Luz found herself stuck in the In-Between dimension. Turning her head around she couldn't see any sign of the others. She sloshed through the golden liquid searching for her friends and family

"Mom! Vee! Anybody! Where are you?" she called out. An intense wave of discomfort overcame the teenager.

Luz started coughing before clutching her stomach. She moaned loudly as she experienced the worst cramps she ever felt.

It felt like someone was trying to punch their way out of her body. The urge to throw up was immense. She started gagging over and over.

From her mouth came an inky indigo fluid. Luz started spitting up more liquid, and her hair and skin changed back to normal. She felt very frail.

Propping herself up on her hands, Luz looked at her reflection in the golden water. Instead of her reflection, she saw the Celestial's.

"AHHH!" Luz scooted backward in horror. She tried to call on her magic only to realize it was all gone. She was a human again.

The Celestial reflection floated skyward from the golden water. Instead of attempting to hurt Luz, she started to fade away until all that remained was a small purple vapor.

"Huh? What just occurred?"

The gold water started to rapidly rise. Luz started to climb a nearby structure. The water started rising faster the color shifting from bright gold to ebony black.

Luz got to the top of the structure and realized she was trapped. There were not any structures near her. She contemplated if she should try to swim for it. That's when she saw how hard the current was.

"Help! Someone help!" Luz screamed in fear. The water was nearly at her shoes. In a few minutes, she was going to drown. She didn't want to contemplate what would happen to her body if the dark water consumed her.

A large screech filled the air. Something flew down and grabbed the human by her shoulders.

"Thank you!" Luz said as she looked up at her rescuer. The artificial light in the realm was directly above her rescuer making it impossible to see what had her.

Luz felt her savior's feet, no talons, tighten around her shoulders. "Oh no, please don't tell me you saved me only to have me for dinner!"

Luz tried to free herself by shaking back and forth. When that didn't work, she attempted to slip out of her costume only there was no way to take the top off with the talons digging into it.

Her savior started to fly faster forcing Luz to stop trying to break free. Whatever had her rode the thermals higher in the sky. "Too high, too high, too high!"

Just then the creature started swooping down. Luz was screaming so loudly it was resonating across the dimension. As they got closer to the ground, she noticed a tiny pinprick of light coming up.

Without warning, the creature tossed the teenager at the light. "I'm going to die!" she shrieked.

She closed her eyes not wanting to see her own death. Luz didn't realize the pinprick was actually an open portal. She fell through it and tumbled across the ground until she came to a complete stop.

"Ugh, I think I lost my stomach back there," Luz muttered. She was scooped up by her mother. Camila embraced her daughter tightly, not wanting to let go of her ever.

"Ah, mija. I was so worried when you didn't come through the portal right away. I prayed you wouldn't end up stuck in another dimension I couldn't reach again. My heart can't take another shock like that."

"I'm okay, Mom," Luz reassured her. She was determined to not put her mom through more heartache.

"Whoa, Luz. What happened to you? I'm not detecting illusion magic over you."

Luz sighed before telling them what transpired. She got mixed expressions from her Mom and friends. It was hard to fathom she was an ordinary human now.

She opened the fanny pack where she had stored some glyphs. Mousy was also in the pack, guarding Luz's palistrom wood. With everything going on she hadn't had a chance to carve a palisman.

"This is the Demon Realm? Well, it isn't as bad as I thought it would be," Camila stated nervously. Vee slipped her hand into her foster mother's hand. She was also afraid but together they could be brave.

There was a loud snap causing everyone to jump. They looked back and saw Amity holding a suitcase with a star on it. She shrugged sheepishly. "Sorry, the new portal door is finished."

Everyone exhaled in relief. At least they had a way back to Earth if they needed to escape quickly. Camila took the suitcase and was surprised there was no key.

Willow theorized that they probably had to create a fixed point for the portal. That way it would always open in one place. Until then, Camila would have to keep the suitcase close at hand.

