"It's not fair!" he yelled angrily. "I don't want to do it anymore! It hurts! It hurts and I hate it!"

Star held her hands up trying to calm her son down. He was always like this whenever they needed to change his form. "Asterossa, I know it hurts and I know you hate doing it, but we can't let anyone see-"

"Why not?!" he yelled. "Why am I the only one who has to hide?! Meteora doesn't have to! Vera doesn't have to! I'm the ONLY one who has to hide! It's not fair! I'm tired of it!"

Star reached down and grabbed his shoulders. "Asterossa, people can't know who you are. If they find out you could be in danger," she explained.

"But it hurts!" he said grabbing the horns on his head as tears formed in his eyes. "And I didn't do anything! Why should I have to hide just because someone else did something?! I don't want to do this anymore!"

She gave him a sympathetic look before wrapping her arms around him and pulling him in for a hug. "I know you don't, and I know you this isn't fair. But one day you won't have to do this. They'll see how stupid they're being and just how good you are. So please, just keep staying strong for me a little while longer, okay?"

He sniffled and wiped his face. "Okay, I'll try…" It still wasn't fair. Why did he have to go through all this because his father screwed up?

It was all his fault.

If his father was just gone, he wouldn't have to worry about this…

Astro opened his eyes with a groan. It was still early, very early. He was always an early riser, so everyone was no doubt still fast asleep. But this was early even by his standards. He yawned before sitting up, and Sear started to stir as well. Astro didn't have a bed in his room. He'd gotten rid of it a few days after moving in. There was just an empty plot of dirt he laid down in.

After he had joined the kingsguard sleeping on the ground had become second nature, and now it was just a habit. He got up and made his way towards the bathroom before quickly getting ready. Once he had showered, washed up, and gotten dressed, he found some paper and began scribbling down a note for his sister.

Nia had been making a lot of progress with her training the past few days, but today he didn't have time for a lesson. He had somewhere to be. He headed out, bringing Sear along with him. It was a quick flight to the Vanguard base, which was also empty at this point. The lead officers would probably be showing up soon since they always made a point to get here early, so he needed to move quickly.

He typed in the security code at the door, and then stood in front of the facial scanner which quickly read him. The doors opened and he made his way inside. The scissors should have been in Damian's office with the other confiscated artifacts. Picking his lock would be easy enough. He just needed to make sure-

"What are you doing here?"

Astro jumped and then turned around to see Amber standing behind him. Sear perked up and ran over to the princess before nuzzling her hand. She returned the gesture, patting him on the head, before looking back at the prince.

He narrowed his eyes. "I could ask you the same thing…"

"I'm here because Cayenne wanted to do a weapons inspection for the combat department and I'm getting an early start. What about you?"

Astro stood there for a few moments. "Well, I don't think that's any of your concern…"

She scoffed. "You know Prince Asterossa, it looks like you were headed towards the officer's quarters. Though I'm not exactly sure why you would since there would be nothing that concerns you in that general direction," she said crossing her arms.

He grit his teeth. "Look, this isn't any of your business. So just butt out and get lost," he said dropping the formalities. Today was too important for him to humor her.

"That sounds fine. But you do know I'll have to mention this to Kingsley. Because you being here right now is his business," she said, smirking.

Astro growled and balled his fist up. "Stump! You little-!" He stopped himself and then took a breath. Then he glared at her. "Fine, if you really have to know why I'm here, I needed the pair of dimensional scissors Damian has in his office."

She looked confused. "Why? Don't you have a pair of your own?"

"The Youngblood took them…"

"You mean you lost them?" She asked, smirking. He once again growled. His patience seemed unusually thin today she noticed. "Why haven't you gone and gotten yourself another pair?"

Astro shoved his hands into his pockets. "Because… and I mean this in the nicest way it can possibly come across, I despise your mother with all my heart," he said bluntly. He had never forgotten what anyone in the commission had been willing to do to him when he was a kid. They'd probably still do it now if they thought they could get away with it.

She scowled at him. "There's no inoffensive way to say that…"

"Take it how you will then," he said moving past her. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have some important things to do. I'd very much appreciate it if you kept your mouth shut about this."

