Well, everyone, this is it. Twenty-six chapters and more than a year's worth of writing has lead up to this; The grand finale. The final clash between the forces of good, and the forces of evil. So, without further ado...it's time for one hell of a battle.
"MAROON AND THE EARTH-NI PROTECTORS!"
BOOK THREE: RESURGENCE
CHAPTER TEN: EARTH-NI UNITED
War! Across the merged world of Earth-Ni, various cleaved regions are under attack from the ruthless Cobalt Empire. Both worlds would be helpless against such sinister subjugation, but yet there is hope...as long as there are heroes. Thanks to the efforts of the Earth-Ni Protectors and their allies, the innocent people of this planet have a fighting chance, especially in the town of Echo Creek.
By now, most of the invading Imperials were humbled by the combined forces of the cleaved city. Valiant knights and National Guard soldiers fought side-by-side against the Empire's robot soldiers, while Pony Head and her sisters impaled them on their horns. Sabrina, ever the unlikely heroine, helped defend a shelter for civilians, using the armor and weapons of her ex's make. Buff Frog and his monster buddies valiantly attacked their foes with brute strength and bravado, while their old master Ludo, now wearing his classic skull and robes, rode around on Bird and Spider. The off-kilter kappa cackled maniacally while brandishing his staff, and whacked the heads of troopers webbed up by his arachnid mount.
In the air, military helicopters were firing upon Imperial aircraft. While they were outgunned by the Empire's Magitech might, they had an ace in the hole; The former queen of Mewni was on their side. Moon the Undaunted glided through the skies like an angel of light, and tangled one of the aircrafts in a plethora of magical neon tendrils. Then, she swung said vehicle around like a flail, and hurled it into another, causing both VTOLS and their pilots to go up in flames.
Once all of the Empire's air support was down, Moon landed like a meteor in the streets, causing a shockwave that blew all the surrounding Cobots to bits. Another mechanical menace charged towards the queen, when the blade of a chainsaw suddenly burst through its chest; Then, its metal head was crushed like a soda can, by who but the ruthless Septarian mercenary, Rasticore. Moon quickly prepared to strike the lizard down, before he could make another attempt on her life.
"Wait, don't hurt me!" The reptilian exclaimed, much to Moon's surprise. "Look, you don't like me, and I sure as hell don't like you. But if we don't join forces, those clankers'll kill us all!"
"You're calling a truce?" The former queen couldn't believe what she was hearing. A Butterfly and a Septarian working together? It sounded ludicrous!
"No! We'll just agree not to fight each other till the invaders are stopped."
"So, a truce."
Rasticore grumbled begrudgingly, and Moon shook her unlikely ally's scaly hand. While the Cobalt Invasion was horrible for everyone on Earth-Ni, it had one positive effect; It united age-old enemies against a greater evil...
An enormous teal monster with dark hair and great fangs pushed the last Slayer to the ground, causing his compatriots to cheer; By the minute, the Empire's army became weaker and fewer; By now, all their forces were just about dealt with.
"That seems to be last of them." snorted Buff Frog, who had regrouped with several other notable figures in the battle; Moon, Ludo, Rasticore, Princess Pony Head, and Dr. Tran, plus her Cleave Foundation cohorts. The sharp-minded scientist observed the live feed of the other cleaved hotspots, and noticed something relieving.
"The other merged regions are improving as well, except for one; Darby Glen."
"The readings there are off the charts! Whatever's going on there is worse than anything else on the planet." Another scientist spoke. The group of ragtag defenders viewed the section displaying the Glen, and saw a yellow portal open; Out of it came her daughter, along with her five loyal teammates.
"It's the Earth-Ni Protectors! They're gonna save the day!" Ludo squawked excitedly.
"But they can't do it alone. I won't let them." Moon spoke valiantly, and prepared to summon a portal to the brutal battlefront; However, she was quickly interrupted by Dr. Tran.
"Not yet, Mrs. Butterfly. The Protectors need all the help they can get." Elisha commented. She pulled out a rack with five Cleave Rays, and took one for herself; Her helpers gave the others to Ludo, Buff Frog, Pony and Rasticore.
"Whuf arr theeth thimmies thor?" Pony Head asked, although it was hard to tell what she said, since she was holding the device with her tongue.
"I need you all to go across Earth-Ni, across the Multiverse, and find anyone willing to fight the Empire's tyranny. The fate of this world and countless others is at stake." With that being said, the Foundation's chosen team readied their Cleave Rays, and made portals to other far-off places, as Moon used her innate magic powers to create one herself. Then, the unlikely heroes went on their way, on a search for whatever help they could find...
Terror and panic ran rampant in the land of Darby Glen. What was once a small and unassuming English village was thrust into chaos, once the Cleaving brought royal nobles, impoverished peasants, and frightening monsters into the mix. The disorder and disarray had a most dire effect; It caused Wanda Watts to fall from grace.
Now, the vengeance-seeking empress sought retribution on the ones she hated so, and that she did; The attack on the Glen was far worse than any other in the world. While Slayers, VTOLS and other nasty machinations rampaged through the streets, the largest and most heavily armed warship in the Empire's fleet reigned terror from above. This enormous and terrifying weapon was the Malcolm, named so after the Dragonfly's beloved husband, now departed from this Earth-Ni.
