Chapter Text
“That was an incredible performance, I must say,” Adrian said with a tone of mock sincerity. “The drama, the resolve, it nearly moved me to tears.”
“Adrian Graye,” Eda growled. “How long have you been watching us?”
“Oh, please. You think I didn’t realize you pickpocketed my incompetent guard and came to rescue the human? To be honest, I was going to stop you earlier, but I was just too curious to see how things would play out. I tried to give the human a proper education about the coven system before this to ensure she hadn’t been indoctrinated by your wild ways, but alas, she was too easily swayed by your oh so brave act of coming to rescue her. How unfortunate.”
“I’ll indoctrinate that head off your shoulders if you don’t cut out your flowery language crap,” said Eda. “I presume you’re here to force me into a coven and lock Luz and King up until they submit?”
“Hmm, that was the plan, yes,” said Adrian, scratching his chin. “But I know you’re going to resist, and I’d rather not get my hands dirty.”
“Well that’s too bad, cuz I got a fire in my gut that’s ready to beat the crap out of you!”
Adrian turned his eyes to Luz behind Eda, smiling at her. “Is this really the brute you choose to follow? Are you absolutely sure that it’s the coven that’s the evil one here? I want you to think very carefully about what you’re doing here, human. I know things are confusing, which is why, even now, I’m still willing to give you a pardon.”
Luz flickered her eyes between Eda and Adrian. Eda, holding her staff in both hands and charging spell, darted her eyes slightly behind her to glimpse at the frightened human behind her. “Luz, he’s trying to turn you against me. I’m not sure what his long-term game is, but if you’ll let me, I won’t let him lay a finger on you.”
Luz looked back at Adrian, noticing his look of disgust. “You naive little human,” he scoffed. “Just think about this logically. Why would you trust this wild savage over someone kind enough to pardon you of your treachery?”
A fire lit in Luz’s eyes. She took a few steps forward, firmly clinging to Eda’s arm. “You can try to sway me all you want, but you’ve already revealed your true colors. I’m sticking with Eda.”
Finally, any composure left in Adrian’s demeanor was completely lost. His fists balled up, and he looked as if he was trying with all his might not to throw a tantrum. “Ugh! Must I do everything myself?” He scowled. “Fine. I guess we’re going to have to do this the hard way. It really is a shame- I saw great things in you, human. But it turns out you’re no better than the savage. If you love her so much, you’ll be joining her in confinement!”
Adrian traced two spell circles with each hand, swinging his arms to slam his palms on the ground. The spell circles erupted from around his wrists, spreading across the surrounding environment and cloaking the room in a veil of black. In an instant, he vanished, and the black void was replaced with a new environment. Eda recognized it as the central room of jail cells. She looked at Luz, who seemed disoriented.
“What’s happening?” she said, tension in her voice.
“Adrian covered the entire prison in an illusion to confuse us,” said Eda. “It’s gonna be much harder to escape like this.”
When Eda turned, she heard Luz let out a cry as she squirmed away from a ripple in the illusion. A gloved hand reached out, trying to grab her. Quickly, Eda darted over, swinging a wave of light. She heard Adrian cry in pain, and he briefly appeared, covering his eyes before fading back into the illusion.
“Come on, we’re not safe here!” Eda called, running over to grab Luz by the wrist and dart out of the room. King followed behind, climbing up Luz’s clothes to mount on her shoulder. Using her memory of the room’s layout, Eda ran for where she thought the door was. In the illusion, it appeared she was stepping off the ledge of the balcony. However, when she put her foot on thin air, she was reminded that what she was seeing was not reality. She stepped through where the door was supposed to be, causing the illusion to ripple like water.
Once she crossed to the other side, she appeared to be floating in the middle of the tower where no ground stood beneath her. Luz started gasping for breath, trying not to hyperventilate despite the panic and nausea squirming in her stomach.
Eda gritted her teeth. “Luz, can you trust me?” She held out her staff, coaxing Luz to come on. “I know the illusion is making things confusing, but at least I’m not drunk this time.”
Luz froze for a second, trying to calm herself and process what Eda was saying. She was quickly broken out of it, however, as Adrian’s hand reached for her through the illusion once again, causing her to run to Eda’s side and hook her hands around her waist. “Eda, go, go, now! I trust you!” She clenched her eyes shut as she hugged Eda’s back.
Eda, not waiting for any further instruction, kicked her legs off the ground as Owlbert spread his wings. The staff soared straight up, directing itself through the open space. As the tower's structure tilted, Eda and Luz started phasing through the balconies above them, reminding them that the tower was still under an illusion.
