No fourth-wall-breaking story here today, folks! Just hop into the actino!
The unlikely trio of Comet, Buff Frog, and Ludo slowly made their way through Castle Avarius. Buff Frog remained at the front of the group, as he had a hunch on where Marcia would most likely be inside the Castle. Comet followed closely behind the Frogman, keeping his guard up at all times. Even though he did not think that Buff Frog would go back on his word of never fighting him again, Comet didn't fully trust him. However, the sight of the baby tadpoles nestled inside the fountain their newfound Dad was carrying did soften his heart a little. Someone capable of caring for their kids like that couldn't be that bad, right?
As for Ludo, he brought up the rear since he was the smallest and the weakest of the three. That, and he did it so that he could keep trying to grab Comet's Wand, much to the boy's irritation, as he had to repeatedly swat him away. The last thing he needed was his most annoying enemy distracting him at a critical moment, get them spotted, and risk the alarm being sounded!
Fortunately for the three, there were no guards of any sort. The normally lively Castle was currently deserted. No Monsters were in the training room/gym, the throne room was empty, even the break room with the vending machine and milkshake maker was devoid of life. Ludo couldn't help but grumble about the whole thing, muttering something about how those ungrateful wretches had usurped his family's Castle and then just up and left. Or something to that effect; Comet wasn't really paying attention. All he could think about was getting Marcia back.
Marcia...I'm sorry. Throughout his journey towards Castle Avarius, Comet had been silently brooding over the last thing he said to Marcia. How he questioned why the two of them were even friends in the first place. He hated himself for saying that to her. Marcia was his best friend, and, like her Mom had told him, part of being a good friend is helping a friend out even when they don't ask for it.
"I hate when you act like this. It makes me wonder why we're even friends!"
Comet winced as he recalled the memory of that fight. He hated himself for saying that in a fit of anger. Then he remembered what Mrs. Diaz told him in the hallway.
"...part of being a good friend means knowing when to help a friend out, even when they say they don't want it."
Hearing that at the time made Comet think about why he was mad at Marcia, and after he had awoken, he felt guilty for snapping at her. That guilt was only magnified when he learned that this Toffee abducted Marcia right under his nose.
Ever since then, Comet had been mentally beating himself up over what had happened. He hated himself for letting it happen. If he had been there, he could've protected her when she needed him the most. And now, she could end up paying the price as part of some stupid lizard-man's vendetta against his people. If anything bad were to happen to her, he would never forgive himself.
Comet was brought of his self-deprecation when Buff Frog motioned for the three of them to come to a stop. "What's up, Buff Frog?"
"We are here." Buff Frog then motioned over his shoulder to the entrance to a very large room. "The banquet hall. This is where they are keeping your friend."
Hearing this, Comet made his way to the front of the group to confirm that what Buff Frog said was true. He was right: the banquet hall was filled with pretty much every last one of Ludo's former minions, all of them looking unusually determined and focused as they stood guard. There was one Monster, in particular, that stood out from all the others. A tall, grey-skinned, humanoid lizard in a business suit was at the very far end of the massive table.
"Is that Toffee?" Comet asked, even though he already knew the answer to his question.
"Da," Buff Frog said as he saw the face of the Monster that had cost him his job.
"And he's sitting in my chair!?" Ludo hissed to himself. "I am going to make that traitor-"
"Yeah, yeah, work on your hateboner for him later," Comet said, cutting the Monster off mid-rant as he continued to scan the room. "Now...where is...Marcia!" After studying the room for a few seconds, Comet located Marcia in a glass cell next to Toffee. She was lying in the far right corner of the cell, too far for him to figure out how she was doing. What's more, from the way she was sitting, she looked to be...injured? That was more than enough to set off multiple alarm bells in Comet's head.
"Jonah," Comet radioed in. "I've got a visual on Marcia, but she's not looking so great on my end. Can you guys get a better idea on your side?"
"Roger that, Comet," Jonah. "Luckily for us, I invested extra money into getting a camera with an enhanced zoom lens. This thing would be able to catch a fly in the middle of the room and give us a high res photo of it."
"Really? Like Star Platinum?"
"No, and no," Jonah told him. "I was joking. But it will let us see how our friend's doing. Alfonso, give me a hand here?"
"On it." Together, the two boys worked on the camera, adjusting everything to get the best image possible. After a few tense moments, they were finally able to get a good look at how Marcia was doing. But what they saw...wasn't pretty.
"Oh no," Jackson said aloud as the others looked on with growing worry.
"Guys? What's wrong?"
"So, um, Comet, listen, I, uh-"
"Oh, just spit it out, Ferguson!" Brittney snapped at him.
"Guys?"
Surprisingly, Sabrina was the one who spoke up first. "Comet, it appears that Marcia's suffered several injuries during her time in captivity," she said without any of her usual nervousness. "Judging by the discoloration on her right hand, I would think it's fair to say that she injured some of the muscles in it, possibly developed hairline fractures in the bones. In addition, it looks like she got hit rather violently by a blow to the gut, judging from the way she's breathing. And I'm not sure because her clothes are mostly obscuring it, but it appears she's got several cuts along her midsection. I think she used part of her shirt as a makeshift bandage, but some of the blood's started seeping through the cloth onto her skin."
