Hello again kiddies. Thank you all soooooooooo much for the reviews; you folks ROCK! I'm thinking I may have to change the rating to 'M,' as we'll be getting into some fairly ugly violence for a while. Anyway, please read the chapter and let me know if you think the current rating of 'T' is appropriate.

Disclaimer: I don't own W.I.T.C.H.

Disclaimer 2: WARNING! The following chapter contains graphic imagery of violence which may not be suitable for all readers. Viewer discretion is advised…Hehehe…

Chapter 4

Irma's turquoise eyes fluttered open. She blinked a few times to clear the haziness from her vision and wracked her brain for information. I remember we were fighting the K.O.V. and I got separated from everybody. Her head throbbed painfully as Irma further taxed her brain. There were bat-thingys and geysers, and…She gasped then as reality finally set in. Dammit…I've been kidnapped! Looking around at her current surroundings, Irma noticed rock…lots of it. She could hear dripping water and she thought she must be in some sort of cave. Next she took inventory of her body. The first thing she noticed was that she was still in her Guardian form. Somehow this made Irma feel a little better. Her ribs still ached, but at least they didn't feel broken. Her back felt tight, stiff, and badly bruised; an occasional spasm told Irma the injury, though not life-threatening, was definitely more than mild.

She looked at her hands and noticed…chains? Are you kidding me? Chains! Her arms were spread out to her sides at approximately a seventy degree angle to her torso. Both of her wrists were chained to natural stalagmite formations with heavy manacles. She hung about two feet off the ground between the stalagmites, putting a ridiculous amount of pressure on her arms and shoulders. Irma couldn't see where the chains could possibly be attached, but really, what difference did it make? All she knew was that, stretched as she was, it would be a race to see what would give out first: arms, back, or ribs? Irma had no idea how long she had been hanging like this, but she could already feel the effects of the uncomfortable position on her upper body. Two things she didn't see were her friends or the Knights of Vengeance. Well, that had to count for something…at least maybe the others are still free, Irma thought. No sense waiting around for them to come and find me…time to make tracks!

Irma closed her eyes and began to summon the power of water. Then she stopped. Opening her eyes she suddenly realized she had no freaking idea what to do with the power of water to help herself out; water couldn't unlock chains, after all. Maybe I can summon up a jet strong enough to break the chains. Irma figured it was worth a shot so, once again, she closed her eyes. She began to summon her element. She waited for the magic to course through her body…and waited…and waited…and waited. Nothing happened! What in the Nine Hells is going on! Irma silently demanded, opening her eyes. She gasped as she saw Raythor, Frost and Miranda all standing in front of her.

"Welcome to our humble abode Water Guardian," Raythor placed his hand over his heart and gave Irma a mock bow. "We're ever so glad you could join us."

Irma glared at him angrily. "Your hospitality sucks Raythor."

"Oh that wounds me," Raythor mocked. Frost grunted appreciatively at Raythor's sarcasm. The former palace guard continued. "If you don't like our hospitality now, just wait…it will get better."

Irma didn't like the sound of that, but she wasn't about to let them know how scared she was. The situation was looking pretty grim, but Irma Lair was a Guardian of the Veil; she would show these knuckleheads who they were dealing with! There was just one problem…her powers didn't seem to be working at the moment. She couldn't even turn on a sprinkler much less cause an apocalyptic flood to drown her enemies! Irma suddenly felt very alone.

"What, no smart remark Guardian?" Frost laughed. "You're not so tough without your friends to hide behind are you?"

"How about you release me, big man, and we'll see who's tough!" Irma sounded much braver than she felt. She kicked out at the brute to punctuate her remark. Frost caught her leg in midair. Oh, that wasn't supposed to happen, Irma thought. Frost smiled menacingly, then twisted her leg violently. Irma cried out as she felt tendons pop, ligaments tear and her knee slide out of place. Frost dropped her leg and laughed.

