Chapter 20: Out of the Woods
A deep, uncomfortable silence had settled over the room, only occasionally broken by the sounds of falling pebbles or the grinding of slowly loosening rocks. Ogron and Diana stared contemptuously at each other, waiting for one to make a move.
"Lady Diana!" a fairy called, as she and a couple of others charged into the room. "We heard a..." They paused.
"KILL HIM!" Diana loudly demanded.
"FORWARD!" Ogron ordered.
The newly arrived fairies prepared to cast magic, but they and Diana had to scatter, as a triceratops leapt over the Black Circle leader and into their midst.
Three of the fairies prepared to counter-attacks, but a sudden blur passed by them with three loud smacks, sending them sprawling on the stone floor.
Meanwhile, Diana summoned another massive root, trying to entrap Ogron. However, a corona of white flames exploded from his body, detonating the plant-life into a cloud of ash. He landed on the ground and charged forward against his mother, but had to leap back as several thorned vines burst out of the stones to defend her.
As the group watched the unfolding melee in stunned silence, they suddenly noticed a hat-wearing figure make his way over to them. Gantlos.
He placed his massive hands on the root holding Flora, detonating it into pulp with a concentrated shockwave.
"Why are you...?" she began as she freed herself from the plant, but was interrupted by a gruff: "Escape now. Questions later."
The brunette nodded and turned her attention to the others. With Diana focused on fighting Ogron, she wasn't investing either the energy or attention necessary to keep Flora from forcing some of the roots to open up, while Gantlos kept pulping others.
"Run for the jungle. We'll be right behind you," the blond instructed.
"Still not sure if that's a good thing, but okay then," Brandon said. "Everyone, follow me."
One of Diana's fairies ducked as one of his comrades was bloodily flung through the air by a bull-shaped Dumon. He looked up just in time to see the group run out of the massive hole that had been blasted in the ruin's side. "LADY DIANA!" he called. "THE PRISONERS! THEY'RE ESCAPING!"
"What?" the fairy-general said and turned her head to see the hastily fleeing group. Her face was dominated by a hateful scowl as she returned her attention to Ogron. "You insolent little whelp."
"GANTLOS! STEP TWO!" the redhead called.
Grunting in reply, the Stetson-wearing man ran over to the load-bearing pillar of the room and charged a heavy shockwave into it. Massive cracks spread like a wildfire along the length of the stony shaft as pieces of it began sliding out of place and falling to the ground. At the top of the pillar, the floor above began to sag as the weight of the ancient structure began to tear itself apart. Within seconds, dust and loose stones began raining down. The building started groaning, spiderwebs of cracks forming at multiple points.
As the entire structure began crashing, Dumon took the form of a rhino and charged out, Ogron and Gantlos jumping on top of him, as Anagan followed after.
Meanwhile, Diana summoned massive pillars of plants to support the roof above her and the guards surrounding her, but she could do nothing about the damages to the rest of the structure. She shot a venomous glare at the retreating Black Circle members, before clouds of debris and dust obscured their forms, the entire ziggurat collapsing into a pile of bricks.
"You know," Anagan noted, as they started catching up with the group they had freed. "There's going to be some archaeologists that are going to be really pissed that we did that."
"It was a sad loss, but it had to be done," Ogron insisted.
"We'll send them a fruit basket and a hand-written apology," Dumon suggested, as they charged into the jungle. "That'll help."
...
Roxy stared as a leaf gently floated down towards her. She took a deep breath and blew it back up into the air again, then watched it fall once more. Then she blew it up into the air again and so on.
"This is, like, tots boring," Stella stated, before yawning.
"Maybe so. But we can't just go wandering all willy-nilly hoping we find them," Bloom said.
Suddenly, they could hear a deep rumbling in the distance.
"What was noise?" Techna sleepily asked, as she peaked up from her improvised bed on a low-hanging branch. "Sounds like somebody is raising a fracas."
"Could it be the others?" Roxy asked, batting the leaf away.
