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

Chapter 3: The Game Is Afoot

"I'm a scout-talent, Fawn," Nyx responded, unmoved. "I see strange every day. Do you think you could be a little more specific?"

"Have you seen any fairy going around looking like they are planning on decimating...I don't know...all of Pixie Hollow?" Fawn tried to sound casual but there was no way to keep her statement low-key.

Nyx dropped her spear. "What?" she snapped, wheeling around now to face them at last. When none of them answered, she decided to get right up in their faces, going so far as to grab Fawn's shoulders. "What did you say?"

"Now hold on, sugar," Rosetta interjected before Nyx could attempt to shake the answer out of the animal-talent. "We aren't jumping to conclusions here, remember, Fawn? We just want to know if you've seen anything out of the ordinary recently. That's all." She spread her hands in a shrug, trying to passively ease the tension.

Nyx backed off, glaring at Fawn but looking thoughtful at the same time. "Hmmm. Well...there was something two days ago. I was patrolling the Autumn Woods per my daily routine and...I could have sworn I saw water shooting up from the trees."

"Water?" Silvermist began.

"From the trees?" Fawn finished. "Come on, Nyx, you can't be serious! Trees don't shoot water!"

"I am well aware of that, Fawn, thank you," Nyx said cooly, picking up her spear and laying it back on her desk. "But I'm telling you what I saw. And it's the truth."

"But..." Silvermist said quietly. "Water doesn't come from trees like that..." She frowned, seeming very confused. "It just doesn't make any sense."

"I agree with you, Sil," Rosetta told her. "Something's definitely going on around here. Tink said she saw light coming from Winter yesterday."

"Light? In Winter?" Nyx's head shot up and she once more turned to face them. "And you're sure about this?"

"Yes."

"First Autumn...and now Winter." Nyx seemed to ponder this for a moment. "Two days in a row. This cannot be a coincidence. This was intentional. Someone wanted us to see this."

"They wanted us to find this?" Fawn repeated. "But...why?"

"That's a question I cannot answer until I know who it is," Nyx responded. "But rest assured, I will find them. And I'll let you know when I do." With that, she passed them and began to take off into the sunshine. She paused only a few feet from the tree and slowly turned back to face the girls who had gathered at the door to watch her leave. "Oh...and by the way...thanks."

* * *

"Well, hello, Tinker Bell," Glimmer said kindly as they arrived in Sunflower Meadow. Overhead, several storm-talents swooped and barrel-rolled as they practiced with their lightning. "Vidia, Iridessa, how nice to see you all. But what brings you here if you don't mind me asking?"

"We wanted to ask you about that storm yesterday," Iridessa explained. "And we were hoping you could tell us where it came from."

"Oh." Glimmer looked a little taken back but managed to recover quickly. "Actually," she went on. "You'd be surprised how many fairies have come to us since then."

"And?" Tink asked hopefully.

"And I'll tell you the same thing I told them," Glimmer answered. "I don't know where that storm came from. It wasn't scheduled and it certainly wasn't one of ours. Whoever caused that monstrosity, they weren't a storm-talent."