"MAROON AND THE EARTH-NI PROTECTORS!"
BOOK TWO: HEROES AND VILLAINS
CHAPTER THREE: GUYS' NIGHT OUT
In the dimmed living room of the Capers Household, the smell of popcorn wafted throughout the air; Tonight was movie night!
Austin was sitting on the couch in the middle of the room; To his left were his Aunt Rita and Uncle Dez, while to his right sat Eclipsa and Globgor, with little Meteora resting on her father's lap. The family was treating their houseguests to one of Austin's all-time favorite films, "Star Wars: A New Hope." While the Butterflies were enamored by the movie, Austin was eagerly waiting for a couple of honored guests.
"That's Chewbacca! Can you say Chew-bac-ca?" Austin asked Meteora, whilst pointing to the hairy alien onscreen.
"Boo-baba!" The baby joyously squealed while clapping her tiny hands.
"These "movies" you have are absolutely wonderful. We had nothing like them back on Mewni." Eclipsa complimented.
"And monsters on Earth really have it good! Look at Chewbacca, he must be a world-famous actor!" Globgor added.
"About that..." Austin stammered. "There were no monsters here before the dimensions merged. Chewbacca's just a dude in a suit." The boy continued, disappointing the size-shifter.
"So that means Shrek isn't real either..."
All of a sudden, the doorbell rang. Austin excitedly leapt off the couch, and ran towards the door; The guests he was expecting were finally here! The teen engineer opened the door; Standing on the front porch were his fellow Protectors, Marco Diaz and Tom Lucitor!
"Hey, guys!" Austin greeted.
"Hey, Austin." Tom responded.
"You ready for Guys' Night Out?" Marco asked. The whole idea of "Guys' Night Out" was Marco's brainchild, after all; It was his plan to bring his closest male friends, who didn't know each other very well, closer together in a grand night out on the town!
"YEAH!"
Meanwhile on the other side of town, tragedy had struck; An office complex had caught fire, and was burning fast! Luckily, a ray of hope had shined down on the imperiled civilians trapped in the blaze; Lady Butterfly had come to the rescue!
Star flew up to the second floor of the burning building with her mecha-wings, and used her Magitech wand to telekinetically float the last batch of civilians to safety. Once all the people were saved, the fire department sprayed the complex all over with their heavy-duty water hose, extinguishing the blaze.
"The fire's all put out. Thanks for the help, Lady Butterfly." One of the firefighters spoke.
"Hey, we couldn't have done it without you guys!" Star retorted, as she saluted the firefighting platoon. "I wonder what caused it?"
"Arson." A feminine voice called out. Star and the firefighters turned their heads to see Janna in her Snatcher getup, dragging a roughed-up, restrained man clothed in a cheap brown suit. "Peter here tried torching his own building for an insurance scam." The heroine continued, much to the shock of everyone around her.
"And I would've gotten away with it too, if it weren't for you meddling heroes!" The arsonist snapped. After he was taken away in cuffs by some on-site officers, The two Protectors left the scene, while the people they saved cheered and applauded.
Moments later, the two girls were on the roof of the Diaz household, watching the sun set over the gorgeous Earth-Ni sky.
"Well, our patrol's almost over. What do you wanna do once we're done?" Janna inquired.
"Hmm...Marco's having his "Guys' Night" with Tom and Austin, so we can't do anything with them." Star sighed, as Janna suddenly got a bright idea.
"If they're having Guys' Night, why don't we have Girls' Night? It's only fair."
"Great idea, Janna! I'll call up the gal pals!"
Unfortunately, their attempt at finding female friends to spend the night with was fruitless so far. Everyone the two girls called seemed to have prior commitments elsewhere.
"So, Starfan's at Comic-Con, Penelope's with Slime, and Pony Head got grounded. What terrible luck!" Star complained.
"Why don't we call Jackie?" Janna suggested. As she took out her phone to call her skater friend, Star began to feel rather uneasy. Recently, she had reflected on past events that made the mention of Marco's ex evoke feelings of unease...and more so, guilt.
"Janna, wait!"
"Too late." Janna retorted, as she turned the phone on speaker. Mere seconds later, Jackie responded to her friend's call.
"Hey, Janna? What's up?" Jackie asked.
"Star and I are having ourselves a Girls' Night Out. You wanna come with?"
"Oh, I'd love to! But I'm kinda busy at the moment. I'm volunteering to help take care of the kids at the local orphanage." Jackie explained. When Star heard the mention of children, her face lit up; She had a genius idea.
"Orphanage?" Star excitedly asked, as she rushed over to the phone. "Hi, Jackie!"
"Star! What's up, girl?"
"I just got an awesome idea! Why don't Janna and I come visit in our Earth-Ni Protector costumes, and hang out with the kids?" The mewman girl suggested, as Janna's eyes widened in surprise.
"Really? You'd do that?" asked Jackie.
"Of course! Anything for those sweet lil' kiddos!"
"Awesome! See you there, Lady Butterfly!"
After the call, Star was overjoyed and brimming with excitement. Janna on the other hand, looked rather uncomfortable.
"What's wrong, Janna-Banana? Don't you wanna spread some cheer?" Star queried.
"I dunno, I'm not very good with kids. Babysitting isn't my idea of a fun girls' night out."
"We're not babysitting, Janna! We're gonna make their night."
"Alright, fine. Let's get this over with." The hooded heroine sighed.
"That's the spirit! Now let's get rolling!" Star cheered, as she activated her mechanical wings, and picked up Janna. As the two flew through the skies on their way to the orphanage, a mysterious man watched them from afar; He was hiding in the shadows below, smoking a tobacco pipe.
