Chapter 120 - Chapter 111: Divided We Stand

Summary:

The hard parts of an impossible plan

Steven could only look in horror as Eclipsa, a woman he trusted, handed the group two blackened stones. "Garnet…" Pearl looked on the verge of crying, before looking murderous. "How could you!?" Pearl grabbed the queen by the collar. "You said you'd do what needed to be done, and now she's gone!!"

"I didn't know…I was on the side…and I dipped down when I didn't even know how…" Eclipse was sobbing in the mist of being shaken like a ragdoll.

"Pearl, calm down!" Steven held her back. "We still have the fountain, we can fix this."

"But not mom." He turned to Star, who stared at the ground. "She's gone … somewhere …"

"It was into a portal." Everyone looked at the Queen of Darkness quizzically. "Only one of her eyes was blacked out. She looked so scared, and then she opened a rainbow colored portal and fled to it like a moth to a flame…"

"Rainbow colored…" Steven and Star said at the same time, looking to each other in realization. "Was it huge and sucked everything into it?" Steven asked.

"Yes, it was actually." The woman nodded.

"She's in the Realm of Magic." Star muttered. "I'll have to search later … right now, this is more serious." She pointed her wand at the queen. "We're locking you up back in your tower Eclipsa." His sister spoke more cruelly than usual.

"I suppose that's fair." Eclipsa relented as the guards placed handcuffs on her. "What are you going to do about my daughter?" Star didn't respond, simply nodding her head to the guards as a sign to drag her away. "Star, what are you going to do!?"

"I'm stopping a mistake everyone is responsible for." The entire room grew noticeably tenser at how she worded that. 

"Star, what do you.." Marco began to ask.

"Because it's true, Marco! Every time someone tries to do something about Meteora, it only gets worse!" Star exclaimed. "The Commission, me, Steven, Mom, Eclipsa's monster hubby, Everyone no matter what side they take, only makes the situation worse! Heck, Meteroa's only this spiteful because Mewni is such a backwater kingdom filled with IDIOTS!"

One of the guards dropped their heads down, Steven giving him a small pat. "Star, I get that but … are you okay?" He asked.

"I'm fine, let's just get this over with." She walked out. "Come on, there's a war room that's a bit dusty."

Everyone left the hall, though Steven looked back at the forlorn Eclipsa. With one shared look of sorrow, they completely understood what it was the other was feeling. No matter the situation…it was always impossible to choose between family.

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"Alright." Pearl watched as Peridot began to write on a board. "From what I can analyze from … Lapis and Garnet." She looked at the dull black gem shaped like a tear, held close. After a breath, the small gem continued. "The 'soul sucking' spell drains all potential energy, creating a strange pocket within the victim." She continued to write. "Because of this, she carries all the combined attributes of them at all times. At first it was just a bunch of Mewmans, which didn't amount to much … no offense." She turned to Star real quick.

"Yeah, yeah, we're all useless idiots, keep going." Everyone flinched at the…acting queen's self-defeating attitude.

"But from my understanding on how magic works, specifically in relation to the Rose Quartz gem, we can assume her ability has been increased with an expansion." She continued to write. "We can also assume she has Lapis's liquid manipulation, Ruby's strength enhancement and heat generation, Sapphire's future vision and heat deletion, the Lizard man's healing factor, and Steven's … pink stuff."

"Super strength, speed, shockwave attack." Steven clarfied.

"Terrifying." They nodded. "Now because you fixed the 'patch', she is probably running on a limited amount of energy." Peridot clarified. "Although that probably doesn't matter much when just absorbing souls alone increases height, strength and durability."

"Yeah, I don't think any amount of swords will be able to pierce through that thick skin." Kelly sighed.

"But if what we've learned from Eclipsa is true, then it is possible to harm her, or slow her down." Pearl joined in. 

"Yeah, we just need to hit her harder and faster than ever before!" Amethyst shouted. "Let's all go and kick some ass!"

"Amethyst, sit down." Star ordered sternly, and the newfound shift in mood scared the purple gem into compliance. "We need real ideas beyond 'hit the bad guy'. If anything goes wrong, she ends up stronger, and we end up dead."

