm not your mother?" the elder winter spirit sneered and said.
It was the evil sister. Jack deducted and watched as the evil twin suddenly melt into the floor with a flurry of snow. There was a moment of silence, no one moves, even present Jack tried not to breathe. But still, he knew that something bad would happen. Specifically, to the young boy.
He was right after all, when the sister materialized in front of the young Jack, frightening him and causing the small form to disappear over the line of the cliff. The scream of frustration made by the angry woman told present Jack that the young boy managed to slip through her grasp. Again. He didn't know how to react to this. Was he suppose to sympathize? What even happened? Did he die?
Man In Moon is a wise person, though Jack Frost was smart, sometimes he just couldn't work out some things.
The swirl of colors entered the Frost spirit's eyes again and he noticed how the realm of white turn into a swirl of green. Jack fidgeted uncomfortably as the heat beat down on his cold skin, penetrating the vulnerable layer and made him feel dizzy. It was obvious that it was summer, and this was the Burguess forest. Jack looked around and realized that it was his lake, however it wasn't frozen, most likely due to the eye-piercing sun that shone heat and light down to earth with malice.
Sobbing. It was the pitiful sound that was mixed with the cacophony of chirps made by nearby birds and whistles of the wind, an occasion snap of a twig and rustle of leaves. Jack tried to find the source of the sobbing and crying. He didn't walk for long when he saw a small shaking figure sitting amidst the tall grass.
To his horror, the figure was actually the young boy that fell off the cliff, Jack immediately knew that the fall had sent the young Jack to the mortal world. Yet he was curious in why he didn't try to fly somewhere cooler like under a tree to cool down. Watching him cry, lost, alone and confused made Jack's stomach jolt. His "guardian" mode was kicking in and he had to remind himself that this was just a memory that he was watching, the young spirit wouldn't see him.
Jack walked towards the trembling form and realized that he was trapped, there was an animal trap clamped on to his ankle. It was painful to watch actually, occasionally the teenage would see the young Jack try to pry it off but it always wouldn't budge and instead, more blue blood would trickle down and stain the grass blue. He also noticed that the boy was drenched in water, he must be melting, the temperature at the ice palace is below zero Celsius and it was almost thirty Celsius on earth. He gasped lightly as the boy's throat gurgled and the young boy bent over, choking out water.
He was dying.
A shadow shielded the sun from the child suddenly, Jack turned just in time to duck from the approaching man that looked curiously at what was before his eyes. Jack watched as he bent down to open the clamp and tried to soothe the whimpering boy that was trying to flee from the bigger man. Jack heart thumped as he the man smoothed the bangs away from the child's face, the fingers brushed over the forehead of the boy.
The present Jack's eyes widened as the skin on young Jack immediately changed into a darker shade, a few strands of his hair turned brown as though it was roughly stained, the young boy's head shot up and he caught the color of his eyes, the crystal blue color only covered the rim of the eyes and the rest was brown, as though the blue was pushed out. he watched in utter shock as the young boy started to sigh in comfort, the older man gasped and at the transformation. After some time, he seemed to be calculating the boy that started to cry, then picked the limp and wet child that gave up struggling away from the stranger, too exhausted under the heat, it was the last image before the colors dissolved back to white and black.
The rough grass vanished underneath his feet and was replaced by cold stone, the temperature decreased drastically and Jack sighed in comfort. Not for long though. Looking around, Jack found himself back at the cell and immediately leap towards the crack. he understood now, the young Jack was actually him. It fit, he wished it didn't, but it does.
"What do you want me to do?" he asked softly, looking at moon.
Jack had expected images, but instead there were words. They weren't real, it was just printed into his mind like bam, bam, bam. Each word imprinting in his mind like a typewriter.
Save the queen, you'll know what to do later.
Jack wanted to ask back, he wonder if he should say it out or think the question out in his mind. Well, the albino tried both. But I don't know where she is.
My light will guide and guard you, just find her and escape together.
The Frost spirit was aware that the conversation had ended. It was as though the light in his mind had dimmed to darkness. He felt lonely again, but tried to remember the part about Manny saying that he would guide him to save the queen. His mother.
Mother. The word was so foreign. As though it wasn't Jack's right to say it or even think of it.
He had a mother that was actually still alive.
Should he be excited? Happy? Or be grieved. What about the guardians? Weren't they his family? It was wrong to have two families. Right?
But right now, he had to find the lost queen.
As much as i hated the Man in moon to help Jack, I just had to go that way. i'm sorry if this story is very confusing or dull, I only spend two nights writing this.
If you have any comments about this story, click that awesome button below and you'll make my day.
~waterlemonade241