Hi everyone, thanks again for waiting. I apologize for the delay, but I have been getting extra hours at work, which is great for my wallet, it also leaves me with less time to work on my stories as I do have a life outside of Fanfiction. But anyways, thank you again for waiting. Now, with all that being said, let's get started.
And Happy (late) Thanksgiving to you all.
Gladiatorial Clash
The group of girls consisting of Jade, Will, Taranee, Cornelia, and Alchemy walked down the streets of Heatherfield when Hay Lin and Irma caught up to them.
"Hey, where are ya'll going?" Irma asked.
"Pet store." Jade answered. "Gotta get some dog food for Scruffy."
"And I'm getting Caleb's bird-thing some seed." Cornelia added.
"I didn't know Caleb had a bird." Alchemy said. "Is it like a hawk or a falcon? He seems like the type."
"Neither." Cornelia answered. "It's more like some kind of magic parrot from Meridian that can repeat anything it hears."
"Yeah, and he traded Blunk a flashlight for it." Taranee added.
Hay Lin gave a swoony sigh. "When a girl gets seed for her boy's bird, I call it love."
"Hmm, it takes all of you to go buy pet food?" Irma questioned somewhat skeptically.
"Did you know Matt's grandfather owns the pet store?" Will told them. "And…you know… sometimes Matt stops by."
"Ooooh." Virtually all the girls said at the same time, with Jade playfully nudging her best friend's side. "You so got the hots for me."
"Speaking of, when are you gonna get a boyfriend, Jade?" Cornelia asked.
Jade shrugged. "Eh, not interested."
"Why? Cause your last boyfriend turned out to be a demon?" Cornelia teased.
"No, but now that I think about it, I think demon-boy would be perfect for you." Jade teased back. "You're both pushy, scrawny, self-obsessed, and down-right evil."
"Ouch!" Alchemy snickered while everyone else laughed, save for Cornelia who merely grumbled.
It wasn't long before the girls arrived at the pet store, which was considerably small, having cages and pens for at least one of every type of animals; from dogs to rabbits to aquariums with different types of fish, to even snakes, birds, and even certain insects and arachnids.
As the girls looked around, Taranee noticed that one glass terrarium next to her had a rather large spider in it. "Ew!"
"Taranee, tarantula, you could be related." Irma teased.
"Well, I wouldn't want a spider either." Jade added. "Mostly cause I'm still not over the time Phobos shrank us and put us in a glass jar with one."
"And the fact that one of his buddies is a shape-shifting spider-girl doesn't help either." Alchemy also added.
"Hello! Mr. Olsen?" Will called out.
However, Jade suddenly felt a chill down her spine. "Uh guys…" Before anyone else could address her, the door behind them suddenly closed with the blinders for the windows closing as well. All the cages and pens for the animals opened up around them, further putting the girls on alarm.
"Mr. Olsen?!" Hay Lin called out to the shop owner, only for her and everyone else to gasp at the sight of the unconscious elderly man floating in the air. Behind him however appeared to be the being who was responsible for all this; someone they clearly did not expect.
"Elyon?!" Cornelia and Alchemy exclaimed as they saw the transparent figure of their best friend/Meridian princess.
"I wanted you all to see what I've been learning!" Alchemy stated as a series of powerful psychic waves, which belonged to someone else that Jade recognized with gasp, which began to shake up the entire shop as if it were hit with a powerful earthquake. All the animals seemed to go crazy from this sudden shake up and spread even further chaos through the store as each of the girls fell on their rears or backs on to the ground.
"Goodbye, friends!" Just as quickly as she appeared, Elyon had suddenly vanished, and all the chaos in the store had died down; save for the animals that were loose outside in their pens.
Once she vanished, Mr. Olsen appeared to have woken up. "What… what in…? Holy mackerel, what happened?!" He looked around to find the state his shop was in. "Why are they all out of their cages?!" He questioned as he picked himself up. "Can... can I get a hand here, girls?"
As the girls tried to collect themselves and help straighten out the shop, Cornelia and Alchemy exchanged concerned glances while Jade had a suspicious expression on her face.
'Nice try, but you can't pull a one-over on me, Tarakudo!'
Just outside the shop in the back alley, the ghostly figure that bore the resemblance of Elyon smirked evilly as it revealed its true form as the floating spirit head that was the King of the Shadowkhan.
"That outta 'shake up' their friendship a bit." Tarakudo chuckled at his own joke as he looked toward the back wall and began to telekinetically carve his symbol into it in order to begin generating a portal that would take him to the Shadow Realm and then back to Meridian.
However, Tarakudo didn't appear to notice that someone was right behind him on the rooftop of the pet shop. After escaping prison, Hak Foo decided to cut his ties with Valmont as his former employer's only focus seemed to be money, which was of little interest to the Black Tiger. So instead, Hak Foo decided to stalk the girls he knew where the civilian identities of the Guardians, hoping that they might incidentally lead him toward a way to obtain magical powers and become stronger.
Once he saw Tarakudo's work in the pet shop at play, his interest was piqued. Right as the black swirling portal was created, Tarakudo floated directly into it, right before Hak Foo himself leapt from the rooftop and fell directly into the portal, just before it closed.
Meridian
Tarakudo entered Phobos' throne room through the walls, where the dark prince himself, along with Daolon Wong and Cedric, in his humanoid-serpent form, all waited for him.
"Well?" Phobos questioned.
"It worked almost perfectly." Tarakudo smirked. "Sewing distrust between former friends always makes quite a show."
"Even if they don't fall for it, this will bring maybe one or two of the Guardians that are closest to Elyon to us, in an attempt to suede her." Cedric hissed sadistically.
"Thus, giving us the means to divide the Guardians, making it easier to crush them!" Daolon Wong snickered.
The group heard the doors beginning to open as Cedric quickly turned into his human form, Tarakudo merged in a stained-glass window, and Phobos threw up the illusion for his throne room just as Elyon and the Dark Chi Enforcers all walked in.
"Elyon, what can I do for you, dear sister?" Phobos offered.
"I've just been kind of wondering what's been going with all the extra patrols." Elyon said. "It's kinda putting everyone on edge."
"Princess, you are a target for the Rebellion, and their leader is not one to give up so easily." Cedric answered.
"There is also the matter of your friends, under the influence of the Heart of Kandrakar." Daolon Wong added. "So extra precautions are necessary."
"But you need not worry Elyon." Phobos assured his younger sister. "I give you my word, you are completely safe. Isn't that correct?" He directed his question to the Enforcers, sending a subtle glare their way, which Elyon didn't appear to notice.
"Eh… yeah. Totally safe." Finn quickly said.
"No bad guys ain't gonna touch this princess." Chow added.
"Cross our hearts and hope to…" Ratso began to say, however…
A sudden and familiar yell was heard as Hak Foo suddenly burst down into the throne room from the ceiling before landing on his feet and one hand on the ground. Nobody quite had the time to react as Hak Foo leapt into the air again, his target being the Dark Chi Enforcers as Finn pulled the surprised Elyon away.
"Flying Elephant Stomps Rat!" Hak Foo literally crushed Ratso upon landing, causing him to vanish in a puff of dark smoke.
"An intruder?!" Daolon Wong exclaimed in surprise.
"Guards! To the throne room! Immediately!" Phobos ordered as he quickly made his way to the ground and moved in front of his frightened sister.
"Hak Foo?!" Chow exclaimed before putting on an innocent act. "Uh… what brings you to this side of the cosmos?"
Hak Foo's only response was him grabbing Chow. "Woodchuck Chucks Weasel!" Hak Foo threw Chow across the throne room, causing him to puff away in smoke upon crashing into the wall just as a dozen guards entered the throne room.
"Cedric, escort Elyon to safety! Now!" Phobos ordered his right-hand.
"Right away." Cedric had already begun to lead Elyon away. "Follow me, princess."
"Phobos…!" Elyon was more than a little worried as she was escorted out.
"Don't worry, I can handle this. Just go." Phobos assured as Elyon had left. Once she was gone, Phobos, Daolon Wong, and even Tarakudo, who had come out of his hiding spot, began to watch with interest as Hak Foo dispensed with Phobos' guards rather easily.
