A third chapter up without the required number of reviews. You guys are getting lucky. I would once again love to mention that IxAmxYasha has been my number one reviewer so far and reviewed every single chapter. So anyway, here it is!

Chapter Five-A Portal and Living Stone

Something was bugging Lacey. It wasn't just the usual school and homework, or even her parents' messy divorce. No!

It was the fact that her and her four best friends had suddenly been given amazing magical powers so that they could protect Earth and some fantasy world called Metamoore from evil.

Now she, an ordinary teenage girl, could control fire with just a wave of her hand. And her friends had these powers too. Mandy could manipulate water, the earth obeyed Kelsey, and Julia had power over the air.

And Hayleigh? Well, she was the Keeper of the Heart of Candracar, a mystical orb that unleashed the girls' powers. Which sort of made her the leader of this band.

That must make Mandy angry, she thought with a smile. She always needs to be in the lead, especially when Hayleigh is involved. Mandy might be a perfectionist, but Hayleigh is effortlessly smarter than her.

"Lacey!" Hayleigh called, jolting the girl out of her reverie. "Come here."

Lacey stood up and walked to the square of varnished yellow desks where her friends sat.

"We were thinking," Kelsey explained, "that we need to practice our powers. Who knows when more big ugly monsters will appear?"

Julia nodded. "How about today after school? There's no cheerleading, Mandy doesn't have dance, and we don't have that much homework."

"And I know the perfect place!" said Hayleigh happily.

"Um, Hayleigh? Where exactly are we?" Mandy asked quietly. They had walked to the end of her friend's block and into a small cluster of trees. Only it turned out that this small cluster of trees was really a forest!

Hayleigh stopped walking. "We're in the woods. By the creek," she stated, as if it were obvious. Mandy scowled, but the leader didn't notice. "This is a perfect place!"

She's right, Julia thought, looking around her. They were deep into the forest, hidden by tall trees that blocked out even the bright sunlight.

"All right, here we go," Hayleigh said calmly.

With a whirl of energy, the girls were transformed into beautiful, magical, strong Guardians.

"I'll go first!" Mandy declared as soon as her purple boots touched the dirt. She stepped up to the creek and raised her arms with defiance and concentration on her face.

With a smug smile playing at her lips, Mandy called on her watery power. She felt it course through her body like an electrical current. Then it spread from her hands like a sparkling wave, dancing toward the water. The light disappeared under the surface. Then…

Whoosh!
The stream erupted into the air with the force of a canon shot, spraying the other four Guardians with water.

"Hey!" Kelsey cried. She flattened down her wet hair. "Now my turn!"

The girl knelt to the ground and touched the soil with both palms. Her long skirt billowed around her and wisps of green light started to skip around her hands. Then it stopped. Kelsey put her head up and stared at the tree in front of her.

'Did you just talk to me?' she asked it mentally, wondering if it could hear her.

The tree shook lightly, its branches rustling. A drop of dew landed on Kelsey's upturned face. 'Indeed I did, young Earth Guardian. There is danger nearby, a portal. It is just north of here, by the bend in the creek. You must tell the blonde girl, the Heart's Keeper, and close it.'

'Close it?' Kelsey asked, a bit shocked. 'How?'

'You have closed one portal already,' the tree replied. "At your place of learning."

'That light at school? That was a portal, to Metamoore?'

The tree shook again, as if nodding, and spoke no more.

"You guys!" Kelsey turned to see the other Guardians staring at her. "There is something over there, a portal. Like the one we closed at the school! We have to close this one!"

Everybody spoke at once.

"Who told you that?" Julia asked, confused.

"That thing at school was a portal?" Mandy's head spun.

"Where is it?" Lacey wanted to know.

Only Hayleigh remained silent as Kelsey answered the questions. Finally she spoke.

"Let's go."

Kelsey led the way to the bend in the creek. The tree had etched the spot in her mind.

"This is it!" she stated firmly, stopping where a gnarled old tree was leaning into the twisted river. "I know it."