"There's plenty more where that came from…I have a feeling we'll be spending a lot of time together." Frost rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

Irma closed her eyes and concentrated on pushing the pain to the back of her mind. When she opened her eyes again, they were filled with fire born of anger and resolve. "Bring it on Pussy," she growled. "Let's see what you got!"

"Why you little…" Frost advanced on Irma…

"STOP!" A commanding voice rang out, echoing around the chamber. Frost halted in his tracks. He glared at Irma before stepping back to stand beside Raythor and Miranda. An old woman in a long brown cloak walked into the room. She was holding a staff and a certain aura of authority surrounded her. "This is no way to treat our guest Frost," she cooed.

"Welcome Water Guardian," the old woman continued. "I trust your…invitation…was not too pleasant. I've been wanting to meet you for a very long time, and now that you're finally here, I feel like I've known you all my life." She reached out and cupped Irma's cheek in her wrinkled hand. Irma tried to pull away, but the old woman had surprising strength and agility. The hag grabbed Irma's face and wrenched it around to face her own. She smiled mirthlessly. "You have spunk and spirit, little one…but do you have any brains?"

The hag released Irma's face and walked over to the far wall. Raising her staff, she shouted, "Quintessence!" The wall opened up to reveal some kind of machine. It was about ten feet high and had no knobs or dials that Irma could discern…In fact it looked like a simple metal box with a pole sticking up from it.

The old woman returned to Irma. "This, little Guardian, is what prevents you from using your powers. It's a dampener of sorts, and it ensures you won't be leaving our company too soon." She turned her back to Irma and walked a few paces away. Then she turned again to face her prisoner.

"Call to them," she ordered.

"What?" Irma didn't understand.

"Your friends, call to them." The hag repeated.

Irma was still confused…how could she call to her friends if they weren't here? Or were they here? "What have you done to them you evil old hag!"

"Oh no child, they're not here…yet. That's why I need you to call them for me."

"What do you think I am a walking cell phone?"

The old woman ignored Irma's quip. "The Fire Guardian has telepathic powers. If you call her, she will hear."

And if you build it, he will come, Irma thought. How did this woman know so much about the Guardians? What did she want? Then it struck her...this is the same woman from our nightmares! "You're after the Heart. You want me to call my friends so this machine can dampen their powers and you can steal the Heart of Candracar."

The old woman smiled slightly, but said nothing.

Irma glowered at the hag. "Dream on lady; I'll never help you hurt my friends! Besides, I'm out of range anyway…something I suspect you already know, so what's the point?"

"I can enhance your telepathic powers child. Now…call to your friends."

"What part of NO aren't you getting?"

The old woman sighed. "Then we shall have to give you some incentive. Raythor, I shall leave you in charge…do not kill the Guardian, but do not be gentle either."

"As you command Mistress," Raythor bowed.

The old woman left and Raythor nodded silently to Miranda. The shape-shifter, in her human child form, smiled evilly and walked over to the corner of the room. She rolled a metal cart of some kind over to where Irma hung. The cart was narrow and approximately three or four feet high. On top of it was a silver tray covered by a thick white cloth. Miranda slowly unfolded the cloth to reveal several gleaming, wicked-looking silver instruments. Irma didn't know what most of those instruments were, but she did know she didn't like the looks of any of them. Miranda took a long, slender knife from the tray and began sharpening it in front of Irma. The pseudo-child looked up at the captive and smiled in anticipation. Irma shuddered; that pure look of evil was so unnatural on a child's face…

"Last chance Guardian," Raythor said, drawing Irma's attention away from Miranda's evil "toys." "Call your friends, or have the worst day of your life."

This cannot be happening, Irma thought fearfully. It's not enough to be their prisoner, but now the Knights are going to torture me! She glanced apprehensively at Miranda and her tray of goodies. Irma knew if she didn't cooperate all of those instruments would be used on her. She could identify the knife Miranda was sharpening, a scalpel, and what were those….pliers! Miranda suddenly stopped sharpening the knife. She took a plain piece of paper from the tray, and held it above the outstretched knife. She locked eyes with Irma and dropped the piece of paper onto the knife-blade. The paper was sheared right in half! Irma's eyes widened and Miranda's narrowed. Miranda then retrieved a chair, placed it beside Irma, and stood upon it. Now eye-level with the captive Guardian, Miranda laid the ultra-sharp knife against Irma's neck. Irma inhaled and pulled away as far as she could. Miranda giggled softly.

