Gantlos held no great love for crowds. Or concerts. Or…things in general, really. He had a few great loves, one of which was dead, while the others mostly thrived in solitude. The constant clamour of the concertgoers was an assault on his eardrums, to the extent that he could barely hear the music. What, he reasoned, was the point of going to a concert if you were just going to spend the whole event screaming for the people trying to make themselves heard? Why not just stay home, and scream in the privacy of your own living room? That was what Ogron did.

But life had opted to ignore Gantlos's activity preferences, hence why he found himself barging past people wearing far too little clothing, all throwing themselves around with gay abandon. Right, that was it, the next person that whapped him with their arm was losing it.

'Oof!' Ugh, dammit, had these people turned off all sense of their surroundings when they walked into this damn building?! Looking down at his unintentional assailant, he readied a sharp, barking remark to make up for the response he really wanted to issue. Not that Neruman had explicitly told them not to throw anyone halfway to the Sun, but still. It felt implied.

'Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry, was that your foot?!' Oh.

Hazel met starlight gold, and both parties just stared for a heartbeat. Sometimes, it seemed, his tracking powers were pointless. Namely when his target danced her way right into him. Guys, I found her, she's here!

'Gantlos?!' Stella jumped back, oddly steady on her platform boots. 'What the hell are you doing here?!'

'Getting barged into by klutzy wannabe heroes, thanks,' he deadpanned, clenching his fists in a silent, steady warning. By the way her eyes started to spark, the warning had been received.

'Did Gregory not send a clear enough message?! We don't want you here! Not in our city, not in our lives, so, seriously, as pointless as I know it is by now, surrender! Oh why the hell am I bothering, you're gonna do whatever you want…Believix!'

That would have drawn a lot of attention, except that her spotlight was stolen as the music came to a grinding halt.

'Sorry, everyone…' The spotlights exploded in a sea of glass as Anagan landed on the stage, snatching the lead guitarist's axe and spinning it lazily in his hands. 'But the concert is over. No refunds.' The guitar met the stage in a shower of blood-red debris, acting as a release button on the crowd's panic. They stampeded for the exit in a confused throng, stepping on feet and shoving in a beautiful display of human unity in the face of danger.

'What are you doing?!' Stella demanded, hurling an attack that Gantlos ducked to avoid. 'Are you three seriously crashing a concert? Why?!'

For a minute, Gantlos allowed himself to channel Duman. He would have loved this much pandemonium… 'Maybe it's just fun.'

'Yeah right! You want something, what?'

'Oh, alright. You, dead. Obviously.' Well, not true. But obvious enough to be plausible. 'You're vulnerable here.'

'How do you figure?'

A smirk twitched at Gantlos's lips as he stomped hard on the ground, sending dozens of stampeding civilians stumbling to the ground in a sudden shock. 'We're surrounded by your biggest weakness.'

'Oh my stars!' Stella whipped around to run and help the fallen people, but Gantlos caught her by the wrist.

'Going so soon? We're at a concert, Princess; let's dance.'

Stella let out a yelp as he spun her around, sending her tumbling onto the floor in a glittery heap.

'That your best move?' she snarked, shoving herself upright. 'Where'd you learn to dance, a back alley? Let me show you what Solarian royal training can do for a girl!' Her sceptre swung for Gantlos's head, and while he ducked the burning metal, she still had a trick up her sparkly sleeve. 'Watch, maybe you can learn something. One, two, three, step!'

Gantlos gasped as one foot, heels and all, came down on his toes, the other leg driving a surprisingly sharp knee into his solar plexus.

'Guh…'

'Ooh, ouch…' She flashed a shimmering smile, tense with the aggression of battle, raising her staff like an executioner's axe. 'Maybe you should take some dancing lessons…check to see if they have them in prison.'

'Nah, I'll just stick to what I'm good at.' Stella shrieked with horror as the bleachers started caving in. 'Demolition.'

'No!'

