Tinker Bell and the War of Talents (2015 edition--OLD)

Chapter 11: Fairy's Haven

"Hello, Clarion."

She whipped around at her name. Before she had completed the turn, the remnants of her talents were already in her hands, ready to be thrown in one final act of desperation. It was as if she had anticipated his arrival and had prepared.

It made no difference to him, however, and he simply waved it into non-existence as though it were nothing more than a puff of smoke or a passing cloud. The queen pixie glared firmly, but he could sense her fear. Fear for herself, for the pathetic fairies she ruled...and for the Protector.

He's not ready. He'd felt it before with the uncontrollable surges of power, but the sparrowman was still weak. Powerful, but untrained. Caring, but underestimated. Strong, but powerless. He still had hope. He still had a flicker of belief that he might be the hero, the Protector of Life.

How he was looking forward to stamping out that spark.

"Shade."

There was no emotion in the way the queen spoke his name. Just a name. Nothing more. Insignificant. Unimportant. Useless. But he would show her, he would show everyone. He was a force to be reckoned with, and if they weren't with him, they were against him.

And the former Protector was certainly not on his side.

"Where is the sparrowman, Clarion?" he sighed, sounding bored. "I know you're protecting him."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Clarion responded in the calmest and most collected voice she could muster, but he could still sense the hesitancy behind the words.

"Don't lie to me!" Shade bellowed. He felt the power surge up inside of him and he swung an arm around. The room was illuminated in orange light...and then he released the talent and sent it careening toward the far corner of the room. A large desk and a few other random assortments burst into flames.

Clarion flinched, but said nothing.

"You may care for the boy. He may be like a son you never had," Shade went on in a dangerous whisper as the room continued to burn. "But you can't protect him from his fate...from the prophecy. Surely you know he cannot be trusted with Neverland's protection."

"And you can?" Clarion blurted. "Shade, prophecy or no, Phineas is a million times better for Pixie Hollow that you would ever be!"

"No one is better than me," Shade spat, eyes flaring furiously. "Besides," he added with a cruel smile. "You hardly have the strength to stop me. He's draining your powers, is he not? That's how it works, after all. The longer he stays away from Pixie Hollow, the weaker you both become. It's only a matter of time. He'll come crawling back to save the ounce of magic that he possessed. That is his destiny. As is the fate of any tinker unfortunate to become a Protector."

"So, nothing like you at all then?" Clarion snapped angrily.

"I defended my home for as long as I could!" Shade retorted. "They betrayed me! It was their doing, not mine!"

"You had a choice!" Clarion argued. "A choice to be different than them! But you made your decision. You chose to do what you did! What happened was entirely your doing!"

Shade drew himself up to his full five-inch height. "And what happens next is yours." He'd already located the tinker. The power surges were becoming fainter, but a new talent had been activated. He knew exactly where to look.

Then, with a new direction, he quickly flew from the room, but not before setting the curtains on fire for good measure.

He was going to enjoy this.