Hey everyone! As the title suggests, today we are going to be meeting the main villain, and see how the Winx handle him!
Guest: Shoot – I did not mean to include that scene with Mirta worrying about her parents. In an original draft, I had Mirta come out to her parents, which resulted in them cutting her off. I removed that from the plot, because I felt bad for Mirta, but it looks like I didn't remove it everywhere (bad editing – eep!). I re-uploaded the chapter without those two paragraphs. I'm sorry to hear you were bullied in school. I was too, unfortunately, when I was very young. I agree, too, that Rainbow should've definitely made Mirta a bigger character in the series – she and Roxy both have a huge fanbase, yet they were both ignored. I also find it awkward having Mirta as a fairy, but if she was a witch, I just don't see how she'd be able to attend Alfea. As you'll see later, there will be some limitations on her powers. Oh yeah, and I hate Nickelodeon too for what they did to Winx Club. I'd advise watching the Cinélume version if you get the chance – it's pretty good.
CHAPTER 6: VALTOR
Those words had kept Tecna completely stunned that entire week. She'd barely opened her mouth during meals, classes, and in the dorms. What Flora had said completely shocked her.
What exactly is rational about love?
And Tecna could find no fault with that point. There was nothing rational about Flora's love, or Tecna's, for that matter. She was heads-over-heels obsessed with a boy from Magix, a boy who coded and programmed in a realm where everyone focused on magical energy. She adored Timmy with all her heart, and nothing would ever change that.
That Friday, Quintmensis 11, Tecna settled down to do some work. The work was piling up immensely; although they didn't have a set final exam, the teachers seemed determined to stuff as much information in their brains as possible. However, that was all far from Tecna's mind. She was too busy staring at the code sent to her from the lab.
This was the first year Vasiliev was still forcing her to program from abroad. Before, he'd let her off during the school year, with the promise that she'd work extra-hard in the summer. This year, however, there was no such promise. It appeared he was getting desperate.
I wish I could know what it was, Tecna thought. What even is this we're creating? But she had absolutely no idea. Why do we need to –
Her head suddenly began to buzz. Startled, Tecna stared as red letters shot across her vision.
BREAKING NEWS, it read. LINPHEA IMPOSES SANCTIONS ON ZENITH.
What? Tecna thought, startled. Linphea did what?
She immediately went to her tablet and searched for a Magix Modern Matrix article. Let me see what it says. Scanning, she read the words silently.
As the trade-war escalates, Linphea has placed sanctions on Zenith. As of Trimensis 20, no magi-fruit will be sold to Zenith.
Tecna stared at the screen in dismay. Zenith depends on Linphea for agricultural exports! Although magi-fruit wasn't an essential item, it was a favorite of the Zenithian nobility, who loved Linphea's exotic fruit-collection. This was a clear move to debase Zenith.
"Linphea's actions are very disappointing," Premier Alexandrova said in a statement. "This realm is unable to get over its grudges towards Zenith, and is unable to negotiate with us. It will be on Queen Isabel's head when our citizens starve."
Our citizens are anyways starving, Tecna thought. Not to mention, the situation wasn't that dire; a lack of magi-fruit wasn't going to kill anyone. Still, the premier had a very good point, as forty-three-point-four percent of Zenith's agricultural imports came from Linphea. Not a small number by any imagination. And if Linphea bans any more stuff…
She hoped Flora hadn't seen the news yet. She didn't want to talk to Flora about what was going on with their respective nations, as she was afraid it might ruin their friendship. Let's hope they resolve things. She went back to her programing when suddenly, her cell phone bleeped.
Frustrated, she opened it. Who is it that's calling? She gasped as she saw Timmy's ID appear on her screen.
"Timmy!" she squealed as soon as she opened the phone.
"Tecna!" Timmy grinned at her, his adorable face showing up on her screen. "How're ya doin'?"
"I'm doing well," she lied, smiling at him. The truth was, her mind was filled with confusion. But seeing Timmy somehow made it all better.
