The place that Amity decided to carve her Palisman was the Knee. A place where magical energy flowed easily and naturally, and it was here that she believed would be the best place to carve her new Palisman. It was frigid, but it wasn't the first time she's trained at the Knee. When she told her mother where she wanted to go to carve it, at first, she was against it, but after Amity talked up that her Palisman may be able to draw on the natural magical energies that are around the Knee, and might make it stronger, she was quick to agree. On the condition that Edric and Emira go with her.
Amity huffed at the idea of having her big brother and sister tag along. Not that she minded their company, but she did mind that her mother forced them to go with her. So, once they arrived, the Blight siblings hunkered down while Amity carved her new Palisman. Bast appeared before her and modeled for her. Amity suspected that Bast's ego was getting stroked by this, and that that was why she was so eager to model for her. But, as time went by, Amity started to feel as if Bast actually felt happy that she was asked to model.
A few hours passed by with morning turning into midafternoon, and her new Palisman was coming along very nicely. Bast, who was keeping still this whole time asked, "So, what are you going to name this little one when it's done?"
"I have been thinking about some names, but couldn't you just read my mind and find out what they are instead of asking me?" Amity asked.
Bast shrugged. "I could, but then we wouldn't have much of a conversation now, would we?"
"Can't argue with that. You'd think that talking to you while I'm doing this would be a distraction, but I feel more focused talking with you while I carve," Amity admitted.
"My regal appearance does have that effect on others," Bast gloated.
Amity rolled her eyes at the cat Phantom.
"So, I was thinking of calling them…Ghost. What do you think?" Amity asked.
"Hmm, well, not very regal. But it does have mysterious tone to it. So, I can live with something sharing my likeness having such a name. Oh, sibling alert."
"Hey, Mittens!" Edric and Emira greeted.
"Ed, Em."
The twins sat down on opposite sides of Amity was the looked upon the nearly completed Palisman.
"Wow, Am, it looks so cute," said Emira.
"And very sleek," Edric added.
Amity smiled as she put the finishing touches on her new companion. "And, done."
The Palisman was complete, and the Blight siblings waited for it to come to life, however, the Palisman did not move. The three of them raised in an eyebrow in confusion.
"Uh, is it broken?" Edric asked.
"Shouldn't the Palisman come to life right about now?" Emira inquired.
Amity drew a spell circle and summoned the book on Palisman carving. She flipped through the pages and found the passage she was looking for. "According to the book, once you're done, the Palisman should come to life immediately. I…I don't know what's wrong?"
"You think Mom may've gotten cheated and they gave her defective Palistrom wood?" Edric asked.
"No way, as much as I hate to admit, Mom's too clever to let someone scam her like that," said Emira.
"Then why…?"
"Because it doesn't know who to awaken for, yet."
Edric and Emira looked at Amity, but she looked just as confused as they did. "I didn't say anything."
"But we heard your voice," said Edric.
"Yeah, my voice."
All three siblings looked forward and gasped. Walking towards them was…Amity. Except, this Amity had green hair like she used to have. Her eyes had a golden glow to them as she approached the siblings, smirking smugly at them.
Amity got back to her feet and glared at the Other Amity. "You! So, you are a Phantom!"
Other Amity sighed dejectedly. "Oh, Titan you're stupid! I'm not a Phantom! I am you! Or I was a part of you, anyway."
"Am, what's going on…?" Emira asked.
"I'm not playing these games, just tell me who you are!"
"Guess you need a hint. Do you remember the theory proposed by Professor Kumakuma? The previous head of the Oracle Coven?" Other Amity asked.
Amity thought about it for a moment until it struck her like a bat upside the head. "No…t-that's just a theory! It was never proven!"
"What?!" Ed and Em asked.
"Professor Kumakuma proposed that magic is also linked to one's psyche as well as their spirit. When a witch or demon experiences changes in their life, something that causes their world view to change, it can sometimes have a drastic affect on their mind, causing a deviation from how that person views themselves as opposed as to the person they are now. This can give rise to the phenomenon known as, a Shadow." Other Amity explained.
"That's…right…" Amity admitted.
"This Shadow is a physical manifestation of that person's other self, the part they are denying, that they refuse to accept or forget about. That Shadow's existence is born through the magic of the original, and so here I am."
Amity shook her head. "I remember! But that theory also states that you can only manifest yourself if I reject you! I never even met you until today!"
Other Amity chuckled. "Really, did you forget already? We met not too long ago."
