Marco at a Crossroads
By: DJ Rodriguez
(Author's Notes: Hey everyone! How are you all doing? I hope that all of you are doing well. I have been enduring some changes in my life, both personal and professional in my work. Will explain later.
But right now, I want to give praise and honor to the Lord. God, thank you for looking after me, my family, my friends and those that really need you. Jesus Christ, I continue to look to you as world gets more crazy & turbulent. You are what we all need, and I will do my best to become a more effective and better servant to you Lord. I will continue to look to you for guidance, for strength, for endurance, for wisdom and for perseverance against the toxic and wrong ways of the world.
I continue to hope and pray for this as well. That any and all things concerning the plague known as COVID-19 and ALL of its variants are done with, and that those responsible for creating them are exposed fully & brought to justice.
I also continue to hope and pray for all of the real, right and true things to return to the people and to places. I pray that no more masks are needed/required/recommended, that everyone is able to show their complete and full face instead of hiding it.
I pray that distancing is no more as well, that people can come back together as we used to be before this nightmare occurred. That people are actually glad to be able to come together and be social like before.
I pray that contactless actions/services are discontinued, for people to engage with one another like before with handshakes/high-fives and so on.
I pray that plastic barriers and such that were brought up during this pandemic nightmare are taken down, so that people can trust in one another without worry or fear.
I pray that virtual/online substitutions go down, that people come back to interact with others in the flesh and blood, in real-reality like it was meant to be.
I pray that Vaccine ID cards and other forms of identification akin to that are no longer needed or required.
And most of all… I pray that fear/hesitation/doubt/anxiety/laziness/greed is expelled from the people! That they are all eager and ready to resume living life as it was before this COVID nightmare started!
Things have changed so much in these short two years… and I have been trying my best to cope & handle these changes. It's been tough for me and my family, but thanks to Jesus Christ, we are doing as best we can. I just hope to be more effective and better for the Lord who has really comforted & strengthened the family through these rough times.
And… I am going to say this. After hearing some disturbing news from a friend of mine who lives in Florida, and also seeing some previews on a certain reboot of a classic series I loved to watch a lot as a kid, I am VERY disappointed and hurt on the direction Disney has taken. It no longer is the company that I have loved ever since I was a little kid. Same with Marvel & DC companies.
So going to stick to the Disney classics, the kind I watched and enjoyed as a kid. The kind that was still clean and good back then. Same concerning Marvel and DC cartoons and comics, going to stick to the classics that I believe in more than what is going on now. In my view, the past series have more promise and potential than what the modern ones are showing now.
I will do what I can in my stories to make sure that the characters in all that I do are given the chance to grow properly & become so much more than what is shown in the cannon series. It will take time, it will take a lot of planning… but I believe it will be worth it in the end. I will not follow or abide by the rules of today's culture and society standards, which have fallen A LOT in recent years.
I wish to also dedicate this chapter to my dear friend Author Kearitona Sjachraelgil. Sigh… her mother had passed on due to a heart attack on May 31st. It was quick and sudden… just a tragedy for her and the family. So this one goes out to her mother, and I ask for all of you to pray for Keara and her family. I also hope and pray this; that their dream of living comfortably out in the country on rich & fertile farmland in cottages designed by Keara's mother herself comes to pass, that it is made a reality.
Please pray and give support to one of my best female friends, please.
On a final note, I wish to do this for my Tia Pamela Espurova-Allen. She is working with police and other official groups to locate and bring home a missing girl that is part of a family she works with & has befriended. Her name is Lina Khil, a little girl that was taken on December 20th, 2021. The search is still on for her, but so far… no luck.
Her information is this: She is three years old, hair brown, eyes brown, race Afghan, weight 55 lbs. & height 4'0. If any can help to locate and find her, please do so and notify the proper authorities. Hoping and praying still that she is found.
And as a reminder to all, it is this. The story takes place after the episode Lava Lake Beach in the cannon series, but everything else after the episode is ignored with a couple of noticeable exceptions. The series had much potential and promise… but it started to decline greatly during Season Two, and more so in my view.
To let you all know just in case, this story LOOKS to be a Marco/Harem story… but it is not. It is more along the lines of a classic anime series I used to watch as a kid called Tenchi Muyo, where Marco will choose ONE of the ladies at the end of the series. So while many women will be by his side, trying to gain his affection and attention… only ONE will be chosen at the end.
I state this again- I cannot please everyone, nor do I ever wish to do so. I believe in the words of my pastor Rick Godwin from Summit Christian Center at San Antonio and it is this: If you try to please everyone, you lose yourself entirely. So while others may not be pleased at this, it is what it is. My aim is not to please all, but to write a worthwhile story. No more, no less.
So again, just to be sure I am clear… trust in what I do. I may not be a total expert with the Star Vs. series, but I will do my best with what I know and pick up along the way. In addition, I have been seeing a lot of old cartoon & live-action series that I have on VHS & DVD, still working in fine condition. They consist of both Disney & non-Disney series, and thus I have enjoyed & learned much from them to put in here. So this story will also have educational purposes, similar to shows that combined education with entertainment in the 1980s and 1990s.
The action will also take place mostly on Earth, with some taking place in Mewni. The dimension where time is greatly accelerated, Hekapoo's home, will only be shown a minor number of times. After seeing the Diaz's losing their two kids once more to rapid growing up to them not being part of their lives… I will not have anything like that here. I believe that parents should see their kids grow, help them grow and become good adults in the process. So Mariposa nor Marco will return to Hekapoo's home realm.
There will be NO kind of reference to slash or femme-slash of any kind. There will also be no trans characters or notions in this story series, nor in any of my other stories. See my Profile bio to see where I firmly stand in and at. In this I am VERY serious about!
So while this is a Marco/Multiple Girls story, there will be NO kind of slash or femme-slash actions or references here at all. I believe that I can bring forth the true and real potential of Jackie and the other ladies here, more so than was done/shown to them in the series.
And that is my stance on this story, and all others I have made and will make in the future. And again, this story will feature Christian elements and faith! And that I am not sorry at all for!
Also, will be giving my OC names from the website 20000-NAMES, as I have done in my previous stories. Each name is linked to a different nation, and has a different meaning. To see what they mean, go to website to look it up. If any of you wish to create your own OC's for me to use in the story, let me know & I will see what I can do.
I should have done this in the first place, but doing so now for the rest of the story. To give credit where it is due. Ratatusk the Mole man, Silka the Giant Spider, King Khan & Queen Seres belong to Author Darkness Rissing, and the Destroian characters belong to Author LORD DESTYRUK. If I have missed something that belongs to someone, please let me know so that I can rectify notes here and give the person the credit for the character, as it is their right.
Dr. Sky Exten and Nurse Delma belong to Author SKYx10, the Author who has made some impressive Star Vs. stories himself & is what inspired me to write my own story connected to the TV series.
And for the comic to this story, look to DeviantArt website and locate the account of Drjeesh. He is also an Author here, using the same name. In any case, go to that account and you will see the comic pages he has made of this story so far. Please review them and give him the support needed to continue on in making the comic!
I do not own Star vs. the Forces of Evil, it is created by Daron Nefcy & executive producers Daron Nefcy, Dave Wasson and Jordana Arkin. Production is the Disney Television Animation, and aired on network Disney XD and Disney Channel. Originally released January 2015, ending on May 2019.
I Am The Christian The Devil Warned You About is by Mario Murillo, © 1996 by said author and edited by Carol Ann Murillo. Published by the Fresh Fire Communications company in Danville, California in 1996.
Now, on with the story!)
~Intro; Insert favorite song & music here~
The scene opens to where it is nighttime, the stars in the heavens twinkling like diamonds in the sky. The camera zooms out to show the entirety of Butterfly Castle, showcasing it for a few moments before zooming in and going through a window to see Star Butterfly in her regal outfit. And on her left was Thomas Lucitor & on her right was her floating BFF Princess Lilacia Ponyhead, both decked out in their best. All three are smiling and laughing, the two humanoids having a glass of punch in their right hands while the floating bodyless unicorn is using her magic to float a cup of punch near her being. In the background are various knights and squires, who all seem to be enjoying a party.
The camera pans and showcases the various beings inside of it for several moments before the scene quickly transitions to outside. And now the camera shows a thick forest & a lake that is a fair distance from the castle, and a being in a familiar red hoodie jacket that is standing near the waters and looking down at it. The camera changes and zooms in to show the face of the person in the water's reflection. It shows the face of a downtrodden Marco Diaz, nineteen years of age and living in the kingdom of Mewni for about three years.
The water's surface ripple and shift, changing from showing his sad face to his memories now. The audience sees what has occurred to Marco in the past, mainly his humiliation and put downs from certain characters from the show during certain series. After showcasing many scenes, water ripples once more… but instead of showing the face of Marco like before, it now showcases the moon in the sky.
The camera changes to show Marco now standing up straight, who looks directly at the camera for a moment before looking upward. The camera shifts upward to show to all the yellow-colored moon… which changes quickly to red, indicating that it was now the Blood Moon! A beam of concentrated moonlight fires from the moon, the camera changing once again to show the crimson light hitting the spot in front of Marco. A moment later, the light twists and shifts until it shows a woman in her early 20's in Roman Empire garb plus helmet. In her left hand was a spear, on the right was a circular bronze shield that had the image of the moon etched within it. The parts of her skin that was showing was fair and silky smooth, plus a figure that was quite alluring & pleasing to the eyes.
The camera got a close up of the being as she took off her helmet, showing full brown hair and crimson-colored eyes. It was Luna the Roman goddess of the moon itself!
The camera zoomed out a little to show the goddess looking at Marco, sadness and weariness shown on her features. She lifted her spear, gesturing to the moon as the camera panned upwards a little towards the celestial object. A small flash of light appeared, and from the moon came forth a red thread! It was thick like branded rope, and it soon split in half. The camera changed to show the thread attaching itself to Star, though the young princess did not even realize it or see the object. The camera switched to show the thick thread going to Marco, attaching itself to where his heart was at. The camera also caught Marco's face, which showed a mixture of sadness and determination.
The camera than zoomed past Marco, going to some trees that revealed a shadowy silhouette. The figure moved slightly and light came up to reveal the figure to be Kelly the Amazonian, who had also grown up in three years to be a beautiful woman! A white line appears on the right side, changing so that three lines appear. Within each of the boxes appears a new being, who is revealed to also be hiding in the trees! The picture illuminates a little so that the viewer can see clearly the faces of the others. From left to right it is this; Kelly, Hekapoo, Eclipsa and Higgs. Other than Hekapoo, who looks unchanged, Eclipsa and Higgs show that they too have grown up some in the past three years. However, Eclipsa is shown to look more mature and alluring than just old.
The camera shows all four females, looks of concern on their faces as they witness the scene. The screen showcases them for a few moments before transiting back to Marco who nodded to Luna… who had a sad yet determined face on as she lifted her spear and severed the thread!
The thread is shown leaving Star, zipping back through the air and towards Marco! The camera showed the thread from him snapping from his heart area, but hovered just a couple of feet from his person. The other thread came quickly and slammed into it, soon expanding exponentially! The camera shows Luna taking some steps back.
The camera than showed for all to see a large, red-colored transculant bubble that was twenty feet in height with a large diameter! The camera pans to show Luna walking to and next to Marco, pointing towards the sphere.
The young man's face is shown as he sighs, than a look of determination is met. The camera changed to go behind him, showing to all the backside of him… than he rushes into the bubble, the camera following quickly after him!
