Star vs Evil - Chapter 7
Tom looked across the long banquet table at Star, sitting on the other end. He diligently hunted for the largest hellboar he could find and overwatched the chefs create their meal tonight.
Toffee said any effort is never wasted, even if we don’t perceive the desired results. Plant the seeds and they will grow.
Star picked at her food and sighed. She looked up across the long table to Tom who gave her a reassuring smile. She returned the smile, but Tom’s faded. He could tell it was half-hearted. He had hoped she’d turn to the normal, bubbly girl he’s in love with, but with her moping about all the time… it felt like she was his prisoner.
“Star… it’s been a week.” Tom said as he mirrored her fidgeting.
“I know, I know.” Star sighed and pushed her food away. Every time her gaze connected with his, she would turn away and focus on something else.
“What do you want to do tonight? There’s going to be a wrestling match later. I know how much you love to watch mindlessly violent sports. Last month we had two dismemberments!” Tom said with glee. He hoped he could find some way to turn this around.
“Meh,” Star said with a sigh and absentmindedly changed her nail colors with her wand. She didn’t even look at the food he spent all day lamenting over. A part of him wanted to scream at her insensitivity, but he’s trying to move beyond that side of him.
“We can go hunting?” Tom said, brandishing all forms of killing instruments from out of nowhere.
“Meh,” Star replied and poked at her plate again, returning her wand with her free hand to her purse.
“What is going on? You were so happy to be here!” Tom lamented.
“No, Tom. I’m not happy here. I’m here because it’s the right thing to do.” Star snapped. She kicked her chair out and stormed off outside the castle.
“Star…” Tom whispered, his outstretched hand grasping at the retreating form of Star.
OoOoO
“Sir… the Butterfly has left the nest!” Buffrog reported to a floating bat eyeball.
“Thank you, commence the attack,” Toffee said from the viewing room. He stood next to Ludo, his stone face hiding any thoughts he may be having.
“I...I should be out there commanding my troops!” Ludo exclaimed. “My years of tactical analysis is going to be invaluable.”
“I understand, sir, but you’re too advanced to be of any help to your troops, This is like a chess game, each piece has its part. Just watch,” he said, revealing a smile full of teeth. Ludo nodded in excitement, ignoring the little voice in the back of his head warning him of danger.
OoOoO
Marco curled up in bed with the covers over his head. What were King and Queen Butterfly thinking? They expected him to be her knight? All this time… it wasn’t a coincidence that he was her host house? The layers of betrayal felt like suffocating weights pressing against his chest, one pound at a time.
The sound of space unicorn erupted from under his pillow. Halfheartedly, he checked the caller ID. He didn’t want to talk to Jackie right now.
Marco shot up in bed and answered the phone. “Star?”
“Hey… Marco,” She said. It was her ‘confused and needs advice’ tone, Marco noted. He should run down and make some s’mores, that always helps the ‘confused and needs advice’ Star.
Marco punched his pillow. No! He will not start that! He’s not her protector or her knight. He was a normal kid going to school.
“I’m… sorta busy.” Marco said, his chest tightened as he said those words to her. God, he wanted to see her!
“Oh… I’m sorry… I’ll just…” Star mumbled.
“No! Wait!” Marco shouted before Star finished. “I… I mean, I got some time, what’s up?”
“I’m… just having second thoughts,” Star mumbled. “But… enough about me. How are you and Jackie? We haven’t talked in like a week… and I just am going for a walk around Lava Lake… and thought of you… I mean though I’d catch up with you… since ya know… walking, and bored… that sorta thing.”
“Star… Your Mom and Dad were here.” Marco said dryly.
“Oh?” She said innocently. “And… how were they?”
“I found out a few things,” Marco said, he wanted to scream and yell but didn’t want to anger Star and have her hang up on him.
“And… you found out how awesome of a friend you are and they are in no way holding you responsible for my rash and uncontrollable decision to run away?” Star said. He could hear her grinning from ear to ear, anticipating what sort of trouble she may be in.
“I found out why you came to live with me,” Marco said.
“What?” Star asked, “I… don’t understand.”
“Don’t pay dumb, Star,” Marco said. “I was chosen before you even came to earth. I was supposed to be groomed into a Bach...knight or something and move to Mewnie when I was older. When you took the crown.”
“I’ve never heard of such a thing. A Bach...knight?” Star said and suddenly gasped with some sort of realization. “I can’t believe them… That’s so like Mom!”
“So… you honestly didn’t know?” Marco asked.
“No. Of course not!” Star said. “I love it over there and I’d never ask you to…”
“Ask me to what?” Marco asked. “Star? Hello?”
Looking down at his phone, it showed the call was dropped.
Marco’s hand shook as he sent text after text, call after call only to get no reply.
“MOM!” Marco screamed as he tore out of his room. “Please tell me you have a way to get ahold of King Butterfly!”
OoOoO
Star looked at the shattered cell phone in her hand. It was cleanly broke in two. She winced in pain as she noticed an arrow sticking out of the back of her hand, the shaft halfway up, and a green stone arrowhead inches from her face...
