Chapter 37 - Chapter 20: EP 20: Luz Ascendant Part 1.

Season 1: The Demon Realm

Chapter 20: Luz Ascendant

Lilith walked through the halls of the Emperor's Castle, a look of determination on her face as she prepared to speak to Emperor Belos. It was early in the morning the day after Eda's capture and Luz's escape, and Lilith had barely slept a wink. She and the other Coven Heads had been healed from the damage Raine Whispers had done to them during their escape, as had most of the Coven Scouts and Guards who'd been attacked by Eda to cover that escape, and the castle moat/ravine was now in the process of being drained and repaired. Eda herself, now trapped as the wild Owl Beast, had been restrained by Belos shortly after Luz and Raine had fled, and now she was chained up in the throne room, awaiting her fate… a fate Lilith hoped to avert.

After Luz's escape, Belos had experienced another of his strange fits that required him to devour Palisman essence, so he'd retreated to his private chambers with his Golden Guard and Silver Sentinel so he could heal, so Eda's fate had been delayed.

Lilith arrived in the throne room and found the Owl Beast bound between two pillars with red chains of magic, pulling her limbs and wings taut so she couldn't move even a little bit. The beast was conscious however, and the instant she laid eyes on Lilith, she began to screech and snarl, wriggling her head in an attempt to attack the woman.

"Sister… I'm so sorry this had to happen." Lilith said softly, getting as close as she dared, "B-But don't worry! The Emperor won't kill you! I'm sure I can convince him to cure you! Then you can cut your ties with Luz. I know it will be painful for you both, but its the only way to save you both! I hope you'll understand."

The Owl Beast answered with a snarl, and a moment later, the doors to the throne room opened and in marched six Coven Scouts, who promptly flanked the short walk between the door and the restrained Owl Beast. Kikimora entered a moment later and announced; "All kneel before Emperor Belos!" before she bowed herself and backed away.

The Emperor swept into the throne room, this time missing his two loyal shadows, and Lilith promptly knelt on the ground in front of him.

"My Lord, forgive me for coming to see you so early, but I had to speak with you regarding my sister." she said formally, head bowed.

Belos sighed; "Very well. I will listen to whatever request you have… after I've had a word with your sister."

He then gestured for her to stand and take a step away from the Owl Beast, before summoning his odd mechanical staff and shooting a red beam of magic at the Owl Beast's head. The creature yelped and screeched, but when Belos stopped the spell and she opened her eyes again, they were the usual white sclera and amber irises of Eda.

"Ah! Where am I!? What is this!?" Eda gasped, now in control of her mind again. She looked around and saw Lilith and Belos, and then realised she was tightly bound in the Emperor's Throne Room. "Aw farts… So, you finally caught me, eh Bonehead?"

"Quite." Belos said shortly, his eyes narrowed.

"Too bad it cost you Luz! Now that she's free from your clutches, you'll never get your hands on her again! Especially now that she knows not to trust this traitor!" Eda smirked, before sneering at Lilith.

The elder Clawthorne looked down in shame, but Belos didn't rise to Eda's taunts; "I wouldn't be so sure of that. I will recapture Luz in time and she will fulfil her destiny as an angel. But for now, the one I'm interested in is you. You possess a portal to the Human Realm, and you will hand it over to me or I will take it from your corpse." he said, pointing his staff threateningly at Eda's face.

The Owl Lady stared back defiantly, but Lilith quickly threw herself between them; "Wait! My Lord, now that we have Eda captured, we can make this end in a way that will please everyone!"

Belos rolled his eyes; "This again…?"

"Please, I know I failed to capture Eda myself, but my previous plan could still work! If you cure Eda of her curse, then she can join the coven and we can use her to bring Luz back into the fold! Luz said herself that she'd do anything you ask if you spare Eda's life! This way, Eda lives and is cured, Luz fulfils her destiny as an angel, and the Emperor's Coven gains two powerful members! Everybody wins!" Lilith said imploringly.

"No. So long as there is a bond between Luz and this wild witch, she will be corrupted and impossible to purify. If she is not purified, she will be of no use for the Day of Unity. I require a PURE angel, which means the bond between them must be severed." Belos said sternly.

Lilith recoiled, then desperately said; "T-Then I'll convince Eda to sever that bond!"

"Like heck you will!" Eda snarled.

"I'm trying to save your life!" Lilith spun around to snap at her sister; "What do you think will hurt Luz more anyway; having you sever your bonds with her, or being the reason you were executed!?"

Eda sneered; "Don't flatter yourself, Lilith! This isn't for my sake, you're just trying to ease the guilt of cursing me and ruining my life! Well tough luck! Luz is one of the best things that ever happened to me, and I'll die a thousand times before I tell her she's not welcome in my life any more!"

Lilith gasped, then Eda looked to Belos with a cocky smirk; "Besides, you're not going to kill me anyway, are you Bonehead?" she taunted.

"Oh?" Belos said, making his staff spark with red energy, "And what makes you so sure?"

Eda grinned wider; "Because Luz is the one with the key to your precious portal. If you kill me, she'll hop right on through it and you'll lose both her and the portal forever! Besides, you need leverage to try and catch her again."

Belos narrowed his eyes; "You overestimate your usefulness. The child has others she loves in this realm; her school friends, that little demon pet of yours, or that treacherous Raine Whispers. I even hear she has a girlfriend." he said, adding that last part with some disgust in his voice.

"Nice try bonehead, but you're forgetting the important part." Eda said, unfazed by the threat, "Luz. Has. The. Portal! With access to the Human Realm, she and her friends can just flee whenever they want! Witch and Demon magic works in the Human Realm too, so they wouldn't even have to give up their life styles! If anything, magic would make surviving in that world way easier! Who knows, maybe their families will spread and grow and the entire Human World will end up with magic in a few generations!"

Belos' eyes gleamed dangerously; "Fine. You've bought yourself a few more hours of life. But as soon as I have that key, you will pay the ultimate price for your sins!" he hissed. He then snapped his fingers and his Scouts marched forward with special staves, each tipped with a red crystal. They pointed the crystals at the red magic chains binding Eda, and the ends of those chains leapt from the pillars to the crystals, allowing the scouts to drag Eda away while she struggled and snarled at them.

As soon as Eda was gone, Lilith opened her mouth to protest and beg for her sister's life, but Belos literally silenced her by covering her mouth with a red tendril.

"I'll hear no more begging or excuses, Lilith. Your sister has been given enough chances. She, and all wild witches, must be dealt with if the Day of Unity is to go ahead. This is the Titan's will. Do you understand?" he asked, leaning down so his masked face was inches from Lilith's.

Reluctantly, Lilith nodded and Belos promptly released her mouth. "Good. You remain my Head Witch solely because you succeeded in bringing me Luz. Do not make me regret that decision. Get to work."

With that, he stalked out of the throne room, leaving Lilith to stand their numbly. Alone with her thoughts, Lilith began to feel a tightness in her chest; for all these long years, she'd worked so hard for the Emperor and his coven, all so she could fulfil her childhood dream and one day cure her sister after the terrible mistake she'd made. She'd told herself that everything she was doing was righteous; it was the Titan's will! It was for the greater good! But she had been deluding herself.

She told herself that once Eda was free of the curse, she would be happy to end her wild ways. Eda had only rejected the Emperor's Coven AFTER she'd been cursed after all, so Lilith convinced herself the curse had been what changed her. But again, she had been deluding herself.

Now Lilith stood there, clutching at the ashes of her life; her hunt for her sister had estranged her from her parents (not to mention how Eda's curse had hurt them), her niece (blood related or not) no doubt feared and hated her now, and her sister? The one she'd been doing all this for? She despised her and would likely prefer to see her dead. Lilith's actions had cost her everything, and all she had to show for it was a sigil on her wrist and the title of the Emperor's chief lapdog.

"What do I do now?" she whispered to herself, tears in her eyes.

She didn't want Eda to be killed, and she didn't want Luz to be captured again! What Belos had done to both of them would haunt her to her dying day, and she had stood by and done nothing. But how could she? She couldn't defy the Emperor!

Unbidden, the words of her apprentice filled her head, and Lilith remembered that day in the Bat Queen's forest.

"I want to decide what I become for myself. Not you, not the Emperor. It'll be my choice. My path to walk. And right now, my path is right here, between you and these Palismen!"

Amity had been brave; she'd stood against the woman she saw as a mentor in order to do what she felt was right. In order to protect the innocent. She shamed Lilith into realising that she had long ago stopped deciding her own path. She walked the path the Emperor paved for her… a path that ended in her sister's death.

"No." Lilith shook her head; "No more. I won't let Eda die! I'll save her!"

But she couldn't do it alone; no one witch could stand up to the Emperor! "But maybe several witches could. Several witches… and an angel!"

With that thought in mind, Lilith left the throne room and began heading out of the Emperor's Castle; she had a very uncomfortable reunion to go to, and a very angry niece to apologise to.