Everyone was okay. Of course they were, that was the whole point of the strategy. The Winx would prioritise the civilians, leaving them to pick off who was left. If they were aiming to win, it'd be the perfect plan. As it was, it was being implemented so that when they were 'defeated', they actually survive. Surviving was good.

'Tecna! Aisha! Roxy! Help the crowd!'

'What, no hello?'

Bloom looked like she had several words for him, none of which were 'hello'. …Or repeatable in print. So, to preserve her reputation, because she really had done a lot for everyone, and deserved a kid-friendly reputation, her response consisted only of, 'Ogron! What are you doing here?!'

Evidently, she didn't much care for the answer, as if she had, she would likely have waited for his response, rather than trying to char him with a searing ball of flames.

Ogron absorbed it with a chuckle that did nothing to belie the burning pain coursing through him at the attack. 'Well isn't somebody slipping…'

'Yeah, you are! Dragon Heart!' The attack blazed to the floor, alighting the wood under Ogron and burning up in a determined circle around him. Somehow he'd gone from freezing to melting in a few seconds, and it was dizzying. But no time, he had to make this convincing.

The flames flowed beneath his skin, releasing in a roaring rush that would have cooked Bloom, were she not irritatingly immune.

'Are you serious? I know throwing electricity at Tecna would do something, but fire? At me? What, you leave your brain in Omega?'

'No, just any semblance of sanity. Thanks for that.'

'Says the guy that ran to Omega of his own accord! That's like hiding out in Alcatraz, dumbass! Fire Arrow!' The attack seared across his shoulder, slicking through the leather of his shirt and leaving a thin, bubbling burn as he dropped to his knees, gasping through the pain.

'Ogron!' Gantlos knocked Tecna out of the sky with a quick, decisive clap, sending her falling like no more than a swatted fly. His boots pounded against the ground, the bleachers rippling with quakes as he rushed to drag Ogron out of the way of Bloom's determined attacks. Flames scorched at their feet as the jaws of the Great Dragon snapped at their heels, before Gantlos quickly punched it. Which…worked, apparently.

'You okay?'

'Mhm…' Ogron dragged himself to his feet, grimacing and fighting against a scream as he touched the fresh burn on his shoulder. Bloom was well and truly sick of them by now, and she was getting vicious…

'We need to-' Ogron stopped short. Shaking. He felt shaking. The bleachers trembled under him, shaking with the weight of foreshadowing, and he looked to Gantlos. '…Please tell me you're doing that…'

'No, it's-' He looked down, and his eyes widened in horror. 'Termites!' A horde of determined, furious insects was swarming at their feet, devouring everything they stood on as they pulsed with a vibrant green light, helping them power through what should be an impossible task.

The bleachers caved in, sending both men tumbling through a haze of dust and grubs, colliding with the ground with enough force to knock all the air from Ogron's bruised lungs.

'How's the ground taste?' Roxy taunted, the cavity glowing brightly with the light spilling from her wings. In that moment, hair forming a halo around her, eyes blazing with vengeful fury, Roxy looked a long, long way from the timid girl whose wings he'd first tried to snatch. This was no child. This was a warrior. And she was furious.

'Roxy!' Bloom cried, stumbling down after her, staring at the caved-in bleachers in horror. 'Roxy, be careful-'

'Of what? Them? Please, Bloom.'

'No, just…of the bleachers…the arena…we don't want to cause more damage than we have to.'

'My mother is dying because of them, Bloom!' Roxy spat, tears brimming. 'They stole her vital energy, and we both know we're not getting it back until we've got them in chains! And the only way we're managing that is if we cross a few lines.'

'Looks like someone's found the first few steps on the path to villainy…' Gantlos muttered, coughing up dust as he forced himself to his feet.

'No way, Van Helsing wannabe! Wolf Talon!'

Ogron dived in front of the attack, gritting his teeth to force the magic beneath his skin, his knees fighting to buckle.

