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Chapter 118: See the Blight
It was Tuesday. As the Lumity wedding reception came to a close, Emira and Viney returned to the party from the woods after their makeout session.
"Come on, we should hurry before anyone notices," Emira said.
"I'm pretty sure some have noticed we've been gone," Viney pointed out while adjusting her dress. "We might have missed the bouquet being thrown."
Emira smiled and nudged Viney. "Oh? Do you wish you were there to catch it? I bet you can't wait to marry me for the honeymoon…"
Viney blushed, which gave Emira a chuckle. As they snuck back, they saw everyone talking amongst themselves. But someone did notice their return…
"Emira?"
She paused, hearing the voice of her mother. She shut her eyes while Viney turned around to see Odalia approaching them. "Oh, Ms… um, Grunhar now?"
"Just call me Odalia, hon," Odalia said to Viney. "You must be Viney. It's nice to finally meet you. Formally, I mean."
"Oh, um… nice to meet you too, Odalia," Viney replied politely, raising her hand. "Viney Potts, I'm in the Healing and Beast-Keeping Track."
"Really? That's an interesting combination," Odalia replied before she turned to Emira "Hello Emira…"
Emira knew that she had to force herself to be polite to her. Last thing she wanted was to ruin her sister's night by causing a scene. She turned around. "Hello… Odalia," she said, acknowledging her mother's presence.
"Um… how have you been doing, lately?" Odalia asked her.
"I'm doing fine," Emira plainly responded. "Me and Ed have been doing good at Uncle Geist's."
"Oh, that's great," Odalia said. "I'm glad that he's been taking care of you both. And I'm glad that you have Viney, who I hope has been making you happy." She could easily tell that her daughter had no interest in speaking with her, not that she could blame her.
Emira didn't look her mother in the eye, but she did respond to her. "So… how have you been lately? What have you've been up to after the trial…?"
"Well, after leaving the courthouse, I knew I couldn't return to the mansion and I wanted some privacy, so I returned to my old childhood home," Odalia explained. "Old cottage outside of Bonesborough, lived there until I married your father. But then the house blew up in a fiery explosion. Thank Titan someone saved me from that."
"Fiery explosion?" Viney questioned. "You wouldn't happen to have seen any fire bees that day?"
"Well, I did notice some kind of insect," Odalia confirmed. "I assumed the house was infested with them."
"Or it might be an arsonist," Viney revealed. "Last Splatterday, there was this serial arsonist on the loose who calls him Firebees. Thankfully he was caught and arrested by the Emperor's Coven."
"Arson?" Odalia said in shock. "They never mentioned that in the news..."
"Probably because of the biggest news story of the day… the Brawl," Emira pointed out.
"Oh… of course," Odalia said.
"So what have you been up to since then?" Viney asked.
"Well, after the lockdown was over, I visited Lilith to see if she was alright after the trial," Odalia explained. "And when they heard about my living situation, she and her parents offered to let me stay with them for the time being."
Emira looked at Odalia in confusion. "Wait, you lost the place you were staying, and after the lockdown is when you went to Lilith's? And… who saved you from the fire?"
"Well… an old classmate," Odalia mentioned.
"So, they were just… around your place?" Emira asked.
"Yeah, they were looking for me and managed to track down my location just as the fire happened," Odalia explained, trying not to reveal too much. "They let me stay with them during the lockdown, though I didn't want to intrude on them much."
"Oh… who were they?" Emira asked.
"Oh you wouldn't know them much, just some old pals from… my old track," Odalia said, though this only made Emira more suspicious. Odalia looked at Emira, a guilty expression showing to the older former-Blight woman. "Emira… I know that this is hard for you being around me. But I don't blame you, and… I just want to say that I'm so-"
"I'm going to see Amity," Emira said, turning and walking over to Amity and Luz, who were talking with Dell and Gwen.
Odalia wanted to reach out to her, but she knew she would only make things worse for her. Viney gave Odalia an awkward look. "It's nice meeting you, Odalia. I um, sorry about Emira."
Odalia sighed. "There's nothing to apologize for, Viney," she said. "It's just how things are between me and her now."
"It… can't be that bad… is it?" Viney asked her.
"I… wasn't a good mother to her," Odalia admitted. "I know that Emira hates me."
"Oh come on, Em doesn't hate you," Viney tried to say.
"I know she does… and that she wanted me dead," Odalia pointed out, which surprised Viney.
"How… how do you know that?" Viney asked her with her eyes widened in surprise. She was the only person Emira shared this with.
"Trust me, I know," Odalia said as she turned to walk away, though she briefly stopped. "It was nice meeting you, Viney. I know that Emira's in good hands."
As Odalia walked away, Viney was left speechless before she went to catch up with Emira.
The next day, at Geist's bar, Emira and Edric prepare the tables and menus as they're having some guests over. Helping them out were Viney, Jerbo, Barcus, Sioux, Korn, and the Ceberus Sisters.
"Again, thanks for helping us out with this, guys," Edric said.
"Hey, it's no problem," Viney responded. "Just glad that my cousin's bringing her friends over."
"Yeah, you guys are gonna love Donna and her friends," Emira promised. "They're pretty cool even if they're from St. Epiderm."
"Eh, I am kinda over petty school rivalries," Jerbo admitted.
'Yesterday's enemies are today's friends,' Barcus barked.
"Yeah, and it'll be cool to see Sioux's girlfriend again," Korn said.
"And I told you before, me and Nica haven't gotten to that point," Sioux told him.
"Right, but you two are starting to call each other by nicknames," Blondie pointed out.
"By the way, where's the rest of the gang? Like Eve and Linkin?" Jerbo asked them.
"Oh, Eve is getting ready for a séance with Gus tomorrow, and Linkin's at a trapping seminar," Korn answered. "My sisters and I are here for the fire-alarm griffin wings special."
"We're trying out the new spices this place got here," Cyndi brought up.
"Yeah! We're gonna set our mouths on fire!" Patty declared.
As Edric was setting up plates, he briefly looked concerned. Emira noticed this and went over to him. "You alright, Ed?"
"Yeah, just… nervous," Edric responded while looking down at the table. "I know that they are your friends, but what if they don't like me or if I say something wrong… I don't know if I'll ever find my own witches."
"Look Ed, the whole point of this is for you to meet some other witches, you don't know what will happen unless you give it a chance," Emira reassured him. "Besides, we're naturally charismatic. So just be yourself."
"Yeah… yeah, you're right," Edric replied. "I should be myself tonight." He took off his concealment stone, which after a magical poof, revealed his true self; black glasses, and a bit of fuzz on his upper lip, not to mention a black headband over his hair. "I won't be needing this today."
"Are… are you sure you don't?" Emira asked in concern.
"Sis, I don't think you'll have to worry for me," Edric said, more confident now. "Like you said, I'm naturally charismatic!"
"Yeah, great…" Emira said as Edric walked away to set up another table. She turned around, taking a deep breath as she muttered to herself. "Oh Titan, I messed up, I really messed up…"
"Hey, are you alright, Em?" Viney asked, walking up to her.
"I thought giving Ed a pep talk would lift his spirit… but I think it works too well," Emira responded, looking nervous. "Ed took his concealment stone off…"
"That doesn't seem too bad," Viney replied. "I mean, I've seen him without his concealment stone plenty of times before."
"Me and Ed used to keep our concealment stones almost all of the time," Emira admitted. "Mostly because we couldn't be bothered to keep up appearances. Amity doesn't have to wear one because she keeps her looks up. After we moved in with our uncle we started to wear our concealment stones less, but sometimes we still wear them as a crutch. Now I'm nervous if they'll find him weird or-"
"Hey, Em, relax." Viney held Emira to calm down. "I've seen you without your concealment stone before, but I still like you, don't I?" She saw Emira giving her a nod as Viney continued. "You don't have to worry about your brother. He's going to be okay."
Emira smiled, feeling a bit better from Viney's encouraging words, "Thanks, Vines… I hope they'll like him."
"Great, cause they're here now," Viney said as she pointed to the door as they heard the bell ding from the door opening.
"Hey Emira, we're here!" Donna declared. With her were Veronica, Beocrow, Tina, Tyrone, Riley, Sarah, Lindsay, Minerva, and Kyle.
"Oh, hey you guys!" Emira greeted them.
""Hey Tina, how are your folks doing?" Viney asked as she went over to hug her cousin.
"Good," Tina replied, "How are Aunt Betty and Atkin?"
"Also good," Viney confirmed. "My mom gave me an earful about the whole Firebees thing, but she was also just glad that I came home safe."
"Hey, Siouxy," Veronica said as she went over to Sioux. "How's the gang doing?"
"Oh doing fine, Korn and his sisters are here for the special wings order," Sioux said, pointing to Geist as he handed the tray of wings to the four.
"Here you go, fresh from the pot," Geist said. "Now if any of you would like to sign some-" But before he could offer them the waivers, Korn and the Ceberus Sisters started wolfing down the wings. All forty of them. "I'm just… um… going back to the register," he said while walking away. "Kids these days with their metabolism…"
Veronica looked disturbed by this, as did Tyrone. "Must be good wings," he said.
"Yeah… those four really love food a lot," Sioux said in deadpan.
Riley, who was wearing a blue button shirt with gray pants and gray boots, still had their gloves on as they stood there looking around.
"Are you alright, Riley?" Minerva asked while wearing a black best with a white button shirt, black mid-length shorts and short black boots.
"Yeah, just… have a lot on my mind," they admitted.
"Is this about what Nina told you the other day?" Sarah asked them. She was wearing a white long sleeve dress with yellow trims, white leggings, and yellow knee-length boots. "How are you holding up?"
"I'm… still processing it," Riley admitted. For years they had blamed themselves for what happened to their Palisman, but then Nina revealed to them that Emily was the one responsible for breaking their hands and Palisman. "Thanks for getting me out here to this place."
"Hey, you're going through a difficult time, Riley," Kyle said while wearing a blue and white hoodie with gray pants and red sneakers "It's the least we can do."
"Yeah, so why don't we mingle around. Get to know some of the Hexsidians here," Sarah recommended.
Riley gave a nod. "Thanks, guys," they said as Edric walked over to the group.
"Hi, name's Edric Blight," Edric introduced himself. On his shoulder was Batric. "And this here's my beastly pal, Batric." Batric waved his wing at them in greeting.
"Nice bat," Beocrow commented.
"Thanks, and other than Beast-Keeping, I've been taking Potions and Illusions as well," Edric explained, which caught both Riley and Sarah's interest.
"Illusions?" Riley asked, looking very interested. "What kind?"
"And what kind of courses do you take in potions?" Sarah asked, sharing the look as well.
"All kinds, really, though I am especially good at duplication spells. For potions I tend to make elixirs and tonics, though my uncle wants me to practice drink mixing. I am even trying to apply my magic to my fireworks. I also once made an elixir that amplifies beasts. Of course, it could use some testing…"
"I could share you some notes on that," Sarah offered.
"And if you're looking for neat illusions for your fireworks, I can show you how to perform the kaleidoscope illusion spell," Riley offered, stepping up in front of Sarah.
"Really? That'd be awesome!" Edric replied. "Come on, I'll show you guys your tables," he told them while leading them the way.
Sarah glared at Riley. "Hey, I saw him first," she whispered to them.
"Sorry, Sari, but I need this more than you do," Riley replied.
Sarah's face softened and she nodded. "Fine, may the best witch win."
"What are you two doing?" Lindsay asked as she and Beocrow walked past them. She was wearing a green turtleneck sweater with denim shorts and green boots.
"Don't bother, Lindsay," Beocrow advised with a shrug. "You do not want to be caught in that."
It was then everyone started mingling with one another. The teens of Hexside and St. Epiderm chatted, ate, played arcade games, and much more.
Tyron was playing Spleen Ball. "Come on, Ty, you got this!" Donna cheered as Tyrone threw the spleen balls in the holes, getting the points.
"Ha! Thirty-thousand points!" Tyrone declared, hi-fiving Donna while Tina and Jerbo watched.
"Wow, you are in second place after Simon on this!" Jerbo pointed out.
"Simon?" Tyrone asked. "What's his score?" He looked at the scoreboard for Spleen Ball and saw that Simon's score was about 200,000,000 points. He narrowed his eyes. "Bet I can double that," Tyrone declared, taking this as a challenge.
Meanwhile, Lindsay was hanging out with Barcus and the Cerberus sisters.
"Hey, Lindsay, how's Jackie doing?" Blondie asked.
"Doing good, and thanks for helping her solve the case of the Apple Vampires," Lindsay thanked them.
"It's no problem, we are just glad we busted that Farmer Crowntooth who tried to scare you and her family for the land," Cyndi said.
"Ooh! Meet our boyfriend, Barcus!" Patty added, introducing Barcus to Lindsay.
'Hi there,' Barcus greeted.
"Hello to you too, Barcus," Lindsay replied, scratching his head. "I bet you're a good boy to these girls."
The other kids were playing games as well, like a big version of 'Connect Four' that was between Kyle and Viney. Minerva and Veronica were talking to Korn and Sioux while Edric was at the counter serving drinks to Donna, Beocrow, Sarah, and Riley.
"Here you guys go, soft brew of Lemonaze, Gorange, Dr. Scepter, and Booberry soda," Edric said while serving.
"Thanks, Edric," Riley said before they drank. "Mmm, delish!"
"I'm glad that you're doing well, Edric," Donna mentioned. "I hope you didn't get too hurt by that Mel girl."
"Don't worry, I'm fine," Edric promised. "I'm just glad that I didn't eat anything while I was down in the Underworld…"
"What's it like in the Underworld?" Beocrow asked. "Lindsay said she didn't see much but did tell us about her trip through Hell."
"Well… to best describe it," Edric started. "It's like an underground cave filled with a river of souls. It's got different kinds of demons there, like a different type of cyclops, minotaurs, then there's a large Cerberus dog that apparently Luz has tamed before. I also met Mel's parents and her older sister. Decent deities, but then there's that Hercules guy… dude looks truly godly."
"Wow, you met more gods than most people do in a lifetime," Sarah commented.
"Yeah, sounds like you were on quite the adventure," Riley added.
"Except for the part where I was held captive against my will," Edric pointed out. "But yeah, it was an adventure I'm never going to forget. Though, this all happened because I fell into a bad crowd…"
Donna gave Edric a look of sympathy, as she could relate to his situation. Especially with how Eustace and Serpentina were involved in his life.
"We're really sorry for what you've been put through, Edric," Riley said to him.
"Thanks, Riley," Edric replied. "Right now, I'm going to take a break from the dating game. I just want to find my own witches."
"Well, we're here to help, and if you're interested," Sarah said as she pulled out a card and placed it on the table. "The Atos Foundation could offer you a scholarship if you want to focus on potions more. My phone number is on the card."
Watching this, Veronica gasped in surprise. "Titan, it's happening."
"What?" Viney asked.
"Sarah never gives out the Atos Foundation card to anyone unless she's interested in them," Veronica whispered to Viney. "Seems like Emira's brother caught her eye."
"When's Riley going to make a move?" Minerva asked.
Edric looked at the card. "Wow, thanks! I think I'll keep it," Edric responded. "But enough about me. What about you guys? Beo, you go first."
"I'm pretty much aspiring to be a Death God," Beocrow explained.
"Wow, really?" Edric asked. "What inspired you?"
Beocrow just looked into the distance, having a moment of silence. "I just appreciate the beauty of life and death," he answered simply.
"Wow… that's pretty cool, actually," Edric responded. "Anything else?"
"I like to do taxidermy in my spare time," Beocrow mentioned. "Mostly by Donna's request when Nina used to-"
"Okay!" Donna shut his mouth, while slightly bushing. "No need to mention that, Bailey…" she said, gritting her teeth.
"Alright, alright," Beocrow responded, knowing better to argue when Donna uses his real name.
"So Donna, how have you've been?" Edric asked her. "Are you alright after getting kidnapped?"
"Oh, well I'm doing fine thanks to my friends," Donna reassured him. "They along with Nina and Skara saved me in Wonderland. Which… is a weird place."
"How weird?" Edric asked.
"It's hard to describe, but it looks like something from a dream… or a drug-induced nightmare. But it was literally both a place and a dream at the same time," Donna explained. "I'm… still weirded out by that trip."
"Well, the important thing is that both of you are safe," Riley said while looking down at their own drink.
Edric turned to Riley, noticing a sad expression on their face. "Hey, anything alright?"
"Oh, yeah I'm fine," Riley dismissed while looking up to Edric. "So… is it my turn to share a little about myself?"
"Well, yeah," Edric responded to them.
"So, I'm top of the Illusions Track, used to captain for Flyer Derby, and my parents are Healers in the Healing Coven," Riley listed off. "But I'm interested in learning more tricks for a trade. Other than illusions, I'd like to try out some other Tracks. My biggest goal is to learn how to make travel portals. I have also mastered levitation spells to make it look like I'm floating."
"Whoa, can I see?" Edric asked before Riley simply just floated up in the air. Then suddenly warped themselves in the air, surprising Edric. "Whoa!"
"Impressed?" Riley asked as they popped up next to Edric, which startled him.
"How'd you do that?!" Edric exclaimed.
"St. Epiderm trade secret," Riley said while phasing through the counter and getting back on their seat.
'If I were a Spoiling Sally, I would say he was in the chair this whole time,' Sarah thought, knowing that this was one of Riley's greatest illusion tricks. Sarah believed that Riley just made themselves invisible while keeping everyone focused on duplicates of themselves. That was her theory, at least.
Edric turned to Sarah. "So what about you, Sarah? Is it true that you're really Staggertarius's kid?"
Sarah smiled. "Well for one, yes, and second, I am top at Potions. My general hobbies include potion brewing, inventing, and learning about what lies beyond the Boiling Isles. I'm planning out my own expeditions that I hope to go on one day."
"Wow, that's interesting," Edric responded. "Is that what this Atos Foundation is all about?"
"Yup, along with learning and researching different kinds of magic. We do it for the good of witchanity," Sarah declared. "My dad was once friends with someone outside of this realm, and he wishes to learn more about the other realms and Titan islands. That way, we could get more resources for the many ideas we've come up with."
"Wow, though I did read that Professor Atos is a recluse these days, never shows up in public anymore," Edric said, which made Sarah wince. "Oh, sorry if that's too personal…"
"Oh no, it's fine," Sarah reassured him. "I know that my dad's a recluse, and it's much harder now that he can't even get out of the house. Because of that, he's become more occupied with his inventions…"
"Oh… sorry to hear that." Edric said, sympathetic. "I know how that feels… my dad's even been more reclusive ever since he became a Coven Head."
"I'm sorry about that, Ed," Sarah responded.
"Is it… ever just as hard for you?" Edric asked her.
"Well… not really," Sarah admitted. "I mean, sure, he never shows up for my cheerleading or my science fairs, but we do spend time together at home, where we find a lot of common ground." She stopped and looked up at Edric, fearing that she may have said something wrong. "I'm sorry if that makes you-"
"No, no it's fine," Edric reassured her. "I'm happy that you get to spend time with your dad. I'm just reminded that, well… my own dad can't even keep his own promises."
