Hello! Hello! Hello again guys! Yes, I'm back with the next chapter of the Six Star Templars! In the last chapter, you guys were given a little bit of a retelling of what had happened during and after Star turned Toffee into lizard pulp and Ludo… dropped a stone pillar on him to finish him. Anyway, while all that was going on, our two 'mysterious' guests have been helping the kingdom get back on its feet after the whole debacle. Of course they nearly got their cover blown during one time (still think the piggoat inclusion was not a bad idea). So now in this chapter, El and his companion will be introducing themselves, stating their intentions (Or more El's intention to train Marco so he can uncover his full potential and possibility protect the kingdom from possible threats), and so on. For now, though we're going to focus on El busting in and saying hello. (Enfaces on the 'Busting in' part)

So, everyone good? Okay, let's dive in!

A/N: Quick little warning, I'm going to be introducing the Realm of Magic early in this chapter. Just a quick head's up for you guys.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Star vs. end. Of. Story.

Chapter 2: The Path Towards True Knighthood Begins

(A couple of minutes before El and his friend approached the door to the throne room)

"Uh River, I'm so confused right now?" Queen Moon said exasperated as she sat on her throne next to her husband and father to their daughter. "You told Marco he could become a knight?"

"Umm… well… yes." King River said a bit embarrassed about getting caught with his metaphorical pants down. "I… didn't think we'd ever see him again, hehe." He chuckled, still a bit embarrassed as Moon shook her head before looking to Marco and her daughter Star.

"I'm sorry Marco, but it's not possible to make you a Knight." Moon said.

"Huh? But King River said I could if I chose to come back." Marco said as he was held by two knights. "He even gave me this cape that has "M" sewed into it that stands for Mewni. So, I thought that meant if I came back, I could become a knight." He explained.

"Oh no, Marco my boy." River said in a more jovial tone. "That's not a cape, it's my old meat blanket."

"Meat... blanket?" Marco repeated, but a bit more flabbergasted.

"Yes. I also have a cheese doily." River said as he pulled out a small yellow doily with the letter "C" sew into from his cape, much to Moon's displeasure.

"So, What I thought was a Knight's cape I was wearing for the last couple of week was actually a meat blanket." Marco said as he covered his face to try and hide his embarrassment. "I was wearing a met blanket… for weeks."

"I'm sorry about this whole mix up Marco my boy," River said using a kingly voice, which Marco quietly noted he hasn't used in a while, "but becoming a knight is no easy task."

"River is right Marco," Moon said in agreement with River, "it takes years of intense training. Also; before you can even become a knight, you have to begin as a squire first." She added.

"Oh right, I forgot about that." Marco said. "Then why don't I just start as a squire then work my way up to becoming a knight then?"

Moon pondered for a bit before leaning over to her husband.

"River do we have any knights who need a squire at the moment?" she asked.

"Hmm; oh how about we set the boy up with Sir Lock, Pop and Drop it? I'm sure the old chap will do fine with him." River said confidently.

"Uh actually Sir Lock, Pop and Drop it, Lock, Pop and dropped out a few days ago." Moon told River, mournfully.

"You mean he?"

"Mm-hm."

"Oh, oh dear." River said shocked at the news.

Meanwhile on the other side of the door to the throne room, the red and black haired young man and his friend who still kept her hood up were listening on the conversation.

"I don't know who to feel bad for at this rate. The kid or the knight who was going to possible have him as a squire?" the young man said.

"I'd feel more bad for this Marco person." She said. "I'm only saying this because I think that knight the queen was talking about is actually…"

"Yeah, yeah, I know." The boy said. "He popped and dropped… down a flit of stairs and got messed up pretty bad. So no way he can continue being a knight, let alone take on a squire."

The two continued to listen in until they heard Moon speak again. This time she was talking to Star, who hadn't said a word at this point.

"Star dear, why don't you spend some time with Marco? It will give you both a chance to catch up, while we sort this situation out." Moon said

"I think this may be a good chance for us to go in and introduce ourselves to them now." The girl in the hood said as she reached to push to doors open.

"Hold it, hold it." The boy said which stopped her in her tracks, a couple of inches away from fully placing her hands on the doors. "Not yet."

"What?" she says, confused. "What do you mean not yet?"

"I mean "NOT YET". There's something else I want to hear before we open this door. Now shush." He said pressing his ear to the door as his friend looked on still perplexed.

That is until they both heard the princess finally speak.

"Wait, Wait Mom. I… I actually know someone who Marco can squire for." Star said in a bit of an uncertain voice.