'Surrender!' Roxy snarled, the regality in her bloodline carrying clear and strong across the cavity. 'Surrender, and this can all be over!' Over. For a heartbeat, Ogron imagined it. Imagined just giving in. Letting it stop. Letting Neruman stop. Consenting to handcuffs and following the Winx wherever they sent him. To rest. They'd send him back to Omega, but he'd rest. Let the frost creep up him, and let himself give in.

No!

He shook himself out of it, refusing to entertain such a foolish notion. He couldn't go back to Omega; it was hell! He still chose Neruman over Omega - at least he could breathe, move, speak. Omega would kill him…no, worse. He'd wish it would kill him. He'd spend every endless second of every endless day praying, pleading for death. For an end. For some force to take pity on him and end his suffering. He'd thought Neruman to be that force. Now, he realised, the universe simply didn't care to save him. There was to be no merciful light in this darkness, so his only hope, his only chance, was to stand as strong as he could manage, and pull this off as best he could.

'Gantlos.' He jerked his head towards the seats above Bloom and Roxy, and Gantlos acted in a heartbeat, leaving both women fighting against a tsunami of rubble as the two wizards dredged up the magic to levitate out of the hole.

When they surfaced, the scene was gradually-calming chaos. Anagan zipped back and forth, dodging Flora's vines and Aisha's Morphix, while Tecna guided the remaining civilians to the exits, her calm monotone ringing out in soft, soothing instructions, granting the terrified rabble a string of sanity to cling to, to allow themselves to be pulled from the pandemonium. Stella stayed off to the side, guiding Musa to try and calm herself, her powers evidently glitching and painful after the sudden destruction of harmony. Two out of the fight…wonderful.

Flora was swatted from the sky with a sting of dark magic, the grass around her set ablaze by the lingering vestiges of Bloom's power at Ogron's fingertips. The sudden screams of the grass around her sent the nature fairy into whimpers and writhing, and a smirk spread across Ogron's lips. They were winning…oh, they were winning! He missed this euphoria, the feeling of standing over your fallen enemies and feeling…strong. Yes…strong. He felt strong.

He crashed down a second later. Both figuratively and literally. Aisha sent him tumbling down the seats in a barrage of Morphix, whilst he recalled Neruman's words. They had to lose. To fail. To ensure Stella took that necklace. No…no, he had to…he didn't want…he didn't want to surrender. To give up this brief taste of power. This reminder of who he'd been.

His shadow flickered as he tried to regain his bearings on the ground, and, as his chest constricted and he fought to repress the panic attack, he remembered. He'd lost who he was. The powerful, prideful wizard had shattered in the ice. Now…now he was a slave. Lying weak in the dirt, gasping and whimpering at a mere trick of the light. A dog to be beaten if he didn't earn his keep.

The fight flooded from him, and he enacted stage two. Appear, and truly be, defeated.

'Ogron!' Anagan turned to run to him, but tumbled down a moment later, his legs ensnared by vines. They crept up weakly at first, shy, hesitant tendrils, barely awakened as Flora struggled back to her feet, but as she stepped past the charred grass, the blades revitalising and springing back to life, the tendrils thickened, until all of Anagan's legs had been mummified by nature herself. Still unfinished, the vines' brethren sprouted from under his arms, clawing at his wrists and dragging them back to their home beneath the dirt, burying his chances at escape.

'Agh! Dammit, let me-' The final trap snared shut, bindweed wrapping around his mouth and rendering him a silent, struggling lump. Two down.

Gantlos seemed to have forgotten the plan entirely, knocking any who drew near from the sky, trying to dash for Ogron and Anagan, but being knocked back every time, facing blazes and briars, crashing waves and snarling jaws until he was shaking on his feet, tremors spreading around him and weakening until barely a shake could be felt. He was exhausted…but Gantlos never went down easy. Ogron supposed if this time he did, the Winx would immediately get suspicious, and this entire plan might be down the drain right along with his self-esteem.