"We can try getting inside her head." Marco offered. "It's not the most stable place and Steven can dream of walking."

"Heheh, we might want to x-nay on the -reamd-walking-ay." Steven said in broken pig latin. "I can only do that when the other person is asleep, and something tells me Meteroa isn't going to sleep until she crushes the castle to pieces." Steven rubbed his face. "Eclipsa's been trying to help me expand it to astral projection…"

"Nope, bad idea." Star shut her brother down. "Not just because we can't trust Eclipsa, but the last thing I want is for my brother to get trapped inside that psychos head."

"If that's the case can't we just wait until she's a sleep deprived mess that can't keep a single thought straight?" Kelly asked.

"Nope, the soul sucking pretty much gives her an endless amount of energy. I'd know, Leckmet used to be an expert on this sort of thing." Heckapoo, the only member of the commission left by this point, answered. "And we have less than a day until Meteora reaches the kingdom."

"Okay, I'd really hate to suggest this…" Pearl raised her hand. "But…Mina Loveberry could possibly put a halt to our problem." And there was a slight chance she would be killed in the process as well.

"No way, she already is a loose cannon that would kill us. And on the off chance she's absorbed, Meteora becomes a truly unstoppable juggernaut." Star groaned. "We really don't have a lot of options here!"

"There's always the void." Amethyst threw out. "Just toss her in there for a couple of months until we're ready to deal with her."

"No, everytime we toss someone in there, they come back stronger or more competent." Steven sighed. "I could always go monster again…."

"We're not sacrificing your humanity!" Star shouted. "And you only do that when you're super depressed and or self-loathing, so you won't even be in the right headspace to fight at all."

"Alright, point taken." The boy nodded. 

Marco thought about something, and snapped his fingers. "Hey, if she destroyed the chainsaw, then Meteora should be stuck here. We don't need to fight her or anything, we can just take everyone and leave."

"Marco, you're talking about telling an entire world of people to just abandon their home to live somewhere else, likely in a new and confusing environment." Pearl pointed out. "There's going to be quite a few hundred that'll be stubborn to leave."

"Didn't the monsters already do that?" Tom asked. "I mean, it's better than the alternative of facing an unstoppable soul sucking monster."

"Ugggh, we're just going back in circles here!" Star shouted, slamming her fist through the table. "Does anyone else have any useful ideas!?"

The doors swung open, with River coming in with a silver platter. "I have dinner."

"....." Star stared at her father with a blank look for a full minute, before taking the platter and walking out of the room.

Pearl looked around. "Should … should we do something?"

"I'll go talk to her." Steven stated, standing up. "Sibling discussion."

"We'll join you." Kelly and Marco joined him, and walked out of the room, leaving just the adults. It was a cruel and heavy burden to put all this pressure on such a young girl. Pearl could only pray to the stars that history wouldn't repeat itself, and Star wouldn't do anything she'd live to regret.

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Kelly watched as Star just stared out of the window, completely silent as the girl gripped her wand. "What option do we have … what option do we have …"

Nobody had an answer, because quite frankly, they were just as clueless. "I don't know…I really don't know." Steven looked out the window right next to her sister, and sighed. "I knew someday we'd have to grow up…I never thought that day would be so soon though…or so horrifying."

"… Mom had to deal with a lot, didn't she?" Star asked. She was quiet for a second more. "We need to put her down, it's not an option anymore.""

Steven looked at his sister's eyes, and began bawling, letting himself fall to the ground. "Why…why does life keep pushing us into making these terrible decisions? Why does it fall on us to make the hard calls!?"

"Sssssh, Shush, there, there, Steven." Kelly got down and glomped onto her boyfriend. "It doesn't have to be all on you or Star. Whatever choice we go with, we'll do it together."

"It's not going to be on Steven at all." Star answered, turning her brother and kneeling down, holding him close. "You almost died, you're staying out of this, you hear me?" 

"If that's the case, then it shouldn't be on you at all either." Marco pointed out. "Meteora is just as blood hungry for you."

