W.I.T.C.H./Guardians

A **Guardian** is one of a quintet of warriors chosen to protect the universe by Kandrakar, the very center of the universe itself. Each Guardian rules over one the basic natural elements of water, fire, earth, air and quintessence (an unspecified form of pink-colored pure energy in the comics and chapter books), the fifth element.

The fifth Guardian is also Keeper of the Heart of Kandrakar, the bright pink-colored, orbicular crystal pendent that allows the Guardians to transform into their empowered costumes by channeling the elemental energy of the Aurameres into the Heart itself. The crystal amulet even magnifies all of their elemental and shared Guardian abilities to tremendous levels when transformed. If not, both of their unique elemental powers, and Guardian abilities, are greatly weakened and much less effective.

When the Veil was in place, the Guardians were known as the **Guardians of the Veil**. Later in the comics, they are known as **Guardians of Kandrakar** and in the TV series, they are referred to as the **Guardians of the Infinite Dimensions**.

## Contents

* 1Members
	+ 1.1W.I.T.C.H.
	+ 1.2C.H.Y.K.N.
* 2Plot
	+ 2.1Ancient history
	+ 2.2Throughout the series
* 3Powers and abilities
	+ 3.1Individual elemental powers
	+ 3.2The Heart of Kandrakar
	+ 3.3Weaknesses
* 4Quinto Guardian
* 5Trivia
* 6References

## Members

### W.I.T.C.H.

*Main article: W.I.T.C.H. (Guardians)*

 —Yan Lin after having presented the Heart of Kandrakar to Will, It Begins

The current Guardians are known as W.I.T.C.H.

* **Will Vandom:** The Guardian of quintessence and Keeper of the Heart of Kandrakar.
* **Irma Lair:** The Guardian of water.
* **Taranee Cook:** The Guardian of fire.
* **Cornelia Hale:** The Guardian of earth.
* **Hay Lin:** The Guardian of air.
* **Orube:** Orube briefly served as Taranee's replacement, although she was given no elemental powers. She left after the 3rd arc was ended, but continued living in Heatherfield.

### C.H.Y.K.N.

*Main article: C.H.Y.K.N.*

 —The Oracle explaining to W.I.T.C.H. about Nerissa and her connection to Kandrakar, K is for Knowledge

The group of Guardians who immediately preceded W.I.T.C.H. are known as C.H.Y.K.N.

* **Cassidy:** The former Guardian of water. She was also briefly the Keeper of the Heart.
* **Halinor:** The former Guardian of fire.
* **Yan Lin:** The former Guardian of air and the final Keeper of the Heart.
* **Kadma:** The former Guardian of earth.
* **Nerissa:** The former Guardian of quintessence and the former Keeper of the Heart.

## Plot

### Ancient history

Long ago, there was a kingdom ruled by a powerful, but uncaring Jade Emperor. Working for this emperor were four magnificent dragons. The beautiful nymph, Xin Jing, the emperor's daughter was greatly worried for the people, for a famine had been on the land for many months. The dragons took pity on the people; two of them boiled the water from the oceans, and the others helped lift it to the skies.

The terrible drought was ended, but the Emperor was enraged that the dragons acted without his permission and he ordered them locked inside four mountains. His beloved Xin Jing was appalled, and she joined the Dragons after releasing their spirits in addition to her own essence. All that was left to remember her by was a crystal amulet.

## Powers and abilities

As magical beings, the Guardians can wield traditional magic by casting spells. For example, they can cast spells to turn themselves and others invisible, transform other beings or objects, and make effective use of glamours.[*citation needed*] Nerissa claimed to have cast a devastating curse on two talismans that enabled folding and she cast an infatuation spell on the boys at Heatherfield.

The Guardians can also combine their powers together and create a beam of concentrated mystical energy from their hands.

When the Guardians transform, their appearance is similar to that of fairies. However, except the Guardian of Air, they could not fly, despite having wings. In the TV series, all five Guardians could fly, though the Guardian of Air is the fastest and most skilled at flying.

In order to magically travel to another place in the same world, each Guardian can teletransport. Teletransporting is a difficult ability to learn and one can materialize into another solid object if not careful enough. If a Guardian teletransports while not connected to an Auramere or a mystic Heart then they will drain their life force.

### Individual elemental powers

Each of the five Guardians possesses power over one of the five classical elements: fire, water, earth, air, and quintessence. Each of the five Guardian's powers are derived and strengthened via the Aurameres, transmitted to the Heart. The Aurameres grant the same exact elemental powers to each of their Guardians; for instance, powers held by Irma would also have been possessed by Cassidy.[*citation needed*]

The Guardians can become one with their dragon (or the powerful nymph Xin Jing, in the case of the Guardian of quintessence) and literally become their element while increasing all of their elemental abilities to their zenith of strength. But this is risky and rather dangerous because it costs them their humanity and they could be easily controlled and enthralled.

