Chapter 5: Independent Study

The main group can be seen at Eda's 'Human Collectibles' shop. King sat on the table as Luz read from the first Azura book to King. Eda stood to the side as she dusted the table with a bored expression, and Flint sat to Luz's left as he drew in his sketchbook.

"Emboldened by the dishonor Hecate had shown, Azura lifted her staff to the cotton-candy skies and shouted, 'I challenge you to a Witch's Duel!' And look! I drew a flip book. Pew, pew, pew!" Luz read, flipping between two pages at the corner with small drawings.

"Show me the picture." King requested, peeking over the top of the book.

Luz blinked. "What?"

"Show me the picture!" King requested more loudly as Luz indulges him. "Hah! I can draw better than that. You know, they once called me the King of Artists." King gestured dramatically.

Flint snorted, showing off his drawings of the Isles. "What is a king to a god?" Flint said smugly.

"Wait. I thought you were the King of Demons. Are you just making this up now?" Luz gave him a suspicious look.

King waved her suspicion off. "Doesn't matter. What's important is that my followers would leave me offerings in fear of me!"

"Well, I can offer you more of this tantalizing book." Luz offered.

Eda groaned. "Ugh! Please stop reading that. Its flowery language is an insult to witches and driving away all of our serious customers!"

Flint looked Eda dead in the eye. "Eda. There is literally no one else here." Flint stated, gesturing to the empty street. "There isn't even another stand set up. And we've been here for an entire hour." Flint wasn't pleased being dragged out there and their time wasted like this. "Now that I think about it, why have we been here for an hour in an empty street? Did that curse scramble your sense of logic, or were you just born that way?"

"This is a bad omen. There must be something horrible happening today." Eda said dramatically, choosing to ignore the latter end of Flint's words.

"Luz, Flint!"

The group turns in the direction of the voice to see Gus and Willow run up to the stand. "Something amazing is happening today!"

"Gus, Willow!" Luz greeted excitedly.

Flint gave a two-finger wave. "Sup guys?"

Willow holds up a flier. "It's the annual Covention! Student witches get to see all the types of covens before they're placed in one. There's even a mystery guest this year!" Willow said excitedly.

Luz lit up at that info, leaning up against Eda pleadingly. "A job fair for witches! Eda, can we go?"

"Absolutely not." Eda denied without hesitation, causing Luz to groan and drop to the ground.

"I never joined a coven for a reason. Sure it's like a fun club for witches, but you're also giving up your magical independence to be part of a crooked system." Eda explained.

Willow frowned at the woman's words, lowering the flier a bit with a hum.

Eda noticed this and tried to salvage it. "Eh, but, you know, no judgment. In any case, I haven't been to one since we were girls." Eda said wistfully.

"'We'?" Two voices rang out.

Eda's eyes widened as she internally swore like that human she met in the human city called 'Vegas.'

"I-the-I mean-" Eda sputtered out as Luz popped back up from the ground and Flint slammed himself onto the table and looked at her with expectant curiosity.

"Who's 'we'? You have a mysterious past!" Luz said, pointing at her.

"Tell us! Tell us!" Luz and Flint chanted, both of them holding their arms forward and banging on the table in sync with each other and the chant.

"No." Eda didn't budge, crossing her arms.

Flint tilted his head curiously from the table as he looked up at her. "Does this have something to do with that person you said tried to keep you out of trouble? 'Lily' was it?" Flint asked curiously.

Eda pointed at Flint. "You shut your trap!" Eda said defensively.

"I'll take that as a 'yes.'" Flint said, rising to full attention. He then turned to Luz, who he knew had an idea, glancing at her Azura book as the two shared a mischievous glint in their eyes.

"Okay. Then you leave us no choice." Luz grinned, turning to King, as the three's currently shared brain cell led them to the same idea.

"Do it." Flint and Luz said in sync.

King grabs the Azura book. "'You shall not shan't doeth no more harm,' Azura callethed out..." King began reading the book aloud.

[Okay, real talk, this is a double negative. Supposedly, Azura is saying this person "Shall not shall not" do any more harm, because "shan't" is actually a legit, albeit very rarely used, contraction. So not only is the grammar massively dependent on whatever was said by the person Azura is responding to, in regards to whether the grammar is correct or not, but it would also mean that she is encouraging harm. Like…huh?!]

Eda looked into the distance with a thousand-yard stare as she walked away with the Portal Door folded up in her hand as King followed along the table, "So flowery, so awful." Eda said in blank horror.

The Owl Lady opened the Portal Door and stepped through it.

"Hecate could only screech, screech as did she, for the screeching did worseneth." King continued. As the door began to close, Luz tossed King through. A moment later, the door unfolded faster as Eda walked back in with King sitting atop her head.

"Stop it! Stop it! I will literally do anything to stop this!" Eda pleaded.

Luz and Flint both just smiled smugly, fist-bumping at their successful plan without even looking.

Willow turned to Gus to get a read on what he thought of what they had just watched, only to find him mimicking the fist-bump. Gus used both of his hands and repeated the action a few times, watching his hands intently as he did it, a slowly forming smile growing. Willow shook her head fondly at her friend's antics.

Eda grunted as she struggled to pull her hood on, King hanging off of it as he attempted to help. "Gotta keep a low profile," Eda said.

The group currently stood outside the building the Covention was being held in, with Eda in the process of putting her hood on in an attempt to make her less recognizable.

Luz grunted as she and Flint tried to shove Eda's stray hair into the cowl. "Is this cowl really necessary?" Luz questioned.

"Do you think all my wanted posters are for petty theft?" Eda asked, only for a number of small objects to fall out of her hair. Flint just stares at her with an unamused look. "Okay, it might be a factor," Eda admits before scooping the items back into her cowl. "But the big whammy is I disobeyed the law and refused to join a coven. If I'm seen, I could go to jail. Again."

Willow stepped forward with one of Eda's wanted posters in-hand. "Maybe this informative event will inspire you to join a coven." The plant witch said with a hopeful smile.