"Your answer Guardian?" Raythor prompted. Frost cracked his knuckles and grinned. Miranda began tossing her knife from one hand to the other. It was all Irma could do not to become a quivering, sobbing wreck. She was terrified! Either she had to lead her friends into a trap, or become evil's art project. What choice did she have? She started to tremble; though whether it was from fright or the uncomfortable position of her body, she didn't know. Somehow, she had to get a grip. She closed her eyes and sought strength reserves from anywhere. She felt warmth flowing through her body, and a certain calmness settled in her mind. Irma was still frightened, but at least she felt she could now hide that fact a little better.

With renewed courage, Irma opened her eyes and stared down at her captors. "Do your worst, because I will never help you get the Heart or hurt my friends!"

Raythor grinned and nodded again to Miranda. Miranda immediately began cutting away Irma's shirt. When she had finished, she stepped down and removed the chair. Clad now in her Guardian uniform below and only her bra above, Irma glared at the Knights. Frost stepped forward and glowered right back.

Irma shivered involuntarily as Frost pulled back his gigantic fist. Oh boy, she thought, this is gonna suck!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Guardians arrived at the Palace of Meridian, shaken, and shocked. One of their own had just been captured by the Knights of Vengeance; and right in front of them too. None of them had noticed that Irma had been singled out for vicious abduction. How could they? They had been fighting for their lives! Every one of them sported several bruises from the encounter, and Will was still coughing intermittently from being nearly buried alive. The plan had been perfectly conceived and perfectly executed; there was nothing the Guardians could have done to prevent Irma's capture…nothing. So why didn't Will feel any better? Because as leader it was her responsibility to think one step ahead of her enemies. As leader it was her responsibility to bring her team back safely. As leader…she hadn't done either of those things. She knew nobody blamed her, but that wasn't the point. She blamed herself.

She looked around at her friends as they sullenly entered Elyon's throne room. Three heads hung down in shock, each lost in their own thoughts. Taranee's eyes were mere slits; Will knew she had been trying to contact Irma telepathically since their friend had been taken. Cornelia looked angry as she stalked along. Her arguments with Irma were classic, and they were always in each other's faces; but Will knew Cornelia cared about Irma in her own way. Then there was Hay Lin…dear Hay Lin. Irma was her best friend and "partner in crime." Hay Lin followed Irma everywhere; and even though Hay Lin had an outgoing and vibrant personality of her own, Will knew the smallest Guardian looked up to her goofball friend. Now she seemed lost and disoriented. Dry sobs wracked the Air Guardian's body, though she struggled to maintain control of her emotions. Just looking at Hay Lin's stricken face made Will's eyes begin to well up. She looked away quickly and wiped her unspent tears with the back of her hand. There was no time for that now; her mistakes had gotten Irma captured…but she would be dammed if she was going to let those bastards keep her!

"Would you stop that!" Taranee's voice interrupted Will's thoughts. Everyone stopped and looked at Taranee; she must have read somebody's thoughts. "For the nine-hundredth time, Will, it wasn't your fault."

Will was just a little tired of hearing those words. Anger boiled up within her and she turned on Taranee. "Then who else should we blame, huh?! I'm supposed to see through crap like that; I'm supposed to anticipate this sort of possibility; I'm supposed to bring everybody home! Which of those did I actually accomplish Taranee?!"

"Will, you're not psychic, you couldn't have known. The Knights of Vengeance have never tried anything like this before…what possible clue did we have that they would start now?" Taranee countered.

Cornelia chimed in. "None of us noticed that Irma had been separated, Will. Besides, Irma's been doing this long enough to know she shouldn't have been trying to take them all on by herself. She should've come back to the group at her first opportunity."