Amber watched him walk off, but then sighed. "You can borrow mine," she said suddenly. The prince stopped in his tracks before turning back to her.

"What?"

"I said you can borrow mine," she said holding her scissors out towards him. Astro looked at her hesitantly. She… she couldn't be serious could she? There had to be some catch. "But only if I get to come along with you."

Astro's eyes widened. "No!" he snapped. "Hell no! Why would you even want to come along in the first place? This doesn't have anything to do with you."

Amber snorted. "Because I don't trust you," she said. "Everything about this situation is suspicious, and I want to make sure you're not up to anything crazy."

"You don't trust me?!" Astro said in disbelief. "You must be joking!"

"Well, you haven't given me a reason to," she said mockingly.

Astro's grit his teeth. "Why you dirty little-!" He quickly stopped himself again. He couldn't lose his cool. Not today.

"You can either let me come with you, take the scissors and answer to Kingsley later, or go home. It's your choice," she said spinning her scissors around on her finger.

Astro kept glaring at her for a few moments, but then grunted. "No questions," he said pointing at her. "I mean it. Not a single one. This is a personal matter and I don't want you trying to stick your nose into my business."

Amber stared back at him. "Fine." She walked over and handed him the scissors, sticking close in case he tried to pull a fast one on her. Astro turned around and ripped a portal open. He stepped through, and she quickly followed after him. When they stepped out of the other side, she saw they were in a dense forest. She looked around curiously. "Where are we?"

"I just said no questions five seconds before we walked through this portal," Astro said as he began walking.

She rolled her eyes but silently followed after him. They walked through the forest for quite some time, and Amber took the chance to look around and observe the place. She could tell this place was still on Earth. But it looked like… there were signs of a battle here. Not one that happened recently, but years ago.

Trees were topped over, there were craters in the ground, and some of the area looked like it had been sliced into. She wanted to ask what had happened here, but she knew he would just shut her down again.

After a few more minutes of walking, they came across an open area with flowers surrounding it. Right smack dab in the middle of it was a post with a sign on it that read, "Rosetta."

It took her a few seconds to realize this was a grave.

Astro walked forward and then pulled out a bubble from his hoodie pocket. He set it on the ground and it popped, leaving a number of items on the ground. Some flowers, a bottle of wine, and a plate of cookies. He sat down in front of it and began arranging everything.

Amber walked forward. "Who… who is this?"

"No questions," he said, not even bothering to glance at her. She frowned, but then stepped beside him and took a seat. He raised an eyebrow. "What do you think you're doing?"

"This is a grave isn't it? I'm paying my respect," she said, lowering her head.

"You don't even know who she is."

"Doesn't mean I can't pay respect." He sighed and then went back to what he was doing. Once he finished arranging everything he bowed his own head. "If you don't mind me asking, what's with the cookies?"

"You really aren't good at holding up your end of a deal are you?" he asked annoyed. "But If you have to know, she liked feeding the animals around here. I leave it out here so they can eat."

"The wine?"

"It was her favorite brand…"

"And the flowers? Never seen them before"

"They called camellias. They only grow on Earth. Are you finished with the questions?"

Amber hummed and turned back to the grave. She wanted to ask who this was again, but she had a feeling he wasn't going to tell her. Rosetta sounded like it could be an Earth or Mewman name, but from what Vera said he and Nia had never been to Earth before a few weeks ago.

But how would he know about a grave here on Earth unless he'd been here? This obviously was not the first time he did this. He came prepared. "Was she close to you?"

Astro was silent for a moment. "Yes."

"I see. I'm sorry for your loss then."

"Thank you…"

They both sat in silence for a bit more. Astro just wanting some peace and quiet, and Amber not wanting to mess with him in such a moment. "Well, that seems like enough time!" Both royals turned around at the unfamiliar voice. A figure stood above them in the trees. "I saw you were paying your respects, so I thought I could wait a few minutes."

The figure jumped down, and they could see it was a septarian. He was dressed in leather armor, and carrying two large swords on his back. He chuckled as he approached them. Astro immediately pulled out his sword and pointed at him, growling angrily.

"I truly am lucky. Not only do I have the chance to bring his majesty's son back, but I'll be able to do away with the little princess as well," he said pulling out his swords.

