~~~~Previously~~~~

Abigail went into the city and was attacked by Ulrik, along with Krista. Krista showed no mercy in taking her down and Ulrik was able to take Abby's essence. Felicity blames Abby's condition on herself, since she told her to go into the city. Ulrik arrives at Alfea and returns Abigail's essence as a token for helping him. The Scoutix convinced Daniel to go to Red Fountain, but he still has doubts about joining them. Rave attacked Alex in an attempt to get his ice magic, which he didn't know he had. Krista attacked the specialists and has forced Ulrik to be her boyfriend. Draegan attacks the Scoutix at Alfea and Daniel transformed for the first time. ~~~~

Red Fountain

Daniel sat on his bed and stared out the window. A few days had passed since he fought alongside the Scoutix and he wanted to rest up. There hadn't been any attacks since then and he felt a little uneasy about it. 'What could they be planning? And why haven't they attacked lately? It's been way too quiet.'

"Is something on your mind Daniel?" Gale asked.

Daniel turned to Gale and sighed a little. "I was just thinking. Why haven't the Collectors attacked?"

"The Collectors?" Gale asked.

"We might as well call them something." Daniel said. "They collect essence, so it makes sense."

Gale sat down beside Daniel and smiled a little. "It's better than nothing I suppose. Are you worried?"

"Just a little." Daniel said. "Why wouldn't they attack? Cloud Tower has already been taken over. All that's left is Red Fountain and Alfea. They have to be planning something big. I need some fresh air." With that, he got up and walked outside. He sat down on a bench and stared up at the sky. "How many more will get hurt? Perhaps I should have stayed at Alfea."

"You could really help them out."

Daniel looked back and took notice to Helia. "Maybe. It's still a lot to take in."

"I can't imagine how hard things are for you." Helia said. "Still, you should be at Alfea."

Daniel looked down and gripped his arm. "I would only attract more danger and I don't want anyone else to get hurt because of me."

"Don't start believing that you're the cause of the attacks." Helia said. "None of this is because of you."

Daniel sighed a little and looked up. "I know. It doesn't erase the target on my back though."

"You're not the only one with a target on their back." Helia said. "Now isn't the time to doubt yourself. There are still dangers waiting in the shadows."

Shadow Lair

"Let's go lover." Krista said, giving Ulrik a sly smile. "We have work to do."

Ulrik shot Krista a small glare. 'I have to find a way to break this hold she has on me. Perhaps if I found out something about her.' "I'll play your game Krista. For now." With that, they both disappeared into shadows.

Draegan watched Krista and Ulrik from the shadows, until they disappeared. 'What could they be up to? And since when were they together?'

"Draegan." Shadow said.

Draegan turned to Shadow and bowed. "What do you need me to do?"

"Wreak havoc in Magix." Shadow said.

Draegan nodded and disappeared into flames. 'This will be easy. Why would he want me to attack Magix? It doesn't matter.'

Alfea

"We should be out there looking for the ones behind the attacks." Rachel said.

Catarina placed and hand on Rachel's shoulder and shook her head. "We can't do that Rachel. It would only put us all in danger."

"Something has to be done." Rachel said. "Standing around doing nothing isn't getting us anywhere."

Magix

Draegan appeared in Magix and started lighting things on fire. 'I wonder how long it will be before someone shows up.' He laughed a little and watched as people started running in the opposite direction.

"You won't get away with this." Aisha said, landing in front of Draegan in her Bloomix form.

Draegan turned to Aisha and chuckled. "Don't make me laugh. You don't have the power to defeat me."

"We'll see about that." Aisha said. "Water Bolt!"

Draegan smirked and dodged the attack. "It's going to take more than that little fairy. Phoenix Fire."

"Protection of Waves!" Aisha called out as the phoenix flew towards it. "Is that the best you got? Take this. Morphix Net!"

Rings of Morphix formed around Draegan and tightened, causing him to wince a little. "Not bad, but I'm not done yet. Flame Vortex." At that moment, a vortex of flames formed around him and destroyed the rings. "Hit me with your best shot."

"You asked for it." Aisha said. "Morphix Trap!"

Before Draegan could react, he found himself stuck in the Morphix. "You may have stopped my movement, but I can still use my magic. Phoenix Fire Cage!"

Within a matter of seconds, a fire cage formed around Aisha and brought her crashing down to the ground. "You haven't defeated me yet."

