The next day dawned strangely dark. Though she didn't say it, Jack could tell that Lady Palutena was worried. She kept casting glances at the sky and eventually retreated into a room of her temple that housed what appeared to be a giant crystal pool in an urn of sorts.

"Through this pool, I can watch over the entire world Jack." She smiled slightly. "It's how I found you." She frowned. "Now however, I can sense that something is wrong. Something is stirring, and I'm trying to find out what."

The pool shimmered and turned purple. Palutena took a step back in surprise. "You needn't look too far." The voice was dark and feminine.

Palutena's expression darkened. "Medusa!"

Jack leaned over the lip of the pool and caught sight of a very pale face with purple eyes sneering at them. The eyes narrowed when they spotted Jack, and the face drew back, revealing itself to be female. To Jack's surprise, the black hair was interspersed with snakes, one of them a bright gold.

"And just who might you be?" She sounded both wary and curious at the same time.

"Jack Frost, Madame Medusa."

Medusa blinked, looking somewhat nonplussed. Jack got the impression that she wasn't used to anyone giving her a title. After a moment she shook her head. "My quarrel is not with you. Stay out of the way and you won't get hurt."

Lady Palutena's eyebrows rose until they reached her hairline. "Sparing someone? That's not like you Medusa."

Medusa's lips thinned. "Let's just say it's nice to see someone who knows how to respect their betters."

Palutena's lips twitched, but she said, "And how are you back this time Medusa? Last I checked, Hades was in no shape to go about resurrecting people."

Medusa frowned. "It wasn't Hades, that much I'm sure of." She shook her head. "But the how doesn't matter!"

"And revenge does?" Palutena sounded slightly bored.

Medusa's smile was almost feral. "There's always a reason for revenge."

"Not a good one." Jack said quietly.

Medusa heard him however. "And what would you know about revenge, you skinny little twig?"

Jack felt himself smile slightly. "You think I haven't wanted revenge against anyone? Whoever it is camping out up there in the moon made me and dumped me on this planet with nothing more than a name. Of course I have resentment towards him. I even wanted revenge against him for a while, but I eventually realized it would have been pointless. What would that have got me?"

Medusa smirked. "Satisfaction."

Jack shrugged. "Somehow I don't think it would have lasted long."

The goddess eyed him. "Then that's your problem I suppose." Her attention returned to Palutena. "I rather thought you would know what was going on."

Palutena's lips pursed. "Believe me, if I had known, I would have done something about it." She eyed Medusa. "You really don't know who brought you back?"

The goddess shook her head, snakes swaying. "I only know it wasn't Hades. I checked the underworld. He's as gaseous as when you and Pit blasted him. The first thing I remember was a voice saying something about ice and the winds of change blowing in a new direction." She rolled her eyes. "Not exactly a lot to go on."

"I suppose not."

Jack leaned over the edge of the pool again. "Why did you contact us? It's obviously not to gloat."

Medusa's eyes narrowed. "What makes you think I did it for anything other than my own amusement?"

"You're not exactly laughing."

Medusa was silent for a moment. "I wanted a truce, however temporary." Jack watched Lady Palutena's mouth drop open. "I have no idea who revived me, but I refuse to play the decoy puppet in their schemes. Having Palutena track them down is worth the embarrassment of siding with her."

Lady Palutena's lips quirked up into a smile. "And why should I side with you?"

"Because the last time I was revived, the culprit created mass panic and worldwide chaos, and very nearly brought the heavens and earth crashing down."

Palutena grew serious at once. "Good point. It's a deal. It might be better if you come to Skyworld yourself. If someone's expecting you to attack us, then we'll be able to gain some time, and the element of surprise. Incidentally, who's been in charge of the underworld proper while Hades is out of commission?"

"Apparently the reapers. They've largely been the responsible parties for chivying souls back and forth, though they relinquished control to me upon my arrival. The alternative was Loki's daughter, and they evidently didn't feel Hel had had enough experience with the entirety of the underworld."

"A more likely reason is that she didn't want to. I suppose that rules out an underworld culprit. The reapers don't have the skill to revive a goddess, Thanatos isn't the type to try, and Hel's too easy going to make waves like that. Especially considering that I asked her to guard Hades remains."

"Which leaves an Overworld force."

"There's not many spirits or deities that would even attempt it, but it could just as easily been a human mage. There's still a few around, for all that everyone thinks they've died out."

"If it was a human, I'll rend their very soul to pieces." Her image vanished from the pool of liquid.

Lady Palutena sighed. Then she turned to Jack. "I had hoped you would never have to have an encounter with her. I thought her gone for good last time, but apparently someone likes to meddle."

"Who is she?"

"She is Medusa, Queen of the Underworld, and the Goddess of Darkness. And my sister."

"You two don't look anything alike."

