"Don't tell me you actually thought I was your friend? You? Youre nothing to me."

"Please! Don't do this! I can fix it! I'm so sorry!"

"You couldn't save me even if you wanted to. Youre just a pathetic princess who will never save anyone."

"Hes wrong. You both will do the unthinkable the only way you know how: Together.

BOOM!

Star sat upright in bed after an early morning storm had woken her up. Thunder boomed outside her window as she glanced around to take in her surroundings. The room she had awoken in was simple and robust. Wooden floors and walls were lined with old and worn furniture as well as a fine layer of dust and tacky wallpaper. A dresser at least 50 years old sat across the room and a vanity that appeared to be even older was next to it.

She eyed the old and decrepit space, attempting to wrap her tired mind around where she was. She breathed deeply and closed her eyes, remembering that this wasn't the tent she had been sleeping in for weeks or a cottage from last month. Star sighed when she remembered her and Marco had rented a room at an inn just outside Braxja, a small settlement west of The plains of plenty.

The small town had hired the two for light mercenary work killing goblins and other pests that had been bothering the townsfolk. The pay wasn't as good as they would usually like but it would have to do. They enjoyed helping out with the little jobs every once in a while when they weren't off saving cities from pesky dragons or bothersome outlaws. Though it had been a few months since they really put boots to the ground and bailed some settlement out of something problematic, rather than life-threatening.

As Star mulled over this, she heard movement in the room. Marco rolled over in his bag on the ground and groaned, clearly not ready for another day filled with chasing small nuisances away from peoples homes. She looked down at him and smiled, clearly enjoying his messy hair and tired eyes. "You know you could have slept up here if you wanted. I doubt the floor here is very good for your back." She said softly, eying him daringly.

"Yeah well, you've been sleeping in a tent long enough. A princess shouldn't have to sleep on the floor." He kept his eyes glued shut and laid on his back, taking a moment to come to terms with having to actually be awake. Star laughed and laid on her stomach, eying him longer than she should. In the five years that they had been doing contract work, he had really toned up well. "Who said id be sleeping on the floor?" , she purred, beaming a smile at him before getting out of bed to prepare for the day.

Marcos' cheeks burned as his eyes shot open, staring at only the ceiling while he processed what she said. "Don't even think about it, princess. We're still kids in our dimension. None of that sass, please," he grumbled as he rose slowly out of his bag. He rubbed the scruff on his chin and walked to the vanity, splashing some water from a bucket on his face. He somewhat missed indoor plumbing but he was used to living without it by now. He heard her call out from the closet. "That's not what you said a few months ago when I turned 19, lover boy."

He again felt his face turn bright red as he fumbled for words to use as a defense. "I had just finished my fifth horn of ale. I was saying a lot of things I shouldn't have said." He heard her scoff from the closet before throwing another jab at him. "Not my fault you can't hold your drink, Diaz. Next time you start 'saying things you don't mean', I might just take you up on it." He was sure his cheeks were about to fall off at any second.

Star walked out of the closet dressed in a leather top, armored with steel to protect her chest and stomach as well as two steel shoulder pads topped with fur at the tips. She had leather bracers on either forearm with brass plates over her wrists and leather gloves to match. Her long blonde hair had been cut shorter and now rested comfortably draped over her shoulder in an intricate braid. The outfit was completed with baggy black pants and leather boots capped with steel shinguards, and a blue sash around her waist with leather stips acting as a makeshift overskirt. Her wand was strapped casually at her waist as well as a small sheath for her dagger.

She waited for a few minutes as Marco began dressing, packing their things and casting a shrinking spell on them. Their belongings shrunk to the size of a pea, which fit easily in a small leather pouch at her waist that was filled with many of the duos other belongings.

Marco stepped out of the closed dressed in his usual work clothes. They largely resembled Stars, however, his had spikes on the shoulder braces, and a leather cloth hanging from his belt crested with the emblem of scissors capped with a star. And he always saved the most important piece for last: A very worn red hoodie used as a cape. Star smiled at him, clearly pleased with herself for getting matching sets of armor, as she strolled to the door.

"You ready for another day of overpowered pest control?" she giggled. Marco couldn't help but smile back at her as he followed closely behind. He was actually thrilled to be doing things like this with Star. He loved being free and enjoying the adrenaline of battle with her. "Ready as I could ever be, Stardust. Let's show those little gremlins who's boss."

