All characters from Disney and other properties are owned by their respectful owners. The OCs made here are written entirely for the story. Enjoy this fic.

Chapter 70: Tragedy at Eclipse Lake

The Healing Coven was a large Victorian-style hospital building of the Boiling Isles where the injured and sick who needed special attention were brought. It was navy blue and four stories tall with two wings.

Hunter went up to the front desk. "Excuse me, I'm here to see Boscha Hieron."

"The second floor, room 3-B," the witch at the front door responded.

Hunter nodded and walked down the hallway, passing by the healers and the injured. He was in a hurry as he found the elevator and pressed the button for the destined floor. Flapjack chirped. "Of course I'm worried," he responded as the elevator came to a stop.

He eventually made it to the room where he saw not just Athena there, but Simon, Beck, and Samwitch as well. The room was filled with flowers, left there by Angmar, and on the bed was Boscha, who was completely paralyzed, her face frozen in horror while her hands were up. Also in the room was Swan Harwitch, who was checking up on Boscha with her magic.

"Hunter," Athena acknowledged.

"How is she doing?" Hunter asked.

"She's stable, thankfully, but still conscious," Swan said, noting how Boscha's pupils were still moving. "While we think she'll be okay, we don't know how long her paralysis will last or if there will be any side effects."

"Is there anything we could do, Swan?" Samwitch asked.

"We don't have a proper treatment for this, so now the best thing we can do is keep her here for observation. If there are any new developments, we'll of course let you know. The identity of her attacker is still unknown, but I'm sure the Emperor's Coven is conducting an investigation."

Hunter had a look of guilt, remembering his last talk with Boscha. If she was paralyzed due to her badmouthing the Emperor's Coven, he would feel responsible for her condition.

"Are you sure there weren't any witnesses that saw who paralyzed her?" Hunter asked. "She was attacked right outside her own home."

"Hogarth was asleep in Boscha's backpack at the time so he wouldn't have seen anything," Athena said while looking at Hogarth, who was staying in Boscha's bed. "He has not left her side since then."

"Who could have done this?" Simon asked with a glare. "When I find who's responsible-!"

"Calm down, Simon," Beck advised her brother. "I know you're angry, but that won't be constructive. The best we can do right now is pray to the Titan that she makes it through this.."

The disguised Golden Guard was feeling increasingly guilty. "Excuse me," Hunter said as he dismissed himself while planning a trip to the Emperor's Castle.

The Emperor's Castle was not far from the Healing Coven. Once there, Hunter looked around for Abel. He checked his office, only to find it empty.

"Abel?" Hunter asked before he tried to look elsewhere. He noticed that there was a lot of movement in the halls and he spotted Steve, who was loading up a crate. "Steve!"

"Oh hey, man, what's up?" Steve asked.

"I'm looking for Abel," Hunter responded. "Do you know where he is?"

"Oh, he's not here at the castle for the moment," Steve explained. "The Emperor assigned him to lead an operation at the Knee. I'm getting ready to head there myself, since more coven scouts have been requested."

"A mission at the Knee?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, apparently we are looking for Titan's Blood up there. The boss Emperor himself wants the stuff," Steve said as he finished loading the crate and picked it up. "Don't know much else, but I do need to make it to the airship before it leaves. See you later."

Beneath the Castle, Belos stood in front of the completed portal. In the center of the gate was the original portal door, which was hooked up to tubes and wires. He has an Abomaton inject green substance into the door lock before he placed a key into the lock. However, the key instantly vaporized. This made the Emperor groan.

Nearby, Hunter was observing the test while Flapjack flew around him and chirped.

"Quiet," Hunter shushed his Palisman.

"Would you like to see how it works?" asked Belos, who was aware of Hunter's presence.

Hunter gasped and hid Flapjack before approaching. "I-I didn't mean to hide, Emperor Belos."

"It's alright, I know you're just curious about my work like usual," Belos chuckled, his maskless face turning to look at Hunter. He sighed. "Though I am afraid that without the key, the portal door is quite useless. We cannot reach the Human Realm without the real key and the Titan's Blood in it…"

Hunter nodded, curious. "Um… the Human Realm… is it true that the rain doesn't boil there?"

"It is," Belos confirmed. "I remember my last trip there. The trees were green, the nights were quiet… and the books were boring. I would very much like to see it again."

"Did my father ever see the Human Realm?" Hunter asked, surprising Belos.

"When he was very young, yes," Belos admitted. "But as he got older, he realized that his heart belonged here."

"He was born a human too, wasn't he?" Hunter asked. "Just like you. Is that… is that why I can't do magic naturally? Because I was the son of a witch and a human or a cambion or whatever he was."

"Yes, he was like me," Belos confirmed, his expression sad. "I probably should have told you that a long time ago, but I wasn't sure if you were ready. You are special, Hunter. And my brother knew how special you were before you were even born." He frowned. "I wish he was here for this. But you weren't spying on me just to hear these boring stories, were you?"

Hunter looked down as he thought of Boscha. "I just got back from seeing Boscha Hieron… she was attacked and paralyzed while walking home. We don't know who is responsible but… I was… wondering if-"

"Hunter… were you always blue?" Belos asked, causing Hunter to look confused.

"Um… no?" Hunter replied while Belos shook his head. "Are you okay, uncle?"

"I'll be fine, just…what was it about the Hieron daughter?" Belos asked him.

"I was… I hope that, and not that I'm doubting you on anything…" Hunter was nervous, he didn't want to accuse his uncle.

"If you think that I have something to do with her paralyzation, I can assure you that I didn't," Belos told him. "But what would you think of such a thing, my boy?"

Hunter felt ashamed, looking down in guilt. "I'm… I'm sorry, sir. Just that… she… said some things about the Emperor's Coven in our last talk. I warned her that she shouldn't be talking like that and then she was attacked. Again, I'm sorry." As he looked down, he felt Belos pat his shoulder.

"Don't worry about it, Hunter," Belos responded while looking a little tipsy. "You were just worried about a friend. That is an amadarian trait to have."

"Amadarian?" Hunter asked him. "Uncle, are you… alright?"

"I'm fine," Belos insisted.

Hunter wasn't sure, but then he thought of what Steve mentioned. "I heard that there was an operation at the Knee. Why wasn't I asked to be part of it? If it is important, then I should help. I know I failed my last mission, but if you just gave me another chance-"

"I still want you out of the field," Belos interrupted. "And I trust Abel to lead the operation just fine. Like I told you earlier, you are not as expendable as the coven scouts. Unlike them, you are too important to replace. And that is why I want you safe in the castle, William."

Hunter looked up to his uncle. "William?" as asked before the Emperor collapsed onto him. "BELOS!" Hunter cried out with worry as he caught his uncle and set him down. "Oh Titan… where's an orb or a mirror?" He spotted an orb and ran over to it, quickly calling up the Healing Coven. "This is the Golden Guard, this is an emergency! Send Coven Head Cutburn here right now!"

A bit later, Head Witch Hettie Killington Cutburn had helped take Belos to his room, Hunter waiting outside to hear the results. He had never been so worried in his life. First Boscha, and now his uncle had seemed to come down with some kind of illness. He hoped that it wasn't the Red Death… the possibility of his uncle dying terrified the boy. But his thoughts were put at ease due to Flapjack's comfort. After what felt like forever, Hettie came out of the room.

"How is he? Is he going to be fine?" Hunter asked.

"He's stable, but…" Hettie looked unsure. "It's the strangest thing. The Emperor is showing symptoms of the common mold."

"What? He has the common mold?!" Hunter asked in shock.

"That's the thing… he doesn't," she clarified. "He has the symptoms, but not the illness itself. For now, it is best that he gets some rest. You could check up on him but… he's a little lucid. I'll be back to check up on him later."

As she left, Hunter looked into the room. He saw Belos laying in bed, an Abomaton standing next to him and holding a box of tissue for assistance. He was breathing heavily and had a purple tint above his nose and a wet towel over his head. Hunter even heard him rambling.

"Oohhh… but I don't want to drink that medicine, mother…"

The Golden Guard and his cardinal Palisman looked at each other before closing the door. Flapjack chirped and Hunter shook his head. "I don't know either, but… maybe this could be my chance to help him, my chance to prove that I can still be useful to him. I mean, he wouldn't know that I'm gone, right?" he whispered.

Making no haste, Hunter changed into his scout uniform while hiding Flapjack in his hood. He then joined some other coven scouts, who were carrying supplies to an airship.

Back at the Owl House, Amity was checking her clipboard.

"Hooty, what's your status?" Amity asked as Hooty broke through the window.

"The perimeter's secured. Nothing's getting past me!" Hooty replied.

"Good," Amity said with a nod. "And make sure to clean up that mess."

"On it, ma'am," Hooty replied as he swept the broken window pieces away.

Willow was bringing groceries into the kitchen with Clover when Amity walked up to her. "Willow, have you gathered supplies?" she asked.

"Yes, we are ready to attack this on the fronts," Willow said with a salute.

"Excellent!" Amity gave a thumbs up. "And thank you guys for coming on such short notice."

"It's no problem. Faust was surprisingly okay with giving us a day off just to check up on Luz," Willow told her. "Though he only wanted us to make sure she isn't faking or is not coming up with some diabolical plan, whatever that means."

Gus, Emmiline, and King come in, with the former holding CDs. "Rain? Beach waves?" he questioned.

"Something called 'lo-fi beats to study and relax to'? We've got it all," King added.

"That's great!" Amity told her. "Wait, where's Eda and Camila?"

"Right here," spoke Camila in a quarantine hazmat suit, which alarmed the kids.

"What is… that you're wearing, Mrs. Noceda?" Willow asked her.

"Eda lent me this hazmat suit," Camila responded. "Though I have no idea where she got it from. We don't know if I could get infected by this… common mold Luz has now, but we do not want to take any chances. Eda's in Luz's room right now."

In Luz's room, Eda was lighting a few candles. She turned to bed-ridden Luz, who was groaning from a stuffy nose.

"Alright, time to take your medicine, kiddo," Eda said while wearing a mask and gloves as she helped Luz take a sip from a small cup of grape flavored medicine.

"Blech, bleach flavor," Luz grimaced.

"Ah poor baby," Eda patted Luz's head as she laid it on a pillow. Opening the door was Amity, who also had her face covered with a mask.

"How is she?" Amity asked.

"She's doing fine, just needs some rest," Eda states while walking towards her. "Though I am surprised that Luz has never caught the common mold before now. I guess we were just lucky. It's usually harmless to witches and demons but to humans… I made sure that Luz got her flu shots at least, though I don't know if it has any effect on common mold."

"And we don't know how it'll affect her cambion form or Maya, who has gone silent," Amity admitted. "This is really poor timing though, right when we were planning to look for Titan's Blood up at the Knee."

