Chapter Two: New Sheriffs in Town
The streets of Bonesborough were quiet, abandoned. Everyone had either fled from the destruction, or had taken shelter inside. Stormclouds darkened the city below, with only two lights illuminating the city square. As rain poured down from the skies, two figures faced one another. Emperor Belos gripped his staff, and his opponent, the Great Witch Luzura gripped hers.
"YAHAHAHAH! You'll never be able to destroy me, Luzura!" exclaimed Belos, in a raspy voice that Luzura imagined he sounded like. "My evil magic is far too powerful for your good magic!"
"That's where you're wrong, Belos!" said Luzura, pointing a finger at her opponent. "For my magic is not just my own: it is the magic of all the people of the Boiling Isles. And for as long as I stand as their champion, our hearts will beat as one!" Her staff began to glow with a warm yellow light.
"HA! Such noble nonsense!" drawled Belos. His staff glowed as well, with a frigid blue light. "The rule of Belos will never end! Allow me to show you why!"
Belos aimed his staff at Luzura, sending an enormous stream of blue flames her way. In a burst of yellow fire, Luzura launched herself into the air, before sending a barrage of fireballs at Belos. Faster than the eye could see, Belos dodged each one, leaping up to meet Luzura in the air.
The two witches collided, flying up higher into the clouds. From below, the townsfolk could see flashes of blue and yellow like lightning bolts in the sky. Then, like a meteor, Luzura fell from above, landing with a crash back down in the square. As she pulled herself up with her staff, Belos descended to meet her.
"So this is the 'great hero' I've heard so much about! HA! Some hero! As though a human could ever stand up to me!"
"I am a human…" said Luzura. "...I'm the human that's going to end your reign of terror, and set the Boiling Isles free!"
Belos surrounded himself in flames. "What is a human? A miserable little pile of secrets! But enough talk...DIE!" The flames around him took the shape of an enormous serpent, which lunged at Luzura. Digging deep down into her reservoir of remaining strength, Luzura summoned a fiery serpent of her own. The twin snakes collided, each combatant struggling to consume the other in the blaze. Slowly, Belos' blue fire began to overtake Luzura's yellow.
"Ugh...he's too powerful!" cried Luzura, the force of the attack pushing her back. "I can't give up...but I can't defeat him on my own!"
"You aren't alone, Luzura," came a voice. "You have all of us, right behind you!"
"W-what? Eda?" said Luzura. "Where are you?"
"Somewhere safe, with the others." Hidden in a bunker somewhere, Eda used her divination magic to communicate with Luzura telepathically. "You may be the only one strong enough to defeat Belos, but we'll always be here for you!"
"Yeah! We're here for you, Luzura!" said Willow.
"We're all behind you, one hundred percent!" said Gus.
"Hmmph...I guess I'll be here too," said Amity, aloof as always.
"Everyone…" A single tear fell from Luzura's eye, sparkling in the firelight as it fell to the ground. "We can do this, together!" With one arm holding her staff, she reached her other hand towards the heavens. "Now! Lend me your energy!"
Eda held out her hand. "If you're giving your all, it's only fair that we do, too! Take it!" she exclaimed. The other people in the bunker began to follow her example.
Willow held out her hand as well. "Take mine, too!"
Gus did the same. "And mine!"
After a moment of hesitation, Amity thrust her hand forwards past the others. "Go beyond, Luzura!" she cried emphatically.
Luzura closed her hand, holding it close to her heart. "I can feel it...the power of my friends, my family, flowing through me! Belos...taste the power of a hundred hearts beating as one! PLUS ULTRA!"
Luzura thrust her arms out to the side, dissipating both streams of fire. "What is this?" said Belos. "This aura...no! Impossible!"
"For me, 'impossible' is a four-letter word!" said Luzura. "Now feel my power!" She flew towards Belos, their staffs colliding with a resounding shockwave that covered almost the entire town. For a brief moment, the rain stopped falling, having been blown away by the force of the attack.
"No...I can't believe this!" shouted Belos, staring down at the two halves of his staff.
"Believe it!" Luzura said triumphantly. "For I am Luzura, defender of the Boiling Isles!"
"Emperor's Coven! Retreeeeeat!" Belos yelled, making a break for it, accompanied by all of his lackeys. All except for one. Luzura reveled in her victory for a moment, until she saw who was left.
"Suggestion noted...and ignored!" said the cloaked figure, removing his hood to reveal the face of…
"Mattias!" said Luzura. "Emperor Belos' most ruthless lieutenant! Why are you still fighting, when your master has turned tail and fled?"