Eda responded by tracing a spell that pulled Willow's cowl over her face and made her drop the poster.

"Let's just get this over with." Eda drawled as they finally entered the building.

They entered the building and saw several booths set up, each with a sign for one coven or another. From the ceiling hangs nine large colorful banners all with their own unique symbol.

"Whoa. Was I even alive before now?" Luz asked in wonder.

"I take it those are for the main tracks Bump showed us?" Flint asked.

Gus nodded. "Yep, those are the main nine covens, but there are hundreds of other ones you can join."

The group trekked forward as Willow continued the explanation. "There's Flower Coven, Artist Coven, Big Dog Coven, Small Cat Coven, Tiniest Cat Coven-"

Eda's loud groan interrupted Willow as they stopped in front of the Cooking Coven booth.

"Those all seem way too niche," Flint remarked.

"Also the Grumpy Coven," Willow whispers.

"What was that?" Eda asked challengingly.

Willow yips as everyone but Eda and Flint run off to escape her.

A random bystander walked up to the two. "Uh, excuse me, ma'am, but you look rather familiar," he remarks, looking between Eda's wanted poster nearby and her.

"Uh...no, I don't. Distraction spell!" Eda denied, before throwing something from her cowl at the ground between them. The item was just a bag of snacks called 'Hex Mix.' Understandably, it does nothing, but Eda runs away anyway.

The man looked at Flint in confusion as the boy pinched the bridge of his nose. "Don't ask."

Eda then returns, dragging the man's hood over his face and scooping up the Hex Mix, before running away again with Flint on her tail. They quickly catch up to the others.

"Ooh, is that the Construction track?" Luz stops and points to a nearby booth.

"That's what the track leads to, the Construction Coven," Willow explained.

A shorter-statured, bearded witch in a hard hat and the conspiracy prisoner stood next to two pallets, one of wood and one of bricks. The witch grabs both pallets from the bottom and tosses them in the air. When the materials fall back down, they perfectly construct a small house.

"They're one of the main nine. They use power glyphs to increase their strength." Willow continued.

The witch removes his hard hat to pull off a power glyph from a stack atop his head. He peels the adhesive off the back of one and puts it on the once-prisoner's nose, her pupils constricting before she begins screaming with orange energy around her. She then proceeds to pick up the witch, throwing him in the air.

"Ha-a-a! I'm the destroyer of worlds!" She declared, running over and tossing the Construction Coven behind her.

Two other Construction witches suddenly run over to try and restrain her as she grabs a giant hammer. "Hey, that's the opposite of construction!" one of them says.

"Huh…neat," Flint remarked.

"Huh…neat," A light blue double of Flint ducks out from behind him.

Flint looked at the double in surprise. "Nani?"

The illusionary double walks over to two Illusion track witches. It waves at them before disappearing, the two witches beside it posing.

Gus ran over to the other witches. "Ah! You've been taken in by the allure of the Illusionist Coven. We like to magic with a hint..." The boy disappears in a cloud of smoke, reappearing a few feet to the right. "...of showmanship." Gus finished, bowing as the other two appeared next to him in their own clouds of smoke.

Flint hummed. "I can imagine those tricks are quite handy for entertainment," Flint said.

"Wow! Acceptance? Comradery? A sense of belonging? Covens sound incredible!" Luz admired before turning to Eda. "Eda, why haven't you ever joined one?"

Flint kept looking at the Illusion track booth as his face went into a frown. "I think we're about to find out."

Eda leaned over, putting one hand on each human's shoulder as she directed Luz's attention back to the Illusion booth. "Watch closely you two."

One of the Illusion Track witches running the booth now stood with a new one.

"When you join a coven, all your other magic is sealed away."

The first witch put on a thick glove and pressed the palm of it against the second one's wrist. After a moment, a seal in the shape of a mirror appears on the witch's wrist, with light blue lines running from it up his arms and face. His pales slightly as the lines fade, completing the seal. [Fixed an error in the show. The brands are done using gloves later, so it would make sense to edit this with that in mind. The dude just uses his normal hand. It would make sense if he was like, the Coven Head maybe, but not just some random student. So now, he's using one of those gloves.]

"From now on, that kid will only be able to make illusions. Since I never joined a coven, I can do every kind of magic." Eda demonstrates by creating a fireball in one hand and a ball of water in the other, before dispersing them both. "That's why I'm the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles," the older witch finishes before walking away.

Willow, Luz, and Gus hurry after her with amazement. Flint however stands still for a moment, staring at the glove with a frown. Something felt...wrong about that. At the same time, this branding glove intrigued him. He pulled out his sketchbook for a moment and drew up a rough copy of the glove. The glove may have been an insult to true magic, but something about it sparked curiosity within him.

'I don't like how that guy's skin paled after getting that seal.' Flint thought. The way the witch's skin lost color reminded him too much of his own affliction before arriving in the Isles. It was like the color in his skin was…drained.

Flint was then snapped out of his thoughts as he looked at something nearby.

"Are you bestowing gifts upon me? Yes! I accept your offering! The King of Demons is-"

"Coming with me." Flint's voice rang out, as King was suddenly swiped from the ground and now being held under his arm.

"Weh?! Flint!? They were going to give me gifts!" King whined.

Flint just kept walking toward the others. "You cause just about as much trouble as Luz. No way I'm letting you out of our sight." Flint stated simply.

King crossed his arms while still being carried. "You're no fun."

"It's called being responsible. Unfortunately, someone has to take up that role and be the adult around here." Flint stated.

"Isn't Eda an adult?" King questioned. His response came in a half-lidded look. "Okay…yeah…you have a point," King admitted.

Flint and King finally caught up to the others as they stood before a doorway flanked with guards wearing bird-like masks and velvet ropes leading to the doorway.

"That panel looks popular." Luz pointed out.

Gus gasped with excitement. "It's the Emperor's Coven! Do you think they'll sign my forehead?" He asked, turning to Willow excitedly.

