Pitch slumped against a chimney, trying to catch his breath. They had been chasing Nightmares for hours. Him, Jack, and Bunny. North would have been trying to help but he had agreed to watch Cherny since Pitch knew most about the nightmares. Jack flew to his side.
"Pitch are you ok?" He asked placing a hand on his shoulder. Pitch nodded and stood and the chase resumed. Leaping from roof to roof Pitch was slowly guiding the Nightmares towards either Jack or Bunnymund to dispatch. He still felt useless, no matter how much he tried he couldn't dissolve the nightmares back into his possession. soon they all found themselves on the outskirts of the city. Only a few Nightmares left. Pitch lept off the last roof landing elegantly on his feet. Jack floated next to him and Bunny ran up on his other side. Pitch faced the nightmares.
"You cannot win this." He said firmly.
"Yessss we can Nightmare Lord." One of the nightmares hissed in his head. "For we know what you aren't willing to rissssk, what you will never harm." Jack cried out as he was dragged down, his head bouncing off the ground, as a tendril of shadow grabbed his ankle. It pulled him over towards the nightmares where he was surrounded by black sand.
"JACK!" he cried out. He started forward only to stop when sand formed around Jacks neck and started to squeeze. "No! D-Dont hurt him." He said staring at jacks wide-eyed face.
"No... we wont hurt him. That would be letting you off easy. No we intend to keep him from you. Never letting him see the light of day. And we will consssstantly remind you how his fate is all. Your. Fault." Pitch opened his mouth to say something. "Or we could kill him right now in front of you while you stand there helplesssssss." Pitch stared at Jack, years welling up in his eyes. "We go and he lives, for now. Fight usss he dies."
"I-I'm so sorry Jack." Pitch said closing his eyes not being able to watch as the nightmares sped off with his love in their vile clutches. He opened his eyes as Bunny placed a comforting paw on his shoulder.
"It'll be alright. We'll get him Back. I promise." Pitch sighed, brushing past Bunny to head home. He paused just as he reached the entrance, guilt flooding over him as he knew Cherney was waiting to see them both. He melted into the shadows reappearing inside the main chamber of his home. Cherney and North were laughing over some game they were playing when she looked up her eyes sparkling.
"Daddy!" she called running over to hug Pitch. "You're back! Yay!" She smiled up at him but her happiness quickly made way to confusion. "Daddy, where's Mommy?" Pitch clenched his fists looking away from his daughter as tears came to his eyes. He tried to fight them back but they came on strong. He sank to his knees pulling the small child close.
"I'm so sorry baby." He said between his sobs "Th-They took Mommy. I-I tried to save him but..." Cherny took her fathers face in her small hands and made Pitch look at her.
"It's ok Daddy. I know you'll get him back." Pitch's heart cracked at his daughters strength. He sobbed into her shoulder repeating 'I'm so sorry...' over and over. North place a gentle hand on Pitch's shoulder.
"Me and Bunny will go try to hunt down where the nightmares are. They will pay dearly for taking him." Pitch wiped his face and looked up at North with hope. "We will be sure to contact you when we find them. You keep her safe." He told Pitch, who nodded. North then left to find Bunny.

It had been three days since that night. Pitch was doing terrible. The nightmares kept their word and plagued him in his sleep with images of Jack chained up in pure darkness. Jack kept calling for Pitch, begging him to come. Pitch almost always woke up suddenly, covered in sweat, his heart racing. Then tears would come and he would lay there in his empty bed wishing he could have spared Jack from this somehow. Of course tonight the nightmare was slightly different. The nightmares taunted him with Jack, showing Pitch his beloved Frostbite wasting away in the darkness. But then it showed three different prisons, one containing North, another had bunny, and the last Tooth.
"Your friendssss have failed to bring your love back to you. Now what will you do? You have nowhere else to turn. Sssssubmit to usss, and we might let them go." Pitch woke up screaming. He had no choice, he had to find them himself. But how? He didn't know where they were and it's not like he could take Cherney with him. He thought of Sandman, he had defeated the nightmares before. It was his only choice. He molded himself into the shadows and went up to the surface looking for the streaks of golden sand that announced Sandy's nightly visit. What he saw was nothing near what he expected. Sandy was already there, Fighting an entire army of nightmares by himself. Pitch watched as Sandy fought he was holding his own very well but it didn't last. Sandy was surrounded and slowly, slowly beaten down by the nightmares. The golden sand was absorbed into the swirling mass of black that fused together into one lone Nightmare, who then landed directly in front of Pitch.
"You sssee Shadow King without you we are more, we are powerful. You cannot fight ussss."
"Won't stop me from trying!" He shouted forming his sythe out of his sand. He swung at the nightmare who jumped out of reach.
"If you continue to fight uss we can alwayss go after the girl." The nightmare hissed, the nose echoing in Pitches skull. Pitch halted pure fury turning his face into a deep, deep shade of grey.
"You wouldn't dare touch my daughter." He hissed back.
"If it's the only way to show you our power then yessss we will." The nightmare spat. Pitch let his scythe dissolve.
"If I knew where you were hiding..." He spat before melting back into the shadows. The nightmare sped off and Pitch followed silently from the shadows until they came to where the nightmares must have been hiding. Pitch memorized the place before quickly speeding back home to wait for his daughter to wake. As soon as Cherny woke Pitch scooped her into his arms.
"Good morning my darling." He said softly. She immediately picked up that something was wrong.
"What's wrong daddy?" She asked.
"You have to listen to me baby," He said, gently sitting her down. "I know where mommy was taken. However, all the other guardians are there as well. I have to go an help them but I can't leave you here. They'll take you too." Her eyes widened as she hung on to her fathers words sensing the seriousness in them. "I have to take you with me. But when I do you must promise me to stay in the shadows. I know you will want to help, but don't stay in the shadows ok my love?" She shook her head slightly trying to take it all in.
"I-I promise daddy. But please don't get hurt. I wouldn't like that. And I know Mommy wouldn't either."