Enjoy! I really enjoyed writing this one, and also be warned of death.

Gruesome? Maybe. You make that decision but I felt it only right to mention it but not tell when, so don't be too surprised.

Also Merry (very late) Christmas/ Happy New Year. I hope I can free up more time to write this fanfiction, I have so many plans for it and I refuse to abandon it.

I will always apologize for the wait, but at least you get a meaty chapter in return.

Lots of lore and story elements went into this chapter, as well as a lot of work, so I can only hope that you all enjoy it.

Remember to like, favorite, and review!

Also, this chapter was about 60k+ words =w= So chew on it at a reasonable pace


-Y-Y-


It has been a solid month since repairs on the castle began.

It was unseen till later in the month, but the rampaging castle incident seemed to have caused more damage to Bonesborough than originally thought, while yes, no one was hurt, several buildings were damaged in the chaos.

Of course, the Emperor went out of his way to announce that he would be paying for the damages caused, at no extra tax to the Citizens.

That got people talking, more than usual anyways, primarily on the Weave. (Boiling Isles internet). More specifically, a lot of discussion boards talked of the more generous side of the Emperor. Especially as of late.

Now the Emperor being generous wasn't new, either. His generosity had begun about 14 or so years ago when he began to take the pleas of peasants and very selective members of nobility on the Isles. The Nobel's usually had everything already, what else could they need from the Emperor?

Not only that, the Emperor's Coven has made moves to improve the safety of the many citizens of the Isles since then. Working hard to improve infrastructure and quality of life in the many cities on the Isles while at the same time, spreading his control of the Isles from not only cities but to more rural areas on the Isles. Win-Win situation in the eyes of Belos.

There has even been talk of new cities spreading across the Isles, as much of the land is laid uninhabited, but that would take careful planning and time… Wouldn't want a massacre on their hands, after all.

But you didn't come here to discuss the socio-economic presence of the Isles.

Let's start somewhere easy, in a boring meeting.


-The Castle-


The Lord Emperor Belos Supreme was once again in an early morning, uneventful meeting with his Coven Heads.

They were discussing all the usual things, progress, numbers of Witches joining their Covens, discoveries that could be useful to the Emperor, discussing news, and other things alike.

He spaced out, looking at the many faces in front of him.

Many were new, others were older. To him anyways, he was beginning to feel the effects of his Titan given longevity...

At his right, sitting on an equally lavish throne that only rivaled his own, was his dear Wife, Camila Noceda.

She was acting as his scribe, as Kikimora had been reassigned to the secret portal project. The very same project that not even his current Coven Heads knew about.

In all honesty, he didn't want her to even lift a finger, but she had insisted on helping. Wanting to help him to take the load of being Emperor, she was his Empress, after all, she needed to support him the best way she could and she found that this was one of those ways.

Looking, he saw Lilith Clawthorne standing from her chair, beginning to discuss her own Coven's progress as of late. Well, his Coven technically, whenever he wasn't busy being Emperor. He wished that he could lead it as he was once able to. As was the price of leading a country.

He remembered Lilith's promotion to the seat very well.

It was when he was restructuring his table of Coven Heads.

He closed his eyes, remembering that day...


-14 years ago-


"I don't know, Alexander…" A younger Camila whispered, looking up at the Emperor. They were outside of what appeared to be a set of large doors.

"You said it yourself, Camila. If I am willing to change… So will my Coven Heads… Darius is arrogant and cares only for his position and status, Ebberwolf doesn't do his job, Desdemona has led my Coven to ruin and corruption, cutting Wild Witches loose at the drop of a coin, in league with the criminal underworld, and Aeson heals for a price! Hele didn't fight to spread Healing Centers across the Isles only for Witches to be stopped by a paywall… Absurd... And don't even get me started on the rest… The only one who does their job with a passion is Drew and Praescitum…"

"Which are those again?" She asked.

"In order, Abominations, Beast, Emperor's Coven, Healing, Construction, and Oracle." He clarified.

"I see… I'm just worried, I guess… You said it yourself, you're still not at full power, even with the medicine I made for you… Rí Imperator nearly killed you and you're lucky to still be alive…" She whispered.

"I told you, that fight was six years ago before I met you. I am more than fine now." He said, demonstrating by summoning a ball of fire and twirling it, but only briefly.

"I'm just worried, Alex… These are supposed to be the strongest Witches the Isles has to offer, what if they don't take too kindly to being fired because you gained a "change of heart"? They could start a coup…"

Suddenly, Camila heard a scoff.

"They'd be wise not to attempt such a thing in my presence…"

Looking, they saw that it was Kikimora, arms behind her back and looking bored with being here.

"Emperor, I believe it is time to begin the meeting and to drop the news… Shall… The Human stay here?" She asked, looking at Camila, "I still have no clue why she is out of her cell… Or why she is with you at all." She said, her voice traced with a hint of jealousy.

Belos shook his head.

"Because she's our guest here, now, Kiki… We've been over this and… No, Camila will stay nearby, at my side. Let's get this show on the road. I believe that's a human saying, as well…" He started with a chuckle as he put his mask back on and pushed open the double-wide doors to the meeting hall.

The Conversing members were all silenced as the Emperor entered, followed by Camila and Kikimora. They all stood in unison and bowed at him.

"At ease…" Belos said, waving his hand as he climbed the dais to his throne and took his seat, which was situated away and above the rest of the Coven Heads. As if to say that he was above them and by all technicality he was…

It didn't feel right to him anymore…

Kikimora took her position, standing at his right and Camila at his left, as the Coven Heads took their seats once again. They all couldn't help but stare at Camila, the human that disturbed their meeting a few months ago was now standing at the side of the Emperor… Was something going on behind their walls?

While Camila wore a face of coolness, as they had practiced, she was very nervous to even be in this room… It just felt like something was going to go wrong at any moment…

Desdemona stood first to speak, he was the current head of the Emperor's Coven. He was a skinny individual who wore a rather expensive version of the normal Emperor Coven uniform, as well as various pieces of gold… Belos would never understand his obsession with Gold, yes it was shiny and looked nice but it was such a numerous material in the mines that the miners were known to toss it aside to make room for better materials…

In all honesty, it was more of a flex than anything else.

"Sir," Desdemona started, "May we ask, why did you call forth a meeting?" He asked.

Another member stood to speak, Thornelius, he held a Bee staff and was the current head of the Plant Coven. He was a well-dressed individual who held his position as Coven Head greatly, it supplementing his ego and distracting from the actual work he needed to do, usually in the form of infidelity and partaking in illegal underground activities… He wasn't exactly one of Belos' favorites either.

"Yes, I concur, I was in the middle of an important meeting of my own." He said impatiently.

Kikimora scoffed once more.

"Please, the girls in your chambers can wait for your sad return, Thornelius, sit back down and keep quiet, you adulterous wretch..." She said with an untold ire for the Coven Head, clearly fueled by his poorly hidden behaviors.

Thornelius conceded, face red in embarrassment from Kikimora's insults, and sat back down in his chair, arms crossed like a child.

Desdemona held the urge to laugh, cleared his throat, and spoke clearly.

"Yes… You usually only hold 2 meetings a month, in the middle and at the end. So this one is out of the blue, is there an emergency?" He asked.

Belos hummed at the question.

"You could say that, yes… It involves our home… The Boiling Isles…" He said with a sigh before he stood up, "Ladies and gentlemen. What is my name?" He asked them all.

The question seemed to confuse them.

"Emperor… Belos…?" Aeson, the healer answered, standing next. He was dressed in the normal Head Healer robes, but the key difference was the many gems and the many gold rings with expensive jewelry embedded into them.

"Wrong…" Belos said, "My name… Is Alexander W. Belos… My family and I were killed by Wild Witches and I alone was revived by the Titan, to bring order and prosperity to the Isles by any means possible… So I started a rebellion in his name. With the help of Kikimora at my side and the knights of old, we gathered our forces till we could seriously oppose the old Emperor Crisis…" He said, spinning his tale as he reached up and removed his mask, shocking the entire court of Coven Heads.

"In the final years of the conflict, a Stranger appeared and helped me achieve my revolution… I watched as she single-handedly took down Crisis' armies with her ancient and wild magic… She was so much stronger than me, I even elected to make her Empress, instead of me, but she refused. She said that she just wanted to go back home, and that was the last I saw of her. But before she left… Do you know what she said to me? The one thing I think of constantly…?" He asked, staring up at the still in shock Coven Heads.

No one said anything, not entirely sure where Belos was going with his speech, so he continued.

"She told me one thing… "I know you will make the Isles great one day, Emperor Belos, that is your destiny and you're meant for great things... Don't ever forget it."... That's what she told me before she left into the woods behind Bonesborough, never to be seen again... And… In my long life… I believe she would be disappointed in me for it seems… That I have forgotten…"

Hearing this, a sudden feeling of intense worry was felt across the room by the Coven Heads, looking, they saw that Belos' eyes were glowing blue and they could feel the murderous intent radiating from not only Belos but also Kikimora, who was smiling widely under her collar.

"Only two of you are still worth the dirt on my shoes… Lord Drew…. Lord Praescitum… You may return to your work and say goodbye to your fellow Coven Heads… It may very well be the last time you see them…" He said cryptically.

The two Coven Heads weren't dumb enough, however, to question Belos' ire and intentions, so they both made a speedy exit. Bowing first, of course.

Praescitum seemed to be chuckling under his breath, whispering something about how, "It's finally happening," Which didn't exactly calm the remaining Coven Heads, especially since it came from a fortune teller… Did that mean… He knew this was going to happen all along?

All that Desdemona could think of was how that bastard didn't warn anyone of this entire thing happening.

"S- Sir…?" Desdemona whispered, fear licking at his voice.

"Silence, you corrupt swine," Belos said, pointing a red finger at the current Emperor Coven Head.

Desdemona became quiet and silently took his seat in his chair, soon to no longer be his.

"I will make this clear to all of you so there is no confusion amongst us… Step down from your seat as Coven Head willingly, or be executed by my Hand…" He presented his ultimatum, "I realize now that the Isle's can not be led to greatness if corrupt, greedy, and lazy Heads are at the helm… You have five minutes to decide before I decide for you."

The many Coven Heads were very silent, but many had already made their minds on their stance… It was just a case of who was going to say something first…

Suddenly, Scooter Crane, current head of the Bard Coven, stood from his chair.

"Emperor Belos, it has been an honor to serve the Isles in your name… I appreciate this chance at life… I will spend it wisely with my family…" He said, before removing the Bard Coven Emblem from his cloak and placing it carefully on the table before he turned, leaving the meeting hall.

Ebberwolf silently stroked the shiny Beast Keeping Coven Emblem before he stood on his chair, bowed at Belos, and placed the Emblem on the table.

"Thank… You… Emperor…" He said simply before jumping down from the chair and running away on all fours out of the meeting hall.

It was silent once more. Who was next?

Surprisingly, the ever arrogant Darius stood from his chair and slammed the Abomination Coven Emblem down on the table.

"Fine… I concede my seat at this table but mark my words, Emperor, you will regret your decision. If I have any idea who my replacement is, then you're going to hope you kept me in this seat… Have a nice day, Emperor…" He said before turning, dramatically turning and flipping his cape as he turned into an abomination, he spun in a tornado of abomination goo and once it settled, he was gone.

Next was the Illusion Coven head, Speculo, a flamboyant man who valued his appearance above all things. He carefully set the Illusion Coven Emblem down and sighed before he suddenly smiled widely.

"Finally… I'll be honest sir," Speculo turned to face Belos, "I never really wanted the job in the first place. Maybe now I can start that theater I always wanted in Right Hand… Thank you for this opportunity, Emperor."

With that thanks, he respectfully bowed toward the Emperor and calmly walked out of the meeting hall.

And finally, Lektvar, head of the Potions Coven. He had fallen so deep into his work he had lost the vision for his job in the first place.

He silently placed the Potion Coven Emblem on the table and bowed at Belos, before turning and leaving.

He never did like speaking to those around him… He just liked to work on his potions...

It was silent once more, though the tension in the room was turning thick and becoming unbearable to the less weak-willed individuals in the room. That being; Camila, Aevon, Desdemona and Thornelius.

The tense silence finally ended when Belos sighed, shaking his head.

The Emperor stood from his throne, going down the steps of his dais, and standing at the head of the table.

"Times up, gentleman... As a courtesy to your lasting "service" on the Isles, I'll give you all one final chance… What. Is. Your. choice? Will you die in your seat by my Hand, or will you walk out of here alive and with your reputation intact?" He asked threateningly, eyes glowing fiercely.

Desdemona gritted his teeth. He couldn't let Belos just push him aside with his empty threats… He knew all about the rumors of power, conquest, and cruelty done in the Titan's name but… Ever since meeting that human, he's been sentencing more and more wild witches to stone, rather than execution, donating to the poor, taxing the citizens less and less…

He was weak and soft… And he wouldn't stand for this…

He stood to speak.*(1)

"I'm sorry, Belos," He said daringly, "But it's with all due respect that I question your decisions here and now…"

Belos looked at him, raising a brow. Kikimora stepped forward but Belos held a fist, stopping her stride. She begrudgingly stepped back, folding her arms behind her back.

"Oh?" He said simply, "And, why's that?" He asked curiously.

Desdemona took a deep breath.

"I believe that… With you airing out all but 2 members of your table, who will lead their covens? Finding competent Witches must be a difficult job..."

"You needn't worry about such things, Desdemona. I assure you that replacements have already been found... Hele herself has decided to come out of retirement to take up the position, once more…" Belos looked towards Aevon, who was now in a state of shock and fear, "She was so disgusted and disappointed that all those years of her hard work had been ruined by such a greedy witch as yourself, her Grandson… A shame, truly…" He turned back to Desdemona.

"Lest we forget the absolute mockery you've made my Coven, Werath…" He used Desdemona's first name, "Accepting bribes and working with the crime family, The Blair-Circe… Disgraceful…"

Desdemona gritted his teeth, clearly not liking that Belos knew of his dealings… But maybe there was an opportunity to be had...

"So… You understand the dire situation you'll be in if you kick me out of my seat as Coven Head… The Blair-Circe family is very powerful and overreaching…" He said silently.

Belos now had a look of disbelief.

"Are you threatening me? In front of my own eyes? Astonishing, surely..." The Emperor then summoned his staff and tapped it on the ground once.

The doors to the meeting room suddenly slammed open, and Coven Guards flooded the room, being led by a certain blue-haired captain but what truly caught Desdomona's attention was who the Guards were pulling into the room by chains.

It was the heads of the Blair-Circe family. They looked beaten and bruised.

"You know, you always forget that I hold absolute power over everything, the minute I discovered you were in league with this scum, I had a captain lead a raid. They never saw it coming…" Belos mocked Desdemona, snapping his fingers. Several Coven Guards then used the ends of their staff to bring the Heads of the Blair-Circe family to their knees.

"The Blair-Circe family is nothing but a pitiful stain on my home… They will all be petrified and locked away, their reign over the people of Bonesborough is over. Any more empty threats? Or are you done?" Belos asked, crossing his arms, unimpressed.

Desdemona clenched his fist, he had run out of options… There was nothing that could be done… Unless...

In a sudden flash of magic, Desdemona summoned his white Raven staff to his hands and twirled it.

"I won't let this happen!" He shouted, causing the other two Coven Heads to stand and stand back, summoning their staves to their hands as well, "I won't let all my work be undone by an Emperor without a vision!" He slammed his staff onto the floor of the meeting hall, sending a pulse of magic outwards and that knocked all the guards off their feet.

Thornelius was quick to act on the opportunity. He stomped the ground with his foot.

A colony of vines rose out of the floor and ensnared the guards as well before another colony of vines launched itself at the Emperor with blazing speed.

Belos simply stared at the oncoming vine with a bored look, opening his fist.

In an instant, the vines were burnt to ashes, before a very heavy Warhammer slammed itself into the ground with Kikimora standing on the pommel, arms still folded against her back.

"You made a very grave mistake, Thornelius, and Desdemona, that I will enjoy correcting..." She said threateningly as she smiled widely, hidden behind her collar of course, "Give up now and you'll only be branded as a Wild Witch…"

Thornelius' eyes widened before he stepped back. He knew the stories and he's read the history of this tiny War Criminal… Her murderous intent was so strong, that it nearly brought him to his knees. He knew better… But he also knew better than to let himself or his palisman be caught by the Emperor.

"Sorry Des…" Thornelius whispered, "But ain't no way I'm dying here, not to Kikimora… I have a brother to take care of..." He told him before lifting his staff and slamming it into the ground, being wrapped up in vines, before the vines went slack, revealing him to have teleported away.

"Coward… She's just a demon with a hammer and those are just stories…" Desdemona whispered to himself, preparing himself to fight.

Kikimora laughed as she jumped down from the pommel of her hammer, grabbing the handle on her way down and easily twirling the Warhammer before resting it on her shoulder. The face of the hammer threateningly glowed with runes of power and the coat of arms for House Bojovník glowed for a moment.

"Final warning," Kikimora said seriously, "Fortunato*(2) doesn't appreciate weak opponents…" She said, referring to her hammer, a powerful relic of her House.

Desdemona said nothing as he fired several lightning bolts at her from the end of his staff.

Kikimora huffed as she dodged each of them with ease, simply blitzing from side to side. His eyes widened at the action. It wasn't possible... She wasn't faster than lightning … Was she? *(3)

"Regretting your decisions already, I presume?" Kikimora asked as she was suddenly upon him, Warhammer raised above her head.

Desdemona's eyes widened and on instinct, he formed a force shield around him that glowed brightly. He poured his magic into the shield to protect himself but it would prove to be a futile effort.

Kikimora brought her hammer down onto the shield, the strength of the Titan would pale in comparison to her display of power. She smiled widely, her sharp teeth being on full display as she stared down at Desdemona with a crazed look in her eyes.

The shield shattered into fragments of magic, not being able to withstand the absolute force of Kikimora's hammer and the amount of strength behind the attack. He was flung back into a wall with a slam.

He groaned as he slid to the floor, holding his side in pain.

It felt as if several bones had been broken, in his back and around his body… But taking time to register the pain would mean death…

And he was right.

In an instant, Kikimora was upon him, hammer raised and coming down at a blazing speed.

He was quick to roll to the side, narrowly avoiding the hammer strike and casting a spell quickly, making the ground under Kikimora open up with a set of sharp teeth and threatening to swallow her whole.

"Seen it before, not impressed." Kikimora said in a bored tone.

The small demoness suddenly jumped into the air and quickly turned to point a glowing claw at the mouth in the ground and fired a powerful ball of energy from the tip of her finger. The mouth snapped closed, snapping her fingers, and the mouth glowed before it exploded with a loud boom. She turned her attention back to Desdemona and gave him a bored look.

"You're more trouble than you're worth." She said before the runes on her hammer glowed and turned into a set of five knives that she threw at the stunned Desdemona.

Desdemona used his staff to block two of the knives but the last three found their mark in his left leg, bringing him to his knees. He gritted his teeth, using his staff to hold himself up.

"How… Am I losing…?" He whispered, "I- I'm supposed to be one of the strongest… On the Isles…" He said, panting as he saw the blood in his leg beginning to pool.

Kikimora held up her hand and made the knives forcibly pull themselves out of his leg, earning a shout of pain from Desdemona, before all the knives collected themselves and reformed into Fortunato, Kikimora's Warhammer.

"You are nothing compared to me or the Emperor…" She said, calmly walking up to him, resting the hammer upon her shoulder once more. She looked back to Belos, her eyes silently asking for his instruction.

Belos looked at her and nodded, and without a word, Kikimora had heard his instruction.

"Werath Desdemona," She began, taking his staff out of his hands and throwing it into the hands of the nearby blue-haired captain, "For Treason against the Emperor, corruption of his Coven, attempting a coup, associating with the Blair-Circe family and attacking the Emperor, you have been deemed a Wild Witch and as such, will be immediately executed…" She said, a crazed smile about her as she lifted her hammer, aiming it carefully. She wanted to get the whole of his head in one swing.

The ex-coven head looked at the face of Fortunato, Kikimora's hammer; it glowed with the coat of arms of her clan. A side-facing horned demon, wielding a hammer. It promised that his death would be instant and he wouldn't even be able to process it either…

Then again, he did remember the stories of Kikimora and her hammer… How Fortunato supposedly cursed its victim's souls to relive their death in excruciating detail over and over, until their souls burned away to nothing…

Those must've been stories though…

He wanted to believe them to just be stories but the way the hammer's coat of arms was glowing and pulsing with power… It formed a fear in his heart that he never felt before…

Fear for his very soul…

In a single instant, he felt a very deep sense of regret coursing through his body... Not for his actions, but rather for letting himself be caught in a fight with the terrifying demoness, Kikimora Bojovník, Right Hand of the Emperor…

He should've run like Thornelius…

He looked up at Kikimora, a look of fear strewn upon his face.

"Y- You can't do this! I- I deserve a trial, a chance, I don't deserve this! I-" He tried to defend himself, delaying the inevitable.

"You deserve nothing but an endless death, given to you by Fortunato…" Kikimora said coldly, twirling the hammer before swiftly bringing it down without a shred of hesitance.

SPLAT

Belos formed a red shield in front of himself and Camila, the blood and what appeared to be parts of the brain as well as an eye splattering over the surface of the barrier.

Camila's eyes widened in shock and she stepped back, she put a hand to her mouth.

"O- Oh Dios Mío…" She whispered before turning and suddenly throwing up behind the Emperor, "Oh lord why did she have to do that…" She whispered with a pant.

Belos turned back to Camila before looking back at the bloody scene.

Having been through a bloody rebellion of his own, he had become desensitized to blood and gore, as he was exposed to it in amble portion, time and time again, and so were those around him to some extent, so when Camila expelled the contents of her stomach, he was confused as to why for a few moments before realizing what was wrong.

He went to her side and crouched next to her.

"Forgive me, Camila, I forget you're not used to all this…"

"I- I would say I'm fine but… Clearly… I'm not…" She joked with a slight laugh before once again rising to her feet and looking at the currently twitching corpse.

Suddenly, a purple fire spread across the body and began to burn it to ashes.

Kikimora lifted her Warhammer out of the corpse, her hammer lit up in the purple flames.

"Hm, not even a challenge." She commented, before turning her attention to Aevon… Or rather, the lack thereof of said Ex-Coven Head, "Where… Is Aevon…?" She turned to the blue-haired captain

"You, what's your name?" Kikimora asked, bringing the captain out of her daze.

The captain turned their attention to Kikimora and saluted.

"L- Lilith Clawthorne, Ma'am." She said quickly.

"Where did the other Coven Head run off to? Why weren't you watching him?" She asked, an edge about her voice.

"I- I'm sorry! You splattered someone's head against the Coven meeting hall! It's distracting! Aevon went through those doors!" Lilith said quickly, pointing at the doors that Kikimora, Belos, and Camila had walked in through.

"But…" Camila cleared her throat, "The only thing back there is-"

The group paused as the sound of a child crying could be heard.

"Hunter…" Camila and Belos said in unison.

In an instant, Belos and Kikimora ran past everyone, Belos himself dropping his staff on his way out, his feet pounding against the stone floor as he moved with a vigor he hadn't felt in quite some time.

A million thoughts ran through his head as he made his way towards the two-year-old Hunter's room.

Would he be too late to save Hunter? Would all his work be for nothing? Would he lose another family member due to his carelessness? Would… Will he be without family once again?

He wasn't even supposed to get close to Hunter in the first place, Belos could've just started over again if something happened to him… But… Camila… That human woman… She's changed everything and he… He couldn't… He had gotten attached to his nephew…

"I can't let anything happen to him…" He whispered to himself before he burst into the room, slamming the door open and practically taking it off its hinges with the force alone with Kikimora directly behind him.

There they saw Aevon, holding a dagger to Hunter's throat. Hunter himself was in a state of tears and disarray. Glancing around the room and spotting the broken toys, it seemed to imply that Hunter was in the middle of playing with his toys when Aevon ran in to hold him hostage.

"Aevon… You being the grandson of Hele meant you would only be stripped of your position and title… Nothing more… But now, you've taken my only heir hostage…" He whispered, carefully stepping into the room as Kikimora stayed back.

"Do you understand what you're doing…? You're signing away your life…" He tried to talk Aevon down from what was obviously a mental breakdown.

Aevon pressed the knife closer to Hunter's throat, a look of fear easily prevalent on the boy's face, it made Belos' heart twinge in equal amounts of fear.

"D- DON'T! Hurt him…" Belos said, holding out his arm towards the two, somewhat surprising Kiki, as she had never heard him sound so desperate before, not even during the rebellion; in a hopeless battle, he always kept his cool… He must've really cared for Hunter.

"Sir…?" She asked silently but Belos didn't answer, too focused on the hostage situation.

Aevon began to step back, towards the window of Hunter's bedroom, making sure the knife was firmly pressed against the young child's neck, as it was his only bargaining chip and probably the only reason his head was still on his shoulders.

"T- Then don't step any closer, Belos… I- I just watched one of my friends get his head SMASHED like a grape by her!" He pointed at Kikimora, "I- I'm getting out of here, and I'm taking your little science experiment with me as leverage to make sure…"

Belos gritted his teeth and Kikimora's eyes widened.

"Don't call him that…" He said angrily.

Aevon laughed crazily.

"What? It is now that you have gained a conscience?" He asked, "Not after you had half of the Coven Heads break the laws of nature and the laws of the Spirit King himself? No, it is only after the creation of this-" He pointed at Hunter "-That you decide that you are better than all of us and suddenly that we all need to go? Nono… I know the truth… You're trying to bury the hatchet and us with it… You don't want anyone to know what you've done here… What "he" is…"

Hunter looked towards Belos, their eyes meeting. Dark magenta meeting with Cornflower-blue.

"U- Uncle?" Hunter whispered, "I- I'm scared…"

"I... I know, Hunter… Your uncle will protect you, I promise…"

Aevon stepped closer to the window.

"Shut up! Shut up!" Aevon shouted, removing his headpiece and throwing it aside, his disheveled hair and crazed eyes showing clear signs of stress the situation and his life being on the line was getting to him, "I AM NOT DYING BECAUSE YOU WANTED A BACK-UP PLAN!"

Belos fell silent, his heart thumping in his chest like a drum.

If he cast a spell, Aevon would surely cut Hunter's throat before he would be struck down by the spell… His teleportation spell wasn't an option either, as it was too slow and Aevon would certainly kill Hunter before the spell even finished. Kikimora couldn't do anything either, she was fast but not fast enough to save Hunter.

"Tell me, Aevon… You kill Hunter… You undo all the progress we've made in the first place, what makes you think that your immediate punishment wouldn't be worse than what Desdemona is suffering right now…?" He asked the frantic healer.

Aevon looked at Belos with a confused look.

"W- What do you mean, "right now"?" He asked, "Des is DEAD! Your pet demon made that clear!" He shouted, pointing at Kikimora.

Belos scoffed, feeling sweat dripping down the back of his neck as he took a step forward.

"Please, you know the stories, anyone with half-a-brain knows of Kikimora and her weapons, all with the ability to burn away one's very soul…?" He whispered, shaking his head. "Not even I would dare to fight Kiki, the risk would be too high… Poor Desdemona… How many times do you think he's died by now? TIme in the Spirit Realm works differently for souls, you know… I'd say that Desdemona has died… At least a thousand times by now…"

Aevon gritted his teeth, tears beginning to leak from his eyes.

"S- shut up…" He whispered now, "T- Those are just myths…"

"Just Myth? How can you be sure anything in the Demon Realm is just a myth? You know as well as I do that Desdemona is suffering… For all eternity… A worthy punishment for a trader such as himself..."

Aevon suddenly lifted the dagger away from Hunter's neck and using the same hand, he pointed a finger at Belos.

"SHUT UP!" He screamed, beginning to draw a spell circle.

In an instant, Belos threw his left Gauntlet, hitting Aevon's hand and redirecting what was a beam of magic, the stray blast safely hitting the ceiling and doing nothing.

Belos then dashed forward and grabbed the hand that was wielding the dagger and jerked it away from him, taking it away from him but Hunter still wasn't safe.

At the same time, Lilith crashed through the window that Aevon was inching towards earlier and swept the legs of Aevon quickly, knocking him off his feet before she sent a magically enhanced elbow into his chest on the way down, certainly breaking a few of his ribs, before she quickly grabbed Hunter and ran to the other side of the room to safety.

Aevon gritted his teeth, pain searing through him. From the floor, he aimed a finger at Lilith, aiming to take her head off with a spell before, out of nowhere, the dagger stabbed his hand, pinning it to the floor.

He screamed in intense pain and shock, looking, he saw that it was Belos wielding the blade.

His face showed nothing but pure anger, eyes glowing a blue brighter than any human sky or ocean could match.

"You're dead…" Belos said clearly, lifting his right hand, it glowed a sinister red. He slowly reached out to grab his face.

Aevon's eyes widened as he attempted to get away from Belos, but his hand was firmly stabbed into the ground. Nothing was going to save him from his fate at the hands of the Emperor…

Lilith held the tearful Hunter as she watched on with wide eyes, she held him closer and away from the scene, not wishing for a child to see an execution happen in real-time.

"It's OK, little one…" She whispered to him as he drove his face into her chest for comfort, "It'll all be over soon…"

Belos' hand was inches away from Aevon's face when a voice cut through the murderous intent of the Emperor and alerted him of the one person he's forgotten about.

"U- Uh… A bit of help?" They squeaked.

Belos paused, confused, and looked around the room.

"Camila?" He asked, looking towards the window and spotting the Human, flying on what appeared to be the previous Coven Heads staff.

"Y- Yes, hi Alexander, help me off this thing, I don't know how to use it." Camila said quickly, nearly sliding off the staff, "En serio, ¿cómo vuelan estas brujas sobre estas cosas?" She asked herself.

Belos looked towards Lilith but she was currently comforting the still scared Hunter, he looked back towards Aevon and pointed a finger at him.

"Move and lose your hands..." He threatened, Kikimora stepping over. Her hammer turned into a sword that she pointed at his chest.

"You heard the Emperor…" She said silently. Aevon grumbled and nodded a defiant yes.

Belos stood up and walked over to the window and took hold of the staff, and Camila's hand, and carefully pulled her into the room.

"Are you alright?" He asked once she was properly situated on her feet, "What on Titan's name were you doing flying that staff? How do you know how to fly the staff?"

"I told Lilith to fly me over with her and when she jumped into the room to apprehend Aevon, I took the reins for a bit… And I've been practicing with Lilith, I did a pretty decent job at it, I think." She said with a laugh.

Belos chuckled and held her hand a bit tighter.

"Yes, my nurse, you flew amazingly…" He complimented, before releasing her hand and turning to Lilith, who was now distracting Hunter with a pair of toys.

He smiled at the sight and looked down at the white raven staff in his hand.

Then, a thought came to mind…

He was originally planning on making Kikimora Desdemona's replacement but she would've most likely denied such a promotion, believing that working at his right hand was the best job on the Isles… But Lilith just risked her head to save Hunter and to stop Aevon… And she was a loyal subject that properly feared his authority and power, as well as a ruthless soul that cursed her sister to join his Coven… And while that fact didn't sit too well with him, it did prove to him that she could be trusted to do what was necessary when asked...

"Lilith, step forth…" He said.

Lilith stopped and looked down at Hunter.

"Lily will be back…" She whispered trying to step away from him but he followed, "I need to talk to your uncle, Hunter." She said softly as she placed the young Hunter a bit ways away from her, and walked towards Belos, but Hunter was quick to follow once again and hold onto her dress, staying close.

Lilith chuckled and shook her head, there was no stopping him, she instead saluted Belos.

"Yes, sir?" She asked in slight anticipation and fear, "Forgive me for using the traitor's staff, I know it's the procedure to destroy the palisman and staves of traitors, but I saw an emergency use in the current situation." She explained, holding the salute.

"At ease," He said, allowing Lilith to drop her salute, "What you did today is exceptional. Not only did you lead a successful raid on the Blair-Circe family and capture all their leaders in one fell swoop, but you also rushed in at a moment's notice and brought my nephew to safety and at the same time, dispatched Aevon quickly. Lest we forget your extensive track record of successful missions… Kiki, what is the success rate of Lilith Clawthorne?"

Kikimora then summoned a compact mirror and looked it over, casting a spell on it.

"Hm, it says that she has an 89.91% success rate, the remaining 10.09% being those impossible beginner missions we send all the recruits on…" She said, lightly chuckling at the thought of those missions.

One of the few things that brought her joy, sending over confident recruits on attitude adjustment missions. Like feeding a Flerken without making a mess, or cleaning Ebberwolf's Beast's...

Belos nodded at Kikimora's words and turned back to Lilith.

"Then it is without a doubt in my mind that I bestow upon you three things…" He said before snapping his fingers, making the Emperor Coven emblem appear in his hand and carefully bringing it forth for Lilith.

"Lilith Clawthorne, I hereby name you the new Emperor Coven Head, in my stead; you will command platoons of soldiers and defend the Isles from the corruption that plagues them, while also protecting the structure of my government."

Lilith's eyes widened as she carefully took the Emblem and held it close to her, staring at the emblem with an utterly shocked face.

While yes, she wanted to someday aspire to the seat of Coven Head, she didn't think it would be when she was only the age of 28…*(4) This brought a wide smile to her face and she saluted once again.

"Thank you, Emperor Belos sir! I'll be sure to make you proud!" She said, beaming with pride.

"I know you will…" He said with a hum before presenting her with the white raven staff, "And this staff never did belong to the traitor, it's a relic from the savage ages, belonging to many of my old commanders… Well, except for Kiki, she never quite liked staves as much as she loved that hammer of hers."

Kikimora gave a loud "Mhm" in agreement with the statement.

Belos chuckled at that.

"But yes, It belongs to you now, and I can not see a better owner of Archimedes." As the Emperor said this, the white raven came to life and flew over to Lilith and perched itself on her shoulder, beginning to nuzzle Lilith.

Lilith smiled at the bird, petting it softly.

"Of course, it's a bird… Mom's right as always…" She whispered, "Clawthornes get birds just how the Blight's get Cats and Havenstars get sea creatures…"

"And finally…" Belos caught her attention once again, "A very important assignment." He told her, "Your first mission, I guess you could say. But be warned, it will be a long one."

Lilith nodded before saluting.

"That will be no problem, sir, your will is my command. What would you have me do?" She asked, excitement slightly leeching onto her words, making it hard to hide her hidden excitement.

Belos reached over and pointed downwards, following his finger, she saw that he was pointing at Hunter.

"You are… To train Hunter and take care of him." He said, shocking her, "I can't take care of him half of the time and Titan knows I don't wish him to be alone any time soon after this situation…"

Lilith looked between the silent Hunter and Belos, eyes wide.

"B- But sir! There have to be other caretakers on the Boiling Isles more qualified than I to take care of your heir!"