The whole screen is light-red in color, and words in bold royal-blue color appear on the screen that shows this: MARCO AT A CROSSROADS. The words stay on for some moments before a flash of white light appears, spreading over and washing away everything on the screen.
The blank screen stays there for a moment, than changes to show a hospital room. The camera showcases the interior of the room, and also the occupant lying in a hospital bed wearing only a green hospital gown & covered in bandages all over. It goes in for a close up of the being's face, showing it to be Marco's as his eyes slowly open up.
The camera shifts to show his upper body and face as his upper-back area is elevated slightly. Marco looks to be gazing in the far distance at something, than another flash of light appears to change the entire scene once more.
The blank screen is almost instantly replaced, showcasing the neighborhood that the Diaz family lived in and that it is nighttime. It panned quickly to the left, now displaying for all to see the Diaz household. It stays for a moment or two to display the front side property of the home, than zooms towards the door as it seems to open by itself. The camera soon shows the interior of the home in the living room, the scene showing Angie Diaz & Rafael Diaz on the couch together & Jackie Lynn Thomas and Janna Ordonia in the kitchen as they were making some food.
The camera got a close up of the parents, as they were looking down at a large, thick brown rectangular book that had the words etched on the front cover Álbum de Rocortes Familiar. The camera shift upward a little from the parents, showing the upper-right corner and zooms in when a dimensional tear appears. Coming through the portal first is Hekapoo, followed by a bloody & cut up Marco Diaz on a bed of stars with Eclipsa, Higgs and Kelly.
The camera changes to show the faces of the horrified faces of the father and mother, who get off the couch and go to them. It shifts to the right to show the Jackie and Janna also in the same state, their facial features showing shock, worry and concern for Marco. The camera soon goes to hover directly over the body, showing said being while a ring was formed around him that consisted of the others. The camera than started to white out gradually as it zoomed towards the face of the young man, whose eyes were closed.
The screen is blank for a moment before it fades back to color and scenery, which shows an overhead shot of Marco as he is awake and in the hospital on the bed.
The camera focuses on him for a few moments before shifting quickly to a new scene. The scene now shows the inside of the Diaz residence, where inside in the living room was Marco's parents and little three-year-old sister Mariposa Diaz. All are wearing casual attire, Mariposa wearing a cute shirt/skirt combo as the white shirt has the Monsters and Magic insignia on it & the skirt is blue with pictures of the Toho monsters featured in said series. The family smile and waves to the camera in 4th wall breaking fashion.
The camera stays on them for some moments before shifting to another scene. Coming into view is an underwater area, deep sea-blue with some fishes swimming about plus two orcas in the background! One male, one female as the male one has the slightly longer dorsal fin. Bubbles come up from below, and coming into view is Jackie as she is wearing a modest yet alluring two-piece sea-green colored bikini. She smiles and waves to the camera before swimming upwards, bubbles following in her wake and soon filling the screen.
The camera shows the bubbles on the screen for a moment or two before they all pop quickly. The scene now shows all of space, the celestial heavens as many stars are shown along with the planet Saturn in the upper-right corner. From below the screen pops up Janna, who smirks and waves to everyone before she turns her back to the camera. She is wearing a new outfit; a white shirt with a blue design of the stars, with two certain stars that are quite famous as being the ones from Disney's animated classic Peter Pan, a dark blue skirt that has sparkles on it that shine like stars & also no beanie so her hair is shown as full & long that goes back her shoulders a little.
She seems to be looking around until she finds a star, reaching up and taking a star near the planet. The bright white diamond-like star is between her finger and thumb in her right hand, then turned back to the camera and flung the star at it like a shuriken! The star flew towards the camera and quickly replace everything with a white screen.
The white screen stayed for a moment before something occurred. A blue line of sort appeared, and the camera zoomed away to show a scene that featured a whiteboard, the kind used in classrooms. It also now showed Eclipsa, dressed as a modern-day schoolteacher in dark-purple clothes that showed off her impressive form. In her right hand was a blue washable marker, showing that it was she that made the line from earlier. Eclipsa was drawing the planet Earth, showing great detail in drawing the continents on it. She smiled to the camera, putting her hands together & bringing them apart to reveal a purple pointer that was created by her natural dark magic. She pointed towards Europe, where the camera zoomed in on the continent.
The scene changed to showcase the legendary Colosseum that was in Rome, Italy. The camera showed one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and rising up from the bottom was Higgs! She was dressed in a Roman centurion outfit, the costume looking very much detailed. In her left hand was a shield that bared the Monsters and Magic insignia, and in her right hand was a gladius sword. She smirked at the camera, pounded her sword on her shield three times before slashing at the camera.
The screen seemed to split in two, and a new scene was shown as a building that was similar in size & shape to Macy's Herald Square department store in New York City, New York was shown. It was red and white colored, and on the front of the store were the words in bright bold golden letters- HEKAPOO'S EARTH GOODS & LAW OFFICES. The camera zooms down to show that standing in front of one of the large double-doors was Hekapoo, wearing a business suit that was in her yellow and red colors & that showed off still her ample curves and form. Hekapoo winked and blew a kiss at the camera before she slightly turned and used her right hand to open one of the doors of the establishment.
The camera went inside, and a flash of white light filled the screen. It only lasted for a moment before the scene quickly showed a jungle area. Thick foliage of different kinds of trees and plants are shown, and the camera pans upward a little to show a clearing and in the background is a full view of the Tres Hermanas Falls (Three Sisters Falls) that is located in Peru. On the side of the screens are beautiful flowers… and leaping down to land in the middle of the screen is Kelly! She is wearing a new outfit that is a white shirt with words in bold purple coloring on it DISNEY ANIMAL PRINCESS, and purple jean shorts that showcase her lovely legs.
She smiles and waves at the camera, than appearing around her are animals. Landing on her left shoulder from above is a Pygmy Marmoset, coming on her right shoulder was a bright orange male Cock-Of-The-Rock bird which is the national bird of Peru. And appearing from the right is an Otorongo, which is a spotted jaguar, which sits next to her and Kelly pets him. This stays on the screen for a couple of moments before the camera zooms past them and towards the falls.
The screen is light blue entirely for a few moments, than the camera zooms out to show a map of the entire continents of Earth. And fading into the picture is Marco, all healed and also dressed in new clothes to show that he is no longer bound to his old life. He is wearing a white shirt with a picture of the Eternal Dragon- Shenron from the anime Dragonball Z, black jeans & a black leather jacket. He is transparent, and appearing around him are the ladies who are wearing new clothes well. On his left side was Jackie and Eclipsa, on his right was Hekapoo and Higgs & finally Janna and Kelly behind him.
A red dot appears in California, and soon a line is drawn in as it is similar to how travel was shown in the classic/legendary Indiana Jones movies. It goes from California, past certain states to arrive at Texas. When the line lands in a certain spot in the state, it forms a round dot and continues onward.
The camera shows it going over the Atlantic Ocean from Delaware, and landing to form another dot on a certain spot in the United Kingdom.
It continues on, going downward until it comes to stop and form a dot in a specific part of Africa.
It than continues onward, going through the Middle East & China before stopping to form another dot in a specific place in Japan.
The line goes downward, the camera showing it passing over many islands until it stops and forms a dot in a specific area of Australia.
It continues onward over the Pacific Ocean, passing over the Hawaiian Islands & arriving at South American where it stops to make a dot at a certain location before it goes upward and heading back to California.
Once it lands back on California, the screen flashes and becomes a swirling blue and green portal as shown in the show. A couple of moments later, the camera shows Butterfly Castle once more. The camera zooms through the doors of the abode and goes into the Throne Room, where appearing in the middle of the screen are King River and Queen Moon. The king is in his royal clothes, but Queen Moon is in her Warrior's uniform. The duo smile at the camera; River doing a muscle pose while Queen Moon have a stance of confidence.
They stay on the screen for a couple of moments before the camera zooms to go behind them, through a door and quickly the scene shows the courtyard where the knights would train. Quickly appearing are Sir Scarsguard on the left, Lady Whosits in the middle and Sir Lavabo on the right. All three smirk at the screen before doing a muscle pose at the same time.
This was shown for a couple of moments before the camera panned upward quickly, the scene changing to show a pitch black setting. A shadowy silhouette appeared, the outline being visible for all to see. The figure soon brings up a sword, going into a stance as it removes the sheath. Once it is removed, the sword glows a dull white color and reveals that the person is… Mina Loveberry! Lightning bolts come down from the sky to illuminate the area, her form becoming more visible. She is wearing a new outfit; a silver and black shirt/skirt combo with armor guards on her shoulders and knees. She has a serious look on her face, her eyes flashing along with the lightning bolts as she glares seriously at the camera. A lightning bolt strikes the sword, increasing is illumination greatly & Mina swings it send a crescent slash at the camera.
The screen is white for a few moments, than a black shadow being emerges in the middle of the screen. A hand is lifted, and the white field is changed instantly to show a command ship bridge that is similar to the one shown on the Death Star in the classic movie Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. The shadow reveals himself to be Lord Destryuk of the Destorian Empire, and appearing from the sides of the screen are the villains. On the left side emerges Rasticore, his purple gemstone eye glowing malevolently. On the right side is Silka, the matriarch/leader of the Iron Spider Clan in Metal Valley. Both sneer at the camera.
The camera zoom out a little, and appearing from above was Meterora. She drops down from above, rising back up and smirking evilly as she takes a stance. She raises her hands up; the left one forming a fireball in the palm area, the right one forming a small twister of silver wind in the palm area. Meterora smirks and takes a step forward before bringing her hands together. The fireball and twister combine to form a vortex of fire that is shot at the camera.
The whole screen is an orange color which lasts for a few moments, before the middle of the screen is replaced by white followed by lavender in the form of a slash mark. The camera zooms out until it shows the form of King Khan, his family with him. The scene shows a thick forest in the background. King Khan has his arms folded across his chest with a look that is like Shere Khan from the Disney animated series TaleSpin. On the right is his lovely and formidable-looking wife Queen Aikaterina, who is leaning on her beau with her hand placed on his chest in a loving fashion.
In front of them are their children; Prince Loukianos on the left side of his father, and Princess Lysimache on the right side of her mother. The two children and Queen gave off smirks, the young ones doing their own stances while letting out the claws from their hands.
The camera stayed on them for a few moments before the camera zoomed past them and going deeper into the forest. This continued for a moment before the camera stopped, showing a small but well-run village with a modest castle looming over it. The camera zooms towards the font of the castle, where it shows King Justus Acacius & his wife Queen Isadora. The two were dressed in their royal attire; modest-wear but carrying themselves in real royal air with the king on the left, the queen on the right. In front & middle of them is Princess Penelope, also grown-up and her fine form in a dress that is similar to Princess Tiana from the Disney animated movie The Princess And the Frog.
The royal looked to the camera, smiled and waved to the audience. This lasts for a few moments before Penelope reaches into her right pocket and brings out a small bottle that is filled with a deep-blue colored liquid. She than tosses it towards the camera, where it lands in a close-up and breaks. An explosion of blue dust with tiny silver stars within it like a nebula fills the screen.
The screen is filled with the dust-like nebula for a few moments, than changes to show the Cloud Kingdom. The camera showcases the scenery for a few moments before zooming down to show the Cloud Castle, stopping a small distance from the gates. Appearing in a flash of light and sparkles are the rulers of the realm; King Gilad Ponyhead on the left, Queen Rachel Ponyhead on the right. The two nuzzle each other for a few moments, looking at one another before turning to the camera. Gilad smirked while Rachel had a soft smile on. The two soon separated from each other… and in between them came flashes of light, and appearing where their children!