"Where are you?" she asked.
"I'm right at the quad," he answered.
Tecna started. She ran to her window and saw that he was right. He was on a hover-bike, and once he saw her, he began waving and grinning. "I'm coming," she cried, and then she transformed.
She burst open the windows, flying down to meet him. They hugged and he grinned at her, happy to see her again.
"It's been so long," he said, in almost a hushed voice.
Tecna could understand the feeling. It'd been two months since they'd last spoken, and three months since they'd defeated Darkar. It felt like an age between them, like forever. "I've missed you so much," she admitted.
Timmy turned on his hover-bike and mentioned for her to sit behind him. "Let's go out for a bit."
Tecna hesitated. "Timmy, I've got work to do. I have this huge project which needs to be finished tonight. I – I can't."
"You always have work," Timmy pouted. "Come on, Tec, let it go for one night. We need some catching-up time."
"I" – Tecna stared at him. How could she say no to his puppy-dog face? Timmy was right; she needed to spend time with him, or her heart would burst. "All right," she acquiesced, sitting behind him.
She laughed as he sped the bike out into Lake Roccaluce. The lake looked beautiful at this time of night. They dismounted and sat down at the lakeside, chatting.
"So, how's your break been?" he asked casually, as if he hadn't been wondering the entire time.
It was a loaded question. Tecna swallowed once, and turned to face him.
"I have a lot of work still left over from the break," she admitted. "Mr. Vasiliev, my boss, is pushing me to finish a bunch of sets by tonight."
"So you said," Timmy frowned. "But it can't be that bad, can it? You just have to do some programming, right?"
"Yes," Tecna said, staring at the ground, "every winter." She squeezed her eyes shut.
"Wait a minute, what's going on?"
Tecna opened her eyes. Timmy was frowning at her, his eyes dark.
"You said you have this work every winter," he said, "and that it's really hard. So"… He took in a breath. "Are you saying that you work every day in the winter?"
"Er… Tecna stared up at him. "Yes," she finally admitted.
"That's horrible!" cried Timmy. "How can he force you to do that?" He stood up immediately. "You need to quit that job!"
"Timmy, no!" Tecna cried. "I can't!"
"Even if you don't say anything to him, I can," Timmy declared. "Just give me his number and I'll ring him up." He sounded more confident that he felt, though, and she knew it.
"You don't understand," she cried.
"Why?" Timmy asked, his voice rising. "You're not bound to him, Tecna!"
Yes, I am, thought Tecna. In more ways than you'll ever know. Nightmarish visions passed through her head, and she nearly cried out. I can't remember that…
Timmy stared at her, and frowned. "Tecna, what's going on?"
"Timmy" – she stammered. He can't know… he can't know…
"Tell me," he answered.
"No," Tecna cried. "If I tell" – She let out a shuddering breath.
"Tell what?" Timmy prodded on.
Tecna closed her eyes. If I tell, I could be expelled from Alfea… But she wanted so badly to tell. She loved Timmy, and knew that he loved her, too. I can trust him. I have to. She looked up at Timmy.
"The only other person who knows is Digit," she said, "and I didn't tell her. Digit's a techno-pixie, so… she knows what I am. But my friends… I can't tell anyone else."
"Tecna," said Timmy gently.
"I'm not a regular fairy," she choked out. "I'm a cyborg." She watched as Timmy stared at her, completely blown away.
"You're a… cyborg?" he said at last.
"Yes," cried Tecna. "I was in an accident when I was very young, Timmy. And the surgeons – they completely transformed me. I'm made of flesh and bone on one side, but the other side is made of steel. Look." She extended her right arm and pulled off the fleshy covering she always put on top.
Timmy stared in amazement as it slid off, revealing steel.
"This is what I am," Tecna continued, her voice trembling as she held her hand up. "I have 3D-printed nerves underneath, and they all connect to a computer interface on my back. And… Timmy?" She took in a breath. "Cyborgs have a terrible status in Zenith, and I'm lucky Mr. Vasiliev even hired me. If I don't do his work, then I'll be out of a job for good."