Belos shook his head.

"There is, surely, there is, but none are worthy of my trust to keep Hunter's blood relation to me a proper secret." He said, "You already know of his existence from his wandering around the castle these last few weeks, because of my careless inattentive nature as of late. Besides… Ever since your first meeting, he's been asking to see you more frequently, he's practically attached to your side. Even now, he holds onto you."

Looking, Lilith saw that Hunter was still indeed clutching onto her dress while he looked up at her expectantly and with a small smile, hoping that she would say yes to being, essentially, his caretaker.

Lilith sighed, placing a hand on the back of his head, smiling at him.

"Alright, Belos, I'll do it if it's your will and-"

ZAP

A stray blast of magic was suddenly fired, catching everyone in the room off guard and just as suddenly, Hunter screamed in pain and fell at Lilith's side, shocking her greatly. She quickly crouched at the child's side and inspected him.

He was alive, as evident by his quickly forming tears and his crying.

Looking at his face, she saw that there was now a gash on the right side of his cheek and it was bleeding now, although the blood looked more akin to a shiny blue liquid rather than a normal ruby red, she could care less about the color of his blood, all she could think about was one thing…

They all turned to the source of the blast and saw that it was Aevon, still trying to put an end to Hunter.

"I- I missed…" He said in disbelief, but he didn't have time to ponder his mistakes as a blade was heard cutting through the air and suddenly, his hands were separated from his arms. His eyes widened and he screamed in pain as the blood gushed and Camila averted her eyes from the sickening sight.

Kikimora swung her blade and used the inner elbow of her sleeve to wipe away the blood.

"What are your orders, Emperor?" Kikimora asked, clearly not phased by the screaming.

Belos felt his eyes shift a deep blue as he stepped forward, hand glowing red once more, but a blue flash of flames cut him off and landed in front of Aevon, suddenly stomping his chest with their boot.

Belos and Kikimora watched in shock as the flames revealed themselves to be a rather angry Lilith. She dug her heel into his chest without remorse, bones audibly cracking under her foot.

She narrowed her eyes, lifting her new staff high, it became caught in her blue flaming magic and formed a pointed spear that she brought down, aiming to execute him in an instant until-

"Stop."

Lilith paused her flaming spear, inches away from piercing Aevon's throat. Although, it wasn't voluntary, as she was now glowing with Belos' red magic. His magic dissipated slowly as Lilith dispelled her flaming spear and stood straight once more.

"It is not your place to sentence traitors to death, Lilith… Let this be your first lesson." Belos said.

Lilith nodded, understanding, looking back down at Aevon.

"Emperor… May I suggest a punishment worthy of a traitor such as him…?" She asked, looking down at Aevon with disgust filling his eyes.

Belos raised an eyebrow in curiosity, but nodded, wanting to hear this.

"What is the punishment…?"

"I say we wipe his memory and release him… He is a witch without his hands… What good is he to anyone if he can't even perform magic or remember who he once was?" She asked coldly before stepping off him, "Let the worm suffer for the rest of his days…" She whispered, turning and going back to the crying Hunter and picking him up once more, "Or kill him, do as you wish… I'm going to take Hunter away from this mess…" She said quickly and left.

Camila cleared her throat and stepped over to Lilith, following her.

"I- I'll patch him up! I can not be in here with severed hands right now…" She said, exiting the room with her, both heading to the healing center.

After they left, both Belos and Kikimora stared down at Aevon.

"That would be a great idea…" He said, enjoying the fearful look upon Aevon's face, "But that would be too good for you… No no, I have a much better plan for you… Kiki?" He asked.

"Yes, Belos?" She asked, expecting that he was going to have her execute him.

"Have him healed quickly, so he doesn't bleed out."

Kikimora and Aevon looked at him incredulously.

"Sir?" She asked, confused.

"Yes, I am aware of what I said. Go, heal him… And have him relocated to the Conformatorium, with the Basilisk project… I'm sure Warden Wrath would just adore another test subject to prod and test…"

Aevon's eyes widened.

"E- Emperor, please! Don't do this! I- I can't bear the thought! Don't! Please!" He shouted, getting on his knees as if to beg for his life but this simply made Belos cringe in disgust at the groveling.

"Pathetic… Take him away, Kikimora." He said, waving his hand.

Kikimora nodded, grabbing Aevon's shoulder.

"At your wish, my liege…" She said, smiling widely under her collar before they were both covered in a bright purple fire.*(5) An echoing laugh and a scream could be heard as she teleported away as if it was a devil dragging a soul down to the furthest reaches of the Abyss.

Belos sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and finally taking a deep breath.

"I can not believe that being an Emperor again would be this tiring…" He said before looking around the room. Hunter's room... He walked over to the wall, pulling an old picture off it and staring at the man in the image.

The man in the picture had the same ash-blonde hair as he and Hunter did, although was much shorter and resembled the same way Hunter's was currently styled. He wore a set of leather armor, holding a golden compass. An explorer of the unknown and a curious soul.

Belos sighed and placed the photo back on the wall.

"Don't worry, brother… Nothing will happen to him… Not this time…" He said before turning and leaving the room to check up on Hunter.


-Present-


Belos looked to his left, at Lilith. She was still discussing the progress of the Emperor's Coven as of late, talking of the pleasing numbers of Wild Witches she's apprehended as of late as well as their joining of many Covens on their capture… At the threat of being thrown into the Confirmatorium, of course.

But Wild Witches and their capture, while it did please him, he wasn't thinking about that right now.

Rather, his thoughts were on Hunter once again. More specifically, his intimate relationship with Lilith.

Lilith had practically raised the boy in her entire time as Coven Head. It was sad to see that he couldn't cast magic but it was expected, considering what he was… But no matter, despite the setback, Lilith hadn't given up on him.

Instead, Belos provided him with an artificial magic staff at the age of three, and from then on, he was trained to be strong and resilient. He was taught many strategic formations, and every possible way to fight and kill a man, but of course, he was always told to be non-lethal at all costs, unless necessary.

He was taught that with his new artificial magic, he wouldn't be able to cast normal spells, but rather, be able to manipulate every aspect of the Titan's body, the very home that the artificial magic was brought from.

The roots, the boiling water around the Isles, the trees, and everything in between would be his to control with his staff. Of course, Hunter being the teenage prodigy that he was, was able to develop some spells of his own.

Finding inspiration from Lilith's flash step spell, the one where she would be enveloped in those blue flames of hers and teleport a few feet in that direction, was able to mimic the spell with his staff.

To say that Lilith was overjoyed at this development would be an understatement. She was thrilled and overjoyed.

He remembered her saying something along the lines of, "We'll make you a worthy heir, yet, Hunter…"

Remembering that brought a twinge of fear up in Belos' heart, one he hadn't thought of in the short month that Luz has been in his life...

How… would Hunter react to the existence of his Cousin?

Would he accept that all his training would be for nothing? That he no longer has a purpose… Just because this human girl was lucky to be born and conveniently arrived to ruin his life…

The thought made him scared of their initial, eventual meeting…

Only time could tell the Titan's plan for his family...

"Sir?"

Belos jolted, suddenly being brought out of his thinking.

Looking, he saw that it was Lilith who had alerted him. He cleared his throat and nodded at her.

"I'm sorry, you were saying?"

"Just asking how you'd like to proceed." She said simply.

He nodded, thanking the Titan that Camila was writing all of this down because he certainly hadn't been paying attention to the last thirty minutes…

He stood up from his throne, which was now properly situated with the rest of his Coven Heads at the discussion table. A part of the discussion, as any good ruler should be.

"I believe that we've heard enough from my Coven, Lilith, no doubt that you're performing past expectations, as always."

Lilith smiled at the praise and nodded.

"Thank you, sir… I appreciate the kind words…" She said before carefully taking her seat once again.

Belos then turned to all the Coven Heads in attendance.

"I feel like we can close our meeting with final statements from you all. Lilith, you may go. I believe you have a commitment with your apprentice right now."

Lilith bowed respectfully.

"Thank you, sir, summon me if anything happens." She said before she summoned her white raven staff, tapping it on the ground, she was surrounded by her familiar cool blue flames, before disappearing entirely.

Belos looked back to his Coven heads, more specifically, to the one to his left.

"Lady Hieronymus." He said, causing the Coven Head to jolt in slight surprise at the mention of her name, as she wasn't paying attention for a moment.

The hibiscus-haired witch quickly stood up from her chair, she was the current head of the Potions Coven but more known as Boscha's Mother and current acting CEO of Havenstar Incorporated after the passing of her husband in a tragic accident.

She nodded and looked towards Belos.

"Sir, the Potion's Coven has greatly improved its curricular subjects these last few months. Vastly improving the understanding of the magic for the younger, less experienced, and possible future applicants, thus hopefully eliminating the possibility of them abandoning the Track further down the line," She cleared her throat, "In layman's terms, we've made it easy to get into, learn, and stay into. This has led to many more promising young Witches joining our Coven each semester!" She said with pride.

"Which also in turn has introduced the possibility of hopefully finally being able to teach Witchlings of Potion making in Dítěgarten*(6) like the other tracks. I've left the full report with the Empress, for your hopeful approval."

Belos looked to his right, seeing the yellow folder labeled, "Introduction of Potions in Dítěgarten".

"I see, I will read it over with my wife and return to you with my decision to include the track to the Dítě." He said before turning to Lady Hele of the Healing Coven. He always seemed to forget that she was one of his oldest friends and allies.

Ever since she joined his side in his rebellion, she's practically been keeping him alive for half of his life. He was sure that he surely would've perished several times had it not been for her. He trusted her with his life.

What impressed him, perhaps, was the fact that in her high level of expertise in Healing Magic, she's discovered the key to living a really really long life… Of course, she kept this bit of knowledge to herself.

Even so, it's not like Witches haven't discovered ways to achieve some form of immortality. If he remembered correctly, trading your soul to a powerful demon was the way to go, but only fools would deal with their immortal soul in such a manner.

"Hele?" He asked simply.

Lady Hele stood up from her chair, her white robes flapping slightly as she carefully placed her white witches hat on the table in front of her.

She looked back up at Belos.

"We've recently opened several more Healing Centers throughout various parts of the Titan. We are also developing a brand new type of Healing Center based on the Empress' experience in the Human Realm. Hospitals are what I believe they were called. If this project deems itself to be a useful venture, we may be able to revolutionize the way we make our Healing Centers. We also began to distribute that new medication the Empress helped develop."

Camila smiled at that.

When the Empress was overlooking medical reports in her free time, she discovered Hele's "List". A list she made of the things she wanted to take care of before she died one of these days. One of these items on her List caught Camila's eye, as it reminded her of something she studied in Med School.

One of these things was a disease called "Prilis", named after the Healer who discovered it after he came down with it himself.

It was a deadly disease that Boiling Isle's Healers couldn't fix.

Once the symptoms started and were diagnosed, it was usually already too late to treat and the afflicted person usually had a few months to a year to live.

Even if they discovered it before it became a serious problem, there simply was no spell or cure that could be used to effectively heal them of the disease anyway, as it appeared to be a genetic disease and not a physical problem that a healing spell could permanently fix. It was also discovered that casting healing spells on this disease worsened its effects.

So more often than not, discovering that you had Prilis was effectively a death sentence. The afflicted usually die within a year or two if they are lucky, but slowly lose the ability to cast magic and become very very weak as well.

The most they could do was help the afflicted Witch feel comfortable in their last few months or years and keep them around their family for when they finally passed on to the Spirit Realm.

In come Camila Noceda, Veterinarian turned Nurse and previously studying to become a Doctor (before becoming Empress). She noticed a link to a very common human realm disease that shared many similarities and symptoms to IDDM.

More commonly known as diabetes.

Camila was quick to present the solution to this crisis to Hele last month, a medicine called Insulin, that could be made from a very specific and simple process.

Very complicated story short, Camila had reinvented insulin on the Boiling Isles and saved quite a few lives. This prompted a friendship to arise between Hele and Camila, in which they would share medical knowledge of each other's worlds and see what they could improve upon for the Isles.

A very symbiotic relationship it was, and it pleased Belos that Camila was making friends, he knew that being cooped up in the castle with no interaction with anyone other than himself must've been tortuously boring.

"That's perfect. Take as many means of transport and vessels that you may need to transport the medicine across the Isles," Belos said to Hele, waving his hand, "Leave no corner unturned, I want no more Witches dying of Prilis while I still rule."

Hele bowed.

"It will be done, Commander." She said, giving him a smirk.

"I thought I told you not to call me that anymore? The war is over, Hele." Belos said with a hum, smiling underneath his mask. He hadn't been referred to as Commander in years…

"Sorry, a force of habit, Emperor…" She said as she took her seat once again.

Belos then turned his attention to… He sighed.

"Lovelace," He said, referring to the youngest among them, Head of the Illusion Coven, inspired by the human items he's collected over the years as well as by Edalyn Clawthorn. His father before him held the seat for a while before retiring. The seat was up in the open for a while, but Lovelace Sr. decided that his son, Aaron Lovelace, was best for the seat.

The teenager was put through many a test, to determine if his father wasn't just choosing him because he was his son. Nepotism wouldn't be allowed to fly around here.

He had more than proven his capability to lead the Illusion Coven, his illusions being more than strong enough to fool any who came across them. He also showed an amazing proficiency in leading and the many new ideas that he presented to the Emperor convinced Belos that he was right for the job.

The only thing that he seemed to regret was that Lovelace was a rather… Eccentric and hyperactive character to say the least, which got on Belos' nerves half of the time… Other than that, he truly was a teen genius, he and Hunter even got along well.

But there was just something about him that he couldn't shake; however, he didn't know what that was or if it was even bad, so he bit the sword and endured.

Lovelace stood from his chair, clearing his throat to speak.

"I'll gladly showcase to you the progress we've made."

With a sudden snap of his fingers, Lovelace poofed into existence many many boards with graphs, charts, and something that said "Globasaor Production" and how it was at an all-time high.

He was now dressed in a white lab coat and black rubber gloves, now sporting a black curly mustache as well as a black beard.

Before he began his long-winded spiel, Belos cleared his throat.

"Without keeping us for a thousand years, please. Not all of us will live that long..."

Lovelace pouted and sighed, snapping away the boards and his form turned back to normal.

"Oh fine, you guys are no fun," He said with a laugh, "The Illusion Coven is now performing at an even better rate than what my father left me when he retired a few short months ago. We've also introduced a new system of learning as well. It should help quell the stigmatism that illusions are useless magic. I've also begun to develop a new branch of illusion magic, something that you might find interesting, Emperor. Useful as well."

Belos gave him a look that was felt through his mask.

"It's not another one of your prank spells, is it?" He asked, "The one you made was used by my daughter's mentor to plant a hidden stink bomb on one of the guards… Now let's not forget about the consequences of your actions..." He said.

Lovelace shook his head.

"No! No! Of course not, Lord Emperor Belos Supreme, man!" He said, waving his hands in a disarming manner, "I don't want to say much on the project, it's something I've been developing in my spare time this last year!"

Belos shook his head.

"Just make sure it's useful and doesn't cause a mess like your ideas usually do… And don't refer to me like that," He said, "Understand?"

Lovelace nodded.

"Of course, Emperor Belos," He said, suddenly being dressed as an overly decorated human general, "On my word, the motherland won't be disappointed!" He said in what would be compared to a human realm Russian accent.

Belos sighed, shaking his head.

"Alright, be seated." He said, finally deciding he had enough of Lovelace, "Send me a report on what you're working on so that I may review it at a later time."

Lovelace nodded and took his seat, and once again his clothes were back to normal.

Belos then turned to the Oracle of the table, Lord Praescitum, the same species as Kikimora he believed. His eyes were darkened from his constant gazing into the future, rendering him permanently blind as a result.

To fix this problem, Lord Praescitum constantly gazed into the future at all times, allowing him to see the world perfectly as if he were never blind. At the cost, yet again, he now knew everything that would happen in the future.

'How cliche,' Belos thought, 'A blind fortune teller…' He often thought with an inward chuckle.

Belos often asked Praescitum what was the right choice on matters he sometimes had trouble deciding on, but Praescitum was a man who was as wise as he was alive. So very very wise.

"I can not simply tell you what to do, Lord Belos," He often said, "There is never an obvious right or wrong answer I can give you when I know the future, because if I tell you to choose A to get to C, B will make itself known and the path you took will destroy A, C, B and then an unknown D through Z. So, no, I will only give you my honest advice and maybe a few hints."

Truly, a man that was wiser than Belos in that regard.

In many ways, Belos was glad he didn't practice Oracle Magic as much as Praescitum has. Knowing what's going to happen at all times and not being able to interfere with any of it was probably an immense responsibility that he didn't think he could handle.

"Praescitum," Belos stated, "Anything to say?"

Praescitum thought for a moment, eyes closed as he hummed in thought, he then stood up.

"Nothing that wasn't already discussed in the meeting earlier, sir… The Oracle Coven is performing exceptionally and no new developments are being made, as the right person hasn't discovered them yet… But they should soon…" He chuckled a bit.

"All is as it should be… Although…" He looked to his right, glancing at the Abomination Coven Head, "I'd recommend getting more reliable support for your Coven Heads…" He said, confusing Belos for a moment.

Suddenly, the Abomination Coven Head's seat creaked under its owner's weight and suddenly broke under him.

"Blasted chair!" He shouted, standing up and dusting himself off, "I swear on the Titan's name, I will DESTROY the idiotic craftsman who made this faulty chair!" He yelled.

Belos gave a huff.

"Calm yourself, Valgur," He then pointed and the chair glowed a familiar red hue, before it repaired itself back to normal, "I will have a word with them, these chairs are meant to outlast an explosion, I have no clue what could've caused that. While you are standing, do you have anything important to add?"

Lord Valgur huffed, turning back to face the Emperor.

His eyes glanced over to Camila and he couldn't help but feel a sense of disgust form in him.

'Ugh… The human…' He thought to himself, 'Her and their half-breed daughter… What a disgrace to the Isles and what it could be… Simply disgusting…'

Now many will ask, "Who's this cunt, talking bad about OUR Luz, anyway?"

Let me explain, not everyone would be acceptable to have a magicless human as an Empress and a half-human daughter as the Princess, but no one would dare share such an opinion in the presence of Belos, or even around those he held close to.

So Valgur kept his opinions to himself, knowing better than to sign his death warrant with the powerful Emperor. He was only a Noble, after all.

Valgur was lucky enough to have been a Lord before being approached by Belos to become a Coven Head.

Yes, that's right, the Lords and Lady's at the Coven Head table were all considered to be Nobles of the Boiling Isles, from the minute you took the position until the day you died.

As such, people were normally required to treat them in a certain way. A perk that Valgur enjoyed rather greatly and normally took advantage of, for his enjoyment.

He was a rather smart man, however, a genius with abominations able to make even larger and grander constructs than simple golems. Dragons, spiders, and an even wilder assortment of beasts and creatures, his talent with Abominations is what caught Belos' eye in the first place.

When the Emperor approached Valgur in Right Hand, he was actually in the middle of training one Alador Blight, a favor to Alador's late parents, he of course accepted the position, after finishing his training with Alador, of course.

Valgur cleared his throat to speak, turning to face the Emperor.

"Yes… My Coven is performing ahead of schedule as it always does since I took the seat 14 years ago." He said smugly, "My Coven, being one of the more popular ones in recent years, has gained a rather substantial boom in members. As such, I will be expanding our training houses once more. If that's alright."

Belos discreetly rolled his eyes, surely not missing the subtle bragging of Valgur and the size of his Coven, but he nodded at the Noble.

"Yes, do what you must but remember," Belos began, "Your obsession with expanding the Abominations Coven will either be the undoing of you or be the reason the Abomination Coven has no funding." He warned, "You should focus more on the development of your Members and less on the size.." Belos advised.

Valgur held back the urge to visibly seethe at the words of the Emperor. After all, what did the Emperor of the Isles, vanquisher of the King of Demons, overthrower of the old Emperor Crisis know about running a Coven?

Valgur nodded as he took his seat once again.

"You must forgive me, Emperor, but I simply have no choice with the number of Witches that join my Coven, it's practically droves of them at this point. I must accommodate them with a proper and safe place to train their constructs." Valgur said.

Belos gave a slight huff.

"I only hope that those numbers are not inflated, Valgur…" He said before turning to the current head of the Bard Coven.

Lord Cruz.

He was a well-practiced witch who learned how to play a wide variety of instruments, but mostly used his voice to perform magic, his songbird palisman doubling as a microphone for him.

Using one's voice to exude their will over the world with their magic was practically unheard of, for Bard Magic anyways, an instrument was always required for it. So you understand why Belos was mighty impressed with the already well-accomplished rockstar witch.

Talking to Lord Cruz was Lady Cruz, of the Plant's Coven.

They were unique in the sense that they were set to be married when Belos approached them for their respective seats in the Plant and Bard Coven. Usually, members of the Coven Table weren't allowed to become romantically involved with each other, as it usually led to a flurry of distractions and conflicts of interest.

But the Cruz's wouldn't budge on their position of "Either you both of us, or neither of us" and at the time, no one else qualified for either of their positions, so he had to fold and bend the law to let them marry and join the Coven Head table.

It did lead to many distractions, however, as would any loving husband and wife duo working together as Coven Heads.

Such as now, with Lady Cruz distracting her husband with growing flowers for him, or how Lord Cruz's songbird was tweeting little love songs for his master's wife.

"Ah love, doesn't it make you feel all warm inside?" Lord Lovelace said, little hearts floating around him as he played a human realm violin, playing a love song.

Belos couldn't help but briefly smile from beneath his mask, before loudly clearing his throat to get their attention.

"Lord and Lady Cruz," He said, "What have I said about distracting each other during our meetings?" He asked.

Lord Cruz hummed, which caused several papers around him to begin floating around him with his red Bard Magic.

"You must forgive me, Emperor Belos, but I simply can't resist it when my wife is at my side," He said, leaning against his wife, "You must surely understand, no?" He asked, looking towards Camila.

Belos briefly looked toward Camila, before turning to face Lord Cruz.

"Yes, I understand clearly, but there are still rules in place and you know this. Now give your closing summary before I lose my patience." The Emperor said.

Lord Cruz nodded.

"Yes, Emperor," He said, clearing his throat, "The Bard Coven has adapted more and more instruments into its folds, as such, the new instruments are helping develop new spells and classes in our ranks. It's a very exciting time if I do say so myself. We are also working on a new curricular course that would teach a variety of Demon Land instruments… Some require multiple hands to master, while others are as simple as-" He summoned a bone-white guitar. "-a Guitar." He then began to tune the guitar.

"A Demon Land guitar is such a unique instrument… Made of bone, it produces such unique and amazing sounds, the magic this instrument helps produce is also quite spectacular."

Lord Cruz, unprompted, strummed the bone guitar. A pulse of dark red magic exuded from the strings and a large spike ring suddenly grew outwards around him, threatening to impale those around him.

"Interesting…" Belos commented, "Before you teach young witches of such a thing, I highly implore you to fully study these instruments properly. I don't want any accidents occurring."

Lord Cruz nodded and strummed a chord on the guitar, undoing the spikes.

"Of course, Emperor, it shall be done. Me and my second have been hard at work doing such, Raine Whispers has an amazing talent for music and understanding it. Together, we should have a full report for you soon enough."

"Good, keep up the good work… Now then, Lady Cruz?" He asked, turning his attention to the plant Witch.

Lady Cruz looked up from a book she had begun reading before she stood up next.

"O- oh of course!" She said with a nervous laugh, standing up from her chair, "E- Emperor Belos, Sir, the Plant Coven is operating at amazing capacity, we are also working with the Healing Coven to synthesize a cure for Demon's Snare," She said, summoning a light purple flower to her hand, "As we know, Demon's Snare is highly poisonous to the Demon's of the Isles, we were successful in eradicating from any populated centers on the Isles as you had instructed and are now managing to look for the source of the invasive species."

Belos scoffed at that.

"The source was Emperor Crisis, he planted them all over the Isles during his rampage against Demons…" He said, shaking his head, "It's taken nearly 20 years to get these blasted things down this much, and now you are making great strides forward in removing them completely. Good work. Once we finish, we may be able to finally start safely founding new cities as well…"

Lady Cruz smiled, bowing.

"You flatter me, Emperor," She said, humbly, whilst taking a seat, "I am just doing my job."

"And I thank you for that," He said, "Now then, Fera…" He turned to the Beast Keeping head and found that she was leaning back in her chair, snoring to herself and mumbling.

It looked like, seemingly, the meeting had put her to sleep.

Belos sighed.

"I knew that Ebberwolf was sending me a headache…" He whispered before lifting a finger, making a red dot appear at the end of his index, before he twirled the finger, causing the chair to glow the same hue. He then snapped his finger, causing the chair to be pulled from under her.

She fell with a thud, her large sword clattering to the floor with her.

"HUH? WHAT? WHO'S ATTACKIN'?" She shouted suddenly, looking in all corners of the room, jumping to her feet and drawing her sword.

"Ahem," Belos said clearly.

Fera paused her frantic search for intruders and more carefully inspected where she was. A meeting.

"Ah, that's right, I'm in a dull prison," She said in a deadpan tone, putting her sword away. Well, I wouldn't call it a sword. It was, at times, too big to be called a sword. Massive, thick, and supremely too heavy to most... Indeed, it was more comparable to a sharpened heap of raw iron.

"Fera," Belos said, "I've told you before, sleeping during these meetings is not allowed, you miss out on every important detail. I understand that it is early in the morning, but don't fall asleep again."

Fera yawned and stretched, that nap was refreshing. She probably should've feared the Emperor more and the possible consequences of her actions in his presence, but of all people, she knew something not many people considered.

That, at heart, he was a good person. His sunshine of a daughter and caring, healing wife of his was clear of this. So she hoped that the Emperor wouldn't execute her for taking a nap in a meeting, especially in front of his Human wife. I mean, it was just dawn, it could be understood why she would be tired.

She cleared her throat.

"Aye, I understand, Emperor."

"Good… Now, tell us how the Beast Coven is performing."

"Well… we've successfully quelled and relocated several larger beasts that were disrupted in their natural habits by wandering witches, as well as drawn out where it would be safe and recommended to start drawing up plans for new cities across the bones of the Isles. No new developments have been made or discovered as of late, not yet." She said, "The Demons of the Hunt are on the move again, however, so I'd issue a warning to any outlying towns and cities to not stray from civilization, else they risk becoming a meal of the Hunt."

Belos nodded at her rather short report.

"Understood, I'll issue a warning to all Guard Posts across the Isles to be on the lookout for these Demons and to increase patrols, posthaste." He promised.

Fera bowed respectfully.

"Thank you, kindly, Emperor." She said before taking her seat, once again leaning back in the chair.

Finally, Belos turned to the final member of his Circle and arguably, one of the most important. Lord Drew of the Construction Coven, is a master craftsman, and an amazing builder. Current builder of the Castle and master of one Bria Day, competitive and fiery young soul.

"Finally, Lord Drew, what is the state of the castle?"

Lord Drew cleared his throat, standing up.

"Well, clearly, as you most likely saw, it's coming along nicely. Your daughter has been a major help with helping along with the progress, in all honesty. She's a quick learner and even better yet, I believe that her magic is something special. She's learned quite a bit, especially how to better control her magic. I believe, given more practice, she'll be able to finally safely cast spells without risk to others."

Belos smiled under his mask, to hear that his daughter was progressing in her magical ability made him happy. He wondered if making her help with the castle was truly a punishment, for every time he passed by when she was working, she seemed to be enjoying herself and those around her. Especially Drew's apprentice. It made him even more joyous to know that Luz was making more friends on the Isles.

"That's good, Drew. Do you believe that she has done enough?" Camila suddenly asked, glancing towards Fera, "I know one of us is angsty to finally get their hands on the Princess for training of their own…"

Fera suddenly fixed her posture and looked toward Drew.

"Well, mate? Is she!?" She asked, somewhat excitedly, "I've been meaning to finally get the Princess holding a sword forever!"

Drew hummed, stroking his beard in thought.

"The Princess has been an immense help, both to the efforts of the Castle and my Coven, she's even earned countless apprenticeships from many of my foremen, as well." He commented with a chuckle, "But she's done all she could to help us. We are going to begin more detailed work, like masonry, and installing the Třina…"

Camila whispered to Belos.

"Třina?" She asked.

"I believe that humans call it Electricity…" He whispered back.

"Ah…" She said, realizing.

"But yes," Drew said, regaining their attention, "I believe that the Princess' punishment is well served. She may move on to the next facet of her training before she is officially crowned. I am told that you finally have a date set for her coronation?" He asked.

The Emperor nodded a simple yes.

"That's true, it is now only a matter of finally setting everything in place." He said, "I believe that it is unsaid that you are all invited. I will also expect you all to help make it the best coronation that the Isles will ever see."

Lord Lovelace suddenly stood up, eyes dazzling.

"Ooh! Ooh! Can I provide the entertainment! I have a killer voice! My Mother was a well accomplished Bard after all!"

Lord Cruz rolled his eyes, scoffing.

"Know your place, illusionist." Cruz said, strumming a normal Boiling Isles instrument, his songbird palisman flying up to his shoulder and tweeting at Lovelace, "I believe that it will be more than clear that you will work on the decoration of the party. It is clear."

Before Lovelace could respond, the Emperor cleared his throat, ending this conflict before it had a chance to even begin.

"Anyways," He said, turning to Drew, "Come with me, the rest of you are dismissed to enjoy the rest of your days." He said.

The other coven heads stood, beginning to discuss things amongst themselves as they left while Drew came up to the Emperor and Empress.

"Come, Drew, I believe that the Princess would love to hear the good news from the both of us," Belos said as he and Camila stood up from their seats, beginning to lead the way to the wing of the castle they called their home.

"Of course, Emperor. I've been meaning to thank her for all her help as well." Drew said, following them close behind.

"Let's hope that she is up by now… No amount of rigorous training could change her sleep schedule." Camila commented with a laugh as they all made their way up to Luz's now repaired room in the castle.


-Upstairs, in the upper west wing-


Surprisingly enough, the Princess in training was already awake. The several weeks working with Lord Drew had a strict schedule that couldn't be messed with, so Camila would wake her up and she'd hop awake to get ready and rush downstairs and get started.

And what was the Princess doing, up so early in the morning?

Why, appreciating her hard work of course.

Luz was currently looking at herself in the mirror, simply stretching her body and popping several joints, and at the same time, was appreciating her reflection in the mirror.

It had seemed that all that heavy lifting and working with Lord Drew was finally paying off for her.

In the month she'd been helping out around the castle, Lord Drew was also tasked with feeding Luz and he had completely taken her off the human realm junk food she had brought with her to the Isles. Instead, giving her a much stricter diet that was common for the Construction Witches.

Although she could barely keep it down half the time, being half-witch meant that she could just barely eat most of the food on the Isles. It took some getting used to… But she was determined to eat her Mothers cooking at all times and for as long as she could.

Luz, however, had to admit when something was working.

"I'm looking good…" She whispered with a whistle, still flexing at herself in the mirror before suddenly the mirror shimmered and a glint appeared and her improved form was staring back at her, giving her a mischievous smile with yellow eyes and pointed ears. A single perfect crack formed on Luz's mirror, going perfectly down the middle.

"Hello, Princess, looking much better than at the start of the month, I see," Zul said, "I swear you were a twig a few weeks ago. Now you're a slightly sturdier stick. I'm so proud of you." She said, summoning a handkerchief and wiping away some tears while sniffling, "They bulk up so fast,"

Luz rolled her eyes.

"Oh haha," She said sarcastically, "I wasn't that skinny a month ago… I think… What's up anyway? Got another lesson lined up?" She asked as she began to get dressed in her Glandus High Uniform, "I think we left off on the Spirit King…" Luz absentmindedly hummed.

"Yes, Yes, King of Souls himself, the greedy bastard himself. Do you remember what he does?" She asked.

Luz paused as she pulled her shirt on, trying to remember.

"He… Gives-"

"Made," Zul corrected.

"-Made," Luz continued, "He made every soul that's ever walked the Isles and will walk the Isles," She said, repeating the words Zul said to her a few lessons ago, "Even now, he sits in his throne, ruling over the entire Spirit Realm, judging and deciding the fate of every soul he's created. That right?"

Zul clapped and summoned silver confetti that she threw around her.

"Amazing, you can be taught," She commented sarcastically.

"Oh come on, admit it, you love me! Well, despite trying to take over my body a month ago…" Luz said, looking off to the side before back at Zul, "So your name, Kopire, does it mean anything?" Luz suddenly asked the mirror demon.

Zul crossed her arms and hummed.

"Kopire is Demon for copy… A lot of demon names are literal." She said with a laugh, "Like how Kralj means "Ruler", or how "Dítě" means Child." She informed.

Luz hummed, thinking a bit.

"Do… You want to be called Kopire?"

Her reflection gave her an odd look, confused.

"Ex… Cuse me?" She asked.

"Well, it was my fault that you're sorta permanently stuck looking like me. So why not call you by your actual name, you know?"

She looked at Luz for a moment, seemingly thinking about her words before narrowing her eyes at Luz.

"Listen here, Princess, don't go around thinking we're friends cause I decided to teach you about the afterlife and all that stuff. I'm only doing this to keep myself entertained while I wait for this crack to spread and my mirror to shatter," Zul said with narrowed eyes, "So don't even think of using my name, only my friends are allowed to even know of it… So don't test your luck…"

With that, the mirror shimmered and Luz was left alone once again, simply staring in shock at her mirror.

"Jeez, I guess I hit a nerve…" She said, grabbing her bag and slinging it onto her back, and turning to her door, "I gotta get going anyways… Drew is probably waiting for me." She said, reaching for her door when, all of sudden, it opened and there stood her father and Lord Drew.

"Oh, Dad? Drew? What's up?" She asked, watching as Belos entered the room, followed by Drew.

"Good morning, my little light…" Belos greeted first, placing a hand on Luz's head, carefully ruffling her hair comfortingly, in such a way that Luz leaned into the touch, "Did you sleep well? Is the new bed treating you well?"

Luz nodded, looking up at him.

"Yeah! The bed feels great, even better than the last one. What did you say it was made of again? Griffin Feather?" She asked no one in particular, staring at her comfortable bed, before turning back to her father, "So what are you guys doing here?" She asked curiously.

"Well," Belos began, "The repairs on the castle are going splendidly, and much faster than previously scheduled, leading to Lord Drew and me to have reached an agreement, so to speak."

Lord Drew nodded at his words, stepping forward.

"Yes, that we have," He said, "You've helped all you could, both you and Bria make an amazing building team, but now I fear that the rest of the work that will be done will be… Not up to your current skill level."

