"MAROON AND THE EARTH-NI PROTECTORS"
BOOK ONE: TURF WARS
CHAPTER EIGHT: DREADED BEASTS
ONE WEEK AGO...
Night had fallen upon Earth-Ni for the first time in history. Mere hours ago, Mewni (and by extension, the Underworld and Cloud Kingdom) had fused with various regions of Earth to form a hybridized world, where the people of both dimensions now intermingled with one another. At this time, the leaders of Echo Creek and the former Mewnian kingdoms were easing the chaos of the Cleave, while Star and Marco just spent the rest of the day in each other's arms, forever grateful that they were still together.
But while our heroes peacefully rested, evil was starting to brew once more. After all, when the universe solves one problem, it causes another. At this time, four feared and ferocious monsters were roaming the forested outskirts of the cleaved city: Their names were Viscosa, Lucanus, Panthara and Manavi.
This ragtag group of monsters were displaced from their familiar bearings by the Cleave; To make matters worse, they were pursued by a troop of armored Solarian Warriors earlier that day. However, this particular pack certainly wasn't innocent; They were raiders, marauders, and cold-blooded killers who terrorized villages all across Mewni. Once the Solarians lost their magic, the playing field was leveled, and the hostile monsters slaughtered them like cattle...
At this time, the coalition of nomadic cutthroats were wandering through a grim-looking forest, searching for a shelter to call home for the night. Their search had led them to quite the peculiar sight; The mouth of a cave, which was completely walled off with blue crystals.
"That cave's blocked off. Shame, it looked cozy." Manavi complained. Without warning, Lucanus pulled back his chitin-armored fist, and thrust it into the wall with all his might, smashing the crystal wall to pieces.
"You were saying?" The Shomuto retorted.
"How did you do that? Those are Rhombulus's crystals, they're indestructible!" Viscosa exclaimed.
"Not with magic gone, they aren't." Panthara answered. With the wall of rock shattered to shards, the monster marauders made their way into the mouth of the cave...
After trekking through the dark, decrepit tunnel, the group reached what lay beneath; An ancient temple, hidden beneath the surface.
"What is this place?" Panthara wondered. In the middle of the temple was something that caught the monsters' eyes; A mound of blue crystal just like the one at the mouth of the cave...but there was something...no, someone trapped inside...
Manavi was the first to head towards the mysterious crystal column, and what he saw made him gasp in surprise. Trapped in the crystal was a hulking green Septarian, with white hair and orange eyes. From these distinct features plus his ferocious, enraged expression, the marauders unmistakably knew who this mysterious creature was.
"Is that...Seth of Septarsis?" Viscosa asked.
"I thought he died centuries ago." Lucanus stated.
"It wouldn't be the first lie the mewmans told us." Panthara scornfully added. The four monsters looked upon the legendary being frozen in solid crystal, and began to realize; If the crystals blocking off the cavern mouth could break...
"Cover your ears, everyone. I've got an idea!" Manavi exclaimed. The others placed their hands on their ears (except Viscosa, who had no visible ears), while Manavi let out a loud screech. The bat's discordant vocalizations rose higher and higher in pitch, until the mound of crystal cracked all over, and shattered to pieces. Once it was broken, the unconscious Septarian fell to the ground with a thud.
"Huh, I guess he really was dead." Lucanus commented. However, he was proven wrong when Seth opened his eyes, and rose up to his feet. As the feared reptilian stood tall for the first time in centuries, the monster marauders submissively bowed down to the alpha of the room.
Seth looked down upon the strangers in his domain, and remained silent for quite a few questions, until he asked "Who are you?"
"We are your people." Viscosa humbly answered. Seth looked around the temple, to see that it was completely empty, aside from the new interlopers.
"Where are my disciples?" Seth queried.
"The Dreaded Beasts? They're all dead." Manavi remarked.
"You've been frozen for centuries..." Lucanus spoke. Soon, the fellowship of hostile monsters communed with Seth, and caught him up to speed with the modern times.
"All the universe's magic is gone, and the monarchy is crumbling. Our enemies are weaker than ever." Panthara reported.
"What the Mewmans have done to our people is unacceptable, and proves that they have no place in this world. You, my comrades, are truly courageous for slaughtering those Solarian warriors like the pig-goats they are." Seth commended.
"It's just business for us." Viscosa replied.
"The Dreaded Beasts may have died in flesh, but their ideals live on through you." The Septarian warrior spoke, as he rose up. "You people have what it takes become my new disciples. Join me, and the Dreaded Beasts shall return to enact rightful retribution on mewmanity for its heinous crimes..."