The only thing standing between Darby Glen's populace and complete annihilation were the Protectors, who were battling Cobalt forces in the city streets. They had only spent eight hours in the Neverzone, resting as their soreness softened. However, they only waited a short while; Despite the dimension's compressed chronology, the thought of the invasion left our heroes sleepless. After they felt spry enough to fight, they left without eating, drinking, or finding help; Earth-Ni was in grave danger, and every second counted...
While hell rained upon the cleaved village, the Empire's glorious leader was in a most unexpected place; Alone, in a grassy field outside the city. Wanda walked across the meadow, hardly paying mind to the carnage unfolding around her; Cold rain sprinkled lightly upon her unarmored shoulders, as she slowly stepped towards a mausoleum made of marble. Etched in the exquisite stone were two names that meant more to her than any else:
"MALCOLM WATTS, 1973 - 2017." "ANDREW WATTS, 2011 - 2017." - "A husband and a son, too good for this world, or any other..."
Wanda sighed deeply, and gently placed her fingers upon the mausoleum wall. A silent anguish ran cold through the woman's body; Underneath her cruel, armored exterior lied someone still grieving for the loss of her loved ones.
"I'm sorry...sorry that I couldn't save you. But this is your retribution; When I'm done, no one will have to die like you..."
"They wouldn't have wanted this, Wanda."
Shocked and angered by the presence of an interloper, Wanda whipped the Dragonfly Wand out of its holster, and aimed it towards the stranger standing on the roof; Maroon, the leader of the Earth-Ni Protectors. She charged up a blast to smite the superhero, but couldn't go through with it; Not if it meant destroying the monument she made to honor her family.
"Hear me out, one human to another." Austin pleaded. Wanda lowered her wand, and looked up at the masked vigilante; He might as well humor her before his inevitable death.
"I know what you've gone through, and I feel your pain. No parent should ever have to bury their child."
"I didn't. There was nothing left for me to bury." Wanda shakily replied. As evil as she was, Austin empathized with her grieving state; After all, he now had lost both of his parents.
"Look around you, Wanda. There's terror, conquest, and bloodshed happening all around the world, all because of you."
"And your father, if I'm not mistaken. Besides, these...things don't belong here. To restore the natural order, they must be exterminated."
"Do you realize what you're doing? It's not just mewmans and monsters you're hurting; Innocent human lives are at risk! Humans like Malcolm! Humans like Andy!" This was the wrong thing for Austin to say, as it provoked Wanda into blasting him off the roof of the mausoleum; Luckily, his reinforced chestplate bore most of the damage.
While Austin began to get up, Wanda placed the wand to her chest, transforming it into her upgraded Dragonfly armor. She quickly formed hand-cannons to destroy her hated foe, but he quickly darted out of the way with his rocket boots, as well as a few smaller jets built into his chest plate, which certainly weren't there before.
Unbeknownst to the Dragonfly, Austin had a nifty trick up his sleeve. During the team's time-out in DX-103, Austin worked tirelessly in the derelict ruins of Fortress Cobalis, upgrading his weapons and armor with whatever scraps he could scrounge from the Empire's abandoned base. Thanks to his efforts and some modified Cobalt tech, he now stood more of a chance against the Master of Magitech.
Dragonfly activated her hard-light wings, summoned an arm-mounted plasma blade, and quickly flew towards her helmeted enemy. Maroon barely avoided her slash with a combat roll, flew up in the air with his hover-jets, and wildly shot at her with his wrist-mounted blasters, which could now fire in rapid succession. However, the crimson pulses of energy hardly scathed her upgraded armor.
Since the blasters weren't working, Austin switched it up, and used a brand-new gadget. He rotated his utility bracelets, and snapped his fingers, firing off a series of heat-seeking darts. The tiny bolts hit the most vulnerable parts of Wanda's armor, and delivered powerful proton-shocks, which managed to stun her. Not wanting to waste a perfect opening, Maroon rushed in and savagely struck Wanda with his wrist-blades, trying to break through her tough outer shell. However, Wanda quickly regained her mobility, and knocked the hero into the air with a powerful blow. Once he fell to the ground, she tried to impale him on her venomous tail, but he rolled over at the last second, avoiding a grisly fate.
Maroon quickly got up with a back handspring, kicked Wanda back with both feet, and landed in a three-point stance. "What's with the killer tail? Dragonflies don't have stingers!"
"Yet they're the greatest hunters in the world." Dragonfly fired rapidly at the hero with her hand-cannons, and he hurriedly continued evading them, even though his stamina was beginning to deplete.
"Wanda, stop! Think of all the innocent people you're hurting!" Austin cried, and ducked his head away from his foe's attack. "Think of the men! Think of the women! Think of the children!" Still, the Dragonfly did not relent. "Think of the puppies, and the kittens, and I'M RUNNING OUT OF THINGS TO SAY!"
Then, like a bolt from the blue, Wanda was struck by a Rainbow Rocket Blast, knocking her away. Into the fray came Lady Butterfly, just in the nick of time. Marco quickly rushed to her side, as did Tom, Janna, and Kelly. While Austin was dealing with the Dragonfly, the other five heroes were repelling the Watch's forces, until all the Glen's civilians were evacuated. Now that the village was empty, Wanda was in for a world of hurt...
"Give it up, Watts. We've got you surrounded." Tom spoke, as a fiery aura emanated from his fists. Janna equipped her sticks, Marco and Kelly unsheathed their swords, and Star readied a Rainbow Fist; The Protectors were poised for one hell of a battle. Wanda, however, was indifferent to the heroes' show of force.
