The swarms descended on the group, with most of them focusing on Philip and Luz. Philip immediately conjured another wave of ice to freeze large amounts of the swarm, but there was just too many! Eda and Lilith had to turn their attention away from Evelyn to assist in freezing the bees, but that just left them open as Evelyn cast another spell, which caused the stones that previously bordered her flowerbeds to combine together into a giant humanoid stone golem, which punched at the Clawthorne Sisters. Lilith was blind-sided and smacked into the barrier surrounding Evelyn's cottage, being mildly burned by it and then falling to the ground stunned. Eda was able to dodge the blow, but then the Stone Golem began firing pieces of its body at her, forcing her to take flight to avoid them. Evelyn grinned as she pursued Eda, firing red beams of magic at her and Owlbert, while Eda tried to return fire with her own gold beams of magic.
While all this was happening, Luz was still stuck dealing with the Fire Bees alongside Philip, who to his credit, was earnestly trying to protect her. He tore off his overcoat and threw it over Luz to give her some extra protection from the Bee's stings, and focused his ice spells on the holes in Luz's barrier made by the Null Magic Potion. Even with this effort though, both suffered a few nasty burning stings, which Luz tried to heal. Philip suffered the worst of it, with parts of his face and arms swelling up and being covered in second degree burns, though none of it lasted long thanks to Luz's healing. However this was beginning to drain Philip's blessing, and Luz was starting to get winded too.
"Okay, that's enough! Philip, root yourself to the ground!" Luz ordered.
Philip did so immediately, frowning as he felt his dwindling blessing grow weaker. Once he was rooted to the ground, Luz spun in a circle, drawing a silver spell circle with her wings. The circle created a massive tornado around Luz and Philip, which blew away the Fire Bees and the Null Magic Potion, which couldn't devour the magic of something intangible. With the potion no longer threatening her and the bees blown back, Luz was able to drop her barrier and then combine the wind and ice glyphs for the first time, creating a freezing gale that blew through the entire garden and coated everything in a thin layer of frost, including the inhabitants.
Since the layer was so thin, Philip and the witches were able to easily shake it off (while Lilith felt some relief from the burns she'd sustained), but the Fire Bees were completely frozen, putting them into a dormant state. Evelyn's Stone Man was also frozen, though like the others, it was able to shake itself free of the ice and lumber towards Luz. She blasted it with a quick gale of wind to slow its approach and give herself a moment to summon her Ocarina, which she began to play. The song she played utilised Bardic Magic to ensnare each stone in the Golem's body and begin squeezing it, applying enough force to crack them and start destroying the sturdy creature's form.
"Oh no you don't!" Evelyn cried, putting her fingers to her lips and suddenly whistling sharply, using a form of Bardic Magic of her own. The sharp whistle released a sound wave that hit Luz and made her scream as a horrible pain filled her ears. The girl dropped her Ocarina and fell to her knees, clutching her ears as Evelyn's whistle changed to something more melodious. This new song caused the grass beneath Luz's knees to suddenly grow rapidly and entangle the young angel, binding her tightly in foliage.
Seeing this, Lilith dragged herself to her feet and applied a healing spell to her burns, then rushed over and cast a herbicide spell on the grass, causing it to decay and freeing Luz, who was then able to use a healing spell to fix the damage done to her ears.
"Abominations, Bardic, Construction, Plants, Illusions, Potions, Beast-Keeping, Healing, and even an attempt at Oracle Magic! This woman can use every type of magic!" Lilith growled as she watched Eda try to attack Evelyn with some Hooty Golems, and Philip used his dwindling magic to create a powerful light beam to disintegrate the core of Evelyn's Golem.
"She's definitely good! But she's more cunning than powerful!" Luz said as she got back to her feet.
At that moment, Eda finally managed to get around Evelyn's defences, blocking her escape routes with Hooty Golems so she was able to cast a lightning spell directly at Evelyn. To everyone's surprise, the witch just smirked and took the spell head on, but rather than screaming in pain, Evelyn disappeared in a cloud of cyan smoke, revealing herself to be an illusion.
"What!? The real one must have switched herself out at some point" Lilith yelled.
"Indeed I did!"
Eda spun around just as the real Evelyn emerged from an invisibility spell and shot a lightning spell of her own at the younger Clawthorne Sister. Eda grit her teeth to stop herself from screaming in pain, but the lightning still zapped her hard enough to make her convulse and fall to the ground. Luz flew forward in time to catch her, and Philip tried to capitalise on Evelyn's focus on Eda by casting a plant spell to try and grab the woman with tree roots and drag her down to the ground. However Evelyn countered with a simple wave of fire, destroying the roots and nearly burning Philip himself, if not for Lilith grabbing him and pulling him behind her and the protective barrier she created.
Luz applied some healing to a panting Eda, while Philip groaned as he felt more of his blessing fade, and Lilith focused on maintaining the barrier between them and Evelyn, whilst ensuring nothing the woman did would get through to them. Evelyn smirked at them from atop her staff, floating down almost leisurely.
"Did you really think that even outnumbered and with an Angel on your side, I would be so easily beaten? You attacked me in my own territory, where I have spells, traps, enchantments, and illusions of all kinds prepared! I've barely had to use any magic; most of what you've faced today was pre-prepared and only required a spark of magic to activate. Let me give you another example!" Evelyn boasted, snapping her fingers.
Suddenly, a Thornivine plant grew out of the ground at Philip's feet, appearing inside Lilith's barrier, and wrapped around his limbs and throat, binding him and beginning to choke him. Luz gasped and create a light scalpel on her finger, which she used to carefully cut away the vine around his throat, but more vines began to grow and slowly creep up to replace the severed one. Another snap of Evelyn's fingers made them pause just a few inches from Philip's neck.
"I don't have any desire to kill anyone but Philip. He deserves to die for all the lives he's led to their ruin, and all that he's done to my family! But I also cannot allow an Angel to live in this realm! So I'll give you an ultimatum!" Evelyn declared, pointing to Eda and then Lilith; "You two will surrender and leave my property, never to return. I'll take Everlasting Oaths to ensure your compliance." she then pointed to Philip; "You will die for what you've done, but I'll make it quick… more than you deserve!" lastly, she pointed to Luz; "And you… I will open the portal to the Human Realm that I took from Philip, and toss you through it. You will never again return to the Demon Realm, but you will live! Be thankful you're still just a child and I don't want to sink to this monster's level!" Evelyn sneered, glancing back to Philip.
"Or else what?" Lilith demanded, "This isn't an ultimatum unless there's an "Or Else" at the end, right?"
Evelyn narrowed her eyes dangerously; "I think you know what the "Or Else" is. I don't want any more witch blood spilled because of this disgusting man, so take my deal before I have to get serious!"
"You know what?" Eda growled, her sclera turning black; "Here's a counter offer; hand over those notes and the portal, or I'll show you what a real witch can do!"
With one final growl of rage, Eda transformed into her Harpy Mode. She'd wanted to keep this a secret, since she was in the past and didn't want stories of it spreading around, but she had lost her temper by this point. Seeing as Evelyn made no moves to surrender and hand over the notes, Eda flapped her wings hard and lunged at the red-headed witch, moving a lot faster than she'd anticipated and managing to knock her and her Palisman to the ground. Owlbert and Corvanc both swooped down on the Buzzard Palisman and began to peck and scratch at it, keeping him from returning to his master's side as Eda and Evelyn clashed; the latter using a gardening trowel to parry Eda's claws.
