The Seventh Son (Male OC x Luz Noceda x Amity Blight)

Chapter Eighteen: Separate Tides

I'm cowboyalchemist on Discord. Due to a new policy on the server, I had to change my username. Come on over if you want to chat and talk about ideas. If you want an invite to join my Discord server, you only have to ask me.

I HAVE RETURNED! And I'm here to continue this story!

There is a dimension beyond that which is known to mankind. It is a dimension filled with magic and terrors beyond which we can see and experience. Where what we humans call witchcraft is not only a practice but a way of life, practiced by the horrifying in appearance, but gentle in soul inhabitants. This is the world known as the Demon Realm, and as the sun rose on another sunny day in the Boiling Isles, it marked a new day for the Seventh Son of the Seventh Son, Booker Bridges.

Dressed in his winter clothes, Booker sat alone on a snow-covered rock. His legs crossed with his hands pressed together, meditating as he focused on controlling his breathing. His efforts to calm his mind were in progress, though not without a lot of effort on his part to keep it clear. His thoughts were a whirlwind and anchored down by the events that had taken place in his life.

And then, it happened! From out of nowhere, a blast of fire was sent his way.

Booker's eyes widened as he quickly sensed the magic attack coming his way. Biting back the fear, the Seventh Son held out his hand and caught the fireball. Using what he's learned, Booker absorbed the magic into his body.

Then, another attack was sent his way. This time, an Oracle Spirit flew at him and lashed out with its claws, forcing Booker to jump away with a backflip.

He landed in the snow with a skid, before quickly moving out of the way of three fireballs being thrown at him. Clapping his hands and digging them into the snow, Booker converted the magic he absorbed into magical energy and formed a shield of ice from the ground that blocked another barrage.

Booker was about to go on the attack himself when he caught a glimpse of something behind him.

Then, at the very last second, he jumped out of the way of a bolt of lightning that smashed into the ice barrier and shattered it into pieces. "Whoa! Whoa! Time out," Booker yelled at the attacker, who almost zapped him into a burnt carcass.

Descending from the sky on her pony Palisman, Claus asked, "What? Too much?"

"Yeah! What the hell?!" Booker yelled, shocked and incensed. Behind him, Roswell floated down from the sky on his bear Palisman.

"Wait, was that a rule," he asked with his arms crossed. "Because I remember telling you we'd randomly attack you and see how well you could react."

"And you have some mad reaction time, cuz!" Claus said cheerfully.

"I wouldn't really say that," Roswell said, however, drawing the annoyance of Booker to him. "Your reaction time was good, but you spent too much time absorbing one magic attack, leaving you open to more attacks." As he continued critiquing Booker's performance, Roswell failed to notice an Oracle Spirit appearing behind him.

"Boo!"

"AAAH!" Roswell screamed like a girl as he fell off his staff, landing in the snow face first with his butt in the air.

"Ha!" Laughed Felix as he and Jason walked up the snowy mountain. "That's what I call knocking you off your high horse–er, bear. Your high bear!" The cousins laughed with each other as Roswell pulled himself out of the snow, looking none too happy.

Booker watched them as a smile appeared on his face, happy to have a family as great as his still. One and a half weeks have passed since the petrification ceremony, resulting in the destruction of the portal back to the Earth. It was a hard decision to make, but between having the portal and having his new mom, he'd pick Eda every time.

But that didn't mean that Booker was going just to let Belos use the door, so he destroyed it. Now, he and Luz were stuck on the Boiling Isles. Reaching into his coat, he pulled out the portal's key. He felt magic inside of it, but it wasn't known if it would have the power to make a new door.

Whatever happens, he'll be ready.

After his first week of training with his cousins came to an end, Booker was flown back to the Owl House on Claus' staff. If he was correct, Luz should be back from her bounty-hunting mission.

"And we're home," Claus said, parking over the roof of the house near the window to his and Luz's room. Booker jumped off and turned to his cousin as she smiled at him. "Keep practicing!" The rabbit witch took off into the air to make her return home.

Taking off the coat, Booker walked to the stained glass window and opened it. Inside, he saw the first of two girls he fell in love with, holding up a glass bottle.

Booker smiled at Luz and announced his presence. "I'm home."

"WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHH!" The little demon of the house, known as King, aka the King of Demons, suddenly threw himself at Booker from out of nowhere, clinging to his face and knocking him over. Luz was shocked by this until she started giggling when she saw her best friend and the boy she loved so much struggling to get King off his face.

Eventually, he yanked him off and held King by his scruff as he struggled to catch his breath. "Good morning, King," he said, annoyed by King almost suffocating him.

"Where have you been?!" King wailed.

"I said I was going to be gone for a few hours."

"That's still too long!"

Luz laughed and walked over to the two of them. "Oh, don't mind him, Booky," she said, using a nickname that always made him blush. And it didn't fail her this time. "King's just happy to see you again after a whole week." Luz offered her hand to her best friend.

Booker dropped King and grabbed her hand. After standing up, he asked, "So, how'd the mission go?" He was happy that she was talking to him again.

Luz's smile turned upside down as she held up the bottle. Inside it, Booker saw a small rabbit-like beast demon with one eye. "Ask him yourself," she said, pulling out the wanted poster for him.

Turns out his name was Garlog.

Booker leaned down to see the creature in the bottle. He then compared him to the drawing on the poster. The Garlog on the poster, who was worth 4,000 sails, was a hulking beast who was bigger, scarier, and more intimidating than the original demon. The thing in the bottle, on the other hand, looked like something that would be put in a stew.

Garlog said in a dark and sinister voice, "Small I may be, but you will soon know fear when I lay waste to all that you—AHH!"

Luz suddenly jerked the bottle up and down. "Hey, what did I tell you about threatening me and my friends?" She turned to Booker and asked, "So, you're all done with training?"

"Actually, it wasn't all that bad," Booker said with a smile. "So, where are the others?"

"They're still here, but Eda said that as soon as you come back, we'll be heading into town," Luz said as her smile grew back on her lips. "We've got a week's worth of bounties to turn in."

"Well, in that case..." Booker held his left arm up and summoned his family's sword. The anti-magic sword Dragon's Bite, sitting against the wall of his side of the room, flew over and into his hand. "Let's get going!"

Booker tried to take a step to the door, but felt something weighing him down. The Seventh Son lifted his leg to show King was clutching it tightly. "I'm never letting you go! You're not going back to your family!" King said before Luz pulled him off and held him like a baby in her arms.

"Aw, you don't mean that," Luz cooed, rocking him in her arms to calm him down as both kids walked towards the door.

"Yes, I do!"

The two kids walked into the Owl House's kitchen. There, they found Eda, who was trying to cast a magical spell to lift a large jug of apple blood and pour herself a cup.

It was pretty hard to watch and not feel pity. At one point, when Booker and Luz came to this world. Eda, famously known as the Owl Lady, was hailed as the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles. Or at least she was until her curse overpowered her and weakened her magic. It's been hard for her to adjust without her magic, but she's been getting by.

At least, she was, until she made the jug explode, getting the apple blood all over her and the kitchen. Eda groaned in frustration before she heard a pair of hands clapping and saw a ball of water floating in front of her.

"Need any help, Mama Eda," Booker asked as he walked over to her.

"Ah, there's my new son!" Eda said with such pride as she patted his head and washed her face in the magic water. Sure, it was weird to the Owl Lady that she had someone to call her son, but there's nothing in this world that could make her trade Booker for. "Do me a favor and go get that sister of mine. It's time we got our money's worth."

"No problem," Booker said as he turned and walked up the stairs to Lilith's room.

Seeing the door open, he looked inside to see the woman who was once his sworn. enemy. No longer the powerful head of the Emperor's Coven, and without her magic as well, Lilith put her old dress away in a briefcase. To symbolize her new state of powerlessness, the older woman wore a graphic tee Eda got from the Human Realm of a "low battery" symbol and a ragged gray skirt that reached to her ankles, which she got from Eda.

Then she closed the briefcase and looked out the opened stained glass window pensively. If Eda's fall from grace was anything, Lilith's was something else. All her life, she'd climbed to the top because it was her selfishness that had cursed her own sister, spending her entire life looking for a way to undo it. When she finally did, it was at the cost of everything she had achieved.

Yet, of all the things she was ashamed of and the terrible things she had done in the name of the mad king, Lilith didn't regret losing it all. It's still hard for everyone to trust her, but maybe with time, they could all become friends, especially now that she has a nephew.

Speaking of nephews, Booker knocked on the door and said, "You, Aunt Lily, we're heading out. Come on."

Lilith jumped a bit but relaxed when seeing that it was the boy. "Oh, thank you, nephew," she said. "I didn't know you'd return."

"Just got back," Booker said.

That's when Hooty suddenly appeared in the window. "Hello!"

Lilith screamed in surprise and slammed the window in Hooty's face. Booker chuckled and walked away. It might have been strange for some to hear Booker calling someone who'd been his enemy 'Aunt Lily,' but the Seventh Son had grown past that. He couldn't forgive Lilith for certain actions she took against his family, but he understood that she was in a very difficult position. She'd followed something that promised her the moon, only to realize that Belos played her as a fool.

Thankfully, Lilith chose to do the right thing, and it saved Eda. That's all that matters to Booker.

A minute later, Booker and Liz walked out of the house together. There, they saw a wagon cart full of other bounties they caught with two rat slugs on the reins. Without the portal, Eda had no human garbage to sell at the market. To put fun on the table, the odd family resorted to working odd jobs to keep food on the table. Booker wanted to help, but Eda made it clear that Booker needed his training to master his powers.

