Kamen Rider SideRide Chronicles: Oscura's Encore

Intermission: The Other Sponsors

Los Angeles

"Are you sure you don't need anything else, Sasha?" Sasha's mom, Amanda, asked.

"It's OK, Mom. Dad's taken care of everything," Sasha said, holding her luggage.

"I just can't believe you'll be interning at your father's company. He didn't even tell me."

"Well, you know how busy Dad can get. It probably slipped his mind," Sasha excused.

"And why did he have to send you out of LA of all places?" Amanda questioned.

"I guess so I can stand on my own feet," Sasha answered.

"Well…maybe it's for the best," said Amanda as she rubbed the back of her neck.

"What do you mean?" Sasha asked.

"Sasha…honey…I know how much you miss Anne, and I…I don't want to sound like I'm trying to tell you to forget about her. But I think getting out of the city might be good for your mental health. I feel like you've been stuck on her death this whole time and unable to move on," Amanda confessed.

If it wasn't for the fact that Sasha knew how to bring Anne back, she would've taken her mother's words the wrong way. But she understood her worry, and with the prospect of bringing Anne back, smiled at her mother.

"No, I understand, Mom. You're right, maybe some time away from the city will help me."

Amanda walked up to her daughter and gave her a hug.

"Call me when you get to wherever it is you're staying."

"I will."

Gravesfield, Connecticut

"This is just so sudden," Camila said. "A writing camp."

"Well, I guess I need the extra practice. Nobody has picked up my book yet so maybe I could learn something there," Luz explained.

"And Amity is going with you?" Camila asked.

"There were two spots and we thought we'd go together," Amity answered.

"Still, it is quite strange that it's free admission," Camila remarked. "But when I called them, they sounded legitimate."

"They are, Mom. It's not a scam or anything sus," Luz smiled and kissed her mother on the cheek. She then looked at Vee who was reading a text on her phone. "Vee?"

"Masha says they need to go out of town for a while," Vee answered, frowning sadly. "Something about joining a Wiccan community."

"Well, Masha does go looking for the strange and unusual," Luz answered. "Case in point." Luz walked up to Vee and began bearhugging the basilisk. "My cute, weird, basilisk little sister!"

"Ah! Luz! C'mon, cut it out!" Vee managed to shapeshift her way out of Luz's hug. She chuckled a little, not unappreciative of her big sister's affection, but still, she worried. "I just hope it isn't some cult that will brainwash them."

"If anything, Masha's going to brainwash the cult," Amity retorted.

Everyone went silent for a moment as they thought that over. After that, all four of them nodded in agreement that Masha would indeed take over the cult. Bearing that in mind, Vee sent a text.

[Vee: Masha. Don't take over the cult.]

[Masha: No promises, babe ;)]

After getting their things and saying goodbye to their families, the players were teleported to the Desire Temple's lounge with their luggage.

"So, what did they tell your parents?" Masha asked when they saw Marcy.

"Oh, I'm supposed to be at Science Camp," Marcy answered. "You?"

"Apparently, I'll be joining a Wiccan coven for the remainder of summer. I mean, that does sound cool. I'm just surprised my parents let me go."

Moments later, Sasha arrived and so did Boscha as she stepped into the Desire Temple.

"So, what excuse did the DGP send your family?" Sasha asked Boscha.

"Oh, that I was going to a conference for grudgby coaches," Boscha answered, scoffing. "That's the best they could come up with."

"Why? Is it not believable?" Sasha questioned.

"Oh, no, it's totally something I'd do. But I wish they had come up with something a bit more elaborate or extravagant than that. An interdimensional wish-granting organization, and they think of a more creative excuse?" Boscha complained.

"The more elaborate the lie, the harder it is to maintain. Sometimes, less is more," Sasha advised.

Boscha chuckled a little as she gave the human a playful punch to the shoulder.

"Speaking from experience, Sash?"

"Hey, have I ever lied? Yes, but only to make sure me and my friends didn't get into bigger trouble, or just get us out of trouble completely," Sasha replied, a smirk forming on her face. "I think someone even joked that I could get away with murder."

"Girl! Me too! I mean, I haven't tried to yet, it just feels too messy, but I guess that depends on your method," said Boscha.

"…Uh, yeah. I guess…"

Luz and Amity soon arrived together, and Boscha's eyes narrowed.

"I might be tempted to try and I've already got my first victim in mind," Boscha glowered.

"Boscha, no. If you kill her, you're out of the game. And if you try anything, remember, you're on your own," Sasha sternly reminded.

"Like you keep reminding me," Boscha sighed, annoyed. 'But it would be so damn worth it...'

"Hey, Lumity!" Masha winked at Luz and Amity. "So, did your family buy the excuses?"

"Yeah, they did," Amity confirmed. "When Camila called the number we gave her, they were able to convince her that it was all legit."

"That's the power of the DGP, all-powerful time travelling aliens from another dimension," Luz said sagely.

"You're still on that?" Masha asked.

"Do you have a better explanation?" Luz challenged.

"Hm, touché."

"Although…" Amity spared Boscha a quick glance, and uttered a disgusted sigh as she saw the three-eyed witch give her a little wave as if her entire outburst from last time didn't happen at all. "…I will say that they better have some damn good security in the rooms we're staying in."

"Right, 'coz we can't always trust when someone's knocking because of voice-changing spells," Luz nodded.

"Voice changing spells?" Masha repeated, puzzled. "That's a thing?"

Amity drew a spell circle around her mouth and spoke.

"Mija, please clean your room," Amity spoke in Camila's exact voice.