Everyone looked at Edric in concern. "Is this about…?" Donna asked.
"The trial? Kinda," Edric said while looking down. "The week of the Glandus War, he said things would be different. But I think that may have been the last time I even had a conversation with him. Now he's preoccupied by his parents and that Gibson guy, and he hasn't made any public appearances since the lockdown." He looked down. "I… I don't know what to think of it, one day he promised to be here for us, only to flake out on us and it can't just be because of coven duties. Skara's mom still makes time for her family. Then there's my mom, who has been trying to be better, in spite of everything that has happened. But there is some complicated distance between us right now and, well, I don't know what to make of it."
The four look concerned for Edric and it was Beocrow who spoke up. "I think I know what you're going through, Ed."
"You do?" Edric asks him.
"Me and my little brother, Felix, we're halfas," Beocrow explained. "We both don't know who our dads are, though I could care less about who my old man was." Edric looked surprised to hear this. "Felix is curious about his own dad, but I think he's better off. Both of us and our mom have been doing fine on our own."
"Oh… you don't… know who your dad is?" Edric asked.
"If he doesn't care about me, then I don't see a reason why I need him," Beocrow said with a shrug. "And you still have a father, but if you really aren't that important to him, then you don't need him."
Edric gave in some thought. "Well… to be honest, my sister's more furious with our parents than I am. Especially Odalia," he said as he looked down. "But… while I am mad at her too, I don't really share my sister's anger. Especially since I don't like being resentful. Not after what Mel did to me…"
"Well… maybe you could give her a chance then," Donna suggested.
"Yeah," Riley said, nodding in agreement. "At the very least, you should give yourself a chance to resolve any unfinished business you have with your mom and maybe even your dad."
"Honestly, I think you should appreciate the fact that you still have two parents," Sarah admitted. "I come from a one person household and believe me, sometimes I wish I had a mom."
"I… do need some time to think about this," Edric said, thinking of talking to Julia about this. "Thanks for listening and talking to me about it, guys."
"It's no prob, Edric," Riley said. "And hey, we enjoy your company."
"Yeah, same for you guys," Edric replied while serving his own drink. "You know, I'm glad to have this night with you guys. I don't need a date right now, just some good friends."
"Here, here!" Sarah and Riley declared, though they both narrowed their eyes at each other.
"Speaking of, if I were to decide on dating again, there are some ground rules," Edric said. "Always background check the person I'm dating. Because I do not want to deal with any more people with dark secrets or complicated backstories…."
Sarah frowned and lowered her glass. "Well… I hope you find someone like that."
"Thanks, Sarah," Edric responded before he heard Geist calling him.
"Hey Ed, you mind helping me pass some food over at Table 3?" Geist asked him.
"Coming!" Edric said as he turned to the others. "Be right back!"
After Ed left, Sarah turned to Riley. "Well Riley, looks like he's all yours," she said. "I forfeit."
"Huh, well now this is-" Riley paused. "Wait, do you have actually have a dark secret or complicated backstory-"
"It's my backstory to tell and I'm not ready to tell my backstory just yet," Sarah told them before getting up. "I'm going to play some of the games here."
After she left, Riley turned to Donna and Beocrow. "So…"
"When she's ready," Donna said while sipping her drink. Both Beo and Riley agree with her.
Sarah went over to the games, seeing Jerbo shooting at a CB game while holding a wand controller to shoot illusioned ghouls for points.
"Yo, need a player two?" she asked him.
"Sure, pick up a wand and help fight these ghouls," Jerbo said as Sarah picked one up and joined as a second player. "So, friend of Emira's?"
"Yeah, name's Sarah," she said as she began shooting at the ghouls. "Top Potionist."
"Jerbo, friend of Viney's," he responded as he focused on his shooting. "I am both in Abominations and Plant Tracks."
"Abominations and Plants?" Sarah asked as she kept her focus. "You have my attention. What's your process?"
"Well, I have to use the right amount of Abomination mix and plant material, plus fertilizer," Jerbo explained. "The exact recipe depends on the type. I made one out of mud, another out of mushrooms, a wooden Abomination…"
"Really?" Sarah asked, turning to Jerbo with an interested look. "Tell me more…"
After some more dining and games, everyone started to leave the bar.
"Thank you for coming, guys," Emira told the members of LOWTH.
"Anytime, Emira. We had a lot of fun today!" Tyrone told her.
"Yeah, it was nice to get to meet some of your school friends," Tina commented.
As Sarah and Jerbo left together, Sarah handed him a card. "Here, take this."
Jerbo looked at the card. "Whoa, the Atos Foundation?"
"Yeah, that talk about Plant Abominations, I would like to hear more," Sarah said while patting Jerbo's shoulder. "Maybe over coffee brew."
"Wow, yeah, I would like that, Sarah," Jerbo replied. "Glad there's someone that's just as interested in other applications for Abominations."
"Yeah, well, I'd like to hear more from you later," she said before she walked over to Veronica and Minerva, the two talking to her in private.
"You gave him your card?" Veronica asked, curious. "What happened to Ed?"
"Riley won by default," she responded.
Donna walked over to Edric. "Hey Ed, just want to know if you got a moment."
"Oh, sure Donna," Edric responded, though he sounded awkward. "Hey um, about last week… I just want to say that I'm sorry."
"For what?" Donna asked him.
"About Mel's gang," Edric said. "Emira mentioned how Eustace and Serpentina hurt you. I was conflicted, but then Brawl Night happened…"
"Ed, you have nothing to apologize for," Donna reassured him, patting his shoulder. "I know what it's like to fall into a bad crowd. I've had my fair share of mistakes in the past, especially with those two pirates."
"Yeah, they weren't cool," Edric said while looking down. "Especially how they abandoned you."
"Which I won't ever forget," Donna replied. "Those two… they're irredeemable. But my friends have my back, no matter what. And I think that the new friends you made today will have yours as well."
Edric smiled. "Thanks, Donna," he told her. "And… sorry about the prank me and Em did years ago."
"Bygones be bygones," Donna reassured him as Korn and the Cerberus Sisters showed up with their mouths aflame.
"Hey, do you have anything to help cool down our throats!?" Korn asked Donna as fire came from his mouth.
The next morning, Emira was getting ready for school while downstairs with Edric.
"Ah shoot," Emira said while looking through her book bag. "I think I left my notebook in my room."
"Want me to wait?" Edric asked.
"You go ahead, I'll catch up," Emira responded as she headed back to her room.
Once she found her notebook, she started to head back downstairs when she overheard her uncle's voice.
"Yeah, I can make it down there," Geist spoke, Emira pausing as she turned to him speaking through the crow. "Yeah, I got everything needed for our meet up. No, the kids don't suspect anything." Getting suspicious, Emira made herself invisible so she wouldn't be seen. "Yeah, see you there."
Geist hung up the crow as it flew away and he walked out to his room. 'Who was he calling?' Emira thought to herself before she went to meet up with her brother.
Edric was outside waiting for the bus when he saw Emira showing up. "Hey, you just missed Uncle Geist," he said.
"Yeah, well we're going to follow him today," Emira replied, drawing a spell circle to summon a duplicate of herself.
"We're skipping school again?" Edric asked as he drew the same spell for his own duplicate. "Wait, why are we following Uncle G?"
"I overheard him on the phone, and he mentioned meeting someone," Emira mentioned. "He also didn't want us to know about it. I don't know who he is meeting with, but the way he talked to this someone… I have this suspicious feeling."
"You think he could owe money to the mob?" Edric asked. "Or maybe, he's meeting a date."
"Well whatever it is, we're going to investigate," Emira said while turning to the clones. "Good luck if you two have detention!" she said while pulling Edric away.
"Okay!" Clone Emira waved to them before she turned to Clone Edric. "So when we get to school, want to commit chaos there?"
"Eh, it's not like we have anything better to do," Clone Edric shrugged.
And so, the twins disguised themselves as they followed their uncle from Bonesborough to Latissa.
"Why do you think he's here in Latissa of all places?" Edric asked, disguised as a bat demon with a construction hat.
"I don't know," Emira replied while disguised wearing a cloak, sunglasses, and a robe. "But we better find out."
The two sneakily trailed their uncle. They saw him stop in front of a stand, looking at the goods it was offering. He looked at the ties in particular… until he got bitten by a tie, causing the salesman to rush to get the anti-venom.
"Aw, crap!" Geist winced as he held his bitten hand. "Why do these ties always bite me?!"
Later the twins spotted him stopping by at a ratworm dealership.
"So this ratworm can go up to five hundred miles?" Geist asked the dealer.
"Sure, whatever you say," Tibbles replied with a shrug.
Ed and Em shared a look before they saw Geist walking away from Tibble's ratworm dealership. They continued to follow him.
In the marketplace, they spotted him with a woman at a stand selling wine.
"Hey Sheila, nice dress," Geist complimented.
"Why thank you, Geist." Sheila replied. She was wearing a short purple dress that hugged her figure. "So are you here to flirt, or buy some of my wine?"
Ed and Em saw this from a distance, watching the two laugh. "See, I knew that Uncle G had a girlfriend. There's nothing to worry about," Ed told Em.
"But… I thought-" Emira looked confused.
"Look Em, maybe you're just a little… too paranoid," Edric pointed out. "What Uncle Geist does in his own time is his own business. There is nothing wrong with that."
Emira looked down. "Yeah… I guess I was a bit too paranoid."
"Well, I'm going to head back to school," Edric said. "You coming?"
Emira thought about it before shaking her head, getting another idea. "Actually, I think I'm going to take the full day off…"
Emira, now donning her Ms. Chevious outfit, staked out the old Clawthorne home until she spotted Odalia leaving.
"I'm going to be out on an errand run," she said while wearing a cloak.
"Alright, I'll let Lilith know when she comes back," Dell responded.
"Don't worry, she knows," Odalia told him as she walked away from the home. Emira his behind a tree, watching as Odalia walked past her.
"Time to know what you're up to…" Emira whispered.
"Excuse me," Gwen said next to Emira, which startled the costumed teenager. "Can I… help you, dear?"
"Uh…" Emira didn't know what to say, so she snapped her fingers and disappeared, running away from Gwen.
"… If you plan to TP the house, you're doing it wrong!" Gwen told her before going back to her house. "Kids these days…"
Emira continued tailing her mother into town, keeping herself discreet up on the roof tops. She followed her to the office of private eye Hardy Boils.
"Hardy Boils…." Emira mentioned. "What could she be doing in there…?"
"So… Detective Boils is unavailable right now?" Odalia asked Tally.
"I'm afraid so, ma'am," Tally replied while twirling her paw-fingers with the yawn string. "Boils is occupied with a little case right now. Let's say, he's getting some info from some… unruly resources. But I'll be happy to give him a message."
"Well, I'm just dropping by about a case I've submitted," Odalia replied. "About Arthur and Destiny Blight, along with Alador's absences."
"Worrying about your ex?" Tally asked. "That's not our usual type of case…"
"Doesn't it bother you that those two keep making appearances speaking for him?" Odalia questioned.
"Well, I noticed that they're very obsessed with you," Tally pointed out. "But I have also heard that Blight Industries is in trouble because of a mishap during one of their private shows. There's even a video about it."
Pulling out her scroll, Tally showed Odalia a video about the incident at Blight Industries.
"Blight Industries has really suffered a humiliation today, as the old idiot coots, Arthur and Destiny Blight, are facing controversy after their unsafe, malfunctioning products caused chaos," spoke Felicia's voice in the video, showing the Abomatons malfunctioning and rampaging. "It makes you question if the Blights are repeating their past mistakes that caused their businesses to shut down due to how unsafe their products and working conditions were? How will the Emperor's Coven respond to this? Stay tuned for more in the series: 'Not Blinded by the Blight', sponsored by Food Gush Deliveries."
"Oh, I saw that when it came out," Odalia replied with a smile. "It's about time those two got what's coming."
"Yeah, especially after how they treated their son at the parade," Tally said while looking over the series of videos made by Felicia.
After Odalia left the office, she started to head somewhere else while Emira continued to secretly pursue her mother.
'Just what are you up to, Odalia?' Emira thought before she heard an alarm.
Turning around, Emira saw a store being robbed by an imp demon wearing an alligator-like costume with a sports jersey. He was holding a bag of money "You'll never take me, the Mascot Marauder, alive!" he declared while running away.
Emira looked at the costume villain, then turned back to Odalia walking away. She looked back and forth, but remembering she was a member of LOWTH, she sighed. "Hopefully I can catch up to her…"
The Mascot Marauder managed to escape from the scouts by taking a shortcut between buildings. When someone jumped in front of him, he stopped. "What the…?!"
"Surrender now, or face Ms. Chevious, LOWTH's lovely magician hero," Emira introduced herself while sparkling her magic around.
"I've heard of you LOWTH guys," the Mascot Marauder recalled. "But whatever, I'm not going to be taken down, when I have the power of sports mascots at my-!"
Emira just kicked him in the face, knocking him into the trash cans and out cold.
"Wow, that was easy," Emira said, before turning herself invisible just as the scouts showed up.
"Alright, time to wrap this guy up," the scout said as they arrested the Mascot Marauder. "What a weird costume…"
After sneaking off, Emira went to where she last saw Odalia. However, by then she was gone.
"Dammit!" Emira cursed, kicking the ground. "Now what?"
She was quiet for a moment before she had an idea: going back to the last place Odalia was at.
It was worth a try at least, right?
Emira, now in her Hexside uniform, entered the office of Boils. Tally noticed the green-haired Blight girl.
"Welcome to Hard-Boils Private Eye," Tally greeted her. "Do you have an appointment?"
"Actually… I came here because of Odalia Grunhar," Emira admitted. "I want to know what she was doing here for…"
"Oh, sorry, that's confidential, especially since she's a client here," Tally said.
"Dammit!" Emira cursed. "I was hoping to get some answers…"
"Well then you came to the right place, kid," Hardy Boils said as he entered his own office. When Emira noticed him, she gasped, seeing some blood on his clothes.
"Hardy, sir, you still have some… blood on you," Tally pointed out.
"Oh, don't worry, it isn't mine," Hardy said before he wiped the blood off. "Got a name, kid"
"E-Emira, sir," Emira said to him, noticing how gruff this guy looked. "Um… as for why I'm here… I was hoping for information."
"Information?" Hardy said after he finished wiping the blood off of himself. "What kind?"
"About a certain someone," Emira said while looking down. "Odalia Grunhar, I just… saw her here."
"Ah, I think I know you now," he said. "One of Odalia's daughters, right?"
Emira turned her head away. "I wouldn't call myself that."
He could tell that there was some bad blood going on. "I see, not a fan of yer mum? Well, I was not a fan of my old man back when I was your age. Drunken bastard, he was."
"Odalia was just here, sir," Tally pointed out. "She left before you came in."
"Ah, well looks like she came here to check on her case," Hardy said while walking into his office.
"What kind of case?" Emira asked him.
"Can't tell you about that," Hardy admitted. "But… if it's info about your mum you want, then I might have some if you're interested."
Emira nodded before following him in his office. She saw him digging through from his file cabinet. "Wait, so despite her being a client, you have a file on her?"
"I keep files on all of my clients… just in case," he said as he dug through the files before realizing the cabinet's label. "Oh, right. I updated her file after the trial," he said as he went to the G-J cabinet and found Odalia's file. "Bingo."
He placed the file on his desk, opening it up. "Right here is everything I have on Odalia Grunhar, formerly known as Odalia Blight. But first, tell me why you are so interested in her."
"Well… it's just that I don't trust her," Emira admitted. "The… woman who gave birth to me, wasn't exactly mother of the year. And after everything she did, to me and my siblings, now she's claimed to have changed and turned over a new leaf, and suddenly everyone starts trusting her! But not me, I do not trust that woman," she declared, forming her hands into fists. "Whatever she's up to, I'm going to find out and prove that she's still the same Odalia who hasn't changed."
Hardy looked at Emira, his face unreadable. "Well… that is something. Though what you do lack is evidence in that department."
"Then I'll find evidence," Emira told him while looking over the file "What do you have on her?" she asked, seeing some photos and documents.
"Well… your mum- I mean, Odalia, had humble beginnings," Boils explained as Emira saw a family photo of a younger version of Odalia with her brother and their parents. "She and her brother, Geist, lived in a small cottage in the woods outside of Bonesborough with their folks, Gretchen and Griffin. The family had some money problems, so Griffin and Gretchen came up with get-rich-quick schemes while making their children participate in them. Eventually, the Grunhar siblings managed to get enrolled into Hexside, with Odalia in the Oracle Track. During her time at Hexside she became associated with Alador Blight, Eda and Lilith Clawthorne, Darius Nightshade… but that doesn't pique your interest, does it?"
"No, it doesn't," Emira said while looking through the documents and photos. "Unless there's something more to it?"
"Well… after she graduated, she joined the Oracle Coven. She was doing pretty well for herself, but then she came into contact with Alador again, the two forming a partnership and starting up a new Blight Industries that drove Alador and Destiny out of business, forcing them out of retirement. Blight Industries flourished since then as it revolutionized Abomination technology, so on and so forth, yada, yada." He showed newspaper clippings about the rise of Blight Industries, plus photos of its employees, including Snope. "Eventually, Odalia and Alador got married…" He showed photos of Odalia and Alador's wedding.
"I know how the rest of the story goes," Emira said while a thought occurred to her as she looked at the family photo again and focused on her maternal grandparents. "What about her parents?"
"Aw yes, Griffin and Gretchen Grunhar," Hardy Boils said. "Those two have passed away shortly after Odalia and Geist graduated. Cause of death, food poisoning. It happens." He pointed to their obituary.
"After she graduated?" Emira asked. "Did they try to call the Healing Coven at the time…?"
"Afraid not, as they were dead by the time they were found," Hardy explained. "Their children were already legal adults by then."
Emira looked more closely at the photo. "Honestly, she's never really talked about her parents before… and neither has Uncle Geist," she said as her expression fell. "Though, I do get that it's a sensitive topic…"
"Well, if you ask me, there's always more to these kinds of stories," Boils suggested cryptically.
Emira looked up at the private eye. "Can I… borrow this file?"
"Sure, kid," he responded. "Just keep it safe."
Back at Geist's bar, in her room, Emira looked over the file she had on her mother. She couldn't help but stare at the photo of her mom when she was a kid. When she was her age. She saw how Odalia looked in her family photo, at her frown. The frown looked a tad familiar… resembling one of Amity's in their family portrait.
Emira shook her head. "No… she's nothing like Mittens," she said, gritting her teeth as she continued to look at the photo.
"Hey, Em!" Edric shouted as he popped up, startling Emira.
"Ed!" Emira shouted, turning to her brother. "Why are you here?!"
"I just got back from school," Edric explained. "Good news, we're not expelled! Though, bad news: your clone is in detention after trying to start an uprising."
"Wouldn't she have disappeared at that point?" Emira asked him.
"Oh, that does make more sense," he said while spotting the file on her bed. "What's with the file? Are we starting a mystery solving business? We could be like Dipper and his twin Mabel."
