Summary: Playing such a melocolic tune
Hooty continued to spin around. "I'm finally freeeee!" That metal was so annoying.
"Yeah, Yeah, yeah, don't ever say I'm not nice to you." Eda groaned, falling to the floor where all the metal shavings were. "Stupid Bizy and her crackhead ideas."
"Ooooh, someone bitter over their ex?" Hooty smirked. He wouldn't blame them, that buff gal was super mean. "Gonna hook up with another one to get over the pain?"
"We were never exes, just friends that hated the Coven System and Belos." Eda rolled her eyes.
"You didn't deny hooking up with another one." He joked.
"Why are you so into my dating life again so suddenly?" The Owl Lady questioned him.
"Because watching Luz fail to date brings back so many memories, I'm feeling nostalgic." He admitted. "I mean, it's really, really sad when your own son has a better dating life than you."
"Shut it, or I'm smelting the metal over your face." Eda threatened. "Speaking of, where are the kids?"
"Outside on the Palisman. They're training for some sort of race." Hooty opened the door to show her.
"And that is how you do a triple axle spin." Lucci grinned. "Boscha showed me how …"
"Dude, I kept you to one promise, don't flirt in front of me." King grumbled.
"She's not even here. I can talk about my girlfriend without delving into romantic banter, you know."
"We do, you're just really bad at keeping it to yourself." Luz mentioned before noticing Eda. "Whatsup Owl Lady, being as old and foxy as ever."
"Trying to be, you know, with being magicaless and all." Eda chuckled. "So, what's this about training for a race?"
"Yeah, it's a fly off. Winner gets to live stream a victory speech to the world." Luz answered. "So we're teaming up with King to get him a message out there."
"If the entire world is gonna see, then maybe my dad's watching!" Oh, that sounded nice.
"Oh…still working on finding your family, are you?" Eda asked weakly with a shaking looking smile.
"Yeah, I mean, there's gotta be a chance they aren't completely horrible like Lucci's family." King pointed.
"I still don't see the big deal about biological family." Lucci shrugged. "If my womb donor and the Blights are any indication, it just sucks. Not to mention the clear strained relationship between Luz and her mom."
"Okay, one, you do NOT get to comment on my relationship with my mom." Luz whacked the boy across the head. "And two, don't you DARE ruin this for King. If he wants to connect with his dad, then we're supporting him one hundred percent."
"I never said I wasn't, just saying it feels like a mess waiting to happen." Lucci shrugged.
"Either way, we're having Lucci on Sugar and Owlbert on Luz, plus the rest of their friends to increase our chances at getting that spot." King stated. "Though I still say getting Boscha on this isn't going to end well."
"Do you know anyone else most likely to murder any actual competition?" Lucci questioned.
"Yeah, and she'll likely get on a winner's high and brag about herself for the interview instead of letting King talk." Luz pointed out.
"Does she really strike you guys as that selfish?"
"YES." Everyone answered simultaneously.
"... Well I'm just gonna train on my super speed while you think about that more carefully." Lucci grumbled. "Onward Sugar, to infinity and beyond!" The boy disappeared in a blurr, quite a few trees getting snapped in half.
"This is why I'll be working on my slow and steady approach." Luz nodded. "So King, know what you're going to say to the whole Boiling Isles?"
"After I ugly cry, I'm going to announce to the world that I'm le…"
"Oh, you know what, checking the time, I just realized that I don't have a watch. Better start planning to steal one right away." Eda quickly headed inside. "Oh why, oh why, Oh why is this happening so fast?"
"Your empty nest syndrome rearing its ugly head?" Hooty questioned.
"Shut it, bird brain. I'm going through a crisis here." Eda fell on top of the couch.
"I don't see why, I'm pretty sure Lucci doesn't plan on leaving even when he gets married." A bit over attached in Hooty's opinion.
"You've never had a girlfriend before, Hooty, and that kid is head over heels." The woman responded. "He's growing up faster than I could've imagined. Luz is trying to find her way home and is probably going to leave this dimension forever with the portal door gone, and King wants to find his real family! I can't compete with that! They're all going to gone one with their own lives and leave me behind."