With Evelyn distracted, Luz was able to slice away the Thornivine plant binding Philip, freeing him from its grip. She then looked to Lilith, who was taking a moment to rest and observe her sister's Harpy Mode.
"Lilith, I'm going to try attacking from above! You try and help Eda from down here!" Luz said.
Lilith nodded; "Understood!"
She then ran forward and jumped into the battle between Eda and Evelyn. Eda, while mostly in control of herself, had lost her temper enough that she was actually struggling to control her Harpy Mode, and was having trouble casting spells with her own dwindling blessing and her rage messing up her focus. She was relying almost entirely on her talons, while also using the corrosive power of her Harpy Magic to decay any spell circles Evelyn tried to draw, limiting her to her trowel. When Lilith jumped in, things became even harder for Evelyn, who ended up taking a few glancing blows from Eda's claws as she prioritised dodging Lilith's point blank magic attacks, each one of which was designed to debilitate and slow Evelyn down even further. To top it off, Luz circled above and began firing silver light beams down into their close quarters skirmish, using the wind element's aspects of Freedom and Faith to imbue her light and ensure it bent around her Mom and Tia to only strike Evelyn. These light beams were less powerful than a conventional one, but they still inflicted painful burns which further drained Evelyn's stamina. The woman had to admit; this trio fought well together!
As Eda and Lilith fought up and close and personal with Evelyn, the sisters striking with their magic and claws as Evelyn countered with her own attacks, Philip saw the perfect opportunity. The three witches were stuck together in close quarters, and so focused on each other that they'd never notice him. They were wide open, and best of all, Luz was flying around above, peppering them with light while looking for an opening to swoop down and catch Evelyn off-guard. With the young Angel out of harms way, Philip had the perfect opportunity to destroy the Evil Witch that had taken his brother… and free Luz from the Witches that had enthralled her too!
He gathered together every last scrap of magic that Luz had given to him with her blessing, and drew a large light glyph on a page he'd torn from his diary. He then drew the largest golden spell circle he could, and focused the resultant spell into the drawn glyph, creating a massive sphere of light that then released all the energy it contained directly at the witches in the form of an intense beam of light.
"Burn in the light of God, you foul Sorceresses!" he bellowed, a vicious smile on his face as the blast rapidly shot towards the witches, ready to consume them. They looked up just in time to see the attack coming their way, their eyes widening as their lives flashed before their eyes. The blast was strong enough that they'd all be consumed and vaporised, and none of them had noticed in time to raise up a barrier, leaving them with no choice but to accept their fate. Lilith had just enough time to try and push Eda behind her while pulling Evelyn forward, planning to protect her little sister with both their bodies, but as the light encompassed them, and they braced for the pain, they were surprised to feel nothing at all. Their eyes were forced shut by the brightness, and they heard Philip's cry of triumph… until the light faded and revealed a crystal barrier had been erected around the witches, protecting them from harm.
The three witches looked up into the sky and saw Luz pointing her palm at them, the glyphs of ice and light overlapping and glowing in her palm as she panted. "That was too close…!" Luz gasped. She'd barely been able to get the barrier up in time!
Philip's jaw hung open as he saw his targets had been protected, but before he could say a word, Luz descended from the sky and fixed him with a furious glare.
"What do you think you're doing, Philip!? You nearly killed Mom and Tia Lily! Not to mention I said I didn't want to kill Evelyn, just bring her to justice!" Luz yelled.
"Death is the only justice that foul creature deserves! The Lord says "Suffer not a witch to live!" I am merely doing my duty as a Witch Hunter of Gravesfield!" Philip cried. He had used up his blessing and felt empty at the absence of the holy power, but he still had his crooked dagger, which he held tightly in his hand.
Luz gasped; "A Witch Hunter!?"
"Yes! I told you before, my brother and I were tasked with protecting the souls of the people of Gravesfield from evil! That is why Caleb went to run off this evil witch off, before she ensnared his mind with hateful sorcery!" Philip explained.
Luz felt her stomach twist; that was what Philip had meant!? She'd assumed he was just like a town guard or protector of some kind, not one of the crazed Witch Hunters! History remembered them largely as religious zealots who hanged and burned innocent people who'd been accused of witchcraft back in the days of Puritanism! If Philip truly was a Witch Hunter… then had all those people he'd led to their deaths been killed on purpose!? Had he been luring innocent witches and demons to their deaths, in the name of his God!?
"Blue Fang… he didn't sacrifice himself for you at all, did he? You used him as bait and left him to die!" Luz cried.
Philip didn't deny it; "I apologise for my earlier deceit, Lady Luz. But it was necessary with those witches so close at hand! This entire realm is filled with evil! It is Hell in all but name! The denizens have turned their backs on the light of God and speak openly about slaughtering your kin! Look at Evelyn behind you! She was willing to kill you the instant she learned what you are!"
Luz shook her head; "No! That's not right! I don't know why Angels and Demons are really at odds, but it's not because all Angels are good and all Demons are evil! I've met countless witches and demons who are my friends! They're good people who just want to live their lives freely and happily!"
"And we know the truth about Angels." Eda said, looking more at Evelyn as she backed off a step; "While some may have tried to enslave us to their order in the past, not all of them are bad just as not all of us are good. Luz there is helping us fight to preserve our own way of life, rather than trying to force her order on people who don't want it. She's even fighting against another Angel to do it!"
Both Evelyn and Philip gasped at that, both looking at Luz for different reasons. Evelyn looked at her with an entirely new perspective, while Philip looked horrified.
"No! Lady Luz, you mustn't listen to these sinners!" Philip cried, "They have turned you against God's light! Their magic has enthralled you, just as it did to my brother! Think about it; isn't it odd that you were so willing to accept this witch as a mother when you already had an Angelic Mother? How odd it was that said Angelic Mother was willing to accept the arrangement? Isn't it bizarre that she immediately swooped in to "take care of you" when you first arrived in this world? And how they use you for blessings!?"
He pointed his knife at the witches, even as his eyes remained fixed on the horrified young Angel; "Please my Lady, open your eyes! They have planned this whole affair to enslave you and turn you away from God! You must resist!"
Luz felt like she was being slapped with deja vu… Philip wasn't the first person to be convinced that she was being manipulated by Eda after all, and his rhetoric surrounding God was definitely uncomfortably familiar too. The girl hated the comparison, but she couldn't deny it, especially when Philip had literally just tried to kill Eda and Lilith, and basically confessed to leading others to their deaths intentionally.
"W-Was anything you said true? Did Evelyn really attack Gravesfield? Did she really force you and Caleb to fight to the death!?" Luz asked in a shaky voice. Had she been fooled into helping the wrong person!?
"Of course it's the truth! My brother was devout, and that monster forced me to take his life just to save his immortal soul!" Philip yelled.
Evelyn snarled; "I did no such thing! I never cast a spell on Caleb's mind! I never made him think or feel a single thing that wasn't purely his own free will! You just couldn't accept that your "devout" brother genuinely fell in love with a witch! You killed in him cold blood while he was trying to defend me!"