"Ah, the Earth-Ni Protectors..." The enigmatic malefactor spoke in his thick Scottish brogue. He took a drag of his pipe, and blew out a couple rings of smoke. Then, he grinned sinisterly.
"Looks like it's showtime..."
Back in the Capers household, Austin led Marco and Tom into the basement, where the rec room was situated. Tom, who had never been down in this room before, looked around and saw various games situated around the room, including a pinball machine, an air hockey table, and even a miniature basketball court!
"Huh, nice setup." Tom remarked. "Not as good as mine, though."
"So, what are we doing first?" Marco asked. He had planned his "Guys' Night Out" so that each of them could choose one thing they wanted to do, and Austin was up first.
"You guys have seen Star Wars, right?" Austin queried. Marco and Tom both nodded and said "Yes." in response.
"Alright, which movie's your favorite?"
"Revenge of the Sith." Marco answered.
"Umm...the one with the Death Star?" Tom quavered, causing the other two boys to groan and facepalm.
"You've never seen them, have you?" Austin rhetorically asked, causing the demon prince to sigh. "It's fine, I guess. Anyways, I wanted to show you guys this."
Austin clapped twice, and the rec room went completely dark. Mere moments later, the room was illuminated by a verdant light when Austin ignited one of his custom engineering projects; A custom-made lightsaber modeled after that of Luke Skywalker's, complete with a glowing green blade!
"Woah!" Tom and Marco exclaimed in unison.
"Thanks, I spent months making it." Austin retorted. "And there's more where that came from," The teen engineer continued, as he tossed two other replica sabers to his friends. Marco's was a blue-bladed lightsaber replicating that of Anakin Skywalker's, whilst Tom's was a double-bladed red one, just like Darth Maul's.
"This is one of the coolest things I've ever seen." Marco remarked.
"Thanks, dude. Now, enough talking; It's time for a DUEL!"
Now, an intense sparring match had erupted in the rec room. Marco and Austin were teaming up to fight against Tom and his formidable double-bladed lightsaber, as a re-enactment of the climactic duel from "The Phantom Menace." All three boys were formidable fighters, and their combat skills shone during their friendly duel. The intensity of the battle grew with each strike, block and parry made by their replica sabers.
"You're strong with the dark side, but light shall prevail!" Austin boasted, completely immersed in the role of a Jedi Knight.
"Oh, I'll show you the dark side!" Tom retorted, as he grinned toothily. He swung his saber at Austin several times, and the boy grew tired blocking his swift strikes. Once he was vulnerable, Tom disarmed him of his green lightsaber, and used his telekinetic powers to "Force-push" Austin to the ground.
"Master Capers!" Marco exclaimed. Tom lunged at the role-playing padawan with his blood-red blade, but Marco blocked his strike just in time. Now, they were locked in a climactic clash.
"Join me, Mar Ko'diaz, and we will rule the multiverse as master and apprentice!"
"I'll never join you, Darth Lucitor!" Marco exclaimed, as he jumped up and swung his saber towards Tom. The two continued to duke it out in their heated duel; Due to his sixteen years of Neverzone experience, Marco was a far more challenging opponent for the demon prince to face. Without Tom resorting to his pyrokinetic powers, the two were evenly matched, or at least until...
"Marco, catch!" Austin exclaimed, as he threw his saber to his faithful padawan. Marco caught the weapon by its hilt, and ignited it; Now, he was a dual-wielding fighting machine! He swiftly swung the blue and green blades at Tom, who was now on the ropes. After a flurry of swift and elegant strikes, he disarmed the demon of his dual-bladed Sith saber.
"Any last words before we bring you to justice?" Marco asked.
"Yeah. Don't look up." Tom retorted. Suddenly, a loud, creepy hiss was heard. Out of nowhere, Meteora dropped down from the ceiling, and latched onto Marco's head! The hoodie-clad teen began screaming in fright, as she repeatedly slapped his face and pulled his hair with her tiny hands.
"Argh! Get her off me, get her off me!" Marco cried. The half-breed baby then leapt off of his head, and towards Tom, who miraculously caught her in his arms. She looked up at the prince of the Underworld with her big, bright eyes, and snuggled up against him, melting his heart.
"Aww, you saved me! The Force is strong with this one." Tom gushed. He held the tailed tyke closer to him with one arm, and used the other to retrieve his saber with telekinesis. He ignited it once again, and its shiny glow fascinated Meteora, who tried reaching for it.
"Tom, keep that thing away from her! She could cut herself!" Marco warned, ever the safe kid.
"Hey, they don't really cut stuff." Austin clarified. To demonstrate, he poked Marco with his lightsaber; It lightly shocked him, causing him to yelp.
"Yow! It still stings, though..." Marco groaned. Now that their "Duel of the Fates" was done, it was time for the boys to head out for an activity of Tom's choosing...
Meanwhile, as night fell upon the cleaved city, Star and Janna landed on the sidewalk outside the Echo Creek orphanage.
"We're here! Are you ready for cuteness galore?" Star excitedly asked.
"Well, I'm glad you're feeling better now." Janna remarked, prompting the mewman girl to raise her eyebrow.
"Uh...what are you talking about?"
"When I mentioned Jackie, you started acting all weird. Is everything okay?"
Star let out a sigh, and looked to her partner-in-crime-fighting. "It's nothing, don't worry about. I've just been thinking lately, and I realized...I'm the reason Marco broke up with her. I mean, he had a crush on Jackie his whole life, and I screwed that up!"
"I mean, you did confess your love to Marco in front of her."
"Wow, thanks for the support." Star grumbled.
