Another day, another chapter. Looks like this is the end of S2 for the show. I will still be mainly relying on the flow of the show for the chapter. Of course, my original text will be interwoven within, so we'll see how that goes. I hope this chapter is as enjoyable to read as the last. Leave a review if you'd like.
King awoke floating in a dream-like state. Nearby, he heard the voice of a child.
"You said you'd let me out!" The childish voice screamed.
There was a second voice after, that was all too familiar to King. "We have to wait after the Draining Spell." Belos's sick voice sent a tingling down King's stomach. It was like he was being stabbed by needles. King rounded a corner to eavesdrop on the conversation, seeing a shadowy figure conversing with Belos through a mirror.
"You better not be fibbin'! You pinky-swore me." The child responded.
"Patience, Collector. You can trust me." Belos replied in his usual calm and collected, but deceptive voice.
King scoffed and rolled his eyes at the audacity of Belos's statement. If the figure had legs, he would have leapt at King, "Hmm? Who's there?!"
King finally woke up in the real world, leaving the nightmarish realm from his dream. He laid on the arm of Calus's throne. A part of him was disappointed to still be there, but he knew he had to stay for the greater good of the Isles.
Calus returned to his throne room, opulent as ever. "Ah, I see you've woken from your nap, my little friend. I hope your dreams were those of what the Isles would be like without Belos."
King shook his head, "I wish. I actually think I finally saw the Collector in my dream. He was talking with Belos, talking about being freed. But isn't that what you're trying to do?"
Calus sighed, "It pains me to know the Collector is still trying to get through to Belos. Yes, we both are trying to free the Collector. Except I am the only one actually trying, from what I've been told. Not only is he a tyrant, but a compulsive liar and manipulator too. You already know that too well."
"You wanna know the weirdest part about it? It didn't feel like a dream, but it was like I was actually there. Like I was meant to be there, or something."
"The mind plays many tricks. But if you felt like you were meant to be there. Then perhaps that is your destiny, telling you to save a life, and many more."
"Yeah, maybe you're right." King looked Calus in the face, "You know, I don't really like you, especially after you tried to kill us a few times. But you're not a completely terrible guy." King turned away and whispered to himself, "Still really evil though."
"I'm not sure whether to consider that a compliment or an insult, but either way, I take it with modesty." A Centurion walked up to Calus and informed him that the legion was ready to move. Calus nodded and dismissed the Centurion. "I never learned your name."
"King. My name is King. I'd appreciate it if you stopped calling me names." King said with sass.
"My apologies, it won't happen again. Not from me at least. But, please, come along, King. I've been informed that the Day of Unity is almost beginning. We have to be there before it could take irreversible effects. This is your chance to be hailed as a hero of the Demon Realm!" Calus extended his hand to King, letting the little Demon climb around him and up to his shoulder.
On the way to the spire where the Draining Spell would take place, the Hexsquad and Alador were all dejected, having lost two of their friends to two different foes, their palismans were all cuddled against each other, trying to stay warm against the cold air. Hunter fumbled around the controls of the ship. Alador looked over his shoulder, annoyed, "I know how to fly a ship."
"Then fly faster! We're barely halfway there!" Amity yelled angrily. "Luz could be in trouble!" She looked to be just as tired as the others were.
"Maybe if I took the wheel…" Hunter said smugly, placing a hand on his chin.
"Eager to return to Belos, eh, Golden Guard?" Alador remarked.
"At least I never built him an army!" Hunter pointed a finger right at the old man's face.
"You watch your tone with me, young man!" Alador snapped back, taking a hand off the wheel and nearly flipping the entire ship over.
Gus fell off the crate he sat on, "Hey, here's a bright idea: Don't distract the pilot." He suggested furiously.
"He started it!" Hunter yelled. Within seconds, Amity, Gus, Hunter and Alador all resorted to arguing it out, all while Willow sat in the back. She watched on as all she could think about was helping Luz and King, but first she needed to stop her friends from tearing each other apart. She held her palisman, Clover, on her finger and sent her over to the others. The pals all pushed a crate of food over to the others and opened it. They turned their attention to the crate and all stopped their bickering and their stomachs growled.
"Look, we're all exhausted and terrified. Let's focus our energy on saving Luz and King instead of fighting each other." Amity said, trying to calm everyone down. The others nodded and grabbed pieces of food. Gus and Hunter fist bumped each other with glee. Alador walked over to Hunter and finally allowed him to fly the ship with a smile on his face. On the other side, Amity shivered, rubbing her hands together, trying to keep them warm. Alador shot abomination goo onto her hands forming mittens on them. "Hmm? Aww, this is just like when I was a kid." Alador sat next to her and smiled, "Wait, is this why you call me Mittens?!" Alador simply closed his eyes, happily eating his loaf of bread.
Willow looked on with a smile as Clover flew back to her. "We're coming, Luz. And we'll be there for you, King." She said to herself.
At the Titan's head, hundreds of thousands of people from all around the Demon Realm gained entry into the Day of Unity's site. All wearing cloaks and divided into sections based on their Covens. There was triumphant music, and chattering amongst them all that almost drowned the music out. Everyone fell silent as Belos took their attention atop the spire with the Coven Heads. He smiled, and shortly after, a large holographic projection of himself appeared in front of everyone, his accursed skin going over some of his face. He was greeted with a roar of cheering and applause from his subjects.
He summoned his staff in his hand, "Children of the Isles, for too long our world has been home to an insidious pox. A corruption that defiles the Titan's blessings. But today that changes." He directed his attention to the sun and moon, "United with the Titan and the power of the eclipse, we shall wipe out wild magic forever. Paradise awaits!" He spread his arms out as his projection disappeared, still to the roar of cheering from the citizens of the Demon Realm.
The Coven Heads all climbed up the stairs to the top of the spire, taking their positions where they would be used as a conduit for the spell. Inside one of the stairways, Raine watched on as his colleagues took their places. Behind them, Eda and Lilith both exhaled deeply as they were finally able to become visible again. Disguised as scouts, Katya and Derwin both gave a thumbs up to Lilith.
"Whoo! That last stretch was a long one!" Eda cracked her back and popped her arm off, before placing it back on.
"Hey, pay attention." Raine said. "The other Coven Heads think they're gonna be royalty after today. And they'll do anything to make that happen. The cloaking stone won't cover your voice, so make sure not to speak." They explained thoroughly as Eda continued to crack and stretch her bones. "Also-"
Eda grabbed Raine by the shoulder, "The curse will do its thing. I got this, Rainstorm. Don't worry."
Raine backed away from Eda, "Don't." They took another step forward as they took Eda's hand and looked at the Bard Coven sigil on her wrist, "Don't tell me not to worry."
Lilith ran over and hugged her sister tight with Hooty on her back, "Edalyn, please be careful! If you need help, just, uh, flap your arms!" She said holding Eda's hands.
"Or scream real loud!" Hooty added.
Eda held Lilith's face, "Don't worry, Lily. With his spell declared, I promise I'll be back."
Lilith started to well up with a slight smile on her face, "That's not a spell. Doesn't even rhyme." The two sisters touched their foreheads together, and Hooty, also with tears in his eyes, came between the two, and received a smooch on the head from Eda. Shortly after, Eda used the cloaking to transform herself into Raine. She met up with Darius and Eberwolf who waited for her at the bottom of the staircase. She looked behind her to see Lilith and Raine looking on at her. She winked at them and walked up the stairs.
They walked into the circle with the other Coven Heads, with Belos standing in the middle. Belos smiled, "Oh! I forgot to mention, I decided to switch up the arrangement." He said smugly. This surprised Eda, Darius and Eberwolf. Eda stayed in her spot, while Darius and Eberwolf were forced away, and Adrian Graye and Terra Snapdragon took their spots, standing in between Eda.
"Hello, Sprout." Terra said with a terrible smile on her face.
Belos began to draw lines around the Coven Heads, all leading to a central circle in the middle. He raised his staff in the air as the sun and moon eclipsed, "Goodbye, Boiling Isles." He slammed his staff down, and the circle began to glow. The Coven Heads were all engulfed in beams of light. The sigils on everyone below and atop began to glow and hum, signaling the start of the Draining Spell. Eda looked at her sigil in worry, while Belos teleported away and into his lair in the Titan's head.
