[Elsewhere]
Belos arrived at Caduceus Grand Hospital, answering the call of his elites, and met Hunter and Lucy in the reception of the hospital. The Emperor's Coven had completely taken over the hospital and were keeping the patients and healers out of the way while they finished their investigation, just as Belos had ordered. The Emperor looked at Lucy and upon seeing she was in good condition, he turned back to Hunter.
"Has the situation changed since you called?" he asked imperiously.
"No, Emperor Belos. Cutburn is bound and under guard in her office. We gagged her as instructed, and I received word a few minutes ago that she'd awakened." Hunter answered.
"Good. I will go and interrogate her; you and your sister will remain here." Belos replied, leaving no room for argument as he swept out of the reception and headed for the nearest Pneumo-Vein. He used it to reach Hettie's office and found it in a state of disarray following her battle with the Angels, and the woman herself was on her knees between four Coven Scouts. She was roughed up, bound and gagged, with her head coverings still removed to expose her true, scarred face. The moment she locked eyes on Belos, they filled with a burning hatred and she began to struggle and scream indignantly into her gag. Belos ignored her and looked to the guards.
"Leave us."
They did so immediately, and as soon as Belos and Hettie were alone, the Emperor reached down and removed Hettie's gag.
"You monster!" she immediately spat at him; "Do you have any idea what you've done!? What you've created!?"
"Naturally. And do you have any idea who you're defying?" Belos asked casually, completely unthreatened.
"A mad man is who I'm defying! Is anything you've told us true? Will the Day of Unity truly do what you say it will!?" Hettie demanded.
Belos chuckled darkly; "You'll find out yourself. I still need you after all… the Coven Heads are all required. But I have alternative ways of ensuring you're in your proper place."
He summoned his staff and cast a red spell at Hettie, causing the kneeling witch to slowly be petrified from the ground up. The woman briefly struggled as her face flashed with fear and pain, before she realised the futility of escaping and turned to glare hatefully at Belos once more.
"Mark my words, False Emperor! The Arch-Angel will destroy you! She's grown stronger since that day in the Conformatorium! You and all you've built will be torn down! I regret nothing other than not being there to see it!" she declared, one final defiance against the man who'd betrayed all her hopes and expectations.
Belos just chuckled and watched as Hettie was fully petrified… all except for a single ear. So long as he didn't complete the spell, he would be able to reverse if himself without need of Luz's powers, and in the meantime Hettie would suffer in stone for her betrayal, all while able to hear everything around her. He then stooped beside her and whispered into her ear.
"Luz will play her part, whether she likes it or not. As will you. In fact… let me tell you precisely what will happen." Belos said, before whispering to her exactly what the Day of Unity was and how it would work. There was no reaction from the stone woman, but Belos knew that inside that casing, Hettie Cutburn's mind was burning with the truth he'd just revealed.
Unbeknownst to anyone, Belos personally moved Hettie's mostly petrified form to a secret location, then replaced it with a simple stone replica. Three days later, when Coven Day itself arrived, everyone across the isles watched as Belos addressed them via a giant illusion projected above Cartilia City Hall and then broadcast via scrolls and crystal balls, ensuring no one avoided seeing his speech.
He was met by the gasps and applause of the crowd watching live; "Thank you, everyone. Together we are perfecting the Coven System as the Titan intended. The Day of Unity will be in exactly one month, when the tide is at its lowest and the moon obscures the sun. At that time, we will journey to the head of the Isles, and there the worthy shall inherit a Utopia free of Wild Magic!"
There was more gasps from the crowd, especially as Belos reached for his mask; "There is more I must share with you. I've always hidden my face, out of fear. But because of your support, I can finally take off this mask."
Slowly, Belos removed the mask with one hand and then swept off his cowl with the other, finally allowing his true face to be seen by each and every person on the Boiling Isles. The face behind the mask was that of an older man with a narrow, gaunt face and a pointed nose with a crooked bridge. He had dull blue eyes, long ash-blond hair, and a knick in his pointed left ear. But most strikingly of all, he had a disgusting green scar that stretched from his hairline above his right eye, and through his left eye and over the bridge of his nose (crossing where it was crooked), before going over his left cheek and disappearing down his neck, where it no doubt continued beneath his clothes.
The reveal was met with more gasps, and then cheers as Belos smiled benevolently; "Thank you, Boiling Isles." he said, before his expression became one of sadness; "But alas, I must also use the opportunity to reveal a heinous plot against the Day of Unity, and deliver a stern message… though my heart is heavy to see such a thing become necessary."
The projection extended to show the area around him, revealing that next to him was the fake statue he'd made of Hettie, though to everyone watching it appeared to be the true petrified remains of the Head Witch of the Healing Coven.
Belos then spoke grimly "Three days ago, Hettie Cutburn was discovered to be a Rebel conspiring against the Empire. She used a medical check-up to try and assassinate my adopted niece and young Angel Lucy, while also attempting to murder her own ally, the Arch-Angel known as Luz Noceda. For her crimes, she has been petrified in stone, and to ensure the nefarious CATTs do not try to force this woman's would-be victim to free her, I will take drastic action." he brandished his staff and promptly destroyed the fake Hettie statue, causing a deathly silence to come over the entire Boiling Isles. He then looked grimly back at the audience via the projection and said; "Let this be a message. To the people of the Isles, hold fast against these Rebels who would betray even their own! To the CATTs, surrender and accept the utopia I offer! And to you, Luz Noceda… it is not too late. Come to my side as the Titan wills it…" he held up the Portal Key, "… and I will save you from the corruption of the Owl Lady, and return you to your true mother."
His eyes burned blue for a moment, before his expression softened and he smiled once more; "But that is enough grimness for one day. Let us celebrate our successes and pending utopia! Happy Coven Day, everyone!"
And with that, the broadcast ended in a shower of magic fireworks. For many, the party atmosphere of Coven Day would return and they would celebrate like nothing had happened. For others, a grim toast would be raised to the apparently departed Hettie Cutburn. For the CATTs, it was a rallying cry; a call to arms against the man who would do such a thing while claiming to be the good guy. And to Luz and her family and friends, it was a reminder of just what they were fighting to stop.
When Luz saw the message Belos had sent her, she heard only the words he'd truly meant; "You will submit. I will make you."
And in response, she muttered back; "Go ahead and try."