"BE SILENT, TEMPTRESS!" Philip roared, lunging towards Evelyn. Luz leapt between him and the witches and held her arms out wide, forcing the man to stop his attack. He recoiled from her, holding his knife out in front of him shakily. "Lady Luz, please! You are being corrupted by them! I don't wish to see another pure and benevolent soul twisted by this place!"
Luz shook her head sadly. In truth, she didn't truly know if she could trust Evelyn, but she now knew for certain that she couldn't trust Philip; his attempt on Eda and Lilith's lives, and his admission that he killed, or rather let die, many other witches and demons had proven that. But even as wrong as his actions were, he genuinely believed he was doing the right thing! Luz wanted to try and get through to him! It was the duty of an Angel to try and help after all.
"Philip, this needs to stop. What you're doing isn't good or righteous. I don't know if you're right about Evelyn, but I do know that the things you've done are still wrong! You've led innocent people to their deaths! You lied to me! And you're wrong about Mom and Tia Lily. I trust them with all my heart, and I know for a fact that is my own feelings and not just a spell they've cast on me." Luz stepped forward and began gently reaching for Philip's knife.
"No… no, you don't understand! Their magic is too deep into your mind! Please, fight it my Lady!" Philip begged.
Luz gently shook her head once again; "No Philip, it's you who doesn't understand. But I can help you! I'll show you that there are good people here in the Demon Realm. I'll show you that being a Witch Hunter is not the holy path you think it is! And if Evelyn is guilty like you say she is, I'll help you get justice for Caleb!" she carefully wrapped her hand around Philip's, careful to avoid cutting herself on his knife.
"Just let me help you, Philip. This doesn't have to end with more blood and violence. We can talk this out, and resolve things peacefully." Luz finished, imploring him with all she had, her golden eyes staring into his blue ones.
For a moment, Philip genuinely hesitated. Luz could see the doubts in his expression, his wonder if he really had been wrong all along. If Witches were evil, and Luz was simply showing him that. But that hesitation didn't last long as he looked passed Luz to Evelyn, who was watching the encounter with incredulous eyes.
No, Philip would not believe he was wrong! He would not have doubts! If he was wrong, then the cause he'd devoted his life to was all for nothing! The years he'd spent in the Demon Realm were for nothing! His holy crusade of justice was for nothing! Caleb… his brother's death would have been for nothing! Philip would not believe that! He would not entertain the idea of his brother truly loving that heinous sorceress! He would not believe an Angel would side against him and his righteousness! This was all trickery and lies, and Luz Noceda was a young Angel being led astray! Well he would save the world and the young Angel, and he'd start by putting down the source of his pain and the girl's control!
With a bloodthirsty scream, Philip pulled his hand from Luz's grasp, ready to dart around her and throw himself at Evelyn in a bloody frenzy. However Luz did not release her grip easily, and she ended up struggling with Philip. The struggle went from trying to hold onto his hand to trying to stop him brandishing the knife, and when Philip finally pulled free, Luz reacted without thinking and grabbed the blade itself. One more quick jerk from Philip resulted in him pulling free from her grip entirely, and Luz screamed in pain as the jagged blade sliced through the flesh of her palm and got caught on her pinky finger. When Philip ripped the blade free, staggering back as a result, everyone looked on in horror as Luz's pinky finger was severed from her hand, hitting the ground between the pair as Luz cried out.
Tears streamed down her face as she gripped her now four-fingered hand, trying to stem the blood gushing from the stump of her pinky finger.
"LUZ!" Eda and Lilith both cried, rushing forward. Eda immediately began casting numbing spells on Luz's wound, making the girl hiss, and then sigh with relief as the pain disappeared.
"N-No! I didn't mean to-" Philip gasped as he stared at the knife, painted gold with Angelic Blood.
Lilith grit her teeth as she marched from Luz towards Philip, and cast a spell at his right hand, which clung to his knife. The spell burned him and he cried out, dropping the knife and making it hit the ground beside Luz's lost pinky finger. He cursed and looked up angrily, but the instant he made eye contact with Lilith, she threw her fist forward and slammed it into Philip's nose. There was a satisfying crunch as the bridge of his nose broke beneath Lilith's fist, and the man fell back on his behind and cried out in pain.
"Agh! You despicable sorceress!" he yelled, holding his battered face.
"You tried to kill my little sister and I, then cut off my niece's finger when she was trying to help you! Be glad I'm not breaking your neck!" Lilith glared furiously. She then marched over to Luz and helped the girl take off Philip's coat, not wanting anything of his touching her. She tossed it at the man, and he glared venomously as he used the sleeve to dab the blood from his face.
"I was trying to save her from you and your evil! I never meant to hurt her! This is your fault!" Philip yelled.
Luz shook her head; "No, Philip. This is your fault. You're hurting people who don't deserve it, and you don't even realise it. No, you do realise it, but you don't care."
Philip looked at her in shock and sorrow, her disapproval seeming to really hurt him almost as much as his broken nose. His right arm, previously burned, began to pulsate oddly, making Luz and the witches blink at it in confusion. Philip held the arm and hid it with his coat, as his hurt expression became one of anger.
"No… No, I am not wrong! These witches have turned you against the Lord! They've infected you with vile sorcery! But I will save you!" Philip got to his feet and began to back away; "I'll save every righteous soul and bring about the end of this vile realm! Mark my words, Luz Noceda; I will tear their influence from you and all of God's Creations! I swear it on the name of Wittebane!"
With that, he pulled out a large rolled up piece of parchment, which he unravelled to reveal a hideously complex looking glyph combo. He dropped it on the ground, and stepped on it as Lilith and Evelyn both shot spells at him. The spells collided with a sudden wall of ice that shot up between them and Philip; the result of an ice glyph Philip activated as he stepped on the giant combo.
"We will meet again one day, Luz Noceda. And on that day, I will sever the bonds that these witches have infected you with. Until then, farewell!" Philip said, his eyes gleaming menacingly as he slammed his palm into the glyph combo. There was a huge eruption of light, forcing Luz and the witches to cover their eyes, and when the light faded, Philip was gone.
"W-What happened!? Where did he go!?" Luz asked urgently.
"I don't know. He's used that strange glyph combination before, whenever I've cornered him. It whisks him away to who knows where." Evelyn sighed, snapping her fingers and causing the barrier around her property to vanish. "Nothing I do seems to be able to stop it. I'd hoped my barriers would keep him in, but it seems that failed too."
With Philip gone and Luz's claims that she didn't want to force her order onto anyone, Evelyn had essentially lost her reason to fight, though she was still eyeing the Angel and her family closely, and the barrier around her house was still noticeably in place. Lilith kept an eye on her too, not willing to let her guard down around someone who'd been an enemy just moments before, and might well still be one. Eda was less concerned with Evelyn though, and more focused on Luz's injury. Her spell had stemmed the bleeding, but Luz really needed to heal the wound.
"Luz, can you manage one of your Crystal Healing Lotus spells?" Eda asked softly.
"Yeah, but it's gonna hurt to regrow my finger. I'd prefer to reattach it." Luz said, feeling a little light headed from all the blood she'd lost. It felt like she'd been losing a lot of blood recently…
Eda looked towards where the finger would have fallen, only to frown when she found nothing. It and Philip's knife were both gone… he must have snatched them both under the cover of his coat after Lilith tossed it at him.
"I think that creep took it!" Eda scowled.