"That's right," Belos intruded, "The work they will begin in the next few days will be too complicated for you to be of any actual assistance… So your mother and I have decided that you have learned your lesson. You may go back to learning your other magics with the Owl Lady... More specifically... Your requested battle training from-"

SMASH

The sound of the Princess' bay window shattering had caught the trio off guard, they looked and to their surprise, it was none other than the Head of Beast Keepers Coven, Lady Fera, standing in a confident posture whilst pieces of the glass of the window lay scattered all over the floor.

Fera gave a wide smile.

"Hello, lassie! Remember me!" She asked with a hardy laugh, "Nice to meet you again without your life being in danger!"

"Damn it, Fera, I just fixed that bloody window last night!" Drew groaned, rubbing his eyes in annoyance, "You were right behind us, too, what was the reason?"

"Maybe she wanted to make a flashy entrance?" Luz suggested, shrugging her shoulders.

"If that's the case, we have teleport and flash spells." He said, looking towards Fera for an answer.

"Ah, where's the fun in that?" She asked, waving her hand dismissively, "And I don't need some poofy entrance like that kid Lovelace. If I want an entrance, I make my own!"

Luz nodded, understanding where she was coming from but she still had her gripes, of course.

"I get that, trust me, the minute I learn a teleport spell, I'll make all the flashy entrances too, but that was sorta my balcony window…" She said, taking careful steps around the glass until she was clear of it, "And now Drew has to fix the window all over again."

Fera waved her hand once again.

"Ah don't you worry your pretty little head about it, lass, I've got you covered." She said, suddenly putting her fingers to her mouth. Fera took a deep breath and gave a loud, ear-piercing shrill whistle.

Luz covered her ears, watching as Fera's fingers glowed with her magic, the whistle echoing even louder than before. Which also meant that it hurt her ears even more than before. Finally, Fera's whistle came to an end.

There was now a pause of silence, before, suddenly…

The sound of a cry caused all of them to nearly jump at the sight, well, except the Emperor of course.

The group watched as a bird-like beast appeared in the room, singing to itself a special song, while at the same time defying gravity itself by walking up and the walls, and taking measurements of the broken window frame.

Lord Drew almost instantly recognized the beast before him, watching as it began to work on repairing the window.

"Oh, I hate these things…" He said with a cringe, "Aracuan Fixer Birds…" He said, as the bird pulled out several window frames from seemingly nowhere in space, it was carrying a pouch but Drew doubted that it came from there.

The now named Aracuan Fixer Bird continued to sing its incoherent song before pulling out an industrial-sized nail gun, using it to nail the specific frame into place before it turned to the others with a triumphant cry, presenting the now fixed window frame and glass.

Fera clapped at her companion's success.

"Well done, Arty!" She pulled a brown paper bag, "You deserve this." She tossed the bag to the bird, who caught it easily. Opening the bag, it was revealed to be popcorn. The bird celebrated before driving her face into the bag, messily eating the earned treat.

Luz smiled, giggling as she went over to the bird and petted it as it ate the popcorn.

"Aw, well, I think she did an amazing job, what's wrong with these little guys?"

Drew came over, lightly pushing Luz and the bird away from the now "fixed" window.

"The damn things they fix tend to usually fall apart, more often than not…" He said silently, watching as the window frame fell forward but he caught it before it had the chance to shatter, "I'll finish properly installing this window, you lot should get going."

Luz nodded, understanding before turning to Belos and hugging him.

"Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!" She said, "You're the best!" She exclaimed, squeezing him tighter than before. Anyone else and they'd be choking under the strain, but the Emperor wasn't anyone else.

He chuckled, kneeling to Luz's height and returning the hug.

"It is not a problem, my dear. Now be off with you, you have a lot of training to get down and I expect you to be able to cut down droves of Wild Witches by the end of it." He said, his tone soft and slightly playful, something that told Luz he wasn't being serious… Maybe…

Luz then saluted.

"Yes sir, Emperor Dad!" She said with pride in her wide smile, "I won't let you down!"

Belos placed a hand on her head, once again ruffling her hair.

"I know you won't, my little light…" With that, Belos teleported away, his body melting into the floor of the castle, earning a grossed-out shiver from Luz.

"I hate that…" She commented, turning to face Fera, walking up to her, "So, what's first?" Luz asked, "Beast Keeping magic? Am I going to learn ancient techniques? Swordplay, maybe even close quarters combat!?" She said, swinging her fist, chopping the air, and giving a mock jump kick that caused her to fall to the ground.

Fera laughed, reaching down and picking Luz off the ground, setting her back on her own two feet.

"I love your spirit, lassie." She said, "First things first, you're going to be away from home for a while, so do me a favor and pack yourself a bag."

Luz nodded and began moving across the room, picking things out of her closet and stuffing them into an overnight bag. Pretty soon, she was finished before coming back to Fera with a salute.

"Good," Fera said, walking past Luz, "I figure we ought to start with the easy stuff. Fighting and sword combat and all that. Now, come on, Fergy is waitin' downstairs." She said, walking out of Luz's room.

Luz gasped, stars in her eyes as she held her cheeks.

"The land shark…!" She said in excitement before quickly following behind Fera, catching up to her.

On their way down and through the castle, they got to see the fruits of the Construction Coven's labor. Many of the rooms were back in working and functional order, many of them being remodeled at the design/command of her mother. The result was that the castle looked less dreary from the inside. Looking much more inviting than before. Even the outsides were being remodeled to be less… Scary and threatening, to say the least. Overall, everything was looking miles better, and since Luz helped build most of it, she knew all the shortcuts and secret passageways and exits.

Eventually, the pair made their way across the castle and were now downstairs, fortunately, they had bumped into Kikimora who was just now entering the castle as they were leaving it.

"Oh, Kiki!" Luz said, running up to the small demon, "It feels like I haven't seen you all month!" She exclaimed.

"That's because it has been a month since we've last seen each other," Kikimora responded matter-of-factually.

Luz chuckled.

"Well, you know what I mean! I usually see you trailing my Dad at night, but you haven't been. Where have you been going off to?" She asked curiously.

Kikimora paused at the question.

In truth, she has been seeing King in Left Arm's forest to talk and practice his developing magical abilities. No, that would reveal way too much information and make her a target to the Emperor's fury, no matter how long they've known each other.

So she cleared her throat.

"You know me, Princess, busy at all hours of the day and night. I don't even require all that much sleep," Turns to face Fera, a curious look on her face, "But I must know, what are you doing with the Princess, Fera?"

"If ya must know, I'm trainin' her in hand-to-hand combat. Why? Ye jealous?" Fera asked, giving Kiki a smug smirk.

Kikimora rolled her eyes and scoffed at the proposition.

"Me? Be jealous of you?" She said, shaking her head, "Don't make me laugh, Ailsa, you are second-best for a reason, or must I remind you of such, yet again?" She asked, looking at the angry Fera with unamused eyes before turning to face Luz; bowing. "Forgive that I was not able to train you myself, Princess, maybe when I have more time, then we can work on perfecting your form."

Fera looked down at Kikimora with an offended expression.

"Perfect!? That's an insult if I've ever heard one, ya plucked-faced henewt! If she wants lessons on how to dance around the battlefield, I would've sent her to the Bard Coven!"

"Even Lord Cruz has more grace with a blade than you, Ailsa Fera, swinging around that hunk of sharpened steel like a primitive witch would with a club…" Before Kikimora could continue tearing into Fera, her mirror communicator went off.

Opening the compact mirror, she read the received message. She gave a hum and walked past them.

"I must be off, the Emperor requires me and my assistance, and honestly Fera, this spat is beneath me…" She said softly, before pausing her stride and glancing once again at Luz and Fera, "But I do wish you well on your training, Princess," She said softly.

It was a surprising change to see Kikimora wish anyone luck, especially in something she challenged Fera on constantly, such as combat but of course, it wouldn't last too long.

"...Because believe me, Princess, you're going to need it, with Fera as your teacher… Titan helps us all." With that final snide comment, Kikimora laughed, walking forward as a purple flame surrounded her and she disappeared, teleporting away.

Fera sneered in anger, stepping forward to where Kikimora was.

"HEY," She yelled, "Come back 'ere and say that to my face, ya clucking bat chicken!" She yelled, shaking her fist cartoonishly.

Luz couldn't help but laugh at this. It was a funny thing to watch Fera be angry at the cool and collected Kiki but she didn't laugh too long, coming up to the steaming Coven Head and tugging on her skirt.

"Fera, let's get going! There's no point in being mad at Kiki when she's not here!" She said impatiently, now pulling on Fera's strong arms in an attempt to pull her along but she did not budge.

Fera mumbled incoherently before turning, walking ahead of Luz.

"Come on, we ought to get going. I don't want the sun to beat us," She said, looking up at the sky and seeing the Boiling Isles sun was just beginning to illuminate Bonesborough below.

"Where are we going, anyway, Fera?" She asked, quickly running up to her and looking up at her, now walking at her side.

Fera smiled proudly at the question.

"Only someplace where we can do damage without hurtin' a single soul, lass…"

Luz hummed at the thought, wondering just where exactly that could be, as she's only been inside of Bonesborough so far…

Then she remembered, she was carrying an overnight bag… They were probably heading far from home…


-Later-


And how right she was.

They had traveled quite a ways away from Bonesborough, the sun was just getting high into the sky, most likely it was noon by now. They traveled the entire way by foot, trekking through a few swamps, a lot of forest, and many hills.

Fera said that it was important for the Princess to know what the common foot soldier experienced daily, that the experience would build character. Luz understood, but still whined about how much her feet hurt from the experience.

Luz groaned as she followed Fera up yet another tall hill.

"I don't get how you're not tired…" Luz said with a pant. Her strength may have improved but her stamina was diving the worst, Fera noticed that, noting it as something that would need to be worked on.

"Magic, Princess, magic," She said, rather simply, "Use it correctly and you'll only tire when you run out of it but we're almost there, don't you worry your dainty little self about it."

"Alright…" Luz said, tightening the straps on her pack and trekking onto the top of the rather steep hill.

After another few moments of climbing, they reached the top of the hill. Luz groaned and fell back, taking off the pack and sitting down, and promptly laying on her back.

"Thank Titan that's over…" She said with a pant.

Fera smiled down at Luz and kneeled beside her.

"Don't pass out yet, Princess, you're going to want to see this…" She said, sounding excited for Luz to see the sight.

Luz huffed, tired but still very much willing. Her eyes widened in amazement at the sight.

"It's… Amazing…" She whispered.

"Welcome, Princess, to the ancestral home of my people, The Ribbed Highlands!" Fera shouted with pride, waving her hand at the land.

Luz looked on from the hill they were on, standing up to get a better look.

Down the middle, there was a giant chasm, and on one side of it was a giant castle, and connecting the chasm was a large stone bridge. The entirety of the lands shared the same Boiling Isles color scheme, with the purples and oranges. There was a large town on the side of the castle as well, surrounded by a large wall that proudly displayed a coat of arms that Luz didn't recognize.

"Oh wow, this is... The Titan's Ribcage…" Luz said with amazement, still looking on in amazement at the location. She even spotted that, in the chasm, it fell into a raging Boiling River that eroded the walls of the chasm with every passing day, "This palace is so cool and probably old as heck!" She said, looking up and seeing one of the ribs high above and how it hung over the town and castle.

Fera smiled proudly.

"Aye, My clan's been livin' here for generations! Though I don't stay here for long whenever I visit." She said, shaking her head with a chuckle.

Luz sat down, reaching into her bag and pulling out her journal. She flipped to a new page and began to sketch the entire scene before her, from the castle to the town and the walls that protected it.

"Why not?" She asked while she drew, "It looks beautiful and amazing, I'd love to live here."

"Glad you think so, lass, but it's as simple as me clan can get very rowdy, even for my tastes. Truth be told, I'm the most mellow one of the bunch." She said, giving a hardy laugh at remembering that.

Luz couldn't imagine that. Fera was so fierce and felt like a force of nature, at least, that's what she's always seemed like to her. It was hard to picture Fera as the calmest of her entire extended family… She wondered what that meant, then, did that mean that there were even crazier members of the Fera clan she wasn't aware of…?

"That's a scary thing to think about…" She said with a giggle, finishing her sketch and closing her journal, safely stowing it away, "Can't imagine what your parents must be like, then."

Fera laughed at that, placing a hand on Luz's shoulder as she sat down next to her.

"You'd love them, but it wasn't them who made me who I am today. You can thank my teacher for that," She said with a prideful smile.

"Teacher? Who was your teacher?" Luz asked.

"Eberwolf. No last name. He was the previous head of the Beast Keepers. If it weren't for them, I'd still be a puny lass," Fera said, summoning a picture to her hand, and handing it to Luz, "Try guessin' who that is."

Luz looks to see what appears to be a much younger Fera, however, she was a lot skinnier and had no muscles. Next to her was a child-sized bestial humanoid. They had a wild mane of auburn hair, tied in a big fluffy ponytail using a yellow, frayed band. Their body is covered with orange fur, with some unkempt spots on their cheeks and elbows. Their eyes have yellow sclera with magenta irises and slit pupils and they have two pointed ears similar in shape to a cat's.

They wore a sage green sleeveless shirt, a dull brown loincloth in the likeness of a hand or paw with light gray claws, and a pair of dark brown boots with gray soles. They also wore a pair of spiked yellow arm bracers.

Luz ran her thumb over the picture, thinking on it and realizing that if Fera was able to become this strong, then she surely would be able to as well. She then narrowed her eyes at the picture, seemingly remembering something.

"Oh I remember my Dad told me about Ebberwolf once," She said, "He was one of the only Coven Heads that willingly stepped down from their position as Coven Head... They taught you to be strong?"

Fera nodded, crossing her arms.

"Aye, back in the day, I was what the clan considered a "hiccup". I wasn't strong and I got picked on a lot. It got bad enough that I ran away from home, running to the Ribbed Gorest."

"Don't you mean… Forest?" Luz asked.

"No." Fera said simply, "Anyways, after running into the forest, a colony of Land Sharks attacked me. Or Bulette, as they're called by others. I was sure I was going to be their chow when Ebberwolf seemingly came out of nowhere!" She exclaimed, "It was amazing! Despite being the size of a wee child, he fought all of them off! Even suplexed one into a tree, I'll never forget it!" She said, laughing.

"After he saved me, he took some of the fresh game, although I wouldn't eat Land Shark, and was going to take his leave when I begged him to teach me how to be strong like that. That ole furball saw me inner potential and helped bring it out of me." Fera said, flexing her amazonian-like muscles once again, "And it was thanks to Eberwolf's suggestion to your pop that I became appointed as Head of the Beast Keepers!" She said, fists on her hips, proud.

Luz smiled at that.

"That's so nice of him, where is Eberwolf now?" She asked.

"Still in Ribbed Gorest. He doesn't much like leaving it, it's his home now, I guess, ever since he stepped down from Coven Head. He loves it, I'm told. I sometimes can't believe that I even survived a step in that bloody place, with how I used to be."

Luz looked down at the photo once again, the image of a scrawny Fera burned into her head and yet, refusing to register with her. It just didn't feel real. She looked up at the tall and strong redhead in front of her, her form opposing and threatening.

"I can't even comprehend you being small and weak, it doesn't feel real." She said, "Like an illusion."

"Well, it was all real, sad to say. But this break is over, we ought to get going. You know, I just realized, why hasn't-"

WOOF! WOOF!

Suddenly, the ground broke apart and splintered, sending Luz onto her back once again as Ferguson burst out of the ground in front of the two, landing in a crouch wagging his tail, his tongue lapping with a pant.

"There he is." Fera simply said.

Luz's eyes widened and she quickly came over, hugging the very dangerous and tamed bulette tight.

"Ferguson!" She shouted, "I missed you, buddy!" She said, scratching him under his scales, making him kick his back leg.

Ferguson showed further appreciation by giving the Princess a big, sloppy lick.

Luz giggled, continuing to scratch.

"I love you too, bud, you gonna help me train?" She asked curiously.

Fera stepped over.

"Nah, he's just here cause he likes followin' his mamma around," She then began to scratch his belly, "Don't you, my little berserker?"

Ferguson's tongue laps as he falls on his back due to the belly scratches, enjoying the feeling. Fera laughed before summoning a large slab of meat.

"Oh, Fergy!"

The land shark perked up before instantly sitting up, spotting the meat, causing him to bark and hop around like an excited puppy.

Fera took a stance and spun around before throwing the slab of meat into the forest.

"Go get it!" She shouted.

Ferguson barked and quickly ran into the forest, his sense of smell already catching onto the piece of meat.

Fera sighed.

"I love that bundle of joy."

Luz looked towards where Ferguson ran.

"Is he going to be fine by himself?"

Fera turned to face Luz.

"Trust me, there's not much out there that can challenge him. He'll be more than fine, trust me. Now then, let's hop to trainin'! You've had your break!"

Luz then saw Fera run off down the hill.

"Keep up, Princess!"

Luz groaned, grabbing her bag and quickly following after.


-Later, now in a clearing nearby Castle-


The clearing was surrounded by trees and seemed to be forming a natural shield, blocking Luz's vision for anything more than ten feet in any one direction, but she wouldn't need to worry about that right now.

Fera and Luz were standing in the middle, across from each other, Fera was staring the Princess down with an intense smile.

"Okay, Princess, before we can even get close to teachin' ye Beast Keepin' magic, you've got to know how to fight."

Luz nodded, pulling out her journal once again and beginning to write that down.

"I understand, Lady Fera! I'm more than sure that I'll get everything down in no time! I mean, look at these bad boys!" She said with pride, flexing her arms with a laugh, excited to start.

Fera smiled, patting Luz's shoulder.

"That's the spirit! Now, to understand why I'm teaching you to fight first is 'cause it ties well with Beast Keeping. Most beasties of the Isles will listen to those of the Beast Keepers to a fault, but some are more difficult than others to listen to."

Luz was seen quickly writing that down, nodding along to Fera's words.

"Yeah, I see…" She said, "The only time I've come into contact with a Beast was a Manticore and even then, it didn't attack me!"

"Good example, Manticores are a rarer type of beast, so it's always been assumed to be some vicious, terrible monsters, but the ones I've come into contact with have always been really sensitive on the inside too. They're honestly more akin to giant house cats with a stinger and wings. They're also very loyal Beasts. Rumors say that if you help it, it'll come when you call for them."

Luz thought of that, looking up from her journal.

"Wait, I once helped a manticore with a thorn in its paw, does that mean I have an animal familiar now?" She asked.

Fera looked at her curiously, stroking her chin in thought.

"You know… I don't know… How long ago was this?"

"Uh, well, it was when I got Demon's Pneumonia, actually."

"Wait, did you get it from the Manticore? I thought your father had that Beast stuffed for that?"

Luz laughed nervously at that, scratching her neck.

"He never did find the Manticore, I think he's still looking for it, but it wasn't the Manticore's fault though! It's not like he knew that that would happen, you know?" She asked.

Fera chuckled at that.

"Yes, your father was always known to hold grudges for those around him." She commented, "There's a tale, that Kikimora was fatally injured during the Rebellion, and he hunted down the group of Crisis' Witches that caused it. I believe that it's a cautionary tale we tell our young witchlets, I don't remember exactly." She said, humming in thought.

"But, yes, you should think like that," Rolls eyes, remembering something, "I can not tell you how many times I've butted heads with your pop over halting extinctions over beasts. He's a very vengeful man, you know."

Luz pouted, looking off to the side.

"Yeah, I know…" She said, "But, that doesn't matter right now, I just hope that he's OK since I took that thorn out of his paw."

Fera detected that she didn't want to talk about her father and his way of dealing with things, so she instead reached out and ruffled Luz's hair.

"Ah, don't you worry your pretty little head about him, lass. Manticores are mighty beasties. Their stingers can pierce stone and their wings can slice steel and claws that can shred Witches to ribbons. Not much can take those bad boys down."

Luz gave a soft smile, looking back up at Fera.

"Yeah, you're right… So, what are we starting with? I'm getting anxious to start!" She said, the excitement coming back to her in waves.

"First…" Unsheathes blade, before she stabs it into the ground, causing Luz to jump a bit at the sudden action, "I want you to fight meh."

Luz simply looked between the blade and then Fera, considering her options and how fast she could run back home.

"But… I've never… Been in a fight before!"

"Well, what about when you jumped at that Oni in the castle?" Fera asked.

Luz blushed in embarrassment, looking away and crossing her arms.

"T- That was different! Hec-" She paused, rubbing her head slightly, feeling a headache coming on, "Amity. Amity was in danger of being eaten!" She said, "I had to do something!"

"And yet, you were quite instantly dispatched, knowing you didn't know how to fight," Fera said with a smile, "Consider this a test if that'll make you feel better."

Still, Luz didn't accept it.

"B- But I don't even have a sword to fight you with, either!" She urged.

Fera smirked, cracking her knuckles and beginning to stretch.

"Now who said anything…" Pauses, popping several joints, "About using swords…"

"What…?" Luz said, her eyes widening as she saw Fera suddenly charge her with a battle cry, "Oh joder…" On instinct, Luz put up her hands.

Now, working on the castle for the better part of an entire month, she learned how to properly control the muscle enhancement technique, so she wasn't bending her mother's silverware anymore which also gave her better precision control on how much strength she would be able to use at any given situation.

Even then, it took every ounce of her practice to hold onto Fera and not be sent flying across the thick forest.

Holding out her hands, Luz caught Fera's. Holding them tightly, Luz gritted her teeth and pushed back, holding her own surprisingly enough. Although, Fera was more akin to a raging bull, as Luz's feet dug into the earth as she was pushed back.

"I think…" Grunts as she was pushed further back and deeper into the earth, "An extreme start…" She said softly with a chuckle.

Fera smiled crazily.

"The beasties won't care! You need to understand that some beasties won't bow to ya unless you show 'em who's boss! That you're that Alpha!" She shouted, suddenly releasing Luz and jumping back and sending a punch toward her.

Maybe it was the stress of the situation, or rather how fast the Coven Head was, or even that her usual magic bullet time didn't activate, but Luz didn't have enough time to properly avoid the punch. Instead, opting to freeze and take the full force of the hit. Not intentionally of course.

Now Luz would claim that having tanked a savage Oni's punch to the chest and lived, she could take a punch with ease. Alas, that wasn't the case, as she was still rather new to fighting and everything that came with it.

So she naturally stumbled back, hissing in pain, holding her cheek in pain, and lightly cursing in Spanish.

"God that hurts…" She said, suddenly ducking to avoid another swing from Fera. Before Fera could hit Luz with an uppercut that she was sure would most certainly take her head off, Luz held out her arms.

"Wait! Wait!" She yelled, causing Fera to pause, "Back in the human realm, it's tame there… No beast to fight, nothing to eat you, no war over the horizon, and certainly no swords… I don't even know how to throw a punch! Can we start somewhere a bit… Easier…?" She asked, rubbing her cheek.

Fera exhaled through her nose and stood straight once more.

"The thing about me teachin' is that my lessons work best on the fly! But if you're so insistent…" Leans forward, tapping her cheek. "Punch me right here, a punch in the face is a good way to gauge someone's prowess. Then I should know where we should start."

Luz looked unsure, considering that she could rip trees out of the ground and lift entire pallets of building materials and such…

"Just… Hit you? That doesn't sound like a good idea… I don't want to hurt you…" She said with an unsure hum, looking down at her hand, clenching her fist.

Fera smirked, an idea forming in her head.

"What's wrong, Princess? Scared, are you?" She asked.

"I- I'm not scared! I just don't-"

"If you're not scared then hit me!" She urged.

"I know what you're doing, it's not going to work!" Luz said, crossing her arms, "I'm not doing it!"

"Hm, I knew you were weak then." She said, smiling.

"...What…?" Luz asked, narrowing her eyes, "I'm not weak…"

'Ooh, that struck a nerve…' Fera thought.

"Clearly, you are. Certainly, that mint-haired lass would perhaps be a better challenge and subject to be trained."

Luz uncrossed her arms, eyes narrowing.

"T- that's not true! I- I'm TEN times stronger than Amity and certainly stronger than YOU! I- I just need practice and- And-"

"You're biting your tongue, speak clearly," She said, leaning forward again, "And if you are as strong as you say you are, then you'd just. Hit. Me. If you're stronger than me, then prove it!" She goaded on.

Luz clenched her fist even tighter, her knuckles practically becoming white from the force.

"N- no…" Luz said, gritting her teeth and turning away, clearly hiding away her anger.

"So you are just a weak Princess. How will you live up to the Emperor's Standards-"

In a sudden turn of events, Luz catches Fera off guard and mid-sentence. She was suddenly in front of her, fist raised and aiming a punch directly at Fera's face. If Fera had to guess, the Princess must've used a flash, blitz, or teleport spell to clear the distance, cause she was really close. Close enough to analyze her face.

Her eyes were full of a fury that reminded Fera of the Emperor on the rare occasions that she's seen him unmasked, usually to berate a council member. Her face was completely blank of any expression, a wave of pure anger washing over her for Fera calling her weak.

What was most striking was that Luz's iris' was a pure, glowing blue, just like her father's.

Suddenly, Luz's fist glowed, lighting up with an unfamiliar aura of red magic before she threw the punch at Fera.

Now, several things went through Fera's head. Such as "Maybe I shouldn't've egged the lass on so hard", or, "That looks like it's going to hurt" or "I thought they said her magic was gold?" and better yet, a prayer, to the Titan, that this wouldn't be where she died. But she was smarter than to just leave herself defenseless.

Practically on instinct, several barrier force fields formed in front of Fera as the Coven Head steeled herself for the incoming punch, digging her heels into the forest floor.

Luz's fist connected with the first forcefield, shattering through it and annihilating the rest of them with ease, it was like a bullet tearing through a stack of papers, nothing would stop her.

Time seemingly slowed down for Fera, her entire body felt the impact at once, resonating with a certain shock at how much it actually hurt to be hit by the unhinged Princess. She wasn't kidding, she was strong, if not stronger than her.

Now she had to deal with the consequences.

BOOM

The sound of thunder echoed across the forest, followed by a red wave of magical aura, all resonating from the impact Luz made with Fera, at the same time, the force all registered at once and Fera flew back, crashing into several of the trees and still going, causing a massive path of destruction in her wake.

Trees were separated from their trunks, rocks were obliterated and the earth was displaced by the unstoppable force that was Fera, still being propelled by Luz's magic-powered punch.

Luz clenched her teeth, an expression of anger clear on her face.

"DON'T TELL ME HOW TO LIVE UP TO MY FATHER'S EXPECTATIONS!" She screamed, eyes pulsing blue for a moment before she realized, and blinked several times, her eyes returning to their normal chestnut brown and the anger leaving her as she came to her senses.

She suddenly hissed in pain, holding her arm.

"I- I think I broke my… Arm… Hm?" She looked at her arm, flexing it, "Oh, already fixed… That's getting faster…"

She finally looked up, fully taking in the absolute destruction that was around her. The trees in the clearing were bending outwards, the force of the sonic boom bending them back, the grass was blown away and she was now standing in the center of a crater.

"Ohhhhhh nooooo…" She whispered, groaning and slapping her face, "I let my emotions take over again... This is horrible…" She then realized, "Fera!? Are… Are you still… Alive?" She asked, cautiously.

Luz looked, there was a line of destruction and displaced earth, it was like someone dug a trench in a garden. The forest was practically destroyed as well. Once she didn't hear a response, she dug her face into her hands.

"I'm in so much trouble…" She whispered, groaning again.

"HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!"

Luz looked up from her hands.

"What the- GAH!" Luz shouted in surprise, as something had landed in front of her and knocked her off her feet, "What the heck!?" She looked closer, realizing that it was Fera. She was dirty and caked in the dirt now, her corset was torn in several places and her skirt was torn in half. Her leather braces were gone now, and she was barefoot. Although, her feet were smoking slightly… Looking closer, Luz saw that her leather boots had actually melted away, as evident by the fact that the shaft of the boot was still around her ankles.

"Uhm…" Luz said awkwardly, "You ok?" She asked.

Fera looked down at Luz, she had a feral smile about her.

"Now that was a punch! All your enemies ought to think thrice before stepping up to you for a fight! She said, picking Luz back up, "You damn near killed me, good work, Princess!" She shouted, patting Luz on her back hard.

Luz looked up at Fera and told herself that there may have been a few key components responsible for her reaction to nearly dying. No visible signs of brain injury, so Fera probably didn't lose her mind when Luz hit her. Maybe it was because she was Scottish? Wait, that didn't make sense, the Scottish don't exist on the Isles… Although, she could see a clear resemblance.

No, it had to be something easier to explain, oh wait, this was the Isles and this was the beast keeping head, she probably dealt with this sort of thing daily but still, Luz had to make sure…

"You're… Not mad…?" She asked cautiously, "You look sorta… Hurt…"

Fera looked down at Luz, confused.

"Hurt? Who's hurt? There's not even a single bruise, scrape, tear or cut on my fair skin lass!" She said with a hearty laugh, "But I will admit, you weren't boasting! You are exceptionally strong!"

Luz couldn't believe it, inspecting Fera further, she was right. Not a single blemish or injury upon her. Even her cheek, which Luz swore she hit, was left uninjured.

"Woah- Wait, how!?" She asked, flabbergasted at the outcome, "I- I hit you with enough power to level half the forest and make a crater!" She pointed out.

Fera chuckled, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"And here I thought that you'd be happy to see that I was left unscathed by your punch." She said, smiling down at her, "Or did you want "killed Ailsa Fera" under your name?" She asked.

Luz quickly shook her head no.

"No! No! No! I'm just- Kinda confused is all…" She said softly.

"Then I can explain…" She released Luz's shoulder and walked over to her sword and pulled it out of the ground, "Take a seat."

Luz tilted her head, confused even more than before, and nodded, listening anyway and taking a seat with Fera.

Fera sat down in front of Luz and presented her large sword.

"What do you see?" She asked.

Luz paused, thinking about what she meant when she asked that question. Drew liked to ask this question a lot, so she knew that it probably wasn't as simple an answer as "a sword".

So she answered honestly.

"It's… A magic sword?" She asked.

"Yes and no," Fera said, drawing a spell circle. The spell covered the sword and made it glow, revealing several runes, "It's enchanted." She pointed at one of the runes, "This one is for sharpness, this is for the edge, this is for toughness, and so on. Haven't you found it odd that in this world of magic, I'm still using a sword?" She asked.

Luz narrowed her eyes, thinking.

"No… No, I never thought of that before actually."

Fera smiled, leaning towards Luz.

"When a witch is an especially strong magic user, their magic will flow through every part of them. Including their skin." She said.

"Oh, so wait, you didn't get hurt because… You're a powerful magic user?" Luz asked, confused, "But, I'm strong too and I get hurt all the time!"

"That's because you are as inexperienced as you are strong." Fera said with a hum, "I've been practicing Beast Magic for the better part of 30 years, since childhood, I am a master at the craft and the magic in my body and soul."

"Wait, 30 years- How old are you?"

"38," Fera said simply.

"I THOUGHT YOU WERE 20!?" Luz shouted in surprise.

Fera laughed heartily at that.

"Thank you lass, but yes, magic can help keep you looking young and able the more often you use it. It strengthens your body as well, the older you become. Trust me, once you hit a certain age, sickness is no longer a concern to you. I mean, look at Hele and your father."

"What about them?"

"Well, the Emperor began the rebellion when he was 18, the war lasted around 6 years and he's been in power for more than 40 years. He's about 64 right now and Hele joined his fight when she was 25, she's 72 now. Yet, they both look like they're in their 30's." She explained, "Like your Mum."

Luz hummed at that and pulled out her journal, writing that down.

"Actively using magic makes you stronger and prolongs your lifespan… Got it…" She whispered, before looking up, a worrying thought coming up to her and filling her with horrid anxiety and questions.

If witches lived long lives, then, does that mean… That she and her father would outlive her mother? Or would it be the other way around? And would those around her outlive her and her mother?

It was a question that would set worry in anyone, but Luz was only 14, she couldn't think like this, not yet.

"Yes, our magic keeps us young and at the same time, strengthens our bodies," Fera continued, "This is why I survived your hit, although I did cast several protection spells on impact too, just to be safe. You do hit hard, and I'd hate to fight you, lass. You'll be a great fighter one day, this just confirms it."

Luz blushed at the compliments, still not sure how exactly to deal with praise from her teachers, she scratched her neck and giggled softly.

"T- Thank you, Fera…" She whispered.

"How's your arm, by the way?" She asked.

"Oh, my arm?" Luz said, pulling up her arms and flexing the both of them, "Absolutely perfect and healed. This fast healing is amazing."

Fera hummed.

"Amazing… Usually, after a hit that hard, the attacker isn't feeling 100%. Hell, when my wife hit me as hard as that and sent me flying, she had at least two broken fingers." She sighed, "Ah, good times."

Luz tilted her head to the side, confused and slightly concerned.

"You're married? And she hits you?" She asked, "Do you want help orrrr…?" She asked.

Fera rolled her eyes.

"Oh calm yourself lass, it's not like that at all, do you think anyone would dare to hurt me?" She said, flexing her arms to show off her muscles, even striking a few poses to get her point across, "No, lass, it's just a clan tradition we have here. The wife has to show that she is tough enough for the family, so she does it by punching her fiancé." She explained, beaming with pride, "It took me by surprise too, since she's a dainty little thing, but I love 'er all the same." She said with a lovestruck sigh.

Luz smiled at Fera, it was a weird tradition, to prove that you were strong enough for a clan of rowdy redheads but this was the Isles, this was probably the tamest thing she'll encounter here.

"You guys sound cute, I hope that I get to meet her while I'm here during this week." Luz said as she got to her feet, "Sorry to sound uninterested, but can we get back to training? I'm feeling confident…" She said with a smile, stretching her body, getting ready for anything that Fera may throw at her.

Fera smiled, following Luz's example and getting to her feet, cracking her knuckles.

"Love your spirit, Princess, now back to sparring. Time you learned to curb that strength of yours."

Luz smiled challengingly.

"We'll see about that, Fera."

They stared each other down, Fera herself inspecting Luz's form. It was sloppy and inexperienced but Luz seemed to naturally fall into it, her fists were raised and her legs were tight, while at the same time, loose in case of a quick shift in movement.

What perplexed Fera the most was that the longer Luz stayed in this stance, the more secure it seemed to become, like being in this form was something she was familiar with. It resembled an older fighting style that wasn't used anymore on the Isles, one from long ago during the Savage Ages.

What was going on here?

Fera decided that she was done analyzing Luz and jumped into the attack, opening with a straight jab. Easy, and clear move.

Luz's stance changed suddenly, widening a bit to keep her grounded as she put up her arms and blocked the jab. Fera's eyes widened slightly, did she telegraph the move?

Luz caught her attention once again, reeling her fist back and swinging a right hook in response, Fera caught that as she saw it coming before she suddenly felt a fist connect with her cheek. Luz had thrown a left jab directly afterward, but she was unfazed.

