The Emperor Strikes Back

Before you read: Here we will finally see some big revelations and some emotional conflict that will lead into future chapters. We will also finally learn the identity of the new Golden Guard. Some of you may have figured it out already but some of you probably didn't see it coming. Either way I think you'll like the big reveal.

Secrets Revealed

It was Friday, and after Luz finished school, she stopped by her house to say "goodbye" to her mother and then used some Titan Blood to go through the portal to the demon realm. She intended to find answers about these mysterious crimes that people were blaming her for and put a stop to them. She went straight to the Owl House and landed in front of it as she found Hunter outside waiting for her with a smile on his face.

Hunter walked to her and said, "Hey Luz. Ready to find some clues?"

Luz smiled enthusiastically as she said, "You know it! We've got a mystery to solve!"

Hunter smiled as he pointed his thumb at the Owl House and said, "Great, let's grab King and get going."

They walked to the door and Hooty said, "Hoot hoot. Password."

Hunter smiled as he replied, "Owl pellet."

Hooty happily opened the door and while he said, "Come on in Hunter. You're a lot more fun than Eda."

He and Luz walked in as Hunter smiled proudly as he said, "Eh, it brings back some memories from when I was the Golden Guard."

King walked into the living room and happily climbed on Hunter's back while said, "Yeah, and you're still hanging out with Lilith and taking orders from Coven Heads."

Hunter smiled with realization as he said, "Yeah, I guess I am."

Luz then noticed how quiet it was and curiously asked, "Hey, where's everyone else."

King pointed his thumb behind him as he said, "Eda went out with Raine and Lilith's at the library again."

Hunter looked at Luz as he added, "And Vee went out a little while ago to take care of some personal business."

Luz smiled as she brushed it off and said, "Well, I guess it's just the three of then. Let's see what we can find."

She then sat on her staff while Hunter sat behind her with King on his back and they flew off to search for clues. Meanwhile, Amity was at her house, in her bedroom playing with a tiny Abomination she made as it did various tricks on her desk.

Amity smiled proudly as she said, "Yes, I'm getting better with every day!"

Suddenly a crow phone flew to Amity and Luz's voice came out of it saying, "Hola hermosa!"

Amity happily grabbed the crow phone and said, "Luz! You're back! What's up?"

Over the phone Luz happily said, "I want you, Willow, and Gus to meet me in the forest near the Emperor's old castle tonight. I've got something big I want to show you guys!"

Amity smiled as she pulled out her Penstagram scroll and said, "Sure! I'll text them on Penstagram and tell them to meet us there."

Luz happily said, "Great! See you tonight!"

Amity smiled lovingly as she said, "Adios batata."

She hung up and smiled while sending Willow and Gus text messages telling them to meet in the place Luz mentioned. Meanwhile, Darius and Eberwolf were spying on Odalia as she walked through Bonesborough, but she managed to shake them and escape. When they lost her Darius was frustrated, but then Eberwolf snarled to get his attention and pointed his finger. They spotted Vee slithering away from Bonesborough, into the forest as she made sure no one was following her. Darius quickly became suspicious as he and Eberwolf quickly and quietly followed Vee without her noticing. They watched as Vee came to the bottom of a mountain side and saw her touch the symbol drawn on the rock, magically opening the cave. Vee entered the cave and Darius and Eberwolf quietly followed her to find out what she was doing.

Vee smiled as she looked at the other basilisks and said, "Hi guys. I just wanted to see how you're doing."

Number 3 spoke nervously as she said, "Not great Vee. New faces are appearing on the Boiling Isles, strange stories are going around, and people are asking questions."

Vee understood as she said, "I know, people are starting to accuse one of my friends of doing bad things. Maybe you guys can help us."

The blue basilisk spoke seriously as he said, "No! We can't take any chances! We're having a hard enough time just trying to stay hidden!"

The purple basilisk was anxious as she said, "Number 7 is right! Even with shapeshifting we've had to drain magic from vicious beasts and it's been hard to steal the necessities."

They all jumped in surprise when Darius suddenly said, "Well you won't have to fight or steal anymore, because you're all going back to prison."

They all looked and saw Darius and Eberwolf staring at them as Vee gasped, "Darius!"