Amity's mind flashed back to the dreams she had, she thought that they were just fever dreams, but when she rejected Shadow Amity in the dream world, when she said, "I'll see you soon," that was the Shadow. She released her Shadow into the real world.
"The sickness you were experiencing was a result of the schism in your mind. Your body was reacting to my existence, to your rejection. And so, I was expelled and am now my own entity," said Shadow Amity.
Amity balled up her fists and asked, "What do you want?!"
"Simple, really." Other Amity drew a spell circle, and into her hands she formed a violet-colored fireball. "First, I'm going to end your existence so that I am the one true Amity Blight. The one you didn't have the guts to become! And then, I'm going to go pay that human a visit and end her retched life before she poisons my mind like she did yours! Afterwards, I'll get my life back on track, where I'll eventually become part of the Emperor's Coven. They'll surely take me when I–"
"DON'T!" Amity begged.
"Become the only Kamen Rider around after Luz is gone," Shadow Amity finished.
Shadow Amity launched her fireball right at Amity, but before it could hit, Edric and Emira drew a combined spell circle to create a barrier in front of them. The fireball exploded against the shield, kicking up a smoke cloud around them. When the smoke cleared, they were gone, but Shadow Amity was not so easily fooled.
"Ed, Em, do yourselves a favor. Do not interfere! This is fight between me and myself!" Other Amity stated.
"You look like Mittens, but you're not her."
"Yeah, she was never this ruthless. A bit uptight, but never like this!"
Shadow Amity scoffed. "Then you two really don't know the real me."
Shadow Amity dropped to the ground and swept her leg around, drawing a spell circle with her left foot. Once completed, Other Amity conjured Abomination goo, and with a flick her wrists, she made the goo transform into spikes that were launched in every direction.
Edric, Emira, and Amity took cover behind a boulder. They flinched when they felt the boulder shake from the spikes that embedded themselves into it, effectively pinned down by Shadow Amity.
"Mittens, what did she mean by being the only Kamen Rider?" Emira asked.
"Look, there's a lot to explain, but right now we need to focus on taking her down! You two stay here! She's only after me!" Amity ordered as she jumped from behind the rock. "HEY!"
Shadow Amity turned to face her counterpart, and that's when Amity drew a large spell circle and made a wave of Abomination goo come rushing forth, threatening to sweep her away like a tidal way. But Shadow Amity drew her own circle and created a huge Abomination blade and sliced right through the wave, parting it down the middle. Shadow Amity commanded the goo to reform around her left fist, creating a gauntlet with knuckle spikes. Amity countered by creating a shield with her goo around her left arm, and quickly blocked the attack. The force of the attacks caused the snow to be pushed away, creating a snow free area for about teen feet in all directions.
"How are you this strong?!" Amity inquired.
"You think just because I'm your Shadow, that I'm weaker than you?! That's insulting!" Shadow Amity exclaimed as she drew back her fist and pushed again.
Amity skidded backwards but was not given time to counterattack as Shadow Amity fired her gauntlet repeatedly, using the fists as projectiles and forcing Amity to widen the shield and brace against the attacks.
"Just like you draw on Bast's mana to fuel your magic and make it stronger, I can do the exact same thing!" Shadow Amity declared.
WHAT?! Is she telling the truth?!
"Unfortunately, yes!"
Can't you cut her off?!
"I can't, it's the same as you drawing on my mana, I can't stop it!"
Alright then, I'll just have to take her down!
Amity drew another spell circle, and from it she conjured multiple Abominations that rose around Shadow Amity. But the Shadow was just as skilled as the original, jumping backwards to avoid getting caught by one of them, while drawing two circles in the air. From those circles emerged two Abomination pythons that slithered towards the golems. The Abomination pythons wrapped around the golems and squeezed them until they burst apart into mush, allowing the pythons to absorb their goo and increase their own mass. Once those were taken care of, the two Abomination pythons rushed towards Amity. However, before they could close in, Amity dashed forward, creating two circles that hovered over her wrists. When the pythons got close, Amity sliced the air with her hands, making the Abomination pythons explode in front her, breaking them down back into goo.
Amity began taking control of the goo and redirected it at Shadow Amity. The Shadow was not about to be outdone. When the goo stream approached her, Shadow Amity took control of it and re-redirected back at Amity. What occurred next was a back and forth of the two Abomination magic users trying to make that same mass of goo try to attack the other. Amity poured more of her magic into it, and so did Shadow Amity. The goo started to become unstable as it hovered in the air between them, with both magic users trying to gain total control over it. After a minute, the goo could not take any more and exploded, sending bits of the goo everywhere.
