In the past of the Human Realm... A younger version of Luz frowns while folding her arms at her desk in elementary school. She slumps her shoulders while laying her head on the cold material. One of her hands rests on her first Azura book.
Then a younger Esper walks into the classroom with her hands behind her back, "Luz? ...I know you're still sad about that stupid Derek for taking your Azura book. Even though we already got it back."
The slightly older girl simply hums, "Hmm..."
The redhead moves her hands from behind her back to reveal a paper cutout of Azura, "But here! I made this for you! I hope it helps you feel better!" While the cutout wasn't perfect with a few unintentional slices here and there, it still stood.
This made Luz's eyes sparkle once she saw it, "...Aw!" She takes the paper cutout and places it on her desk, "Thank you, Esper!" She then notices a cut on one of her fingers, "Esper! Your hand is bleeding!"
Esper waves her hand with the injured finger, "It's okay! It's just a papercut, I'll be fine!"
The brunette shook her head, "No, don't worry! Here, I'll put a spell on your booboo to help you feel better!" She places a bandaid on the smaller girl's cut and waves her hand around it, "Pain pain, go away! And if you don't, go to someone else!"
After hearing the spell, Esper smiles with a wide grin. It reveals that she is missing a tooth before she lets out a giggle, "Hehe, I feel better already! Thanks, Luz..."
...
Now outside the Emperor's Castle... Lilith is looking down from atop from the castle walls. She is watching a cart donning a sign of the Emperor's Coven be wheeled across the bridge... The cart holds a few Wild Witches, most hidden in shadow, the ones we do see looking resigned to their fate. Something explodes out of the castle's chimney. Lilith then turns and heads inside the castle once she see the cart make it inside.
The raven witch approaches a stained glass window of Emperor Belos that portrays robed witches bowing at his feet while a Hand of the Titan reaches for the sun behind them. She closes her eyes before taking a breath, "I haven't forgotten what you've promised me... I will bring you my sister, Emperor Belos..."
A much smaller woman takes a step behind Lilith, "Then why the delay?" She has dark red skin and dark blue hair that resembles a hand wrapped around her head, fashioned in a high ponytail. Her hair covers her left eye, the sclera of her right eye is a yellow color while her iris is red. She wears a high collared sleeveless veil that is of a white and gold color with a gold triangle pin in front of her neck. She wears a black long sleeved shirt and pants underneath the veil. She does not wear shoes, however, revealing her feet to have black claws.
The pale witch turns around in surprise, "Kikimora!"
The shorter woman walks with her hands behind her back, "The Day of Unity is fast approaching, and other teams have bound many rogue witches to covens... And yet the Owl Lady still roams free. Are you... Protecting her?" She takes a step away from her comrade before looking over her shoulder, "And what of the Star Touched Witch? We both know the Emperor has been waiting to meet her..."
Lilith shook her head, "Rest assured, Kiki. I have everything under control." She snaps her fingers and a swarm of coven scouts approach upon command, "Today, we capture Eda! Once and for all!"
...
Now at the Owl House, Hooty is fast asleep... He snores lightly, "Hoot, hoot, hoot, hoot, hoot, hoot, hoot..."
Lilith emerges from the bushes circling the outside of the house, "Good. That infernal house demon is asleep..." She beckons at the scouts while they ready their weapons, "Surround the house!"
The scouts go off in different directions to surround the house.
Hooty begins to mumble, "Sleepwalking... Sleepwalking..." He then wakes up from his slumber, "Sleep-hooting!" He slams his face into the ground, popping up behind the lead witch, "Hiya, Lilith! Peek-a-hoot!" He swings his tube body at her and smashes her into a tree.
Lilith grunts, which makes the scouts charge.
The owl tube smiles at them all, "Sorry! Eda doesn't like trespassers, but I'm always here to make new friends! Hoot!" He bonks a scout on the head and his armor falls onto him, "Oh! Look at me! I'm a person now. Wobbly, wobbly! Ooh, blackout!" He punches other guard with his face, "Hoot hoot!" He throws the armor away, "Hoot hoot! Bye, friend! Ooh! I feel like dancing!" He then shakes his body to hit the scouts running towards him, "Hoot!"
Lilith grunts before grabbing her staff. She stands up to see Hooty bobbing in front of a tree. She takes aim and fires a light blue and white blast of light at him.
The owl tube cheers, "I did it!" he bends down and unintentionally dodges Lilith's spell, "Oh hey! Look, it's a bug!"
The spell blasts through the tree, which falls towards Lilith. She just dodges it and then collapses on the ground.
Hooty pouts at the ground, "Aww! Just an old leaf! Well, that's good too." He then eats the leaf while making loud chewing noises.
...
From inside the Owl House, Esper walks to her mentor with two cups of tea, "Whatcha lookin' at, Eda?"
The older witch, now wearing a yellow scarf, takes a cup from her, "Watching Hooty " She shakes the binoculars in her hand.
The redheaded witch frowns at her, "Okay, that was for Luz but aw man! I missed it! Lucky Hooty..."
Eda looks back through the binoculars, "Haha, you kinda did! Hooty! Ah, you're a thorn in my side..." She takes a sip from the cup of tea while a coven scout is slammed into the window, "...But you always dig your way into my heart!"
Meanwhile, Luz pouts briefly, "My tea..." But then her eyes sparkle at the sight of something brewing in Eda's cauldron, "Ooh, magic 'sghetti!" She then tries to touch it.
The Owl Lady frowns at her, "Hey!" She slaps Luz's hand with the spoon using a spell that makes the utensil float, "That 'sghetti is Witch's Wool! It repels powerful spells." She picks up some of the wool, "Every witch worth their salt has a cloak made from this stuff."
The brunette stares at the wool adoringly, "I'm worth salt... I want cloak!" She smiles at her childhood friend, "Don't you want a cloak, Esper?"
Esper jumps next to her, "Oh yeah! That would be so sweet to have our own cloaks!" She sits on the couch on the other side of Eda, pulling a sleeping King into her lap.
The human tries to grab the cauldron but Eda pulls it away from her.
The older witch shakes her head, "Easy, kid! With the Emperor's goons at my doorstep, I need this for protection. They have really stepped up their attacks lately!"
Luz stares at her intensely, "I think I finally understand why the Emperor wants you so badly." She giggles while joking, "He's got the hots for you, doesn't he?" This makes Esper cringe at the thought of the Emperor having a crush on their mentor.
Eda shoots finger guns and clicks her tongue, "Uh, but no. Emperor Belos wants to control all wild magic through his coven system. He ordered my capture years ago because I refuse to fall in line."
The human droops her head, "And he won't stop until he's got you..."
The gray haired witch puts a hand on the redhead's shoulder, "And I heard from a little birdy that he's after Esper to see the 'Star Touched One'."
The brunette picks up her head, "Wait, Esper's in danger now?!"
The freckled witch raises her eyebrows, "Uh yeah, they're after me?! Why didn't you tell me earlier?!" She hugs the sleeping demon closer to her.
The Owl Lady folds her arms, "Hey, hey, I only found out about it when you came home spouting about how you finally got to teach that grudgby captain a lesson. What? Did you want me to spoil your good mood?" She stopped when the two started to look uneasy, "...Awww, don't sound so worried, you two." She ruffles the witchling's hair, "Your magic is getting stronger and stronger every day so I have no doubt you can put up one heck of a fight. Besides, stick with me and they won't be able to get you that easily. I'm a master escape artist. The only thing that can slow me down is my curse, and that hasn't bothered me for weeks!" Right when she said that, feathers pop out from Eda's arms, "Uh oh..."
Eda starts to transform into the Owl Beast while the two girls gasp in horror. Esper standing in front of the human while holding King tightly in her arms.
Luz backs away from the giant monster, "King!"
The tiny demon opens his eyes, "Weh?" He rubs the sleep from his eyes, "AH!"
The redhead shouts at him, "Get the elixir! Now!" She then tosses him past the beast.
The Owl Beast raises its head at the two girls while the small demon rushes off. Esper picks up her fists in between the monster and her childhood friend...
...
Now standing in a void within her own mind, Eda gasps. Her childhood bedroom materializes out of the bleak landscape. Her younger self is sleeping in her bed and Eda sighs sadly. The door opens behind her, revealing a indistinct shadow wearing what seems to be large glasses.
The older woman glares at the shadow, "You know, I'm getting a little tired of this game!" She approaches the shadow and tries to grab it, "So, why don't you just show me your face?"
...
Back in the real world, Eda is now holding Luz's face while the human holds an empty bottle of elixir to her mouth. Esper has her arms around her, like she was attempting to hold her back.
The owl lady's voice sounds muffled due to the bottle, "Oh..." She lets Luz's face go and takes bottle out of mouth, "Whew! Oh, thanks for this! You can let me go now." She stands to back away from Esper, knocking over about a dozen other empty bottles, "And those..." Her scarf falls off, revealing that her gem is still half black.
The redhead gasps while shaking her friend. She points to the gem on her mentor's chest, "Hey, your gem! It's still dark!"
Eda's eyes widen a her statement, "Uh..." She pulls her scarf back on to cover her gem on her chest, "No, it's not! You two are nuts!"
The human points a finger at her, "The curse has been getting worse and you've been hiding it from us!"
The older witch sighs, "Ugh... you're right. It's taking more elixir to turn me back and more magic to keep the curse from rearing its feathery head."
Luz frowns at her mentor, "What happens if you use your magic up? Do you... "
Both girls' eyes widen at the same time while they speak, "Do you die?"
Eda quickly shakes her head, "No! Jeez, you're both morbid! I just kinda, sorta, turn into the Owl Beast... Forever. Ahhh, it's a fate much worse than death if you think about it." She start to laugh sarcastically.
The human begins to freak out, "No! No, I-I can't let that happen!" I'll do something about it! I-We-"
Her younger friend puts her hand on her shoulder, "Luz, we just need to find a way to cure it or I don't know... Keep it at bay longer?"
The brunette nods her head at her, "Right! We'll find a cure and then-"
The Owl Lady puts her hand on Luz's other shoulder, "Hey, don't worry. I just have to limit my magic use a little." She smiles upon seeing that she made the girl grin, "Ah! There's the Luz I know!"
Luz sadly pouts with puppy eyes at Eda, which makes Esper snicker.
Eda groans, "Ugh, go on. Do the parallel arm thing..."
The human immediately beams and hugs Eda tightly. The smaller witch hugs the other side of their shared mentor.
King pokes his head into the room and rushes to also hug Eda, "King demands huggies too!"
The Owl Lady frowns at all the children, "Oh come on!" She walks in a strained manner with Luz and Esper wrapped around her torso and King on her right leg, "It's... Time... For... School!"
The redhead lets out a giggle, "Hehe, just like me and my dad!"
...
Now at the kitchen door, where the girls are beginning to leave for school.
Eda smiles at the two, "Have a good day!"
Esper smiles at her, "You too! Oh hey, maybe I can do some magic chores around the house more? Oh! And maybe you can show me how to make potions when I get back!"
Luz playfully pushes her friend while talking to their mentor, "Get rest! Drink lots of water! Stay out of the sun! Lift with your knees, not your-"
The older witch slams the door on the both of them, "Such good kids! So considerate. They deserve something nice..." She picks up cauldron of witch's wool, "And I think I know what!"
...
Now the girls are walking through the forest to get to school, talking amongst themselves
Luz slumps her shoulders with a frown, "Poor Eda. Enemies everywhere, even her own body! I wish we could help her."
Esper rubs her chin, "I'm sure we can find some way to-"
Suddenly, both girls hear a distant scream. The two peek through bushes to see Hooty, wrapped around beaten up guards and scouts while serving them tea. One of the guards is trying to crawl away from him, feebly.
Hooty smiles at the soldiers, "The roughhousing was fun, but I like this part of our playdates even better!"
The duo stand and shudder at each other before rushing to school. They both pass by a compact mirror on a pile of dirt that starts to vibrate. Lilith's arm emerges from the dirt to grab the compact mirror. She grabs opens it while she drags herself out of the dirt pile with a bird nest on top of her head.
Kikimora appears on the small mirror and speaks, "The Emperor demands your presence in the throne room! ...And there's a bird on your head."
Lilith looks up, where there is in fact now a bird in the nest. The black bird smirks at her, "Oooo... You're in trouble!"
The raven witch groans and closes the compact mirror.
...
Now at Hexside, Principal Bump looks at clipboard while various students are lined up for a flying ship. Luz and Esper walk up to Amity, Willow and Gus, who are also in line. Skara and Jasper are further up in the line, talking to each other.
The illusionist smiles at the two before posing, "Luz, Esper, you ready for the field trip of a lifetime to the one, the only, Emperor's Castle!" He shakes his hands to add some pizzazz to his pose.
The human shakes her head and folds her arms, "Right. I was actually gonna stay behind. I don't like the way they treat Eda."
The freckled witch folds her arms alongside her friend, "Yeah, dude! They're constantly after her!"
Gus shoves a book towards both their faces, "But you're gonna miss out on all the cool stuff!"
The redhead witch rolls her eyes, "Like what?"
Willow put a hand on her shoulder, "Like ancient relics! Look, it's the Plant Coven's Green Thumb Gauntlet! It can grow whatever you imagine!" The book shows a picture of regular trees captioned "BEFORE." And the other side has the tree tops act like heads with arms and abs and one is holding an owl's nest in the "AFTER" section.
Luz hums while looking at the page, "Mmm..."
The freckled witch folds her arms alongside her friend, "But dude! They're constantly after Eda! AND ME!"