"Charging Rhino Flattens Ghazel!" Hak Foo charged and headbutted one guard to send him flying away. "Stubborn Mule Kick!" He performed a hand-stance to deliver an upside-down split-kick to the heads of two more guards before spinning his feet around like a helicopter blade. "Spinning Eagle Talons!" This move easily dispatch the remainder of the guards as the villainous trio looked more intrigued.
"Most impressive." Daolon Wong stroked his beard with an intrigued smirk.
"He must have followed me from Earth through the Shadow Realm. Not an easy feat for the ordinarily mortal." Even Tarakudo was impressed.
"And he was able to infiltrate my castle on his own without even setting the alarm." Phobos smirked as well. "Yes, most impressive indeed."
With all the guards dealt with, Hak Foo approached his only remaining obstacle. "Dude, dude, dude!" Finn urged him. "You're making us ookle adbe in front of the ossesbe." He said in Pig-Latin, but Hak Foo wasn't interested.
"Shark Bites Bottom Feeder!" He lunged and delivered a powerful strike that caused Finn to vanish like the rest of his companions before turning toward the villainous trio, Phobos specifically.
"I understand that you are the main adversary to Chan and the Guardians, dark prince." Hak Foo spoke to Phobos as he approached him. "Allow me to suggest you end your conflict against them, as they are foes that I intend to slay!" He was about to strike Phobos as a warning, but Phobos had already grabbed him with his magic and pinned him to a nearby pillar as the prince chuckled with amusement.
"Then by all means, oh mighty warrior, slay them… for us!" Phobos gave an evil grin as he turned to his wizard companion with a nod. Daolon Wong then aimed his staff and blasted a dark chi magic surge at Hak Foo, which began to engulf him in dark energy as a familiar mark was etched on his forehead.
Meanwhile, Caleb and Aldarn, hid in the swamp below the castle, just outside the main wall as they looked up the massive stone obstacle to see if the coast appeared clear, which it did. Caleb also carried with him the bird that Cornelia had described.
"Show him the crackers." Caleb told Aldarn, who pulled out some crackers from his sack, which the bird attempted to eat, but Aldarn pulled them away. "Not yet." Caleb told the bird. "Over the wall, then crackers. Now go observe." He ordered the bird, before sending it to fly over the wall.
Caleb and Aldarn waited a few hours before the bird returned and repeated what it heard from the guards. "An intruder entered the castle. Double the patrols. Phobos' orders."
"Someone else broke into the castle?" Aldarn questioned.
"Whoever it was, they weren't from the Rebellion." Caleb groaned in annoyance while handing a cracker to the bird for its reward. "With doubled patrols, it'll be that much harder to enter the castle."
"But maybe the bird can get a closer look than we can." Aldarn suggested.
"Observe." Phobos told the bird before sending it back up. "We've got to find Phobos and his friends' plans for Elyon. If I could just get a timetable, a location, anything!" Suddenly, a light flashed on them, causing them both to gasp in alarm. Only for it to turn into annoyance as it was revealed to be Blunk with a flashlight.
"Blunk here. Brought crackers for birdie." Blunk walked to the pair, right before Caleb took the flashlight away to avoid their location being revealed to the enemy. He then took the sack that Blunk had and looked inside, only to find nothing.
"It's empty."
"Blunk get hungry too." The Passling smiled innocently.
Meanwhile, within the castle's library, Daolon Wong had returned a certain golden book to its shelf as he appeared alone, with Phobos, Cedric, and Tarakudo discussing their next move in the throne room.
"My new warrior shall make it easier to dispense of the Chan, the Guardians, and any other annoyances that my bard my way." Daolon Wong spoke to himself as he placed a spell over the golden book, causing it to change appearance from golden to a normal book. "The Book of Secrets, once thought to be a myth, and now in my possession. Whatever that fool has planned for his sister, is nothing compared to what I've devised, though the King of the Shadowkhan's appearance and conversion with Phobos is unexpected, it's not without a solution." He chuckled as he left the library, not appearing to notice a familiar bird that hung over the chandelier on the ceiling.
Earth – Uncle's Rare Finds
After getting the pet shop straightened out, the girls all returned to the Chan's family shop where they told Jackie, Uncle, Tohru, and even Yan Lin, what had happened.
"Elyon attacked you?!" Jackie exclaimed in surprise.
"Yeah! Completely out of nowhere!" Hay Lin stated. "She was all, Princess of Evil, on us!"
"Maybe she was under some kind of spell?" Cornelia said, trying to stand up for her friend.
"Probably, except that wasn't Elyon." Jade stated, getting everyone's attention.
"What?" Alchemy questioned.
"How do you know?" Irma also asked.
"Call it a gut feeling." Jade explained. "And my gut's telling me, that was really Tarakudo."
"Well, it would explain everything flying around." Will seemed to understand. "We have seen Tarakudo do that kind of thing before."
"But why would Tarakudo take the appearance of Elyon? What does he have to gain from this?" Tohru asked.
"To sew distrust." Uncle assumed. "By making it seem that Elyon has fully committed herself to the Forces of Darkness, it will be easier to make her a clear enemy."
"Well, wouldn't be the first time he's tried that." Taranee said, glancing toward Jade, who looked down with an expression of regret over her actions as the Queen of the Shadowkhan, with Will putting a gentle hand on her best friend's shoulder for comfort.
"That floating head punk has got a lot of nerve pulling a stunt like that!" Alchemy growled, not happy about the idea of Tarakudo using the image of her best friend to frame her.
"So, let's go to Meridian and try to talk to Elyon!" Cornelia suggested, only to get smacked on the forehead by Uncle. "Ow!"
"We cannot charge into domain of evil so recklessly!" Uncle chastised. "That is precisely what Phobos and other villains want!"
"So, what? We just leave Elyon!? Forget about her?!" Cornelia questioned.
"Cornelia, I understand your concerns, but Uncle is right." Jackie told the blonde in a calm and rational tone. "We can't afford to act rashly. We need to remain calm about how we proceed."
"I agree with Jackie." Yan Lin said. "An opportunity to tell Elyon the truth will present itself, but we must be patient."
"Sorry Cornelia." Even Will agreed. "But I gotta go with Jackie and Miss Lin on this. I get it, she's your best friend, but remember what happened last time we tried something like that?"
"I do." Hay Lin raised her hand. "We got shrunk down and almost eaten by a giant spider."
"And after that, we had that whole mess with Elyon's 'ghosts', and we still couldn't find the real one." Taranee added.
"Yeah, not in the mood to charge head-on into the lion's den." Irma said.
"At least not without a plan." Jade commented.
"That's pretty ironic coming from you." Alchemy said to her.
"Yeah well, I learned." Jade replied.
Cornelia couldn't help but sigh as everyone around her came to the same agreement, and she couldn't change their minds. However, that didn't mean she was entirely satisfied with it.
Meridian
After finding what appeared to be a hole in the castle's defenses; Caleb, Aldarn, and Blunk had snuck into the courtyard, trying to find a way deeper into the castle.
"Alright everyone, stay on guard." Caleb told the duo. "Keep an eye out for anything that moves. Anything that looks like a person or a face, a statue, a painting, anything like that."
"Good plan." A dark and familiar voice said as the King of the Shadowkhan emerged from ground behind them, much to their shock. "Expect I'm not entirely limited to stuff like that."
"AW! FLOATING HEAD THING!" Blunk screamed before Tarakudo unleashed a psychic wave to blast all three of them back, right before the alarm was sounded and guards began to mobilize.
"So… that's Tarakudo…?" Aldarn asked with a groan as they pulled themselves up.
"Yep." Caleb confirmed as they made a run for it.
"Yeah… floating head… way scarier than Phobos." Aldarn said as they tried to run up the stairs to the outer wall, avoiding the arrows shot in their direction, as well as the small psychic blasts that Tarakudo sent their way.
The trio was already on the wall but found themselves cornered in all directions from the guards, with Tarakudo himself hovering above them. Caleb drew his katana, ready for a fight. "Blunk! Throw the onions!"
