Disclaimer: I do not claim ownership of any of the characters or other elements (pun intended) portrayed in this story.


"Unmaking the World"

By: Starwin


Episode 2: Lost Will


Part 4: Betrayer


Serenity sat on her bed, her whole body shaking. The confrontation with the Oracle had taken it's toll on her, even if she hadn't felt it at the time. Using the Heart and the Soul together had given her incredible power, but it had also diminished her life force, leaving her drained of energy and in a fair amount of pain.

But the ultimate goal was worth it. And the Oracle had to pay for what he had done.

Serenity let her eyes close as she wrapped her arms around her body. She wished they were Will's arms instead. She felt so alone. She was the only one left who could accomplish what her father had started.

Her thoughts filled with foreign memories, Will's memories. Serenity had stolen them, had been stealing them, than replaced the redheaded girl's original memories with those of her own making; with a new life, a new identity.

But still there was a road block. Something that stopped Serenity from fully completing her task. The fire guardian. Somehow, Serenity had not been able to erase her from Will's thoughts. This lingering memory always returned, no matter how many times Serenity replaced it.

And the strenuous task of creating a new life for Will, as well as the battle in Kandrakar had weakened the silver haired teen greatly. If the guardians were to launch another assault against Rakadin, they would easily overpower her.

However, the astral drop was doing well in the task of distracting the guardians. They hadn't even tried to contact Kandrakar. A good thing since they would have discovered that the copy had no Heart.

Serenity couldn't help but smile, she had given it a soul though, or at least part of one.

Without the Heart the guardians could not contact the Oracle, could not travel to the sacred Halls of Kandrakar, and could not transform into their more powerful selves.

A knock at her chamber doors pulled Serenity from her thoughts. The silver haired empress stood from her bed, regaining her composure before opening the door. Owin waited on the other side.

"You summoned me back?" Owin asked. He had been in biology class when Serenity called for him and he'd had to sneak out.

"Yes, I need you to help me with something," Serenity said as she gestured for the boy to follow after her.

The two walked silently through the halls of Rakadin.

I cannot wait any longer, thought Serenity. I have to remove the final obstacle in Will's mind once and for all.

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Will sat with her friends in Golden, talking while they waited for their food to arrive. The restaurant was one of their favorite hangouts. And after a strenuous day of class there was no place any of them would rather be right now.

"I don't think class was that bad, Taranee," Will replied to her friend's remarks.

"Well, maybe not for me…" Taranee said looking across the table at their friend who was finishing his third soda, "but Dante, you must have done horribly on that geography test!"

Dante looked up and smiled awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck, embarrassed.

"Well… the teacher said I could do some extra credit to help bring my grade up," said Dante.

"Oh, oh!" Hayden cried with such excitement that he was practically jumping out of his seat. "Pick me, pick me!" Dante shot him a quizzical glance. "To help you with the extra credit!" Hayden exclaimed.

"Sure, Hay Hey, why not," replied Dante casually with a sideways smile at his best friend.

"Uhn," grunted Will. The redheaded girl had felt a sharp stab of pain in her temple. She thought, just for a moment, that Dante had been someone else… Ir… m… a… something… but the thought was lost.

Will looked at her friends through burning eyes. Taranee flickered as if she were a bad projection, before being replaced by someone else, someone new, an Asian boy with black hair. Yet this person, Owin was his name, was someone she had always known, hadn't she? But the other name, Tara… something… seemed so familiar, yet so distant.

Shaking her head and blinking the strange effect dissipated. Will looked at Owin, unsure why she had thought him to be someone else.

"Hey, Will, are you sure you're alright?" Serenity asked with concern, putting her arm around Will and hugging her tightly. "Maybe we should have taken you home." Will looked at Serenity feeling a little confused. For some reason Will was sure that she hadn't been there a moment ago, but that wasn't right… Serenity had been hanging out with her all day long…

"No," Will protested. "I'm fine, really." She shot an appreciative smile at Serenity, glad that her girlfriend was here with her.

