Thank you, everyone, for your kind words and encouragement.

'I am hiding from some beast
But the beast was always here
Watching without eyes
Because the beast is just my fear
That I am just nothing
Now its just what I've become
What am I waiting for
It's already done'

The Bravery, 'Believe'

Chapter 7

April 17, 1713 (One week after Jackson Overland died and was reborn as Jack Frost)

Deep in what would become known as British Columbia's part of the Rocky Mountains, a flash of lightning lit the night, then faded away. In the impact crater, the edges still steaming from the incredible heat, a figure slowly stood up, stretching his arms. "Ooh, man. I can't believe Tempus shipped me off in a freaking bolt of lighting! Granted, that's a hell of an entrance."

Ears twitched in the frigid air, a soft black nose taking in the many scents of pine, ice, and lichen. A furred hand reached up to brush a small forelock of head-fur out of the way of ice-blue eyes. He now stood at 6'9" (5'7" without the ears) with a long, lean build, with thick pads on his feet. Two streaks of dark blue went in vertical trails under each eye, like tear tracks that ended at his jaw line. He now had a dark brown cloak with a hood that could cover his ears, a belt with two knives, and white cloth wrappings at his wrists and feet. All this had been given to him by Tempus, along with a strong, sturdy pack attached to the belt.

And then there was Tempus' most important gift of all; a Time Pendant.

On a thin chain of tempered steel around his neck, hung an adamantine circle 8 centimeters wide. Inside the circle, sent into a groove, a golden hourglass spun slowly. This was a Time Pendant, a channel of Tempus' power.

It was necessary after all, for the new Guardian of Time.

The young Pooka glanced around, recognizing the mountain chain from sending winter here for hundreds of years. "Okay, it would have been a hell of an entrance if anyone had been around to see it! Tempus, dammit, this is not Burgess! This isn't even the right country, I'm in Canada! Why the hell did you send me here?!"

Jack hadn't expected an answer, so he nearly jumped out of his new fur when one came. Calm down, kid, came the multi-toned voice from within his head. I promise, there is a reason you are here first, and not Burgess. There is a relic of the Golden Age hidden in this mountain range, something that will help you greatly in your journey.

"Telepathic? you wait until now to tell me you're telepathic?" Jack face-palmed. "Just great. And, wait, the Golden Age? You mean, the universe before Pitch came along?"

Yes, Tempus said quietly. There is a great power in these mountains, and you will need it to finish your quest.

"Haha! Now I'm on a quest, I've always wanted to go on one of those," the Pooka smirked. "Now, care to tell me how we're all telepathic and stuff?"

Ah? Did I not tell you? My apologies, kiddo. Your pendant can allow us to talk no matter where or when you are. I won't always be in, but I will try to help you as best I can. I do have other duties besides you.

The Pooka nodded. "Fair enough. Alright then, where am I headed?"

To find a weapon for you to use. After all, you cannot use the staff you once had. But this weapon will help you destroy Pitch Black once and for all. The location is on your map I placed in your backpack. Good luck, my new Guardian. Oh, and if you would, please pay my respects to Nightlight when you get there.

"Pay your respects to a nightlight? What is that, code for 'send some smack down'? Tempus? Tempus? Aw, man." The Pooka sighed, then rummaged through the backpack. "A cloak, a pair of pants, a shirt, shoes? Is he kidding? A canteen, some-ooh! Cheetos!" He immediately tore open the bag of cheesy goodness and munched as he continued going through his new things. "Some blankets, a fire-starter kit, here it is! Alright map, lets see where we're-hello now. What's this?"

As he opened the map, a piece of paper fell out onto the ground. Jack quickly scanned over it, his blue eyes growing wider as he read.

'Dear Jack,

Be sure to burn this after you read it, kiddo, no good will come of it if someone find this somehow. And the Cheetos wrapper; you won't see any of those for a few hundred years. Now, the pack I gave you has some interesting things in it, as I'm sure you've seen. Yes, every last bit of it has a purpose, so if you threw any of it away, you are in serious trouble.'

The former winter spirit swallowed nervously as he thanked his good luck that he hadn't followed his first urge to pitch the shoes off the nearest cliff.