This week, they were bounty hunters. Next week, they could be anything.

As they walked to the wagon, Booker's attention was drawn to Eda, who could be seen constructing something. Even though Eda had been frustrated, she found new ways to make up for her lost powers. And building new inventions was one of those ways. Although, most of her new ideas are...not so great.

"Check it, Booker!" Eda presented to the Seventh Son a makeshift spear made from a broken piece of an old harpoon and a net. "It was a new hunting weapon. I will call her the Stab-Catcher."

Booker took a step back with his hands up. "Mama Eda, I love you, but I don't trust you with that thing."

"Yeah," said Luz nervously, "what if you hurt someone?"

"Oh please, I have the aim of an archer," Eda boasted while looking to see what she could test out her new weapon on. That's when she did find herself a target and held her 'Stab Catcher' like she was going to throw it. "Hey, King, did you know that that apple is a hat?"

Booker and Luz turned around and panicked when they saw where King was standing. "Really?" King gushed and put the apple in front of him on his head, not knowing he was standing in front of a target.

"King!" Luz screamed as Booker clapped his hands. He summoned a vine that grabbed the little demon and pulled him away, getting King out of harm's way. The Stab-Catcher, with Eda's detached hands still holding on, hit the bullseye.

Booker and Luz glared at Eda, who looked away, whistling to herself while finding the cloud to be very interesting to look at.

Lilith came out of the house, stopped, and looked to her right. Her eyes widened upon seeing the harpoon and her sister's arms. "I don't even want to know what happened," she said, grabbing the severed arms and throwing them back to Eda.

With a smirk, the youngest sister held out her stumps, and the arms landed perfectly back on. Earning her a round of applause from the kids. "Alright, time to bring these bad boys to market!" Eda said as she jerked her thumb to the cart.

Booker jumped onto the back and helped Luz and King up.

Lilith sat in the front with her sister, only to get feathers on herself when she sat down. She patted feathers off herself and grunted. "Eda, do you own anything that isn't covered in feathers?"

"I had to deal with a curse for 30 years," Eda said, "so I think you can handle a few feathers."

In the heart of Bonesborough's marketplace, the citizens of the Boiling Isles were going about their daily routine. However, upon waking up today, they were surprised by a new, towering statue of Emperor Belos placed in the center of the bazaar. It stood over two stories tall, with his hand held up in a gesture that told the people to stop being happy and to remain faithful.

Or, in the heroes' eyes, it was a gesture to stop their thoughts of defiance and remain fearful of his power.

Not only was the statue a new presence in the market district, but so too was the increasing number of Emperor's Coven guards everywhere.

"Wow, the Emperor is really taking over," Luz said as she, Booker, and King followed Eda across the market's streets.

The Dominican girl wore her new cloak, which Eda had made, and her hood to hide her ears. After his lizard hoodie was destroyed by his magic, Booker only had the white shirt he wore under it to cover his chest. His golden hair was covered with the beanie he wore when he was in school. King, well, he was still naked and had a dog tag.

"I see it too, Luz. And I'm trying to stay civil," said her master. However, Eda's version of 'staying civil' was walking up to a demon decked out in Emperor's Coven apparel and kicking him in the balls.

Booker looked at the statue with a glance of disgust and anger for the Emperor that was boiling in his heart. The evil man who wanted his blood for something that even he couldn't understand.

But as he looked at the guards patrolling the district, the Seventh Son felt a sense of guilt. They were here because of him. He defied the Emperor, beat him in combat, and lived to tell the tale. Booker read enough trashy teenage revolution books to know this was the part of the story where the oppressive government was going to try to stomp out any semblance of the people rebelling against the regime. And what's worse, he knew it was just his fault.

"Hey, kiddo!"

"Huh?" Booker looked at his adopted mom and saw her and Luz standing in front of one of the booths reading BOUNTY.

"Come on! Let's get some money!" Eda grinned as she placed the bag of captured demons on a scale.

Booker quickly walked over and waited with Eda and Luz while a shopkeeper behind the counter read the scale.

"Tsk. Your payment," said the shopkeeper in a dry voice, holding out a measly snail.

Eda looked at the token in shock and annoyance. "A single snail?" She asked. "Are you kidding me?"

The shopkeeper looked at the token and laughed, as if he had made a minor mistake. "Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't done yet," he said.

The demon snapped the snail in half, then presented the half snail to the Owl Lady.

"You can't do this to me!" Eda went into full Karen mode, attracting a few onlookers. "Do you know who I am?"

"Yeah, you're Eda the Owl Lady. What are you gonna do?" The guy taunted. "We all know you're powerless now."

Eda growled in anger before Booker, just as angry that the man had the nerve to insult his new mother. "She may not be powerful anymore, but I still am," Booker said, resting his left arm on the booth's counter. "So cough up the money we're owed."

The shopkeeper was about to tell him off, too. That was until he saw the dragon tooth handle of the sword on his back. And then he realized the newly permanent markings on his arms weren't painted. Their likeness was that of tattoos or even burns.

"I know who you are," he said in shock. "You're the kid who took on Belos, the Seventh Son, Booker Bridges."

This surprised everyone in the crowd, drawing a lot more attention to the odd family.

Booker, not noticing, smirked and said, "Yeah, that's me."

The shopkeeper, however, looked at Booker quizzically, sizing him up before asking Luz, "This isn't a joke, right? This is really the Seventh Son everyone's talking about?"

"Uh..." Luz nervously smiled and nodded. "I'm pretty sure...please don't call the police."

"But he's a runt."

This infuriated Booker, and he yelled, "OH, YEAH?! CAN A RUNT DO THIS?!"

Booker clapped his hands together and slammed them to the ground. Catching the shopkeeper in an earth-made trap that wrecked parts of his booth.

The trap didn't crush him but kept him in place. "I've heard the rumors, but still, I never imagined this," the shopkeeper said as his face was squished. The powerful Seventh Son is just a little kid."

Booker, getting mad again, clapped his hands and made a light-made hand while shouting, "DON'T CALL ME LITTLE!" The hand smacked the shopkeeper out cold, destroying the front of the booth.

As Booker panted out his anger, Luz smiled a funny, weary, cat-like smile with her eyes closed. Some things changed, and some things stayed the same. "Uh, Booker, you do know he wasn't talking about your height, right?"

Booker realized his mistake but said, "Well, even if he wasn't, he still pissed me off!"

"The Seventh Son is here!?" Luz heard someone yell and turned around. In the back of the crowd, she saw a group of five Emperor's Coven soldiers shoving their way through to reach her and her friends. "There they are! Stop them!"

"Crap, time to go!" Luz exclaimed, picking up King and grabbing Booker's hand. Followed by Eda, she and the others ran away from the scene of the crime.

Eda, however, rushed back. "MONEY!" She shouted wildly, grabbed two sacks of money from the booth, and ran away with her kids.

Luckily, it only took them 30 seconds to escape and lose the guards. They stopped at a tall wall with the wanted posters of the Seventh Son and Owl Lady, along with Lilith's recruiting posters. Panting for a few seconds with King on her shoulder, Luz said, "You two really are the same, you know that?"

"Come on, I know you like my bad boy traits," Booker said with a smirk, making Luz blush.

"Bad boy terms isn't the word I'd use," she joked back at him. "But, I do love your 'quirks'."

Booker stood up straight and said, "The guy deserved it, anyway. You and Eda both worked really hard to get those bounties. With Eda no longer powerful and the portal..."

Booker's heart stung with guilt and shame when he saw Luz look away from him. Her face turned into an angry expression, and she crossed her arms. This had become a reoccurring reaction whenever the golden-haired boy brought up the portal. Sadly, the response to the portal's destruction has been less than positive. Not that Booker blamed her. It was her only way back home. To her mom. To her life on earth. Luz wouldn't even talk to him for a day, and when she did, she would just shut down and return to the bitter state she was in whenever the topic was brought up.

"...anyway," Booker continued, "We can't rely on Eda to help us out of a pinch anymore."

"If anything, she's the one that needs help," King said, pointing to the old woman.

"You bite your tongue! Ah, I don't need your pity," Eda said. With her proud smile, the infamous Owl Lady pulled out and held up her own wanted poster. "I was the most wanted criminal for years before you came along, adopted son of mine. I can still command fear and respect!"

That respect and fear were taken away when a passing garbage man grabbed her wanted poster and put it in the trash cart he was pushing. "No magic? Not so wanted anymore," he said as he passed.

With a twitching eye, Eda growled in disbelief and frustration. Which only grew when her sister walked over with a laugh. "Don't worry, sister. At least my image still commands respect and fear," Lilith said, posing in front of her Coven recruitment poster, in which she was making the same pose.

Like her sister, however, that respect and fear were taken away when the poster was promptly torched by the same garbage man holding a flamethrower.

King pointed and laughed, "HAHA! You're a traitor."

Furious at the desiccation of her poster, Lilith marched up to the garbage man and demanded, "What's going on? This is anarchy! Who told you to do this?" That answer came in the form of three new Coven recruitment posters magically flying onto the wall. Lilith looked at the posters in shock before feeling nothing but anger and annoyance. "Oh, fuck me..."

Ripping one off, Booker looked at the poster and saw a person known as the Golden Guard. Recognizing him as the same guard who tried to stop him after Booker destroyed the petrification machine. "The Golden Guard?" he asked.

Luz saw the guard and gasped in shock and anger. "That's the pendeja that knocked me out!" Luz yelled, pointing to the poster.

