Chapter 25: EP 4: Evening with the Blights Part 2.

The Blight siblings all shook their heads; "Good idea in theory, but not in practice." Emira said.

"Security is too tight. Believe us, we know. Em and I have been trying to sneak in and out of there for years; we know every nook and cranny, and the ins and outs of every security measure, but we've still never gotten in." Edric finished.

"Okay, so we can't fight our way in or sneak in, so what do we do?" Eda asked impatiently, "Go to this fancy party and buy out the contract before Emperor Bonehead?"

Both Amity and Darius looked towards her, contemplative looks on their faces. "You might be onto something there, Edalyn." Darius said.

"You're kidding!? You want to outbid the Emperor!? Isn't he super rich!?" King exclaimed.

"Not the bidding part; the going to the Ball part." Darius said, rolling his eyes.

Amity was on the same page as him; "Security will be tight, but the Ball is being held in the factory and there will almost definitely be a tour! It's a perfect way for us to get inside! Edric, Emira, and I are being forced to go, and Darius will be there too!"

"So will I." Skara chimed in; "Daddy received an invitation last night and is agreeing to attend. His invitation included me specifically. I think Boscha's parents got one as well, so she'll probably be there too."

"Great! The five of you can sneak into the lab and sabotage the place while at the party then! I can whip up some concealment stones if you want!" Gus volunteered.

"Ooh! And my invisibility glyphs! You don't need to hold your breath any more, so they'll be great for sneaking around!" King said eagerly.

"Just one problem though." Darius frowned; "The Golden Guard and Silver Sentinel are going to be there too, and they'll be keeping a very close eyes on proceedings. They'll be watching for anything suspicious, especially after their last major mission failed thanks to Luz and King. I'll also be limited in what I can do without risking breaking my cover."

Luz thought back to the battle at the Simmering Shoals over a week ago; the Golden Guard and Silver Sentinel had both been powerful and annoying opponents to fight, and had been nearly impossible to deal with until she and King had separated them. Getting them to fall for the same trick twice was going to be tough, and if it came to a fight, Luz was sure the factory would go up in flames just like the Emperor's Coven Frigate had.

"So we'll stop them from attending." Eda grinned at Darius; "While you go with Boots, the Twins, and Ponytail to the big party, Raine and I can stage an "attack" outside Bonesborough. We'll ambush those two teenage lackeys before they get into town; that way we'll keep them busy and won't break the town truce."

Raine agreed immediately, but Lilith raised another point; "The main purpose of this Ball is to win the Emperor's Coven Contract, correct? But if neither of the representatives show up, Odalia will get suspicious and might not even allow people into the factory proper."

Amity frowned; "She's got a point. Mom isn't even above cancelling the Ball when people have already arrived; she really wants this contract."

Edric and Emira nodded in agreement as everyone was stumped. They needed to get the Emperor's Elites out of the way so that Darius and the others could sneak in and complete their mission, but if they got them out of the way, Odalia might cancel the Blight Ball and they'd lose their opportunity to do things quietly! If the Ball was cancelled, Odalia would likely hold a private showing for just the Emperor's Coven, and not even Amity and the Twins would be able to get their allies inside to help with that!

After a few minutes of thinking, Luz had an idea.

"What if we get the Golden Goof and his sister out of the way, then send in an impersonator!" Luz suggested.

Raine's expression brightened; "That could work! Odalia would have no reason to cancel the show if one of her guests of honour still managed to show up."

"That's right! And I should be the one to go." Luz declared, casting an illusion over herself to make herself look like the Silver Sentinel. "I'm a little taller than her, but that can be explained as a growth spurt. Other than that, we've got similar builds, so the only one who'd likely notice is the Golden Goof. And since I've seen the Sentinel before, I've got an idea of how she moves and acts."

"Great idea, Owlet! Amity and the others will also have back up in the worst should happen! And you get an evening at a high society ball with your girlfriend." Eda winked.

Luz and Amity both blushed, then exchanged smiles. Amity usually hated the stuffy high society parties she was forced to attend, but with Luz there with her, she might actually enjoy herself!

The others quickly agreed to the plan too; "It's not a bad idea. The Silver Sentinel doesn't speak either, so we don't need to worry about changing your voice." Darius said, "Can you speak sign language?"

Luz grinned and began to sign; "Yes I can! I'm quite good!", though only Raine, Darius, and Eber actually understood her, so she verbally added; "My Mami taught me when I was little. I saw it on TV and wanted to learn, and she thought it was a good skill, so she taught me. I'm still kind of surprised that the Boiling Isles uses ASL though."

"It probably came from a book or something that washed up here from the Human Realm." Eda shrugged.

"So it's decided? Darius, Skara, and the Blights will attend the Ball to sabotage the factory, Eda and Raine will attack the Emperor's Elites to stop them from attending, and Luz will take the Silver Sentinel's place and attend in her place to keep Odalia from getting suspicious and back up the others." Rasiel summarised.

Everyone nodded in approval and the plan was officially decided. Darius then said; "We have the rest of today and then two more evenings before the Ball. We should use that time to plan and prepare. We have a lot to go over."

It turned out that when Darius said they had a lot to do, he really meant it! For the rest of the night, and the two that followed it, he had them all working hard to prepare for the Ball. Amity was sent on recon missions into the Blight Industries factory, looking at anything and everything she could as her Dad happily showed her around. She felt rotten lying to him and abusing his trust to destroy all his hard work, but it was for the good of everyone on the Isles… Belos could not be allowed to have those weapons! After a personal tour of each different area after dinner, Amity would go to Digale Island after school the next day and have her memories of the tours plucked out of her head by Raine and Eber, who would then use them to map out the factory and find the ideal spots to sabotage.

Edric, Emira, and Skara all received some extra lessons from Eda and Lilith, who taught them more elemental magic that suited their abilities (being Light Magic for all three) as well as the best ways to disrupt a fight without blowing their cover should things come to blows between Luz and the Blight Parents. The rest of the Hexsquad helped them out, with Willow especially working hard to prepare them as another way of getting some revenge on Odalia! This included giving the Twins and Skara copies of the blackmail photos, which were bound to keep Odalia distracted if the worst should happen! Rasiel, who didn't have the magic to help with training, instead spent the time managing the cave surveys and continuing his personal explorations for signs of a Black Tomb. Being able to leave his body behind and phase through walls made exploring the tunnels a lot easier, so even the unsafe or collapsed tunnels weren't out of his reach.

