Back in Magix, Tecna, Timmy, and Codatorta were called into Ms. Faragonda's office. From everything Tecna had mentioned over their video conference the previous night, Mrs. Faragonda concluded that Tecna had managed to tap into a new power. The whole idea of a new transformation both excited and scared the headmistress.
"Good Morning, everyone," the headmistress greeted the group. They returned the greeting before she continued, "Tecna dear, I have called you here to congratulate you on your new transformation. You have wings again." Tecna smiled proudly at the headmistress, but Ms. Faragonda had more to say, "However, the magic you've unlocked has never been done before. It needs to be studied, especially with someone like you who has… alternative powers."
"Alternative powers?" Tecna asked.
Faragonda turned to her father. Codatorta had a look of unease on his face as he began to clarify her words, "Yes, Saladin was a warlock, which means you're part-witch."
Tecna's jaw hit the floor with this new information. She stood up abruptly, her voice shaking with anger, "And you didn't tell me? Oh no, does this mean I'm evil?"
"No, no dear, it doesn't mean your evil. Now sit down so we can explain," Faragonda said, seeing the panic on the young fairy's face.
Tecna sat back down and felt Timmy's hand wrap around hers. She looked down at his hand and squeezed, hoping it somehow would give her the strength she needed. At the same time, Ms. Faragonda continued to explain, "Witches can be good or evil, just like fairies can be. It's what you do with your power that determines what you are. Codatorta probably didn't tell you because not everyone in his family is born with these powers. He wasn't, so he probably doubted that you would be."
Codatorta nodded in agreement, "Also, using both fairy and witch magic can be catastrophic if used improperly. Regardless of this fact, the Trix are becoming more and more dangerous. You are going to need to harness all your powers to defeat them. So, I want you to start training with Saladin on how to safely use those powers."
Tecna agreed, so he turned his attention to Timmy, "Timmy, you and Tecna seem to be the closest in the group. I know Tecna is not going to allow me to ask you to watch over her."
Of course, Tecna heard this and proved his point by shaking her head. She was tired of being babysat.
Codatorta looked almost amused by her reaction. He continued, "This semester is almost over, and I am hoping to put Tecna on the fast track to learning how to properly use her powers. That means, next semester, she won't necessarily be in the same classes as you and the other Specialists.
During this time, I was hoping to hire you to train her outside of class."
Timmy looked over to Tecna to get her approval. All she did was shrug, not seeming to be bothered by the idea. So, he replied, "I'd be happy to."
…
Class resumed for all specialists later that evening. Timmy was partnered with Bishop, who seemed to be doing everything he could to fight dirty. Timmy wasn't much of a swordsman but put everything into practice since he would soon be training Tecna. Bishop managed to catch Timmy off-guard by kicking his feet from under him. With Timmy being a victim of gravity, Bishop took that moment to stab him in what would have been the chest. Timmy rolled out of the way just in time, but his cape was caught and ripped in the process.
The sound of ripping fabric caught the entire class's attention, causing everyone to drop their weapons. Tecna was about to attack when she saw everyone freeze. She put her blade down and asked, "What's going on?"
Sky explained, "During practice, the swords are spelled so they won't hurt anyone. Since Timmy's cloak ripped, it means that…"
"You tried to kill me," Timmy shouted accusingly at Bishop before getting up on his feet.
"Bishop, to my office," Codatorta bellowed furiously.
"But, I didn't do it. I swear!" the boy defended, looking panicked. Suddenly, they were surrounded by the sound of cackling, and everyone searched for the direction it was coming from until their eyes landed on the Trix.
"He's right; he didn't. I removed the spell from his weapon," Icy told them simply.
As soon as Codatorta saw the Trix, he removed the spell from everyone's weapons and commanded, "Boys, get into formation."
They instantly picked up their now fully functional phantoblades as Darcy chuckled with delight, "Oh, how cute! They think they are going to defeat us with their glowsticks."
Codatorta saw the electricity building around his daughter, "Tecna, don't you dare transform," he ordered.
Tecna looked at him with disappointment and asked, "Why?"
"Your magic is unstable," he reminded her sharply, "We'll deal with the witches, go inform Headmaster Saladin of the intrusion."
However, Tecna wasn't taking no for any answer, "No way, I wasn't enrolled at Red Fountain just to…." She protested, only for Codatorta to cut her off.