"Well that's macabre… But I suppose he'd consider it some kind of grim relic from an Angel. The mad Zealot certainly seemed obsessed with you and this God you both allegedly serve." Evelyn commented, "I'm willing to help you heal, provided you answer some questions."
Luz smiled at her; "I'll answer your questions, but I can heal myself. It's just gonna suck… Mom, keep those numbing spells coming!"
Eda nodded and continued casting numbing spells and very mild ice spells to further numb the pain as Luz waved her hand, creating a trio of glyphs in the air. After her encounters with Philip, Evelyn was familiar with the ice and plant glyphs, but the light glyph was a new one to her, and the way they combined with a spell circle to form a crystal lotus flower was definitely new! She watched as green light emerged from the flower in little pollen-like balls and touched the stump of Luz's finger, making the girl wince as the finger began to regrow, starting with the bone, then the nerves and blood vessels, and finally the muscle, skin, and nail. It was a painful and very tiring process to regrow a lost body part, even one as small as her pinky finger, but at least the pain only lasted as long as it took to heal.
"There! All done! Is any one else hurt?" Luz asked.
Eda and Lilith shook their heads, and when Luz looked to Evelyn, the surprised witch shook her head too.
"Great! Now I guess we should decide what to do next. We still need those portal notes even if Philip turned out to be a crazy zealot… and you said you had questions." Luz turned to Evelyn. "So how about we sit and talk things out. I promise I won't try to hurt you or do anything underhanded, if you promise to hear us out and explain yourself too! Is that fair?"
Evelyn thought about it for a moment, the nodded; "Very well. Answer me this one question, and I'll make an Everlasting Oath not to harm you and your friends unless provoked."
Luz, Eda, and Lilith exchanged surprised looks, and Luz nodded in agreement; "Okay, ask away."
Evelyn stared into her eyes; "I was raised to believe Angels were cruel and cold creatures that would destroy anything that didn't fit their ideals of goodness and order. The Sages of the Titan even claim Angels are responsible for killing the Titans. Was all that a lie?"
Luz frowned sadly; "Honestly… I don't know. Not totally at least. I know Angels didn't kill the Titans; that was the work of a clan of witches known as the Titan Trappers, who were working for these insanely powerful creatures from beyond the stars, called the Archivists. As for whether or not Angels were cruel and cold… well all I can say is that not all of us are like that. There may have been some who really were horrible to the people of this world… Angels like Philip would have worshipped. I don't know for certain, but I can believe its true… we're not always kind, even to our own people." she confessed, thinking of Belos and the Angels of Crest Kindness, whom her Mami had run away from.
"I see… so like you said before to that Human, there is good and evil in your kind just as there is in mine and his. That is… both comforting and terrifying. A large part of what I believed to be true has just been undone." Evelyn confessed, looking up into the sky.
"I'm… sorry?" Luz tilted her head.
Evelyn chuckled; "Don't be. Anyway, a deal is a deal; give me your hand and I'll make the oath."
Luz offered her hand, but Eda pulled her back and Lilith offered her hand instead. "I'll take your oath. No offence, but you did attack after hearing Luz was an angel. I'm not taking more risks with my niece after that mad man cut off her finger and fled with it!
"You tell her, sis!" Eda grinned.
Evelyn smirked; "You'll get no arguments from me." she said, taking Lilith's hand and drawing a spell circle around their joint hands. "I swear not to harm you, your sister, or your niece so long as none of you attempt to harm me. I also promise to truthfully answer any question you ask of me, though I reserve the right to refuse to answer."
The spell circle sank into their hands and the customary glow happened, signifying the completion of the oath. Lilith let go of Evelyn's hand and smiled with relief.
"So you really are reasonable. I think we have a lot to talk about." Lilith said.
"Indeed. We can talk inside, now that we know we're not going to fight any more. If only you'd come to me without Philip; we could have done this from the start and spared my poor garden." Evelyn commented, looking forlornly at her garden. It was largely just a grass lawn now, with the remains of golems and tree roots sticking out here and there.
"I can help you regrow everything, if you tell me what you want grown." Luz offered.
Evelyn smiled; "I may take you up on that later. You want those notes I took from Philip after all, and that sounds like good payment. Anyway, follow me; I was making lunch when you all came calling, so I've got some tea on the boil."
The woman, now fully relaxed, snapped her fingers and made the barrier around her cottage drop. She then opened the front door and headed inside, inviting Luz and the Clawthorne Sisters in too. They followed her inside and looked around at the quaint cottage; it was very homey and reminded Luz of a more rustic, old-fashioned version of the Owl House; sort of like a mix of the Owl House, a country cottage, and a log cabin in the woods. The majority of the ground floor was taken up by a single multi-purpose room, with a dining area near a kitchen towards the back, and a sitting area with several bookshelves and a fireplace closer to the front. Two stair cases could be seen, one heading downwards beside the fireplace, and one heading upwards beside the kitchen.
"Whoa… this place feels just like my parents' house." Eda commented, looking around as Evelyn went to the kitchen, where an old kettle and several pots were bubbling away.
"Your parents must have good taste! I built this place myself after moving away from my own folks. They and the rest of the Clan are all gone now; they left the Boiling Isles to seek out other Titans. I'm all that's left of the Clawthorne Clan on the Boiling Isles." Evelyn commented, stirring a delicious smelling stew.
Luz, Eda, and Lilith all snapped their heads towards Evelyn, eyes wide with shock. Had Evelyn just said "Clawthorne!?"
"Not quite ready yet. That fight didn't last as long as I expected! Guess I should count my blessings." Evelyn murmured, casting a spell on the pots then grabbing the kettle and turning to the others; "Alright, whose up for… tea?"
She looked at their shocked expressions with a frown; "What is it?"
"D-Did you say your name was Clawthorne!?" Eda asked.
Evelyn smirked; "Ah, heard of us have you?" she puffed her chest out proudly; "Not to be surprised! We are famed travellers and Palisman Carvers!" she whistled sharply, and her red Buzzard Palisman came and landed on her shoulder; "I carved Rizzard here myself! He's as fine a Palisman as you could ask for! Though yours aren't too shabby either; I can tell they were carved with care."
Luz couldn't help but giggle at that; "Well of course! They were carved by famed Palisman Carvers too!"
Evelyn raised an eyebrow as Eda and Lilith shook off their shock. Eda stepped forward and said; "We haven't introduced ourselves properly. I'm Edalyn Clawthorne, and this is my sister: Lilith Clawthorne, and my adopted daughter, Luz Noceda-Clawthorne."
Eda and Lilith took off the cowl and head scarf that hid their hair, allowing Eda's wild silver mane to puff out and Lilith's own dark hair to come tumbling down, curling at the ends. Evelyn gaped as she looked between the two; her first instinct was to deny it, as she knew every member of her family! However looking at these two witches and the quality of their Palismen… they really did look like Clawthornes!
"I think we both have interesting stories to tell…!" Evelyn eventually said, casting a spell to summon some tea cups and making them and the kettle float over to the sitting area. She gestured for her apparent relatives to join her in sitting down, Evelyn and Eda taking a pair of armchairs while Luz and Lilith sat on a sofa. As a show of trust, Evelyn's Palisman Rizzard perched behind Luz on the back of the sofa and gently preened her hair, much to the Angel's joy. Evelyn smiled at this as she poured them all a cup of tea, then after they'd all sat back and enjoyed it for a few moments, she spoke up again.
