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The Prophecy
The Blood Moon hung low over a mysterious, glittery lake, leering like the eye of a predator.
Its ominous glow turned the thick, churning liquid red as it lapped against the distant shores and swirled into little eddies around Star, who stood in the middle of it. She swore she saw an island on the distant horizon when she squinted but it seemed too far away to reach. Where am I? The black sky ahead was blank and starless; not even clouds floated around the red moon as if they were afraid to dwell in its presence. However, that wasn't the most confusing part about the place. It seemed ancient and new. Familiar and unfamiliar. Close yet far away. Almost like the Realm of Magic. Star vaguely remembered the shimmering dimension and its hypnotic allure, but that was gone as was all the magic in the universe. Right?
Star used to be convinced that magic was destroyed, but as of late, her confidence in the fact faded. Too many weird things had happened lately to be pure, whacky coincidences. Somehow, the laser puppies, Marco's dreams, and the cheekmarks had to be connected. And that connection, whatever it may be, must be something supernatural. I'm going to get answers, the princess trudged through the shallow lake towards the island. The truth she sought was there—she just knew it. With each step, the water lapped at her knees and occasionally wet her lower thighs. The sensation felt otherworldly. It was warm and sticky yet cool too. Blood and Ice. The feeling of magic— she remembered it well. Maybe it isn't gone, she dipped her fingers into the lake, and her cheekmarks burn through her skin. If the magic still existed, then why did it act like it was gone? What was blocking it from flowing freely? Maybe it had to do with the prophecy Eclipsa mentioned. The dark words still haunted Star's mind and whispered into her soul. They promised the coming of something sinister, and whatever it was, it was coming for her and Marco specifically.
"Star!"
Marco stepped towards her, grumbling about his wet socks under his breath. Fear and confusion flickered in his eyes, and his cheekmarks cast a gentle glow on his face and hoodie.
"Hey, Marco," she smiled. The sight of him gave her comfort and courage in the eerie place. At least she had him, no matter what. I'm glad our drama is over, she wanted to run to him but hesitated. This was just Dream Marco, and while he was just as adorable as the real thing, she knew he'd disappear if she touched him.
Yet something compelled Star to break her "look; don't touch" rule. There was something different about this Marco. He never appeared in her dreams with his cheekmarks, and his body wasn't hazy and translucent. Maybe she should touch him. What was the worst that could happen? If he disappeared, then she'd simply wake up and seek comfort in his arms. Cautiously, she reached out a hand to test her suspicions, laying her palm on his chest. Instead of nothingness, she felt the cotton of his hoodie, the squishiness of his flesh, and the solidness of bone. It was him.
"It's really you!" She squealed and wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace. Her cheekmarks pulsed brightly from the contact. They were mind-twinsies! This is so cool!
"I know…" he breathed, holding her close. "I can't believe we're together. I love you so much."
Just as she was about to reply, something sharp plunged into her chest, driving through her ribs with a wet, sickening crunch. At first, it didn't hurt outside of the immense pressure above her heart. It felt like someone had piled rocks on her. Then the pain came. Her heart winced in agony as it desperately tried to beat against the blade piercing its flesh, and her breathing pushed her inflamed lungs into the shards of her shattered chest. When Star coughed, she tasted blood. I'm going to die, she realized with a strange calm. Then again, she had died once before. She knew the comfort of its inevitability. After all, even magic was fated to die.
"Star!" Marco cried her name in horror. Tears formed in his eyes when he beheld the reddening sword sticking out of his girlfriend's chest.
You can make it without me, she swooned as dizziness swayed her weakening body. Be strong for me, Marco.
But he refused to let her go, and he gripped the hilt, ignoring the blood staining his hands."I'm not losing you!" He pulled out the weapon.
Suddenly, a torrent of blood gushed from the wound and flooded the lake in an endless cascade. Both teens simply stared in horror until the tide swept Marco under.
"Marco!" Watching him drown snapped Star out of her delirium. She had to save him, even if it meant dying in the process. Ignoring the pain, she dove after him and swam into the inky-black depths of the lake and her own blood. She searched but found nothing. Marco! She frantically swam but continued to find no sign of him. Where are you?! Bubbles of precious air drifted from her nostrils and from the gash in her lungs. Her strength started to ebb away, and her limbs flailed until they too gave out. With nothing to propel her forward, she sank deeper along with the current.