"Yeah, and the Emperor's Coven is already up there looking for it," Gus added as he and King joined the conversation. "Matt told me that he heard his brother's going up to the Knee as part of a large operation to recover Titan's Blood."

"So rather than wait until Luz gets better, we have to go there now and try to beat the Emperor's Coven to Eclipse Lake," King said. "Which is too bad, since I was hoping for an adventure with the whole family, but instead I will have to make due with just Amity and mom."

"Amity…" Luz called for her girlfriend. "I wanna go with you…"

"Hey Luz, how are you feeling?" Amity asked as she went over to her.

"The cat is scratching my knees again," Luz replied lucidly, while turning to Amity, looking at her with her purple tinted face. "I wanna go to the Toe with you, so that we can go to the hooman world, dress up and travel together…"

"Oh Luz, I know that you're eager to come but you're sick," Amity told her. "But don't worry, we'll find Titan's Blood so that we can use it to get to the human world before Belos does."

"Promise me you'll come back with smooches?" Luz asked, holding onto Amity's hand.

"I promise," Amity responded. "And yes, I'd like to travel around the human world with you."

As she left the bedroom, she saw Eda smiling at her. "What?"

"Oh, I am just thinking about when you first started staying with us," Eda told her. "Back then, we all weren't sure if it would work out. But now, I speak for all of us when I say it's hard to even try picturing this place without you around."

Amity smiled back. "Thank you, Eda."

Willow was playing with Kay, who was in her playpen, while Amity walked towards them. "Hey, think you can help keep Kay company while I'm gone?" she asked.

"Of course, Amity, she'll be safe until you get back," Willow assured her while Amity knelt over to Kay who looked up to her.

"Hey, Kay. Listen, I'm going to be out looking for treasure. So for now, Aunt Willow and everyone else around the house will be here to watch over you." Amity patted her head. "Don't worry, I'll be back soon."

Kay only bounced up and down for Amity, who smiled. But then she felt saddened to be away with Kay for a while.

"You sure you don't want me to go in your place?" Willow asked her.

"No. Even if it's hard to be away with Kay, I have to do this for Luz," Amity told her. "I know that I'll be back for them by the end of the day anyway."

Meanwhile, Eda found Camila. "Hey," she spoke to her. "Listen, while I'm gone, can you help watch Luz for me and occasionally check up on her?"

"You… trust me to check up on Luz?" Camila asked her.

"I know that what happened the other night was a big blow up, but you are still Luz's birth mother," Eda told her. "I trust you, Cami. Though you should still give Luz some space even if she's lucid, this could help to start making things right."

This only made Camila sigh. "I don't know if that is possible…"

"Hey, don't give up on your relationship with Luz," Eda advised while grabbing her coat. "Besides, I know how it feels to have a teenage daughter angry at you. Me and Luz once had a spat over her getting better at school, since I learned that she had managed to trick me into thinking she's been in a special class rather than in detention."

"Yeah, she conned you good," King snickered while wearing his own winter coat.

Just then, Cat burst into the Owl House with some medical supplies. "I'm here!" Cat said as Amity walked over to her.

"Thanks a bunch, Cat, for coming on short notice and agreeing to be our standby healer," Amity replied as she helped Cat sort through her supplies. "So are there any updates on Boscha?"

"Yeah, my parents said that Boscha is stable and conscious, but they don't know how long she will remain paralyzed or who paralyzed her," Cat answered, looking very concerned.

Amity looked worried as well. "First Eve's disappearance, and now Boscha's paralyzed. I wish I could do something about this."

"Yeah, but there's nothing we could do right now," Cat told her. "Mom said that Boscha should recover, so for now we'll just have to wait for results."

Amity nodded in agreement before she heard Eda calling for her. "Come on, Amity, we're heading out."

"I'm on my way!" Amity replied before turning to Cat. "Again, thank you so much for helping out." She then embraced Cat in a tight hug.

Cat hugged back, smiling. "Hey, what are friends for?"

Eda flew over on her staff with Amity and King seated behind her. They flew over to a certain house that Eda had been to before, though not in many good years.

"Is this… your old home?" King asked Eda.

"Yeah," Eda replied awkwardly once they landed. "My old childhood home, and where Lilith's staying."

"I wonder if I can lay on your old bed," King said out loud.

Amity looked hesitant, which Eda noticed. She sighs, patting Amity's back. "Look, I know that we didn't want to say we were getting Lilith in front of Camila and that our feelings about it, but despite the mistakes Lily has made, she does still want to help. It doesn't erase the horrible things that she's done, but we could still use her. Especially since she knows more of the Emperor's Coven better than any of us."

Amity looked down, sighing. "I know, let's just… get her."

Eda looked hesitant toward the door before walking up and ringing the doorbell, which screamed. 'Hopefully dad isn't here,' she thought, feeling like she wasn't ready to face her father yet. Coming out was Lilith in a blue robe. "Hey Lily."

"Edalyn!" Lilith replied while noticing Amity and King were also there. "I'm surprised to see you all here," she said awkwardly.

"Yeah…" Eda nodded. "So um, mom and dad home?"

"Mom's out and I haven't seen dad at all since I've moved in," Lilith explained while looking away, feeling ashamed. "So um, what brings you three here?"

"We, um, we need you, Aunt Lilith," King told her.

"Me and Luz found out about where Titan's Blood can be found at the Knee according to the pages from Philip's journal," Amity explained. "Then we learned that the Emperor's Coven is already up on the Knee to look for Titan's Blood, so we need your help since you know more about them than we do."

"Oh, I see," Lilith responded. "Where's… Luz?"

"She got the common mold so she has to stay behind," Eda answered. "So you with us?"

"I-I'm not sure," Lilith said while gripping her own hair, which Eda knew she used to do back when they were kids. "Considering the things I did that have come into the light…"

"Lilith, look," Amity said as she stepped in, facing her godmother. "We haven't forgotten what you've done, but you could still make yourself useful to Luz. And we are willing to set our feelings towards you aside for her." She extended her hand. "So for the time being… will you help us?"

Lilith looked at Amity's hand, still hesitant. But then she smiled. "Yes, for Luz," she said, shaking Amity's hand. "Let me get dressed and ready." She then headed back inside, ready to help her family.

At the Knee, an operation by the Emperor's Coven was well underway. A large number of scouts with Abomatons were mining for Titan's Blood while being overseen by Abel and Captain Wolffe.

"Sir, we have reports that some of these tunnels are unstable," Wolffe told him. "Perhaps we should slow down."

"Hmm, I think you are right, Captain," Abel agreed before raising his voice. "Alright, team, listen up! Due to the instability of the tunnels, the workload will be slowed down! So for the moment, take a break and have some hot cocoa to warm you up."

The scouts cheered at the decision as they went to their camps, the Abomatons providing hot cocoa for the scouts. Among them was Steve who went by to sit with a couple of fellow scouts.

"Not used to being allowed breaks," Steve admitted while sitting by his peers.

"Yeah," one scout spoke while lighting her cigarette under her mask. Her voice had a venomous tone. "I still wish we didn't have to be working on the Knee."

"I agree," said the other scout, who had a smooth sounding accent, as he drank his coffee. His uniform was more form-fitting, like a tracksuit. "Being back up here brings too many unpleasant memories…"

"Oh, were you guys left up here during training as well?" Steve asked them.

"Yeah, good times…" the female scout said sarcastically.

"You're new here, are you, Steven?" the other scout asked and Steve nodded. "Well if you must know, freezing temperatures and the Slitherbeast aren't the only things you have to worry about up here. There was once a scout we knew from training that was left up here and never made it back down… Zebiel."

"Zebiel?" Steve asked in confusion.

"Yeah, as you might know, when scouts are left to fend for themselves anything can happen. Zebiel was betrayed and left behind by his fellow scouts, who saw him as nothing but dead weight," the female scout replied, showing her reptilian skin under her mask. "But his death was never confirmed. Some say that he did survive, but not with his mind intact. He might still be up here, having gone completely feral and developed a taste for witch flesh… or who knows, maybe he got his prairie dog ass eaten by the Slitherbeast."

"But who knows, he may pop out the least expected," her partner added, making Steve look nervous under his mask.

Wanting to ease his fears, Steve changed the subject. "So um… what do you guys think of Abel? He seems pretty cool."

"Yeah, he's alright," the male scout responded.

"Yeah, better than working under Kikimora," she added while they heard the diminutive former-aide using an Abomaton to drill a tunnel, despite her partner's protest.

"Oh gee Kiki, I don't think it's a good idea," spoke the large, buffed scout. "Should we be going on our break?"

"Nonsense, Pugsley!" Kikimora dismissed, getting the Abomaton to drill into the wall, "The Titan's Blood has to be in there somewhere, so we have to dig, dig, dig!"

"But Kiki, the Emperor's Aide said that the tunnels are unstable, isn't this a little dangerous?" he asked her.

"Please! You can't get results if you-" As the Abomaton drilled, a rumbling noise was heard as an explosion followed, launching Kikimora into the air, smoke trailing behind her as she hit a tree and was buried in the snow.

This got a laugh from the other coven scouts, including Steve and the two scouts he was with. Wolffe however groaned at Kikimora's actions, which Abel noticed.

"How do you feel commanding your former superior, Captain Wolffe?" Abel asked her.

"No matter how many times I tell her to not do this kind of stuff, she won't listen," she answered with a sigh. "Not to mention her growing paranoia is causing her to be a little daffy."

Meanwhile, Hunter in his scout uniform was sneaking away from the camp and hiding behind a tree, trying not to be spotted by Abel. Flying out of his cowl was Flapjack, who chirped to get his attention.

"Hey, hey, shush!" Hunter told his Palisman. "We can't let Abel see us now, so here's the plan. We slip in with this disguise, find the Titan's Blood before Kiki or anyone else, give it to Belos and boom! I'm useful again." Flapjack chirped in response. "Of course it's a good plan."

"Man, this place is covered with tools!"

Hunter heard a familiar voice, causing him and Flapjack to hide. They saw the Owl quartet nearby, spying on the operation at the Knee. 'Oh no… they're here too!?' he thought in both shock and worry.

"Titan's Blood is the most valuable source of magic on the Isles. Of course Belos wants it as much as we do," Eda said while Lilith held up her goggles.

"Looks like they're on a break," Lilith told the others. "It's no surprise that Belo's new aide is here and Kikimora as well. Steve's also down there, along with… oh no. Not those two…"

"What? What's so special about those two scouts?" Eda asked her sister.

"I worked with those two during my time as a Coven Head. They're highly infamous for their unique abilities. Venoma Heathens is known for her venomous touch, manipulative tactics, and strategic mind," Lilith explained.