"Oh so it was Irma's fault!" Will screamed. By now the argument had attracted Elyon's attention. She made her way over to her friends. Will was still raging at Cornelia when Elyon arrived. "She did nothing wrong except save my life instead of her own!"

"Easy Will," Taranee said placatingly, "Cornelia's just trying to show you that it wasn…"

"The next person who says it wasn't my fault is gonna lose teeth!" Will yelled, brandishing her fist dangerously.

Elyon immediately stepped into the middle of the group. "Whoa, hey, time out! What's going on…and where's Irma?"

At this, Hay Lin sat down on the floor, buried her face in her hands, and began to cry loudly. Horrified, Elyon dashed to her side. She put a comforting arm around Hay Lin's shoulders. The Air Guardian twisted around to bury her face in Elyon's shoulder. She cried so hard her whole body shook. Elyon patted her back and let her cry. Taranee sadly shook her head and went back to trying to contact Irma.

Cornelia and Will continued to glare at each other, and the Earth Guardian wasn't ready to let it go quite yet. "All I'm saying is that all of us had a chance to recognize what was happening…including Irma; and she didn't take any action to help herself."

"How could she? She was under constant attack from five or six guys!" Will retorted.

"We don't know that, none of us saw anything except Taranee…and all she saw was the very last blow. For all we know, Irma managed to free herself from Sandpit and then decided to go after the other Knights herself."

Will's jaw dropped…was Cornelia serious! "Tell me you're joking," Will said incredulously, "Tell me you don't really think that Irma would be that selfish and that stupid…"

"That stupid, no…that headstrong…definitely. Irma's a hothead, she always has been. This isn't the first time that unenviable quality has gotten her into trouble."

SMACK!

Cornelia's head twisted around from the force of the blow. In shock, she turned to face her attacker. "Hay Lin?" she questioned.

"How dare you Cornelia Hale!" Hay Lin shrieked. "How dare you try to put this on Irma! How dare you try to blow her off like that! Do you have any idea what they'll do to her? You think she wanted this to happen?"

"No Hay Lin, you've misunderstood…I wasn't trying…"

But Hay Lin cut off Cornelia's explanation; she screamed loudly and charged at the Earth Guardian. She grabbed Cornelia's shoulders and started shaking her as hard as she could.

"Hay Lin…STOP!" cried Cornelia…but Hay Lin wasn't listening. Cornelia felt she had no choice; her hands began to glow with green magic.

Taranee grabbed Hay Lin around the waist and pried her off Cornelia. Will, meanwhile grabbed Cornelia and pulled her back. Hay Lin fought to get away from Taranee, while Cornelia struggled in Will's unrelenting grasp.

Elyon stepped between Cornelia and Hay Lin. "STOP IT! STOP IT, BOTH OF YOU!" she commanded. At the authority in the voice of the Queen of Meridian, both young women ceased struggling. "Listen to yourselves," Elyon continued. "Look at yourselves. How is any of this helping us find Irma?"

Will looked at the floor. "She's right…we need to pull together now, more than ever."

She released Cornelia and was relieved to see her blonde friend's hands back to their normal color. Taranee let go of Hay Lin and watched the latter collapse to the floor in grief. She stared at Hay Lin intently for a moment; then Hay Lin looked up at her dark-skinned friend, smiled gratefully and nodded. Taranee extended her hand and pulled Hay Lin off the floor. Hay Lin wiped her tears with her hand and stared around at her friends with determination.

"Hay Lin, I'm…."

