Author: The long-awaited return of Freshmen Year has come at last. This story is actually a prologue to the major project. I've split it into three parts. It tells the final hours of the Kingdom of Domino and focuses on the Company of Light. See if you recognize all of the names and characters. The title of the main story will simply be titled Freshmen. I've changed a great deal of the plot. Suffice to say it will be taking place in an alternate storyline, where all the characters are freshmen and are attending their respective schools. But that's later. Here we focus solely on the Company of Light. Events in this prologue will have major consequences for future chapters so listen up!
Have fun and enjoy!
Disclaimer: First and foremost, I do not own Winx Club nor do I financially benefit from the making of this story. I do this for the fun of it and because I enjoy interacting with other aspiring writers and fanfic enthusiasts.
1. The Fall of Domino (Part One)
"How do you stop a fire when the other side controls all the water? – General Lach - Gene Rodenbury's Andromeda
The battle was lost. Domino lay in ruin. What little remained of the once magnificent kingdom would be swept away in the coming darkness. The clouds were so thick they blotted out the sun. But these were no ordinary clouds. Black magic had conjured up a storm that would swallow the entire planet and if the survivors did not leave soon they would become a part of this mass grave.
Saladin knew they did not have much time left. His friends were still out there—fighting monsters, demons, and who knows what other unimaginable horrors let loose by the Ancestresses. A formidable mage despite his youth, he'd barely managed to fend off a creature of such twisted design that the mere sight of it had sent his knight escort mad with fear. One of them, the poor lad, actually gorged his own eyes out upon seeing it. So horrifying was the creature that Saladin vomited upon first glance. He felt so sick. What kind of women held sway over such madness?
Only one knight stayed to aid Saladin in the desperate battle. Saladin admired the boy's courage, which surpassed that of most fully-trained soldiers, and admitted that he could not have slain the creature without his aid. But the boy had been wounded; the thing's fangs had found him and he'd been poisoned. Saladin enacted a spell to slow the spread of the poison and ordered the young warrior to return to the evacuation point to receive proper medical attention. After that, the mage set out for the wilderness of death and destruction before him, intent on finding the last remaining members of the Company of Light.
He wondered how many were still alive.
Rienhlocke.
Glinda.
Elphaba.
Atmos.
Palladium.
Baltor.
Ameryl…
…am I the only one left?
No!—he told himself. He could not be. The Company of Light was the finest group of heroes ever assembled. Its members would not go down so easily. Somewhere, out there, he knew they would still be fighting…not surrendering an inch to the living nightmares who would now make this dying world their home. They were holding off the assault while the evacuation was in process. The mage knew his skills were needed elsewhere. Baltor, Rienhlocke, and Ameryl were talented magic users all, but Saladin was the best. A master wizard at only twenty-nine years of age, such a thing had never been done before in recent memory.
But he was weak. Fighting for two days straight had drained the powerful mage of most of his energy. That last monster had taken more than he would have liked to have used out of him and he doubt he would still be here searching for his friends had the boy-knight not helped him. He prayed to whatever gods were still listening, though one look around shook his faith at the moment, that he did not run into any more obstructions on the way; particularly those of the "I'm going to eat you" variety.
A flash of thunder caught his attention. A first he thought it originated from the sky seeing as how the black clouds loomed ever closer to the center of the city…but then he noticed the lighting was emitting too close to the ground for it to be anything but non-terrestrial. A battlecry filled the air, which in turn filled his heart with joy. It was Rienhlocke!
His legs burned in protest as he ran towards the battle. He could have used magic to transport himself there instantly but he wanted to save his remaining magic for an emergency. Plus it was never wise to simply "appear" in the middle of a battle you knew nothing about. You could materialize right in the path of a charging giant, getting squashed in the process—or get caught in the crossfire of dueling wizards. As weak as he was, it was best to remain on the side of caution.
The rubble of buildings proved to be quite the chore of circumventing, but once Saladin was over the mound he saw his friend locked in battle with a monster resembling a cross between a woman and a spider. The creature had the body of a spider, its bulbous thorax pitch black save for the red markings (a black widow!). The upper half was that of a woman; naked, but completely unattractive. Her distorted breasts were on opposite sides of the torso and her hair clung loosely like rags around a balding head. Her skin was a sickly gray, boils and warts, thousands of them, dotted her ugly body from head to thorax. She had six arms, a weapon in each hand.