"You hate him too? Good!" Lilith threw her arms up. "I finally have someone to hate him with...that isn't Kikimora."

Further confused, Booker asked, "Did you know him in the Coven, Aunt Lily?

"Unfortunately, I did." Lilith aggressively snacked the poster from Booker. "He always got special treatment because he was the 'genius teen prodigy,' but he's really just a brat," she angrily told her adoptive nephew, crumpling up the poster with all the anger and frustration that boy had caused the older woman. "If he's in charge...fuck the Coven!"

The former coven head threw the crumbled poster at a trash can, only for it to stop and hover right before entering. However, the poster unraveled and flew back, adhering to Lilith's face, making her scream out in frustration and try to rip it off.

"I've gotcha," Booker said, clapping his hands. Conjuring a little fire, he burned the poster away from her face, though it did leave black dust on her face.

"Thank you, nephew." Lilith sighed in misery.

"You can just keep calling me Booker," he said with a smile.

"Right. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to wallow in my misery," Lilith said, sulking away.

It's been one week since Booker left to train with his family at the Knee, and coming home allowed him to see the state of not just his new aunt but also the rest of his family and friends. They were barely able to get by, forced to do minimal work that offered a little reward in return. Luz was able to keep her optimism alive, but Eda and Lilith were so down in the dumps by their situation.

"Alright, that does it!" He said loudly, getting the attention of the others as he gave them a look of determination. "Mama Eda, I'm not going to sit back and watch as you and Luz struggle. I'm joining you on the next bounty."

Luz gasped when her eyes sparkled. "Woo! Yeah! The Weirdo Family is back, baby!"

"Now that I'm here, we can really go after the bigger bounties. Something to last us a year or half of one. Something that will give us the confidence boost we need. Why don't we take on the biggest bounty we can find?" Walking up to the bounty board, named Greg's list with several posters on display, Booker looked around for a decent bounty to catch but found other things aside from bounties. "Hmm. Lost Cerberus, no," he said, moving on to the next bounty.

Wanting to help him with finding a bounty, Luz stood beside her best friend and looked at one. "Witch cackling contest? How's your cackling, Booky?"

Booker proceeded to cackle like the Monarch from the Venture Bros.

"Nice, but maybe not today."

"Wait! Aha!" Booker grinned when he saw what had to be the biggest bounty reward ever.

Pulling the poster from the wall, Booker looked at a drawing of a large, strange beast. From the simplified version printed on the poster, the creature appeared to be a mixture of a walrus, hippo, and whale. However, Booker was only interested in the 1,000,000 snail bounty—the largest and most genius bounty on the board.

"A 'Selkidomus' ravaging boats up and down the coast," Booker read from the poster before looking to Luz.

"Yes! Finally, a real monster hunt!" Luz shouted in excitement. No more small creatures that were over-advertised. No more small rewards for small prey. This time, they were going to, pun intended, catch a big fish.

Grinned, Booker looked to Eda and King. "Alright, who's ready for a high-seas adventure," he said, grinning.

Booker started walking away from them to get to the docks. However, an arm grabbed him from behind and pulled him back. "Hmm... no," said Eda, the arm's owner.

"What?!"

"We gotta keep a low profile while my powers are weakened."

"But I'll be with you guys!"

"And that's another reason. Haven't you forgotten you're the most wanted person right now? What we need is fast cash, Eda said, looking at all the other bounty posters on the board. Trying to find one that would not draw the most amount of attention. That's when she saw one that worked for her. "How about this guy?"

Looking at the poster Eda was gesturing to, Booker and Luz saw it was of a demon who looked like a young child with pink skin, tiny horns, and bat wings. To drive home the idea of the demon being only a child, it was seen holding a lollipop with a pink and white swirl. Booker looked at it and thought it was trying to pass off as a stereotypical kid he'd see in old cartoons.

"'The Abominable Cutie Pie'?" Luz said as she looked at her mentor in confusion.

"No, no, no. I hear it's very dangerous," Eda said, trying to sell the quest to the kids.

Booker grabbed the poster and looked it over. "'Not responsible for any mass murders, nor responsible for any atrocities. Just extremely annoying. Please get rid of him.' And also for the low, low price of 600 snails," he said, giving his new mother a sassy look--Something he'd learned quite well from her.

Looking a bit nervous, Eda gasped and pointed to the street. "Look, there he is!"

Turning to where she was pointing, the duo saw their wanted "criminal". Standing between two Hexside students, one being Selene, with a lollipop in hand, was the demon they were looking for. At a height of about 2 feet tall, he looked like a pig man and wore a ripped pink shirt with magenta shorts and a matching hat.

Seeing that he'd been spotted, the Abominable Cutie Pie giggled as he ran off and climbed the statue of Emperor Belos. "You'll never catch me!" he said in a cute voice.

It was just pathetic. Far from the best bounty worthy of Booker's power, and he knew it. However, money was still money, and he promised to help his family in any way he could. And so, the Seventh Son walked to the statue and clapped his hands. Forming an arm of hard light, he stretched out the arm up and grabbed the small demon.

"You did it. You caught me," the Abominable Cutie Pie said in a deadpan tone, almost as if he was expecting this.

"This is even more pathetic than the last one," said Luz as she and King approached Booker.

The Seventh Son sighed and pulled the demon back down to him. He was about to get him to the bounty booth he'd destroy to cash the demon in. However, he stopped when he heard a conversation between his new mom and aunt.

"Something on your mind," asked a concerned Lilith as she sat in the wagon, at the reins again. "You're usually in a good mood when you rob people, " she said.

Eda, looking worried, sighed as she loaded the sack of snails into the cart. "Things aren't looking great, Lily. This bounty hunting stuff isn't putting food on the table. Face it, I've become a single mother with no job, no magic, with two children to feed and King."

"Those children aren't exactly the most valuable people. Believe me, I know," Lilith said to Eda, cringing at the many times she had been defeated and failed to capture her new nephew. "Let them take the bigger bounties. They can handle it."

"Oh, I'm sure my son and Luz could handle bigger bounties, but if we wanna eat, we don't have the luxury to mess up even once," Eda told her. "And with Booker, I don't want him to attract the attention of the Emperor. You saw what happened a few minutes ago."

"It's not easy being a mother, huh?" Lilith joked a bit, getting a snort from Eda

"No kidding," she said. "Elizabeth made it look so easy with Booker's brothers. Then again, she had Malcolm."

This made Lilith look away from her sister with a look of great sadness and shame. Even her sister had the opportunity to see Mal's children. "I...I wish I could have met them."

Knowing what was going through her mind, Eda placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We both wish for many things," she said melancholically.

"Sounds like someone needs apple blood," Lilith said, needing a drink of her favorite beverage.

"No apple blood. I spent the money on griffin eggs for the kids. There's not a lot Luz can digest here, so I make sure to have her favorites around. Booker's stomach is easier to work with, but he's a picky eater. Wouldn't even eat mud-puppies."

"What?!"

"I know! Who doesn't want to eat a puppy?!" Eda joked a bit as the sisters headed back to the owl house, leaving the kids in the market.

Back at the statue, Booker looked at Luz, who felt just as down as he did. The two best friends, along with King, sat down on the stone base of the Belos statue.

The Abominable Cutie Pie then said in a manly voice, "That's rough, buddy." In response, King took his lollipop and shoved him to the ground.

Booker didn't mind, even as his hard light arm dispelled. He was too depressed to do anything about the cutie pie, who ran off.

"Hey, you okay?" Luz asked, scooting closer to the hybrid.

"I'm just... wondering if maybe it would be better if I never came here," Booker said with great sadness as he looked at the ground.

"What? Booker, don't say that," Luz said, instantly wanting to get her BFF out of the rut he was in and back to his normal self. "If it weren't for you, people's lives wouldn't have been as good as they are now. Think of all the people who you've helped. You have a family here, both in blood and heart."

"Yeah, but look at the stuff I brought upon you and everyone else," Booker said, gesturing to the statue. "I've made a lot of mistakes here, and my actions had consequences that others have to deal with. I may have messed things up for me, but I didn't want Eda to suffer for my mistakes. She wouldn't be in this situation if it weren't for me."

"And she wouldn't have been cured if it wasn't for you." Luz pointed out. She then jumped down from the base and said, "We can't change the past, but we can still change the future. We're gonna help Eda and prove we're more than just a burden."

Booker looked at her with a raised eyebrow. However, his mouth then formed a small smile. "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Always." Luz nodded.

When the three friends found their way to the Bonesborough Dock, Booker walked up to the captain of the only ship docked at the port and slammed the poster on the barrel with a determined glare in his eyes.

"The Selkidomus hunt. We want in," he said to the captain as his freighter-shaped ship's horn blew and smoke blasted out of the five smokestacks.

The captain himself was a medium-sized, muscular demon with the overall appearance of a light, brownish-red lobster, with his left arm a red-and-gray lobster claw. He had two whiskers-like antennas hanging off from his chin and a two-tone maroon beak, in addition to red horns on his head with darker gray tips, which made it look like he was wearing a pirate hat. He donned a scar over his right eye and had a golden tooth sticking out from his lower lip.

His attire was also fitting of a pirate: a jagged, grayish-white top with a dark cyan cloth around his neck, pinned together by a gray lobster-like trinket with dark gray and yellow claws. Over his top was a navy blue coat with white rings around the sleeves and bluish-gray trim near the neck. He also wore medium-blue pants and black boots.

