"Star?"
The last remnants of magic blinked out of existence as what used to be a two story Mewni style tower reverted back to its original, normal state, its structure and furnishings not unlike the bedroom across the hall. Marco's bedroom.
The red hooded boy dropped to his knees, the emotional and information overload weighing on his mind and his body.
"Star..." he repeated, the utterance of her name like a stinging bitterness upon his tongue. His best friend was gone. Just like that. No warning. No reasoning. No goodbye. Simply...gone.
She had a crush on him? Why didn't she say anything sooner? What did she mean she might have to leave Earth forever? What is going on in Mewni right now? What's gonna happen to her?
These questions settled and simmered in Marco's mind as he continued staring into nothingness. So many questions devoid of any fitting answers. He didn't even bother trying to make any hypotheses. He was in a state of mental paralysis.
My scissors! His mind snapped as his legs sprang into action towards his room. What used to be the pinnacle of organization and cleanliness was quickly becoming a frantic, haphazard mess as Marco turned his room upside down, diagonal, and sideways searching for his hard-earned dimensional scissors.
"Looking for these?" a rather vexing female voice from behind felt like a sucker punch to his psyche. Marco's body made an almost instant 180 as he traced the voice to be none other than Janna, the long-time, beanie-bearing bane of his mental health.
She leaned against his door frame, casually snipping the otherworldly arts n' crafts tool while giving the worried kid the smuggest shit-eating grin.
Marco remained silent. Far too beside himself with anger and concern to even question how she got a hold of those scissors.
"Give them to me. I need them now," he demanded with firm determination and added emphasis on "now". It didn't go unnoticed by the wily girl standing before him. In fact, his distant demeanor chilled her just a tad bit.
"Geez, I don't think I've ever seen you like this, Diaz. You look like you're ready to murder a dude."
"Now," Marco repeated himself, the determined tone closely creeping towards irritation. Janna's expression softened a bit. The boy exuded a drive and pain that was evident in his body language and his speech. Such qualities were never expressed once during the time she's come to know him. She wasn't sure whether to pity or admire him.
After a few moments, Janna relented and approached him with the scissors. Marco's tight expression loosened a bit, as the object drew near his grasp. But before he could even touch the tip of a blade, Janna swiftly withdrew her hand, with which the boy responded with a look of shock as his jaw dropped slightly.
"Lemme come with you," Janna said, providing a catch to this seemingly simple exchange. Marco had so many choice words to consider in response to this, most of which involved calling her crazy and/or stupid.
"Why?" he eventually settled with after a long silence.
"'Cause Star's my friend, too," Janna answered, sincerity seeped in her speech. "And besides, someone's gotta have your back when she's not around. I think I'm more than capable."
"Janna, you were on a tree cowering from all those rats when Ludo attacked us in the graveyard," Marco spoke flatly. "Jackie had to come to your rescue,"
"Hey, I was overwhelmed and unarmed!" Janna sharply rebutted, embarrassment etched on her face."Besides, I'm more stealth and thievery than combat and crowd control,"
Marco closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. Something could be happening to Star or her family or her kingdom right at this very instant and he was wasting time arguing with this... he didn't even know what derogatory term to use at that instant. He just wanted to get the hell going.
Still, he had to begrudgingly admit that she was right. The dimension of Mewni wasn't exactly a stroll down Sunset Boulevard, what with dangerous locales like the blatantly named Forest of Certain Death. An extra body could help their chances of helping Star with whatever crisis she and her kingdom is enduring. Surely two first year high school students had the ability to help stem the tide of a dimension-wide conflict.
"Fine," Marco sighed, much to his dismay and Janna's joy. He took the pair of scissors from the girl's fingers and immediately prepared to open up a portal to Mewni.
"Uhh, aren't you forgetting something?" Janna vaguely inquired, raising an eyebrow. The guy simply blinked.
"Marco?" As if on cue, the distinct valley girl voice of Jackie Lynn Thomas, his chill skateboarder girlfriend, was like a bucket of cold water on the hooded teen's face. She stepped from behind Janna, her radiant aquamarine eyes affixed with worry for her neurotic and hasty boyfriend.
"J-Jackie?!" Marco's tanned skin went pale as he was blasted by the realization that he was about to take a long journey to another dimension while leaving behind his girlfriend, his parents, and the party full of kids downstairs.