"That's an order, Tecna!" He yelled firmly as he led the charge towards the witches.
With that Tecna, irritably turned on her heel and headed towards the building.
Saladin was surprised to see Tecna barge into his office. "The witches are attacking," she announced.
He quickly stood up hurried over to grasp her hand. Then he teleported himself and his granddaughter to the back of the battlefield. They would be hidden there until the time was right.
"Sometimes the best time to learn is when your adrenaline is pumping," Saladin explained, "Now close your eyes and push out all the noise. Feel the power course through your veins. Don't release it until your body is shaking and you feel as if you are going to explode."
She did as he asked, trusting that he would be watching her back. "Now, set up a mental barrier to separate your fairy and witch powers. That's the only way you can use one of them without damaging the other. Let it build in your hands until you are ready to release it on the witches."
Tecna opened her eyes and was horrified as Codatorta was being lifted in the air by a tornado. She raised her hand, and with every ounce of energy she could muster, she shot a blast of electrical energy at Stormy, taking everyone around her by surprise. Then, she smirked and said, "Let's do this, grandpa."
Saladin's beamed with pride as he watched her take off towards the battlefield, pulling out her phantoblade, which now had electricity running through it. Even though Tecna was a fair distance away, she swung her blade, sending lightning at Darcy, who was busy fighting Bishop.
"Thanks," he yelled as he pulled out his daggers to fight the other witches.
"Tecna, behind you," Tritannus yelled in the heat of battle. Tecna swung her sword behind her but froze when she saw a face she hadn't seen in months.
"Dad?" she said as she let out a startled gasp. Even after all the hell that King Cryos put her through, she couldn't hurt him. He was still the man who raised her.
"Hello, Princess," King Cryos greeted. Before Tecna could react, he shot a beam of magic towards her. In mere seconds he trapped her in a barrier that was hovering back to him. King Cryos had easily succeeded where the Trix took so long and failed.
"Let me out!" Tecna screamed, which caught Timmy's attention while he was occupied battling the Trix. Tecna continued shouting while making futile attempts to break the barrier with her magic. However, it was no use. It took no time at all until the barrier reached King Cryos. He looked down at his so-called daughter as she was trapped, pleased with his accomplishment. Then, they vanished without a trace.
"No!" Timmy yelled, running towards where she disappeared. With Tecna captured, the witches disappeared.
There was no time to think of a plan. The specialists had to act immediately. "Prepare the ships!" Codatorta bellowed without hesitation.
While Timmy was readying one of the ships for the rescue mission, his phone buzzed. He picked it up instantly, and a live stream appeared. A strange sense of Déjà vu washed over Timmy as he watched the feed.
King Cryos waved to his subjects as he walked up to the microphone. The cameraman zoomed into a bust shot right before he started to speak. The guards protecting the King seemed to tense as his expression showed he was fuming with rage. The King tapped on the mic before speaking to the audience, "Greetings, I apologize for my tardiness. But I have come to announce that the Zenithian Princess is now in custody and awaiting trial. As per my council's request, the trial will be publicly broadcasted and live-streamed."
Codatorta was watching the stream over Timmy's shoulder. He let out a relieved breath upon hearing about the trial. The hearing would give them time to plan a rescue mission. As they continued to watch, Timmy noticed something odd on Cryos' arm. He used an advanced feature on the phone to zoom in on the irregularity. When Timmy finally recognized what it was, he felt his skin crawl with terror. "Codatorta, look. This is similar to the microchip that was found on Bloom. This one is larger, though," Timmy said, pointing to a chip that was made to look like a tattoo on his arm.
"That could be why he's been acting so erratic," Codatorta replied. By the time Timmy had made this new discovery, the ships were almost finished being supplied for the mission. "Timmy, I need you to take your ship and go pick up the girls from Alfea. We are going to need them to remove that contraption from his arm," Codatorta told him as they both rushed towards the ships. In the corner of his eye, he noticed Tritannus standing with the group, "Also, take the new kid with you. It'll be better for him to learn the ropes from people he knows."
Timmy nodded in response before he walked over to Tritannus. As the two boys boarded the ship, Timmy found that his other friends were already waiting for takeoff. When Timmy sat at the controls, his fists clenched tightly as a mess of jumbled emotions coursed through his entire being.
