Hello, people. So, here we have chapter 6 and the continuation of the "battle" against Remus. The next ones will be very different and will focus more on the revelations, which are coming in two chapters.
Okay, first of all there are two things that I'd like to make clear: James isn't a wizard like Saladin, only Helia inherited magic. Just in case anyone was wondering. Second, many people said that Helia should have gone to art school instead of Red Fountain. Might I remind you that the series states that he used to be a student at Red Fountain, but then he transferred to art school. So I'm assuming that in S1 he would go to art school while the year before (which is when we are at) he would have gone to Red Fountain. Hope that's cleared.
Now on to the shoutouts:
Windrea: I already sent you a message to discuss what you said. Thanks for reviewing.
Flora: I already answered your questions. That was a mistake of mine, but I think it's better to assume that Sky's older than him while Helia's a month older than Brandon. Changing it would end up altering the story too much.
winxkate: Yeep! Those two finally got together. Too bad that the circumstances aren't the best. Good, there will be many Brella scenes in this story, since I decided to include them a lot. You'll see here how it continues, I can tell you that it's not what anyone's probably expecting.
Sweety Chou: No problem. Thanks, I'm glad to hear that my writing seems to be improving. I actually really like writing Brella and I thought that scene fit very well. Someone is a fan of AlyssaXRollos, thank god! I love them as well, here we have some intense scenes with them. I was planning that kiss for a while. It sure came from B&B, it's my fav movie of the moment and I'm obsessed.
So this chapter ain't the happiest one, but there are some cute moments for FXH and AlyssaXRollos. Good luck with reading it!
"This isn't working out!" Alyssa screamed in frustration. She and Lily had been trying to hold off Remus' guards for a while now and it wasn't going so well. The guards were armed heavily and they kept shooting arrows and spells that, miraculously, the two fairies had been able to avoid.
"I know, but we have to keep trying!" Lily replied as she used her magic to create vines that circled three enemies, making it easier for the king's army to destroy them.
"How about another convergence?" Alyssa suggested and Lily nodded before flying closer to her. They joined hands and used all of their strength in their second convergence of the night. Bright green light surrounded the gardens and many flowers started growing, carnivorous plants that started devouring the guards. Thanks to the two fairies help, their allies managed to escape the wrath of such hungry plants while only the enemies were eaten.
"Well, that did it." Lily stated proudly while watching their good work. It had diminished Remus' army greatly and so they were finally outnumbered. That didn't mean that they gave up, no, when the two fairies were making sure that most guards had been eaten, one of them who was still free shot three arrows their way and one of them hit queen Alyssa right in the stomach. "Alyssa!" Lily screamed once she saw her friend clutching her stomach as a surprised look was on her face.
"What?" The confused queen whispered before she moaned in pain as blood started coming out of her wound. Unfortunately, Lily was unable to help her because more arrows came and she had to use all of her energy to create a barrier. While she was concentrating, eyes closed, she didn't see how Alyssa detransformed and started falling towards the ground. The queen of Limphea didn't scream as she tried to use all of her energy to transform again, but it was no use, she was too weak. So she eventually let out a defeated sigh and closed her eyes, having given up.
"I've got you." She heard the voice of the man she loved and once she opened her eyes, she found herself safe in his arms.
"Rollos." She cupped his cheek with her blood covered hand and smiled weakly at him. "You always had a knack for great timing." She mused and both laughed as he kissed her hand before he noticed the blood.
"Are you injured, love?" He pulled away a bit so that he could scan her for any injuries and his eyes widened once he found the arrow stuck in her stomach. "This doesn't look good." He commented while he examined the wound and she looked at it worriedly.
"And I have no way to heal myself, it seems as if my magic has ran out." His face lightened up once an idea came to mind.
"Flora can heal you, we'll take you to her." He suggested and she shook her head.
"No, she needs to be as far away from here as possible. Have you contacted Niobe and Teredor?" She asked him and he nodded. They were so lost in themselves that they completely forgot about the attack that was taking place in their home.
"No!" They heard a loud scream and they turned back to see Lily falling to the ground, back to her normal form.
"Oh, no." Alyssa muttered, worried for her best friend. Rollos was ready to stand up and try to catch her too, but someone beat him to it. White light surrounded Lily and she was carefully placed on the ground by their side. As they searched for the one responsible for it, they saw Saladin and his good friend, Headmistress Faragonda of Alfea.
"Talk about great timing." Rollos commented and the two elders smiled at them before approaching them.
