A/N: I'm sorry for the crappy chapter last time guys! It was a filler to get ready for this beauty but there's no excuse for what I served :( I revised it and corrected many of the mistakes but if any of you ever catch an error, let me know and I will correct it! Super shout out to all of you who reviewed on that crap:

Moonshroom429: Yes you are absolutely correct in that assumption and I'm glad you enjoyed that last chapter!

Guest: Glad you're pumped up and I hope I don't disappoint!

A Stripped Tigger: They will be in it for the duration of the story! Yay!

Doubled-Helix: Believe me, you will want to kill a lot of people after this chapter. Hide your deadly weapons for your own safety ;)

I.F.T.S: Aww! Thanks so much and you're such an awesome beta!

Taranodongirl1: IT'S A COMIN'! IT'S A COMIN'!

Beanie-art1: well sit back and relax because this one will keep you on the edge of your seat! Good luck with your painting as well!

Sheeijan: He breaks my heart too! I never know quite how he will react to a situation until I'm knee deep in it! Lol!

8fangirl8: pft! I post them so late you'll have to skip out on sleep to read them anyways! Lol! And yes it absolutely is an illusion to the bible. In fact, this entire story, strange as it seems, is one large illusion. By the end it will be fully apparent if you're looking!

I DON'T OWN ROTG! But I do like waffles.

Where we left off:

With only a word, a shadow approached and waited for instructions.

"You will go to the Guardians and deliver a message for me."

Yes, Master. The shadow whispered.

"Tell them I wish to meet tomorrow at dusk to discuss our terms. Negotiations of sorts, not a battle, make sure those imbeciles understand that. They may pick the location; I can find them wherever they decide. You may go now and bring back a response."

The shadow bowed low, the movement nearly indiscernible from its normal shiftings, and disappeared into the walls of the chamber. Pitch didn't have to wait long, within half an hour the shadow had returned with news of their acceptance. A wide grin split the Nightmare King's face.

"Get ready, children of the light," he said. "For tomorrow the darkness begins."

Chapter 7: A Battle Won

Pitch sat in his chambers, head resting heavily in his hand and boredom almost tangible in the air. His shadows had been bringing him whispers for hours, though few of those tidbits were actually of any merit. He knew the Guardians were planning on meeting him deep in the Canadian Wilderness. They would be sure to choose a location far enough away from any towns to prevent any human casualties of negotiations gone awry. But as of yet, they had given no indicators that they were moving. So here he sat, bored to tears because there was very little that could actually entertain him any longer.

A light rustling drew his attention to the corner of the room. Jökul was rocking absently from one foot to the other, his fingers picking at the threadbare hem of his shirt. Pitch sighed—rather loudly—and approached the boy. He had often become like this over the years, a ball of wintry energy pent up behind mental blocks that left him dazed, confused, and agitated. In any other circumstance, Pitch would have taken the sprite into one of the pits and released enough of the sand's hold on him to allow for a brief session of exercise and destruction. Like walking a pit bull to keep it from tearing up the couch from boredom and extra energy. By the time it was over, Jökul was drained just enough to take the edge off and Pitch was reminded of the power that he held in the palm of his hand; a worthy trade off for both parties.

But now was not the time to waste the boy's power on rock walls and mutated nightmares. Now was the time to rile it up. Poke the bucking bull and make him angry before the show.

As it was, the boy was going to get rid of the energy somehow. Whether by twiddling his thumbs or freezing a continent solid, it would be expended. Pitch rolled his eyes and took the boy by the hand, taking care to dam the flow of winter that threatened to spill over with the physical contact. Even with the fiddling, Jökul was still mentally present enough to follow Pitch down a hall and into the sitting room where he had spent many of his early years. Once there, the child spirit immediately took a seat on the floor next to the armchair that Pitch favored, foot still tapping and frost almost visibly writhing below his skin. Pitch took a moment to smile briefly at the boy's unquestioning obedience and recollection of Pitch's favored habits before he opened a chest and began to root around in it for his needed tinctures. Jökul hardly seemed to take notice of Pitch's mixing, he just sat with his grey eyes staring at a spot on the wall. But the sand within him would not allow for such insolence when Pitch returned and the boy's attention was immediately snapped to his master.

Pitch dipped his fingers into the stone bowl and swirled them in the bright blue paint. He spread it over both of the boy's temples, combing it through the white hair around his ears and spiking the unruly mop that remained.

