Welcome, one and all, to a special treat! This is your author, SuperHeroTimeFan, coming back to FanFiction with part one of a special arc for my The Owl House and MegaMan NT Warrior crossover story, Owl House: NT Witch! It had been a while since my last update, but there is a reason for that. This here starts the first half of my new arc, the Dem-N1 Grand Prix Arc. This is only part one, as the full thing consists of six chapters. I, of course, will only start with three, and then the rest will come later on to kick off the second season events of the story. So thank you all for continuing to support and like my story, especially Blackmetalzane22 and Cloud4012. The support from the two of you and everyone else really means a lot. And thank you for continuing to like the art I make for the story on DeviantArt and adding to the TV Tropes page for the story. It really helps to keep me motivated. To those who had been wondering about my twenty competitors error from the previous chapter, I apologize. With all the restarts that my laptop went through at the time, I kept losing track of what I was doing, and ended up accidentally skipping over the ninth spot. But now, I have fixed it, so there should be no more confusion. With that out of the way, I apologize for the delay, as I had tried to the entire three chapters for a same-day release. With how busy things have gotten, they will now be released independently. Now, without further ado, here we go! Please be sure to review, rate, and as always, please be sure to enjoy!
Chapter 19: Start It! The Dem-N1 Grand Prix! (Day 1)
At the Emperor's Palace, the Golden Guard was watching over a recording of the recent execution of a Darkloid from Saturday's sudden Darkloid attack. Underneath his mask as several Coven Scouts watched as well, he could only grin.
"This is a proud day for us all," the Golden Guard announced as the Coven Scouts who partook in the takedown nodded in agreement. "After Luzura Incorporated and those with CrossFusion have had more luck defeating Darkloids, we have finally been able to prove capable of doing it ourselves. Where she was absent throughout that day, we were able to step in and destroy one of those… just as Emperor Belos told us the Titan had foretold."
At that moment, the Crystal Ball turned on. The Golden Guard and the other Coven Scouts turned to it as Octavia appeared.
"Finally, not even the people or the media can cover this." The Golden Guard said as Lilith nearby watched as well.
"Thanks to the efforts of Team CrossFusion, with an assist from the Emperor's Coven," Octavia started out, causing the Golden Guard to clench his fist, getting the attention of his fellow scouts. "The Darkloid attacks have been contained. And just in time too, for come Monday, the Dem-N1 Grand Prix will officially begin!"
"Huh," a Coven Scout said. "I'm gonna have to get tickets to see how that goes down."
"An assist?!" the Golden Guard snapped, getting the scouts around him to look to him with worry as he destroyed a training dummy with his staff in rage. "All that effort to take down that Darkloid, and all we are credited for is an assist?!"
"Coming in at nineteen, sharing the spot together, we have Blake and Holly with their Navis, the Ferham Sisters!"
"Keep in mind, child," Lilith said, walking over to the Golden Guard as he kicked over some weights. "That the Emperor's Coven has proven to be far from perfect when it comes to dealing with the Darkloid threat, whereas those associated with Luzura Incorporated have had more success, and therefore, the faith of the people on their side."
"It's outrageous, it's unfair!" the Golden Guard continued to rant. "We fought for them on that day more than those witches, and this is the thanks we get?!"
"Fifteenth shows Morgan Terry and her Navi, Leviathan, while fourteen's spot is claimed by Elijah Avery and Rico!"
"Even the Emperor should know that a single victory will not be able to get us back in the good graces of the people," Lilith said, poking the Golden Guard in the chest while grabbing his staff to diminish the damage he was making from his tantrum. "As should you. We each have a long way to go before we can truly claim to be as adept in dealing with Darkloids as Luz Noceda, Azura and their friends are." She said as she walked away, taking her Maverick Hunters, who had remained silent yet alarmed by what had been shown by the Golden Guard, with her.
"The Dem-N1 begins after tomorrow," Octavia finished up as several other Coven Scouts had backed out of the tirade to watch her announce the qualifying candidates for the Dem-N1 Grand Prix, which the Golden Guard turned back to see her wrap up. "This will be a blast, everyone! So stay tuned!"
"Enjoy that day, human and company," the Golden Guard said as he turned off the Crystal Ball. "We shall have ours soon enough." He declared before walking away, closing the doors behind him as the lights went out.
Monday soon arrived, and in front of the Convention Center of Bonesborough, Octavia stood with her microphone in hand, recording her broadcast as several witches and demons came by to make their way inside.
"Hello to all across the Demon Realm!" Octavia announced. "The day you have all been waiting for has finally arrived! I am Octavia Porter, standing outside of the Bonesborough Convention Center, where the Dem-N1 Grand Prix is soon set to begin!"
All across the Demon Realm, witches and demons watched on their own devices or on public large screens the Dem-N1 Grand Prix as Octavia continued to report it. Even Principal Bump was watching on his Scroll PET as he made his way inside, while from Blight Manor, Odalia scowled at the sight before turning her Crystal Ball off and making her way out of the abode.
"Witches and Demons here have been waiting for this event to start since the crack of dawn, all hoping to get front-row seats to see this all unfold," Octavia went on as several people had tents set outside of the Convention Center, with some getting up and getting in line once they woke up. "And inside is more packed than the day of the Covention, as sponsors for all competitors have set up booths to promote them, same with snack, sale and Chip Vendors to hype up the moment, both in the hall here and in the network on MagiNet City. Take it away, my Navi Homie, Morningstar!"
With that, a new Navi appeared in front of the MagiNet Server of the Convention Hall. He had silver armor with gold accents, a helm with a headset resembling headphones, a visor over his eyes, and a Navi Crest resembling a sunset on his chest.
"Great to be here in MagiNet City today, Octavia!" Morningstar announced from within the MagiNet. "Just like the Convention Hall, we've got Navis, both NetOp-owned and Solo, are here to watch and participate in all these upcoming NetBattles! Even the training arenas are packed in anticipation for these events, and now, here comes the Navi of Chip Seller, Higsby, known as NumberMan!" he said as NumberMan came over, selling Battle Chips to every Navi who passed him. "NumberMan, everyone here is relatively new to the trend of the Net, and ever since the opening of MagiNet City, your shop has been packed! What do you wish to see coming out from all of this?"
"Thank you, it means a lot to be helping a new generation," NumberMan started out. "Higsby and I see everyone here as new people to gain Battle Chips, and while it helps us financially, it further pleases us to see them make their mark on the world of NetBattling. With this, we hope to give some of the best Battle Chips, and see how they get used. It is all about how they are used, not about the power they hold. In the end, the NetBattler and NetNavi make the best out of every Battle Chip they use."
"Such wise words from a professional who fought in the original N1 Grand Prix," Morningstar said. "How are things out there, Octavia?" he asked.
"Just as packed as before," Octavia said as her cameras started to show the Convention Hall becoming more packed than it was earlier. "We're getting tons of supporters for each of the qualifying contestants, some even from each school, with a majority of them coming from my alma mater, Hexside!"
Indeed, Octavia was right. Either visiting the different booths and stands or taking pictures of posters showing the different contestants were a majority of students and teachers from Hexside. Eileen was taking Selfies with some cutouts of Boscha, Bo was looking at the selection of Battle Chips created by Viney and Cat, and Edric and Emira were both creating illusions of Alana and Amity respectively with their Navis.
Soon, Octavia found herself with some of the Hexside students, with her now interviewing Jerbo and Barcus.
