Chapter 15

"Are you enjoying your toy?" Pitch practically purred as Ember left Jack's room. She didn't even look up at the Nightmare king. She wasn't in the mood to deal with his soliloquy. "I'm glad you are finally getting the justice your sister deserves."

"Yeah," Ember muttered continuing to head back into the main foyer. She could feel the king of fear behind her just trailing her. She could feel his yellow gaze burning a hole in her back. In her mind, there was still a job to do; the Guardians were divided but not defeated.

Ember was able to walk into the main room where all the cages hung before she turned to face Pitch. He was smiling at her, his razor teeth showing, and she just casted her look to the ground. Today was becoming an emotionally exhaustive day; never in all her years did she think she would be standing her in front of the boogeyman with the chance to get revenge. It was a bit overwhelming to think about.

"I'm ready," Pitch said, his smile growing. "My powers are unstoppable now. The Guardians need to be reminded that you can't kill fear."

"Nope," she agreed. "You can only kill the person feeling it." That was more for herself than for Pitch, but his gaze narrowed with her words.

"Yes well," he said waving off her comments, "this world will know to believe and fear me."

"Have fun with that," she said, and this time the Nightmare king didn't let her comments slide. He stepped forward and wrapped his hand around her throat. She didn't struggle, and she barely glared up at him. "You and I both know I'm not afraid of you. My fear died in that fire."

"Yes most of it did," he hissed. "But remember, I can still smell fear, and yours is there albeit faintly." She knew a concealed threat when she heard it; he had the power to make her dream of the fire over and over if he wanted.

"How about we focus on the Guardians or what's left of them?" she suggested, her grip tightening on the bow on her shoulder. The longer she was around him, the more she wondered if it was possible to shove him into a box and never let him out.

"They are starting to be forgotten," he chuckled as he released the fire spirit. She shrugged her bow off and held it tightly in her right hand. "They are finished. Then we can rule and be believed in."

"You have fun with that," she said stepping away from the boogeyman. He looked ready to argue, but she held up her hand. "The deal was I help you take down the Guardians and I could make Jack suffer for what he did to my sister… I don't care to be believed in. Never again will I be, that's my punishment." She saw Pitch purse his lips with her words, but he gave her a short nod. "You can have the entire world for your taking; I'm going back to the equator after this."

"As for Jack?" he grinned, licking his lips at the thought of the frightened spirit in the other room. He could taste the fear in the air along with a mix of defiance. Pitch couldn't help but wonder how the boy was still able to struggle after being told Ember blamed him for a part of her sister's death. He had figured that would destroy any fight in him, but oh well. Pitch figured this just meant he could have the honor of turning the annoying young spirit into a quivering pile of panic and anxiety. He could already see it, his own personal Guardian that would always be around to feed him fear.

"I don't… I don't care," Ember said with a shake of her head. She was tired; she didn't want to think about the winter spirit anymore. She said her peace; she told him what had haunted her. For now, she just wanted to forget. She ran a weary hand across her face and tried to focus on the plan at hand. "Let's just finish this."

Pitch let it drop and tried not to roll his eyes with the thought of 'teenagers'. He followed behind the fire spirit as she left the lair, and he again enjoyed the fullness of the night. Next to him, he saw Ember allowed fire to consume her again before being picked up by a breeze. Pitch called his main nightmare and caught up with the fire spirit. The warren was gone, the workshop was gone, and she hadn't finished the job at the Palace… which meant they had to make one last stop before confronting the Guardians.

…

Jack pulled against his restraints only for them to stay as tight as they were before. He couldn't get loose no matter how much he struggled. He had to get out of here, he knew that, but there wasn't a plausible escape route yet. He could only hope at least Jamie was safe, but with someone as angry as Ember, he wasn't entirely sure if that was possible anymore. He felt lucky to not be burnt to a crisp after what she told him.

He relaxed his head against the back of the cell trying to keep the panic to a minimum. He wasn't even sure if he was in this cell alone; his hearing was cut before he could listen for the door. The thought that Ember could be standing across from him, just watching him squirm caused him to pause. He took deep breaths in through his nose trying to calm his racing heart. Even if she was watching him, Jack reminded himself that it wasn't like she was trying to burn a hole through his chest currently.

He went back to struggling and fighting against the hardened sand. Sadly the more he fought, the more exhausted he became. The last thing he wanted to do was fall asleep in here again. Sweat began to pool across his face as his muscles strained and his mind tired. What he needed was help or his staff… His staff would have been perfect as it would make his ice powers usable; he, sadly, had never learned to really use his powers without it. Suddenly, this seemed like a good time to try.

Focusing, Jack tried to drop the temperature of his body as he would do if he was in the presence of Ember. He knew in the past he had done it subconsciously when they fought in response to her higher body temperature. Diving deep into his own mind, Jack thought of how he felt when he fell into that lake- how cold it was, how his own blood felt frozen in his veins.

Jack felt a tremor run down his spine as the temperature fluctuated in the room; he smiled to himself before focusing again. He tried to make the cold go into the sand and freeze it. He tried not to smile to himself at the realization he was doing it. Jack knew with a bit more, he would be able to break free and help the guardians. He could just hope that he could keep Ember busy with his escape so that she wouldn't go after Jamie.

He mentally scolded himself for taking so long. He kept repeating in his mind 'come on Jack, come on.' Finally, he felt the shackles crack before he fell forward from the sudden release. Reaching up to his face, he pried off the rest of the sand and looked around the room. The fire had gone out from how cold he had made it; he could even see his own breath. In that moment, he felt like celebrating, but he knew he didn't have much time. He grabbed his staff that they were kind enough to leave in the other corner before blasting the door with ice.

Jack didn't waste any time before bolting from the lair; he had no idea that Ember and Pitch had already gone to the Palace. He just figured something probably heard his escape, and he didn't want to be around by the time they came for him.

He let the air lift him and tried not to hiss as his battered body resisted. The adrenaline was already wearing off, and with how hot he expected it to be outside, he knew he didn't have much time to meet up with the others. He figured his best shot was to either go to the Warren or the Palace, but he remembered Ember's words about how she turned it into nothing. Not seeing much choice, he took off for the Palace.

Chapter 16: The Guardians face off against Pitch and Ember… and Jack tries to return to the fight. His guilt starts to eat at him with every blast of cold air he uses, and as he finds himself crushing under the weight of what he did, he finds his powers failing… Can the Guardians get through this fight in one piece?

OOC: Sorry it's not as long as the last few, but that's because it's an intermediate chapter. It's meant to be a leeway into what's coming next. As for the reviewer who pointed out what Ember is doing is not justice but vengeance- you're completely right . Hope you guys are enjoying this R&R