A.N: After reading a recent reviewer's review, I went back to re-read all the comments I've gotten since the beginning of this story, and omgosh. Guys can I just say how much I love and appreciate you? It motivated me to come back and finish this story. I hope to finish it by 2021. There's not a whole lot left I think. I'm still in the midst of getting my life back on track... But I'm also making little changes on the side. Like actually sticking to some form of a loose schedule.

Again though! I would like to thank each and every one of you for reading, following, favorite-ing, and reviewing this fanfic! You guys give me so much life and happiness that sometimes I wonder how a person can even be able to feel so many grateful positive emotions at once. It's overwhelming in the best way possible!

(And as always, SHOUT OUTS at the end of the Chapter!)

Viola New Chapter! I hope you guys enjoy this one!

Chapter 25: From the Hell's Highway to Death's Door.

"I somehow made it outta there and got help by morning," thanks to David, of course. Jack wasn't even sure how he even managed such a feat. It was like he was on auto-pilot. He remembered making it till the lake and collapsing near the edge out of exhaustion alone. He remembered lying on his back and looking up at the moon. He could've sworn he almost saw a face up there… but then again he was hurt and delusional; he was probably just hallucinating the whole thing. "After that, I never looked back, not even once…" Not until today, that is…

"And you never got caught?" Hiccup asked. Not that he wanted Jack caught but he doubted the cops and investigators were that bad at doing their jobs.

"They did," Jack said. "Showed up at David's doorstep a day later. But David pulled every string he could to make sure I wasn't blamed for any of it. The cops fell for the whole 'He was under Pitch's influence' crap and let me off the hook. He even did everything to stop the press and media from publishing the fact that I was there and a part of it." All that was left were the rumor and that was something his uncle could never control, no matter what he did…

"The paper said the object-the crystal went missing too… And if… If Gothel died in the crash then where did it go?" Rapunzel didn't want to believe Jack would steal it. He had no reason to… Besides, the crystal would've been the last thing on his mind, right? But her brain couldn't come up with any other reason why the crystal would go missing. After all, according to Jack's story, Gothel had it in her hand the whole time. "Did you…?" She left the question hanging.

"No," Jack told her flatly. He was a little offended by her assumptions. Heck, normally he wouldn't have given a shit… but now, it kinda hurt.

But he did understand why they would assume that. The cops even raided poor David's house in search for the stolen object but of course, they didn't find anything. Jack knew they wouldn't. He felt immensely guilty for putting David through that. The things the poor guy had to put up with over the years because of him. Jack truly didn't understand why his uncle didn't kick him out or let him rot in jail.

Thankfully though, the gun that Jack had hidden under his bed was elsewhere at the time—Well, someone had to teach him how to use it, and who else, than the Boogeyman himself? a.k.a the criminal who had Jack do all his dirty work.

Well, yeah, Jack had to get his gun back eventually, but that was a story for another time. "I honestly dunno what happened to it." But I know who does…

"What 'bout Pitch?" Merida asked as if she'd read his mind.

"Donno… I haven't seen him since," that's all Jack said; still looking straight ahead. They would be approaching the lake soon, then the town, and then Pitch. He wasn't a coward or anything but he didn't want to go to Black Oak's St. again. He didn't want to face Pitch; didn't want to face his fear. He wanted absolutely nothing to do with Pitch ever again. Jeez, talk about Karma…

"I don't think anyone has…" Hiccup muttered. Jack wasn't lying. It was as if Pitch had disappeared along with the Gothel's tainted soul. It was strange but no one dared question it. Everyone was secretly glad that they didn't have to deal with him anymore; even though no one spoke the words out loud. Things went back to normal after that and the people soon forgot about the town's Boogeyman and his beloved.

"Oi," Merida said grabbing everyone's attention. She leaned forward in her seat until her head was poking out between Jack and Rapunzel. She pointed her index finger at the windshield and beamed. "Lone zombie ahead."

Yup and she was right. A few meters away, lumbered a zombie on the right side of the road, just lolling its head to the winds. Jack understood what Merida wanted him to do. Heck, he would've done it anyway. Jack smirked coldly and stepped harder on the gas pedal.

Jack sped up the car and it roared and charged at the zombie-like a raging bull with headlights. The front of the car was dented anyway, what was one more dent gonna do? Plus, it wasn't like David's gonna yell at him for damaging his baby or anything.

