It was a frenzied period of transition for everyone in the Boiling Isles. Belos was dead, the Day of Unity crisis was averted, the covens fell into disarray and fought amongst themselves for control of the empire, despite the Titan having chosen a s...
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In the throne room of the Grand Matriarch, seven coven heads sat around the Empress' seat in flowery chairs of their own. Bo and Eileen were checking their Penstagram accounts on their scrolls. Angmar, head of the Plant Coven, had summoned Hollyhocks to attract butterflies. Jasper Bloodstone, head of the Oracle Coven, was deep in meditation, and Head Witch Darlene Deamonne of the Abomination Coven was conversing with the Beast Coven's head witch, Nova Midnight, on current events. Head Witch Zephyra of the Illusionist Coven simply kept to herself, fidgeting every so often.
They all sat at attention as soon as Kikimora and Raine entered the room. Kiki stood in front of Willow's throne, but did not sit. "Esteemed Coven Heads, before we begin our meeting, I would ask that we take a moment to send our prayers and well-wishes to our fellow Coven Head, Steve--"
"May he rest in peace." Angmar wept, making Kikimora facepalm.
"He's not dead..." Raine interjected. "... he's actually expected to make a full recovery, if I heard you right, Bo?"
"Yup! In fact, he was just taken out of traction this morning." Bo stated. "So don't worry, Ang, he'll be back on his feet in the next few days."
Angmar stood up, raising his fist in the air."Either way, Steve will be avenged! THIS I VOW!"
"HEAD WITCH ANGMAR!!"
The Plant Coven head meekly sat down at the acting Co-Empress' outburst.
She continued. "Now, then, if we can take a moment for--"
"Hang on a second!" Darlene raised her abomination hand to get everyone's attention. "Where exactly is the Empress? She's usually here early for these meetings."
The acting co-empress' face met her hand once more. "Gaaaahhhh!! Okay, I was going to get to that, but... well, per our advisement, Empress Willow is taking a sabbatical."
"She can do that?"
"She can now." Raine answered. "We've all been through so much these past years, but Willow is the only one of us who isn't here by choice. She was made Empress at such a young age, tasked with so many responsibilities and targeted by power-hungry criminals and former coven heads still seeking their 'utopia'. So, yes, Kiki and I decided that she's earned a vacation."
Kikimora jumped back in. "Now, then, let us take a mome--"
"But is now such a good time?" Jasper inquired. "What of the visitors from the Scalding Archipelago? Can any of us afford to let our guard down while they're here?"
Raine fielded that question as Kikimora banged her head on the throne. "Realistically, there was never going to be a 'good' time for the Empress of the Boiling Isles to take a break. Also, I think we can all agree that we can't exactly take our normalcy for granted. Better that she rest up while she can. As for our visitors, I believe Zephyra has that covered?"
