Hey, everyone. I'm sorry this chapter took so long to come out. I've been juggling this and a content-creating internship; plus, it's the longest chapter I've written in anything ever. I hope you'll enjoy it, and that it was truly worth the wait. Thank you all for your patience!
CONTENT NOTICE: This chapter contains violence with fantasy magic, bloodshed, physical violence, brainwashing, minor character death, mentioned animal death, referenced child abuse, referenced substance abuse and Belos.
"THE LAST GRIMWALKER"
CHAPTER FIVE: MIND KILLER
In the Demon Realm, a storm was brewing. A cryptic coven was plotting to overtake the Boiling Isles through chemical-induced brainwashing, but that was not the endgame; it was just the beginning. If the Eternal Coven's heinous plot succeeded, their next step would be all-out war with humanity...
In the Human Realm, a storm was already there. A literal one, with flashing lightning, rumbling thunder and pouring rain. As the harsh weather raged on, Luz Noceda relaxed in her cozy clubhouse, which doubled as the one and only gateway to the Boiling Isles.
Luz was cuddling up to her beloved Amity on a bean bag, her serpentine palisman nestled in her dark, flowing locks. On the couple's left was Gus, and to their right was Willow. The four witches were waiting out the storm by watching Mean Moon Rising, the best worst werewolf movie ever. The current scene was a romantic exchange that was anything but.
"I may be hungry, but I'm ALSO thirsty..."
That laughably awful line, delivered by the shoddy-looking werewolf without a hint of irony, caused the teens to burst into fits of raucous laughter. Not many things could make them laugh so hard they cried.
"Man, this is right up Hunter's alley!" Gus giggled.
"Yeah..." Willow replied, her mirth quickly souring. Although she was enjoying her sojourn in Gravesfield, it didn't feel right without Hunter at her side. Of course, he wasn't the only member of the "Human Realm Buddies" to be absent; Vee had prior arrangements with her friends from camp. But as for Hunter? She had no idea why he flaked so suddenly, only that it was important. "But if it's so important, why can't I help him?" She thought to herself.
Before Willow could further ponder her pal's abrupt absence, the portal door opened, and out of it stepped Eda and King. The former was holding a crystal ball with her arm, and a sharp bronze blade was fastened to her prosthetic.
"Eda? King? What are you doing here?" Luz inquired. Alas, she could tell by the looks on their faces that they came bearing bad news.
"It's Hunter." Eda gravely answered. She set the crystal ball down in front of the television, and replayed the message she received. The teens recognized its sender as Celine Crescentine, one of their classmates at Hexside. How she ended up in a musty cave with Hunter, Viney, Matt and Boscha was anyone's guess.
The video was an eye-opener, to say the least. It was a desperate plea for help from the honorable Chancellor Clawthorne, a revelation of Hunter's gruesome injuries at the hands of former Head Witch Vitimir, and a warning of the Eternal Coven's scheme, complete with the whereabouts of their headquarters. By the time the orb went dark, everyone was aghast and appalled.
"I'm going to end the Eternal Coven." Eda spoke, as she morphed her hand into its feathery, taloned alternate form. Before she could open the portal door, Amity held her staff over it to block her path.
"Not without us."
"Let's make them pay." added Willow. Eda wasted no time arguing with her younger peers. Her republic had no standing army, the BIRDs were spread too thin, and both her sister and her life partner were dealing with pressing issues elsewhere. However, she was more than happy to accept the help of the mighty young witches who helped save the Isles...
Of all the regions of the Titan's weathered carcass, none were as vile as the Swampy Toes. Due to its torrid temperatures, foul-smelling gases and legions of pesky pests, few dared venture into the treacherous wetlands.
As Belos rose to power, the magic users deemed "wild witches" fled to the Toes to escape persecution. There, they lived in squalor, surviving off whatever they could grow or forage. Alas, the growing Empire eventually caught wind of their supposedly Titan-tarnishing behavior, and razed their settlement to the ground. Afterwards, the Emperor's Coven erected a citadel in the Toes' End Bay, so that wild magic would never again taint the land.
Now, a new group of witches were holed up in a marshy cave once haunted by the rebels of old. There, Hunter lay torpid on a stone table, as Viney mended the last of his dire wounds. Even with his injuries healed, the boy still twitched and grimaced, soft yet anxious groans emanating from his vocal chords. Viney summoned a hard-light construct in the shape of a stethoscope, and used it to listen to his heart; it was racing.
Waffles lay close to her master's head, and whimpered worriedly. Even Puddles, who wasn't overly fond of Hunter, solemnly lowered her head. Nettlesome flies gathered around the unconscious vigilante, and some of them landed on his chest. Angered, the blue jay furiously flapped her wings, and Puddles squawked at the vexing vermin. Matt cast an illusion of a large, sharp-toothed toad with an intimidating scar on its face, frightening off the frustrating flies.
"It's not looking good." Viney gravely admitted.
"What did they do to him?" Matt queried.
"Mind Killer." Boscha suddenly uttered, surprising the rest of the teens. That was the first time she talked since escaping the Eternal Coven's fortress. Since then, she spoke not a word, and kept to herself in the corner of the cave. In her grasp was the chemical codex she stole from the Coven's library; she began to read it aloud.
"A deadly brew made with the bodily ooze of Grometheus the Fear Bringer. It afflicts the victim's brain with living nightmares, causing them to slowly die of fright."
"Dear Titan..."
"What else does it say?" asked Viney.
"There is no potion or healing spell that cures this toxin. The only way to destroy it is from inside the mind."
Everyone looked towards Celine, who had been even more reserved than Boscha. Understandably, of course; she had just learned her dear, beloved mother was the mastermind who founded the Eternal Coven. The moon demon sighed deeply, and placed her crystal ball on the table, next to Hunter's head. Just as she was about to activate it, she received a transmission from who but the Justice herself!
"Celine!" Lunelai exclaimed, causing her daughter to freeze. "Where are you?! Return to the compound at once! You're in grave danger!"
"I can't! I have to save Hunter."
The justiciar was revolted. "That wretched thing? Don't you know what that atrocity is? He's a GRIMWALKER!"
Her revelation shocked the teens, especially Celine. They all believed grimwalkers to be nothing but myth; hair-raising tales told at sleepovers and such. Only now did they realize they knew one all along.
"A living phantom made by the Emperor, just like your father's killer. I wanted to punish him for serving that tyrant, but he had friends on the tribunal. Now, I'll bring him to justice myself."
Now it was Celine who was disgusted. Her whole life, she thought her mother was as fair and unbiased as a judge could be. But here she was, persecuting Hunter for something he couldn't control. While it was true he helped Belos in his genocidal plot, the same could be said for nearly everyone in the Isles. If it wasn't for his help at Hexside, Celine and all her schoolmates would have been stuck with deadly sigils on their wrists.
"You've forgotten what justice is."
With that scathing remark, Celine ended the transmission. She couldn't believe she just talked that way to her mom, but the situation certainly demanded it. With Lunelai out of the picture, she placed her hands on her pristine orb, and braced herself to enter her ally's mindscape.
Entering the mindscapes of others was one of the oracles' many powers, albeit one forbidden by decree of the Emperor. However, she was still taught the skill by one of the few fortune-tellers who knew how; of course, it was the same one who got her into this mess.
Waffles flitted up to Celine, and perched on her shoulder. The palisman chirped something at her; she couldn't understand the bird's twittery tongue, but she knew she wanted to help. With Waffles in tow, she cast an elaborate spell with her crystal ball. The orb absorbed both demon and palisman, and sent them—along with itself—into the unknown frontier of the grimwalker's mind...
Chief Justice Crescentine was furious, yet frightened. Her daughter had rebelled against her, and was helping the being she feared and hated most. Something needed to be done, even if it cost her.
"We must rescue my daughter from that vile monstrosity!" The magistrate exclaimed. Gathered with her were Vitimir, Senber, and a few other high-ranking members of her coven. It was clear from their murmuring that the rest of the top brass weren't on the same page.
