Saving Time

And Then He Was Gone

Cael lunged forward, a ball of his grey-blue aura forming between his hands. My eyes widened as I leapt after him and grabbed his wrist.

"What are you doing? He has Jennifer!" he hissed, spinning around.

"It's not Jennifer. That's... It's... Her... You know..." I hesitated, but Cael's eyes registered what I said. He knew who I meant.

"I thought you-" he started.

"Cael! Help!" the girl cut him off. Cael turned back to her, rage in his eyes.

"You aren't Jennifer," his voice was like an icy dagger. "I know who you are. I thought you were dead... You've always been tricky. Don't assume that a whole team can be blinded by one member's weakness... Lira..."

The girl's eyes flashed with shock, but she didn't falter. Lira's eyes grew dark, anger clouding her vision.

"I actually enjoy this form- the guardian of... What was it, father?" Lira turns to Pitch. I had nearly forgotten- she was his "Dark Princess" daughter.

"Water," he replies, letting go of her wrists. She shakes them out, blue nails sparkling.

"Now, Terra," Lira began. "You thought you destroyed me, with good proof to back that up. But you can't destroy darkness. There will always be that tiny corner of it. But light can be extinguished. And we plan to extinguish all the light- the guardians of the world and of children."

"That was your plan last time- no, wait, it was smaller last time. And you failed, if I remember correctly. Now add them," I pointed at Bunnymund, North, Sandy, Jack, and Tooth. They all held their weapons ready.

"You can't destroy wonder!" North called. Bunny added, "Or hope!"

"Memories never fade completely, and dreams will always be there," Tooth pointed out.

"So there you go," I placed my hands on my hips.

"Really? Even if we destroy the source? Destroy you and the part of humans that gives them happy feelings? We will harden their hearts and numb their minds. But first, we will destroy YOU," Lira told us.

"If you destroy me or Cael, you won't be able to do anything else! Time will twist and nature fall apart," I called to her.

"Oh no. There will be Father Time and Mother Nature. Father Time Fear and Mother Nature Darkness,” Lira said, her hand linked behind her back.

"It won't work," Cael said behind me. "Only I can touch time; only Terra can bend nature."

"Oh really? Even if you were both destroyed? Your powers would float aimlessly until someone took them, used them for themselves," Lira had begun to sound bored. I sighed and shook my head.

“Then I guess we’ll have to destroy you first?” I asked her. She laughed, shoulders shaking slightly.

“You don’t have a chance,” she smiled, and for a second the smile seemed sad. But then, it was gone, and suddenly darkness shot from behind her. Pitch laughed darkly as Cael was hit squarely in the chest, flying backwards and hitting the castle wall.

He slid down the side of the wall, eyes wide in shock. His shoulders slumped as he hit the ground, and he looked up weakly. Where the ball had hit him, his chest was dark- no, wait… Suddenly Cael looked at himself and jumped up, clutching at his own chest. My own eyes widened in shock and anger as I realized- the darkness was eating away at him from the inside out. A soft, glowing blue orb floated out of him, and his entire body crumbled into black dust, drifting through the air. Jaw gaping, I stared. He was gone, just like that…

“Pitch! You… Fool… To try and destroy my brother…” I lashed out with my hand and they both disappeared without a trace. Right before they were gone, though, I caught something on Pitch’s face. Recognition, realization, and a pure detachment from it all. And I realized that Pitch knew who I was now, not just Mother Nature but also his first daughter. And that he knew who Cael was, who Lira really was, why he was here, what was wrong with him. That second, I hated him, because he had destroyed his own son without feeling anything. I was happy I had never spoken to him, because even the worst people would never kill their children. But in the one moment Pitch had been free, of all things, he destroyed Cael.

“Come on,” I spoke in a rasping, choked voice, “We need to create a guardian.”