Lastly, Darius kept Luz busy for the next few evenings by returning to his efforts to teach her high society etiquette, reasoning that the Silver Sentinel may not speak, but she still behaved regally and appropriately. He'd also taught her how to dance like a Boiling Isles Noble, and how to politely ask for a dance, cut-in on someone else's dance, or even reject another person's advances. He also taught her a few tricks for dealing with abominations, just in case the situation went badly. King also helped out, though his main contribution was being roped into helping Darius tailor a replica of the Silver Sentinel's uniform, since the little Titan was shockingly good at it despite not wearing clothes himself. Darius himself was also a talented tailor, and had whipped up a perfect replica of the Sentinel's gear that fitted Luz better than any clothes she'd ever worn! He'd even made her a replica of the Sentinel's staff, though it wasn't functional.

The three days of preparation before the Ball were hectic, especially since they had to juggle the CATTs with school or work, but by the time they went to bed on Thursday night, they were all as ready as they'd ever be!

[The Day of the Blight Ball]

After school on Friday, Luz and her friends met up at the Owl House to prepare, while Darius, Skara, and the Blights had all gone to get ready at their own homes. They were joined by Steve and two of his fellow defectors, who'd brought along an extra scout uniform, as well as Katya, Derwin, and Amber, who would be helping Raine and Eda.

"Alright everyone, is everybody ready?" Raine asked. King and the remaining kids would be staying at the Owl House with Hooty and Rasiel, while Lilith, Steve, and the defectors would act as Luz's scout escort.

"Ready as I'll ever be. This uniform is surprisingly comfy, though I could do without the mask." Luz said, now dressed fully as the Silver Sentinel. The "mask" Darius had made for her was a full helmet, so there was no chance of it slipping off or her hair being revealed if her hood was pulled down. It made her voice sound a little strange, but it had also been enchanted to allow food and drink to pass through it, so she didn't have to abstain from the meal. Her clothes were also enchanted to allow her wings to pass through, and they were kept shrunken and hidden beneath a concealment stone.

"It's eerie how similar you look to that silent creep when dressed like that." King shuddered. He swiftly shook it off and said; "I hid a whole bunch of drawn wind glyphs inside your clothes, just in case."

"Thanks King! Hopefully I won't need them." Luz said, being handed the fake staff by Matt, who'd been playing with it (under the excuse of trying to make the red crystal look as realistic as possible).

Lilith came down from her room, now dressed in the scout uniform Steve had brought for her; "Wearing this again is nostalgic."

"Don't get too comfy in it, Lilith." Eda said; "And don't get too chummy with any of your old pals tonight either. You're there to back up Luz."

"Of course, Edalyn. You don't need to remind me." Lilith frowned, before smiling at Luz; "You don't need to worry about a thing! Between Darius' lessons and my insider knowledge of how these functions usually go, you will fit in seamlessly."

"Thanks Lilith." Luz nodded. She then noted that Steve and her other escorts were ready, so she turned to her Mom and Raine.

"Mom, Titi; are you both ready? You'll be fighting the real elites and keeping them out of Bonesborough! It's going to be tough." Luz said worriedly.

"Don't worry Sparks; we're as prepared as we could hope to be." Raine smiled, always loving when Luz called them Titi. The angelic girl had already given both of them a fresh Angelic Blessing so they were at full power, while King had given them many of his drawn glyphs and combos. They also had their staves, so they had nothing to fear.

"We remember what you said too; keep them separated. Use light to counter the Sentinel's shadow hopping, and watch out for the Guard's warp flash. We'll be fine, Owlet." Eda said, patting her daughter's head; "You just focus on having a fun night with Boots and keeping Odalia and Alador's focus away from Darius and the others."

Luz saluted; "Yes Ma'am, Empress Mom!"

That got the group giggling, and Eda playfully pulled off Luz's helmet so she could pinch her cheeks. After that, Steve checked his demon wrist watch; "According to what Darius' insiders at the castle told us, the Golden Guard and the Silver Sentinel will be leaving there on an airship around now. They'll be flying directly to the factory, so we'll have to ambush them about…"

He drew a spell circle and created an illusion of Bonesborough and the surrounding area, then pointed to a section directly above the northern part of the upper arm. "… here. It'll be a small airship, so no more than six scouts will be with them."

"So six chumps and two brats? Sounds easy to me!" Eda smiled confidently. "If we force them to crash land, I bet we can take out the scouts in one go, then deal with the kids. What do you think, Raine?"

Raine nodded; "That could work. But let's not take chances; I'll put them to sleep first. If we're lucky, we won't even need to fight."

Eda crossed her arms with a pout; "If I'm not gonna get to knock these fools around a little, you better have something else to entertain me, Raine Storm."

Raine gave her a coy smile; "I'm sure I'll think of something."

Eda blushed, and Raine's three apprentices wolf-whistled while the teens laughed and pretended to be grossed out. King and Luz just giggled and began singing "Mom and Titi, sitting in a tree…" until Eda began chasing them around the living room. Once she caught them and pinched both their cheeks with a bemused grin, she said; "You've got no right to tease me, Owlet! You and Amity are the most sickeningly cutesy couple on the Isles!"

"I can't help it! Have you seen my awesome girlfriend!? It's a crime that I have to take her to a fancy ball wearing this…" Luz sighed dramatically, flourishing her cape. "I mean, it looks kind of cool I guess, but Amity deserves way better."

Her friends chuckled at her; "Oh please, Amity would love you dressed as an Otter! And yes, I have seen that costume in your closet!" Willow grinned.

"Snag yourself a crush and I'll let you borrow it, Willow." Luz shot back.

Willow giggled; "No thanks, I don't think I can pull that look off. Besides, the kind of person I like is the dark and troubled type. A real rose with thorns, y'know?"

"Same!" Skara grinned.

"Aren't you dating Rogier?" Matt pointed out. Rogier was a nice guy and a real animal lover (predictably, being in the beast-keeping track), but he wasn't exactly dark and troubled. He was a popular jokester type, the kind who didn't take himself too seriously but was pretty in-touch with his emotions. Skara shook her head in reply.

"We broke up."

"They broke up."

Everyone in the room blinked as Derwin and Amber spoke at the same time as Skara, forming a strange echo. Katya looked between her friends with surprise and said; "How do you two know?"

