'This is going shockingly well,' Edric thought to himself as he walked into a circular room with a large device in the middle. Considering the door at the center of the device, Edric could only assume it was Belos' portal to the human realm. That meant his search should be nearly complete. Everything was going smoothly but Edric couldn't fight the sense of unease growing in his stomach. As he continued searching for the blood, he started to replay the events of the day. Looking for something he'd missed. Something that would ruin everything.
When morning had come the three witches exchanged very few words before setting out. They were all anxious to get this over with. It took several hours of walking before they approached the outskirts of Belos' castle. That was when Lilith and Darius told Edric to stay back.
This was when his unease had really started escalating. The goodbyes had been a lot more heartfelt than he'd expected. As if his companions didn't expect to see him again. Lilith was tearing up as she hugged him and Darius was clearly struggling not to do the same. He'd never heard the man's voice crack like that. Edric was touched by how much they cared but also a little hurt. On some level it felt like they didn't have faith in him, or perhaps in the plan itself. Not that he deserved their faith if he was being honest.
Even with over half a year of training from three of the strongest magic experts on the Boiling Isles, Edric was still the same teenage screwup he'd been before the Day of Unity. There was only so much he could do after wasting his formative years on learning magic he'd never be able to master. He'd worked as hard as he could to make up for it. Whenever his companions weren't busy he'd ask for any kind of training they could give him. Darius had managed to get him to the level of a decent Abomination track student at hexside. Darius considered that growth rate ridiculous but his actual abilities still weren't anything special by most standards. Lilith had taught Edric a few spells and potions along with a lot of basic glyph magic. Edric had been a little surprised by how much she seemed to enjoy teaching, but he supposed any distraction was nice in a world like this. Eberwolf had taught him the principles behind a lot of powerful beast keeping magic, but those lessons had been a bit pointless with so few beasts to actually practice on. Edric had hoped to learn some of the self modification beast magic that Eber was known for but apparently that required extensive knowledge and first hand experience with a multitude of beasts. Even with that it was no less difficult than Darius' self abomination magic. In the end, the best Edric could do was learn a large variety of low level skills. None of his teachers ever seemed disappointed in his progress but he still felt underqualified for pretty much any important task. And now he'd been given the most important task of all.
It felt like they were preparing for the worst and saying their last goodbyes to him. Which was odd because this wasn't the first life or death situation they'd been in together and the former coven leaders typically managed to stay positive in front of him even if they all knew things were bleak. Maybe he was reading too much into things though. Open displays of emotion were pretty uncommon in the Blight family and even after all this time Edric wasn't the best at processing them. Crying in particular was something Odalia had basically treated like a punishable offense. Blights never show weakness after all. Even after going through so much together with the former coven heads Edric still often defaulted to that kind of mentality.
In the end his two companions did manage to compose themselves. After that they gave him some encouraging words and rushed headfirst into a battle with the emperor. The plan was for them to engage Belos first so Edric could sneak in while he was distracted. Generally sneaking past a single person shouldn't have required this much effort. The man had no actual guards left. Just some Abomatons which, while decent at fighting, were poor at most other tasks. For once Edric was happy that his mother had been such an unscrupulous businesswoman. If Alador had been in charge every Abomaton produced would be top of the line, but Odalia was more than willing to cut corners and costs so long as it helped them make a profit. Thanks to that, Edric wasn't that worried about getting past the purple goons. The tricky part was Belos himself.
According to his mentors, the emperor had always had a bit of an air of omniscience around him. He rarely if ever seemed surprised by anything. Darius had always assumed this was at least partially an act. The man was an expert on maintaining his composure to the point that it always felt like things were completely under his control. Lilith, on the other hand, believed the emperor must have some level of supernatural senses in addition to that. She'd spent more time with him than Darius had and always felt that the man was unnaturally aware of his surroundings. Considering the nightmarish transformations he had revealed during their fights with him it would make some sense that his senses weren't on the level of a normal witch or human. Presumably they were at least around the same level that Eberwolf's had been. Hopefully they weren't beyond that or this plan would likely fail before Edric even got into the castle.
