Mind of Opulence Chapter 11: Sins of the Past, Sins of the Present, a Destiny + Owl House Crossover fanfic

Wow, it's the one year anniversary of this fic. All I have to show for it is 11 chapters that I think are alright. I didn't think I'd stay committed to this past the third chapter, but here we are now. To those who stuck around after all this time, I appreciate that you're still here, even though I'm short on chapters. And those who read just one chapter, I appreciate you too, just a little teeny tiny bit less.

I got some interesting stuff for this chapter, I'm hoping it hits well. And to those of you wondering where the real 'mind of opulence' is, I'm telling you right now that it is within you. Seriously though, there will be mind stuff...at some point.

I hope chapter 10 was enjoyable to read, and I hope the same goes for this chapter. Leave a comment if you like or dislike, tell me if I'm a bad or good writer, or don't. I ain't yer ma. Anyways, with that out of the way, I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

"This is…invigorating. Only the magic of an Ahamkara's wish bone can rival what I am feeling. But I am inclined to believe that…this is so much more than that," Calus stated. "The power alone to control the Egregore makes me feel so powerful. Even then, I am not done. We are not done, Collector. There is still work to be done, magic to be harvested, and loose ends to be cut off." Just then, Calus received another vision. This time, it was of Caiatl in her cell. "And of course, how could I forget. My dear daughter. Perhaps I should pay her a visit. So she can look into the eyes of her reborn father; one last time."

"Now that you've achieved what you wanted, Calus. You can…free me now, right?" Collector asked as he loomed over Calus. He stared his friend in the face intently.

"I do believe that my capabilities to free you have been…enhanced. Unfortunately, that is not an event I see happening soon. But do not lose hope yet, Collector. I will unlock your true potential in the future." Calus gave the Collector a sympathetic look, but on the inside, he was screaming 'betray him' over and over again. "I urge you to not feel like I have used you, but to feel like we both learned something tonight."

"I-You aren't…betraying me are you?" Collector asked, worried.

"I have no reason to. I am your friend. I wouldn't leave you behind like some wild animal." Calus laughed to himself in his head. "No, I am simply allocating my time to other matters, other arrangements that require my attention. You wouldn't want to be freed into a world not accepting of you, a world not accepting of me and all your other friends, would you?"

"No, I wouldn't even fathom that!" Collector exclaimed. "I'll…leave you to your own business." Collector started to whisper to himself, "But if you don't want to help me…then I'll just have to find a new friend."

"That is amazing to hear." Calus said. "Qexal, Ilzat, my loyal followers. We will depart first thing in the morning. I have a feeling that the Loyalists yearn to see their emperor once more." The two Psions nodded. "Curious. Is the Demon Realm in need of a new emperor?" Calus asked himself. "This place will certainly need one when I am finished here." Calus said as he laughed maniacally.

The next morning, Luz and her friends were gathered in the living room, discussing what they could do to help Caiatl.

"How can we be sure they even captured her?" Amity asked. "I'm not saying that they didn't. But if we go through all of this just to find out she's…"

Luz stopped Amity "She isn't dead. There's no way. I don't know these Loyalist guys well enough to know that for sure. Shoot, I don't even know Caiatl that well, but I do know that she for sure wouldn't go down without a fight, and she definitely wouldn't be defeated by the likes of them."

"Where would they even take her? Some secret base? The emperor's castle?" Gus asked. He then gasped, "What if they took her to some horrid place where she gets tortured by giraffes?!" Everyone else except for Luz gasped.

"Gus. There aren't any giraffes here. Even if she was getting tortured by giraffes, they'd probably just end up cuddling up to her the first chance they got. Which, to someone like her, probably is torture now that I think about it." Luz said jokingly. "But, on a more serious note. Where would we take someone if we had a prisoner?"

Just then, King walked into the room. "Hey, Luz. Do you remember the crown you and Eda helped me get from the Conformatorium? I think I lost it again. Can you help me find it?"

Luz's face lit up. She ran over to King, picked him up and hugged him, "King! You little genius!" She gave him a little smooch before putting him down.

"I don't know what I did," King shrugged, "But whatever it was, I am more than okay with the outcome. So, what did I do, exactly?" King asked as he tilted his head to the side.

"You just solved a piece of the puzzle, that's what you did, little buddy. Now the next question is," Luz said as she rubbed a finger on her chin, "Is that really where they took her?"

"I have something!" Willow blurted out. "It may be a bit far-fetched though."

"Yeah, what is it?" Luz asked.

"This is gonna sound crazy, but…" Willow paused to take a deep breath, "What about time travel of some sort?"

"Time travel…could work actually!" Luz responded, "Anyone else have any ideas?"

"Time travel sounds kind of crazy." Amity said.

"Yeah, not to mention it doesn't seem possible, to my knowledge at least." Gus added. "Why don't we just bribe Warden Wrath and get him to spill the details?"

"Well, for starters, we probably wouldn't even get close to Warden Wrath. Especially with all those Loyalist creeps crawling around." Luz continued, "And secondly, time travel is definitely possible. Me and Cool Aunt Lilith did it not too long ago. Although, it wasn't too pleasant, to say the least."

"Yeah, Lilith is actually the reason I learned about time travel!" Willow told the group, "I read some research of hers on the time pools, and I've been interested ever since. I've never had my own means of finding any, but I've kind of just been hoping I'd just randomly come across one at some point."

"Yeah, that's the thing, these time pools could be anywhere for all we know. Like Lilith said, they could be on the other side of the world!" Luz told the others. "But luckily for us! Lilith left her time pool tracking doohickey here." She ran over to a chest full of trinkets and other miscellaneous objects. After digging for a while, she pulled out a makeshift wing anemometer. "And it still has some juice left! Sick!"

"What's that, Luz?" Amity asked.

"Me and Lilith used this to find time pools when we went searching for them. I'm hoping that we can use this to find some more. And I'm hoping we can get to the right time period, otherwise…we'll have to wing it, I guess." Luz told her friends. She went to grab her backpack full of items, and walked in front of the door, "Right guys, let's go swimming through time!" She exclaimed as she raised her arms in the air. "W-was that a good one?"

"Eh, it could have been worse." Gus said as he shrugged. He waved a hand in the air as he said, "You should have said something like, 'Let's go dive down into the deep.' I think that's better personally."

"Whatever, let's just go." Luz responded. She and her friends, along with King all exited out the door and began their search of the time pools. They took to their staffs, and flew wherever Luz told them to.

Within the Conformatorium, Caiatl and Satuur stood in their cell. "We have barely been here for a day! Yet it feels as if we have been here for weeks!" Satuur yelled angrily. He punched the wall next to him, making a small hole in it that magically regenerated. "What will we do, Empress?"

Caiatl was looking at the cell, facing away from her Valus, looking at all the other prisoners on her floor, and the prisoners on floors below her. "We will be patient. There is nothing more to do than wait, Valus."

"Empress? Wait for what, exactly? For the Loyalists to execute us?" Satuur asked. He continued, "Or do we wait for the small ones to rescue us?"

"We will wait for the perfect moment, Valus. I don't know when it will present itself, but we will surely know when it is time." Caiatl responded, "And when that time comes…we'll deliver the retribution that these Loyalists truly deserve." Caiatl continued staring down at the prisoners, "And perhaps, they can deliver theirs when they are freed too." She said in a softer tone.

"Then, we sit here…and wait?" Satuur laughed, "Okay. I will trust in your…process, Empress. But the second that shield is lowered, I'm pushing the first Loyalist I see down that hole."

Caiatl heard the sound of footsteps, they sounded heavier than the usual Cabal grunt, "Quiet, Valus. Someone is approaching." Primus Za'aurk walked in front of the cell. They couldn't see it, but under his helmet, Za'aurk was smiling, at least doing the Cabal equivalent of a smile and alongside him was a Psion, Caiatl paid no attention to them though. "What do you want?" She asked.

"If it isn't the Princess-Imperial. My predecessors would have killed to see you in such a state. So powerless and weak. I relish in the fact that I achieved what they couldn't." Za'aurk said, attempting to goad Caiatl. "I'm sure my hard work will be rewarded in due time. After all, he has returned."

"What do you mean? Who has returned?" Caiatl asked. Then, she heard another person walking up. Za'aurk stepped out of the way and bowed, "Could it be?" Caiatl asked in awe. Just then, she saw Calus walk in front of her, she could barely recognize him due to his new appearance, but she could never forget his voice, even if she tried. Satuur walked up next to Caiatl, he was also shocked, but infuriated.

"My dear daughter, I thought I raised you better than this," Calus taunted. "I had hoped our reunion would be much more…grand."

Caiatl's eyes narrowed just from the sight of Calus, "Calus…" She banged a fist on the shield, "When I am freed from this prison, I swear on the blood Milos that I will make you suffer pain so excruciating, that you'll be begging for death from whatever false god you worship." She continued, "What are you even doing here?!"