"Well, while we have high hopes for those from our tracks like Amity, Willow and Cat for me, and Boscha, Morgan and Blake and Holly for Barcus here, we're gonna give our full support to the founder of our trio, Viney RD Martha," Jerbo said. "She trained hard to reach the top of the ranks in the NetBattle Arena, and even more to get this far to this event."
"{She has our full support all the way!}" Barcus barked in agreement.
"Sure, Amity became stronger with Luz, but I know that if she and Luz make it to the finals, we can see a rematch from the Covention." Mary said as Octavia went to interview her afterwards.
"Yes, you heard it, folks," Octavia announced as all around, several other students, even those not from Hexside who had attended the Covention back then, were looking to screens of Luz and Amity or going to booths promoting a battle between the two and Azura and Hecate. "Ever since the Covention back nearly a month ago, when the Witches' Duel with Luz Noceda and Amity Blight took place, many had been anticipating them to have a proper rematch on equal power. What initially started out as a concept soon became a near-reality with the full announcement of the Dem-N1 Grand Prix. Bets had been made, but we received this comment from Amity Blight's NetNavi, Hecate, in response to such actions…"
"There will be no betting on something involving Amity Blight," Hecate said in a recorded past interview. "Anyone who gambles on either her or Luz will have to answer to me and Azura!"
"Yeah, she's a scary one whenever something happens that involves speaking ill of Amity," Octavia admitted. "As such, we have withdrawn any potential gambling on a rematch in the foreseeable future with Ms. Noceda and Ms. Blight, who I talked with earlier about the actions of Odalia Blight, whose joke popularity from a video spread virally is now lowering after repairs done by her attempt to take down the Darkloid BubbleMan have now fully completed."
"For the record, I had not been involved in any demonstration performances of any of Mom's weapons against the Darkloids," Amity was saying to Odalia in a recorded interview within a dress room earlier that day. "All I know was that she saw Luz as a business competitor, even though, as she has stated dozens of times on numerous occasions, that she only acts for the people, and not the profits."
"So, what would you have to say about how aside from the failed Darkloid Destroyer at the Boiling Isles' heat wave a month ago, her other Anti-Darkloid weaponry?" Octavia questioned.
"Clearly, she still has a long way to go before anything from Blight Industries can actually have an effect on any Darkloids, so I would say for the time being, what she tries to plan out is a waste of money and resources that could be put to better use in other areas." Amity admitted.
"We were stopped from going any further, as it sounded to Hecate that it was getting too personal with the questions we had," Octavia said in the present. "As for the Dem-N1 itself today, tensions among fans of each contender are running high for each chance of victory. But we have full confidence that as an event that is now bringing the Isles together, it will be all worth it."
Outside of the Convention Hall, Lilith had arrived. She got off of her staff and let Mike Socks fly beside her as she entered, where she saw several other witches and demons getting ready for the tournament to begin.
"Ah, Lilith Clawthorne," Damaras said, walking up to the Imperial Head Witch as she turned to see who had called her name. "It has been a long time since we have seen each other."
"Damaras, hello," Lilith said, shaking Damaras's hand. "I heard that the head of the Order of the White Dragon made it into this tournament. Are the rest of the followers of Serra Kaniska here as well?"
"Yes, they are in the stands with reserved seats," Damaras replied. "Have you come to watch your own student in battle?"
"Indeed I have," Lilith said as she and Damaras walked to the stands, with everyone else making their way as well. Making her way past some guard for hire for the event, she showed her badge, getting him to allow her to pass, before turning back to Damaras. "Granted, outside of Darkloid attacks where we would have some brief exchanges, this is the first time Amity and I have actually come together again. I wanted to see how far she had come since the first attack of ShadeMan."
"So, that begs the question of what is next," a Scottish female voice came, revealing an orange-haired witch with a kilted dress and white shirt, walking out and showing off brown eyes with fair skin. "Are you here to represent the Emperor's Coven, or just a guest? I really hope to see my girlfriend, Elijah, make it through as far as she can," she said before holding her hand out. "Mosco Moon, at your service."
"I'm only here as a guest, rest assured," Lilith said before seeing more people watching them as they entered. "And just like everyone else here, I'm here to provide my support to the one I care about, in this case being Amity."
"Well, I hope you're ready to see some action, because it seems we're getting lots of it," Mosco said. "Ya can-nay deny the thrills these sorts of things bring ever since Luz introduced them."
Lilith remained quiet for a while to think of what had happened since Luz introduced the trend of the Net to the Demon Realm. After a while, she spoke up again.
"Yes, things have been… lively, ever since the human arrived," Lilith admitted. "Even with the Emperor's mixed feelings on all of it, I have taken quite an interest in what now brings us together."
"The Dem-N1 Grand Prix is about to begin. Everyone please go to your seats."
"Well, best of luck to your student." Mosco said before walking off to her seat.
"Let us get comfortable ourselves, shall we?" Damaras offered as he led Lilith into the stands.
From a distance, Eda watched as Lilith took a seat and narrowed her eyes at her. However, unlike some of the previous times she had thought of her sister following what she had learned at the Titan's Backbone, she did not clench her fist, and instead walked to her own seat, where King was seated.
"You okay?" King asked.
"Yeah, getting there," Eda said before crossing her legs and her arms. "Can't face Lily yet. It's gotta be at the right time, as Luz said."
"Good thing you didn't let your anger get the best of you this time," Owlette said to Eda. "When the time comes, we'll confront her on the matter."
"And I've got a few strong words for her when that happens," Eda replied before the last few people came in and sat down. "Besides, how can we be mad now with the best seats in the house?" she asked, revealing her and King in a booth with a banner of Luz beneath their windows.
As soon as everyone was seated, the lights dimmed. Soon, everything around them turned into a spiraling view of the MagiNet. Everyone looked at it with awe before from the center of the stadium, Octavia arose from an underground platform, with two others following afterwards, each holding ten of the contestants each. As Octavia spun her finger back towards herself with a completed spell circle, everyone cheered at the display.
"What is up, Demon Realm?!" Octavia announced as everyone, including Luz, her friends, and all of the other contestants, to applaud the performance. "Welcome, one and all, to the first ever Dem-N1 Grand Prix! Standing behind me are the lucky twenty who have made it into this tournament, each willing to give it their all to show they are the best NetOp and NetNavi team of our realm!" she went on as she cast Illusions of all of the Navis of the contestants.
"Serra Kaniska and Sabela!"
Upon seeing Serra, Tigrerra led the rest of the gathered Order of the White Dragon to cheer for her as she threw her fist into the air, with Sabela swinging her sword down.
"Blake and Holly Barrett with Navy and Crimson Ferham!"
"THUN-DER! THUN-DER! THUN-DER! THUN-DER! THUN-DER! THUN-DER!" several witches chanted as Blake and Holly swiped two fingers across their faces in tandem before posing back to back with each other, arms both crossed, while their Navis gripped the weapons on their backs in tandem as well.
"Amelia Pond and Eratoeir!"
A handful of the Plant Track witches from Hexside cheered as Amelia raised her fist into the air, getting Eratoeir to sprout up at the command.
"Catalina Manx and Prairie!"
This time, the Healing Track students cheered as Cat twirled forward. As she came back down, she posed in just the right position to make it look like Prairie was catching her.
"Boscha Yong-Jon and StrikeMan!"
"Banshees!" Boscha called out, tossing a Grudgby Ball into the air, which StrikeMan shot, causing fireworks to erupt, getting the Potions Track, as well as fellow Banshees Fledge and Bryce to cheer.
"Morgan Terry and Leviathan!"
"What's going on, Bonesborough?" Morgan called out as Leviathan next to her waved, getting several fans in the audience with hair modeled after hers to cheer.