Gus blushes at her, "Aw maybe they just wanna talk to you about something?" He points at another page, "And the Oracle Sphere! The picture shows a white sphere with a two-headed snake on it, "It shows you which path will help you become your best self!"
Esper raises her eyebrows, "...Okay, I may be interested in that." She folds her arms, "Plus, Eda did say I was tough!"
Amity points at the page next to the sphere with her good arm, "There's also the Healing Hat!" Her other arm is wrapped in bandages within a white sling around her shoulder. She also has a flask filled with Abomination goop tied around her waist with a string.
Luz starts to read from the page, "The Healing Hat. Made from the magic of the Savage Ages. It is said to cure the deadliest diseases... and heal any curse?"
The plant witch pumps her fist in the air, "Yeah! You can't miss this!"
At the front of the line, Principal Bump gestures for everyone to come closer, "All aboard students!"
Skara and Jasper sit together in the chairs on the flying ship, quickly inviting Esper to sit with them. Willow, Gus and Amity head for the giant boat, dropping the book.
Luz hums, "Mmm..." She then picks up the book, "You've done so much for me, Eda. Now! I'm gonna do something for you..."
...
Now on the flying ship headed for the Emperor's Castle, Esper playfully pushes Skara. This makes the other girl giggle. Then all the students on board start to cheer, including Skara and Jasper. Though Esper simply shakes her head.
Principal Bump shouts at his students, "No roughhousing! Do not make me turn this carriage around!"
The redhead sticks her tongue out at the principal and gets up from her seat to nudge the pale girl in the Abomination uniform, "Hey, Amity! By the way... I've been wanting to ask you something since the first day of the semester!"
The popular witch nods her head, "Oh! Of course! What is it?"
The freckled witch smiles at her, "Well... I was hoping you could..." Her eyes then sparkle, "Show me how to for an Abomination!"
Amity nodded her head at her, "Oooh! That's what you wanted!" She gestures to the flask tied around her waist, "I only have a little bit of goop on me but I'll be happy to show you how to use it. You know... To thank you for..." She started to whisper, "Not telling you know who about you know what... And being a good sport about the grugby game."
Esper shrugged her shoulders, "Of course! Now come on, show me some little baby Abominations!"
Meanwhile, Luz is writing something down in her notepad. She has drawn the Healing Hat and wrote down, 'HEALING HAT HEIST 1. Sneak into castle! 2. Steal healing hat! 3. Lift curse!' She had drawn arrows pointing at the drawing of the hat.
Willow walks close next to her side, "Hey, Luz!"
The human jumps in her seat, "Ah!" She hides her notepad, "Um, what was that, Willow?"
The plant witch smiles at her, "I was just saying we were getting close to the castle." She and Luz look over the side of the ship, "Emperor Belos built it as a symbol of unity. Before he came to power, folks were doing magic all wrong! He taught us that the only way to respect what the Titan gave us is through joining covens!"
Luz looks squints her eyes in doubt.
Meanwhile, Amity forms a circle with one hand near the flask full of Abomination goop. The goop floats out of the glass and into the air, where it dances until it formed a small Abomination monster. She smiled at the redhead next to her, "Notice how the circle stabilizes the Abomination. The stronger the circle, the better the Abomination."
She allowed the goop to fall on the wall of the ship in a goopy form, "Here, now you try."
The redheaded witch nodded her head, "That circle thing does make sense. Okay, let's try it..." While her circle was little wobbly at first, it soon became a wobbly Abomination shape, "Hey look! I'm doing it!" She brings the goop closer to herself and started to change it's shape into a circle.
Soon, the goop wiggled and shifted into a star shape. The star opened it's eyes to reveal that they were green and it high fived it's creator.
Esper smiled at the star Abomination, "Wooo! I did it! Oh, this is awesome!"
Amity raised an eyebrow at her creature, "Why'd you make one shaped like a star?"
The redhead pokes her star shaped Abomination, "I don't know. It just felt right! Besides, it was easier to make than a regular ol' Abomination."
The golden eyed witch slowly nods her head, "I see... Hey, Esper? How do you feel about visiting the Emperor's Coven?"
The freckled witch shrugged her shoulders, "Ehhhh, I'm interested in the relics but that's kinda it. How about you? Especially with that broken arm."
Amity gestures with her hands in front of herself to try and keep her composure. She looks down at the cast on her arm, "I am just so glad I could still come." She took a deep breath, "No no, don't lose your cool, Amity. Stay calm, stay calm..."
Esper let out a giggle, "Hahaha! Careful Princess! You know we have to keep an eye on you!" She then raised an eyebrow when she noticed her looking worried, "...Hey, you alright?"
The pale witch looked down at her sling bound arm, "Yeah, I'm just wondering if I should keep this on me or not. It's not like I'll need it inside the castle." She gestures with her sling bound arm, "And I can't exactly use magic with this arm right now..."
Esper takes the flask of Abomination goop from her friend, "Here, I'll take it off your hands." She then ties the string tightly around her waist.
Luz continues to talk to her friend, "So, Willow... Would you say this Belos guy is, like, powerful?"
The plant witch chuckles at her, "No offense to Eda, but the Emperor is the most skilled witch that's ever lived. He can even talk to the Titan!"
Esper tilts her head at her friends, "Psssh, talk to the Titan! ...Wait, the Titan?"
Gus jumps up next to her, "Yeah!"
The redheaded girl scratches the back of her head, "No, that's not what I meant. I just remember that name for some reason. Why does that name sound so familiar to me?"
The illusionist squints his eyes at her, "Do you think it has something to do with your memories?"
The freckled witch looks away from him, "Probably..." A flash of the mysterious women who pushed them out of her own memories appeared in her thoughts before she took a breath...
Soon enough, the ship lands in front of the castle... Where the incredibly tall door open to welcome the students inside. Much to the joy of a giddy Amity trying to calm herself down.
Principal Bump smiles at his students, "Now, the Emperor's assistant will be your tour guide. Please don't make me regret taking you here."
Kikimora stands on a platform while a bridge extends to the ship.
All the children from the class look at the bridge with amazed faces, "Whoa! Look at that!" Jasper gasps while pointing at it, "It's massive!" The bridge retreats and bringing the students closer to Kikimora.
The Emperor's assistant smiles at all of them, "Children of Hexside, Emperor Belos welcomes you to his castle. We're honored by visits from students. You'll soon be a part of a coven, some lucky few may even find their home here! In the mighty Emperor's Coven!" She looks right at Esper before her eyes dart to Amity.
The redhead takes a step back and whispers to Luz, "You saw that right? Freaky little hand lady looked dead at me!"
The human whispers back to her, "I know! That didn't seem normal!"
Amity from Luz's other side smiled widely, "And isn't that great, Esper? She looked at me too! This is amazing!"
The other students are heard chattering, "She looked at me!" "Wow!" "Awesome!"
The smaller woman snaps her fingers to get their attention, "You are all... The future of the Isles! My job is to teach you its past."
They all walk into the castle to see guards flank either side of a hallway. They are all saluting, while others walk on overpasses. The walls are covered in tapestries, murals, and statues.
The students all gasps, "Ooh!" "Whoa!"
Kikimora squares her shoulders, "Today, the Isles are a place of peace and prosperity. But that wasn't always the case." She gestures to a mural of witches dancing around a fire, "Up until 50 years ago, witches and demons practiced wild magic during what we called the Savage Ages." She leads the students away, "Witches had access to corrupt knowledge, and that dishonored the Titan..."
Luz stops at a grate, which Esper did not notice. The redhead rolls her eyes before slumping her shoulders in boredom. Amity still smiles excitedly next to her while Skara giggles at her. Jasper elbows the bard girl, who elbows Esper to get her to walk straight. Gus follows Kikimora with a smile next to Willow.
The small assistant smiles at a mural, "That was until our great Emperor ascended to the throne and taught witches how to use magic properly." She gestures to the mural of Emperor Belos holding up a beam of light with witches below celebrating his power, "Our next stop is the Emperor's personal collection of relics."
Willow moves to touch her friend, "Oh! Luz, you'll like this. It's where-" She realizes that she is simply touching air, "Huh?"
The human struggles to open the vent before she notices Willow and Gus looking at her, "Hehe... Uh, love me a properly ventilated castle!" She does get up to follow the rest of the group, much to the suspicion of her two friends.
...
Kikimora opens the door to the new room, "The Relic Room! These items are reminders of our great Emperor's overwhelming power!" She passes the Oracle Sphere, "From the curious and mighty."
Gus's eyes sparkle at the object, "Oooh!"
The short woman passes the Green Thumb Gauntlet, "To the very handy."
Willow taps her feet excitedly, "Oh, I could grow such beautiful things with that!"
Kikimora then passes by the Healing Hat, "And even, the most valuable!"
Luz stares at the hat while Willow is admiring the gauntlet...
Esper walks within the group of children until... She suddenly starts to hear a ringing noise in her ear, "Argh..." She starts to hold her head in pain while her birthmark on her leg starts to glow.
Luz rushes to whisper to her, "Esper! Your birthmark is glowing!"
Her childhood friend speaks through gritted teeth, "I can see that. Can't exactly stop it!"
Kikimora turns upon hearing the whisper, "Is there something wrong, girls?"
Gus speaks up, "Uh, I don't know." He puts a hand on her arm, "Esper, are you feeling alright?"
The redhead speaks to both her friends, "My head... It's killing me all of a sudden!" She begins to lean on the illusionist, who blushes before attempting to keep her upright.
The tiny assistant shifted her eyes towards all the students, "Hmmm..." She lets out a cough to clear her throat, "Well, that's no good. Can't have an injured child walking around. It looks like she will not be able to continue the tour."
Jasper speaks up from the crowd, "I'll take her back to Principle Bump, Miss Kikimora." He holds up Esper's arm from Gus's side, who let him grab her before walking off to join Willow.
Skara walks over to pick up Esper's arm from Luz's side, "I'll help you too. Come on, Esper, we're going back to the ship. You'll be okay..."
The redhead could barely hear the both of them but nods her head. She allows the two to pick her up by under the arms. She turns her head back to the closing doors once they enter the hallway, her eyes briefly glowing white. They return to normal when they start to walk away from the room.
Back in the Relic Room, Kikimora shakes her head with a scowl, "Come along, children!"
Willow rushes to catch up to the group. Luz starts walking towards the Healing Hat...
But Gus runs up and pulls her arm, "Let's go, Luz!"
...
Now in the other hallway, the short assistant continues to speak to the other students, "Here at the Emperor's Coven, we require members with sophistication, elegance, and grace!"
A door slams open with Lilith is standing there. She has leaves in her disheveled hair and spits out a few feathers and makes her staff vanish. She then enters, which makes Luz gasp and duck around a corner.
Kikimora smiles at her mockingly, "Ah! Make way for Miss Lilith Clawthorne, students."
The rest of the class all gasp in awe, "Oh, my gosh! The head of the coven! Wow!"
The Emperor's assistant waves her hand, "Yes, and if I'm not mistaken, she's on her way to see the Emperor himself! Let's all wish her luck!"
Amity smiles at her mentor, "Good luck, Miss Lilith!" She waves to her.
Lilith blushes in embarrassment and turns her head away from the class, "Thank you, students. Good luck with puberty."
Kikimora smirks before motioning to the students, "This way, children!"
Most of the class follows Kikimora down the hall while Lilith enters a door.
Luz looks after the older witch, "Hmm..."
...
Meanwhile in the first hallway, Esper's head continues to hurt. She moves her hand on Skara's side to clutch it... The bard girl starts to form a circle with her finger, "Hey, are you alright? I can try and see if a song can soothe your head."
The freckled witch shakes her head, "Skara... I love your songs but I don't think my brain is really in the mood right now..." She hears a distinct buzz in her ear, "I... I think I need to stop..."
Jasper nods at her, "Sure, let's take a break." He lays her against the wall, "Just chill here for a second, Esper."
The other two students started to talk between themselves, obviously worried for their friend. They soon turned away from the redhead so their voices wouldn't hurt her head too much.
The buzzing noise in Esper's head decided to turn into a voice... A very muffled voice but still, someone was speaking to her. But no one actually was. She was hearing a young boy's voice in her head...
"...Let's go... Game... Play..."
The voice took a brief pause before speaking more, "Come on!"
The redheaded witch takes a breath before struggling to stand up, the voice playing n her head over and over again. She covered her ears in an attempt to silence the voice but to no avail. Both her friend missed her while she started to walk down the hallway and through the corner.
She takes a deep breath while clutching her head, "Who... Who's speaking to me right now?"
Jasper turned his head, only to see that their friend wasn't there, "Wait... Where'd Esper go?"
Skara's eyebrows raised in surprise, "I don't know! She was just in pain, how'd she get away so fast?"
Eventually, Esper made her way to the end of the next hallway... Even through stumbling, she had opened the door to another room. A much darker room... She heard a whisper, "Hey... Are you... Play?"
The freckled witch spotted a blue glint on the ground in front of her and peered up at the room. Her birthmark began to shine the same color. She looked around before her eyes were drawn to a small, circular tablet that was blue and had a crescent moon on it. Despite her head hurting, the girl began to walk closer and closer to the metal object.
She begins to reach for it, "I do play..." Until the light from her birthmark reflected on a golden object laid below the blue tablet.
The redhead squints at the object, "What is that? ...A sword?" She looks down at the long object, it is a large wooden staff with a golden blade at the top end of it. Towards the bottom of the staff was a red cloth tied around the wood and the bottom has a gold, metal covering. She touches the blade and her eyes widen when an image of the spear flashes in her mind, "This... This is my spear!"
