Bodach's next shriek echoed around them, but it couldn't touch them in the light. They all took stock of themselves and their new looks. Barrel, his flesh as pale as when he'd been alive, had gators around him acting like giant puppies, and he pet them without any fear. Shock's long hair was a rich, shining brown and she could feel the buzz of magic in her fingertips. Lock felt a strong connection to the earth and he had a feeling he could do some damage. Riker looked healthy and whole, and he pulled a vial out of thin air, the liquid inside a bright blue. He tossed it into the air and caught it, grinning.

"I nearly forgot what this feels like! Oogie, get started. We'll keep them away."

With that, the doctor turned and shook the potion before launching it into the middle of the shambling mob of Halloween Towners. The potion vial shattered, and an explosion of blue-white light flashed as the potion splattered at least half a dozen people. That certainly livened them up, and they shuddered and came sprinting. Lock stomped his foot to see what would happen and the earth cracked open so that there was a gulf, but that didn't stop them. The oncoming citizens made incredibly dexterous leaps over the gulf and met the group with a hellish screech.

Jack watched while Oogie began the spell. It was fascinating to see what his call to fight had wrought. He'd seen the effects from his brother's yells a thousand times or more, but he had used his only a handful of times before. Bodach's angry, penetrating glare seemed to burn, and Jack shivered. Then he solidified his resolve and marched forward. His brother smirked and laughed, and though Jack faltered, he kept going. He knew this was going to hurt, but he had to win this time. If he didn't? Well, that wasn't an option. Not with all of his citizens depending on him to free them.

"Ooh, look at you, Jackie!" Bodach crowed. "Finally grew a spine?"

Jack didn't respond as he stopped several feet from his living night terror. Bodach sneered at him.

"What do you hope to accomplish, Jack?"

"I don't have to answer to you here, Bodach," Jack said, and he was surprised that his voice was steady. "This is my Realm. You answer to me here."

"I'll never answer to anybody!" Bodach snapped.

"You know that's not true," Jack said coldly. "There are others beyond me who will take up this case. But you will leave my Realm. You are not welcome here."

"This Realm is mine now, Jackie!" Bodach laughed.

Jack reared back and created a whip of white fire then slung it forward. Bodach was too slow to dodge it, and he yelped as an angry weal appeared across his face. He straightened then snarled, and black fire erupted around him.

"I'm sick of this game, Jackie," Bodach hissed.

"Their lives are not your game," Jack said. Then he lashed out again. Bodach copied his whip, and they tangled together before exploding between them and flinging them backwards. Neither stayed down, and they leaped up then clashed again in an explosion of black and white flames.

The others sensed the power from Jack's fight, but they didn't dare to look. There were enough townsfolk to keep them very busy, but they had something in their light that the townsfolk didn't have in the dark. They could think for themselves.

Lock, Shock, and Barrel were trying to keep each other in sight. As powerful as they now felt, they were still the smallest on the battlefield. Lock had just escaped Behemoth when Shock saw the Mayor creeping up behind him with his knife.

"Lock!" Shock screamed and instinctively flung out her hand. A burst of white magic came from her and blasted the Mayor backwards. Lock yelped and lunged toward Shock.

"Thanks," he said. "Where's Barrel?"

"I'm not as worried about him," Shock muttered. "He's got those gators."

There was a scream and the ground in front of them suddenly melted into bog as Barrel skipped over. "This is much better than Bodach's scream," he said happily.

The Mayor was up again and he looked mad. Lock, kicked up a large rock then flung it with more force than he thought he was capable of. The Mayor went down again, and they turned and quickly ducked through the crowd. Huge flashes of black and white came from Jack's fight with his brother, but they didn't dare intervene this time. They had their job, and the three kids looked around at the grownups and tried to figure out where to help while they had a moment. What they saw made them pause to take in the rest of the fight.

Sandy and Carol were wielding snow and ice to great advantage, making sure that the townsfolk they faced couldn't even get to them. If they got close enough, they'd step on ice and get blasted back by a snowy gust as they slipped. Eros and Psyche both wielded bows and arrows, and they stood behind the ice and helped the others with their sharp shooting. Squanto and Pocahontas were actually in communication with several different animals native to Halloween Town that were helping to herd some of the townsfolk. While they kept them contained, Bunny and Stormy were giving some of the townsfolk a good chase. They simply weren't as fast, though they were certainly mad.

Sam and Betsy had climbed into separate trees and were launching firecrackers to confuse the townsfolk. They were protected by Patrick and Aileen and a load of clovers, which Patrick had managed to grow in the soil around the trees. The clovers weren't green, though. They were a deep, crisp orange, like pumpkins.

"Great pumpkins, this is crazy," Lock muttered.

"And it's our fault," Barrel said solemnly.

A huge explosion of black and white fire nearly deafened them, and they turned and saw Jack and Bodach together in the air, locked in fiery combat. Jack strained against his brother, but he simply couldn't beat him. Not alone.

