The Sovereign's Resurgence
Chapter 1-Memory and Fallout
Butterfly Castle-Butterfly Kingdom
The ground rocked with tremendous force, it's furious shaking forcing the already weakening walls of Butterfly castle to crumble. Forcing them to give way as it felt to all those inside as if at any moment, the ground beneath their feet would split open and swallow the castle whole. It's occupants were not concerned with that however, the crumbling foundations and the roaring sounds of destruction and chaos in the air being barely noticed by the enemies which were locked in their final death struggle for the Mewnian capital.
An 18 year old girl, stood in a set of armoured leather trousers which were a deep red colour, a matching leather tunic over her upper half with 4 small daggers placed two at each side secured nicely in black sheathes. Her radiant and shimmering, blood red hair glowed brightly as it cascaded down to her lower-back like a waterfall, the light seemed to dance off it as it glowed brilliantly in the space. Her eyes matching the intense glow of her hair, her iris' having turned a deep red and shone out like beacons as she stood her ground against her opponent.
What truly completed her impressive and intimidating appearance however were the pair of angelic wings which stretched from her back and were crafted from beautiful red and orange flames which gently swayed and crackled as the wings gently moved as she commanded them without effort.
She stood defiant, angered in the way that only comes from the deepest feelings of betrayal and sorrow. She stood against a man who had made her feel only the worst in her life, a man who had turned her mother against her and a man who had slaughtered thousands in cold blood to attain power and so called "glory". She felt sick to her stomach to even look at him, and even more sick to look at him knowing one simple undeniable fact. The man she faced, was her father.
He stood in a regal and slim black military uniform. It's typical finery and awards had been abandoned so as to better suit active warfare. Where most of his troops and officers had worn steel breast plates which defended them from attack. He had opted instead for a series of metal plates that were sewn into his uniform so that they are nearly unnoticeable unless you were actually trying to look for them. This made him quick and more flexible which suited this tyrant's typical style of combat. His face was handsome by all means, aside from a long scar which travelled down from his left eyebrow to just above his glowing crimson sun cheekmarks.
His own eyes glowed a crimson red with marks of crimson suns adorning his cheeks which shone with an intense light as roaring flames circled his position. He smiled a sinister and cruel smile, chuckling to himself as the flames danced and flicked around him, slight movements of his arm causing them to flicker and spiral at his command. The chuckle from his lips grew as he stared into his daughter's hate filled eyes, he saw in her all the years of boiling hatred that had built up inside of her, focused on only him. Her only target and only goal was to see him pay for everything she thought he had done to her. If only she could see how wrong she truly was, it was for her...all of it had been for her. Why could she not see that?
But he knew he had no choice anymore, whatever daughter he had once known had now gone and now all that stood before him was an enemy. A new and dangerous foe that challenged his right to rule, and he would answer the challenge regardless. "It seems that my daughter really did die all those years ago" he uttered in a cruel and dismissive tone, but he couldn't help but feel in himself some sorrow behind it. This girl had once been his child after all. "All I can see before my eyes is a traitor, and you should know by now that traitors.." he paused and brought his left hand up. A small crimson flame floating gently in it. She watched as the flame in his palm began to shrink in size but also take the shape of what appeared to almost be a teardrop.
She could feel the intense heat as the flame began to grow hotter and hotter, turning from crimson red into a nearly pure white inferno which illuminated the massive space of the Butterfly castle. "Farewell Tamia my dearest child, be sure to send my love to your mother" he spoke as he moved his hand in front of him, palm outwards and facing the awaiting Tamia and in a moment a great mass of white flames shot from his palm.
Lucitor Citadel-Grand Lucitor Union (Two years later)
Tamia awoke with a gasp of air, the dream...once again that same dream of the final time she had seen her father was present in her mind. The nightmares came often of that final struggle with the tyrant that had once given her life and whose powers and blood flowed through her body. It was always that blinding light that woke her. The heat and intensity of the flames and the blinding light that shone from them as Helvete had resolved to kill his only child in his crusade to annihilate the Butterfly Family and subjugate Mewni.