Amity panted from the effort but smirked as she said, "Looks like we're evenly matched, but there's one thing I have that you don't!" The youngest Blight child took out her Driver ring and slipped it over her right middle finger.
[Driver On.]
Shadow Amity chuckled mockingly as she said, "You think you're the only one with a MagiDriver?" Shadow Amity reached into her pocket and showed off the exact same ring as Amity.
[Driver On.]
Amity's eyes widened with shock as she watched a MagiDriver appear around the Shadow's waist. Both Amity's entered their transformation stances, and spoke in unison, "HENSHIN!"
[Ready, Open!]
[Roar of the Heavens!]
[The Goddess Descends!]
Purple magic circles appeared beneath Amity and Shadow Amity, and once they did, both circles rose over them, transforming both into Kamen Rider Heka. But Shadow Amity's form was different. While the armor was exactly the same as Heka's, the gold color was replaced by a sparkling silver.
"You thought that was unique to you? Sorry to disappoint you, but either way, I'll be the new Heka once you're out of the picture," said Shadow Heka.
Heka wasn't worried as she took a ready stance. "Let's just see if you can back up that talk!"
In the blink of an eye, both Hekas dashed towards each other, meeting in the middle as they clashed with their staffs. Another powerful shockwave rang through the area, pushing back even more snow. Edric and Emira's jaws were dropped, they couldn't believe their eyes. Their little sister was Kamen Rider Heka this entire time.
"Can today get any weirder?" Edric asked.
"Don't jinx it!" Emira hissed.
Heka and Shadow Heka exchanged blows with their Lady Lucks, causing sparks to fly as their blades struck against each other. It was frustrating for Heka; her Shadow was just as fast and just as strong as her. But if there was one thing that was different, Shadow Heka was indeed more aggressive than she was, and that seemed to make her attacks hit just that much harder. Shadow Heka swept Heka's legs, making her fall to the ground as she raised Lady Luck to stab her. Heka quickly rolled out of the way and jumped back to her feet as she came in with another slash of her staff, only to be blocked by Shadow Heka again.
Shadow Heka slipped on one of her Arms rings and forced Heka to do the same.
[Call to Arms: Scarab Saber!]
[Call to Arms: Sphinx Shield!]
Lady Luck disappeared as a shield appeared around Heka's left arm, while the Scarab Saber appeared in Shadow Heka's left hand. Shadow Heka wasted little time in rushing Heka, speeding towards her as she slashed at her golden counterpart from every direction she could. Thankfully, the Sphinx Shield increased her armor's overall defensive strength, so the blows were not as serious, plus, the Scarab Saber's attack strength was reduced in favor of greater speed.
"You and I both know the Scarab Saber doesn't have enough power to cause me any real damage, you're better off using the Griffon Axe!" Heka stated.
"You're right, but then again, you're style of fighting is too limited!"
Shadow Heka disengaged for a moment and raised her right hand. A shimmering silver glow appeared in that hand before Lady Luck reappeared.
"What?! How did you call Lady Luck back?!" Heka asked.
"The better question is, 'Why haven't you tried to do it before'?!" Shadow Heka retorted as she pulled the lever. "Decrease defense!"
[Spin 'round and 'round!]
The roulette spun around until it landed on a purple number.
} WINNER: 36 {
A purple aura appeared over Amity, and suddenly, she felt her entire body become more vulnerable.
"Increase attack!"
[Spin 'round and 'round!]
} WINNDER: 33 {
A silver aura appeared over Shadow Heka, and in the next moment, she sped towards Heka and slashed at her once again. Several sparks erupted from Heka's body as the attacks hit way harder and with more power than before, and what's worse, with the added speed boost from the Scarab Saber, they were hitting that much harder. Shadow Heka reappeared in front of Heka, she quickly dismissed Lady Luck and swapped out to another ring.
[Call to Arms: Griffon Ax!]
The Scarab Saber disappeared and was replaced with the Griffon Ax, and with one mighty swing, Shadow Heka swung her weapon. Heka raised her shield, but the moment the ax hit the shield, it shattered like glass. While it did spare Heka a direct blow, the power behind the attack released an energy wave the crashed into her, sending Heka flying into several trees before stopping against a huge rockface. Heka found herself stuck against the rock, she could taste some of her blood in her mouth, but amazingly she was still breathing.