All of this boiled down to one thing. Sneaking past the emperor would be the hardest part of Edric's mission. The only reason the group even considered it possible was that Belos had seen Eber and Edric seemingly die during their last confrontation. He should have no idea that Eber had saved him and would therefore not be expecting more than two adversaries today.
Edric had started moving the moment he heard the fight begin in the distance. As much as he hated to admit it, deep down he had been certain something would go wrong. That Belos would have some kind of ward that would detect him the moment he entered the castle. Or worse, that he'd screw up purely due to his own incompetence and get caught by one of the Abomatons. None of that had happened though. He had easily made it through the castle to the inner sanctum of the emperor himself. But his job wasn't done. He still needed to find the titans blood itself.
To that end, Edric pulled out the device Lilith had created for him. Calling it a device was a little weird considering it was actually a complicated glyph circle carved permanently into a piece of wood. Edric had learned the basics of glyph magic and some of the more useful and simpler combos from Lilith but he couldn't say he was an expert. He could never understand how the woman could devise such intricate circles with complicated effects. Granted to someone who didn't know what this glyph was for its effect would seem fairly underwhelming. As Edric activated it all that happened was that a single small ball of light appeared in the upper left corner. The outer layer of the glyph combo was simple. 8 light glyphs arranged in a circle. It was what was inside the circle that was complicated. Edric didn't even try to understand it but the end result was that only the strongest of the 8 light glyphs would activate. Theoretically this glyph should point him towards the strongest source of magic nearby, IE the titan's blood.
Once again Edric expected something to go wrong and once again he was proven incorrect. The compass led him to a small table on the right side of the portal. The table had a lot of objects on it that Edric had no way to identify. They could be anything from ancient relics of unfathomable power to random knick knacks the emperor collected. Either way it didn't matter much to him. The only one that he was interested in was a small key with an orb of blue liquid built into it. After confirming that it was the source of magic his glyph compass was detecting he picked it up and let out a deep sigh of relief.
He'd done it. He'd actually completed his job without screwing anything up. He was finally useful!
Edric pulled out the second glyph Lilith had given him. It was even more complicated than the compass one and Edric didn't really understand it at all. It mostly consisted of light glyphs in some complicated pattern which he assumed had something to do with traveling at light speed. He'd been shocked when Lilith declared a week ago that she'd finally cracked teleportation and this was the first time he'd get to see it in action. It wasn't without limitations of course. Apparently it could only teleport someone to another specially prepared glyph that Lilith had made near the portal door she'd built. This was why they hadn't used it to get inside the castle in the first place. Lilith also said it would also cause a very large burst of magic energy that could be felt by any witch (or magical human monster thing) within around a hundred miles. This was why they'd never actually tested it out of fear that Belos would find them. Edric wasn't worried though. He had total faith in Lilith's creations. Plus the burst of magic was actually useful in this situation since it meant that once he used his teleportation glyph the others would feel it and know to use theirs to escape as well.
Without further hesitation Edric closed his eyes and activated the glyph. When he opened them he found that he hadn't moved at all. He was still in front of the emperor's portal. Panic set in at the thought that the glyph might be a dud, but it quickly turned to confusion as he saw Lilith and Darius appear in front of him. Was the glyph actually designed to bring them here? Belos' portal was in this room so it worked out but he couldn't understand why Lilith would hide that. It was at this moment that Lilith began to speak and Edric's panic turned confusion settled into horror.
"Hello Edric. If you're hearing this it means you've succeeded. You've found the Titan's blood and are hopefully in the same room as Belos' portal door. Darius and I are very proud of you but I'm afraid I wasn't quite as successful. The truth is, despite my best efforts, I am nowhere close to creating a teleportation glyph capable of what we need. I've seen one before. I know it's possible. But there's no way I'll be able to create a glyph advanced enough to transport someone vast distances in the time we have left. What I did manage to create is a glyph that allows us to record a message for you and play it in the form of an illusion spell."