"I thought you've never been in a fight before, Princess?" Fera asked, reaching up and grabbing Luz's left wrist, "You been lyin' to meh?" She asked.

Luz blinked, her concentration leaving her.

"Huh? What? No, never, I've just always done this stance when something happens, a reflex I guess. Guess it's a good fighting stance too, huh?" She asked with a laugh.

"Hm, only if you can get out of my hold," Fera said, reminding Luz that she was now in possession of both of her hands.

Luz thought hard, narrowing her eyes at the current situation and racking her brain with countless ideas before one came to mind.

"Ooh, I've seen a movie with something like this! I always wanted to try this!" Luz said excitedly, suddenly grabbing back at Fera's wrists, before suddenly crouching and jumping up and quickly coming back down, sliding between Fera's legs and using her enhanced strength and the momentum, she pulled hard, flipping Fera onto her back, getting her hands free and stumbling back.

"Oh, crap that actually worked?" She asked in amazement, giggling madly, "This is so fun…" She said between giggles, jumping up and down for a few moments before falling back into the unfamiliar foot stance, "Come on, Come on! Get up! I want to try more moves! I want to see if I can do a spin kick next!"

Fera groaned a bit, getting back to her feet and facing Luz.

"I'll admit, the last time I was flipped I was a child, you are full of surprises Princess. So I'll need to stop holding back, then." She said, cracking her knuckles, and giving the Princess a wide grin.

Luz smiled, giving an equally wide and toothy grin.

"I'm ready!" She said, waiting to see what Fera would do first…

Suddenly, Fera crouched and jumped towards Luz, fist raised for a decisive attack, aiming to see how Luz would react to that when, all of sudden, a noise rang out across the forest.

"AEEEEIIIII!"

ROOOOAARRRR!

Fera skidded to a stop in front of Luz, standing straight and looking off in the directions that scream and roar came from, she narrowed her eyes, thinking.

"I know that roar and scream anywhere…" She turned away from Luz, suddenly rushing into the forest.

"Wha- Wait for me!" Luz quickly followed after the speeding Beast Coven Head, "What even was that!? Why are we running towards it!?"

Fera never answered, focused completely on running, expertly avoiding all stray branches and obstacles until they finally came upon an odd and incriminating scene.

Spears and arrows were seen strewn around the forest floor, signs of a struggle were seen, recorded in the gashes in the earth and the surrounding trees, arrows were also embedded everywhere and some were lying on the ground.

However, what stood out the most to Fera was what appeared to be a woman laying on the ground. She was bruised in several places and seemed like she was bleeding from a cut on her forehead, making the wound appear worse than it probably was.

Fera tensed at the sight, rushing over to the woman and crouching at her side.

"Astrid! Astrid, Love!" She shouted, lifting her and turning her head to get a better look at her. "Muffin, speak to meh!"

Astrid didn't wake, only groaning and mumbling in Fera's hold.

Luz came over, giving Astrid a look over. She was a dark-haired witch, pointed ears, of course, she was wearing a long, plaid dress. It had white long sleeves and was frilly on the edges.

"Who's this?" She asked, "You calling her "Muffin'" has me thinking that this is your wife?" She asked, putting the pieces together on her own.

Fera nodded at Luz's statement.

"Yes, She is my wife!" She confirmed, carrying Astrid in her arms, a fire in her eyes, "And when I find out who did this to her I'ma rip them a new one!

Luz looked around the area.

"She was fighting some… Things?" She asked, "There was definitely a struggle here…" She giggled lowly to herself, "I always wanted to say that…"

Luz investigated the area a bit more, before spotting an odd bush that gave off a weird, pulling feeling.

Like it was calling out to her.

"That's a… Very interesting plant…" She whispered, eyes dulling over as she began walking towards the plant, reaching out to touch it.

Fera heard what was happening and tenses, reaching out and grabbing Luz by the shoulder in the knick of time, as suddenly, a large steel bear trap snaps shut from the bush, causing Luz to break free from the enamor of the bush.

Fera's eyes narrowed at the trap.

"Be careful, Princess traps on the Isles have a risk of being amorous. Don't let your mind fall victim to that kind of magic."

Luz gave a nod, blinking away the remaining magic.

"Y- Yes lady Fera, noted." She said, saluting Fera quickly before looking back at the trap, "Is hunting Beast and Demon's Legal on the Isles?" Luz asked with worry, "Doesn't seem right…"

Fera sighed.

"It's an unfortunate necessity, but this trap is way beyond legal and it's on my family's land…" She said, "But that doesn't matter right now, Astrid needs a healer and my clan home just so happens to be nearby!"

With that, Fera suddenly dashed away, carrying Astrid.

"Come on! Time's a-wastin'!" She shouted back at Luz.

Luz quickly got to running after Fera with a loud groan.

"More running?!" She said, tired already, as she caught up with Fera who was running like a demon out of the Abyss, feeling her feet already becoming sore, "This is gonna kill me…" She said with a pant.

"It's good for your heart!" Fera shouted, "Now keep up!"

"I'm trying my best!" Luz yelled back with a groan, out of breath and wondering how Fera could run so hard and fast, "Come on Luz, you can do this… Don't pass out…" She told herself with a huff.

Fera then suddenly turned backward, facing Luz and still moving at the same pace, impressive in Luz's eyes.

"Quick magic lesson, Princess, focus your magic on your heart and lungs. That'll help ya plenty and it'll improve your stamina even more so. Lesson over, keep up!"

Luz panted, exhaling through her nose before she closed her eyes for a moment.

"Focus…" She whispered to herself, pulling from the lessons with Drew, she directed the flow of her magic to her heart and lungs, quickly feeling like the running was becoming easier and less difficult on her aching muscles, even being able to stay in stride with Fera.

Luz smiled brightly, especially at how fast she was able to get it down.

"Thanks, Fera!" She shouted, although, in Luz's excitement, she kept accidentally stomping craters into the ground behind her, as she was using the magic to strengthen her muscles instead of making them more durable... She'd work on control later…

Finally, they came upon the castle. It was huge, certainly big enough to fit an entire clan's worth of members and then some. Like she had seen earlier, it was separated by a huge stone bridge over a chasm that fell into a boiling river.

"Oh Titan, this place is amazing…" Luz whispered as they stopped running, now walking as Luz didn't want to destroy the bridge.

Fera chuckled at Luz's wonder, finding it refreshing.

"Aye, it is. Though, small compared to your father's, am I right, lassie?" She asked with a laugh.

Luz chuckled at that as well, before looking back up at the approaching castle.

"I mean, yeah, that's for sure but I've only ever seen two castles my entire life, and this is one of them!" She said, excited before pointing at the banners that hung on the wall, "What do those banners mean? With the symbols on them?" She asked.

Fera looked to where Luz was pointing.

"Oh that, that's my family's coat of arms," She said simply and with pride, "Well, it used to be the symbol for The Chest." She said,

"The Chest?" Luz asked, "What do you mean?"

Fera fixed Astrid so that she was comfortable in her arms, even though she was unconscious, and looked towards Luz.

"Small history lesson, you can ask your father more about it when you get a chance," She cleared her throat, "The Isles used to be separated by each of the limbs. Arms, legs, body, and head."

"Oh, like countries!"

Fera nodded.

"Exactly, we were divided before-"

"My dad came into power!" Luz guessed, but Fera shook her head no.

"Nice guess, but it was Crisis who unified the Isles into one." She informed, "His genocide's across the Isles started in the chest and extended outwards. Why, the Fera clan were fighting his forces on our own before your Father came and drove them out with the help of his rebellion. It's why we are loyal to him, even now! You get all that?" She asked, looking to her side and seeing Luz furiously writing all this down in her journal once again.

"Oh yeah… That's so interesting… I always thought that Crisis was just a genocidal maniac?" She asked.

"Ah he was, but he was still an Emperor with goals. He unified the Isles in his reign through blood and I'm not proud to admit that it worked." She said, shaking her head before smiling, "Still couldn't take our land though, that blonde-haired prissy bastard!" She said with a hearty laugh.

Luz laughed with her as she closed her journal, putting it back in her bag.

"Can't even imagine getting past those doors." She commented.

Finally, they reached the castle's large doors. They were wooden and reinforced by giant metal bars and buckles as well, they also had various runes etched into the wood.

"Yup," Fera said, "These things have withheld countless sieges from our enemies, but luckily, I know the password…" She cleared her throat and suddenly started pounding on the doors, "Open up, I'm back, ya gully drate tatties!" She shouted.

In a sudden motion, the doors opened up into the main hall of the castle, and out pounced onto the back of Fera were a set of three small shadows, all holding onto her for dear life. Looking more closely, Luz saw that the shadows were actually little kids, they appeared to be triplets, Two girls, and one boy! With the same red hair and dressed similarly to Fera.

"Sistah!" They shouted in unison, "We saw you coming down the bridge! We missed ya!" They said together. "What's up with your clothes?" One asked, "And who's the outsider?" Another asked, looking at Luz. Luz simply waved at them.

"Hi…" She whispered.

Fera giggled at them, attempting to shake them off of her but it was a futile effort, as they were latched on pretty good to her back and were also using her sword to hold on.

"I've missed you a lot, too, cubs! Now get off meh, your sister-in-law isn't feeling too well!"

The triplets looked over Fera's shoulders and looked at Astrid, just now noticing her unconscious form, they gasped in unison.

"What happened!?"

"Who did this?"

"Who's going to bake cakes now?"

And then they all turned and pointed at Luz.

"Was it her!?" They shouted, before beginning to shout many many questions at Fera and continue to accuse Luz of this most heinous crime while the Princess just stood by, looking towards Fera for a way out.

Fera sighed and shook her head.

"Alright enough, get off!" She shouted and they responded accordingly, standing straight in front of her, saluting at her, "Go get the Healer now, or else sis-in-law will have a hard time makin' ya cakes."

They all gasped before quickly running off towards a wall, they pushed against it and watched as it swung open for them and they ran into what was supposed to be a secret door to their hidden hallways.

Fera sighed, shaking her head before looking down at Astrid, moving the hair off of her face.

"We'll get you fixed up soon, sweetie…" She whispered before looking up, being reminded of Luz. She spotted the Princess looking up at a wall in the hall. It was adorned with a tapestry of an event.

"It's so well made…" She whispered, head moving side to side to capture all the details she could, the tapestry was of two armies meeting in the middle with its two people shaking hands, looking closer, Luz realized something quickly.

"Oh shoot, is that my Dad?" She asked in shock, "He looks so different here…"

The tapestry was indeed of a younger Belos, clad in leather armor and leading an army of masked soldiers with Kikimora at his side, she was wielding a war hammer that was too big for her, naturally.

What seemed to confuse Luz the most was the green-haired, half-masked stranger standing next to Kiki and Belos. She was dressed in a modified version of the Rebellion army's uniform. But by the fact that she was standing next to Belos and Kikimora, she figured that she was important. Especially if she was being depicted in what she assumed to be a historical event.

Speaking of, the tapestry depicted Belos and a female red-headed warrior that was holding a giant sword at their side. They were shaking hands in the middle as their troops held up their weapons with a third fleeing army in the background.

Fera came over.

"Aye, that is your father and this tapestry is a personal favorite of mine," Fera said, "That's my grandmother, Titan rest her soul, shaking hands with your pops. This was right after a great battle, Crisis had tried to wipe our clan off the map that day but in our eleventh hour, your Father, Kikimora, and-" Points at the tapestry, "The Stranger came to our rescue. It was incredible, the Stranger used magic like no one had seen before or has seen since, your father and his generals commanded the entire army and Kikimora was…" She paused, swallowing her pride, "She shook the very Earth with her hammer… My Grandmother allied with them for the rest of the rebellion, even now, the truce holds."

"And this was when Dad was still gathering his forces against the old Emperor?" Luz asked, cracking open her journal to write all of this down, wanting to confirm this detail, "Dad had a lot of allies, I heard."

"That he did and still does, and I'm told that it was one of the greatest battles known in the Isle's history… Well, 'sides the battle against the King of Demons of course."

"Against the King of Demons?" Luz asked, finding the name familiar, as it was synonymous with King himself, the small cute demon, but Fera was probably talking about someone else. The actual King of Demons so she pressed for more info, turning to a new page in her journal.

"Who fought the King of Demons?" She asked.

"Why, your old man of course! The fight was massive, huge, and destroyed the entirety of Chest City… Lots of good folks minding their own business lost their lives during that long, strenuous battle…" She said grimly but continued.

"I still wish I could've helped since Chest City was close to my home… But I wasn't a Coven Head at the time and my father had restricted that anyway, saying we all needed to be ready if the Emperor lost the battle, that we'd be the first line of defense against the King of Demons…" She sighed, "But honestly if your pops had fallen that day, I don't know what an army of drunks would've helped… Just goes to prove that the Emperor is the strongest Witch on the Isles… No offense to your mentor of course." She said with a chuckle.

Luz chuckled back.

"I'm sure she wouldn't mind…" She said, "And, well, if he had won…" She paused, thinking about how to phrase her question, "Then why doesn't he talk about it more often?" She asked, "I'd think something as great a victory against the King of Demons would be something he'd be proud of, right?" She asked.

Fera hummed at the question.

"Well, lassie, not every battle is this epic, fantastical magical duel you'd wish it to be or think it is… The rebellion in all honesty was the bloodiest war the Isles had seen and your pops had to go through every battle, leading his army to take back our home from Crisis… And his fight with the King of Demons was no different, bloody, long, and painful. So let's just say he didn't live through it unscathed, lassie…" She said seriously.

Luz nodded in understanding, still staring up at the tapestry.

"I get it…" She said, bringing a hand up to touch the tapestry, feeling it, "I don't think I'd like to remember a bloody fight either…" She then turned to face Fera, "How unscathed would you say?"

Fera looked at Luz curiously.

"You don't know?" She asked.

Luz sheepishly drove her face into her journal, scribbling faster into the book.

"Well… Dad doesn't like talking about himself… Most of what I know is from history, people who knew or know him, or what my Mom can tell me too…" She said silently, "Like, I didn't even know she existed till now!" She said, pointing at the green-haired Stranger, "Who even were they?"

Fera looked up at the Tapestry.

"Well, the name says it all, doesn't it, lass?" She asked, "She was a Stranger who appeared one day and helped your Father win his war in the final years…" Fera paused, looking around before leaning in close, "Word has it that she was stronger than him…"

"Really!?" Luz asked, "But… Hm… If she was supposedly stronger than Dad and helped him win the war, then where is she now?" She asked, "I'd think that she would help him in the Emperor's Coven or something…"

"Ain't that the million snail question," Fera said, "No one knows, the entire war she was a mystery in every way. Her backstory, motives for helping, palisman, etc were all unknown. She just appeared, helped win the war, and left into the woods. No one knows what happened to her after, not even your father."

Luz went to ask another question when loud and frantic footsteps were heard.

Turning, both Fera and Luz saw that it was a blonde-haired witch with the easily identifiable healer robes, they held a handbag at their side and quickly went over to Fera, inspecting Astrid.

"Ailsa, good to see you again," He said quickly, "I came as soon as your brother's alerted me, what befell her? What or who did this to her?" He asked, taking Astrid away from Fera.

"That's what I want to know meself, but… This is a lead…" Fera said, pulling out a serrated arrowhead, "We found this at the scene."

The Healer took the arrow and drew a spell circle, the arrow glowed blue slightly, humming with his magic.

"Good news is that it's not poisoned, but you see these serrated edges on the arrowhead?" He asked, bringing Fera's attention to it, "This is illegal, only used by specialized groups of sadistic hunters. They must've been organized too if they were able to take down Astrid of all people." He said, shaking his head in disgust, before turning his attention back to Astrid and beginning to rummage through his bag, "But we ought to focus on what's in front of us, right now."

Finally, he found what he was looking for. A small jar of rocks that was adorned with the Healing Coven's logo on it.

"Here we are… May want to cover your nose, ladies, this stuff is strong if you're not used to it…" He said, cracking open the jar slowly. Fera seemed to finally recognize the despicable little jar and pinched her nose tightly. Luz, however, looked on with curiosity.

The Healer finally removed the lid, and almost instantly, Luz was punched with an intense smell that nearly brought her to her knees. It wasn't foul-smelling or even disgusting but very very strong. It reminded her of days when her Mom would deep clean the house with bleach…

All of sudden, her nose began to bleed. She quickly covered her nose in alarm and shock but was pleasantly surprised when the Healer handed her napkins to slow the bleeding, having anticipated this outcome.

She graciously took the napkins and covered her bleeding nose, collecting the blood.

"What the heck is in that jar?" Luz nasally asked.

The Healer brought the jar up to his nose and took a whiff, not at all being affected by the intense and overpowering smell. Most likely immune from constantly using it.

"These bad boys are smelling salts, made from salt that was mined at the bottom of the Boiling Seas. The same salt has been kicking and absorbing magic for the last couple of million years too, so it's pretty strong… Just these small few pieces are strong enough to wake anyone up and disrupt any magically induced slumbers…" He slowly brought the jar to Astrid's face, "If this doesn't wake her, we have a serious problem…"

The healer held up three fingers, beginning to slowly count down. Fera came in close, crouching next to Astrid and holding her hand.

"3… 2… 1…"

What happened next was considerably, very funny to Luz.

Astrid, being woken up by the magic smelling salts, shot up into a sitting position with a shout and instinctively swung a fist at the first thing she saw, which was the Healer but he seemed to anticipate this, as he was ready and had leaned back, dodging the fist and letting Fera take the full force of the punch to the cheek.

Fera held her face in pain.

"SONOFABITCH!" She shouted out, having truly not been expecting the punch.

Astrid covered her mouth in shock, realizing what she's done, she tackled the Coven Head into a hug.

"Oh, Titan, love! I am so sorry!" She apologized, giving Fera a flurry of apology kisses.

Fera chuckled, wrapping her arms around her.

"It's alright, I'm just glad you're alright… You had me so scared there for a minute…" She said.

The Healer quickly capped the smelling salts while they had their reunion and crouched near them.

"Astrid, how are you feeling?" He asked, drawing a spell circle and forming a light orb, "Look into the light…" He whispered, shining the light orb near Astrid's eyes to get a sense of her condition.

Astrid followed the light with a slight thing of annoyance.

"Look, I'm fine, just got a headache is all… Those bastards got me over the head…" She said with a tsk, rubbing her head in pain.

"Could be a concussion…" He said with a hum, "Check in with me for the next few days, wouldn't want to miss anything important. Now, tell us, what happened to you?" He finally asked the million-dollar question.

Astrid closed her eyes, remembering what had happened.

"Well, I heard that you were coming home for the first time in a while, so I decided to go into the forest to gather a few wild herbs- Those always had the best flavor -When I was ambushed."

Fera's eyes narrowed and she slammed her fist into her open palm in a threatening manner.

"Oooooh, when I find out who had the nerve… Tell me, by who?" She asked.

Astrid looked down and away from Fera.

"It was… It was demons…" Turns back to Fera, "But not just any demons, love, they were the Demons of the Hunt…"

Fera's eyes widened and seemed to visibly pale at that.

"Oh no…" She whispered before resting her face in her palm, "It just had to be them of all Demons…"

Luz tilted her head in confusion as if she was a puppy.

"I'm sorry these guys are clearly bad news but they can't be that bad, right?"

Fera turned to face Luz, exhaling through her nostrils before sighing.

"No… I guess you wouldn't think that… There are a lot of groups of interest on the Isles that we Coven Heads are in charge of keeping tabs on, just in case, one just so happens to be a lifelong enemy of my family… At least I don't have to watch the Vampires…"

"The what now?" Luz asked but Fera ignored her and continued to speak.

"The Demons of the Hunt are an ancient clan of demons who live only for the hunt. When it's close to a full moon, they go out to hunt for their stew. They don't discriminate between witches or other demons… Truly, a remnant from the Savage Ages…" She turned to Astrid, "How in the Isles were you not taken?"

"They… They were going to… But Ferguson showed, he protected me…" She pauses, closing her eyes to think before they widen in shock, "They… They took him! They took Ferguson!"

Fera's eyes widened before her face turned into that of a snarl and she stood up from the floor.

"Those bastards…" She growled, cracking her knuckles in a threatening manner, "Don't go blamin' yourself for this, love, now that I know who did this, I'm in the mood to crack some skulls and I'm getting back Fergy…"

"Hold it, lassie, did I hear you're about to fight THE Demons of the hunt over your pet?" A voice asked, seemingly echoing across the hall they were in.

Fera's eyes widened, she'd recognize that voice anywhere.

"Dad…" She whispered with a groan.

Looking, the Group saw a tall man with a graying red beard and equally red short hair, and an eye patch over his left eye. He had a sword that was equally, if not bigger, than Fera's on his hip. It was the Patriarch of the Fera Clan, Duncan Fera. Aka, the Father of Lady Fera herself.

"Now I know ya ain't thinkin of goin' out there to fight them, lass, they'll spot you from miles away,'' He said with a huff, coming up to Fera, placing a hand on her shoulder, "And what if they find out ye a Fera?" He asked, shaking his head, "Ailsa, you'd be walking into a suicide mission…"

Fera scowled at him slightly, slapping away his arm.

"I have to do this, Pops! Ancient customs say that I can't seek help from the warriors of Clan Fera. You know that!"

"Don't preach the customs to me, especially when you went and broke half of them by becomin' a Coven Head in the Emperor's Hierarchy." He said with a huff, crossing his arms, "You know just as well as I that the Demons of The Hunt and the Fera Clan have been at each other's throats for damn near a century and the peace we have right now is shaky right now at best, you'd put the entire family at risk just for the life of your pet."

"Oh and I'm supposed to ignore the fact they were after my wife first!?" She retorted, "Well guess what, Dad, they were. And Fergy is just as much part of this family as anyone else in the clan!"

Duncan sighed, glancing back at Astrid for a moment.

"Ailsa, you must understand…" He said, holding Fera's shoulders once more, "One day, you're going to take head of the Fera Clan after either my death or retirement and for that to happen, you need to understand that your pet isn't worth starting a war over…"

Before Fera could give an outburst of understandable anger, there was a clearing of the throat, looking, they saw Luz was casually standing by, awkwardly twiddling her fingers before she smiled up at them.

"Hey, I couldn't help but get tired of being ignored, but I noticed that you could maybe use some help from a neutral, third party? Such as a very magical human?" She asked with a nervous smile, trying to sound confident, before turning to Duncan, "When's the full moon?"

Duncan gave this odd human a look, wondering how he didn't notice her in the hall with Fera until now.

"The full moon is set to occur in… About a week from now…"

"There we go, then!" She said excitedly, turning back to Fera, "You can teach me enough fighting skills in a week so that we can get Fergy back from those nasty Demons! We can even stealth so they never see us coming!" She said, "If they don't see us, no war, right?"

Fera smiled at that and chuckled, ruffling Luz's hair a bit.

"I knew I liked ya for a reason, lassie! Together, we'll storm their castle, destroy the Master of the Hunt and rescue me Fergy!" Fera turned to Duncan, "Well, old man? What do you say?"

Duncan crossed his arms, closing his one good eye, and exhaled through his nose.

"Fine… Just… Try not to get yourself hurt, Ailsa… I'd hate for you to lose an eye to those bastards like I did." He said, pointing at his eye patch.

Fera smiled widely.

"We promise we'll be fine, Dad." She then turned to Luz, "And together, we can save me Fergy," Sniffs a bit before tears suddenly form and begin to fall, "Before it's too late and he's eaten!"

Fera suddenly broke down into tears, holding Luz and pulling her into the tightest bear hug on this side of the Isles.

"Uhm, Love, I think that the wee lass is turnin' blue?" Astrid pointed out.

"Hm?" Looking down, she saw that Luz looked ready to pass out, her face going through the rainbow, " Oh! Sorry, lassie." She said, releasing her and wiping away the tears from her face.

Luz took a deep breath of air, gasping before violently coughing and finally clearing her throat.

"Oh jeez, I think I saw Death for a minute… They were kinda cute…" She said, coughing a bit more before standing straight, "So, where do we start!? Times a wastin!"

Duncan gave a huff, crossing his arms.

"We ought to arm you first, lass… Can't have you rushing into our sworn enemy's territory without a weapon to your name." He said, pulling out a ring of keys, and going through them, before tossing one of them to Fera.

"Make sure you choose something sharp, lass." He said to Luz before turning to Fera, "And be careful hun."

Fera smiled brightly at her father.

"I always am, Dad!" She said with a bright smile.

Duncan smiled, turning and beginning to walk off.

"I know you will, lass. You have your grandmother's spirit…"

With that final comment, he walked down the hall and made a turn, disappearing into the castle.

Astrid came up, leaning up and kissing Fera on the cheek.

"I'll be in the healing center, the Healer wants to run more tests…" She said softly, before turning to Luz and smiling at her, "And good luck on your training, Human, I wish you luck." She then whispered, "And keep an eye on Fera…" She said before quickly turning and leaving with the Healer.

Luz then turns back to Fera, eyes wide and full of stars.

"So does that mean that I'm finally getting a sword!?" She asked, clearly excited to finally wield a weapon.

Fera nodded, enjoying her excitement.

"Aye, you will, lass but before that, you hungry yet? Cause you can't help me fight an army of demons on an empty stomach."

At the mention of eating, Luz's stomach rumbled and growled at her, she also suddenly felt immensely tired.

"Oh, uh, now that you mention it, yeah I am... Using all that magic made me a bit hungry…" She commented.

Fera chuckled, patting Luz's back.

"Best answer! Follow me to the mess hall and we'll get you some grub before we continue your training," She said, walking out.

Luz quickly followed behind.

"You guys have a mess hall? We don't have a mess hall…" She said, remembering the layout of her home from the fact that she helped rebuild most of it.

"Well, a lot of Clan members make the Castle their home, we need the space to feed them all, you know?" She asked, "Now stay close, wouldn't want you to get lost in here."

The pair made their way through the castle, Luz seeing many relics on display on the walls, as well as show weapons.

If Luz had to assign a feeling that the castle gave off, she had to say that it was… Cozy… To say the least, many Clan members passed them on their way, all greeting Fera but also seemingly missing the shorter Luz at her side.

It made her feel a wee bit small, but that was fine!

Luz was here to train how to use a sword and fight to get Ferguson back! Nothing would discourage her…!

Honestly though, would it kill them to at least nod at her…?

Finally, they reached what they were looking for, the doors to the mess hall.

Fera spared the bravado and swung the doors open, revealing to Luz quite the rowdy scene. Many of the members of the Mess Halls were singing and drinking, others were eating entire slabs of meat, others were having arm wrestling contests, and tables were being broken. All in all, it looked like everyone was having a good time.

Someone seemed to notice Fera before they drunkenly lifted their stein of mead.

"Ailsa back!" They shouted, alerting the entire mess hall.

Everyone stopped what they were doing, drinking, fighting, even a table stopped its path mid-air as they all turned to face Fera.

They all simultaneously lifted their glasses and cheered her name, practically echoing across the entire castle.

"Ailsa!" They shouted, "Welcome home!"

Fera gave a hearty laugh, scratching her neck, as a group of clan members began to play instruments similar to bagpipes, as she and Fera walked into the mess hall.

"Oh, you loveable lot! I'm only here for a wee bit, else I'd have to beat y'all in another drinking competition!" She said with a laugh.

Suddenly, a clan member peaked their head over.

"Hey, who's the wee lass next to Ailsa?"

The music seemed to stop immediately as all attention was now on Luz.

Another clan member chimed in.

"Aye, she's a tiny thing, is she?"

Yet another clan member spoke.

"Shouldn't she be home for her bedtime?"

This caused an uproar of laughter amongst the group and any who could hear.

Luz blushed brightly in embarrassment, clenching her teeth and looking off to the side.

She suddenly felt a challenging nature arise in her chest, being bullied back on Earth, she wasn't about to let it happen again… Especially considering that she was supposed to be a Princess now!

"I'm more than sure that I'm stronger than everyone here!" She said with a huff, silencing the crowd, "And I'm more than willing to prove it!" She challenged the crowd, clenching her fist.

The clan member that started this fiasco rolled his eyes.

"Ooh! And she's feisty too!"

This gave another uproar of laughter to arise from the group.

Luz blushed even brighter, looking off in embarrassment. She clenched her teeth in anger, feeling a bubbling feeling arising in her chest at the sound of their laughing, mocking her for simply existing in their presence. She was ready to say something, but Fera beat her to it.

"ENOUGH!" She shouted, silencing the entirety of the mess hall while Fera glared at the group that started the fiasco.

"Let's show the lady some respect, she's a guest in our home!"

"But we were just—"

Fera suddenly got into his face, silencing him instantly.

"SHUT. UP!" Points to the other, "And you too! This young lady is one of the strongest witches I come to know. She's able to take an Oni's punch and stand back up, heal severe wounds, and has the power to make a castle move! I don't want to hear a bad word about her come out of ANY of your mouths!" She shouted, getting closer to his face, "Got it?"

The clan member nodded quickly, holding his hands up.

"G- Got it, Lady Fera…" He said with a nervous chuckle before quickly running off before he had to face Fera's fury.

Fera chuckled, standing straight once more before turning back to Luz.

"Sorry about that, lassie. You alright?" She asked, coming over and placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Luz smiled up at her, following Fera to a table.

"Thanks, Fera… I appreciate you standing up for me… I wish more people like you existed in the human world when I was growing up.

Fera waved her hand dismissively, leading them to a table as the mess hall began to become loud once more.

"Don't thank me, just take a seat and eat up, I won't be holding back you know? You need all the energy you could get." She said, taking a seat and patting the space next to her. Luz got the message and quickly took the seat.

It didn't take long for the many barmaids strewn about the mess hall to notice that Luz and Fera were without plates and drinks, so they were quick to fly by on their palisman, dropping a set of plates and steins of drinks.

"Sorry, Lady Fera," One barmaid apologized, placing the stein next to Fera, "All we gots is Starfruit juice until later tonight, these brutes have drunk this morning's supply of mead." She said with a chuckle before quickly flying away to attend to other Clan members.

"So I don't get it," Luz said, looking up at Fera, "They call you either Lady Fera or Ailsa, but if this is Clan Fera, isn't everyone here a Fera?" She asked.

Fera shook her head no, beginning to eat her food.

"Not really, lass. Clan Fera is exactly what it's called, a clan under my Family's name. The heads of the Clan are me and my family! Founders and unchallenged leaders!" She said, pointing at herself, "No one here is related by blood at all. We are all just one big ol' clan of idiots who've been protecting the chest since the savage ages! It's our ancestral home, and nothing could take us out of here. Enough history, get to eating before it gets cold." She said, reminding Luz of her appetite.

Luz looked at the plate that was set in front of her, ready to eat but was reminded that the food on the Boiling Isles was barely edible, her Human half barely able to even hold most of the food her Witch half ate... (7) Looking closer at the dish in front of her, it appeared to be a grayish pink sack of sorts, which was giving off steam. The very sight of it brought confusion and a raised brow to the young Princess. As well as several forms of concern, but she just watched Fera eat at it like it was nothing.

Luz poked at it with a fork, wanting to see how it'd react…

"Lady Fera, I'll admit that I'm super hungry and could probably eat a pegasus, but I don't know if I can even down… Whatever this is?" She asked, "It looks like a dissected stomach…"

Fera gave her a curious look, taking a sip of her drink.

"What? Do you want a pegasus?" She asked, reminding Luz that most Witches didn't understand her Human idioms, "It's just haggis, you've never had it before?"

Luz shook her head.

"I'll hold on the pegasus and, definitely not, only rick, chicken, ribs, chimi's, etc… Human food…" She said with a hum.

Fera hummed back.

"Funny... My grandmother got this recipe from her great great great grandmother who met a human once. Said it was a delicacy from a place called... what was it... Scotland?"

Luz cracked open her journal, writing that down for later reference.

"Well," She said between sentences, " I lived on the other side of the world from Scotland so I've never had this before... So, wait, is that why you guys have Scottish accents? Or is it just something that happens across dimensions…" She speculated, before shaking her head, "Ah never mind, you probably don't even call it a Scottish accent…"

Luz stared back at the now identified haggis and gave an unsure hum, closing her journal and stowing it away once more. She felt her stomach rumble a bit as well, urging her to at least take a bite.

"I… Am super hungry…" She said softly.

"Aye! That's the spirit, lassie!" Lady Fera said proudly, before beginning to munch on her food, very unlady-like.

Luz stared at the haggis in front of her with intense eyes, cutting it down the middle and watching its contents spew across the plate. It reminded Luz of potato and ground beef but it certainly didn't smell as such. She wanted to gag, but her hunger was too strong. She took a deep breath and took a scoop of the haggis with a spoon, closing her eyes and bringing it to her mouth, before suddenly-

"STOP!"

Luz dropped the spoon, releasing a breath.

"Oh thank Titan…" She said with a sigh of relief, looking up to find the source of the shout.

Everyone's attention was brought to one end of the mess hall leading up some stairs.

At the top of them was what appeared to be a witch in a brown robe wearing a skull mask and wielding a staff with a similar skull on the top of it. The one thing that ran through Luz's mind was "creepy".

Luz leaned over to Fera, who was still eating as she stared at the figure as well.

"Who's the creepy shaman-looking guy?" She asked silently.

Fera cleared her throat and swallowed.

"That's Tos Vomitar, he's the Druid of our clan." She said, putting down the plate, "He's an older member of the Clan, knew me grandma and everything… He doesn't like outsiders much… He must've found out about you…"

Tos then began to speak out to the group in a language Luz couldn't understand, making gestures that involved pointing and semi-claw grips. Luz stared in confusion.

"What the heck is he saying?" She asked.

"What? Don't know Runic?" Fera asked, confused, "I thought they taught that to the Dítě…"

"Grew up human, remember?" Luz whispered, still looking as Tos pointed at Luz several times and made several gestures, "Why do I feel like I should be getting mad?" She asked.

"Well, you should, he says that he sees you as a "softie" and that you can't possibly be fit to help take Fergy back from the Demons of the Hunt… He also called you skinny and short…" Listens to Tos Vomitar some more, "He says that to prove yourself, you've got to complete the Test of Strength. Only then will you be allowed to help me."

Luz looked a bit worried.

"And what does that Test entail, exactly?" She asked.

"Ya got to throw a rock. You can throw a rock, can't ya?" Fera asked simply.

Luz raised an eyebrow.

"Of course I can throw a rock, who can't throw a rock?"

Fera then stood up.

"Let's get to it then!"

In one fluid motion, Fera scooped Luz onto her shoulder and ran off, much of the clan and Tos following behind.


-Outside-


Most of the clan, including Luz and Fera, were now standing in a green field just outside the castle, on a cliff that overlooked the Boiling Sea.