"But I'm the Queen now, this is my responsibility." Star said dejectedly.

"And I'm your squire, it's my job to help." Marco held the girl. Now all four of them were in a nice warm pile. This would've been way better under less life threatening circumstances.

"Damn it, Damn it, Damn it!" Star banged her head against the wall, the tears flowing out of her eyes like a stream. "No matter who we send out, nobody aside from my mom is going to have the firepower to put Meteora down."

"I mean, you're more powerful than your mom right?" Kelly noted. "And Starry Quartz apparently tears apart dimensions like butter."

"Tear apart…dimensions…that's it…that's it!" Star jumped up from her slump and swirled Kelly around. "Kelly, you're a genius!"

"No argument here." Steven agreed. "But what is she a genius about?"

"Mom opened a portal to the magic dimension, someplace I've been to before!" Star explained. "That means I can go there and drag her out! After that, we tag team Meteora and blast her to bits!"

"Woh!" Marco raised his hand. "I'm all for getting your mom out of the Realm of Magic, but that place … does things to your head." He reminded them. "Even if you don't lose your sanity, she probably did, and then there's the matter of getting you out when your sanity is messed up."

"I can always come with…" Steven tried to offer.

"No, it affects everyone, and we can't risk all three of us getting lost." Star stopped her brother. "I'll leave a message on my hand mirror to keep reminding myself of what I need to do."

"I was just gonna suggest tying a rope and pulling you out when it gets serious." Kelly offered.

"It does take a while to get there, and we need all hands on deck." Marco added. "I know you won't like this, but we need everyone we can gather to hold the fort down and slow Meteora as much as possible."

"If you won't let me go fight Meteora, I won't let you go into the realm of magic." Steven answered. "You may be the Queen now, but I'm also the new Rose Guard, and the Rose Guard does whatever they want." It was always hot to see Steven put his foot down on any occasion.

"Ugggggh! I hate adulting!" Star pulled on her hair and screamed into a pillow. "Fine, but the moment things go to hell, I'm counting on you…!" Star pointed to Marco. "..To get him out of there, no matter what."

"Done deal." Marco and Kelly spoke at the same time.

"Wait, why are you saying that?" Steven asked her.

"Because we all know if Meteora is gonna be gunning for ANYONE out of the group we put together … it's 'Princess Turdina'." She patted his back. "Good luck being the bait."

"Oh yeah…you're probably the only one in the group Meteroa doesn't have a vendetta again now." Marco observed. "That's actually going to be pretty helpful. Now all there's left is to gather our team and plan."

"Oh, we're going to do more than just plan." Star smirked as she let her wand glow menacingly. "If you're serious about fighting head on, then we need everyone in fighting shape."

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"Now heres how it's going to go!" Tom heard Star shout at the top of her lungs. "You all will be beaten within an inch of your lives by me and Steven! If you survive, you're in! Any questions?"

"Yes…WHY does it have to be within an inch of our lives!?" Tom shouted

"Because Meteora won't leave a single inch." Steven clarified as he glowed pink. "And you need to experience as much life threatening danger in order to prepare for the real deal."

"Follow up question." Jana asked, completely casual. "Can I get an upgrade? I wasn't around when Bismuth showed up and I still only have a pipe on hand." She held up the rusty object.

"Oh, I think I have something in mind for you." Pearl reached into her gem, and pulled out a curved, bendy looking sword. "It's called an Urumi. It's basically a sword that acts like a whip."

"Nice!" She shouted, swinging the object as it flew backwards, hitting Marco in the back of the head as he yelped. "... I'll get the hang of it."

"Getting back to the topic at hand." Star continued on as she went into a lovely looking golden butterfly form. "Meteora isn't going to hold back for a second, so out there, you need to be ready for any and all situations, especially with her being super jacked on souls."

"Ah, soul rage, always tricky to deal with." Tom chuckled as he lit up his hands with fire. "So, do we just let you start or.." He was suddenly met with a bubbled fist to the chest by Steven, seeding him into a tree.