"Well, it's not impossible I guess," Stella slowly replied. "Sure wish we had Nabu to go take a look. Can anyone do anything that'll help us figure out what happened?"
"I could try charming a parrot or something. But I'm still not entirely sure of my powers," the Earth fairy admitted.
"Hang on a sec'. I'll go take a gander," Techna said, before climbing up the tree.
"Well?" Bloom asked, as the scarred girl reached the top. "Anything?"
"Yeah, I see something. That there stone temple-thingamabob. It's gone," she replied.
"Gone? What do you mean gone?" Stella asked.
"I mean somebody's gone and replaced the whole fucking thing with a dust cloud," came the reply. "Anything more than that and we'll have to get closer. Which could be bad."
"DUCK!" Stella suddenly yelled while throwing herself down, causing her two on-ground comrades to fall flat, as a barrage of stalactites sailed over their heads.
Bloom looked up and saw several of Diana's fairies pushing their way out into the opening. "Oh, that's just great."
"Lady Diana was right. They're already here," one of them proclaimed, ripping a piece of soil loose and shaping it into a stalactite. "Kill them."
"I think we better leave," Roxy said, sprinting into the jungle.
"Right behind you," Stella called as she and the others followed, a stalactite hitting a tree near her.
"DON'T LET THEM GET AWAY ALIVE!" the leader of the fairy squad behind them yelled, as they initiated their pursuit into the jungle.
"I feel like my heart is about to go pop," Bloom gasped, as they charged across the uneven ground.
"Should have done some more regular exercise," Stella said, throwing a glance over her shoulder. "I think... I think we're losing them."
Suddenly, the group fell forward, the undergrowth having hidden a large ditch.
"Oh, my head," Roxy muttered, as she got up. "Everyone okay?"
"I banged my fucking knee on a rock," Techna hissed, cradling the limb. "I think it's unbroken, but it hurts like a motherfucker."
"You have much greater things to worry about," one of the pursuing fairies said as he stepped out on the edge of the ditch, several stalactites hovering over him. "Now you will..." A loud bang echoed through the jungle and the guy's head jerked back, crimson liquid spraying from the back of his destroyed skull.
Roxy felt her stomach do a couple of spins as the faerie's corpse fell over and she once again found herself voiding her stomach content, acidic bile splashing the ground.
The other White Circle fairies were momentarily stunned at the sudden and gruesome loss of their squad's leader.
"Girls. Over here," Brandon yelled, as he appeared on the other side of the ditch. "We need to leave. Now."
"Got it," Stella said, as she and Bloom helped the still retching Roxy up.
One of the White Circle fairies launched a fireball at the other side, but had to duck into cover as Timmy and Riven opened fire, forcing them to hide behind the trees.
Sky and Helia quickly assisted the girls with climbing out of the muddy hole and together the group hurried into the jungle while their enemies regrouped.
"So, the others got you free?" Bloom asked Sky, as they hurried along.
"Not exactly, no," Sky said, sounding uncertain. "Things happened and..." He looked away for a moment, a contemplative look on his face. "Brandon, how do I say this in a way that doesn't sound like I've lost my mind?"
"The Black Circle showed up," the squad leader said. "Punched a hole in the building, fought the fairies, helped us get free."
"When you say helped you, do you mean like that their fighting gave you a chance to escape, or...?" Techna began.
"They deliberately freed us," Riven said. "We're meeting up with them. You can get the rest of the story once we're safe."
"Great... Fantastic..." a sickly sounding Roxy commented. "Looking forward... To see them again..."
...
The group entered a meadow somewhere in the jungle. From the moment they set foot in it, they could feel the awkward atmosphere that hung heavily over the area. In one end of the glade sat Musa, Mirta, Flora, Aisha and Nabu. In the other sat Ogron, Gantlos and Dumon.
"Well, seems like everyone has become best of buds in our absence," Riven cheerfully said, as they arrived. "Good, that will make things work out so much more smoothly."