Will felt a second sharp stab of pain and for a very brief moment she was some place else, a world filled with nothing but white. She was standing all alone with flat emptiness as far as her eyes could see

But the pain faded after only a moment and the world of white went with it. Will had returned to Golden, unsure if what she had seen had been dream or reality.

Her friends were all looking at her with surprise and concern. Her hands were shaking uncontrollably and she had spilled her drink all over the table.

Yet another stab of fire burned in the side of her head as if someone had pressed a red hot poker against her temple. Will let out a cry of agony as her body arched, trying to escape the pain. But the sound of her scream was instantly silenced before it left her lips. And she was no longer sitting in the booth at Golden.

The world of white had returned. Will was breathing hard. Where was she? Why was this happening to her? She felt so confused, what was this place?

She'd half expected for the world of white to vanish as quickly as it had before, but this time it lingered. Will began to question if the place she had been only moments ago had been real.

This world of white felt strange, like it was real but only a dream of what real actually felt like. Everything was different, upside down, inside out.

Will looked around her seeing only endless, flat, white. The ground glowed as if it were under bright lights. There was nothing here, except for Will, or at least that was what she thought at first. Because, though the world was empty, voices that echoed in the sky. Will listened trying to make out the words.

Why won't you be gone, interfering guardian? The voice was a jumble of hundreds of people all speaking at once, the tone was oddly soothing. And Will thought she recognized some of the voices too but she didn't know to whom they belonged, couldn't remember their faces or names.

Not until you let my friend go! Another voice shouted back. This one was harsher, less pleasant to listen to than the first. But Will recognized speaker this time, Taranee. Will could recall her face, see her image. "RUN WILL, RUN!"

The hallucination of the world of white ended and Will found herself being half carried out of the restaurant, Serenity's arm around her, holding her up.

"That's enough! I'm taking Will home!" Serenity said angrily.

"I won't let you take her anywhere!" Taranee shouted defiantly blocking their path. Other customers were listening in on the argument.

Her mind was fuzzy and unfocused, where had Owin gone? And who was Owin for that matter? What was wrong with her, why were her friends fighting? "Will, you have to resist! None of this is real! You have to escape!" Taranee's harsh voice said as her image begun to flicker again. The burning returned to Will's head and she passed out.

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Serenity opened her eyes momentarily blinded by the light of the silver pool. She had been forced out of Will's mind by that memory! No it was stronger than simply a memory! Serenity decided. There was something more there! Something I'm missing…

"What just happened?" Owin asked groggily. He was sitting in the silver water not far from Serenity. Like both Will and Serenity he too was naked, though the murky silver of the water made it impossible to see more than the top of his chest.

He had hesitated when Serenity instructed him to undress before getting in. "The water will burn away your clothing," Serenity had explained. "If you like you could walk around Rakadin naked, I am sure the others would be quite amused." He hadn't argued after that.

"We were forced out of Will's thoughts," said Serenity as she watched the unconscious girl across the pool. "We can only affect her waking mind."

"How can we even do that!" Owin asked not understanding anything that had just transpired. Serenity hadn't told him much, other than she thought his presence would make the task easier.

"I have the power to steal people's memories and make them new ones," Serenity explained, fixing her gaze on Owin. "Just like I'm going to do with you, right now." There was panic in Owin's eyes for a brief moment as Serenity looked at him. He couldn't move, his whole body had become frozen in place. He was trapped in her gaze as she invaded his mind.

Then she released him, "Now leave," Serenity said looking away. Owin blinked hard, his thoughts fuzzy as he climbed out of the pool. He was unsure what he was doing here or even how he had come to be in this place.

Owin dressed himself quickly and moved towards the door. He almost glanced back as he was leaving but a small voice in his head told him not to.

Once alone Serenity refocused her thoughts on Will. Owin had been a waste of time. True, his presence had been able to help momentarily replace the fire guardian in Will's mind, but somehow, unlike the others, he had easily been forgotten.

