A Long Time Ago, In A Galaxy Far, Far Away…







Slowly and groggily, Star Butterfly opened her eyes.

And quickly, with a sudden sense of alarm, she realized that the room she’d woken up in was not the room she’d fallen asleep in.

Leaping up out of her prone position, Star quickly took stock of her surroundings. She was in a relatively small black-painted room, with poor lighting, a single bench along the back wall, and no apparent exits. It didn’t take Star long to determine it had to be a cell of some kind, though it did little to address the questions of how she’d gotten here, why she’d been taken prisoner, and where here even was.

As she examined the room, Star caught a flash of white against her shoulder in the corner of her eye and looked down.

“What the…?” Star muttered. Instead of the green dress she’d been wearing previously, Star now found herself adorned in a long, flowing white gown. Awkwardly, she attempted to search the garment for any kind of tag or marking, but found none. What she did find, to her annoyance, was that whoever had dressed her in this outfit had also tied her hair up into a pair of tight buns along the sides of her head-and that her wand and all of her other belongings were nowhere to be found.

It was, she concluded, the third-strangest way she’d ever woken up.

“This is just too weird,” she said as she glanced around the room, looking for any kinds of cameras or microphones. “Hello? Is anybody there?”

There was no answer.

Frustrated, Star banged her hand against a wall. She regretted it immediately-whatever material the wall had been constructed from, it was very solid. As she held her hand and winced, the dull thud echoed through the room, and an uneasy sense of claustrophobia began to build in the back of her mind.

Without warning, a section of the wall across from her began to hiss. Shocked, Star spun around as a previously invisibile door opened out of the wall, revealing a short figure donned in ornate black armor.

“Princess Butterfly,” the figure said in a deep, electronically tinged voice, “I hope for your sake you are ready to tell you the location of your hidden rebel base.”

“Bwuh?” Star stared at the figure, bewildered. “Who are-what’s going on here? Where am I?”

“Don’t play dumb with me, your highness,” the figure barked as it strode into the room, its black cape flapping at its heels. “You are a member of the treasonous Rebel Alliance, a confirmed spy, and a traitor. If you value your life, you are going to tell me what I want to know, and tell me now.”

“I-I’m not any of those things! I think!” Star said. “Look, I don’t know who you are or who you think I am, but I honestly do not know about anything you’re talking about! So you better drop me right back off where you found me, or else-“

“Or else what, Princess?” the man said. “You are aboard the largest and most powerful battlestation in the galaxy. The Imperial Senate has been disbanded, and your pathetic band of rebels is of no help to you here.

“Now,” he said menacingly, “I would consider your next words very carefully.”

Before Star could respond, a pudgy man in a sharp grey uniform ran up to the door of the cell. “Lord Ludo,” he said nervously, “I’ve just received word, sir, that we’ve captured a small freighter. There doesn’t appear to have been anybody aboard, but-“

“Put the garrison on high alert, there may be infiltrators aboard intending to rescue the Princess,” Ludo said. “I’ll go to inspect the ship myself. In the meantime, inform Grand Moff Toffee that the Princess appears to be feigning some form of amnesia, and that I will be resuming the interrogation shortly.”

The officer nodded. “Yes, Lord Ludo.”

Ludo turned back to Star, and raised a threatening hand. “Do not believe you have earned yourself a reprieve, Princess. Once I have dealt with this matter, I will return-and you had best end this pathetic charade.”

With that, Ludo turned and strode out of the room. For a second, Star considered running after him, to make a break for it-but the door swished shut as soon as Ludo stepped through it, leaving Star alone once again in the barren cell.

Wordlessly, she sat and held her hands together. Then, losing control completely, she began laughing hysterically.

“Lord Ludo? LUDO?” she wheezed, tears streaming down her face. She couldn’t help it-whatever had just happened, and whatever danger she might be in, the mere image of Ludo in that ridiculous outfit was enough to send her into fits.