Darius eyed her with distrust as he said, "I knew you were hiding something!"

Number 7 then pointed at the two Coven Heads as he yelled, "They've found us! Attack!"

They all shrieked viciously as they charged forward while Vee desperately pleaded, "No wait!"

None of them listened as they slithered toward them but Darius changed into his Abomination form while Eberwolf summoned a pack of ligers. Eberwolf also bared sharp teeth and claws as he snarled while he, Darius, and the ligers all charged at the basilisks while Vee watched helplessly. Meanwhile, Odalia entered a building where she found Graye and Vitimir with Belos' spirit and the new Golden Guard.

Belos showed them a picture he made as he explained, "We have one week left, and for the Amplifying Spell to work we need something that will greatly enhance our magic."

Graye smiled deviously as he raised his finger and held his chin as he said, "Oh, I can help with that. During my failure at Hexside I met a young Illusionist who had been to the Looking Glass Ruins. The Galdorstones grant an amazing boost of power to any spell other than illusions."

Belos looked at Graye as he seriously said, "Did the boy happen to reveal the location of these stones?"

Graye raised his finger before pointing his thumb behind him with a sly smile as he said, "No, but those three teens from Glandus say that they were with him when they found the Looking Glass Ruins and they can lead us to them."

Belos smiled deviously as he said, "Then we must send someone with them to make sure that they deliver the stones to us."

Odalia spoke up as she put her hands together with a sinister grin as she said, "I believe Kikimora would be perfect for the job."

Belos was pleased as he said, "Excellent."

Odalia smiled evilly as she then added, "Also Darius and Eberwolf have found and captured all of the other basilisks."

Belos was very pleased as he smiled wickedly and said, "Perfect, then they won't get in our way. Now it is time for us to make our move. Send Kikimora and those three children to retrieve the Galdorstones immediately."

Odalia, Vitimir, and Graye walked out of the room as Graye showed a twisted smile and said, "I love when the plot thickens."

When the three of them were gone, Belos looked at the new Golden Guard and said, "Did you do what I asked?"

She looked up at him and replied, "Yes. They're on their way."

Belos had a maniacal smile on his face as he said, "Then it is time for Luz to meet her better."

The Golden Guard pulled out her staff and eagerly said, "Yes! Finally!"

She sat on her staff and flew away while Belos watched with an evil grin before his spirit vanished into thin air. Later that night, Amity, Willow, and Gus flew on their staffs and gathered in the forest near where the Emperor's Castle once stood.

They landed and Willow looked at Amity as she curiously asked, "Okay, we're here. Where's Luz?"

Amity shrugged as she said, "I don't know."

Gus looked around with uncertainty before he turned to Amity and asked, "You sure this is where Luz said to meet?"

Amity glanced around before smiling excitedly as she answered, "Yes, this is the spot. She said she had something big she wanted to show us. Maybe she learned who's been starting these rumors about her."

Willow then pointed her finger as she curiously asked, "Did she say what time?"

Amity thought for a second and said, "No, she just said tonight. Maybe we're early. Let's wait for a while and see if she shows up."

They both nodded in agreement and sat down on some rocks and glanced around in curiosity while patiently waiting for Luz to show up.

Meanwhile at the Owl House

Eda, Raine, and Lilith were sitting on the couch talking about their day and their ideas for the future of the Boiling Isles. Luz and Hunter walked in through the front door as Luz held King in her arms with Stringbean on her shoulder.

Eda smiled as she said, "Hey kids. You have any luck?"

Luz smiled as she turned from her to King then Hunter while saying, "We didn't find any clues but Palm Stings was pretty fun."

King looked up at her and Hunter as he commented, "They gotta change that name now that the left arm is high in the air."

Hunter nodded at King before looking at the others while he said, "Yeah, they've got a lot of work to do to rebuild their homes. Hey, where's Vee?"

Luz put King down while Raine had an honest expression as they said, "We're not sure. She didn't come home yet."

The door suddenly opened and Hooty showed a nervous expression as he said, "I see her coming this way with some friends of ours."

Darius and Eberwolf walked in as they led Vee inside and they had Abomination handcuffs on her as she looked scared.

