I'm back! I had some terrible writer's block trying to figure out how best to continue the story four chapters from now, so I reread the entire story to refresh my memory and figure it out. It took awhile, but I've got it all straightened out now. I think.
"Quickly now! And keep quiet!" Buff Frog urged the others in a loud whisper as he led them down out of the east tower of Butterfly Castle.
"No! Put me down!" Star angrily sobbed. "I'm not abandoning my family!"
"Star, please!" Marco pleaded in a loud whisper. "You're gonna give us away!"
"I don't care! I am going to fight! Put me down and give me back my lightsaber!"
Tom and Janna exchanged a concerned glance. "We're not gonna make it very far if Star doesn't stay quiet," Tom said.
Janna snapped her fingers. "Don't worry, I got this. Hey, Buff Frog? Can you kneel down for a second?"
"Um...sure?"
The towering Mewni General dropped to one knee, bringing Star down to level height with Janna. The Princess was continuously screaming and struggling so ferociously against Buff Frog's grip that she didn't even notice as Janna calmly reached up and squeezed a pressure point on Star's neck. The young Padawan instantly fell silent as she was knocked unconscious and went limp on Buff Frog's shoulder. Tom, Marco, and Buff Frog all stared in quiet disbelief.
"That oughta last long enough for us to make it out of the castle," Janna said nonchalantly. "C'mon, let's keep moving."
"Uh, yes. Right." Buff Frog got back to his feet and led the way, resuming their exodus from Butterfly Castle.
They made it down to the second floor without incident, making their way toward the main staircase when a loud explosion rocked the floor beneath them, freezing the group in their tracks.
"What the heck was that?" Tom asked.
"Imperials likely breached main entrance door with explosives," Buff Frog said. He quickly turned around and headed down the corridor in the opposite direction. "This way. We will take servant staircase down. Less conspicuous, and lets out into service area where entrance to basement is. Maybe Imperials not make it there before we do."
At the far end of the second floor corridor, Buff Frog tapped on a spot in the corner of the wood-paneled wall and a small hidden door popped open. Beyond was a narrow spiral staircase. Seeing the size of the tiny opening, Janna raised an eyebrow. "Uh, Buff Frog? Are you gonna fit through there?"
"Of course! Frog men are like cephalopods. If head fits, everything fits." He slung Star from his shoulder and cradled her in his arms so that the Princess would not hit her head before bending his knees and squeezing his broad shoulders through the tiny doorway. Had they not been in such a dire situation, Janna would have likely laughed at the way the General's skin wrinkled and rolled as Buff Frog squished his way down the staircase, filling the space from stair tread to ceiling. She followed close after, Tom on her heels, and Marco brought up the rear, closing the door behind him.
At the bottom of the tiny staircase, a second concealing doorway opened up into the corner of a ground floor corridor, much like the door they had entered at the top. Buff Frog checked to make sure there were no intruders in sight before fully opening the door and quietly whispering, "Coast is clear. Keep quiet."
They filed out of the tiny stairway, Buff Frog lifting Star's unconscious form up to his shoulder once more and Marco again closing the hidden doorway as he exited. The quartet moved along against the wall, treading on their toes to make as little noise as possible on the stone floor. When they reached the end of the hallway, Buff Frog signaled for them to halt. He carefully peered around the corner.
"See anything?" Janna asked.
"Yes. Many stormtroopers." The general pointed across the adjoining main hall where the entrance to another branching hallway was visible, the way blocked by at least two dozen stormtroopers systematically scouting the service floor. "Door to basement is over there."
Tom carefully edged past and looked around the corner himself. "That's an awful lot of troopers to shoot our way through. With no cover, there's no way all of us will make it."
Marco beckoned the others closer. "Okay, here's what we'll do. I'll go first as a diversion. They're obviously on the lookout for a pair of Jedi, so hopefully they'll all be so focused on trying to shoot me that they won't even see you guys sneak over to the other hallway. Once you've all made it across, I'll follow."
