Chapter 3 Acting and Reacting
Cavern
When Helia opened his eyes, all he could see was a looming darkness held off by a small source of light. He could barely recognize the surroundings as being cavernous He could hear a buzzing noise. It took a moment for the buzzing to filter through his muddled brain. Then he heard it.
"When we get free I'm gonna leave scorch marks on you hide!" Stella raged.
"Stella, keep calm and think of the baby." Brandon soothed, but none of the girls were everything but calm.
"I'll make sure, you'll never hear another sound for as long you live!" Musa screeched!
He could Riven say, "better them then me…"
"Which won't be very long, once I get my hands on you!" Layla growled.
He heard Nabu say, "Don't taunt the villains, honey!"
"This is a highly illogical but I agree with Stella! We'll fry you, like all the others!" Tecna spat out. He rolled his eyes at what he hoped was the ceiling, not wanting to even try to hear Timmy's opinion.
"You're gonna regret having messed with the Winx!" Bloom bellowed, it took him a moment to recognize the trio that held them hostage. But what he remembered turned his gut to ice. They were the ones who had attacked Flora all those years ago. Rage boiled inside him at being face to face with the ones who drove his beloved away. They had ruined everything that was great and good about Flora. They had trampled his beautiful winter rose.
It was too much for him, "YOU STOLE MY EVERYTHING FROM ME! YOU'LL PAY WITH BLOOD IF I HAVE ANY SAY IN IT!" He swore, he could feel all eyes on him but he could have cared less. They robbed him of five years with Flora. And he would be damned if they took one of the others from his friends. His vision turned a bloody red.
"Ha, you fools!" One cackled her moonstone sparking in the reflection of the flame she held in her hand, "we have already won and once she comes—"
"We'll be the all empowered—"
"Pollutants!"
"I am Toxicia, destroyer of waters" said the one with cat-green eyes.
"I'm Acidia of the acidic elements," cried out the red head.
"And I am Poisonia killer of air and plants!" Said the woman with moonstone eyes.
"What do you want with us?" Sky inquired of the three.
"To finish what we started five years ago—"
"Stripping your friend of her powers—"
"We have collected powers of nature from almost every realm—"
"We will be virtually invincible!" The trio cackled, their laughter echoing off the walls of the cavern.
"Where are we?!" Sky demanded.
"The caverns of the Lost Souls!" Toxicia announced throwing her arms out in a grand gesture, twirling about.
"It's the one place that will absorb good magic, such as your little pixies!"Acidia added, a gasp reverberated throughout the cavern.
"That's right, Pixies," Poisonia jeered gleefully, "The great Winx Club will be powerless and if your friend doesn't hurry. All that will be left of you will be rotting corpses!"
"What friend?" Riven growled, "and how will he know where to find us?"
"She," Toxicia corrected, "you don't really believe that she would leave, you guys, without keeping a close eye on you?"
"You're lying!" Stella cried out, it was in that moment when everything clicked together.
"You want Flora…" Timmy guessed
"Give the Geek a prize!" Acidia mocked, Helia could see everyone looking at each other as if to ask 'do you believe her?'. He could feel his heart trying to force itself from his chest with every pulse. Could it be true, had Flora never truly left them. Yes, in body but in spirit? He could not bring himself to hope and be led a stray once more, " of course we want her, she is the only one to live after we removed her powers the last time we met. Her death should have been but she managed to resist and was able to retain small part of her powers."
"Never have we ever come across such an conundrum."
"How could she be able to do so without dying?"
"How could she do so at all?"
"She's a Winx!" Bloom shouted, "we are the best!"
"Not true, if you are truly the best, as you claim then how do you proclaim that you will escape those bonds of yours?"
"Like we'd tell you." Stella rolled her eyes.
"Let's leave them to their plotting and planning, I'm famished there's a loch muddled with Acidic waste in the Starry Cross realm." Toxicia temped, the others just nodded and with a wave of Poisonia's hand. The south facing wall collapsed into the ground like a sliding door. Trio left without a backwards glance at their hostages. Once, they crossed the threshold the wall slide back into place.
"Do you believe them?" Musa asked the gang.
Stella was the first to reply, "I don't know what to believe, Musa. We've looked everywhere for her—"
"Maybe not everywhere but we try." Layla conceded.
"Who cares if they're telling the truth about Flora!" Riven raged, "how are we we going to get out of here?!"
"He's right lets focus on getting out of here." Sky said.
"It wouldn't be a problem if I could reach my p.d.a. I could piggy back off one of the inter-realm satellites and send an S.O.S. to Red Fountain."
"Brilliant, where is it?" Nabu asked.
"In my bag that they confiscated…" A groan rented the air.
On board a ship
"We've got a lock on them." Wheeler announced as he monitored tracer screen.
"Preparing decent." Links told the group as they buckled up.
"How many clicks out?" The petite brunette asked
"Forty!" Gi said as she measured the distance ratio.
"Suit up everyone! And be ready for anything!" Kwame shouted.
The ship began to shake and rattle, "there's movement on the southern side of the area—" Ma-Ti investigated.
"Measure the strength of a level one earthquake." Gi said as she glanced at the sensory map, but this area is thousands of miles from any fault lines."
"Or a wall falling into the ground." The brunette said as she saw the side of the cliff move, "how much longer?"
"We're on top of the target." Gi replied as she rechecked the instruments.
"Good! Let's go planeteers!" Kwame said, as he hit the release button. The team assembled in the bay just as the cargo door open.
As they jump from the ship, Wheeler shouts, "Let's get'em!"