"Wow, Amity, that sounds just like Cam-Cam," Masha said, impressed. "So that's how you did all those impressions."

"It's a simple spell, really," Amity shrugged. "Boscha should know it too, so be careful if you hear someone knock on your door."

"We should use codewords," Luz suggested. "Like spies do, so we know we're talking to the right person."

"Reasonable, can't be too careful. But it'll have to be something that we know, something that we know about each other or something that we all like, relatively speaking. Boscha has no knowledge of the Human Realm, so we can probably come up with something random that she won't have any idea about," said Amity.

"We could quote Azura," Luz proposed. Luz and Amity had read all the books cover to cover and knew them by heart."'For the power of TealSkull'!"

"Wait, 'TealSkull'?" Masha questioned.

"From the movie," Amity answered. "'The Good Witch Azura: Quest for Castle TealSkull'."

"Wait…wasn't it that one movie where Azura got a staff-sword that could turn her into a magical Amazon warrior with a dire wolf that she rode like a horse into battle?" Masha inquired.

"Yep!" Luz and Amity exclaimed. "So, cool!"

"You guys are such Azura nerds," Masha sighed, smiling. "You even dressed up as Azura and Hecate for Halloween."

"I tried to even give myself three faces like in the book," Amity sighed. "But it was easier to use the movie adaptation version of Hecate."

"I dunno. Being able to kiss three beautiful faces at the same time sounds sweet," Luz grinned.

"Y'know, Vee actually tried that once," said Masha, nonchalantly. "Now that was an experience."

Luz and Amity deadpanned.

"Once again, my mind is filled with things about you and my sister's sex lives that I cannot get out of my head," said Luz.

"I'm almost – almost – willing to ask Boscha to go back to the Demon Realm, and grab me some memory tweezers," Amity added.

"Mi amor, no."

"Why not?"

Luz drew Amity closer.

"If we forget, they'll just tell us all over again, "Luz whispered. "It'll be an endless cycle!"

The players had all arrived at the lounge, and Tsumuri went to greet them. That was when she bumped into Amity and Luz.

"May I help you?" the Navigator asked.

"So, Tsumuri, could you, I dunno, arrange it so that Amity and I could share a room?" Luz requested hopefully.

"That is not possible, I'm afraid," Tsumuri answered.

"Why not? I promise Amity and I won't do anything inappropriate," Luz swore.

"It's because it would not be fair for the other players," Tsumuri answered reasonably. "It's already enough that we gave you individual rooms. The other alternative was you all sharing a room with bunk beds."

"...Yeah, not a fan of that idea," Luz admitted. Sharing a room with Boscha and Sasha would leave her vulnerable in her sleep. She was sure Sasha would not try anything but Boscha would, damn the rules.

"However…there is no rule against you sleeping over in her room or vice versa," Tsumuri offered with a warm smile and a wink.

"Ah," Luz winked back. "Gotcha."

"Now, I'll have your luggage sent to your rooms. Please, relax in the lounge," Tsumuri advised.

After everyone's luggage was taken to their rooms, the players hung out in the lounge. Luz and Amity were in deep conversation on the couch while Sasha and Marcy were just chatting nearby. Masha was on her phone, texting someone. This left Boscha by herself so she went to the bar to grab a drink.

As Boscha sat down on the stool, she turned her back to the counter to see Amity and Oscura talking. Her eyes narrowed at watching their interaction, imagining her in Oscura's place.

'Oscura, you stole my Amity from me and poisoned her mind. I am going to make sure you'll never hurt anyone ever again,' Boscha thought menacingly as she glared at the former Empress of the Boiling Isles, and then her eyes softened as she gazed at Amity. 'And you've been stuck in the Human Realm for four years with her. Who knows what she did to you during that time? But I'll save you, Amity. I swear on the Titan.'

As she sipped her drink, she continued to leer at them. She suddenly noticed that Oscura and Amity were wearing matching rings. She then remembered something she heard a long time ago.

Hexside, Bonesborough, Boiling Isles (Before Oscura took over)

Boscha was at the cafeteria, grabbing her lunch. She spotted Gus at his table with his HAS buddies and sneered. What was so interesting about humans? Unfortunately, there weren't any other tables but the one closest to Gus' group. Without another choice, Boscha sat down and put her tray down to eat. She could not help but overhear Gus talking about humans again. She would have tuned it out but it sounded interesting this time.

"So, human courtship is similar to ours. While we exchange personal pieces of jewellery to propose to our significant others, in a human relationship, one of them will propose with a ring," Gus explained.

Boscha seemed intrigued. She did plan to make Amity her girlfriend and wife someday, and that meant an exchange of jewellery. Boscha could get a ring and propose to Amity, or vice versa. Either way, it sounded like a good way to cement their future relationship. It may be a dumb human tradition, but maybe they had the right idea about courtship.

"Oh, and at the wedding, the bride will throw a bouquet at all the women attending and they'll fight for it for the honour of being the next one to get married..." Gus continued.

"Wait a minute..." The gears spun in Boscha's brain and then her eyes went wide as she came to a startling conclusion.

Confessional: Boscha Barbtalóne/Red-Pan

"Was I upset when I found out Oscura and Amity were engaged? Of course, but I responded in a reasonable and sensible manner."

"I'M GONNA FUCKING KILL YOU!"

"Yeah, yeah. 'The evil Empress must die', 'Kill Oscura', blah, blah, blah. Get some new material BoschaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

Luz screamed, realizing too late that Boscha had bolted from the bar area and lunged at her like a wild animal going for the kill. The Latina quickly pushed Amity off the couch as Boscha barreled into her, sending the two of them, and the couch, flipping over. Boscha managed to grab hold of Luz as the two of them rolled along the floor, knocking over several pieces of furniture. Sasha, Marcy, Masha, and Amity watched with pure shock at Boscha's blatant attack on Luz.