Timmy looked shocked. "I can't believe you didn't tell anyone! Tecna – why? Why would you keep Zenith's horrible legal system to yourself?"
"I'm sorry," Tecna whispered. "It's not like I don't trust you. It's just… if the wrong person finds out, then I'll have to leave and go home, to a world where there's nothing but work, work, and more work. And there's no love, and I wouldn't be able to see you ever again"… She buried her face in her hands.
Timmy came up to her and brushed her shoulder.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I didn't mean to upset you. I – I'll keep your secret, Tec. I swear." His voice trembled as he spoke. "You're the most amazing person I've ever met."
Her sobs subsided. She looked up at Timmy, and managed a smile. "Thank you," she breathed. Then she leaned over and kissed him.
HEARTBEAT 127.3 BEATS PER MINUTE, flashed across her vision. EMOTIONAL EXCITEMENT DETECTED.
Tecna hadn't seen that flash across her feed since last Duodecemenis. What is this… I'm not supposed to be doing this…
But she didn't stop it. She couldn't, for she was with the boy she liked. She wasn't going to let anything or anyone get in her way. And so she hugged him, holding him tightly in her embrace.
"Thanks for understanding," she choked out.
"No, thank you," Timmy answered. "You're so awesome." He smiled at her. "Now, let's go back."
They boarded the hoverbike and headed back to Alfea. Tecna's mind was swirling as they flew, and they landed in the quad.
Then she saw Layla running towards Tecna, a wild look in her eyes. "Where've you been?" she demanded. "There's trouble, Tecna! We need your help!"
"What?" Timmy demanded, climbing off the bike. "What's going on?"
"Andros is under attack."
"I won't allow it." Faragonda shook her head.
"But Ms. Faragonda!" Layla protested. "My realm's under attack!"
It was the next morning. The Winx were in Faragonda's office, protesting. Faragonda lifted a hand to silence them, and shook her head.
"Too many things are going on now," she said. "Until we know what force is attacking the realms, we cannot send you girls. Let the Andros authorities and UR Defense Forces take care of it first."
"We've faced villains before!" shouted Stella, outraged. "We're not helpless little girls!"
"I know you aren't," Faragonda said. "And I trust in each and every one of you. But not now. I have a gut feeling, and I am going to honor it."
Tecna couldn't believe what she was hearing. Gut feelings aren't rational! She stared at Faragonda.
"If we had a sixty percent chance of getting injured at Shadowhaunt," she said, "we probably only have about ten or fifteen percent chance of injury here. Ms. Faragonda, don't you think you're being a little" –
"I am Headmistress of Alfea, Tecna," said Faragonda. "And I don't think I need to remind you the mistakes that come with faulty calculations."
Tecna's cheeks burned as she remembered how she'd led the other girls to attack the false Professor Avalon last year, to defend Bloom. I was right about him, though! She clenched her fists.
"You can't go," said Faragonda, and her tone was final.
Disheartened, the girls trooped out of the office. Musa and Layla were furious as they walked down the hall, Layla most of all. "I'm not letting my people suffer!" she fumed.
"You don't have to," a voice called. Mirta was standing in the doorway of their apartment, nodding at them.
"Mirta?" asked Tecna uneasily. She still remembered the scene with her and Flora; unease took over her as she frowned. "What are you doing here?"
"I just spoke with Riven and Brandon," she said. "They're sneaking a ship over here. You're going to Andros."
"We're approaching the atmosphere," said Riven, looking over at them. "Almost there."
Tecna frowned. So many things could go wrong… They'd snuck out with Riven and Brandon, ignoring Faragonda's orders to stay back at Alfea. They'd slept all night on the ship, and now it was Saturday morning in Magix; their disappearance would've been discovered by now. And they would be punished severely upon returning back home.
Tecna knew they were taking a risk by going. But she also knew it didn't matter. Layla's realm was much more important than whatever punishment they'd face back at Alfea.