"Are you alright, your majesties?" Faragonda asked them as she eyed them warily while Saladin quickly put up a strong shield around them.
"I'm fine, but Alyssa has been shot by one of their arrows." Rollos told her as he stepped back to let her have a look at the queen's wound. "Can you heal her?" He asked a bit desperately and Miss. Faragonda nodded.
"I'll do my best." She replied before using her magic on Alyssa. It worked out just fine and soon the wound had vanished and the color returned to her face.
"Thank you." Alyssa thanked her afterwards before she turned to her husband. They exchanged smiles before kissing passionately.
"Have you seen James?" Lily asked her father in law worriedly and Saladin smiled at her.
"We met him as he was on his way to the Greenhouse with young Miele." He replied and she sighed in relief at the news that he was alright.
"So they're still here?" Rollos asked, having broken apart from the kiss.
"We have to get the kids out of here and fast, it's not safe for Flora, Helia or Miele." Alyssa added worriedly and Faragonda cast her a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry, they will be fine. From what I've heard, both of them are very powerful and capable of defending themselves. They'll have no problem taking care of a few guards if they go their way." Her words had the opposite desired impact and queen Alyssa only started freaking out, so she decided to use a different approach. "But they won't have to, I'm sure James will take them somewhere safe soon."
"Now we need to worry about this battle, because more guards have arrived." Saladin warned them and as they looked around the gardens, they could see that he was right.
"I don't understand why Remus is doing this." Alyssa commented and Lily cast her a look.
"Isn't it obvious? He wants the crown for himself." She told her and the queen was still unconvinced.
"But was it really necessary to destroy the palace and kill so many innocent people? He knows that if he wanted a position of more power all he had to do was talk to us." She argued and Rollos decided to intervene before this could become a huge fight.
"We should think about his reasons later, now we need to focus on stopping him." He told her gently, yet firmly.
"Okay. Let's go back into the palace, then. Lily and I need to recharge and there's no point in staying here when there are so many of them." She suggested and everyone nodded before Rollos helped her stand up and together, the group of 5 walked back to the palace, their minds set on the library where they could find a useful book to stop Remus' guards from taking over the castle.
Back with Flora and Helia...
Flora and Helia pulled apart from their kiss after a while, both breathless. They looked at each other with surprised expressions as they tried to think of a way to start the conversation they knew that they needed to have. "That was..." Helia said and she nodded.
"I know. I so wasn't expecting it." She replied and worry crossed his face.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have kissed you." He apologized and she shook her head while smiling.
"No, I'm glad that you did. I've been... well hoping that you'd do that." His eyes widened.
"Were you?" He asked her in confusion and she blushed.
"Yes. I just didn't know how to approach the subject or if I even should." She confessed and he sighed, understanding what she meant.
"Neither did I. I've had feelings for you for a while now, but I was afraid..." He intended to continue, but she interrupted him.
"I know. I didn't want to ruin our friendship, but I guess it's too late to be worrying about that now." She laughed bitterly.
"But is it really ruined? I believe that two people can have feelings for each other and still be great friends." He asked and she sighed.
"I don't know, Helia. But I don't think that we should do... this again." He looked at her sadly, wondering if perhaps he had misunderstood the situation.
"So does that mean that you don't want to be with me?" He cursed himself for how lame and desperate he sounded.
"That's not the point. I would love to be with you, I've wanted to for a while now, but it's just too complicated." She replied just as sadly.
"It's not so complicated. I love you and I think that should be all that matters." It was her turn to look at him with widened eyes for she hadn't been expecting such a heartfelt confession.
"You...love me?" She asked and he blushed before scratching the back of his head nervously.
"I know that we're way too young to know anything about love, but I just feel it. Every time I am with you I can't help but smile and all I desire is to make you as happy as you make me. You're my best friend and so much more. And now I'm gonna stop talking because I'm sounding so lame."
"You're not lame. I feel the same way, Helia, I was just too scared to admit it." She told him just as nervously and he looked at her with so much love and adoration that she didn't know how she could have missed his feelings before, it had always been clear as day. She just hadn't been smart enough to figure it out. Without a second thought, he leaned in and kissed her again, even more passionately and desperately than before. It felt just as perfect and magical as the first time and both wondered how it was possible.
"There's still an issue that we need to talk about." She broke apart too soon and he sighed before looking at her. "Aisha." She answered his unasked question.
"She's our best friend, she'll understand." He replied simply and Flora shook her head.
"I'm afraid that if we get together she might feel left out, that this might ruin our friendship. You know how important she is to me." She voiced her fears and he gave her a reassuring smile.
