Standard Disclaimer: I do not own W.I.T.C.H., Final Fantasy, or any of their related characters/concepts, nor any other properties whose characters/concepts appear in this story. This is a work of fan fiction.
Author's Note: This is the sixth in a series of one-shots which take place after the events of "Kieva Lynn's Season Three" and before the events of my next major W.I.T.C.H. story, the Final Fantasy Seven crossover "Guardians of the Multiverse." These tales will all take place in the summer break between the guardians' eighth and ninth grade, and will serve to fill loose ends left over from the previous story and provide foreshadowing for the next. In this chapter, the former Dominators have a run-in with a mysterious entity from another world...
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Summer Break Six: "Dominators, Dominated"
Heatherfield. The Vandom/Collins apartment. Will held the Heart of Kandrakar high. "Guardians unite!" She exclaimed, and the powerful orb released the magical orbs which transformed the girls into their Guardian forms.
As she opened a fold, Susan asked "What's this one about?"
"Halinoor didn't say." Will replied. "Just that the Oracle wants us to come to Kandrakar as soon as possible... There's something he needs to show us."
Standing up, hand on her stomach which was not yet showing any distension from her pregnancy, Susan said "Well, whatever it is, be careful okay?"
"When am I not?" Will asked, then after a moment's thought added "Don't answer that."
Kandrakar. The Guardians emerged in the Fortress of Infinity, on an outer balcony on the lowest level. "What do you think the odds are that this is good news for once?" Irma asked.
"Slim to none." Taranee answered.
Trying to be upbeat, Hay Lin said "There have been a couple of times it was."
"Yeah... But I've got a bad feeling." Taranee replied.
As they were speaking Halinoor appeared from within the fortress. "Thank you for responding so quickly girls. Please follow me."
"What's going on Hali?" Cassidy asked.
"It's best if you see for yourself." Halinoor led them through winding hallways and long curving stairways, eventually coming to a chamber the Guardians hadn't seem before. The room was rectangular, perhaps thirty feet long and twelve feet wide. What looked like a window was set into one of the longer walls, though the glass, if glass it was, was very dark and impossible to see through. Waiting for them were the Oracle, whom they had expected, and two other men they never would have thought they would see in this place; General Stanrych and Captain Annanias.
"Whoa! What are you guys doing here?" Cornelia asked.
Himerish said "Their presence is at my invitation. When I saw what had happened it seemed appropriate to bring them along."
"Could you bring us up to speed?" Elyon asked. "Halinoor didn't explain anything."
Nodding towards the darkened window, Himerish said "Be aware that this is a two-way mirror. Those on the other side can hear us, but they will not be able to see us." With that, he raised a hand towards the window, which grew clearer, affording a view into an identical chamber on the other side. Standing in that chamber were the five former Dominators: Judas, Sandra, Uriah, Bess, Courtney. But 'former' was not an applicable term. Their powers were back, and they were in their powered-up forms.
"What the...!?" Cornelia exclaimed.
Shocked at seeing their powerful adversaries in battle-ready form, the girls all prepared for a fight, but Himerish motioned for them to be calm. "They do not desire a fight. The powers are back, but the mind-altering aspect which Neera placed into them is not."
"They came to us immediately." Stanrych said, "Seeking aid. They know the power is dangerous and want to be rid of it."
"You can help them right?" Alchemy said directly to Himerish. "Take away the power?"
"Since they are willing, yes. It won't be difficult at all. But, before I do so, I wanted them to tell you directly what they have told us. It indicates the presence of a potential new threat." He moved to the window. "Judas, the Guardians are here. Please tell them how this happened."
Judas nodded. "Alright... Well, I guess I should start this morning. See, they've been having us do these therapy things together. Kind of a 'get over the trauma of what happened' thing, you know? Anyways, after the meeting we had lunch together then went back to Uriah's place to hang out. Things got weird around two thirty...