The scout known as Venoma Heathens removed her mask while drinking her hot cocoa. She was a pale white cobra biped demon with her hood form down like hair. She had human-like features on her face with sharp, gray eyes, and gray lips with fangs. Her eyes rolled when her partner removed his mask, showing his handsome face with smooth dark-brown hair, a small goatee, narrow teal eyes, and a fang.

"And that's Alburno Striker," Lilith continued. "Known for his agile and incredible physique. Like Venoma, he is also a calculative manipulator and strategist. He and Venoma… I oversaw their training and graduation. Those two back stabbed and betrayed everyone else to come out on top. Those two wouldn't hesitate to kill if they wanted to and they are also known as a power couple among the scouts."

"How romantic," Eda replied sarcastically.

While the Clawthorne sisters were talking, Amity heard something and she turned around toward the woods. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a white blur darting away. "Huh?" She narrowed her eyes until she saw a cape behind a tree.

Hunter hid behind the tree. 'I don't think she spotted me,' he thought, until he felt something stick to his boot. He looked down and saw a purple substance wrapping around his boot.

"Titan-dammit… AAAH!" he screamed as Flapjack flew up and he was dragged by Abomination goop from Amity's gourd towards the quartet.

"A scout spy!" King pointed to Amity's catch.

"Good job, kid," Eda rustled Amity's head. "You've caught the scout!"

"Uh… yes, I am nothing but a humble scout!" Hunter attempted to say, grateful he was wearing his mask. "I surrender!"

"Wait a minute," Amity said, recognizing his annoying voice. She shot out and abomi-goo like web to grab his mask and pull it off, revealing his identity to everyone else. "Hunter!" she shouted, glaring down on him with King, Eda, and Lilith.

"Um… hey guys…" Hunter said awkwardly. King, however, responded by jumping on top of his head, beating him up. "Ah! King, no!"

"You have a lot of nerve showing up here!" King pulled on Hunter's hair while beating and scratching his face. Eda and Amity had to pull him away from Hunter.

"King, stop/Let him go!" Amity and Eda said as they pulled King away from Hunter, leaving him with some scratches and bite marks. Once they got off of him, Hunter avoided eye contact with them, especially Lilith.

"Let me at him!" King cries out.

"Hold on, King," Eda told him while looking at Hunter. "So what are you doing here, Golden Guard? Though, you're not even wearing your golden uniform. Did the Emperor demote you or something?"

"That wouldn't surprise me," Amity responded.

"I'm not demoted!" Hunter insisted. "I was… um, sent here on a secret mission from Belos himself! It requires me to go undercover as a coven scout!"

"Yeah… not buying it," Amity told him.

"You live in a throne of lies!" King declared.

"So what do we do with him?" Lilith asked them.

"I say we just knock him out cold and leave him for the wild animals!" King suggested.

"Or for the Emperor's Coven to later find," Eda added.

"No, you can't!" Hunter cried out while turning to Amity. "Please, you can't just leave me here!"

Amity turned away from him. "You have a lot of nerve, you know that?" she told him, while Hunter looked down in shame. Amity sighed. "But… we could take him along. He may be a valuable asset and to tell us more about those 'visions' Belos showed him."

Hunter's eyes widened. "Wait… how did you-!?" He then realized. "Gus told you, didn't he?"

"Yeah, he told us about you being there at Glandus, along with the talk you two had," Amity told him. "What, did you expect him to keep that information from us? Especially after you told him that his father deserved to be arrested?" He didn't say anything while Amity wrapped her abomi-goo around him. "He's more honest than you'll ever be. Now remember that I can easily gag you, so I would watch my mouth right now if I were you."

"Come on, I think there's a way we can sneak in while they're on break," Lilith pointed as she led the team and Hunter toward the mines. They didn't see that Flapjack had started to follow them.

Hunter realized something. "Hey, why isn't Luz here?" he asked.

"She had to do something else very important," Amity told him. "Now get moving."

Once they had left the spot, a certain white cat emerged from the bushes. She had been listening in on their conversation. "Well this is just purrfect."

Back at the Owl House, Willow was in the kitchen chopping up some veggies to make soup while Cat was starting up the oven. Gus and Hooty were still looking over the music while Camila checked in on them.

"Anything going on okay here?" she asked.

"Don't worry, we're doing fine, Ms. Noceda," Willow replied while Gus played some music on Eda's jukebox. Camila didn't know where Eda had gotten a jukebox from, but she knew that like with the hazmat suit it was best not to ask.

"We are young! Heartache, to heartache, we stand!"

"Hoot, I love this one! This one was from Eda's best 80s mixes!" Hooty said while his head danced around.

"Oh I remember this," Camila replied while Cat listened to the lyrics of the song.

"Whoa, who is she?" Cat asked about the singer.

"That's Pat Benatar, she was a famous singer back in my time," Camila answered.

"'No one can tell us we're wrong, searching our hearts for so long', is this Pat Benatar a revolutionary of some kind?" Cat asked while listening.

"Well, I don't know about that…" Camila said.

"Yeah, yeah, but this song could totally be the anthem of our revolution!" Cat suggested, inspired by the music.

"Yeah, I like the sound of that," Willow agreed while Gus nodded.

Camila then thought of something. "Wait, is Pat Benatar even still alive? I have missed out on more than a decade of human pop culture…"

Meanwhile in Luz's room, she opened her eyes to reveal that Maya had taken over. She shot up from bed and sneezed.

"What the hell's going on?" Maya asked woozily, her wings shooting out from her back as she fell off the bed and onto the floor. "Gah!" she grunted, followed by some crashing noises.

Everyone downstairs heard the crashing noises coming from Luz's room. "What was that?" Gus asked.

"Maybe it's time to check up on Luz," Willow responded, looking concerned.

They went upstairs together. "Luz, is everything alright?" Camila asked, only to find the door left open. They were worried as they peered inside, only to find that the already messy bedroom was empty.

The atmosphere suddenly felt grim. "Where's Luz…?" Gus asked.

The Owl family and Hunter were now exploring a section of the mine. Eda and King were in the front, scourging around. Lilith and Amity were in the back keeping an eye on Hunter. Eda crashes through a wall of ice in her harpy form.

"Careful Edalyn, who knows how stable these tunnels are, and we don't want to give away that we're here," Lilith advised.

"You can put down your staff, Lilith, I promise I won't run," Hunter told them but then he felt the abomi-goo around him tightening.

"How about no," Amity replied.

Hunter turned to her. "Hey don't forget that I did help you, Luz, and Gus out during the Glandus War."

"You may have helped us, but that doesn't make up for lying to Luz and Edric while spying on us for the Emperor," Amity countered. "Along with the other horrible things you did for him."

"But I thought you wanted to hear about my visions?" Hunter asked her.

"We'll talk about them later," Amity told him. "Though I doubt that they're real. I know from experience that Belos is an impressive illusionist."

"Ooh, look at this drill thingy," King said while climbing on top of a mining drill, which Eda pulled him away from. "Weh!"

"Now, don't be playing with potentially dangerous stuff that you wouldn't know how to work, King," Eda told him while she looked at the drill. "Man, this is old."

Hunter started to explain. "That's because ancient witches used it to mine the veins for Titans' Blood-"

"They're not listening," Amity told him as they watched Eda and King messing around the drill.

"Eda, don't!" Lilith cried only for Eda to accidentally cause a laser beam to fire from the drill. The beam bounced off the walls, causing everyone to duck, until Amity used her abomi-goo to trap the beam inside a sphere. Everyone turned to Eda and King.

"This isn't a normal cave!" Hunter called them out. "These walls are made from the veins of the Titan!"

"He's right, Edalyn, these caves are dangerous!" Lilith added. "Any magic you shoot will-"

"Bounce right back at you!" Lilith and Hunter said simultaneously. The two looked at each other weirdly when they finished each other's sentences.

"You know much about the tunnels here," Lilith commented.

Hunter looked away from her. "Y-Yeah, I've read a lot of books about the geography in the Isles."

"Ugh, just what we need, two nerds," Eda said while turning to King. "Say King, why don't you use your new powers to echo locate the lake?"

"Okay!" King agreed as he walked towards a tunnel. He took a deep breath. "WEH!" he shouted, sending a sonic wave down the tunnel. After a few moments, he turned to the group and shrugged. "Eh-eh."

"Those two are definitely going to get us caught," Hunter realized.

"There is no us, Hunter," Amity told him while going up to Eda and King. "I'm going to talk to them. Lilith, think you can handle him?"

Lilith nodded while Amity went up to Eda and King. Hunter found himself alone with Lilith, his memories of him shooting Lilith and leaving her for dead flashing in his head. He shut his eyes, not looking at the elder Clawthorne sister.

Lilith broke the awkward silence. "Have you not realized now that what you did to your friends was wrong?" she asked him.

"I… I only wanted what was best for them, and Belos had promised to help Luz," Hunter argued.

Lilith sighed. "I once thought the same way," she admitted with a saddened look. "For years, I wanted to force Eda to join the Emperor's Coven, because I thought that was what was best for her and Belos had promised to cure Eda of the curse that I had given her. That promise to undo my selfish mistake helped me justify all of the awful things I did for Belos, because I told myself it was for the 'greater good' of the Isles and that I was helping Eda, that she would be grateful when it was all over."

"But… but Belos would have cured your sister if you hadn't betrayed him," Hunter countered.

"Even if he had kept his word, there would have been likely a catch," Lilith pointed out. "But that was not what was important. What's important is that I focused too much on what I wanted for Eda, rather than what Eda wanted. I had been convinced that my way was the only way, and that was wrong. Just like how what you're doing is wrong." She turned to him while Hunter avoided eye contact. "I know you wanted to help Luz, Hunter, but you don't realize that Luz didn't want the help that you and Belos were offering. You did all sorts of horrible things for him, justifying it by believing what he had told you. You've convinced yourself that it was the only way instead of thinking about what Luz actually wanted."

He was silent as they followed the others. Hunter looked down, thinking of Lilith's words. He eventually spoke. "I'm… sorry." She turned to him, surprised "I'm sorry that I shot you and left for dead… I keep telling myself it was for self-defense but… that doesn't make it better."

She looked at Hunter, still surprised by his apology. "I accept your apology," she told him.

Hunter turned to her, shocked. "You… you do?"

"It doesn't make what you did okay, but I do forgive you," she told him sincerely.

Hunter went silent again, thinking about if he could use this opportunity to ask Lilith something that he had been wondering about. "Can you… tell me about my mom?"

Lilith's eyes widened. "What?" she asked him. "Your mother worked at the Emperor's Coven?"

"Remember back when I asked you about the previous Golden Guard?" he asked her. "He was my father. And just like you knew him, you also knew the previous Head of the Emperor's Coven before you… Vina, my mother."