He had almost succeeded. That was what had stuck with Tamia the most. That madman and the armies of the Helios empire had subjugated or annihilated almost the entirety of Mewni with the exception of the Johansen Kingdom and a few outlying villages and tribes which mattered very little in the grand scheme of things. It had only been for the monumental efforts of Star, Marco, Her beloved Tom and herself that had stopped him in his tracks, destroying him in the centre of the kingdom he despised so much. 'It'd be poetic if it hadn't involved so much death and suffering' Tamia thought to herself as she took in her surroundings. She sighed with relief as the shock began to wear off from the night terror and she was once again able to fully recognize where she was and, more importantly, that she was safe.
She pulled herself up and sat up in the bed, her back resting gently against the headboard as she took in her surroundings. The master bedroom of the Lucitor citadel, a grand space from when Tom's mother and father had occupied it, the tall ceilings a constant reminder of the sheer size of the demon that was Tom's mother. Not that Tamia really had to worry about impressing in-laws like most girlfriend's did. They had seen to that when Tom's parents had turned against Mewni and had thrown their lot in with Helvete for land and power. Ponyhead never quite let Tom or Tamia forget about that anytime they encountered one another.
'I suppose you can't blame her' Tamia thought to herself as she casually swept her silky red hair away from her eyes and she shifted in the bed until her legs dangled over the edge and her tiptoes touched the warm granite flooring below. 'Helvete did kill her dad after all' the thought continued, Tamia ensuring that even in her mind she never referred to that monster as anything like 'Dad'. He'd thrown away the chance of having that title long, long ago in her eyes.
She stood to her feet and began walking over to the dressing table in the corner of the room. It was a quaint little table with a small sink in it's centre filled with crystal clear water. A large mirror fitted just above that which was just large enough to show most of the room, save for the ceiling as the room was simply too high for that. She looked into the mirror and took notice of her face. Not much had changed in two years, aside from she'd cut her hair slightly shorter, it only hung down to her upper back now. She took hold of a nearby brush and began to brush the knots out of her hair, she was rather blessed when it came to her long hair, miraculously it never formed that many, even in her sleep. Once she was done her mind suddenly noted her Boyfriend's absence.
Tamia looked towards the bed and sure enough, Tom wasn't there. Tamia sighed and a small chuckle escaped her lips as she knew exactly where the Lucitor king was. She looked up from his spot on their bed and sure enough, there he was. Sleep floating just below the high ceilings of the bedroom. She couldn't help but laugh everytime she woke up to see him like this. It wasn't the strangest part about their relationship, but it was up there. She sighed and reached into the left drawer of her dressing table, pulling out a small plush toy which resembled Buff frog which she'd picked up randomly during her last visit to Mewni, thinking it was kinda cute.
A sly smile formed across her face as she took aim at Tom's sleeping form, she held her arm in place for a few moments, making minor adjustments for the perfect shot. Shifting in her chair and motioning the throw with her arm to ensure she had an optimum shot. When she was absolutely sure that she had the perfect shot, she coiled back and launched to the toy from her hand. It hurtled towards Tom's sleeping form at speed. Just as Tamia thought she'd made a perfect headshot however, Tom's right hand shot up and he effortlessly caught the toy in mid air, after which his three eyes opened wide and he looked down from his perch towards Tamia, a rather pleased with himself grin plastered across his face.
Tamia faked a pout, and in a mock whined up to the King "That's not fair, you were just waiting for me to throw it, that's cheating". Tom just chuckled aloud as he floated himself down until his red eyes came into line with Tamia's crimson ones. "Well, if you do it everytime it's gonna get a little predictable yknow" he teases as he places a gentle hand under her chin. "Besides, you take too long to aim" he chuckles. Before Tamia can reply to this quip, Tom placed a small, soft kiss onto her lips, silencing her words and drawing her into a loving embrace. 'Dammit' she thought to herself 'He knows I can't be mad at him when he's like this..not fair'.
When the kiss broke the couple smiled sweetly at one another before Tamia lightly flicked the end of Tom's nose, making him cover it with his hand and back up slightly. "That's for not playing fair, now cmon, we've gotta get dressed it's a busy day today" she said with a playfully bossy tone to her voice as she turned back to face the mirror on her dressing table. Tom nodded and quickly floated over towards his closet, the doors opening with a quick motion as the Lucitor king approached, revealing the miniscule amount of outfits the couple had between them. Neither one of them really wanting to dress formally unless it was necessary.
