The Queen of Shadows - World of Winx rewrite S.1

Chapter 21: Once a Dream, Now a Nightmare

Stella was uncertain why the surroundings had changed. Instead of being on the shore, they found themselves surrounded by towering crystal walls adorned with black, spiky vines, as if guarding the polished surface within. It reminded her of the Crystal Labyrinth; the walls bore a striking resemblance.

"This place feels so..." Musa hesitated, trailing off.

"...lifeless," Flora sighed, wrapping her arms around herself as she surveyed the dead plants scattered on the ground. Roxy approached Flora and offered comfort.

Stella paused, gazing at her reflection on the crystal wall. She saw herself standing there, transformed into her suit, a figure of strength and resolve. Normally, she would have felt pride at such a sight, but now all she saw was the failure of letting her best friend down. Despite Flora and the others insisting it wasn't her fault, the pain lingered, compounded by the weight of her promise to protect Bloom from any evil. Tough choices were among the things she detested most...

"Hey, Stella? Can you light up this dark tunnel?" Tecna's voice called from behind. Stella turned, nodding, summoning a bright smile.

"Of course! Illuminating dark situations is what I do best," she said with a wink, conjuring a sphere of light in her palm. Stella led the group through the towering walls, following Tecna's instructions on which way to turn. It became apparent to Stella that they were in some sort of maze.

"I don't understand... We've been walking in circles for three minutes now?" Tecna muttered. Stella turned to see Tecna's display, showing a map with perplexing numbers and data. "It's like a labyrinth that adapts to our movements..."

"Which means?" Roxy inquired.

"We'll never find our way out... we're trapped," Tecna sighed.

"Great... just when I thought I'd never see a labyrinth again," Musa grumbled, crossing her arms. Aisha rested a hand on her shoulder. Stella's light sphere flickered like a malfunctioning lamp, drawing everyone's attention.

"Are you okay, Stella? Your light..." Flora began.

"— I'm fine! It's just that my powers don't seem to respond well to this dark magic around us..." Stella replied, letting her light fade, leaving them in darkness, save for Tecna's display casting a faint glow against the blue crystal walls. "Let me try a different approach..."

Stella attempted to summon light with a snap of her fingers, but to no avail. It seemed as though all her light had been drained. She felt her hand tremble, panic rising within her, and sweat trickling down her face. She hoped nobody noticed her struggle to conjure a simple light spell.

"Um, have you run out of energy?" Aisha asked.

"No, no... I just need to..." Stella snapped her fingers again, with no result. She felt the weight of her friends' eyes on her. Normally, she wouldn't mind being the center of attention, but now she just wanted to flee and hide.

'Come on, Stella, this is nothing compared to creating a mirror spell.'

A comforting hand touched her shoulder, and she saw Flora standing beside her, looking concerned.

"Hey, Stella. You're shaking. Maybe you should—"

Intense whispers surrounded them as their shadows on the walls morphed into shadow creatures, their hunger for revenge and blood evident in their wicked smiles and sharp claws.

"Alright, Winx! That's our cue to leave!" Aisha exclaimed, striking one of the shadows blocking their path. "Tecna, guide us."

"But we can barely see anything?" Roxy pointed out.

"It's okay. I'll use my sound waves to navigate, with Tecna's device helping," Musa declared.

Flora gently guided Stella as they took flight. Musa's sound waves reverberated through the space, creating a rhythmic beat. Aisha, Flora, and Roxy fought off the shadows attempting to ensnare them, while Tecna directed their flight path. It felt like an endless journey. Stella wished her sun powers would respond so she could aid in battling these chilling shadow creatures.

After a while, they had to halt. According to Tecna, they had entered an unknown terrain. Flora and Aisha erected a barrier of vines and pink morphix to block the shadows from pursuing them any further.

Stella surveyed the small glade they had landed in, noticing a hole in the crystal wall blocked by black bars, reminiscent of a prison cell. Approaching cautiously, she peered through the bars and saw black chains of shadows and dead veins strewn across the floor. It dawned on her that this was a holding cell. The walls exuded a gray, chilling aura.

Placing her hand on one of the bars, she felt the cold seep into her skin. Suddenly, something grabbed her wrist, pulling her. She yelped in panic, struggling to break free. A burst of light erupted from her hand like a miniature sun explosion, revealing a figure in the blinding aftermath.

"Are you... a light fairy?" a female voice emerged from the white void the explosion had created.

"Well, sort of," Stella replied. "I'm a Sun and Moon fairy, actually..."

Silence ensued as the light dimmed, allowing Stella to discern the figure before her. She saw a woman in a dark green, glittering sleeveless dress that reached her knees. Her wavy yellow hair cascaded just below her shoulders, but her visage bore signs of neglect, with heavy bags under her red, swollen eyes. Black chains bound her to the far wall, securing her wrists and ankles. Stella noticed her once-beautiful green butterfly wings were now cruelly halved. She realized she was looking at a fairy.

"What... happened to you?" Stella asked, her tone softening. The fairy began to sob quietly, covering her face with her trembling hands, her skin cracked and dirty.

"The Queen... she..." the fairy stuttered. "She captures us to force us to serve her... to accept her dark powers."

"Who... who are 'us'?" Stella inquired, noting that she only saw one fairy in the cell.

"My friends... they've already been transformed into the Queen's shadow creatures. I'm the last one resisting her influence. But that's why I'm here in the darkness. Please, I need your help to escape," the fairy pleaded, tears welling in her eyes.

Stella nodded, preparing to cast a spell to break the bars.

"But if you're Dreamix fairies, too..." the fairy continued, looking up. "Then she'll come for you as well."

Stella froze, her eyes widening.

"Are you... a Dreamix fairy?" she asked, blinking in disbelief.

"Yes. My name's Odette. The Queen once ruled over us in the World of Dreams. We lived in peace until she went mad. She brought us here to seek revenge on Earthlings. Her plan is to prevent them from ever dreaming again, to subject them only to their worst nightmares," Odette explained, her gaze conveying fear and concern, sending a shiver down Stella's spine. The notion of a world devoid of dreams, filled only with nightmares, was chilling. But it raised questions: why Earth? Why would someone as powerful as the Queen seek revenge on a non-magical place?

"I'll help you, Odette. I promise," Stella vowed, snapping out of her thoughts and grasping two of the black bars, heating them with her sun powers until they glowed like the core of the sun itself. The fairy stared at the light as if she hadn't seen it in ages, entranced by its brilliance.

A loud explosion behind Stella made her flinch, turning to see the rest of the Winx knocked to the ground by a powerful force. She gulped, observing the Shaman and the crocodile man entering the glade, their eyes fixed on her.

"Well, hello there, light fairy," the Shaman grinned, clutching his small runes in his hands. "Care to play a game? Hot potato?"

Stella glanced between Odette in the cell and her approaching adversaries.

'Shades. Why do decisions have to be so difficult to make?'

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Authors note:

This chapter was short, I know. But I had to save my last brain cells before wrapping up this first season rewrite. Writing longer chapters burns me easily out. And I'd like not to lose motivation of writing on this fanfic when we are so close to the end. But I hope you enjoyed this small update. 

See you in the next chapter!