Finished: 27th December 2005
Uploaded: 28th December 2005

Gasp! Update! Season 2 reference for the title, even though none of the season 2 SGW are in this fic. I'd come with the ideas in this chapter ages ago, but the name really fits. Trust me.


Chapter 4: Shadow of Fear

Was this real? It had to be a dream, but ...

Crouched down on his knees, Omi was surrounded on all sides by ten figures. He and the figures were lit up, but other than that, there was nothing but darkness.

"You're nothing but a failure!"

"You're no Xiaolin Dragon!"

"You've let the forces of darkness win!"

"Not true …!" Omi said, but all he could feel was his guilt for sending Raimundo astray, and his anger at himself for failing Kimiko and for not being strong enough to defeat Wuya. He didn't think it was weird that there were ten Dashis around him, pointing at him accusingly, even though he'd never seen Dashi in real life before. But each word they said cut into him deeply. The darkness was strong here, its finger-like tendrils growing everywhere.

Join us, the darkness said.

The Dashis continued their verbal onslaught.

"The Dragon of Wind has been turned evil!"

"You couldn't save the Dragon of Fire!"

"Dead?"

"Yes! She's dead! Wuya's taken her soul away! And it's all your fault!"

I … no … Kimiko …

The darkness grew stronger, and the tendrils grew larger.

Become us, the shadows whispered.

"You weak, useless, pathetic Dragon!"

Join us.

Had all his training been in vain?

Dashi seemed to think so. The darkness was growing stronger. The ten Dashis parted, to reveal Omi's parents.

Omi looked up. "Mother …? Father …?"

"You're a disappointment to us, Omi," his mum said sadly, and she buried her head in her hands.

"But, I –"

"You see what you've done? You've made your mother cry!" his father snapped harshly. "You've brought shame upon the temple, and upon your parents!"

"I …"

The shadows grew even stronger.

Become us, they said.


Water, water, everywhere, and not a drop to drink. One minute Clay had been with Omi running from the food monster, and the next he was swimming in the ocean. It been hours since then – or at least it had seemed like hours – but for the first time since the endless ocean had appeared, something new had happened. A giant seal, at least twenty feet long, broke to the surface.

Clay immediately swam in the opposite direction, but the seal cried:

"I took your mother away!"

The grey seal now had Clay's full attention. Something unbidden came to mind, a lost memory of childhood that he didn't even know he had. "W-what?"

"I took your mother away! I took your mother away! I took your mother away – and now I'm coming for you!"

The seal laughed, a continual, high-pitched laughter that sounded like an alarm clock gone wrong. The laughter repeated over and over again in Clay's mind, even as the seal opened its huge mouth and swallowed him.

Join us, the shadows hissed in the darkness.


Jack came to a small clearing, where he found odd, tiny cake-houses dotted along the path, little wisps of smoke drifting upwards from each of them. He slowed down and approached them with measurable caution. The last couple of days (and indeed, the last couple of hours) had taught him to expect anything apart from the ordinary.

One or two seconds later, and he found that he had been right to be cautious. Several streaks of different colours came whizzing out of the cakes, all yelling cries of distress. He ducked and jumped to stop himself being hit by one of the moving colours, until one of them, a blue sparkle of shimmering colours, came to a halt right in front of his face and said, "You'd better leave, or you'll be sorry!" in a high-pitched, angry little voice.

He was not daunted in the least, since he had been expecting something of this nature. He was still a little annoyed with the griffin, so he stomped the ground with his left foot and frowned in the most evil way he could, trying to look intimidating. He'd show them not to mess with an evil boy genius. This ploy worked; the blue creature backed off a little, looking scared for a brief moment, before returning to the angry panic.

So these are the pixies, he thought, full of curiosity despite himself. He noticed that there was sparkling dust following each of them wherever they went.

The blue pixie was giving him a hostile glare. Most of the other pixies had taken up positions on top of the cakes, and compartments opened up revealing tiny cannons, all facing Jack from different directions. Others sat with helmets and shields and wands, and some had dived behind small bunkers, of sorts. It looked as though he was being confronted by a miniature toy army, and though he was now wise enough not to underestimate the creatures of the magical world, he couldn't really feel threatened by these pixies. They were just too small. Indeed, he found this quite amusing after seeing what Wuya had done to the future. He couldn't help it – he burst out laughing at the little creatures.

