Chapter Fourteen: The Clash
Bloom ducked under a fallen pillar to shield herself from the storm of rubble raining down on her, Stella had just leapt beside her, they were both out of breath and had cuts and scars all over them, not to mention all the battle wounds they had gotten the last few days.
"You ok?" Stella said between breaths, another blast caused them to duck their heads.
Bloom peeked through the crack in her arms and yelled over the battle sounds "I don't remember Icy, Stormy and Darcy being this tough!"
The girls looked at each other for a moment and a thought of understanding swept over them. "Valtor" they both said at the same time, Stella shook her head "We really need to kick that guys ass!"
"How do we do that when we can't find him?! And what about that army outside pretty soon they'll figure out that we're not on their side!" Bloom yelled as another blast went off; apparently Stormy was giving the Specialists hell.
Stella sat up from where she was lying and shot a huge ball of light into Icy, sending her back into a bookcase, causing a major domino effect until all the shelves were piled onto floor and books were littering the floor and flying from the sky.
"How about this" Stella said turning back to Bloom "We send Techna to go and send for help, and we pray that anyone who hears it, answers our call"
"What makes you think anyone will help us?" Bloom said as she stood up, firing blast of fire as she went. Stella stood up beside her "I said we pray that they answer our call"
Bloom sighed as she looked around at the battle. The Specialists were very busy trying to reach Stormy who floated just above their heads, Helia was able to throw some kind of knife her way and it embedded itself into her wing and stuck her to the wall. She screamed out in rage, waving her arm and sending lightning bolts down in the guys. Bloom looked over to see Flora wrapping vines of thorns around Icy, while Techna made electricity form around her head, zapping her and making her lose focus. Layla was just recovering from a blast to the arm, holding onto her wound as he tried to stop the blood flow.
Stella put her hand to her mouth and yelled "Techna, a word?" Techna looked over at her as if she was insane "A little busy Stella!" Gesturing to Icy.
Stella rolled her eyes as Bloom turned to her suddenly "Wait! Where's Musa?!" Stella didn't say anything but pointed to the ceiling.
Musa felt the power in her hand as her nails bit into the skin, the intake of breathe and the pulling back of the arm was done in less than a second and in one quick burst of power and an enraged battle cry...she clocked Darcy right in the nose.
The girl yelled in pain and anger as she flew back into the stone wall, almost embedding herself in it. The two girls were flying around the roof of the large library, completely oblivious to the battle going on below them. Icy was being ganged up on by the, now fully glowing with power, Winx Club girls, while Stormy was viciously battling the Specialists.
Darcy looked up from where she was holding her bloody nose and glared at the dark pixie in front of her, she shot a stream of darkness at Musa which sent he back into the opposite wall. Both girls, now holding onto the wall glared at each other and then in one powerful burst they charge each other. The girls connected by grabbing the other by the shoulders and with the impact their bodies were sent swirling around and down into the floor at an alarming speed.
The floor cracked beneath them as they made contact, Musa was able to stand up quick enough and throw another punch, this time she used the vibrations of the sounds in the room to strengthen the punch, in short terms, it hurt a lot.
A yell of surprise caught Musa's attention as she turned and saw Bloom and Stella standing only a few feet away "Oh sorry, are you guys ok?-" She was cut off when Darcy wrapped her hands around Musa's throat.
Stella ran in Techna's direction as Bloom charged Darcy from behind, grabbing her by the hair and twisting it around her fist. The witch screamed as her head was pulled back and her hands slipped from Musa's throat. Musa used this opportunity to punch her again, this time in the stomach.
Stella leapt to the side, dodging a huge wave of energy, it hit the pillar next to her, sending her flying across the room and into the far wall, stone rained down on her as she struggled to lift her head enough and yell "Techna! Go!"
Techna whirled around and flew for the exit, she landed on her feet long enough to grab Timmy's arm "Come on, I need your help!"