"On the eve of our most important mission? We have to strike, before it's too late!" Senber disputed. Angered by his contradiction, Lunelai pointed her staff at the bald-pated chemist, and shot him a steely glare. A chaotic silence filled the air, until Vitimir broke it.
"I will lead the expedition. Retrieve your daughter, before it's too late. And while you're at it, finish off the Guard."
"I intend to."
With a mere thought, Lunelai summoned her reinforcements; five of the civilian thralls whose minds were bound to hers by the Eternaline's effects. They gathered around her, and stood still as statues, awaiting their next command.
"The grimwalker has powerful allies. When they find out what happened, they'll come for us."
"I've planned for that. Now go, before it's too late!" Vitimir responded. The Head Witch and her mind-controlled militia left the commandeered castle via her personal airship. Her next move was to scour the ship for any sign of her daughter—and the bane of her existence...
"But your soul can yet be saved, for once again, I am in control."
Staring Hunter down with malice in his eyes was the one man Hunter hoped never again to encounter; Emperor Belos. While the witch hunter's marred face haunted his nightmares every now and then, this encounter didn't seem like a dream—it felt all too real.
"This isn't real, this isn't real..." Hunter muttered, his voice trembling just as much as his hands. His ever-growing panic boiled over, and he shouted at the top of his voice.
"YOU AREN'T REAL!"
Hunter expected savage retaliation for raising his voice at Belos, be it emotional or physical. However, the Emperor did no such thing; he simply laughed, sending frigid shivers down the boy's spine. The only time he ever heard Belos laugh was in his mind, where he took the form of his child self.
"You believed the lies I told you of your purpose and past, without a shred of doubt. You have no clue what's true or false, and you never will."
As Belos spoke, pitch-black veins stretched across his surroundings like slithering serpents. The towering trees, the crumbling castle walls, and even the starry skies themselves were tarnished by streaks of abyssal darkness.
In a fit of rage, Hunter dashed at Belos, and thrust the sword of his predecessor through the ex-Emperor's chest. Alas, when he looked up, he saw that Belos was entirely unfazed by his supposedly lethal attack. The tyrant glared daggers at his former apprentice, then struck him with a brutal backhand that launched him across the mindscape. Hunter crashed into a wall, and cried out in pain.
"Pathetic." Belos sneered, as he summoned his magic staff. With a flourish of the magical apparatus, his scarred, rotting face became concealed by his distinctive golden mask. Then, he aimed its head towards Hunter, and let loose a powerful blast of blood-red energy. Terrified, he cringed and froze in place, bracing for agony that thankfully never came.
Hunter opened his eyes, and saw he was surrounded by a dome made of purple hard-light. Standing in front of him was Celine, of all people, who was casting said shield with her crystal ball. What's more, Waffles was perched on her shoulder. Once she saw Hunter, she immediately flew to his side to ensure her master was okay.
Of course, Hunter was anything but okay. In fact, the arrival of his allies only worsened the terror he was experiencing. Now, Waffles was within the reach of the monster who murdered her big brother, and Celine was doomed to face his wrath. The oracle reached her hand out towards Hunter, but he was rigid with fear.
"You're not supposed to be here, demon." The masked monarch snarled. Celine stood her ground; she knew the creature standing before her wasn't the reviled ruler, but a pathetic parasite feeding off her friend's deepest fears.
"I'm not afraid of you."
"Then what are you afraid of?" The Mind Killer lashed out at Celine with a dark, gooey tendril, which latched onto her crescent-shaped head. The false emperor's eyes glowed white, and he underwent a horrific transformation. A shrieking, humanoid mass of black slime burst out from his body in an atrocious mitosis.
The second Mind Killer morphed itself into a frighteningly familiar form. It was cloaked in a threadbare hooded outfit of sullied blacks and faded reds. Its face was partly covered by a half-broken mask—the mask of a certain vigilante. Behind the shattered vizard lay matted blonde hair, black, soulless eyes and gray, scaly skin, with cuts and tears revealing decaying palistrom wood.
"I know what you fear, even if you don't..."
Standing before the oracle was the mythical monster that haunted her nightmares; a creature she thought could never exist. While it greatly resembled Hunter, the Sentinel it was not. It was a living phantom straight from the Isles' lore; a living, breathing grimwalker...
If the others could see the evil that invaded Hunter's mind, they too would be terrified. As Viney and Matt closely attended to their ailing ally, Boscha had retreated to the darkest, most secluded edge of the damp, mossy grotto. The disgraced grudgby captain was reeling with shame; in her efforts to earn street cred by dealing Titan's Venom, she had advanced the Eternal Coven's evil agenda—and made her fellow Banshees their thralls.
Boscha continued to sulk in the corner, until she felt something poke up against her back. She turned around, only to immediately recognize the object. It was a brewing kit—a very old one—but a familiar assortment of tools all the same. She still had the Eternal Coven's book of potions, and the swampy hollow was rife with useful ingredients; perhaps she could make the best of an awful situation.
Despite spending a good chunk of her time at Hexside in the Detention Track, Viney was considered quite the skillful healer. Thus, it was a surprise to her and her peers that she had no idea how to help Hunter. All she could do was watch the poor boy whimper and writhe. She gently placed a hand on his forehead, and felt a sweltering sensation.
"Still hot." Viney quavered, when Boscha suddenly ran up to Hunter, and poured a bottle filled with blue gel onto his forehead. "Hey, what are you doing?!"
Boscha didn't answer. She simply rubbed the azure material further over his skin, until most of it was gone.
"That should take the edge off."
To test her claim, Matt put his hand where Boscha applied the gel. It was far cooler than before, and it seemed some of Hunter's symptoms had been mitigated.
"You're actually helping? Never thought I'd see the day."
"This is serious, Matt." The violet-haired triclops gravely retorted. As unkind as she'd been to Hunter and his friends, she drew the line at someone dying on her watch. As the fallen hero continued to twitch and thrash, Celine's crystal ball abruptly activated, due to an incoming transmission from her malevolent mother.
"This is your final warning. Unhand my daughter, and surrender the grimwalker."
"No way!" Matt refuted.
"I pity your insolence, witchlet. Thankfully, you won't have it much longer..."
All of a sudden, Puddles turned towards the mouth of the cave, and let out a loud, angry squawk.
"What is it, girl?" Viney and the other teens followed the griffin out of the grotto, and into the fetid open air. Looming high above their improvised lair was an airship helmed by the Head Witch of the Eternal Coven herself. Lunelai pointed her magic staff towards the trio, and her five followers leapt off the ship with nary a second thought. They glided above the steaming swamp on their flying broomsticks, and landed twenty feet away from their opposition.
Dread and shock quickly pervaded the hearts of the young witches. It was clear Lunelai hadn't chosen her thralls at random. Between grudgby players, magic-mixers and a ranger captain, each of them was close with the Justice's foes—taking advantage of their sympathy. And with Eternaline serum in their systems, sympathy was something the servants sorely lacked.
Despite being drugged, Cat and Amelia were as agile and athletic as ever. The Banshees ganged up on their former team captain, and slung dangerous spells her way. Amelia launched Cat into the air with a massive thorny tendril that rose from the murky marsh, and the healer hurtled towards Boscha with a bright blue blade she conjured. Boscha erratically evaded her attack, and used her telekinesis to knock her over with a watery wave.
Boscha immediately recognized her adversaries' move as a grudgby tactic—particularly the Thorn Vault, a maneuver made popular by 'Little Miss Round Ears' herself. They retained every iota of their skills, yet shed their free wills. Now Boscha was truly in trouble, and there was no Rusty Smidge to save her this time...
Jerbo and Barcus were Viney's closest friends, and for the longest time, the only ones she had. Now, she was fighting against them for her life, as well as theirs. Barcus hurled a purple potion Viney's way, and it burst, releasing a swarm of small spirits that swooped at her. Viney shielded herself with a hard-light barrier, and warily stood her ground.