"But that's all in the past! You and Marco are together now, and Jackie's dating that awesome French chick. It's a win-win!"
"I guess."
"Don't let it get you down, Star. We all make mistakes, trust me. Now let's go in, we've got a bunch of kids waiting on us." Janna spoke. Star faintly smiled, and the two heroines headed into the orphanage to spread some cheer...
Star and Janna entered the receptionists' desk, where a nerdy-looking man sat at his desk, playing Solitaire on his computer. "Welcome to the Echo Creek Orphanage. How may I be of service?" The receptionist nonchalantly asked, without even looking up from his monitor.
"Hi! We've come here for a very special visit. Do you know where the kids are?" Star asked.
"Well, first you'll need to sign a-" The receptionist droned as he looked up from his computer; He suddenly fell silent when he saw two members of the famous Earth-Ni Protectors standing at the register. The aide fainted, much to the girls' surprise.
"Don't mind Lucas, he's just a huge fan of you guys." remarked Jackie Lynn-Thomas, who had just entered the room. "I'm so glad you made it, the kids are gonna go nuts!"
"Great." Janna groaned; The last thing she was looking forward to was a room full of hyperactive kids running around screaming.
"Let's go, I wanna to see the kiddos!" Star exuberantly exclaimed. Jackie showed the girls to the playroom where all the children were gathered, and headed in first to announce the prescence of the Protectors.
"Hey, everyone!" Jackie called out, as she clapped her hands twice to catch all the kids' attention. There were over a dozen kids scattered around the room, including a few mewman and monster orphans who were sheltered here after the Cleave. The kids all stopped playing with their toys and games, and looked up at Jackie.
"Gather round, everyone! We've got some special visitors here tonight." The skater girl continued. Most of the younger children, who were one at the youngest and five at the oldest, gathered together on a circular mat in the middle of the room. However, the five oldest children, who were between the ages of seven and eleven, stayed behind at a small table in the corner of the room.
"I'm sure you all know these two awesome ladies who've done so much to keep us safe. Everyone, clap your hands for Snatcher and Lady Butterfly!"
On that cue, Star hopped into the room, with a thrilled smile on her face. Janna hesitantly trailed behind her, not wanting to be the center of attention. All the little children excitedly rushed up to Star, wanting to meet their beloved hero.
Overwhelmed by the group of adorable little tykes standing before her, the mewman heroine dropped down to her knees to hug them. While Star affectionately doted on the little ones, Janna watched from a safe distance; While her friend was a total cuddle bug, she was more reserved around others, when she wasn't pranking them, at least.
"Yo, Snatcher!" A pre-pubescent voice called out. Janna looked to its source, and saw those five older kids, who were still hanging out at their table in the corner of the room.
"'Sup." Janna retorted, as she subtly waved towards the kids, and tentatively stepped towards their table.
"She's so cool! Remember when she hacked those evil robots?" A human boy asked his fellow friends.
"Or when she hypnotized that bat dude into fighting Seth!" A bird-like monster girl chirped. The children's praise of Janna warmed her heart, causing her to smile and take a seat at their table.
"Ooh, can you show us your magic powers?" A little mewman girl asked.
"Well, I don't really have magic powers, that stuff's all gone. But I do have this." Janna retorted, as she pulled something out of a satchel she kept on her belt; The skeletal remains of the corrupted baby millhorse, which perished after magic's destruction. The five kids erupted into oohs and aahs, as Janna faintly smiled...
On the other side of the room, Star was signing autographs for the children, using a pink crayon.
"Once again, thank you so much for doing this." Jackie told her superhero friend.
"Oh, it's my pleasure! Anything for these adorable lil' munchkins." Star happily replied.
"You guys are really popular with the kids here. Just look around the room." Jackie suggested. Star looked around the playroom, and saw lots of drawings of her and her teammates, done by the residents of the orphanage. Several kids were playing with hand-made Earth-Ni Protector dolls, including one girl who held a Martial Boy doll in one hand, and a Princess Turdina action figure in the other.
"I wuv you, Pwincess Tudina!" The child cooed, as she smushed the toys against each other to simulate kissing. Star giggled watching the girl played, since the two characters she "shipped" were in fact the same person.
"Those heroes are gonna need some bad guys to fight." Janna told the kids, as she dropped three dolls on the ground. They were made of makeshift materials, such as felt, buttons and even human hair. What's more, they were modeled after three of the fiercest thieves in Earth-Ni; Xaxira, Lord Larceny and Wild Deak Robbins.
The children rushed to the Royals Red dolls like moths to a flame, and started playing with them roughly, smashing them into their Earth-Ni Protector toys. While the kids frolicked, Janna had a devilish smirk on her face, and snickered suspiciously.
"Those are voodoo dolls, aren't they?" Star queried.
"Mm-hm." Janna nodded. In a prison outside of town, a certain trio of incarcerated thieves were sure to have a very rough night...
Back at Austin's home, the boys were getting ready to head out for the next leg of their night of excitement. Currently, they were saying their goodbyes to the Jean-Marcelins and Butterflies.
"Goodbye, boys!" Eclipsa called out, as Meteora cooed and waved her little hands.
"Have fun, but not too much fun!" Uncle Dez joked.
"See you later!" Austin chirped; Then, he closed the front door. "So, when's our ride coming?"
It should be here right now." Tom answered. Suddenly, the ground began to shudder and shake. All of a sudden, a demonic black carriage erupted from a fiery hole in the earth; Hitched to the ominous wagon was a skeletal unicorn with a mane of scorching flames.
"What the hell?" Austin exclaimed. The teen gadgeteer was absolutely astonished at the sight of Tom's intimidating choice of transport.