"Jökul," he began, heightening the boy's attention with a grip on his chin. "Today is the day that I have long been awaiting. Since the moment I brought you into my home, I have been thinking of these next few hours and anxiously anticipating their arrival." He paused and smiled at his weapon. "Today is the day that I will destroy that which has been created to make room for that which I desire. And it is you that will help me do it." Pitch released the boy's chin, smiling at the blue fingerprints that only broadcasted to the world the complete control over his creation. The boy blinked once as Pitch re-dipped his fingers.

The Nightmare King began to speak again as he swiped his thumb over both of Jökul's brows, making him look every bit the feral animal that he was. "You will meet our greatest enemies today, Jökul. There is a woman with feathers and wings. I want you to freeze them and rip them from her shoulders. There is a rabbit that walks like a man, cripple him so he crawls at my feet like the rest of his rodent brothers. There is a man of sand as well. Coat him so thickly in hoarfrost that his golden shine can glitter only when the sun glints through the ice. And finally, there is a man with a long white beard. Make him watch as his friends die in agony then stab him through the heart."

With each order, Pitch drew another line on the left side of the boy's face. Rimming the underside of his eye, defining the cheekbone and the jaw, and running the length of his nose. With each order he tapped his sand into his creature's emotions, twisting them into hatred, fury, and fear. By the time he had finished with the war paint, not only was there a plethora of wintry energy pent up inside the shell of a spirit, but enough emotion to make sure there would be no survivors.

He left the boy seething on the rug of his sitting room when the shadows called him to the globe room, allowing Jökul enough freedom to frost himself over many times.

"What news?" Pitch asked, breathing in the hatred of the thousands of dark creatures that filled his halls like a pungent aroma.

The enemy awaits your arrival in Saskatchewan, Dark Lord. There is a clearing deep in the forest where they have set up a base camp.

A jagged-toothed smile split the Nightmare King's face. "Thank you for your service," He crooned. And with that he turned on his heel and returned to the sitting room to retrieve his prize and a certain crooked stick. It was almost dusk and the shadows were at their peak for travel.

Pitch smirked as he held firmly to the shoulder of the icy youth and melded into the shadows. They wouldn't know what hit them.

~o.o~

E. Aster Bunnymund stood and paced the clearing for what seemed like the hundredth time in the last hour. Tooth and Sandy had long since given up on trying to placate him and North looked like he was about ready to join him. He knew he shouldn't be so anxious, there was nothing to fear from a shadow-hopping scoundrel that fed off the fear of babes, but he couldn't help it. It was his nature to worry and at this late hour the shadows were at their peak for an ambush. Pitch could hide an entire army inside the shadow of a thimble and he now had access to hundreds of feet of dark shadows cast from the waning rays of the sun and the towering firs and evergreens.

Aster growled again and tapped his foot impatiently. "Where is 'e?" He snarled. "We've been waitin' here fer ovah an hour an we're runnin' outa daylight!"

Quite suddenly, a sickeningly smooth and all too familiar voice filled the clearing. "Calm yourself if you can, Thumper, I know your kind is nervous by nature but you're taking it a little far don't you think?"

Aster backed up to join his comrades, all of whom had already drawn their weapons. "A'right, Pitch," Aster called. "Joke's ovah, we held up our part o' the bargain. Come on out."

"Honestly a little trust would be most welcome. This whole round and round, watch your back because someone else has a pointy little object charade is getting quite old. I've got a proposition to give, you've got a proposition to accept and the sooner we can get this all over with the better."

"Little full of youself, yes, Pitch?" North called out into the shadows.

Pitch yawned and stepped from his hiding place. "I only act in accordance with my power. Which, at the moment, is quite high."

Tooth cringed at the sound of Aster grinding his teeth. "Aster," she whispered. "Stop that!" He shot her a glare but relaxed his jaw.

"I'm gettin' real tired o' this, North. Les jus hear what 'es got ta say and get outa 'ere."

"I am vith you on dat," North murmured.

Pitch chucked again. "Wonderful!" He stepped out into the open, the shadow to which he was anchored stretching to allow him full access to his opponents. "You have two choices, Guardians. Number one: war. A war in which you will undoubtedly loose many good and kind souls to either our corruption or our blades. Or option two: surrender unconditionally and we will spare any who do not rebel."

Aster scoffed. "I don' care if ya got all ah hell waitin' at yer beck an' call! We will nevah surrendah!" Pitch reached them in two strides, practically nose to nose with the rabbit.