'I know you're still in there! You have to take control!" Viney cried out, her desperate plea falling on deaf ears. Jerbo summoned thorny vines from the deep, and they lashed out at his friend-turned-foe. Puddles darted towards her master, caught her in her claws, and flew her out of the tendrils' reach.
Viney climbed atop her familiar's back, and fired a flurry of energy bolts—nonlethal ones, of course—at her brainwashed buddies below. Jerbo shaped the muck around him into a sturdy wall, shielding him and Barcus from the blasts. Then, he used his hybrid magic know-how to form nearby mud and swampland foliage into a twelve-foot-tall golem shrouded in greenery.
The enormous abomination lobbed a great glob of muck at Viney and Puddles. They tried to evade it, but the ooze hit them dead-on. Both rider and mount plummeted towards the ground, and fell into the muddy clutches of Jerbo's colossal construct.
As for poor Matt Tholomule, he found himself face-to-face with his big brother, Steve. As the mind-controlled captain approached him, Matt made a last-ditch effort to jog his half-sibling's memory.
"Come on, bro, it's me! Remember when you gave me all those noogies for the map to the Looking Glass Rui—"
Before he could finish, Steve sent a stone column sliding full-tilt towards Matt. It collided with the boy, but instead of being crushed, he poofed out of existence—or so it seemed. It was merely an illusion; the real Matt lay hidden behind a fallen tree, his heart pounding in his chest. His brother—his idol—tried to attack him without a shred of remorse. And despite the danger he was in, the younger boy couldn't bring himself to do the same.
Before Matt could make his next move, Steve flung his cover away with telekinesis, then charged towards him. Matt used his staff to erect a tall column in his half-brother's path, blocking his way. Then he constructed another—and another, until the ranger was captured in a makeshift corral.
Alas, it didn't hold him for long; in a stunning feat of physical prowess, the older witch swiftly parkoured from pillar to pillar, until he was free of his rudimentary prison. He leapt off the towering column, and seized hold of Matt before he could cast another spell. Matt writhed wildly, but he was unable to escape the captain's vise-like clutches. However, Schnoz leapt off his staff and rammed himself right in Steve's face, causing the ranger to let go of his master.
As Steve reeled in pain, Matt heard the pained cries of Viney and Puddles as they struggled to break free of the swamp golem's clutches. If something wasn't done, surely they both would perish.
At that moment an ingenious—yet incredibly dangerous—idea popped into Matt's head. He swiftly mounted his staff, and flew out of the frying pan, towards the raging blaze beyond...
As the battle raged on in the swampy undergrowth, Eda landed atop one of the Titan's towering talons, for a respite from her long and harrowing flight. The Hexsquad followed close behind on their respective staves, as did King, who was riding on Owlbert. Beneath the gray and gloomy skies stood their target; the Eternal Coven's citadel.
A myriad of emotions were running high amongst the party, and none of them were pleasant. Luz felt hurt that Hunter didn't ask her—or any of them, for that matter—to help him in his battle with evil. Willow was deeply worried for him, and Gus shared every bit of her dread. Amity was quite angry at Hunter for keeping his friends out of the loop, but it was merely a mask for her deep concern. Worst of all, Eda felt guilty.
"It's all my fault..." The Owl Lady quietly quavered, her voice tinged with remorse. "He only came here 'cause I didn't."
"Stop that, Eda. You're not to blame, and neither is Hunter." Luz replied. As someone who struggled with self-reproach herself, she couldn't let her mentor do the same. King looked up at Eda with his sweet, soulful eyes, and she couldn't help but feel a bit better. She placed her hands on her adoptive children, and let loose her bottled-up woes.
"When I was younger, I was in a dark place. I was on the run, Raine had broken up with me, and I lost my sister to the Emperor's Coven. So, I turned to Titan's Venom. I thought it could ease my pain, but it just made it worse—not to mention the curse. I couldn't stop taking the stuff...until I found you, King. Taking care of you gave me the strength to quit."
Moved by her heartfelt admission, King hugged Eda as tightly as he could, and Luz joined in after him. As they warmly embraced Eda, she stared down at the offshore citadel beyond with bitter contempt.
"This whole mess started 'cause of Titan's Venom, and Hunter risked his life to stop the ones behind it. It's time we finish the job." The harpy stood tall with her wings spread, and her children followed her lead.
"For Hunter." Luz added wistfully.
"FOR HUNTER!" The others shouted. With that rallying cry, the witches and Titan soared towards the seaside stronghold, all of them primed to bring a swift end to the evils of the Eternal Coven...
Of all the frights in Celine's life, none scared her more than Grometheus's wild rampage through Hexside. Not because of its monstrous appearance, of course; in the Isles, grotesque is the norm. What truly terrified her was its petrifying power to take the form of whatever its victim feared. In her case, it was a grimwalker—more accurately, what she was taught to believe was one.
The ominous, rotting specter shambled closer and closer to the frightened demon, until she mustered the courage to retaliate, and launched a column of violet fire from her crystal ball. The scorching blast caused the creature to let out a blood-curdling shriek. When the smoke cleared, Celine saw her attack had only revealed more of the grimwalker's deathly, decaying body. Beneath its stolen bones lay a glowing galdorstone, and lungs too large for any normal witch.
The Mind Killer hissed harshly, ripped the orb from the oracle's grasp, and seized her by the collar of her sweatshirt. It raised its claw-tipped hand in the air, but before it could bring it down upon Celine, Hunter dashed to the rescue and tackled the monster to the ground.
"RUN!" Hunter shouted, as he held down his diabolical doppelgänger. It was a courageous effort, albeit a dangerous one. The Fear Bringer's spawn morphed its face into that of its attackers, and scars of putrid slime ran across its visage, culminating in a pair of necrotic antlers atop his head. It was the very same form Hunter was cursed with when Belos possessed him that fateful night. Appalled and enraged, he quickly beat that mockery of himself to a literal pulp, then took off as fast as he could.
Grom-Belos uttered a horrific yell, and his shape changed into that of his true form; a wretched, festering husk of a man, with slender limbs, sludgy skin, and steely blue eyes all over his body. The loathsome creature charged towards his fleeing prey on all fours, the darkness around him expanding with every stride.
Celine conjured up a phantom with her crystal ball, and sicced it on her malevolent pursuer. As the spirit engaged the Mind Killer, the teens kept running, only to come across a dead end. To make matters worse, Belos had just finished off Celine's specter, and set his sights back on Hunter.
The former Golden Guard apprehensively backed away, only to stumble and hit the ground. However, that blunder turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Hidden in the decrepit cornerstone was a conspicuous crevasse, which seemed to lead somewhere.
"In there!" Hunter blurted out. He quickly took the oracle by the hand, and delved into the rift with nary a second thought. The duo's descent abruptly became a free fall, but Waffles quickly converted to staff form and spread her wings, turning the teens' plummet into a steady float down.
The space below was so dark that Celine couldn't even see her hands in front of her face. To remedy the issue, Hunter summoned an orb of light, revealing a craggy and treacherous tunnel. The Sentinel carefully traipsed through it, with Waffles on his shoulder and Celine close behind. Eventually, they reached the other end of the tunnel, where they were greeted with a most surprising sight; a whole other hallway.
Unlike the run-down, overgrown ruins of Hunter's mindscape, this place resembled the Emperor's Castle in its prime; a building he thought and hoped he'd never step foot in again. Although they looked like the hallowed halls he grew up in, something about them felt off; like somewhere he'd seen in a dream. His silent state of bewildered awe was only broken by a question from Celine.
"That's not you, is it?"
Hunter diverted his attention to the elaborate stained-glass window the moon demon was pointing to. To his astonishment, it depicted a Golden Guard—a much older one with long locks of hair—rallying Coven Scouts into battle against a group of wild witches. He noticed Celine curiously approaching the painting, so he quickly grabbed her by the hood of her sweatshirt, stopping her in her tracks.