"I would ask you the same. But I already know your answer, Caiatl. Even with my new powers. You are still so predictable, after all these years."

"Your new powers? What do you mean?" Satuur interjected.

"I don't think it would be appropriate to showcase what I have discovered, achieved. Not here, not yet. But don't worry, when I reveal them to this world, you both will be amongst the first to see." Calus chuckled a little, leaning up close to the shield, "Up close and personal, no less." He sighed. "You know, it is poetic, really. First, you and Ghaul imprison me, or so you thought. And now, look what has become of you, a prisoner to the very father you betrayed."

"To add insult to injury," Za'aurk laughed, "Even those amongst you have conspired against you. It seems that no matter what happens, our species will always come full circle."

Caiatl's eyes widened. It was a possibility she always thought of, but didn't think would come to fruition any time soon, "Conspiracy against me? Explain!" She exclaimed.

The Psion next to Za'aurk took a step forward, "Hello, Empress." She spoke.

Caiatl was met with yet another figure who she did not recognize at first, but once they spoke, it clicked. "Vruzra? What is this treachery?!"

"Empress. You were never the leader the Cabal needed. You never stood for the ideals or the principles that Emperor Calus stands for, and dare I say, you never had the resolve or vigor of Ghaul. No, I could not continue to follow such a weak minded leader. And many others think the same of you." Vruzra explained.

Caiatl couldn't believe what she was hearing. She could only think about how much of a fool she was for not seeing her former advisor's treachery sooner. "When I am freed…I will have your head for this act of treason."

"Unfortunately not, Empress. By the time you're freed, I'll be long gone from this place." Vruzra replied. "You'll either be dead, or rotting in this cell until your demise."

"Unfortunately, daughter. I have other business to attend to. But don't worry. I'll make sure you don't miss me too much, daughter. I will see to it that we meet again soon. Although I am very sure it won't be very pleasant; for either of us." Calus said as he walked away.

"I hope the family reunion was pleasant, traitor." Za'aurk followed Calus.

Vruzra was the last to walk. Caiatl stayed silent, but decided to say something before she could leave, "Vruzra. Who else have you conspired with?"

The Psion stopped in her tracks, she kept her face away from Caiatl, not wanting to see her face. "It was so obvious, Empress. Neither you or your inner circle could sniff us out, yet we acted right out of your very own flagship, undetected, undeterred. When the time is right, you'll find out just who my conspirators were." Vruzra said, with not a hint of remorse in her voice.

"Heed my words, traitor. You and your insubordinate conspirators will see no mercy from me. I will have the heads of you, Calus and the Primus flaunted on the front of my ship." Caiatl spared no details. Despite the shield separating her from Vruzra, she could almost feel her hands wrapping around her small body and crushing it in pure rage. "Leave my sight, you deceitful worm." Vruzra walked away, not even taking a second glance back at her former leader.

Once the others were gone, Caiatl retreated to the back of the cell. Just like Satuur before her, she punched the wall, and it magically regenerated once again. "So powerless. Against these low lifes such as the Loyalists, no less."

"Empress." Satuur tried to get Caiatl's attention. "Even while we are imprisoned, we will find a way to end Calus's life. Once that is done, we can stop this game of 'cat and mouse', as the Humans call it. I am certain we will find a way out of this prison."

"Yes, of course. But how will we get out is the question. Cabal shields are near impenetrable without heavy weaponry or breaking the shield generator. And the guards here surely do not share the same sentiments when it comes to Calus and his followers." Caiatl responded.

"What of your allies? The Human and her friends?"

Caiatl shook her head, "It is…shameful to rely on them. I am sure the Human is working on a plan to rescue us. But between the Loyalists, and their support. I doubt they would even get past the guards at the front gate."

"What then, Empress?"

"We wait. Be it until our deaths, or freedom. Although, I take no pride in such a 'strategy' it is our best one for the moment, unfortunately." After Caiatl said this, there was a silence that pierced the air like a knife. The two Cabal weren't completely hopeless, but their resolve was starting to diminish after their encounter with Calus. They didn't say it, but they both knew it, yet they remained steadfast.

"Empress. Do you believe what the Psion said? About there being more traitors like her? There could be entire legions that turn against us at the blink of an eye."

"I have no doubt. There are many who would threaten and challenge my leadership. And with both of us imprisoned, this is a prime time for those who conspire against us to rise to power in a vie for power. I am certain those who are still loyal to us will fight for their empress, but it will only be a matter of time before the traitors grow wise and come here to rendezvous with the Loyalists."

"Then we'll just have to crush them too."

"Indeed. And when it is finished, we will leave this place. We don't belong here. Cabal have no place in a realm different from ours."

Satuur nodded, "Of course, Empress." After that, the two stayed silent, not exchanging any words. Simply staring at the walls, or out of their cell. They had been imprisoned for barely a day, but for them, as Cabal, it felt like years.

Luz and her friends were on the trail of a group of time pools. After searching for hours, they were starting to get closer to finding them. "Almost there guys! I can feel it!" Luz told the others. "I can also tell because this thing is giving it away." She pointed to the anemometer. The device then started to power down. Luz slapped it a few times before giving up, "Ugh. Stupid thing."

"What happened Luz?" Amity asked, running up to Luz.

"The thing gave out on me all of a sudden. What gives?" Luz said, frustrated. She slapped it a few more times again. "Whatever. Well, it led us here of all places. In the middle of nowhere in the forest."

"And these time pools could be anywhere for all we know." Gus added.

"We should start looking around anyway. They might be around here somewhere." Luz told the others. They all got to looking around the area for the time pools, covering every inch of the ground that they could.

Eventually, Luz found an opening between some shrubbery along a treeline after multiple minutes of searching. Upon further inspection she found a beach, "How original. Time pools on another beach, huh?" She looked around further, looking for anything else. Then, she spotted some odd structures. A tall guard outpost, looming over a string of bunkers built around a group of ships on the other end of the beach. Her eyes widened, and she quickly retracted her head out of the bushes. "Guys! Come look at this!"

The others all ran over to Luz and crouched next to her. "What? What's the matter?" Willow asked.

"Take a look at this." She peeked her head out and quickly pointed to the right where she saw the base. The others also peeked out, looking where Luz was pointing to. They all saw the small base, and the Loyalists patrolling around. "This must be where they're operating from or something. I guess they decided to cozy up here on the Isles." Luz looked at the device, "Let's just make sure, for good measure, that the time pools aren't down there."

Luz once again tried getting the anemometer to turn on. "Come on. Just turn on already!" She violently shook it, and then stopped, "Please?" The device then sprung to life. "Aha! You just gotta use some tough love every now and then." She said pridefully. For a short moment, the device locked on to the direction of the Cabal, "Of course." Luz said disappointedly. It then powered back down. "Well, at least you lived out your purpose one last time."

"So…are we really going to go down there and do this? Seems dangerous." Gus asked.

"What choice do we have? It's this or going in staffs blazing into the Conformatorium with the chance of finding nothing." Luz replied. "Besides, we might have a chance to sneak around them. They'll probably be preoccupied with whatever it is they're doing."

"Wait, 'staffs blazing'? Is that some kind of play on words for a Human phrase?" Willow asked.

"It's not a bad phrase, huh?" Luz replied.

"Not at all. I kinda like it actually." Willow told her with a smile on her face.

Luz responded with a nod and a smile, "Alright, let's get moving." They all took off in the direction of the Cabal. Unknowingly making their way to the Loyalist base. The kids all sneakily walked down the treeline, avoiding being seen by any guarding or roaming Loyalists. As they got closer, Luz took a quick peek out the bushes. Looking around, she noticed a severe lack of anyone patrolling the base, "I don't see a lot of them here. That's weird. You'd think they would be all over the place." She retracted her head back into the bushes.

"Maybe they're out hitting the town and celebrating?" King said with a hint of sarcasm.

"Yeah, celebrating being literally massive douches." Gus added, crossing his arms.

"Small amount of guards or not, we need to stay stealthy and quiet, just like spies." Luz told her friends. They all nodded and prepared to sneak around, but before they could do so, their attention was hailed by a familiar voice.

It was Hunter, who also happened to be there, "Hey guy-" The boy noticed he was speaking loudly, so he lowered his voice, "Ah, sorry. Hey guys." He whispered, giving them a slight hand wave.

"Hunter? Here on official Emperor's Coven business I assume?" Luz asked.

"Well, uh. No, I'm not." Hunter responded. "I'm actually here to prove something to-" He gave them a contemptuous look, "Wait! I should be the one asking what you're doing here. You know, I could have you arrested for spying on allies of the Emperor's Coven." He blurted out irritably.

"But you aren't going to arrest us. And since you asked so nicely, we're actually here to find a way to help our friend out of prison, or at least we hope to find a way." Luz told Hunter.