But I have to find him! she wailed.
Right before her consciousness faded away, she became aware of giant claws stretching around her and the glinting of green eyes. "I'm coming for you, Star Butterfly!"
"Marco!" Star kicked down the door, knocking it cleanly off its hinges. The boy woke up with a start and screamed.
"Star!" he clutched his heaving chest. "Oh, it's just you, and you're alive." Tears wet the corners of his eyes, and they eventually escaped down his cheeks as he breathlessly sobbed.
Her fear and excitement softened into sympathy. "I'm here," she sat on the bed with him. "I'm not going anywhere, I promise."
But she shuddered when the moon outside turned red. I'm coming for you, Star Butterfly, the ominous warning hissed. The dark quality of the voice drew a shadow across her mind and chilled her blood. She wanted to believe it was a silly threat, she really did. That the words were nothing but frivolous imagining from her tired mind. But they breathed a heavy promise. They swore an oath to her and the Blood Moon looming outside. They were coming to pass one way or another. There was no way to avoid the tides of fate.
Marco wiped away his tears, "I'm tired of these dreams. I really am."
"Me too," she kept her eyes glued to the moon. "I think it's time we found answers. The warning isn't going away until we've done that much."
"True. Didn't you mention something about St. Olga's before bed?"
"Oh yeah," she remembered. "I did, but I don't know if the creepy old school exists on Earth-ni anymore."
Marco thought about it for a minute. "Plus Meteora destroyed it long ago. Well, let's think of it this way: this is all tied to magic, right? How about we go to the last magical place on Earth-ni?"
"You mean Britta's Tacos?" Star raised an eyebrow. "But it's all abandoned and destroyed."
"You're right. Maybe we should just—"
"That's the perfect place to go!" she bounced off the bed.
"Ugh, I was afraid you'd say that," he groaned. "But I'm starting to think we have some unfinished business there."
"And we should tend to it soon," the Blood Moon's light grew brighter as they talked, and Star's body tingled with a sense of urgency. "Should we call Janna and Tom?"
"Not tonight. We're just going on an exploratory mission to see what's there. Now, lemme get dressed."
"Don't be so bashful, Marco," Star batted her eyelashes. "We have nothing to hide from each other anymore."
He blushed and reached for his clothes. Star left him alone to get dressed, mostly because she left her outfit in the other bedroom. After they dressed, they carefully snuck out of the Diazes house and ventured into the empty, dark streets of the town. The silence was deafening. At two in the morning, even many of the clubs were shut down, and their patrons have gone to sleep off their hangovers. The wind rattled through trash cans and summoned the curious eyes of alley cats and raccoons. They flashed amber-like warning lights: Turn back, Star Butterfly, before it's too late. She shook her head to dismiss her premonitions. The dream might have messed with her head, but there was no need to read meaning into rangy street animals. And she was Star Butterfly. Nothing scared her!
At last, the reached the ruins of their old, favorite taco restaurant. While many things had been repaired since the Cleaving, Britta's Tacos remained frozen in time. Only the roof and sign were visible above the black ooze drowning it in the deep hole of its resting place. Yellow caution tape, tattered by the passage of time and weather, wearily fluttered in the breeze as if they tired of warning people to stay away. Marco ventured to the edge of the solid ground and peered into the liquid, his reflection illuminated by the Blood Moon and stars.
"Here we are," he announced halfheartedly. "But I don't know what we're supposed to do now since the way to the magic dimension is gone."
Star dipped her boot in the remnants of the dead magic, "We could swim?"
"Or rent a submarine," Marco replied. "Either way, I doubt we're getting answers this way."
"There's another way to get to the bottom."
The teens screamed and held each other as a third voice inserted itself in their conversation. Behind them, the lanky body of Oskar appeared like one of the alley cats they passed, silently and with eyes dully glinting with mischief. He had one of his keytars tethered to his thin frame.
"What are you doing here?" both Star and Marco shouted out of fear and confusion.