She opened the door and stopped, wide-eyed, as there was an almost equally surprised older man in a full suit of armor at their door. He had a light grey beard and his armor was nicked and beaten from years of battle. The man shifted nervously and looked at the two with curiosity. "You both wouldn't happen to be Marco Diaz and Star Butterfly, would you?"

Star looked the man up and down, noticing his broadsword at his waist and several armed guards behind him. Marco stepped forward and gripped the scissors on his belt. "That depends on who's asking. We're not in trouble for anything are we?" The man let the air out of his lungs and seemed to relax a bit before he spoke, gesturing to his guards to ease up. "Youre not in any kind of trouble. You're actually needed for an important task. One that the esteemed army of Vintal is unable to complete on its own."

It wasn't unnatural for the Vintal army to recruit contracted help for odd jobs too big to handle. Star and Marco had appeared out of the blue in this underdeveloped dimension over five years ago and immediately began to take out difficult warlords and supernatural forces, earning them quite the respectful eye from mercenaries and soldiers alike. But for the army to show up here, in Braxja of all places, a seedy little town near the countries limits. That was more unnatural.

"What's so difficult the that the army can't handle? And why bother recruiting our help instead of someone elses?" Marco crossed his arms, which served to make himself seem beefier in front of the general. "There's some type of creature holed up in the mountains across the plains. Its made military movements difficult and any scouts we send in, don't come back. Hell, we sent in a few battalions of troops and nothing came back."

Marco uncrossed his arms and looked at Star, who surprisingly shared the same expression of, well, surprise. He looked back at the man and heaved a sigh. "IF we decide to help you, we're going to need more information on what's being asked of us. And we're going to need a sizable payment to compensate for a job we'd have to abandon here." The general, who then introduced himself as General Oliver Titus Grenor, nodded and agreed to Marcos terms. And with that, the two asked for a moment alone.

Star stepped closer to Marco so they wouldn't be overheard before whispering " What do you think? This sounds big. And as much as I enjoy danger, It sometimes gets people killed." Marco placed his hands on his hips and looked at her. He didn't like the idea of accepting a contract when he didn't know much about it. But he knew the military was all about confidentiality in its missions. "I think we can do it. But I doubt it's going to be as easy as taking out some goblins that steal trash."

She smiled and spoke softly, keeping her eyes locked to his. "That's why we're getting paid more for this. Cmon. Let's go see what we're up against." With that, they left there extremely temporary room and walked outside to discuss the matters with General Grenor.

When they came here years ago, it was to de-stress from the worries of home. Sudden attacks by monsters and a magic-wielding warrior, school life, and stressful parents had done a number on them. Star really needed the open world to feel free from responsibility, and Marco felt refreshed in a world where he didn't have to worry about the next thing that would happen. It was a good break from all that was stressing them.

Star and Marco rode their respective horses to a nearby military camp that served as a temporary base of operations. They followed Grenor through the maze of tents and approached central command. A larger tent flanked by several armed guards. He had agreed to discuss terms further from here, and after the two were briefed, the full force of the army would move out to a large mountain range east of them.

Star and Marco dismounted and began approaching the tent Grenor had walked into when one of the guards began leering at Stars more grown body. "Hey there beautiful! You looking for the barracks? If you're lost then I can show you to mine," he called out. Star turned to him in disbelief and was about ready to punch him out of the camp when Marco stepped forward casually. "Actually, she was looking for the last guy that said something like to her. Why don't I show you where they buried him?"

The guard turned pale as the two approached the tent and began apologizing profusely when Grenor stepped out of the tent and slapped the back of his head. "Get your sorry ass to the barracks yourself. I expect you to spend the next 18 hours cleaning it, THEN MOVING OUT TO SLEEP WITH THE HORSES IN THE BARN!!" He kicked the guard away and motioned for the two to enter. Apologizing for the rude behavior.

Once the three sat down at the map table with a few other commanders, General Grenor began to brief them on their mission. "We don't know what's in those mountains but we do know that its got powerful magic, and its immense in size. It also has a small army engaging travelers through the mountains that needs to be dealt with. But we will handle that. We need the two of you to lead a makeshift invasion against this small foreign power and help us eliminate it".

