"Damn it!"

Astro scowled as he gripped the controller tightly in his hands. Micah sat beside him smirking in amusement. "Don't crush my controller. You break it you buy it," he taunted.

The green haired prince set the control down and grit his teeth. Micah had been him in this game twenty-seven times in a row. How the hell was that even possible? He knew he was new to these things, but he'd expected to win at least one. "Stupid Earth game…"

Micah chuckled. "Relax man. I've been playing games like this since before I could walk. You just found out what a handheld was yesterday. You got to give it time, you'll get the hang of it… I mean, you'll never be good enough to beat me, but you'll get the hang of it."

"I will beat you in this blasted game Micah! I swear on my honor as a knight of Mewni!"

"It's good to have goals… they might be unachievable and unrealistic, but still goals."

Astro kept on sulking while Micah smirked. Micah's phone suddenly went off and he glanced down at it. "Huh, time to head to base," he said standing up.

"Something important going on today?' Astro asked.

Micah nodded. "Yeah, Tech Department has been working on a training ring for us. We already had an open space we bought for our training facility, but we needed a place that wouldn't get totally wrecked by our heavy hitters like Cayenne."

Astro raised an eyebrow. "She's one of your heavy hitters?"

"I'd say she's our heaviest hitter actually. There's a reason she's the head of the combat department," Micah said as they headed for the door. They began making their way down the street, and Sear peaked his head over the fence from next door.

The dragon flew over towards them and Astro reached out and rubbed his head. "If she's that strong, why haven't the Youngblood been dealt with?" he asked, playing with his pet as they continued to walk.

"It's not that simple. They stay in hiding, lay low, and use their resources. And they have a lot of them. We were lucky they were laying low while we were forming together. If we have been on their radar they could have totally wiped us out."

Astro hummed. "It was foolish of them not to. It's better to stomp out a small threat before it grows too big," he said. Micah looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "That's not how I meant it. I'm just saying from they're point of view I don't see any reason they should have let you get this far if they could have wiped you out."

"That's a good point," Micah said as Sear began sniffing around him. He reached out and patted the dragon on the head. "Maybe they were testing us or something."

Before they could go any further about the subject, they heard a loud crashing noise, followed by the ground shaking. "Shit…" Micah said, narrowing his eyes. "That sounds like trouble. Let's go check out," he said before zipping off.

Astro jumped onto Sear. "Let's go boy." The dragon roared before speeding off after Micah. The teens sped towards the source of the noise, and began to slow down as they went by a bunch of screaming people. "What in the world is going-"

"Shit!" Micah yelled looking up. Astro followed his gaze and then grew wide eyed as he saw a large building beginning to tip over. "Shit! Shit! Shit! This is bad!"

He began flying up and tried to push the building upwards. He might not have been able to stop it, but he could slow down and give some of the people inside some time to escape. "Micah, stop!" Astro yelled as he grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Let go, I don't have time for-"

"Chrono Frost Over!"

Astro's eyes glowed and suddenly everything began slowing down. Micah watched in shock as the building slowly stopped right in midair. Everything around them seemed like it had stopped dead in its tracks. The people, the building, even the birds had stopped in midair.

"You… Did you stop time?" Micah asked, looking towards Astro.

The prince was sweating, looking strained. "I didn't stop it. I just slowed it down to a crawl. Which is very difficult by the way. Hurry up and get everyone out of the way. I can't move very well when I'm doing this, and the longer I hold this the more strain there is on my body…"

Micah slowly nodded, weirded out by what was happening, but knowing he needed to act quickly. He sped inside as quickly as he could into the building and began grabbing the people from inside first. Once he could everyone outside, he started moving around the people outside, clearing them from the area.

As fast as he was moving, it still took some time since there were just so many people. Sear helped him out a bit, moving some of the people out of the way for him. After using his x-ray vision to make sure he hadn't missed anyone, he turned back to Astro. "Alright, everyone is good. Now we just have to handle the building."

"I'll take care of it," Astro said before lowering his hands. Time sped back up and the building continued to fall. Astro raised his hands again and took aim. "Hell Blizzard!"

A tornado of wind and ice flew from his hands and struck the building. The ice quickly spread across the building, and then shattered it apart into tiny chunks of ice. The ice rained down around them as Astro fell down to his knees, struggling to catch his breath.

