Light of the Sun and Stars

by thDorkMagnet

His whole life Marco Diaz has been raised by monsters, living under the cruel rule of their leader, Toffee. But one day Marco escapes into Mewni where he meets a magical princess and Mewman like himself, who begins teaching him all about her world. Together they will learn about life, love, and the lights within each of them, as they change their world forever.

48. Race For Your Life, Jackie Lynn

Chapter 47: Race For Your Life, Jackie Lynn

Hey everyone! I'm baaaack! Whoo these last few months have been a rush! I had several projects that drained all my creativity for this one until I finished them, holidays and family stuff, and some general hecticness at work and with life. So sorry for the long delay again, it just couldn't be helped. But I'm back and I got what I hope will be a fun chapter for you all!

Today is Jackie's time to shine! I've been looking forward to getting to write another Jackie-centric chapter and I'm so happy it's here for you all now! Jackie always deserves more love and attention in my humble opinion. So please enjoy! Oh and also big thank you to everyone with your patience and support! It really does mean the world to me and keeps me going when things get tough! And it's a little late but Merry Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate this lovely time of year!

Disclaimer: Star vs and all its characters belong to Daron Nefcy and Disney. All right go to them.

Marco skipped along joyfully, a bright, positive smile on his face as he slowly scanned the large gathering of tents all around him, searching for the one that housed his friend. He carefully slipped past a few people blocking his way, making sure to clutch the beautiful boutique of roses close to his chest so they wouldn't be crushed. They needed to be perfect when he gave them to their new owner.

The hooded teen was starting to lose heart on finding the tent he needed on his own, all of them looked the same to him, their bland colors all blending in a little too well with each other. He looked back to his friends, Tom and Janna, for help but they were too distracted by each other to be of any use. They had been like that all day, sharing quiet whispers too low for anyone to hear, and Marco was too proud and excited for them to interrupt. Though maybe he should, if the looks of joyful mischief were anything to go by, nothing good ever came out of those expressions, that was for sure.

Marco let out a sigh, deciding to try one more quick look around before he gave up and called Jackie to ask which tent she was in. But by chance his eyes landed on the right one, spotting the small ceramic seashell hanging above the entrance, Jackie's own personal signature and the clue she had told him about. Marco grinned, calling to his two friends, "It's over here, guys." Janna gave a simple thumbs up as a response, neither breaking off their engaging conversation.

The boy didn't wait as he ran over to the correct tent, dodging a few surprised strangers on the way there, finally bursting through the tent in excitement. "Surprise!" Marco screamed, his eyes shining with joy.

Jackie looked up from attaching her knee guards to give her friend a smooth grin. "Hey, dude. You made it!"

"Sure did! I wouldn't miss this for the world!" Marco exclaimed brightly.

Jackie laughed, returning her focus on attaching the straps but still made sure to keep Marco in the corner of her eye. "Well, I'm glad you're here. I could use the moral support."

"Why? Is our dear Jaqouline nervous about today?" Janna asked as she and Tom stepped into the tent.

Jackie shot her roommate a dirty look for using her first name, but calmly replied, "More excited than nervous but yeah, maybe a little." She looked over to the purple teen and added, "Hey, Tom, glad you could make it."

"Sure," Tom said with a small shrug.

Marco suddenly remembered the bouquet still in his hands and quickly held them out to his skater friend, "Oh here Jackie, these are for you."

"Aww thanks, Marco," Jackie said, giving him a quick hug. "They're beautiful."

"They're from all of us," Marco humbly replied, his cheeks lightly tinged pink.

"They're also Flaming Roses so, uhh, I wouldn't smell them if I were you," Tom spoke up.

Jackie nodded, setting the flowers aside. "Good to know," she replied before going back to attaching her gear. "So where's Star?"

"She had an important phone call," Marco explained. "But she promised she'd be done in time to watch your race."

"That's sweet of her," Jackie replied, finishing up with her knee straps and moving to her elbow guards. "Still can't believe she got me entered into the Dragoncycle 6000! This could single handedly launch my skating career!" The girl was almost giddy at the thought, her smile stretching from cheek to cheek.

"Still confused how you can compete without a dragoncycle," Tom commented, though most of his attention diverted to his phone as he poked and prodded the screen.

Jackie shrugged. "Eh, the rules are pretty laxed," the skater explained. "So long as you have a means to ride, they don't really care."

"Did your parents ever compete?" Marco asked curiously.

"Compete? Ha, they won five years in a row," Janna spoke up for her friend, recalling all the stories her roommate had told her about her deceased parents and their famous skating careers.

"Wow, really!" Marco exclaimed excitedly.

A sad look crossed Jackie's face as she nodded. "Yeah, I just hope I can live up to them," she admitted, her calm demeanor slipping slightly as she thought of the two people she missed the most in this world. Her fingers began to nervously play with the seashell necklace always hanging around her neck and Janna put a hand over it, stopping her.

"Hey, you're gonna do great," Janna said in a sympathetic tone, uncharacteristically genuine and kind. "You've been training for this your whole life. And today you're gonna show all those chumps just who exactly Jackie Lynn Thomas is!"

Jackie smiled, the cool radiance returning to her bright eyes as she whispered, "Thanks, Janna." The two shared a quick hug, Janna giving her best friend a small pat on the back for encouragement.

"Wow, Janna, you took the words right out of my mouth," Marco commented, giving the girls a bright grin. It was rare to see this side of Janna but it was always a welcomed change.

"Uh yeah and how come you never talk like that around me?" Tom asked, glancing up from his phone, an eyebrow raising suspiciously.

As Janna pulled away from her friend her typical attitude returned, smirking over at her boyfriend as she cocking her hip to the side. "Well I gotta keep some sides of myself a secret," Janna explained. "Besides, we both know you prefer it when I mess with you." She shot her boyfriend a wink, who blushed and looked away, muttering some comment under his breath.

Jackie laughed, glad to have her friends there with her. Even though she wasn't exactly nervous, the Dragoncycle 6000 was still a big deal and she knew better than anyone not to sike yourself out before a big competition. Mentally preparing was just as important as the actual competition, after all. Still, as much as she wanted to keep talking with her friends, it was getting close to time, so she sadly had to say, "Well, you guys should get going or there won't be good seats for you."

They nodded, catching the hint, and started to head out the tent, Janna saying playfully over her shoulder, "Welp, break a leg, Jacks."

Marco let out a long gasp, swerving around to gap at his creepy friend in pure disbelief. His gaping mouth and bulging eyes made him resemble a fish rather than a Mewman and Janna had to bite her lip to keep from laughing out loud. "Janna!" he said incredulously, his voice cracking. He sounded more like a parent scolding their child and this nearly made Janna's smirking mask crack. "How could you say that? Jackie's our friend!"

Janna couldn't hold it in any longer, her poker face breaking as she busted into hysterical laughter which only confused Marco, looking at Janna like she had three heads. Jackie took pity on her naive friend, explaining through her own giggles, "It's a figure of speech, Marco. It's just another way of saying good luck."

"Ooooohhhh," Marco said, nodding his head in understanding. He still didn't get why people didn't just say what that meant, instead of being weird about it. Wasn't it easier to just say 'good luck' rather than something so horrible that might end up upsetting them? But, whatever, at this point Marco had just accepted some Mewman things he would never understand. "Okay, that's better, I guess," he hesitantly added. "Um, well then, I hope you break your legs." He gave his friend a bright, positive smile, his face so cute and innocent that neither girl could bring themselves to correct him. It was a nice gesture even if he had said it completely wrong.

"Thanks, Marco," Jackie said, holding in her giggles. Marco looked quite proud of himself as he raced out of the tent, calling for Tom who hadn't waited on them. Janna shot her roommate an encouraging wink before leaving herself, leaving Jackie alone with her thoughts once more. She shook her head at Marco's little slip-up, making a mental note to tell Star later, knowing she'd find it adorable. But for now she had a competition to win.

She quickly strapped on her helmet, buckling it tightly under her chin. She tucked her skateboard under her arm, before casting a longing glance in the mirror. Jackie wasn't one to brag but even she couldn't deny she looked and felt like a professional skater, her crystal clear eyes burning with passion back at herself. She had always believed this was what she was meant to do, that it was more than just a dream, it was her purpose, her destiny and it finally felt like she was right.

She was so close to finally being a professional skater, to have her childhood fantasy become her reality and it felt… different. A good different. Jackie didn't know how to describe it yet but it was as if a new part of herself had formed. And it wasn't just herself she saw in the mirror, it was also them.

Her smile faltered for a moment, her hand raising up to touch her seashell necklace. Her fingers slowly traced the rough surface like she had done so many times before, usually it comforted her to feel the necklace was still there but today it just left a pit in her stomach. She wished they could be there to cheer her on. "Wish me luck, guys," Jackie murmured softly. "I'll make you both proud."

With that she jerked her hand away from the necklace, shifting her thoughts to the present, though the lump in her stomach stayed. With one last sigh to calm her nerves, she pushed back the entrance to her tent and stepped into the sunlight, standing proud and strong. Jackie Lynn Thomas had arrived.

…

"What?! What do you mean there's no cases!"

"As I already told you multiple times now, Star, there have been no reports of any royals going missing," Skullnick growled so aggressively that in any other situation Star would have full-body flinched and taken a very large step away from the troll general but since they were talking behind the safety of Star's mirror phone, her stance remained unchanged.

"Are you seriously telling me that in the infinite expanse of the multiverse there have been zero instances of a prince or princess going missing?" Star asked in a challenging tone and Skullnick grumbled something under her breath. Star wasn't trying to test Skullnick's patience, she really wasn't, but what was she supposed to do when the general clearly wasn't taking her warning seriously.