"Illusions..." Edric said blankly, staring at the images of his mentors. His eyes filled with dreadful comprehension. He could already tell what was coming next but he hoped he was wrong. Darius spoke next, shattering that hope.
"When Lilith told me that the teleportation glyph wasn't feasible we both decided to go through with the plan anyway. I was the one who insisted on not telling you. I'm sorry but we couldn't be sure you'd go along with it if you knew the truth. There's no way for all three of us to escape from the isles, but it is possible for you to escape alone..."
"No"
"I hope you can forgive us for this Edric." Lilith continued. "I know it hurts. I know you don't want to leave us behind. I know that you'd rather we fought and died together in one final clash with Belos. But I'm begging you to do this for us. To go through that portal to the human realm and never look back. I spent years as the emperor's loyal attack dog. I made so many lives worse. I just want to save one person. And I know that's selfish on some level but it's how I feel."
"And I refuse to let another child soldier die trying to prove themselves to me. I agreed to train you because it would increase your chances of survival, but this isn't the kind of fight I want you taking part in. I know it will be hard. Adapting to a new world totally on your own. But I know you'll be able to handle it. If it's any consolation, Lilith and I will both be using the monstrification potion you invented in our fight with Belos. We still won't win but we'll make sure to give him plenty of trouble. And you'll land the final blow. The realization that not only is there another witch alive but that they and the human realm are forever out of his reach."
"There's a hundred more things we want to say to you Edric," Lilith said sadly. "But we're reaching the limits of how much this Glyph can record. What we really want you to know is that whatever happens we're proud of you."
"Goodbye Edric"
The illusion disappeared and Edric was once again alone in the Emperor's bleak inner sanctum. Without a word he raised an arm and smashed his fist through the table in front of him. Dozens of potentially powerful or cursed items fell to the floor and Edric didn't pay them any mind. He just glared at his bleeding fist, angry that the pain wasn't nearly enough to distract him from his despair.
'Do they really expect me to just escape on my own,' Edric thought to himself. 'But what else can I do? I could try to join their fight with Belos but I'd only hold them back. That's assuming they're even still alive when I get there. I'd just be wasting their sacrifice.' He abandoned that thought and glanced at the key in his undamaged hand. 'One thing's for sure. I have to either use this Titan's Blood or destroy it. There's no way I'm letting Belos ruin another world. But what should I do?'
"Give it to me!" a childish voice demanded, drawing Edric out of his thoughts.
"Who said that?" Edric exclaimed. He frantically searched the room but couldn't find the source of the voice, until he saw a shadow moving in the corner of his eye. He turned around and was shocked to see... well it was hard to describe exactly what he was seeing. It seemed to be some kind of weird shadow kid.
"Who are you?" Edric asked cautiously "And where did you come from?"
"I'm the Collector," The shadow child answered. "I've been here the whole time. I just couldn't speak because that jerk Belos covered up my mirror." The shadow pointed to a round mirror on the floor with a picture of the moon on it. There was a sheet next to it that must've been covering it before Edric broke the table and sent it clattering to the floor.
"The Collector? Lilith mentioned that the Emperor was working with a being with that title. We never really got any details though. Kind of assumed Belos killed you like everyone else who outlived their usefulness to him."
"He couldn't kill me," the Collector replied glumly. "He tried but he couldn't figure out how to do it."
"Oh..." Edric said, not really sure how to respond to that. The statement was less offputting than the sadness with which it was delivered.
"Please give me the Titan's Blood. I'll do anything you want for it."
"Why? What do you want it for?" Edric asked suspiciously. He needed to be careful. Lilith hadn't known much about the Collector. She only really had some second hand information about one of Belos' memories that involved him.
"I just want to be free." The Collector pleaded. "Please. I've been trapped for hundreds of years. I'd do anything to get out. Belos said that's the last Titan's Blood in this whole world. Once it's gone I'll never be free. I'll be trapped here alone forever and ever. Nobody to play with. No one to even talk to. Please. You can have anything."
