Chapter Five
Somewhere
Jack's startled gaze took in the rumpled sight of Albus Dumbledore. If he was in this awful place, they had a chance of getting out alive. He had turned, prepared to strike out at whoever had grabbed him, and was extremely relieved that he didn't have to. Then, with a sinking feeling in his heart, he remembered their last conversation. He had not even had a chance to talk to his people yet about Salem.
Would any of them willingly stand for Salem and his men? How had the time come so quickly, right upon the heels of their latest disaster? He did not even know how many of his people had survived their nightmarish battles with the Piratesses. He wondered if Albus could read his mind. He had to get help for Faith.
He looked down at the spot he had last seen Salem, realizing why the cat had been so frightened. The cat was no longer there. Salem already knew he was in trouble. With the finger upon Albus' lips, Jack knew he could not speak out in a loud voice, so in a voice that was barely audible, he whispered, "I need a healer. My sister is dying."
Knowing that he dared not speak lest he might be overheard, Albus kept Jack's gaze with a deeply serious look in his own eyes before slowly removing his finger from his lips. With his eyes never blinking or moving from Jack's, Albus reached into his robe and pulled out a wand. Then he waved his other hand at Jack, gesturing for him to lead the way.
Jack turned and hastily went back to where he had left Faith. He was relieved to see her laying where he had last seen her and that she did not seem to have attempted to move. He knew she had probably tried and was not able to. In a hushed voice, Jack told her, "I am coming, Faith. We'll help."
He reached her side, knelt down beside her, and gazed down worriedly into her face. She was so still he was afraid she was no longer with them. His hand touched her face gently. She had to still be with them. He could not imagine a world that did not have his very feisty sister in it, and he only hoped that Albus would be in time to return her to her normal self.
Faith's struggles to move after she'd scared the talking worm away from her had only succeeded in putting tightness in her aching muscles and seizing her up more. She'd given up as much as she could and had been waiting, in vain hope, for Dawson, Jack, and Salem to return since then. She'd felt Jack's approach before he reached her, but it took her a moment before she could reopen her eyes. She was so tired and in so much pain that at one time she would have told him to leave her, but now she did not speak a word of that. Instead, as her eyes reopened at his touch, her gaze shifted toward him and she smiled a weak half-smile. "I'm not dead yet, Birdboy," she told him with what was supposed to be a strong, jesting voice but came out so weakly that she could barely hear herself.
She caught movement behind Jack and turned her eyes to look in that direction. An old man with long, white hair and beard was swiftly following Jack. He carried a wand aloft, but it was the black robe that swirled all around him that Faith's gaze dropped to. She pulled back, her mind flashing back to the other robe that Judson had worn, the robe he'd worn most often when he'd taken her. It was all a swirl of black . . .
Salem ran. His heart pounding, he ran and leapt, twisting in and out of feet without bothering to take any notice of who was almost trampling him. He raced as though his paws had been given wings, as if his very life hung in the balance and all depended on his reaching his destination in time. He darted between Dawson's legs, almost causing the boy to fall, and kept running.
At last, what he sought came into his vision, and Salem redoubled his efforts. He ran even faster until he was near enough to jump, and then he sailed into the air like a black lightning bolt and landed onto a woman's stomach. He started in immediately, loudly calling her name, urgently kneading her fur, and persistently licking her face. "KATRINA," his panicked voice was almost a yell, "WAKE UP! KATRINA, WAKE UP! FAITH NEEDS YOU!"
I need you! he thought to himself. If any one would protect him, it would be Faith, but Salem could only hope she would. As he continued trying to awaken Katrina, he cast a nervous glance around for his men but could see none of them. Perhaps that was for the best. If they were there, they might well turn against him if they thought doing so would help them out in the long run. After all, had not the betrayal of one of his own men been what had cast him into this life of a fur coat, four legs, a tail, and whiskers in the first place? "KATRINA!"
Katrina shuddered and brushed at the paws. "Not now, Tom! I have a headache!" she moaned.
Salem's fur would have bristled more at Katrina's response if it had not already been out at its fullest. The voice that answered her was not her husband's but was instead the commanding tone of a world dictator. "Katrina Lewis, get yourself up this instant! Gods only know where your husband is, but Faith needs you now!"
His insistent voice brought Katrina's eyes instantly open. "What's wrong, Salem?" she asked. "What's wrong with Faith?" It was then that she heard another voice calling her name and recognized it as young Dawson Leery.
Oh, Gods! What had happened to her beloved Faith? She sat up, dashing the sleep from her eyes, and then crawled shakily to her feet. Her Faith needed her; she had to be there immediately! She now took the authoritative tone as she looked down at Salem. "Well?" she inquired.