Star watched the screen as Skullnick rubbed her eyes in annoyance, stating in a very strained tone, "Look, Star, if there was any instance of royalty going missing don't you think you would've heard about it by now?"

Star bit her lip. That was a good point. "Okay, well, even if no one else has been taken they could still be a target. We should tell the other royals to beef up security."

"And say what exactly?" Skullnick asked, crossing her arms. "You know we can't tell anyone about your attempted kidnapping."

Another good point. Dang, Star wished she had better prepared her argument before calling. "But what about Penelope?" Star tried, though she already saw the flaw in her logic.

And, unfortunately, so did Skullnick. "That doesn't mean every royal is a target. It was only after Penelope, so what reason would anyone have to assume it was after them, too." Skullnick paused before adding, "Besides…"

Here it comes, Star thought, bracing herself for the inevitable. "I'm not convinced that machine is even related to the Rasticore incident. That lizard's attack was months ago and since then he's completely vanished from the multiverse. Why would he then go and send a bot to do his job when he nearly got away with it the first time?"

Star's grip on her mirror phone tightened, just slightly. "Maybe he was scared," she tried and Skullnick didn't bother to hide her scoff, rolling her eyes right there on Star's phone screen. The blonde knew it was a stretch but that was a bit much.

"Of Penelope?" Skullnick countered sarcastically and for the first time since the call began, Star looked away from the bright screen in embarrassment. She didn't have a good answer for that one.

Out of the corner of her eye, the blonde royal watched as Skullnick raised a suspicious eyebrow, asking, "What made you believe the robot and Rasticore were related anyways?"

Star forced herself to keep a neutral expression, not giving anything away to Skullnick's scathing eyes. "Just a hunch," Star replied with a shrug.

"Riggggghhht," Skullnick said, her eyes narrowing and Star had to focus all her energy on keeping her body still, refusing to let herself fidget. Skullnick's face softened before she abruptly changed the subject. "Well, I wouldn't worry yourself, Star. Rasticore is bound to come out of his hole eventually and when he does, we'll get him." Skullnick's confidence was far from encouraging but Star forced herself to give the troll general a weak smile. "Enjoy yourself, today. We've got everything under control," Skullnick added before ending the call, the screen going black.

Star huffed and violently shoved her mirror phone into her small cloud purse, nearly snapping the shoulder strap in the process, angry and frustrated with how poorly the phone call had gone. What a complete and total disaster, not to mention a waste of her time. She had at least been hoping to convince the stubborn troll to double down security, maybe even get the dimensional knights involved. Instead all she had done was convince Skullnick she was completely paranoid. Star had to support herself against the nearest rocky cliffside to keep herself from losing herself to her anger and frustration.

The worst part was, Star couldn't entirely blame Skullnick for her reaction. She knew if she was to tell the general the real reason she believed Rasticore was behind the bot, she would have taken Star seriously, but that would require telling Skullnick about Rasticore's other two kidnapping attempts and admitting that she had chosen to keep them secret from everyone. And that would obviously lead to dealing with her very furious and disappointed parents.

But her parents disapproval wasn't the reason she had chosen to keep the whole thing a secret, it was her peace commission she was worried about. The MMPC would be history if they found out and all the Monsters would be oppressed all over again. So what choice did she really have?

Star knew it was getting close to time for Jackie's competition to begin and since she promised she would be there, she began to head that way. But her troubled thoughts stayed with her and she found herself contemplating her next move on the way, since warning Skullnick had been a failure.

Her best bet now was Babs. Her spy had been pretty selective with information, giving only vague answers when they talked. Babs had said it was for safety reasons but it only added to Star's frustration. The blonde wished she could call and get an update but Babs had warned her about calling only if it was an emergency and since Star had already told her about the robot there wasn't a good excuse for her to call.

At least Babs believed that the robot and Rasticore were linked. In fact, she had seemed intrigued when Star told her, asking for pictures, which Star had provided. It seemed like it might be promising evidence, at least Star hoped so. The last thing Babs had said was she was "close to a breakthrough and would call when she had something to report". That was three days ago and Star was dying for more than just a cryptic hint. She wanted answers so badly that it hurt but all she could do was wait. Maybe that's why she had told Skullnick, out of a need to do something.

Well at least one good thing had come out of that call, she now knew no royals had been kidnapped thus far. Which meant there was hope that she and Babs could stop Rasticore and his employer before anyone else got caught up in this mess.

But for now, all Star could do was wait. As much as she hated to say it, Skullnick was right, she should try and keep her mind off everything and enjoy herself. If not for herself, then for Jackie.

"Hey, Star! Over here! I saved you a seat!" Marco suddenly called to her, waving his arm wildly to get her attention. Star grinned and waved back, quickly sliding into the seat next to him. "Hey guys, so what did I miss?"

"Nothing, it's been totally boring so far," Violet grumbled, slumped into her seat with her arms crossed, her face a bored pout.

"That's because the competition hasn't started yet, darling," Lily said, while helping Daisy untangle a large knot in her hair, the strands glued together with caramel

"Well, can't you guys make them hurry up," the creepy girl straight up whined. "I wanna see Jackie do cool flips and stuff."

"Be lucky you get to see anything at all, young lady, after what you did to Daisy," Lily scolded.

"My hair's all sticky now!" Daisy whined.

"Well that's why we don't play catch with a candy apple," Lily replied.

"We had to do something to keep from dying of boredom!" Violet stated defensively. She suddenly got an idea, turning around in her chair and giving her mentor an affectionate grin. "Jannnaaa," she said hintingly, batting her eyes.

Janna and Tom were busy making popcorn together, the beanie-wearing teen placing popcorn kernels in her boyfriend's hand, which he would then heat up until they popped. "Sorry, Vi, but my hands are tied," she said with a shrug, her and Tom quickly munching down their spoils.

"You're only saying that 'cause you're with your boyfriend," Violet grumbled, returning to her previous pouting position.

Marco did a quick look around, making sure no one was listening in before whispering to Star, "So how did the phone call go?" Of course Star had told Marco her plan and he was eager to know if it was a success or not.

Star stuck out her tongue at the reminder doing a fake gag.

"That bad, huh?" Marco said, sympathetically.

Star leaned back in her chair. "Let's just say we won't be getting any help from the royal guard."

"Oh," he said, leaning back in his seat like Star. A moment of silence passed between the two before he asked, "So, uh, what's the new plan, then?"

Star shrugged. "Wait for Babs I guess. But whatever we do, we'll have to do it later. Today is about Jackie and I want to keep it that way." Marco nodded in agreement, glad his bestie wouldn't be dwelling on it. He knew Star was impatient, that she wanted to do more than just wait around, but he felt lost on how to help her, since neither of them had any clue what they were really dealing with or who. The blond royal changed the subject, asking, "So, how was Jacks?"

Now it was Marco's turn to shrug. "She seemed determined."

"I'll bet," she said, propping her head up on her hands. "She's been training for this her whole life, I'd be pretty determined, too."

"Do you think she can win?" Marco asked, more curious than concerned. Although he had seen Jackie practicing, Star knew much more about it than him.

"I think she stands a pretty good chance," Star replied honestly. "I mean she may not be as experienced but she's confident, probably the most confident person I know. I don't think the others know who they're dealing with."

"I hope she gets it," Marco said, a hint of anxiety in his tone. "She definitely deserves it."

"What are you two lovebirds whispering about?" Lily asked, teasingly.

"Nothing!" Star, Marco, and Tom all exclaimed at the same time. All eyes slowly drifted over to the hot-headed prince, who's entire face was now painted red.

"Uhhh, Tom, I think Aunt Lily was talking about me and Marco," Star corrected her friend, trying to hide her grin.

"Oh… yeah- I-I knew that, obviously," Tom stuttered, shifting uncomfortably in his seat, smoke rising off his head as he overheated. He cast a desperate glance at his girlfriend but Janna offered no assistance to help dig her man out of the hole he was in. If anything, she seemed to be enjoying his awkward state, smirking and eating her popcorn in silence.

Thankfully, someone saved him from utter humiliation, Daisy loudly squealing, "Hey, I see Jackie!" The cutesy girl hopped to her feet, enthusiastically pointing her out to the others.

"Finally!" Violet huffed.

Sure enough, Jackie was there in the distance, lining up with the other racers at the starting line, her signature skateboard tucked under her arm.

"Oh yeah it is her!" Marco exclaimed joyfully.

Daisy began furiously waving at the skater, shouting at the top of her lungs, "Jackie! Jackie, it's us! Do you see us?! It's me, Daisy!" The skater girl glanced over to them, a smile lighting up her face as she waved back. "You can do it, Jackie!" Daisy continued to scream. "We believe in you!"

"Yeah, these wimps don't stand a chance against you!" Violet added. "Send 'em home crying to their mommies!"

Harsh chuckling echoed through the crowd of competitors, amused by the embarrassing display. Now that Jackie was the center of attention, many scathing eyes were sizing her up, some even openly ridiculing the girl behind her back. Jackie was far from embarrassed though. Knowing her friends- her family- were there watching and supporting her made her determination all the stronger. And if the others wanted to judge her then let them. None of it would even matter once the race began.

Ignoring all the glares on her back, she focused on readjusting the large button pinned to her shirt displaying her number. She was number 68, she wasn't sure how many people were in the competition but it had to be in the early hundreds, so she was surprised to have such a low number. She had to be the only one there on a skateboard, almost everyone else seemed more interested in dragoncycles, though she did spot a few on some other vehicle: a few hoverboards, some non-dragon bikes, Jackie even spotted a hairy orange creature riding on top of some kind of blue dinosaur-looking thing.