"We would be honored." Panthara answered, as she and the other three monsters knelt to their new leader. Now, the Dreaded Beasts have been born anew in the Cleaved world of Earth-Ni...
PRESENT DAY
Back at the Monster Temple, our heroes and their allies had just experienced a grievous siege from the Neo-Solarians. Seth of Septarsis and his Dreaded Beasts showed up as well, and nearly kidnapped Meteora, but her father Globgor intervened just in time.
Now, everyone was recuperating from the assault. A platoon of firefighters extinguished the flames that consumed half the temple, while the Diaz parents were telling the police what had happened. As Austin was speaking with Janna, Tom and Marco, Star had to confess to her family about her new wand...
"Star? Is that the Royal Wand?" Moon asked.
"W-well-" Star stammered, when she got cut off.
"I thought we destroyed all the magic for good?" Eclipsa commented.
Star wanted to explain to her folks the story behind her new mechanical wand, but under all the pressure, she was having trouble spitting it out.
"Does this mean magic is back?" River wondered.
"Was everything we did for nothing?" Moon asked.
"Everyone, SHUSH!" Star exclaimed, cracking under the pressure of constant questions she didn't know how to answer. Now that everyone was silent, the Mewman explained the origins of her new wand.
"It's magic...but it's not really magic." Star sighed.
"Could you elaborate?" Eclipsa requested.
"A few days ago, Austin and I found a pond full of corrupted magic. Now, Austin's really smart, so I gave him a bottle of it to work with. He ended up making it into a new wand for me. It's a mixture of magic...and science."
"That's wonderful! How come you didn't tell us sooner?" River asked.
"Well...after everything that's happened, I wasn't sure how you guys would feel about me having the last magic out there." Star admitted. "So I kinda just...hid it away."
"Oh..." Moon quietly responded. This revelation fed into something the former queen suspected; Her daughter still didn't wholly trust her, as a result of her siding with Mina during the recent crisis. Before the Butterflies could discuss the new wand any longer, the helmet-wearing hero Maroon walked up to the former royals with Tom, Janna and Marco at his side.
"Is everyone okay?" Maroon queried.
"Yeah, we're good. For now, at least." Star responded.
"You really gave that giant lizard hell, dude." Janna said to Globgor.
"So, do you think he's...you know?" Marco queried, as he put a finger to his throat and stuck out his tongue, to gesture "death."
"I don't think so, sadly. Trust me, I've done worse to him before." Globgor admitted, surprising everyone.
"Wait, you knew Seth?" Star asked, as the size-shifter let out a deep sigh.
"Hundreds of years ago, Seth and I led different factions of the Monster Army. I wanted peace with the mewmans, while that extremist wanted to kill them all."
"So, you and the other good monsters fought Seth's army?" Austin presumed.
"Well, it's more complicated than that..." Globgor quavered, as he began to tell everyone some uncomfortable truths...
ROUGHLY 300 YEARS AGO...
Turn the clock back a few centuries, to before our heroes were even born. At this time, the so-called "Prince of Darkness" was worriedly pacing about the throne room of the Monster Temple. Recently, both Eclipsa and Meteora had abruptly gone missing, due to reasons unbeknownst to him.
"Our scouts have searched the neighboring regions for your family, but they found no trace. I'm terribly sorry." A slender, green-hued monster with horns solemnly reported.
"Well, keep searching! They have to be somewhere!" Globgor exclaimed.
"It will be done, my lord." The horned creature responded, as he took a bow and left the monster prince alone. With every day that passed, Globgor had become more and more anxious about the fate of his wife and child; At this time, the love of a Mewman and a monster was an unspeakable taboo. All of a sudden, a group of familiar monsters entered the throne room.
"Well, well. The Prince of Darkness, alone on his throne."
Globgor's eyes widened, and he perked up when he heard that rough, foreboding voice; It was his biggest rival, the violent monster warrior who opposed his peaceful ideals at every turn; Seth of Septarsis.
"Seth! I told you never to come to this temple again." Globgor snarled.
Now, Seth wasn't by himself in the size-shifter's throne room. He was accompanied by five other intimidating-looking Septarians clad in armor; These were his most devout disciples; the original Dreaded Beasts.
"You should be glad to see us, Globgor. After all, we know what happened to your wife and daughter."