"It's about time you got to your feet!" Salem barked in retortion. "She's dying! Come on!" Without waiting for a response, he took off again, once more darting through Dawson's legs on his way back to Faith now.
Twice, that dratted cat had almost knocked Dawson to his feet, but at least he had found Katrina, who now looked inquiringly at him! "What's wrong with Faith, Dawson, and where is she?"
"She's dying!" Dawson gasped out. "Judson almost killed her! It was just too much! I can't lose her, Katrina! I can't!" the frightened boy wailed even as he felt Katrina's arms give him a gentle hug.
"Lead me to her, Dawson. I can save her if I can reach her."
Grabbing Katrina's hand, Dawson ran, pulling her behind him back into the direction he had just come from. They had to reach Faith in time. If she died, his whole world would be black. He didn't think he could live without her, and even if he could, he didn't want to.
Katrina ran beside him, praying to Bast that they would reach her in time. They ran so fast that they almost fell over a huddled shape that knelt beside Faith. Oh my Goddess! Katrina thought as she took in the appearance of Faith. Who was this man who knelt beside her Faith, dressed all in black, and why was Faith pulling away from him?
Where the Devil was Jack! Then her nose told her that Jack was there somewhere. She moved to stand beside the man and was about to strike him away from Faith when she realized that Jack was trying to hold Faith down and that her vision had been blocked by the man. Why was Faith fighting so hard with her last ounces of strength? "Jack?" Katrina asked.
"Something has terrified Faith," Jack told her. "She must lay still so that the healing can begin."
"Who is this?" Katrina whispered in the same voice that Jack had used with her. She thought he must be afraid some one would overhear them and realize that they had weakness amongst them. Would they attack? Her green eyes wandered up the wall as far as they could reach but could see no one, but her keen ears picked up the sounds of others far above them. Who was up there? Were they in Hell, or was it just their Judgment Day?
It was then that she clearly saw the face of the man and knew that she did not know him. From the way Jack was trying to hold Faith down so that the man could administer to her, Katrina figured Jack knew him and that was good enough for her. She walked around to the other side of Faith and knelt down. "Little sister," she talked to Faith even as her hands touched her, "lay still so that we might heal you. Why do you pull away from this man? Do you know him?"
Salem had stopped, frozen in shock, when he'd managed to get near enough to Faith to see what was happening. The damned Wizard Albus Dumbledore had already reached her, and that fool of a Pirate Captain was trying to hold Faith down so that Albus could do whatever he was going to do to her! Salem's tail twitched as he watched the scene and deducted what had brought this about. Albus must have offered to heal Jack's people, a way to help win the others' trust, but Salem still did not trust the old goat as far as he could have shredded his robe. Clearly, from the way she was pulling away from him, Faith's instincts told her not to trust the man, too.
Salem cautiously approached on silent paws even as Faith struggled against both Jack and Katrina, who was now attempting to assist her Captain in holding the girl still, and grunted and grumbled something that was mostly incoherent. The one word he could make out was Judson. Was Faith losing her mind as she slipped closer to death's edge, or did she know not to trust Dumbledore but didn't know how to tell the others why she did not? Could it be that Jack and Katrina were even now frightening her, as they fought to hold her down? Salem came to a stop beside Dawson's legs.
One glance at the boy told Salem that the kid was also confused. Salem looked back at Faith. Out of all the Wizards, Albus would have come the closest to having his trust, but the simple fact was that they had all cursed him and that none of them could be trusted. For all he knew, Albus might well be trying to put a spell on Faith out of the knowledge that she might actually dare to stand up for him. A shudder ran through Salem at the thought that the Wizard might harm Faith in order to get to him. Of course, however, that would be right along their ways of thinking. Had they not cursed all of his men except the one who had betrayed him?
He had to get Dumbledore away from his Faith, but he could not let the others know exactly why it was so necessary. As always, Salem realized, he had to pick and choose his words. His cunning mind quickly running, Salem cleared his voice and spoke in a smooth, quiet tone. "Katrina, you can clearly see that Faith is afraid of this Wizard. Why allow him to heal her when you yourself can save her? Every second we waste trying to calm her is a second that brings her closer to Death."
Albus pulled away from Faith at Salem's words. His ancient eyes looked up at the catwoman through his half-moon spectacles. "Salem is right," he whispered. "I should not attempt when she fears me so but trusts you." He stood slowly and backed just as slowly away, a gesture that nearly made Salem's mouth drop open.
Dawson had made it to Faith's head and had been sitting, touching her gently, trying to calm her. He now leaned forward and kissed her forehead. Sweat was pouring from her body. "Sweetheart, I know you don't know us, but it's Jack, Katrina, and me. Salem's here, too. Judson's dead." He had understood what Faith had mumbled in her frantic attempt to be free. "Don't fight us. Let Katrina heal you." He continued to kiss her face gently.
