Great news, everyone! The latest addition to the tale of the Protectors came a day early! Yes siree, I decided to move new MATEP releases to Thursdays, as opposed to Fridays. It's a good thing, too, since we last left off on a cliffhanger; Kelly wants to leave Earth-Ni behind. How will that turn out for the team? Find out in this brand-new adventure I had a BLAST writing!


"MAROON AND THE EARTH-NI PROTECTORS!"

BOOK THREE: RESURGENCE

CHAPTER FOUR: THE BADLANDS


Austin Capers was no stranger to sleepless nights. Some nights, he'd be prowling around on patrol, while on others, he'd work on various experimental gadgets. But in this case, it was deep-rooted inner turmoil that kept him awake; Earlier, he had a chilling nightmare involving his father, his friends, and his newest teammate, Kelly of Woolandia. He tried going back to sleep numerous times, but sadly, he couldn't drift off in peace. So, he spent the late-night hours working on upgrades to his crime-fighting outfit.

He even stayed up past the rising sun; It was ten o'clock, and Austin was in the kitchen, treating himself to some freshly brewed coffee; His usual beverage of choice during an all-nighter. Just as he finished the last of the dark, steamy liquid, the doorbell rang. So, he begrudgingly shambled to the front door to see what was the matter.

"Hi, Austin!"

Much to his relief, it was a pair of familiar friends who often came to his home; Star Butterfly and Marco Diaz. Oddly enough, Star was holding three helium balloons with motivating messages on them, while Marco held a bouquet of flowers and some candy.

"Uhh...what's all the stuff for?"

"It's for Kelly. We know she's feeling bad right now, so we wanted to cheer her up!" Star responded.

"Oh, right! I forgot she lives here now. Come on, I'll show you the way." Austin invited. The three teens then headed down the hall, towards the spare bedroom on the first floor. While they walked, Austin noticed a certain pair of tricky troublemakers were missing.

"Hey, where's Tom and Janna?"

"They had other plans. I was scared to ask what they were, so let's leave it at that." Marco shuddered. Once they made it to the spare room, Austin lightly knocked on the white wooden door.

"Hey, Kelly! You've got company." No response. Austin knocked again, but there was just dead silence; They couldn't even hear her moving around. "You okay in there?"

Star opened the door, and the trio gasped when they saw the bedroom; It was empty! The trio looked around the room for any sign of their missing friend, when Marco discovered a silvery metal ring laying on the nightstand.

"It's her hero ring! And there's a letter underneath it."

"What does it say?" Star queried.

"Dear friends..." Marco read the letter aloud, and the heroes became more upset as it went on. They all gasped in surprise when they found out where their friend had gone. "Kelly's trying to go back home!"

"She can't do that! The Collider's not ready, who knows what could happen to her?" Austin exclaimed.

"We've got to stop her, before it's too late." Star spoke with determination. Now, it was a race against time to save their forlorn friend from her own reckless actions...


Although they were attacked at yesterday's demonstration, the Cleave Foundation managed to bounce back, and continued to research Earth-Ni and the greater multiverse. The hole blown in the ceiling by a watchman's rocket launcher was patched up with a tarp, and parts of the damaged Gateway Collider had already been repaired.

Currently, Dr. Tran was testing out the R&D department's latest creation; A green, serpentine device with a blue crystal in a chamber; Said gadget fit directly over the user's arm. She aimed the device at an apple sitting on a table, and fired a blue beam of energy, which encased the fruit in solid crystal.

"Eureka!" The scientist cheerfully exclaimed.

"There goes my breakfast..." Sighed Mr. Burroughs, Elisha's dour lab assistant.

"Looks like the Rhombulizer finally works. Now, all we need is its approval." Director Reyes noted, when an unexpected visitor suddenly barged into the room. To their surprise, it was the weary-looking Woolett who came from the collider, and she had walked for miles to get where she now stood.

"Can we help you?" Dr. Tran queried.

"Let me go home!" Kelly exclaimed, as she quickly stepped towards the massive machine. "Take me back to Woolandia. It's the place you opened a portal to at yesterday's demonstration. That's where I'm from, and I wanna go back."

"Sorry, Miss, but we can't let you do that. The gateway collider is still under repairs. It won't be ready for quite some time." Reyes mandated.

"Don't be so harsh, Director." Mr. Burroughs interjected. "The girl is just homesick, and wants to return where she belongs. Who are we to deny her?"

"Look, why don't I test it for you? If it works, that's great, I'm home. If it isn't...then so be it." The bushy-haired girl sighed morosely.

"Fine. Fire up the collider, we have a test to run." Reyes ordered. The Foundation's workers activated the large mechanical ring, which was still missing a few of the dimensional scissor blades key to its operation. The machine's exterior sparked and sputtered, and the blades began to glow blue. An azure spark of light flashed in the center, and it quickly expanded into a large portal. Kelly could faintly see the outline of hairy hills and pinkish-blue skies; After a whole day stuck on Earth-Ni, she could finally go back home...

Slowly but surely, Kelly made her way towards the portal to Woolandia. She hesitated when the gateway began to fluctuate, but regained her confidence; It was now or never. The Woolett braced herself, and just before she could make the leap of faith, she heard a loud yell.

"Kelly, STOP!"

To her surprise, Star, Marco and Austin had all busted into the room on Nachos. Looks like they found her letter earlier than she expected. Kelly froze in place, unsure of what to say, or what to do; She'd been caught red-handed, and it was time to face the music.

"Don't leave us, Kelly!" Marco exclaimed.

"You're not a failure! We need you!" Star added. "Earth-Ni needs you!"