Well. Almost.
Two of the arms were out of commission. One of them was severed to the elbow while the other hung limply from a broken joint. Several scorch marks appeared on her massive frame. The black widow towered forty feet above the ground. Her long legs, all eight of them, sent a tremor through the ground with each step. To Saladin, it sounded like an ogre marching band.
The widow cried out as another bolt of lightning spun straight for her. She lifted an arm holding a shield to block it. The blast was redirected to a crumbling tower that disintegrated on impact. The shield had been rendered useless by the attack and so it was discarded. Above, Saladin saw his friend swoop in for another kill.
A paladin was something to see. His great wings and sylvan features gave him the image of an angel when in fact he was a winged elf who was blessed by the power of his gods with command over nature. His long, silver hair streaked behind him as he dived from a hundred feet up. The widow raised a hatchet and a longsword to mutilate him, but the paladin was too smart…and too fast.
He danced around the widow's futile attempts at killing him like a fly would a person, only this fly was about a thousand times more dangerous. His sword, beaming with mystical energy, sliced another arm off the spider monster and sent black blood spewing forth. She screamed, got angry(er) and tried to eat him. Rienhlocke raised his palm, aimed it at her face and unleashed a terrible fireball. The monster's head was engulfed in flame and she futility tried to put it out using her remaining hands.
"To the abyss with you!" He shouted and gathered a massive ball of energy in his hands before firing a blast at point-blank range. The blast incinerated the monster into nothingness. Rienhlocke crumbled to the ground, his magic spent.
Saladin came sliding down the rubble and rushed to his friend's side. "Rienhlocke!"
The Paladin of Ferendor Fjord felt Saladin place a hand on his shoulder. "You're almost as bad as I am," He said and before Saladin could ask him to clarify what he meant the paladin added, "I can sense you are almost out of magic. That spider-bitch took what little I had left to finish. I doubt I could fly now." He moved his wings weakly to insinuate the point. "Damn it all. Why couldn't it be goblins? They die so much more easily."
Saladin was glad to see his friend retained his sense of humor given the circumstances. Despite his appearance, the paladin was well over two-hundred years old. A child by the standards of his race but no less incredible. Rienhlocke served as Saladin's master when he was still a pupil at Ferendor Fjord. He knew that if his former teacher was exhausted it was because he had given it everything he had. The elf was an army unto himself and one look around the field was testament to his destructive power as countless demonic dead lay burning or hacked on the ground.
"You'd best return to camp. The last ships are preparing to leave. I was sent to search for stragglers."
Rienhlocke looked at him. "So I'm a straggler now? Funny. As I recall it was always you who needed to be rescued at the end of a battle."
Saladin laughed. "You taught me well, old friend. Believe me when I say I know how to take care of myself."
"I see." A wicked smirk overcame his beautiful face. "Then why is it you still need me to look out for you?"
"If you're referring to the incident on the Resort Realm, I told you that girl was only,"
"No," the paladin cut him off. "I mean—duck!"
"Wha—"
The elf forcefully shoved Saladin to the ground before raising his hand, a ball of light forming. The remains of a creature with the head of a cockroach that was mere inches from Saladin's exposed back moments before, now clicked its mandibles angrily as the paladin readied to fire. The horrid thing vanished in a globe of light and was no more. Funny, he thought, I could have sworn I squashed that thing when I dropped the tower on it. Then again, given the insect the creature resembled, it was no surprise how tough it had been to kill.
"You see?" Rienhlocke said.
"Guess I still have a lot to learn." The human mage had no idea what his friend had killed but he heard the screech and the hungry sounds of something clicking before the blast came. A part of him was glad he did not get to see it. He'd already witnessed enough to have nightmares for the rest of his days. "But I thought you said you had nothing left."
"I was just catching my breath." He breathed in heavily. "There we are." And then he bounced back up. "Good as new."
Saladin secretly hated him for it. Elves were highly evolved beings. Even with their soft stature they could still heal faster and fight longer than humans. No doubt the paladin had already gained most of his energy back and was ready to go another round with another widow.
"Have you seen the others?" the mage asked, getting to his feet.
Rienhlocke's face turned sour. "I'm afraid we got separated during the initial assault."
"We?"