Palutena smiled wanly, her eyes looking distant. "Long ago we did. We used to rule together, I the day and she the night. When we first came about, deities and spirits alike were either imprisoned or otherwise rendered powerless, and the world had been cloaked in hatred, fear, evil, and despair. "

"Together with Pit, we fought back against those forces. Working as one, the three of us, along with our forces, banished Weeping Night, the Spirit of Despair into a realm beyond that of ours and sealed him there. Pit himself slayed Risodante, the Spirit of Hatred in battle. The wounds he sustained from that battle are the reason he cannot fly without assistance. "

"We defeated Umber, the Spirit of Evil, and Medusa herself executed her, using her as an example of what would happen to those who would attempt to wreak havoc. Many thought it was a fitting end."

"What about Fear?"

Palutena shook her head. "With despair, hatred, and evil defeated, Gaia and Viridi were free. They took the fight straight to the master of fear, Pitch Black, the Nightmare King. After a vicious battle, they defeated him and forced him into hiding. These days, he's known as the Boogeyman."

"They didn't get rid of him?"

She frowned. "Fear is a universal constant. It's what makes children look both ways, what keeps them from touching a hot stove. It's what makes animals be wary of strangers. Fear is a necessity of life, and as such it cannot be destroyed." Palutena's lips pursed. "However, that doesn't mean the current wielder of it cannot be removed. In the case of Pitch Black, there were other forces at work."

"Other forces?"

Palutena grimaced. "It's a very long story, and I'll tell it to you soon, but the short answer is that Pitch Black is not entirely in control of himself. There's also the matter of the Guardians. These days, he's primarily their enemy."

"The Guardians?"

"A special group made up of four spirits. That's another story I'll tell you. At any rate, Medusa and I worked in harmony for many years. Unfortunately, Medusa began to turn against the humans, punishing them ever more viciously. Drying up their crops, visiting plagues upon them, turning them to stone, etcetera." She paused for a moment.

"In my anger I confronted her. After a fierce battle, I defeated her, and I transformed her into the image that I saw in heart, and banished her from skyworld. The face you saw today is a facade, an image she puts up."

"You transformed her?"

Lady Palutena sighed. "I was enraged, and wasn't thinking clearly. Looking back, I can't help but suspect that Hades may have been involved even then. Medusa certainly seemed to change overnight."

"Hades?"

The former master of the underworld. He was the last one who revived Medusa. And he did it solely as a distraction to keep me busy so I wouldn't notice what he was up to. If someone is using that tactic again, then who knows what their end goal is."

She smiled grimly. "If that is the case however, I seriously doubt they ever expected Medusa to call a truce, which means we have an advantage, however slight."

The next day, Medusa arrived with fairly little fanfare on her part, but a great deal of panic from the centurions. Jack was irresistibly reminded of a flock of startled birds as every one of them launched themselves into the air.

Ignoring the numerous weapons pointed at her, Medusa turned her attention to Palutena and Pit, who were swiftly approaching. "I see you didn't inform them." She waved a hand to indicate the centurions.

"Stand down!" Palutena barked. When the centurions hesitated, she thumped her staff on the ground. "I said stand down! She's not our enemy!"

"For once." Pit muttered quietly.

Palutena shot him a glance, but otherwise ignored it. To Medusa she said, "Actually I did tell them. But evidently they thought I was joking." She sent the still armed centurions a rather stern look.

When they finally lowered their weapons, Medusa turned her attention to Jack. "You look…new."

Unsure how to respond to this, Jack remained silent.

Medusa swept closer, leaning down to stare him in the eyes. "You are a young one."

"Seventy, or thereabouts I think." Palutena supplied.

Medusa's eyes narrowed. "Winter?"

"According to the man in the moon, yeah." Jack said. "Never bothered to say anything else though."

"Somehow, I'm not surprised." Medusa said archly. "The Man in the Moon has always been a little less than excellent." With that, she swept off, following Palutena into her temple.

Pit wandered up next to him. "Sounds kinda like she actually approves of you."

"Yeah, I sort of caught that myself. What did she mean about the moon being "less than excellent"?"

Pit shrugged. "If she ever knew the man in the moon, then it's news to me. Lady Palutena and I almost never even speak with him, though I think that has more to do with him than anything else." He frowned. "Either way, I don't like having Medusa here, even if she does seem more…laid back." He shrugged again. "I guess being destroyed three times gives you some perspective for when it's your fourth time around."

"Fourth?"

"Yeah. The last two were because of Hades."

"Lady Palutena mentioned him earlier. Who was he?"

"The god of the underworld. He revived her once as distraction, and I don't know why he did it a second time, but it backfired then. Hades was about to destroy me when Medusa showed up out of nowhere and punched his head off. Said she wouldn't play the puppet any longer."

"She punched his head off?"

Pit nodded as they headed back towards the temple. "Yeah. Lady Palutena said she got an A for vindictive tenacity. Even then it wasn't enough. Hades grew a new head and destroyed her. Said she'd worn out her usefulness." He shook his head. "Usefulness to him maybe. Her attack bought Lady Palutena enough time to come up with a plan, and gave Viridi the chance to get me into the air. I'm starting to think that was Medusa's plan. She had to know she wouldn't be able to hold Hades off for very long."