"I know what you're going through. We can help you through this!" Austin pleaded. Kelly turned away from the portal, and longingly looked towards her friends. While she felt shameful and homesick because of her defeat, she was giving up five great friends that had her back through thick and thin. The Woolett took a deep breath, and was about to respond, when a loud, discordant noise came from the collider.

The portal to Woolandia suddenly switched appearances; Now, it had become a black, diamond-shaped portal. Even worse, the portal began malfunctioning further; It began to suck things into it like a vacuum!

Many of the scientists quickly fled into the other room for safety, while Kelly held onto a railing as tightly as she could. Austin activated his hero ring, and used his suit's wrist-mounted grappling hook to safely secure himself to the wall. Nachos flew as fast as she could in the other direction so she and her rider wouldn't get sucked in, but poor Star had nothing to hold onto; She was hurtling towards the portal!

"HERO UP!" Star yelled in a panic. Once she was in her Lady Butterfly garb, she set the thrusters on her mechanical wing-pack to their highest power setting. However, the suction of the portal was growing faster by the second; She couldn't keep this up for much longer.

"Don't worry, Star! I'm coming!" The hoodie-wearing boy raced towards his flying girlfriend on Nachos, and extended his hand out to her. Right before she could take it, the worst possible thing happened; Her wing-pack, which was damaged by Commander Cobalt in last night's fight, suddenly lost power. A look of total horror befell Star's face, and mere seconds later, she was sucked into the mysterious black portal.

"STAR!" Marco cried out in terror. He rushed towards the portal to go after her, but the damaged collider suddenly broke down from the stress it was under. The portal suddenly closed, and Marco only flew through an empty ring.

"No, no, no, NO!" Marco's worst nightmare had just come true. It was the very thing he feared when magic was destroyed; He and Star would be separated by dimensions, without a way to see each other again. Now, the former princess was lost somewhere in the Multiverse, and the only way to find her was broken. While poor Marco began to tear up, there was a deafening silence. Most mortified of all was Kelly; Because of her reckless attempt to go home, her dear friend was lost with no way to return...


For six minutes, the Cleave Foundation's engineering team tried getting the collider back online, but their attempts were fruitless. The machine was far too damaged to run, let alone open a portal.

"So, you're telling me Star is gone?" Marco asked in an unusually hostile tone. While he was normally less irate, Star's life was on the line; Now that she was lost somewhere in the Multiverse, he was worried sick. While Dr. Reyes tried explaining the situation with complicated scientific jargon, Austin heard faint weeping, and saw what looked like a mint-green bush lying on the floor. Knowing how awful Kelly must have felt, he decided to console his crying friend.

"You okay, Kelly?" The young man asked, as he knelt down to get on equal footing with her. Kelly peeked her teary eyes out from her hair, and sniffled.

"S-S-Star's stuck in another dimension, and it's all my fault!" The Woolett whimpered. "I just wanted to go home, but now I made everything worse..."

"Don't say that about yourself! It's going to be okay." Austin kindly consoled, as he lightly patted her wooly hair. "I know you're worried about her; Trust me, I am, too. But if there's anyone who can survive a dangerous dimension, it's Star Butterfly."

"Attention, everyone! I have a solution!" Dr. Tran exclaimed, as she entered the room with a peculiar item. It looked like a white ray gun, with silvery metal accents. In addition, the barrel of said device was actually—you guessed it—a modified dimensional scissor blade.

"What is that?" Austin wondered, intrigued by the futuristic device.

"It's a little prototype we've been working on for the past few months. It's like the gateway collider, but in a much smaller package. We call it a Cleave Blaster."

"Does it actually work?" Marco retorted.

"Well, it's still in its testing phase, but it's our only shot at finding Miss Butterfly." Elisha explained. "Director, which dimension did she end up in?"

"According to the readings, it's something named Dimension X-103." Director Reyes replied, causing Marco to gasp. The name of that desolate place was one all too familiar to him.

"Oh no, that's Hekapoo's dimension!"

"Then we better hurry up and save Star." Kelly retorted.

"You don't understand! Time works differently in there. It's been six minutes, right?" Marco asked, to which the scientists affirmed. "Then Star's already been stuck there for...thirteen years..."

"My God..." Austin responded in shock, while Kelly began to panic; The situation was far worse than she thought. "We need to find her now, before it's too late. Fire up the portal!"

Dr. Tran set the Cleave Blaster to the correct setting, pointed it, and pressed the trigger. The modified bladed barrel began to glow blue, and fired out a black beam of energy, which formed into a black, diamond-shaped portal. For Marco, that portal brought back a lifetime of memories, ones that had faded away from his mind until now.

"In we go!" Marco pushed Austin and Kelly into the portal, then mounted Nachos and rode in after them. Now, the search for Star had taken them right into the danger zone...


The first thing our heroes felt was intense, scorching heat. They had landed in a truly harsh environment; A barren, unforgiving desert with snow-white sand and sweltering heat. The intense temperature caused Kelly to tie back her fleecy hair and peel off her sweater, revealing a magenta tank top underneath. Yet the hellish heat of this no man's land still plagued her nonetheless.

"Ugh, it's so dang hot! How can anything live here?" The Woolett complained, as she wiped the sweat from her brow.

"I'm used to it, trust me." A deep, gravelly voice retorted. Austin and Kelly both gasped in utter shock when they saw the rugged stranger standing behind them. He had a scar on his eye, a muscular physique, and a scissors tattoo on his wrist. As hard to believe as it was, this adult man was none other than Marco Diaz, the so-called "safe kid."

"M-m-ma-mar-" Kelly stammered, feeling incredibly flustered. The sight of her ex as a brawny hunk of a man caused her face to flush bright red, and her sweating intensified. The Woolett pulled her hair in front of her face, to hide her intense blushing.