The two of them ran outside of the library, bits of wall and floor crumbled around then as wave after wave of energy hit the structure of the building. They were both running as fast as they could, their breathe burning in their lungs and the voices in their heads telling them not to stop until they reached where they needed to go. Techna gasped as they both rounded a corner and were surprised by a large group of monsters that apparently now knew that they were the enemies. Timmy drew his sword while Techna flared to life electricity in her hands, both taking up defensive positions as the monsters charged them.
"Whatever happens...please...stay with me" Techna whispered, her eyes not leaving the oncoming battle. Timmy glanced sideways at her, there were so many things he wanted to say to her, so many things that he might never have the opportunity to say but right now all he could think about was how much he loved her.
"I promise"
...
Stormy was hit by Darcy's oncoming body with a huge smacking sound, echoing through the library. Flora used her vines to entrap the two long enough for the Specialists to surround them, swords pointed.
Musa and Bloom made their way over to Icy and the other Winx Club girls as Icy broke out of the vines. She stood opposite to group, glaring and practically growling as she stared them down. In a swing of her arm she sent a blast of ongoing ice at the group which Bloom countered by throwing a huge flame of fire at the ice, stopping it in its tracks.
Icy looked at the girls in doubt for a moment "You know it's not too late to swap sides" Layla threw her hands up in frustration and groaned.
"No! We just settled that!" she put her hands on her hips and shook in head in disbelief.
Musa smiled and raised an eyebrow "You look a little nervous icy...thinking of running?" Icy bared her teeth at this remark but didn't move, she knew that she was outnumbered and that the power of the Specialists and the Winx Club was too much for her to handle now that her sisters were out of the fight.
She slowly shook her head as she met the eyes of Bloom. She could see the hate and rage and there was no doubt in her mind that Bloom would kill her, given the chance.
"No...I'm not running...not this time" and with that she shot out a huge wave of ice over everything.
...
Techna and Timmy burst into the audio room, shoving the door behind them closed. They both leaned against the door, their breath coming in harsh bursts.
After a moment Techna made her way over to the control pad. This machine was state of the art audio control. You could broadcast anything over thousands of miles, even to all the planets; it was only to be used in emergencies.
Techna pulled up a chair and booted up the machine, lights were flicked on and the sound of the equipment running filled the small room. Outside they could hear the grunts and angry cries of the monsters outside the door.
"We're trapped" Timmy said as he barricaded the door. Techna didn't look up from the screen in front of her as she typed furiously "I know"
"How are we going to get out?" Timmy asked as he stood behind her.
"We're not, someone is going to break us out" a small smile came to Techna's lips as she remembered saying almost the exact same thing to the girls in the prison cell.
"Who?" This made Techna pause, she had done everything and the audio machine was ready to go, all she had to do was press a button and talk.
"Anyone who listens" she whispered as she eyed the red button "What do I say? What do I tell them?"
Timmy answered immediately "The truth"
Techna paused, taking a huge breathe before she pressed down on the red button in front of her. Everywhere around Magix, on every planet and in every home all electrical appliances switched on and a screen of white came on, on the white screen there was a black line running through it and when Techna's voice sounded through the line moved with the sound of her voice.
"My name is Techna, a member of the Winx Club" Tecna paused to take another breathe "I'm transmitting this message to you on the school of Alfea's emergency frequency. I'm sorry to tell you that the world known criminal Valtor is alive and at the present moment very powerful. He has taken control of Alfea, killed countless students and teachers, some have fled to the woods while others have been captured and put into the school's jail cells. The fate of these students has been decided...he'll kill them" her voice shook a bit now. Techna was always one for public speaking but never to such a huge audience, not every day you speak to the world, it was as if she could feel the intake of breath of everyone in the universe as they heard the message "But we can't let that happen. Valtor is planning a worldwide take over and he'll stop at nothing until he has what he wants...so we have to stop him. If there ever was a time to strike it is now. Send help to Alfea before more people die and those that are fighting him right now lose their lives as well. These are...good people" at this Techna reached over and held Timmy's hand tightly "They don't deserve to die here. Please..."
