Dawn of Faith

Chapter 31

Unable to recall how much time had passed, I blearily wandered back to the room where two friends had vanished. Jack was perched on a windowsill, staring out at the fading light of a brilliant orange sunset. An ominous feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. I knew that once night fell, only empty space would lay beyond the glass.

North stalked back into the room, his swords ringing as he sliced them through the air. "No more waiting. No more fading. We take out Fear. Now." His voice was deep and threatening, though despite his words, we knew it was useless. I looked up at him, searching, and saw the determination melt off his face. We had done everything we could. With the Moon gone there was nobody to guide us. North's sorrow consumed him, causing him to pace back and forth in front of the globe as if possessed. His swords glinted against the light of the setting sun. There would be no moon. There would be no stars.

"Jack! Dawn!" North cried suddenly, halting suddenly. The circular pattern upon the floor had begun to shine bright blue, despite the absence of the Moon. I stared up through the sky, able to see only the faintest blue streaks glimmering through the black fog.

"Another guardian?" Jack asked, leaning heavily upon his staff, "but why now?"

"This better not be trick," North grumbled, though the anticipation on his face shone through.

We watched awestruck as the crystal rose through the floor, illuminated not from above, but from below. As if the light of the Moon had been trapped beneath the floorboards, waiting to be released. What the statue revealed, however, was startling.

"A...symbol?" Jack said skeptically, brow knit in confusion.

North shook his head, waving a sword at the vague depiction. "Manny, what is this?"

"Wait, we've seen this before, haven't we?" Jack said with surprise as he turned swiftly to me.

I couldn't speak. I was frozen, staring blankly at the statue. The symbol depicted by the crystal was none other than the pendant hanging about my neck, which had started humming against my chest. I raised the necklace to the crystal. The colors began to shine brighter as it neared the Moon's light, illuminating the silhouette of the pendant.

"Ah, of course! Your necklace! But...why?" North puzzled, moving closer to examine the twisted metal.

"Can an object become a Guardian?" Jack joked, tapping the crystal with a finger.

"Why not? You became a Guardian, didn't you?" I responded, knowing that Bunny would have beaten me to such a statement. Jack graced my comment with a good-natured smile.

"No, no, there is message hidden by Manny. Pendant is not Guardian, but is important somehow..." North stroked his beard and began to walk back and forth, swinging his swords in thought. With a pang of distress, I recalled the bell-like whirr of Tooth's wings that typically accompanied our usual discussions. I clutched the necklace in my palm.

"Their souls should still be in there, shouldn't they?" Jack asked, training his bright blue eyes on me.

"Yes, but why? Why is pendant absorbing souls?" North continued Jack's train of thought, shaking his hands in exasperation.

I clenched my head between my hands, fighting against the growing confusion. I shook my wings to settle my nerves, the ruffled feathers clamoring against one another. What did my pendant have to do with any of this? Why was it so important? Why was it trapping the Guardian's souls?

"What if..." Jack began, twirling his staff as he thought. His gaze was trained upon the floor as he spoke. "What if we're supposed to fade?"

"What?" North responded, incredulous.

"Wait, hear me out," Jack said quickly, holding up a hand. "When Sandy, Tooth, and Bunnymund faded, they didn't simply disappear. They were taken into Dawn's necklace. I don't think that's normal."

"None of this is normal," North noted, lodging his swords in the wooden floor as he crossed his arms. The Naughty and Nice tattoos peered out from underneath his raised sleeves.

"What are you saying, Jack?" I asked slowly, eyeing him carefully.

"We don't know what truly happens when a Guardian fades," the frosted spirit continued, "but I can say with certainty that they wouldn't wait for Dawn's pendant to absorb them. It doesn't make any sense. What does make sense is our inability to defeat Fear."

"Jack..." I said cautiously, starting to realize what he was attempting to convey. It was a reasonable idea, but one that I didn't even want to consider.

"I'm saying that the key to defeating Fear is hidden within your necklace, Dawn. The spirits. Look at how it shines when you hold it."

I unclasped the pendant from my neck, holding the symbol in my hand. It glowed brightly, several colors swirling about the moon and sun.

"Just like that. But when North or I hold it..." he took the necklace from my grasp, and the light faded. "There's nothing. What if...Dawn is the only one who can use the remaining power in our souls? Look at the colors," he said as he placed the pendant back into my palm, "yellow for Sandy, purple for Tooth, green for Bunny. Dawn, you must be orange, as the day. Which colors are missing?"

"Red," North responded with a resigned sigh.

"And blue," Jack finished, nodding. "We complete the spectrum."

"But what does a rainbow have to do with anything? Why does that affect me?" I asked, trying to find some other answer, some other way. I couldn't lose them too.

"Rainbow embodies full spectrum of light," North commented thoughtfully, beginning to follow along with Jack's reasoning, "and you, Dawn, are spirit of light."

"Exactly," Jack smiled. "And the Guardian of Faith. The most important piece of a Guardian's existence aside from children. Without faith, we're nothing."

I shook my head vigorously, stepping back from them. If what Jack was saying was true, then they had to fade. There was no other way. My heart sank, knowing that I was inevitably going to lose them. That I was going to face Fear alone. That I may never see them again.

"But what if...what if your fading is permanent? What if...I use the last of your power, and you all fade forever?"

The two looked to each other, both shuffling on their feet. Jack bit his cheek, but nodded. North strode up to me, placing his hands upon my shoulders.

"We are Guardians," he said with a solemn smile. "It is risk we must take."

"I don't want to lose you," I responded with a wavering voice. North embraced me, wrapping his arms around me as he attempted to soothe my growing fears.

"You are not losing us. We are here, inside pendant," he pointed to my chest, "and inside heart."

I blinked away the tears as he stepped back, smiling his jolly North smile. Jack nodded and cast me a mischievous grin. As they stood side by side, I could see the wooden walls behind them grow more pronounced. Not once did they show any hesitation. They waved, and then with one last flourish of light, were gone. A snowflake and piece of red fabric floated to the ground, the last pieces of their souls.

I sank to my knees before the fragments, sobbing. The cold winds outside sang their sorrowful song. I was alone in the vast open spaces of North's home, a place he had filled with love and wonder. A place he would never see again. With a heavy heart, I reached down and touched the fragments, watching as their lights were absorbed into the pendant. A soft rainbow glowed from the symbol, the rays of light almost soothing. I could feel the warmth of their souls against my palm, radiating hope and belief.

I stood, staring out at the white snow, the black sky.

I slowly reattached the clasp behind my neck, breathing deeply as the necklace hummed and sung against my collarbone. I could hear the song, their voices. I sighed heavily, steeling my mind, blocking out the sorrow that threatened to wash me away. With their memories and strength by my side, I knew what I had to do.

It was time to face Fear.