"MARCO?" Austin was just as dumbfounded by his best friend's sudden transformation. The once lean and lanky teen was now thirty years old, and built like a Greek god. It was an impressive sight, one that even made Austin feel self-conscious about his own physique.

"Why are you an adult man?"

"Well, I spent a lot of time in this dimension, chasing after Hekapoo. It took me sixteen long and gritty years, but I caught all her clones, and earned my own scissors for completing that impossible task. Man, I miss her..."

"Woah..." Kelly droned in awe.

"Hekapoo, huh? Wasn't she the talking snow globe?"

"No, that was Omnitraxus Prime."

"What IS your life?" Austin cried. He was a crime-fighting superhero; Why were his solo adventures the least weird?

"Enough talk. Star could be anywhere, and she needs our help. So hop on Nachos, we've got a lot of searching to do." Marco commanded. It could take days, weeks, or even months to find the rebel princess, but Marco was willing to endure anything to find his lost love.

However, Kelly was frozen in place, and shuddered nervously. To stay on, she'd have to grab her former breakup buddy's taut, rippling abs. Her face turned even redder, as she impulsively clenched her teeth.

"Oh, move over!" Austin mounted the dragon-cycle, and held onto his friend's muscular torso. "Damn, he's ripped." The teen engineer then felt a pair of arms wrap around him; Kelly was holding onto him for support, and she looked much more comfortable than she was around Marco. Still, she had the faintest blush on her cheeks...

Nachos let out a roar, and took flight into the sky. As the two teens and their seasoned guide flew across the desert, Austin had a pressing question to ask his now-adult teammate.

"So, if you're actually thirty, and Star's just fifteen, doesn't that make you-"

"No, it's not like that, I swear!" Marco quickly retorted. When I leave this dimension, most of my memories fade away, like a hazy dream. But Star knew everything from what little time she spent here, so I guess you forget more the longer you stay."

"Hey, what are the dangers around here? I wanna be prepared." Kelly inquired.

"Too many to list. We're in the Ukushra Badlands; That means intense heat, sandstorms, bandits, giant scorpions, and fire-breathing vultures. But worst of all are-"

Suddenly, the ground below began to quake intensely, and the sandy dunes shifted. Without warning, a titanic, tan-colored worm with an enormous maw full of teeth leapt out from the ground, and nearly chomped up Nachos and her riders! Kelly and Austin screamed in horror, while Marco grimaced angrily.

"Sandworms." The rugged rogue snarled with vitriol. "We better get out of here, FAST!" Nachos picked up the pace, and the heroes raced across the skies to escape the desert predator. The sandworm reared its head up, and spat some chewed-up boulder bits at its prey. One of the rocks grazed Nachos' tail, causing the beast to lose control and start plummeting towards the ground.

Kelly held her human friend tighter, as they fell towards the ground. They landed in a sand dune, but lucky for them, Kelly's wooly hair worked as a natural shock absorber, rendering the two teens unharmed. As for Marco, who had fallen in a different part of the Badlands, Nachos was able to swoop down towards him, and rescued her master just in time.


The human and Woolett shrugged off their landing, and slowly struggled their way out of their sand dune. Kelly scoffed in disgust, as she beat the sand out of her thick, bushy hair.

"Ugh, I hate sand! It's coarse, and rough, and-"

"-Irritating. Yeah, I know." Austin replied. The two looked out and saw Marco fighting the sandworm in the distance, armed with naught but his trusty sword. "Come on, we gotta help Marco!" Austin sprinted towards the action, but stopped when he heard his ex-teammate yelp. She fell to her feet unconscious, and rolled down the sandy dune; A dart was lodged in her back!

"Kelly!" The teen vigilante cried, and rushed towards his fallen friend. "Show yourself!" He looked around the area, and saw a mysterious, dart gun-wielding assailant, whose face was obscured by a shawl, bandana and sand goggles. Whoever it was, they certainly weren't human; Their physiology more closely resembled a humanoid cockroach.

"HERO-" Before Austin could activate his Maroon armor, the bandit fired another dart into shoulder. Immediately, he felt himself grow weaker and wearier. "Uhhhh, crap." The boy felt everything around him go black, and he collapsed onto the white sand below...


Marco was still in a life-or-death struggle with the sandworm, but something in the distance caught his eye; A bandit on a dragon-cycle was flying away, and was towing his teammates in a net!

"Don't worry, guys, I'm coming!" Marco whistled loudly to signal Nachos, and he mounted his trusty steed. But before they could take off to save their friends, the sandworm slammed into them, knocking the duo back to the ground. The bandit was getting away, and as long as the menacing worm was around, Marco and Nachos were helpless to rescue them...


"Austin..." Although the leader of the Protectors was still knocked out, he could faintly hear his name being called by a familiar voice. Once he regained his consciousness, the boy groggily opened his eyes, and saw Kelly looming over him, with a worried look on her face.

"K-Kelly?" He grumbled, still weary from the effects of the knockout dart. He could hardly see the girl's face, as they were both trapped in a dark, muggy room.

"Good, you're finally awake!" The Woolett replied in relief, then assisted her friend so he could sit upright.

"...Where are we?"

"I don't know, do you? All I remember was Marco fighting that giant sandworm."

"No, I don't—wait a minute! I remember something! Someone hit you with a dart, and then—"

"OUT YOU GO!" A harsh, angry-sounding voice snapped. The locked doors of the room opened, revealing a curved stone hallway, which was illuminated by torchlight. "NOW!" The mysterious voice shouted. Kelly took Austin by the hand, and quickly darted into the hallway, dragging him with her.