"We have to retreat! We should go and get Laly and Luz! You can't beat her on your own!"
"It's okay…since she's me, that means her MagiDriver will run out of power soon, then I can overtake her when she slips up," said Heka.
The golden Rider managed to peel herself off the rock and fall to the ground. Once she picked herself up, Heka put on the Scarab Saber Arms ring.
"I just need to rundown the clock until that happens!"
[Call to Arms: Scarab Saber!]
Now armed with the Scarab Saber, Heka dashed back to the battlefield, where Shadow Heka was waiting for her. Heka struck fast with her saber, but in a shocking twist, Shadow Heka raised the Griffon Ax quick enough to block the attack.
"Yeah, I may've cast a couple of more increase spells on myself."
"AURGH!"
Heka went into a speed blitz, but Shadow Heka matched her speed even in her powered weapon state. Unfortunately, it was the same situation as earlier, except the power of Shadow Heka's blows were even stronger than before thanks to the power boost of the Griffon Ax. Heka herself was still under the effects of the decrease and new she had to be extra careful and dodge as much as possible, one blow from that ax could probably end her if she was careless.
Suddenly, as Heka dodged another swing of the ax, more Heka's appeared. First there were two, then four, then twelve, and now thirty. All of them were moving around the area swiftly, making it hard to discern the afterimages from the actual clones. It didn't take long for Shadow Heka to know exactly what was going on her.
"Ed! Em! You really should not be interfering in your sister's personal matters!"
Shadow Heka raised her ax up, channeling her mana into it so that it glowed a bright silver color. And with one swing, she slashed in a circle, sending out a cutting circlet wave of energy that expanded in all directions. Heka hurriedly stopped her movements and summoned her own Griffon Ax, after, she placed the ring back in the right slot of the MagiDriver and turned it.
} Griffon Ax: Blazing Strike! {
The Griffon Ax ignited with golden flames as Heka brought the blade down, creating her own counter cutting energy wave. The two attacks grinded against each other, sending sparks of energy flying everywhere, and kicking up a whirlwind around them. She was not sure of where Edric and Emira were, but she could not take the chance that this attack could hurt them. After about a minute of struggle, Heka managed to hold back the attack long enough for it to dissipate on its own. But at the last second, Shadow Heka came in and slashed her across the chest, making sparks erupt from her chest armor as Heka screamed in pain from the attack.
Shadow Heka spun on her right heel and kicked Heka in the stomach, sending her flying again in the opposite direction. The Shadow chased after her, getting into an intercept path as she waited for Heka to arrive. When she did, Shadow Heka slashed again, this time hitting her counterpart in the back and showering the air with more sparks and causing another scream of pain to come from Heka. The hit sent Heka flying straight down to the ground, where she impacted hard against the rocky terrain.
Unfortunately, that last attack was enough to force cancel the transformation, leaving Amity exposed. Her body hurt all over, there were some bruises that matched the slash marks, showing just how close Shadow Heka came too close to cutting through the armor. Amity spat out some blood from her mouth, painting the white snow before her with scarlet droplets. The youngest of the Blight family managed to turn around and watch as Shadow Heka came walking towards her, ax in hand, like an executioner.
"That was fun for a minute, but it's over my weaker self," said Shadow Heka.
"Have you been keeping track of your time? You should be almost out of power in a few more seconds," said Amity, smugly.
Shadow Heka laughed at the insinuation. "I'm not as weak as you. See for yourself."
Amity looked at Shadow Heka's MagiDriver and was shocked when she saw that the hourglass indicator had not changed at all since the start of the battle. It hadn't decreased in the slightest bit. "That's…not possible…! The MagiDriver can only keep me transformed for ten minutes every twelve hours!"
Shadow Heka raised her ax and pointed it at Amity. "That's your limitation, not mine. Because you don't have the resolve it takes to properly wield this power. But once I get rid of you, I'll make better use of it than you could have ever hoped to."
Amity's eyes began to water as Shadow Heka's words sunk in. "Am I…really that weak?"
"Yes, you are! As you are now, you're a burden! You're nothing but a liability! You think you can stand on equal footing with that human?! HA! She's still far stronger than you! But after today, I'll change that! I'll use Bast's power to its fullest extent!" Heka raised the Griffon Ax overhead. "First you. Then Luz Noceda, and then I can finally get my life back on the right track!"