"Come on in, make yourself at home! The Underworld awaits!" Tom shouted, as he hopped into his sweet ride.
"Don't worry, dude. This is gonna be fun." Marco assured his worried friend.
"If you say so..."
Austin followed Marco into the carriage, and what he saw inside was a mixed bag; Sure, there were open flames, skulls and bones everywhere, but there were also six flatscreen TVs, a photo booth, a karaoke machine, and some comfortable-looking seating. He took a seat next to Marco on a scarlet-colored sofa.
"Alright, let's get this show on the road!" Tom cheered, as he snapped his fingers. Suddenly, the carriage plummeted back into the ground at maximum overdrive, frightening Austin to the point where he was screaming his head off. Contrarily, Tom and Marco, who had done this song and dance before, were completely nonchalant.
"Is he okay?" Tom wondered.
"He's just new to this whole "Underworld" thing." Marco responded.
"Ah, gotcha. How are things going with Star?"
"They're wonderful! How's Janna?"
A few minutes later, Tom's carriage arrived at its intended destination. A shook and nauseous Austin immediately jumped out of the vehicle to throw up, while his comrades calmly stepped outside, into the smoldering environment of the Underworld.
After puking his guts out, Austin looked up at where he was standing; A fiery hellscape surrounded by flames. All that demonic fire really freaked Austin out, especially since he was nearly burned alive by the demoness Xaxira not so long ago.
"A-are we in hell?" Austin cried.
"It's called the Underworld, dude. Get it right." Tom remarked. "Come on, let's get moving."
The three boys walked towards their next stop; A defunct and derelict amusement park. A faded sign on the front gate boasted its name; "HELLUVA PARK."
Austin and his friends wandered through the calamitous carnival; The rides were rusty, and the stalls where games and food would normally be were completely empty. In fact, not a single person was here other than then them.
"Where is everyone?" Marco queried.
"Oh, this place went out of business years ago. You should've seen this place when I was a kid, it was awesome." Tom bragged, with a hint of sadness noticeable in his voice. This once-great park was very special for him.
The demon prince and his human cohorts approached a huge, intimidating roller coaster, with an entrance adorned with horned skulls and open flames. With its loads of loops and no shortage of spirals, "The Nine Circles" made some of Earth's scariest coasters look like child's play.
"Well I'll be damned." Austin spoke, completely in awe of the attraction that lay before him. The trio of heroes headed into the entrance, and there was no attendant at the control panel, worrying Marco and Austin.
"Are you sure this is safe?" Marco worriedly asked.
"Of course, I've ridden this baby hundreds of times." Tom stated; However, they still weren't full convinced that the Nine Circles were one hundred percent safe.
Austin and Marco sat together in the front of the coaster car, while Tom sat at the very back. "Get ready for this!" He shouted, as he extended his arms. The demon prince expelled fire from his hands, boosting the coaster out of the gates like a rocket ship. The cart raced down the track at breakneck speed, leaving a trail of flames as it went. Marco and Austin screamed not in terror, but in thrill, as their car went through all sorts of crazy twists and turns.
Unfortunately, their excitement turned to horror, when the ride's ramshackle track suddenly broke; Now, the coaster car was hurtling towards a lake of boiling lava!
"Don't worry, I got this!" Tom exclaimed, as he broke free of the car's safety restraints. The half-demon teen flew towards his pals, then rescued them from the doomed vehicle. Tom then boosted himself upwards towards safety, but just as he was about to reach a safe ledge, he was struck in the head by some falling debris, causing him to crash to the ground. While Marco was safe with him, he had accidentally dropped Austin!
"AUSTIN!" Tom and Marco screamed in unison. Both boys were paralyzed with abject shock and horror, as their friend was now plummeting towards a fiery pit! All seemed lost, until they heard a faint exclamation of "Hero Up!"
Suddenly, the sounds of two rocket boosters igniting was heard. In his high-tech Maroon suit, Austin flew back up to the ledge with his rocket boots, and landed safe and sound on solid ground.
"You made it!" Tom exclaimed, as helmeted warrior coldly glared towards him. The demon prince couldn't see Austin's face behind that crimson metal helmet, but he sure as hell could tell he was mad.
"What were you thinking? You nearly got us KILLED!" Austin shouted, his anger amplified by his helmet's intimidating voice filter.
"I'm sorry! I didn't mean for this to happen!" Tom sincerely cried, horrified at the freak accident that just occurred.
"I thought you said you rode this hundreds of times!" Marco exclaimed, causing Tom to sigh deeply.
"Okay, I've never been on it before, I was always terrified of it! I just wanted you guys to think I'm cool."
"You LIED to us so we'd think you were cool?" Austin furiously asked. "What were you THINKING?"
"Break it up, he said he was sorry!" Marco commanded. Austin took a deep breath, glared at his demonic adversary, then silently flew off towards the carriage. "And Tom, you should have known better." He added. Tom slumped down to the ground, and longingly stared at the defunct roller coaster, feeling incredibly guilty.
At this point, Marco was feeling awful; His plan to make Tom and Austin closer friends only drove them further apart. At this point, it would take a miracle for their doomed friendship to be salvaged...
Luckily, things were running smoother back at the orphanage. Star and Janna had a ball playing with the kids, but alas, it was almost the children's bedtime; Thus, it was time for the visiting heroines to leave.
"Pwease don't weave, Wady Butterfly!" One of the younger girls piped, as she held up her homemade Lady Butterfly doll.
"I'm sorry, but it's time for us to go. But first, how 'bout a group hug?" Star asked. All the little children rushed to her, and she happily hugged them and lovingly kissed their foreheads.
