Hey, guys! Welcome back to RFL 2: Into the Dark! Sorry I couldn't update last week; had a lock-in at school in which I stayed up 'til 6 AM, so...had to take a while to recover from that. But here I am now, so let's get right to the reviews!

Thanks so much to TheSinPride and Loftcat27 for reviewing! Glad you guys like it so far! :)

And with that, on with the chapter!

Chapter 10: Providing Proof

The atmosphere in the room was uncomfortably silent for a long period of time, though Jack had expected as much. After all, he was quite aware that his claims sounded ridiculous, especially to a room full of people that had been hidden and isolated for the past six years, unaware of the developments that had taken place above their heads.

Not to mention the fact that I came here practically delirious from heat exhaustion… the boy silently acknowledged. I obviously wasn't in my right mind then...it wouldn't be too much of a stretch for them to believe that I'm still out of it. Either way...I must make them believe me, both for their sake, Simon's, and mine.

Dr. Fletcher was the first to break the silence, speaking slowly and hesitantly, as though unsure of himself. "A...Guardian of Childhood? You…?"

Jack nodded in response. "Yes. My name is Jack Frost...Guardian of Fun."

"Uh...since when was there a fifth Guardian?" Shiro asked, one eyebrow raised.

"I've certainly never heard of such a thing," Sera answered skeptically. "The boy's obviously lying. Either that, or the desert sun got to his mind more than we previously thought."

"I'm telling the truth!" Jack insisted. "And I know it sounds insane, but I swear to you that I haven't gone mad from the heat. Five months ago, I was chosen to become the fifth Guardian of Childhood, by Tsar Lunar himself."

If anything, this statement only increased the tension in the room.

"Please…" Ferran growled with a roll of his cobalt eyes. "Why would the Tsar suddenly decide to do a snow sprite any favors? It's not like he did anything for our kind when our homes were being burnt to the ground!"

A frown made its way onto Jack's face as he briefly hesitated to respond. In truth, despite his Guardianship, he too harbored a distinct resentment for the Tsar of Soluna, due to both his neglect for the snow sprites and more personal ties to Jack himself. The boy had never approved of the fact that the Tsar seemed to act as a puppet master from afar, nudging his Guardians into danger for him like pawns across a chessboard. He had always felt as though Tsar Lunar never truly cared about those he commanded, merely sitting back in his aloof, distant way as he plotted out the most "convenient" path for them (or rather, convenient for him) he could find.

And of course, the fact that the man had abandoned Jack and left him to fend for himself for six years in order to "build character" did not help in the slightest.

Still, rather than jump to agree with Ferran, Jack took a deep breath and continued, "I...must admit that I too feel little appreciation for the Tsar and what he has done...or what he has neglected to do. But even still...I am a Guardian. And before you ask, yes, the people of Soluna know what I am. Some are still wary of me, it's true...and I believe that it will take far more time for everyone-or at least almost everyone-to fully accept me. But I can assure you that there has been a start. I can now walk the streets of the capital without a hood to conceal my face, and I am no longer hunted. Granted, part of it may be because of my status...but I'm continuously working to prove that snow sprites are not the demons that everyone thought we were."

"There's still no way we can truly know that!" Sera cut in. "You could easily be lying through your teeth!"

"Sera's right," Ferran quickly agreed, crossing his arms. "Humans and others were quick to turn on us with absolutely no prompting. How can we trust that they've suddenly decided to change their minds after quite literally attempting to destroy us!?"

"Actually," Jack responded, steeling himself for giving a long explanation. "Believe it or not, they were prompted to turn on us."

Rayla's eyebrows creased as she looked at the younger sprite in confusion. "They were prompted?" she asked uncertainly. "Are you suggesting that we snow sprites somehow provoked-?"

"No," Jack interrupted, shaking his head. That's not what I'm suggesting at all. In fact, we were not to blame in the slightest, and even our assailants did not quite know exactly what they were doing."

Shiro frowned. "Which means…?" he prompted.

"Well…" Jack exhaled. "It means that all of us were deceived from the beginning. The one responsible for it all...was none other than the Nightmare King himself."

As expected, his words were met with wide eyes and a few gasps.

"The...Nightmare King!?" Dr. Fletcher exclaimed in surprise. "How is such a thing possible!?"

"It can't be!" Sera protested firmly. "I told you, he's lying!"

"Damn…" Shiro cursed, running a hand over his silvery hair. "If that's true, then...this is all much worse than we could've imagined…"

"Hold on, hold one, allow me to explain," Jack told them, holding up his hands to quiet the anxious council. "It is...quite a long story, actually, but I will do my best to explain quickly."

With the councilmembers' permission, Jack launched into the tale of the Nightmare King's plans regarding the snow sprites, careful to be as concise as he could as he did so. Truthfully, it was still a difficult story for him to tell. Five months had evidently not been enough to temper the horror that had gripped him upon learning of the dark fates that befell the sprite children that had been captured by the evil specter. As such, he was forced to stop to calm himself several times throughout his narrative, but continuously fought to still his wavering voice and press on.

Thankfully, the adult snow sprites did not seem to mind. They too required time to process the extraordinarily dark things Jack told them, staying dead silent throughout his narrative. Even Ferran and Sera, though they both still seemed skeptical, appeared visibly disturbed by even the possibility that Jack was telling the truth.

"This...was all to stop a snow sprite from becoming a Guardian…?" Shiro asked incredulously once Jack was finished, eyes wide. "And...to create an army of Fearlings…out of our children...?"

