Maledictio Verae Tenebrarum [The Curse of True Darkness]
Prologue
All around there was rolling shadowy mist. The mist was so suffocatingly dark, that nothing could be seen.
Suddenly a blinding light blinked on in front of a red-haired woman and forced her bright blue eyes closed. With her eyes closed she could clearly feel power pulsing all around her. It was originating from the light. She tentatively opened her eyes and reached out to it. She could feel it was more powerful than anything else she had ever encountered, even more powerful than the magic boiling inside her.
After the light appeared, her surroundings became muddled fuzzy shapes, but the power in front of her was as clear as a bell. She reached out to touch it and when she did, her mind cleared. The dark mists peeled back like the opening act of a play, and she looked around in confusion. By her side was a being of pure energy. He was so powerful she could feel his energy caressing her bottom lip like a sweet lover.
Opposing her were a rag-tag group of young adults in various levels of distress. The females were in the tight sparkling outfits most fairies sported and the males were dressed in tight-fitting, matching, blue and white fighting gear. She vaguely recognised them, but something was still making it difficult to remember anything past them being against her at that moment.
She could vaguely hear them yell a name at her, but the being beside her had all her attention. His arm was extended towards her, waiting. She knew what he wanted and reluctantly handed over the power in her grasp.
At the moment when she did, he reached out to her, embraced her, and shared the power with her.
The scene faded away like watercolours in the rain and the two of them mixed together, their colours becoming one dark smudge on the canvas.
Then she woke up.
The red-haired girl from the dream was now dressed in ordinary pyjamas, drenched in sweat and panting. She clutched at her chest and tried to calm herself down as the memory of the dream faded away like an unpleasant smell. After a moment of simply breathing, she felt better, but she couldn't fully shake the anxiety brought on by the nightmare.
The sun peaked over the horizon and streams of light blinded her to full wakefulness. The red-haired girl quickly and quietly jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom without waking her roommate. After washing her face and getting changed into tight fitting sports gear, she left the school dorm to go for a morning run.
The sweating redhead quietly tiptoed through the dorm after her run.
"Bloom! Where have you been?" A tall, gorgeous, blonde girl stopped her at the door and scrunched up her face at the red-head's appearance. "Did you go running?"
"Good morning, Stella." The red head, identified as Bloom, replied to the blonde woman. "I just went to clear my head quickly."
"You could have just used a spell for that." The blonde, identified as Stella, laughed softly.
"I'm still used to doing things the Earth-way" Bloom replied with a smile.
"Whatever. Anyways, Flora and the others are already getting breakfast. Hurry up and get changed or we will miss it and be late for class."
"You go ahead, I want to take a quick shower."
"You did hear me about being late?"
"I heard you, Stella. I will be very quick."
"Okay, okay," Stella replied and walked away muttering under her breath with a shrug, "you could just use a cleaning spell."
As promised, Bloom was ready in record time and entered the school cafeteria with a light-hearted step. She sat down at the table with the rest of her companions. The blonde-haired sun fairy who was her best friend, Stella, smiled when she noticed her friend was on time. Bloom returned the smile and bid each of the girls good morning.
The magenta-haired technology fairy, Tecna smiled and bid her good morning before returning to whichever project she was working on her laptop.
The black-haired music fairy, Musa, cut her conversation with the fairy of waves beside her to chirp good morning, before the two of them returned to their discussion about their next class.
"Good Morning sweetie." Bloom's brown-haired, sweeter-than-honey, roommate perked up when their eyes met. "I was worried when I didn't see you in bed when I woke up. Is everything okay?"
"Good morning, Flora," Bloom replied and gave the slightly taller woman a hug. "I just had a nightmare and went for a run to clear my head."
"Again? Aren't they happening too often?" Flora asked softly so the other girls wouldn't overhead them.
"Maybe." Bloom replied under her breath, embarrassed to talk about the topic.
"Sweetie, look at me." Bloom eventually made eye contact with her roommate. "Don't be ashamed, what happened in Relix would give anyone nightmares."
"Yeah…"
"Why don't you talk to Headmistress Faragonda about it? She's been through a lot, I'm sure she would be able to help you."
"I think that's a good idea." Bloom agreed. "I'll go see her after classes today."
"I'm proud of you sweetie." Flora's beautiful face broke into the brightest and most gentle smile, and she reached over to give Bloom a much-needed hug.
The rest of the day was uneventful. Everyone seemed to have fallen back into old routines after Lord Darkar was defeated and Relix was sealed shut. It was only Bloom who was feeling restless.
As agreed, Bloom made an appointment to see Faragonda after class.
"Bloom, its always a pleasure to speak with you." The white-haired older woman who was the Headmistress of their pink school greeted Bloom at the door to her office with a gentle smile. "Come inside and sit down."