Edric winced at the pain in that childish voice. He couldn't see the tears but he was pretty sure the shadow was crying right now. The Collector was supposed to be some kind of malicious eldritch god, but he sounded more like a desperate child begging for mercy. But before Edric made any decisions he had another question that he was pretty sure he wouldn't like the answer to.
"So you need the Titan's Blood to free you? Why would Belos leave you right next to it then?"
"He said it was funny." the Collector said bitterly. "Told me it was our last game together. If I could get the blood before he left to the human realm then I'd win my freedom."
"But you don't have any way to move do you?" Edric asked, his voice growing angry. "He was just taunting you. Keeping the possibility of freedom close so your imprisonment would hurt even more."
As if reminded of said possibility, the Collector immediately went back to pleading for his freedom, only to be shocked silent by a single word from Edric.
"Ok"
"What?"
"I'll free you."
"Really? You mean it? You're not just pranking me like Belos does, right?"
"I'm nothing like Belos! How do I do this? Is there a ritual? Or do I just spill the blood on your mirror?"
"Just the blood is fine. What do you want in exchange?" the Collector asked cautiously. still thinking this was too good to be true.
But Edric didn't respond. He simply moved. As the Collector stared in shock, Edric broke the key with his bare hand and pressed it against the mirror. They both watched as every drop of blue blood was absorbed into the mirror. Then there was a moment of stillness before the mirror broke in half. Shadows swirled around the broken mirror, slowly shifting into a thick smoke. When the smoke dissipated Edric saw a small boy staring at him. The boy had white hair. a purple spot on his face, and was wearing what looked like space themed pajamas. Honestly he looked more adorable than threatening.
"Are you doing Ok kid?" Edric asked.
"Why did you free me?"
"What?"
"You want something don't you?"
"I guess. Are you able to bring Darius and Lilith here?"
The Collector paused for a moment before answering. "I'm sorry. Your companions are already gone."
"I figured," Edric said sadly. "Probably for the best. At least this way they got to die thinking they helped me escape."
"Do you want me to kill Belos?" the Collector asked. "Is that why you freed me?"
"No. I freed you because you didn't deserve an eternity of solitude. Only Belos does. That's also why I don't want him dead. On the contrary I hope he lives as long as possible alone on this desolate rock."
"You know I helped him don't you?" the Collector asked. "You sounded like you knew who I was. I gave him the draining spell. I taught him how to make sigils and how to remove the vitality from the Titan's corpse itself. I'm responsible for the end of your world too! So why save me?"
"I knew lots of people that helped the emperor. Some of them were good and some were bad. Only one other than you could make the excuse that they were a child whose life Belos had almost total control over."
"The Grimwalker?"
"I don't know what that is? The point I was making is that everything Belos did was on him. It doesn't matter to me if you helped him. As far as I'm concerned you're just another kid he manipulated into doing his bidding."
Once again the Collector seemed shocked by his response. "I'm not a kid. I'm older than you are! I'm almost half a millenium"
"I don't think mirror time counts. Also adults don't count their age in half anythings. I don't know how Celestials, or whatever your species is called, ages but I can tell the difference between a kid and an adult. Speaking of, you have a way out of here right. The legends Lilith found said you came from the stars and were able to return there whenever you wanted."
"I don't have a species. There's only one of me I think. I can't open portals like the Titans but I know how to traverse space" the Collector replied. "I can leave this planet whenever I want now that I'm free. You could come with me if you wanna. Since you can't use the portal without Titan's Blood..."
"Appreciated," Edric said with a sigh. "But the truth is I never really wanted to run anyway. This is my world and, lost cause or not, I want to go out fighting for it. I only considered running because I didn't want to waste the sacrifice my friends made. But now I've used that sacrifice to save you. I'm not sure if they'd approve, but I'd like to think they'd understand. You should get out of here though kid. Even if you are strong enough to face Belos, that guy can do a lot of damage with words alone."