Jack leaned forward just so Faith could hear him. He had been holding her down about mid-ways where he had her arms pinned to her sides. "Faith," he whispered, "that was only Albus. He wouldn't have hurt you. I realize you're confused, little firecracker, but you hang in there. We love you, and we need you back with us, so stop fighting us. That's an order," he told her, knowing that she never took a direct order, but for once, in her life, he figured she wasn't strong enough to do anything about it. He felt her tenseness and knew that if she did not relax, the healing would not work as well as it would if she did.
Katrina sat beside Faith, not touching her but concentrating on the healing. Her hands began to roam the length of Faith's body just above the skin so that she could find out everything that was broken. She winced at some of the things she found out and then, as Katrina's hands softly began to glow blue, she reached out and touched Faith and the healing began to flow from her into Faith's body.
Faith appeared to have calmed some as Albus had stepped away, but she was still trembling. Salem's gaze kept on Albus even as he walked around Jack. His eyes were hard, and a silent warning passed from his gaze to Albus. The damn Wizard had better not hurt his Faith!
He circled around the others until he could reach Faith's shoulder, an area that planted him between Dawson and Jack. There he began to gently rub his fur against her skin and purr to her. She had been right not to trust Albus, but now she needed to relax. His back arched against her and he continued rubbing against her and purring as the healing process began and he felt her begin to relax at last. He didn't know if it was Dawson's kisses, the others' words, his purrs, or some sort of combination of the lot that was working, but he was glad she was relaxing, whatever the cause. The entire time, however, his gaze remained pinned on Albus.
Angel felt some one angrily attacking him and could not, for the life of him, imagine who it could be nor could he seem to get completely awake. It was as though he lingered under a spell. Finally, he managed to open his eyes, and his mouth fell open as he gazed at the woman who was straddling him. Was it Helvira, Elvira, or Delvira? "Don't hit me again," he growled, his fangs flashing, even as he picked her up and tossed her off of him. "What is so important that you wake me from my slumber?"
"It's about damn time," Delvira snapped back at Angel, her own fangs flashing in response. Though he'd managed to throw her off of him, she had landed on her feet with relatively little ease. "As for what's so important for me to wake your Vamp ass, and to keep me from going after my husband, I don't know," she retorted sarcastically. "Call me crazy, but I thought you might want to know that your sister's ran off!"
"But I had her!" he protested. "I knocked her out! How in the Hell did she manage to wake before me, and why was I so deeply asleep?" he asked the woman he now recognized as Delvira. "And just where in the Hell are we?"
"I'm not exactly sure where we are," she told him though she had a sinking feeling in the pit of her gut that warned of their location, "but it's not where we woke up. Crystal knocked you out. Oh, don't look so surprised! You should have known she was capable of it!"
"She's headed for the North Pole, and you also know why! As soon as we can find a way out of here, you and Lorne need to head out first. Don't wait for anything. When you get to the shore, there'll be a portal. It's waiting for you."
Angel shook his head groggily. "The last thing I remember was that I knocked Crys out. She fell to the deck, and then the whole world erupted. There seems to be a gap in my memory. What shore are you talking about? And you say there's a portal there? Just who the Hell opened the portal?" he looked at her angrily, figuring it was her the whole time. Why would she take a hand in helping Crys? What business was it of hers that Crys managed to run away?
He looked away from her, scanning the area to see if he could find Lorne or any of the others. He was glad to see that Lorne was not too far from him but surprised to see that all three of Crys' babies were laying near him and were still asleep. He never would have thought that Crys would leave without them and immediately realized her intentions upon seeing them.
He did not see Cordy anywhere. He hoped and prayed that she had made it, but fear grew in his heart that, maybe like his sister, she, too, was gone. Every one he had ever cared about, and even dared love, had been taken from him. Why should Cordy be any exception?
Delvira had seen the flash of accusation in Angel's eyes. "Yeah, it was me," she told him, "and if you want to fight over it, I'll just kick your butt until your brain decides to wake up! I could have left her alone, true, but if I had, she would have headed straight out for You-Know-Who! As it was, I helped her along to the North Pole, but not to him. She should have found herself right in front of Santa's whereabouts."
"As for your Princess, no, I haven't found her. I no more know where she is than I know where my Jareth is. And the shore was -- " Delvira's words broke off at a high-pitched scream. She looked in its direction but saw nothing. The scream continued, growing in pitch and volume, until something collided with her foot.