"Thank you for agreeing to see me Headmistress." Bloom shut the door and sat down in front of Headmistress Faragonda's desk.
"How can I help you today?"
"I've been having nightmares about…" Bloom bit her lip and sighed in resignation, "Lord Darkar and Relix."
"What are the dreams about?"
Bloom scrunched up her face and spent a few minutes in silent reflection. "Its difficult to remember most of it after I wake up, but there is one thing that is crystal clear."
"Yes?" Headmistress Faragonda prompted when Bloom fell silent. "Do not be afraid Bloom, nothing that happened in Relix is your fault."
"The part of the nightmare I can clearly remember is handing over the Ultimate Power to Lord Darkar." Bloom bit her lip and immediately covered her face in shame.
"I see." Headmistress Faragonda got up from her desk and knelt next to Bloom's chair. She gently placed a hand on her knee and tried to comfort her student. "I wont lie to you Bloom, I expected this."
"You did?" Bloom asked in shock and immediately made eye contact with the older woman.
"I hoped that you wouldn't feel responsible for what happened, but I expected the incident to create a wound inside your mind. I want you to know that neither I, the Winx or any of the Specialists hold you responsible for what happened."
"I let him trick me and I gave him all the keys. I may as well have handed over the Ultimate Power."
"That's the nature of being tricked Bloom. He is the evil one for coercing you with your vulnerabilities and then using dark magic to control you. You didn't do anything wrong. The only thing you should do is a little bit of self-reflection and vigilance. Learn from what happened and grow. Don't allow the next evil to enter your mind and control you." Headmistress Faragonda pointed at her head at the end to drive the point home.
"I think I understand."
"I know you do Bloom. You are stronger than people give you credit for. Not just anyone would be able to admit something like this and come looking for help. Be proud of yourself and be willing to learn and grow and you will get through this." Headmistress Faragonda smiled at the red head before slowly rising from her crouching position and returned to her desk.
"Now since you have come to me for help, of course I will do so. However it will take a long time and will require that you persist even if it seems like none of this is helping, okay?"
"What will I have to do?" Bloom's anxiety was clear on her face.
"I am going to teach you some relaxation techniques, meditation techniques and spells that help with warding off bad thoughts and anxiety. Only by using all these techniques and magic together for a few weeks will you see any results, and you will have to do it every day."
"I see, I think…I can do that."
"You'll see, its easier than I make it sound. We will need to meet once a week to see if it is helping as well and so I can make sure you are casting the magic properly."
"Thank you, Headmistress."
"Of course Bloom. I think it is best if you try to relax for today. Come see me after classes tomorrow wearing something comfortable and I will teach you the first spell, okay?"
"Yes, I will see you tomorrow." Bloom was feeling much better about her situation after a plan was implemented.
The next night, the nightmare reoccurred, but after waking up Bloom took a deep breath and was able to calm herself down much faster. She didn't even have to go for a run. After dressing for the day and attending classes, she attended her appointment with Headmistress Faragonda where she learned the Level One Dark Thoughts Ward spell that was supposed to help with the nightmares.
That night, there was no nightmare.
Meanwhile in a cold wasteland far from the sparkling pink school, a tall, gorgeous, and dangerous looking woman broke free from a frozen prison with a burst of dark magic. Long silver blue hair tied into a high ponytail fluttered down behind her. Her ice-blue eyes scanned her surroundings and settled on two similar looking prisons to her own. The shadowy forms of two familiar women could vaguely be seen from the outside.
The powerful witch immediately used her mastery of ice magic to free the other two women with ease. Their prisons shattered with a 'pop'.
"Took you long enough," the woman with frizzy dark purple hair in the shape of a cloud groaned as she jumped from the slightly raised platform which was all that was left of the frozen prison. Her teal eyes blinked away the frost that had gathered on her eye lashes and she shook icicles free from her hair.
"I needed to make sure there were no guards around."
"Why? We could take them!"
"No it was smart to wait." The third member of the group, a tall woman with gold cat-like eyes and straight brown hair that reached her knees patted the frost from her legs and agreed with the ice witch.
"Well now what?" the purple haired woman asked with annoyance.
"Lets scout out the area and see what the situation is." The sharp gold cat eyes of the brown-haired woman glanced at the tall ice witch, who nodded and quickly cast a spell. The spell made small bats made of ice materialise from the water in the atmosphere. After fully forming, the creatures scattered in every direction.
The purple haired woman crossed her arms but waited in silence.
The bats returned and conveyed all they saw to their summoner. She closed her ice blue eyes to sort through the information.
"We have two options. Either we can directly fight the guards of the Omega Dimension and force our way out."