The zombie came closer and closer as the gap between them got smaller. It stood still, facing them as they approached at full speed. It looked as if it wanted to be killed. Its milky eyes had almost melted out of their sockets. The black suit it wore was completely worn out and torn in many areas; sleeves were no longer attached to it. Every rib and collar bone could be seen. It looked like the decayed flesh and decomposed muscles were the only things holding the bones together.

Wait a minute…This zombie looked like… Oh Jeez!

This wasn't any ordinary zombie. It was the faster, stronger ones.

The Rombies…

(Seriously, why were they still using that name?)

Still, Jack didn't slow the Chevy down and inevitably, the four of them felt the crunch of the zombie underneath the wheels of the car. Rapunzel sucked in air through her teeth. She'll never get used to that. But somehow, it didn't feel the same. It felt different from the last time they ran over all those other zombies in front of the diner. The hair on the back of her neck stood up but she forced herself to calm her agitated nerves down. Everything was fine…

"It's Road-kill!" Jack grinned sadistically; enjoying its demise way more than he should. It was actually a little scary to watch.

"Um…" Hiccup began; looking through the rear windshield. "If it is Road-kill… Shouldn't it be on the road?" And killed?

"Wha-" The others frowned in confusion. But before anyone could even utter the word completely, Rapunzel's ear-piercing scream filled the vehicle and echoed through the deserted highway.

The car swerved dangerously as Jack struggled to get the car back under his control. Rapunzel was still screaming on the top of her lungs. Hiccup and Merida were yelling too many things at the same time for anyone to make sense of what they were trying to say and Toothless was barking like a mad dog from the footboard. The whole car was filled with frenzy and hysteria.

The crazed zombie that they had just run over was now holding onto the right side of the car and yanking mercilessly at Rapunzel's beautiful long hair. It thrust itself through the broken window determined to get inside. But it wasn't succeeding very well in its task.

Rapunzel screamed continuously; from both fear and pain. She felt as though the zombie was going rip the hair out of her skull. She tried to maneuver herself so she could get away from the zombie and then kick at it but the zombie held on too tight. And to make things worse it was also trying to sink its gross maggoty teeth into her. She gripped her hair even tighter and pulled, hoping that it would at least lessen the pain. Harsh winds blew by them in a wail.

"Rapunzel! Hold on!" Merida yelled as Hiccup repeated the words 'Oh My God' over and over again like a mantra. It wasn't helping… at all. She thought fast and grabbed her bow and lunged forward to the front of the car. She twisted her body so that the upper part of her body was in between Jack and Rapunzel and she was facing the endangered girl. With the support of her elbow on the gearshift, she shoved the sharp end of her bow at the decomposed creature but its iron grip on Rapunzel's golden locks didn't falter even in the slightest. At best, the action prevented it from getting further into the car—but just for a moment.

Merida grunted, the weight of her body was making her elbow hurt; especially when Jack wasn't keeping the god-damn car still enough.

Jack cursed, between all the bustling and panicking everyone was doing; it had become extremely hard to keep the car going straight. Not to mention the fear he felt for Rapunzel; he'd almost lost her once, he wasn't losing her again. He had to trust that Merida would take care of the zombie and protect her.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Merida thrusting her bow at it. It didn't seem to be working as well as they had hoped. If he stopped the car now, it would only end with their demise as it would give the zombie the upper hand. He had to use the momentum and speed of the car to their advantage and dislodge the zombie. It was like déjà vu but only worse. He wanted to take out his colt and freaking shoot the damn thing in the face but he had to keep his eyes on the road. He couldn't do both. Plus, it would be even harder to take aim with Merida in the way. Her red frizzy hair was flying all over the place. "Hiccup! Take my gun!"

"Wh-what?!"

"Take my gun and shoot it!" Jack barked commandingly.

"But I-I can't aim! What if I miss?" Hiccup stuttered in panic. What if he accidentally shot Rapunzel instead? He was right behind her in the back seat, watching the horror play out in front of him. He wanted to do something to help but he was just too afraid.

"You won't have to aim! Just point and fire!" Encouraged Jack. "C'mon, you can do it!"

Hiccup pressed his lips into a thin line. Yes! I can do this! I can save Rapunzel's life. She saved his for Christ's-sake! He had to return the favor. Forgetting his injured shoulder he leaned over Merida and snatched the gun from Jack's waistband and heavily plopped back into his seat with a heavy breath. Toothless was at his feet; barking and jumping relentlessly.

This was one of those 'really dead zombies' for sure. The fact that it was able to grab onto a moving car said it all. From past experience and discussions, they'd realized that bullets wouldn't kill it. So how was Jack's gun supposed to help? Does it even matter? Would the close distance help any?