Hooty shrugged. "You could always kidnap another baby." He then felt the familiar grip of her hands around his throat. "Just…a…thought…"
"I never kidnapped…oh what's the point?" She sighed. "I can only find happiness if I take it. I took Lucci, I took King, I took Luz, and they all have their own things going. Ever since I lost my magic, I've become more and more useless to them. They're strong enough to handle situations on their own…they don't need me anymore."
Hooty stared at her. "I need you."
"Like I said, no one needs me anymore." She repeated like he wasn't there. "Everyone important leaves me…I don't have my family, I don't have my magic, I don't have any friends…what do I have to show for myself and my life?"
"A legacy as a criminal?" He questioned.
"A legacy that's already overshadowed by both my lack of magic now and Lucci." The woman grumbled, reaching for a photo taken during Grom of her, King, and the kids. "Forget it, I'm going for my night market ice cream I've been fermenting for years."
"King and Lilith ate it all, remember?" Hooty brought up.
"Ah … dang it!" She slammed her head into the ground. "Not just people, I'm losing everything important!"
"Not everything…Ah…you still…have this lute!" He tossed her the instrument.
"Oh yeah … maybe I can still play a note." She began stringing along a melody of sorrow, gazing out of the window. After a few seconds things began to fly. "Wait … do I have Bard magic!?"
"Looks like it." Hooty cheered. "So beautiful and majestic…and the black sludge everywhere is a nice touch too."
"Wait what?" The woman turned, looking at the decaying objects, before she instantly stopped playing, watching it fall and break. "Great, I still have Bard Magic, but all it causes is chaos … maybe that's where Lucci picked it up from." She mumbled.
"Like mother like son." Hooty smirked.
"Another problem I caused …" She sighed. "I'm gonna go drink my worries away at a bar." The woman said, walking to the back door. "Owlbert lets … oh right, he's training with them." She mumbled. "Another friend lost …"
"I'll be your friend forever!"
"Why do I keep losing everyone I love!?" Hooty was starting to think he wasn't that appreciated around the house.
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Eda took another gulp of Apple Blood. "You know, sometimes, life throws the strangest stuff at you, ya know?" She asked her only talking buddy.
"I know, like how you went through fifteen bottles today but still manage to drain my Apple Blood supply." The bar keep rolled his eyes.
"And then it just disappoints you over and over again, like an endless cyle." She complained. "And with a dangling thread of hope."
"Yes, like how I hope you'll pay your tab … which you never do."
"That's how it is, you suffer through the worst experience ever, and you don't ask for much, just a little comfort, just a little company, but apparently you're not allowed to have those little things of life."
"Nope, not even a cent in return." The man nodded. "So did you actually bring snails or …"
"What's the point in clinging onto what you love? Either they outgrow you or you push them away. It's one or the other, there's never an in between." It's happened with every single relationship she had. Is there anyone in the world who's life was made better by having Eda in it? "The key to happiness is the complete dulling of the senses, that way you can't even tell if you're in pain or not."
"Yes … so fill up the hole that is your tab."
"It's always cryptic answers with you, you know?" It's like Eda was the only one trying with this friendship. "It's like I can never understand what message or advice you try to give me."
"Look Clawthorne, the only reason why I'm not getting the Emperor's Coven to drag you out is because they don't even care about capturing you anymore."
"That's their mistake, I'm as dangerous as ever!" She pounded her fist, before a lightbulb went over her head. "That's it! That's how I fill the void! I'll rebuild my rep and become the most infamous witch on the isles again! Then my life will finally have meaning again."
"… Yeah sure, maybe then I can turn you in for a bounty." The man shrugged.
"All I need now is a powerful yet naive group of morons to manipulate to my wims." She muttered. "But that's so hard to come by." With her infamy being drowned out by Lucci's, not a lot of people took Eda seriously anymore. Who around here would be desperate enough to team up with her?
"No, no, I don't want to join a coven!" A shout of fear and defiance that was far too uncommon now a days, Eda turned her head to see a couple of Emperor coven goons manhandling a witch outside.
"That's just the wild magic corrupting your common sense. It'll pass once you're branded." The skinnier guard said as the dragged the woman by the arms. "No need to be alarmed people, we're just helping this poor confused woman find her place in society."
Ugh, such a disgusting sight, and one ripe with opportunity too. Just beat up the two guard's and she'll be on the road to infamy in no time. Eda just had to figure out how to do that without magic.