"Not now Cornelia," Hay Lin held up her hand. "We can get to that later; right now, Irma needs us…all of us."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Irma grunted in pain as Frost's fist connected with her stomach…again. How long has he been beating me? Irma wondered. It seems like weeks! She inhaled sharply as he pounded her previously injured ribs. I'm really glad to be in Guardian form right now. If there was a silver lining in all of this pain, it was that Irma was in her Guardian form; because with the fluttery wings and smashing multi-colored outfits came enhanced strength and endurance. As a Guardian, Irma could take a pretty good beating and still be alright. Nevertheless, Frost was a seriously heavy hitter and she didn't know how much more she could take. She suddenly regretted all the insults she had hurled at Frost over the last few months. She wondered if he would be more inclined to take it a little easy on her if she hadn't called him a pussy. Blood flew as Frost smashed her nose to pulp. Irma clenched her teeth and fought not to cry out…she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing how much he had hurt her. Blood ran down her face and into her mouth.

"What do you say now Guardian?" Frost laughed in her face.

Irma glared at Frost; then she spit blood in his eye. Controlling her voice as best she could, she replied, "You hit like a girl Frosty."

Frost wiped his face. With a roar of rage he grabbed Irma around the neck and started to squeeze. He stared into her panic-filled eyes as he squeezed harder and harder. Irma couldn't breathe; her chest started to constrict. She struggled for breath, certain this was the end. She had finally pushed it too far. Cornelia always said her mouth would be the death of her someday; Irma just didn't think it would be before she got her driver's license. Suddenly Frost released her neck, and Irma took a large breath. She sputtered and coughed violently, as she struggled to breathe normally. Frost then delivered a hammer blow to her solar plexus, knocking the wind out her. Unable to breathe again, Irma never saw the next blow coming. Frost slammed his fists into Irma's right temple. Her head began to swim and her vision began to blur. She groaned and began to feel sick. Her head drooped a bit and she began to feel very tired. But Frost woke her up quick with a vicious uppercut. Irma bit her tongue hard; she tasted blood. For a minute, Frost stopped the beating. Irma let her eyes close and dared to hope that today's "lesson" was finished.

She made the mistake of opening her eyes just in time to see Frost return…with a large metal bar. He jammed it under her chin, forcing her head up and back. The blood in Irma's mouth slid down her throat and she gagged in spite of her best efforts not to. Frost laughed and removed the bar from her chin. Then he jammed it hard into her ribs, again…and again…and again. Irma heard bones crack like dried twigs. She gasped, and suddenly breathing became a lot harder. Frost tangled his huge hand in her hair and roughly yanked her head back. Then he pounded on her sternum until Irma heard it crack as well. Somehow, she knew it was broken, along with at least a few of her ribs. Frost stepped away again and Raythor moved forward.

"Well Guardian…how about we go over your choices again. Option A: Call out to your friends to come and rescue you; or Option B: Remain silent and endure even greater punishment than this." Raythor smiled…sometimes he really loved being evil.

Irma didn't answer for a time…What should I do? If I try to contact Taranee, that ugly old bag will capture my friends and probably torture them like they're doing me. If I don't cooperate with Raythor, this is gonna continue until I do; and I don't know how much more I can take. Irma's thoughts raced through her throbbing, battered head. She didn't know if she could hold out much longer…but she did know she never wanted to put her friends through this kind of pain. She would stand it as long as she could, then try to stand it a little bit longer. She had a responsibility to the world as a Guardian of the Veil; without them, the world would fall into darkness. No way could she let these goons capture the rest of the Guardians. Steeling her waning courage, she stared into Raythor's evil eyes. "I've already told you…I will never help you destroy my friends or steal the Heart of Candracar."

"So be it…Guardian." Raythor snarled. "Frost, let's step it up a bit."

"With pleasure Raythor." Frost left the room for a moment and returned with a simple wooden stick. The top of the stick was wrapped in a filthy rag. Frost carried the stick behind Irma and she heard a strange scratching sound. Then she felt intense heat behind her. Oh damn…it's some kind of TORCH! Irma thought. Fire…water…bad combination…!

Frost laughed maniacally as he lowered the burning stick to the exposed flesh of Irma's back…

Alright that's it for Chapter 4 friends. Again, I would ask for opinions as to whether I should change the rating to 'M' or leave it as it's current 'T.' As always, I appreciate any and all reviews. Cheers!