"You think you can stop me? With those little things?"

"Shut it, you big MEANIE!" the blue pixie yelled, completely outraged that Jack had the cheek to laugh at them. One of his hands was clenched in anger, the other pointed a tiny finger in Jack's face.

"Yeah! Leave us alone!" added a pink one, although far less convincingly than the blue one. She was peeking timidly from behind one of the others, in one of the ditches. "We're ready for you this time! We're not gonna let you get away with stealing!"

Jack managed to stop snickering, although he still had an amused grin on his face. "What are you talking about?"

"You sent her to steal our sleepy powder!" the blue pixie shrieked.

"What are you talking about?" Jack repeated more slowly, shaking his head in exasperation. The way they spoke, they sounded like little four-year-olds.

"Aren't you Jack Spicer? And aren't you with that hideous ghost? Well? AREN'T YOU?" the lead pixie screeched in his ear.

He lost his composure this time, reeling backwards slightly. He stuttered, not quite expecting such a small creature to have such a loud voice. "W-well, I-I … Wait, Wuya was here?"

All the pixies bared shiny teeth and hissed at him.

"Of course she was here – she stole our sleepy powder!"

Jack thought back to when he and Wuya had still been allies. He couldn't remember Wuya mentioning anything about pixie dust, but then she had always been secretive about her ultimate plans.

"I didn't know," he said earnestly, hoping that the pixies would believe him. If anything, he might need their help to find the others, because he didn't know where to start. "I never kept tabs on her 24/7. I told her to stay in my lab. How could she steal your dust anyway? She couldn't hold anything solid."

The lead pixie was frowning (though it looked more like a childish pout) and deliberately declined to reply, until Jack glowered back.

"She came here with the spirit of Sando'ip," the pixie said eventually.

"Sandy? I don't know any Sandy," Jack said, still mirroring the pixie's frown. Just what had Wuya been up to while he'd been out of his lab? He was angry and confused at the same time, and the blue pixie buzzed around him like a glittering dragonfly, examining him carefully, trying to see if there was any truth within his eyes.

"Hmm … the anti-Wuya alarm didn't go off, so ya must be here alone."

"Anti-Wuya alarm? Heh, maybe you guys are more like me than I thought."

"Listen, sissy-boy, just 'cause you're not here with her, doesn't mean we believe ya."

"Look," Jack said, starting to get annoyed, "I just came here to find help. The Xiaolin monks are in this world too, and if I don't hurry, Wuya will take over the physical world. Maybe this one too."

"Isn't that what you want?"

"Get your facts straight! I'm not with Wuya any more! She nearly killed me!"

"She should have finished the job! You're not welcome here!"

This really was becoming ridiculous, and Jack had lost his patience. Just how many of these damned magical creatures were going to hold a grudge against him for opening a little box?

Fortunately, Dojo chose that moment to come to his defence. "It's okay!" he yelled, slithering out from under one of the bushes and waving an arm. "He's on our side!"

Suddenly, he zoomed across the clearing into some candy floss bushes on the opposite side; Jack caught a glimpse of the Dog's Nose, which was pulling Dojo straight in the direction of what must have been a new Shen Gong Wu. Dojo crashed into a tree, causing all the cookies to fall down – and a glowing gold bracelet, as well.

"Heh! Found it! Check me out!" Dojo cheered. The lead pixie did another disbelieving pout, but Jack joined in the little dragon's cheers. Finally, a familiar face.

After some persuading on Dojo's part, the pixies finally agreed to let Jack be. The lead pixie said that the nearest Fountain was to be found across the Lake of Woes, and past the Mengmei Plains. Dojo had already been to the Lake of Woes, so he knew how far away it was. He held up the Bag of Tricks, telling Jack that he had gone to sleep at the same time as Omi and Clay. Befana had cast a spell to allow them to bring Shen Gong Wu with them to help, and also one to get them as close to a Pixie village as possible. Upon arriving in the Dream World, Dojo had sensed a new Shen Gong Wu, the Rooster Crest, so they begun searching for it. But unfortunately Omi and Clay had been lost to the Dream World. Two giant white hands had immerged from the Lake of Woes and pulled them into a dream, and the Dog's Nose had forced Dojo to continue the search alone, as another Shen Gong Wu had become active shortly afterwards. And then Dojo had met Jack.