[Meanwhile]

Luz stood in the basement of the Owl House, her hands glowing softly with gold magic as she focused on the Panacea Mirror in front of her. She'd been awake since the crack of dawn, and decided to come down and complete the mirror before she did anything else. It was the only way to turn Eda back to normal and cure her, so she'd need to get it done. Thankfully Rasiel had added their blood to it the night before while waiting for Eda to rescue Luz, so the mirror only needed a little more angelic magic to fully blend the blood together and be completed.

"I was under the impression you were going to rest."

Luz turned her head to see Rasiel walk into the basement potions lab. He really was looking a lot better than when she'd seen him before being captured.

"I got some sleep, but it was tough. I kept thinking about Eda. Decided to come down here rather than toss and turn all night and disturb King." Luz replied.

She and King had gone to sleep together in Eda's nest, while their friends had decided to sleep over (with permission from their parents). Amity and Willow had taken Luz's room, while Raine had slept on a sleeping bag in Eda's room, and Gus and Rasiel had slept on the two couches in the living room. They'd all been asleep when Luz crept down to the lab.

"Did I wake you when I came down?" Luz asked.

Rasiel shook his head; "No. I enjoyed sleeping again, but my body feels like it has been resting for, well, 100,000 years. I doubt I need much." he walked over to examine the mirror; "You're making good progress. When the silver frame of the mirror turns gold, it will be complete. I suspect it'll be only a few more minutes."

"Good. With this, we'll be able to turn Eda back to normal. Without her curse and with the two of us working together with Raine, we're sure to beat the Emperor!" Luz smiled determinedly.

"You'll have other allies too. The others are all awake and last I saw, they were making calls while I was making breakfast. That's why I came down here by the way; there is food on the table." Rasiel grinned; "It's been so long since I've cooked and eaten, but from how King was enjoying it, I'd say I've still got it."

Luz blushed as her stomach began to rumble. "I could go for some food. By the way, have you recovered any more memories of your past."

"Sadly not." Rasiel sighed, "I have a few blurry flashes and fragments, but little else. I suspect I'll recover my personal memories from one of the other Black Tombs. But that can wait until after we rescue Eda."

Luz nodded and turned back to focus on blending her magic into the mirror. Her magic felt a little odd ever since her forced transformation into a Pseudo-Titaness, but it didn't seem any more or less powerful, so she powered on without worrying. Just as Rasiel predicted, a few more minutes passed before the mirror began to shine brightly and the silver frame turned golden, signalling the completion of the Panacea Mirror. The completed product was a roughly plate sized oval with a golden frame decorated with two angelic figures with Angelic Runes carved along the edge of the mirror itself. The angelic figures resembled Luz and Rasiel, as it was their blood that forged the mirror, and the mirror felt warm to the touch.

"Perfect! It's complete!" Luz cheered.

"Excellent! It was a lot of work, but you pulled it off. Now we just need to capture Eda's reflection in it while pouring your magic through it. That should activate the mirror and cure Eda's curse once and for all!" Rasiel grinned. His grin grew wider as Luz's stomach rumbled again, much to the girl's embarrassment. "But that can wait. Go eat breakfast, you'll need your strength for today."

Luz nodded and summoned her satchel, putting the Panacea Mirror inside it so she could summon it whenever she needed to. Then she walked with Rasiel up to the house, where she found a plate of Scrambled Eyeggs and Orc Sausages being kept warm by a little pink flame courtesy of Amity. There was also a note that read; "Luz, we're all waiting out front to discuss the rescue plan! Eat up and meet us there! We've called some friends to help! Love, Amity."

With a warm smile, Luz quickly wolfed down her breakfast while Rasiel watched in amusement. "I'm guessing its good?" he said.

"It's awesome, Rasiel! You'll give Eda and Hooty a run for their money. Maybe we should have a cooking contest some time? Angels VS Owls!" Luz giggled. She found that if she thought of Eda's impending rescue as a guaranteed success, it was easier to stay calm and collected. Rasiel certainly wasn't going to question her!

"Sure thing, Luz. Now if you're done, go change out of your pyjamas so we can see these friends that Amity and the others called." he said.

"Got it!" Luz said, rushing up stairs to change and wash up. The hoodie she'd worn to the desert was still in need of repairs and she didn't like breaking up the pieces of her favourite outfit, so Luz decided to wear her Hexside uniform instead, with her new Witch's Wool cloak over the top. The uniform had some minor resistances to magic (for the protection of the students) so it was probably a safer option for going into battle anyway.

Once she was dressed, Luz returned to Rasiel and then headed out the front door, only to freeze in shock at what she saw. She'd expected a handful of additional friends from Hexside, like maybe the Multi-Trackers, the Twins, Skara, and Mattholomule… and while all of those people were present, there were a LOT more! It looked like a miniature army had been called up!

Of the people Luz recognised, there was Mattholomule, Skara, Boscha, Cat, Bo, Amelia, Edric, Emira, Jerbo, Viney, Barcus, Capra, and Eileen from Hexside, Katya, Igor, and Tinella Nosa from the Conformatorium escapees, Steve from the Emperor's Coven, and even the Bat Queen herself! And that didn't even include the almost fifty people Luz either didn't recognise at all, or only vaguely recognised from the Conformatorium break out.

She could only stand their in shock as Amity and Raine came over with big smiles. "Good morning Luz. Quite the turn out, huh?" Amity said, kissing Luz on the cheek.

"This is… this is beyond anything I could ever imagine!" Luz gasped.

Raine grinned; "Most of them are escapees from the Conformatorium, who worked with me to make the Covens Against the Throne, AKA The CATTs!" they said, leading Luz over to the others. "They all want to help save Eda just like she helped save them from the Conformatorium. The rest are all your friends; the people whose lives you've touched and made better, and who now want to return the favour."

The chatting crowd quietened down as they saw Raine and Amity bring Luz over, all of them smiling determinedly at her. Her friends from Hexside approached her, led by Willow and Gus, with King on the former's shoulders.

"Isn't this great Luz! We've got an army to save Eda!" King beamed.

"I-It's amazing! It's almost hard to believe!" Luz stuttered, feeling totally overwhelmed.

"Well believe it!" Willow grinned; "I called Skara and Amelia, and they called Boscha, Bo, and Cat."

Skara nodded; "We were all pretty shocked when we heard what happened. I never knew you playing hooky yesterday would lead to this! Dad's still reeling from Raine's "betrayal" but I knew something was up! So I'm gonna help you and Raine!"

"I'm just here because of Skara." Boscha said dismissively, before Willow elbowed her sharply, making her grumble and add; "Okay, and because I owe you one. I busted you out of the local precinct, so I can probably help bust out the Owl Lady too."

Luz gaped at the three-eyed girl, while Amelia and Cat grinned and nudged their captain; "And we're here to help too! You're still one of us Banshees after all!" Cat said.

"And you did save my life from the Mandragora." Amelia added.

Bo giggled at Luz's dumbfounded expression; "I was actually called by Skara AND Gus, as part of the HAS. Your visits to the club, and Eda's human treasures always made my days so much happier, so I'll be glad to repay you!"

Gus then stepped forward, flanked by Eileen and Capra of the HAS, with Matt trailing behind. "These guys felt the same when I called them too!" he said, gesturing to the trio.

"Bo's right. You and Eda made the HAS so much more fun! Plus it was nice to have another friend in the Bard Track!" Capra said.

Eileen mumbled something through her eyelid, but Luz had spent enough time with her to recognise her words. She'd said; "You took the time to understand me too. Almost nobody else outside of the HAS bothered to do that."

"And of course, you know what you did for me. Forgiving me even when I was such a jerk, and helping me stand up to my old bullies. I owe you big time." Matt said, looking somewhat shy to be speaking with so many people listening; "I hope you don't mind, but I also told my bro. I know he's in the Emperor's Coven, but he's a good guy and wants to help."

Steve stepped forward, as did four other Coven Scouts who were being watched warily; "I wouldn't blame all of you for distrusting us, especially after what Lilith did, and what the Coven did to all of you who were locked up unjustly. But we really want to help and we'll do it in anyway you want us to." Steve said earnestly; "We joined the Emperor's Coven to help people, not be enforcers for a monster. Besides, I owe you for helping out my little brother, and for telling me about Pebbles."

The Bat Queen eyed Steve sharply but did not comment, choosing to remain silent in that moment and trust Luz's judgement on the man. The other Coven Scouts nodded in agreement with Steve's words, with one of them adding;

"We actually already helped a little. We fed a false report to the castle that said the Owl House had been cleared out and abandoned. No one will come looking for you here, so it's a safe place to meet and plan for the time being."

Gus then added; "I tried sending an illusion to the Looking Glass Graveyard to try and get the Keeper's help too, but he sent another one back saying he couldn't risk leaving the place unprotected. Apparently there was another intruder there recently and they made off with one of the Galdorstones, so he has the place on a tight lockdown."

That made Luz frown; had someone else followed them that day, or had Bria and her friends gone back once Luz and her friends had left? That could be a problem, but it was a problem for later.