"So, you have questions. Ask away."
Luz leaned forward; "Honestly, we just want to know the truth about what happened between you and Philip. He claimed you attacked his home in the Human Realm, kidnapped and bewitched his brother, forced him to kill Caleb in a fight, then stole his portal and the notes to make it so he couldn't go home!"
Evelyn scoffed; "The only part of that which is true is the part about his portal and notes! There was no way I was going to let him run away to his own world after what he did!"
"Figures. I knew there was something off about that creepy little nerd!" Eda declared; "If he wasn't our only clue on making a new portal, I'd have told him to take a hike!"
"He definitely turned out to be a disappointment…" Luz sighed, looking sadly at her regrown pinky, "… but still, while I know he lied about a lot of things, it didn't feel like he was lying about you. I think he genuinely believed what he was saying about you. Could you tell us what really happened, in your own words?"
Evelyn nodded; "Of course. You're right by the way, Philip genuinely believes his own delusions and will rewrite reality around him in his own head, just to try and make sense of it. That's why he was so sure you were corrupted; in his mind, witches are bad and angels are good, and he is good too, so if an angel is siding against him, then they have to be corrupted by something bad."
"That level of delusion is dangerous. Believe me, I once suffered from something very close to it…" Lilith said, thinking of her service to Belos and the excuses she made for him.
Luz held her Tia's hand comfortingly as Evelyn nodded; "It happens sometimes. The fact you saw the error of your ways is a credit to your strength of character. But regardless, you asked for my side of the story…"
Evelyn took a deep breath as she leaned back in her chair; "It begins with your people, Luz. Not far from here is an old Portal Gateway that was originally built by Angels as passageways between the realms. But it was broken over a thousand years ago, and as a girl I was fascinated with it and hoped to fix it so I could visit other worlds. We Clawthornes are famed for being explorers and free spirits after all! Thankfully the portal wasn't too damaged and about 10 years ago, I was able to excavate the keystone needed to operate it, as well as Titan Blood to fuel it. Once the portal was fixed up, I went through it and found myself in the Human Realm, near the small town of Gravesfield… they'd used their side of the Portal Gateway as part of a graveyard gate."
Luz racked her brain for a moment, then gasped; "The old graveyard on the edge of town! I always felt weird visiting the place, but I just thought that was because Mami had Papi buried there, instead of the newer cemetery! I always wondered why, but maybe she found it comforting to be near an old portal built by her people… or maybe that's the portal she came through when she ran away from the Divine Realm!"
"I couldn't say. However when I first arrived in Gravesfield, I was kind of a big hit. The men were all super into me, and I can't blame them. Have you seen this body? BAM! Ha!" Evelyn laughed, striking a sexy pose that made Eda cackle, even as Luz and Lilith were shocked by how similar the two were. "So no, I didn't enchant anyone… not with magic anyway."
Luz hummed; so the men in the town had just been smitten with her, and Philip mistook that for sorcery? He probably couldn't comprehend anyone being willingly attracted to a witch. But honestly, Luz couldn't blame the men of Gravesfield; compared to the conservative style of clothing women in this era wore, someone like Evelyn was probably more than they could handle!
"Well that explains one thing, but what about his claims about you casting spells on their crops and animals?" Lilith asked.
Evelyn scoffed; "I was helping them! Many of the men who became smitten with me were farmers, who offered me gifts and other such things to win my favour. It was blatant courtship behaviour, but I didn't want to turn down the human trinkets I found so interesting! Unfortunately, accepting such gifts would be accepting their courtship, so I decided to instead help them out in return, so it was more like an exchange of favours, or payment for a service. I cast spells to reinforce their crops against the cold and diseases, and make them grow more abundant, and I helped tame unruly animals and provided medicine for the sick ones. My magic scared a few of the suitors away, but others didn't seem to care… But my magic also attracted one of the town Witch Hunters… Caleb Wittebane."
The woman's expression became a sad smile; "At first, he tried to drive me off with a pitchfork, but when I showed him what I was actually doing, he stopped and listened to what I had to say. We talked for quite a while, and I told him where I'd come from… Caleb was sweet and very curious, and since he decided that I wasn't evil even though I was a witch, he wanted to talk to the townspeople and convince them to accept me. Unfortunately, my time in the Human Realm was coming to an end; the Titan Blood I'd filled the keystone with was limited and wouldn't last much longer, so I was forced to flee before the gate closed… unbeknownst to me, Caleb followed me through and Philip, who'd just arrived, followed him. Caleb and I got through to the gateway near here, but it closed before Philip could reach us and he was lost. I later learned he was spat out of a different gateway somewhere else on the isles, which just so happened to have still been functioning."
"So that's how Philip ended up here and separated from his brother…" Luz murmured; "What happened next?"
"Well at first, I offered to get more Titan Blood to open the gate and send Caleb back home, but he was sure Philip was somewhere on the isles and wouldn't leave without him. I felt responsible, so I decided to let Caleb stay with me until he found Philip. I even tried to help find him, but I had no luck. I didn't get my Oracle Spirit until a couple of years ago, and Oracle Witches are rare, reclusive, and very expensive to employ, so we were forced to search the hard way. I thought it would be easy to find a human, but Philip was crafty and didn't trust anyone, so few people knew of his existence… Caleb ended up living with me for five years, and in that time we fell in love and married. Caleb, who had no attachments to his family besides his brother, took my name and became Caleb Clawthorne. I even helped him carve a Palisman of his own, so he could use a small amount of magic."
Evelyn's expression was wistful, before it darkened dramatically; "We continued searching, but in the end Philip found us. Caleb and I were out walking when Philip attacked me, believing I'd ensnared Caleb. My love tried to convince his brother that I wasn't evil and that he had married me of his own free will, but Philip became agitated and the two got into a fight. It started with fists, but then Philip revealed the glyphs, forcing Caleb to use his staff. Seeing his brother using a witch's staff drove Philip off the deep end, and he drew a knife… Caleb drew his own to defend himself, but never did more than block Philip's blade… They fought to a standstill… then Philip lunged at me. I was… impaired at the time and couldn't defend myself fast enough, so Caleb…" Evelyn's eyes filled with tears; "… he jumped in the way. The forest was aflame from the magic they'd used, and the smoke was thick… and I saw my love dead on the ground, with his brother looming over him. I went wild and attacked, aiming to avenge Caleb but like I said before, I was impaired. I wounded him, but Philip escaped."
Luz, Eda, and Lilith stared at the woman with pale faces; they knew she was telling the truth thanks to the oath she'd taken, but the truth was more horrible than they'd expected. Eda and Lilith felt their throats go dry, while Luz's eyes filled with tears as she whispered; "I'm so, so sorry… I can't believe we were going to help him!"
Evelyn shook her head and wiped her eyes; "It's fine; Philip is a skilled liar. He has lied and cheated and betrayed his way through countless people; you've nothing to be ashamed of. Anyway, after Caleb died I took his body and buried him. I thought Philip would die from the wound I gave him, but he somehow survived and the ghoulish little monster found Caleb's grave and stole his body. I don't know why… maybe he just didn't like the idea of him being buried by a witch. Either way, that was the last nail in the coffin; I've spent my life since then caring for Caleb's legacy, and hunting his brother. We've been trying to kill each other ever since."
