Walt's Princess: Chapter Two

Early in the past couple of years, the entire family had been mysteriously but tragically brought down to death except Rodney and Rachel. Because of this, both of them were forced to drop out of school since they had no parents anymore to pay for their education and take a couple jobs to pay for their apartment’s rent. Meanwhile, Yen Sid, Mickey Mouse, and the rest of the characters were well aware of the situation and had Rodney work as an undercover custodian. One day, it was supposed to be Rodney’s day off, but then he was told that someone was sneaking around the crowds of Disneyland. They found that this particular person did he neither pay for an entry ticket nor did he enter through the turnstiles. Of course, Rodney had to check in on it, but there was a problem: he was supposed to spend his day off at Disneyland with Rachel! In a way, it was alright; all he had to do was dress up and do some undercover work while having a good time with his sister. For most of the morning and half the afternoon, Rodney searched for anything unusual. It was almost halfway impossible to do that with Rachel around. Finally, they stopped by the Star Tours ride which was only a half hour wait. Right then Rodney noticed someone barging through the crowd toward Sleeping Beauty castle! He was cloaked in black with a loose dropping hood that covered his identity. There was no way Rodney was going to let that past his guard. But going after him meant either bringing Rachel along or leaving her behind. Hopefully, no one knows so much about her so he was left with one decision.

“Hey Rachel?” said Rodney.

“Yeah?” Rachel replied.

“Umm… I just got an urgent text from my boss. He says that there’s a really big clogged toilet in the bathroom down by the Frontierland gateway. You think you can handle being on your own without me for a little bit?”

“…Okay, sure. But how long will you be?”

“I don’t know. Text me where you’re gonna be, alright?”

Rachel didn’t say a word. She didn’t like where this was going, but she kept a straight face.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be back. I promise. And Rachel?”

“Yes?”

“I love you.”

“…I love you, too.”

So Rodney ran off to do his ‘duty’ while Rachel stood in line for Star Tours. She looked back and couldn’t see him anymore. As she pressed on, she started getting butterflies in her stomach, she began to sweat on her head, and she knew something bad was going to happen. Suddenly, she started to hear a voice in her head.

“Rachel!” the voice shouted, “Your brother is in trouble! You’ve got to go after him!”

Those words echoed and pounded in her mind so badly, she ran outside, not getting the chance to get a ride in Star Tours, and all at once she heard a loud boom! It scared her, but she thought that could’ve been any kind of noise; maybe a sonic boom. But as she continued out the hallway and in the crowd outside, she heard the loud boom again! Sonic booms don’t regularly sound off twice. The sound was coming from Fantasyland. Rachel ran towards the Sleeping Beauty castle where a large crowd stood in awe of what they were seeing. She shoved her way to the front, looked up at the castle, and suddenly her jaw dropped! She couldn’t believe what she was seeing!

Up in between the towers of the castle, a dark silhouette with a knife in his hand was fighting another individual who got himself cornered on the highest tower. Rachel recognized that other person in an instant. It was Rodney! ‘What the heck is Rodney doing up there?’ Rachel worriedly thought. Nobody knew who this person was, but Rodney did.

“I didn’t expect you’d come out start off like this in front of everybody.” Rodney remarked. “What I want to know is why? Why here in front of all these people?”

“It’s not just the people that are just about to see it.” said the black-cloaked figure.

Rodney looked at the crowd and spotted Rachel up front. He could see the fear in her eyes. And that was the moment Rodney finally came to understand.

“You know!”

“Like I never did before; did you honestly think you could hide her away from me after all these years? I knew there was a reason Yen Sid chose you to become his newest apprentice the minute you stepped into that mirror.”

“You saw that? I thought I was alone; I thought-“

“Thought what? You thought you could hide her from the truth? You thought she could be free? You thought she was always safe from me? Believe me, boy, I admit you have made a lot of progress training on your magic to this day. You are persistent, but I must tell you that this is the real deal and all that you’ve strived for, your long journey of heroism, your life’s dreams and inspirations and all of your crazy actions-“ the figure charged Rodney into the tower, “must come to an end.”

“If that is so, so be it! I’ve already got plans set up before my sister even if it means dying on this spot or any spot!”

