Luz the Dragon Lady

A Ballad of Sneks and Stones

The long 'talking to' that occurred when Amity and Luz got home was honestly terrible, but at least for Amity it wasn't so bad. She was used to yelling and violence so barely contained concern was a nice change even if Camila's disappointment somehow felt worse then Odalia's violent outbursts. Between Eda and Camila no stone was left unturned, and the hugs afterward were just so nice. Amity finally understood why Luz's hugs had always been so warm. It was because she learned how from Camila, and Eda made her feel safe, like Lilith had, but this felt different. There didn't feel like there were any strings with Eda. It was official, Amity would do anything for her new family. Now that she knew what real love felt like she couldn't lie to herself anymore, her parents had never loved her, maybe her siblings had, but not them.

Having to scrub Hooty as a punishment was horrifying, but any time she got to spend with Luz was worth it, and Hooty even agreed to some magic experimentation in the form of Luz's new ice rune. It took a few tries, but soon Luz could control the temperature of it making water, and later warm water that seemed to relax the odd Owl tube. Coupling that with her fire rune as a 'blow dry', and the whole thing was over surprisingly fast. Getting to cuddle Luz as they went to sleep was her favorite part though. Amity was going to enjoy being 'kidnapped'.

In Luz's dream/mindscape Oscurenex was already congratulating Luz on her new rune. With the ice rune claimed that only leaves one major rune left to find. Truly you amaze me Luz, but the last rune is a big one, the life rune. With it you will fully unlock your magic, and your physical evolution should complete.

"Ok, this Life rune can't be that powerful? What exactly can it do?" asked Luz, as she relaxed against the lip of the cave.

Luz, I have explained this before, but I'll make it clear this time. In the beginning there were only four runes: Light, Fire, Ice, and Life. While light never needed adjustment the other three did. A portion of fire and ice was used to create wind so that they would remain in eternal balance, but earth was created specifically to weaken life, and even after, it remains the most potent rune in terms of raw power. To put it in terms you might understand, and using your memories, gaining each rune's power can be compared to a level of injury. Light would be getting hit by a normal everyday car. Very rough, but since you learned it first you were able to handle it. It also helped that you had a natural affinity for it, but I digress. Fire and Ice were swings from baseball bats. Painful, but survivable. Wind and Earth were powerful punches, but they only caused problems because you gained them nearly back to back. Life will be a semi-truck. I have no doubt that if you had found it at any point before now... it would have destroyed you.

"Dam. But why is it so potent? Wait, does this have anything to do with why Willow's magic is so strong?" asked Luz.

Obcurenex laughed, "In a way, yes. Your friend Willow has the strongest affinity to the life rune that I have ever seen. In fact each of your friends share that trait. Gus for ice, Amity for fire, and you for light. Give Amity time, and you will see your love burn brighter than any star. As for why the life rune is so potent. It is life itself, raw, wild, and chaotic. It is the life rune alone that gives Titans the ability to create life from their corpses. Every other division of 'witch' magic is made or augmented by two or more runes power, except for plant magic. It alone is pure, and it is pure life."

"If that's true then why didn't you mention it earlier? If you knew which runes correspond to each track you could have shared that a long time ago," yelled Luz feeling frustrated.

Never. You enjoy experimentation, and it is the best way to learn, but as an apology for upsetting you I will show you something special you can do now that you have ice and fire. After they were done Luz began to wake up, but before she did she heard Oscurenex laugh, "By the way... enjoy your new 'gift'. You earned them." Before Luz could ask what she meant, she was gone, and she heard Amity scream.