"It's actually a glaive."
The Star Touched Witch turns to see a older boy who's head was covered in a white hood. He is wearing an outfit similar Emperor Coven guard's uniform, but in white and gold with a gold pauldron resting on his left shoulder. And his face was hidden by a golden mask...
...
Lilith walks through the halls with Luz tailing her just out of sight. The closer to the Emperor's room they get, the more pipes are visible snaking around the walls. Luz is nearly caught, but ducks behind a corner before the older witch turns around. When she continues on, the human peeks from the corner.
Amity follows her brunette friend and speaks to her, "Luz? What are you doing?"
The human raises her eyebrows before pulling her friend into her hiding space, "Shhh, Amity, I just wanna see what Lilith is doing."
The green haired girl blushes immensely from the sudden closeness, "Oh! Um, okay. Let's uh, let's watch Lilith together... Haha..."
Lilith stops at a massive door to clean herself up before entering and closing the door. Both Luz and Amity run up and watch through the giant keyhole.
Inside is a massive throne room... A gigantic beating green heart is hooked up to pipes above the golden throne, which is flanked with flaming braziers. Various guards are standing around the room, surrounding their Emperor. Belos himself is sitting on the throne with his head in his hand.
The raven witch approaches the throne and kneels, "I am at your service, Emperor Belos."
Emperor Belos breathes in heavily... Which makes a guard bring a Palisman on a tray to present to him and he grabs it, "Just a moment, Lilith..." He takes the Palisman and sinks the finger guards into the Palisman's neck and breaks its head off. Glowing green goop falls out of the Palisman, which he pours into the eye holes of his mask. His black eyes suddenly flash a glowing green. He lets out a long sigh, "Ah, that's better..."
Luz and Amity both gasp at the sight and pull away from the door, the human covers her mouth. She whimpers and runs off, pulling her friend with her.
The green haired witch whispers to her, "Luz... We... We need to go back to the school."
The human frowns at her, "Amity... You go back, you're still hurt and Esper is the one with your Abomination goop." She puts her hand on her shoulder, "Please, I'll be back soon. I promise."
The other girl starts to blush, "Okay, I can do that... Please be careful, Luz."
Back in the throne room, Emperor Belos glares at his subordinate from behind his mask, "How is the hunt for the Owl Lady? I heard you attempted a raid this morning."
The raven witch nods her head, "Yes, but we were-"
The emperor shakes his head, "Unsuccessful? That was obvious enough. It's been over a month since you promised to bring me the Owl Lady. Well, where is she? And what of the Star Touched Witch? They live together, do they not?"
Lilith frowns at him, "If I just had more time, I-"
Emperor Belos slams a fist onto his desk, "I'm getting bored of your excuses, Lilith. I already figured I should give the task of bringing me the Star Touched Witch to someone else. Don't worry, I'll give you the time you need. Bring the Owl Lady to me by twilight. She'll join the Emperor's Coven and in return, I'll heal her little curse. But, if you fail..." His nails dig into his throne which makes the heart above the throne beats faster, "You will be stripped of your rank and banished from my coven! You do know what happens to coven-less witches, don't you?"
The woman looks up at the same mural the students saw in the hall. She starts to hear screams in her head, in actuality the witches ae screaming and begging for mercy. Not worshipping the emperor...
The raven witch stands up, "I-I understand. I will not fail." She then turns and leaves the room...
...
Back at the Owl House, where Eda is in the living room. She is sitting on the couch, knitting with the witch's wool. King is taking a nap next to her.
The older witch holds up a dark blue cloak, "Yeah! Something tells me Luz and Esper are gonna like having a cape!" She picks up the other cloak, which is a dark purple.
King wakes up from his slumber, "Cape? I thought you were making cake!"
The Owl Lady tilts an eyebrow at him, "You thought I was knitting a cake?"
The tiny demon blinks back at her, "I... Uh... Anyway! If there's no cake, then I have to get to work!" He starts to runs off, "Would you look at us two, being all generous to those kids!"
Crashing can be heard while he is rummaging through the kitchen.
King's voice can be heard from the other room, "You know what, when she first got here, I thought we were gonna eat her. And maybe keep the witch to do our bidding!"
A louder crash knocks a picture off the wall while the young demon shouts, "But now I only think of that, like, sometimes!"
Eda shrugs her shoulders, "Yeah, they've really changed the feel of this house..." She picks up the fallen picture, which shows Luz shoveling purple and green tentacles in her mouth with a banner behind her reading 'FINISH OR DIE!' Esper is depicted next to her with an already finished plate with a proud smile and small crumbs on her face.
She lets out a sigh, "Well, Luz always had a good heart but was impatient and always bit off more than she could chew. Esper can definitely be stubborn and doesn't think before she acts but she does give can actually be rather empathetic. Despite all that... I think they're both finally growing up..."
...
Back at the Emperor's Castle, Luz peeks out of a curtain to look through a window. She is watching the class leave, "It's a good thing they sent Esper home early! Please don't notice I'm gone, please don't notice I'm... Boarding the bus?"
She blinks and rubs her eyes to see that there is a Luz is on the bridge. That Luz turns around and sticks out her tongue at the real one still inside the castle. Amity is seen sitting in front of the ship and smiles when the fake Luz sits next to her.
The human rubs her head, "Huh?" She suddenly feels a tap on the shoulder, "Wah!"
Luz turns around to see Willow and Gus standing next to her. The small illusionist is spinning three spell circles with his hands.
The brunette scratches her chin, "Oh! Guys. I, uh..."
The plant witch pulls Luz's notepad out of her pocket, "You were planning on taking the Healing Hat, weren't you?" The girl in the purple uniform shakes her head disapprovingly.
The human sighs, "You got me. But you don't understand! Eda has this curse and it's zapping away her magic, and-"
Willow shakes her head, "Luz... No matter what, you can't steal this hat."
The illusionist then steps in front of their plant loving friend, "But, you can borrow it!" He turns to their green haired friend, "Right Amity?"
The witch with glasses frowns at the both of them, "Hey! I wanted to say that! We learned about Eda's curse from your notes. We're totally gonna help you!"
Luz starts to tear up, "Thanks, guys!" She then pulls them into a hug, "I know exactly what we gotta do. It's time for a heist!"
Willow, Luz, and Gus sneak through the halls when they see a guard coming down the stairs. They duck behind a small bush, which Willow grows into the shape of a unicorn. The guard stops, nudges its horn and continues on. The three then run off...
Another guard is standing in a hallway. The four notice them and come out of a door stacked together awkwardly under one uniform. Luz waves, high-fives the guard, and fingerguns while they retreat. The guard is very confused and Luz looks at the vent from earlier. She draws out a fire glyph and melts the vent. They reach yet another hallway, where Gus creates a double of Kikimora to send a guard off. Once the guard leaves, the illusion of the high ranking coven member doing the worm. Gus laughs at the sight, oblivious to Luz and Willow's confused looks.
Finally, the three enter the Relic Room...
...
Back in the treasure room, Esper squints her eyes at the new 'face', "Who are you?"
The older boy straightened his shoulders, "I am the Golden Guard and I have been tasked with making sure the Emperor is safe. I wasn't expecting to find the Star Touched Witch however. Especially in the Emperor's secret treasure room."
The freckled witch smiled at him while shrugging her shoulders, "Uh yeah, that's me! Star Touched Witch! I just came to collect my spear and go."
The Golden Guard folded his arms, "Huh... Funny, there were no reports about you wielding a glaive."
The girl pointed at the weapon in her hand, "Okay one, it's totally a spear! And two... I don't know, I just... Feel like it's mine somehow."
The mask wearing teen shook his head, "So you're just going to steal it? Listen, the Emperor does wish to speak with you! So maybe you can ask him about it when you meet with him. Perhaps he'll let you keep it." He extends his hand to her, "Just come with me and I will take you to him right away."
Esper reaches forward and is about to take the strange boy's hand, "Yeah..." Until she grabs it and yanks him so hard that he falls behind her. She begins to run ahead of him, "That just sounds too good to be true!"
The Golden Guard begins to rush after her, "Hey! Get back here!"
The redhead started sprinting down the hallway, "Hey! Hey guys!"
Her two friends turn around upon hearing her voice. Skara smiles when she sees her friend, "Esper!" The boy's eyes widen, "Where did you go?!"
Esper grabs the bard student's hand while they run, "I'll explain later! Come on, stay right behind me! Some Golden Guard is after me!"
Jasper's mouth flies open, "THE Golden Guard?! You got the attention of THE Golden Guard? We're so dead!" He turns to see the other teen flying towards them on a staff with a red light at the top and turns back to the girls, "He's getting closer!"
The redhead lets go of her friend's hand, "Not if I can help it! Keep going!" Once they get to the front doors, she shifts her shoulder to tackle the door. They burst open and the trio run through, however, they are stopped by the lack of a bridge and a chasm full of spikes.
Skara looks down at the pointy stones, "What should we do?!"
The girl with freckles turns to get a good look at his staff, "Wait a minute... We can fly without Palisman?"
The boy with blue hair takes a step back from her, "I... Um... What are you going to do?"
Upon seeing the Golden Guard fly closer and closer to them, Esper turns to the chasm with a determined look. She turned the spear so that she is sitting with the blade side towards the ground. She turns to her friends, "Guys, get on! We're doing this!" With her brows furrowed, her birthmark started to glow a bright white color.
Jasper sat behind the bard student, "Waaaaait! What are you doing?!"
Skara suddenly wrapped her arms around her smaller friend's waist, "We can't fly on this thiiiiiiiiiiing!" She looks down to see that they were actually flying in the air, "Holy Titan!"
Jasper looks down at the chasm while they flew over it, "Esper, how are you doing this?!"
The redhead tried not to look down while guiding the spear in the air, "Honestly! I have no clue!"
The three landed on the hard ground below, each covering their faces from the impact. They rolled around for a few seconds before they each got up. Esper picked up her spear and pointed it towards the approaching guard...
The Golden Guard was about to fly across the chasm until his attention was called back by Steve. The older scout shouted to his superior, "Golden Guard, sir! The Emperor wishes for your presence in his throne room."
The smaller guard spoke under his breathe, "Uncle..." He saluted the scout until he flew back inside the palace, the doors closed behind him...
After a brief cheer among themselves, the trio decided it was best to head back home. Especially after seeing that they had actually missed the ship. After a bit of a walk, the three eventually reached The Owl House.
Jasper waves his hand at his smaller friend, "Okay... That was one crazy day. You... You do you, Esper."
Skara nodded her head, "Yeaaaaah, that was too much adventure for me for one day. Have a good night, Esper! See you in school!"
Esper waved back at them while they left, "Bye guys! Have a safe walk back home!" She then relaxed the spear against her shoulder before she slams the door open, "Man! Do I have a crazy story to tell you guys about this whole field trip!"
...
Back at the Relic Room of the Emperor's Castle... Luz sees the relic she is after, "Healing Hat... Mmm! You're Eda's last hope." She grabs the hat, which starts to glow, "I-I can feel it! I can feel the magic flowing!"
Gus smiles at her, "Me too!" He holds up the Oracle Sphere, "Finally, I'm about to become my best self!"
He pouts some magic into the sphere, and a purple-tinted double of him appears. The copy whispers to him, "You're always your best self.
The real boy tears up and starts crying while the copy pats his back to comfort him.
Meanwhile, Willow is wearing the Green Thumb Gauntlet with an excited look on her face. She grows a large wooden arm, which flexes and then sinks back into the Gauntlet. She smiles at the result, "Whoa! I just wanted to try it out!" She returns the gauntlet with a chuckle.
The human laughs, "Now we can cure Eda and get this hat back before anyone knows it's gone."
However the room suddenly distorts and pulses around all of them. The voice of the Emperor can be heard throughout the room, "I will know..."
The room suddenly returns to normal and everyone is looking at the ceiling. Luz and Willow back up nervously.
The brunette starts to shake, "We need to go. Now!"
Barricades drop in front of the doors, locking them in. Luz and Gus gasp in shock. To make matters worse, the doors of the room lock themselves to further keep them inside.
Willow grabs the Green Thumb Gauntlet, "Stand back!" She grows a massive, buff tree and it extends its arms at one of the barricades.
...
Meanwhile in the hallway, Lilith is pacing in front of the stained glass mural of the Emperor, "Lilith, think! You've given your entire life to this coven, you can't lose it! What's Eda's weakness? That Star Touched Witch isn't even in the castle anymore! Eda has no attachment, no friends... Think!"
She ends up punching the wall at the same time a loud crash happens. She stares at her hand for a moment before walking away.
...
Back in the Relic Room, the barricade now has a hole in it. Luz coughs while Willow's tree shrinks to nothing.
The human tries to walk ahead, "Come on, let's go!" She then gasps.
She stops at the sight of Lilith's pointed staff. Using her Palisman, Lilith pushes down the hood of Luz's cowl to blind her.
The raven witch smiles at her, "Why, if it isn't Eda's human pet. How perfect!" She starts to walk closer to the girl, "Aren't I lucky to find you here! Where's that Star Touched friend of yours?"
Luz backs away from her, "Like I'd tell you! Stay away! If you touch us, Eda will come after you so fast-"
The older witch teleports right in front of her, "That's the plan."
Willow raises the Green Thumb Gauntlet in the air, "Run, Luz!" She grows a wooden arm to grab Lilith's staff. The human runs away.
But Lilith uses her staff to fling Willow toward the door.