"And spying on these guys helps you achieve that, how?" Hunter asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It's simple, really. We tracked some time pools to this location and we plan to go back in time, see where they took her, and come back here. Bam, we know where she is." Luz explained.

"And when you guys do find out where she is. How do you plan on getting her back?"

"We…didn't think that far. But we'll think of a plan once we get back, that's a promise! You could even help us if you want." Luz extended a hand out to Hunter.

"No, I shouldn't. I'd be going against my orders, helping criminals. I can't even fathom what type of trouble I'd get in if I helped you all"

Willow crouched next to Luz, "No one has to know. It's not like they're going to see us anyway. We'll be like ninjas."

"Besides, I'm sure they wouldn't tell anyway. These are like low level grunts, just doing their jobs. I doubt they'd even care." Gus added.

"Yeah, they'll probably just evaporate us the moment they see us instead of going to tattle on some intruders." Amity said.

"Well, it just so happens that I have just the thing to get past them." Luz pulled a stack of invisibility glyphs out of her pocket. "Sorry, Hunter. I only made five for us. I didn't know that you'd be here. You can always grab someone's hand to turn invisible with us."

Hunter held his hands in front of him, waving them in denial, "No, no, I'll be fine on my own. I should be cool with these guys. At least I'm pretty sure I am." He pointed to himself proudly, "I'll just charm them with my…charm."

"Whatever you say." Luz turned to her friends and handed out the glyphs to them. Everyone took their respective glyphs and held them near their chests, "Grab hands and take a deep breath!" Everyone grabbed each other's hands and took a deep breath before smacking the glyphs on themselves. They turned invisible and walked out of the bushes, moving toward the base.

All alone, Hunter popped out of the bush. Dusting himself off, he walked toward the base. Flapjack flew along with him. His palisman chirped at him discontentedly. "Yeah, I know. I probably should have just gone with them. But I can't prove to myself, or anyone else that I'm useful if I just take the easy route." Just then, a legionary stepped in front of Hunter, stopping him in his tracks, causing Flapjack to transform back into his staff form.

It was the same beast handler that caught Hunter yesterday, "Again, boy? This Emperor's Coven must really not trust our outfit. What are you doing back here?" The handler's war beasts walked up to Hunter, sniffing him up and down.

"I just want to say, I really like what you guys have done with the place. I don't know what it is, but it fits you guys a lot. Anyways, I'm here on more official Emperor's Coven business. I need to speak to your leader. Now where is he?" Hunter tried to look past the giant alien, but couldn't due to his enormous size compared to him. He just opted to look up at the face, or mask of the beast handler.

The handler yanked the chain of the war beasts, "Primus Za'aurk is not here. The Emperor has returned, and he is escorting him around. That is why we are so short on men here." The handler dismissively waved his hand, "As if any of that has anything to do with you. Now, move along. Before I make you."

"Yeah, right. Like Titan I'm leaving without completing my mission." Hunter tried to storm past the handler, before being stopped once more.

"I'm going to stop you right there, boy. You're going to have to leave this place." The handler slowly loosened his grip on the chains of his war beasts.

Hunter gulped, but kept his composure, "The Emperor's Coven presides over the entire Demon Realm. You may claim this land as yours, but technically, it belongs to us. So I'll just be going." Hunter sternly walked past the handler, but shortly was stopped by the handler again. "Hey! What's your problem?!"

"We are under strict orders to keep anyone out of the base. I am following my orders, and you will follow mine or suffer."

"Yeah well, make me suffer, and your entire little alien club will suffer the wrath of Emperor Belos, so." Hunter smugly shrugged his shoulders and continued walking further into the base.

The handler watched as Hunter walked away. Feeling his authority was being challenged, he relinquished his grip on his war beasts chains. He yelled at them in Ulurant, siccing them on the boy. They quickly ran after him, catching up with him almost instantly. One of the beasts made a quick slash at Hunter, but before it could hit him, he teleported away. The handler was flabbergasted, he had seen guardians blink in and out of reality on the Leviathan, but he had never seen someone teleport without means of transmat. He alerted his comrades, "Intruder! Intruder!" He called out in Ulurant.

Although he teleported away, Hunter would find himself getting into more trouble, as he sent himself tumbling into the others, knocking them over and causing them to become visible again. He got up, rubbing his head as he let out a groan. After recollecting himself, he looked over to the others and ran over to them, "Guys! I'm so sorry! I'm still getting the hang of this whole teleporting thing!" Hunter crouched next to them, checking on them to make sure they were okay.

Luz looked up at Hunter first, then her attention turned to something else immediately after. A red laser was lining up on Hunter. "Hunter, move out of the way."

Hunter threw his head back in confusion, "What?" He turned around to see a laser creeping up towards him. A loud charging noise could be heard before the laser turned from a red dot to a large bullet hole in the sand, followed by a booming crack that floated through the air. Though luckily for Hunter, he was able to evade an inglorious death at the hands of a sniper. "Okay, find cover! Now!" The group ran for cover behind a giant wall five times the size of them all. There was a short reprieve before the laser appeared once more, followed by a loud crack, kicking up sand. The shot was so powerful, a small patch of sand turned into glass. Everyone looked at the patch with horror on their faces.

"I cannot stress it enough! But do not get hit by whatever weapon of mass destruction they're firing at us!" Luz exclaimed. As the group was being suppressed by sniper fire, the tide began to wash in, revealing ripples in the sand. Luz gasped, "Time pools!" She yelled out, though no one could hear her as a shot from the sniper ringed out at the exact same time.

"What?!" Everyone else yelled.

"I said-" Luz was stopped as another bullet was shot at them. She continued, "I said, time pools!" She pointed to the ripples in the sand some few meters away from them. "Once they fire at us again, we should make a run for them!" Everyone nodded in agreement.

"How will we know which one to go to?" Amity asked. "It's not like we can just look for the correct one, not with these guys hounding us."

"Then we'll just have to take a leap of faith. Follow my lead after this next shot." Luz told them all. But there wasn't one, they seemed to have stopped.

"Did they just…stop?" Gus asked.

"You guys think they forgot about us? I sure hope they did." King added.

After a few seconds a loud whirring sound broke the silence. It grew closer, and closer until the sound of an object hitting the ground was heard. Everyone looked at what had just hit the ground. A gray triangular device landed quite close to them, almost right next to them. Then, the device was completely engulfed in a slightly blinding bright orange color, and it started to emit a whirring noise, it pulsated with energy, glowing brighter as it sat on the ground and the whirring noise got louder and faster.

Everyone widened their eyes, "Okay, just run for it now!" Luz screamed. They all ran away as fast as they could. Behind them was an explosion, slightly throwing them off balance, but they kept their footing, continuing their sprint for the time pools. As they drew closer, the sniper returned. Despite being farther away, the charging up of the rifle could be heard from a good distance away.

The sniper fired a shot right in front of Hunter, hitting the ground right in front of him. The sheer power of the bullet caused Hunter to lose his footing and trip. He lost his grip on his staff, and it flew through the air as it fell, it then ended up flying right into one of the time pools. "Flapjack!" Hunter called out. He got up and instantly ran for the pool, jumping in without even thinking first.

"Hunter! What are you doing?!" Luz yelled out. She and the others stopped running after coming under sniper fire again. They ran back for the pool Hunter jumped into. Taking the short moment of reprieve to make sure she and her friends weren't jumping into certain death, poking her head into the pool. She saw Hunter looking around for his staff. "Hunter!" She called out to him. "Guys! Let's go!" She jumped in the pool, and everyone followed after her as quickly as possible. A final shot from the sniper ended up making its way through the time pool and splashing into the sand next to them.

A legionary walked over to where the kids had disappeared. He looked down, perplexed at what had happened, wondering if what he saw was even real. Curious, he crouched and dragged his hand across the sand. After a few seconds of dragging, his hand fell into a small pocket of sand. The legionary immediately pulled it out, staring at it, before reaching back in to confirm his suspicions. His hand disappeared once more, he then took it out and stood up. A large centurion sentinel commander rushed to the legionary's position, asking if he saw where the intruders went. The legionary got on one knee and showed the centurion, saying in Ulurant, "Here. I saw them jump into the sand and they just disappeared." The centurion was surprised, but expected some type of witchcraft to be at play.

"Then we'll take chase. You'll be our scout." The centurion ordered. His subordinate nodded and stuck his head into the time pool. What he saw was a beach nearly identical to the one the Loyalist base was built upon, but empty. The land around seemed less developed and different in terms of it being more 'fresh'. The atmosphere was noticeably much more clear, and the sun shined brighter than ever. He looked around and caught a slight glimpse of the kids. The legionary yelled out loudly in his native language, and was briefly spotted by one of them, before he pulled his head out. The centurion asked what he saw, and the legionary responded, somewhat in awe. Now devoted, the centurion called over a group of soldiers, "Over here, now!" Khuun, along with Gor'tuk and Eratl reported to the centurion, saluting him. "Your orders are simple. We have found a…mirror world while chasing the intruders. You will venture there, and capture them so they may face punishment. There is no telling how you will get out, or when you have to get out, but you are giving up your lives for the emperor. Now move." The centurion crouched over where they needed to go, pointing to the time pool.

