Okay, this is a nice short little chapter, but with the Resort Realm and the confrontation with Lord Darkar looming it's probably gonna be the last short one you read so enjoy it while you can.

Chapter Eighteen – Heart of Cloud Tower

"How serious do you think Jacob's getting with that nurse?" Brandon asked, stretching his legs out as he sunned himself on the grass after class one afternoon. If there was one thing he really liked about Red Fountain's new campus, it was the gardens on the upper level. The grass, the trees, the open walkways and the sound of the water running off the four points of the school gave off a calming, Zen-like feel and it was nice to walk straight out of class and lounge in such an environment. Brandon had a feeling that this relaxing area was going to come in a lot of handy during his senior year and his final exams.

"Brandon, for the last time; she's not going to leave Jacob for you so quit hoping for it," Sky told his squire, lying down on the grass with his arms folded behind the back of his head.

"Oh, I've given up on that. Hell, I'd date Jacob if it meant extra dessert. I'm just worried that they're gonna get engaged and then Jacob's gonna leave us."

Timmy looked up from his PHA that he was sorting out some program in horror. "He can't leave. Who will make our crème brûlée?"

"They can't get married," Sky said sternly as if he had some say in the matter. "They've only been dating for what? A year? Isn't that moving a little fast? And Jacob can't leave Red Fountain. It's his job."

"It's not his only source of income. He owns a couple of restaurants in town and he was saying ages ago how he really wanted to get back into being that whole head chef thing," Timmy reminded them. "I guess we can't expect him to stay here forever."

"He doesn't have too. He's just gotta stay till we graduate," Brandon told his friends as he shifted down lower onto the ground so that he was resting back on his elbows. "Then and only then he can do whatever he wants."

"What do you think the food at Cloud Tower is like?" Sky asked, looking over in the direction of the school for witches.

"I dunno. They probably serve eye of newt, brain of dog and barbequed crickets," Brandon speculated before grinning wickedly. "Actually, it'd pretty funny to see them eat that kind of stuff. It'd be like those disgusting food challenged that have on those reality TV shows."

"I wouldn't do too well in those challenges," Timmy admitted.

"Oh, I would."

"Yeah, I believe that."

"I'm worried about the girls," Sky commented, his eyes still on Cloud Tower. There was an odd light coming for the school – well, odder than usual – and it was making Sky nervous. Even though he knew that had Dominique in there keeping an eye (reluctantly) on the girls, he still had a bad feeling eating away at his guts and it was enough to make want to jump on his levi bike and drive over there, school politics be damned.

"They're fine," Riven grunted as he sat down along side the three of them. Helia was also with him, but he sat down more gracefully than his roommate who just flopped down.

"How do know?"

"Because I friggin' do, shit head now quit your bitchin'," Riven snarled with sudden heat that caused everyone to back up.

"Riven's in a bit of a mood today," Helia informed them all calmly with a delighted little smile that caused Riven to swear colourfully at him, but Helia only grinned back as if he was utterly enjoying his roommates particularly foul temperament. As Riven ranted off a few more choice curses at Helia, he was simultaneously digging through the pockets of his jeans looking for something and it wasn't until he was telling Helia of some places where he could store his paintbrushes that he found what he was searching for.

"Are you still smoking?" Sky demanded sharply, but he regretted asking it as soon as Riven shifted his blazing violet eyes from Helia to him.

"No, this isn't smoking. This is frickin' bullshit! I may as well be smoking air with the amount of nicotine that in this shit! They're bloody lights for crying out loud! Only Alfea freshmen smoke this shit! Helia, you're friend Vincent's a cock spank and I should have never agreed to this," Riven ranted, confusing everyone, but Helia remained completely unfazed.

"You've never met Vincent so how would you know?" Helia asked calmly, digging through his book bag for something.

"I don't give a shit! This was a stupid idea and it's not . . ." Riven trailed off as Helia found what he was looking through his bag for and pulled out a familiar red and white box so that Riven's vision completely tunnelled. It was his packet of Smaug Red (1) cigarettes which he had been pinning for since the day Helia had decided he was going to help Riven quit smoking. The art student had replaced Riven's usual brand of smokes with a weaker, inferior bands, gradually working their way down to brands that Riven believed would never satisfy his nicotine fix, so when Helia had pulled out his Smaug Red's it was as if a former lover that he was still lusting after had returned to him. "Gimme."