"Oh, good," Pitch purred. "I was so hoping that would be your answer. A dead enemy cannot rebel nearly as effectively as a live one. But before I go to prepare my armies, I would like to give you a little parting gift." He grinned his Cheshire cat grin and slid back a step. Before the Guardians could react, he released a black smoke into their circle and slunk back into the shadows. The soldiers of light coughed and sputtered against the attack, trying their best not to breathe it in when in reality it should have been their eyes that they were protecting. After all, eyes were so very easily manipulated.

As the haze cleared, they could still hear Pitch's chuckling. "My Guardians," he crooned. "May I present to you my newest addition, Jökul Frosti."

Tooth gasped and gripped her needle-like sword a little tighter. Beside Pitch stood the most horrific creature she had ever seen. It's legs were that of a ram, but its arms like that of a man. The skin on the beast was tinged a greyish blue, decaying with frostbite as a stream of freezing air passed from the masked lips. Long, crooked horns protruded from the head, hoarfrost and icicles coating the body and clinging to the fur.

Pitch chuckled and put a hand on Jökul's shoulder. In reality the boy had not changed, just the Guardians' perception of him. After all, the Guardians of Childhood may find it difficult to fight against a child. Pitch breathed deep, their immortal fear filling him to the brim. Eyes still on his opponents, he bent to Jökul's level and let his lips almost rest on the boy's blue painted ears. "Kill them for their sins," he whispered, drawing back his sand from its blockade positions. He would not release the phoenix, not yet, but the boy was a formidable foe even without the tempest powers of destruction.

A growl ripped from the boy's raw throat and he charged forward the moment Pitch released his shoulder, staff swinging and power charging. Bunnymund met him halfway to his intended target, pulling his attention from the bird lady to the rabbit man. Aster threw a boomerang as he ran, forcing Jökul to duck to avoid it. The boy's attack with a knee to the chest was stopped with a right hook to the jaw.

The boy stumbled back, eyes ablaze with feral energy. Ice shot from his palm, catching the boomerang on its return trip and he swung it towards his adversary. Aster fell with a grunt when he was clocked in the head with his own weapon. The boy-monster was on him in seconds beating the dazed rabbit with fists laced with hoarfrost.

The other Guardians were almost too stunned to move. Almost. North charged, scimitars glinting and blood pumping. He dislodged the beast with a kick to his ribcage, circling it as it growled and stood. Tooth and Sandy flew to help, Tooth pulling Aster out of harm's way while he recovered and Sandy going to North's aid. Jökul grinned when he saw the little man of sand. Hoarfrost for him. He gripped the staff with both hands and unleashed a spray of deadly ice. The little man's eyes went wide and he threw up a wall of golden sand to protect himself, barely able to grab North and bring him behind the blockade when the beast turned his attention to Father Christmas.

Tooth and Aster joined as quickly as they could, unable to watch their friends take a beating from a distance. Lashing out in quick, coordinated attacks, they surrounded the monster that only grinned and clawed at them in its own fury. It seemed to be everywhere, shooting frost at one adversary while warding another off with a roundhouse kick. He was by no means untouchable, he just didn't seem to notice the blood trickling from his growing inventory of wounds and the bruises from his many blows.

North was the first to fall, frozen from the waist down, but the beast never went for the kill and instead focused on the other three. Aster came next. A blow to the head following a sickening crunch as his left hind leg was broken. But the boy was unable to finish the job with the other two flitting around like insects.

Jökul called forth an ice storm, forcing the bird-enemies to the ground while he took to the air. The little golden man was the hardest to catch unguarded. Any of his attempts at freezing were only shed off like a snake loosing its skin. The bird lady on the other hand was already almost down for the count. Ice coated her wings so thickly that they hung from her shoulders like weighty burdens.

She will be easy. The sand whispered in his head. Finish the bird lady, frost boy.

He formed one, long icicle, the tip glinting like it was smiling in bloodlust. He dove towards her, silent as death, but a band of gold wrapped around his waist, halting his kill. It yanked him from the sky and threw him into the tree line, grabbing him before he had the chance to recover. He froze the band and it fell away but another formed just as quickly. Again and again he was slammed into trees and rocks, bashing him until he somehow managed to slip under a lash. But the big man, whose body he froze had escaped as well, and with the help of the two others he hadn't managed to cripple, they circled him like prey.