From left to right; Azniss, Angel, Khrysthalle, Jan-Jan, Pamanda, Shonda, Shinda, Hornanne, Teta, Chezna, Whistine and finally Pranciss Ponyhead. The floating female pony heads smirked at the screen for a moment, than those with horns powered up their magic through them! They soon shot their magic at the camera, combining it into one large blast that filled the screen with whiteness combined with dark-blue star sparkles.
The screen displayed this for a few moments before it was taken over by darkness that came from the right. It came in like a tsunami wave, covering the whole screen in blackness. It was completely dark for a few moments until Star Butterfly appeared in the middle of screen, teleported in a flash of light. She looked very down, her posture showing her head down while she was standing straight. The Butterfly Wand was in her hands, clutched tight and held to her chest.
Star was alone for a couple of moments, before two other beings appeared above her, fading into view but also slightly transparent as they were represented as mental images. The one on the upper-left corner of the screen was Thomas Lucitor, who looked up and at the camera with a sinister smirk on his face. Only his upper-body was shown. In the upper-right corner appeared Lilacia Ponyhead, the eldest of the Ponyhead siblings having a dastardly smirk on her face as well.
The scene was shown for a few moments, than the camera zoomed past them and soon everything was black once more. It was only for a moment… as red, pupil-less eyes appeared from the darkness! The eye seemingly multiplied quickly, filling in the entire screen.
In the middle of the screen came forth one of the set of eyes, an outline and form soon appearing to show that walking towards the camera… was Toffee! But he was different. No longer garbed in a business suit, but wearing armor that truly looked more demonic & fearsome than anything in the Underworld realm. He brandished a longsword that was called a zweihänder, a large two-handed sword that was primarily used in the 16th century during the Late Middle Ages period.
The sword was double-edged, straight-bladed but with small triangular protrusions on the edges. The camera showed that Toffee was considerably bulked up in form, but not in Hulk-like proportions. His face had also changed; no longer looking bored or calculating, but now fierce with a hint of savage intelligence.
He smirked evilly at the screen, getting into a stance as he held his sword at the ready. The camera zoomed back a little, to show the many other red eyes in the background coming together in two groups, soon forming a large pair of sinister-looking red eyes… and a faint outline which showed it to be the head of a classic European dragon, which was stationed above Toffee!
The warrior did a spin and brought down his sword in a vertical slash at the camera, seemingly cutting it in two as the vision split apart. The scene was now completely black for a few moments, before stars appeared. The camera zoomed out to show that the scene was in space. Appearing from below was Marco and the ladies. The young lad was in the middle; Jackie on his left side with Hekapoo beside her, Janna on his right side with Kelly beside her & finally Higgs and Eclipsa above him. Eclipsa was on the right, Higgs on the left.
The group had confident smirks on their faces, and the camera zoomed out a bit more. In the background, two planets appeared. On the left was the blue planet known as Earth, and on the right was the purple planet known as Mewmon.
The camera zoomed out a bit more to showcase the beings and the planets, Marco and the others featured below the planets to form a triangle of sort. In the space between the planets and beings appeared the words in bold white letters MARCO AT A CROSSROADS.
To say that Marco was surprised was a massive understatement, as the stunned look on his face was quite evident. He looked to the doctor and nurse and asked in a tone that mirrored his current emotion, "Whoa! You're telling me that my blood type has somehow changed, and that it has some strong antibodies?!".
Dr. Exten nodded his head & it was Nurse Delma that spoke with her tone indicating surprise as well, "That is correct. Also, the testing shows that your antibodies can seriously fight and destroy some harmful viruses and bacteria!".
The good doctor added in, "And even though it may be premature of me to say this until more testing is done… I believe your blood could help revolutionize modern medicine in the future. Maybe, just maybe… it can be used to make some potent vaccines or medicine.".
The young Diaz lad was certainly stunned by the news. Even though he had studied magical theory and such in Mewni, while Star was with her two friends & that he took notes down for her, he never heard of magic changing blood type. Of course, any medical books he read were quite old and ancient. And none of them covered what he was in now.
Marco looked to the dedicated doctor & nurse and asked Dr. Exten, "Thanks for informing me of this development, doctor. And also… do you think you can call my folks and my friends, and tell them to come here? I believe they need to hear this as well.". The doctor nodded his head, Marco approving some time ago to add Jackie & Janna on the list of Emergency Contacts in case something happened to him.
The young lad made a mental note to get Hekapoo, Kelly, Eclipsa and Higgs cellphones. While their Interdimensional Mirrors worked fine, there was the possibility that they would not be compatible with Earth technology.
Nurse Delma looked as if she remembered something important and said, "Oh! I almost forgot! Marco, there is someone here that would like to meet you.".
The young man looked to the lovely nurse with a puzzled expression and asked, "Oh? Who is that? Anyone I know?".
The Asian-American beauty answered, "In a manner. Her name is Joasia Nadzieja, but she was better known some time ago as StarFan13.". Now this really surprised Marco, and it showed on his face clear as day. The young man hadn't seen the girl for three years, ever since Star announced her crush on him. He often wondered what happened to his old friend Ferguson O'durguson. He knew that his friend Alfonzo Dolittle was still married to the Pixie Empress, whom she did not eat but genuinely cared for him.
Alas, Alfonzo was rarely seen due to the duties he had as the very first king of Pixtopia who did NOT get eaten. And when he did appear, it was usually at high social function. He had changed physically, going from scrawny doppelganger of Steve Urkel from the 1990s television series Family Matters, to a man of muscles like King River. And when they did meet, they often talked about the old days but not much else. They were more acquaintances than friends, and even that was a bit of a stretch but Marco understood that it was due to his duties as Star's squire at the time & he with his duties as a king.
Marco also wondered how Oskar Greason, the musical one who last he heard had dropped out of high school. And surprisingly, wondered how Brittney was doing even though thoughts like that were very rare.
A beautiful sounding voice called out from behind the two medical staff members, "Did someone just call me by my old name?". The duo parted, and coming into the room was a really beautiful brunette young lady that had Marco's jaw drop down & his eyes widen in sheer surprise alone.
What he saw before him was a beautiful woman that was about Kelly's height, wearing a standard intern outfit but really rocking it with her body that had curves in all the right places. She looked to have D-cup sized breasts, her hair long and shiny with a white nurse's cap on with the Red Cross symbol on the front, long legs that were strong and slim & finally a small but tight booty if anyone looked to her backside. She also did not wear glasses, her brown eyes shining with surprise as she saw Marco. And also, she had no more braces as her teeth were straightened out & pearly white!
It was quite the awkward moment for the young adults, the older adults looking on in amusement as it seemed a little reunion was about to take place. After some moments, Marco was the one who broke the spell of silence and stillness as he managed to lift his left hand up and pointed weakly towards the young woman in a stunned tone, "S-Starfan, is that you?!".
She responded in a tone that mirrored the lad, "M-Marco?! Is that…?! Just… wow! So it is you! You're back from Mewni!". She walked more towards him, stopping close to his hospital bed and seeing the state that he was in. She winced at seeing his bandaged form.
Nurse Delma saw the confusion in Marco's eyes and explained, "Miss Nadzieja had signed up yesterday as a student assistant to the hospital from University of California, Los Angeles. She has decided to become a qualified nurse, and is working here to gain some experience. She managed to come across your report file, and needless to say, she was quite stunned on what she read.".
The former Star fangirl added in, "When I read it, I was… well, I was shocked on how serious your injuries were. I wanted to find you and talk to you, but my shift ended & had to return back home.".
Dr. Exten really wanted to hear more between the former friends, but his watch soon beeped as it indicated that he needed to be somewhere else now. He looked to the duo and stated, "Well, sad to say that I have to get going. I have more patients to check up on. Miss Nadzieja, I trust that you will look after Mr. Diaz? And also Marco, I will call your parents and friends to tell them to come here as soon as possible.".
Marco slowly nodded his head towards the physician and replied in a grateful tone, "Thanks Doc, and also thank you for telling me about my friend here Nurse Delma.". The two smiled at him, nodding their heads and saying that it was no problem. Also, the former fangirl nodded her head and stated firmly that she would look after Marco. Entrusting the fresh assistant with the patient, the doctor and nurse soon left the room.
Alone now, the two looked at each other as this was a bit of new territory for them. After a few moments of silence, it was Marco who broke the ice once more as he asked, "So… is Joasia your real name?".
She smiled softly as she answered, "Yes, it is. Sometime after graduation, I… I decided that it was time for a change, especially since you left with Star back to Mewni. I convinced my Dad and Mom to legally change my name back to my real name they gave to me when I was born, which is that.". Her mother was of Polish descent, Joasia's grandparents coming over to America years ago to escape from the fighting occurring during World War II.
Miss Nadzieja pressed forward, "Once I had my name changed back, I started to really study and move towards the future. I graduated with honors from Echo Creek High, then moved to the university in Los Angeles. I met Andrea, Chantal and Megan there & we became good friends. I decided to become a nurse, and that is when I came back here to get some experience since most of the hospitals in LA were already full with interns.".
Marco was impressed on the drastic change that the former fangirl had achieved, both physical, mental and social. He replied in an honest tone, "I see. All I got to say is just… amazing! You really have changed from the girl I last saw you as those three years ago, and it's really for the better. You look really good, Joasia.".
This brought a blush to the young lady, and a small but true smile. Yes, she was aware on how much she had improved in the looks department. Many a man had asked her for dates, which she accepted some of them but alas, the young men were driven more by their hormones rather than anything else. While the dates were not that bad, it was just that Joasia had standards on what she was looking for in a real man. One that had self-control/restraint, honor and a sense of dignity and caring for a lady instead of just trying to get her skirt off.
And hearing the honest words from Marco really made her heart warm up just a little.
Marco than asked a question, "By the way, how is Ferguson? And Oskar and Brittney too?".
The lovely young lady answered him, "Last I saw Ferguson O'durguson, he moved to Fresno with his family after graduation. I heard that he joined a gym there, got in shape and even has a girlfriend named Emigdia Macaria who is considered to be a bombshell by most standards.".
Again, Marco was surprised that his friend had changed, but how much he would have to see with his own eyes… IF he got the chance. She continued on, "As for Oskar, he used to work at Britta's Tacos for some time. But I guess he wanted to change as well, so he quit his job and applied for the California College of Music in Pasadena, despite not graduating from high school. Last time I heard, he got accepted and went over there. Haven't seen him since then.".
Joasia finished up, "As for Brittney… well, last I saw her was shortly after graduation. She went on a world tour, courtesy of her father as a graduation present. But when she came back, she tried to get into multiple universities but they turned her down due to her low grade point average. I heard rumors that she is now working one at one of her family-owned restaurants in San Jose called Wong's Eastern Cuisine.".
The young lad was only mildly surprised on what occurred to the Asian-American beauty. She did come from a rich family, so it was not much of a surprise that she got something as grand as a world tour as a graduation present. However, the low GPA did surprise him a little. From the memory of his high school days, he knew that in order to be on any kind of sport in the school, one had to keep up academic credentials in order to stay in said sport.
And cheerleading was considered a sport back then, so Brittney HAD to maintain a decent enough grade in order to maintain her captain position on the team. And despite her attitude and such, she did have a brains as she showed quite a remarkable mind when it came to mathematics in the area of figures in business.