"We did it! It's done! It's done!" The Collector cheered. He appeared behind Belos, "Now you can set me free and we can play new games!"
"I'm afraid that's impossible." Belos walked over to a large device, and placed the Collector's mirror on a nearby table.
"Excuse a-what now? B-But you said you'd use the Titan's blood to help free me!"
Belos took his cloak off, revealing his attire he wore ever since he arrived in the Demon Realm, "And I'm sorry, I just realized I only have enough Titan's blood to open the portal." He took a key off his neck that had a small amount of Titan's blood in it. He cracked the key open and poured the blood into an input device that powered a portal door to the Human Realm. The machine whirred to life and a swirling portal inside the door frame was waiting to be crossed through.
Collector grew in size and shadowed over the portal, "You said we were friends! W-We pinky-swore! You lied!" Collector threw a tantrum calling Belos a liar several times over and over.
Belos swiped his cursed skin off his face. Growing tired of Collector's incessant rambling, he placed a cloth over the mirror, effectively ridding him of his presence.
Kikimora arrived in Belos's lair in her Abomatron suit, desperation coating her face. She kneeled, "Emperor, congratulations on this momentous day. I come bearing a gift. You had been looking for the Golden Guard, and here he is!" She held the bubble containing Luz in front of Belos. "Perhaps this act is worthy of returning me to my old post. Or if you're looking for a new right hand…"
Belos leant down to expect the bubble, "Have you as a right hand? I'd sooner cut off my whole arm." He mocked her.
"But, uh, I just want to help." She responded desperately, clinging to the front of her mech.
"You want to help?" Belos chuckled. He threw Kikimora's suit out the door. His former assistant's eyes looked like they lacked life, she could only give a thousand yard stare to her former leader. Belos leant over to her, "Go find a hole to wither away in." He walked to an edge with the Collector's mirror, "And you." He took the cloth off the mirror.
The Collector returned enraged, "I taught you the Draining Spell! I taught you magic stronger than anybody's!"
"And that's why I won't release you. Can't have you giving that to anyone else." Belos responded.
"You're going to regret this!"
"I will?" Belos chuckled.
"When my buddy turns you into a speck on the wall, don't come to me for any help!"
"I'll take that into consideration. Goodbye." Belos dropped the mirror into a deep pit below.
"You're a liar, liar, pants on fire!" Collector screamed as he was dropped.
"Of course she'd mess up such a simple task." Belos looked over the bubble. He opened it with his staff and released Luz from it. "But I am glad to see you, my fellow Human. What? No fight left? Or did you learn your lesson from our last encounter?"
"You wish!" Luz inhaled and slapped an invisibility glyph on to herself. Within a second she reappeared behind him again, throwing a fire glyph at him.
Belos was faster, and blocked the glyph with his staff magic, "Of course not."
The humming of all the sigils across the Isles started to get louder, but the full effects of the Draining Spell had yet to set in, so the crowds kept cheering louder and louder. Despite this, the Hexsquad were still hot on the trail of Luz. Though, they were unpleasantly surprised that they were being pursued by another airship commanded by a Coven scout accommodated by Abomatons.
A scout yelled from the opposite ship, "Your ship has been reported stolen! Land immediately!" He commanded.
Amity looked over the railing and sighed, furrowing her brow, "Mom."
Gus put the ship under the illusion of being a flock of birds to cover their escape.
"Don't be fooled, take 'em down!" The scout ordered. The Abomatons aimed their weapons at the illusory birds, but were unable to hit them. The scout then came under assault from Hunter, who wrapped his cloak around and tripped the scout over. An Abomaton slapped Hunter off his staff, sending him falling. Flapjack flew after him, but wasn't fast enough. Willow luckily swooped in on her staff to save him. Hunter was more than relieved to have been saved as Flapjack flew back into his hand. Meanwhile, Amity shut down the Abomatons using a remote, stopping their assault.
Gus dropped his illusion as the others flew back to the ship, while Alador cursed himself for making his creations stronger than he should have.
Nearby, Loyalist ships were converging on the spire. Some landed farther away, while others kept moving closer. Calus hailed Za'aurk's ship, which the Primus answered immediately. "Za'aurk, you will take the majority of our forces and lead them to the base of the spire. Crush any opposition." Za'aurk nodded, and was about to turn the transmission off. "Oh, and do be careful not to harm any of the innocents. We want to be believable." Za'aurk nodded once again and cut the feed. Meanwhile, King sat on the emperor's shoulder squinting his eyes looking at Calus suspiciously.
Calus pointed to the spire, "Do you see, my friend. The root of death. Such a sad sight to see, all those people manipulated. You will be saving them all."
King wasn't so sure how much truth Calus's words held, but a large part wanted to believe him, so he went along with it. He caught a glimpse of one of the dropship's mounted cameras, seeing an airship of people he felt he recognized. "Hey, Mr. Pilot. Can you zoom that camera in?" He pointed to the camera focused on the ship. The pilot obliged, magnifying the camera.
King climbed down Calus and over to the camera, looking closely into it, seeing all his friends. He smiled widely, knowing they were safe, but a second glance filled him with dread, seeing they were being pursued by two other airships, full of Abomatons. "Hey, we have to help them!" He pointed to the camera.
"I am afraid that we have no time to save them. They've survived my Loyalists. They can certainly survive those brutish machines. Our course is charted for the Titan's head alone." Calus responded without a hint of worry in his voice.
"But you have to! They'll die if we don't help!"
"And thousands more will perish if we divert our course." Calus continued to look out the ship's cockpit window as they drew closer to the head, barely paying attention to King.
King could only watch in absolute terror as he watched the airship be shot down. He fell to his knees as the camera slowly panned away. Calus leaned forward, "King, my friend. It is a cruel world, there will always be death. Unfortunately, their time had come. I deeply wish I could have helped them, but the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. Keep that in mind."
The little demon could barely believe the words he was hearing. How could someone be so heartless, to not spare a few extra seconds to save the lives of others. The regret had already set in for King the moment he met Calus formally, but now he had no reason to think any differently of him. He could only hope that they somehow survived, through some miraculous event. "I hope it was worth it." King said, holding his head on his knees.
Meanwhile atop the spire, all the Coven Heads still stood tall, waiting for the spell to take place. Though, it started to grow weaker. Eda looked at her arm, which started to turn a dark gray. Her curse was weakening the spell, delaying it further. But the other Coven Heads caught wind of her deception. Terra grabbed her by the shoulders, "Looks like my suspicions were correct. Graye, if you'd please."
Adrian Graye walked forward with a wide smile on his face, "Gladly. I love a good twist." The illusion master cast a spell circle that revealed Eda's true form.
Eberwolf jumped to Eda's defense before being intercepted by Mason of the Construction Coven. Mason swung his hammer at Eberwolf, only for the beast to summon a swarm of insects upon the dwarf, taking him out of the fight.
"Oh, for Titan's sake," Darius took the form of an abomination with knife-like hands. He attacked Vitimir of the Potions Coven, who spewed poisonous breath at him. Darius retaliated with a swing to the head, but Vitimir disappeared before he could be injured. While Darius was distracted, Eberwolf was grabbed by an energy construct conjured by Osran, who slammed and pinned him to the ground. Darius turned around to try and save Eberwolf, but his companion was threatened at knife point by Hettie Cutburn. Darius reverted back to his original form, and was grabbed by Vitimir who pulled him back to his spot.
"You too, Darius?" Terra asked disappointedly. "Did you really think you'd get away with this?"
After the scuffle, the real Raine was brought atop, while Eda was taken away by Abomatons. "No! Raine!" She looked at Terra, who was smiling like a child on Christmas, about to receive her sought after gift. "Oh, you are making a big mistake!" Eda warned.
"My only mistake was letting you two live all those years ago." Terra remarked. Raine was dropped onto their spot, being held by an Abomaton. The Draining Spell's influence started to grow stronger once more. Terra cackled, already seeing only paradise in the future. The spell would soon be complete, as the moon was slowly but surely moving to eclipse the sun.
