Whoa. Last time I updated was in August. It's 2017 now. I know I'm 26 days late, but Happy New Year! I'll try to update this story more often—I'd been sorely focusing on finishing another that I ignored this one. I'll update this story more often, I promise. What do you wish to see?

ღ Greyshire Castleღ

"Ugh, my head," groaned Darling, slowly lifting herself off the ground. The cold marble floors stung her legs, sending a chill up her spine that made her shiver. The frosty damp air filled her lungs as she looked around. Overhead hung a crystal chandelier that made the ancient stone walls glisten. With its cream couch, gold dreary drapes, old and faded tapestry panels, the room was steeped in luxury, wrapped with gold embossed designs, mixed with shimming fabrics, and regal damasks.

"Tell me about it." Red-armor clad Nex was already on his feet, rubbing his rump with a scowl. "Where are we, anyway?"

"And where is everyone else?" added Darling, standing up. It was just the two of them in the old living room, meaning they'd been separated from the rest of the group. She was about to proceed over to the large stone doors, but some kind of black magic swirled into existence in front of them. It took the form of three holographic figures, all of them girls in flowing robes with their hair tied up.

"You," hissed Nex, reaching over his shoulder to unsheath his halberd.

"You know them?" asked Darling curiously, taking backwards so she was once again at his side.

"If you're watching this, then the challenge has official began," announced the one with lavender hair in an icy, evil tone.

~O~

"You have until noon to get to the top of the castle," went on the hologram of Icy, "my sisters and I have set up challenges all throughout the fortress to make things interesting."

"Ugh! The Trix," hissed Bloom, frowning deeply and clenching a fist. She, Raven, and Apple were in the castle's medieval-ish kitchen, where holograms of the Trix were projecting in front of the twin doors leading out of the kitchen.

"Uh, old friends of yours?" assumed Raven, raising an eyebrow.

"Hardly. They've been our evil enemies since day one," informed Bloom, still frowning.

"Well, witches will be witches," pointed out Apple. "But how did they know we were in Wonderland?"

"Get past our challenges and make it to the top if you don't want to face our punishment," continued Stormy with a devilish grin. "Good luck. If you have what it takes to conquer our castle."

~O~

"I demand to know what's going on!" Lizzie stomped her foot angrily after the holographic Trix disappeared. She, Stella, and Briar had been transported into a high, high tower of the castle. "Where the dickens are we?"

"This is the Trix's work." Stella frowned. "They're a group of evil witches who are determined to get rid of us for good. And now that the Wonderland curse has been lifted, their dark powers can penetrate the realm. So we've basically stopped one nutjob only to run into three more. They're worse than Courtly. They're basically using us as pawns for their stupid game. And if we don't get out of here quick, we can all kiss the magic dimension goodbye."

Briar, who'd been trying to force the door open the whole time, gritted his teeth with frustration and took a step back. "The door's jammed."

"Please. Step aside. Studies prove that we Wonderlandians have better physical attributes," insisted Lizzie, waving Briar aside as she proceeded to the door with her chin held high confidently. She grabbed the brass handle and gave it a yank. However, the door didn't even budge. "What?" Lizzie furrowed her brows. She yanked again. Nothing. "I command this door to open!" she shrieked madly, pounding on it with two fists. "I am your princess!"

"Lizzie! Liz. Calm down, girl." Stella grabbed the princess's shoulders and steered her away from the door. "I got this." She zapped the door with a bolt of yellow magic and levitated it out of its frame. "See? Piece of cake."

Behind the door had been a spiraling staircase, leading deep into the dark tower below. "Uh, it looks kinda dark…" trailed off Briar, "oh, yeah. And dangerous."

"Don't worry. Fairy of the sun and moon, remember? I can erase the dark no problem." Stella started down the stairs first, glowing a beautiful white that vanquished the dark. "See? No sweat."

Briar and Lizzie exchanged glances of uncertainty before proceeding after Stella.