"Oh right, I have glyphs." She pulled out to look at her current arsenal."Two light and one fire …" Why didn't she pack these more often? It should be obvious crazy shit would happen every day.
"So you wanna pay your tab before you run out or …"
"No time to layout my life story, Kevin, I have a reputation to maintain!" She ran out the door. "Hey, Emperor Chumps, lay off the lady or you'll get burned!"
"Seriously? What are you even doing here, Owl Lady? No coven is interested in a powerless witch."
"Powerless?" She smirked, making a light show. "Wanna reconsider?" And smacked the other light glyph right into his face.
"Uggggh!" The bulky one reeled back, before steadying himself and prepared a magic circle. "Oh your going to get it now!" Eda prepared to brace for impact…
Pluck pluck ping
Until a serene but familiar melody began playing, the Coven Stooges instantly stopped and raised their arms up. "What the…!?"
"Look upon the Emperors lackey's,'trying to…mute…the music of our hearts… ." A raspy voice that Eda could identify no matter what rang in their air. "Why do I have to say that?"
ping
"It's in the script I wrote and everyone unanimously agreed it was what needed to be said." Turning their heads, Eda and the crowd that was being gathered around saw four people in bard get up, all of them having large bat mask over their heads. "Come on fearless leader, lead them with your awesome voice."
"I should've thought twice about this public inspirational speech approach." The 'unidentified leader' shook their head. "The Emperor doesn't seek to help witches, he wished to control, constrict, and constrain your freedoms, abilities, and your knowledge!"
"Blasphemy!" The skinnier guard shouted.
"Blasphem-you!" Oh that couldn't be more cheesy if they tried. That was Raine alright. "We are the Bards Against The Throne! Aka…!"
"The BATTS!"
"Blasphem-this!" The guard put on ear muffs. "Bard magic is useless if we can't hear it!"
"Our one weakness, fashionable sound protection!" The white haired bat masked bard shouted on terror. Looks like they found a fun lot.
"Time for some good old Eda magic." She nodded … tossing over a barrel of Apple Blood from the stand, with a fire glyph attached to it. "Bombs away!" She cackled as she grabbed the 'leader' of this gang, running away.
"What the-"
"We can talk about paying me back later, Rainestorm, right now you and your posse better follow me if you want to avoid petrification." Eda winked at her ex.
"I have no idea what you're talking about." They tried to deflect.
"I know your voice way too well Rainy." She smirked. "From the singing, to the whistling, to the moans in a bathroom stall."
"That was one time and-I mean, whoever you're talking about clearly wouldn't want to discuss such private matters so publicly." They were such a bad actor.
"You left me alone for over sixteen years. I feel entitled to a lot of teasing." She deadpanned. "But if you're really not who I'm thinking of, I'm sure your team will love to hear about a time with me and a certain Coven Head in a two person sack."
"Can we please put the teasing on hold until after we get out of the sewers?"
"Totally, but you're going to explain all…this in detail Rainestorm." She waved to their get-up.
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Kataya popped out of the sewers, looking around. "Coast is clear." She said as she began crawling out of the grate. "Rare for us to not run into any guards during an escape."
"Told ya I know the sewer tunnels like the back of my hand." The owl lady, someone Kataya hadn't seen ever since she sprung her from the confromtorium, chuckled. "Any when I don't, I have this map for it." She pulled out said piece of paper from her mane of a hairstyle.
"Very well, we thank you for your help to our cause." Their leader bowed. "Now we best be on our way, quickly, to focus on other things."
"Trying to run off again?" The Owl Lady questioned. "I can and will make you scream, and not in the way you like Rainestorm." Oooh, sounds like something spicy. She could use some new inspiration for her next foodfic.
"Eda…!" Their leader blushed in a way they had never seen them do before, aside from stage fright when they ran off the stage in absolute fear. "You're embarrassing me in front of my troupe!"
"Ha, got you to admit it." She grinned. "You are many things Raine whispers, but an actor, you are not. So, you finally realized Covens were a mistake?"
Their leader sighed, taking off their mask. "I always knew they were a mistake, Eda, I just wanted to deal with it alone, my own way."
"Alone huh?" The owl lady pointed to the rear of them.
"Hey there, I'm Kataya." She waved, taking off her mask. "You freed me from prison, and I'm pretty sure your Lucci is friends with my Skara."
"Her what now?" Raine asked.