It was then Serenity noticed something odd about the water around Will's body. It had changed color. It was no longer silver but gold. At the edges, where silver met gold, four thin lines, like beams of light, reached out across the pool.

A connection! Of course how could I not have noticed? Will was being protected by her friends, even if they weren't here!

Serenity held up the Soul of Rakadan and gazed deeply into it. The face of Will's astral drop appeared in the gem. She was laughing and joking with Will's friends. Serenity moved the gem closer to her mouth and whispered into it.

"Do not be afraid," Serenity said softly. The image of Will's astral drop looked panicked for a moment, reflexively grabbing the gem underneath her shirt. She quickly calmed herself before the other girls noticed. "It is your Empress, I have another task for you."

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For the fourth time that week the astral drop found herself once more in a sleeping bag on the floor at Taranee's house. Will's mom had not been pleased to let her daughter stay out again, but the gem around the astral drop's neck had made Susan Vandom forget all about her objections.

And since Taranee's parents were still out of town there was only her older brother Peter to stop Will from staying over, which he hadn't.

The astral drop sunk lower into her sleeping bag, pulling the fabric tighter around her body and contemplating Serenity's request. Why did she feel so hesitant? She tightened her grip on gem Serenity had given to her. But what other choice did she have?

The sounds of Taranee sleeping reached the ears of the astral drop as she listened to the other girl's deep breathing. This was it. The time to strike was now.

Crawling out of her sleeping bag, the person who was not Will Vandom, yet wore her blue pajamas and shared her face, moved to the side of Taranee's bed. Pulling out the gem that was tethered around her neck the astral drop lifted it high into the air and prepared to strike the defenseless guardian.

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Serenity sat impatiently by the edge of the silver pool, her eyes watching Will's motionless form on the far side. The silver haired girl had not redressed herself as she would have to move quickly once the astral drop made its move. What was taking so long?

Suddenly, Will shivered, causing ripples to spread across the smooth surface of the water. The golden sphere of water that surrounded Will begun to quiver and a spike of silver water forced its way through the golden shield, impaling the redhead's body. Will gasped as if the silver water had actually pierced her skin. She was once more connected to the rest of the silver pool.

At last! Serenity thought as she slid back into the silver water and closed her eyes. Holding out the Soul of Rakadin, Serenity invaded Will's mind once more.

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Taranee's felt a sharp pain in her chest. She gasped for air, her lungs burning. Rolling to her side, the chocolate skinned girl coughed violently. Her mind raced as she tried to figure out what had just happened! One moment she had been asleep the next she was waking up with Will hovering over her holding something knife-like and silver!

Taranee put her hand against her chest where she remembered Will having stabbed her, but there was no dagger, or even a cut there. Had she just imaging it? It seemed so real, hurt so much…

Maybe its related to what happened to me in the Void? Taranee thought. Ever since I got back to Earth my powers have been weak and my telepathy has been acting all funny. The only person I can feel is Will, but it's a strange feeling. Like Will's thoughts are very, very far away.

Even though Taranee had been at Will's side all week long the thoughts she had been picking up from Will didn't seem to be coming from her at all. Like she was hearing a distant echo. And like an echo the fire guardian couldn't understand most of what she had seen either, mostly faces and people she didn't know.

"Taranee!" called Will excitedly as she came running towards her friend. Taranee sat up slowly. She realized that she was not in her bed, but on the ground, in some place very strange, that was not her room, or indeed anywhere in her house.

The pain Taranee had felt was fading, but the image of Will stabbing her was still fresh in her mind. Taranee shrunk away as Will got close. Will stopped. "Taranee? What's wrong."

"I… " Taranee started to say, but she didn't know how to put into words what she was thinking. "Where are we?" Taranee asked putting forth the only other words she could think of. Will shrugged.

The world around them was flat with nothing but the two girls in it. It was colored absolute white, like someone had turned the lights to maximum. Both Taranee and Will had a strange glow about their bodies as well and had they not both been dressed in pajamas Taranee might have thought she was dead.