Angel's eyes went back to Delvira. "As I have just awoken, I do not know where your mate is," he told her. "I'm not going to look for Cordy. If you see her, you can tell her that Lorne and I have gone after Crys. I'd leave him behind, but he'd only wake up and follow and he's safer with me than he would be on his own."
"Can you send us from here back to the shore?" he asked her hopefully. It was at that moment that the high-pitched, screaming thing landed on Delvira's foot, and Angel looked downward only to be surprised at what he saw. "Is that a worm?" he asked.
"Yes, it's a worm," Delvira retorted as though the answer was obvious and Angel was insane for having to ask. She kicked her foot as she spoke, stopping Worm from climbing up her leg but not succeeding in knocking him from her foot. Raising her foot and bending down to reach it, Delvira plucked the little, purple worm from her foot.
Delvira had never seen Worm so terrified. He was shaking all over, and his trembles did not cease as her hand closed around his tiny body. Standing erect once more, Delvira lifted Worm to her level and gazed down at the little fellow. "Worm, what . . . ?"
She did not have a chance to get the rest of her question out, however, for Worm's eyes and mouth shot wide simultaneously. "You must hide me, Mistress! Please you must before she eats me!" With a scream, he pushed himself off of her pale hand and dropped to the only hiding place he could reach.
Delvira gasped and shuddered as Worm landed between her breasts. Her hand went into her cleavage after him. "Get out of there, Worm! I don't know what's frightened you," she exclaimed, gasping again as he left a slimy trail against her flesh, "but only the King goes in there!"
Angel had to put a hand over his mouth to suppress a laugh. Even in the midst of chaos, Jareth's subjects always made him laugh! How had it come to be that Jareth, who was not afraid of anything or any one, had subjects that were terrified of almost everything? When he heard that some one was trying to eat Worm, he could only think of one person: Faith, who was always inviting him to eat the worm in her tequila bottle! But not even she would mistake this one for one that came in a bottle . . . or would she? His eyes traveled the room, but he could not see her. He returned his attention to Delvira, trying very hard not to look at her cleavage.
"Why, you little . . . " Delvira gasped out. Her elbow was sticking out of the top of her dress now, and Angel was getting quite the show as she continued desperately trying to grab a hold of Worm. She felt the tip of his tail many times, but just before she could take a firm hold of him, Worm slipped out of her grasp every time. "Worm!" she thundered in warning.
A chuckle erupted nearby, and Jareth reached out, plucking Worm nimbly from Delvira with one hand and with the other hand, pulling his wife's dress back on. He noticed that Angel had adverted his eyes and not watched, and he appreciated that. "Darling, I am sorry that Worm went down forbidden territory. I'm sure there is a reasonable explanation, isn't there, Worm?" he asked the little creature he now held on the flat of his palm. "Apologize to the Queen," he now ordered even as his free arm slipped around his wife's waist.
Relief had washed over Delvira the very second Jareth had spoken. She had tried hard not to fear for him too much while she had been struggling to awaken Angel, but it had been rather close to impossible as she had barely managed to save him and he had still been in such a weak condition when the ship had been overtaken by ice. Now, even as his arm slid around her waist, she wriggled against the sticky trail that Worm had left between and over her perky bosoms. She looked angrily at Worm, but before she could speak, he spoke again.
"I am sorry, Master," Worm squeaked in the same high-pitched tone, "but I had to hide! She was going to eat me!"
"Who was going to eat you, Worm? And do not apologize to me. Apologize to your mistress. Well, speak up!" he told the worm, who seemed to be choking on his words.
"I . . . I . . . She was the one I had been warned about, the, hum, the hard-assed one, sir! I did not mean to come across her, but she was there and she was trying to move when she really should not have been and no one else was there to discourage her from it and you did say to help Jack's people when and as possible! I honestly did not mean to come across her like that, nor did I think she would threaten to eat me!"
"And I am sorry for hiding in the Queen's bosoms, but it was the only safe place that I could think of! She is fast, you know! I've heard it said before to watch out for her for she'll have your butt before you know it was hanging out or some such! That Gnome told me that! Earl, Carl, or whatever his name is! But I did not mean to encounter her! I was merely looking for you, Your Majesty, and there she was! And -- And -- " Worm's tirade broke off as he gasped desperately for breath to fill his tiny lungs. He had still not stopped shaking.
"Worm, you shall be okay. Rest for a while. You'll be safe here," he told him even as he lifted the Worm and dropped him into one of his breast pockets. He stroked him gently before moving his finger away. "Rest for I may have need of you later."
He closed the pocket even as Worm was still talking about the girl going for a fork. Who ate worms? Jareth wondered, and the mere thought made him want to spit. Worm would not be tasty at all, and not even in his most desperate hour, would Jareth contemplate eating him. He did not like crunchy things and could imagine nothing crunchier than trying to chew Worm.
