Chapter 28: Lance-a-Lot
As Seth, Kendra, Warren and Raxtus all walked away from the naiad pond, where the currently-demolished fairy shrine stood, they couldn't help but concern themselves with the issue at hand. They were running out of time, and while they had ideas, they had a tendency to sound good only in theory. Imagining the outcome would seemingly always lead to a loss.
Before long, Bright and Clover both reappeared beside Kendra. The destroyed fairy shrine was still visible from where they were standing, and was truly a sight for sore eyes for the two fairy angels.
"I can't believe it's gone. Again," said Clover sadly.
"Bracken had worked so hard on it too," added Bright.
"At least Oblivion can't use it," noted Warren.
"What good is that going to do?" asked Seth. "She can just construct another one any time she wants."
Soon the group had reached the yard. As with the rest of what they had seen of the preserve, it looked completely deserted.
"Where is everyone?" asked Seth. "Not just the humans, but the creatures?"
"Don't you remember?" retorted Kendra. "Our family's taken refuge elsewhere, and they've probably instructed the creatures to go into hiding or something."
"I at least want to know where our family is," said Seth.
Warren whipped out his cell phone and thumbed through the menu. "No messages or anything. I'll try calling them."
The others watched as Warren dialed a number and held the phone to his ear, only to hang up several seconds later.
"Stan's not answering," he said. "I try Dale."
As Warren proceeded to call his brother, a booming noise could be hear from somewhere in the distance.
"What was that?" asked Seth.
"It sounded like... thunder," said Kendra.
"That was not thunder," said Raxtus. "It sounded like someone roaring."
"You don't think..." said Clover.
"No!" shrieked Bright. "It's Tritanoss! I mean, Ashley! I mean... whatever!"
"Tritanoss?" asked Raxtus. "Quick! We've gotta get out of here!"
"What good will that do?" asked Warren, who had given up on trying to call the others. "I mean, they're sure to spot us flying away."
The booming roar echoed again, only this time, it was coming from a significantly closer point than it had previously.
"They're coming," muttered Clover. "Oh lord. The Sorensons had the right idea. We should've just stayed with Mariana and fled to Duskreef Lagoon. No way we can stop Ashley while she's Tritanoss."
"It's futile," said Seth. "We can't hide from Oblivion. Not once she obtains the Omega Star."
"I know," said Clover. "But maybe our fellow fairies back home can stand up to her and Ashley when they venture there."
"Maybe if defeating Oblivion and Ashley is out of the question," said Seth, "could we somehow follow them into the Fairy Kingdom when they pass through? At least then we could try to meet up with the Fairy Queen or something."
"It might not work," said Bright. "And if those two are already there, we'd be too late to stop them. They're not going to waste time when they force the keepers to surrender their instruments to them."
Moments later, a dark, heavy presence had begun to loom over the entire preserve. Sure enough, Ashley, still in her Tritanoss form, was now soaring towards the center of the preserve from the west end. It was obvious that the distractor spell made no difference. Ashley was huge. Kendra could only assume that she was longer than several city blocks. Seth assumed that she could go head to head with King Ghidorah. And win.
"What do we do?" squealed Raxtus. "We're doomed!"
As if by instinct, the group all darted into a rather dense grove of trees. However, it was still possible for them to gaze up into the sky and watch as Oblivion and Ashley made their entrance. By the time they were close enough, everyone could see that Oblivion was standing atop Ashley's humongous head, as if she were in complete control.
Ashley turned her head towards the naiad pond. No doubt she and Oblivion were discovering that the shrine was in ruins. From what the group could sense, the two villains were no doubt outraged that the shrine was no longer intact.
"Is anybody there?" boomed Oblivion's voice through what had to have been a megaphone. "Where are you hiding? You know its pointless. I can just build another shrine myself and enter the Fairy Kingdom anyway. You're only delaying the inevitable."
Kendra glanced over at the rest of her friends and could see them all dreading in fear. If they got caught, they were doomed.