Everyone gave Sabrina the weirdest look as they heard her finish, much to her confusion. "What? When you spend as much time in the nurse's office as I do, you tend to learn a lot about health."
"I'm sorry, but can you repeat that so that the rest of us can understand it?"
"Yeah: this Toffee bastard roughed Marcia up, and we weren't there to do anything about it." Jackson put it bluntly
Mr. and Mrs. Diaz took the sight of their injured daughter the hardest out of everyone present. Marcia's Mom could barely keep it together as her husband gently ran his hand down her back to calm her down.
"Comet, did you catch all of that?" Jonah asked over the radio. No response. "Comet?"
Back in Castle Avarius, Comet was just staring at the sight of his best friend, laying in that cell in a heap. All he could hear at the moment was a buzzing sound in his ears as he thought about what he just heard.
They hurt Marcia...THEY. HURT. MARCIA!
Comet practically trembled with anger. Anger at himself for letting this happen, and anger at the one's responsible for attacking his bestie. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck begin to stand up on end. His grip on his Wand became so tight that his knuckles started turning white. And for the briefest of milliseconds, his Cheekmark turned from a pink to a hot white.
"COMET!"
Just as soon as the moment came, it passed. Comet was brought out of his head by the sound of Jonah yelling at him.
"Comet, I asked you if you heard about Marcia's status?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I heard everything, Jonah," Comet said, his voice dark and filled with emotion. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go take care of this." Comet then turned towards his two unlikely companions.
"All right, here's the plan. When I say now, we all charge in at once and take them by surprise. While they're all caught off guard, I'm going to blast that cell open. After that, we'll grab Marcia and then get the heck out of here. Got it?"
"What-no! We are not leaving here!" Ludo said. "This is my home, and I came here to reclaim it!"
"And at what point am I supposed to care about that, Ludo?" Comet coldly asked his enemy.
"But what about our deal? Remember? You help get my home back. I leave you guys alone for a while?"
"You mean the deal that you were going to break the second Toffee was gone?" Comet said, throwing it right back in Ludo's beak. "Let me make one thing clear, Ludo. I don't care what happens to you. I don't care if you never set foot in this place ever again. After all the shit you've pulled against my friends and me, you can go crawl into a cave and rot there for the rest of your life, you miserable-"
"Comet," Buff Frog sternly said, making the boy lose his stride mid-rant. "You promised me that you would help my little ones and me? Remember?" Like a promise, Buff Frog turned around to show off his tadpole babies, warming Comet's heart just a little.
Unfortunately, any love he had for the babies was overshadowed by his anger towards Toffee for hurting his friend. So, he put his foot down. "Alright, I'll help you get rid of Toffee, but we're still sticking to my plan."
"But it is terrible plan," Buff Frog said.
"The Frog guy is right, Comet," Alfonso said in his earpiece. "You need a better plan of attack."
"I have a plan: attack." Before anyone else could argue, Comet charged up his Wand and then strode inside of the banquet hall.
"No, wait, Comet-!" Buff Frog tried to go in after the boy, only to be stopped by Ludo.
"Buff Frog, wait! Don't you see? This is perfect!"
"What is-"
"This whole plan! We let Comet take care of Toffee and trying to free his friend. Once he does that, we can get the Wand from him, and we'll be unstoppable!"
Buff Frog just stared at the little Monster, incredulous over the fact that, even now, he was still obsessed with gaining the Wand of the Dragonfly family. Scoffing at his former master, Buff Frog followed Comet inside, albeit with much more stealth, leaving Ludo alone.
"So can I take that as a yes, then?"
Back on Earth, everyone saw as Comet so brazenly marched into the open with great concern. They knew that Comet was tough, but considering how he was fighting in enemy territory against dozens of Monsters, including one that could regenerate, they had every right to be worried. As Jonah and Jackson looked at their friends and then at each other, they nodded in agreement. They needed to do this.
"Mrs. Diaz," Jackson said, catching the attention of Marcia's Mom. "I think it's time to call it in to Comet's parents."
"Do it, Mrs. Diaz," Jonah said, seconding the skater, much to everyone's surprise.
"Jonah, you do realize that if we do this, we may risk losing Comet forever," Ferguson pointed out. That was an outcome that none of them wanted.
"We've got no choice, Ferg," Jonah said. "We could end up losing Marcia if we don't do this." This argument was more than enough to end the debate. Without saying another word, Mr. and Mrs. Diaz made their way to Comet's mirror and began to input the number that the boy gave them.
Marcia didn't know how long she'd been lying in the corner of her cell. She was tired, too tired to focus on something as trivial as the time. All she could think about at that moment was the pain from the blows Toffee gave her.
By now, Marcia was fairly certain that the lizard had managed to damage her hand when he blocked her punch. She could barely move it without a bolt of pain shooting up from inside. At the very least, she didn't think her bones were broken, just fractured. That was little comfort, though.