Raine was the next once to speak; "And I naturally called up the CATTs! I'm sure you remember most of our members from the Conformatorium!" they said, gesturing to Katya, Igor, and Tinella. Luz had seen all of them around on occasion and had shared a few words. Those three, plus the huge crowd of witches and demons stood with them, all waved and gave little cheers, shouting their thanks.

"We'll save the Owl Lady and repay our debt!"

"Don't worry kid, we're with you!"

"Kinda shocked you're a real angel and not just a kid playing around, but we'll help anyway!"

"Yeah! Let's kick the Emperor's butt and save Eda!"

There was a cacophony of similar proclamations, making Luz's heart swell with joy. Tinella jumped up and down as she waved at the angel; "We will save Eda! Fight the oppwessors! Fweedom for everyone! We'll wepay our debts!"

Igor nodded; "You saved us when no one else did. Even though we're weird and everyone else rejected us, you were kind to us and helped us. You never treated me like I was creepy because I like to eat my own eyes. I want to do for you what you did for me!"

"That's right!" Katya grinned, "You're the one who inspired me to join up with Raine and the BATTs, before we became the CATTs!"

Luz's eyes widened in surprise, and she noticed that Katya was wearing the same outfit as Raine, which also matched with two other people who stepped forward to stand with Katya. One appeared to be a tall man with dark skin, shaggy black hair, and brown eyes behind a pair of gold framed spectacles that clung to the bridge of his nose. The other was a female Biped Demon of the same bat-like species as Rogier; though she had pinkish skin, big silver eyes, cute freckled cheeks, large bat eats, long pale grey hair, and even little bat wings on her back.

"Hi! I'm Amber! Katya and Raine are always talking about you! Nice to meet ya, Miss Angel!" the bat girl chirped happily, waving enthusiastically. "Thanks for saving her from that jerk Wrath! Let's save Eda together, okay?"

The dark skinned man then smiled too; "And I'm Derwin. Pleasure to meet you, Miss Luz. We'll be working together from now on, so I hope we can be friends."

"O-Of course! I-I'm honestly a little overwhelmed that so many people came to help!" Luz smiled back at them. She'd honestly expected to do this with only Raine and King as support, since her friends would have to stay out of it to avoid becoming criminals!

And it wasn't over yet either, as Amity eagerly held her hand; "And of course, while Willow, Gus, and Raine were calling all of them, I called the twins!"

Edric and Emira both raised their fists, and Orthie and Russ barked happily beside them; "Eda taught us some wicked wind magic and helped save our butts up on the Knee!" Edric grinned.

"So we're going to return the favour! Plus we owe you like a hundred favours for stopping us from being jerks to our little sister. You were an awesome girlfriend even before you were her girlfriend!" Emira added with a giggle. "Also, I was the one to call Viney, and she called Jerbo and Barcus!"

Edric pouted and said; "For the record, I was totally gonna call Jerbo right after but I got stuck using an illusion to trick Mom and Dad."

The three Magic Mixers chuckled at the Twins', then smiled at Luz. "We Magic Mixers have got to stick together, right?" Jerbo said.

"So naturally we'll help save Lord Calamity! Plus we owe you big time; it's thanks to you that we can learn all the magic we want!" Viney said, pumping her fist happily. "I also brought Puddles! He's roosting on top of your house."

Luz turned to see the young Griffin was indeed lounging on top of the Owl House, occasionally spitting up spiders that Hooty eagerly ate.

Barcus then woofed, and like Eileen, Luz had begun learning to understand him; "I cannot foresee how this day will go, but I know in my heart that we will succeed!"

"You guys…" Luz gasped softly, reaching the end of her composure… and there was still one more person who'd yet to say their piece.

The Bat Queen flew forward and landed beside Luz next, smiling and bowing in greeting as Amity grinned at Luz's awestruck expression.

"Bat Queen, you came too!?" Luz exclaimed.

"Yes. Young Amity calls for me this morning. She explain everything. Eda is owed one, so I will defend her as she defended my forest." the Bat Queen declared.

Amity grinned; "I used that whistle she gave me after we saved the Palismen from the Mandragora. But once I told her the situation, she let me keep it to use again in the future."

Luz finally lost her battle to keep her composure and began to cry, completely overwhelmed by the outpouring of support. "Everyone… you all came to help us save Eda! I can never thank you all enough!"

They all smiled at her and stood a little straighter, as Rasiel put a hand on Luz's back and said; "Luz, they are doing this precisely because they have so much to thank you and Eda for. You have touched their lives, helping them when they needed it most, saving them when no one else could or would. By being yourself and helping others with a selfless heart, expecting nothing in return, you have received their love and gratitude. They now stand ready to fight for what is good and righteous, and save the innocent, because of you and your example." the ancient Seraphim smiled wider and nodded to the gathered crowd; "Look around you Luz; this is the result of your efforts. This is the result of a kind young angel who put others before herself."

Luz looked at them all and began to sob harder. Her mind flashed back to her days in the Human Realm; her days of being a useless Cherub who couldn't do even the simplest thing to help without causing everyone trouble. How many times had she tried and failed to help others? How many times had she decried herself as a failure? How many times had she wondered if her Mami was right to send her away?

But here she was, stood in front of a whole crowd of people that she had helped. She'd come to the Demon Realm, a place supposedly filled with chaos and evil, and yet it had been exactly what she'd needed to grow. She'd awakened as an angel, found love in all its forms, and done the only thing she'd ever wanted; help people. And now, after all of that work and all the stumbles and failures she'd had along the way, Luz was finally being rewarded.

Stood in front of her was proof that Luz Noceda was a true angel, and as far as Rasiel, her friends, and all her allies were concerned… she was a pretty darn good one too!

"Thank you! Thank you!" she cried over and over, smiling brilliantly despite the tears streaming down her face. Her heart was full of warmth and determination as she proclaimed; "I won't forget what you're all doing for me and King. You're helping us save our family! Thank you all!"

She bowed a full 90 degrees, and King promptly bowed too, showing his own gratitude. The gathered crowd accepted their thanks graciously, and after Luz's tears were dried, they were all sat together to discuss their plan of action.

Since there were so many of them, it was decided that most of the CATTs members, as well as the four scouts that had come with Steve, would instead guard the area while Steve, Katya, Derwin, and Amber would attend the planning meeting for them and give them the plan afterwards.

"Okay, I guess that before we get to planning, we should make sure everyone is on the same page." Luz said. "How much does everyone know about what happened yesterday?"

"Amity and the others only told them the important parts; Lilith captured you and took you to Belos, then Eda came to save you and succumbed to her curse while Raine finished the job and got you home." King said.

"We weren't sure how many details you wanted to give." Amity explained.

"I understand. But the time for secrets has passed; now that the Emperor's Coven knows who and what I am, the entire Boiling Isles will know too. Let me tell you everything that happened." Luz said, before recounting the previous days events.

Everyone listened with grim faces as they heard how Belos had tried to force her to his side, first with words and then with pain. If they were upset before, hearing of how Luz had been tortured by him made them furious, and then learning that he'd used Titan Bile to force her into a Pseudo-Titan form and tried to force her to kill Eda herself left them all absolutely seething. Any lingering doubts they'd had about the Emperor's Coven were gone; they were all devoted to seeing them defeated today! Even those in the group who weren't interested in actually rebelling, like Boscha, the Banshees, and HAS were all disgusted and would be happy to see the Emperor taken down.

However the most shocking reveal was that Belos himself was an angel, and trying to bring his own brand of order to the Boiling Isles.

"So Belos is an angel!? He's not even from the Demon Realm!?" Skara cried in shock.

"It may not be that simple. It's possible he really is from this realm; we've found evidence of other angels who were born and raised in the Demon Realm, descended from Crestless angels who supposedly came here 50,000 years ago, before the Boiling Isles even existed." Rasiel said, remembering Zachael and his origins.

"How do you know that?" Viney asked with a raised eyebrow, before pointing out; "And how come you have a physical body now? Weren't you a spirit before?"

Aside from Luz's closest friends, Raine, and the Blight twins, everyone else just thought Rasiel was some kind of angelic oracle spirit. With a sigh, Rasiel quickly gave them the truth of the situation, and also told them about Zachael (though leaving out his connection to King, so he wasn't revealed as a young Titan). Like Luz had said, the time for secrets had passed, but King's identity was his own to give.

Hearing that Rasiel was an ancient Seraphim was also fairly shocking, but after the reveal of Belos, it wasn't that crazy to think about. In fact, it made a lot of sense for some of them.

"I always thought it was weird for Luz to have some kind of angelic oracle spirit when she can't use normal oracle magic. I guess this explains that, though I'm still wrapping my head around you being the prize inside the Black Tombs." Jerbo commented.

