Chapter Four- Saviours

Shadows pooled around them, lapping at their feet. The shadows rocked from side to side in anticipation. Exited murmurings broke out amongst them, misleadingly melodic and calming, peaking and waning, raising in volume as the sounds crashed together. The shimmering horses of sand like substance snorted with their blind, all seeing eyes. The masses almost converged on them, before halting at the command of their leader, a very smug looking Pitch, riding the largest and most menacing steed. Illusive and dark, he merged with the shadows that surrounded him, his nature blackening still.

The moment became so still, that one sound would shatter it. Jack had struggled to his feet, clenching his fist at the loss of his staff, which Pitch was holding as a symbol of victory, as a prize. Adrianne peered over at Jack, who was staring at his belonging with a fierce raw desperation and longing in his eyes. He wouldn't... would he?

"I'll tell you what. I'll trade Jack's staff for the girl." His very voice was enough to send her over the edge, but the comment caused her to see red, and her eyes ignited. She growled in indignation and a ring of fire shot up rapidly around her and Jack, before dropping slightly as her eyes dimmed. The nightmare king would use her, she knew, as his eyes began to turn mad. The ghost of insanity, creeping up inside him.

"No deal." Her and Jack spoke in unison, both horrified by the request. Pitch dropped his head slightly, and continued in his unnerving calm way.

"Very well. But I am a patient man, and I can wait an eternity for something that belongs to me." Shivers cascaded down her spine. "But for now, I'll give you two minutes." He turned away and barked some commands to his 'troops'.

"Does he mean it?" Adrianne muttered to Jack, who frowned and cast a fleeting look around.

"No way to tell." His shoulder drooped. "You might as well leave me. I'm useless without my staff." He said dejectedly, and closed his eyes wearily.

Adrianne looked at him squinting. "You need your staff for your powers to work?"

He ran a pale hand through his pale hair. "It's a conduit. The power is inside me."

"So like a magnifier?" Jack looked at her, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Yeah I guess." He answered after some thought.

Adrianne had only met two people in her memory. The first was this boy, who was brave and loyal. The other was Pitch, who was a madman.

"I won't leave you to him." An idea occurred to her, and her face lit up. "Use me as a conduit."

Jack blinked. Had he heard her properly? "You?"

"Yeah! All you would have to do is hold my hand. We can fight back to back."

Jack nodded slowly considering her words. "It might work. Better than nothing I guess."

Adrianne smiled. Then she jerked her head towards the shadows. "What are they?" Jack shuddered. "Nightmares and fearlings." He stared at the ground for a while, trying to work the question in his head so that it didn't sound strange.

"You know... we might not come out of this in one piece and... I would like to know your name before this... happens." He finished lamely. Adrianne watched as he shuffled his feet, and blushed a faint purple. This was serious, she realised, if he was asking for her name, as if he was... as if he was never going to see her again. Oh God.

Her response was almost pained. "My name is Adrianne."

"Okay." He nodded frantically. "Adrianne."

"Your time is up." Pitch called expectantly.

Adrianne held her hand out to Jack, which he encased within his own. His hand was so cold, but not clammy, smooth and inviting. She relished the temperature. In a short moment of inspiration, she formed a staff made of ice, not unlike Jack's conduit. She passed it to him, and gave him a look to say it's better than nothing, before fashioning one for herself- they could be useful. She inspected herself. She was wearing trousers and a top, both loose, but not loose enough that they could catch on anything. Her hair, she noticed, was problematic. She pushed the thought away, nothing she could do now.

"Take them. Oh and alive." Pitch went back to studying Jack's staff.

They were at a disadvantage. She would need to twist away and he would be torn into to the path of a nightmare, if he needed to jump, she would be dragged up with him. All that kept them together was their hands. The nightmares were attacking the link between them, so they kept the fight on the ground, so they couldn't target the weak spot from below as well. They were hopelessly outnumbered.

And yet they were winning. As impossible as it seemed, they were winning.