'Harmonic Attack!' The ground trembled, but no longer under Gantlos's power. Musa, finally recovered and standing strong, shook the venue with a soft, melodic hum, knocking Gantlos's feet out from under him.

'Gah!' His hands were rapidly bound with the same vines restraining Anagan, his struggles doing little to fight back as Aisha strengthened the bindings with Morphix.

'Damn…somebody can't admit defeat,' Stella muttered, wandering back over after Musa. She shook her head watching Gantlos, facepalming. 'Seriously, dude, just give it up.' Rolling her eyes, she crouched down next to Ogron, raising an eyebrow at the distinct lack of struggle. 'Wow. Someone's depressed.'

'Shut up,' Ogron muttered, closing his eyes and refusing to look at this ball of sunshine, free to beam and fly wherever she so desired.

'Wow, no need to get snappy…' She straightened up, about to walk back to the others, when suddenly, she stopped, a glint of blue reflecting in her eyes. 'Huh…?' The rabbit's paw was in the trap. He fought the urge to squirm as he felt Stella's hands reach inside his pocket, the sensation of his enemy's hands on him unpleasant and another reminder of just how powerless he truly was.

'Girls! Girls! Omg, Roxy, come over, come quick!' Yes. She'd taken it. Mission…almost accomplished.

'Stella, what is it?' Roxy ran over, skidding to a halt as she caught sight of the jewels sliding through Stella's hands like poisoned water. 'Mom's necklace!' Tears sprung to her eyes, fresh, vulnerable. No longer angry, just a girl overwhelmed with relief at the ability to save her mother. For a second, guilt strummed on Ogron's heartstrings, but he shooed it away. Guilt was a luxury he'd lost. Let her feel life's blows; feel enough and you grow numb.

'It's so beautiful…' Stella murmured, tracing the flawless cuts of the stones. A gentle blue light shone from her eyes, and Ogron knew the hex had been activated.

A hazy smile pulled at Stella's lips, practically dripping with desire.

'I…I shouldn't…' The whisper barely carried to Ogron's ears as Stella glanced around like a spooked rabbit, her gaze yanked back to the necklace each time she tried to look away.

'Stella?' Roxy's voice trembled as her hand hovered just out of reach of the necklace. 'Stella, please...give me the necklace…'

'In a minute!' The Winx all recoiled at the sharp bark, but Stella didn't even register it, too focused on letting the necklace swing in her fingers, gaze locked as though on a hypnotist's gold watch.

'Stella!' Roxy stepped closer, snatching at the necklace, but Stella gripped it tight. 'Stella, give it to me! You're playing with my mom's life, Stell!'

That cracked the hypnosis, just for a second. Stella's eyes sparked with conflict, her gaze meeting Roxy's just long enough to look away. 'Roxy…' Her expression twisted, pain and confusion warring on her face.

'Something's wrong!' Bloom exclaimed, staring in horror. She reached to grab the necklace, but Stella flew up and away, landing a few metres away.

'It's mine, Bloom! You never want to see me shine! Always outshining my light with your own!'

'Stella!' Hurt flickered across Bloom's face, while Tecna's gaze drifted to the wizards.

'You…you did something to her…'

Ogron sighed, watching the scene with a detached tiredness. It was taking all he had to cling to the energy he'd absorbed in the fight, his body rushing to cash the cheques his magic had hastily scribbled. 'We didn't do anything…she's the little fool that chose to take it.'

Tecna's gaze swung back to Stella, horror painting her expression as she saw her undo the clasp.

'Scorpion's Tail!'

'Roxy, no!' Bloom yanked Roxy's arm down just in time to send the attack diving into the ground, both girls watching helplessly as Stella fixed the necklace around her neck. In an instant, her eyes narrowed, a dark, malevolent light shining out like a lighthouse guiding souls to their doom.

'Endless Eclipse!'

