The Road to Freedom
By The Senshi of Valis
Chapter 16
I don't own W.I.T.C.H. or Ranma 1/2
Will groaned as she sat up, her whole body was in pain from where Cedric slammed her into the ground. Wincing when she noticed where she decided to look around in hopes to finding a way out though it was a very slim chance. She would never have been put somewhere she would have had an easy time escaping.
"So the brat lives." A voice hissed from the bars drawing Will's attention to Cedric who had a smug grin on his face.
"Yeah and as soon as I get out of here I'll be kicking your tail." Will growled.
"In your dreams guardian." Cedric laughed as he slithered away, "Dinner will be served at sunset…of next week."
Will tried to access her powers but failed making her worry even more, why was her powers abandoning her? Did Candracar abandon her as well?
"Will!" a new voice whispered quietly, urgency in it's voice.
Looking to where the voice was coming from Will found Elyon standing outside the door watching cautiously both ways while holding some rolled up parchment. "Elyon?"
"Will, I can't let anyone know I'm doing this but I can't let them hurt you. If you promise me that you will leave here now I'll let you out and give you a map of a safe way out of the castle. You have to promise to go though Will, please." Elyon said, pleading with her eyes.
"I promise, Elyon, but you should come with me." Will said.
"I can't, Will, I want to try and help my brother find the goodness I know is there in his heart." Elyon said, "In a few weeks I will be coronated and I will become Queen of Meridian. I will help of the people while trying to help my brother too."
"I…I understand." Will sighed, not sure if she would do anything differently. Phobos was the only true living relative Elyon had.
"Thank you, Will." Elyon said opening the door and giving Will the map. "Please hurry, I don't want you to get hurt Will."
"Thank you, Elyon." Will said hugging the girl then opening the map. She found it hard not to gasp, not only was the map of a safe way out but it was a map of the entire castle.
"Be careful, Will." Elyon said before turning to go.
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Ranma marched toward the castle intent on leveling it if he had too and get Will back. He knew he was getting strange looks from the people he passed as he was glowing brightly like the sun as the Heart of Candracar hung around his neck feeding his power. He could sense it, energy was literally pouring into him from the heart but he had no idea how, only Will should have been able to use it. That worried him though, how did the thing get to him anyways?
"Ranma, you are really freaking these people out." Ryoga said, looking around as people cowered from the walking bonfire of power.
"I'm sorry but I have to get to Will, I'm powerful Ryoga but not this strong. The heart is doing this and I need to get to Will before it stops." Ranma said, "There are far too many powerful enemies at the castle for me to go in alone normally but as long as the heart keeps giving me power nothing will stop me."
"Then lets do this, Ranma." Ryoga said, "I'm behind you all the way."
"Thanks Ryoga." Ranma said before stopping and looking up as close to fifteen soldiers stood in front of Ranma.
"Give up, boy." One of the guards said with a sneer, "Your pathetic light show doesn't frighten us."
"Too bad." Ranma said, instinctlively holding his hand out toward the guards, palm facing them. A blast of power erupted from his hand washing over the soldiers throwing them back hard and making them skip and roll across the ground leaving all of them unconscious.
"Whoa…" Ryoga said, awe actually in his voice.
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"Great, I'm lost." Will sighed, squinting to see the map in the dark, damp underground tunnels under the castle. All of them seemed to be like a maze.
"Relax." A gentle voice whispered, "Everything will be okay."
Will all most screamed in fright when she found the origin of the voice. There was a girl who looked a little like Will in guardian form though her sleeves were missing and her hair was longer and more brownish.
"Don't be scared, my name is Cassidy and I'm here to help you." Cassidy said with an amused smile, "I must admit that I'm pretty shocked at how soon our meeting had to happen. The chaotic energies that surround your husband makes for quite the excitement, your lives will probably never be dull."
"Are you a guardian?" Will asked, not sure what to think.
"In a way." Cassidy giggled, "I was once the guardian of water…until something happened. The keeper…she was stripped of the heart and it was given to me…In retaliation she…Let's not worry about that, we don't have much time."