"Stay back! You don't wanna see that, trust me." He sternly warned, when a horrific howl echoed through the castle halls, sending chills down both witches' spines.
"Whatever's in there, it can't be worse than him." Celine hurriedly headed towards the painting, but stopped once she realized her friend wasn't following. "Hunter, come on!"
Hunter didn't move. He couldn't. If the Guard in the painting was who he thought it was, then that raised a long litany of questions, with no time to answer them. Only when he heard the sound of slimy footsteps growing ever-closer did he break free of his still state, and dive into the great unknown...
Upon entering the painting, the twosome was transported to a wildly different—yet equally uncanny—locale. Like the castle halls before, it was a familiar place; the Swampy Toes—particularly the mire outside the very same cave in which Hunter's physical body lay dormant. However, the usually verdant marsh was ablaze with the reddish glow of raging flames, and the night sky was rife with smoke.
Also alight were the tents and hovels of wild witches, who were fighting to protect their sanctum from Imperial forces. Unfortunately, the iconoclasts were woefully outmatched, despite them outnumbering the opposing force. The cause of their monumental disadvantage was the Coven's heaviest hitter short of its Emperor; The Golden Guard.
The warrior witch in the metal mask made short work of his rebel adversaries. He evaded their attacks by teleporting all over the place, and retaliated by raining red-hued fire down upon them with his artificial staff. By raising it overhead, he commanded the very waters his enemies stood in to rush over them like a tidal wave, sweeping them off their feet.
The robe-clad elder of the coven summoned an abomination golem and bade it to attack the Guard. The white-cloaked sorcerer conjured a construct three times the elder's size, and it smashed the opposing abomination into a slimy purple puddle.
Hunter was awestruck. While many in the Emperor's Coven once revered him as the strongest in their ranks, this older Guard was on an entirely different level. Celine even thought he could give Belos a run for his money. Alas, Hunter knew all too well how wrong she was.
As the Coven Scouts apprehended the defeated dissenters, the Golden Guard stood over them, and began to speak. His voice was deep as it was clear, and resolute to boot.
"Wild magic is forbidden by law! By practicing it, you have disobeyed the Emperor, defiled the Titan, and endangered the lives of your fellow witches. For these heinous transgressions, you all must be punished."
Upon hearing his edict, the wild witches fell into a frenzied clamor. One of them—a male moon demon with wide-curving horns—broke free of his captor's clutches, and launched a fireball at the Guard, who dashed out of the way. The other Scouts rushed towards the demon, but he summoned thorny vines that constricted around them. He drew a circle in the air with intent to slay them, when in a flash, the Golden Guard appeared in front of him; the blade of his sword was buried deep in the dissident's chest.
What followed was a blood-curdling scream of agony, sending shivers down the teens' spines. Its source was another moon demon; a pregnant female held in place by a pair of Scouts. She writhed in her restraints, her tearful gaze dead-set on her lover's killer. At this moment, Celine realized exactly who the poor woman was. The Guard noticed something as well; branded on her right wrist was the sigil of the Oracle Coven.
"Poor soul. They've indoctrinated her. Bring her to Head Witch Snapdragon for re-education." On his command, his subordinates dragged Lunelai away kicking and screaming. As her crestfallen wails filled the torrid air, the masked warrior turned towards the other captured enemies. "Take the rest to the castle; they have to be petrified."
As the sickening scene continued, its spectators were speechless. Celine had witnessed the tragic event that started her mother's dark descent, and was left shaken to her core. As for Hunter, he was just as mortified. Watching the old Guard's work was like looking into his own past, before he broke free of Belos's control...
Matt hurried towards the hulking colossus of muck and flora, his blood running red-hot. As Viney and Puddles writhed in the giant's ever-tightening grip, he reached into his pocket, and pulled out one of the power glyphs he pilfered from Bria.
He slapped the fist-shaped sigil onto his wrist, and immediately felt a rush of magical power course through his veins; enough power to pull off a spell he'd never seen anyone try. Chances were it would blow him to bits, but with the peril his friends were in, that was a chance he was willing to take. As he drew a spell circle around his body, Matt said to himself:
"Here goes nothing."
Upon casting the spell, Matt's body quickly began to grow. He charged towards Jerbo's golem, his stature increasing with each step, until his height matched that of the monster's. He slugged the construct square in the face with his super-sized fist, causing it to drop its captives. Viney flew to safety on her staff, her animal companion gliding by her side.
Everyone—even the brainwashed thralls—were shocked by Matt's remarkable metamorphosis. In a booming voice, the now-towering witch called out to rally his companions.
"LET'S SWITCH THINGS UP!"
Viney nodded in agreement, and soared towards Boscha, who was becoming overwhelmed by her formidable former teammates. The triclops took a dive to avoid one of Amelia's ranged attacks, and flopped in the tepid mud. Before either thrall could finish her off, they were interrupted; Viney fired a fist-shaped construct that sent Cat reeling, and Puddles tackled Amelia off her feet.
"We've got them! You deal with Steve!"
"What?!"
Before Boscha could protest any further, the renegade ranger let fly a blue fireball, and it hurtled towards her. She rapidly revolved her staff, and just barely managed to deflect the deadly spell. However, Steve took advantage of her exhaustion by sending forth a pillar construct. It hit Boscha dead-on, and pushed her deeper into the putrid mire. Dazed and aching, a low groan left her lips.
Steve trudged towards his fallen foe, and drew a large circle in the air. Before he could execute the spell, a large bubble began to rise from the watery sludge beneath his feet, until it popped, releasing a cloud of pungent swamp gas. The acrid vapors caused Steve to gag and cough profusely. What's more, the violet veins on his face had faded.
Boscha looked into her apparent enemy's eyes, and saw a far different person. Not a stoic, obstinate slave of the Eternal Coven, but a bewildered, rueful soul. As the miasma petered, Steve regained his facial veins, and with them, his cruel apathy.
Well aware that purple meant danger, Boscha acted fast, using her staff to sweep Steve's legs. He hit the ground with a splash, and attempted to retaliate. However, the athlete followed it up by conjuring a gale of freezing wind, trapping the thrall in an icy prison.
Whilst the now-massive "Man Tholomule" tussled with Jerbo's golem, Barcus hurled volatile potions at the super-sized witch. Potent as they were, his concoctions were like paper airplanes hitting an ironclad warship.
"That tickles!" Matt retorted, as he shifted his foot to make a wave that swamped the doglike demon. With Barcus dealt with, he shifted his focus back to his earthy opponent. The plant-powered abomination entangled Matt's left arm in its tough tendrils, putting him on the ropes.
Luckily, the clever witchlet had one more trick up his sleeve. He used construction magic to conjure an enormous stone machete, and used it to cut through the vines like they were paper. Then, he hacked the golem apart with his razor-sharp blade, until it was naught but a puddle of fetid mud.
With the construct vanquished, Mega-Matt seized Jerbo in his gargantuan grasp, and scooped Barcus out of the swamp. After placing stone shackles around their wrists, he erected a stone cage in the middle of the marsh, and trapped the magic-mixers inside it, taking them out of the fight.
As for Viney, she was faring far better against the Banshees than Boscha. While Cat and Amelia were both nothing to scoff at, Viney's beast keeping abilities meant they were outnumbered thousands to one. The aspiring vet called forth a vexing horde of flies to swarm the girls. While they were distracted by the pestilent insects, Puddles knocked them both over with a swipe of her bushy tail, and her master tied them down with fortified ropes.
Alas, just as Viney thought the fight was over, she saw Justice Crescentine enter the cave in which Hunter lay unconscious. The thralls were just a diversion! She rallied her allies and raced for the cave, ready to risk it all to protect her fellow Entrail...
Cries of bloody murder rang in Hunter's head as he traversed the eerie corridor. He had never taken a life during his stint as Golden Guard, and for that he was profoundly grateful. Sadly, the other grimwalkers weren't so lucky.