"Hey, kid!" a gruff voice said behind her, snapping Jackie out of her thoughts. She turned to see a muscular eagle creature on a dragoncycle, both he and his vehicle wearing sunglasses which seemed a bit excessive but Jackie knew better than to comment. "You're standing in Talon Raventalon's spot! Talon Raventalon always races in that spot, only Talon Raventalon is allowed to stand there!"

Jackie ignored his rather rude tone, saying apologetically, "Oh, sorry dude." She took a few steps back, allowing the eagle man to roll his dragoncycle into his spot.

"Nah, it's cool, Talon Ravontalon doesn't hold grudges," Talon said dismissively, casting a casual glance in Jackie's direction.

She could tell Talon wanted to be alone and so just shrugged and started moving away from him, waving over her shoulder. "Well, good luck," Jackie said politely, thinking that would be the end of it.

However, something had caught Talon's eye, the eagle sliding his sunglasses down his beak to get a better look at it. "Whoa!" he exclaimed, making Jackie jump in surprise. She turned to see Talon was off his cycle and was now right behind her, examining her skateboard closely. "Haven't seen anyone race with one of these in years!"

The skater girl smiled, holding out her pride and joy for him to admire. "What can I say, I stick with what I know."

Talon nodded in appreciation, running a feathered finger along the smooth wood. He let out a long whistle before commenting, "Talon Raventalon can see why? It's a nicely made board."

"Thanks, glad to see someone else with good taste," Jackie said jokingly, tucking her skateboard back under her arm. She offered the eagle man a hand to shake. "Since you already told me your name, I'm Jackie, Jackie Lynn Thomas."

"Wait, Lynn Thomas? As in the fearless Thomas daredevils?!" Talon looked awestruck, his eyes bulging and practically popping out of his head.

Jackie nodded, ignoring the tight clench in her gut. "Yeah that was my mom and dad," she said, trying to keep her tone light and casual.

"Wow, oh, wow! Talon Raventalon never thought he'd actually run into a descendent of Jack and Judy Lynn Thomas! Your parents were legends! It was always a dream of Talon's to meet them someday and get them to sign his sunglasses." His enthusiasm turned to melancholy as he added sympathetically, "Talon was sorry to hear what happened to them, the multiverse lost two great people that day."

"Thanks," Jackie replied sadly, her insides twisting violently. Her hand reached up, instinctively feeling her necklace, finding both comfort and pain in its presence.

Talon seemed to realize the awkward situation he had created, quickly trying to duck out of the conversation before he made it any worse. "Talon needs to get ready for the race, good luck Jackie Lynn Thomas."

"You too," the skater said, tucking some hair behind her ear. Once she was alone again, Jackie placed a hand over her heart feeling the rhythmic pounding vibrate against her palm. She had been caught off-guard by Talon mentioning her parents, her inner calm totally shattered, leaving her struggling to recover. She still wasn't nervous, just troubled, but being shaken up to any degree on the most important day of her life just wouldn't do. So she focused on calming her mind, taking several deep breaths, thinking of peaceful, happy things: spending time with her friends, playing around on her skateboard, listening to music in the silence of her room. She hummed a few verses of Love Sentence before she finally felt calm enough to stop.

It seemed she had picked just the right time too because the race was about to get underway. A goblin holding a microphone stood in front of the starting line. He cleared his throat before saying, "Racers to the starting line! The Dragoncycle 6000 is about to begin!"

A loud cheer erupted from the audience, several giant mirror screens rising from the ground in front of the stands, each displaying the small goblin, who was being watched and recorded by dozens of Seeing Eye Cams. The goblin waved to the crowd, trying to signal them to quiet down but it only made the cheering worse. Eventually, he seemed to give up, saying in a raised tone, "I see the crowd is all hyped up this year. Thank you all for coming today!"

From the stands, Star, Marco and the twins were screaming their support, shouting along with the rest of the crowd.

The goblin surveyed the racers, his scathing eye scanning each and every face before him. "And it seems like there are even more racers this year than ever before. So just to be safe-" He lowered his voice, whispering to himself, "...and to avoid legal ramifications…" His voice regained its volume as he finished the sentence. "...let's go over the ground rules for all you newbies. Starting with, well, the ground." An awkward silence fell over the crowd at the terrible joke and the goblin coughed into his hand to recover from his embarrassment.

As Jackie listened to the goblin's instructions, she double-checked her set-up, stepping onto her board and testing to make sure all the straps were on nice and tight.

"Thanks to many cheaters last year, I would like to remind each and everyone of you that despite this race originally being built around dragoncycling, it is strictly prohibited to use your wings during the competition. Anyone with flight capabilities built into their vehicle must refrain from using them, this competition is about your skill as a rider, not your vehicles." His voice was stern and condescending, sending chilling glares to dragoncycle riders as extra warning.

Jackie was unaffected by this, just stretching her arms over her head and bending side to side, making sure she was loose and limber.

The goblin cleared his throat before continuing in a more casual tone, "Now that that's out of the way! There are four legs, the first three have been changed like every year to help keep the race fresh and interesting and the final lap, as always, will be our dimensional famous Devil's Mark jump." His jovial voice took on a sinister edge as he added, "But I warn you, each challenge will be more difficult and dangerous than the last, so if anyone wishes to leave, you may do so now."

Jackie narrowed her eyes, leaning forward on her board, her feet planted firmly in place. She made sure to keep a confident look on her face, not letting even an ounce of hesitation show. There was no way she was backing down, not until that trophy was in her hands.

The goblin waited for a full minute to pass, no one had moved an inch, just as he suspected. No one would give up an opportunity like this but for legal reasons he was required to do this. They didn't need a repeat of four years ago. That poor quirky guy had been dead before he even said go. The goblin rose the microphone back up to his lips, speaking in a grim tone. "Very well then."

The ground under Jackie's feet rumbled and she glanced down, frowning in confusion. Were they having an earthquake? Or whatever the Neverzone called it. It seemed unlikely and yet…

But then she heard a loud noise behind her and slowly turned to see what was causing the ground to shake violently. A giant boulder, probably the size of a house was rolling down the cliffside and headed right towards the racers!

The other racers quickly took notice of this as well, letting out screams of fear or gasps of surprise, the bravest amongst them simply gritting their teeth in anticipation. The audience as well was beginning to panic, many jumping out of their seats to escape inevitable death but then a large forcefield appeared around the stands, protecting them from harm and they all quickly calmed. A forcefield also appeared around the goblin who was just watching the panicked scene with mild satisfaction.

Jackie couldn't look away from the boulder, her heart pounding so hard she could feel it in her ears, so much so that she almost didn't hear the last of the goblin's speech, saying in the same grim tone, "Good luck and try not to die."

…

"Whoa!" Marco screamed, hopping out of his chair. "We gotta do something before someone gets hurt!"

Star gently grabbed the back of Marco's hoodie, giving a light tug to ease him back into his chair. "Calm down, Marco. This is just part of the race," she explained, putting a hand on top of his.

"Wait, seriously?!" the hooded teen exclaimed, his eyes wide with fear.

Tom, on the other hand, seemed invested in this dark turn, leaning forward in his chair, his eyes alight with excitement. "Alright! Now this is more like it! You didn't tell me it was a race for life or death."

"Tom, not helping," Star hissed, glaring at her old friend.

"How is this even allowed?!" Marco asked, confused and terrified at the same time.

"The goblin guy did warn everyone it would be dangerous," Janna reminded him, casually eating popcorn as she watched the panicked scene below.

"Well yeah but-"

"Relax, Marco," Lily cut in, giving him a soothing smile. "I know it looks bad but most of the creatures down there are much more resilient than they look. It would take more than a boulder to kill them."

"Awwwww, lame," Violet mumbled under her breath in disappointment.

"But Jackie's human!" Marco reminded everyone.

"It's okay, Marco," Star said gently, swiping a hand through his bangs, causing her whole hand to tingle. "Jackie knows what she's getting into."

"Guys look! There she goes!" Daisy squealed, pulling everyone's attention, once again, onto the skater girl. The group could only watch in awe at what came next.

…

It took a second for Jackie to snap out of her stupor, shaking her head to help clear her thoughts. The boulder was still barrelling down towards them but Jackie wasn't deterred. With a small push of her left foot the wheels of the skateboard were set in motion and she was off. Many other racers began to speed away from the giant rock, zipping across the starting line at breakneck speeds. Some were too distracted to move in time, by the time they tried to escape from it, it was already too late, they were crushed under its massive weight, along with their methods of transportation. Thankfully, none of them were dead just very, very hurt and it would be some time before they would race again, especially since they would have to wait for their dragoncycles to recover as well. A few, out of fear, took flight to avoid being crushed and a loud whistle was blown, signaling them out of the game.

But Jackie wasn't one of the victims that day, she kept herself firmly planted on her skateboard, leaning her body in whichever direction she needed to go as she raced through the crowd of fellow competitors. Many of the racers sped ahead of her, their motorbikes easily able to reach speeds Jackie just couldn't on a mere skateboard. She wasn't concerned about getting in the lead yet, not this early in the competition, but if she didn't manage to get ahead of this boulder she would never get the chance. She didn't check to look behind her, knowing it would only cause her to panic and possibly lose balance, instead judging the distance by the loud rumbling as it rolled down the hill towards her and based on the ground quaking beneath her feet it was a fair bet that it was right on her heels.

Jackie knew she needed a way to gain some kind of an advantage, at this rate she would be crushed, one slip-up could be the end of her, but she couldn't get enough momentum to even hope to get ahead of the deadly rock. Then she saw a dip in the road ahead and she smiled knowingly. A hillside, finally! She thanked whoever had designed the race course the way they did or that might have been the end of her time as a skater and possibly the end of her in general. She leaned her weight forward, helping pick up that last bit of speed she needed before she plummeted downhill.