Marco had a theory concerning the former head cheerleader of his old high school. He knew that it was just speculation until there was solid proof of it, but he theorized that Brittney must have just kept to the bare minimum required to pass her classes & to still stay on the cheerleading squad until graduation. He believed it would account for her low GPA.
But until he met up with her in person to find out for himself, or seeing her grades from one of the teachers, it was all just speculation. And right now, he had other concerns to think about. For the time being, he would put Brittney's fate on the backburner.
He looked to the transformed former fangirl and said, "Thanks for telling me all of this. I really appreciate it Joasia. Heh… a bit strange to say your real name instead of the other one you went by.".
The young lady smiled and blushed slightly in embarrassment as she replied, "No problem, Marco. And yes, it was strange for some time… but soon, I got more than used to it. I realized that it was more fitting… more real to use my real name instead of the other one, as I never really achieved much from it.". In her view, it was true.
While it had been fun acting and behaving like Star at first, she noticed that people were ignoring her more. And some were quite… hostile to her, most likely given on how Star had utilized her magic that did more harm than good to them. Joasia had also noticed that she did not really develop at all in any area before and after graduation, making it difficult to find work or to be taken seriously.
One day, she woke up and looked into the mirror… and her eyes soon became truly open & she saw a reflection that did not please her at all. It was then decided that a change was needed, first starting with her name. Her looks came after that, and finally her attitude which aided her in finally moving forward. And best of all, it was all of her choosing! Which some subtle but positive coaxing from her parents, friends and others she trusted of course.
She looked to the young man before her and inquired, "Well now that you know what has happened to me and the others, how about we talk about you? It's been a long time since we've even seen each other. How are things going in Mewni? And how is Star doing? Is she here?".
Upon hearing her words, his smile faded and he looked nervous. It soon morphed into sadness at hearing the name of his former best friend, which had Joasia look more perplexed. Marco looked to her and answered softly in a mellow tone, "Joasia… well… my answer to your question is a bit of a long story…".
The young intern nurse went to the wall, pulled up a chair and set it down in front of him. She sat down and replied, "I have the time. My bosses told me to look in on patients, and they'll call me if I need to be somewhere else.".
Seeing that she was determined to stay and hear everything, Marco sighed softly and started to tell his tale on what had occurred during his time in Mewni… and with it, how he ended up in his current situation thanks to Star, Thomas and Lilacia. And of course Luna the Roman goddess of the moon.
~At the Cloud Kingdom~
While Marco was busy telling his tale & situation to an old friend, a delicate situation was happening in the home of the Ponyhead family. King Gilad and his wife Queen Rachel were at the Dining Room Hall with their daughters, eating breakfast together as they were talking about this and that. The ponies were having pancakes, which to all of them was their favorite of foods to ear. The imposing king of the upper-realm looked to his daughters and inquired, "So girls, what are your plans for the day?".
Angel answered, "Well, we plan to go out somewhere down below in Mewni. You know, to do something that will help us to relax and such.".
Azniss added in, "We think it's a good idea since if we stuck around here, we might do something to set Lilacia off and I think that would be a bad idea.".
The King and Queen were surprised by the words coming from their 2nd child, as they knew the siblings did not hold the firstborn in high regard. And less so now after what was revealed to them last night. But they believed that it was their warnings from last night, and earlier that prompted them to be considerate towards their sister.
That was not entirely accurate. While the Pony Head siblings would love nothing more than to tease their now less-fortunate sister, they had bigger issues to look into. Angel reminded them also that given how Lilacia was now, any kind of teasing could potentially mess up their mission in finding out exactly what happened to Marco.
And of course, they had to follow the words of their parents… or else face the consequences of disobeying them. So for the time being, they HAD to hold their tongues or risk everything they had worked hard to uncover.
More would have been said until the doors banged open… and standing in the entrance/exitway of said door was the very topic of the discussion. All stopped their eating and talking to look to her, the family seeing Lilacia as she floated towards the table. She looked decent enough, but a scowl was on her face as it showed she was still not pleased with the current situation she was in.
She floated past her sisters, who were just staring at her neutrally. Lilacia was on guard though, as she was expecting her sisters to rib her somehow. Once she made it past them, she took her seat beside her mother. Queen Rachel looked to her daughter and said softly, "Good morning sweetheart.".
The firstborn replied in a quick tone, "Good morning Mom.". Once she was situated, she used her magic to float the utensils up & manipulated them to dig into her food. She also used her magic to manipulate the container that held the milk, pouring it into the glass in front of her. One thing could be said about the eldest Ponyhead, and that was she could multi-task when it came to using magic like so.
King Ponyhead cleared his throat, looking to his daughter who paused with the fork held up close to her muzzle that had some pancake parts on them. She looked to him, seeing his eyebrow raised up and she remembered that she forgot to greet him as well. Lilacia chuckled nervously and stated, "Good morning Dad.".
He accepted the welcome, but his facial expression showed that Lilacia should not forget greeting her parents & also to watch the tone as well. Lilacia resumed in feeding herself, munching down on the breakfast in front of her.
Pamanda is the first to break the ice after some tense silence as she asks, "So sister, what are your duties as the new assistant to Karlos?".
Lilacia growled deeply and loudly, turning to her left to look at her younger sibling. Her eyes were blazing with anger as the mere thought of being an assistant instead of a princess very much enraging her. She answered in a harsh tone, "That's none of your business you little…!".
A loud clearing of the throat came from her right, the former princess looking towards said direction to see that the sound had come from her mother, who was now glaring harshly at her. Her anger evaporated like a drop of water on a sidewalk on a clear day in July, a look of fear and meekness on her face. Despite being a young mare instead of a filly, her parents could still make her feel small like one.
Lilacia managed to compose herself, looking back to her sister with an expression that was now a tight smile with nervousness shown. She spoke once more but in a more subdued voice, "I mean… my boss told me that my duties are to be reviewing and calculating the money that has been spent so far by the kingdom & by us. And also on what is left in the Treasury.".
This had some of the sisters softly snorting, trying to hold in their laughter. They knew the state of the Royal Treasury already, which was very close to the red zone thanks to the spending of Lilacia in the past. Said princess looked up to send a heated glare to Hornanne, Teta and Chezna. Said Pony Head sisters looked at her, then saw that their parents were looking at them as well. This caused the trio to hold their laughter and tongues for the time being.
The family started to resume eating, the pancakes being swallowed quickly dissolving into sparkles of brown energy that started to revitalize their magic. There was still that tenseness in the air, as the sisters were still not pleased at their sister's actions towards Marco. The younger ones were still trying to wrap their minds on the concepts that their oldest sister had done something so devious and wicked like so; working with Thomas in utilizing and manipulating in a negative way the negative aspects of a potent legend on the Earth man, bringing Star's attitude & way of thinking back to how it was when they first met, blocking Marco's well-deserved praise so that they would get the credit…
And the icing on the top of the cake was the fact Lilacia had a horn in organizing something that was a serious breech in royal marriage protocol, one that had the high possibility of starting a war between kingdoms!
So yes, the sisters were now more wary of Lilacia but they knew they had to endure it in order to complete their mission for the day.
Angel managed to finish half of her three pancake-stack, gulping down some milk and turning to her parents. She inquired, "So Mother, Father. What are your plans for the day?".
Queen Rachel was the first to answer, "I'm going to Quest Buy to see if I can buy some necessary ingredients for a special potion I am making. Your father is coming with me to keep me company & also see if there is something that catches his eye.". King Gilad actually wanted to see if there was any warincorn horn enhancer accessories there.
It was a type of ring-shaped ornament that would be put on the base of any horn, and it would enhance the magic potency of the wearer. It varied; some were mild and moderate… while some were so powerful, one would need a written license and royal order to even use it, as there was the chance that the enhancer could overwhelm the user… and cause them to explode from their own overloaded power!
It actually had happened a number of times in the past, but only a few times it was from legitimate business transactions. A majority of times it was from fools who had managed to swipe the item from the store, or bought it in the black market to use in wars or in illegal fights. And when that happened… the resulting overload of power would cause an explosion & shockwave that would seriously wound any poor soul within its radius. And again, it would vary due to the power settings.
King Gilad already had a powerful reserve of magical might, but he often felt that in case of emergencies, it was necessary to have a back-up to follow on. And mostly he would get an enhancer with a moderate setting.
Said king added in, "We will be gone for most of the morning, and most likely come back in the afternoon to check up on Lilacia and her progress.". The firstborn ducked her head, her cheeks sporting red to show her embarrassment at being mentioned like so.
Breakfast continued on until 8:15 a.m. struck. King Gilad wiped his mouth with a napkin using his magic and looked to his firstborn daughter. He stated firmly, "Fifteen minutes until your first day on the job, Lilacia. You better go and get ready for your orientation from Mr. Neystrong.".
The eldest daughter sighed, rising further up from her seat and floating past her siblings. All could see the frustration on her face, and it took the sisters a LOT of will power to not chuckle or make any kind of snide words. She was at the door when her father called out to her, causing her to pause and look to him. The co-ruler of the Cloud Kingdom spoke once more in a firm tone, "Remember Lilacia… you have only ONE strike left. Remember that always.".
The Valley Girl-like unicorn had a grimace on her face as he reminded her that she only had one more chance. Any kind of negative report from her new boss of any kind… and that would be it. Three strikes, and she would be out of a home and permanently out from the royal power & inheritance. She merely nodded her head before going out the door.
Pamanda looked to her parents and asked, "Is wise to let her go alone?". While she did know that Lilacia would do almost anything to make sure she had the royal power, she would also do whatever it took to have freedom as well.
Queen Rachel answered her, "Do not worry. The guards have been informed to make sure that she stays within the castle, and also her dimensional tool is in our care. And dear, I think that she is not that foolish to try anything at this point in time.". She still had the hopes that her daughter would do the right thing, even after what was just shown to her and her husband at the Butterfly home just yesterday.
Angel spoke up, "Well, we better go to our room and get ready for the day ourselves.". She and the others straightened out their empty plates so that the maid could come and collect them in a neatly order. Once that was done, the Pony Head daughter floated up to their mother and nuzzled her. The royal head beauty smiled and accepted the nuzzling, and after a few moments, they daughters did the same to their father.
While her was fierce and tough-looking on the outside… the powerful king of the clouds was a softie when it came to loving gestures from his family. He smiled and returned the nuzzles, soaking in the attention from his daughters. It lasted for some moments before the girls departed from him, saying goodbye to him and their mother before floating away and out of the room.
The queen looked to her king, seeing the smile on his face and softly giggling. She floated towards him, nuzzling him in that special, secret loving way that was reserved only for him. Gilad smile became more soft as he returned the gesture, showing that special kind of love that was reserved only for his lady love.
As the Ponyheads siblings flew away towards their room, Azniss looked to her sibling and inquired, "Okay, are you sure you got the Time Spell memorized?".
Khrysthalle answered with a bit of pride in her tone, "Of course I got it memorized! I know you doubt Lilacia a lot, but never doubt my memory skills! And how about you? You got the necessary calculations all set up in your head?".
The second eldest sister of the family retorted, "Yes, I got it all figured out on how far back we need to go! Right down to the very last second!".
Jan-Jan cut in, "And while you do that, me and Pamanda will set up an Anti-Magic Detection barrier around the area! That will shield what we are doing!".
At seeing their surprised faces, Pamanda remarked, "Me and her thought that we needed some kind of protection while we do this, something to hide what we are up to from prying eyes and detection. That is why me and Jan-Jan did some late night reading last night from the Book!".