Celine shared every bit of her ally's dread. Whilst the events that transpired in the Toes had left her sick and speechless, she was more worried about the present than the past. The wretched spawn of Grom was stalking them like a predator, and she was supposed to slay it; a daunting duty for an outmatched oracle.
Before defecting, Hunter believed his rise through the Emperor's ranks to be a wholly unique experience, but the pictures on the walls had proved him wrong. In them, a blonde-haired boy who looked like—but not identical to—him was depicted going through rigorous training, harrowing trials, and treacherous tasks as a Coven Scout. These were the same steps, taken by a different soul. Belos had told Hunter a great deal of lies, but the first was that he was special.
One painting caught Hunter's eye more than the rest, for it was the literal crowning moment of this grimwalker's career; the day he was named Golden Guard. In the throne room, he knelt to his Emperor, who granted him the coveted rank. Spectating the ceremony were the nine Coven Heads. Hunter recognized some of them from his own bestowing, such as Terra Snapdragon, Osran the Oracle, and the now-retired Scooter Crane. Others, namely the Abomination and Potions leaders, were total strangers.
While Hunter was grappling with déjà vu, Celine was experiencing a horror show of appalling paintings. The old Guard had fought in brutal battles, slain a slew of enemies, and presided over the petrifications of numerous wild witches. Unlike Hunter, this witch's legacy was naught but blood and sorrow...or so she thought.
The next picture Celine came across was unlike any she'd seen before, because in this one, the Guard was unmasked. His visage was much like Hunter's, albeit older; he appeared to be in the latter half of his twenties. His hair flowed wild and free, with a scruffy beard to match. His most striking feature, however, was a scar that ran just above his left eye.
Furthermore, he wasn't razing a rebel base or putting heretics to death; in fact, he wasn't even in uniform. He was simply drinking at a tavern, a smile on his face and a friend at his side. His companion was a man just a few years younger, with dark skin, green eyes and black dreadlocks styled in a topknot.
That same confidant showed up in several more paintings, most of which were of him and the Guard enjoying each other's company. The last of them was the odd one out; In it, the two men were in the midst of a tense discussion. Waffles also noticed the imagery, and chirped at Hunter to catch his attention. Once the grimwalker laid eyes on the portrait, he let out a soft gasp.
"Is that—?" Hunter carefully examined the young man in the portrait, and had a good guess of who he was. That, of course, clued him in to the identity of the grimwalker whose vacant mindscape he was standing in. Before he could speak his predecessor's name, Waffles fluttered into the stained glass window. And wherever Waffles goes, Hunter must follow...
On the other end of the image was a bachelor pad in downtown Bonesborough. There, the dark-haired young adult was carefully working with abomination sludge. He magically formed the ooze into complex shapes with the skill of a seasoned sculptor. He was in a deep, trance-like state of concentration—one that was woefully broken when a certain masked witch teleported into the room.
"DARIUS!"
Startled, Darius let out a yelp, causing his abomination construct to explode. The purple slime splattered all over the room; the velvet cushions, the slitherbeast-skin rug, and even his exquisite lilac clothing were all casualties of his broken focus. He frantically wiped the gooey residue off his garments, then glared at his now-unmasked companion.
"Titan, Esau! Don't you ever—" Darius snapped, when he suddenly recalled the news he'd heard. "Esau?! What are you doing here? Why aren't you at the castle, they said it's on lockdown!"
"Did you figure out that teleportation spell?"
"What does that have to do with anything?"
To answer, Esau used actions instead of words. He reached into his cloak, and pulled out what looked like a brown briefcase, with a yellow, slit-pupiled eye at its center. He set it down on the coffee table, and looked at his friend with an expression of utmost urgency.
"I need you to send this as far away from Belos as possible."
"Wha—Why?"
"Can't tell you, too dangerous. But if my suspicions are correct, all magic-kind is in grave danger. Do you trust me?"
Darius nodded affirmatively, and enveloped the briefcase in slime. Then he shut his eyes, concentrated, and pushed out his hands. In an instant, the attaché was whisked far out of sight, and hopefully, out of mind, too. Impressed, Esau smiled proudly.
"The student has surpassed the master. Great work, Dari." The warrior witch re-donned his mask, and readied his staff for takeoff. Just as he was about to soar out the window, Esau felt something slimy grab his shoulder. He looked back, and saw an outstretched arm of abomination matter coming from Darius's body.
"Let me help you! Whatever you're facing, we can stop it together!" Darius desperately pleaded. Alas, Esau had already made up his mind.
"Trust me. You don't want any part of this."
As Esau took flight, a wave of melancholic guilt overcame poor Hunter. Despite seeing the exchange from his fellow grimwalker's point of view, it was Darius who he felt for more. Only now did he understand why Darius didn't free him from the Emperor's Coven; had he done so, both their lives would've been at risk. Furthermore, Esau insisted on working alone, just as Hunter had been. That, of course, led to his downfall.
Hunter's solemn, silent self-reflection was abruptly interrupted by the sound of a scream in the outer mindscape. He rushed out of the painting, and saw Celine surrounded by corrupted copies of him—at least what she feared he was. Her surroundings were stained by the spreading abyss; the Mind Killer's grasp was growing.
The Scarlet Sentinel dashed into the fray, drew his sword, and slashed one of the Grom-walkers apart. However, its pieces rapidly rejoined, in the form of the monstrous Emperor, no less. Belos grabbed Hunter by the throat, and pinned him against the wall. All the while, Waffles was cowering in terror, fearful for her master's life.
However, Hunter managed to reach his sword far enough to cut through the Mind Killer's arm, freeing him from its dreadful clutches. Belos let out a piercing screech, and lashed out the boy with a forceful kick. Hunter was sent flying through the halls, and before he could retaliate, the monster regrew its arms and threw him into a mural at the end of the mindscape. With a haunting cry, it reverted to an amorphous blob, and leapt in after him.
"HUNTER!" Celine screamed in horror, as Waffles shrieked in shock. That was no ordinary painting that Hunter had fallen into; it illustrated Esau facing down Emperor Belos on his throne. Worse, she was still encircled by undead grimwalkers. Despite being separated, the duo faced the same challenge; they were trapped and alone with the things they feared most...
Hunter wasn't the only one stuck in old memories. Lunelai had delved into the dank, musty cavern she once called home. It was neither comfortable nor pleasant, but it was the only safe haven around for freethinkers like her late husband. Indeed, she'd given up many things—her family, her coven, her career—for a love she eventually lost.
Those rueful memories fueled the justiciar's fanatical fury, which grew hotter when she laid eye upon the comatose grimwalker; she found him more revolting than anything lurking in the marshes. Even worse, her daughter was trapped in his mindscape; who knew what horrors she was witnessing! With a resentful scowl, Lunelai activated her crystal pendant, causing it to glow.
"I'm coming to save you, Celine. Whether you want it or not." Just as she was about to invade Hunter's mind, an enraged shout echoed throughout the grotto.
"LEAVE HIM ALONE!"
Banded together at the mouth of the cave were Viney, Matt and Boscha, all of whom were wielding their magic staves. The moon demon sneered, and raised her own staff in return.
"He abducted my daughter, and you're all accomplices. Why are children like you serving this freak? The Golden Guard doesn't rule you anymore!"
"Says the wannabe Emperor." Boscha refuted.
"How dare you compare me to that murderous tyrant! I'm ensuring his heir never seizes the throne."
"If you wanna hurt Hunter, you'll have to go through us." Matt boldly mandated.
"I didn't want to fight you kids, but you give me no choice." Lunelai created a circle with her staff, and let loose a flurry of stinging energy bolts. Matt created a wall to hide behind, Viney summoned an energy barrier, and Boscha quickly dove for cover.
The three teens retaliated against the corrupt justice with spells of their own, but she deflected them all with ease. Lunelai then countered with an arcing wave of energy that swept the students off their feet. While they were down, she made a beeline for Hunter, only to stop in her tracks. From behind, she heard the unmistakable sound of a spell being cast at her.
