CHAPTER 20

The Guardians sent the fairies right to the spot where Zackwell was. He was in the very center of the sky, in full view of everything. He was in his dragon form and seemed to be waiting for something.

"There he is!" Bloom called to her friends when she spotted him. "Right over there!"

The other fairies spotted him too and instantly flew toward him, readying spells as they did so.

"Zackwell!" Bloom shouted as the fairies hovered around the big black Bahamut. "Your quest for power ends here!"

"Oh yes, it does," he said eyeing Flora. "For you have brought the Final Power to me!"

The fairies stared at him, confused. "What does he mean by that?" Layla asked, looking at her friends.

None of them could answer. His reply had confused them as well.

"What do you mean?" Musa demanded.

"It's actually very simple," he told her. "Out of all seven of you which was the only one who could hurt me?"

Everyone knew who he ment right away. They all looked over at Flora. She'd been the only one with power enough to harm him even a little bit. "Flora?" they gasped.

She stared back at the others, her eyes full of fear, at what he might be implying.

"Correct."

"What do you want with Flora?" Bloom demanded, turning back to Zackwell.

"It's more like what do I want from Flora," he corrected.

That answer was just as confusing. "From her?" Layla questioned. "What can Flora give to you?"

Suddenly Flora let out a frightened scream. Everyone stared back at her in horror as darkness suddenly surounded her.

"FLORA!" Musa screamed looking ready to try to break the spell.

Zackwell was laughing. "Now that I have what I want I bid you farewell for now!" then he and the captured Nature fairy vanished completely.

"FLORA!" everyone screamed staring at the spot where their friend used to be.

"Why did he take Flora?" Stella asked, looking at the others. "Why would he want to take Flora?"

Nobody could answer her.

Suddenly a voice from below shouted. "Girls! Down here!"

The six fairies looked toward the ground. "Hey!" Apris exclaimed. "Isn't that the headmistress from your school?"

"Miss F.?" Tecna exclaimed. "What's she doing here?"
"Let's go down and find out," Bloom replied.

When the girls landed they saw that not only was Miss. F. there but Mirta as well.

"Hey, Mirta," Bloom greeted. "What are you doing here?"

"We came to help," the friendly witch replied holding up an old book. She looked around. "By the way, where is Flora?"

Apris replied. "Zackwell has captured her."

At that moment Flora was being shoved up against midnight black walls in the Darkness Palace, by the enemy of everything. Zackwell. He had taken Flora to the Realm of Darkness and was trying to get her to give up the item he thought she had. He knew he couldn't get it out of her body unless she agreed to it. But the thing was; she didn't, which made it hard.

"No!" she shouted, struggling against his grip. "I won't! I won't!"

"You have to!" he growled gripping her arms painfully. "If I am to ever rule the universe you must!"

"How would me joining you help with that?" she demanded, through clenched teeth. "You have all the Spheres, why take me too?"

"Because you're the Final Sphere!" he replied.

She stared at him, startled by that news. "What?"

"The Sphere I took from the sanctuary of Nature was a fake!" he told her. "You or within you is the Real Sphere of Nature!"

"Why would it be me or in me?" she asked, unbelieving.

"I don't know," was his answer. "But it's because you are the only one who can hurt me and the only way that can happen is if the Sphere had some sort of connection with you," he brushed her hair out of her face just then. "Now do you understand, my beauty?"

She did but she still wasn't about to change her mind. "I still won't help you!"

"Then you leave me no choice!" he raised a finger and something black formed on it. "So sad for you though. I didn't really want to use force. Now I have no other choice."

The black thing floated away from him and into Flora. The next instant her mind was filled with darkness and she screamed.

"Why would Zackwell want Flora?" Ms. Faragonda wanted to know. "What importance is she to him?"

"We don't know," Tecna replied. "But he said something about power."

"Power?" Mirta exclaimed. "There is no way Flora has the power he's after! Why didn't he target you, Bloom?"

The red head shook her head. "He said once that he doesn't care a thing about the Dragonfire. In fact; I think he has no interest in it at all."

"But Flora?"

Bloom could only shrug. "I have no idea."

While the others tried to figure it out Layla was thinking. She puzzled over the question a moment then said. "Flora is the Sphere of Nature."

Everyone stared at her. "What!"

"It's the only thing that makes sense."

"But Zackwell has the Sphere of Nature," Stella reminded her. "Why- how- could Flora be the Sphere?"

"I know," a voice said suddenly.

Everyone looked toward the sky. They saw a green wyvern glide down to them. When it landed it took on the form of a woman in green. An etheral woman of Nature.

"Lady Irisa!" Apris exclaimed, recognizing the deiety. "What do you mean?"

Irisa looked at them all sadly and said. "It goes like this. When we beat Zackwell the first time I decided to hide my Sphere where no one could ever find it. After awhile I decided on a person with the same magical power. Flora's many greats grandmother. After that the Sphere has always transmigrated into the first born daughter of her family. Her family always had daughters because of that. Currenly Flora has the Sphere in her body and if she can tap into that power her magic can increase." the woman looked away, suddenly sad. "I always thought it would be safe there but I guess I was wrong..."

"So you're saying Flora's the Sphere of Nature?" Stella asked.

Irisa nodded. "In a way, yes."

Suddenly a loud clap of thunder split the sky. Startled, the eight looked upward. Zackwell had returned and this time he wasn't alone.

"Who's that?" Musa asked staring at someone beside the former lord of Darkness.

Bllo, who had the best vision out of them all, squinted to see better. She saw someone in a dark sparkling pink outfit. She also noticed the person was tanned and had brown hair with blond highlights. She gasped when she realize who it was.

"That's Flora!"

Everyone stared at her. "FLORA!"

Suddenly Zackwell raised his arms into the air and shouted. "Come to me, circles of the Elements!"

Instantly seven balls of different colors appeared around him and their friend.

"The Spheres!" Apris exclaimed.

The Spheres slowly began to revolve around the two figures. Zackwell muttered a few incantations and the Sphere's went dsark. When this happened electricity began to zap in and out of all the Sgheres.

"Look!" Musa exclaimed, pointing into the air.

The fairies looked toward the horizen. Tne sun had suddenly turned bright red and the clouds had begun to roll in as they filled with storms of evey kind.

Layla noticed something else. "The plants are dying!"

Bloom looked at the ground then back into the sky. "How are they doing that?"

Suddenly the wind picked up and dust and rocks started blowing around. The sun in the sky began to fade and the clouds grew darker.

"He's using the Spheres," Irisa said, her voice filling with horror. She looked at the girls. "You must stop him!"

"What about Flora?" Stella asked.

"Maybe you can figure out a way to bring her back," the green woman replied. "But you don't have much time! Go!"

That got the fairies going. Flapping their wings they rose into the air and flew toward the former Lord of Darkness.

A/N

I had such a hard time coming up with the whole Flora's family tree and the Spheres story. I hope it made sense.