As they went down towards the ground, Tecna saw what the problem was. The beautiful, fertile islands of Andros were now under attack by severe thunder-clouds. And by the looks of it, it was more than just a thunderstorm.
"I'll do a digi-scan," she offered, pulling out her portable device. She tapped a few buttons, connecting it to the Internet in Andros.
HIGH WEATHER ALERT, her brain feed flashed across her vision. MAJOR STORM WATCH ON OLYMPUS ISLANDS.
Tell me something I don't know, Tecna thought irritably, sending a wave of techno-magic from her internal computer into her device. Then she pointed it towards the clouds, sending it towards the glass and into the clouds.
HIGH-ENERGY STATIC CLOUDS, the reading came back to her. LOWEST CLOUDS ONLY ONE SIXTY-EIGHT HUNDRED METERS ABOVE SEA LEVEL. LIKELY MAGICALLY INDUCED.
Just as I suspected, Tecna thought. She turned towards Riven and frowned. "These clouds have been magically induced," she said.
"What?" Layla leapt up in alarm.
"That means somebody's close by!" yelled Musa.
"I say we go out now, and figure out what's going on," Stella said.
"Hold it!" Riven shouted. "You girls are not going anywhere!"
"Those clouds are too dangerous," Brandon added. "It's too close for you to go."
"We'll just shield ourselves, then," Layla said, skewering him and Riven with dagger eyes. "What are you implying? That we girls aren't strong enough to go on our own?"
"Woah, woah!" said Brandon, holding his hands out defensively. "I didn't say that, did I?"
"You kinda did, snookums," said Stella, affectionately tapping him on the shoulder.
Layla's eyes seemed to burn with fire as she glared at Riven. "You boys always think you're stronger than us."
Well, we do have forty three-point-eight percent less muscle-mass on average, thought Tecna. What's up with Layla? Riven sighed and threw his hands down.
"Fine," he said, "go. Just don't blame us when you get zapped and fried."
The ship lower-compartment door opened. The girls transformed and flew towards the storm. Musa closed her eyes.
"I'll set up a sonic shield," she said.
"Add that to my World Wide Web," Tecna added. The two girls converged their powers, creating a bubble around them.
"Let's hit it, then!" Bloom yelled. The six girls flew together, into the clouds.
"The Voice of Nature is calling to me!" cried Flora, throwing her hands over her ears. "The lightning is beating up the islands! It's horrible!"
"This cloud is insane!" yelled Stella. "It's too strong for us!"
All six girls screamed as they were blasted down apart. Tecna cried out as she burst through the cloud, the ground approaching at an alarming rate.
"No!" she shouted, creating a digi paraglider to slow her fall. She looked at the other girls and saw they were falling, unable to fly. "Digital net!" she yelled. A net appeared, attached on either side to two tall trees, and the girls hit it, gasping in relief.
Then she heard laughter. Loud and high, it came unmistakably from above them. She gasped as she recognized who it was. Oh no…
"The Trix!" yelled Bloom. "I'd recognize that laugh anywhere!"
"How'd they bust outta Omega?" Musa demanded, clenching her fists.
Tecna grabbed her device, recalibrating it to sense them. They must be hiding in the clouds… She gasped in alarm as a warning popped up on her screen.
"Right above us!" she yelled. "They're about to attack!"
The Winx gasped in alarm and flew to the side. Shielded by a bubble, Icy, Darcy, and Stormy flew down, cackling.
"You three!" Bloom gasped, firing at them. "It was you who caused the storm!"
"Let's get 'em," Layla said grimly. Bloom nodded, and began addressing the girls.
"Stella and Musa, you go after Darcy," she said. "Tecna and Flora, deal with Stormy. Layla and I are going to take Icy down!" She and Layla linked hands, flying towards the ice-witch.
"Thanks for creating the net to break our fall," Flora said as she joined hands with Tecna.
"Don't mention it," said Tecna. "Now, you want to go and take Stormy down?"