Marco eyed the map and thought for a moment. "We're going to need a lot of back-up in case things get dicey, some long-range explosives to draw them out, and necessary compensation for equipment and armor." Grenor nodded and agreed. "Done. Miss Butterfly do you agree?" She looked up and shrugged. "Hes the genius organizer. I go where he goes and make him look good. But yes. I'm so good with this." He gestured to Marco then Star.

"Given your master swordsman ability, and your adept use of magic, we believe you both would be an immense help in destroying this threat. We will pay you 30,000 Vins, and an extra 200 to compensate for your lost job in Braxja. Is that acceptable?" Star and Marco traded glances and did their best to hide their excitement. Star leaned forward and eyed the Map. "When do we leave?"

Grenor nodded and motioned for his commanders to begin preparations. "We will leave at dawn tomorrow with eight hundred troops and head straight for the enemy stronghold. We've prepared a tent for you both to use for the evening as well as food." The two mercs tried to hide their disappointment with having to sleep in a tent again and trudged along as they were escorted to the mess hall.

After a hearty meal and shared drinks with the soldiers, the two were then shown to their quarters. They thanked their escort and entered their sizable tent to begin winding down for the day, but stopped when they saw the room. The rest of the tent was furnished well enough to put even the inn to shame, but there was only one bed. Marco was about to call a soldier over to bring another bed when Star stopped him. "It's fine, Diaz. We can share the bed. I mean c'mon. It's obviously big enough, and do you really want to have a soldier drag one out here for us to use for only one night?"

Marco furrowed his brow and thought for a moment. He'd be lying if he said he didn't like the idea to a degree, but he was also nervous about sleeping in the same bed as Star. It had been over five years and he had never tried to impose himself in such a way. They may have spent years with only each other but their relationship with one another was still something they rarely brought up. They were exceedingly close but neither of them had brought up the courage to discuss their feelings for each other in that time. A few kisses here and there and plenty of hugs left plenty open for debate, despite their closeness.

"Fine." He muttered, to Stars surprise. "There's a good lad." She grinned wildly and began preparing for bed as he started unpacking their now properly sized belongings. He carefully set his armor and weapons aside before he washed his face and organizing his things. Star walked out from behind a room divider dressed in her usual nightgown and flopped onto the bed. She spread out and enjoyed the marvelous fur blankets that adorned it and closed her eyes with a smile.

Marco stood next to the bed looking like hed seen a ghost. He gulped nervously and fidgeted with his hoodie before placing it on the table next to the bed. "Star maybe we should just get another bed. Honestly, I'm really okay with sleeping on the floor." Star looked at him and frowned. "Marco. Just get in the damn bed. We're not gonna do the hanky-panky or anything, its fine. I trust you enough to share a bed with you and I know you really want to enjoy a bed tonight. Plus, its cold out."

He sighed softly while blushing just a bit at her implications but let his shoulder un-tense. "Okay. But if you change your mind then that's completely alright. I don't want to make you uncomfortable." She sighed back at him and rolled her eyes before sitting upright. "The only thing making me uncomfortable is how long it's taking you to join me."

He eased himself onto the bed and relished in the soft fur blankets as well for a moment. He made himself comfortable and closed his eyes to rest but was quickly shaken from that sentiment by a pair of cold hands pulling him closer. "Hey! You said there wasn't any-" "I said no Hankey-Pankey. I said nothing about sharing body heat for, strategic purposes. Now be quiet so I can sleep. Gosh, Marco. Keeping me awake. who does that?"

He sighed, defeated as Star pulled him closer and kissed his cheek. She blushed profusely and rested her head on his shoulder before feeling a large arm wrap around her. She smiled to herself and whispered softly. "Goodnight 'Mr. Brawny'." "Goodnight 'Princess'."

The two drifted to sleep soundly as the stars in the sky shone brightly alongside the icy blue moon that glowed above the camp, bathing everything in its sapphire blue light.

_

AUTHORS NOTE

Hey all, sorry for the late update and shorter chapters recently. My job has us working 12 hour shifts this week so I dont have aoot of time to write. That being said Ive commissioned an artist by the name of AmythystOcean to draw the introductory scene for Vartek in the bounce lounge, so keep an eye out for when its released! Im open to questions and as always, please leave a review and follow the story for future updates. Enjoy your week and thanks for reading! BUH BYE!

~Mr. Ronald Reagan