"Commander? There is nothing there." Khuun spoke out.

After hearing this, the centurion gestured his head toward the legionary who showed the others the time pool, revealing the unusual ripples in the ground. "There. We'll establish contact with you when you're there, but if we can't, then so be it. Do not return until your mission is done. Or I'll disgrace you all and execute you for all to see. Now go!"

The squad all grunted, and nodded their heads. Khuun took point, and was skeptical to jump in, but after persuasion in the form of yelling from his commander, he pushed his worries aside and took the plunge, just barely fitting into the pool. His subordinates soon followed him in. They all stumbled as they came out on the other side, trying to catch their footing in the confusion.

"I have a headache." Khuun rubbed his head, grasping his projection rifle. "Where are we?" He asked, observing his surroundings.

"We're…at the base, but…before it was built here." Eratl responded.

"If that is the case then…are we in an alternate universe?" Gor'tuk inquired.

"An alternate universe within an alternate universe? I doubt it." Eratl answered her ally.

Khuun tried to use his comms to contact the commander, but all he heard was loud static, "Bracus Khuun to command. Respond, this is Bracus Khuun." Static still filled his comms. He shook his head in disappointment and turned around to face his subordinates, "There is something interfering with our communications. We don't know how much time we have left, so let us find out where and when we are. We'll head to the town square, if there is one. Then we'll find those trespassers. Move out!" He commanded. Khuun and his squad marched in the direction of Bonesborough.

Luz and her friends were far gone from the beach. They traveled through a forest on the Isles, headed for the Conformatorium. "Jeez, I hope we jumped into the right time pool. Otherwise, we could be walking with literal magical dinosaurs right now." Luz exclaimed.

"Sorry." Hunter laughed awkwardly, "I totally would have waited if I hadn't dropped Flapjack. But, y'know, priorities and stuff."

"It's fine. At least everyone's safe, right?" Luz responded. Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Fine here." King responded, "Just a little disoriented from going back in time." The little demon rubbed his eyes.

The group soon arrived at the Conformatorium, or at least what they thought was it. What they were greeted with was nothing, to everyone's surprise. Instead of a sprawling prison, they were met with a giant hole in the ground where it should have been.

"Luz? Where's the Conformatorium?" Amity examined the empty area, confused, and wondering where it was.

"I…don't know. I'm just as confused as you all." Luz started to walk over to the hole, the others followed her. "I think we might be in the wrong timeline. Not good at all."

"Should we just head back then?" Gus asked. "It's not like we'll find anything helpful here."

"Probably not. They're definitely waiting for us back in our timeline." Luz answered. "Let's see if we can find civilization and wait out the storm. Hopefully before the tide washes in." She waved her hand, and the group set off in the direction of Bonesborough.

Soon, they arrived at their destination to find a rather derelict town that looked like it could have been built less than a year ago. It looked nothing like the Bonesborough of current time, or of the Deadwardian Era. "I guess this is Bonesborough before it got its name, huh?" They continued on into the small town, seeing witches and demons alike in ancient looking clothing, such as robes, dresses and other garments. "Now be careful, we could be in any time period. Belos before he went all evil and cuckoo could be around here." She told the others.

Luz, who was distracted, accidentally bumped into a demon, knocking them over, "Oh, sorry. Let me help you up there." She offered her hand out to the small, blue, horned cyclops demon. The demon took her hand, and Luz pulled them up to their feet, "I didn't see ya there. With you being small and stuff. The name's Luz."

The demon responded with a soft, feminine voice, "You're fine, young one." She examined Luz thoroughly, walking around the girl with her eye squinted, "I can't tell. But something seems…different about you. You send forth an aura different from the common witches here."

"Yeah, I'm a Human, actually." Luz turned around as the little demon circled around her, "Do you know what a Human is?"

The demon stopped in front of her, staring up at Luz, "So you are not a witch? Interesting." She continued, "Pray tell, what is a 'Human'?" She tilted her head. "I've never heard of such a species. Especially not here in our town, or any of the other lands."

"It's a little complicated. It's a somewhat long, but interesting story. I'd love to tell you." Luz looked around, "Also, question. Where are we right now?"

"You would be in the Borough, young one."

"The Borough, huh? The name fits for a little place like this." Luz said while crossing her arms with pride, "Also, if it's alright with you, do you have anywhere we can rest? I'd say some of us are a little word out. And don't worry, it's alright if you don't want to invite strangers into your home, we get it."

"It is no problem. I will gladly invite you and your party to stay in my home for the time being, only as long as you tell me how you got here, 'Human'." The demon started to walk, "Now if you would all follow me." The group set off behind the demon, and followed her to her. They looked at all the old structures. Some of them looked similar to the buildings in current day Bonesborough. They could see witches and demons using their magic freely and in whatever way they saw fit.

"So, this is the 'Wild Magic' Belos was talking about? What a load of Slitherbeast goo." Gus complained as he watched several witches using different types of magic at once.

"It was like this in the Deadwardian Era too, way before Belos even took over." Luz responded, "But don't worry. I'll make sure witches in every time period can use their magic as they wish, with no constraints at all. Unless you're just straight evil like Belos of course." After walking for a while, they all made it to the demon's house. It had a medieval look to it, well-kept and sturdy, another similar look to current day Bonesborough homes. The little demon opened the door to her home and held it open.

"After you all," She held her hand out, beckoning them to come in. Once everyone was in, she closed the door behind her, and walked up to a chair, climbing into it with a wooden stepping stool. "Make yourselves at home, have a seat anywhere." The interior of the house was tidy, looking like a typical home they could find anywhere on the Isles. The kids all took a seat on two sofas adjacent from each other.

"So, if I may ask. What brings all of you here?" The little demon grabbed a cup of something, and began drinking out of it. She examined them as she drank, "Your attire doesn't seem as if you belong here."

"First of all, you have a nice house, and thank you for letting us stay here. And second of all, it's a tricky situation. But we arrived here by accident while looking for a friend of ours. Although, we ended up a lot farther away from her than intended." Luz responded.

The little demon set aside her beverage, "Perhaps the good townspeople could be of some help in finding your friend? I'm sure they would be happy to help. Do you all remember where she is?"

"Some help would be much appreciated," Luz waved her hands opposingly, "But there's unfortunately not much any of you could do. We're kind of not even supposed to be here technically speaking." The little demon nodded. An awkward silence fell over the living room of her house. Luz spoke once again, breaking the silence, "Oh! How rude of me not to ask. What's your name?"

"There are no hard feelings, 'Human'. My name is Viola, but the townspeople call me Vi for short. What are all your names?" Viola took a sip of her cup again, before setting it aside once more. Luz then named her and her friends off to their host. "It is very nice to meet you all." Suddenly, a loud knock was heard at the door. Viola hopped out of her chair, walked to the door and opened it. Nothing but a large and stubby leg with three purple bands around it could be seen outside. Viola faced upward, looking pleasantly surprised, "Oh, hello! What a surprise to see you here at this time!" She said joyously before walking out of the house.

To the others, a familiar deep voice filled the air, "A welcome surprise no less! I've come to visit. I am only taking a short respite from my travels. Though, my recess is against my better judgment. I am on the verge of something wonderful, but I do not wish to be enervated once I discover it."

"You know the people of the Borough will always welcome you and any friends here," Viola said. "Oh, and before I forget, I would like you to meet my guests." She gestured for Luz and the others to come outside. They all got out of their seats and walked outside. The person they saw flabbergasted them all. "Friends. This is Calus. Apparently he isn't from here, just like you all." This was a form of Calus they had never seen. He was dressed in what seemed to be undergarments to armor or a suit of some kind, his arms and legs were exposed, free to breathe. He looked like the opposite of the effigy of himself. His most defining feature was his overtly pale skin, it was almost as if he was sickly, clinging on to some sort of life.

Calus coughed loudly, covering his mouth, "Excuse me." He coughed again, before speaking. His tone of voice was notably softer and less grandiose than usual, "Greetings. My name is Calus, an explorer fr-'' Before he could finish introducing himself, Calus was then interrupted by Amity.

"We know who you are already. What are you doing here?!" Amity pointed at Calus accusingly. The others all stared at the towering Cabal with frowns that stabbed his ego like daggers.

Calus was bewildered, he looked at Viola, who shrugged awkwardly. "You know me? I have never met any of you in my time here." He observed their expressions, they were obviously irked at something, but he genuinely had no clue. "Is there any reason why you stare at me with such irate faces? Do I know you?" They didn't respond. "I do believe that I should leave. I will return to say my final goodbyes before I return to my travels." Calus nodded, and waved goodbye to Viola as he walked away coughing again.