Hiccup sucked in a harsh breath and only hesitated for a minute; just until he was sure he wouldn't hurt Rapunzel by mistake before pointing the gun directly at the zombie's head and pulling the trigger. A spilt second before the shot was fired; the zombie snapped its ugly head to face him; as if it knew what he was about to do.

The loud bang echoed. This time Hiccup hadn't missed. The bullet had lodged itself deep into the zombie's face. Its head snapped back from the impact. But just when they thought the zombie would let go, it went ballistic. With a sudden boost of energy and power, the zombie roared like a deranged wild animal and mercilessly wrenched Rapunzel's hair in anger, making her screams more painfully loud.

Merida gasped and cussed out loud and flopped back into her seat. This wasn't working. A split second later, an idea struck her.

The knife!

The one she took from the diner, the one that was, thankfully, still strapped to the right boot. She quickly grabbed the hilt of the knife and pulled it out of the lace. She had to act fast though. She jumped to Hiccup's side, nearly crushing him against the door.

The wild red-haired girl didn't think twice as she sliced the knife clean through Rapunzel's braided hair; just above where the zombie had a death grip. Golden strands flew everywhere. The zombie grunted at the sudden loss of leverage. It would've fallen off the car if it hadn't been for its other hand gripping the window.

Rapunzel yelped as the sudden pressure and pull on her hair was gone and she fell back onto Jack. She had no time to mourn the loss of her long beautiful golden hair as she scrambled as far away from the zombie as possible.

The zombie, having given-up on trying to get inside, used the window frame for support and began rocking the car.

To its credit; it was a lot stronger than it looked and a lot more powerful than the last one they encountered. It wasn't just them—the zombies truly were getting stronger and smarter with each passing hour. It began rocking the car so hard that each pull made the car tilt right.

The super-indestructible-zombie rocked the car to and fro several more times. With each pull getting stronger and stronger.

The latest power-pull made the car tilt so much to the right that for a few seconds it ran on only two wheels before settling back onto the road on four wheels again. All the occupants of the car were jostled harshly.

"Damn it!" Jack cursed. If he thought controlling the car was hard before, this was on a whole other level of difficultly. The car was barreling out of control. They were one step closer to death's door as each second ticked by. If he didn't think fast and do something soon they were all surely gonna end up bloody or a part of the zombie's fat-filled diet.

Except for Jack, none of the others even wore their seatbelts. It would be a repetition of the accident that happened a year ago.

The car tilted again and the teens screamed. Rapunzel was tugging so hard at Jack's hoodie, that he was sure she was going to tear it. He didn't even think to complain though; she needed something to hold onto to stop herself from sliding back towards the zombie.

If the zombie pulled any harder, there was no doubt in their minds that the car would surely topple. The highway had just ended and they were entering into the forest now. A number of thin trees surrounded them on either side.

An idea flashed into Jack's mind. He could use the trees to get the zombie off the car. The only problem with that plan was that in order to dislodge the zombie he had to get extremely close to the trees. With the way the car was veering, there was no way he could hope to control it well enough to make sure they didn't crash into the trees themselves.

Deciding that it was their only option left, Jack began to put his plan into action. But the car was going at 120 miles per hour. He realized then, what a great mistake he had made; one that would actually cost them their lives. He had doomed them all.

As he banked right and went close to the trees, the zombie gave one last heave, making the car tilt unbelievably. Out of instinct, Jack slammed the brakes and steered left. The car trampled through a number of bushes until it turned left and headed straight into the forest. The slippery slope gave them little to no friction and rendered the brakes useless as the car barged through the thin trees.

Before anyone knew what was happening. The Chevy, along with its five occupants and the zombie, plowed through the forest at deathly speed. Their car was headed right towards the lake. They could feel the rocks hitting the metal underbelly of their car; the branches of trees clawing at their windows. It was all happening too fast. Then suddenly—

SPLASH!

… And then Darkness…

So the scene where the Rombie rocks the car is actually inspired by the game "Zombie Highway" lol. If you guys have never played it check it out. It'll keep you entertained for a while. Also P.S It's legit been so long since I've been on this site that they even changed the guidelines! Jesus. Like when did that happen?

And no! I REFUSE TO GIVE THESE POOR CHILDREN A BREAK! RRAAWWRRR! *giggles devilishly*

NOW FOR MY FAVORITE PART! SHOUT OUTS TIME!