However today was unfortunately not a day to be relaxing in whatever they fancied. Today they were to look their best and give the impression of a true ruling couple as they'd be attending yet another formal council with the leaders of the other kingdoms that had been all too common in post-war Mewni. The meetings dragged alot, Tom and Tamia only being saved from total boredom by their casual conversations with Marco and Star that would occur in the middle of the long and dreary meetings. It was doubtless going to another trumped up affair with the Magical high commission attempting to pass some new law or complain about some new use of magic within the kingdoms.
'Although' Tom thought to himself as he pulled on his black undershirt which fit snugly over his body and was made from an incredibly soft, silky material that kept the king warm in the occasionally harsh winds of Mewni. Tom was obviously much more used to the warmth of the underworld so cold weather really didn't do it for him. 'It certainly beats Ponyhead's attitude at the moment, I'd rather be bored than insulted all the time' the thought continued in his head as images of the past meetings came to mind one after the other.
At first Ponyhead had been severely depressed, unable to really rule the kingdom in any realistic way and would often retreat into her room, surrounding herself in snacks and Korean dramas. But recently she had been crawling out of her well of self pity and despair, only to end up in another one which seemed to be filled with a bottomless source of anger, pain and hatred. Most of those emotions were aimed squarely at Tom and Tamia. Ponyhead it seems, not matter how much she denied it and how much Star and Marco tried to vouch for her, certainly blamed the Lucitor couple for her father's death.
Tom wasn't unsympathetic, far from it, they'd all lost something or someone in the war without exception. But Ponyhead was in the unique position of having Tamia's father kill her own, and Tom's parent's had helped him enslave her kingdom. Even after the downfall and death Helvete and the Lucitors, it seemed Ponyhead was not satisfied and the Lucitor and Ponyhead kingdom's were now at their lowest point of friendliness in centuries. 'I just hope it doesn't lead to anything worse than a few name calling incidents' Tom thought for a moment. His mind turned to worse scenarios and their possible outcomes when it came to the Ponyhead Kingdom.
It wasn't until he felt a light tap on his shoulder that he was sprung from these thoughts with a jump and a surprised gasp as he turned around in an instant. He was met only with a giggling Tamia, who was now poking fun at him because he'd been so jumpy. "Jeez hun, you really were miles away, you haven't even finished changing yet, I was asking if you could zip up my dress for ages" she laughed pointing to the pair of black, military style trousers in his hand which had clearly been clenched in his grasp for some time by now. Tom blushed slightly and began to quickly pull on his trousers before zipping Tamia's dress up until reaching a small clasp at the back that was little more than a simple hook which he hooked in properly, finishing off his girlfriend's ensemble before he then attempted to assemble his own outfit as best he could as he watched Tamia turn to reveal what she had picked out in all it's glory.
Tamia was beautifully dressed in a long, flowing red dress with a fine, golden trim on it's outer hems which looked like golden flames which climbed up the edges of the dress to around her ankle level. She also wore a small, golden crown with an oval cut Sunstone in it's centre which shone brightly and was surrounded by twelve strips of shimmering Golden Beryl which gently shimmered as the light caught them. The gemstone arrangement forming the image of a twelve ray sun which had become the symbol of the Grand Lucitor Union.
Tamia's long flowing red hair cascaded down her back to meet her dress and she had put very light waves in it which only made it seem more angelic and perfect. To Tom there was no more beautiful sight in this or any other dimension, and he was the happiest demon in the underworld knowing that they had found each other. Even if it was in pretty grim circumstances at the time. Tom stopped his staring for long enough to assemble his basic Lucitor military uniform which was worn to most occasions where he was required to look somewhat formal. Next he began the long and annoying process of attempting to fix all of the additonal finery and awards that were required to be worn during more important events like these boring meetings with the Magical high commission.