Em suppressed a laugh as she patted her brother's head. "Well, if you want to know, I'm doing an investigation. So yeah, mystery solving," she explained. "I was trailing Odalia, but when I lost her I went to one of the places she had been to… the office of Hardy Boils."
"Boils?" Edric asked.
"Yeah, some shady private eye who has been doing work for her and had a file on her," she explained. "It goes over her complete history. From her early life to the rise of Blight Industries…"
"Whoa… mom's childhood?" Edric asked as he up a chair, looking interested. "Does it say anything about what our grandparents were like?"
"Their names were Gretchen and Griffin Grunhar and they died of food poisoning by the time Odalia and Geist graduated. They… were financially unstable, working in the gutters while coming up with get-rich quick schemes," Emira explained.
"Huh… you'd think mom would've grown up in the aristocratic lifestyle, but the get-rich quick scheme makes sense," Edric said while looking over at the file. "Guess we're not complete silver blood."
Emira then thought back to the wedding. "You know, Odalia did mention that she moved back into her old childhood home after the trial, before it caught on fire."
"Her old childhood home?" Edric asked. "Are you thinking about going there?"
"Yeah," she nodded. "Maybe see what's left of it."
"We could ask Uncle Geist to take us," Edric suggested.
Emira thought about it, realizing she could use this opportunity to talk to her uncle about Odalia more, see what he knows. "Yeah, we should…"
Geist was setting up the tables when he was confronted by the twins. "Hey Em, Ed, what's up?"
"Uncle Geist, we want you to take us somewhere," Emira told him. "Somewhere we… want to see."
"Alright, where'd you like to go?" Geist asked.
Ed and Em looked and nodded to each other before Edric answered. "We want to go see your old childhood home."
Geist's eyes widened. "Uh… w-why go there? I mean, your mom said that it got burned down..."
"We know and, well, we want to see if there is anything left," Emira explained. "So could we please go?"
Geist hesitated. He was reluctant to go back, especially after all this time…
Later, after some convincing, Geist agreed to take the twins to the woods outside of Bonesborough, where his old childhood home was.
"It should be right… here," Geist said as Emira and Edric looked at the burnt cottage.
"Whoa…" Edric said, seeing the burned down cottage that was charred, without a roof and barely any walls or even a chimney is up in place.
"This must be Firebee's work," Emira said, looking around at the burnt cottage.
"Yeah, this place has seen better days," Geist said, looking around the old home with an expression of discomfort. He glanced at where his old shared bedroom was. "This is where we used to sleep." He turned to what had once been the kitchen. "And that'd be the kitchen where we used to eat."
"Are you alright, Uncle G?" Edric asked.
"I'm fine, just…" Geist sighed. "This place brings back memories… not good ones."
Ed and Em shared a look of concern before Emira spoke up. "This place… what were our grandparents like?"
"We know it's a sensitive topic, but… we feel like we deserve to know," Edric added.
Geist sighed and found a lone stump to sit on. He pressed his hands on his own knees. "Your mother and I… we didn't have a good childhood. Our parents… they were awful, just as awful as Alador's folks. Ironically, when Odie first started dating Lilith, dad was furious about her for not even dating Al, which she didn't even want to at the time."
"Seriously?" Edric asked. "Mom didn't want to date Dad?"
"At the time, she and Al were just friends, along with Darius… before their fallout," Geist explained. "Before we were admitted to Hexside, our parents used to have us help with their get rich quick schemes in order to try and get us out of our poor lifestyle. And Dad would try to get us to date any rich suitor so we could mooch off them, though Odalia more than me.'' He was saddened as he remembered all the times Odalia had to work for and deal with their parents… along with falling victim to their wrath. "They were abusive. Physically, even."
The twins looked shocked. "Really?" Emira asked him.
"Yeah, when your mom stood up to dad for Lilith, he struck her to the floor," Geist said, looking uneasy when he remembered the memory. "Dad used to hit us… your mom never hurt you physically, did she?"
Emira looked down, "She… didn't hit us," she admitted.
"Yeah, she never laid a hand on us," Edric responded. "Scold us, sure. But she never resorted to violence."
"Good," Geist said, relieved. "You know, I remember one time mom burned Odie's Grom dress after Lilith couldn't beat Grom… she did it while she was still wearing the dress too."
"That is messed up," Emira admitted.
"Yeah, well, one of the only comforts me and your mom would have are the old lounge music we listened to," Geist explained. "Only things we could afford were cheap, oldies. When we got admitted to Hexside, I thought of us joining the Bard track together but Odie wanted to be in Oracle, and I ended up in Illusions cause, well, I only knew illusion spells. Useful when I sing and put on a show, don't need Bard magic for that." He suppressed a laugh while looking at the burned home. "But you know, despite how our parents treated us… I do miss them."
The two were surprised to hear him say that. "How could you miss them?" Emira asked him. "They hurt you and Odalia."
"I know, it's… complicated," Geist admitted. "But they were still our parents, and it's why me and your mother didn't talk for months after their funeral. I know your mom doesn't miss them because she hated them. And I can't forgive their actions, but I wish they were still alive. Amity talking things out with Odalia made me realize that maybe it could have been possible to get closure with Griffin and Gretchen if they were still alive… but I don't know. Guess I just can't help but wonder."
As Emira listened to the story, she realized something. "You want us to talk to Odalia, do you?"
Geist looked at Emira and shrugged. "Maybe it could do you two some good. Just a suggestion."
Next day, it was Frieday. Emira was walking down the halls of Hexside with her own thoughts. She then looked up and saw Nina coming out from Julia's office.
"Thanks again, Dr. Traveler," Nina said to an unseen Julia Traveler before she noticed Emira. "Oh, hey Emira. Are you here to see Dr. T?"
"Oh, well, not really," Emira admitted. "Though, it did cross my mind…"
Nina then remembered something. "Hey, um, you got some spare time?"
"With me?" Emira asked her.
"Yeah, there is something that I've been curious about," Nina said while looking around. "Maybe we could have a private chat…"
Up on the rooftop of Hexside, Nina and Emira were talking.
"So you want to know about my deal with Tamme?" Emira asked her.
"Yeah," Nina admitted. "Rather than snatch you and take you up to the roof, I thought I would just ask you to come up here. I heard that you were in the Banshees before, and, well, according to Pinkjoy, Tamme didn't take it well that you left."
"Oh, right," Emira replied, looking guilty. "So you're probably wondering why I left, and why Tamme isn't on speaking terms with me."
"Yeah," Nina said with a nod. "I don't usually pry into people's business, but sometimes us werecats just can't help but be curious."
Emira sighed. "Well, you probably heard that I abandoned the team. Though, there was a reason for it, and it's not because of the team… I did it to spite my mother."
Nina raised her eyebrow. "Your mom?"
"Yeah," Emira admitted. "I was only into cheerleading because Odalia wanted her children to do extra-curricular activities. Ed joined a board game club, Amity took grudgeby, and I joined the cheer squad. I had the skills for it, though. Me and Tamme were good squadmates… but it wasn't good enough for Odalia." She looked down while crossing her arms. "She said that I needed to up my game, live up to the Blight name and even become captain. I did, but I then decided to sabotage myself during a local competition." She looked up to Nina. "Have you learned about the 'Banshee Jump?'"
"I've heard about it, one of our signature moves," Nina responded.
"Well… I was in charge of the jump… but I ended up falling on top of Eve," Emira admitted. "After that, we lost by three points and… well, I quit the squad, never spoke to any of them again. Tamme became captain that day, and, well, we haven't been on speaking terms since."
"Whoa," Nina said, now getting the full picture. "So does Tamme know your reasons?"
"No," Emira responded, looking back down. "But I don't think it would matter. And I'm okay with her not liking me. There's no way me and Tamme could be friends after that..."
"I… I think I understand where you're coming from," Nina admitted. "The thing is… I don't have a good relationship with my folks back in the Villa."
Emira looked up at Nina. "Really?"
"They don't want anything to do with me," Nina admitted. "It hurt when they said that they don't want me to come back home, not that they were good parents to begin with. Then again, I was always the black sheep of the family."
"Huh, I sometimes feel that way about my family," Emira admitted.
"Did they play favoritism to their children?" Nina asked her.
"Yeah, Amity was the golden child," Emira said. "What about yours?"
"My sister, Cally, is their best singer," Nina replied while looking down. "But I think that even she's getting tired of being the golden child."
"Same for Amity," Emira responded. "If your sister's lucky, she could declare herself Nameless."
"Nameless…" Nina said while thinking about that. "Have you thought about going Nameless like your sister did?"
"No. Honestly I never considered it, especially because of how extreme it is," Emira admitted. "Names hold power and all."
"Well, in my case, 'Fangs' doesn't hold much power," Nina admitted. "Cause, well, you know…"
Emira decided to ask Nina something. "Hey, um… I want to know, hypothetically speaking," she said as Nina turned to her. "What if you could talk to your parents? Despite how they treated you and even though you didn't want anything to do with them, if you were given the chance to talk to them would you?" She sighed. "I mean, would you talk to your own folks, even if it's complicated?"
Nina considered it. "Well… I do admit, I would like to talk to my parents… someday. But I'm not ready for that right now. For the moment, I want to focus on myself."
After hearing Nina's words, Emira knew she had to make her own decision…
"Are you sure about this, Em?" Edric asked as he and his sister followed Geist.
"I'm… sure about it, Ed," she replied while looking down. "I just want to get this over with."
Ed looked at Emira in concern then looked around "So… we'll be meeting her here?"
"Just keep your cloaks up, kids," Geist said, all three of them wearing cloaks to hide their identities.
"So… when you were here in Latissa, it wasn't about seeing Sheila?" Edric whispered.
"What? You think me and Sheila…" Geist looked confused before he saw where they were. "We're here."
The two teens saw the building in front of them as Geist knocked on the door.
"Password?" asked someone on the other side.
"Sugar and spice," Geist responded before the door opened up, revealing Bunker.
"Who are those two?" Bunker asked, pointing to the twins.
"My niece and nephew," Geist responded. "Odalia's kids."
"What?!" Bunker exclaimed. "You brought your kids with you?"
"They just want to see their mom," Geist told Bunker.
"She, along with… the Conductor, isn't going to like this," Bunker responded as Ed and Em looked confused. He sighed. "Come in, all of you."
The twins and their uncle entered the CATT base. They entered the main meeting room, where much to the shock of Ed and Em, they saw their mother talking to Steve, Lilith… and Raine.
Lilith noticed Geist, along with the twins. "Geist… who are those two you're with?"
"Uh… I can explain…" Geist said as Edric and Emira removed their hoods, shocking the adults.
"Edric?! Emira?!" Odalia exclaimed.
"Geist, why did you bring those two here?!" Raine exclaimed.
"L-Look, I had to, alright?" Geist responded nervously. "They wanted to talk to their mom and they were starting to get suspicious. Em had been following me and then you, Odalia, the other day, so I knew it was only a matter of time before they found out, Odie."
"Just… what is going on around here?" Emira asked in confusion.
"Yeah, and is that Eberwolf with a… Abomination?" Edric asked while pointing to Eberwolf with Darius. "Wait a sec, is this where you two have been?!" he asked, turning to Raine.
"That Abomination looks weirdly like… Darius," Emira said.
"That's because it is Darius," Lilith revealed, which shocked the twins again.
"WHAT?!" the twins asked before their mouths were covered by Shadow Wolf, who gave them a shushing sign.
"But… how is that possible?" Emira asked.
"Long… story," Darius said while Star, Hikari, Bindell, and the Bat Queen showed up.
"Wait, you two are Amity's siblings, right?" Star asked them.
"You know Amity?" Edric asked.
"Wait, you're Star, aren't you?" Emira asked and Star nodded. "She mentioned you… but can someone explain what's going on here?!"
"Yeah, who are these people and why are you involved in this, mom?" Edric asked.
"Guess the cat's out of the bag, isn't it?" Lilith asked. "No pun intended."
Odalia sighed. "Well, I didn't want either of you or Amity to get involved at first, but now… this is a rebellion against the Emperor's Coven."
"Call us the Covens Against the Throne, aka… the CATTS!" Raine declared as they along with Steve, Eberwolf, Geist, and Star made hiss noises.
"This is a thing…" Darius sighed.
"The CATTs?" Emira and Edric asked in confusion.
"Basically, we're all in this to rebel against the Emperor's Coven," Star explained. "To ensure the future of the Isles, we plan to overthrow the Emperor and stop the Day of Unity, and put an end to this dogma system that Belos has decreed."
"Oh, just like with Luz's Junior Bad Girl Co-" Edric was nudged in the arm by Emira to keep him quiet.
"So… this is what you've been doing all this time?" Emira asked Odalia.
"Yes," Odalia admitted. "Look, I know that there is a lot I have to answer for, but I do want to make things right for my children and Alador. That is why I am here. To ensure a better future where Amity won't be hurt by the Emperor and all of us can be alive and better off."
"Seriously…?" Emira asked in disbelief.
"It's true," Raine spoke up. "I can vouch for Odalia and her commitment."
But Emira just scoffed. "And you believe her?" she questioned Raine. "You expect me to believe that this woman, Odalia, a capitalist who has kissed up to the Emperor and has helped make robotic monsters for him, suddenly wants to help take down the Emperor?"
"Emira…" Lilith said, but Emira continued.
"How do you all know that this isn't a long con game?" Emira pointed out while glaring at Odalia. "That woman could do a lot of damage. Like, how do you know that if you dethrone Belos, she won't decide to just take over in his place? Or that she won't just sell all of you out?!" Her hands were shaking as she denied that her mother was actually doing some good.
"Emira, please it isn't like that," Odalia reassured her, reaching out to her daughter.
"Don't you fucking touch me!" Emira shouted as she slapped Odalia's hand away from her, showing her anger to the woman. "I don't know what you're up to and you may have everyone fooled but not me!" She snarled at her own mother, who looked startled by her reaction.
Edric looked shocked by her outburst. "Em…" he said, touching her shoulder.
"WHAT?!" Emira snapped at him before she saw the scared look on his face. "Ed… I…" She saw everyone looking at her while her hands just… shook.
In silence, Emira ran off while Edric called out to her. "Em, wait!"
"Are you alright, Odalia?" Lilith asked her.
Odalia sighed. "Honestly, Lilith, I'm not surprised that she'd react this way. Not that I blame her," she said as she looked down with a guilty expression while Lilith patted her shoulder.
Hikari looked in the direction Emira had run off in, thinking…
Outside on the balcony, Emira was in a fetal position, silently crying to herself. Even made her invisible so she wouldn't be seen…
'Why?!' Emira thought while wiping away her own tears. 'Why can't I just… face her? Talk to her? I… I lost myself back there…' She looked at her shaking hands as she felt those familiar intrusive thoughts. 'No… no, no!' She pressed her hands on her own head, the dark thoughts starting to creep in…
"Emira?"
Her eyes widened as she looked up and saw Hikari standing before her. Even though she was invisible, Hikari was looking her straight in the eyes. "Are you okay?" she asked, offering a tissue box.
A shocked Emira became visible again. "How did you… know where to look for me?"
"Your aura was very noticeable," Hikari responded. "I'm Hikari, by the way."
Emira looked Hikari over, noticing she was the same height as Amity. "Nice to meet you, Hikari. Though… what are you doing in a rebellion? Aren't you a little young?"
"I'm about your age, and… I was almost forced into a coven," Hikari revealed, shocking Emira.
"What?! Since when does the Emperor's Coven brand kids?!" she questioned.
"I dropped out after deciding that the Coven system was unjust," Hikari told her. "I became a wild witch and was on the run until I met Steve, who quit the scouts and helped me out until we met up with Raine and Star."
"Oh… that does explain his defection," Emira replied, now getting the picture.
Hikari looked at Emira in concern. "Your aura, though… I do sense some negativity around you."
Emira looked up to the girl, then down at her own knees. "What else is new?"
"It seems that you have a lot on your plate," Hikari said as she sat beside her. "Do you want to talk about it?"
Emira looked at Hikari again. Despite just meeting the girl, she felt like she needed someone to talk to. "Well what is there to talk about? That for years my so-called mother would always give me shit about everything? That she would force me to do things that I don't want to do? That she drove Amity away from us?" Emira wiped her tears and then blew her nose with the tissues. "I mean, yeah, I wasn't the best sister to Ed and Amity, but I'm trying to do better now. Trying to be someone for my siblings to look up to! And now suddenly, Odalia's doing the same with this whole rebellion? Well, I don't buy it. For fuck sakes, who does she thinks she's trying to impress? Lilith?"
Hikari listened to Emira before nodding. "I have seen the demons within your mother as well."
"Oh really?" Emira asked, rolling her eyes. "What can you tell about her aura?"
"It is plagued with regrets, guilt, sorrow, and a desire to make things right. I do not sense any malicious intentions from her," Hikari answered. "Honestly, you two aren't that different from one another."
"Oh yeah? So what, we're just supposed to forget all the bad shit she did?" Emira asked.
"I'm not saying you should forget, just to acknowledge that Odalia wants to do some good for her family," Hikari said while Emira looked down. "Does the idea of her doing something good bother you that much?"
Emira shut her eyes. "It's just… it is hard for me to accept that she has changed and she means it. That she has no ulterior motives."
"If Odalia were to have betrayed us all, don't you think she would've told the Emperor about us already?" Hikari asked her.
Emira stayed quiet as she thought about what Hikari said about her and Odalia not being so different. "I recently heard about what her parents were like from my uncle," she admitted. "I… do imagine that she hates her own mother just as I do now. Though, I can't blame her."
Hikari understood. "You know, Odalia isn't the only member who joined the CATTs to redeem themselves," she explained as Emira turned to her. "Many members don't have the cleanest record, but they joined as a chance to do some good and be more than they once were." Hikari looked up, seeing the sights of Latissa. "When I met Steve, he was troubled from his time at the Emperor's Coven. Being ordered to arrest me was the last straw to him, along with losing his fellow scouts under Orsan's orders. He is now trying to be more than a scout who just does whatever he is told."
"Lilith joined because of her guilt for everything she did while working for the Emperor's Coven, including what she did to her family," Hikari continued. "Darius and Eberwolf, they both gave a lot of themselves to the Emperor's Coven, making their sacrifice to the Emperor and committing their own regrettable deeds. Like Lilith, they want to make up for these past actions."
Emira then noticed Shadow Wolf outside, standing on the rooftop above them. "And what's their deal?"
"Shadow Wolf?" Hikari asked before she sighed. "They haven't spoken because of their vow of silence. But I can tell that they're filled with great regret as well."
Hikari then looked down as she continued. "Raine holds a lot of regret for their first attempt at a rebellion and the lives that put their trust in them, they still blame themselves for what happened. Then there's Star, who holds a lot of regrets about what happened in her old Realm." She patted Emira's shoulder. "But you know, a lot of us are here for another reason as well… love."
"Love?" Emira asked.
"We are not just doing this for ourselves, but also for the love of the ones we care for. The Bat Queen's love for her children and other Palismen, Steve's love for his family, Odalia, Lilith and Riane's love for Eda, Luz, King, Hooty and Amity, Darius and Eberwolf's for Hunter and their families, my love for my parents…" She was quiet for a moment. "Do you love your sister more than you hate Odalia?"