After a solid minute of laughter, Star slowly wiped the tears from her face and forced herself to think about her predicament. It was a concerning one, for sure-As comical as Ludo’s appearance had been, his threats had been earnest, and Star was not looking forward to dealing with him when he got back. That left escape as her only option-but, as she scanned the room, the opportunities appeared scant. There were no windows, only a single vent that was far too narrow to climb through, and the invisible door. Hoping against hope, Star walked forward and pressed against the wall, and received exactly what she was expecting-nothing.

Sighing, Star went back, sat down on the bench, and stared at the wall. There had to be something, anything she could do!

Well, she thought, there is ONE thing…

Getting up off the bench, Star walked up to the far wall, crouched down in the corner, and waited. It was a long shot, she knew. But if she could get the jump on Ludo the next time he walked in…

After several minutes of crouching, Star’s knees began to wobble, and she gave up and walked back to the bench to sit down. Rubbing her sore legs, she began to consider alternatives to her plan. Maybe if she…

Star’s head perked up as she heard what sounded like shouting on the other side of the thick cell wall, followed by a series of explosions and screams. Hurriedly, she ran back into position and prepared to strike. Within moments, the door to the cell hissed open once more, and Star could barely contain her glee as a figure clad in white armor from head to toe and holding a black rifle walked through, their head fixed straight forwards.

As the figure began to turn to look through the rest of the room, Star balled her hand into a fist and lunged. Before the soldier could react, she knocked him back against the wall, raised her arm, and-

“WAIT! I’m here to rescue you!”

Star’s fist froze in mid-punch. “What?”

Awkwardly, the soldier raised his hands to his head, fumbled with his helmet, and removed it-revealing, to Star’s complete and utter shock, the face of Marco Diaz.

Star stepped back, unable to process the revelation. “What-how-when-“

“I’m Marco Skywalker, I’m here to rescue you!” he said. “I’ve got your PH unit and I’m here with Gloss Kenobi!”

“Gloss Ken… Glossaryck is here? Where is he!” Star shouted.

Marco gestured to the doorway with his rifle. “Come on!”

Unsure of what else to do, Star followed Marco out the door and into the corridor. Like the cell, it was black and poorly lit, and terminated in a wall on one end and a well-lit control room at the other. Just as Star began to step down the hallway, however, the far room exploded with noise, smoke, and red blasts of energy-and as she watched, another white-clad figure emerged out of the smoke and raced down the hallway towards them, followed closely by a tall, furry monster of some kind.

“Jan, what’s going on?” Marco shouted, raising his blaster.

“We’ve got company!” Jan replied, sliding behind a bulkhead built along the wall of the corridor. “They, uh, didn’t like my Harrison Ford impression.”

“RAAAWWWGGHHH”

“Oh come on, not you too!”

All four instinctively ducked down as a blaster bolt exploded against the floor between them, showering them in sparks. At the end of the hallway, a half-dozen soldiers had taken firing positions, and raising their blasters and filling the air with red blasts of energy.

“Oh great, not more Stormtroopers!” Marco groaned. “There’s gotta be another way out!”

Jan leaned around the bulkhead and fired back, hitting one of the attacking ‘Stormtroopers’ in the chest and sending him crashing to the floor. “Well we better find it quick, I can’t hold them off forever!”

“Well, uh, I appreciate the rescue,” Star said, “But didn’t you guys have any plans for actually getting out?”

“Hey, it was his idea, Princess!” Jan shot back.

Rolling her eyes, Star quickly began to examine her surroundings-and within seconds, spotted a grate across the hallway labeled “GARBAGE DISPOSAL”

Wrestling Marco’s blaster away from him, Star pointed it at the grate, found the trigger, and fired. It exploded instantaneously, revealing a dark, narrow chute.

Jan turned to Star, confused. “What are you doing?”

“Someone’s got to get us out of here!” Star shouted. “Now come on, let’s go!”

As Marco, Jan, and the large furry monster paused, Star sighed, passed the blaster back off to Marco, and dove across the corridor. Dodging the incoming fire, she leapt straight down the chute and closed her eyes.