"I suppose we can just wait for when Oblivion gives up and see if we can catch her constructing her own fairy shrine?" asked Seth. "I mean, if not at that point, then when?"
"Maybe we should lure our friends out of hiding," said Oblivion. "Take out some land as a warning, Ashley."
Ashley opened her massive mouth, revealing teeth that were the size of houses. She then let out a devastating roar and unleash a huge bolt of lightning at the ground. Ashley aimed the electricity forward by several acres. The bolt destroyed all the trees in its path, leaving behind nothing but a trail of charred, burning, indented ground.
"How're we supposed to deal with that?" asked Seth. "She'll kill us!"
"We don't have the man-power to stop her," said Warren. "Or fairy-power. Or dragon-power."
Kendra looked up at Ashley, praying to herself that they wouldn't get caught so easily. The demon's eel-like body loomed over the preserve, expelling its ominous presence. "Warren's right. We don't have the power to stand up against Oblivion. Not by a longshot."
"What about fairy power?" asked Seth. "It's how you stopped Navarog, isn't it?"
"But you were a part of Navarog, then," stated Clover. "Ashley's not sharing that body with anyone."
"But she's not the actual Tritanoss," said Raxtus. "She's just a human. Sort of. So fairy influence might do the trick."
"You're right!" exclaimed Clover. "Let's just round up all the fairies and..."
"And what?" asked Kendra.
Clover's face turned white. "They're all back... in the Fairy Kingdom."
"Wait a minute," said Seth. "Aren't you fairy angels supposed to be like fifty time as powerful as standard fairies? You should be strong enough, right?"
"Seth," said Bright. "Clover and I may have a considerable amount of magic between the two of us, but triggering Kendra' fairyprime power would take, well, more than two fairies and a fairy dragon."
"What do the extra fairies do?" asked Warren. "If it's not their power that's needed, then what is?"
"I'm not sure," answered Bright. " Fairy magic is partially fueled by heart and love. That's why Oblivion is unable to use her magic to harm anyone, since she is a fairy."
"And the three of us might not be enough," said Raxtus.
"Then I'll help if it's possible," said Warren. "I may not be a fairy, but if I can lend my heart..."
"Me too," said Seth.
"I don't know if this'll work," said Bright. "It's never even been attempted before."
"Then let's attempt it," said Seth.
"We'll all hold hands around Kendra and try it," said Bright, as she, Clover, Seth, Warren and Raxtus all stood in a circle around Kendra and held each others hands.
Everyone in the circle closed their eyes and squeezed their hands. Kendra watched as Bright, who was standing in front of her, transformed into a glowing ball of rainbow-colored light. Next to her was a ball of green light, that had been Clover. Next to Clover was another green ball, Warren. Kendra turned around and saw a blue ball, which was Seth. Finally, between Seth and Bright was a platinum ball, Raxtus.
All at once, the five balls flew into Kendra filling her body with a tremendous flow of energy. However, immediately something didn't feel quite right. The last time Kendra had become fairyprime, she grew wings and her hair changed in color similar to Bright's. She examined a lock of her hair and saw that it was still light brown, same as it always was.
In spite of this new feeling, Kendra could still feel the magic channeling inside of her, and was able to float up into the air.
This was it. It was time to try and defeat Tritanoss, even if she wasn't quite as powerful as before. She rose up above the trees, and soon caught the attention of both Oblivion and Ashley.
"Kendra," said Oblivion through her megaphone. "There you are. Come to surrender? Don't try any stupid tricks. As Tritanoss, Ashley is completely invulnerable."
Ashley then proceeded to open her mouth, as if she was going to fire lightning at Kendra. "NO!" boomed Oblivion, prompting Ashley to close her mouth. "I sense greater power coming from Kendra than before. It's as if Kendra's been given additional power from her fairy friends. Power that I can use to get a hold of the instruments even faster!"