“I always knew you’ve got heart, a lot of heart, but you’re not all that bright either. You want to know if what you’ve said is true? You really want to know if operating your little plan means death upon you? You want death? I’ll give you death. And then it will be death upon your sister and everyone who stands in my way!”

“Rodney!” Rachel shouted.

Rodney looked down at her and shouted back “Rachel, I’ve made a mistake in bringing you here today! Get out of here! Don’t come back; don’t come back to Disneyland ever again!”

“But Rodney-”

“Go!”

“I’m not leaving you!”

“Aww… Your little sister wants to stay for you.” the cloaked figure teased Rodney, “How touching. It would be rude if you had to miss the show, Rachel. After all, your brother is the star of the show! And like Walt Disney himself said: ‘the show must go on.”

Finally, without hesitation, the black figure took off at Rodney. Rodney dodged his blow and jumped onto one of the roofs down blow. His felt his feet tingle in pain and his hands started to bleed a little. Rachel started off under the castle. Suddenly, she heard a loud and painful scream! She turned and looked up at the castle and then it struck her. Rodney J. McGivern, her only brother was stabbed into the stomach and fell, from where she stood, to the far left side of the castle! The sight of it pierced Rachel’s eyes like a hundred tiny needles poking through her flesh. Immediately, she ran through the small little tunnel that led right to the tiny section of Fantasyland known as Snow White’s Grotto where Rodney landed. Rachel noticed the top of the well lost some of its roof plates and some of the leftovers were partially covered in blood. Rodney tried to sit up and get back on his feet, but he was too weak.

“Rodney!” she cried.

“…Rachel…” Rodney smiled.

“Oh God, Rodney, how did- why- who was that guy? Why would he do this?”

“He’s… s-someone you have to- nnngh… stay away from. He wants you dead.”

“Who wants me dead? Who was that guy who did this?”

“Rachel,” he started as he caressed Rachel’s cheek, “I knew… all along about you being a silver spirit… all your life; A sorceress.”

“What? But, I’ve always been vigilant about having anyone see me? Did you find out for yourself?”

“…Not at first.”

“Who told you this?”

“Some good friends of ours… and they all live here in the park?”

“Who?”

“Rachel, you have to get out of here for now. You not safe here.”

“No! I’m not leaving you! I can help you, Rodney, you’ve got to let me.”

“No… I don’t want you to. Not this time.”

“What? But Rodney-“

“Listen to me Rachel, I know I said for you not to come back to Disneyland ever again, but I changed my mind. You know where the Skyway building is, right?”

“Yes.”

“I want you to run over there and never come out- OW! I-I have some friends who will greet you and take you away from here. They will take care of you.”

“No they won’t, you will.” Rachel cried, “I don’t care what you say, I’m going to help you whether you-”

“Rachel!”

“What?”

“Remember when we first came to Disneyland for your sixth birthday? Remember how happy we both were?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“When I’m gone, I want you to live as happy as you can possibly be. Forget all this pain; forget every bit of your sorrows, your fears, and all of your past problems. Be brave, Rachel. You may not be safe for now, but you’re not alone; you’re never alone! And I will always be with you by your side no matter what happens. I’ve always thought of you as a person with so much heart; so much I almost drowned in it. And you’re very talented, Rachel. Every night, I always watched you turn silver, talk to the moon, and fly high in the night skies like it was your job! It made me believe that- that anything can be possible, especially with you around. You are my stepsister and I love you. I've always loved you.” he cried.

“Stepsister? What are you talking about? I was born with you out of mom dad, you know that!”

“I did know that at first… before he told me?”

“He told you? Who? Rodney, what’s going on?”

“You have to go now, Rachel. Go now and be free! I’ll be with you always.” Rodney smiled once more, kissed Rachel’s cheek, and took his last breath. “I love you…”

“Rodney?” But Rodney couldn’t speak anymore; his dropped down softly like he was put into deep permanent eternal slumber, his arms fell to the ground, and held a weak but soft smile on his face. Rodney was gone. “No! No, no, no, no! Rodney! Wake up, Rodney! Wake up! No! No! Rodney!”