Shadow Heka gripped the Griffon Ax with both hands and brought it down to finally end her weaker self and become the true self.
"…THAT IS IT!"
Suddenly, a white glow of light came speeding from far in the distance, and at the same time, a bright golden glow emanated from Amity. The two lights converged and created a powerful burst of energy that threw Shadow Heka back a few feet. The Shadow managed to correct itself in midair and landed on the ground, using the ax as an anchor to keep herself from flying back any further. When she took a moment to see what it was that stopped her, she was honestly surprised, and so was Amity.
Standing before Amity was her awakened Palisman, Ghost. The blued eyed cat released a threatening yowl and hissed at Shadow Heka. But that wasn't all, a construct of Bast was standing behind Amity, and let out a fierce panther roar in conjunction with Ghost's yowls.
Amity was awestruck to not only see that Bast defended her, but also her Palisman. "Ghost…Bast…you…you two protected me!"
Ghost turned around and happily meowed at Amity as it approached her and nuzzled into her side. Bast however remained behind Amity but lowered her head so that Amity could see her face.
"I'm tired of hearing this imposter insult you and say that she's the stronger one. If anything, she's only proven that SHE'S the weaker one!"
Shadow Heka shook her head in disbelief of Bast's words. "How could you say that?! You know better than anyone how weak she's become!"
"Why? Because she wishes to change? Because she's willing to accept change and forge her own path, rather than the one that was predestined for her? How is that weakness? If anything, she's grown stronger. You're a Shadow, the parts of her she's rejected, that means you're also the weakness she once had to just sit back and accept her fate. Whereas she has obtained the power and the strength to go against it and make her own!"
"I…That's not…"
Amity felt tears form in her eyes upon hearing those words from her Inner Phantom. "Wow…that was strangely encouraging coming from you."
Bast looked down at Amity and smiled a little. "Let's just say, you've intrigued me since I first emerged. You keep breaking the chains that have shackled you to a life that was not yours until now. Your love for that girl has allowed you to become more than you used to be. And I like what I've seen so far. I want to see you become more, become stronger, and become whatever it is you decide upon!"
Amity cradled Ghost in her arms, she tried to stand up, but found it hard after the beating she received. Bast used her head to give Amity a boost up, allowing her to stand. "But…what if I don't know what I want? What I wish to be in the future?"
"Knowing you, you'll find your way."
Amity smirked up at Bast and asked, "Say, does this mean you like me now?"
"Let's just say, I'm very interested in you. Consider that to be a great achievement as there are few things in this or in my realm that can do that," Bast corrected as she raised her head in a haughty fashion. But then she felt Amity's hand on her leg, and it made her look down.
Amity was crying but smiling. "Thank you, Bast. You really are a good friend after all, even if you can be a jerk at times."
Bast sighed. "Well, since we are friends then. I can't have you continue to be limited by time."
Amity watched as Bast stood back and tapped Amity's MagiDriver with her paw. As soon as she did this, the Driver opened and showed the empty hourglass gauge go right back to full.
"From now on, no more time limit. If we're going to stand a chance against that monster, and stand on par with Laly and Luz, then we can't let something like a time limit get in the way."
Shadow Heka gripped her ax hard as her silver aura raged. "You called me 'weak'…! I AM NOT WEAK! SHE'S THE WEAK ONE! NOT ME! I'LL BECOME THE REAL AMITY AFTER I'VE FINISHED YOU! AND BAST, YOU'LL LISTEN TO ME WHEN THIS IS OVER!"
Ghost hissed at Shadow Heka, and Amity understood what they said.
"Yeah, she's being a real jerk. But then again, that's how I used to be. Sorry you have to see this side of your partner, Ghost." Amity put Ghost on the ground and looked back at Shadow Heka with a glare of determination. "My feelings for Luz, having her in my life, has not made me weaker! It's made me stronger! Each time I think I can't, I push myself more so I can protect her! So, I can finally stand next to her as an equal in power and fight alongside her! So, to overcome my weakness, I chose to love! To quell darkness, I choose order! I am Kamen Rider Heka, and I am Amity Blight!"