"Uh… Onion?" Blunk blinked nervously.
"The onions I told you to bring with the bird crackers?!" Caleb exclaimed.
"Oh… Blunk did say Blunk was hungry… onions taste good with crackers so…" Blunk gave a nervous chuckle.
Caleb groaned in annoyance. "Oh for the love of…!?" Suddenly, he, Aldarn, and Blunk were pulled up into the air with Tarakudo's telekinetic powers.
"Well, it's been nice having you over boys." Tarakudo remarked. "But next time, call first." He then sent all three of them flying away from the castle with a burst of his powers.
Meanwhile, from a higher balcony of the castle, Daolon Wong watched with amusement as he saw the whole spectacle. But, looked in surprise to see a familiar bird attempting to fly in the same direction he saw the rebels fly in. Recognizing this type of bird, Wong grabbed it from the air with dark magic and pulled it close to him as the bird spoke.
"Whatever that fool has planned for his sister, is nothing compared to what I've devised." The bird said in a squawk, causing Wong to gasp slightly as he recognized those words from his own mouth.
"Clever, little rebel." Wong growled. "But I cannot have you reveal any secrets." He then blasted the bird with his scepter, killing it in an instant. "Only one thing shall ever know my secrets."
"What about birdy?" Blunk asked as he, Aldarn, and Caleb made it back to the portal, further away from the castle.
"It'll return to the village." Caleb answered. "I'm going to Earth to get supplies. If it says anything about Phobos' plans for Elyon, I need to hear it." He briefly shook Aldarn's hand before entering the portal, while Blunk and Aldarn ran back toward the village.
"Why did you not capture the rebels, Tarakudo?" Phobos questioned as he sat on his throne, with the Oni King floating slightly above him, and Cedric right by his side. "I know you have the power to do so."
"Because this will help to further persuade a Guardian to come." Tarakudo remarked. "Any single Guardian, even one who doesn't bear the Heart, will be a more valuable prisoner, and that much easier to bring down the others."
"But in order to fully commit Elyon to our side, I think it's time that she understands just how evil the Rebellion truly is." Cedric hissed, causing Phobos and Tarakudo to share malevolent smirks, catching his hint.
Elyon wondered around the castle's library, looking for something that might elevate her boredom. However, her attention was caught on a nearby bookshelf as she saw one of the books look almost odd. To an ordinary person, it was a normal book, but with her own growing magic powers, she was able to see something of a pulsating dark energy around it, which appeared to be some form of concealment spell.
"Huh… what do we have here?" She wondered aloud as she touched the energy, taping a bit of her magic on to it, which cleared away the illusion to reveal the golden Book of Secrets, much to her surprise. "Whoa!" Curiosity taking hold, Elyon took the book from the shelf and began to inspect it. When she tried to open it, she found herself unable to as it appeared to be sealed shut, even though there was no lock on it.
Even though she was unable to open it, Elyon took the book to her bedroom, if only to admire the shiny gold cover.
"Cornelia would love this. Gold's her favorite…" However, upon recalling her best friend, she gave a sad sigh. "I wish you here with me." She said as she looked at her sketchbook.
"Elyon?" She turned to her open doorway to see both her brother, as well as Miranda. "I apologize for what happened earlier. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, Phobos." Elyon said as she got up from her bed. "Who was that guy anyway?"
"Someone from the Rebellion." Phobos lied. "But he's been dealt with, so don't worry."
"That's good." Elyon was indeed relieved, but that relief didn't last long as she looked down in sadness. "I miss my friends."
Phobos kneeled closer to her level as he appeared to give her a comforting expression. "And I am sincerely sorry that it's taking me so long to help them. Their powers, as well as their corrupted state, has made it… challenging. Finding a method to subdue them without harming them, while also doing my best to ensure my own soldiers aren't harmed either hasn't been easy."
"Is there anything I can do?" Elyon asked. "Daolon Wong has taught me so much, and I've got better control with my magic, and it's only grown stronger."
"Of that, I don't doubt." Phobos replied. "But still, you must be careful. Even with your powers, the Rebellion is crafty. They'll find a way to get to you, so you must be careful. What is most important, is that you do not let your power go to your head and make reckless mistakes. I've made more than my fair share in my youth."
Though saddened, Elyon understood what her brother was saying and trusted him for it. "Alright. But still, if there's anything I can do…"
"You'll be the first to know, I promise." Phobos assured.
"Hey Elyon, you know what might cheer you up?" Miranda offered. "How about we go explore the village?"
"Really? Is that alright, Phobos?" Elyon asked.
"So long as you stay with Miranda." Phobos assured. "I'll even have Cedric accompany you. Just be sure you don't wonder off on your own."
"Okay. Thanks." Elyon gave her brother a brief hug before Miranda took her hand and led her away.
Once they were out of earshot, Daolon Wong approached from behind with a group of Lurdens behind him. "You know what to do."
"Of course." Daolon Wong sneered as he turned around and aimed his scepter at the Lurdens, casting a dark illusion over them that made them take the appearance of soldiers of the Rebellion.
Earth – Sheffield Institute
Cornelia opened up her locker to pull out a photograph of herself, Elyon, and Alchemy. "Will and Jackie are not going to stop me from seeing Elyon." She muttered to herself.
"Cornelia!" Alchemy called to her as she, Will, Irma, Hay Lin, and Taranee all came around the corner, each with their own set of gym clothes. "What are you waiting for? Gym starts in five!"
"Oh no…" Cornelia feigned ignorance. "You know what? I forgot my gym clothes at home!"
"Take whatever you need from our lockers." Taranee offered.
"Yeah, you know the combos. Borrow anything I've got." Will said as she and the other girls left for the gymnasium.
"Okay… I will." Cornelia smirked as she opened up Will's locker first to pull out the Heart of Kandrakar. "Okay… what was the spell Miss Lin taught us?" She muttered as she looked around the hallway and saw the coast was clear. "Oh right. Spord Lartsa!" With those two words, an identical Astral Drop of Cornelia materialized right in front of her.
"Wow, so that's how the Astral Drop spell works. Cool." Jade said from behind with a smirk.
"I know, Jade." Cornelia replied, before her eyes widened in shock as she turned around in surprise. "Jade!? What are you…?!" Suddenly, the Astral Drop of Cornelia vanished, much to Cornelia's shock. "Where'd she go?!"
Jade gave a slight scoff. "Cause when a Guardian says, 'Astral Drop', they go away. Miss Lin taught us that, duh."
"Yeah… but… forget it, what the heck are you doing?!" Cornelia questioned.
"I could be asking you the same thing." Jade replied. "But I already know. You're gonna sneak off to Meridian and try to talk to Elyon, right?"
Cornelia scowled as she made no attempt to deny it. "Don't try and stop me, Jade."
"Who's trying to stop you? I'm coming with you." Jade revealed, much to Cornelia's surprise. "I might not be as close to Elyon as you are, but she's my friend too. Plus, I can be extra handy since I get the willies now every time Mr. Oni King is around. And besides, I snuck into Phobos' castle when this whole mess started. And do you even have a plan as to how you get in?"
"Well… I uh…" Cornelia tried to come up with an explanation.
"No plan, huh?" Jade crossed her arms with lowered eyelids. "Well, good thing I got this." Jade presented the Snake Talisman. "The perfect sneak-in magic tool."
"Why do you even have the Talismans?" Cornelia asked. "You're a Guardian now, it's not like you need them."
"Well since Alchemy's getting involved, figured to have them handy just in case." Jade answered. "So, what are we waiting for? Let's get going. Be sure to create an Astral Drop of me, while you're at it."
Cornelia still didn't appear to be completely over her shock at Jade actually volunteering to go with her. But then again, this is Jade they were talking about. "Jade… I…listen. I get we're not BFFs or anything, I mean not as close as you and Will are but… thanks." She said with a small smile.
"No problem." Jade said. "And we are friends." She assured before a serious look formed on her face. "Which is why, the second I get the willies, or we end up running into any other bad guy, we bolt. I know you wanna talk to Cornelia, but we can't exactly do that if we're dead."