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Uriah Dunn's house, two-thirty p.m. Uriah threw himself backwards onto his bed, sighing deeply as he landed. "How much longer are we gonna have to do these dumb therapy sessions anyway?" He complained.
Bess threw a pillow at him. "Dope. We're lucky we're not in prison. Or being cut up in a lab somewhere maybe."
"Yeah." Courtney agreed with her sister. "They didn't even kick us out of Sheffield."
"Are you sure that's a good thing?" Uriah countered. "You know what it's gonna be like going back there? Everyone'll be against us. They're all gonna hate us!"
"Can you blame them?" Judas said. "We did a lot of damage."
"But were were totally out of it!" Sandra countered.
"It won't matter." Uriah said.
"Well there's nothing we can do about it." Courtney said, "Except stick together and wait it out. I mean, surely it'll get better after awhile, right?"
"Right." Judas agreed.
Before anything more could be said, a bright flash of light shone in through the bedroom window, accompanied by a rumble of thunder that rattled the window panes. "What the heck?" Uriah asked. "It's not supposed to rain is it?"
Sandra looked out. "No clouds in the sky. But, what else could it have been but lightning?"
Then a voice spoke. It was a female voice, deep and silken, with an almost seductive quality. "What else indeed my children?"
Everyone jumped up. Looking around, confused. "Who's there?" Bess demanded.
"Who is there?" came the answer, "What a strange question to ask your mother..."
"My mother is dead." Judas said, a hint of anger in his voice. "And you are not her."
"Is it Neera?" Uriah asked, terrified, "Like, her ghost or something?"
"I am not Queen Neera, though I do know of the dark queen..." There was a chuckle, "I can appreciate her evil, but she is far too... alive... for my tastes..."
"Not anymore, Neera's dead."
"Truly? I've been away for too long." The voice whispered.
"Who the hell are you?" Courtney shouted.
"You wound your mother, to not recognize her... Who am I? I am entropy. I am decay, devastation and decimation. I am the unliving embodiment of The Third Law..."
"The what?"
"I wonder though... How could mere children such as yourselves know of Neera? Could it be that you are..." A pause. "No, no, but I feel power within you nevertheless."
"No! That's not possible! They took the power away so it wouldn't kill us!" Uriah said.
"Preventing death? What a horrible thought... The power was taken, but a spark remains. Perhaps I can fan it back into a raging fire..." The voice fell silent, but after a moment Uriah screamed and fell to his knees.
"What's wrong!?" Bess exclaimed.
"The voice! Inside me, in my head!" Uriah shouted, panicked.
They heard the voice again. "Ahh yes... Here it is..." Uriah gasped as a yellow aura appeared around him. "Interesting... Very interesting... Weaponized fear. Not really my thing though..." Aura still flickering around him, Uriah fell the rest of the way over.
As he fell, Bess gripped her own head. "It's in me now!" She screamed as the entity reactivated her powers, red light shining out from her.
"Now this is more interesting." The voice said. "Rage. Anger. I like it. Still not for me though."
As Bess sighed in relief at the entity's departure from her Courtney yelped in surprise, then began to whisper "no" as an orange aura flowed around her. The entity laughed. "Avarice? You call that a power? Pathetic."
Judas was next. He doubled over, clutching his head, as the voice said "Now this is more like it. Hate. A great power, which leads to much death and destruction. Not bad... But there's one more, isn't there?"
"Sandra run!" Judas yelled, but before she had a chance the voice was speaking from within her. "Despair!? Oh, delicious. Yes, I like this very much indeed!"
"Get... Out!" Sandra yelled.
"What is this? What do you want with us!?" Bess demanded.
"Such whining." The voice said. "Nothing at all like him... I wonder if... Hello, what's this?" There was a long silence, before the voice spoke again. "Interesting... Just like them... I want to see!"
"See? See what?"
"This." The voice said, and with a sudden surge of power the teens found themselves beginning to float up into the air.