Techna paused one last time, silently praying that the people would hear this...
"Help us"
And with that she took her finger off the red button and leaned back, she was exhausted and sweating, she needed a break but knew that the girls were waiting for her.
...
"Where is Valtor!?" Bloom yelled into Icy's face. Icy, Stormy and Darcy were piled onto the floor in the middle of the library in a cage of fire. The Specialists and Winx Club stood around it, they had been at it for a while but the three still hadn't given Bloom an answer.
Bloom stamped her foot and bit her bit furiously. This! This is what's standing in my way from killing Valtor?! Three witches with a habit of not talking when under capture! Damn it!
"Icy!" She yelled again, causing the white haired girl to look over at her in shock, the rage in her voice was enough to make anyone flinch. The Specialists were getting every uncomfortable, they thought they had seen the bad side of the girls but this was different, this time they were very evil and pissed off.
"Just tell her! Then she'll make your death that less painful" Stella said from where she stood, observing her nails.
This made Icy look around panicked but still silent. Bloom sighed and dropped the angry pose. She slowly walked over to the cage of fire and crouched down so she was eye level with Icy.
"Icy...we've been enemies for so long now. You've done so much to hurt me in the pursuit of power, you even joined Valtor's side" The way she said it, it implied that joining Valtor was a horrible move "And with the way things are looking now, your situation is not good. Valtor is the one I'm most angry with, he's the one that really killed my parents and you were just the bullet in the gun. Just tell me where he is so I can kill him...and maybe you and I can discuss your fate"
The silence was thick in the library. That silence was broken when Icy whispered in a small and broken voice "The roof"
The Winx Club girls stood up straight, Bloom shooting up from where she crouched, she took a big breathe before turning to the guys "Look after them, we have things to do"
Sky turned to her, startled "We're not going with you?"
Bloom shook her head "No, I have a feeling that you guys are much more needed downstairs" At that Techna and Timmy ran into the room.
"What took you guys so long?" Stella asked
"We were trapped but we figured out a way back here" Timmy said as he eyed the Trix in the cage.
Techna nodded her head "Yeah, we just decided that if we couldn't go out the door, the wall is just as good" This made the girls and guys all laugh, they didn't know why but they just needed something to laugh about before this whole thing ended "What now?" Asked Techna
Bloom smiled "We go and kill Valtor" after she said this, a strange awkwardness descended on the room. It was time to say goodbye, in case someone didn't come back.
Everyone paused, they didn't know how to say goodbye but it filled them with dread and regret to think that this would maybe be the last time they saw each other.
Stella burst away from the girls and threw her arms around Brandon, they clutched on to each other desperately, whispering to each other. This was the sign for everyone to move as well.
Layla ran over to Nabu and gripped him around the neck with her arms, their foreheads touching as they gazed into each other eyes.
Flora and Helia were locked in each other's arms, Helia whispering to Flora that he loved her over and over. She smiled, tears coming to her eyes as she kissed him sweetly.
Techna held Timmy's hand again, they then held each other. It was as if they had wasted so much time a part and now they only had seconds left.
Riven held Musa tight. They didn't say anything at first but when Riven spotted a tear fall from Musa's eye he was shocked, Musa never cried, he held he even tighter "Don't cry Musa...please don't cry"
The only two let standing a part were Sky and Bloom. They only stared at each other, silent messages running between them. No words needed to be said, they had already said their goodbyes to one another in the hospital room.
"Go" Sky whispered once. Bloom paused but then turned quickly and stalked out of the room, the others following reluctantly.
No one looked back.
...
The girls flew up the stairs, climbing the tower to the highest point of the school. Each girls breathe came quick and urgent. It was finally time to kill Valtor, they would have revenge. Even if the girls died up there they were taking him with them.
They all paused outside the door. It was quiet on the other side; the girls held their breath as Bloom reached for the handle.
"I have to tell you guys something" Bloom said abruptly, whirling around to face her friends.