Dojo explained about the newest Shen Gong Wu. It was called the Soul-Dream Bracelet and had the power to separate souls from bodies or other vessels. Dojo was going to ask the pixies if they knew where Hunpo gauges were kept, but, of course, Jack was one step ahead of him, already having Kimiko's and his own bottle in his possession. The only thing they needed to do now was to find Kimiko, and refill the bottles.

"I really didn't expect to see you here," Dojo admitted to Jack after the pixies returned to their cake houses, "though I am glad to see you."

"Really?" said a sceptical Jack.

"Well … we weren't sure whether Wuya had claimed your soul too. Your souls have been detached from your bodies – you could have ended up anywhere." Dojo looked around him nervously for a few moments, before turning back to face Jack. "We should get out of here, before she locks onto this new Wu."

Jack nodded, tossing the Bag of Tricks over his shoulder, and soon they had left the pixie village behind, travelling once more through the peaceful forest. Dojo coiled himself around Jack's shoulders, pointing out directions to Jack. He had already been to the Lake of Woes, but he also knew where he was going because he was sensing another Shen Gong Wu in the same direction as the Lake, the third Shen Gong Wu to become active in this world. Both hoped it would be the last. The Dog's Nose was bopping up and down in Jack's hand and was a bright red colour, which meant that this Shen Gong Wu was nearby.

"We didn't get the Rooster Crest," Dojo said, as Jack used his heli-pack to hover over a small stream. "Wuya must have found it by now. But at least we got the Soul-Dream Bracelet. That one's far more dangerous in Wuya's hands."

Jack nodded, knowing all too well what Wuya could do with souls. He asked, "Couldn't we just use that to reattach mine and Kimiko's souls to our bodies? It works in reverse too, right? Or do we need the Reversing Mirror?"

"No, it's like the Changing Chopsticks; a second use restores things. We could reattach your souls with the Soul-Dream Bracelet and the Shining Darkness in theory, but your essence still needs to be replaced, or you'll both die an early death. Might as well do it while we're here."

They stopped as they came to the edge of the forest. They had reached the Lake of Woes. To Jack, it looked just like an ordinary lake, but by now he knew there had to be something more to it, and he became cautious again. The Dog's Nose was going crazy in his hand, but, until he actually used it, it wouldn't pull him to the Shen Gong Wu. Dojo frowned as Jack held the Nose up, looking down at the water. The Scarf was in the water somewhere, but …

"The Scarf of Scares is in there, somewhere," Dojo said to Jack slowly, keeping his grip on the Soul-Dream Bracelet. "I'll keep the Soul-Dream Bracelet and wait up here. When you find the Scarf, use the Dog's Nose again, and it should take you straight back to this Bracelet because it's only just went active."

"You'll be okay by yourself, up here?"

"Yeah … But you should be careful. This is where I lost Omi and Clay."

"What, and you just left 'em here?"

"Well, the Nose dragged me off before I could do anything. They'll be okay; they're just dreaming. Everyone's soul drifts to this lake when you go to sleep or fall unconscious, I think. Pixies and a few other magical creatures are immune to it, though. That's why they get pixies and griffins to tend to stuff in this world. I think this Lake is linked to a big Dome place."

Oh, no. I don't wanna go all the way back there. "What about Wuya?" Jack asked, latching onto the immunity part.

"No, Moshu-Ren aren't immune. Then again, you never know with Wuya; she might have cast some spell. Anyway, make sure you avoid giant hands."

"Okay … Well, let's get this over with."

Jack activated the Nose, and it pulled him down into the water. There was no splash, however, and no wetness … No water whatsoever. Everything went black as he touched the surface, but still Jack held on as hard as he could, letting the Nose take him to the Scarf of Scares.

