"Such gorgeous weather!" exclaimed Flora delightedly as she was the first to step through the portal in Magix with her packed suitcases. The gentle breeze smelled fantastic, carrying the scent of spring and lightly tousling her hazel-brown sun shone pleasantly warm on her tanned skin. The plants in the town square bloomed in full splendor, and her green eyes delighted in noticing not a single cloud in the sky. While Gardenia's weather often brought its showers and thunderstorms, here in the spring sunshine, Flora felt like she was in seventh heaven.
One by one, the other fairies also stepped through the portal.
"A superb start to a super day for shopping!" giggled Stella.
"Shopping? But Stella, our suitcases..." Bloom began, but Stella pulled out her phone and waved her off, saying, "Yes, hello? Yes, we're here. The suitcases are here!"
A second later, a glowing platform appeared on the ground.
"Is that a magical luggage teleporter?" asked Tecna, her turquoise-blue eyes shining with excitement.
"Exactly! It's programmed to take the suitcases directly to Alfea - so we have more time for the important things!" Stella winked. Tecna blew a strand of her short, pink hair out of her face and placed her suitcase on the platform, followed by the others.
Once all the suitcases were on the platform, it lit up and lifted them along with the luggage into the air and disappeared.
Bloom was amazed: "The magical dimension never ceases to amaze me."
"You said it," smiled Flora.
"So? Where should we go first?!" exclaimed Stella excitedly.
Her eyes darted between the large shopping center to her left and the luxury marketplace to her right.
"Oh, let's go to the marketplace. Then we can enjoy the beautiful weather," suggested Musa.
"Good idea!" said Bloom.
Just a few minutes later, the fairies were loaded with shopping bags (most of them belonging to Stella) and ready for the journey back to Alfea when - "Hey, do you hear that?"
A voice rose in the wind, so clear and pure and more beautiful than anything even the music-loving Musa had ever heard.
"Let's go check it out," Tecna suggested.
The Winx made their way through the crowd gathered around the singer. Silently and almost hypnotized, they gazed at the woman singing a solitary song. She was very pale, almost snow-white, and wore old-fashioned clothes that had seen better days. Her wine-red blouse was held together by a black bodice, and her black skirt was covered by an equally wine-red hip scarf with golden embellishments. Her pale arms were adorned with leather arm guards with golden inlay. She had a pretty face, barely visible under the shadow of her hood. Her large bright blue, almost whitish eyes, accentuated by dark makeup, looked serious and somehow melancholic. Her very long, flowing black hair fell in thick curls over her shoulders, briefly covering the large golden hoops at her ears.
Her dark lips began to form a new song:
In the twilight of eternity
Where souls weep softly
Woven by fate
in threads of forgetfulness
Death, a gentle lullaby,
beckons the spirits softly
In this symphony
That brings the end.
Weeping souls,Trapped in darkness
Lost dreams
In creeping shadow
Death softly sings a sad song
A requiem for what irretrievably flees.
Through the gate of transience
Where memories fade
Dancing shadows
stand on the graves of time
Loss, a bitter taste
In the silent lament
In this fateful melody
That pierces the hearts...
"Bloom? Bloom! Something's wrong with Aisha!" suddenly exclaimed Flora.
Indeed.
Her friend stared as if hypnotized at the singer, unable to speak or move. She was like in a trance.
"Musa?! Musa!" Tecna was the first to realize that the fairy of music was in a similar state. She reached for their pale hands, trying to shake them awake - unsuccessfully.
"What on earth is going on here?!" exclaimed Stella, alarmed.
The stranger continued to sing, and her song caused Musa and Aisha to move forward, like so many other people in the crowd.
Then it happened.
Something seemed to detach from them... A kind of aura, transparent and brightly pulsating.
"Whatever that is, we need to help them - WINX BELIEVIX!" Bloom exclaimed, ready to free her friends from this strange spell, - but nothing happened.