"Rogier is our little brother, remember Katya?" Derwin replied.

"Wait, Skara was dating THAT Rogier? I never realised! Why'd you break up?" Katya asked. She was being a little nosy, but her romance loving heart couldn't help it.

"We got along just fine, but we both realised neither of us were that into each other. We were both attracted to each other, but not in love or anything. After a few dates, we decided we were better off as friends." Skara said with a shrug; "We're still good buds."

This wasn't news to Luz or Willow, who'd heard this before during their usual girl talk, which Gus and Matt stayed out of by their own choice. However neither had known Rogier was related to Amber and Derwin, or that they were related to each other!

"I didn't know you two were siblings!" Luz said.

"It's not a big secret or nothing." Amber said casually; "My Mama married Derwin's Daddy when we were both little. Rogier was born not long after, making him our half brother."

"And my life hasn't been quiet since." Derwin said with a wry smirk.

"OI!" Amber protested; "I am the best little sister and you love me!"

"I will concede to one of those statements." Derwin shot back, making Amber pout.

The group laughed as the two siblings playfully bickered, Derwin acting as the responsible older sibling while Amber was the bratty younger sibling. Eventually they were interrupted by Steve.

"Sorry to interrupt, but as much as Steve loves love and sibling bonding, you've got to get going if you're going to ambush the airship before it enters Bonesborough airspace."

Eda and Raine nodded; "Right. We'll get a move on. We'll send a message if everything works out. Good luck, Sparks!"

"Thanks Titi! You too!" Luz smiled.

Eda gave each of her kids a quick hug, then gave the finger guns to the rest of the group, who returned the gesture with wide grins. She then gave Lilith a stern look; "Look after my daughter, Lilith."

"I'll protect her with my life." Lilith swore, Corvanc nodding happily from her shoulder. Eda accepted that answer (and pet the white raven Palisman), then left the house with Raine and their three apprentices. They sat on their staves and took flight, waving over their shoulders as they disappeared to the east. Luz and the others watched them go for a moment, before Lilith said; "We should get going too."

Luz nodded; "Right. I'll see you guys later!"

"Bye Luz!" the rest of the Hexsquad chimed, along with Hooty.

"Blow stuff up in my name!" King demanded.

Rasiel smiled; "I'll watch over this lot. Go have fun with your lady."

Luz nodded once again, then began the walk to Blight Manor with Lilith, Steve, and the other two Scout Defectors, hiding themselves under illusions until they knew it was safe to be seen in their disguises.

Meanwhile, Eda's team flew quickly through the skies to the edge of Bonesborough, then into the forest to the east that they knew the Golden Guard's airship would be flying over. They got there just in time too, as they'd barely gotten comfortable hiding amongst the canopies when they saw the airship coming towards them. Raine and Katya switched their Palismen; Rena and Rumba into their violin and tambourine forms respectively, and Derwin and Amber followed suit. Derwin's Palisman was a large dark brown ferret named Dulcett, which became his Bassoon, while Amber's was a fluffy caterpillar named Riko, which became a flute. Eda also summoned her cittern, since she'd yet to master the spell for transforming her Palisman into an instrument.

Once all five of them had their instruments, they began to slowly play the Lullaby of Lethargy, creating a powerful sleeping spell. Thankfully, Luz's Angelic Magic countered the corrosive effects of Eda's curse (an effect Raine had been spared when taking a portion of her curse), so their combined efforts were able to spread up to the airship above. After a moment, Eda heard a boy's voice yelling something as the airship suddenly began to drift off course as the pilot was put to sleep.

"Great, we got some of them! Masks on, everyone!" Raine whispered, slipping on a bat-themed mask that had originally been made for them when they were still just "The BATTs". Eda didn't bother with a mask of her own, and instead led the charge up to the airship.

They all turned their instruments back into staves and flew up, surrounding the front of the airship. On the deck, they found six unconscious scouts, snoozing away without a care in the world, while the Golden Guard was shoving one of them off of the controls they'd fallen on so he could wrest back control of the ship. The Silver Sentinel was looking around cautiously with her staff in her hands, and the instant she spotted the CATTs, she pointed the staff at them.

"Rebels? Now of all times?" the Golden Guard huffed; "We're not even on an important mission! We're going to a stupid party!"

"Yeah, a party where you plan to buy weapons to use against the citizens of the Isles." Raine scowled.

The Golden Guard was about to retort, when his sister conjured her illusory hands and made them sign; "It's Whispers. They're wearing a mask."

Raine narrowed their eyes on the girl; "Sharp ears you've got there."

"Distinctive voice you've got there." she replied, her illusory hands moving with a flourish that implied she was trying to be sassy.

The Golden Guard finally got the airship under control and made it float gently in the air, allowing him to finally draw his own staff and join his partner in facing down the CATTs. He glanced at Eda, then chuckled; "So, the Owl Lady came to play too, did she? You may have tricked the angel into giving you some magic, but we both know you're not as strong as you used to be."

"Still stronger than you, Golden Goof." Eda smirked, practically hearing the boy grinding his teeth.

"I swear I'm going to get Luz back for spreading that name! Once she's done with her penance and taken her place in the coven, she'll have paperwork coming out of her ears!" he growled.

Eda snorted; "Not gonna happen. Let me tell you how this is gonna go, boyo; we're gonna capture the two of you and deprive Belos of his last two decent coven members! With only those dopey scouts and Kikimora under his command, he'll be toast."

That was mostly a bluff; capturing them wasn't part of the plan, though if they could manage it then it would be a worthwhile achievement. But if that wasn't possible, just keeping them busy for a few hours would be more than enough!

"So, why don't the two of you make this nice and easy by surrendering? I'd hate to scratch your pretty play armour." the Owl Lady said with a threatening grin. Behind her, Amber and Katya both gave their own big grins, showing off their fangs.

The Golden Guard scoffed at Eda's threat; "That might be a serious threat, if it wasn't coming from someone who looks like they escaped their nursing home."

"You little brat! I'm in my mid-thirties! My hair is grey because of the curse!" Eda yelled.

"And mine is going grey from dealing with you!" The Golden Guard shot back, "So how about I make a counteroffer? You surrender and we take you prisoner, and Whispers and their three flying monkeys can fly on home."

The Silver Sentinel signed to him; "Wouldn't it be wiser to take Whispers too?"