"We're going to save her, buddy," Brandon consoled his close friend.
Timmy looked up at him in surprise and nodded.
"We have to pick up the girls before we go. There's no time to waste." And so, Timmy set off towards Alfea."
…
While the Specialists were heading to Alfea, Codatorta had filled Faragonda and the Winx about the situation. So the girls were already waiting outside for their arrival. "What intel do we have so far?" Aisha asked the group, ready to jump into action.
"According to Codatorta's military sources, Tecna is being held in the East end of the dungeons. She hasn't been hurt, but she was put in handcuffs that prevent her from using her fairy magic," Sky explained.
"Couldn't she just bust out of there with her dark magic?" Riven asked.
Timmy stared at him in shock, 'How did she know that she was part-witch?'
Riven saw Timmy's reaction and started laughing, "Oh come on, Timster, it's pretty damn obvious she's a witch. You've seen her use her magic before."
The reminder that Tecna's magic was unstable put him on edge. He clutched the steering wheel tighter until his knuckles turned white. Then, he tried to calm his nerves saying, "Codatorta made her promise not to use her witch powers. It is too dangerous for a fairy to use dark magic without proper training. I doubt she will break that promise unless it's a matter of life and death. Besides, I am not sure if the cuffs will block dark magic anyway."
Suddenly the scanner on the spaceship started beeping wildly. A screen showed three ships approaching them. Timmy noticed the Zenithian emblem on the ships and knew things were about to get ugly, "Everybody buckle up. Specialists get to your stations and prepare for battle."
Everyone instantly leapt into action. Timmy was maneuvering the ship to avoid getting hit while the other specialists shot back at the attackers. Soon Timmy had the ship spinning like a washing machine to prevent the attacks. It nearly took a significant hit, and the ship started to spin out of control, making all of the fairies feel sick to their stomachs. Other than Tritannus, who was new to the team, the Specialists were used to being tossed around on missions.
After a few minutes into the battle, a loud explosion could be heard. "Yeah, one down two to go," Riven yelled victoriously, pumping his fists in the air.
"Great, can you hurry up before my stomach is the next thing to burst," Musa pleaded while holding on to her stomach.
Another explosion was heard from Sky's side of the ship shortly after, signaling the fall of another enemy aircraft. Finally, after ten minutes of evasive maneuvering on Timmy's part, the third ship crashed into the ocean.
"Great job," Helia congratulated as he let out a sigh of relief.
"Can we unbuckle our seatbelts now?" Bloom asked hesitantly when the Red Fountain ship was stable again. [CJ1]
"Yeah, it's safe," Brandon assured her.
"Perfect," Bloom said before standing up and dizzily stumbling over to the bathroom.
Suddenly they heard a retching sound, and Timmy said, "Sky, I think you better go help your girlfriend."
Sky groaned slightly, "Yeah, I'm on it."
…
Deep in the cold, damp dungeons, Tecna sat in her cell, sobbing. The memories of the last time she was here, when her father cut off her wings, haunted her. But this time, it was worse because she was alone. When she was in the dungeon last time, she was terrified, but Codatorta was there when she woke. He calmed her when she saw her magnificent wings bloody and tossed to the side like garbage.
Tecna tried to keep herself calm. She knew Timmy and the others were trying desperately to find her… Or, at least she was pretty sure they were… As time when on, her doubts began to sink in. Why would they even bother to rescue her? She was nothing but dead weight to them.
Tecna's mind continued to spiral into a dark and horrible place when the sound of the door to her iron prison swinging open interrupted her thoughts. She snapped her head in the direction of the door and saw King Cryos standing with two guards. She stood up, her hands were still cuffed behind her back, "What do y…you want?" Tecna tried and failed to sound intimidating.
King Cryos grabbed her arm and smiled, "Can't a father just come and pay his beloved daughter a visit."
"You're not my father," Tecna spat, "You lost that title the day you murdered my mother."
"Oh, but you're right," Cryos said with a smirk, "My daughter died with her. You are nothing but baggage. And do you know what we do with old baggage?" Tecna remained silent, not wanting to do anything to trigger his anger. He continued, "We dispose of it."