"What?" Will asked, shocked. She was sure she knew what Cassidy was about to say but the whole tunnel shook for a few seconds almost knocking Will off of her feet.
"He's here…if he kills them now…Ranma can't kill them now, not until Elyon sees the truth for herself. Everything changed the moment he came into the picture and nothing is certain anymore but if he kills Phobos now, Elyon will surely kill him and the circle will never be broken. You have to stop him and escape. Very soon the chance for all of this to be over will appear and you will have a chance to end this war with Phobos forever but you must wait."
"I can't transform, I…I lost the heart somehow, I can't even feel it." Will said.
"That's easy." Cassidy said, holding out her hand. A small silver light gathered in her palm as the heart of candracar slowly materialized there. It was strange though, it was glowing silver instead of pink. "Every guardian retains a part of the power even after they stop being one, a small spark that will always be with them. This…this is my spark and all of the keepers before me. We all know that you are destined to be the greatest keeper ever and are meant to do great things. This is my heart Will, all of our hopes. Take it…Take it and make us proud. After you use it though…it will lose its power for a little while as it wasn't meant to be passed on quite yet. Until it is needed again, give it to Ranma to protect and recover the Heart of Candracar. When the time is right, the two will become one just as the two of you have."
"I…I don't know what to say." Will said, reaching timidly for the Heart of Cassidy and gently taking it.
"Just make us proud, Will. Show us what a true keeper can do and follow your heart." Cassidy said, beginning to fade, "We will meet again, Will. Take care."
"Thank you Cassidy." Will said, clutching the heart to her chest, "I will make you proud, I promise."
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Phobos was shocked as reports kept filling in, reports of the man on fire storming his castle foolishly. Reports said that he was there demanding his wife…the red haired guardian. But the guardian wasn't even married so who was this fool attacking?
A loud blast echoed throughout the chamber as the large doors was blasted off of the hinges as Cedric was flung through them, beaten unconscious by the very man Phobos had been hearing about. Normally Phobos wouldn't be worried about anything but this man was wearing the heart of candracar and was blazing like an inferno though he seemed to not even be hurt by it. There was something else, he had on him somewhere the amulet Phobos had given frost which increased one's natural abilities greatly. This…This was not good, no where even remotely to good. For once in his life Phobos was scared as the man leveled a burning and hate filled glare at the evil prince.
"I am asking this only once, where is Will?" the boy asked.
"I'm right here." Will said as she hurried into the throne room in guardian form which should have beem impossible. Phobos could plainly see the man wearing it. "I'm okay Ranma, please…please lets just go home now."
"Lets finish them off, Will." Ranma said, hatred seeping into his voice.
"No, Ranma, not like this. Please, let's just go home. Phobos will fall…but not today…Not like this. He will fall because it is the right thing to do, not because we kill him out of cold blood. We will defeat him and he will be tried by Candracar."
Normally Phobos would have scoffed at this but at the moment something told him it would be best to keep his mouth shut for now and hope they left.
"O-Okay." Ranma said, the flames disappearing as another boy walked into the throne room and caught Ranma's shoulder and helped support him.
"Wow, you really did a number on this place Ranma." The new boy said as Will and him helped Ranma out of the throne room without any opposition, stopping only long enough by Cedric for Ranma to say something.
"You ever lay a finger on my wife again and I'll make a pair of snake skinned boots." Ranma said weakly though for some reason Phobos didn't doubt it.
Cerdric slowly crawled up off the ground shakily after everyone left the throne room but Phobos and himself. "What happened?"
"Our plans have been threatened, we have to act soon if I'm to get Elyon's power, First the coronation and my stealing her power and then I will kill the little brat in front of all of those rebel scum. After that, not even that…that thing can stand against me."
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Elyon ran from the doors of the throne room where she was standing outside and listening to what was happeneing inside. She couldn't believe it, Phobos really didn't care about her, it was all a lie. She was nothing to him and Will was right, he was evil.
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AN: Sorry I didn't have any updates the last couple of days but it got really hectic here for a bit but its okay now. Hope everyone is enjoying and continue enjoying this story.
Until Next Time,
Ja Ne