"Actually, I imagine he'd be rather stringy, though the bones would be crunchy . . . What little he does have . . . Still . . . " Delvira shuddered.
"Never in a million years," Jareth vowed to which Delvira nodded. "Do you know where we are, beloved?" Jareth asked. "It is the next thing to Hell. We may not make it out of here. Those of us . . . " His voice trailed off, and he did not finish.
Delvira turned to face her husband, all traces of humor gone from her voice and face. She was as solemn now as though some one had just read her King's death sentence. Her deep, black eyes gazed into Jareth's eyes, and she could see the fear hidden within his owl-like gaze. "I was afraid of that," she told him, "but if they want to take you, they will have a war on their hands."
"I fear my leaving the Labyrinth has really griped them off, and of course, James leaving Neverland didn't help matters. Alas, Judgment Day has arrived again! If they take me, it will be beyond your power to fight. You must think of yourself and our people." He hugged her to him, his face burrowing into her hair, and he drank deeply of her scent. His body trembled at the thought of being torn from her.
"Our people became our people only because they cast you into that awful place, but even they would say what I believe. You come first, my love, and no power in Heaven or Hell can strip me from your side as long as I exist." She arched into him, holding him while he held her, and stroking his spiky, blonde hair. As her fingers caressed him, Delvira realized that even now, in the midst of this chaotic Hell, Jareth had taken the time to clean himself up and even redo his hair.
Angel withdrew from the couple. He had heard their exchange of words, and his mind began to wonder. Judgement Day? Then why are all of us here? Have we been killed? But that could not be for, if that had been, why would Delvira have taken the time to awaken him, and why was there a chance that he could go through the portal to get to Crys?
"I hate to interrupt you two, but where are we? What's happening? Thank you for waking me, Delvira, but can you send us to the shore so that we can go through the portal? Can you take all of us out of here?" was his next question.
Delvira pressed a kiss against Jareth's hair, letting him know that she would answer Angel and he needn't worry about it. Her eyes reopened, and she looked at Angel, her tears clearly shining in her black eyes though she had not allowed a single one to drop. "No one can teleport from this place," she told him. "All those who are here are here until they decide to release us. They may do it one at a time, a few at a time, or condemn us all at once. I don't know how they'll work it, and it will mostly depend on their mood."
"Who are they?" Angel asked, realizing that both Jareth and Delvira were extremely afraid and trying hard not to show it. "This isn't Hell," Angel told them. "I've been there a couple of times. So where is here?"
"There are worse Hells than Hell itself," Delvira informed him. "This . . . We are in court, Angel, and they . . . " Her eyes turned upwards to where she could even now hear the whispering of many voices that grated her nerves and made her want to scream out at them and kill them all. "They are the Council."
"Why do they have power over us?" Angel asked. "I've never done anything against them nor met any of them. Why are they holding us?"
"They have power over all of those who have a role in the Supernatural world. Vampires, Witches, Sorceresses, Sorcerers, Demons, Weres . . . Any one who has even a drop of magical blood or who practices magic must answer to them."
"Then they want us because of the Piratesses? Or could it be something else?" he questioned, looking into Delvira's eyes and knowing that she would tell him the truth as far as she knew it.
Delvira allowed herself a moment to place her face against her husband's neck and draw an unneeded breath before looking back at Angel. "They brought us all here for a . . . " She paused, knowing what she was about to say was something that not even Jareth knew yet. " . . . for a retrial. The retrial of Salem Saberhagen and all of those who followed him."
"How do you know that?" Angel queried, confusion plainly showing in his face. "It looks like they brought all of us, and most of us don't have anything to do with Salem in his past trial. Most of us have only recently met him. So why do they need us?"
Delvira knew Jareth was also listening for her answers. "Do you remember when Shadowcat said that two Wizards showed up and saved Kurt and Autolycus? Those two Wizards are amongst their number, and they appeared to those of us who were left behind by the Piratesses. Although our peoples barely know each other, the Wizards had hatched a plan that they hoped would work. You, and your people, will be called upon shortly, or in a long time -- you never really can tell with these idiots -- , and given the opportunity to stand for Salem, Jareth, and the rest of their number."
"Stand? What do you mean by stand?" Angel asked. "You say that they are going to retrial them? They have done nothing wrong, not that I know about!"
"They felt that their attempt to take over the world before should condemn them all for the rest of eternity. That is why Salem was transformed into a cat and how Jareth came to be in the Labyrinth and James and Smee in Neverland." She shook her head sadly. "One attempt to take over the world, and they condemned them for all time! I still say the world would be better off if they had succeeded!"