Abruptly, the Nose stopped, and just as suddenly, Jack found himself sprawled on a cold floor. He saw that he was inside what appeared to be a small wooden cottage. And sitting across from him was – Wuya! She was in her Heylin robes, sitting crossed-legged with her eyes closed. It looked like she was meditating.

Oh, great. I must be in another dream …

Just to make sure, he got up onto all fours, with his knees on the ground; balancing on his right hand, he reached out with his left and waved it in front of her face, like before, to see if she knew if he was there. Her right hand shot out and grabbed his wrist; and she stood up, forcing him up as she did so.

Crap, it's really her! Not that it wasn't her before …

"What do you think you're doing, boy?"

He gulped. Every part of him froze in place when his eyes met her glower. He noticed she was wearing a dull grey scarf around her neck.

The Scarf of Scares!

"… You can see me?"

"Obviously," she snapped, although it appeared she didn't know what he was getting at.

"So … this isn't a dream?"

"Have you finished being a jackass for the day? Or am I going to have to pummel the stupidity out of you?" Before he could answer, she added, "You do realise you're wearing the Silver Headband? And that you can use it to teleport to any area of the Dream World?"

"I, uh, knew that." I just forgot …

"Then what are you waiting for?"

"You to let go of me!"

"Just use it!" she barked.

"Fine …" he conceded. He wouldn't make the same mistake again. Deliberately making Wuya angry was what had got him into this soul-detached mess.

Dojo was waiting for Jack to reappear on the surface with the Scarf, but squealed when he saw Wuya appear on the edge of the lake with him.

"Ugh … the pest. Don't interfere and I'll let you live."

"But – this is the Dream World! W-we can't die here, we're just souls – and you don't have your powers!"

"Heh," she sneered. "If that's what you truly believe, then you're a bigger fool than I thought. But perhaps I should enlighten you." She drew something in the air with her free hand, which Dojo recognised as yinying. Dark tentacles emerged from a portal, grabbing him and yanking away the Soul-Dream Bracelet. Jack could have sworn there were voices coming from the portal.

Join us, little one. Become us.

Jack shivered.

Dojo shrieked as the tentacles slowly constricted. He attempted to grow to his larger form, but couldn't; something was blocking his ability to do so.

"No!" yelled Jack. He couldn't bear to watch Wuya kill someone else before his eyes. He turned his head round to face her. "Let him go!"

"Only if he promises to keep still," she said.

"Do as she says, Dojo," Jack said nervously. They couldn't save Kimiko if they were dead – and that portal of darkness was just freaky. But Wuya was still holding his wrist, and until she let go, he wouldn't be able to escape with the Headband … Better to wait for her to drop her guard.

"Ok-ay," Dojo choked. "I-I give …"

She waved her hand, and the tentacles and portal vanished. Dojo went to pick up the Bracelet, but said nothing more. Jack breathed a sigh of relief, but then Wuya smirked, and Jack instantly felt nauseous. Wuya's smirks were never a good sign.

"I was going to ask those wretched pixies where the gauges are kept, and then destroy their pitiful little village," she said, smiling with artificial sweetness, "but it seems you've saved me a trip." For a minute, he thought that she was after the Shen Gong Wu in the Bag of Tricks, but she reached inside his coat to pull out Kimiko's bottle.

"H-hey! Give that back!" he shouted, struggling to get free.

"No sudden moves," she ordered, her eyes narrowing again into a glower. "If this bottle smashes, Kimiko will die, and I get to absorb her soul."

Dammit…! Jack growled in his thoughts. I should've tried to jack Wuya's bottle from that Dome place – then I would have been holding all the cards.

"H-how did you know I had that?" he asked, trying to stall for time.

"What did you think I was doing down there? Sensing for your gauge? Although … it feels as if you've got your own gauge too …"

Wuya closed her eyes. Jack's panic grew, as he had no idea what she was doing. Casting another spell? He reckoned it would be a good time to try something, since her eyes were shut. He was about to bite her hand, grab Dojo and teleport the heck away, when her eyes flew open and she gasped.

"Your soul," she said, releasing his wrist, "it's –"

"It's what?"

She gave him the very same all-knowing look that Cloudstorm usually gave him.