Jack's newly made staff was working, while Adrianne was sending jets of ice both through the staff and her hand. Some strange part of her was enjoying it, the blood pounding in her ears, the endless surge of assailants filling her senses, the sound, the sight, the smell. Her and Jack were well matched, she realised, gracefully leaping around each other as they picked off nightmare after nightmare. Fearling after fearling.

She spotted a figure taller than the others. Advancing towards them.

"Pitch!" She yelled over the din, snarling as the mere sound caused her to lose focus and have to lunge to the side. The movement brought Jack to the floor, and a nightmare jumped on top of him which she quickly iced. Back to the nightmares. She swung her staff into a nightmare, was jerked round by Jack, froze another and another, stabbed one, sent one back with a gust of wind, then froze the crowd behind it. She blew a gust of fire into the next horde and brought her staff round to face those remaining. All the while keeping an eye out for Pitch. A shadow reared on its hind legs, pushing her back, and to the side causing her to drop her staff. She braced herself on Jack's back and swung her legs round to pass through the dark horse reducing it to dust, scooped up her staff and carried on.

A steak of red flew across the sky. A merry sound greeted her ears, the sound of bells, many bells all jingling happily along.

"NORTH! NORTH WE'RE DOWN HERE!" Jack bellowed behind her, his strength sapping. But his words that meant-was-could it-no!

Santa's sleigh landed right in front of her. A large stocky man dressed in Russian furs beckoned towards them his arms covered in were they tattoos?

"Get in!" Adrianne burst into the air, dragging Jack with her. Jack took the lead, feeding on her energy. They landed haphazardly in the sleigh, which began moving into the air and then they were going, leaving Pitch and his fury behind.

...

North immediately threw a thick woollen blanket at Adrianne, who was slouched, thoroughly exhausted. Jack knew the feeling, his muscles burnt, and his head was throbbing. He wanted nothing more than to curl up and sleep. But he needed his staff. Adrianne looked uncomfortable under the heat of the blanket, so Jack reached over and took it from her, fearing her politeness would cause her to keep silent. He earnt a grateful look from Adrianne, and a questioning look from the others. Within seconds she was asleep, appearing so much younger than the warrior he had seen earlier.

"She's like me." He explained.

"Are ya sure frosty? She doesn't look a lot like you-" Bunny began.

"But she is." He held up his staff. "Adrianne made this." They questioned him to longer.

The Sandman created pictures above his head. What happened to yours?

"Pitch has it. He attacked me earlier today, he said he wanted to check her out, and she didn't disappoint." Tooth picked up on one part of the statement.

"We saw you fighting how did you do that without your staff?"

He shrugged, it really wasn't important. "I held her hand, and she acted like a power generator. We both fed off her power, and a little of mine." His eyes drooped. "That's why she's so tired."

After a brief silence, North piped up. "What powers does she possess?"

Jack was suspicious at the offhand tone of the question. "Mine pretty much. And abilities in creating fire. Does being a good judge of character count? Why?"

"She's been chosen mate. To be a guardian." He'd had to wait 300 years, and she got nominated for the job straight away? In what way was that fair?His anger was chased away by guilt and shame- how dare he be mad at the girl for her fortune, when he had condemned her to death?

"She'll be good. She's already saved me." He shrugged, a warm feeling slowly building up in his chest. He liked her, already as a friend and ally.

The sleigh lurched, and dropped. North yelled, cursing in russian and tried to regain control of the reins. Bunny blanched. Tooth gripped the edges, and Jack gripped onto Adrianne and the side, making sure she didn't tumble out as the sleigh tipped sickeningly again. They were flying far too low, the branches of the trees reached out desperately and whipped passed them. Amidst the tumult, Adrianne woke and yelped when she felt a branch slash her face. Then in one last tumble all the passengers of the sleigh tumbled out into the snow.

"What did you do that for? I'm bloody freezing out here mate!" Bunny hopped from one foot to the other, glaring at the Russian.

"Well don't talk to me when I drive!"

"As I recall mate, you were the one talking to us! Why could we have taken the tunnels like I suggested?"

Jack watched with amusement as the guardians bickered, Adrianne once again curled beneath his arms, asleep.

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