Hornanne spoke up, "Do you want me and Angel to use our…?".
Teta exclaimed in an anxious tone, "No way! We are not going to risk you or her using your ability! You know what will happen if you two use them, and we don't know how long the spells will need to be held!".
Hornanne looked sad, but Angel went to console her. One could not blame Teta for her tone, for the special abilities that Angel and Hornanne possessed were doozies.
As it turned out, Angel was a natural Amplifier and Hornanne was a natural Enhancer!
Angel could amplify anything with her magic, and it was not limited. She could amplify the senses of herself or others, amplify the energy of a person or object & also other abilities as well. Her normal setting for amplification was increasing the target's energy/skills/senses was by twice the normal means. And when she does this, a time limit starts. She can only amplify one being or object at a time, and the time limit starts at fifteen minutes max.
But when she is forced to increase the amplification beyond the normal standards, like the increase goes to 3-times, 4-times, etc., the time limit shortens. And when the time limit is up and the ability is still turned on… Angel's life-force is used to power the magic, and it will shorten her lifespan. The more intense the usage, the more time is shaved off her own life.
With Hornanne, she focuses her magic all over her head instead of a horn. And her ability is limited to only energy, magical or any other kind of energy. She has a time limit as well, but it's double of Angel's, which meant that she could maintain her enhancement to herself or to the energy she is enhancing for thirty minutes. But by increasing the strength/power of the energy, it also eats away more at the time limit. And once the time limit is done and it's still going on, it also taps into her own life-force & starts to shorten her lifespan.
Angel and Hornanne do share one thing in this. To fully recharge themselves to use their ability once more, they need an hour of rest at minimum. But after pushing themselves to the limit, they will need about eight hours of rest before using it again safely.
The family had been stunned that both had such a unique but dangerous power, and worried upon hearing the limits of said power. King Gilad and Queen Rachel forbade the duo, saying as both their royal leaders AND as their parents, to not use their abilities unless it was in an extreme emergencies.
Angel told her sister, "It's alright little sister. We can just use our magic, which should be enough to power the spells.".
Hornanne replied in a defeated tone, "I know. It's just… well… when will the time come when our abilities can really be useful?". She really wanted to prove herself to the family, and also to others since she was a bit self-conscience that she was the only one without a horn in the realm.
The blonde unicorn smiled softly and stated, "Our time, and your time, will come. Just have to be patient, that's all.".
The siblings soon reached their rooms, gaining the items they deemed necessary for the mission that would start soon!
~In the Underworld~
While Lilacia was dealing with her family, Thomas had been dealing with his own problems. When he arrived at the cafeteria in his new work clothes, he saw how the place was structured. A long serving station was there, behind the counter were four blue-uniformed demons that would be serving the food. If… one would call the bubbling substance in the containers edible, let alone food. Some vending machines were about that served snacks and drinks. And in strategic spots within the facility were large four-armed women in black uniforms, each of them armed with various weapons.
If one from Earth would have seen them, they would have stated that the guards looked like the character Sheeva from the 1995 arcade game Mortal Kombat only wearing mall security uniforms.
When he entered and made his presence known, almost all of the workers and staff looked towards him. Their faces showed surprise and shock, for they believed that no one of royalty would be in such a lowly place, let alone wear a uniform of the facility. He tried to make himself as insignificant as possible, getting a tray and being served the food. And like Amaranthos told him, the good stuff was already gone.
He tried to eat the pink slop that was in front of him, but the smell was too horrid even for him. And when he did taste it… he forced himself to NOT puke up the substance and yesterday's dinner with it! Again, he was under scrutiny from the various demons/devils/monsters that were looking at him. Tom tried to ignore him, but the staring was getting to him.
Before he could explode, the owner of the Metal Construct Facility appeared. All was still as the immense being came in, walking in casually with his arms behind his back. He was wearing a suit, again standing out from the workers and staff like so. He eyed the various beings there and soon proclaimed clearly for all to here, "Five minutes till work time! You workers get to your posts now!".
This caused the various workers to scramble about, rushing out of the place to get to their assigned areas. To them & also the staff, it was quite unusual to see the big boss come down just to deliver news like that. The announcer on the PA would have done the same job, though most likely would not get the same results as Amaranthos just did.
Tom was about to go… when he felt a big hand on his right shoulder, stopping him in place. He looked to see the immense figure of Amaranthos looming over him. The muscular winged demon looked down and spoke to him in a deep voice, "Oh no, new worker. You are going to have a special orientation presentation courtesy of me. Now come, time that you get to know your role in my establishment.".
Normally, Tom would have gotten mad and used his fire power on him. Most likely even turn into his 'true' demon form as a show of intimidation. But he soon realized the situation he was in, swallowing his pride & anger as he was led by his new boss to wherever he was taking him.
The duo went outside, passing by machinery of great size and noise. But also among the metal buildings were great piles of trash, mostly of the metal kind with a few rock/crystals added in the mix. They soon arrived at a building that was about the size of a Toys R Us building from its prime days. When they went in, Tom was greeted by the sight of a large room that was filled with all sorts of scrap metal that was being dropped by a conveyor belt from high above.
Near the small door they came through was a large one, and close by it was a bulldozer & a cart that was the size of a semi-truck trailer. And hitched to the trailer were some skeletal winged horses with fireballs for eyes, and they looked quite nasty in both looks & temper. They looked at Thomas, their eyes blazing and neighing powerfully at him.
Amaranthos pointed at the conveyor belt and spoke, "This is what you will be working on. The trash comes from the belt below, drops it down here. Your job is to use the bulldozer to pick the piles metals up, dump it into the cart, and then take said cart to Building S.".
He pushed a button that opened the large door, and then pointed in the distance to a large volcano. Tom squinted to see a bit more clearly, and he managed to see something. A building structure was made at the base of the volcano, where the junk would be dumped at.
The bat-winged demon stated, "You carefully dump the junk down to where the others will put them in the smelters, melting them down so they can be remade into bars of metal that can be sold to the market. You come back here, rinse and repeat until your work shift is over.".
The muscular one looked down at his new worker and inquired, "Any questions before you start?".
Tom looked to him and asked, "Well… I do have one question. If I find something that catches my interest here, can I keep it?".
This had the demon raise his eyebrow in a way that was similar to a famous wrestler/actor on Earth that was known as Dwayne Johnson… but he was also known famously as The Rock! He looked pensive for a moment, than shrugged his shoulders and answered, "I believe it is okay. All of this is junk anyway, discarded items that was thrown out for a reason.".
This pleased Tom very much, but he was doing his best to try and look just satisfied. He replied, "Thanks. That's all I wanted to know.".
Amaranthos was a bit puzzled by the ex-prince's question and statement, but he did not have time to dwell on it. Just leave it on the backburner for now. He went to leave so that Thomas was get started on his work. He walked away, but then stopped and turned to face the ex-beau of Star Butterfly. He said, "By the way, we do have security spells monitoring this building. If anything unusual that warrants me to have my guards check it out, this will be reported. Understood?".
Tom nodded, saying that he understood. When his boss left the building, the demonic prince looked to the pile of junk. To many, what they saw was useless piles of junk. But for Thomas… he was looking at a vast pile of treasure!
The ex-prince had taken to a few of his studies seriously, and among them was the making and usage of runes. He learned that many things utilized in the magical realm, and other various dimensional worlds, was due to using runes. Of course, many kinds of runes existed and in an untold number of languages. Tom managed to become an expert in his people's own language of runes, and also a couple from various other worlds that caught his interest.
And another study he had taken seriously was metallurgy, the study of various metals. He was more prone to the physical aspects of it more than the chemical, but he did learn about both subjects. He learned that certain types of metals could be used as conductors of magic, while some actually resisted or nullified it completely.
And before him were all kinds of metals that called out to him, along with some crystals among the debris that would actually benefit his new plan concerning a certain Earth man.
He had a cruel smile on as he chuckled nastily and whispered to himself, "Soon, I will get my revenge on you Marco Diaz. Just you wait and see. Hehehehe…". Tom than started to get to work, already finding some metal that would fit in nicely with his plan. And seeing the building that was built inside of a volcano actually helped him to further cement another part of his plan… IF he could scout it without raising some kind of alarm.
~Back at Echo Creek Hospital~
It was about 8:45 a.m. when Marco had finished telling his tale to Joasia on what had occurred during his stay in Mewni… and all of the details that led to him coming back & now in the hospital. Needless to say, the young Polish-American was stunned to hear what she just heard. It seemed that Marco did not have much of an adventure in the magical realm like she had believed.
Sure, he said that he did go to other worlds and been on many kinds of missions… but hearing that he was discriminated by many of the knights of the Butterfly Castle just because he was a human from a 'backwater dimension with no magic' really did put a dampening on it. And also that Star had slowly reverted back to her previous self, the self she was upon coming to Earth for the first time, made her glad that she was able to change her name and looks just in time.
The real kicker though was that Marco was famous in Mewni and in several realms… and he didn't even know of it! Marco told her that Thomas and Lilacia, along with several princesses that were aligned with them, managed to keep him in the dark about his true popularity and clout he had.
However, all of it paled in comparison when he got to the part concerning the Blood Moon and the effects it had on him and Star. Upon hearing the consequences of a forced bond utilizing the legend, Joasia made a comparison that it was like the scene from the 1992 20th Century Fox movie Love Potion #9. Where the gypsy Madam Ruth had told the hero Paul Matthews on the real effects & consequences of the potent Love Potion #9 on the one he loved, which was Diane Farrow.
But she was really miffed upon hearing that Tom and Lilacia had utilized the negative effects in order to harm Marco, and sadly that Star did not truly foresee the circumstances of her actions when using her damaged wand. And that it kept on going for three years straight, which meant that Marco had to endure a LOT of pain physically/emotionally/socially/mentally.
In her view, Marco was truly as tough as they come. But what truly cemented the belief was when he got to the part where Luna the Roman Goddess had appeared! She realized that Marco had left out HOW he had contacted a goddess of all beings, and also how long he had been in contact with her. Questions that she would go to later on, but right now she was more hooked on the story Marco was telling her.
Words could not describe the fear she felt when he got to the part where in order to break the bindings of the Blood Moon & to make sure that Star would not suffer as his last act as her friend… he would have to take EVERYTHING that had been given to him, all of the pain he had suffered inside and out, in raw form. He admitted that all he felt was intense pain like nothing else, like every fiber of his being was being burned, frozen, torn, cut and shredded all at the same time. And that it lasted for about an hour, but to him… it felt like eternity.
Joasia could not comprehend what kind of pain that Marco had been through. A normal human had varied thresholds of pain, some being trained to withstand torture to make them look superhuman. And Marco had just been bumped up to that level in her eyes.
The young man admitted that he did not know what had happened after that, until he managed to wake up & was told on what occurred by his parents that it was Kelly and the others who brought him back to Earth & giving him some medical treatment before taking him to the hospital.
Miss Nadzieja spoke softly in an awed tone, "Wow! I just… Marco… that is… you have really been through a lot.". While she knew that was putting it very mildly, she honestly did not know what else to say at this particular point.
Mr. Diaz chuckled softly, though it did hurt him a little to do so. She quickly reached out, reacting on instinct, to help him. He answered, "Yeah, I have… but I believe that this one was worth it, as I am now free from the legend. And it appears I can be release between June 28th and July 1st.
Joasia than asked a crucial, at least to her, question, "So after you're all healed… are you going to return to Mewni, or stay here?".