Flora smiled, and Tecna felt a rush of gratitude towards her. What she had witnessed between Flora and Mirta had not changed their relationship. They would still be close friends. Or as close as we can ever be, she thought, feeling a sense of guilt overcome her. Stormy flew towards them, her teeth bared.
"Don't think this is going to be easy," she said. "I'm not giving up."
"Well, neither are we!" Tecna snapped back. "Winx Charmix!" She and Flora transformed into their Charmixes, converging their powers together.
"Ivy vine!"
"Digital snake!"
A vine crept from the ground, fortified with techno-powers. Stormy smirked, then gasped with shock and rage as the vine encircled her, tying her up. She fell down, gasping.
Tecna looked over and saw that Musa and Stella had defeated Darcy, and she had fallen to the ground. Icy, on the other wing, was still just as strong as ever.
"No!" she yelled, and a blast of cold energy shot across the islands. The vines trapping Stormy turned to ice, and then broke open. Stormy smirked as she flew up, facing Tecna and Flora again.
"Don't think we're giving up that easily," Tecna snapped, her hands filling with digital energy. "Not until you dismantle the storm you created!"
"She didn't create the storm," a voice said behind her. Tecna and Flora gasped as a wave of energy hit them, and they toppled to the ground. The hit was like a punch in the guts to Tecna, and she winced, turning around on her back and staring up.
"I did," the voice continued. Tecna stared in horror as a man emerged from the clouds, smiling.
He had long colorless hair and stormy gray eyes. He was wearing a handsome coat, and was grinning deviously. The Trix flew up to join him, laughing as well.
"I am Valtor," he announced as he flew down. "Destroyer of realms, creator of chaos. Pleased to make your acquaintance." He bowed.
"You"… Bloom stared at him, at a loss for words. "I saw you on Solaria!"
She did? thought Tecna, irritation rising up inside of her. Why does no one tell me anything? The wizard was smirking as well.
"Oh yes," he said. "I saw you too." He flew towards Layla, who glared at him contemptuously. "Greetings, princess of Andros."
"I'm not afraid of you," Layla spat back. "I fought shadow-monsters and the Shadow Phoenix himself last spring! Clear out and remove these clouds!"
"You're not in a position to bargain, my princess," Valtor drawled, and the Trix laughed maniacally. "Your attitude is rather unbecoming, I must say."
"Shut up!" Layla slammed him with an attack, her strongest Charmix spell.
But Valtor simply caught it in his hand, holding it at bay. Tecna gasped out loud at the sheer power in his hands, and he turned towards Layla, his eyes blazing.
"Princess of Andros! Meet your fate with dignity! Once I take over this dimension, you shall forever be a reminder to all of what happens if they dare to confront I, the wizard Valtor!" He turned her spell against her, combined with his own magical energy, and shot it straight into her eyes.
Layla screamed as she was blasted to the ground. Musa hollered in alarm and flew down to her friend.
"Layla!" she yelled.
The Trix and Valtor were laughing. "Later, losers," Icy crooned. With a snap of Valtor's fingers, the four of them vanished.
"What happened?" Bloom demanded as they flew down to Layla.
Layla stared blankly at them, and Tecna was shocked at what she saw. What had once been two sets of vibrant, sea-blue eyes were now clouded and misty. Almost as if she's –
"Blind," Layla said, finishing her thought. "I can't see anything." She let out a gasp. "Now however am I going to save my realm?"
Yeah, they underestimated Valtor pretty badly. Now what do you think will happen? What did you all think about the Tecna x Timmy fluff at the beginning?
AOTD: 4Kids, without a doubt, is my favorite dub. In fact, I just released a one-shot article here, explaining why I love 4Kids so much. It helped me through a very emotional, turbulent time (read it to find out!). I love all of the witty dialogue and great voice-acting throughout the show. However, I do enjoy Cinélume as well – in fact, I'm re-watching the series now.
QOTD:Who are your favorite Winx Club villains?