"Alright. I admit, part of me was wondering if it was all just a bad joke," Bloom said, warily eyeing the three Black Circle members. "But no, you're really here."
"Indeed," Ogron said, as he got up. "Now that everybody has assembled, I have a proposal for you all. I believe it is in our collective best interest to cooperate on the task of taking down Diana."
Musa scoffed. "And why exactly should we do that?"
"You mean besides the fact that we're all trained mages with years of experience, which would greatly supplement your own capabilities?" the redhead asked, eyebrow raised. "Or is it our motive you are worried about? In that case, I stand by my earlier assertions. The interest of the Black Circle is protecting the people of Earth from dangerous magic. That has always been our goal and I do believe that Diana and her forces qualify as dangerous magic."
"Alright. But what exactly is stopping you from turning on us the moment Diana is out of the picture so you can get your hands on Roxy?" Bloom asked.
"Ms. Peterson, I think you've vastly overestimated her importance to our plans. Not that I blame you in that regard," he commented. "Her presence still does raise questions I'd like answered at some point, but now is really not the time. And even if we bring Diana down, there's still three other generals to worry about, not to mention Morgana herself could be a considerable issue. It is in our best interest right now to increase the number of allies we have."
Bloom paused, chewing on her lip.
"He raises an excellent point," Brandon said. "We need all the help we can get."
Suddenly, Anagan zipped into the glade.
"Report," Ogron ordered the moment the dark-skinned speedster had paused.
"They're shifting their defences to focus on the ritual site," he said. "I think Diana herself has gone there. Most likely to initiate her retaliation for our actions."
"Typical White Circle strategy," Ogron growled. "Everyone, listen. We each have our reasons to dislike each other, much of which, I believe, is tied up in some fundamental misunderstandings. But that doesn't matter right now. If we do not act fast, more cities will feel Diana's wrath and we need to force our way through their forces and stop her from doing that. Can we agree on this at least?"
Musa paused. "Sure," she said, getting up. "I'm not going to let that maniac hurt anyone else if I can help it."
"Agreed," Nabu said, as he got up. "Though now I too have a couple questions. But they will have to wait."
"Count me in. That crazy bitch needs a couple whacks across her noggin," Techna stated.
"You know my answer already," Brandon said.
One by one, the group agreed to cooperate.
"So with that said, what now?" Roxy asked. "How do we do this?"
"They seem to be spreading their defences out evenly," Anagan explained. "Trying to equally cover all points."
"With the limited time we have, we'll have to act fast," Ogron stated. "We'll employ the lance."
"I guess you don't mean the one for horse-riding," Stella commented.
"Correct," the redhead replied. "It's a strategy. A focused all out attack designed to penetrate their defences. The thick jungle terrain should give us an advantage in that regard, since it will be hard for their forces to notice that we have initiated an attack. Anagan, any idea where reinforcements would have trouble getting in?"
"Yes. There's an area with some notable ditches running through it. Could make it difficult for them," Anagan commented.
"Excellent. Then that is where we will strike. We have to move out now. Every second counts."
...
Silence hung over the Amazon Jungle. Even the many animals seemed to have retreated into their dens and nests, waiting for whatever was to come next. Two of Diana's fairies stood guard, eyes focused on the jungle foliage.
"So," one of them, a brown-haired man, began. "You think they will come?"
"They succeeded at freeing their comrades and have already attacked the ritual site once," the other, a blonde woman, replied. "So yes, I think they will try. We have to be on our guard."
"Makes sense, I guess," the other replied. He narrowed his eyes. "Hey, did you hear..."
Anagan shot out of the greenery in a blur, sending the man flying with a punch. His compatriot paused for a moment, stunned by the sudden attack, before she raised her arms. A shot rang out through the jungle, a bullet piercing her chest and sending her stumbling to the ground.
"Move, move," Brandon ordered, as the combined groups charged forward. "Eyes on your surroundings. There will be more nearby."
The united groups charged forward, rushing through the verdant jungle towards the ritual site, as Diana's forces tried to mobilize against the sudden attack.