Tsumuri would have jumped in and stopped the altercation as it was against the rules for players to attack each other. However, she had been ordered by her superiors to not interfere unless necessary. They claimed it added 'drama'.

Luz and Boscha finally came to a stop, with both of them slamming against the wall. Luz was still in a daze from the initial tackle, which granted Boscha enough time to land a few punches into the human's face as she screamed with uncontained fury.

"YOU BITCH! *POW!* HOW DARE YOU!? *BAM!* HOW DARE YOU TAKE HER AWAY FROM ME!? *POW! POW* YOU DON'T DESERVE HER! *BAM!* YOU DON'T DESERVE TO LIVE AFTER EVERYTHING YOU'VE DONE!"

Boscha cocked back her right fist to deliver another punch, but before she could land it, a purple aura surrounded Boscha's body. In the next second, the three-eyed witch was thrown across the room like a ragdoll and she crashed against the wall on the opposite side of the room, back first. Boscha groaned, but was otherwise fine, having suffered worse on the grudgby field. When she did get back up, she saw Amity standing beside Luz, her eyes glowing bright purple as her hands had two spell circles floating out in front of her.

"AMITY, GET AWAY FROM HER!" Boscha ordered.

"Take one single Titan damned step towards us and I swear I'll tear you apart from the inside out!" Amity threatened. "NO ONE ATTACKS MY FIANCÉE!"

"OSCURA HAS TO DIE, AMITY! YOU'RE NOT THINKING STRAIGHT! SHE'S MESSING WITH YOUR HEAD! BUT I'LL PUT AN END TO HER! I'LL FREE YOU FROM HER!"

[Desire Driver!]

The others gasped as they watched Boscha slap on her Desire Driver and readied her Boost Buckle.

[Desire Driver!]

The pink-haired witch did the same, placing her Desire Driver on as she brought out her Abomination Buckle.

"YOU WANNA GO THERE, BOSCHA! LET'S GO! I'VE BEEN WAITING TO PAY YOU BACK!" Amity yelled.

Luz, after managing to regain her senses, saw the scene before her and immediately shot to her feet and got out in front of Amity.

"Amity, stop! Don't do it!" Luz urged.

"Out of my way, Luz! This bitch has had this coming for years!" Amity growled, eyes still glowing.

"Look, I know. But if you do anymore, then you'll get disqualified!" Luz warned.

Amity looked at Luz, and then her gaze shifted to Boscha. Her vision tinted red a little as her anger grew. Boscha nearly kissed her when she was in a coma four years ago and recently tried to rape her. This girl wanted her as a possession and called such a thing 'love'. That wasn't love, that was obsession. Amity experienced what love was thanks to being with Luz.

Now, Boscha had just assaulted her fiancée, in plain view of herself and everyone here. She was willing to kill Luz right in front of her and take away the person who made her happy, whom she loved. That was not going to stand, she was going to finally put an end to the threat of Boscha right here, right now.

Luz placed her hands on Amity's face and forced the enraged witch to look her directly in the eyes.

"Mi amor, stop! Please, calm down. Do not stoop to her level. I'm alright…" Luz thought for a moment, and while she didn't have Bard magic, she knew something that might help Amity calm down and stop her from making a mistake. "You're okay~. You're alright~. I'll never, ever leave your side~..."

Amity's rage started to quell as she heard Luz's singing voice and the glow in her eyes faded as the spell circles disappeared as well. The pink-haired witch let her heart rate settle down as she let her shoulders slump.

"I will stay~. And I will fight~..." Amity gently pressed her forehead against Luz's. "...with you~"

Marcy and Masha released a tension-filled sigh, but it wasn't over just yet. Apparently, seeing such a tender scene between Luz and Amity only served to further enrage Boscha as she inserted the Boost Buckle into her Driver.

[Set!]

Luz and Amity quickly turned their gazes to Boscha as she readied to transform.

"Hen–!"

Without warning, Sasha came up from Boscha's right and punched the three-eyed witch right in the face, sending her flying until she hit the opposite wall. The blonde human teen rushed Boscha, pinning her against the wall before grabbing the Buckle and ripping off the Desire Driver and tossing it far behind her.

"SASHA! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! LET ME GO! I HAVE TO KILL THAT MANIPULATIVE BITCH BEFORE SHE CORRUPTS AMITY ANY FURTHER!" Boscha yelled.

Sasha punched the witch across the face again, grabbed her by the collar of her jacket, and slammed the witch against the wall again as she glared daggers at her.

"WILL YOU CUT THIS SHIT OUT?!" Sasha screamed.

That seemed to snap Boscha out of her little tantrum.

"B-But, Sasha, I have to–!"

"You aren't going to do a damn thing! What the hell is wrong with you?! You just attacked Noceda! Did you forget the rule against Riders fighting each other?!" Sasha questioned. "Get your shit together, Boscha! Or so help me, our alliance is officially over! And you can keep playing the rest of this game by your damn self! You understand me?!"

Boscha opened her mouth to reply, but Sasha immediately grabbed her by the mouth to stop her.

"NO! The only words I want to hear from your mouth right now are 'Yes, Sasha I understand'!" Sasha manipulated Boscha's mouth to make her say these words. "Say it!"

Sasha let go of Boscha's mouth and awaited her response, everyone did really.

"…Y-Yes, Sasha, I…I understand."

"LOUDER!" Sasha commanded.