With catlike reflexes, Lunelai turned around and used telekinesis to slow Boscha's fireball to a screeching halt, astonishing the triclops. Then, she threw it right back to sender. Boscha avoided it by the skin of her teeth, and it hit the wall; the resulting shockwave threw her to the floor with vigorous force. The once-mighty Banshee lay fatigued in the dirt, strands of her violet hair singed by the very flames she cast.
Viney rode valiantly towards the Coven Head on her winged beast, but Lunelai touched her crystal charm, projecting a hard-light fist that brought both steed and rider down. Just as she reached her ailing target, the ground began to rumble, and her surroundings quickly darkened.
Standing tall above her was Matt, who had yet again grown to gigantic proportions. To up the ante, he summoned a pair of enormous axes, and clashed his axes together to intimidate his foe. In spite of his imposing display, the judge was undaunted.
"I've fought bigger..."
When Hunter came to his senses, he found himself in a room he reviled more than any other; the throne room. With dread, he turned around to see the Emperor atop his towering golden throne, in his full royal regalia. The ex-Golden Guard shakily readied his sword, his heart beating as hard as the one hooked up to the walls. Although he couldn't see the tyrant's eyes through the mask, he shivered from the harsh chill of his icy glare.
"Esau."
Turns out Belos was staring right through Hunter, towards the previous holder of the mantle. Standing behind the boy was the elder Guard, who appeared to be enraged. He was drenched in a cold sweat, and the veins on his face were engorged with anger.
"Where have you—"
In a flash of crimson light, Esau teleported to his superior's position, telekinetically tossed the staff from his grasp, and pointed his blade at the Emperor's chest.
"What are you planning?!"
Despite being held at swordpoint, Belos was unfazed by his underling's threat. He spoke no words in response, further inciting Esau's righteous indignation.
"I know the Day of Unity is a lie. The paradise you promised will never come to pass. So what is it, really?" The rogue Guard interrogated. Again, no response from the Emperor.
"ANSWER ME!"
At his breaking point, Esau raised his sword with the intent to wound his malevolent mentor. Alas, just as he was about to bring down his place, his heart was struck by a sharp, piercing pain. Esau cried out in agony, fell to his knees, and dropped his weapons to the floor. He could feel his chest tightening, and his ragged breaths grew harder to draw. As his vision blurred, he saw a tall, slender figure approach the throne.
"The poison acted slower than expected. How peculiar."
Belos's sudden silent partner was a face Esau found unrecognizable. To Hunter, however, he was all too familiar. It was none other than Vitimir—younger and healthier—but a detestable rogue nonetheless.
With what remained of his strength, Esau lunged towards his sovereign—and promptly collapsed. Vitimir sneered scornfully at the debilitated Guard, and Belos clasped his gold-gloved hands.
"Your power exceeds that of your predecessors. Couldn't let you use that strength against me." The Emperor spoke. He then diverted his striking gaze towards Vitimir, who immediately froze in place. Belos reached into his cloak, and pulled out a yellow medallion bearing the mark of the Potions Coven. Flecked across it were minuscule specks of dried blood; not so much to ruin its luster, but just enough to send a message.
"Speak nothing of this night, and you'll lead the Coven for the rest of your life. Now leave us." The obedient alchemist claimed his prize and slinked into the shadows, leaving Esau alone with his angry abuser.
"I knew you would betray me eventually. Those wild witches seduced you with their despicable lies. Drove you to treason. And the penalty for treason...is death."
With that decree, Belos clenched his fist, causing hard stone to creep across the poisoned grimwalker's body. A wave of horror overcame Esau, as well as Hunter; they had both witnessed enough executions to know the former's fate.
In his last moments of life, Esau reached towards his killer in one final act of defiance, before he was completely petrified. The tyrant then clenched his fist, releasing a force of magical energy that crushed said statue to dust. All that remained of the once-mighty Esau was a sword and a staff. Hunter was mortified beyond any description, and it only grew worse as the Emperor spoke.
"The Golden Guards. Nothing but a long line of worthless traitors." Belos snarled. It became chillingly clear to the boy that this was no mere figment of memory, but the Mind Killer itself. He reverted to his horrific cursed form, and glared at Hunter with malignant intent.
"It's time I end the cycle for good, and kill the last grimwalker!"
Outside the painting, Celine was still struggling against the horde of undead grimwalkers, the darkness steadily consuming their surroundings. She summoned spectral tendrils from her orb to keep the monsters at bay, but one of them morphed into a puddle, slithered beneath her, and reverted to humanoid form to tear it from her grasp. Another tackled her to the ground, and the rest joined in to crowd her.
In a panic, the oracle frantically kicked at the creatures, whilst Waffles pecked and scratched them. One of the grimwalkers seized Waffles in its grip, causing her to shriek in terror. Just as the Mind Killer was about to claim its first victims, an arcing wave of red energy struck the pack, reducing them to ash in one fell swoop.
Alas, Celine's anxiety only grew harsher when she laid eyes upon her rescuer. Standing before her was a dead man walking; the very reason she never got to know her father. He was clothed in a faded yellow tunic, a tattered white cape, and dark, worn-out boots. To top it all off, he was brandishing the exact same staff Celine once wielded. The poor girl was at a loss of words, and Esau could tell.
"I know you're scared, but I'm not going to hurt you."
"You're supposed to be dead! Are—are you a ghost?"
"It's...complicated." The former Guard answered. "Part of my spirit roams these halls. All our mindscapes are hidden within Hunter's. Just one of the many mysteries of grimwalkers."
Celine was still dead silent. Her life had been saved by none other than the witch her mother hated most; a grimwalker, no less. And unlike the loathsome caricatures the Mind Killer created, he was no monster. Just a man who made many mistakes. This sad reality was not lost on Esau, as he quickly realized why the girl he'd never met looked so familiar.
"That demon from the swamp...you're his child." He uttered, surprising Celine.
"Y-you remember?"
"I remember all of them. Every life I took still haunts me to this day. I wanted to make things right, but I never succeeded. At least Hunter was different."
"Wait, you know Hunter?"
"Are you kidding? He's a legend to us! The one who helped bring down Belos for good."
"Well, Belos—technically Grom in the form of Belos—is trying to kill him, and we need to stop it!"
"Say no more." Esau pointed his staff towards a crack in the wall, revealing a hidden passage leading downwards. He dashed into the darkness, and gestured for Celine to follow along.
"Hunter's that way!" The oracle protested.
"I know. But to take on the Emperor, we need an army..."
Hunter was in the fight of his life; on the losing end, no less. His exhaustion grew by the second as he evaded Belos's savage strikes. Eventually, the Emperor landed a hit, causing him to yelp. The spawn of Grom seized the vigilante, and slammed him through one of the pitch-black marks expanding across the walls, leading deeper into the arcane recesses of his communal mind.
As Hunter struggled against his demonic captor, he saw more grimwalkers perish at the hands of the Mind Killer's muse. One was disintegrated by a beam from Belos's staff. Another was crushed by falling rubble. A particularly unfortunate Guard was swallowed whole by a monstrous serpent summoned by the Emperor. The fatal final memories of countless quickly blurred into an overwhelming cavalcade of unspeakable evil.
Belos slammed his victim hard into the very edge of the mindscape, and savagely swung a claw his way. Hunter teleported out of his grasp, but the false Emperor outstretched one of his grotesque arms, and dragged him back into his clutches. The accursed creature brutally beat the boy down, the shadows around him expanding with every torturous attack. By the time Belos relented, his surroundings were naught but nothing.
"You'll die a traitor, Caleb. Just like the rest of them." Belos raised a claw to execute his foe, when suddenly, a hole was blown through his chest from behind. The Fear-Bringer turned around to see Esau staring him down, unmasked and armed with his artificial staff.
"The predecessor. I've killed you once; I'll gladly do it again."
"But you can't kill us all."