'The cloak is enchanted, and will hide you from nearly anyone's sight that you do not wish to see you, including the Lunarian. Put it on immediately. You will need to always keep this cloak on, or Manny will do his best to isolate you as soon as he sees you meddling with his plan. The human clothing is very special, as putting it on will change your form into that of a human to all who see you. That includes the shoes, so don't lose them! The canteen is charmed to be always full of clean water, and this map will always change to show where you need to be.

Please pay attention to that last line, Jack. Not where you want to go. Where. You. Need. To. Be. I know you want to go straight to the young Jack, but until the weapons and magical objects Pitch Black used to create his army are locked away, our plan to save this world is doomed to fail. I will help guide you to each one with the map's help.

You should also see the pieces of your staff at the bottom. You will need those shortly, so keep them in hand. I wish I could send more with you, but you won't need much, not yet. However, I can send some small things, and if I think of anything you might need, I will make it appear in the bag, so please check its contents every so often to be sure you don't miss anything. Take care of yourself, be safe, and go have some fun with Jack the Younger.

Sincerely,

Tempus

P.S. Please tell me you've picked out a new name.'

"Smart ass," Jack muttered as he shoved the paper back into his bag to use as kindling later on. He pulled out the unassuming brown cloak and shrugged it over his shoulders, fastening a clasp of muted silver. Instantly, he felt a cool shiver go through his entire body. "Whoa. Must mean its working."

He then pulled out the two broken pieces of his staff. "Alright then, lets get this show on the road." He hitched the pack onto his shoulders, adjusted the map, and set out for the nearest mountain range.

And promptly fell backwards on his tail.

"Yeow! Son of a-that hurt! Ow!" He stood up with some difficulty, gingerly rubbing his abused tail. Oof. He looked down at his bruised tail, wagging it slowly. "Didnt' think that would be so sensitive."

Jack looked down at his larger Pooka feet. How in the world did Bunny do this? He tested out his new legs and feet, carefully trying a few hops and jumps. After a few stumbling tries, it suddenly seemed to click in his head. Foot goes here, leg goes here, knee bends here...oh. Okay. I can do this, right. Memories began to trickle into his head, the remains of a forgotten Pooka kit's life filtering into his subconscious mind.

A few hours (and a few crashes from getting used to his new body) later, the map had led him to a cave buried deep in the mountains. Jack shivered as he very carefully stepped into the cave, feeling the magic that absolutely soaked this place. He could make out symbols and glyphs glowing throughout the walls and floor to light the way, the Time Pendant whispering into his mind about what those runes meant and what they would do to him if he made a wrong move.

From the dim hallway, Jack stepped into a cavern lit with light as soft as moonbeams. The room was a cavern carved smoothly from the stone in a perfect circle. The light came from gently glowing balls of silver light that were set into the stone, surrounding what Jack first thought was some kind of altar. But it wasn't.

It was a sarcophagus.

The crypt was made of what looked to be pure silver, gleaming faintly in the dim light. It wasn't a very big box, measuring less than six ft by three ft by four ft. Images were engraved into the metal, of a boy that wore fierce looking armor, and carried a long, wicked spear, the end of it like a shepard's crook. Jack looked over the inscription on the tomb, his voice quiet as he read aloud;

"Here lies the great hero Nightlight-"

"Oh, come on, seriously? I thought Tempus was kidding. That was your name? What are these people thinking?" Jack muttered before continuing.

"Here lies the great hero Nightlight,

Last of the Royal Guard of Lunaria

And famed warrior monk

First to rise in arms against

The corrupted General Pitchiner

And destroyed his black ships of Shadow Men

Here lies the bravest of all Guardians

Sacrificing his life

To protect his friends

Sweet Dreams, Beloved Friend"

The Pooka felt tears sting his eyes, remembering when Sandy had fallen to Pitch the first time, and how the elven bells had rung in sorrow for the first Guardian. He remembered how all the Guardians fell. Jack saw the remains of a few gutted candles at the base of the crypt and a mountain of dust covering the room, a sadness and camaraderie growing in him for the fallen Guardian. "Its not that they've forgotten you," he said quietly to the tomb. "I'm sure they haven't. It probably just hurts to talk about loosing you. But I bet it gets lonely down here."