~O~

Darling approached the suit of armor that stood beside the fireplace. She drew the sword at its side, holding it high. "We'll force our way through," she said simply, removing the suit's side sheath and putting it on. "You have your halberd, I have this sword. We don't have much time, do we have no choice but to storm the castle."

"Fine by me." Nex grinned, reaching over his shoulder to draw his halberd.

Not long after, the two were running down the corridor, calling for their friends. Eventually, they made a turn that took them into a wide hallway, aligned with identical decorative suits of armor. Nex kept running, but Darling froze.

"Wait! Something isn't right!" she hissed, looking around suspiciously. And just as she spoke, an eerie dark magic drifted into the corridor, snaking everywhere. "Whoa!" Darling threw herself onto the floor as dark essence whirled by her. She kept her eyes on it, watching as it disappeared into one of the suits of armor. Almost immediately, the suit started to rattle and move.

"Uh, Darling?"

Nex backed up as the rest of the suits came to life, all of them stepping out of their stiff position against the wall and turning to face the pair. Darling and Nex backed into each other, their backs bumping.

"A curse," growled Darling as all of the armor threw their swords, forming a circle around the heroes. "They're coming alive!"

"Stand back—things are about to get windy," warned Nex, holding up in halberd. He started to whirl it above his head, creating a whirlwind around them. The growing winds pushed back the armor, and Darling took this as an opportunity to slash at one. She put a deep scratch straight across its breast plating, and then kicked it down to the floor.

And that was when the battle began.

~O~

Darling's and the armor's swords clanged as they traded blows, neither of them losing their posture. Over her shoulder, Darling heard Nex holding his own, but she didn't dare look around and give her opponent an opening. A swordsman never let his guard down no matter what. No exception.

Darling gritted her teeth as the enchanted armor started to back her down the corridor. She was tiring. Using up her strength. She wasn't like her opponent, who was nothing more than a hexed tool. It didn't have a heart, and didn't even have a body underneath its shiny plating. It didn't share the same humanly weaknesses as Darling. It couldn't tire out, it couldn't run out of breath, it couldn't even flinch. All it could do was fight, and wouldn't stop until its adversary was defeated.

Behind her, Darling could hear the clanging of heavy footsteps approaching. Dang it! More were coming behind her! "Nex!" shouted Darling, whipping her sword back and forth to knock away each of the enchanted armor's attacks.

"Yeah?" Nex's voice was quick, distant, sharp, and winded. Darling could hear his halberd clashing with his opponent's sword.

"How many?"

Nex didn't answer and Darling heard the unmistakable, violent sound of a sword slicing the air and then Nex's pained scream echoed all around. A thump then followed, most likely Nex falling to the ground.

Oh no! Nex was hit! Darling's head was spinning like crazy. Thinking fast, Darling dove under her enemy's sword just as it was swinging it, sliding across the marble floor on her knees and hopping back onto her feet a few several yards away. She whirled around, to see new hexed suits of armor joining the one she'd been battling.

She didn't see Nex. Where was Nex? Instead of facing her regrouping foes, Darling turned her back to them and ran. Her heavy breaths matching her hurried footsteps, the princess sprinted down the hall, shouting Nex's name. She didn't hear any footsteps over her own, meaning her competitors weren't following her. Ugh, what did that mean? Were they taking another route so they could corner her? Were they—

Darling screamed as the wall to her left suddenly exploded, the impact throwing her hard onto the right. "AHHH!" yelped Darling, letting go of her sword as she sailed across the corridor. She back-first into one of the paintings on the wall, and it fell atop her as she dropped into a heap on the floor.

Darling muttered, lifting her face up from the floor. She looked up to see a giant hole in the stone wall that had exploded. A shadowy, faceless, eerie figure was floating right outside of it, its hands cackling with dark lightning.

Swearing, Darling struggled to wiggle out from underneath the painting. Just as she managed to flip the heavy decorative off her, a black lightning bolt flashed before her eyes and Darling let out a scream as its dark energy coursed through her body. Due to the electricity, she could feel her whole body spasming violently.