"Oh, I didn't know the princess already knew someone who her friend could squire for?"

"She doesn't."

"Huh?"

"She doesn't have someone set up to have squire the kid." The boy said trying not to laugh out right. "She's only saying that because for some other reason, she doesn't want her friend around her."

"What?" The hooded girl said a bit shocked about what she's heard. "But why wouldn't she want him around? I mean from what we saw before he left to go back home, it looked like you'd have a hard time keeping them apart. So why doesn't she want him around now that he's back to stay?"

"Don't know. But – "the boy said as he raised his foot to the door, "You can ask her when the two of you have a moment!"

"Wait! What are you!"

Before she could finish asking, the boy launched a powerful kick at the doors. Resulting in them being torn off their hinges and sent flying off to the sides, which did not fail to get the attention of the rooms occupants. Two of whom had to dive out of the way of the now giant air-born oak doors.

"What the heck just happened!?" Marco shouted as he picked himself up off the ground.

"Sorry about that, but I thought it was the best way to make a grand entrance. Not bad, huh?" The boy said as his partner just stood next to him, both flabbergasted and embarrassed.

"There was nothing 'GRAND' about the entrance! You just kicked the door down!" She shouted as she went over to help Star up. "I'm really sorry about that, my friend here can be unpredictable a lot of the time."

"Oh, don't sweat it. I can unpredictable myself to- Hey wait! You're that person I ran into earlier today!" Star shouted in recognition. "Yeah! The one who was chasing after that super heavy piggoat. I was really hoping I'd get to see you again."

"Wait, really? How come?"

"Well to be honest with you, I didn't really know myself." Star said. "I just had this feeling that maybe if I met you again, something amazing and thrilling would happen. You and your friend actually coming to the castle and busting our door down like that is what I'd count as cool."

"Um Star? How does us almost getting crushed by your giant doors count as cool?" Marco asked.

"Yes and secondly Star?" Moon said. "Could you explain to me and your father why you invited these two to the castle?" she asked as she had swiftly used her magic to place the doors back on their hinges.

"Oh right, about that mom. I… didn't invite these guys to the castle." Star said. "But now I'm starting to wish I'd did. Oh that reminds me, you left in a hurry last time that I didn't get your name."

"Oh well…" She looked back at the boy, only for him to nod his head meaning "it's okay if you want to", "Sure, alright then." The hooded girl said.

She then proceeded to pull back her hood, reveling herself. Once the hood was down, she was shown to have white skin, a "false nose", blue "bangs" and blue "pigtails" that were connected to her head with bolts.

"My name is Jenny, Jenny Wakeman. It's a pleasure to meet you all." Jenny said as she introduced herself and curtseyed to everyone.

Star quickly grabbed Jenny's hand with both of hers as she shook it excitedly.

"Hi Jenny! I'm super glad to meet you!" Star said as excitedly. "So what about your friend? What's his name?" She asked looking at the young man.

"Well that's a relief, I almost started to think I was invisible here." The boy said in a sarcastic tone of voice. "You can call me El, just your run of the mill wandering knight. It's nice to finally meet you Princess Star Butterfly." El said in as he did a mock bow, which got Star to laugh a bit.

"Alright, I believe that's enough." Moon said, getting everyone's attention as she looked to the two interlopers. "I'd like to know how exactly you Sir El and your friend were allowed to enter the castle. The guards would know not to just let anyone in without either my consent or otherwise."

"Yes, well regarding that," El said as his hand glowed red before the letter he used from before appeared in it, "You should probably have some guards who can easily tell the difference between a real letter from you and a fake one." He said as he handed the forged letter to Star for her to see and watched as the young royal's eyes widened in surprise.

"Whoa, I can't even tell if this is a fake. You wrote it just like how my mom would; gasp, you even matched how she ends most of what she writes with a tiny little crescent moon at the end." Star said in astonishment.

"What on! Star let me see that letter." Moon said as she came down from her throne along with River to look at the forgery.

To both their surprise and shock, they couldn't tell the difference either.

"My word! This writing does match yours Moon dear. That is some impressive skill you have here my good man." River complimented.

"River please, this is a serious matter." Moon chided as she continued to look over the… admittedly well-made fake letter, before looking to the young man again. "May I ask why you and your friend – "

"Mom? She has a name." Star said pestered as Moon sighed.

"I'm aware of that Star." Moon said as she began again. "May I ask why you and your friend Jenny have come to the castle and chosen to enter using a fake letter?"

