An: Wow the longest story I've ever written and I finished it Kudos to myself I'd like to thank all my reviewers… especially locket101, DayDreamer9, Smilin Star 13, Frozen lightning, Uniasus, Morganite, FrozenBlossom BubblyShell22, Autumn Theif… and everyone else…
Jade didn't much remember what happened next. Her sense of time was completely lost, dreams and blankness occasionally broken by far away words and sporadic blurred glimpses of figures. Some wore white, and some wore other colors. But everything was in a deep fog.
The drifting was peaceful though, and Jade went with it.
And hence, she was not particularly shocked when eventually the haze lifted enough so that reality once again began to define itself, solidified into a light blue ceiling and part of a wall.
"Hey Tecna, she's waking up!"
A small head on top of large shoulders suddenly looked into Jade's vision. Jade blinked a few times before she fully recognized it as Musa and Tecna.
"Hey Jade. How you doing?" Tecna asked. Jade just blinked in response, and then Stella, her face slightly marred with worry lines but now in an expression of joyful relief, was in her line of vision too.
"Oh Jade." She said. She looked like she wanted to hug her: why she didn't was unclear to Jade for a bit, until her mind finally gained enough cohesion to ask a question.
"…Am I?" She said, not quite getting the word 'Where' tacked on at the beginning.
"The hospital at Alfea Jade. Don't worry, you'll be fine."
And if they noticed the confusion in Jade's eyes, they probably wrote it off to a drug haze of some kind.
Bloom poked her head into Jade's already crowded view.
"Yes, but don't worry Jade! You'll be fine! True, it was a little strange for you to go into a mild coma for exhaustion, but perhaps that was balanced by how quick a healer you are! The doctors are amazed: usually burns take twice as long to heal as they did for you! Yes, you come from good stock my girl!" Feragonda said to Jade.
"You need anything Jade?" His Musa asked. Jade tried to turn the simple question over in her head, and found it nearly impossible. And her vision was starting to fade again.
She could vaguely hear another voice: someone else had entered the room and was talking with her parent. Jade caught "needs her rest", and that was it as she began drifting out again, and as she did, a thought occurred to her.
I won…
And then, as her vision began to blur and darken again, she sensed more then saw a figure lean in close to her.
"You did good cousin. Real good." Bloom whispered.
And those words accompanied her back into the murk.
She slept.
He spent more time, wandering through the darkness. She saw many strange things. She supposed her brain was completely burned out by what she had gone through and was now taking its time in rebooting itself. Still, some things seemed beyond even the incredible confusing conundrum of images the subconscious was capable of producing.
There was one moment where she saw the world, covered in ice, ice that suddenly vanished.
And another strange, disturbing picture: a white glove holding an eye, an outplucked eye seemingly fresh from its socket.
Once the harsh, gritty taste of sand seemed to fill her mouth…
And another time her hands seemed to be battering against a hard substance, impossibly hard, which she needed so badly to get through…
A twirling handgun and words, "You think you have anything at all, kid?" in a voice overflowing with cockiness…
Other things she only saw briefly and immediately forgot…
And…she could have sworn that somewhere along the way she saw a girl, in long black robes, with tan skin, and incredibly spiky black hair, much like Jades blond, in fact the girl looked like her father, and the girl may have said something to Jade, but she could not remember it…
And then once again, the dark.
The next time Jade woke up, she was somewhat more aware of it, as she slowly began to come back to the world she knew.
"Jade? Are you waking up?"
"…………..Buh." Jade said, as she tried to open her eyes. They seemed to be almost glued shut.
"Stella, don't push her. She's still healing."
"Oh right. Sorry Musa."
"…Guh." Jade said. "Guh-guys?"
"Yeah, Jade, it's us."
"…Wah-tuh."
"You got it."
A smooth straw slipped between her lips. Jade drank slowly, as the fog lifted more. She realized she was sitting up somewhat more then she had been last time, in a small room with closed curtains and soft florescent lights. And there were Musa and Stella, on another side of her. Stella was sporting a sling, but besides that she and Musa looked perfectly fine.
"…Oh man…" She said, for no real reason.
