Vortagar's smile twisted into something darker as he raised his staff high. Dark, crackling energy surged at the tip, and his eyes gleamed with cruel amusement. "You may be skilled fighters," he hissed, "but even you cannot resist the magic of regression."
Alex and Luke, still engaged with the shadow creatures, both froze. A cold shiver ran down their spines as they felt the air around them shift again. Something was wrong—very wrong.
Vortagar pointed his staff directly at them, chanting in a language neither of them recognized. A swirl of dark magic shot from the staff, wrapping around both boys like a coiling serpent. They staggered back, clutching at their chests as the magic seeped into them, its touch icy and insidious.
"What's… happening?" Alex gasped, struggling to keep his balance.
Luke’s face paled as he fought against the dark energy invading his body. "It's… some kind of spell!" he managed to say through gritted teeth. He could feel his muscles tensing, but at the same time, an odd lightness began spreading through his limbs, as though his strength were being sapped away.
Vortagar cackled, watching as the boys trembled before him. "I will enjoy watching you two shrink away into nothing! Warriors? No, you’ll be nothing more than helpless babes by the time I’m through with you!"
Both boys tried to move, to resist the magic, but their bodies betrayed them. The first signs of the spell took hold as their faces grew softer and rounder. Their once-strong jawlines became smooth, and the stubble that Alex had sported on his chin faded away. Luke's sharp, defined features softened into the cherubic roundness of youth.
Their bodies began to shrink. Slowly, their toned muscles diminished, their once powerful arms and legs becoming less defined. Alex’s shirt, once snug over his broad shoulders, started to hang loosely. Luke’s hoodie, which had fit perfectly just moments ago, began to drape over him like a blanket as his height started to recede.
“No… no!” Alex tried to shout, but his voice cracked and pitched higher, sounding more like a boy on the verge of puberty than the confident teen he had been moments ago. "We can’t—" He broke off, his vocal cords shifting, his voice rising to a higher, younger tone.
Luke’s hands trembled as he stared down at himself in horror. His fingers had grown smaller, his once long, nimble hands becoming shorter and pudgier, like those of a young child. "Alex… we have to… fight… this…" Luke’s voice now sounded like that of a pre-teen, his words strained as he tried to maintain composure.
But it was no use.
Their legs, once powerful and capable of delivering swift, crushing kicks, wobbled beneath them as their height continued to dwindle. They stumbled, their clothes sagging more and more, until they looked like kids playing dress-up in their parents' clothes. Alex’s pants, which had once fit his athletic frame perfectly, now bunched up around his ankles, far too big for his shrinking legs.
By now, the boys were no older than eleven or twelve, their limbs gangly and awkward, their clothing hanging off of them comically. Luke’s once cool, tech-inspired hoodie drooped past his knees, while Alex’s shirt billowed around his much smaller frame. They struggled to stand upright, but their balance wavered, as though they were forgetting how to control their rapidly changing bodies.
Vortagar’s laughter filled the park as he watched the transformation continue. "Look at you!" he mocked. "The mighty Cyber Warriors, reduced to mere children! Helpless, powerless children!"
Alex’s cheeks flushed as he struggled to hold onto some semblance of dignity. His mind raced, trying to find a way out of this nightmare, but the magic was too strong. He felt his body continuing to regress, his limbs growing smaller, his voice now that of a small boy. "This… can’t… be happening…"
Luke, equally helpless, gripped his oversized sleeves, trying to keep them from swallowing his hands entirely. But as he shrank further, he found it impossible to hold onto anything. His fingers were becoming shorter and chubbier, and his coordination was slipping away. His hoodie was now so big it dragged behind him like a cape, and his pants pooled around his feet.
Finally, the boys reached the final stages of their transformation. They were no older than toddlers now, their bodies small and chubby, their clothes absolutely swamping their tiny forms. Alex’s shirt had slipped completely off one shoulder, hanging like a tent over his babyish body. Luke’s hoodie, far too large, buried him in a mound of fabric, his small hands barely visible as he tried to push it off his head.
Their minds were still aware of what was happening, but their bodies had regressed to that of infants. Alex’s once fierce determination had melted into frustration as he tried to push himself up from the ground, only to stumble again, his balance completely gone. Luke tried to speak, to call out for help, but all that escaped his lips were incoherent babbles. His teeth had shrunk into little baby teeth, and his tongue felt heavy in his mouth, making it impossible to form real words.
Vortagar floated closer, his eyes gleaming with malice. "What a sight," he said mockingly, leaning down to observe the two helpless babies before him. "The great Alex and Luke, reduced to blubbering infants. Where’s that courage now, hmm? Where’s your power?"
Alex, now no more than a tiny baby swamped in his oversized clothes, glared up at Vortagar, but all that came out of his mouth was a high-pitched wail. Luke, trying to crawl toward Alex for comfort, was equally helpless, the magic having stripped them of their strength, their skills, and their ability to fight back.
"Pathetic," Vortagar sneered. He gave a mocking wave of his hand, watching as the two boys squirmed helplessly in their baby forms. "You’re nothing more than babbling, drooling little babies now. No more heroic deeds, no more battles. Just nap time and diaper changes."
As Alex and Luke sat there, powerless and trapped in their infant bodies, Vortagar turned away, laughing to himself. "Tell Lord Skullface he has nothing to worry about now," he said to himself, disappearing in a swirl of dark energy.
The park was quiet once more, save for the confused, frustrated cries of the two baby warriors, their bodies helpless but their minds still fighting to comprehend their humiliating fate.