Mattias scoffed. "Belos is no master of mine! I fight only for myself...and you stand in my way, Luzura!" Driving his staff into the ground, he raised his hand to conjure a dozen abominations from the cobblestone beneath him.
"I have vanquished Belos, I will vanquish you as well!" said Luzura, racing towards her new opponent.
"You will try!" Mattias thrust out his staff, urging his creations forwards. The abominations merged into a single whirlwind of sludge, ensnaring Luzura before she could reach him.
"No! I c-can't move!" cried Luzura as the mass of purple slime covered her, growing tighter and tighter. As she struggled, the mass seemed to cover her more. Mattias sneered as the abominations covered her face like a blanket. Tighter, darker, hotter…
"Mph! Gah!" Luz sprang upright, dropping King from her face down onto her lap. "King! What was that about!?"
The little demon was none too happy with being thrown from his sleeping spot. "What!?" he said defensively. "It's not my fault your face is the comfiest spot!"
Luz sighed good-naturedly. "Well, we might as well get up now," she said. She got out of bed, scooping King up in her arms as she headed down to the kitchen. "What're we gonna do with you?"
"Let me sleep in?" he suggested.
"Maybe just not on my face next time!" Luz giggled. "Morning, Eda!"
"M'rn'," said Eda, leaning over a cup of apple blood. Her eyes were baggy-it seemed that she just woke up as well. "How'dya sleep?"
"Good!" said Luz. "I had a pretty good dream. Of course, King woke me up…"
"He'll do that," Eda said. "Lemme guess, he decided your face made a good cushion?"
"Is that a thing he does?" said Luz, smiling.
"Oh yeah, all the time," Eda said. "Anyways…" She stood up, yawning as she walked over to the cabinet. "Thinkin' about goin' down to the market today. You comin', or no?"
"Sure! School doesn't start for a little while, I'd love to tag along!" Just as quickly as she had sat down, Luz stood up once more, grabbing her bag.
"Today's a school day? Sheesh, doesn't that place give you any breaks?" said Eda. "'Course, when I was a kid, I skipped every other day…"
"Almost," Luz replied. "We get the whole week off for St. Bludworth's Day in about two weeks. I'll bet we can fit in a whole lot of magic training when…" All of a sudden, Luz went quiet. Her face darkened, as though she had just remembered some recent tragedy she had been trying to forget. "Oh, no…"
"Kid? What's the matter?" Eda stepped closer to the girl, concerned, but not quite yet worried. "Something going on with school? That Boscha kid isn't still giving you trouble, is she?"
"No, it's not that," Luz said sadly, rubbing her arm. "It's just...remember that camp I told you I was supposed to be at?" Eda nodded. "It's ending in two weeks. If all the other kids come home but me, Mami's going to be worried about me..."
"Well, don't worry, there's an easy fix for that!" said Eda. Although she was trying to console Luz, she herself sounded a touch melancholy under her cheerful exterior. She held up the magic key around her neck, and pressed the eye. A door appeared from out of the ground, opening up to reveal a white glow. "When the time comes, you'll be able to see your mommy again!"
"Thank you, but that's not why I'm worried," said Luz. "I know I can leave the Boiling Isles, but I...I don't want to. I feel more at home here than I ever did back on Earth, like I belong here. I don't want to leave you behind, or King, or Gus, Willow, Amity, any of the people I've met here."
"Or Hooty!" called Hooty from outside.
Luz giggled. "Or Hooty," she said. "Don't get me wrong, I love her, and I know she loves me, but I don't know if my mami would approve of me...well, being here."
As all Eda knew about Luz's mom had come from the girl herself, she had no way of knowing if that was true or not. "Luz...your mom loves you, yeah?"
"Yeah," Luz answered, nodding.
Eda put a hand on the girl's shoulder. "I'll be the first to admit, I don't know a whole lot about mom stuff. But I know that if she loves ya, I'm sure she'll be just fine with you coming over once in a while to see everyone again. Maybe not at first, but she'll come around."
Luz cocked her head to the side. "How can you be so sure? How do you know she won't ground me for life, or forbid me from ever setting foot on the Boiling Isles again?"
"Because my mom was the same way," said Eda. She averted her gaze, smiling fondly. "Back when I first got this curse, she was one of the only people who wasn't scared of me. She was always there, and she always made sure I was okay whenever I transformed. She…" Eda trailed off for a moment, before she turned back to Luz. "My point is, if your mom is anything like my mom, she'll want you to be happy. Even if she might be mad at first, it's just 'cause she's worried about ya."