"Don't worry Queen Moon, Jenny and I don't have any under-handed motives if that's what your worried about." El assured. "I just didn't know how else to properly get an audience with you. So, I had to think outside the box." He said grinning. "But unto the reason for my coming here. See I sort of make it a habit of mine to bring out the absolute best in something or someone that catches my eye. As of late, I've yet to come across someone whose potential matches mine when I first started out on my own path to become a knight. So I've been traveling around the multi-verse to see if I can find any individuals that I could pass on my skills and knowledge too who would in-turn use it to help those they feel would truly need it when the time comes." El explained as he saw Moon and (especially) River in deep thought.

While Moon was processing what she had heard, she was also going over this feeling she was getting as she looked at the young man in front of her.

'El, why does that name sound so familiar. Where have I heard it before?' Moon thought before making a mental note to see if she could gather any more information on the boy later.

"Hmm; after hearing all this. It seems like you're looking for someone that would be able to become a great warrior like yourself." River said.

"Well I wouldn't say I'm THAT great, but let's just say I've got more wins than I do loses from the last time I checked." El said confidently while Jenny silently rolled her eyes. "So I don't suppose I'd be able to find anyone here in Mewni who I'd be able to train?"

"Well Sir El," Moon started before El politely cut-in,

"Just El is fine, Queen Moon. I may be a knight, but I was never really all that dedicated to formality and stuff."

"Very well. Unfortunately, I'm not aware of anyone who we could have – "

"Yes we do! Yes, we do!" Star shouted, abruptly interrupting Moon as she swiftly pushed Marco closer towards El. "El, allow me to introduce you to your new squire."

"Huh? What?" Marco said, confused as were Moon and River on what Star was doing.

While El was honestly surprised at how quickly things were going.

'O-kay, was not expecting to just have the kid thrown right at me like this.' He thought. 'Not sure what's going on with the princess here. But whatever it is, it must be something related to why she chose to start dating the prince of the underworld again. Maybe I should have Jenny hang around with her to see if she can find something out.' His thoughts were interrupted when he heard Moon respond to Star's hasty proposal.

"Star what are you doing?" Moon asked. "You can't just suddenly have Marco squire for someone who showed up out of the blue like this."

"But this isn't just someone who came out of the blue mom. This is a knight who came out of the blue." Star explained as if it was obvious. "A knight who Marco can squire for."

"But Star, didn't you say you knew a knight I could squire for already?" Marco asked. Which caused Star to quickly come up with a cover for that little fact.

"O-Oh yeah, I did have a knight I was thinking of. B-But, I just remembered. He's…He's actually out of the kingdom right now, which totally slipped my mind. Ha-ha…ha." Star laughed nervously. "But luckily for us a traveling knight and his friend just so happened to come visit us today."

"Sigh, well… what do you think about the idea River?" Moon asked her husband.

"I'd say it's a fantastic idea. Being able to learn from a knight whose no doubt seen and learned from his countless travels? I say Marco my boy, I can't think of any better person to have squire for." River said in approval of Star's decision.

After hearing River's approval, Moon looked to both El and Marco.

"Any objections from you both on this arrangement?" She asked.

"Not really." Marco said as he got a better look at El's appearance. "To be honest, you're like the coolest looking knight I've ever seen. How come we haven't run into you before?"

"Heh, well I try to keep a low profile wherever I go. Wouldn't get much peace if fans kept trying to track me down." El said jokingly. "But yeah, I've got no problems with the kid here being my squire Queen Moon."

"I see. Well since there are no objections; I hereby declare Marco Diaz, Squire to Sir El." Moon said.

"YES! WOO-HOO!" Star loudly cheered in excitement and a bit of relief which no one seemed to notice, except El.

"So Marco, you ready for your first lesson as my first-ever squire?" El asked the young man.

"You bet! What am I going to learn to use first? Swords? Lances? Maybe a Battle Axe?" Marco listed off, before El lifted his hand up for Marco to stop.

"Okay; first off besides the sword, you're not going to be using any of the other weapons you named or were about to say next." El said much to Marco's, Star's and her parent's surprise. "Secondly, first I need to check something out about you."

El then threw off his cloak, reveling his outfit. Which consisted of a black, body-hugging armored shirt, a red, fingerless armlet on his right hand and black, fingerless one on his left. A large, red belt hung loosely around his waist where two pitch-black swords as dark as night with gold runic writing on them were seen sheathed. He wore black/gray armored greaves with red on some sections. Finally, on his lower back were two more swords. A red claymore that had more of those runic symbols and a third pitch-black sword like the first two.