Gus takes a fighting stance while he glares at the older witch, "Like we'd ever let you take Luz! Or tell you where Esper is! So... Wrong move, Lilith. It's two against one, and you don't stand a chance against-"
Lilith pokes the copy of Gus with her staff, which makes him explode into a cloud of smoke. She then throws him across the room and he lands alongside Willow.
The raven witch uses her magic to float the hat towards herself, "Now, that doesn't belong to you!"
Luz grabs the hat, "No!" She tries to pull the hat free from Lilith's magic. The witch closes her fist and her magic rips the hat in half. It blackens and grumbles to dust...
The human shouts at her, "No! I needed that to heal your sister!"
Lilith raises an eyebrow at this, "Huh?" She then grabs Luz, "These decrepit relics are useless. If you wanna see your friend again, deliver this to Edalyn."
The older witch throws her staff to Willow and Gus. Which then takes the two of them and flies away into the distance.
Willow shouts while she reaches for their friend, "Luz!"
Luz looks nervously at Lilith while the older witch smirks.
...
Back at the Owl House, where Eda folds a completed witch's wool cloak. Esper is next to her with a noticeable smudge of flour on her cheek. Her mentor presents the purple cape to her, "Here you go, kid. Made this with my own two hands for ya!"
The redheaded child cheered, "Wow! Thank you so much, Eda! I love it! You know what, I think I'm going to wear it right now!" She wraps the cape around her neck, tying it under her hood, "Woooow! And I know Luz is going to love hers!"
Hooty opened the door to shout at the two, "Speaking of! I spy with my little eye something coming this way!"
Both witches smile a the door, "Luz!"
King shouts from the kitchen, "Wait!" He pushes a cake into the living room, "Wait for me! You're not the only one who knows dark magic!" He holds up cake mix box, "Esper showed me how to perform this dark magic called 'baking!' Turns out it's nothing like cooking... Now stop gawking and load me in!"
The Owl Lady laughs at him while Esper stands and helps him in.
The demon struggles while she pushes him in, "Ow! Ow! Gentle, Esper!"
Suddenly, the shadow of Willow and Gus on Lilith's staff passes the window. The two knock on the front door, which Eda opens. Her face falls when she sees it's not Luz. She turns to her student, "Esper, come here."
The smaller witch's smile falls when she only sees her friends from school, "What's going on?"
Willow frowns at the two witches, "We... We have some bad news..." She gestures to the object behind her and her friend...
Lilith's staff is floating and glowing blue.
Eda glares at it, "Lilith..." She reaches her hand out, which makes Owlbert fly into her hand in staff form. Golden electricity emits from the Palisman's eyes. She turns to her student, "Esper, stay here."
The child shook her head at her, "No way! I'm going with you!"
The Owl Lady shook her head back at her, "No, you're not! You're staying here with these everyone else, where it's safe."
Esper ran in front of her mentor, "NO! I am going with you! Luz is MY friend and she's in trouble!"
The older witch rubbed her forehead, "I'm not going to put you in danger!"
The young girl held her spear in both her hands, "I don't care! I'd do anything to protect her..." She turns to her school friends, "Willow, Gus... I promise, Luz will be okay."
Eda takes another look at Esper before an image of a younger version of herself flash over her in her mind. Once she blinked, the image of herself disappeared but the redhead's determined look remained the same. She then put her hand on her student's shoulder and let out a sigh, "...Okay." She lets her Palisman float in the air, "Get on, we're getting Luz back."
Esper nods her head and jumps on the front of the staff. Eda sits behind her before they suddenly fly off in a flash of yellow light.
...
Now at the bridge to the Emperor's Castle... Lilith stands near the entrance, "Come on, Edalyn. You would be late when I need you most!"
She looks to the top of the castle, where Emperor Belos is looking down at her. Yellow light flashes and Eda floats in midair with Esper holding her spear behind her. Lilith smirks before her sister throws her staff at her. It narrowly misses her face and leaves a crater in the castle wall behind her.
Lilith smiles at her family, "Sister! I see that you got my invitation to a Witch's Duel!"
Bolts of electricity fly at the raven witch, though none actually hit her. Eda flies towards her to taunt her. Lilith blocks one hit with a summoned shield. She summons her staff and fires a bolt of blue lightning at Eda.
The younger sister flies at her, "Where is she?"
The older witch holds up her hand, "Easy now!"
Eda and Esper stop charging at her.
Lilith frowns at the both of them, "The human is safe." She taps her staff to the ground. A blue bubble flies out of the castle, with Luz inside of it.
The human presses her face to the wall of the bubble, "Eda! Esper!"
The raven witch walks in front of the bubble, "You can have her back, provided you both do as I say. Renounce your wild ways and join the Emperor's Coven! He can help heal your curse!"
The Owl Lady glares at her, "Don't believe everything that bonehead tells you. He doesn't want to heal me, he wants to control me!"
Lilith spins her staff, "Then I will take you in by force!"
Eda keeps her glare on her sister, "You've always looked down on me because I'm wild, but fortunately, that just made me work harder than you!" She then slams her staff on the ground, summoning a towering owl made of light behind her.
She rushes at Lilith, launching her in the air with a swing of her staff.
Inside the castle, guards turn to watch. Esper rushes to her friend in order to hit the bubble with her spear, trying to break it but to no avail.
In the air, Eda appears behind Lilith. The older sister disappears before Eda swings her staff. The raven witch reappears behind Eda right when Eda disappears. Eda appears behind Lilith and kicks her, then zaps away to chase her. From the bridge below, Esper and Luz watch Eda and Lilith zip across the sky, nothing but gold and blue lights weaving and crashing into each other. Lilith shoots a beam of blue light at Luz's bubble, sending it flying off balance. Esper attempts to catch it before nearly slipping off the wood. Eda lands on the bridge.
Luz screams while the bubble she is in starts to suddenly roll towards the edge of the wood.
Both mentor and student shout, "Luz!" Before Eda uses her magic to redirect the boards of the bridge to keep Luz from falling off.
Esper floats on one of the slabs of wood like it is a skateboard in the air. Her birthmark glows before she jumps closer to the raven witch.
Both her and Lilith drop down with Esper immediately taking a piece of paper out of her pocket to shove into the older witch's face. She briefly blinds her with the light glyph before rushing to slash at her with her spear. Lilith blocks it with her staff with her eyes slowly opening, "Careful, little one. You could cut somebody with that!" She shoves the young girl away...
Upon being pushed away from the older woman, Esper spins and forms two circles with her hands, "Oh yeah? Well take this!" One circle was green while the other was a light blue. A large vine from her side of the bridge extends in an attempt to grab the older woman while the other circle spit out a large ball of fire to trail onto the plant.
The raven witch smirks at her, "Nice try!" She swings her staff while firing a light blue beam of light at the girl. The beam evaporates the burning plant coming towards her.
Esper hastily slams the spear onto the ground with a small forcefield around her hand. She tries to use it to block the incoming attack but her shield breaks and she is flung back. She clutches her hand, now red with a burn.
The Owl Lady slams her staff into the ground before she summons a giant Hooty Hydra to wrap her sister up. She then spins her staff and sends a giant blast at Lilith. The raven witch puts Luz between her and the bolt, which Eda redirects to miss them both.
Eda pants, "Stop hiding behind Luz, you coward!" She starts to groan.
Lilith pants like her sister, "It's sad to see you slowing down sister. Tell me, is it the curse?"
Eda growls, sounding a little bit like the Owl Beast. The darkness in her gem bubbles while it starts to grow.
The human bangs on the bubble, "Eda! Your gem!"
Esper shouts while clutching her burned hand, "Eda, be careful! Your magic!"
Eda ignores her students, "Maybe it is the curse! But then how pathetic are you, that you can't best me at my worst?!" She then spins her staff and summons a dozen rings of magic, all of which send bolts at Lilith. Eda's Hooty Hydra drags Luz to safety while Lilith summons a shield to protect herself.
The sphere around Luz is thrown to Esper, who summons a small star Abomination using the goop in the flask tied around her waist. The purple creature helped her catch the orb. She and the Abomination put the sphere down, "Are you okay?!"
Her human friend nods her head, "Yes! I am now! Go help Eda before her magic is drained!"
Esper nods her head before her star shaped Abomination jumps onto her shoulder. She rushes to assist Eda in the fight.
The brunette looks around and notices a pointed rock. She gasps before rolling the sphere over to the rock in an attempt to break it.
The older woman glares at her sister, "Maybe you are stronger than me... But that made me work smarter! I became smart, crafty!"
Eda glares back at her sister, "A lapdog for a tyrant!"
The young witch girl readies an illusion spell circle with her good hand.
Luz hits her bubble against the rock until the bubble shatters.
Lilith shouts from behind her forcefield, "You always thought you were better than me, that I could never beat you in anything!"
The Owl Lady extends her arms, "I am better than you!"
The Raven Lady shouts again in anger, "Then why were you so easy to curse?!" She then gasps before covering her mouth.
Eda's eyes widen in shock and betrayal...
A flashback to Eda's bedroom door opening appears in both the sisters' minds. Light from the hallway lights up her sleeping figure. The mysterious figure steps forward, shadows disappearing to reveal that it was Lilith all those years ago...
Back to the present, both Luz and Esper gasp at the revelation.
Lilith shakes her head, "A-And I have the power to remove it... If you would just let me explain!"
Eda looks away before she shakes in anger. With a yell of fury, she rushes forward and destroys Lilith's shield, flinging her sister to the wall hard enough to leave a crater.
Luz rushes to her mentor and stands next to her younger friend, "Eda, stop! Your magic!"
The darkness in Eda's gem is writhing furiously but she doesn't seem to care. But this makes Lilith smirk.
The human is surrounded by a glowing blue light and starts floating. Luz gasps when she feels herself fly in the air.
Lilith smirks at the child, "Human. That orb was for your protection!" She moves Luz over the edge of the bridge and then drops the magic.
The human falls while screaming.
The redhead yells for her friend, "Luz, no!"
Eda shouts at the sight, "Luz!" She draws a shaky spell circle with her staff. Luz stops plummeting a foot above a score of giant spikes. The older witch strains to keep Luz up. Esper moves to try and touch her mentor.
Luz shakes her head, "Eda, stop! You'll run out of magic!" She looks to her friend, "Esper!"
The younger witch looks between the older witch and her friend, "I... I..." She jumps onto her spear and slowly flies into the air below the bridge.
The Owl Lady shakes her head back at her, "It's my power, kids... And before you two showed up, I spent my whole life wasting it."
Lilith grins evilly before she summons a giant hand to push Luz closer to the spikes.
The human tries to reach for her, "Eda, no, no, no!"
Eda's gem is almost entirely black at this point. The whites of her eyes begin to be taken over by the darkness. She looks from Luz near the spikes and to Esper in the air, getting closer to Luz. She lets out a sigh, "Alright, girls. Listen to me. I'm going away and I don't know if I can bounce back this time... Watch over King. Remember to feed Hooty."
Luz shakes her head, "Please, no!"
The young witchling gets to the bottom of the chasm and tries to push her friend away from the spikes, "Eda..."
The Owl Lady smiles at the duo despite being in pain, "And Luz... Esper... Thank you for being in my life, girls."
With a scream, Eda unleashes a powerful burst of magic. Owlbert flies off the staff and Lilith is pushed back with her forcefield broken.
Eda's magic illuminates the entire Isles. Luz falls before she feels a hand on her cowl. She is caught by Esper, who put her behind her on the spear despite the pain in her hand. She flies them both back to the bridge, where Eda is laying.
Both girls shout upon getting closer to their mentor, "Eda!"
The older witch rolls over and screeches, her voice overlapping with the Owl Beast's. She slams a hand to the bridge and the Owl Beast stands. The monster advances on the girls, who back away. The Owl Beast tries to pounce and Luz ducks behind Esper but the impact never comes... The two look up to see Lilith binding the Owl Beast and dragging it halfway across the bridge with her staff.
The Raven Lady smiles at her family, "Come along, sister. Now we can let the healing begin!" She looks up to Belos, who turns away.
Luz shouts at her, "You monster!" The human jumps on Lilith's back and tries to drag her down.
Esper gasps while grabbing her burned hand, "Luz!"
Lilith grabs her by the cowl and throws her, "Leave, human! She grabs Owlbert from midair, "Edalyn is finally with her family. Her real family!" She turns to the redheaded witch holding her human friend, "Not that you would understand any of that. Betrayer of your own kind!"
The raven witch taps her staff on the bridge. The gears below start to turn which pull the bridge toward the castle.
The dark haired woman glares at the two of them, "Go back to your world. This one is ours."
Luz runs from Esper's grip and tries to chase after them, but can't. The doors to the castle close with a haunting echo...
...
The human and the witchling are slowly walking back to the Owl House. The sun is rising to reveal that the two had been walking all night. Esper wipes at her eyes with noticeable tears building up in her face.
Hooty yawns before smiling at the human, "Oh, Luz, there you are!"
The brunette frowns at him, "Hi, Hooty."
Luz opens the door to the dark living room. She looks at the side, her eyes widening and she gasps. There are balloons and streamers hung up. Party hats are on the couches, and confetti is on the floor. Esper looks away in shame. Luz's new cape is wrapped in a bow on the table, next to King's cake... The candles of which have long burned out.
King bursts out of the cake and gasps, "The cake is me!" He looks around and frowns, "Hey, um, where's Eda?"
Luz gasps and her eyes suddenly fill with tears when she falls to the floor. Hooty and Esper look at her in concern. The witch wipes at her own eyes aggressively before wrapping her friend in a hug... Both Hooty and King join in the hug to comfort the two of them...
...