On Esau's command, a sea of shining scarlet lights illuminated the unending darkness, revealing ten other grimwalkers, all wielding similar staves. Their appearances differed from their ortet in various ways, yet they'd banded together like birds of a feather. The former Guards charged their common enemy, turning the void into a jet-black battlefield.
Hunter watched in shock and awe as the company of warriors battled valiantly against the Mind Killer. He only snapped out of his bewildered state when he heard a voice cry out his name. Celine hurried towards him with Waffles, who leapt into his lap and cawed in relief.
"Are you okay?" The oracle inquired. Hunter nodded affirmatively, despite the pain he was in.
"Where'd all they come from?"
"I brought backup."
"Where are their horses?" He asked dead serious, perplexing Celine. "Never mind."
Hunter diverted his attention to the ongoing battle. To deal with the increased amount of adversaries, the Mind Killer mutated into a larger, deadlier form. Its lower body now bore spider's legs and a reptilian tail, whilst its superior half retained its imperial appearance.
The beast fought ferociously against the squadron of spirits, who peppered him with blasts from their staves. A pair of them tried going in for the kill, but the Mind Killer smacked them away with its tail. Then it breathed blue flames like a dragon, scattering the ranged attackers. The only one left within striking rage was Esau, the penultimate grimwalker.
Esau evaded Grom-Belos's attacks, and formed a gauntlet of abomination matter over his hand. He threw a punch the Fear Bringer's way, only for it to seize his fist in its wicked grip. With a clench of the fist, Belos brought Esau to his knees, and formed his other arm into a razor-sharp blade. He thrust it towards his defiant foe's heart, only for Hunter to teleport between them, and bear the killing blow.
At least it should've killed him. To the shock of Esau and the Belos alike, Hunter was completely unharmed. Upon contact with his chest, the necrotic blade had bent like it was made of rubber. Needless to say, the monster was aghast.
"H—how! Why aren't you dead?" The Mind Killer howled.
"Because now, I'm not afraid of you."
Hunter followed up his brave retort by converting Waffles to staff form, and shooting an energy blast at the creature's chest. He followed it up by raising a stony spike from the ground, impaling the Mind Killer's monstrous lower half. Lastly, he closed his fist tight as a vise, and let fly a punch that pierced through—yes, through—Belos's face. When he pulled out, it left a sizable hole in the demon's revolting visage.
Holes began to pierce the inky void, signifying that the Mind Killer was growing weaker. Vying for control, it let out a vile screech and lunged at Hunter, only to be struck by a flurry of bolts from the staves of the other grimwalkers. Even Celine raked its rotten flesh with claws summoned from her crystal ball.
To finish off the Mind Killer once and for all, Hunter, Esau and the rest of their assembled army stood united, and pointed their staves at the barbaric behemoth before them. Each one cast a large spell circle in unison, as the creature charged their way. Just as it was about to strike, they let loose the combined power of twelve witches unified as one.
The ensuing spell was a colossal column of energy, which reduced the Mind Killer to a charred, smoking husk. The darkness it caused faded away, revealing an orange-hued forest lit by a setting sun. The air was cool and brisk, and birdsong rang through the treetops; it was far more pleasant than the unending abyss.
"Great work, Hunter! We couldn't have done it without you." Esau commended. He, along with the other renegade Guards, were in good spirits. While the real Belos was dead and gone, slaying the beast that bore his image was immensely cathartic—and satisfying.
All of a sudden, a grating hiss filled the air. What remained of the Mind Killer was desperately crawling out of the woodlands and towards Hunter, in a last-ditch effort to end his life. However, its strength had mostly waned—it held the same pathetic shape as Belos in his last moments. But like the monster it mimicked, the Mind Killer was snuffed out for good by a well-placed stomp.
The final blow wasn't dealt by any of the grimwalkers, but rather their progenitor. Looking down at the lifeless puddle of sludge with disgust was the ortet whose bones bore dozens of witches; whose face Belos saw in all his creations. Hunter recognized him on sight; he was the boy's spitting image, albeit a couple decades older, with round ears to boot. Lo and behold, the one and only Caleb Wittebane.
Hunter was astounded. He knew very little about Phillip's elder brother; not even Gravesfield's rich historical records had much to say about him. For the longest time, he thought he was just another narrow-minded witch hunter, but that harrowing Halloween altered his notions. Now, he knew for certain that Caleb was nothing like the wretch who raised him. Alas, he had no idea what to say to his human forebear; a thousand thoughts spun through his head like a cyclone. Although he seldom spoke aloud, it was Caleb who broke the silence.
"Thank you...from both of us."
An orb of golden light shined down upon Hunter like a star, illuminating the dusky treetops above. As it floated lower, the radiant sphere transformed into an avian shape that was all too familiar. The spectral cardinal perched gingerly on his master's hand, and stared deeply into his umber eyes.
Hunter was without words; more accurately, with too much of them. There were a thousand things he wanted to say to his perished palisman, yet he was too astonished to even say "hello." Waffles, however, was exceedingly eager to meet her fabled "big brother." The birds tweeted back and forth, and Hunter could understand every word of their conversation. Naturally, he was deeply touched—to the point of tears.
"I love you, Flap..."
Celine was just as moved as everyone else by the heart-warming reunion between palisman and witch. Alas, a whole other crisis was brewing in the physical world; one that could spell untold disaster for not one, but two worlds.
"We need to go now." Celine uttered with remorse. Hunter's spirits were dashed, but he knew his relieving reconciliation couldn't last forever.
"Goodbye..." Hunter quavered, when Flapjack leaned up against his chest. A gleaming light shined brightly where Hunter's heart was, much to his mystified amazement. Surging magical power coursed through his veins like a rushing current; it felt like the sensation he experienced when Flapjack revived him, only magnified tenfold. Unbeknownst to Hunter, he had only scratched the surface of his palisman's parting gift—until now.
"Thank you, Flapjack..." Hunter directed his attention to his fellow grimwalkers, as well as their human ortet. "Thank all of you." Just as he turned to leaves, Flapjack's spirit spoke his goodbyes not in the tongue of palismen, but in words for all to hear.
"I'll always be with you..."
"We all will." added Caleb.
"Now go save the world." Esau remarked.
Hunter waved his last goodbye to the spirits of his predecessors, as did Celine. The oracle then activated her crystal orb, transporting both witches out of the former's expansive mindscape. The Mind Killer may have been vanquished, but a far worse threat still lay ahead...
When Celine returned to the material plane, she was wide awake; the same could not be said for Hunter. Although the Sentinel was still unconscious, he appeared to be in better health—and at peace. Alas, their surroundings were anything but serene.
As Hunter slowly came out of his coma, Celine was startled by an earth-shaking crash. She turned around, and saw Matt—who had reverted to his regular size—sprawled out in the mud. Also incapacitated were Viney and Boscha, and they all had the same foe to thank for it; Justice Crescentine.
The air grew tense as Lunelai advanced upon her rebellious daughter. Celine tensed up, clutched her crystal ball, and dauntlessly stood her ground. The oracle had overcome her greatest fear; nothing—not even her malevolent mother—could sway her now.
"It's okay, Moonbeam. I forgive you."
That certainly wasn't the statement Celine expected, especially after her supposed betrayal. For a moment, she let her guard down—only for it to rise back up when Lunelai pulled out a bottle of Eternaline.
"Drink, and we'll all live happily ever after."
Celine was harrowed. As much as she wanted to think otherwise, her mother had truly fallen from grace. In an act of audacity, she threw the bottle to the ground and stomped it to pieces. Then, she gave her a scornful glare that pierced her soul.
Outraged, Lunelai swung her staff at her defiant daughter, who flinched and fell into the muck. "Fine, then!" She shouted, seething with frustration. "If you won't change your mind, then I'll change it for you."
Before the justiciar could make good on her threat, she was blinded by a bright flash. When her vision returned, she saw her wrist was seized by none other than Hunter, whose eyes were aglow with blazing golden light. Despite the Mind Killer toxin nearly taking his life, his rather literal heart-to-heart with Flapjack had given him a stupendous second wind. Now, he was more formidable than ever, and Lunelai was about to feel his wrath firsthand.