On the other side of the room, Janna fist-bumped her gaggle of older-aged fans. "Stay cool, little dudes." The raven-haired occultist remarked.
"Say goodbye to the Protectors, everyone!" Jackie called out. The kids all waved and cheered, which made Star melt from the overload of cuteness.
"Goodbye, you little angels! We love you so much!" Star cooed. The two Protectors then left the building, and Jackie followed them outside.
"Once again, thank you guys so much. You made their whole night." Jackie thankfully spoke.
"No problem." Janna retorted.
"Y-yeah, it was our p-pleasure." Star shakily spoke; With all the adorable antics of the orphans, she had totally forgotten her guilt regarding Jackie.
"Are you alright?" Jackie queried.
"Star has something she needs get off her chest." Janna answered.
"Janna!"
"Hey, it's alright. Whatever it is, you can tell me." The skater girl suggested. Star took a deep breath, then began to get those nasty internal troubles off her chest.
"Jackie...I really don't know how to say this, but...It's my fault you broke up with Marco."
Jackie didn't say anything; She just waited to see what else the former princess had to say.
"I confessed my love to him in front of a whole party, which you were at, and then I left for Mewni saying I'd be gone forever. I'm the reason Marco wanted to leave Earth, that's why you broke up with him. And don't even get me started on the All-Seeing Eye!" Star ranted, in a frustrated and guilt-stricken tone.
"Star..." Jackie sighed. "I'm not mad at you. I split up with Marco because I knew you and him had something special. I didn't want him to be miserable without you."
"R-really?"
"We're just teenagers, drama like this happens all the time. And besides, now we're both dating people who make us really happy." Jackie assured, as she pulled Star in for a friendly hug. Star smiled, and hugged her back, relieved that the tensions she had were finally relieved. It was a huge weight lifted off her shoulders; Unfortunately, their troubles were far from over.
"LOOK OUT!" Janna screamed. A spinning, hurtling ring made of metal was heading towards the orphanage! Star whipped out her wand, and created an energy shield to block the ring, which exploded on impact. However, the initial shock of the blast shattered the windows, sending the now frightened orphans into frightened hysterics.
The three girls looked up to see who threw that infernal device; Floating on a high-tech, ring-shaped hoverboard was a sinister-looking man. He had pale skin, long, black hair which was slicked back, a curly mustache like one of those old-timey movie villains, and a triangular goatee. He wore a gaudy, elaborate outfit that consisted of a crimson top hat, a matching coat adorned with a yellow ring pattern, a gold-colored vest covering a white shirt, jet-black pants and gloves, and dark leather boots that went up to his calves. What's more, this caddish creep was armed with an armory of high-tech throwing rings!
"Jackie, get the kids to safety!" Star commanded.
"I'm on it!" Jackie exclaimed, as she rushed through the window to herd the orphans somewhere safe. As she heroically helped the children, the mysterious villain laughed hysterically.
"Who cares about those spoiled little brats! It's not like they have any parents!" The dastardly scoundrel scoffed in his Scottish brogue.
"Just who are YOU supposed to be? Star angrily asked, as she pointed her finger at her foe.
"I am the Ringmaster, and the world is my circus."
"You look more like a clown!" Janna taunted.
"How dare you, lassie!" Ringmaster snapped, as he leapt down from his ring-shaped hoverboard. He whipped a couple of razor-sharp throwing rings towards Star and Janna, who both leapt out of the way.
Janna ran at the supervillain with her Kali fighting sticks, but the two rings returned to his hands, and he used them as blades to block her strikes. He disarmed Janna of her sticks, and was about to strike her, when Star hit him in the back with a blast of magic from her wand, knocking him down.
"How DARE you try to hurt those precious little angels, you CREEP!" Star furiously shouted. "We're gonna lock you up where you belong!"
"Nuh-uh-uh, little lassie. The fun's just started." The Ringmaster retorted. He threw a smoke-bomb ring on the ground, and it expelled its harsh, murky contents. As the heroines hacked and cough, Ringmaster flew off on his hoverboard.
"He's getting away!" Janna exclaimed.
"Then we better go after him." Star replied. She fired up her mechanical wings, picked up Janna, and flew into the air to pursue the sinister supervillain...
On the other side of town, the demonic Underworld carriage erupted from the ground outside "Golden Echoes," a local karaoke bar. The first to step out of the carriage was Marco, as karaoke was his chosen activity for tonight.
"Come on, guys. This place is the best!" Marco piped. Austin and Tom both exited the vehicle, without even acknowledging each other; They hadn't said a word to one another since the freak accident at Helluva Park.
"I'm gonna go in and sign us up." Marco spoke. He'd been to Golden Echoes before with Star, and the couple thrilled the crowd with their rendition of "Every Time We Touch" by Cascada. "Don't kill each other while I'm gone." The hoodie-wearing boy added, as he headed into the bar.
While Marco got things set up, things were still ice-cold between his friends. Austin wouldn't even look in Tom's direction, or at least not until a six-year-old girl and her mother walked down the street near them.
"Mommy, look!" The child obliviously exclaimed, as she happily pointed at the demon teen. When her mother saw Tom, a frightened look befell her face, so she covered her daughter's eyes.
"Let's keep moving." The woman nervously ordered, as she rushed her child away from the half-demon prince. As Tom let out a disappointed sigh, Austin began to sympathize with his marginalized teammate.
"Oh man...that's rough." Austin awkwardly stated.
"You've got it good, dude. You don't know what it's like for others to judge you just by how you look." Tom replied.