"Bring it on."
The heroes let out their battle cries, and charged towards the Magitech menace. Star, Tom and Austin used their ranged attacks to strike her, but Dragonfly crossed her arms and tanked the blasts. To send the pesky Protectors on the defensive, Wanda launched five heat-seeking missiles, causing her foes to disperse. Star cast a barrier spell to block two of the rockets, Tom destroyed two more with his fiery discharge, and the last one nearly hit Austin, but Kelly sliced through it with her sword, saving his life.
When the smoke cleared, Marco leapt towards Wanda from behind, and kicked her twice in rapid succession. He clashed against her armor with his sword, and she tried blasting him in retaliation; However, her lethal attack was cut short by Kelly striking her from behind. Wanda struck at the Woolett with her venomous tail, but she parried the sharp stinger, and sliced it off.
"Insolent deviant!" The Dragonfly lunged at Kelly to deliver a powerful punch, but a black-scaled serpent coiled itself around her arm, and restrained her. Obviously, this was a Shadowy Serpent Snare, one of Janna's custom spells. Wanda's other arm was then bound by Star's Raspberry Ribbon Lasso, the basis for Janna's snake-themed spell.
Tom's eyes turned blood-red as he levitated and chanted in demonic tongue. Dark metal chains of hellish make erupted from the ground, and wrapped around Dragonfly's legs and tail, constraining her even further. With Wanda immobilized, Austin analyzed her armor, and made a brilliant discovery.
"That core in her chest! That's the source of her power!"
"Then let's rip that sucker out!" Kelly commanded. She pulled out a smaller short-sword suitable for such a precise operation, and drove it into the chestpiece of Wanda's armor. The villainess tried to retaliate, but the heroes only restrained her tighter in response. Marco and Austin hurried to help her, and stuck their blades in as well, in an effort to carve out the armor's core. The crucial component began to loosen, causing some of the suit's Magitech nanites to dissolve.
Almost...got it..." Marco spoke in a strained tone. Just as the team was about to depower Dragonfly, her cobalt-blue cheek marks glowed through her armor, signaling a world of hurt for our heroes. Wanda let out a powerful shockwave of magical energy, which sent all six of her enemies flying. Now that her arms were free of the magic girls' spells, she used her plasma blades to cut through Tom's chains, liberating herself entirely. The Master of Magitech levitated high into the air, and looked down upon the humbled heroes with corrosive malice.
"Now which one of you shall I kill first..." Wanda sneered, when she was suddenly hit dead-on by a Narwhal Blast. Said spell came from the last Protector still standing; Lady Butterfly.
"I take it you have a death wish, insect."
"I beat you once...I can beat you again." Star concentrated, and morphed into her golden Butterfly form. In their last battle, she wiped the floor with Wanda, and overloaded her precious armor; But unbeknownst to her, the Dragonfly had upgraded immensely in her ten years amassing an army.
Star wasted no time, and fired off multiple different spells in rapid succession, which all made their mark and hit the Dragonfly. However, they were easily absorbed by Wanda's absorbent armor, and the villainess fired back with blasts of equal magnitude. To evade the dangerous attacks, Star summoned a portal, and flew into it; Then, she created another directly under Wanda, and caught her off guard with a powerful surprise Rainbow Fist. Star then let the Empire's leader have it, "it" being a powerful blast of raw, magical energy.
"You're abusing magic, Wanda! People like you are why I destroyed it!"
"And look what happened! The world's gone to HELL because of you!" Wanda retaliated by punching the princess with her armored fist, knocking the wind out of her She then launched a plethora of electrified needles at the heroine, and they stuck into her body; Star cried out in agony, as they shocked her and drained her energy. While she was stunned, Wanda hit her with a powerful blast, which sent her crashing into the ground; When she landed, a small crater had been made in her shape.
Star groaned in agony, and reverted back to her regular form. Marco quickly rushed towards his hurt girlfriend, and cradled her in his arms. As he protectively shielded the girl with his own body, the villainous Dragonfly loomed above them.
"For all the chaos and carnage you've caused, I have to thank you, Star Butterfly. Because of your magic, I'm stronger than ever!" Wanda then harnessed Star's phenomenal power to undergo a grotesque, gruesome transformation.
Her armor and tail became one with her body, and morphed into scales of metallic chitin with neon blue lining. Her helmet's faceplate disappeared, and the rest of said headgear fused with her cranium; Horn-like metal antennae jutted from her skull, and her canine teeth became razor-sharp fangs. Her hard-light dragonfly wings became a part of her body, and her eyes turned blue, and became more reptilian than human. To top it all off, two extra pairs of arms burst out from the sides of her body, and her wicked, draconic talons grew on her fingertips. Now, Wanda had evolved, becoming a cybernetic creature corrupted by her own magic.
"BEHOLD, YOUR EMPRESS DRAGONFLY!"
Geniune horror overtook the heroes, as they witnessed Wanda's malicious metamorphosis. Their dread got even worse, as reinforcements came from the city; Thousands of Cobots marched into the field to back Wanda up, as well as dozens of Slayers, fleets of aircrafts, and brigades of Magitech tanks. The full might of the Empire's forces was descending upon our heroes, to annihilate Earth-Ni's last hope.
"You fought well, Protectors, but it's time for this insolence to end. Today, Earth-Ni dies, and the Cobalt Empire rises!"