The Clawthorne sister had a very surprised look. "That's… that's a lot to take in," she said, remembering Sir William and Vina back from her scout days. She had never known that those two were together, nor that they had a child together…

The young Lilith, now in her coven scout uniform, was being led by some guards. She looked super excited that she was getting to meet the Head Witch of the Emperor's Coven.

"Looks like someone's excited to have an audience with Head Witch Vina," one guard noted.

"Are you kidding? Who wouldn't be excited for this opportunity!" Lilith responded. "She has her own ink brand and is an inspiration to young witchlings like me! Being her apprentice will be a dream come true!"

They were now at the office of Vina Charmspsell, the Head of the Emperor's Coven. The guards knocked on the door and it opened showing a graceful woman with short bobcut black hair, blue eyes, and red lips that complimented her snowy skin. She was tall and elegant in her black long gown with gray sleeves. She also wore an onyx necklace and black boots.

"What pray tell can I help you with?" Vina asked them.

"Head Witch Vina, the Emperor wishes for you to help show this young scout the ropes. Be her mentor," the guard explained.

Vina looked down at Lilith, who looked super excited with a wide grin, which disturbed Vina. But the woman knew she couldn't protest over this. "Alright, I'll take this one in."

As the guards were dismissed, Lilith walked into Vina's office and was in awe at the portraits, trophies, and art décor. The cotton ball haired Clawthorne felt like her life was complete.

"Oh my Titan, your office is great! And this desk!" She felt the desk. "Is that really made from cementum wood?"

"Yeah, uh-huh," Vina said with a shrug as she pulled out a cigarette. "Got a name, kid?"

Lilith turned to her. "I-It's Lilith Clawthorne, ma'am."

"Clawthorne… Clawthorne… oh, Palisman carvers, I've heard about your family," Vina said while lighting her cigarette.

Lilith looked at Vina awkwardly. "Oh um, I didn't know you smoke."

"Helps me deal with the stress that comes with the job," Vina said while walking over to the window, her eyes narrow. "They don't pay me enough for this. I have been the face of the Emperor's Coven for a full decade now, smiling and waving at the children… fuck those witchlings," she ranted bitterly.

Lilith was surprised by this different side of the woman she idolized. Vina turned to her, noticing her look.

"What? Did you expect to be the 'graceful' witch that inspired you or something?" Vina asked while blowing smoke donuts in front of Lilith, making her cough. "Well sorry to disappoint you, but this ain't the media covens. Though if I'm stuck with you for the time being, I might as well teach you a thing or two." She got a good look at Lilith. "But first, lose those glasses, you look too much like that bard Crane. Also that hair, we have got to do something about your hair."

"What… what's wrong with my hair?" Lilith asked as Vina rolled her eyes at her.

"Just straighten it out and change it to something dark. If you want to be my apprentice, I can't teach you while you are looking like some hoyden witch from the streets," Vina explained in a dismissive tone. "You'll thank me later once we improve your look."

Lilith wasn't sure what to tell Hunter. While Vina had been her childhood hero, her memories of the real Vina were… far less pleasant.

"I was her apprentice for a time," Lilith explained. "She took me in while I was still new to the Emperor's Coven, and helped me find my place. She was a very accomplished witch and I do owe her a great deal. She even introduced me to Flora D'splora."

"Really?" Hunter asked excitingly. "I used to watch Flora's exploration show a lot as a kid." He sighed. "I really wish that I could have known my mom. She and my dad died shortly after I was born. I have no memory of them, so the only way I can know them is through the memories of those who actually knew him."

"I… am sorry that you never knew her," Lilith nodded awkwardly, feeling bad for glamorizing a version of Vina to the boy, since she didn't want to say anything about her more negative attributes in front of him. "I am sorry that you never knew either of your parents. They were good witches, both of them."

"Hey nerds," Eda whispered, coming up to them as she pointed to where she, along with King and Amity, were looking down. They could hear voices from below. The voices belonged to Kikimora and her partner Pugsley.

"I don't know about this, Kiki," Pugsley said. "I don't think Mr. Abel would want us to sneak in here without the other scouts. We should be careful considering how dangerous these caves are."

"Being careful will take too long," Kikimora dismissed. "And I need to get that Titan's Blood before Abel does so that I can earn my old position back!"

"But Kiki, wouldn't it be more productive if we just followed orders properly, that way you can get on the Emperor's good side by respecting proper protocol?" Pugsley suggested, while Kikimora just stared at him for a while.

"Pugsley?" she asked him.

"Yeah, Kiki?" he asked, only to earn a smack from the former aide. "Ow!"

"Shut up, Pugsley!" Kikimora scolded him. "You have no idea what needs to be done in order to earn the Emperor's forgiveness! I've made several attempts to please the Emperor by trying to spy on the Clawthornes… with disastrous results."

Kikimora in a black suit snuck over at the Owl House, trying to replant the bug again. But then she found herself face to face with Hooty. "Hey, is that a food offering?" he asked as he engulfed the screaming Kiki.

Next attempt was a disguised Kikimora knocking on the door. Opening it was Amity who looked down at her.

"Greetings, I am a home inspector and I wish to-" Before she could finish, a large abomi-fist shot up from the ground, launching the screaming Kikimora sky high.

"There's no way this could go wrong," Kikimora chuckled as she knocked on the door before hiding herself in a present. Hooty and King showed up, looking at the present.

"Hmm, I wonder what's in this present?" Hooty asked.

"And it has no return address, so let's do what we mostly do with these kinds of presents," King replied, while pulling out large pins. "Let's poke at it with these sharp pins!"

What proceeded was King and Hooty inserting the pins into the present, poking it. Kikimora let out silent shrieks and groans. The two then brought out a saw so they could saw the present in half…

"It was a miracle that I survived that last attempt," Kikimora muttered. "But anyway, let's go find the Titan's Blood so that I can get my old job back!"

"If you say so, Kiki," Pugsley said, shaking his head.

"Well, looks like she's going through something," Eda said while watching from above.

"She's also blocking the path to Eclipse Lake," Amity pointed out. "We should go find a way to keep them busy. Lilith, think you can watch over Hunter?"

"Be careful," Lilith told her while Amity ran off with Eda and King, leaving Lilith with Hunter.

"They are so going to get caught," Hunter told Lilith.

Lilith turned to him. "What are you really doing here, Hunter? I am surprised that you were not put in charge of this expedition."

Hunter looked away before answering. "Okay, I'm not on a secret mission for the Emperor. The truth is, while Belos didn't really demote me, he did take me out of the field after the… Palismen fiasco." Guilt flashed on his face. "Belos insisted that he wasn't disappointed in me, but I still felt like I had let him down. So I came here to prove myself by getting the Titan's Blood first."

Lilith sighed and nodded. "I understand where you're coming from," she admitted, turning to watch Amity as she formed a plan with Eda and King. "I know what it's like to disappoint someone who thinks you're special."

Hunter noticed who Lilith was referring to. "I recall that Amity once said that you two were still working on some things."

"We were," Lilith responded. "But I feel like now I have lost my last chance to reconnect with Amity. The relationship we once had, the connection I had once hoped for us… is gone." She shut her eyes and took a deep breath. "And I've come to accept that."

Meanwhile, Kikimora and Pugsley heard a voice behind them. "Hey!" They turned to see Amity there. "I got lost and I think you two could help me find my way," she said while shooting out abomi-balls that hit Pugsley and Kikimora, knocking them down.

"You!" Kikimora shouted as Eda's shadow loomed over the two. "Pugsley, shoot at them!" She drew a spell circle as Pugsley did the same, the two of them shooting beams of light towards Harpy Eda who was holding King.

"Hey, watch the wings!" Eda cried out while King let out his sonic screech.

"WEH!" he screamed, causing Kikimora and Pugsley to be knocked back. The beams of light they shot bounced around the cave. Amity put up an abomi-shield to protect her, Eda, and King from the blast while motioning Lilith and Hunter to come forward.

After the five escaped, Kikimora groaned as she got back up. "What… what just happened?!"

"I think we got defeated, Kiki," Pugsley pointed out.

"Shut up, Pugsley!" Kiki told him.

"KIKIMORA!"

Kikimora heard her name called and she turned to see Captain Wolffe marching up to her. With her were Venoma, Alburno, Steve, and some Abomatons. From Wolffe's tone of voice, she wasn't happy about what Kikimora did.

"Captain Wolffe, what… what brings you here?" Kikimora asked.

"Abel has sent me down here to look for you and Pugsley, and bring you back," Wolffe said while frustrated. "These mines are unstable and going in by yourselves was reckless and stupid!"

"Oh, Abel sent you here for me?" Kiki scoffed. "Please, he doesn't really care about my safety, he just doesn't want me to get to the Titan's Blood before him! He is intentionally trying to make me look bad!"

"She's really doing a good job at that all by herself," Venoma whispered to Alburno, who nodded in agreement.

Wolffe just sighed. "Look, Kiki, not everyone is out to get you and not everything is a conspiracy against you. While I understand you want to earn the Emperor's favor, getting yourself killed won't achieve that."

"And what do you know, Wolffe?" Kiki argued, fuming. "We need to get that Titan's Blood, so I order you to-"

"ENOUGH!" Wolffe raised her voice at Kikimora and removed her mask out of frustration. Kiki's eyes widen when she looked at Wolffe's tanned face, rustled brown hair, black lips, and the scar across her right blank eye. "You don't get to order me around anymore!" she angrily shouted at her, showing how pissed she was. "I am your superior, and as your superior I order you to do as I say, and if you decide to go against my orders, you will be cleaning the outhouses near the Scarby's! IS THAT CLEAR, SOLDIER!?"

Kikimora has never felt this much fear from authority, not since Belos. "Y-Yes, Wo- Captain Wolffe, sir," she saluted.

"Good," Wolffe replied while turning around.

"I-If I may say one more thing, there is something you should know about," Kikimora said "I saw the Clawthornes, they were just passed by us after attacking us."

Wolffe paused, turning back to Kikimora. "The Clawthornes? Are you sure?"

"I can confirm!" Pugsley spoke up. "There was the Owl Lady, her skull dog, and the former Blight girl."

"They must be after the same thing as us," Wolffe realized as she put back on her mask. "Alright, we need to go after them before they find the Titan's Blood first!"

"The Owl Lady? Now this just got interesting," Alburno said.

"Yeah," Venoma agreed, grinning under her mask.

Steve, who was behind them, was concerned about this.

Meanwhile, Viney was heading over to the Owl House to see if she could help. She heard crashing coming from inside the house.

"What the…?" She heard Hooty's cries as the door opened slightly. She poked her head inside. "Hey, is everything alright?"

"Maya, no! Hooty's not food!" Gus cried out, as Maya had taken over Luz's body and was now biting Hooty's tube neck.