"Prince Atmos, Baltor and I were searching for the girls when the widow and her minions fell upon us. I told them to go on without me while I held back the demonspawn. Glinda and Elphie were escorting a group of refugees from the east side of the city towards the stadium. They were headed that way when the battle began."
"Then that's where we'll go."
A loud screech filled the air. Something big was making its way toward them and from the sound of shifting rubble it was coming very fast.
"You go on, good mage. I must keep this way clear so that nothing tries to outflank us when we return to the zone."
Saladin was hesitant. "But you're not at full strength. Whatever's coming could prove too much for you in this state." The mage held firmly his staff, a golden weapon with the head of a dragon. It had a ruby gem in the mouth, pulsating with magical energy. "We will fight it together."
"You humans always have trouble seeing the bigger picture."
The paladin's tone irked the young wizard and he turned to retort but was stopped with a flick of his wing that tapped Saladin on the head. "My powers come from nature. So long as there is still some of it left on this world I will be more than a match for anything that comes my way. Besides, I can always fly away if things get too dangerous and I still have a few teleportation spells handy. And then," he raised his sword, glowing with silver light. "White Star will be at my side. The two of us have never lost a battle."
"You place too much faith in that inanimate object of yours."
"Look who's talking."
The screech came again, closer this time, and stopped Saladin's words in his mouth.
"Off with you," Rienhlocke said. "Go be the hero and save the pretty damsels. I go to meet my destiny." The winged elf took to the air wanting to meet the foe away from Saladin so that he could make a clean escape. As Saladin watched him go, he prayed, this time really prayed, that the elf's words were only metaphorical. He'd hate to lose his teacher…and best friend.
"Godspeed," said Saladin, and turned to find his other companions.
Galinda, better known as Glinda, poked her head outside to have a look around. Whatever had flown over the ruined neighborhood moments before was long gone and they could move again. Turning back, the fairy regarded the cowering mass of people behind her. "It's gone. Now when I give the word I want each of you to file out one by one and try to make as little noise as possible. All right?"
Those with enough sense managed to nod, but the others were so terrified they just gawked at her with wide eyes. Glinda could not blame them. Their entire world was destroyed and most of them if not all had lost loved ones. She could never imagine what they were going through.
She searched the crowd for a familiar face who stood at the back end. A pair of yellow eyes met her brown and that was all the communication they needed. Glinda and Elphaba need not the gift of telepathy to pass on messages. The two were so in sync they may as well have been twins. Basically, the fairy just told her witch counterpart that she would lead the refugees out onto the street while Elphaba guard the rear. As they continued toward the stadium where the evacuation was taking place, Glinda would make sure the way was clear while Elphaba made sure no one got lost or left behind. It was their duty as members of the Company of Light to see as many people to safety as possible.
Taking one more look just to be absolutely sure the way was clear, Glinda said, "Follow me," and the procession began.
Back at the line, Elphaba watched her friend go. Whatever that thing was it was huge. The entire building shook at its passing and the witch hoped they'd never see it again anytime soon. While she had the greatest confidence in their abilities, hers especially, she doubt that they alone could handle a demon that big. Those Ancestresses were powerful. She was almost filled with pride to know that they were witches like her. But all witches, no matter how wicked, had limits and those women had crossed a very broad line.
The pink-haired fairy emerged from the doorway. She raised her hands so that she may fire at any attacker at a moment's notice but when nothing appeared she did not lower her guard. All of Domino was a danger zone. Death could be waiting around the next corner and whatever may happen the fairy wanted to be ready.
In her Enchantix form she was a sight to see. While half-naked, as fairies tended to be, Glinda was power and majesty wrapped into a pretty package. Her sleeveless, blue blouse had slits to reveal ample cleavage. The skirt, which barely covered anything, fluttered in the breeze, occasionally revealing her underwear. Her feet were bare save for metal rings coiling around them like golden serpents. Her beautiful wings were a multi-colored design of intricate lines and patterns. The colors were mostly in the blue and green families, but there was a dashing of red and pink as well. A small silver bell hung at the tip of each wing, jingling whenever the fairy flew or a strong gust happened by.
Her pink hair was cupped into two buns with pigtails hanging off each. All in all, the attire was impractical for battle, Elphaba thought. Her Hauntix abilities saw her strong, sexy, and fully clothed—thank you very much. The witch could never understand what fairies saw in wearing almost nothing to a fight. Sure Glinda was strong and fast, and boy could she dish it out, but one good hit and…well, you get the idea.