Hunter suggested they head to the Owl House. "We can also check on the students and Bat Queen while we're there."

"Bat Queen?" Vee asked nervously. "She doesn't eat basilisks, does she?"

"No sis. She either eats regular food or book pages depending on her mood."

The small group headed towards the forest. As they walked, they kept their eyes out for anyone. It was strange that they couldn't hear any people or animals at all.

After a short time, they came to the cliff where the Owl House had originally sat. The tower was still standing though it was a bit lopsided now. The kids raced to the edge and looked down at Bonesborough.

"What in the Titan did the Collector do?" Gus asked as he just stared at the chaos below.

It appeared that someone had thrown glitter and sparkly stars all over the town. The houses were colored gold, pink, and red. The stars had been stuck to the roads and the ribs.

Rainbow-colored bubbles filled the air forming shapes. Birds that looked like candy were singing loudly. Above the Titan's head was a floating crown.

Vee shuddered and commented, "It looks like the Collector let their imagination run wild. This is like a toddler's dream world, but you said they were over four hundred years old?"

"Age doesn't always equal maturity," Camila explained. She wasn't ready to investigate the town. "We need to move along for now."

Luz nodded and told the others to stick close. They didn't know what the Collector did to the forest. As they got closer to the border, Willow noticed huge patches of barren land, where only a few months ago had been filled with shrubs and flowers.

Twenty minutes later they arrived at the part of the forest that belonged to Bat Queen. Luz's eyes widened when she saw the barrier was gone. A glance at the trees, which were now decorated in yellow ribbons told her why it was gone.

The kids were dumbfounded. The forest barrier had been very strong. Not even Kikimora could get through. How powerful was the Collector?

Stepping into the forest Luz instantly halted. She was straining to hear the river but she couldn't. "Do any of you hear the river?"

"No, I don't. We should be hearing the water cooling down but there's nothing there," Amity replied uneasily.

Willow looked at the soil and realized how dry and cracked it was. "It looks like it hasn't rained since we left here."

"Do you think that's why we haven't seen any of Bat Queen's subjects?" Gus asked. Willow said it was a strong possibility. Without plants, the ecosystem was falling apart.

They hiked a little further and came across a Qulin carcass. Everyone covered their noses at the horrendous smell. "Ugh, how long has it been dead?" Vee asked.

Camila eyed the carcass critically. "I estimate it's been dead for over a week. It wasn't killed by a predator and I'm not seeing any signs of scavenging."

That surprised Hunter. When he had been secretly living here, he had to be careful around the three-legged vultures in the forest. They were the top scavengers in the woods and didn't hesitate to attack the living if they got too close while they fed.

What was more bizarre was there wasn't any magic around the body. Like that Avatar movie, Luz had made them watch, when witches/demons, plants, and animals died, their magic returned to the Titan to be used somewhere else.

"We must keep moving. If the forest is dying the beasts here will be ravenous. We don't want to be around when that happens," Hunter informed the group.

The branches cracked under their feet as they continued. The grass was not red but yellow indicating it was dying. There was no moving wind leaving the air stale.

The palismans were frightened by all the changes in the forest. They had reverted to being wood so they didn't have to see it anymore. Waffle, the only one who had never resided in the Demon Realm, stayed close to Hunter.

Luz picked up the pace as she started to see familiar landmarks. Leading everyone around a thicket the group reached their destination. "The Great Palistrom Tree. Bat Queen's home is through that cave."

Camila glanced at the entrance. She stared at the bones on the ground and trembled. Luz had told her the Bat Queen was huge. By the size of the scattered bones, the woman was starting to worry they would be on the menu.

Luz approached the cave entrance. She started calling out to see if anyone was there. There was a huge gust of wind and out of the cave came Bat Queen carrying her three babies.

Upon seeing the massive palistrom, Camila fainted into Vee's arm. Amity and Willow came over to help her. The boys called Luz's name but she didn't appear to hear them.

