Ladies and gentlemen! Brace yourselves for the final confrontation between Pitch Black and Jack Frost! I apologize for the delay, but I wanted to give you something EPIC! I hope it was worth it and I hope that you like... no, that you love it! The end is near, guys. Here we go with Chapter Eight!
Chapter Eight
There was a heavy silence in the atmosphere. No one dared to make a move, to take a breath. Jack glared at Pitch intently and Pitch returned the glare. For a few minutes that felt like hours nothing happened. Then, without any kind of warning, Pitch launched at Jack with the speed of a bullet. In his hand Pitch made a small but sharp blade of compacted black sand, which he was aiming at Jack's heart. Jack saw it just in time to dodge and he could hear the blade making high pitched sound while it cut the wind. Jack grabbed his staff tighter and gulped loudly: this was a battle to death.
Jack loved his staff. It had been with him ever since he woke up on the lake three hundred years ago and even before that, when he used it to save his sister from death. It was a magnificent artifact, as ancient as winter itself, even before Jack was even born. It was magical; the wood was special so it would absorb his power without breaking. On the contrary, Jack's power made it stronger, proving how much magical it was. It was the mean with which he transmitted his power and let it out to the world; it was like a magic wand. Unfortunately, it had always been a lousy weapon. Even when magic couldn't damage, any physical contact over the edge could break it, like when Pitch snapped it in half. It wasn't good to defense or to offense because it didn't have any sharp edges. Jack never minded though, because he wasn't fond of conflicts and fights. Even when he brought the snow and the winter he always did it moderately. In the blizzard of sixty eight, for example, he never hurt anyone because he just through enough snow to spoil the Easter Egg Hunt.
He didn't want to fight or hurt, but now with Pitch aiming at him a pointy sharp black blade he didn't have much of a choice. He needed a better weapon, something to defend himself with and something to attack too. He searched his memory for things he could use that he had available. He remembered in Tooth's castle when Bunny used his Easter Eggs as bombs, North's swords, even Tooth's punch and he thought it was ironic everyone had such cool weapons. Well, Tooth wasn't a fighter, but she needed to get some sort of compensation for her fairies; after that day she never did any attempt to hurt nobody, even when she got mad. Then he thought about the greatest weapon he could use: his own powers. Yeah, great, just one little detail: it was spring. How was Jack supposed to fight Pitch when the warm weather would melt everything he attempted to do? Well, for starters, he needed to change scenario. If he was going to fight, he needed to have something hold to help him.
Jack was about to receive a direct blow from Pitch when he flung into the air. As he predicted, Pitch gave him chase on top of a sand cloud, pretty much like Sandy's, only that Pitch's was black. Soon, Jack was leading him all the way to the South Pole, the place where they had had their first confrontation. If he decided to go to the North Pole he feared the yetis and North's workshop might get compromised, damaged or hurt, or even destroyed. He couldn't risk that. He had already screwed up enough.
Pitch was oblivious to it, a look of madness to his face; his pupils were dilated and his mouth was curved up in a mad grin that showed his yellow teeth. "What's wrong Frost? You're too weak to fight me? What happened to playing your own game, huh?" He screamed at Jack and he really had to focus on getting to the Pole and not punching Pitch in the face. The might have been above the Atlantic ocean, where the weather was warm enough to hurt Jack, so he couldn't afford to fight him there. However, soon Jack took a glimpse around and he didn't saw Pitch anymore. He stopped abruptly and looked all around himself in search of Pitch, but he didn't saw him anywhere.
Suddenly, he heard Pitch's war scream below him but he realized too late. Pitch came at him at alarming speed and Jack couldn't dodge the attack. Pitch's blade cut Jack all along his right arm, making him drop his staff and lose his balance. Jack started to fall into the ocean below him, and he couldn't think straight enough to process that. The pain on his arm was unbearable, and he was sure that blood was oozing out of the deep gash on his arm. He also didn't feel his hand, but he knew that he didn't have his staff. He was trying to think of a way to get it back when he fell flat back into the ocean. The, for us, warm water of the Atlantic Ocean was like boiling lava to Jack, who was used to very cold temperatures. His warm was the human's cold, and viceversa, so falling into such warm water was like torture to him and it caused him excruciating pain.(A/N: According to the internet the average temperature on the Atlantic Ocean is of 82.774839 °F, which is 28.2082 °C. I'm not an expert or anything, but I think that is far too much for the weather Jack is used to and that it's just too much for him to handle. Just a random fact that might be useful to this story.)