This caused the young man's face to scrunch up slightly, showing that he was thinking on it, giving it some serious thought. After some moments, he looked to her and answered in a soft tone, "I don't know, to be honest. But I do know that once I am better, I'm going to be going around the world for some special training that Sensei is sending me on.".
The young woman was stunned to learn that Marco was going to take a world trip… but what was it that prompt something like this, especially after healing from something that should have been a year or more to recover from, not just a month? Now many will say many things about the former Star fangirl, but she was not stupid. Especially now after deciding to change her life around.
She started to see that there was something about the Diaz lad that was apparently worthwhile, at least to what she was hearing and seeing now. She remembered yesterday on hearing a conversation between some doctors about Marco's blood being 'a breakthrough in the study of medicine', which did confuse her on how could that be. And after seeing his report, she was perplexed on why he would only be staying a month when judging by the levels of injuries he sustained, he would have to be in the hospital for a year or more.
And now going around the world on the orders of his former karate instructor? She knew that something big was up, but she did not exactly what it was. But she was determined to find out exactly what it was.
She was about to ask him another question when her cell phone went off. She sighed, wondering on who it was that was calling her. She sat up from her chair, taking out her device and checking the Caller ID. She frowned slightly as it was from a doctor, apparently she was called back on duty so to speak.
Joasia tapped the Accept button & spoke, "Hello? Yes Dr. Sukuinushi? Oh… Oh! Okay, I'll be right there. Thank you for calling me.".
Marco saw her put the phone back in her right pocket and inquired in a curious tone, "What was it Joasia? Is it an emergency?".
The young woman looked to him and answered, "Well… it is but not in a life-threating way. It seems that the children who are here are in need of some cheering up in the Children's Nest area. It's a place where the little ones who are healing here from minor physical injuries go to be entertained, and it seems that they need a helping hand with some of the more… rambunctious ones.".
The duo shared a chuckle, as they knew how kids were when too bored and full of energy. Marco had his fair share when he was assigned to look after children during his trips to numerous worlds/realms/kingdoms. Well… to be more specific, he was told by Star and the others to watch them while they attended to 'other duties'. In short, having fun while he was stuck minding the little ones.
It was from there he learned patience and tolerance, though they were lessons that almost drove him over the brink when looking after certain young ones that were quite mischievous. And a couple who took much pleasure in causing him headaches and such with their antics.
He looked to her and said, "I understand. Thanks for coming by, and for the talk. It was… well, rather nice to catch up with you again.".
Miss Nadzieja smiled softly and replied, "No problem, and it was good to see and talk with you again Marco. The things you have been through… well, they kind of are enlighting to me.".
The young Latino had a look of confusion on his face as he asked in a tone that mirrored his look, "What do you mean?".
Joasia answered with a soft smile, "What I mean is that I have found out that you are much stronger than people gave you credit for, even myself in which I apologize for that. And also… it shows that I made the right choice in finding my own way instead of imitating another.".
She turned and walked out of the room, making sure to close the door before making her way to the elevator nearby that would take her to the first floor. As she walked away, her mind was in a whirl. What Marco told her just blew her away on many levels, concerning himself and also Star. Miss Nadzieja wanted to know more about the situation, and she knew that the only way to get it was to see Marco's parents.
Joasia also noted that Marco told her the four Mewnians- Eclipsa, Hekapoo, Kelly and Higgs- were still on Earth. She would also have to ask them… if she found them, and even then she would have to tread carefully. She believed that Mewnians were to be taken lightly, her experience with Star cementing that fact.
~At the Butterfly Castle~
There was much activity at the castle of the Butterfly family, such a commotion that had the citizens wonder what was going on. They did see the various squires and knights, including Sir Lavabo and Lady Whosits, earlier doing some basic training that Marco did willingly & with dedication. What they did not know was why.
Once all were in their uniforms, including Ahasuerus after he was revived from his one-sided beatdown by King Khan, they started out by doing stretches. This was done to get everyone as flexible as possible, as well as finding spots on the body where the muscles being stretched hurts. As from many yelps of pain from both squires and knights, a majority had a lot of spots that were in need of some serious conditioning. King Khan was in excellent shape as he stretched his form, many of the female onlookers appreciating his form very much. Of course, the king did not take notice at all as he was focused completely on the upcoming torment… training.
Hekapoo was also doing her stretches, and this let the many males stare intensely at her voluptuous form, some outright drooling with their mouths hanging open & tongues hanging out as their hormones were being driven wild. Of course, Hekapoo found this annoying and shot stinging fireballs at them. It got them back to reality, and also showed them that she was not amused. Even though she was a magical construct, she had the same feelings like the original… and in her view, only one man could openly stare at her with no consequences like that.
After the fifteen minutes of stretching, the two trainers had the entire group do an entire run three times around the castle grounds. Which meant running around the outside of the moat area, going in a full circle around the place! This had the villagers, who were awake and preparing for the day, stare at the scene with puzzlement and confusion written on their faces. Of course, certain single males were eyeing the training females, especially a certain fiery magical being. And single females were eyeing the males in the new outfits, especially the anthro King Khan.
Hekapoo informed them that this was just a warm-up… that the serious training would start tomorrow as they would run six times around the grounds! This has many of the trainees having their eyes bugged out, or groaning/moaning in complaint as a majority were starting to feel the burn. Only the truly more advanced knights like Sir Lavabo and Lady Whosits were doing alright, though a fine sheet of sweat was developing on them.
When their jog was done, they went back to the Main Courtyard to prepare themselves to do some basic exercises. King Khan was given a rundown on what Marco did during training, which made him mildly surprised as a regular human from Earth did these kinds of training regiments daily. As a warrior, he admired self-discipline, commitment and dedication to training one's self in many aspects.
And now it was time for his… ahem, new pupils to get a taste of what the young man from Earth did in order to stay in shape.
The trainees were ordered to do twenty push-ups, Hekapoo and King Khan making sure that ALL went down before rising back up. They soon ordered twenty sit-ups, making sure that they did it properly instead of the easy way. They were also ordered to do twenty jumping-jacks, twenty squats and also running in place for ten minutes straight! When it was all done, a majority of the recruits were panting as they were tired. Even the veteran knights were looking a bit winded.
Hekapoo clapped her hands and exclaimed, "Okay you wimps, stop complaining! We haven't even really started the training!".
One of the female squires looked at her with her eyes bugged out and exclaimed, "ARE… YOU… KIDDING… ME?!".
The buxom and big-booty woman cast her gaze at her, a vicious smirk on that would drive mostly anyone with a weak spirit running for the hills. She replied in a smug tone, "Oh, I kid you not cupcake! Marco did this every day while he was here, training and never complaining! This is how he earned his fighting ability and spirit, which is what me and Khan here are going to do to you all!".
King Khan added in while casting his gaze to the female squire as well, "Indeed. The young man proved that disciplining yourself, and sticking one's daily regiment, builds character and ability. Something that you all lack, but we will fix that. And even though I am only staying here for a week… I will really enjoy my time in whipping all of you into shape.".
Hekapoo than shouted out, "OKAY YOU SAD EXCUSES FOR WARRIORS, GET UP! TIME TO DO THE BASIC KARATE EXERCISES THAT MARCO DOES!". The smirk on her face actually grew, as this was something out of left field for the recruits and experienced knights.
This was a scene that was happening now; the knights and squires all in the courtyard in stances, doing what Hekapoo and Khan were showing them. The anthro tiger was given a memory crystal by the buxom being, which was a special kind of crystal that would automatically download to the user's brain any kind of information that was needed. Those kinds of crystals were very rare, created only by Rhombulus himself & the magic powered by any of the Magic High Commission.
This was the scene that many were witnessing right now. Watching from the stands was Mina Loveberry, the powerful warrioress taking in what was being shown. She had a neutral expression on her face, still wondering on how it was that these training techniques had made the Earth man strong. While she did acknowledge that the Diaz boy was decent enough, the fact that he was a mere human still made her believe that he would not amount up to the level of a Mewnian warrior like herself.
Also in the stands, a bit of a distance from Loveberry, were some other people. The Butterfly parents had been teaching Star more about the policies of the realm, both in their kingdom & with their allies, when they overheard one of the servants stating that the knights & squires were in the courtyard and doing a strange ritual of sort. River and Moon knew that it was Hekapoo and Khan training them, but they were a bit curious to see how they were doing as they were now doing the kind of workout Sir Marco did. So they had told Star that the lessons were on hold for the moment, telling her to come with them to observe the Butterfly forces working now under Marco's training.
The blonde young woman was watching in fascination as she saw the squires and knights working out. She spoke in a soft tone, "Look at them doing that. And Marco did this every day?".
Moon replied in a soft tone that held admiration for said young man, "He did. Some time ago, I went out early in the morning to get some fresh air. I saw him already up just as the sun was rising, jogging around the moat that runs around our ground borders. He ran around the borders four times, and then did some unusual movements he stated were warm-up exercises before doing what he called katas. He told me that means 'form' in Japanese.".
River spoke up next, "Your mother told me on what she saw, and I had to see it for myself as well. That Marco lad has some discipline and stamina to do something like that on a daily basis. He explained how karate works when we asked him more on it, and he says that it focused on two poles.".
A familiar voice inquired, "Two poles? What is that exactly?".
The Butterfly family turned to see that the one who spoke was Penelope Acacius, who was wearing a two-piece light-green track suit of sort. The top was sleeveless, but it did cover her form until it reached close to her belly-button. And the pants came all the way down close to her ankles, where light-green shoes covered her feet. The material clung to her body like a second skin, showing a form that displayed her womanly curves and assets.
Star felt a little self-conscience now; while her body was no slouch in the looks department, Penelope had taken her princess duties seriously with her training & had developed a body that most women would kill for. And where men would love to hold onto. She was light layer of sweat that gave her a subtle but definite glow that enhanced her beauty. Behind her were her parents King Justus & Queen Isadora, wearing some light-clothing that fit their sense of taste.
And following them was Queen Aikaterina, followed by her two children Prince Loukianos & Princess Lysimache. The young royals were dressed in similar clothing to Princess Penelope, but modified due to their anthro forms. Loukianos was wearing a two-piece track suit that was black, and Lysimache was wearing one that was silver. And also, they had no shoes on as they preferred to feel the earth beneath their feet.
Moon spoke in a mildly surprised tone, "Oh, everyone! You have decided to see the punish… I mean, new training for the knights?". A small smile was on her face as she wanted to say 'punishment', but she did remember that she was a royal one & had to have some sense of class in her words. Though everyone could see the mirth in said smile.
King Justus chuckled as he realized the little slip-up was intentional and replied, "We did. We were talking about what we were going to do for the day, but hearing what was going on outside piqued our interest.".
Queen Aikaterina added in, "Indeed. We ran into our children as they finished their morning exercises, and they decided to join us.".
The Acacius princess & the Khan heirs looked on at the scene. They had seen the squires and knights running around outside where the moat as at, smirking at seeing them getting a taste of what Sir Marco the Mighty did on a daily basis. Once they had completed their morning workouts, which was far from the training action, they decided to investigate further in. That is when they ran into their parents, and joined them to see more of the new training the Butterfly fighting force was now enduring.
Penelope looked back to Moon and inquired yet again, "Your Highness Moon, you were saying that Sir Marco's karate style was focused on two poles. What exactly does that mean?".
The blue-haired mature beauty answered, "Oh yes! I remember now. Ahem… Sir Marco told me that karate focuses on two poles; ideal form on one side, power & speed on the other. He stated that doing the motions & stances of karate slowly is to make sure to do them correctly. To do it repeatedly until one feels they can do it perfectly.".