Her wheels left the ground for an instant and Jackie felt her stomach lurch, a familiar feeling whenever she was freefalling and a bright smile lit up her face. There was nothing that made her feel more alive than during one of her jumps, it was like she was riding the wind itself and the freedom she felt in that moment was almost too wonderful to describe.

Her board touched ground again, slamming hard into the rocky hillside, the wheels bouncing once before returning to their wild spin. Jackie took a second to recenter her gravity and once she was properly positioned, the skateboard picked up speed, going faster and faster down the cliff. She passed by several dragoncyclists who took a second to gawk at her in surprise, believing someone on such an inferior set of wheels would have already been taken out by now. Jackie felt herself shine at the recognition, beaming ear to ear as she sped past her competitors.

Unfortunately, for her though, the boulder was much faster now, as well.

Despite the advantage going downhill had given her she still had the stupid rock on her tail and she was gonna have to think fast if she had any hope of escaping her fate. On top of that, a group of dragoncyclists had decided to gang up on her, forming a circle around her, trapping her to their will. They seemed unfazed by the giant boulder no more than a few feet away at all times, moving at a deadly speed that would probably crush them in an instant. No, instead their sights were on Jackie, feeling the need to teach her a dangerous and painful lesson at the very worst moment.

One of the cyclists revved their bike, moving swiftly towards his right with the intent of mowing Jackie down with his superior set of wheels. But Jackie was onto him, forcing her board to bounce off the ground, causing it to swiftly rise straight up in an ollie. Jackie gripped the front of her board, and pulled her legs to the side, the cyclists going right under her. She used his head as a handstand for a second, flipping off of him and doing a full twist before landing back on her feet and board. The cyclist, however, was so lucky, ramming into his partner knocking both of them down, the dragoncycles sensing the danger and quickly flapping away, abandoning their riders.

Jackie didn't need to turn to know what happened next. She heard the thump before she even landed, keeping her eyes trained straight ahead to avoid being the next victim. The other two dragoncyclists behind her, growled in anger for taking out their friend both speeding up their bikes and swerving in towards her, planning on ramming her from both sides.

The skater girl caught onto their plan and quickly shifted her weight to the back of her board. With a simple push the skateboard went up, the back of the board scraping against the ground as it slowed her descent downhill. It was just enough to outwit her competitors, sot that instead of hitting Jackie, they smacked into each other, crashing their bikes and causing their drangoncycles to abandon them also.

Jackie pushed the skateboard back down and swerved around the pair, trying to gain as much speed as she could now that she was no longer under attack. She grimaced when she heard the sickening crunch behind her and swore to herself that she wouldn't be joining them. But thanks to her instinctive reaction, she was now going way too slow to outrun the rock which was now mere inches away from her. It was so close the ground was shuddering violently beneath her, making it difficult to keep her board steady. She tried not to panic, this hill couldn't go on forever, eventually they had to reach the bottom and maybe then she could escape from this deadly rock.

Just when Jackie wondered if all hope was lost she spotted a rock wall up ahead, with a thin tunnel split into its center, obviously the exit to this section of the race. Before relief could even register in her mind she saw what came before it and her heart leapt into her throat. A jump.

Of course it couldn't be that easy, Jackie thought. There was a ramp aimed in the direction of the tunnel so clearly she was going the right way. But with the giant boulder feet away from ending her life it would be tricky to make the leap. And if that wasn't enough, then the small size of the tunnel would certainly do her in. It looked like it was barely big enough to fit Jackie and since she was meant to jump to it, there was a very small window of success there, one small mistake would be the end of her.

But there was no time to second guess it now, not when she could feel the boulder's presence behind her, its shadow falling heavily over her, a towering presence promising an agonizing death for the human skater.

Jackie leaned as far forward as her body would allow without slipping off the board, hoping to gain the last little burst of speed she needed for this jump. Finally, she shot off the ramp like a rocket, Jackie grabbing the front of her board to keep it from slipping away. The boulder was propelled upwards too, following closely behind the young skater. As the seconds ticked by and Jackie's body sailed clear through the air, she watched as the narrow gap approached. She tightened her grip on the board… it was gonna be close.

The boulder cast a long shadow across the rock wall, Jackie somehow looking even smaller in the presence of the menacing death rock that towered above her. The tunnel drew closer and closer until the skater was sure she could see a light at the end of it. It was somehow even smaller up close. She bent downwards, trying to become as small as possible, hoping and praying by some miracle she fit through. How others had made it before her was a mystery.

Just as Jackie reached the rock wall, the boulder crashed hard into its surface, creating a massive crater in its side and sending smoke and dust scattering down below, blinding all onlookers to the scene.

From the stands Marco and Star both jumped to their feet, their faces going pale with panic and terror. Tom spat out his popcorn as Janna launched herself upwards from her seat, her arm which was around her boyfriend, smacked him in the back of his head, causing him to growl aggressively. "Whoa! Did you see that?!" she screamed, not even bothering to keep up her cocky demeanor in this moment of panic.

"Is she okay?!" Marco asked, nearly hysterical, his grip on the seat in front of him nearly enough to snap it in half.

"Maybe she's dead!" Violet shrieked and Daisy gasped, tears flooding her eyes. "R-Really," the younger twin muttered weakly.

"Now, now, girls. We mustn't jump to conclusions," Lily said calmly, putting her arms around both of her daughters as a means to comfort them. Though her own eyes were flooded with worry as she watched the mirror screen intently.

After a few moments of suspense, the camera angle changed off of the wreckage of the massive boulder and instead onto a familiar, white-haired girl effortlessly navigating a dark tunnel on her skateboard.

The entire group let out a collective sigh of relief, Marco collapsing back into his seat in exhaustion. "Oh thank goodness," he whispered to himself.

"Daisy! Jackie's alive!" Violet shouted to her sister, who had covered her eyes in fear. The cutesy girl uncovered her eyes, casting a hesitant glance at the screen before bursting into tears, turning to her mom for comfort. Violet scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Crybaby." She made sure to turn away from the other's view as she swiped a hand across her wet cheek.

"I knew it all along," Janna said, trying to put on a chill act as she sat back in her seat, her hands cupped behind her head and her legs crossed in front of her. "My girl Jacks was just going for dramatic flair. A skill she picked up from me."

"Yeah right," Tom scoffed in a challenging tone. "Tell that to my popcorn, which you spilled all over me!"

"I'm just glad she's alright," Star said, breathing a big sigh of relief and distracting Tom from losing his temper. "This competition is way more dangerous than the application said."

"Oh boy, I hope Jackie knows what she's doing," Marco whimpered, biting his lip.

Star put her arm around him in comfort. "Jackie will be fine. She's got skateboarding in her blood and more talent than any of us combined. If anyone can get through this it's her."

Marco's eyes never left the screen as his face scrunched up with worry. "I hope you're right," he whispered.

…

Jackie rolled through the tunnel with ease, the short ride through darkness enough for her to calm her nerves so she would be ready for the next section. She hadn't expected the first section of the race to be so perilous and she wondered what was waiting for her at the end of this tunnel. She soon got her answer when she emerged into the blinding sunlight, the girl having to cup a hand over her eyes as she waited for them to readjust. She blinked a few times in surprise, wondering if maybe she had gone through the wrong tunnel somehow.

Before her was a wide, open field, holes dotting the area but otherwise this place seemed almost… peaceful. Certainly a contrast to the giant boulder chase from earlier. That was until hot water shot out of one of the holes, spraying in the air for a few moments before vanishing back underground. Ah, a field of geysers, clever, Jackie thought, nodding her head in appreciation.

Jackie carefully dodged around the holes, shifting her weight from side to side as she made sure to give each and every hole a wide berth. Even with this new challenge Jackie really didn't see the difficulty compared to before, it was more of a minor inconvenience than an actual challenge. But as the minutes dragged on more and more holes covered the ground, making it difficult to avoid. On top of that they were going off much more frequently, shooting up into the sky, sending scalding hot water in all directions.

Still even with this, it just wasn't perilous. Something was off here. Jackie could sense it. There had to be more to this challenge than just some naturally-made water fountains. And it seemed her suspicions were correct as she heard a loud caw above, barely having time to glance over her shoulder before a large shadow fell onto her. She saw a pair of sharp talons descending towards her, gleaming in the sunlight, and she knew she had to move or she would be dead. The girl lunged forward off her board, narrowly avoiding being impaled. She did a flip in the air stretching her arms out to catch herself, landing directly onto her rolling skateboard. She did her best to steer while doing a handstand, before she flung her legs forward, doing another flip, now landing back on her board, right side up.

Once Jackie was properly situated on her board again, she focused on putting as much distance between herself and the creature behind her. She heard another schreech and knew whatever it was hadn't given up the chase just yet. She ducked just in time as the creature flew over her head, its claws snapping air rather than her head. Now that it was in front of her, Jackie got a good look at the beast, blinking a few times in surprise.

It was a griffon, an eagle's head merged with the body of a lion, thick talons replacing the beast's front paws, and a pair of wings jutting out of its back, creating a bizarre monstrosity. Jackie had heard the Neverzone was crawling with strange creatures but she hadn't expected to see one up close and personal. The griffon once again rose high into the air, spreading its wings to block out the sun before dive bombing down at her.

Jackie, resourceful as ever, did a jump with her skateboard, grabbing the front of it so she could twist it to its side. Her board landed on the griffon's back, the extra weight pushing it down and causing it to crash into the ground. Jackie rolled off at just the right time to avoid the impact herself. Her skateboard crash landed a few feet in front of her and she ran to retrieve it. She cast a quick look back at the griffon, making sure it wasn't going to get up and chase her again but it seemed to have realized Jackie wasn't the easy prey it was expecting and quickly flapped away with its tail between its legs.

