Chapter Six

Icy had never been so sick in her life.

"Come on, cough it up." Stormy, trying and failing to be soothing, was wiping her down with a wet rag. "The sooner it's out of your system, the sooner we can get the hell out of here."

It was the first and last time the Trix ever accepted food from a poorhouse. Icy already felt undignified stooping so low, but it was the only place that gave things away for free.

Now she knew why. And she was more humiliated than ever.

A homeless woman had passed by earlier when Stormy was the one throwing up. She'd laughed at them.

"Foreigners, hm? It takes a Desperini's stomach to hold that down."

The bile in Icy's throat was calling bullshit on that one. How anyone could successfully digest such a horrid poison was beyond her. Whoever cooked it with magic was not very experienced. Not that Icy could do better at the moment. Food had never been a forte of hers.

The witch was finally bending over the fence, puking into a brackish river. The putrid scent attacked her nostrils, sending her over the edge once more. Her sister grabbed her around the waist, trying to keep her from falling in.

"Don't touch that water," Stormy warned. "Or else you really will get sick."

"No shit." Icy snapped, throwing her off.

Her mouth was still tainted with a foul taste. But, at least, she didn't feel like dying anymore.

The air was cleaner out here, half a mile out from the city. The witches no longer had to wear rags around their faces. Unfortunately, they couldn't stray too far from the city until Darcy came back. Last night, she'd been convinced she could get them more money before moving on. Icy didn't like the idea, but she'd promised to meet them again before dawn.

It was almost noon.

Where was she? Icy was starting to get fearful.

No, I'm not! She protested. I don't need magic to be strong. I never did, and I never will.

She did everything she knew to harden her heart. It didn't work.

Was this how Bloom had felt, all those years ago?

I doubt it. A small voice spoke. She barely knew her potential, then. She had no idea the magic she was holding. You, on the other hand, knew exactly what you had inside you.

They would never be comparable, for one reason only: Icy's power had never been hers. All her life, someone else had given it to her; now, she was paying the price.

"Icy!"

"What?!"

"Look," Stormy pointed. "Darcy."

Thank the Dragon.

Darcy ripped the mask from her face. It was decorative and sparkly, not meant to protect her from the toxic air. Her soiled heels were in one hand as she waded across the shallow river, bravely ignoring its contents. Her shirt had been ripped to shreds, showing Icy things she did not care to see from her relative.

"Where have you been?"

Darcy sighed once she got to the other side, dropping her things onto the ground. Along with it, thirty-four Dimeres fell to the ground. "Working. I had two jobs last night and one in the morning."

Stormy took in the clotted cuts on her neck. "Did someone recognize you?"

Darcy nodded. "We fought. Now he's dead."

He's dead. Icy hadn't killed anyone before, far as she knew. What was it like?

She looked back at Darcy. She sensed her sister was leaving something out, but considering what her 'job' entailed, Icy wasn't sure she wanted to know. "Ready to go?"

"Hold on," Darcy stripped herself of the ripped shirt. She tied together a few of the pieces and, in no time, it was a tube top. Once she was done, she looked back at Icy. "So where are we going?"

"Nocturne Alley," Icy replied.

"What for?" Stormy asked.

"If my sources are correct, we'll find someone there. They'll be helping us."

Stormy narrowed her eyes. "Why so sure?"

For the first time in days, Icy smirked. "Because they owe me big time."


Nocturne Alley wasn't very far. The Trix reached it before the sun went down. Unfortunately, it was only slightly less polluted than the last city they visited.

The whole Dimension had wept when Andros's waters went toxic. But when places like Desperin, a smaller planet with a larger population, lived in poison for decades on a planet barely habitable, no one said a word. Hypocrites.

"Is this where we're supposed to be?" Stormy eyed the houses on the street.

Icy nodded. It might've been seven years since they last saw each other, but she hadn't forgotten. Though, she had to ho- assume he hadn't left early.

"Do you know where our mysterious person lives?" Darcy questioned. "This is a big town."

"The richer part." Icy didn't need to explain further.

That area encompassed less than a block of that whole city, hardly housing a dozen people.

"Well, then." Stormy scanned the street. "Who is our mysterious helper?"

"You should know. He's an old friend." Icy replied.

"No, I'm not."

The Trix turned around. Behind them was a man in his late twenties, flocked by a ragtag gang of teenagers and young adults. They looked ready to fight.