“Hang on!” said Eda. “I think I’m familiar with the tower’s structure, but this is really hard with the illusion.” She tilted her staff forward, slowly trying to follow the crooked pattern she remembered from the tower’s structure. For a few moments, she flew through the air without any issues. Eventually, however, the tip of Owlbert’s head crashed into a wall, causing the staff to flip and fling its passengers off.
As the three of them screamed and flailed, Eda thrusted the butt of her staff into the wall, letting it slide and slow her fall. She grabbed Luz by the neck of her jacket. Luz proceeded to catch King in her arms, nearly fumbling in the process. Eda slowly let go of her staff, gently dropping her and her companions to the ground. By this point, Owlbert looked very dazed, his eyes spinning like a cartoon character.
Eda looked around the room to consider her next move, and suddenly, the illusion changed. She, Luz, and King appeared to be in an endless hallway, which disoriented them all over again.
“Ugh, I really don’t know where I am,” said Eda, rubbing her head. “Stick by my side, guys. Don’t separate or you might plummet to your-”
“Weh!” King shrieked, stumbling over what looked to be solid ground according to the illusion. Eda quickly scooped him up, holding him by the armpits. He squirmed and squealed with rage, earning a chuckle from Luz to slightly ease her tension. Eda smiled briefly, but it faded quickly. She began putting her hands in front of her, feeling around for any walls.
Her palms collided with solid air, causing it to ripple. “Okay, if I counted correctly, I think we actually landed on a floor with an outside balcony. Follow me, and stick to the wall!”
Luz and King followed behind Eda, sidling across the illusion of empty space that covered the wall. The entire time, Luz’s legs shook. The idea of plummeting to her death played on loop in her mind over and over. It didn’t help that she also kept vividly picturing the sensation of Adrian trying to grab her by the wrist, which instinctively made her squirm. Clenching her teeth, she tried to follow Eda, hoping desperately that neither scenario she feared would catch her by surprise.
Finally, Eda’s hand phased through the air again. She repositioned her hand, trying to find the corner of the wall before turning to follow it. “This way,” she said, sticking to the new wall she was tiptoeing across. After a few moments of following it, she and the others ran into an illusion wall, phasing through it. They walked several steps in pitch dark, which prompted Luz to grab Eda and King’s hands respectively to avoid getting separated and lost in the void.
Eda carried her companions across, reaching the other side where sight finally graced her eyes again. She felt the fresh, cool breeze pass through her hair. She stood on a long balcony that stretched ahead of her, and she realized that she was not only on the outside of the tower, but outside of Adrian’s illusion. She turned back to smile at Luz and King, the latter of whom looked like he was about to throw up.
“We’re in the home stretch now!” Eda announced.
“Good, because I need to find a ledge to puke over,” King gagged.
“Only if you promise to make sure it hits a coven guard,” said Eda, winking. She gently scratched Owlbert’s head, turning her eyes to meet his. “You all recovered, little buddy? I’m going to need you for one more flight, and then you can take the rest of the night off.”
Owlbert blinked slowly, trying to reorient himself before letting out a cheerful hoot.
Eda mounted the staff, coaxing Luz and King to follow suit. However, before they could, they froze in their tracks as a familiar, dreadful screech filled the air, sending chills down their bones.
Luz felt her braids flapping violently in the wind as two hellharpies zipped from beneath the balcony into her sight, setting their eyes on her, King, and Eda. They growled and hissed, gazing deeply into their prey.
As if things couldn’t get any worse, a shriek could be heard from behind Luz. Two more hellharpies soared into the air, approaching from behind and leaving the trio of witch, demon, and human completely surrounded by a pack of vicious beasts.
Then, through the loud wind, there was an echo of sarcastic clapping, practically mocking the three fugitives who stood trapped in their situation. Adrian approached from behind, smacking his hands together a few more times before letting his arms return to his side. Eda, King, and Luz all turned to face him, showing mixed expressions of fear and anger.
“Well, well, well,” Adrian called. “Looks like this is the end of the line. It was a valiant effort at a prison break. Really, I was impressed that you got through my illusion maze. However, it finally ends here. You can either come back with me and submit to the emperor, or become the harpies' next snack. It’s your choice, though I’d advise against the latter if you have any intent on living past the next two minutes.”