Luz walked in front of Viola and crouched in front of her, "Viola, you can't trust that guy. He's real bad news for anyone involved with him. Nothing good can come out of being friendly with him."

"Excuse me. But it is not up to you who I consider my friends or not. Calus is a nice fellow. He and his 'Loyalists' as he calls them have done only the nicest of things for us ever since we met them months ago. They even helped us build this town with their incredible strength," Viola reminisced. "He's taken a particular interest in our magic too. He wishes to learn it for himself one day. Why, he even wants to find the origins of the very Titan we have based our civilization upon." Viola looked like she wanted to keep going on and on about the good deeds Calus had done, but stopped herself. "Listen, I don't know who you think Calus is, but there is no ill intent within him."

"But he's-" Luz tried to plead with Viola.

"No, it's okay," The little blue demon walked back into her home, "If you really think he's as wicked as you say he is, then bring back proof of him being a terrible person. Though I doubt you'll ever get anything close to that."

"You want proof? Alright, we'll get you proof. Whether we have to bring it to you, or if he shows his true colors, you'll see him for what he really is." Luz said determinant.

"'I'll hold you to it then." Viola responded. She shut her door in their faces, not slamming it so as to not come off too rude.

"Okay, it shouldn't be too hard to find Calus doing something egregious," Luz said. "We should follow him around and snap a few pictures of him doing suspicious things. That's a surefire way to expose him." The others nodded in agreement. "Then let's get to work and expose that poser for who he really is." They all set out to go find Calus.

Khuun's squad arrived in the Borough, catching the attention of all the town's residents, some with faces of gratitude and indifferent expressions. Despite their confusion, and their expectancy to be immediately ridiculed and kicked out of the town, they carried on, looking for their targets.

A random woman walked up to Gor'tuk, stopping him and the others behind him in their tracks. The woman hugged the gladiator's leg, "Oh thank you, thank you!" She exclaimed. "I am not certain if you are the same one who saved us from that dreaded Slitherbeast, but if you are not, please send my regards to the warrior who did!" She released her grip around his leg, and ran out of sight of the group. No words were spared over the occurrence and the group kept moving.

"Bracus. What if they aren't even here? We'll have no choice but to return to the commander empty-handed. And he'll certainly have our heads if we don't succeed." Eratl spoke out.

"We won't fail. They're here, I know it. I take it there aren't many places to hide due to its size." Khuun surveyed his surroundings. He continued forward through the town, matching the height of most of the buildings. "But where could they be?" He asked himself. Khuun's attention was then taken by hearing a voice, the voice of Calus himself. "Emperor Calus? Has he followed us here?" The others questioned what he meant, but were briefly ignored. They were ordered to follow Khuun, which they did. The Loyalists ran up to Calus, bowing their heads in his presence. Khuun spoke on behalf of his subordinates, "Emperor Calus. You have followed us here? To what do we owe the pleasure, my lord?"

Calus was perplexed, he hadn't followed anyone. Especially not his own soldiers. He commanded them to raise their heads before speaking to them. "Followed you? Here?" His tone was indirectly irritant, but he remained calm. "It is you who has followed me here. I requested your presence hours ago! Yet only now have you arrived?" He was noticeably getting more angry, but he lowered his tone, being careful to not embarrass himself around the townsfolk. "No matter. We can continue on with my plan. Come with me." Calus led them away, walking out of the town. He coughed heavily as they walked, "Either it is this rotting body, or there is something I am deathly allergic to in this wretched town." Calus said, just in earshot of the Loyalists. To them, something felt different about Calus than his current self. Perhaps it was the decay on certain parts of his body, his coughs that sounded like death was knocking at his heart, or the fact that he seemed paranoid, looking over his shoulders at every moment. After a while, he led them just a little ways outside of the Borough. He stopped, and turned to them. "Tell me, where have you left the beast? Is it outside of the town?" He asked urgently

"My lord. The beast? What do you mean?" Khuun asked.

"The magic sapping beast! Are you telling me you didn't bring it here?! First you arrive late, and now you fail to follow my simple orders!" Calus let out a loud Tch! "No matter. If you have not retrieved it, then it should still be where we last left it." Calus told the soldiers to follow him, much to their chagrin. Calus led them to what seemed to be a knee that still had clumps of meat on them. "We are almost there."

"My emperor, just where are we?" Eratl asked.

"The locals have named it 'The Knee'. But to me, it is nothing but a prison." Calus continued up the giant body part as his subjects followed.

Not too far behind were Luz and company. They found Calus after asking around town, and since then, they had been following him, and now his escort, discreetly and from afar. Despite this, they were ill equipped to face the Knee's wintry conditions, but they still made the trek, desperate to prove Calus wasn't who the witches thought he was. They shivered and shook as they made their way up the Knee. The bunch eventually found a tunnel that they could shelter themselves in. They all leant up against a wall, taking a moment to breathe and recuperate.

As Luz leant against the wall, a marble-like liquid fell from above. She initially jumped at the sight of it, letting out a small squeal, before she tensed down. "False alarm, guys. It's just…Titan's Blood?" More of the 'Titan's Blood' started to rain down in clusters of small blobs. Curious, Luz picked one of the blobs up and bounced it in her hand. "It's like jelly, sort of. Really weird jelly."

Amity looked at Luz, and her eyes widened, "Luz, I wouldn't mess with that!" Amity yelled. This startled Luz and caused her to drop the blob which cracked down the middle. A few rocks then began to fall, a loud rumbling noise followed. The tunnel was collapsing in on itself. The group took to running down the tunnel system as the entrance had been blocked by rocks. Finally, they made it to safety, ending up at a crossroads. They all sat down, taking a breather.

"What was that?!" Luz yelled out, breathing heavily.

"It was Fool's Blood. At least that's what Belos calls it." King responded.

Amity continued off of King, "The reason the entire tunnel caved in is because you disturbed it. It's terrifying the first time, and even more terrifying the second time it happens to you."

Luz laughed awkwardly, "Sorry guys. I didn't think anything like that would happen, but at least we know not to mess with that stuff now."

Amity put a hand on Luz's shoulder, reassuring her, "Hey, just be glad we weren't all crushed under some weird fleshy rocks." She looked forward, staring at the two paths, "So, where to next?"

Loud, heavy footsteps could be heard echoing throughout one of the tunnels, prompting the group to hide behind a cluster of rocks.

"These witches and demons. Naive and fickle doesn't begin to describe them." Calus and his Loyalists just so happened to walk past Luz and her friends, but they didn't notice them. "The same gifts and promises that the Guardians fell for, they have also fallen victim to. But this next plan of mine will surely strike their hearts with my grace." Calus continued talking, but his voice got lower as he walked farther away. Luz peeked out, spotting them walking down one of the tunnels.

"Let's go, they went this way." Luz gestured for her friends to follow her, and they sneakily trailed the Loyalist group. After a couple of minutes of slowly and painstakingly walking behind the Cabal, and listening to Calus annoyingly go on and on about his achievements and what he would do, they arrived at the Loyalists' destination. They were all surprised from what they were seeing. They were at Eclipse Lake, except this time around, it was full of Titan's Blood.

"There's enough Titan's Blood here to power the Isles for decades…" Gus said, his mouth hanging wide open.

"Or even centuries." Willow added.

That wasn't all they saw. There was also a group of three average sized basilisks there who were all purple in color, but marks on the sides of their heads differentiated them from each other. They were all imprisoned within a circular cell that emitted an orange glowing shield around it. There were also cells holding other types of creatures and beast demons. "What's he doing with all those critters?" Willow asked.

"I don't know, but whatever it is, it can't be good at all." Luz responded. The group decided to move in for a closer look at the situation.

Calus moved closer to the cell holding the basilisks, "Such foul beasts. But so interesting. Once I am done here, I would like to clone these creatures, test them, and push them to their limit. Perhaps I can even take some form of magic for myself, or better, claim the powers of the Deep." Calus looked over his shoulder, seeing a shadow float by him, "How did you find me here? I have slain this Titan as I promised. It was a sheer waste of resources and powers, I regret not taking its power for my own before slaying it. Despite all this, you still ask of me? What is it that you want?" To his subordinates and the Hexsquad, it seemed like Calus was talking to himself, as if he was crazy. Calus walked away from them to have his own privacy.

Collector playfully floated over Calus, "And that's great news! Just one teensy problem, there's still one more Titan left. But don't worry, this time you won't have to use up everything, I promise."

Calus grunted frustratedly, "I will tend to this problem once I am done here. I will meet with you shortly, Collector." Calus started to walk back to the cell, "And no, I didn't forget our agreement. Your time will come, my friend. In due time." Luz and the others could just barely hear Calus's conversation, only being able to make out a few words which were of no use to them. "I return. Now, back to the situation at hand." The kids could now hear what Calus was saying. Luz pulled out her phone and recorded the conversation, adamant to show the people of the Borough who Calus really was. "These are called 'basilisks'. They pose no threat to us, but to the witches, I have learned they are one of the greatest dangers they could face. It has already proven that they will be grateful to whoever helps them, and now, defeating one of their most dangerous threats will yield excellent results."