"Only one way to find out!" Willow responded, matching her friend's enthusiasm as they both ran ahead.

Flint blinked dumbfoundedly as he watched the two run through the doorway.

Luz and Flint start to follow them, but stop when they realize Eda hasn't moved.

"Aren't you coming, Eda?" Luz asked.

Eda stood with her arms crossed. "No way. Of all the covens, they're the worst. I'll wait out here."

"I get it, Eda. Covens: bad. Individualism: good. But we're still figuring this world out, so I'm going to go in there and make up my own mind, okay?" Luz said, walking in after Willow and Gus.

Flint shrugged. "Even if you don't like something, it doesn't mean you can't still learn a thing or two from it," Flint said before heading in with King in tow.

"I just saw her."

Eda turned to see the guy from earlier talking to a guard and holding one of her wanted posters. "She's over there. I think that's her!" He said, pointing at her.

Eda quickly runs in after them. Guess she was gonna see the presentation after all.

Eda walked down the stands in the auditorium and sat down to Luz's right, while Flint sat to Luz's left with King in his lap.

"All right, let's see this mess," Eda said begrudgingly.

The lights dimmed as Principal Bump rose from the floor with spirals of green magic with a spotlight illuminating him. The audience applauds and cheers as he summons a mic.

"Hello, Bonesborough!" Bump began to address the crowd, causing everyone's cheering to quiet so they could hear the man. "Students ask me all the time, 'Principal Bump, what's the height of magical achievement?'"

A random kid in the crowd stood up a few rows in front of the group, bringing everyone's attention. "Is it this?" The kid uses a spell that proceeded to increase the size of his head greatly, falling over and crushing the student next to him. Flint stared at the kid, baffled.

Principal Bump watched on and grimaced. "Wow. I failed you as a principal." Bump then moved on from…thatand grabbed the mic. "It's being selected to join the best of the best. And there are none better than the jewel of the coven system and the enforcers of his will, the Emperor's Coven." Bump spoke, introducing three witches as they appeared ahead of him.

Flint watched intently at the display.

"Feast your eyes on this elite force, each member handpicked to help usher in a new age of controlled magic." Bump continued. Each coven guard traces a white spell circle above their head. One produces a jet of flame, another water, and the third made lightning. The three elements come together in a firework that turns to confetti, which Luz grabs.

"Members of the Emperor's Coven have access to all. Yes, all forms of magic. Ooh. Aah."

As the audience mimicked the principal, Flint frowned.

"But...only the best can ascend these ranks. Some day that could be one of you!" Bump points into the crowd, turning out to be directly at Amity who was sitting a few rows over, who brightens and squeals. This made Eda laugh.

Flint and Luz blinked in surprise at the girl's reaction. Neither of them had been expecting that kind of behavior from the, as Flint referred to her later, "Witch spelled with a 'B'."

The three guards then grabbed their capes and disappeared in flashes of white light.

"And now, I'm pleased to introduce the esteemed leader of this coven and this year's mystery guest. You know her, you love her! Lilith!" Bump hyped up.

As the audience gasped, Eda went rigid and stopped laughing to look on in surprise.

A bright flash of light near the ceiling turns into a blue raven sitting on a branch. It flies off the branch to the stage, landing to reveal the supposed 'Lilith.' She was a tall, slender, woman who looked to be in her mid-to-late 40s. She had ivory skin, the signature pointed ears of all witches, black lipstick, and mint green eyes. She also has dark claw-like nails and dark-navy straight hair. Her attire consisted of a long-sleeved two-tone dark gray dress and dark gray laced boots.

It disappears with a screech as she lifts her arms and sends her mask flying. The audience applauds and cheers, while Eda is looking at her speechless. Luz and Flint noticed this.

"I take it she's the 'Lily' you were referring to?" Flint questioned.

"You know her?" Luz also asked.

Eda was still in a stunned state. "You could say that," was all they got from her

Luz gasped. "Mysterious past!"

Flint looked to King expectantly. King crawled up to Flint's ear and whispered something into his ear, causing Flint's eyes to widen. "Really now?"

"Thank you, all." Lilith thanked as she magically sent her cape and mask back into Principal Bump, revealing an inverted kite-shaped sky-blue gem on her sternum and attached to her dress. "It wasn't easy for me to rise to the top. I also started from humble beginnings."

"Like me?" The giant-headed kid spoke up.

"Now I have the highest honor of enforcing the Emperor's will. So be more! The Emperor's Coven awaits you!" Lilith said dramatically, spinning as she created the raven illusion again. It spreads its wings before bursting into balls of light. Lilith poses with her arms out, smirking, while Eda glares at her.

The four could be seen leaving the auditorium as Eda kept walking ahead of them and King at Flint's left.

"Eda! Where are you going?" Luz called out.

"I'm gonna head home and wash the con funk off my skin," Eda said with displeasure.

"But we haven't even taken the quiz to determine our coven type!" Luz said, pulling a thick magazine out of her pocket, and holding it above her head. Eda doesn't even look as she casts a laser beam through it and walks away. Luz pulls the magazine down to read it, walking without looking.

"Ooh, a punky potionist," Luz said.

Flint saw the way she was walking. "Luz, watch where you're-"

Flint's attempt at warning her came too late, as she accidentally backed into Amity with a grunt.

"Watch where you-" Amity's eyes widened in recognition before twisting into a scowl. "Oh, it's you."

"Uh...hey, Amity. I-I'm Luz. The human. Hi!" Luz said nervously, offering her hand for a handshake.

"Good grief. Luz, how many times have our moms and I told you to look where you're going?" Flint asked with exasperation.

Luz then pulled her hand back and began counting on her fingers. "Um…more than I have fingers and toes?"

Flint pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh.

Amity ignores Luz and turns to Flint. "And you, Mr. 'Don't deserve to know my name,' don't think I've forgotten about that embarrassment. I'm not going to take any of that from a no-good magicless freak." Amity said, walking away.

