Prologue
Sunset had transformed the mewnian sky into its dusky version, when it lighten up. A mix of fiery red and sapphire blue painted the battlefield below. The phenomenon burned away both knights and monsters' shadows for a moment. As actors in a bloody play, none of them responded in any way. They continued swinging blades at each other, furiously trying to achieve victory on the ground.
In the skies, the phenomenon caught battle-worn Star unprepared. A heated gust of wind overpowered her and she got swept away like an autumn leaf. The golden wings on her back struggled with the chaotic wave. It took an exhausting second of fighting, before the invisible enemy passed through her. Star turned at the source of the explosion. One part of her conscious noticed her heart was working twice as hard. The other was busy searching through the thinning smoke. She recognized the silhouette of Queen Moon floating in the air. It was impossible to tell how injured her mother was. Through a cloud of smoke, two tiny lights emerged. Another woman joined the picture, with glowing cheeks piercing the gray curtain. The heartbeat did not ease up.
Star's peripheral vision picked up a purple stream of light getting stronger, closer. Instinct overwrote any though, her arms raised on their own. A violet beam cut through the sky, reaching its target in a blink of an eye. There was no explosion, only a melted hole in her gauntlet, as if it was made of glass. The feeling of any internal injury wasn't there. Was that it? Even after every blow they had traded, Star was not exactly sure what to expect from her opponent. Then she noticed she could neither feel, nor control her right arm.
The same arm that held the wand.
One finger released its grip over the magical artifact. Confusion was written all over Star's face. With every bit of willpower she commanded her hand to hold onto. The middle finger followed up. Mentally she counted each remaining one, as if it was a countdown till the end of the world. Another finger let go. The wand lightly tilted away from Star's arm. Her pupils were gone, replaced by sharp dark dots. She tried to reinforce the grip with other three hands.
The last finger opened up, sending the wand into a long freefall. Less than a second had passed since the beam had struck Star.
"Damn it!" she yelled and dived down.
Like an eagle after its prey Star locked onto the wand. Golden wings fluttered furiously, pushing her through the thick air. Every moment she was getting closer to the falling wand. Every second the blurry background was getting clearer. Monster and mewmans, clashing silver weapons and golden shields. Star pushed herself further. The distance was disappearing. She was going to make it, wasn't she? Maybe instead she should make a portal at the battlefield? A knight screamed as his life reached its end. It was too risky. And the wand was almost in her grasp. Star extended her closest left arm and kept the others straiten-up. Seconds later she would have to hit the brakes really hard. Or crash-land.
Of all the sounds coming from the battlefield, her attention focused on a thin buzzing. For each centimeter she got closer, the buzzing increased its pitch. That's right, she was not alone in the skies. Her enemy was aiming at her again. The same mistake. She cursed herself.
If you can't move, you don't need a wand. Just as Star finished her though, the buzzing vanished. Her wings instantly tilted and felt ray of magical energy passing just above her back. A last moment maneuver saved her from the violet beam. But the distance between Star and the wand started to grow rapidly. The warmth of magical energy was still on her back. Worried that the attack had hit her, Star turned her head and searched for damage. Unfortunately, she was right. A purple fiery hole was eating away her right wing. Before she could wash away the shock, the dark flames finished devouring their prey.
Just a moment ago the wand was almost in her grip. Now Star watched as it was running away, following its own path. With arms she desperately tried to manipulate her descent. Instead the ground and the air rapidly swapped their places. Wing clipped, Star's attempts at taming her tumbling ended in even more unpredictable spinning. She gave up and focused on opening a rift. To where? Doesn't matter. Can you open it below yourself? Don't have a choice.
She tried to channel her magic into a single spot at the moving ground. The constant rotation and brewing motion sickness made her lose focus. With eyes closed, and somewhat ignoring her senses, Star tried again. Nothing happened.
"Come on! I've done this hundred times" she grumbled with frustration. "Why is it not working?!"
The ground was a few seconds away. No more time was left for wasting. Star wrapped arms around herself, squeezed her eyes, and silently prepared for impact. Heartbeat echoed in her mind. Somewhere far away a woman screamed her name.
She did not felt a thing. Her brain simply pushed away her consciousness, protecting it from the overwhelming agony of the body. Like a shooting star, a trail of violet dust led to where Star's flight ended.
XXX
It was the sound of heavy marching, not the pain, that brought Star back from her shutdown. One part warned her to focus on the sound, other demanded to pay attention to her injuries. She carefully opened her eyes. It took a few seconds before the images converged. Dust was still settling from Star's crash-landing. Threatening yells were getting closer.
Standing up was awkward, painful, yet possible. Piece of her chest plate was missing, starting a deep crack around the shoulder. Blonde and rose locks mixed together around Star's forehead. Dull pain in her chest tripled. Breathing was hard and felt uncomfortable. Definitely a broken rib. More yelling, much closer than before. They were not mewmans.
Butterfly wings - they were gone. Overloading jolt from the left arm. That was broken as well. But the right one seemed to be back in working order. Star pulled out her own silver sword and carefully took a battle stance. Metal stomps ringed like a gong. In the dusty clouds menacing silhouettes solidified. She tightened up the grip.
A serpent with axe raised above his head leaped at her. Star precisely stepped away and left his leg with a deep cut. Thin furry creature tried multiple swings with his mace. Each one was getting closer to connecting. Last strike hit and shook the ground. The girl sliced vertically her enemy's back and pushed him away. Two more monsters had already surrounded her. She dodged their synchronized attack, ending in two blades clashing together. Strings of golden hair floated away. Star retreated back, when one of the monsters tried to slice her throat. She pushed the sword away with her own weapon. The other monster attempted to cut her broken arm off. Somehow she found strength to parry away that as well. Her eyes registered two more monsters headed her way. Oh, come on!
"Get away from her!" Eclipsa's voice thundered through the skies. Star was surprised how dominating, yet worried she sounded.
The monsters hesitated for a second, then obeyed. They stepped away, but kept their weapons ready. Panting, Star waited till the space around was her own. She watched as the Queen of Darkness was descending, heading this way. She swallowed painfully.
Cold, external force thrust through her back plate and continued. Perfectly sharpened piece of steel broke through Star's chest. She noticed one-eyed monster was shaking, barely moving. He looked confused. Guilty. Didn't you hear her? She said get away from me!
Warm liquid gushed in her mouth. It had salty and metallic taste. Oxygen was not enough. With each short breath blood ran down her lower lip, then her chin. How can I die here?! No matter how much air she was getting in, it was never enough. Pony Head will be so mad. And Rhombulus. And Buff Frog. And Tom. Mommy and papa will...
Everybody was quiet. Even the nearby battle between monsters and mewmans lacked sound. Only rapid heartbeat echoed in her ears. It was surprisingly peaceful. Mommy and papa will be devastated. Everybody will be.
Vision was getting narrower.The monsters looked shocked. Even the just-arrived Eclipsa. But if I die, who will get monsters and mewmans to live together? Now they will kill each other for sure…
The world had lost its colors. Through the collapsing tunnel Star could only see the Queen of Darkness. Teary eyes. Hand desperately trying to reach. I can't let this happen. I can't die yet!
Gravity pulled Star back. Legs had finally given up. The last ray of light died out. Heavy silence.
Not before Mewnie can go on without me.