Jack tried to swim to the surface, but with one arm injured it was very difficult for him. He needed to breath, he needed to get out of there, but the surface just seemed to move further away from him. He could not possibly use his ice powers there, could he? The warm temperature would melt everything. He thought about how the Titanic sank with that iceberg, it was in the Atlantic Ocean too, but it was far north from there. Now he was near the equator, making the weather much warmer. His consciousness starting to fade, he thought it was the end. When he was about to slip away, his sister came to mind. His sister smiling, his sister crying, his sister scared, his sister laughing. He did everything for her, he was who he was for her, thanks to her; he could not die without saying goodbye once again, and he could not abandon her like that. She didn't deserve it.
A new determination moved him now: he would see his sister again. Yes, he would make Pitch pay, but he would also see his sister. His cold core seemed to be cooling down even more, trying to regulate Jack's temperature under the warm water. All around him the temperature started to drop suddenly, and Jack realized that as a defense mechanism, his own body was using his power to cool down the water, at least in the place where he was. It seemed to work, though, because he didn't feel so bad suddenly. He also noticed the pain in his arm was gone, and he took a glimpse at it. The salt of the water mixed with his cold temperature had created some kind of protective layer on top of the wound. Jack had never seen something like that, because he wasn't supposed to get that hurt in the first place. The water kept cooling down as the seconds passed and he soon was able to get to the surface. He emerged and gasped for air loudly.
"I thought you weren't getting out, Frost. I had already thought it had been too easy!" Pitch mocked him and Jack glared at him. He could try to fly to the Pole, but maybe using the water he was already cooling down wasn't such a bad idea. He started moving his hands in the water, trying to cool it at a faster rate. When he could feel ice forming, he shaped the small pieces sharply and hid them in between his fingers, so that Pitch wouldn't see him. Then he flew back in to the air and out of the water. If he kept cooling down water that was supposed to be warm bad things could happen. The weather wasn't something to be messing with.
When Pitch saw Jack already in the air, he lunged forward, knowing he was weakened in the heat. However, Jack saw it coming and threw Pitch the sharp shards of ice knowing they could hurt a lot. They had become even more solid in his hand, and even Pitch couldn't have expected that. When he was close enough, Jack threw them in his face. Pitch screamed in pain and stopped, Jack used that distraction to call for the wind and for his staff. He could sense it near, and when the wind picked him up he saw it floating in the sea not too far. He asked the wind to go as fast as possible to the South Pole, and when Jack flew above his staff he grabbed it and flew with the wind. When Pitch recovered he followed after, but this time Jack made sure he couldn't catch up.
After some minutes they arrived finally at the South Pole and Pitch finally saw his plot, if not a little too late. "Very clever boy…" Pitch said under his breath while narrowing his eyes.
"Now we can really play my own game," Jack said, repeating the same words he said in Burgess to piss Pitch off. If he was going to fight, he might as well make it fun right? The Boogeyman responded with an attack, but now that Jack was on his territory he used the snow to cover and make himself visible for Pitch. Pitch attacked aimlessly at everything that moved, thinking it might be Jack, but he wasn't lucky enough. Jack positioned behind Pitch and shot ice at his feet, Pitch tripped and used his hands to stop the fall; Jack took advantage of that and shot ice at his hands. Now Pitch was locked in the floor unable to move, his sand useless too. Jack made the blizzard stop and stood in front of pitch, holding a dagger made of ice in a threating manner. Pitch just laughed coldly. "You can't kill me," he said, still laughing.