Tamia watched him struggle for a moment with a giggle before sighing and began to fix his medals and orders to his chest herself. She then turned her attention to his aiguillette which was affixed to his left shoulder with a small hook on the end of the braided, beautiful golden rope which decorated his uniform further and showed off his high status to his army and anyone else who happened to lay eyes on him. Once she'd finished she picked up his crown off a small, plush purple pillow which sat on a marble pillar, before gently placing it on his head. The crown matched her own in the decoration for the most part. However it was larger and was also lined along the rim with a white fur which distinguished his crown from that of the Queen's.
"Do we really have to go?" Tom moaned as Tamia gave him a sympathetic look "I mean we never get anything done besides catch up with Star and Marco or get yelled at by Ponyhead" he pointed out before muttering under his breath "..usually both.." in a slightly bitter tone. Tamia just smiled "Yes we do, we're the king and queen of the union and we have to attend" she told him before she sang "besides, I hear Marco and Star have some news for us all this time". Tom chuckled to himself and looked at his wife with a smile that only told him he was thinking something he shouldn't "Bet you a bag of gold that he's knocked her up" he said with a grin. Tamia at first pretended to looked shocked he would even make such a bet, but he saw right through that in an instant. So she thought for a moment before nodding and extending her hand to Tom's to shake on it "You're on, I bet they've finalised the wedding day" she grinned with a confident chuckle. Tom nodded before taking out a pair of dimensional scissors and the pair stepped through the portal together.
Butterfly Castle-Butterfly Kingdom
In the Butterfly Kingdom, the sun crept slowly over the mountains of Mewni which lined the kingdom's borders. Illuminating the forests and plains and turning the kingdom's flowing waters into golden pools and streams which criss crossed the landscape and twinkled with unworldly beauty. The sky glowed a bright and dazzling orange hue which faded into a deep purple the higher up you looked as the planets overhead came into view.
The great towers and dazzling walls of Butterfly castle glittered majestically as the sunlight hit them. The multi-coloured rooftops splashed with vibrant orange, blue, white and pink hues as the sunlight seemed to give the castle a radiant glow and beautiful aura. The castle, left in ruins after Helvete's devastating invasion and it's destruction during the final climactic battle which had cost the tyrant his wretched life, was now fully repaired and restored to it's former glory that had previously taken hundreds of years worth of past queens to build.
In the city below, life for the Mewmans commenced the same as it had done for hundreds of years and hundreds of thousands of mornings before this one. Farmers left their homes and made for the fields to tend to the, frankly ridiculously large, corn crops that Mewni had grown famous for. Merchants began to unlock their stores and vendors, carrying out heavy boxes full of wares and arranging displays with surgical precision, as if the slightest change could mean the difference between a sale or a loss.
Outside the Barracks and along the guardtowers and gatehouses of the mighty stone walls of Mewni which stood as a bulwark against any would be attacker that would dare stand against the kingdom, guards switched shifts as the night watchmen trudged tiredly down to their awaiting beds, exhausted from their long night of staring out over the dark landscape of Mewni and the new watchmen replaced them with fresh faces and well rested eyes. The walls of the Butterfly Kingdom themselves had recently been augmented with newer technologies to make the capital city near impregnable. The citizens of the kingdom were determined that never again would they allow such a disaster to occur like they had seen under Helvete's invasion of their homeland.
The war had taught them much and forced them to improve a great many things about the kingdom's self defence. Like the artillery pieces which had been installed at the top of each tower, overlooking the landscape with their devastating power and range which could deter any foe from attempting to assail the walls of the mighty kingdom. The soldiers on the wall were well drilled and disciplined, trained and armed at the crown's expense and taking on the lessons learned from the conflict to develop new tactics and drills which had crafted them into a formidable fighting force.
A detachment of men exited the barracks and formed up smartly in three ranks of six on the road just outside. A couple of onlookers stopped to watch on their way to work to see the guard commander exit the barracks. He wore a fine uniform which was as blue as the ocean itself, his name embroidered across his left breast in bold, block capitals which were etched in white thread so as to contrast well with the deep colour of the uniform. On his right breast was the symbol of the Palace Guards which was displayed as a pair of crossed broadswords surrounded by a laurel wreath, all of which was stitched into the uniform in beautiful golden thread.