The Bat Queen's eyes glowed and in response so did Luz's. She stood there not moving at all. A minute later Luz came back to her senses.

"You came back, human. I was wondering if my babies and I had seen the last of you."

The babies popped out of their mom's hair and started flapping around Luz excitedly. Luz laughed and opened her arms wide. The triplets cuddled with their favorite babysitter.

The Bat Queen saw the rest of the group and bid them to come closer. She smiled at Camila and Vee as she tried to make a good first impression. "It is an honor to meet the mother and basilisk sister of Luz. She has mentioned you quite a bit."

"All good things, I hope," Vee replied softly.

Hunter stepped forward and bowed. "We thank you for your kindness. We are puzzled by what is happening in the forest. Could you please explain what has happened?"

The Bat Queen sighed unhappily. She told them she would enlighten them once the group had showered and eaten a good meal. Everyone could tell Bat Queen was delaying and decided not to press her.

Camila's first impression of the Owl House was trepidation. The big stained glass window with an eye was intimidating. She notice a hole in the door that had what appeared to be veins sticking out.

Luz whispered something under her breath before opening the door. The furniture had been covered up. None of the lights worked without Hooty powering them. The stairs were covered in a layer of dust.

The kitchen wasn't much better. The dishes had been left in the sink waiting to be washed. Mold was starting to grow on them. Several flies hovered over the garbage.

The table had a huge crack. The fridge was empty of food but thankfully didn't smell. Cupboard doors hung open with nothing inside.

"Mom, Vee, you two check the basement for emergency rations. They should be with Eda's apocalypse survival supplies. Hunter, you're going to shower first, and don't argue with me. The rest of us can search the house for something to protect ourselves with."

Camila was secretly proud of how her daughter was taking charge of the situation. She didn't need magic to be heard. Taking a ball of light from Luz, she and Vee descended into the basement.

Hunter was slowly undressing. He looked at his body in the mirror. The possession scars were deep and they were on his chest, his back, and his legs. They would never heal or lighten.

"Guess he reasoned that the shape of my corpse didn't matter," he mumbled. He placed his hand over where his heart would be. He could still feel Flapjack's love for him residing there.

"I miss you, buddy. I wish you were here to guide me now." He didn't notice Waffle spying on him from under the door. Poor Hunter. "I promised brother I would look after his witch. I'm going to do my best Flapjack."

Eventually, everyone showered and ate. Luz had found a few outfits in the storage room that fit her friends. Eda must have gotten them at a thrift store because they looked very old.

Going outside, Bat Queen was waiting for them. She had fed her babies who now were sleeping up in the treetops. Seeing everyone was fed and showered, it was time to explain what was going on.

"When Belos supercharged the magic, it was too much for some of my subjects. Several animal species lost half their population to spontaneous combustion. A few palismans were lost as well."

"What about our peers? How did they fair?" Amity asked.

The Bat Queen held up one wing indicating she would get to them shortly. "After the eclipse ended, We had barely recovered when the Collector sent their star minions throughout the forests. They captured several creatures and a handful of students with ease."

"I don't know what happened to them after the Collector's minions took them away. A few of my subjects and a small group of students went to investigate and never returned."

"Bat Queen, what is happening to the forest?" Luz asked with trepidation.

She explained that the magic levels started dwindling gradually once the Day of Unity was stopped. After a month they realized that the magic wasn't returning to normal.

"The magic of the Titan is being drained a little more each day. The Boiling Isles are dying. Soon, there won't be enough magic left to hold the remains together."

Willow and Amity gasped. Hunter and Luz were stunned by the news. Only Gus was able to talk. "Surely, we can move to another Titan body if this one deteriorates, right?"

Bat Queen shook her head sadly. She explained that all the magic had drained out of the other Titans. The Boiling Sea was eroding them as the years went by.