Eda charged up a spell with her staff, though her arms visibly shook with fear as a harpy slowly approached behind her. Smiling, Adrian approached the trio. Luz backed up into Eda, clinging to her waist once again. She felt sweat pierce the back of her neck as the hellharpy sent her hair flying with its nasty breath.
King clung to Luz’s leg, staring at Adrian. Adrian grew closer, smiling ominously. “Come, don’t make this difficult. I promise the coven won’t treat you so harshly if you simply cooperate.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you, you creep,” said Luz, sticking her tongue out.
“Then stay with your precious wild witch and be ripped to shreds by a hellharpy. But I know that’s not what you want. And I would hate for them to tear you apart before you even had a proper chance to meet the emperor.” Adrian then reached out, trying to grab Luz’s arm.
Eda’s eyes burst with a sudden rage. “You leave her alone, Titandammit!” She slammed her staff onto the ground, and it exploded into a series of light spells shooting from its head like fireworks. Blinding flashes scorched the air, blinding all of the hellharpies and Adrian in the process. Luz clenched her eyes shut, pulling King close to her.
Eda let out a huff, gasping for breath and sweat beading down her forehead. Once she realized that everyone was dazed from the spell, she took the window of opportunity to escape. “Luz, King, come on!” She gently nudged them away from the circle of harpies, coaxing them to run as their vision returned to them. She took out her staff, mounting it and allowing her companions to do the same. With the kick of her legs, she began to fly.
Just before she could take off, another hellharpy soared from above, letting out a screech. It spat fire, causing King and Luz to flinch. Eda rapidly traced a spell circle, calling the bricks of the balcony beneath her to rip from their foundation and reassemble into a barricade to block the incoming flame. Her skin felt like it was on fire as the temperature of the air quickly rose.
Eda traced a series of additional circles, swiping her finger as the last one was cast. The wall of bricks broke apart and scattered before eventually spreading out to orbit the harpy. Eda flicked her wrist back and forth, causing each brick to pelt the harpy all over every square inch of its body. Eda circled it, avoiding angry swipes from the beast as it continuously flinched from the pain of each brick piercing into it. Eda soared just above it, tracing one more large spell circle to summon a large block of ice. She molded it to take the shape of her own fists, and she quickly swung them in a downward punch, causing the ice to crush the creature in a suffocating smash.
Without looking back, Eda took off, leaving the conformatorium behind her.
“Eda, that was amazing!” Luz cheered, clapping her hands. “I’m glad I decided to follow such an incredible witch over that sleaze.”
Eda blushed. “Oh, stop, I’m just doing what I do every day.” She smiled as she gazed into the night sky, calmed by the serene sight of glowing star systems bathing her in their gentle light. Luz, too, was enamored by them. She felt herself resting against Eda’s back as she basked in the light and gentle breeze.
Meanwhile, Adrian rubbed his eyes, his blurred vision slowly returning to normal. In this moment, he found himself staring directly at a hellharpy, its vision also blinking away blurriness. No longer seeing Eda, Luz, or King, the harpy fixed its gaze on Adrian, the only target left.
Adrian didn’t even have time to process what was about to happen. The hellharpy dove forward. It grabbed him by the shirt with its knife-like talons, making him yelp with pain as they sunk into the skin surrounding his ribs. He screamed in agony and panic as the creature dragged him into the sky, soaring above the tower and carrying him off into the night.
—
Eda slowed the pace as she continued the flight home. She was conscious of King’s sensitive stomach, Owlbert’s minor head injury, and everyone’s exhaustion. She instead opted to go the pace of a bicycle and let the breeze gently flow through her hair. She dropped the hood that her scout uniform disguise would normally have pulled over the forehead of the mask, which she was thankfully rid of by now.
“Hey, Luz?” Eda spoke gently, not taking her eyes off of the skies ahead of her. “You said you had some questions for me, right? I’m happy to explain things to you. I know it wasn’t really fair of me to not be upfront about my position in this society.”
“It’s okay,” said Luz, resting her head against Eda’s back. “How long has the Emperor’s Coven been after you?”
“Pretty much since I graduated from High School,” Eda replied. “They really pressure you to join a specific coven for the rest of your life the moment you graduate. I’d been having questions about the system for a while at that point, and I really didn’t have my life figured out enough to know what kind of magic I wanted to devote myself to for the rest of my life. And, just like that, I was deemed a criminal.”
“Is that the only reason they’re after you?”
“Well, that and some cases here and there of petty theft,” Eda laughed. “I only steal from government-owned property, though. They’re the only ones worth robbing.”
