Chapter Nine
Meltdown.
Zeebad was depressed at the minute. The memory of Sam hurting him in the stomach still was playing in his mind. Elora wondered what was wrong with him. Suddenly outside it began to rain. Zebedee could tell somebody in the Village was sad. He then looked into his mirror to find the sadness but it wasn't in the Village. He then got an idea. He then focused it on the Roundabout. He felt vibes of sadness coming from it. He then realised who it was. Sam then went to Zeebad's prison to talk with him and maybe stop the rain. He found Zeebad curled up in a ball and talking silently to himself. "Are you okay? Zeb got worried because it's raining and he figured that someone was down." He said to him. Zeebad looked at him sadly. He groaned in pain as he touched his stomach. "Let me help you!" he said but Zeebad got up by himself but fell down again on his stomach. The pain was so intense, he wanted to cry but he couldn't show weakness in front of Sam or Zebedee because that would give them something to laugh about. He gritted his teeth. "Curses! It hurts… so much! I thought it was sore before but now it's worse. Where's Elora? Let me guess. She's with Zebedee, isn't she?" he said to him. He saw sadness in Sam's eyes. "Yes she's still with him but… soon she'll probably be down here." He told him quietly. What did he mean by that? Questions about were buzzing in his icy blue head. "What do you mean by that?" he asked Sam. He sighed deeply before talking to him.
"Zebedee wants to put her down here because he's worried that she's going to end up like you. He was going to send her back home to her parents unless she did it but she wanted to stay here. Apparently it's because she cares for someone the village hates." He said as he knelt by Zeebad's side. Only this news brought more pain to his heart. Elora could've gone home and used her powers to do what she wanted but instead she'd chosen to stay even if it meant being imprisoned down here with him. A tear rolled down his icy cheek. Sam saw it but decided not to mention it. "Zebedee must be pretty upset by doing this, I suppose?" he told him. Sam knew what he meant. "He seems okay about it but I don't know. Every time Elora's in the house, he goes from happy to sad instantly but hides it." Sam said. Zeebad watched as he left. He then felt the need to eat. He then made some frost cross buns and scoffed them down. He wasn't stopping eating all day. He felt dizzy. He then threw up but felt okay. He then decided to have a drink so he opened a six-bottle pack of Chardonnay and started to drink them. Zebedee was watching this worryingly. He could tell something wasn't right with his old nemesis. "Sam when you were down there, he wasn't acting strange or not himself, was he?" he asked. "He was depressed when I told him about Elora joining him down there and crying a little. I'm worried for him Zeb. I know he's our enemy and he's done some bad things in the past… but he might be suffering mentally and if we leave him like that, he might hurt Elora by an accident or try to kill himself. He needs help but I don't know. I know some things you can fix with magic… but a depressed Zeebad it can't fix, can it?"he told Zebedee quietly. He nodded. He hated to admit it but Zeebad was hurting at the moment and needed help before it got worse. "You're right Sam but I don't know what we can do to help him. Anytime we try to, he pushes us away." He said to him. Sam then heard Zeebad sing in a slurred tone. "Oh great! He's drunk. How are we supposed to help him when he's like that? There's bound to be trouble when he's like this!" he said to him. Zebedee agreed. He watched as Zeebad started beating himself up. It was scary watching their enemy act so human like this. He then saw Zeebad vanish out of sight. This caused great alarm to Zebedee. But it caused more when they realised he'd taken the ice sword with him. "He must be trying to hurt himself or worse! Sam we've got to help him before he does something even I can't fix. " he said angrily. Elora heard this. She was worried for Zeebad more than her uncle. He'd headed to the cliff his old lair was on. She realised what he was planning and tears welled in her eyes. "You guys have to hurry! He's planning to go into the never ending sleep!" she told them. Zebedee gasped at this. "How do you know that?" Sam asked her. "I can feel him in my heart and right now he's sad and angry but he's not thinking clearly." She said to him. Zebedee understood and vanished out of sight. Sam stayed with Elora in her uncle's house. She hoped he'd reach Zeebad in time.
Zeebad was unsheathing the sword. Fear and anger raged through his body but to him this was the only way. He then prepared to stab himself with it but Zebedee appeared and the sword slipped in his hand… "Zeebad stop! You don't know what you're doing! You're confused and your depression is telling you this is the only way but Sam and I just want… want to help you." He said to him softly. But Zeebad wasn't listening. His body glowed faintly with icy lightning. "I'm sorry but this is the only way I can… can help Elora not be evil as I was. Also everyone in the entire village will be happy that I'm not here anymore to spread darkness around them." He said as his eyes closed in sleep. Zebedee was scared. He had to save Zeebad and fast! There was only way to do it but it was risky. Tume was running out. Zeebad's spring had been cut off from his body and it hurt badly. "I can't let you go. Elora would hate me too much if that happened." He said as he closed his eyes and thought very hard. Suddenly his body was full of fiery lightning and he spun into the air. It then lifted Zeebad into the air and went into him. He fell to the ground but Zebedee landed on the ground on his spring. "I hope it worked." He thought as he scooped Zeebad into his arms. The magic had also reattached Zeebad's spring to his body. He then bounced off and flew into the Village. He landed on the grass near the Roundabout. Mr Rusty had seen this and was shocked. Zeebad looked worse for wear and was moaning. "What happened to him?" he asked nervously. He saw sadness in his friend's eyes at this. "He… He tried to hurt himself again with the sword but this time… I don't know if he'll be okay." Zebedee said wiping away a tear. He watched sadly as Mr Rusty walked off to hospital with Zeebad in his arms. The others wondered what he'd done this time but Zebedee bounced off without talking to them. Dylan then saw Sam meditating on the grass and sat down beside him and Elora. He saw sadness in their eyes like Zebedee. "Will he be okay after this time?" he asked them. "I don't know. Zeb got to him in time… but the sword slipped in his hand and really hurt himself." Sam said. His voice was quivering in fear as he spoke. Elora was very quiet. She then saw her uncle go off somewhere. He was going away for a while just until he could get things straight again in his mind. Mr Rusty was aware of his plans but wanted to tell the others but Zebedee had decided against it. He was also worried because of the Roundabout. Nobody wanted to ride it and it had lost it's magic until Zebedee had came and started it again. He watched as Zebedee disappeared in the middle of the night. He hoped he'd come back soon. Sam hadn't been told this either.
Only time would tell if Zeebad would be revived or not. He knew that Elora cared for him deeply and if the spell didn't work, then he would hate seeing her sad about it. He watched as Elora held Zeebad's hand as he lay in the hospital bed still unconscious. Pain throbbed through his body but he was stuck in a dream like state. He then saw somebody he knew. It was his mental self. He was looking for the third diamond…