He pushed Tecna into the wall and said, "I was foolish enough to think that removing your wings would be enough to kill you last time. I won't be making that mistake again."
Suddenly she felt a blade against her throat and screamed, "What about my trial?!"
King Cryos started to laugh menacingly, "There are hundreds of dangerous criminals in here. I will simply blame your death on one of them."
With the blade against her carotid artery, she only had time to act. She conjured up all her pain, anger, frustration into a great ball of magic energy. Then, she released it in a single blow. The electric pulse sent King Cryos and the guards flying into the wall. Tecna didn't hesitate, running out of the cell at top speed. She knew that an explosion that loud would alert any other nearby guards.
While she ran, she searched frantically for a way out of the dungeons. They were like a maze, and it was dark, so she couldn't see anything. Suddenly she felt an arm grab her from behind and cover her mouth. She gasped in fear when she saw it was a Zenithian guard.
"Shhhh," he warned as he heard other guardsmen approach. He pulled her into a dark corner and held his hand over her mouth. When the group had passed, he whispered, "I'm a friend of Codatorta. If you trust me, I can free your hands and help you get out of here. Do you trust me?"
Tecna didn't have much choice, so she nodded in agreement. Then he pulled off the cuffs like he promised.
"Who are you?" she asked as she allowed herself to be led through the dungeon.
"It's better if you don't know yet," he replied simply.
Tecna followed him to a dead end. She was about to ask if he really knew a way out when she saw him pull on a sconce. As he did, a hidden door was revealed. He grabbed her hand and said, "Don't let go, or you will get lost. It's pitch-black down here."
Tecna walked down the steps to an underground labyrinth. Now that they were in the maze, the man asked, "Do you think you could use your magic to transfer a message to someone?"
Tecna shook her head, "I used too much power to escape King Cryos. I need to recharge before I can use any more."
The man grunted. Tecna wished she could see who this man was, but it was so dark she couldn't see her hand in front of her face.
The tunnel eventually led to a trap door. The man pushed opened the door and helped her inside what appeared to be an extensive wine cellar. Inside this room, she was finally able to see the face of her rescuer. He had a muscular build like one of the Specialists, but older with short black hair. "Stay here," the man said, "No one knows about this room except for Codatorta and me."
As soon as he was gone, Tecna started to search for a second exit. He may have helped her out of the dungeon, but that didn't mean she trusted him.
She noticed a tiny window that looked too high for her to reach. Nearby, several boxes were in the corner. She quickly started to stack them, hoping to boost herself high enough to escape. Finally, she managed to make it to the window, but it was locked. She was about to use her elbow to bust it open when she heard the man return.
He noticed that she was attempting to climb out of the window, "I should have known you wouldn't listen to me. Your father never did," he said with a chuckle.
She looked at him irritably and replied, "I am in a country where there is an enormous bounty on my head, and I have no idea who you are. Did you really expect me to stick around and sit pretty?"
He smirked, "It's like speaking to a tiny female version of your father. Perhaps next time, I should make you pinky swear. But for now, why don't you take the phone and talk to your dad."
Tecna's eye's watered, and she grabbed the phone, "Dad?" she asked tearfully.
Codatorta's heart was filled with both relief and joy. Tecna was safe, and this was the first time he ever called him her father. "Tecna, I am so happy you're safe. We're on our way to come to get you. Please stay put. My brother will keep you safe," Codatorta explained.
"Brother?" Tecna asked. The man with black hair gave her a smirk she could have easily mistaken for Codatorta's.
"Yes," Codatorta replied, "Silva is my brother-in-law."
She looked over to Silva and said, "So that means that you're Helia's dad."
"Very perceptive. I think I am finally starting to see the resemblance," Silva answered.
Then, he took the phone from Tecna and began to speak to Codatorta, "I've already informed my son via text that we have her. We just need to formulate a plan to get her out of here."
"That won't be a problem," Codatorta replied, "just keep her safe, and Thank you for risking your neck like that."
"Of course, she's family," Silva answered.
A/N I would like to give a special shout out to TecnoFan34 who has been acting as a Beta reader for this story, and is in the process of creating the cover art. I would also like to tell everyone that the next chapter will be the last chapter of part one. The story will be continued in "Siren's Wings." I hope you will continue to read and follow that story, once this one is concluded.
Thanks for reading and reviewing.