One stepped forth and used his magic to reshape the earth into a series of grinding stones, hoping to catch Musa and crush her into paste. The black-haired girl leapt over the sudden hazard and spun her leg out as she did, her heel cracking down into her target's skull. She jabbed her folded fan forward, hammering it into the fairy's diaphragm, smashing the air out of his lungs. Then she jabbed her other hand forward and let a concentrated blast of sound fly directly into the fairy's face, rupturing his ear drums. As he stumbled back screaming in pain, Musa forced him aside with an elbow to the side, allowing her to follow the others.
Another of Diana's fairies stepped out, frozen mist falling from her hands. She raised her arms, ready to freeze the attackers solid. Suddenly, the intruders seemed to vanish. She paused a moment, surprised by the display. That moment was enough. Suddenly, a sharp pain exploded through her chest and arm as Flora appeared in front of her, bloodied machete in her hand. A well place heel kick sent the now one-armed fairy right into the path of a massive branch, which smacked her and sent her flying through the jungle. Flora gave a quick thumbs up to Mirta, who looked queasy at the sight of their opponents painful fate.
Another of White Circle fairies jumped forth from cover and unleashed a bolt of lightning. The charge of electricity collided with Ogron's hand, the man absorbing the magic before taking a step to the side, allowing Stella to aim. She unleashed a ball of light that exploded in the fairy's face, blinding him, before Ogron stepped back in, using the absorbed magic to unleash his own thunderbolt. It struck their opponent in the chest with enough force to lift him off his feet and smash him into one of the trees.
To the left of the group, a giant animated tree suddenly stepped forth, the earth shaking under the arboreal titan's steps. Bloom glanced at it before letting a dragonflame boosted blast of fire loose, engulfing it in flames. As it stumbled back, Gantlos charged forward and smashed his fist into one of its legs while letting a shockwave loose, the punch shattering both bark and tree, sending the mutated being crashing to the forest floor with a thunderous noise.
At that point, a giant tarantula charged out of the underbrush. Its spear like mandibles came crashing down upon Sky's shield, the blond soldier grunting in exertions as he tried to hold the mutated arachnid at bay. Brandon came up behind him and used his shoulders to launch himself on top of the creature, before driving his great blade into its head. He leapt off as the beast fell over shuddering, taking a moment to catch his breath before continuing the charge.
They were almost at the ritual site.
...
Diana concentrated as she reached into the magic of the ritual. Her agents up north had already selected several promising targets further east of their initial strike areas. It wasn't exactly joy she felt as she prepared to initiate the magical spell to assault the chosen cities, but rather a grim satisfaction at a job well done.
The sound of snapping leaves shook her out of her pondering. She disengaged from the ritual's magic and turned around. She wasn't surprised to see the group before here, only annoyed.
"Diana," Bloom started, breathing heavily from the exhaustive charge. "Stop this. You don't have to do this. We can solve these problems without killing people."
"Can we really?" Diana asked, sounding quite certain that wasn't the case. "For years, they have killed all other species en masse, plants and animals alike, to make room for themselves. I say it's high time we trim their numbers and remind them that they do not own this world."
"Give it up, Bloom," Ogron coldly commented. "My mother gave up on rational discourse centuries ago."
"Your what?" the redhead asked surprised.
"Your interference ends NOW!" Diana yelled and raised her arms.
The ground by the lakeside exploded into dirt and debris, as large roots rose up to crush the intruders.
"Getting real tired of this," Musa growled, as she tried to push back against the root encircling her body.
Ogron dug his fingers into the root attacking him and began drinking deeply of the magic flowing through it.
Diana scowled and stopped her spell, leaving most of them hanging in the air for a few seconds before Flora took control and released them all.
The moment his feet touched the ground, Anagan shot off, moving fast enough to allow him to run across the lake's waters. Diana made another movement with her hand and a large clump of sticky grasping algae halted the speedster, before starting to drag him down into the water.