Luz immediately became concerned as she exclaimed, "VEE!"

She and King ran over to her and pulled her away from Darius and Eberwolf before trying to pull the handcuffs off her.

They would not come off, prompting Luz to demand, "Take these off of her!"

Darius raised his finger as he said, "Not yet."

Hunter walked up to him and curiously asked, "Darius, what's going on?"

They were joined by Eda, Raine, and Lilith as Eda strictly said, "Yeah! Vee wouldn't hurt a fly, unlike Hooty."

Hooty ate a bug behind Darius, then Darius held his hand out toward Vee as he said, "I'm afraid your basilisk friend has been keeping secrets from you. She knew where all of the other basilisks were hiding and didn't tell anyone."

They were all shocked as they looked at Vee, who looked down with a guilty expression when King climbed on her tail and hugged her from behind. Darius made a pink ring of light with his finger that made the Abomination handcuffs melt off of Vee's wrists.

He and Eberwolf both looked at Raine as he said, "We have much to discuss."

Sometime later, the others were sitting at the kitchen table with Hooty looming over them while Raine talked with Darius and Eberwolf.

Luz looked at Vee across the table as she asked, "Why didn't you tell us about the other basilisks?"

Hunter agreed as he said, "Yeah, we could've helped them."

Vee looked down with guilt as she answered, "They didn't want me too. When I met all the other basilisks they were in hiding and they made me promise not to tell anyone."

Luz spoke sincerely as she said, "But we're your friends, family. Even if you didn't tell us where they were hiding you could've at least told us that you found them."

Vee shamefully looked down as she apologized, "I'm sorry everyone. I didn't want to betray their trust and I was worried something bad might happen if I told people. I trust you all but I didn't want anything bad to happen to them."

Eda smiled forgivingly as she said, "It's okay kid. We've all kept secrets from each other at some point."

Lilith agreed as she showed regret and said, "Yes, and we've all made mistakes and done things that we're not proud of."

King walked across the table and sat down in front of Vee as he sincerely said, "They're right. Look at me. I've probably got the biggest secret in the whole demon realm."

Luz showed an honest expression as she smiled and said, "I still wish you told us, but I know how it feels to be afraid of sharing something."

Hunter nodded, Vee smiled at them with a touched expression as she said, "Thanks guys. That means a lot to me."

Raine walked in and they all looked at them as Vee got out of her seat and said, "Well?"

Raine showed a nervous expression as they said, "I have good news and bad news."

Eda pointed at Raine with a serious expression as she said, "Bad news first, good news second."

Raine took a deep breath before they said, "The bad news is all the other basilisks have been taken back to the Conformatorium."

Vee was horrified as Luz stood up and said, "Why?! It's not their fault Belos brought them back!"

Raine looked at Luz as they said, "Yes, but they've committed several crimes across the Boiling Isles since escaping."

Eda leaned back in her chair with an annoyed expression as she said, "Some things never change."

Vee held her hands together as she asked, "What's the good news?"

Raine held Vee's shoulders as they sincerely said, "I convinced Darius and Eberwolf to let you off the hook and give them better treatment. They'll be better cared for in the Conformatorium, they won't have to drain magic from anyone, and they'll be given much better food than before."

Vee was still saddened as she said, "But they have to stay in prison?"

Raine spoke sincerely as they assured, "As long as they don't cause any trouble they'll consider ordering their release."

Luz smiled with hope as she looked at Vee and said, "You see Vee, we can still help them."

Hooty then moved his head toward her as he eagerly said, "That's right! We'll plan a jailbreak and free the basilisks from the Conformatorium! Come on witches!"

Hooty then wrapped his body around Eda, Raine, and Lilith and carried them into the other room despite their protests.

King ran after them as he said, "If we're doing a jailbreak I have an idea!"

Luz and Hunter walked beside Vee as Luz promised, "Don't worry Vee. We'll find a way to set the basilisks free."

Hunter then suggested, "Maybe I can convince Darius to have them released."

Vee looked at Hunter as she frowned and said, "Thanks Hunter but I don't think you can change his mind. He seemed pretty serious earlier."