"I apologise for the deceit. I asked Luz and the others to hide my nature, as I wasn't ready to reveal it. However you should know that while we angels can't perform your oracle magic, we actually have our own version that we call Divination. Instead of using the spirits of the dead to tap into and read the Threads of Fate, we use our connection to various celestial bodies. Angels are connected to the sun, the moon, and the stars; anything that gives off or reflects celestial light. Since these sources of celestial light are also connected to the Threads of Fate, we can use the connection to do most of the things that oracle magic can do, excluding using the spirits of the dead as helpers. That's a bit more like necromancy for us angels, which is a major crime in our society." Rasiel explained.

Barcus woofed with interest; "Luz, can you not use this Divination magic too?"

Luz shook her head; "No. I don't know how to tap into the connection with the sun and stars, and it's not the sort of thing you can be taught with words. Another angel needs to use their magic to help you learn how to do it yourself. Mami never taught me because I basically had no magic in the Human Realm, and Rasiel doesn't have access to his magic."

"Darn… that would have been useful. If Belos is really an angel, we can't use oracle magic to predict what he'll do, but Divination might have worked! Oh well…" Willow sighed.

"Speaking of Belos, I've developed a theory. I believe his ability to lie and his corrupted body are a result of experimenting with the very same Titan Bile he used to corrupt Luz." Rasiel said.

Amity raised an eyebrow; "You said something like that last night. What makes you so sure?"

"Think about it; Belos needs Luz for his plans on the Day of Unity… whatever that is. So why would he risk injecting her with Titan Bile? He wouldn't… unless he knew what it would do. Belos also has access to witch magic and is famed as the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles, who can specifically talk to the Titan, so I believe that he has been using Titan Bile to make himself strong enough to take over the isles and imitate witch magic, as well as to fake a connection to the Titan. But doing it for so many years has slowly corrupted him. At least, that's my theory."

The others fell into deep thought; it did make some sense, and also explained his dependence on Palismen; Titan magic was basically wild magic in its purest form, and Palismen essence could alleviate any harm caused by wild magic. That was why the practice of carving Palismen was originally adopted by witches and demons in the era that wild magic was basically all magic; it allowed them to use it more safely and without risk of suffering negative effects from the potent power.

While most of the group agreed, something about the theory didn't sit right with Luz. She had felt his magic and it had felt like a lot of different people's twisted together around a rotten core, but she hadn't sensed anything that made her think of angels or Titans. She suspected it was because Belos had consumed so many Palismen, and their magic was now twisted around his corrupted soul. But there was something familiar there… something she couldn't quite put her finger on through the haze of rot and corruption.

She shook this thought off; ultimately it didn't matter too much at the moment. Belos being an angel was only useful information if they could expose him, but that wasn't their ultimate objective at the moment.

As the topic was about to turn back to the actual rescue plan, one of the scouts that had defected along with Steve suddenly rushed back over to the group, holding a crystal ball.

"Sorry to interrupt, but we just got a message from the Coven Headquarters! A special news report is about to go live on all news networks across the Isles! They want everyone on the isles to see it!" they said urgently.

Luz and her friends exchanged looks, then pulled out their scrolls or summoned their own crystal balls to watch the news story. Tuning into Bonesborough News on the Hex Network, they were greeted with the image of Gus's father, Perry Porter, stood in front of the Emperor's Castle.

"This is Perry Porter, coming to you life from outside the Emperor's Castle, where it has been announced that Edalyn Clawthorne, known commonly as "Eda the Owl Lady", has been successfully apprehended after an attack on the Emperor late yesterday evening. It has come out that the attack was an attempt to kidnap a young angel that had recently been discovered in the Boiling Isles and brought to the Emperor by Head Witch Lilith Clawthorne."

The image shifted to two side by side pictures; one of which was Eda's wanted poster, and the other was a candid shot of Luz walking in the streets of Bonesborough. Perry's voice spoke over these pictures, though he stuttered in shock upon seeing the picture of Luz for the first time. "L-Luz!? Ahem, apologies. The angel, revealed to be a young student at Hexside named Luz Noceda, previously believed to be Half-Human and Half-Witch, was discovered by the Emperor's Coven in the custody of Eda the Owl Lady. Lilith Clawthorne took custody of her and took Luz to the Emperor's Coven, whereupon they were attacked by the Owl Lady."

"Lies! They were the ones to kidnap me while Eda tried to save me!" Luz hissed angrily.

Gus sighed sadly; "Dad doesn't know that. He'd never knowingly report a lie… He'll probably call me after the report is over. I never told him about you, so he's probably pretty shocked that you're an angel. Plus I told him I was staying here last night."

Willow and the Blight siblings grimaced, expecting some calls from their own parents before too long. They'd talked over some of the details Perry was giving, but as it was just a pack of lies regarding Eda's attack on the castle and the damage she'd done to the bridge and spike pit, none of them cared too much. But then the report mentioned Raine, whose picture replaced Eda's on the screen.

"In yet another shocking turn of events, Raine Whispers, the successor of Scooter Crane as Head of the Bard Coven, has been exposed as a traitor to the Emperor. They wounded numerous other Coven Heads and Scouts, attacked the Emperor himself, and maimed the young angel by cutting off her hand, which had been marked with the Sigil of the Emperor's Coven. They then fled with Miss Noceda, leaving the Owl Lady behind as she succumbed to her infamous curse. Head Witch Scooter Crane, whom Mx. Whispers was filling in for at a meeting held in the Emperor's Castle, is currently bedridden and unable to give a statement, but the Bard Coven's third in command; Severin Cadence, had this to say."

The scene switched to outside the Cadence Manor, where Skara's father was stood behind a lectern and flanked by scouts and members of both the Emperor's Coven and the Bard Coven.

"I am deeply shocked by this turn of events. Never once did I think Raine capable of treason, or of hurting young Miss Noceda like they did. I was aware that they still had feelings for the Owl Lady, but never dreamed they would go so far. I am acquainted with Miss Noceda, who is a friend of my daughter and a fellow student of the bard track at Hexside, and I wish her well, and hope she can be returned to the custody of the people who truly want what's best for her." Severin said, notably not saying that he wanted her back with the Emperor's Coven.

"I am deeply shocked by this turn of events. Never once did I think Raine capable of treason, or of hurting young Miss Noceda like they did. I was aware that they still had feelings for the Owl Lady, but never dreamed they would go so far. I am acquainted with Miss Noceda, who is a friend of my daughter and a fellow student of the bard track at Hexside, and I wish her well, and hope she can be returned to the custody of the people who truly want what's best for her." Severin said, notably not saying that he wanted her back with the Emperor's Coven.

Skara could see that her father smelled a rat regarding this whole story, but had to play the political game carefully, especially now that Raine's ousting meant that he was now the next in line to be head of the Bard Coven.

"Well, it looks like I'm officially a wild witch and outlaw now. Eda will get a kick out of that." Raine joked.

The report then switched back to Perry's face, and he looked noticeably less comfortable and sure of what he was reporting; "Raine Whispers is currently wanted, and a bounty of 500 Million Snails has been placed on their head. Similarly, the 5 Trillion Snail reward on Angels of any Rank has been rescinded and a new 5 Trillion Snail bounty has been placed on the head of Luz Noceda, who is notably wanted alive and uninjured. The Emperor's Coven has explicitly stated that this bounty is for her rescue, but warns that she may be indoctrinated by the Owl Lady and/or Mx. Whispers and will likely resist attempts to help. Finally, the Owl Lady has been brought before the Emperor and a judgement has been rendered. We now go to Emperor's Assistant Kikimora for a statement."

The report switched again, now showing Kikimora stood behind a podium and surrounded by news people and microphones, as well as little flying eyeballs that were broadcasting her across the isles.

Kikimora spoke imperiously as she announced; "For the crimes of attacking a Coven Head, high treason against the Emperor, kidnapping and corruption of an angel, practicing wild magic, and refusing to join a coven, Edalyn Clawthorne has been tried and found guilty. She has been sentenced to be petrified in stone, and the sentence will be carried out at sundown at the Conformatorium."

Luz and her friends all gasped in shock, as one last time the report switched back to Perry's face, who looked even more concerned than before. "And there you have it folks. Edalyn Clawthorne has been sentenced to petrification. This is a grave day for Bonesborough. Luz Noceda, if you're watching this, I pray that you're okay and that you know who really has your best interests at heart, and do what you know is right. This is Perry Porter with the Bonesborough News Hex Network, signing off."

The news report ended and everyone watching was left to stare at their scrolls and crystal balls in horror.

"I-I think Dad knows something is up." Gus said, as he got a text from him. "He just messaged me to stay safe and not do anything crazy… and to tell you Luz that he's thinking of you."

Luz smiled weakly; she'd only met Perry a couple of times when visiting Gus' house after school, but she'd always found him to be a nice (if slightly spacey) man. She'd have to thank him for his concern later, but right now she had bigger worries.

"Would Belos really go through with petrifying Eda? It can't be reversed right, so its basically like executing her." Luz asked uncertainly. "Raine, didn't you say he wouldn't do that so long as he still needed to capture me?"

Raine nodded; "I think this is just a bluff, or a trap. Belos expects you to come running to save Eda. But there is always the chance that he'd go through with it… being petrified isn't exactly the same as being dead, so it's possible that he thinks you'd still come for her even as a statue."