Leviathan was a purple-armored Navi with yellow snake-like eyes, as well as a trident on their back with dark skin. On their chest was a Crest depicting a silhouette of two fluid-looking flames spreading like water.
"Elijah Avery, your favorite NSAF, and Rico!"
"Hello there!" Elijah called out with devil horns from her hand as Rico crossing her sword in front of her arm to cross it, as a large number of witch couples and demon couples to cheer, all holding hands with their lovers.
"Zoe Saladin and Raticate!"
Several Illusion students of Hexside cheered as Zoe swept her hands across her face, briefly changing to the face of her Navi, before she stepped out from her.
Raticate was a brown-armored Navi with disk-shaped gauntlets, and a Navi Crest depicting a mouse tail shaped like a lightning bolt in blue. Just like Zoe, she had a tail on her back, which intertwined with Zoe's as they posed together.
"Paris Bloom and Nightbird!"
Paris created several illusion clones of herself running forward before jumping into the air, where Nightbird, a ninja-like Navi with her mouth covered on her helmet, with armor in purple and gold, caught her, before the two landed, just as more Illusion Track students cheered for them.
"Gavin Chaku and MuckMan!"
Gavin stepped up and clenched his fist before thrusting it forward, where MuckMan shot out and created the symbol of Glandus, getting the Glandus students to cheer loudly for him.
MuckMan was brown and purple, with his armor seeming to be made out from Abomination Goo. With the Abominations symbol as his crest, he also had unnatural-looking eyes and ooze dripping from him, with him overall floating above ground.
"Her father has taken her place as head of the Illusion Coven, but she remains the Queen of Illusions for us all," Octavia went on as every Illusion witch in the audience spun spell circles around. "Give it up for Alana Graye and Mysteria!"
Mysteria, who was a Navi with a spectral appearance, mist between the areas of her not covered by armor, and a ponytail coming out from behind her masked helmet, flew out and spread mist down, where several shadows of Alana appeared from each cloud. Finally, all of it gathered together and spread out to reveal Alana herself, getting every Illusionist present to cheer for the former head of the Illusion Coven.
"Mildred Vivian and Glacia!"
Both Mildred and Glacia spun around, a Plant Axe in Mildred's hands and a cyber axe in Glacia's, and placed them behind their backs, both poses mirroring each other as they wrapped up, with all of St. Epiderm watching either in the stands or from their homes, cheering them on.
In contrast to the Plant magic of the Imp Witch Mildred, who wore a red-dyed version of the Plant Track colors for St. Epiderm, Glacia was themed after ice, hence her name, though like her NetOp, still kept a red color theme to her. There were icicles protruding from her shoulders, elbows and knees, with ice claws over both hands, and a helmet that seemed to look like it was on fire with a blue flame, which was also her Navi Crest.
"Lea Puckett and their Navi, Ravencroft!"
Several Bard witches cheered on Lea as they spun forward with a staff in their hand, slamming it into the ground rhythmically before tossing it into the air, where it transformed into their NetNavi, Ravencroft, whose armor had feathered and a crow-shaped helmet, as well as a Navi Crest depicting two wings spread wide.
"Mattholomule and BlockMan!"
The Construction Track cheered as Mattholomule stepped up, slamming his fists into the ground, getting rocks to shoot up. Each of them formed together until BlockMan was formed from them, all now melding together into his shape as he burst forward.
"Willow Park and GardenMan!"
Just like with Amelia, all of the Plant Track students cheered loudly for Willow as she burst forward from a giant flower, eyes glowing green as she spread her arms out, causing plants to sprout up around her, with GardenMan riding on all of them before landing next to her.
"Skara Capella and Melody!"
The Bard Track of Hexside cheered as Skara stepped forward, playing a few notes from her lute. She swung it forward and shredded it like an electric guitar as Melody leaned against her back, strumming the same notes as her on her harp.
"Viney RD Martha and Mediclaw!"
Both the Healing and Beast-Keeping students cheered Viney on, with Jerbo and Barcus joining in, as Viney lunged forwards, where Puddles flew further so she could land on him, before creating large spell circles to cleanse herself of claw marks on her skin, with the spell circles forming into Mediclaw and landing next to her.
All the while, Boscha was blushing at the way Viney was performing, with only Skara seeming to notice as she patted her comfortingly on the back.
"Now, give it up for my son, Gus Porter, and MirageMan!"
Gus appeared next to Octavia from some blue smoke, with two clones of him appearing from the sides. All three of them then merged into MirageMan before Gus himself appeared with his mother, the three all aiming outwards.
"Yes!" Perry exclaimed from an announcer's booth with Principal Bump as the Illusion Track students cheered. "That's my son right there!"
"Thank you, Gus, for letting me be a part of that performance," Octavia said to Gus as he headed back to his platform. "Fun fact, I did some Illusion Parkour back when I was at Hexside, and let me tell you, my son did better than I did," she said, getting the audience to lightly laugh. "Now, next up, we have none other than Amity Blight, and her NetNavi, Hecate!"
All of the Abomination Track students, as well as Edric and Emira, who created Illusion Banners of Amity, cheered as Amity spun from her spot and towards the center of the stage, arms spread out and with a confident smirk on her face. Abomination Goo soon started to form in the same shape as her pose, where Hecate appeared, materializing out from her hologram, getting more cheers to come before the two bowed and returned to their place.
"Finally, we have the spell-raiser herself, the human in our Demon Realm, and head of the company that has brought the trend to bring us all together…" Octavia said as Bard Witches created drum-roll effects before rays of light shot out from the center of the stage. "Luz Noceda and Azura!"
With this, everyone went wild as Luz emerged from the light, followed by towers of ice and rings of fire around her as she kept one arm aimed in the air and the other clenched at her side. Opening them, she grinned and spun forward, where she performed a three-point landing, where Azura materialized next to her from her hologram, just like Hecate did, and spun the MagiBuster until it gained all of the Glyph spells cast, shooting them into the air to create multicolored fireworks.
"And there you have our twenty contestants for the Dem-N1 Grand Prix!" Octavia announced as Luz and Azura returned to the floating platform. "For our first day, here is what will be happening," she started out as the jumbo screen changed to show profile images of all of the contestants, all bracketed out. "We will be starting off with five one-on-one matches, each randomly selected. All of the times for the matches will be set to ten minutes. When the contestants are selected for their designated fights, the warp points they are standing on will take them to their NetBattle terminals set up all around," she went on, showing NetBattle terminals placed at different locations in the arena. "Also, with the evolution of new Style Changes that Luz and Azura have achieved over the past few weeks since the Covention, they have agreed to not use their newest Style Change which earned her the top spot in the NetBattle Coliseum, Healing Saber Style. All other Style Changes will be allowed. As for all the CrossFusers in the tournament, all battles will be restricted for the Net only unless we decide a change," she added. "And now, let the selection process begin!"
Everyone cheered as all of the contestant images appeared, randomly sliding in blurs on the screen next to the bracketed contestant setup.
Amity watched on and took a deep breath, recalling something that happened with her and Odalia from the day before, after Skara's birthday party.
Yesterday…
"I am in shock. Complete shock that you had the gall to compete in this tournament," Odalia said to Amity as she glared at her, with Hecate doing so as well from Amity's floating Scroll PET. All three of them were at the stage in the showcase warehouse, with Alador watching from the sides. "However, I am willing to let this slide if you do something for me. If you do, I shall drop the matter completely, even stop bothering you about your… unique… change in your hair color."
"What is it?" Amity asked, arms crossed.