"Wherever we are, we gotta get out of here. HERO UP!" To Austin's surprise, the Maroon suit did not magically form around his body. He looked at his right hand, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw his Magitech ring was gone!

"My ring! Where's my Hero Ring?"

"Stolen, just like all my stuff." Kelly retorted, as she dug her hands into her spacious hair. "No swords, no knives, not even my cell phone. Looks like we're screwed..."

The two teens apprehensively headed down the hallway, until they reached the main lobby. It looked like a bizarre alien locker room, where various species were picking out weapons and armor. There were tall, grey-skinned elves, stalwart one-eyed men, a handful of diminutive gnomes, an anthropomorphic cobra creature, a ghostly-looking Neverzonian wraith, and even a few humans...or perhaps they were mewmans. It was hard to tell.

"Look, everyone. Fresh meat!" A gnome with an eyepatch exclaimed. All eyes were now on Austin and Kelly, who were practically sweating bullets.

"A Woolett? Haven't seen one of them in forever." One of the older dark elves remarked.

"They won't lassst sssix minutesss out there." The snake person hissed. The two teens awkwardly headed through the room, and tried not to make eye contact with the leering strangers. They sat down on a bench in the corner, away from everyone else.

"Hey, I need to talk to you about something." Austin spoke. "We read the letter you left."

"Y-you did?" Kelly asked, when she had a realization. "Oh, of course. That's why you came."

"You shouldn't be so hard on yourself. You're just as welcome on this team as anyone else."

"But I can't help you! We could've stopped Cobalt Watch last night, but I just had to get cocky and fight the Commander. But he defeated me like I was nothing. I'm losing my edge..."

"How can you say that? You've been fighting since you were a toddler!"

"I'm not cut out for your team, anyways. You're the Earth-Ni Protectors, and I'm not from Earth-Ni." The Woolett whimpered, as she longingly looked down at the floor. However, Austin wasn't going to give up on her yet.

"You know who my favorite superhero was when I was a kid? Superman. Superman was a great and mighty hero that protected the Earth and everyone on it. But he wasn't from Earth; He was an alien from another planet."

"Are you going somewhere with this?"

"What I'm saying is that you don't have to be from Earth-Ni to protect it. You can do good things, no matter where you're from!" Austin exclaimed, causing Kelly to smile. "Besides, losing isn't everything. I've gotten my butt kicked plenty of times, but I still get back up! And trust me, you will, too, just like you always do."

By now, Kelly was swelling with pride, thanks to her teammate's heartfelt words. She'd been feeling down in the dumps ever since her breakup with Marco, and her mood only worsened after the Cleaving. But now, she was beginning to feel better about herself, and had who but Austin Capers to thank for that. She even contemplated giving him a grateful hug, but the pair of newfound friends were then rudely interrupted by a hulking, teal-skinned monster with three eyes.

"Look what we got here. A couple of tasty snacks." The three-eyed lout snarled. He lumbered towards the two teens, and Kelly tried to defend herself; However, he managed to overpower both Protectors, and pinned them against the wall. Their hearts raced as they saw his savage, ravenous visage; It looked like this was the end, when a mysterious stranger entered the room.

"Let them go."

The whole room fell dead silent, and the vicious brute turned his head to see who dared to call him out. To the surprise of both him and his soon-to-be snacks, it was an adult woman with blonde, braided shoulder-length hair, deep blue eyes, and a claw-mark scar on her shoulder, which was likely left by one of the dimension's deadly predators. This barbarian wore a tan minidress with bronze armor plating, knee-high combat boots and copper bracelets, along with a necklace with a crescent-shaped gem. The mystery woman had a fierce and determined expression, as she stared down the imposing brute. Any guesses to who this might be?

"Forget you small fries. THAT'S a good meal." The heavyset fiend dropped the pair of teens, and stalked towards the barbarian woman with a lecherous grin on his face. "You're gonna be delicio-"

That was all the brute could say before receiving the beatdown of a lifetime. Despite being the larger opponent, he was no match for his would-be prey's rapid strikes and heavy blows. After a swift kick to the gut and a jab to the throat, the monstrous maneater fell to the ground with a thud.

"Anyone else?" The blonde barbarian looked at the other creatures in the room, who all nervously backed away or bowed their heads in respect...and fear. As for our heroes, Austin was completely awestruck, while Kelly was terrified. They both knew who the mystery lady truly was, and after overcoming his stupor, Austin called out her name.

"...Star?"


Back in the Badlands, Marco was still locked in battle with a beast hundreds of times his size; The dreaded sandworm. It was a battle of David and Goliath, and the former was on the losing end. He got close enough to slash the sand-swimming leviathan with his sword, but as sharp as it was, it left not even a scratch on the worm's impenetrable hide.

Nachos let out a snarl, and flew towards the sandworm to help her master win the fight. She toasted the worm with her fire breath, but the creature reared up, and spat a sticky substance towards the dragon-cycle. It hit her dead-on, and pinned her to a rock. The reptilian steed struggled to free herself, but alas, she was stuck.

"Nachos!" Marco cried out. He quickly headed towards his noble steed, but he was nearly hit by a lunge from the giant worm. The shock of the impact knocked him off his feet, and he tumbled into a sand dune. As the rugged warrior coughed up sand, he had a sudden realization.

"I can't do this alone. Time to call in the big gun." Now, it was time to call for help in a most unconventional manner. Marco leapt towards a large red cactus, and plunged his sword directly into it, soaking the blade in its mystical nectar. Then, he lowered his sword towards the ground, and drew a large, ancient-looking rune symbol in the sand. But what was the meaning of this bizarre behavior? Summoning a mighty warrior, who also happened to be an old friend...