Cries of panic rang out as all light was snuffed out by Stella's spell, certainly a gift from Neruman. As his eyes widened, seeking any spark of light in this thick, choking abyss, Ogron felt his chest constrict, every breath a struggle, every inhale tasting of the thick, musty air of Neruman's dungeons. The dark…he was alone in the dark… No! Later, he'd pray to every deity he could think of that the Winx hadn't heard the terrified whimper that escaped his lips.

Bring the light back…please, please, please, bring the light back… In the midst of his panic, Ogron gasped to feel hands on him. He kicked out, determined to keep them back, but, to his surprise, they simply freed him from the Morphix and pulled him to his feet.

He was pulled forwards, refusing to let go of the hand in his, too terrified to be alone in this darkness. Whoever had him, wherever they were going, it was out of these shadows.

The fingers grasping his felt small…delicate…not Gantlos or Anagan. Who had him? A flash of silver in the shadows answered his question. Stella. Eyes glowing with a detached, disturbing light, she freed Gantlos and Anagan, pulling them to their feet, all with a steady, mechanical determination.

'Solaria!' There was a blinding flash of light, and Ogron found himself blinking down at the sidewalk outside the arena, spots creeping back from his vision.

'…Stella?'

Ogron glanced up to see Anagan hesitantly speaking to Stella, unnerved as she didn't offer a reply. 'How hard did Neruman's spell go…?'

'She's not responding?' Ogron frowned. This was…disturbing. He shivered at the puppeteer's spell, reducing Stella to no more than a doll, forced to play her role in Neruman's schemes.

'My, my, my…'

Ogron clapped a hand over his mouth to stifle the startled scream leaping for his lips as the familiar voice drawled up at him from the ground, sneering up past dropped ticket stubs and chewing gum.

'Looks like you actually did a half-decent job for a change.' Neruman slipped across to Stella, a hint of a smile, not a smirk, tugging at the slash that served as his mouth. 'Oh, excellent work…keep this standard up, and maybe you'll finish the month without a beating…'

Ogron's heart leapt. …Then it leapt again. Dear god, it was practically trying to tunnel out of his chest…was he having a panic attack? …No…no, he was crashing. He'd used all the energy he'd drawn into his body, and now he had to cope with the loss of the strength he'd used to draw it in in the first place! No, not in front of Neruman…who knew what he'd do to him for collapsing?

'Hm…very good,' Neruman purred, grinning up at Stella. 'Have her teleport back to the base! I placed the location in her mind, I want you back soon. Until she's in front of me, she'll follow your orders. Do not presume to act as masters…that is my fun and mine alone.' He flashed them all a grin thick with warning, before slipping from Ogron's shadow. 'Toodloo!'

'That is never not gonna be creepy…' Gantlos muttered. 'Ogron, you okay?'

Ogron, now no longer high on magic nor adrenaline, simply collapsed forwards with a breathless, exhausted whimper, dropping into Anagan's arms and struggling not to pass out.

'Ogron!' Anagan carefully guided him upright, looping his arm over his shoulder so he could stand. 'Hey, you're gonna be okay…' He looked to Gantlos, hesitant but determined. 'G, he's still half-starved, and I think he's crashing. We can't go back, not yet, he needs help. And I know Neruman hurt him again, I gotta patch him up…'

Gantlos glanced worriedly at Stella, evidently wondering how much of this she could hear, but Ogron wasn't unduly concerned. Hypnosis victims seldom remembered what had happened while their free will was switched off. Besides…everything hurt too much.

'Stella.' Stella turned immediately at Anagan's speech, and he grimaced at how creepy it was to command her like no more than a lifeless doll. 'Can…you take us…to…' He paused, thinking. '…a pharmacy? We need medical supplies…'

Stella nodded blankly, drawing her sceptre. Her voice, normally bubbly and fizzing with enthusiasm, came out in a robotic, dead monotone. 'Solaria!'

Everything was so dark…what happened?