Luz then held her palms up as she said, "Maybe Amity can help. She said Darius has been teaching her Abomination tricks now that he and her dad are on better terms. Let's go talk to her."

Vee thought for a second and said, "I guess it's worth a try."

Stringbean then floated off of Luz's shoulder and turned into her staff form before Luz flew out with Hunter riding behind her. Vee flew beside through them as she turned her arms into bat-like wings and they all flew to Amity's house. They knocked on the door, which was answered by the Abomination butler, who let them all inside. Hunter and Vee went inside, but Luz stayed and smiled at the Abomination butler, unaware that a faint hazy pink glow was covering her hands. She then adjusted the Abomination's face to make it look like a cute cat's face and she noticed that it didn't droop or change shape.

Luz's hands stopped glowing as she was pleasantly surprised as she said, "Hey, I must be getting good at this."

She then hurried after Vee and Hunter as they came to Ed and Em as Ed happily said, "Hey guys, good to see you!"

Luz looked at them as she curiously said, "Ed, Em, where's Amity?"

Em was confused as she said, "Don't you know?"

The three of them were baffled as Luz said, "No."

Ed pointed at Luz as he said, "Mittens left earlier. She said she was meeting you, Willow, and Gus in the forest by the Emperor's castle tonight."

They quickly became shocked and concerned as Hunter said, "Huh?"

Luz was very confused as she said, "I didn't hear anything about that. We'd better go see what's going on. Thanks guys."

They hurried out and Luz and Hunter flew on Stringbean while Vee flew beside them again with her arms as wings. Sometime later, Amity, Willow, and Gus were still waiting in the forest near where the castle once stood when they suddenly heard something. Luz and Vee landed in front of them while Stringbean turned to her natural form and rested on Luz's shoulder.

Luz, Hunter, and Vee approached the others as they stood up and Amity happily said, "Luz!"

She ran to Luz and hugged her while Willow and Gus greeted Vee and Hunter, then Willow asked, "So what's up?"

Luz pushed Amity off of her and looked at them as she said, "We've been looking for you guys. We have something important to tell you."

Hunter pointed his right thumb at Vee as he said, "Yeah, Vee knew where all the other basilisks were hiding and didn't tell us."

They gaped in shock as Gus looked at Vee and said, "Really?!"

Vee looked down as she shamefully said, "Yes. They made me promise not tell anyone, but today Darius and Eberwolf caught me and now they're all back in the Conformatorium."

Willow showed sympathy as she held Vee's shoulder and said, "Oh Vee, we're sorry."

Luz turned to Amity as she said, "Raine talked with Darius and Eberwolf and said they might let them go if they behave. We're hoping we can do something to help them."

Amity was surprised as she said, "Wow! That was A LOT darker than how you made it sound earlier."

Luz was confused as she said, "Huh?"

Amity held her palms up as she said, "When you called me and said you found something big to show us I thought it was something good, but that reveal was pretty depressing."

Luz was somewhat troubled as she said, "Batata, I never called you."

Amity became confused as she pointed at Luz and said, "Yes you did. This afternoon you called me on my crow phone and told me to get Willow and Gus and meet you here tonight."

Luz became even more troubled as she said, "No I didn't."

Hunter joined them with an unsettled expression as he pointed at Luz and said, "I can vouch for that. She was with me all day since she came back and she never called you."

Vee, Willow, and Gus all looked nervous, as did Amity as she pointed at Luz and said, "But it was your voice. Believe me I definitely know my girlfriend's voice when I hear it."

The six teens came close together with nervous expressions as Luz said, "I believe you Amity, but I never called you and told you to meet me anywhere."

Vee nodded as she said, "Yeah, we only knew you guys were here because Ed and Em told us."

Hunter then asked, "Is this one of their pranks?"

Amity shook her head and nervously looked at Luz as she said, "No! They may love to mess with people but they wouldn't do something like this. If you didn't call me, who did?"

Suddenly they jumped as they heard Luz's voice while her mouth stayed shut as it said, "Maybe it was me."

They all turned to where the voice came from and saw the new Golden Guard emerge from the shadows of the forest.

She stared at them as she creepily said, "Looks like my little plan worked."