Hunter let loose with an outburst of magic energy that flung his opponent backwards. Lunelai thrust her staff into the ground to brake herself, and countered with a barrage of bolts. The grimwalker zipped around the cave like a comet, eluding the Coven Head's spells.
"Vile creature! You're no witch! You're a shadow of my husband's killer!" Stoked by hatred, she summoned a horde of shrouded spirits from her crystalline pendant, and sicced them on her foe. Hunter stood firm, and made short work of the phantoms with concussive blasts fired from his bare hands.
As the empowered warrior kept fighting, his peers looked on, rapt and agog. He was wielding magic's might with neither staff nor circle; none of them had seen anything like it in all their lives. While the witches were too exhausted to aid their friend, it was clear he needed no assistance. Lunelai may have defeated them, but was worn down from doing so. Now, Hunter had the chance to serve the rogue justice her just desserts.
With whirlwind speed, Hunter darted towards Lunelai, and struck her dead-on with a palisman-powered punch. The magistrate crashed into the cavern wall, and let out a pained cry. She aimed her staff at the grimwalker, only for him to zip forward and tear it from her grasp.
Unfortunately for Lunelai, Hunter wasn't finished. In a fit of rage, the grimwalker continued pounding on his opponent with fists wreathed in radiance. He had every right to be angry, as not only was the justice attempting to become the next Emperor; she had betrayed her daughter to do so.
The other teens were astonished by the brutal beating Hunter was giving Lunelai—even though she certainly deserved it. Celine was in a stiff state of shock, until she was snapped out of it by a loud caw from Waffles. The blue jay palisman converted to staff form, and she hesitantly took hold of the shaft. Next thing she knew, she had been teleported right behind her furious friend.
"Hunter, stop! She's had enough!" Celine cried out, to no response. "STOP!" One of Hunter's punches missed its target and struck stone, creating a shockwave that swept his friend off her feet. It became chillingly clear that if Hunter's frenzy didn't end, the burden of murder would weigh down upon him.
Alas, Celine was powerless to stop him...or so she thought, until her orb began to faintly glow. She felt a strange sensation in her very soul; something—nay, someone—was trying to reach her. Desperate to save her mother and friend, she set her claws on the crystal and answered the call.
In a last-ditch effort to slay her enraged attacker, Lunelai cast a lethal spell towards Hunter's heart, only for him to knock her hand away, causing it to misfire. Overcome with agitation, the once-Golden Guard drew his sword, and raised it upwards. Just as he was about to deliver the killing blow, a vision flashed in his head.
A burning home. A lover bereaved. A brother murdered. These were the gut-wrenching sights Hunter witnessed in his mind's eye. When the terrors subsided, he saw a spectral hand holding back his own. Standing above him was the summoned spirit of Caleb, whose face bore a look that spoke a thousand tragic words.
Hunter's eyes lost their incandescence, and his anger melted away. Supplanting the red-hot rage was the frigid chill of shame. Appalled by his loss of control, Hunter fell to his knees and dropped his weapon; the blade sank deep into the mud. He locked eyes with his defeated foe, and drew a long, deep breath.
"It's over..."
If only he was right. While Lunelai was waging her personal crusade, her forces were preparing for a war of their own. Back at the fortress, Vitimir was gathered with the rest of the Coven's top brass, carefully watching as their lackeys prepared an airship. A crow phone perched on one of the officers' shoulders, and squawked out some troublesome news.
"Word from Justice Crescentine's pilot! She's been defeated." The commander spoke. Some of the witches reacted with shock and dismay; Vitimir, however, simply sneered.
"Bested by children? Clearly, she isn't fit to rule the new empire." The alchemist scoffed, then discreetly leaned in towards Senber. "At least now, I won't have to kill her, now." He redirected his attention to the masses, and spoke aloud. "In wake of our leader's downfall, I declare myself Head Witch of the Eternal Coven!"
"You can't do that! It's mutiny!" One of the dignitaries protested. Vitimir gestured towards the offending officer, and Senber whipped out a pistol loaded with Eternaline darts. He fired it at the dissenter, injecting the philter into their bloodstream. Now, their mind was completely under the Coven's control.
"Any other objections?" Vitimir snarled. However, the answers he received were drowned out by the sound of fighting in the fortress halls. The self-appointed headmen hurried inside, only to see a trio of teenagers taking down his soldiers. With powerful plants, incredible illusions and astounding abominations, they truly gave their enemies hell. Before Vitimir could join the fray, an enraged voice called him out.
"YOU!"
At the other end of the hall stood Luz, accompanied by Eda & King. Lunelai was right about the grimwalker having friends in high places; the Owl Lady, the last living Titan and the savior of the Isles herself had all come to avenge him.
"You're gonna pay for what you did to Hunter." Luz threatened.
"He was the Emperor's tool. He deserved to be broken."
Inflamed by the apothecary's scathing remark, Luz screamed and swung her staff, sending a fireball his way. Vitimir barely evaded the blazing attack, and retaliated by breathing caustic gas at the human. Eda swooped in and petered it out with a flap of her mighty wings.
"Get him, Stringbean!" On her master's command, the snake-shifter morphed into a curly-horned ram and headbutted the blackguard, staggering him. King followed up with a deafening shout that launched Vitimir across the hall. Just as the villain was about to get back up, Luz summoned spikes of ice that jutted dangerously close to his vital organs, pinning him down. Then, the trio loomed over him with looks of revulsion.
"Here's a lesson for you, Vitimir. When you mess with one of us, you mess with—" Before Eda could finish her sentence, Luz let out a cry of pain and fell to her knees, causing the harpy and Titan cried out her name. They saw a dart stuck in her shoulder, and a gun in Vitimir's grasp. Eda shrieked savagely, and raked her talons deep into the Coven Head's chest; his screams of agony were music to her ears.
"Is she..." King quavered out of worry for his sister, when Vitimir let out a sputtering cough.
"No...she's the only human worth saving."
Luz then rose to her feet, and stared down her companions. To their shock, her face was covered with winding violet veins; the telltale sign of an Eternaline victim. Other dart gun-wielding soldiers infected Amity, Gus and Willow, and they succumbed to the Coven's sinister serum.
"You won't get away with this." Eda growled, as she raised her claws to strike Vitimir down.
"Oh, I will. And you're going to help me."
Suddenly, Eda felt a piercing pain in one of her wings. She turned her head 180 degrees, and saw she had been darted by Senber.
"Mom!" King cried out in horror. Overcome with anger, his eyes glowed bright blue. He was about to let loose on the demon with all the fury of a Titan, when Luz and her Hexside friends stood around their new master. Even Eda joined in, and shielded Vitimir with her wings. Unable to hurt his family and friends, King stood down, and Vitimir shot him as well. But to the shock of everyone—especially King—the Eternaline had no effect!
"Kill him."
On the alchemist's command, the once-heroic witnesses charged towards King, who turned tail and fled as fast as he could. Their palismen took off alongside him, with the exception of Stringbean. The snake-shifter didn't know her master as long as the others, and thus couldn't tell she had turned. What's more, she was too scared to leave Luz's side.
King and the critters reached a hole the team blew in the castle to storm it, and Owlbert changed forms. The young Titan mounted his mother's magic staff, and took off to the skies with the rest of his friends' familiars.
As the defeated invaders flew off, a pair of healers rushed to Vitimir's aid, and began mending his torn flesh with regenerative spells. As they worked their magic, the Coven Head addressed his battered underlings.
"How fortunate are we! Our feeble founder is finally gone, and we now have the heroes who slew the charlatan Wittebane. With them on our side, we will unite all the Isles under one mind, for all time!"
"One mind for all time..." Luz and her mind-controlled cohorts droned in unison. The soldiers and officers in the Eternal Coven's ranks joined in, their blaring voices ablaze with fiery fervor.
"ONE MIND FOR ALL TIME!"