Her primary concern, however, was where Toffee had struck her with his claws. The wounds weren't that deep, but if left untreated, they could end up getting infected. It might even end up leaving a faint scar on her. Marcia hated to admit it, but she was worried that something like that would make her feel even more self-conscious about her wearing swimsuits than she already was.
I wish that this was a bad dream, Marcia thought to herself. No, scratch that. I wish Comet would show up with an army to get me out of this mess. The thought of her best friend coming here to save her left Marcia unusually conflicted. On the one hand, she wanted to see him again and apologize for getting so worked up over the sandwich quest. He didn't mean any harm, even if he was acting like an idiot.
On the other hand, she knew that he'd be walking straight into a trap. And unlike Ludo, Toffee seemed like an actual threat. The last thing that she wanted was for him to get hurt because of her!
Oh, who am I kidding? I want to get out of here! Marcia realized. Comet, please get here and show this jerk who's boss.
Fortunately, Marcia didn't have to wait very long, as the Universe decided to answer her prayers. At that exact moment, she heard a familiar voice call out her name.
"Marcia!"
Marcia looked up from where she'd been sitting and directed her gaze towards the banquet hall entrance. Standing there, with his aqua-colored hoodie wrapped around his waist and his devil-horned cap, stood Comet Dragonfly.
As soon as Comet made his presence known, all of the Monsters went into battle mode. They glared at their hated adversary, their fists raised in anticipation for the fight that was to come. Yet, they made no move to attack. Instead, they stood there, watching the boy as he leaped onto the dining table and made his way to the end where Toffee was sitting. As Comet did so, he paused to look at Marcia, who had her face pressed against the cell and a smile on her face.
"Hey, Marcy," he said, his face forming into a smile. "I know that you're probably still mad at me, and you think that what I'm doing right now is stupid and dangerous, but can you hold off on the lecture for a while? I've got something to take care of first."
"Okay," Marcia said, trying not to cry.
Having said that, Comet then turned his attention to the being sitting at the end of the table.
"I see that our guest of honor has arrived at last," Toffee said, his voice of mixture of cordiality and derisiveness. "Welcome, Comet Dragonfly, son of Mune Dragonfly and heir to the Kingdom of Mewni."
"The one and only," Comet said. His voice may have sounded cocky, but the look on his face was anything but. "And I assume that you're Toffee?"
"Toffee of Septarsis, Lord of this Castle and leader of the Monsters that you see before you. So good of you to come on such short notice and at such an early time in the day."
"The feeling ain't mutual," Comet tersely responded as he pointed his Wand at the lizard. "Here's what's going to happen," he explained as his Wand began to glow with magical power. "You are going to let Marcia go right now, then you are going to pack your things and leave this Castle, never to return." Comet then turned to the rest of the Monsters. "As for the rest of you, you're going to leave my friends and me alone from now on. Otherwise, I will come back and level this place to the point where there won't be two bricks left standing."
Toffee snorted. "Typical Mewman arrogance. You come into our house, make threats of us, and expect us to comply."
"Look, we can keep arguing about who started this for hours, but that doesn't change the fact that I'm leaving here with Marcia," Comet retorted.
Toffee remained unmoved. "I think we both know that you can't kill me with that trinket, boy."
"I don't have to." No sooner had Comet finished saying that than did he fire off a blast from his Wand. The bolt of magical power then proceeded to strike Toffee near point-blank range and was so powerful, it blew his left arm clear off, sending him falling to the floor in a heap.
"GET 'EM BOYS!" One of the Monsters cried out, making them all charge straight at Comet. Just like that, the fight was on.
"Did you think I forgot about the rest of you guys?" Comet said before extending his Wand into Wand-Staff mode and twirling it around his body. "Spiraling Salamander!" As Comet spun around on his lead foot, a giant salamander, its body composed of pure flame, leaped out of the bell of Comet's Wand and began to encircle the Prince at speeds so fast, Marcia had trouble keeping up. Caught off-guard by the sudden ring of fire, the Monsters hesitated to close in on Comet, which was what the boy had been hoping for.
"Super sticky tape trap!" Comet called out next, which confused most of those present, as they had no clue what that might mean. However, they didn't have to wait long to figure it out. When Tyler, Dave and Ping Pong, and this Monster that looked like a cross between a mushroom and a pig tried to advance on Comet, they found that they couldn't. When they looked down at their legs, they soon figured out why. Somehow, that last spell had covered part of the table with industrial-grade sticky tape, trapping them in one place. They couldn't move at all!
Comet wasn't done there, though. Next, he ordered a company of Flying Monkeys armed with jawbreaker guns and sicced them on the rest of the Monsters. They all broke and ran for cover, save for Beard Deer, this frill-necked lizard Monster (Comet wanted to say his name was Logan), and Three-Eyed Potato Baby. They alone stood guard to Marcia's cage.
"Sorry, got no time for this. Baby Blast!"
"Baby wha-?" *ZAP*
And just like, the three Monsters were then transformed into babies. That didn't stop the Monsters from trying to attack him. But since they were no longer much of a threat, Comet was able to bat them aside.