Jack knew that already, so he didn't give Pitch the satisfaction of looking surprise. Jack wasn't planning on killing him either, but he would play along with him. "And why's that?" he asked, as if he didn't know, while he glared at Pitch with hate and rage. He would pay.
"Fear can't die Jack. Besides, a guardian who kills, a guardian who murders cannot be a guardian," he said hoping to cause some impact on Jack, but he didn't even flinch.
"And did you really think I was going to kill you?" Jack said next, his turn to mock Pitch.
"You… you don't?" the Boogeyman asked in disbelief.
"No. That would be a gift compared to what I'm really going to do with you," Jack replied repressing his anger. "You are going to beg me to kill you;" he said again and he smiled when he saw Pitch's eyes widen in fear. Then, he grabbed a dagger made of pure ice and thrust it in the icy ground right in front of Pitch. The ice cracked all around the Boogeyman, who watched in terror as the crack finished an uneven circle with him inside. Jack tapped the ground with his staff and the piece of ice Pitch was in raised into what looked like a big and tall column. Pitch looked terrified below, and he was a good ten feet in the air. Jack floated up to him. "You are going to wait here until I get the guardians. Then we will decide what to do with you." He said while he reinforced the ice so that it covered half of the legs and arms of Pitch so that he would not escape.
"Wait, you can't possibly leave me here, it's freezing!" he begged. Jack chuckled.
"Of course I can; this is my game" he said before flying off and living a trembling Pitch in the top of that mighty ice column. Whether he was trembling of fear or cold, or both, it's still unknown. Jack flew as fast as he could back to his lake. He needed to make sure Pippa and the guardians were okay, then he needed to talk to his parents and the villagers and apologize to everyone. It felt so nice to be back, so without the rush of persecution and fights he let himself float, fly and turn in the air as he pleased. He had missed wind so much. He looked at his arm and saw that the wound had almost disappeared, thanks to being in such cold and the salt of the sea.
He flew up, he flew down, he enjoyed the wind on his skin as he slew down or sped up. He stopped in some places along the way that needed winter, and he laughed along with its citizens when snow started to fall down. The children played and the adults watched them. Some lovebirds kissed under the first snowflake and some peoples just went for a walk in the refreshing snow. Jack laughed wholeheartedly, he was happy again! Not only happy, he was complete. Nothing was missing anymore, at least for a little while. He took the route he always used to get to Burgess and he was there in no time. The town much small than the great city in would one day become, but the lake remained the same at all time as well as the forest. That was the true place that remained unchanged for three centuries, and that got over all the obstacles presented to it by standing firm on its roots and remaining to be what they were. Just like Jack did.
He landed softly on the ground lake that still had that dirty layer of thick black sand. Jack gagged. How he despised Pitch for doing that to his beautiful lake. "Don't worry, I'll fix you in no time;" he whispered to the lake knowing that the nature could hear and understand him as Jack Frost. He was going to start the cleanup, when something –or rather someone– tackled him to the ground hard. He got ready to defend himself from the yet unknown being that cling into him, but he relaxed and smiled when he saw Pippa crying on his chest. She was hugging him so tightly that Jack thought she could break his ribs if she wanted to. He hugged her back, relief washing over him. He was glad his sister was free at last, and so he supposed the guardians too, but they could wait. Jack soothed his sister and moved his hand up and down her back, to get her to stop sobbing. He heard fast footsteps running at them from behind, and he didn't have to think too much before recognizing the steps.
The big thuds were from North, an irregular hop was from Bunny, the sound of wings fluttering softly with soft steps were Tooth and other more steady and calm, almost lazy and inaudible, were from Sandy. He also heard two more pair of footsteps that didn't match the guardians, and so he turned his head and found all the guardians panting, but smiling, and next to them were his parents, smiling relieved. The guardians looked at him proudly, but kept their distance. It was a family moment. His parents hesitantly neared him on the weird surface they obviously distrust, but they wanted to reach their children. Once near enough, Her mother kneeled in front of him and put her hand in his cheek. "I'm so proud of you," she said and then frowned. "But that doesn't mean you are not grounded for life;" she remarked, barely able to hold her smile and her tears –happy tears– before hugging both her children.