On his right arm, also stitched into the fabric in brilliant gold thread was a golden crescent moon surrounded by a laurel wreath which seemed to shield the moon from all sides, signifying the man as a Senior Squire 2nd class, the second highest rank of the squires of the Mewnian army. He was still a far cry from even being recognised as a knight, but he'd certainly earned a place of command. He stood in front of the awaiting line of still, silent troops so that they could all see him and he could easily stare into the whites of their eyes as he prepared to take command of the squadron.
"Palace Guard! 'Shun!" he yelled with a booming voice of command which immediately caused all of the squires to come to attention with a loud thud as their boots crashed to the ground with the movement. The guard commander paused for a second before making his second command "Palace Guard! Move to the right in threes! right! turn!" He yelled once more, his voice differing in volume across the command with the final "turn" being the loudest part of the order. Immediately each of the squires turned on the spots they stood on, keeping their arms held into their sides neatly as their trained-in iron discipline took it's effect, until they were now facing their immediate right.
The guard commander copied the movements of his previous command to complete his own turn, however he turned to his left so that he was facing the same direction as his squadron. "Palace Guard!By the centre! Quick! March!". As he spoke that last command the squadron, starting on the left foot, began to march towards the looming Butterfly Castle which formed the skyline of Mewni. Their boots struck the ground heel first making a rhythmic stomping noise as they marched smartly towards their duty.
The bystanders who had been watching the soldier's movements with interest, now dispersed and began to go about their lives once more as the sound of bootheels thundered off into the distance towards Butterfly Castle to relieve their comrades of their night watches.
Inside of the castle, Star Butterfly giggled to herself as she watched Marco lightly snoring in bed, a small stream of drool just peaking out from his open mouth. She had always been an early riser and as such had already been up, gotten washed, dressed and ready for the day's events before coming back to find that Marco had barely stirred from how she left him. 'He's so cute when he sleeps, buuut I do need you awake Marco Diaz' she thought to herself for a moment before leaning down and placing a soft kiss onto his cheek and gently whispering into his ear.
"Marcoooo, Time to get up" she sang with a cheery voice as the boy began to stir with a murmur which, despite his sleepy and mumbly voice, Star heard quite clearly as "Star, don't hog the nachos". Star nearly burst out laughing at this small glance into his dream and decided to have a little fun with him. "I'm not gonna share my nachos unless you get up sleepyhead" she teased which caused him to stir once more with a still tired "hmmpff no fair" as his eyes began to flicker open and in doing so he caught a glimpse of Star with a mischievous smile on her face.
His eyes opened wide in realisation that he had been talking in his sleep and his face immediately turned a shade of red that matched his distinctive red hoodie. Star began laughing much louder now as she saw her trick had worked and that he was now both awake, and adorably embarrassed. "Morning Marco" she said sweetly between giggles "Was it a nice dream?" she asked as she gave him a sly look which only further increased his embarrassment. He hid his reddened face under the blanket and through the muffle of the soft fabric he replied with a muttered "Well it was till you started hogging all the food".
This just made Star laugh again as she sat down on the bed beside him and gently coaxed him to lower the blanket before cupping his cheek gently with her left hand. "oh Marco, Marco, Marco" she said with a loving voice "I'd always share my Nachos with you" she finished before planting a kiss onto his lips which he happily melted into, wrapping his arms around her waist as hers wrapped around behind his neck, both of them being temporarily lost in the kiss until breaking away mostly for air.
Giggling in the aftermath of the kiss, Star unwrapped her hands from around Marco and tugged on his right arm to drag him out of the bed. "Cmon Marco, you gotta go get ready for the meeting today, you've been in bed long enough" she said as she struggled to drag him from the covers, as he'd grown older it was clear he'd also become much stronger than she was, at least physically anyway. She still won every time they duelled each other for training, a fact her competitive self was immensely proud of.
After a few of watching her struggling to move drag him from the bed, Marco chuckling as she did so, he relented with a quick "Okay, okay Star, I'm getting up" causing her to let go of his arm and smile widely in victory as he hauled himself from the bed until he stood up just on his side of the bed. The marble floor below him made him flinch slightly as his feet took in the cold sensation of the ground but within moments he had risen to his feet and was now walking shirtless to the bathroom to wash himself in preparation for the day.