"What?" Jack repeated. It was irritating being gawked at like a specimen in a zoo, and he wished everyone would stop doing it. Cloudstorm had done it, that Bean Stork had done it and now Wuya was doing it. There was nothing like a soul-penetrating stare to creep someone out – especially when the person doing the staring was Wuya.

She pointed at the Headband. "You can keep it; but don't lose it."

"Huh?" said Jack, looking like the world's largest question mark.

Dojo gathered up the courage to speak. "Wait – is that the Silver Headband?"

"You're quick on the uptake," Wuya said mockingly, and Dojo shied away, behind Jack's legs. "You might want to use it to save your friends," she said to Jack.

"What! What have you done to them?"

"Nothing – for once. They're just dreaming. But I'm sensing a presence from the lake. At first I thought it was part of this world's warped design. The Mengmei Fog can sometimes bring unwanted memories or feelings to the surface. But I can still sense the darkness here, even though I'm no longer on the Mengmei Plains. I can feel it; it's blocking the passageway between this world and the mortal realm for Omi and Clay. They may not be able to leave this place without outer intervention. Put simply, they'll never wake up. They'll be in eternal slumber, while their souls remain here forever."

"What do you care whether they leave or not? And how do I know it wasn't your fault in the first place?"

For a second – just for a second – Jack saw something strange on Wuya's face. Fear? The look vanished as soon as it had come, though, to be replaced by the usual cold arrogance. Her hand glowed white, and Kimiko's bottle also shimmered briefly, before flickering back to normal. And to Jack's complete surprise, Wuya handed the bottle back.

"There; I've relinquished my claim on Kimiko's soul. You may have her, no strings attached – but only if you can find her."

"Why? Why the change of heart, all of a sudden?"

"As I said, this world sometimes brings unwanted things to your attention. Here, thoughts become reality, reality becomes distorted, twisted … Things which are normally as clear as day become obscured by the mists of uncertainty, and likewise, things which are usually hidden away by the physical realm are dragged to the surface."

"Would it kill you NOT to speak in riddles, for once?"

"When you opened the puzzle-box that day … I could have left and joined someone else. But you seemed to share my goals. What's more, I sensed something in you. And now I've discovered exactly why I was drawn to you." She patted him affectionately on the head. "Which means, sadly, that I cannot kill you. You're too important to my plans."

"I'll be sure to throw a celebration party when I get back home," said Jack sarcastically.

"Good for you. Meanwhile, I have business to attend to." She removed the Scarf from around her neck and wrapped it around Jack's neck. "You'll need this," she said simply.

This reflective, non-killing Wuya was, quite possibly, the most mind boggling thing that had happened to Jack thus far. It was certainly up there on Jack's Why Fate Is Out There Somewhere Laughing At Me list.

"Wha – ? Why are you helping me?"

"Tick, tock, Jack. The longer you take to figure out what you're supposed to do, the harder it will be to implement it."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Dojo said, despite his own fear. He wasn't comfortable with Wuya's sudden helpful nature either. She was plotting something.

"That there's nothing you can do to stop me."

"Oh yeah? We'll see about that," Jack snarled.

"Go ahead: just try and stop me," she said uncaringly. "You'll give up, soon enough, once the going gets tough. Raimundo fell before me; the rest of you will soon follow."

"The other monks'll never give up so easily," Dojo growled, his faith in Omi so strong it gave him the confidence to challenge her.

"The other monks don't concern me," she replied simply. She bent her head down, as if reconsidering something, and then looked up at Jack with a serious expression. "Don't let the darkness overtake you, Jack. You're not strong enough to handle being evil. No one is," she said quietly, "not even me."

Jack just raised an eyebrow at her cryptic comment. She waved her hand to make a picture of Kimiko appear in the air inside a magical blue mist.

"As you can see, Kimiko is on the Mengmei Plains. Use the Silver Headband to get there – but beware the Mengmei Fog. When you inhale it, it brings memories to the surface, and in so doing, makes the darkness stronger. Perhaps you have a Shen Gong Wu in that Bag to help."

"Is this a trap?" Jack asked bluntly.