"Stand back, Marcia!" Comet warned her friend, who had been watching the battle the entire time. "Supersonic leech bomb!" Many neon-colored leeches shot out of his Wand and attached themselves to the glass cage on Comet's command. The leeches exploded in a blast of colorful smoke in a few seconds, making Comet cover his eyes to shield them from the blast.
However, if he expected that blast to blow the cage open, he was sorely mistaken. When the smoke cleared, there wasn't a scratch on the damn thing!
"Wha-?"
"Comet, look out!" Marcia shouted and pointed behind him.
Comet wheeled around to find Man Arm leaping into the air, ready to punch the Prince with his giant, overly muscular arm.
"Oh, dang."
Luckily, Man Arm didn't get the chance to hit him. Out of nowhere, Buff Frog came in and delivered this epic drop-kick, pinning his former comrade to the ground. At first, Man Arm looked angry at whoever had just hit him. But once he saw that it was his old pal, Buff Frog, he smiled.
"Oh, hey, Buff Frog! How's it-"
Buff Frog promptly punched the Monster's lights out.
"Sorry, comrade. Nothing personal," Buff Frog apologized as he stood up.
"Wait," Marcia said, confused as Hell. "So, are the two of you working together now?" she asked as she looked at her best friend and her one-time enemy.
Both of them merely shrugged. "It is more of a-"
"Don't say it's a one-time thing, Buff Frog. This makes it three times now that you've helped us out," Marcia pointed out.
Before any further explanation could be given to the Diaz girl, a loud noise began to attract the two's attention. Having put out the fire from the salamander and freed themselves from the sticky tape, the Monsters had started to regroup and were currently coming right for the pair.
"Focus on getting karate girl out of cell," Buff Frog said as he cracked his knuckles. "I will talk sense into old comrades." Buff Frog then charged back into the fray, distracting the bulk of the Monsters and leaving Comet to deal with the remainder.
"Okay, seriously. Why is Buff Frog helping you out, Comet?" Even though the situation was dire, Marcia couldn't resist wanting to know the truth about this.
"It's a long story, Marcia," Comet said as he started fending off Spikeballs and Bearicorn, who had managed to slip past Buff Frog and reach Comet.
"Well, I'm not going anywhere, so feel free to tell me," Marcia said as she crossed her arms...then winced when she remembered how her hand got broken.
"Okay, maybe it isn't that long," Comet admitted as he ducked underneath Bearicorn before cleverly extending his Wand into staff form, making it hit the Bear Monster underneath the chin. "See, if he helped me get inside this Castle, I would help him get rid of Toffee so that he could have somewhere to raise his kids."
"Say what now?" Marcia asked, clearly not believing what she was hearing.
"Wait, Buff Frog has kids now?" Even Spikeballs couldn't help but be curious.
"Yeah, Ludo tried bribing him with a bunch of tadpole eggs he may or may not have stolen to get him back on his side. And before you ask, they are adorable. Just look at them!" Comet casually pointed in the direction of Buff Frog, with everyone noticing the fountain he carried on his back, along with the tadpoles inside.
"Oh my gosh, they are so cute!" Marcia couldn't help but gush.
"Long story short, we made a deal," Comet said before narwhal blasting Spikeballs and Bearicorn away. "I help him get in here, and he agrees to leave us alone."
"And you bought that?"
"Hey, it was either that or Ludo. And as much as I don't trust a Monster, I'll take Buff Frog's word over Ludo."
Marcia couldn't help but smirk. "Sounds like you might be changing your tune about Monsters, after all."
"Look, can we talk about this later? I need to get you out of here!"
"Please do."
Meanwhile, Buff Frog found himself in combat against his former comrades, who were none too pleased to be fighting against him.
"Buff Frog, how could you do this to us?" Lobster Claws asked. "Do you know how upset we were when you got fired by Ludo? Very upset!"
"Yeah! And after we got rid of Ludo, we were hoping that you would want to come back to uzz" Boo Fly sadly buzzed.
"But instead, you join up with Comet?" Lobster Claws looked like he was about ready to cry. "It's like I don't even know you anymore!"
Buff Frog couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy as he dodged blows from the other Monsters. "Comrades, I am sorry about this, but know this: I am not on Prince Comet's side. I have my own reasons for working with him."
"Bawk bagawk ba gawk?*" Big Chicken clucked as he tried to peck at the Frog Man's arm. (*"And what reasons would they be?")
"One, I am Father now," Buff Frog said while pointing to the tadpoles he carried on his back, which made the other Monsters go "aww!". "Second: I am doing this because I do not trust Toffee."
"But Toffee's a way better leader than Ludo ever was," the Giraffe-Man said as he tried to ram Buff Frog down. "He's made it so that we can finally beat Comet and take back what is ours!"
"But why did he come to us?" Buff Frog tried to argue as he continued to block punches and attacks from his opponents. "He could have gone to any group of Monsters and ordered them to seize Wand. But he chose us. Did none of you ever ask why is that?"
"Uhh, because he believes in us?" Dave said.
"Nyet, Dave," Buff Frog said as he dodged another attack. "Comrades, I do not know what, but Toffee is planning something big. Bigger than all of us. If he is not stopped, all of Mewni could be at risk. And I will not let my babies grow up in a Mewni like that."