"Yes, but it'd be more of a hassle. Whispers is a small problem, but if we nab the Owl Lady, we get the portal and the leverage to bring in Luz. Best not to get greedy by going for both." the Guard muttered back, with only Amber's bat-like ears picking up what he'd said.

Eda didn't need to hear what he'd said though; it wouldn't change her answer. "Yeah, I think I'll go with… Spicy Toss!"

With that, she conjured a fireball and through it at the airship's balloon, causing it to explode and send the entire thing crashing to the ground. The Golden Guard hopped on his staff and flew off, with the Silver Sentinel merging into a shadow and emerging from her brother's, riding his staff with him so she could use her magic to catch the falling airship and slowly set it down on a dirt road leading through the forest, so the scouts within wouldn't be harmed and the forest wouldn't be ignited.

Raine, who'd been beginning to whistle a song to save the scouts too, quickly shifted gears and conjured a series of glowing balls of light to float around Eda and each member of the CATTs, ensuring there were no shadows on their bodies for the Silver Sentinel to exploit. Katya, taking a page from the Sentinel's book, hopped onto the back of Derwin's staff and switched Rumba back to tambourine mode before beginning to slap the instrument to the beat of a song. Each slap released faint pink dust into the air, which the Silver Sentinel kept away from them with a barrier. The instant a speck of this dust touched something solid, it suddenly grew explosively into a large cluster of pink crystals.

"Careful, partner." the Golden Guard warned; "This is Myla's Requiem. A bardic song that grows magic sapping crystals! If they grow on you then the only way to get them off is to have the caster remove them, lose that part of your body, or have all your magic sucked out."

The Sentinel signed something to her partner, but Raine didn't recognise the sign. The Guard responded by surrounding himself, his staff, and his sister in a red aura, after which the Sentinel dropped her rapidly crystallizing barrier. The instant the barrier went down, the Guard flashed them backward and away from the cloud of pink crystal dust, which the Sentinel blew away by conjuring wind with her staff. The dust blew back towards the CATTs, but Katya just scowled and slapped her tambourine again, creating a discordant note that made the powder disappear.

Eda then darted at the duo, while Amber mimicked Katya's move by leaping onto the back of Eda's staff. Eda conjured a water spell in one hand and turned it into a huge cloud of mist around the Emperor's Elites, after which she threw a lightning spell with the other hand that created a web of electricity that leapt from each droplet of mist to all the droplets around it. It would have shocked the duo if they hadn't once again warped out of the way. However Amber had expected this and blew sharply into her flute, which shot a sticky web at them and tied them up. The Golden Guard prepared to flash his way out of the web, but Raine whistled a sharp note that disrupted the Guard's magic, stopping his spell and causing them to fall from the sky.

As this was happening, Derwin had whispered to Katya; "Switch!" and the two jumped off his staff, which turned into his bassoon at the same moment Katya's tambourine became a staff again, catching them. Then just as the web caught the teens and Raine stopped them escaping, he blew into his bassoon and produce a huge fluffy white cloud. The cloud was solid and caught the falling teens before they could hit the forest ground.

For a moment, it looked like their combination had caught the duo, but the instant they touched the clouds, the Sentinel dragged them both into their own shadows on the cloud's surface, using the light cast by the orbs floating around Derwin. They then emerged from the shadows of the flames being cast by their airship's burning balloon. They were free from the web now, and both were a lot more on guard.

Eda smirked and muttered to Amber behind her; "Looks like they're going to give us a bit of a chase."

Just as she expected, the two shot off, each now riding their own staves. They flew in opposite directions, the Golden Guard heading for Bonesborough and the Silver Sentinel heading for the castle; they were clearly going for help!

"Dang it, they're speedy little runts! Raine, Derwin; go for the Sentinel! Ladies, we're going after the Goof!" Eda yelled.

Without waiting for confirmation, she shot off after the Golden Guard and threw a lightning bolt at him, throwing him off course. So long as she could keep him out of Bonesborough, she'd take it as a victory!

[Meanwhile]

Darius found himself annoyingly early to the Blights' little soiree. He usually preferred to be fashionably late (if only to annoy Odalia Blight), but he needed to be present before Luz showed up in disguise, just in case she needed someone to help cover for her. Thankfully he also had the excuse that as the only one of the Coven Heads to be attending (not counting the Little Prince or the soon to be promoted Severin), he was expected to be a good example and show up on time.

He marched up to the entrance where a few other early guests were mingling, and handed his invitation to the abomination doorman, who promptly allowed him inside the factory showroom, which had been transformed into a temporary ballroom for the Blight Ball. It was all very tastefully decorated in shades of purple and neon green (Odalia's toxic influence creeping in on perfectly good abomination aesthetics) and several abomination butlers shuffled about with platters of hors d'oeurves and wine, meant to keep the guests occupied before the formal dinner.

Darius withheld a scoff as he swept through the small crowd already inside the Ball, making polite small talk with a few of the more important ones as he looked for any signs of the Blights he actually tolerated. He'd avoided Odalia thus far by staying behind her as she mingled, and Alador was currently of to the side sucking down coffee that was more like black sludge consisting of 99% caffeine. He couldn't spot Amity anywhere, so he decided to go to the next best thing; the twins.

Edric and Emira were greeting guests by the door, each dressed in dark purple clothing; Edric having a suit and tie, while Emira had a tasteful dress (Darius himself had opted to just wear his usual attire; it was more than good enough for this party), and he conceded that the two looked decent.

"Ah, the infamous Blight Twins." he greeted, mindful of listening ears. "I'm surprised the children of Alador can clean up so nicely. Where is the Baby Blight? I've yet to make her acquaintance."

Emira looked away from the guest she was greeting to smile and say; "Good evening, Head Witch Darius. It's nice to meet you! Welcome to Blight Industries. If you're interested in meeting my sister Amity, I'm afraid she's momentarily preoccupied with a wardrobe problem. Perhaps you'd be willing to help her? Your sense of style is famous."

Darius raised an eyebrow; Amity was supposed to be in the party, but she was avoiding it over a wardrobe malfunction? He would have face-palmed, if not for the fact he knew she was only being so vain due to Luz coming along soon. "I suppose I should help. Alador is a subordinate in my coven after all, and it would reflect poorly on me for his daughter to appear in front of all these fine people in slovenly attire. Point me to her."