"What is this? I can't transform!" said Flora.
"Let's try again! WINX BELIEVIX!" Bloom exclaimed forcefully, but still nothing happened.
"Bloom, that's not working. Something seems to be blocking all magic here. Look!", Tecna pointed to the street, where all magic-powered cars had stopped. Even the magical advertising billboard had disappeared, and the magic-powered dressing platforms that projected new clothing onto the body no longer worked.
"It has to do with that woman. I sense... cold... hatred... darkness..." someone said.
Spoken by a young woman. Her falcon-yellow eyes looked at the singer, and she seemed to focus on something.
"Who are you?" Bloom asked.
"...can't... I must... maintain the connection..." she pressed out and touched her temple. Her bright blue, bushy hair slowly turned whitish as she concentrated longer. Sweat drops formed on her dark skin.
"Bloom, we need to do something!" exclaimed Stella and wanted to rush to the singer, but "No...! She..." the girl began, but before she could finish the sentence, she collapsed unconscious.
"Flora, you stay with her. Tecna, please make sure you evacuate the people. Stella and I will confront this singer!"
"Please be careful!" said Flora, kneeling beside the blue-haired girl.
"And, any suggestions?" Stella asked as they looked toward the singer."...we... we could try talking to her?", Bloom suggested half-heartedly.
"Great idea, 'please stop attacking our friends,' sounds like a fantastic idea," Stella remarked sarcastically,"That would definitely work with the Trix!"
"If you have a better idea, spit it out!" Bloom said annoyed.
Slowly, they made their way through the pale singer seemed to be expecting them because she fell silent and gestured for the people to make way.
"...well, well... The Princess of Domino and the brightest star of Solaria united..." she said. Her voice was calm. Yet it seemed to be an unspoken threat. The stranger surveyed them, "So, what brings me the honor?"
Now Bloom understood what the blue-haired girl from earlier had meant - the aura emanating from the singer was so strong that the fairies sometimes found it hard to breathe. This creature was absolutely... Deadly.
"Now listen, you overblown—MMMPFFH!" Stella couldn't finish her sentence because Bloom covered her mouth. It was by no means wise to anger this being.
"...we... Who are you?" Bloom finally asked."I have many names," said the singer coolly, "but... call me Dakeria."
Now Stella managed to free herself from Bloom's grip: "Okay, Dakeria - so would you please be so kind as to leave our friends alone and get out of here?!"
Dakeria chuckled softly.
"What's so funny?!" growled Stella.
"Your light will extinguish first," Dakeria said simply. She aimed a hand at Stella.
"...what...?..." Stella managed to get out before her eyes shone in an eerie green light and a bright aura seemed to detach from her body.
Bloom stepped in front of her friend, "Stop, please!" but Dakeria only laughed.
Then - BANG! Something struck the ground right next to Dakeria. The singer released Stella, and her cold gaze shifted into the distance.
Stella fell unconscious, and Bloom caught her just in time before she hit the asphalt. Her friend felt cold, as if all life had drained from her."Stella... Stella, come on, please say something!" whimpered Bloom.
"She's still breathing," Tecna hurried to Bloom's side.
Bloom wiped her eyes and saw a strange man fighting against Dakeria. He seemed to control three daggers that hovered in the air and repeatedly flew toward Dakeria. His red eyes never left her.
But Dakeria apparently had no interest in a singer erected a wall of black mist in front of her and eventually disappeared into it.
Meanwhile, Tecna and Bloom helped the unconscious Stella to her feet.
"There are already some ambulances over there," Tecna said, "they'll take her to Alfea, and then we'll figure out what to do next. Are you okay, Bloom?"
"...yes," was all she could say. Fear and sorrow overwhelmed her as she watched paramedics attend to Stella, Layla, Musa, and the blue-haired girl.
She hadn't been able to protect anyone. Flora took her hand. None of them spoke a word.