"Maybe its an angel thing." Viney suggested, "Do angels have a cure for petrification?"

Everyone looked to Rasiel, who stroked his beard; "Not really, no. Being petrified was a horrible fate, even in my time. It was something that only very powerful Earth Dragons and Cockatrice Demons could do, as well as a certain sub-species of ancient Basilisk. I don't know about the former two, but that sub-species of Basilisk was already extinct even 100,000 years ago."

"So if Eda is petrified…" Amity gulped.

"It would be over." Rasiel nodded sadly.

A dark mood fell over the group, with both Luz and King looked haunted by the idea of failing. They both shook it off quickly however; "That won't happen. We'll save Eda! We just need a plan! I have an idea for one too."

Raine and the others listened to her plan, then began suggesting their own. They mixed and matched ideas, poking holes in one another's strategies so they could refine them into something as close to foolproof as they could get. With a wide range of magic and personalities at their disposal, the group were able to come up with a plethora of different ideas, eventually settling on four plans that they would use. Raine, in their brief time as a rebel leader, had already learned that few plans survived first contact with the enemy, so it paid to have back ups and alternatives in place. Their plans were basically Plans A through D, with each one ready to start if the last one failed.

Plan A was intercepting and rescuing Eda on her way to the Conformatorium, as Steve had confirmed that he and many of the Bonesborough division of the Emperor's Coven had received orders to guard all routes from the Castle to the Conformatorium, along with divisions from other cities and towns across the isles, which confirmed that the transport hadn't happened yet. Plan B would be infiltrating the Conformatorium stealthily and breaking Eda out from within, curing her of her curse then sneaking out with her in disguise. Plan C was starting another riot in the prison to cover their escape if stealth failed. Lastly, Plan D was a full scale assault on the Conformatorium, using sabotage and subterfuge to disrupt the Emperor's Coven as much as possible and escape with Eda. There was also a fifth plan; Plan E, that would begin if Luz or Raine every announced "ROOST!". If the CATTs and their allies heard that word, they were to immediately close their eyes so Luz could unleash a bright light to blind their enemies, after which they would all retreat and high-tail it back to Bonesborough and the Owl House. It was basically a last-ditch "We're about to get killed" plan.

Most of their forces would have a role in at least one of these plans, even the kids, though all but Luz and King were restricted from doing anything outright criminal, so they couldn't have bounties put on their heads. No one wanted a bunch of kids to become wanted fugitives! Heck, Luz was only allowed to actively participate because she was more powerful than the average witch, she was wanted anyway, only only an angel could use the Panacea Mirror to cure Eda. Meanwhile King was allowed to help her because he simply refused to back down and short of being physically restrained (which Luz would never do to him), he would be joining them no matter what. The rest of the Hexside gang either accepted this decision immediately or weakly protested, but they couldn't really deny Luz and the adults had a valid concern. The Bat Queen especially wanted the children kept out of danger and limited to support roles.

Once the plan to save Eda was solidified, Raine sent Steve and Derwin to gather the other defecting scouts and CATTs members so they could let them know what they'd be doing and assign them roles. As they were doing this, Raine smiled to Luz.

"We're almost ready. We'll have Eda back before you know it!" they said confidently.

"I hope so. But I actually wanted to ask you something…" Luz said, looking shy all of a sudden.

Raine blinked in surprise and knelt beside her. "You can ask me anything. I won't judge or get upset." they smiled gently.

Luz blushed faintly then blurted out; "I-I would like to officially join the CATTs!"

"You want to join our rebellion?" the Bard asked in surprise. Their first instinct was to reject her request outright on the grounds of her still being a child, but something about her demeanour gave them pause. When Eda had told Luz about the CATTs, she'd been interested and eager to help, but hadn't wanted to join like King had, and she'd been the least reluctant to agree not to get involved if she didn't have to. Her change of attitude made Raine curious.

"Is this because you want to oppose Belos now that you've seen what he's capable of?" Raine asked.

Luz shrugged; "Sort of, but it's more than that. Belos is an angel… he's one of my kind, and he's the worst example of all the bad stereotypes witches and demons have of us! As an angel myself, it feels like I should do something to stop him. I couldn't do it on my own; trying to change things without people's support would just make me another angel trying to force my order on everyone. But if I'm helping witches and demons get rid of him on their terms and not mine, then I'm doing good without becoming like Belos."

Raine was surprised by her reasoning; "Luz, I don't think you ever need to worry about being like Belos! You're also not responsible for him just because you're another angel. You've already done enough to help-"

"But I haven't!" Luz interrupted, "There's so much more I could do! So much more I could have done, and should have done! The Boiling Isles is my home! I love it here and I love its people! If Mami was here, it would be literally perfect for me! I…" she bit her lip, "I want to help everyone. I want to repay this world that accepted me when my own didn't."

The look in her eyes, determined yet vulnerable, touched something deep inside Raine's soul. It reminded them a bit of Eda, when she'd been a child about to drop out of Hexside and confessing to Raine why, and that she was going to carve her own path. Raine was older and wiser than they'd been back then, but found themselves unable to give a different answer.

"I don't know if this is the right choice for you. But I care about you, so you have my support." Raine said, putting a hand on Luz's back; "If you want to join the CATTs, I won't object… assuming we get Eda's permission of course."

Luz gasped with delight and threw herself at Raine. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! I promise, I'll be the best rebel ever! I can heal people up after missions and brew potions with Eda and make barriers to protect people and-"

"Breathe, Sparks." Raine laughed, trying out a new nickname for Luz. They'd once compared Eda to a Fire Cracker, so it felt right to call her daughter (because that's what Luz was, as far as they were concerned) Sparks; a smaller, gentler version that was just as bright.

Luz seemed to like the nickname, and giggled with a blush. "Thanks Raine." she said, still hugging them, "And for the record, I'll totally tell Eda about how heroic and cool you've been. She'll definitely be head over heels for you after we rescue her!"

Raine chuckled at the cheeky angel; "Oh no you don't! You leave adult relationships to the adults! But speaking of Eda, I think the others have assembled so lets go tell them the plan."

Luz nodded and followed Raine over to the gathered CATTs, and listened as they explained the plan and gave everyone roles. Most of them would only have roles to play if things escalated to Plan D, but they would all be going to the Conformatorium anyway, most of them disguised with illusions provided by Gus and Concealment stones stolen from the Emperor's and Illusion Covens. Once the details of their roles were given, everyone headed out to their assigned positions.

Luz, King, Raine, Katya, and the Bat Queen were the only ones with active parts in Plan A, while Steve and the Defectors would be assisting them if needed, so they were the last to leave. Luz shared a kiss with Amity and hugged all her friends from Hexside (even hugging Boscha, who accepted without too much fuss) before saying goodbye to them.

They were about to take to the skies when Hooty suddenly called out to them; "Wait! I want to come too! Hoot!"

"But if you're with us, who'll protect the Owl House?" King frowned.

"I'll handle that." Luz said, "But we've got no time to argue, so switch to Porta-Hooty Mode."

Hooty happily hooted away as he once again yanked himself out of the Owl House and into his Portable Bird House body, with Luz spreading her wings to block the others view of the process to spare them the mental damage. Once he was ready, Hooty was handed over for King to wear and provide the young Titan with some extra help, while Luz then erected numerous icy barriers around the Owl House to protect it from intruders, before finishing off with a layered illusion. The first layer made it look like Hooty was still there and very alert, while the second just made the house and barrier invisible.

"There, that should keep out any intruders." Luz said, dusting off her hands, "Now let's fly!"

Luz took to the sky with King and Owlbert on her shoulders, followed by the Bat Queen, Raine, and Katya; the latter two using their Palismen as staves. Katya's Palismen was green Hercules beetle named Rumba, who also transformed into Katya's tambourine, much to Luz's interest. Katya was happy to tell Luz about it on their way to intercept Eda's transportation; as apparently it had once been a tradition among Bards to have their Palismen turn into an instrument for them to use, though it had been a lost practice before Raine had rediscovered it.

Their discussion ended as they got close to the spot they were supposed to hide and wait for the transport, and Luz hid them all under an illusion so they wouldn't be spotted. Steve had told them that Eda would have a heavy escort as she was taken from the castle to the Conformatorium, which was a fairly short distance since the castle was in the eastern part of the chest and the Conformatorium was in the western part. As such, he'd pointed out a good stretch of forest between those points that would be ideal for ambushing them if the transport came by cart, and would keep them hidden from above if the transport came by airship. Steve and his team were part of the guards assigned to guard the route too, and had specifically told Luz and the others to hide in their section so they could cover for them.

Once they were in position, Steve leant against a tree that Luz was hiding behind so he could whisper to her; "HQ confirmed a minute ago that they're on their way and they're taking Eda by airship, so keep an eye on the sky."