To Be Continued...In the past of the Human Realm... A younger version of Luz frowns while folding her arms at her desk in elementary school. She slumps her shoulders while laying her head on the cold material. One of her hands rests on her first Azura book.
Then a younger Esper walks into the classroom with her hands behind her back, "Luz? ...I know you're still sad about that stupid Derek for taking your Azura book. Even though we already got it back."
The slightly older girl simply hums, "Hmm..."
The redhead moves her hands from behind her back to reveal a paper cutout of Azura, "But here! I made this for you! I hope it helps you feel better!" While the cutout wasn't perfect with a few unintentional slices here and there, it still stood.
This made Luz's eyes sparkle once she saw it, "...Aw!" She takes the paper cutout and places it on her desk, "Thank you, Esper!" She then notices a cut on one of her fingers, "Esper! Your hand is bleeding!"
Esper waves her hand with the injured finger, "It's okay! It's just a papercut, I'll be fine!"
The brunette shook her head, "No, don't worry! Here, I'll put a spell on your booboo to help you feel better!" She places a bandaid on the smaller girl's cut and waves her hand around it, "Pain pain, go away! And if you don't, go to someone else!"
After hearing the spell, Esper smiles with a wide grin. It reveals that she is missing a tooth before she lets out a giggle, "Hehe, I feel better already! Thanks, Luz..."
...
Now outside the Emperor's Castle... Lilith is looking down from atop from the castle walls. She is watching a cart donning a sign of the Emperor's Coven be wheeled across the bridge... The cart holds a few Wild Witches, most hidden in shadow, the ones we do see looking resigned to their fate. Something explodes out of the castle's chimney. Lilith then turns and heads inside the castle once she see the cart make it inside.
The raven witch approaches a stained glass window of Emperor Belos that portrays robed witches bowing at his feet while a Hand of the Titan reaches for the sun behind them. She closes her eyes before taking a breath, "I haven't forgotten what you've promised me... I will bring you my sister, Emperor Belos..."
A much smaller woman takes a step behind Lilith, "Then why the delay?" She has dark red skin and dark blue hair that resembles a hand wrapped around her head, fashioned in a high ponytail. Her hair covers her left eye, the sclera of her right eye is a yellow color while her iris is red. She wears a high collared sleeveless veil that is of a white and gold color with a gold triangle pin in front of her neck. She wears a black long sleeved shirt and pants underneath the veil. She does not wear shoes, however, revealing her feet to have black claws.
The pale witch turns around in surprise, "Kikimora!"
The shorter woman walks with her hands behind her back, "The Day of Unity is fast approaching, and other teams have bound many rogue witches to covens... And yet the Owl Lady still roams free. Are you... Protecting her?" She takes a step away from her comrade before looking over her shoulder, "And what of the Star Touched Witch? We both know the Emperor has been waiting to meet her..."
Lilith shook her head, "Rest assured, Kiki. I have everything under control." She snaps her fingers and a swarm of coven scouts approach upon command, "Today, we capture Eda! Once and for all!"
...
Now at the Owl House, Hooty is fast asleep... He snores lightly, "Hoot, hoot, hoot, hoot, hoot, hoot, hoot..."
Lilith emerges from the bushes circling the outside of the house, "Good. That infernal house demon is asleep..." She beckons at the scouts while they ready their weapons, "Surround the house!"
The scouts go off in different directions to surround the house.
Hooty begins to mumble, "Sleepwalking... Sleepwalking..." He then wakes up from his slumber, "Sleep-hooting!" He slams his face into the ground, popping up behind the lead witch, "Hiya, Lilith! Peek-a-hoot!" He swings his tube body at her and smashes her into a tree.
Lilith grunts, which makes the scouts charge.
The owl tube smiles at them all, "Sorry! Eda doesn't like trespassers, but I'm always here to make new friends! Hoot!" He bonks a scout on the head and his armor falls onto him, "Oh! Look at me! I'm a person now. Wobbly, wobbly! Ooh, blackout!" He punches other guard with his face, "Hoot hoot!" He throws the armor away, "Hoot hoot! Bye, friend! Ooh! I feel like dancing!" He then shakes his body to hit the scouts running towards him, "Hoot!"
Lilith grunts before grabbing her staff. She stands up to see Hooty bobbing in front of a tree. She takes aim and fires a light blue and white blast of light at him.
The owl tube cheers, "I did it!" he bends down and unintentionally dodges Lilith's spell, "Oh hey! Look, it's a bug!"
The spell blasts through the tree, which falls towards Lilith. She just dodges it and then collapses on the ground.
Hooty pouts at the ground, "Aww! Just an old leaf! Well, that's good too." He then eats the leaf while making loud chewing noises.
...
From inside the Owl House, Esper walks to her mentor with two cups of tea, "Whatcha lookin' at, Eda?"
The older witch, now wearing a yellow scarf, takes a cup from her, "Watching Hooty " She shakes the binoculars in her hand.
The redheaded witch frowns at her, "Okay, that was for Luz but aw man! I missed it! Lucky Hooty..."
Eda looks back through the binoculars, "Haha, you kinda did! Hooty! Ah, you're a thorn in my side..." She takes a sip from the cup of tea while a coven scout is slammed into the window, "...But you always dig your way into my heart!"
Meanwhile, Luz pouts briefly, "My tea..." But then her eyes sparkle at the sight of something brewing in Eda's cauldron, "Ooh, magic 'sghetti!" She then tries to touch it.
The Owl Lady frowns at her, "Hey!" She slaps Luz's hand with the spoon using a spell that makes the utensil float, "That 'sghetti is Witch's Wool! It repels powerful spells." She picks up some of the wool, "Every witch worth their salt has a cloak made from this stuff."
The brunette stares at the wool adoringly, "I'm worth salt... I want cloak!" She smiles at her childhood friend, "Don't you want a cloak, Esper?"
Esper jumps next to her, "Oh yeah! That would be so sweet to have our own cloaks!" She sits on the couch on the other side of Eda, pulling a sleeping King into her lap.
The human tries to grab the cauldron but Eda pulls it away from her.
The older witch shakes her head, "Easy, kid! With the Emperor's goons at my doorstep, I need this for protection. They have really stepped up their attacks lately!"
Luz stares at her intensely, "I think I finally understand why the Emperor wants you so badly." She giggles while joking, "He's got the hots for you, doesn't he?" This makes Esper cringe at the thought of the Emperor having a crush on their mentor.
Eda shoots finger guns and clicks her tongue, "Uh, but no. Emperor Belos wants to control all wild magic through his coven system. He ordered my capture years ago because I refuse to fall in line."
The human droops her head, "And he won't stop until he's got you..."
The gray haired witch puts a hand on the redhead's shoulder, "And I heard from a little birdy that he's after Esper to see the 'Star Touched One'."
The brunette picks up her head, "Wait, Esper's in danger now?!"
The freckled witch raises her eyebrows, "Uh yeah, they're after me?! Why didn't you tell me earlier?!" She hugs the sleeping demon closer to her.
The Owl Lady folds her arms, "Hey, hey, I only found out about it when you came home spouting about how you finally got to teach that grudgby captain a lesson. What? Did you want me to spoil your good mood?" She stopped when the two started to look uneasy, "...Awww, don't sound so worried, you two." She ruffles the witchling's hair, "Your magic is getting stronger and stronger every day so I have no doubt you can put up one heck of a fight. Besides, stick with me and they won't be able to get you that easily. I'm a master escape artist. The only thing that can slow me down is my curse, and that hasn't bothered me for weeks!" Right when she said that, feathers pop out from Eda's arms, "Uh oh..."
Eda starts to transform into the Owl Beast while the two girls gasp in horror. Esper standing in front of the human while holding King tightly in her arms.
Luz backs away from the giant monster, "King!"
The tiny demon opens his eyes, "Weh?" He rubs the sleep from his eyes, "AH!"
The redhead shouts at him, "Get the elixir! Now!" She then tosses him past the beast.
The Owl Beast raises its head at the two girls while the small demon rushes off. Esper picks up her fists in between the monster and her childhood friend...
...
Now standing in a void within her own mind, Eda gasps. Her childhood bedroom materializes out of the bleak landscape. Her younger self is sleeping in her bed and Eda sighs sadly. The door opens behind her, revealing a indistinct shadow wearing what seems to be large glasses.
The older woman glares at the shadow, "You know, I'm getting a little tired of this game!" She approaches the shadow and tries to grab it, "So, why don't you just show me your face?"
...
Back in the real world, Eda is now holding Luz's face while the human holds an empty bottle of elixir to her mouth. Esper has her arms around her, like she was attempting to hold her back.
The owl lady's voice sounds muffled due to the bottle, "Oh..." She lets Luz's face go and takes bottle out of mouth, "Whew! Oh, thanks for this! You can let me go now." She stands to back away from Esper, knocking over about a dozen other empty bottles, "And those..." Her scarf falls off, revealing that her gem is still half black.
The redhead gasps while shaking her friend. She points to the gem on her mentor's chest, "Hey, your gem! It's still dark!"
Eda's eyes widen a her statement, "Uh..." She pulls her scarf back on to cover her gem on her chest, "No, it's not! You two are nuts!"
The human points a finger at her, "The curse has been getting worse and you've been hiding it from us!"
The older witch sighs, "Ugh... you're right. It's taking more elixir to turn me back and more magic to keep the curse from rearing its feathery head."
Luz frowns at her mentor, "What happens if you use your magic up? Do you... "
Both girls' eyes widen at the same time while they speak, "Do you die?"
Eda quickly shakes her head, "No! Jeez, you're both morbid! I just kinda, sorta, turn into the Owl Beast... Forever. Ahhh, it's a fate much worse than death if you think about it." She start to laugh sarcastically.
The human begins to freak out, "No! No, I-I can't let that happen!" I'll do something about it! I-We-"
Her younger friend puts her hand on her shoulder, "Luz, we just need to find a way to cure it or I don't know... Keep it at bay longer?"
The brunette nods her head at her, "Right! We'll find a cure and then-"
The Owl Lady puts her hand on Luz's other shoulder, "Hey, don't worry. I just have to limit my magic use a little." She smiles upon seeing that she made the girl grin, "Ah! There's the Luz I know!"
Luz sadly pouts with puppy eyes at Eda, which makes Esper snicker.
Eda groans, "Ugh, go on. Do the parallel arm thing..."
The human immediately beams and hugs Eda tightly. The smaller witch hugs the other side of their shared mentor.
King pokes his head into the room and rushes to also hug Eda, "King demands huggies too!"
The Owl Lady frowns at all the children, "Oh come on!" She walks in a strained manner with Luz and Esper wrapped around her torso and King on her right leg, "It's... Time... For... School!"
The redhead lets out a giggle, "Hehe, just like me and my dad!"
...
Now at the kitchen door, where the girls are beginning to leave for school.
Eda smiles at the two, "Have a good day!"
Esper smiles at her, "You too! Oh hey, maybe I can do some magic chores around the house more? Oh! And maybe you can show me how to make potions when I get back!"
Luz playfully pushes her friend while talking to their mentor, "Get rest! Drink lots of water! Stay out of the sun! Lift with your knees, not your-"
The older witch slams the door on the both of them, "Such good kids! So considerate. They deserve something nice..." She picks up cauldron of witch's wool, "And I think I know what!"
...
Now the girls are walking through the forest to get to school, talking amongst themselves
Luz slumps her shoulders with a frown, "Poor Eda. Enemies everywhere, even her own body! I wish we could help her."
Esper rubs her chin, "I'm sure we can find some way to-"
Suddenly, both girls hear a distant scream. The two peek through bushes to see Hooty, wrapped around beaten up guards and scouts while serving them tea. One of the guards is trying to crawl away from him, feebly.
Hooty smiles at the soldiers, "The roughhousing was fun, but I like this part of our playdates even better!"
The duo stand and shudder at each other before rushing to school. They both pass by a compact mirror on a pile of dirt that starts to vibrate. Lilith's arm emerges from the dirt to grab the compact mirror. She grabs opens it while she drags herself out of the dirt pile with a bird nest on top of her head.
Kikimora appears on the small mirror and speaks, "The Emperor demands your presence in the throne room! ...And there's a bird on your head."
Lilith looks up, where there is in fact now a bird in the nest. The black bird smirks at her, "Oooo... You're in trouble!"
The raven witch groans and closes the compact mirror.
...
Now at Hexside, Principal Bump looks at clipboard while various students are lined up for a flying ship. Luz and Esper walk up to Amity, Willow and Gus, who are also in line. Skara and Jasper are further up in the line, talking to each other.
The illusionist smiles at the two before posing, "Luz, Esper, you ready for the field trip of a lifetime to the one, the only, Emperor's Castle!" He shakes his hands to add some pizzazz to his pose.
The human shakes her head and folds her arms, "Right. I was actually gonna stay behind. I don't like the way they treat Eda."
The freckled witch folds her arms alongside her friend, "Yeah, dude! They're constantly after her!"
Gus shoves a book towards both their faces, "But you're gonna miss out on all the cool stuff!"
The redhead witch rolls her eyes, "Like what?"
Willow put a hand on her shoulder, "Like ancient relics! Look, it's the Plant Coven's Green Thumb Gauntlet! It can grow whatever you imagine!" The book shows a picture of regular trees captioned "BEFORE." And the other side has the tree tops act like heads with arms and abs and one is holding an owl's nest in the "AFTER" section.
Luz hums while looking at the page, "Mmm..."
The freckled witch folds her arms alongside her friend, "But dude! They're constantly after Eda! AND ME!"