"I know exactly how it feels. People don't just judge monsters like that; Trust me, they even do the same to their own." replied Austin, who had been the victim of such bigotry on more than one occasion.
"Hey...I'm sorry for putting us all in danger back there. That was really stupid of me." Tom sincerely apologized.
"And I'm sorry for freaking out on you back there. I guess I just don't know you as well as the rest of the team." Austin responded.
"Then let's change that." The demon prince replied. The two teens reconciled and shook hands, just as Marco came back out of the building. Seeing his two estranged buddies burying the hatched truly warmed the boy's heart.
"Glad to see you two are finally getting along. Now let's go inside, it's karaoke time!"
As the trio of off-duty Protectors headed into the club, they were sighted by a duo of teenage boys; Marco's old friends from school, Alfonso Dolittle and Ferguson O'Durguson.
"Look, it's Marco!" Alfonso exclaimed. "But who are those guys?"
"Huh, I guess we've been replaced." Ferguson remarked.
In the streets of Echo Creek, the diabolical Ringmaster was terrorizing the citizens of the cleaved city. The malevolent malefactor lobbed explosive rings at every building he could see, all while dancing on his hoverboard and scatting "Entry of the Gladiators." He lobbed a bladed metal ring towards an old woman with a walker, but the projectile was shot out of the air by a blast of yellow energy. Star and Janna had caught up with him just in time!
"Ach! Looks like the hero lassies are here for the second act!"
"Give it up, Jerk du Soleil!" Janna retorted. Ringmaster just cackled maniacally, and threw a flurry of his ring-shaped projectiles at the girls, who dodged out of the way and hid behind whatever cover they could find.
"Where's he keeping all of those rings?" Star wondered.
"He's pulling them out of his-" Janna joked, when her quip was cut short by a throwing ring that nearly hit her.
"Don't hurt my friend!" Star yelled, as she fired an explosive magical orb towards the Ringmaster. The costumed supervillain bailed and leapt off his hoverboard, which exploded as a result of the blast. Now, the fight was much more even.
The ex-princess leapt towards Ringmaster, and swung her wand-staff at him; However, he dodged each of her strikes with a series of fluid, acrobatic movements. He blocked even more of Star's attacks with his trusty ring-blades, then swept her legs with a well-placed kick, knocking her to the ground.
"Time to behead a bumbling Butterfly." The sadistic supervillain mused, as he menacingly raised one of his razor-sharp rings. But before Ringmaster could deliver the fatal blow, the sneaky Snatcher crept up behind him, and forcefully kicked him right in his rear end!
"YOW-YOW-YOWIE!" The Ringmaster screeched at the top of his lungs. He continued howling in pain, as he frantically hopped all over the place like a maniac. Everyone in the area, including Star and Janna themselves, erupted into laughter at the costumed cad writhed from his condign comeuppance.
"Ooh, that's gotta hurt!" Star snickered, then fist-bumped Janna.
"You insolent BRATS!" Ringmaster screamed, whilst clutching his damaged derriere. "Let's see how you fare against my RINGS OF FIRE!" The villain hissed, as he pelted a flurry of flaming discs at his feisty foes...
Currently, things were going much smoother for the male members of the Earth-Ni Protectors. On the Golden Echoes' center stage, Marco and Tom had brought down the house with their sublime rendition of Love Sentence's smash hit song, "Awesome Feeling." The two teens took a bow as the crowd cheered wildly.
"A stunning performance by Tom Lucitor and Darco Miaz!" The DJ exclaimed, embarrassing Marco.
"They messed up my name!" Marco cried.
"Whatever you say, Darco!" Tom retorted. The two star singers returned to their table, where Austin sat with a plate of mozzarella sticks, and a smile on his face.
"That was fantastic! I never knew you two were such great singers." Austin congratulated.
"Thanks, bro! Would've been even better if you joined us up there." Marco retorted.
"Personally, singing really isn't my thing. But I can beatbox. Lemme show you how to scratch it." The techy teen joked, then demonstrated his unusual musical talent.
"The mic's always open, so sing your heart out!" The DJ continued. Tom and Marco knowingly looked at Austin, to signal he should go onstage.
"No thanks, I think I'm just gonna stay he-" Austin replied, when his throat suddenly went dry; On the other side of the dining area, a teenage girl was being convinced by her friends to go up on stage. This lovely lady was no stranger, but a familiar face to him; It was the accident-prone cheerleader and former Maroon cosplayer, Sabrina Backintosh!
Sabrina was at a table on the other side with five of her friends; Her Spirit Squad buddies Chantelle, Megan and Andrea, plus the two bullied mewman girls she befriended; Cara and Tia. Sabby's girlfriends were all positively pressuring her into going onstage to sing. After convincing her with their compliments, Sabrina decided to be courageous and head up to the mic, with Megan and Chantelle backing her up.
Upon seeing his former copycat on stage, Austin's heart began thumping in his chest; Since that fateful fight against the Royals, he'd felt a growing romantic attraction to his distaff counterpart. He did a horrible job hiding his little crush, as Tom and Marco immediately recognized his apparent awkwardness.
"You okay, dude?" Tom asked.
'Uh..."
"He's fine, Austin's just got a little crush." Marco coyly retorted, as he subtly pointed to Sabrina on stage with her pals. When he pointed it out, Austin got red-faced, and began to stammer and sweat; It reminded Marco of a time before Star, when he acted the same way at the mere mention of Jackie Lynn-Thomas.