"Stop calling me kid!" the Collector exclaimed. He was still having trouble processing the fact that the person who finally freed him didn't want anything in return. Not even a ride off the planet the Collector himself had helped doom. He wanted an explanation but instead he got another curveball.
"Well what's your name then?"
"I'm the Collector"
"Is that your name? Sorry I thought it was like a title or something. I guess it's not that weird. I used to know a guy named King after all."
"I met him," the Collector interjected. "He almost freed me but Belos killed him first. Completely destroyed his body too."
Edric winced at that. He'd only met the little guy a couple of times but it felt like they really connected. And if the Collector had seen King's death then he might have seen Amity's as well. That was a distressing thought. Edric already knew his friends and family were all gone but he didn't really want any more details, so he was relieved when the kid changed the subject.
"Collector isn't really a name," the boy said. "People used to call me a lot of things back then. Most of them were mean or sounded dumb. Collector seemed like the nicest. I don't really have a real name. Those are for boring people."
"Well my name is Edric Blight and I'd like to think I'm pretty interesting." Edric tried to give the boy a cocky grin but he wasn't sure it got across. The boy seemed to be staring into space.
"You really don't want anything from me do you?" he asked softly. "It doesn't make any sense. Everyone I've ever met has either been afraid of me or wanted to use me. What makes you different?"
"I don't know what to tell you kid..." Edric answered slowly. "There's always going to be jerks like Belos, but there's good people out there too. Most are somewhere in between. I guess power like yours can really bring out the greed or fear in most people though. That's not really your fault."
"There has to be something you want. It doesn't feel right just leaving you like this..."
"What, are you some kind of genie kid? I freed you so you won't leave until you've granted a wish for me. If it means that much to you I'll think of something..."
"Not a genie or a kid," the Collector responded. He didn't understand why Edric still refused to simply call him by his title.
"Collin"
"What?"
"Your name is Collin," Edric clarified before hesitating for a moment. "Collin Blight"
"Are you saying your wish is to name me?"
"Not exactly," Edric answered before repeating himself. "Your name is Collin Blight. You can change it later if you want. I won't be offended. But for right now your name is Collin Blight"
"You keep saying that..."
"I'm not sure how smart you are, kid. Gotta make sure you remember it. Mom would never let me live it down if I gave the Blight name to someone who couldn't even remember it."
Collin... The Collector glared at Edric in response. He was certain the teen was mocking him. What kind of wish was that?
"Don't give me that look. The name thing wasn't my wish. It's just something I felt like doing. This way I can stop calling you kid. And if you don't like the name you can change it like I said."
The Collector hesitated for a moment. He didn't really have anything against the name. It was better than being called a kid at least...
"Fine" Collin sighed. "But for the record, Blight isn't any nicer than most of the names I used to be called..."
"Well I make it look good. If you can't do the same that's a you problem."
"Whatever... So what's your real wish then?"
"I want you to live a good life"
"What? How is that a wish? What does that even mean?"
"It means a lot of things. Be happy when you can. Be sad when you have to. Find people to care about who care about you in return. Make mistakes. Learn lessons. Don't hesitate to mourn what you've lost but never let yourself feel guilty about moving on. The list goes on..."
"I don't understand..."
"How about we start with making actual friends. You said you never met anyone who didn't either fear you or want something from you, right?"
"I guess..."
"Even those cultists of yours?"
"The Trappers? They played with me, but they only wanted to play games that involved me catching or fighting things for them. Whenever I wanted to play a new game they were never interested. Sometimes I think they just used me to do their chores..."
"Well I want you to change that."
"I mean I know a few mind control spells but I'm pretty sure the trappers are already gone"
"Not them specifically. And no mind control. I just want you to try to make real friends in the next world you visit."
"How the heck am I supposed to do that?"
"I don't know Collin. I didn't really have a lot of friends growing up either. But I think if you keep trying you'll figure it out. You seem to be borderline immortal so you've got time. At the very least I don't want you to convince yourself that it's impossible or that you should settle for befriending those who don't actually care about you. Oh and maybe avoid being friends with people who try to get you to help them hurt others. This is a bit hypocritical coming from a former prankster but, ideally, games should be fun for everyone."