Calus's ship zipped over the spire, catching the attention of most of the citizens. Their attention was soon again diverted by the spell. The ship landed just outside of the head. The Palatini formed ranks outside of the ship's ramp as Calus walked down it, behind him was one of his guards holding King in a small containment cylinder. "Finally, the culmination of all my work here." He looked over the horizon, seeing the shining beam of light coming from the spire. "There could be no better way to celebrate this, other than making this world mine. And my friend, the Collector, will be freed. Ha! But on my leash." King's ears perked up hearing Calus's plan. Although, he didn't want anything to happen to him, so he kept silent. Calus led his men further into the head, and they marched through.
Back inside the head, Luz and Belos continued their clash with each other. Luz dodged a blast from Belos's staff and hid behind a dead tree stump, she took out an ice glyph and placed it on a nearby stump. Belos taunted her, "I didn't realize you're already combining glyphs. You do have a strange intuition with these. It took me years to figure that out"
Luz continued to place the ice glyphs around the room, even as Belos shot several blasts at her.
"It's almost like the Titan himself didn't want me to have that knowledge." Belos lamented as he nonchalantly let Luz carry out her plan. "Though you're still decades away from beating me." Suddenly, all of Luz's glyphs sprouted at Belos, shooting spiky glaciers at him, which he effortlessly melted away with his staff. After dodging a blast of fire, Belos snapped around, stretched his arm out and grabbed Luz.
"Eat dirt, Belos!" Luz yelled defiantly. She struggled to release herself from his grip, but Belos's cursed strength was too much for her.
"It's Philip. And despite our differences, I want to help you, Luz. I can send you home. I have just enough Titan's blood for one more trip." Belos bargained with Luz, he stared deep into her eyes trying to sway her, but Luz was having none of it. "Please. I don't want to see another Human life destroyed by this place.
Luz furrowed her brow and looked Belos right in the face, "You're such a hypocrite. You talk big about protecting humanity, but after everything you've done, you're barely Human yourself." As Luz said this, Belos's curse began to take form once more on his face.
"I do pity you. These monsters have warped your sense of reality. Perhaps it'd be merciful to put you out of your misery." Belos balled his fist, and began to petrify Luz, slowly turning her into stone.
"Wait! You-you can't…" Luz desperately looked around the room for any way to escape. On a table behind Belos, she spotted a branding glove. She knew what she had to do if she were able to somehow get free. "Y-You do realize you've been gone from the Human Realm for centuries. Times have changed. You wanna be known as the Emperor of the Witch Hunters, right?"
"Witch Hunter General." Belos responded emotionlessly, still in the process of petrifying Luz.
Luz continued her pleading, "Sure, sure. Uh, Witch Hunter General. But those aren't really a thing anymore. No one's gonna take you seriously if you start ranting about the Demon Realm. Not to mention a fashion sense like that. Yikes, my dude." Belos responded by slamming Luz against the table. Despite her injury, she was finally able to get a hold of the branding glove.
Belos chuckled lightly, "You're offering to be my modern-day guide?"
"I'm not offering anything. But I do want to make a deal." Luz replied, still being petrified. Belos raised an eyebrow. "I can't beat you. I know that. So I will return to the Human Realm and I will be your guide. If you spare my friends." Belos scoffed, he could care less for a guide if it meant the survival of even one Witch. "Come on. You'll need living proof that this realm exists. You'd do anything to save humanity. Well I'd do anything to save the people I love." Luz's eyes began to flood with tears. Please. Philip."
Belos smiled and reverted the petrification just before it could finish, "Fine." If he were anymore sadistic, he'd outright tell Luz he enjoyed seeing her suffer so much.
"Then shake on it, Human style." Luz held her hand out, with the other behind her back. Belos rolled his eyes. Luz pulled her other hand out to reveal there was nothing in it.
Belos reached out his hand, but before they could even touch hands, the doors on the room were busted open. In came Calus, laughing uncontrollably, like a maniac. "Am I interrupting anything? My Human friends." Calus looked at Luz. "So, you're faced with the end of a world, and you're betraying it to him? I thought you had more dignity than that." He turned his attention to Belos, "And you. Do you know how many centuries of progress you are halting right now? Frankly, I am impressed. But your Draining Spell will be for naught but a failed attempt at genocide."
Belos snarled, "What are you doing here?! We agreed upon a truce!" While Belos was distracted, Luz snuck away and hid behind the portal door.
Calus shook his head, "After recent events, I'm afraid that our visions simply no longer align. So, you will be dealt with, and your Draining Spell stopped."
Luz took her earpiece out of her pocket, and was about to contact Caiatl. But after hearing Calus, she raised an eyebrow, "Wait, is he turning…good?"
"That is why I need the Collector. Once they see I stopped the Draining Spell, these people will worship me like a god, and with their power, we could conquer the stars."
Luz was instantly met with disappointment, "Of course not." She activated the earpiece and hailed Caiatl's flagship.
Caiatl's deck crew immediately picked up the signal, "Incoming signal from the Human, Empress!" Caiatl nodded, and allowed it through.
"Caiatl, it's me, Luz. You know, the Human? Sorry it took so long to get to you, but that's not the point. Calus and Belos are here, right now. You need to get here fast! This could be our chance to get rid of both of them for good." Luz said, trying to keep as quiet as possible. "I can't promise I'll stay out of the way, but I'll do what I can to let you do your thing when you get here. Luz out." The transmission was cut then and there.
"Pinpoint the coordinates of the device." Caiatl ordered her bridge officers. She turned to Satuur who stood idle, "Valus, we leave immediately." The two made their way to the hangar, where Caiatl's chosen forces of about one hundred Ascendant Guard legionaries, incendiors and Psion already awaited their deployment. She spared no time for speeches, she and everyone with her were already motivated enough to carry out their objective. They boarded their respective ships and they were off, entering the portal. As they entered, the sun and moon had just reached an eclipse. As this happened, the giant beam of light emitting from the spire bursted with energy. This was Caiatl's beacon.
Back in Belos's lair, the two emperors were still busy going back and forth, the two seemingly unable to quit arguing like children. Luz took the opportunity to slap Belos's wrist with the branding glove. Belos screamed in pain as the Draining Spell began to take its effect on him too. "You fool! What have you done?!" His skin began to fracture ang glow a bright yellow.
"Amazing work, Human! I knew you were always on my side!" Calus expressed joyfully.
Luz crossed her arms in denial and furrowed her brow, "What?! No! Don't rope me in with you and your group! You just want to take over the Demon Realm and exploit everyone here! Just like you did in the past! It won't be happening again!"
"But don't you want peace for these people? Free of any vexation? They deserve a true emperor, one unlike him." Calus pointed to Belos.
Luz shook her head, "I'm sorry, but any type of peace that you're offering, I'm not for it. And I'm almost certain no one else would be down for it either. Except for about ten people here."
"Is that so? Well, your friend seems to think differently." One of Calus's guards brought out King trapped in his container. "Would you believe that he sided with me willingly? To end the suffering of these people, to bring a new age to them?"
"You let him go! Now!" Luz commanded. She took out a plethora of different glyphs, ready to use them in an instant.
Calus looked at Luz as her face widened with horror and disbelief he hadn't seen before. "I guess not. Perhaps hearing it from him would convince you." Calus grabbed King's prison and knocked on it, waking King from his slumber. "King, my friend. Tell the Human what we agreed upon."
King struggled to open his eyes, he looked at Calus, then at Luz, then back at Calus. He suddenly locked back on to Luz, "Luz, is that you? Why are you here?"
"I was here to stop Belos. But now I'm here to save you too." Luz grasped her glyphs tighter. "You didn't really side with Calus, did you?"
King looked down in shame, "Luz- I- He promised you and everyone else would be safe if I did. I couldn't think about anything else, not even myself."
Luz slowly loosened her grip on the glyphs, "King…" She was about to walk forward, until her ankle was grabbed by Belos.
"Wait… We aren't done yet!" Belos strained. He was forced to let go as his body pulsed in pain.
