Tecna's Visit
Gardenia
It was a normal night in Gardenia, for the moment. Bloom yawned as she walked from her bedroom downstairs to grab a drink. It had been a massive change for her, from sleeping with roommates to her own bedroom again. She had just grabbed a glass from the cupboard with a light that appeared in the kitchen, someone very familiar appeared out of thin air.
"Tecna!" Bloom shouted.
"Oh," Tecna said, reeling under Bloom's iron grip hug
"Nice to see you again," Bloom squealed. "I didn't know you were coming for a surprise visit. Here for your laptop?"
Bloom pointed to a blue computer on the counter. Tecna walked over to it and picked it up. She paused upon picking it up, knowing she was about to depart immediately. She gave Bloom an apologetic look.
"I know you have to go," Bloom said sadly.
"Alright," Tecna said, giving Bloom another hug, her conscience momentarily eased. "I'll be back soon, I promise. Flora will be here to visit tomorrow. And I'll be here on the weekend. What do you guys call that day again?"
"Saturday."
"Saturday night."
Tecna pulled out her phone and hit a button on it. Nothing happened.
"That's strange. I had an open phone line with Faragonda. But it's gone. Let me check something."
Tecna flipped open her laptop and typed away at a rapid pace. Bloom joined her, watching the tech fairy speed through programs at a rate that made her dizzy. Tecna finally opened a program that showed static on the screen.
"What's that supposed to be?" Bloom asked.
"That's supposed to be a street camera in Magix City's central square. The Realm Wide Web is down."
Bloom's phone started to ring. Bloom raced over to what had been Stella's old phone and picked it up.
"Wuzzit! Oh Stella, how are you?" Bloom said, her voice accompanied by a yawn.
"Bloom, we're coming to get you."
"What? Has Faragonda lifted my suspension?"
"No not really. The Trix just attacked Alfea. They've got the powers of the witches that destroyed Domino."
"Was anyone hurt? When are you guys arriving? Is the school alright?"
"Hopefully within a few hours. I won't sugarcoat this Bloom, but you and the Dragon Flame are our only hope."
Bloom froze, dread exploding in her chest. "Great. Does she know I can't control the Dragon Flame?"
Stella didn't know what to say. "Stay close to Tecna. We'll be there soon. Send me a text every hour. I'll call you later when I have more details."
"Deal," Bloom said. "Goodbye. See you soon. Love you."
"Love you too."
Bloom's anxiety skyrocketed the longer the conversation went. When she put the phone down, she exchanged a horrified look with Tecna.
"We've got to get my parents up," Bloom said, running towards her parents' bedroom.
Thirty minutes later, Mike and Vanessa, both with impressive bedheads, were sitting at the kitchen table while Tecna and Bloom explained everything to them. When she had finished, the redhead exploded.
"And they think that somehow I'll magically save them. What the hell are they thinking? Faragonda knows I can't control the Dragon Flame!"
Bloom flopped onto the nearest couch and stared at the floor. Tears of frustration began to leak out of her eyes and stream down her face. Her parents moved over to the couch to comfort her. Mike put his arm around her while Vanessa wiped the tears from her face.
"You're right Bloom. They have no right to ask this burden of you," Vanessa said, rubbing her daughter's back. "You don't have to go back."
Mike knew what he had to say would give her no comfort. "Bloom, nobody asks me to run into a fire. But it's what I do, and I make a difference. I know you are frustrated, but if you go back, it's like when I rush into a fire. It's like when we took you in."
Bloom wanted to shout in frustration when an idea occurred to her. She walked over to her phone and opened it, only to be greeted by a busy signal.
"You want more information before you make a decision," Tecna observed.
Bloom nodded, resisting the urge to slam Stella's old phone onto the counter. She went back to the couch and sat down between her parents again.
"Oh no," Tecna said, causing everyone to jump. Bloom's busy signal had confirmed what she had suspected all along.