"I will allow you to enter, but you shall promote Blight Industries and bring our family company out of the shame that has befallen us," Odalia started out. "Or, you can do your best to make sure that that human does not make it all the way through. Either way, I shall keep to the terms if you choose either or. After all, a Blight always keeps their end of a deal." She said, unaware of Amity's clenched and shaking fist at the offer.
"Wow," Hecate spoke up, getting Amity to look to her Navi. "You must have a few screws loose if you think Amity is willing to sing praises about you, or even try and take down Luz, someone she cares DEEPLY about."
"That's right," Amity agreed. "Try all you want, offer me anything you think would make me happy. Nothing is going to make me do what you want."
"How dare you listen to that lowly unworthy servant of yours!" Odalia snapped, getting Alador to slowly prepare some Abomination Goo at the outburst. "I am your mother! You will obey me! Not that slave!"
"Let me make something perfectly clear, Odalia," Amity hissed with her eyes narrowed as she lifted her hand, getting Abomination Goo to emerge from every nook and cranny of the warehouse, all solidifying into jagged blades and aiming at Odalia from every angle. "Hecate is no servant. She is more important to me than you ever were, and ever will be," she started out, getting Alador to stumble back in surprise as even his own Abomination Goo was being controlled by her. "If you ever speak ill of her again… I will make sure you will suffer for it for the rest of your life. That is a promise!" she exclaimed as the Abomination Goo all around shattered, getting Odalia to jump in surprise before Amity walked away, willing her Scroll PET to her hand and twirling it around before placing it away.
"Whoa, that was… amazing, Amity," Hecate said as Amity exited the warehouse. "Way to stand up to that devil."
"I'm surprised you didn't say anything the entire time, or even come out." Amity commented.
"Let's just say she was 'UNWORTHY' of my presence." Hecate joked, getting the two to laugh.
Present…
"We're gonna do great here, Amity," Hecate said to Amity, now back inside of the Scroll PET. "We don't need Odalia to tell us what to do when you control your fate."
"I can't wait," Amity said before spotting some people in the stands, each with banners that had her and Luz clashing with the words LET THE REMATCH HAPPEN! displayed on it. "I just hope I can get to face Luz after all this time."
"Not those extremists again," Hecate said with a sigh. "Always wanting to see our rematch with Luz."
"Well, your first fight with Azura," Amity corrected. "But yeah, the sooner we get through this and be done with those guys, the better."
"And the first five match-ups have been decided!" Octavia announced as the images stopped spinning. "All matches will be concurrent with each other. No time record is required. Now, first match-up, we have…"
Everyone looked to see Luz's image appear, followed by the images of Blake and Holly, all three with their Navis next to them.
"Luz Noceda and Azura vs Blake and Holly Barrett and the Ferham Sisters!"
Everyone cheered as Luz stared down Blake and Holly, to which they returned the favor. All three were soon warped right to their terminal, PETs out and at the ready.
"Next up, we have…" Octavia went on as Amity's image came on with Hecate, followed by Serra and Sabela. "Amity Blight and Hecate against Serra Kaniska and Sabela!"
"The head of the Kaniska White Dragon Order?!" Amity exclaimed nervously in a quiet voice, getting Boscha and Gus to pat her shoulders comfortingly. "This is gonna be rough."
"For honor!" Serra called out, thrusting her sword into the air and getting the Order of the White Dragon to cheer for her.
Soon, Amity and Serra were teleported to another terminal, where Luz waved to both of them as they summoned their Scroll PETs.
"Skara Capella and Melody against Catalina Manx and Prairie!"
Skara nodded at Cat, who returned the favor, before they too were teleported to a terminal with their Scroll PETs out.
"Alana Graye and Mysteria against Lea Puckett and Ravencroft!"
Alana puffed into blue mist while Lea slammed their staff down, both immediately teleporting to their assigned terminal.
"Boscha Yong-Jon and StrikeMan versus Viney RD Martha and Mediclaw!"
Boscha gasped as soon as she heard the next match-up, and glanced at Viney on the other platform. She did her best to suppress a blush, both of flabbergast and nervousness, before hearing a soft whistle. She turned to see Skara giving her an okay gesture, getting her to lightly smile, before she and Viney soon found themselves directly across from each other, now with their Scroll PETs floating alongside them.
"And lastly, my son, Gus and his Navi, MirageMan, against Gavin Chaku and MuckMan!"
All of Glandus cheered for Gavin while all of the Illusion Track cheered for Gus. Both of them sent competitive glares at each other before they warped right to their terminal.
"NetBattlers, at the ready!" Octavia called out as she drew a giant spell circle into the air. "Let the Dem-N1 Grand Prix… begin!"
With that, Octavia fired a giant spell into the air, creating fireworks, getting everyone to cheer as the starting ten contestants all held their PETs out.
"JACK IN!"
"Azura!"
"Crimson Ferham!"
"Navy Ferham!"
"Hecate!"
"Sabela!"
"Melody!"
"Prairie!"
"Mysteria!"
"Ravencroft!"
"StrikeMan!"
"Mediclaw!"
"MirageMan!"
"MuckMan!"
"JACK IN AND POWER UP!"
Red rays shot out from the eleven PETs and into the terminals, getting different large screens to appear from each of them to show the Navis of each NetOp appearing for the NetBattle to officially begin.
Azura digitized into the MagiNet first, landing in a crouched position. As she got up while summoning the MagiBuster, she heard the sound of thunder cracking and turned around, seeing the Ferham sisters.
"We've been waiting for this, Azura." Navy Ferham said as she and Crimson Ferham stood ready.
"And so have we." Azura replied, aiming the MagiBuster out.
As Azura and the Ferham sisters showed up on the big screen, it shrunk to then show Hecate flying into the MagiNet in another dome on her LunaStriker, where Sabela appeared with her sword drawn out.
"So we meet at long last," Sabela said as Amity narrowed her eyes while trying to block out the nervous sweat coming from her forehead. "Prepare for defeat."
"I could say the same to you too." Hecate replied as she held her LunaStriker back.
As this happened, Melody walked around in her cyberspace with her Lyra String in hand, playing a small tune. She stopped and closed her eyes with a smirk on her face as Prairie appeared behind her, clapping.
"I hope you play a different tune when Cat and I win." Prairie taunted.
"Oh, but we haven't even begun yet," Melody said as Skara and Cat exchanged playful competitive glances at each other. "It'll be a victory song we play once we win this."
Elsewhere, Mysteria floated down in an arena before Ravencroft flew down, both making three-point landings as they did so.
"I won't be holding back." Ravencroft warned.
"Don't worry," Mysteria said as she let mist float around her. "I'm counting on it."
At her terminal with Viney, Boscha took a deep breath as she watched StrikeMan and Mediclaw both materialize into their NetBattle space.
"Don't think because we're friends, I'll be holding back." Mediclaw said as he readied his claws.
"Hope you're ready for this, Boscha," StrikeMan said as Boscha attached one of her grips to her Scroll PET. "I know I am."
"I am, StrikeMan," Boscha reassured as she looked to Viney, who had a competitive look on her face. "I am."
Finally, MirageMan digitized into his own NetBattle space and swung his sword out, where MuckMan formed from a puddle of slime and into his real form.
"It's my honor to finally fight you." MuckMan said as he readied several tendrils at his sides.
"You'll need all the luck you can get against us." MirageMan promised as he swung his blade to the side.
All of the selected NetOps stood ready, staring their respective opponents down as the crowd started to cheer again.
"Alright, here we go!" Octavia called out, throwing her fist into the air.
"THE BATTLE IS ON!"