At the moment, a large and very muscular member of the clan hoisted and hocked a boulder around the size of his chest away from him, it flew hard and fast from him, practically disappearing into the ocean, earning a roar of cheers from the other clan members.

Fera clapped along with them, laughing a bit.

"Looks like we're in good shape, Princess…" She whispered, "Angus's throws always stunk, here…"
Fera was seen scouring the field before finding a "rock" that was around Luz's size and handing it to her.

"Just throw this wee stone past Angus's and you'll pass the test, easy."

Luz, while strong enough to carry the rock, couldn't seem to get a good grip on it, as it was in fact a large boulder and not a rock. She did eventually get a good hold on it after a few moments.

"S- So I just have to chuck this thing across the water?" She asked, looking up at Fera, "Is there a limit on how far I can throw this?"

Fera shook her head no, stepping aside.

"None at all! Just give it all you got and Luz?"

"Yeah…?"

"Make them regret laughing at you…" Fera said with a smirk, crossing her arms, "Consider this another test…"

Luz nodded, turning forward and walking up to the edge of the cliff, walking past many of the Clan members. They were all mumbling and pointing at her, even snickering at her.

"Look at her… She's such a dainty thing… How is she even holding it…? Must be taking every ounce of her strength…"

Luz narrowed her eyes and finally reached the edge of the cliff.

It seemed that no matter where she went, people would always judge her at first glance… But… She'd prove them all wrong…

"I'm not weak… I'll show you…" She said to nobody in particular before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, focusing. Luz felt her magic coursing through her veins, her arms, legs, and body, every part of it coursed with her magic and from her focus.

The mutter of the clan quickly became nonexistent, as they all began to feel the power radiating off this young girl, it was an intense feeling to feel all that magic coming off a single girl.

"What the blazes…" One asked, turning to a smirking Fera, "Aisla, who is this girl?"

Fera snickered behind her teeth, covering her mouth with a hand.

"Just… A strong Emperor's Coven Recruit…" She said, "Give them hell, Luz!" Fera shouted with a smile.

Luz's eyes snapped open, they flashed golden for a moment before settling back to brown.

She took her stance and began to spin, gaining speed before digging her foot into the ground, halting her momentum and sending it all into her right arm that was throwing the stone, adding massive amounts of strength into it as well.

BOOM

Once again, thunder boomed across the Isles as the round stone sailed out of Luz's hands, instantly breaking through the sound barrier and sending a shockwave that knocked the unprepared off their feet and onto the behinds. Fera and Tos were one of the few members that seemed to see this coming, and properly readied themselves. Fera stomping her feet into the earth and Tos having roots wrap around his legs to secure him in place.

Luz was also seemingly unprepared for the amount of force and magic that was put into the throw, flying back a bit and onto her back. She quickly scrambled to her feet, watching the path of the stone as it flew far into the horizon before it completely blinked out of view.


-Elsewhere, high above, in the air-


Hunter was focused, his airship on autopilot as he practiced his stances with the new magic staff he had acquired from his master. It seemingly flowed with magic of its own, felt cold to the touch, and was perfectly weighted. The metal ends also looked like they'd give anyone a pretty nasty headache.

"Just three more months until I'm home…" He said with a breath, wiping away the sweat from his practice. Suddenly, he heard a whistling and a fast-approaching object in the distance.

He narrowed his eyes, going to the edge of the airship, and looked a bit closer.

"Is that…" He didn't get a chance to confirm his thoughts, as a stone ball careened through the balloon of his airship, leaving behind a large hole that quickly began to take him out of the air.

"Shit shit shit…" He mumbled, quickly running the wheel of the ship and taking control, looking across the waters and spotting a landmass, he released several sandbags of weight from the side of the airship, allowing him to more easily control the descent of the ship.

"I swear if I find out who threw that Titan forsaken stone…" He grumbled to himself as he made a controlled crash landing on the shore, internally sighing about the massive setback.


-Back on the Isles-


Luz got to her feet, dusting herself off before turning to the shocked clan members. Many with gaping mouths, others with wide eyes. She blushed in embarrassment at their staring, before clearing her throat slightly.

"I uh…" She mumbled, stretching her throwing arm a bit with a small smile, "I think that was a good throw?" She asked, rather than stated.

It was silent before a clan member chimed in.

"Three cheers for the lass!"

This broke them out of their staring, shouting and beginning to cheer the word "lass" multiple times, Fera coming over and picking up Luz, placing her on her shoulder.

"I knew you could do it, lassie!" She said proudly, beginning to walk through the Clan that continued to cheer Luz as she and Fera made their way out of the field.

Luz smiled, waving at the many clan members, giving them high-fives and fist bumps or even a firm handshake as well.

"Where are we going now?" Luz asked, just now realizing that she and Fera were moving away from the crowd.

"First, the tailor to get you a proper set of training attire, then the armory, and then we'll start your proper training so that you're not unprepared when we rescue Fergy."

Luz nodded in understanding.

"Alright… Thank God, too, I don't want to run in guns blazing without any ammo…" She said with a chuckle.

"What in the Titan's name is a gun?"

Luz went to explain, but closed her mouth, shaking her head, deciding that Fera wouldn't understand no matter how hard she explained it

"A human realm weapon, don't worry about it too much. What kind of weapons do you guys have in the armory, anyway?" She asked, looking down at Fera, "Knowing you guys so far, it's probably the heaviest things I've ever seen."

Fera chuckled at that, nodding as she once again re-entered the Fera clan castle.

"Oh, that's a definite yes, lassie." She said, "We've been collecting weapons in the Armory since the Savage Ages. A lot of them have profound history attached to them, and lucky you, you get to choose one of them." She said, still leading them inside of the castle, eventually placing Luz down once they reached a set of large double doors, a common theme here in the Fera Clan Castle, it would seem.

"Here we are!" Fera said excitedly, pulling out the key her father gave her, "Now, we are in a sort of a rush, but take your time in choosing what weapon best suits you. It's the weapon that calls you, not the other way around." Fera informed as she unlocked the door and swung it open dramatically, "Other than that, welcome to the personal Fera Family Armory!"

Luz walked into the room, the walls were lined with an assortment of countless swords, giant swords. As well as many great axes, blades, maces, morning stars, blunt weapons and clubs and just about everything else in between. It was almost comical the number of brutish weapons that were kept here.

Of course, our Luz was absolutely amazed to see it all with her own eyes.

"Oh my gosh! An actual armory!" She said as if she wasn't informed already that this was where they were going, "Are any of these enchanted!?" Luz asked.

Fera gave an absentminded hum before she grabbed a sword out of a bucket labeled "Magic Swords" and swung it, resulting in a wave of ice magic.

"I'd say yes, but enchanted weapons like this are a dime a dozen, Princess. Look for something that calls out to you. Take your time, it took me a good month to find ol' Ruth here!" She said, lifting her great sword, "Best sword a Witch could ask for."

Luz nodded, turning back to the many weapons in the armory, the number of options just now registering in her mind.

"Oh Jeez there's so much stuff…" She said, feeling slightly overwhelmed.

Fera placed a hand on Luz's shoulder, patting it.

"Just take your time and choose what you feel is right to ya, warriors always have a sense of the "feel" of the right weapon."

Luz hummed, unsure of herself.

"But I'm no warrior… And I'm barely a Princess either…" She whispered to herself, beginning to look through all the weapons that were strewn about, "And I can barely lift half of these, practically…" She commented.

Expectedly, to Fera, Luz would spend upwards of thirty minutes going through all the many weapons in the Fera Clan's position. She would test each one that caught her eyes and decide that it wasn't for her. Be it from it not feeling right or her simply fumbling with it and nearly taking her arm off.

"Ughhhh…" She groaned, dropping yet another sword and letting it clatter to the floor, "This feels impossible…" She was about ready to give up on this search when, all of sudden, something caught her eye.

It was a long, wooden box chest of sorts. Upon closer inspection, however, Luz identified that the wood was some sort of black stone with intricate designs and runes etched into it but the most prominent detail of the stone chest was the rather stylized "AZ" etched into the face of the lid.

"Woah…" She was in amazement, feeling something coming off of the chest as if it was calling to her, "This must be that weapon calling to the warrior thing Fera was talking about…" She turned to Fera, who was dozing off in a chair, "Fera!"

She jolted in place and cleared her throat, rubbing her eyes slightly.

"Y- you found something, Princess?" She asked.

"I think so…" Luz said with a hum, looking down at the chest again, "What's in this weird chest?" She asked.

Fera looked at the stone chest and gave it a confused look, raising a brow.

"Huh… You know, I never noticed that in here before?" Walks over, inspecting it, "Well, I can tell that it's old." She tried to open it, but found magical resistance, "And enchanted..." She stood straight, stroking her chin in thought, "Maybe my dad knows something about it?" She theorized.

Luz suddenly lifted the chest above her head with ease.

"Then let's go see if we can bother him for the key!" She said, sounding rather excited about the mystery that was now presented to her, "What if it's a super powerful weapon from before the savage ages!?"

Fera shook her head.

"A lot of those weapons are lost to ruins scattered across the Isles, and even then, the savage ages were centuries ago. Any weapons from then are most likely lost… Maybe…" She said, beginning to lead her and Luz to her Father's study, "Let's just hope that ma's there to keep him in a good mood."

Luz was quick to keep on Fera's tail, carrying the chest with her. As they walked, Luz constantly inspected it, especially the "AZ" on the face of the chest. Most likely, they were the initials of its previous owner.

"I wonder who AZ was?" She asked herself with a hum.

It took a minute, but the pair finally reached the other end of the castle, where Duncan Fera's study was. Fera wasted no time in disturbing the peace of the castle by banging on the door.

"Aye, Dad! We found somethin' in the armory you need to see!" She shouted, banging on the door some more.

A deep sigh could be heard before distant footsteps, until finally, Duncan opened the door, looking annoyed.

"What have I told you about banging on doors? What did you find?" He asked, crossing his arms with a grumble.

Luz held up the chest.

"This thing, sir! It has AZ on it and it's locked!" She exclaimed, "Is it special?"

Duncan looked down at the chest, his one eye widening in slight surprise.

"I had almost forgotten about that old thing…" He said softly, reaching into his jacket and pulling out an equally intricate key that matched the chest, "Set it down lassie," He told Luz, to which she did so.

"This blasted thing has been in our armory for Titan knows how long, your grandmother gave me the key for it before she bit the dust…" He said, inserting the key into the lock, the chest's intricate designs lit up, suddenly glowing blue before the breaking of a chain was heard as he twisted the key, and opened the lid of the chest for the girls to see what was inside.

It was a thin long sword, with an intricately made cross guard and a leather-wrapped grip and what appeared to be a silver encased blue gem as the pommel. It was stainless and glimmered in what light cut through the windows of the castle, it looked practically untouched but Luz felt that this sword was most definitely used in the past, it just… Gave off an unidentifiable vibe to her…

She reached out for the handle when-

"It's yours if you can handle it…" Duncan said cautiously.

Luz reeled her hand back a bit.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Anyone who's tried to wield this blade has ended up being drained of their magic by the sword. It's an extremely powerful relic from even before the savage ages. If you can hold onto it without passing out, it'll be yours."

Luz looked at him curiously.

"Just like that?" She asked, unsure.

"Just like that." He confirmed with a nod, "Think you can handle it?"

Luz looked down at the blade, many possibilities going through her mind but all fell through to the one thought, "What could really go wrong?".

"Well… Maybe… I do have magic to spare!" She said with a bit of pride before reaching out and grabbing the handle of the sword and lifting it from the chest.

In an instant, the blue gem hummed and glowed and flashed at Luz, and a set of glowing words appeared to her in English on the sword. She held the sword and read the words aloud.

"A familiar soul grabs the…" She squinted at the word, "S… Ve…" She struggled to read the word.

Fera looked over.

"That says Světlonoš, dearie, it means Lightbringer in Demon." She clarified.

Luz blushed in embarrassment and continued reading.

"Face this trial and prove your worth of her blade…" Luz finished, "Her blade? Is it talking about the previous owner?" She asked.

Before any answers could be exchanged, the blue gem flashed once more, and a swirl of blue magic wrapped around Luz's arm before it transitioned to her signature golden hue and the magic began to be sapped into the gem itself, seemingly feeding itself after being starved for magic for probably thousands of years.

Duncan was right to have warned her, the enchanted sword felt as if it was draining her of every last ounce of her magic from the very palm of her hand but she held on, knowing that she could take this greedy sword's draining capabilities.

A moment later, however, pain began to arise in her chest, more specifically, in her heart. The golden glow began to flicker and buzz as if it was a dying lightbulb. Her vision began to fade as well and she fell to one knee.

"O- Oh geez…" She whispered with a pant, "That's taking… A lot… Of magic…" She whispered.

Fera crouched near her.

"Lassie, let go of the sword, I can feel it, you're almost out of magic." Fera waned, holding Luz's shoulder, "You're not strong enough to withstand the blasted sword's drain!"

Luz clenched her teeth and got back to her feet and hardened her stance and brought her other hand to hold the sword as well, tightening her hold.

"I- I got this! I'm… I'm not weak!" She shouted, her iris' flickering between blue and brown before she closed her eyes to focus, "AND THIS STUPID SWORD ISN'T GOING TO WIN!" She shouted, eyes gleaming with her golden magic once again and whisps leaking from them.

The swords draining of her magic suddenly became faster and harsher at her heightened level of magic, she lifted the blade above her head and stared it down before clenching her teeth and giving a loud shout.

Duncan and Fera averted their eye(s) away from Luz, the light she exuded being quite bright and representative of her name as well.

Moments later, the light finally died away to reveal a rather tired-looking Luz, eyes back to normal and the sword was no longer draining her of her magic.

New words were on the sword, Luz read them out loud.

"You… Are worthy to be the Successor…" She said out loud as they faded away, before falling back on her behind, "Oh gosh, I'm so tired…" She whispered, laying back, "I think… I'll… Mmmm…"

Duncan rubbed his eye, looking down at the very tired Luz.

"Aisla, just who is this human girl with magic?" He asked, "She seems stronger than you and I both combined…" He whispered to her.

Fera nodded, glancing at Luz, rubbing her sore jaw.

"I can't tell you that one, pops, just trust me that she's here for good reasons…" She said softly with a smile.

Suddenly, they watched as Luz got back to her feet, stumbling a bit.

"Alright… Not unconscious… I'm getting used to it, I think…" She then heard and felt a rumbling, however, "Ugh… I'm hungrier more than ever though…"

Fera laughed a bit, coming over and petting Luz's back.

"Tell you what, that Haggis is never enjoyed by guests, we'll hunt you a meal."

"Hunt?" Luz asked in worry.

"Don't worry about that for now, how's that dainty thing feel?" She asked, looking at the long sword that never left Luz's hold.

Luz held it up, angling it so that she could see her reflection.

"It feels…" She paused, smiling at herself, "Like it was made for me…"

And it truly felt like it, too. The weight was perfectly balanced in her hold, the sound it made when she swung it in the air was euphoric and pleased her ears. The cross guard perfectly protected her hand and the handle felt amazing to hold… A true work of art by a master, if she had to guess…

"And, Mr… Fera, sir," She looked towards him, "You don't know where it came from?" She asked.

Duncan shook his head no, crossing his arms.

"I don't know much but all I do know is that Light bringer belonged to a very good witch, you could say… Or at least… That's what dear ol' mom always told me."

Luz stared into her reflection in the blade once again.

"A good witch, huh…?" She asked with a hum.

Her eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Zul shimmering in the reflection.

"Princess!" She yelled, pointing at a bloody carved watch on her wrist, it even ticked, "You're missing your lessons! Hurry and finish so you can make it back!" She said before disappearing again.

Luz tsked.

"One minute she's trying to take me over and the next, she wants to keep teaching me about demonology…" She whispered lowly to herself, shaking her head.

Duncan looked over at Fera.

"Make sure you teach her how to use that long sword, I don't want to explain to her parents why she fell in a fight she had no business being in," He said.

Fera smiled with pride, crossing her arms as well.

"Of course I will, old man! She'll take down droves of those pesky demons, just you wait and see!" Fera then turned and picked up Luz, setting her on her shoulder once more, "Alright lassie, time to get started on your training! Bye pops!"

Luz turned to Duncan, waving at him.

"Thank you, sir! I appreciate the sword!" She looked down at Fera, "Where are we going?" She asked.

"To get you fitted in proper gear and a sheath for that pointy thing," Fera told her.

"Sweet! New outfit!" She said with an excited giggle.

Duncan watched them leave before humming to himself.

"I can't believe he was right…" He hummed to himself before turning and once again entering his study.


-Meanwhile-


It was at the same time that Luz was being outfitted, that Lilith Clawthorne was training Amity Blight. After the walking castle incident, it was decided by Lilith that she would train Amity with a more hands-on approach to magic, as she watched what was essentially a daughter to her almost get killed by that brute of an Oni… It didn't help that she was reminded of Hunter in Amity, especially in her drive and skill that rivaled his amazing prodigal senses.

So their training changed, instead of books and methods, she was granted permission to be more hands-on.

Much more hands-on…

"Too slow," Lilith said, suddenly sweeping under Amity and taking her off of her feet once again, earning a groan from the Mint-haired girl. This was probably the fifth time today.

Lilith stood straight, coming over and looking down at Amity, her staff firmly in hand.

"Come on, now, Amity. How do you expect to join the Emperor's Coven if you keep falling for something as simple as that?" She asked, helping Amity to her feet once again, "You are usually more focused, is something on your mind, perhaps?"

Hearing the question, Amity looked off to the trees, being reminded of her annoying siblings and their teasing throughout the entirety of this month… On how Amity most definitely had a crush on Luz, the actual Princess of the Isles.

She kept finding herself in the pit hole of her siblings bringing up Luz's contact info as evidence of her crush on the Half-Human, naturally, she'd be able to defend it as "she's actually the Princess" but to do that would mean severe treason and petrification by Emperor Belos, so she endured… And kept enduring for the sake of national security and her family's sake too.

It was, however, the constant teasing that seemed to stay persistent in her mind. She was sure that it was just a random idea brought upon by her siblings' weird theories they liked presenting to her… But… Was it just that anymore?

The Princess had been sending Amity photo after photo of herself getting stronger while working on the castle and Amity had saved every last one… It was a forming collection of memories that Amity was beginning to cherish, as well as the text chat logs between the two of them.

Amity sighed, leaning before falling onto her back amid the clearing.

"I'm sorry, it's just…." She sighed again, sitting up, "There's been a lot on my mind, lately…"

Lilith hummed in thought, stroking her chin in thought, she crouched in front of Amity and twirled a finger, casting a spell and making a water bottle appear in Amity's hand.

"You know, a good witch has a clear mind, do you wish to speak about what's been on yours?" She asked caringly, taking a seat across from Amity, "I'm sure it'd help you along… Considering…" She checked a watch, "You'll be here for the rest of the week."

Amity blushed slightly, looking away from Lilith's eyes.

"You'd think it's silly and inappropriate…" She muttered.

Lilith could only raise a brow at that, being reminded of a younger and shy Hunter, before chuckling softly.

"That's nonsense, Amity, just speak your mind. I will not judge you."

Amity took a deep breath before exhaling.

"Have you… Ever had a crush before…?"

Lilith's face shifted to one of understanding, humming and nodding along.

"Oh of course I have, sadly, most of mine were not meant to be. Just playground love, I suppose… Do you have one? Are they the reason you've been distracted?"

"I guess so… I… I caught myself looking at their pictures more and more often and missing them more and more and being sad when they go to sleep and I can't text them anymore…" She looked down, face red and heated, "You'd probably freak out about who it is too…"

That just made Lilith very curious.

"Freak out, huh?" She asked, "So I know them? Could it be that Willow girl you've recently reconnected with, as of late?" She asked, giggling.

Amity quickly shook her head.

"No! Why does everyone think that…" She whispered, "She's more like another sister to me if anything else…"

"Hm, I see… Then, pray tell, who is it? I must admit, you've made me interested."

Amity suddenly blushed even brighter, looking down at her lap.

"It's…" She mumbled the rest, low enough that Lilith couldn't hear or make out anything but the first word.

"I'm sorry, Amity but what was that? You were mumbling." She said, wishing for a more clear answer.

Amity sighed, clenching her leggings and looking up at Lilith.

"I said… It's… The Princess…"

Lilith's eyes widened in shock, but her face transitioned to that of a smile quickly.

"Oh… Oh my… That is quite the surprise…"

Amity groaned, covering her face as her blush became brighter.

"I know… I don't know what to do, I'm so embarrassed…"

Lilith giggled a bit more at her apprentice's attitude, never really seeing this side of her before, it was cute, but she cleared her throat.

"Amity, please don't be embarrassed, it's completely normal for a girl your age to feel that way." She said, placing a comforting hand on Amity's shoulder, "Just breathe, how long have these feelings been there? Since the castle incident?"

Amity removed her hands from her face and nodded.

"Yeah, more or less…" Takes a deep breath, "But I know this'll only be one-sided to begin with…" She said, picking up a stone from the ground, "She's the Princess and I'm… just some rich girl who hated her not even a month ago…" She said, throwing the stone at the trees with a loud groan, "I hate myself for acting like that…"

Lilith pouted slightly.

"Amity, dear, you can't think like that, you must remember, the Princess grew up humble, in the human realm, away from luxury and fame. As a normal person until a few short months ago. Abyss below, she doesn't even like being called Princess. I'm more than sure that status won't be a factor she even considers."

"I know that Luz is too good to be a snobby Princess… But what if my mom finds out about this? You know how she is about our Family's image and being in favor of the Emperor..."

Lilith exhaled through her nose, shaking her head with a slight chuckle.

"Yes, growing up, Odalia was always pressured by her Mother to be the best there ever was, I see that she continued that tradition along with you… But your mother won't find out, it'll be OK, Amity. Are you perhaps worried that if she finds out, she will attempt to get you two to be together?" She asked.

Amity smiled slightly, nodding.

"Well, yeah, kind of. She'd be like-" Stands up suddenly and began speaking in a perfect imitation of her mother's voice, "Amity, this will be a grand opportunity! With your close bond with the Princess, the Emperor's Coven will surely be willing to provide untold funding for the Company's various projects!" She exclaimed with a huff before falling back once more, "It makes me sick…" She said normally.

"Ah, yes, that sounds just like her," Lilith said with a laugh, smiling at her apprentice, "I've known Odalia since my Hexside years. Her family was just one on a hill in a big house, nothing to their name, and she was driven by her mother to fix that at all costs. So, she married your father, Alador, and with him, formed Blight Industries, and only then did she fall in love with him," She said, shaking her head, "Odalia has always been about success first, emotions third."

Hearing that her parents fell in love only because of their proximity at work made Amity slightly sad, but knowing her mother, it wasn't hard to visualize it. She sighed, sitting up in front of Lilith once again.

"That seems about right… So, what do I do about this? I can't just go up to her and say, "Hey, Princess! I like you! Want to go out?" Amity groaned at herself, hiding her face in a fetal position, most likely blushing brightly once more.

Lilith smirked, placing a comforting hand on Amity's head.

"Would you believe that this isn't the first time I've had a conversation like this?" She asked with a chuckle.

"Really?" Amity asked, "Who was the first…? Was it the Princess?" She asked, sounding more hopeful than she should've been.

Lilith shook her head.

"No, no, but rather the Golden Guard. I did practically raise him, after all."

Amity then pulled out a book, crossing a sentence out in it.

"Well, that's one theory that the Twins were right about…" She whispered, before looking up at Lilith again, "You wouldn't happen to be his Mom, right?"

Lilith shook her head no, laughing slightly.

"No, he's not my son but our relationship is very much that of Mother and Son. I'll tell you the same thing I told him when he went through his own "crush" of sorts," She leaned forward, looking Amity in her eyes, "Do not rush things. Not to discourage or negate your feelings, but I believe you should put a pin in those feelings for now and focus on making sure the things you feel are real. For all we know, it could simply be an enamoration for her and nothing more. I don't want you to get hurt because you rushed into things, OK?" She asked, "Just take your time with it all."

Amity sighed, leaning back and staring at the sky.

"Alright… I'll wait till then," She stood up and stretched a bit, "What's next on the agenda?" She asked.

Lilith smiled, standing up as well.

"Tell me, Amity, do you know of a previous Coven Head? Before our Lord Valgur?"

Amity hummed in thought, crossing her arms as she thought.

"Yeah, I remember, it was Lord Darius." She said, "Dad was never fond of him, and called him an overzealous and prideful Abomination user. From the sound of him, I don't think I would've liked him either, always sounded like he was on a flying pegasus." (8)

"Yes, but while he was a pretentious fool, he did have a few solid techniques and very strong magical talent. One of these techniques was the ability to be one with his creations and his magic... So much so, that he became more Abomination than Witch in the end, as reflected in his hair turning into living Abomination goo." Lilith said with a nod, pacing across the field, "For example…"

Amity watched as Lilith rose an arm towards her before she clenched her fist. In an instant, Lilith's arm turned into purple abomination goo.

"Lord Darius' techniques were quite incredible but also extremely high-level and even harder to master. Abyss, I can manage an arm before I begin to feel winded." She said, shaking her hand and turning it back to normal with a deep sigh, "I want you to use these techniques as a base for the new magic you will be learning today."

Amity looked unsure.

"Are you sure, Lilith?" She asked, "Darius was a coven head, I'm just a top student at Hexside who gets good grades, do you think I can do what he does?"

Lilith cast a spell, and a pair of books appeared in Amity's hands. At first glance, one seemed to be a handbook and another an… Autobiography?

"I know you can, Amity. Your skill is profound and amazing. You are not only at the top of your class but also your school. You are meant for great things and I will help you along every step of the way."

Amity smiled at that, appreciating the praise before looking down at the books she was given.

"Lord Darius' venture into Madness." And… "The small book on teleportations, substitutions, blips, and flash spells," She read aloud, "I'm learning teleportation magic?" She asked incredulously, looking up at Lilith, "I thought you said that that was too high-level magic for me?"

Lilith nodded.

"I did… But, the thing is, you've been making great strides in your training since the walking castle incident. I'd say that you're already at the level of an Emperor's Coven recruit." She said, "It's time you began learning magic suitable to your skill level, else you become complacent and stagnant."

Lilith then tapped the face of the book, the autobiography.

"I want you to use Lord Darius' abomination techniques…" She then pointed at the teleportation book, "...As a base to make a substitution clone, seeing you get caught in the hands of the Oni struck a fear in my heart, so we will make sure it never happens again."

"I was fine, you know," She said, remembering that day very clearly, "Titan, Luz was ready to sacrifice herself to save me from the Oni…" She said with a sigh, "It was so admirable, I still can't believe it…"

Lilith smiled, snapping her fingers.

"Focus Amity, we can daydream later," Lilith said.

Amity blushed brightly, flipping open the books and driving her face into the book.

"R- right…" She whispered lowly to herself.

After a good while of reading and understanding the material before her, Amity hummed, feeling like she was getting a grip on the magic and the way it worked.

"So Darius used magic throughout his entire body to turn into an Abomination, but was susceptible to colder weather and ice spells… Alright… So, using that with a substitution spell…" She whispered to herself, her head aflame in brainstorming, ideas, and connecting solutions together.

She pulled out a pen and wrote a few things down in both books before nodding to herself.

"Alright… I think I got something…" She said, looking up at Lilith, "But what if it goes wrong?" She asked.

Lilith smiled at her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I'd never allow for you to come to harm, Amity, but don't you worry about that, I have a spell for if you severely mess up, I'll be able to bring us back by one minute." She whispered to her, "So go for it, Amity, show me what you came up with."

Amity nodded and closed her eyes. Lifting a hand, she began to draw the spell circle when, suddenly, Lilith shot out and grabbed her hand. Her eyes shot open and it was clear that she was confused at the reaction.

Lilith looked slightly disheveled, unlike a few moments before.

"Let's uh…" She cleared her throat, straightening her posture once more and combing her hands through her hair, "Let's focus more on teleporting, rather than becoming the abomination itself…"

Amity's eyes widened at that.

"What- How did you know what I was thinking-" She stopped herself, realizing a few things after inspecting Lilith's form, "Ohhh it went wrong, didn't it…?" She asked with a hiss and clenched teeth.

Lilith nodded grimly.

"Horribly… Just- Be very careful, you're only replacing yourself with an abomination, not turning into one. Only Darius could do something like that and sur-" She stopped, clearing her throat, "Anyways," She released Amity's hand, "Go ahead, I can cast the minute spell two more times before I can't cast it again for a while."

Amity nodded and, once again, lifted a finger, closing her eyes and beginning to slowly draw the spell circle, pulling the very magic from her heart to impose her very will upon the weave that was granted to them by the Titan.

As she drew the circle, she kept in mind Lilith's words, "Use it to replace yourself, not becoming one…" She could get seriously messed up if she failed or even die… She couldn't allow that, too much was riding on her success on this high-level spell. Her mother, who demanded results, her siblings, who teased her for not being able to cast a fireball spell yet…

Luz…

Amity's eyes shot open with a blush and her eyes flashed purple with her magic as she completed her spell circle.

Suddenly, Amity was no longer standing across from Lilith but rather, across the field and in a tree, standing on top of a branch. Unexpecting this result, Amity shouted in surprise and stumbled greatly.

"Woah Woah Woah!" She yelled before stumbling and falling off the branch only to suddenly be caught by a blue glow of Lilith's magic.

"Impressive, Amity," She placed her down as she walked over to her, "I didn't even see the switch happen…"

Amity panted a bit, the fall taking the breath out of her.

"Didn't see it…? What do you…"

Amity looked around the clearing and her eyes widened at the near-perfect clone of herself that was standing in her original spot. She ran over and inspected herself with a look of amazement at the unexpected accomplishment.

"I wasn't trying to make such a perfect clone of myself… I didn't even think it was possible to do something like this." She said, reaching out to touch her clone's face, "It looks just like-" She touched its face and its skin instantly turned purple, before the many abomination eyes opened at the same time before, finally, it fell apart into a puddle of goo.

"-Me… Ugh… It didn't last long…" Amity said with a tsk, crossing her arms and pouting, "Useless…" She mumbled.

Lilith couldn't help but see herself in Amity, always putting herself down because she knew she could do better at any cost, it circled back to the many things she's done to get where she was now. She shook her head and went over to Amity.

"Don't diminish your success because you didn't cast the spell 100% right the first time, dear, you used a lot of magic to make a near perfect clone of yourself and teleport across the field, all the while, I didn't even spot the change happen." She said, smiling at her, "It's good to be critical of yourself, but do try to see the success in yourself as well. So keep trying, work now on aiming where you teleport to. Wouldn't want you to end up mid-air, now would we?"

Amity smiled softly, standing up straight once again, determined to get the spell down perfectly.

"Alright… I got this… I got this…" She whispered to herself and drew the spell circle again, focused on teleporting across the field.

Once again, a clone was left behind and she had overshot her desired destination by a few… Thousand feet…

She gave a yelp and a scream as she began to fall through the air before suddenly stopping, Lilith holding her, now sitting on her staff.

"Let's picture the ground next time, yeah?" Lilith asked with a chuckle, looking down at Amity.

"Y- yeah…" She whispered, looking down at the ground far, far below.

This went on for several moments, Amity attempting the spell and an unforeseen reaction happening. It was pretty comical at certain points and dangerous at others, but Lilith was there to catch her if she fell, sometimes literally.

At the end of it, Amity was now completely out of breath and tired, lying on her back and staring up at the sky.

"Oh Titan, I'm exhausted…" She glanced over at Lilith, who was standing nearby.

"Simply amazing, Amity, you improved your casting of the spell greatly in the last hour, it's something to be proud of, truly." She complimented, summoning a water bottle to Amity's hands, "But more than that, I'm proud of you, Amity. Your progress seems to be skyrocketing at an amazing rate, ever since you met the Princess, you're certainly getting stronger by the day."

Amity chuckled as she chugged most of the water before starting to take small sips, sighing in relief at the cool feeling that rushed through her.

"Yeah… I guess you're right about that, maybe you can say she helped inspire me in a way?"

Lilith gave Amity a knowing look, a teasing smirk that Amity could spot anywhere.

"Ah, hoping to impress the Princess with your impressive magic ability?" She teased with a giggle.

Amity flared up with a heavy blush.

"W- What!? Y- You don't know what y- you're talking about! Shut up!" She said quickly, looking away with a huff, face still bright red.

Lilith giggled at her reaction.

"I only tease, but yes, I know what you mean. The Princess has done much and improved even more in her two months here, it's amazing the impact of a single person."

Amity hummed at that statement… Feeling it resonates with her.

"Yeah… I can't imagine what I'd still be like if I hadn't met her…"

"Yes, Yes, I know what you mean, and I'm very proud of your growth, Amity. I remember, I once did all I could to get ahead in life and I still live to regret it, to this day."

"You mean… With your sister?" Amity asked.

Lilith nodded with a slight sigh, before smiling.

"Yes… So it makes me all the prouder to be your teacher and watch you become a better person than I was when I was your age."

While Amity would never dare say it, or even dare mention it, she would always see Lilith Clawthorne as the mother Odalia wasn't, it gave her a very warm feeling inside, even more so to hear Lilith say she was proud of her and her growth as a person.

Amity smiled, scratching her neck and turning away slightly, taking a few extra sips of her water.

"Thanks, Ms. Lilith, that… Means a lot…" She said softly.

Lilith hummed at that.

"Ah, I can only imagine…" She said, standing up and summing her staff to her hand, "One final lesson and we shall be done for today and then we can set up camp for the night."

Amity got to her feet, looking up at Lilith.

"What are we doing now?"

"Well," Lilith began, "I believe, with you being my protégé, you are sure to take a position in the Emperor's Coven, one day... So we must begin branching off to other sects of magic, I believe you are ready for it."

Amity's eyes widened at that.

"But I thought you had said that you wanted me to master Abomination magic first?" She asked.

"Yes, I did say that, but it is clear that you are already quite skilled in it, and time flies by quicker than one would like, as you know." She said with a smile.

Amity nodded.

"Alright, I'm ready when you are…" She said, getting into position to cast a spell.

Lilith smiled.

"Yes, you are always ready... but are you ready for Construction Magic?" She asked, tapping her staff into the ground and suddenly causing a wave of spikey earth to shoot out at Amity.

Amity felt her muscles tense and quickly cast the spell she was practicing, a clone taking her place and the earth stabbing through it instead. She had ended up on the opposite side of Lilith.

"A- A little extreme, don't you think?" Amity asked with a nervous chuckle.

"I forget I am not training the Golden Guard anymore," She said with a laugh, "Forgive me for acting like my sister with a surprise attack, but your reaction time was flawless, and you needn't worry about what if you weren't fast enough, I had the spell under control." She reassured, "But if that demonstration wasn't clear, you'll be learning about construction magic, only the basics for now and soon enough, maybe more."

Amity took a few deep breaths to calm herself.