"No," said Wuya, just as bluntly. "I intend to keep you alive. I believe you will need the help of your friends, too. But once your purpose is served, I will reconsider. So I would run along, if I were you. Time waits for no one."

Jack was vaguely surprised to see her form flicker ever so slightly before vanishing completely. Only vaguely surprised because there wasn't much more that could shock his already worn out system.

"She must have woken up," Dojo surmised.

"That was weird," said Jack, frowning at the spot where Wuya had been. "What the hell what that all about?"

"Haven't the foggiest. She's acting so different to the way she was when the Grandmaster was fighting her – she would have been more cautious and cagey. She could have easily killed you all in her palace, but she didn't. She should have just killed us both now. Or killed our souls. For her to just let all these Shen Gong Wu get away like that …"

"Cagey she still is. Maybe fifteen hundred years inside a box gives you time to rethink your strategies. Or maybe it's because Dashi's dead … and she just doesn't see any of us as a threat."

That can't be the whole story, though, he thought uneasily. She was ready to kill me before … what changed? What is it that everyone sees in me that I can't see myself?

Dojo sighed. He could see that all of this was taking a huge toll on Jack's already frayed nerves. Jack was no longer the arrogant genius who knew everything. He was now a bundle of anxiety who had found that the only thing he did know was that he didn't know everything … and that discovery had turned his world upside-down.

"Jack," he said gently. "I don't understand this any more than you do. But Wuya was right about one thing. We haven't got time to sit around and think about it. Let's find the others first."

"Yeah, okay," said Jack, managing a little smile. He could do this.

"We've got just the Shen Gong Wu to get past the Fog," Dojo said, pulling out a mask in the shape of a dragon's head from the Bag of Tricks. "This is the Dragon's Mask. It'll let you breath normally in the Mengmei Plains."

"Sweet," said Jack, rubbing his hands together. "Time to save Kimiko."


Kimiko was sitting comfortably, against a tree she was tied to. She had given up trying to break free of the magical bonds Wuya had put on her. She just had to hope that one of the others would come rescue her, but until then, she would rest right here. The Mengmei Fog was making her far calmer than she would normally be, and so she just let herself drift off.

Suddenly, as clear as day, a memory appeared.

Raimundo sat cross-legged on the grass outside, a nearly full moon shining high above him. Why did he always seem to think that everyone in the whole world was against him?

"Hey, Rai …"

She sat down next to him. "I'm sorry about what happened …"

A sigh, and a dismissive shrug. "I was expecting something like this to happen. It's cool."

"It's not cool! How can you be so relaxed about all this?"

"Hey, my family always used to treat me like a second-rate loser. Why should Master Fung be any different?"

She rolled her eyes. "Master Fung doesn't think you're a loser."

"He thinks I'm stupid, that I shouldn't have gone after Mala Mala Jong myself …"

"Would you quit with the self-pity? We all make mistakes. But our strength of character is shown by how well we overcome the consequences of those mistakes."

"But … I'm not strong … Not like you … "

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"I thought that I'd be able to handle all this discipline, all this training, but I can't. I feel like I've reached the end of my tether …" He stood up suddenly, fists clenched. "I can't take this much longer …"

Kimiko looked up at him, scowling at him slightly. She remembered the pure resolve she'd seen on his face when he'd been facing Tubbimura in the showdown for the Shroud of Shadows, the wilful, stubborn knowledge that he was going to win, and refused to believe that this was the same Raimundo. He had worked hard to overcome his mistake that time; why should this time be any different?

"You can't give up just like that. You're strong, Raimundo. Stronger than you know. That's why Master Fung wants you to meditate. You just haven't realised where your true strengths lie yet; and you're trying too hard to prove yourself … You need to let things happen naturally."

"Maybe," he replied, looking up at the moon. "But, it was still dumb of me to attack Mala Mala Jong …"

"I thought you were brave, Raimundo. Most people would have run from Mala Mala Jong."

He still wasn't convinced, and Kimiko could sense this. It would probably be best to leave him alone. This was the kind of thing he had to figure out for himself. She got up. "Look, it's late … I'll see you in training tomorrow, okay?"