"Eh, no big deal, just love causing chaos and trouble to anyone working close to Belos." Eda ignored Raine's question. "Now, let's talk about how you all will make me your shadow leader as I cause you to skyrocket in success."
"Eda…" Their leader shook off the curiosity from earlier. "I'd love for you to join, but I'm trying to work with a hint of subtlety, and you're not exactly the quiet kind of outlaw."
"And you failed to get around a single pair of earmuffs." She deadpanned. "You all would have been caught if it wasn't for me."
"Nah, that's how it usually works out for us." Amber brought up. "It would've been the fifth time we've gotten caught. We end up escaping when they're hailing us away to the conformatorium."
"… I am both impressed, yet stupified." The owl lady groaned. "This is what I mean. Honestly, it's a titan damned miracle that you haven't been recognized Raine."
"The ability to fake stage fright drives it up high." … Everyone stared at their leader with deadpan looks.
"You're kidding, right?" Derwin raised an eyebrow. "You fled the state when you were anointed Coven Head,, and even before that it was well known how scared you are of audiences."
"Not to mention you still have trouble giving our well written speeches." Kataya stated.
"I don't have trouble speaking, they're just too..,big for me to say all at once." Raine weekly excused.
"Even back in our school days they were a bit on the shy side, even if Rainestorm was the best company around at the time… among other things." Eda smirked mischievously. "So come on, let me join up. I'd love to start sticking it to a Belos again."
Their leader looked back and forth at Eda and them. "Only if you can truly say without a doubt you have nothing to lose."
The woman cackled. "Oh trust me, I have absolutely nothing to live for at this point." She assured them.
"It's kind of hard to trust you with your habits of bottling your problems and your pathological lying disorder." Their leader said skeptically.
"Maybe, but lying and acting are two sides of the same coin, and you need all the help you can get." The owl lady laughed. "Don't worry folks, Mama's giving you all her support."
"You're not my mom!" Amber shouted.
"Isn't the manticore menace her.." Derwin began to ask.
"Why don't you show me around whatever secret hideout your hanging out in and we'll get started on stirring up trouble for the emperor?" Looks like it was time for a new change of pace.
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Eda was tackled by the crazy girl, Amber. "I love you Mama!" Most people probably would've been annoyed by this, but over a decades worth of getting the same affection made it rather welcoming.
"Love you too, crazy kid." Eda snickered as she scratched her head. "So what's next on the agenda? Rescuing the covenless, fighting some scouts, taking on a political scandal?" The last few hours had been quite exhilarating. She may have had no magical ability now, but her years of being the most wanted criminal on the Isles gave the Owl Lady quite the knack for strategy. It made her feel almost ten years younger causing this much trouble again.
"We heard reports of a transport." Rainestorm explained. And catching up with the longest relationship she held with anyone was a great little cherry on top of things. "Well, more like we acquired them after that last run in at a holding cell where you had us create a miniature painbow."
"My insides were on my outsides, how fun." Kataya smiled.
"Nothing like a little organ misplacement to get the day rolling." She snickered as she popped off her left hand and threw it up in the air like it was a ball.
"How did you manage to date her?" Derwin asked with curiosity.
"Willpower and intense curiosity." Raine huffed, but there was a small content smile in their expression.
"Don't forget the apple blood, lots and lots of apple blood." Eda countered. "Come on Rainestorm, this is just like old times, except you're the one telling me to do something illegal now."
"I tried telling you not to, you just happened to barge in and say what we were doing sounded fun." They reminded her. "Seriously, I heard you got captured at the petrification ceremony, are you okay?"
"Oh that, pfft that was nothing." Eda waved off. "Lilly split the curse between us, so I'm able to hold it back with Exilars full time now. Can't do magic anymore, except bard, though that has this weird decay effect on it."
"Hey, that really does make you a Bard Against the Throne." Amber chuckled. "A Bat!" Seriously, that sounded like a name Lucci and his friends would've come up with, like their little Law group.
"Wait, I'm confused. Wasn't the Manticore Menace also at the petrification since he's your…." Katya began to bring again.
"Hey, we're here." Eda deflected. She was doing this to get her mind OFF of her kids, and Raine would probably send Eda away if they knew she had a family, and the Owl lady really didn't want to leave…half because she was certain her ex was going to get caught without her. Seriously, as booksmart as Raine was, she was WAY too obvious. "And … it's empty?" She looked around at the forest, noticing a distinct lack of witches.