"Dude, you okay?" Micah asked, kneeling down next to him.

Astro waved him off. "I-I'm fine. I just need a bit of time to recover." Astro was a powerful magic user, but that first spell was one that heavily drained him. Messing with time was always something that came at a cost. There was a reason he couldn't just use it all the time.

"C'mon, let's get you some-"

A figure suddenly rushed right as Astro and kicked him right in his side. He gasped as he had the air knocked out of him and went flying back. Micah looked utterly shocked at the suddenly attacked. He turned his head and saw the figure before them.

It looked like some kind of… walking cheetah. It was on two legs, had yellow fur and black spots, and even a tail. But it was wearing clothes. A pair of shorts and a black t-shirt. It hopped from foot to foot as it looked down at Astro with a smirk. "Not bad! Not bad at all! I heard you were good at magic, but I didn't think you'd be able to pull something like that off!"

Micah balled his fist up. "Who the hell are you?!"

The big cat smirked before turning towards him. "You mean little old me? The name is Paw, the fastest thing on two feet. Nice to meet you!"

"The feeling is NOT mutual," Micah said before shooting a laser blast from his eyes.

Paw moved out of the way and zipped towards him, throwing a lightning fast punch. Micah barely had time to react, just barely managing to avoid his fist colliding with his face. He jumped back, only to be kicked from behind by Paw.

Micah looked at him stunned. How in the hell could he move that fast? "Man, you really are fast! I thought it might have been a fluke, but this'll be fun!" Paw said, rushing towards him.

Before he could attack again, a wall of ice came between them. Micah looked over and saw Astro pushing himself back up to his feet. Sear was helping him steady himself. "God damn it…" Astro muttered. This was not how his day was supposed to go.

"You're still awake?!" Micah said, surprised.

"Keep your guard up! He's too fast for-"

Paw suddenly rushed around the ice wall and punched Astro in the side of the head, knocking him right back to the ground. "You really are durable huh young prince? I guess that makes sense considering you're his son," he said chuckling.

Astro growled and reached up towards him, but Paw moved aside and hit him with a roundhouse kick. "And still going! Man, you're actually pretty amazing!" he said laughing. "It was a good idea making you waste all that energy first. You're totally drained."

"I'm going to murder you," Astro said still trying to catch his breath.

Micah rushed at Paw from behind and tried to punch him, but the monster moved his head to the side and then turned around and kicked at him. Micah tried to block it, but he was just a second too late. The kick landed and sent him stumbling back.

"Fast, but not quite fast enough," Paw said zipping behind him again. Micah turned around and shot a laser beam at him, but he moved. "Still, this is way more fun than dealing with a total slowpoke! I almost wish you were the one I was after! That's be way more fun!"

He rushed in again and Micah braced himself, but before he could land another punch, a gust of wind came by blowing him back. Both Micah and Astro looked confused, but then saw Ryu jump down in front of them. "Sorry I was late guys! I heard the noise and came as fast as I could!" he said getting into a fighting stance.

"No problem, you're actually right on time," Micah said smirking.

Astro grunted and rubbed his side. "You're actually not, but your help is greatly appreciated all the same," he said honestly thankful for the backup. He hated dealing with speedsters.

Paw smiled. "Wow, there are more of you! I wonder how fast this one is!" he said getting down on all fours. "Let's have some fun!"

He rushed at Ryu who shot a blast of wind from his hand. Paw easily moved around it and punched at Ryu who managed to lean back and avoid it. Unfortunately Paw moved his tail and wrapped it around his neck. "GAH!"

Paw started running again, dragging Ryu along with him. He headed towards Astro before making a sharp turn and throwing Ryu at him. Astro panicked and quickly lowered his sword, and Ryu crashed into him.

Ryu rubbed his head. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"No…" Astro said through gritted teeth. His whole body was sore. He really shouldn't have used that spell. But it wasn't like he had a choice.

Micah tried to attack Paw while his back was turned, but the cheetah ducked down and then kicked back, aiming for his stomach. Micah managed to grab his foot and was about to shock him, but Paw suddenly swung his claw, nearly slashing his face. "Shit!"