"What is it?" Vanessa said.
"All the networks are down. That means we can't get back to Magix. We can't even contact them. Not any way that I know of."
Tecna began typing on her laptop again as fast as she could, trying to boost the signal. Back in the living room, Mike didn't know much about magic, but he knew a hopeless situation, even temporary, when he saw one. He walked over to and glanced at the clock in the kitchen.
"Why don't we go back to bed," he proposed. "We can't do anything at the moment. Unless Tecna, you know of something?"
"I'll keep looking, I'm not tired," Tecna said. "I'll wake you if I come up with anything."
Mike escorted Bloom up the stairs. When they reached her room, Bloom turned to her father and gave him a hug. He wrapped his arms around her, trying to convey how much he loved her. When Bloom let go of him, she walked into her room but stopped before lying down on her bed.
"I'll give you an answer in the morning. But if I do, it won't be for Magix. It will be for you, Mom, and my friends."
"Bloom, sometimes that's all you need."
Mike closed the door and turned off the light. Bloom didn't go to sleep, lying on her back and looking up at the ceiling. She already knew what the right thing to do was, but she was hesitant. Bloom pondered on why she was so reluctant to go and save a world that she had fallen in love with. Where she had come from, where everything had begun for her. Why do I feel this way?
Bloom rolled over onto her left side, slowly drifting off into an uneasy sleep. Down in the kitchen, the hours ticked by as Tecna ran into roadblock after roadblock. Everything she tried, even enhancing her computer with magic, failed to get a signal from the Magix Dimension. The crack of dawn was just arriving over the horizon when her brain finally hit upon an idea. I need something to boost a signal. Then I need to connect it with...wait, the ship we used! If only I had a strong enough signal. Is there something in Earth tech that can boost it?
Tecna looked up as the Peter family slowly trickled into the kitchen. None of them looked like they had gotten much sleep. Bloom, came with a determined expression on her face. Vanessa whipped up some pancakes and eggs.
"So, I have an idea. Only took me five hours to come up with it," Tecna said. "I can connect with a Red Fountain ship, but I need something to boost my signal. I don't know what they call it here. Like a...a.."
"Radio dish?" Vanessa suggested.
Mike suddenly lit up. "I know where, The fire station has a large radio dish mounted on it. As the fire chief, I can say it has to go down for maintenance and you can use it. I'll simply redirect the traffic to a local sub-band. But you have to leave it as you found it. It's not an inexpensive piece of equipment."
"Nobody will know I will have used it," Tecna reassured him.
"Tecna dig in," Bloom said, noticing the tech fairy hadn't eaten anything. "It sucks doing anything on an empty stomach."
Tecna wanted to say no, but a look from each of her hosts persuaded her otherwise. She grabbed a plate and put it on the table. She pulled out some of the yellow egg and pancakes, neither of which she had ever seen before. She grabbed a fork and put a little of the egg into her mouth. Lighting up like a Christmas tree, Tecna began shoveling the food into her mouth. Bloom smiled, knowing her mother's cooking could convert anyone. When the plate had been emptied (which didn't take long) everyone grabbed what they needed.
"Alright everyone, into the car," Mike called.
Vanessa, Bloom, and Tecna all raced out the door and down to the car. Tecna came to a sudden halt when she saw the car wasn't floating.
"What's wrong Tecna?" Bloom asked.
"The car. How's it supposed to go?" Tecna asked.
Bloom rolled her eyes, opened the door, and shoved Tecna into the back seat. She jumped in after her as Mike started the engine.
"It's not floating," Tecna protested.
"Here on Earth, things are more simple. No magic, remember," Bloom said as she buckled her seatbelt.
Mike pulled out of the driveway and began to drive towards the fire station. Tecna watched, her face glued to the window, as the tires carried the car down the street. Bloom lost it and began to laugh, earning a punch from the tech fairy as they turned onto one of Gardenia's main highways.