As she struggled to make sense of it all, all Stella could focus on was the oppressive weight on her neck. Like chains, dragging her down…why had she put on that damned necklace?! The whispers…the whispers had been so loud… Put it on…not for long, just for a moment…it's so beautiful, you'll look radiant… Why did she care?! She looked beautiful if she was in a necklace, or if she was in a burlap sack covered in ketchup! It had just seemed so alluring… Of course, by now, it was becoming pretty apparent that it hadn't been the necklace at all…no Major Fairy's power source would fall so easily to the dark magic that had her teleporting the wizards.

Their entire interaction passed in a haze…Anagan seemed actually unnerved by what was going on…then they were all talking to the floor… Her soul shivered to see a face slashed across Ogron's shadow, and her mind scrambled to understand. Was…this Neruman? They knew the wizards were working for him, but it was different to see him in person. The way he spoke, the casual, dismissive sadism, it put her further on edge than she'd thought possible in her current state.

'Keep this standard up and maybe you'll finish this month without a beating…' Were she in control of her body, she would have done a double-take. The hell did Neruman just say to Ogron? A beating? Actually…now that she thought about it…he'd sported a number of cuts and bruises she didn't recall any of her friends inflicting…was that why? Was he being beaten?

Neruman vanished, and Ogron almost immediately collapsed into Anagan's arms. She had to admit, as evil as they were, it was sweet to see them care about each other. Not sweet enough to keep her from burning them to a crisp as soon as she got out of these magical bindings, but still!

More hazy conversation she could barely make out, then Anagan turned to her. 'Stella.' It was as though the word flicked a switch in her, and, suddenly, she felt herself move. The motion barely felt under her control - no, no, it wasn't. She wasn't being controlled so much as…there were blocks on doing anything that wasn't ordered of her.

Anagan asked her to teleport them to a pharmacy, and her staff came out before she could stop herself. 'Solaria!' Her voice was dry, a robotic command, but her magic flowed just the same.

As they reappeared, she trailed after the wizards, fighting to focus on anything, furiously struggling to manage any hint of control. Even fluttering her eyelashes would do! Anything to remind her that this was her body, not someone's puppet! But all she could do was follow, screaming at her feet to stop.

Inside, Anagan had the audacity to turn to her and ask her to pay! She was not his ATM! But, of course, now, she was whatever those pulling her strings asked of her. It was sickening, and terrifying. Absolutely terrifying. But…they barely seemed to spare her a glance, focused on getting out.

Anagan took a few notes from Stella and handed them to Gantlos, sending him off with a command that Stella could only make out as a slurred mumble, her feet leadenly trudging after Anagan. Where even were they? Was it Gardenia? She'd teleported them… It was so hard to keep up a train of thought. It would be so easy to just slip into the darkness…

No! No, she wouldn't let someone else run the show! This was her body, her mind, she made the calls! And she'd keep her head above water as long as it took!

They set up camp in a back alley, and Stella shrieked internally as a rat ran across her foot. A rat! Why were they here?! …She supposed the wizards didn't have anywhere else to go. Their warehouse hideout was rubble under police and Lightrock investigation, and their faces were splashed across wanted posters and social media alike. It wasn't like they could just check into a motel or something. But why did they even need to be here? The shadow creep had said to have them come back…come back where? Oh, she hoped it was still on Earth…

'Not in front…of her…'

Stella's ears strained to focus on what Ogron was saying, her eyes fighting to focus past her leaden lids. What not in front of her? Discussing their plan? Laying bare their weaknesses?

Oop! He was laying something bare! Why was he taking his shirt off?! Why was she watching him take his shirt off?! Privacy, Stella! Yeah, he was evil and sort of kidnapping her, but still!