"AHH! It hurts! Her teeth hurt!" Hooty cried out while Maya's eyes were blank as she bit him.

Willow tried to grab Maya with her vines, pulling her away from Hooty. But Maya just flew around and crashed through the wall, escaping from Willow's grasp.

"Luz or Maya?" Viney asked as she came in.

"Maya!" Willow responded. "Glad you came just in time!"

Cat rushed in. "Camila is with Kay and our Palismans in the basement, so right now we just need to put her in a sleep spell." She turned to notice Viney. "A double dosage of sleep spells."

In the hallway, Maya flew around like a bat trapped in a closed space. She knocked over some photos and broke some vases. She then crashed her head through the wall and as she pulled herself out, mushrooms started popping out from her hair and she started to sneeze, which knocked her back. "YACHOO!"

"Maya!" called out Gus who waved at her. Maya turned to see him through her blurry vision. Not knowing who it was, she flew towards him, only for him to disappear, since it was just an illusion. It was then that large vines started wrapping around her wings, her arms and her legs.

"AAAH!" Maya cried out while Willow was the one to keep her contained.

"Cat, Viney, now!" Willow shouted as the two girls drew spell circles and fired their sleep spells at her, which passed through her. Blue and white light shone around as Maya started to feel tired. She struggled and continued to move around until eventually she fell down the floor, fast asleep.

"We caught her!" Cat declared in victory.

"She's gonna be out for a while," Viney said as Gus showed up to join them.

"Guess the common mold can affect both Luz and Maya," Gus said as Willow and Viney helped the sleeping Maya up.

"Let's take her back to her room, and then clean up this mess," Willow said as they took the restrained Maya back to Luz's bedroom.

The team found themselves in a cave filled with what looked like dark blue orbs. Flapjack, who had been following them, landed on Hunter's head. Of course, no one noticed this as they were focused on the tunnel they were in.

"Is this Titan's Blood?" Eda asked.

Amity looked at the map she had brought. "But Eclipse Lake is farther ahead."

"Who cares? We did it!" King declared as Eda was about to crack open an orb.

"Wait, stop!" Hunter called out. "Don't touch it, that's Fool's Blood!"

"Oh, so you can keep it all to yourself? Hard pass," Eda scoffed as she used her staff to crack open the orb.

Lilith rushed in. "Edalyn, wait!" But it was too late, since Eda had already cracked open the Fool's Blood, which caused a crack to appear in the floor beneath them.

"Whoops," Eda said as she along with Lilith and King fell through the opening chasm. "AAAHHH!"

"NO!" Amity cried out as she watched them fall.

"Did you hear that?" said a voice in the tunnel behind them.

"Yeah, it came from over here," said another voice.

Amity and Hunter realized that scouts were coming. Hunter turned to her. "Quick, free me! I can use Flapjack to save them!"

"I… I don't know," Amity looked hesitant, but Hunter kept begging.

"Please! What choice do you have!" Hunter told her.

Knowing the scouts were coming closer, Amity shut her eyes. "Ugh, fine!" She released him and Flapjack turned into a staff for Hunter. "Hurry up and save them, I'll keep them busy!"

Hunter nodded, but then he noticed a nearby mine cart on a track that led deeper into the mines. "Yeah…"

"Hunter…" Amity noticed what he was about to do, but before she could do anything he swept his leg under her feet, knocking her over as he rushed for the mine cart.

"Sorry, Amity!" Hunter told her while getting in the mine cart and riding it toward Eclipse Lake.

"HUNTER!" Amity cried out, feeling betrayed by him yet again. "Dammit!"

"Well, well, well," said a voice.

Amity felt a chill down her spine, then something grabbing her. "AH!" she yelled as she was bound by an Abomaton's hand. She was then turned to face Captain Wolffe's team.

"Look who we found," Venoma commented.

"It's her! The former Blight!" Kikimora pointed out.

"Yeah, it is her," Wolffe confirmed. "Amity, isn't it? There's a lot on you we have on record. Is the Owl Lady around here? What about Luz Clawthorne?"

"She's not here," Amity told her, trying to keep herself calm.

"He was here, I saw him!" Kikimora raved.

"Kiki…" Wolffe groaned but Kikimora continued to rave like a madwoman.

"The Golden Guard is here to steal my glory, just as Abel is!" Kiki ranted madly. "Both he and Abel have been plotting against me, and how everyone's laughing at me! Pugsley, let's go find the Titan's Blood before the Golden Guard does!"

"Kiki, stop!" Wolffe tried to stop her, but Kikimora and Pugsley had already climbed into a mine cart to pursue Hunter. "Ugh… this is just… she is out of control, you know?"

"There, there, Captain," Alburno said, patting her back. "Here, have some ghoul-aid."

"Thanks, Alburno," Wolffe replied as she lifted her mask to drink the ghoul-aid.

Venoma looked up at the restrained Amity. "So, what's it like to be the girl who once had everything, only to give it all up for a criminal life?" she asked her. Amity just ignored her. "Silent treatment, huh? Well, you know, I was in the Abominations Track myself, really good at it back at St. Epiderm. Do you know what kind of Abominations I make? Let me show you." She demonstrated as she summoned an Abomination from the ground.

When Amity looked at Venoma's Abomination, her eyes widened out of shock and fear. The Abomination summoned was more darkly purple, with its eyes glowing white. Its slime in its arms dripped a substance that gave an acidic sizzle when it hit the ground. "What… what is…?"

"Do you like my Abomination, former Blight?" Venoma asked her. "I've added a little something special to make it more beneficial for the Emperor's Coven. That being, it's made of venom. Can you imagine what it can do if it makes contact with someone's skin? Can you imagine the screams when the venom touches them?"

'This… this isn't right,' Amity thought while feeling overwhelmed. 'She created something unnatural…' She gulped and Venoma smirked under her mask as she intimidated Amity.

"Hey, stop that!" Steve scolded Venoma, his tone disapproving. "You're making her scared, she's just a kid!"

Venoma scoffed. "Whatever." She summoned back her poison Abomination.

"Come on, we should go after Kiki and Pugsley before they hurt themselves," Wolffe told the scouts.

"Captain, let me stay behind to watch over Amity," Steve told her. "That way you won't have to worry about a prisoner getting in the way."

"Very well," Wolffe nodded as she led Venoma, Alburno and the Abomatons to the mine cart tracks, the Abomatons turning into mine carts that Wolffe and her scout duo rode down the tunnel in.

While Steve stayed behind, he noticed the restrained Amity tearing up. "Hey, are you alright?" he asked her out of concern, only for Amity to shake in fear and start to have a hard time breathing.

Amity was on her knees, she could feel a panic attack coming. "M-My bag… capsule," she managed to muster.

Steve went to check her bag, which had a lot of supplies in. He found a capsule and a water bottle, which he showed to her. "Is this it?" he asked and she nodded.

"Please, release me so that I can take it!" Amity begged him.

"Okay, okay," he said as he untied Amity, allowing her to take the capsule, pull out a pill, and drink some water to help swallow it. "Are you better?"

"No… no I'm not," Amity said while wiping away her tears. "I was supposed to get Titan's Blood for Luz, but then Eda broke some Fool's Blood which resulted in my family falling to their doom; Hunter was supposed to help them, but he just left!" She was still overwhelmed, not bothering to escape. "All he cares about is pleasing Belos, regardless of who he has to screw over to get his approval…"

"Oh, um, I'm sorry…" Steve said awkwardly, not having the full context.

"It's fine," she responded while looking down at the chasm that the others had fallen into. "It's just… a lot has happened and sometimes… I just want to be away from the Isles. Going to the human world, I want to see more of it. Where I'm not in constant danger and maybe me and Luz could live there someday." She turned to Steve. "Sorry, I shouldn't have dumped this all on you."

"Hey, it's cool. Steve's always a good listener," he replied. "So um, you've been in the human world before? What's it like there?" he asked, trying to help calm her down.

"Well, it's less chaotic compared to the Demon Realm… sort of," Amity replied. "It's very beautiful. The trees are green, their food is delicious, so many of the people are nice, and there are no covens to tie you down." She looked down. "That Titan's Blood may have been my one chance to go there again, for me and Luz to just take a break from it all and spend some time with her step-family and human friends."

Steve looked at the chasm where Amity said her family fell in. "Well then," he decided. "Sounds like we should probably go down there to help your family."

Amity was shocked. "You want to help me?"

"Hey, I've helped you and Lilith in the past, right? Steve is here to help!" Steve declared as he looked down the chasm. "Now all we need is to use the rope and something to tie-"

WHACK!

Steve was punched across the face by a feathery fist, knocking him down with his mask dented. Amity was surprised to see Eda flying out of the chasm while carrying Lilith and King, her staff and Lilith's were held in her taloned feet.

"Boom! Take that, scout!" Harpy Eda declared as landed. "Amity, are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine," Amity replied as she went to hug Eda. "Hunter he… he left… I freed him thinking he could save you, but-"

"Hey, hey it's okay," Eda said as she patted Amity's head. "What matters more to me now is that you're safe, kiddo." She wiped away Amity's tears.

Amity smiled, while then realizing what Eda had just done. "Eda, I can't believe you just punched out Steve!"

"Steve?" Eda turned to the knocked out coven scout. "Ooh, that guy. Sorry about that!"

King and Lilith checked up on him. "Don't worry, he's alive!" King told them.

"Edalyn, did you really have to punch him that hard?!" Lilith scolded her sister. "I'll stay behind to watch over him, you three can go ahead."

"If we can catch up, we might still be able to get to Eclipse Lake before Hunter and the scouts!" Eda declared as she held onto King and Amity and flew down the tunnel. "Catch ya later, Lily!"

After Eda left, Lilith used her staff to draw a fire glyph on the ground, starting the fire to keep Steve warm. As she did so, she heard footsteps. "What? Who's there?!" She turned toward the sound and raised her staff, wondering if it was another scout or Abel. She then saw someone hiding in the shadows. "You! Come out so that I can see you!"

"Relax, Lilith, I'm not here to hurt you," spoke the shadowy figure as they stepped forward.

Once Lilith got a good look at them, her eyes widened. "No…" she said in a shocked tone. "It… can't be..."

"It has been a while, hasn't it, Lilith?" asked the one who Lilith recognized… Ford Pines.

"Ooh, I can't wait to see a real life mine cart chase!" King clapped his hands while Eda kept flying down the tunnel with him and Amity.

Once they reached a larger cavern, they saw that the mine carts had crashed. The scouting party were scattered around with their downed Abomatons. Wolffe, who struggled to get up, went to check on Pugsley and Kikimora.

"Pugsley, Kiki, are you two alright?" Wolffe asked them.