Icy smirked, raising her hands in surrender. "Oh come on. I know it's been a while, but I didn't think you'd actually forgotten."

He narrowed his eyes at the witch. His black hair was longer than she remembered it being, almost to his shoulders. His dark eyes shone as arrogantly as ever, and the way he nodded to the others suggested a position of authority. Despite the planet's conditions, everyone in his crew looked decently fed. They didn't even bother wearing face masks. Were they using magic?

"What do you take me for? I might have known you in another life, but no one leaves the memory of Darko the Black."

"Darko?!" Darcy and Stormy gasped at the same time. Icy watched as all the pieces came together in their heads. The man himself laughed.

"Isi, Drina, and Selia. It's been a long time. Can't say I missed you."

"Same here," Darcy replied, casting a suspicious eye towards the others. "Found yourself another gang, hm? I'm sure you're still selling the same old stuff."

"It keeps them and their families alive," Darko explained, crossing his arms defensively. "Greater kindness than you've done anyone."

Stormy's mouth was thin. "How much do you know about the past few years?"

"Enough." He waved off. "I can't believe you bitches actually went through with it. That sure takes guts."

No, it really doesn't. Icy's stomach turned, and it wasn't because of breakfast. She was about to speak, but he wasn't done.

"So, what brings you three here? I don't think there's anything worth ruling over in this part of the dimension, but you can correct me if I'm wrong. If you're just feeling particularly destructive today... you can't destroy what's already wrecked. If you're hiding from the Winx..." he gave them a mocking smile. "I'll commend you on that one. It's not a bad strategy. Because honestly, no one from the inner ring is insane enough to visit this place."

"We're here to cash in on a favor," Icy replied, keeping up her bravado.

Darko snorted. "What favor? You three condemned me to ten years in this shit hole."

"Good to see you remember. While you're at it, think back to how it was either this or a lifetime in Omega." Icy had her hands on her hips. "Like or not, Black, you owe us."

"And if I think otherwise?"

Icy smirked, sending a warning glance to both her sisters. She threatened him with the first thing she thought of. "We destroy every member of your little group, one by one. Ending with you. I'll freeze them solid."

"I'll trap them in eternal nightmares."

"And I'll blow their houses down. Including yours."

Darko stared at Icy, trying to assess her from afar. I can't back down now.

He couldn't possibly know they'd lost their powers. They were bound to get away with this. That should have made Icy happier than it did.

"As if their lives aren't hard enough. They never even hurt you bitches" He shook his head. "You really are as heartless as they say," Darko sent his followers away, insisting they don't worry about him. Once they left (though Icy suspected they would merely be following them from afar), he turned.

Hands up in the air, he said. "I might be a wizard, but I can't beat all three of you."

Icy dropped her smile, looking almost mournful. "Let's take this somewhere more private, shall we?"

He nodded, motioning for them to come inside the house. It was a nice place, if a bit under-stocked. "I never thought I'd see you again. Why did you do it?"

Icy stared at him. "Do what?"

"All of it. Any of it. What possessed you to take over Magix? Go after the Codex? Team up with Valtor, of all people? Help that crazy prince-"

"We wanted power," Icy snapped, cutting him off. "We wanted attention. All those people think they can just ignore the darkness in their world, but they can't. We won't let them." We also had no choice. Power comes with a cost.

"I can't believe I used to know you people. Most people won't believe it. They thought you magically came into existence as seniors." Darko laughed, the sound humorless.

Darko the Black had met the Trix before they were the Trix. They'd grown up together for as long as their kid selves had remembered. He'd been born to a member of the coven, just like they supposedly had. No one knew who their real parents were, and after the Company of Light destroyed their care-houses and killed most the children, the four had scrounged together. That is, until he was adopted by Nero the Black, an infamous black market dealer who needed a future heir for his enterprise.

They last saw him the summer before their senior year at Cloud Tower, when he was caught dealing them Wisperian Crystals. It was only through Icy's persuasion the police never arrested him. She'd told his "dad" instead, who punished him accordingly.

"What do you want from me, anyway?"

"A place to hide," Icy spoke first. "Literally every major power in this universe wants to kill us. We need a place we can live in peace. Give us that, and we'll never hurt anyone again."

Behind her, Darcy and Stormy nodded. Darko looked furious.

"You want a new life, after everything you've done?" Darko approached Icy. She didn't fight when he pushed her against a wall, despite her sisters' objections. "My father was in Solaria, when Cassandra and Chimera took over. He watched people be tortured for no reason."