The ride was rapid and rough, and the stench overpowering, but fortunately it was over quickly. After only a few seconds of banging around the narrow slide, Star was flung out of the chute and into a large room overflowing with garbage. Landing on a pile of unidentifiable debris, Star stood up, moved over, and looked back up at the hole in the ceiling from which she’d emerged. After less than a minute, the furry monster flew out and landed on the garbage pile, followed swiftly by Jan and Marco.

“The garbage chute, great idea Princess!” Jan said, wrinkling her nose as she stood up amongst the filth. “What incredible smells we’ve discovered.”

“Hey, someone had to get out out of there!” Star snapped. “And would someone please tell me what’s happening?”

Marco paused from wiping a hideously decayed banana peel off his stolen armor to look up at Star, confused. “We’re… rescuing you?”

She slapped her face. “No, I get that, I mean, why was Ludo messing with me by talking about this ‘rebellion’? Where’s my wand? And why in the world am I dressed like this?”

Jan stared at Star for a moment before giving a sidelong glance towards Marco. “Dude, I think there’s something wrong with this Princess of yours.”

Star groaned in frustration. “URGH, I don’t have time for this. Let’s just get out of here, and I can figure out what’s going on later.”

“RAAWWGGHHH”

Jan nodded. “You said it, Jackie.”

Without warning the walls began to vibrate, and a hideous screeching noise echoed throughout the room. Barely able to remain standing as the garbage beneath her feet began to shift and churn, Star and looked up and had a terrible realization that the walls slowly, but surely, beginning to close in.

“They’re activating the trash compactor!” Jan shouted. “Marco, call M-FR3D! Hurry!”

As Marco desperately began to shout at his comlink, Jan, Jackie, and Star burst into action. Grabbing a large section of discarded metal pipe, Star and Jan attempted to lift it up and wedge it between the walls, while Jackie made for a door on the far side of the room.

It only took moments for their hopes to be dashed. As the walls pressed in on both sides of the raised pipe, the rusted metal instantly buckled and broke under the overpowering mechanical force. And, try as she might, Jackie couldn’t do anything to budge the sealed door.

With nothing else left to do, Star uselessly pushed back against the closing walls, unable to do anything to prevent their inexorable purpose. As the gap between the walls narrowed to ten feet, then seven, then five, then three, Star began to wonder if this might really be-

The walls, as suddenly as they started, stopped.

For a second, no one spoke, daring not to disturb the miraculous silence. Then, all four broke into celebratory cheers, whooping and hollering wildly. Overwhelmed with relief, Star wrapped her arms around Marco and hugged him tightly-and, as she released him, laughed at the hint of a blush on his cheeks.

“M-FR3D, we’re alright, you did great!” Marco shouted happily into the comlink. “Now, see if you can get this door open.”

No sooner had Marco spoken then the door to the trash compactor hissed and swung open, revealing a clean, brightly lit corridor beyond. Shoving their way through the crumpled mass of garbage, the four raced through the opening and breathed in deeply as they emerged into the fresh air.

“That was way too close,” Marco said between gasps. “Now let’s get back to the ship.”

“The ship?” Star asked, confused. “You sailed here?”

Marco gave Star another odd look. “What? No, we-“

“It’s them!”

Star turned and immediately ducked down as a blaster bolt screamed overhead, exploding against the ceiling in a shower of sparks. Ahead, a dozen Stormtroopers rushed down the hallway, firing wildly as they charged towards the group.

Screaming at the top of their lungs, Jan and Jackie lowered their weapons and fired bac into the advancing horde. To Star’s amazement, the Stormtroopers began to backpedal and retreat, only to be pursued by Jan and Jackie as they fell back

Grinning, Star began to move to chase after them, but Marco grabbed her arm. “Come on, we have to go this way!”

“What, we’re just going to let them have all the fun?” Star asked, disappointed.

Marco shook his head. “If they don’t get themselves killed! Come on, we’ll meet them back at the ship.”

Sighing, Star acquiesced to Marco’s judgement and followed as he set off in the opposite direction from Jan and Jackie’s charge.

Then, only seconds later, another group of Stormtroopers emerged from around a corner, and Star ducked again as a flurry of blaster bolts filled the air.