Luz could practically feel the air become thick and cold with those words as she quickly turned to Flint, who was not happy.

Luz stepped between the two nervously and began trying to defuse the situation "H-Hey, there's no need to be calling anyone names like that. Why don't we all just calm down and-"

"You callin' me a freak you minty-haired bitch?!" Flint said angrily, trying to get up in Amity's face as Luz tried to push him back to no avail.

"Yeah I am! Neither of you can be here! This Covention is for witches only." Amity bit back in equal anger as she turned back around.

Luz turned back to Amity with a shaky smile. "Actually, we're learning that. We're getting lessons from a powerful witch and a ferocious demon."

Amity looks at the ground nearby with a raised brow. "Is that your ferocious demon there?" Amity remarked snidely.

King raised his arms up in exasperation. "What'd I do?!"

Flint growled. "Leave him out of this."

Amity scoffed. "You two and your pet will only give witches in training a bad name."

Hearing Amity's words finally wore Flint's minuscule patience out. "That's it!" Flint yelled, gaining everyone's attention nearby as he stomped between her and his friends, pure rage in his eyes as he got up in her face. The action made Luz aware of how Amity and Flint were equal in height. "No one talks to my friends like that, you got me? Actions speak louder than words so…I challenge you to a Witch's Duel!" Flint declared.

Everyone around gasps. Amity stared at him unmoving, and Luz swore she saw the stereotypical lightning glare happen between them.

"I accept. Terms?"

"When I win, you have to apologize to my friends and admit that humans can be witches too," Flint states his terms firmly.

Amity scoffed. "Fine by me. But when I win, not only do you have to tell the whole Covention you're not a witch, but you and your friend 'Luz' have to stop training forever."

The mentioning of Luz actually caused Flint to waver a bit and become hesitant. He actually began to consider backing down…

But then he turned and saw the fiery look in Luz's eyes. One accompanied by a nod. She trusted him.

Turning back to Amity, his expression returned to the fierce look he'd had prior.

"Deal. Let's shake on it." Flint approves, holding out his hand.

Amity draws a spell circle around it before shaking.

"The Everlasting Oath is sealed," Amity said confidently, pulling her hand back and the spell circle faded.

'Something tells me I might have bit off more than I can chew…nah!' Flint thought.

"Meet back inside the theater in one hour. Let's see what kind of witch you are." Amity said before walking away.

Flint and Luz stared at each other for a moment before Flint turned to King. "Do you think I can win this?" He asked.

King shrugged. "I dunno."

When the three found Eda she looked to be preoccupied with Lilith in a similar stance Flint and Amity had been in earlier.

"Well, this sure looks familiar," Luz remarked.

"Oh, it's a promise," Eda threatened when they got into earshot.

Luz ran over and popped up between them. "Eda, we need your help! Flint may have challenged Amity to a witch's duel, and I think she wants him dead!"

Lilith was surprised at the girl's appearance before noticing Flint and King walking up to them. "Mmm, it seems your student has met my strongest protégé. And look at those ears!" Lilith said with a hint of surprise, noticing the detail on both of them. "Are they human? Where did you even find one, let alone two?"

Flint sent her a rather rude gesture at that.

"Okay, Edalyn." Lilith disregarded Flint as she traced a spell circle, causing Eda's wanted posters around the building to burn away. "For one day, you won't have to hide from the law, because I want to see how good a teacher you really are," Lilith said her piece before walking away.

"Come on, kids. Time to prepare for bloodshed." Eda said, resting a hand on each kid's shoulder.

"But...whose blood?" Luz questioned.

"Anyone's guess!" Eda said with a chuckle.

Moments later, the four were sitting in a nearby hallway.

"All right, level with me kid. What did you do? You're not usually the one making trouble like this." Eda questioned.

"I challenged a bully to a Witch's Duel and wagered both me and Luz being able to learn magic," Flint stated.

Eda blinked at that. "Okay…wasn't expecting you would pull a stunt like that."

"She insulted Luz and King," Flint added.

Eda gave a deadpan look. "And that explains it." Even in the short time knowing Flint, Eda knew he was dedicated to protecting those he cared about, especially Luz.

"By the way, what's an 'Everlasting Oath'?" Luz asked.

Eda facepalmed. "Oh for Titan's sake." Eda pulled the hand from her face. "I'll admit, you dug yourself into quite the hole there kid. An Everlasting Oath is unbreakable. As long as you're under the terms of it, or all parties are in agreement, you'll be incapable of breaking it no matter what."

"So like, if someone's wager ended in them needing to only ever tell the truth or something, then they could never lie again?" Flint asked.

"Pretty much, yeah. The magic forces them to do it no matter what, so you can't even resist it either." Eda confirmed.

"It could be worse. It could've been Luz who was fighting." King chimed in.

The three turned to Luz who shrugged. "Honestly, yeah."

They all turned to see Lilith and Amity standing nearby. Amity commanded an abomination that comes up to Amity's shoulders to rise from the ground with a groan. It twisted its head off and throws it, hitting a bakers coven witch in the face. The conspiracy prisoner grabs his hand, chucks him, and then screams in another power-up pose.

Eda scratched the back of her head with a sigh. "I'll be real with you, I don't have a clue how this might go down. Don't get me wrong, I know you're a capable kid, but…I really don't know how good you'll do. You have those glyph thingies and some fire magic, but I've never really seen you do much else." Eda said honestly.

"I can't believe I might have to stop learning magic!" Luz cried out in despair.

Flint looked at her with a determined look. "That's not going to happen. I will win. I will not lose." Flint stated.

Eda stood with her hands on her hips. "Listen to me, you two. We are not gonna let those snobs win that easy! We are not gonna let them win at all. I've got an idea." Eda said with a smirk.

"If it involves cheating, hell no," Flint said with a flat tone.

"Oh come on! You're not even gonna consider it?" Eda asked with exasperation. The glare he sent her way made her flinch.

"No. If I'm gonna prove myself, then this has to be played fair and square." Flint shot back.