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM?" Globgor angrily shouted, as he doubled in size and glared down at the lizard monsters. The five underlings trembled and shook in fright, but Seth was unfazed by the size-shifter's display of power.
"We didn't do anything to your precious mewman family. But Shastacan did..."
Shastacan Spiderbite. That name was truly revolting to Globgor. Shastacan was Eclipsa's betrothed husband, wed to her out of political ties to the Spiderbite Kingdom. However, his hatred of monsters and overall repugnant personality disgusted the queen, who eloped with her monster lover instead.
A look of horror fell upon the size-shifter's face, and he became dead silent, as the horrible possibilities arose by that name swirled in his mind like a raging storm.
"Shastacan found out about your little affair with the Queen, and he wasn't happy about it." Seth spoke.
"W-what did he do?" Globgor choked out.
"He was furious with Eclipsa for choosing a monster over him, and the fact that she had a CHILD with you only stoked his anger. So, he punished her accordingly."
Globgor gasped in horror, when he heard the Septarian's statement. He could hardly believe what he heard, but he knew all too well how often things like this happened.
"The king had your wife executed slowly and painfully, in front of the ENTIRE kingdom, to make an example of monster-lovers like her. And when she finally died, he did the same to poor Meteora..."
The size-shifter snapped when he heard what Shastacan did, and let out a ferocious roar fueled by fiery rage, equivalent to the fury of a thousand suns. When he was done, he shrunk down and began hopelessly crying at the deaths of his cherished wife and daughter. As Globgor sobbed in agony, Seth and his Septarian disciples surrounded him.
"The truth is, the mewmans will never accept us. You can treat them with all the kindness you can give, but they will never do the same to monsters..."
Globgor didn't respond; As of now, he was completely emotionally destroyed.
"The Prince of Darkness, crying like a spoiled child. Some king." One of the Septarians scoffed. Mere seconds later, he was knocked through a wall by the enlarged fist of an infuriated Globgor.
"However, you can avenge their untimely deaths. My disciples and I plan to raze the Spiderbite Kingdom as retribution for their heinous actions. I ask that you and your monster army support us, and enact righteous justice upon King Shastacan and his wretched followers." Seth offered. Globgor got up to his feet, and looked the Septarian in his fiery orange eyes.
"Join us, and become what those reprobates will fear for generations; A Dreaded Beast..."
The size-shifter sighed deeply, and shook Seth's hand, sealing the deal.
"Excellent. Those Spiderbite savages will rue the day they trifled with the Prince of Darkness..." Seth snarled. With Globgor officially a Dreaded Beast, what would follow was one of the darkest days in Mewni's history...
"So that's why you burned down the Spiderbite Village..." River realized.
"And devoured King Shastacan." Star added.
"Hold on, YOU were a Dreaded Beast?" Austin queried.
"I hate to say it, but at the time, I was. However, soon after joining them, I found out some terrible things. Seth lied to me about my family being murdered; What's more, he's the one who killed Queen Solaria." Globgor stated.
Everyone who was familiar with Solaria gasped in shock at this revelation, especially her daughter Eclipsa. While it was known that the Monster Carver was killed by a rebel monster faction's ambush, they didn't know it was Seth and the original Dreaded Beasts who did the deed.
"After I found out I was being manipulated, I rejected the Beasts, and fought Seth in a bloody battle. At the end, I killed him...or so I thought. No matter what you do to a Septarian, they always come back..."
"Actually, there's more to the story..." Moon admitted, as everyone looked to the former queen.
"When I worked with the Magic High Commission, I learned the truth about Seth. Long ago, my mother invited him to a ceremonial banquet to settle the conflict between mewmans and monsters. However, he refused, and vowed to kill her and everyone else attending."
"So, what happened to him?" Marco inquired.
"To make sure Seth couldn't carry out his threat, the Commission ambushed him in his temple, and Rhombulus trapped him in a crystal. They even sealed up the entrance to his cave, so his disciples could never return there..."
"If he was trapped in crystal, how'd he get out?" Tom wondered. However, Star immediately realized how Seth could've been freed, and became filled with horror and dread. The force that freed Seth of Septarsis...was the destruction of magic...
Star felt her chest constrict, as she started spiraling into a state of anxiety. The former princess abruptly dropped to her knees, and her eyes began welling up with tears.
"Woah, Star! What's wrong?" Marco asked.
"Is everything okay?" River queried.
Star's family and friends quickly comforted the distressed girl, but her emotional strain only got worse, until it reached her breaking point.