"You juzzt haven't zeeeen what Toffee can do, Buff Frog!" Boo Fly buzzed. "But we will make you zee it!"
As all of this was going on, Toffee was watching from where he lay on the ground. He hadn't bothered getting up to join the fight. Why expend the energy when he could merely have the peons do it for him? Besides, the Prince and his unlikely ally were fighting a losing battle. Sooner or later, the Prince would exhaust himself in a futile effort to free his friend, and then he would be overwhelmed and made to see things his way. So, he would just sit there and wait.
On Comet's end, he was now fending off the Monster babies, who had not only regrouped but managed to grab hold of a bunch of chainsaws and were trying to hack away at his limbs. Comet managed to thwart their efforts, though, by turning the chainsaws into bubbles before swatting them aside.
"Marcia, stand back. I'm gonna try something." Comet then jumped into the air before grabbing hold of the chandelier. Boo Fly and another bat Monster tried to attack him, but they were forced back by the timely arrival of the Flying Monkeys from earlier.
"Cordak Blaster Minigun!" The next thing Marcia knew, Comet had transformed his Wand into a sort of minigun, one that vaguely resembled the kind found in a series of LEGO sets from the mid-2000s. Using the bell of his Wand as the handle, Comet then aimed the weapon squarely at the crystal cell and fired upon his mental command. Instead of shooting out bullets, though, this weapon fired several red-tipped, explosive missiles. The kind that could stop a tank dead in its track.
Marcia ducked behind the chair that she had been held in, trying to use it for cover as the missiles detonated on impact. One by one, the weapons hit their target, a fixed point on the cell. Since his previous efforts to blow the thing open had failed, Comet reasoned that it was because he spread his attack out too widely, mitigating the damage. Now, he was going with the opposite approach: concentrating on a single spot. With any luck, it would break, giving Marcia the chance to escape.
Luck, though, was not on Comet's side today. When the dust cleared, there wasn't even a scratch on the damn glass! All Comet had managed to do was waste his time and frustrate himself even more.
"Pegasus feathers," Comet cursed. With how urgent his mission was, he found himself unable to come up with any good ideas. At this rate, he was going to screw up even more!
"Guys, you got any suggestions on how I can get her out of there?" Comet asked over his communicator?
"Oh, oh, I know! How about you make a wrecking ball out of diamonds?" Brittney suggested. "That's got to work!"
"No way," CometFan13 disagreed. "What he needs to do is make a giant steamroller and drop it on the cell."
"But that could crush Marcia!" Alfonso pointed out. "Maybe he could use a drill instead?"
"That's stupid, Alfonso," Jonah remarked.
"Have you tried the Kamehameha?" Ferguson threw out.
"This is magic, not Dragon Ball, Ferguson," Jackson told him.
As his friends back on Earth continued to debate, Comet could feel his stress levels rising. This was all his fault! If he hadn't argued with Monster, she wouldn't have gone off on her own and gotten captured. And then they wouldn't be in this mess! They could be at home in his room, playing video games or watching the laser puppies. Instead, he was about to lose his best friend, and it would be all his fault!
As Comet continued to get angry, something began to awaken inside of him. It was hard to describe. It was like someone had lit the embers to a fire deep inside of his soul. Or something deep below an endless sea was beginning to bubble its way to the surface. But the angrier that he felt, the more this strange feeling began to grow until he couldn't ignore it any longer.
"ENOUGH!" Comet said in a voice so loud, so commanding, that it proceeded to grab the attention of everyone witnessing, whether they were on Earth or fighting in the banquet hall. With a look of utter seriousness on his face, Comet jumped onto the table below and began to advance on the cage. The Monsters dropped whatever it was they were doing and proceeded to rush him. However, Comet was not having any of it. Without even taking his eyes off the cage, Comet raised his Wand and summoned a giant barrier that kept him and his enemies separated. It was like nothing the Monsters had ever seen before. Even Toffee lifted his head up in surprise.
At last, Comet stood face to face with the cage holding his bestie prisoner. That strange feeling he'd been experiencing only began to grow in intensity. Comet didn't know why, but some part of him told him not to fight it but instead embrace it. To let it guide his actions and intent. So Comet did so.
With a level of focusing the likes of which Comet had never felt before, the boy began channeling everything he had into his Wand. He did not realize it at the moment, but everyone watching saw the Prince's Cheekmark begin to glow white-hot. His hair started to stand up on end, and even his eyes began to flicker between their normal blue and a pupilless white.
Without a word, Comet then cast his spell towards the cell. And then everything went white.
No one on Earth had any clue what was going on with Comet. (Well, Glossaryck did, but he kept quiet). All they knew was that Comet shouted at them, he threw up some kind of barrier, and then he cast some sort of spell. Then the screen got so bright that everyone watching had to shield their eyes.
As surprising as that was, though, what happened next was even more concerning. By the time the glare subsided, all they saw was...nothing. Absolutely nothing but static appeared on the TVs.
"No, no, no no, no, no!" Jonah said as he began to check his laptop.