“M...Marco?” She asked the destroyed cell phone. Her mind hadn’t caught up with what had happened. A part of her was mildly curious at the green ooze coming from the stone arrowhead.
Star looked around. Slowly Ludo’s army appeared, surrounding her. Instinctively she reached for her wand and gasped in pain. The arrow was still in her palm. She fumbled with her purse and reached in with her left hand, pulling out the source of her powers.
“Narwhal Blast!” She screamed, The rainbow filled attacking narwhals fired as usual but missed their target.
Ludo’s crew surrounded her and slowly closed in the circle. Star fired a few more missed shots and turned her focus to her dominant hand.
Star tried to pull the arrow through but almost blacked out from the lightning pain that shot through her arm. Her breathing was labored, a mix of panic and pain. She cast her wand about wildly, not even attempting any real spells. She hoped Tom was on his way and glad Marco was safe. She didn’t want him to see her like this.
OoOoO
“And.. she just stormed off!” Tom said to his therapist. Toffee nodded and wrote in his notebook.
“And.. how did that make you feel?” Toffee asked
“Like I should go after her!” He replied. There was a knock on the door. “I’m BUSY!”
“Should we stop?” Toffee asked,
“No, It’s nothing. Just some underlings want something. They know not to bother me in here.” Tom said and sat on the reclining sofa that he sat in front of the communication mirror.
“Now, what would happen if you did?” Toffee asked, picking up from his last question.
“She’d say I was smothering her and get mad,” Tom replied, he slumped down on his chair and let out a defeated sigh.
“Exactly… Let's work on those feelings.”
OoOoO
“Tom? Marco?” Star shouted. Her voice cracked from the pain. She felt a knot in her throat and despair claw at her chest. “Anyone? I need help!”
Star lightly jogged away from the minions that attacked her. A full sprint would waste energy, and she needed to conserve what she had. None of the minions had attacked her yet, the massive presence and their slow approach were driving her mad. She was being engulfed in hopelessness, knowing she was powerless against them. The more she ran, the more appeared. She realized too late, that she was being corralled.
She needed someone to help her… she couldn’t do this herself. She thought she could, but she could barely move her hand, the pain had moved up her arm and was now at her shoulder. Was the arrow poisoned?
Desperation overtook her. She charged the nearest monster and screamed. The giant chicken moved aside, and her kick whizzed through the air, connecting to nothing. Losing her balance, she slid on the hard rock that overlooked the lake of molten fire. The group reformed around her and closed in on her. She backed away, brandishing her wand, firing shot after shot with her left hand, missing each one as they slowly closed in.
As Star backed away, her foot slipped. She knelt down to steady herself and looked behind her. She was up against the edge of the magma lake.
The creatures in the army chuckled, and the sound of a tiny slow clap rang in her ears. She could see some of the monsters part ways to reveal Ludo clapping in triumph.
“Nowhere left to run… Butterfly!” Ludo said in triumph. “Now… give me the wand, or your goose is cooked!”
“Ludo… this doesn’t mean you won!” Star said she tried to muster up any intimidation she had left.
“Look around! No one is showing up to save you!” Ludo chuckled. “You’re incapacitated, and there’s no way you can win! I mean… the only thing you could do is…”
Ludo covered his beak, realizing the mistake he made.
Star’s face wore a wide grin.
“Oh… you want my wand?” She said. Her legs shook as she stood back up. “Fine… go get it!”
“Wait! No! Star! Can we talk about this!” Ludo screamed in a panic! “NO! STOP HER!”
Star mimicked a baseball pitch Marco taught her and threw the wand with all her might.
Everyone stood in silent reverence as they watched the spiraling wand land in the lake of magma. Slowly it became encased in molten rock and disappeared from view.
“NO!” Ludo screamed and lunged forward. BuffFrog grabbed him with one hand and held him back. “No! I can still get it! I can get it! Someone go in and get it!”
“Sir, It’s gone,” BuffFrog said somberly. “It’s… It’s over.”
“NO! NO! NO!” Ludo wailed. “I was so close! I almost won!”
Star fell on her side, breathing had become increasingly difficult. The frantic Ludo paused and looked at Star’s collapse figure.
“Star?” Ludo asked. He rubbed his hands gingerly and motioned BuffFrog to set him down. The maniacal look on his face changed to one of concern. He walked up to her and looked over her body’s labored breathing. Black veins crept out from the arrow wound and slowly inched up her wrist. “Hey… is she going to be okay?”
“She was shot with poison arrow… of course, she’s not okay.” BuffFrog replied with a shrug.
“Who said to use a poison one?” Ludo asked that voice in the back of his head screamed louder, warning him of danger. “The idea was to disable her hand so she couldn’t aim!”
“Toffee instructed,” BuffFrog replied with a shrug.
Before Ludo could say anything more, the ground around them erupted. Star’s vision blurred, but she could make out a red hoodie rushing forward surrounded by Mewnie guards. The monster army scattered and escaped into the undead forest surrounding them.