"Y-Yeah, of course I do," Emira responded, remembering that she would do anything for her sister, even participate in her wedding in the same vicinity as Odalia. Emira then turned around and saw that Shadow Wolf was suddenly behind her. "Yee!"
"Do you wish to hurt your mother, Emira?" Shadow Wolf asked, which came as a surprise to Hikari.
"You're… talking," Hikari said.
"Yes, I am," Shadow Wolf responded while looking at Emira. "I know how you feel, Emira. When I saw your outburst, it… reminded me of how I handled things with my sister."
"Your sister?" Emira asked her.
"My sister… was a bully," Shadow Wolf explained. "She mistreated me and others around her. She mistreated me especially, making me her own personal servant or slave. I hated her and that hatred built up over time. I ended up acting out on that anger, to the point of almost killing her with a plague spell." This shocked Emira, while Hikari gave Shadow Wolf a saddened look. "It was something that I deeply regret. It may feel good in the moment, but afterward you realize all you've done is cause more pain. I now can't stop thinking about everything I could have done differently, everything I could have said differently. But instead, I went to violence. This is something that I saw in you, Emira; the anger and the desire to hurt your mother." Shadow Wolf looked down. "It is something I do not wish for you to do."
"Is… that why you're telling me this?" Emira asked her.
"I am worried for you, Emira," Shadow Wolf admitted. "Worried that you'll make the same mistake as I did." It was then she removed her mask, revealing the face…
…of an older girl with blond bobcut hair, gray blue eyes, and pink lips. There were dark shadows around her eyes.
"My name Belatrix, or Bela for short," she said, revealing herself to be Bela. "I named myself 'Shadow Wolf' because I am a shadow of regret, a shadow of my former self… and wolves are my favorite beasts," she admitted while she turned to Emira, patting her shoulders. "Emira, if you decide to join the CATTs, me and Hikari promise to help you in any way we can."
"She's right, Emira," Hikari said. "We are here for you, especially if you get those bad thoughts again."
Emira looked between the two and despite shaking earlier, now she felt much calmer and reassured… and safe.
"I… man, we just met and… you two act like the big sisters I never had," Emira admitted while wiping her own tears.
"As a twin myself, I understand your situation," Belatrix told her.
Emira was teary eyed again. This time, she embraced the two girls. "Thank you," she said as Hikari and Belatrix hugged her back.
Back inside, Edric was having a talk with Odalia and Geist.
"So… you two have been working together this whole time," he said.
"Yeah, pretty much," Geist responded.
"So how did this happen?" Edric asked.
"Well, me and Geist started talking while Amity was stranded in the Human Realm, though we didn't tell you or Em because we were worried how you would react. Then, shortly after the trial, I was rescued by Darius and Eberwolf from the fire," Odalia explained. "I was brought to the Bat Queen and we hid out in her woods during the lockdown. But to our surprise, we came across Raine who led us to this hideout."
"It was one of the hidden bases Raine had here in Latissa," Geist explained. "Then after the lockdown, Odalia contacted me and told me to come here, and explained to me what's going on and, well, I decided to join for the same reason she joined."
"To give you, Emira, and Amity a better future and to save Alador from his parents," Odalia explained. "And… to make up for everything that I've done to this family." She looked up at Ed, her expression softening. "Edric, I'm… I'm so sorry for everything and how I've neglected and mistreated you over the years. I understand if you hate me as well."
"I… I don't hate you, mom," Edric admitted while looking down. "I don't like being resentful, not anymore, and while I can't forget what you've done and I am still not sure if I can forgive you… I can acknowledge that you want to change for the better."
"Thank you," Odalia told him with a nod.
"And… I have learned about what really caused the… affair between you and Lilith," Edric told her.
"I know," Odalia admitted "Lilith already filled me in about Mel and her friend."
"Yeah, Trini," Edric muttered. "Honestly, I can't really blame you for the affair. I know that it wasn't your fault… because it's mine."
"Ed… it isn't your fault," Odalia reassured him.
"But it is," Edric said while looking up to her. "Mel had Trini spike your and Lilith's food and influence you, just so Mel could isolate me from my family. If I hadn't met her… Amity wouldn't have been outed."
"Ed, stop blaming yourself," Odalia told him, patting his hand. "If there's someone to blame, it's that Mel girl and Trini. They're the ones who are at fault, not you. You can't blame yourself for their manipulation."
"That's what everyone tells me, but still," Edric said as he looked over to Lilith, who was talking to Steve and Bindell. "Mom, do you… still have feelings for Lilith?"
Odalia looked surprised by the question. "O-Of course I don't!" she denied, sounding awkward. "Don't get me wrong, I still care for her, just… not in that way. Especially in light of everything." She sighed before looking back at her son. "Edric, I know that things can't be forgotten, but perhaps if you want, and only if it's okay to you, you would be willing to give me a second chance to be your mother…?"
Edric looked hard at Odalia, seeing how remorseful she looked. "Well… maybe if you're serious, we could spend some quality time together."
"Of course," Odalia said with a nod. "I promise that we can do whatever you like, for a mother-son thing. To start to make up for all those years."
Ed smiled. "I would like that," he admitted before he saw Emira show up, walking with Hikari and a masked Belatrix. "There's Em," he pointed out. "I should go talk to her."
Edric walked over to Emira, who turned to him. "Hey sis," he said to her. "How are you feeling?"
"I… I've calmed down," Emira replied. "Thanks to those two."
"That's great," Edric said, turning to Hikari and Bela. "Thank you two for helping my sister out."
"It is no problem," Hikari replied while Bela gave a thumbs up. "We were happy to help."
Emira smiled before she heard her scroll buzz. She pulled it out and read a text from Viney. "Looks like Viney is asking if I want to help her watch over Scabrina while Skara and Nina are out," she said before looking up at Edric. "I could use some time with Viney."
"Yeah, you could," Edric replied while shifting his eyes.
"What about you?" Emira asked him.
"Well… I've decided to stay here and... spend some time with mom," Edric admitted, which surprised Emira.
"R-really?" she asked him.
"Yeah, and it's my choice," Edric said. "I uh, hope you don't mind… or get angry at me."
Emira looked down, shutting her eyes and taking a deep breath. She then looked back up to him. "I don't mind, Ed. But just be careful, okay?" she asked him before she embraced her brother.
"Don't worry, I will," Edric promised as he hugged his sister back.
After Emira was gone, Edric and Odalia decided to spend some time together. So they headed out from CATT headquarters and walked from Latissa to Bonesborough.
"So… I guess it's just us now," Edric said.
"Yeah," Odalia replied before they both fell silent. "So, mother-son bonding time… what would you like to do? Or, what do you usually like to do?"
"Well, I do like to work on my fireworks," Edric admitted. "Which reminds me that I should meet up with someone… want to come along?"
"Of course," Odalia said with a nod as she followed her son to where he got his supplies for his fireworks…
Outside a local convenience store, Edric met up with two individuals.
"Yo, Ed, my man!" spoke a beanie-wearing slim teenage witch-boy around Ed's age. He had long blond hair, gray skin, black eyes, and was wearing a yellow hoodie, black shirt, blue baggy pants and sneakers. "Here for the powder?"
"You know it, Ray," Edric responded before he turned to Ray's partner. "What's up, Silent G?"
Silent G was a large, black witch teenager who was Ray's friend. He was wearing a red cap, a black long overcoat with a green shirt, black pants, and black sneakers. He had a goatee and a small horn on his forehead. He waved to Ed silently before pointing to Odalia.
"Oh her? She's cool, that's my mom," Edric replied while Ray handed him the powder as Edric handed him the candy bars. "Thanks."
"No, thank you for the candy bars, Eddie," Ray thanked as Edric walked away with Odalia.
"Who are these two again?" Odalia asked him.
"Oh, that's just Ray and Silent G," Edric responded. "They give me supplies to make fireworks in exchange for buying them snacks form the convenience store they're banished from."
"Aw, these bars are great!" Ray declared as Silent G nodded in agreement before Ray made a yell. "Ragga-ragga-MOOSH!"
In an open field, a shield wall had been set up for Edric and Odalia to get behind. The two were wearing goggles as they looked at the homemade firework Edric just made.
"Alright, now that we've made this baby, we're gonna test it out in T-10 seconds," Edric said as the two watched through the small window.
"Where did you find this location?" Odalia asked him, seeing the clear field.
"Remember three years ago when we had that family hiking trip with the Wilskins for a deal, and then we found that dead body of a drunken scout that we had to report it?" Edric asked Odalia, who nodded. "Well, while you guys were dealing with that, I came across this field and thought 'yeah, this is the perfect testing ground for fireworks.' It was a great trip."
"Not sure it was that wonderful with the dead scout…" Odalia pointed out as Edric held the switch. The two got prepared.
"Three, two, one…" Edric pressed the switch, causing the firework to start to light up and shoot off in the air.
Odalia removed her goggles, impressed by her son's creation as she saw the rocket explode in the sky, creating sparks of light. "Wow, Edric. I… never knew that you could make something like this. You really are like your father."
"Well, yeah, I guess I am," Edric responded while scratching the back of his neck. "I may not know much about Abominations, but I do know a lot about making fireworks and bombs."
Odalia paused. "Bombs?"
"Yeah, I have made more than a few bombs, and I am even better at it now that I am multi-tracking in Potions," Edric admitted casually. "I have a secret storage space where I have been keeping a bunch of them for a special occasion."
"That is… well, to be honest as your mother, that is very concerning to me," Odalia admitted. "But you know, your skills could be useful to the CATTs."
"Really?" Edric asked him.
"Yeah, Raine could use someone who knows how to make explosives," Odalia told him. "Though this also explains your eleven trips to the Healing Coven…"
At the comic book shop, Edric brought Odalia inside to show her another one of his interests.
"So this is what a comic book shop looks like," Odalia said while looking around.
"Yeah, it's where I get the latest issues of Captain Coven," Edric said. "Though, the comics really haven't been selling as well since the current run is now all about the 'Fae Scare' propaganda."
"Oh, I'm sorry about that," Odalia responded, looking at the Captain Coven comics and noticing one cover that showed Captain Coven taking on a Fae… with suspiciously familiar lavender hair. "What the-?! You have got to be kidding me!"
Edric looked at the cover and his jaw dropped. "Oh come on! That's it, I'm switching to another comic," he said while looking around.
"Excuse me," Odalia said as she went up to the Comic Book Wizard. "What is this that you're selling?"
"Uh… a Captain Coven issue…" the Comic Book Wizard answered.
"This cover here, I did find this highly offensive," Odalia told him. "My son finds it offensive as well, cause it looks exactly like his sister, Amity."
"O-Oh, sorry, ma'am. I just sell what they give to the shop," he said nervously. "The ones you should complain about are the publishers… the artist and writers should be in the credits."
Odalia looked at the cover, saw the names on the issue. "Thank you, now I know who to talk to," she said as she turned to her son. "Edric, dear, did you find anything else?"
"Yeah, I think so," Edric said while looking at some Hawkman, Zatanna, and Scarlet Spider comics. "Huh, I don't think I've seen these comics here before."
"Oh, those? Yeah, that human girl, Luz, donated these comics to the shop. Said that she's finished reading them and would like to put them in the donation bin. Who knew that the Human Realm comics had interesting stories to tell as well," the Comic Book Wizard said.
"Ooh, I like these," Edric said as he pulled up some Transformers comics and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics.
"Get whatever you like, Edric," Odalia told him. "I'll buy them for you."
He looked at his mother in surprise. "Really?"
"It's the least I can do," she said as she smiled at him, Edric smiling back to her.
"It's great to see you two getting along so nicely, I wish my relationship with my mother was like that," the Comic Book Wizard said as he sighed. "Not everyone's cut out to be a pie maker… oh what the hell, I think I'm gonna call her now!" he said as he excused himself, leaving Edric and Odalia alone.
Later, the two headed over to a Newt Burger to get something to eat.
"I'm still surprised that out of all the places to eat, this is where you'd pick," Edric commented as they ate their food.
"Well, it's been a while since I've been to one of these places," Odalia admitted. "I used to eat at Newt Burger all the time during my childhood, since it was something we could easily afford. Hexside's cafeteria food was a relief change of pace."
"Wow, that does sound difficult," Edric responded. "Your childhood, I mean."
"Yes, well, my life wasn't easy," Odalia admitted. "I had to work hard to get everything I wanted. But enough about me, what about you, Edric? What have you been up to?"
Edric thought about it. "Well… I am still multi-tracking in Illusions, Potions, and Beast-Keeping. That has been going well. I still keep and take care of Batric, oh and I've managed to make some new friends that Donna and Emira introduced me to."
This surprised Odalia. "Donna? You and Emira are hanging out with Donna again?"
"Yeah, Emira met up with her while Amity was missing and the two decided to give being friends another shot," Edric explained. "I'm happy for her, really. Emira could use some more positive influences and, well, so do I. That's why I met Beocrow, Sarah, and Riley. We all share common interests with our Tracks. Also, after both the Hunter thing and the whole Mel thing, I've decided to take a break from dating."
"That's nice to hear," Odalia said with a nod. "What are they like? Your new friends, I mean."
"Well, Beocrow is Luz's cousin, so he is Eda and Lilith's cousin as well," Edric replied as he ate his fries. "He's like a goth who sees the beauty in death, so he's a pretty philosophical guy… I think. Riley is top of Illusions at St. Epiderm, their parents are doctors and they know how to make some pretty good Illusion tricks."
"They sound interesting," Odalia replied as she ate.
"And Sarah, well she's the daughter of the previous Potions Head, Staggertarius Atos," Edric explained, which surprised his mom. "She offered me a card for the Atos Foundation after hearing about what I am doing with Potions, Illusions, and Beast-Keeping."
"That's great!" Odalia exclaimed. "I'm proud of you, Edric, for putting yourself out there and finding new friends."
"Thanks, mom," Edric replied with a smile. "I'm glad that I managed to meet my own witches that share my interests."
"I'm glad too," Odalia told him. "Because you deserve to have good friends, Edric."
Ed smiled again as he looked down at his drink, a thought occurring to him. "Mom… do you think that… all of us will be together again? As a family, I mean."
Odalia noticed his son's concern, which she shared. "Honestly… I don't know, Ed," she admitted. "I do want to at least explain to myself to Alador, and get him away from his parents. But besides that… I'm not sure if we'll ever be together again."
"Oh…" Edric said, lowering his head.
"But I would like to bring my family back together again, believe me," Odalia said, causing Ed to lift his head up. "But if that's not possible, then I'm content to just keep everyone alive."
Ed nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I do think that's going to be possible for us, keeping all of us alive that is," he said. "And mom… thank you for actually making time for me."
Odalia smiled with a nod. "It's the least I can do for my son."
At the Brooke home, Emira was helping Viney with Scabrina as they all watched a scary movie.
"Are you sure your folks allow you to watch these?" Viney asked as she saw the monster in the movie slaughtering their victims.
"Eh, this is nothing compared to what I see on an average day in the Isles," Scabrina replied while eating popcorn.
Emira leaned closer to Viney after a scene shocked her. Viney held Emira's hand, squeezing it gently. "So, how are you dealing, Em?" Viney asked her in a whisper.
"Just… fine," Emira replied while laying her head on Viney's shoulder. "I am so happy to be here with you right now."
Later, after the movie, Viney and Emira helped get Scabrina tucked in for bed. Once they helped put the young girl to bed, the two chatted in the living room as they watched a sitcom in the mirror.
"Well, I'm not gonna sleep after that movie," Emira said.
"Yeah, surprised Scabrina was able to," Viney replied while watching the show. "Seen this episode before?"
"Yeah, the one where the kid brings a chimp demon home and- ooh, there's the face-ripping part," Emira pointed out while watching the show, the laugh track being heard. "Can't believe this is supposed to be a comedy…"
Viney nodded. "Hey, um… so… about that rebellion you've told me about."
"Oh, yeah that," Emira said with a sigh. "We could explain it to Luz, but Raine and Lilith made it clear to not get her, Eda, or anyone else involved."
"Yeah, but I don't like keeping this a secret from Luz," Viney replied. "Mostly because I'm afraid she'll pop my kneecaps for keeping it."
"Like I'd let her do that to my Vinella," Emira said as she hugged Viney's arm tightly while giving her smooches on her cheek, making Viney laugh.
"Though, I do wonder if you'll potentially join the rebellion. As a way to help your sister," Viney said as she held Emira's hand. "Like… would you join even if it means working with your mom?"
Emira hesitated. "I… I guess. Though, I suspect that Ed might join. Then there's LOWTH, though honestly I'm more of a reserve member. Maybe I can make a chapter here in Bonesborough with Gavin and possibly the SSE. And maybe you and Ed can be a part of LOWTH as well."
"You think I would be LOWTH material?" Viney asked.
"Babe, I know you'd be LOWTH material," Emira reassured her. "Though, one benefit if I decide to work with the CATTs, Belatrix and Hikari would help me out."
Viney nodded. "Yeah, they sound nice."
"Yeah, and maybe I could join to keep a close eye on Odalia," Emira suggested. "Like, I don't trust her and I do suspect that she's keeping something. Maybe not about her current situation, but I feel like she is hiding something… something from her past."
"You think there's a dark part of her backstory?" Viney asked her.
"Well, I just got a hunch about it," Emira replied just as they heard the door open. They turned to see Nina, Skara and Lambi coming in. "Hey, you guys are back…"
Later, both Emira and Edric were in the Healing Coven after hearing about Calypso's attack. Edric was waiting for a certain someone to walk out from his conversation with Luz and Eda. He saw the three exiting out of the empty room and Hunter noticed Edric waiting for him.
"Ed?" Hunter asked in surprise.
"Hey, Hunter," Edric responded while he turned to Luz and Eda. "Um, mind if I chat with him?"
"Um, take your time, Ed," Luz said.
"Yeah, we'll leave you two alone," Eda said as the two walked away, leaving Edric with Hunter.
Hunter brushed the back of his hair as he looked at Edric awkwardly. "So um… how are things, Ed?"
"Um… doing great," Edric replied, just as awkward. "I've, um, made some new friends."
"Really? That's great!" Hunter shouted. "I-I have made some new friends… well, kind of, in the Emperor's Coven…"
"That's cool," Edric said with a nod.
"So… have you caught up to Captain Coven lately…?" Hunter asked him.
"Actually, no," Edric responded. "Because of their 'Fae Scare' run, I have decided to try to get into other comics. Found some that my mom bought for me."
"Yeah, I get what you mean," Hunter responded. "I tried to talk to Belos about it but he insists that it's all to help spread Fae Awareness to the Isles- wait." He paused. "Your… mom bought you some comics?"
"Yes, actually," Edric confirmed. "Me and mom decided to catch up and spend some quality time together. Even showed her how I make and test out my rockets."
"Wow, that's… that's great for you, Ed," Hunter replied with a smile.
Edric nodded and the two were awkwardly silent for a moment before Ed spoke again. "Hey Hunter… are you… really okay in the Emperor's Coven?" he asked him.