"We had nothing to do with that. It was Valtor alone."

"And you were allied with him you... you-"

He didn't even know what to call them.

"I know what happened in Andros. Some of those mermaids might never recover, you know that? Most of those mermaids never did anything to hurt you. They aren't the privileged delusional bastards we all know and hate, not even close! They were normal people, with lives and a future and a family to provide for. And thanks to you, their life is now as fucked as yours ever was. You have no right to flee. You bitches don't even deserve death. Too painless."

None of the Trix argued.

"We're running from the Ancestral Witches," Darcy cleared her throat. "We thought about going to the Winx, but they'd send us to Oblivion, the Witches' home. I-I know what we've done. I was there when it happened. But do we seriously deserve them? You know what they did to their followers over twenty years ago. Does anyone deserve that?"

For a moment, Icy thought he was going to say yes. He thought so too.

But in the end, he didn't. "Fine," Darko released Icy, who let out a breath. "I'm surprised none of you attacked me."

"I wouldn't attack you," Icy replied, voice thick. She wanted to tell him why, but it wasn't worth whatever shreds of dignity she had left. She wasn't dealing with those thoughts ever again.

"I don't know what you did to piss off your ancestors, but I can assume you're pretty fucked. There's only one place I can think of where they can't reach you."

"Where?"

"Temprous: Home of the time spirit, Chronos."

Silence.

"You're kidding me, right?" Stormy raise a brow.

Icy stared at the man, looking for any sign that he was giving a half-hearted joke.

His face was straight, completely serious.

"Think about it: a timeless planet, hard to gain access to unless you somehow pleased the spirit. Sure, Chronos may not have as much power as the Witches or the Great Dragon, but he'll let you live an eternal life in a society far removed from anything you've ever known."

"We know the legend. We just didn't think you were stupid enough to suggest it." Darcy said. "Even if it's true, no one knew what lies beyond, not even the other ancient spirits."

"Yeah, but the one thing people do know that you'd forget everything about yourself. That's perfect, right?" Darko watched them intently. "Your mind is wiped clean, leaving you with a blank slate for a new life."

"But Temprous is only a myth." Icy muttered.

"So is the Great Dragon. And, until the coven showed up, the Ancestral Witches. But hey. If you don't like the idea, then there's always death," Darko said, handing them a dagger. "I'll send the Winx your bodies and claim the prize on your head. If you choose to die now, you can die however quickly you'd like."

"I would never-" Stormy started, then stopped herself. The sisters looked at each other. Were they seriously considering this?

Icy looked at the dagger in her hand. He had a point. It might be for the best.

Then again…

My wish is very simple. Simply promise me, when the new dawn comes that you will be there to see it. Do not die in the depths of the night.

Icy looked back and forth between her sisters. They both nodded, the same decision in their heads.

"We can't do this," Icy handed the dagger back. "When my sisters and I die, we'll be sent to Oblivion no matter what. Once we're there, the Ancestors will never leave us alone. Temprous is our only hope."

"But where is it, then?" Stormy asked.

Darko shrugged. "You're on your own on that. Good luck with your lack of powers and all, right?"

Darcy gasped. Stormy's eyes widened. Icy said nothing.

The man in the room smirked. "Figures. Usually you have more pride than this It was either that or a terminal illness."

"I... guess we didn't need your help after all," Darcy replied.

"No, you did. Just not the kind you were thinking of. Unlike you bitches, I care about people's lives."

"I guess we should go." Icy choked. "Bye Darko. I... think this is the last time."

"You said that last time, too. Only Dragon knows if that's true." He nudged her playfully. "Now go get some sleep."


A/N's: PTV: Ah... I owe this one on SME. 100%. It was crap when I wrote it. I was in a funk, had no clue where I was going with any of it, and now... This. Thank you so mucb.

Also, sorry we take so long now. It's better than an unplanned hiatus, no? You can reliably get a chapter once a month or go months with no word from us. Yeah, not the best way to keep a following. Sorry people.

Anyway, thanks once again for tuning in, I'm amazed at all the support our first fic got and hope to achieve just as much here, and we will see you all on the far side. And now, SME would like to say some very brief words:

SME: So we meet again... hey guys, I hope you like the chapter today. I also hope that you'll continue enjoying SitS, even if there's the longer wait time. School is a challenge to work with, but we shall still try our best to deliver. Thank you for your time reading, reviewing, and favoriting.