"I don't understand, my tip off has always been on point." Raine gazed at the area, confused.
"You think the timing was marrow instead of midday?" She questioned.
"No, that can't be it." They muttered. "This is off, we need to leave."
"I don't know, I say everyone is right where they need to be, little songbird." Abomination goop surrounded Raine's team and bound them together. "Wouldn't you agree, Ebberwolf?" What!?
"Grrrrgh!" The head of the beast keeping coven borrowed from underneath ground, popping up like a badgermole and growling feral.
"Heyyyy Ebberwolf." Eda chuckled nervously. "So you're not carrying any grudges about the invasion, right? Because you know most of that didn't have to do with me or anyone I know, right?" She asked with a hint of fear.
"A Coven head!? So this was a trap." Raine gulped.
"As if that wasn't obvious. How you got the position I'll never understand, Whispers." They turned to the voice of another Coven head in fancy clothing, gazing at them with hatred.
"Hey Darius, long time no see.." The owl lady laughed as she began to back away, looking at one of the Coven head's arms. "I see you got a fancy Handjob."
"I admit, despite loathing Vitimir for causing this, the color scheme has grown on me." He nodded. "Besides, now I have a brand new trick up my sleeve, perfect for dealing with pests." He shot out of his other arm…. pink sludge right at their feet.
Booooomm
"What!?" She backed herself and Raine into the valley below just in the nick of time. "Exploding abomination goo!?" That was exactly how…!
"An indirect ability I gained after Vitimir experimented with the Devil child's blood." Darius smirked viciously as his entire body became purple and sludge like. "They're like a living Galder stone, something to think in the back of my mind if I ever encounter him." Of course people wanted to use her son's body for selfish reasons, why not?!
"Okay, clearly you took down most of the resistance." She nodded, slowly reaching for a glyph. "How about we let bygones be bygones?"
"After the locker incident? Oh I've been waiting YEARS for this." The man's arm became a blade as he launched right at them to begin attacking. "I'll cut you into so many pieces you won't even be able to reattach them all!"
"Will people let that go, we all had fun, right?" She asked as she began running.
"Not when it was with ALADOR!"
"Hey, it could've been worse! You could've been with Odalia!" Eda shouted back as Ebberworlf called out a giant mouse worm, constantly burrowing underneath them to get them to sink in.
The abomination coven actually paused for a second. "Eh, fair enough." Because turning his arm pink again and launching another explosive shot at them.
"Can we at least talk you down?" Raine questioned the feral man trying to get them all killed.
"Grrrrggg." The man playfully rode on the worms as it tried to take a bite off of their heads.
"Ebber's right. We had free time scheduled today. Do you have ANY idea how hard that is outside of the one day off we're given?" Darius asked. "No, because you've barely been a coven head for five minutes."
"Well I am rebelling against the throne, so believe me when I say I schedule time to not be seen." They responded, using her violin to levitate mud to create a wall as they tried once more to run. "Besides, who wants to work in a job where you're ONLY given one day off?"
"That is a slight con in this business, but the payoff for after the day of unity should be more than worth it." Darius smirked.
"Day of Unity?" Eda questioned as another explosion rang out next to them.
"Something I've been researching, something bad is going to happen then." Rainestorm explained. "There's a huge spell that's going to be used, a spell that requires everyone to be branded into a coven, and I don't trust it one bit."
"Because you're a small minded fool that threw away their one shot at paradise to play vigilante with your band geeks." The abomination coven head mocked.
"They were not band geeks!" Raine shouted as they were launched into a tree, courtesy of the massive worm flying out of the ground.
"Grrr!" And now Ebberwolf was circling Eda, waiting for an opening to attack.
"Oh you want some of this?" Eda pulled out a glyph. "Then come and get it!" And planted it on herself, turning her invisible when she held her breath.
"Where did she go!?!" Eda quickly used the brief moment of distraction she had to run to Raine, knowing it wasn't going to last long with Ebber's enhanced senses.
"Raine! Rainestorm!" She climbed to where her ex was hanging, stuck in between the branches. "Look, you know I'm not really the play it safe type of gall, but we're getting our kiester's kicked out their, and we need to book it."