Eda groaned. "Fine."

Sometime later, everyone was back in the theater. Lilith and Amity were standing on the dais, while Eda and Flint stood opposite them. In the stands, Luz sat next to Willow and Gus with King in her lap.

"Beloved citizens, the Emperor's Coven proudly presents an impromptu demonstration of the sort of witch we seek every year. Introducing Amity Blight." Lilith announced.

The crowd erupted in cheers as Willow, Gus, Luz, and King watched on nervously after hearing all the praise Amity was getting. The girl was clearly a fan-favorite.

"Versus...some human boy." Lilith finishes as Eda steps out of the way and proudly presents a determined Flint.

The applause ground to a halt as the people murmured amongst each other.

"A human?" "Humans can't do magic!" "He's not Amity."

The group in the stands got a tad more nervous. Luz eventually took a few deep breaths to calm herself. 'I have to have faith in him. If there's anything I know about Flint, it's that he never gives up. He's never given up on me…so I need to do the same for him.' Luz thought before cupping her hands around her mouth. "GO FLINT!" She cheered, drawing everyone's attention to her, but she didn't care.

Eda looks down at Flint with a hint of nervousness. "You're sure you can do this?"

Flint didn't take his eyes off Amity. He was laser-focused on the task at hand.

Seeing that she wouldn't get any actual response from him, Eda sighed as she stepped back. "Go get her kid." Eda said with an undertone of concern.

The two combatants walked forwardwith fierce glares of determination. Suddenly a bell rings (screams), commencing the fight. Luz, still nervous, and Amity, confident, approach each other as the audience cheers.

Amity makes the first move by tracing out a large spell circle on the ground. "Abomination. Rise."

At her command, an abomination rose with a groan from the spell circle and towered over the two. Flint just stared with a calculative look.

"Whoa," Amity breathed out in surprise before smirking. "Show me what you got, human!"

Flint's eyes narrowed as the abomination rose its foot in an attempt to stomp on him. Before it could reach him, Flint swiftly side-stepped to the left, holding out his arm and creating a scarlet spell circle in the air, much to the audience and Amity's shock.

"Wait, what?" Amity breathed out as a small baseball-sized fireball shot into the abomination's right shoulder, making it sizzle from the heat.

The crowd murmured amongst themselves. They'd never heard of a human being able to perform magic before. This was unprecedented.

Amity huffed. "Doesn't matter. Attack!" Amity called forth, ordering her abomination on the attack.

The abomination groaned, lifting its right arm up to try and slam it down on the boy, fracturing the ground a bit but missing Flint as he dodged to the left this time, shooting another fireball at its other shoulder this time.

"Is this all you've got?" Flint taunted.

Amity growled. "Don't give him time to think!"

Flint kept weaving out of the path of the abomination. He couldn't get close to Amity due to the abomination not only serving to attack him but also defending her from Flint. Every time he would try and attack her head-on, the abomination would be there and she would move away. This tactic continued as Flint would pepper the abomination with fireballs after dodging.

'Alright. Maybe it's time to do something outside of the thing Gohan sucks at.' Flint thought, deciding to try something new. After another dodge, he made another spell. This time, however, it shot a current of icy wind at the sludge-based golem. This caused the thing's torso to freeze before collapsing into a puddle of goop.

Luz pumped his fist. "Yes! Way to go Flint!" She cheered.

Flint turned to Amity with a triumphant smirk on his face. "Ha! Take that!"

Amity stared at him unamused, wordlessly making another circle and summoning another abomination in the previous one's place.

Flint stared at it and sighed. "Me and my big mouth."

This charade kept up for another 10 minutes. Flint would dodge and counterattack, using fire or ice. He even used one with each hand on one of them and caused an explosion in the one soldier, but Flint was beginning to tire. Amity hadn't been moving much throughout the fight, but he had been mobile almost the whole time while drawing on his magic reserves for each attack. Even when he'd managed to defeat the sludgy golem, Amity simply created a new one in its place. She had so far created 4 total, and it was admittedly starting to wear on her own magic reserves.

Amity was getting annoyed. This 'human' was more of a pest than she thought. It should have only taken one of her abominations to stop him, not to mention the fact that he ended up destroying multiple of them. She noticed he was tiring out, but how could she utilize that?

Flint got close to her again, but she was able to get away rather easily. When she stood straight, she noticed she'd stepped in something. Looking down, she noticed that she was standing in the puddle her original golem had become, which sparked an idea within her.

"I'll admit, you've lasted longer than I thought you would. But it's time to bring this duel to an end." Amity said, casting another spell circle.

Suddenly, all the remaining abomination goo that was surrounding Flint on the ground began to rise up. Flint quickly realized that he was stuck in the middle of it all, the sludge blocking off all paths of escape. He tried to fight back, but there was too much for him to handle at once, as the goo wrapped around him in the form of chains, holding him in place.

Flint struggled as he tried to free himself to no avail. The goo prevented him from moving his hands as they held them in place, trapping him. Even so, Flint continued to struggle.

The others in the audience looked on in despair, none more than Luz. She couldn't believe it. Even after all the effort Flint had put in, everything he did to try and defend her and help her learn magic…was this really where it would end?

Luz gritted her teeth. "DON'T GIVE UP FLINTLOCK! YOU'VE NEVER GIVEN UP BEFORE, SO DON'T START NOW!" Luz cheered him on.

"Come on kid!" Eda encouraged from the outer edge of the arena.

"Destroy the non-believer!" King cheered in his own way.

"You go human!"

Luz blinked in surprise, looking to the source and seeing it was actually from one of the people in the stands who was cheering. A complete stranger at that. Soon enough, and much to the group's surprise, others actually began to cheer for him as well. Even if Amity was the fan-favorite, everyone seemed to like a good dark horse story.

Back in the arena, Amity scoffed as she looked at him. "I can't believe they think an amateur like you could beat me. Pretty stupid if you ask me."

Flint's pupils shrank in anger as the abomination goo held him in place. "Shut up!"