"But my lord, why? What is the purpose of all of this?" Khuun inquired.

"Conquering and dominating entire races has proven to be costly and time effective. We can only clone so many warriors at a time. And given the circumstances of being disconnected from the Leviathan and that these witches and demons are so primitive, it would simply be a waste of resources. It just wouldn't make sense." Calus looked one of the basilisks in the eyes as he talked, "Trust is the most effective way to control a population, this is only second to fear. And luckily for us, they are easily manipulated." Calus walked over to the device generating the shield and shut it off. The basilisks had dared not to move, knowing well that Calus would harm them if they tried to escape. "Good pets." He grabbed one by its tail and pulled it out of the cell. He held it up to his face, "Are you proud? Today is the day you get to prove your entire species to me!" He exclaimed. The basilisk looked at him with a sullen look on its face as it struggled to release itself from Calus's grip, but to no avail. He was too strong for it. "Worry not, you will be free soon. Much like another friend of mine." He put the basilisk in the hands of Khuun, "Hold it until we get back. Then, we will unleash it." Calus ordered Gor'tuk and Eratl to grab the other basilisks, and they made way for the exit.

Luz stopped recording and put her phone back in her pocket. "So that's what he's up to. I just knew he was up to no good. It's like a gut feeling with him." They got out of their hiding spot, and booked it back to the Borough, hoping to beat the Loyalists there.

Back in the present day, a new rotation of guards was assigned to Caiatl's cell. Among them was Urlgor, who was not pleased to be placed on guard duty, even for such a high value target. He faced Caiatl and Satuur, "I must admit. It is disappointing to see you in such a deplorable state, Caiatl." The empress paid no attention to Urlgor, but he continued talking anyway. "I will say, it is beyond me why Emperor Calus has kept you alive. Especially after doing so much to have you killed. I would rather have my lifeless body at the edge of your hammer than to see an adversary such as you imprisoned like this."

Urlgor's final statement caught Caiatl's attention. She made her way to the front of the cell, "Then why do you stay behind this shield? Why not free me? So that you may live out your desires."

"Admittedly, I would like to do such a thing," Urlgor responded without a hint of remorse in his voice. "But I am loyal to the emperor, and his orders are definite. I can spare no mercy at his expense."

"Where is your pride? Has Calus taken that away from his followers too?" Caiatl couldn't even look the colossus in the eyes, opting to look down at the floor instead.

"I shed my pride in exchange for subservience to the one true emperor of the Cabal."

"Then perhaps it is time for a change. Is the absence of your pride worth becoming a sycophant to a presumptuous tyrant?"

"I chose this path for myself, but perhaps I was destined to walk it ever since my birth, no matter what."

"That is no way to live your life. No less, the life of a Cabal." Caiatl protested. This time, she looked Urlgor in the eyes, determined to sway his way of thinking. "We did not claim the sun millions of years ago to be held back by those such as Calus."

Satuur interjected from the back of the cell, "Release yourself from Calus's false reign. He'll lead you and the rest of his followers down a path of mutually assured destruction. If anyone, he, like the Hive, would be the harbinger of the Cabal's extinction." Caiatl nodded in agreement with her subordinate.

Urlgor turned his back to the two, "No. Emperor Calus is much more than that. I shouldn't even be conversing with you two traitors to the empire. It is only a matter of time before we catch the rest of your forces, so you might as well settle in."

"Ignorance is bliss as the Humans say. But this is not bliss, your ignorance is the byproduct of despondency. If we can not sway your state of mind, then so be it." Caiatl returned back to her spot in the cell. Standing and contemplating, undisturbed and unmoved. Urlgor on the other hand was thinking about their conversation. His mind was at war with itself. He decided to set aside such thoughts for another time, he felt obligated to focus on his duty to his emperor instead.

In the past Demon Realm, the Hexsquad made their way back to the Borough. It seemed like they made it there before Calus, or at least before he could continue with his plan. They rushed to Viola's house. Luz knocked on the door, hoping she would answer soon. The door opened, "You've come back, and with evidence to support your claim I presume?" Viola said with a prickly tone.

"Yes, we have enough proof to change your mind for a thousand years!" Luz said urgently. Viola invited the kids in to listen to them. They all took a seat, except for Luz, who stood next to Viola's chair. She pulled out her phone and loaded up the video she recorded. Viola was infatuated with the device, and was about to speak about it, until Luz shushed her. It was low quality, so Viola reached for an eye glass. She concentrated hard on the video. At first, she couldn't make out what the problem was, but as the video kept running, she got more and more hurt. Feeling betrayed, she asked that Luz turn off the recording, not wanting to see anymore. "So do you see? That big turtle looking bully isn't some saint. Not even close. I'm sorry if seeing that hurt you. But I know he definitely won't say it, so I will." Luz placed a hand on the little demon's shoulder.

"I don't blame you. It's not your fault that I- we were manipulated by his lies. I'll inform the townspeople of this right away."

"You're doing the right thing, Viola. We'll come with you." A moment after Luz said this, screams could be heard outside. Everyone inside looked out the windows to see the basilisks slithering around town, albeit without any malicious intent. They were simply slithering around, not hurting anybody. It seemed like they didn't want to be there. Despite this, everyone outside still screamed their lungs out, in fear of having their life force drained out of them.

Calus watched from afar with a pair of binoculars, an expression of disappointment fell over his face as he observed the basilisks seemingly just lounging around. He groaned, "Why haven't those beasts taken their life force yet?! What are they waiting for?!" Calus threw the binoculars to the ground, "Unacceptable." Calus walked off without warning.

Instead of immediately following, Khuun and the others opted for staying behind. "This does not feel right. This is Emperor Calus, but not our Emperor Calus." Eratl said.

"That is true, but the orders of the emperor are absolute." Khuun responded, as he looked at Calus angrily marching away, "Past or not."

"Yes. But I do not know how much longer I can follow his orders. He is much different from our Calus, obviously, but there is something about his past self that is…hard to follow." Eratl replied.

"Is that insubordination I hear?" Khuun asked threateningly. "That is a crime against the thr-"

Gor'tuk interrupted the conversation, "She is trying to say that the past version of Emperor Calus is much more…eccentric than the present one. And besides, it is not like you would report her for such words. Out of all the Cabal we know, we are the only ones that are willing to be friendly with you." He remarked jokingly, to which Khuun turned away from the gladiator.

"Shut your mouth. We will follow the emperor and back him up." The squad followed Calus's tracks.

Luz approached one of the basilisks, who was the same color as the other two, but "Hey there." She was careful with her tone, not trying to provoke it. "So, you're a basilisk, huh? The last one I saw was…bigger. And a lot scarier."

"And hungrier." Gus added.

The basilisk spoke with a hoarse female voice, "Yeah, you're lucky I don't have an appetite for any magic right now. Although, I could go for some right now."

"Easy there, huh? We're friends. No need for any magic absorbing antics." Luz slowly walked closer to the basilisk. She noticed the mark engraved on the side of her head. It looked like some type of ancient hieroglyphics, but she knew that it was definitely alien in nature. "Hey, what's the point of that mark there?"

The basilisk turned away, "It's nothing but alien gibberish to me. I can still feel the searing pain from having it branded on me." She touched it with her hand, and flinched, "I'm sure that my siblings feel the same way too."

Luz eased up, "You're all siblings? That explains why you look the same." The footsteps of the Cabal could be heard, "Quick! Hide!" The basilisks took the form of identical tan skinned, purple haired witches. "Or you can shapeshift. Kinda forgot you could do that." The group all stood in a circle and hid the basilisks, making it seem like they were having a conversation.

Calus drew closer and closer. He stopped near the kids and loomed over them. "You there!" His voice startled them, "Where have the beasts gone? They are terrorizing this town!" They all ignored him, and he quickly grew agitated, "Answer me!"

"I'm gonna punch him square in the face. I swear." Amity whispered aggressively.

"I don't think that'll be happening, I hear more on the way." Luz responded quietly. The marching of the other Loyalists grew louder with each step.

"So, what's the plan?" Hunter asked.

"I say we just roll with the punches. It's not like he knows who we, or the basilisks are." Luz suggested. The group all nodded, and turned to face Calus, who was staring at them intently. "Nope, we haven't seen any beasts roaming around here." Luz shrugged, "Maybe they went to the next town over. Or maybe you're just really blind. Who knows?" She said mockingly.

"Do not sneer at me, child. Have you any idea what the urgency of this situation is?!" Calus roared.

"Yep, and I'm not helping you. Because you suck ya big ol' meanie." Luz stuck her tongue out at Calus, and blew a raspberry at him.