"What's wrong? What happened?" Jackson said, trying his best to stay calm.
"We lost the camera." Jonah simply said.
"WHAT!? What do you mean you lost the camera?" Brittney said, demanding an explanation.
"I mean that whatever just happened didn't just cut off the feed. It completely fried the camera. It's gone." Jonah grimly explained.
"Guys, I can't get ahold of Comet on the radio!" Alfonso said, clearly on the verge of panicking. "I think it shorted out his communicator."
"You mean we have NO IDEA WHAT'S GOING ON?!" CometFan13 asked.
"No. We're completely blind," Jonah told everyone present.
And it was at this point that virtually everyone in the room began to lose it.
"Comet...Marcia! They could be...they could be..." Sabrina didn't even want to finish that sentence.
"Grow some pompoms, Sabrina!" Brittney said, trying to get Sabrina from freaking out. "They will be fine. They've gotten out of tough situations before. There's no way that they're going to...to..." and now Brittney wasn't able to finish what she tried to say as the same dark thoughts that Sabrina had begun to enter her mind. "No, please, no. I just started talking to her again..."
"COMET, NOOOO!" Ferguson cried out as the tears began rolling down his eyes. Normally, everyone would chide him for being overly dramatic, but in this case, it was justifiable. Alfonso even joined in.
CometFan13 fared little better. He was rocking in the corner in a fetal position, muttering in complete denial of what was happening. Karla couldn't stop playing sad, mournful music on her guitar, making things worse. Coryn was fluttering all over the place, his feathers ruffled and his eyes in a state of utter panic. His friends were in danger, and he couldn't do anything to help them! What kind of Pokémon was he?!
Mrs. Diaz, though, was taking this the hardest. She had tried keeping it together when she saw the state her daughter was in, but now that she had no means to see what was happening, the dam broke. She just couldn't stop crying into her husband's shoulders. "My baby...our baby, Rafael!" Mr. Diaz did his best to console his wife, but he was on the verge of tears, as well.
The only ones who were managing to keep a level head through all of this were Jackson and Jonah, the latter of whom was frantically trying to get the camera working again, to no effect.
"I knew I should've gone with him!" Jonah said, wondering why he didn't follow Comet.
"Is there any other way we contact Comet? Or get to his location?" Jackson suggested, trying to be helpful.
"It's a no-go," Jonah told him. "The equipment's completely fried, and they're in another dimension right now. We can't get to them without dimensional scissors, which we don't have. And even if we did, Comet was the only one who knew the exact location of Ludo's Castle. We're S.O.L. right now!"
"Damn it," Jackson said as he ground his teeth. "I hate this. Our friends are in danger, and we can't do anything to help them."
"I know how you feel. I hate feeling like this, but at this point, all we can do is hope for a miracle."
At that exact moment, the Universe seemed to oblige this wish. Out of nowhere, another portal opened up in the middle of Comet's bedroom, catching everyone off guard. However, what was even more surprising was who then stepped out of the portal. A man.
The man who exited the portal appeared to be straight out of a medieval fantasy story. He stood at about 5' 7", with steely, blue-gray eyes and a pale blue, shoulder-length hair tied up into a ponytail in the back. The man, who looked to be in his early-to-mid thirties, was clad in magnificent battle armor that consisted of a dark gray steel top with chainmail underneath a gray belt with a silver diamond in the center, a lighter gray, knee-length plated skirt with diamond edges on the bottom, and white shoulder pads that vaguely resembled a dragonfly's wings. The man wore gray boots with white tips to complete the armor, much like the ones Comet was fond of wearing, long-sleeved white gloves that traveled up close to his elbows, and a simple crown with a diamond center resting on his head. However, what drew everyone's attention was on this man's face: a pale, magenta-colored diamond mark on his left cheek.
It didn't take a genius to figure out who this was. He looked like an older, more serious version of his son but with blue hair. Everyone instinctively knew that they were looking at none other than Comet's father, the King of Mewni.
"Where is my son?"
When Comet's vision began to clear, he had no idea what had just happened. All he knew was that his body hurt like crazy.
If Comet had to accurately describe this kind of pain, it would be like he just pulled a muscle that he rarely ever used. Still, whatever pain he felt was the least of his worries. All he cared about at that moment was whether or not that attack had managed to do any damage to Marcia's cell.
Comet managed to peer through the debris as everyone in the room stumbled around amidst the smoke and dirt, trying to get their bearings. Much to his delight, he saw that the spell worked: the cage had been completely incinerated!
"Marcia!"
Without a second of hesitation, Comet ran over to his best friend and grabbed her in a bear hug. "You're okay! OhmygodsMarciaIamsosorryIgotmadatyouearlierandletyougetcapturedIpromiseitwillneverhappenagaincanyoueverhopetoforgiveme?" Comet speaking so fast that few people could hope to understand what he was saying. Fortunately, Marcia got the gist of his apology.
"It's alright, Comet," she said while stroking his unkempt hair. "But, do you think you can let go of me now? I'm in a lot of pain."
"Sorry!" Comet said before hastily ending the hug. "Think you can still walk out of here?"
