AN – This chapter is a lot more serious and depressing than anything I've ever written before, and that includes my essay on why Mary, Queen of Scots lost her throne, so I hope it reads okay. I'm going to warn you now, dear readers, there are quite a few character deaths but I hope that doesn't put you off. Anyway, please enjoy and shoot me a review with any thoughts.
Disclaimer – I own nothing.
...
Pain hit Irma Lair like a speeding train. She screamed, the white hot lightning bolts burning her skin and causing her muscles to freeze. The ghastly stench of her own flesh sizzling under the unbearable heat was enough to make her gag. Nerissa cackled and shot another burst of deadly electricity towards the incapacitated water guardian. Irma screamed again.
"IRMA!"
Somewhere, in the deepest recesses of the girl's mind, she was vaguely aware of the battle raging around her. The terrified yell of one of her teammates was enough to shake her from her agonised daze. She glanced around and grinned in relief as the red-headed leader of the guardians swooped down and used her body to knock Irma's tormentor off balance. The momentary distraction was all Irma needed to shoot a well-aimed, albeit slightly weakened, blast of water at the aged sorceress. The hag gasped in surprise as the torrent of liquid smashed into her and Irma used the opportunity to scramble out of her destructive path.
Her escape was not as swift as she had hoped, however. Irma's aching muscles groaned in protest as she attempted to stand on shaky legs. Blackness was slowly creeping into her vision and she shook her head desperately. She needed to stay awake. Her friends needed her. She could not afford to give in to the oh-so-tempting darkness. An icy gust of wind blasted from behind her and the chilling breeze jolted her into consciousness.
"Not sleeping on the job are we?"
The Guardian of Air floated behind her injured comrade, a small, tight smile gracing her features. Irma easily recognised her friend's fear; the smile was just for show, a blatant attempt to offer the still-smoking water warrior some brief comfort. She was grateful for it. Irma winked and opened her mouth to make some inappropriate but probably very witty quip. It froze on her lips. A strangled scream of warning replaced the joke as Frost the Hunter appeared behind Hay Lin, sword drawn and a murderous grin across his face. The warning came too late, however. The pale girl barely had time to move as the creature thrust his sword into her back.
"NO! HAY LIN!"
Hay Lin stared at the bloody metal protruding from her stomach, her mouth opened in a tiny 'o' shape, shock evident on her delicate features. She slowly blinked at Irma.
"Ouch."
The Asian guardian suddenly dropped from the sky like a rock. Irma yelled in fright and pushed her pain-ridden body forward, arms outstretched and ready to catch her friend. Hay Lin was unnaturally heavy as she collided with the water wielder and the sudden weight was enough to cause Irma's knees to tremble and give way. Tears sprang to the brunette's eyes.
"No, no, no, no, no!"
"Oh gosh," gasped Hay Lin, blinking in surprise, as if she had not actually expected the wound to be so painful, "it r-really hurts."
"Duh," whimpered Irma, placing the air guardian's head in her lap, her trembling hands sweeping wayward strands of Hay Lin's hair from her friend's clammy face, "but it's going to be okay. We're gonna get Will and she can fold us out of here. You'll be fine in no time at all."
"S-sure," giggled Hay Lin, "and then we can p-pester Grandma into m-making some of her famous soup."
"Absolutely," nodded Irma, her eyes frantically searching the impromptu battlefield for Will and trying desperately not to look at the red-stained weapon that was firmly fixed in the other girl's stomach, "I do love me some soup."
Hay Lin chuckled and then groaned in pain, causing Irma's tear-filled eyes to snap back to her friend's face.
"Y-you may have t-to have that soup without me," the injured warrior whispered, "it r-really, r-really hurts."
"Hey, it's going to be okay," urged Irma, "you and I will be eating soup before you know it. Will's going to be here any second and we're gonna hightail it back to Earth. Easy as pie."
Hay Lin let out a shuddering breath.
"W-will you tell Grandma I'm s-sorry? I w-was meant t-to work an extra s-shift at the r-restaurant this weekend. I'm not sure I'm g-gonna make it."
"Don't talk like that, okay?" hissed Irma, tears now streaming freely down her face, "you're my best friend, Hay-Hay, and I'm not gonna let you die."
"You're m-my best friend t-too, Irmy," mumbled Hay Lin, her eyes slowly closing, "I'm g-gonna m-miss you."
"Shut up! Just shut up!"