"I come here to compose and to get away from my mom's boyfriend—I mean new stepfather," his voice came out slow and glib even though his words were laden with a sad note. "Anyways, one day I was just laying in the parking lot, communing with the universe, and I heard a voice like talking to me. Go up to come down, it said. First, I thought maybe I got a bad strain this time—the sellers on New Market street often cut their supply with inferior stuff. But then it kept saying it over and over. Even when I came here sober, I heard the voice. So now, I am its Keeper. I must spread the word of the Abandoned-Parking-Lot gospel to those who need it."
Star blinked, "Uh...thanks for sharing, Oskar…"
"It's my mission, Star Butterfly," he bowed his head. "I went noodling inside of Britta's one night and found a secret tunnel. The voices told me that this is the place, but I can't go in there without you."
Marco gently pulled Star aside for a moment. "I have a bad feeling about this," he whispered quickly. "He's clearly not in his right mind."
"Oh totally," she nodded. "I'm so glad I stopped liking him. But I think we should follow him."
"Why?" Marco said a bit too loudly, and it briefly attracted Oskar's attention.
"We need to find the stuff we've seen in our dreams, and call me crazy, but I think Oskar can get us there."
"You are crazy, but that's what I love about you," Marco kissed her cheek. "You're my crazy and amazing girlfriend."
She smiled, "Aww. Especially in bed."
"Star!"
She laughed and returned to Oskar, "Alright. Take us to this secret tunnel."
"I'd be honored to," the teen pulled out a badly-rolled joint, lit it, and took a drag of it. "Gotta hit up before the road. Want some? This is the good stuff from Highland Street."
"No thanks," Star and Marco refused.
"More for me, I guess. It helps me get into the adventuring spirit."
"This was your idea," Marco hissed to Star and went first behind Oskar.
They climbed to the top of the sign and jumped onto the orange roof of the restaurant, care not to fall into the goop below. Oskar prattled on and on about how he discovered the true meaning of the universe one night. He spoke of how the stars taught him a secret song that could unlock the "Power of Love," which was supposedly the strongest force in existence. "I need to write it down," he concluded his tale. "It must be known."
"Uh-huh, cool," Star pretended to sound interested.
"By the way, we're here. The Sacred Entrance—the voices call it that," Oskar removed a section of shingle and revealed a way into Britta's Tacos. "We gotta be careful in here. The ground's all slanty."
"I'll go first," Marco offered. When he disappeared into the gloom, Star and Oskar followed. The second the princess landed in the restaurant, she nearly slid down the slick floor into a table. Her stoned guide wasn't wrong when he said that the floor was tilted. Everything pitched towards the back of the kitchen in such a severe incline, she struggled to remain upright.
"Welcome to my divine mistress," Oskar said proudly. "Inside of her are the deep mysteries. You know, that sounds like a good lyric."
Star would've said something but the air, thick with mildew and dust, gagged her. Thin layers of fuzzy mold grew on the decayed remnants of food in containers, and a few rats scurried across the floor from the light above them. If Marco wasn't here, she would've been afraid, but she remained strong for him. The sooner we find this tunnel, the sooner we can leave.
Carefully, they inched their way to the back of the restaurant where the meat locker used to be. The smell was unbearable, but Oskar, thankfully, took them around it. "You don't wanna go in there," he stated the obvious fact. "Not good at all. Deep mysteries and old meat don't mix. That's a good lyric too. I gotta write down this song one day. Did I tell you that?"
"You did," Marco said sharply.
"Secret tunnel that leads to the Power of Love." He took another hit off his joint. "Highland Street is a great place."
They snuck through a tiny broom closet and found a hole descending into utter darkness. Either Oskar was onto something amazing or the drugs had really rotted his brain. Star liked to believe the former for her own sanity. The three teens disappeared into the underground, led by the skunky smell and weak light from Oskar's joint. Star and Marco gripped each other's hands for dear life, refusing to let go even when the climbing grew rough. His touch kept her calm and eased the growing terror in her mind. It wasn't hard to imagine a grisly fate lying in the shadows around them when no one could see anything.
After a long while, their feet reached solid ground, and Star let out a sigh of relief. They weren't dead yet. "Oh, yeah, I had a flashlight the whole time," Oskar toggled the switch and flooded the cavern with light.