Jack nodded gravely. "Indeed. Pitch Black manipulated the rest of the races in Soluna to turn against us for his own safety and personal gain. I won't pretend any of our attackers were blameless in this...but the Nightmare King was the mastermind behind it all, until myself and the other Guardians bound him with magical chains in his own lair, completely imprisoning him and the rest of the Nightmare Army. With him gone...change should be entirely possible. Which means...you should certainly be able to return to the surface."

Another silence fell over the room as the councilmembers exchanged uncertain glances. Rayla was the first to speak up and break the silence, saying softly, "We would...certainly like to believe you, Jack, but...we have no way of knowing that you're telling the truth...there's no proof…"

"Actually," came a Simon's voice suddenly from behind them, causing them all to start and turn in surprise. "There is proof." The archer smirked wryly at the six sprites' startled expressions. "And yes, by the way, I'm still here."

"Cut the sarcasm, human," Sera snapped impatiently, though Jack could tell that she was still discomforted by his story by the slight waver in her harsh tone. "Where exactly is your so-called 'proof'?"

"Check the saddlebags you so kindly relieved me of upon my arrival," Simon told them with a shrug. "There should be a book in one of them...it will confirm his story."

Jack frowned slightly in momentary confusion, then his eyes widened in realization. Groaning slightly, he ran a hand through his hair exasperatedly as he gave Simon a sharp look. "...you didn't," he deadpanned. "You didn't actually buy that book. Tell me you didn't."

The archer's cheeky smirk all but confirmed Jack's suspicions. "What's the problem?" he asked innocently. "I found it a rather interesting read...and entertaining, at that."

"That disgrace to literature was not 'entertaining,'" Jack insisted with a scowl. "Besides, what exactly is it supposed to prove? Practically none of it was even accurate!"

"That's true, but even so, the fact that the book exists in the first place is proof enough that you're telling the truth," Simon pointed out. "It is part of a series that portrays, however inaccurately, the origin stories of each of the Guardians of Childhood. Given the fact that there was a book written about you...well, that would confirm your claims, now wouldn't it?"

As reluctant as Jack was to use a children's book of all things to prove his honesty, he was forced to admit that it was a decent idea on Simon's part. The book's contents would not be completely irrefutable, of course, but it was certainly better than the nothing they had been working with so far.

"Fine, then," he sighed. "Let's use it...hopefully it will convince you that I'm telling the truth."

Each of the other snow sprites appeared rather confused by the conversation between the Guardian and the archer, but did not bother questioning their banter. Instead, Rayla merely stepped forward and nodded, saying, "Very well. We will look into the book in question."

"And how do we know this won't be a complete waste of time?" Ferran asked with a roll of his eyes.

"There's only one way to find out," Dr. Fletcher said firmly. "And that's taking a look at the book, of course." Ignoring Ferran's mildly annoyed expression, the doctor then turned to face Jack, studying the boy carefully for a few moments.

Jack blinked, confused. "Er...is there something wrong, Dr. Fletcher?" he asked hesitantly.

The doctor frowned and replied, "My boy, I believe we might need to take you back to your room to get some rest. You're beginning to look quite exhausted…"

Despite wanting to protest, Jack found himself unable to deny Dr. Fletcher's observation. In truth, he had been gradually tiring ever since he had finished telling his story, but had hoped that blatantly ignoring the approaching fatigue would prevent him from showing signs of falling victim to it.

Evidently, he was wrong.

"I…" the young sprite sighed. "Fine, then...but only if Simon can come with me."

"And why is that?" Ferran asked suspiciously. "Is there, perhaps, a reason you're trying to end the interrogation early? Is there something you don't want us to know after all…?"

"Or perhaps you're planning on trying to escape and disclose our location?" Sera added, hands on her hips.

Jack opened his mouth to deny their accusations, but Shiro beat them to it, rolling his cerulean eyes in exasperation. "Honestly, what's gotten into you two lately? Quit being so paranoid!" he told them. "We've got nothing else to ask and no reason to suspect these two as of right now. Besides, they're going a couple rooms away, and haven't even seen the majority of the city yet. How exactly are they supposed to plan an escape route of any sort?"

"Not to mention the fact that I'm...physically weakened at the moment," Jack chimed in when Ferran and Sera said nothing.

"And the fact that I'm unarmed," Simon added dully. He glanced briefly at his tied-off left sleeve. "...in more ways than one."

Rayla nodded. "Right...I see no reason why we can't let them rest for a bit while we examine the book, then discuss our next course of action. Darreth-" She turned to face Dr. Fletcher. "-could you escort them back to Jack's infirmary room? And Shiro, please retrieve the book the two of them mentioned."

Shiro nodded. "Sure thing, Rayla," he replied.

"Very well," Dr. Fletcher agreed as well. He then proceeded to help Jack stand up and head towards the door, gesturing for Simon to follow.

"'Unarmed?' Really?" Jack mumbled dully to the red-haired man once he had joined them.

Simon chuckled lightly in response. "Sometimes, Jack," he said wryly. "One simply needs to learn how to laugh at themself, no matter the situation. Whether one is taken prisoner, loses an arm, or has a silly children's book written about them-"

"Just shut up about the goddamn book."

That's all for now! Hope you guys enjoyed, and don't forget to leave a review to tell me what you think! See you guys next time!

For now, Sapphire316, out.