"P-promise me y-you won't be t-too sad. W-when I'm gone, I m-mean. I n-need you to l-look after Grandma."
"Be quiet, Hay-Hay. You're gonna be fine. I think I see Will and-"
"P-promise me, Irma. 'C-cause I'll c-come back and h-haunt you if you d-don't."
"Okay," sobbed the brunette, "I promise."
"G-good," sighed Hay Lin, her body relaxing in Irma's arms, "I'm a little b-bit s-scared. I d-don't w-want to d-die."
"Then don't! Fight it!"
"I c-can't. It hurts t-too much."
"Please, Hay Lin," cried Irma, barely suppressed sobs shaking her body, "you can't leave me. You can't leave us! What about W.I.T.C.H?"
She did not receive an answer, however. Hay Lin's slight form went limp the Water Guardian's arms, her face adorned with a peaceful smile. If it was not for the gruesome wound, the Asian girl could have been mistaken for sleeping.
"NO!"
Irma's anguished scream was enough to halt the entire battle. Silence reigned for several minutes, no-one entirely sure what had caused the sudden pain-filled outburst. It was only when Frost approached the grieving water wielder, pulled his bloody sword from Hay Lin's body and raised the weapon above his head did the realisation set in.
"The Air brat is dead!" roared Frost, "long live Nerissa!"
"HAY LIN!"
The Guardians broke away from the skirmish and swooped towards the grief-stricken Irma and the broken body of their friend. They stumbled over to the pair, their faces pictures of pure agony.
"What happened?" demanded Will, horror evident on her features.
"F-frost," choked Irma through sobs, "he was b-behind her. I tried to warn her but he was too f-fast and I couldn't find you and she was so scared- Oh God..."
"We need to get out of here," whispered Taranee, her wide eyes fixed on Hay Lin's pale face, "we need to take her home."
"How are we going to tell Yan Lin and her parents?" murmured Cornelia, unshed tears glistening in her eyes, "this will destroy them."
"We can't worry about that now," said Will, slipping into leader mode, and pulling out the Heart of Kandrakar, "time to go."
"Oh, I don't think so, Guardians," laughed Frost, brandishing his sword wildly, his comrades joining his side, "you'll have to get through us first."
"With pleasure," snarled Irma, struggling to her feet, her blood-stained hands clenching into fists, "I'm gonna make you regret the day you ever heard the word 'Guardians.'"
"No way," retorted Taranee, placing a restraining hand on Irma's shoulder, "you can barely stand. You and Will get Hay Lin home. Let me and Corny handle these losers."
"What? Taranee, that bastard killed Hay Lin!"
"I know."
Will stared at Taranee in confusion.
"T, what are you doing?" she asked, tentatively opening the metal link between her and the fire wielding warrior.
"Irma's in no state to take on the Knights of Vengeance. Her encounter with Nerissa left her seriously drained," answered Taranee, not breaking eye contact with the smirking Frost, "and I'm a little bit worried about her mental state as well. If she starts beating on Frost, there's no way she's gonna stop. Besides, I want some vengeance too."
"Alright," Will nodded, "Irma, we're leaving."
"Will!"
"Don't argue. Taranee's right."
"We'll buy you guys some time," agreed Cornelia, "and beat their asses into the ground in the process."
"Be careful," urged Will, one hand firmly gripped on a protesting Irma's arm and the other grasping the Heart of Kandrakar, "I-I can't lose another one of you guys."
"We'll be fine."
"Will, get off! We can't just leave them! No!"
"Irma!" snapped the red-head, hurriedly opening a fold to Kandrakar, "stop struggling!"
In one fluid movement, the Keeper of the Heart shoved Irma through the fold and gently picked up Hay Lin. She looked at Taranee and Cornelia uncertainly, desperately questioning her decision.
"Will, we'll be fine!" yelled Taranee.
"Yeah!" nodded Cornelia, "now hurry up and close that fold before Irma comes barrelling back through!"
"Alright," said Will, her reluctance to step through the fold and leave her friends obvious, "good luck."
"You too."
Will turned towards the fold, Hay Lin still clutched firmly in her arms. She inhaled deeply and attempted to block out the battle cries of Taranee and Cornelia. Now was not the time to worry. The Guardians of fire and earth were both incredibly capable fighters and had bested the Knights of Vengeance on many different occasions. As the red-head stepped into the fold, however, she could not help but think 'so did Hay Lin.'
...