Amber growled and pulled out her sickle. "I don't know who you are, but as the daughter of Lord Rasticore I'm ordering you to stand down and-"

"Save your words halfling. I'm no lacky of Rasticore," he said looking disgusted. He lifted one of his fists and balled it up. "No, Sever is in the service of the true king of monsters. Not that traitorous brown nosing failure!"

Amber glared at him, not willing to stand by and let her father be insulted. Astro on the other hand looked downright furious. "YOU BASTARD!" he yelled angrily. "None of you have the right to be in this dimension, let alone at her grave! Leave now, or I'll kill you!"

"I can't do that young prince. His majesty would be disappointed if I came back empty handed," he said getting into a fighting stance.

Amber looked confused. King of monsters? His majesty? Who in the world was he talking about? Astro charged forward ready to strike. "You won't be coming back at all!" he yelled swinging Ocean's Kiss.

Sever raised his sword and blocked the attack, laughing as he spun around and tried to slash Astro from behind. The prince easily parried the attack and swung again, trying to slash him across the neck. The septarian didn't even bother trying to block or dodge.

He let the blade cut right through him, but it healed just a moment later. "I'm afraid that won't work on me young prince," he said holding his arms out. "But feel free to try!"

"I'll give it a shot!"

He looked over just before Amber leapt at him and swung her sickle. She took his left arm right off, sending him stumbling back. But once again, he healed almost instantly. "Foolish little whelp! You should know more than anyone how futile this is! You have no hope of defeating me!" he laughed.

Amber spun her sickle in her hand. "Immortal doesn't mean invincible!" she yelled before charging in again. Astro charged from his other side, and he quickly began parrying against the both of them.

Even with one sword, he was holding his own pretty well. He dodged their attacks and then rolled over towards where his old arm was before grabbing his other sword back. "You should both be ashamed! Monsters of your caliber serving the mewmans like mere dogs!" he shouted.

Amber shook her head. "What are you talking about?" She was the only other monster here, wasn't she? Astro yelled and rushed past her again. He swung and sent a wave of ice at him, but Sever jumped up into the air and into a nearby tree.

He laughed and then leapt at Astro who stabbed at him. Before the sword could make contact however, Sever used his unusually long tail to grab his wrist. "What the-?!" He landed and then spun around, slamming Astro to the ground. Before the prince could move, he lifted his sword and stabbed into his shoulder.

Astro yelled in pain as he was pinned down to the ground by the blade. "How disappointing. I expected more of a challenge from you. But your father did say you were a bit hot headed. He was quite sure me coming here would throw you off. And he was right."

Amber quickly moved in, lighting her sickle on fire before jumping up and stabbing him in the back of the neck. She twisted the weapon and he gasped and spat out a mouthful of blood. "Y-you little… how?!" he asked in disbelief. "How could I, the great Sever, be brought down by the likes of… just kidding," he said suddenly smirking.

Amber's eyes widened and suddenly his tail wrapped around her waist. He pulled her back and then slammed her against the ground. "His majesty has offered me powers far beyond what your tiny mind could comprehend. It would be shameful of me to lose to the daughter of a traitor like your father," he mocked.

She tried to get back up, but he lifted her up again and then spiked her against the ground once more. She grunted in pain. Why was he so strong? Between her and Astro she was sure they'd be able to take him down easily, but this guy was more durable than anyone she'd ever faced.

Even if he was a septarian, he still should have felt pain and been injured. She had stabbed him in the spine, that should have stunned him for a while But he shrugged off the attack without a second thought. "His majesty ordered that I bring back the young prince. You on the other hand, are expendable," he said as he walked over towards her.

Amber grit her teeth and reached out for her sickle, but he stepped on her wrist. "You're unworthy to wield that weapon. I will take it and use it in the service of someone who truly fights for our kind," he said lifting his sword up above her. She grit her teeth and braced herself for the attack, but it didn't come. "What the-?!"

The princess opened her eyes and saw Astro back up on his feet. The wound that had been in his shoulder didn't seem to be bleeding, and there was a dark aura around him. He had grabbed Sever's wrist, stopping the sword just in front of Amber's face. He pulled his hand back up and away from her.