However, even in the face of an unbeatable defeat, Marco stood tall and pointed his sword at the encroaching army, ready for battle. It didn't matter if he was the only hero left standing; He'd fight till his dying breath for Earth-Ni, and everyone on it. One by one, the other Protectors, with the exception of the beaten-down Star, got up and joined their courageous teammate.
"As long as we're still standing...evil will never win."
"Then prepare to fall." Dragonfly raised up all six of her arms, and began forming a cataclysmic ball of volatile energy. As the sphere of destruction grew bigger and bigger, the heroes braced themselves; This could very well be their valiant final stand. Wanda was about to reign hell upon her most hated enemies, when she was suddenly struck by a literal bolt from the blue. She lost her concentration, and the explosive orb blew up in her face, blasting her across the field. The Protectors all looked up in amazement to see their sudden savior, a sight for sore eyes.
"Mom?" Lo and behold, Moon Butterfly had entered the fray from a magic portal, and saved her daughter's team in the nick of time. "You came to help us!"
"Not just me, darling." The magical queen then opened another, much bigger portal leading to Echo Creek; Out of it marched more volunteers eager to fight the Empire. There came knights on Warnicorns, hordes of helpful monsters, herds of Pony Heads, squadrons of National Guard soldiers, and even the heroine Rouge walked into the Glen, much to everyone's shock and awe.
Then, another portal, this time one with a darker aura, formed next to the one created by Moon. This one came from the Chilean mountains, and summoned flocks of sapient pigeons, their eccentric prince Richard, Queen Wrathmelior and her army of demons, and the portal's powerful creator; Eclipsa Butterfly.
Seconds later, a third gateway opened, this one coming from the Serengeti. Rowdy war chanting emanated from the portal, as River and his Johansen countrymen stormed out of it alongside monster nomads, Kenyan rangers and Ludo Avarius, who brought them all here with his Cleave Ray. Even Nachos flew out of said wormhole, and reunited with her beloved master.
Several other portals formed on the battlefield, bringing more reinforcements with them. Buff Frog brought Globgor, the Spiderbite Royal Guard, the monster militia, and tamed giant spiders from Australia, while Dr. Tran came from the South China Sea, bringing revenge-seeking Pie Folk and amphibious Waterfolk warriors. Pony Head came from Woolandia with a huge horde of Wooletts itching for a fight, as well as the mighty wolf monster Jorby. Even Rasticore pulled through for Team Earth-Ni, and brought some forces from DX-103; The inter-dimensional mercenary Talon Raventalon, warriors from the Ukushra Badlands, frigid Neverzonian wraiths, and the thunder goddess Brunzetta, all of which sought vengeance on the Empire for invading their dimension.
As more and more people came through the portals to fight for the fate of Earth-Ni, Star became incredibly moved. People of all races, species and origins were banding together to fight the forces of evil; It was everything she had ever dreamed of. Inspired by the fighting spirit of all who came to help them, the Earth-Ni Protectors banded together one last time, to fight a battle for the ages.
"Ready when you are." Austin told his heroic mewman teammate. Star smiled, and let out a valiant war cry:
"FOR EARTH-NI!"
Star charged towards the Cobalt Empire, and the legions of heroic warriors followed her lead. Wanda furiously commanded her army to counter their attack, and the Imperial forces stampeded through the field. Both sides ran as fast as they could, until they collided in an epic clash between good and evil.
On raged the battle for the fate of Earth-Ni. While the Empire's weapons of war were nothing to scoff at, our heroes and their allying armies fought valiantly against their genocidal foes.
In the skies, River led a group of Johansen barbarians on eagles, who attacked Imperial aircrafts with their razor-sharp talons. Once the pilots were vulnerable, they were promptly clobbered by the mighty mewmans. As attack helicopters fired upon the Malcolm, Globgor and Wrathmelior reigned terror on their tiny foes, crushing tanks and demolishing Slayers. All the while, Eclipsa demolished scores of Cobots with wave after wave of dark energy.
Dr. Tran used her Rhombulizer gauntlet to partially crystallize a Cobalt tank, immobilizing it; Brunzetta then let out a mighty battle shout, and smashed the engine of war with her electrified axe. Ludo commanded his spider to web up a Slayer's feet, then Talon shot a harpoon into its chest and pulled it to the ground with his dragon-cycle. Rasticore leapt on top of the downed mech, cut through its armored hull, and ripped its terrified pilot out of the cockpit.
Janna, Tom, Sabrina, and their reinforcements faced down dozens of Cobots, who were fiercely firing at the couple. The dark mage cast a barrier spell to protect her, Tom, and their reinforcements, but the Cobots kept coming closer. Rouge fired at the robots with her wrist-blasters, but was nearly hit by a stray shot; The unlucky lady clumsily fell on her face, but was helped up by a three-eyed monster wielding a glaive.
"We need more backup!" Sabrina cried. Janna knowingly looked at Tom, who had a realization; It was time to show these buckets of bolts why he was Prince of the Underworld. The half-demon hero began to levitate, and flames surrounded him as he chanted in his native tongue. A crack opened in the ground, and out of it leapt a whole horde of skeletal warriors armed with spears, swords and maces. The undead masses charged the Cobots, turning the tide of the skirmish; Tom, Janna and their allies joined the charge, taking down any baddies that dared step in their way.
"I love you, dude." Janna proudly told her boyfriend; For her, dating someone who could raise the dead was a dream come true...
