Hey Everyone, I'm here with another update.
Apologies for the delay. Life has been moving a lot, particularly the married part. But here we are, back again.
So in the last chapter we discovered: (1) The Westergaards hate Hans and the young prince has been stripped of his title (2) Germany what the Duke removed from office (3) Both The prince and the Duke have been abducted by Icy and Stormy
CAST
(In Order Of Appearance)
Characters And Voice Actors
Pitch Black - Jude Law
Icy, the Witch of Ice - Mila Kunis
Stormy, the Witch of Storms - Megan Fox
The Duke of Weselton - Alan Tudyk
Prince Hans – Santino Fontana
Meanwhile back in the lowest level of the Boogeyman's lair, which opened up into a large underground cavern; Pitch was preparing to send his nightmares out upon the sleeping world. With a twist of his wrist, 200 black horses composed of glittering sand and yellow eyes appeared before the dark figure. The nightmares snorted and snarled as they restlessly barged past each other towards their evil master.
The Boogeyman raised his hands to calm the wild animals. "Easy my minions. I have something to say." The Nightmares continued to rudely snarl, drool and snort. Pitch angrily glared at the unruly rabble. "PARDON ME, BUT I AM TALKING!" he growled, his voice echoed throughout the cave. The Black Horses immediately ceased and remained patient to received their commands.
"Now my pets. It has come to that time at last. This is our big moment. Our time of revenge is at hand. Tonight, we will attack the sleeping world to the most greatest extent we can achieve. I want you, my trusted pets, to cover this world in darkness. Make it known to those cursed Guardians that we are here to claim the world back by any means necessary."
Pitch's speech was cut short upon hearing echoing sounds originating from the cave entrance. "Ah, it appears we have company," he said, he then turned back to his patient minions. "Go, on your way." Pitch pointed to an exit and his nightmare's galloped off into the night. Pitch clasped his hands together and smiled smugly. "I've made my move. Now you make yours my dear enemies," He snarled then evaporated into a billion grains of Black Sand and flew off to the lair entrance.
At the lairs main entrance, Icy and Stormy shuffled in with body sacks over their shoulders containing their assigned targets. Each bag twitched and squirmed as both men wrestled with their entrapment. "I have to admit, that mission was fun." Stormy gloated.
"Speak for yourself, I had to storm an entire castle just to visit the dungeons." Icy retorted.
Stormy rolled her eyes. Nothing ever seemed to fulfil her elder sisters desires. The room around them darkened abruptly.
"Icy, still ever the whiner." echoed a sinister voice. "One would think you ungrateful with the power that I have given you. Just like a spoilt child, forever whining and complaining, never acknowledging what it has until it is taken away."
With those final words, a dark laughter sounded as Black Sand began to be drawn from Icy's body. Icy started to become frail and weak. She collapsed under the weight of holding the body bag which contained Hans.
"Please stop," Stormy cried, as she saw her sister struggling for breath.
The attack ceased and the darkness was lifted as Pitch materialised upon the bridge which overlooked the lair's entrance. Strangely enough from what Icy could make out, Pitch was actually enjoying this little drama. He pointed at the deformed sister, "You have no right to complain about the designs of my plan. YOU BELONG TO ME."
A rather dried up looking Icy could only bow and mouth the words of "Sorry." Pitch snapped his fingers and her body and skin rejuvenated and renewed as the Black Sand returned to her body.
"Leave us." Pitch ordered. Stormy began to retreat into the shadows but halted upon seeing Icy remaining stood where she was. Pitch noticed this, "Disobeying me again?" he scowled.
"Don't ever do that to me again!" Icy spat.
Stormy was horrified, "Icy... What are you doing? He could've killed you."
Icy turned to Stormy, "That was not necessary." She then turned to the dark figure which stood above them. "How of a man. Abusing women to put them back in their place. Do you get off on this type of thing? I didn't sign up for this crud."
The Boogeyman was furious, "Excuse me, you do not get to talk to me let that. If you've got a problem with how I run things here, then you will come up here and say it to my face!" he snapped.
Icy scowled and flew up to the overlooking platform where the dark figure stood, Stormy followed. "Not once have I questioned your leadership. I just crave a challenge. Storming a Castle and stealing a Prince isn't even in the same league as what our previous masters tasked us with."