"I hate him more than I ever hated Tom," Marco muttered.
"Me too," she replied. Now that they could see, Star knew where they were—in the entrance to the old magic portal. She saw the junk they tried to throw into the Realm of Magic to get the Firstborn's attention. Curious, the princess went to the opening in the ground and stared into it. A thin layer of black goop covered the hole, but otherwise, there was nothing below it. The magic was gone. The way to other dimensions was sealed forever. Or so she thought. Suddenly, she lifted her eyes and spied a hole where the Glossarcyk mural used to be.
"Bingo," Oskar coughed after his next hit. "That's the real Secret Tunnel. Ah! I've got the song now." He pulled his keytar around and played a few jarring chords as he sang. "Secret Tunnel! Secret Tunnel! In the restaurant. Cosmic secrets...uh...something-something...and die!"
Neither Star or Marco clapped, but Oskar took a bow anyways. "I'm here all day and all night because I'm unemployed," he moved his instrument to his back again. "Now, as I was saying we gotta go in there."
"Are you sure?" asked Marco, his eyes darting between the suspicious tunnel and their crazy guide. "Maybe there's another way around."
Star shook her head, "Nope, he's right. That's the only way inside." She didn't know exactly how she knew, but something whispered in her soul too. Not in voices, per se, but in gentle suggestions that prickled with expectation and foreboding. What they were looking for—the answers to everything—was in there. But did they have the courage to learn the truth? The whispering "voice" asked that, and Star found herself unable to answer. Dread sliced her heart to pieces like a sword.
Marco sensed her uneasiness and took her hand, "We're in this together, Star. Don't worry."
She leaned against him, letting his scent calm her anxiety, "Thanks, Marco." Then to Oskar, she said, "Alright, then let's get going. The night will be over soon."
"Absolutely," he nodded. "Y'know, there was some kinda red forcefield the last time I was here preventing me from going through. Now, it's gone. The voices were right—you are the Chosen."
"The what?" Star and Marco glanced at each other.
"Can't say, but that'd make a great lyric." Oskar hummed as he climbed into the narrow tunnel, "The Chosen open the way under the great red moon. The Power of Love's the answer, and something-something...uh, Marco, what rhymes with answer?"
"I don't know," he replied.
"I'll just keep thinking," Oskar's voice became faint with distance.
Here we go, Star was about to squeeze in after him when Marco pulled her back. "Let me go in front."
"Why?" she raised an eyebrow. "I'm not that scared."
"I know...it's just you're wearing a skirt and…"
"And what?"
His cheeks turned red, "I mean...if I'm behind you…"
"Oh," she realized. "You're saying my tush is too distracting for you."
"Star…"
"It's okay, Marco. It is irresistible to you."
His groan made her giggle, and she let him go in first. Plus, taking up the rear—pun intended—meant it was her job to protect against potential followers. And she had the best view of all crawling in front of her. If only reaching out to caress Marco's cute, rounded butt was acceptable in public…
The darkness closed around them, but Star and Marco continued into the tight tunnel. The walls and ceiling scraped their backs and sides, slimy and wet from humidity. If only I still had magic to light the way, the princess lamented being unable to see. Yet maybe she didn't want to—something crawled on her arm, and she nearly shrieked. Just focus on the quest, she chanted. And Marco's hot, boy-tush. The image of it wiggling in her face just a few inches away calmed her down quickly.
For a long time, the darkness still kept its hold over the tunnel until tiny streams of light trickled in—slowly at first, then in great, flooding streams. Peering over Marco's body, she saw the tunnel open into a great antechamber and smelled the skunkiness of Oskar's joint in the musty air. After Marco helped her down into the room, she immediately recognized where they were. It was the creepy room from St. Olga's!
"No way," she breathed in disbelief. Eerie lizard faces sat atop stout, polished columns that framed doorways into the unknown. They kinda look like Toffee, she suddenly recognized the Sepetarian's likeness in the faces. Above them, a mural of winged monsters swooped from the sky, carrying fierce weapons to make war. But what caught Star's attention, and Marco's too, was the mural under their feet depicting a sun, moon, and star. Weird energy radiated from it, sending a shiver down the princess's spine. "I'm coming for you, Star Butterfly and Marco Diaz," the voice from the dream echoed in the chamber. Marco huddled close to her.