Jack laughed a relaxed, happy and relieved laugh. "Don't worry, mom. I have plenty of time to pay my sentence." He was joking of course, but it was true that he was no longer going to grow old or die. It saddened him that he might watch his family die, but he pushed the thought aside. It would be a long time before that happened. His dad didn't say anything, there was no need to for Jack knew what he was thinking, so he just kneeled down too and hugged his whole family. His large and heavy arms managing to embrace the three of them and there they stayed for a couple of minutes. They broke the hug reluctantly and smiled at each other. Pippa's eyes were puffy and red, but she was happy; the tears were stained in her face. They started to leave the pond.
Just before Jack stepped out, however, he had something to fix. He told his family to go to the shore, as well as the guardians, and they did. He went to the center of the pond again, took a deep breath and tapped his staff hardly on the compacted black sand. Instantly it froze, a few seconds later it cracked. The spider web of cracks expanded and covered the entire pond, and when it wasn't solid enough to hold something, the water reemerged from the bottom and the pieces floated aimlessly. He had freed the water, which was good. He could leave it there and it would do no harm, but it looked dirty and not pretty, so he decided to clean it all up. He floated a few feet in the air and raised his staff. The wind, listening to his command, blew hard; so hard that the pieces of black sand were sent flying to the shore, where they piled up in a much disorganized manner. He would deal with that rumble later, because for now the lake was clean and that was all that mattered.
He hovered back to his family. They were slightly freaked out, but they smiled nonetheless. Someone cleared his throat next to them and they turned to see a very uncomfortable North.
Jack's face shifted from one side to another, trying to get something straight. When he couldn't he sighed. "Okay, I give up. Can you see them?" he asked his parents. If Pippa saw them it was alright, she was still a child.
"Of course, why wouldn't we?" his mother answered him. "They saved your sister," she said and smiled gratefully at the guardians who returned the smile.
"Give me a sec," he said using the modern expression that he was sure his father didn't get, but it didn't matter for him had matters to attend. He walked over to the guardians, who unexpectedly jumped on him in a massive group hug.
"Jack, Jack, Jack! You are okay, aren't you? You aren't hurt, are you?" Tooth asked quickly as he surveyed Jack once the hug broke. She gasped when she saw the scar on his arm. "What happened? Did Pitch do that?" she asked again. Jack just chuckled.
"I'm glad to see you too guys," he replied and smiled. "Before I get into details," he said when he saw the guardians opening their mouths to ask something, "my parents can actually see you. Why's that?" He hit a nerve. The guardians shifter uncomfortably on their places and looked to the ground.
"Jack, everything here is a parallel time frame isolated for your test. Some rules were altered for you to succeed, for example, that everyone here could see you," North explained looking sad. Jack looked puzzled. North gulped a sudden lump that formed on his throat, knowing that he was about to destroy the child. "You were never human Jack; the Man in the Moon just locked away your powers inside. If we hadn't altered the rules, the people wouldn't have been able to see you because no one can come back from the death."
North's words were harsh, but they were the truth. Jack knew that, and still he wanted to get mad at the guardians, at the man in the moon, at Pitch, at anyone, but he had known the truth since the Boogeyman revealed to him his plot. He just didn't pay any attention to it because it was too painful. Jack swallowed, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. But he would not cry in front of the guardians; not then, not ever. "Does that mean this never happened? As if it had been a dream all along? This… was this ever real?" he managed to ask, but the feeling got him and a single tear escaped his eyes.
"Everything that happened here was and is real. And it will be as long as you believe in it; look at us, for example. Look at you with Jamie. It is real if you want it to be," Tooth told him, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder. Jack looked down and repressed a sob.
"When do I have to go back?" he asked after taking some deep breaths.