"How will I learn anything, though?" She asked, "Learning more than one track isn't allowed at Hexside."

"Well, yes that's true, it isn't, that's why I'll be teaching you myself and, I mean, how do you plan on joining the Emperor's Coven with only Abomination magic, after all?" She asked.

Amity hummed, not having considered that before, somehow.

"You do have a good point…"

Lilith then summoned a bo staff and tossed it at Amity, who caught it with ease.

"Get ready then, things are only going to get harder before they get easier, from here on, you're going to start learning every branch of magic under the Titan's gaze…" Lilith then smirked, "You're going to be an amazing Witch, one day, great enough to hopefully catch the eyes of a certain… Princess…" She teased with an even wider smirk.

Hearing the tease, Amity's face became synonymous with that of a tomato, an intense blush overtaking her. In her embarrassment, she didn't put too much thought into the following words.

"MOM, PLEASE!" She tensed at the words she just blurted, before immediately covering her mouth, her blush becoming even worse than before.

While Lilith had guessed how Amity viewed her, to hear it still surprised her greatly, causing her to also blush slightly, covering her mouth as she giggled at the sudden situation. Didn't stop her from teasing her more, though.

"Aw, Amity, do you see me as A mother figure?" She teased, laughing a bit more, not being able to contain her laughter.

Amity could only blush even more, covering her face and muttering.

"Titan, Kill me now…" She whispered.

Lilith would tease Amity for a few more moments, before finally moving on, learning the basics of Construction Magic and even a few selective advanced spells.

It went well, Amity thought, although stepping out of your comfort zone like this did prevent itself many hurdles that she wasn't expecting, such as the very precise control and focus, as well as the vision that you needed to make constructs.

It was very similar to creating abominations, she put together… Maybe… She could make a few spells of her own?

She could, right? I mean, she was friends with the Princess and apprentice to the Emperor Coven Head…

Amity put a pin in that, deciding to experiment later.


-Later, in another training field-


Finally, we return to Lady Fera and Luz, now properly outfitted for a week-long training session.

Firstly, a sheath was fitted and provided to Luz for her new, seemingly magic, sword. It was securely attached to her left hip. Fera recommended that it be attached to her back but Luz didn't find it practical enough to justify it. Secondly, her outfit had been swapped to something more comfortable and magically enhanced.

A white long sleeved shirt with a set of leather braces on her forearms and a leather vest as well, as well as pants that resembled something that a Guard in the castle would wear, as well as a pair of high leather boots and a pair of leather greaves to complete it all.

In all honesty, Luz felt like a pirate at the moment, instead of a Princess learning how to defend herself, but overall, she looked the part and was happy to be as well but still had reservations, as she grew up Human after all.

It often slipped her mind that she could dress however she wanted and no one would even bat an eye at her.

"Is all this necessary to train, Fera?" She asked, inspecting herself, "I look like a pirate…"

Fera waved her hand.

"Pirates wish they had the style you possess, lassie, but you should be happy you were only fitted with leather armor. I have half a mind to even allow you to walk around without full plate armor."

Luz smiled, placing a hand on the blue gem pommel of her sword.

"Please, Fera, I'm more than capable, I think." She said with a smile, "SO!" She said excitedly, "Do we finally get to use swords!?" She asked, stars in her eyes to finally get started.

Fera chuckled at her enthusiasm, being reminded of herself a long time ago.

"That we do, lass, but relax a bit yeah?" She said, "I'm more than sure you've not held a blade larger than a kitchen knife, right?"

Luz glanced away.

"M- Maybe…" She said sheepishly.

"That's what I thought, that's why we're starting with something more beginner friendly. For your safety, of course. Catch."

Fera drew a spell circle and summoned a wooden sword that was nearly identical to the long sword on her hip, tossing it at Luz.

Luz fumbled with the sword but caught it successfully, only barely. She cleared her throat, regaining her composure and standing straight with the "blade".

"Alright… What's first, then?" She asked, adjusting her hold on the practice weapon.

"First, the basics! Proper sword stance, then swings and after that, we'll start sparring a bit!" She then gave a wide, excited grin, "Get ready for your several-day regimen, lassie!" She said, laughing, practically, maniacally.

Luz chuckled nervously, she was excited to get started.

"It won't be that bad… Right?" She asked.

Fera patted her back hard, still laughing.

"Ah, you worry too much, Princess!" She said with a smile, "Just get ready for what I call… Beast Week!"

Luz couldn't help but second guess herself, could she really get through this? Or would she fall flat? Well, she wasn't about to let her worries get to her! Not when ol' Ferguson was in danger!

Luz gave a challenging smirk.

"I'm ready for whatever you throw at me, Fera! Bring it on!" She declared.

Fera beamed with pride.

"Then to the pits!"

"The what…?" Luz asked but it was too late, Fera had scooped up Luz and was already on her way.

The next few days would consist of heavy, almost non-stop training for our dear old Princess.

Fera's promise of grueling labor and work was well fulfilled and kept to the T, her days for the last week consisted fully of waking up in the forest with no tent (endurance training apparently), foraging for barely edible food, eating before they'd practice their stances and techniques as well as how to use magic in fight, they'd do that from breakfast to lunch. From lunch to dinner, swings and how to properly apply them, from disarming swings and fatal ones (that Luz strayed from), to nonlethal disabling ones that were less effective in a fight but would keep her opponent alive.

"I don't know why I need to know those… I don't want to hurt anyone too bad…" Luz often said, to which Fera would respond: "The Isle's is a dangerous place! You ought to be able to "dispatch" those who step up to you without effort, as Empress."

Luz tried not to think about that too much, rather putting her attention into training.

After assuring herself that Luz could properly hold a sword by day 3, Fera began the sparring.

It was slow at first, Luz's inexperience showing itself instantly but it didn't take long for that to improve, almost the same day, Luz started to get the hang of things, and her growth was astounding. She was nowhere near Fera's level, as she would often end up on her behind many many times but still, as always, it was only a setback.

Luz would get back up and strengthen the things she got right and fortify and then eliminate the constant mistakes she made in the sparring sessions.

Fera was amazed by her consistent growth, fearing to herself that maybe the curve would flatten, but the Princess was constantly working on improving, this entire week of training was proving to be successful. Ferguson would be safe in no time!

Finally, on the 6th day, Luz was stalking a beast high above in the trees, simply staring it down with sheer focus, remembering Fera's words this morning.

"I'm sure you're tired of eating berries and things… There's a beastie that I spotted a few weeks ago in this area, catch him and then, maybe, meat'll be on the menu again!"

And after an entire week of nutritious fruit, she was more than willing to take this thing down, if it meant getting some meat to sink her teeth into.

It was called a Mutox, more commonly known as a Giant Boar and all she needed to do was to catch it off guard and-

"Found you!"

"Huh?" Luz asked, turning to the source.

"Abomination, rise!" The voice shouted once again.

"Amity?" Luz asked with wide eyes, eyes darting to her.

She saw Amity, dressed in casual clothes, summon a large Abomination and send it to the Giant Boar.

Luz noticed that her hair was down and she looked disheveled and slightly dirty like she had been on a warpath, could it be that she was chasing this Boar before her? Furthermore, why was she here in the first place?

Luz was brought back to reality when the large boar shrieked at Amity and her abomination, scratching at the earth, snorting, and charging at the both of them.

The boar's tusks lit up orange with magic, plowing through and destroying the abomination with ease and screeching to a halt, turning and charging at Amity.

Amity's eyes widened in shock, and she stumbled back, too much in shock to even cast the substitution spell, when suddenly, someone landed in front of her. They were dressed like a character in a book, with leather armor and the sword at their side.

They looked… Very hot if she was being honest with herself.

The light then cut through the trees and cast a ray of sunshine on the person's face, illuminating in the morning sun.

Amity blushed brightly, realizing quickly who it was, embarrassment coursing through her in an instant.

"LUZ!?" She shouted in surprise.

"Get back!" Luz yelled, hardening her stance securely and looking towards the charging boar and reeling her fist back, she waited for only a second before throwing a solid punch.

It connected with the boar's snout, the force rippling across its body before it was sent flying back, connecting with a tree and breaking it.

Luz relaxed her stance with a sigh, shaking out her hand.

"Whew, Fera was right, that Boar is pretty tough." She said with a hum, "I thought she was exaggerating about stone skin, jeez felt like I was punching a rock…"

Amity cleared her throat, getting her attention once more.

Luz perked at the noise and quickly turned to face the young heiress.

"AMITY!" She said excitedly, pulling her into a tight hug, "It's been a whole month since I've seen you! I missed my favorite mean girl!" She said with a laugh.

Amity winced at the force of the hug, but also because of the mean girl comment, it no longer felt like a passing comment to her anymore, but that wasn't important right now.

What was important was to figure out why the Princess was in the middle of the Chest's forest. Also to get out of this hug before she suffocated.

"P- Princess! I need… Air!" She wheezed out.

Luz quickly realized and released Amity, setting her down.

"Oh, sorry Amity, didn't mean to take your breath away! I guess I'm stronger than I give myself credit for." She said, flexing her arms once more to assert her point.

Amity gave her a playful smile, giggling.

"Yeah, you are pretty strong, with how you punched that Mutox earlier…" She said, looking towards the broken trees, hearing rustling, "What are you even doing here? And why are you dressed so…" She took in Luz's outfit, words leaving her as less than appropriate compliments flooded her brain, well, inappropriate to say to a Princess anyways.

Luz chuckled in embarrassment, scratching her neck.

"Yeah, I think I look a bit dumb too, but hey! It lets me breathe when I'm fighting boars and Lady Fera!"

Amity was quickly on the defensive.

"I- I wasn't going to say you looked dumb!" She blurted.

"Oh? What were you going to say?" Luz asked curiously.

Amity was suddenly backed into a corner. What should she say in this situation? "Yeah, that outfit and when the sun hit your brown eyes? Yeah, that was hot." The idea was making her get very very red already.

"Are you ok?" Luz suddenly asked, placing the back of her hand on Amity's forehead, "You're red…" She asked, leaning close, "Open your eyes a bit…" She said with a hum. It would seem her mother was rubbing off against her.

"O- Oh, I only get this red when I'm upset about something!" She said quickly, without realizing.

Luz seemed visibly saddened to hear that, pulling her hand away and making some distance between them.

"Oh, I'm sorry," She apologized, "I didn't realize I was upsetting you…"

Amity felt like she had been stabbed by several daggers to see Luz visibly downcast. It was as if she was watching the sun dim.

"N- No, wait, that's not-"

A loud shriek got their attention once again, turning, they saw the boar charging up again, its tusks glowing once again before it began to charge at them.

Luz smirked.

"You asked what I was doing out here? Well, I was with Lady Fera, she's been training me how to fight!" She said with pride, getting into a fighting stance once more, rooting her feet into the ground, "Let me show you what I can do!"

Amity's eyes widened, the Princess wasn't thinking about fist fighting a wild, angry boar, was she?

"Luz! Are you sure about this!?" She asked, worried and taking a few steps back to give Luz some space.

"Nope!" She said simply as the boar finally cleared the distance, slamming into Luz but she had caught its large tusks and was pushing against them, "I've been following this thing all morning!" Luz yelled, proving that she was the strongest one among them by pushing the boar back before suddenly picking it up and slamming it back into the ground, kicking up a mighty dust cloud.

Once it settled, Amity's eyes widened in astonishment, seeing the boar passed out on the ground with Luz standing over it triumphantly.

"And just like that, the Princess is still undefeated!" Luz proclaimed, "Oh, wait, why were you after this thing?" Luz asked.

Amity took a minute to answer, simply taking in the fact that Luz had taken out a Mutox with such ease, it was honestly frightening to see it happen if she was being honest to herself, it made her wonder just how strong Luz could become one day… Worthy of being an Empress, for sure… It made her glad to know that she was on her good side now… She hoped… One could never know with the tyrannical Emperor's daughter, after all.

"Oh, uhm, Lilith and I were meditating in a field nearby when this thing attacked us," She said, kicking the unconscious magic boar with disdain, "I rushed in here before Lilith could stop me and have been tracking it ever since… It's more agile than I want to give it credit for…"

"Oh, you and Lilith are training? What are you guys learning?" She asked, pulling out her journal, making a quick sketch of the boar for her notes, taking note that the tusks were a great handhold.

It was now Amity's turn to scratch her neck nervously.

"Well, it's nothing like what you're doing, it's mostly magic, getting better control of my magic, and a bit of books here and there…" She said with a blush, "I mean, you punched a boar through a tree, seems miles more impressive than what I'm doing."

Luz shook her head.

"As if! I wish I was learning magic right now, the best I can do right now is… Well… Here, lemme show you." She said, pointing upwards at the sky, just in case, "I like using my glyphs for this spell but its good practice." She said as a tiny golden dot appeared at the end of her index finger.

A small spark of golden lightning arched across her hand before it settled and a small golden light orb formed above her.

Luz smiled ecstatically at the sight, jumping up and down.

"Yes, that's right, I can cast a basic light spell!" She said proudly, "Think I can be a real witch, now?" Luz asked in a teasing manner with a giggle, reminding Amity of the mean words spoken to her in their first meeting.

Amity sighed, looking at the ground for a moment.

"Look- Princess, I wanted to-"

"Lassie/Amity!" Two different voices cut through the forest.

"That must be Lilith/Fera." Luz and Amity said in unison, pausing and looking at each other for a moment after speaking at the same time.

Amity sighed.

"Guess that means we should get going… Listen, Princess-"

"You can call me Luz, Ames, we're friends, remember?" Luz said with a wide smile.

'Yeah, but it doesn't feel like it…' Amity thought to herself.

Amity hummed a bit.

"I don't think I should… But, anyway, I wanted to talk to you! About something important, text me when you're free." She said quickly turning and beginning to walk into the forest, "Coming, Lilith!" She shouted.

Luz nodded, watching her go.

"Alright! Stay safe Ames! As soon as I finish my training, I'll message you!" She yelled, watching her until she finally disappeared into the tree line.

Suddenly, Fera broke through the forest line and looked at Luz and then the boar.

"Oh, you got him!" She said.

Luz raised an eyebrow at her.

"You sound surprised?"

"I mean, I won't beat around the bush, aye, I thought I was going to see you come back screaming." She said with a chuckle.

Luz huffed, pouting and crossing her arms.

"I mean, I was hesitating a bit but one of my friends was in danger, they're training in a field nearby with their mentor, Lilith… I couldn't just stand by and do nothing."

Fera smiled, giving a hearty laugh, patting her back.

"That's what I like to hear, lassie! Now," She looked towards the boar, "We can have lunch and-" Pauses, "I thought you said you got him?" She asked.

Luz tilted her head.

"I… did?" She asked, "Is that not "getting him"?" She asked, poking the unconscious boar.

Fera shook her head.

"No, no, it is… It's just that… He's still breathing…"

The color seemed to drain from Luz's face, realizing several things at once.

"Oh uh… I had thought… I had thought that you meant that all I needed to do was catch the boar? You didn't say that he would be on the menu!"

Fera gave a deep exhale through her nose, shaking her head.

"Well, even if you misunderstood me, it is just a boar. I love all beasties but this is an invasive species here, in the chest, we've been trying to thin the herd for months. Either by relocation or by very controlled hunting, like this."

"W- Well, I still don't think you should kill it!" Luz said firmly.

"Princess," Fera said, suddenly serious, "We've talked about this, before…" She said, turning to face Luz with crossed arms, "You can't let morals get in the way of what must be done."

Luz sighed, looking down, resting her hand on the blue gem pommel of her sword as she looked down at the boar.

"I just… I just can't bring myself to take something's life… It's just… it feels so wrong to make that decision, it isn't my right to decide what happens to someone." She said, looking up at Fera.

Fera sighed.

"You're a very caring Princess, Luz, but the thing is, that is your decision to make. One day, your position as Princess will become more public and maybe, you'll have to decide the fate of someone. And that is almost certainly the case when you take the seat of Empress one day, and while those days are far and few in between, you must become accustomed to such things."

Suddenly, Fera drew her great sword with one hand and angled it over the Boar, aiming at the neck.

"What will happen one day when you are attacked in your throne room and your loved ones are threatened and the only way to protect them is to take the attacker's life?" She asked, "That's a facet of my job here, to teach you that you must one day take a life… Starting with this boar-" She let her sword fall, the slice would've been quick and precise… Would've been, that is, had it not been for Luz's long sword cutting in her way to stop her.

Luz held the grip of her sword firmly in both hands, clenching her teeth before angling the blade to throw Fera's blade away from the boar, she now stood protectively in front of it.

Fera narrowed her eyes at Luz.

"Princess…" She said lowly, pulling her sword back and making some distance, "Step aside… Unless you think you can beat me in a sparring match? Which, let me remind you, you haven't even gotten close to doing it yet."

Luz gave a challenging smile once again.

"I think I can take you on again if it means saving this boar's life, I'm feeling confident!" She said with a wide smile.

Fera smirked back.

"Oh, do you now?" She asked as she readied her sword, "Then let's see what you got, lassie."

Luz smiled as she got into her stance, readying herself before suddenly jumping forward, surprising Fera as she wasn't one to usually engage first with such a direct approach, Luz took the advantage, attempting to disarm Fera in one move. But Fera was quick on the response, blocking the attempt.

"Come on lassie, who taught you that move, I wonder?" She said, "Show me that pep I've been looking for, lassie! I know it's in there!" She gave a hearty laugh before pushing her away and swiping her sword at her, non-lethally of course.

Luz saw through the attack, successfully ducking under the swipe and rolling to the side before swinging upwards at Fera, once again trying to disarm her of her great sword.

Fera was quick on the turn once again but was pushed back by the attack before laughing in glee.

"Atta girl! Keep it up! No holding back by any means!" She praised, still advancing on her and the boar.

Luz hummed, thinking of any kind of plan, when she remembered that she still had the wooden sword in her position, more specifically, on her hip. So she drew it and stood across from Fera.

"What are you planning, lassie?" Fera asked, curious about Luz's approach.

"I don't know myself, honestly," Luz said with a shrug, jumping into the fray.

Now armed with a second weapon, Luz began to think creatively.

She swung the wooden sword at Fera's leg, thwacking it hard enough to bruise and earn a sudden shout of pain from Fera.

Luz would do this several times, using the sword to defend and deflect while using the wooden one to attack Fera all over her body.

"Ooh, a blunt weapon, nice thinking," Zul said after a minute of watching from the reflection of Luz's sword.

"Yeah but she's not going down… If anything, it's making her angry…" She whispered back, glancing at the shimmering in the reflection of her sword, and dodging Fera's swipes at her with her huge sword.

"Try cutting at her fingers, Witch hands are really sensitive," Zul recommended.

Luz, while weary, decided to take the advice. She dodged to the side, avoiding an upwards swipe from Fera's greatsword and swiping at her hand with her actual sword.

"Gah!" Fera suddenly exclaimed, releasing the grip of her sword, "Are you daft!? You could've taken a finger of mine!" She exclaimed.

Luz smirked.

"It's a fight! You can't complain about getting hurt, you know!" She exclaimed, resting both wooden and actual sword on her shoulders, "And you're fine! I was aiming at your backhand! What? Too scared to risk a finger?" She asked with a smile, "If anything goes wrong, I'm sure that I can heal you myself!" Luz boasted confidently, or at least, tried to sound confident. In reality, her heart was pounding at the idea of almost taking a finger off of her.

"Oh? You think you're better now, eh?" She asked with a smirk, "Tell you what, Princess, dodge this swing, and we relocate the boar into a shelter. Get a cut on ya, we have pork for lunch tonight."

Luz nodded, holding both of the blades out in front of her, she had a wide smirk about her.

"Ready when you are…" She said.

Fera narrowed her eyes and got into position, slightly adjusting her stance before, suddenly, she blinked out of existence.

Luz's eyes widened.

"Where-"

"Behind you, Princess, it's the same move from the conjuring," Zul said to her.

Luz was quick to turn around, just as Fera reappeared.

She dropped the wooden blade, firmly grasping the grip with one hand and the other on the face of the sword, she was able to redirect the swing away from her. Fera's eyes widened at the action. Where had she learned that? No one should've been able to redirect this move…

Luz jumped back, spinning her sword in a defensive manner across from Fera.

"Haha! I actually did it!" She said, jumping up and down excitedly, "I'm thinking that I'm getting the hang of this stuff, Fera!"

But Fera was still hung up on being deflected, coming up with several theories. Each one was more outlandish than the last.

"Where in bonnie blazes did you learn that move!?" She asked, begrudgingly stowing away her blade, " I haven't even got to the point of teaching you that yet." She then narrowed her eyes at her, "Was it that namby-pamby Kikimora?"

Luz tilted her head in confusion.

"I haven't left your side since we started training, Fera," She said with a chuckle rubbing her neck, "I guess I just knew what to do, just felt right, I guess." She said with a beaming smile, "If that makes sense."

Fera was silent for a moment, before nodding in understanding.

"Yes… It does… Anyways, I think you're ready now, for the final final test of this long week."

Luz's eyes widened slightly at her words.

"Oh, you mean…"

Fera nodded.

"Yyyup! Tonight, we're going to storm the Castle of Boone and take down those bastards, the Demons of the hunt! For Ferguson! Let's get ready!" She said, quickly hefting the boar on her shoulder, "After I throw this bastard into a pen!"

They then left the area, moments later, Lilith and Amity poked their heads from the bushes.

Amity's eyes were wide.

"Did she just say they were…"

Lilith sighed, nodding.

"Yes, my dear apprentice, they said they were going to storm one of the most dangerous spots on the Isles…" She said, rubbing her temples with a groan, "I swear the Princess must be the most danger-prone girl I've ever met… Perfect for you, huh, Amity?" She teased, walking out of the bushes.

Amity blushed brightly, following her out

"I regret telling you anything…" She said, shaking her head from the blush, "But, what are we going to do? Let them fight the Demons of the Hunt?" She asked, "I don't want to imagine what would happen to Fera if something happened to Luz…" She said, being reminded of the Emperor's well-known wrath.

Lilith hummed.

"That is the question, isn't it…Alright… This is what we shall do…" She said, beginning to explain the plan to Amity.


-Later-


Luz was now sitting at a desk in Fera's private study she used when she would visit her home. She was quickly drawing a series of light glyphs in varying sizes.

Just in case, she reasoned, Her and Fera were storming a castle, after all, so it was best to be prepared for anything.

Fera was standing over her, watching her draw them.

"And you say these things of Wild Magic don't require any sort of magic…?" She asked with a hum, "Then how do you activate them?" She asked.

Luz looked up at her for a moment before turning back to the desk, still drawing.

"It's simple. This symbol means "Light" or at least, I think it does. Depending on how big you draw it, it makes the glyph stronger or weaker. Like an itty bitty one won't be all that strong, but a massive one will blind a Black eyed Demon or beast!"

"You sound like you speak from experience." She said.

Luz rubbed her forearm slightly with a hum.

"You could say that… But what's the plan, anyway?" She asked, "For the Demons Of the Hunt?"

Fera crossed her arms, thinking.

"In more recent years, if I remember correctly, the majority of the Demons of the Hunt are mainly custom golems that listen to orders to a tee, but don't let that fool ya, lassie. Those nasties are deadlier than the average golem."

Luz nodded, thanking God that she'd be fighting golems and not actual Demons, beginning to pack her bag.

"And who's in charge of the Demons of the Hunt? Ugh, that name needs to be shortened… Your dad said that you both have been at each other's throats for years?"

Fera nodded.

"The Master of the Hunt. He's been the head honcho that founded that clan. He believes everythin' is food and is never sated. He's devoured countless members of me clan in the past and, aye, but years are small, it's more like decades, since the end of the Savage ages." She said with a huff, "They are an even older group though, used to control the entirety of the Chest but they were left with no power or respect in your father's new Empire. The only reason they haven't been wiped from the face of the Isles by your father is because me clan wants to do it ourselves." Fera said, checking her sword for a moment to make sure that it was properly sharpened for what was to come.

"He sounds like bad news, maybe this fight is where we finally take him down?" Luz asked with a bit of hope.

Fera crossed her arms, shaking her head.

"I'd love to, I even got a special place on the wall for his head on me clan's castle wall!" She said, sighing, "But I can't risk a war breaking out between the clans, too much on the line… SO we'll have to do what I hate most… Sneaking around..." She said with a shiver.

Luz chuckled at her reaction and adjusted the strap of her sword tight, not wanting any surprises, and threw her bag over her shoulder.

"I'm sure everything will be fine. Let's go!" Luz said, getting up and dashing out the door, excited and completely forgetting that she was risking an entire complicated conflict if they somehow messed up in any way.

Fera chuckled, shaking her head slightly.

"Ah so innocent… Never change Princess…" She hummed, going after her.

And so, the pair got to walking.

It was a long walk too, long enough, that Fera thought that this was a perfect opportunity to teach Luz another lesson.

"The Demons of the Hunt use illegal and dangerous traps in their territory. Not only them, many groups on the Isles use traps, it'll serve you well to be able to spot them, as well as what kind they are as well." She told Luz.

Fera also made sure to teach Luz to spot things that didn't make sense, like how a tree they passed was different from the entire forest they were in, revealing it to be a really weird beast called a treeleak.

"Nasty beasties, those things, good thing they look like a toon out of a Crystal orb, easy to spot." Fera had commented.

Luz took in this information and continued to scout ahead, being sure to carefully spot anything that was out of place to the best of her ability and to make sure that nothing would take their legs. The job was more stressful than she thought it would be.

"There, another one!" Luz pointed ahead at another trap, "Those leaves aren't the right shade with the season," She said, pointing at an off-colored pile of leaves, "We've been seeing a lot of extra traps…" She said, reaching into her bag and throwing a slip of paper at the trap, "Does that mean we're getting close?"

Mid air, the paper crumbled and turned into a light orb, setting off the bear trap that snapped at the light.

"Aye, lass. Be warned, The closer we get to their castle, the more you'll see what their impact on the land has caused."

"It can't be that bad, could it?" Luz asked but Fera didn't answer, deciding to let the scene make itself known to Luz.

They continued to walk, an air of silence falling over them made only broken at the sound of the occasional trap being pointed out and disarmed.

Finally, they cleared an exceptionally large hill that overlooked the entirety of the Demons of the Hunt's land. The sight was… Shocking to say the least, to Luz. The usual vibrant and beautiful trees and green land were dead and grayed over, villages that once housed life were devoid of anything and in a state of disrepair, and at the center of it all, was a giant castle that looked like it belonged to an overtly evil sorcerer.

"Oh my God…" Luz gasped at the sight. Everything looked dead and weathered throughout, and she just noticed, that the sounds of nature seemed to stop in their tracks at this point, perhaps it knew that getting close to this area spelled certain death, "The Hunt did… All of this…?"

Fera narrowed her eyes, staring out at the land with a sigh.

"Aye… They take and take but never give back, the entire demon realm would be better off without them."

Luz looked further into the lands, not even being able to spot a single beast. Usually, they'd roam in areas such as this but here… It was so dead and lifeless here…

"This feels so creepy…" Luz whispered as they began to descend the hill, carefully, as they didn't know what was awaiting them.

They carefully made their way towards the castle and even reached the bridge connecting the mainland to the castle when Fera suddenly pulled Luz behind a large set of boulders, just before they could step on it.

"Hold it, lassie…" Fera whispered, "Just because I tend to rush into battle doesn't mean I'm that headstrong…"

Luz watched as Fera grabbed a small rock, tossing it at the bridge, the moment it landed, a group of beings composed of stone and bits of abomination goo-like substance appeared around it. Their hands were shifted to be claws as their soulless yellow eyes scanned the area around them. Luz counted about seven of them in total.

Fera tsked in annoyance at their appearance.

"I figured… How do we get past them?"

Luz inspected the yellow-eyed golems, they resembled horned demons with goat legs… Scary… She hummed at Fera's question, thinking… She stared at the golems, more specifically, their eyes…

"Hmmm…" She reached into her satchel, pulling out a few light glyphs, "I think I got an idea…" She whispered, "Do things track light?" She asked.

"Well, they do have brains the size of a moth's. Why? Got somethin' up your sleeve, Princess?" Fera asked.

Luz smirked as she unfurled the stack of glyphs.

"Yes, I do…" She said, throwing the stack of glyphs at the bridge, watching them flutter across the air and around the bridge.

Luz then closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she pointed at the glyphs.

"Focus… You've been practicing this all month.." She whispered to herself, "Control…"

Luz then snapped her fingers and, in an instant, the glyphs activated remotely, forming a small disco of shining lights, getting their attention with ease.

The golems seemed to instantly spot the light show, falling into a trance, they walked towards the light show, only to fall into the chasm below as they walked off the bridge to follow the lights.

Luz smiled widely at the sight.

"Bridge clear!" She said.

Fera smiled, ruffling Luz's hair.

"Good work, Princess, follow me…"

Fera led the way to the front door of the castle.

"They surely heard the noise of their friends falling into the chasm below, we gotta be fast about this…" She whispered, pointing at one side of the wall, more specifically, a window, "That's our way in…"

"How are we getting up there…?" Luz whispered, looking around.

"How strong would you say your grip strength is, Princess?" Fera asked, walking over to the wall and stretching her arms for a moment, and grabbing a brick, pulling herself up before beginning to scale the wall.

Luz watched in amazement as she saw Fera's fingers leave visible indents in the stone wall as she scaled it. It was honestly something else.

Fera spared no time, being able to clear the wall in minutes and climb into the window before poking her head out to look down at Luz, waving her hand to tell her to follow her already.

Luz stared at the wall and took a deep breath, before running at and up the wall and firmly gripping a brick.

"Alright…!" She said with a smile, but it quickly went away when the brick came loose, "Crap crap crap…" Luz was quick to grab onto another brick, just as the other fell through and into the chasm. She didn't wait to hear it land and got to climbing with a renewed vigor, the fear of falling to her doom motivating her to keep going.

Finally, Fera reached down and grabbed her once she was close enough and pulled her through.

Entering the castle, it was nothing like her father's castle or even Clan Fera's castle. The lights weren't electric the Demons were still using torches and oil. It gave a dreary atmosphere, along with the unkempt floors and other things, it was a very messy and dirty, horrible place to even exist in.

Luz cringed at the sight of it all as if being here was making her sick.

"I hate it here already…" She whispered to Fera.

Fera was already gone, however, peering from around a corner, Luz was quick to catch up to her.

"It's a despicable sight, isn't it…?" She asked, feeling Luz walk up behind her before she suddenly paled, "Oh no…"

"What? What's wrong?" Luz asked, peering around the corner herself to see the sight and her eyes widened at the sight.

Just up ahead, in what appears to be a large mess hall of sorts, a large group of demon golems was standing in front of a large black cauldron over a crimson fire. A single demon golem was stirring the pot of the boiling red broth while the others made a collective thumping noise with their claws on the ground.

The beginning of their ritual…

"We need to speed up in finding Fergy, lassie. They're already stirring the broth which he'll be the main ingredient for before the moon rises. We should split up to cover more ground, but we should not separate in case we run into trouble and-"

While Fera was talking, Luz tuned her out, not a force of habit of course. This always happened when something more interesting was happening around her, like the fact that these golems were following such a ritual at all… And as Fera was talking, Luz looked out of a window for a moment but her eyes caught sight of the tower connected to the castle of Boone.

High above in the window of said tower, she saw a very familiar silhouette.

"-What do you think, lassie?" Fera asked.

Luz snapped back to reality, nodding furiously as if she heard everything she said.

"Yup! Got it!" She said quickly, "I'll message you on the scroll if anything happens... I'm going to head... This way!" She said, pointing behind her and quickly moving away from Fera.

If she knew the layout of the castle as she thought she did, then this hall would lead her to the tower, so that she may find out why the silhouette looked familiar.

Fera paused.

"Wait, what?" She looked at her side, seeing that she was alone, "Ah bollocks! If anything happens to her, the Emperor will kill meh!" She said with a sigh, smacking her forehead and dragging her hand across her face, "Alright… Just gotta find her…" She whispered.

"Titan help me…" She whispered to herself.


-Elsewhere-


Luz, now on her own, was carefully sneaking through the castle of Boone. It was eerily silent, and portraits were hanging on the walls, they were all torn and beyond recognizable... Probably for the best...

She continued to sneak until she found what she thought was the entrance of the tower, it was hard to tell in an unrecognizable place like this.

Placing a hand on the door, she tried to push it open but was met with resistance in the form of a deadlock.

"Locked…" Luz groaned out. Quietly, of course.

She looked at the lock with a hum once more, before she drew her long sword from her side, and shimmied it between the lock and door. A bit of finagling later, she was rewarded with a click, the lock coming undone.

"Hehe... Door: 0, Luz: 1…" She said proudly as she opened the door, being met with a winding staircase, definitely the path up a tower if she's ever seen one before. Luz didn't think about it too hard before beginning to run up the stairs, quietly, of course.

Quickly, she reached the door at the top of the stairs and carefully reached for the handle, and carefully creaked it open, being careful as this very well could've been the wrong room and her suspicions could've been very wrong.

Once open, the sight washed away any concerns she may have had, before her was none other than Ferguson himself, his ankle was chained to a steel plated floor and he was laying on his stomach, in clear discomfort.

"Ferguson!" Luz exclaimed, quickly running over to Ferguson and hugging him tightly, "I'm so glad that you're safe and alive!" She said, petting him underneath his scales, before looking over at the chain. "Let's get you out of here…" She whispered before grabbing the chain and grunting, snapping it from the floor.

Ferguson seemed to check the chain on his ankle before panting and suddenly barking loudly, at what though?

"Fergy!?" A voice shouted

"Oh, that's why…?" Luz whispered, turning to face Fera, "I found him!"

Fera opened her arms.

"Come to mama!"

"WOOF!"

In an instant, Ferguson ran and pounced at her, tackling her to the ground and giving her a storm of licks.

Fera giggled, scratching and petting him.

"Oh me, Fergy! Did they hurt ya, me wee dumplin'?" She cooed, giving a loud laugh.

Luz cleared her throat, now posted at the door, on the lookout.

"Uh, Fera! She whispered and shouted at them, "I don't want to break up the Reunion but you guys are being loud... We don't want to attract The Hunt… Can we get going?"

Fera turned to Ferguson.

"Can we?" She asked him.

Ferguson attempts to walk forward but immediately whimpers as he raises his right hind foot in pain.

"Fergy? What's wrong?" She quickly stood and checked him, spotting a bad gash on the said ankle, "Those monsters did hurt ya!" She turned to Luz, "I don't think he can walk out of here with an injury like that, lassie. We might have to carry him."

Luz nodded, drawing her sword, still keeping lookout.

"You're stronger than me, you carry him, I'll take point… If things get hairy we can just... I don't know... Go guns-" She paused, correcting herself, "Swords blazing and get Fergy out of here, I wish I knew how to cast healing magic right about now…" She whispered with a groan.