"YES, SASHA, I UNDERSTAND!"

Sasha released the three-eyed witch and let her fall to the floor. She walked over to where the Boost Buckle was and pocketed it.

"Until further notice, this is mine. You're gonna have to earn this, and what little remains of my trust in you, back." Sasha turned around and levelled her glare at Boscha. "Now get up, we're leaving."

Boscha briefly glanced at Luz and Amity, the animosity in her eyes was still there, and for a moment she contemplated forgetting Sasha's warning and just using her remaining Buckle to kill Oscura right then and there.

"THAT WASN'T A SUGGESTION! GET YOUR ASS UP AND LET'S GO!" Sasha ordered.

Boscha flinched, sighed dejectedly, and got up. She walked until she left the room, Sasha's gaze set on her every step of the way. Once the doors opened, Sasha followed after Boscha, but not before looking in her rival's direction.

Luz wasn't sure what to make of Sasha's gaze. Was she sorry? Angry about what Boscha did? Both? It was hard to tell. But that was all before Sasha left the room.

"Holy shit, what is her problem?" Masha inquired after witnessing Boscha's episode.

"It's PTSD," Marcy concluded. "Red-Pan is showing clear signs of post-traumatic stress disorder. Luz told me about what happened back in the Boiling Isles when Empress Oscura took over. A lot of people suffered."

"Okay, I know some bad things went down back in the Demon Realm, but…I didn't think it was this bad," said Masha.

"It was that bad," Luz admitted sullenly. "Very bad." The pain soon caught up to her. "OWWW! DAMMIT!" She clutched her face, having held back how much the beating hurt.

"Luz! Are you alright?!" Amity asked.

"Oh, crap! Ice packs! We need ice packs!" Marcy exclaimed in a panic as she ran to the bar area.

Confessional: Amity Blight/Gato

"I can't believe Boscha attacked Luz like that! She was going to kill her! She keeps thinking that Luz 'corrupted' me or 'is keeping me prisoner' or some crap like that. Did she forget that it was my choice to leave the Demon Realm? That it was my choice to be in a relationship with Luz?! Ugh, you'd think after four years, she'd grow up and be someone better! Clearly, she's only gotten worse!"

Confessional: Masha DeLisle/Kurma

"Whoa, that was savage. Like, totally, completely savage. That witch was straight up about to kill Luz! If I didn't see Amity going for her, I would've done the same thing. What? Did you guys seriously think I'd let my SIL get beaten on and not throw hands? Heh, yeah right."

Masha crossed their arms as they thought aloud.

"Although, now I'm wondering just how much of what happened in the Demon Realm they haven't told me. I mean, don't get me wrong, I got the broad strokes of what went down. A lot of that stuff is still a sore subject for Luz and Amity, so I try – keyword: try – not to pry too much. Still, I might need to have a serious talk with Lumity after this game. I still trust those two with my life, but I'd just like all the facts in full."

Confessional: Marcy Wu/Newtonne

"When Luz told me about what Empress Oscura did, I guess I did not get the full picture of how this affected the people of the Demon Realm. Seeing Boscha react like that, Empress Oscura's rule must have left some deep psychological scars. Seeing Luz and Amity together must have triggered something in her. I know what Luz did in the past was bad, but that's all it is, in the past and she's trying to move on. I can understand where Boscha is coming from, I do, but Luz brought everyone back to life. Isn't that worth forgiveness?"

Confessional: Sasha Waybright/Soaron

Sasha had a bewildered look on her face as she pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Ugh, I can't believe Boscha went psycho like that but I shouldn't be surprised. I've begun to question if my alliance with her was a good idea. Ever since the Slasher Game, I've noticed that she's obsessed with killing Noceda and trying to take Blight for herself. I don't care much for Noceda, but even I wouldn't have done what Boscha did. I am trying to keep her on a short leash, but this obsession might risk her spot in the game and also risk my chance to fight Noceda in the finals."

Confessional: Boscha Barbtalóne/Red-Pan

"OK, I admit that it was stupid of me to attack Oscura in the lounge. But can you blame me? She took over my world and ruled it with an iron fist. She also killed a lot of people, including Amity's mom, which she has clearly forgotten. I don't care if Oscura wished everyone back to life, it does not make up for the pain and misery she caused. And now that she's got her powers back, she has a chance to do it all over again. I'm going to save Amity and I'm going to protect the Demon Realm from Oscura. I don't care what Sasha says. Oscura needs to go down, now."

The players were provided with their own rooms for the duration of their stay. Instead of keys or keycards, the rooms used a biometric lock that could only be opened with the players' handprints and also included voice recognition. When Amity opened the door to her room, she found it to be rather Spartan in appearance. It was all white walls with a bed, a closet, and, thankfully, its own bathroom.

She then noticed a card was left on her bed. At the same time, Marcy was checking out her own room when she spotted a card on her bed as well.

Amity's card was an invitation to go meet with her sponsor. When she asked Luz about it, her fiancée told her that members of the audience were responsible for choosing them to join the Desire Grand Prix the last time.

When Amity stepped into the room, she felt like she was looking at a mirror, albeit a funhouse mirror. Sitting on the couch was a young woman with amber eyes and long, unruly green hair. She noted the presence of brown roots which meant her hair was dyed and her pointed ears identified her as a witch. She was dressed in a pink Bad Girl Coven T-shirt with a leather jacket, ripped blue jeans, and combat boots. She wore a spiked collar around her neck and spiked bands around her wrists.

"Okay…W-What am I looking at here? W-Why do you look like me? I mean, me from four years ago but…older and with a punk look?" Amity inquired.