Meanwhile, on another part of the battlefield, Austin and Kelly were fending off more Cobalt hordes. The Wooly Warrior ripped through robots with her Neverzonian blade, while Maroon took out wave after wave with his rapid-fire wrist-blasts. However, the robots had taken out most of their backup, leaving them alone.
"There's too many of them! What do we do?" Austin exclaimed.
"We go down fighting." Kelly retorted. The two Protectors stood back to back, ready to take down as many bots as they could before falling. However, they were then saved by much-needed reinforcements. A bunch of bushy-haired Wooletts came into the fray, and beat down the Cobots with all sorts of melee weapons; Some even used their bare hands!
One of the Cobots flew towards Kelly to try and kill her, but it was stomped flat by a purple Woolett the size of a house. A diminutive green Woolett with a bushy mustache jumped off the larger one's head, and landed next to Kelly. These two hairy fellows were her parents, Herb and Maggie.
"Kelly!" Maggie reached out and hugged her daughter, who almost fell into her spacious, shrub-like hair.
"Kelly, where have you been? We've been looking all over for you!" Herb exclaimed.
"You were gone for days!"
"Well, there was this portal, and my friends came out of it, and I got trapped on Earth-Ni-" Kelly exhaustedly explained. "Look, it's a long story. I'll tell you guys later." Then came a shrill, familiar voice that made the warrior cringe.
"KELLEH!" Tad, Kelly's clingy recurring ex-boyfriend, hurriedly ran towards her as fast as his little legs could carry him. "When you went missing, my negative energy was so overwhelming. It made me realize how much I really missed you. How about we get back together?"
"Sorry, Tad, I already have a boyfriend." Kelly spoke, much to the shock of him, her parents, and even Austin. "This is Austin. It's our first date."
The masked vigilante awkwardly waved and greeted Kelly's parents. It felt a little overwhelming, since he'd never met Wooletts other than Kelly till now.
"Boyfriend? How do we know he's right for you?" Herb questioned, when another squad of Cobots charged towards the group. The high-tech hero quickly flew towards them with his jets, then wrapped a whip-cord around one of the robots. He slammed it into another one, and fired a wrist-blast that pierced through both their heads. He then took down the other three in rapid succession with his wrist-blades; The last of them was decapitated, and its metal head went flying.
"So, when's the wedding?"
"Daaaad!"
In the center of the battlefield, the couple who caused the Cleave was fighting at full capacity. Star launched Marco into the air with a levitation spell, so he could jump on top of a Slayer and impale its head, disabling most of its internal functions. While the mech malfunctioned, Star hit it with a Shooting Star Explosion, causing it to tip over. Marco jumped off the falling titan in the nick of time, and Star caught him in her arms.
"I gotcha, sweetie." Star lightly kissed her boyfriend's temple, and set him on the ground. However, a huge blast of energy hurtled right towards Star and Marco, who hit the deck to avoid being disintegrated. To their horror, ten Slayer mechs, six hover tanks, a fleet of VTOLS and hundreds of Cobots were coming for the couple!
"That's a lot of bad guys." Marco nervously spoke. As courageous as he was, seeing so many Cobalt forces charging towards him was bone-chilling. However, they weren't so unlucky as to face them alone. Six valiant heroes hurried towards the couple to back them up; Janna, River, Moon, Globgor, Buff Frog and Sabrina had come to the rescue!
"Star-Tacular Seven, reporting for duty." Buff Frog spoke, and saluted the heart-cheeked heroine. To even the odds further, more helpful heroes arrived; Tom, Kelly, Pony Head, Jorby, and Talon.
"Aw, yeah! The Marcnificent Seven, back together again! Wait...where's Hekapoo?" Talon remarked, causing Star and Marco to look at each other awkwardly. The two heroes got up, and joined their helpful friends in the fray.
"Starco Thirteen, ATTACK!" The thirteen valiant warriors charged towards the massive Imperial force, and began wrecking house. Jorby and Tom smashed through tanks, while Moon and Globgor struck down the Slayers with ease. Kelly and Sabrina worked together to take down goon after goon, as Buff Frog and River beat their foes down with brutish force. As the heroes continued whooping Cobalt ass, a lesson was learned by their foes; Never mess with the Starco Thirteen...
Alas, while our heroes were tearing through the evil invaders, Dragonfly was doing the same to the brave warriors fighting to defend Earth-Ni. Using her cruel cybernetic abilities, she killed a Spiderbite guard, a trident-wielding Waterfolk warrior, and three Ukushran warriors in rapid succession. Three Warnicorn-riding knights charged towards the empress, but she easily downed them all with a volley of energy grenades she conjured from thin air. Rich Pigeon leapt towards her with his humungous battle-suit, but she hit the princely bird with a beam from all six of her arms, blasting him halfway across the battlefield.
However, Wanda's smug expression fell flat when she looked around her; Despite her efforts, the forces of Earth-Ni were winning. If they continued, this battle could very well end in her defeat.
"Very well, deviants. If you want a battle, then I'll bring you HELL!" Wanda used her Magitech powers to control the ship's cannons manually, and commanded them to open fire on the battlefront. The huge armaments launched explosive pulses of energy towards the meadow, changing the odds in her favor. The overwhelming bombardments dispersed her enemies with ease; One of the blasts sent a whole platoon of Pie Folk flying, while another knocked River off his eagle. One of them even hit Rasticore dead-on, disintegrating every part of his body but his right hand. However, it wasn't a total win; The cannons were destroying her troops as well.