"You think you can handle this, squi—" The captain was cut off when he saw Luz and King desperately motioning for him to go no further with his sentence, knowing that he was going to say a word that would have brought attention to Booker's height. "Squidlings. I...I was going to say squidling."

"You have no idea what I can do," he said with a confident smile and crossed his arms.

The captain looked over Booker for a moment, seeing the fire in his eyes and the strength of his will. But more importantly, he saw the marks on his arm. Knowing what he was, the captain knew this boy was just what he needed.

"Welcome aboard," he said, tossing the two kids their uniforms.

As the two kids and King were let onboard the ship, neither of them knew what they were getting into. Watching them go, the captain looked up at the side of the boat at an open window. In the shadows of the quarters, he saw a mysterious individual and nodded to them.

The Golden Guard nodded back and closed the window of his quarters, bearing the Emperor's sigil.

As the ship prepared to leave port, Luz and King waited for Booker to step out of the changing room of the ship. The Dominican girl was already in her pirate uniform, consisting of a blue scarf that had a cute white fish on the front wrapped around her head, a purple ascot with a spider head headpin, a dark beige shirt with gray lines on the sleeves with a torn rim, and blue pants with torn ends while wearing black flats on her feet.

Luz couldn't help but think about replaying Pokémon Sapphire and capturing Kyogre. She didn't know why. But as they waited, King got impatient and banged on the metal door. "Booker, hurry up! Are you even dressed?!"

"I am," Booker said in the changing room. "I just...don't really think I made the right choice of outfit."

"Oh, I'm sure it's fine, Booker," Luz reassured him. "Just come out, and let us see."

A moment later, the door was unlocked and pushed open. The Seventh Son steps out. Luz's eyes went wide as she looked at her crush in the attire of a swashbuckler. Looking like a modern-day Errol Flynn, Booker had on a white buttoned-up shirt with puffy sleeves. It was halfway buttoned up and tucked into a pair of brown pants. On his feet were a pair of black boots, while around his waist was a thick leather belt with a gold buckle, and Dragon's Bite strapped on his back. To cover his golden hair, he trained his beanie for a blue scarf, just like the one Luz had. Complete with a cute fish on it.

"So... is this good?" Booker asked his crush and friend, still unsure of it. To make sure he wasn't recognized again, he rolled down his sleeves and covered them with a pair of leather gloves he'd found in the changing room.

Luz looked at him in amazement and said with a big smile, "Yes, yes, you did make the right choice." She clearly liked what she saw.

The horn of the ship blasted through the air of the docks. The anchor was pulled out of the water, and the boat pulled itself out of the harbor. Turning around, it soon became sailing at high speeds. Seeing the Boiling Isles being left behind, Booker, Luz, and King ran out from the deck below and stood at the bow of the ship. The young boy took in a deep breath of the sea air blowing past him. It was hotter than expected. It must've been why it was called the Boiling Sea.

"This is it, you two," Booker said as King climbed onto the boy's shoulder and acted like his parrot. "Our first adventure away from the Isles."

"When we defeat the Selkidomus and get a boatload of snails, Eda won't have to worry about money for a long time," Luz said, equally excited.

King said, like a parrot, "King wanna cracker!"

"All hands!" The captain, Salty, called out to his crew.

Booker and Luz joined the rest of the crew. Lining up in front of Salty as he inspected his crew. From right to left, the demons were a mixture of different shapes and sizes. One had dark green skin with bumps on his face, his left eye shut, no right hand, and a red scarf on his head; one man was large with purple skin, no shirt, and portly with a clam for a head wearing a sailor cap; one had teal skin with one eye, and a jellyfish for hair with a salamander tail; and the final made was just a red fish with legs and small fin arms.

And then there were the two humans, the two that stood out the most.

"Alright, crew. The Selkidomus has been ravaging the coastline. It was last seen in the Simmering Shoals. You know the drill, snag the quarry..." Salty pulled out and dropped a large sack of snails onto the deck. "...get the money galore-y. We all do the work; we all get a cut."

Booker and Luz began cheering with the rest of the crew. Their goal was just within reach. "I have many debts," said a fish sailor, waving his fins.

"Till then, keep everything shipshape. This ain't no pleasure cruise," Salty said, throwing a broom to Luz and a bucket of water and soap to Booker's feet. "Don't be a burden, Squidlings."

"Oh, you don't have to worry about us," said Booker with a challenging smirk. Determined to prove his worth.

The first of the random tasks they were given was barnacle duty. Barnacles were all over the front of the ship, and someone had to scrape them off. The only problem was that they had mouths and sharp teeth. And Salty picked the kids to do it.

Salty offered Luz and Booker a scraper to get the job done, but they declined. The Dominican girl pulled out a plant glyph and slapped it on the rail in front of Booker. The veins wrapped around the young man and lowered him down like a harness. The Seventh Son dangled in front of the barnacles, which grunted at her. Booker hissed, causing them to quiet down. He then pulled out Dragon's Bite and scraped them off the ship.

Next on the list was engine maintenance. Salty brought Booker down into the bellows of the ship's engine, which worked like a steam engine. It required coal to run, which was why Salty shoveled coal into it.

For a moment, Booker's pyrophobia acted up a bit, but the Seventh Son powered through it. He had been working hard to control his fears of fire, and he wasn't going to panic now—not when he and Luz were on this very important mission.

Salty offered the shovel to Booker, but he shook his head and pushed it away. He then clapped his hands and formed a ball of fire. He pushed it directly into the bellows and closed the door. Taking a few steps back, Booker snapped his fingers, and the fireball expanded. Smoke shot from all corners before the ship sped off faster than before. In spite of the soot covering half of Salty's face, he smiled and nodded at Booker.

Together, Booker and Luz used their combined powers to wash the deck. They started by standing on opposite sides, with Booker standing to port and Luz standing to starboard. Smiling at the boy she loved, Luz pulled out three wind glyphs. Nodding to her, Booker clapped his hands and formed a ball of water.

Pulling out a bar of soap, Booker tossed it into the water. Then, he spun the water until it was foaming and had bubbles dripping down from it. Booker then bent the water into a disk and placed it on the wooden desk. He then commanded it to spin around and moved it around, washing the desk until it was sparkling.

Once he was done, Luz activated her glyphs and blew a gush of wind across the desk, drying the floor within a matter of seconds.

With the job done, the two smiled at one another and blushed. However, the peaceful moment wouldn't last, as Salty suddenly started screaming. "AAAAAAAAHH! Cover your ears, men!"

"We're all gonna die!" The clam pirate yelled.

Booker and Luz ran to the captain, with the boy drawing his sword. "What's going on?"

"Boy, cover your ears!" Salty yelled. "This area is infested with sirens!"

The captain pointed, and the two kids looked. Sitting alone on a rock was a beautiful green mermaid with deeper green hair. She was sitting out at the port, singing a beautiful song about being a part of your world.

"Wait, why," Luz asked. "She's got a beautiful voice."

"Don't you know anything, girl? They're known for luring sailors to their deaths with their voices," Salty exclaimed. Just to drive home the point, the mermaid's song was interrupted when she burped out a bone. That bone landed on a pile of skeletons and skulls next to her.

"Just let me go!" The fish sailor yelled. He was being tied to a barrel by the jellyfish sailor.

The jellyfish sailor desperately held him back and yelled, "No! It's a trap!"

The clam sailor walked up to the railing and said in a dreaming voice, "It's the voice of an angel~."

"Don't follow her voice!" The bumpy sailor yelled. "Cover your ears!"

"I can't!"

"Why?"

"I don't have ears!"

"Then how do you hear?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" The clam sailor wailed.

However, as everyone was freaking out, Booker, Luz, and King were far from affected by the mermaid's singing. "Do you feel anything," asked the human girl.

"Of course not! I'm the king of demons!" King proclaimed.

"Huh, I guess it doesn't work on humans," Booker said with a smile. What a stroke of fortune.

"PSST!" The siren called out to the kids. They turned around and looked down at the siren, who called out specifically to Luz. "Shipping is cringe."

Oh, how the roles were reversed. Booker freaked out immediately when Luz ran to the edge like an angry dog. He and other crew members grabbed her before she could jump off the ship to kill the siren. Unable to get to the bitch, Luz could only shout her vitriol at the siren. "I can assure you that shipping can make a story better by adding more characterization to—!"

"Keep a hold on her! I'll get us out of here!" Booker yelled, rushing to the steering wheel with King on his shoulder.

"Hurry, lad!" Salty yelled as Luz started going into detail about harem shipping.

Booker made it to the helm and grabbed the lever next to it. Shoving it forward, the Seventh Son threw the acceleration of the vessel to full speed, and the crew found themselves being thrown to the deck. Water was kicked up around them, with a wave knocking the siren off her rock.

The moment the boat was as far away from the siren and the rock she was one was out of sight, Booker slowed the ship down. With the crew now away from the siren, they were safe. Walking down to the main deck, Booker found the crew clapping for him, while Luz was pouting over the siren's comment. Nevertheless, she was still happy that her friend was able to save the crew.

"Well, ye had me confront my own biases," Salty said, approaching her and Booker. "And I got nothing but respect for ya now, Squidlings—uh, I mean, sailor."

"Thanks, Salty. You make us feel like a real part of the crew," Luz said, growing back her smile.

Salty threw his arm around the kids. "Well, that's because you arghhhh." The others cheered and laughed.

"Boo!" King yelled, waving his cracker in displeasure. However, he stopped when a bird with a hand for a head tried to grab it from him. "Hey, that's mine, you feather. duster!"