“Star! Star!” Marco screamed. He was so far away. She tried to reach out to him. He raced over to her and cradled her in his arms. “I’m here… god, I’m sorry. I’ll never leave your side. This is all my fault.”
“Arrow… poisoned.” Star mumbled, indicating her injured hand. With that, consciousness escaped into visions of space unicorn videos involving laser puppies.
OoOoO
Star woke up in her room. She felt disoriented. It wasn’t Tom’s castle or Marco’s house. Was she back on Mewnie?
She sat up and winced. She looked down at her hand. It was bandaged, but black streaks were running up her arm.
“It won’t go away,” Marco said from the corner. He couldn’t quite hide the crack in his voice. His eyes are puffy and red. Was he crying?
“M… Marco?” Star asked rubbing her head. The events were fuzzy after her hand was skewered with the arrow.
“Yeah. I’m here,” he said and sat on the foot of her bed and held her good hand.
“I was so scared.” She whimpered and burst into tears. She never felt so powerless before.
“So was I.” He said and pulled her to him. She laid in his lap, and he rubbed her head. “I’m here now. It will be okay.”
“No… no, it won’t” Star sobbed. “It’s gone.”
“What’s gone?” Marco asked.
“The wand… I… I threw it in the lava lake. It was my only choice. If I died, then Ludo would have gotten it.” Star sobbed. She looked at her bandaged hand and winced in pain.
“They… are looking for a way to stop whatever was on that arrow,” Marco said. “I can’t believe Ludo would be this dirty. I mean, I don’t know the guy, but there seemed to be an underlying respect for you when we fought. There was a line he wouldn’t cross you know?”
“I heard him say he didn’t know about the poison,” Star mumbled. “BuffFrog said someone named Toffee made the decision.”
“Well… no matter what happens, we’ll get you fixed up.” Marco said and rubbed her temples. “Just rest knowing this is all over. We’ll figure out where to go from here, but without the wand, no one is going to be coming after you.”
“Yeah…” Star said, and wrapped her good arm around Marco’s waist. She closed her eyes and felt her consciousness slipping away. “Marco…” She whispered as she drifted off to sleep. She swore she saw Tom standing in the doorway, but she must be imagining things. She was with Marco and knew everything will be alright.
OoOoO
Toffee stood at the edge of the magma lake and looked at his pocket watch.
“He’s late.” Toffee said.
“TOFFEE!” Ludo screamed as he emerged from the forest. “What’s the big idea!”
Toffee cocked an eyebrow at Ludo and turned back to overlook the molten lake.
“Why did you poison Star?” Ludo shrieked. “There’s a line you don’t cross when trying to destroy your enemies!”
“Do you realize how stupid that sounds?” Toffee grimaced. “The problem you have is that you played fair. This whole thing was a big game between you two. It was… so annoying to watch.”
“You better change that tone.” Ludo shouted, “You don’t know who you’re messing with.”
Toffee checked his watch and removed from inside his jacket a large plastic glove. Looking at the shoreline, he nodded to himself.
“I wish to make an announcement to all those following chicken head here.” Toffee said everyone looked at the Big Giant Chicken. “No… I meant… god, you all are stupid. Ludo! Those who follow Ludo.”
“What is this? Some sort of mutiny!?” Ludo demanded and ran at Toffee.
Toffee took a step forward and extended his leg. Ludo flew over the crowd and passed a pair of trees. BuffFrog raised two hands in the air, signaling the shot was good.
“Now… as you can well assume, I’m taking over. This can be an easy or a hard transition or…” Toffee explained.
“But… what about the wand?” Someone asked.
“I’m glad you mentioned it.” Toffee said and stepped aside. Crab Claws emerged from the molten lava, encased in a lead suit. Around the edges glowed from the heat and pressure. Gripped in his claw, dripping with molten rock was the Butterfly wand of power.
Toffee grabbed the wand with his gloved hand and grinned.
“Any Questions?”
There was a shriek of anger from behind the group. Ludo erupted from under someone’s legs, holding a sharpened stick, and charged at Toffee.
“I HAVE WORKED FOR YEARS FOR THAT WAND!” Ludo screamed. His little legs pushed his tiny frame forward, building momentum for his attack.
Toffee sighed, rolled his eyes, and held out the wand. A sparkling light erupted from it, engulfing Ludo.
A stone statue of the tiny ruler remained.
“Let's head back to my castle and I’ll tell you of the next stage of my plan.” Toffee said and cut open an interdimensional portal. “I’ve ordered pizza and ice cream for the party.”
Everyone erupted in cheers and barreled through the interdimensional portal. BuffFrog was the last one. He was holding the stone remains of his former master. Toffee raised an eyebrow at him.
“Wanted to put it on mantle. Would make great hat rack.” BuffFrog said and shrugged.
Toffee shrugged in response and let him pass.
As the portal closed after them. Silence filled the undead forest, occasionally interrupted by a glug from the molten lake.
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