"That hardly seems fair!" Angel told her. "Who gave them the right to condemn them forever? One mistake should not be a death sentence! What's your plan? I'll wake Lorne, and we'll help you in it."
"You may not be able to," Delvira hated to tell Angel but knew she must be honest with him. "You know your sister is in the North Pole, and you know why. Every second spent in here is another second that she draws closer to him."
"It's not like we're going to get out of here unless we do come up with a plan," Angel replied. "Maybe Lorne can figure out something? I'm going to wake him up." Angel moved slowly to where Lorne lay on the floor and began to wake up his friend.
His mind traveled back over everything Delvira had told him, and as Lorne gasped and sat up, Angel knew that they had to get to Crys, but in order to get to Crys, they had to get out of this Hellhole. He began to tell Lorne what was going on, starting with the worst of it first.
The first thing Lorne heard was that Crys was gone, and his heart turned over in his left buttcheek. He felt it break into a million pieces. Then he saw Crys' babies, who were now slowly beginning to wake up. Not only had Crys left him and Angel, but she had left them, as well, and Lorne became terrified. "She means to die, Angel! She plans to take the son-of-a-bitch out!"
"I know," Angel told him even as he gripped his friend's shoulder. "We have to reach her first, but in order to get there, we have to get out of here."
"Where is here?" Lorne asked. Angel then began to fill Lorne in on all the details.
Donkey stirred and slowly opened his eyes. "Oh, man! What was I drinking last night?" he asked himself as his head swirled round and round. He got groggily to his hooves and shook himself off.
"Where's Elizabeth?" he asked himself. "It's so dark here! There could be ghosts in here!" he thought to himself and felt his hair bristle. "Where's my Will, and where's that stupid Captain?"
He took a tentative step forward and heard something making a scratching noise. His eyes grew wide and terrified. "Gotta find my Will! He can handle it!" He took another step forward and again heard a scratching noise. His wild eyes darted around, but he could see nothing moving in his direction.
Without light, he could not make out any one clearly. Will had to be here somewhere! He could find Will and then let Will find Elizabeth, or failing that, he could find Jack and let Jack solve everything! After all, the Captain did think he could do everything better than anybody else! He chuffed and took another step forward.
Again, the noise came to his quivering ears! "Holy shit! There's ghosts in here!" His voice quivered as he exclaimed, and then he clamped his mouth shut at the thought that the ghosts might overhear him and come after him. He tried to tip-toe, and his tail hung limply between his legs.
WILL! he wanted to scream at the top of his lungs. Where was his boy! He'd save him! He whirled slowly around, his eyes ever larger, but he could see nothing. Every hair on his body stood straight out.
It was going to get him! He wasn't going to find Will! He wasn't going to make it! He couldn't even find the damn Captain! Rising panic almost choked him, and then something reached for his tail! With a screech, Donkey raced across the room, running as though his very life depended on it, which he fully believed it did . . .
Sean crept across the floor on all fours. He knew where he was, and he did not want to draw attention to himself. He had to find Emma. He began to pray to Aphrodite, something he was getting more back into the habit of doing. Help me find Em, an' help me be able tae get us out o' here. I'll di anythin' Ye want me tae! Jest get us out o' here safely! Let Em be okay, an' let her remember me!
In the semi-darkness of the room, Sean barely missed crawling over people, desperately seeking his Emma. The room was filled with the sound of screeching, which reaffirmed for Sean that he was in Hell. In Hell, Emma would not be found. After all, she was an Angel. Where would she be? His mind pondered this even as his body continued to crawl, and then something flew by in front of him so fast that the outward blowing winds knocked him to the floor.
He heard screams and howls from others who were being stepped on by whatever was fleeing for its life. Where were the Demons? he wondered as his eyes darted back along the trail of the fleeing beast. They're lurkin' in here somewhere! If they have Emma, I'll rip them apart limb from limb!
It was then that his nose caught the smell of his beloved, and he moved forward to find her and gather her close to him. He tried desperately to awaken her, but although he could tell that she was alive from the sound of her soft breathing, he could not awaken her. She must be under a spell, he thought and continued to hold her and rock her, hoping that some genius would soon turn on a lantern.
Screams and indignant yells filled the room as Donkey fled across it. "GET OFF OF ME, YOU FOUL BEAST!" a voice yelled at him, but Donkey ignored them all in his efforts to get to Will and safety. He paid no attention to any one who was unlucky enough to get stepped on. Let the Demon get them! he thought as he recognized Autolycus and Joxer and managed to step on both of them. It had been Autolycus who had yelled at him, and Donkey did not bother to answer him, just kept running.
Joxer sat up slowly. "Damn animal! I think he broke my hand!"