"Enjoy the show, buddy." Tom remarked, as he patted Austin's shoulder. Sabrina and her buddies began belting out the latest pop hit, as Austin watched with a smile on her face. Sabrina had a surprisingly beautiful singing voice, and she looked absolutely adorable in her outfit; A fuchsia top, an off-white skirt reaching just above her knees, and tan-colored slip-on shoes. The teen gadgeteer was in a state of rapture watching his crush perform with courage and confidence, but things were just about to go sour...
"Hey, cheerleaders! Where's the booty shaking?" A repugnant, vaguely familiar voice shouted; Lars Vanderdud, Echo Creek Academy's resident bully, who was most famous for getting smacked silly by Marco's parasitic monster arm. The balding, overweight ruffian was accompanied by four of his like-minded cronies.
"Take off your clothes!" One of Lars' lewd and lecherous louts hooted, in a teen-friendly establishment, no less. Megan and Chantelle blushed furiously and quit singing, whilst Sabrina glared daggers at the congregation of chauvinist catcallers.
"Hey! Leave them alone!" Marco snapped, as he stood up out of his seat and faced the boorish bullies.
"Or what, Diaz? You and that three-eyed freak will sing some prissy Love Sentence at us?"
"Don't you DARE diss Love Sentence!" Tom furiously refuted, as he got up and stood by Marco, his fist clenched with rage.
"Without that nasty little tentacle arm, you're nothing but a wimp!" Lars scoffed. He raised one of his huge, meaty arms to strike Marco down, but the martial arts aficionado dodged his telegraphed attack with ease.
"Try me." Marco coldly replied, as he struck the bully back with a punch to the face. Suddenly, one of Lars' buddies smacked his back with a chair, knocking him to the ground. But like any good friend, Tom stuck up for his best bud, and sent that rube across the room with a single punch!
By now, an all-out brawl had erupted in the bar. While Marco and Tom battled Lars and his cronies, Austin stayed by the table; He wanted to help his bros, but was nowhere near as skilled in martial arts as Marco, and he certainly didn't have demonic powers. However, his stomach turned when he saw a truly appalling sight.
Near the stage, Sabrina was being cornered by a couple of thuggish punks. One was short and stout, the other was tall and lanky. Upon closer observation, Austin realized they were not just any bullies; Over a year ago, they tried mugging him, but were rightfully beaten up by Marco on the day they first met.
"Come on, darling. Just a little squeeze." The lean punk discordantly purred, as he tried reaching his hand towards the cheerleader's rear end. Before he could touch anything intimate, she smacked his hand away, and punched him square in the gut!
"ACK!" The skin-and-bones ruffian sputtered.
"Hey! No one turns us down, girlie." The stout stupe scoffed. He and his unsightly partner grabbed hold of Sabrina's arms, as she desperately tried to fight them off.
"Help!" Sabrina desperately exclaimed, making Austin's heart skip a beat. Now he knew it was time to act. So, he dove beneath the table, to become his imposing alter-ego by whispering;
"Hero Up..."
"Ooh, she's feisty! She'll need a good spanking." The lean punk snarled, getting dangerously close to the threatened brunette. Just as all hope seemed lost for the poor girl, the harsh sound of rockets going off emanated through the room. Much to everyone's surprise, the helmeted hero Maroon leapt out from under a table with his jet-boots, and struck the lean punk with a wrist-blast!
In an instant, Maroon boosted himself towards the stout thug, and kicked him square in the face! Now that both of the lusty predators were down, Austin came closer to his cheerleader crush.
"Are you alright?"
"I-it's you!" Sabrina exclaimed, shocked to see her one-time battle partner in a karaoke club, of all places. "What are you doing here?"
"Nice to see you again." Maroon retorted. Sabrina smiled warmly, but her expression quickly turned to shock when she saw the lean-built thug standing behind him, wielding a knife meant to cut food.
"LOOK OUT!"
Thanks to her warning, Maroon turned around just in time. He delivered a hard kick to the ruffian's shin, then knocked him out with a hard punch to the face.
"Ready for seconds, or are you boys full?" Austin remarked. It felt incredibly cathartic putting those louts in their place, just as Marco did before him. "Well, you won't have to worry about them anymor-" The masked hero continued, when all of a sudden, Sabrina leaned in and hugged him tight. Surprised, Austin froze up, not moving a muscle.
"Thank you..." Sabrina whispered. Without warning, Lars suddenly collided into a nearby wall with a deafening crash.
"And that's for dissing Love Sentence." Tom retorted, as police sirens began to blare outside.
"Wow, the cops got here fast." Marco noted, as he looked out the window. But strangely enough, an entire trio of police cars went right past the karaoke club! Mere moments later, the whole club was shaken by the sound of an explosion in the distance.
"We gotta go." Tom responded. The two boys started heading out of the building, and signaled Austin that trouble was brewing.
"I gotta run now, duty calls. Stay cool!" Austin uttered. The helmeted hero then rushed out of the Golden Echoes, as Sabrina watched in awe.
"You like him, don't you." Tia coyly remarked, causing her to blush...
In the middle of an intersection, Star and Janna were in deep trouble. While they put up a valiant fight, the wretched Ringmaster had them on the ropes with his cheap tricks. He lobbed two rings connected by a thick cord at the girls, tying them together and knocking them to the ground. Star tried gnawing on the restraining cord, but it was no use.
"Aye, this has been fun, but the show must end. Say goodnight, hero lassies." Ringmaster snarled, as he prepared to kill them with an explosive ring. But all of a sudden, he head an angry scream, and was promptly roundhouse kicked by none other than Martial Boy!
"Marco!" Star joyously cheered. Austin and Tom landed behind their tethered teammates, and the former cut them free with one of his wrist-mounted blades.