"Hey, knock it off, King!" Booker yelled as King and the bird both tugged at the cracker.

As they battled for the cracker, the ship hit a large wave, which made the crew stumble to regain their balance. It also sent King tumbling off Booker's shoulder and rolling into the captain's quarters. The doors closed behind him. Trapping him.

"Hey, King wanna cracker!" King yelled, trying to open the doors. He looked behind him and gasped upon seeing a box of crackers on the desk. "Ooh!"

The little demon scrambled up the desk and grabbed some crackers from the box. As he stuffed his face with crackers, he noticed a letter below the box. "Huh?"

Picking up the letter, King's eyes widened when he saw the gold wax seal on the envelope, and the sigil of the Emperor was on it.

"Is that the Emperor's sigil?"

It didn't make sense. What would a pirate ship hunting down a sea monster be doing with a letter from the Emperor? Becoming worried and suspicious, King turned up the brightness on the lamp next to him. The brighter light revealed his worst fears. The room was covered in items and artifacts, as well as decor with the Emperor's sigil.

"This ship belongs to the Emperor?! Oh, boy. I gotta tell Booker and Luz."

"Unfortunately, you won't have the chance."

King screamed as the Golden Guard grabbed him.

Neither Booker nor Luz noticed King was gone after a short celebration from the crew. When they did, they assumed that the little demon was off doing his own thing around the ship—hopefully not doing anything to get them blown up. And so, they remained on the top deck for another hour of sailing.

The sound of the ship's horns blew as the ship finally arrived at its desired location, which was in the middle of darker waters.

"We're here. The Simmering Shoals," Salty said as he looked through a telescope. His eye was directed at an island with jetting rocks far from the Boiling Isles in the middle of the boiling sea, bathed in an eerie mist. "Eyes peeled, mates."

One of the crewmen took this order very seriously and peeled his stretching eyelids back, tying them behind his head like a blindfold.

The ship sailed into the deathly calm waters, her crew on the lookout for danger. Booker and Luz stood together and scanned the waters, only for the young boy to gasp upon seeing the flaming wreckage of another ship. One that the Selkidomus must've destroyed. Some of the sailors took off their hats to pay their respects. Booker and Luz gave a silent prayer for them as well, wishing them peace in the afterlife.

Salty said, "She's close."

Booker looked down at the water and noticed bubbles appearing at the surface a meter away from the ship's hull.

Suddenly, a large blue tail came from the water and thwacked the side of the vessel. The ship shook wildly as some of the crew grabbed the side to stay up.

"She's here!" Luz yelled, pointing at the beast, which came around the boat with its back and dorsal fins poking out of the water.

The crew began to throw spears at it, but the Selkidomus dived down to dodge them. The sea beast, like a humpback whale, jumped out of the water and spun around to show its underbelly to the ship. It then puffed up like a pufferfish, with cannonball-size spikes covering its belly. It fired the spikes at the boat, causing several crew members to dodge, but the one with the clam for a head was hit in the head, causing it to get knocked off.

"AAH!" Booker screamed before the sailor's body moved on its own and grabbed the head.

"No worries, this happens all the time," he said, reattaching it.

"Luz! I have a plan!" Booker went up to her and whispered the plan. She smiled as a reply before the two jumped on the railing of the ship.

Seeing the beast trying to runway, Luz pulled out three ice spell glyphs from her pocket and fired two of them at the Selkidomus! They landed in the water in front of it, causing the Selkidomus to turn back to the ship. Luz then used her last ice glyph and threw it into the sea. It grew into a large iceberg with a ramped wall to block its escape!

The Selkidomus beached itself on the iceberg and roared in anger. Revealing the giant seal-like sea monster in all her glory.

Like seals, the Selkidomus had four flippers, except that its front flippers were bigger and had three digits on each one, while the hind flippers were smaller and had only two digits. Unlike seals, the beast had a long tail that ended in a whale-like fluke, with a small spine on the tips of it. The color of its skin was grayish purple with a light-gray underbelly, while its nose and forehead were a darker shade of purple. It had black eyes and pink coloration that surrounded the eyes. It had three webbed shark-like dorsal fins on its body: a small one in its neck, a big one on its back, and another small one on its tail. The Selkidomus also had aquatic plants growing, looping, and covering its neck, back, and sides of its mouth.

"I got you now!" Booker shouted as he clapped his hands and used his plant magic, making a large plant bomb with a vine wrapped around his arm.

Throwing the bomb into the air, he clapped his hands again, powering himself with a power spell. He caught the ball of vines before throwing it at the beast. The moment the ball hit the side of the Selkidomus, vines burst out of it and ensnared it.

The plan worked, and Booker began pulling his hardest to prevent the beast from escaping. Despite the help of the power spell, it was still a very difficult task, especially when the beast was wiggling around.

The crew watched in awe before Luz grabbed the vine and started pulling with her best friend. "Help them, boys!" Salty snapped out of it and ordered his men into action. Everyone grabbed onto the vine and started to pull with all their strength. "Put your backs into it."

The Selkidomus roared as it was pulled out of the water. Helpless as it was bound to the side of the ship. Luz then tied the vine to a knotting post, allowing Booker to let it go and power down.

"Haha! We did it!" Luz cheered.

"Yeah, we did!" Booker cheered as they high-fived.

KA-BOOK!

Suddenly, an explosion shook the ship. Booker, Luz, and the rest of the crew fell to the deck, losing their grip and allowing the Selkidomus to break free and swim away.

"Did we cause that?" Luz groaned, rubbing her head.

"I-I don't think so..." Booker leaned up and looked around, seeing smoke filling the ship. Squinting his eyes, he saw the silhouette of a figure dressed like a pirate stealing a large sack.

His eyes widened. That was the sack of snails!

"Is that a—a ghost pirate?" Salty said in fear as he pointed to the "ghost".

Luz saw the thief and gasped. "The money!"

"We're being robbed," Booker yelled as the thief jumped off the ship. He ran after them to the edge.

Looking down, Booker saw the thief landing inside a tub with a propeller and steering wheel. He watched as the thief started the speedboat and headed to a nearby island.

"Oh, I don't think so." Booker then jumped off the boat.

"BOOKER!" Luz screamed.

Booker clapped his hands together and used his illustration magic to make himself a pair of wings on his back. Like an angel, he flew after the thief.

Becoming fearful that he would get hurt, either by falling into the sea or by the thief, Luz summoned a boat-shaped block of ice in the water and jumped on it. To propel herself, she quickly used a fire spell and rocketed herself after them.

Salty laughed and cheered them on. "Show that specter what for you two."

Flying low and close to the boiling ocean, Booker closed in on the island. He saw the thief's boat and the people climbing out with the booty. Closing in, the Seventh Son was about to freeze this person, but got distracted when he heard someone screaming behind him. He turned around, and his eyes widened.

"Look out!" Luz was still following him, the ice having melted to two small blocks that barely supported her feet.

"Luz?" That was all Booker could say before she all of a sudden rammed into him, sending them both flying towards the ash-gray beach and knocking into the thief. Money flew up as the three crashed onto the sand.

Seemingly having knocked out the thief, Booker looked up and watched as the money fell back to earth, right towards the water. He gasped, "No, no, no, no!"

Thankfully, it drops at the shore. The sack opened, revealing that it was the money the thief stole.

Seeing the booty was safe, the boy sighed in relief.

... but sadly, it was taken away when a wave came and washed it out to sea.

Booker's eye twitched. "Of course. Why not? Why the fuck not?!"

"Booker! Are you okay?" Booker looked back to see Luz making her way over to him and the thief, looking at him in a mix of worry and relief.

"I'm fine, but Luz, why did you knock me down?!" Booker stood up and looked at her, confused and angry.

The Dominican girl looked down. "I didn't want you to get hurt...and when you just jumped off the boat, I was worried..."

Booker's glare softened as he heard her out. Yeah, he saw where her concern came from. If he saw her doing the same thing, he'd freak out. Letting out a sigh, Booker heard the sound of a groan beneath him and saw the thief, a woman with a black captain hat, a black mouth mask, and a matching jacket with a bandolier of potion bottles, dark gray pantaloons and missing lower legs, was waking up.

The Seventh Son grabbed the thief and pulled her up. "Alright, you bitch! You have any idea what you just cost—" Booker stopped when her pirate hat and mask fell off, revealing a familiar pale skin, orange earnings, mismatched eyes, and the smell of bird crap. "Wait a minute...Eda!?"

Eda smiled at Booker and Luz and started chuckling nervously. "Hey."

"What the hell, Mama Eda?!" Booker backed away as the woman sat up. "We had the damn fish in our grasp, and now the money's gone!"

"And what happened to your legs?" Luz yelled, putting at her teacher's severed legs.

Eda rolled her eyes and whistled. Her feet, in tall heeled boots, came hopping out of the tub and reattached themselves to their master. "It's called 'disguising your tracks'," she said, standing up. "As for you, mister and missy, what are you two doing here?!"

"We were earning money from the Selkidomus hunt! What are you doing here?!" Booker asked.

"I'm robbing a coven ship for loot!" Eda said before pointing to her kids. "You shouldn't have been on that ship to begin with. You could've gotten killed!"

Booker was about to argue back with her when, suddenly, the ground began to rumble. The three of them looked back at the ocean to see the boiling sea rupturing with a red glow that reminded Booker of Belos' magic. It even felt like it. He drew his sword and watched as the water formed a fist that reached up into the air. Within it, someone inside it. But how? That sea should've boiled them alive. Unless, of course, they were using magic to protect themselves.