"I'm fine, Captain Wolffe," Pugsley told her. "But um, gee, I don't think Kiki looks so well." He pointed to the knocked out Kikimora, who wasn't moving. Her forehead was bleeding.

"Oh Titan, Kiki, are you alright!?" Wolffe asked while shaking her, but got no response. "Shit..."

"Ooh," Harpy Eda winced at the sight of the wrecked mine carts..

"Guess mine cart chases are a lot more dangerous than video games make 'em seem," King realized.

"There it is!" Amity pointed to a sign that marked the entrance to 'Eclipse Lake'.

"Alright, let's GAH!" Harpy Eda felt an Abomaton grabs her by the leg, bringing the trio down. They turned to see that Venoma had been the one who ordered the Abomaton to do so.

"Looks like Steve didn't do his job right," Venoma hissed as her mask was removed, along with her cowl.

"Forget him, we'll just have to deal with them ourselves," Alburno replied as he joined her.

After recovering, Eda turned to Amity. "Get to the lake, I'll take care of them."

"Be careful, she can summon a poisonous Abomination," Amity told her.

"Way to spoil the surprise!" Venoma called out to her.

Amity and King ran for the tunnel to Eclipse Lake. However, Alburno jumped up high in the air, and landed in front of them. "Where do you think you're going, little miss?" he asked while cracking his neck.

"Get out of our way, or face my screech of rage!" King declared, while Amity put up a defense with a spiked abomi-fist.

"I can't let you two get past me," Alburno said while dodging Amity's fist. He grabbed her by the coat and threw her back to the ground. He was then knocked sideways by King's sonic screech, though he managed to regain his composure. "Interesting, so you do have some tricks for a little guy."

"Amity, we'll catch up with you!" King shouted as he pulled some glyphs from his pocket. "I'll take this guy out!"

"Be careful you two!" Amity told them as she ran toward the entrance.

"Hmm, I don't know if we should keep you two alive or not," Venoma commented. "But I wouldn't cry over it if this ended with you dead."

"King, you good?" Eda asked while getting in a fighting position.

"Yeah, I am gonna take this guy down and then we'll catch up to Amity," King responded.

"Gotta warn ya, squirt, we're no pushovers like the other scouts," Alburno said while getting in a fighting position.

While she ran down the tunnel, Amity heard a voice behind her.

"Long time, no see, little witchling."

"Huh?" Amity turned around and saw no one there.

"Uh, down here."

She looked down and saw a white cat Palisman that she recognized. "You!" Amity said, realizing that it was Ghost.

Meanwhile, at the Owl House everyone had finished cleaning up the mess caused by Maya. Viney and Cat prepared to leave with Willow and Gus seeing them out.

"Well see you guys tomorrow, be sure Luz drinks more water and keeps her hair dry," Viney told them.

"And use sleep candles next time, in case Maya were to take over again," Cat informed them. "Call us if you need anything and let us know when Amity comes home!"

"Okay, see ya later, guys!" Willow said.

"Well I don't want to experience that ever again," Hooty said while covered in bandages. "I don't know who's worse when feral: Eda, Luz, or Maya."

"Don't worry, Hooty," Gus said, patting the house demon's head. "At least she's calmed down."

Luz was back in control, but the common mold was still in effect. "Ugh… so stuffy…" she groaned while wrapped up in vines.

"Luz?" asked Camila, who entered the room with a bowl of soup. "Willow made you some soup for you."

Luz looked up to her hazmat suited birth mother. "AH! Space men! Here to suck my brains!" she cried out while trying to get out, but was still wrapped in vines. "Please, I haven't told Amity I love her yet!"

Camila set the soup on her desk. "You do?" she asked.

"Yes," Luz admitted. "I… I want to see her. I wanna tell her how much I love her! She… I have never felt this way about anyone else. Just her."

Camila was pleasantly surprised by this. While there was a lot about Luz's life that she had trouble understanding or accepting, she never had any problem with Amity. She could always tell that Amity cared deeply for her daughter and vice versa. If anything, it was the part of Luz's life that she had the least problem with. "She will be back soon, and then you can tell her," she reassured her daughter.

"Thank you, space man," Luz told her before Camila started to feed Luz soup, all the while promising that it wouldn't melt her insides.

But before Camila left the bedroom, she sighed. "Luz… I'm… I'm sorry for the other night. I know I was wrong to say those things to you and-" She stopped when she realized that Luz had fallen asleep peacefully. The candles were working on her. "We'll talk later," she said before leaving Luz to rest.

"I… I don't believe it…" Lilith said. "What are you doing here, Ford?"

"Yeah, I suppose I do have a lot to explain," Ford admitted. "After I left you, I tried to find a way to escape this realm. I learned about Titan's Blood, so I came up here to the Knee to find Eclipse Lake. Unfortunately, I learned that it had gone dry for a long time. So I have been up here ever since, mapping out these tunnels and trying to find a vein of Titan's Blood that hasn't gone dry. And what about you? I have been seeing a lot of coven scouts around more lately, so I assume Belos is looking for Titan's Blood as well and you're helping him."

"Actually, I'm not with the Emperor's Coven anymore, I am here looking for Titan's Blood for my niece," Lilith explained.

"Your niece?" Ford asked her.

"Yes, Luz, my sister's adopted daughter from the Human Realm," Lilith told him. "Me and my sister came up here along with my nephew and goddaughter."

"Hmm, perhaps I may be able to help you," Ford replied as he headed down a tunnel. "Follow me."

But Lilith looked reluctant, turning to Steve. "I'm not sure, Steve-"

"He'll be fine," Ford reassured her. "Now come on, I want you to see this before the scouts do."

Lilith looked at Steve again, the fire glyph keeping him warm. She sighed before following Ford down a tunnel.

"So it sounds like your life has been eventful, Lilith," Ford pointed out.

Lilith rubbed the back of her hair. "You could say that. I got kicked out of the Emperor's Coven for trying to help my family, but I do think I am better off. I did have to move in with my parents though, and I am still waiting to hear back from a job interview."

"And what about your sister? Found a cure for her yet?" Ford asked her.

"Actually, no. But Edalyn and I share the curse now and, well, she can turn into a harpy now," Lilith explained. "No idea if I have that ability as well."

"And your niece and… goddaughter?"

"Luz… it's a long story for her," Lilith said awkwardly. "At first I wasn't sure about my sister raising a human, but she is better for it. And my goddaughter, Amity, she is smart and wonderful, but… I've really messed up with her." She looked down and sighed. "What about you, Ford? You have been… up here all this time? That must have not been easy."

"Oh you know, I survived on griffin eggs and whatnot." Ford replied dismissively before he came to a stop. "Well, we're here."

Lilith entered the cavern and looked around. "Wait a minute," she said, noticing the familiar blue orbs around the cave. "Ford, this is-"

"Fool's Blood," Ford replied before punching a blue orb that caused the entire cave to shake, the ceiling coming down on top of Lilith.

"AAH!" Lilith cried out, trying to move only to get buried. "Ford, why!?"

"Oh, I'm not really Ford," he responded with a sadistic smile as Lilith was buried alive. He turned to leave.

"WAIT, NO!" she cried, trying to reach out to 'Ford'. But it was all for naught. He was already gone, leaving Lilith to her fate.

"Ghost?" Amity said to the white cat Palisman. "What are you doing here? Have you been following me this entire time?"

"I have," Ghost admitted. "I was a bit curious as to why you were here in the first place."

"Well, what are you doing here?" Amity questioned, crossing her arms. "Why would you be up here at the Knee in the first place, so far away from the Bat Queen's woods? Especially now, when it's swarming with coven scouts?"

"Worried about little ol' me?" Ghost asked with a cheshire grin. "Flattered, but to answer your question, this is far from the first time that I've come up here to visit Eclipse Lake. And I know how to avoid the Emperor's lackeys, especially since I know these tunnels well."

"You know where Eclipse Lake is?" Amity asked her and Ghost nodded.

"Yes, and it appears that you're looking for it too. So how about we kill two griffins with one stone and I can help you find the lake," Ghost offered.

"Really?" Amity asked in surprise. "Wow, thank you, I'd like that. I honestly thought you would be like, this cold guard type kind of Palisman, but you're really nice."

"Just don't step on my tail," Ghost responded while jumping onto Amity's shoulder, using her front paw to point in a direction. "That way, straight ahead!"

And so, the two headed down to Eclipse Lake, Ghost telling her which tunnel to take when the path split. However, while on the way Ghost spotted something.

"Stop," Ghost said and as soon as Amity did, Ghost jumped down.

"Why? Are we almost there?" Amity asked her.

"We are," Ghost said while looking up at a wall "But first I… gotta see this. You can go ahead without me if you want."

Amity was curious about what Ghost was looking at. She got a closer look and saw a marking, two names carved into the ice…

Philip + Adam

"Philip," Amity said. She wasn't surprised by seeing Philip's name since it confirmed that he's been here. However, when she saw Adam's name, that surprised her. "Adam…?"

"Familiar with the names?" Ghost asked her.

"Philip I've already heard of," Amity replied. "But Adam… I wonder if he is the same Adam whose sword I have."

"What…?" Ghost gasped, shocked at what Amity had said. "You hold the Sword of Adam?"

"Yeah, I got it during the school war," Amity replied. "Afterward I just felt that it was right to keep it."

"And it works for you?" Ghost asked in curiosity, which confused the witch girl.

"Yeah, it does," Amity told her. "What does that mean?"

"Oh, I think you'll get it someday," Ghost responded.

"So this… Adam, do you know him?" Amity asked the Palisman, who fell quiet.

Ghost sighed and looked down sadly. "I did know him once… he came here a long time ago and that's why I'm here now. Because he is gone and I have very little to remember him by."

Amity noticed how sad Ghost was, realizing what she meant. She decided to not push the subject. "You have my condolences." she told her. "He must've meant a lot to you."

Ghost sighed. "He did," she said while looking at the carving one more time, before returning to Amity's shoulder. "Come now, young witchling."

Amity followed the cat's instructions until they made it to an open space that held Eclipse Lake. There, she saw that it was all dried up and Hunter was already there, digging away.

He noticed Amity there. "Don't worry, I won't pick a fight with you. There's… not any Titan's Blood here. There probably hasn't been any for a long time."

"Then… why are you digging?" Amity asked him.

Hunter looked slightly unhinged. "Oh, it's simple really. Belos needs Titan's Blood to make a new portal key. Can't get to the Human Realm without it! And since I failed my last mission, I thought 'Hey, a chance to make up for it!' But I can't go back empty-handed!" He laughed hysterically. "Not again… Long story short, this is my grave!" he said happily, while burying his face in the hole.

"Overdramatic, don't you think?" Ghost asked sarcastically, though Hunter wouldn't be able to understand her.