Aisha concentrated and started shifting the water away, ensuring Anagan could still breathe even as he was being dragged down to the bottom of the lake.
At the same time, Timmy raised his rifle and aimed, while Stella charged power up in her staff. As they fired, Diana raised a barricade of roots, the attacks splintering large parts of the wooden defence without actually hitting the fairy commander.
Gantlos prepared to fire a shockwave, but was interrupted by a boulder hitting him from the side. He stumbled and looked up, noting a couple more faeries jumping out of the woods. "OGRON!" he called. "ENEMY REINFORCEMENTS!"
The redhead cursed under his breath at the unfortunate development.
"We'll try to help fend them off," Brandon said, as he and Riven drew their blades. "Just try to end this fast."
Bloom bit her lip and speeded along the coast of the lake, firing balls of searing flame at Diana, who countered by raising more root barricades to defend herself. Suddenly, a massive creature charged out of the woods with a deafening roar, leaping for the shocked redhead. It looked like it had once been a jaguar, but now its body had grown to monstrous proportions, its limbs slightly uneven, its muscles straining its skin almost to the point of ripping apart. The transformed feline raised a clawed paw and swiped it at Bloom, who barely managed to dodge out of its reach.
Diana sent a simple order for the beast to kill the redhead and returned her attention to the others. Anagan was still trapped and Aisha had to focus to keep him able to breathe. Stella and Timmy were still trying to fire at Diana, but her constantly regrowing barrier blocked their shots. Riven, Brandon, Gantlos and Musa were busy barely keeping incoming faeries at bay. That's when the fairy commander noticed Sky and Ogron moving through a shallower part of the lake, trying to reach her. She scowled and raised her hands. Long roots raised up in a circle around them.
"She's trying to wrap us up again?" Sky asked.
"No. She knows that allows me to drain her magic," Ogron replied. He ducked as one of the tendrils lashed at him like a whip, producing a loud cracking sound. Another made an attack on Sky, who managed to raise his shield in time.
Flora, Nabu, Dumon and Mirta tried to move in from another angle, but a mutated snake lunged out of the forest at them.
Diana smirked. Her forces were convening on the ritual site. She was convinced it would soon be over.
Bloom went flying through the air and crashed into the dirt, three long, bleeding gashes having been torn in her shoulder. She gasped as she tried to catch her breath. The mutated feline loomed over the princess and prepared to crush her.
And then Roxy was suddenly in between them. The hulking predator paused as the Earth fairy locked gaze with it. Roxy concentrated, drawing upon everything she had been told and let her magic flow into the creature. She could feel it, under layers of control spells and directives. It was scared. In pain. The pink-haired girl began gritting her teeth. Anger started welling up in her chest. "HOW DARE YOU!?" she yelled, as she directed her furious glare at Diana.
The fairy commander paused as she noticed that she was being addressed. "What is it?"
"You claim you work with nature? Help it?" Roxy began. "Well, look at this poor thing. It's scared out of its mind, because you went and turned it into a weapon. What is wrong with you?"
"I am protecting nature from..." Diana began again, but was cut off by Roxy's frustrated scream of: "STOP SAYING THAT!"
The Earth fairy took a deep breath. "This has nothing to do with what nature wants. You know what I think? I think you're too much of a coward to admit that you're murdering hundreds of people on behalf of a megalomaniacal tyrant."
"What did you say?" Diana hissed, eyes narrowing.
"I said you should take some responsibility for once," Roxy shot back. "All this attributing your deeds to the will of nature is just you throwing away responsibility. You know what, I'd still hate you for it, but I'd at least respect you a whole lot more if you just came out and admitted that all this is just one of the most grotesque invasion plans ever, rather than just saying that it's because nature, you myopic bitch." Thick roots exploded out of the ground around Roxy and wrapped around her with lightning speed. The pink-haired fairy gasped as the air was pressed from her lungs.
"You... Insolent... Brat," Diana hissed. "I don't care what Morgana says, I'll crush you right here and now."