Annoyed, Calus rose his fist to the kids, which they rightfully stepped back from. Viola took to getting in front of them, despite her size, she made a big impression. "You!" Viola yelled. "You lied to us! You captured innocent animals and sicced them on us! All under the guise of doing 'good deeds'! How dare you?!"

Calus was unmoved, he knew what he did, "Is it my fault you people are so gullible? The first individual to show you kindness, you flock to them. I only took advantage of such a weakness."

Viola was visibly hurt by Calus's words, "So all the nice things you said? Everything you did? That was all a lie?"

"All of it, demon! I saw an opportunity to control you, and it worked. There are secrets I have uncovered about this realm that I would have never discovered, were you all not so credulous." Khuun and the others had finally arrived, "About time you've arrived. Destroy them all! Raze this town to the ground and the citizens along with it!"

"But Emperor Calus-" Khuun tried to speak out, but was deferred by Calus.

"You are Cabal! You will not hesitate to crush those that are weaker than you!" Calus barked, "Or I will do it for you."

Khuun aimed his projection rifle at the witches below, getting ready to shoot. Despite this, he was hesitant to do so. "My lord…I can't." Khuun shook his head, "There is no honor in this." Gor'tuk and Eratl were also uncertain what to do.

"Honor is a dead and gone tradition for our people." Calus snatched the rifle out of Khuun's hand, "I do not have the luxury of time to wander around the diffidence of you and your cowardly subordinates." Calus took aim, finger on the trigger. "This is the lowliest of consequences of defying a god."

Before Calus could do anything though, he was hit by a blast of fire from behind. It seared his skin, but he expressed no pain. He looked behind him to see a small mob of people all shouting at him angrily and cursing him, "Liar!", "Deceiver!", "Get out of our town!", "We don't want you here!" were the most prominent words of all the shouting. "Silence, all of you!" Calus shouted, threatening them all with the rifle. "Do something!" He ordered the Loyalists.

Calus was promptly ignored, as Khuun was busy examining Luz and the others. "I remember you," He said to himself. He tapped the shoulders of Eratl and Gor'tuk and pointed to them, "They were there in Emperor Calus's mind. Our Emperor Calus. They helped us then, but I have no doubt in my mind they are the ones we need to capture."

"What do we do then? We are trapped under the service of this Calus." Gor'tuk responded.

"It pains me to say, but he must fight his own battles. I would never betray Emperor Calus in such a way in the present, but this is the past. He won't even remember this." Khuun told Gor'tuk. "It is not like we know how much time we have left to get back anyway. We haven't even established contact with the base yet." Khuun continued, "I have an idea to get them out of here."

"Then you should hurry up. My stomach is growling louder than a war beast before feeding time." Gor'tuk commented.

Khuun nodded, and they walked over to the kids, leaving Calus to fend for himself. "You there!" Khuun exclaimed. The kids all tensed up, taking defensive positions, "Wait, we are not your enemy!"

"You've been following that monster around long enough to be considered that!" Luz yelled, holding a few glyphs in her hand.

"The truth is, we have been waiting for the perfect moment to split from him. He is…not what we anticipated when we first joined." Khuun held his hands up, "We saw that he was antagonizing you and your friends, but we hadn't even known most of it." Khuun felt disgusted with himself, willingly putting himself in a vulnerable position, and feigning ignorance, instead of taking action. Though he had seen what just these witches could do to Cabal who crossed them, and didn't want to meet that same fate. "We wish to get you all to safety."

"How can we trust you?" Luz asked.

"Because, you have nowhere else left to go. Our forces are everywhere, and most certainly looking for you by now. Make your choice."

"Fine, but no dirty tricks, alright?" Luz said reluctantly.

"You have my promise." Khuun gestured for the others to follow him. Everyone followed, except for Viola, who stayed behind. Luz fell back after realizing this.

"Viola, you aren't coming with us?" Luz looked at her with a hint of worry in her eyes.

Viola shook her head, "No, I'm going to stay here and help everyone else run that monster masquerading as a saint out of town. He deserves nothing more from our Isles."

"I wish you luck then, Vi. Have fun tearing him a new one!" Luz exclaimed, "See you another time! Maybe!" She waved as she ran back to the group.

"A Human. How interesting, and weird." Viola joined the mob of people screaming and hollering at Calus, who had since then dropped his weapon after being pelted with all types of magic abilities. The once all-mighty emperor froze up.

"Insolent! All of you!" Calus cried out. But no one listened. He looked around for his soldiers to back him up, but no one was there. He roared in frustration as he was still being hit with magic. To a healthy, normal Cabal, the magic would be doing little, but to Calus, who was deteriorating due to his past endeavors, he very much felt the pain. Despite that, the pain wasn't what deterred him, "Listen to me! I have built this town from the ground up for you! You have no right to depose me!" The thought of being 'overthrown' once again, and no longer being adored pushed him away. "You will all live to regret this!" Calus barked as held his wounds with parts of his skin slowly flaking off, "I am a god! The gift giver! You will feel my wrath." Calus coughed as he stumbled out of town, presumably to never be seen again.

As Calus departed, the mob of witches and demons settled down. They were grateful to have their town still intact, but they were more happy to have been rid of a parasite sucking them dry of their own kindness. The crowd slowly dispersed, going their own ways. Viola walked back to her home, she opened the door and took a seat, contemplating on the day she had. Although she hadn't known Luz and her friends for more than half a day, and didn't even know what a Human was, she still felt indebted to them for helping her see the truth. "I have not known you for long, but I can only hope that others are beholden to your kindness one day, Luz the Human."

"It looks like we're far enough away. Now-" Khuun was cut off.

"Uh, can you give us a moment, please?" Luz asked nicely. Khuun gave her a disinclined nod. The kids, along with the still disguised basilisks, walked into some shrubbery nearby.

"So what are we doing here?" Hunter asked.

"We're covering our escape from those Loyalists." Luz responded.

"Wait? Why?" Gus inquired, "They were going to help us, right?"

"Guys, trust me. I've spent enough time in the Demon Realm to suss out all the liars. Even the good liars can't get past me, to some extent. They were definitely going to betray us and take us back to their emperor, for sure." Luz gestured for everyone to follow her, "Now, we're going home." They all continued on a path back to the time pool.

"It has been minutes. They should have been out by now." Khuun walked over to the bush, crouched down and opened it. He found that no one was there, "We were tricked! They couldn't have gone far!" The Cabal took after them.

The kids finally made it to the site of the time pool, they all looked down at it "Just through here is a tunnel right back to home." Luz said.

One of the basilisk triplets walked up to Luz, "Thank you for saving us, friends. It is a shame we could not get properly acquainted with each other."

"As long as you all are okay, that's fine by me." Luz reassured the basilisk, placing her hand on her shoulder. She looked over the basilisk's shoulder to see Khuun and his subordinates arriving. "You should go now. Be safe, yeah? Keep those disguises handy." She waved them away, and the disguised basilisks all ran away. "Give it up! You aren't taking them back with you, and we'll make sure of that!" Luz yelled.

"Them?" Khuun asked. "No, we're here for you all."

"Us? What'd we do?" Luz asked. "Apart from creating an angry mob against your emperor." She whispered to herself.

"We were tasked with taking you back to our base of operations." Khuun laughed, "It seems you're already on your way back though. Go ahead and jump through that portal for us."

Luz raised an eyebrow, "How do you know where we came from? You're from the past, that's not possible."

"It hardly matters when and where we are from. All that matters is that you and your friends trespassed on Loyalist territory, and for that, you'll face punishment." Khuun slowly walked closer to them. He deployed his wrist mounted blade and pointed it at them, "Surrender yourselves, now!"

"We don't know where you came from, but we aren't going with you! Not willingly at least." Luz yelled out.

"No matter where you go. You will end up in the clutches of the Loyalists." Khuun tried to radio in the base commander, but still wasn't able to get any response.

"I'd rather blindly jump through this time pool without a plan than go with you!" Luz exclaimed. She leant in close to her friends and whispered, "I really wish we had a plan right about now."

"You don't have any more invisibility glyphs?" Amity asked, to which Luz responded by nodding her head. She sighed, "Then I might have an idea to get out of this alive." She conjured up a mass amount of abomination goo and suspended it in the air around her, "Get your staffs ready, and follow my lead." Amity ran for the time pool, and the others followed her, including the Cabal. The kids jumped in, while the Cabal lagged behind. "Jump!" The kids all jumped in, and as soon as they were on the other side, Amity conjured two abominations to keep the Cabal distracted from their escape.

"We are under attack! Lay waste to this witchcraft!" The Loyalist commander ordered. The Loyalists opened fire on the abominations. Their weapons did little to them, only putting holes in them that reformed immediately after. One of the abominations grabbed a legionary and smashed him into another. The commander held his arm up, "Hold your fire! Incendiors!" A squad of Incendiors arrived to deal with the abominations, they charged up their flame packs, but before they could do anything, Khuun and his squad came crashing down on top of the abominations, effectively splattering their matter everywhere. The commander wiped the goo off his armor. "So, you've returned, Bracus. And empty handed I see." He cursed the trio out in Ulurant. "You have taken a gamble on your lives coming back without having completed your mission. And unfortunately, it is a gamble you lost."