"Or?" The cat eyed woman asked.
"There is a powerful dark wizard imprisoned not far from here. We can use him to help our escape."
"How?" the purple haired witch asked with glee.
"Bait. Fodder. Who knows?" The ice witch shrugged with a sadistic smile on her face.
"How powerful is he?" The cat eyed woman asked.
"Its hard to tell from this distance."
"Well lets go see him then. Then we can decide what to do with him."
The three women nodded in agreement. The journey was short, but it took them a long time because they wanted to avoid the attention of the guards and other inmates who were wandering around the frozen landscape.
Finally they entered the cave where the frozen tomb of the dark wizard was waiting silently. None of the other inmates dared to come close to this man. A sign that he was either powerful, sadistic or had a terrible reputation. It would be best if all three were true.
The ice witch glanced at her companions before she called magic up from her core and pointed at the ice tomb. Under the assault of her superior mastery of ice magic, the enchanted tomb immediately shattered. Large swaths of ice fell away from the emancipated skin of the imprisoned man and the witches worried that he might already be dead. However their worries were cast aside as soon as the man opened his sharp grey eyes and a wave of dark energy burst outwards from his core.
The screams of distant inmates echoed around the cave and a gentle wave of energy entered from outside to be absorbed by the bony man. His features and body immediately filled out like a balloon as he used the life force of the surrounding inmates to fuel his recovery.
Such powerful dark magic was rare to behold, and the golden eyes of the brown-haired woman were fixated on this man. He shook his head and the long strands of his strawberry blonde hair filled out and became a luscious mane framing his handsome face. The cat eyed witch was immediately entranced with his appearance and power, and she could feel herself being drawn to him.
She was the first to take a step towards him and extended a hand to help him out of the remains of his prison.
"Thank you." The man croaked out with disused vocal cords.
"My pleasure." The cat eyed woman purred out.
"Who are you?" The ice witch asked from behind her companion.
"I am Valtor, the Greatest Wizard of All Time!" He spread his arms out wide and elegantly bowed before the three women. "How shall I address my saviours."
"We are the Trix." The ice witch replied. "I am Icy, witch of ice."
"Stormy, witch of storms." The purpled haired woman chimed in next.
"And I am Darcy, witch of illusions." The brown-haired woman purred from beside him and gave him the sultriest smile, which he reciprocated with a smirk.
"The pleasure is all mine." He bowed elegantly once more, and the women smiled to themselves. Pleased with his manners. "What say you, shall we escape?"
"Lead the way." Icy replied.
The next few days Bloom was able to sleep peacefully.
The Headmistress was informed of the good news and was happy the plan was working, but she was curious why Bloom was seeing effects so quickly. Either way she was pleased her star pupil was feeling better.
At first Bloom was honest about the past dreams and told the older woman everything she could remember. They try to work through the fire fairy's feelings together, however as time goes on and the dreams stopped. Bloom became reluctant to dig further, and Headmistress Faragonda accepted her choice.
The next night, a nightmare returned the same as before. Bloom handed over the Ultimate Power to Lord Darkar. Except this time Bloom was able to remember the next part of the dream, where he embraced her, shared his power and they fused into one being. When she woke up from this dream she was drenched in a cold sweat and her bedding was soaked.
"Shower…" Bloom whispered to herself and dragged her exhausted body to the bathroom to strip and wash herself.
In the hot water she remembered the feelings in the dream. When her essence started merging with Lord Darkar's essence it felt…good. Better than that, it was pleasurable, and Bloom couldn't help her body's reaction. She had to relieve the pressure in the shower, but afterwards she was so ashamed that she vowed to never tell Headmistress Faragonda about it.
The same dream kept coming back, the magic and meditation was no longer working, but Bloom didn't have the same anxiety or fear about it anymore. She still woke up somewhat sweaty, but there was a warm feeling inside her now and she was brimming with power.
It was time to end this farse, Bloom decided, and she went to see Faragonda early before class.
"Oh Bloom!" Faragonda was surprised to see the red head waiting in her office.
"Good morning."
"Is everything alright?" Faragonda asked.
"I think I've finally beaten this."
"What makes you say that?"
"This morning I woke up feeling good, positive, sure of myself." It wasn't a lie.
"That's excellent Bloom!" Faragonda was so pleased she pat the younger woman on the arm and smiled reassuringly at her. "If that's the case, then there is nothing left for me to teach you. I was hoping we wouldn't have to go as far as the level five spells."
"Why is that?" The redhead asked with perfect serenity on her face.
"Sometimes the level five spells can be too strong and start to suppress emotions other than anxiety and depression. Its necessary for extreme cases, but from our sessions the last few weeks, I can see that you will not be required to learn these spells."