Taranee looked up seeing that high above them, infinitely far away, was a ceiling of blackness, like the night sky without stars.

What is this place? thought Taranee. And why do I have this odd sensation of being asleep but still awake at the same time. Like I know I'm asleep.

"This has to be a dream…" Taranee said aloud as she looked around at the surreal world. "What are you doing in my dream, Will?" Taranee asked.

"I was going to ask you the same thing," replied Will as she looked around at the nothingness

"I don't like it here," said Taranee, hugging her arms to her chest. "Will, I want to wake up." Will moved quickly over to her friend and wrapped her arms around her.

"Don't worry Taranee, I'll be right here with you," Will said holding her friend reassuringly. "Together we can find a way out of this place." Will let go of her friend and offered out her arm. Taranee took hold and Will led the way. Moving with caution the two girls wandered out across the empty white nothing.

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"This place doesn't seem dangerous," said Will, after they had been walking for some time. "I mean, if something brought us her to attack us, it's not doing a very good- Ekk!." Will screeched.

"What's wrong!" Taranee asked in a panic, gripping Will's arm more tightly. Will couldn't speak, she could only point. There, a short distance away, was another Will. She was walking slowly toward them. Her body bound in silver chains and a strange vacant look in her eyes.

Taranee looked back at the Will by her side. The only difference between the two was their clothing. The Will at her side was wearing blue pajamas, while the chained Will was wearing nothing but the silver chains.

"So the problem girl emerges at last," echoed a cold voice. Taranee let go of Will and her hands ready to defend herself, she hoped that her powers would work this time. She noticed that her hands were shaking slightly.

A young, slender girl stepped out from behind the captive Will. She emerged from an impossibly thin space behind the redhead that should not have fully concealed her. The girl's hair was silver and her eyes were a reflectionless black. In the bright glow of the white surroundings her pale skin almost made her vanish against the colorless background, as if she were a line drawing that hadn't been colored in.

"Who are you!" Taranee demanded.

"I could be a friend," said the silver haired girl, her icy tone vanishing to become pleasant and sweet. "Or…" someone grabbed Taranee's arm twisting it behind her back. It was Will! The one who was wearing the blue pajamas.

"Will what are you doing! Let me go! Ouch!" Taranee cried as Will torqued her arm.

"But more likely I am an enemy. I am Serenity, Empress of Rakadin," Serenity finished, her tone turning icy again. "You and your friends have put a wrench in my plan guardian." Serenity advanced on Taranee, Will twisted Taranee's arm even more, forcing the fire guardian to her knees.

Serenity stopped in front of Taranee and put out a hand to stroke the side of the girls face. The touch was cold and Taranee felt like her fire was being drained from her body. Taranee turned her head away, pulling free of the cold fingers.

"Don't fight me!" Serenity said kneeling down and looking Taranee in the eyes. Taranee closed her eyes and looked away. She had seen herself reflected in Serenity's gaze for a brief moment and Taranee had felt Serenity trying to force her way into her mind.

A cold hand grabbed Taranee's jaw and jerked her head forward. Taranee suddenly felt Serenity's lips pressed against her own. She tried to pull away but Will held her head so that she couldn't. Taranee wanted to scream, the ice was everywhere! She was being frozen from the inside out!

Serenity pulled away and frozen breath escaped from Taranee's lips. She was shaking, shivering. Her thoughts were dull too, like her brain had also been frozen. What had just happened to her, what had the silver haired girl just done to her? Taranee was having a hard time recalling.

"A little something for later," said Serenity standing and moving away. "It is you who gives your friends the power of telepathy. That is why you are so hard to erase. Why your memory kept coming back."

"Errassseee?" asked Taranee through chattering teeth.

"From Will's mind," Serenity said. She was looking around as though trying to spot something invisible. Taranee looked back at the Will that was holding her. "Not her," said Serenity, her back still to Taranee, "she's just the copy. Ah, here it is!" announced Serenity.