"Deal." Cornelia nodded as she held out the Heart of Kandrakar again. "Spord Lartsa!" This time, Astral Drop duplicates of both Jade and Cornelia appeared in front of both of them. "Okay, follow these instructions." Cornelia addressed her own Astral Drop as she handed her a list. "It's like, what I know and how to behave and stuff. And don't tell our friends anything."
"Um… what do I do?" The Astral Drop of Jade asked as Jade herself began to address her.
"Just the same thing." Jade said before whispering into her ear as she slid a small note in her sweatshirt pocket. "Give that to Uncle Jackie when you see him. There's also a photo of him if you forget what he looks like." The Astral Drop nodded as the real Jade gave a wink. "This is so much better then when I used that duplication spell on me."
Cornelia had also taken out the magic map from Will's locker and shined the Heart of Kandrakar over it and managed to find a portal, identified by a glowing red X.
"Looks like we got a portal." Jade observed.
"Better hold onto this too, just in case." Cornelia put the map and Heart away as she addressed her Astral Drop and put on a coat of lipstick as her double did the same, almost like she was looking into a mirror.
"Uh, Earth to Cornelia, kinda in a hurry here!" Jade urged.
"You can't rush perfection." Cornelia said as she put her lipstick away.
"I'm not rushing perfection, I'm rushing you." Jade joked.
"Ha, ha." Cornelia laughed in clear sarcasm as she took Jade's hand, allowing them both to turn invisible as the later held the Snake Talisman.
Both girls, still remaining invisible, walked through the streets of Heatherfield, toward the destination where the map said the portal would be when the Heart of Kandrakar began to pulsate in Cornelia's pocket, much to the blonde's frustration.
"I don't think it likes you." Jade made another joke, which Cornelia ignored as she tried to speak to the Heart itself.
"Look, I know I'm not Will, but you gotta stop with the sound."
"Why'd you even bring it anyway?" Jade asked. "Will's the only one who can use it to transform the rest of us."
"I know, but who knows, maybe we can use it." Cornelia said.
"Or maybe we could practically drop it directly into Phobos' grubby hands, making it impossible for our friends to transform and rescue us if we get caught." Jade said in a matter-of-factly tone. "And I'm telling you from experience, more than half the time I sneak in with the bad guys, I get caught."
"Jackie's still got the moves, even without magic." Cornelia argued. "Look we're not gonna pick a fight with anyone, and you said you can get us into the castle, right? We'll sneak in, find Elyon, tell her what's going on, grab her and get out before Phobos or Tarakudo know what's up."
"Fine. But if we get caught, it's your fault." Jade said as the invisible duo rounded the corner and into an alleyway to find the portal they were searching for.
"'These are your friends. Don't let them see these cards.'" Astral-Drop Cornelia read her instructions aloud, which also carried a photograph of her friends. She turned it over to reveal another set of instructions, with a photograph of Uncle on it. "'This is Uncle, do not go near him under any circumstances. He'll probably figure you out and smack me. Also, his breath stinks.'"
Astral-Drop Jade also looked at the note she had which had a picture of her uncle Jackie on it, with a set of instructions on the photo. "'This is Uncle Jackie. When you see him, give him this.'"
"Cornelia, Jade." Both Astral Drops turned around to see Will and the others approach them.
"Will." They both said at the same time.
"What happened? You guys missed gym." Irma told them.
"Yes, we did." Astral-Drop Cornelia said
"Where can I find Uncle Jackie?" Astral-Drop Jade asked the group. "I am supposed to give him something."
This only caused the girls to look at each other with confusion.
Meridian
Elyon walked through the town along with Cedric, Miranda, and even the Dark Chi Enforcers acting as her bodyguards.
"This is a nice change of pace." Elyon said. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the castle; but it's nice to step outside."
"Eh… yeah. Really stuffy in there." Chow commented.
"Help!" All of them were on alert as they saw a guard quickly run toward them. "The rebels! They've started a fire!"
"What?" Elyon questioned in surprise as Cedric stepped up, appearing to take command.
"You three, stay with the Princess and Miranda." Cedric instructed the Enforcers. "I will deal with this." He then addressed the guard. "Take me to the rebels!" They quickly ran off in the direction where smoke was coming from
"Wait…!" Elyon was about to follow him, but Miranda stopped her.
"Cedric knows what he's doing. Just trust him." Miranda told her.
With great reluctance, Elyon stayed behind. "I can't believe the rebels would go this far…!" Elyon muttered as her fists clenched; all the while the Enforcers looked toward each other with expressions of guilt and uncertainty.
Earth – Uncle's Rare Finds
Caleb had a map laid out on the table for Jackie, Tohru, Yan Lin, and Uncle to see, which appeared to identify what he knew of Phobos' castle. "Alright, Elyon's room is in this tower." Caleb pointed to the map. "It's one of the center-most towers in the castle, and the most difficult to get to, unless you can fly."
"But with someone like Tarakudo or even Daolon Wong, flying there would be a difficult task." Tohru commented.
"Due to the many times Phobos' castle has been infiltrated, he and his allies have taken every precaution necessary to ensure that another such an infiltration is no longer possible." Uncle said.
"What about this area right here?" Jackie asked, pointing toward what appeared to be some kind of arena on the map. "It seems the least guarded."
"That's Phobos' arena." Caleb described with a low growl. "Here he has prisoners and monsters fight each other for his entertainment. It might be the least guarded, but only because so many of his troops go there, so there isn't that much of a need to guard it."
As the group began to think, they heard the shop's bell ring as the girls all came in through the front door. "Guys, something's off with Cornelia and Jade!" Alchemy stated. "They're not acting like themselves!"
"What do you mean?" Caleb asked as he and the others looked with concern.
Astral-Drop Cornelia looked at her set of instructions. "I like shopping."
"That kind of weird." Irma pointed out.
"That is because this is not really Jade and Cornelia. These are their Astral Drops." Yan Lin spoke, much to everyone's surprise.
Astral-Drop Jade looked toward her note with a photograph of Jackie attached to it. "Are you Uncle Jackie?" She asked the man whose appearance was identical to that on the photo.
"Yes?" Jackie nodded with uncertainty.
"I am supposed to give this to you." Astral-Drop Jade handed Jackie the note, which Jackie took and began to read aloud.
"Dear Uncle Jackie, if you're reading this, it means you found mine and Cornelia's 'clones'. We went to Meridian to try and find Elyon. Well, Cornelia, knowing her, was gonna go anyway, so I went with her to make sure she doesn't bite off more than she can chew. Don't worry, I took the Snake Talisman to make it easier to sneak in. But if you don't hear from us in two hours from when you read this, assume we've been captured. I know you're probably disappointed as you told us all to wait, but Cornelia was probably going to do something like this, and I probably couldn't stop her unless I glued her feet to the floor. Sorry, hopefully we'll be back soon. Jade."
This was quite a surprise for the whole group. "So, this is how the Astral Drop spell works?" Hay Lin asked, resulting in the Astral Drops of Cornelia and Jade vanishing. "Oops… when a Guardian says it, they go away… forgot about that."
"Aiya! What are foolish girls thinking?!" Uncle exclaimed.
"Maybe you rubbed off too much on Cornelia." Irma said to Caleb as Will immediately began to search her backpack.
"Hey, I wouldn't do something this reckless!" Caleb protested, only to have Uncle deliver a dope-slap to his forehead. "Ow!"
"How many times has Rebel-boy been captured due to reckless nature?" Uncle reminded Caleb. "At least Jade has foresight to use Snake Talisman power to sneak in!"
"But this is still a dangerous and reckless move for them, especially for not telling the rest of us about it." Tohru said.
"I agree." Yan Lin said. "If Cornelia and Jade are in Meridian, you must go there immediately."
"Uh huh, but not as the Guardians." Will said as she finished searching through her bag.
"Why not?" Taranee asked.
"Because one of them took the Heart of Kandrakar!" Will revealed.
"Jade's note doesn't mention the Heart!" Jackie stated after looking over Jade's note again.
"Cornelia probably took it then." Tohru assumed.