The situation was dire. If all the magic vanished then the citizens wouldn't have a place to live. Even on another Titan, witches, and demons would lose their magic over time until no one would be born with a bile sac. If something wasn't done soon, the entire Demon Realm would perish.

Luz felt her heart beating faster. Her plan to take out Belos had failed and the Boiling Isles were paying the price for her mistake. Amity clutched her hand assuring her this wasn't her fault.

Vee spoke up. "Um, Ms. Bat Queen?" The huge palisman turned her attention to the little basilisk. "If I regurgitate the magic I ate, would that help save the Boiling Isles?"

Bat Queen patted Vee on the head. "At last, even if it was possible, I doubt it would help. Only another Titan's magic can restart the magic cycle."

Gus smiled upon hearing that. "Then all we have to do is get King back from the Collector. Take him to the heart and let him recharge his dad's corpse."

"Will that even work? My understanding was King was a little kid. Would he even have enough magic to perform such a feat?" Camilla asked the children.

The kids shrugged their shoulders. The only power King displayed was his sonic scream. They had no idea if King could access his Titan magic or not.

No matter, they were rescuing King, Eda, and the rest of the Boiling Isles from the Collector and Belos, (wherever he was). They would need assistance to succeed in this mission.

Amity asked again about the missing students. Bat Queen sighed. "When food started to become scarce my subjects were on the verge of eating the students. In the dead of night, I and the remaining palismans, took them back to Hexside for their safety. They have erected a strong forcefield around the school grounds. As far as I know, they are still there."

This was the first bit of good news they heard. If the teenagers were at the school maybe the teachers and scout captains were also there.

The kids were eager to get started but Camila reminded them it was starting to get dark.

"I understand how badly you want to see your classmates but it's not a good idea to go running around the forest at night," Camila reasoned with them. "After all, the reason the students returned to school was to avoid being eaten. We can go to Hexside tomorrow."

The kids started grumbling, so Camila brought out her sandal weapon. The kids stopped complaining. The mother of six then told everyone to follow her. "The beds are not going to make themselves you know."

"They could if I was better with construction magic," Gus muttered. The kids followed him. Bat Queen told Luz to stay behind for a few minutes. She wanted to speak to her about something.

As soon as the others were out of sight, Bat Queen asked Luz to show her the palistrom wood. The human pulled it out and laid the wood in front of the palisman.

Bat Queen sniffed the wood before picking it up. She examined it closely before setting it back down. "The magic is very strong within this small log. Any palisman carved from this wood would greatly assist you with whatever magic you use."

Luz was grateful to hear that. She had worried the magic had been zapped from it upon arriving here. She still had a problem.

"Eda never got around to showing me how to carve a palisman. I could try to do it on my own but I'm afraid of leaving irreversible harm on the palisman because of my lack of skill."

Bat Queen had perceived that along with one other crucial piece of information. "You have no idea what shape your palisman should take? Many aspects of your life have changed since you first appeared in this world. You desire to have your palisman reflect how much has changed but are not sure what would fit."

"I was hoping you might be able to help me with that. You speak to other palisman. Is there any way you can ask this wood what shape it should take?"

Bat Queen replied that was out of her power. There was something she could do to help assist the future palisman find its form. Placing her wings over the wood, she started chanting an ancient spell.

Her eyes went pure white as the wood started chipping off the log. The faster she chanted the more wood was chipped away. When she finished her chanting, the palistrom wood was now in the shape of an egg.

Luz gently picked up the egg. She felt a heartbeat coming from inside. She looked at the Bat Queen curiously.

"Another ancient spell lost to time. Like you, other witches didn't always know what to carve. This spell allows the spirit of the palisman to reside in safety. Once you truly connect with your deepest desire, the egg will hatch to reveal your palisman."

The teenager thanked the Bat Queen. She promised the egg would stay with her at all times. Mousey would make sure nothing happened to the egg.

