I own nothing, not the characters, the space where this story exists, or even the eyes that you are using to read it. This is for entertainment purposes only, no money involved.


"Dad..." Caleb said, hardly able to believe it. The image in his head of the strong proud warrior from his memories crumbled away as he looked down on the aged and tired eyes of the man in front of him that stared up in a mixture of awe and disbelief. His frame was almost that of a skeleton from lack of food, his brown hair and beard had grown out to cover most his face and the dry air had split his lips and dried the life from the poor man's eyes.

But none of that seemed to mater the moment he opened his mouth and Caleb heard his father's voice again. "Caleb... I can hardly believe it." Julian said, his voice still had the deep hum that had made him a leader of men, it was the voice of Caleb's father.

"Dad." Caleb said rushing forward and embracing his father after all the years he had missed him.

"Caleb. Oh son how even dreamed of seeing you again." Julian said, closing his eyes as he pressed his head against his son's shoulder. Fearing that if he looked upon his son's face for to long it would disappear, like the last dreams of a dying man, moving towards the light. But then another worry moved into the father's heart. "Caleb, you shouldn't have come. You need to get out of here before they capture you as well. This world needs you more than it needs me, son."

"No, dad, I came to rescue you! And I've brought the Guardians!" Caleb said pulling out of his hug.

"The Guardians?" Julian said in surprise. He looked over his son's shoulder to see a young girl around his age with long blond hair. She was not one of the Guardians from Julian's memories, but the dress and wings were unmistakable. "Then the Guardians really did come." He mumbled in awe.

Will walked up next to Cornelia. "Fifty three live prisoners in all, the rest are dead from starvation. And those who are live don't seem that far off." Will said quietly to Cornelia. Their petty differences forgotten in the light of this horror.

"Will... I don't know how we are going to get these people out of here. Most of them can hardly walk." Cornelia said as she watched Caleb trying to help his father stand. It was a saddening sight, reminded the two girls of the pictures of the concentration camps from WWII Germany.

"Don't worry, we'll find a way to get them out." Will said, trying to find confidence.

"I don't think you will!" Will and Cornelia turned to see Frost and Tracker standing on the top of the stair leading down into the main cells area with their monstrous animals and over five dozen guards armed with crossbows.

The newly released prisoners coward back as best they could. Cornelia started to raise her hands but stopped when Frost shouted. "Don't even think about it earth girl, your element isn't very fast, and I don't you can stop all the arrows." Frost boasted and his crossbowman all took aim and various prisoners, or the Guardian's themselves. "We were going to let the roaches eat them alive, but I don't think Prince Phobos would mind it they faced a different death. If anything, you should thank us, this would be a much easier death."

Cornelia lowered her hands to her sides and bit her lip. "Cornelia. On three, I'm going to throw up a shield over the passageway, when I do, you cause the ceiling to cave in over them." Will whispered to Cornelia. The Earth Guardian nodded to show that she understood. "One... two... three!" Will brought up her hands and created a bright pink wall between them an the archers. The arrows were fired but they all bounced harmlessly off Will's shield.

"Earth." Cornelia commanded and ceiling above the guards cracked and caved in on their heads. Kicking up a smoke screen of dust of dust. Will lowers her shield. Supporting one that covered the entire hallway was a lot harder than just one to surround a few people.

"Everyone move further back! Give the Guardian's room to work!" Julian ordered and the other prisoners obeyed his commands.

"Caleb, contact the others and tell them..." That was all Cornelia had the chance to say before a glowing green spiked ball on the end of a large chain came from the dust and she was hit by the chain her in the stomach, knocking her to the wall hard enough to crack rubs.

As the dust settled Cornelia could see that Frost and Tracker were both still standing along with a few other guards. Tracker had his green ball and chain in hand, preparing for another throw. "It looks like its time to clip this fairy's wings. Permanently." Frost said with a grin.

The Tracker throw the ball and chain again the ball heading straight for Cornelia. "Cornelia!" Caleb shouted in panic, but before the ball could smash into the Earth Guardian's face, Will grabbed the chain and brought the ball to a halt.

"I don't think so." Will said with a small smile. She could see the Styx based energy inside of the ball and chain that helped propel it through the air and gild it. She so she could see were it was going to go. "Quintessence." She said. Will's own bright bluish white electricity rushed through the chain and back to the Tracker who gave an ear piercing scream as he was violently shocked before disappearing to a cloud of bats, leaving only his clothes behind.

There were some startled shouts before Frost gave the order to charge. The remaining guards rushed forwards along with Frost on top his rhino and the Tracker's tracking dog. But Will stood her ground and gathered up a massive amount of Aether.

"Get lost!" She shouted and let the intimidating aura push over the group in front of her. They all stopped in their tracks as they stared into her glowing pink eyes. Fear gripped at each one of them and the guards turned on their heels and started to run. Frost's rhino reared up on its hind legs, causing its master to fall of to the ground before turning band bolting itself alongside the Tracker's hound yapping like a puppy. "How does Danny scare them so bad that they faint? I can only ever get everything to run away with their tail between their legs." Will said, faking disappointment.

"You... you..." Frost said as he tried to pull himself up. His knees were shaking as he strained himself against the fear that threatened to grip him. "I won't fall for your sorcery!"