Stormy was shocked with Icy's behaviour. Was she trying to get herself killed? Had she forgotten all the gasping for air as her energy was drained leaving her as dried as a raisin? It's like she was tempting fate with this disrespectful attitude towards Pitch. Stormy did her best to calm her sister, "Icy, count your blessings for pete sake."
Pitch filled with anger, this girls disrespect was impossible. Although he couldn't stop himself from feeling impressed with Icy's lust for a difficult challenge. He simply smirked and glided over to the girl and whispered in her ear. "Let me tell you something, witch of ice. Could you have pulled off such a successful mission without the power I gave you? Aren't you aware that this mission was designed to be a warm up, an appetiser to the main event? As I have told you and seeing as you're incapable of retaining information, I shall repeat myself again. You don't get to complain about the designs of my plan. YOU BELONG TO ME AND YOU'LL DO AS I SAY!" With that he slapped her across the face which sent her falling to the bottom level from where she was standing before. Stormy flew after her and managed to catch her before making contact with the ground.
Pitch's smirking face appeared over the edge of the platform from which he stood. He stared at the two sisters, but more so at Icy. "Be patient my dears, I will have another mission for you soon."
Stormy took this opportunity to get the Boogeyman's attention. "So where do you what them?" She said as she motioned towards the sacks containing the two captives.
Pitch smiled, "Put them down before me," he commanded as he dimmed the candles which hung on the walls with his Black Sand. Icy and Stormy dropped the bags to the ground with a thud and tipped both men out.
"How dare you!" said the Duke as he cascaded out of Stormy's bag. When the Duke recovered he glared at Stormy. "I agreed to go with you, but not in a sack!" The Duke snapped.
"Shut it Weaseltown. You are my prisoner and you'll go in what I see fit." Stormy spat.
Prince Hans stood up as soon as he was able and stood face to face with his captor. He stared into her icy blue eyes. "Why have you brought me here? I told you, I am not Prince Hans."
Duke glanced to see Hans, "Oh my Prince, please save me." he cried as he crawled over to his saviour. Hans sighed, he could've face palmed himself if his hands weren't bound together by Black Sand.
Icy grabbed the Prince's chin in an icy grip, her nails dug into his cheeks. "Would you mind running that by me again, your highness?" she snarled and threw him down to the floor.
A finger click echoed from the lair ceiling and the sisters took that as their cue to leave. Both girls bowed and disappeared into the shadows.
The Duke and Prince Hans looked around their eerie surroundings. It was so cold and damp, water occasionally dripped from the ceiling which echoed throughout the vast emptiness. But for the most part it was dark, so dark that the candles on the walls looked like stars.
The Duke grabbed one of the body sacks and wrapped himself in it to fight off the chill and dampness. "Where are we?" he wondered.
"I'm not really interested in where we are. I'd rather look for the way out." replied the disgraced Prince. He peered into the darkness in an attempt to seek out an exit from this purgatory, but none could be found.
"Can you see anything?" asked the Duke, peering into the nothingness.
"Well what do you think?!" Hans snapped. "I would've gotten out of here if you hadn't blabbed and called me Prince."
A dark laughter echoed from the shadows. The Duke leapt into the Prince's arms. "Wha-What was that?" he stammered,
"GET OFF ME!" Hans growled as he dropped the Duke to the floor with a dusty thud. "It's just your imagination going wild in your senile mind."
Then the dark laughter sounded again, only this time it seemed to be coming from everywhere around the helpless captives. Every so often, shadows brushed past the two shaken visitors thus creating more feelings of anxiety and panic.
"LOOK, WHOEVER YOU ARE?! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO KEEP US HERE!" Shouted the young Prince as he looked around to discover who was mocking them.
"I HAVE EVERY RIGHT!" echoed a menacing voice.
The terrified Duke cried into the darkness, "What do you want from us?"
The voice laughed again and when it spoke it sent fear coursing through both men. "It is not a matter of what I want from you. It is what you want from me." The mysterious foe replied.
Prince Hans cautiously stepped forward as he couldn't see the floor too clearly. "Oh really? Well I'm not into making any deals with a coward who doesn't talk face to face."
