Hi gang! Thanks for the reviews Lord of Darkness 2099 and Orion 101. And a special Thank-you goes out to Invader Spyder and Irma Rokz; you two have turned in multiple reviews already. I thank you for your opinions and advice. Now let's go on with the story…
Disclaimer: I still don't own W.I.T.C.H. and I never will…
Disclaimer 2: WARNING! The following chapter contains graphic violence.
Chapter 5
Elyon sat on the steps leading up to her throne listening to her friends recount the tale of their battle with the Knights of Vengeance. Her jaw dropped as the Guardians recalled every detail they could remember. Elyon had suspected that Irma had been captured when Hay Lin had broken down so violently just a few minutes ago. But she thought it had been accidental, or otherwise unintentional; she never dreamed they would try something so bold on purpose. But not only had they tried it, they had succeeded. Now Elyon and the remaining Guardians had to find their friend fast; there was no telling what the Knights would do to Irma if left to their own devices.
Will," Elyon asked, "You say they just folded away?"
"Yeah. They grabbed Irma and somehow opened a fold."
"Great…that means they could be anywhere on Meridian." Elyon stated the obvious.
Taranee spoke up. "Wherever she is, it's not anywhere near the Palace…I can't contact her telepathically."
"Well maybe that just means she's unconscious…she wouldn't be able to answer you anyway, right?"
Taranee shook her head. "It doesn't work like that El. Even if Irma were unconscious, I would still be able to at least feel her mind, even if she couldn't answer me. If she were close enough, I would know."
"What if she's dead? Would you be able to feel anything then?" Cornelia glared at four shocked faces. "What? I'm just saying what everyone is thinking!"
Hay Lin met Cornelia's glare with an icy glower of her own. "Irma's tougher than that Corny. She's alive…I know it."
Will intervened before Cornelia and Hay Lin could start arguing again. "They wouldn't capture Irma for the sole purpose of killing her. What would be the point? Something tells me they have something else in mind."
"Like what?" Hay Lin asked fearfully.
"I don't know…maybe they'll try to turn her against us or something." Will sighed…"Look I don't have those answers, but we need to focus on finding Irma, not what may or may not be happening to her at this moment. Not to sound cold or anything, but this is just distracting us…we need to focus people."
Hay Lin knew Will was right…she was always right and Hay Lin trusted her leader. Still, she couldn't help thinking what it would be like if Irma suddenly attacked them. Would Hay Lin be able to fight her best friend? As an only child, Hay Lin had to come think of Irma as more of a sister than a friend. She could no more hurt Irma than she could her grandma. But what if she had to choose between Irma and Will? Would she blast her best friend to save her leader? She shuddered at the scenario and hoped she would never have to find out.
"Will can you use the Heart to find Irma?" Taranee asked excitedly.
"I've been trying, but all I get is smoke…..stuff." Will replied.
"Has that ever happened before?" Cornelia asked.
"No," Will replied. "It's definitely strange and not normal. Maybe the Heart of Candracar has a range too…"
"I doubt it," said Elyon. "More likely is that that little jewel has power you've yet to even tap Will. No, I don't think range is the issue here."
"Then what is it?" Hay Lin asked.
Elyon sighed. "I don't know Hay Lin; but it's a cinch we'll never find Irma without the Heart. We can't just start flying around the whole planet and hope to stumble across her. Not only is that unlikely to happen, but it would take years to check every nook and cranny of Meridian."
"And we don't even have a place to start." Cornelia chimed in. "Will, can't the Heart track the Knights through the fold they made?"
"Not that I know of." Will glared at the little jewel; not for the first time she wondered why it had chosen her, of all people, to carry it. Didn't it know that Will Vandom was just a scared little kid who hated math and hated pressure? Her friends were looking to her to make everything alright; and she didn't have the first clue how to do that! She had no idea how they were going to find Irma; but one thing she did know was that the Knights of Vengeance were going to pay if they had hurt Irma in any way! They were going to be sorry they had ever been born!
Will saw Taranee wince; oops, must have been broadcasting. Sorry about that T…
Taranee nodded imperceptibly. She knew how Will felt; Taranee wanted Irma back just as badly as anyone. She had been trying to contact the Water Guardian ever since she had been taken. At times, Taranee thought she felt…something, though she couldn't be sure. It was like trying to watch a fuzzy TV; you could barely see your program behind all the fuzz, and occasionally, you could hear a few words, though mostly you just heard static. Hmmm….she thought, I wonder if that means…
"The Oracle!" Taranee's musings were interrupted by Hay Lin. "The Oracle would know where she is! He could help us find her!"
Elyon got excited. "Hay Lin, you're right! Will, try going to Candracar and see if the Oracle will help!"
Without a second thought, Will implored the Heart to take her to Candracar. A pink light began to gather around the red-head and Will closed her eyes. She knew when she opened them again she would be standing before the Oracle. She waited until the pink glow faded, then opened her eyes. Elyon and the Guardians stared back at her from the throne room.