"And to do that, we're going to be taking a little trip to a place that will help with that."

El then unclipped the red claymore from his back and performed a cross-slash in the air, which created a portal.

"What the! How'd you do that without dimensional scissors!?" Marco asked awestruck by what he just saw. But failed to notice El grabbing his arm, until he felt his feet leave the ground.

"Questions can wait after we get a proper assessment of what you've got locked away inside first." El said as he threw Marco over his shoulder and began to walk into the portal.

"Wait! Wait a minute!"

El turns his head and sees Star holding onto his belt with a look that was a cross between worry and uncertainty.

'Okay, so at the very least she does have some concern for the guy here.' El thought. 'Figured she'd want him out of her hair as quickly as possible. Then again from what I've seen so far, she's not that shallow.'

"Where are you taking Marco? And what did you mean when you said "proper assessment of what Marco has locked up"?" Star asked as she looked at El.

"Ah, now that would be spoiling the surprise Princess." El said. "But trust me when I say this; once I've gotten a good look of what your friend Marco here can do, don't be too surprised if I spot others here in Mewni with the same level of potential that I try to look for in people." He said as he patted Star on her head in a comforting way. "I'll bring him back safely. Although I can't promise he'll be the same in… certain ways."

With that said; El then resumed his walk into the portal and as he entered, it began to close. Before it completely shut, Marco looked to Star who had her eyes pointed down in slight worry.

"Star!" Marco said which got the young mewman girl's attention. "Don't worry, I'll be back later. I mean it, when's the last time you've known me to break a promise?" he said smiling at Star which in turn caused her to smile back at him.

"You better not start with this one Diaz." Star said back with her infectious smile. "Make sure you come right back here."

"Jenny, think you can hold things down while I'm busy?" El asked.

"Someone has to since you have the unmatched ability to sometimes forget about everything else around you." Jenny said, basically saying "Yes, I got this".

"Alright then, See you all in a bit." El says as the portal closes in on itself, taking Marco and his new teacher with it.

Realm of Magic - Elrianode Training Grounds

As the two exited the portal, Marco looks around at where they are now. It looked to be some kind of training ground from ancient times as Marco noticed the amount of discarded weapons, armor, and evident signs of battles that took place here with the numerous craters and destroyed sections. Looking up at the sky, Marco could see no indication of a sun. But, this place did have clouds and he could feel a light breeze on his face.

"Place blows your mind, right?" El said getting his young squire's attention. "This place is called the Elrianode Training Grounds. This is where I and a couple others I know trained and honed our skills. This place is going to help in figuring out what you've got hidden away." El explained.

"What I've got hidden away? What you do you mean by that?" Marco asked confused.

"What I mean is that this place is going to help in unlocking your hidden potential." El said as he sat cross-legged on the ground and motioned for Marco to do the same, which he soon did sitting next to him as they both looked up at the passing clouds.

Marco was starting to wonder if this El guy was really a knight. He first brings him to this place that's an ancient training ground that he uses to come to. Then he talks about how this place will unlock his potential, but all they've done so far is just sit and look up at the clouds.

"For someone who was dubbed the "Safe Kid", you are surprisingly impatient." El said which caught Marco off-guard. "It's not that surprising that you want to just jump right into training to become a knight. Since I was just like that."

"You were?" Marco asked.

"Yep, but you can't just jump head first into it. 1- you need a reason for why want to become a knight in the first place. And 2- you need to have the drive to become stronger so as to protect that reason and see it through." El explained. "So before I can even begin to train you, I want to ask you somethings about yourself. That good?"

"Yeah, I guess." Marco said, although he felt a bit nervous about something.

"Okay then. How about we start with… why do you want to become a knight? What reason do you wish to pursue that position?" El asked.

"Well originally, King River said that if I came back to Mewni I could become a knight if I chose to." Marco started. "But as I'm pretty sure you now know; he wasn't actually serious when he said that. The cape he gave me was in fact his…. meat blanket. So as of right now the best reason I can give for wanting to still be a knight is… I guess to hang with Star again and help her with anything she needs."

"Hmm, I see." El said as he thought over what he had heard. 'Well, can't blame the kid. He thought he was coming back to possible be a knight and probably have a chance to hang out with his best friend like old times. But came back to being told that he can actually become and knight and also not being aware that his friend was close to almost dumping him somewhere where he'd be out of sight and basically out of mind.' He thought.

"Not much of a noble reason for become a knight is it?" Marco said, disappointed in his own response.