"AIYA!" Uncle exclaimed. "Without Heart, girls cannot transform! Only bearer of the Heart has that ability!"
"Darn it Cornelia." Alchemy smacked her forehead. "I wanna see Elyon again too, but this is just crazy!"
"Get the other Talismans." Jackie instructed with a serious expression on his face. "We're going to Meridian, now!"
"And find Blunk, we need a portal!" Will also stated, as the whole group was already on their feet.
Meridian
Thanks to the Snake Talisman, both the invisible Jade and Cornelia had snuck into the castle with little effort. They were able to follow the patrolling guards, being careful not to make a sound, as they entered the main gate before searching the inside of the castle.
"Any willies yet?" Cornelia whispered to Jade.
"Not yet." Jade replied. "But keep it down. The Snake Talisman keeps us from being seen, not heard."
"Right." Cornelia nodded as they remained invisible, rounding a corner, while sticking close to the walls to avoid the patrolling guards. After a couple minutes of searching, the pair heard a trio of familiar voices.
"Man, I really feel bad keeping the kid in the dark like this." They heard Ratso's voice around the corner as they saw the Enforcers talking right outside a door. "She's sweet."
"Yeah, not like that psycho brother of hers." Chow commented.
"It's not like we can tell her, she probably won't believe us." Finn said. "And there's also the fact that Phobos and co. would have our heads if we spill the beans."
"Think that's Elyon's room?" The still-invisible Cornelia asked her companion in a whisper.
"Only one way to find out." Jade said, while remaining invisible, she spotted a table next to her with a vase on top. She kicked the table down, to knock over the vase and shatter it, getting the attention of the Enforcers.
"Hey, what was that?" Chow asked.
"It came from over there." Finn said as he, Chow, and Ratso went over to investigate, leaving the door briefly unattended as the invisible Jade and Cornelia snuck in. Much to their relief, this was Elyon's room as the princess sat on her bed, looking in confusion as the door appeared to open and then close on its own. However, the two invisible girls revealed themselves as Jade put the Snake Talisman away.
"Cornelia? Jade?" Elyon looked in surprise as she stood up from her bed.
"Elyon, I had to see if you're alright." Cornelia said as she pulled out the phot of herself, Elyon, and Alchemy. "You're my best friend, and I brought you this to remind you of that. I would still do anything for you. And please don't say 'anything' until you let us explain what happened back on Earth."
"You two really shouldn't have come here." Elyon told them.
"Look, I don't know exactly what Phobos and his buddies have told you, but I can promise they're all lies!" Jade stated. "We can even show you! If you just come with us…"
"I'm sorry, but I can't do that." Elyon told them. "I know you two and the others think what you're doing is right, but that Heart of Kandrakar thing is brainwashing you! It's corrupting you with its power!"
"What? You think it's like Lord of the Rings or something?" Jade asked. "Look, just hear us out okay!?"
"Please Elyon! We're not brainwashed!" Cornelia pleaded. "We're your friends! Don't you remember any of the good times we had?!"
"Of course, we do! And that's why I want to help you!" Elyon stated. "And I'm going to help you! But with the fire that rebels started in the town, I can't afford to play it safe!"
"What? What fire? What are you talking about?" Cornelia questioned when suddenly, Elyon waved her hands, and both Cornelia and Jade were encompassed in a magic bubble. "Elyon, no!"
"I'm sorry guys, but this is for your own good." Elyon told them with an apologetic look on her face. "Guys!" She called out to her guards outside as the Enforcers walked into her room.
"Hey, what is…? What the?!" Finn exclaimed in shock upon seeing the trapped Jade and Cornelia.
"How'd these two sneak in?" Chow questioned.
"I don't know but take them to my brother. Maybe he can undo their brainwashing." Elyon told them, right before Ratso took the bubble and dragged it away with Finn and Chow right by her side, with Jade and Cornelia trying to pound their way out, but unable to so much as dent it.
In little time, the trapped Jade and Cornelia were brought to Phobos' throne room where he, Cedric, Daolon Wong, and Tarakudo resided. Before they could even begin questioning their captives however, the magic pool on the floor just beneath the throne came to life to reveal 'magical footage' of the group consisting of Jackie, Will, Irma, Uncle, Hay Lin, Tohru, Taranee, Alchemy, Caleb, and Blunk scaling the rocky hillside that led to the rear of the castle.
"Chan, the Guardians, and their allies all approach; but in Earthly form. Interesting." Phobos mused.
"Perhaps they merely wish to be discrete in their approach, suspecting another frontal assault to be futile." Daolon Wong assumed.
"Maybe." Tarakudo didn't seem that convinced as he looked closely at the two captive girls; with Cornelia looking a little intimidated, while Jade glared. "You two wouldn't happen to know something that we don't, would you?"
"Kiss my butt, Taradork!" Jade exclaimed in defiance.
"Well at least your retorts are original." The Oni-King commented.
"Regardless, your plan did indeed work Tarakudo." Phobos congratulated. "You lured two of the Guardians, which has brought the rest to our doorstep."
"Happy to be of assistance." Tarakudo smiled.
"My prince, what of Elyon?" Cedric asked, getting the attention of not only Jade and Cornelia, but also Finn, Ratso, and Chow.
"Ah yes…" Phobos began as his magic pool shifted to reveal Elyon's room as she herself seemed to be sitting on her bed. "My sister would not want to see the demise of her erstwhile friends." He threw some magic dust over the pool, which sinked into it and actually appeared in Elyon's room, over the girl's head before she fell onto the bed, much to the shock of the captured girls and the Enforcers.
"No! Elyon!" Cornelia exclaimed.
"Whoa, what just happened?!" Chow questioned.
"She is merely sleeping." Phobos said as he stood up from his throne. "Come, let us go greet our other guests." He prepared to walk out with the rest of his associates.
"What of these two?" Wong asked, referring to Cornelia and Jade.
"In their current state, they are of no threat to us." Phobos brushed off. "We'll deal with them later." He and everyone else left the throne room, leaving Jade and Cornelia alone, still contained in the magic bubble.
Meanwhile, the rest of the heroes had snuck in through the gladiatorial arena, which seemed unusually dark as they tried to find their way into the castle.
"Okay, there should be a sewage pit around here somewhere." Caleb looked around, when suddenly Tarakudo felt a chill down his spine, much to everyone's worry.
"Tohru?" Jackie asked with concern.
"Let me guess, the Willies?" Taranee asked with a gulp as they all knew exactly what that meant.
"Yep." Tohru confirmed.
Suddenly, multiple flames lit up all over the arena, illuminating everything to reveal that all the stands were occupied by virtually every guard and Lurden that worked in the castle; all of which cheered and roared with anticipation.
"Trap?" Will asked as the entire group circled up with their backs to each other.
"Trap." Jackie confirmed.
At the uppermost balcony of the stadium, Phobos sat on his personal chair with Tarakudo, Cedric, Daolon Wong, Miranda, and the Enforcers all by his side. The dark prince rose from his throne, raising his hand in the air to silence the crowd.
"Welcome, my friends!" Phobos greeted his subjects. "This is bound to be our greatest match yet! Jackie Chan and the Guardians of the Veil….!" This announcement was met with a series of boos, directed to the heroes.
"And this is why I hate away games." Irma muttered in minor annoyance.
"Against my newest and most deadly warrior yet!" Phobos finished as he looked toward Wong with a nod.
"Zen!" Wong shot out his staff to send a dark magic bolt onto center of the arena, in front of the group of heroes. When the smoke cleared, their opponent stood in front of them. He was a Dark Chi warrior, but one unlike any other they've seen thus far.
He was far muscular than all the others, with a steel-plate appearing to be embedded onto his chest. His dark red hair was tied back in a long and fiery-shaped ponytail, with a familiar mustache and beard pattern. One look at his face, and the heroes all knew who he was.
"Hak Foo?!" They all exclaimed in shock.
"Ah, I see you've already met." Phobos addressed with a sneer before addressing the Dark Chi Hak Foo. "Warrior, please reacquaint your old friends with the new you."