He knew there was something more down inside; a greater power to be wielded. But he couldn't reach it, and every time he tried he felt only anger like acid pouring down the back of his neck. Fury filled his bones and he lashed out without thinking, using every bit of wintry power that he was able to grasp to push them back. But they were stronger than he was and there were three of them against only him.

His fight was not valiant. It was not for honor or duty or love. But even when they had him pinned down and a blade raised to end it all, he still struggled on with an animal instinct.

"Stop!" A hoarse voice screamed through the dying storm. Jökul turned his head to find the crippled rabbit limping over to them, shock etched into his furry features. "It's not what ya think! E's not what ya think!"

"Bunny, get away from it!" The bird screeched, pulling him back away.

"Him!" The rabbit insisted and pulled himself free. "It's an illusion, Toothie, 'e's not what ya think! North don't ya dare gut him!"

North paused and pulled back his blade. "Bunny…beast hit you hard in de head. You not see de tings correct."

"No ya bloody idiots, yer not seein' things correct! It's a kid! Yer gonna kill a kid!"

North blinked and looked at the struggling creature before him. Legs and horns of a ram, bloodlust in its eyes and icicle weapons in its grasp. A monster fit to put the Minotaur to shame. North shook his head and raised his sword. It's time they ended this.

"North!" Bunny cried again, his voice reaching a whining lilt. "Stop! North…North, touch 'is feet! Yer not gonna feel hooves!"

The Cossack almost ignored his friend, so obviously deluded by his wounds, but something deep inside was screaming "no" as well. So he sheathed his blade, knelt low on the ground, and felt along the unrestrained calf. No fur. When he hit an ankle his body began to wilt. Though it was ice cold and kicking frantically, North held the human foot in his large hands and counted each toe. And before his eyes the beast disappeared, leaving a child spirit dressed in rags and wearing Viking war paint. The boy snarled at North and struggled against the sand cords that bound him tightly.

"Tooth," North choked and put her little feathered hand on the boy's foot. She cried when she saw him, eyes filling with fire as she looked at the tree line where Pitch stood smirking. The moment Sandy's hand touched the boy, the cords melted away and the sprite was up again, growling and pacing in spite of his numerous injuries.

"Monster!" Tooth screamed as she rushed at Pitch, drawing the rest of them away from the slave and towards the master. With a smirk Pitch melded with the shadows, disappearing from their line of sight. A laugh from behind had them spinning around, weapons raised. Pitch stood in the center of the clearing, his hands set firmly on the boy's shoulders and a grin splitting his face.

"Pitch…" Aster warned.

Pitch chuckled again and ran his fingers through the boy's hair. The child leaned into the touch, eyes lulling to half-mast. Ice began to crawl over him, stemming the bleeding from his many injuries. "Pitiful thing, isn't he?" Pitch said.

"Give us boy, Pitch," North replied.

"Give him to you? Now why would I do that? He is mine to control and mine to play with. I never really was all that good at sharing, you know." As if to accentuate his point, Pitch took Jökul's chin in his hand, and pressed the boy's face into his robe. "I don't know why you'd want him anyway, first thing he did was attack you. Oh well, no one ever said the moon gave you common sense to go with your immortality."

"Release him, Pitch!" Tooth called. "He is a child. Children belong to us until they grow and make their own decisions."

Pitch chortled. "He's nearly three hundred years old! Believe me, Miss Toothiana, he is more than old enough to choose his side."

"Then why don' y a release 'im an let 'im choose!" Aster snarled, standing as best he could on his one good leg.

"Tempting," Pitch sang. A black sand blade formed in the hand that cupped the boy's chin. In a flash it was at the sprite's throat. "But I've got other plans and I would hate to ruin them."

"Vhat do you vant for boy, Pitch," North asked cautiously. He took a step forward, hand twitching at his side as though he wanted to rip the boy free. Jökul hadn't even responded when the blade appeared.

"As delicious as it would be to extort untold riches and power from you, I really don't want to give up my chess pieces, North. As I said, he's mine to use, mine to abuse, mine to play with, and should I so desire: mine to kill." And with that he slit the boy's throat, laughing as he melded into the shadows. He was gone before Jökul even hit the ground.

Do not kill me. I have already written the next chapter so be assured that it will come. But like the others, you will have to wait until next week to read it! *evil laughter*

Challenge: send me lots of reviews and I might just post it sooner! But you will really have to blow me away tho ;)

Toodles!