"You always were too easily provoked," came a voice right behind her.
Diana paused. She could feel the colour drain from her face.
She spun around, calling upon all her power. Ogron mercilessly locked his grip around her wrist, before hammering his knee into her stomach. The fairy commander bent over from the pain, as the redhead grabbed her throat with his other hand. She could feel her power being sucked out every second he was latched onto her. She lashed out with her leg, but Ogron countered with a kick of his own. Suddenly off balance, she was lifted up and smashed into the ground again, as Ogron tightened his grip. Water flowed in from the sides and Diana found herself coughing and sputtering to catch breaths of fresh air. She writhed and kicked as more and more of her energy was sucked out.
Suddenly, she was hoisted up in the air. "It's over," Ogron stated.
"No... No..." Diana gasped as she weakly tried to get free again. She felt something snap inside her, felt it get sucked out of her and disappear into the hands that were locked around her. She felt the connection to the world around her fade, her control over the jungle vanishing into nothing. "No..." she gasped as she sunk into unconsciousness. "No..." And then she went limb.
Ogron let go of her arm and reached down and grabbed the blue flower that was the heart of the spell. He closed his eyes and concentrated, sucking out the energy that sustained the magic. Across North America, dozens of underlings were suddenly cut off, as the network disintegrated. "It is done," he said, as he let the crumbling flower go. He turned around. The fairies under Diana's command stood as if frozen. And then as one, they turned and fled back into the jungle.
...
After the battle, the group took a moment to breathe. Roxy was, somewhat reluctantly, convinced to guide the animals back into thejungle.
"What's going to happen to them?" she asked, as she watched the tail of the mutated jaguar disappear into the forest.
"With luck, we will soon be able to send a team down here to start doing clean-up," Ogron stated. "Undo the mutations and return them to their natural state. Of course, our first priority must be the neutralization of the White Circle." He turned his gaze to several prone, tied-up forms, the fairies they had managed to take prisoner. Not that they were faeries any longer. Ogron had ripped the magic out of every single one of them.
"For the record, I still think that's messed up," Musa grumbled, as she inspected her fans.
"It's better than having them pull this stunt again," Dumon said with a shrug. "They'll manage. I lived most of my early life without magic. Ain't hard."
"Wait, what?" Aisha asked. "How does that make sense?"
"The rings," Anagan said, showing off his black ring. "They contain the essence of a defeated magician. When we wear them, we can draw upon it."
"Right, I remember Faragonda mentioning something about that," Flora said, looking speculative. "For every magi you took down, you created one of your own."
"Not always, but often enough. Though I do wonder..." Ogron shook his head. "It does not matter right now. We must return to plan our next move. I doubt the other fairy commanders will take this defeat lying down. They will respond and it will be with force. We must try to be ready."
"Hey, hold on a moment," Techna started. "I actually have a couple hundred questions or so after all this."
"That will have to wait," Gantlos drawled.
"Indeed. Rest assured, we will contact you shortly. Despite our past disagreements, your cooperation was essential for this mission's success," Ogron agreed. "I am especially impressed by you, Roxy. You have showed that your powers have evolved dramatically and your distraction was just what we needed to move in for the final blow."
"Well, uhm, it wasn't like I was trying to do that," Roxy admitted. "It was just, when I felt what she had done to that poor animal, I just got so angry at her hypocrisy."
"Believe me, I know the feeling," the Black Circle leader replied, gazing heavenwards.
"So, do you all have a way home?" Anagan asked. "Or do you need a lift?"
"That won't be necessary," Nabu replied. "Thanks to a magical ritual we've worked with, we can just teleport back into the torn asunder ruins of our apartment."
"That'll probably mean we'll have to go shopping for furniture again when this is over," Mirta commented.
"Oh Dragon save us all," Sky groaned. "Not again."
"You think you've got it bad? I can't imagine anyone's got anything on Flora when it comes obnoxious shopping habits," Riven added exasperated.