Luz chuckled. She gazed into the sky in front of her. The clouds had a bright, violet glow in the light of the moon, which shone with the color of the ocean from back home. “I’m still trying to wrap my head around the belief system of the coven. Supposedly, it makes the Titan happy? And you guys… live on this so-called Titan?”
Eda suddenly grinned. There was a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Do you mind if we make a quick detour? I want to show you something.”
“I mean, sure? What does this have to do with my question, though?”
“You’ll see. Hang on!” Eda kicked her legs, making Owlbert pick up the speed. She soared straight up into the atmosphere, causing Luz to yelp as she clung her arms to Eda’s stomach. Eda stayed on course, remaining at her current speed despite Luz’s screams.
The trio popped through the clouds like a mole out of the ground. Luz was squeezing her eyes shut, but Eda coaxed her to open them. Once she did, she found herself losing her breath not just from lack of oxygen but from the beauty of what lay before her. She saw a clear, overhead view of the island that she was just on. It was shaped like the skeleton of some colossal beast. Its skull rested upright at the edge of the island, gazing upon the rest of its body. A ribcage jutted out of the island’s center, and the right knee was raised into the atmosphere, dusted with snow.
“This is The Boiling Isles. What Adrian told you about it is true- it was formed from the remains of a titan who lived eons ago. It’s thanks to this creature that new life has sprung from it. We exist and have a home because of what its body left us. So, to a degree, witchkind has always worshiped it like a god. Which, I mean, I don’t have an issue with at all. I’m not very religious myself, but giving thanks to the creature responsible for your existence and providing bountiful resources, I can kinda get behind that. However, that bull the coven feeds us about wild magic displeasing the Titan? I personally don’t buy it.”
“Well, whether it's true or not,” said Luz, “I’ve always stood by the fact that it’s not a government’s place to enforce religious beliefs. What they’re doing here is nothing short of controlling your free will. I saw how Adrian spoke to you, and… it kinda reminded me of back home.”
“Oh?” Eda raised an eyebrow.
“I… wasn’t well accepted among my peers back home. They called me a loser, a freak, and in some cases, things much worse than that. You wanna know why I decided to side with you over Adrian? Well, I could see you’re the same way here. And I think us weirdos have to stick together, ya know?”
Eda’s curious and sympathetic gaze lit up into a massive grin. “Couldn’t have said it better myself, kid! I think you and I are gonna get along just fine.” Eda playfully dug her fist into Luz’s temple, earning a laugh from her.
King, in turn, jumped and latched onto Luz’s shoulders. “Don’t forget about me! I’m a weirdo, too!”
“A weirdo? I thought you fancied yourself royalty,” Luz questioned.
“That’s besides the point!”
After a few more moments of laughter and taking in the serene view of the isles, Eda took Luz and King back to the forest she called home. They walked through its treacherous path, watching out for anyone following them or any more dreadful hellharpies before finally making it back to the comfortable atmosphere of The Owl House. Luz felt as if she was retreating to a quiet little witch’s hut in the woods, just like in some of her favorite fantasy stories. Only this was not fantasy, but her new reality.
Moments later, Luz was helping Eda take the sleeping bag from the dryer in the basement. Luz took it upstairs, unrolling it on the dusty floor of the storage room. It wasn’t much, but she already knew that in time, it would be like home to her.
Just then, Eda came into the room with a large bag in her hand. “Good news, Luz! I managed to find an inflatable mattress for you to use, so you won’t have to sleep on those hard, wooden floors.” She set the bag on the ground and reached inside. “Just give me a moment and- ow!” She yelped. She yanked her hand away from the bag, and Luz’s eyes lit up when she noticed a small scorpion crawling around the back of Eda’s hand.
“You found the scorpion!” Luz squealed. “Aww, look at the little angel crawling on your hand.”
“Well, glad someone is getting joy out of this situation,” said Eda, grimacing as she took it over to the window and let it outside. “Damn, no one ever told me how much scorpion stingers hurt. They give some of the demons here a run for their money.”
“Are you gonna be okay? I don’t think that scorpion looked like one of the poisonous ones, but I’m no expert.”
“Eh, I’ll be fine. I’m sure I have an elixir somewhere that can treat it. Why don’t you set up your mattress while I go tend to my wounds?” Eda took her leave, and the moment she was gone, Luz got out the mattress and started blowing into it.