The fist smashed down on the beach. Sand flew in all directions, and the water fell apart, revealing the Golden Guard, kneeling with a staff in his left hand and a covered birdcage in his right hand.

"That can still be arranged," he said, looking at them with steam coming from his body and the eye holes of his mask.

"You," Booker growled, prepared to fight the Golden Guard as the new Emperor's Coven head stood up. The Seventh Son didn't get a good look at this new enemy the first time he saw him at the petrification ceremony. He was taller than Booker, standing a good head above him. Gazing towards his staff, Booker saw that it was similar to Belos's, too. No palisman on it. White with a gold wing and a red jewel tip.

Oh, and for some reason, the golden-haired boy found the Gold Guard's voice to be oddly annoying. Even if he weren't his enemy, he would still find the voice annoying.

"Hello, criminals," said the Golden Guard. "What's about to happen should be relatively painless, if you just do what I say."

Booker looked at Eda and Luz, who stood on either side of him. "And why would we do that?" Luz asked.

The Golden Guard pointed out with the hand holding the cage. "Because only one of you can use real magic," he quipped. Booker could just feel the smirking under his mask.

Eda pushed Booker behind her. "You don't know that!"

"Maybe not, but I do know you're standing on a plant that eats flesh."

Booker, Luz, and Eda look down. Sure enough, they were standing on seaweed-like plants with spike-covered bulbs. Their feet began steaming, as the plant started trying to melt their shoes and nibble on their feet.

Panicking, they scrambled away and stomped on the sand to try and put out the smoke as the Golden Guard laughed at them. He then watched as Booker pointed his sword at his feet and shot a blast of water, putting out the smoke. Then, he did the same to Luz. Then to Eda.

Using his magic, he formed a short pillar from the sand and placed the covered birdcage on it. "Ah, Booker Bridges, the Seventh Son of the Seventh Son," he said. "Just want to say I'm a big fan of your work."

Booker raised an eyebrow. "You are?"

The other boy laughed as he paced around, twirling his staff in his hand. "Oh yeah! I mean the way that you took down the Blight girl. Helping to expose Holmes. Oh, and whipping Lilith's ass. That one's a personal favorite of mine, including breaking into the Emperor's castle. Just to steal some worthless artifact," he said, stopping to point at Booker. "And then the icing on your cake of crimes, breaking into the Conformatorium for the second time, breaking the petrification machine during a public trial, and laying a hand on the Emperor."

His chuckle turned dark.

"Honestly, I was going to beg the Emperor to let me bring you in. And now, with that incompetent new aunt of yours gone, her magic drained, and her mom's magic drained, there is no one left to protect you."

Booker got into another fighting stance. Eda placed her hand on his shoulder while Luz pulled out her glyphs.

Seeing this, the Golden Guard sighed. "Okay, here is how it's gonna go: the human will remain a sailor to repay all the money you lost, while you and Owl Lady will be arrested."

"Wait, hold on!" Booker stepped in front of his mom. "You're after me, okay? Let Eda and Luz go."

"Booker!" Luz gasped.

The Golden Guard considered it for a moment. "Yeah, here's the thing: Attacking one of the Emperor's ships isn't something that can be looked away from."

"Emperor's ship?" Booker looked at his mom with an exasperated expression. Of course. Why not? Why wouldn't she attack a ship belonging to her worst enemy?

"They're the only ones worth robbing," Eda said, before pointing to the Golden Guard. "Why are you guys hunting the Selkidomus? It's a peaceful creature, and you're provoking it!"

"The Emperor ordered me to slay one," said the other boy. "I'm just following orders."

"Well, I'm just gonna smack you around a bit!" Eda yelled as she ripped off her arm to use as a weapon. She yelled and charged at the Golden Guard and took a swing at him. She missed and got tripped by the guard's foot, then blasted away in the back.

"What a fall from grace," said the Golden Guard, if you can call what Eda was doing grace.

"Leave Eda alone!" Luz shouted, running from behind him, and attempted to use a fire glyph. However, the boy dodged her attack, used his staff, which gained a red glow at the tip, and sent a wave of sand at Luz.

Eda was about to pick herself back up when Luz was thrown at her. Knock her back down.

"You know, you two are really starting to disappoint me," the Golden Guard said. Booker lunged himself at the guard with his sword, ready to cut him down with a furious glare.

CLASH!

The guard blocked his attack with his staff. "Finally. About time you get in the fight," he said.

Booker backed off and was about to take another shot at attacking the Golden Guard, but stopped when his staff started to glow red.

The guard hit the end of his staff on the sand, and Booker found himself being shot high in the air by a pillar of sand that launched him. Helpless, Booker's limbs flailed around as he tried to get his balance. However, just as he was about to fall back down to the island, the Golden Guard appeared on his staff a few inches.

Booker was only able to block the staff from striking his head, but the force of the Golden Guard's magic-infused hit sent him flying back to the sands of the beach. He landed hard on the ground and groaned in pain as he tried to open his eyes.

Gasping, he saw the Golden Guard coming back down and rolling out of the way.

However, instead of landing in his original spot, the Golden Guard teleported with a dash of light and appeared in front of Booker.

The boys clashed their weapons together, and the Golden Guard glared hatefully at him from behind his mask. "You have no idea how much I wanted to do this since the petrification ceremony! I know all about you, you half-breed. You're not from this world, but we've got traditions here. An eye for an eye for hurting Emperor Belos," he said, sneering.

Booker powered up the runes in the blade and unleashed a powerful golden blast that pushed the Golden Guard away from him. "I should have done worse than cut Belos in half!"

The Seventh Son stabbed the Dragon's Bite into the ground, making a wave of ice spikes shoot out from the sand, heading towards the Golden Guard. The other boy teleported above the spikes before they could stab through him. Booker then clapped his hands and fired a beam of magic at the Golden Guard, hitting him in the chest.

The Golden Guard backflipped and landed on the ground before using the power of his staff to send a giant wave of sand at Booker.

Booker grabbed the handle of his sword and conjured a wall of fire to block the sand, biting back the panic until the sand turned into glass. Letting go of the sword for a moment, he clapped his hands and activated the power spell, increasing his strength. He kicked the glass wall towards the Golden Guard, making the guard teleport out of the way before it shattered into a million pieces.

"Got you!" The Golden Guard shouted behind Booker as he swung his staff his head.

However, Booker grabbed his sword, which was still stabbed in the ground. From the tip of the blade, a vine dug under the sand behind the Golden Guard and shot out to wrap itself around the staff, much to his foe's surprise.

Pulling out Dragon's Bite, Booker spun around and slashed the Golden Guard, but he blocked it after maneuvering the staff at an angle. However, he was still sent away from Booker. He landed on and skidded across the sand before coming to a stop.

"What I did to the Emperor was my eye for an eye payment!" Booker yelled at the Golden Guard. The two began circling each other like a duo of hungry sharks.

"The fuck did you say?!"

"Do you know about the Bridges? About what he did to my family?" Booker asked the taller boy.

"Buddy, I don't give a shit what he did to your family," said the Golden Guard, spinning his staff around. "I'm here for my reasons, and that's what matters to me."

"So does my family," Booker said.

That, however, might have been the wrong thing to say in the middle of their battle. The Golden Guard stopped and pointed with his finger. "Oh, I see now. Well then. How about..." Powering his staff, the Golden Guard lifts the sand under Luz and Eda and hurls them directly above the steaming waters. "I leave you dangling above the Boiling Sea?!"

"No!" Booker yelled.

"Hold up," said the guard as Booker's new mom and best friend looked down at the steaming water in fear. "Around these parts, just the steam is enough to cause third-degree burns."

The Golden Guard halted his actions when he felt two blades being pressed against the front and back of his neck. Confused, he turned to his right and left. The moment the other boy took his eyes off the Seventh Son, Booker used that chance to conjure two clones of himself with his sword, which acted like a Palisman staff thanks to the runes on its anti-magic blade. Not only that, but he looked down to see that a bit of him was frozen in place.

After firing the ice spell and pointing the sword at the Golden Guard, Booker said, "I would think twice about what you do next."

The two enemies stared at one another.

"...Not bad," said the Golden Guard, bringing the girls back to land and landing them between him and Booker. With them safe, Booker dispelled the clones and ice spells. "I guess I don't have to be that mean. How about this? No one will have to be a sailor or get arrested if you follow those Selkidomus tracks and slay the beast."

The Seventh Son's golden eyes followed the Golden Guard's staff, pointing to a single, straight trail leading into the mouth of a cave in the face of the tall mountain. Booker glared at him and said, "Why do you want the Selkidomous dead? As Eda said, it's an innocent creature. What do you have to gain from that?"

"Like I said, pipsqueak. Just following orders."

Booker's glare deepened. Oh, he could just feel the smirk on his face. A very smug smirk. "Don't call me pipsqueak, again!" He said with a growl.

"Then what would you prefer? Huh, Pipsqueak?"

The Seventh Son attacked him, but the Golden Guard jumped away from him and landed next to the covered birdcage. With a waving finger, he said, "Ah, ah, ah, I wouldn't do that if I were you, unless you want me to drop your bird."

Booker was about to ask him what he was talking about. "What bird are you—" Booker was cut off when the guard lifted its curtain to show what he caught. "King!"

"Weh!" The little demon said before the curtain dropped back down to cover him, putting him to sleep as he sighed. "Oh, it's dark now."

Booker started to smirk at his adorable little goober. But then he realized that he didn't really have much of a choice. If he fought, the Golden Guard could throw King into the boiling sea in an instant. So, the only option was to play his game.