"Blue Lightning Burst!" Navy Ferham called out, sending forth a surge of blue lightning at Azura.
"With a touch of my Red Thunder Breaker!" Crimson Ferham called out, firing an electrical blast afterwards.
"HeatSide, Battle Chip In! Download!" Luz called out, placing a Battle Chip into her Progress PET.
Azura soon gained the HeatSide blaster on her MagiBuster and leapt back, firing it down at the ground in the way of the two attacks. Immediately, a wall of fire was made, erupting just as they made their way over it.
"Steam Slash!" Sabela called out as she slashed at Hecate, who flew up and aimed her LunaStriker down.
"Descending Moon Crash!" Hecate called out, firing several moon-shaped blasts down at Sabela, who quickly slashed them away.
"These guys got tougher than when we first fought them," Azura noted as she landed, with Luz nodding. "Gloves are off for this, Hermana. We need to make our next move carefully."
"Blinder!" Blake called out, slotting a Battle Chip in.
"EnergyBoomer!" Holly called out afterwards.
"BATTLE CHIPS IN! DOUBLE DOWNLOAD!"
"ENERGYBOOMER!" both of the Ferham sisters called out, summoning and throwing EnergyBoomers at Azura, who shielded herself as the Blinder Battle Chip started to set in on her.
"Azura is losing sight thanks to that Blinder!" Octavia announced as many of Luz's fans, with Eda, King and Cero, were on the edge of their seats for what would happen. "How are they gonna get out of this?!"
"The answer: two CyberMines!" Luz replied, slotting two Battle Chips in afterwards. "Battle Chips In! Double Download!"
Azura recomposed herself and aimed out, firing in the last known direction she saw the Ferham Sisters. The two dodged to the side, but thanks to both CyberMine Battle Chips, Crimson Ferham was caught in a blast before Navy Ferham narrowly dodged an explosion from the second one.
"Salamander, BambooSword and WideBlade! Battle Chips In! Triple Download!" Luz called out, placing in her next three Battle Chips.
Azura opened her eyes, now clearing up as she lit on fire. Gaining a BambooSword, which then caught on fire, over her left hand, and the WideBlade on her MagiBuster, she dashed at the two Ferham Sisters, the rest of the CyberMines starting to go off as she passed them.
"ElectroBlade!" Navy Ferham quickly called out, dashing forward.
"AquaSword!" Crimson Ferham called out as well, charging in with her sister as the two met Azura midway, clashing with her dual blades.
"Hey, you've gotten better." Azura complimented.
"You're not too bad yourself!" Crimson Ferham complimented back.
"VariableSword, Battle Chip In, Download!" Amity called out, giving Hecate a VariableSword as Sabela charged forward, swinging wildly.
"Abomination Sonic Boom!" Hecate yelled, sending forth several purple Sonic Booms at Sabela, who slashed some of the attacks head-on before getting hit by the rest. As soon as she was, she suddenly disappeared into smoke, revealing a dummy in her place.
"BodyDouble! Look out!" Amity warned.
Hecate gasped and turned around, slashing behind her just as Sabela struck. The two fought for momentum over one another before the former summoned Abomination Slime to force Sabela back, both of their blades now glowing.
"Have a Bard Blast!" Melody called out, sending forth her music notes at Prairie as she leapt into the air for the strike.
"Healing Aura!" Prairie called out, creating a shield around herself with a blue glow. Looking up with a grin, she leapt up to meet Melody, holding her hand back.
"Capsule Fist, Battle Chip In, Download!" Cat called out, using one of her magic-made Battle Chips.
A white fist appeared over Prairie's hand before capsules covered the knuckle. Letting out a yell, she punched forward at Melody, but Skara already took out her own Battle Chip.
"EvilShield, Battle Chip In, Download!" Skara called out, slotting the Battle Chip in and sending over the EvilShield to Melody.
"Nice, Skara!" Melody called out before the EvilShield appeared over her hand, blocking the punch from Prairie just in time. "Try and dodge this!"
"Mist Strike!" Mysteria called out as she went up against Ravencroft in their own fight.
"AirSpin, Battle Chip In, Download!" Lea called out, sending Ravencroft a Battle Chip to block the incoming attack.
"Muramasa, Battle Chip In, Download!" Alana called out in response, sending to her own NetNavi the famed sword.
"Time to lift this fog!" Ravencroft called out, activating the AirSpin before Mysteria lunged at him. Quickly, he gained a CyberSword and blocked the attack, both engaged in a blade-lock as they circled around each other.
"Try my Grudgby Barrage!" StrikeMan yelled as he fought against Mediclaw, sending forth a blitz of Grudgby balls at him.
"Wide Sweep!" Mediclaw called out, clearing out as many Grudgby ball strikes as he could with his claws before charging right at StrikeMan.
"BigHammer, Battle Chip In, Download!" Boscha called out quickly, slotting in the Battle Chip as she looked to Viney, who was very invested in the match herself.
'Oh, she's so hot when she's determined to win," Boscha thought to herself as she looked to the Battle Chips she had on hand. 'But I want to get through this as much as her, and I can't throw the match to make her feel good. This is way different than what I felt for Amity back then. What do I do?'
Viney looked to her own hand of Battle Chips before looking back to the holographic screen to make her next move. However, as she did, she looked to the nervous expression on Boscha's face, as well as the blush that accompanied it. Boscha quickly noticed what she was seeing and turned away, inputting a command to give to StrikeMan.
"Wait, I know that look…" Viney said to herself as she narrowed her eyes covertly at Boscha. Suddenly, they started to slowly widen with a sense of realization once it hit her. "Could it be… Boscha has…?"
"Slime Tower!" MuckMan yelled, slamming his fists into the ground to create Abomination pillars which made their way to MirageMan.
"Nice try, but you'll have to find the real one of my Navi first to hit him!" Gus taunted, creating spell circles and placing them on both sides of his Scroll PET.
Everyone watched the screen as dozens of clones of MirageMan appeared from the original, each one dashing at MuckMan and his incoming Slime Tower.
"That's my boy!" Perry cheered from his booth with Principal Bump.
"Yes, Hexside is definitely excelling in this tournament," Principal Bump said with a chuckle. "One student from Glandus in this round. I wonder which school will emerge victorious."
"Come on, Luz!" King cheered.
"Go get them!" Cero cheered.
"You've got this!" Eda called out.
"ElecCharge!" Navy Ferham called out, slamming a CustomVolt arm into the ground.
"MagBolt!" Crimson Ferham called out as well, sending forth several electrical blasts at Azura. "You can't stop two attacks at once!"
"You wanna bet?" Azura asked as her eyes lit on fire. "Fire Champion Style Change!"
Everyone watched in amazement as flames surrounded Azura. In front of her, the Fire Glyph showed itself before imposing itself onto her as her entire body started to glow a bright fiery red color. Azura spread out her arms, getting the fire to clear away. Holding out her hand, the MagiBuster revealed itself now as the Fire Wrecker with the spiked Grudgby Ball attached to the chain. Swinging it around, she slammed it down and held out her hand. Gaining spiked gauntlets, several flames disappeared, before the same happened when her letterman-like coat replaced her top. She glanced forward and grinned, now with streaks under her eyes, before catching the ball in her left hand.
"So nice of you to finally take us seriously!" Crimson Ferham taunted as she spun around. "AquaTower!"
"ElementSand!" Navy Ferham called out, summoning the lamp in her hand to shoot out the ElementSand attack.
"Azura, do it!" Luz called out.