Gradually, Luz smiled. "You're right," she said. "You know, you'd make a great mom, Eda."
"Psh, no thanks!" said Eda. "Maybe an aunt or something. I don't need no snot-nosed brats ruinin' my bad girl lifestyle!"
Luz giggled. "So, should we get going?"
"Yup." Eda levitated har bag into her hands, and she and Luz towards the door. "Ya know, when that camp thing ends, it's not like you'll never be able to come back here again." She pointed to the key. "The door's always open!"
"Yeah," said Luz. "I'm just going to miss living here, is all."
"Well, if you've only got two weeks left, we might as well make the most of them," Eda said. "Hows about we get some of that candy you like?"
"Those ice scream bars with the gumball eyes?" said Luz excitedly. "Today just took a turn for the better!"
"Hrmmm…" Eda stood in front of a stall, her eyes shifting back and forth between a pair of shrunken heads. On the one hand, one was a few snails cheaper than the other. On the other hand, it might be cheaper for a reason. There was a chance it would burn out before she could get her money's worth; it was always hard to tell.
"Ma'am, not to rush you, but could you hurry it up?" said the shopkeeper. "You're holding up the line." A grand total of one person stood behind Eda, and they seemed more interested with some sort of hubbub going on nearby.
"Alright, alright," Eda grumbled, fishing out her coin pouch; she decided it would be worth it to splurge a little. "Alright, Luz, what's next on the list? ...Luz?" She looked around for the girl, who seemed to be staring in the same direction as the person behind her.
"Huh?" Luz turned around. "Oh, right, sorry about that." She walked back over to Eda. "What's going on over there, anyway?"
Eda shrugged. "Thought you knew." She turned back to the shopkeeper. "Is there some sort of sale going on I don't know about?"
"Nah, the Emperor's Coven is scheduled to make some sort of announcement today," he said. "Something about a new branch or whatnot."
Eda rolled her eyes. "Gag, no thanks." She nudged Luz. "As if this 'new branch' has any more chance of catching us as the old ones, right?"
Luz, however, was deep in thought. "A new branch, eh?" she said to herself. "What if that dream I had...wasn't just a regular dream? What if it was a prophecy dream? Eda, I figured it out!"
"Figured what out?" asked Eda, stuffing the shrunken head into her bag.
"...I don't know," admitted Luz. "But shouldn't we check this thing out? If the Emperor's Coven has some sort of new branch, wouldn't it make sense for us to know about it? That way we can be prepared if we have to tangle with them later!"
"Yeah, I think I'll pass," said Eda. "It'll probably just be Lily rambling about the latest batch of recruits or something." However, when she noticed Luz's bummed expression, she added, "Hey, you can check it out if you want, just as long as you stay out of sight. Report back to me, alright?"
Luz lit back up immediately. "Will do!" she said. "And don't worry about me being spotted, because I'll be…" She flipped up her cat-ear hoodie. "...in disguise!"
Eda grinned. "Right. Your mission is to collect classified intel on the Emperor's Coven's latest plot. Titanspeed, agent!" Luz saluted, hurrying off towards the gathering crowd. "And meet me back here when you're done!"
Between the tightly-packed people and the murmur of voices, Luz couldn't see or hear what was going on in the square. Rather than push her way through the crowd, as she didn't want to draw unneeded attention to herself, she opted to find a way to where the crowd was less dense. Through breaks in the people and noise, she could just barely make out what looked like a carriage of some sort, as well as a steady pounding of some sort; it almost sounded like footsteps, but they were far too heavy to belong to a regular person.
Soon, Luz found a place where she could see from. A shop in front of the town square had a raised porch, which seemed to be absent of people. She climbed up the few steps and walked over to the railing, where she saw what the fuss was about.
It was definitely a carriage she had seen, and a very large one at that. It was as big as some of the buildings it rolled past, and it needed three wheels just to hold it up. Almost as big was the figure pulling it: an ogrish man, three times as tall as most of the people in the crowd and just as broad, pulled the carriage behind him like a rickshaw. He had rough brown skin, and a multitude of horns emerging from his head and his shoulders. He wore the black suit and white cape signative of the Emperor's Coven, as well as a curved white mask over his eyes.
"Well, this does seem like something Lilith would ride in," said Luz. "I think." She watched closely as the carriage pulled to a stop. A multitude of cone-faced guards were nearby to control the masses, not that they seemed to need controlling. The ogre stepped forward and turned to address the crowd.
