Chapter 3
The Escape

"20 years…" spoke a voice into the darkness "20 years I have been in this prison…chained to the floor, removed from the land that was once mine…charged with a crime I did not commit…20 years, waiting for the right person, pure of heart and naïve to free me. Finally, that time has come."
Juno spoke into the darkness as he felt a surge of power rushing through his body. With his sword removed from the barrier it moved through the aura of darkness and returned to him, returning him to his full strength. With a deep breath, he began to pull at his chains, shaking the entire candy kingdom. With a mighty scream, and a terrifying pull he ripped his chains from the ground. He was free but still trapped behind the barrier of light and with no shadows cast on the ground he would be unable to leave his cell. He stood a moment in thought, how was he to break out of this prison for good? It was then that two banana guards entered the dungeon with Princess Bubblegum.
"Juno!" She exclaimed "I don't know how you were able to break your bonds, but it was a useless effort! You're still trapped behind the barrier of light"
"Oh yeah Princess? Well we'll just see about that!" and with a mighty shout, Juno's body began to emanate a black aura. Slowly his body was covered by darkness which took shape around him forming a black, scaled chestpeice, spiked gauntlets and clawed hands, boots and a hood. A mask concealed the bottom half of his face, and his eyes were white dots hidden in darkness. He slammed his hands against the bars of his cell, immediately being shocked. He screamed in pain as he held the barrier for minutes, until eventually he dropped to the floor. The Princess and her guards waited for him to get up for what seemed like an eternity, but he did not.
"Do you think he's dead?" One of the guards said.
"I dunno, Princess what do you think?"
"It's possible that the power of the light barrier may have been too much for him. Juno is a creature of pure darkness, but he never attempted to destroy the barrier before. I imagine the raw force of light may have destroyed him."
Princess Bubblegum looked at the ground, deep in thought for a moment and said "pull the lever to open the bars; I will check if he is dead or merely incapacitated."
The two guards nodded dutifully and as the Princess walked over to the cell they readied their hands on the switch. PB nodded, and with a mighty pull the bars opened. The princess knelt down beside Juno checking his pulse and examining his body.
"He's dead" the Princess said with a sigh of relief, but the second those words were spoken, in a movement that defied time; Juno leapt forward and rolled onto his feet, sliding towards the exit. His speed was unreal even after two decades of confinement. Juno looked at the two guards who immediately exploded with terror. Juno wasted no time, tearing through the doors of the elevator and bursting through the top of it, running up the long shaft until he reached the main hall of the kingdom. Juno burst through the wall and kept running; knowing full well the guardians who protect the Candy Kingdom would sense his evil powers and try to stop him, and as he ran through the town square he could see them beginning to stir.
"EVIL PRESENCE DETECTED!" They shouted and began to rise, but Juno was too fast and before they could destroy him, he was out of the kingdom and running towards the horizon.
Hours later Finn and Jake returned to the Candy Kingdom, and ran inside the castle. They both let out a serious "Whoa" at the sight of the damage to the main hall. Princess Bubblegum was there already overseeing the repairs.
"Princess! What happened here?" Finn exclaimed
"Oh Finn, it's worse than I could have imagined. Juno has escaped! Something or someone must have returned his power source to him. This is bad, this is unimaginably bad" She cried.
Finn, afraid that telling Princess Bubblegum the truth would make her hate him for life, dropped on one knee, grabbed her hand and said "Princess, I vow that I will not rest until this fiend is brought to justice."
The Princess exclaimed "No Finn! You can't face him. He's way to powerful!"
Finn jumped to his feet and raised a fist righteously to the air, "I can defeat anything!"
"No Finn, I promise you, you cannot win this. Just leave it to me. I'll come up with something, after the kingdom is repaired, and fortified accordingly."
"But Princess…" Finn said sadly
"No Finn, I order it as Princess of the Candy Kingdom."
Finn let out a sigh and said "Alright Princess, we won't fight him."
"Thank you Finn. I know I sound harsh, but it's only because I care about you and couldn't bear to see you killed at the hands of that monster" she said hugging Finn.
Finn blushed brightly as he was being hugged and could only mumble incoherently. The Princess released Finn and said "you two go home and rest, I have much to do today and many preparations to make. I'll send for you as soon as everything is ready.
Finn and Jake both left the Candy Kingdom feeling guilty and conflicted about the turn of events, however they pressed forward. As they left, Princess Bubblegum turned to Peppermint Butler.
"Peppermint Butler, I want you to send word to the five Kingdoms of Ooo. Let them know we need to meet for a conference right away."
"Whatever for M'lady?" Peppermint Butler asked.
"Because Ooo, is going to war…"