"Nah, it ain't broke," Autolycus told him. "Just hurts like Hell. He got my leg. Need a little intensive care here. Elizabeth?" he called hopefully.
"Phoebe?" Joxer asked the dark room.
Xena heard something running. She had just awoken and did not know what the Hell was going on. She saw Gabrielle, who was laying in the main path of the fleeing animal, and threw herself at her beloved, grabbing her and rolling her neatly out of the path. "WHAT THE HELL'S WRONG WITH YOU, DONKEY!" Xena hollered after him.
"DEMON!" Donkey returned and never slowed down.
Xena then began to try to awake Gabrielle, gently running her hands down her face and then her arms, making sure that her beloved was not hurt. As she checked Gabrielle over and tried to awaken her, she remained constantly at the alert for the so-called Demon . . . but never realized that her chakram was missing.
Ray was having trouble processing. Something seemed to be wrong with one of his processors, and its output was very little. "Mouse?" he mumbled her name, hoping she was not far from him.
His mind wandered back over what he had seen earlier, and he marveled at his beloved's powers. How had she managed to keep them hidden all this time? He had never seen her in all her glorious abilities until this night. Why had she not revealed herself to him? "Mouse?" his trembly voice called her name again. He tried to move but was unable to.
Brown eyes flashed open and a new mouth cursed Donkey as Eddie flew over yet another sleeping Pirate. "YOU DAMN JACKASS!" the man thundered, reaching immediately for his gun. "I'LL SHOOT YA! KAT MIGHT FRY MY ASS, BUT I'M GONNA SHOOT YA ANY DAMN WAY!"
Bishop's hand had closed around his gun, but he could not seem to get it off of the floor. Somehow, it was heavier than it should have been, and no matter how hard he jerked it, he still could not manage to lift it. "DAMN IT!" he yelled, snatching at his gun again. "WHAT THE HELL'S GOING ON!"
A sleepy voice murmured something in Chinese even as Donkey kept running. Donkey never looked back, and Bishop knew his chance to shoot the ass was gone. His ribs hurt where the beast had ran over him, but his puzzlement won out as, with a great deal of effort, he turned onto his side.
Bishop tried once more to lift his gun, but his hand froze along with the rest of his body as he looked at the object he held. Only now did his weary mind realize that the texture of the object was vastly different from the hard metal of his weapon. His mouth fell open, but his hand seemed frozen to the spot. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. All he could do was stare.
He did stare. He stared at what he held writhing in his hand with even greater shock than if it had been a live snake. He stared until his eyes were beginning to bug out of his head. He stared even as Chinese words fluttered over his ears. He stared until another pair of brown eyes opened.
Chong turned to look at Bishop, a sleepy smile crossing over his lips. "Hello to you too, big boy," the Chinese man purred. "I was hoping you'd . . . "
His words were drowned out, however, as Bishop's shock finally made its way through his mouth. He thundered out an unintelligible yell and dropped Chong's member as though it were poison to his touch. Bishop couldn't speak nor even meet Chong's eyes. He jumped to his feet, his pain forgotten, and ran from his own Demon as quickly as Donkey had fled his.
Chong sighed and leaned back against the floor, his full lips pouting. "Damn! I thought I had him . . . " Then he heard Hansel crying for Derek, and Chong turned to look in the direction of his ex-lover. The sight of the blonde man doubled over and crying tore at Chong's heart, and he immediately scrabbled to his feet and headed over. He didn't know what he was going to do to help the man who he couldn't help thinking of as his poor baby, but he had to do something . . .
Familiar, masculine voices had began to lead her mind back toward consciousness, but it was Donkey's screams that snapped Elvira awake. The wolf instantly sat up at attention, her ears perked upwards in Donkey's direction and her thick fur already standing on end. She saw him running but had not yet spotted what he was fleeing from when she heard her brother coo questioningly and her feline sister growl from her other side. Their questions brought her memories from a short time before flooding back, and as pain filled her heart, Elvira threw back her head in a long howl.
Elvira's howl stopped Cindy and Blue in mid-question. The dragon and lioness shared a look, their disbelief and shock mirrored in each other's eyes. She couldn't have left them! Not now! Not after all they'd been through! Not after having just escaped him again! She couldn't have!
But they knew she had for Elvira would not lie and Blue realized that Angel also would not. It took a moment for their shock to pass enough that they could react, and then their voices added to the chaos that was building all throughout the room.
She awoke to screams, wails, howls, and roars from a dozen different voices that seemed to be familiar and all around her yet that she could not recognize. As their voices rattled her ears, she felt bodies pressing down against her, and she realized that she was covered, pinned to the floor by still, cold bodies. A scream split from her own lips, and her arms and winds thrust upwards, knocking bodies off of her and causing more screams.