The others nodded.
"Time for a show," Marco whispered dramatically. His own lightsaber in his right hand and Star's in his left, he briskly walked out into the center of the hallway, turning to face the unwelcome guests. They spotted him immediately.
"Hey! You there! Freeze!"
"Hands where I can see 'em!"
Marco obeyed, holding up both hands. He ignited his weapons.
"It's a Jedi!"
"Shoot to kill!"
A hail of blaster fire peppered the corridor. Marco twirled on his feet, his blades at defensive angles, deflecting blaster bolts that came his way. He over exaggerated every movement of the glowing azure and emerald blades, attempting to make himself as distracting as possible and obscure the space behind him.
Buff Frog motioned for Tom and Janna to follow him. "Alright. Let's move."
Four steps was all they took. A loud voice echoing through the stone-walled corridor took them so much by surprise that they froze in their tracks.
"Those who dare to invade the sanctity of the Butterfly Castle will answer to the Knight of the Wash!"
Even the stormtroopers were taken so much by surprise that they ceased fire on Marco. From the adjoining corridor opposite the smugglers and their escort, the clank of full-body armor accompanying every step, emerged Sir Lavabo, carrying the largest rotary blaster canon Marco had ever seen. It was easily twice the size of the Z-6 rotary canon used by some Republic troops during the Clone War, with eight gapping barrels instead of six.
For a few seconds, the stormtroopers were so surprised by Lavabo's unexpected entrance that they simply stared at the knight and his hulking weapon, and Lavabo stared back, his expression hard.
And then...
"Blast him, too!"
The flurry of blaster fire resumed, red energy bolts tearing down the hallway toward both the young Jedi and the Knight of the Wash. Marco sprang back into action, now not only focusing on protecting himself but also Lavabo as the armored laundry knight opened fire with his rotary blaster canon. The massive weapon spat blue lasers so quickly that it easily equaled the volume of returned shots from the stormtroopers, and with far deadlier accuracy. One trooper fell, then two, then six, then ten. In less than a minute, Sir Lavabo's massive rotary blaster canon had laid waste to the entire squad of stormtroopers in the corridor.
"Wow!" Marco marveled as he extinguished the lightsabers. "That was amazing! I never would have expected you would be able to fight!"
Lavabo let the barrel of his heavy weapon rest on the floor, pressing his now free right hand to his heart. "Since time immemorial, the Knight of the Wash has been the last line of defense for the Royal Family, the most highly trained of the royal guards! Today, I must do my duty!"
Buff Frog quickly hurried over. "Strange Knight! We are needing your help!"
"I am afraid I cannot help you. I must protect the royal family!" Lavabo quickly hoisted up his canon once more and started to rush off down the corridor.
"Wait!" Tom yelped. "Come back!"
Janna added, "We need you!"
"I am sorry, my friends!" Lavabo called back. "I cannot abandon my sworn duty!"
"Uh! Th-that is what you're doing!" Marco yelled in a panic. "You are abandoning your duty!"
Lavabo froze. He slowly turned back, clearly confused by Marco's accusation. "You dare..." He said slowly, "question my honor?"
Marco quickly pointed to Star's unconscious form slung over Buff Frog's shoulder. "The Princess is right here. Queen Moon told us that the most important thing was that she escape."
"Saber Boy is right," Buff Frog confirmed, "The Queen directly ordered me to escort Star Butterfly and her friends to their ship."
Janna quickly added, "And she told us to find you so that you could lead us out through the laundry drain tunnel!"
Lavabo backtracked to where the others stood, his expression hard. "The Queen ordered this directly, you say?"
"Of highest priority, yes," Buff Frog said.
Lavabo considered this as he looked at the unconscious Princess.