Paw laughed and sped around behind him, but an ice spike rose up and nearly stabbed him. He scowled and looked back towards Astro who was holding up his hand. "You're still going? Give it a rest already, your magic has to be running on-" He was cut off as he was suddenly lifted up into the air by a small tornado. "What the-?!"

He looked over and saw Ryu holding his hands up. "You may be way faster than us, but it doesn't matter if your feet don't touch the ground!" he yelled.

Paw glared at him. "So what? As soon as I hit the ground again I-"

Astro smirked. "Aw, you think you're going to hit the ground again. That's cute," he said as Ocean's Kiss began glowing. "This guy is way more durable than you think, don't hold back and hit him with everything you got!"

Both Ryu and Micah nodded before joining him. Ryu threw a kick towards him, making the tornado large and lifting Paw up into the air. "Typhoon Boom!"

Astro swung Ocean's Kiss and sent a barrage of ice chunks towards the bottom of the tornado, where it got pulled up inside of it. "Hailstorm Barrage!"

Micah held his hands out and shot a blast of electricity towards it. "Lightening King Iron Hammer!"

The three attacks all came together, thrashing the cheetah like a monster who was in the middle of it all. When it was all finished, Ryu released the tornado and watched as he fell to the ground with a thud. Paw looked completely finished. His fur was charred, and he was unconscious.

Just to be safe, Astro froze his arms and legs to the ground. "Nice job… is your attack really named lightning king iron hammer?" Astro asked, looking to Micah slightly impressed with the name.

"Hmm? Oh, no. I just heard you guys yelling out attack names and didn't want to mess up the flow," he said shrugging. "By the way, nice save Ryu. Who knows how long we'd have been dealing with that guy if you hadn't shown up."

Ryu rubbed the back of his head and blushed at the praise. "Uh, yeah. Thanks," he said shyly.

Astro was about to thank him as well, but suddenly a portal opened up behind him. Micah and Ryu both grew wide eyed and began to move towards him, but something shot out of the portal before they could. It was a pair of bandages. They wrapped around Astro, quickly pulling him back into the portal before he could fight back.

Right as they got pulled in, they saw a face sticking out of the portal. It was Victor. "Sorry guys, we just need to borrow him for a sec," he said, smirking.

"Astro!"

"Damn it!"

Micah, Ryu, and Sear rushed towards the portal, but it closed just before they could get to it. Micah grit his teeth in anger, and Sear growled loudly. "God damn it!" This was the second time one of their members had been kidnapped! Right from under their noses too!

He turned to Ryu. "Ryu, head back to base and tell them what happened! Maybe if we move quickly we could track them down before they get to wherever they're taking him!"

"What about you?" Ryu asked, pulling out his phone.

Micah walked over to the still growling Sear. "I need to find Nia. If they grabbed him they might be after her too," he said before grabbing one of Sear's horns. The dragon turned towards him with narrowed eyes. "We don't have time for this. You don't want Nia to get taken too, do you? If not help me track her down."

The dragon kept glaring at him for a few seconds, but then snorted and lowered it's head, allowing Micah to step up on top of him. Micah grabbed onto his horns. "Wow, really wish I could appreciate how cool this was right now…" Sear sped off, presumably towards where the princess was right now.

Nia walked down the street rubbing his stomach. "Man, that really was the most delicious things I'd ever tasted!" she said happily. There had been so much to try, so many different flavors, and all so delicious. She loved Chinese food!

AJ walked behind her carrying two bags of leftovers… okay, leftovers weren't exactly right. He had leftovers. One box of leftovers. She had several extra boxes she ordered to take home. He still couldn't fathom how she put so much food down. The bill had been ridiculous.

Usually he didn't like flaunting his money. Being the son of a rich tech genius had made people tend to think he was some spoiled rich kid. But he had never been more glad to come from money then the moment he saw that receipt. "You sure you okay blondie? I'm pretty sure you ate more than half your body weight in food."

Nia tilted her head. "Did I? I usually eat way more than that."

"Seriously?!"

She nodded. "By the way, how much do I owe you for the food?"

AJ waved her off. "It's all good. Don't worry about it."

"Are you sure? I know it probably cost a lot. I don't want to seem like I'm leeching off of you or something," she said looking genuinely concerned.

He shrugged. "I got more than enough cash to cover it blondie."

Nia smiled. "Wow, you're really generous huh? Kind of weird you don't have a lot of friends. I mean you seem like a really nice guy," she said.