"Flora, you don't need to worry so much about these things. We'll try our best not to make her feel left out and hope that she'll understand. And I won't let it ruin our friendship, I promise you." She looked at him unsurely and he sighed once again." I love you, Flora, and I want us to be together without any obstacles. But you'll have to trust me." He pleaded and she smiled at him this time.
"I like when you say it, it makes me feel so happy." She told him and it was his turn to smile.
"I love you." He repeated and they laughed.
"I love you too, my hero." She replied and another kiss followed their heartfelt confessions. They were hoping to be able to be together now that they had settled the most important matters, but their timing was far from perfect. The sound of screams forced them to break apart.
"What could this be about?" Flora asked as she pulled apart from him before looking outside the windows. It was very dark outside, but she could see many silhouettes.
"I don't know, but I recognize this scream. It was my mother." He told her and they shared worried glances before helping each other stand up. They were ready to go outside and check out what was going on when the door to the Greenhouse was opened and two figures came in. James was holding a lantern, so the newly formed couple didn't freak out cause they saw his face. Nearly 8 years old Miele held one of his hands while the other was clutched to her favorite toy, a small teddy bear she had gained on her first birthday.
"Father, what's going on?" Helia asked him in concern and James only sighed.
"The castle's under attack." He replied shortly and the teens looked at him in shock.
"Who's attacking us?" Flora asked and there was a sudden explosion that kept Helia's father from replying.
"No time for answers, you have to go now." James said exasperatedly while he signalled for Miele to go to Flora. The nature fairy kneeled down so that she could hug her clearly scared younger sister.
"Go where? Where is my mother?" Helia asked him worriedly and James cast a desperate glance towards the window.
"She needs me right now, she's fighting against them with Alyssa." He said and they could clearly see the panic in his eyes.
"Then we should be helping them." Flora said firmly and James cast her a warning look.
"I know that's what you want, dear Flora, but your parents desire above anything for you to be safe. So that's why I want you three to go to Andros and wait for us." He told her emphatically, though firmly.
"No way! We can't just stand by while you fight whoever's attacking us!" Helia argued and James sighed.
"Helia, my son, I know you too desire to help us, but you're too young. Your mother and I couldn't bear the thought that something might happen to you during this battle. Please, stay safe and don't argue." James pleaded and Helia could see how worried his father was. Though he had no intention of backing down, he knew that James wanted to be with Lily now, so he decided to follow the rules.
"Okay. Please, be careful, dad." The blue haired teen said and James smiled at him before walking closer so that they could hug.
"I will. See you later." He wished before he hugged Flora and Miele as well. Within minutes, he was out of their sight.
"Now what?" Helia asked no one in particular and Flora smiled.
"Now I'll create a portal to Andros." She stepped away from him so that she could focus and Miele ran to his side. Helia held the young girl close to him in order to protect her while Flora concentrated. Unknown to them, they were being watched by one of Remus' guards, who started coming up with a plan. He aimed his bow at Flora, ready to take her down, but a carnivorous plant appeared out of nowhere and grabbed his arms, so the arrow missed the nature fairy, instead going Helia's way. Unfortunately, Miele was the one who ended up getting hit.
"Ouch." The little girl screamed while she stared at the arrow stuck in her shoulders and Helia looked at it with wide eyes. Flora was too concentrated on making the portal to notice what was happening.
"Don't worry, Miele, as soon as we get to Andros we'll fix it." His promise did nothing to stop the young girl from crying in pain, making Flora look back at them worriedly.
"Miele? Are you okay, sweetie?" She asked her younger sister while turning back from the portal that she had just created.
"It hurts." Was Miele's simply reply and Flora walked closer to them, eyes widening once she saw the arrow.
"Where did that come from?" She looked around worriedly and Helia looked around, alert.
"Seems like they have already found us. We need to hurry." He told her before taking her hand and they walked towards the portal. Just as they were in front of it, many guards suddenly appeared, circling them.
"You're not going anywhere." One of them said while he pointed an arrow towards them. Flora and Helia looked around panickingly before their eyes fell on Miele. Even if they might be able to take out those guards, she needed to get to safety since she couldn't defend herself.
"Helia, you need to take her to a safe place." Flora told him and he shook his head.
"No, you should go. I can handle them." He told her firmly and it was her turn to shake her head.
"I know that, but I am the princess of Limphea. It's my duty to protect my kingdom." Right on time she used her magic to create a barrier around them. All the arrows that were sent their way hit it, but didn't harm them.