The sandworm began charging towards Marco, when the rune began to glow bright white. Gray storm clouds appeared out of nowhere, blocking out the scorching sun. Then, Marco smiled as he heard the rumbling of thunder. All of a sudden, a bolt of divine lightning struck the massive worm right in the back, knocking it out cold. Marco looked up in satisfaction, and saw a familiar muscular woman wielding an enormous axe. It was Brunzetta; A powerful goddess of thunder, and an old ally from his greatest adventures.

"Yammy, is that you?" The thunder goddess leapt off the body of the unconscious sandworm, and shook the ground as she landed in front of her friend.

"Hey, Brunzetta."

"It's been eons since I last saw you around here. How come you never visit anymore?"

"It's a long story. Anyways, I gotta ask you something really important. Thirteen years ago, something horrible happened; My girlfriend Star got stranded in this dimension. Is...is she still alive?" Marco sighed, his nerves wracked over his lover's fate. But to his surprise, Brunzetta began to laugh tremendously.

"Alive? Understatement of the century! Oh, the adventures we've been on are the stuff of legends!" Now, Marco was feeling much more relieved. Star was okay, and by the looks of it, she was doing rather well. Now, all he had to do was find her.

"Oh, that's awesome! Do you know where she is now?"

"I do, but you're not gonna like it. Rumor says she was captured by the slavers who roam this desert. Now, she awaits a gory fate in the Ukushra Arena." Brunzetta explained, causing her friend to gasp. He was infuriated about his girlfriend's fate, but that anecdote made him realize something.

"Slavers? Arena? That must be where Austin and Kelly were taken! Come on, we've got to save them!"

"I was thinking the same thing." Brunzetta pointed her axe at the rocky outcropping Nachos was stuck to, and fired a weak bolt of lightning that freed her from her sticky prison. Nachos quickly flew up to her beloved buddy, who affectionately patted her head. Now that the two heroes knew what to do, it was time to head out on a quest to save their friends...


Meanwhile in the arena's gladiatorial quarters, the now adult Star was frozen still. It had been over a decade since she last saw her friends, but at long last, she was finally reunited with some familiar faces. The woman quickly ran towards the two teens and hugged them tightly. Kelly nervously shuddered, while Austin blushed profusely; Now he understood how Kelly felt about Marco's adult form.

"It's been so long, but you finally came back!" Star exclaimed, then let go of her pair of pals.

"N-nice to see you again, Star." Austin awkwardly retorted, still noticeably flustered by his old crush's mature new form. However, Star noticed Kelly cowering in the corner. Something was wrong with the worried Woolett, and it was her job as a friend to find out why.

"Kelly, are you okay? I beat the crap out of that jerk, he's not gonna eat you."

"Yeah, but I'm next!" Kelly cried.

"What? Why would you say that, I'd never hurt you!"

"'Cause I'm the one who got you stuck in this deathworld for sixteen years! You should be furious!"

"First off, I've only been here thirteen years...I think. And yes, I was angry when I first got here. But what happened was an accident. All you wanted to do was go back home." Star kindly replied.

"And look where that got you." The green-haired girl sighed, when Star placed her hand on her shoulder.

"Don't beat yourself up, Kelly. Look, Marco spent sixteen years in this hellscape, and he had the choice to leave! But he braved this place for me; If he could do it, then I can too. In fact, Marco's been what's kept me going all this time. Where is he?"

"We got separated from him in a sandworm attack, and ended up here." Austin replied, disappointing the mewman warrior. "So, how'd you end up in this dump?"

"Well, I was out exploring with a troupe of singing nomads, when we were captured by slavers. They took me to the palace of Lerinax, the evil emperor of Ukushra."

"Evil emperor, huh? What's he like?" Kelly wondered.

"Horrible. He's a disgusting, greedy, gluttonous slob who hoards precious resources while his people starve! Worst of all, that wretch tried to make me part of his harem, but I fought back. So, he sent me here to die."

"That's horrible!"

"I don't regret it. There's only one man for me, and his name is Marco Diaz." Star purred, catching the intrigue of the other gladiators.

"Did you say Marco Diaz?" One of the gladiators asked.

"The Rider in Red? I thought he was just a myth!" Another one exclaimed.

"Yeah, he's my boyfriend." The mewman retorted, much to the warriors' disbelief.

"Star, what are they talking about?" Austin queried.

"Well, because of all his awesome adventures, Marco became a legend out here. See?" Star gestured to a carving on a nearby wall, which depicted the adventures of the Rider in Red; He was shown riding on Nachos, receiving his scissors from Hekapoo, and slaying a fiery boar with Brunzetta. Austin and Kelly were both amazed by the escapades of their mutual friend.

"I was in that last one, but no one believes me." The warrior princess retorted, when a sudden announcement blared through the halls of the gladiators' quarters.

"ATTENTION ALL GLADIATORS! THE BATTLE WILL BEGIN IN FIVE MINUTES!" The announcer boomed. Star then helped her teenage friends up, and began heading towards the armory.

"Gear up, you two. It's time for us to fight for our lives..."


The Ukushra Arena was a truly massive place. Like the Colosseum of Ancient Rome, this complex center could seat tens of thousands of people, and that it did. Most of the arena's patrons were the poor and hungry masses who inhabited this desert city. While most of them lived in poverty, they were kept entertained by the bloody spectacles shown here. As said best by the ancient poet Juvenal, "Give them bread and circuses and they'll never revolt."

While the peasants and peons sat in the highest rows, Emperor Lerinax sat comfortably in a royal box seat close to the action. He was short, pale, and quite fat for someone who lived in a desert; This he owed to the copious amounts of food and water he hoarded for himself. As for his species, he was a pointy-eared dark elf, although he was much shorter than most of his brethren. To top off his lavish lifestyle, he wore a golden crown and an exquisite red robe.