Meanwhile, Eda and King continued to keep Venoma and Alburno busy. To say the least, out of all the scouts, they're the most formidable. Even without the Abomaton, Venoma proved to be skillful to Eda, shooting out beams at her as Eda dodged them.

'Too bad I can't use my poisonous Abominations,' Venoma thought, figuring that using her Abomination wouldn't be a good idea in such an enclosed space. So she improvised with her other magic. She calculated Harpy Eda's moves, figuring out that while she didn't have magic, she was an excellent flyer.

When Harpy Eda launched herself at her opponent, Venoma jumped up, and did a flip over her as she landed behind Eda. She then turned around and shot an electricity spell at Eda. Eda flew up to dodge it, but the lightning bounced off the wall and hit her in the back.

"Ah!" Eda cried out. "How did you-!?"

"You gotta know every angle, Owl Lady," Venoma said while calculating her next strike. She summoned thorny vines that she whipped at the Owl Harpy, who dodges from the strikes.

Meanwhile, King jumped back while Alburno shot fireballs at him. "I see why they call you Alburno, Al," he said, which made Alburno flinch.

Instantly, he teleported behind King. "I dare you to say that again, you little imp!" he grabbed King by his coat and shoved him to the wall.

"Weh!" he cried out and struggled. "Hey, a little rough here, bud?"

"Sorry, it's just… I don't like to be called Al, you know?" Alburno responded, as his other hand forming into a fiery fist. King then bit his hand, causing him to let King go. "Ow!"

King ran past Alburno and turned back, letting out another sonic scream. But Alburno had predicted that and he moved four steps away just as King sent out his shock wave attack. This gave Alburno the opportunity to shoot a light beam at King, knocking him back.

"Nice try, little guy." Alburno said as he blew smoke off his finger. "But I have the upper hand."

Harpy Eda looked at King fighting Alburno. Worried, she flew towards him to help but was hit by a kick from Venoma. Her kick sent Eda crashing into a wall, while Venoma adjusted herself when she landed.

"Didn't know you coven goons were this good…" Eda muttered, as she was almost shot with a poison beam. She moved away and saw Venoma's fingertips dripping with venom.

"Let's see if you can dodge this!" Venoma swung her arm, targeting Eda with venom.

Eda flew up before they hit her. Venoma jumped up to Eda's height to deliver a swinging kick, which Eda blocked with her arm. However, this burned Eda's arm making her wince, due to Venoma's leg being covered in her venomous abomi-goop.

"AAH!" Harpy Eda cried out as she flew back.

"Mom, are you alright?!" King asked her while keeping Alburno busy.

"Yeah, just a sting," Harpy Eda replied.

"Don't worry about her, rat!" Alburno went behind King and summoned a sword to swing at King. The little demon dodged the sword as he sent out another shock wave. "Weh!" Alburno summoned a shield to protect himself from the shock wave.

"I never heard of a demon that can do that… you must be one of the kind," Alburno noted.

"Yeah, cause I'm the son of the Owl Lady!" King declared. "I'm King Clawthorne, the mightiest of Clawthornes!"

Alburno gave out a laugh. "Mighty? That little scream you make might be impressive, but is it really enough to be considered 'mighty?'" He saw King launching himself at him, but Alburno simply moved away and delivered a knee kick to him, sending King back. "Face it, little guy, you're outmatched. But don't be too hard on yourself, you are hardly the first."

"Shut up!" King shouted as he released another 'weh' at him, which Alburno side stepped away quickly from. King then released another 'weh', aiming at the ledge above Alburno.

"You missed," Alburno declared.

"Or did I?" King pointed up and Alburno looked up, spotting a mine cart that had been hanging off the ledge. The scream had caused it to fall… right on top of him.

"OOF!" he cried out.

"Hahaha! Now who's mighty now, Al?" King asked.

Meanwhile, Wolffe removed her mask while checking up on Kikimora. Pugsley looked just as worried as she was. "Is she going to be alright, Captain?"

"She's not responding," Wolffe responded. "Dammit, you idiot." She looked up at the battle and the tunnel leading to Eclipse Lake, realizing that a decision had to be made.

Harpy Eda delivered a kick to Venoma, who grabbed her leg and swung her to the ground. She pinned Eda down with her boot. But Eda used her wings to throw dirt at her, causing Venoma to let go. Harpy Eda then delivered a punch to her face, causing Venoma to back away.

"AAH! You bitch!" Venoma cried out as one of her fangs fell out.

"Mama still got it," Harpy Eda grinned.

"Oh you will pay for that!" Venoma responded, her fingertips covered in abomi-goo. She took a swipe at Eda who dodged them. Harpy Eda then swung her wing to knock Venoma away, grabbed Venoma's leg and swung her into a wall. Venoma groaned and looked up to see Eda spinning around like a drill, striking Venoma in the stomach.

"AAH!" Venoma cried out, feeling the air knocked out of her lungs.

"You put up a good fight compared to the other scouts," Harpy Eda said as King joined her. "But you are still just coven scouts. Let this be a lesson for ya."

"Don't mess with family!" King declared as he and Eda fist bumped.

Venoma was holding her stomach, wincing in pain. She looked up and glared at Eda. But before she could do anything, Wolffe called out.

"Venoma, Alburno!" she told them while Pugsley carries Kikimora. "We're going to have to fall back. Kiki needs treatment and we have to get out of here now!"

"But… the Titan's Blood…" Alburno said while being helped up by an Abomaton.

"We'll worry about that later, right now Kiki needs medical attention!" Wolffe told them as she led the way to an exit. "Come on, let's move!"

Venoma managed to get up, glaring at the two. "You haven't seen the last of us," she said while healing herself. She then joined Alburno as they followed Wolffe, leaving Eda and King alone.

"Help! Someone help!" Lilith cried out while still buried. "Eda! Amity! King! Steve!" Tears began to leak from her eyes. "Oh Titan… this is what I deserve, isn't it?" she asked herself. "I'm sorry that I failed you Amity, and I'm sorry that I failed you, Luz, Eda, King, Camila. Hooty…"

But then she noticed some light in front of her. Someone was digging her out. "It… it can't be…?" she said as a gangreen hand grabbed Lilith's arm and pulled her free. Once she was pulled out, she looked at her savior and was startled. "Are you…?"

"Rawr!" said the gangreen witch-demon hybrid who resembled a prairie dog. His pointy ears looked chewed on and his yellow eyes were twitching. Dirt was all over his torn coven scout uniform as his whiskers and big front teeth twitched. He was on all fours. "Zeb… saved Head Witch Lilith."

"I'm… I'm not a Head Witch anymore," Lilith pointed out. "But thank you, um, Zeb."

Zeb gave a thumbs up before he darted away from sight.

Lilith smiled, but then realized something. "Steve!" she exclaimed. She ran down the tunnel to where she had left Steve. But then she spotted Wolffe and the scouts, prompting her to grab an invisible glyph and slap it on herself as she took a deep breath.

"Steve, wake up!" Wolffe shouted as Steve started to stir.

"Oh… what happened?" Steve asked while taking off his mask and rubbing his face.

"We need to head back to the surface to get Kikimora medical attention and probably fix your nose," Wolffe pointed out.

The invisible Lilith quietly pinned herself to the wall while Wollfe and Steve walked past her along with Pugsley, the knocked out Kiki, and some Abomatons. The ones that were lagging behind were Venoma and Alburno, who were arguing.

"Crap, I think she cracked a rib!" Venoma winced while rubbing her side.

"Looks like you tangled with the wrong opponent, Heathens," Alburno mocked.

"At least I didn't let myself get tricked by a screaming rat!" Venoma spat.

"Hey, I bet I could've taken on the Owl Lady better than you!" Alburno argued as the two bickered.

Lilith doesn't know how much longer she could hold her breath. However, Venoma stopped arguing and looked around.

"Wait, did you hear that?" Venoma asked, while Lilith felt nervous.

"Hear what?" Alburno asked.

"RAWR!"

Zeb jumped down as he pushed the two scouts into the chasm that Lilith had fallen into with Eda and King not long ago.

"AAAAAAH!" they screamed as fall.

"Bad scouts!" Zeb shouted at them before running off to hide.

Lilith released her breath and rushed over to the chasm, looking down in worry for the two scouts. When she heard them arguing again, she sighed in relief, realizing that they were at least still alive.

"Do you have to hold me like this, Burnie?!" Venoma shouted while he held her by her waist while he held onto the wall of the chasm.

"What? I thought you liked this when we were dating, madame," Alburno told her.

Venoma blushed angrily while muttering. "We need to get an Abomaton to get us…"

Back at Eclipse Lake, Amity walked over to the depressed Hunter. Ghost cautiously followed her.

"Careful now, who knows what this scout is capable of," Ghost warned her until she saw Flapjack landing on top of his head. "Flapjack?"

"Hunter," Amity spoke to him, but he didn't respond. She knelt down on the ground next to him. "You know, I actually get the position you are in right now. There was someone I once looked up to, someone who I wanted to prove myself to more than anything else. I was terrified of failing them, so I was willing to do anything for their approval. Even spying on a friend and her family. I was promised that nobody would get hurt… but people still get hurt regardless." She looked down awkwardly. "That person was Lilith," she admitted. "Who has done terrible things… including killing Luz's biological mother."

Hunter was shocked, his eyes widening as he turned to her. "How… how do you feel about that?"

"Honestly, I don't know how to feel about that or how to feel about Lilith in general," Amity confessed. "But I do know that she used me, just as Belos is using you. That doesn't mean that he doesn't care about you, people are just complicated. Lilith cares about me and she didn't mean to hurt me, but she did, and what Lilith did was wrong, despite her intentions." She was silent for a moment before continuing. "Maybe Belos does want to save the Isles, but what exactly would Belos do if he could get the portal door working? What would happen if he sent his people to the Human Realm as a way to 'protect' the Boiling Isles? Short answer: innocent people from both worlds could get hurt or worse. And that may be a sacrifice Belos is willing to make, but is it a sacrifice you are willing to make?"

Hunter looked away. "The alternative is that everyone will die…"

Amity sighed and stood up. "I know you believe that, but maybe there is another way. But we can talk about it more-" She offered her hand to him. "Back at the Owl House."

Hunter was surprised by Amity's offer, but before he could reply they heard slow clapping.

"Now wasn't that nice?" asked a voice.

They turn to see someone else at Eclipse Lake. It was an old witch with black shaggy hair and a beard. He was wearing a long cowl. "It is a shame though. Both of you have come all this way, only to realize that it didn't really matter. No Titan's Blood, no results. It seems you two will just go home empty handed… or will you?"

"Who are you?" Amity demanded to know.

"Oh, just an old witch who can offer you something that you can't refuse," he said as he pulled out something from his sleeve. Once he bought it out, Amity and Hunter were both shocked.