"I can't just leave you here, alone." He argued and she smiled at him. Knowing that discussing the matter wouldn't help, she surprised him by kissing him passionately.
"I'll be okay. Now take Miele to safety so that you and I can kick some ass together." She told him determinately and he was speechless at how bold she was being.
"Okay." He finally complied before taking Miele's hand and walking with her towards the open portal, Flora's barrier protecting them from the guards that tried to attack them.
"See you soon, little sis. Love you." Flora told Miele with a smile before they disappeared into the portal. As she looked at her younger sister, she spotted the necklace that she had been using nonstop for two years and she wondered if maybe she should take it to help her in this fight. But as she thought about it, it was too late. So she pushed all thoughts aside and got ready to defend herself against the guards.
On Andros...
Aisha and her parents were in the throne room discussing the very unwanted topic of marriage when a portal suddenly appeared and Miele and Helia came in. Since the royals were expecting the visit, they weren't too startled. "Helia, are you okay?" Aisha worriedly ran his way and gave him a tight hug while he wrapped an arm around her, since the other one was holding Miele's hand.
"Yeah, I'm fine. We got out before the battle could truly begin." He told her after they pulled apart and she sighed in relief.
"I'm glad to hear it. Where's Flora?" Aisha asked him worriedly and his face fell, but his reply was interrupted.
"This really hurts." Everyone looked at the young girl and the queen and king of Andros gasped once they saw the arrow on her stomach.
"Oh my." Niobe put a hand to her heart and Teredor let go of her and approached the child.
"This injury looks serious, she needs help right now!" He exclaimed before looking back two guards guards that were in the room.
"I need you to take princess Miele to the doctor." He called them and the guards approached him.
"Of course, your majesty." As they neared them, Miele got scared and hid behind Helia, her small hands holding his shirt tightly.
"Hey, Miele. Don't be afraid, they'll just take you somewhere you can get better." Aisha talked to the young girl, but she only held tighter onto Helia. The blue haired teen turned around and knelt down so that he was facing her.
"I know you're scared, princess, but you have to let go of me so that I can go back to Flora." He tried to reason with her.
"But I want you to stay with me." She argued and Helia sighed, worried for Flora and eager to get back to her.
"Aisha can stay with you, but I have to help your sister. You want her to be alright, don't you?" He asked and Miele nodded slowly.
"There's no way I'm letting you go back on your own, I'm going with you." Aisha said firmly and Helia sighed once again, not wanting to argue.
"Okay,then. Let's get going because Flora needs us right now." He stood up and looked back at the royals of Andros."Thank you for welcoming us, your majesties."
"But of course, Helia. Please, be careful, both of you." Teredor replied, looking worried and unsure. Aisha hugged her parents tightly and told them not to worry so much before Helia handed Miele to the gently queen, who picked her up and walked with her towards the doctor. As soon as they were gone, Aisha and Helia converged their magic to create a portal to Limphea and said their last goodbyes to king Teredor.
Back with Flora...
"Now this is getting out of hand." Flora muttered to herself as she attempted to keep up her shield, panic starting to build. She had been fighting the guards for a few minutes now and the results were unsatisfactory.
"Keep on shooting, men. She's bound to break eventually." One of them shouted and more arrows were sent her way. She could feel that they weren't normal arrows, there was magic in them and so they weakened her shield greatly. She thought about what she should do, since she didn't have much time left to maintain her shield. Then she recalled the words spoken to her by her mother, who hated battles more than anything and despised the thought of hurting others.
"When your defences fail, you'll have no choice but to attack. I don't like it, my sweet Flora, but sometimes we must make hard choices and in a battle, the choice there is to live or to die." Alyssa had told her one day after she had been training with Helia, when she had accidentally hurt him and he had had to be taken to the infirmary. As Flora watched the guards prepare themselves to attack her again, she realized that her mother was absolutely right.
"I don't want to die. I can't, there are people counting on me." She muttered before she concentrated all of the strength she had left on taking down the guards, just as her barrier was erased. She felt a pain on her side, but she ignored it and kept concentrating. Green light shot out of her body and encircled the guards. Soon they all fell to the ground, unconscious and Flora opened her eyes once she heard only silence.
"Now that...did it." She muttered weakly, feeling more exhausted than ever. Feeling pain once again, she looked down to find an arrow was stuck on her stomach and she groaned. "Great, just great." She reluctantly took it out, holding off a scream, and then tried using her magic on the wound. It was no use, the spell had taken all of her energy and she felt more tired by the seconds. Once the world started spinning, Flora decided that she'd better lie down to make it stop and gave up on trying to heal her wound. "Helia better come back soon." She whispered before she yawned and, against her wishes, her eyes closed and darkness encircled her.