Later that night, Waffle nipped Hunter's fingers trying to wake him up. The boy brushed her away. "Go away, Flapjack," he murmured sleepily.

Waffle didn't give up. She started nipping the ear with the notch in it. She hovered in the air when he tried to slap her away. "Go to sleep, Flapjack."

Waffle was getting aggravated. How deep could her witch sleep? Time to bring out the big guns.

She flew out of the room and looked in the storage area for a few minutes. Finding what she needed, she went back to Hunter. She was carrying a party whistle in her beak.

She landed next to his ear. Taking a huge breath, she blew as hard as she could. The whistle caused the teenager to sit up straight and yell, "Whose attacking us?!"

Waffle chirped and Hunter apprehended what was going on. "Why did you do that? It's the middle of the night and I need to get some sleep."

Waffle pecked his hand and used her head to point at the window. She chirped a few more times.

"You want to show me something?" he asked his new palisman. Waffle chirped and nodded. "You heard Camila. It's not safe to go outside right now."

Waffle glared at him. Unlike her brother, Waffle was more direct. She grabbed his collar with her tiny feet before attempting to pull him in the direction of the door.

"Whoa, stop trying to drag me! Waffle what is going on with you? Are you sick?"

Waffle kept chirping and dragging Hunter. Having enough, he swatted Waffle away. "STOP! I can't understand what you're saying!"

Waffle paused as the blond glared at her. "Flapjack is, I mean, was my palisman, not you! I know you're trying to do what your brother asked of you, but I need time! I never should have agreed to bond with you right away."

Hunter turned away from Waffle and started crying. Waffle was hurt by his words. She had only been his palisman for a few hours and already she was messing up.

"You're not messing up, Waffles," Clover said as the bowling ball-sized bee touched down next to her. The palisman nudged Waffle so she would look at Willow comforting Hunter.

Willow stroked Hunter's hair. "I'm here for you, Hunter. Let it all out. You're safe with me."

"I miss him so much. I keep expecting him to pop up somewhere. He's only been gone a few hours and I'm starting to forget the sound of his voice."

"Your witch needs time to grieve for your brother. Despite our circumstances, Hunter has to let his feelings out or he's going to be unable to fight."

"I miss my brother as well. While we didn't meet until Halloween night, I have had a spiritual connection to him since I awoke. I know everything that I need to know to guide Caleb's descendent on his quest."

Clover blinked in slight confusion. Hadn't the quest to make a new portal ended?

Waffles nodded and stated that particular quest was over. There was still one that needed to be completed. The quest to free Caleb's soul so he might finally pass on.

Clover was shocked. Waffle had been made before Caleb's death and this was her first time on the Boiling Isles. How was it possible that Caleb knew what was going to happen to his remains?

"When I was carved, both Caleb and Evelyn, attached a tiny part of their souls to mine. They knew Phillip would come for them one day. They vowed not to move onto the next life until he faced justice for his crime."

"They're still waiting inside the In-Between dimension? I'm surprised that they didn't go when we thought the Collector had killed Belos. Souls have to be strong-willed to hold on this long, especially if they don't want to go insane."

"Indeed Clover. The only way to free my creators' souls is to use the same dagger that Phillip used to kill them to end his life. I sense an object within a five-mile radius that has Caleb's blood on it. It could be the dagger."

Clover stated it could be something far worse, such as human remains. Waffle slapped her wing against her head. Why hadn't she considered that?

"You're new at this. Wait until you have a better idea of what you are sensing. Then you can bring it up to our witches."

"Okay, I trust you, Clover."

The next morning, the group was preparing for the trip to Hexside when Clover buzzed something to his witch. "Oh, that is a good idea." Willow turned to the group and announced that her palisman thought they should take a closer look at Bonesborough

"Why should we do that? We need to get to Hexside and get some help to rescue King and the others," Amity pointed out.