Frost willed himself to his feet and ran at Will with his mace raised over his head. But as he brought the steel down on the guardian's head, the mace just went right through her to hit the ground with a solid clan that sent vibrations through the shocked captain's arm. The smug image of Will disappeared right in front of him, dissolving into pink light.

"You can't push me around anymore." Will said as she grabbed onto Frost's right arm, applying pressure until he let go of his weapon from the pain before throwing him into one of the empty cells with enough force to crack the wall he had smashed into. "I'm the heavy hitter now."

"Will... how did you... owww." Cornelia gasped from her broken ribs as she slumped against the ground.

"Hold still." Will said quickly as she moved up next to the Guardian of Earth. "This might feel kind of funny." She said before placing her hands near the bruises on the other girl's stomach. Small blue sparks moved along her hands and they started to glow pink. Cornelia was surprised again as the pain went away and the bruised skin returned to its normal color. "Still think I shouldn't have asked Danny for training?"

"...I'm still mad." Cornelia said as she looked away with a pout.

But they were distracted back to reality by Frost's low laughter. "You... you think you've won... but you haven't..." Frost spat through gasps of pain.

"Roaches!" One of the prisoners screamed. Will and Cornelia looked to the stairs to the lower area to see dozens of the large bugs skerying out of the darkness.

"We released them before we came down after you. With an army above, and the roaches below... those prisoners won't ever be get out of here alive." Frost chuckled, savoring his last small victory as he watched three of the roaches manage to grab and prisoner and start to tare the man limb from limb.

"Cornelia, collapse the stairway before more come!" Will shouted. The Guardian of Earth was back on her feet and doing just that.

Cornelia picked up large rocks and began to try to smash the bugs with them, but they were too fast, Earth was not the fastest of elements. Will wasn't having much more luck than Cornelia. She was shooting the large bolts of pink light that had replaced her old beam attacks at some of the closer roaches and blasted them backwards. But the creatures had hard shells and won't stop getting up.

"These things are harder to kill than roaches!" Cornelia said angrily as more of her attempts to smash the things hit nothing more than empty air.

"Back off!" Will said, trying to use her Aether to drive off the bugs, but it had no affect at all, and Will had to jump into the air to avoid being eat from trying it. "Right... bugs... forgot." She grumbled to herself, sure that Danny was laughing at her somewhere.

"I am glad, that I was here to watch you die." Frost said, not caring that he would die as well. Will stopped glaring at him to see Caleb fighting off two of the creatures using the sword he brought along. He seemed to be having much more luck than they Guardians were as he plunged his blade up to the hit through one of the bugs heads.

"Well sorry to disappoint you Frost." Will said walking up to the downed Captain and grabbing the short sword from his belt and turning to the roaches. "We aren't going to die."

The blade of the short sword began to glow a bright blue and sparks of electricity crackled in the air around it as Will focused her powers through the sword.

It felt as if the blade was guiding itself through the air as Will cut through the roaches, one after another like a knife through warm butter.

The fighting was over in just a few seconds leaving Will covered in the roaches guts. "Oh gross." Will said as she pushed off the white goo. "I really need a shower now." She looked around and felt bad for joking. A dozen of the previously alive prisoners had been torn to pieces and eaten by the giant bugs before everything had been resolved.

"Will, we still need a way out of here. We can't fight though either all of the roaches or the army of guards that waits for us outside. At least while protecting these people. We need an exit strategy." Caleb said in order to drag Will out of her thoughts.

"R...right." Will said looking around at the surround people. They were all to weak and shaken to move. Even if there hadn't been surround at all sides, getting the people out would have been a chore. None of the elements powers could help them with that one. And to guard all of them on the way out would be to much even for all five Guardians.

Will ran through everything she had learned about her powers in her mind but was drawing up a blank. They might be able to save five or so people, but they would be leaving the rest to die.

Will's heart sank at the thought of leaving anyone to die. It was not something you asked a thirteen year old girl to do. Decide who lives and who dies. 'There has to be a way out of here. There has to be a way.' She kept repeating in her mind again and again.

The Heart of Kandrakar felt hot against her chest. 'The Heart...' Will thought and then remembered seeing Danny using the Ring of Rage to open a portal between Earth and Tartarus. If he could do it, then just maybe she could to.

Will pulled out the Heart of Kandrakar and looked down at the glowing pink jewel. "Caleb, we're trying something new." She said pulling her arm back and giving a prayer before dragging the Heart across the air in front of her. A ripple appeared in the air before twisting around itself into one of the blue and white portals that connected Meridian and Earth.

"Will, how did you do that?" Cornelia asked surprised.

"Don't know." Will admitted. "Caleb, tell the other girls whats going on and to meet us on Earth. Everyone through the portal!" Will shouted waving everyone to move through. The remaining prisoners moved quickly through as freedom was finally presented to them.

Before leaving Will turned to Frost. "I told you we wouldn't die." She said with a grin before moving through the portal taking the sword she had picked off the captain with her. Leaving him to his misery.


What should Will's new sword be called? I would figure out an appropriate name, but I'm willing to take suggestions, just in case someone else's is better than mine. And please don't say it should be called April Fools, because I don't feel like naming after you guys/girls/others.