Suddenly, a bright golden flame erupted in front of Amity in the form of a pillar. Inside that pillar, Amity could see the ring and staff that her father had been working on earlier. She knew what to do just from seeing it. Amity, without hesitation reached in with her hands and grabbed ahold of the ring and staff. Upon touching them, the items transformed into brand new items. The shaft of the staff was bright white, at the bottom of it were two blades in the shape of wings that were colored gold and purple. At the top was a box that had the image of a golden cat with green eyes. The box was colored gold and purple as well. Facing Amity was a gold plate that had a mechanism slot that was similar to the ones on her MagiDriver. At the top of the staff was a crystal sphere with heart shaped apparatus in the center. The ring for this new device was bright purple and had the same golden cat image on the front.
"No…it can't be!"
"Dad's new invention!" Amity exclaimed.
"It's time for you to ascend, Amity."
Bast disappeared, returning to her place within Amity's Underworld. Ghost took a few steps back, granting Amity ample room to transform. Amity slipped the new ring on her left hand and twirled her new weapon around.
"What shall we call this new device?"
"How about…The MaguScepter ?"
"Ha! Your time spent in the Kamen Rider Club was not a waste."
"Shadow, let me show the power that you scoffed at! The power you said makes me weaker than you!" Amity exclaimed as she pressed the ring into the gold plate and turned it like a key.
[Rise Champion!]
[ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!]
[THE HERO OF LOVE & ORDER!]
Amity's magic circle appeared beneath her feet as Bast manifested next to the circle. Purple light shot forth from the circle, as Bast ran above the circle before jumping into the pillar and setting it ablaze with golden flames.
[HEKA~]
[HEKA~]
[CHAMPION~!]
[THE GODDESS ASCENDS!]
Shadow Heka had to shield her eyes, along with the twins. But when the light faded, they were able to bear witness to Heka's Final Form.
Heka's armor was much more regal now, making her look like an empress from ancient times. The helmet's face was white as snow, with emerald, green eyes, and purple markings around the eyes, and single purple line that ran down the middle of her face. Golden plates were framed around the helmet, with a scale plated headdress that started at the middle of the forehead and ran down the back of the neck. The helmet also sported two large ears, like that of a cat. The shoulder pauldrons were oval shaped and acted as fasteners for a coat that had the same gold scale mail pattern on the back, but the inside was a bright lilac color. The chest plate had an engraved ring at the center with two feathered wings, a white line came down the middle as if the ring was shining down divine light to smite something. And next to the ring and wings were white wisps. The midriff had two metal decoration plates, along with her upper arms.
The forearms had bracers which extended into metal plates on the top of each hand and wrapped around the palm. At the lower half, there were gold metal bands around both thighs, and in those bands were engraved rune markings, with Heka's boots also sporting the same rune engraving. The MagiDriver's cat eyes had changed from purple to green, and the green hourglass light switched to purple and remained at full. This was the Final Form of a warrior who fought to protect those she loves and bring justice to any evil that threatened her home, this was Heka Champion.
"It doesn't matter how powerful you are, now! You're still the weak one!"
Heka Champion whirled the MaguScepter around and took a fighting stance. "Why don't you put that theory to the test!"
Shadow Heka, still under the influence of her increases, dashed straight for Heka Champion. But as soon as Shadow Heka was in range, Heka Champion disappeared in the blink of an eye and reappeared many feet away from where she once was. Heka Champion looked a bit surprised by just how much faster she was as she turned around and saw how far she had travelled. Even Shadow Heka was shocked to see this.
"Oookay, I am way faster than before," Heka Champion commented.
"DON'T MOCK ME!"
[Call to Arms: Scarab Saber]
Upon donning the Scarab Saber, Shadow Heka summoned Lady Luck.
"Decrease speed!"
[Spin 'round and 'round!]
} WINNER: 30 {
"I don't think so!"
Heka Champion raised the MaguScepter, the crystal ball at the center began to glow as the heart apparatus started to spin rapidly. The cursing power of Lady Lucky was immediately countered in the form of an explosion of purple energy hitting what looked like a protective invisible barrier.
"What?! That's not possible!"
"The MaguScepter is able to generate a counterforce field to prevent any negative spell effects from even touching me. So, in other words, you won't be able to alter my status at all," Heka Champion explained.
Shadow Heka was getting visibly agitated as she dashed straight for Heka Champion. The golden Rider dashed as well, flipping the MaguScepter around so that she could better utilize the blades. The two warriors began to fight at highspeed as the ringing of metal clashing against metal echoed through the air. Flashing streaks of gold and silver were the only things that could seen as the twins watched on in awe and worry as they were unable to see who was winning. However, it was no secret who held the upper hand in this fight.