"What's the magic word?" Helia taunted, holding the box out of Riven's reach.

"Now!"

"Hm, close enough," Helia shrugged, tossing the box at his roommate who greedily accepted it.

"I thought you were quitting," Brandon asked, trying not to sound too much like a parent chilling chiding a child, but Riven was too focused on trying to fumble the box open to even hear the question.

"He is," Helia answered for him.

"So then why did you just give him his cigarettes?"

Helia only smiled as Riven placed a cigarette between his lips and sparked his lighter. Lifting the flame to the end of the cigarette, lit it and breathed deep . . .

. . . and instantly stared to choke.

"What the hell?" Riven gasped, his eye watering and his chest was burning. He hadn't felt like that because of a cigarette since he first took up the habit over a year ago. A foul sickness gripped him and he suddenly had a feeling like he was going to be physically ill.

"You've been smoking cigarettes with a much lower nicotine content than the Smaug Red's," Helia explained calmly as Riven continued to suffer. "I think Smaug's have something like 3.5 milligrams while the other was only .05, so that's a bit of a jump (2)."

"Are you enjoying this or something?" Riven snarled before falling back into another coughing fit.

"Immensely," Helia grinned widely. "I was kind of hoping you'd throw up."

"Oh shut up!" Riven snapped stubbing out the almost untouched cigarette and flicking it away. Still fighting the urge to be sick, Riven regarded the red and white box in his hand and then threw it at Helia's head. In one drag, the pacifist had had completely ruined Riven's taste for cigarettes. "I hate you."

"I know," Helia said smugly, putting the cigarettes back in his bag. He was sure he could find someone who wanted them. He was just about to return to taunting his roommate when there was a sudden shift in the air that made every student in Red Fountain freeze. It was a difficult feeling to describe, but it reached right down into their souls and left all who felt very uneasy.

Something powerful had entered Red Fountain, and it was not happy.

"What the . . ?" Brandon gasped, but no one could reply to him because suddenly things started to teleport to various places around the school. A bench that was situated under the shade of a tree suddenly vanished and was replaced with a can machine that normally stood just outside the doors to the cafeteria. School desks magically appeared outside, as did the beds of a few unlucky students, but it wasn't just inanimate objects that were being moved. Students suddenly found themselves being translocated to places where others had been standing seconds before, confusing and startling heroes everywhere.

"Do you think Lord Darkar's behind this?" Timmy asked, as he watched a sophomore get teleported six foot in the air only to crash back down again.

"He's already got our piece of the Codex, so I doubt it," Sky pointed out.

"Okay, then what the hell is that?!" Brandon panicked slightly as a glowing burgundy and violet mark appeared beneath where they were sitting. It was a large circle with a hexagon inside it along with several lines and symbols to make it resemble a transmutation circle used by alchemists, but one major difference with this mark had north, south and all the other directional points lining the outside of the circle like a compass. Before any of them could scrambled to their feet, the mark flared and all of them experienced a strong pulling sensation like someone suddenly yanking them backwards, and it was so strong that is actually slammed them all onto their backs. Blinking, the five boys tried to orientate themselves, but that was hard when they realised that they had somehow suddenly ended up inside someone's dorm room and looming over them was a very angry looking Dominique.

"You've got some nerve!" the witch growled in a deep, menacing voice. The boys had seen the cold, callous side of her nature and they had also seen her at her most excited, but they had never seen her angry before, and she was furious. Her lips were pulled back in an animalistic like snarl and her sea-grey eyes were blazing and had a reddish cast to them. Her skin was white hot in anger and even her burgundy dyed fridge seemed to be burning brighter. But no matter how terrifying and intimidating her physical stance was, it was nothing compared to the way her powers lashed out of her, acting in ways that they weren't entirely sure she was even conscious of. They all assumed that they had ended up in Lex's and Jared's room, but it was kind of hard to tell since ever piece of furniture, clothing, or any other random object in the room such as posters that had been stuck on that walls was being teleported to various places in the room again and again, moving so fast that it actually made the boys feel slightly motion sick.

In fact the only things not moving in the room was the five boys and the witch themselves, and of course Lex who was standing very still with wide eyes and his mouth shut as he watched his girlfriend shift his belongs around in an endless series.