Belos wasn't alone in his suffering. Witches and Demons across the Isles also began to glow and fracture, clutching their wrists in pain. Citizens at the spire tried to leave, but were trapped by Abomatons holding a large bubble over the entire area, preventing any type of escape. Those most affected were the Coven heads atop the spire. Their entire bodies were instantly overtaken by the spell.
"No! We're too late." Darius lamented as he held his arm.
"What is happening?" Terra asked, confused and scared. "Raine, Belos is giving us paradise, right?" Raine shook their head. The Coven heads all dropped to their knees, being severely weakened, while Eda could only watch in horror. As the spell grew stronger, the sky turned a bloody red, and the boiling sea dried up.
In a matter of moments, the Loyalists caught wind of Caiatl's ships. Za'aurk ordered them to be shot down. Rows of colossi wielding heavy slug throwers and slug launchers opened fire on the ships, successfully shooting a majority of them down. Caiatl's ship was unfortunately no exception, as one of the engines was hit directly. The rest of her forces soon followed suit. Most crash landed in a near empty field. Miraculously, Caiatl's forces were all hardy enough to survive their landings. They rallied to their Empress, weapons in hand. They all had a set goal in mind, reach the spire, find Luz, and annihilate Calus and his Loyalists. Caiatl turned her attention from the giant beam of light to some noise not too far away. She looked down a hill to see a group of Witches fighting Abomatons. One of them she recognized. She contemplated helping them, or beelining it to Calus. Knowing her father, she knew he was probably in the middle of a speech, or taunting Luz. She slid down the hill to help. Her soldiers were confused, but followed her anyway.
"They just keep coming!" Amity yelled. "How many of these things did you guys make, dad?!"
"Just enough to get us killed it seems!" Alador responded as she shot a powerful blast of goo at a group of Abomatons.
"We're gonna get overrun!" Willow screamed, wrapping one of the constructs in a slew of vines.
"Don't worry, I'll cover your escape," Alador dropped an Abomaton remote into Amity's hands, "Take this."
"No, dad! We're not leaving you!" Amity resisted.
An Abomaton creeped up on the two, but before it could harm them, a large knife was driven through it from behind, and it was thrown to the ground. "Listen to your daughter, small man." Caiatl sheathed her knife. Satuur and a few other Cabal cleared out the rest of the Abomatons. The Valus sent a squad to sweep the area to prevent anymore sneak attacks.
Alador stepped in front of Amity and readied another spell, "There's more of these weird aliens?"
Amity peeked from behind her dad's arm, "Dad, wait! She's friendly!"
"Friendly? How much danger have you been getting into without any of us knowing?" Alador asked, with a slight smirk on his face, both disappointed and proud.
"That's against the point. She can help us get to Luz!" Amity turned around, "We're so glad you're here, Caiatl!" The others walked over and waved happily, though they weren't quite acquainted with the empress yet.
"We have to find Luz. She says she is in the same room as Calus and Belos. I do not know how dangerous Belos is, but Calus could do anything at any moment. She is in great danger being there alone." Caiatl said, looking to the spire.
"Oh, Luz." Amity said worriedly. "It's a good thing we know where she is then," Amity pointed to the Titan's head, "If that's where Belos is, then Luz and Calus are also there."
"And King is most likely there too!" Gus yelled.
"Great, a double takedown and a double rescue." Willow smashed a fist against her palm.
"Our route there will not be so easy. There are Loyalist garrisons placed all around the spire ahead, they'll shred us if we get too close." Satuur interjected. "And our ships are out of commission. I highly doubt we could ride their staffs up to the head."
Alador grunted and walked over to one of the Harvesters. He put his goggles on and began to inspect it, taking looks inside and out of the ship. "This…technology. It's thousands of years past our time!" He chimed, with a smile that spread across his face. "Do you mind?" He asked the ship's pilot, who was working on a busted engine. The pilot obliged and moved out of the way. Alador examined the engine and nodded his head, "While it is way out of my league, I think I could have this fixed in half an hour."
"Dad, you haven't even been close to one of those things before. What could you possibly do?"
"How can I call myself an engineer when I don't push myself to explore new possibilities, Mittens?" Alador turned to Caiatl, "I'll fly it in once I'm done. But I'll need the ground and sky to be threat free if you want to reach the head."
Caiatl nodded. "We'll fire a flare once we've cleared the threat," She said. Alador acknowledged and immediately got to work on the engine, being assisted by the pilot.
"If you want to go help your friend now, I suggest you go. The Loyalists won't be looking for you." Satuur said, holding his slug thrower up vertically to rest on it.
"But be careful around Calus. You already know how dangerous his second in command can be." Caiatl looked at Amity.
"We'll be safe, don't worry about us." Willow said, happily pointing to herself.
"It is a fleeting concept, but I wish you all good luck. We will be there to assist you." Caiatl offered a small bow to the young Witches as they flew away.
"Empress? Our next course of action?" Satuur asked, grabbing his slug thrower.
"We will destroy the Loyalist placements and clear a way for the small man to pick us up."
"The Loyalists far outnumber us, Empress. I am certain we could crumble their ranks, but it wouldn't take long until they deplete our numbers." A Psion remarked.
"The last time we were here, we were underprepared and easily overwhelmed. But now the tides turn, they may outnumber us now, but our prowess in battle far precedes theirs. This is no motivating speech, for this is something you all already know. You are warriors of the Cabal Ascendancy. There will be no defeat when we are so close to victory. Follow me into battle, not for glory, not for honor, but for a universe free of Calus and his parasitic followers. We will eat the mountains, and drink the seas." The Cabal all raised their weapons in the air and yelled screams of victory. "Let us go, and end this." Caiatl led her forces closer to the spire, ready to destroy any Loyalists they saw along the way.
Amity and the others arrived at the top of the spire to see the Coven heads and Eda all on the ground. They all seemed to be lifeless husks, stripped of all their energy, but they all continued to hold out to what last bit of life they each had.
Hunter knelt over Darius, "Darius? Darius? Darius, wake up!" The boy begged.
Amity ran over to an Abomaton holding Eda and deactivated it. Willow ran over and safely caught her, "I got her. She's not waking up!" She said worriedly.
Amity pointed forwards, "We have to get to the head. Luz could be in trouble." And so, the young Witches made their way to the head, on the final stretch of their journey to finally save Luz and King. They all hoped that for Luz's sake and everyone else on the Isles that they could make it there fast enough to help stop the spell, otherwise it'd spell doom for everyone.
Back in Belos's lair, Luz was still having a stand-off with Calus, while Belos writhed in pain. Luz shortly turned her attention to Belos, "Hey! If you stop the Draining Spell, you won't have to be in any more pain!"
Belos laughed through his agony, "You don't understand, I can't stop it, you can't stop it. No one can!" His laughter soon turned into the cracking of bones and the tearing of skin, as his flesh and body molded into a green, lanky, gooey monster. Blue eyes appeared on his back and face, while antlers grew from his 'skull' and his teeth protruded from his mouth. His true form was revealed to everyone in the room and any semblance of humanity left within him, if there ever was any, was now gone.
"Marvelous." Calus said. "Perhaps I could have my Psions study you too, Belos. Incapacitate him, whatever he is." Two of the Palatini walked toward Belos. They both grabbed his arms and were about to restrain him, but they were both flung away, one of them falling way down into the pit below. The other landed near Luz, which was almost a little too close for comfort. Luz scurried away. With Belos distracted, she set her eyes on King and trying to help him. A second group of Palatini raised their weapons and opened fire on Belos, who absorbed their shots.
Meanwhile, Luz got closer to King, under the cover of the pillars around the room. A stray bolt from a Cabal shotgun almost hit Luz square in the face. She recaptured her breath and continued forward. Belos threw one of the Cabal at the soldier holding King, loosening his grip on the container. It began to roll off the edge. "King!" Luz quit sneaking and bolted to save him. Just before he could fall, Luz used an ice glyph to create a wall that stopped the container. She ran over to King and fumbled around the container, trying to open it.
"Luz, the button on the side," King pointed to a big red button.
"Uh, right. I knew that." She pressed the button and the orange field around the container dissipated.