Hunter nodded. "I'm alright, Ed. Really. If things get too dangerous for me, I'll get out of here."
Ed smiled while looking away. "Well, that's good… so… you know, I was wondering if you'd like to… hang out sometime? I mean, as friends."
"Yeah, I'd like that," Hunter confirmed, looking away as well.
"Good. Anyway… I wish you well, Hunter," Ed said, sticking out his hand.
"Yeah, me too," Hunter replied as the two shook hands.
Afterward, Edric walked back into the waiting room, where Emira spotted him. "Hey, how'd it go?" Emira asked, knowing where he was.
"Well… me and Hunter are both cool," Edric admitted. "And I told him we could hang out sometimes. As friends."
"That's… great," Emira replied. "And I also heard that Calypso's going to be okay."
"That is good news," Edric responded.
"So you wanna head back to the bar then?" Emira asked before she noticed a look in his face. "Ed?"
"Actually… I'm going to be spending the night at mom's," Edric admitted while whispering. "At the CATT base…"
Emira was surprised by this, but after a moment she sighed. "Alright, if that's what you want to do then… I'm okay with it," she said, though truthfully she wasn't happy about it. But she wanted to give Edric his own choice.
"Great," Edric replied. "So what about you? Are you heading to Geist's place?"
"Actually… I'm thinking of spending the night at Viney's," Emira said while turning to Viney who looked at her.
"Well, see you in the morning then, sis," Edric replied as the two hugged.
"Of course," Emira said, hiding her concerned face while hugging her twin.
The next morning at Viney's, Emira was sleeping next to her girlfriend…
"Did you sleep well?" Viney asked after waking up and feeling Emira resting with her arms wrapped up behind her.
"Yeah," Emira responded while in a light-blue top and shorts. "I just… love to be close to you."
Viney smiled. She was in her blue jersey shirt and shorts. She turned around to wrap her arms around Emira's waist. "Yeah, me too," she said as she left a trail of kisses from Emira's lips to her neck.
Emira gave a gasp as she felt Viney's kisses hitting her good while she felt up Viney's abs. "Wow, your abs are ripped."
"Heh," Viney said while seeing Emira pulling her shirt up. "I've been working out."
"I see," Emira said while playfully tickling her ripped stomach. Viney gave a laugh while picking up Emira by the hips. "Oh!" she shouted as she was raised up in the air. Emira looked down at Viney. "This early in the morning? What would your mom think?"
"Don't worry about her," Viney said while leveling Emira down, the two pressing their lips together while roaming their hands over each other…
"Viney? Emira? Are you two awake?"
The two paused upon hearing Betty's voice and the door started to open. Quickly, the two teens got off each other and fell off the bed as well. "Oof!" they cried as Betty opened the door.
"What was that?" Betty asked, only to see Viney stand up.
"Nothing, mom! Just waking up!" Viney declared despite Emira having landed over her shoulder.
"Why is Emira on your shoulder?" Betty pointed out, which made Viney nervous.
"Uh… she's a heavy sleeper so I ended up getting her out of bed!" Viney replied while Emira looked at Betty with an embarrassed look.
"Um.. good morning, Mrs. Potts…" Emira waved while still hanging on Viney's shoulder.
Edric was sleeping alone in his cot. He was snoring until he felt the bright light hit his face. Opening his eyes, he picked himself up from his bed. Looking around, he realized he was in a different room than he was used to.
"Oh, right," he said with a yawn. "I slept over."
After getting himself ready, he walked over to the meeting room where he saw everyone gathered around a crystal ball. He overheard their conversation.
"There was an incident last night…" Raine explained as the crystal ball relayed the news.
"Last night's art gallery show took a tragic turn when Head Witch of the Beast-Keeping Coven, Calypso Brooke, was reportedly bitten by a vampire. The vampire in question was incapacitated by Slasher Brooke, who in turn was revealed to be a werewolf."
"Oh no…" Lilith said as she covered her mouth in shock, she along with Odalia looking worried for the Brooke couple.
"Both Slasher and Calypso are reported to be in the Healing Coven making a recovery. While Slasher Brooke is being prepared for discharge, Calypso is still being treated from her vampire attack. Scouts have surrounded the Healing Coven and the Emperor's Coven is making an investigation into the incident."
"How could this have happened?" Odalia asked, shaken. "Calypso is usually on guard for this kind of thing, even when she's not sober!"
"There's no way the Emperor would put a hit on her," Vina said, knowing that the Emperor wouldn't waste a Coven Head unless they turned coat.
"Is there anything we can do?" Steve asked, looking around at everyone.
"I'm not sure, Steve," Lilith admitted with a saddened look. "All we can do is hope for Calypso's recovery…"
"Uh, morning, guys," Edric said, while walking into a meeting room, though nobody heard him.
"Calypso's attack was no coincidence," Raine indicated while looking around at Lilith, Odalia, Steve, Bindell, Bunker, Star, Hikari, Shadow Wolf, Bat Queen, Darius, and Eberwolf. "Someone within the Emperor's Coven let that vampire inside."
"Buy why?" Steve asked. "Why risk losing another Coven Head?"
"He's right," Bindell replied. "It's almost as if someone wanted to delay the Day of Unity as much as we do."
"But whoever it was, isn't an ally to us," Odalia said while crossing her arms. "Someone was targeting Calypso specifically."
"Hey," Edric said as he walked up to them. "You guys talking about what happened last night?"
"Yeah," Star replied. "I just learned about it just now."
"We believe that someone within the Emperor's Coven may also want to stop the Day of Unity," the Bat Queen suggested.
"But as far as we're concerned, they are not on our side," Bindell added.
"So we're dealing with a wild card?" Edric asked while sitting beside Star.
"More like, a rogue agent," Star replied while raising her hand up. "Name's Star, by the way. We haven't formally greeted each other."
"Edric Blight," Edric responded while shaking Star's hand. "So, I hope you don't mind me asking but… is it true that you're from another Realm?"
"Yes, and was part of another rebellion before here," Star responded. "So your sister told you about me, huh?"
Edric nodded, though bringing up Amity made him wonder where Amity was now and how she was doing…
Meanwhile, at the Owl House, stepping through the back door was Amity.
"Home, sweet home," Amity said before she suddenly got wrapped up by Hooty.
"AMITY!" Hooty announced while in tears. Also coming in was King.
"Amity's back?" King asked before he saw Amity. "Yay!"
"Hooty! King!" Amity teared up as she hugged the two demons. "I've missed you guys!"
"Same!" King shouted, tears flooding from his eyes. "We missed you so much…"
"There's also someone else that missed you, Ams," Luz said as she came through the back door with Eda and Vee, Ghost and Acorn trailing behind them.
Amity heard a walking baby seat coming over and she turned to see Kay on that baby seat. "KAY!" she shouted as she rushed over and went to hug the gill child.
"Bamiti!" Kay cheered as she nuzzled into her godsister.
"Are you… was that your first word?" Amity asked in surprise.
"Bamiti! Bamiti!" Kay repeated.
Amity smiled proudly. "Oh you've learned so much, Kay!" She hugged her, having missed Kay even if it had only been for a few days.
"Aw, that's sweet," Vee commented.
"Yeah, Amity makes everything ten times sweeter," Luz added.
King noticed Vee. "Vee? Is that you?" he asked.
"What's up, King?" Vee asked, waving to him. "Heard from Luz that you got a new gig, and a girlfriend."
"Oh well that's-hey!" King narrowed his eyes at Luz, who just whistled mischievously.
"Alright, now that everyone has had their reunions, we have to make some plans for today," Eda said while looking outside the window up the front, seeing some scouts left. "Now, for starters, Vee, you have to make sure to be in disguise at all times. I'm going to call Raine to set up a meeting between you and Star."
"Thanks, Eda," Vee responded with a nod.
"And as for you, Amity," Eda said, pointing to her. "Me and Luz will be sure to get you in contact with your family so you can settle your… unfinished business."
"Thank you, Eda," Amity said while turning to Luz. "So… is it still here?"
"Yup," Luz replied as she led Amity to their room.
As Amity set Kay back to her tank, Luz pulled off some of the floorboards.
"Just in case some scouts decide to check around our rooms, which thankfully didn't happen," Luz said as she pulled up the helm of a sword…
"The Sword of Adam," Amity said as Luz handed it to her. "Thank you for keeping it safe for me, Luz."
"Hey, anything for my wife," Luz said while Amity gave her a kiss.
Some time later, Eda had left with Vee. The scouts had already been called out by the time Gus showed up and knocked on the door. Opening it was Luz.
"Gus, come in," Luz said, letting Gus inside where he saw Amity with King, Kay, Ghost, and Acorn.
"Gus!" Amity shouted.
"Hey, Amity," Gus replied as he walked over, noticing Ghost running past him while chasing Acorn. "Ghost still chasing Acorn?"
"I learned that I can't stop her," Amity admitted as she handed Kay to King before she walked over and gave Gus a hug. "How have you been?"
"Been doing better," Gus replied. "Sorry that Willow couldn't show up, she's helping out Skara, who spent the night at her house along with Nina and Scabrina."
"Did something happen?" Amity asked in concern.
"Yeah… Mrs. Brooke got attacked and bitten by a vampire last night," Gus informed her, shocking Amity. "Not only that, but when her dad killed the vampire, he exposed himself as a werewolf to the whole Isles."
"Oh gods… poor Skara," Amity said. "Are they alright?"
"Well, Slasher will be discharged from the Healing Coven later today. But Calypso's still recovering," Gus explained.
"I… I really want to see her, and I should be there for her as a friend," Amity said while Luz patted her hand.
"Don't worry, Ams, you will," Luz promised as they heard another knock on the door.
"Hey! Emira and Viney are here! Hoot-hoot!" Hooty announced as he let Viney and Emira in. Both of them were wearing cloaks.
"Hey, Mittens," Emira waved to her as she and Viney removed their hoods.
"Em!" Amity shouted as she ran over and jumped up, hugging her older sister. "I'm so glad to see you! Where's Ed? Is he alright?"
"Don't worry, he should be coming," Emira reassured her.
Amity turned to Viney. "Hey, Viney, how's it going?"
"Oh, pretty good," Viney admitted. "A mostly uneventful week for me after the wedding, unlike Luz. Hey Luz, did you told her about your blue ribbon from the IFWOT?"
"The IFWOT?" Amity asked in surprise, turning to Luz. "You won a ribbon at the IFWOT? I'm so proud of you!" she shouted while hugging Luz.
"Eh, it was no big deal," Luz replied casually. "But at least Bump's back at Hexside."
"From what Willow told me, it was pretty hectic that day," Gus said.
"More guests here! Hoot-Hoot!"
Luz went to open the door, smiling as she let three more in…
"Mittens!" Edric shouted, waving to Amity.
"Ed!" Amity shouted back as she went to hug her brother. "How have you been?"
"Great," Edric responded before Amity spotted her mom and uncle.
"Amity…" Odalia said before Amity went to hug her mom. "Oh, it's so good to see you."
"It's good to see you too, mom!" Amity responded, hugging her tightly.
"Hey, more room for one more?" Geist asked before Amity went to hug her uncle. "Ah, that's it, good to see you too, Mittens."
"You too, Uncle Geist!" Amity admitted.
Emira looked stoically at Odalia, who noticed Em. "Um… hi, Emira," she said nervously, causing Emira to turn away. Odalia didn't press it, getting the message.
"So now that you've returned, what's the day here, Mittens?" Edric asked once everyone was settled.
"Well, I didn't just come back to see everyone again," Amity explained while looking determined. "I came back to settle things with Arthur and Destiny once and for all, and to get through to dad. Because I do believe that he'll listen if I talk to him."
"And what if he doesn't?" Emira asked.
"I have to at least try," Amity said. "And I was hoping this could be a family effort."
"Well, I'm in," Geist declared. "Saving my brother-in-law from his toxic parents? You better believe I want in on this."
"I want in too," Edric agreed. "I mean, I may have… mixed feelings on dad, but you literally went through Hell to save me, even though I was acting like a jerk. We need to get dad away from Arthur and Destiny, like how I needed to get away from Mel."
Odalia nodded. "Your father hasn't been seen all week. I am worried something may have happened to him… and I am eager to take those bastard parents of his down."
"Me too," Emira admitted.
"I'm in as well," Viney volunteered.
"We're all behind you, Amity," Gus agreed.
Luz was about to answer, but then she got a crow call she needed to answer. "Hello? Skara?"
"Luz," Skara spoke through the crow. "Me and Nina need your help!"
Luz looked concerned. "What is it?" she asked before listening to Skara. "WHAT?! When did that happen?!" Everyone looked concerned as they watched and listened to Luz reacting. "Okay, Skara, calm down. I promise to be there," she told her before hanging up on the crow.
"Luz," Amity spoke up. "Is everything okay?" she asked.
Luz sighed and gave a grim look. "Some of Nina's family, her younger siblings and her pregnant mom, were kidnapped."
This shocked everyone in the room. "What?!" they exclaimed.
"When did this happen?" Emira asked.
"Last night," Luz said while looking down. "Skara and Nina need my help and, well, you guys know that I can't ignore this. I owe Nina, and-" She looked up at Amity with a regretful look. "I'm so sorry, Ams…"
"Don't worry, I understand, Luz," Amity responded while patting her shoulder. "I want to help too."
"No, you need to help save your dad," Luz pointed out. "Like your mom pointed out, he hasn't been seen all week. If something did happen to him, delaying this could only make things worse. I know that you want to help Nina, but you could lose your chance at confronting Arthur and Destiny, since right now you have the element of surprise, since they don't know if you're back in the Isles. Nobody does…"
"Yeah, you're right," Amity reluctantly agreed.
"So what are we going to do?" Gus asked.
"Don't worry, me, King and Eda will help out Nina and Skara. Eda could get LOWTH to help as well, so we will have more than enough hands to help," Luz explained.
"As much as I wish to help out the boss and the captain, I think I will stay to help with Alador," Viney said while turning to Amity. "You deserve to speak to your dad."
"Yeah, I want to help deal with Arthur and Destiny as well," Gus declared. "I may not know where my dad is, but I can help you with your dad, Amity."
Amity smiled. "Thanks, you two. I appreciate the help."
When Eda came back to the Owl House after being texted by Luz, she was informed by Luz and King what's up.
"I see," Eda said while looking at everyone getting prepared. "So we got two missions going on at the same time."
"Yup," Emira said while she and Viney put medical supplies in their bags.
"We're going to take down the walls of the establishment!" Gus declared while wearing war paint.
"I like your enthusiasm, Gus," Eda said while turning to Odalia and Geist. "Are you sure you two are up for it?"
"Don't worry, Eda, it's about time we face off against those old coots," Geist declared.
"You three just focus on finding Ms. Fang's family while we go rescue Alador from his parents," Odalia told Eda, giving her a nod.
Eda nodded as well. "Alright, good luck. Take care of your family, Odalia."
"Oh, I will," Odalia promised.
Luz was with Amity, the two giving each other kisses for good luck. "Good luck, hermosa," Luz told her.
"You too, la batata," Amity replied as the two got ready for their missions. "I do hate splitting up like this already."
"Me too," Luz said to Amity. "But I promise to see you after we find Nina's family. We can talk about how our missions went at Geist's."
Amity smiled. "Promise?"
Luz nodded. "Promise."
Shortly after this, Luz and Eda flew away from the Owl House, King on Luz's back and Eda on her staff. Once they left, everyone else exited out of the Owl House.
"Alright, so what's the game plan?" Viney asked.
"We go to Blight Industries, stake it out, and find a way in so we can confront Arthur and Destiny and locate Alador," Amity explained.
"Hope I'm not late," said a new voice.
Everyone paused. "Um… who said that?" Geist asked.
"I did," Sly said as everyone turned around and saw him standing behind them, much to everyone's shock.
"Sly?!" Amity exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
"Wait, aren't you that Fae who appeared at the wedding?" Odalia pointed out as she remembered seeing this guy a few days ago.
"Yes, it is I, Sly," he introduced himself. "I came because we didn't get to speak earlier, Amity. But as your mentor, I would like to help my student out… if she wants me to."
Amity smiled. "Of course, Sly, we would all appreciate the extra help."
Later, everyone kept hidden near the perimeter of Blight Industries. From the looks of it, there were some Abomatons and Abomi-Goblins patching the place up after an incident days ago.
"Man, this place has seen better days," Geist said.
"What are those things?" Gus asked, pointing at the Abomi-Gobins.
"Abomi-Goblins, they're creations of Arthur's and, well, they would sometimes sing," Amity explained. "We should do some scouting. Em, you're with me at the north wing."
"Got it," Emira said with a nod.
"Ed, Viney, and Gus should scout the west wing, mom and Uncle Geist should look at the east wing of the factory, and Sly, be our eye in the sky."
"My shadow will be on lookout, just in case we get some unwanted guests," Sly mentioned.
"Alright, let's move," Odalia said as everyone split up into their groups.
Amity and Ed checked out the north wing, continuing to stay out of sight as some Abomi-Goblins were passing by.
"Alright, looks like we're-" Amity turned, only to see Emira in her Ms. Chevious outfit. "…still not used to that."
"Well, I gotta look the part as a hero if we're going to save Alador," Emira pointed out. "Besides, the last thing I want is to change in front of mom..."
Amity sighed, but understood. "Sam, try to see if you can look inside."
"On it," Sam replied as they headed inside the building.
While they waited, Emira decided to start up a conversation. "Hey um, how does it feel to be back?"
"Honestly, yesterday I fought a spider-lady, so it was really no different than a normal day in the Isles," Amity admitted.
"Oh," Emira said. "Uh, I think I should tell you this now, but… mom's part of a rebellion now."
This surprised Amity. "Really?"
"Yeah, she and Geist are part of a group to overthrow the Emperor to keep you safe," Emira said with a mutter.
"Wow, that's great." Amity replied, proud of her family. "Who else is in the rebellion?"
Emira looked around before she whispered to Amity. "Lilith, Raine, that Star girl you know, Steve, the Bat Queen…"
"Steve and the Bat Queen?" Amity asked in surprise. "How is Steve and when did Lilith join?"
"Steve is doing well and Odalia apparently recruited Lilith only a few days ago," Emira said. "Oh, and Eberwolf's there as well, along with Darius."
"Darius is alive?!" Amity exclaimed in a whisper while covering her mouth. "Oh man… wouldn't Gavin be glad…" She looked back at Emira. "So… how do you and Ed feel about it? About mom being in a rebellion, I mean."
Emira sighed. "Well, I think Ed is okay with it… but I still don't trust Odalia," she admitted. "Amity, let me ask you this… do you know anything about mom's childhood?"
Amity thought about it. "I don't know… and I don't recall mom ever talking about it."
Emira looked down. "Well, I recently learned that she and Uncle Geist didn't have the best relationship with their own parents. Much like Alador and his folks. According to Geist, their dad used to beat them…"
Amity was shocked by the news. "Oh… oh gods," she said. "Now I'm not surprised that she doesn't like talking about this."
"Yeah, though that's no excuse for how she treated us before," Emira said while keeping her anger in check. "Her shitty parents do not justify her being a shitty parent. Though apparently her parents died by the time she and Uncle G graduated."