"Heh, guess it's true. Everyone said I look a lot like you, but if even you're saying that, guess it must be true. Although, even I can't deny it. Seeing you up close, I do see the resemblance," said Amity's sponsor.

"Who are you? You're clearly a witch from the Boiling Isles, but…are you…are you a clone of me or something? I read a book about Grimwalkers, but you don't have the signs of one," said Amity.

"Wow, uh, no. I'm not a grimwalker, nothing artificial about this bod. One hundred percent natural," she replied with a wink.

Amity blushed and shook her head.

"Would you tell me your name already, otherwise, I'm leaving!"

"Jeez, calm down, you don't have to get your panties in a twist." Amity's sponsor sat back down and crossed her legs as she spread her arms out on the back of the couch. "My name? It's Amara, Amara Blight, and I'm your several times great-grandniece."

Amity's jaw dropped, she was her niece, and from the future at that. There was no way that was true. She looked strikingly similar to her, but her mannerisms and attitude were the complete opposite of hers. While Amity was more poised and spoke with a respectable tone, Amara's manner of speech was crass and laid-back. Her choice of clothing also showed her rebellious nature. If Amity had been given more freedom, she believed that she might have ended up the same way as a result.

"Is it that hard to believe I'm your kin?" Amara asked.

"I…I mean…I have heard of the likeness of past generations being passed on to future generations. It's a trait that witches and demons share, which sometimes ends up with a few witches inheriting very similar appearances to their ancestors, but…I never thought I'd see it happen to me," Amity admitted.

"Well, take it all in, Great Aunt Ami. Hmm?" Amara looked Amity up and down.

"What?"

"I think we even have the same figure. Looks like we both inherited the Blight child-bearing hips, am I right?" Amelia teased.

"Would you stop perving on me like that?!" Amity shouted, her face red like a goremato. "I'm family!"

"What? I'm just making an observation. You're the one making it weird," Amara replied.

Amity dragged her hands down her face. It was like she was talking to herself and Emira at the same time. That's when it struck her.

"Wait a second…is Emira or Edric your great-grandparent?" Amity questioned.

"Ah, so you finally noticed. Yep, Great-great-great-grandma Emira, Titan I miss her," Amara sighed. "She and Great-granduncle Edric were hella fun, even when they got old."

A forlorn expression befell Amity upon hearing the names of her older siblings. Despite their little exchange, Amity walked around the coffee table and sat down next to Amara.

"Did they…Did they have good lives? I'm sure you can't tell me everything that's happened in the Boiling Isles, but…can you at least tell me that much?"

Amara let her smirk fall as she leaned forward to answer.

"Yeah, it's best if you don't know too much about the future. But I will tell you that, yeah, they had good lives. Married wonderful people and had many children. Blight Industries is still going strong, BT dubs. My Mom and Dad are running it, and I'm slated to be the next one to run it."

"Oh, wow, that's great, right?" Amity sounded relieved that their family was still doing alright, even years in the future.

"Eh, it's whatever. I mean, it's a steady paycheck, a hefty one at that. But as you can tell from my awesome T-shirt, I'm not exactly the 'executive type'," said Amara.

"Total rebel, huh?"

"Bad Girl Coven for life, baby."

"So, why are you my sponsor? I mean…you've never even met me."

"But I've heard the stories about your determination, how you went against Empress Oscura and despite the many times you failed to kill her, you never gave up," Amara said.

Amity scowled as she turned her gaze away from her great-grandniece.

"Is that what you think? What you've been told?" Amity asked through gritted teeth.

"Well, yeah. Everyone knows you and the WATs took the fight to Oscura, and defeated her with the help of two Kamen Riders from another universe. So metal," Amara chuckled. "You're the family hero."

"I didn't attempt to assassinate Empress Oscura because I wanted to be a hero or to save my world. I did it...because I had to. Because if it wasn't for me, she would not have existed," Amity confessed, full of regret and resentment. "I drove the girl I love to commit horrible deeds, all because of my pride."

"Huh, no shit?" Amara leaned against her thighs, whispering the following sentence, "So, those stories that Lumina was spouting were true?"

"You may know Empress Oscura – Luz – as some kind of monster that came from the Human Realm to rule over the Boiling Isles, but she is the kindest, bravest, most forgiving person I know. It just took me a while to finally realise that but by then it was too late. I took away something precious to her and it nearly destroyed her." Amity turned to Amara with tears in her eyes as she furrowed her brow. "Oscura was a monster that I created! I was never a hero! I was just a foolish girl trying to atone for the sins she committed!"

"So, now you know, your Great Aunt Amity is an even worse monster than the monster you probably all feared, the creator of the nightmare you all fear! So, now what? Are you afraid of me now? Are you going to pull your support? Sorry to disappoint you if you thought you were going to get to meet a great hero or some crap like that! You only get to see a villain!"

Amara looked upon her Great Aunt for a long minute, in complete silence. Then Amara did something unexpected. She shrugged her shoulders, kicked up her feet, and then let herself plop towards Amity, with her head landing in the other witch's lap, catching the sponsored party completely off guard.

"W-W-What are you doing?!" Amity yelped.

"Look, I didn't decide to sponsor you because I thought you were some big legendary hero. I always felt like the stories were a bit off, but I didn't know how much until now. History is the written record of the winners. The WATs won the war against Oscura, and because of that, they got to write the narrative. Those who knew the truth were told not to talk about it." Amara then let out a groan. "Ugh…great…now I have to apologize to her of all people. Titan, she is going to be rubbing it in my face."

"Who are you talking about?" Amity asked with a raised brow.