As the procession went into the open, Glinda took to the air so as to get a bird's eye view of the area before them. She saw no monsters, demons, or apparitions to bar their path. The way seemed relatively safe though she found her eyes scanning the sky for signs of that big bird thing or whatever it was.
"Anything?" Came Elphaba's voice. She'd used telepathy this time for Glinda was far ahead of her and not looking back.
The fairy turned to where her friend who was bringing up the rear. The witch wore a long black robe that covered all save her face—her pale, witchy face. This did not mean she was not beautiful. Elphaba was gorgeous in a gothic sort of way—if you were into that.
"No. The way is clear."
"Famous last words," Elphaba thought cynically. Ever the pessimist. "Stay sharp. I don't think it'll be that easy."
"You mean it's been easy so far?"
"Trust me, Glinda. It's never easy."
"Can't argue with that." The fairy returned to her vigilant watch. Ahead remained what was left of a crumbling bridge over a river. "There's a bridge up ahead." She announced to the refugees. "I'm going to see if it's sturdy enough. Wait here." She left the group in the care of her friend while she went on ahead. Despite a few cracks—okay, a lot of cracks, the bridge seemed moderately in shape. She tested it with her own weight, her wings still fluttering should it decide to break at an inconvenient time. It held though that wasn't saying much. Glinda was only one fairy, and a small one at that. How would it hold a score of people, some of them full grown and overweight adults?
"No choice," she said to herself. It would take too long to find another way across and there wasn't much time left. "This will have to do."
Returning to the procession, Glinda told them about the bridge. "We'll go over one at a time just to be safe. Move quickly, okay?" She led them to the bridge. "Go." One by one, the refugees began to make their way across. Elphaba joined Glinda in the air above the survivors. While lacking wings, the witch possessed the ability to levitate her body using her own dark magic. Witches were mentally more powerful than fairies. They were more than just spells and chants.
"We're almost out of time," the witch told Glinda. "We'd best hurry up." She looked about. "Where are Atmos and the others? They were supposed to help us evacuate these people."
Glinda shrugged her slender shoulders. "You know the boys. Probably off fighting the bad guys in an attempt to prove their masculinity."
"Either that or they left without us."
"No way. Baltor's got a thing for you. He'd never leave knowing you were still here."
Elphaba grimaced. "I never count on that wizard for anything."
"You never count on anyone but yourself, Elphie." Glinda used her nickname for the witch that she knew she hated. Witches took great pride in their name because it was part of their heritage. Every witch took on a name that was unique to her and her alone. Even warlocks, their male counterparts, took a fierce pride in their identity. It was rare in their culture when a witch or warlock took a name by another. They chose their own names, not their parents, so when someone abbreviated it, it was like taking their identity and tossing it aside.
"And what's wrong with that?" Elphaba asked defensively. "Too much reliance on others makes you weak."
"Then why did you join the Company of Light?"
"To prove that a witch is just as capable as any fairy, wizard, paladin, or knight."
"Uh-huh." Glinda smirked.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"What? What is it?"
"It's just…"
"Glinda!"
"Baltor."
"What about him?"
"Admit it," she leaned in. "You like him."
"I do not."
"Sure."
"I don't know where you---"
"I see you looking at each other."
"He looks at me."
"Your cheeks flush whenever he's around."
"Only because he makes me so angry."
"Uh-huh." Glinda pinched Elphie's cheek. "That…and you like him."
"This isn't the time for your childish antics, fairy!" Elphaba shoved her hand aside. "We're in the middle of a war! Now take this seriously or else."
"Yikes." Glinda backed off. The witch could be very scary when she wanted to be. Then again, weren't they all?
The refugees were almost over. Elphaba and Glinda stood watch over the entire procession when one man nearly fell over. He'd been walking alongside the stone railing when a part of it collapsed. He stumbled at first and would have gone over had not the fairy been fast and grabbed his arm. "Be careful." Glinda scolded him. The part of the railing that went over sent ripples throughout the water. Those ripples were followed by bubbles which expanded into a pool. Soon enough the surface of the water turned black.
"That's the last of them." Glinda reported up to Elphaba.
"Let's get going. I don't think there are that many ships left waiting for us."
Something slithered up out of the river.