"This is all my fault!" Star cried out in despair, as she teared up, and suddenly took off towards the partially destroyed temple, sobbing all the while.
In the isolation of her room, which was thankfully barely touched by the siege, Star lay on her bed, hopelessly bawling. The ex-princess felt wholly responsible for Seth's return, making her feel terribly guilty and regretful.
Someone knocked on the door, but Star couldn't hear it over the sound of her own crying. The visitor knocked once more, and got no response. So, he opened the door himself. With teary eyes, Star looked up to see who had entered her room, and felt hopeful when she saw Marco standing in the doorway.
"There you are! We were so worried about you." Marco calmly said, as he walked up to Star's bed and sat down.
"M-Marco?" Star whimpered.
"I'm here, Star. You can tell me what's wrong."
"This is all my fault!" The Mewman cried in a strained tone of voice.
"What do you mean?"
"I-I regret everything! When I destroyed magic, I thought it would bring peace to everyone. But Mina's still out there, and Seth is too! It was all for nothing..." Star sobbed.
Now, Marco wasn't sure what what to say to Star; So, he used actions instead of words, and ran his fingers through her soft golden locks to ease her pain.
"This isn't your fault, Star."
"I don't deserve you, Marco..." Star croaked. "I don't deserve you, or any of my friends, or my family, I don't even deserve to live!"
Marco's heart sank when he heard Star's last saddened remark. He quickly grabbed hold of her, and hugged her as tight as he could.
"Don't say that! Star, you deserve all the good people you have in life. If I ever lost you...I don't think I'd ever move on..."
"I didn't mean that...it's just...I feel awful, and I'm under so much stress, and-"
"Don't worry. When this Dreaded Beast crap is all over, we'll get you some help." Marco offered.
"Help?" Star queried.
"We'll get you a good therapist, I promise."
"Thanks. It'll be hard to fine one better than Dr. Marco PhD, though." Star remarked, as she leaned in and kissed Marco on the lips. Marco reciprocated her affection, by enveloping her in a soft hug. After a few seconds, the two lovers pulled from their kiss at the same time.
"Feeling better?" Marco asked.
"I sure am." Star replied.
"Good. Now get some sleep, it's been a long night." Marco sighed in a tired tone.
"Only if you join me." Star retorted. Marco nodded in agreement, and the two got in the covers and cuddled up, until they finally drifted off to sleep...
After Star and Marco fell asleep, the others went their separate ways. The Diazes (sans Marco) returned home, and took Star's laser puppies with them for safe-keeping. Conversely, Austin, Tom and Janna all headed to their respective houses. Eclipsa, Globgor and Meteora went to bed in their room, whilst River and Moon stayed up to keep watch for any returning enemies.
Once the sun rose and morning came, Star finally woke up, and nudged Marco to do the same.
"Marco, you up?" Star whispered, as Marco slowly opened his eyes and groaned.
"I am now..." The boy moaned.
"Let's go check with the others." Star spoke as she got out of bed with a stretching yawn. All of a sudden, her stomach began to rumble.
"How 'bout we get some breakfast first?" Marco suggested.
"Good idea!" Star answered. The two then walked out her room hand in hand, towards the dining hall to find some grub...
Around the same time the couple woke up, Austin, Tom and Janna returned to the temple lobby to check in with the Butterflies, and discuss their next move.
"The temple is badly damaged, and we're the number one targets of Mina and Seth. Where should we go?" Moon wondered.
"If you're asking me, I say go to Hell." Janna remarked. Everyone gasped in shock, and the Butterflies looked extremely offended.
"Janna!" Austin snapped.
"What? I meant that literally." Janna replied, as Tom groaned in exasperation.
"She means the Underworld. There's nowhere safer than my parents' palace, and they'd be happy to have you." Tom elaborated, as the ex-monarchs quickly realized the misunderstanding.
"Oh, the Underworld! What a brilliant idea!" River exclaimed.
"Yeah, Janna's pretty clever." Tom remarked, as he lightly nudged Janna with his elbow, making her smirk and blush lightly. Although Mina's attack on the temple ruined Tom's chance to confess his love to Janna, they still felt much closer to each other after the "not-quite-a-date."
Austin, who was still in his Maroon gear to protect his identity, turned to Globgor and asked the size-shifter a question.
"You have more experience with Seth than anyone else. What do you think his next move will be?"
"Well, if there's anything Seth hates, it's mewmans and monsters co-existing." Globgor replied.
"Alright, and?"