She left, returning to the warmth of indoors, and there was another sigh, accompanied this time by a sad, melancholy expression.

The memory ended, but the unwanted emotions immediately rose up again. A nice blend of guilt, sorrow, incomprehension and anger, all rolled into one fat mess of negative feelings.

Why, Raimundo? Why? Why did you leave us?

Kimiko hugged herself tightly and closed her eyes, feeling alone once more.

I miss you …


Jack used the Silver Headband, followed by the Dragon's Mask once he arrived in the misty fog. He immediately beamed. There was Kimiko, right in front of him! She was sleeping – or at least unconscious, as they were already sleeping in this world. She was floating like a balloon, tied to a tree by a pink string.

He ran towards the tree, but in his eagerness, he failed to notice a giant black hand erupt from the ground behind him. The hand grabbed his leg, and pulled him into the ground.

All he could see was darkness, after that. He couldn't even see his hand in front of his eyes. There was a bemused cackle from in the shadows. He whirled round but could see nothing – except the damned darkness.

"Tell me, Jack," Wuya's cold, poisonous voice rang out, "what is it you fear the most?"

He stepped backwards, as he suddenly found he could see himself again. But everything else was still dark, as if he were inside a picture and the entire background had been painted in a gloomy black.

"Is this … another dream?"

Jack could feel Wuya's smirk on him, and he shivered again.

"Oh, no, Jack," she said from the shadows, voice full of false pleasantry once more. "This isn't a dream. This is your eternal nightmare. And you fell right into it."

A trap.

Stupid, stupid, stupid! I should never have believed her!

"You're no evil villain."

Jack was insulted by this somewhat unexpected statement. "I am so!"

"Then why do you fear death?

"I … I … What?"

"If you were truly evil, you would embrace the darkness … you would not run away from it. You would accept that sacrifices must be made. Insignificant insects need to be squashed, otherwise they become irritating nuisances. Some people deserve to die."

"No … you're wrong! No one deserves to die," Jack said shakily. He fell to his knees as he saw the woman from his dream of the future appear, the one who had begged Wuya to spare her daughter's life.

No, not her … Anything but that …

"Is that so?" Wuya replied, stepping forwards, out where Jack could see her. "So if this woman was in your way, stopping you from conquering the world, you wouldn't kill her?"

"Of course not! What kind of sicko do you think I am?"

Jack winced and whimpered in horror as the woman burst into flames again. "Stop, please! Why are you doing this?"

"To make you see. You do not have the killer instinct within you. You could never be my equal, Spicer."

"I …" His eyebrows creased in confusion. "But I never wanted to be."

"You're no villain," she repeated, this time scolding him instead of mocking him. "You're just a pretender. There's no way you're evil. You're too soft-hearted. You have feelings," she spat in disgust, "and you care about what happens to others. What kind of evil villain isn't evil?"

She's right … I'm not evil, am I? I'm … a failure. I 'm not cut out to be evil. I'm not ruthless enough. But I don't know how to do good … I … should just not do anything … I should just … give … up …

What was this place? So cold, so empty, so dark … It felt like all hope was being drained out of him. All of his resistance was being taken away, to be replaced by a dull acceptance … He felt just like the people in his dream had looked.

"Yes … just let the darkness take you … no one can save you."

The rasping voices of the shadows came again. Join us … become us …

"You're nothing but a spineless coward. How could you even dare to think you could stand up to my power?"

Wuya's words sounded hollow, as if they didn't matter. Nothing mattered. There was no point. Wuya was far too powerful; not even Omi had been able to get close to her. How on earth was he supposed to fight her? He'd seen the future, and Wuya ruled the world in that future. What was the point in struggling against something that was going to happen anyway?

Jack let the darkness take him away. And the shadows laughed.


That was bloody depressing. And weird. I had Clay get eaten by a seal. I'm not quite sure how that Kim/Rai stuff got in there. Oh well. Fast update, because I had a huge bulk of it done already.

Next chapter: The Yinying Bird. Season 3 reference, too, but it kinda fits, as well (though not as much as this chapter's one). I like titles that involve wordplay or have double meanings, as you can probably tell. Oh, and thankee, all, for the reviews.