Pitch roared with laughter. "Behold the young, naïve and disgraced Prince of the Southern Isles, a man who left Princess Anna to die from fatal wounds sustained by Queen Elsa. You have no ground to stand upon down here." he snarled as portions of the lair floor in front of the prisoners cracked and disintegrated into the abyss below. As the two men stumbled back from the deteriorating floor, the Duke stared at Prince Hans. "You said that Prince Anna was killed by Queen Elsa."
"And that would have been true if she hadn't escaped," grunted the Prince as he tried to justify himself a little.
"You see, with Elsa and Anna gone, Prince Hans would have been elected to rule Arendelle. Such a wasteful idea, no wonder it didn't succeed." said the voice.
The Duke grabbed the Prince, "How could you?"
"Don't play me. I happen to remember two henchmen taking pot shots at the Queen in her ice castle." The Prince retorted. "Don't contest it. I know it was you that gave the order."
A mocking laugh sounded from the ceiling above. Prince Hans had had enough, He was intimidated and angry. "ENJOYING THE SHOW? WHY NOT JOIN IT FREAK?"
"Oh why should I?" replied the voice. "I'm enjoying this too much."
But Hans wasn't having any of this anymore. "NO. I ORDER YOU TO SHOW YOURSELF CREATURE OF SHADOW!" he shouted.
The candles around the lair abruptly were lit revealing the size of the cave. The Duke and the young Prince gasped and gazed at the enormity of its size as they looked around in awe. Soon their eyes fixed upon a dark figure who stood above them on an overlooking bridge. But of course Pitch had made himself appear more large and menacing with his Black Sand and Shadows.
The Duke screamed and hid behind the disgraced prince upon meeting this foes cold grey eyes. "So you're the one whose been toying with us then," called Prince Hans.
The Duke was so frightened to talk to this foe which unnerved him but he managed to string a sentence together. "And you're the one that organised our abduction?"
The dark figure mockingly clapped at the two men's deduction as he dematerialised into a swirling mass of Black Sand and disappeared. The prisoners looked at each other with confused expression. Then a thud was heard as the Black Sand dropped from the bridge and thumped down to the ground in front of them causing the whole lair to shake. The prisoners steadied themselves as Pitch materialised within the Black Sand. As he took a step forward, Prince Hans grabbed a dead tree branch from the lair floor and drew it at the approaching foe.
Pitch chuckled at the pathetic attempt. "No weapon can harm me let alone a tree branch." He snarled. Hans looked at the dark figure then back to the dead tree he held and dropped it. What was a branch really gonna do against this foe? He stood in front of the Duke guarding him from the Boogeyman.
Pitch smirked and returned back to his normal form. However the men still found him unnerving. "What is the point to all this resistance when all I am offering is power?"
Hans wasn't going to fall into this trap set before them. "Well look at yourself for a start," he replied.
But the Duke's ear pricked up at the mention of power. He tugged on the Prince's torn garments "Calm yourself Prince Hans," ordered the Duke. Still cowering at the sight of the dark figure, he turned to face him. "What power do speak of my Lord?" he asked.
Pitch smiled, it seemed like his plan was beginning to work, well for one of them at least. "Not long ago, Arendelle ceased trading with you. This has put a strain on your economy and ruined your respected reputation" he answered.
The Duke looked at the floor and nodded and sadness in his eyes. "What can you do my Lord?" he asked.
The Prince halted the brainwashed Duke, "Hold on, what do you think you are doing? This is the mastermind which had us both abducted, had us freaked out of our wits and now claims to be concerned with your economy?"
The Prince looked at the Boogeyman, "I know people of your type, and I'm not biting. Besides you haven't given me any reason to trust you."
The dark figure clasped his hand together, "Oh is that so?" he smirked. "Well if you don't want to accept my offer then you are well in your right to do that. But I do honestly think you'd like what I have planned for you."
The Prince was interested but didn't trust in what Pitch was saying. But for the sake of satisfying his own curiosity he asked anyway. With a sigh he asked the question. "Ok... try me."
Pitch smiled. "How does "The Westergaard that saved Arendelle" sound?"
- To be Concluded -
― End of The Guardians of Winter Book One - The King of Nightmares Returns ―
― Look out of The Guardians of Winter Book Two - The Rise of Good and Evil ―
― Coming Soon ―
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