"My duty can only be redirected by an order from the acting Queen herself, so...okay. I will help yo-"
His last word was cut off by a blaster bolt streaking past their heads and slamming into the wall. Everyone whipped around to see another squadron of stormtroopers traipsing down the main stairs into servants' tunnel.
"There they are!"
"Get 'em!"
In an instant, Marco's lightsabers hissed to life and he quickly placed himself between his friends and the invaders. "Go!" he yelled. "I'll cover you!"
The Imperial troops practically gushed from the stairs, a seemingly never ending flood of identical white helmeted soldiers spitting red lasers. As Buff Frog, Tom, and Janna sprinted toward the adjacent corridor, the Padawan and Knight of the Wash walked carefully backward, Lavabo laying down a spread of cover fire with his rotary canon while Marco deflected the incoming blaster bolts. Once they made it past the entryway of the adjoining corridor and were protected by the corner of the wall for a few precious seconds while the stormtroopers raced to catch up, they both deactivated their weapons and rushed for the basement door where their friends anxiously awaited them. Tom and Buff Frog stood well back several steps down to give Marco and Lavabo space to run through the doorway, but Janna squeezed herself into the corner beside the door. The instant the pair cleared the door frame, Janna slammed the activation panel to close the door, then quickly fired her DC-17 at the door control. The fried electronic panel effectively sealed the door closed. It was mere seconds before the sounds of frantic stormtroopers attempting to open the door could be heard from the other side.
"The basement door is reinforced," Lavabo told them. "It should hold long enough for us to make it to the subbasement." He squeezed himself and his giant blaster canon past Tom and Buff Frog. "Follow me!"
The basement stairs were dimly lit and it was hard to see each stair tread. Holding onto the handrail was a necessity. It seemed to take forever to reach the basement, and Tom breathed a thankful sigh of relief when they reached the bottom where the lighting was better.
"Hang on," Marco said as he observed the stacks of boxes and crates that filled the room, "I thought we were going to the laundry room. This just looks like storage."
Lavabo laughed as he led them to another set of stairs on the adjacent wall. "That is because it is storage. This is the basement. The laundry room is in the subbasement." He pointed down the stairway. "This way."
"Oh, geez, more dark stairs," Tom groaned as he watched Lavabo begin his decent. Buff Frog followed closely behind. "I just know I'm gonna trip and fall."
Janna shoved him roughly forward, causing her partner to stumble on the first step. "Quit your blubberin', we don't have time for this."
Marco once again brought up the rear, but before he did he glanced up the stairs they had just descended, thankful there was no sign of stormtrooper headlamps on the dim staircase. Just as he was about to follow after his friends, a strange thought crossed his mind. Glossaryck...
Marco's eyes scanned all around the room, but there was no sign of any life aside from himself. "Glossaryck?" he called out. "Glossaryck? Glossaryck, where are you? We could really use your vast knowledge of the Force right about now!"
Silence was the only reply. There was no sign of the old Force-guru.
Marco shook his head and hurried down the steps toward the subbasement.
Queen Moon sighed and removed her crown from atop her head, setting it carefully on her desk. She knew she had mere moments before the stormtroopers streaming in through the castle's main entrance reached her office in the east tower.
"So now what?" asked a voice. "Just giving up?"
She looked up to see a familiar, tiny blue figure floating down from above. "Glossaryck."
"Glossaryck!" River shouted, whirling away from the open window. "Where have you been?! We need your powers to protect the castle!"
Glossaryck shook his head. "Mm. No."
"No?!"
"I don't have the capacity for violence. It's one of the reasons I left the Jedi Order. Besides," he went on as he floated over to the window and observed the wanton destruction occurring below as hordes of stormtroopers roamed the streets, "even with all of my knowledge of the Force...this is still beyond my capabilities." He turned back to the Queen. "Would you have sent Star away if you thought otherwise?"
Moon sadly shook her head. "No."
Eclipsa, having been leaning through the open door into the hallway, suddenly ducked back into the office and closed the door, setting the magnetic lock. "We're about to have company," she said simply.