As soon as he was out, King hugged Luz as tightly as he could. "I thought I'd never see you again, Luz. Please don't disguise yourself as someone else and get captured again."
"That was a one time thing, won't be happening again. Now what's all this about 'joining' Calus." She squinted her eyes in suspicion.
"Well, after you were captured, I was captured. Or, well, I willingly went with the Loyalists. It was just to keep the others safe! I promise I wouldn't turn on you guys!" Tears began to stream down King's face.
Luz held his head up, "I know you wouldn't buddy." She rubbed and kissed his forehead, "But what you did should also be a one time thing. But we'll talk about it later, right now, we need to worry about stopping the Draining Spell. The thing is though, there's apparently no way to stop it."
"I think I know a way. When I was with Calus, he told me about a being named 'The Collector' and apparently he can stop the spell completely. I'm not sure how true that is though."
"We'll have to find him first," Luz said. "But he could be anywhere by now."
Loud grunts from the Cabal could be heard, but Belos screeched even louder, almost piercing the ears of everyone in the room. Sounds of struggle came from both ends, but it seemed like the Cabal were getting the upper hand.
"Find the Demon! Bring him back here, then we will find wherever The Collector is!" Calus barked. "I will not allow two measly Humans to belay the fate of this world. Not when we are so close to victory." One of Calus's soldiers obliged and patrolled the surrounding area, crushing everything in his path. Luz held King close to her, grasping him tightly almost like she would a plushie. The roaming Palatini stopped. He breathed heavily, wanting to say something, but couldn't as he wasn't even bred to be able to talk, but to only serve and destroy. He smashed the small little pillar Luz and King hid behind.
The two ran from him as fast as they could while he activated his wrist blade and chased them out the door of the lair. He used his jump pack to cut them off on the narrow bridge they stood upon, holding them up from a seemingly bottomless pit below. Luz held her arms out before the Palatini could do anything else, "Hey, you seem like a pretty rational guy! What if instead of slicing us up with that big sword on your arm, you just look the other way and go help your buddies kill the big goo demon back there, huh?"
The Palatini grunted and raised his arm and swung at Luz. Just before he could hit her, his arm was restrained by long vines, followed by his entire body. Luz was a little more than a few centimeters away from being sliced in half by the finest Cabal material. She wanted to faint, but she simply screamed, before exhaling at least twenty times until she calmed herself down. The Palatini was soon wrapped in the vines, and was brought down to the ground. As he dropped, Luz's friends were revealed behind him.
"We're here to help!" Willow said, kneeling after using her magic.
"Did you really think we wouldn't follow you?" Amity asked with a smile on her face.
"Yeah girl. Get with it." Gus added.
"You guys are literally the coolest." Luz exclaimed joyfully. The Palatini began to rise again, breaking out of his constraints, "The Loyalists decided to crash the party. They're being a help and a problem at the same time." The Cabal roared as he cocked his shotgun. He fired at Luz, but Amity shielded her and King from being shredded instantly.
He was once again restrained, but this time he pulled Willow towards him, flinging her against the ground. Luckily, Hunter teleported under her and caught her, just before she could be splattered against the ground like paste. "Now we're even," Hunter said as he set her down safely. He looked at his wrist as the Draining Spell eventually began to take its toll on him too.
Willow looked at him with concern on her face, "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Hunter groaned quietly. "Don't worry about it, let's get back to the fight." Willow nodded reluctantly and the two returned to fighting.
Gus summoned illusions of a squad of Imperial Cabal. The Palatini turned around, firing with precision into the illusions. Everytime he shot one, another one appeared. Luz and Amity took the opportunity to sneak attack him, using a combination of an ice glyph and abomination goo, an icy hand was formed around the Cabal's head. He panicked as his head froze over, stumbling around foolishly, crashing into one of the bridge's pillars, almost making it fall. Just before he could regain his bearings, the Cabal was pushed over the edge by a punch directly to the face and was sent falling down the pit, a fall he most certainly would not survive, even with his armor.
"It's not over yet, we still have Calus and Belos to deal with," Luz said. "And it looks like they have Belos under control. Just keep Calus away from King for now, and we can bide our time until Caiatl gets here."
Gus picked King up and placed him in a nearby doorway, leading down a path of stairs. "Buddy, it's about to get real scary. You stay here."
"But I can help!" King retorted.
"So, you managed to defeat one of my Palatini. I bred them to be the ideal Cabal soldier, yet they were defeated by such insignificant beings. No matter. They'll be perfected yet."
"Just give it up, Calus! Leave the Demon Realm, no one wants you here!" Luz pointed at the gargantuan Cabal, gritting her teeth in anger.
"Oh? But they will want me here, Human. I'm sure my objective here did not fall upon deaf ears. I know yours are ones that are always listening, nosy little wretches. But do not worry, I will not kill you for knowing. You simply just will not leave this room." Calus sneered at the group. "Just know that you are the ones letting the people of the Isles suffer by not handing the Demon to me."
"We aren't giving you King, just let it go!" Willow exclaimed.
Calus laughed boisterously, "Then so be it! Who in this realm would be able to stop me anyway?!"
Caiatl and her forces battled through waves of Loyalists on the path leading to the spire, taking them on head first with her hammer and projection rifle. She cut through legionaries to incendiors, while Satuur offered support from the back with his slug thrower, mowing down several enemies at a time.
"This is what I have waited for! Since we arrived here, I have only wanted the thrill of cutting through Loyalist dogs like a freshly sharpened knife!" He continued to unload into them, carefully and expertly weaving his weapon through his allies' positions. Psion Opti rained lightning down on their enemies from behind, and sent some flying through the air with powerful void blasts. A Loyalist centurion stood behind their lines, ordering their forces about. The centurion soon ordered the formation of an impenetrable line of phalanx shields. The shielded soldiers opened fire on the Imperials, while Psions took potshots at them from behind.
The Ascendant Guard took formation around Caiatl, forming a wall of meat and armor around her, "Psions! Make openings for us to rush through! We have to take out that centurion!" Caiatl ordered. The Opti spread out and began to bombard the phalanx line with lightning, forcing them to hold their shields up to defend themselves. Seeing an opportunity, Caiatl's legionaries sprayed down several of the phalanxes, swatting them down like annoying pests. Incendiors rushed through, purging those stripped of the Imperial faith in the embrace of the Empress's flame.
Caiatl rushed down the centurion and smashed his head with her hammer, his helmet cracked open leaving just the bottom half of his helmet intact. His skull was caved in and instantly killed him. As he fell, so did the rest of his unit. They continued on further, battling through many more Loyalists as they drew closer and closer. Soon, they reached the group of colossi that shot them down earlier. Within seconds, they were pinned down by a flurry of bullets and arc energy. Some guards were gunned down, not being fast enough to take cover.
Satuur dived next to Caiatl, "Empress, we won't get past those guns. I caught a glimpse of their lines earlier, and even if we tried to sneak around, we'd get caught."
"Our battle will not stop here. There must be another way." Caiatl raised her gun over her head and fired blindly, barely grazing one of the colossi.
"I believe I have a suggestion, though it may be risky and idiotic." Satuur said.
"I am listening," Caiatl continued to blindly shoot.
"Reinforcements by drop pods. They don't have to be precise, but as long as they can distract them long enough to divert their fire, then we can make our move and clear them out."
"Do it. I don't see them running out of ammunition any time soon."
Satuur was pleasantly surprised, but also amused at the Empress's answer, he radioed the flagship, ordering reinforcements and sending the coordinates of the Loyalist positions.
Five squads of legionaries rushed to large drop pods to be deployed into battle. The launcher operator closed the pods and secured them. There was no count down for them, as they were always prepared to be launched at excess speeds, hurtling through space. The squads launched one by one, making it through the portal safely. By the time they entered the Demon Realm's atmosphere, they were on the ground within seconds. One of them crushed a group of colossi, and as soon as the pods disintegrated, the legionaries jumped out, opening fire on any Cabal that sported any armor that wasn't blue.