There were so many tears, so many tears in Rachel’s eyes that her vision blurred. Everyone crowded around with their eyes tearing and their feelings feeling so sympathetic and the emergency health department came by in a hurry! Many of them asked if she needed some help, but she declined angrily! Even many of the Disney characters crowded around the scene; many began to cry, but they tried to cry quietly. But Rachel could hear them.

“Get away from us!” Rachel cried.

One out of the crowd, Princess Belle from Beauty and the Beast, who happened to be Rachel’s favorite Disney princess, stepped up.

“Rachel, we want to help you. We can help your brother!” Belle encouraged.

Rachel didn’t know how Belle knew her name, but she didn’t care. She was too upset and angry to figure things out. Being a sorceress she knew how to control some of natural elements like water, earth, fire, and her specialty, wind. With so much anger and pain Rachel had inside her, she conjured a fire wipe and snapped it at the crowd. Thankfully, everyone ducked and no one was hurt.

“Leave!” she shouted. It frightened the whole crowd so terribly everyone ran off! Well, everyone except one. He was a little taller than Rachel and was cloaked in brown with a large hood that hid his face.

“I said for you to leave us alone! Was I not clear?”

The brown figure slowly walked up to Rachel and her dead brother and petted Rachel’s head softly. Rachel’s eyes and teeth clenched tightly with more tears falling out of her and she began to whimper a little.

“Let him go, Rachel.” the brown-hooded man said.

“No.” Rachel replied.

“I know this is a painful moment, but you shouldn’t hold everything inside all at once. Up to today, Rodney lived up as your brother and died a hero. He gave his own life for yours; you should be happy for him.”

Rachel didn’t say another word and the brown-hooded man left her. She stayed there all day and after park hours not letting anyone bother her. She embraced her brother tightly and continued crying. For once, she was fortunate that the announcer said the fireworks show was cancelled due to high wind otherwise either the cast members or the park security would’ve asked her to leave. True to the announcer’s word, the wind was blowing and howling like wolves wailing at the moon! The trees rustled loudly, dark rain clouds closed in and began to pour, and lighting struck and thunder roared across the sky. Normally, Rachel loved the rain; it usually gives her lots of time to think. This time, however, Rachel despised the rain! She felt the raindrops pound on her back as she held on to Rodney, protecting him from the storm. The cold, crispy bitter weather embraced her body and laughed at her cruelly. Wrath began to grow inside the poor girl and she screamed to the sky! Little did she know she was not alone; some of the Disney characters watched her all day with her mind wallowing in despair. Unfortunately, the Disney characters weren’t alone either. As soon as the park closed and all the guests and cast members left for the day, Rachel felt a harmfully tight grasp on her shoulder. She finally turned around and saw a black silhouette standing tall with some henchmen behind him.

“Miss me?” asked the black figure.

“You!” Rachel clenched her teeth. She knew that black figure anywhere; it was the same dark character that killed Rodney today. Rachel charged at the figure, but with swift hard swing of his arm, Rachel was knocked down to the ground. The henchmen went up and held her by the arms.

The black figure took off his hood and revealed his face as the lightning struck. Rachel looked up and began to notice something about this particular man.

“I know you. How do I-" and finally, Rachel began to see what was to be seen of this man. “No, it can’t be you? You’re-"

“-the guy whom you’ve been hidden from all your life? Yes.” The man finished.

“Olin! You’re Olin! I remember you when I was small! You wanted to kill me for being a sorceress!”

Olin punched the girl right on the forehead and knocked her out unconscious! The Disney characters, shocked at the horrifying display, ran in hiding to get some help!

“You know, I’m not at all surprised with how you're able to remember me so much giving the fact that you are a silver spirit. Your brother was a fool to put himself against me for your sake. I always knew you would end up in my possession sooner or later. And now here we are; look at you: a weak, blind, hopeless young woman who has nowhere to go, nowhere to hide, and no one to turn to, not even her real family. Boys,” the henchmen looked up, “bind her. We’re going for a little ride.”

Olin’s henchmen tied up Rachel’s hands, arms, and legs tightly and went off through Main Street U.S.A, leaving Rodney’s dead body behind in the cold weather. As they walked through the street, Olin noticed a light glowing inside the Firehouse Apartment Walt Disney used to live in. Even after the park is closed, it's still turned on. Maybe Walt's spirit is still in the park! But Olin didn't care; he got what he wanted and that was that.