"Yeah. I think I can manage that. Now, come on. Let's get home and get me to a doctor."
"That sounds like a good idea," Comet said before offering a shoulder for his friend a shoulder to lean on as they exited the cell.
"I still can't believe that you managed to do that, Comet. That was incredible. How did you-?"
"Pull that off? I-I don't know. I just sort of...did it," he truthfully answered.
"Wait, we can't forget about Buff Frog. It would be wrong to-to-leave him behi-gah!"
Suddenly, Marcia began to tremble in Comet's arms. Her vision started to get blurry as this sudden, ringing noise could be heard in her ears. She listened to the distant sound of Comet's voice calling out her name, but all she could focus on was the pain coming from her body. It felt like her skin was on fire!
"MARCIA! MARCIA!" Comet desperately shouted at the girl, trying to get her attention, to no avail. To his utter horror, she proceeded to collapse onto the floor, panting and gasping for breath as she did so. He was focused on her sudden condition that he failed to pay attention to his surroundings. Buff Frog had been knocked out in one corner of the room by his old compatriots, who surrounded Comet. Before the boy could respond, Spike Balls grabbed him in a full nelson and hoisted him to his feet while Beard Deer took hold of Marcia (who was still conscious somehow) and proceeded to place her back inside where the cell used to be.
"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH WITH THOSE FILTHY HANDS OF YOURS, YOU BASTARD!" Comet was practically foaming at the mouth as he said this, his rage was so great. And it only got worse from there. Much to Comet's horror, the cell began to regrow around Marcia until it was like new. "No, no, no, no, no, no!"
"Stop."
At this moment, Toffee finally stood up, using his remaining arm to get to his feet. "That's no way to treat our...guest of honor," he grunted as his arm proceeded to regrow itself. The missing limb was back within less than a few seconds like it had never even left.
Spikeballs brought Comet over to Toffee and then promptly released him as Toffee ordered. Comet began to look between Marcia inside her prison and at Toffee.
"You bastard! This isn't over!" Comet defiantly told the Septarian before aiming his Wand at the cell.
"Don't bother. Thanks to your little attack, the crystal that the cell is made from is now twice as strong. You can't break it now, and even if you did, that would do little to help your friend. I made sure of that."
"What did you do to her, you animal?" Comet demanded to know
"I took precautionary measures," Toffee cooly explained as he ignored the insult. "I have to admit, I wasn't expecting the Prince to have the strength to shatter the crystal in his current state. However, I never underestimate what my opponents are capable of. So, when I struck you earlier, I didn't just injure you." Toffee then pointed at his claws, which both teens now realized were covered in some strange, purple substance. "I administered something that would force the Prince to comply."
Comet knew right away what Toffee's claws were covered in. "Zolom venom," he whispered.
"Correct. It's been in her body for some time now. I estimate that it will spread to her internal organs in less than an hour, and then that will be it. That is-" Toffee then pressed a button, and all of a sudden, the cell's ceiling began to sink to the floor. "-If she lives for that long."
"You freak!" Comet angrily pointed his Wand at Toffee. "FIX HER RIGHT NOW, OR I WILL MAKE SURE THEY NEVER FIND YOUR REMAINS!"
Toffee remained unfazed, though. "Like I said before, we both know that you won't be able to kill me with that little toy. Besides," Toffee reached into his pocket and pulled out a vial. "if you did that, you would destroy the only means of saving her."
"The antidote," Comet instantly recognized.
"Correct again."
For the first time since he arrived at this Castle, Comet truly felt despair. No matter what he did, he couldn't win! He was going to lose Marcia, and it was going to be all his fault. At the same time, though, he also knew what Toffee wanted in return: his Wand. One of the most powerful artifacts in all of existence, able to alter the fabric of reality itself. In the hands of someone like Toffee, the results could spell doom for all creation.
Even so, Comet didn't hesitate to do what he did next. He jumped onto the table, looking ready to strike at Toffee...only to let all the fire go out of him as he proceeded to drop the Wand onto a plate in front of him.
"Fine. Take it. Now let Marcia go and give her the antidote."
"Comet, no..." Marcia weakly cried out.
He wears his emotions on his sleeves. So predictable.
The moment was broken when Ludo, who had been hiding before, jumped out of nowhere and tried to take the Wand. "AT LAST, IT'S-"
Alas, Ludo's moment of triumph was cut short when Big Chicken appeared out of nowhere and grabbed his former boss in his giant beak.
As Big Chicken proceeded to chew on Ludo, Toffee continued. "Do you really think that I'm like that fool, Ludo?" However, he then grew visibly irritated by Big Chicken's actions. "Just swallow him already."
Big Chicken complied, and just like that, Ludo disappeared inside the bird's mouth, making everyone watching cringe.
Toffee then continued. Much to Comet's surprise, he then passed the plate with the Wand back to the boy. "I don't want your Wand. Destroy it."
Comet and Marcia's eyes grew wide as dinner plates. They did not expect this to happen.
"Whaaaaaaat?" they both said in unison.
For a split second, Toffee's calm facade broke as he sported this chilling, slasher smile on his face. "SURPRISE!"