"Well, color me impressed! It seems like you haven't forgotten your true- GAH!" Astro tightened his grip, crushing his wrist in his hand.

Amber was wide eyed as she saw Astro bring his other fist back and then swing. The blow had sent him soaring away, and Amber had quickly lost sight of him. "How did you…?" She flinched when she saw his eyes. His pupils looked the same, but the whites of his eyes were pitch black.

"Stay here…" Astro said before crouching down. He jumped off after their attacker, leaving the stunned princess behind.

Sever crashed quite a distance away from the two. He groaned as he started to push himself up back to his feet. But suddenly a knee crashed into his chin, knocking him back again. He smashed into a nearby tree and fell to the ground.

The septarian grunted in pain before shaking his head and then smirking. "Yes, now this is the power I expected from the son of Typhon!" he said, getting back up to his feet.

Astro grit his teeth and then brought his fist back again. He punched him in the stomach, knocking the air out of his lungs. "Never say that name in front of me…" he said as he let him fall to his knees.

Sever somehow still had the nerve to smirk. "You truly are strong. But unfortunately, as I said earlier, you father has gifted me with great power!" He flexed his muscles as he slowly began growing larger. His teeth and claws grew longer, and his eyes turned into slits. "Behold, the peak of septarian power drawn out by the king of-"

Astro delivered another punch, this one even harder than last time. Sever gasped and covered his stomach as he fell right back down to the ground. Astro looked over him giving him a glare. "Do you know why I knocked you all the way over here when I just as easily could have killed you back there?" he asked holding his hand over him.

Sever tried to talk, but he only coughed up blood. "It's because you don't deserve to die in the same place she did," he said as dark energy surrounded his hand. "Black Velvet Inferno…"

Amber rubbed her shoulder as she got back up to her feet. She'd had to snap her arm back into place. Something that, while she could easily do, still hurt like hell. She looked off in the direction that Astro had gone. There was no way she had mistook that aura, or those eyes.

Either way, she needed to go make sure he was okay.

Just as she was about to head off, Astro came sliding back down towards her on a trail of ice. He stopped in front of her. "Are you alright?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine," she said, still rubbing her arm. "What happened to him?"

"I killed him," Astro said bluntly. "Is that going to be a problem?"

She hummed. "Not mine. And just so we're clear, I had absolutely nothing to do with that guy."

"I know. He couldn't have had anything to do with you." That guy was definitely working with his father. No doubt about it. He turned around before bowing his head towards her. "You had plenty of chances to stab me in the back, but you didn't. So I owe you thanks and gratitude."

She raised an eyebrow. "And your trust?"

Astro sighed. There was no way she had missed what had happened and what was said. Playing dumb would just be a waste of time. "Given what I know you saw and heard, I don't really suppose I have a choice but to trust you now," he said looking back up at her. "I'm guessing you have questions."

"A lot of them. But I got the basic gist," she said crossing her arms. "You're part monster."

He looked down at his feet. "You can't tell anyone…"

"Why?" she asked, looking a little irritated. "You know there's still tension between mewmans and monsters. You're a hero back home. Everyone looks up to you. If people found out you were part monster it'd do so much good for-"

Astro cut her off. "If people found out who my father was, everything my mother worked for would go up in flames," he said shaking his head. "Nobody can find out. No one."

"My father literally tried to kill the queen, I doubt what you father did-"

"It's worse. Worse than your father, worse the Meteora, and worse than Toffee," he said sternly. She looked at him skeptically, but could tell he was serious. "Look, I know you have questions, but I can't answer them now. Wait until tomorrow."

"Why tomorrow?" she asked.

"Because I owe Micah answers too," he said. Micah had been more than understanding about all of this. He figured he deserved to be let in on it. "And today I need to finish paying respects," he said as he headed back towards the grave.

Amber decided to just let him go for now. Whoever that was over there must have been important to him. She could give him a bit of alone time to grieve.

Astro went back over to the grave and sat back down in front of it. He sighed and bowed his head. "I'm sorry about that mom…" he muttered. "But I got some good news to make up for it. I only have to wait a little bit longer." He balled his fist up and glared. "Then I'm gonna kill that son of a bitch…"