The armies of Earth-Ni ran around wildly to avoid being struck. Star, Janna, Eclipsa and Moon all made dome-shaped barrier spells to hide their allies under, while Dr. Tran used her Rhombulizer to make a crystal shelter. Tom and Wrathmelior used their innate geokinetic abilities to make rocky blockades, and some of the stronger demons followed their lead; Similarly, the cold-blooded Neverzonian wraiths created smaller barricades from ice. However, our heroes couldn't be on the defensive forever; As long as the Malcolm's cannons were firing, they were at a clear disadvantage. It was at this moment that Star realized what she had to do.
"Take cover, everyone! I'm going in!" Star morphed into her Butterfly form, and flew into the sky as fast as she could, to take on the warship herself. She swooped towards the dreadnought's blaster cannons, and hit them with everything she had. Supersonic Leech Bombs, Rainbow Fist Blasts, Stardust Daisy Devastations; While her blasts disabled some of the deadly guns, there were still far too many for her to handle alone. One of the cannons aimed itself at her and charged up to fire, when it was suddenly melted by a beam of dark magic. Star turned her head, and her face lit up when she saw Moon and Eclipsa in their Butterfly forms.
"Let's show that Dragonfly the real masters of magic." Eclipsa offered. The three Butterflies flew around the ship, taking out more cannons together. They converged together at the last of the gruesome guns, and blew it to hell, with the power of three queens fighting for the good of Earth-Ni.
"Alright, ladies! Let's blow that ship sky high." Star ordered. The trio of winged heroes flew towards the ship to try and blow up its Magitech reactor, when Star was suddenly struck by a beam of cerulean energy.
"STAR!" Moon used her neon whip spell to catch her falling daughter, who regained her balance. The Butterflies looked on in horror to see who but Empress Dragonfly blocking the way.
"Wanda, what have you done to yourself?" Moon asked, appalled by her mutated appearance.
"I evolved. Thanks to your daughter, I'm the strongest being in the Multiverse!"
"I beg to differ. Not even you can handle us all." Eclipsa refuted.
"Ha! Three queens are no match for the might of an EMPRESS!" Wanda flew towards the Butterflies with murderous intent, beginning a battle between four masters of magic...
Meanwhile on the ground, the forces of Earth-Ni were thriving now that the cannons were destroyed. As heroic warriors battled the remnants of the Empire's army, Austin and Kelly rode on Jorby's back, ripping apart any metal menaces who came their way. As they raced across the battlefront, Kelly had a realization regarding her unacquainted allies.
"Hey, you two haven't met! Austin, meet my good pal Jorby."
"Hey, Jorby! You're a good boy, yes you are!" Austin cooed, and petted the quadruped's fur.
"I can talk, buckethead!" The canine monster retorted, embarrassing Austin. Just then, said hero was nearly hit by a thrown axe from Brunzetta, which hit a Slayer in the chest, one-shotting it.
"Hey buff lady, watch the magic axe!" The vigilante snapped, out of fear for his life. "Man, my life is weird." As Austin and Kelly continued crusading from Jorby's back, they were backed up on both sides by Marco and Talon, who rode in on their dragon-cycles. Marco hacked through Cobots with his sword, while Talon took them out with a high-tech ray gun. To make matters better, they got help from above; Janna came in riding Tom like a surfboard. The Prince of the Underworld scorched his foes with demonic flame, while Snatcher hexed them with blasts of dark magic. However, Jorby was nearly hit by a VTOL's cannon, startling him and his riders.
"We gotta take out that aircraft!" Janna exclaimed.
"I'm on it! Jorby, gimme a boost!" Maroon ordered. Jorby picked up the pace, and leapt towards the airborne engine of war. Austin latched onto it with his grappling hook, and made his way to the cockpit; Using his trusty wrist-blade, he cut through the windshield, wrist-blasted the pilot, and threw him out of the vehicle. Then, Austin did something no one expected; He piloted the Imperial aircraft.
"Holy crap! Austin, you can fly that thing?" Marco hollered, in awe at the sight.
"Practiced on a damaged one at the Cobalt base. I've been waiting to fly this baby for hours." Austin retorted, when he saw Star and her fellow Butterflies duking it out with Dragonfly in the skies. He lowered the VTOL, and called out to his teammates: "Get in! Star needs our help!"
Marco, Janna, Kelly and Tom all hurriedly jumped in the cockpit, and Austin took off in his hijacked ride. It was time for the quintet of teen heroes to give their allies a helping hand...
Speaking of the Butterflies, our magical heroes were laying the hurt on Empress Dragonfly. The Master of Magitech launched a flurry of micro-missiles at the queens, but they swiftly dodged the heat-seeking rockets, and blocked them with their barrier spells.
"BOMBASTIC BUBBLE BLAST!" Star retaliated with a spell she made up on the spot, which launched a slew of explosive bubbles at the evil empress. Wanda snarled ferociously as the orbs burst against her scaly metal hide.
"Black Widow Cobweb!" Eclipsa launched a sticky web of dark energy towards Dragonfly, webbing her up. The mutant magic-wielder quickly broke free, but as soon as she did, Moon slashed her with an energy blade, returning the favor for that sinister stinger stab. Infuriated, Wanda retaliated by firing wildly at the Butterflies, with all six of her arms. It took all their focus and agility to avoid being shot down.
"How in the world can we beat her?" Moon wondered.