"Don't worry, Elphie. They won't leave without us. We're two gorgeous girls."
"Don't call me that."
"What? Gorgeous? Oh…you mean Elphie."
"Glinda."
The fairy laughed. "It's just my pet name for you."
Elphaba glared down at her friend. "If you don't stop behaving like a brat so help me I'll," then she saw the tentacle reach for Glinda.
"You'll what?"
"Glinda!"
"No need to shout. I'm r…" She was stopped as the tentacle wrapped around her body and pulled her down. The last thing Elphaba saw was her friend's pleading eyes looking to her for help. The people on the other side of the bridge cried out and began to run away but Elphaba paid them no mind. Right now all she could think about was her friend and her terrified eyes.
"Glinda!"
The hold the tentacle had on her was intense. She could feel her lungs gasping for air which was made all the more difficult now that she was underwater. Glinda tried using her wings but they were all mangled up in the creature's hold. The suckers on the tentacle began to puncture her skin. She would cry out but all that came out was bubbles. It took every ounce of willpower she had not to lose her cool and remain in control. As Saladin once told her, "emotion is the enemy of victory."
What she needed to do was gather enough of her winx for an all-out attack. Good luck. About the only thing she could move now was her feet and unless she planned to stomp this thing to death there wasn't much advantage in that. But a fairy need not her body to use her magic. Glinda's powers emanated from light which was brightest in her heart. Focusing her winx, Glinda prepared to unleash her power.
A terrible sound came from beneath her. Barley managing to twist her head to a point where she could see, Glinda saw a gaping mouth several yards wide rushing up to meet her. The maw was a vortex of teeth that led into a pit of darkness. Now she really wanted to scream…but no—you can do this, Glinda. Focus your winx!
Calling up power from the deepest recesses of her soul, the fairy brought it up to the surface…just as the maw closed in around her.
Elphaba nearly dived in after her. She never realized how important Glinda had been to her until now. While there was already a deep-rooted distrust of witches—which would only intensify after today's atrocities—Glinda treated her not only as a friend, but as a sister. All her teasing, all her antics were a display of affection for Elphaba. Now she'd lost her.
A part of her had been lost forever.
Not if I can help it!
"Hang on, Glinda! I'm coming!" The witch prepared to throw off her robe when the entire length of the river exploded with light. Being used to darkness it was especially hurtful to Elphie's eyes. Like a rocket launched from a submersible, Glinda came streaking out of the river. Striking a pose, the fairy asked, "Did you miss me, Elphie?"
"With every blast so far," Elphaba returned to her grouchy manner. "Do you think this is some sort of game? You were almost killed!"
"No problem. That tuna couldn't hurt me if it tried."
Suddenly the river exploded again; this time a large black mass surfaced accompanied by several writhing tentacles.
"I think it wants a second chance," Elphaba said and prepared an energy blast. "Take this!" She fired it off only to have it bounce harmlessly off the sea creature's armored hide. "Dammit!"
"Let me try." Glinda fired off a beam of light from her forefinger that streaked toward the sea monster who managed to deflect it with a single tentacle. It came shooting back at Elphaba who barely had time to dodge it. "You okay?!" Glinda cried after her friend's near miss.
"Clearly. This thing is too powerful for either of us to defeat alone. We should join our attacks to finish it off."
"Convergence." Glinda smiled. "Let's do it. You lead."
Having no problem with that, the witch began her attack. Rising herself out of the reach of those tentacles, the witch raised her arms up high. A black globe of dark energy appeared over her head. Wind kicked up, lifting her cloak to reveal her Hauntix outfit. Basically it was a form-fitting purple body suit with black patches on the shoulders, knees, elbows, hips and ankles. The Hauntix looked futuristic in that it pulsated with violet energy that started from Elphaba's neck and worked down to her feet. On her chest appeared her personal mark, the one that granted her this miraculous power. Like winx to a fairy, each witch bore a mark that was theirs alone and could only be obtained after going through a grueling trial that could cost one her life. When she achieved her mark, the witch would gain her Hauntix, her most powerful form. In this form, Elphaba was Glinda's equal.
The globe of energy grew larger until it was twice the size of the woman who wielded it. "Now, Glinda!"
Even higher up, Glinda formed rings of pure energy. Blue and white coils appeared around her arms and she fired them down like lances toward Elphaba. "Convergence!"
