Disclaimer: I do not own Winx Club. Remember when I had jokes for these things? They were a lot more fun back then. Sigh.
Hey everyone. Before I get started I just want to say that the level of interest you guys have shown in this story has been downright amazing. I'm glad that everyone's been enjoying the story so much and I will do my best to keep improving its quality. I have a lot of backstory still in reserve, a whole lot more of the main story, and probably even some side stories. Which brings me to my second point: When I started writing On Borrowed Wings, I was writing a stand alone story based on the bizarre concept of Winx Club in reverse. Instead of a girl finding out she's a fairy, a fairy finds out she's really a girl. It was weird, it was silly, and I would never have predicted it would turn into what it's become. I doubt I will ever be able to leave this universe I've created, and I expect I will be writing more stories about it for a long time to come.
Once again, thank you to everyone who's helped to support this story, and I look forward to writing the side stories, as well as other things, once this trilogy is finished.
On with the story!
It was well past dawn when Dhalia woke the rest of the Classix. They'd needed the extra rest, but now they had to make up for lost time. They quickly gathered up their supplies and prepared to leave.
"We need to get moving." Amelia said. "Before Sasha finds us again."
"Then let's get going." Dhalia replied. "Magix!"
(Cue transformation music)
They took to the air.
"One good thing about the incident with Koroboras: It taught us how to fly in Altivix." Reyva said.
"There's a phrase for that on Earth." Perdi replied. "I believe it goes: 'The prospect of being hanged focuses the mind wonderfully.'"
"That sounds about right." Dhalia said. "Morbid, but right."
They kept flying.
They continued to buzz across the forest they had spent the night in. The occasional small flying monster tried to stop them, but the Classix still had their weapons. The attacks hardly even slowed them down.
Eventually though, the forest ended. A mountain range rose before them.
"Great." Artis said. "Now what?"
"There's a valley over there." Amelia said, pointing. "It looks like it goes straight through."
There was indeed a valley. The harsh grey stone of the mountains gave way to a gentle grassy field dotted with small trees and boulders. A light fog covered the valley, giving it a slightly eerie appearance. However, they could also make out several large shapes circling over the valley. As they watched, one of the shapes turned and flew towards a second, smaller one. The shrieks from the aerial battle could be heard from where the Classix were floating.
"We can't fly through." Reyva said. "We'll be attacked by those creatures."
"We'll have to make it on foot." Dhalia said.
They flew to the valley's entrance. Landing, they returned to their normal forms.
"I don't like this." Dhalia said. "This is a perfect place for an ambush."
"We don't have any other way of getting over these mountains." Reyva said. "They're too tall for us to fly over, and those flying things would probably kill us if we tried."
"I know. That only makes me even more worried."
They started walking.
The valley was cold, hidden from the sun's warmth by the mountains which flanked it. Moisture clung to everything, and the fog muffled sound. Every footstep was a flat, dead thing, its echo consumed by the mist. Perdi shivered.
"Why is always cold, everywhere we go? It was cold in Univix, it was cold in Omega, and it's cold here."
"Better cold than hot." Artis replied. "At least when it's cold you can usually do something about it."
"Wait." Dhalia stopped, peering into the mist. "Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Artis asked.
"I didn't hear anything." Reyva said.
"...Never mind. It's probably nothing." She turned to continue walking, but before she could move, she spotted something out of the corner of her eye. "Classix, down!"
The girls dropped. A roaring blast of fire blew over their heads, burning away the mist. They quickly go to their feet.
Five men stood before them, each holding a sword. They were clad in old and battered armor. Tattered crimson capes hung from their backs and small gold circlets held back their bright red hair. The one in the middle had his sword leveled at the girls. Steam drifted from its surface.
"Who are you?" Amelia demanded.
"They are the Ember Blades. Or rather, the Dark Ember Blades." Sasha's voice drifted through the air. Its beauty was tarnished and poisoned by the anger it held. "Surely you've heard of them?"
"No." Dhalia's voice was flat, hard, and challenging.
"Ah. Then perhaps I should tell you." The majestic beast materialized, resting on her stomach as she observed the confrontation. "It's quite fascinating actually." She waved an almost dainty claw at the swordsmen. They relaxed, waiting for orders.
"You see, these men hold the power of the Dragon Flame."
"What?" Amelia's voice was shrill, like a cat whose tail has been stepped on.
"Well, an ember of it. They never possessed much power, and they lost most of it before they were sentenced to this place. You see, the Dragon Flame was once a power much like any other. The Great Dragon bestowed it upon Arcadia's son for his courage in the war with Eclipsis. Every male descendant of his possessed a spark of the fire, and when he went on to establish Domino, that power became the mark of royalty. Those who possessed the power became a powerful order of sorcerer-knights known as the Ember Blades.