Oskar took another hit off his joint and blew a reef of smoke, "That's not the right voice, amigos. That's the bad voice. He's mean and stuff. Where's the other voice?"
Suddenly, the mural lit up and red light filtered through the ceiling above. "See and know the future," someone else said.
"There we go," Oskar chuckled. "Hi, Mr. Nice Voice. I brought them just like you told me to."
This is the weirdest night ever, Star took Marco's hand for comfort. Their cheekmarks started to glow too, and the light was nearly blinding. Her eyes were drawn upwards, and her blood ran cold. Unless Oskar's weed smoke was affecting her—and it certainly wasn't—or Star had officially gone crazy, she saw the pictures move. The monsters peeled off the ceiling and swooped towards the terrified teens below, screaming and hissing with rage. Moonlight glinted off the blades...no, Star's eyes grew wide in horror when drops of real blood ran off the grooves of swords and spears.
In an instant, the room around them changed into a charred battlefield covered in ash and littered with bodies of all people: humans and monsters, young and old, Mewmans and magical creatures. Blood soaked the black earth and created a heavy, metallic scent that soured in Star's nose. But that wasn't the worst of it. She made out shapes of familiar places—the Monster Temple, the Diazes' house, Echo Creek Academy. Whatever happened wasn't from the mural of the past but from the future…
"Star Butterfly," a shadowy figure strolled towards her. "I've been expecting you." His face was mired in darkness, so Star couldn't see him, but she saw the skulls on his shoulder pads and found herself wishing she hadn't. One of them had crescent moon cheekmarks and the other hearts. Marco took a step forward to defend her, but the figure tossed him aside.
"Marco!" she gasped.
"He can't save you." A massive hand wrapped around her throat, crushing it and forcing the air out of her body. Despite her struggle and protest, Star couldn't stop him. For the first time ever, she was truly trapped by something she could not beat. If I had my magic...she longed to feel the power in her blood. She longed to have her old strength back to stop the future coming to pass. But who was she now? She traded everything to be a normal Earth girl. Now, she would die like one too.
"Nothing can save you," said the figure. "You brought the end of all things by destroying the magic. This is the future you created."
"No…" Star weakly coughed.
"It is your time to die!"
A sword plunged into her chest, and the shadow flung her to the ground. As he turned to walk away, the Blood Moon cast a red beam over her, drawing the gazes of both the figure and Star. The Prophecy had been written for both of them.
The vision ended there, returning Star, Marco, and Oskar to the room. "That was an experience," Oskar said in his usual tone. "'The Prophecy'...sounds like a nice band name."
"Can we please not do this right now?" Marco scowled. "This isn't a joke, Oskar."
"Oh, I know it isn't. You had to see that to know what's at stake. Now, you gotta finish the ceremony."
"The what?"
"The pictures what you do something else, but I think it's too late. It's dawn now."
Whether or not Oskar or Marco said anything after that, she did not know for Star bolted out of Britta's Tacos and into the morning. You can't run from the Prophecy, the Blood Moon warned as the sun's glory forced the last of the night away.
Review Roundup
StarryEyedButterfly- Yes it was! But this chapter and everything afterwards will be a roller coaster.
RJWritingInk- Thanks! I love looking into Blood Moon lore, and this story won't disappoint.
Aldal- It'll make sense some way or another. The doubt will only increase for sure.
Xzbro- Yep lol.
Starco4everr- Thanks!
Alfonso Sparda- There's a lot more Blood Moon mysteries coming soon, and we'll have to see what it wants with Star and Marco. As for the picture at St. Olga's...you're on the right track.
Gated Reverb (ch 5)- I love me some Jantom.
Guest- Mwhahaha! But yes, Meteora is the worst baby to babysit ever.
Blackspiderman (chs 5 and 6)- Thanks! This story aims to explore Earth-ni and the plot points left kinda dangling in s4, so there will be some juicy lore to get into. And yeah, Star acted poorly, but couple's fights happen.
The CreativityQueen- Sorry it isn't your fav, but the best is yet to come.