Oooooohhhhhhh boy. It looks like Tritannus is here. And his power has obviously grown. What will happen to Bloom and Daphne now?
Chapter 11: 30 A.O.T. (Age of Tritannus)
Tritannus rose out of the water, a monstrous grin on his face. Bloom almost fainted from the fumes of dark magic emitting from Tritannus.
I'm losing confidence, Bloom thought.
Don't give up! Daphne's voice rang through Bloom's mind.
Daphne? Bloom tested.
Bloom, I've tried talking to the humans here on the beach, Daphne said telepathically. They won't talk. Sister, the hypnosis spell is even stronger than I thought. It seems that the spell makes them respond to only one or two certain people, and the humans are all linked to respond in a certain way depending on the instruction."
It's like they are robots, programmed by Icy and Tritannus, Bloom realized. She glanced over towards Tritannus. He hadn't given the humans any instructions yet- it was like he was savoring the moment for some reason.
Exactly, Daphne confirmed. And they all act immediately. Bloom, if we're going to blend in, we have to let enough of the hypnosis spell into our brains to make us react, but not enough to completely succumb to it.
Should I think about what I was thinking about before you told me to think of a happier memory? Bloom asked.
Aim a little less happy, Daphne suggested. You can't feel confident and you have to be able to immediately jump on command, but not be under complete control.
Bloom thought about it, and settled for when Mike and Vanessa had first met Daphne. It had made Bloom feel like her family was finally complete, but Mike had sort of ruined it with the ghost comment. Therefore, it was the perfect memory for the current circumstances.
And it worked, for just as Bloom started reminiscing that moment, Tritannus yelled out "KNEEL!" Bloom, Daphne and the hypnotized humans immediately got down onto their knees.
Tritannus grinned. "Good, good." He paused, surveying the group. His eyes skimmed by everyone, including Bloom and Daphne, so the plan must have been working.
"Now, slaves," Tritannus addressed the people of Gardenia. "Where is my yearly offering?"
"It's coming, Emperor," they said simultaneously. Just as those words had left their mouths, a group of fifty people came over, rolling a dozen barrels of toxic waste each. Bloom guessed that this was that the factory was built to produce. But now that Tritannus had the power of the Emperor's Throne coursing through him, Bloom had thought that Tritannus didn't need the toxins anymore. The whole point of activating the Emperor's Throne was so that Icy and Tritannus would never have to search for power again.
So why was Tritannus still stocking up on pollution?
The group of fifty presenting the toxins rolled the barrels into the ocean. But instead of absorbing the pollution on the spot, Tritannus raised his trident. As if on cue, six hundred mutants rose out of the water, one for each barrel of toxins. Each of the mutants grabbed one barrel each, and dove back under.
"You have served me well, slaves," Tritannus addressed Gardenia. "You will all stay here until midnight, when the New Year arrives."
"30 A.O.T., 30 years of the Age of Tritannus!" the citizens of Gardenia cheered.
"Exactly," Tritannus grinned. "30 years of my rule throughout the universe." He turned around and dived underwater. "Let's go, you beasts!" Bloom overheard Tritannus address the mutants.
And then he was gone. Despite this, the citizens of Gardenia continued to stare out beyond the horizon. And Bloom found that she couldn't stop staring.
Daphne, she sent the message. I can't move.
Bloom, you have to stop thinking about your semi-happy memory and go back to the happier one, Daphne instructed. Only then will you be free of Tritannus' last instruction.
Bloom concentrated, and soon was able to move of her own free will. Bloom then found that she could sense that Daphne was standing a little to her left, and farther back in the crowd.
Bloom and Daphne ran towards each other and fell into each other's embrace. "Oh, Daphne," Bloom whispered. "It felt terrible to be under Tritannus' control, even for a little bit."
"Yes, Bloom, it was," Daphne agreed. "And we weren't even completely under his power. The humans here aren't even able to think freely. They just think of, well, nothing."
Bloom frowned. "Daphne, how did you find out what the hypnotized humans were thinking? You didn't cast another spell, did you?"
"I had to, Bloom," Daphne insisted. "They couldn't talk to me. I had to find out why, and the only way was through a spell."
"Daphne, I thought we agreed not to cast any other spells until we gathered enough information," Bloom scolded.
Now it was Daphne's turn to frown. "Bloom, I understand that you are the unofficial leader of the Winx Club, but I am not a Winx. You are not the boss of me. In fact, I have seniority over you."
Bloom took a deep breath. "Well, if you agree to work equally with me, I promise that after all of this is over, you can lead the Winx Club."
Daphne cracked a smile. "I don't want to lead the Winx Club, Bloom. That's your thing. I just wanted to point out that it's unusual for a little sister to reprimand her older sister."
Bloom grinned sheepishly. "Was this our first argument?" she asked.
"No Bloom," Daphne shook her head. "It was more of a brief squabble. It's all good, sister. Now, let's head over to the Infinite Ocean. I have a feeling that's where Tritannus hides all of his secrets."
Something about the idea of going to the Infinite Ocean in this future made Bloom's heart speed up. Oddly enough, it wasn't a feeling of fear. It was… Bloom couldn't identify it just yet. She figured that she would figure it out once they arrived.
Bloom nodded to Daphne. "Let's go."
They transformed into Sirenix fairies, flew over the people of Gardenia, and dove into the water.
The two sisters didn't notice the pair of glowing red eyes watching them from beyond the horizon.