"Here it is, the Bonesborough garden club or whatever." Said Odalia with a frown as she gestured towards the building. "Ugh, are we really doing this?"
"Yes, Odalia, we have to." Said Alador with a frown.
"No we don't." Said Odalia in confusion. "We can go back home and pretend nothing happened."
Alador went silent and stared at Odalia, trying to think of an answer. Odalia rolled her eyes at her husband before pushing him inside the building.
Inside, there were many many plants of different kinds and shapes. Some of them even caught Odalia's eyes.
"Ooh, i like this." She said as she inspected a plant that had the ability to fire large needles with impressive precision.
Alador, as well, was fascinated by some of the more unique ones...like one that disguises itself as insect like demons like a fair to lure them in to be their pollinators.
It wasn't until a member of the garden club found them that they went back to their usual selves.
Odalia cleared her throat and turned to the member. "I'd like to speak to the head of the garden club."
"I'm sorry, but i have to ask you to leave-"
Odalia didn't let him finish before an abomination entered the scene with a large sack of money.
"If everything goes right, this will all go to your little club." Said Odalia calmly. "Now, lead me to the head of the club."
"Y-yes ma'am! Please follow me."
Odalia watched as the member practically lay down a red carpet for her with a satisfied smile across her face.
"I love being rich-" she whispered as she barely dodged a needle fired by Alador by accident. "ALADOR! FOCUS!"
Alador immediately left the plant alone and followed the member to meet the head of the club.
Odalia, however, took one last look at the needle plant. "I wonder if they have a bigger one...i should ask."
xxXxx
"I'll cut to the chase, i need four palistrom logs and a one of those needle plants...a big one." Said Odalia calmly
The club head choked on air the moment he heard Odalia's request. He cleared his throat before giving his answer as Alador was distracted once more.
"I, uh, apologize, but i can't do that. We can however still give you the needle plant."
"I'm sorry?"
"Palistrom wood is growing scarce these days, we can't-"
"I know, that's why I'm here. Look, how about this, think of it as an investment. You get a generous donation that could help you protect even more palistrom trees and i get what i want." Said Odalia calmly. "Does that sound like a good deal?"
The club head went silent and Odalia continued.
"And i might even drop in a good word with some of the investors of Blights industries. I'm sure many would like to secure palistrom for...future generations."
The club head started wavering in front of Odalia and offer and she could see it.
"Just think of all the plants you could...uhh plant? With that money." Said Odalia calmly. "And how many gardeners would be disappointed if it doesn't happen."
"...fine." The club head gave in. "We can give you some our logs, but we're not giving you any more than four of them."
Odalia smiled. "Pleasure to do business with you."
The club leader told a member to get four logs and a large needle plant. The items soon arrived and Odalia stared at with a smirk.
But as she ordered her abomination to take the bag filled with logs and the plant, it was stolen by a bird.
"What the- what is the meaning of this?!" Said Odalia angrily as the bird began flying away.
"I don't know, but you better catch it! We didn't give you these to throw them away!"
Odalia groaned before turning to Alador. "Alador! It was your idea to get the wood, you better go through with this!"
Alador turned around just to see the bird in the distance with his kids' palistrom. He turned to Odalia and nodded.
Not a second later, the two were out of the building standing on an abomination pillar.
"After it!"
Alador began chasing the bird, using his abomination magic to traverse the forest the bird was entering.
Every time Alador attacked, the bird dodged with impeccable agility. Sadly, that agility couldn't work as well while holding the sack causing Alador to accidentally punch one of the palistrom logs out of the sac and into a river leading to the boiling sea.
Alador stopped in his tracks to see if he could retrieve the log, but Odalia urged to ignore it.
"Focus! We can't risk losing the other three just for one." Said Odalia calmly. "Besides, I'm sure Edric will be fine with some random bat instead."
Alador growled and began his pursuit of the bird with much more vigor this time round.
He soon managed to catch up to the little bird, but immediately he and Odalia regretted that decision.
The two saw one person they couldn't mess with. The bird was a palisman.
And it took them to the forest of the bat queen.
The bird believed that the blights didn't deserve the palistrom, so it urged the queen to stop them.
Thus, to get their bounty back and prove themselves worthy, it was time to overcome the many trials of the bat queen.
And perhaps they could also find a solution to their mission log.
xxXxx
"Welcome, everyone, to magical divergence 101!" Said an eccentric looking lady from the plant track as she stood on a stage with quite an audience.
The spectators watched patiently as the cheerfully lady continued.
"Today, you all will learn how to find the secrets of your covens!" Said the lady as she made a plant that spewed out fire. "You'll find the potential you desire and cast the magic you once had again. Now, let me explain how magical divergence works."
Sitting among the audience were Odwin, Skara and Hunter who's in disguise, all watching intently as the lady continued.
And Odwin's opinion was...that it was lacking anything new. He knew this stuff, his dad used it in abominations to make flamethrowers, even he uses it here and there, it wasn't new.
"This is a waste of time." Said Odwin dejectedly as he began leaving.
Skara was crest fallen at that comment, taking a glance back at the lady before following Odwin, unknowing of the golden guard staying on her tail.
xxXxx
"*sigh* I've lived my whole life being the guy good at magic. Who am i even now?" Said Odwin dejectedly as he slumped down onto some stairs away from the magic divergence class.
Skara winced before sitting next to Odwin. "C'mon, Odwin, you're pretty great at other stuff."