Luz felt pretty glum after hearing that, and still felt guilty for her part in helping Philip attack Evelyn's home, while Eda was grinding her teeth over the man's trickery. Lilith saw their reactions and decided to change the subject a bit before their moods darkened too much.
"One of these encounters between you led to you stealing the portal and his notes?" she asked.
"Yes." Evelyn nodded; "It was maybe… five, no, six months ago. I'd heard rumours that the Fang Brothers were hired by Philip to break into an ancient ruin in the Titan's Skull. Red and Green Fang abandoned Philip, but Blue Fang didn't and lost his life to a Stonesleeper. Later, Philip reappeared in town and were confronted by Red and Green Fang, who wanted to know what happened to their brother. They tried to burn Philip's diary, and he responded by freezing them both solid with an ice glyph and abandoning them to die from hypothermia. I'd heard he was in town and came running, but he was already gone by the time I arrived. I did save the brothers though, and hired them to help me so we could both get revenge. I had my Oracle Spirit by that point, so I was able to scry on Philip and discover him invading the Titan's skull with some new mercenaries. They all died to the Stonesleeper, but Philip dug up… something. It looked like a mirror, but it messed with my scrying as soon as it was unearthed and I didn't see what happened next."
"A mirror in the Titan's Skull… that sounds a lot like…!" Luz's eyes widened before she clamped her mouth shut. Orion had told her that one of the Collector's Mirrors was sealed up inside his skull! Had the relic Philip wanted been the Collector's mirror!? But why did he want it!?
Evelyn, unaware of Luz's thoughts, continued her story; "I kept scrying for Philip for a while after that, but didn't find him again until he came back to Bonesborough. He had the Portal Door with him at the time, so I was quick to attack him. We fought again and I wounded him again, earning myself the nickname; "The Bloody Buzzard of Bonesborough" due to how brutally I fought him. Unfortunately, Philip slipped away with that big combo of his, but I was able to snag the Portal Door AND his notes! That was the last time I saw him before today. And that's my whole story." she finished.
The Future Clawthornes sat in silence for a long moment, taking in everything that Evelyn had said. It was a lot to go through, but at least now they fully understood the story between Philip, Caleb, and Evelyn.
"You experienced a lot…" was all Luz could say, still trying to get her head around it all; "I'm sorry all that happened to you and your family."
Evelyn smiled; "Thank you; I appreciate the kind words, but I don't need sympathy. Philip will get what's coming to him one day; he's made too many enemies not to. Now, how about you tell me your story? I'm pretty familiar with our family tree, so I'm understandably shocked to see three new relatives coming out of the woodwork! Especially since the others of the clan left the Isles."
"You wouldn't believe us if we told you." Eda smiled sardonically.
"Then have Luz explain; an Angel can't lie, right?" Evelyn looked to the young Arch-Angel.
"Okay, but buckle up! This is gonna be a bit complicated…" Luz chuckled nervously, before beginning her story.
The story she told was a somewhat truncated version that really only went over the important parts. She started with the fact they were from almost 400 years into the future and had come through a Time Pool, then went back to how she came to be in the Demon Realm, becoming a Clawthorne, and how they lost the portal and came to the past in the first place. Evelyn listened with wide-eyed wonder, occasionally casting a spell to get more tea or stir the pot of stew on the stove. When Luz finally finished by repeating the events that happened between arriving in the past and showing up on Evelyn's doorstep with Philip, Evelyn slumped in her chair.
"And here I thought my story was complicated! So you two…" she pointed to Eda and Lilith, "… are my biological descendants from Titan knows how many generations into the future, and you're fighting against an evil super Angel that took over the Boiling Isles and stole the only portal Luz has to get back to her Angel mother with. And since you read that man's diary in the future, you knew he was making one and so came back to the past to get his help in making a new one…?"
"That's the long and short of it." Lilith nodded.
Evelyn looked down at her tea cup; "I think I need to add something stronger to this tea…"
"This must be hard for you." Luz said sympathetically; "I mean, if you have descendants then it must mean you have another lover someday. That's probably a lot to take in while still trying to avenge your husband."
Evelyn chuckled; "Right… about that. Remember how I said I was impaired when Philip first attacked us?"
Luz nodded slowly, while Eda and Lilith's eyes widened, both seeing what Evelyn was getting at.
"No way… You were pregnant!" Eda exclaimed.
Luz gasped; "What!? Then that means… if Eda and Lilith are descended from yours and Caleb's child then…!"
Eda went green; "I'll join you if you're getting out the hard stuff! I can't believe my sister and I are related to that Philip creep!" Eda cried, looking disgusted that she shared any blood with the zealot who'd hurt her daughter (even accidentally) and murdered her great great etc. grandfather!
"I'm not one for day drinking, but I'll take something stronger if it's on offer." Lilith chimed in, also looking paler than normal.
Evelyn chuckled sympathetically; "Sure. Anything for my great great, who knows how many greats, granddaughters! Lunch is basically ready anyway, so you can take a seat at the table while I fetch the food, a stiff drink… and someone you should meet."
Evelyn stood and walked over to the stairs leading down to her basement. She whistled a little tune, and a different tune was whistled back from the basement. Hearing that made Evelyn smile, then call out; "Your Uncle was sent packing, Dove. Mama and some new friends drove him off. Come on up for lunch, and you can meet them." she called. "Bring up that funny box and book too; one of our new friends could use it."
Luz, Eda, and Lilith didn't need to guess who Evelyn was talking to, and a moment later they heard the door to the basement open and the sound of little scampering feet running up the stairs. A little girl, no older than four or five, ran up into the room, a very familiar briefcase in her arms, as well as a bundle of aged parchment covered in esoteric notes. Luz recognised the folded up Portal Door instantly, and guessed that the parchment was Philip's notes. The little girl glanced at their guests for a second, then put the items on the table and then leapt at her Mama, giving the woman a tight hug.
"Mama! I'm glad you're okay!" she cheered in a sweet young voice.
"Hehe, with my little Dove cheering for me, how could I lose? Now lunch is ready, but let me introduce you to the ladies who helped save me." Evelyn said, gently moving her daughter in front of her so the little girl was facing her guests.
Luz examined the girl with friendly eyes and a kind smile, while Eda and Lilith took in the sight of their ancestor. The little girl had sandy golden hair, which was fluffy and messy like her Mama's, as well as light hazel eyes that looked almost golden, like Eda's. She has round cheeks, plump with baby fat, and a very slightly hooked nose that Luz found oddly familiar, though she couldn't place where she'd seen one like it. The little girl gave a bright smile, showing that she was missing a baby tooth, and she wiggled energetically, making the little pale green dress she wore swish back and forth. She was an adorable child, and Luz could definitely see the Clawthorne in her; resembling both Evelyn and the childhood pictures that her Abuela had shown her of her Mom and Tia.
"These ladies are sisters; Edalyn and Lilith, and Eda's adopted daughter, Luz. They helped Mama drive off your mean old Uncle!" Evelyn explained, before looking to her guests; "Everyone, this is my daughter Lillian."
Lillian gave a little wave; "Hello! Thank you for helping Mama!"
"You're welcome, sweetie!" Luz cooed. She loved little kids; they were always so cute! She especially loved watching Amity with them at the library.