Gus blushes at her, "Aw maybe they just wanna talk to you about something?" He points at another page, "And the Oracle Sphere! The picture shows a white sphere with a two-headed snake on it, "It shows you which path will help you become your best self!"
Esper raises her eyebrows, "...Okay, I may be interested in that." She folds her arms, "Plus, Eda did say I was tough!"
Amity points at the page next to the sphere with her good arm, "There's also the Healing Hat!" Her other arm is wrapped in bandages within a white sling around her shoulder. She also has a flask filled with Abomination goop tied around her waist with a string.
Luz starts to read from the page, "The Healing Hat. Made from the magic of the Savage Ages. It is said to cure the deadliest diseases... and heal any curse?"
The plant witch pumps her fist in the air, "Yeah! You can't miss this!"
At the front of the line, Principal Bump gestures for everyone to come closer, "All aboard students!"
Skara and Jasper sit together in the chairs on the flying ship, quickly inviting Esper to sit with them. Willow, Gus and Amity head for the giant boat, dropping the book.
Luz hums, "Mmm..." She then picks up the book, "You've done so much for me, Eda. Now! I'm gonna do something for you..."
...
Now on the flying ship headed for the Emperor's Castle, Esper playfully pushes Skara. This makes the other girl giggle. Then all the students on board start to cheer, including Skara and Jasper. Though Esper simply shakes her head.
Principal Bump shouts at his students, "No roughhousing! Do not make me turn this carriage around!"
The redhead sticks her tongue out at the principal and gets up from her seat to nudge the pale girl in the Abomination uniform, "Hey, Amity! By the way... I've been wanting to ask you something since the first day of the semester!"
The popular witch nods her head, "Oh! Of course! What is it?"
The freckled witch smiles at her, "Well... I was hoping you could..." Her eyes then sparkle, "Show me how to for an Abomination!"
Amity nodded her head at her, "Oooh! That's what you wanted!" She gestures to the flask tied around her waist, "I only have a little bit of goop on me but I'll be happy to show you how to use it. You know... To thank you for..." She started to whisper, "Not telling you know who about you know what... And being a good sport about the grugby game."
Esper shrugged her shoulders, "Of course! Now come on, show me some little baby Abominations!"
Meanwhile, Luz is writing something down in her notepad. She has drawn the Healing Hat and wrote down, 'HEALING HAT HEIST 1. Sneak into castle! 2. Steal healing hat! 3. Lift curse!' She had drawn arrows pointing at the drawing of the hat.
Willow walks close next to her side, "Hey, Luz!"
The human jumps in her seat, "Ah!" She hides her notepad, "Um, what was that, Willow?"
The plant witch smiles at her, "I was just saying we were getting close to the castle." She and Luz look over the side of the ship, "Emperor Belos built it as a symbol of unity. Before he came to power, folks were doing magic all wrong! He taught us that the only way to respect what the Titan gave us is through joining covens!"
Luz looks squints her eyes in doubt.
Meanwhile, Amity forms a circle with one hand near the flask full of Abomination goop. The goop floats out of the glass and into the air, where it dances until it formed a small Abomination monster. She smiled at the redhead next to her, "Notice how the circle stabilizes the Abomination. The stronger the circle, the better the Abomination."
She allowed the goop to fall on the wall of the ship in a goopy form, "Here, now you try."
The redheaded witch nodded her head, "That circle thing does make sense. Okay, let's try it..." While her circle was little wobbly at first, it soon became a wobbly Abomination shape, "Hey look! I'm doing it!" She brings the goop closer to herself and started to change it's shape into a circle.
Soon, the goop wiggled and shifted into a star shape. The star opened it's eyes to reveal that they were green and it high fived it's creator.
Esper smiled at the star Abomination, "Wooo! I did it! Oh, this is awesome!"
Amity raised an eyebrow at her creature, "Why'd you make one shaped like a star?"
The redhead pokes her star shaped Abomination, "I don't know. It just felt right! Besides, it was easier to make than a regular ol' Abomination."
The golden eyed witch slowly nods her head, "I see... Hey, Esper? How do you feel about visiting the Emperor's Coven?"
The freckled witch shrugged her shoulders, "Ehhhh, I'm interested in the relics but that's kinda it. How about you? Especially with that broken arm."
Amity gestures with her hands in front of herself to try and keep her composure. She looks down at the cast on her arm, "I am just so glad I could still come." She took a deep breath, "No no, don't lose your cool, Amity. Stay calm, stay calm..."
Esper let out a giggle, "Hahaha! Careful Princess! You know we have to keep an eye on you!" She then raised an eyebrow when she noticed her looking worried, "...Hey, you alright?"
The pale witch looked down at her sling bound arm, "Yeah, I'm just wondering if I should keep this on me or not. It's not like I'll need it inside the castle." She gestures with her sling bound arm, "And I can't exactly use magic with this arm right now..."
Esper takes the flask of Abomination goop from her friend, "Here, I'll take it off your hands." She then ties the string tightly around her waist.
Luz continues to talk to her friend, "So, Willow... Would you say this Belos guy is, like, powerful?"
The plant witch chuckles at her, "No offense to Eda, but the Emperor is the most skilled witch that's ever lived. He can even talk to the Titan!"
Esper tilts her head at her friends, "Psssh, talk to the Titan! ...Wait, the Titan?"
Gus jumps up next to her, "Yeah!"
The redheaded girl scratches the back of her head, "No, that's not what I meant. I just remember that name for some reason. Why does that name sound so familiar to me?"
The illusionist squints his eyes at her, "Do you think it has something to do with your memories?"
The freckled witch looks away from him, "Probably..." A flash of the mysterious women who pushed them out of her own memories appeared in her thoughts before she took a breath...
Soon enough, the ship lands in front of the castle... Where the incredibly tall door open to welcome the students inside. Much to the joy of a giddy Amity trying to calm herself down.
Principal Bump smiles at his students, "Now, the Emperor's assistant will be your tour guide. Please don't make me regret taking you here."
Kikimora stands on a platform while a bridge extends to the ship.
All the children from the class look at the bridge with amazed faces, "Whoa! Look at that!" Jasper gasps while pointing at it, "It's massive!" The bridge retreats and bringing the students closer to Kikimora.
The Emperor's assistant smiles at all of them, "Children of Hexside, Emperor Belos welcomes you to his castle. We're honored by visits from students. You'll soon be a part of a coven, some lucky few may even find their home here! In the mighty Emperor's Coven!" She looks right at Esper before her eyes dart to Amity.
The redhead takes a step back and whispers to Luz, "You saw that right? Freaky little hand lady looked dead at me!"
The human whispers back to her, "I know! That didn't seem normal!"
Amity from Luz's other side smiled widely, "And isn't that great, Esper? She looked at me too! This is amazing!"
The other students are heard chattering, "She looked at me!" "Wow!" "Awesome!"
The smaller woman snaps her fingers to get their attention, "You are all... The future of the Isles! My job is to teach you its past."
They all walk into the castle to see guards flank either side of a hallway. They are all saluting, while others walk on overpasses. The walls are covered in tapestries, murals, and statues.
The students all gasps, "Ooh!" "Whoa!"
Kikimora squares her shoulders, "Today, the Isles are a place of peace and prosperity. But that wasn't always the case." She gestures to a mural of witches dancing around a fire, "Up until 50 years ago, witches and demons practiced wild magic during what we called the Savage Ages." She leads the students away, "Witches had access to corrupt knowledge, and that dishonored the Titan..."
Luz stops at a grate, which Esper did not notice. The redhead rolls her eyes before slumping her shoulders in boredom. Amity still smiles excitedly next to her while Skara giggles at her. Jasper elbows the bard girl, who elbows Esper to get her to walk straight. Gus follows Kikimora with a smile next to Willow.
The small assistant smiles at a mural, "That was until our great Emperor ascended to the throne and taught witches how to use magic properly." She gestures to the mural of Emperor Belos holding up a beam of light with witches below celebrating his power, "Our next stop is the Emperor's personal collection of relics."
Willow moves to touch her friend, "Oh! Luz, you'll like this. It's where-" She realizes that she is simply touching air, "Huh?"
The human struggles to open the vent before she notices Willow and Gus looking at her, "Hehe... Uh, love me a properly ventilated castle!" She does get up to follow the rest of the group, much to the suspicion of her two friends.
...
Kikimora opens the door to the new room, "The Relic Room! These items are reminders of our great Emperor's overwhelming power!" She passes the Oracle Sphere, "From the curious and mighty."
Gus's eyes sparkle at the object, "Oooh!"
The short woman passes the Green Thumb Gauntlet, "To the very handy."
Willow taps her feet excitedly, "Oh, I could grow such beautiful things with that!"
Kikimora then passes by the Healing Hat, "And even, the most valuable!"
Luz stares at the hat while Willow is admiring the gauntlet...
Esper walks within the group of children until... She suddenly starts to hear a ringing noise in her ear, "Argh..." She starts to hold her head in pain while her birthmark on her leg starts to glow.
Luz rushes to whisper to her, "Esper! Your birthmark is glowing!"
Her childhood friend speaks through gritted teeth, "I can see that. Can't exactly stop it!"
Kikimora turns upon hearing the whisper, "Is there something wrong, girls?"
Gus speaks up, "Uh, I don't know." He puts a hand on her arm, "Esper, are you feeling alright?"
The redhead speaks to both her friends, "My head... It's killing me all of a sudden!" She begins to lean on the illusionist, who blushes before attempting to keep her upright.
The tiny assistant shifted her eyes towards all the students, "Hmmm..." She lets out a cough to clear her throat, "Well, that's no good. Can't have an injured child walking around. It looks like she will not be able to continue the tour."
Jasper speaks up from the crowd, "I'll take her back to Principle Bump, Miss Kikimora." He holds up Esper's arm from Gus's side, who let him grab her before walking off to join Willow.
Skara walks over to pick up Esper's arm from Luz's side, "I'll help you too. Come on, Esper, we're going back to the ship. You'll be okay..."
The redhead could barely hear the both of them but nods her head. She allows the two to pick her up by under the arms. She turns her head back to the closing doors once they enter the hallway, her eyes briefly glowing white. They return to normal when they start to walk away from the room.
Back in the Relic Room, Kikimora shakes her head with a scowl, "Come along, children!"
Willow rushes to catch up to the group. Luz starts walking towards the Healing Hat...
But Gus runs up and pulls her arm, "Let's go, Luz!"
...
Now in the other hallway, the short assistant continues to speak to the other students, "Here at the Emperor's Coven, we require members with sophistication, elegance, and grace!"
A door slams open with Lilith is standing there. She has leaves in her disheveled hair and spits out a few feathers and makes her staff vanish. She then enters, which makes Luz gasp and duck around a corner.
Kikimora smiles at her mockingly, "Ah! Make way for Miss Lilith Clawthorne, students."
The rest of the class all gasp in awe, "Oh, my gosh! The head of the coven! Wow!"
The Emperor's assistant waves her hand, "Yes, and if I'm not mistaken, she's on her way to see the Emperor himself! Let's all wish her luck!"
Amity smiles at her mentor, "Good luck, Miss Lilith!" She waves to her.
Lilith blushes in embarrassment and turns her head away from the class, "Thank you, students. Good luck with puberty."
Kikimora smirks before motioning to the students, "This way, children!"
Most of the class follows Kikimora down the hall while Lilith enters a door.
Luz looks after the older witch, "Hmm..."
...
Meanwhile in the first hallway, Esper's head continues to hurt. She moves her hand on Skara's side to clutch it... The bard girl starts to form a circle with her finger, "Hey, are you alright? I can try and see if a song can soothe your head."
The freckled witch shakes her head, "Skara... I love your songs but I don't think my brain is really in the mood right now..." She hears a distinct buzz in her ear, "I... I think I need to stop..."
Jasper nods at her, "Sure, let's take a break." He lays her against the wall, "Just chill here for a second, Esper."
The other two students started to talk between themselves, obviously worried for their friend. They soon turned away from the redhead so their voices wouldn't hurt her head too much.
The buzzing noise in Esper's head decided to turn into a voice... A very muffled voice but still, someone was speaking to her. But no one actually was. She was hearing a young boy's voice in her head...
"...Let's go... Game... Play..."
The voice took a brief pause before speaking more, "Come on!"
The redheaded witch takes a breath before struggling to stand up, the voice playing n her head over and over again. She covered her ears in an attempt to silence the voice but to no avail. Both her friend missed her while she started to walk down the hallway and through the corner.
She takes a deep breath while clutching her head, "Who... Who's speaking to me right now?"
Jasper turned his head, only to see that their friend wasn't there, "Wait... Where'd Esper go?"
Skara's eyebrows raised in surprise, "I don't know! She was just in pain, how'd she get away so fast?"
Eventually, Esper made her way to the end of the next hallway... Even through stumbling, she had opened the door to another room. A much darker room... She heard a whisper, "Hey... Are you... Play?"
The freckled witch spotted a blue glint on the ground in front of her and peered up at the room. Her birthmark began to shine the same color. She looked around before her eyes were drawn to a small, circular tablet that was blue and had a crescent moon on it. Despite her head hurting, the girl began to walk closer and closer to the metal object.
She begins to reach for it, "I do play..." Until the light from her birthmark reflected on a golden object laid below the blue tablet.
The redhead squints at the object, "What is that? ...A sword?" She looks down at the long object, it is a large wooden staff with a golden blade at the top end of it. Towards the bottom of the staff was a red cloth tied around the wood and the bottom has a gold, metal covering. She touches the blade and her eyes widen when an image of the spear flashes in her mind, "This... This is my spear!"