Oblivion aimed her hands at Kendra, then used a peculiar force to pull Kendra's body in closer to hers. Kendra retaliated in shooting a force of energy, in the form of a faint rainbow, back at Oblivion. However, it didn't even shatter the force field that was surrounding her body.
Kendra tried to pull herself away from Oblivion, but the dark fairy's force was simply too powerful. She was getting closer and closer, to the point where Kendra was only several yards away from Oblivion herself.
Suddenly, a loud screech boomed, startling everyone. Oblivion lost her grip on Kendra, prompting the girl to try and flee for her life. She didn't know what the screech was, but she was extremely grateful.
"Leave her alone!" exclaimed Lance from off to the side. Kendra turned her head and saw Lance, riding atop of Jet, floating in the air.
"Lance!" exclaimed Kendra, who didn't know what to think. "Jet!"
"Lance?" gasped Oblivion. "Wait a minute. Who cares?"
"I care!" yelled Lance. "These Knights of the Dawn are some of the greatest people I've ever had the privilege of knowing! I can't stand to see them lose to a monster like you, Oblivion. I can't believe you even are a fairy."
"Ashley, this little brat has outlived his purpose and is irritating me. Destroy him."
"No!" screamed Lance. Jet squawked in response.
"You'll have to get past me, first!" said Kendra, as she flew in front of Lance and Jet, then held out her arms.
"Forget the brat," said Oblivion. "Kendra's right where I want her."
Oblivion proceeded to magically pull Kendra inwards again. This time, however, Jet grabbed hold of her arm with her beak, and attempted to help pull Kendra away from Oblivion.
With one hand still focused on pulling in Kendra, Oblivion aimed her free hand at Jet. "This'll go a lot faster if I turn that phoenix into a real turkey."
Oblivion fired a blast of magic towards Jet, only for it to fizzle out completely upon reaching Kendra.
"What's happening?" asked Lance.
"My fairyprime powers must've shielded Jet from Oblivion's magic!" exclaimed Kendra.
"Fairyprime?" asked Lance. "What's that?"
"Long story short, the rest of my team lent me their power," said Kendra hesitantly.
"How exactly?" asked Lance, as Jet continued to pull Kendra away from Oblivion.
"I dunno," said Kendra. "But so what? It wasn't enough. Unless...
"Unless what?"
"Maybe you could lend me your power?"
Lance's jaw dropped. "I don't have any power! I'm no fairy!"
"Warren and Seth aren't either, but that didn't stop them."
"Then what do we do?" asked Lance.
"Bright, Clover and Raxtus used their magic to turn themselves, along with Seth and Warren into some sort of energy, which I absorbed. And if I have their power... Lance! Grab my other arm! Just do it!"
Lance reached over Jet's head and grabbed hold of Kendra's free left arm. "Okay," said Kendra. "I can do this!"
Kendra concentrated, and soon both Lance and Jet had transformed into balls of magical energy. Lance's was orange, while Jet's was golden. She then absorbed both forces of energy, and felt even more magic surging through her.
Suddenly, it happened. Wings spurted out of Kendra's back, just like the first time she had gone fairyprime. She then felt her hair glow, and examined a lock. Sure enough, it had changed rainbow-colored streaks, similar to the ones Bright had.
"What are you doing?" exclaimed Oblivion. "You look... ridiculous!"
"That's what Navarog thought," said Kendra, as she flew over to Oblivion's side. "Just before I defeated him."
Oblivion unleashed a wave of dark energy upon Kendra, much like she had the first time they had met. However, this magic failed to penetrate her body whatsoever.
"It's not working!" cried Oblivion.
"Maybe this will!" exclaimed Kendra, as she shot a rainbow at the dark fairy. Upon contact, it shattered Oblivion's force field, knocking her towards the back of Ashley's head.
"You stupid..." snarled Oblivion, as she got up and flew over to Kendra. "I'm going to..."
"Going to... what?" asked Kendra, her heart racing with confidence. "Do you have any idea how powerful I am?"