At that, Elphaba unleashed the dark globe. The two attacks combined halfway down. The light lances encircled the globe, forming a wall of electricity. The globe flickered from black to purple and as it collided with the monster's maw and the Convergence attack struck deep and exploded from within. The sea monster exploded in a mass of black goo and body parts. The blast also managed to destroy the bridge.
Elphaba and Glinda looked at each other. They shared a smile.
"Kick ass!" Glinda exclaimed.
"We do make a good team," the witch said. That was as congratulatory as you can expect her to be.
Now the fairy looked around. "Uh…where are the people we were supposed to escort?"
"Cowards turn and ran when the creature pulled you in. Despicable."
"They're only civilians. We can't expect them to fight with us."
"They could have at least cheered us on." She sighed. "Let's go find them."
Right now the refugees wished they stayed with the fairy and the witch for they were faced down with two evil-looking scorpions the size of shuttle craft. There were two pincers on each arachnid, both dripping with venom that burned holes through the ground. They had long snouts that squealed with glee when they spotted the refugees. Three eyeballs protruded from stalks on their heads and they snapped their pincers with every step.
Fortune was with them for the scorpions were not the only ones to have found the refugees.
A dashing figure leaped off a nearby building and sliced the tail off from one of the scorpions. Prince Atmos turned to face down the two monsters with sword and shield in hand. His blue armor was singed from previous encounters with roving monstrosities but he was no less determined to fight. His shield bore the royal insignia of his kingdom and his sword was stained with the blood of many a foe.
"Not one step further!" He commanded. The scorpions did not listen; likely they didn't even care, and attacked.
The people watching were in awe at his fighting prowess. Atmos bobbed and weaved out of their range and reciprocated with a blinding slash of his sword. One scorpion tumbled to one side as the first two legs on one side had been cut off. The other bled acid when the prince tore an opening through its mid-section. Barely a minute into the fight the prince had the two beasts dead before him. Their bodies burned right through the street and they disappeared into the ground. His sword had been made from the finest dwarven blacksmiths of his home realm, thereby making it impervious to acid. After wiping it on the floor, he sheathed the magnificent weapon.
Prince Atmos turned to the refugees who stood in silence. "I promise you the way will be clear from this point on. My friends and I have cleared the streets between the river and the arena. I take it this is everyone?"
Several members nodded.
"Good. Now if you'll," a large shadow loomed over them. "Oh hell! Everybody take cover!" the prince brought up his sword in preparation for this new fight. A monstrous bird with wings as red as blood and whose body was covered in talons instead of feathers, swooped in on them. His one massive leg lashed down at the prince on the first try. It scrapped his shield but hit with such tremendous force that he'd been tossed to the ground.
Cursing in his native tongue, the prince bounded up. Enraged at the blemishing of his shield, Atmos reared back his sword.
The bird demon turned around and came back for a second pass. Talon and steel met and there was shearing sound as the blade won. The creature's leg fell off and it crashed to the ground. The prince closed in for the kill but to his surprise and eventual disgust hundreds of the bird's talons leaped off its body, becoming carnivorous little worms which sped toward him. "By the gods!" he swore and suddenly found himself overwhelmed.
Several of them latched onto his armor, boring their way through and nipping at the skin within. Atmos spent more time flicking them off than he did fighting the rest. The refugees watched in horror as their savior faced imminent demise. One of them, a young boy, took the initiative to pick up a rock and throw it at the worm-things. His aim was true and it crushed one, but that turned the attention of many of the worms on them. Cries went up as the worms closed in on the refugees. Some picked up stones, poles, glass, anything that could be used as a makeshift weapon and tried to defend themselves.
"Run!" Atmos cried. "Flee for your lives!" another worm bit at his neck and he screamed bloody murder.
"How pathetic," came a worldly voice. "The Prince of Eraklyon devoured by ravenous invertebrae." A handsome young man in a long red trench coat appeared from out of thin air. "Allow me."
Raising his hand he twiddled his fingers until a hundred little sparks came out of them. The spark fell on the mass of worms attacking the people and burst into flame, incinerating the vermin. Next he turned to the prince. Removing two green feathers from an inside pocket he whispered something before blowing them toward the prince. The feathers morphed into large green birds which began to eat the worms. "Best use their natural enemies to fight back," the wizard said. "Must I fight all of your battles, Prince Atmos?"