Willow glared at her as she said, "So there IS a new Golden Guard."

Hunter glared at the new Golden Guard as he said, "No, just some wannabe trying to make a name for themselves."

She spoke snidely as she pointed her staff and Hunter and said, "Or, maybe someone who thought they could do the job better than you."

Hunter glared at her with a vexed expression and then Amity glared and pointed at her as she said, "You were the one who called me? How dare you pretend to be my Luz!"

The Golden Guard looked at Amity before focusing on Luz while she evilly said, "I knew it lure Luz out of the Owl House and into me. Ever since I started framing you I knew we'd meet, and I couldn't wait any longer."

Luz glared at her as she pointed her finger and said, "You're the criminal! Well you made a mistake luring us into a trap! You're no match for all six of us! We'll beat you, take that mask off, and find out who you really are!"

They all stood in fighting stances as they glared at her while Vee snarled threateningly and Willow, Gus, and Amity held their staffs.

The Golden Guard chuckled maliciously as she said, "I didn't lure you here just to fight, I wanted to introduce myself."

She rested her staff against a tree trunk next to her and then grabbed her mask as she prepared to lift it off. The others watched and then they all gaped in shock as they stared at her while she dropped her mask to the ground. The new Golden Guard looked almost exactly like Luz; the only differences were she did not have Luz's scar, her ears were pointed, her eyes were magenta colored, and her hair was different.

She smiled evilly as she spoke with a voice identical to Luz's as she said, "Tada! I'm an evil twin!"

They all kept staring at her in shock and fright as Luz stumbled, "H-H-Who are you?!"

The Golden Guard smiled evilly at Luz as she said, "I'm a better version of you."

Luz was almost speechless as she examined her counterpart and noticed that her outfit looked exactly like the Emperor's outfit that she wore in her nightmare the Collector gave her.

She was horrified as she said, "This can't be real! This has to be a nightmare!"

The Golden Guard had a twistedly amused smile as she raised her finger and said, "Ooh, maybe it's both!"

Hunter was horrified as he asked, "What are you?"

She smiled sadistically as she pointed at Hunter and said, "The same thing you are Hunter."

His eyes widened in shock and horror as he let out a hushed, "A Grimwalker!"

She lowered her arm and grinned evilly as she said, "Smart boy."

Everyone was baffled and frightened as Willow asked, "What's going on?!"

Amity stayed close to Luz as she asked, "How is this possible?!"

Vee curved her tail behind Gus' feet as she fearfully said, "I really don't like this!"

Gus stared at her as he desperately said, "Please let this be an Illusion! Please! Please!"

The Golden Guard smiled as she took her staff and fired a magical red blast at all of them, hitting them and knocking them on their butts.

They all looked back at her in shock as Luz frantically said, "It's real! Real! Too real!"

The Golden Guard smiled sadistically as she said, "It's just like Azura Book 4 when she found out Lucy was still alive."

Amity looked extremely nervous as she said, "She even talks like Luz!"

Luz was flabbergasted as she kept staring at her in shock and exclaimed, "I don't understand! What's happening here?!"

They were all spooked as they heard Belos' eerie voice echo, "I can explain."

They all watched and were horrified as Belos' spirit appeared to the left of the Golden Guard, who smiled as she looked at him.

He leered at the six teens as he said, "Hello everyone. So good to see you all again."

Stringbean cowered in fear on Luz's shoulder while she stared at him with her eyes wide open in horror and said, "Belos!"

Belos smiled smugly at her before moving his right hand toward the Grimwalker as he said, "That's right. It's so nice to see your ambition for knowledge hasn't died out, but we don't have time for you to stumble around turning over stones. So I would like you to meet my new right hand."

She turned from Belos to the others with an evil grin as she said, "You can call me Zul."

Author's note: So now you know. Belos created a Grimwalker of Luz and her name is Zul. That's part of the reason why people thought it was Luz committing the crimes. Zul is Belos' new right hand and she has Hunter's old staff and she is dressed like Belos. It's as if Luz's worst nightmare has come to life, and it's even worse than she could've imagined. We also learn the next part of Odalia and Belos' plan as they continue to move forward. This is the perfect cliffhanger for a chapter. Please review.