Draegan chuckled and surrounded himself in flames, getting rid of the Morphix. "Stupid fairy. Do you truly believe that? There's nothing you can do to stop me now. That is, not while you're in that cage. Can't you feel your energy draining?"

Aisha fell to her knees as her vision started to become blurry. 'I can't move.' Almost instantly, she returned to her casual form.

Draegan smirked and walked up to the cage. "I told you that you didn't stand a chance. Now then, I can't allow you to interfere any longer. Absorption." He chuckled as her essence appeared and was absorbed into his pendant. "Which fairy should I take down next?"

Shadow appeared behind Draegan and smirked. "You've done well Draegan."

"Of course." Draegan said. "This fairy was nothing compared to me. I can take on any of them."

Shadow surrounded Draegan in a circle of dark flames and glared a little. "Don't get cocky. There are still the other members of the Winx. You wouldn't stand a chance if they all worked together. Try not to draw too much attention to yourself. You're just lucky that it was only one this time."

Draegan winced and nodded. "Yes my lord."

Red Fountain

Krista appeared in the trees in front of the school and smirked a little. "It's time to shake things up a little. None of the fools in this wretched school have what it takes to defeat me. Isn't that right lover?"

Ulrik appeared next to Krista, keeping his gaze straight ahead. "Whatever you say Krista."

Krista pouted a little and chuckled. "Is that any way to speak to your girlfriend? Show a little more passion than that. If you prefer, I could tell Shadow about your little secret."

"Something doesn't feel right." Daniel said, looking around.

"What do you want me to do my love?" Ulrik asked.

Krista smiled and giggled a little. "Now that's more like it." She then glanced at Daniel and smirked. "Keep fairy boy distracted. I can't have him interfering in my plans."

"What will you do?" Ulrik asked.

"That's none of your concern sweetie." Krista said, rubbing the side of his face. "Just keep him busy."

Ulrik shivered a little and nodded. "We're supposed to leave him be."

Krista chuckled and quickly kissed Ulrik. "Oh sweetie. We're not supposed to take his essence. Shadow never said that we couldn't mess him up a little. You just have to keep him occupied long enough for me to finish my little mission." She then made her way closer, making sure to not be seen. 'This won't take long at all.'

Ulrik watched Krista closely until she gave the signal for him to go. 'I have no choice but to do as Krista says. Shadow would never forgive me for what I done.' Without hesitation, he made his way towards Daniel. "If it isn't the fairy boy. Surrender and I won't hurt you."

Daniel looked over at Ulrik and quickly stood up. "Who are you?"

"Be careful Daniel." Helia said, focusing his attention on Ulrik. 'Why do I get the feeling that something else is going on?'

Ulrik smirked, keeping his gaze on Daniel. "Call me Ulrik. Are you going to surrender or make things difficult?" He then glanced over at Helia and smiled a little. "At least one of you has a brain. That being said, I can't have you getting in the way Helia." At that moment, pollen and dust surrounded Helia. "Don't even think about trying to break free from that. You don't have the power to break my paralysis spell. Don't worry, it will wear off in an hour."

"I'm not about to surrender." Daniel said. Within an instant, he transformed into his fairy form. 'I have to keep my guard up around this guy. Who knows what else he can do?'

Ulrik smirked a little more, not taking his sights off Daniel. "Why does everyone make things difficult? You'll regret messing with me fairy. Don't expect me to hold back either. Terra Dust."

Before Daniel could react, he found himself struggling to get pollen out of his eyes. "Cheap trick." 'This isn't good at all. I can't see anything.'

"Concentrate Daniel." Helia said. "You can do this, but you need to have faith in yourself."

Daniel nodded, trying his best to make out where Ulrik was. "I won't give up. Neptune Vortex!"

"Earth Barrier." Ulrik said as a shield of vines and dirt formed around him. "It's going to take more than that. Rose Prison."

Before the roses could trap him, Daniel flew up higher into the air. "I'm not falling for that one. Expanding Water Bolts."

Ulrik quickly dodged the attack, or at least thought he did. One of the bolts had managed to strike him in the leg and knock him on his back. Wincing a little, he stood up and shot Daniel a small glare. "That won't stop me. Paralysis."

Within seconds, Daniel found himself unable to move and falling to the ground. 'This is the same thing that he did to Helia. There has to be a way out of this.'