"Everything okay?" Jackie asked, calm but concerned. "Your parents and everyone else got worried. We thought you might've gone after Star immediately and left."
Marco's face fell into a deep frown once again. He stared at the floor, too afraid to face Jackie in fear of what she'll say and think when he has to break it to her.
"Mijo? Is everything alright?" the deep, caring voice of his concerned father emerged from the door frame, accompanied by his mother, whose visage was drawn with an anxious frown. "Your mother and I have already sent everyone home. Those two girls that Star brought here had to return to their respective kingdoms. Something about them being in danger." Guilt was dog piling on the poor boy's conscience. Now he was trapped into bearing the news to his parents, too.
"Mom. Dad...Jackie. I-"
"Ah, ah, ah. Say no more," Much to Marco's surprise, his mother, Angie, held up a hand and interrupted the boy. "We're all worried about Star and we know how deeply you care about the poor girl."
"You two have been on many dangerous adventures before," Marco's father, Rafael, casually reminded his son."This shouldn't be any different, right?"
"Mom...Dad..." Marco had no idea what to say. Sure, his parents loved and supported him unconditionally, but the situation seems a lot more dire than the norm. They nor he had any idea how bad things really are.
"Marco..." Jackie began, her eyes glistening and her tone serene, yet serious. "I know how you two are. I've seen it every day in school. I can just feel the unbreakable vibes between you two whenever you're side by side, y'know? I don't think I can even come close to having what she has with you. I know I can't convince you to stay or choose or whatever, but just know that, the only thing that matters to me is that both of you come back safe and in one piece. Whatever changes or choices you make during this whole thing, I'll be fine with it no matter what."
Marco's merely stood there wide-eyed and slack-jawed. Absolutely no words whatsoever can even begin to describe his emotions and how grateful and blessed he is to have someone this understanding and this accepting of Marco's current ambitions. If there was ever a moment where he felt he absolutely didn't deserve someone like Jackie Lynn Thomas, this was definitely now.
The boy sniffled. His eyes clenched shut as tears slipped between the cracks and slid down his cheeks. Jackie took him in a tight, loving embrace, rubbing his back in an effort to calm him down. He put his arms around her, and continued to cry into her shoulder, her shirt getting dampened by the tears. Marco broke away from the hug and approached his parents. He threw himself into their arms, the combination of their loving warmth and tight embrace gradually easing the pain in his heart and the stress off his mind. Janna merely sat at Marco's bed, her heart softening at the heartfelt scene unfolding before her. She almost wanted to shed a tear herself. Almost.
"I can't thank all of you enough," Marco finally said, rubbing his eyes. With the support of his girlfriend and his parents, he was more motivated than ever to go to Mewni. To go to Star. To go back to the way things were.
With that, Marco took some time to make necessary preparations. Gathering some snacks, water, extra clothes, and above all, his first aid kit. All of it went into a rather large green backpack he used whenever he went camping with his family.
And finally, the moment was upon them. The determined teen sliced the air with his dimensional scissors, conjuring a blue, swirling vortex out of thin air. Before he and Janna stepped in, Marco turned towards his parents and Jackie.
"Mom. Dad. I don't know how long I'll be gone, but I know I'll be back home with Star." Hope and confidence glistened in his dark eyes. The couple nodded at him, with the same hope etched on their faces
"We love you, son. Stay safe." They both said simultaneously.
"I love you, too." the red hooded boy reciprocated wistfully. "Jackie, I-"
A pair of soft lips rested upon his own. The kiss was sweet and inflamed with passion, longing, and promise. And yet... he couldn't lose himself in the moment like he has in the past. His eyes remained open.
Their lips gently parted. Jackie gave him one of her beloved smiles. The smile that would always melt the coldest of hearts and calm the most furious of storms.
"Go get her. She needs you now more than ever." She declared with a firm certainty.
With a single nod, Marco stepped into the portal, his body fading into the blue spiral. Janna was following behind.
"Shouldn't we let your parents know you're going as well, dear?" Angie asked, concerned for the rash girl.
"Eh," Janna apathetically shrugged, before immersing herself in the rift.