As Star held onto Marco’s arm, the pair ran straight past the Stormtroopers and escaped through a side passageway. With the soldiers hot in pursuit, it was all Star and Marco could do to stay ahead of them as they raced through the twisting corridors of the facility.

As they rounded a corner and dashed up a ramp, Star gasped and dug in her heels as the passageway opened up into an impossibly tall chasm. Barely managing to stop in time, Star grabbed and held onto Marco as he nearly ran right off the edge.

Looking around, Star was awestruck by the sight. Though the chasm wasn’t particularly wide, spanning only two dozen feet across, Star could see neither the top or the bottom-only an endless wall of grey metal. For the first time, Star began to wonder just how big this place was-and again, questioned just how in the world she’d managed to end up here.

Beside her, Marco began to panic as the corridor behind them echoed with the clacking of countless Stormtroopers. Locating a control panel along the wall, he quickly hit a button that sent the door behind them crashing shut. For good measure, he then took his blaster and fired into the panel, leaving it a smoking, molten wreck.

“Think that’ll hold them?” Marco asked.

Star shrugged. “Won’t exactly do much good if we can’t get across this gap. You think there’s a way to activate a bridge or something?”

Marco looked back down at the destroyed control panel and gulped. “Uh…”

Suddenly, another flurry of blaster bolts flew out from nowhere, exploding against the walls beside them. Startled, Star looked up and saw another set of Stormtroopers peering out an opening across the chasm, teetering close to the edge in order to get shots on their quarry.

As Marco ducked back against the wall and returned fire, Star spotted a grappling hook on his belt and got an idea. Grabbing it before he could protest, she let loose a long length of wire and swung the hook upwards into a ventilation fixture that ran across the chasm above. As the hook caught fast against a pipe, Star tugged the wire to ensure it was secure, grinned, and turned to Marco. Needing no invitation, the boy quickly wrapped himself around Star, and to her surprise, pecked her on the cheek.

“For-uh-luck!” he said quickly.

Star rolled her eyes, but secretly appreciated the gesture.

Then, not wasting any more time, she pulled on the wire and flung herself forward, swinging dramatically across the gap. Blaster bolts filled the air around them, but miraculously none of them landed-and as Star and Marco reached the other side of the chasm, they were able to stumble forwards and out of the line of fire.

Now free of their pursuers, the pair were able to quickly navigate through the immense facility-and before long, Marco managed to lead them to their destination-a hanger housing something that appeared to be a giant, rough-hewn metal pancake.

“You came here in this?” Star said, perplexed. “You’re even braver than I thought.”

Before Marco could comment, he was distracted by the sight of a tall, light-blue covered metallic man walking out to meet him. “Master Skywalker, you’ve returned!”

It was the sight of the second robot, however, that caused Star to gasp. Floating next up to them was the unmistakable sight of Pony Head, appearing as though someone had wrapped her in aluminum foil painted in blue and white stripes.

“Pony Head, what have they done to you?!” Star screamed, clutching at her seemingly now-metalic friend.

“Like, beep boop, or whatever,” P2-H2 replied.

Before Star could ask another question, she was distracted by the sound of Jan and Jackie coming up behind her, each running at full tilt.

“Everyone, on the Falcon, now!” Jan shouted, rushing past Marco and Star on her way to the boarding ramp.

“But wait, what about Gloss?” Marco shouted back. “We can’t just leave him here!”

Jan paused as she reached the ramp, and pointed across the hanger. “Isn’t that him over there?”

Twisting her head, Star was shocked to see Glossaryck, appearing at a normal human size, facing down Ludo. Each wielded a strange laser sword-Glossaryck’s gold, Ludo’s green-and together slowly circled around the far entrance to the hanger, each totally focused on the other.

Spellbound, Star watched as Ludo attempted to strike at Glossaryck. Before Star could even process the saber was moving, Glossaryck swung his weapon out and deflected the blow. The sound of the two weapons striking against each other sounded not unlike a thunderclap, and the air around the duelists crackled with the noise of discharging energy.