"You won't hurt him?" He asked.

The guard shrugged. "Does it look like I want to?"

"Say the words," Booker said, "please."

The Golden Guard sighed. "I won't hurt him."

"Thank you," Booker said as he began walking to the cave, much to the shock of Luz and Eda.

"Booker!" Luz called out.

"Son, wait! Booker!" Eda pleaded as she got up with her student and went after Booker.

Entering the cave, the trio saw it was a disgusting and slimy lair with pillars of rotting titan flesh, barnacles, and coral growing on the walls or pillars. Other wrecked ships were inside, some inside a large hole that led to a deeper part of the cave. The mast of one of them was tall enough to be above the hole, with the yard close to the edge to be a bridge.

"Booker!" The young teenager looked to his right to see Luz snatching Dragon's Bite out of his hand. "What are you doing?" She asked, looking upset at him.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Booker asked, looking at her with a confused and serious expression. "I'm going to kill a sea monster. Now, give me back the sword."

"Who died and made you leader?" Luz argued. "We stick together, remember?"

"Yeah, well, sometimes you have to handle things on your own," he said, holding out his hand. "Now, hand over the sword."

Luz looked at Booker with a sad expression. "Booker, what's the matter with you? You can't really be willing to kill the Selkidomus." Booker looked away from her with an angry expression as he crossed his arms. The same way she would whenever he brought up the door. He didn't answer her, even as Eda caught up with them.

"Luz is right, Booker. It's a peaceful creature," Eda said. He felt Eda's hands rest on his shoulders, but Booker shrugged to get her off him.

The Seventh Son snatched the sword out of Luz's grip. "You heard what that jerk said. The only way we'll be free is if I take the beast out. So stay out of this."

Booker started walking toward the mast of the ship until Luz grabbed his hand. "No, we agreed that we would help out Eda together," she told him.

"And what is it with you wanting to help me all of a sudden? Don't you remember? Us weirdos have to—"

"What? Stick together?" Booker said as he turned around, pulling his hand away from Luz to glare at her and Eda softly. "Because of me, you lost your magic. You almost got turned to stone. You can't even afford your apple blood because you're worried about what we need to eat."

That last part made Eda instantly realize Booker had overheard what she had said to Lilith earlier.

"What's worse is that Luz hates me," he said, turning around and jumping onto the mast's yard. Turning around, he saw his best friend looking at him with a shocked expression.

"What?" Luz gasped. "Booker, I—"

"What? You're not angry with me for destroying the portal? For trapping you in this world with me? Away from Camila? You won't even look at me or talk to me whenever I mention the door!" Booker said, watching as Luz flinched and looked away in shame. Realizing how unfair she'd been to the boy she loved.

The Selkidomus roared, shaking the cave as they looked down the hole. "It's my fault all this happened," Booker said, bearing the weight of the effects he caused. "That's why I've got to do this alone. I'll make it all up to both of you. I promise."

With determination, Booker fell backward, down into the Selkidomus' den.

"BOOKER!" Luz and Eda shouted as they watched the Seventh Son fall into the pit.

The boy landed on the soft ground. At least, what the hybrid thought was the ground. It felt too rubbery. It didn't take long for him to realize that he'd just landed on the head of the Selkidomus when its eyes opened and glowed in the darkness.

Booker said, "Oh, crap."

The Selkidomus lifted her head up and tossed its head back, making Booker roll down its back before it's fluke flung him off. Sending him to land near a bush of seaweed.

The sea beast rose with glowing orange eyes and turned to Booker, who stood up and sheathed his sword on his back. The creature then puffed its chest, and its spiked belly was ready to fire.

"I don't think so," Booker said, clapping his hands. He then got down on one knee and slammed his hands on the ground. His light magic formed a bubble shield around him that blocked all of the spikes. "All right, let's do this."

Dropping the shield, Booker started running toward the Selkidomus. As he got closer, he drew his sword, his magic coursing through the blade's runes. He slashed at the ground, summoning an ice pillar that laughed him up into the air at the monster as it opened its mouth to bite him!

Booker yelled as he raised his sword. However, right as they were about to clash, Eda and Luz swung in with a plant vine and grabbed Booker in mid-air, sending all three of them flying inside the seaweed bush.

Immediately getting angry, Booker turned around to see who it was. When it turned out to be Luz and Eda, his anger turned into frustration. "Dammit, you two!" Luz tackled Booker. "What? Luz, get off me!"

He stopped struggling when he felt something wet on his chest. Looking down, the Seventh Son saw the girl he loved with her head buried in his chest, sniffling as she cried.

"Luz." Booker tried to push her off and look at her, but she didn't want to let go. Clinging to his chest as if he would disappear if she did. "Luz, please—"

"No, she's not going to let you go until you listen to me, young man," said Eda, having lost her hat. Panting a bit, she pointed at her son. "You think throwing your life away is gonna help me? Help Luz? Well, it won't. You helped me find King's crown when you barely knew me. You saved me from turning to stone, and you even got me talking to my sister again. And most of all, you're my son, Booker Clawthrone Bridges. So yeah, being a nagging mom isn't my style, but I'm becoming one now because I care about you kids, and I want to keep you in my life."

Booker couldn't reply to this as he felt his anger and worries fade away. That's when Luz pulled away from his chest and looked up at him. Her eyes dripped with tears.

"I'm sorry, Booker. I shouldn't have been so upset at you," she said, pulling him back into a hug. I just...I don't know what to do. I wasn't thinking straight. You were only trying to do the right thing. I'm sorry..."

Booker felt his lip tremble, and he, too, started tearing up. He was stopped when Eda grabbed his cheeks.

"I know the past few days have been rough for you two, but remember that no matter what trouble you get yourself into... we'll always be there to back you up. Especially me and Luz."

Booker was most definitely on the verge of crying. He looked at Luz, who was smiling at him. A few tears dripped down his face.

"Come here, you two." Eda pulled her kids into a group hug, with Booker lightly crying into his mom's shoulder. The three stayed like that for a couple of seconds until he felt a little better.

Once Eda let them go, Booker turned his attention to Luz, and the boy immediately wrapped her in a hug, too. "I'm sorry, Luz. I was being an idiot."

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "It's alright, Booker. I was, too."

After a couple of seconds, the three finally managed to calm down and try to devise a plan. "There's got to be a way out of this where no one has to get hurt," said Eda.

The three of them thought for a moment, only to be interrupted by a shrill, whale-like noise. They looked back and were met with an absolutely adorable Selkidomus baby. It resembled the mother, albeit smaller and with rounder proportions. It had a single dorsal fin, a sapling on its head, and two leaf bristles protruding from the muzzle.

Luz gasped. "¡Bebé!" She squealed, hugging the baby Selkidomus. The baby made happy noises as its sprout glowed a green light.

Well, that's certainly explained everything. However, as Booker looked at the sprout on top of the baby's head, an idea came to him. He got ready to clap his hands. However, looking at Eda, the young boy stopped and smiled. "I think it's time Eda learned her first glyph, Luz," he said, gaining the attention of the others.

Meanwhile, above them, the Golden Guard waited for the trio to get the job done while playing with King's birdcage.

He lifted the shade, waking King. "Weh?" he cried, spinning around. That was until the boy dropped the shade. King sighed in relief and went back to sleep.

The Golden Guard lifted the shade, waking up King. "Weh?" He cried, spinning around. That was until the boy dropped the shade. King sighed in relief and went back to sleep.

The Golden Guard lifted the shade, waking up King. "Weh?" He cried, spinning around. That was until the boy dropped the shade. King sighed in relief and went back to sleep.

The Golden Guard laughed with a smile under his mask. "You're actually weirdly endearing."

"No, I'm not," King mumbled as he went back to snoring.

The sudden echoing of a roar brought the Golden Guard's attention back to the cave. He looked up and saw shadows on the wall of Booker fighting the Selkidomus. The beast puffed its chest to push him, but the Seventh Son sprouted a pair of wings and dive-bombed the beast, cutting through the Selkidomus' neck and killing it as the body flailed and blood spilled everywhere.

The Golden Guard watched Booker's shadow as he grabbed the head by the seaweed whiskers and dragged it to the entrance. The moment he saw him, Golden Guard took a step back at the sight of Booker being covered in green blood. That's when he caught a whiff of the stench. The head wasn't even out of the cave yet, and he still smelt it from where he was standing.

"Ugh, no! Okay. Stop. You can leave it right there," he said as he waved a hand in front of his helmet. "Oh, that thing smells awful. Why are you touching it with your hands? Gross."

Booker pointed at him. "You're gross!"

"I'm not the one covered in its blood," the guy shot back.

"Yeah...w-well, I'm not the lazy ass who has other people do his job!" Booker said.

"Well, at least I'm taller than you."

"At least my voice isn't annoying!"

"Dude!" The Golden Guard paused for dramatic effect. He then lowered his head and said in a crushed voice, "Uncool."

Booker rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Now give me King," Booker demanded.

The Golden Guard held up the cage. "Actually, he smells pretty bad too. Take him," said Belos's new top man, tossing him King's birdcage. Booker caught him with ease. "Thank you for your service. Your blood payment is paid off. You can find your own way home."

"Wait!" Booker called out as the Golden Guard turned his back to him. "What is Belos's endgame? Why is he in my blood?"

The taller boy looked over his shoulder and looked at him through the slit of his mask. "Who knows, really? All I know is that everything he does is for the greater good. So, if your death is necessary for the survival of all the Boiling Isles, then you will die. I may not be able to get your blood now, but I will eventually. And not me, then most certainly the Emperor. So please, try to stay out of trouble."