"Together." Star valiantly answered. "We need to hit her all at once; It's how I beat her last time."
"You heard your daughter. Let's give the Empress a taste of real magic." Eclipsa insisted. The three former queens flew around Dragonfly, and hit her as hard as they could from three different directions. Their combined power was truly something to behold; Star was a master of light magic, while Eclipsa was the uncontested Queen of Darkness. While Moon lacked their raw, unbridled power, she had decades of experience with her mystical powers.
However, Wanda Watts was too smart to be beaten the same way twice. Thanks to the insurmountable strength of her Dragonfly form, she merely absorbed the energy the Butterflies struck her with, making her even stronger. When her power had reached its apex, the empress created a huge, arcing shockwave that shook everything around her; The mighty wave of energy hit her foes hard, and knocked them out of the sky.
Moon and Eclipsa fell fast towards the ground, too weak to catch themselves with their wings. However, they both had loving husbands to count on; River hurriedly raced towards Moon on his eagle, and caught her in mid-air, saving her life. Globgor shot up in stature till he was a hundred feet tall, and precisely plucked his falling wife out of the sky; Due his size, he made sure to be very gentle, so he didn't crush her like a bug.
Star, on the other hand, wasn't so lucky. Like a comet, she crashed straight into the open maw of the Malcolm, and hit the hard metal floor of the ship. The poor princess moaned in pain, and weakly reverted to her regular form. The mewman heroine tried to get up, but she felt too pained and exhausted to even move her legs. While she struggled to regain her strength, Empress Dragonfly menacingly levitated through the halls of the ship, until she loomed over Star like the Grim Reaper.
"Poor little Butterfly. You tried so hard to protect your world of freaks, and opposed me to do so; Look where that got you now." Wanda cruelly mocked. "All you did was doom your people. With the power of three Butterflies coursing through my veins, I finally can cast the spell that wins this war forever. And you get to watch it happen."
Wanda positioned her six arms together, and formed a staff-like version of the Dragonfly Wand out of thin air. This spell was the only one Wanda actually knew, but she honed it for over a decade. Through the years, she learned two things about her ambitious idea; For one, there was only one being in the Multiverse who could cast such an unfathomably dangerous spell, and he was both indifferent to conflict, and gone. Secondly, it required the use of a wand even in her higher form; If she didn't, her entire body would be reduced to nothingness. But at long last, the empress was in the perfect position to cast her crowning achievement; The Deviant Devastation.
"I call upon the darkest void..."
Star's heart churned as Wanda began her spell; An incantation this long meant it was extremely dangerous.
"To make my enemies destroyed..."
As Dragonfly continued her abominable incantation, a stolen VTOL crashed through the maw of the ship. Out of it came Austin and his teammates, who gasped when they saw the empress standing over a defeated Star.
"Star!" Marco cried out his girlfriend's name, and rushed towards her as fast as he could. The other Protectors followed after him, to try and save their beloved friend.
"For my cause, so true and just..."
Star mustered all the strength she could to get up and fight, but she didn't have much of it left. It felt hopeless; The fate of her entire world was at stake, and there was nothing she could do.
"All deviants shall turn to dust..."
The other Protectors raced through the dreadnought's halls, taking down any resistance that dared block them. No obstacle, be they man or machine, would stop them from helping their brightest star.
"By my hands, the wretched die..."
No. This couldn't be the end. Star had risked life and limb for the good of Mewni, and the well-being of Earth. Now, both worlds' survival depended solely on her. She'd come so far since her mother gave her the wand, and one thing was certain; Star Butterfly wasn't about to die on her knees.
"SO SAYS THE EMPRESS DRAGONFLY!"
Too late. The empress had cast the most dangerous spell to ever grace the Multiverse; A force of pure magic, that would wipe every non-human being out of existence. But a mere fraction of a second later, Star instinctually turned into her Butterfly form, and grabbed the wand with all six of her hands. Her cheek marks glowed white-hot, as she cried out in agony; Even in her strongest form, she could hardly handle the raw, destructive power emanating from the wand. With each second of struggling, her pain grew worse; By the ten-second mark, she had used up all the energy in her Butterfly mode, reverting her to her regular self.
But even without her mighty magic form, Star wasn't giving up just yet. The whole world was at stake; Stopping that spell was her top priority, even if it killed her. The mewman cried out and fell to her knees, as glowing cracks appeared all over her skin. She was failing to contain the Dragonfly's curse; Soon it would consume her, and destroy life on an unfathomable scale...
Star was about to give in; It wouldn't be long before her total annihilation. But just as she felt too weak to hold on any longer, another person grabbed onto the hilt of the wand, diverting some of its deadly power away from Star's body. The magical girl weakly turned her head, and saw Marco crying out as he held onto the wand, his crescent-shaped cheek marks glowing a deep blood-red. Even without powers as great as Star's, he was laying down his life to help his soul-bonded lover; Star weakly smiled, and a tear streamed down her cheek.
Star's left hand slipped off the Dragonfly Wand's hilt, due to the stress she was under; However, she felt a wave of relief when someone held her hand; It was Janna! The dark mage let out a strained groan, as her eye-shaped marks glowed a bright green. Thanks to her powers, the wand's overwhelming energy was divided even further, lightening Star and Marco's load.