The girls looked at her in disbelief and all shouted "Now!?" Bloom nodded, biting her lip "Bloom, we are about to kill Valtor in a matter of seconds and you choose now to tell us something, can't it wait?" Stella said as she continued to stare at her friend.
Bloom looked at the ground for a moment but her head shot up when she heard a weird buzzing sound in the distance "What the hell is that?"
The girls flew to the nearby window in the stairwell and looked outside.
"Oh my god" they all whispered at the same time. Outside in the distance was another army, ships hovered in the air, people marched and fairies flew. The sight was astounding and the girls could not look away.
"They came...help came" Techna whispered as she stared at the hundreds and thousands of people.
The sight of the army gave Bloom some time to think. She had to tell them about what Valtor had said to her that day when they had left, she still couldn't believe that had just been yesterday. But she couldn't, this needed to be done with.
She walked away from the window and stood in front of the wooden door again, she could feel the girls join her. They all stood there in silence for a minute and for a brief moment, the glistening sun shown in from the window on them, a perfect moment of peace.
Without a moment's pause, Bloom turned the handle and walked out onto the roof.
There he stood, at the edge of the roof, overlooking the two armies marching toward each other, hands behind his back. The girls all stood at the other side of the round rooftop, it was about the size of a small house but circular.
Valtor turned and looked at his six assassins; all of them were covered in scars and wounds, blood covered and sweaty. But in each of their eyes he saw the look of a killer, as merciless and cruel as himself. He made eye contact with each of them slowly until his eyes rested on Bloom who stood at the front.
A voice sounded in her head, his voice. You know what will happen...
She looked down and smiled sadly. When she looked back up at him her eyes were hard as stone. Yes...I do.
The world seemed to explode around them. As if flicking off a light, sky turned pitch black and lightening struck around them, dangerously close to the roof. Vines of black thorns made their way up the building and hovered behind Valtor, water came out of nowhere and flooded their feet, light ceased to shine and fire burned around the edges of the roof.
And these forces of power weren't the girls.
The girls quickly jumped into action, sending power shooting out their hands, yelling spells and willing them to hit their targets. Flora lunged out of the way of the black vines, the ropes of pain swirling around her and piecing her legs, she screamed and sent more vines to counter them.
Layla was flying as fast as she could away from the water but it seemed to follow her into the air, quicker than she was it found its way to her body and encircled her, chocking her. She hit the ground of the roof, clutching her throat.
Stella was blinded by dark clouds, she yelled as she waved her arms at the darkness, desperately trying to escape its clutches.
Musa gripped her ears as blood streamed out of them. She couldn't hear anything but the screams of some feral animal, the piercing sound entered her soul and it felt like her head was going to explode.
Techna screamed as electricity from the skies burned along her skin, like a jackhammer going off in her head, the pain was unbearable and she could not escape.
Bloom stood where she was, the fire scorched up her body and burned her skin, making it look like ash. The pain was too much and she could not move, all she could do was stare into the eyes of Valtor. It was awful and yet...so familiar. She gasped and her knees hit the floor as she remembered the memory, the torture Valtor had made them endure before he had killed them. But this time, they were going to stay dead.
Then the realization hit Bloom like a ton a bricks. It's an allusion! The first time he did this we woke up without a scratch on us! It was all fake, just happening in our heads! Bloom shut her eyes and whispered "Wake up"
It didn't work; Bloom shook he head furiously and yelled so loud that even the soldiers down on the ground could probably hear her.
"WAKE UP!"
Their hands shot out before any of them had even opened their eyes, the girls stood in the exact spot they had been when they had stepped out onto the roof. With their arms outstretched the girls sent a huge wave of power Valtor way.
It hit him in the chest, sending him to the ground and before he could even gasp the girls flew into the air, surrounding him in a huge circle.
"The allusion won't work Valtor" Bloom said from where she flew. Valtor looked up from his place on the ground, bloom seeping out of his mouth.
"Oh my apologies, did you want the real thing?" He clicked his fingers and yet again the sky turned back and all the terrible things the girls had just endured came to life once again.