Amity laughed. "I mean seriously. Even if you are a human that somehow has magic, I've had it all my life. I've trained with it for years. But you? Please! I can tell you've hardly ever used it in your sad life, either that or you're just that bad with it. Your friend must really not care if you're battling for both of you. As soon as I'm done with you, I won't have to worry about either of you getting in my way with magic because you won't be allowed to use it." The bully stated with a smile.

Something clicked in Flint's mind, causing him to hold his head low.

Amity notices this and smiles. "What? Did you finally realize how pointless it is?"

Flint brought his head back up violently, startling Amity with his expression. His expression was more like that of a wild animal, with the accompanying growling as he tried to rip himself out of the sludge he was confined in. Amity, even with the advantage, shivered in fear at his vicious expression; the sheer rage having struck her with his malicious intent, it was like looking down a predator that had found its latest meal.

The girl shook her head to snap away from that thought process. "F-fine! Abomination, put him to sleep!" She ordered.

The abomination goo solidified into one giant one, so tall it would've loomed over its predecessors. It did as it was told as it prepared to knock the boy unconscious as it raised its arm, while still holding him in place with the chains which were held using its left.

'No! I refuse to let this be the end!' Flint screamed in his head, his heart rate skyrocketing as he felt his throat begin to heat up.

In desperate situations, our bodies will push ourselves beyond the limits, and act upon instinct. Even if our mind doesn't know, our body does. When pushed to the brink...the body will often move on its own.

Before the abomination could slam its arm back down, Flint pulled his head back as he took a deep breath, his pupils beginning to glow. Amity could see a light glowing within his mouth and was about to warn the abomination, but was too late.

With a powerful huff, Flint breathed out a torrent of scarlet-colored flames from his mouth! The flames burned away the abomination's arm before it could strike him. Recoiling from the attack, its left arm was flung upward with the boy in tow, sending him flying high into the air.

Everyone in the stadium gasped, and Eda prepared to cast a spell just in case.

Flint reached the apex of height before gravity took hold. Acting quickly, Flint managed to break free from his Before the boy could hit the ground though, he rotated head first as he threw his arms forward. All but his thumb and pinky were balled and he brought the knuckles to face each other in front of him. In a swift motion, he twisted both hands 180 degrees, both thumbs and pinkies emitting scarlet energy and forming two rings, each digit having formed half of a circle on each side. When the circles were complete, a stream of continuous scarlet fire shot from his hands, burning the ground beneath it as his descent slowed to a stop. When the momentum ended, Flint pulled his hands back to his sides as he landed on his feet without an issue, his back facing Amity.

The entire stadium was speechless.

Eda, Luz, and King sighed in relief that he was okay. Everyone else in the area was stunned by the action and watching with wide eyes. "Whoa" was all any of them could say in response to Flint's display.

Amity pushed away her shock and replaced it with anger. This was getting annoying. "So what?! You're still going to lose when this is all over! Why won't you just give up?!"

For a moment, Flint didn't react. Slowly, he began to turn, his newly scarlet pupils boring into her as he glared over his shoulder. He fully turned to face her and she could see that the corners of his lips were slightly scorched.

"You..." Flint growled, his voice rough and gravelly. He brought his right arm up to point at her. "You can berate me all you want, but let me make something clear. Luz is off limits." Flint snarled. "You would never understand the pain we've endured. To be forced to suppress who you truly are."

Amity internally winced at that but didn't vocalize.

It was like a fire had been lit in Flint's soul as he continued. "Here we can finally act like ourselves, to finally feel like we belong." Flint leaned his head forward with his manic expression, slightly crouched as his fingers spread like he was baring claws. A moment later, he threw his arms forward, using his index fingers to make a spell...

But this one was different.

His fingers converged before splitting to form a circle in twin arcs, but then they bounced back to make a larger one underneath. After finishing the second circle, he drew two lines from the sides of the bottom circle and intersected them at the top of the upper circle like a triangle. He then did the same action again with the upper circle, making a triangle converge above it before reflecting them downward in an arc, making a larger circle around the whole thing. The entire spell was within a meter-wide circle.

"And I won't let you take that away from her," Flint said coldly with a piercing gaze. He threw his right fist forward like an uppercut into the center of the bottom circle and twisted his arm counterclockwise to make his knuckles point upward, forming a solid dot in the circle. A moment after the glyph was finished, the spell activated and another torrent of scarlet fire shot forth toward his target. Compared to the regular spells he'd cast earlier, this one was noticeably stronger than his previous spells, sending a heated current of air to whip through the arena.

Amity's eyes widened. "Abomination to me! Defend!" Amity ordered frantically.

The abomination fell in line and took the fire head-on, standing just in front of Amity as it became a wall of sludge to defend its master. The sludge bubbled as it took on the mass of heat, a large portion of it vaporizing in the wake of the attack. A portion cleared in the middle of the wall so Amity could see her opponent again.

Flint walked forward menacingly as he pushed his left hand forward, outstretching his index and middle fingers as each emitted a scarlet spell ring only as wide as his hand, each ring creating a fireball that shot forward and burned away more of the abomination's mass piece by piece. Flint repeats the process over and over again, summoning two fireballs at a time and continuously hitting Amity's barrier to whittle it away.

'Think Amity! You have to do something! Even if your abominations are strangely stronger than usual, this one won't hold out long!' The girl thought frantically, trying to find a way to win. Amity looks at the monster and sighs. 'This'll leave me drained, but if it finishes this fight then I have to do it.' Amity thought.

"Abomination, encase him! Don't let him out until he's unconscious!" Amity ordered.

The abomination complied as it surged forward while Amity dove out of the way of yet another set of fireballs. The sludge moved like water along the ground before wrapping itself around Flint, completely covering him from head to toe in a thick layer of abomination goop, freezing him in place in a condensed statue vaguely resembling him.

Amity breathed out a sigh of relief as she lay on the ground with her eyes closed. "He'll run out of air and pass out eventually. With as much abomination sludge as there is covering him, there's no way he could-"

FOOOOOOOMMMM!