"I knew that, though how did they die?" Amity asked.
"Food poisoning," Emira said with a drug. "While Uncle G misses them, he says that Odalia hated them for how they treated her and him."
Amity looked concerned for Emira. "Em… do you still hate mom?"
Emira looked at her sister, quiet for a moment. "Yeah, I still do."
"Well… maybe we can all talk it out after we get dad out," Amity suggested.
Emira scoffed. "I'm sorry, Amity, but I don't see that going well. I'm just here to make Arthur and Destiny pay for making you cry."
After they finished scouting around, everyone regrouped. Sam spoke to Amity about what she saw inside.
"Sam said the inside of this place is filled with many, many safety violations," Amity told them, "Walkways having the railing removed, scraps of metal and abomi-goo just lying around the floor, health code violations… not to mention a lack of hazmat suits, though she didn't see many workers. Today they seem to be working with a skeleton crew."
"This is what caused them to go under in the first place," Odalia said. "Arthur and Destiny… they are old-fashioned. They thought updating their safety guidelines would either waste money or breed complacency."
"Is that why they have it against safety regulations?" Gus questioned.
"They believe that it is unnecessary," Odalia answered. "They don't care who gets hurt as long as their products are completed. And if someone gets hurt, they just see it as weeding out the incompetent."
"Alright, now we need to get inside," Amity said while turning to Sly. "You up for a distraction, Sly?"
Sly smiled. "I was hoping you'd suggest that," he said as he held his guitar, flying up to the factory. Acorn followed him as well, deciding to join him.
Inside the factory, Sly and Acorn popped up, Acorn flying around while Sly started playing his music.
"Hello, my slimy goblin folk," Sly announced, earning the attention of the Abomi-Goblins. "This little song goes out to my good friend Jay who sang this back in the sixties," he said while strumming his guitar. His shadow formed into a band playing different instruments. "In a little cafe, just the other side of the border,"
"A-gobli-intruder!" one Abomi-Goblin shouted before its head got split apart after Acorn flew through it at a rapid speed.
"She was just sitting there giving me looks, that made my mouth water," Sly sang as he walked through the factory.
The Abomi-Goblins heard the music and followed it while Acorn mischievously spread her pixie dust around, making them float up.
"So I started walking her way, she belonged to a bad man Jose."
In their office, Arthur and Destiny could hear Sly singing. "Where is that music coming from?"
"It's not the radio," Destiny responded, both looking suspicious. "Something's going on here."
"Get the Abomatons ready," Arthur told her while they went to the source of the music.
"And I know, yes, I knew I should leave, when I heard her say, yeah~!"
As Sly sang, Amity in her Abomi-Suit, along with Ghost to her left and Gus to her right, entered the factory first. She carried her Sword of Adam over her shoulder and Gus hung his staff on his shoulders before they were spotted by a bunch of Abomi-Goblins.
"Come a little bit closer, you're my kind of man! So big and so strong. Come a little bit closer, I'm all alone, and the night is so long!"
Amity levitated her sword up with her finger and pointed at the Abomi-Goblins. Her sword glowed as it flew down to slice and stab through each of them. They each fell and screamed before getting cut up and turned into splatter of purple slime.
Sly continued to sing, just as an Abomaton spotted him on the walkway above. "So we started to dance, in my arms, she felt so inviting…"
The Abomaton was about to target him, until Sly's shadow pushed off the walkway, making it trip and fall. Acorn flew around some Abomatons, sprinkling her pixie dust to make them float.
"Oh and I just couldn't resist, just one little kiss, so exciting…"
Acorn flew up to blow a kiss at an Abomaton, who tried to swat her. But as Acorn flew back, the Abomaton got stabbed through by the Sword of Adam. As it fell, Gis created duplicates of themselves to make the Abomatons and Abomi-Goblins confused.
"Then I heard the guitar player say," Sly sang while dodging an ax from an Abomaton. "Vamos, Jose's on his way!" He sent out a shockwave that knocked the Abomaton back while Odalia and Geist showed up, Odalia summoning her ghost to fight back against the Abominations. "Then I knew, yes, I knew, I should run… but then I heard her say, yeah~!"
Viney, along with Emira and Edric, rode on Puddles, who flew up in the air as Edric threw potions around the Abomatons, while Emira blasted them with her spells. The Abomi-Goblins and Abomatons were hit with the rain of potions and magic blasts while Viney held her staff to shoot beams of magic at the Abomi-Goblins on the walkway, knocking them off. This caused a cloud of colorful explosions.
"Come a little bit closer!" Sly sang while strumming his guitar as the Abomi-Goblins fell around him. "My kind of man! So big and so strong- Come a little bit closer, I'm all alone and the night is so long!"
Amity's sword ran straight through another Abomaton. When more Abomi-Goblins showed up, Amity shot abomi-webs to grab them, then smashed them together. One Abomi-Goblin tried to smash Gus, who turned out to be an illusion. Gus popped up, riding on his staff as he flew around the Abomatons trying to hit him. But the Abomatons ended up hitting each other, making them fall.
"La, la, la-la~! La, la, bam-ba!" Sly sang while spreading his magic around, knocking down some Abomi-Goblins and Abomatons. "La, la, la-la~! La, la, bam-ba!"
Acorn spread her pixie dust on Ghost, who spotted an Abomi-Goblin. Ghost flew towards the Abomi-Goblin, hissing and scratching it up. Emira, Viney, and Edric jumped off Puddles as Edric threw more of his explosive potions from his bag, Emira used her illusions to confuse the the Abomi-Goblins and Abomatons, and Viney used Puddles to tackle one of the Abomatons, Odalia and Geist also made their way through the party, Odalia's ghost knocking their enemies out of their path.
"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!"
Everyone stopped and turned to the source of the shout as Sly stopped singing. Coming onto the factory floor with more Abomatons and Abomi-Goblins were Arthur and Destiny. They saw Odalia, Amity, and the twins.
"Oh… saboteurs," Arthur said with a frown.
"Arthur," Odalia spoke up. "Where is Alador?!"
"Oh Odalia, have you not learned your lesson?" Arthur asked as he stepped forward. "I warned you years ago to stay away from Alador or else, and a Blight always keeps their word… and now, you've chosen to involve your children. How low can you go as a terrible mother?"
"Hey pal, that's no way to speak to my sister!" Geist told him off.
"I'm sorry, who are you?" Arthur questioned.
"Uh, Geist? I'm like, your son-in-law," Geist pointed out.
"No, doesn't ring a bell," Arthur said, turning to his wife. "Do you know who that guy is?"
"Beats me," Destiny said with a shrug before a sword was aimed at Arthur. "Arty!"
Arthur turned and saw the Sword of Adam held up against him by a masked Amity. He gasped. "W-What the Titan?!"
"We won't say it again," Amity said as her eyes narrowed. "Where… is… Alador?"
Arthur was taken aback at first, but his eyes quickly narrowed as he recognized her voice. "Amity? You're back?"
"I'm here for my dad," Amity told him. "You tell us where he is, or else…"
Arthur scoffed until he looked at her sword again. When he looked at it more closely… his eyes widened. "That sword… where did you get this?"
"Arthur… tell me it isn't…?!" Destiny realized after also taking a closer look at the sword.
"The Sword of Adam," Arthur said as he backed away, realizing what Amity had. "How could you get that sword?! It belongs to the Blight family and you have no right to wield it!"
"Oh, so you've heard about this?" Amity asked while holding up the sword. "Well, it basically chose me, and as far as I know, I don't see the name 'Blight' in it."
Arthur fumed at this before sighing. "You know, Odalia, I made the mistake of not having you dead all those years ago. Just as I almost made the mistake in making Amity be the one to run Blight Industries in your place…" He glared at Amity. "A Fae running the company would ruin us! It's bad enough that you tainted this family for who you are!"
"Enough!" Amity shouted. "Tell us where dad is, NOW!"
"Oh of course, you want to see him, don't you?" Alador asked while forming a grin.
"Something's up…" Odalia realized as they heard thumping noises.
"Might I present to you our new and improved Abomi-Armor!" Arthur shouted as crashing through the doors and onto the factory floor was a large, purple exo-skeleton armored with a rhinoceros-like head, large metallic arms with bulky round shoulders with spikes, an Abomination head with green eyes is placed on the chest, large metallic boots, wrist cuffs, and waist belt. The one who was piloting it and connected with slimy vines on his body was the former Glandus student Goregon.
"Amity Goodfellow!" Goregon declared. "Time for a rematch!"
"Goregon?!" Amity exclaimed in shock.
"That's right!" he declared while controlling his metallic fists to clash them together. "And this time, I'm not going to be taken down easily!"
"The Abomiro 2.0 is our latest and improved armor!" Arthur declared. "It's got jetpacks, shields, trap-bubbles, missiles and laser beams! And this is the perfect time for a test run against Fae threats!"
"Great," Amity muttered while activating the sword. A large, Abomination head rose up to engulf her, allowing her to don the Abomi-Knight armor. "I'll handle the Abomi-Rhino."
"And we'll take on those two assholes," Emira declared as she along with Edric, Viney, Gus, Odalia, Geist, Sly, Ghost, and Acorn stood ready.
"You all think you can take on us?" Arthur asked as he held up a remote. "Goregon isn't the only thing we wish to test!"
Several doors opened up. They heard screams due to electric collars that were on the Abominable beings that came out. Arthur and Destiny smirked.
"I hope you children are ready to meet… your extended family," Destiny announced as Edric and Emira saw the three monstrous beings…
"Alton," Destiny said as a large, blue Abomination showed up with a collar around his neck. He had glowing yellow eyes, brown hair, a skeletal face with a mixture of flesh and goo, and extended arms and skin-like feet mixed with goo. He also had a golden chest plate connected to some other metal on its arms and legs and body that connected his collar.
"Alice." A red slim Abomination showed up with longer brown hair, blue eyes that glowed, ribs sticking out from the stomach, and many hands and feet. She also had golden bolts connected to her collar along with golden cuffs around the ribs.
"And the twins, Ardon and Addy." The final being was a two-headed green Abomination with dark circles around its glowing green eyes, with each head having skeletal jaws and elongated necks. Both wore black and gold egg-shaped containers with their long arms and short legs sticking out.
"What the FUCK?!" Emira shrieked in shock.
"Those… what did you do to them?!" Edric demanded.
"Simple, we just learned how to perfectly control their bodies," Arthur declared. "Thanks to some help from Gibson, these exoskeleton armors allow us to control our children."
"And, we're going to be planning on making more of them," Destiny said. "Maybe once we finish with all of you, you'd also be a good addition to our Abomi-Monsters…"
"You people are sick!" Gus called them out. "These are your kids!"
"Yeah! Where do you get off?!" Viney shouted.
"We're going to take back what Odalia robbed us of years ago!" Arthur declared as he turned to his children. "My children, Goregon, and Abomatons, take down the gutter trash!"
A battle broke out. The rescue team used their magic against their enemy front, Odalia tapping her necklace to summon her ghosts. "Get behind me, Giest!" she shouted while her ghost fought off an Abomaton.
"Don't have to tell me twice!" Geist replied while creating his own illusions.
Sly got in front and strummed his guitar, blasting the Abomatons away with his music. Amity charged in as she slashed the Abomaton in front of her while Goregon flew down to push her towards a wall. She crashed into it, but when she saw Goregon's metal hands coming down to hit her again, Amity teleported away and reappeared behind him.
"Over here, big guy!" Amity shouted as Goregon turned to charge towards her again. She brought out her sword and charged in to swipe at him, but Goregon blocked it with a glowing shield popping up from his gauntlet.
"Thought I couldn't see this one coming?!" Goregon declared while delivering a punch towards Amity, sending her flying to a box of crates.
"Amity!" Emira shouted before dodging a long arm of Alton and Addy. She along with Edric were forced to fight against the two-headed monstrosity that was their aunt and uncle. "Ed, got any more potions?"
"I got some left, but we'll have to use them wisely!" Edric responded as the two split up to dodge another attack.
Viney and Gus kept casting spells towards Alton and Alice, but no effect. "This is just another Splatterday, isn't it?" Gus asked.
"Why do we keep getting bad weekends?!" Viney questioned as she kept blasting.
Alton stretched out his arms to punch at Viney and Gus, but Puddles flew up to intercept the punches, getting hit.
"Puddles!" Viney cried out.
"Hang on, Vines!" Emira shouted as she drew a spell circle that created a large flash of sparking light at the Abomi-Twins. They backed away, blinded by the light as Emira pulled Edric over to Viney and Gus. But then Alice blocked their path and extended her mouth to send out a large bubble to trap the Blight twins.
"Hang on, kids!" Odalia shouted as she sent in her ghost, who knocked Alice away. She ran over and turned to them. "Are you two alright?"
"Yeah, we're good, mom," Edric reassured her.
"… Yeah, thanks," Emira muttered before shooting an ice spell at an Abomaton, slowing it down. She then got in front of Viney and Gus, using a light spell to temporarily blind Alton. "You two good?"
"Yeah, now that you're here," Viney replied with a smile.
"Okay, Ms. Chevious, I think I see more Abomatons heading our way!" Gus shouted as he pointed at the Abomatons flying down.
"You know, is it just me or are these Abomatons are much easier to take down?" Geist asked, noticing the faulty work on them.
"Arthur and Destiny's 'improvements'," Odalia said, narrowing her eyes at them. "Something tells me they also removed the safety features on them…"
"So they're junk!" Edric shouted as he threw a potion at one, which exploded.
"Kinda weird that our dad would build something like this," Emira said while helping Viney out with Puddles, dragging the griffin to safety while Gus distracted the Abomatons and the Abomi-Twins with his illusions. "Cause even he wouldn't make a downgrade like this!"
Odalia's eyes widened. "He wouldn't… because those aren't his designs," she said while getting a better look at a downed Abomation. "He didn't build these at all!"
"I figured as such," Amity said as she flew around while Goregon chased after her. He shot lasers at her, which she blocked with her sword. "Dad's kind of a perfectionist, there's no way he would allow his inventions to get in this poor state!"
"But if he's not building them…" Gus said while back to back with Edric.
"They trapped him somewhere," Odalia said, narrowing her eyes while noticing Arthur and Destiny going to an elevator. "We have to stop them!"
"But we have to deal with this first!" Geist shouted while Alice and Alton were surrounding them.
Amity slid across the ground while facing off against Goregon, having a standoff with him. "Goregon, you don't have to do this. Arthur and Destiny are just using you!"
"Yeah, well, that's how business works!" Goregon pointed out as he grabbed some crates to throw at Amity. She slashed them up before shooting her Abomi-webs at him to blind him. He grunted and as he pulled the webbing off, his face got kicked back by Amity's boot.
"So why, a rhino, exactly?" Amity asked while avoiding a punch from the mechanical menace. "I mean, why is it designed like that?"
"I read a zoo book I found washed ashore a long time ago, and am fascinated by them! That's why I asked them to design it like that!" Goregon declared while slamming his fists at Amity, who teleported away.
"Really? Cause from where I'm standing you're just copying a comic book villain!" Amity pointed out while dodging another punch from Goregon. "And from what Jerbo mentioned, you tend to take other's Abominations for your own! You have to be the most unoriginal fella I've ever met!"
"SHUT IT, FAE!" Goregon shouted as he charged with his horn, crashing through more crates.
Amity noticed some cauldrons of Abomi-goo and she used her Fae magic to lift it up from the cauldron and send it at Goregon, the goo rushing through him.
"Hyuk, hyuk, hyuk!" Goregon laughed mockingly as he used the Abomi-goo to coat more of his armor. It made him appear like a larger Abomination with his head sticking out, forming the head into rhino shape. "Stupid fae! You just boosted my power!"
"Yeah, well, power that I can still control!" Amity declared while Goregon sent his fists at her until she raised her hands up. As she did, Goregon's abomi-fists… stopped.
"Huh?" Goregon asked in confusion as he tried to move his fists. "Why… can't… I… move?!"
"You should have listened," Amity responded while flying up and delivering a kick to Goregon's face, sending him out of the Abomi-exoskeleton and rolling across the ground. "I can control all Abominations."
Meanwhile, Emira and Edric tried to chase after their grandparents, but were blocked by Aldon and Addy, who cornered them. Viney and Gus were dealing with the other junk Abomatons while Odalia and Geist handled Alton and Alice.
"There's too many of them!" Gus shouted as the Abomatons smashed through his illusions.
"Perhaps… assistance," said a voice.
Suddenly, a larger Abomination with green eyes and a slimy bun showed up, topping every Abomaton in its way. After clearing a path, the Abomination started to resemble Darius… because it was him.
"Darius!" Emira and Edric called out.
"Darius?!" Viney and Gus exclaimed in shock.
"Took you long enough!" Odalia responded.
"Dramatic… entrance," he responded while looking at Alador's monstrous siblings. "Titan… what have their parents done to them?"
Alton roared as he, along with his siblings, felt the electric shock from their collars. They charged towards Darius, who formed his arms to grow bigger hands to push them back to give the kids time to get clear. Darius then faced off against Alton first, who stretched his arms to fight him. Darius morphed his body around to avoid the punches while slithering underneath Alton to get behind him. He grabbed the collar and crushed it with his hand, which resulted in the metal chest plate and appendages falling off. Alton stopped fighting immediately.
"One down, two… or three to go," Darius comments while going to Alice next.
Alice kept forming bubbles from her mouth, but Darius dodged the bubbles. He stretched out his hand and held onto Alice's collar. She shrieked as the collar shocked her and Darius. He grunted and struggled to maintain his form, but he eventually managed to pull the collar off and release her. He used his other hand to pull out the other appendages.
He then saw the Abomi-Twins, who shot out tendrils from their mouths. Darius swirled around the tendrils and reached out to grab their collars, but then they grabbed his arms. However, a lone potion hit the Abomi-Twins, causing them to screech. It distracted them enough for Darius to grab their collars and take them off. The container armor on them was soon taken off.
He turned to Edric and nodded. "Thanks…"
"No problem, sir," Edric said with a nod.
"You think they've calmed down?" Geist asked, noticing how the Abomi-Twins and the others had stopped fighting and were now just wandering around.
"I think they have," Amity responded while flying down.
"Excellent work," Sly said after dealing with some Abomatons. "Perhaps you mortals didn't need me help after all."
"Thanks… whoever you are," Darius said while looking around. "Arthur and Destiny… where?"
"I think they took the elevator beneath the factory," Amity realized.
"Wait," Viney spoke up, looking around. "Where's Emira?"
After leaving the elevator, Arthur and Destiny walked through the hallways of their underground bunker, which Odalia actually had installed in case something ever went wrong.
"Of all the times those miscreants come to ruin everything!" Arthur yelled in anger.
"Not to worry much, dear," Destiny responded as she unlocked a metal door. "At least we have the panic room ready. Perhaps one of the few good ideas that Odalia had."
As the door opened, it revealed someone in the room chained to the floor. The two Blights noticed their unshaven prisoner… Alador.
Opening his eyes, Alador looked up at them. "What's… going on… up there?"