"Volcanic Eruptor!" Azura called out, slamming her Fire Wrecker out in the ground in front of her. A wall of flame erupted, just as the ElementSand hit it, turning it into glass. Afterwards, the AquaTower slammed into it, but was held back, before Azura kicked the glass wall at Crimson Ferham, sending her back.
"Sister!" Navy Ferham exclaimed as she watched Crimson Ferham getting pushed back. She turned back to attack Azura again, but found the Fire Wrecker slamming her at her sister, the two getting knocked down together.
"Ice Launcher Style Change! Activate!" Luz called out, sending the command to Azura.
In front of Azura, the Ice Glyph spread across her body until it gave her crystallized gauntlets, the left arm with a shield and the right with a diamond blade, as well as blocky boots with the Ice Glyph on the soles. A long elegant coat covered her top before looking up with a grin, two cannons appeared on her back, each one with a kaleidoscope-like pattern to them. Swinging down her bladed arm, she let our a triumphant yell as her transformation came to a close.
"Frost Charge!" Azura called out, holding her diamond blade and the MagiBuster Blade into the air, giving them a charge that sent chills throughout the NetBattle space. Launching herself from the air, she soared down at the Ferham Sisters, slashing through them repeatedly until they were encased in ice. "Checkmate." She quipped afterwards, snapping her fingers.
With that snap, the ice shattered, sending the Ferham Sisters to the ground, groaning weakly.
"Crimson and Navy Ferham, Logging Out."
"And Luz and Azura win the first match!" Octavia announced, getting everyone to cheer as Luz and Azura simultaneously held their fists into the air victoriously. "Let's see now who else will finish with a bang!"
"Luz is getting good," Amity said as she noticed the outcome of Luz's fight. "We've got to catch up, Hecate. StepCross and Abomination Plus, Battle Chips In! Double Download!"
Hecate gained a second LunaStriker as she used her main one to block the upper slash coming from Sabela. As she rammed her sword down, Hecate swung at her with her secondary weapon, both now gaining purple blades.
"Slasher, Battle Chip In, Download!" Serra called out, placing in her own Battle Chip to counter.
"Prepare yourself for defeat, Hecate." Sabela said as she charged up her blade as well.
Hecate stared Sabela down before the two AreaStole at each other. Everyone watched as they teleported all around, slashing away and clashing endlessly. As Hecate tried to cross-slash Sabela from the side, she disappeared again and reappeared above her, spinning her sword around.
"Revolve On!" Viney called out as Mediclaw was sent back by StrikeMan's Grudgby Striker. As he was tumbling back, the wheel for his Revolve On appeared and caught him, reversing his chest and leg armor as he continued to spin before landing now with the Beast Pulse Saber armed.
"ZeusHammer, HeavyGauge and CustomSword! Triple Download!" Boscha called out, placing her three selected Battle Chips to send to StrikeMan.
The Grudgby Striker retracted to allow for StrikeMan to get the ZeusHammer before a gauge appeared over both combatants, just as the CustomSword came to his left hand. He ran at Mediclaw just as he charged back with his own sword glowing.
"Do it!" Viney ordered her Navi.
StrikeMan and Mediclaw both slashed through each other at the same time, landing behind one another and panting heavily as they waited to see who would hold out the longest.
"The head of a warrior clan, it's no wonder why she's so tough!" Amity panicked to herself softly. She looked to her Battle Chips again before an idea came to her. "TripleBoomer, Battle Chip In, Download!"
"Boomers won't work on Sabela, I'm afraid." Serra said with a grin.
"That's just what I'm hoping for," Amity replied, causing Serra to raise an eyebrow. "Do it, Hecate!"
The Triple Boomers all fell in front of Hecate, getting her to slam each one at Sabela.
Sabela grinned and slashed each of the Boomers apart before seeing that Hecate disappeared.
"What happened?!" Sabela exclaimed.
"Ever hear of AreaSteal?" Hecate asked, now reappearing beside Sabela. "FireSword!"
Sabela slashed at Hecate, but she blocked the attack and pushed the FireSword into her blade, getting it to sizzle.
"AquaSword, Battle Chip In, Download!"
Holding out her right hand, Hecate gained the AquaSword and slammed Sabela back, forcing her back into the air. As she charged up her blade again, she saw Hecate now rocketing at her with the FireSword before both blades glowed bright.
"ElectroSword and BambooSword! Battle Chips In, and Program Advance!" Amity called out.
"ElementSword!" Hecate roared, flashing and cloning herself.
Sabela gasped as each clone of Hecate slashed through her, alternating between each elemental slash. As she tried to recover, she saw Hecate appear above her and slam down with all four strikes simultaneously, sending Sabela crashing into the ground.
"Sabela!" Serra called out in worry.
Sabela groaned and tried to get up, but lost the strength to do so and collapsed, just as Hecate landed behind her.
"Sabela, Logging Out."
"Amity Blight and Hecate win the next match!" Octavia called out, getting Edric and Emira to lead the Abomination Track students in a loud cheer for their sister.
"We did it…" Amity panted as she leaned against the terminal, trying to catch her breath from the intense match. As she continued to do so, Serra looked to her and grinned, starting to reach for her sword.
"She did it!" Emira cheered as Lilith slowly smiled at the outcome.
"Truly a strong witch with her Navi." Lilith admitted before fully applauding for Amity and Hecate.
"Three minutes now remain!" Octavia announced as the timer started to blink for the rest of the contestants in their own NetBattles. "Let's keep it going strong!"
"Moloko Rush Program Advance! Go!" Skara called out, sending forth three Moloko Battle Chips to Melody.
"We won't go down that easily!" Cat protested. "PitHockey Program Advance! Download!" she called out, sending to Prairie three AirHockey Battle Chips in response to the Moloko Rush.
"PitHockey!" Prairie yelled, sending forth a barrage of AirHockey attacks.
"Moloko Rush! Boost with Bard Power!" Melody called back, sending forth her own Program Advance, with each of the Moloko attacks glowing red.
Both Program Advances collided with each other, one Moloko and one puck making it past the collisions. Both Melody and Prairie were struck with them before the attacks finally subsided.
Melody and Prairie stared each other down before the latter collapsed with sparks flying across her chest, falling to her knees.
"Good fight." Prairie weakly complimented before digitizing out.
"Prairie, Logging Out."
"Full Muramasa Charge!" Mysteria called out, creating illusions of herself as Ravencroft charged up a HeroSword.
"You're mine!" Ravencroft called out, slashing at Mysteria and all of her clones.
However, this caused the Muramasa to glow even brighter. Mysteria pulled the Muramasa back and slashed right through Ravencroft, sending him flying.
"Ravencroft, Logging Out."
At the same time, Mediclaw collapsed from his simultaneous strike with StrikeMan, albeit with a smile on his face.
"Good luck to your NetOp. You've fought well." Mediclaw bid as he digitized out.
"Mediclaw, Logging Out."
"Spinning Trick Shot!" MirageMan called out, spinning through the air with his Illusion Blade out, now making his way towards MuckMan.
"One minute now remains!" Octavia announced as everyone watched the final fight continue on.
"Goop Grenades!" MuckMan yelled, tossing dozens of Abomination-patterned grenades at MirageMan.
"Now!"
"AREASTEAL! PANELOUT! MOONBLADE! NEOVARIABLESWORD! BATTLE CHIPS IN! QUADRUPLE DOWNLOAD!" Gus and MirageMan both called out, now in perfect sync.
MirageMan disappeared from the line of attack of the Goop Grenades before a portal hole took each attack away. MuckMan gasped as the same hole appeared behind him, sending him forward, where MirageMan reappeared, now armed with a NeoVariableSword and a MoonBlade. Spinning both around, he slashed right through MuckMan as he was sent flying at him, causing him to digitize away.