"Well, some of my co-workers were talking about a big festival tonight, and anyone can go. Humans, mewmans, monsters..."
"Wait, I remember hearing that! It's called Echo-Palooza, and it's supposed to unite everyone; The very thing Seth and Mina are against..." Austin realized.
"Then we need to stop them. Janna, do you know when it is?" Tom asked.
"Yeah, but you're not gonna like it. It's tonight." Janna sighed.
"Then we better act fast." Austin spoke...
In the dining room of the temple, Star and Marco were sitting together and eating a rather unorthodox breakfast; The leftovers from last night's dinner party.
"Pizza for breakfast. This is my life, now." Marco remarked, as he took a bite of cold pepperoni pizza.
"Hey, I'm not complaining!" Star retorted, as she ravenously gobbled up a slice. Moments later, three familiar faces entered the dining room, much to the teens' delight.
"Hey, guys." Austin nonchalantly greeted. Star's face lit up when she saw that her friend's formerly sprained arm was no longer in a sling.
"Woah! Your arm's not broken anymore!" Star exclaimed with glee. In all the commotion from last night's attack, she completely forgot that Austin had healed.
"All thanks of you, Star." Austin responded, making the former princess smile.
"Let's cut to the chase. Rumor has it the Dreaded Beasts are gonna attack Echo-Palooza." Tom stated, making Star and Marco gasp.
"Oh no!" Marco exclaimed. Marco had been to Echo-Palooza celebrations in years past; He knew almost all his friends from high school would be there, especially Jackie & Chloe, who volunteered to work there this year.
"Mina's army probably will too, but without magic, they aren't so tough." Janna added.
"Guys...you're gonna hate me for this, but this is all my f-" Star quavered, when Marco gently pressed his finger to her lips and shushed her.
"This isn't your fault, Star. We're gonna get through this." Marco kindly consoled her.
"It doesn't matter whose fault it is; Innocent people are going to die at the hands of our enemies...unless we stop them together." Austin spoke, and lowered his his gaze down to Star. "I said it before, and I'll say it again. You're gonna do great things, Butterfly." He then looked back at the rest of the teens.
"We all will."
"Now let's go save the world!" Marco exclaimed. Now that Earth-Ni's first superhero team was united as a whole, it was time to stop their foes and save Echo Creek...
Outside the Monster Temple, the Butterfly family was waiting for their passage to the Underworld. Once it arose from the ground, it would take them to the fiery depths, where their safe haven awaited.
"Where's Star? The carriage should be arriving soon." Eclipsa asked. As if on cue, Star called out to her folks, and quickly headed over to them.
"There you are! We're just about to leave for the Underworld!" River exclaimed.
"Wait, the Underworld?" Star asked. Suddenly, the ground began to quake, and a large carriage pulled by skeletal horses erupted from the ground, surrounded by flames.
"Come on, Star. It's time for us to leave." Moon spoke. Star sighed deeply, and knew she had to tell her family that she couldn't come with them...
"I'm sorry everyone, but...I can't come with you." Star quavered, bewildering the others.
"Star, this is life or death! Seth is still out there, if you stay here, you could be killed!" Moon worried.
"We can't lose you, honey!" River added.
Star felt awful about not coming along with her family, but she needed to serve the greater good...
"I'm sorry, but I have to stay here and make things right. If I don't, innocent people are going to die! This is my fight, and I'm going to see it through." Star spoke, as she held up her wand to show the others.
"She won't be alone." Marco called out, as he and the other teen heroes walked towards the group.
"We'll watch her back." Tom added.
"Oh, I see..." Moon sighed, realizing that there was no changing her daughter's mind. "That wand couldn't be in better hands."
Upon hearing such a kind compliment from her mother, Star reached in and hugged Moon tightly. Their embrace turned into a group hug when River, Eclipsa, Globgor and even Meteora joined in, the latter placing a tiny hand on the blonde's cheek.
"Save the world for us, darling." River said profoundly. Once their group hug was finished, the Butterflies all headed into the carriage that would take them to safety. Everyone waved and said their heartfelt goodbyes, and the carriage quickly descended underground, to the protection of the Underworld beneath...
"So, now what?" Janna shrugged.
"Your call, Maroon." Star remarked, as the helmeted hero turned to his teammates.
"Alright, team. Let's get Mina and her goons out of the way first. I have an idea where their base might be." Austin informed.
"Let's SUIT UP!" Star cheered...