Star couldn't help herself but to admire him a little as he walked, he wasn't quite his muscular self from Hekapoo's dimension but he was certainly getting there that was for sure. She blushed lightly as she caught herself staring before she turned away to leave the room and head down to the dining hall for her breakfast. It would be a long day after all with her assisting Queen Moon more and more these days, and this one would be no different.
Queen Moon had unfortunately not fared well from her own battles with Helvete. The tyrannical emperor had brutally and without hesitation torn the Queen's wings from her back in a sadistic display of cruelty which the entire Butterfly Kingdom, especially the royal family, had paid witness to. The after effects couldn't have been known to anyone, such an event had never happened in the entire history of the Butterfly Family. Unfortunately for Moon, it appears that the effects of such an event were drastic indeed.
Granted, the Queen was already in her mid-forties by now, but her health had seriously declined since that day and was only growing worse as the months passed. She had began to age rather rapidly and it was certainly possible for you to mistake her for being in her late-fifties to early-sixties as wrinkles had began to show much more prominently on her skin which had faded in colour ever so slightly, making the queen appear pale by comparison to how she had previously looked. Her long, pale blue hair had now began to show signs of ageas the blue slowly began to give way to grey and white hues, although it was still in a well kept and silky state, if only with slightly less colour to it now.
She also had begun walking with the aid of a wooden staff which was about her height, thin and coloured a pure and dazzling white. At it's tip was an intricate carving of a crown which formed a ring around a ocean-blue, spherical cut sapphire gemstone which was sat neatly in the centre. Her movement had certainly slowed but she was no less majestic and graceful than she had been before. Although as queen it was quite clear she could only really attend to the more administrative side of ruling the kingdom. This allowed her to sit down and relax her the aches and pains that now plagued her body in the aftermath of war.
Star was therefore trusted and relied upon to carry out the ceremonial and more active elements of Mewnian rule in her mother's place, effectively preparing her for her own future rule of Mewni one day as her experience in command had already grown significantly across the past two years. Marco's as well, as he continued his previously held command of Mewni's armies under his newly bestowed title 'Knight-Commander of the Mewnian army' A title he secretly loved the ring of in his head.
Star sighed as she sat down to breakfast, her mother and father were already there. Both of them greeted Star as she came in, although it has to be said that River had done so without swallowing his food first causing him to spray bits of bread, bacon and sausage across his portion of the table with each word. Moon quietly reminded him with a loving but stern voice "River, swallow before you talk to people!", River shamefully apologised and attempted to eat slightly more neatly, which was definitely not his natural habitat. Star just giggled at her father's strange antics before sitting down as one of the servants brought her this morning's meal with a formal bow and a polite "Good morning your Highness" as he did so.
Star thanked the servant and then turned to her mother, who sat in her usual place at the head of the table. "So mum, besides that Mewni council meeting do I have anything else to cover today?" Star asked with some small hope that Moon would say no. Moon looked up from her breakfast with a knowing smile towards her daughter "Nothing beyond what's needed for that announcement of yours" she spoke with a teasing tone to her voice causing Star to blush slightly, this only made moon chuckle to herself as she continued eating and pausing only to speak further.
"How do you think they'll take it?" the queen enquired as Star shifted nervously at the question. "Well...Eclipsa and Globgor will be overjoyed, the Magical high commission will probably be happy for us but not really care in the grand scheme of things" she said as she thought about just how many similar announcements they must've heard in their immortal lives, it probably gets boring and mundane to them after a while. 'What a depressing thought' she thought to herself before continuing to answer her mother's question. "Tom and Tamia will also be super happy I guess, the one I'm worried about it Ponyhead" Star finished with some worry present in her voice as much as nervousness over the announcement.
Queen Moon saw the concern on her daughters face and a sympathetic expression crossed her face. "We all lost things that we hold dear in the war Star, Ponyhead more than most of us, Just try to be patient with her dear, she'll come around in time" she reassured her daughter as she gave a small smile which Star returned, a hopeful look now drawing across her face. "Thanks mum" she responded before looking down to actually concentrate on her food for a while. Today was certainly going to be a long day. 'That' Star thought 'Is for certain.