"MuckMan, Logging Out."
"And with thirty seconds to spare, the first round of the first day is up!" Octavia called out, getting all of the Illusion Track students to cheer for Gus's victory as he shook hands with Gavin. "Luz Noceda and Azura, Amity Blight and Hecate, Skara Capella and Melody, Alana Graye and Mysteria, Boscha Yong-Jon and StrikeMan, and Gus Porter and MirageMan move on to the next round for the next day!"
Everyone continued to cheer as Luz walked up to Blake and Holly.
"You really gave us a run for our money there," Luz said, holding out her hand. "Azura and I would be glad to battle you again any day."
"The honor was ours to give you such a challenge." Blake said, shaking Luz's hand first.
"When we become stronger, you'll be the first to know." Holly added, shaking Luz's hand afterwards.
Serra walked over to Amity as she finally recovered. The youngest Blight looked up to the head of the Order of the White Dragon before she took out her sword. Without warning, she swung it right at Amity, but she did not budge.
"You have truly given me a fight to remember," Serra said before pulling the Temenos Sword back. "Show me some Abomination slime."
Amity did just that, and Serra tapped it with her sword before tapping both of her shoulders. Amity looked on with surprise as the Abomination goo she had summoned started to change into a solid sword, the blade completely made out of Abomination slime, though still had a reflective surface for her to see her face off from.
"What is this?" Amity asked.
"The gift of the White Dragon to those who show courage and strength to the chosen wielder of the Temenos Sword," Serra explained. "That blade is yours to mark you as the only one who had been able to best me in combat. And you have now been knighted as an honorary warrior, the heir to not head your company, but others who reach the same level of talent you have shown today."
Amity smiled before holding out her hand. "I look forward to living up to those standards." She said.
Serra smiled back and shook Amity's hand in return, getting Hecate to smile as she recovered within the Scroll PET.
"Well, screw me," Cat said as she and Skara walked up to each other. "With all the practice Amelia and I had been going through to prep for the Dem-N1, we've never had quite a challenge like that."
"You've given us quite the fight too," Skara said. "I might not be with the Banshees anymore, but you've still certainly got that spirit."
"I hope we can hang out again like we used to." Cat said.
"I wouldn't have it any other way," Skara said as she and Cat hugged. After they released, she turned to Boscha and Viney. "And speaking of the Banshees…"
"Hey, Boscha?" Viney said, walking up to Boscha as she pulled StrikeMan out of the server. "Great work out there."
"Um, thanks. You too." Boscha replied almost nervously.
"Let's talk some more in the lounge," Viney offered. "There's some stuff I want to talk about with you alone."
Boscha felt herself blush as Viney winked at her before walking away. Keeping that winking memory in mind, she recovered and felt her heart.
"Wicked moves, dude!" Gus complimented Gavin as the two clasped hands with each other. "Sorry you didn't win for your school."
"I was in it for the thrill, but thanks," Gavin said. "Keep it up, Gus. You're now the strongest Illusionist I've met."
"Mx. Puckett, I've never faced an opponent like you before," Alana said as she walked up to Lea. "Should there be another tournament like this, I hope for you to give me and Mysteria the same challenge."
"And I look forward to seeing you more in the future, Head Witch Alana," Lea replied before they bowed. "Even if your father took over the Illusions Coven, you will still be the top Illusion Witch to all of us."
"Thank you kindly." Alana said with a small curtsy.
Everyone continued to cheer as Luz, Amity, Gus, Skara, Boscha and Alana made their way to the front platform, with the defeated opponents making their way to another.
"Now, for you who had lost, don't worry," Octavia spoke up before the panels beneath the eliminated contestants glowed. "For the challenges you provided today, while you will not be getting a trophy or the grand reward for winning the Dem-N1 Grand Prix overall, you will still be treated to luxury seating for the rest of the Dem-N1 Grand Prix," she said before all seven were teleported to seats within the stands. "Anyone who had not made it from this point forward will receive a dark-gold medal for their efforts, engraved with the Crests of all those who participated in this, to show the strength they have displayed for all to know for all time!" she announced, getting everyone to cheer once again. "Now, as we set up for the next matches tomorrow, we encourage you to partake in the activities at the booths in the hallways. We will be serving complimentary drinks, snacks and Battle Chip deals for the rest of the day, as well as NetBattles to test your skills against those who now make it to the next round! Until the next day comes, your seats will be reserved, and we wish to see you all again!"
Soon, everyone had left the arena, and were now tending to the other booths, partaking in any of the activities that were going around. Watching some of the NetBattler Witches and Demons who were looking at reruns of the battles and their standout moments, Eda, Cero and King made their way to the lounge.
"I actually saw when Luz and Azura first went up against Blake and Holly and the Ferham Sisters," King said as the Barrett sisters passed them. "Azura took them out with only one hit! I didn't think they'd even provide a good challenge this time."
"Well, when the Dem-N1 was announced, everyone wanted to step up," Eda said. "When I was running my sales, everyone trying to get into the Dem-N1 Grand Prix were focusing on making themselves better after Luz and Azura took part in the battles."
"Yeah, I was already out at that time," Cero said. "Took on a lot of disguises, but I had learned a lot from what was going on in the Human Realm, like their best fighters and other Net trends. I saw every fight Luz and Azura had before eventually making it to the top after taking out Viney and Lionel. Just hope Luz doesn't have to deal with him again."
"Apparently, she won't have to."
Eda, King and Cero turned to see Serra approaching them with Tigrerra and Damaras on either side of her as Elijah ran to Mosco behind them.
"What do you mean?" Cero asked.
"I had just told Serra that we had found out something disturbing about her parents when their time of exile was over," Damaras said. "When we arrived at the Shoals of Solitude to collect them, we had found the Nightmare Battalion there as well."
"The same guys Luz said that Lionel sided with?" Eda recalled. "What did they want with Dryden and Minna?"
"They had also been a part of the deal to usurp my betrothed and take control of the Order of the White Dragon, apparently," Tigrerra said. "When Lionel failed, they executed him, but before that, since they promised the triumvirate that he would succeed, they went there and personally killed them themselves…"
Flashback…
"This is what you deserve for your pride and arrogance!" Saigan exclaimed as Pranara grabbed Minna by the skull.
"No, please…!" Minna begged before Tigrerra and Damaras turned away, only hearing the sound of a fist grinding through flesh and a body dropping.
"You were never too bright, Dryden." Saigan said as he lifted up Dryden Kaniska by the stomach. Within seconds, he pulled out one of his ribs. Now with a sinister grin, he raised it into the air and brought it down, getting Damaras and Tigrerra to turn away again, only hearing the body fall.
"Grab that failure of a warrior Nevareth and bring him back to base," Pranara ordered some of the Nightmare Battalion acolytes as the Kaniska parents were placed in coffins. "Leave them to drift back to the Isles. They can rest with the fishes once Leona takes care of Lionel."
Present…
"Serra had given them a second chance, and they never got the chance to live it out." Tigrerra finished up as Eda, King and Cero looked horrified at what happened.
"I didn't wish for that to happen," Serra admitted. "I wanted to welcome them back, give them another chance. And I never got to even say goodbye to them. I will be mourning them my own way, and return here tomorrow. Give Luz and Amity my regards." She said before they departed.
In the lounge, Boscha watched as Luz was bringing over a cake to everyone.