"She's transforming us!" Judas exclaimed, recognizing the sensation. They were all surrounded by spheres of light, and when they emerged they were changed; they looked two years older, covered in armor with dragon-like wings.
"Yes indeed. Just like them." the voice said. "Now my children, come along and do your mother's bidding."
The Dominators found themselves moving towards the window, but resisted. The effort was painful, but they were able to stop themselves. "You are not our mother and we are not obeying you!" Courtney shouted.
"Such obstinacy. Unsuitable for children of mine." The power drawing them increased, became a weight on their hearts and minds, a force that was brutal but also subtle, trying to worm into their minds and make them want to obey, make them want to call her mother, make them want to...
"NO!" Judas roared. "We will not be the bad guys again! Get out! Get out now!" Reflexively he cut loose with a blast of power which wrecked Uriah's room but also seemed to surprise the entity.
"How dare you talk back to your mother!" The voice shouted. The teens all felt an overbearing surge of mental power in their minds, and fell to the floor clutching their heads and crying. There was a laugh. "Pitiful. Your powers may be impressive but you yourselves are unworthy. Mother will leave you to perish with your world..."
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"...And then it left." Judas finished his story. "We went straight to my dad once we all pulled ourselves together."
"'Perish with your world.'" Taranee quoted. "That's not encouraging."
"Whoever and whatever she was, she meant it." Uriah said. "We're all in big trouble."
"Nah, we're on the job." Irma said.
"Indeed." Himerish said.
A door opened in the room with the Dominators and Luba entered. "Follow me, we'll begin the procedure to remove the powers."
As they watched the Dominators file out of the room, Cornelia asked "So how was this thing able to bring back powers that were removed?"
"Consider that former Guardians retain a tiny spark of their powers even after new Guardians are empowered." Himerish answered. "I expect the same is true of the Dominators. Really, it would only make sense given that they were powered up in the same way as Guardians."
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After the Dominators were led out of the room, the Guardians were preparing to return to earth. They had gone outside onto one of the fortress balconies, but before they could leave Alfor called out for them. They followed him to the chamber where the Dominators were being prepared for the power removal procedure. "They'll see us if we go in there!" Hay Lin objected.
From inside the room, Uriah, who had heard, called out "That's alright. When our powers came back so did our memory of who you are."
The girls exchanged wary glances at each other before stepping into the room. The Dominators were each laying on a marble slab similar in size and shape to a medical bed. "Why didn't you say anything sooner?" Will asked.
Judas laughed. "We couldn't, not in front of my dad and the General."
"So you'll keep our secret?"
"Turns out we won't have a choice." Bess said. "Luba here says that when the power goes the memory goes with it again."
"Indeed." Luba agreed.
"Probably for the best." Judas said. "But, right now, before we forget again... Thanks. For everything."
"Yeah." Uriah agreed, and three girls agreed as well.
"Hey, all part of the service." Irma joked.
"We're just glad everything worked out." Alchemy said.
"Us too. But has it worked out?" Courtney asked. "Whatever this 'Mother' thing is, I've got the creeps from it big time. Neera didn't scare me as much."
"That's saying something, for sure." Will agreed.
"Just be careful and watch your backs." Uriah said. "Whatever's gonna happen, it's gonna be bad..."
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Several days later the girls were in the park, along with their boyfriends. They were playing volleyball and trying to relax, though they were all on edge given recent events, and the knowledge that a new threat was coming. Another thought was on several minds as well, a thought which they got the opportunity to address when they saw Judas and the other former Dominators walking along the sidewalk nearby. Will, Elyon, and Miranda ran over, invited them to join in the game.
"Us?" Uriah asked, perplexed. "Why?"
"Yeah, after everything we did to the school..." Bess said.
"And that's gonna be a long road for you guys." Will said. "But someone has to take the first steps towards forgiving. Might as well be us."
Judas laughed. "What the heck? Why not?"
Up Next: Summer Break Seven: "Abyssea: Meridian"