"I'm glad to hear that. It sounds frightening."
"Don't worry Bloom, we can end our sessions here if you feel comfortable enough to continue on your own."
"Yeah, I think I will be just fine from here on."
"I am pleased to hear that. Remember to come see me if anything ever happens in the future Bloom." The red head stepped forward to shake Faragonda's hand with a smile. "Its been a joy to teach you."
"Thank you." Bloom replied and left the office to attend class.
Neither of them had noticed Bloom drop the honorific of Headmistress during their last session. A sign of things to come.
After this last session, Bloom's dreams exploded in intensity and clarity.
All this time her mind had been trying to communicate something of vital importance through her subconscious. Only now was Bloom able to finally comprehend what these nightmares were really about.
It was common knowledge among the school staff, the Winx and the Specialists that Lord Darkar had cursed Bloom to make her into a Dark Fairy. However none of them knew that he had used a fragment of his own soul to fuel the curse. It was necessary to overpower the Dragon Fire within her. Any ordinary curse would have simply burnt up the moment it touched her essence.
The nightmares were a result of the conflict between the powerful fragment of Lord Darkar's soul and Bloom's soul. The last few nights where Bloom was finally less afraid, and started to feel good instead, were a result of her soul winning.
The result of the silent battle was Bloom's soul reining supreme over the fragmented Lord Darkar's soul and absorbing it.
Once she consumed his essence and made his power her own, the nightmares stopped and her whole existence became serenity. Both the pleasure and the fear from the last few weeks was gone.
It was an increasingly strange feeling and something about it made her feel empty, incomplete.
She pushed the feelings aside with the help of meditation and tried to return to her normal life.
A big school assignment was around the corner and Bloom was struggling with the project. She stayed late in the library night after night studying to ensure she could understand the work.
One of these nights she was exhausted and couldn't even remember half of the book she was reading. It was time to head to sleep. However when Bloom got up from her chair, she couldn't move her legs forward and fell backwards into an endless swirling darkness.
A silent scream tore its way from her throat as she fell.
Eventually when her vocal cords could no longer support her endless scream, her throat split apart, and blood gushed forward. It fell around her like rain, and at this moment she realised it was another dream, but it was new, different from before. It felt so visceral and real.
She clutched at her gushing throat at the same time that she landed on the ground with a loud splat. Her bones broke and blood splashed all around her. She tried to groan in agony but couldn't utter a sound from her ruined vocal cords.
A purple flame lit up beside her and bathed her broken body in eerie light.
Bloom reached out towards it.
When her fingertips touched the fire, it immediately grew and ate her skin and body. She turned black from the heat, but she did not feel pain, only an intense, dark, and satisfying pleasure.
The feeling was intoxicating. It felt so foreign and yet so familiar.
The familiarity tugged at her mind, and she pushed through the intoxicating feeling with the grace of a practised hand.
All at once, the dream, the darkness, and the eerie dark fire vanished, and she was momentarily blinded by nothingness. She realised her eyes had been closed and she opened them to unfamiliar surroundings and a heavy leather-bound and chained book open in her left arm.
Her right arm was extended slightly in front of her, and the after-effects of a dark and unfamiliar magic danced up her wrist before dissipating into thin air. Bloom stared at her right arm in shock and a little bit of horror before turning to the book in her arm and reading the spell she had apparently cast while asleep.
It was an exceedingly dark spell that rent the target from the inside out, as if directly ripping their blood out of their body with string. She was shocked at the spell and didn't believe she had cast it until a gentle wind blew from the open door, and she smelt the distinctive metallic smell of blood.
Not two steps away there was a rat that looked as if it had been twisted and drained of blood like a dishcloth of water.
An expression of anguish bloomed on her face, and she fell to her knees.
She had definitely cast that spell. On this rat. In her sleep.
Bloom didn't understand how this had happened. All she knew was that she had to get out of there before the librarian came. She had to move fast. However, she couldn't bring herself to put the book down. She closed her eyes and remembered the feeling from her dream.
With a guilty look, she cast the spell she had just learned on the dead rat once more and its clotting blood was ripped out of its body once more to pathetically splatter on its leg. Bloom released the spell as quickly as she could, but not before relishing the feeling of casting the dark magic.
She closed her eyes and did something unthinkable.
The page with the rending spell cleanly ripped from the book and was stuffed into her jeans pocket in one swift movement. The chained book was returned to its place, looking none the worse for wear.
A fire spell engulfed the rat and Bloom scattered the remaining ashes before she ran out of there.
She didn't stop to think about how she had accessed the forbidden section or learned a spell in her sleep, all she could think about was mastering the spells she had stolen.
To be continued in Chapter 1...