Once the electrocution stopped, Darling felt her body go limp. She couldn't move and everything inside her was on fire. If she was hit again, she'd fry.

The shadowy being levitated into the room, lightly landing on the floor. A dark, evil laugh echoed out of it, and it stated to morph into something else. Darling watched hopelessly as it transformed into one of the Trix, the one with lightning bands and storm-cloud hair.

"I am Stormy, the most powerful witch of storms," she said proudly and arrogantly, walking up to faint Darling.

"Stay back," warned Darling, her eyes darting around in search of her sword. Her gaze locked on her fallen weapon, which was all the way beside the hole. If only she could reach it…

"The Winx will regret pulling amateurs into our rivalry." Stormy started to generate purple lightning, her bolts slowly spiraling and cackling around her like whips. Due to all the static electricity, Darling could feel her hair standing up. "I'll zap you into the next world," smirked Stormy, "Amethyst Lightning Lasso!"

Darling's eyes bulged as Stormy's lighting sailed toward her in bursts of shades of purple. This was it. She couldn't move, she'd have to take this. Just as the electricity was about to penetrate Darling, a gust of strong wind blew it off course.

Darling's and Stormy's heads snapped in the same direction to see Nex standing a few yards away, breathing heavily as he held up his Halberd of the Wind. The chest plate of his Paladin armor had been cut in several areas, and his face was bruised.

"Nex!" exclaimed Darling. She tried to get up again, but her body still refused to move.

"Don't get your hopes up too high, girly. He's no match for me," insisted Stormy, turning to face Nex. "I'll end him and then you." She started to generate more lighting in her palms.

"Nex, run!" snapped Darling.

However, Nex raised his halberd above his head, spinning it rapidly. As he whirled his halberd faster and faster, a strong current of wind began to spiral around him and the blue weapon on his weapon glowed bluer and bluer as the winds picked up. He was charging up for an attack! Stormy must've figured this too, because she narrowed her eyes and shot her lighting throw her fingertips toward him.

"Nex!" yelled Darling.

Before the lightning could reach him, Nex swung his halberd downward toward the floor, and his blue blade released a long, curved beam of energy and a blast of wind that sailed toward Stormy, slicing through her electricity. Stormy tried to conjure a shield, but was too slow. The magic from Nex's halberd bashed into her, the impact sending her flying, her cry of "NOOO!" reverberating down the hall.

"Darling? You alright?" Nex was at Darling's side in seconds.

"Yeah. But I can't move. What about you? What happened?" Nex waved away her concern. He bent down and slowly helped her up to her feet. "Thanks, but I don't need help," insisted Darling stubbornly, resisting Nex's support. She wasn't a damsel. She didn't need rescuing, especially from a guy. But as soon as she let go of him, she lost balance immediately. Darling growled.

"We gotta move. She'll be back soon." Nex bent down and hoisted Darling onto his back. "We have to find the others."

Darling swallowed her pride. Though she seriously disliked the idea of being treated like a helpless damsel, she knew saving her friends was more important.

~O~

"Okay, so where are we now?" asked Briar. "Left or right?"

She, Lizzie, and Stella had fully descended the stairs, which had led them into some kind of two-way tunnel. The air was stale and cold, and their every word echoed off the walls.

"Left," said Stella at the same time Lizzie said, "Right!" They looked at each other. "Rock-paper-scissors?" suggested Stella. After Stella won with rock, the girls wandered down the passageway leading to the left.

"In Wonderland, scissors can cut straight through rock," Lizzie was muttering her breath, haughtily folding her arms across her chest.

"The vault is all the way at the top of the castle, so, all we have to do is find out where we are and—" A faint roar echoed out of the darkness behind them, interrupting Stella. "What was that?" she said, jittery.

"Ugh, let's go a little faster," suggested Briar. Remaining quiet, the girls began to mega-pace further down the stone tunnel. A snarl sounded around them, only encouraging them to speed up. Eventually, the tunnel took them into a wide antechamber. The ceilings were made of glass and two staircases set against the wall, leading up to a second-story landing.

