Our Beginning

Chapter 16

No Good Deed

AN: OKAY, I should let you know that this chapter may be sad, and it may seem slightly out of character or forced, but I was building this based on what I knew about Dark Heart based on how he formed during the creation of this fiction. Keep in mind, through the last 3yrs and 3months, Dark Heart has really fleshed out. We've seen his side of the story, or part of it and now his part is reaching it's pinnacle. Everything that happens from this point really has a big deal with why he is STILL after the Care Bears in the second movie. There is a sequel in the planning stages, and if you will be patient with me and read Written in the Stars eventually you will understand what it is that the Great One did that was so horrible.

Dark Heart, as long as the room was tall, stood heartsick. He'd thought that, when he'd finally had what he'd fought for, he'd have Starshine by his side. But he was wrong. He'd misplaced his affections, and she'd betrayed him. Now just look at the position he was in.

Starshine looked up at her lover. What a mess this had all become. She had once thought the eventually, he would come to his senses and end this foolishness. How wrong she was. Now just look at the position she was in.

Dark Heart made the first move, snapping at her with his massive jaws filled with large, pointy teeth. It was a weak attempt to be sure, he didn't want to kill her. But in order to achieve his goals, he had no choice. He couldn't be selfish.

With ease, Starshine dodged the half-hearted lunge. She aimed a ball of fire at his tail, ill-aimed that is. She still loved him, and didn't want to fight. But as it was, it was the only way to occupy him long enough for the Chosen Ones to make their escape. Tears stained her eyes as she dodged yet another lunge from Dragon-Dark Heart. This one came closer than the last.

"DARK HEART!" she shouted. "It doesn't have to be this way!" Sob. "You don't have to do this!"

"Do what?" Dark Heart demanded. "Defend myself? Fight against injustice. Avenge my best friend!"

"But you have!" You won! The ones who hurt you are gone and can never hurt you or anyone else again.! But the cubs, their caregivers, they had nothing to do with that!"

Dragon-Dark Heart's tail lashed out and knocked her to the side, painfully. "They were involved the moment they were created!"

Meanwhile,

The cave shook with the force of the battle. Horse allowed Bear to lead, just in case Starshine wasn't able to hold him off.

"Come on, we have to go, quickly now!" Horse encouraged.

"HORSE! LOOK!" Bear cried. "Sunlight!"

Sure enough, there was light at the end of the tunnel. He grinned, soon they would be safe.

"Star, why did you betray me?" Dark Heart asked, tightening his great tail around the priestess. "We could've been great you and I? I would have been ruler of this world and you would have been it's queen." He'd finally reached the point where he was done playing. He had to get it over with and go after those blasted creatures before they got too far away. "We could have had everything!" As hard as he tried to suppress it, his voice could only break and tears could only pool at his eyes.

"Dark Heart, I never betrayed you!" Starshine insisted. "But I could not rightly allow you to harm innocents!"

Dark Heart tightened his tail further around, trying to postpone what he knew he had to do. "YOU BETRAYED ME!" he raged. "Did you know that your Great One never even told them what they were made for? He simply intended to use them, clearly to manipulate them as he did me! It is better that they die now than to face that later on!" He had to make her understand. He had to make her see that her precious Great One was the true villain here and that he was merely fighting that wickedness. "He would have made them indebted to him. He would've used them to achieve his purpose! Then, when he had no further use of them, he'd dispose of them!" He lowered his head, trying to shake off the memory of his own betrayal and hurt at the hands of the Great One. "I must save them, and this is the only way I know how!"

Starshine's heart broke as Dark Heart's memories reached her mind. She was sure he had no idea that he was transmitting them, but they were terrible. She could understand now, why he was so bitter, and why he was insistent on this path.

"Dark Heart…."

He looked at her. "Don't you understand! The Great One is the dark hearted one here. My only flaw is that I care TOO MUCH!! Long ago, I swore to you that I would go so far as to defy gravity. To defy everything I know to be true and find my own way. Now I have. That way is clear to me now. Join me, Starshine, if we work together, if we allow our love to bind us forever, our power will be unlimited. Don't you see? Join me!"