"And if I manage to find people who do care about me. People who don't want to use or run from me. What do I do then?"
"You protect them," Edric replied somberly. "Unlike me you're probably strong enough to do that..."
Collin wasn't really used to empathy but he found himself wincing at the sadness in that statement. "Belos is almost here. Are you sure you don't wanna come with me?" Collin asked. "If you're worried about getting bored in space I know lots of games we could play together."
"Sorry. I used to love games, but I think that part of me is gone now. Guess I lost one too many times."
Collin was surprised how much that disappointed him.
"Alright, if you're sure..."
With that Collin began walking towards a large window. He marveled at the feeling of sunlight touching his skin for the first time in centuries. He smiled as he took in the beauty of the sky. Then he winced at the sight of the desolate landscape below it. Regardless of Edric's reassurances, he knew this was his fault as much as Belos'. It used to feel so justified. A story of revenge against the Titans and the unity they fought so hard to protect. Now it just felt hollow and pointless. Suddenly Collin stopped walking.
"Hey Edric," Collin called back without turning around.
"Yeah?" Edric replied. He hadn't really expected more conversation once Collin started walking away.
"Would you still have freed me if you had something to lose? If the people you cared about were still around would you still have risked releasing me?"
Edric paused for a second before responding even though the answer was obvious. "Of course I would. Maybe I wouldn't be as blasé about it as I was. I'd probably try to lay down some ground rules before releasing you. But I'd still do it."
"Why?" Collin challenged, turning back to face him now. "Why would you risk everyone you love for a stranger? You don't have any reason to trust me. You know I helped Belos. You have every reason to think of me as an enemy. We aren't even the same species!"
Collin flinched as Edric's expression hardened suddenly. "It really would be so easy to justify wouldn't it?" He asked quietly. "Letting you suffer I mean. Who cares if you look like a child? Who cares if you were literally living out my own personal worst nightmare? You have powers I don't understand. Powers that could hurt me and the people I love. We're not the same species so why should I even see you as a person? The stories I've heard make you out to be a monster so why shouldn't I assume that you are one. And monster's don't deserve empathy right? Monsters deserve to have their entire world stripped of life!"
Edric paused for a moment and took a deep breath to compose himself. Some of the rage faded from his expression. "It's so easy to justify your actions when you can embrace that kind of self righteous, asinine, bullshit. I can't do that though. I refuse to do that!" He turned to look Collin in the eye. "For me it wasn't really a question of whether I should help you, it's whether I'd be able to live with myself if I didn't."
An awkward silence lingered between the two until Collin broke it. "I've been to a lot of planets, you know? Most of them got old quick. I rarely stayed on one for more than a month. The Boiling Isles was different though. It was full of weirdos. People and creatures who could do magic like me. Well not exactly like me but... you get the idea. This place used to be so full of life. And I'm the reason that life is gone." Collin paused for a moment before his expression shifted from regret to resolve. "I don't want to let go of my perfect playground so easily. I want to play here more. A new game. A different kind of game. The kind where everyone has fun. And I want to play with you and those friends you miss so much. If they're half as weird as you they have to be pretty interesting."
"Interesting's a good word. I wish you could play with them too, Collin. But I don't think even you have the power to make that wish come true..."
"Not alone... But if I had some help..."
Before Edric could respond to that Collin began to speak again. But this time Edric could tell the words weren't directed at him.
"I walk the edge
Of day and night
Was made a wedge
To stay the fright
But made no pledge
To play the light
Across this ledge
Of fey and blight
But Blight's what freed me
From the dish
And for this deed he
Earned a wish
I curse the border
Like the lock
Reverse the order
Strike the clock
Invoke the fish
That's most bizarre
And make this wish
ON EVERY STAR!"