Then, Glossaryck looked up from the duel, turned his head, and locked eyes with Star from across the room.

With an almost imperceptible nod, he deactivated his weapon and turned to Ludo.

“You may strike me down, Darth Ludo,” he began, “But-“

Before he even could finish, Ludo laughed manically and swung his saber forward.

“NO!” Star screamed, watching helplessly as Glossaryck’s robes fell to the ground. A group of nearby Stormtroopers, similarly transfixed by the duel, turned in surprise at Star’s outburst and immediately began firing on the distraught princess.

“Star, we have to go!” Marco shouted, and grabbed Star. Focused totally on the sight of Ludo leaping up and down on the pile of Glossaryck’s robes, offering no resistance as Marco pulled her onto the boarding ramp of the ship.

As she stumbled up the ramp, the ship’s engines roared to life as the deck began shaking violently. Following Marco through the narrow confines of the interior, Star stepped inside the cockpit, sat down next to Marco, and watched as Jan and Jackie wrestled with the controls.

“Alright, that old thing better have disabled the tractor beam or this is gonna be a real short trip,” Jan said. “Jackie, hit it!”

Jackie roared and punched the controls. To Star’s amazement, the ship slowly lifted off the ground and twisted around to the entrance of the hanger-which she only now realized opened out into a field of stars. A moment later the ship blasted forwards, rocking Star back into her seat. Before her eyes, the confines of the hanger disappeared, leaving only the infinite expanse of the universe before them.

“We’re… we’re in space!” Star said, awestruck. “When did we get to space?!”

“If you like that, you’re gonna love this,” Jan said. “Jackie, take us to hyperspace!”

Grabbing a throttle on the ceiling, Jackie waited a moment, pressed a button, and slammed it forward.

Time and space seemed to stretch into infinity as the stars themselves turned into elongated beacons of light. The feeling in Star’s body in that moment was indescribable-and then, the stars merged together into a swirling blue vortex, and the sensation passed.

Jan smiled, leaned back in her chair, and swiveled around to face Marco. “Well kid,” she said smugly, “You have to admit, that was some rescue.”

Marco didn’t reply for a moment, and instead looked down at the floor, dejected “I… I just can’t believe Gloss Kenobi’s gone.”

Star patted him on the back sympathetically. “It’s alright, Marco,” she said. “If I know anything about that guy, he always pops back up somehow.” She tried to smile, but it quickly morphed into a grimace. “Even when you don’t want him to.”

Jan coughed loudly. “Alright, so I’ve got to ask a few questions, Princess,” she said. “You say don’t know what’s going on, but you knew the old guy, you act like you know us… so what gives?”

Star looked at Jan, confused. “But I do know you! You’re Janna! Janna Banana!”

Jan turned her head and looked at Star curiously. “I don’t know if you ran into some long lost twin or what, but my name is Jan Solo, and Princess, I’ve never seen you before in my life.”

She grinned and raised her palms. “Not that I mind the view, of course.”

“But I do know you! All of you!” Star protested. “Even Jackie! Though I don’t know why she’s suddenly seven feet tall and covered in hair.”

“RRAAARRGGHHH?”

“Not that that’s a bad thing!” Star said quickly. “Actually, it’s not even a bad look for you.”

“RAAWWGH”

“Princess Star,” Marco said, “I’m not going to say I know what’s going on. But I do know that you gave a message to P2 to find Gloss Kenobi, and that she has information that’s vital to saving the Rebellion against the Empire. If you can tell us where we can find the Rebellion, I’m sure we can figure out what’s happened to you and your memories.”

Star sighed. “Marco, I don’t know… I just wish I was back on Mewni.”

“The Mewni system?” Jan laughed. “There hasn’t been anything out there for six thousand years.”

Marco looked back at Jan curiously. “Yeah, and that’d make it a pretty good place to hide, wouldn’t it? Try plugging it in, it’s worth a shot.”

Jan shrugged, and swung around in her chair. “Well, I suppose it can’t hurt.”

She sighed. “I just hope the Princess here can still remember how to open her bank account.”