"Sir. We tried. We were side-tracked by-" Khuun tried to explain, but was cut off by his superior.

"No, you didn't try. You failed me. You failed your emperor." The commander deployed his wrist blade, "And the consequence for failure is death and dishonor." He raised his blade, and brought it down onto Khuun. But before it could hit, he felt his arm stop midair. He looked behind him to see Za'aurk behind him, holding his arm. Za'aurk released his grip on the commander's arm, "Primus?"

"Were you about to execute the emperor's saviors, commander?" Za'aurk asked, his armor illuminated as night fell upon the sky.

"Primus. I gave them an objective, they failed. You know as well as I do that the penalty for such a transgression is death."

"Yes, yes. I know. But under Emperor Calus's rule, that has changed. That punishment was used by Ghaul's legions. Us Loyalists aren't like those Red Legion savages. Slaughtering our own for failure is not what we stand for. That goes for all of you." Za'aurk told the Cabal standing around. The commander nodded reluctantly. He looked at Khuun and walked away. Khuun thanked Za'aurk, which the Primus responded with a simple nod.

Once they were far away enough, the Hexsquad all stopped to rest their bodies. Then, they all started laughing nervously. "That's like, the fifth time we've been in danger and barely made it out alive." Luz said, "I can't believe it."

"What a rush!" King yelled out.

"I didn't think it'd work, but we did it." Willow added.

"And it's all thanks to Amity's risky but effective plan." Gus commented.

Amity smiled, flicking her hand humbly, "It was nothing but some simple improvisation, no biggie."

"I wouldn't say that saving our skin is 'no biggie'." Luz chuckled, patting Amity on the back. Everyone was celebrating, except for Hunter, who was silently leaving the group. "Hey, Hunter! Where ya goin'?!"

"Uh, home." Hunter said quietly, "Everyone at the castle is probably wondering where I've been all day. Not to mention, you didn't even get close to finding your friend. Today was just a waste of time for everyone. "It was my fault we were there in the first place.

"Hey, don't sweat it," Luz walked over to Hunter, and placed her hand on his shoulder, "We helped a town of witches from the past realize everyone isn't as they seem. Hopefully one day we can do the same for everyone today, and oust Belo-" Luz noticed Hunter had a frustrated look on his face at the mention of Belos, "I'll leave it at that. But my point is, today wasn't a total waste. We'll keep looking around for Caiatl, even if it takes days or weeks."

"Thanks. I'm gonna go now." Hunter waved to the others as he walked away.

"Be safe!" Luz yelled out. "Right, let's get home." Everyone nodded in agreement, and they proceeded back to the Owl House.

When they made it back, they found a Loyalist Colossus waiting for them out front. "Guys! Look out!" They all readied their magic, drawing spell circles in the air, "What are you doing here?!" Luz screamed.

"Save your energy, young ones. I am not your enemy, not now. Right now, I come to you only as a messenger." Urlgor held his hand out, and pointed to someone below him, "Your friend here can vouch for me."

Urlgor pointed to Eda, she waved a hand at the kids, "Hey, I held the same sentiment when I first saw him. I lugged an explosive potion at him, he didn't even let out a groan. Kinda worrying, but don't worry kiddos. He's fine, for now. But he knows if he tries anything, the last thing he'll see is the bottom of my boot in his face."

The kids broke their spell circles, but stayed on edge. "Okay? How did you know where to find us? Why did you find us?" Luz asked.

"I asked around town. It was surprisingly difficult to find this one…abode." Urlgor continued, "I came here to deliver you a message, regarding Caiatl. I have not seen you all with her myself. But I expected no other individuals here to cause trouble with her, other than you."

"Why are you telling us this? Are you some sort of spy?" Amity asked.

"I am no traitor! I would follow Emperor Calus to the ends of the universe. His every rule is absolute to me. But my values; the values of my species as a whole have overcome that, just for the moment." Urlgor took out a small handheld projector and threw it on the ground. A hologram of Caiatl and Satuur in their cell beamed out of the projector. "They are imprisoned here in this realm, I do not know the name of it, or where it is, but I do know that they are at the very top of the spire. You'll face heavy resistance, and-"

"What's your game here? How do we know it's not just some trap?" Luz asked.

"If I wanted you captured, I would have brought a task force with me." Urlgor replied. Luz nodded in response. "Now, you'll face heavy resistance, but it is mostly the grunts of our forces, until you reach the top. That is where the true challenge lies."

"Why, what's at the top?" Luz inquired.

"That is all I can say. I anticipate how you will rescue Caiatl. I was never here, you don't know me." Urlgor walked away into the forest.

"The very top of a spire, huh?" Luz tried to pick up the holoprojector, but ended up dropping the device, as it was too heavy for her, "That thing's size is very deceiving."

Amity stepped forward, "Do you think he meant…?"

Luz finished her sentence, "The Conformatorium? Yeah." She said solemnly. Her face then broke into a slight smile, "It looks like we're going on a prison break!"

"Luz, we have school tomorrow." Willow commented.

"A prison break after school!" Luz reworded.

"I think I'll tag along for that adventure. I've been wanting to do another prison break for a while now." Eda added.

"Alright Eda!" Luz exclaimed happily. "But before we do any of that, I need some shut eye."

"Yeah, me too. I'm all tuckered out." Gus yawned, and others did the same.

"Yeah, the King of Demons can't rule his subjects on a sleepy mind. 'Night everyone!" King scampered into the house, Eda followed suit.

"Bye guys! Make it home safe. We're probably wanted criminals by now." Luz waved to her friends as she walked into the house. She shut the door and locked it.

Back in the past Demon Realm, Calus retreated back to his island refuge. Despite being empty, and full of nothing but a single golden statue of himself that had miniscule egregore spores on it. To him, it was a 'home' away from home. "Do you think I could win back the trust of those witches with this statue?" Calus asked.

"I don't know, buddy. They seemed pretty mad at you from what I saw." Collector responded playfully.

"If they will not follow me. Then how can I gain their magic? That is what I crave."

"Well, there is one way. But, like I said. You gotta help me out first."

"Yes, yes. What is it that you needed again?"

"There's still one last Titan that you haven't dealt with yet."

"Where is this Titan then?! Surely I would have seen it by now, roaming these lands. You must be wrong."

"Nope, that's where you're wrong." Collector's shadowy form floated around Calus, "I know there's another one. I can sense it, like some sort of wizard. That sense is especially strong here."

"If it is here, then it must be small. That is no Titan."

"It's a baby Titan. That's why, duh."

"If it is so small then, it could be anywhere. How do you expect me to find it?!"

"Hmm," Collector pointed to a dilapidated tower in the distance, "That could be a start."

"So be it. If this is the price I pay for the power of magic, then it is one I shall pay." Calus set off for the tower, hoping to reap the fruits of what lay inside, and what he could get should he succeed.

And thus ends chapter 11. I obviously took heavy inspiration from the episode 'Elsewhere and Elsenwhere' for this one, which is one of my favorite episodes from TOH. I'm hoping I did the whole time pool and time traveling thing some justice with this. One of the reasons I had this idea was because in recent chapters I haven't done the 'lore book/grimoire' type prologues with past Calus, so this was a sort of remedy for that, hopefully it hit well.

Also I have some things to say, so feel free to stick around and read these closing statements if you want. First off, wow, this was kinda long for my standards. Apologies for the wait, I got preoccupied with so many things and procrastinated a lot. I'm working on getting better at NOT doing that, but if I have to release one damn chapter per month, so be it. It's not the best way to keep people engaged, but it's better than me burning myself out. Second off, I'm gonna refrain from writing scenarios for big groups of the MCs for a bit 'til I get better at doing so. It felt wrong to leave some characters out for some moments because I didn't know how to fit them into the current scene, so I'm gonna stick to smaller groups of characters. Thirdly, I wanted to give my Cabal OCs some sort of exposure here. They aren't the most fleshed out, and that's my fault so I didn't give them too much time, but I think I got their points across the last few times I featured them. And finally, once again, thank all of you beautiful people for reading this chapter, I hope ya enjoyed it. Happy anniversary to MoO, and to 'Watching and Dreaming'. And if you're a Destiny fan who stumbled upon my story and stayed for the Destiny part of the X-over, and haven't watched The Owl House yet, THEN GO WATCH IT! And if you're an Owl House fan who hasn't played Destiny and just stayed for the Owl House part, THEN DO NOT PLAY DESTINY! JUST GO WATCH MY NAME IS BYF LORE VIDEOS, PLEASE! also i hope you destiny players enjoy into the light when that comes out it looks very cool bye bye xx