Amity's eyes burst open in alarm as she sat up to look at the source. What she found left her in a state of horror.

A mass of flames had erupted from where Flint and the abomination once were, covering the surrounding area and obscuring her vision from the sheer heat that was being emitted. Something shot out of the flames and landed at Amity's feet. She looked down and saw the crispy final remnants of her abomination. Just a moment later a foot stomped on it and she looked up in fear to Flint's eyes boring into her very soul.

Flint made another spell circle and the ground beneath her fractured to make vine cuffs that held her wrists and legs in place. Amity tried to break free of it, but it was no use, she was trapped and tapped out.

"Do you yield?" Flint asked firmly.

Amity knew this was going to get her into a hell of a lot of trouble later with her, but she knew when she was beaten. She also knew that this thing was terrifying.

"I...I yield." Amity said with a shaky voice, gulping nervously.

Flint gave a short nod of acknowledgment, his scarlet pupils reverting back to black as he applied another spell. The spell undid the cuffs mounting Amity in place and freeing her. Amity crawled backward a bit before running away and out of the arena.

The entire arena sat silently after the duel, eventually erupting into applause after Gus began a chain reaction, with many talking about what they had witnessed.

Luz watched with a frown as Amity left the arena.

"He actually did it!" Gus said excitedly as he continued clapping.

Willow nodded. "That was amazing! I can't believe you grew up with him...Luz?"

Both teens looked to where Luz had been only to see she had disappeared, leaving King where she'd just been.

"King, where'd Luz go?" Willow asked.

King blinked looking around him in surprise. "What the-?! How'd she put me down without me realizing?!"

Back in the arena, Lilith growled, stomping over toward Flint. "You cheated! I don't know how, but I know Eda helped you cheat this somehow!" Lilith accused.

Flint stood motionless, staring at the exit Amity had fled the arena through.

Eda stepped between the two. "Sorry, sister, but he didn't. Everything he did, well I'll be honest, I'm not entirely sure what some of that was. What I do know, is that he couldn't've cheated."

Lilith became even angrier. "Don't lie to me Edalyn! He's human! They don't. Have. Magic!"

"Well, this one does. Ask Bumpie or whoever's teaching Healing over at Hexside if you want proof." Eda denied, glancing back toward Flint…

Only to realize he had disappeared from the arena.

Before she could think on it though, Lilith screamed. "That's it! I'm taking you in!" Lilith summoned her staff and hit Eda with a blast of energy, throwing her into the wall behind the dais.

Amity could be seen hiding in the shadows beside a bathroom within the building. She had a haunted look as she kept replaying the events of the battle in her mind. A mixture of fear and sadness ran throughout her as Flint's words echoed in her mind.

"You would never understand the pain we've endured. To be forced to suppress who you truly are."

The worst part was...she did understand. And she hated it. The passion in his words could mean nothing else, that he had been forced to oblige to what others believe. Titan did she wish she could as well, but her family wouldn't allow it. Or rather, she wouldn't allow it.

But that gaze. That look in his eyes when she was left vulnerable, unable to defend herself...it was like he wasn't even looking at her. Like as if he didn't see her as a person, but as an obstacle in his path. Amity shivered as the image of him looming over her played in her mind.

"Hey-"

Amity yelped, jumping a bit from her fetal position from the unexpected voice. The young witch turned to the source to see the other human was there, looking panicked.

"Ah! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to scare you!" Luz apologized.

This made Amity angry. "What? Did you come here to gloat? Go ahead then, do it! Like I care!"

"Are you okay?"

Amity froze at those words, ones laced with worry.

"Wh-What?" Amity managed to get out.

"Are you okay?" Luz repeated. "You're not hurt or anything are you?"

Was she...worried about her? Preposterous! What was this human's angle anyway?

Amity scowled at her. "Why would you care? Didn't you want him to win?"

"Well, yeah. But not like that!" Luz admitted. "Look. I'm really sorry about how my friend acted, okay? When it comes to me, he gets...defensive. We've always been there for each other and we've helped each other more times than I can count...even in our darkest moments." Luz trailed off, thinking about that horrible week.

Amity looked down. "Sounds like a good friend," Amity said. 'Better than I've ever been.' she thought internally.

"He is...and that's why I know that he's probably looking for you to apologize for the battle," Luz stated, confusing the witch.

"What? Why would he come to apologize to me?" Amity asked, genuinely confused.

"Because if there's anything I know about him, it's that he's beating himself up for going as far as he did," Luz said firmly.

A grating cough rang out nearby.

"She's right." A hoarse voice agreed.

Both girls look to the source, one out of concern and the other out of fear, at Flint as he leans against the corner. His body was trembling, likely from exhaustion, hence why he was using the wall to keep himself upright.

"Flint!" Luz said with alarm as she got up to inspect him. "Oh my gosh! Are you okay?! You look and sound horrible!" Luz asked frantically.

"I feel horrible," Flint admitted.

"Come on! Let's get you to a healer and-"

"No," Flint said with finality.

Luz sputtered. "But you're hurt!"

Flint's eyes moved to look at Amity, who flinched a bit under his gaze before they returned to look Luz in the eye. "I'll catch up. There's a mistake I need to correct."

Luz bit her lip nervously, unsure about whether or not to leave him like this.

"Please." Flint pled.

Luz looked into his eyes for a few moments before sighing. "Okay. I'll go get Eda. But you need healing immediately when I get back." Luz said firmly, pointing her index just an inch over his chest.

Flint nodded slightly, and Luz walked away to go find Eda.

"May I sit?" Flint croaked out.

Amity didn't say anything. Taking this as a yes, Flint fell with his back against the wall, sliding down until he was on the ground with her and facing the ceiling, his eyes closed.

The two sat in silence for a few moments, Flint's rugged breathing piercing through the silence as he pushed through the pain.