Za'aurk spotted the drop pods. "Jam their communications! They won't be calling for anymore reinforcements!" A group of Psions worked in tandem to cut the communications of the Imperial Cabal.
The colossi stopped their suppressing fire, and focused on the legionaries. Caiatl's forces pressed forward again, flanking the distracted colossi. Satuur unleashed his cluster missiles on them, disorienting them and stopping their fire. They, and any support they had were quickly and swiftly dealt with. Caiatl shot a flare in the sky, signaling Alador. The Ascendant Guard began to secure the perimeter, making sure to hold off any Loyalists that would dare come their way. Through the woods, trees fell and animals scurried out. Val Vu'lam, followed by a squad of his traitorous followers exited the woodwork, coming through a blindspot that the Imperials missed.
The Ca'uor aspirant ordered his men to attack. Cabal still donning the armor of the Red Legion didn't even think twice before assaulting their former comrades. The two sides clashed, while Vu'lam kept his focus on Caiatl. The Val rushed her, "Caiatl! You interfere with Emperor Calus's plans! Surrender you and your forces now, or face death!"
"Fool. I face death with more anticipation than the thought of surrender. Especially to the likes of scum such as you. Calus will be stopped, and soon." Caiatl took her hammer off her back, "The penalty for insubordination is a painful death." Caiatl swung her hammer at the Val, which he dodged. He reacted with a burst of flame from his magma launcher. Some of the magma seared Caiatl's skin, leaving a terrible mark on her arm, but she fought through the pain. She was able to strike at Vu'lam's leg, knocking him over onto his fuel tank. Caiatl prepared to drop her hammer on his head, but was stopped when the Val shot a compression blast from his launcher directly into her face, knocking her away. Luckily her mask covered most of her face from the heat of the flame.
Vu'lam continued his hellish assault. Caiatl slowly backed away from him, returning fire with her projection rifle, hitting him a few times. Vu'lam slowly closed the distance, keeping the pressure on Caiatl with short but plentiful bursts of magma. Vu'lam took advantage of the area around, setting the area around the two on fire. "You'll see Acrius yet, Caiatl!"
Caiatl looked around, seeing the makeshift arena the Val had just created. Vu'lam ran towards Caiatl and used the sharp end of his launcher to slash at her. Caiatl dodged and retaliated with a backfist to his head, leaving him slightly dazed. Caiatl raised her gun and kicked Vu'lam away from her. She aimed her gun at his exposed fuel tank and took the shot. The Val shrieked as he tried to reach around and hold the flame in, but his arms were unfortunately too short. He screamed as his own weapon disintegrated him and most of his armor into a pile of ash.
As the fire circle began to die down, Caiatl stomped the rest of the flames out, trying to avoid any more damage. She regrouped with her forces who had just cleared out the rest of the traitors. They looked up to see Alador arriving in the repaired Harvester, its once broken engine replaced with a few spare parts from the deactivated Abomatons. The ship's pilot carefully landed the ship next to the others and lowered the ramp. Out came Alador and the pilot.
"Impressive, for a small man," Caiatl remarked as she examined the ship. "I've never seen another species be able to salvage Cabal technology like this, other than the Fallen."
"Well, I don't know about these 'Fallen' you mention. But I'd imagine they don't have the expertise I do." Alador adjusted his goggles and proudly raised a finger in the air, "It was quite easy you know. All I had to do was-"
Satuur interrupted the scientist to his chagrin, "Empress, our communications with the flagship have been cut. But it doesn't matter. This is the final stretch. Calus is just up there in the head and we're all more than ready to finish this."
"Valus, you're with me." She pointed to three Ascendant Guard legionaries. "You all will also accompany us. As for the rest of you, hold your positions. Ward off any Loyalists that come your way. We are on the cusp of victory, so do not falter now."
"And what about me?" Alador raised his hand.
"You can stay here. Regale the troops with stories from this realm," Satuur said as he and the others boarded the Harvester.
Alador grumbled as he adjusted his goggles, he looked up at an idle Psion, "So, you been in the job long?"
"I do not have time to entertain your senseless inquiries." The Psion communicated telepathically.
Alador rolled his eyes. He looked at his wrist, seeing the cracks begin to get worse and worse as time went on. He fell to his knees and grunted, looking up as the Harvester raced toward the head. "Help them stop the spell," The man said weakly, before slowly fading in and out of consciousness.
Back in the head, the Hexsquad began their battle with Calus, doing everything in their power to bring him down. Amity and Luz worked together to form a flaming abomination fist, socking Calus right in the face. He simply shook it off and used tendrils of Egregore to pick the two up. Hunter teleported into the air and sliced the tendrils up with his staff, releasing them both.
"Since when does he have magic?!" Amity asked.
"And why is it some type of weird plant magic?!" Willowed asked as she retaliated with her own magic, summoning a large carnivorous plant that tried to gnaw at Calus. The emperor used his brute strength and tore the plant from its roots, killing it instantly. He threw it back at Willow, who managed to block the plant with a wall of vines. "Sorry!" She said to the plant, she continued using her magic to keep the pressure on Calus.
"Alright. It's time for you to calm down," Gus stepped in, and using his magic amplifier, his eyes glowed a light blue and he reached into Calus's memories, forcing him to relive all his worst ones. Calus grabbed his head and screamed, falling to his knees, his immense weight shook the bridge and caused everyone else to fall over.
Despite being out of the way, King also fell over and down a nearby flight of stairs. He caught himself just before he could fall over the edge. He looked up to see his friends helping each other back up. "It's useless," A voice behind him said. King turned around to see Kikimora, still in her mech suit, yet she was severely weakened and dejected as the Draining Spell took its toll on her body. "They have no chance of stopping either of them. And they especially have no chance of stopping the Draining Spell," She moped. "Only the Collector has that power."
"I know who that is. He isn't a Witch or a Demon, or so I was told." King responded.
"Yes, he's a child from the stars. Belos only talked to him when he thought no one was around, but I was always listening."
"An opportunity. Take me to him! Maybe I can convince him to turn on Calus!"
"Sure, kid. If that means kicking the Emperor's butt, gladly." Kikimora got up and led King down the stairs, and into the pit where the Collector was dropped.
Calus began to snap out of Gus's trance, "Gah! I wanted to resolve our issues peacefully, with grace. But you have forced my gentle hand!" He slammed a fist next to the group. "If your bodies have to be the foundation for the future, then so be it." He stood back up, standing imposingly over the group. Calus dug his tendrils into the ground, and the Hexquad were all snatched up by them and held in the air. Calus brought them closer to his face, they involuntarily felt the disingenuous and disturbing aura. "You were given so many chances to simply ignore me. Now look where your incessant meddling has you." He began to slowly squeeze them as if they were objects to relieve stress. "Inconsequential creatures, the lot of you. But the rest will learn to adore me."
"Drop them, foul traitor!" Caiatl and her squad entered the room, weapons drawn.
Luz's eyes lit up, "Caiatl!" She and the others were suddenly thrown to the ground. She nearly fell down the pit, but she was luckily grabbed by Amity.
"Daughter. Have I not disciplined you enough already? Ever since you were a child I've taught you not to defy me. Yet since adolescence, you've continued to do exactly that. I should have cast those bastards Ghaul and Umun'arath to the dunes of Torobatl when you were born."
"Ghaul may have been a power-hungry emperor, and Umun'arath a tainted soul, but I have gained centuries of knowledge and experience from them. There is only one thing I have learned from you." Caiatl swung her hammer into her hands pridefully. "It is that family is nothing, when they treat you like a tool."
Amity rolled her eyes, "Pfft, I should have told my mom that," She grumbled.
"So face me, like a true Cabal!" Caiatl pointed the head of her hammer at Calus.
"You can be so difficult at times, Caiatl. This moment isn't about us battling, or fighting to the death. It is about waiting." Calus turned to the Hexsquad, "I see your friend, King is gone. Perhaps he is fulfilling his end of our deal?" Calus turned around and laughed. The others frantically searched for King. Calus walked up to Belos, who was subdued by Calus's soldiers and still in his true form. "You can finally be useful. I know you're angry at me, so angry. That is okay, my friend. Channel that anger on to them." The Palatini that restrained Belos picked him up and threw the enraged creature, human, whatever he was out of the room and onto the bridge with the others. Calus closed the door behind him and decided to wait out the onslaught. Belos banged on the door wildly, trying to get back to Calus. He then turned around and roared at the others, to their dismay.