"Danger comes when you least expect it! So learn to expect the unexpected when you expect the unexpected." The pink boy clarified as Tom wheezed from his attack.

"Alright, attack!" Amethyst turned into a ball, rushing at the duo before being blasted by Star. "Or keep your distance, whatever works."

"Oh please, they're just two kids." Heckapoo rolled her eyes as she turned her scissors into daggers. "Yeah, they can be a pain in the neck, but they shouldn't be that strong…" With a quick flash of pink, Heckapoo found herself flying sideways into a rock. "...Yep, he definitely has his mom's strength…"

Pearl began graceful moves of ducking and weaving around the blasts. "One and two and three!" She jumped.

"Stickyhand Exploding FORCEFIELD!"

"Wait what?" The gem hit a giant sticky hand … which exploded, sending her flying into a wall covered in sticky goo. "This goes against everything Rose has been trying to tell me…but I truly despise magic!"

"It is a tricky conundrum to count, but all obstacles can be overcome with the power of the mind!" Peridot gathered every manner of metal weapon she could surround herself with, and sent them hurtling towards Steve, who managed to avoid each one with that weird pink super speed. "Yes, flee, flee from my metallic maelstrom of mayhem!" The boy raised his hand, a giant pink hexagon blocking her attacks as the makeshift shield went flying at the gem.

"Alright, we're getting creamed." Jana idly commented, turning to him. "Any plans?"

"I really don't feel like flinging fire at my girlfriend, but I feel like if I don't she'll fry me faster than the lava lake could ever do." Tom said begrudgingly. "How good are you at getting on people's nerves and distracting them?"

"That's basically been my reason for existing ever since I've met Marco." The cap wearing girl smirked. "Oh look, there he is now." They watched as the boy got flung like a paddle ball between the two siblings.

"Why…is…this…so… brutal ?" He asked between hits.

"Because Meteora is gonna focus on you!" Steven shouted. "So muscle up!"

"Oh, this would be so much funnier to me about a year ago." Tom couldn't help but laugh.

"What are you talking about, it's still funny." Jana giggled. "Okay, you lay the flames thick on Steven, I'll clip Star's wings with the bendy sword." She demonstrated by whipping out the weapon aon, and causing a crack in a nearby rock. "I am never letting this baby go."

"Okay, and … break!"

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"After twelve hours of combat, I think you guys might stand a chance at holding her off." Star smiled at the traumatized team.

"I thought Steven was supposed to be the nice once…." Heckapoo groaned as she rubbed ice over the purple bruises on her white skin.

"Repressed anger, you don't get to be that happy without repressing something." Her boyfriend Tom (who she was determined to keep her boyfriend by never, ever explaining what happened in that booth) explained, probably familiar due to his own personal experiences.

"And with all the time I've spent learning on earth and my family … I've got a lot bottled up." Steven laughed. "You sure you don't want someone to hold you by a rope Star?" He asked.

"Nah, the longer the portal's open, the more things are going to be sucked in, and two people in the magic realm is already a whole hassle to handle." Star waved off. "Besides, we can always ask our daughter for help … or is it our son?"

"I want to say girl, but it's a unicorn made out of magic…" Steven cupped his chin before shrugging. "I'll just say daughter unless she corrects me next time we see them."

"If I didn't have context, I would be very concerned right now." Kelly said as her hair had her tied up in a nearby tree.

"I guess this is it …" Her brother pulled her into a hug. "I'm gonna miss you Star."

"Steven, this isn't gonna be any longer than when I first went to earth." Star waved off. "I'm going to be back in like…three hours at most once I get past all the dimensions."

"I know, I know, it's just…we've come so far from the days where we'd just ride on Lion through the forest of certain death." Steven looked up at her. "It's more than just us now…and we have to do our own things in order for us to win…"

"I miss the days when it was just us too, Steven." Star hugged her brother back. "But once I find mom, we'll have more days like that, along with days with our friends, and then we can have just a little more time to be kids before we have to be adults again."

"Alright …" He sighed. "Good luck."

"You too bro." She patted him, before changing forms and flying out. "Alright Realm of Magic … round three!"