"And if I don't?"

The guard turned around, pulled out his staff, and looked at his prey sinisterly. "Well, what will happen should be no surprise to you. The Emperor is not a merciful man....Bye-eeee!" With a silly goodbye, the Golden Guard got on his staff and blasted off in a trail of red magic

As he watched his new enemy leave, Booker gave him the bird.

Opening the cage, Booker allowed King to crawl out and onto his shoulder. "Ew, what is this stuff?" King asked, pulling his hand away as the green "blood" stretched across.

"Oh, grow up. It's just plant juice," Booker told his friend, having to suffer the worst of the smell by being covered in the juice.

The little demon looked at the "head" of the Selkidomus and saw that it and the corpse were actually made entirely out of plant magic. And it was all thanks to Eda. Sitting on her knees beside Luz, the witch drew a series of light glyphs and cast them. Providing the light that allowed Booker's plan to work.

"My first glyph. Did I do good?" Eda asked her student with excitement and joy.

Luz smiled and nodded. "Yeah. You did great."

"So? Did the golden stooge buy it?" Eda asked Booker as the Seventh Son walked in with King on his shoulder.

"He left with his annoying voice," Booker said.

With the danger gone and the coast being cleared, the real Selkidomus mother and baby came out of hiding. Leading to the baby crawling the seaweed double and crawling over to Booker. Hugging the Seventh Son for saving his and his mama's life.

"Awww, you adorable little thing," Booker said as he hugged the baby back.

"Booker, what is that thing?" King asked in slight fear, pointing to the baby. "It's hideous!"

Eda smiled as she and Luz petted the baby. "Don't worry, King. Once the mother saw we weren't a threat to her baby, she calmed down," she explained to her. The Owl Lady then turned to the Selkidomus mother. "This area is dangerous. You need to move further out into the sea."

The Selkidomus nodded in agreement. Staying would put herself and her child in more danger than before, especially now that the Golden Guard knew the location of her lair. Then, as a token of her appreciation, she regurgitated a pile of gross golden goo.

Booker and Luz looked on in horror, but Eda looked happy at the sight of it. "Hot diggity-dog!"

"What am I looking at," Booker asked.

"It gave you the treasure of the sea," Eda said, scooping up two handfuls of the gold stuff.

Luz asked, "Gold? Tuna?"

"That's chicken of the sea," Booker corrected.

"Like that whale movie?"

"That's In the Heart of the Sea."

"It's selkigris. Ah, people pay big money for it at the Night Market. Ah, feel that money, Luz." Before Luz could reply, Eda was already lathering her two handfuls of Selkigris on the Dominican girl's face.

"No, Eda! Stop!" Luz complained while also laughing.

Booker started to laugh. "I don't know why you're laughing. You're up next, son of mine!" Eda said, making her way over to her adopted son.

"Mama Eda, no!" Booker yelled as he ran away. Eda chased after him.

"Luxuriate in it. What, you don't like to luxuriate? There's a whole pile of luxury right in here," Eda said after she managed to catch Booker and carry him back over to the pile.

"DON'T YOU DARE!" She dropped Booker into the selkigris.

Popping his head out of the gold stuff, he rolled up his sleeves with a grin. "Okay, that's it!"

He was trying to get up, but Eda had other plans in mind. The Owl Lady grabbed Luz, who picked up on what Eda was going to do with her. "Eda! Please, No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!"

"In you go!" Eda threw Luz into the selkigris, but her trajectory would have her landing on top of Booker.

She closed her eyes for the impact as a clapping was heard before she felt a set of hands on her hips. After opening her eyes, Luz discovered that Booker had caught her midway and was holding her up. The Seventh Son smiled with some red on his cheeks. "Are you okay, Lu Lu?"

Luz immediately started blushing, so she pushed herself off of Booker and landed in the selkigris. "Ewww." She laughed and looked at her BFF. However, that's when she noticed something that she hadn't before. "Hey...are you using illusion magic right now?"

"No," Booker said, showing his hands as he powered down. "So enough, nothing changed. "Why?"

Luz looked at him for a moment, wondering what could have changed since she'd last seen him a week ago. That's when she realized she wasn't looking down at him. "Quick! Summon a tape measure. Eda, measure us!"

"Uh, okay..." Eda didn't know what the hubbub was about, but when Booker used his illusion magic to make a tape measure, she took it. Both kids took off their bandannas and put their backs together as the witch walked up beside them. With the two lined up, Eda first measured Luz. She then measured Booker. The results left her surprised.

"Holy shit, she's actually right," she told her adopted son. "You've got exactly two millimeters on her!"

"What?!" Booker exclaimed in shock and disbelief.

"Woah, don't you see what's happening, Booker? Your cousin-in-law was right," Luz said, referring to Booker's cousin's husband, Willy. "Using magic and adjusting to the Boiling Isles has increased your growth spurt."

Booker gasped as stars formed in his eyes. "You mean..."

King pointed at him. "You're gonna be a tall freak!"

"I'M GONNA BE A TALL FREAK!" Booker shouted with all the joy that he felt in his heart. He grabbed a surprised Luz and spun around with her in his arms until falling back into the selkigris.

"Make way!" Eda landed in the pile with them, flattening the pile.

"Take that, depression!" Booker threw his arms up as Luz and Eda laughed together. King, with selkigris splattered on him, pulled out a witch skull from the pile.

After gathering all the selkigris and using Eda's bathtub boat to get home, the four made it back to the Owl House. With the help of Luz, who used her fire glyph for boosters, they made it home in no time. The long adventure had left the family exhausted and relieved to be back home.

Eda walked inside first. "We're home—WOAH!"

Booker and Luz, who had King on her head, stopped and looked in at Eda after tripping on Hooty's long body. That's when they saw an injured Hooty covered in blisters, having been stung multiple times by some kind of bug, and Lilith on the couch with the coffee table covered in medical supplies and a bubbling cauldron.

"What the hell happened here?" Booker exclaimed.

Excited, Lilith ran over to them. "Eda, come here. I have a gift for you," she said, gesturing everyone to the caldron. "To prove that I'm trustworthy, I'm giving you a peek inside the Emperor's Castle."

Eda got up to follow Lilith to the cauldron and looked in it. Booker, Luz, and King looked in too. Everyone watched the purple potion bubble until the cauldron showed a corridor at the Emperor's Castle that split into two paths. Four distracted guards at each side are doing nothing.

A guard on the left turned to the guard on the right. "Hey.

"Yeah?" The other guard asked.

"You ever wonder why we're here?"

"Because your squad sucks, bitch."

"Fuck you, Reed."

"Suck it, Beau."

Luz looked at Lilith and asked, "What are we supposed to do with this?"

"Whatever you want. Don't you see? These troops don't know what to do with themselves. So, go crazy. Pull whatever pranks your heart desires. They're clueless.. without me," Lilith said as she lay on the side couch.

"Oh, Lily, you couldn't have been more right," Eda said. "And that Golden Guard... what a chump. Oh, I'm in a good mood. Who wants to get takeout and draw faces on Hooty?"

"YEAH!" Booker, Luz, and King shouted in glee, following Eda into the kitchen.

"Noooooo," Hooty said as he shook his head, but they couldn't hear him.

"Don't worry. I'll protect you, Hootcifer," Lilith said with a smile, calling Hooty by her new nickname for him. This made the house demon smile as their new friendship blossomed.

At long last, things are starting to feel right again.

If only they knew the truth. Things were not right. A war had begun for the fate of the Boiling Isles, and Booker was right in the center of it all. He was the key to everything. The past, the present, and the future of these lands.

The Scyping Spell's potion zooms in through the wall the guards were at, diving deeper into the castle—going deeper than any guard has ever gone in the bowels of the palace. The potion stops when it arrives at the secret chamber, where Belos is piecing together the portal door. With his cowl gone, revealing his long gray hair, he puts the final piece on the reconstructed portal, completing the golden eye.

At last, the door was complete. The first piece of his plan was within his grasp.

He felt a presence. Someone was watching him, and he knew who it was. Amused, Philip put his mask back on as he turned around, looking directly in the direction of the potion. Even though the child was Evelyn's reincarnation, why spoil the fun?

Especially when the hunt was about to begin.

"Knock, knock, hybrid."

AN: I had a lot of fun writing. It's great to be able to come back after a long hiatus and finally get back into the game, unlike with Gem of War, in which I'm still trying to find the motivation to work through the writer's block for that story.

First up, we get a glimpse of Booker training to fight with his cousins before coming back home. King, of course, hated that he was away for so long. And, of course, Booker started calling Eda Mama Eda.

Booker is more trusting of Lilith than I think people expected him to be, and that's mostly because of her actions in saving her sister and renouncing her loyalty to the Emperor. Now, this doesn't automatically mean that she is absolved of all of her past actions. But it's a start for her redemption.

The Seventh Son faces off for the first time against the Golden Guard.

Not only do they battle, but they also show the first instance of their sibling rivalry and how much they're alike. Booker is sensitive about his height, and Hunter is sensitive about his voice.

Luz's bitterness towards Booker for destroying the door was part of a planned tension between the two as Luz became even more desperate to get home. And even though it might seem like they had a tearful resolution, the bitterness will eventually pop up again as the story progresses.

The next chapter will be Escaping Expulsion, in which we'll see Amity return and the further development of the trio's relationship.

Until then, I'll see you all next time, and farewell.