"Hey Jade, check it out." Stella said, as she produced a mirror. Jade looked at it and started, just a bit, when she saw that one side of her face was completely covered with bandages, her blonde hair bristling out from the top, a small hole cut into the bandages to allow her to see with both eyes.
A few minutes and some more water later, Jade was pretty much fully alert.
"How long have I been out?"
"A little under two weeks. The doctors were a tad bit worried Jade: apparently burns like yours shouldn't cause the catatonic state you went into. But we know the truth, and we knew you'd come out of it."
Jade started a bit, but Musa just glanced backwards.
"You're slower then I thought."
"You try packing all of Jone's luggage." Flora said as she suddenly stepped from a pool of darkness in the corner of the room. Bloom quickly followed, bounding over to Jade's bedside. Remy, in an almost sneaky way, slipped out behind the two, staying behind them, even as the shadow portal converged into Jones.
"Jade! I am so glad to see that you are still alive and possessing all your major limbs and most of your vital fluids!" Bloom joyfully said.
"…Imortalisdea. Darcy. What happened?" Jade asked, the question having been planted in her brain by Jones's comment.
"The aftermath of the mess here caused plenty of people to show up. Including some of the greatest sorcerers in the Realms. Apparently the events here caused more then a few ripples in both the physical and mystical worlds. In due course every single inch of the city and the surrounding countryside was tested, both to ensure there wasn't any delayed damage waiting in the wings and also to see if anything could be found of the being called Imortalisdea who caused all this."
Jones paused, though whether it was for dramatic emphasis or bad news, Jade didn't know. She felt his heart catch.
"…They found nothing. At all. And they went over it three times just to be sure. There isn't a trace of Darcy and Imoralisdea, left. She's gone, Jade. Completely and utterly. It's finally over. It's ended."
Jade was clearly relieved at the words, but at the same time…a slight pallor came over her face. Bloom noticed it first.
"What is wrong Jade? You saved the day, us, and untold millions of lives."
"…She was in so much pain. Sometimes I wonder if she was more of a victim in this then we were. I mean…"
"Whoa, whoa. Jade, stop right there. That path leads down the road to madness." Flora said.
"It's true what happened to Darcy was utterly inhumane…and it's also true that virtually all evil, human evil anyway, is made, not born. Nurture is far more important then nature in deciding who we will be…but Jade, as you understand that, understand this." Jones said. "We always have a choice. ALWAYS. It might be a hard choice, it might seem impossible, it might even BE nearly impossible…but we always have a choice. Darcy made hers. She, in some way, let her pain turn malignant, and let that malignancy consume her. It's a tragedy, and we shouldn't forget, forgive, or stand for what drove her to this. But in the end, the choice was hers to make." Jones sighed.
"Yet…even so…even I can't help but feel there were outside factors at work here. Even though part of her chose it…another part of Darcy never understand what she had done, what kind of curse had befallen her, a curse that has happened to many before and will happen to many in the future. She hated so much what her mother had done to her…yet she never realized she was doing everything they had, and worse. That's the curse Jade. You become what you hate. Sometimes you become something worse. Remember that too Jade. But above all else, remember that she made her choice in the end. You tried to pull her back, she wouldn't go. At least she's at peace now, even if that peace could only be found in the nothingness of oblivion."
"Yes Jade. You must move forward. The past cannot be changed. The future can. Focus on that." Bloom said.
Jade still looked saddened, but another drink of water seemed to ease her burden.
"If we're playing Twenty Questions, can I have one?" Stella asked.
"Uh…yeah Stella?"
"Jade…how did you do that?"
"…What Stella?"
"Jade…what you did out there…it was amazing…how did you do it?"
A pause.
"…I…I don't know." Jade said, as she brought her hand to her head. "All I can remember of what happened…is blurry flashes…brief snapshots…and I have no idea how to connect them. I just can't remember. Any of it."
"It's ok Jade. It's not important." Jones said. "You came through in the clutch. The whys are irrelevant."
"But what if…something this bad happens in the future?" Jade asked.
"I'm not worried." Jones said. "I think whatever may happen…you'll be ready for it. Somehow."
Another pause.
"Um, Jade, I was wondering if you could solve a mystery for us in turn." Bloom asked. Jade looked at her cousin.
"Uh, sure Bloom. What is it?"