"Subjects of Ukushra! Today, you shall experience a glorious spectacle! My mighty brigade of warriors and vicious beasts will destroy the filth that plagues our society. Rebels! Prisoners! Outsiders! But worst of all is a special kind of menace; Star Butterfly, a mad maniac who rejected my hospitality, and claimed to be the lover of the mythical Rider in Red." Lerinax snarled hatefully. He was furious with Star for rebelling against him, and wanted nothing more than to see her dead.

"Today, they will all die in grisly ways, as punishment for their treachery. RELEASE THE PRISONERS!"


At the Emperor's command, the arena doors opened. Star, Austin and all the other gladiators walked out of their quarters, and stepped out into the scorching hot sunlight. Star had equipped herself with an enormous spiked mace like the one she wielded on the football field so many years ago, while her younger pals took what they could from the armory.

Kelly had equipped herself with armor much like one a Roman gladiator would wear, which included a Gallic-looking helmet. She also wielded a sword as tall as she was; It wasn't her prized ancestral blade, but it was close enough.

As for Austin, he was wearing armor resembling a samurai's, with a ragged black cape and a kabuto helmet that concealed most of his face. He even got his hands on a katana-like sword; He didn't have much experience with blades that weren't attached to his wrists, but this was life or death; Hopefully, the skills he already knew would be enough.

Star glared towards the greedy Emperor, who scoffed at his would-be harem girl. The elf reached into a pot, and devoured a whole frog alive; Then, he grinned devilishly at his captive prisoners.

"LET THE SHOW BEGIN!"

Now, the fight was on. Two more doors on the other side of the arena opened; Fully armored warriors with swords and spears marched out of the first door, while several vicious, alien-looking beasts leapt out of the second. There was a trio of predators resembling reptilian panthers, and a huge red animal resembling a cross between a buffalo and a piranha, with horns as wide as a pickup truck! To Austin and most of the gladiators, the opponents seemed overwhelming. But Kelly felt herself get excited; Fighting was her favorite pastime, and now she could do it in front of a crowd of thousands.

"Well, this is just great. We have to fight a whole army, and I don't have my tech."

"Don't worry, I got your back." Kelly encouraged her human friend.

"And I've got yours." Star added. The beasts and warriors began to charge, so Star let out a war cry and led her fellow gladiators into a great and glorious battle...


Austin and Kelly used their swords to fight side-by-side against armored warriors, all while staying close to Star and the other gladiators on their side. Austin was able to disarm a warrior's sword with his katana, then knocked him down with a swift kick to the knee. The teen gadgeteer was holding his own, much to the surprise of both Kelly and himself.

"Wow, where'd you learn to swordfight?"

"I did a lot of lightsaber duels at Comic-Con."

"I don't know what either of those are." Kelly retorted, when she saw a scaly feline beast charge towards Austin. "LOOK OUT!"

The young man quickly turned around just as the snarling predator pounced at him, but Star jumped in and struck it with her mighty mace, sending it flying.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it, it's just a repti-lion. This one time, Brunzetta and I-" The warrior woman was about to ramble, when a horde of Lerinax's warriors rushed towards her with their swords and spears. Star hollered loudly, and leapt into the fray to kick their armored butts, while her friends continued to fight for their lives.

Kelly spun around like a whirling tornado, and took down an entire platoon of goons with her sword. That attack was "The Warrior's Whirlwind," a Woolhairdo move, and one of Kelly's personal favorites. She looked to see Austin struggling against an imperial soldier with a shield, so she leapt up, landed behind him, and knocked him down with her sword.

"Nice moves, Kelly!" Austin remarked, making the Woolett smile. However, her happy expression faded when the ground began to shake.

"It's a gorechomper! Run for your lives!" Cried a knife-wielding gnome. The red piranha-bull beast charged through the arena, ramming and trampling anything in its way, be it ragtag gladiators or imperial soldiers. Even worse, it was heading right towards Star!

"We gotta help her! What do we do?" Kelly cried.

"...I've got an idea." Austin whispered his on-the-fly plan into his friend's ear, and she nodded in agreement. Austin picked up the fallen soldier's shield, and held it over her head. Kelly moved back to get a running start, then leapt onto his shield. The teen vigilante pushed it upwards right as she jumped off it, launching the Woolett high into the air. Kelly let out a yell, and plunged the blade deep into the gorechomper's back, then bulldogged the beast into the ground, where it landed mere inches from Star's feet.

The audience immediately erupted into applause due to Kelly's stunning takedown, which made the girl's heart race. She'd been feeling down in the dumps for so long, especially after her humiliating defeat at Cobalt's hands. But now, thousands of people were cheering her on, like she'd always dreamed...

On the other hand, Emperor Lerinax was absolutely enraged. The gladiators he sentenced to death, which included his reluctant bride, were winning. So, he decided to call for his last resort.

"Bring out my champion! Bring out KOSHAN THE BONE-CRUSHER!"

A sudden symphony of booming horns blared, and a third pair of gates opened in the arena, releasing a dramatic cloud of smoke. Dozens of drummers pounded away, as the audience repeatedly chanted the champion's name.. A hulking, warrior with four arms and rough, stony skin leapt out of the gates, and shook the ground with a mighty stomp. Koshan wielded a huge sword, a battle-axe, an enormous spiked flail and a war hammer in each of his four hands; With a stunning streak of wins against his foes, he truly was the Emperor's deadliest warrior.