Reaching out she seemed to take hold of thin air, but as she pulled Taranee could see that it was a golden string pinched between her fingers. The string shimmered and danced in the white glow of the dream light. Taranee followed the strings path. One end of the string was tied around the wrist of the Will in silver chains. The other end was tied to one of the four fingers on Taranee's hand. And now that she was looking closely at it Taranee could see other strings tied to her other fingers.

Her eyes followed each string. Each one was tied to a different guardian and each guardian was, in turn, tied to Will. Taranee prayed that Serenity could not see the other strings or the other guardians. She could see her friends, she could feel them at the other ends, all she had to do was…

Serenity stepped hard on Taranee's hand and the fire guardian let out a yelp of pain.

"Don't even think about calling the others," Serenity said nastily. "I've only come to cut one thread from you tonight, but if you push me I will sever them all! And your heart will forget all your friends, instead of just one." Serenity turned her foot crushing Taranee's hand even further and causing her more agony. Taranee looked away from the golden strings attached to her fingers, tears coming to her eyes. "Good girl."

Serenity laced Will's golden string around her wrist a few times, then taking the section between Taranee and herself she cut the string with her teeth. Taranee's hand went numb. There was a dull pain up her whole arm that was working towards her heart. Serenity examined the golden string around her wrist, like it was a new piece of jewelry. She smiled at it.

"I would have preferred silver, gold is not my color," Serenity said.

"We won't let you get away with this, we'll stop you!" Taranee said through gritted teeth and tears. Serenity turned her attention back to Taranee.

"No, you won't," Serenity said. Her eyes flicked up to the Will holding Taranee. Will's astral drop pulled Taranee roughly to her feet. Serenity stepped uncomfortably closer to Taranee. "In fact, you, are going to help me cut away the rest of the guardians."

Serenity turned her back on Taranee and strode a few paces away. Serenity held out her blue gem and it began to glow. Taranee watched unable to take her eyes off the magical item that looked exactly like the Heart of Kandrakar!

"I'm so sorry," whispered the astral drop in Taranee's ear. Taranee didn't know what to say.

The smile faded from Serenity's face and a burst of darkness exploded from her gem, racing out at Taranee and striking her full on, while the astral drop kept her from escaping.

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Taranee's eyes snapped open. She was breathing hard, her hand burned as if it were on fire. She stumbled blindly out of bed, almost tripping over Will, who lay sound asleep in a sleeping bag on the floor. Taranee looked at Will in distress for a moment, she was afraid of the redhead. It was an irrational fear that she couldn't explain but it was there in her chest.

Her hand throbbed with pain again as if to remind her that she should be paying attention to it instead. Taranee let out a whimper clenching her hand into a fist.

Quickly she reached the bathroom and turned on the faucet. She extended her hand to put it under the water but she pull back as she felt the cold spray. She was afraid of the cold, afraid of touching it.

She turned off the tap and took hold of the edges of the sink, staring down into the slowly draining water. She'd had a horrible, horrible nightmare… but she couldn't remember what it had been about… something… something about Will… and string and… cold…

It was then that Taranee noticed the red mark slowly becoming more prominent around her middle finger as though something had once been tied tightly there but had recently been cut away.


End of Episode 2


Authors Notes:

Alright! Two episodes down!

A HUGE thanks to my BETA readers Kuramas Girl Angel AND Waterclaws

Thanks to everyone who left a review on the last chapter! Dai Makai, KnightofFaerun, Sokai, XV-Dragon, Taniaea, and Guardian's Light

To everyone else who is reading but not reviewing, I still give you a big thanks for taking time to read my story I hope you have liked it so far (though I don't know because you haven't told me) and continue to enjoy it.

Don't forget to leave a review and/or visit my forms where you can discuss pretty much what ever you like, within reason, about this and other stories I have written!

Also, as a side note, the last chapter I posted pushed my total published word count on this site to over 300,000 words, WOOT! Just thought I would share.

Next Episode starts 04/13!

Starwin out.