The senator was correct. A few moments later, the sounds of Imperial stormtroopers in the hallway reached their ears, the echoing clangs of metal-on-metal as they attempted to break down the door.
River quietly came to his wife's side, taking her by the hand, attempting to appear brave and unshakable as he said, "I love you, Moonpie." But Moon could see the tears forming in the corners of his eyes.
"Glossaryck..." Moon said slowly, afraid to ask the burning question on her mind, "can you see Star's future? Will she be alright?"
The old Force-guru closed his eyes, feeling the swirls and ebbs and flows of the Force. "It's cloudy, but...I think she will make it off-world okay. Anything past that is anybody's guess."
From the other side of the office, the stormtroopers could be heard requesting explosive charges to blow the door open. "Glossaryck, get yourself out of sight," Moon quickly ordered. "If Star ever returns...she will need your guidance."
"Sure you wouldn't rather me stick around here with you?"
"We'll be fine. Go!"
"Okay then." Glossaryck waved his arms and evaporated into a cloud of green mist, calling a final, "Good luck," just before he vanished.
Moon squeezed River's hand. "I love you, too, River."
The office door was obliterated in a deafening explosion, a cloud of dust and smoke filling the room. Before Moon, River, and Eclipsa could even get their bearings, each was struck by the opaque blue ring of energy from a stormtrooper's E-11 blaster rifle. All three crumpled lifelessly to the floor.
Three stormtroopers entered the office. The first used his armored boot to roll Eclipsa over onto her back. "It's Senator Butterfly."
The other two troopers inspected the other stunned Mewmans. "The King and Queen here."
"I'll call it in." The lead trooper removed his commlink from his belt and activated it."Sir. This is ST-102. We've captured King and Queen Butterfly, as well as the renegade Senator."
"What is your location, trooper?" returned a smooth and unimpressed voice.
"Butterfly Castle, sir. We appear to be in an office in the east tower."
"What about the Princess and her friends?"
"No sign of them, sir."
"I'm on my way. Secure the prisoners in the castle courtyard and continue your search. She is likely nearby."
"Yes, sir." The stormtrooper turned to the others standing in the corridor beyond the doorway. "Cut the power off and seal all exits. Then fan out and find the Princess. Don't let her escape!"
The gang was halfway down the stairs to the subbasement when the power was cut, the already dim lighting instantly flickering out and plunging the staircase in complete darkness.
"Whoaaaa, it is really dark!" Tom exclaimed as everyone halted their decent.
"No one panic!" Marco said in a loud whisper. "Not a problem!" He quickly ignited Star's lightsaber, the glowing blade filling the staircase with an emerald glow, plenty bright enough to see by. He handed his own lightsaber to Janna. "Here, pass this up to Tom."
Janna handed the weapon off to Tom, who flicked it on. The azure glow from Marco's lightsaber added to the illumination, making it almost brighter than the dim lights overhead.
"Come along," Lavabo urged. "We approach the end."
At last, they reached the subbasement, just as dark as the stairs. Lavabo guided the group between the various washing machinery, all of which appeared to be in perfect working order despite looking extremely antiquated. He led them to the far back corner of the room and down three steps to a small stone platform just large enough for all five of them to stand on. The platform was the edge of a rectangular basin about three meters deep and a little less than half filled with water that came in through a dozen pipes which were the outlets for waste water from the laundry equipment. Water went out again through a large drain tube on the opposite side, protected by a metal grate.
Carefully setting down his rotary blaster canon, Lavabo motioned to Tom. "May I borrow the lightsaber please?"
"Oh, uh, sure. Here."
Without deactivating the blade, Tom carefully handed over Marco's weapon to the Knight of the Wash, who immediately slid into the waist-high water. Lavabo waded over to the drain pipe and, with three quick, precise slashes, cut a triangular hole in the grate. He hoisted the severed piece out of the way with one hand as if it were weightless.