"Well…I am not sure how to explain this, I find it so unsettling…perhaps one of you could do it better…?" Bloom asked.
"I'll do it Bloom. Something VERY weird happened while you were sleeping Jade." Flora said.
"What?"
"Oh, I better set the scene. As you might remember, you fight with Darcy pretty much razed every part of The Shiran capital. Something that the people…"
"Something that the people of capital found disturbing. The sorcerers do have a special division that works exclusively on repairing the damage involved with magical brawls. They sent most of their entire team here, but they were certain they were looking at at least several months work. So they started, cleaned the roads, patched up the suburbs so some people could come back home for a day or two if they couldn't find or afford to go anywhere else, and then one night they stopped for the day and left to sleep and when they came back the next morning…well, Bloom, will you show her the picture?"
Jade arched an eyebrow in confusion, turning her head to Bloom as she retrieved the picture.
Then she pulled them out, and Jade understood why they were questioning her, and why Bloom had seemed so incredulous in her ability to describe what had happened. Because Jade hit her peak of disbelief within a second.
There, outside the window…stood The Shiran Capital. Perfect, pristine, untouched, as if the events a few weeks ago had just been a terrible nightmare. It was a good thing Jade wasn't drinking any water at the time: she probably would have choked to death on the liquid (and wouldn't THAT have been ironic). As such, she nearly suffered severe ocular nerve damage when her eyes nearly bugged out of herhead.
"…Please tell me that everything that happened wasn't a dream, and I'm not about to wake up in front of the couch having fallen asleep watching a TV show and eating some way beyond its best date food." Jade said.
"Oh no, everything happened Jade. Including your severely damaged capital being completely fixed overnight. Even a troop of Speed Force users would have some trouble doing that, and they'd make one hell of a racket. Yet this happened without anyone finding out why or how. We thought you might be able to shed a little light on the subject." Jones said.
"Believe me Jones, I'd like to know as much as you. But I don't have a clue."
"I figured that would be your answer." Musa said. "Jones, the night this happened, I slept overnight in this room. I'm a light sleeper. If Jade had done ANYTHING, I would have seen it, or sensed it, or something. But I slept the whole night through. And I assume Jade did as well. I don't think, as great as it is, that Jade had a hand in this."
"Well…ok. We believe you Jade." Flora said.
Well, whatever may have done it, it is comforting to know that not all incredible powers seek the chaos and the destruction and the knocking down of all the buildings and the hurting and shoving." Bloom commented.
"What do I do now?" Jade suddenly asked.
"Well…we hung around, at first to organize things and then to make sure nothing else was going on, what with the whole town reappearing overnight as if by magic… and all…but we're getting ready to go back home Jade. And you…I guess you heal and then go back to your life… Oh and you have midterms in 3 days…" Jones said.
"…And that's it?"
"You wish for more battle?" Jones asked wryly.
"NO! Well nothing like that at least… It's just…I went through all this…and…that's it? All I get is a higher tolerance to pain and a first hand look of just how terrible the human race can be? And I still have midterms…"
"There are many results which could have been far, far worse Jade. And yes you do have midterms." Bloom said.
"Yeah, but still!" Stella suddenly piped up. "Who organizes things so that tormented females get god like power ups and wreck havoc and never die while the good guys get a hospital stay before they've shoved back into the meat grinder?"
"Stella, if I had the answer to that, I'd find the bastard myself and kick him in the nuts." Jones replied. "But as Bloom said, all things considered, things turned out pretty good! What do you want, a medal?"
"That would be nice!" Jade said tersely.
"Well Jade? You have anything to say before we leave?" Remy asked.
"…You really are an asshole Billy. But keep them alive while I'm in here…" Jade replied.
Ten days later…
"I still can't believe this is all real, sometimes…" Jade said, as she walked through the hallways of Alfea. She had been released from the hospital four days ago: the doctors had been amazed how quickly her burns had healed up. She had been rather amazed herself. But not too much.
"Believe it." Stella said, in lockstep, as usual, with Bloom, Tecna, Flora, Jade and Musa. "You're a hero and a heiress to the throne."
"Guys, can I tell you this odd thought I've been having?"
"What Jade?"