"Hello. It's very nice to meet you, Lillian." Lilith said kindly.
"Yeah, we're always happy to meet a new munchkin." Eda joked.
Lillian giggled, but then her eyes were drawn to Luz; specifically her wings. "Mama, Luz has wings! Is she a birdy?"
"No Dove. Luz is special; she's a Good Angel." Evelyn explained.
Lillian's eyes shone with wonder; "There are Good Angels!? Wow! I wish Papa could have met her! Papa's book had Angels in them too!"
Eda and Lilith looked confused, but Luz guessed that the child was talking about the Bible. Caleb had likely kept his faith, even if he hadn't been a fanatic like his brother. Feeling sentimental, Luz knelt down and flapped her visible wings forward so she could gently tickle the little girl with her feathers, making Lillian squeal with delight. The child stroked them happily, and continued to do so as her Mama, Eda, and Lilith began setting the table and setting out their lunch. Once it was set out, they all sat down to eat together, with Luz entertaining Lillian throughout the meal while the adults talked. There was an unspoken agreement not to bring up the fact they were all Clawthornes, just in case it confused Lillian and influenced her young mind, which could cause ripple effects through time.
Once the meal was over, and Lillian was distracted by playing with their Palismen, Evelyn handed the portal notes to Luz.
"Here; you should take these. Philip stole the keystone to the gateway I used to get to Gravesfield so I wouldn't be able to go back there, so I'm afraid you won't likely be able to use the gate in the future to get back home. You'll need these to make a new one." Evelyn said.
Luz took the notes gratefully; "Thank you so much! It took a lot, but we finally have what we came for! And learned a bit about your family history too." she said, glancing to Eda and Lilith.
"It's your family history too, Luz." Eda reminded her, making the girl smile.
Lilith then raised a question; "What do we do about the actual Portal Door? This is the same door that you found in the future, right Sister?"
Eda nodded; "That's right. Which is why I know exactly what you should do with it." she said, looking serious.
"Really? Do tell; I was just going to let it rot in my basement if you weren't going to take it. I've got no interest in going back to the Human Realm after losing Caleb." Evelyn confessed.
Eda smirked; "That's exactly what I want you to do! Leave the portal in your basement. Even if you decide to leave this house, leave the portal buried here."
Evelyn and Lilith both looked very confused, but Luz saw what her Mom was getting at. When Luz had asked how Eda had gotten the portal, the woman had explained that she'd found it in the dirt not far from her house on the night she ran away. Considering Eda had pointed out earlier that her childhood home would one day be built near Evelyn's home, it was almost certain that Eda had tripped over the portal while running through the land on which Evelyn's house once sat. That was how Eda had gotten the portal; Evelyn stole it and buried it for her to find generations later!
Luz explained this to Evelyn and Lilith, and the former smiled and agreed; "Got it. I'll make sure the portal is buried and I won't mention it to Lillian again. She's only little, so she'll forget it ever existed before long. If she does ever ask, I'll distract her with Flap-Flap."
"Flap-Flap?" Eda raised an eyebrow.
"My late husband's Palisman. Flap-Flap is what Lillian calls him; he's her best friend. I'm not sure where he is; he tends to come and go, but he always comes back when Lillian wants him." Evelyn answered. "Now, about my garden…"
For the next few hours, Luz, Eda, and Lilith assisted Evelyn and Lillian in restoring the garden that had been destroyed in their battle. It wasn't a very difficult task thanks to magic; they cleared away the remnants of golems and roots, and trimmed back the grass to only where Evelyn wanted it, before Luz used her new earth glyph to rebuild the flower beds and stone borders (though she struggled with using the cumbersome drawn versions of the glyph). Once the garden was back to its proper condition, Luz used her plant magic to grow all the plants Evelyn wanted, and even included a little flowerbed full of Lilies, as a gift for Lillian. It was a pleasant afternoon, spent with Luz playing with Lillian and the Palismen while Evelyn told Eda and Lilith stories about their family's past, including some that had been lost by the time they were born.
But sadly, all good things have to come to an end and when the sun began to dip in the sky, Luz, Eda, and Lilith knew that it was time to return home. The tide would start coming in soon, and that would close the Time Pool for good, so it was time to say their goodbyes.
The three stood outside Evelyn's property as the woman herself and her daughter stood in their open gateway, both smiling sadly. Despite their bad first impressions of each other, both groups had grown quite fond of the other. Perhaps it was because they were family, but they'd definitely bonded more than one would expect, so their farewell (which all but Lillian knew would be forever) made them all feel a little choked up.
"Thank you again for the notes. I won't ever forget you and all the help you gave us." Luz said earnestly.
"You are welcome. And thank you for teaching me that Angels are not monsters, but just people like everyone else. I shudder to think that I almost had the same mindset towards Angels as Philip does towards Witches!" Evelyn replied, giving Luz a warm hug.
Eda stepped forward next and shook her ancestor's hand; "It's been fun, Evelyn. Keep being awesome and kicking that evil nerd's butt!"
"Naturally. And don't worry about the portal; it'll be waiting for you right where you remember it." Evelyn grinned. "And you girls can call me Eve. It's what Caleb always called me."
Next was Lilith, who bowed politely; "Thank you so much for sharing so much history with us! I've learned so much! I can't wait to use this to make an exhibit at work! Even Flora D'splora won't be able to measure up to this!"
Evelyn blinked; "I have no idea who that is, but good luck! And try to get out a little more. Clawthornes are explorers and adventurers by nature; we don't see the world through books, but through our own eyes."
Lilith took that advice in the spirit in which it was meant, then joined Eda in stooping to ruffle Lillian's hair. Lillian politely said goodbye to them, but she wasn't too upset to see them leave; a kid her age hadn't been too interested in the boring talk of grown ups. She did get teary eyed when she came to say goodbye to Luz though, as she'd rarely had a bigger kid to play with. The little girl hugged Luz tightly as she said goodbye.
"I'm gonna miss you, Luz! You're my best friend, just behind Flap-Flap!" she said, lip trembling as she tried not to cry.
Luz cooed and returned the hug; "Aw, and you're one of my best friends too! And you know I mean that, since Angels can't lie!" she said, playfully tapping Lillian's nose with her finger; "I'll miss you too, Lillian. Go out and make lots of friends, and have awesome adventures! That way even if I don't get to see you again, I'll hear all about the cool stuff you've done and will know my friend is out there having fun!"
Lillian sniffled, then nodded enthusiastically. She gave Luz one last squeeze, then released her so the trio could leave. They waved to each other and yelled one last goodbye as Luz and the Clawthorne Sisters walked back through the forest towards Bonesborough and the road back to the shoulder. Only a few seconds after turning away from the waving Evelyn and Lillian, Luz saw a flash of something red in her peripheral vision and turned to watch as a red bird landed beyond the garden wall of Evelyn's home. Luz didn't get a good look at the red bird, but she did hear Lillian's excited cry of "Flap-Flap!" just before they moved out of earshot. Putting that thought out of her mind, the young Angel smiled and walked with Eda and Lilith out of the forest.
After a brief stop in Bonesborough to return their borrowed clothes, and so Luz could change back into her own attire, they returned to the beach on the Titan's Right Shoulder and jumped through the Time Pool they'd come through, re-emerging in their own time. They arrived to find Raine, Rasiel, and King sitting around a campfire making s'mores, with small pillars of stone all over the beach… clearly King had been practicing with the earth glyph!