Edric, without looking away from the guests he was schmoozing, pulled a key from his suit pocket and handed it to Emira, who handed it to Darius; "She's in the staff wash room. Take this key to get in. Thank you for your help."

Emira then pointed Darius to a door that would lead him to the wash room. He took the key and nodded; "Very well; I'll be back once your sister is presentable." He then spun on his heel and marched off with a flourish of his cape.

He walked through the door Emira had indicated, finding it led to a hallway with a few labelled rooms. He swiftly found the one marked "Wash Room – Employees Only" and knocked sharply, before unlocking it and walking in.

Amity had her back to him and said; "I already told you I'm not going out like this! I- oh!" she turned around and saw Darius. "Sorry Darius, I thought you were Emira or my Mom. Did Emira send you?"

Darius nodded, his face pulled into a sneer of displeasure; "Indeed, and thank the Titan she did. What in the name of all that is fashionable are you wearing!?"

Amity blushed as she looked down at her outfit in disgust. She was wearing tight pants, a puffy shouldered shirt, and a waistcoat and bolo-tie, all in varying shades of neon aquamarine. It was a strikingly similar outfit to Odalia's, and was coloured similarly to the woman's hair. It was a terrible looking outfit that only a mind as demented as Odalia Blight's could ever think looked appealing.

"My Mom laid it out for me while I was in the shower… and she took ALL my other clothes too! It was either wear this or come down in nothing but a wet towel!" Amity cried; "Look at me! I can't show my face looking like this!"

"Dear, looking at you is rather hard at the moment. I should congratulate your mother on creating the finest abomination I've ever seen! It's almost painful to look at it! I feel like dousing my eyes in wine!" Darius sneered, utterly revolted. "Why so many shades of neon green!?"

"Except for Dad, the rest of the family have purple clothes and green hair, and Mom insisted that if I was going to have purple hair, I had to have green clothes so I'd still "match"." Amity explained miserably; "Please help me Darius! I can't let Luz see me in this monstrosity! She'd break up with me on the spot!"

Darius scoffed; "Enough dramatics. That lovestruck fool would call you beautiful even if you were covered in mud and a potato sack! Besides, of course I'm going to help you! Letting you out of this room looking like that would be like committing a war crime on the eyes of all the party guests!"

Amity beamed; "Thank you, Darius!"

He waved her off; "Think nothing of it." he said, conjuring a changing screen with abomination slime, then summoning a pair of abominations that he pulled tailoring tools and a plain white dress from. The dress was very simple, sleeveless and would come down to Amity's knees while keeping her chest fully covered, as was appropriate for a teenage girl. As a witch restricted to abomination magic, Darius had found a way to perform summoning spells by storing items he wanted inside abominations, similar to how Luz did the same with her satchel.

"Change into this. I assume your mother at least left you acceptable undergarments?"

Amity nodded with a blush, then went behind the screen to begin changing into the white dress. Once she was done, she set fire to the clothes Odalia had chosen, much to Darius' approval, then stepped barefoot onto a stool of abomination slime. Darius then walked around her, having his abominations use his tailoring tools to measure Amity and begin placing parts of their own bodies over the white dress, forming a layer of abomination slime. It didn't take long for Darius to come up with a design for a dress that suited Amity, and would match not only her siblings, but also pair well with the Silver Sentinel disguise Luz would be wearing. The finished result was a purple ballgown with pale lavender detailing and some silver embroidery (Amity had no idea how he'd managed that), as well as pale lavender sleeves that covered her arms but left her shoulders bare. It also included simple strappy heels, which were kept short for ease of walking, dancing, and potentially fighting.

When Amity looked at herself in the mirror, she gasped; the sleeves and pale lavender detailing had been designed to look similar to Luz's Holy Raiment! It was a detail only someone who was intimately familiar with the outfit would notice, and it went well with the Silver Sentinel's white and silver aesthetic, but also meant a lot to Amity.

"This is wonderful! Thank you, Darius!" Amity gushed.

Darius smirked smugly; "You're welcome. You may keep the base dress; I only included it so that if the slime was disrupted, you wouldn't end up disrobed. I was lucky enough to convince your little girlfriend to let me take a closer look at her raiment, so I made this to match. It'll look good beside her disguise too, so have no fear."

Amity hopped off the stool and did a little twirl, absolutely delighted with the result. She just knew Luz would love this! It was almost a shame that she wouldn't be able to see her face behind that mask. Darius actually felt quite proud of himself after seeing the girl's reaction; the design was simple and easy, but she reacted like it was a fine treasure! It pleased him to see his rival's daughter so impressed by even his simplest works! It felt like a small victory over Alador and his rotten wife.

But there were bigger victories to win tonight, so Darius dismissed his abominations and tools, then turned to take his leave; "The others are due to arrive soon. Don't keep them waiting, Baby Blight." he said, before walking out of the room.

Amity, giving herself one last once over in the mirror, smiled and nodded at her reflection, then followed Darius back out to the Ball. More people had arrived since Darius had shown up, with most of the guests now being present, and Amity found herself receiving quite a few looks and turning just as many heads as she walked out. Edric and Emira smiled brightly when they saw her, and her Dad actually seemed to wake up a little when he noticed her. His face lit up with pride, and he immediately came over.

"You look beautiful, Mittens. You're really going all out for this showcase. Thank you." Alador smiled softly, brushing his hand through some of Amity's hair.

A knot of guilt twisted through Amity's stomach as she forced herself to smile; "It's okay Dad. I want what's best for us, so I had to make an effort." she said. She was being honest, but naturally what she thought was best for the family was not what her parents would think.

Unfortunately, Odalia finally took notice and excused herself from greeting Severin and Skara to hurry over to Amity.

"What are you wearing!? Where are the clothes I laid out for you!?" she whispered angrily.

"Last I saw them, they were on fire." Amity replied bluntly.

Odalia's eye twitched; "Amity, now is not the time for more of your rebellion! Look at yourself! You don't match the family!"

Alador scowled; "Neither do I, Odalia." he replied, gesturing down to his own attire. He was wearing his usual dark grey overcoat, though washed clean of abomination stains. With that and his brown hair, he didn't look like the rest of the family either. "Besides, Amity is on theme; we're selling abominations and her outfit is abomination coloured. In fact, is it made from abomination slime?"