"What happened?" Will asked, confused. "Why am I still here?
"I don't know…you glowed then….nothing." Elyon answered.
Will looked at the Heart. "What's wrong with you?" she demanded. No one was really surprised when the jewel didn't answer. Will let out a frustrated grunt and put the Heart away.
"Maybe you and Elyon together can do something." Cornelia suggested. "Combine her powers with the Heart's powers and see what happens."
Elyon and Will looked at each other. They both shrugged and Will retrieved the Heart once again. Elyon focused on the softly glowing jewel and concentrated on Irma. The smoke in the jewel seemed to clear for an instant and Will thought it was working. Then the smoke returned and the Heart looked once again as it had before. Elyon sighed and dropped her head to her chest.
"I think it was actually working for a moment Will." She said. "I think we should keep trying. But first, you guys need some rest; you're practically dead on your feet."
"We can't rest now…we have to find Irma!" Hay Lin shrieked.
"What good are you going to be to her if you collapse from exhaustion Hay Lin? I'll have somebody prepare rooms for you all. We can start again in the morning."
There was no arguing with the Queen of Meridian, so the Guardians sullenly obeyed. None of them wanted to give up now, but they didn't know what to do. Perhaps some rest would give them a fresh perspective. Hay Lin doubted she would be able to sleep at all…
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Irma closed her eyes and ground her teeth together to keep from crying out; but despite her efforts, the occasional groan or gasp would escape. Frost was gleefully putting torch to skin, searing the Water Guardian's back. Maybe it was her affinity with water, but the fire didn't seem to be causing as much pain as Irma thought it would. That wasn't to say it wasn't causing her pain, because it most definitely was! But it didn't feel any worse than a bad sunburn…at least at the moment. Nevertheless, a bad sunburn was not a pleasant feeling; Irma had had her share of those in the past. Her broken ribs, nose and sternum throbbed terribly, and she could see that her injured knee was badly swollen. Her arms and shoulders had started to tremble long ago; Irma was sure it had been at least a day since she had been captured, and the K.O.V. showed no signs of boredom with their latest hobby. The damage Gargoyle had done to her back was starting to be outweighed by the damage Frost was now doing to her back.
She inhaled sharply as she felt the extreme heat touch her flesh again. Then she cried out as Frost punched her in the kidneys. Damn it…now he knows he hurt me. Her already ragged breathing became more ragged still, as sore kidneys mixed with broken ribs. Frost punched her again in the same spot…and again…and again…and again. Irma started to cough up blood, every contraction causing her ribs and sternum to scream with pain. Irma was tired, and she felt sick…she knew she couldn't last much longer. But that didn't seem to deter Frost any…he laughed as he burned her again. Irma felt darkness descending, and gratefully welcomed the relief of unconsciousness. But it was not to be as Raythor held smelling salts under her nose. Jolted back "awake," Irma tried to glower at her captors; but somehow she didn't think it looked all that menacing.
"You know your options Guardian." Raythor grinned. "Why put yourself through all of this? Just call your friends and get it over with."
"G-go t-t-to HELL!" Irma screamed shakily, tears of frustration and rage coursing down her cheeks.
Raythor smiled and approached his captive. He reached up to wipe the tears from Irma's face. She tried to pull away from him, but her injuries had slowed her down. Raythor easily grabbed her by the hair and wrenched her head around to face him. She grunted as he held her hair roughly.
"You would do well to be a little more polite, my dear." Raythor growled.
"And you…would do…well…to take…a…bath." Irma gasped, her burns starting to take a toll.
Raythor laughed and slapped her sharply across the face. She cried out as his hand struck her near the mouth. Her lip began to bleed, and still Raythor held her fast. "We can come to an agreement, you and I," he said. "You be nice and do what we told you to do, and we'll be nice and stop hurting you."
Irma tried to look unfazed. "What…makes you think…you've actually…hurt me?" she spat. "You guys can….so…do better…than this."
Raythor brought his face close to Irma's, and for a second she thought he meant to kiss her. But instead he veered away and pressed his lips close to her ear. "And do better we shall," he whispered.
Raythor released Irma's hair and stepped back. "Frost, let's let Miranda have a turn."
Frost reluctantly stopped burning his captive and stepped over to stand by Raythor. Miranda, who had been watching the torture quietly, stepped forward now with her cart. Irma cringed involuntarily as Miranda brought the knife she had been playing with before dangerously close to the Guardian's neck. Then, with an unnatural grin, Miranda swiped at Irma's cheek, opening a small cut. Irma gasped as her cheek began to bleed. It seemed no more than a papercut, but somehow Irma knew Miranda was far from finished…
Wow I think this is the shortest chapter thus far. You'll just have to wait to see what kind of damage Miranda's going to cause poor Irma. Please review if you have a second. Cheers!