"How powerful?" asked Oblivion.
Without speaking, Kendra aimed a blast of magic down at at tree. It began to grow longer and longer, stretching and twisting with seemingly no limit.
"A green thumb?" asked Oblivion?"
Ashley retaliated by blasting the trunk of the tree with electricity, knocking off the upper portion of it. However, the tree continued to grow, as if Ashley's attack didn't even phase it. It then wrapped itself around Ashley's neck, nearly crushing Oblivion in the process.
"Is that all?" snapped Oblivion. "Ashley can break this tree no sweat."
Kendra unleashed another wave of magic upon the tree, transforming it into an equally large chain, which proceeded to pull Ashley down to ground, slamming her body against numerous trees and bushes. The shapeshifter struggled to break free, but the strength of the chain proved to be too great for her.
"Don't transform," said Oblivion in an assuring voice, as she flew down towards Ashley's head. "If you do, you won't be able to harness Tritanoss' power!"
Kendra followed Oblivion down to where Ashley was, and glared into the dark fairy's eyes. They were completely bloodshot and baggy, but it was obvious to her that Oblivion simply didn't care.
"Break the chain," said Oblivion. "Break free and crush Kendra."
Ashley struggled to move her body, but the force of the chain, thanks to Kendra's fairyprime magic, was far too great for even Ashley to demolish.
"You can't keep Ashley here forever," said Oblivion. "Tritanoss is immortal. He had to be sealed up for eternity because it was impossible to truly defeat him. As long as Ashley poses as Tritanoss, you'll never defeat her."
Kendra pondered for a second, then realized something that made her smile. "Since Ashley is only posing as Tritanoss, as would be the case with any animal, she's still... in a way... human. Sort of."
"What do you mean?" asked Oblivion.
"It means I can do... this!"
Kendra raised her arms into the air and clenched her fingers. Suddenly a swirling ball of rainbow energy formed between her hands, growing in size until it was a large as a beach ball. Kendra then directed the ball of energy down towards Ashley. The power of the ball consumed Ashley like wildfire, its colorful magic engulfing her enormous body as if a display of dominoes had been set off.
Once Ashley's entire body had been consumed by Kendra's magic, it began to shrink rapidly. Kendra and Oblivion both watched as the mighty demon shrank down in size at an alarming rate. Once Ashley was no larger than a blue whale, Kendra and Oblivion witnessed as Ashley continued to shrink down even further, until she had ultimately transformed into a pig.
"Ashley?" gasped Oblivion, flying down to the ground where the pig was standing. "What's going on? Turn back into Tritanoss right now!"
"I... I can't!" oinked Ashley.
"That's right," said Kendra. "I don't know how powerful Tritanoss truly is, but I definitely outclass Ashley. And that's what matters."
"If she can't undo the magic, I will!" said Oblivion, preparing an attempt to revert Ashley from being a pig.
"You think I'm just gonna stand here and let you even try?" asked Kendra. "Never!"
Kendra blasted a rainbow, bursting with power, directly at Oblivion. The dark fairy screamed in horror as her entire body turned entirely to stone. Now completely motionless, Kendra ceased her rainbow attack. Before her stood Oblivion, her body now nothing more than a terrified and petrified grey sculpture.
"What did you do?" squealed Ashley.
Kendra laughed. "Oblivion wanted my power, right? Well, she certainly got it, wouldn't you say?"
Ashley oinked, then scurried off away from Kendra into the woods.
"Oh no you don't!" said Kendra shooting a small blast of energy at Ashley. Rather than affecting Ashley directly, upon contact with the pig, it caused a small, barred cage to materialize around her body, essentially trapping her.
"You can't leave me as a pig!" snorted Ashley. "Why, I'll..."
Kendra wanted to think of a snappy comeback, but she couldn't. She was still too ecstatic over the recent turn of events, that she was too speechless to even say a word. Instead, she just bent down, looked through the bars of the cage at Ashley, and smiled.