The girl sighed, thankful she had made it out of that in one piece, before starting off on her skateboard again, taking extra care to watch for more hot geysers and regularly checking the sky for any more wild beasts. That had been a close call but Jackie wasn't sure if it was part of the race or not. It definitely was as deadly as the announcer had promised but it also could have just been a coincidence, the griffon flying by and spotting what it believed was an easy meal. Any doubts fled her mind, however, when she topped the next hill.

There the rest of the racers were all dealing with a massive pack of griffons, swooping, diving, and clawing at the helpless competitors. Jackie's mouth dropped open. This was so much worse than she was imagining. What was worse was the geysers were now going off every few seconds, knocking several off their dragoncycles before getting picked off by one of the evil hybrid beasts. It was like Jackie had just entered into a battlefield and she wasn't ready to go to war just yet.

The skater girl did her best to glide around the battle waging around her, dodging enraged dragoncyclists, furious griffons, and explosive hot springs, all in an effort to sneak ahead of the race untouched. Luckily, being on a skateboard meant she went relatively unnoticed, the dragons managing to attract attention for themselves as they growled and provoked the angry griffons. Despite her determination Jackie felt like a sitting duck. She wished she had asked Star to give her some armor if she had known griffon attacks would be part of the race. But she would just have to make do with what she had.

A griffon spotted her and tried to knock her off her feet but she used the same trick as before, jumping into the air and sailing over it. As her wheels hit the ground, a tower of water shot into the air in front of her and Jackie had to lean her whole body to the left to avoid getting burned, though a few spare drops landed on her skin sending shockwaves of pain through her.

She ignored the minor burns, focusing on dodging and evading. The griffons just kept coming. The more they picked off the other riders the more obsessed they were with her. Jackie tried every trick she could think of to stay alive: luring some of the griffons over a nearly erupted geyser, sending them flying, ducking underneath their sharp claws causing them to crash into each other, or just speeding up and slowing down when needed. Somehow, Jackie stayed ahead of it all and she could finally see the end of this section up ahead, towering trees leading into what looked like a darkened swamp. No way could the griffons follow her in there.

But that was when she spotted Talon Ravontalon, who was doing his best to fight off the largest griffon Jackie had seen yet. It was at least twice the size of the others and much more viscous. Its eyes glowed red and its beak was curled to a deadly point, its claws red with what Jackie could only guess was some other poor racer's blood. Talon didn't seem afraid of the beast, yelling at the top of his lungs as he punched it with his bare claws, shouting insults between strikes. Still it was clear he was losing, his dragoncycle at a complete stop, its tail curled around itself in fear, while a large fountain of steaming hot water shot up behind them, keeping Talon from escaping his foe. And this geyser didn't seem intent on stopping anytime soon. Jackie doubted he would last that long at this rate.

So forgetting her drive and limitations, she veered her course, knowing what she had to do. Something deep inside her told her this was what her parents would do too and that filled her with new determination. She didn't think, she just acted.

Jackie headed right for Talon and the griffon, trying to pick up as much speed on her skateboard as she could while trying to stay undetected. She scanned the area around her, looking around for a very specific hole when her eyes landed on one with steam heavily pouring out of it. That was her best bet.

She had no way of knowing the exact timing so Jackie would just have to guess and hope for the best. Jackie leaned forward, picking up more and more speed before she slammed her foot into the back of the board, causing the skateboard to leap off the ground.

At that exact moment, hot water erupted from the hole beneath her, shooting high into the air. The pressure was enough to force Jackie upwards as well, though not without a few painful burns as punishment for the reckless action. Still, Jackie ignored the pain, grabbing the front of her board as she sailed through the air right towards the griffon.

Kicking out with her left foot, she slammed the board into the griffon's back as hard as she could. The strike was enough to shove the griffon forward and right into the active hot water geyser. The poor bird creature let out a pained caw before it was flung high into the air thanks to the rush of the water unable to stop itself as it spun recklessly through the air.

The momentum from Jackie's kick was enough for her to flip over in midair but with no board beneath her, she fell straight down, curling up around herself in preparation for the painful crash landing. However, she was saved at the last second, Talon zipping by on his dragoncycle where Jackie landed safely across his lap. The eagle man brought his cycle to a hard stop, looking down at the girl with concern. "You alright, little miss?"

In all honesty, she wasn't, her head was spinning, her adrenaline was pumping hard through her veins, and her leg was hurting, but she didn't want to say that so she just answered, "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks dude."

"Talon Ravontalon should be the one thanking you," Talon argued, gazing off dramatically into the sunset. "Without you, Talon's journey might have ended there, in the belly of that beast." Said beast finally hit the ground, landing a short distance behind the pair, alive but in pain. Most of its feathers had been burned off and It shot them death glares before slowly flapping away limply.

"Oh, it was no problem," Jackie said, sliding off the dragoncycle. "Just looking out for a fellow racer. I'm sure you would have done the same." Jackie practiced putting weight on her hurt leg a few times, trying to make sure it could support her weight. It felt like a sprain, she must have kicked that griffon at an odd angle. She could probably still walk on it but if she continued the race she was gonna risk causing it permanent damage. If anything else happened…

Jackie shoved those thoughts aside, forcing herself to stand, ignoring the uncomfortable jolts from doing so. She couldn't give up now, she had come too far and if she backed out now it would be another year before she'd get a chance again. This was her best shot at following in her parent's footsteps and she was not gonna waste it because of a minor sprain.

She tried to walk as naturally as she could, not wanting Talon or possibly a hidden Seeing Eye Cam seeing her limp. Her skateboard was laying upside down a few feet away and she slowly retrieved it.

"Talon would like to repay your kindness," he added, his voice surprisingly sincere, if not still dramatic and over-the-top, Jackie could swear everything he said would be perfectly accompanied by a guitar solo or something.

"That's not necessary," Jackie said, picking up her skateboard and checking it over for damage. Luckily, it looked unharmed.

"Talon insists."

Jackie paused for a second, thinking that over. With her ankle sprained, it was gonna be difficult to do the last two challenges but with someone watching over her and helping her along the way then she was confident she could do it. She would just have to be careful not to let Talon or the unseen audience know about her injury. So she turned to him with confidence, saying with a bright positive smile. "In that case, I'll take you up on your offer, dude."

Talon grinned back, though he tried to hide it behind his cool demeanour. "Talon assures you, you won't regret it."

Jackie nodded, stepping onto her skateboard, her ankle spasming in protest. She did her best to ignore it, focusing on her new teammate instead. "So are we in the lead now or not?"

"Actually, Talon saw a group of them ahead of us. But from the looks of it, the next terrain should slow them down a lot."

"Then we better hurry and catch up, right partner?"

"Right!" Talon revved up his dragoncycle a few times for emphasis.

And with that, Jackie was back in the race, Talon right beside her. As the two approached the looming treetops, Jackie turned to her new friend and asked, "So how can you tell what the next terrain is anyways? I can't see anything through all these trees."

"Talon has the eyes of an eagle," Talon responded, flashing her a cocky smile, his sunglasses somehow glinting at the exact same moment.

Jackie held in her giggle, biting her lip to keep it from slipping out. Yeah, no kidding. You literally are an eagle, she thought to herself. "And what is the next terrain?"

"Mud," Talon responded cryptically.

"Just mud?" Jackie replied in disbelief. That seemed a bit too easy.

"Well, mud that is full of mudmonsters that blend in so well you won't see them until they are eating you alive and also most of the mud is on fire."

Jackie blinked. What did a mudmonster even look like? Guess she was about to find out. "Eh, sounds doable," she said nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders. "Thankfully I got the eye's of an eagle with me."

Talon gasped. "You have them too?"

"Uhhh, I was talking about you, dude," the skater replied, trying not to sound condescending in her state of shock.

"Oh." For a moment, the confident mask slipped from Talon's face, looking unsure and uncomfortable as the two just rode in silence. But it quickly came back as he said, proudly, "Talon knew that!"

Jackie rolled her eyes but smiled. Talon was quite a character but she was happy to have him with her. She just hoped she could keep up the charade until the end of the race, her ankle screaming at her with every passing second. She took a deep breath, trying to relax her mind. Mud would be difficult to navigate through with a messed up ankle but for the sake of her future career she was just gonna have to do it.

Steeling herself, Jackie entered into the trees.

…

"Wow! Jackie is so cool!" Marco shouted, vibrating excitedly in his seat. He was barely able to hold still, only Star's hand in his keeping him sitting.

"What? You're just noticing this now?" Janna asked jokingly, giving him a sideways smirk.

Marco rubbed at the back of his neck sheepishly saying, "Wellll I mean I did but I guess I just never realized how cool she was."

"Yeah, no kidding," Tom agreed, sounding just as stunned as Marco. "Since when was Jackie able to pull off a move like that!"

"Told you she wouldn't disappoint," Janna said proudly, leaning heavily against her boyfriend. "When are you gonna learn to trust me, huh?" She poked Tom's cheek with her finger, causing him to blush and smack her hand away.

"Oh please, boyfriend or not, I still know better than to trust you," he replied in a half-teasing tone.

"Then I've taught you well," Janna said, giving him a surprise peck on the cheek, causing his whole face to heat up.

"I'm curious, does anyone know that bird man Jackie's travelling with?" Lily asked, interrupting the two lovebirds.

"It must be Jackie's new boyfriend!" Daisy exclaimed, her eyes sparkling in excitement.

"No way! Jackie wouldn't fall in love with that guy!" Violet argued.

"You don't know! She could be in love!" Daisy countered poutily.

"You think everyone is in love," the creepy twin said, rolling her eyes.

"I do not!" Daisy huffed.

"Do too!"