"Better you don't know, at least not just yet. Anyway, I'm sponsoring you because I wanna see what you can do. Besides that whole 'hero' BS, Great-granduncle Edric and Great-grandma Emira talked a lot about you. They were the first to tell me how I reminded them of you," Amara explained.

"Did your parents expect you to live up to my likeness or something?" Amity inquired.

"I am a Blight after all, so, we're kinda expected to be the best. And I am, don't get me wrong. But I don't want to be known as the 'second coming of Amity Blight, the hero'. I am who I am, and I make no apologies for it," Amara stated.

Amity smiled as she found herself starting to stroke the unruly hair of her Great-grandniece, which seemed to surprise Amara.

"You are definitely not me, Amara. You're far stronger than me, that much I can tell. You're not afraid to be you, to speak your mind, to not live your life by what someone has dictated for you. I don't know how much this means coming from me, but…I am proud of you, Amara," said Amity, sincerely.

Amara's eyes widened when she heard those words. Only her Great-grandma and Great-granduncle ever said something like that to her. They were the ones who encouraged her to be herself and to make no apologies for it. To hear it coming from the person that everyone compared her to, her own family from long ago, hit her heart a lot harder than she was expecting. The punk witch quickly turned to her side, hiding her face from Amity as tears started to form in her eyes.

"I…I'm not crying! Just so you know! My mascara is getting into my eyes," Amara lied.

"Shh, I know. I've had that problem too," Amity replied.

A couple of minutes passed before Amara was done with her crying fit. She slowly got off of Amity's lap and she sat up properly, her mascara running down her face. The punk witch girl drew a spell circle and summoned a mirror to look at her face.

"Titan, I look like crap." Amara drew a second spell circle, and the mascara was wiped away from her face. "Dammit, Aunty Ami, I wasn't expecting that to happen. No fair."

"It's not good to keep things like that bottled up. Believe me, I know. For what it's worth, whenever you need to talk, you can always invite me back. I'd be happy to talk with you if you'd like to get something off your chest," said Amity.

"Oh, now you're comparing our chests, Aunty? And you call me a perv?" Amara joked.

"Ugh, how is it that I now have to deal with this from my fiancée and my Great-grandniece?"

Amara thought for a moment, and then a wicked smile formed on her lips.

"Hey, Aunty, why don't you bring your fiancée over here next time? I'd actually like to meet the person who's going to be my other Great-grandaunt."

Amity wondered if that was a good idea. But really, what was the harm in introducing the person who was about to become family to her future family member? Plus, it would serve as a way for Amity to show Amara that Luz wasn't the monster that the entire Boiling Isles made her out to be.

"Okay, I will," said Amity. "When do you want to meet?"

"I'm free anytime, just send me a message, and we'll meet up," Amara replied. 'Oh, I can't wait to see Lumina's face.'

Marcy was also meeting her sponsor and wondered who the person was. She also had questions, but the most important one was why they decided to choose and sponsor her for the DGP. Marcy stood nervously in front of the door before she steeled herself, took a deep breath, and stepped through.

"Greetings, Master Marcy!"

"Are you...a newt!?" Marcy yelled when she met her sponsor. He was an anthropomorphic newt with green skin, neatly combed black hair, and dressed in a suit. Instead of a tie, he wore a gold chain. "Are you my sponsor?"

"No, Master Marcy. I am merely working in their stead. But he is quite impressed with your performance in the Desire Grand Prix," the newt replied.

"So you're just a representative. Tell me, who's my sponsor and what are you and where do you come from?"

"I work for the King of Amphibia, which is my home, and I'm indeed a newt," the newt introduced himself. "You may call me Oliver."

"Well, Oliver, nice to meet you. Wow, so there really are other worlds. And one of them is inhabited by talking newts."

"Amphibians," Oliver corrected. "Besides newts, there are also toads and frogs."

"Fascinating!" Without warning, Marcy whipped out a journal and pen and began bombarding the newt with questions. "Tell me, what's your economy like? Are you technologically advanced or more like a medieval kingdom? Do you have a caste system or does each race have a group of democratically elected representatives that make up the court of your king? What's your diet mostly composed of? I suspect it must be insects, but regular-sized insects wouldn't be sufficient to sustain anthropomorphic amphibians if they're roughly your size. I can surmise that they must be way bigger compared to Earth insects, but that also implies that you have a more oxygen-rich atmosphere. Do you guys know what your atmosphere is mostly composed of, either the exact or approximate amount of different gasses present? Oh, do female amphibians lay eggs and the males – AH! Sorry, sorry, too personal. Anyway, what about–?"

"M-Master Marcy!" Oliver interrupted.

Marcy snapped to her senses as she blushed.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I tend to get excited about things like this. It's just, I've never met anyone like you," said Marcy.

"It's okay, no harm done, Master Marcy. I was told you could be very inquisitive. But it appears that was an understatement," said Oliver with a chuckle.

The newt waved his hand towards the couch, offering Marcy a seat. The Taiwanese teen accepted the offer and sat down, while Oliver sat across from Marcy, keeping a respectable distance between them.

"So, Oliver, why is your king sponsoring me? I could understand it if I was a fellow amphibian, but I'm human. I don't know what he gets from sponsoring someone who's not even from his world, or even the same species," said Marcy.

"Truth be told, Master Marcy, our king has lived a long time, more than a thousand years," Oliver answered.

"What?! Your king is more than a thousand years old?!" Marcy exclaimed.

"Such is his bloodline."

"Wow…But still, what does that have to do with me?"