"It is not my fault you do not have the patience to hunt down the best possible offers," Flora stated, sounding slightly insulted. "Besides, I was of the impression your military trained you for endurance and patience."
"They do. It just never seemed to take with Riven," Brandon commented.
"Hey, I for one really appreciated the furniture you found," Helia quickly added. "It really tied the room together."
"I think, like, we're slightly getting off track here," Stella commented. "We were about to go back, yes?"
"We were," Bloom agreed. She turned to the Black Circle members again. "I'm still not completely sure we can trust you. But thanks for helping us today."
"I wouldn't expect anything else," Ogron replied nonchalantly.
The group nodded. Nabu concentrated and the ritual spell went off. And with a flash of light, the group was gone.
...
The group had reappeared in the unstable apartments they had lived in for most of the year. Trees and bushes had ruined the floor and made a mess of the walls and ceiling. It would be a while before the place would be up to snuff again. As they walked through the devastated city, there was a different feeling in the air. Replacing the sense of tension that had enveloped the city, a sense of weary calm now engulfed it. Everywhere, they saw signs of rescue workers, medical personnel and so on. Even a few journalists had arrived to start reporting on the tragedy. The Gardenia Dance Hall was little different. Ambulances had arrived, doctors working on helping the people and transporting those in greatest need to the nearest functional hospital.
The group was greeted quietly by the others. Everyone looked tired. But there was also a sense of optimism over the place. That this could be turned around and overcome.
Sighing heavily, Bloom sat down by the bar desk.
"How'd it go?" Jason asked. "You look blasted."
"It's over," the redhead said, with an air of finality. "Diana has been taken care of. She, at least, won't harm anyone else."
"Sounds great," Mitzy said, as she sat down beside her. "Situation is bad enough as it is."
"Yeah. The government is in an uproar. An attack of this scale... Well, it gets noticed," Jason continued, as he began cleaning glasses. "Don't think we're the only place with problems though."
"What happened?" Stella asked concerned, as she too sat down by the bar desk. "Did some of the other faerie generals attack?"
"Possibly. Heard it on the radio a couple hours ago. Northern Italy has gone dark, as has Ireland. Several of the governments over there are in a state of alert," the Suits leader reported.
"Who can blame them with all the shit happening over here," Mitzy mumbled.
"How bad is it?" Bloom asked.
"They still don't know the death toll or the extent of the damage. It'll take years for Gardenia alone to recover, that much is certain," Mitzy elaborated. "I've seen a couple of friends from school show up." Her eyes fell. "There's also a lot of people I know that I haven't seen yet."
Bloom paused and took a deep, ragged breath. And then she collapsed over the desk.
"Whoa, there," Jason said, as he quickly put the glass down and helped the redhead up. "You okay there, Bloom?"
"No," Bloom sniffled, as tears began streaming down her face. "This... This is all our fault. All these... These people getting hurt. We re-released the... The White Circle. I might as well have..."
"Bloom, I'm going to have to ask you to shut up," Mitzy sharply cut in.
The redhead paused, shocked to silence.
"Look, there is no doubt in my mind that you did what you thought was best. Was it a mistake? Yes. A colossal one? Yes. You think you're the first one to do that? At least you bother taking responsibility and try to fix things." She grabbed a napkin and handed it over. "Look, I'm not saying you are blameless. But you are trying to fix things and that's worth a lot. Besides, if we really have to assign blame, it's not like you forced those nut-jobs to assault several cities. That's on them. So calm down, please."
"Harsh, but true," Jason agreed. "Those people are completely loco. Total vacuum on the top floor. That's not your burden to bear." He handed her a glass of juice. "Here, on the house."
"Th-thanks," Bloom hiccuped, before gulping it down. She took a deep breath. "What about Selina? You've seen her?"
"I have." Mitzy paused. "She's okay, if shocked. And I did tell her what happened." She bit her lower lip.
"How did she take it?" the Dominian princess asked.
"With a great deal of silence."
Bloom was quiet for a moment. "She's going to hate me for this, isn't she?"