Amity's face became angry. "What, did you just come here to gloat? Congratulations! You won! Good for you!" Amity said sarcastically.

"You're eyes," Flint said simply, not having moved from his current position.

Amity blinked as she turned back to him again. "What?"

"You're eyes...I know that look. You're pretending to be something you're not." Flint clarified.

Amity just looked at him with confusion, but now looking at him Amity finally got a good look at his current state. The boy's clothes were covered in splotches of ash, and the cuffs to his jacket were a bit charred. His skin looked paler than she remembered, with the corners of his lips looking to have first-degree burns. Flint dropped his head and looked her in the eyes. His eyes were sunken and bloodshot. Overall he looked like he was on the verge of collapse.

"Oh my Titan..." Amity said quietly, his appearance shocked her.

Flint chuckled quietly, wincing in pain. "Yeah...I know I look awful. But I can tell you're not a bad person. Though I'm surprised you cheated in the battle."

Amity blinked confused. "Cheated? I didn't cheat." Amity said defensively.

"Then what's that on your neck?" Flint asked.

Amity reached for her neck. "What do you-" Amity froze as she felt a papery texture attached to her neck. She pulled it off and brought it in front of her, her eyes widening as she recognized the form of a Power Glyph in her hand.

"Wha- When did this-"

"Lilith. I suppose she and Eda really are sisters after all." Flint deduced.

Amity's heart dropped. "She lied to me. She didn't believe in me...and even then I lost." Amity waved her hands defensively. "I swear I didn't know!"

"I knew from the start. Your surprise by seeing your own abomination confirmed it to me. And just for the record, I don't blame you. It wasn't your fault." Flint told her.

Amity was shocked. "You knew the whole time?! Why didn't you say anything?!"

"If you'd won, then I would've. But since I won…I didn't want to embarrass you."

Amity was surprised. "What?"

"With everyone watching, I didn't want to humiliate you for something like that. I may be many things, but I wasn't going to call you out for cheating if you didn't mean to do it. When someone else made you cheat." Flint said firmly.

Amity stared into his eyes for a while, trying to understand him. After a bit, she sighed as she grabbed his hand and made a similar motion to the Everlasting Oath.

"There. The Oath is undone, though I doubt it would've stopped you anyway if you had lost. I don't know how you managed to do it, but humans can't do magic." Amity stated.

Flint took the Power Glyph from Amity and pulled out a pencil and he started to draw a Fire Glyph on the other side.

"I do have magic, for reasons none of us understand, but Luz doesn't. But both of us are capable of using magic..." with the fire glyph finished, he tapped the paper, making it crumple into a ball of fire before their eyes. "...though her method is more external than my own."

Amity stared at the ball of flames in fascination. "I've never seen magic cast like that. It'll be harder for her for sure. But with you at her side...I'm sure she'll figure it out."

"The stranger thing is that I saw this symbol ages ago. The fact that it casts magic here in the Isles, somewhere in a different reality altogether, has us asking many questions." Flint said more to himself than to Amity.

Footsteps could be heard approaching rapidly. "Sounds like they're on their way over."

Amity started to get up, outstretching her hand to him. "Do you need help up?"

Flint weakly nodded and she propped his arm over her shoulder, helping him to his feet just as Luz, Eda, and King rounded the corner.

"Kid! Are you okay?!" Eda said with some worry.

"Can't...can't move." Flint managed to get out, his energy waning.

"Ah dangit! I should've come to help you sooner. Luz! Get him and let's get out of here!" Eda told the human girl.

Amity carefully handed the boy off to his companion as his head lulled. The adrenaline had finally worn off and he passed out.

The three were preparing to run when Amity called out to them. "Wait!"

Luz turned back to her in confusion.

"Tell him I said thank you...and good luck to both of you," Amity said her piece.

Luz smiled before the group quickly ran off, a bunch of Emperor's Coven scouts chasing after them.

Amity watched them go by with a faint smile on her face. Maybe these humans weren't so bad after all.

Outtake:

"Luz, Flint!"

The group turns in the direction of the voice to see Gus and Willow run up to the stand. "Something amazing is happening today!"

"Gus, Willow!" Luz greeted excitedly.

"DONKEY!"

Everyone turned to a random talking donkey that had appeared out of nowhere. He waved his hoof. "Hi. You got any waffles?"

Outtake 2:

Mason removes his hard hat to pull off a power glyph from a stack atop his head. He peels the adhesive off the back of one and puts it on Tinella's nose, her pupils constricting.

"Kaio-ken!" She screamed as red energy surged around her.

Mason's face contorted in confusion. "Kaio-what?"

Tinella punched him in the face, sending him flying the moment he finished asking the question.

Flint shrugged as he looked at the camera. "Guy must not be good at dodging."

Omake (Alt-Non-canon scene):

King grabs the Azura book. "'You shall not shan't doeth no more harm,' Azura callethed out..." King began reading the book aloud.

Eda looked into the distance with a thousand-yard stare as she walked away with the Portal Door folded up in her hand as King followed along the table, "So flowery, so awful." Eda said in blank horror.

The Owl Lady opened the Portal Door and stepped through it.

"Hecate could only screech, screech as did she, for the screeching did worseneth." King continued. As the door began to close, Luz tossed King through. A moment later, the door unfolded faster as Eda walked back in with King sitting atop her head.

"Stop it! Stop it! I will literally do anything to stop this!" Eda pleaded.

Flint turned to Luz. "And you still wonder why I prefer reading my version of it?"

Luz huffed. "It's just not authentic."

"And yet, Mildred Featherwhyle approved my translations as an acceptable way of reading them," Flint stated flatly.

"The translations, yes. But don't forget about how people online tried to cancel you because of the name." Luz reminded.

Flint waved his hands into the air dramatically. "Oh come on! What's wrong with 'The Good Witch Azura: Deflowered Edition'?"

Both Eda and Willow managed to choke on air at those words, coughing aggressively as Luz pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh.

Flint looked at the two. "SERIOUSLY?! WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE NAME?!"