Krista watched the battle take place, causing her to chuckle a little. 'This is working out better than expected. Now to end this before anyone else shows up.' "Shadow Dream." Almost instantly, her spell had put both Helia and Daniel to sleep. "That was too easy. Leave fairy boy and grab Helia. You did well lover."

"So that's what you were planning." Ulrik said. "You were going after the headmaster."

Krista laughed and rubbed Ulrik's face. "You should have seen that one coming. It shouldn't come as that much of a surprise. Without the Winx and their boy toys, the other fairies won't stand a chance. Or haven't you figured that out yet. I thought you were better than that lover."

Ulrik winced a little and threw Helia over his back. 'She does have a point. The others will be weaker without the Winx lovers to bail them out. Draegan took out Aisha and now Helia is out of the picture. That leaves the rest of them and they won't be taken out so easily.' Within seconds, he had disappeared within a green aura.

'I wonder how Neva is doing.' Krista thought, disappearing into shadows.

Cloud Tower

Neva sat in Griffin's office and stared out the window. "It's starting to get boring around here. What's the point of being here if I don't get to have any real fun?"

Shadow appeared behind Neva and glared a little. "You're not here to have fun Neva."

Neva jumped a little and turned to face Shadow. "Master. Forgive me."

"It's quite alright my little ice witch." Shadow said. "You've done well. And now you have a much more important task at hand."

Neva knelt down and nodded. "What do you wish of me master?"

"Find the nature fairy Flora." Shadow said, smirking a little. "Bring her and the essence of nature to me. Ice has a way of killing plants. And tell Draegan to bring Aisha as well."

Neva smiled and stood up. "Certainly my lord." Without hesitation, she disappeared into a block of ice.

Magix

Draegan walked up beside Aisha and smirked. "Thanks to you water fairy, I've proven that fire can stand up to water."

Neva appeared behind Draegan and scoffed a little. "Why are you even talking to this fairy? It's not like she can hear anything you say."

Draegan turned his attention to Neva and shot her a small glare. "It's said that you can still hear, even in a comatose state. No one knows if it's actually true. What are you doing here frost breath?"

Neva chuckled a little and hit Draegan with small blast of magic. "You should watch what you say pyro. I'm on a mission and you get to head back to the castle. Well, you need to take the fairy with you. And don't tell me no either. It's an order from Shadow. Bye bye." With that, she headed straight for the flower shop.

Draegan growled a little and picked up Aisha. "I really can't stand her, but orders are orders." Almost instantly, he disappeared into flames.

Flora had been busy out in the flower shop garden, making sure that every plant got the perfect amount of water. "Drink up little ones. You'll be nice and healthy in no time."

Neva walked into the garden, freezing the plants as she walked. "It won't matter much longer. By the time I'm finished with you, these plants will be dead."

"I won't allow you to do that." Flora said. "Magic Winx! Bloomix!"

Neva smirked, watching as Flora transformed. "Let's see what you got fairy. Ice Bullets!"

Flora quickly dodged the attack and hovered above Neva. "Take this. Spring Shower."

"You're little flower power doesn't scare me." Neva said, jumping out of the way. "Explosion."

One of the explosions managed to strike Flora and knock her to the ground. "Magical Vine Grab."

Vines wrapped around Neva, causing her to chuckle. "Is this the best you got? You must be the weakest of your pathetic group. You're such a worthless fairy." At that moment, the vines froze and shattered into pieces.

Krista appeared from the shadows and smiled a little. "You're sure taking you're sweet time Neva."

Neva glanced at Krista and smiled. "I do like to play a little with my prey. This isn't going to take much longer."

"Hurry up and finish her already." Krista said. "Her precious boy toy is already locked away. He put up more of a fight than this weakling fairy. Well, he would have if he had actually been given a chance."

"What have you done to Helia?" Flora asked.

Krista chuckled and turned her attention to Flora. "I'm sure you would love to know that little fairy. Don't worry. You'll be joining him soon enough."

"Lilac Vortex!" Flora called out. 'Please be alright Helia.'

Neva winced a little and glared at the nature fairy. "You haven't defeated me yet fairy. Frost Arrow!"

Flora cried out in pain and dropped to one knee. 'I have to keep fighting.'

"You're done for." Neva said. "Snow Prison!"

"Infinite Echo!"

Krista growled a little and looked over to see Musa. "You won't last long with both of them Neva."