Well this was... definitely not where they expected to be. Janna and Marco ended up in a very dense forest, as far off from any semblance of civilization as they could have been. Somewhat good news however, was that the topmost spire of Castle Butterfly was within view in the bright daylight. Just very...very...far away. Like, maybe several dozen miles over if they had to make an estimate on their distance.
From what Marco remembered from his last trip in the wilds of Mewni, this was thankfully not the Forest of Certain Death. However, they were still in monster territory, so caution and vigilance was still a must.
"Marco, I thought you knew how to use those things," Janna sharply rebuked, pointing at the scissors.
"I do, I just...haven't really gotten the hang of them yet." Marco sullenly stated, glaring at the magical blades. "Well, at least we're in Mewni, and not...elsewhere."
"Well, I guess no one said this would be easy," Janna's attitude loosened as she performed some stretches. "A little exercise never hurt nobody,"
The duo began to walk in the direction of the castle spire. Minutes passed with barely a word between them. Only the brisk breeze, the rustling of leaves, and the cries and chatters of fauna filled the empty silence. Marco simply stared forward, seemingly unblinking and unyielding. Janna marveled at the otherworldly wildlife, her head looking this way and that way like a tourist in an exotic country. Plants and flowers of alien shapes and colors lined the ground beneath them. The teen girl eyed a pair of blue, bug-eyed chipmunk looking things running up a tree, seemingly searching for whatever fruit or nut grew from its branches. Or to get laid. That's also a possibility.
"Hold up, I gotta take a leak," Janna declared after what seemed like an hour of trudging through the vast sea of towering trees. Marco simply nodded and sat at the base of the nearest tree. Janna disappeared behind some bushes to do her business.
Marco was just left alone with his thoughts. He couldn't help but think back to when Jackie kissed him before he embarked on this journey. It felt..different. It was a nice gesture and he absolutely appreciated it for sure, but the kiss didn't hold the same impact as it has multiple times in the past. But why? He's dedicated years and years of planning to get even one of those kisses, and getting multiple from his longtime target of affection should be like heaven to him. Was it because it felt like the last kiss he'll ever get for a long time? If that was the case, then it should have felt way more special and cathartic.
The contemplative boy vigorously shook his head, as if trying to physically get these unnecessary thoughts out of his mind. He was probably overthinking it, as always. It was most likely simply a matter of getting used to being kissed by his girlfriend. Nothing more. Nothing else.
His mind decided to leap into another train of thought. How is Star taking all of this? Leaving Earth behind, possibly forever and having the burden of being a princess facing a kingdom-wide crisis? Plus there was the fact that the destiny of Mewni would fall into her hands someday and she had to master her magic before that day came. Man, if Marco had a kingdom's worth of pressure on his back, Star had a universe's worth. But that's why he's here, isn't it? To be there for his friend and ease the burden off each other's backs. To fight as one against all odds. Against whatever forces the universe or fate decides to chuck at them.
"Marcoooooo!" the faint sound of his name being screamed dragged Marco back into reality. Before he knew it, he was running through the forest, pushing through branches and bushes and jumping over logs. How could he have been so stupid as to let her go as far as she did? What was she even doing this far away? Sweat raced down his face and his legs begged his body to stop, but adrenaline forced him to go even further beyond his limits. The shrieks were getting louder and clearer as he ran deeper and deeper into the forest.
He finally reached a wide clearing in the forest. Three bound and gagged mewman men sat bunched up against one another in one corner of the area. Janna was on the ground, clearly bruised and beaten with two monsters towering high above her. One was a lean goat man who stood on cloven hooves and brandished a large, blood-soaked machete with a wide blade that hooked at the tip. The other was a muscular, hunched over bull creature, with fat winding horns, and a large bronze nose ring.
"Ya got some nerve tryin' to steal our loot, flesh bag," The goat snarled, pointing his giant blade towards the captives. His voice scratchy and raspy. "Whaddya think, Troh? Think she's got the Hand? She doesn't smell mewman to me."
"Uhhh, maybe, Kas." The bull answered, his voice was deep, accompanied by a childlike dopiness. "I say we give it a chop!"
"Just what I'd like to hear," Kas held Janna's right arm in one hand as she feebly struggled against his might and raised his unwieldy blade with the other. The blade shone beneath the daylight sun as it was raised towards the sky.