"Well, hate might be a bit strong. But it might take her some time to forgive you for keeping this secret, yes," Mitzy admitted.
Bloom chewed a bit on the inside of her cheek. "I'm going to find my parents. Hopefully they are okay. And then..." She looked at the people who had sought refuge in the Dance Hall. "Then I'll see if I can't make myself useful somewhere."
"We've got some busted pipes down in the basement leaking water. You and that Aisha girl could team up with Jack to do some voodoo and fix it," Jason suggested. "Would be nice to have running water in the building again."
...
Faragonda took a deep breath and the sipped the rest of the tea in the cup. Another meeting between the realms had been called for. Those who wanted action kept trying to stir things up, while those who preferred not to do anything tried to keep the boat from rocking. This had resulted in a painful standstill and as close associates of the people who had gotten involved, both Faragonda and Saladin had been called in several times. And now, both of them were sitting in a small office, waiting for the session to begin.
The ageing headmaster of Red Fountain took a deep breath. "It's all going to change now."
"I know. But that does not make me any less nervous." Faragonda put her cup down. "Rash actions are as problematic as paralysed indifference."
"True, true."
Their quiet conversation was interrupted by a double door opening. They stepped out on a balcony with a couple of plush seats, which they sat down in. In front of them was a panel, with which they could inform the one directing the meeting that they wished to speak. And above that, a great opening revealing the massive round hall in which the various rulers of the realm met. And already, opinions were being flung around.
"Mr. Kadmos, I see no reason why you and others like you keep calling us all in for these meeting," the current president of Zenith said annoyed. "Some of us have work to do."
"Are you implying I don't work?" Oritel replied, a smouldering look on his face.
"Gentlemen, please. Let's be reasonable," the leprechaun Mr. Goodson, who was in charge of directing the meeting and to try and keep things civil, said. "The guests have arrived, so if you would please wait for your turn with your opinions, we could probably have a civilized debate."
"It begins," Saladin mumbled.
"Indeed," the headmistress of Faragonda sighed and pressed the button.
"Ah, Miss Faragonda. You have something to start out with?" Goodson asked.
"I do. There has been a recent development in this case that I wish to share," the headmistress of Alfea began. "I had noticed that the group had refrained from contacting me for quite a while. I found this to be unusual and tried to contact them. It failed." A deep silence engulfed the room. "I used what resources I had. The entirety of Earth has been covered in a forbiddance effect, including much of the surrounding space. They are trapped there and we have no idea what is causing this."
The silence continued for a few more seconds, but this was not the stunned quiet of a shocked audience. This was the quiet right before lightning struck.
"THIS IS AN OUTRAGE!" Oritel yelled into his microphone. "IF YOU WON'T HELP ME GET MY DAUGHTER OUT OF THERE, I WILL SEND MY ARMIES TO EARTH MYSELF!"
"YOU WON'T STAND ALONE!" King Radius added. "I'LL GO TOO."
"I FOR ONE WILL NOT ALLOW YOU COWARDS TO ENDANGER MY SON AND HIS ALLIES LIVES!" King Erendor added. "I'LL GO TOO IF THAT'S HOW IT'LL HAVE TO BE!"
"OUR DAUGHTER AND HER HUSBAND TO BE ARE IN GRAVE DANGER! WOULD YOU FOOLS HAVE US ABANDON THEM?!" King Teredor, Aisha's father, added with his booming voice.
"IF THESE REALMS FOLLOW THROUGH WITH THIS, WE WILL HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO ACT IN TANDEM WITH THEM!" the leader of the Roccalucian Order yelled, mostly to be heard.
Mr. Goodson tried to call for order a few times, before sighing and sitting down. But it was clear from how things were going in the room that the people calling for action were winning the debate.
"It'll pass," Saladin commented. "They will act, for not doing so could shatter alliances and agreements that have been upheld for decades. These threats are not made lightly."
"I can see that. I just hope that they will not let their own involvement cloud their perception," Faragonda noted.