"Girls, girls, please," Lily cut in before a full-blown argument could break out.

The two quickly quieted down, not wanting to get into trouble, though they both looked none too happy about it. "And anyways if Jackie was dating him then how come we don't even know his name?" Violet whispered under her breath.

"Maybe it's a secret romance," Daisy quietly argued back.

"Jackie isn't into the whole dating thing," Janna spoke up, quelling any further argument. "They probably just teamed up because it's convenient."

"Yeah but is it even allowed?" Marco asked, cocking his eyebrow in confusion. "Aren't they competitors or whatever?"

"Hey the only rule is someone has to cross the finish line first, anything goes, remember?" Janna nonchalantly replied.

"Man, this race is so weird." Marco shook his head in disbelief. And he had thought the bake-off had been unrestricted, this whole competition seemed to be trying to get people killed. It seemed a little too dangerous for him. Why would people want to put themselves through that? Marco sighed, figuring it was just another thing that went over his head. "Well at least she's got help now," he said, more to himself than anyone else. "What do you think, Star?"

He glanced over at his girlfriend who had pulled out her phone when no one was looking, holding it an inch from her face, her focus and attention trained on the device, waiting impatiently for something to happen. The screen was off but that didn't keep her from staring at it obsessively, clearly a thousand miles away from her friend's conversation. "Star," Marco tried again, giving her shoulder a light shake.

She quickly snapped out of her stupor, jolting upright in her seat and hiding the phone behind her back. "Huh, what?" she exclaimed, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment.

Marco glanced over at Tom and Janna before leaning in close to his girlfriend, asking, "Is everything alright? Did Babs call you? Because I can cover for you if she did."

"No, no, it's fine, I just got distracted," Star admitted, shoving her phone back into her purse. "I said I was here to support Jackie and that's what I'm gonna do."

"I'm sure Jackie wouldn't mind you checking," the hooded teen reassured her.

Star let out a short sigh, forcing her focus back on her friend and off the device burning a hole in her pocket. "Yeah but I would," she argued before quickly changing the subject. "So what'd I miss?"

"Okay, well, Jackie saved this eagle guy from some bird thing and now it looks like they're teaming up," Marco explained, his eyes shining with joy as he subconsciously hopped around in his seat. Star smiled at how cute her Marco was before staring at the giant mirror screen. Sure enough it was displaying Jackie and her new partner, apparently. Just like Marco said, it was an eagle man, possibly a Monster, and Star couldn't help but marvel at that for a second or two. Jackie had seriously made an ally in one of the most brutal competitions in the multiverse? That girl never did fail to impress.

Though, now that she was paying closer attention, something else caught her eye, something about her friend was different. She couldn't put her finger on what it was that had changed in the last few minutes but it was definitely there, taunting Star and demanding speculation. She couldn't help but point it out to Marco and the others, asking thoughtfully, "Does something seem off about Jackie to you?"

"Like what?" Marco replied, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't know, she's just acting… different," was all Star could think of to describe her friend's changed demeanor. "Like, she's hiding something."

Daisy gasped. "Like her secret feelings for eagle guy!" she squealed happily.

"No, no, it's not that," Star said, shaking her head.

"I don't see anything different about Jackie," Janna spoke up. "I mean, other than all the mud she's currently wading through."

"Perhaps it's in your head, darling," Lily pitched in, trying to gently contradict her niece.

Star frowned. Maybe it was just in her head. She may have known her longer but Janna was much closer to Jackie, the two were almost inseparable. If anyone were to notice something off about her, it was Jan. I have to be overthinking it, Star decided. To her friends she added, "Yeah, yeah, that must be it." Though for some reason she couldn't quite let the feeling go and she vowed to pay extra close attention to her friend for the rest of the race, just in case.

Had she not made this promise, had her attention been elsewhere she might have noticed her phone buzz in her pocket, an unknown number appearing on the screen, causing the phone to vibrate. It continued to ring for a while, completely undetected, before going silent again, the screen turning black. After a few seconds, the screen lit up, a string of messages flashing to life on the small device, all from the same anonymous caller and all unnoticed by Star and her friends.

'Princess?'

'Hey you there?'

'Don't ignore me! This is important! I've got big news about our mutual friend. We need to meet up NOW!'

'Hello?'

'Hellloooo?!'

…

By the time Jackie and her new partner Talon made it through the mud swamps, she was sore, exhausted, filthy, and overheated. Her pure white hair was singed in several places thanks to some close encounters with the flaming mud, which Jackie had decided was one of the worst things to exist ever. Everything from her hair, to her clothes, and even down to her beloved skateboard were caked in mud and Jackie had never been more ready for a bath in her entire life. On top of that, her leg was killing her, throbbing painfully with every second that passed and it only got worse the longer she was on her board.

But despite these difficulties, Jackie was not giving up. No matter how much pain she was in, it would be worth it when she crossed that finish line. Thanks to the difficult third leg of the race, her and Talon had gained the lead and had even created a wide berth between them and the rest of the competition. A lot of that was thanks to Talon, who had turned out to be an invaluable teammate. Even though, at first, he had seemed cocky and overconfident, it was all completely backed up with quick wit, lightning fast reflexes, amazing eyesight, and most importantly an unflappable loyalty. Sure he was weird but who did Jackie know that wasn't.

And thanks to both her and Talon's hard work, there was only one more obstacle standing between them and victory. Unfortunately, it was easily the most dangerous leg of the race, the one that had claimed the most victims and had become a staple of the Dragoncycle 6000. It was arguably the reason the race was popular in the first place. The Devil's Mark. The largest, fastest and most death-defying jump in the Neverzone.

Jackie had been hearing stories about the imfamous jump since she was a child and the rumors only seemed to get more fantastical and ridiculous as time went on. And most of them were as impressive as the gorge itself. Things like the bottom of the gorge was covered in the bones of fallen riders or that it was haunted by all the poor souls who had perished there and other such claims had put it on the map. Jackie didn't believe most of it but that didn't mean she took the jump lightly. Her parents had told her how perilous it was, how even the smallest wrong move spelled death for you, especially on the much weaker skateboard, compared to others dragoncycles.

Still, Jackie didn't let that phase her, she was ready. She had to be.

"We're coming up on the jump, you ready for this, little lady?" Talon asked, more teasing than concerned.

Jackie gave him a confident thumbs up. "You know it!"

"Then let's do this!" Talon shouted, revving up his dragoncycle, who roared in response, racing up the hill adjacent to the jump at top speed. Jackie used the time she had to gather her wits. She breathed out slowly, letting all fears and doubts flow with her breath, then drawing fresh air into her lungs, steeling her nerves for what came next. She followed after her friend at her peak speed. Going uphill meant Jackie had to keep pushing herself forward with her one good leg and everytime her good leg lifted off the board, her hurt ankle screamed in agony, begging to be rested. Jackie ignored it. She just needed to make this jump and then she could rest it for as long as it needed.

Talon was screeching at the top of his lungs, pumping himself up for the jump and as he crested the hill, he looked back at his partner and winked. Then, with newfound speed he raced down the side of the hill, revving up his dragoncycle so it was at max performance, squeezing every ounce of speed and power out of his ride, before lifting off into the air.

Jackie was right behind him, topping the hill herself before leaning forward and crouching low to the ground. That coupled with her downhill momentum meant that Jackie was going faster than ever before. She had never felt more alive than in that moment, the wind whipping against her body, fluttering through her clothes and hair, drying the mud onto her skin. Every sensation was so real and vivid, the coldness of her skin, the pounding in her chest, the burning adrenaline coursing through her bloodstream, even the pushback from her board as the wheels clattered down the rocky hill. The agony of her ankle was but one sensation in a sea of thousands and Jackie knew this was right where she belonged, closing her eyes as she just enjoyed the moment.

Just as she reached the ramp, Jackie grabbed the end of her skateboard, feeling as the road ended and her wheels became airborne, spinning wildly against nothing but open sky. She travelled higher and higher, until she was above the rocky cliffside themselves. Down below Talon gaped up at her open-mouthed, his sunglasses slipping off his face and falling down into the gorge, not that he noticed. The sun peaked over the top of the cliffs, lighting up Jackie and filling her with new life and energy. She was like a cloud in the sky, drifting peacefully through the atmosphere, no worries or cares, just blissfully looking down at it all. Jackie and the sky were one, the beating of her heart commanding the wind itself. She could see for miles, could see the finish line up ahead waiting for her, could see the long stretch of challenges she had endured looming behind her, and all her problems felt so, so far away. She was better, she was stronger, and she was gonna win.

And then the momentum tipped and Jackie was plummeting.

The adrenaline in her veins turned to panic for a moment and she had to internally snap herself back into control, forcing herself to pay attention as she approached the other side of the cliff. Talon had already landed on the other end and had been kind enough to stop and wait for her to catch up, watching with a bright smile on his beak. That gave Jackie some courage and she tried to focus on bridging the gap, even with her forward momentum it was gonna be close. She leaned her body forward until she was starting to go into an aerial roll.

She didn't fit the momentum, doing a full flip through the air, making sure her body was level so she wouldn't land awkwardly on the other side. The last thing she needed was to cause more pain in her ankle, it was already almost unbearable and Jackie feared the landing might cause the bone to finally snap.

Still it looked like she was gonna make it, just barely, but with luck she would land safely on the other side. Jackie smiled, already bracing herself for the landing when she heard Talon call out to her, sending her senses on high alert. "Jackie, look out!" he screamed in warning, pointing to something to her side.

The skater girl looked to her left and saw a giant red arm shoot out of the rock wall, clenched into a tight fist as it headed straight for her. Jackie only had seconds to react and her instincts cried out for her to move. Forgetting all about the race, she released her grip on the board and flung herself forward, springing off the skateboard. The oversized fist barely missed her but she felt the whoosh of air as if sped by, crashing into the opposite wall, leaving a giant crater in its side.