Fera patted Luz's shoulder.

"You'll learn eventually, lassie… But for now… Let's get him out of here…" She then got under him before heaving a bit and lifting him with ease and a smile, "Heh, me Fergy may only weigh 16 tons but this feels like me light workout back home." She said, flexing her huge biceps with pride.

"Christ, 16 tons…" She whispered in amazement before slowly moving forward, creaking open the door. Once confirming that it was safe, she nodded her head forward, signaling for Fera to follow. They slowly descended the steps.

"So... What do we do now? Are we getting Fergy out of here or are we still going to fight the head Demon…"

"Right now, Fergy's safety matters most right now. As long as we don't make too much noise and-"

Suddenly, Fera adjusted her hold on Ferguson, accidentally grazing one of his wounds, causing probably the loudest roar Luz has ever heard in her life.

It was a painful one. It echoed across the entire stairwell of the tower and reverberated through the halls they were about to enter.

Neither Princess nor Coven Head dared move an inch, standing still to listen to what could've heard that…

"Oh thank Titan… Nothing heard-"

"WHO WAS THAT!?" Someone shouted from down the stairs, instantly followed by rushing footsteps up the stairs.

Fera groaned.

"Oh, sonofa… Change of plans!" Fera turned to Luz, "You like cats?" She asked.

Luz was caught off guard by the question.

"Y- yes?" She said, unsure, "I guess? I mean, I think they're cute but Fera," She looked down the stairs, hearing them getting closer, "We're about to get caught, what are we-"

"Think fast!" Fera said before lifting a foot, it glowed Orange with her magic before stomping it into the staircase with a resounding boom.

Now, The Demons of the Hunt were many things, but builders, they most definitely were not. Years of not keeping up with the required maintenance of a castle this big with a tower this big made things rather fragile.

So with Fera stomping the staircase, it seemed to set off an unseen chain reaction. Cracks formed under her feet and quickly spread up the walls and soon enough, the stairs fell under them and they began to quickly fall to the bottom of the tower.

"OH JESÚS CRISTO DE MIERDA!" Luz shouted in Spanish, flailing her arms wildly as she saw the ground quickly approaching, heart pounding in her chest.

And not only were they falling to their imminent demise, but Fera was also struggling with an injured and surprised Ferguson, it seemed her ill-defined plan seemed to be coming undone in record time.

Suddenly, a bell dinged in Luz's mind and the world went silent as her eyes glowed Golden with her magic, wisps of her magic leaking from her eyes once again and her form glowing as well, hair flowing without a care in the world.

"What the blazes!?" Fera shouted with wide eyes, watching Luz as she continued to wrestle Ferguson in the air.

Luz's look of fear left her as she righted herself midair and suddenly held out her hands outwards, a pulse of gold coating every floating object in the air and stopping its sudden descent.

"Woah, woah, how in Titan's name are you doing this!?" Fera asked, fumbling in the air.

Luz didn't say anything but pointed at Ferguson, and snapped her fingers, instantly, the cuts and wounds on him were healed and he was back in fighting shape.

Luz then took a deep breath and lowered her hands and they slowly were brought down to the floor of the tower, safely and unharmed. Once her feet carefully touched the ground, the golden glow left her and her eyes went back to normal.

"Ugh…" She suddenly said, falling backward and slamming onto the ground, "I… Need a minute…" She whispered, struggling with consciousness. Luz was about ready to fall asleep until Fera smacked her cheek lightly, alerting her.

"Hey hey, stay with me lassie, that was some pretty impressive skill you had back there. Eat this, it'll restore your magic a bit…" She said, rummaging through her bag and presenting Luz with a…

"A star fruit?" She asked, groggy, "I used to love these back home… Weird stuff always happened when I ate one though." She said, taking the fruit and biting into it without thinking and instantly feeling a boost in energy.

"That's probably because here, on the Isles, they restore magic in someone who eats them…" Fera said, looking around the destroyed and crumbling tower, "It's no doubt that they heard that, let's get going, with Fergy here with us, we stand a better chance!"

Luz nodded then realized.

"Wait, where are those guards?" She asked, looking around.

It didn't take long for them to be found, luckily. Two demon guards, members of the Hunt most likely, knocked unconscious by falling debris and groaning.

"Alright, problem one of many solved…" Fera said with a hum, rubbing her chin.

"IT CAME FROM OVER HERE! GOLEMS! TO ME!" Someone shouted, followed by a marching of stone feet.

"They're coming…" Luz said, drawing her sword once again, "This was supposed to be an easy sneaking mission… Well, I can't say I expected this to go off without something happening…" She said, watching from the doorway the Demons and the golems turn the corner and begin advancing towards them.

"Fera, what do we do?" Luz asked as she, Fera, and Ferguson entered the hall to meet the giant army, "I don't think we can fight them all…"

"Don't worry, Princess," Fera said, drawing her sword, "I'm here with you and so is Ferguson, so let's give these freaks a taste of our cold steel!"

With a battle cry, Fera ran forward into the awaiting army with Ferguson at her side.

It was clear that running hadn't even crossed through the Coven Head's mind. Maybe it was her sense of pride that drove Fera forward to fight an impossible enemy, or perhaps it was her seeing this as a chance to rid her clan and family free of their lifelong enemy, but just maybe, she was just that dumb to think she held a chance.

"I mean…" Luz started, walking forward as she took a deep breath, "Maybe I'm just as dumb as her then… I would've booked it…" She whispered, breaking into a run and meeting with Fera in the middle of the marching Golems.

It appeared the Golems and their commanders weren't expecting such an upfront confrontation, being caught off guard by Luz and Fera, their front line instantly breaking.

What was also clear were their fighting styles, different from night and day.

Fera's, the more experienced of the two, was wild and aggressive. The swipes of her swords took out entire circles of Golems and her strong punches and kicks crumbled them to pebbles and with Ferguson up in perfect condition, she was even more deadly. Setting up perfect opportunities for Fergy to spring from the earth to bite the heads of Golems off, and to dive back into the earth to do it again.

Fera was an unstoppable wave of destruction and she dared any to test her merit.

Meanwhile, Luz, the very inexperienced of them, was very careful and precise, she dodged and weaved past enemy attacks and used her long sword effectively to separate the limbs of Golems, as she had identified that as a weak point to exploit. She did however constantly risk losing her head, not as battle savvy as Fera but enough that she was just barely fine, and while not as strong as Fera to shatter the golems by hand, those that got too close were pushed. And by push, she meant launched at high speeds back from whence they came.

Both fought with no goal but to survive.

Luz dared to say that she was having fun right now, but she couldn't, for she knew that this was a situation of… Life… And death… Against an army that didn't get tired or scared… And… And…

Luz's hands trembled slightly as she evaded another swipe from sharp stone claws, taking a few steps back to make distance from the golems. Her teeth clenched as her sword began to feel very, very heavy…

An overwhelming feeling began to overcome her, she could feel her heart pounding in her chest, she took another few steps back and bumped into a golem. Luz quickly turned to face it, lifting her sword to strike but she hesitated and the golem took the chance, swiping its sharpened claws at Luz's midsection.

"AH!" Luz shouted, stumbling back and holding the new gash in her side, losing her grip and letting the sword clatter to the ground. Luz pulled her hand away from the wound, it was already healing but…

To see her blood on her hands…

It brought up the realization, a truth she hadn't been thinking of until she saw her own spilled blood…

This wasn't a game, this was a fight! A fight that could cost her her life, she could lose everything here... Her parents and friends would end up knowing only that she died in a fight she had no business being in.

'Oh God, what would mom think? She'd blame herself for bringing me here at all… Dad would hate himself for letting this happen to me… I can't…'

Luz held her chest as her heart began to beat even harder and faster than before, her breathing becoming hard and controlled as if it was getting harder to breathe.

"P- Please…" She fell to her knees, holding her head as all the bad thoughts started to flood her head, "I don't want to die here… There's too much… Too many… I can't…" She whispered as tears began to uncontrollably spill from her eyes in droves.

The golems began to slowly encroach on the Princess, spotting an opening to take her down; finally, they all came very close, all lifting their claws to strike faster than she could heal from the injuries.

Luz just closed her eyes, whispering to herself.

"Please… I just need… Someone…"

"LUZ!" A voice echoed across the hall before an equal number of Abominations rose from the stone floors of the castle and grew sharpened appendages and all dispatched the many Golems that surrounded Luz.

Luz looked up from around her, seeing that she was no longer surrounded and relatively safe now.

"Luz!" The voice repeated before, suddenly, Amity landed in front of her, "Are you alright? Lilith and I got her just in time to see that you were about to get taken down by those stone wretches…" She said before crouching to meet Luz's level, holding her shoulders up to see Luz's teary face, "Are you OK?" She asked again, a look of worry clear on her face.

Luz looked up at her for a moment, silent and staring up at Amity.

The worry for her in Amity's eyes was genuine… It was… Foreign… Why was she so worried about her? The look made her feel bad for making Amity even be worried about her in the first place.

Luz remembered why she was learning how to fight in the first place so that she could protect her friends from all the things that go bump in the night, the Beasts that would dare attack them, the monsters that hid in the woods… Remembering this, Luz felt her heart calm itself and her breathing return to normal…

'I'll be ok… I'll be ok…' Luz thought to herself as she gave Amity a weary smile, getting to her feet and helping Amity up as well. She took a deep breath and wiped away the tears from her face and slowly got to her feet, picking up her sword.

"Y- yeah, I'm… I'm fine, thanks for all the help, Ames… I'm not hurt…" She said, putting away the sword in its sheath, "Y- you said that you and Lilith were here?" She asked, "Why?"

Amity nodded, lowering the wall of abominations from around them.

"I told Lilith about you training in the Chest with Fera and we went to greet you both but we heard you guys talking about storming the Castle of Boone, which, might I say is a horrible idea!" Amity scolded, pinching and pulling Luz's ear down, "What were you thinking!? You could've died had we not followed you both here!"

Luz hissed in pain at the ear pull, probably would've hurt more if she had Witch's ears, so she thanked her mother's genes for that one.

"Ah, Ah! Amity! Watch it! That hurts you know!" She said with a hiss, "We just wanted to save Ferguson from the Demon's stew!" She said quickly, "It was supposed to be sneaky, I swear!"

Amity's features softened and she looked confused now, rather than upset.

"The… Bullute?" She asked, "You guys did all this for her pet?"

Luz embarrassedly tapped her index fingers together.

"Well… When you put it like that… It- it was worth it, I swear!" She defended herself, "Fera really loved him and was willing to start an entire war for him! I just wanted to help her out!" She said, "You understand, right?" She asked, hoping.

Amity exhaled through her nose and sighed, looking at Luz made her feel warm and she couldn't really get mad at her for just wanting to help Fera get her pet back… She released Luz's ear.

"Fine, Fine…" She said, "It's just- You need to be careful! You're the Princess! You're important, what if something happened to you?" She asked, eyes lit with worry and concern.

Luz rubbed her ear with a hiss.

"Yeah… I was thinking about that earlier, you won't catch me outnumbered in a battle like this anytime soon, you can count on that!" Luz said with a smile, "So, where's Fera and Lilith?" She asked.

Amity pointed forward.

"Over there, fighting the Master of the Hunt…" She said.

Immediately after she said that, the large pot Luz saw on her way was thrown out of the mess hall and through the castle's wall.

"WHO ARE YOU GOING TO COOK WITHOUT A POT, HUH? YOU CONNIVING RED BASTARD!?" Fera shouted before she was thrown from the mess hall and out the hole in the castle. Ferguson could be heard barking loudly for her, but It didn't take long for her to climb back in and run straight back into the fight with him.

Luz's head snapped in the direction, eyes wide.

"And we're missing it? Come on! Let's go!" Luz shouted urgently, reaching out and grabbing Amity's hand and pulling them towards the fight.

"L- Luz! I think we should keep our distance!" Amity attempted but was ignored, Luz's excitement overpowering Amity's voice of reason.

Finally, they reached the mess hall, it was in an amazing state of disrepair.

Fera and Lilith had easily dispatched the entirety of the Golem army, rubble and components for making them were strewn about all over the place and a wall of the hall was destroyed, giving way into the mess hall where the actual fight was happening in.

It didn't take long for Luz to spot the Master of the Hunt, as his skin was as red as blood and he was taller than anyone else in the room, he was wearing something akin to tribal-styled hunter's wear and a stowed sword.

Along his neck was a necklace of skulls, Witch, demon, or even monster Skulls. He was a menacing opponent, to say the least, but it was nothing that two Coven Heads couldn't handle.

Fera and Lilith, although polar opposites of one another, their synergy for fighting and magic was clear as all day, nothing would be stopping the strength of their stride.

Fera worked on the physical while Lilith provided the mystic might that Fera desperately needed right now, even though she often forgot that she had that too.

The Master, a tall and experienced demon warrior, growled at the two and charged at them, swinging his large fists at them with amazing force and power, the wind whistling behind them. He targeted Lilith first but she saw through him.

Lilith ducked quickly under the fists, narrowing her eyes at the Master and drawing a circle, it caught aflame with her blue, fiery magic and expanded in front of her.

"Please, give up this fight, it'll be an honor to take you down," She said before clapping her hands together. The floating spell circle began to spin violently and it turned into fiery snow and blasted him with a burning storm of ice.

The Master held up his arms, blocking his face from the ice and gritting his teeth. The ice coated him, freezing him from the bottom up and solidifying him.

Would this be how it ends? His legacy? His Pride? Taken down by a single pair of Witches and an ice spell?

"PAY ATTENTION!" Fera suddenly shouted.

Apparently not…

The Master opened his eyes just in time to see Fera punch through the ice and grab him by the neck and slam him into the ground, the stone spreading cracks under the Demon as Lilith stopped the spell.

"You'll no longer terrorize these lands, Ferguson or my clan! AND I'M GOING TO MAKE SURE!" She shouted, lifting him again and slamming him once more, this time, putting him through the floor. Ferguson climbed out of the ground and barked in response, growling at him.

She pulled him up once again, he was bloody and coughing, bones were surely broken. The Master narrowed his eyes at Fera, gritting his bloody teeth.

"You'd… Make a fine meal…" He mocked in a deep voice, licking his sharp teeth with a long, black and slimy tongue.

Luz, Lilith, and Amity all simultaneously cringed at the sight and comment.

"Alright, Alright… Fera, you can't kill him, he's definitely down for the count." Lilith said, stepping forward, "You know the law." She said, a bit of authority in her voice.

Fera groaned and dropped the Master.

"Yeah, Yeah… Throw him in your maximum security cell or whateva, just get him out of my sight before I-"

"Before you what, Witch?" The Master of the Hunt spat out, "Too scared to kill? I saw that you left all my commanders alive and constricted…" He whispered, "You've become a very weak Fera… I should've killed your pet when I had a chance…"

Fera narrowed her eyes, turning and grabbing his neck again, choking him.

"The Emperor's laws, you are beaten already, that is the only reason you are still alive and standing… So many of my clan have fallen to you and your Golems' claws…" A sudden shink and a sharp blade was pressed against his neck, "I have a perfect place for your head on my Clans walls…" She pressed her blade close, cutting at his neck. Ferguson barked in agreement.

"Fera…" Lilith said, "Calm your emotions before they control you…" She warned.

Fera took a deep breath and dropped him to the floor, turning away from him and walking towards Lilith, stowing away her sword with a sigh.

"Fine, just-"

Suddenly, the drawing of a blade was heard and a broken sword was driven through Fera's midsection. Ferguson went to bite the Master but was kicked away by him and slamming into a wall, he whimpered and attempted to get up but was down for the count.

The room fell silent, Fera's eyes widened as she coughed up blood and looked down at the blade in her midsection. The Master of the Hunt then leaned over Fera.

"I don't share your weakness, Witch… Now die, just like countless members of your clan…" He said, giving a toothy grin that sent chills down the spectator's spines, "...Nothing but a meal during my full moon…"

He opened his mouth, it unhinged and opened to untold levels and he went to bite down on Fera's head but that wouldn't happen any time soon.

In a sudden turn of events, Fera punched his jaw, shutting his jaw with a slam and shattering his teeth with ease, Fera then reached behind her and grabbed him by his neck, and slammed him into the ground in front of her.

"You thought I hadn't been stabbed in the back before…" Fera growled out, slamming her foot into her chest with a loud pulse of orange magic, The Master gasped loudly and coughed up blood.

"What in the world…?" He whispered, looking up at Fera.

Fera surprised everyone by pulling the bloody sword out of her body and throwing it away with ease, the wound healing in an instant and glowing with orange magic, leaving behind a scar.

"I can not believe my clan was fearful of someone as pitiful as you…" She whispered, before picking him up again and throwing him back, he stumbled onto his feet, holding his chest.

"You are nothing but a coward and genocider… And I think… fatally wounding a Coven is a capital offense and the punishment is an instant execution…" She said, slamming her fist into her palm with a wide grin, her teeth bloody.

"Let me show you the final spell that my Mentor showed me… You'll love it…" Fera said, closing her eyes and focusing on her beast magic.

A pulse of magic was felt across the mess hall, and Fera stabbed her sword into the ground, the magic got stronger around her before her appearance started to become more feral, her teeth become more prominent fangs, her nails become claws and her eyes shot open to reveal that they slit like, that of a wild animal.

Lilith's eyes widened.

"Girls, the show is over," She said quickly, drawing a spell circle.

"Ah what!?" Luz asked, "It's just getting good!"

"I'm sorry, Princess but this spell gets really destructive really fast, the real damage is about to happen and we need to leave before we become collateral in her rampage."

With that final word, Lilith completed the spell circle and a blue ring appeared under them and Ferguson they all were then teleported out of the mess hall and were now outside.

Fera smiled and loudly cracked her knuckles, stepping up to The Master of the Hunt.

"Now… Where do I start…" She whispered, her voice echoing with her Beast magic.

The Master could only stare up at her and think one thing…

"Fuck…"


-Outside-


Lilith had teleported the group outside the castle, as mentioned, and across the bridge from the castle, facing it. Suddenly, Ferguson teleported into Luz's arms. She heaved loudly from the sudden drop into her arms.

Fera wasn't kidding, he was HEAVY.

"Dear Lord, how does she make it look so easy…" She whispered, putting him down carefully and looking him over.

Amity was staring at her with wide eyes.

"It's a miracle you can carry him at all…" She commented.

Luz laughed, flexing once again.

"Thanks, I've been working out." She said with a smile.

Amity smiled and crossed her arms.

"Mhm… I hope you know that this makes me on top again," She said with a smug smirk.

Luz looked up at her, confused.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Well, first, it was the Covention, you saved my life. Then, during that Illusion world, I saved the day. Then, when I fell out of that window, you caught me and in that same hour, I pushed you out of that Oni's reach. Finally, now, I saved your life from those Golems." She explained in a matter-of-fact voice, "Which means that I'm winning this race."

Luz smirked and stood up from Ferguson's side, placing her hands on her hips.

"Oh yeah?" She asked, "Well, I'll just have to make sure to watch out for the perfect opportunity to save your skin again, as Princess of the Isles, it is my responsibility to protect my citizens," She said, once again doing the Victorian England accent once again, "I will even out the score before you know it, Ames, count on it." She said with a dramatic bow.

Amity giggled and crossed her arms, holding her biceps with a soft and warm smile.

"Of course you will, you goof…" She said softly.

Luz couldn't help but get a warm feeling in her chest at the reaction, it made her cheeks slightly rosy, but she shook it away and stood straight once again, just in time to hear a loud boom coming from the castle.

The party turned to face the stone fortress and their eyes widened to see it beginning to fall apart and crumble inwards, loud laughing could be heard coming from inside of the Castle of Boone, it seemed that Fera was having fun undoing the mark on the land by The Demons of the Hunt.

"Is she… Going to be ok?" Amity asked first.

"Yes, most likely, that form of hers can take quite the beating, I wouldn't be surprised if a Castle falling on top of her was just a mild inconvenience in her rampage," Lilith commented.

Luz looked toward Lilith.

"So you know that form she took?" She asked, "Is it anything special?"

Lilith hummed at the question.

"Maybe… All I know is that it originally belonged to Ebberwolf and when he used it, well… Let's just say, that the one under the receiving end of that spell didn't usually survive…"

Luz nodded, eyes turning back to the castle.

Finally, after what felt like forever, the stone walls and towers of the castle settled into one giant pile of stone rubble and various metals and irons. After the held breaths of the group, a hand broke through the rubble and from it, jumped out Fera. She panted before her form changed, the orange glow leaving her as her teeth, eyes, and nails returned to normal. She took a deep breath and a sigh.

"Finally…" She then turned to Ferguson, "FERGY!" She shouted, holding out her arms.

Ferguson wasted no time, running across the bridge and pouncing onto Fera, licking her all over her dirty face.

Fera just giggled and hugged him tighter.

"I missed you too, pal…" She said, laughing as she and him crossed the bridge, meeting up with the girls, "Thanks for the help, you two…" She said, "But then again, I didn't need the help in the first place." She said smugly.

Lilith rolled her eyes.

"Please, if I hadn't joined in on that fight, you would've been swarmed by not only the Golems, but the Princess would've lost her life."

Fera cleared her throat at that.

"Speaking of… The Emperor doesn't need to know about this, does he?" She asked with a chuckle.

Lilith smirked.

"I wasn't planning on saying anything… But knowing him, it is more than likely that he already knows… To some extent. He'll probably question you on what happened to the Demons of the Hunt."

Fera sighed, rubbing her temples.

"Aye… I need a drink…" She turned to Luz, "Let's head back to my Clan's castle, you need to pack up before your ride gets here."

"Lilith's not my ride home?" Luz asked.

Lilith shook her head.

"Not this time, Kikimora is, I need to get Amity home. Kikimora'll be here by the end of the night…" Lilith then checked the time, "Oh Titan, would you look at the time… Amity, we need to start going, your parents wanted you home hours ago…"

Amity nodded and looked towards Luz, waving at her as she reached over and held Lilith's dress.

"Bye, Princess!" Amity said with a smile, "Stay alive, I still want to talk to you when you get a chance!"

Lilith lifted her staff, the eyes of her raven glowing.

Quickly, Luz responded.

"Alright! Bye, Ames! Stay safe!" She said, waving back as Lilith tapped her staff on the ground. They were covered in blue flames, and in an instant, they were gone.

Fera then patted Luz's back.

"You did good today, Princess, glad to see you were a natural for most of that fight! Makes me a proud teacher!" She said with a hearty laugh, "When we get back, we'll have a celebratory dinnah. My wife does wonders with her personal haggis recipe! Just thinkin' about it makes my mouth water!" She said with a smile.

Luz smiled.

"Sounds delicious…" She said softly, before looking a bit downcast, "I uhm… I'm… Sorry that I got choked up in the middle of the fight…" She apologized, kicking at the dirt, "I don't know what came over me…"

Fera placed a hand on her shoulder.

"It's fine, Princess, you got your first battle scare, it happens to everyone, even me. Honestly, if you hadn't I would've been very concerned. But I mean it when I saw you were very brave today, you'll be amazing with that sword one day, trust me."

Luz nodded, smiling at the kind words, placing a hand on the blue gem pommel of her long sword once again.

"And… Does it ever get easier? Fighting, I mean." She asked.

Fera nodded, taking a seat on a piece of rubble and sighing at the load off.

"In some cases, it does, but in other cases, you'll be fighting with other witches and it will really get to ya. Sure fightin' a golem, a monster, or even a feral demon is one thing, but another Witch is an entirely different ball game."

Luz nodded once again.

"I understand… Fera… Have you…" She paused, thinking about how to word the question, "Have you ever needed to take another Witches life?" She asked.

Fera paused, a pained look finding her face and a profound silence filling the air as Ferguson whimpered at the question, licking Fera's hand to seemingly comfort her.

"...Aye, I have…"

Luz exhaled through her nose.

"And…" She paused again, a pained expression finding her, "...As Empress, I'll have to do that, one day, too right…?" Luz asked, worried about the future prevalent on her face.

Fera sighed.

"Aye, you will, lassie, one day. We can all hope that you will never have to go through something such as that, but such scenarios are almost always inevitable as Empress… But always remember, lass. You not only got the Coven Heads lookin' out for ya but also your friends and family to help ya through the tough times, "She smiled, "I know I'd be lost without me bonnie lass of a wife I can tell ya that!" She said with a laugh.

Luz chuckled, her pained expression leaving her and being replaced with a smile.

"I'll remember that, then! When I'm Empress, I'll be sure to be such a good fighter, no one would even dare challenge me! My very presence will make people shake in their boots, just like Dad!" She said, waving her sword around expertly, practicing the forms that she was taught.

Fera smiled at her enthusiasm. Seeing the carefree Princess act in such a serious manner was something she didn't want to see, not any time soon.

"That's the spirit, lassie! And I'll be the one to get you there!" She said, coming over and ruffling Luz's hair, "You'll be one of the best fighters the Isles has ever seen."

Luz smiled wider as she sheathed her blade once again.

"Who knows, maybe I'll be better than you one day." She said.

Fera just gave her a look, one of confusion.

"Yeah right, it'll take you years of practice to get at my level, Princess."

"You doubt my skills?" She asked exaggeratedly, "You'll come to regret it!" Luz said, dramatically, might I add.

Fera rolled her eyes and laughed, beginning to walk with Ferguson at her side.

"I don't doubt you at all, lassie, I believe you alllll the way." She said sarcastically.

Luz caught up to her with a laugh.

"Thank you, thank you, honestly, I just want to be as good as my Dad, even better, maybe!" She said, "There's just so much to live up for… Like, every day, he's changing the face of the Isles! My mom too! And she's only been Empress for like, two months!"

Fera pouted slightly, shaking her head at Luz.

"Ah lassie, you're thinking about this the wrong way."

Luz gave her a confused look.

"I am?" She asked.

"Aye, I think so," Fera said with a nod, "You don't have anything to live up to, you're already makin' him proud for being yourself. You're already a strong witch and will make an even stronger Empress one day, if I had a daughter like you, I'd be very proud."

Luz smiled at the compliments, rubbing her neck in embarrassment.

"I know that… It's just… Being Empress just sounds like such a big job… I don't want to accidentally cause a war or cause civil unrest in the Isles, you know? I just want to be as great a leader as he is…"

Fera patted her back.

"And you will be!" She confirmed, "Remember, a good leader brings up those under them to new heights, and I believe that you will do that one day too. Bring the Isles up to all new heights… Just believe in yourself first.'

Luz nodded in understanding.

"Thank you, Fera… I appreciate it a lot…" She said softly, looking forward, "We are quite a bit away from the Castle though and… I'm so tired…" She said.

Fera drew her sword.

"That's why we're taking a fast way home!" She said before flipping her sword upside down and revealing to Luz an animal pommel. It was a small saber tooth tiger, it opened its eyes and glowed with her beast magic.

"Your Palisman is attached to your sword!?" She asked in amazement, "I- I thought only staves had Palismans, though!"

Fera waved her hand at her.

"A staff could be anything that you can use to enhance your magic through, ie, for me, it's my sword! Now hold on, we're going to be teleporting!" She said.

Luz was quick to grab onto Ferguson and Fera, as Fera cast the spell, they were surrounded by a colony of birds that swarmed around them and cawed loudly before they dispersed and they were now in front of the Fera Clan Castle mess hall doors

Fera stowed away her sword and wasted no time in kicking open the doors with a slam, being met with a wide variety of eyes. She and Luz looked like they'd been through hell, Luz's leather vest was riddled with claw marks and stained with blood while Fera looked trashed. Respectfully, of course. Her clothes were once again in tatters and her entire form was bruised and slightly cut up.

But all the same, she smiled just as widely as she normally would.

"Guess who's back, ya gully-drafted tatties!" She shouted, suddenly hoisting Luz onto her shoulders, "We beat the Master of the Hunt! He is no more!" She announced to the silent and in shock mess hall.

Luz smiled widely, deciding to add her own flare.

"We beat the Demons of the Hunt to a pulp!" She shouted, "Even their castle is just a pile of bones and rubble!"

That was enough to set them all off. The entire clan cheered for them, going into an earth-shaking uproar before suddenly rushing the pair, lifting them into the air, Ferguson being held up by Fera's Father himself.

"Three cheers for my daughter and the Strong Child!" He shouted, and everyone cheered, lifting their mugs or weapons into the air, giving Luz and Fera loud cheers.

Luz giggled and waved at the many clan members with a laugh.

"Strong Child, huh?" She asked with a laugh as they were brought to a table in the middle of the mess hall and promptly seated.

Fera laughed as she took her seat next to Luz.

"Well, you did make quite the impression a few days ago, lassie!" She said with a smile, "But you must be starving, willing to actually try Haggis, this time?" She asked.

Luz sweated a bit.

"Can I at least get something to drink with it, this time?" She asked.

Fera rolled her eyes with a laugh.

"It's whatever you want lassie, you earned it," Fera then lifted a hand, getting the attention of a flying barmaid and ordering them food and drinks.

And so, the celebrations began.

The bards tuned their instruments and played lively music, befitting of a lifelong enemy finally being slain and their home finally being free of the threat. People danced and clinked mugs with each other, all were having a good time and one that would surely go down in their history books.

Even Luz, who was apprehensive at first, was enjoying the food that was served to her. Finding that, while haggis was a bit of an oddity, it was quite edible and didn't taste bad with a little bit of salt.

It was then that one of the clan members came up to her, handing her a drink, saying "For a job well done!" They congratulated her and handed Luz the mug, clinking it in celebration and down their own.

Luz looked at the mug for a moment, she hadn't had many boiling Isles drinks, but this one smelled sweet, like honey, and was a bit bubbly.

It reminded her of a soda if she was being honest. She went to ask what it was but the person who gave it to her was already gone, probably dancing along to the music.

Luz sighed and looked at the mug.

"Well… When in the Boiling Isles…" She whispered before taking a sip of it, her eyes widened at the taste, "Mmm, that's… Good… Really good…" She said before downing the entire mug in an instant. And just as fast, a flying barmaid refilled her mug, probably not paying attention to who it was she was serving and just wanting to act fast.

Luz down mug after mug of drink without thinking, if anything, it felt like her senses were being dulled by the drink but it felt good and a crowd was gathered around her, chanting Chug over and over again.

So she kept going and going.

Eventually, Fera, who was catching up with her wife, heard the entire Clan chanting "chug" over and again and wondered what poor witch was pulled into trying to break the record of chugging the most Mead.

"Uhm, hun," Astrid asked, looking over in that direction, "Isn't that your student?" She asked, "Boy she's pounding those mugs of mead back hard…"

Fera's eyes widened and she shot up from her seat and turned to spot the Princess on the shoulders of one of the clan members, drinking yet another mug of mead as she was handed another one, which was promptly down in seconds. Earning a loud ring of cheers from seemingly the entirety of the clan.

Fera rushed over with untold speeds just as Luz was handed another mug of Mead, lifting it over her head.

"20!" She shouted loudly and drunkenly to the clan, earning a loud chant of 20 in response.

Fera was quick to snatch the mug out of her hands.

"I think you've had enough, lassie!" She said quickly.

Luz groaned as she jumped down from the shoulders of the clan member, stumbling and leaning against a table, picking up a mug and pointing at Fera.

"Heeeeyyyy Fera…" Luz's face was red from the very strong mead in her system and her speech was slurred slightly, "I'm fine… I'm fine…" She said with a giggle, "I'm doing GREAT even! I'm only 20 drinks away from breaking the record!" She said, attempting to drink the mug of mead but it slipped from her hands and fell to the floor, "Hehe… Oops… I broke it…" She said before breaking out into a loud laugh and falling into Fera's arms.

Fera sighed, thinking that The Master of the Hunt was the hardest fight she had to deal with tonight, but in reality, it seemed that this was going to be it. A drunk Princess.

"Your pa is goin' to kill meh…" She grabbed Luz by the back of her shirt before lifting her over her shoulder, "Funs over! She can't drink anymore!" She told the members of the clan, earning a groan of disappointment before she turned to Luz, "Come on, you. We're going to detox your system before Kikimora gets here." She said, beginning to walk away while Astrid caught up with her.

Luz, meanwhile, giggled as she was limp in Fera's hold.

"Hehe… The floor is soooooooo far away…" She said with a giggle and a hiccup, "Where… Where are we going?" She asked, looking towards Fera.

"To get the Mead out of your system before your Dad finds out and executes me…" She whispered.

Luz laughed heartily at that.

"Pshhh my Dad won't do nothin'!" She exclaimed loudly as Fera continued to drag them away, Astrid right behind Fera, but Luz still had things to say.

"Even if… Even if he's THE Emperor, he won't hurt me, the Prince... Princess of the Islesssss...!" She slurred with a loud laugh, earning quite a few stares from those around her.

"What did the lass just say?" One clan member asked.

"The Princess?" Another asked.

Fera chuckled nervously, waving her hand.

"T- that's just the mead talking everyone, she's not used to drinking so much!" She said with a laugh.

The clan members seemed to accept this and laughed the thoughts away as Fera, carrying Luz, and her wife, Astrid all left the mess hall.

Fera sighed and rubbed her eyes.

"I swear to the Titan's name… It's a good thing Kikimora isn't here or she'd-"

"Or I'd what?"

Fera jumped at the suddenness of the voice and quickly turned to face its source, finding that it was, in fact, Kikimora herself. She was standing in her normal stance, hands behind her back and a look of disinterest in what was happening around her.

"Kikimora!? What in the blazes are you doing here!? How are you here!?" She asked.

Kikimora glanced over at Astrid and cleared her throat.

"The front door was open and I was sent here to pick up Luz, remember?" She asked, reminding Fera of Luz's departure. Saying the Princess' actual name didn't feel right…

"But you're like… Super early, aren't you?" Fera asked.

Kikimora nodded a yes.

"That's correct, she's been away from home for the last week and her father couldn't wait till the next day to see her again…" She said softly, already having anticipated Fera's question, "What… is wrong with the Princess, Fera...?" She asked, glancing at Luz, who was still being carried by Luz.

Fera laughed nervously.

"Very funny that is, don't get mad…"

Before Fera could explain the complicated and delicate situation that led to the Princess' current state, Luz perked up herself.

"I was drinking MEAD!" She declared suddenly, giggling loudly as she tossed and turned in Fera's arm, "I was good at it too...! 10... Cups... Zzzz…" She snored, suddenly passing out.

Kikimora's one visible eye widened and twitched.

"There is absolutely no way…" She whispered, "You allowed the very underage girl to drink 20 cups of mead...?" She asked in disbelief.

"Well… It was more like 19 if anything…" Fera whispered, "But it wasn't me that did it! It was me clan members! Don't be concerned though, I will find out the instigators and they will get berated to the Abyss for this…" Looks at the Princess in her arms, "And if it's any consolation I think when she wakes up tomorrow she'll be squared off of alcohol." She said with a laugh.