But as she was about to awkwardly flick her gaze away, she suddenly lost all capacity to do so. Not by any further dark enchantment, just pure, unadulterated horror. What…what happened to him? She could see the outline of every rib, flinching internally at the bruised depressions telling a sickening story of what lay beneath. But it was hard to distinguish those bruises from the symphony of blue, black, yellow and brown painted in a mural across his skin, the painter's brush trailing all over their battered canvas, dripping out of Stella's sight as it battled for her attention with the red crusting across his skin. It was still flowing…who'd given him those cuts? Why…why hadn't they been treated? What happened to him? Or who. Maybe you'll make it through the month without a beating. Was…was this Neruman's work? He was a notorious sadist, so…she wouldn't put it past the man she'd read about. He was a casual killer when it suited him, known to break minds; did he break Ogron?

She felt guilt twinge through her as she remembered every hit she and her friends had dealt, how much they must have exacerbated this pain. He…he should have said something…explained…surrendered, they wouldn't have hurt him…

A strangled yowl snapped her from her thoughts, and she winced internally to see Anagan trying to clean out Ogron's gashes, doing his level best to avoid the broken ribs, but he wasn't a doctor. Even a doctor would struggle. God, Ogron needed a hospital.

'Are…you…done?' Ogron panted, gritting his teeth and squeezing his eyes shut. To Stella's shock, which apparently was not yet worn out by this scene, tears streamed down his face, his body shaking with the evident urge to pull away from Anagan's ministrations.

'Almost done…just hold on a little longer, okay?'

Ogron just stared at him pleadingly in response, groaning and sagging back against the alley wall, seemingly unbothered by the alleyway grime now coating his hair.

Once everything had been antiseptic-ed to death, Anagan swathed everything in bandages, until, finally, it looked slightly less horrifying. Slightly. The sight of someone that had to be so swathed in bandages an Egyptian mummy looked underdressed was its own kind of horrifying.

'All done…' Anagan's voice was so soft…it was so harsh in battle. But he was so gentle with Ogron. So calm. And the way he looked at him- oh, well, that was happening.

'Nice patch job.' Gantlos walked down to join them, kneeling next to the group with a paper bag. 'Gotcha something.' Ooh, greasy! Contrary to popular belief on princesses, Stella did not have a diet, and the greasier and less healthy, the better! When Brandon had taken her for a date at Burger King, she'd been tempted to propose then and there.

Ogron looked even more infatuated with the bag than her, seizing it before even bothering to put his shirt on and tearing it open with a ferocious, desperate hunger.

'Oh god…thank you…' He began devouring with a hunger Stella had only seen before in the strays Roxy brought back to the animal shelter, before he froze, throwing a glance to Stella. His movements slowed, until Stella could actually see him chewing rather than immediately swallowing whatever he tore off. Was…was he trying not to embarrass himself in front of her? Wow, did he not know her…she'd taken ketchup-covered selfies, and posted them. No shame in eating. Especially not when you looked…like he did.

'We need to get going.'

Ogron looked like he wanted to cry when Gantlos spoke. 'Can't…can't we just stay here a little longer?'

'If we wait any longer, Neruman will get suspicious and might investigate.'

All the colour drained from Ogron's face, and he rapidly scrambled to his feet. 'S-Stella…'

Again, she turned unwillingly, her focus entirely on his next command. Despite screaming to snap out of it, all her mind could do was watch as her body set her staff spinning, the back alley vanishing from around them. A location flashed through her mind, sharp and clear, and her magic rushed to it before she could even think about it.

A thick, musty smell assaulted her nostrils before the light had even cleared from her vision, making her fight to choke, but even that was barred from her.

As her eyes adjusted, she struggled to fight through the haze and see where she'd been forced. Huge, towering columns vanished into the shadows of the vaulted ceiling, while tall windows almost seemed to suck light from the room into the void beyond, the heat flying right after it to leave goosepimples shivering their way up and down Stella's arms.

At the end of the room, lit by black braziers sparking with lumps of coal, lay a black metal throne, twisted and deformed, the dark metal practically melting into the figure lounging atop it, the red slits shining under his hood set ablaze with dark satisfaction as his sanctum was lit by Stella's power.

'Well, well, well…' he purred, lifting his head to look at her like a rabbit that had wandered into the wolf's den. 'Welcome, your highness…'