"Got it." Luz whispered back, before flying up into the air with the rest of her team. She passed on what Steve had said, then waited for the transport to come by. She spotted them in the distance a few minutes later, and Luz immediately realised that Plan A was never going to work.

Eda's transport was not a single airship or even a small group of them; it was an entire huge fleet! There were almost 30 airships of varying sizes, with no obvious flag ship or prisoner ship, so it was next to impossible to tell which one housed Eda. To make matters worse, they were all crawling with Coven Scouts, and nine of the airships bore the crest of the Nine Covens, indicating them as the personal transportation of the Coven Heads. Luz grimaced; Belos must have wanted them to attend the petrification just as they'd attended Eda's capture the previous day, and had them travel together as extra protection.

She whistled sharply, giving the signal for her team to fly back down into the woods and drop their illusions so they could speak more easily.

"There's no way we're going to get Eda out with all that protection." Luz told them, "We need to move straight on to Plan B."

Raine, Katya, and the Bat Queen agreed immediately, but King asked; "Couldn't you just bond with the Bat Queen like you told me you did against the Mandragora? With your High Angel powers and her staff form, you'd be able to shred those airships!"

"And probably kill hundreds of people in the process! And since we don't know what ship she's in, Eda could be among them! Besides, even with BQ's help, we're still just six VS hundreds! It's too risky." Luz countered, making King pout since he couldn't argue.

"I agree. I'll not lend my power for reckless murder. Emperor's Coven is corrupt, but not all members deserve death." the Bat Queen said. "But I have no role in Plan B or C. I will retreat. Use whistle if Plan D is needed."

Luz nodded and thanked her, casting an illusion again to hide the Bat Queen as she flew off to find a hiding place near the Conformatorium. The others then returned to Steve and told him of the change of plans.

"Got it. I'll contact the others that Plan B is a go. Until then…" Steve led them to a prison transport cart that his team had parked on the edge of the path through the forest. "We'll use this to sneak into the prison. I left uniforms inside, but you'll need to use illusions to blend in better."

They climbed into the back of the cart and sure enough, there was a trio of scout uniforms waiting for them. Katya immediately changed into hers, while Raine was amused to find that theirs was a captain's uniform. Since Luz would need to use an illusion to make herself look older anyway, she only bothered putting on the mask and cloak (the latter of which hid King and Hooty), then put up the illusion of a normal scout to hide behind. She even turned Owlbert into staff form and hid him as a scout's spear. Once they were changed, Luz got out to sit up in the driver's seat beside Steve, who began to drive the cart down the path to the Conformatorium.

"Okay, so Plan B." she said quietly, "We go in through the rear entrance and then find our way to Eda in disguise. Shouldn't be too tough."

Steve nodded; "Security is going to be tight, and there'll be checkpoints up everywhere, but if we're smart, we'll be able to get around them. I know the checkpoint protocols, so you can rely on Steve!"

Luz smiled, then looked up as the fleet of airships passed over head, speeding towards the Conformatorium. With how long it had taken to plan things out, then prepare themselves and get to their positions, noon had already come and gone and it was now early afternoon. Taking it slowly, they should be able to just barely get to Eda and free her before sundown. It would be even faster, but the cart was painfully slow.

"We probably should have parked this thing closer and flown to it instead… it'll take another hour at this pace!" King groaned.

"This is as close as we could park the cart. Security is tight, so we could only leave it in the section my team guarded." Steve replied. "Speaking of, are the others following us yet?"

Luz peered behind them and sure enough, there were a trio of other carts following them down the road to the Conformatorium. The rest of Steve's team of defectors, plus Derwin and Amber in Scout disguises, were driving carts that already contained some of the more battle-hardened members of the CATTs, including Igor and Tinella (both of whom was surprisingly strong). Their job was to set up Plan C if they failed to get Eda out stealthily, by having the scouts pretend to have arrested the CATTs and take them into the prison in fake restraints. Once inside, they'd await the signal and then "escape" and begin causing a riot with the other prisoners, while the scouts and disguised CATTs sabotaged the guards' attempts to stop them. If Plan B worked out perfectly, they'd instead wait for Eda to escape… then start a riot anyway so they could free any other prisoners.

"They're following." Luz confirmed, "Let's hope this works, because if Plan B fails, there will be violence…"

"I hope there is! We'll kick the crud out of these Emperor's Coven losers! Uh, no offence Steve." King said.

"None taken, but go easy on some of the other scouts. Not all of them are bad guys; don't forget that a lot of them genuinely believe they're in the right here." Steve replied.

That gave King pause, and he retreated back to hiding behind Luz's cloak and illusion to think about his tactics. He'd planned on just going ham with glyphs, his roar, and Hooty, but maybe he should try and be more restrained… at least against anyone who might not deserve his full wrath.

It took a while, but they finally arrived at the Conformatorium and began driving in through the rear entrance meant for prisoner transfers. The airship convoy from earlier was now largely patrolling the skies around the Conformatorium, having dropped Eda and the Coven Heads off on the upper levels, but Luz and King barely noticed that as their path took them past row after row of petrified statues. Numerous witches and demons, eternally bound in stone, decorated the path into the Conformatorium, like grim garden ornaments. Eda's petrification was the first in 30 years, so all of them had been there for decades, yet none looked even the slightest bit weathered. Luz felt her heart ache for them, while King gulped as he noticed a new plinth being placed in the middle of a row, with a plaque reading "Edalyn Clawthorne" on the front of it.

"There's not gonna be a new statue going up today, right Luz?" King whispered.

Luz nodded, before narrowing her eyes as they passed a poster of Lilith. Luz had some very strong feelings going through her right now when it came to Lilith; Luz had genuinely considered Lilith to be like an aunt to her, having bonded with her more than she'd ever thought she would, despite her being at odds with Eda a lot of the time. She'd seen Lilith as a good, but flawed person and cared for her as family… but that was before her betrayal. Luz could have forgiven Lilith for capturing her; she thought she was doing the right thing after all, but she could never forgive her for standing by and doing nothing as the Emperor turned her into a monster and tried to make her murder Eda. For all her talk, Lilith had rolled over like an obedient dog and let her master torment her sister and niece. That wasn't even including the curse that had cast a shadow over Eda's entire life!

Luz growled softly, her magic raging inside her enough to make her eyes begin glowing softly. If she ever saw Lilith again, she'd make her pay!

The cart came to a stop outside the rear entrance and Steve, Luz, Raine, and Katya all disembarked and were immediately met by a pair of guards. "Halt! State your business!" one of them ordered.

Steve stepped forward; "Our unit has been posted at the Conformatorium for additional security during tonight's event. Our cart was sabotaged and needed repairs, delaying our arrival." he explained.

The guards exchanged looks, then nodded; "Understood. Report to Kikimora for your assignments. The Captain should head directly to the viewing platform on the west side."

Raine, disguised as the captain, gave a nod and then marched in, acting like they knew where they were going, while Steve, Luz, and Katya followed behind. Once they were out of earshot of the guards, Steve whispered; "Now we'll need to find Eda's cell. Asking around would be suspicious, so unless we get lucky and overhear something, we need to head to the Warden's office and find the record book."

"Got it." Luz said, briefly looking over her shoulder as she saw their disguised allies bringing in the CATTs members they had "arrested". She hoped the other guards wouldn't be too rough with them…

They walked through the lower levels of the Conformatorium, heading for the Warden's office, and noted the large amount of security. There were a few checkpoints, but all they had to do to pass through them was flash their coven sigils (all illusions of the Emperor's Coven sigil, except for Steve's) and explain they were reporting to Kikimora for assignment. They managed to get all the way to the upper floors without too much trouble, but as they neared the Warden's office, they found themselves actually running into Kikimora.

The diminutive demon was marching somewhere and saw them, immediately narrowing her eyes on the disguised Raine.

"And what are you four doing!? All Scout Captains are supposed to be guarding the Coven Heads on the west viewing platform, and everyone else has their assignments!" she scolded.

"Forgive us, Ma'am." Raine replied nervously; "Our transport was delayed by sabotage. I was just on my way to the viewing platform while my squad went looking for you while reporting to Warden Wrath about some captured rebels."

Kikimora glared; "It looks to me more like you're palling around with your friends! Today is an important day and its already hard enough with the Bard Coven Head once again not attending and only sending some low level replacement, and Head Witch Lilith being nowhere to be seen! I won't have you lot slacking off!"

She pointed down the corridor; "Captain, get to your post immediately! I'll assign your friends separately to make sure they're working and not socialising!"

Raine hesitated, before reluctantly heading in the direction Kikimora had pointed. The Emperor's assistant then turned on Steve, Luz, and Katya. She pointed at Steve; "You will report to the courtyard. We've been getting reports all day about suspicious individuals who keep disappearing!"

Luz grinned behind her disguise; that was Amity and the other Hexoleos at work. Since security was so high but the public were allowed into the courtyard to watch the Petrification, they were helping by reporting various people as suspicious to force the guards to investigate. The "suspicious" people were all CATTs members who would then disappear by using their Concealment stones to change disguises (courtesy of Gus) or lure the scouts and guards to a secluded area where they could be knocked out and replaced, lowering security and also giving the CATTs more people on the inside in the event of Plan C or D.