She continued, "The other pole is speed and power, doing the motions & stances but more quickly and effectively without wasting too much energy. The goal is to bring the two poles together to achieve perfection in the art, at least according to Sir Marco. He also told me that being inventive in the art of karate does help, but it's all about discipline and commitment to one's self & also over one's self.".
Star looked to her mother in confusion and asked, "Over one's self? What does that mean?".
Moon looked to her daughter with a firm look and answered, "I asked the same question to him, and he answered me like so. He told me that the martial arts, not just karate, is meant for the practioner to have mastery not just in combat… but also over their own selves. That they are aware of what they can do, and train so that they can discipline themselves so that arrogance & pride do not consume them. That they do not defeat themselves by using their skills for questionable, selfish or outright evil goals that goes against the principle of the martial arts.".
This information surprised the others very much, especially the Khan family. They were prideful in what they could do, given their warrior's instincts and nature. But King Khan often told them that while it was good to be proud of their abilities and stances, to never allow the foolish kind of pride to overtake them. He stated that there was a fine, thin line between being proud & pride… and to never cross that fine line.
Penelope spoke in a soft voice but the tone was full of admiration for Marco. But this tone had a subtle but distinctive quality and substance that was different from what Moon used earlier. She stated, "I believe that is what separates Marco from the rest. That he is humble despite the many amazing feats he has performed, and he trains so that he does not let pride and selfishness consume him.".
Prince Loukianos & Princess Lysimache nodded, reminding themselves to write their own letters to Marco & see if Moon could deliver them to the knight.
While all of this was happening within the castle grounds, another event was taking place in a certain spot outside of the castle grounds.
A certain group of floating unicorn heads were emerging from a dimensional portal, the Ponyhead sisters looking this way and that cautiously as they exited the portal. Once all of them were cleared through, the portal closed quickly. Whistine asked, "Anyone around?".
After some moments, Jan-Jan answered, "Nope. It seems that we're not detected. So we better work fast.".
Angel spoke up after her, "Agreed. Okay sisters, let's do this!". The sisters spread out, going to the spot where Marco was at those few nights ago. The area had a bit of red around it, very faint but still noticeable to trained areas. Jan-Jan and Pamanda went into positions; if one were to view it from above and used a clock as a reference & using the minute-hand, they would see Jan-Jan was in the nine o'clock position & Pamanda on the three o'clock position. They were at a precise distance from each other, following the measurements laid down by Azniss.
Once they were set, their horns glowed in sync with light-brown color at the tips. They moved in perfect opposition to each other in a circle in a clockwise motion, as this was required to set up the Anti-Magic Detection barrier spell. For other magic users, a circle would have to be drawn. But the Ponyheads improvised as best they could, and it seemed to work. The trail of energy that left their horns soon connected to form a circle, but the duo continued their rotation. After four rotations, they stopped within the circle. The others came within the circle quickly, and just in time as the magic hummed like the buzzing of many bees.
The brown-colored magic pulsed three times… before it created a large sphere that encompassed where the Ponyheads were at! Now while many could see the sphere, no magic could be detected within it nor outside of it.
Inside the large area, Jan-Jan and Pamanda were panting as the spell had used up a good chunk of their energy. While the barrier spell was potent, it did require a great deal of magical energy, focus and timing to utilize. The sisters went to the duo with Shonda asking in concern, "Hey! Are you alright?!".
Pamanda answered while panting, which showed her exhaustion, "We're… we're good. Just… need to rest and eat… after this. The spell… should last about… two hours… or until me and Jan-Jan… dispel it.".
Angel spoke with relief in her tone, "You did great! Now it's our turn. Khrysthalle, time to reverse time here!".
The ginger-colored maned Ponyhead nodded before she focused her magic into her horn, which was now glowing a light-black color at the tip. The Time Spell they were using was unique in two ways.
One, the color of the spell varied according to the set time that one wished to view, as well as the length one wished to view into the past. If the time was set in the morning or afternoon, it would be a soft light color. But if it started at a time when the sun set, it would take on a dark color. Also, the intensity of the color indicated how far back time had gone. It was a couple of days or so, the intensity would be light. But if went back weeks/months/years, the intensity would produce quite the bold color. The further one traveled back, the deeper the color would get & the more energy would actually be used.
Two, the spell was unique so that one could not go directly into the past. But rather view it as if they were there, but they could not interact with anything in there. Anything they would touch would go right through it like a phantom. It was one of the qualities that Father Time allowed to be utilized without coming to his domain.
Khrysthalle sweated a bit as the spell was using quite a bit of her energy, but she hung in there! She was also utilizing the exact time where they needed to see into, thanks to the precise timing provided by Azniss.
Soon… the area around them changed! The Ponyheads saw the skies darken, stars coming forth with the yellow full moon rising high in the sky. After a couple of more minutes, Khrysthalle released the spell and let out a sigh of exhaustion. Even though the spell was mild, it seemed that she needed to do some training to boost her magical reserves and stamina.
The sisters went to her, Shinda asking if she was okay. Khrysthalle answered in a tired tone, "I'm good… now… I think we need to watch… what happens.".
As if on cue, the floating unicorn heads saw images appear. Said images were transparent at first, then become more solid-looking and clear. The first to appear was Marco in his usual hoodie, the females' eyes widening at seeing one of the most wanted beings in Mewni. Wanted by certain villainous factions that wanted to kill him, and wanted by certain female groups who wanted him for more… ahem, adult reasons.
Pranciss exclaimed in delight, "Oh! It's Marco! But… he looks so sad…". Her tone turned more somber as she saw the condition of said Earth man. The other Ponies saw this too, wondering on what why Marco looked so glum. Alas, the vision of the spell was limited only to the area they were in, so they could not see Star or the party she was throwing three or four days ago.
When he looked to the moon and spoke those words, they were puzzled on what he meant… until Teta spoke in an anxious tone, "Umm… girls… something freaky is happening with the moon!".
Indeed, they all saw the moon turning the color of the legendary Blood Moon! Red moonlight shot forth and struck a spot in front of Marco… and the sisters gasped as coming into being was the legendary Roman moon goddess herself Luna! The floating heads trembled mildly as they beheld the powerful deity. It may have been just a phantom image, and they could not feel her power… but the mere sight of her inspired a kind of fear that was akin to facing Mina Loveberry in full battle mode!
The sisters soon saw and heard everything; Marco's conversation with Luna, the legendary red thread of destiny showing itself as it was tied to the young Earth man, it being broken and forming into a sphere twenty feet in height, Marco being given a taste of what awaited him, telling Luna that he did not want magic to heal him… and finally said man plunging himself into the translucent sphere!
The younger sisters looked away from the bloody scene that they were witnessing, also trying to cover their ears with their magic to block the sounds of Marco's yells/screams. But Azniss, Angel, and Khrysthalle looked on in just horror-filled fascination. Even Jan-Jan's shades slipped off to reveal that she had platinum-colored eyes. Each of them thought this, 'No kind of being we have seen could take such pain! Yet… this Earth man is taking it…'.
They had been surprised to learn that he had taken Hekapoo's trials. Her tests to see who was worthy of her dimensional-cutting crafts ranged from mild to serious, and usually would take weeks or even years to do! So they were wondering now what kind of tests he had to do, and also curious on his life as a mercenary as he did not look the type or have the body build for it. And they were amazed when they heard him say that he was free, which did have an impact on them.
The Ponyhead sisters were now more curious than ever now about Sir Marco the Mighty!
When it was all done, the floating pony females were very much concerned about the Earth man but also amazed that after enduring all of that… he was still standing up! And he fell backwards, on instinct they rushed to catch him. However, they stopped in their floating tracks when they saw Kelly, Higgs, Hekapoo and Eclipsa emerge.
Chezna exclaimed, "What the-?! They were here this whole time?!". This surprised the sisters very much, many thoughts going through their heads.
Angel thought, 'They must have seen everything from the very beginning! Were they following Marco? But why?'.
Her thoughts were answered as they saw the two Mewnian women, Amazonian and magical being tend to Marco as he fell down. They also heard everything that was spoken between them, shock/surprise filling them as they heard that the four women had feelings for Marco! Many were wondering how deep said feelings ran, and also how long they had it.
When the scene ended with Marco getting carried back to Earth, all were just stunned silly. After a few moments of silence, Whistine broke it by saying in a stunned tone, "Whoa… just… wow! All of this… it… it blows my mind!".
Hornanne replied in the same tone, "I hear you on that sister. I knew that Marco was something, but this… just… incredible!". The same thoughts were going through their minds as well. They knew that the Diaz lad was something different and unique, but it seemed that their respect and admiration for the lad rose up drastically as they saw him endure something that they firmly believed no other being could endure!
But in turn, this raised much questions now. But for now, said questions would have to wait. For the time being, they had completed their mission on finding out what had happened to him.
Angel spoke up with authority, "Okay everyone, we learned what we needed to learn. Let's go back to the castle before we are spotted. Jan-Jan, Pamanda, Khrysthalle. Cancel the spells.".
The three sisters nodded their heads, their horns glowing white as to cancel the spells they utilized. However, they soon started to feel that something was wrong. The others saw their concentration becoming deeper, more aggravated. It kept up for several moments until the trio released the magic they had in their horns.
Azniss went to them and inquired, "Are you three okay? What happened?".
Shonda put in, "Yeah! We're still inside the spell!".
Khrysthalle panted softly as she answered, "I… I don't know. Something is keeping the Time Spell active…".
Pamanda added in the same tired tone as her sister, "Same here with… the Anti-Magic Detection spell. It's still up…".
This really perplexed the sisters, as it was common knowledge that it was near impossible for someone else to just hijack spells like so. Shinda asked the question on their minds, "But… that's impossible! Who is doing this?!".
A soft but ominous tone filled the area they were in, "That would be me, young one. And taking over magic like so is but a simple thing for a goddess like myself.".
The Ponyhead sisters' eyes had widened very much, almost comically but the look of fear and dread was apparent in them. The group looked up at the moon, which shot down white moonlight down in front of them. This was not good, as this was not part of the Time Spell at all.
The white moonlight soon took shape, revealing the form of Luna! But unlike last time, she was not in her armor but rather a pristine white stola. A stola was a long dress that reached down to the feet, usually worn over a tunic. It was the style of the Roman women long ago in ancient times on Earth. The goddess did not have a fierce look on her face as before, but a neutral one that showed that she had serious business to discuss.
The Roman goddess of the moon spoke in a serious tone, "I believe we need to have a talk everyone.".
~Outro; insert your favorite music & song here~
The camera shows a black screen for a moment, than fading into view is a peaceful grassy clearing. The credits start to show on the screen. It is nighttime, the moon bright and full with the stars coming out. It shows a full view of the scenery; on the grass nearby is a black & silver Protec Q18 Expanding Motorhome vehicle, and hitched to the back of it was a sturdy & large Strongway Steel ATV Trailer. And a short distance from it was a camp ground, with a fire going in a well-built fire pit and a large tent situated a small distance from it.
The tent is a Wenzel Klondike 8-Person Water Resistant Tent with Convertible Screen Room for Family Camping. Parked next to it was Nachos the dragon-cycle, the little lady dragon having her eyes closed & asleep. Nearby is a large lake that is sparkling due to the moonlight and starlight from above.