Comet was at a complete loss. He had heard of many people trying to take the Wand for their own, selfish purposes. But he had never heard of anyone demanding that it be destroyed! Was such a thing even possible? But what would that mean? What would happen to it and to him?
"I...I don't even know how to do that..." Comet said in dull shock.
"Yes, you do," Toffee leaned in. "It's the first spell your father ever taught you."
Comet gasped in realization. It was such a long time ago, but even now, he could still remember what it was...
"All right, Comet, I need you to pay very close attention to me," a younger King Mune said to his bright-eyed, eager son. "This is one of the most important spells that you will ever have to learn, and it's also one that I pray that you never have to use."
"Boo!" Comet said, pouting. "What good is learning a magic spell if I can't use it?"
"Because, son, if you ever, in your life, come across some sort of magical artifact that proves even beyond our power to contain, you must know how to...make it stop."
"But what does that have to do with this?" Comet said, clearly not getting the point.
"Comet, that is because this spell will allow you to..."
"...to destroy the magic that powers it," Comet mumbled in a daze as he looked at his Wand.
"Exactly," Toffee nodded, leaning forward even further. "Marcia's waiting..." he told him.
"Comet, don't do-AHHH!" Marcia tried to plea, only to fail because of the pain she now had to endure from the poison. At this point, she was struggling to stay conscious or aware of the ceiling closing in on her, yet she knew that if she closed her eyes, she'd never open them again.
Comet looked at his Wand, then Marcia, and back at his Wand. He knew what he was being ordered to do: destroy his family's most sacred artifact, the source of their power, and their magic. If he did this, he could never use magic again. His Dad might disown him and cast him out; his Uncle Eternia might have him thrown in the dungeon for treason! He would never be able to perform magic or go on adventures again!
But then he looked at Marcia once more. And he knew right away what he needed to do.
As a tear ran down his face, Comet looked at his Wand one last time and told it, "I'm sorry." And then he began to utter the spell.
"Break the bond,
Tear the fabric,
Cleave the stone,
Stop the magic."
"Break the bond,
Tear the fabric,
Cleave the stone,
Stop the magic."
As Comet continued to do this, everyone watched what happened to his Wand. The vibrant colors on it began to turn an unhealthy pale while the wings on the side of the bell started to crumble into dust. Bit by bit, the golden star in the bell began to turn black as the magic that gave it life faded. At last, the little crown on top of the bell cracked before shattering into dust. The Wand was now dead and gone.
Once he had finished, Comet then carefully, reverently set the now dead Wand back onto the plate before wiping the tears from his eyes. As he did so, though, something happened. A ghost, a tiny phantom in the shape of a unicorn, came out of the Wand's bell. It hovered in the air for a few seconds before settling next to Comet's ear, where it whispered something to him. No one else could make it out, but whatever it was, it was enough to make Comet gasp. Then, the ghost faded away to whatever lay beyond death.
"I did what you wanted. Not give me the antidote and let us go."
"A deal is a deal," Toffee cooly said before handing him the vial and then unlocking the door to the cell and returning it to its normal size. Grabbing the antidote out of Toffee's hands, Comet made a beeline to the injured Marcia, though not before turning to Buff Frog, who had just started to come to.
"Run. Now."
Buff Frog didn't question what it was that Comet meant. He didn't have to. The look in the boy's eyes was enough to tell that whatever was going to happen next, he didn't want to be there. "My babies!" Buff Frog then gathered up his tadpoles and ran out of the hall, making sure to get as far away from the Castle as possible.
By now, Marcia was hardly breathing. Her chest seemed to struggle to take in each breath, while her tan skin was becoming an unhealthy pale white. At this point, Comet wasn't even sure if she was aware of what was happening anymore.
"Come on, Marcia," Comet pleaded. "Just open your mouth a little bit and drink the antidote." Thankfully, she managed to hear that, as her mouth opened up just enough for him to chug the antidote down her throat. It took a few seconds after that, but the medicine seemed to work. Her breathing evened out, and her skin began to return to its normal color, making Comet release a breath he didn't even know he'd been holding.
Outside the cell, the other Monsters didn't know what to make of the situation. However, judging by the look on Toffee's face, they all assumed that the destruction of the Wand was a good thing for them.
Toffee then stood up and looked at his assembled army. "Gentlemen, it's been a pleasure."
Then the Wand began to shake and tremble. Then, without warning, several massive fissures started to appear on its surface as what was left of the artifact began to crackle with energy.
The Monsters in Ludo's former army didn't need to be told what to do next: they followed Buff Frog's example and ran for their lives, though not before Big Chicken laid an egg in shock.
Within moments, the entire banquet hall was empty, save for Comet, Marcia, and Toffee. Toffee made no move, no attempt to escape. He just sat there, staring at the Wand with a maniacal grin on his face as it continued to split apart while Comet watched from inside the cell. Just before the light reached its zenith, Comet swore that he saw the lizard turn to him and say, "Until we meet again, son of Mune Dragonfly."
And then, for the second time in the last few minutes, everything went white.
To Be Concluded...