"Nothing for you to worry about, son," Arthur told him with a stern look. "Because no one's coming for you…"
Alador glared at his parents, remembering how he got in this predicament…
Last Splatterday.
After hearing the news about his daughter, Alador marched out of his lab, Gibson following him.
"Alador, wait!" Gibson shouted, trying to grab his arm. "You can't go out during a lockdown!"
"But I have to go find my daughter!" Alador replied. "I have to make sure nobody hurts her!"
"I can't let you leave while we're in a lock down!" Gibson told him, only to receive a punch from Alador, sending him away. "Oof!" He was pushed back to the floor, Gibson rubbing his jaw while he saw Alador pick up speed. "ALADOR!"
Alador ran through the building, heading for the exit. Just as he was about to reach the doors…
"Where are you going, son?" Arthur asked.
Alador stopped as Arthur and Destiny blocked his way. "Mom, dad, I have to go find Amity."
"You will do no such thing!" Arthur told him. "Right now, it's too dangerous, and with Amity being a Fae…"
"It's best that you just sit this out, dear," Destiny replied with a 'concerned' look.
Alador shook his arm as he looked down to the floor. But then his hands formed into fists. "No."
"Pardon… me?" Arthur asked with a twisted look.
"I've put off seeing my daughter for too long," Alador declared. "I thought that she needed her space and that I could help her as a Coven Head, but after hearing that she is a Fae… she needs me and I am not going to stay here and do nothing while she's probably out there scared and panicked."
Arthur paused, looking at his son while holding up a cup of tea. "Son, you're tired and stressed, maybe you should have some of this tea…"
"I don't want your tea!" Alador shouted, swapping the tea away from his father's hand, shocking him. Alador felt a terrible headache and he clutched his head as he tried to fight through it. "I'm going to find Amity, and-"
WHACK!
Alador didn't finish after he was struck to the back of his head. He fell down the floor, lying there motionless.
"You won't be going anywhere…" Arthur told him, as he and Destiny shared a nod before summoning some Abomi-Goblins to drag their son away…
Seeing Alador's glare, Arthur scoffed. "Oh don't give me that look, Alador," he told him. "I've been doing all of this for your own good."
"My own good?!" Alador shouted, looking furious. "I can't believe I allowed myself to have you two back in my life again, and allowed you to hurt everyone…"
"Oh please, don't give me that bellyaching," Arthur ranted, grabbing Alador's hair with a tight grip. "I had my own brothers killed to get where I am! That damn tea Terra gave you was supposed to make you submissive, but Titan damn it was not powerful enough to make you stop caring about your brats! Especially that traitorous Amity."
"I will not let you talk to my children that way!" Alador spat at his father before he got smacked by his father's gauntlet.
"Respect your elders, boy!" Arthur declared as he raised his hand again. "You know, Terra promised that we would live like royalty in the new world. You could have been royalty too… but I suppose not."
But before Arthur could hit Alador again, he suddenly felt a punch to the face. It was A hard punch by Ms. Chevious's gloved hand, knocking him to the wall. Emira made herself visible.
"Arty!" Destiny cried out, only to get kicked in the stomach.
"That's enough," Emira hissed at them, shocking Alador.
"Emira?" Alador asked, recognizing his eldest daughter's voice. "Is that… you?"
Emira turned to him and knelt down to free her father. "Yeah, dad. We're going to get you out."
"We?" Alador asked as Emira used a spell to unlock his cuffs.
"Yeah, Amity, Ed, Uncle Geist… and Odalia are here to save you," Emira replied, much to Alador's shock.
"...Amity is here?" Arthur asked. "And with Odalia?"
Meanwhile, the rest of the group headed into the depths of the factory, trying to catch up to Arthur and Destiny.
"Come on, Emira's probably got a head start on us!" Amity shouted.
"Alador's gotta be somewhere around here," Odalia responded while looking around.
Gus also looked around until he stopped, noticing someone in front of them. "Uh, who's that?"
Amity stopped as well, noticing two figures standing in the shadows.
"Arthur and Destiny were right to be worried you'd return," one of the figures spoke, causing Amity's eyes to widen when she recognized that voice.
"No…" Amity said as the pale blue faced teen in the black hoodie came out of the shadows.
"Oh, good. You recognize me," Zephyr said as he removed his hood. His hair was now tendrils, his hands and feet were chimpanzee limbs, there was a turtle shell on his back, and he also had a scorpion's tail. The other figure was Brian, who now had a snake tail as a replacement for his legs and his arms were octopus arms. "Now we can skip the introductions and have some fun together!"
"Amity," Gus spoke, turning to her. "Are they…?"
"My muggers," Amity said, glaring at them while her body shook as she remembered how they made her feel helpless. "Why are you two out?!"
"Let's just say that we were offered a pardon and a chance to get back at you if we agreed to be given some… enhancements by Dr. Mera," Zephyr said while holding up his monkey hands. "And we're not the only ones with enhancements!"
On cue two other Glandus students revealed themselves: Weaselton and Ruth. While the two looked mostly the same, Weaselton had horns along with his legs being replaced with a dog's body, making him look like a centaur. Ruth's tail was now a living snake.
"Behold! The return of Weaseltaur! And his fellow lieutenant, Ruth! Aka, Snaketail!" Weaselton, who now called himself Weaseltaur, declared.
"I'm sorry, but… who?" Gus questioned.
Weaselton looked confused. "What? How is it that no one knows who I am!?" Weaselton asked.
'We're going to kick your asses!' Ruth signed.
"They're not the only ones who wish vengeance, Amity Goodfellow!" someone else announced.
Amity's eyes widened as she heard heavy footsteps. "No… not you too…" she groaned in annoyance.
"Yes, it is me!" Captain Hook declared while riding in a mech suit. It varied in many shades of purple abomination matter. Its head and green eyes were positioned in place of its chest, which was protected by iron armor. Such iron armor was also found on the legs, feet, and wrists. The right arm bore a cannon, and the tops of the bulky shoulders were spiked. The place above the chest served as the cockpit. A purple jetpack was also present on the back of it.
Odalia's eyes widened. "No way… that's the Abomatron!"
"The what?" Edric asked.
"The Abomatron, which your father was developing while working on the Abomatons!" Odalia said, looking impressed at the finalized battle mech suit. "It's 700 snorsepower, has two pixie-powered jet packs, and comes in several shades of lilac! It's the ultimate battle mech!"
"Uh, glad to know and all, but now's not the time to admire the product, Odie," Geist told his sister.
"Sorry, I got carried away," Odalia responded sheepishly.
"I'm glad that you liked this suit," Hook declared while marching forward. "Because it will be the last thing you see before you die!"
Acorn narrowed her eyes at Hook, gasped, and turned to Amity. "Wait… Amity, that wouldn't be…?!"
"Captain Hook," Amity told her, which shocked the pixie. "Why are you here?!"
"Well, after I lost Smee while raiding the Owl House, I was in a miserable state," Hook explained. "While I was working with someone else, I was offered another chance by the Tarot Guild to work with them again. I would've declined, but then they offered me this new battle suit to use against the likes of you, just in case you showed up again!"
"Tarot Guild…" Amity said as she, Odalia, and Gus realized what he meant. "Arthur and Destiny are part of the Tarot Guild?!"
"Dr. Mera… she is also a suspected member!" Gus pointed out.
"It all ties together now," Odalia said.
"We'll take that big mech suit!" Sly declared as he, along with Darius, charged at Hook in his Abomatron suit. Darius formed his hands into sickles while Sly strummed his guitar at him. Hook stood his ground and used his arms to shoot purple energy blasts that ran through Darius, creating holes. Sly dodged the blasts, but was then blasted to the floor, which surprised him.
"That… hurt!" Sly realized, taken aback.
"Wait, are you a Fae?" Hook asked, curious. "Oh, that is perfect! This was designed especially for the likes of you!"
"And to an extent, me," Amity notes while looking at Zephyr and Brian coming up to her.
"Want me to send them flying?" Acorn asked Amity.
"… No, this is something I have to deal with," Amity told Acorn, while facing the two. While she did feel a little anxious facing them again, she knew she had to set aside her fears in order to get to her father.
"DIE!" Zephyr shouted as he held his hands up, shooting shock wave magic towards her. Amity raised an Abomi-Wall while everyone split up to dodge the attack. Brian slithered over as he shot venom at Amity, who dodged the attack with her abomi-shield. Zephyr had his scorpion tail extended to try to sting Amity, only for it to get hit by a potion that froze it.
"Shit!" Zephyr winced, seeing that Edric had thrown the potion.
"Leave my sister alone!" Edric told him off, as he and Odalia stood alongside Amity.
"You're going to pay for hurting my daughter," Odalia declared while summoning her ghost.
"Brian, let's give these two a lesson!" Zephyr said while Brian towards the two, only to get pinned down by Odalia's ghost. Zephyr charged at Edric, only for Batric to fly up to his face. "Gah!"
"Scratch him in the face, Batric!" Edric encouraged as Batric attacked Zephyr.
"Thanks, guys," Amity told them as Ghost jumped up and turned into a staff for Amity to catch. She used her staff to shoot beams of light towards Zephyr and Brian, pushing them back.
Meanwhile, Weaseltaur and Ruth both charged at Viney and Gus. The two were on their staffs, flying around as Ruth's tail tried to bite Gus, who created duplicates of himself to confuse her.
"Hey Viney, you remember our Flyer Derby play strategy?" Gus asked her.
"Of course," Viney responded while drawing a spell circle, summoning Boiling Isle bugs that swarmed around Weaseltaur, who swatted at them.
"Gah! Not the flies!" Weaseltaur screamed as he was covered in flies.
Ruth turned to Viney and tried to use her tail to bite her, but Geist jumped up to grab it. "Whoa, no need to bite!" Geist told her as Ruth swung her tail around to throw Geist off. "AAAH!" he shouted as he crashed into another room.
"Geist, are you alright?" Gus asked.
Geist groaned. "Yeah, I'm alright, kid," he said before he noticed something munching on a bag of snacks on the table. He looked closely and saw a gray rat with dark brown hair and golden goggles with purple lenses, and purple spots around. "What the…?!" he asked as the rat turned to look at him. "Oh my Titan… Alador?!"
While that was going on, Gus cast more of his illusions, confusing Weaseltaur who ran around trying to find the real Gus before Puddles tackled him.
"Oof!" Weaseltaur cried out, landing on the floor as Puddles pinned him down.
Ruth tried to save Weaseltaur, sending her snake tail to try to bite Puddles. But her tail was hit by Gus's staff. "Oh no, you don't!" he declared, knocking the snake back so that it bit Ruth in the face instead.
'Oh shit,' Ruth signed before falling down to the floor, paralyzed.
Hook kept shooting his beams at Sly and Darius, the two having a hard time taking him on. "Hahaha! Try as you might! But I, Captain Hook, have the upper hand!" he shouted while pulling a lever with his hook. However, Acorn flew up in front of his face. "What the?!"
"Hey, Hook, right? Heard about ya," Acorn said, even though Hook couldn't understand her. She grabbed his mustache, pulled on it, and let go, knocking him back.
"Oof!" Hook cried out, glaring at the pixie who stuck her tongue out before flying around him. She grabbed his hair and pulled on it. "Ow! Hey! Cut that out!"
Amity, Edric and Odalia continued fighting Zephyr and Brian, Amity using her spells to push the two chimeras back while Edric used his positions to confuse them. Brian tried to get back up, but his tail was pulled by Odalia's ghost who started swinging him before throwing him into Zephyr.
"You… think you're all… that…" Zephyr groaned while Amity towards him on her staff.
"Compared to everything I've faced since my mugging… you're nothing," Amity said before entrapping Zephyr and Brian into Abomi-goo, bounding them.
Acorn continued to annoy Hook, who kept swatting at her. "Get away from me, you damn pixie!" Hook shouted. When Acorn flew out of the cockpit, he tried shooting at her, but the pixie avoided his attacks. "You're just as pesky as that blasted Tinkerbell!"
"Good! I'd love to impress my idol!" Acorn declared as she flew up high to dodge the attacks.
Hook decided that he had enough of her, so he tapped on his panel to activate the shoulder cannons. "Take this!" he declared as he shot a purple goo ball at Acorn, who saw the ball about to hit her.
Fortunately, the ball was grabbed by Amity's web-goo and Amity threw the ball at the floor while glaring at Hook. "You alright, Acorn?"
"Yeah, I'm good," Acorn responded.
Hook looked shocked when he saw Amity fly up to the pixie's defense. "You!" he shouted. "You're flying now… just like that accursed Pan!"
"Yeah, I have been taking flying lessons," Amity commented as she threw some Abomi-goo at the cockpit, blocking Hook's vision and giving Darius and Sly the chance to back up Amity by tackling him.
"Get off of me!" he shouted, blasting the two off of him, causing Sly and Darius to fall on the floor.
"Sly! Darius!" Amity shouted before turning to Hook. "Alright, time to put a stop to this thing!" she declared as she held her hands up, aiming at the Abomatron.
Hook paused while seeing Amity trying to control the Abomatron. But when Amity tried to do something, even with her hands glowing… nothing happened.
"What… why can't I control it?!" Amity asked before she realized something. "Oh shit… the anti-Fae measures on that thing."
"That's right!" Hook shouted with a grin. "This thing has been outfitted with iron! You can't do anything!"
Hook aimed his cannon arm at Amity, charging it up to blast her. But Sam flew in to save Amity, getting her out of the way of the cannon as it created a hole in the wall.
"You alright, Amity?" Viney asked as Amity was carried over to the others.
"Yeah, but we have to stop him!" Amity told her.
"No, you go save your dad, and find Emira!" Viney told her, as she along with Gus, Acorn, Darius, Sly and Geist stepped up. "We'll handle that pirate!"
"You, Ed and Odalia go ahead!" Gus told her while Geist ran over.
"Don't worry, I found Al," Geist said while having the mouse on his shoulder. "I think his folks turned him into a rat."
"That's not Alador, Geist," Odalia told him. "That's his Palisman."
"Oh… really?" Geist said, looking at the rat and noticing the hole on the foot. "Oh…"
"None of you are going anywhere!" Hook declared as he attempted to blast them, only for Darius to grab him from behind and push the cannon up, causing Hook to shoot the ceiling instead. While Darius and Sly's shadow wrestled with the Abomatron, Viney got on Puddles and flew into him to knock him off balance. Gus and Geist distracted him with their illusions, Acorn flew up to harass him directly, and Sly teleported around, using his guitar to attack Hook.
"Come on, I think I know where they went!" Sam shouted as she led Amity, Edric, and Odalia away.
"So it comes down to this, isn't it?" Arthur asked.
Emira and Alador faced off against Arthur and Destiny, who had blocked their way.
"Get out of our way if you know what's good for you," Emira threatened.
"I'm surprised, Emira," Arthur told her. "I thought that you hated your father…"
"I'm not doing this for him," Emira said. "I'm doing this for Amity,"
"How unfortunate… for you!" Destiny declared as her dress spread out Abomi-goo.
Arthur held up his cane and out emerged Abomi-tendrils that he launched at Emira.
Emira used flame magic to slice through the tendrils, Alador taking the sliced off Abomi-goo and some of the Abomi-goo from Destiny's attack and forming the matter into large fist gauntlets. He charged at his parents, Emira creating a few duplicates of him to confuse them so that Alador could get a direct punch in at Arthur.
"Oof!" Arthur shouted as he backed away, glaring at Alador. "You dare to strike at your father?!"
"I am never talking to you again," Alador declared, attempting to hit Arthur again. But Destiny's Abomi-dress trapped his feet, sticking him to the ground.
But while Destiny was focused on helping her husband, she noticed Emira popping up in front of her. Destiny tried to grab her, but she disappeared. "What?!" she declared, looking around until she received a punch from Emira.
"You have no idea how much I am enjoying this," Emira declared as she snapped her fingers, creating sparks.
"Tramp!" Destiny shouted while using her Abomi-cape to rise herself in the air and hover over Emira, who backed away as Destiny launched Abomi-goo at her. Emira tried to avoid the attack, but was eventually grabbed by the leg and held upside down. "Not so tough now, are you, dearie?! I think it is time for a lesson about your manners…"
However, she was then punched in the face by Alador, who threw his Abomi-gauntlet across the room to hit her.
"AAH!" she cried out as Emira dropped down.
"Are you alright, Em?" Alador asked before dodging another tendril attack from Arthur.
"Pay attention to your enemy, Al!" Emira responded while dodging another attack from Destiny.
Arthur tried to aim his cane at Alador, but Alador used his remaining Abomi-gauntlet to grab the cane away from Arthur and break it.
"My cane!" Arthur cried out before getting grabbed by Alador.
"It's over, dad!" Alador declared while Destiny noticed this.
"Dear!" Destiny shouted before she was flashed by Emira's light spells. "BAH!" she shouted as she fell back to the floor, Emira tapping Destiny's body, performing a spell.
"Un-mending bones," Emira said as Destiny felt her old bones weaken.
"BAAH!" Destiny cried out.
"Destiny!" Arthur cried out, looking nervous as Alador had him pinned. "A-A-Alador… please, let's talk this over…"
"I'm through being your puppet!" Alador shouted angrily.
"Please, don't do anything rash, Al!" Arthur begged. "You don't want to be like Odalia!"
Emira turned to him. "What?" she asked. "What are you talking about?"
"Oh? You don't know…?" Arthur asking, looking at Emira. "Tell me, Emira, how much do you know about your mother's parents…?"
Emira was confused at first… but then she started to put two and two together. And the realization hit her.
"Em!" Amity shouted as she, Edric, Ghost, and Odalia came running in. Then Amity noticed Alador. "Dad!"
"Amity… you're okay!" a shocked Alador shouted as he shoved Arthur down and rushed towards his daughter.
Amity flew up, hugging her father. "Dad… it's so good to see you!" Amity shouted, getting teary-eyed. "I… I wasn't sure what to think, and I wanted to reach out to you-"
"Amity, I'm just glad that you're safe now," Alador said. "And… I'm so sorry for not talking to you more. I wanted that, believe me, but others kept preventing me… I've been-"
"Influenced?" Odalia asked him. "I was starting to suspect that the Emperor's Coven has been influencing you, making you more easily suggestible."
Alador nodded, though he was surprised to see his ex-wife again. "It is true. When I learned that Amity was a Fae, I knew I had to find her and keep her safe, consequences be damned… but Arthur and Destiny got to me and kept me locked in here for a week. But that gave me the chance to make my mind clearer… and realize the only reason I let them back in my life and started listening to them was because of something in the tea that Terra and my parents had been giving me… I think even Gibson was in on it."
"Don't worry, dad," Edric said to him. "You're safe now."
Alador, still hugging Amity, nodded at his son and gestured for him to come in. Edric, surprised, didn't pass up on the chance to join in on the hug, despite not being sure how to feel about it. Emira and Odalia just looked away, trying not to ruin the moment.
Arthur glared at this, but he especially glared at Odalia. "We warned you, Odalia," he told her.
"You just can't get that nose out of our family business!" Destiny called her out. "We told you what would happen if you interfered with our plans!"