Hunter responded by saying, "We can't plan a rescue if we don't know the current situation. We need to know where the Collector and King are and what we're up against if we want any chance of rescuing them."

The kids looked at Camila knowing she would have the final word. Camila was torn. Both kids made legitimate points. However, she didn't like running into a situation without being prepared.

"We will do a quick recon of the town before heading to the school. We'll need to stick close together. Also, be ready to run at a moment's notice."

Gus suggested the group fly on their magic staffs to Bonesbourouh due to their speed. Luz would ride with him. Camila would be with Amity, and Vee would shapeshift into a bird. While Luz was enthusiastic Camila was starting to regret her decision.

Fifteen minutes later the group arrived at Bonesborough. Landing in an alley everyone dismounted except Camila. She had her eyes shut tightly.

"Mom, we're back on solid ground now. You can let go of Amity's staff," Luz said.

"I'm trying to let go. My hands are frozen in place," Camila replied. The ride had been very terrifying and her body still felt like it was flying.

Luz looked at her girlfriend who nodded. Summoning some goo, Amity covered her staff in it. Camila gently slipped off the staff. Once the human was off, Ghost jumped into Amity's arms lamenting about the goo.

Amity assured her palisman she would bathe her later. Ghost huffed before circling and going back to being wood. "Ghost! This is no time for a nap!"

Vee hushed Amity. "I'm picking up vibrations. Something big is coming this way."

Peering out the alley, everyone gasped as a stampede of puppets came running down the street. There must have been at least thirty of them. Willow gasped when she saw two of the puppets were her dads.

"Dad! Father!" She started running to them only for Luz to hold her back. "Let me go! I need to help them!"

"You can't help them if you don't know what happened to them!"

"Look up there!" Gus said as he pointed to the sky. There was a parade of magical stars floating above the puppet citizens. On the biggest star was the Collector hugging King, who was dressed like the Collector, close to their chest.

The puppets clapped as the Collector's star descended. Once it was on the ground, the Collector spoke up. "Hello, my friends! Today, my baby brother King is joining us in our game. Make sure he stays safe."

"I'll be happy to keep an eye on your brother for the day," Puppet Steve said. Delighted to hear this, the Collector handed King off to the former scout.

"Ugh, is this necessary? I can look after myself, remember?" King stated tentatively.

"As your big brother, I'm supposed to watch out for you. Today's game will be a bit dangerous so I want to make certain you are safe at all times. That's what a good big brother does, right?"

Seeing the Collector's puppy eyes look, King nodded reluctantly. Puppet Steve strapped his spare motorcycle helmet onto the young Titan's head.

"Today, we're going to race! Each of us will drive a star around Bonesborough. The racers can use magic to get ahead of their opponents. The first person that finishes ten laps wins!"

With a snap of their fingers, the entire course was set up along with the bleachers. Next, five different colored stars appeared at the starting line. They whistled loudly and the racers appeared on their stars.

Katya was on the red star, Eileen was on the yellow one, and Bo was on the blue one. Steve and King popped into existence on the gold star. Lastly, the Collector sat on the purple star.

The Collector clapped their hands three times. The spectators were seated in the stands. At the same time, the puppet racers were turned back to normal.

They blinked a few times and looked around them. Not one of them tried to run away knowing they were locked onto their stars. Steve looked at King for answers.

"Ten laps around Bonesborough and you can use magic to get ahead of your opponents," King half-heartedly explained.

"Are you ready to have some fun? Then racers on your marks. Get set and go!" A huge explosion of fireworks boomed in the sky as the racers started making their first lap.

Katya used her bard magic to create a dome shield over her star. Eileen tossed Bo a temporary invulnerability potion. In exchange, Bo flung a couple of boxes of magical Band-Aids to Eileen.

Steve conjured up balls of fluff to help cushion the ride. King struggled to make it to the top of the fluff pile. Lastly, the Collector had added rocket boosters to their star which was a blur as they took the lead.