"No, no this might be our only chance to stop the Emperor's plan." Raine stretched their neck out. "The Coven heads are also vital for the spell. He needs one for the main nine to complete the spell. If we can get rid of at least one of them, we can stop it."
"Did you not notice the fact that even trying to run leads to us getting curbstomped?" She questioned. Eda did not remember Raine being this reckless.
"I know, which is why I think we can put your curse to good use for once." Raine twirled their fingers, summoning her violin and Eda's lute. "You said your curse corrupts bard magic? If we play at the same time and combine it, we can send out a big enough wave that'll corrode Ebber and Darius into nothing."
She looked at Raine, then at the two down there. "I don't know if you'll make it out in one peace … or me."
"You're the one who said she didn't have anything left … one last Rhapsody?" They sent her that charming smile Eda always felt weak against.
If she did this…then this was it for Eda. No more parents… no sister…. no Luz… King…. Lucci…. they were all better off without her in their lives. At least like this she'll go out doing something good for them for once….stopping Belos's plan. "It's more of a Requiem now."
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Darius whipped off his cloak. "Of course I can't do this squeaky clean." He muttered to himself, looking up at the treeline. "Would you mind surrendering before I make your punishment worse?" The man questioned, readying another explosive burst. He needed to get his dry cleaning done.
Darius also did not need Raine ruining everything he and Ebberwolf had been working for. It was difficult enough trying to form a rebellion against blasted Belos without them dancing around like brain dead monkey's in public. He needed to end the Emperor's plan before anyone else got killed along the way…like the previous Golden Guard did.
He watched the two jump out of the tree, landing next to a rock formation. "Grrrg." Ebber readied the flesh eating scarabs to eat away their legs if it came down to it. While he wouldn't hesitate to kill them for getting in the way, Darius wasn't one to turn away potential help. They just needed to stop acting like idiots for five seconds and actually use their brains.
Then the music began to start, a dual melody of notes that filled the air, as an orange glow began to spread across the ground. Darius turned to Ebberwolf in bafflement. "The Owl Lady lost her magic, right?" She shouldn't be capable of causing any more chaos.
"Gggggh." Right, it was one of the reasons why the Manticore menace was such a high priority on the Emperor's kill list. If Belos was actually afraid of one single child, then they of course needed him to stay alive. Hopefully before history repeated itself and got the next golden guard killed.
The ground slowly became blacker. Darius was on guard, looking at everything with intense precision. From the ground, to the source of the music, to the decaying bridge, to the rotting trees … The Coven Head turned to see the trees literally falling apart fast and quickly, branches and bark falling onto the ground faster than should naturally happen. "No …" The man began running to the source of the music. "We have to stop them now!"
These crazy bastards, didn't Raine know they were replaceable!? "Egggggh!" Ebber shouted in pain as his animal's began fading into black sludge, quickly becoming ash that faded in the wind.
"You asasine idiots, do you have any idea what you're doing!?" Darius attempted to stretch out and reach them, only for his form to quickly begin to decay as well. "AAAAAGGGGGGH!" Every single inch of his body was rotting from the inside out. His blood was practically oil and his origins charcoal with how every single nerve of his felt like they were on fire.
"Stopping the Emperor's plans, you purple prissy pants pussy!" Eda mocked them with a wide grin, even as she and Raine were beginning to corrode from the leg up.
"We are not letting the Day of Unity come to pass." The bastich exclaimed, continuing to play the music as their body rotted.
"No … no!" Darius tried to push himself forward. "You don't understa-" He could no longer speak, on the account of the decay reaching his mouth. Oh, someone was going to pay for this.
"It's working, It's working!" That moron Eda proclaimed happily.
"Yes…it is." Raine smiled, though it seemed more forlorn than Eda's. "Eda, you're certain you're okay with this? This is the end of the line if we finish."
"Like I said, I have nothing left to live for." The outlaw explained, giving a twirl as a photo dropped out of her hair. "Now come on, let's keep this going."
The photo landed right in front of Raine, who grabbed it and held it right in front of her. "Eda…..do you have KIDS!?"
The music instantly stopped as the Owl Lady froze. "I … I can explain."
"Wait, how did you not know this?" Darius asked. "The Manticore Menace is her son, Lucifer Clawathorne."
"HE'S WHAT!?" Raine continued to look in shock.