"The portal key!" Amity and Hunter shouted.

"Correct!" the old witch declared as Hunter rushed toward him in an attempt to grab the key, but he evaded the teen. "Nah-ah-ah, too slow!" he said as he dodged a fireball from Amity. He then disappeared and reappeared farther away. "Nice try!"

"Give up the key, now!" Amity demanded.

Hunter held onto Flapjack and had him change into a staff as he teleported towards the old witch, who just teleported away again. "Hand it over, you old weirdo!"

"You two want this key so much?" he asked while Hunter flew over to him while Amity slung her abomi-web to grab the key. But the old witch teleported, prompting the web to stick to Hunter, which tripped him off of his staff. "I do quite like your determination, so how about this? Prove how much you really want it… by fighting each other."

"What?!" Amity asked, her eyes narrow. "Like we'll fight each other over a key, right Hun...ter?"

She saw Hunter giving a worried and desperate look. He looked up at Amity, his hand gripping his staff. "I'm… sorry," he said as he raised his staff and charged towards her.

"Hunter, no!" she shouted as she formed her abomi-goo to make a shield, blocking Hunter's attack.

"Yes, fight!" the old witch ordered, while Hunter and Amity were forced to face each other.

"Hunter, I'm not going to fight you!" Amity told him, while she summoned her abomi-goop at Hunter to entrap him with his staff.

Hunter looked stressed as he tried to get out of the abomi-goop, managing to teleport away with his staff. This surprised Amity, who saw him reappear above her and swing his staff, shooting golden electric bolts down at her.

Amity dodged them along with Ghost as the bolts bounced around the cave. She formed an abomination sphere around them for protection.

"There's no way you could beat him without a staff!" Ghost told her.

"Are you saying…?" Amity saw Ghost come up to her and turn into a staff. "Oh, wow I'm honored," she said as she looked out and saw some bolts still hitting around.

She flew out as she used her Abomination goop to block the remaining bolts. She tried to spot Hunter, only for him to pop up next to her and swing his staff at her. She dodged it and Hunter teleported away. He appeared behind her to swing his staff again, prompting her to use her Abomination goop to shield her against him. He teleported around her several more times, and each time was the same result. Amity then formed her abomi-goo into a fist, knocking him back.

She swung her staff to create a ring around her and summoned an Abomination hand to trap him with. Hunter tried to escape but was still engulfed in the purple muddy sphere. Amity fell back while riding on her new staff as Hunter struggled to get out. Then a rumble from the ground was heard and she was hit by a large rocky fist that came out as Hunter blasted his way out of his sphere.

Amity tumbled over, but managed to get back on her feet as Hunter charged her.

"Let me get the key!" Hunter shouted, sounding more obsessed which frightened Amity.

"NO!" Amity shouted as she shot Abomination tendrils to send him back. Her eyes glowed pink as suddenly more large Abomination arms sprouted around her. Hunter was shocked by this and he backed away from her. He tried to fly away on his staff, but was punched by one purple fist that sent him back.

Hunter rolled over and was hit by another abomi-fist. "OOF!" he cried out as he tried to recover, but was punched more and more. He had never seen Amity do something like this. He tried to hold onto his staff, but then was grabbed by an abomi-hand, making him drop his staff.

Amity held Hunter in this large hand as she levitated with the Abomination goop swirling around her. "I tried to help you!" she told him off. "But instead you decided to betray me again and for what? To please someone who made you ruin your own personal life?!"

"Amity, please…!" Hunter felt the grip tighten around him.

"When will it stop, Hunter?" Amity asked him with her voice sounding other-worldly. "When will you stop doing these horrible things to your friends?! Maybe you do deserve nothing from the Emperor! Maybe you don't deserve to be the Golden Guard! Maybe you deserve nothing!" she shouted, as Hunter started to cry while feeling his bond tightened.

And as Amity saw Hunter start to cry… she realized what she was about to do. Her eyes stopped glowing and the Abominations around them dispersed as she dropped Hunter to the ground and levitated back to the ground, trying to calm down while using her staff to hold herself up. The two looked tired.

"What are you waiting for?!" the old witch demanded. "Finish him off! Do it!"

Amity shut her eyes. "No," she responded as she opened them back up and turned to the old witch. "I refuse to hurt him. This is just… insane! All of this is! Why do we always have to fight each other? The exams, the school war, now this? Yeah, Hunter hurt me, my girlfriend, my brother and my friends, but hurting him back won't make things better! And you know, thinking it over, how do we even know that the key you have is real? For all we know, you just say it just to see a couple of kids fight each other, you sicko!" she accused.

DING!

Amity's eyes widened when she heard the familiar sound behind her. She turned around and saw, to her and Hunter's shock, a portal door as it opened, bathing them in bright light.

"Still want to go to the human world?" the old witch asked as he appeared behind Amity. "Then let me help you!" He grabbed her and lifted in the air, causing one of her boots to fall off, before he threw the girl into the portal, Amity screaming as she fell through.

"AMITY!" Hunter shouted in shock.

"AAAH!" Amity cried out as she landed on the ground on the other side of the portal, still holding onto Ghost in her staff form. She looked up and saw that the portal was still open. "No, no, nononono!" she cried out as she ran back to the portal… only for it to close and vanish in front of her.

Her eyes widened. "No!" she cried out. "Hunter! Eda! King! Lilith!" As she cried out in vain for somebody to hear her, she realized where she was. She noticed the green trees, the grass underneath her feet, and the blue sky over her head.

Amity gasped.

This was the Human Realm.

And she was now stranded here.

Hunter was shocked by what just happened. His body shivered as he turned around. "Where did you send her-!?"

But the old witch was gone. It was just him alone.

Though not for long. He heard the voices of Eda, King, and Lilith as they approached. Hunter gasped and panicked, quickly grabbing his staff and flying away, going through a hole in the cave's ceiling just as Harpy Eda came in with King and Lilith.

"Was that… Hunter?" Lilith asked, spotting the fleeing teen.

"Forget him. Where's Amity?" Eda asked as she changed back and started to look around. "Amity! Where are you?!"

"Mom!" King shouted, pointing at a boot. "That's… that's Amity's boot. But I don't see Amity."

Eda's eyes widened. "No… Amity." She shook her head. "No, she has to still be here. We can't give up!"

They continued to look for her, but the boot was all they found. Eventually they were forced to come to the conclusion that Amity was just… gone. And while they didn't know what happened to her, they did know one thing for sure: that Hunter was involved.

Luz blinked and found herself looking up at a ceiling she had never seen before. "What… where am I?" she asked, only to cough suddenly. She saw her hand, which had pale white skin. "Wha… what?"

"Older brother!"

As she turned to the door of her room, Luz realized that she was in someone's memory again. She saw a young girl she didn't know. This girl was pale, with spiky red hair and a brown dress. "Mom said you have to sleep a little more if you want that common mold to go away!"

"W-Wait, who are you?" Luz asked but the girl didn't respond as another voice was heard.

"Hey Philip, Adam is here!"

Luz's eyes opened as she woke up. She shot her head up and realized that it was covered in mold, with mushrooms in her hair. "What the hell…?" she asked herself while getting the mushrooms out of her hair. "I'm starting to feel better, at least," she said. "How about you, Maya?"

"Ugh, Hooty tastes bad," Maya responded.

"That's kind of concerning but I'm not gonna delve into it," Luz replied as she got up from her bed and stretched. She then heard people coming in downstairs and she gasped. "They're back!"

She ran out of her room, but tripped due to still being affected by her sickness. She quickly recovered and went downstairs in a rush to see her family back. "Hey guys!" she said as she saw Eda, King, and surprisingly Lilith… but then she noticed who wasn't with them and their saddened looks. Willow, Gus, and Camila looked worried as Luz realized that Eda was holding a boot that belonged to Amity.

All of this made Luz fear the worst. But she still had to ask, even if she wouldn't be able to handle the answer.

"Where's Amity?"

So yeah… what an ending…

These new characters, the OC scouts Venoma Heathens, is a parody of Heather along with Alburno Striker as a parody of Alejandro from the Total Drama series. Pugsley, who's Kikimora's partner, is an obvious parody of Mugsley, the partner of Rocky from Looney Tunes. Seems fitting for Kikimora to have a big lunk of a partner. Also another Total Drama reference, Zebiel, is a parody of Ezekiel.

And if you're interested in what a Scarby's is, it's pretty much a BI's equivalent to Arby's.

Thank you Crosshot for suggesting this line for the story between Amity and Eda to tell her how they couldn't picture a life without her. Though you had no idea how this chapter could end when you suggested it. You just suggested it as a comparison to how in canon Amity had only just started spending more time at the Owl House at this point, which Willow noted is different. But here, Amity has been living in the Owl House for the last thirty chapters. So your innocent suggestion just highlights how painful this ending is.

This was something we've planned for a long time as part of Book Two. It was our goal to make Amity feel at home in the Owl House, to make the other characters and readers get used to her living there, before she gets taken away from both her home and her family.

Now for the reviews:

Teloch: That's exactly what Belos whats others to believe he is: a necessary evil who is only trying to do what he has to do in order to save the Isles. If you think that is what he really is, you are buying the lies. Also quoting Lelouch from Code Gease… dude, comparing him to Lelouch to Belos is pretty inaccurate comparison. If you want a better comparison, he's more in common with Charles Zi Britannia, who has also, like canon and AU Belos, a manipulater, gaslighter, and seek for a 'better world'. If Belos was anything like Lelouch, then he wouldn't drag Luz to be involved with his war against humanity, nor would he do these atrocities for the sake of "peace."

Gamelover: Thanks.

Alamout: 1) Maybe, but that's an epic line. 2) Spoilers, 3) Not likely.

Deadpoollover77: Nope.

Guest: The timelines of The Owl House, and Amphibia have been adjusted, since this is an AU.

Crosshot: Nice OCs, we'll consider them for the time being of our choices.

Ultimate-drax: Thanks, and hope you enjoy this chapter…

Matteso585: 1) No. It was iron that struck her heart and her body vanished, which is what we saw in the movie. 2) The portal door works differently in Luz Clawthorne as a necessity for the plot. In canon, it seems you can open it up anywhere in the Boiling Isles but it can only open to a fixed location in the Human Realm: the old cabin. But in the prologue of Book One, it is immediately established that the portal doesn't have that limit. Ultimately it comes down to the intent of the person with the key. 3) No spoilers.

Alquimiauniver2500: Well, great analysis on Globgar.

Shuffollower: Well we're not sure about self-inserts when setting up this OC contest…

Also to add that we're still going up the OC contest so submit what OCs you want to see being used in LC. It depends on how they can be used for the story.

Man, the past chapters have been nothing but downer endings, huh? Oh well, hopefully the next one will have a lighter ending. Right?...