"Hades sounds like he must have been powerful."

"Very. He caused decimation on a global scale, and disrupted the balance of life so badly that it took his own destruction to set things right. And he did it purely because he was greedy. If it hadn't been for Medusa, I'm not sure we would have won."

Mulling this over, Jack followed Pit into the temple.

Dinner with Medusa as a guest was just as interesting as breakfast with Viridi had been. Shortly after she had been served a rather raw looking steak by a very nervous centurion, she started giving Jack some strangely searching looks that made Jack feel as if he was being looked through rather than at.

After a few minutes of this she spoke. "Man in the Moon isn't the only responsible party is he?"

Since he had no idea what she was asking, Jack was glad that it was Palutena that answered. "Viridi and I are fairly certain that Gaea is the main force behind it. Viridi is out searching for her as we speak. She said she'll contact us as soon as she gets things figured out."

Medusa frowned. "That might take a while. Gaea is a…elusive being."

Palutena nodded. "Viridi seemed confident she could find her very quickly."

Jack blinked, remembering something. "When you first contacted us, you said a voice told you about the winds of change. Was it the Man in the Moon speaking to you?"

To his surprise, Medusa actually burst out into a full-fledged laugh. It was rich and melodious, and completely at odds with her former behavior. As she settled back, Jack saw a real unguarded smile. It seemed to transform her entire face, and for a moment, Jack was forcibly reminded of Lady Palutena.

When she managed to control herself, Medusa shook her head, still smiling. "It wasn't him that much I'm certain of. We never exactly got on."

Lady Palutena leaned forward, looking interested. "I didn't realize you had any contact with him."

Medusa pulled a face, the snakes on her head hissing. "Contact is a bit of a strong description. Tsar Lunar's idea of recent is something like centuries. Back in the early days, we both viewed ourselves as guardians of the night. That being the case, we had our differences. Eventually, Lunar started focusing more and more exclusively on children, though he still kept an eye on the world, for all the good that did. He certainly never interfered in any of our tiffs."

Jack took a careful sip of his soup and found it to be quite pleasant. "But you came before him didn't you? That was the impression I got." When Medusa looked puzzled he said, "Lady Palutena told me that you three fought to free the world when you first came around."

Her expression cleared at this. "Ah. Yes, we did. Lunar was already here however. He and Pitch Black arrived at roughly the same time. That being said, Lunar either didn't know what to do, or wasn't old enough to do it. He essentially grew up in his observatory up there. Which is why it ended up being Viridi and Gaea who actually forced Pitch Black from power that first time. No one else really had the strength to do it. Fear is a powerful foe."

That night, Jack had a particularly nasty dream. Fire and screaming raced through his mind like lightning. He jerked awake to find that he himself had been screaming.

Lady Palutena had evidently heard him as well. She swept in, looking more than a little concerned. "Are you alright Jack?" Medusa was behind her, looking around the room with a strangely suspicious expression.

"I- I think so. It was all fire and screams."

"A lost memory perhaps."

Jack shook his head. "I don't remember anything like that. I usually stay away from fire after the whole bonfire incident."

Palutena's lips twisted. "I suspect there's a story involved in that. The word "Incident" usually gives it away."

"There was something else too, something dark and nasty."

Medusa suddenly made a snatching motion over in one corner. "Nasty is right."

Palutena turned from her spot at the foot of Jack's bed. "A fearling."

Jack felt his dinner trying to come up as he saw the squirming, ink like shadow that was caught in Medusa's clawed hand. "What is that?"

Medusa squeezed her hand and thing gave out a high pitched shriek and exploded into nothingness. "A fearling, though a weak one. They spread nightmares and fear." Her eyes narrowed. "They are agents of Pitch Black."

Palutena raised a finger. "That's not entirely accurate you know."

Medusa shrugged. "It seems easier to understand than them being agents of each other." She turned to Jack, who was watching her, wide-eyed. "That being said I am the true ruler of darkness, and all it entails. Weak little creatures of the dark such as them have no power against me. Dreams, sweet or vicious are of little effort for me." She traced a symbol of some kind in the air over the bed. "Sleep well, and rest easy in dreams of peace."

She swept out. Palutena was silent for a moment before saying. "I do believe you've won her over, Jack." She smiled at him. "It's heartening to see signs of Medusa as she was so long ago. I think you can probably bring out the good in her that's been hidden away for so long."

She too left and Jack quickly fell into a sleep that was filled with warm and comforting darkness, and light, shining gently down from above.

AN: Hoo boy! This took a while to write. Medusa is a very tough character to write, and I had to go back and re-listen to her scenes before I felt I had a good handle on her. She is most definately the type to look out for her own interests first, even if it would mean siding with Palutena. She also seems to be the sort of thing that could easily deal with a fearling, as they would technically roam in her domain, and darkness is a pretty wide description. As for the bit about Pit's wings, I was fairly certain that Palutena's explanation that they "just don't work right" was hiding something.

I think we can all guess who's going to appear next btw :)