Kikimora suddenly had a slight flashback to the very distant past.

One of the much younger Belos during the Rebellion against the old Emperor Crisis, drinking up a storm with the Stranger after a hard and long battle, becoming blackout drunk, and then them both repeating the process the very next fight.

Kikimora sighed, shaking her head.

"If she's anything like her father, I don't believe that will be the case anytime soon but how will I explain to her parents that their daughter can't come home because she's become inebriated in your care?" She asked.

"Don't worry, me wife here has the perfect solution for this."

Astrid nodded and stepped forward.

"That's right, I've developed just the thing to cure it." She said with pride.

Kikimora looked at Astrid with a look of disbelief, it was easily identifiable even with her collar and one eye.

"You have a remedy for being inebriated? I find that hard to believe…" She said doubtfully.

"It's true!" Fera defended, "You wouldn't believe how many of the clan get drunk around here."

"Knowing you… I think I have an idea…" Kikimora whispered, but Fera ignored her,

"Me wife's remedy comes from her side of her family, from her grandmother. Used it on me once and I was fit as a fiddle!" Fera said proudly, "She'll get Luz right as rain in no time!"

Kikimora sighed, shaking her head.

"I hope you're right… Lead the way."

Astrid nodded and led the group to her apothecary that was located in the castle, the entire section of the castle was full of glasses and all sorts of herbs and potions and various other liquids and chemicals that Astrid specialized in.

"Set the poor dear down on the cot, love," Astrid instructed as she went to her work table and began to work on the medicine for Luz.

Fera went over and carefully placed Luz down on the cot, who mumbled at Fera's touch and snored some more.

Kikimora sighed, shaking her head.

"This entire mess is utterly ridiculous…" She commented, following Astrid and watching her work, "What's in this remedy of yours, anyway?" She asked.

"It's a potion me granny taught me when I was a wee girl…" She said, swirling a vial of liquids, "My pa was a happy drunk, so to speak." She said with a chuckle, "Always got into some sort of trouble, so she made him this so he could come down sooner."

"Hm... I see... Let's just hope that it sits well with Luz then... Her half witch nature makes it difficult to predict what will stay down her gullet and what will come back up."

"Well, I've studied it and human anatomy is very similar to witches, only one or two things are different, like ears and the ability to use magic," She paused, rummaging through her supplies before grabbing some ingredients and began finishing the brew, "Also our appetites, can't forget about that one."

Astrid then fell into her work, crafting the potion with ease and perfect precision before, finally, Astrid stepped up to her cauldron and dipped a ladle into the brew and poured it into a potion bottle, and corked it before violently shaking it.

The potion hummed a bit and settled into glowing a soft blue.

"There," Hands potion to Fera, "The potion is done, all she has to do is drink this and she'll be right as the boiling rain on a Snagglebacks shell."

Kikimora hummed as she took the bottle in claw, swirling it slightly.

"Now the question becomes, how do we get her to drink this?" She asked, looking at the unconscious Luz, "She's out cold."

Fera chuckled a bit at the question.

"That's easy," She said, rummaging through her wife's lab before pulling out a liquid funnel. She opened the Princess' mouth and stuck it in before the potion and uncorked it with her teeth and spit it away.

"Down the hatch!" She said, pouring it down the funnel.

It surprisingly worked, Luz subconsciously downed the potion in her unconscious state, probably dreaming that it was more booze. After a few moments, Luz groaned, eyes fluttering open and holding her head.

"Ughh…" She groaned, "Oh my head is killing me…" She whispered, sitting up from the cot, "My mouth tastes like… Blueberries? What happened?" She asked.

"You have a hangover, Luz." Kikimora said with a stern look, "You are 14, did you forget that?" She asked.

Luz's eyes widened.

"No I didn't, forget, wait… Are you telling me that I… Got drunk?" She asked in a state of disbelief.

Fera chuckled, crossing her arms.

"After 19 mugs, no less... Quite a tolerance, lassie." She said with a smirk.

Luz blushed, rubbing her neck in embarrassment, before hissing in slight pain.

"Ugh, this headache is killing… I don't know why anyone gets drunk if you gotta deal with this in the morning…" She said with a sigh.

Fera gave a hearty laugh and patted her back.

"You never forget your first hangover. I felt like I got ran over by a herd of Slitherbeasts during my first time," Sighs, "Good times…"

Kikimora rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Luz, I hope you learned your lesson, but you've been away from home for long enough, your parents are wishing for you to return." She said softly, "Gather your things quickly, I hate being away from the castle…" She said with disdain, but in reality, she wanted to get back to the Emperor to make a report on the portal.

Luz's eyes widened, seemingly forgotten that her parents would like her to come back home.

"Oh, yeah, that's right! I guess it has been about a week…" She whispered before turning to Fera, "When will we train next, Fera!?" She asked, already excited for the next lesson.

Fera chuckled, reaching out and ruffling Luz's hair.

"It'll start back up in three days, during that time, we'll tackle Beast Keeping magic. Until then focus on your other studies and relax a bit, you deserve it after today." She said with a smile.

"And during that time, I'll take the time to help you perfect your form, Luz… You'll require more finesse and fluidity if you are going to learn how to use a long sword such as that…" She said, glancing at Luz's Longsword that was on her side.

Luz's eyes brightened at that.

"Oh, really!?" She asked, "But aren't you always busy?"

Kikimora hummed at the question.

"I've been… Learning to relax, with the help of a friend, I guess you could say…" She said softly, thinking of the Prince but she couldn't just say that. She took Luz's hand and began to draw a spell circle, "Any parting words, Fera?" She asked.

"Yeah, have fun when she's moppin' the floor with ya!" She said with a hearty laugh.

Kikimora could only give her a look, smirking beneath her collar.

"We shall see about that, Fera…" She said before a tornado of purple fire surrounded them and they disappeared soon after.


-Elsewhere in the Fera Clan castle-


Duncan Fera entered his office, silently shutting the door behind him.

Suddenly, his dark office was illuminated with the click of a lamp and in his chair was sitting Aaron Lovelace, aka the illusion Coven Head of the Boiling Isles, causing Duncan to jump.

"Sooooo…" He began with a smile, "How'd it go?" He asked, elbows resting on the table and fingers interlaced, "Did it happen exactly like I said it would?" He asked.

Duncan sighed.

"How'd you even get past all of the security?" He asked, rubbing his temples.

"Your triplets let me in after I gave them candy," Aaron said simply, "Now tell me, the sword, did it take the Princess?"

Duncan nodded.

"Yes, it happened exactly as you said it would, she was drawn to the chest, she brought it to me and passed the test of the sword. The Princess' magic was just as strong as you said it'd be." He confirmed, "Was kidnapping my daughter's pet and manipulating her wife's memories necessary to your entire plan?" He asked.

Aaron smiled at the information and nodded.

"Absolutely necessary, if it makes you feel better, I changed the Master's memories as well and I never even hurt Astrid either. The brain is a very easily convinced thing, you know?" He asked with a chuckle.

"Why'd you even have me plant the chest myself?" Duncan asked, crossing his arms, "I know you got in here on your own, past all the security and runes, my boys know better than to let random strangers into our home… Why did you ask for my help at all…"

"Well, I can't exactly explain to the Princess, "Hey, you hold the world on your shoulders, have Azura's sword to help you along" now can I? And besides…" He then stood up, "It's a sign of trust, among us…" Aaron said, walking up to Duncan and putting out his hand.

"A lot of things hang in the balance and you supporting the Princess for what is to come will greatly help prevent all of those bad things." He said with a wide smile, "Can I count on that support?"

Duncan stared at his hand before sighing and reaching out, taking it and shaking it firmly.

"Fine, fine… The Princess has all of Fera Clans' support for anything that may happen… I hope you know what you're doing, Lovelace… I just wish I could see what you were thinking…"

Aaron smiled widely at his words and laughed.

"Of course I know what I'm doing! Trust me, and let this be a sign of goodwill, among us…" He said, lifting his hand and snapping his fingers.

The snap radiated with his blue magic and echoed loudly and in an instant, Lovelace disappeared.

"What in the blazes did he…" Duncan paused, blinking, feeling something that he hasn't felt in years.

His hands became shaky as he brought them to his face and carefully removed his eye patch and looked into the hanging mirror in his office.

His eye… He…

He could see…

"Did Lovelace…" He paused, looking at the mirror, and seeing a yellow sticky note, he reached out and read it.

"Yes… Yes, I did…" It read, "Here's to an amazing partnership…"

Duncan sighed and crumpled the note, catching it on fire and burning it to ashes.

"I hope he knows what he's doing…"

He then was reminded of Luz, the Princess of the Isles, and the plans that Lord Lovelace claimed to be in store for her… But, against an enemy like that…? How could anyone hope to win, not even Belos would dare make such a challenge…

He sighed, shaking his head and walking to the window of his office and staring out at the Isles, specifically, at the hollow skull of the Titan.

"May the Titan be merciful on you, Princess Luz…" He whispered.


-At the Castle, our castle, home of the unrevealed Royal Family-


The last few days have been a bit hectic, and also, quite a bit quiet.

With the Empress working with Hele to finalize the medication and Lilith having completed all of her missions and taking the spare time to train her apprentice and possible successor and even Kikimora working hard on the portal below, the Emperor himself has been left with little to no interaction… Becoming very very bored, he even caught up with all the paperwork! All of it! How does one even begin to do something like that!?

It wasn't just him who felt the effects of the Princess' absence either, many of the guards were quick to note the usual ray of sunshine absent from the halls and nothing even happened now, so a familiar sense of boredom once again washed over the castle, reminding them of the times before the Princess and Empress' arrival.

Belos certainly felt this in his very soul, as he sat on his throne, bored out of his mind and slightly saddened by the absence of his daughter, he couldn't wait until tomorrow either, he needed a boost of serotonin and fast. So he sent Kikimora to go and return with Luz…

Any minute now…

A sudden tornado of purple flames appeared before his eyes and Kikimora and Luz appeared before his eyes.

Kikimora bowed respectfully.

"The Princess, just as you asked, sir…" She said.

"Dad! Luz shouted, in a much less formal tone, rushing him and tackling him into a hug, "I missed you!"

Belos internally sighed in relief, feeling his mood instantly rise.

'Thank Titan…' He thought to himself as hugged Luz back, "I missed you too, how was your training, my little light?" He asked.

Luz smiled brightly.

"It went great! Look at this magic sword that I got!" She said, taking a few steps back and drawing her longsword, it seemed to even shine in the limited light of the throne room.

Belos hummed at the sight, removing his mask and cowl and stroking his chin in thought.

"Impressive…" He held out his hand, "May I?" He asked.

Luz wasn't expecting that.

"Oh, uh, sure, just be super careful! It's super old… From before the Savage Ages…" She said softly before carefully holding out the handle to Belos.

Belos reached out and grabbed the hilt.

"Hmm... Feels light as a feather…" He snapped his finger, a pillar rose out of the floor and he made a quick swipe at it, causing it to form a cut in the middle before it fell over, a perfect and clean slice.

"Yet, made from a material stronger than most metals we have nowadays…" Hands it back to Luz, "It's a fine blade, daughter. Perfect for a Princess."

Luz giggled in excitement as she carefully sheaths away the blade

"Thanks, Dad!" She said excitedly, "Fera taught me a lot, says that I'm a real natural with the blade, too! Maybe we can spar one of these days! Kiki always said you were a master swordsman in the Rebellion!"

Belos smiled and chuckled at the challenge.

"That would be an interesting experience, I believe… Although I haven't picked up a sword in-" He stopped, a random smell catching his attention, "Is that… Honey, I smell?" He asked.

Luz was confused.

"Honey?" She asked, smelling her breath for a moment, "Oh that must be me…" She said without realizing.

Kikimora sighed.

"I knew it would go wrong…" She whispered.

Belos leaned forward, taking a quick whiff of the air around Luz.

"I know this smell... Fire Bee Honey Mead…" He said, standing straight once more, "Young lady, Why do you smell of alcohol?" He asked sternly.

Luz sweated slightly, holding her hands behind her back.

"I- I swear, there is a perfectly reasonable explanation for this…" She said softly, with a nervous chuckle, "Would you believe… That it was an accident…?"

"I'd sooner believe that a man could walk on the moon in the sky," Belos said.

'Don't say it… Don't say it… Don't say it… Don't say it…' Luz repeated to herself in her mind before clearing her throat.

"I- It's the truth!" Luz defended herself, "We were celebrating in the mess hall and I was given a mug of mead!"

Belos sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"How many did you even drink?" He asked.

"About… 19 mugs of mead…"

"Titan, that's a higher tolerance than mine when I was her age…" He muttered to himself before clearing his throat, "Since you're fine now, I assume you received a potion from Fera's wife correct?"

Luz gave him a confused look.

"How do you know that?" He asked.

Belos smiled knowingly.

"Other than Fera telling me about it, I knew her wife's Grandmother way back when during the Rebellion, and more often than not, she gave me that remedy after… A more exciting night of celebration…" He said with a chuckle.

"He means when he got blackout drunk." Kikimora said with a huff, crossing her arms, "It was amazing that the Stranger was able to keep up with you at the tavern."

Belos smiled at Kikimora.

"Yes, she was something special, wasn't she?" He asked, turning back to Luz, "How do you feel?"

"Well, besides a minor headache… I'm feeling fine…" She said, rubbing her head a bit.

Belos let out a breath.

"Alright, then I hope you learned a valuable lesson, young lady. Make your way back to your room, freshen up and get some rest. Your mother doesn't need to know about this little "accident"." He said, winking at Luz, "She is not as understanding as I am…"

Luz sighed in relief, before squeezing Belos tightly in another hug.

"Thanks, Dad... I appreciate it…" She whispered with a chuckle, before scooting past him and leaving the throne room, running upstairs to her room.

Kikimora took small steps and came up next to the Emperor, watching Luz leave.

"Will we dispense a punishment onto Fera for that?" She asked.

Belos shook his head no.

"No, I don't believe that's necessary, I trust Fera enough to issue the punishment on the real culprit." He turned to Kikimora, "Tell me, how is the progress of the project so far?"

Kikimora nodded.

"The project goes well, sir… The Elite Guard has confirmed the existence of the Owl Lady's portal, confirming that it indeed leads directly into the human realm, as well that it requires a Key to operate," She said softly, "Once we acquire the door and key, we can move on to the final stages of the project and the day of Unity can commence within the given time frame... There are... Certain things to worry about, however, I won't lie…" She said seriously.

Belos looked towards her, curious.

"Oh? Like what? Does the portal require more resources?" He asked.

Kikimora shook her head.

"No, no, we have enough materials and resources to last us well into the next few months…" She paused, taking a deep breath, "Sir, the portal is nearly complete but it lacks very necessary stability…" She said seriously, glancing around to make sure no one was listening in before continuing.

"I fear that if we are not extremely careful or if the wrong button is pressed, the portal will destabilize and cause a restructuring reality event…" She whispered, "I didn't realize it until you pulled out your Elite Guard through that portal, we are tapping into the very Weave of Magic, as well as Space and Time across other Universes… Do you even know who your Elite guards are?" She asked.

Belos paused and sighed.

"No… I do not… But their identity is not important, the Titan sent them to me so that we could complete our goals in his name."

Kikimora sighed and reinforced her composure, trying not to outstep her boundaries… But the Emperor's zealot nature towards the Titan often made her feel like it would be the death of all of them…

"Fine… Fine… But I suggest that we take more steps to be careful with the project, so a rip in time doesn't occur…"

"I see…" Belos said with a nod, looking away and thinking for a moment, "We can't put a pause to the development of the project, see to it that the necessary steps and safety precautions are met. We can't have a rip within reality occur now, can we?" She asked with a mild chuckle, "I know for a fact my Empress would give me an earful if that happened…"

Kikimora nodded, taking a deep sigh, and closing her eyes.

"No… No, we wouldn't want that at all…" She was silent for a moment, trying to hold her composure but couldn't her curiosity and need for closure for her dying questions finally pushed her forward, and the Empress wasn't here, it was a perfect opportunity… She sighed softly.

"Emperor… May I ask you something that's been on my mind for a long time…"

Belos looked back at Kikimora.

"Of course, Kiki, you may ask me anything."

Kikimora took a deep breath.

"Why… Did you never tell… Me about your relationship with the Empress?" She asked, "I've been your right hand since the Savage Ages, during the Rebellion, and through every battle... I had thought we were to trust each other…" She said softly, sounding slightly hurt but it was more full of curiosity for now.

Belos glanced down at the small Demon before taking a breath of his own, stepping back towards his throne, placing a hand on the armrest, inspecting the throne so that his eyes wouldn't meet Kikimora's.

"I am sorry that I held back my relationship with Camila from you, and that I betrayed your trust by doing so, Kiki…" He apologized, "There were many reasons that I held back the truth from you and those around me... I just didn't know who I would be able to trust with such information and if you'd be accepting of Camila at all…"

Kikimora narrowed her eyes at him, inspecting his face carefully, as he was without it since he was talking to Luz moments ago. She saw the way he wouldn't meet her eyes, how his short ears slightly twitched as well…

Such escapable details were only noticed by those close to the Emperor, like his wife or his warrior demon assistant of many many years. She would've missed it, had he had his mask and hood on.

"You... You are lying, Alexander…" She said, crossing her arms and unexpectedly using his first name, "What is the real reason you hid the truth from me? It can not be as simple as that. How could you not trust me with this but trust me with a machine that could rearrange reality? It doesn't make sense…"

Belos turned, finally meeting her eyes.

"You are reading too far into this, Kiki, it's just as I said it was, so back. Off." He said firmly, eyes glowing blue as a warning to back off, but Kikimora knew the Emperor, she knew who he was far before the Empress did, and so much better, so what was he hiding...?

"Alexander Witterbane Belos…" Kikimora whispered in silent frustration, "You are keeping secrets from me and I have the right to know what they are... Now tell me... Why. Didn't. You. Tell me... Of Camila?" She asked, an edge about her voice.

"There... Is nothing... To tell you…" He said before his eyes widened, quickly leaning to the right to dodge the hammer that was thrown at him, destroying his throne, "Kikimora Bojovnik!" He shouted, more in surprise rather than anger but his eyes widened like saucers soon after at the sight of Kikimora.

The small warrior Demon was doing something he didn't think he'd ever see again in his lifetime... She was... Crying... In actual tears.

A wave of guilt washed over him.

"Kiki, I'm…" He said, experimentally stepping forward but stopped when the same Warhammer from before struck the floor in front of him, cracking it greatly.

"S- Stay away from me!" She shouted, wiping away the tears from her eyes as her hair flared and threatened to cast a spell, but the tears just kept coming, "I've- I've fought at your side, killed at your command, and have enforced your law and the Titan's idiotic will, and have been at your side for nearly half a CENTURY! And yet, the MINUTE this human falls into your lap and I am now your shadow!" She shouted at him, prying the hammer out of the floor and twirling it threateningly.

"What did she have that I didn't!? Why do you trust her more than I? SHE'S JUST A FEEBLE HUMAN!" She screamed at him, panting heavily, "Why... Why wasn't I good enough for you...? Was I ever good enough...?" She asked, looking at the floor, defeated and with droves of tears in her eyes as she dropped her Warhammer, it clattering to the floor before it disappeared in a cloud of flames.

The Emperor was silent before he took a deep breath and took a few steps, removing his cloak as he did so and teleporting it away.

Kikimora's eyes widened as she leaned back, watching him advance on her. She could only imagine what was going through his head right now… Was he going to execute her for insulting the Empress and the Titan in the same breath? That could be the only explanation…

"I- I said, stay back!" She shouted a twinge of fear in her voice, summoning throwing knives and throwing them at Belos. He easily evaded them all but one found its mark in his arm but he pulled it out, throwing it away and advancing further towards her, reaching out to her.

Kikimora then summoned a sword next, she couldn't believe she let her emotional state get the better of her, her parents would be so disappointed in her to hear such a thing happened and that she died on her knees.

But, to Kikimora's surprise, Belos had disarmed her in her distraction and was suddenly kneeling at her level and wrapping his arms around her, hugging her tightly.

"W- What…?" She asked with wide eyes.

"Kiki please stop trying to kill me, I heal faster than I can be hurt…" He said softly, Kiki looked at the wound in his arm, it was already healed. It hadn't even bled… He continued.

"Kiki... The truth of the matter is that... I always knew of the way you felt…" He whispered, shocking her greatly, "It was... Always a thing I saw through, in your character but I could never love you the way I love Camila now... You were... Too loyal, you could say... You would do anything to seek my approval and recognition... And... You know how much I hate groveling…" He said with a slight chuckle, "The truth is, I never told you about Camila, for I knew it would break your heart to learn that I had loved another... I could never come to the thought of hurting my most trusted ally and friend…"

Kikimora felt even more tears well up in her eyes as her hair settled and relaxed once more, as she let her head fall forward onto the Emperor's shoulders, staining his dark clothes with her tears.

"I… I see... But... You had to have known that I would eventually find out…" She whispered.

"That I did… It's why you were the first to find out about Camila and Luz, on their return... Besides the imminent return of my wife, nothing else was on my mind but your impending reaction…" He said with a low whisper, pulling away from the hug and looking into the small Demon's sad and hurt eyes.

"You, Kikimora Bojovnik, are one of the oldest and only friends I have left, as well as one of my most trusted allies... You found me in a jail cell and helped me start a proper Rebellion, it was you who taught me the law and held me up when all seemed certainly lost... I could never imagine being without you... My most loyal friend, ally, and assistant…"

Kikimora looked into the eyes of Belos, those corn-flower blues that she fell for long ago before sighing, stepping away from his hold.

"T- thank you… Alexander…" She whispered, turning away from him, "I... I will be back by the morning or tomorrow... I need some time to myself…" She said softly and before Belos had a chance to say anything, a tornado of flames wrapped around her, and she was already gone.

Belos sighed and stood up from the ground.

"I hope that she doesn't take this too hard…" He whispered, turning back to his now shattered throne.

"That was given to me by Lord Darius…" He whispered grimly, remembering how his original Construction Coven Head gave him that throne before he retired, "It was such a good chair, too…" She said with a groan, rubbing his eyes.

I mean, there was a reason he sat in here in his off time, he enjoyed the chair.

He sighed, turning and walking, deciding to maybe meet with Camila and discuss a few things before they both called it a night.


-Meanwhile-


The Owl House.

Everyone was snoozing and enjoying the cool night, even Hooty was asleep, thankfully.

And so, our lovely and cute King of Demons, or shall we say, Prince of Demons, was currently enjoying his favorite spot on the couch, snuggling into it as if he was a dog and was about to finally doze off himself but was thinking, as he usually does into the night.

It's been a silent month, no Luz coming around and Eda just preparing lessons for her return, which would be next week... Just nothing to do at all but wonder if his sister received his letter by now... He was then brought out of his thoughts by the sound of soft knocking at the door.

He wanted to ignore it because honestly, who answered the knocking door in the middle of the night? But it was consistent and very much prevented him from even nearing the possibility of going to sleep.

On top of that, with his recently enhanced hearing, he'd most likely hear it from anywhere in the house as well.

"WEH!" He yelled, throwing away his blanket and getting up before stomping towards the door, "Who in my father's name is knocking at this hour!?" He said to himself, swinging open the door.

"Who dares to intrude on-" Immediately stops as his eyes widen a bit at the sight of Kikimora, "Kiki? What are you doing here?"

Looking closer, he saw that Kiki was in a sight of slight disarray. Her white clothing was dirty and stressed, and she seemed to have been crying moments before.

Kikimora cleared her throat, folding her arms behind her back.

"H- Hello, Prince…" She whispered, looking down at the floor, "I mean, King… I mean King…" She reminded herself, "I've had… Sort of a bad night, to say the least, and didn't feel like staying within the Castle's walls... And I have nowhere else to go, so I was hoping... If you would allow me to stay here in the... "Owl House"..." She said, saying it out loud felt so odd to her.

King thought a bit, before looking back into the house, tilting his head towards the stairs, hearing Eda's snoring all the way from her room then looking back at Kikimora, "Yeah, of course, come on in! As Luz would say, "Mi casa es su casa". Whatever that means." He said, stepping to the side and letting her in.

Kikimora sighed in relief, thanking the Abyss she didn't have to sleep under the stars tonight…

Entering the Owl House and following King, she looked around the entire living room.

"It looks so… Unorganized…" She chuckled a bit, "Reminds me of home, a bit…" She commented before looking towards King again, "Thanks for allowing me to stay here, Prin- King…"

King laughed a bit as he rummaged through a closet.

"You really can't help yourself, huh?" He asked before finding a set of blankets that he was looking for and continuing to walk, "Think nothing of it. The King of Demons is humble enough to allow guests within his castle, you know."

Kikimora smiled, but it was hidden underneath her collar.

"Hm… Truly, I am not worthy to be in your presence, my King," She said with a tired laugh before yawning loudly, feeling tired for the first time in a while, "But I must say, King... I am rather tired…" She said, "Where do you think I can rest my head for the night..?" She asked.

King then handed her the blankets he had found.

"Upstairs. Follow me." He said, quickly scampering up the stairs like a dog, Kikimora running up after him.

King came up to his room before opening the door, "Your room, m'lady," He said dramatically.

Kikimora stepped into the room, it had a string of human Christmas lights illuminating the ceiling and a few lit candles here and there, a locked chest in one corner of the room, and other miscellaneous bedroom items.

"It's quite cozy here…" She commented.

"Yeah, it's nothing like my room back home in the Demon Lands, though," He sighed, "I miss Jean-Luc and my big scary minions…" He said, shaking his head, "Well it's whatever."

Kikimora laughed.

"Are you talking about those nursery drones that always followed you and your sister around?" She asked, "Those things always gave me the creeps…"

"Yeah, I had a favorite that I had to leave behind in my birthplace… But, that's not important, right now, get some!"

"But… All I see is the one cot…?" She asked, "This is your room, I couldn't possibly take your bed, Prince…" She said, not even bothering to correct herself this time.

King waved his claws.

"It's fine, really and besides," He fell backwards, landing on a pile of stuffed animals, "My army will provide me comfort tonight."

Kikimora let out a breath and nodded, undoing her jacket and collar, revealing to King the tusks she often kept hidden from the Isles as she laid down on the cot.

"Thank you, Prince... You're a comfort in these trying times…" She said softly.

King clapped his hands and the enchanted lights turned off.

"It's my pleasure, lady warrior. And if you want…" Holds up a bunny plush, "François can guard you while you sleep! He is the most loyal member of my army!" He said with pride.

Kikimora thought for a few moments before reaching out and grabbing François, inspecting the rabbit plush with care before smiling softly at it.

"Thank you, Prince... I shall entrust my care with your most reliable soldier," She said with a giggle.

King smiled brightly.

"My pleasure!" Pauses a bit, thinking about how he should word his next sentence carefully, "I don't want to sound rude or anything but how come you were in tears earlier?" He asked softly.

"I... Uh…" She rubbed her eyes a bit, wanting to erase any further evidence of King's claims, "I just came to realize a few things about those around me, you could say... And some clarifications…"

King sat up at that, interested.

"Like what?" He asked.

Kikimora probably should've just ended the conversation there, saying that she didn't want to talk about it but all she could do was continue talking, maybe talking about it would help along.

"Just... About…" She sighed, deciding to simply bite the bullet and reveal the embarrassing truth, "For who knows how long, I was in love with the Emperor... I was at his side for decades, so I questioned him finally on why he chose a human over me and... He made things clear that there could never be anything between us... So I guess, I am just processing that still…" She said sadly.

King thought for a bit.

"You want my opinion?" He asked.

"I'm scared to hear it... But... Yes, I could use the wise words, if any."

"When I was younger, my father often told me that things wouldn't always go the way I wanted them and that I'd need to suck it up and move on because better things would one day be on the way…" He said, looking towards Kikimora and meeting her eyes, "So if I confessed my feelings to someone and they didn't feel the same way, I'd just move on. So what if they don't like you that way?" He said, "There's probably someone out there willing to give you more attention than that guy, anyway. If I ever get a mate I'd want them to like me for me and not treat me like a sibling or something. If that makes any sense…" He said, finishing his small rant.

Kikimora thought about his words.

He was right after all… The Emperor would never see her in such a manner anyway, he had a daughter and a wife to love already, after all…

"Yes… It does make sense but…" Sighs, "I wish it was just that easy, Prince... To just move on after years of being in love, I mean, I'm a demon for crying out loud! I remember ten years ago like it was yesterday!" She said with a groan.

"But... I'm more than willing to do so... Even now, talking about it here with you is helping me, especially how silly it was for me to even develop such feelings in the first place... You know, I'd probably just do the Demon thing and bottle it up if I wasn't talking to you about it, you know?" She joked with a slight chuckle.

"Eh, Eda says bottling up emotions is bad for one's mental health or whatever," Lays back down, "That's why I express myself in certain ways. When I'm angry I do a… thing…"

This made Kikimora curious…

"A thing?" She asked, "Like what?"

King exhaled through his nose and sighed.

"I do this certain "squeak" whenever something or someone angers me enough, Eda calls it my "Squeak of Rage"." He said, avoiding Kiki's gaze, clearly embarrassed to talk about it, "I've been meaning to stop that…"

Kiki smiled a bit covering her mouth with a slight giggle.

"I see…" She said softly, "How unbefitting of a Demon Prince such as yourself…" She teased softly, holding in her laughs.

King blushed a bit with a half-lidded expression, thanking the Abyss that it was unseeable due to his fur.

"It's not that funny…"

"True, but I find it very funny…" She said, "But if it is any consolation... I find the fact rather adorable... It reminds me that you truly are a Demon and not just some fearsome wolf Prince."

"Oh…" he blushed a bit, "T- The King of Demons appreciates your comment!"

"It's no problem, Prince…" She then stretched her body, feeling several bones pop and sighing in much-needed relief, "Ah, alright... I'm about ready to lie my head down for the night... It's been a long day... Especially with the Princess becoming drunk…"

Hearing this, King immediately sat up.

"Who got what now!?" He asked.

"Oh that's right," She sat up also to look at King, "So essentially, Fera, the Beast Keeping Coven Head, let the Princess out of her sight for less than five minutes and the Fera Clan gave Luz 19 mugs of Fire Bee Honey Mead that she downed in record times."

King gave a loud laugh.

"Oh my Titan, I wish I was there to see that!" He said with a wheeze, "Luz, drunk, I can barely picture it in my head…" He said in between laughs.

Kikimora laughed along with him as well.

"Yes, I was told that the Princess was hoping to break the record of 39 mugs, I can not imagine the sight of the Princess that inebriated."

King laughed even harder.

"Oh, my sides! Eda's going to bust a gut when she hears this!" He said, wiping a tear from his eye.

Kikimora couldn't help but laugh just as hard as King, his laugh was rather contagious. Suddenly, she laughed so hard that she accidentally snorted. She ceased laughter immediately and covered her mouth in clear embarrassment.

"Y- you didn't hear that…" She said quickly.

King could only blink in shock at Kikimora.

"Did… You just snort?" He asked.

Kikimora was red in embarrassment.

"N- no… Maybe…" She said.

"Ah don't be so bashful! A snort is a sign of someone with a sense of humor!" King encouraged with a laugh.

"Please... It's embarrassing... A warrior who snorts, unheard of…" She said with a groan, covering her face with François, making the stuffed rabbit squeak.

King stroked his chin in thought.

"You know… My mom was once from a warrior clan before she was dad's mate…"

Kikimora glanced at King from behind the plush, still embarrassed.

"Unsurprising…" She whispered, "Ri Císařovna once singlehandedly took down an entire ship fleet without breaking a sweat with just her shield…" She commented, "I'd admire her skill every day…" She said softly, "Why do you bring her up, Prince?"

"Well, when I was a small demon, I asked my parents how they fell for each other," He said, beginning to spin a tale, "Mom said it was because of Dad's strength but also his gentle nature. Dad said it was because of Mom's intelligence, battle prowess, and sense of humor. If anyone could laugh at my dad's jokes it was always my mom. If you think you could snort, whenever mom laughed she always snorted up a storm."

Kikimora lowered François and couldn't help but feel a smile show itself on her face, laughing a bit at his story.

"That's… That's actually really sweet, Prince, Thank you for telling me that... It makes me feel... Really better about my laugh…" She said softly

"No problem, Kiki, and besides if it's any consolation, I like your laugh." He said.

Kikimora blushed brightly at the compliment, averting her gaze.

"Oh you flatter me, Prince…"

"It's the truth, lady warrior!" He declared, before stretching with a yawn, "Welp, it's time for this King of Demons to have his royal snooze," He laid down, getting comfortable, "Goodnight, Kiki, sleep well."

Kikimora got comfortable, laying down on the cot.

"Goodnight, Prince of Demons…" She whispered as she stared up at the ceiling for a moment before turning and glancing out the window, staring at the night sky and the full moon with a blanket of stars to accompany it...

It was such a beautiful night and honestly... She wasn't sad anymore…


I mean... I just like crack ships, you know? They're fun and give me the perfect opportunity to build up that relationship. Anyways, I'm sure you noticed those numbers, I'm trying something new cause, I know what this means, but you don't.

I'll post the list of things at the bottom of the chapter, so if you see these numbers, just scroll to the bottom and find it.


1. Writing this part made me laugh so hard for no reason, such a dumb joke that I loved.

2. Of course Kiki would name her favorite weapon, based on a lovely human novel she read.

3. Common misconception on the Isles is that most lightning formed from the spells is the same as the lightning formed in the storms in the sky, the elements produced from magic are only artificial. The actual elements are much stronger and faster. The only exception is Witch's fire, which burns purple.

4. Consider this. Eda is said to be in her 40s and Lilith is older than her by 2 years. So if Lilith took the seat at 28, she'd be 42 by the time she took the Coven seat. Making Eda an even 40, in this story at least.

5. Might I mention that teleportation spells are indictive of their own hearts and/or their own magic.

For example, Kikimora's magic burns like the flame of a warrior's heart, and for people like Belos, it's the Titan's blessing. Giving Kiki a flaming exit while Belos gets a creepy, body melting into floor eldritch horror exit.

6. Dítěgarten; Boiling Kindergarten. Place where Little Witchlings are taught how to read and speak "Rune" and art taught the history of the Boiling Isles and the many Coven Tracks, currently excluding Potions for its complexity.

Dítě = Demon for "Child"
Garten = German for "Garden"

7. I don't think I explained this well enough, but when I say this, I mean that since Luz is Half witch, she can eat most things here but her human half sometimes fights her about it.

8. Ever heard of the human expression of a "high horse?"


Do you have any questions? Was it worth the wait? Please, let me know! I love writing, and will be finishing this story eventually.

The next few chapters shouldn't be too long either, so expect one before the end of the month, have a nice day/night y'all!