"I never said the reason had to be noble." El said. "And hearing straight from you about what happened, really you didn't have much chose. So let's just skip the reason for now and move onto your drive." He said. "How determined are you to become stronger and how much effort are you going to give to reach the rank of a knight?"

"I… I'm not sure." Marco said. "I guess I want to be strong enough to help Star if she needs it. But given how good she's getting with her magic, I'm not sure if she'll really need my help. I think getting stronger would more or less… help me really."

"What makes you say that?" El asked.

"I mean it would let me know that…. If Star ever has to go through something like what happened when the kingdom was in trouble, I could do more to help her. Than just let her…. Face it by herself." Marco said as he looked up at the sky. "So, if becoming stronger and pouring my all into becoming a knight is what will let me help Star with whatever she's up against…. Then I'm willing to do anything and even beyond that."

El could already see what exactly drove Marco in most cases, even if the boy himself didn't realize it just yet. He also didn't let it be his sole reason, he wanted to get stronger to show he could keep up with the princess. Plus, the amount of determination he was getting from him was on a different level.

'The thought of these two fighting on even ground… that would be a sight to see. Now I've got a good grasp on what he's all about.' El thought approvingly. 'Now this next part… ha-ha, this next part will defiantly blow his mind.'

"Okay," El said as he sprung up from his sitting, "now we move onto ACUTALLY unlocking your potential."

"Wait, what?" Marco said.

Mewni – Butterfly Kingdom Castle

The evening was starting to roll around as Star waited in her room with Jenny for Marco and El to come back from… wherever they went to.

Star had asked Jenny if she knew where El had go to with Marco. While Jenny said she knew of the place, El surprisingly guessed Star would ask about it. So he swore Jenny to secrecy not to say a word about. Even if Star tried to use magic, she wouldn't be getting any answers.

"Hey Jenny? Can El read minds?" Star asked which caught Jenny off-guard for a second or two. "I'm just asking because you said he knew I would ask about where he was taking Marco. So I thought maybe he could read people's minds or something."

"Oh, so that's what you meant." Jenny said getting the gist of what Star was asking. "Well no, El can't read people's minds. It's more like… he can get a read on someone's personality by either looking at them or talking with them." She explained.

"Just by looking or talking with them? Wow, wish I could that." Star said. "Also I can't believe your actually a robot! That's so cool!" she said excitedly. "So El found in a dimension with a city that was destroyed?"

"Yep, found me sleeping in some kind of pod that got buried under a clasped building." Jenny said as she looked out the window of Star's room.

Jenny had taken off her cloak since El and Marco had left, reveling her blue "cloths" (a crop top, a miniskirt and boots), and her belly-bolt (a bolt that simulates a belly button) which she said doubles as a linchpin.

"So you don't remember anything before you went to sleep?" Star asked. "Like who made you? Why'd they make you? Or how come you were built like a teenager?"

"Not a thing afraid." Jenny said as she turned around from the window. "El said he'd try to find anything that could lead to me remembering something, so I've been traveling with him since. Besides, it's not like I'm in that big a rush to remember everything." She said smiling which caused Star to smile back.

"Well if you're okay with waiting on it, then alright." Star said.

Suddenly the two hear a slicing sound as a portal in a cross "X" shape opens up in the middle of the room. They soon see a familiar red long-haired figure walk out of the portal.

"El!" Star shouted as she jumped off the bed. "Your back!"

"Took your sweet time there, didn't you?" Jenny said. "You realize it's almost evening time here?"

"Really? Huh, could have sworn we weren't there too long." El said. "Well aside from that, I got a good look at the kid. And I think my time with him is going to defiantly be worth it." He said.

"Really? So then where is Marco? Is he behind you?" Star asked wanting to see her friend.

"Hold on, he's coming now." El said as he stepped to the side.

The three then heard footsteps coming. Before long, they saw Marco coming out of the portal. But the moment he completely exited the portal, Jenny and Star's eyes widened in complete surprise at what they were seeing.

"Holy…" Jenny said.

"M-Marco?" Star said at a loss for words as she looked at her best friend's new appearance.

A/N: And that is where I'll leave it for now. What? you excepted me to just show you Marco's new look now? Yeah no, you guys will have to wait for it. This new outfit for Marco will be his go to staple during his training with El, but I do have a causal version for when he's hanging out with Star and his other friends. Additionally, the other members of his future squad will be getting new outfits too. But these outfits will get replaced when they become knights, those designs I'm still working on. For now this is where we'll stop, see you all next chapter.

Also, review and tell me your thoughts.