"This…" North said signaling all around him, "…universe was meant to disappear as soon as you passed the test. We have little time, so you should go say your goodbyes. We still need to… deal with Pitch," he said, half translating from Sandy and half from his own. Jack just nodded and sniffed before heading to his family.
They saw him approach with his head hanging low, and they knew that the guardians had finally revealed the truth. After Jack left with Pitch to battle off town, and that the guardians saved Pippa, they explained as thoughtfully as they could the situation to Jack's parents and sister. They were shocked, but they understood it was important to show their cooperation because it would be even harder on Jack. The guardians even told them what happened after the incident in the lake. That Jack died and wandered the world alone for three hundred years being invisible to everyone; the conflict that arose with Pitch and how he was defeated the first time; how Jack got his first believer and how he became a guardian. Then they explained the test and the reason behind it and they understood that the hardest part would be on Jack.
His mother neared and hugged him midway. Jack was startled but he hugged back and started to cry on her shoulder. He broke his vow of never crying, but he couldn't help it. After being with his family he had to say goodbye, he had to let go. He didn't want to, but he didn't want to disappear into oblivion either. After some time they parted and his mom put a hand on his cheek. "No matter how many years have passed, we will always be in your heart, in your memories. This is as real as it's going to get, and I just want you to know that we are all very proud of you son. You are brave and have a noble heart. I know you can face this;" his mother told him with tears in her eyes. Jack's eyes widened.
"You know?!" he asked wiping away the tears from his face and sniffing.
"They already told us," she pointed the guardians. "You just have to keep being you. You said it yourself: you are Jackson Overland as well as you are Jack Frost, and nothing could make us prouder," she explained and Jack couldn't help but smile at her. He hugged her tightly and then they went to the family.
Pippa ran up to him and hugged him very tight and cried a bit more on him. Jack himself shed some tears. "Thank you, Jack. You died saving me; you exchanged your life with mine. I couldn't have asked for a better brother than you. I might be selfish, but I don't want this to end," she said between sobs in her brother's shoulder.
"I know, Pippa. These few days were the best I had in a long time. Three centuries to be precise; and I don't want this to end either. You don't know how much I missed you and how much I will," he said wholeheartedly. Pippa cried harder. When she calmed down they broke the hug.
"What's it like in the twenty first century?" she asked real curious and Jack couldn't help but laugh at her innocence. She was still a child, and even then she knew how to cheer Jack up.
"You would love it," he simply said thinking of the skates they sold back in the stores. They had to do theirs themselves as good as they could, but they were fine. In the modern era she could go buy them and skate all they long any time of year in a perfectly secured area where she would not risk falling into freezing water. Then he hugged his dad, again short of words. They had this… telepathic ability in which they didn't have to talk to understand what the other wanted to say. It was a hug full of longing and love. But both were men and enough tears had been shed already; they didn't cry.
"Jack, it's time," North called back and Jack nodded and looked at his family once more.
"I'm going to miss you so much," he told his family before a final hug. Then, Jack turned around and went to North; he could already see some of the borders fading into whiteness. There was portal from which they would go back to their time. "What about Pitch?" he asked the guardians.
"Manny took care of him," Bunny told him. Jack nodded and grabbed his staff tighter. The guardians held their hands and prepared to jump. He dared to look back one last time, and he saw his family waving at him. They were smiling, they were happy. His sister was in tears, but she still looked happy. His mother was about to and his father was holding them both; his wife by the waist and his daughter by the hand. When they faded into the whiteness, they would be together. Jack felt reassured by this and smiled: everything was going to be okay. Then, the five guardians jumped into the portal.
The last thing Jack saw was white.
What did you think? Did you like it? Please review, I want to know your opinion. I know it was a little sad... correction, it was too sad the ending of this chapter but I promise you it gets better in the next chapter. Maybe the next will be the last, considering that I write each chapter with at least two thousand words... I thank you all for your support up until now and I apologize for the delay on this chapter, but tell me, was it or was it not worth it? I also apologize for my possible mistakes in grammar, english is not my mother lenguage. Again, I'm sorry, and thank you all. See you on the next, and possibly last, chapter.