It wasn't until the crack of dawn that Elsa opened her eyes again. She'd never woken up like this before; so rejuvenated and full of energy! She could remember what she was thinking of just before she'd blacked out: the second task.
That's right. She'd made a promise. Elsa wasted no time and she swung her legs off of the bed and leapt into action. It was still snowing when she looked out the window. Arendelle seemed to be at its most peaceful right at daybreak. She wondered if Jack knew about her deal, or if the Sandman had spoken, er, not speak, but made himself known to him at all. She hoped he'd kept his end of the deal and gave Jack pleasant dreams. Or better, no dreams at all.
She didn't know if anyone was under Sandman's spell or not, so she paced herself and sped from her room to Jack's. With some luck, they may finish before anyone was awake. Jack was completely still when she busted the door open, blanket tousled over him and hair in even more of a mess. Guess Sandy had done his job. She hoped the spell would be easy to break, at least. "Jack," she shook his arm, "Jack!"
His eyes flipped open. "Wha-What?" He'd been in such a deep sleep he didn't even know it was morning already! "What's wrong?" He asked in a scratchy voice.
"Where's the parchment?" She looked under the bed but only found Tooth's gold satchel. She reached inside the pouch of the mattress.
Jack wearily sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Why do you need that right now?"
Found it! Elsa took the paper and quill to the table and placed the tip onto it.
"Elsa!" He finally said in a demanding voice.
"The second trial!" She answered with equal authority. "I made a promise to Sandman we'd do it at daybreak."
"What?" He definitely didn't remember a visit from Sandy before falling asleep, though it might explain why he barely recalled anything from the night prior once he'd lied down in his bed. Based on Elsa's behavior, however, her words must reign true! "Why didn't you tell me?" He got out of bed to change his clothes.
"I just did, sorry! He was upset we didn't do the trial yesterday." She grew impatient with the parchment. "Why isn't it writing anything?"
Jack hopped to get one of his boots on. "Can you calm down?" Not even awake for five minutes and she was making his blood race! He looked over her shoulder at the blank page. "Just give it a second, it'll show up." Jack then remembered Tooth had said her babies would help. He reached for the satchel and put it over his shoulder. There was still nothing there.
"Maybe it wants you to do it." Elsa thought.
"I don't think it matters."
"Try." She gave him the quill and moved out of the way. Jack didn't know why it would make a difference, but right as he placed the tip to the paper, words began to etch into existence. They were both taken aback although they'd seen it before.
"It must want you to do this one..."
"I guess that's fair, you did most of the work last time." He tried cracking a joke, but there was no humor in his voice. He carefully read the words aloud.
...
Let the fairies guide you to the portal
Disguised as an old well,
Then use your blood to open it.
Once you step inside, you must
Use no magic.
Only one may go.
Tooth's three babies led Jack and Elsa out to the cold—it was still so dark that they weren't preoccupied with who might see them. They kept their sights set on this 'old well.' "This is strange." Elsa said. "I've never heard of anyone speak of a well out here."
"Well, I've never heard anyone mention a tree that went to some witch's cottage either."
"Okay, fair enough."
The fairies chittered and zipped ahead. Once again, they found themselves in an indistinguishable part of the forest with nothing of note. The fairies hovered closer to the ground, making a noisy fuss. Elsa used her magic to move the snow out the way – a hole covered up by wooden boards. It became clear that they were the first ones to find it; like the rotted tree, it was hidden from mortals, but Jack and Elsa were different.
"So this is the portal?" Elsa wasn't impressed. How was anyone supposed to fit through it? Jack remembered what came next, 'use your blood to open.' He knelt down close to the wood, bit into his thumb, and then pressed it until a drop of blood splattered on top of it. Small specks of red landed on the white snow. There was a soft, hissing sound, and the baby fairies quickly tumbled back into their satchel. Elsa felt the ground shift right beneath her feet and she tugged on Jack's sleeve to pull him away.
The wood began to break and fall into the monstrous cavern as the hole grew wider and wider until a stairway appeared before them. The darkness it led to was such a foreboding presence that it made both of them shudder. Now that she knew it would be Jack going alone into the depths, it was Elsa who hesitated before letting him go. But neither had a choice, they'd taken too many steps to back out now.
"Don't worry." He tried to reassure her.
Elsa looked at him and gave his jaw a gentle stroke. She believed in him. That was when she remembered, "Oh! The key!" She grabbed the silver key from her pocket and gave it to him. "Just in case you need it."
Jack tucked it safely into the satchel with the fairies, whereupon seeing the parchment rolled up in there reminded him this task's rule: No magic. How bad could it be if he couldn't use any magic, right? He gave Elsa a (hopefully) comforting glance before he descended.
...