A couple hours later, the five teens were all geared up in their superhero outfits, and were heading towards the alleged Neo-Solarian campsite, where the wreck of the Dauntless lay. Star and Tom were flying high above the trees whilst carrying Marco and Janna, whilst Maroon flew down low in the forest with his trusty rocket boots.
Soon, the heroes five all landed on the forest floor, and grouped up just outside the enemy camp. As they prepared for a battle with their bigoted foes, Tom caught wind of a familiar scent.
"You guys smell that?" The half-demon asked. The others started sniffing, and smelled the odor as well.
"Smoke." Marco commented. The group then quietly headed down towards the campsite, with their weapons at the ready. Marco unsheathed his sword, Star held out her wand, and Janna whipped out her pocket watch. However, what they saw when they reached the base shook them to their core...
Corpses. Mewman corpses, strewn all across the Neo-Solarian encampment, as well as destroyed tents and a ruined campfire. To the heroes' horror, most of the bodies had claw or fang wounds, but one in particular stood out; It was the deceased body of Manfred, who seemingly had no external injuries. However, there were drops of dried purple goo around his nose and mouth. However the former servant was killed, one thing was for sure; It sure as hell wasn't pretty.
No one could muster a single word at the horrifying scene; The only sounds to be heard were the calls of birds...and deafening silence. Even Janna, who had a penchant for all things dark and macabre, was genuinely appalled by the sight of such a massacre.
In addition to the mess of slain mewmans, the pond of corrupted magic that the Dauntless lay in was now completely dried up; It had all been burned away, indicated by the black smoke billowing from the withering pond.
'It's...it's all gone." Star weakly choked out. Now, her wand truly was the last of the cleaved city's magic. Suddenly, she felt a jolt of fear surge through her, when she heard Marco scream. She ran to see what was the matter, and yelped in shock herself when she saw what scared Marco.
What they saw in the burned-up magic pit was a charred skeleton with burnt clothes, and a partially melted helmet that they both immediately recognized; They were looking at the dead body of Mina Loveberry!
Everyone gasped at the sight of Mina's scorched skeleton, and Marco looked like he was about to puke.
"That's horrifying." Austin meekly commented, in a shaky tone of voice.
"Guys, look!" Tom exclaimed. The others gathered around the half-demon to see what he was pointing at; A set of large, five-toed tracks in the mud, near the edge of the pond.
"Septarian tracks. Looks like the Dreaded Beasts beat us here." Tom explained. The Neo-Solarians' deaths brought up some conflicting feelings in the group; While it was good that the hateful thugs couldn't hurt innocent monsters anymore, it still felt appalling how gruesomely they died.
"T-they're all dead." Star stammered, still coming to terms with the grisly scene she had witnessed.
"If we don't stop those monsters, Echo-Palooza will end up just like them." Janna added.
"We can't let them kill anyone else. Let's go, there's nothing for us here..." Maroon sighed, as he activated his rocket boots and flew away from the scene of the crime. Tom picked up Janna, and took off into the air after him. Marco comforted Star with a soft hug, and the two headed off as well, leaving the gruesome ruins of the Neo-Solarian encampment.
Before their journey to the wreck, Austin and his team thought finally putting an end to Mina's prejudiced crusade would be cathartic; However, seeing the slain corpses of the Neo-Solarians was anything but. No, it was a grim reminder; If they failed to stop the Dreaded Beasts, the innocent people of Echo Creek would share the same fate...
Well, that got dark real fast. And it was originally gonna be WORSE! I had an outline of a scene where the Dreaded Beasts kill Mina and her followers, but I decided to cut it to keep the surprise that the Neo-Solarians got killed off. Speaking of the Beasts, a lot went into making these villains, so here's some trivia about their development!
In a very early version of the story, Rasticore was supposed to lead the Dreaded Beasts, but he got swapped with the more mysterious and threatening character, Seth of Septarsis.
Lucanus's name comes from the genus of stag beetles, the animal he's based on.
Manavi's name originates from manavy, the Malagasy word for "bat."
Having a monster from Ludo's gang as the "weak link" of the Beasts was in there from the beginning, but it was originally going to be Man-Arm, not Lobster Claws.
Mina's role in Book 1 was originally going to be larger, with her and her followers attacking Echo-Palooza; However, later on I decided to have Seth kill her off.
The current Dreaded Beasts were partially inspired by the Red Lotus from "The Legend of Korra."
Anyways, the next chapter will be the finale of Turf Wars, so stay tuned for the exciting conclusion!