Kikimora then pointed at the disguised Katya; "You will go patrol the cells on level 4! The prisoners there are being rowdy!"

Then she turned to Luz, but before she could give any orders, Luz saluted and braced herself; "Ma'am, if I may, I'm the one who has been sent to report to Warden Wrath about the new prisoners. May I take care of that before I'm reassigned?"

Her throat burned painfully at the lie, but she didn't try to stop it, instead letting it make her sound extra croaky so Kikimora wouldn't recognise her voice. Beneath her illusion, King was gently placing ice glyphs against her throat to help cool the burning too. He knew Luz was lying for Eda's sake, but he still hated to see her in pain.

Kikimora seemed surprised by the request, but nodded regardless; "You may. Make your report then join your captain on the viewing platform. You seem to enjoy being an errand girl rather than a proper scout, and the Coven Heads could use a few more lackeys to keep their glasses filled. Now get moving!"

Steve immediately headed in the direction of the courtyard, giving his comrades only a brief nod to avoid suspicion. Katya hesitated, but Kikimora's glare had her high-tailing it to her own assignment before she got in trouble. Meanwhile, Luz continued on her way, now without her back up. It wasn't ideal, but at least Katya and Steve would be in good positions to help deal with Plan C and D if they became necessary!

The remaining path to the Warden's office was short, and Luz quickly found it and knocked on the door. When no answer came, she looked around cautiously and saw there were no guards nearby, so she used a thin light blade to slice the lock and push the door open, entering the Warden's office then closing it up behind her. Once inside, King and Hooty jumped off Luz's back.

"Okay, now we just need to find the record book that Steve mentioned!" King said, immediately beginning to rifle through the bottom draw of a filing cabinet. Luz began helping by searching the room's bookshelf, and Hooty looked in the upper draws of the filing cabinet. After ten minutes of looking, they still hadn't found any sign of the book.

"This place isn't that big! Where could he have hidden it?" Luz muttered. Wrath's office was fairly small; it had a fireplace with a portrait of Wrath and his son Braxas above it, a large desk and chair for the Warden to sit and work at, a smaller chair for visitors to his office, and a book shelf and filing cabinet against one wall. There was also a window that overlooked the courtyard, allowing Luz to see the crowd that had gathered there, as well as the tall scaffold upon which the Petrification would take place. The sight of it made Luz gulp; as did the slowly darkening sky. Sundown was approaching and they were running out of time!

Luz began tearing through Wrath's drawers, which contained only half-eaten lunches, a bottle of some kind of alcohol, a crumpled up copy of Eda's wanted poster (with an unsettling number of love hearts doodled on it) and a few childish drawings that must have been made by Braxas (and which Luz was careful not to damage). However there was still no sign of the record book!

Hooty suddenly perked up; "I hear someone coming, hoot!" he said quietly. Luz quickly grabbed King and Hooty and cast another illusion over them to make them invisible, just in time to see Warden Wrath open his office door.

His mask was still in place, but his body language screamed frustration as well as confusion as he wondered why his door was unlocked. He then looked around his office and clenched his fist; "What the-!? Has someone been in here!?" he growled, noting the mess Luz, King, and Hooty had made. He was about to turn and leave to alert his guards, but before he could, the invisible Luz slammed his door shut then cast vines at him, binding him tightly and knocking him to the ground.

Wrath groaned as Luz removed her illusions, revealing herself to the Warden.

"Y-You! You made a big mistake coming here, angel! The whole Coven is searching for you! You'll be caught in no time!" Wrath growled.

Luz rolled her eyes and pulled off Wrath's mask to reveal his face; "No, I won't. But I will be walking out of here with Eda. I came here to find your record book, but you can tell me where Eda is yourself!" she said, creating a light sword and pointing it at Wrath's throat.

The Warden shook his head; "I won't! Surrender now, and I might just let your little friends there escape while I hand you over to the Emperor!"

Luz looked very unimpressed. "Wrath, I took you down when I only had one glyph and couldn't even fly. Do you really think you can beat me now that I'm a High Angel? Especially since I've already got you wrapped up and at my mercy?" she asked, looking at Wrath like he was stupid.

Wrath gulped; "O-Okay, so maybe I can't beat you! But I don't have to help you either! So there!"

Luz and King exchanged looks, before turning to Hooty; "Think you can make him talk, Hooty?"

"Oh boy can I!" Hooty said cheerfully, extending his way towards Wrath; "Hiya Warden Wrath! I'm Hooty! Luz, Eda, and King told me all about when you played together before, so I want to play too! Hoot! If you tell us where to find Eda, then you win and you get to take a nap! Hoot!"

"A-And if I don't?" Wrath asked, already shaking at the sight of the infamous Bird Worm that still struck fear into the hearts of the Emperor's Coven.

Hooty's beak stretched into an even bigger smile; "Then you lose, and I rearrange your organs until they're in alphabetical order! Don't worry though, I won't take them out! I'm good at this game!" he hooted, speaking just as cheerfully as always.

Wrath looked terrified, and even Luz and King were a little disturbed. Luz leaned in and asked; "Hooty, are you being serious? It's hard to tell with you…"

"Of course I'm serious!" Hooty smiled, "Hoot hoot, I'm no angel, but I never lie!"

The House Demon wormed his way a little closer to Wrath, who shrieked quietly; "Okay! I'll tell you! Head Witch Lilith cornered me a little while ago and took my record book, but I know were the Owl Lady is! She's in the dungeon cell beneath the courtyard, where the condemned always stay!"

King grabbed his notepad and pen and thrust them into Wrath's hands while Luz adjusting his restraints; "Draw us a map." King demanded.

Wrath quickly complied, and as soon as the map was finished, Luz coated her fist in ice and smacked Wrath on top of the head to knock him out. She then tied him up completely and hid him below his desk, before casting an illusion over the office to make it look clean and tidy, so no one would suspect what happened.

"Right, we know were Eda is now! Let's go!" Luz said, putting King and Hooty on her back and covering them in her scout illusion again. She made the illusion look different this time, so Kikimora wouldn't realise she was the same person if they ran in to each other again.

As they snuck out of the office (Luz subtly freezing the hinges to make it seem like the door was still locked), King whispered to Hooty; "You know Hooty, you're kinda terrifying, but I'm glad you're on our side!"

The only answer was a quiet hoot that made Luz smile behind her scout mask as she headed down to the dungeons.

[Meanwhile]

It was an extremely nervous Raine who stepped out onto the viewing platform. The disguised bard knew that Steve and Katya could take care of themselves, and honestly knew Luz and King could too, but being separated from the kids still left them feeling incredibly uneasy. This wasn't helped by the fact that they were now without back up of their own and surrounded by the elites of the Emperor's Coven AND the Coven Heads.

The viewing platform was high above the courtyard, and had an excellent view of the scaffold that had been set up for the Petrification, as well as the massive crowd of people who'd come out to watch it too. The Emperor had obviously wanted the Coven Heads to attend as extra security if Luz and Raine showed up to save Eda, but sickeningly, his coven had set up a little buffet table filled with finger foods and expensive wines. It was a fancy party for the Coven Heads to enjoy as they watched the love of Raine's life be turned to stone. It was staffed with Coven Scouts serving as waiters, while Scout Captains served as the actual guards, protecting the Coven Heads and keeping watch for signs of betrayal or rebellion. All the Coven Heads, excluding Lilith and Scooter, were in attendance and it heartened Raine to see that many of them looked as disgusted by the festive atmosphere as Raine felt.

Darius was leaning against the safety railing, nursing a glass of wine with a sneer as he muttered lowly to Eberwolf, who sat on the railing beside him and picked apart some fancy hors d'oeuvre. Mason was stood beside Osran, neither speaking, eating, or drinking as they watched the sun slowly getting ready to set in front of them. Adrien was chatting to Hettie and Vitimir over wine, seemingly boasting about something and acting like he was at a high society party while his conversation mates looked annoyed with the whole affair. Then of course there was Terra Snapdragon, a woman for whom Raine had an intense dislike. That woman had always made their skin cruel, ever since that day of the IFWOT program where they'd also met Eda, and she'd always gone out of her way to talk to Raine and call them Sprout whenever they were forced to interact during Coven business. Terra was currently smiling eagerly as she looked down at the scaffold, wine in one hand and finger food in the other, looking like she was having a wonderful time.

Raine decided to just stand against one of the walls and observe everyone, then if something should happen, they could repeat their tactic from the castle the previous day and take out all the Coven Heads in one sonic boom, so they couldn't join the fight if Plan C or D was required. They stood against the wall as close to the safety rail as they could and looked down at the crowd below, trying to spot any one they knew.

At that moment, the doors to the platform opened and the Golden Guard and Silver Sentinel stepped out, causing several of the Coven Heads to look to them.

"Not escorting the Emperor today, Little Prince?" Darius asked sardonically, raising an eyebrow at the Golden Guard.