"Well…the whole place has been perfectly quiet. No magical beings since the Darcy attack. You'd think at least ONE of my stupider enemies would have regained their nerve and jumped me by now. But no. Nothing. My powers are back to normal: I've tested them several times, so I'll be ready and refreshed. I just don't have anyone to use them on. And that gave me an odd thought: what if I'm dead?"
The girls looked mildly perturbed to say the least.
"Jade, even I find that morbid." Musa said.
"Well I don't think I am…but it's just a notion I had. Think about it. All that stuff, I should have died…maybe I did. Maybe this is my idea of heaven. A quiet, normal life. Where I'm not someone special who saved the universe, but just the average kid I seem to be."
Silence.
"In truth Jade, what kind of life would that be?" Tecna asked.
"Peaceful. Quiet. Unassuming. Normal." Jade said. "…And just as dull as dishwasher."
The Winx club chuckled. And Jade allowed herself a wan smile.
Griselda found Feragonda on the roof, like she thought she would. She appeared to be watching the moonrise, but what she was really doing was thinking. Deeply. Too deeply, for Griselda's taste. That style of thinking usually marked that she was obsessing about something, and the last time she had been obsessing about something, it had led sending a 16 year old to war.
"You're not brooding on how you failed as a headmistress, are you?" Griselda asked as she stepped up next to Feragonda.
"…..No. And I'm not brooding. I'm pondering." Feragonda replied. "I think…I finally have an answer to one of our unanswered miracles."
"Which one? That last incident had a list."
"The fact that despite so much destruction, the only recorded deaths of the Shiran capital incident were at the beginning, when Darcy had possessed Yusuke and blew up that block of buildings. After that…nothing, lots of injuries, but no deaths. It didn't make sense that so much hell could happen, yet so few souls were sent to heaven, so to speak. But I think I've finally figured out how that happened Griselda."
"How?"
"Jade."
Griselda looked at Feragonda, in the way she did when she wasn't questioning her but wasn't agreeing with her either.
"Are you suggesting…"
"Griselda, we never told her what we learned in those books about the phoenix force. Remember how the power was supposedly impossible to unlock like that? Or more accurately, DIRECTLY unlock? I think that with her personality and beliefs, the way she directed them towards others and not herself…Jade found a way to access the power. Even when she didn't realize it. She didn't just manifest it in that orb Griselda. I think she manifested it in a way that she was able to alter probability itself to ensure the insane odds of no death in the face of such destruction because SHE DIDN'T WANT ANYONE TO DIE. Well at least not anymore"
Griselda thought it over…and a slight chill went through her. It was possible…and scary.
"Now…I doubt this kind of unknowing machination will last. Darcy placed Jade under a special kind of duress that was probably 90 percent of the reason Jade did that. It might never happen again in her life. But for that day…Jade was dictating the fate of thousands of people…and she was never aware of the fact."
"So Jade has more power…"
"In her little finger than Bloom has in her whole body… but Bloom can access that power to if she was put in that situation."
"That kind of power is NEVER good in the hands of people."
"…Yes…which is why hopefully the seal will stand. The power will only be truly granted to the worthy." Feragonda said.
There was a silence.
"What do you think Feragonda?" Griselda asked.
"…I believe that if what I theorized is correct, and if Jade somehow does not stray from the path…one day she may come into a power that would make her a god to GODS."
Another silence.
"And I believe…that if that ever happens…the universe has nothing to fear…."
Jones bowed low to a sleeping figure… "Grandmother the young one has passed her first test as did her cousin… what's next…" Jones shivered as the voice spoke in her head. "You can't be serious… I will not revive her…. I will not revive Darcy Trix…" Jones clutched her head in pain. "Yes Lilith… I'll do it… and next year… the girl will go to Earth I promise you… we will find the Jades half sister… that I promise you…" Jones sighed as she disappeared.
Yep I'm thinking trilogy… anyway in the next story Bloom will gain access to the power that Jade has as well as Jade heading to Earth as her powers become diluted by some unknown force… but not before a challenge comes to her for the Shiran throne… the third and final power is found as the beast awakens… and the seal will be broken… Earth is going to be a big part in the stories to come and after the trilogy another stories taking place in my mind which happens a few years after the trilogy but focuses on Riven and Darcy's relationship in Winx club supposedly what would happen if Darcy had a child but hey it's just an idea…