"With pleasure, my prince." Hak Foo sneered himself before leaping high into the air. "Phoenix Flies to Moon!" He exclaimed as he shot high enough into the sky that he completely vanished for a second. Next thing they saw coming down was a blue fireball, which completely engulfed the falling Hak Foo. "Meteor Brings Mass Extinction!"
"RUN!" Jackie exclaimed as the group tried to clear the away, right as Hak Foo landed with explosive results; the shockwave sending all of them, even Tohru, flying and rolling hard across the ground.
"Tiger-boy's been hitting the magic gym…" Irma groaned as they tried to pull themselves up.
"Daolon Wong has turned Hak Foo into Dark Chi warrior!" Uncle exclaimed with distress. "All his strength and power are further enhanced by dark magic!"
"As if this guy wasn't scary enough already." Taranee gulped as they saw Hak Foo step out of the self-made crater.
"Tornado Decimates Trailer Park!" Hak Foo spun his body so fast that it created a miniature tornado, complete with electric bolts of pure friction as he spun like a top, shooting toward the group.
"Everyone scatter!" Jackie ordered as the group tried to run away, while the Hak Foo tornado gunned straight for Jackie. The martial artist purposely ran toward and leapt over each and every obstacle in front of him, hoping it would be enough to slow down Hak Foo, but that did not seem to be the case as he obliterated everything around him.
Will tried to come in around the side along with Taranee as they shot out blasts of eyebeams and fire-blasts respectively, from the Pig and Dragon Talismans. Both blasts hit the tornado and sent it crashing into the wall. However, Hak Foo stepped out of the smoke and cracked his neck before leaping at the two girls, forcing them to split as his axe kick impacted the ground, causing a minor tremor which shook up the entire arena and knocked most of the group off their feet.
Caleb tried to leap up at Hak Foo from behind and get him with his katana, but Hak Foo caught the blade with his hand, not even bothering to turn around as he delivered a kick that was strong enough to send Caleb crashing into the wall, resulting in cheers from the crowd, which was likely toward Caleb's pain for being the leader of the Rebellion.
"Hey big guy!" Alchemy exclaimed as she used the Monkey Talisman to transform into a large elephant. She then tried to charge him, but Hak Foo actually grabbed the elephant by her tusks and lifted her up into the air before throwing her into the wall where Caleb was recovering. Thankfully he rolled out of the way before the elephant impacted the wall, right before Alchemy changed back to normal.
"Hey, you guys keep him busy! I got an idea!" Irma said to Tohru and Hay Lin specifically. They both nodded as Hay Lin hovered in the air, courtesy of the Rooster Talisman, while also telekinetically picking up multiple weapons scattered over the arena.
"Hey Hak Foo! Have a taste of this!" Hay Lin called to him before throwing all the weapons at Hak Foo, but he quickly sliced with each of his hands at such a rapid pace, it was almost a blur as he sliced through each weapon with extreme precision. However, this proved to be a distraction as Tohru grabbed him from behind with a bear-hug.
"Hold him still!" Irma exclaimed as she used the Ox Talisman to dig her palms into the ground and pull up a huge slab of the ground before walking over to Hak Foo with it, who merely flexed his arms to break free of Tohru's grip with little effort. "Hey, time for you to go poof big boy!" She threw the slab at him, but Hak Foo stood perfectly still as the slab hit and broke in half once it made impact with his head, much to everyone's shock.
"I do not 'poof'." Hak Foo said, brushing off some debris form his shoulder before walking toward the frightened Irma and knocking her away with a back-slap.
Back with the villains, Miranda gave a chuckle as she saw this. "Now this is entertainment."
"Yes, a wise addition to our army." Phobos smirked before it briefly faded. "Unlike three certain failures who have done little more than serve as embarrassments!" He glanced at the Enforcers specifically, who glared at him in response while Ratso blew raspberries at him.
Uncle drew his blowfish to shoot multiple chi-blasts at Hak Foo, who proved far too quick for Uncle to even get a hit as he leapt and dodged each attack before leaping into the air to try and deliver a double-fist strike toward him. Fortunately, Jackie zoomed in with the Rabbit Talisman to pull his Uncle out of the way just as Hak Foo landed as most of the heroes all began to regroup.
"Something's off." Tarakudo noticed. "They're using the Talismans, but the girls aren't transforming."
"How can that be… unless…" Phobos gave a gasp of realization. "They don't have the Heart of Kandrakar! The other two, they have it! You three!" He stood up to speak directly to the Enforcers. "Bring those girls and the Heart of Kandrakar to me at once!"
"Who? You mean us 'failures'?" Finn questioned out of spite.
"Why don't you ask your precious Hak Foo?" Ratso also questioned in an equally spiteful tone.
"Why don't I twist your bodies till they break!?" Phobos exclaimed as he blasted all three of them with his magic and literally began to twist their bodies like pretzels.
"We're on it…" Finn groaned in pain-induced reluctance.
"You say 'jump'…" Ratso began.
"We say, 'how high?'" Chow finished before all three were picked up in Tarakudo's telekinetic grip.
"I'll go as well and make sure they don't mess this one up." Tarakudo volunteered as he disappeared, and the Dark Chi Enforcers were pulled into the castle.
"Cedric, Wong, Miranda; you three stay by Elyon's room and make sure nobody enters!" Phobos ordered. "I will stay here and personally watch the end of these infernal pests who have plagued me for so long!"
"As you wish." Miranda smirked as she transformed into her humanoid-spider form before Wong waved his staff to encompass himself, as well the two shapeshifters near him, before the smoke vanish, along with all three of them; leaving Phobos alone to continue watching the battle below.
"We're going nowhere against this guy!" Will exclaimed as she aimed the Pig Talisman again to blast heat-beams from her eyes at Hak Foo, only for him to cross his arms and tank the blast with little effort. "We gotta find Jade and Cornelia and hope they got the Heart!"
"I doubt this guy's just gonna let us leave!" Taranee exclaimed as she tried to flank Hak Foo and shoot a blast of fire from the Dragon Talisman, but Hak Foo leapt over the blast and tried to strike at Taranee as he came down; but Hay Lin picked up a piece of debris with the Rooster Talisman and threw it Hak Foo to knock him off course, but he recovered quickly enough before leaping toward Hay Lin, who hovered higher into the air to avoid getting grabbed.
Jackie however noticed the hole Irma made in the arena when Irma pulled the slab from the ground. "Caleb, can you get into the castle from there?"
Caleb noticed the hole as well. "Yeah, I can."
"Good. Take Blunk, Alchemy, and Uncle, the rest of us will keep Hak Foo busy." Jackie instructed.
"Uh… we will?" Irma asked with a gulp.
"Yes, we will." Tohru confirmed as he tried to charge Hak Foo to keep him distracted, but Hak Foo easily caught the sumo with one hand before throwing him away. This however was enough of a distraction to allow Caleb, Uncle, Blunk, and Alchemy to sneak away through the hole as Hak Foo faced the heroes, Will specifically.
"Your turn, leader of the Guardians." Hak Foo said menacingly.
"Um… take five?" Will said with a nervous chuckle, but before Hak Foo could even strike, Jackie was able to use the Rabbit Talisman to grab and pull Will out of the way just before Hak Foo's fist obliterated the wall that he punched.
Back in the throne room, Jade and Cornelia still remained trapped within the bubble, unable to escape. "I don't wanna say I told you so." Jade said to the blonde. "Oh wait… I totally wanna say I told you so!"
"I'm sorry, okay!? I didn't ask you to come with me!" Cornelia argued.
"And you would have been caught by yourself, regardless!" Jade argued back. "Take it from someone who has experience!"
Cornelia couldn't even find a proper argument, knowing how right Jade was. However, she felt a pulsation in her pocket and pulled out the Heart of Kandrakar. Once she and Jade looked inside, they saw the face of their friend.
"Will? Are you here?" Cornelia looked in surprise before the Heart began to glow, creating a surge of power that was enough to break the bubble and free the two girls. "We're out!"
"And you're also in." They heard Tarakudo as he appeared as well, with the three Dark Chi Enforcers below him. "In a serious amount of trouble, that is."