Lacey frowned. "Are you sure? I don't…"

Just then Hayleigh groaned and dropped to her knees. Her eyes were tightly shut and her face had gone very white.

The girls raced to her. Kelsey grabbed her arm and tried to pull her up again with the help of Julia, who grabbed her other arm.

"Are you alright?" Mandy asked, concerned.

Hayleigh's eyes fluttered open.

"I-I'm fine. Just a dizzy spell." She tried to stand, but fell back weakly into her friends' arms.

Julia studied her for a moment. "Do you think it might have something to do with the portal?"

As if answering her question, circle of blue flames erupted right in front of them. The girls jumped back in alarm. What looked like a long cold tunnel appeared through the circle.

But the portal didn't want to be found. Stones from inside the tunnel flew out of it, forming a circular wall around it.

"How are we supposed to close it if we can't get to it?" Lacey wondered aloud.

"I have an idea!" Kelsey said triumphantly. She touched the wall with both hands, green sparks flying. A small hole appeared, growing larger by the second.

But then it stopped growing! With a noise like a vacuum cleaner, Kelsey was sucked into the wall. There was only a foot or two between her and the portal!

"Kelsey!" Hayleigh screamed, pounding on the wall. The stones shimmered and rippled before throwing out a long rocky rope. The rope twisted around Hayleigh, and held her high in the air. She screamed, but was unable to move. She couldn't even reach the Heart, for her arms were pinned to her sides!

The other girls backed away slowly. But it was too late. The war against the portal and its wall had begun. Stones started shooting out of the barrier. They formed a slightly bigger circle around the first stack. Then new walls erupted from the floor to separate all the girls. Each was alone.

Lacey heard herself scream. She wasn't quite sure that this was really happening. But she knew that she was in a fight with a stone wall, which was now covering her in a smooth layer of rocks so that she was forced to lie flat on her back. As she screamed again, the girl felt her Guardian clothes turn back to her ugly plaid school uniform. Her wings melted away and her hair thickened and arranged itself into a nest of knots.

She felt all her hope die within her. She was trapped forever, and she would die alone without her friends or family by her side. Tears streamed down Lacey's face. Her friends, her family! She would never see them again.

Similar thoughts were occupying Mandy, who was trapped up against the second wall by a third stack of stones, and Julia, who was being hung upside-down by a thread of rock.

But Hayleigh still struggled. "Put me down!" she screamed, kicking at the brick tentacle. The rope whipped her through the air again, almost smashing her into the first wall.

Then she stopped struggling and hung her head. Please, Heart of Candracar! she pleaded, help us! Her fist unclenched as she waited to feel the fiery energy in her palm. For a moment there was nothing, and she almost gave up. But then a warm glow filled her, and she saw out of the corner of her eye the Heart, letting loose its teardrops.

Julia saw it too. Her heart lightened as she watched her wind-like teardrop dance to her. With a burst of silver magic, she felt herself lifted into the air, just like her friends. It was like the wind was swirling around her, lifting her up and transforming her to her magical form. She threw her arms out and laughed as she felt her limbs lengthen, her muscles grow stronger, and her face change. Her clothes melted away, replaced by a little turquoise shirt and purple skirt. But the best had to be the wings! They were beautiful, multicolored and fluttery, the perfect finishing touch to their magical forms.

When they all landed, the walls were gone! Their magic had defeated the portal.

"Now where were we?" Hayleigh asked with a grin. "Together girls!"

With expertise the girls directed their magic toward the portal. Between them and the Heart, it had no chance. It quickly shrank and disappeared.

"Well," Kelsey said finally. "I think that was enough excitement for one day."

Hayleigh nodded.

"We'd better get back." With that, Hayleigh lifted the shining medallion. In a whirl of magical energy, they were normal teenagers again.

"Now who wants a snack?" Hayleigh asked.

The girls ran off, talking and laughing and trying their very best to forget what had just happened.

Lovely new chapter, doncha think? Please review!