"You have…how shall we say? Sentimental value to him." Oliver noticed Marcy's confused look and clarified, "You see, living for more than a thousand years, our king has had the privilege and the curse of meeting and making new friends, only to see them pass on while he continues to live. It's a sad state of affairs, one that many of us in the court sympathize with. But then he saw you, Master Marcy."

"Me?"

"You very much remind him of a dear friend he had when he was much younger, and just a prince at the time, obviously not in looks, but in spirit and mannerisms. He developed a fondness for you, Master Marcy. And after seeing your struggles, he decided to officially sponsor you," Oliver explained.

Marcy rubbed the back of her head as she let that sink in.

"Wow, I really remind him of an old friend from his past? So much so that he's willing to sponsor me? I guess his friend must've been someone very close to him," said Marcy.

"I wish I could give you more details, but he's very sensitive about that time in his life, and hasn't given much details to me or others. It's also the reason why he has me here to represent him."

Marcy understood what Oliver meant. Sending this newt as a representative made it easier to maintain distance, and lessen any potential heartache he might feel by speaking to her and dredging old memories, or seeing her get eliminated or possibly get killed during the game.

"I understand. Please tell him 'thank you' for me. Can I assume that the FeverSlot Buckle was his gift to me?" Marcy asked.

"Indeed it was. I'm sorry we couldn't have something stronger sent to you or commissioned for you, in the way that Oscura or Gato have received special Buckles, but fret not, we are currently in talks with the DGP staff. However, I can't guarantee with certainty that we'll have such a Buckle ready in time. Please, do forgive us," apologized Oliver as he bowed his head to Marcy.

"Oh, no! Don't apologize! I don't know how Luz or Amity were able to get those Buckles, but if what you're saying is true, then their sponsors must've pulled some strings or have a lot of clout to be able to have Buckles like that made," said Marcy.

"Worry not, Master Marcy. My king will be sure to set up secret missions for you in the near future to provide you with the means to at least keep up with your competitors. We are all very much wishing for your victory."

"Really?"

"Of course, what you're trying to do is a noble thing. Despite your opportunity to wish for an ideal world of your own design, you're choosing to use your wish to bring back someone who is most dear to you. That kind of selflessness is always something to celebrate and root for, Master Marcy," Oliver explained.

Marcy blushed as she scratched at her cheek.

"I mean, yeah it is noble, but I'm not the only one with the same wish. Luz and Sasha are wishing for the same thing. So, it's not like me losing means I don't still get what I want. So long as one of them ends up winning, Anne will be back with us," Marcy explained before a dour expression befell her. "I just wish Sasha would drop her grudge."

"Ah, yes, the final one-on-one match between Oscura and Soaron, should they make it to the finals, that is."

"It's so stupid! All three of us are fighting for the same thing! We could easily be winning these games if we worked together! Between me, Luz, and Sashy, we'd be dominating these games and making it to the final round! But nooooo! Sasha can't stop blaming Luz for what happened in the final round of the last DGP season!" Marcy sighed. "Sorry, Oliver, I'm sure you don't want to hear my ranting."

"No, no. Master Marcy." Oliver shook his head as he replied, "It's alright. I am also here to lend an ear, metaphorically speaking, since, well, I don't have ears like humans do. That is another part of my duties as the king's representative. And for what it is worth, the king agrees with you."

"He does?"

"We watched what happened in the previous final round, even though you had been eliminated earlier. And we saw the events that went on. While it is true that Oscura definitely could've prevented Qrok's death by using her special Raise Buckle, Soaron is equally at fault for running out ahead of the group and putting herself in harm's way, forcing Qrok to sacrifice her life to save Soaron's. A series of tragic events that ultimately led to the loss of your dear friend," said Oliver.

"Thank you! Luz at least acknowledges that she should've acted sooner and used the Buckle, and is willing to use her wish to correct that mistake. But Sasha, ugh, she's hellbent on pinning the whole blame on Luz when it's also her fault for making Anne have to make that kind of move in the first place. I…I love Sasha, I do. But…" Marcy sighed as she leaned against the couch and stared up into the space around them. "Sometimes she makes it really hard to keep loving her…I just want her to let it go. I want her to just fight by our side, and to stop being around that Boscha girl! She's so…so toxic! So…unstable! I'm afraid she's going to convince Sasha to do something horrible or be the reason something horrible happens to her!"

Oliver stroked his chin as he contemplated Marcy's conundrum.

"Indeed, Red-Pan is a wild card. She could very well end up being the end of Soaron in a more permanent sense of the word. We cannot allow that to happen," said Oliver.

"Wait, you don't want Sasha eliminated?" Marcy asked, surprised. She thought that, as her sponsor, the King of Amphibia would want a rival player like Sasha eliminated to give his favourite player a better chance.

"Master Marcy, we are all rooting for you. We all hope to see you bring back the one you cherish, but what good does it do you if the other you cherish is killed as well? If you win, you regain a friend, but risk losing another to a volatile player," Oliver reasoned. "To this end, I believe the wisest course of action is to eliminate Red-Pan as quickly as possible. If her influence is snuffed out, perhaps you might have an easier time convincing Soaron to join your side. Or at the very least, the chances of Soaron meeting an untimely end are significantly lessened."

Marcy leaned forward as she interlocked her fingers and pressed them against her chin.

"But for now, eliminations are suspended, and with the addition of this 'Mole' thing…"

"Then, perhaps you should use this 'Mole' challenge to your advantage?" Oliver suggested.

"How so?" Marcy asked.

Oliver turned to fully face Marcy and began his explanation.

"Red-Pan has already shown how unstable and aggressive she can be. Blatantly attacking Oscura in the lounge, a neutral area, with the sole intent of killing her. She was even willing to use her Rider powers to get the job done. Everyone will more than likely suspect that she is the Mole."