"You have a keener eye than I thought, Alador." Darius smirked, having begun walking back over as soon as he saw Odalia make her move. "I apologise for stepping on your toes, but I took the liberty of fixing her atrocious outfit."

That took the wind out of Odalia's sails, as she could hardly start a fight with one of their most important guests! Darius' opinion would likely be asked for when it came to settle any deals with the Emperor's Coven, and it wouldn't do to antagonise him!

"I-I see! W-well it isn't what I had in mind, but it is very nice." Odalia said, smiling through gritted teeth.

Alador nodded; "It is good. Very form over function though, which is just like you, Darius."

Darius' smile became predatory; "Well, some of us know how to combine form and function. Perhaps you'll get there one day too."

Alador narrowed his eyes, and the two prepared to devolve into one of their usual exchanges of barely civil, back-handed comments, but before they could, Alador and Odalia both felt a ping from their pockets. Alador pulled out a small remote, which was vibrating and flashing with a yellow light.

"One of the security abominations is requesting assistance." he muttered. "Someone is attempting to enter without an invitation."

Odalia frowned; "Have them sent away then."

"I would, but…" Alador pressed a button on the remote and a small magic screen appeared in front of him, showing him the view from the abomination's eyes. It showed the Silver Sentinel, flanked by four Coven Scouts, waiting impatiently.

"Oh dear. You might want to go and see to that, Odalia. You wouldn't want your guests of honour being sent away." Darius smirked.

Odalia bit back a retort and hurried to the entrance, with Amity following closely behind. When they arrived, they found the disguised Luz waiting patiently while her disguised escorts tapped their feet and made a show of being angry with their treatment. Odalia immediately plastered on a fake smile as she approached.

"Honoured guests, I apologise for the hold up. I hear there is a problem with your invitation?" she said pleasantly.

The disguised Lilith nodded imperiously, then spoke in a slightly altered voice (courtesy of an audio illusion); "As we have tried to explain to your incompetent creation, the Silver Sentinel's invitation was destroyed when our airship was attacked by the rebels outside of town. Head Witch Golden Guard is currently pursuing them, but the Emperor's new assistant personally came here to attend for the both of them!"

Odalia gasped; "Oh my, how ghastly! Thank the Titan that you are all unharmed! I trust the Golden Guard will bring the rebels to justice."

Luz smirked behind her mask, and waved her fake staff while keeping one hand behind her back, within her cloak, to draw a spell circle and conjure the image of illusory hands, which began to perform sign language. "Naturally, though I dislike having my time wasted! Am I here for a Ball, or to exchange small talk with your slimy doorman!" she signed.

Odalia didn't understand sign language though, and it didn't look like the others around them did either, so Luz cheekily signed; "You are a moron with big ego and a small brain!"

Amusingly, Odalia just chuckled nervously and said; "A-ah! Yes, quite."

Luz almost giggled; since she was communicating non-verbally, she could lie as much as she wanted without consequence, which was a lot of fun in this instance! Still, she decided to replace her hand illusion with glowing words. "Don't pretend to understand me. I dislike being lied to or humoured like a child. Your first impression leaves much to be desired."

She was really laying it on thick, using some of the language Darius had taught her during their etiquette lessons, and seeing Odalia splutter and apologise made those lessons more than worth it. Some of the watching guests were quietly laughing, or hiding smirks behind their hands; Odalia was not a popular woman, and it amused them to see the usually arrogant Blight Matriarch being brought down a peg or two.

"F-Forgive me, Ma'am. I had no intention of insulting you. Please, allow me to personally welcome you to the Blight Ball." Odalia said, recovering from her embarrassment and inviting Luz and her escorts in. As they were sweeping past the abomination door man, Luz finally noticed Amity. The youngest Blight didn't even need to see Luz's face; the fact she froze mid-step was more than enough to make it clear her new dress had made an impact on her hidden girlfriend. In truth, seeing Luz in that uniform was making Amity's stomach fill with butterflies as well!

Ignoring Odalia (who seemed confused), Luz went over to Amity and gave her a formal bow, before gently taking her hand and pressing it to the front of her mask as if kissing it.

More illusory words appeared floating over Luz's shoulder; "Good evening, Miss Blight. You look lovely tonight. Enough even to make up for your mother's foolishness."

Amity giggled and curtseyed in response; "You honour me, Lady Sentinel."

The words on Luz's shoulder changed to; "Please, you may call me Silver. Not my real name of course, but the only one I may give you this evening."

"That's more than alright, Silver. Please, call me Amity." she replied with a wide smile. She was aware of her mother watching the pair, but there was a glint of happiness and excitement in the woman's eye, no doubt already planning how to leverage this friendliness between them.

In fact, she started right away; "Amity, why don't you be the Silver Sentinel's personal guide and attendant this evening? As an apology from our family for the problems at the door?"

Amity nodded; "Of course, Mom."

"You have a fine daughter, Madam Blight. If everything your family creates is of this quality, we might just have deals to discuss." Luz said via message. It made her skin crawl a little to talk about Amity like she was just another product, but it made Odalia smile brightly and that helped their cover. Amity seemed to understand, though Luz made a mental note to make it up to her later.

Odalia brought Luz over to where Darius and Alador were still stood. "Allow me to introduce my husband; Alador Blight! The finest abomination creator of the era!"

Darius snorted, making Alador and Odalia both glare at him, while Luz offered her hand for Alador to shake. He did so with a tired smile; "Nice to meet you, Silver Sentinel. I hope my creations are impressive to you."

"I'm sure they will be." Luz said with her message. She then gestured to her four escorts and then pointed around the room, sending them off to their "posts". In reality, Lilith, Steve, and the others would be casing the place and looking for ways to sabotage the rest of the security. Since Eda and the others had distracted the real Silver Sentinel and her brother, there was no other Emperor's Coven security present, leaving only Alador's abomination security. That would make things easy.

Odalia then said; "Since your invitation was destroyed, allow me to remind you of the itinerary for the evening. Once the last of the guests arrive, we will have a formal dinner, followed by a band and dancing, with the grand showcase taking place afterwards, and finishing with tours of our facilities. We wanted to save the best for last!" she said with a wide grin.