———-

Mewni was both shockingly similar and tremendously different from the version that Star knew.

The tall towers she had known as a child remained, standing straight and proud into the sky. But the interior of the palace had been utterly transformed-far from a home for the royal family, it was now a military base, complete with garrisons, armories, and expansive hangers housing dozens of worn and battered starfighters. To make matters worse, everyone knew her, as she was apparently a major figure in the Rebellion. In turn, though she recognized many of the Rebellion’s leaders, soldiers, and pilots, like Marco and Janna it was as though they were different people entirely.

Through it all, her sole rock was Marco. Though he didn’t remember her as, well, her, he constantly remained by Star’s side, and offered constant words of positivity and reinforcement. It was, Star considered, one of the sweetest things anyone had ever done for her-especially considering that, from Marco’s perspective, he barely knew her. In the end, his presence was enough to make the entire experience…. Well, if not quite comfortable, then tolerable.

“So, how’d it go?” Marco asked as Star climbed out of a flight simulator.

Star shrugged. From the moment she arrived, it had been made clear that if she wanted to fight back against Ludo and Toffee, it would have to be from the cockpit of a starfighter. Though the other members of the Rebellion had insisted she leave the fighting to the trained pilots… the truth of the matter was, the Rebellion didn’t have enough pilots. As such, both Star and Marco had signed up to join the Alliance Starfighter corps-for better or for worse.

“It wasn’t too bad,” she said. “I’m, uh, still learning all the controls, but at least I didn’t crash this time!”

Marco replied with a nervous grin. “Well, uh, I’m sure if you give it a couple more tries, you’ll-“

“All Pilots, assemble in the briefing room. Repeat, all pilots, assemble in the briefing room.”

Star and Marco looked at each other and gulped.

Together, the two raced towards the briefing room, accompanied by a dozen other pilots. As they arrived and took their seats, Star saw her mother standing at the head of the chamber, wearing a grim expression on her face.

“Everyone,” Moon Mothma began, “We have just received word that the Death Star has entered the Mewni system.”

There was an immediate chorus of terrified whispers.

“As you know,” she continued, “The battlestation is heavily shielded, and carries a firepower greater than half a starfleet. However, its defenses are designed around a large scale assault-a one man fighter should be able to penetrate the outer defense.”

As she watched the briefing, Star spied Jan and JacklynTombacca standing together in the back of the room, wordlessly glancing at each other. Judging by the sour expression on Jan’s face, Star could tell exactly what she thought of the plan.

“Pardon me for asking, ma’am,” River “King” Johanson said as he stood up, “But what use are snubfighters going to be against that?”

“A fair question, Gold Leader.” Moon Mothma replied. “The Empire doesn’t consider a small one-man fighter to be any threat, or they’d have a tighter defense. An analysis of the plans provided by Princess Butterfly-“ she nodded at Star-“has demonstrated a weakness in the battle station.”

P2-H2 beeped nervously as the screen next to Moon Mothma began to display a 3-D image of the Death Star’s topography.

“The approach will not be easy,” Moon Mothma continued, pointing at the display. “You are required to maneuver straight down this trench and skim the surface to this point. The target area is only two meters wide-It’s a small exhaust port, right below the main port. The shaft leads directly to the reactor system. A precise hit will start a chain reaction which should destroy the station.”

She paused for emphasis, looking around at the gathered pilots. “Only a precise hit will set up a chain reaction. The shaft is ray-shielded, so you’ll have to use proton torpedoes.”

The pilots murmured in disbelief, and Tom Antillies, sitting beside Star, shook his head. “Two meters? That’s impossible, even for a demon.”

Star nudged Tom playfully. “Oh come on, I used to blast swamp bats with my wand all the time back home, and they’re a lot smaller than two meters.”

Moon Mothma looked around the room solemnly. “Now, man your ships,” she finished. “And may the force be with you.”

The pilots slowly began to file out of the room, and Star followed. Jan, staring at Star disbelievingly, walked over and threw up her hands.

“What do you think you’re doing?” she said.

Star looked back at her defiantly. “I’m not just going to sit here while Ludo pilots that Death Ball or whatever to come and kill us! I’m going to fight back!”