"We know you celebrated your birthday yesterday, but in addition to a second cake for turning fifteen…" Luz started before revealing the cake to have Congratulations! written on it. "It's now for us all."
"Thanks!" Skara squealed as she hugged Luz before Emira gave Skara a peck on the cheek.
"No matter how far you get, I'll give you a full lip one next time." Emira promised before Boscha made her way to Viney.
"You… wanted to talk?"
"During the match, I could see you were scared of something," Viney said. "At first, I thought it was losing, but then I looked closer… and it was something else entirely."
"Before you judge me, I want to say I'm trying to become better," Boscha said. "I don't wanna be the bully I was before, not while I saw that part of me in Lurerre."
"So… is this truer version of yourself the reason you like me?" Viney asked.
Boscha blushed, but after a while, nodded silently. "Yes, I do," she said. "I've loved you ever since Luz got her memories fixed, and… I was scared to admit it. Because of what I've done, and because I still have some of that pride in me that doesn't want to show shame."
"This must be tough for her, isn't it?" Mediclaw asked StrikeMan.
"She's told me about this a few times," StrikeMan replied. "And as someone who wanted to help her change her ways, I can understand why this could be so hard to try and do."
"I'll admit, knowing your background, there are some things that I don't forgive," Viney started out, getting Boscha to look away, only for her to hold her chin and turn her back. "But… as someone who knows how healing both physically and mentally can look like and feel like, you're trying your best. To me, that's what matters. You're putting effort into making yourself a better person, and even if there are those who will never allow themselves to see that, know that I do. And for that, I'm willing to give you a chance."
"Well, in that case…" Boscha said, holding out a heart-shaped card with both of their initials written on it. "Will you go to Grom with me?"
Viney looked to the card with surprise at first, but then smiled as she looked back up to Boscha. "I would be honored… the answer is yes."
Boscha smiled brightly and wrapped her arms around Viney. Viney stood in surprise for a good few seconds before smiling and returning the hug, all while Skara watched from the main table.
"Bold move, Boscha." Skara said quietly before she and Emira started to indulge in their victory cake.
Watching over the entire tournament through a specter, from the scaffolding of the arena, Odalia Blight walked down, looking into her crystal ball all of the contestants and the ones who had made it into the next round for the next day.
"So, with all of these people and their Navi servants here, I can at least find who the strongest are to put my company back at the top of the hierarchy," Odalia said to herself. "And once we're on top, I can finally end the feud that Luzura Incorporated started with me. Nothing shall stop me now." She swore before leaving the arena.
At the Palace of Darkness in the MagiNet, ShadeMan was also watching over each of the battles that had just taken place, with BlitzMan and Pandora standing before him as all of them were looking to the holographic screens.
"Tell me, BlitzMan, what good shall come from this Demon Realm recreation that gave birth to Bass?" ShadeMan asked. "Even I know who will come out on top in the end, and not even that will help us in our plans… or you if you aim to become my right hand like everyone else has been trying to do."
"Because, Master ShadeMan, everyone is competing there to show they're the strongest," BlitzMan said, strolling through a hologram of MuckMan before changing to show Mysteria. "Think of the opportunity that awaits once the strongest Navi and human, witch or demon emerges from this slaughter-fest. When they're all knackered out from taking on all of the competition, what's stopping us from taking the ones who gave the best challenge… and making them into fresh new Darkloids that can tear down the system Belos put us under?" he suggested, getting ShadeMan to think.
"Watch it!" Pandora ordered, only for BlitzMan to shoot near her feet, getting her to back away.
"So, we're not getting the winners… but the fodder…" ShadeMan deduced as a grin came to his face. "I will admit… the plan has merit."
BlitzMan chuckled, as did Pandora. "Trust me… Daddy knows what he's doing…"
Later that night, at Blight Manor, Amity was changing in her room, pacing around as she did so.
"We made it to the second round," Amity said as Hecate watched her eventually finish changing, taking off her bathrobe and fitting her pajama shirt on. "But barely. Serra and Sabela were tough ones to beat. We don't know who could be next!"
"Amity, please calm down," Hecate said calmly. "Remember what ranking you made when this day came. You're not going to lose so easily, and this fight showed it."
"I know, but I want to make it so that I can have a proper rematch with Luz," Amity said. "I can't stop worrying about it, and…"
Before Amity could go on, Hecate pulled her onto the bed, now with one of her books in her hand, all while Amity had a flustered look on her face once her head was rested on Hecate's lap.
"What's going on…?"
"I'm helping you calm down," Hecate said. "I know why you're nervous, but if you keep stressing, you will end up losing. I know you won't, and you'll have that rematch with Luz, but right now… you need to unwind and relax. Trust me."
Amity smiled. "Okay…" she said. "Just please… don't leave…"
Hecate prepared to read the book until she patted Amity's head. "I'll be right here when you wake up." She promised before starting to read.
While Amity listened, the words were being blocked out from her thoughts.
'There's this kindness again. I've never felt anything like it before,' Amity thought to herself as she took a few deep breaths to help calm down. 'It feels so soothing… so… peaceful…" she thought before starting to slowly fall asleep.
Later on, after reading Amity to sleep, Hecate walked out, looking to Amity as she now rested softly with a smile on her face. As she gently closed the door, she felt someone watching her and turned, seeing Lilith standing there.
"Ah, Hecate," Lilith said. "How is Amity doing after today? I wanted to come and give her my congratulations."
"She is resting for tomorrow, and resting from the stress," Hecate said. "I will be sure to tell her you came by in the morning."
"Of course," Lilith said. "She has certainly improved…" she admitted before looking to her hand. "More than how I had her with the patch at the Covention."
"What?" Hecate asked, hearing the murmur.
Lilith froze, suddenly realizing her mistake as Hecate now made her way towards her until they were on the stairs. "I… I did not mean for it to be that way," she insisted. "I was planning to put that power patch on Amity, but she was too eager to face Luz back then, and I never got the chance to properly place it on. Everything she did at the Covention was her own power, I swear!"
Hecate clenched her fist, looking at Lilith sternly. To her, there seemed to be a red glow in Hecate's eyes, though she was unable to tell if that was her mind playing tricks on her.
"Since your cheating was never caught and it didn't negatively effect Amity, I'll let it slide this time," Hecate said as Lilith prepared to let out a sigh of relief, only to be cut off as Hecate came in very close to her face. "But know this, if you ever pull something like that again, whether it's for your own selfish reasons or something else entirely, if you do anything that makes Amity look like she's cheating, or actually make her cheat; there is nowhere and no one on the Boiling Isles, or the entire Demon Realm, that will save you from me," she threatened, getting Lilith to now pant nervously as she backed against the wall. "What I will do to you will make anything Eda pulls look like a prank… ARE WE CLEAR?"
"Yes, yes! Perfectly clear!" Lilith replied, now turning her head away with her eyes closed as she prepared for the worst to happen.
"For your sake, Lilith," Hecate started out as she backed away, allowing Lilith to properly breathe again. "Do not get on my bad side." She warned before walking away.
Lilith continued trying to catch her breath as she saw Hecate walk away. Knowing this side of her was not to be toyed with, she backed away and flew off into the night.
End Day 1…
Author's Notes: Well, it took me a while, but Part 1 of the first Half of the Dem-N1 Grand Prix is done! Sorry for the long wait, but I tried to do all three chapters for the first half of the Arc for the same day. I couldn't do it with how busy things got, but I will make sure I get the other two chapters done going into next year. Please review, rate, and as always, if you can, PM me for anything on this story. For now, this is SuperHeroTimeFan signing off. Merry early Christmas, everyone! See you next year!