Luz held back a snort; so the showcase was after the Ball proper. She glanced around, seeing how many people were already drinking, and wondered if Odalia's strategy was to get her customers drunk and their purse strings loosened. It was a double edged sword for their plan; on the one hand it gave her more time to enjoy with Amity, but on the other it meant they would have to wait quite a while before they could infiltrate the factory itself, which appeared to be sealed until the tours were ready to begin.

"In that case, I will mingle with the guests until the meal begins. Do not let me keep you from your host duties, Madam Blight; your daughter will be more than sufficient company." Luz said with another message.

With a gracious nod, Odalia walked off to do just that, while Alador narrowed his eyes on the disguised angel. Thankfully Darius swiftly drew him into a debate about their achievements in the Abomination Coven, and the heated exchange kept the man busy while Luz and Amity wandered over to Skara, who was talking to Boscha.

What followed was actually quite a pleasant evening. No one dared question Luz for choosing to spend time with Amity and Skara, considering the Silver Sentinel was behind only the Emperor and Golden Guard within the Emperor's Coven, and everyone wanted a piece of her approval. Luz had a great time messing with a few of the more stuck-up ones who came over to court her favour, making them sweat by intentionally misconstruing their attempts at flattery as insults, or pretending to not have heard of their prestigious families and deeds. She only did it to the jerks though, and Amity remained by her side the whole time to make sure she knew who were good people and who were brown nosers and boot lickers akin to Odalia. The adults were bad, but some of the teens were worse; Luz had never been flirted with so much in her entire life! It made Amity fume, but then it also made Luz fume when a few of them flirted with Amity instead. Skara just found the whole thing hilarious, while Boscha was eyeing the disguised Luz with quiet suspicion. Luz suspected she knew something was up, but the three-eyed girl had no intention of ratting on them, so she didn't push the issue and was perfectly pleasant to Callisto Alembic when she came over.

It was also the first time Luz got to meet Boscha's other parent; a gender neutral witch with red hair like Boscha's, a relatively plain face, and large rimmed glasses similar to Raine's. They introduced themselves as Morel Alembic, a member of the Potions Coven, and they were a soft spoken but friendly person. They didn't try to kiss up to Luz and instead dragged Callisto away when she started to, much to Luz's appreciation.

Shortly thereafter, the last of the guests arrived and they were all seated at a series of round tables that were set up around the room. Luz ended up sat between Darius and Amity, while the rest of the Blights shared the table too. Luz was extremely glad her mask had been enchanted to allowed food through, as the meal was exquisite. To a human it would have looked like something from a house of horror, and it had definitely turned Luz off a little at first, but as soon as she actually tried it, she found it amazing. The Catboneara was a particular favourite, though Luz hoped it wasn't made with actual cat bones… she'd never be able to look Ghost in the face again!

Once the food was done, Alador excused himself to begin preparing for the showcase of his Abomaton Mk II while the rest of the Ball enjoyed the music and dancing portion of the evening.

As he was leaving however, Luz saw an opportunity and began creating illusory messages to talk to him. "Mr. Blight, I would ask that you take Darius here with you. As the head of the Abomination Coven, I'd like him to inspect your facilities and the creations you want to showcase. I trust his word on the subject, and want his opinion before I even entertain this showcase."

Alador frowned; "With all do respect, Lady Sentinel; I feel that is unnecessary."

"And with all do respect, Mr. Blight; I feel it is necessary. If you have qualms about a rival being allowed to see your secrets or potentially commit sabotage…" Luz snapped her fingers, and all four of her disguised escorts came over. She gestured for Steve and one of the other defectors to follow Darius, "… then I will assign two of my own men to ensure his discretion and good behaviour."

The Blight Patriarch still looked displeased with the idea, but Odalia elbowed him subtly and gave him a meaningful look, making him sigh and concede. "Very well; if it will ease your mind, I will allow it. But no funny business, Darius."

Darius nodded; "Yes yes, I'll behave myself. The Little Sentinel's guards will ensure it, no doubt." he said, feigning annoyance at the security.

Alador didn't acknowledge him and instead marched away, followed by Darius and his guards. Before Darius disappeared onto the factory floor, he shot Luz a small nod while no one was looking, signalling that he and the others would subtly begin their sabotage. Alador would be so focused on Darius that he'd pay no attention to the guards the "Sentinel" had assigned to watch him!

Once they were gone and the abomination butlers cleared away the silverware and tables, Odalia went onto the prepared stage and introduced the band for the evening; the best band that the Bard Coven had available. They began to play the kinds of music one would expect at a fancy ball, and as couples took to the dance floor, Luz offered Amity her hand.

"Care to dance, Amity?" she asked via message.

"I would love to, Silver." Amity replied. She and Luz had been exchanging flirtatious gestures under the table through the whole meal, and now they were both ready to let off some steam.

They stepped onto the dance floor together, and since Amity was the taller one (only by half an inch, as Luz always reminded her when the topic came up), she led Luz through a Demon Realm Waltz. It was a lot like a Human Realm Waltz, but a tad faster paced and with less grace and more energy. The two girls had a blast, but when the song ended and the next one began, the two took a brief break from each other to dance with other people. Luz danced with Skara, and since Luz was the taller one, she got to experience leading them through the steps (she thanked her lucky stars that dancing was a part of the bard track's curriculum and Darius had reinforced those lessons). Amity meanwhile danced with Boscha, and the two were smirking at each other as they each tried to lead the dance, making a very combative but entertaining show to watch!

Naturally, the quartet switched partners on the next song and Luz found herself somewhat awkwardly dancing with Boscha. The three-eyed girl took the lead and whispered in her ear; "I know it's you, Luz. Amity's too loyal to be so obviously in love with another person while dating you."

Naturally, the quartet switched partners on the next song and Luz found herself somewhat awkwardly dancing with Boscha. The three-eyed girl took the lead and whispered in her ear; "I know it's you, Luz. Amity's too loyal to be so obviously in love with another person while dating you."

"You won't say anything, right? This is important Boscha." Luz whispered back, feeling a bit strange to be using her voice again after a couple of hours of text speech only.

Boscha rolled her eyes; "Of course, you dork. Skara would kill me if I ratted you out. Besides, I'm trying to be "nice" remember? I've been doing good at it too!"

Luz giggled; "Well you haven't made anyone cry for at least a month, so I'd call that progress."

"Oh, just for that; I'm gonna lead you through the Fango!" Boscha grinned viciously.