"I didn't ask for your opinion Krista." Neva said. "We'll just have to take out both of them. You deal with Musa. Flora is all mine."

Krista nodded and readied a spell. "I hope you're ready Musa. Shadow Bind!"

Musa dodged the attack and fired off another attack on Krista. "You won't win this battle."

"Chlorophyll Bolts!" Flora called out.

Neva cried out in pain and was knocked back a few feet. "So you do have some fight in you. It won't do you much good. You've become weak and I still have plenty of magic left. Snow Prison!"

Before Flora could react, she was surrounded by a cage of ice and snow. 'I have to get out of here.'

"You should pay more attention fairy." Neva said. "Watch as your body freezes."

Flora took notice to the freezing, trying to figure out a way to get free. 'What should I do?' "Life Essence."

"Crystal Voice!"

Krista held her ears and winced a little. "You'll pay for that fairy. Dark Trance."

'What's happening to me?' Musa thought, dropping to her knees.

"Musa?!" Flora yelled.

Neva smirked and prepared her next spell. "Frost Arrow!"

Flora cried out in pain and fell to the ground. 'I can't move. My magic is almost drained.'

Neva laughed and walked up to Flora. "I almost feel sorry for you. Absorption." At that moment, a ring-shaped emblem with a rose in the center appeared and faded into Neva's amulet. "Another fairy down."

"Not bad Neva." Krista said. "Unlike you, I didn't have trouble with my target." Without hesitation, she took Musa's fairy essence. "A diamond with a treble clef in the center. How am I not surprised? Let's get out of here before the remaining winx show up."

Neva nodded as both her and Flora disappeared into ice. 'If I had to guess, there are only three more winx fairies to go. They are dropping like flies.'

Krista smirked and disappeared into shadows with Musa. 'Taking down the winx is taking too long. I was hoping for a better fight than the one I just had. Or perhaps this amulet has made me a lot stronger than I thought.'

Shadow Lair

Shadow sat on his throne as Draegan, Neva, and Krista appeared. "Well done you three. That leaves Tecna, Stella, and Bloom."

"Not to mention their boy toys." Krista said.

Shadow shot Krista a small glare and smirked. "Right you are Krista. Next time let me finish. The fairies are a bigger threat than their lovers. It should be quite easy to deal with them. Focus on Bloom. She will pose a large problem."

"Of course master." Krista said.

Ulrik smirked to himself and glanced at Krista out of the corner of his eye. 'I can't let her see anything. Krista could give me away at any moment. If I say or do anything she doesn't like, I'm done for.'

"Draegan." Shadow said. "You and Ulrik will deal with Bloom. Now leave me. I want to be alone with these fairies." He smiled as the others disappeared, leaving him alone with Flora, Musa, and Aisha.

'Why would Shadow make me team up with Ulrik?' Draegan thought. 'He would definitely be at a disadvantage against Bloom. Oh well. Who am I to question Shadows' orders? Maybe I can get Ulrik to tell me what's going on between him and Krista.'

Neva appeared in her room and stared out the window. 'How long will Shadow keep sending us out on these missions? It's pathetic really. Making us do all the work while he does nothing. Not to mention the fact that he won't allow us to take the essence of fairy boy. He better watch his back. You will get what's coming to you Shadow.'

Ulrik appeared outside with Draegan and looked up at the sky. 'I don't exactly want to be stuck with Draegan, but at least I get to be away from Krista.'

"Where to partner?" Draegan asked.

Ulrik sighed a little and glanced at Draegan. "Where else? Domino. And try not to get too carried away."

"Sure thing." Draegan said. "As long as you tell me what's going on between you and Krista."

Ulrik shot Draegan a small glare before opening up a small portal. "That's none of your business. Besides, this is not the time or place for that."

"I was just curious." Draegan said. "One way or another, I will get the truth out of you."

Ulrik smirked and stepped through the portal with Draegan. 'He won't stop until I say something. Perhaps I should tell him. I'm just not sure if he can be trusted.'

Shadow smirked as dark flames surrounded the three fairies. Almost instantly, their Bloomix wings appeared on the wall. 'These wings are very nice additions to my collections. And soon, I will have all the winx wings on display.' He chuckled as the walls lit up, revealing all the wings he had collected over the years. Right above his throne were a pair of wings that were displayed in a golden case. 'The grand jewel of my collection.'

Krista walked up to a cell with a lone prisoner inside and smirked. 'No one will find you here Helia.'

'