"Padawan Diaz, do you mind if I hold onto this until we have safely traversed the drainage tunnel?" Lavabo asked of the azure lightsaber in his hand. "My canon is much too large to carry through the drain and I am afraid I do not have a smaller weapon. Also, the tunnel is...quite dark."
"Uh, yeah, sure. Just, uh...don't, you know...lose it." Marco forced himself not to look in Janna's general direction. He didn't want her to think he was making a jab at her.
"Thank you, youngling," Lavabo said with a polite bow. "Now, quickly! Follow me!"
Buff Frog slid into the drainage basin without any hesitation, the big frog man just as comfortable in water as on dry land. He ducked into the drain, once again taking care to ensure that he did not accidentally cause Star's head to make contact with the ceiling of the tunnel.
The three teenagers were a bit more hesitant, Marco especially. He watched as Janna and Tom each took their turns sliding carefully into the water. Being significantly shorter than Lavabo and Buff Frog, the water came up to their chests. They both turned to Marco still standing on the platform behind them.
"Come on, Marco," Janna urged. "What're you waiting for?"
Marco clenched his teeth. "Just bracing myself for wet socks..." He crouched down and slowly slid into the water, grimacing as the water poured over the tops of his boots and saturated his socks before slipping the rest of the way in, careful to keep Star's lightsaber above the water. "Okay, I'm good," he said through clenched teeth. In addition to his soaked socks, the water was also freezing cold which did not make the experience any more pleasant. "C'mon, let's go."
Awkwardly sloshing through the high water in the drainage tunnel as quickly as they could, they hurried to catch up with Buff Frog and Lavabo. Fortunately, the grown Mewman and Frog Man did not fit through the tunnel quite as easily as the teenagers and the young trio easily erased the distance separating them from their escorts.
The group moved forward methodically, keeping a steady pace, the only sound the soft echoing of the rippling water as they pushed onward, and the humming of the two lightsabers illuminating their way. Occasionally, an explosion would be heard from above ground, but no one was brave enough to acknowledge the chilling noise.
The slow, half-submerged trek went on for almost ten minutes before Sir Lavabo abruptly raised his left hand. "Halt!" he whispered loudly.
"What i-?" Tom began.
"Silence!"
As the Knight of the Wash and the royal family's last line of defense, Lavabo had been trained in and mastered many forms of combat, including sword combat. He held Marco's lightsaber before him with both hands, poised to strike. The others watched as best they could from their single-file positions behind. For almost a full minute, Lavabo remained completely motionless, everyone scarcely daring to breathe, unsure what had caused their guide to suddenly command them to stop.
And then it burst from the water, letting out a piercing shriek that echoed through the drainage tunnel and nearly drowned out Tom's panicked scream of terror. The creature was some native species of aquatic hydra, though instead of having many heads, it had only one, about the size of Buff Frog's skull, it's gapping mouth opening incredibly wide on a hinged jaw like that of a serpent. A dozen tentacles with barbed ends stretched up above the water as it stared at Lavabo from its single, unblinking blind eye. Lavabo did not so much as flinch, while those behind him shrank back in shock, Buff Frog instinctively covering Star on his shoulder with both muscular arms to protect her.
The Knight of the Wash slashed the azure-bladed lightsaber forward, but the hydra was quick, ducking backwards out of reach. Even so, the fast swipe of the laser sword managed to sever one of its tentacles, and the creature shrieked in pain. It sank quickly back beneath the surface of the water.
"Where'd it go?! Where'd it go?!" Tom yelped, backing up against the wall.
"Do not move!" Lavabo yelled. "It cannot see you, but your movements will make it easier to find you!"
It was too late.
Tom screamed again as he felt something wrap around his calf. "It's got my leg! It's got my-!"
And then he disappeared, roughly yanked beneath the surface.
"Tom!"