He had gone so far below that there was no light left, nor any sound of the wind or trees. He knew something had changed only when the sound of the wooden steps suddenly turned into a tile floor. Jack looked back up the stairway; how far down was he? If he called Elsa's name, she'd never hear him! There were only two things Jack noticed about the hall he was currently in: it was so wide that he couldn't feel walls on either side of him, and it was completely dark.
Out of habit, Jack opened his palm to summon his magic as a light source, then he remembered. "No magic." He told himself. Was there anything to help him see? It was... pitch black. A chill went down his spine right as he recalled whose domain he was in. She had to be here watching, listening, waiting. If he couldn't use his magic to fight back, then what would he do? All he could think was to do whatever the stupid note said and get out of there pronto.
Jack felt the satchel rumbling at his hip, the fairies were eager to get out. He opened it and they fluttered in front of him, their wings creating echoes in the darkened hall. He could tell where they went, as they always stayed ahead of him. One chirped excitedly as he turned his first corner—light! A lantern that was hanging on the wall. He sighed with relief and grabbed it from its sconce. What caught his attention next was the fact that the hall didn't go much farther from where he stood.
He took a look at the wall next to him; there were several portraits of strange-looking individuals. Jack couldn't tell if they were real-life portraits or just bizarre artwork. There was only one that appeared relatively average; a family painting. A mother, a father, a daughter... daughter. This was Amelia's home! The fairies sensed Jack's tension and they hovered closer for protection; he was starting to wonder just what the Man on the Moon was using them for. But now one thing made sense: why a key had been left so irresponsibly at the shack she secretly practiced her experiments in.
Keys unlock doors. A door in her home... but to where?
Jack wasn't itching to find out, but the guardians didn't care what he wanted or not. He was going to press on, but he got lost in the familiar gaze of his old friend whom he hardly recognized at first glance. He looked nothing like the creature Pitch Black—Kozmotis Pitchiner was a regal man who stood proudly behind his family. The things Jack now knew only made this moment more tragic, for he not only lost his memories of the family he clearly loved, but he would end up dying for the last person he cared for.
There was a loud chirp in his ear and Jack waved the bird away. "I know, I know!" He said in an irate, hushed voice. She was correct, they had to hurry! The two others had flown ahead, urging him to come quickly. When Jack made it to the end of the hall, he was greeted by a stunning dining room, one that rivaled that of Arendelle's!
Only this one was not teeming with life, delicious smells, or comforting decor. The wallpaper was rotting and the chairs were covered in cobwebs. What's more is that, although the table had no occupants, there were plates and bowls in front of each chair as if to be served. He looked at one of the baby fairies and shrugged before getting closer. Maybe now was a good time to check—
The fireplace lit up and Jack leaped and nearly dropped the lantern. The birds all huddled underneath his shawl as if it would protect them, but it had been nothing. He caught his breath as he looked around to see if anyone was there, "It's okay." He said to the baby fairies, who each peered out to check. "We're fine." He repeated, trying to get back to what he was thinking of right before... the note!
He knelt in front of the fireplace and pulled out the parchment from the satchel. Words began to drip down the page.
The witch's most prized essence
Sits above the fire
Use the black key
And steal what has been stolen
"Sits above the...?" Jack stood up and saw a small chest sitting on the mantlepiece. Without thinking, he whipped out the key and went to unlock it... but it didn't fit. It said 'black key,' this one was silver. "Black key. Where's a black key?" He shined a light on the dining table and checked around it carefully while the fairies got into every corner of the room to try and help. There was nothing in this godforsaken room. "What the Hell?" He looked quizzically at the shining trinket in his hand. Why would the spirits leave them this if it was useless?
The fire crackled loudly and caught his attention. That's when he observed the fireplace more closely, the ash was so dark... ash!
With haste, Jack quickly dipped and twirled the key in the black pile and as soon as the metal touched with the soot, the key began to turn a color as deep as the logs inside the pit. Jack smiled widely right as the key became too hot to hold and he dropped it. "Ow!" He grabbed his burnt finger while still laughing. "I'm a genius!" He said more to himself than the grinning fairies who were so proud. "If only Elsa had seen that!" He scraped the blackened key off the ground and, this time, it fit perfectly into the locked box. He sighed with both relief and glee; he could get out of here now! As soon as he grabbed the...
Nothing.
The box was empty; even the fairies were confused.
"Did you think I wouldn't catch on?" Said a woman's voice.
The fire in both the pit and the lantern went out and Jack was left with nothing but darkness. The fairies all shrieked as they cramped back into the satchel. Jack didn't know where to turn! He fell over one of the chairs before scurrying back to his feet. He wanted to make a light, but no magic. What would even happen if he used it?
"So you're the new guardian I've heard so much fuss about these last few centuries?" A shape slithered around the room. "I'm not very impressed."
Jack refused to say a word. She just wanted to provoke him. He didn't care about finishing the task anymore, he was getting the Hell out! He felt around to try and make his way out of the room until he felt the skin of someone else's hand. It frightened him so that he nearly cried out when he pulled away.