The camera zoomed in to the camp, which showed the seven campers around the fire. It showed it to be Marco, Jackie, Janna, Higgs, Hekapoo, Kelly and Eclipsa. All of them are dressed in comfortable pajamas, each one unique and according to the wearer's tastes. All are looking up at the star-filled sky.
The camera shows the face of Marco, who is smiling softly and looking peacefully up to the heavens. The camera stays on him for a few moments before switching over the Jackie. The blonde girl has the same expression as Marco, but it appears that she is also night-dreaming. The screen changes to show a semi-transparent viewing on what is in her mind. Her face and expression stay the same, showing her in the lower-left corner of the screen.
The night-dream shows her and Marco together as husband and wife, where the pair are in front of a store near a beach. They look older; Jackie's curves and assets more plentiful, while Marco looks like his older self when traversing Hekapoo's dimension, but clean shaven this time around & wearing casual clothing.
The store is quite moderate in size and the sign above shows in big, bold sea-green colored letters DIAZ SURFING & SKATEBOARD STORE. The two are together, holding each other lovingly while looking into the other's eyes. The scene changes with additions, as coming onto the scene are three kids. Two little girls come in on skateboards from the left to Jackie, wearing safety gear and such. They take their helmets off; one has brown hair, the other has platinum-colored hair with a dark-purple streak on the left side. They look to be around eight years old, both with brown eyes like Marco.
The next one to coming in shortly after them is a young boy who has brown hair, sea-green eyes like Jackie. He is carrying a surfboard that is white and carries the Monsters and Magic insignia on the front of the board. He seems to be around ten years of age.
They are the children of Jackie and Marco, said kids smiling and hugging their parents who return the gesture.
This touching scene stays on for a few moments, before the camera switches over to Janna. She has the same expression of peace on like the others, but also night-dreaming as well. The same night-dreaming sequence from Jackie starts again, this time with Janna's face on the lower-left corner of the screen.
The scene now shows Janna and Marco together, both older and also in front of a building that is quite large. It features a large telescopic feature that is similar to the Hale Telescope in Palomar Mountain, California. The sign above shows in big, bold black letters DIAZ OBSERVATORY & DAYCARE CENTER.
The camera shows two children emerging from the central doorway and going to them. One was a little girl with brown hair with a rose-colored beanie on her head, wearing a shirt and skirt combo that has the planet Jupiter on said shirt & brown eyes. The other is a small boy with black hair, wearing a black shirt that has the white outline picture of Godzilla from Godzilla 1985: The Legend is Reborn. He has dark blue jeans, and his eyes are brown as well. Both of them look to be around the age of nine.
They are Janna and Marco's children, the little girl leaping into the arms of her father while the son is lifted up by his mother. The scene is shown for the next few moments before going to the next young woman, which is Higgs.
As the credits still rolls, the camera shows the night-dream she is having. The scene changes to show a small clearing near a forested area, and it appears to be in Mewni as the Butterfly Castle is in the background. It showcases a modest cottage near the forest, and emerging from it was an older Higgs and Marco. Said Diaz lad had the same build like the others, but this time with a small goatee and dressed up like a noble knight of the realm. And the older Higgs seemed to have filled out in the right area, making her look more womanly, despite the knight outfit she had on.
Said outfit was modified and changed to be different, unique from the male knights.
From the cottage, the camera showed three little ones coming to them. They were also the children of the duo! Two boys were dressed up like little squires; one had brown hair, the other orange hair. Both had green eyes and looked to be healthy and strong. They looked to be around ten years of age.
The little girl was dressed like a knight, though the clothing was all plastic and not real. She had brown hair, brown eyes and looked quite adorable and healthy. She looked to be around eight years of age.
The camera showed the children going to their parents, who had proud and loving smiles on their faces as they held their little ones close. The scene stayed there for a few moments before switching to the next woman, and it was Hekapoo this time.
The night-dreaming scene showed a building that is similar to the New York Stock Exchange building in New York City, New York. The difference is that building is red with yellow pillars, and on the front shows a white billboard-like sign that displays the planet Earth on the left & planet Mewmon on the right. In between the planets were the words in bright, bold red colors INTER-DIMENSIONAL GOODS EXCHANGE.
The camera zoomed in close to the doors, where they opened to reveal Hekapoo and a grown-up Marco. Hekapoo looks like she has not changed at all physically, but is wearing a tight business attire that showcases her fine form. Marco is also wearing a business suit.
A portal appears on the left close to Hekapoo, and coming forth from the orange/red swirling vortex are three children. Two are girls; one having brown hair that is short and in the style of Marco's, another having full flowing red hair but kept in a ponytail. Both are wearing Hekapoo's original dress style, but the one with brown hair is holding a Dimensional tool in the form of safety scissors. Both look to be around ten years old.
The boy with them looks to be a mini-version of Marco, dressed in a white karate gi with a white belt around his waist. He looked to be older than the girls, around eleven years old. All three of them have red eyes though, like Hekapoo.
They are their children, the camera showing the smiles of Hekapoo and Marco as they pat/rub the heads of their kids. The scene stays on the screen for a few moments before it switches to the next girl, which is Kelly.
The scene changes to show the village of Amazonia, the camera showing the village for a couple of moments before zooming in towards the largest hut at the end of the village. Coming from the doorway is an older Kelly and Marco, the Amazonian having filled out nicely in the right areas while Marco is clean shaven this time around. Both are wearing royal clothing, similar to the ones shown from the DreamWorks movie Road to El Dorado.
From the hut emerges four children; two girls, two boys. All have large fluffy hair like Kelly, but in different colors. One of the girls and one of the boys have brown hair, the remaining two have green hair. The little ladies have brown eyes, the little men having black eyes. The girls seem to be around nine years old, the boys seven years of age.
They are the children of Kelly and Marco, and the camera turns slightly to show that coming from the forest behind the house are four wolf pups that are about the size of the kids. Those pups belong to Jorby and his mate. The scene shows the children now playing with the Monster pups, Kelly and Marco looking on in love and pride at their little ones.
The scene continues on for a few moments until it shifts to the final woman, which is Eclipsa.
The camera shows the scene of Butterfly Castle in Mewni, but it has changed. It has been reconstructed to look similar to the Balmoral Castle located in Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire, Scotland on Earth. The castle is also decorated in the colors of dark-purple and black, but in a tasteful way. Around the palace grounds are a mixture of Mewnian and Monster citizens, but it seemed to be peaceful and no kind of negative or hostile emotions/actions.
The camera zooms to one of the balcony areas of the castle in the northeast sector, said balcony having an ornate design. There are two people on it as they look towards the rising moon; it is Eclipsa and older Marco, Eclipsa looking like she has not aged much while Marco is clean-shaven and with a bit more muscles on him. Both are wearing royal clothing, indicating that they are King and Queen of the realm.
The two hold each other together, than are soon joined by five children that come in from the door behind them. There are three boys and two girls, all wearing Earth clothes. Two of the boys have green hair like Eclipsa, the other having brown hair in their own styles. The two girls both have green hair, also set in their own unique style. The boys have brown eyes, the girls have mauve-colored eyes. The boys look to be around the age of nine, indicating they are triplets. The girls are twins, looking to be around the age of seven.
They are the children of the couple, the boys gathering around their mother and hugging her while the little ladies are picked up & hugged by their father. The scene lasts for a few moments until the image fades completely and the camera is back to show the present scene.
The camera shows the smiling faces of the ladies, and also of Marco who is looking up still at the sky with a peaceful expression on. The camera keeps on them for a moment, before it changes to show the starry sky above.
The scene shows the young man in the lower middle part of the screen, where a path of white light appears before him. The path goes up, than splits into six lines; two going to the left, four going to the right. On the left side appears Jackie and Janna, the two lines stopping at their feet. On the right side appeared Hekapoo, Higgs, Kelly and Eclipsa. Each of the lines stops at the feet of each of the ladies.
Above Jackie and Janna appears the faint image of the planet Earth, and above Eclipsa and the others is the planet Mewmon.
The credits are at their end, the scene showing that Marco is indeed at a crossroads in many ways.
(Author's Notes: And… cut! That is it for this chapter! Whew… it was a long one for me! I hope you all like this one!
Thank you Lord for helping me with this story, and I continue to pray and look to you Jesus to guide me in my works & with my life. Continue also to give aid to all of my family and friends, especially now in this day and age where many things have changed… and sadly not for the better. We need you more than ever God, and I will do my best to follow and obey you. Please look after me, my family and my friends including the ones here on this site!
I hope you all liked how I brought in Starfan13. I gave her a more distinct background, inspired by my friend Author Dreams Come True 996 who is Polish and lives in Poland. And also I hope you like how I brought in Marco's old friends & also Brittney as well. She will meet with Marco much later on in the series, most likely in Book Two of my trilogy series here.
I see her in the same way that I see Paulina Sanchez and Star Satellite, the two lovely ladies from the Danny Phantom series & of which are featured in my Disney/Toho works, my Danny Phantom works & finally in my Danny Phantom x Dragonball crossover. Paulina and Star had much potential and promise, but sadly their potential and promise came up short & were wasted by the creators and storywriters for the cannon series. Same with Brittney here in the Star Vs. story, as she lacked depth and character other than the stereotypical spoiled girl.
So I plan to change that here. Just hope that when all is said and done, the characters that were not given much depth or characterization have their moments here with growth and development. Will also be focusing on plot and story development in this and all of my future works.
I also had to go back to my previous chapters a LOT to see where things stand and such, so it's good to do to research back to see if you may have missed something. Also helps to keep critical/crucial notes on physical real paper instead of on electronic/digital ones, to keep a real-reality back-up just in case. And also, I looked up daily training for karate at a site that was linked to Yale University for Shotokan Karate.
One last thing… is there anyone willing to make pictures featuring my story here? I know that Drjeesh is making a comic series of this on DeviantArt, but wondering if there was anyone willing to make pictures of this story at said site. I cannot pay commission and such, so just wondering if someone would be able to do this for free and in their own time.
Now for the questions! Ahem…
What do you think the medical community will want with Marco after learning of his blood change & healing capabilities? What do you think certain pharmaceutical companies will do when they hear about the news as well?
What do you think of the change in Joasia Nadzieja, formerly Starfan13? And what do you think of the fates of Oskar Greason, Ferguson O'durguson & Brittney Wong?
What do you think is going through the head of Joasia after hearing Marco's story on what had happened to him in Mewni, all the way to this particular point in time? And if she does confront the other ladies on what had happened, what do you think the reaction is going to be from any of them?
If you were with the Ponyhead family during breakfast, what would you say or do? What do you think of Angel and Hornanne's special abilities?
In the Underworld, what do you think of Tom's new workplace? And what kind of security measures would you put up if you were in charge of the facility?
If you were at the Butterfly Castle, what would you be thinking & doing at seeing Hekapoo's duplicate construct & King Khan training the various squires and knights? If you were in charge of the training, what kind of additional training exercises would you have them do?
After hearing Moon explain to the others on what martial arts means, what else would you like to add in to it concerning the martial arts & its disciplines?
And finally… what do you think is going through the minds of the Ponyhead sisters after witnessing everything that occurred a few days ago? And if you were with them, what would you be thinking at seeing Luna taking over the spells & coming down like so?
Optional Bonus Question: I believe that Mewni, and other dimensions like Amazonia, are not aware that blood actually has types & certain uses for them in the medical sense. So what do you think Eclipsa's, Higgs', Kelly's and Hekapoo's reaction will be at hearing the details of Marco's blood type change and such?
R&R, no flames, enjoy and leave LONG reviews!)