"Yes! I told you left was the right way," said Stella, high-fiving her new friends. "Now all we gotta do is keep—"

A demonic screech sounded all around them, causing all of them to yelp. And just then, a sphere of dark matter materialized in the center of the room in midair. The girls watched in horror as it grew bigger, taller, and wider. Eight long arms squeezed out of it, and a face of shark-teeth and dark eyes appeared within the head.

"Stella?!" squeaked Briar, stepping back as the thing grew huge, its head stopping a few feet from the ceiling. It was a giant, shadow-like octopus, and it looked bloodthirsty. It let out a final roar before setting its sights on the girls.

"This is one of the Trix's hexes again!" Stella gritted her teeth. "Stand back, girls. I'll deal with this." She held up a hand. "Magic Stella, Bloomix!" With a flash of light, the girl was in her beautiful, winged warrior-fairy form.

She flitted up into the air. "Behold!" she declared, "I, Fairy of the Shining Sun has arrived! Prepare to be—YIKES!" The demon breathed dark matter at Stella, who dodged it. "Rude!" she frowned, putting her hands on her hips. "Here I was introducing myself and you totally tried to kill me! Looks like I'll have to punish you." She held up an arm, pointing a finger up at the ceiling. "Blazing," she chanted, "Wave…" Thin lines of light magic conjured around her, all of them starting to join together as a single force. "She pointed that finger at the octopus and her magic rushed at it like a tidal wave.

The octopus hissed, countering spell with its dark-magic breath. It swung a leg at Stella, pushing her into a wall.

"Stella!" screamed Briar, running across the marble floor toward the fairy.

"Briar, no!" shouted Lizzie.

The octopus eyed Briar and swept an arm over to her, snatching up right off the ground. "AHHH!" screamed Briar as the creature lifted her high above the ground upside down.

Stella peeled herself off the wall. "Briar! Hold on!" She rose back into the air.

"Shining Mirror of Solaria!" She held up a hand and a yellow-framed mirror conjured in midair. The blond grabbed it, spinning the mirror in her hand. Flying into the air, the blond pointed the mirror at the beast so it'd appear in the reflective glass. "Sirius Supernova!" she shouted and a huge ray of yellow and pink energy blasted out of the glass, sailing at the beast.

The spell crashed into one of the octopus's many arms, marking it with a huge black burn. The demon let out an ear-shattering wail, dropping Briar. "WOOHOO!" cheered the girl as she plummeted down toward the stone floor.

"Moon's Embrace!" Stella managed to hit Briar with a spell, creating a golden transparent bubble around her. The bubble gently floated down, popping once it landed on the ground.

"That was awesome!" Briar clapped her hands, "let's do it again!" Lizzie gave Briar a sideway glance like she was crazy.

The octopus shadow demon gave a terrifying screen, spreading out its black arms in all direction. Lizzie and Briar yelped, dropping onto the floor to avoid its tentacles.

"Sunlight's Shocking Kiss!" Stella held out a hand and pure light radiated within her hand, which then morphed into a big solid golden heart. As it grew larger, the blond held both hands above her head and the heart started to spin right above her palms, multiplying into many hearts that spiraled in ray of white light around her. She held both hands apart, sending her hearts and rays straight at the octopus.

The dozens of hearts and rays all targeted different parts of the demon, detonating the second it made contact with its skin. The shadowy being roared and started frantically whipping three of its arms at Stella in an attempt to swat her away.

"Whoa!" Her wings flapping madly, Stella steered left, right, up, and down as she avoided the tentacles.

Down below, Lizzie and Briar were watching from behind a column, which didn't really serve as protection since it was only concealing half of their bodies. "Whoa! I can't even see what's happening!" exclaimed Briar. The octopus's tentacles were moving so fast, they looked like nothing more than blurs. Its arms were slashing this way and that, whipping the walls and ceilings. Rumble was flying everywhere, and the impact of its blows shook the corridor.

A huge chunk of the wall suddenly fell from the wall, descending straight down to crush Lizzie and Briar.