Will watched Yan Lin sob over her granddaughter's body and could not help but succumb to a wave of crashing guilt. She was the leader. It was her duty to ensure that her friends came home to their families and on this occasion she had failed in the worst possible way. The Oracle placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, as if sensing the nature of her thoughts.
"It was not your fault, Keeper of the Heart," he murmured, a sorrowful expression gracing his features, "you must not blame yourself for this."
"Then whose fault was it?" Will sighed, rubbing the tear tracks off of her cheeks, "I'm supposed to protect them and I failed."
Kandrakar was unnaturally silent. The usual cool breeze was absent from the floating palace and there was no playful wind teasing Will's hair. It was as if Hay Lin's very element was in mourning.
"Sometimes," began the Oracle, breaking the eerie silence, "terrible things happen. No-one can truly be blamed for them. I am certain your friends know this."
"I'm not sure Irma does."
"The Water Guardian is scared and upset. She knew Hay Lin the longest and shared her last few moments. That in itself is enough to shake even the steadiest of us."
"How did everything go so wrong?" lamented Will, "it was supposed to be a simple patrol."
"Fate has a funny way of working her magic. We cannot hope to possibly understand it."
"I know but- ARRGH!"
Will suddenly doubled over, clutching her chest in pain. The Heart of Kandrakar began to glow violently and the red-head wailed in agony. Two glowing balls of light swooped into the Council Chambers, closely followed by Luba and Halinor.
"The Aurameres!" cried the cat-woman, "what's happening?"
"Something awful," answered Halinor in horror, watching as the lights circled Will, "we have lost the Guardians of Fire and Earth and if we do not do something soon, we will also lose the Keeper!"
"Council!" cried the Oracle, his hands stretched towards Will and radiating energy, "lend me your power! We must do what we can to save her!"
Despite all his power, however, the Oracle had to struggle with the idea that his Guardian leader may have been beyond saving.
...
"What did you do to her?" screamed Irma, staring at the limp figure floating in the middle of the Council Chambers, "what happened?"
She had been drawn from the medical ward after hearing violent yelling. The fear of losing another one of her friends had caused her to ignore her injuries and race towards the source of the commotion. She was not at all pleased with what she had discovered. The Oracle sighed, feeling utterly weary in the first time for eons.
"The Guardians of Earth and Fire were lost in the battle against Nerissa and the Knights of Vengeance," he answered, wincing as a sob wracked Irma's body, "we can only assume it happened after Will and yourself left. We had to put Will into an enchanted sleep to protect her."
"W-what?"
"You see, the Heart of Kandrakar links you all to Will. The backlash of losing Taranee and Cornelia at the same time caused a sensory overload. She would have died had we not taken action."
"No! You've made a mistake! Corny and Taranee are not dead! They can't be! You need to wake Will up right now and we'll go and get them!"
"Please calm yourself, Irma," soothed the Oracle, "this is difficult to accept but there is no other explanation. Know that your Guardian sisters would not want you to mourn over them."
"No! You're lying to me! They're waiting for us! We can't leave them there!"
"We won't. I assure you. Luba has already left to retrieve their bodies and they will be buried with the highest honours."
"They're not dead!"
"I am sorry, Irma. So very, very sorry."
"No..."
The Oracle's heart broke as he watched the young girl collapse to her knees and bury her face in her hands.
"S-so I'm the only o-one left?"
"Yes and no," sighed the immortal, "when Will's mind has recovered from the trauma we will wake her, but that could be many years from now. There is no way to tell."
"T-there has t-to be a way to f-fix this."
"I wish there was."
"N-no," stated Irma, lifting her tear-stained face to meet the Oracle's, "there is a way. And I'm g-gonna find it and fix t-this whole mess."
If the Oracle was concerned over the mental state of his only remaining Guardian, he did not show it. His mind was racing. He knew of a way to remedy the situation but it was far-fetched and he was certain that the Council would not support it for several good reasons. Nevertheless, the immortal saw the teenager's desperation as an opportunity to right so many wrongs and it was for that reason alone that he shared his knowledge.
"If you're serious about saving the Guardians," he murmured, "there is an artefact that could help us. Unfortunately it has been lost for eons and would need unearthing before we could use it, but I believe that it is our only hope."
Irma's eyes snapped to meet the Oracle's serious face.
"And know this, Irma Lair," he warned, "what I am about to propose is riddled with risk. Think carefully before you agree. And of you do agree, the Council cannot know."
"B-but I can save m-my friends?"
"And many others if my plan goes correctly."
"T-then I'm in."