But Jackie had bigger thing on her mind, the cliffside was just below her, it was gonna be close but she might make it. She reached outwards, hoping to grab onto the edge and stop her descent, and she stretched her fingers as far as they could go, reaching with all her might…

Until a flash of pain shot through her ankle and Jackie's body seized up for just a second, her hand clenching into a pained fist. She had to bite her lip to keep from crying out but the split second reaction caused her to miss her window, falling right past the ledge with no time to recover. In a panic, Jackie twisted her body, trying to reach back up for it but it was too late, she missed it by a single inch, her fingers flailing at nothing.

And then she continued her plummet straight down, falling as hard and fast as a rock. Jackie screamed in terror, still reaching up for the ledge that was getting further and further away. She had lost all momentum, her only direction to go in now was down. She could see her skateboard spinning through the air a few feet above her, not that it would do her any good. She couldn't stop this. She couldn't stop her own death.

Fear clenched Jackie's throat, every sense coming alive all at once, she could feel the cold wind against her skin, now menacing and unforgiving compared to the free feeling it had given her before. She could barely feel her ankle in the cascade of frightened adrenaline pulsing through her nervous system. Her terror was real and raw and unlike anything she had ever experienced in her fifteen years of life. Was this what they had felt? Was this the last thing they thought before they…

Jackie choked on a sob, silently begging for help. It couldn't end like this. She couldn't end up like them. She couldn't. Her seashell necklace was freed from her shirt, pulling upwards as if trying to take flight, a childish thought making Jackie wonder if it was her parents trying to save her from beyond the grave. But they were too late.

It was already too late.

Jackie clenched her eyes shut, hoping it would be painless.

Only to open them again as she heard the roar of a dragoncycle overhead, both machine and beast growling in time. She spotted Talon as he drove off the edge of the cliff, his dragoncycle's wings opening wide. It flapped furiously towards her, puffs of steam escaping from its nostrils with every breath, its eyes trained on her and her alone.

Talon reached out for the skater girl, screaming, "Jackie! Jackie, grab my hand!"

Jackie obeyed immediately, stretching upwards for him, trying to grasp her last hope for survival. His feathered hand clasped around hers, bringing her descent to a sudden halt. For a few seconds Jackie just hung there, her only lifeline being Talon's strong grip which she was infinitely grateful for. "Thanks," she said through panted breath and Talon nodded in response. "No problem, little lady. Just returning the favor."

"Uhhh head's up," he added, gesturing over to Jackie's skateboard still freefalling in the air. Kicking her legs back, she swung herself forward, kicking the board with her good foot, propelling it in Talon's direction, his dragoncycle snatching it up into its strong jaws. The two racers shared a satisfied grin, before he pulled her up so she could climb onto the dragoncycle.

Once she was safely onboard, Talon clicked his tongue and his dragon let out a low growl, flapping its wings as they rose out of the dark ravine. Jackie risked a quick glance down, wanting to see just how close she had been to being a splat at at the bottom and was surprised to see a whole collection of skeletons lurking down there, each one a different species, fallen riders just like her. The skater girl shuddered, though her fear didn't break through her calm exterior, saying nonchalantly, "Huh, so guess the rumors were actually true."

"Oh no, those are just props," Talon replied, casting a quick glance down himself. "They put them down there for the tourists."

"Really? They look pretty convincing," Jackie asked skeptically.

"Talon is positive… mostly."

Jackie opened her mouth to retort but Talon's dragoncycle sped up and she had to focus her attention on staying on the beast, quickly forgetting about the possible skeleton's lurking at the bottom of the ravine. Once they landed, Talon helped Jackie off, the girl struggling to hold in her scream as her ankle touched bare ground once again. "So what happens now?" she asked, hoping talking would distract herself from the pain in her ankle.

Talon grabbed the skateboard from his dragoncycle's mouth, handing it to his friend before saying in slight panic, "The finish line is just ahead. If you hurry you can finish this thing before the other racers catch up."

"But what about you?" Jackie asked, until realization hit her and she gasped. "Talon! Your dragoncycle! You flew! Does that mean-"

"Talon Ravenclaw is no longer in the race," he confirmed, nodding his head once.

"I'm so sorry, dude," Jackie apologized, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I didn't mean to get you disqualified."

Talon shrugged, surprisingly calm about not being able to finish the biggest race in the multiverse. "To be honest, Talon was already planning on throwing the race to let you win. Talon's been in this competition more times than he can count but this is your big moment."

"Wow, I-I don't know what to say," Jackie said, taken aback by the show of kindness from her new friend.

"Just make sure you win this one, for me and for your parents," Talon said, holding out his fist.

Jackie nodded, giving him a strong, confident smile as she returned the offered fistbump. "Thanks, dude. I won't let you down."

Just then, shouting could be heard from the other side of the cliff and the two turned to see a group of racers, speeding towards the long jump.

"Go!" Talon screamed and Jackie nodded, stepping onto her skateboard and headed towards the finish line. She didn't look back, didn't need to see Talon waving at her to know that his support was there, she just focused on finally finishing this race. A path of dirt and gravel was laid out before her and she followed it with joyful anticipation.

Up ahead she spotted it.

The finish line.

It beckoned her closer, like a shining beacon guiding her towards her destiny. At last, the moment had finally come. After so much trial and error, so many close calls and near-deaths, her journey was coming to an end. Or more accurately, her life was about to seriously begin. She would no longer be an aspiring teenager trying to live up to her parents ambitions, she would be able to honor their memory by carrying on in their place.

With every passing second, the finish line grew closer and closer, she could see at least a dozen seeing-eye cams trained on her, as well as the same goblin that started the race and several other creatures gathered around him, waiting to congratulate her on her victory. Jackie felt joy pierce her chest and she no longer felt tethered to the ground. Instead it was like she was floating on air, uplifted by the powerful feeling building up inside her. It was more than just adrenaline or happiness giving her that feeling, it was so much stronger than that, it was pure ecstasy, the kind of feeling that made life worthwhile. She felt unstoppable, like nothing in the world could ever hold her down again. She wondered if this is what her parents felt when they were in her place, if that is what had driven them to such great heights. It wasn't just the joy or love of the sport, but the pure elation from rising above the challenges and shattering the barriers that divided them from what they couldn't do and what they could.

Thanks to this race, Jackie finally understood what this new side of herself was, it was pride in herself, not just confidence but love for the person she was about to become, the heart of the true skater living deep inside her. It finally felt like she was the person she always wanted to be.

And that made what happened next all the more tragic.

It all happened so fast, she heard a familiar bird cry out from above, saw the shadow appear in the path in front of her, and she knew she didn't have time to move out of the way. The griffon landed heavily onto the path, blocking Jackie off from the finish line. In that instant Jackie knew it was the same griffon from before, its feathers still nearly gone from its body and its eyes full of rage and revenge.

The girl swerved to try and avoid the beast's wrath as it tried to peck at her but the moment she was off-road her skateboard hit a large rock, sending shockwaves through her whole body. If she had had the chance to brace herself it might have been a different outcome but the force proved too much for her hurt leg and Jackie felt the bone finally snap. The pain was raw and agonizing so much so that it took her breath away, though not enough that it kept the scream from escaping.

Her senses blurred and her vision distorted making it impossible to recover from the collision, her skateboard flipped and her body was thrown forward. Jackie was taken aback when the weightless feeling fell over her once more, making her head spin. Her mind was clouded by pain, sending waves of agony through her bloodstream.

She had no time to brace for impact as her body hit the ground, sending new jolts of pain through her but Jackie barely registered it, she was already starting to blackout.

From the stands, the others had watched the whole thing, they had been expecting some kind of miraculous recovery from the girl, for her to pull off one last trick and win the gold. Instead they all watched, stunned, as Jackie's body made contact with the ground, all of them out of their seats before a single gasp emerged from the crowd. Panic surged through them all but none more so than the skater's closest friends, Star, Marco, and Janna, who all simultaneously screamed at the top of their lungs, "JACKIE!"

With each passing second, Jackie felt her mind drifting, her clouded mind seeking relief from the pure agony her body was in. But somewhere in her anguish, she thought of her parents. A glimpse of a memory came to her, beckoning her further into unconsciousness. She saw their bodies falling lifelessly towards the ground, blurry dots through her tear-filled vision. Even in her foggy state of mind, the image hurt but not as much as when she heard them speak to her. Jackie had almost forgotten what their voices sounded like, but in that moment it was like all those years apart had never happened, as if she was standing next to them once more.

"Hey don't cry, babygirl, look it's barely a scratch, a band-aid will take care of that in a jiffy… see? All better."

"So are you ready to get back on, show mommy and daddy your new trick."

"Awww don't be afraid, Jackie. I know you're scared but you can't let that keep you from what you love. If your mom and I quit every time we fell down we wouldn't be doing this for a living."

"Jackie, look at me. I need you to understand something, okay? It's normal to fall down but you have to get back on and keep riding. You can't let the fear of falling keep you away from what you love."

"So are you ready to try again? ….That's our brave girl!"

"Don't worry, sweetie. Daddy and I are right here. We won't let you fall again, okay? Nothing bad is gonna happen to you on our watch."

Voices were all around her now, she couldn't quite place them but they sounded scared. They were screaming, trying to call out to her but she couldn't respond. Nothing in her body was working, everything was empty and numb. She didn't know why but she felt guilty for not comforting them.

Just before everything went completely black, Jackie managed to mutter one last thing into the nothingness all around her, hoping it somehow reached them through the fog.

"Mom. Dad. I'm sorry."