Heka Champion managed to block each one of Shadow Heka's attacks, she was mainly playing defensively at this point, as she was still unsure about her full strength. Plus, there was another reason why she did not want to completely go all out. What was crazier, as fast as Shadow Heka was going, and as fast as Heka Champion was going, Heka Champion felt as if she could move even faster. So, she did. Shadow Heka came in with a thrust of her saber, but it passed right through Heka Champion, as it only hit her afterimage. Heka Champion appeared behind Shadow Heka and slashed at her back, causing sparks to fly from her armor. The golden Rider began to speed blitzing Shadow Heka, attacking her from every direction in a similar manner as Shadow Heka once did to her moments ago.
Heka Champion appeared in front of Shadow Heka, flipped the MaguScepter around, and struck her Shadow in the gut with the incredibly durable crystal ball. Shadow Heka coughed hard as she was sent flying forwards from the power of the blow. The Shadow bounced on the ground for a moment before she managed to stab her saber into the ground to stop herself, cutting a long groove into the rock and dirt. Shadow Heka was panting, and her armor was showing visible signs of damage now, while Heka Champion had not gotten so much as a scratch on her, and even if Shadow Heka had hit her, there was no visible sign that it did anything to the supposedly weaker version of herself.
"This can't be…I'm the stronger one!"
"I pity you."
Shadow Heka's eyes widened. "What did you say?!"
"I pity you, because your scared. You're scared and the only way you know how to deal with it is by lashing out. By proving your superiority, I know that's why you're frustrated and angry. But you don't have to feel that way, we don't have to feel that way anymore," said Heka Champion.
Shadow Heka shook her head back and forth, as if trying to deny Heka Champion's words. She tossed both Lady Luck and the Scarab Saber to the ground and replaced her ring with the Kick Strike ring. "WE'RE ENDING THIS NOW!"
Heka Champion did the same, slipping on her Kick Strike ring, and then activating it at the same time as counterpart.
[LET'S GO! KICK STRIKE!]
[LET'S GO! KICK STRIKE!]
Silver energy wrapped around Shadow Heka's left foot, at the same time, golden flames erupted around Heka Champion, with her left foot shining with golden light. The two Heka's ran and then jumped into the air. Shadow Heka's eyes shined bright purple as she was propelled by her power straight for her opponent. Heka Champion's eyes glowed bright green as the flame aura shot her forward, and when it did, a construct head of Bast appeared around her, jaws wide open and baring her sharp fangs. The two kicks met at the middle as both of their powers fought for supremacy. Silver and gold lightning lashed out in different directions, making Edric and Emira have to take cover. That's when the head of Bast roared and Heka Champion's flaming aura doubled in size as the construct's head clamped down its jaws and released a burst of energy that engulfed everything in the area.
)-^-(
There was a white void that was all around Amity, but in this void, she heard crying. Amity looked around and saw that it was her Shadow, on her rear, and crying into her knees as she hugged them close to her. The lilac haired witch walked over to where her counterpart was and knelt down before her, although one would expect her to show anger or hate towards this being who wanted to take her place, that was not the expression on her face. It was one of sympathy and understanding.
"Just say it," said Shadow Amity.
"Say what?"
"Say that you hate me."
"If I did, then I'd be hating myself."
"Don't you?!" Shadow Amity exclaimed as she looked up with a tear-streaked face. "You hate me! You hated what you once were! That's why you pushed me down! Because you're afraid that you'll become me again! So, just say that you hate me! Finish me off and you'll be rid of me forever!" Shadow Amity gasped.
Amity drew in her Shadow for a hug, holding her tight. Shadow Amity thrashed and struggled against this embrace, but in the end, she started crying into Amity' chest. "You're right, I am afraid that I'll become you again. That I'll slip back and turn into the person who only saw others as steppingstones. But I don't want to forget about you, about the person I once was. Because even though those times weren't happy for me, for you, it was during those times that I got to meet Luz."
Shadow Amity looked up at Amity with her glowing eyes as she sniffled.
"When we were inside Willow's mind, her Inner Willow was going to destroy all the memories that had me in them, she wanted to erase all the good and all the bad memories. But in the end, she decided that Willow should keep both of them. It's the same with me, I want to keep the good and the bad, because you balance me out."
Shadow Amity smiled a little. "You'd be a complete wuss without me."
"Heh, probably." Amity gently pressed her forehead against Shadow Amity and closed her eyes, making Shadow Amity do the same. "You are me, and I am you. We're two halves of the same coin."
"…Thank you."