"It's actually a glaive."
The Star Touched Witch turns to see a older boy who's head was covered in a white hood. He is wearing an outfit similar Emperor Coven guard's uniform, but in white and gold with a gold pauldron resting on his left shoulder. And his face was hidden by a golden mask...
...
Lilith walks through the halls with Luz tailing her just out of sight. The closer to the Emperor's room they get, the more pipes are visible snaking around the walls. Luz is nearly caught, but ducks behind a corner before the older witch turns around. When she continues on, the human peeks from the corner.
Amity follows her brunette friend and speaks to her, "Luz? What are you doing?"
The human raises her eyebrows before pulling her friend into her hiding space, "Shhh, Amity, I just wanna see what Lilith is doing."
The green haired girl blushes immensely from the sudden closeness, "Oh! Um, okay. Let's uh, let's watch Lilith together... Haha..."
Lilith stops at a massive door to clean herself up before entering and closing the door. Both Luz and Amity run up and watch through the giant keyhole.
Inside is a massive throne room... A gigantic beating green heart is hooked up to pipes above the golden throne, which is flanked with flaming braziers. Various guards are standing around the room, surrounding their Emperor. Belos himself is sitting on the throne with his head in his hand.
The raven witch approaches the throne and kneels, "I am at your service, Emperor Belos."
Emperor Belos breathes in heavily... Which makes a guard bring a Palisman on a tray to present to him and he grabs it, "Just a moment, Lilith..." He takes the Palisman and sinks the finger guards into the Palisman's neck and breaks its head off. Glowing green goop falls out of the Palisman, which he pours into the eye holes of his mask. His black eyes suddenly flash a glowing green. He lets out a long sigh, "Ah, that's better..."
Luz and Amity both gasp at the sight and pull away from the door, the human covers her mouth. She whimpers and runs off, pulling her friend with her.
The green haired witch whispers to her, "Luz... We... We need to go back to the school."
The human frowns at her, "Amity... You go back, you're still hurt and Esper is the one with your Abomination goop." She puts her hand on her shoulder, "Please, I'll be back soon. I promise."
The other girl starts to blush, "Okay, I can do that... Please be careful, Luz."
Back in the throne room, Emperor Belos glares at his subordinate from behind his mask, "How is the hunt for the Owl Lady? I heard you attempted a raid this morning."
The raven witch nods her head, "Yes, but we were-"
The emperor shakes his head, "Unsuccessful? That was obvious enough. It's been over a month since you promised to bring me the Owl Lady. Well, where is she? And what of the Star Touched Witch? They live together, do they not?"
Lilith frowns at him, "If I just had more time, I-"
Emperor Belos slams a fist onto his desk, "I'm getting bored of your excuses, Lilith. I already figured I should give the task of bringing me the Star Touched Witch to someone else. Don't worry, I'll give you the time you need. Bring the Owl Lady to me by twilight. She'll join the Emperor's Coven and in return, I'll heal her little curse. But, if you fail..." His nails dig into his throne which makes the heart above the throne beats faster, "You will be stripped of your rank and banished from my coven! You do know what happens to coven-less witches, don't you?"
The woman looks up at the same mural the students saw in the hall. She starts to hear screams in her head, in actuality the witches ae screaming and begging for mercy. Not worshipping the emperor...
The raven witch stands up, "I-I understand. I will not fail." She then turns and leaves the room...
...
Back at the Owl House, where Eda is in the living room. She is sitting on the couch, knitting with the witch's wool. King is taking a nap next to her.
The older witch holds up a dark blue cloak, "Yeah! Something tells me Luz and Esper are gonna like having a cape!" She picks up the other cloak, which is a dark purple.
King wakes up from his slumber, "Cape? I thought you were making cake!"
The Owl Lady tilts an eyebrow at him, "You thought I was knitting a cake?"
The tiny demon blinks back at her, "I... Uh... Anyway! If there's no cake, then I have to get to work!" He starts to runs off, "Would you look at us two, being all generous to those kids!"
Crashing can be heard while he is rummaging through the kitchen.
King's voice can be heard from the other room, "You know what, when she first got here, I thought we were gonna eat her. And maybe keep the witch to do our bidding!"
A louder crash knocks a picture off the wall while the young demon shouts, "But now I only think of that, like, sometimes!"
Eda shrugs her shoulders, "Yeah, they've really changed the feel of this house..." She picks up the fallen picture, which shows Luz shoveling purple and green tentacles in her mouth with a banner behind her reading 'FINISH OR DIE!' Esper is depicted next to her with an already finished plate with a proud smile and small crumbs on her face.
She lets out a sigh, "Well, Luz always had a good heart but was impatient and always bit off more than she could chew. Esper can definitely be stubborn and doesn't think before she acts but she does give can actually be rather empathetic. Despite all that... I think they're both finally growing up..."
...
Back at the Emperor's Castle, Luz peeks out of a curtain to look through a window. She is watching the class leave, "It's a good thing they sent Esper home early! Please don't notice I'm gone, please don't notice I'm... Boarding the bus?"
She blinks and rubs her eyes to see that there is a Luz is on the bridge. That Luz turns around and sticks out her tongue at the real one still inside the castle. Amity is seen sitting in front of the ship and smiles when the fake Luz sits next to her.
The human rubs her head, "Huh?" She suddenly feels a tap on the shoulder, "Wah!"
Luz turns around to see Willow and Gus standing next to her. The small illusionist is spinning three spell circles with his hands.
The brunette scratches her chin, "Oh! Guys. I, uh..."
The plant witch pulls Luz's notepad out of her pocket, "You were planning on taking the Healing Hat, weren't you?" The girl in the purple uniform shakes her head disapprovingly.
The human sighs, "You got me. But you don't understand! Eda has this curse and it's zapping away her magic, and-"
Willow shakes her head, "Luz... No matter what, you can't steal this hat."
The illusionist then steps in front of their plant loving friend, "But, you can borrow it!" He turns to their green haired friend, "Right Amity?"
The witch with glasses frowns at the both of them, "Hey! I wanted to say that! We learned about Eda's curse from your notes. We're totally gonna help you!"
Luz starts to tear up, "Thanks, guys!" She then pulls them into a hug, "I know exactly what we gotta do. It's time for a heist!"
Willow, Luz, and Gus sneak through the halls when they see a guard coming down the stairs. They duck behind a small bush, which Willow grows into the shape of a unicorn. The guard stops, nudges its horn and continues on. The three then run off...
Another guard is standing in a hallway. The four notice them and come out of a door stacked together awkwardly under one uniform. Luz waves, high-fives the guard, and fingerguns while they retreat. The guard is very confused and Luz looks at the vent from earlier. She draws out a fire glyph and melts the vent. They reach yet another hallway, where Gus creates a double of Kikimora to send a guard off. Once the guard leaves, the illusion of the high ranking coven member doing the worm. Gus laughs at the sight, oblivious to Luz and Willow's confused looks.
Finally, the three enter the Relic Room...
...
Back in the treasure room, Esper squints her eyes at the new 'face', "Who are you?"
The older boy straightened his shoulders, "I am the Golden Guard and I have been tasked with making sure the Emperor is safe. I wasn't expecting to find the Star Touched Witch however. Especially in the Emperor's secret treasure room."
The freckled witch smiled at him while shrugging her shoulders, "Uh yeah, that's me! Star Touched Witch! I just came to collect my spear and go."
The Golden Guard folded his arms, "Huh... Funny, there were no reports about you wielding a glaive."
The girl pointed at the weapon in her hand, "Okay one, it's totally a spear! And two... I don't know, I just... Feel like it's mine somehow."
The mask wearing teen shook his head, "So you're just going to steal it? Listen, the Emperor does wish to speak with you! So maybe you can ask him about it when you meet with him. Perhaps he'll let you keep it." He extends his hand to her, "Just come with me and I will take you to him right away."
Esper reaches forward and is about to take the strange boy's hand, "Yeah..." Until she grabs it and yanks him so hard that he falls behind her. She begins to run ahead of him, "That just sounds too good to be true!"
The Golden Guard begins to rush after her, "Hey! Get back here!"
The redhead started sprinting down the hallway, "Hey! Hey guys!"
Her two friends turn around upon hearing her voice. Skara smiles when she sees her friend, "Esper!" The boy's eyes widen, "Where did you go?!"
Esper grabs the bard student's hand while they run, "I'll explain later! Come on, stay right behind me! Some Golden Guard is after me!"
Jasper's mouth flies open, "THE Golden Guard?! You got the attention of THE Golden Guard? We're so dead!" He turns to see the other teen flying towards them on a staff with a red light at the top and turns back to the girls, "He's getting closer!"
The redhead lets go of her friend's hand, "Not if I can help it! Keep going!" Once they get to the front doors, she shifts her shoulder to tackle the door. They burst open and the trio run through, however, they are stopped by the lack of a bridge and a chasm full of spikes.
Skara looks down at the pointy stones, "What should we do?!"
The girl with freckles turns to get a good look at his staff, "Wait a minute... We can fly without Palisman?"
The boy with blue hair takes a step back from her, "I... Um... What are you going to do?"
Upon seeing the Golden Guard fly closer and closer to them, Esper turns to the chasm with a determined look. She turned the spear so that she is sitting with the blade side towards the ground. She turns to her friends, "Guys, get on! We're doing this!" With her brows furrowed, her birthmark started to glow a bright white color.
Jasper sat behind the bard student, "Waaaaait! What are you doing?!"
Skara suddenly wrapped her arms around her smaller friend's waist, "We can't fly on this thiiiiiiiiiiing!" She looks down to see that they were actually flying in the air, "Holy Titan!"
Jasper looks down at the chasm while they flew over it, "Esper, how are you doing this?!"
The redhead tried not to look down while guiding the spear in the air, "Honestly! I have no clue!"
The three landed on the hard ground below, each covering their faces from the impact. They rolled around for a few seconds before they each got up. Esper picked up her spear and pointed it towards the approaching guard...
The Golden Guard was about to fly across the chasm until his attention was called back by Steve. The older scout shouted to his superior, "Golden Guard, sir! The Emperor wishes for your presence in his throne room."
The smaller guard spoke under his breathe, "Uncle..." He saluted the scout until he flew back inside the palace, the doors closed behind him...
After a brief cheer among themselves, the trio decided it was best to head back home. Especially after seeing that they had actually missed the ship. After a bit of a walk, the three eventually reached The Owl House.
Jasper waves his hand at his smaller friend, "Okay... That was one crazy day. You... You do you, Esper."
Skara nodded her head, "Yeaaaaah, that was too much adventure for me for one day. Have a good night, Esper! See you in school!"
Esper waved back at them while they left, "Bye guys! Have a safe walk back home!" She then relaxed the spear against her shoulder before she slams the door open, "Man! Do I have a crazy story to tell you guys about this whole field trip!"
...
Back at the Relic Room of the Emperor's Castle... Luz sees the relic she is after, "Healing Hat... Mmm! You're Eda's last hope." She grabs the hat, which starts to glow, "I-I can feel it! I can feel the magic flowing!"
Gus smiles at her, "Me too!" He holds up the Oracle Sphere, "Finally, I'm about to become my best self!"
He pouts some magic into the sphere, and a purple-tinted double of him appears. The copy whispers to him, "You're always your best self.
The real boy tears up and starts crying while the copy pats his back to comfort him.
Meanwhile, Willow is wearing the Green Thumb Gauntlet with an excited look on her face. She grows a large wooden arm, which flexes and then sinks back into the Gauntlet. She smiles at the result, "Whoa! I just wanted to try it out!" She returns the gauntlet with a chuckle.
The human laughs, "Now we can cure Eda and get this hat back before anyone knows it's gone."
However the room suddenly distorts and pulses around all of them. The voice of the Emperor can be heard throughout the room, "I will know..."
The room suddenly returns to normal and everyone is looking at the ceiling. Luz and Willow back up nervously.
The brunette starts to shake, "We need to go. Now!"
Barricades drop in front of the doors, locking them in. Luz and Gus gasp in shock. To make matters worse, the doors of the room lock themselves to further keep them inside.
Willow grabs the Green Thumb Gauntlet, "Stand back!" She grows a massive, buff tree and it extends its arms at one of the barricades.
...
Meanwhile in the hallway, Lilith is pacing in front of the stained glass mural of the Emperor, "Lilith, think! You've given your entire life to this coven, you can't lose it! What's Eda's weakness? That Star Touched Witch isn't even in the castle anymore! Eda has no attachment, no friends... Think!"
She ends up punching the wall at the same time a loud crash happens. She stares at her hand for a moment before walking away.
...
Back in the Relic Room, the barricade now has a hole in it. Luz coughs while Willow's tree shrinks to nothing.
The human tries to walk ahead, "Come on, let's go!" She then gasps.
She stops at the sight of Lilith's pointed staff. Using her Palisman, Lilith pushes down the hood of Luz's cowl to blind her.
The raven witch smiles at her, "Why, if it isn't Eda's human pet. How perfect!" She starts to walk closer to the girl, "Aren't I lucky to find you here! Where's that Star Touched friend of yours?"
Luz backs away from her, "Like I'd tell you! Stay away! If you touch us, Eda will come after you so fast-"
The older witch teleports right in front of her, "That's the plan."
Willow raises the Green Thumb Gauntlet in the air, "Run, Luz!" She grows a wooden arm to grab Lilith's staff. The human runs away.
But Lilith uses her staff to fling Willow toward the door.