Below the fray, Kikimora led King through a graveyard of sorts, where the masks and remains of previous Golden Guards were laid. King watched as a centipede-like insect crawled into one of the masks, "What is this place?" He asked with one hand over the other.
"Where the failures end up," Kikimora responded. She stopped as King approached the Collector's mirror, which was left intact despite its long fall. Right next to it was the Palatini that fell earlier. King recoiled in disgust as Titan blood began to seep through the area.
The little demon frighteningly touched the mirror. He jumped as it lit up and a shadowy figure poured out of it and onto the wall behind it, "Leave me alone. I don't associate with fibbers." The Collector bemoaned, crossing his arms. He blew a raspberry in King's direction. "Wait. I know someone's there. I can feel it. But why can't I see you?" He ignored Kikimora standing in the back.
King looked down to see his collar glowing, he took it off and the Collector was able to see him. The child gasped and flew around King, "He wasn't lying! I knew I could trust him! But wait… You look like that bully who put me in here. Are you really the little Titan baby? I've always wanted to play with you! But your dumb pops hid you. Hey, do you wanna play hide and seek? I'll hide first!" The Collector playfully teleported away.
King held his hand out, "Wait, wait! Mr. Collector. Please. We need you to stop the Draining Spell."
"Mister? You are so boring." Collector kicked his legs up and down, rolling his eyes.
King thought to himself for a second, "You know what's better than playing hide and seek? A game called "The" uh, "The Owl House"!" King exclaimed.
King suddenly caught the being's attention, "Ooh, how do you play?"
King continued his charade, "Oh, it is so fun. Like, the most fun. And I could show you if you want. We're gonna need a lot of players. Like a whole island's worth of players, but uh… Aw, shucks." King put a hand to his snout.
The Collector's face covered all the masks on the ground, "What's wrong?" The faces all asked at once.
King scratched his head awkwardly, "Well, gee, everyone's gonna perish from this ding-dang Draining Spell. Guess we can't play that awesome game after all." He dangled his arms in faux dejection. "Man, it was fun though."
The Collector appeared beneath King, imitating a Titan's horns, "Wait, if you're a Titan, you can let me out." Collector smiled joyfully, "I could stop the spell. And we could play together!"
"Golly! You'd do that?!"
"Wait. You're not tricking me into doing your chores like Philip, are you?" The Collector questioned.
"I would never! Pinky swear." King held his pinky out in front of the Collector. The celestial being simply laughed. The ground above shook and rocks fell from above as the others battled Belos above, which urged King to hurry "I'll even let you out right now. What do I need to do? Do-Do-Do you need my blood?"
"No, silly." The Collector moved over back to his mirror, shadowing over it with his pinky out, "Just follow my lead."
Belos roared and prepared to pulverize the kids, but Caiatl stopped him with a strike to the face from her hammer. "Stay behind me! Valus, guards, get to opening that door!" Satuur and the Ascendant Guards ran past Caiatl and began ramming the door, which was seemingly barricaded from the inside.
King slowly approached the Collector's mirror, and before touching it, he stopped. "I need you to promise me something." The Collector raised an eyebrow, "Promise me everyone will be safe. From Belos, from Calus or any other tyrants that are probably lurking here."
"I pinky promise." The Collector grinned and waved his pinky in the air. King touched the mirror with his pinky and it began to glow brightly. The two finally fulfilled their compromise, as the Collector's corporeal pinky met King's. A large shadowy circle consisting of imagery of the moon and other symbols appeared beneath them as King continued to pull the Collector out of his prison.
Back on the spire, Eda had woken up. The Draining Spell worked in tandem with her curse as her body slowly disintegrated. She screamed in pain, holding her arm. Then, Raine grabbed Eda's arm, "Raine?"
They looked up at Eda with cracks all over their body. "I promised a special kid I'd protect you," they strained. Raine used the last of their strength to rip the branded arm off of Eda's body, effectively stopping the Draining Spell from affecting her and stopping her from being disintegrated.
Eda embraced Raine's limp body in her hands as they passed out, "Raine!"
The Collector's mirror broke in two, and out of it a figure in a large cloak appeared, along with a bright blue light that blinded King and Kikimora.
As their battle continued, Belos gained the upper hand on Caiatl. Though she stood rocksteady, Belos continued to gradually pound her stamina down. The monster was able to get Caiatl on to one knee, he raised his hand and shaped it into a scythe and brought it down to slash at her and the Hexsquad. Luz and Amity embraced each other, while everyone else simply looked on. He was suddenly stopped completely. A small, child-like person wearing pajamas and a nightcap stood under Belos, holding his hand in place with between the tips of his index finger and thumb. "Whatcha playin'?"
Even Caiatl looked in surprise as the figure stared at them with a large smile on their face. Belos stepped back, "Collector? You're free. Just as promised." He didn't even try to free himself, only trying to get back on Collector's good side once more.
"As promised? I remember someone throwing me off a bridge." Collector placed a finger on his face, looking at Belos skeptically. "I'm not angry though. Say, you wanna play tag?" He whirled Belos's arm into just a nub, pulling the monster toward him. "I'm it." Collector lightly tapped on Belos's forehead, flinging him at the wall at unimaginable speeds, instantly splattering and turning him into a dark green stain on the wall. Everyone looked in disgust, watching Belos be defeated so easily but so brutally wasn't what they expected whatsoever. Collector giggled to himself, "Too slow."
Collector turned around to face the others, "You guys look slow too." He looked at them with an ominous but clueless expression. He walked toward them, holding his finger out.
Before they could share the same fate as Belos, King ran in front of Collector. "Woah, woah, Collector! Buddy, pal."
"King!" Collector raised his arms in jubilation, calming him down.
King knew he had to put on a good performance for Collector, lest he and his friends end up as red mists, "Remember what we talked about? You gotta help all my friends outside, or, uh, we won't get to play Owl House."
Luz joined in, "Uh, Owl House. Uh, gosh." Luz laughed awkwardly, but believably enough. "I love that game."
"The memories last a lifetime." Amity said.
"I play it everyday!" Willow added.
"I play it every hour!" Gus exclaimed.
Hunter smiled awkwardly, letting out a squeaking noise as he did so.
"I take leisure in playing Owl House…Every minute of free time I have." Caiatl chimed in.
"See? Even the big alien lady likes it!" King raised his arms in the air, "I'll explain the rules later, but remember, we need lots of players."
"Say, you kind of remind me of someone." Collector floated around Caiatl, touching her arms and poking her face. She didn't retaliate, knowing what he was capable of. "I think I know who! My friend, Calus!"
"Friend?" Caiatl asked. Satuur and the guards took a step back as the lair's doors opened.
"Yes, a best friend!" Calus walked out the doors, straight past the sneering Imperial Cabal and caught the attention of Collector. "Me and the Collector go far back. Centuries even. I made a promise to a child of the stars so long ago, and now look. It has been fulfilled."
"I would have liked it if you did it a little earlier, but that's water under the bridge. You freed me and that's all that matters!" Collector fired small fireworks out of his fingertips.
"And it shall stay that way for the rest of time. Now, Collector. I need you to stop the Draining Spell, please."
"Woah, wait, Collector! He's just using you to take over, don't listen to him!" Luz shouted.
"Yeah, don't you want to play Owl House with us?" King pleaded.
Collector turned back to King and the others, "I really do want to play, but…"
"Ah, you all are playing a game? Collector, I have an even better game that we can play. It has been so, so long since I have played it. Ever since I arrived here, I have been aching, dying even, just to be able to play it with someone else."
"Hm? What's the name of the game?" Collector asked.
"It is called…Leviathan. It is an experience to die for. A game that could grind up planets with how fun it is." Calus held his chest, "It would warm my heart if you would play it with me."
"It sounds cool. But wouldn't it just be us? That's so boring!" Collector grimaced.