"The Emperor has other business to deal with. He is certain that the Angel and Whispers will attempt to free the Owl Lady and has decided to set a little trap for them. He's waiting for them personally down in the dungeons. It the Angel shows up, he'll capture her and the petrification will become an execution with the Angel as executioner." the Golden Guard said, a hint of discomfort in his voice.

Raine stiffened reflexively, and Terra gave them the side eye. Meanwhile Darius snorted; "Ah yes, the Emperor is going to force the angel to take on the form of the Titan again. What exactly is that concoction he uses anyway? It looked rather unpleasant."

"I am curious too." Vitimir added, his voice nasally and snake-like.

The Golden Guard replied; "It is Titan Bile. It's highly dangerous to most people, but the Angel is blessed by the Titan and can survive its trials. The Emperor believes the pain it causes her is a result of her defiance; the Titan inflicting His own penance on her."

Raine couldn't stop themselves from clenching their fist in anger, and causing their knuckles to make a quiet cracking sound that went unnoticed by everyone… except Terra.

The Plant Coven Head turned to the disguised Bard and smiled sinisterly; "My my, does hearing of the Angel's defiance anger you so much, Captain?" she asked.

Raine gulped and stood at attention, putting their hands behind their back in the process. They used this position to subtly cast a bardic spell to change their voice; "Yes, Head Witch Snapdragon. Forgive me for disturbing you; I simply hate to hear of a noble creature like an angel defying the Titan's will."

The others on the viewing platform turned to Raine and Terra, watching their conversation as Terra took a step closer to Raine; "Ah, it's wonderful to hear of such loyalty from our captains. But then, why was someone so loyal late to arrive today?" she asked.

"My team's transport was sabotaged, Ma'am. We had to repair it, so we were delayed. I apologise." Raine said, bowing their head.

The Silver Sentinel began signing something to their partner, but Raine couldn't see what it was. The Silver Sentinel never spoke, being nicknamed the Silent Sentinel as a result, and communicated with sign language.

In response to this, the Golden Guard turned his full attention to Raine. "Did you catch the perpetrators?"

"Yes." Raine said, lying on the fly, "They were apprehended while sabotaging another team's cart. They are being processed into cells as we speak, I believe."

"Interesting! And where exactly were you stationed before, Captain?" Terra asked, getting even closer.

Raine froze; each precinct only had one captain, and there were dozens around them. If they gave the wrong answer, they'd be busted immediately. They considered just going straight for the sonic boom, but that would mean sabotaging their own plan and potentially endangering Luz and Eda.

Taking a gamble, they replied; "Latissa. Precinct 206."

There was a beat as Raine waited for one of the captains to protest that they were the captain of the Latissa precinct, but no one said a word. Instead Terra just smiled; "Ah, I'm sure you don't get much in the way of culture there. Latissa is literally in the Titan's armpit after all!"

"A-Ah, yes. It isn't the most… classy place." Raine replied, not even having to lie. Latissa was a rough port town after all.

Terra laughed and patted them on the back, almost making them shudder; "That's putting it mildly! You must be very busy, with all the scoundrels there. Why, I hear there has even been rebel activity in the area!"

The disguised Bard felt a flood of tension fill their body as they looked into Terra's eyes. In that instant, they knew for certain; Terra knew they weren't a real scout captain. Thinking fast, Raine began to channel bardic magic into their ears and palms, ready to repeat their sonic boom trick from the previous day, but the instant they tried to move their arms from behind their back to clap, vines suddenly bound their wrists.

Raine gasped softly as thin green vines wrapped around their body and began sapping their energy, making them feel faint. A light shove from Terra had them falling face first onto the ground, where they found numerous real captains pointing their spears at them.

Terra then stooped and pulled off their mask, revealing Raine to everyone on the viewing platform.

"Well isn't this a surprise! I wasn't expecting it to be you, Sprout." Terra smiled cruelly, "Come to save your old flame?"

"You old monster…!" Raine gasped out, feeling the drain on their energy. Terra had planted a Sapper Seed on their back when she'd patted them moments ago, and now they were bound and helpless.

"It was a nice attempt, Whispers." the Golden Guard said, wielding a staff similar to Belos', "But no guards or captains from Bonesborough or the surrounding settlements were assigned to the Conformatorium. The Emperor wanted to make sure that the Owl Lady had no allies in our ranks. Naturally we didn't tell anyone from those places though."

Raine cursed, remembering Steve mention that the Bonesborough scouts had been assigned to the roads despite Eda coming by ship. The same must have happened with other scouts from the area, and Latissa wasn't far from Bonesborough…

Darius eyed them curiously; "What are we going to do with them? Throw them in a cell? We're in the right place for it."

"Oh no, we have something more permanent at our disposal." Terra smirked, "It was a mistake to let you and the Owl Lady live all those years ago, but I think I'll rectify it. Sprout came to save their lady, so let them have her. They can be together forever as stone statues!"

Raine growled and the Golden Guard nodded; "The Emperor has already handed down a sentence of petrification for the crime of corrupting or kidnapping the angel. I'll need to confirm with him, but I suspect it will be fine." he then looked to the captains pointing their spears at Raine; "Take them directly to the scaffold under an illusion. We don't want to spark a riot if they have allies in the crowd."

"Wise. These rats never work alone." Adrien commented.

The guards grabbed Raine and pulled them to their feet, then began to drag them away while casting an illusion to disguise them. Before the illusion could be completed though, Raine glared over their shoulder at the Coven Heads and everyone else on the platform, before saying; "You best pray that your plans today fail. Because I've seen what Luz and King are willing to go through for the sake of their family. If today ends with Eda as a statue, then not even the Titan will be able to save you!"

They were then gagged and dragged off, leaving the Coven Heads behind with the Emperor's loyal shadows. Terra and Adrien both scoffed at Raine's defiant last words, while the other Coven Heads looked either contemplative or outright worried. Doubts filled their heads; angels were agents of the Titan, so was it wise to get on the bad side of one?

They had a feeling they'd be finding out sooner rather than later.

[Meanwhile]

Sneaking all the way from the Warden's office to the dungeons below the Conformatorium proved to be a slower, more challenging experience than Luz had expected. The young angel had already had to swap her illusory disguise a whopping seven times, as every time a guard would get suspicious of her, she'd turn the nearest corner and change disguise to fool them, while also occasionally luring the smarter ones towards open cells, where she could swiftly knock them out with an icy punch to the back of the head, before dumping them in the cell and hiding them under the illusion of a sleeping prisoner.

By the time Luz actually made it underground, she was pretty sure she'd taken out at least 15 scouts, which would be helpful if they needed to start a riot. But eventually, she managed to make it all the way to the dungeons and found a large double door leading to the condemned cell. It was guarded by five Coven Scouts, all of whom took combat stances and drew spell circles as they saw Luz appear, even with her disguise.

"Halt! No personnel are allowed near the Condemned. State your business and authorisation!" the central scout demanded.

"Alright." Luz said, slowly raising her hands; "This is my authorisation!"

She suddenly dropped her disguise and illusion, and spread her four angelic wings. A light glyph appeared on the end of each one, and her wings suddenly shone with an impossibly bright light. The scouts screamed as they were blinded by the light, and while they were reeling from that, Luz combined ice and light glyphs to fire a pair of aurora beams that froze the two scouts on the edges, while Hooty extended from King's back and grabbed the remaining three, before turning them upside down and smashing their heads against the floor to knock them out. Luz left the frozen scouts in place, while King used a plant glyph to tie up the others with vines. Once they were out of the way, Luz approached the door, which was locked with a simple padlock and chain.

"This is it." she said, freezing the lock so she could shatter it. She then pushed open the door and walked inside, finding what looked like an old torture chamber, which thankfully didn't look to have been used in decades. At the end of the room, trapped inside a large cage with bars made of magic, was the Owl Beast. Its limbs were chained to the corners of the cage to limit its movements, and the cage itself was only barely big enough for it to stand up and turn around.

"Eda!" Luz and King cried together, rushing towards the cage.

At the sound of their voices, the Owl Beast turned around and snarled, struggling to get at them with the chains and cage blocking its way. Luz immediately cast a light spell, which always worked well to sooth and mesmerise the Owl Beast enough for Eda to take back some control. The beast's solid black eyes became the usual gold eyes of the Owl Lady, which immediately filled with horror as they looked at Luz and King.

"Luz!? King!? Oh no, no no no no! What are you doing here!? You can't be here!" Eda cried in a panic.

"It's okay Eda, we're here to save you!" Luz smiled.

"Yeah! Raine and the CATTs helped us make a whole bunch of plans to bust you out! We snuck in here without raising the alarms too!" King said proudly, "We can cure your curse and then sneak out with you!"

As King spoke, Luz took aim at the chains around Eda's legs and fired a light beam to cut them. However when the beam was about to pass through the bars of the cage, it suddenly hit some kind of invisible barrier and completely disappeared, much to Luz's confusion.