"Ugh, that'd be too obvious, wouldn't it?" Marcy questioned.

"Obvious? Yes. Useful? Even more so. It won't take much to sway the others into believing that Red-Pan is the Mole. I'm very much certain they have grown tired of her presence and are just waiting for her to be eliminated. Convincing Oscura, Gato, and Kurma won't take much effort, and with your vote, you'll easily have the majority. It's a win-win scenario, as you say. If Red-Pan ends up being the Mole, then that's one obstacle eliminated. If she isn't, at least you've gotten rid of a potential threat to yourself and Soaron."

Marcy had to admit, Oliver raised a good point. Was it too obvious for Boscha to be the Mole? More than likely, but that could also be a red herring. The most obvious choice was so obvious that it made everyone not choose that person, which made eliminating Boscha a double-edged sword. If they were correct, no more Mole. If they were wrong, well, she'd be gone, but that would mean either Luz, Amity, Masha, or Sasha was the Mole.

Marcy knew that Luz's wish was the same as hers, so if she ended up being the Mole it still meant Anne came back, same for Sasha. But she wasn't so sure about Amity or Masha. Amity could align her wish with Luz's, so there was no guarantee that she wished for something else. Masha, well, she didn't know that much about the nonbinary, other than they were apparently dating Luz's little sister, which made them family. But that also didn't mean that they were going to make the same wish as Luz.

'That leaves a two in five, four if I get eliminated, chance that Anne will come back. That's at least a fifty-fifty chance…ugh…that's not good. I wanna trust that Amity will wish for the same thing as Luz. I could ask her, but…will she tell me the truth? And if she is the Mole, she might just lie to me just to make sure I don't vote her out…Oh, damn it, this Mole situation is messing things up…'

"Master Marcy, are you alright?" Oliver asked.

"Sorry, yes, I am. Just thinking, Oliver. And you're right, I can't take the chance that Boscha screws things up for Sasha. For her sake, for the sake of Anne's resurrection, she has to go."

Oliver nodded his head.

Marcy got up from the couch and smiled sweetly at the newt.

"Thanks for meeting with me, Oliver. I've been having these thoughts rattle around in my head without anyone to talk to. Having someone to bounce ideas off of helps a lot," said Marcy gratefully.

"Call on me anytime you need a friendly ear, Master Marcy, and we shall meet again."

"Thank you, Oliver! And tell the king thanks for all his support!" Marcy exclaimed as she left the room.

"Indeed, Master Marcy. The king will continue to support you. He can't afford to have all three of you dead."

Meanwhile, Luz was paying a visit to her sponsor, Lumina, with the future witch chuckling a little at the state of her Great Aunt.

"Wow, Boscha really did a number on you, huh?" Lumina commented.

"Ow…ugh…she did, totally didn't see that coming," said Luz as she held an ice pack to her swollen face. Amity had helped take care of some of the swelling, but the rest needed to heal naturally.

"Still, I'm surprised you didn't fight back. I thought you might've had a chance to retaliate," Lumina remarked.

"What good would it have done if I did?" Luz questioned rhetorically. "If I fought back, and trounced her, then I'd get disqualified, and she wins. That's one less person, one less chance that Anne will be wished back."

"So, you don't think Gato will wish for the same thing as you?" Lumina asked with a raised eyebrow.

Luz lowered the ice pack and sighed.

"I don't want to think about that. Her original wish caught me off guard but I trust Amity to know what I want this time around. At the same time, I don't want to leave her alone with Boscha. If I'm not there acting as the focus of her hate, she'll just turn her eyes onto Amity, and I won't have her touch the person I love like that again," Luz stated as she clenched her hand around the ice pack.

"At least Soaron managed to get that wild dog under control," Lumina replied. "Still, we can't always count on her to keep Red-Pan on a short leash. So, that being said, turn your head towards me."

"What?"

Luz did as Lumina asked and watched as the witch girl drew a spell circle. The circle coalesced into a sphere of light at the tip of Lumina's finger, which she pressed against Luz's face.

"Boop."

"OW! LUMI!"

"Oh, hush and put up with it for a second."

Suddenly, the pain that Luz felt in her face and body suddenly vanished. And within a few seconds, her face returned to normal. Lumina withdrew her finger as the glowing sphere disappeared. Luz felt her face and confirmed that it was no longer swollen or in pain.

"Wow, thanks, Lumi," said Luz. "I didn't know you knew any healing spells."

"It's nothing special. I know Gato knows a few healing spells, but magic has advanced a lot in my time, so what I did was technically beginner's level Healing magic," Lumina informed. "But still, I know a few more spells that could boost your physical abilities past your limits without any negative side effects." Lumina drew a spell circle and smirked. "Wanna give it a shot?"

"I am not cheating," Luz firmly declined.

"I never said that. It has other uses too. Like say…" Lumina's smirk started to look like a Cheshire cat's grin. "Extending your private sessions with Amity?"

"LUMINA CLAWTHORNE!" Luz exclaimed as her face turned bright red with embarrassment.

"HAHAHAHAHA! You're too easy, Great Aunt Luz!"

"Ugh…Without a doubt, you are definitely Eda's greaaaaaaat-grandchild."

Dr. X: And so Marcy and Amity have met their sponsors. I still have not yet decided about Sasha's sponsor, but maybe it can just be her dad, you know? Now, who should be the Mole, I wonder? Also, you might enjoy the next chapter. The challenge won't be as high-stakes but it'll still be important. Stay tuned.

BTW, I also have a forum thread for this story. Please, check it out.