He released her, and changed back into his true form to hear her answer. Of course he wasn't expecting it to be a favorable one. She had become less predictable of late. And her naiveté, despite all proofs, had proven to be indelible.

Starshine looked away. Although she could understand, she still couldn't go against her heart. This was wrong. "Dark Heart, the Great One didn't mean to hurt you!"

He looked at her. "Then why did he let Fauna and Flora do all they did. Kill Earth's unborn child, break up such a perfect relationship, allow them so much power! Why he allow us to be torn apart!" His best friend's face clashed in his mind. "Why did he let them kill Cats!" He felt only anger and long buried grief.

Starshine tried to wrap her arms around hi. She understood now that the man she had though had gone mad was simply a broken man whose terrible past still beat it's torment against his soul. Even to the point where this man, who once longed for wide open spaces now could only find refuge inside a cold, dark cave where supposedly none could harm him any longer.

But he forced her back. "Off of me, ungrateful wench!" He sneered as she gasped. "Yes, ungrateful! All of this, all of this I did for you! All of this I did so that one day you and the rest could be free and so the world could finally have a suitable ruler. One willing to take a stand against wrongs! But you don't get anything!" He became a vaporous crimson cloud. "Now, out of my way, or I will move you myself."

Starshine choked back a sob and shook her head.

"I SAID OUT OF MY WAY!!!" A heavy gust of wind and lightening flung out at her. She crashed first into the ceiling of the cave then back to the ground. There was the terrible sound of crushing bones, snapping Dark Heart out of his blinding rage. His eyes grew wide in shock as his beloved slumped brokenly against the wall. He reverted instantly to his original form. "Star!" he pulled her into his arms. "Starshine! Wake up! Answer me!" But she did not wake. Dark Heart shook as blood poured seemingly like a river covered his arms as he held her. She was growing cold in his arms. "Starshine…..please….. please….don't leave me……come back…." Sobs tore his soul to pieces. "NOOOOOOOOOO!" In desperation he began chanting a spell, hoping it was a healing spell, hoping it would bring her back to life. But nothing, nothing worked. She was gone, and nothing he could do would reverse it. "No….this wasn't supposed to happen…..everything…all of it…..was for you….." And it had been. Everything he had ever done was for her. The old saying was true. No good deed goes unpunished. "Maybe…." he said to himself, "Maybe that's because no good deed is ever done for unselfish reasons. Maybe all a good deed is, is a cry for attention….for someone to say "good job" and pat you on the back," he said to himself. He came to a realization. "I'll never make that mistake again!" His eyes became cold. It was all because of those creatures that this had happened. He would make them pay.

Meanwhile…

"Horse, do you know where we are?" Bear asked her mate. This forest was unfamiliar.

Horse shook his head. "No Bear, I don't. But the Lady will be here soon, I'm sure. She'll know. We'll just rest here until then. You and the cubs need it."

As if on cue, a bright light glowed, announcing the appearance of the priestess.

"Lady!" Horse bowed to her.

Star smiled. "Chosen Ones, you and your cubs must go south. Not more than a mile you will reach the ocean once more. There you will find your ship awaiting you. Sail five days to the west, to the center of the ocean. There, you will finally reach your destiny, the end of your quest."

Horse looked up at her. "Yes, Lady, but, aren't you coming too?" Surely, they weren't just going to leave her here.

But she shook her head sadly. "No, I have met my own destiny here. I will soon be reincarnated into a human life. But now is not the time to go into details. You must leave now. Dark Heart will be after you soon. Waste no more time, for it is not on your side this day." And with those final words, Star vanished without a trace.

Though shocked by the news, Horse did as he was told. He led his new family through the dense forest and true to the Lady's words, their ship awaited them at the shores of an unfamiliar beach. They boarded and soon were headed to the west, to their future.

AN: That my friends is the last actual chapter. There will be an epilogue posted within a day or so. Tell me what you thought. If you want to know what happens with Dark Heart and the priestess, review. BTW, this chapter was largely influenced by the musical Wicked, just incase you couldn't tell.