The new Guardian of Time set to work, wiping down the dust from the walls and carefully removing it from the sarcophagus' artwork with water from his canteen. The male gasped in surprise when he suddenly saw a few golden candles in his bag, and smiled. "Thanks, Tempus." He lit the three candles over the remains of the others, giving the room a yellow glow. He then bowed his head, far too used to funerals to feel awkward at a grave ever again. "The Master of Time, and his new Guardian, would like to pay their respects to you, Nightlight. Here's hoping they're really good dreams," Jack said softly.

They are.

Jack nearly jumped out of his new fur, yelping in shock as he fell backward onto the ground. He found himself staring up at a figure that would have easily passed as Jack's brother. It was a teenage boy with brilliant green eyes, his skin as pale as moonlight. His hair was a shade of ghostly white that stuck up at odd angles around his head. He wore studded black metal armor, like a knights, but more form fitting. But what really scared the Pooka was how the boy was completely see-through, like a ghost. "Who...who are-wait! You're him, Nightlight, aren't you?" Jack asked.

Yes, the boy answered, his voice gentle, for all that it still sounded stiff and formal. You?

"Oh! I'm Ja-"-he paused. He could no longer be Jack Frost, could he? He had to choose a new name. He'd given it a lot of thought as he'd walked here, and had finally come to a decision. As a nod to his favorite book series, and as a private joke to his Aster, he chose the name, "Rhosgobel. Um, you can call me Rhos. I'm the new Guardian of Time. I've got to ask, did someone just bring you back, or are you some kind of a ghost?"

The spirit nodded in acknowledgement. Ghost. Why are you here?

Rhos slowly stood up, dusting himself off as he adjusted his cloak. "Not much of a talker, are you? Oh well. I was sent here by the Master of Time," he answered. "He said that there was something here that could help me stop Pitch."

Nightlight was quiet for a long moment, looking at his own tomb. Rhos almost thought he'd forgotten the question, but then he finally answered. My spear. He walked over to the sarcophagus and made a motion at the base. A compartment slid open, showing the three broken pieces of a very powerful weapon.

The spear's shaft gleamed in the dim light, made of polished black obsidian. Lines of glowing platinum twined around it, from the studded shepard's crook at the end to the base of a blade that nearly defied description. It was as if pure moonlight was condensed into a solid form, forged with liquid silver and steel, and shaped into the most deadly, wicked-looking blade imaginable. The blade had been snapped off the base, and the shaft had been split in two pieces.

Rhos stared at the pieces, then pulled the two pieces of his staff out from his bag, placing them with the spear. "Okay, Tempus said I'd need these, but he didn't mention what to do with them. How are we supposed to fix these? Find some kind of mystical blacksmith, or something?"

The ghost nodded at Rhos. Hephaestus.

"Bless you," the Pooka said in bemusement. "I didn't know ghosts could sneeze."

Nightlight got a look on his face as if he dearly wished that he wasn't too dignified to face-palm. Greek god of the forge. Hephaestus forged Zeus' lightning.

Rhos' felt his jaw drop. "He forged lightning?! Oh that is freaking sweet. So if we take the pieces to this guy, he can fix them?" Nightlight nodded. "Then where can I find him?"

Greece.

Long black ears twitched. "Um, I'm going to go out on a limb and assume you mean I have to go to Mount Olympus? That's the home of the main Greek gods, right?"

Nightlight nodded.

The black Pooka winced. "Oooh, man. That's a long way away, and I can't fly anymore. Its gonna take forever to get there."

Good luck.

"Huh?" Rhos saw Nightlight's image start to fade away. "Nightlight! You're-What's happening to you?!"

The Lunarian smiled with warmth. To sleep, perchance to dream. Goodbye, Rhos. May the Light ever be with you.

"Wait! Don't go-!" but he was already gone. "...goodbye, Nightlight. Sweet Dreams," he said sadly. The Guardian of Time picked up the pieces of the weapons, carefully putting them in his pack, and quickly left the tomb.