"That we would expose what you've kept from everyone…" Arthur mused as Odalia's eyes widened.
"You tried to bury the truth," Arthur said with a sneer. "But thanks to a friend of ours in the covens, we've got the evidence to incriminate you!"
"What?" Amity asked in confusion as she turned to Odalia. "What are they talking about?"
"I'll tell you, Amity," Emira said, turning to Odalia. "You… you poisoned your parents, didn't you?"
Amity, Edric, and Alador looked shocked by Emira's accusation as they turned to Odalia. She stood there, looking down as she shut her eyes. "Yes." she confirmed. "I… I killed my parents."
Everyone but Emira, Arthur, and Destiny looked shocked by the reveal.
"No…" Amity said as she let go of her father and stared in disbelief at her mother.
"Please, let me explain," Odalia spoke up.
"Explain what?" Arthur asked with a grin. "That you had your own family killed for your own ambitions? Not surprising…"
"No, it's not like that!" Odalia told him off before turning to her family. "I… I hated them, alright? Hated them enough to poison them. Griffin and Gretchen… they were awful, and I thought that me and my brother would never be free from them as long as they were still alive." She looked worried when she saw their reactions. "I know that keeping this a secret is bad, but the truth would ruin me…" She started to plead with her family, who didn't know what to say. "I know that I should answer for it, but I can't afford that right now! Not when I still have so much to do! Please, Amity, Edric, Emira, Alador… please understand!"
"Why not do us all a favor and turn yourself in now before the Emperor's Coven hunts you down?!" Arthur ranted at her.
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!"
Everyone looked even more shocked when they heard Emira snap at Arthur. "You two need to shut up cause you have no place to say anything!" she told Arthur and Destiny off, shocking them. "As bad as my mother is, you two are the worst. So kindly shut the fuck up!"
A moment of silence followed, as everyone was quiet after Emira's rant. She looked down to the floor, processing all of this. She shut her eyes and sighed.
"To be honest, I'm not really that surprised," Emira admitted. "Especially since I once thought of doing the same to you, Odalia."
This shocked Amity and Edric. "I thought you were just…"
"Joking? I wish," Emira told her brother. She then turned back to Odalia. "But you know, I'm not even upset about this."
"You're… not?" Odalia asked her.
"No, cause I understand why you did it. Griffin and Gretchen were just plain awful," Emira said before turning to everyone. "What do you guys feel about it?"
"I… I don't know," Amity admitted, looking down. "It's a lot to process…"
"I know," Alador responded before turning to his son. "Edric?"
Edric looked at Odalia, seeming conflicted. He then looked away. "I think… maybe we should just get out of here."
After everyone agreed, Amity turned to Arthur and Destiny. "Well, we can't leave those two here. They won't be telling everyone what we know… besides mom's friends. And if they are connected to the Tarot Guild-"
"Connected to the Tarot Guild?!" Alador exclaimed in shock before he glared at his parents. "Is there any low that you won't stoop down to?"
"Don't worry, Alador, my friends will take care of them," Odalia said while Amity trapped them in Abomi-goo while Arthur and Destiny looked at each other with worry.
After they took the elevator back up to the factory floor, Arthur and Destiny were led down a walkway over vats of Abomination goo.
"Come on, this way," Amity said while looking at a text from Gus "The others are outside. Hook managed to get away,"
"What is that pirate's deal with you, Amity?" Edric asked her.
"It's a long story…" Amity replied while Alador noticed the destruction to the factory and the wrecked Abomatons.
"Good Titan,.." Alador said while looking around the damage. "What happened here?"
Before Amity could answer, a sudden explosion occurred beneath them, causing the walkway to shake.
"What was that?!" Odalia shouted.
"Don't look at us! It's not our doing!" Arthur responded as the walkway shook. Another explosive occurred, which caused the walkway to start to collapse with everyone on it.
"Hang on!" Alador shouted as he summoned his Abomi-Goo to grab a support and hold themselves up while Amity latched onto Edric, Emira, and Odalia with her Abomi-Goo to keep them from falling, Sam helping. But before she could web up Arthur and Destiny, the walkway fell some more and Destiny lost her balance.
"Destiny!" Arthur screamed.
"Arthur!" Destiny cried out as she fell to the ground. As she turned over, she saw the edge of the broken walkway fall over, aiming at her face. "AAAAAHH!"
CRUSH!
"DESTINY!" Arthur cried out before he was webbed up to be pulled back. "NOOOOOOOO!" he cried while seeing his wife's demise.
"Hang on, Dad!" Alador told him, but Arthur glared at them.
"NO!" he shouted before turning to Odalia. "You… you caused my Destiny to fall!"
"What?!" Odalia asked while hanging onto the webbing. "Arthur, be reason-"
"YOU'VE ROBBED ME OF MY DESTINY!" Arthur shouted as he struggled, the webbing starting to snap.
"Arthur! You're going to fall!" Amity shouted as she tried to help her father keep the walkway up.
"I… I can't live without my Destiny," Arthur said while grabbing Odalia.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Odalia shouted.
"IF I DIE, YOU DIE AS WELL!" Arthur declared as he grabbed onto Odalia and they both fell towards a vat of boiling Abomination goo… but Odalia halted in midair and was pulled back, causing Arthur to let go of her. "AAAAAAHHHHHH!"
Odalia watched as Arthur fell into the vat of boiling Abomination matter. A splashing sound was heard, followed by sizzling. Arthur's screams stopped as his hat floated up. She then looked up to see that the one who grabbed her… was Emira.
"Hang… on!" Emira said, still connected to the Abomi-web from Amity, who along with Sam started to help everyone to the ground, safely away from the vat.
After the family landed, unknown to them there was someone who was responsible for the walkway's destruction. He gave a quiet cackle. "The deed is done," he said while slipping into the shadows. The Grim Goblin had struck again, ensuring that Arthur and Destiny wouldn't give away the Tarot Guild's secrets…
"Is everyone alright?" Alador asked.
"Yes, we're… fine," Odalia responded while turning to Emira. An awkward silence fell over them as Emira avoided her mother's gaze. "Emira… I just want to say… thank you, for saving me."
"Yeah, just… doing what I signed up for," Emira admitted awkwardly. "Helping people." She then looks at Destiny's head smashed by the walkway. "Though I can't say the same for them…"
Alador looked around the factory, disgusted. "Look at this mess…" When he got a closer look at the Abomatons, he narrowed his eyes at them. "Those aren't my designs…"
"Your parents were hacks," said a familiar voice.
Alador's eyes widened and he turned around, seeing the Abominable form of Darius at the exit. "Darius…?!" he gasped in shock. "Is… is that you?!"
"Al," Darius said, waving to him. "Long time, no see…"
"I… but how?" Alador asked. "I have so many questions about how are you still…?"
"Later," Darius told him as the family went outside, where they saw Viney, Gus, Geist, Sly, and Acorn, along with a tied up Goregon and the captured chimeras; Zephyr, Brian, Weaseltaur and Ruth all tied up and knocked out.
"Guys, you're alright!" Amity shouted as she, Emira, and Edric rushed over to them.
"We're good," Gus responded after Viney finished healing him up. "Hook decided to bail after we gave him a scare. Dude apparently has a fear of crocodiles…"
"Yeah, sorry that we couldn't stop him," Viney apologized while Emira hugged her.
"Don't worry, we'll worry about Hook later," Amity reassured them.
"What about Arthur and Destiny?" Gus asked, causing Amity to look down.
"We… don't have to worry about them anymore," she admitted.
"Al!" Geist shouted as he went to hug his brother-in-law. "It's so good that you're not turned into a rat!"
"Good to see you too, Geist," Alador responded, patting his back. "Though I don't know about the rat thing…"
"Oh, cause I got this little guy," Geist said as he showed him the gerbil Palisman, who squeaked to Alador.
Alador gasped. "Ratador!" he said as the gerbil Palisman jumped onto his shoulder. "Oh, it's so good to see you! I thought I lost you somewhere!"
"Whoa, neat Palisman," Viney commented after Emira let her go. Her comment got Alador's attention.
"Thanks… um, pardon me, but I don't think I know you," Alador said to her.
"Viney Potts, Emira's girlfriend," Viney introduced, raising her hand.
"Emira's girlfriend?" Alador asked. "Well, it's um… nice to finally meet you, Viney," he said while awkwardly shaking her hand.
"You too, sir," Viney responded. "I'm both in the Healer and Beast-Keeping Tracks."
"Interesting track choices," Alador commented. "You know, other than Abominations, I've always wanted to do Beast-Keeping, since I have a fascination with creatures. I used to have a Demon Butterfly collection."
"That's nice, sir," Viney replied while Emira watched the two talk.
"Well, I guess it's good that you two have met, at the very least," Emira muttered while Alador turned to her.
"Em… thank you, for saving me," Alador replied to her. "And… I am sorry. For everything. I don't know what things between us will be like moving forward, but I just hope to be part of your life and the lives of your siblings."
Emira was quiet for a moment as she looked up at her dad. "It's… fine. Do what you like to do," she said while Amity walked up to her.
"Dad." Amity spoke up, getting Alador's attention. "Look… I know that… things have been really crazy since last week, and awkward between us… but, about me being a Fae… I'm only part-Fae, but… how do you feel about it?"
Alador turned to Amity and knelt down. "Fae or not, you're still my daughter," he reassured her with a smile while patting Amity's shoulders. "Though how did this happen?"
"I've made a deal with a Fae named Puck in order to save Luz and her family," Amity answered. "Though, both of us didn't know the consequences of this deal at the time. Apparently, in order for me to protect Luz and her family, I started to develop Fae abilities. I… even have a living shadow now." She gestured to Sam, who waved at Alador.
"Nice to officially meet you, sir," Sam said.
"Her name is Sam and she said that it's nice to meet you," Amity told Alador, who looked fascinated by Sam.
"Interesting…" he said, scratching his beard. He then looked back at his daughter. "I, uh… Amity, I promise that from here on out, I will do everything within my power to keep you safe, even from the Emperor's Coven," Alador declared. "I'm aware of Belo's anti-Fae policy, but I'm not going to let him hurt you."
"Thanks, dad, and," Amity said as she turned to Odalia. "About mom's affair… it wasn't her fault. She and Lilith were also influenced, like you were."
Alador looked up at Odalia, shocked. "Wait, really?"
"It is kinda my fault, actually," Edric admitted. "My ex-girlfriend's friend, Trini, was a cambion who drugged mom and Lilith, framing it as an affair just to isolate me from my family. Which I guess is how Arthur and Destiny tried to isolate you from us."
Alador was silent for a moment, processing everything. While this did clear a lot up for him, he was still left with a lot of questions. "Oh… oh dear Titan, I am so, so sorry, Odalia," Alador said to her. "I'm sorry about all of this, I… I should've been stronger, stand up to everyone that was controlling me…"
"It's not your fault, Alador. Don't blame yourself," Odalia reassured him, her voice gentle. The two looked at each other, some awkwardness between each other.
"Thank you, Odalia," Alador said. "Maybe… maybe we could talk later." He turned to the rest of his family. "We should all talk later."
"Hey, sorry to interrupt the family reunion, but we gotta bail," Sly said as he pointed up to the sky. "Cause we'll soon be getting some company."
Everyone looked up to see some blimps in the distance, quickly approaching. "Yeah, that's our cue to bail," Gus said.
"All of you go, I'll stay behind to cover for you and wipe the footage on the crystal balls," Alador told them, though everyone was reluctant to leave him.
"Are you sure, dad?" Amity asked him.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine now," Alador reassured her. "You did your part, now let me do mine. Though what about those guys?" he asked, pointing to Goregon and the chimeras.
"We'll take them," Darius responded, wrapping his body around Goregon and the chimeras. "No more trouble…"
Alador nodded and then looked around at everyone again. "Thank you all for saving me. And I promise we'll talk later," he told them as Amity went up to hug her dad again.
"Just be careful," Amity said. After letting him go, everyone started to leave. Darius left with his prisoners while Geist and Emira rode with Viney on Puddles, Odalia rode on Amity's staff…
Just as Jerbo flew down on his staff, Barcus riding with him. "Alright, time for some action!"
"Sorry Jerbo, but you missed it," Edric told him while riding on Gus's staff
"What?! Again!" Jerbo exclaimed as he spotted Alador and waved at him. "Oh, hey Mr. Blight. Glad that you're alright."
"Come on, let's go," Amity said while Odalia rode on her staff.
Once everyone was gone, Alador turned back to the Blight Industries factory and sighed. He knew he had a lot of explaining to do…
Back at CATT headquarters, everyone decided to rest. Raine came to Odalia, Darius, and Geist after they locked up their prisoners.
"So Arthur and Destiny were part of the Tarot Guild?" Raine asked them.
"Yeah, but now they're dead. We could have made them tell us who's in charge," Odalia admitted.
"What about those kids, though?" Geist asked, pointing at the cells.
"Well, we will try to find a cure for whatever the Tarot Guild did to them. But maybe they could know about the Tarot Guild," Raine suggested.
Geist nodded as he turned to Odalia. "Odie, um, can I have a word?"
"Of course," Odalia said as she and her brother walked away to talk in private.
"The kids told me… that they know," he said.
Odalia sighed and looked down. "Yes, they do," she admitted. "Did you tell them that you already knew?"
"Yes," Geist admitted, looking away. "I guess I'm glad that I don't have to keep your secret anymore…"
Odalia leaned back against the wall, looking frustrated. "I have no idea what I'm going to do now, Geist…"
"You'll think of something," Geist encouraged. "I mean, they probably won't take this as hard as I did when I realized what you did. I didn't talk to you for months after the funeral…"
"I know," Odalia said sadly, remembering it. "…how do you feel about it now"
Geist fell silent for a moment. "I was in denial at first," he admitted, looking down. "Mom and dad were awful, but… I didn't think you were capable of something like that, killing our parents. That… that wasn't the sister that I thought I knew. But now…" He looked back up at his sister. "I feel like I failed you as a brother. That if I had protected you better, you wouldn't have-"
"This is not your fault, Geist," Odalia interrupted. "This is mine. And maybe… maybe I should face consequences for this. After Belos is out of the picture."
Geist nodded. "Whatever you decide, I'll be here for you," he admitted.
Odalia smiled and went to hug her brother. "Thank you, Geist."
"No problem, sis," Geist responded, hugging his sister back.
Meanwhile, Amity was with Edric, Emira, and Viney in another room, hanging out with Hikari and Shadow Wolf.
"How are you feeling now, Emira?" Hikari asked her.
"Well… I think I'm… a little better," Emira responded while sitting on her cot. "I… still don't know if I could forgive mom and dad, but I do know there are witches worse than them and deserve worse. Arthur and Destiny were two of those witches."
"Are you… not thinking about hurting mom right now?" Edric asked, worried.
"I'm… not," Emira admitted. "But thanks for the concern."
"Em, I just want to say… thanks for saving mom and dad," Amity told her.
"Yeah, well, I did it for you, Mittens," Emira replied. "And as a Healer, it's my duty to help others. Even if it is mom…" She laid on her cot, setting her hat down and looking tired.
Hikari smiled at Emira before she turned to Amity. "You must be Amity, it's nice to finally meet you. I'm Hikari."
"Oh, nice to meet you," Amity said.
"Amity!" Gus suddenly shouted.
Amity turned to see Gus, who came in with his scroll and a worried look. "We got a problem. I just got a text from Skara, who Eda, King, and Luz went with to save Nina's siblings and mom."
"Is everything alright?" Amity asked, standing up.
"Skara said that Nina's siblings and mom are safe, but…" Gus said in a concerned tone. "Luz, Nina, and Willow are all missing…"
Back at Blight Industries, the coven scouts were setting up a perimeter and trying to round up Alador's siblings, who were still wandering around the factory.
"What happened here?!" a coven scout shouted while with Alador.
"A Tarot Guild attack," Alador explained. "My parents… I'm afraid they died."
The coven scout sighed. "Titan… we are going to have to shut this place down until further notice!"
"I understand," Alador said with a nod while he saw the scouts carrying his mother's body in a body bag.
After the vats of Abomination goo were drained out, the matter was washed out of a drainage pipe that led outside of Blight Industries to a polluted lake.
In this lake, a few bubbles boiled to the surface. More bubbles appeared before rising out from the water… was a burnt skeletal hand glowing purple.
BuckJohnson here.
So yeah, this is basically the Luz Clawthorne version of "Clouds on the Horizon". You may be surprised that it's here instead of after "Hollow Mind". Well, originally we did plan to have the confrontation with Arthur and Destiny come after "Hollow Mind", but we decided to move it earlier because we thought the readers would like to see the Blight grandparents get their comeuppance sooner, rather than wait longer. JP also wanted to do a chapter where Emira was the main focus and she would try to help her brother make new friends, so we decided to combine that with "Clouds on the Horizon".
Ray and Silent G are based on Jay and Silent Bob from "Clerks Animated Series", where because of ABC they were firecracker dealers instead of pot dealers like in the movie. Silent G is also based on B from Total Drama.
The song that Sly sung was "Come A Little Bit Closer" by Jay and the Americans.
Fun fact: me and JP like to think that Riley was Edric's date mentioned in "Through the Looking Glass Ruins" in the canon universe.
I bet some of you were thinking Amity would end up being captured by the Ninja and the Alchemist as well... but no. They don't know that Amity is back in the Isles and they were focusing on the characters who were at the IFWOT, so that means Amity was not a target. Which means that in the next chapter she'll try to find a way to help Luz while we finally learn the Alchemist's role in all of this...
BlueKnight-X2: Yeah, things are furthering more shocking in the end.
Shuffollower: Don't worry, there won't be an Ultimate Drako-situation, and he won't be after Amity. Thanks for the fankid entry.
OMAC001: Yeah, that's the intention.
Matteso585: 1) I mean, we're just exploring different settings. Also The Ninja Supreme is just getting the Papa Parks and Kitsuni out of the way since they'd pose a threat to the Alchemis's plans. 2) Yeah. 3) You should. 4) If Belos had the Collector in this timeline, he could've learned what was Terra doing behind his back. Belos is so focused on the Day of Unity, to the point that he does entrust Terra as a necessary evil.
Ricardo Alfredo Almiron: Nothing planned about that yet. Though we do have some ideas.
Crash X Fusion: Oh trust me, there does remain those who aren't part of the Tarot Guild that does what they want. Venoma included since she's associated with Draco and Seth after encountering them at some point through Silas. For now, she's the Baroness of of the whole thing. And don't worry, we are planning on doing something to do a tribute to Smash Mouth soon.
Ultimate-drax: Oh trust us, we're just scratching the surface.
Spantidem7: Well compare to Mel and her gang, Terra, Seth, and Draco, are worse since they don't have any sympathy. Terra is a child-killing monster who loves drugging people to be put under control. Seth is a racist supremacist, and Draco takes pleasure in killing his brother and would let a baby get eaten and not to mentioned kicking Donna when she's down. The Ninja Supreme shows that he has no qualms in taking down those who gets in the way, not even women and children. As for Amity's grandparents… they called Luz "exotic" like what most racist rich peedos would say.