Six gladiators charged towards Koshan to try and take him on, but the four-armed warrior made short work of each of them. Even Star was shocked by how strong of a fighter he was. Once he was finished with the lesser foes, Koshan leapt up in the air, and headed right towards the trio of Protectors! He slammed his hammer into the ground as he landed, but the heroes all leapt out of the way; Now, the fight was on!

Star, Kelly and Austin all worked together to take on the Bone-Crusher, but the Emperor's favorite fighter was a fierce and formidable foe. It was three fighters against four arms, which clearly wasn't enough. Koshan used his flail to knock Star away, nearly crushed Kelly with his hammer, and used his battle axe to destroy Austin's katana, leaving him unarmed. As the weary warriors writhed on the ground, the champion stepped towards their adult leader. As a monster of few words, Koshan remained silent; He only stared at his defeated foe with disdain, and raised his sword up to slay his master's rebellious foe.

But before he could bring about the blow, a loud and ferocious roar came from the sky, catching everyone's attention. Everyone in the arena gasped in shock, as they had seen a mythical being; Riding atop his trusty dragon-cycle was who but Marco Diaz, the legendary Rider in Red.

"Marco?" Star was absolutely floored by her boyfriend's dramatic arrival, but in the best way possible. She waited thirteen years for this moment, and at long last, it had finally arrived.

Marco leapt off of Nachos' back, and kicked Koshan square in the face, knocking the gruesome goliath out cold. As the juggernaut fell to the hard arena ground with a thud, Marco brushed himself off, and saw a sight that took his breath away; After all that time in Hekapoo's realm, the rebel princess had grown into an adult woman, and she looked absolutely stunning.

"...Star?" Marco asked, still in disbelief of what he was seeing. Star sprinted towards her rugged lover as fast as she could, and embraced him in a passionate kiss. Marco reciprocated by hugging his beloved girlfriend, who fought back tears as she embraced her long-lost love. As they cherished their long-awaited reunion, the audience began to clap and cheer tremendously.

"Awwww..." Austin and Kelly droned in unison.

While our heroes were happy to be together again, Emperor Lerinax was seething with jealousy and rage. After eons of absence, the fabled Rider in Red had returned to the Badlands, and Star really was his lover. That meant the Rider would be furious when he found out the demagogue's depraved intentions for her. Fearing a grisly fate at Marco's hands, Lerinax made a last-ditch effort to kill his hated foes.

"RELEASE THE RABID PACK!"

A heavily bolted gate on the east side of the arena flung open on the Emperor's command, and out of the doors charged a pack of four dozen diseased and abnormally aggressive repti-lions. The vicious predators hissed and snarled, as they sprinted towards their prey. While the now unarmed Austin began to panic, Kelly, Marco and Star all drew their weapons, prepared to fight a battle they may not even win. But right as things looked their bleakest, gray clouds began to form over the arena, along with a sound that announced the turning of the tides; Thunder.

Like a bolt of wild lightning, Brunzetta leapt from the clouds whilst yelling a mighty war cry, and slammed her enchanted axe into the ground, causing an electrified earthquake that killed the entire War Pack in one fell swoop. The audience cheered even harder now, including Star, who had a noticeable blush on her face.

"Why's everyone in this dimension so freakishly hot?" Austin cried, causing Kelly to shrug in response.

"Alright, it's finally safe. Let's get out of here." Marco spoke. The War Pack was dead, and the imperial soldiers surrendered; They were home free.

"Not yet, Marco. I've got a score to settle..."


In the Ukushra Arena's imperial suite, Emperor Lerinax was panicking like a lunatic. He threw everything he could at Star and her friends, but they trumped all his warriors and beasts, thanks to the divine intervention of a dragon rider and a thunder goddess. The diminutive dark elf took as much food and water as he could carry, and tried fleeing the arena; However, he tripped and fell on the floor, just as Marco and Star flew up to his suite on Nachos. Marco marched over to the tiny tyrant, and held him up by the collar of his robe.

"Unhand me, you hulking brute!" Lerinax snapped, as he tried to scratch Marco's face.

"Who's this little miscreant?"

"Emperor Lerinax. A greedy, power-hungry, blood-thirsty dictator who tried to make me his slave." Star snarled. Infuriated by the emperor's audacity, Marco decked Lerinax in the face, threw him to the ground, and whipped out his sword to punish his foe.

"Easy there, wildman." The warrior woman purred, while stroking her lover's shoulder. "I got a better idea in mind." Star strutted over to the balcony, and called out to her divine friend.

"BRUNZETTA, DO THE THING!"

"You got it, Butterfly!" The thunder goddess plunged the handle of her axe into the ground, and the enchanted weapon vibrated, attracting an unexpected guest. The earth trembled, and the sandworm from before burst out of the ground!

"Oh crap, not again!" Kelly cried. Luckily, the creature was under Brunzetta's charm, and wouldn't make any innocents its dinner. The Emperor, on the other hand...

"NO! Let me go, please, let me go! I'll give you food, water, treasure, I'll even make you my grand vizier! I'll give you ANYTHING!" The Emperor shouted, as he tried fighting his way out of Marco's tight grip.

"I've got everything I need right here." Star leapt towards Lerinax, and kicked him off the balcony, knocking him right into the sandworm's toothy maw. After chewing the demagogue up something fierce, the desert leviathan spat his crown out into the crowd. Needless to say, there was much rejoicing from the downtrodden populace he treated like dirt. As the people of Ukushra celebrated the tyrant's death ,Star and Marco watched in satisfaction.

"That cheering is music to my ears." The former princess retorted, then turned to her muscular lover. "Marco, I've missed you so much."

"Glad to have you back, Star." The cleaved couple then shared yet another kiss, as they were overjoyed to be together again. Victory was sweet, but their reunion was even sweeter...