Ororo's fists and feet flew, striking against all those who had lain on top of her. Many familiar voices met her ears, but her mind recognized none of them as she flew upwards, screaming at the top of her lungs. Thunder and lightning filled the room. Rain began to pour, and winds howled.
"AUNT ORORO!" a voice called from below. "AUNTIE 'RO, IT'S JUST ME!" She knew she was not alone but realized that the others were not enemies, and that her godmother was too far gone in her fear to take any notice of their names. She only hoped that hearing her voice would calm her, but 'Ro seemed to not even hear her as she continued screaming and flying upward.
Wolverine heard the screams and jumped to his feet immediately. He realized that his claws had returned, and he was ready to slash anything that was attacking 'Ro. "'RO," he yelled, "WHERE ARE YA!" He was almost hit by a lightning bolt. Rolling out of the way, he regained his feet and, gazing upward, saw his beloved.
Once again, she was locked inside her own little world, her hair sticking straight out and lightning bolts ripping out of her body and ricocheting around the room. He had no idea how to get up there, and his small body began to jump frantically upward. He wished, for about the millionth time, that he could fly. It would be the only way he could reach 'Ro.
"'RO, DARLIN', IT'S ME! I'M DOWN HERE!" he called to her, hoping she would hear him. At the same time, he warned the others, "AVAST! THERE BE LIGHTNIN' BOLTS IN THE ROOM!" Some of the terrified others in the room were scampering to get out of the way of the bolts.
He had to turn to keep from being hit by Jasmine, who was running as fast as her legs could carry her and screaming. "IT'S RAINING INSIDE! IT'S RAINING INSIDE! IT'S RAINING INSIDE!"
A startled Wesley reached up and snatched Jasmine as she ran by, trying to pull the girl down to the relative safety of the floor. It wasn't much, but at least she was not making a standing target. "Hush, Jasmine," he told her. "It's only 'Ro, and she's very upset. Don't you see the lightning and hear the thunder?"
Jasmine nodded against Wesley's shoulder. "Y-Yes, but I'm upset too and you don't see me throwing lightning bolts!" Her eyes then grew very big as she stared at Wesley.
"Can you throw lightning bolts?" Wesley asked her very seriously, wondering why she was staring at him so hard.
"I-I never tried," Jasmine whispered, her wet hair plastered to her shocked face. "W-We-Wes?"
"Yes? What is it?" He wondered why Jasmine was acting so strange and why his stomach was hurting so much.
"When did you get fat?"
"I'm not fat!" Wesley told her. "What makes you think I am?"
Jasmine nodded very slowly and in all seriousness. She pointed at Wesley's stomach with a quivering finger. "You are too. Look."
Wesley followed the shaking finger and looked at his stomach. "What the Hell's in there?" he wondered aloud.
He ignored Jasmine's obvious answer. "Your stomach."
"I've heard of being bloated by retaining too much excrement, but this is ridiculous! I'll have to see a doctor at once!" He looked around for Brendan.
Jasmine shook her head. "You don't need a doctor. You need a diet!"
"Jasmine, shut up for once!" Wesley told her. "I am not fat, just bloated, and Brendan can give me something to get rid of it!"
"Yeah, right!" Jasmine retorted, still staring at Wesley's round stomach.
Shadowcat's tightened shoulders shook with ragged breath as she stared down at the man who had almost attacked Kurt. His hood still covered his face, but as he reached up and took off his hood with one hand, Kitty stared, her mouth agape and her eyes wide. She had barely had time to register her mistake when, amongst all the screams, howls, roars, winds, thunder, and lightning that filled the room, a voice thundered out, drowning out all else.
"ENOUGH!" a man yelled from above all of them. Torches suddenly flared up in the walls that circled the location of the Pirates, lighting the area and revealing that it was not a room but instead a hole. "WE SEND OUR OWN DOWN THERE TO GIVE THEM A CHANCE TO HEAL YOUR PEOPLE, AND THEY ARE ATTACKED!"
Oh crap! Kitty thought.
She heard a weak voice in her head just then. Kitty, what did you do?
I kicked Charles.
What!
Xavier. I attacked him. I thought he was about to attack Kurt, and I attacked him before he could.
Where are we?
I don't know. Kitty's brown eyes looked up, up, UP into the faces of the beings who sneered down upon them. Most of them had human enough appearances, but there was a woman with horns and a green-clad boy who hovered impatiently in the air. All that she could see except for the two in the air were dressed in solid black attire and wore stern expressions. I don't know, but I'd say we just stepped out of the frying pan . . .
And into the fire, the voice in her head agreed.
To Be Continued . . .