It is possible for the Guardians to switch powers if they don't think their current element is the right one for them, or completely renounce them in case they do not want to be a Guardian anymore.[*citation needed*]

### The Heart of Kandrakar

*Main article: Heart of Kandrakar*
Using the Heart of Kandrakar, or a mystic source of equal or greater power, the Guardians can magnify their powers and alter their appearance to their benefit. When the Guardians transform, they change form, height and grow wings. In the comics, their wings originally did not grant them the ability to fly, not until they received their New Powers. According to Cassidy, within every Keeper, a spark of the Heart of Kandrakar continues to burn.

According to the Oracle, the nymph Xin Jing gifted the Guardians with the power of regeneration to allow them to withstand the physical strain of transforming from one state to another. Apparently, every time the Guardians are touched by the power of the Heart of Kandrakar, they become stronger; they are afforded supernatural longevity (e.g. this allowed Yan Lin to serve as a Guardian for longer than any ordinary mortal could have) and little physical imperfections disappear overtime (e.g. Taranee's eyesight improved because of this gift). The Oracle also stated that this gift can be refused.[*citation needed*]

### Weaknesses

* **The Aurameres:** The Guardian's powers are derived from the Aurameres, and should these objects be destroyed they will be rendered powerless.[*citation needed*]
* **Mortality:** Despite their mystical attributes, the Guardians are still human and share many of the same weaknesses as non-supernatural beings (e.g. age, blood loss, suffocation, etc.). However, the Guardians can get around this weakness through the use of magic.[*citation needed*]
* **Magic:** The Guardians are susceptible to the powers of magic. This is includes magical objects such as the Star of Threbe or the Horn of Hypnos.
* **Overexertion:** If a Guardian uses their elemental powers and is not connected to an Auramere, it will drain their life force, making them much weaker. This may be why Nerissa aged so much faster than the rest of C.H.Y.K.N..
* **Team Balance**: Yan Lin revealed that when the Guardians argue and are not united, their individual powers diminish in strength and they are more vulnerable especially if the group is partially disbanded.

## Quinto Guardian

A Quinto-Guardian is a Guardian that has all of the powers and abilities over all five elements: energy, water, fire, earth and air including the individual powers/abilities of other Guardians. A Quinto-Guardian can gain the power to create solid ice out of thin air as with liquid water.[*citation needed*]

In the comics, Cornelia became a Quinto-Guardian after touching, and absorbing the powers of the changeling. The five elements combining in one person released Nerissa from her prison. Cornelia used her new powers to turn Caleb human again, after Phobos turned him into a flower. Luba, who had accidentally created the changeling, removed the power from her. A small amount of each element remained within Caleb due to his resurrection, although using these powers is implied to drain his life force.[*citation needed*]

In the TV series, Cornelia became a Quinto-Guardian when she was fueled by all five Aurameres, the source of the Guardians' elemental powers, when Nerissa tried to absorb the power of the Aurameres. Apparently as a member of the Council of Kandrakar, Halinor could disrupt the flow of the Aurameres and channel them into one person. However, whilst the enthralled, Halinor attempted to channel the Guardians powers into the Heart of Meridian under Nerissa's orders, Cornelia flew into the room and accidentally adsorbed all five elements which she controlled with almost expert precision.

Nerissa later gained control and manipulation over all five elements, when she absorbed her former friends into her Seal thus becoming a Quinto-Guardian herself although her powers were fueled by the Hearts of Meridian and Zamballa via the original Guardians not by the Aurameres.

## Trivia

* While male Guardians were never confirmed to exist in the TV series, the comics did make mention of men having been Guardians.[*citation needed*]
	+ Althor was revealed to be have been a Guardian himself, prior to being a member of the Council of Kandrakar.[*citation needed*]
* In the TV series, before striking their ending poses during the transformations, all the Guardians call out the names of their elements.
	+ Will was initially an exception to this, as she exclaimed *Keeper!* or the *Heart!* prior to the reveal of her elemental power in K is for Knowledge; she cries out *Quintessence!* from that episode onward.
* Despite Irma claiming that the Guardian's couldn't cast spells in Divide and Conquer, the Guardians were described as doing so in the comics, and Nerissa and Yan Lin seemed to have cast spells in the TV series.[*citation needed*]
	+ Irma confirmed in that while the Guardians have elemental powers, they can also perform traditional acts of magic.