"Don't do it, Olin." a voice was heard. "There will come great consequences if you press onto your schemes." It came from the same brown cloaked man that accompanied Rachel just moments ago. Olin ignored the voice's warning and continued onward.

Confident with his scheme in progress and collecting his prize, he let out his signature evil grin and jumped into his limousine with Rachel at his side. They drove out of the park and headed up north on the way out of Los Angeles. The next morning, with a big bruise in her head, Rachel woke up next to Olin; she thought she was still in a nightmare, but she wasn’t and was threatened that if she wanted to live longer, she’d stay in the car all the time unless she was asked to come out. Rachel slide down her seat trying not to show herself crying once more. She felt ruined and completely hopeless. Twice, she tried to run away, but then she’d always get caught and beaten down with a small club! You could see all the bruises, cuts, and wounds that Olin and his henchmen have made on her legs, her arms, her head and face, and her back. Rachel she had to get out of there!

Finally, the group arrived at their secret headquarters. It was old abandoned warehouse that was left alone for nearly twenty years. Sadly, the worst was about to come. They all went inside and to Rachel’s surprise; there were a whole lot of cages filled with captive prisoners: men, women, and children! But they weren’t just any kind of people; they were all sorcerers; sorcerers that tried to hide away from Olin from his hatred and terrorism, but failed. Like Rachel, they all felt hopeless, scared, and ravaged. Their clothes were torn piece by piece, they were all dirty, scarred and their flesh was stained with dried blood and dirt; everyone in those cages were absolutely miserable! The next room they went to scared Rachel the very most. There were torture machines everywhere; and each one held a victim! Rachel shunned her eyes away from the horror those people were suffering from.

“Take a good long look, Rachel.” Olin spoke. Rachel took a small peek. “This is what happens when I don’t get what I want when someone tries to run and hide away from me. Don’t worry, they won’t continue on alone. But I’ll be frank with you; you’re too much precious to kill considering your gift. You may not know this, but long ago, when I was around my early twenties, my brother married the previous silver spirit before you.

Eventually, my brother became the chosen master sorcerer, the highest level of wizardry, that would lead our people to great peace, but I became jealous. Despite the fact that I was not born to be a sorcerer like my brother, I should’ve been the one to take the position; so in a pit of that jealous, I contacted outsiders and convinced them that my people were the kind of terrorists they’ve being looking for and they wiped out every last native except my brother and some of his friends. Me, however, with the outsiders consuming the inhabitants, I took the liberty taking away the one thing that my brother loved so dearly.”

“And… what was that?” Rachel asked.

“I killed his wife, the previous silver spirit along with their five-year-old daughter.”

Rachel widened her eyes with fear. Long ago, she was told by the Maiden of the Moon, who was at that time her spirit mistress, that her predecessor was murdered by jealous and wicked man of Olin’s type. She didn’t realize she’d actually stand face to face with the same person who caused it.

“Now, do I have to the same thing to you? Or are you going to go inside your new bedroom, stay there, and do whatever I tell you to do without saying a word?”

Rachel looked at the tortured sorcerers screaming in pain and getting harshly bruised from the machines; and with broken spirits, she walked quietly into the bedroom Olin had set for her. The henchmen untied her hands and arms, left her, and locked the door behind her. Despite it being a prison, the room was nicely laid out; the bed was made, the room was colored in feminine shades and lights, there was nice furniture, and the walls and floor were finely detailed. She had to admit, she was impressed, but that didn’t change much of her mood. She ran to her bed and cried in her pillow. She was alone and helpless with no way out.

Suddenly she remembered what Rodney told her right when he died, “You may not be safe for now, but you’re not alone; you’re never alone! And I will always be by your side no matter what happens.” Those words echoed in her mind all night. Rodney’s voice became the guardian, soul, and breath of Rachel’s subconscious. She felt a little better when she woke up, but she was still in her nice bedroom in her warehouse prison. She had to figure out a way to escape and get back to Disneyland. Only time will have to tell if it will work or not; but with having the Maiden of the Moon as her guide and Rodney’s spirit there to comfort her, Rachel knew what she had to do. So then she began to think.