Janna frantically tried to spot her partner below the water, but all she could see was the reflection of Star's lightsaber blade in Marco's hand on the now-turbulent surface. She did, however, feel something make contact with her legs as it forced its way past her in the narrow tunnel. She stumbled backwards and nearly fell.
Marco's adrenaline-fueled Jedi-instinct kicked in. Sucking in a deep breath, he bent his knees and allowed himself to slip completely beneath the water. Forcing himself to keep his eyes open, Star's lightsaber, completely beneath the surface, bathed the lower half of the tunnel in emerald light. He could clearly see the hydra pulling itself along by its tentacles, dragging Tom behind it, aiming itself directly at him.
Force guide my blade-don't let me hit Tom!
Swinging the lightsaber underwater took much more effort than on land, but he managed to strike the hydra midway up its narrow body...just as its mouth was opening to engulf his face. The head spasmed as the body and most of its tentacles were severed, the creature panicking as it squirmed in pain. It shot off down the tunnel with its remaining two appendages, leaving Tom wrapped in a writhing heap of twitching tentacles.
The demonicite could not free himself, nor could he raise himself above the water for a breath of air. Remaining submerged, Marco kicked off the tunnel wall with his cybernetic leg, propelling himself through the water until to within range, then carefully cut Tom free and helped the terrified smuggler surface.
Tom gasped as he broke the surface, panting hard, while Marco wiped the moisture from his face and eyes.
"Tom!" Janna exclaimed, quickly putting an arm around him to ensure he would not slip back under. "Are you okay?"
He could only manage to nod in reply as he struggled to refill his empty lungs.
Marco looked toward Lavabo. "What was that thing?"
"Freshwater Mewnian Megahydra. Feisty things. Always building their nests in the drainage tunnel and blocking it up," the Knight answered.
The echo of a muffled explosion boomed overhead, interrupting any further discussion.
"We must keep moving," Buff Frog said simply.
Marco looked to Tom. "You okay to keep going?"
"Yeah...I'm okay. Thanks for the save, bro."
"No prob. C'mon. We gotta get back to the Raventalon."
"Right. Janna, I'm okay now, you can let go of me."
"Oh, right!" Janna quickly retracted her arm, blushing, having not even realized that she was still holding onto her partner.
They resumed their slow, saturated trek in silence once more, the sounds of battle and destruction above ground fading away as they drew further and further away from the castle.
"I'm starting to feel a little claustrophobic in here," Tom said after about ten minutes. "How much further?"
"We are almost to the end of the tunnel," Lavabo replied. "Just a bit further."
He was correct, as no more than forty-five seconds passed before the tunnel opened up. Unfortunately, this was not the end. They found themselves in larger space very similar to where their journey began. The drain pipe had become a canal for the last dozen meters before ending in a wall, a narrow platform on the right side. Near the furthest wall, the water seemed to abruptly accelerate.
"What's this, a dead end?" Tom inquired.
"Not quite. This is where the water exits into the river from the hillside," Lavabo explained as he pulled himself out of the water and up onto the platform. He gestured to the far wall with Marco's lightsaber. "There is a much smaller pipe there, beneath the surface, where the water drains out, and a filtration unit cleans the water before it empties into the river. I will have to deactivate it for us to traverse the pipe." He made his way to a control panel on the back wall and began tapping keys. "We must pull ourselves through one at a time."
"Could we not just cut a hole in the wall?" Buff Frog asked. "We have two of the hot swords."
Lavabo shook his head as he tapped a final key and the soft whirring of some sort of machinery could be heard shutting down. "I am afraid not. The final stretch of pipe is two dozen meters long." He slid back into the water. "There is still a decent length of the hillside beyond that wall."
Janna raised an eyebrow and asked the question on Buff Frog's mind before the Mewni general could. "How's Star gonna get through? She can't hold her breath if she's unconscious!"