Gus takes a fighting stance while he glares at the older witch, "Like we'd ever let you take Luz! Or tell you where Esper is! So... Wrong move, Lilith. It's two against one, and you don't stand a chance against-"
Lilith pokes the copy of Gus with her staff, which makes him explode into a cloud of smoke. She then throws him across the room and he lands alongside Willow.
The raven witch uses her magic to float the hat towards herself, "Now, that doesn't belong to you!"
Luz grabs the hat, "No!" She tries to pull the hat free from Lilith's magic. The witch closes her fist and her magic rips the hat in half. It blackens and grumbles to dust...
The human shouts at her, "No! I needed that to heal your sister!"
Lilith raises an eyebrow at this, "Huh?" She then grabs Luz, "These decrepit relics are useless. If you wanna see your friend again, deliver this to Edalyn."
The older witch throws her staff to Willow and Gus. Which then takes the two of them and flies away into the distance.
Willow shouts while she reaches for their friend, "Luz!"
Luz looks nervously at Lilith while the older witch smirks.
...
Back at the Owl House, where Eda folds a completed witch's wool cloak. Esper is next to her with a noticeable smudge of flour on her cheek. Her mentor presents the purple cape to her, "Here you go, kid. Made this with my own two hands for ya!"
The redheaded child cheered, "Wow! Thank you so much, Eda! I love it! You know what, I think I'm going to wear it right now!" She wraps the cape around her neck, tying it under her hood, "Woooow! And I know Luz is going to love hers!"
Hooty opened the door to shout at the two, "Speaking of! I spy with my little eye something coming this way!"
Both witches smile a the door, "Luz!"
King shouts from the kitchen, "Wait!" He pushes a cake into the living room, "Wait for me! You're not the only one who knows dark magic!" He holds up cake mix box, "Esper showed me how to perform this dark magic called 'baking!' Turns out it's nothing like cooking... Now stop gawking and load me in!"
The Owl Lady laughs at him while Esper stands and helps him in.
The demon struggles while she pushes him in, "Ow! Ow! Gentle, Esper!"
Suddenly, the shadow of Willow and Gus on Lilith's staff passes the window. The two knock on the front door, which Eda opens. Her face falls when she sees it's not Luz. She turns to her student, "Esper, come here."
The smaller witch's smile falls when she only sees her friends from school, "What's going on?"
Willow frowns at the two witches, "We... We have some bad news..." She gestures to the object behind her and her friend...
Lilith's staff is floating and glowing blue.
Eda glares at it, "Lilith..." She reaches her hand out, which makes Owlbert fly into her hand in staff form. Golden electricity emits from the Palisman's eyes. She turns to her student, "Esper, stay here."
The child shook her head at her, "No way! I'm going with you!"
The Owl Lady shook her head back at her, "No, you're not! You're staying here with these everyone else, where it's safe."
Esper ran in front of her mentor, "NO! I am going with you! Luz is MY friend and she's in trouble!"
The older witch rubbed her forehead, "I'm not going to put you in danger!"
The young girl held her spear in both her hands, "I don't care! I'd do anything to protect her..." She turns to her school friends, "Willow, Gus... I promise, Luz will be okay."
Eda takes another look at Esper before an image of a younger version of herself flash over her in her mind. Once she blinked, the image of herself disappeared but the redhead's determined look remained the same. She then put her hand on her student's shoulder and let out a sigh, "...Okay." She lets her Palisman float in the air, "Get on, we're getting Luz back."
Esper nods her head and jumps on the front of the staff. Eda sits behind her before they suddenly fly off in a flash of yellow light.
...
Now at the bridge to the Emperor's Castle... Lilith stands near the entrance, "Come on, Edalyn. You would be late when I need you most!"
She looks to the top of the castle, where Emperor Belos is looking down at her. Yellow light flashes and Eda floats in midair with Esper holding her spear behind her. Lilith smirks before her sister throws her staff at her. It narrowly misses her face and leaves a crater in the castle wall behind her.
Lilith smiles at her family, "Sister! I see that you got my invitation to a Witch's Duel!"
Bolts of electricity fly at the raven witch, though none actually hit her. Eda flies towards her to taunt her. Lilith blocks one hit with a summoned shield. She summons her staff and fires a bolt of blue lightning at Eda.
The younger sister flies at her, "Where is she?"
The older witch holds up her hand, "Easy now!"
Eda and Esper stop charging at her.
Lilith frowns at the both of them, "The human is safe." She taps her staff to the ground. A blue bubble flies out of the castle, with Luz inside of it.
The human presses her face to the wall of the bubble, "Eda! Esper!"
The raven witch walks in front of the bubble, "You can have her back, provided you both do as I say. Renounce your wild ways and join the Emperor's Coven! He can help heal your curse!"
The Owl Lady glares at her, "Don't believe everything that bonehead tells you. He doesn't want to heal me, he wants to control me!"
Lilith spins her staff, "Then I will take you in by force!"
Eda keeps her glare on her sister, "You've always looked down on me because I'm wild, but fortunately, that just made me work harder than you!" She then slams her staff on the ground, summoning a towering owl made of light behind her.
She rushes at Lilith, launching her in the air with a swing of her staff.
Inside the castle, guards turn to watch. Esper rushes to her friend in order to hit the bubble with her spear, trying to break it but to no avail.
In the air, Eda appears behind Lilith. The older sister disappears before Eda swings her staff. The raven witch reappears behind Eda right when Eda disappears. Eda appears behind Lilith and kicks her, then zaps away to chase her. From the bridge below, Esper and Luz watch Eda and Lilith zip across the sky, nothing but gold and blue lights weaving and crashing into each other. Lilith shoots a beam of blue light at Luz's bubble, sending it flying off balance. Esper attempts to catch it before nearly slipping off the wood. Eda lands on the bridge.
Luz screams while the bubble she is in starts to suddenly roll towards the edge of the wood.
Both mentor and student shout, "Luz!" Before Eda uses her magic to redirect the boards of the bridge to keep Luz from falling off.
Esper floats on one of the slabs of wood like it is a skateboard in the air. Her birthmark glows before she jumps closer to the raven witch.
Both her and Lilith drop down with Esper immediately taking a piece of paper out of her pocket to shove into the older witch's face. She briefly blinds her with the light glyph before rushing to slash at her with her spear. Lilith blocks it with her staff with her eyes slowly opening, "Careful, little one. You could cut somebody with that!" She shoves the young girl away...
Upon being pushed away from the older woman, Esper spins and forms two circles with her hands, "Oh yeah? Well take this!" One circle was green while the other was a light blue. A large vine from her side of the bridge extends in an attempt to grab the older woman while the other circle spit out a large ball of fire to trail onto the plant.
The raven witch smirks at her, "Nice try!" She swings her staff while firing a light blue beam of light at the girl. The beam evaporates the burning plant coming towards her.
Esper hastily slams the spear onto the ground with a small forcefield around her hand. She tries to use it to block the incoming attack but her shield breaks and she is flung back. She clutches her hand, now red with a burn.
The Owl Lady slams her staff into the ground before she summons a giant Hooty Hydra to wrap her sister up. She then spins her staff and sends a giant blast at Lilith. The raven witch puts Luz between her and the bolt, which Eda redirects to miss them both.
Eda pants, "Stop hiding behind Luz, you coward!" She starts to groan.
Lilith pants like her sister, "It's sad to see you slowing down sister. Tell me, is it the curse?"
Eda growls, sounding a little bit like the Owl Beast. The darkness in her gem bubbles while it starts to grow.
The human bangs on the bubble, "Eda! Your gem!"
Esper shouts while clutching her burned hand, "Eda, be careful! Your magic!"
Eda ignores her students, "Maybe it is the curse! But then how pathetic are you, that you can't best me at my worst?!" She then spins her staff and summons a dozen rings of magic, all of which send bolts at Lilith. Eda's Hooty Hydra drags Luz to safety while Lilith summons a shield to protect herself.
The sphere around Luz is thrown to Esper, who summons a small star Abomination using the goop in the flask tied around her waist. The purple creature helped her catch the orb. She and the Abomination put the sphere down, "Are you okay?!"
Her human friend nods her head, "Yes! I am now! Go help Eda before her magic is drained!"
Esper nods her head before her star shaped Abomination jumps onto her shoulder. She rushes to assist Eda in the fight.
The brunette looks around and notices a pointed rock. She gasps before rolling the sphere over to the rock in an attempt to break it.
The older woman glares at her sister, "Maybe you are stronger than me... But that made me work smarter! I became smart, crafty!"
Eda glares back at her sister, "A lapdog for a tyrant!"
The young witch girl readies an illusion spell circle with her good hand.
Luz hits her bubble against the rock until the bubble shatters.
Lilith shouts from behind her forcefield, "You always thought you were better than me, that I could never beat you in anything!"
The Owl Lady extends her arms, "I am better than you!"
The Raven Lady shouts again in anger, "Then why were you so easy to curse?!" She then gasps before covering her mouth.
Eda's eyes widen in shock and betrayal...
A flashback to Eda's bedroom door opening appears in both the sisters' minds. Light from the hallway lights up her sleeping figure. The mysterious figure steps forward, shadows disappearing to reveal that it was Lilith all those years ago...
Back to the present, both Luz and Esper gasp at the revelation.
Lilith shakes her head, "A-And I have the power to remove it... If you would just let me explain!"
Eda looks away before she shakes in anger. With a yell of fury, she rushes forward and destroys Lilith's shield, flinging her sister to the wall hard enough to leave a crater.
Luz rushes to her mentor and stands next to her younger friend, "Eda, stop! Your magic!"
The darkness in Eda's gem is writhing furiously but she doesn't seem to care. But this makes Lilith smirk.
The human is surrounded by a glowing blue light and starts floating. Luz gasps when she feels herself fly in the air.
Lilith smirks at the child, "Human. That orb was for your protection!" She moves Luz over the edge of the bridge and then drops the magic.
The human falls while screaming.
The redhead yells for her friend, "Luz, no!"
Eda shouts at the sight, "Luz!" She draws a shaky spell circle with her staff. Luz stops plummeting a foot above a score of giant spikes. The older witch strains to keep Luz up. Esper moves to try and touch her mentor.
Luz shakes her head, "Eda, stop! You'll run out of magic!" She looks to her friend, "Esper!"
The younger witch looks between the older witch and her friend, "I... I..." She jumps onto her spear and slowly flies into the air below the bridge.
The Owl Lady shakes her head back at her, "It's my power, kids... And before you two showed up, I spent my whole life wasting it."
Lilith grins evilly before she summons a giant hand to push Luz closer to the spikes.
The human tries to reach for her, "Eda, no, no, no!"
Eda's gem is almost entirely black at this point. The whites of her eyes begin to be taken over by the darkness. She looks from Luz near the spikes and to Esper in the air, getting closer to Luz. She lets out a sigh, "Alright, girls. Listen to me. I'm going away and I don't know if I can bounce back this time... Watch over King. Remember to feed Hooty."
Luz shakes her head, "Please, no!"
The young witchling gets to the bottom of the chasm and tries to push her friend away from the spikes, "Eda..."
The Owl Lady smiles at the duo despite being in pain, "And Luz... Esper... Thank you for being in my life, girls."
With a scream, Eda unleashes a powerful burst of magic. Owlbert flies off the staff and Lilith is pushed back with her forcefield broken.
Eda's magic illuminates the entire Isles. Luz falls before she feels a hand on her cowl. She is caught by Esper, who put her behind her on the spear despite the pain in her hand. She flies them both back to the bridge, where Eda is laying.
Both girls shout upon getting closer to their mentor, "Eda!"
The older witch rolls over and screeches, her voice overlapping with the Owl Beast's. She slams a hand to the bridge and the Owl Beast stands. The monster advances on the girls, who back away. The Owl Beast tries to pounce and Luz ducks behind Esper but the impact never comes... The two look up to see Lilith binding the Owl Beast and dragging it halfway across the bridge with her staff.
The Raven Lady smiles at her family, "Come along, sister. Now we can let the healing begin!" She looks up to Belos, who turns away.
Luz shouts at her, "You monster!" The human jumps on Lilith's back and tries to drag her down.
Esper gasps while grabbing her burned hand, "Luz!"
Lilith grabs her by the cowl and throws her, "Leave, human! She grabs Owlbert from midair, "Edalyn is finally with her family. Her real family!" She turns to the redheaded witch holding her human friend, "Not that you would understand any of that. Betrayer of your own kind!"
The raven witch taps her staff on the bridge. The gears below start to turn which pull the bridge toward the castle.
The dark haired woman glares at the two of them, "Go back to your world. This one is ours."
Luz runs from Esper's grip and tries to chase after them, but can't. The doors to the castle close with a haunting echo...
...
The human and the witchling are slowly walking back to the Owl House. The sun is rising to reveal that the two had been walking all night. Esper wipes at her eyes with noticeable tears building up in her face.
Hooty yawns before smiling at the human, "Oh, Luz, there you are!"
The brunette frowns at him, "Hi, Hooty."
Luz opens the door to the dark living room. She looks at the side, her eyes widening and she gasps. There are balloons and streamers hung up. Party hats are on the couches, and confetti is on the floor. Esper looks away in shame. Luz's new cape is wrapped in a bow on the table, next to King's cake... The candles of which have long burned out.
King bursts out of the cake and gasps, "The cake is me!" He looks around and frowns, "Hey, um, where's Eda?"
Luz gasps and her eyes suddenly fill with tears when she falls to the floor. Hooty and Esper look at her in concern. The witch wipes at her own eyes aggressively before wrapping her friend in a hug... Both Hooty and King join in the hug to comfort the two of them...
...
To Be Continued...