After the highly energetic and head-spinning dance that followed, Luz was almost happy to be handed off to a stranger on the next song. It was an older teenage boy, who was very polite and respectful and made polite conversation, while Luz replied just as politely with illusory words. This pattern repeated itself for a few more partners, with some flirting with her, others being strictly polite, a couple trying to promote their families, and even one oddly large gentleman who appeared to be some kind of bear demon and only wanted to talk about the crabbages he was growing in his garden. Luz was rather fond of that last one!

As the song once again changed, Luz excused herself from dancing to get a drink and find her friends. Skara and Boscha were now dancing with each other's parents; Severin chatting casually as he waltzed with Boscha, while Skara and Morel Alembic were laughing merrily as they danced around in circles. Edric and Emira were dancing with each other, and even the disguised Lilith had been dragged into a dance with the large crabbage gentleman, but it was Amity Luz was really looking for.

She eventually found her dancing with a female witch; one whom Luz had danced with earlier. Luz narrowed her eyes as she watched Amity try to extract herself from the dance without causing a scene; the female witch was a senior at St. Epiderm and a massive snob who'd flirted with Luz shamelessly and been very insistent until she'd used her fake title of Emperor's Assistant to shut down the girl's advances. Apparently Amity wasn't able to do the same, so Luz made her way over immediately, her temper flaring a bit as she got close enough to hear some of the conversation.

"I'm flattered, Miss Dermi. But I really must decline." Amity said.

Miss Dermi, being tall and imposing (as well as annoyingly beautiful in Luz's opinion) just tutted; "Come now, Kitten; call me Epa. You should consider it more carefully; my family and yours could help each other greatly, and I'm sure I could show you how to have a good time."

The girl, whose hands were already around Amity's waist, pulled her a little closer with a wide smile and Amity's eyes flashed with rage. Luz could see she was moments away from setting the pushy girl on fire, and while Luz was tempted to do nothing and watch, she knew Amity would be upset with herself later for causing a scene and endangering the plan, so Luz smoothly cut in. She brushed the older girl's hands away from Amity and replaced them with her own as illusory words appeared behind her.

"Pardon me, Miss Dermi, but I'll be cutting in. The showcase will begin soon, and I want another dance with this lovely lady before the end."

Amity smiled gratefully and a brief look of annoyance crossed Epa's face, before it was replaced by a smile; "Of course, Lady Sentinel. Perhaps the three of us could have some fun together; the more the merrier, after all."

"I prefer the adage; "Three's a crowd." Good evening, Miss Dermi."

Without another illusory word, Luz twirled Amity away to the middle of the dance floor, leaving a pouting Epa behind. Amity subtly cast an illusion spell around them, allowing them to talk to each other without being heard by those around them.

"Thanks for the save there Luz. Any more of her clumsy advances and I would have done something drastic." Amity said.

Luz giggled; "I know you can take care of yourself, but I couldn't pass up the chance to be the saviour of my girlfriend, even if it was just from that pushy flirt. You know she was flirting with me too earlier."

"Not surprising. Epa Dermi is infamous in our circles for being a serial womanizer. She loves high status girls… I'm the seventh girl she's tried to make her "Kitten". They never last long, since she gets bored easily. A shame too; I had a tiny crush on her when I was younger. Before I learned what a quality woman is like." Amity flirted, giving Luz a wink.

Luz felt her face heat up; "Go easy on me, Amity! I'm trying to keep my cover and that's hard when you make me want to rip this mask off and kiss you senseless! That dress alone is testing me!"

Amity giggled; "It's a Darius original! You should have seen the monstrosity my Mom tried to make me wear. Imagine my Mom's outfit but in the colour of her hair."

The lavender haired girl actually felt Luz shudder as she thought about it; "Remind me to thank Darius!"

The two girls continued to giggle and flirt as they danced together, moving to their own rhythm and becoming deaf to the music being played around them. They were almost entirely oblivious to the rest of the party, but the party and its guests were certainly not oblivious to them. Edric and Emira were watching with big smiles, the latter pining to be dancing with Viney (who naturally hadn't been invited). Skara and Boscha were slow-dancing together, whispering and gossiping to each other about the "Lumity" couple as they'd come to be known, and Lilith was just smiling behind her mask as she absent-mindedly listened to her last dance partner talk about his garden; she wagered Steve would be crying with joy if he was watching!

Unfortunately, not everyone who was watching had such positive intentions. Odalia Blight was watching too, a glass of wine in her hand and a smile on her lips as she watched her daughter dance and smile with who she believed to be the most eligible and desirable bachelorette on the Boiling Isles. The Silver Sentinel had annoyed her at first, talking down to her and leveraging her superior rank and position in society to make Odalia grovel a little, but the Oracle couldn't deny the kernel of respect she felt too; it was what she'd do in the girl's position as well after all. However, after seeing the obvious interest the masked girl had in Amity, and the surprising interest Amity showed straight back, Odalia had smelled opportunity… a way to potentially bind her family to the Emperor and his coven far more permanently than with a simple contract.

The Emperor had no heirs, and the Golden Guard and Silver Sentinel were popularly believed to be his chosen successors if something were to happen to him, and based on the man's obvious sickness that Odalia and the rest of the isles had seen when he'd been forced to abandon his fight with the angel girl, it didn't look like he had much time left. When he departed, one of his elites would take the throne, and if something should happen to the Golden Guard… well, there would be only one option. An option that had the potential to see the Silver Sentinel as the new Empress, and Odalia's daughter as her Queen.

Odalia was almost giddy at the idea of it, and quietly excused herself to behind the stage; a place that would allow her to look out across the ballroom without being seen herself. Once there, she released her Oracle Spirit from the stone around her neck, then cast a spell to encase it inside a Crystal Ball, which glowed with a sinister purple light.

"Let's see how compatible they really are, and perhaps how to steer them together!" she said to herself. Normally, she'd consider it beneath her to perform a Love Reading, but this was too important!

She focused her mind and magic and began to channel them into thoughts of Amity and love. Almost immediately, Odalia's vision was full of red and pink, showing that her daughter was indeed completely besotted! That made Odalia smile even wider; especially when the spell failed to provide her with a face for Amity's beloved. That must mean it was the masked Sentinel! At least now she knew why Amity had been so oddly obedient this evening, excluding the incident with her dress. But that wasn't enough; she needed the feelings to be mutual, so she instead shifted her thoughts to the Silver Sentinel and love.