The racers zoomed past the group's hiding spot. Luz and Hunter had a gut feeling that the Collector was going to add a surprise to the course.

"This race is fun. Do you know what would make it even more fun? Giant gumballs!" Instantly, giant gumballs appeared going up and down the sides of the track.

Eileen's star clipped a gumball. Her star started spinning off the course. She crashed into Eda's favorite pub. Everyone gasped in fear hoping she was alright.

The cyclops girl pushed herself up. She was bleeding from the gashes on her arms and chest. Delicately, the potion student started putting on the bandages Bo had given her.

"Do you think she'll be okay?" Amity whispered to Luz. Her girlfriend didn't reply.

"I thought I got through to the Collector about playing safely. They must have misunderstood me. I have to do something!"

Camila knew that look in her daughter's eyes. "Young lady, you are not going to attempt to talk to that star child until we find a way to do so safely."

Luz wanted to protest only to stop when her mother was glowering at her. Instead, she kicked the dirt in frustration. She turned her attention back to the race.

Both Bo and Katya had been taken out when they crashed into each other. Steve was wobbling on his star while King was clutching the scout's leg in terror. All the while the Collector was laughing loudly.

"This is so fun! I can't wait to play with my big brother and sister when they get back here!" their voice resonated all over town.

Halfway through in the last lap, Steve overcorrected his star sending it hurling towards the library. King used his sonic scream to push them back towards the course. They ended up smashing into the Collector.

Both racers fell into the stands scattering several of the puppet people. Steve gasped as he realized he had broken off Tibbles's left arm. "Oh man, this is bad. Really, really, bad."

The Collector scowled. "You ruined the race and broke one of my puppets! You're going into time out." Snapping their fingers, Steve and all the other racers vanished in a pink cloud puff.

Smiling, they asked if King was okay. "You didn't get injured, did you little brother?"

"I'm fine, but Tibbles isn't! You can't keep breaking people's appendages off. The damage could end up permanent when you turn them back," King stated in a cold tone of voice.

The Collector rolled their eyes. "Hey, I didn't hurt Tibbles. It was Steve who crashed into him. Besides, I can fix him," he did so with a snap of his fingers, "so what's the big deal?"

"How would you like it if you woke up without your arm or leg? I don't think you would find it funny."

The Collector looked down at the ground in shame. "Yeah, I didn't like it when my Archivist siblings disappeared parts of my body. I'll try to do better next time."

King patted them on the head. Smiling, the Collector summoned their star minions to carry everyone back home.

The group watched as the stars made their way up to the crown above the Titan's Head. Now they knew what happened to the others and where to find King.

Amity was already moving. "Come on. We need to get to Hexside asap. The sooner the better."

Two shadows fell over the group. They all looked up in fear wondering if the Collector had found them. Two people in cloaks were staring at them.

The one on the right gasped and pulled down her hood. "Amity! Gus! Willow! Oh, I'm so glad to see you guys!"

She jumped down and ran over to hug her friends. "I've been wondering where you guys were! Hunter, Luz it's great to see you as well." That's when she noticed Vee and Camila.

"Oh, you must be Luz's mom and sister! But how did you oh!" Skara exclaimed. She tilted her head back at her friends. "You got stuck in the human realm!"

"Tch, figures Gus would get to realize his dream while the rest of us were fighting for survival," the second cloaked fellow said. He removed his hood revealing him to be Matthomule.

He didn't imagine being knocked over by Gus. "You don't know how much I've missed you Matthomule. We really could have used your help!"

Matthomule pushed Gus off of him. He brushed the dirt off his cloak. "Well, we could have used you here. The situation is pretty bad."

"Yeah, Bat Queen told us what was happening. We have a plan to save the Boiling Isles. To pull it off, we'll need everyone's help," Luz admitted.

Skara's grin grew wide. "Yes, my favorite part of an adventure! Follow us, we know a shortcut to Hexside."