….. Sooooooooooo, yeah. Don't know if you guys are ready for the next one but I guess we'll find out, huh? And don't worry Jackie's not dead, I would never kill her, ever! She's one of my fav's for a reason. Character development doesn't come for free, though.

So a lot of you have already guessed it and yeah her parents died in a freak skating accident. They were training for the Dragoncycle 6000, ironically, and well things went wrong. I'm saying this now because I'm not sure how much detail I'm going into about what happened to them. But Jackie was there and it did affect her and I'm planning on going into that shortly. I just wanted to clarify here since it seems the right time.

Sorry to leave you all here but I gotta get to work on the next one. See you guys next time! Have an awesome New Year!

Gamelover41592- Awwwww thank you! Yeah, I tried to make them deeper characters with room to grow and develop. It's more interesting that way!

LockAndKey989- Nope but chances are she will soon :/

NightAroma- Yeah, yay! Sadly yes, she did. Ummm I think it was just Star and Penelope, though Star doesn't know they both went but Penelope does. It's one of the reasons she joined the commission so quickly, she felt a kinship with her. Good question. I actually had this thought myself, my best reason is that Pony's dad either didn't care about his daughter's behavior or was oblivious to it. He could be a big pushover in my universe, who knows?

Awww thank you! I really wanted to sell their relationship so I went full fluff XD They really were an important turning point in the canon in my opinion so I wanted to do it justice here. It was nice to see such a positive Mewni-Monster relationship. Plus I'm just a sucker for their ship! Yeah I figured they'd need time to let their feelings grow before all eyes were on them. It'll be a bit before that happens.

Yeah she can't stay dormant forever, unfortunately. She finally ran out of hair products XD Oh we're getting close to it, don't worry. I'll try and make sure it lives up to the hype haha. Hopefully the gang will be ready by then. Star is still in the dark about Heinous in general.

Yeah between updates I took some time to try and flesh out Mina and her role in the story and I think I have a solid backstory that also fills in some blanks in the timeline. Planning on a chapter with her in season 3 and that will probably be her only appearance, sorry. I have bigger villains to get to and I think she works best as a minor inconvenience than a full-blown antagonist. Thanks so much for the ideas though they really did help me flesh her out into something workable and I adore the way the Trait works for the Solarian Warriors! It would actually make sense why Eclipsa's staff does the same thing, she learned it from her mom, only instead of channeling magic into people she found a way to do it with an object.

Thank you so much for sharing haha! I am totally adapting those and they've given me so much to think about!

Monkey lover 911- Thanks :D Me too! They really are perfect for each other in here and in canon! This chapter is all about best girl, Jackie, because it was long overdo! Hope you've been staying safe too and that you had a Merry Christmas! Thanks I will, friend!

Starco4everr- Aaaaa thanks so much!

Bedrock Armor- Yeah you were! Oh haha why do I never think to do those things myself! That is so much simpler! But oh well, I'm glad you were able to find such perfect names for her!

That's okay, it sounds like you got closer than ever, so that's a step in the right direction. When it's time, I'm sure you'll be able to push past it and finish your story. Oh yeah I get that! Got a bunch of new games and I'm struggling not to just play those instead of writing.

Sugar- Aaaaa yes! I'm so glad to hear it! Yeah they are adorable together! And Slime really stepped up for this one. Mmhmm I wanted Ponyhead to actually grow, she is one of the only characters in the show without an arc and that's pretty sad since she really needed it. She could have become a better person but nooooo. Haha well yeah I tend to start most of the ships with Starco and then change them based on the characters I'm working with. So Slime and Penelope being shy and self-conscious was a big part of their interactions. Thank you! I was a little unsure about her humor since she's kinda a big jerk XD Ooooooh I'll keep that in mind! I would love for her and Pony to have a rivalry, Pony needs someone even worse than her to compete with haha. Hmmm it'd be interesting. Not sure if I would put it in or not but you're free to think that.

Oh yeah hahahaha that would be hilarious. Marco would be the only one who thinks it's sweet haha! Sadly, I don't think they are going to get any time to interact as cool as an idea as that is. I just don't know how to fit it into the story I want to tell.

Well that's good to know! I think a part of me has moved on from Star or at least the show but this story is a huge part of my life so I don't think I want to stop until it's done. I'm dedicated to seeing this through. Also that's so sweet I'm flattered that I'm your main Star story! Honestly I've been jumping to different fandoms in the last several months and have even had some ideas for an Undertale fanfic that I kinda want to tell but that won't be for a while. Awww sounds like a really cute show! I've never heard of it before but it sounds very enjoyable! And I love that there are series out there with a more positive relationship. Ladybug is something that I've grown to really dislike because I feel like they keep hinting a ship that will never actually happen and they are using that to keep people interested and it really makes my blood boil. A lot of people enjoy it though so it's okay if you enjoy it, I just think it's worse than Star with the drama.

I mean yeah! 3 and 4 never felt unrealistic to me. It was just two kids falling in love and that's usually support innocent like the show did. I know a lot of people think it's more realistic that way but really that's not always the case. I think drama just sells and they know that people will watch if things are "complicated". It's why I respect a show that isn't afraid to do things differently and just let the couple happen without petty drama.

If you are on the lookout for that I do have an anime to suggest it's called Chinnibiyo. It has a very cute couple that is tender and sweet and doesn't have all the love triangle stuff thank goodness! The first season is about them getting together and the second season is them getting used to being a couple. There is also a movie that I haven't found and it makes me really sad because it finishes the story but I highly suggest it!

SideVermin93- Yayyyyyy! I love to hear it! And yeah take your time, I know these are long XD I tend to take my time reading fics too.

DC the cat- Haha, yay! It's always great to hear from you! Yeah I understand, life tends to do that. Oh, was it? I didn't even know XD but I'm glad it was! Thank you!

Same! It takes a lot to overcome that and I also have some insecurities so I related a lot to these two. It's also just really fun to see characters overcome shyness or insecurity and grow into better people because of it. Yeah! I really thought it fit her character and yeah Angiebrew is something like that though probably with flowers that only exist on Mewni hehe. Is there a tea that you like best or drink the most?

Yes, yes you should. Thanks, I really enjoyed that little setup for the world. I'll be honest the idea came from the Matrix series but I twisted it on it's head. Somehow Walle never even crossed my mind haha. I thought that was much more interesting than just robots are bad and humans are racists to robots. Yeah, I thought that was the easiest way to explain it. Oh shoot did I put decade? Dangit it was only supposed to be like 5 years ago so half a decade actually. That's what I get for not writing out a timeline of events for myself haha.

Oh yeah, you are so right! Reading that I totally get where you are coming from. I really didn't do them justice at all! I know there are plenty of journalists out there that aren't that way and I was more showing paparazzi. Like Stormy could have been the negative representation while the rest were the good reporters who were quick to leave when Star said it was a private matter. Noted. I will keep that in mind for next time. I was going a little too cartoony with that interpretation honestly. Also haha, yeah, I hear he is a real super guy!

I'm really hoping you will like it! Yeah she's got quite an interesting background but then they all do haha. It was kinda my intention that each of the four mains were all raised in a different culture and the whole idea of them being friends is like uniting all the different cultures together. Also yes she is from Echo Creek and I do believe it is in California. On top of your evidence there is that one scene where Rasticore is trying to find Star's location in Gift of the Card I think and it shows it's California, which does explain Jackie's way of talking. I actually go into Jackie's backstory in the author's note and hint quite a bit in this one. I will have more detail in a flashback chapter I'm planning which will be very, very soon.

Oh yeah that's a good point! I didn't even think of that! They wouldn't be programmed to do harm, hmmmm? Yeah I've heard of the three laws but it's nice to get a good refresher. I mean even saying the laws are loose it is a bit of a stretch to say that she just found a loophole around it so that it's cool with killing or helping her do all the bad things she did while in her school. It's a good question for sure and it's definitely going to need some food for thought. It's possible she had them 'repurposed' to do her bidding. Or added something to their core that made them obedient to her? Like the heart that her main minion had in the main series but she added that in herself. Or possibly her Trait had something to do with it? Her whole thing is that she can manipulate people into doing her bidding, not sure if it would work on a machine but who knows? Anyways, I would love to hear your thoughts. I don't know a lot about technology so I'm not sure if either of these are plausible.

Tom: ….yeah I'm gonna pretend I got all that.

Sorry Tom doesn't speak nerd like us XD I've only ever seen the first three Lord of the Rings movies and even then only once so a lot of stuff happening in Middle Earth is over my head. Oh that's so good to hear! It's such a great game! Though I have been perpetually stuck on the same stupid boss fight for a while and have been jumping around to different games in the meantime. I would at least suggest a let's play or two to get a feel for the world if the gameplay is too hard since it can be challenging but very rewarding to get right. Oh yeah that was a creepy moment for real! Good thing Vee is actually a sweetheart that we all love! Not sure if you watch Amphibia or not but there is some nightmare fuel in there too. Not surprised, real life can be the scariest stuff of all! Also dannnggg that is freaky! So vampires are real apparently or at least people who act like vampires, wow, oh wow, wow! Huh, two stories involving blood, strange coincidence. But yeah that would be really scary to find out something like that! Enough to keep you up at night. People are strange and can do really strange things.

Oh yeah that is much more solid than what I was saying! Ah, chakras, the go to solution for your fantasy hijinks. I mean I know it is a real thing but a lot of times anime will use it as an excuse for superpowers like in Dragonball for example. Still, the science is there and I think that is an absolutely amazing explanation for magic in Mewni! Wow, you really got the details down! I'm so glad to have someone smarter than me helping me out with the lore haha otherwise I would be sunk XD

Also I hope you and your family had a Merry Christmas and that you have a great New Year too! Talk to you next time, dude!