"Who's that guy?" Tom wondered, out of the loop on the off-the-wall weirdo the girls had been fighting all night.
"Some raving lunatic who calls himself The Ringmaster." Janna remarked in a mocking tone.
"Wow, our first real supervillain!" Austin exclaimed.
Marco continued to battle the Ringmaster with his exceptional karate experience. He struck the Scottish supervillain in the chest with another kick, knocking him off his feet; However, the acrobatic attacker used his hands to spring back, and kicked Marco in the face with both feet! Infuriated, Maroon and Star retaliated by firing energy blasts from their respective weapons. Ringmaster reacted quickly, and deflected their fire back at them with reflective chromium rings, stunning them.
Tom flew around the vexing villain, and threw a flurry of fireballs at the fiendish foe. However, he dodged each one with acrobatic evasive maneuvers.
"Ah, the Violet Devil! I've got something special for you." Ringmaster retorted, as he reached into his coat and pulled out a strange metal ring with blue accents. He hurled it at the demon prince, and it exploded into a cloud of white gas. When the cloud cleared, poor Tom was frozen solid!
"Liquid nitrogen ring. One of my favorites." The sinister circus performer commented, when Janna suddenly appeared behind him and snatched a ring-blade from his coat; Then, she yanked on his mustache, causing him to yelp!
"Ooh, so that's where you keep them!" Janna teased.
"YOW! You sneaky little nyaff!" The Ringmaster screamed, as he took out one of his razor-sharp ringblades. The two dueled it out in a battle of rings, but the villain had an advantage with his weapon of choice. He easily disarmed Janna, then smacked her to the ground.
"You're sloppy, lassie. Remember, I'm the ring master."
Upon seeing his cherished girlfriend reeling on the ground, Tom became enraged, and thawed out of his frozen state. Now that the demon prince had been freed from his icy prison, Austin got a bright idea.
"Hey, VD! Let's take him together!" Maroon exclaimed. Tom nodded in agreement, and the two heroes boosted themselves into the air for an advantage in fighting their deranged enemy.
The dynamic duo of Maroon and Violet Devil flew around Ringmaster in two different directions, so he couldn't take both of them out at once. The tech-savvy circus freak hurled every type of ring he had at them, but they worked in tandem to dodge his deadly projectiles, all while throwing fireballs and energy blasts at him.
"Prepare for your doom, Protectors!" The supervillain shouted, as he reached into his coat for another deadly throwing ring. However, his face went white as a sheet when he felt nothing inside; He'd used up all of his weapons!
"Aw, crap." Ringmaster sighed. Tom and Austin flew towards him together, and punched him square in the face at the same time! Now, the costumed lunatic was knocked down, and down for the count...
Moments later, the police had arrived on scene, and were loading the defeated villain into a police transport truck headed to the county jail. As the evil Ringmaster got his just desserts, the Protectors were taking a well-deserved respite from the climactic battle. Star and Marco sat down on the top of a building, glad to see each other after a long night apart.
"So, how'd your night go?" Marco wondered. "Before that lunatic showed up, I mean."
"Oh, it went pretty well. We went to the orphanage and made the kiddies' nights. I even got to reconcile with an old flame of yours." Star jokingly teased.
"Huh? Oh, you mean Jackie! Good, I'm happy for you."
"How was Guys' Night Out?" Star wondered.
"Wonderful! Sure it started out rough, but everything worked out! Now Austin and Tom are finally friends." Marco happily answered, as he gestured to the two vigilantes chatting it up on the sidewalk.
"And that's how a Naysaya works." Tom explained to his fascinated friend.
"Wow, that's messed up. Don't put one on me, now!" Austin joked, prompting both boys to chuckle. "Seriously, don't."
"'Sup, Ozzy. Lemme steal Tom for a minute." Janna spoke, as she took her demon love by the hand, and walked further down the street with him. Now alone, the First Protector sat on the ground to collect his thoughts.
On the ground, Austin looked around to see various sights unfolding. The police truck had just drove off, with the vile Ringmaster trapped inside. On the top of a nearby building, Marco was sharing an amorous kiss with Star. On the other side of the street, Tom was acting out the karaoke club fight to Janna, who seemed rather impressed.
The helmeted hero let out a deep sigh. Despite being the de facto leader of the team, he admittedly felt like a fifth wheel sometimes, as he lacked something his teammates had; Someone to love...
In the middle of the night, the police transport truck was headed to the slammer to lock its deranged passenger behind bars. In the back of the truck, the Ringmaster was fiddling around with his hands, which were cuffed behind his back. He rotated a ring on his right index finger, and pressed a little button on it. Said button caused the red gem in the center of his ring to fire a red beam of energy, which cut through his handcuffs!
Now that his hands were free, Ringmaster fired his laser ring at the steering wheel, causing the driver to lose control and swerve the vehicle to a stop. Now that the police van was stationary, he used said ring to carve a hole through the back of the van, then jumped out and fled into the dark forests of Earth-Ni. Once he'd distanced himself from the fuzz, the seemingly deranged villain pulled out his cell phone to call an unknown benefactor.
"My mission has been compromised, but I've escaped detainment. The rest is up to you..."
End of Chapter 12!
This was another fun episode to write! It may seem like a "filler episode," but due to the pacing of my series, no chapter in the story is truly "filler" IMO. Besides, chill episodes like these work wonders for character interactions; I wanted to do an episode where Tom and Austin resolve their differences and become better friends. Also, there's a good amount of foreshadowing in this chapter for stuff that happens later down the road...
Anyways, I'm your boy FD-00, have a great day and stay safe out there! Be a hero, and wear a mask when you go outside!