"No, there would be many more people, just like their game. But mine would have many places to play. Along with the sheer amount of players we'd have! That is why you need to stop the Draining Spell."
Caiatl stood up, "Collector, I do not know you. But you would be unwise to trust anything Calus says. Just like Luz said, he is only using you to get what he wants."
"That true?" Collector raised an eyebrow at Calus.
"Would I break your trust for such selfish reasons? Besides, who would you rather believe, people you met just today, possibly trying to manipulate you? Or your centuries old friend, Calus, Emperor of All Joys?"
"Collector, please! Calus didn't free you, I did! Because I wanted to." King exclaimed, trying his best to sway Collector back to his side. "Stop the Draining Spell, then we can sort all this out."
"Hmm, okay." Collector walked past everyone and to an opening in the head, he squinted his eyes as he looked at the eclipse. He widened his eyes to look further ahead, seeing all the unconscious people on the ground, having the life sucked out of them. He raised a finger and swiped the moon out of the way of the sun, almost as if we were swiping on a phone. His actions ended the Draining Spell almost immediately. Everyone suffering from the spell woke up, feeling lightheaded and confused.
"Amazing." Calus walked over to the Collector, "Now, if we want to play Leviathan, then you'll need to actually bring the Leviathan here."
"Hm, I could probably do that." Collector thought to himself. "Hey, what do you guys think?" He asked the others. They all shook their heads. Collector shrugged, "It looks like they don't want to play your game, Calus."
"Collector, their lives are…fragile. Cabal lives aren't fragile. We could play forever and ever, however you want, and whenever you want." Calus responded with a large smile on his face.
"Alright, alright. I know what to do. The last thing that I think about wins!"
Everyone looked at each other with worried looks on their faces.
"Eeny meeny miny moe- Ugh! I keep thinking about them both at the same time!" Collector turned back to face everyone, "Hey, I have an idea! What if we played both games at once?" Collector floated in the air and clapped his hands together, then the head began to break apart. Cracks began to form as the very ground everyone stood on began to crumble and fall apart. "What are you guys thinking? Owl Leviathan? Or how about Leviathan House?" Collector spun around in the air, waving a hand around, further breaking apart the head, "We're gonna have a blast everyone!"
"Collector! What are you doing?!" King cried out.
"Starting his 'game'." Caiatl replied. "Hurry, leave!" She took her hammer off the ground.
Willow looked back, seeing the portal door still powered on and intact, "I think there's a way out!" Luz picked up King and everyone ran for the door. Suddenly Luz stopped and looked back at the Isles.
"Luz, come on!" Amity grabbed Luz's arm.
Tears formed in Luz's eyes as she stood in shock, "Everyone. Eda. I-I can't just leave them."
Amity grabbed Luz's hand, "Luz, please." Luz closed her eyes and ran away with Amity.
As they ran, the Palatini tried to stop them from escaping, taking swipes and firing at them. Caiatl and her squad took their attention. "Go, little ones! They won't even get close to you." Satuur yelled as his slug thrower peppered the Loyalists. A legionary jumped in and stabbed one of the Loyalists in the neck, popping his helmet off and instantly killing him. The legionary urged them to hurry, waving his hand for them to go.
Hunter stopped short of the door, seeing the puddle of whatever was left of Belos. Gus called for him, and Hunter aggressively stepped in the puddle continuing to make it for the door.
The portal door began to flash and give way as it started to slowly fall apart due to the rumbling. Hunter opened the door to reveal the swirling portal. Suddenly the swirling changed into rain, real Human Realm rain. "It's Human rain, It's okay." Gus said as Hunter and Willow followed him in.
Amity stopped, "Luz?" She turned around to see Luz holding herself and King down with plant glyphs. She used more to hold the portal intact so everyone else could make it in safely. "Luz, what are you doing?"
Luz strained, "I-I have to get Eda. We'll find a way back to you." Collector noticed King on Luz's back. "Go! Go, go go! I-I can't hold the portal much longer!" Collector began to pull the little demon up towards him, along with Calus, who slowly and powerlessly orbited around the powerful being. "King!" Luz held her arm out and King grabbed it.
"King, you promised you'd play with me!" Collector shouted angrily. "You pinky swore!" He strengthened his pull on King.
"Human, don't be foolish!" Caiatl yelled as she slammed a Palatini to the ground and stomped on their head. "Go through the portal! We'll keep him safe!" Caiatl turned to face the Collector and Calus, pulling out her projection rifle and firing at the both of them.
"We gotta stick together. We gotta stick together." Tears poured out of Luz's eyes.
"I'm sorry. Not this time. But I can keep you safe."
"No!" Luz sobbed.
King smiled, "Luz, I'm so happy I had you as a big sister." King let out a supersonic scream that pushed the Hexsquad into the portal, closing the door behind them. They were all now in the Human Realm, laying in the muddy ground as the rain continued to pour.
"No! King!" Luz got up and ran back to the door, opening and closing it shut, hoping to see the portal again. But to her dismay, she could only see the inside of the very shack where her whole adventure in the Demon Realm started. She turned around, dumbfounded and in shock. She looked at her friends who were just as distraught as she was. Gus burst into tears and fell to the ground.
Inside a nearby residence, a woman walked into her kitchen and began to stir up a pot of soup on the stove. A basilisk from the Demon Realm was behind her, though the woman wasn't bothered by their presence one bit. She heard a knock on the door and went to answer it. To the woman's surprise, she saw a group of roughed up kids in tattered clothes, and bruises all over their bodies standing at her doorstep. Once she realized who was in the middle of them all, she gasped, not believing her eyes.
Luz looked up, "Hey mom. I'm back." Luz smiled as she held her arms out.
Well, that's the end of this chapter, and man has it been a crazy ride for me writing up to this point since chapter 1. First of all, a few things to say. To anyone who's been reading up to this point, thank you. I know this isn't exactly the best piece of fanfiction, not by a long shot, but I've spent a lot of time writing and 'planning' things out for this. Quotations on the planning since brainstorming for me lasted about 5 minutes before I thought of something cool to do and revolved the whole chapter around that. But hey, just about most things turned out the way I wanted them to. Once again, I appreciate you all, even if you didn't leave any reviews or nothin' like that. I just wanted to write and add something to this teeny tiny little corner of this site and that's what I did. And you know? I could have done better, but I feel this is alright how it is. All things considered, I'd say things went according to how I saw them a year ago. Also, only chapter 15 after a whole year? You must think I'm crazily lazy. And to that I say that it's true to an extent, but I did what I thought was necessary to not burn myself out, along with everything else going on. But I got here, so that's all that matters.
Now to talk about what I MIGHT have done differently in this chapter because I have to do that everytime for some reason. So, there's not much I would have changed really, except for the end. Originally, I was just gonna have Calus keep King away from the Collector and just use him for his own schemes. And do y'know, what a Calus does. Experiment on poor and unfortunate creatures. But I figured going with the 'original' ending of the season would be better. Along with that, I was gonna have Calus just throw the Hexsquad into the portal himself, but I just didn't have the heart to change the ending like that.
Finally at the end of this addendum. I will continue to write for this fic. When? I'm not sure, but I'm going to take a break from writing for a little bit to focus on le school and work. But worry not, as I won't be leaving this fic just like that. I've hit a stride from writing in tandem with the flow of the show, so that's been a big help. Although, I'm not very sure how I'll go about writing for the first episode of season 3. I might end up skimming through it and changing some things to get our heroes back to the Demon Realm. I'll probably end up doing chapters without any episodic structure from the show before the Hexsquad gets back to the Demon Realm, but we'll see. Other than that, I have a plan for most peeps that I feel didn't get the time they deserved. Like Hunter and King. Even Eda perhaps. I have a few ideas on where I want to go with this and I'll try my best to implement them into the next chapters.
And with that, I'll be signing off here. Thanks to those who stuck around with this fic up until now. I did the best I could with what little experience I have, but I'm very proud of it either way. Dunno when this'll be back, but oh, trust me, it'll be back with many minds of opulence! Leave a review if ya want, watch the Owl House if you haven't yet, and see y'all in the next one! :salute: