Mason gave a grateful nod in return; "Thank you, Miss Luz. But it doesn't end there; Ma was petrified, but that wasn't enough for Belos. He knew Ma had told Pa the truth and so he wanted our entire family wiped out! Even as a youngster, I was good with Earth Magic and Construction Magic, while Pa was a real genius with Abominations, so the two of us whipped up a couple of realistic looking abomination replicas of ourselves. When the Emperor's Coven attacked our home, Pa set off a bomb while we fled. The Emperor's Coven found what they thought were our blackened bones and declared us dead, while Pa took me to the Flotilla Ma's parents came from. I lived there with him for 15 years, neither me or Pa ever really forgiving ourselves for running away and leaving Ma behind as a statue. When Pa was on his deathbed, he finally told me the truth of what had happened."
The man's face darkened considerably and for the first time since meeting him, Lilith saw true hatred in his expression; "I'd always hated Belos for taking Ma from me, and causing Pa's premature death from grief… but I'd always thought Ma had been framed by someone else and he'd been tricked too. But hearing that it was all a lie and set up by him to cover his own cowardly hide? I couldn't take it. For the next five years, I prepared myself to kill that man and free my Ma. I searched the world for a cure for Petrification, but found not a single clue, and eventually decided to just come to the Boiling Isles. So I disguised myself with a Concealment Stone, joined the Construction Coven, and rose through the ranks until I became the new Head Witch. I've devoted my life to finding a cure that may not have even existed, and to killing a man that seemed unstoppable."
Seeing the intensity in Mason's eyes made Luz feel both awe and sorrow for him. He was amazingly devoted to his Mother, yet he was motivated as much by hatred of Belos as he was love for her. Luz hated to think about it, but she'd come very close to being just like him… if she'd failed to save Eda that day, she likely would have fled too, and devoted her life to becoming strong enough to come back and eviscerate the monstrous angel that took her Mom from her.
"Well, I don't know if I can help with killing Belos. I hate him, but killing someone feels… wrong to me." Luz confessed. "Besides, I promised my Mami I wouldn't go near him unless I had no choice. But I can at least cure your Ma!"
Mason's expression lightened considerably; "And that alone is enough to convince me that maybe you really are an agent of the Titan. You are my only hope; restore my Ma for me, and I'll pledge myself to your service." he said, getting down on one knee and bowing his head; "Please… she's the only family I have left in this world. I just want her free from that horrible stone!"
Luz grabbed the man's hands and pulled him back to his feet; "Don't kneel to me. I'm not your master or a God or anything like that. I'm just Luz, and I want to help. You don't need to pledge yourself to me; I just want you and your Ma to be happy!"
The disguised Merrow, currently in his full witch-like form, looked at her with surprise before saying; "If you are an angel… then I don't think it's possible for Belos to be one. There's no chance the two of you are cut from the same stone!"
"I'm not so sure. Believe me, we Angels are far from perfect. But I think we've talked enough; I'm ready to begin." Luz said, eyes burning with golden flames of determination; "This is only the third time I've used this, but if I can de-petrify someone this big, I should be able to de-petrify anyone!"
Mason nodded and moved out of Luz's way, opting to stand beside Matt, Lilith, and Hooty. Luz gently took Pebbles from her hood and handed him to Mason so he wouldn't be in the way, then approached the petrified Luna. She looked up at the woman's stone visage, beautiful and fierce even in the face of what she'd likely thought was her demise, and summoned forth her magic. Luz let her six wings flair out behind her and switched her clothing to her Holy Raiment, causing an aura of golden magic to surround her. She then flew in a circle around Luna's statue, drawing the largest spell circle she could around the woman. Just like with the Butterfly from earlier, the spell circle sank into the stone and began to slowly transmute it from stone to crystal.
It was a slow process due to the size, and the amount of magic Luz had to pump out was staggering, but Mason was completely enraptured by it.
"Yes! Yes, it's working!" he gasped, his voice nearly a whisper as he feared speaking louder and distracting Luz.
"You know, I worked with you as a fellow Coven Head for at least five years and I think I've seen you make more expressions and say more words in the last ten minutes then in the previous five years combined!" Lilith commented.
Mason didn't look at her as he answered; "Never had much to say. I'm not a man who likes to waste words. I say what is necessary and keep professional… but even I can't stay stone-faced here! I'm about to get my Ma back!"
"A family reunion! It's gonna be so beautiful! Hoot!" Hooty cried, already beginning to blubber noisily.
"There there Hootsifer. Don't cry; we don't want to ruin their moment!" Lilith smiled, crouching to pat Hooty on the head. The odd House Demon responded by wrapping himself around her and burying his face in her shoulder so his beak was muffled by her back but his eyes could still peek over and watch.
Luz was sweating by the time the spell had fully turned Luna from stone to crystal, but then a massive crack appeared straight down the middle of the giant woman, and pieces of her crystal shell began to fall away until it suddenly all shattered as Luna flexed and roared, breaking free once and for all. Luz shielded herself from the crystal shrapnel (which was thankfully small) with her wings, while Hooty shielded Lilith and Mason tanked it without issue, pulling Matt and Pebbles behind him for safety.
Luna's roar was loud and bestial, shaking the room. It also showed off her razor sharp teeth, which were akin to a shark's. Now free, she almost immediately collapsed forward onto her hands and knees and began to pant hard, catching her breath and gathering her wits after decades encased in stone. As she was doing so, Luz got a good look at her flesh and blood form; naturally she looked mostly the same, but now Luz could actually see her colouration. Luna's scales were larger and sea foam green on her back, the sides of her face, and her limbs and tail, while her belly, chest, throat, face, and the underside of her tail were all a pale shade of yellow. Her eyes were teal like her son's, and her hair was long, thick, and coloured a very dark navy blue. The membranes of her fins were the same yellow as her underbelly, and the dress she wore was sky blue with a darker blue robe over the top.
"W-Where am I…!? What is happening!? Is this another nightmare?" Luna asked in a booming, yet shaky voice. The volume was staggering, yet she sounded weak and vulnerable.
Mason opened his mouth to speak, but as tears filled his eyes and his heart filled with joy at the revival of his mother, the words got caught in his throat. Instead Luz was the one to speak to her first.
"Miss Miphari, please try to relax and stay calm. You've been petrified for a very long time and only just been released." she said soothingly.
Luna looked around frantically; "Who said that!? My eyes are still foggy… speak! Or are you another delusion!?"
Luz frowned and peered up at Luna's eyes; they were glazed over and likely weak from disuse. She spoke up again, keeping her voice calm and gentle, but loud enough for her to be heard; "I'm not a delusion and this isn't a nightmare. You're awake and alive in the Demon Realm. We're in an underwater grotto inside the Metatarsal Reef right now"
The Merrow woman looked around and eventually seemed to zero in on Luz's location, squinting at her. She could only see her as blobs of white, gold, and tan, but she could at least hear her clearly. "Prove you're not a fake! That you're not an apparition of my own mind!" Luna demanded, her fierceness cracking a little to show the vulnerability inside.
"Alright. I'm going to touch you, okay? If I wasn't real, I wouldn't be able to do that." Luz said. She then cautiously floated up to Luna's face and laid a hand on her cheek. Luna flinched hard, almost knocking Luz away, but she calmed down and instead pressed her face into the contact.
"T-This is real? I-I'm not stone any more?" Luna asked shakily, leaning back and looking down at her hands.
"Nope! Luz fixed you right up, Hoot!" Hooty yelled.
Luna startled again and looked around for the source of the voice; "What was that!?"
"A friend of mine." Luz said quickly; "I'm here with four others. You'll be able to see them once your eyes readjust. Is there anything I can do to help you with that?"
"She needs water. That'll freshen up a Merrow." Lilith instructed, seeing as Mason was still too choked up to talk and didn't want to startle his Ma by running up and hugging her like he dearly wished he could.
Luz nodded and used the ice glyph to generate a large amount of cool water, which she shaped into a ball and floated in front of Luna's face, then gently pressed it against her. Instantly, Luna grabbed the water with her hands and used her own water magic to control it and press it into her skin, sighing with relief (which sounded like a gurgle thanks to her mouth being in the water). Manipulating the water to keep its shape, Luna rubbed it all over herself as if it were a sponge and she was bathing herself (which wasn't far from the truth). The cool liquid rehydrated her quickly and her scales took on a glossy sheen, while her eyes became sharp and focused. Once she was done, she drank the water down and sighed contently.
"My mind still feels distant… but my body feels so much better! You have my thanks, Miss-"
Luna suddenly froze as she looked at Luz with clear eyes. Her pupils narrowed to slits as they focused on Luz's wings.
Mason and Lilith both paled as they saw this, knowing that a Merrow's pupils acted like that when they were becoming hostile, but Luz was more concerned with where those pupils are focused.
"Oh right, my wings. This might be kind of a shock to you, but I'm actually a-"
"Monster!" Luna snarled, raising a massive hand to try and swat Luz to the ground and crush her. Luz hadn't expected the sudden aggression and wasn't ready to defend herself, but Lilith was and immediately cast a spell to create a lasso of magic that she used to grab Luz and pull her out of the way before she could be hit.
Lilith pulled Luz right into her arms, then once she was sure her niece was safe, she pushed the girl behind her and pointed her staff at Luna.
"What are you doing!? Luz here just freed you from petrification and you immediately try to hurt her!?"
Luna snarled and her voice boomed out so loudly that it actually hurt their ears; "Do not think you can fool me! I saw those wings! She's the same kind of abomination as Belos! Any moment now, the rot that fills her will burst out and she will take your body for her own! That is why you freed me from stone, isn't it!? You wish to steal my body! I saw your fellow monster do the same to a Dragon when we went in search of Galdorstones!"
Luz blinked in surprise; the rot Luna was talking about had to be the corruption that had infected Belos. So exposing his wings and his rotten body was what caused him to have Luna petrified? But what was this about stealing bodies!? She'd never heard of an angel being able to possess people!
"Ma, please stop! Luz isn't like Belos! She's a rebel fighting against him! She freed you as a favour to me!" Mason implored.
Luna flinched and looked at the man. Her eyes softened slightly as something about the short, muscular, and bearded Witch pulled at her heart strings. Calling her Ma had caught her off guard, but she tricked herself into believing she'd just caught him saying -Na as the end of her name. There was no way the man before her could be her little boy!
Still, he gave her pause and so she asked; "Who are you!? What is this about rebels!?"
Mason opened his mouth to answer, but Hooty, bless his heart, decided to try and help by answering first… in typical Hooty fashion.
"Hoot hoot! You should recognise him! He's super important! When your son Talis went away, Mason is what came back! Hoot!"
The Giant Merrow froze and turned to glare at Hooty, then slowly back at Mason. Her pupils were still slits, making the man gulp, but then she turned her glare back onto Luz, who was peeking out from behind Lilith.
"Is this true, Angel!?" Luna demanded, making the room rumble from the volume alone.
Luz squeaked in fear at the rumbling and said; "Yes! But it's not how it soun-"
Luna let out a massive, blood-curdling scream of rage and slammed her fists into the ground, one aimed at Luz and Lilith, and the other at Mason, with Pebbles still on his shoulder and Matt still behind him. Luz was able to grab Lilith and fly out of the way in time, while Matt grabbed a stunned Mason and yanked him to safety, then conjured a pillar of rock to strike Luna's hand and force her to pull it back.
"MURDERER!" Luna bellowed, tears in her eyes as she glared at Mason; "You killed my son!"
Mason and the others gaped at her; in her post-petrification state, her mind was somewhat addled, so she'd misinterpreted Hooty's poor explanation! Instead of Talis going away and becoming Mason when he came back, she now believed Mason had gone after Talis and killed him!
She swiped her claws at Mason, and the poor man was still so stunned by his mother trying to kill him that he could only stare numbly at her. Thankfully Matt was on the ball and conjured another pillar of rock to block her swipe, though this time Luna put more strength into the attack, shattering the rock pillar easily. The pillar still took some of the momentum out of her strike though, so when it hit Mason and Matt, the two were able to move just enough to be caught by her fingers and not her claws, so the blow sent them slamming into a wall instead of being cleaved in two.
The impact was still severe though, and both of them ended up with broken bones from the strike, and Pebbles was sent flying.
"Guys! Don't worry, I'll save you!" Luz cried, conjuring a vine to catch Pebbles and pull him into her hand, then darting towards the injured men so she could begin healing them with her Crystal Lotus healing spell.
"I'll crush you all!" Luna screamed, using the limited space in the room to spin around and swipe her tail at them. Lilith grabbed Hooty and took to the air to avoid it, while Luz conjured a crystal barrier around her and the men to protect them as she continued her healing. Luna saw this and began snarling like a beast, pounding and stomping on the barrier, trying with all her might to shatter it and get and what she assumed to be a Monstrous Angel and her Son's Murderer. Thankfully, as large and as strong as Luna was, she was nothing compared to the Ash Moth and even that monster had taken two strikes to break Luz's crystal barrier, so Luna was barely even able to crack it, and the cracks would close before the next blow came. Still, Luna rampaged and screamed her hatred at them, completely frenzied by her misunderstanding and the years she'd spent in stone.
Eventually she realised that breaking the barrier wasn't going to be possible with her body, so she switched to magic. She drew three spell circles of teal magic; one with each hand and a third with her tail, which conjured massive balls of water, which she then condensed down into a tiny size, before shooting the compressed water out as a high pressure jet that cut through portions of the crystal chamber as they zeroed in on their target. She focused all three on the same spot in Luz's barrier and actually began to pierce through it, to the point that Luz actually had to dodge at the last minute to avoid having her head chopped off by the sudden attack. She still ended up with a minor cut to the side of her neck though, but healed it instantly since she was already working on fixing up Mason and Matt.
"Tia Lily! A little help!" Luz cried.
"I'm on it!" Lilith yelled back, having been using small spells to carve glyph combos into the walls of the chamber so she could preserve her magic. She'd carved King's Monster Combos, and once she was done, she shot a weak bolt of lightning at Luna's hands, causing her to yelp and stop her spell. The loss of concentration caused the compression of her water orbs to be undone, and they exploded in her face, further stunning the giant woman. With Luna momentarily distracted, Lilith fired tiny bolts of magic at each of her glyph combos, activating them and spawning large Titan-like arms, each the size of Luna's own arms. They reached out and grabbed Luna's ankles, tail, wrists, shoulders, and the back of her head, then forced her into a kneeling position with her head bowed.
"Got her! Finish healing those two so we can all talk to her!" Lilith said.
"Good job Tia Lily! I'm almost done!" Luz shot back, returning to healing. Mason had shattered most of his ribs and spine when he'd hit the wall, as he'd used his own body to shield Matt (who had only broken two ribs and his left arm). The gruff man was stoic as he was healed, and Matt tried to be cool and stoic too, but Luz could see he was on the verge of tears; broken bones were no joke!
"It's okay! I'll fix it, Hoot!" Hooty declared, jumping onto the bound Luna's head from Lilith's staff and wrapping all around her to help restrain her. He actually did the smart thing and wrapped around her fingers too, so she couldn't draw spell circles even with her arms restrained, but that was unfortunately where his cleverness ran out.
"Hoot! It's okay Big Merrow Lady! Mason is a good guy! He's the one who took care of your husband too, Hoot!" Hooty said cheerfully.
"M-My Husband? Where is he!? What happened to my Solus!?" Luna cried.
Hooty's face fell; "Aw geez, well he's kinda not here any more. But don't worry! Mason was there at the end!"
Already seeing where this was going, Luz screamed out; "By the Seraphim, stop talking Hooty!"
"What?" Hooty said, confused; "I thought she'd want to know that Mason was there when her husband died! Hoot!"
Luna's eyes filled with tears, and they began to cascade down her face and hit the ground with big splashes. She turned her eyes on Mason, glaring at him hatefully through the crystal barrier; "It wasn't enough for you to kill my Talis, but now you killed my Solus too!?"
Hooty, finally grasping that he'd made a mistake, gulped; "Oh… oops. That's not what I meant, I-"
Lilith quickly covered his beak before he could put his foot in it again; "Hootsifer, I love you, but I think it'd be best if you were quiet for now."
"Sorry Lulu…" the poor House Demon said sadly; he hadn't meant to make everything worse!
Thankfully Luna was still restrained by both the monster hands and Hooty himself… at least mostly. Her tail could just barely move enough to draw a spell circle, creating a huge ball of water and once again compressing it into a razor sharp jet of water that she blasted at Luz's barrier.
It wasn't as strong as three jets combined, so it didn't pierce right through, but it was strong enough to begin carving through. Thankfully Luz had just finished healing Mason's injuries and pulled the man to his feet right before the jet finally got through. Matt tried to help block it by conjuring a layer of rock on the inside of the barrier, directly where the jet was cutting through, but his stone wasn't hard enough to stop the jet, only buy them a few seconds.
Luz dropped the barrier and the three of them split up, with Luz once again handing Pebbles off to Mason to keep him safe as she flew up to Luna.
"Listen to me! Mason didn't kill Talis or your husband! Mason IS Talis!" Luz screamed.
"LIAR!" Luna screamed right back, her voice so loud that the vibrations it sent through the air actually disoriented Luz and made her struggle to keep flying.
"I know the face of my son! He's a little boy, and a Merrow like me! Not this bizarre, hairy Witch!" Luna roared, her eyes beginning to flash with teal magic as her fury and confusion brought her to the verge of a Bile Overload.
Mason grimaced; his mother had only ever seen him on dry land once, and he'd been a young boy at the time, with a full head of blond hair like his father, pale skin from lack of sunlight, and obviously no beard or muscles to speak of. Now he had lost his hair, grown a long beard that had turned grey with age and stress, and built a lot of muscles from his Construction work, as well as sun-kissed skin from long hours under the baking sun. Combine his changed appearance with the fact his Ma had no idea how much time had passed and the mental damage done to her by the petrification, and it was no surprise the woman didn't believe he was her son.
It hurt him deeply, but Mason knew it wasn't her fault so he found the will to speak up; "Ma! I know I've changed, but it really is me! I am Talis Miphari! That's the name you gave me when I was born 40 years ago!"
"40 years…!? No, no my baby is only 10! It couldn't be that long! You're lying! You're just a witch!" Luna yelled, the flashing of her eyes becoming faster.
"I'm not lying, Ma. Luz, hit me with some water." Mason ordered.
Luz nodded and used the ice glyph to manipulate the water from Luna's spell, saving herself from wasting magic to generate more. She created a large enough ball of water that Mason could leap straight into it, taking on his full Merrow form as Luz then lifted the ball so it was directly in front of Luna's face.
"You see, Ma? I'm Talis! Look at me!" the Merrow Man implored. He discarded his boots and cape so that his webbed feet could be clearly seen along with his scaled arms and webbed fingers, and he'd allowed his tail to grow out and rip a hole through the back of his britches.
Luna stared at the man, struck silent by his appearance. So he really was a Merrow, and one that became a Witch on dry land… just like her Talis! M-maybe he really was her son!
However, as these thoughts entered her mind, so too did doubts. Why had that creepy demon said such cruel things to her if this was true? Had he been telling her the truth while these others were lying!? Could this all be an illusion!? Her heart beat harder and harder, until she saw something that nearly made it stop; Mason's Construction Coven Sigil on the inside of his wrist, and the matching sigil on the hammer at his waist. That hammer was one Luna recognised, as it was a status symbol for the Head of the Construction Coven, who had once been a colleague of hers.
Seeing this made Luna roar in rage; "LIES! IT'S ALL LIES! MY SON WOULD NEVER JOIN BELOS AND HIS COVENS! DECEIVER! MURDERER! I'LL KILL YOU ALL!"
The volume of her screamed words once again had the room rumbling, and Luz, Lilith, and Matt all had to cover their ears. Mason was thankfully spared due to the water bubble he was in, but as Luz struggled to deal with the volume, she lost control of it and it splattered to the ground along with Mason.
"No! Ma, listen! I joined the coven to avenge you!" Mason yelled.
It was too late though; Luna's eyes were now glowing a solid teal and her magic was running rampant from a Bile Overload. With the wrathful roar of a woman who thought she'd lost her son and husband, Luna ripped her head and one of her arms free from the grasp of Lilith's monster hands, allowing her to lean over enough to sink her shark-like teeth into the hand grabbing her other arm. The hand held on tight as it felt no pain, but Luna tore it open with her jaws, revealing that the inside of the conjured arms was just glowing blue magic that dissipated as the hand disappeared. With both hands free, Luna drew a massive spell circle that created a powerful acid that rained down on everyone in the chamber and began to melt the crystal. Lilith shielded herself with a barrier, while Hooty yelped and hissed as he urgently tried to unravel himself from Luna so he could shrink back into his bird house. Luz protected herself, Matt, and Mason with another crystal barrier, but then Luna gathered the conjured acid into a tightly compressed orb and shot it at her just like she had with the water.
Knowing her barrier wouldn't hold up to that, Luz pulled a drawn Wind Glyph out from her pocket and slammed it on the floor as she lowered her own barrier. The resultant blast of wind knocked Matt and Mason away from her to protect them. Luz then dodged the acid jet, but some of her feathers on her right wings were clipped and ended up burned by the acid, making Luz yelp. Not only that, but since Pebbles and Mason hadn't been prepared for the sudden wind, neither had been holding onto the other tightly enough, so Pebbles ended up being blasted off in a different direction.
He landed hard, cracking his little body once again and making him squeak in pain and begin to tear up. Seeing Luz and wanting the comfort of a friend, Pebbles began scurrying towards her as quickly as his little arms could carry him, but this meant he was almost struck by the acid.
"No! Pebbles!" Matt cried, rushing forward. He cast a quick Construction Spell to take some of the rocks he'd conjured earlier and bind them to himself as rudimentary armour, allowing him to dive into the acid jet and survive long enough to grab Pebbles before he could be melted. He scooped Pebbles up and ran for safety, immediately shedding his melting armour. Matt was a bit too slow though, and patches of his right arm and leg now sported acid burns as the acid had eaten through his stone armour and his clothes.
Pebbles squeaked in concern as Matt bit his lip hard to keep in his scream of pain. The feeling was agonising and the boy was again fighting back tears, but he forced a smile on his face as he gave Pebbles a thumbs up; "Don't worry Pebbles! I'll protect you!"
The little Palisman crawled over Matt's acid burns, using his cool, slimy body to soothe the burns a little. There was still a miniscule amount of residual acid that burned Pebbles a tiny bit, but he held in his own squeak of pain to help his saviour feel better.
While this was happening, Luz healed her damaged feathers and yelled to Mason and Lilith; "We can't reason with her like this! If you two can hold her down, I can try a Bardic Song to calm her down!"
"Easier said than done!" Lilith cried as she fired a barrage of weak magic bolts at Luna in order to keep the Merrow's focus on her and away from Luz and Mason. Luna responded by smashing her hand against the crystal ground and scooping up some broken shards of crystallised Titan Blood, which she then threw at Lilith like a shotgun spread of razor sharp crystals. Most of them were blocked by her barrier, but the sheer number of shards overpowered her and broke the barrier, causing the final few to clip Lilith and force her to whip out one of King's Healing Glyph Combos to repair the cuts they inflicted on her.
Seeing his mother going for another handful of crystals now that Lilith's barrier was down, Mason cast a Construction Spell on himself, causing his muscles to swell until he was a six foot tall hulking version of himself, with scales that had hardened to a stony texture. He then ran at his mother, causing her to slash her claws down at him. He slid between her fingers and behind to her tail, which he yanked on hard to make her fall backward onto her rear. Now that she was low enough, Mason grabbed her waist and used his enhanced strength to pull her up into a Suplex.
"I'm sorry Ma!" he cried as he arched his back and slammed her into the wall behind them. Thankfully Luna was sturdy enough that the impact didn't really damage her, but it did stun her for a moment, giving Mason a window to use Construction Magic on the walls and floor to create giant manacles to hold his mother down before she could attack again.
The instant Luna was restrained, she began to growl and thrash like a wild beast, trying to break free with all her might. Her tail was still free, but since she'd been forced onto her back it was partially trapped beneath her own body, and she couldn't quite wriggle it free. Mason turned to Luz and yelled; "Sing your song and calm her down!"
Luz nodded and focused her magic as she began to sing the Song of Soothing, opting to use her voice instead of her Ocarina since her vocal Bardic Magic was stronger. The song began to take effect and Luna felt her heartbeat slowing down and her temper cooling off. However this wasn't what she wanted! As far as she was concerned, this Angel was another monster like Belos, and the other Merrow was a foul murderer who took her son and husband from her! She couldn't just let them enchant her into a sedated state! The Angel would probably steal her body as soon as the song was finished! These thoughts, and the fact the song took longer to work on such a large person, ensured Luna's rage and Bile Overload never fully abated, leaving her to continue struggling. She wanted to destroy all of these creatures, and as she looked up at the ceiling, she saw exactly how she'd do it!
Her large body would never have fit into the room via the one small passageway that led to the rest of the grotto, so Mason had made a hole in the ceiling large enough to fit her through, then covered it with a magical barrier to keep the water out, so she could leave again when she was revived. Luna didn't know any of this of course, but she did see the massive hole through which she could escape… and the barrier that kept several tons of boiling hot seawater from flooding the chamber.
Wiggling her tail just enough so that she could point it at her own throat, Luna cast a spell on herself that caused her throat to fill with water, then drew a spell circle in front of her mouth. This spell circle used Potions Magic to transmute the water into acid as Luna spat at the ceiling with all her strength. The acid couldn't hurt the purely magical barrier, but it could melt the crystal ceiling around it, causing it to spring a leak. A small trickle of sea water began to drip down from the ceiling… then another trickle. Then another and another… then a small stream of it, followed by the sound of cracking as the crystal walls and ceiling began to break.
In an instant, everyone in the room knew what was about to happen and had to act fast, having only a split second to act. Matt stuffed Pebbles inside his tunic then coated himself completely in stone that would keep out the boiling water. Hooty opened his beak wide and swallowed Lilith and Corvanc, planning to protect her with his own body. Mason was a Merrow, so was immune to the Boiling Sea and able to swim in all but its hottest depths without fear. Lastly Luz, seeing everyone else was already protecting themselves, threw up a barrier around herself, then tried to throw up a second around Matt, but before the second barrier could be completed, the ceiling shattered completely and a torrent of boiling seawater flooded in to the room.
The sudden deluge of water rushing into the room actually caused the entire thing to shatter thanks to the damage already done to it during the fight, causing everyone inside to be swept out into the open ocean. Hooty began to thrash due to the boiling water (to which he was resistant but not immune), but thanks to his natural buoyancy and Lilith flying up while inside him, he rapidly reached the surface and emerged with only some minor burns. Meanwhile, Matt sank like a rock due to his stone armour, causing Luz to use her barrier to keep herself safe in the Boiling Sea as she dove down after him, knowing he couldn't escape on his own. She tried to cast ice magic through the barrier to cool the sea but as they were so close to the seafloor, the water was far hotter, so Luz was unable to repeat what she'd done on Grom Night and her date with Amity; the ice she created melting far too quickly to be effective.
Mason and Luna (the latter of whom was freed by the destruction of the room) could swim around just fine, though both were disoriented by the sudden flood. Mason growled to himself, knowing that most of his grotto would have been flooded too, while Luna instead growled at the sight of Luz, having survived the flood thanks to her barrier. Recovering fast, Luna swam at the Angel with lightning speed, then once she was about to reach her, she did a loop in the water to build up momentum and slammed Luz, barrier and all, with the heel of her foot. The force of the blow smashed Luz into the seabed, leaving a crater and dazing the girl. Frustrated that she hadn't cracked the barrier, and seeing Mason swimming towards her at high speed, Luna decided to leave Luz for later while ensuring she didn't escape.
Drawing a yellow spell circle with her tail and a teal spell circle with her hands, Luna began transmuting some of the seawater into a golden liquid, which she manipulated into the shapes of chains that wrapped around Luz's barrier. Once the chains were formed, Luna cast another spell to transmute them into a solid form and fuse the sand beneath the barrier into a massive hunk of rock, which the chains were fused into, before transmuting it into a metallic material of some kind. Luz, recovering from being stunned, tried to move and escape, but her barrier wouldn't budge thanks to the chains and the weight of the rock she'd been chained too. Luna had effectively turned Luz's greatest defence into a prison, leaving Luz trapped at the bottom of the sea with no escape.
Mason reached them a moment later (having taken longer since he was far smaller than his mother) and immediately gunned it for the trapped Angel, only for Luna to whip her tail at him and slap him into the seafloor as well, kicking up a huge cloud of sand.
"I will destroy all of you monsters!" Luna cried, her voice warbling through the water.
Her son shot out from the cloud of sand and swam directly into her face. He struck her hard (though it did very little damage due to the size difference), and kicked off from her face to begin swimming away, causing Luna to snarl furiously and swim after him. She was technically slower, but could cover more ground due to her size, so her attempts to slash and swat at Mason with her claws looked like a person trying to catch a fly.
Luz watched nervously, until she heard a pounding on her barrier behind her. She turned and gasped as she saw Mason there, confusing her.
"Mason!? But how!? She cried.
"That other one's a golem. I made it from sand after Ma smacked me down and hid in the sand cloud while it attacked and distracted her. Can you move? I don't think I can stop her without your help."
Luz shook her head; "I can't. Your Ma chained me down to this massive rock she made and now I can't move my barrier! I could drop it and swim out through the gaps in the chains, but I'll be boiled alive and it's too hot at this depth for me to cool the water with ice magic! Can you break the rock these chains are bound to?"
Mason swam down and touched the rock, then grimaced: "It's not a regular stone. Ma transmuted this stuff and the chains with a Potions Spell. I can't break it or undo the transmutation."
That made Luz scowl; while most people viewed Potions Magic as brewing literal potions by mixing ingredients (which was admittedly the primary focus of the art), the school of magic was actually a kind of mystical Chemistry and Alchemy. Anyone can mix ingredients together, but the spells of Potions Magic were about manipulating and altering things on a chemical level, largely through transmutation or some form of molecular alteration. Luna had transmuted water into some other unknown substance to create the chains, while she'd done the same to the sand beneath Luz's barrier to create the heavy rock, and since she'd seen that Mason was Head of the Construction Coven, she'd likely made the materials resistant to the powers of a Construction Witch.
"The only way to free you is to get you to the surface. I can probably do it, but Ma will realise the ruse with my golem as soon as I try, which means things will get rough. Are you ready?" Mason asked.
Luz was about to agree, but then she remembered Matt and looked over to the boy. Thanks to his stone armour, Matt looked like he'd been petrified, but was insulated from the Boiling Sea… mostly. Unfortunately, the water was still hot enough that the heat began penetrating the stone, and there was no way Matt could breathe like that.
"Save Matt first! I'm trapped, but at least I'm not gonna suffocate or burn like this! Matt needs help more than I do!"
Mason nodded to Luz then swam as quickly as he could over to Matt, and used his enhanced muscles to pick the statue boy up and begin swimming for the surface at high speed, soon surfacing and seeing Lilith and Hooty.
Since the surface of the sea wasn't hot enough to instantly melt ice, Lilith had been able to make a decently sized iceberg for her to sit on after she and Hooty had surfaced. Now she was cradling Hooty in her arms and applying multiple Healing Glyph Combos to the burns he'd suffered from both the acid attacks and the Boiling Sea. Poor Hooty was blubbering over the trouble he'd caused, apologising over and over while Lilith soothed and comforted him. Mason was less inclined to comfort him since Hooty's foolish attempts to help had caused this whole misunderstanding, but the odd House Demon was so distraught that he still felt kind of bad for him.
Shoving that thought aside, Mason leapt out of the water with Matt in his arms and landed on the iceberg, which Lilith immediately expanded with a pair of ice glyphs to keep it floating with the extra weight.
"Mason! Where is Luz!?" Lilith cried.
"Trapped under the water. She's safe for now though." Mason said, setting Matt's stone clad form down and casting a Construction Spell to disintegrate the armour, freeing the boy.
Matt immediately fell to his knees with gasp, taking several deep breathes. "Oh my Titan! I almost suffocated myself! Oh no, Pebbles!" he gasped, nearly tearing open his tunic in search of the little Palisman. Lilith and Mason gaped at the boy; his skin had turned red and suffered some minor burns from the stone heating up under the water, enough that every movement should be painful, yet he wasn't even acknowledging it and was instead frantically looking for Pebbles.
He soon found the little Palisman nestled in one of his armpits, quivering in fear but thankfully unburned, having been shielded from the heat by Matt's body.
"Pebbles! Oh thank the Titan! You're okay!" Matt cried with relief.
Pebbles gave a frightened squeak, then took in Matt's appearance and began frantically squeaking. This seemed to make Matt finally realise his condition, causing him to hiss in pain.
"Oh man, this feels worse than when I got sunburned visiting Palm Stings! Note to self, create rock with lower heat conductivity next time!" Matt muttered to himself as he looked around. He saw Hooty, Lilith, and Mason, but scowled when he didn't see Luz.
"Luz!? Where is she!? Don't tell me she's still under the water!?" Matt cried.
Mason nodded; "She is, but she's safe. I'll get her out, just be patient. In the meantime, stay safe and let Lilith heal you."
"But I can help! I'm tied for the top in my class in the construction track!" Matt argued.
"And you're injured and can't swim in the Boiling Sea." Lilith pointed out, carefully grabbing him by his clothes. Matt tried to pull free, so she very gently poked his reddened skin, making him yelp and stop his struggling. "Let me heal you; you can't help Luz or calm down Mrs Miphari if you're injured."
The boy winced and grumbled, but really couldn't argue. If a light poke was enough to have him wincing in pain, an actual blow would have him howling. With a displeased scowl, the boy knelt down and accepted the healing, though he tried to give Pebbles to Lilith first.
"Can you heal him too?" he asked, noting the poor little guy still had a crack or two from his earlier impact.
Lilith shook her head sadly as she began to apply her final few Healing Glyph Combos to Matt's skin, healing the burns and curing the redness. Matt frowned and gently cradled Pebbles as he was healed, while Mason dove back into the water.
"I'll go and try to raise Miss Luz out of the water. Once she's free, we can retry her plan to calm Ma with a Bardic Song." Mason said, receiving nods of agreement from the others before she dived down beneath the waves. Under the water, he used a Construction Spell to line the underside of Lilith's iceberg with porous stone, ensuring it wouldn't melt or sink any time soon, then swam deep down to the sea floor where Luz was imprisoned. He looked over to the distance as he swam and saw his Ma chasing after the golem he'd made. The golem was avoiding her primarily by swimming around the bones of the Metatarsal reef, using them to kite the giant Merrow, but it wouldn't last much longer; Mason wasn't the best at crafting golems and so the magic he'd infused into it would only last a few minutes, and the golem could only follow a few commands, namely flee their opponent while maintaining their attention.
Aware that he was running out of time, Mason rushed to Luz's barrier and greeted her with a nod of reassurance, then cast a Construction Spell to raise up a pillar of earth beneath her and the rock his Ma had chained her to. The pillar rose quickly, and Mason rose with it, keeping his eye firmly on his Ma. Unfortunately for him, Luna noticed the glowing bronze aura that surrounded the growing pillar and immediately realised that the Mason she was chasing was a fake. Her glowing teal eyes narrowed and she ignored the golem in favour of swimming directly at the real Mason.
"I WON'T LET YOU ESCAPE AFTER WHAT YOU'VE DONE!" she bellowed, casting a spell to transmute several spears out of the water and launch them at Mason. He responded by coating his fists in hard stone and punching them away to protect the pillar of earth, then swam at his Ma. She span at the last minute and smacked him with her tail, but he held onto it at the last moment and avoided being sent flying. However his concentration was broken, causing his spell to stop and the pillar to cease its rise, leaving Luz stranded once more.
With a growl of frustration, Mason used Construction Magic to refine the salt in the seawater into several large white chunks, which he turned into a giant crystalline chain to wrap around his Ma's waist. With his magically boosted strength, he then span the woman around and threw her down to the seafloor, though she hit the floor with her feet and immediately kicked up, forcing Mason to swim away from the pillar so it wouldn't be broken.
"Miss Luz, hang in there!" he yelled; "I'll find a way to keep her busy or restrained, then come back and finish the job!"
Luz nodded; "I understand! I have faith in you Mason! Just be careful!"
The Man nodded in response and kept swimming, grabbing his hammer from his belt and coating it in a layer of crystalline sea-salt to smack away the massive metallic boulder his Ma had just transmuted to drop onto his head. Luz watched as Mason and Luna exchanged blows, her heart going out to both of them. Poor Luna was confused and heartbroken to the point of a Bile Overload and Poor Mason was forced to fight against his mother, the woman he'd devoted himself to saving, because of a horrible misunderstanding that Luz was currently powerless to help. She wanted to try firing some light beams or conjuring plants to hold Luna back, but in her precarious position, drawing attention to herself would just make things harder for poor Mason. Not only that, but she couldn't even attempt Bardic Magic since the water would warp and distort the song!
She was completely useless and helpless, and Luz hated it! All she could do was sit back and have faith that things would work out. She did have faith too, but that didn't make it easier to bear…
Back up on the surface, Matt was now pacing the iceberg as Lilith, Hooty, and Pebbles watched (the latter now resting on a slightly raised chunk of ice). They'd all been fully healed, but thanks to the Boiling Sea, they still couldn't rush to Luz and Mason's aid; Matt because he had no way of going into the water or cooling it down, and Lilith because she'd run out of glyphs and paper to draw them on and didn't have a lot of magic left from her blessing. She had already needed to drink an Elixir to stay calm, so she really couldn't afford to waste her magic until she had a solid plan, especially with a powerful Merrow raging around beneath them.
"I hate this! I feel so useless!" Matt muttered to himself.
"It's unfortunate, but it can't be helped. We're at a major disadvantage in the sea." Lilith said, "The best thing we can do now is stay calm and conserve our strength."
Matt sighed and sat down on the ice and rubbed the back of his neck; "I know that, I just-! Ugh…"
Lilith smiled sympathetically, deciding to change the subject to take Matt's mind off the situation. "So, you're Steve Tholomule's younger brother? He talked about you a lot when we were in the Emperor's Coven together."
"He did?" Matt blinked.
Lilith nodded; "He did. He was probably my favourite colleague and subordinate, so I'd often vent to him about my frustrations regarding Eda. We were obviously still at odds back then… Steve would respond by telling me about his little brother."
"Yeah, I guess I gave him a lot to want to vent about too…" Matt flushed with shame.
"Actually, I don't think he ever said a bad word about you. I think the only time he seemed unhappy when discussing you was when he said you were having trouble at school or something. Though this was a couple of years ago." the woman replied.
Matt looked to her with shock; "T-That's all the bad stuff he's ever said about me?"
"Even that wasn't bad because of you. He was more upset for you. He always made it clear he was very fond of you; Steve is incredibly proud of you."
Matt looked away, biting his lip and bowing his head as mixed feelings of pride and shame warred inside his stomach. It made him happy that his Bro was proud of him, yet he felt like he hadn't done enough to come close to deserving it, especially from someone as accomplished as Steve. Lilith saw his reaction and frowned.
"Do you and Steve not get along at home? Or are you fighting at the moment?" she asked.
The boy shook his head; "No. We get along great! I look up to Steve; he's my hero! But…" he looked down at his clenched fists; "… but I'm jealous of him too. He's an awesome guy! Everyone likes him, and he's strong enough to be in the Emperor's Coven! He went to Glandus like I did, but he wasn't so weak that he got chased out like I was, and he was also a good enough person to not become a bully! Compared to him, I… I just don't measure up."
Matt felt ashamed to say it; he was so amazingly proud of his big brother, whom he idolised, but seeing Steve be so amazing made him feel like a failure.
"I'm actually smarter and better at magic than he was at my age. I got to skip a year because I was so good! But I still don't compare to him! I ended up the bottom of the social ladder at Glandus, becoming the lackey of everyone there until I couldn't handle it any more and got transferred out. Then I spent my first months at Hexside being just as much of a jerk as the kids I was running away from! I tried to lie and cheat my way into popularity by trying to take over Gus's club for Human lovers, and when Luz came along and threatened that, I was such a monster that I tricked her into the Detention Pit when all she wanted to do was help me!" Matt confessed, on the brink of frustrated tears. "Steve would never have done any of that! He would have been able to save Luz and Gus at the Looking Glass Graveyard on his own too, while I just cowered until Luz snapped me out of it and Gus came up with a plan! Now the same thing is happening again, with me useless on the sidelines while my friend is in danger! Dang it, how am I ever going to live up to Steve if this is all I can do!?"
Lilith's eyes widened, and she felt a bit of kinship with the boy. She too had felt like she'd lived in the shadow of a sibling, whom she'd loved and cared for deeply. In her moments of self-doubt, Lilith had also compared herself unfavourably to Edalyn, just as Matt was to Steve… and she knew just what to say, because it was what she'd always wanted to hear.
"Matt, Luz told me about all her adventures with you; the Detention Pit and the Looking Glass Graveyard. She told me the things you've done, and the things you did to redeem yourself! Steve is an amazing man, but even he made a mistake when he chose to stay in the Emperor's Coven and give up Pebbles, instead of keeping Pebbles and following a different path. Even he could fail! You are an incredibly strong young man, Matt Tholomule, because while you made severe mistakes and stumbled in life, you always got back up and kept going! You worked hard to redeem yourself for what you did to Luz and Gus, to the point that you are one of their best friends! You were instrumental in stopping those Glandus brats at the Graveyard even if you were afraid! And you've been working so hard in school and on Digale Island, not to mention this project to repair King's Tower!"
Lilith grasped the boy's shoulder as he looked at her with wide, hopeful eyes.
"Everyone makes mistakes. It's a part of life! But not everyone can pick themselves up and give everything they have to fix those mistakes! Believe me, I know how hard that is, especially when you don't particularly like the person you've become…" Lilith remembered her own mistakes and sins, "The fact you can do that makes you incredible! Steve is right to be extremely proud of you, and you should be proud of yourself! Believe in yourself, because I know that Steve and Luz both do!"
Matt's lip quivered; "Y-You really think so? You really think someone like me is amazing!?"
"I do. I barely know you, but I know Luz and Steve well enough to know they wouldn't lie or exaggerate." Lilith said seriously. She heard a squeak to her left and looked down to see Pebbles sliding his way towards Matt, then tapping his boot with his little paws, squeaking and nodding along. Lilith grinned; "See? Someone else agrees too!"
Matt knelt down and scooped Pebbles into his hands, then stood and cradled him against his chest. "Heh, I guess if you think I'm cool, then I guess I can't be all bad!" he laughed, even as he had tears in his eyes.
Pebbles looked up at Matt and stretched his tiny arms out as much as he could across the boy's chest, hugging him. Matt felt his heart swell, then to his surprise, he heard the voice of a little boy inside his head.
"Pebbles likes the person that Matty became!"
Matt gasped and looked down at Pebbles; "I-Is that you? Are you talking to me in my head!?"
Pebbles nodded; "Pebbles remembers when Matty was small. When Steve carved him… Pebbles didn't move, but then Steve cuddled Matty and said he wanted to be a good big brother, then Pebbles could move! Then Matty gave Pebbles his name!"
"That's right…! I can't believe I forgot that! When Steve was carving you, I was just learning the basics of Construction Magic and made my own version of you out of pebbles!" Matt began to laugh at the memory; "Steve called it my "Pebbles Palisman" so I said "Then that's your Pebbles Palisman!" and the name stuck!"
Pebbles giggled too, an adorable sound that warmed Matt's heart; "Pebbles remembers! But then Steve wanted to be friends with people who'd hurt Pebbles, and he sent Pebbles away… it hurt a lot and I was scared… I missed Steve and I missed Matty! But now… Steve doesn't need me any more, and Pebbles doesn't want to go back… Pebbles wants to stay with Matty!"
"M-Me!? You want to be my Palisman!?" Matt gasped.
Pebbles nodded and nuzzled against his chest, over his heart; "Pebbles does. But Pebbles needs to feel the bond… he feels it a little. Enough to talk to Matty. But wants more! Pebbles wants to feel connection! Wants to know what Matty wants!"
Matt closed his eyes and thought about the wish he'd made at Palismen Adoption Day. He wanted to be a cool guy like Steve, and be a better person than the bullies who'd turned him into a lackey. He wanted to redeem his past sins by helping others and being someone they could look up to! He wanted to be someone's hero, just like Steve was his hero.
He still wanted all of that, but there was a new wish in his heart now too; "I want to keep getting better, and being a person that Steve and my friends can keep being proud of. I want to be the best person I can be, even if I'm not the strongest or the best there is. I want to prove that Matt Tholomule is a Great Man that people can look up too!"
That wish was all Pebbles needed. Feeling the full connection, Pebbles gave one more delighted squeak as the cracks on his body healed on their own, then transformed into his staff mode. As a staff, Pebbles' arms were folded against his torso and looked like they were painted on, while his eyes were closed similar to Ghost's in her staff form. His tail also stretched out below him, and the tip below his axolotl tail fins extended down to form the staff itself. Matt held him in his hands and gasped with amazement as he felt not only a huge well of magic building inside him, but also a connection that made it really feel like he and Pebbles were one. In an instant, he felt almost like he'd had Pebbles his whole life!
"I can't believe it! Pebbles, you're my Palisman!" Matt beamed, spinning the staff with ease and hopping onto it to fly in a loop through the air, laughing the whole time.
"Pebbles is happy too! Matty feels a lot like Steve, but stronger! More earthy! Pebbles likes it a lot! It's a good wish!" the little Palisman replied.
Lilith and Hooty watched the pair with bright smiles; "Excellent! Good for you, Matt!" Lilith congratulated him.
"Hooray! Something good happened, Hoot!" Hooty cheered. He'd been quiet so far, afraid of saying the wrong thing again.
Matt flew back down to the iceberg and hovered beside it; "I feel incredible! Like I can do almost anything! In fact… I'm going to see how things are going underwater!"
"How? Getting a Palisman doesn't make you immune to the sea you know." Lilith pointed out.
Matt just smirked and flipped his hair in what he thought was a cool guy gesture; "Don't worry, I feel inspired! I've got a plan!" he declared.
He then used Earth Magic to create a small pile of sand, which he used to create a fishbowl shaped helmet over his head. He then cast a Construction Spell to refine the sand into glass, making it transparent and giving him a protective bubble around his head. He immediately put it to use by hanging like a bat from his new staff, dunking the top of his head into the water. The glass resisted the heat and kept the water away from Matt's skin as he looked around for signs of Luz, Mason, and Luna.
He immediately saw Luna near the seafloor, exchanging blows with Mason. The Construction Coven Head was using his hammer to parry blows from various projectiles Luna was transmuting out of the water, but he wasn't getting any closer to wearing her out or restraining her, while she didn't look any closer to calming down. If anything, her glowing eyes were shining brighter, as the blood-pumping battle with who she thought was her family's killer made her Bile Overload slowly worsen over time. Unable to help there, Matt instead looked for Luz and saw her barrier still trapped on the top of the pillar Mason had been raising.
He pulled his head out of the water and said; "I think I can get Luz out now that I've got Pebbles to boost my magic, but I'm betting that the moment I do, Mrs Miphari is gonna be on us! Are you two ready to fight if need be?"
Lilith nodded and switched Corvanc back into staff mode, while grabbing Hooty and wearing his bird house like a backpack. "I'm ready. Worst comes to worst, we can fly out of Luna's reach. She'll be at a disadvantage above the waves!"
With Lilith's approval, Matt began his plan by flying rapidly towards the Shin, which was the closest part of the Titan that wasn't underwater. He reached it and landed on a small beach, the sand of which he immediately manipulated and refined into a large glass bubble similar to Luz's crystal barriers. With this, he would be able to go beneath the water for a short time and reach Luz. Matt flew back to Lilith and made sure she was ready to fight (Lilith took to the air, just in case), before he dove into the water on the back of Pebbles, his glass bubble protecting him. He flew down to Luz, who gasped in surprise upon seeing him.
"Matt!? And is that… Pebbles!? I missed something big, didn't I!?" Luz exclaimed.
"Kinda yeah." Matt said as loudly as he could, since his words had to get through two barriers and the water between them; "Long story short, I had a heart to heart with Miss Lilith and Pebbles, and bonded with him! Now Pebbles and I are partners!"
"I missed a lot!" Luz huffed, before smiling brightly; "Congratulations Matt! I should have known you and Pebbles would be perfect for each other!"
Matt grinned and flipped his hair; "Thanks. Now sit tight and watch me be an awesome hero!"
He used Pebbles to draw a bronze spell circle that caused the pillar Luz was on to begin rising once again. It wasn't as fast as when Mason was doing it, but it was getting Luz to the surface and that was all anyone cared about. As they rose, Luz kept an eye on Luna, who hadn't noticed them yet thanks to her fight with Mason, whilst talking to Matt.
"Hey Matt, I think that Pebbles was the Palisman that BQ thought would bond with you back on Adoption Day, but he didn't because he'd fallen asleep in my bag."
"I wouldn't be surprised. Even when he was still Steve's Palisman, he had a habit of eating a ton and then passing out in weird places. I found him in my sock drawer once." Matt grinned, as Pebbles squeaked in embarrassment.
"I'm happy for you both! I had faith in you! But I've gotta admit to being kind of jealous too. I really want a Palisman of my own!" Luz said.
"Are you still having trouble thinking of what you want?" Matt asked, remembering Luz mentioning it to the whole Hexsquad at lunch the previous day.
Luz nodded; "There are a lot of things I want to do, but I don't know what I want to focus on. How did you decide?"
"I didn't." Matt said with a shrug; "I just told Pebbles everything I wanted. I think being honest about what you want, even if its a lot of stuff, is what's important. I mean, it's the connection that matters and you've just gotta open your heart to make that, right?"
Luz stared off into the water, deep in thought; "Honest about my desires, huh?"
She closed her eyes and thought hard, thinking back to a time when she'd wanted something oso badly that her wishing for it had been ingrained in her memory. Aside from short-term goals (which she'd mostly reached), only one really stood out to her; "Before I came to the Demon Realm, what I desired most was to be a good Angel! No, it wasn't just that… I guess the thing I wanted most was for Mami to accept the person I was back then and the person I was becoming, and see that person as a good Angel. Now she has! She and Mom both gave me the freedom to decide my own path in life, even if it was one they didn't want for me."
"Then maybe that's enough of a start? Carve your Palisman into whatever you want and see if the bond forms." Matt suggested, still focused on raising the pillar. They were almost to the surface now; it'd just be another minute.
Luz nodded and opened her eyes with a smile; "It's a start. But what should I carve I wonder… I- uh oh."
The young angel paled as she looked down and saw that Luna had finally taken notice of the rising pillar and was now gunning for the person raising it; namely Matt! The Merrow was fast approaching, and Mason was giving chase but had no chance of catching up in time, so Luz had to act fast.
"MATT! LEAVE ME AND RUN!" she ordered.
"What!? But I-" Matt began, only for Luna to reach him before he could finish his sentence. She clawed at him, forcing him to stop his spell so he could dodge and reinforce his glass barrier with Construction Magic. A follow-up tail smash struck him hard and knocked him away from Luz, and would have shattered his barrier had he not reinforced it, though the blow had still cracked the glass and boiling water was beginning to seep in.
"Oh Titan! Sorry Luz, I'll be back!" he yelled, quickly flying away with Luna in hot pursuit.
"Don't worry Matt, you've done enough already!" Luz declared, noting her current depth. The pillar had risen high enough to elevate her into relatively shallow waters, which were cool enough that she could use ice magic through her barrier to cool it down to survivable temperatures. As soon as she saw slush and pieces of ice forming in the water outside her barrier, Luz took a deep breath and dropped her barrier. She was immediately slammed into by the cooled ocean, which made her stagger for a moment, before she began swimming for the surface as quickly as she could, using a little water magic to push herself up even faster.
Luz broke the surface of the water with a loud gasp and immediately took flight, shaking her wings dry as she flew around in a big circle and laughed joyously; "Fresh air! Thank the Titan! It felt like I was under there for hours!" she cheered.
Lilith flew over to her as soon as she saw her; "Are you okay Luz!?" she asked urgently, flying close enough to touch Luz's face and pat her down for signs of injury.
"Tia Lily, Hooty! I'm fine, and it looks like you are too! Thank goodness! Now we just need Matt and Mason!" Luz said.
As if on cue, Matt (still inside his cracked glass barrier) flew out of the sea and immediately disintegrated the barrier back into sand, dropping the water that had started to flood it. He was unhurt, though a little hot and sweaty from the steam the water had given off. His barrier had been like a sauna for a few seconds there!
"Oh thank Titan, you got out alright! I panicked when I doubled back and saw you were gone." Matt said, panting a little as he flew over to join the others.
"I'm fine thanks to you. I'd never have been able to escape if you hadn't gotten me closer to the surface." Luz said, patting the boy on the shoulder. "But where are Mason and Luna?"
"When I doubled back, Mrs Miphari followed me and crashed right into Head Witch Mason. They're still fighting somewhere down below." Matt answered, pointing down to a section of the sea that was especially choppy and foamy as a battle raged below. "Merrows really are tough though, I've never seen people fight like that!"
Lilith nodded; "Merrows prefer to rely on their bodies over magic, especially since they're naturally larger and stronger than Witches and most Demons. Unfortunately, that means they're incredibly difficult to deal with, especially in the water. We need Mason to drag his mother out so we can calm her down and talk sense into her. If we can stop the Bile Overload, we might be able to stop her."
"If we can hold her still long enough, I can try the Song of Soothing again." Luz suggested.
"I've got some Soothing Potions too, which are effective with Bile Overloads. They aren't enough on their own thanks to how big Mrs Miphari is, but combined with your song, they might just work. Lilith replied.
"In that case, I've got an idea! Luz, can you take us both under in another barrier?" Matt asked.
Luz nodded, making Matt smirk; "Great, here's my idea…"
As Matt and the others were planning, Mason was growing exhausted from fighting his Ma. While he was a Merrow, he was only Half-Merrow, so he didn't have the same level of natural strength or toughness. He had superior magic, which he used to compensate, but his Ma's Bile Overload made her even stronger, virtually tireless, and completely impossible to reason with!
"Ma, please stop this! It's me, Talis! I'm alive!" he panted, speaking in the language of the Merrows.
Luna didn't reply, instead snarling like a beast and trying to slash him with the claws on her feet while using her hands to draw yellow spell circles that transmuted the water yet again. The right hand transmuted it into a swarm of icy projectiles in the shape of arrowheads, while the left hand transmuted it into a thick purple liquid that she manipulated into the arrowheads, before she sent the whole swarm flying at Mason. He tried to dodge, but Luna's water magic controlled the currents and allowed her to slow him down and make the arrowheads follow him wherever he went, forcing him to instead expend even more magic on hardening his scales, making sure the arrowheads couldn't pierce him. However they shattered instead, and the purple liquid got on him and began to corrode his scales.
Cursing, Mason began swimming for the surface as fast as he could, hoping that the water rushing across his scales would wash off the poison, or that one of the others would be able to get it off so Luz could heal him. Naturally his mother followed close behind and slashed at him, this time managing to catch his back and carve three deep cuts into his flesh. They weren't life threatening, but they hurt and had come dangerously close to his spine! If this kept up, he'd really be killed! His poor Ma would never forgive herself if she later found out she'd murdered her own son!