"Yeah? Well so are you!" Cornelia pulled out an onion from her pocket and threw it at his face.
"UGH! MY EYES! MY EYES!" Tarakudo screamed as he 'cried' green energy before vanishing, much to the surprise of the Dark Chi Enforcers.
"Well, that was anti-climactic." Chow stated before he and his friends turned to see Cornelia and Jade had completely vanish.
"Huh? Where'd they go?" Ratso looked around, only for an invisible force to stomp on his toe and push him toward the window, causing him to crash into it and fall out of the castle.
"Whoa! What just happened?!" Finn questioned as he and Chow looked outside where Ratso had fallen, only for the same invisible force to push them out the window and send them falling as well.
"And that is how it's done." Jade said as she and Cornelia turned visible again briefly, before giving each other a high-five, and turning invisible once more to leave the throne room.
Meanwhile, Caleb led Uncle, Blunk, and Alchemy through the lower levels of the castle. "Caleb, you are going wrong way!" Uncle told him as they ran toward a stairwell.
"Look, I've infiltrated and scouted this castle before!" Caleb stated. "I know where I'm going…!" Suddenly he and the rest of his group were cut off by a plum of dark smoke, revealed to be Daolon Wong, Miranda, and Cedric.
"See? Wrong way." Uncle said, much to Caleb's annoyance.
Wong was the first to attack as he blasted dark chi-magic from his scepter, which Uncle retaliated with a beam of his own chi-magic from his blowfish. Both blasts collided and pressed against each other while Cedric and Miranda moved around them to engage Caleb and Blunk respectively.
Caleb rushed past Cedric, slicing at his side with his katana, causing Cedric to hiss in pain before he slammed his tail into Caleb to smack and pin him against the wall. However, right before Cedric loomed over him, Caleb stabbed the katana into Cedric's hide, causing him to wail and release his grip before Caleb ran up his body to slice at his face with his sword.
At the same time, Alchemy used the Monkey Talisman to transform into a bird and fly around to avoid the shots of webbing that Miranda shot at her. She then flew directly behind Miranda and transformed into a large black bear that grabbed Miranda in the form of a literal bear-hug, which Miranda had a hard time breaking out of.
While the villains were kept busy, Blunk climbed up the next set of stairs before finding his way toward the door that led into Elyon's room. He took a quick whiff of the door.
"Girl here." Blunk said before sniffing further. "Three girls."
Back in the arena, the spectating guards and Lurdens all cheered as Hak Foo appeared to be wining against the group of heroes. Despite them wielding the Talismans, they appeared to be no match against Hak Foo's marital arts experience and newfound powers as a Dark Chi warrior. Honestly, the only thing that kept them going was Jackie providing relief with the Horse Talisman, which he quickly zoomed to the nearest downed girl, or Tohru, once they were down; but even he was now becoming exhausted.
Hak Foo punched the ground to send a powerful shockwave that knocked away Tohru and Irma, sending them flying and rolling across the ground. He then picked up Tohru and threw her at the hovering Hay Lin, too fast for her to dodge with the Rooster Talisman, causing them both to crash and fall hard on to the ground. Taranee tried to blast him with fire from the Dragon Talisman from behind, but Hak Foo had leapt over the blast and landed behind Taranee to deal a kick that sent her flying all the way to the other side of the arena.
Jackie zoomed over with the Rabbit Talisman to Taranee and provided her some much-needed healing with the Horse Talisman, but also found himself cornered as Hak Foo was already directly in front of him. Jackie stood protectively in front of Taranee and attempted to punch him in the chest, only to feel as if he had just punched a steel wall, and maybe broke his knuckles. Jackie winced and tried to wave the pain away, only for Hak Foo to grab him by the shirt, turn around, and punch him to send him crashing into the wall on the other side, resulting in cheers from the crowd, and a satisfied, yet malevolent, smirk from the spectating Phobos.
Hak Foo slowly approached the downed Jackie, but Will quickly blocked his path. "Hold on! Time out for a second! Take a good look at yourself, Hak Foo!" She told him. "Phobos and Wong have made you their personal attack-dog, their slave! Is this really what you want? To be some kind of… inhuman monster for the rest of your life?!"
Hak Foo looked directly into her eyes with an evil smirk. "Yes." He said before grabbing Will by her coat and pulling her close.
"Elyon! Please wake up!" Cornelia tried to shake her awake, but it didn't seem to work. "What's going on with her?!"
Jade however noticed that Elyon's face was covered with sand, the same kind of sand Phobos used when he casted her spell. "Looks like she had a visit from the sandman." She brushed the sand out of Elyon's face, which began to stir her awake. "Rise and shine, sleepyhead."
As Blunk climbed onto the bed, he noticed the Book of Secrets. "Oooh, pretty gold square… Ow!" He felt a smack on his forehead from Uncle, who had just arrived along with Caleb and Alchemy.
"Not square, book! And book contains powerful magic." Uncle stated as he picked up the book.
"Elyon! Cornelia! Jade!" Alchemy exclaimed upon seeing her friends again. "I was really worried for all of you!" Though Cornelia and Jade were also glad to see her, Elyon still appeared drossy.
"Princess Elyon, the rebels are all behind you." Caleb bowed to Elyon, who appeared to be almost fully awake.
"Real this time, no ghost." Blunk asked.
Suddenly, the door burst open to reveal Wong, Cedric, and Miranda, the two shapeshifters in their human forms, while all three of them, looked more than a little angry.
"Talk later! Time to go!" Jade exclaimed.
"Everyone, get on!" Alchemy used the Monkey Talisman to transform into a giant condor, one big enough for everyone to get on except for a certain princess.
"What about Elyon?!" Cornelia asked.
"We'll come back! But we gotta go!" Jade exclaimed as Condor-Alchemy was already flying out the window. Once they made it outside, they flew just above the gladiator arena to see most of their friends beaten down, with Hak Foo holding up the defeated Will by her legs from a ledge near the stands.
"Whoa… is that Hak Foo?!" Cornelia exclaimed.
"Looks like he's Dark Chi turbo charged." Jade observed.
"Do not just sit there! Give Will Heart!" Uncle exclaimed as Alchemy tried to fly closer.
Will looked more than a little nervous as Hak Foo held her upside down by her legs. "Heh, good thing I didn't wear a skirt."
"Finish them, warrior! NOW!" Phobos ordered.
Hak Foo smiled evilly as he looked down at Will. "Shall I, make a wish?" He was ready to rip her in half when the shadow of a giant condor appeared over him, much to his surprise as it flew down with its passengers.
"Will! Catch!" Cornelia threw the Heart of Kandrakar toward her, which Will was able to successfully grab and said the magic words as soon as she had it. "Guardians Unite!"
In their usual flashy demeanor; Will, Jade, Irma, Cornelia, Hay Lin, and Taranee all transformed into their respective Guardian forms as J-WITCH as they hovered over the injured Jackie and Tohru, while Alchemy set down before turning back to normal as she, Uncle, Caleb, and Blunk tended to them.
"Ah yeah! We're back baby!" Jade exclaimed with a fist-bump.
"Alchemy, you and the others look after Jackie and Tohru, the rest of us will handle Hak Foo." Will instructed as all six of them flew toward Hak Foo, who only smirked upon seeing them as Guardians.
"Finally." Hak Foo leapt toward them with his super-charged strength. "Tyrannosaurus Swats Flies!" He tried to smack them out of the air, but they all flew away to avoid his devastating strikes.
Taranee was the first to attack by throwing a volley of fireballs, which Hak Foo braced himself to defend against. While Taranee appeared to have had him pinned, Cornelia used her control of the earth to not only shake up the ground but grow a series of plant tendrils which had completely ensnared and cocooned Hak Foo. Taranee then lifted a series of large rocks from the ground before throwing them at the immobilized Hak Foo. However, he need only flex his arms a bit to escape the bindings before leaping into the air, punching each rock to dust that was thrown at him before grabbing the surprised Cornelia and slamming her down hard onto the ground as she fell.