After the harrowing gladiator match, our heroes were heading back to the portal the Cleave Foundation opened. Marco was flying on Nachos, as a satisfied Star held onto his abs, while Austin and Kelly hitched a ride on the sandworm Brunzetta was controlling. As they rode across the sands, Kelly was still gushing about the thrilling adventure she had been a part of.

"Man, that was AWESOME! Remember when I took down that monster, and everyone started cheering for me?" The Woolett reminisced, as Austin nodded in agreement. "This place is so fun..."

"You're not from around here, are you?" Brunzetta asked rhetorically, causing Kelly to smile and nod. Moments later, the party of five arrived near the portal home, which was thankfully still open due to this dimension's temporal dilution.

"Alright, this is your stop. Now if you excuse me, adventure calls. BRUNZETTA OUT!" The thunder goddess disappeared in a flash of lightning, much to the awe of everyone around her.

"She's so awesome..." Star gushed, her cheeks still a little red. As for the sandworm she charmed, it no longer had any interest in devouring the heroes. As the leviathan dove into the desert sands, Austin and Kelly started heading back to the portal. But oddly enough, Star and Marco had stayed put. The rebel princess was playfully stroking her boyfriend's rock hard abs, while he had his hands placed firmly on her hips, causing her to giggle.

"Hey, lovebirds! Aren't you coming with us?" Kelly inquired.

"You kids go on without us. I've got thirteen years of missed Marco-time to make up for." The mewman warrior purred, then yelped with joy when Marco picked her up in his powerful arms.

"We'll catch up to you later." Marco added. The two dimensional explorers then flew off on Nachos, going to who-knows-where. Not even they knew their next destination, but they knew for sure that wherever they went, they'd go there together.

"They are way out of our league..." Austin commented, still shocked at how physically...different the couple was here, as opposed to on Earth-Ni.

"Indeed they are. Now let's get out of here, I'm broiling!" Kelly retorted. As the pair of teen heroes headed towards the portal, Austin had a pressing question to ask his fluffy friend.

"So, you still wanna go back home? It's okay if you want to."

"Thanks, but I'm staying with you. Earth-Ni's in deep trouble, and I'm not coming home until we've saved it."

"Then welcome back to the Earth-Ni Protectors." Austin warmly replied, causing Kelly to smile. While Hekapoo's realm was a deadly place, Kelly came into it unsure, afraid and ashamed; But after that harrowing quest, she accepted both herself, and her newfound place in the Earth-Ni Protectors...


As mentioned before, time in Dimension X-103 is a peculiar thing. This fact was learned by the Cleave Foundation's scientists, when they saw Austin and Kelly walk out of the same portal they entered, in what felt like a tenth of a second.

"Woo! Earth-Ni, sweet Earth-Ni!" Austin exclaimed.

"Back already?" Mr. Burroughs asked in disbelief, when Star and Marco, who were back to their regular teenage forms, walked out of the portal merely two seconds later. They were both carrying bags of stuff they brought from the "abs dimension," with Nachos following closely behind. .

"What were you up to?" Kelly wondered.

"Oh, not much. We brought peace and prosperity to the Ukushran Empire, helped find water for the people of the Badlands, and...had a little alone time..." Star purred. "We even got you two some special gifts!"

"Here's your hero ring back, Austin. You won't believe how long it took us to find it." Marco handed the metal ring to Austin, who was incredibly relieved that his prized armor was safe and sound.

"And for Kelly, we found all your stolen stuff!" Star handed the Woolett a bag of swords, knives, and other things, including a huge sword with a blade made from a strange crystalline metal.

"Hey, I don't recognize this one."

"We saw Cobalt destroy your family sword, so we stopped at H-Poo's old forge, and made a new one just for you!" Marco happily replied.

"With pure, unbreakable Neverzonian crysteel!" Star added. "So, do you like it?"

At first, Kelly was speechless due to such a thoughtful gesture; But once she regained her composure, she engulfed the couple and Austin in a tight embrace. "You guys are the best!" The bushy-haired girl cooed.

"Best month ever..." Star thought to herself. Her experiences with Marco in that dimension were unforgettable...but with the nature of said realm, she'd forget most of those memories by tomorrow morning...


Hours after the heroes had left, the Cleave Foundation scientists were intensely analyzing the peculiar qualities of Hekapoo's realm. Dr. Tran and the other lesser scientists were running tests with the Cleave Blaster, while Director Reyes perused an entry on said world from Alphonse's multiversal atlas.

"Strange how time works in this dimension. A month in there is two seconds out here." Dr. Tran noted.

"Very strange indeed, Dr. Tran." Mr. Burroughs replied.

"Now that we know the Cleave Rays work, let's start making more." Director Reyes commanded. As Elisha and the others headed out to the lab to make more blasters, Burroughs secretly snuck out into an empty room, and pulled out his phone to call an unknown number.

"Alert the Dragonfly. I've made a discovery that will win the war..."


And that's the end of Chapter 21! I had a hell of a time revisiting the Neverzone, as it's one of the most interesting settings in the entire SVTFOE-verse. With science taking magic's place, I took inspiration from some desert-related sci-fi series when making the Ukushra Badlands; Star Wars, Mad Max and Dune were all major influences on the scorching new setting. Adult Star was fun to write as well; I'm genuinely surprised that no other Star Vs fic I know of has done that. Overall, this was one of my most favorite chapters to write, and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

Side note: Some of you may be wondering why Janna and Tom didn't show up in this chapter. Well, don't you worry and don't you fret, because they're getting their own synchronous chapter in the next release! (Like how "Bogbeast of Boggabah" and "Total Eclipsa the Moon" took place at the same time) So stay tuned till next week for a magical new chapter: "Janna and the Queens!"