"When the hell were you going to tell us about this Lord Darkar creep?! Huh?!" Dominique shouted, her face completely livid. The anger and power radiating off her was causing her hair to flying around her as if it was caught in a strong breeze and it was enough to keep the universes future heroes frozen in fear. "When were you dickless bastards and your Alfea skanks going to fill me and the rest of the witches in on this supposed end of the universe type scenario?! Did you even bother to factor us into you're plans to counter this threat?! God dammit! I am sick to death of this god dammed heroes and fairies show you've got going on! There are other people in the world, ass wipes! Hope you've realized that! Why is it that you have to be some uppity pixie with perky breast and your pussy on display before someone takes you seriously?! Huh?! Witches are a part of this world too!!"

"Look, Dom, I – " Riven started uncertainly, but the witch didn't want to hear a word of it.

"Silence!!!" Dominique screamed, making everyone flinch and cower backwards. The teleporting objects suddenly stopped, and whether it was a conscious decision by Dominique or just a coincidence, but everything was returned to its usual location. "Do you have any idea what kind of a week I've been having? First, you lot give me this damn task of looking after your slutty girlfriends when I would much rather be exposing them to a realmful of pain and torment, but then no other than our dear friends Icy, Darcy and Stormy show up and mess with the very foundations of Cloud Tower! So one of you better get me some alcohol or I swear to god I'm coming good on that threat to castrate you!"

"I'll just go get some for you, shall I?" Riven offered gently so as not to provoke her further. He chose to ignore the disappointed look Sky shot him.

"Wine, if you've got it. I want to get drunk quickly (3)."

"Red or white?"

"Both. Hold still. I'll get you there quicker." With a snapped of her fingers, Riven vanished with a loud crack, no doubt teleported to his room in search of alcohol. Sighing heavily, Dominique collapsed down onto Lex's bed. Her initial rage had dulled slightly to the point where she looked more tired than angry, and it was only then that the boys were daring enough to address her.

"The Trix came to Cloud Tower?" Sky asked, his chest constricting at the thought of Bloom in trouble.

"Yeah. I thought CT had seen the last of them after the Witch Invasion, but there they were, roaming the halls and messing with witches younger than them for the fun of it," Dominique informed them in a drained sounding voice. Wordlessly, Lex went over and sat on the bed behind her so she could lean against him. "It felt like I was in my freshmen year again."

"Are the girls okay?" Timmy asked her and he tried not to look intimidated when her sea-grey eyes flicked up from looking at her feet to lock on his.

"Which girls? Your fairies or the witches of Cloud Tower?"

"Both of them," Timmy assured her, though he was simply asking about the fairies. However, he believed that this answer would be better for his health.

"I'm touched by your concern," Dominique purred wickedly, hinting that she saw straight through him, but she made no other effort to pick a fight with him. "Both are fine. Cloud Tower is pulling itself back together after be violated by the Trix . . . again . . . and your little fairies would be back at Alfea by now. And yes, they're fine, just a bit bitchy due to a catfight spell that was put on them."

"A catfight spell? I thought you were supposed to trying and stop that kind of thing happening," Brandon snapped, but instantly regretted opening his mouth with Dominique glared at him with blazing eyes.

"I was supposed to sway the student body, you prick, which I did flawlessly by the way, but there is shit all I can do against teachers."

"A teacher spelled them?" Helia repeated in shock.

"Yeah, do not underestimate the level of hatred that exists between fairies and witches, Poet Man," Dominique told him in a deadly serious voice. Her attention shifted off of him, however, when the door opened and Riven returned with his fingers snaked around the neck of three bottles. "It's about frickin' time. God, what was keeping you?"

"Well excuse me for not possessing super speed," Riven growled, passing her two of the bottles before holding up the third. "I found a bottle of Fawks's homebrew. I figured we should drink it soon since I don't like having something that combustible sitting under my bed."

"Fair enough," Dominique nodded, cracking open the bottle of white wine and raising it to her lips. The boys watched half in shock and half in awe as the witch gulped the alcohol, downing a third of the bottle in one go. Slouching back against her boyfriend, Dominique held up the bottle and grinned lazily at it. "It's gonna be a fun night."

"So did the Trix end up getting Cloud Tower's piece of the Codex?" Sky asked as Dominique took another large swig.