"Several hundred years later, a civil war broke out. I don't know what the reasons for it were, and I couldn't care less, but the important thing is that seven of the Ember Blades turned against their order, and their king. They began to kill other Ember Blades, stealing their powers. They were renamed the Dark Ember Blades, and they waged war upon their kin. They were merciless, but eventually one of their number was ambushed and slain.
"Fearing that he would be the next to die, their leader sought a way to achieve a decisive victory. He stumbled upon one of the many curses Eclipsis left scattered across the Magic Dimension."
The Classix started.
"You thought your precious Allanya was the only one who touched the realms with her magic?" Sasha's voice became even more distorted with anger. "Fools. Eclipsis left her mark upon the realms as well, creating monsters to stalk the day and horrors of the night. The Dark Ember Blades found one such spell.
"Thinking they could use its power to create an army, they channeled their power into it. Their Dragon Flame merged with the dark energy of the curse, creating a new power: The Shadow Flame. But the Shadow Flame would not be controlled. It took every last scrap of power it could from them before taking possession of the man who had led them. The man named Darkar. With its new body, the Shadow Flame set out to destroy Domino and steal the rest of the Dragon Flame.
"The other Ember Blades soon learned of this. Even when working together, they were no match for the power that possessed their fallen brother. Desperate, they hatched a desperate plan. Every living Ember Blade gathered beneath the capital of Domino. There, they released the full power of the Dragon Flame, turning themselves into a living source of power: The Vortex of Flames.
"The king of Domino, Darkar's brother Hano, then took their sister Merina, a powerful fire fairy in her own right, to the Vortex. He plunged into the Vortex, gathering as much of its power as he could before it destroyed him. As his final act he gave the power to Merina, who became the first keeper of the Dragon Flame, as well as the first queen of Domino.
"Merina fought and defeated Darkar, destroying his body in the process. The men you see before you were arrested, tried and convicted of treason. Rather than having them executed, Merina sent them here. Not out of mercy, but so that they would live forever."
"And to make a needlessly long story short, they work for you now." Reyva said, cutting Sasha off.
"How dare you interrupt me?" Sasha demanded. "I am-"
This time it was Artis who interrupted with a deadpan voice. "Sasha. Daughter of Eclipsis, Scourge of Altivix, Princess of Monsters. We know."
Sasha blinked in surprise. "You know who I am?"
"Yes." Amelia said. "We came here to remove the dark magic from Eclipsis, which should free you too." Amelia took a step towards the dragon. "Sasha, we can help you. Just let us pass."
Sasha's eyes smoldered in their sockets as she rose to glare at Amelia. "The last person who said they could help me left me here, abandoned and betrayed, trapped living half a life. You can take your 'help' and burn. You, Allanya, and everyone like you. You will all burn." With that, Sasha leapt into the air, her wings flapping powerfully as she flew away.
The five swordsmen raised their weapons once again, staring intently at the Classix.
"No way out." Dhalia said. "Girls, time to transform. Magix!"
(Cue transformation music)
Aaannnddd CUT! Oh man, this has to be my worst cliffhanger yet, and I'm sorry. It could have been worse though. I considered ending it when Sasha said "...These men hold the power of the Dragon Flame." and publishing this chapter back on Saturday, but I decided against it. Chapter length has been trending downwards in a way I'm not happy with, and that would have been under a thousand words. The last time a chapter (acknowledgements don't count) was under a thousand words was chapter twelve of On Borrowed Wings. Enough said.
A/N: Okay, a lot of backstory and not much action here. Sasha really does like to talk, doesn't she? Thank you Reyva for calling her on it. Anyways, quick recap and explanation. I was always somewhat baffled by the fact that the Dragon Flame has a keeper to begin with. It wasn't really explained, and it seems like an extremely irresponsible thing for the Great Dragon to just give someone that much power. Imagine if someone like Diaspro were the keeper of the Dragon Flame. Anyways, I'm not sure how well I explained this, but the modern Dragon Flame is not like other powers. In many ways, it's sort of like a non-physical version of Stella's ring or Amelia's earrings. This is why it has to be transferred from person to person. However, it's still very much connected to its keeper, both by blood and by magic. The Dragon Flame belongs to a specific family and it will do its best to serve and protect said family. It's also connected to the hereditary fire powers of that family, which is part of the reason why it's impossible to extinguish.
Moving on to Darkar. Biggest waste of potential in a villain I've ever seen. He's an armored undead lord of evil. He should be intimidating. Instead he's that awkwardly painful sort of funny. Well, in my story he's Bloom's uncle with a lot of "greats" added to it (Remember how creepy his whole thing with Bloom was? Yeah, it gets even creepier if they're related.), and the skeletal figure he appears as is all that's left of his body after Merina defeated him.
So, yeah. Not much actually happened this chapter. Next chapter should be exciting though. I hope to see you all there.