Shock scowled and took aim then fired a bolt of white magic toward Bodach. He faltered for the briefest of moments, but that was long enough for Jack to get the upper hand. Jack wrapped his arms around his brother then sent both of them hurtling downwards into the earth. The noise when they hit was meteoric, and there was a ripple across the townsfolk as they slowed for a minute.

Jack rolled off his brother and scrambled for Oogie, praying that the spell was almost complete. The townsfolk screeched and tried to get at him, but everybody else renewed their efforts and kept them back. Bodach was struggling to his feet when Jack reached Oogie.

Oogie pointed at the blood vial, but he didn't stop talking, and Jack snagged it up then hurried to the middle of the star. Bodach bellowed with rage as he finally stood.

"You're a coward, Jack None!"

"I am Jack Skellington!" Jack boomed fiercely. "I am no longer an orphan trapped in the past! Unlike you. There's still a chance, Bo. Your time isn't over yet."

Bodach spat a curse at him, and Jack's face set like stone. He uncorked the blood and looked at Oogie, who nodded. So Jack poured the vial into the center of the star. Instantly, the star turned from white to a dark burnt orange. Jack's entire body lit up in black fire. Oogie suddenly stopped reading the spell, and there was silence for a moment. Then Jack spoke.

"By my power, I banish you, Bodach, from my Realm. You are not welcome here and until you change, you won't be. Now get out."

A huge flux of power erupted around Jack, and the orange light suddenly erupted up into the sky. The winds howled and Bodach screamed as his talisman was ripped away. He was swept up into an autumnal vortex, which swirled and flashed like a storm. Then there was a loud pop and the lights vanished, leaving them in darkness. After a moment, the darkness seemed to lighten. The full Jack-o'-lantern moon came out from behind the dark clouds, which were being blown away on a crisp breeze. The entire Realm seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.

Jack looked around dazedly after a moment. He was tired from the use of so much power, but he noticed he wasn't quite done. The townsfolk weren't moving, still trapped in Bodach's scream. So Jack let out his own call to settle things down. The white glow around his allies faded and they became themselves again, while those who had been under Bodach's influence blinked like they were coming out of a deep sleep. The silence didn't last, and they soon began screaming. Jack looked around helplessly, then he sighed and braced himself as he stepped in to calm everybody down.

Oogie began cleaning up the spell, keeping an eye on Jack. He'd allow him to help for awhile, but he was going to pull him away as soon as he could get away with it. The Holiday leaders and the children came over, too. Nobody had even acknowledged any of them. They didn't mind too much. It was chaos. Riker padded over and glanced uneasily at Oogie.

"Jack should be resting," he said.

"He should be," Oogie agreed. "But if we don't let him help a bit, he'll get angry. He don't have the energy for that right now. Don't worry, wheeler, I'm watching him."

"Can I do anything?" Riker asked.

Oogie thought for a moment. "You know what? You can. Go prepare your guest room. Jack ain't gonna sleep well alone tonight. Or for awhile."

Riker brightened. "I can do that if you can get him there."

"I will later. Go on, wheeler. And thanks for helping."

"It's the least I could do after what I did," Riker said. "Watch Sally for me?"

"Of course."

Riker nodded then turned and headed for town. Oogie piled up all the used spell ingredients then lit them ablaze. They melted into wisps of smoke. Oogie then turned his attention to the Holiday leaders.

"We really have to thank you for the help," Oogie said. "But now I think you should stay away for a couple days. Everybody here is going to have a rough time of it."

"What about Halloween?" Squanto asked.

"That will still happen, but it might be a little darker this year than other years. That Hellion Yell? It lingers."

"Thanks for the warning," Bunny said. His fur was a dusky blue, and he had to stifle a yawn. "I think we'll head back home if we aren't needed anymore."

"You will keep us informed about Jack?" Squanto asked.

"Yes, Injun," Oogie said.

"Then we shall take our leave."

Squanto looped his arm through Pocahontas's and they headed for the doors. The others followed suit, except for Sandy and Carol. They watched Jack talking to his citizens, soothing them as they all reached for him at once.

"I'll send some food over later," Carol finally said.

"Take care of our Pumpkin King, Oogie," Sandy said. "Pleasant nightmares."

"Pleasant dreams," Oogie replied.

With that, they followed the others into the Hinterlands.

Oogie settled in, keeping an eye on his charges as he watched and waited. He took a deep breath of the fresh fall air and sighed. Bodach really was gone. He didn't care if he never saw that man again, but he knew this wasn't the last time he'd bother them. But that was a problem for later. He turned his eyeholes back to Jack and the townsfolk. The Pumpkin King had a lot of work to do. Maybe he'd let him help this time.

Oogie scanned the scarred battlefield for the children and saw them talking gently to the other children in town. He looked for Sally, and she was resting against an old tree. Then he focused on Jack.

A little longer, he decided. Then he'd drag Jack away to rest. So he settled back to wait and kept an eye on everybody.