)-^-(
The world of white started to crack as golden light shined from it, shattering it to pieces as Shadow Amity merged back with her original.
The light faded and when it did, only Heka Champion remained standing.
"Well done, Amity."
Thank you, Bast.
"AMITY!"
Heka Champion turned to her left and watched as her siblings came running towards her. When they arrived, they were still in shock to see her as a Kamen Rider.
"W-What happened to that other you?! Did you destroy her?" Emira asked.
Heka Champion shook her head and placed her left hand on her chest. "No, she's a part of me. A part of myself that I wanted to forget. But I realized I don't want to. Because then I might make the same mistakes from before. So, I'll accept her. The good and the bad are a part of me. That's how order is maintained."
The twins blinked and said at the same time, "Wow."
"Okay, that was heavy. But now onto the most important topic…YOU'VE BEEN HEKA THIS ENTIRE TIME?!" Edric exclaimed.
"Ed, Em, I promise I'm going to explain everything to you, but first…can you carry me down the mountain…I'm really tired…"
Heka Champion's transformation faded away, returning her to civilian form. The twins quickly caught their little sister before she could faceplant into the snow and noticed that she was completely knocked out now. Ghost came up and nuzzled Amity's leg, they transformed into a staff and then laid themselves out horizontally.
"Guess they want us to put her on," said Edric.
"It'll be easier getting her down like this. I'll go and pack up our stuff," said Emira.
Once everything was packed up, the Blight siblings made their way back down the mountain. Completely oblivious to the fact that a menacing shadow was watching them from the trees, smiling at the latest development before leaving, with only large hoofprints to show that it was even there.
Thankfully, their parents weren't home by the time they got back. They brought Amity to the living room where she was able to rest up. Upon her request, Edric brought Amity some sweet snacks, which helped her in recovering her expanded mana, accelerated Bast's healing effect, and offset her fatigue. After regaining enough of her strength, Amity started explaining herself to her siblings. Telling them her origin, and at the same time telling them that Witch was actually Luz. Their jaws had not come up for most of the story.
"So, yeah, that's it," said Amity.
Emira sat down next to her little sister, inhaled deeply, and then exhaled slowly. "Okay, wow. Just, wow. You and Luz are fighting against the Phantoms together. No wonder you pushed yourself so hard during that Abomaton test. So, you two saved Mom together. That's actually really cool."
"Thanks."
Edric came up behind the couch and asked, "So, does this mean you're going to see Luz? 'Cause I'm pretty sure she'd like to see you, especially after what just happened. Both the other you and that kiss."
Amity sighed. "I know, I know. I just don't want to push her. A girl back in the Human Realm messed with her, and she's a little skittish. When she's ready, I'll tell her. But as for this? Yeah, she needs to know." Just then, Amity's scroll went off. "What's going on now?"
Amity opened the scroll and saw that it was a live stream from Eda Clawthorne's account, and on the screen was King.
{Eda, who's even gonna watch this?}
{No one watches crystal balls anymore. It's all about streaming.}
{All right. Hi, Dad. If you're out there watching this, I uh, want to introduce myself. I like cheesy foods and conquering kingdoms. Though I haven't conquered any of my own yet. But maybe you have, and we can compare notes. I'd love to meet you. We could do parent-kid stuff, toss a ball, burn some cookies, catch me going on weird websites or something. Also, I found a symbol in the tower I hatched in. Maybe you can teach me to read it.}
The Blight siblings watched as King raised up the tag on his collar, which had a symbol carved into it that they didn't recognize. The camera zoomed back and showed King again.
{I live with my favorite human and a cranky old witch.}
{Hey!} Eda's voice exclaimed.
{But cranky or not, she's the one who raised me, which is why I am le…gally changing my name to King Clawthorne!} King suddenly whipped out a stack of adoption papers for all to see. {HA! Surprise, Eda! Now we're connected for life, and there's nothing you can do about it!}
The camera panned to show Eda and Luz, the former looking surprised and on the verge of tears. {Is that what you wanted to tell me this whole time?}
{And if you sign here, it'll be official,} said Luz. { Eda, are you okay?}
The Blight siblings watched as Eda started to bawl right then and there.
{Eda, if you keep doing that, I'm gonna cry too!}
Amity smiled as she shook her head, watching her crush cry emotionally along wit her mentor.
"Looks like they had an eventful day, too," said Emira. "And wow, that is an ugly cry."
"Yeah, that's the girl I love."