AJ raised an eyebrow. That was… pretty blunt. But she hadn't seemed to mean anything by it so he let it slide. "I guess I'm just not a peoples person." One half of the school seemed to think he was a spoiled rich kid, while the other half just thought he was some thug.

"Kind of like my brother then. He's really good with our citizens and stuff, but he doesn't have a lot of close friends," she explained. "I was hoping him coming here with me would let him lighten up. I hope it works."

Her brother wasn't very tolerant of… people. Aside from Maria and Slick, the prince of the Spiderbite kingdom, he really didn't have many friends. Or any at all really.

"Sounds like a real piece of work," AJ said.

"So are you then, right?" she asked, smirking.

He scowled and blushed slightly. "Shaddup. I only stick to myself because I felt like it. Not because I don't have a choice."

Nia laughed. "Ha! My brother says the same thing!"

The two continued walking until suddenly a portal opened up in front of them. They gasped and stopped in their tracks as two figures walked out of it. Shen Mi and Heath. "Hey princess, sorry to interrupt your little date, but you got an appointment with Drake," Heath said, smirking.

"Uh… who are you?" Nia asked, confused. "And who's Drake?"

AJ narrowed his eyes. "From the freaky eye paint and robot arms I'm gonna guess these are a couple of low class bad guys," he said reaching into his pocket.

"Low class? Aren't you one to talk," Shen Mi said, raising her hands towards him. "Anyhow, we're not here for you, so get lost." With one flick of her hands, AJ was sent sliding back a few feet. He nearly fell back onto his butt, but managed to stay upright.

Nia looked back at him, and then glared at Shen Mi. "Hey! Leave my friend alone!" she said, pulling out her wand. She turned it into a hammer and then rushed at her.

Shen Mi didn't move. Instead she let Heath step in front of her and stop the hammer with his hand. "Shape shifting? That's baby magic," Shen Mi said crossing her arms.

Heath frowned. "This sucks. Victor gets the big fish and we're stuck with the small fry," he said before easily pushing Nia back. "Why did both of us have to come for this. It's a waste."

"I'm only here to make sure you don't screw it up," Shen Mi teased.

Before Heath could snap back, Nia turned the wand into a bow and quickly fired an arrow at the two. They turned back towards her, and Shen Mi held her finger up. The arrow dispersed right before it could hit them. "All that raw magical power, and you have no idea how to use it," the redhead said, rolling her eyes.

Heath headed towards her. "Whatever. Let's just grab the brat and-" AJ suddenly rushed at him, pulling out a bat from seemingly nowhere. Heath raised his arm and blocked it, the bat breaking in two. "Don't interrupt me," he said before reaching out and grabbing him by the throat.

"AJ!"

Nia was about to charge at them, but Shen Mi held her hand up. "Ah, one more step and we snap your little boy toy's neck," she warned. Nia stopped in her tracks, the thought of her friend being hurt because of her was enough to make her think twice.

"Drop the wand and kick it over here," Heath ordered.

Nia grit her teeth. She couldn't give up the wand. It was her family's most precious heirloom. It had helped keep order in Mewni for years. She had no idea what these people would do with it. But she also couldn't let her friends get hurt.

"Don't give them two shits blondie!" AJ yelled angrily trying to break loose.

Heath tightened his grip. "Would the peanut gallery please be quiet," Shen Mi said rolling her eyes. "Hand it over, now. Or we'll kill him. Simple as that."

Nia kept staring at them for a while, and then sighed. She put the wand on the ground and then kicked it over towards them. "Here, now let him go."

Shen Mi picked up the wand and then signaled for her to come closer. "Not yet. You're coming with us princess. Step through the portal and then we'll let the loser go."

"Fuck off! Don't go with them Nia!" AJ managed to yell out.

Nia balled her fist up and then headed towards the portal. They both stepped aside and allowed her to step inside. She turned back to AJ before she walked through. "Don't worry, I'll be back soon," she said smiling at him.

Shen Mi followed after her, and Heath threw AJ back onto the ground. "Little advice, stay in your lane," Heath said chuckling as he walked through the portal as well.

AJ got back up and tried to run after them, but the portal closed just as he reached out towards his. He stumbled forward and fell onto the ground before punching it. "God fucking damn it!"