With Alyssa and Lily...
About half an hour later, Alyssa, Rollos, Saladin, Faragonda, Lily and newly returned James found themselves in the throne room as they battled for their lives. The search for an useful book was rendered successful, but the two fairies had to use all of their powers to cast the spell contained in it and so they were exhausted when the time came to fight against the guards that had broken into the castle.
James and Rollos managed to convince them to hide in the library as they waited for their powers to recharge before joining in. So the two men were rather distracted as they tried to keep the guards at bay, which caused them to almost get hit many times. Thankfully, Saladin and Faragonda were very skilled and quick and they were able to help them while holding off the guards.
Eventually Alyssa and Lily came into the room, ready to join the fight. They weren't transformed because that would take energy that they no longer had, so both used their powers while remaining in their normal form. They converged a few times and were able to take care of most of the guards that were left undefeated by Saladin and Faragonda.
"Please tell me that it's over." Lily pleaded breathlessly as they looked around at the guards that were either unconscious or dead.
"I think that we did it." James said while he approached Lily. The two elders looked around cautiously, worried that this might not be over yet.
"We did it, my love, we won." Rollos excitedly told his wife and him and Alyssa hugged and kissed, eager to be as close as possible after being apart for so long during the fight.
"Indeed, we've managed to save our kingdom and our children." She told him and both had smiles at the thought of telling Flora that everything was alright and seeing her again. Now that the battle was over, the feeling that had been bugging them ever since they had found the book came back and they shared worried looks. Something was wrong. "Rollos, do you also have the feeling that something terrible happened?" She asked him and he sighed.
"I do, love, I worry that it might be connected to our daughters." He replied worriedly before he took her hand for a kiss. "But right now we should be focused on making sure that our victory is real before we find them." He advised and she nodded, knowing that he was right.
"Watch out!" They heard a loud scream and suddenly both royals felt as if they could no longer breathe. As they looked around, they realized that they were trapped in a green bubble.
"Remus!" James yelled angrily at the man standing behind the queen and king of Limphea. He smirked at them before looking at the fairy by his side, his wife, Violet. Her eyes were staring into nothing as if she was blind, but Saladin and Faragonda were quick to spot the spell she was clearly under. They wondered why he would need to control his own wife, but it might be because she didn't agree with what she was doing.
"I see you were able to defeat most of my guards. Wasn't expecting so much resistance, but it doesn't really matter now." James took a few steps, but Lily held his arm while giving him a warning look.
"You better let the queen and king go unless you want to spend the rest of your life in the Omega Dimension." Saladin warned him and he simply laughed.
"The Omega Dimension? Please, do you really think anyone will consent to that?" James mocked while shaking his head before he turned to Violet once again. "Now, love, why don't you speed up the process so that we can be done with this." They watched in horror as the pink haired woman barely nodded before the bubble that was trapping Alyssa and Rollos started turning grey.
"Rollos, I want you to know..." Alyssa started saying between coughs as the air on the bubble started going away.
"I know. I love you too, more than anything." He replied while bringing her closer as both attempted to breathe. Faragonda and Saladin used their magic to try to break the bubble, but time was running out.
"Please, take care of our girls." Alyssa said as she and Rollos turned to their best friends, who stood there in shock and worry, arms wrapped around each other.
"Don't be like that, you'll be fine. We'll get you out of there." Lily said with tears streaming down her face and the queen of Limphea only looked at her with the saddest of smiles. Within the next few seconds, her body tumbled to the ground as Rollos tried to hold her, but he was too weak himself and both ended up on the ground. As Saladin and Faragonda were finally able to destroy the bubble trapping them, it was too late. They were gone.
I KNOW. THE KILLING HAS BEGUN AND I DIDN'T EVEN GIVE YOU A WARNING. Well, let me remind you that every death in my stories is for plot purpose, so they are necessary. You'll see that next chapter.
Now, what are your thoughts? Did you enjoy the Rollyssa scenes? What about FloraXHelia? Too cheesy? With me it's always gonna be a bit cheesy, seeing as I'm a hopeless romantic.
Did you like the battle scenes? I'm not very good at writing those, hope they were okay.
What will happen now?
Next chapter should come between Friday and Sunday, depending on your reviews. It will be mostly about Flora, but you'll have the return of a forgotten character and a few scenes with Aisha, her parents and JamesXLily. Think we can make it to 5 reviews?