Grumbling beneath his breath, the brown-haired warrior-knight turned on his companion. "I had everything well in hand, Baltor."
"Indeed. Then I guess that dance you were doing as the worms bore into your skin was meant to impress them with your ballroom skills?"
"Quiet!" Atmos squashed a worm with his foot. "Cursed things."
But in all the commotion they'd both forgotten about the demon bird. It was far from dead and all this time had grown a new leg. With that finished it turned its hungry eyes on the two men.
Atmos saw it first. "Dragon's Teeth! The damn thing was only biding time to heal its wound."
"Let me take care of this." Baltor approached the bird with utmost confidence. Not three steps away the bird attacked, its beak spread wide for consumption. "Don't you know it's rude to gawk your mouth at someone?" He asked before enacting his spell. A small pin he carried in his hand suddenly extended to the length of a sword. It grew as long as a javelin, then a lance; it grew until it was many times its size until it was portable ballista which skewered the bird as it tried to eat him whole. Baltor laughed as the point came out the other end. "Farewell." The ballista ignited and burned the creature alive.
"What is it with you and fire?" Atmos asked as his friend stepped away from the carcass.
The handsome wizard brushed back his orange-brown hair which he had turned into a ponytail behind his back. "When something absolutely, positively must die there is no substitute."
"Pyromaniac."
"Hey!" Glinda's voice rang out. Both she and the witch Elphaba came flying over to where they stood. "Thought that was you, Baltor. Smelled your handiwork a mile away."
"You know me, Glinda. I always strive to leave an impression."
"Your impressions tend to lay waste to everything around you," Elphaba said. She landed softy, her dark clock enshrouding her in mystery. Baltor's eyes lit up at seeing her. "By the way, thanks for meeting us at the assigned spot. Glinda and I were attacked six times before we managed to get all the refugees ready for escort. I thought you boys were going to clean up the streets."
"Being among the few who could fly my place was in the air battling the winged minions of the Ancestress Witches. I must say, your kind are quite imaginable, my dear Elphie."
"Elphaba!" She spat.
Beside her, Glinda chuckled. "How cute. They're having a lover's spat."
"Don't you start with me, fairy."
"Enough." Prince Atmos, the unofficial leader of their troupe, sheathed his sword and directed their attention toward him. "The last ships are preparing to leave. We must return before that storm reaches us." At that, all eyes turned to the black clouds which loomed ever closer. The rain was said to eat flesh and melt bone, turning anything it touches into monsters. It was a living death—far worse than the real thing.
"Let's get these people to the arena for evac and…where is everyone?"
"Aren't they with the ships?" Glinda asked.
"I sent Saladin to look for stragglers a while back. Ameryl and Palladium went to the aid of a squad of soldiers trapped on the other side of the city. They should be back by now."
"And Rienhlocke?"
Atmos rolled his eyes. "That damn elf flew off somewhere. Could be dead for all we know."
"Don't say that." The fairy puckered her lips.
Baltor smirked. "Yes. Our dear Galinda has a thing for the winged elf."
"I think he's cute, all right? And the name's Glinda. Galinda makes me sound old."
"Excuse me?" One refugee, a woman with long, dark hair, asked the Company. "We'd like to be saved now."
Prince Atmos then said, "Glinda. Elphaba. Take these people back to the arena. Baltor and I will make one more sweep of the area before returning. See if you can find out what happened to our elf friends while you're at it."
"Will do. Come on, Elphie." She flew up.
"This company's going to be down one fairy if she keeps this up."
"Elphaba." Baltor called to her. "You look so cute when you're pouting."
Her white cheeks turned red. "S…shut up!" She soared away.
"Always the ladies man." Atmos mused. "Let's get going."
Saladin arrived at the mouth of a crumbling subway entrance. The spell he used to track down his friends took the form of a whisp of light that led him here. Once the whisp reached the subway it went out and Saladin was left staring into a dark hole. "Oh sure. There's nothing to worry about down there." He sighed aloud and used his staff to light up the dark before venturing in.
Within the underground he found no monsters but something worse. People. Dead people. Many were torn apart or crushed beneath the rubble. The trains were strewn about like a child's toys and there was so much blood that he nearly slipped. Fighting back the uneasiness that threatened to force his lunch out through his mouth, Saladin pressed on.