"Citizens of Bonesborough!" he said, his voice bellowing and impossibly deep. "This is an important announcement from the Emperor's Coven! Listen well!" He hammered on the side of the carriage, causing a trapdoor on the roof to flip open. A similarly-dressed figure rose up to the stage.
This second figure stood still for a moment, as though making sure absolutely every eye present was on him. Luz couldn't help but feel that something was familiar about this man. And then, when he spoke, it hit her. "People of Bonesborough, on behalf of Emperor Belos, I bid you greetings." Luz gasped lightly; she knew that voice, knew it all too well. She hadn't recognized him with the mask and outfit. When someone tries to kill you, you don't forget their voice easily.
"Mattias," she whispered. "But, w-what's he doing here? Wasn't he supposed to be in jail? Why is he working for the emperor? Does this mean it was a prophecy dream?"
Mattias continued. "It has come to the emperor's attention that a certain fugitive of justice had continually escaped notice in this humble town. I am speaking, of course, of our very own Eda the Owl Lady." Murmurs picked up in the crowd. "Indeed, the Boiling Isles' most wanted. It seems a million-snail bounty was not enough. And worse still, we have reason to believe that she is no longer working alone in her schemes."
Mattias snapped his fingers. Some of the guards and covensmen began to distribute papers to the crowd. One found its way up to where Luz was standing, and she found it was a wanted poster. Of her. Quite a few liberties had been taken, as Mattias had likely had this made from memory, but it bore enough of a resemblance to her that she pulled her hood on tighter, just in case.
"The Owl Lady has taken an apprentice. And it is no mere witch she has following her-she has chosen a human to be her protege." Once again, he spat out the word 'human' as though it physically hurt his lips to say it. More murmurs from the crowd, which seemed to be of disbelief and incredulity. "Make no mistake, this is no mere rumor! I have witnessed this foul creature for myself, and the magic it is capable of conjuring! Indeed, you heard correctly: against all natural laws, the Owl Lady has found a way to allow a human to use magic! And mark my words, if this is allowed to continue, it will only be the first of many servants! For we have reason to believe that Eda intends to build an army with which to overthrow Emperor Belos, crown herself empress, and usher in an age of untold suffering!"
If Mattias wasn't so heated, Luz would have rolled her eyes. He was clearly making this up as he went, and yet, he seemed so genuine in his ranting and raving that he was almost intimidating despite his overblown performance.
"Fortunately, Emperor Belos, in his limitless wisdom, has a solution. And that solution...is us." The doors to the carriage opened, and several more figures stepped out. It was hard for Luz to make them out from where she was standing, but, counting Mattias and the ogre, there appeared to be seven of them, each one wearing identical masks. "The emperor has assembled nine of the strongest, most cunning, most loyal warriors from across the Isles. We are the Inquisitorius Magicus! Together, we will hunt down Eda the Owl Lady and her pet, Luz the human!"
Luz decided that she had heard enough. She began to walk away as Mattias continued his spiel, but was drawn back by a particular note:
"Of course, your cooperation will be necessary," Mattias said. Reluctantly, Luz stepped back up onto the porch. "Anyone found aiding the Owl Lady of her apprentice will be apprehended. This includes doing business with either of them, sheltering them, or not coming forward with any information you may have. All of this is for your own safety, of course. If we are to capture the Owl Lady once and for all, we must work together."
Luz sighed, leaning over the railing. "Of course," she muttered. "I'm starting to think maybe Eda was right about not coming."
Down near the carriage, a bit of movement caught her eye. One of the 'Inquisitors' had nudged another, and was whispering something to them. Luz leaned in closer, only to jump in surprise when both of them looked directly at her.
The second of these two pointed her out, even as she tried to hide beneath her hood. "That's her!" came a voice. "That's the human!" The crowd began turning towards her as well, noticing that the Owl Lady's apprentice was indeed among them.
Luz was startled, but her fear didn't turn to panic until Mattias spoke again. "Well, well, well. It seems our job just got a little easier. Inquisitors-after that human!"
Luckily for Luz, the large crowd meant that the Inquisitors were blocked at first, giving her a few seconds head start to run away. Of course, it wouldn't be that easy, as several Emperor's Covensmen appeared on the street in front of her, blocking her escape. Given the sounds behind her, the Inquisitors were gaining.
"On second thought, maybe Eda should have come along!" said Luz. "Or maybe I shouldn't have…" She slipped down a side alley, hopefully avoiding her pursuers.
AN: Sorry about the abrupt ending, I decided to split this chapter into two. We'll get to the action-y part next time!