Suddenly, Hak Foo was blasted by a powerful torrent of water, courtesy of Irma. While Irma continued to spray him, Hay Lin inhaled deeply before exhaling to blow a powerful breeze of cold air, in an attempt to freeze Hak Foo. However, the ice wouldn't hold him as he raised his hands and brought them down onto the ground to create a shockwave to blow the Guardians back slightly and break the ice off his body.
Jade then flew directly at Hak Foo with a clump of shadow magic in her hand, which Hak Foo attempted to retaliate by throwing a punch. "Volcano Blows Top!" However, the clump of shadows not only completely absorbed the attack, but even trapped Hak Foo's fist. Jade then flew over and quickly landed behind Hak Foo to pin his other hand in the growing clump of shadows to pin his hands behind his back.
"He's all yours Will!" Jade exclaimed as she kept Hak Foo pinned, leaving him open for Will to fly in and deliver an airborne roundhouse across Hak Foo's face. She then threw out a series of powerful punches and kicks across Hak Foo's body, which did appear to cause him some form of pain, but not as much as Will's fists were feeling.
"Ugh! Feels like I'm punching a steel wall." Will winced as she waved her hands in a similar manner to Jackie. However, Hak Foo was able to channel enough strength into his hands to break free of Jade's shadow-bindings, grab her and throw her at Will to send them flying into the air, but they quickly recovered and regrouped with their fellow Guardians.
"Even with our powers, he's still more than a match for us!" Taranee stated.
Will began to think as she looked toward her hand and just realized she still had the Dragon Talisman with her. She then appeared to get an idea.
"Hay Lin, make a tornado around Hak Foo! A big one!" Will instructed. "One powerful enough to bring him into the air!"
"Got it." Hay Lin nodded as she flew down and began to spin around Hak Foo, channeling as much of her air power as she could. Already, she began to create a large tornado that had already began to pull Hak Foo into the air.
"Everyone! Throw as much elemental power as you can into it! Now!" Will ordered. As per her instructions, Taranee sent a torrent of flames into the tornado, with Irma blasting a stream of water from her hands. Cornelia even pulled as many rocks as she could and threw them into the vortex, be they big or small. Even Jade threw in a stream of shadow magic into the mix. "He may not go poof… But let's see him go boom!" Will shot out the Dragon Talisman to shoot a concentrated fire-stream into the elemental vortex, which was the equivalent of throwing a match onto gasoline.
*BOOM!*
The explosion caused everyone; Jackie, Alchemy, Uncle, Caleb, Tohru, and Blunk, who had all recovered thanks to the Horse Talisman; along with Phobos and the spectating guards and Lurdens, to look away and avoid being blinded by the flash. Once it subsided, they all heard Hak Foo's screams as the explosion had sent him flying straight up at least two hundred feet into the air before coming back down, landing on the ground, poofing away on impact.
"What do you know? He does poof." Jackie noted.
Finn, Ratso, and Chow sulked as they continued to hover in the small pocket dimension within Daolon Wong's staff, when suddenly, Hak Foo appeared as well, indicating he had been defeated too.
"Hey, welcome to Loserville." Finn gloated.
"Aw, don't look so sad, big guy." Ratso also rubbed in.
"Yeah, you're one of us now." Chow mocked as well.
"Ugh… Shut up." Hak Foo said in a pouty groan.
"Hell Yeah!" Jade exclaimed as she and the other five Guardians all shared an arial-high-five before setting down with the rest of their friends. "And the crowd goes wild!" Her only response was a rock thrown at her, one of several that the guards and Lurdens all threw with a series of disapproving boos and groans. "Literally!"
"Are you not entertained?!" Irma exclaimed, putting on a gladiator-tough-guy impression. "Huh?! Are you not entertained?!"
"Come on, it's time to go." Jackie said to the group as they made their retreat. With Alchemy transforming into a giant condor again to carry Jackie, Tohru, Uncle, Caleb and Blunk, to fly away alongside the six Guardians.
"Elyon, are you alright?" Phobos asked as he came to her room.
"Yeah…." She groaned slightly, shaking off the last of the sleep spell. "Phobos… Caleb… he… he bowed to me… said the rebellion was on my side…"
"You know they can't be trusted." Phobos told her. "Get some rest, I have to check on the rest of my guards." He left the bedroom. However, as he left, Elyon looked only confused. For a second, she could have sworn she also saw Alchemy alongside Cornelia and Jade. She then looked at the photograph Cornelia had given her, the one of herself and her two best friends. For a moment, she seemed a bit unsure about what was going on.
Earth – Uncle's Rare Finds
"Ow! Ow! Ow!" Uncle had dope-slapped Cornelia three times before moving onto Jade.
"Ow! Ow!" Jade only got two slaps, but they still hurt.
"You both kinda deserved that." Will scolded. "What you two did was totally reckless and stupid! And Jade… I thought you at least learned your lesson about doing stuff like that!"
"No… guys don't blame Jade; it was my fault." Cornelia defended her. "The whole thing was my idea, she even tried to stop me."
"No, I went alone with it." Jade confessed. "I just thought that with… you know… experience… we could get in and out with little trouble."
Jackie gave a small sigh. "Well, at least you had the foresight to not only use the Snake Talisman, but you also gave us a message just in case you two were caught. And while I am impressed by that, Jade, I'm still disappointed in both of you. I thought we made it clear that we made our decisions as a group and not so recklessly act."
"Yeah, and you're right to be disappointed, Jackie." Cornelia admitted. "But I had to see for myself. Elyon hasn't changed. It's like Caleb said, she thinks we've been brainwashed, like the Heart of Kandrakar is some kind of Lord of the Rings type of deal."
"I kinda saw it too." Alchemy added. "That look in her eyes hadn't changed at all. So maybe… is there a chance we can get her back?"
"If Elyon believes her friends to be brainwashed, it also means that she believes that all of you can be 'saved' and there's good in you." Tohru said. "Perhaps if we are able to provide her with hard evidence, maybe we can convince her."
"But it's gonna be a lot harder to get to her now." Taranee pointed out. "Phobos is probably gonna tighten up his defenses even more."
"Not to mention Hak Foo of all people is now super dark-chi juiced." Irma added.
"Yeah… that's gonna be a problem." Hay Lin winced.
"Forces of Darkness have indeed grown stronger, yes." Uncle said. "However, we still have acquired something very interesting." He revealed the golden book that was taken from Elyon's room and set it on the table.
Yan Lin gave a gasp upon seeing it, while everyone else didn't seem to recognize it.
"A book?" Jackie asked.
"A book that is surrounded by powerful magic." Uncle explained. "None of my chi spells are able to open it."
"Let me try." Jade took the book along with a hairpin. "There's never been a lock that I couldn't… what the heck? There's no lock on this thing!" She looked in surprise when Yan Lin took the book into her hands. "Miss Lin?"
"Could this be… the Book of Secrets?"
"Miss Lin, do you know what this book is?" Jackie asked once again.
"I've heard a few stories…" Caleb began. "Somewhere in Meridian, there's supposed to be some kind of book that's also a… magical diary… that absorbs and stores all the secrets of whoever owns it."
"If this is that very same book…." Tohru began.
"And it was in Phobos' possession…" Jackie continued.
"…Every plan he has for Elyon… every evil thought… is locked inside." Yan Lin finished as the whole group looked at the book with surprise and interest, while the book itself seemed to shine, almost like it was tempting the heroes to try and open it, if they dared.
Done.
How did you all like this chapter? I had plenty of fun writing it. It may be late, but Hak Foo is now a Dark Chi warrior, which only makes the heroes' job that much more difficult. I decided against using the Mogriffs, mostly because they're never seen again after this episode in the cannon. And it seemed like the perfect opportunity to introduce Hak Foo as a Dark Chi warrior, so I went with that route. But, on the plus side, the heroes were able to recover the Book of Secrets, which they think has Phobos' secrets, when it in fact, actually contains those of Daolon Wong.
Things are certainly getting interesting, even more so as we resume the quest of the Oni Masks in the next chapter. I look forward to writing more of this story and surprising all of you with what I have planned in future chapters.
Until then, stay safe and stay healthy out there.