His was the only light in the tunnel save for loose wire cables. He made sure to stay clear of them. Wouldn't make sense to have survived numerous monster encounters just to be electrocuted to death. After minutes of aimless wandering he made it to a juncture where the train tracks split. Aiming the staff this way and that, Saladin had to contemplate which way to go. His eyes fell on something he recognized. A white leaf hanging on one of the walls. The leaf's edge was pointed back the way he came, signifying it as a marker. The mage smiled. "Palladium."
The cunning elf had been this way not long ago. He continued down the tunnel the leaf had been placed and found another further down. This continued and he found three more leaves before the ground gave way to a gaping hole. "What would possess Palladium to go down there?" he wondered. Elves usually avoided subterranean places. They were beings of the surface where the sun and the moon shone down from above. To take them away from that was like taking a fish out of water.
Braving the hole, the mage continued on until finally he heard something. It was a voice—an elf voice.
There was no mistaking that melodic accent. Saladin picked up the pace eventually winding up in a sizable cavern with a ceiling fives stories high and three wide. He found Palladium slouching against the far rock wall, clutching a wound in his lower stomach.
"My friend!" Saladin rushed to his aid. Unlike Rienhlocke, this elf was grievously wounded. The blood had stained his pants and shirt almost entirely. Had he been human he would already be dead. He'd been using a combination of magic and potions to heal the wound. Palladium had stopped the bleeding but he was very weak.
"F-Fiyero." The elf was one of the few who called him by his first name rather than his last. His sparkling green eyes brightened at his arrival and he weakly smiled. "H-How are you, m-my friend?"
"I could ask you the same. Here. Let me help." Whatever had wounded Palladium it had caused him to use up all of his potions. Saladin took out one he kept just for emergencies. The elixir was meant to mend broken bones and any other internal injuries. Palladium's condition improved tremendously upon drinking it and he was able to get back on his feet with Saladin's help.
"What happened here?" He asked. "Who did this to you?"
"A horror."
"What kind of mon…"
"Not a monster. Not even a demon. A horror."
The human mage did not understand so the elf clarified. "An evil so ancient that even my people have no name for it. Eons ago before the universe was born, a terrible darkness battled against the light. Horrors served the darkness. They were its strongest minions able to bring one's nightmares to life and turn the most beautiful thing into something truly disgusting. I thought them but myths but now I've seen one with my own eyes."
"How did you manage to survive?"
"You can thank Ameryl for that."
"Ameryl? She's here?"
"Was. She saved me from the horror by distracting it, making it chase her instead of me. I was gravely wounded trying to help a solider who'd been pinned down by debris. Before I knew it the horror was on me and I'd have died from madness before death claimed my body. Brave Ameryl led it away and I have not seen either since. I crawled my way back here, the soldiers we came to aid all dead, stopped the bleeding and awaited rescue." Palladium faced Saladin. "It's far worse than I've feared. The Ancestresses. They've called upon forces so vile that even they could not control it. This world is doomed, Fiyero. If we do not stop this here there is no telling where this evil will spread next. We cannot simply leave Domino. We must separate it from the rest of the universe forever."
"How do we do that?"
"My people know a way. I'm sure the Magix Council will see it as the only option. For now we must see to our dear friend and pray that she is okay."
"At once."
Both man and elf strode boldly down the tunnel until it opened up to an even larger cavern. The bodies of soldiers lay about in mangled forms. Palladium offered a swift and silent prayer for the dead before moving on. It wasn't until they reached the pit when Saladin almost lost his nerve. The pit descended ceaselessly as if into the mouth of Hell. It took all the courage he had before he dared to take one step further.
"This was where the horror first appeared. Knowing Ameryl as the dutiful woman that she is, she led the creature back here so as to trap it."
"It does not look like she succeeded."
"Hush now! We mustn't think that way. I still sense a trace of her energy in the air. It leads down." Palladium removed a shortsword from his belt. "Are you with me, Fiyero?"
"To the death," Saladin said.
"Once more into the breach!" Palladium leaped and used his elven magic to float downward. Taking the cue, Saladin used a spell that would allow him to fly and followed Palladium into the pit.
In the next chapter, Saladin and Pallidum find just how far down the rabbit hole goes. Time has run out for Domino and the universe holds its breath when an ancient evil emerges.