Chapter #4
The blackness was suffocating. The coolness was the only way Jack could breathe. Down the hallway, footsteps sounded down the hall, and startled Jack as he pulled himself off his hands and knees from the ground.
Whoever was down the hall, they dragged Angel with them, for Jack heard her loud cries all the way to his end of the hallway. The red cloth pictures on the walls moved with a light breeze, and Jack watched, mortified, as one of the images, a "Blade Wolf", moved his furry black head, to look at Jack. His glowing green eyes and expression held intelligence.
"She's gone." He growled.
"W-what did you say?" Jack stammered. The Wolf flicked his ears in annoyance. He narrowed his eyes, and sniffed.
"I said, she's gone." He emphasized his words to prove his point. Still dumbstruck, Jack slowly approached the cloth image on the wall. Only the Wolf's head, neck, and shoulders were in the image. But the size of the portrait was from the roof to the floor, and about half as wide. A full moon in his background blinked out when the Wolf moved in front of it, or shifted positions.
"I'm awfully sorry... But... Where did she go?" The Wolf's eyes softened, and he looked Jack up and down, evaluating, calculating, reading his mind. He patiently awaited the Wolf's answer.
"Do you know why she shoved you into that Forest Maze, Sir Skellington?" He startled Jack with his 'Sir Skellington' reverence. "She wished to protect you. Protect you from the elf's magic. Her fortune telling is right. You do have a doom upon you Jack. And no matter how much you fight or squirm, you cannot escape your fate. And Angel cannot save you either." Jacks rebellion burned, and fear seized him. Sally...
"What... What is my fate Wolf?" Jack asked with a hint of righteous color in his words. The Wolf raised his mighty head higher in defiance, then lowered it so he was eye level with Jack.
"I am sorry, I am sworn to secrecy." Jack scowled.
"Yet you could explain this much?" The Wolf nodded, and seemed to confirm something Jack could not see.
"All I will tell you, Jack, is that the elf has a very special 'gift' she'd like to offer you. And, I will tell you one more thing, Your Majesty, for your heart aches to know so horribly, it brings me close to tears." Jack was astonished. This powerful beast? Close to tears for him? And how did he know so much? "Your love, Sally, does not sleep as you think. The trees lie Jack. She is awake. And she will have her largest quest yet. Take Halloweentown.
Jack looked at his hands. Lose his crown? Even if it was Sally taking over, it disturbed him how much he had to sacrifice. Had to. Because he couldn't go outside the castle walls. The Wolf's stern gaze was compassionate.
"I feel your pain Your Majesty. I... I wish I could help." His knife ears folded back. As though he wished he could explain Jacks future in far greater detail. But knew he could not. "I'm sorry."
"No. I appreciate the information you risked yourself for. But... How do you know such things Wolf?" The portrait looked to the wall behind Jack.
"They speak."
In thanks, Jack bowed so fast and so low, his coat tails floated out from behind him, and fell back down in his excitement. "Thank you." The Wolf lowered his head and closed his eyes since he could not bow to Jack. When Jack began to walk away, the Wolf stopped him.
"One more thing Jack the Pumpkin King... Answer this riddle, and you will find Angel." Jack stood, and waited. Wolf recited:
"On broken wings she flies,
Under Heaven, through the skies.
With her voice, the wind sighs,
And the very Heart of Stone cries."
Jack was hypnotized by the words. So cold and lonely. The only thing that came to him, was the elf, but was it right? Jack bowed a final time, and left the Wolf alone. The Wolf watched him go mournfully, for he knew Jack's fate.
The further Jack wandered in the darkness, the harder it was to see. In his mind, he puzzled over the Wolf's riddle. It seemed more like a poem than an actual riddle. But then again, weren't all riddles like that? It was a feeble idea, but maybe the elf actually was the answer to this thing. Elves loved wind, rocks, and flying didn't they? They rode on dragon backs. But the very plan of going back to the elf's room was discarded quickly. He was trying to find another way, when he opened a door to a courtyard. A large angel statue, stood proudly in the center. It reminded Jack of the angel in the graveyard he'd crashed on.
A plaque at the bottom read two things that already gave him part of the riddle. O.U.W.A. The first four letters of the riddle. The name wrote, Otis Uther Wallace Andrews. The founder of the Town of 1,000 Sorrows. Jack knew his course now. All he had to do was follow it. The hard part, was figuring out which direction to go. He circled under the stars for a time, staring up at them with puzzled concentration. But none of them gave away any cold secrets that could help him. Just the clue in the courtyard. He wandered close to a fountain to relax for a while before continuing. But his mind was preoccupied with the day's events. Too much had happened. And the problem with this place was, there was no sun. You had no idea whether it was day or night. So all he could do, was lie down by the water, and fall asleep.