"You're back!" King cheered; "How'd it go? Did you find that Philip guy?"
Luz cringed; "Yeah, but he stunk. We got what we came for though!" she said, perking up as she showed the notes.
"We'll tell you all about it back at the house. How was your day?" Eda asked, giving Raine a peck on the cheek, much to their pleasure.
"Easy enough." Rasiel answered, seeing as Raine was now too busy kissing Eda back. "We mostly just hung out and tested some glyph combos with King. Though Raine did get an interesting scroll call…"
The girls turned to Raine, who frowned; "It was your Mom, Gwen. She'd apparently been trying to call you all day, but you couldn't answer being in another time period and all."
"Really? What did she want?" Eda asked. Since she was on good terms with her Mom again, she'd taken to talking to her regularly over their scrolls.
Raine's face fell further; "W-Well she was visiting the Owl House with your Dad. He'd just got back from his latest trip and wanted to see you. I explained you were occupied and he seemed to understand but…"
Eda bit her lip guiltily; "He thinks I'm still avoiding him…"
Rasiel raised an eyebrow; "Well I mean, aren't you?"
"I guess. I really need to go talk to him, especially with everything that's happened. It's just finding the time. And the courage too…" Eda admitted. She'd already decided she was definitely going to finally face her father again, but the reality of what that meant was still scary for her, especially after all these years.
"Why don't we discuss it as a family? You, me, King, Tia Lily, and Titi Raine. We could all visit together." Luz suggested.
Lilith nodded; "That would be nice. I've only seen him briefly since I moved back home, since he was getting ready for another of his travels, so I'd like to spend more time with him."
King nodded eagerly too, and Raine seemed agreeable, so Eda just sighed; "We'll talk about it later. But let's focus on reuniting Luz with her Mami before we worry about me and Dad."
"Right! I've got school again tomorrow, but first thing after I get home, it's portal building time!" Luz declared.
Her family gave a little cheer, and they all started to head home. However as they walked, something niggled at the back of Luz's mind; Lillian had definitely been an adorable child, but something about her had definitely been familiar. Luz wondered if it was just the Clawthorne in the child reminding her of Eda, but that didn't feel quite right.
"Who does she really remind me off?" Luz thought, before King began gushing about his latest glyph combo and all thoughts of the odd familiarity fled from Luz's mind.
[Elsewhen]
It was a furious Philip who returned to his secret hideout hidden in the base of the Titan's Skull. Holding his broken nose with one hand, Philip used the other and his own blood to inscribe a complex glyph combo into the bone wall, causing a secret passage to open up and grant him passage into the hideout itself. He walked to the end of the cave, feeling his right arm swelling as the glyph markings he'd carved into his arm began to pulsate. He groaned in pain, and muttered foul curses as he walked into the chamber that housed his books, his research, and the mirror he'd spent so long trying to acquire.
A shadow emerged from the mirror and began to watch him, giggling childishly as Philip pulled back a tarp in the corner of the room, revealing a pile of dead and drained Palismen. He rifled through them for a moment until he found one that was merely dormant… though it didn't stay that way for long. With a sickening crunch, he snapped the poor creature's head off and inhaled the green magic that rose up from inside it, sighing with relief as his arm calmed down. His nose also stopped hurting, though a scar had begun to form… Philip saw the green tinge to the scar in the mirror and grit his teeth.
"Those damnable witches! As if they haven't taken enough from me! And now they've taken the soul of a young Angel too!" Philip snarled.
"Ooh, an itty bitty birdy came all the way to the Demon Realm? How fun! Did you catch them? I wanna play with them!" the Shadow said cheerfully.
"Patience, Collector." Philip said sternly; "You will be playing with no one until the Day of Unity is complete… though now I know where to find the piece I need to finish it! I just need to save her soul first."
The Collector rolled his eyes, then giggled; "Speaking of Angels, I can smell their magic on you! Did the birdy give you a blessing?"
"She did. That power was intoxicating! I felt closer to God than ever before!" Philip declared, before reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out two items; a dagger coated in golden blood… and the still bleeding pinky finger that he'd accidentally cut from Luz's hand.
"Ooh, a souvenir! What are you going to do with that?" the Collector asked.
Philip placed the finger into a glass vial, and then did the same with some of the blood on his dagger. "For now, nothing. I'd need the whole thing to supply the Bone of Ortet, so I can't make multiple back-ups. With the Eclipse so far away, I can't afford to waste it until the time is right. But when the day comes, I'll have a safety net should I be unable to find and save Luz's soul in time. Angels can live for 1000 years even at their lowest forms, so I'm sure she'll still be alive and somewhere in this wretched realm."
"She may live longer than you think, Uncle."
Philip frowned and turned to face the newcomer; a boy in a white cloak and a golden mask. "Zachary. I take it you completed your task?"
The masked boy nodded and revealed a large piece of what appeared to be reptilian skin; "Fresh Selkidomus scales, just as you ordered." he tossed the scales onto his Uncle's workbench. "Are you going to tell me what they're for?" he asked impetuously.
Philip narrowed his eyes; "Do not get ahead of yourself, Zachary. I grow tired of your insubordination." he snapped. "And what did you mean about Luz living longer than I think? Have you been spying on me again!?"
Zachary tilted his head; "No Uncle. I merely returned earlier than I expected, so I took the liberty of spying on the Clawthorne Witch's house. I had no idea you were planning to attack it today, and I intended to join you, but the witch raised those barriers and kept me out. Since I couldn't help fight, I decided to stick around even after you fled… I witnessed the Angel leave with those two witches, and when I followed them, they disappeared through a Time Pool on the Titan's shoulder."
Philip's eyes widened; "A Time Pool! Did you follow them through!?"
Zachary shook his head; "No, Uncle. The tide was coming in and I thought I'd be trapped."
Philip scowled; "I see… no matter. The information you gave was still useful. I will see Luz Noceda again one day, I am sure of it! She must have come from the future; it's the only way she could know of me! I'll need to be sure to leave evidence behind for her to find…" he muttered that last part as he glanced over at his diary.
The Collector gave a sly grin; "If you live long enough! The Eclipse isn't for almost another 400 years after all!"
"I will live long enough to see this through, no matter what I have to do!" Philip declared; "Now if only I could get my hands on another Angelic Blessing! With the power of an angel, I would be able to achieve all of my goals!"
Zachary scoffed under his breath, but the Collector's grin grew wider; "I don't know about the Ickle Birdy Luz, but I might know where you can find another Angel… Care for a trip to the desert?"
Philip turned to stare at the Collector, whose shadowy hand had shaped itself into a cube. Realisation hit the man like a ton of bricks; "The Black Tomb…! An Angel is interred inside!"
"Bingo!" the Collector giggled.
Philip began to smirk; so an Angel was buried in the Black Tomb… and Luz had given him everything he needed to open it! He glanced at the vial of her blood, then thought of her warnings of what guarded the tomb. He turned to Zachary.
"I've new orders for you. Go out and hire a mercenary band… the largest you can. Offer them any amount of money they ask for."
"And how are we supposed to pay them?" Zachary asked.
"We won't be." Philip chuckled darkly; "None of them will be leaving Volcarpalis alive. After all… there be Dragons!"