Infrared-Ultraviolet: I'm always always always happy to read your reviews. I always look forward to them. \(^^)/. You definitely did call it. I had a smile on my face anticipating your reaction to that particular reveal. Hehe. Man. Those are the exact reasons why I will always love writing Pitch. He's so much fun! (I love his nightmares as well. That backwards ribbon effect thing is sooooo well done! Gah! I could literally gush about the movie for years!) Hahahah! IKR! Jack even practiced it in front of the mirror a whole bunch! How could it have not worked! WHUT! AND YESSS! Merida and ADHD are basically canon. I mean c'mon! I didn't give it much thought until you pointed it out as well. Lol. And you are completely right about the road trips part irl. Jesus. Believe me that my family annoys my dad so much that now his policy is to just silently nod to everything and succumb to their demands. So I guess it's a trope for a reason. Lol. I think five hours is my limit. I really enjoyed working on their dynamic on the little car ride though. It was so much fun. Hahaha. Also yeah! I thought about adding some casual dialogue. But 1. The chapter would've gone on for too long and 2. I didn't wanna kill the mood and give you guys a whiplash hehe. (Plus I was saving their bonding convos for the diner chapters- they have a looooot of time to kill there.) And DAAAYYMM. You do know my writing well. Hehehehe. And omgosh! Now that you mention it, Merida and I have a lot in common. XD Mom + traditionalism troubles. OMG! Dude! I'm so glad you're doing better as well! Gosh, it really is worth it taking a break and coming back home. I hope your still doing awesome and the big depressy boi has hit the road! You want me to tell Jack to run him over? Just gimme the word. *wink wink* Hahaha. Yeah! I even raised one of those ducks so lol I'm glad I have some interesting stories to tell (apart from the fanfics that is. Hehhe) God I'm so happy to hear your getting counseling! I am too! And I genuinely feel like it has not only improved my mental health but also made me into a better person. I've also recently gotten into reading books about psychology (heavily influenced by my boyfriend who's studying to become a psychologist someday). It's pretty interesting. And again, it really helps with mental health like I seriously donno what dreadful state I'd be in without it all. For C25: Hehehe I'z glad you ship! I think they make such a super cool bad guy duo! What I wouldn't give to see a irl crossover of the four movies. Jesus. AND HOLY GOD I CRY READING YOUR TOO KIND WORDS! I don't deserve it but I really- just- Thank you! I appreciate your amazing encouragement! *cue Oogway's voice* One must discover how to "snake" by oneself, little one. Hehe. Also yeah! God I keep forgetting. Thank you for being super patient with me and my writing. Some stupid habits are hard to break. If it happens again, feel free to throw a digital shoe at me! Hehehehe. And again! I'm so so so so glad to hear from you! It never fails to bring a huge-ass smile to my face. MUILTI DOZEN COOKIES for my awesome friend! (::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::)
Guest1: Hehe! I know! It's a lot! ^^ Hope you enjoyed it! (::)(::)(::)
Ariel: Yay! Thank you so much! I'm so glad you like it! And i hope you liked this one too! (::)(::)(::)
nomadofyore: Your wish is my command! Just... a delayed one! Which I apologize for! And yes! I really wanted to turn up the badassery for JAck in this fanfic! hehehe (::)(::)
Guest2: Awwww! You're so sweet! I wish I knew your name. But don't worry I'm back now! And don't worry. It might take a while but I will not stop until this fanfic is done! I think we're sorta kinda close to the end. So stay tuned! (::)
thewindyguy: Awwww! Well. Ta-Daaa! A new chapter! Eeee! I hope I didn't get you into trouble with the people I'm sure you've woken up with your screaming. hehehe. I look forward to your thoughts on this update! (::)
elocin the lost: C2 Thank you so much for dropping the reviews! It really reminded me to sit my ass down and write and update this! And I'm so surprised you got attached to David so fast! hehehe. And ikr! Jesus. Scattered panic is basically my middle name just doing normal human things... so this was easy to write. lol C3 Thank you so much for sticking with me. And I will do my best to update more regularly! Please do continue to read and enjoy the story! That alone will be enough to keep me going! C4 Oh hun, you havent seen anything yet. *giggles evilly* And here you go, a cookie for each review! (::)(::)(::)

And that's it!

Please do drop a review!
I love to hear your thoughts and opinions and theories about this!
(Plus it'll give me more motivation to torture our favorite children a little more lol)

Take care, everyone!
Please stay extra safe! Until next time!
Byeeee!