Once it was set up, Luz, once again, spread out her sleeping bag. She then unzipped her backpack, taking out a plushie of one of the animal companions from The Good Witch Azura . She hugged it tightly as she settled into her new bed. Trying to shove aside her worries about the human realm, she settled into the cloak of night and drifted off to sleep.
Meanwhile, Eda was in the bathroom, pouring a potion on her scorpion wound and gently rubbing the concoction into the skin. Despite the immense pain, it didn’t seem to leave a mark. Her eyes then drifted to the bathroom mirror, and then, the gem on her chest. It didn’t have any trace of black, just the gold sheen it was supposed to have. She cradled it with her pointer finger and thumb.
“Hey, Eda?” Eda jumped, turning to find King standing in the doorway. “Are you gonna tell Luz about your curse at some point? If she’s going to be staying with us for a while, she should probably know.”
Eda looked back at the mirror, struggling to look herself in the eyes. She rubbed and fidgeted with the gem. “I don’t know. Maybe someday, but I’m not ready to. You saw how conflicted she felt about me for a while before finally deciding to stay by my side. I don’t want to give her any more reasons to be afraid of me.” She turned to King, noticing his whimpering expression. She kneeled down next to him, smiling warmly and rubbing his skull. “Ah, don’t worry about me. As long as I keep drinking my elixir, I can keep the curse at bay, and it won’t hurt anyone. You should get to bed now. It’s way past your bedtime.”
King, reluctantly satisfied, let Eda usher him out of the bathroom. He scurried back to the living room, curling up on the couch and letting out an incredible yawn. Eda, feeling sleepiness overcome her as well, turned off the living room lights and headed for her own bedroom.
—
A door at the top floor of the conformatorium opened. The inside was no prison cell, but instead, a gargantuan chamber cloaked in darkness. The only light was that which crept from the outside room into the overwhelming presence of shadow. The witch who entered cast silver spell circles, shooting out balls of fire to light the various candles spread across the room. Their green glow revealed the one who had entered- a miserable-looking Adrian Graye.
His clothes were tattered, his shirt had bloodstained rips, revealing gaping wounds around his ribs, and his perfectly treated curly hair was now a frizzy, unkempt mess. Groaning angrily, he made his way deeper into the chamber. At the end of the room was a set of extravagant tables and decorations reflecting the presence of royalty. At the center table was a small crystal ball branded with a sigil that looked like a sword stabbed through a set of golden wings.
Adrian tapped the ball, gritting his teeth as it lit with violet-blue light. Above it, the projection of a masked being hovered at the scale of a real person. The figure wore a gold mask with slitted eyes, a white robe, and a ruby-red scarf. “Headwitch Graye,” it spoke with a vaguely masculine voice that sounded as if it had just hit puberty. “My, you’re looking terrible. What happened?”
“I don’t want to hear another word about it,” Adrian grumbled, not looking at the projection.
“Is that how you think you should be addressing your superior?”
Adrian, letting out an insult under his breath, knelt before the projection. “Apologies, Golden Guard. It won’t happen again.”
“It better not. The emperor wouldn’t hesitate to strip you of your status and throw you in the very conformatorium you stand in. Luckily for you, I’m willing to forgive mistakes like what you just made.”
“Of course. Thank you, Golden Guard.”
“Now, get on with it. What business do you have with me that you felt the need to interrupt my duties?”
“I wanted to inform you that a human has been spotted in Bonesborough. She has been keeping company with the wild witch known as Edalyn Clawthorne. I thought Emperor Belos would be interested in knowing such intel.”
“And I take it the human is now in custody at the Bonesborough Conformatorium under your watch?” The golden guard’s voice had a hint of sarcasm in it, as if he knew what the answer was going to be.
“Well, I did, but I regret to inform you that Edalyn has broken her out. She is no longer under my surveillance.”
The Golden Guard stared for a moment, watching Adrian attempt to hide his look of fear and embarrassment upon informing him about this news. Finally, the Golden Guard said, “Unfortunate, but not unexpected. I’ll inform the Emperor about this human. I’ll overlook mentioning your incompetence this time. But please remember your responsibilities as coven head and try to uphold the ideals of that position moving forward. You were hired for a reason, and I don’t think you want the emperor to regret his choice. Is that clear?”
“I understand, Golden Guard. I will be sure to hold myself to that standard.”
“Good. If you have no other news to share, then you are dismissed.” After a moment, the projection vanished, fading with the light of the crystal ball. All that remained in that room was the glow of the green flames flickering across Adrian’s face as he quivered in anger and fear.