"Yeah. I didn't even know we had a Codex, and now it's gone. What exactly does it do anyway?" Dominique slurred as she gulped down another mouthful of wine. The alcohol was clearly a calming agent for her and it was only then that the boys felt it was safe to hold a conservation with her.

"It's a key to the Realm of Realix where the Ultimate Power has been sealed away, and now Lord Darkar has two of the four pieces," Brandon explained.

"And a Lord Darkar is?"

"The Shadow Phoenix that lives in Shadow Haunt."

"Hn. Sounds ominous," Dominique commented dryly, tossing away the now empty bottle of white wine and moving onto the red. Any chance for anyone to respond to that was cut off by a soft knock at the door which opened to revile Headmaster Saladin with Professor Codatorta standing right behind him. All of the boys – particularly Lex – tensed since they were breaking Red Fountain rules by have alcohol and a girl in the dorm room, but Dominique – who was more than a little tipsy by this stage – simply grinned widely and held up her bottle of wine in cheers. "Hey guys."

"So, this is the source of the teleportation we've been experiencing this afternoon," Saladin smiled softly at the witch as he calmly entered the room.

Codatorta, however, was not so welcoming. "You do realise, young lady, that we don't allow alcohol on campus."

"You do realize, old man, that Cloud Tower has those same rules, but I spent this afternoon trapped in a wall so I think I deserve this," Dominique snapped back, taking a defiant swing of the red wine while glaring at the Combat Instructor who barely suppressed a growl.

"Oh, I think we can let it slide this one time. After all, she has had a rough few days," Saladin reminded Codatorta gently, before turning back to the witch. "I heard you had a bit of drama over at Cloud Tower."

"If you call fairy intruders, a Trix attack that turns our own school against us and the theft of a power relic that no one bothered to tell us about a bit of drama, then yeah."

"The decision to inform you of Codex was left up to your headmistress."

"Oh save it," Dominique snapped back, proving that she wasn't as drunk as she had let on when the headmaster had entered the room. "I already know how this is going to end up. For better or worse, it's gonna be Red Fountain and Alfea verses this Darkar creep at the final battle. Miss. Griffin might be there, but she'll be the only witch there besides the Trix. God, I feel like a second rate character in some TV show. There are three points of power, Saladin, and one of these days you're gonna wish that you paid more attention to us instead of focusing all your time on those damn pixies. We might not be as optimistic and perky as Alfea, but Cloud Tower has its own unique skills to offer."

"I would never take the witches of Cloud Tower for granted," Saladin assured her, but she didn't look convinced.

"Hn. Whatever," Dominique grunted, swallowing another mouthful of wine. "So what are our chances against Darkar?"

Saladin sighed heavily. "It's hard to tell. He's half way to obtaining the Ultimate Power and although Alfea and Pixie Village's pieces of the Codex remain hidden, I can't help but get the feeling that Lord Darkar has something up his sleeve. Something we haven't foreseen. But I know that if he ever gets his hands on the Ultimate Power, the universe will fall."

Everyone remained silent in the wake of Saladin's dark prediction, until Dominique hmmed as she regarded her almost empty bottle of red. "Well then, we're gonna need more alcohol."

(1) Smaug is the red dragon from the book The Hobbit (which should be out in cinemas in 2011! Yay!) and I think he'd be a good logo for a brand of cigarettes

(2) I personally have never smoked, but I'm friends with lots of people who do. While the idea of smoking has never appealed to me (mostly because they make you reek) I always love listening to peoples theories on the best way to quit smoking. I've heard a few such as always wait forty-five minutes and then if you still want one then you deserve to light up or you limit the amount of time you can smoke eg. never smoke under a roof. But the one I went with was the one where you smoke your way down till you get used to cigarettes that have a low nicotine content and then suddenly jump back up to really strong ones so the taste will make you sick. Buggered if I know if it actually work but I'm sadistic enough to enjoy putting Riven through it

(3) I love wine for that exact reason. Whenever I got out I like to get a nice glass of white (but never chardonnay. Hate that stuff) because it's so much cheaper than spirits and I'm not that big a fan of beer

I'm with Dominique about how one sided this three points of power bull shit is. The poor witches never get to have any fun. You've either got to be a Trix and have your asses kicked by a bunch of fairies three years younger than you or you're a helpless spectator who never does anything asides from standing by and letting your school get overrun

TBC.