"Like what? I use magic for everything, even for socializing i use mind reading sometimes. If only i did something! I could've stopped this if had just stood up to my mom!" Said Odwin dejectedly. "Heck! These aren't even my eyes! She just makes me wear these stupid contacts to match my siblings!"
Odwin took off his contacts to reveal his vibrant blue eyes, causing Skara to blush upon seeing them.
"Wow, you look a lot better without them."
"See?! I'm so stupid!"
Skara frowned as Odwin curled into a ball in sadness. She put a hand on his back and spoke.
"C'mon, how many can actually read minds on the Boiling Isles?" Said Skara with a smile. "Stop beating yourself over nothing and for what it's worth, i think you're pretty awesome, with or without a brand."
And then she gave him as small kiss on the cheek.
Odwin paused for a few seconds, taking in what just happened, before he started blushing heavily.
"I really do." Continued Skara with a smile.
"How are you not embarrassed right now?" Asked Odwin with a pout as he tried glaring at Skara.
"You can't be a bard without being a bit sappy." Said Skara with a smirk and a light blush. "Plus, it did lift those spirits up, didn't it?."
Odwin pouted, trying his best to be angry. He failed and smiled, but as he was about to reply to Skara he suddenly had an epiphany.
"Spirits...that's it!" Said Odwin in realization. "There's one way to remove the brand."
Odwin didn't want for Skara to reply and began casting a spell. His eyes glowed and the skin on his arm darkened to pitch black.
"I just need to borrow some of your power." Said Odwin in an ominous tone.
Soon, the brand began being ripped apart slowly but surely. Skara watched, wide eyed at the spectacle that took place in front of her.
That spectacle was soon interrupted when the golden guard entered the scene by slamming his staff into Odwin's head.
"Halt! For crimes against the emperor, you are under arrest!" Declared Hunter, the golden guard as he got ready for combat.
Skara immediately summoned her violin and attacked Hunter with a few blasts.
Hunter calmly dodged and teleported behind Skara, to which she respond with an attack that hit everything around her, knocking Hunter into a wall.
Skara didn't stop and attacked again. Hunter dodged again and struck back with a blast of his own.
Skara blocked and Hunter didn't let up. The fight seemed like a stalemate until Odwin returned. Then the fight became a 2v1 and Hunter was quickly overwhelmed.
Odwin opted for tying him up using a few spirits and it worked wonders to stop the powerless witch.
"Untie me this instant!" Demanded Hunter angrily.
"Why?" Asked Skara raised a brow, surprising Hunter.
"Because this is a crime! Attacking a coven official!"
"Why would we care about that? Aren't we supposed to be criminals or whatever?" Asked Skara scratching her hair in confusion. "I'm serious, why?"
"Because once I'm free, you'll be thrown into the smallest, dingiest room the conformatorium has to offer." Said Hunter menacingly.
"And what did we do?" Asked Skara curiously as she narrowed her eyes.
"You made a nearly successful attempt to destroy your coven brand. That's enough to get you petrified." Said Hunter angrily "Now, untie me and i might just have your punishment reduced."
"...or i can just erase your memories." Said Odwin nonchalantly.
Even under the mask, the fear on Hunter's face was clear as day. Skara also was surprised.
"You can do that?" Asked Skara in shock.
"Sure i can, it just wouldn't work on someone with high mental fortitude." Said Odwin calmly. "I doubt a grimwalker would have much of it."
"Grimwalker? What are you talking about?" Asked Hunter in confusion.
"Whoops, spoilers." Said Odwin with a mischievous smile as he summoned his oracle magic book and from it rose a centipede. "Let me fix the surprise for you."
The centipede crawled across Odwin's arm and through the hole in Hunter's mask.
Hunter screamed a lot that day and Odwin reassured Skara that he didn't erase anything but anything about grimwalkers and how he could potentially erase coven brands.
All in all, it wasn't too bad.
xxXxx
A few days later
"I still can't believe you did this." Said Emira as she cuddled her new palisman.
"Yeah, it's weird." Added Odwin as he a black bunny palisman sat atop his head. (see cover.)
"Who cares! We have Batric now!" Said Edric as he held a bat palisman up high proudly. "BATRIC!"
"He's right, who cares! I'm more concerned what Amity did to her hair!" Exclaimed Odalia angrily. "And when Odwin would put his contacts back on!"
"I'm not changing it, mom." Said Amity with a frown as she held her palisman, Ghost.
"And I'm not putting them back on." Added Odwin.
Odalia groaned before turning around and stomping her way out of the room in anger. "Ungratefu little brats-" she grumbled before Amity interrupted her.
"But thank you...for Ghost." Said Amity calmly as she stared at her palisman. "I appreciate it."
"Yeah, as much as i dislike you, i have to say...thanks for Shade." Added Odwin.
"Yeah! Thanks for Batric!" Added Edric cheerfully.
"Thanks from me too!" Added Emira.
Faced with genuine appreciation from her children for the first time, Odalia couldn't find it in her to be angry at them.
So, for once in their lives, the blight kids heard something unbelievable.
"...you can keep your hair and eye color." Said Odalia before leaving without another word.
And for once, Alador smiled as he actually payed attention this time.
xxXxx
SOME IMPORTANT INFO.
It isn't revealed if Ghost was passed down to Amity or carved by her and it'd be very annoying if it's revealed to be the one i didn't pick. So i made Alador and Odalia lose a log.
If Ghost was passed down or adopted, then it takes the place of the missing log.
If it was carved by Amity, then it's Emira's because she volunteered to take an old palisman with the help of the bat queen in her twin's place.
xxXxx
Tell me how i did. Leave a review.
Toodles.