While rhyming incantations weren't exactly common in modern magic, they weren't unheard of either. But Edric had never heard of an incantation being this long. From the very first word he could feel a sort of otherworldly power in the chant. A growing pressure that made it hard for him to even breathe by the end of it. And that was just the start. That pressure was nothing compared to the more tangible effects that happened next.
"A"
It was subtle at first. The air seemed to buzz with energy.
"X"
The earth began to shake. Edric was worried the building might collapse
"O"
Things ramped up suddenly as violent winds ripped the walls apart. Edric was surprised he wasn't blown away as well. It seemed like he and Collin were at the center of a developing tornado
"L"
Bolts of lightning crashed down around them like they were drops of boiling rain. Edric heard an inhuman scream and absently wondered if Belos just died.
"O"
The sky changed. The stars, sun, and moon moved in random unpredictable patterns.
"T"
Everything went still and blissfully quiet for a moment. Edric breathed a sigh of relief thinking the chaos was over before he noticed the thin white cracks appearing on everything he could see. They even seemed to form in the air itself.
"L"
Everything but Edric and Collin seemed to shatter away, revealing nothing but an empty white void. It was if reality itself had been revealed to be an illusion and Collin had just dispelled it. Edric wanted to say something, anything, but he didn't have the words... Not until Collin spoke first.
"Oh good. I was worried he wouldn't help because I called him a fish..."
"what?"
"Don't look at me like that. I had to. Do you know how many words rhyme with wish. Not enough!"
"What?"
"And really what is an amphibian if not a bizarre fish right?"
"WHAT?"
"You know you really don't have to yell," Collin responded rubbing his ears. "In a space like this you could whisper to me from miles away and I'd still hear it just fine."
"WHA..."
"Stop saying what!" Collin said, putting a hand over Edric's mouth. "We don't have time for you to freak out about this. All you need to know is that I made a deal with an extradimensional salamander to turn our universe hypothetical..."
Edric pulled himself away from Collin's hand. "That explains nothing about what just happened!"
"Yeah well we don't have time for me to explain basic metaphysics to you either. I made a deal to give you a do-over. You get to go back and fix things."
"Are you talking about time travel? This is a lot to take in..."
But before Edric could truly process what had happened he began to notice familiar cracks forming on Collin's arm. He watched in horror as they so slowly spread through the boy's body.
"Collin, what's happening to you?"
"I'd say that's pretty obvious. The Axolotl would never let something as powerful as me go back like this. I'm becoming a hypothetical just like everything else. It's not dying really. More like reverting to my previous state. You're the only one who will remember what happened."
"Does it hurt?" Edric asked, still looking at the cracks.
"You really are a weirdo, you know that? There are more important things you should be asking about right now than how I'm feeling! But to answer your question it's completely painless. The only thing that hurts is the thought of being back in that mirror again..."
"Then why do this? You just got free. Why risk being trapped again?"
"Does that not make sense to you? Now you know how I've felt this entire conversation!"
Seeing that the cracks had almost completely covered Collin, Edric decided to drop the subject. "I promise I'll free you again" he swore.
"I don't have much faith in promises anymore. Belos made promises like that everyday. Even after the Day of Unity when we both knew they were lies. But you're nothing like Belos, so I guess I'll trust you on this one."
With that, two things happened in very quick succession. Collin finally shattered into nothing. And Edric woke up...
AN: And with that the prologue is finished. I was a little iffy on making that Gravity Falls reference but I think most fans of Owl House will get it. And if not it doesn't really matter. The Axolotl shouldn't come up again in the story.
I do want to make it clear that while I've portrayed the Collector as sympathetic that doesn't necessarily mean he isn't dangerous in this story. Part of the reason the Collector acted the way he did in this, is because after the Day of Unity Belos used tormenting him as a form of entertainment whenever there were no witches to hunt. Edric's desire to free the Collector could easily result in disaster depending on the situation, but it's also not something he's willing to compromise on easily. It's also not an issue that will likely come up for a while anyway.
Side note. I gave this story a cover image. I don't think anything sums up Edric's personality better than this image of him about to lick a snowball because he saw the Owl Lady do it...