Following her teammates' lead, Kelly did the same and held Marco's hand. The magic flowed through her body like a tidal wave, and she grit her teeth to bear the pain; Seconds later, a pair of white, sword-shaped marks glowed brightly on the Woolett's cheeks. Tom grabbed hold of Janna's free hand, and absorbed some of the magic as well; The demon prince's three eyes widened, harkening the appearance of bright yellow flame symbols appearing on his face.
The last helping hand came from the Protectors' leader. Austin reached his hand to take hold of Kelly's, and the force of the magical energy hit him like a truck; He was only human, after all, and unlike Marco and Janna, he'd never come in contact with magic before. The overload of power sent cracks running down his helmet, until it burst open, revealing his face; Glowing on his cheeks were gear-shaped marks, the same color as his codename.
Thanks to the combined power of her teammates, Star was much less overwhelmed by the force of the wand, which made a sudden transformation; It became a magical tool of great elegance, with features from both Star and Marco's wands, plus eye, flame, sword and gear symbols adorned on the hilt. An expulsion of energy emanated from the head of the wand, knocking Dragonfly away; A look of horror befell the evil empress's face.
"Th-that's IMPOSSIBLE! H-how are you alive?" Wanda shouted. Star and Marco just looked towards the vile villain, and spoke their parting words:
"'Cause we're the Earth-Ni Protectors."
Enraged by the heroes stopping her destructive curse, Dragonfly let out a savage yell, and lunged towards Star with her deadly bladed tail. However, Star and Marco let loose on the empress with a purified version of Wanda's own spell. The mutated cyborg screamed in agony, as the massive blast reduced her entire body to mere atoms; Armor, wings, and all. The energy beam ripped further through the dreadnought, until it struck the Magitech reactor, causing it to overload. It expelled a huge shockwave that knocked the heroes off their feet; Just then, Star fell unconscious and dropped the wand on the floor.
As the other heroes got up to their feet, the cheek marks of all but Janna faded away. Sections of the ship began to explode, in a chain reaction that would soon incinerate the poor Protectors.
"Guys, what do we do?" Austin was admittedly frightened; He and his friends were trapped on a doomed ship, with no way out. If something wasn't done, he would face the same fate as his father. While Tom and Kelly began to panic, Janna looked at Marco knowingly. Surprisingly, he caught his macabre friend's drift, and reached down to take the hybridized wand...
Back on the battlefield, the other forces of justice all froze in place when they saw the Malcolm burst before their eyes. While it was relieving to watch the engine of war go up in flames, it brought no joy to the armies of Earth-Ni, for they knew their greatest heroes were on board as well...
As the meager remaining Cobots shut off and fell on their faces, everyone looked up in silent shock at the cloud of smoke and ash above them. Hunks of debris fell from the sky, and turned into bright blue dust when they hit the ground; The reversed destruction spell had rendered all the falling wreckage harmless.
The deafening silence continued across the battlefield, along with a silent grief; As hard as it was to accept, the Earth-Ni Protectors had died to save their world from total annihilation...or so they thought.
"LOOK!" Cried one of the Wooletts. The smoke cleared, and all eyes fell upon a floating orb of green and orange energy, which slowly descended towards the ground. This magic barrier bubble was created by Janna and Marco, the former using her Kali sticks and the latter wielding the wand. Inside their spherical shield were the rest of the teammates, who they had saved from eminent destruction.
The crowd cheered loudly, as a wave of relief overcame the heroes' loved ones. Once the orb reached the ground, Marco and Janna stopped casting it, and settled down with their teammates. However, there still was cause for concern, as poor Star was out cold.
"My baby!" Moon hurriedly rushed towards her dazed daughter, as did River, Eclipsa and Globgor.
"Marco, check for a pulse!" Janna exclaimed. Marco placed two of his fingers on his girlfriend's wrist, and hoped to heaven she was okay; To his relief, she was unconscious, not dead. Moments later, the mewman heroine weakly opened her eyes, and gazed at Marco, who was cradling her in his arms.
"She's okay!" River joyously shouted, and the rest of the Johansens cheered raucously for their fellow warrior.
"W-what happened?" Star weakly muttered, as she gently placed her hand on Marco's cheek.
"We did it, Star. We won."
Star smiled, then leaned in and kissed Marco, causing both teens' cheek marks to illuminate brightly. The whole battlefield erupted into cheering greater than any before, as the impossible had happened; Earth-Ni won.
While the cleave-causing couple cuddled up, overjoyed to still be together, the other heroes were basking in their victory. Kelly smiled as all the Wooletts chanted her name; After struggling with her confidence and self-esteem, the Wooly Warrior had finally won the day, with the help of her greatest friends.
Just as joyful were Tom and Janna, who waved to the cheering crowd. Her whole life, Janna never thought herself as "the good guy," only seeing herself as a force of chaos and trickery. Once the worlds merged, Tom feared his reputation in the new and changing world, due to Earth's negative perception of demons. But both of these oddball heroes rose up for the greater good, and proved that they were more than meets the eye...
Austin Capers had come a long way since Maroon was first conceived. At first, he was too meek to even wear the suit he made; If only his past self could see him now. He had led his team of ragtag heroes, plus their countless courageous allies, and saved not one, but two worlds from complete subjugation. The young superhero smiled with pride; This was the high point of his whole life, and it all began with the mantle of Maroon...
THE END! Well, not just yet. There are still some lingering matters to be resolved, and they will. Stay tuned, for tomorrow comes the epilogue to our heroes' story. Until then, I'm FungusDungus000, and thank you for reading.