Everyone looked at the limp princess draped over Buff Frog's shoulder. It was true, she couldn't hold her breath while unconscious. The pipe that led to escape from the hordes of invaders was completely submerged and long enough that it would take most of a lung-full of oxygen to reach the end.
Lavabo put a hand to his chin thoughtfully. "Hmmm...that would seem to be a problem."
"I can get Star through."
Now everyone turned to look at Marco, still standing at the back of the room.
"You can?" Tom asked. Marco only nodded in reply. "How?"
"Let's just say if you hang around a Nautolan Jedi Master long enough, you pick up a few water-based Force-tricks." Marco waded over to the general. "Let me have her, Buff Frog." The Frog Man complied, gingerly lifting Star from his shoulder and setting her into the water, Marco cradling her gently in his free arm and using the water to make her float. "You guys all go first. I'll bring Star after."
"Are you sure?" Buff Frog asked.
Marco stared at the water. "Yes. I...I...it's going to take...a lot of concentration for me to do this. It will be easier if you guys aren't watching me or anything. Just be ready on the other side to pull us out when we get close."
Buff Frog was unsure about leaving Star behind even temporarily. After all, he had promised the Queen that he would get Star to safety. He glanced at Janna, and the smuggler captain nodded at him confidently, knowing that there was no person in the galaxy more worthy of trust to keep Star safe than Marco Diaz. "Alright, Saber boy. I will be waiting on other side to pull you and princess through."
"Thank you, Buff Frog."
And so, while Marco stood back and watched, Lavabo explained to the others how to find their way through. "Take a deep breath, keep your arms out straight in front of you, and pull yourself through. The current should help you along, but you will never make it through before you run out of air if you do not pull yourself along."
Janna, ever fearless, went first. She removed her hat and tucked it into the empty holster inside of her jacket to ensure she would not lose it, checked to make sure her single remaining blaster was secure in the opposite holster, and then took a deep breath and plunged beneath the water. The others waited a full minute to give her a chance to reach the other end, and then Tom took his turn. Lavabo extinguished Marco's lightsaber, causing the room to become significantly dimmer, and tucked it beneath his belt before diving through the pipe himself.
Buff Frog looked to Marco one last time, his eyes falling upon the unconscious Princess. "You are sure that you can get Star Butterfly through safely?"
"Well...I sure hope so," Marco said, nervous. "To be perfectly honest...I've never actually attempted what I'm about to do."
This did not ease Buff Frog's mind. "What? I thought you knew what you were doing?! If you are not absolutely certain, then we must be finding another way!"
"Okay. I'm open to suggestions."
"Well..." Buff Frog looked around. He could think of no possible method for safely transporting the unconscious girl through the pipe. "...I...do not know."
"Yeah...me neither. I wish there was another way." Marco sighed. For a moment, the room was silent, save for the humming of Star's green lightsaber in his hand. He squeezed the elaborately crafted hilt as he looked the Mewni General square in the eyes. "Buff Frog...Star isn't just my best friend. I love her." He watched as the Frog Man's eyes abruptly widened with surprise, his stern expression softening. "I love her more than anything else in the entire galaxy. If I allowed something to happen to her...I wouldn't be able to live with myself. I will do everything in my power to keep her safe. And that goes double for once we leave Mewni, too." Marco looked hard into Buff Frog's eyes. "I will get Star through...even if I don't get through myself. Just be waiting on the other side to pull her through."
Buff Frog understood. Even if Marco was unsure of his ability to transport Star through the pipe safely, there was no being in the galaxy more determined to keep the Princess safe. "Okay, Saber Boy. I will be on other side waiting."
"Oh, and don't panic if I don't come through right away. It might take me a few minutes to figure out how to do this."
"Understood." Buff Frog saluted the young Padawan, dove beneath the water, and disappeared.
And then Marco was left all alone with his unconscious best friend. He looked down at her face, her cute features somehow managing to appear pained and tortured while completely old cold. "Okay, Star...Let's get you out of here."