"Oh crap" Bloom muttered as fire shot toward her. Bloom flew like the wind, soaring through the air trying to escape the fire that wanted to consume her, the girls did the same. For just a brief moment Bloom saw Valtor lose his concentration when a huge explosion went off and the two armies charged each other. One of the first lessons Valtor taught them was to never lose focus.
"Now!" Bloom yelled shooting fire at him that caught onto his form. Flora shot vines toward Valtor, they wrapped around his form like a cage, Techna sent electricity along the vines, Layla encased him in water, Stella blinded him in light and Musa boxed all the powers in a case of vibrations.
Bloom watched the great ball of power for a moment. Slowly she reached up her hand and in a swirl of magic her sword formed itself inside her hand, once there Bloom ran toward the trapped Valtor, sword aimed.
All sound and motion and in a second everything turned white.
It was like waking up from a dream, Bloom's eyes flew wide and she jumped slightly. She stood in front of Valtor, everyone was frozen around them, the people fighting below and the bolts of lightning and power racing through the air and her friends, all stuck in place. Bloom looked back at Valtor her looked down on her, he was a few inches from her face.
Glancing down Bloom saw her sword plunged into Valtor's chest; she met his eyes "You knew I would kill you" her voice was surprisingly calm, everything was so peaceful.
He smiled slightly "I know. I always knew you would kill me Bloom" he reached up and traced the line of her temple to her chin, she didn't move away.
"Where are we?" she asked looking around at the scene around them.
"The silence before an explosion, the calm before the storm, we're in that moment of stillness before everything you know comes crashing down" He moved his hand to tuck a stray piece of red hair behind her ear.
Bloom eyed him warily "Why?"
He paused and smiled again "Saying goodbye. I'm curious, what would you say if I told you I loved you? Would it change anything?"
Bloom answered immediately "No, I wouldn't believe you"
He chuckled "That's my girl" He leaned down slowly and rested the side of his head against hers "Do you remember what I told you? About the deal?"
Bloom closed her eyes sadly, she had relived that memory so many times over the last few hours since it happened; It had never fully left her mind.
Valtor smiled "Oh yes that good old deal. I have a confession, I didn't tell you the whole story about why I killed and made you evil, there's more. I could have found a way to make all this reality some other way but I chose to make you evil instead and not just for the book and do you know why?"
Bloom stared at him, not able to answer.
Valtor smiled and leaned down and whispered in her ear "Bloom, the spell I cast to make you evil started the day I killed you. From the moment you woke up you were evil and I was the bond which kept you evil. When you kill me that bond will be severed...and I'll take you all with me"
Bloom took a shaky breath "Yes, now that you're going to die...we'll all die with you" she opened her eyes and glanced sideways at him "Why did you cast that spell?"
Valtor moved his face in front of hers "Revenge. You killed me, I came back and ruined your life, tried to finish my evil plans for world domination and if I failed I wanted to be sure that no matter what I would take you down with me. After I die you'll have about an hour before you die in horrible pain"
Bloom gasped eyes wide and tears escaping. Valtor smiled one last time and gave her a small and brief kiss "My sweet Bloom"
Bloom pulled back her head in disgust and stared at him with hard hateful eyes "The world is a much better place without you in it, Valtor"
The world spun back into action as the sword again pierced Valtor's chest, Bloom glared up at him, her tears still escaping. The girls behind her gasped in shock, they stared at their old master in disbelief. After so long he had been like a god to them, they had never really believed he could be killed.
Valtor looked down on Bloom in pain that he didn't show. Slowly his skin cracked and his eyes went white. Valtor crumbled into ash and blew away with the wind. The sword, with no one left in it, clattered to the ground.
The Winx Club stared after the remains, then observed as all the monsters on the ground turned to ash just as their master had and blew away, cheers were heard from below.
Stella stumbled to the edge and smiled "It's over" relief was clear in her voice, the rest of them joined her in a hug of victory, the girls began to laugh. All accept one.
"Yes...it is over" Bloom said as she stared into the rising sun.