"I mean, yeah…he is mine, but the other two have other families and I was just looking over them while.." Eda began to stumble on her own words. "Look, they mean the world to me, but they're leaving, and-"
"I HAVE A SON !?"
A silence enveloped the area as the rot vanished. But Darius made not a single move … because THAT was a lot to process.
"Wait, how did you get…!?" Eda looked even more flustered.
"He looks fourteen, maybe fifteen … was it that one time on the beach we forgot to use … and the transformation, like the curse!" The Coven Head began rambling.
"Raine, I think you're getting…!"
"Grr." Oh yeah, he was a notable user of Bard Magic … wait, did this theory hold credence?
"I can't believe this, I can't believe, why didn't you tell me!?"
"Rainstorm, just let me explain…!"
"You said you had nothing to live for, and you're just going to let yourself die when you have kids waiting for you!?" Raine chastised. "That's messed up Eda, especially for you!"
"They all plan on leaving me, none of them are actually going to wait for me!" She shouted back. "Not to mention you left me for the Covens, so don't you get on a high Snorse!"
"We broke up because you refused to tell me everything important, including THIS apparently!"
"Just let me explain and you'll know…" The owl lady was surrounded in a yellow glow by Raine's magic.
"Look, I get you have trouble handling people, but dying isn't the solution! You DO have something to live for, so I'm going to make sure you get out of here to realize that!"
"Wait Rainestorm, don't you dare-" And then the woman was launched away, into the horizon.
"Make sure our kid grows up safe, alright!" The witch shouted. "Promise me that!" And people called Darius the dramatic one. That was a real life soap opera situation….and Daruis was too sucked into to actually realize they should've just captured them both while they had the chance.
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Raine sighed, raising their lute to the two Coven Heads. "Unfortunately for you, now I have something to live for." They had a son … they had a SON and Raine never knew! How fucked up did you have to be to never tell someone that!? Not only that, the first time they met him, they fought against each other! Why was the titan so cruel? "So if you think I'm backing down that easily…"
They didn't get the chance as Darius surrounded them in the goo, restraining their arms and legs. "I have to say, that little show of Melodrama almost makes up for getting my cloak dirty…except it doesn't and I'm going to make you pay for it."
Raine growled, trying his best to break free. "You know it's not going to work right?" They asked. "The Unity spell isn't what you think it is!"
"Grrr." … Wait what?
"You knew?" Raine questioned.
"Yes, because we're not morons, or people blinded by fame and power." Darius rolled his eyes. "Neither of us trust Belos or anything he says. We've been planning on a coup of our own for a while, and we were trying to be discreet about it, not wearing tacky bat masks and acting like a bunch of court jesters."
"... The masks weren't that bad." Raine pouted. "Wait, you never said anything all this time because …"
"You're a terrible actor."
"Grrrr."
"Why does everyone keep saying that? I have everyone believing I have genuine stage fright!" They proclaimed.
"....You're serious?" Darius asked, before shaking their head. "But now that you're up to speed, you should know that your plan wouldn't have worked even if we all died. The Emperor doesn't require US, he requires coven heads."
"... Ah." Raine nodded. "I see where I went wrong …"
"Grrr." Yeah, now they could work on something new. "Grr."
"... What?"
"The Emperor already knows a Coven Head is a traitor." Darius explained. "We need to bring in someone, so it may as well be you, after I make you pay for the near death experience and dirt on my clothes of course."
"You're so petty." Raine grumbled.
"And you just made your payback even worse." They cracked their neck. "Now we need to do this before Kikimora comes here and hands you to Terra."
"So I'm just dead now?"
"Not entirely." Darius answered. "We may be replaceable, but they require strong witches to be a coven head, and you just so happen to fit the bill. They won't 'give up' on you just yet."
"Ah, Brainwashing." Raine paused. "Wait, wouldn't Adrien be a better choice for that? Illusionists are the masters of mental manipulation."
"...Full disclosure, no one likes him, so no one thought to approach him." Darius nodded. "Anyway, if, and that will be a big IF, you survive the mental conditioning, then we can talk strategy."
"Alrighty …" The bard Coven Head let an awkward silence pass. "So is this the part where you beat me up, or…"
"Yes." Darius created a giant Abomination fist that hung over her head. "And let me just say for the record….hard feelings all around." If this meant Raine had a sliver of a chance of seeing Eda and their son, then it would be worth it.