"After how long I've spent in this treacherous wasteland, the Man in the Moon sends you to stop me?" Amelia went on. She was so close before him, but she wouldn't reveal herself. He'd paced blindly down whatever direction he was facing, but he'd accidentally found his way into another room. How did he get out? "Oh, don't leave so soon after all the trouble you've gone through. Why not stay with the other guests who've tried to rat me out?"
Other guests?
The fire in his lantern suddenly came back on and what Jack saw in front of him was terrible enough to rip anyone's sanity away. He dizzily ran from the room and held back a vomit, only succumbing to dry wretches and gags. This was no Pitch Black. This was someone far worse. He could feel the fairies trembling in the bag and he held it tight. He was going to get them out now that he could see.
"Got a weak stomach, have you?" Jack looked up and saw her. A tall, cloaked woman with ebony hair that looked like it reached her knees. She looked nothing like the monster she really was, at least in this form. Somehow, finally seeing her brought him a sense of calm. She looked no different than the woman in the portrait. "I've looked forward to the day I could finally get close enough to see you squirm."
Jack tried to sound calm through a shaky voice, "I didn't kill your father."
"No?" Her eyes looked surprised, but she was toying with him.
Jack tried to discreetly take a few steps back, the more distance the better. "He sacrificed his own life for me... and I'm sorry." What else could he possibly say? He slid his feet back a little more... Why wouldn't she say anything?
"You really think I don't know all of that?" It went dark again and Jack felt a surge of panic return. He couldn't waste any time! Jack whirled around and tried to run back down the way he came. He couldn't see! He had his arms out in front of him as he desperately searched for the exit. But shadows seemed to surround him that what he thought was the wall was actually the floor.
"I know what great things my father would've accomplished if it weren't for you! But he wouldn't see me! If I had gotten to him before you, we would be Kings!"
But he didn't remember her! Didn't she know that? None of this was his fault! Jack knew Amelia wouldn't listen to anything that came out of his mouth and he kept quiet. Soon he was able to make it to the wide halls he'd first found himself in. Amelia Pitchiner, however, appeared right in front of him. They could see into each other's eyes. Jack tried to mask his fear—it wasn't himself he was afraid for. It was those who were waiting for him up above he had to make sure she didn't reach. All Jack could think was that this was no Pitch Black. The Pitch Black that Jack had known wasn't malicious and full of hate, even though he became greedily obsessed with fear to stay alive in the end... he had some capacity to care.
Amelia was nothing. She was an empty husk.
As Jack began to believe this, he began to feel stronger, calmer, the dread in his face started melting away. It was Amelia who began to bristle. How dare he behold her with those judging eyes? Anger filled her and the hall went black again.
"Jack?" Said Sophie's frail voice.
He shriveled, but it wasn't her. He paced down the hall as fast as his feet would carry him to get to the stairs.
"Jack? Where are you? I'm scared!"
"It's not Sophie...!" He felt his heart racing and his hands shaking. Where were the fucking stairs?
"Why aren't you answering me? Jack! Where are you?" She began to shriek.
The voice changed, "Jackson! Please!"
Mom...?
He couldn't take it and his body temperature began to drop. He came to a dead-end and found himself cornered by the cacophonous wailing of his loved ones. "Stop it!" He shouted. "Stop it!" It wasn't real! His family was safe at home! He couldn't let her win! But the screaming went on and on and Jack held his hands over his ears as ice began to coat the floor and walls. The house began to shake as if he'd enraged it.
Sophie.
His mother.
His father.
The King and Queen.
Then finally, one more voice that took what shred of sanity he had left. "Jack! HELP ME!" He was so torn about what was real and what wasn't that he couldn't answer even Elsa's petrified cries! He couldn't take it anymore and created a blast of ice and wind so strong that it silenced the entire abode. He could see where he had to go now, but he could barely stand up straight. It felt like the ground was moving... the portal!
His heart was racing when he reached the last bend in the corridor. Perhaps it was good he'd forgotten about all the stairs he had to climb. He could see the light source getting smaller and smaller. He was so tense with fear that he tripped up two steps and dropped the satchel, which went tumbling back down.
...
Elsa knew nothing of what went on down below. All she saw was the portal closing and no Jack in sight! "Jack?" She could hear footsteps. Jack ran with what little strength he had left and felt the earth brush his leg when he pulled himself out from the underworld and back to the glowing daylight and wet snow. The portal continued to shrink until it was once again nothing more than an unassuming well. A groan echoed through the ground.
Their worst fears were now underneath them, hidden, shaking the ground they wished to be firm and safe. Jack was trembling all over, but once he was certain nothing was coming out of that well, he and Elsa pulled one another into their arms. Their heartbeats soon began to soothe the other's and the forest was calm again.