Without thinking, Marco leaped from the bushes, charging the two burly brutes at full speed. He slammed into the bull monster with as much might as he could gather. The unexpected attack baffled the burly bovine, and he ended up stumbling into the cloven creature.
"What the Home, Troh!?" The goat loudly rasped, his grip upon Janna loosened enough for her to escape.
"Wasn't me!" the bull replied frantically.
"Janna, get those guys outta here!" Marco commanded, his voice booming with urgency. He held his ground in a karate stance. "I'll hold 'em off!"
The teen girl was hesitant at first, but her sense of justice quickly drove her to free the captives from their binds. After several moments of untying rope, all three were free and ran off, disappearing into the brush with Janna following behind.
"So, we got a tough guy huh? Who does he think he is? Alexander?" Kas snorted arrogantly.
"Huh, huh, huh. He's not Alexander!" Troh guffawed, enabling his buddy.
Having enough of their idiocy, Marco charged forward and unleashed a series of hard punches upon the bull monster's belly, much to his amusement. It felt more like an inept stomach massage if anything.
"Huh huh huh. Why don't... uhh, you. Talk to the, uhhh," The bull demon tapped a claw his chin, trying his hardest to fill in the blanks for his upcoming clever quip. Marco was still laying out a multitude of strikes upon the bull's torso, to no effect.
"Oh yeah, the HAND!" the bull yelled as he drove the palm of his hand into Marco's face, knocking him down to the dirt. The hoodied teen felt his nose bend and his teeth loosen. A pair of dark red streaks cascaded from his nostrils to his upper lip.
"Heh, I don't think that girl got the Hand, anyways. She didn't look the part," Kas smugly remarked, taking a few steps towards Marco, still reeling from the prior impact. He pulled the fallen teen by the right arm with almost enough force to dislocate it. "This one doesn't either, but juuuuust in case."
"No, No! Please! Anything but that! Stooop!" Marco begged profusely, his pleas falling on deaf ears. His eyes widened with fear as he vigorously struggled in futility. He feared for his own life far too much to wonder what kind of sick tradition they're partaking in where they need to sever right arms off of innocent lives.
"Kid, the sooner you accept your fate, the easier this is for all of us," The goat raised his machete into the air once more, the flat part of his blade reflecting the sunlight. "Ya don't hafta look, if that makes it better for ya."
The machete dropped at full strength, the red hooded teen's arm cleanly and instantaneously severed from his body. A stream of crimson sprayed from the severed appendage, his red sleeve still attached to the limb.
"RRRAAGGHHH!" Marco's blood curdling shriek seemingly echoed all throughout Mewni. Startled flocks of birds flew off their trees and into the skies. The one armed boy couldn't hear the laughs of the demons over his own tortured cries.
"Aww, it's just a regular ole' floppy meat stick," Troh childishly complained, swinging the still bleeding limb back and forth like a pendulum made of flesh, liquid crimson showering the ground below. "Could make a good snack I guess,"
"Gah, figures. Guess we gotta keep lookin'," Kas groaned, walking away from Marco. His body contorted uncontrollably, still holding onto his bloody stump in his only good hand and uselessly trying to keep more blood from escaping his body. His hearing was clouded and his vision drastically blurred. The two demons in his sight were reduced to amorphous blobs that seemed to shrink smaller and smaller until their forms blended into the mess of greens, browns, and grays in his deteriorating vision. Their vexing laughter was muffled and extremely low in pitch. It felt like his mouth was stuffed with cotton and metal was coating his tongue.
The pain. It was unbearable. It hurt. So much. Too much. Bleeding.
Marco's eyelids grew heavier and heavier as seconds went by. The intense blur was slowly fading into a black void. However, before his eyes closed indefinitely, a floating blue and white blob with a smaller pink blob within it slid into view. Just hovering there. Not doing a thing. Like it was just judging him. The boy struggled with all his might to keep his eyes open and focus on the mysterious entity, but the trauma was beyond what his body and mind could handle. All of his physical and mental functions teetered on the cusp of shutting down. His writhing body relaxed to a complete standstill, and the mess of colors in his vision gradually faded into darkness. However, the unshaped form made a sound that was crystal clear.
"Oh, grow up boy, it's just a flesh wound."