Jan looked at Star, slack-jawed. “Are you crazy? Have you even flown a starfighter before?”

“Well, no.” Star admitted. “But Marco’s been taking me through some of the games they have here-“

“Simulators!”

“Simulators, right,” Star corrected herself. “And I mean, come on, it doesn’t seem that hard.”

Jan shook her head and turned around. “Well, whatever. It’s your funeral.”

“Wait,” Star said, “You’re not coming?”

Jan shrugged. “Look, I’ve got to pay off some old debts back on Earth. But even if I didn’t, you think I’d be dumb enough to stick around here?”

She sighed. “Star, why don’t you come with us? You might not remember anything, but you’re pretty good in a fight, and Jackie and I could use a girl like you on the Falcon.”

Star felt a wave of anger rush through her. “Jan, just look around you! You know what's about to happen, what these people are up against. They could use a good ship… flyer… person like you, and… you’re… you’re just turning your back on them!”

Jan looked at Star seriously. “Star, attacking that battle station isn’t exactly my idea of courage. It’s suicide. You know that.”

Star returned her look with a cold glare, and began to walk towards the hanger. “Take care of yourself, Jan. Guess that’s what you’re best at, isn’t it?”

“Hey, Star!”

Star turned and looked at Jan, who paused, and sighed. “May the Force be with you.”

Star nodded, turned back, and left Jan standing behind.

As she entered the hanger, she saw Marco standing next to his assigned fighter, holding his flight helmet in one hand and a checklist in the other. As he looked up, he saw Star, and immediately rushed over, tucking the helmet underneath his arm. “Hey Star, what’s wrong?”

Star sighed. “Oh, it’s Jan! I don’t know, I really thought she’d change her mind.”

Marco nodded apologetically. “She’s got to follow her own path, Star. No one can choose it for her.”

She sighed again. “I just wish Glossaryck was here.”

“Pilots, prepare for immediate departure. Repeat, Pilots, prepare for immediate departure.”

Marco looked up at the loudspeaker, and back down at Star. “Alright, Star, this is it. Watch yourself out there, okay?”

Star smiled. “You too, Marco.”

With that, she turned around and began making her way to her ship. For a second, she wondered if she’d even be able to find it-the hanger was a maze of fighters, bombers, armaments, spare engines, components, and maintenance equipment, in addition to the countless pilots and maintainers dashing throughout the space. Before long, however, she was greeted by the sight of the space fighter she’d been assigned, and brightened at the sight of Pony Head being lifted down into the ship by a team of maintainers.

As she grabbed the ladder and climbed up into the cockpit, one of the men leaned over and waved at Pony Head. “This P2 unit of your seems a bit unruly. Do you want a new one?”

Star laughed. “Not on your life! Doesn’t matter what body she’s in, that girl and I have been through a lot together.”

Twisting around in the cockpit, she watched as Pony Head’s metal exterior was latched into the spacecraft. “You okay, Pony?”

P2’s head twisted enthusiastically in her socket. “Oh, you better beep boop believe it, girl.”

Filled with determination, Star strapped herself in and looked down at the controls. For a moment, the sheer number of buttons, displays, and toggles overwhelmed her-but she quickly pushed the trepidation out of her mind.

“Just relax, Star,” she said to herself. “Can’t be worse than riding a bike.”

“Red Squadron, begin takeoff procedures. Repeat, Red Squadron, begin takeoff procedures.”

“This is it!” one of the maintainers shouted. “Good luck, Princess!”

Star gave him a thumbs-up, and with a slight shudder the canopy began to lower. The hanger was now filled with the sounds of whining turbines and roaring engines-and, before long, a man ran in front of Star’s fighter and began waving at her to take off.

Taking a deep breath, Star grasped the controls and began the takeoff procedure. Fortunately, it was fairly simple to remember-and within seconds, Star felt the spacecraft slowly begin to lift off the ground.

“Star,” a quiet voice said, “The force will be with you.”

“Pony Head, did you say something?” Star asked, looking around the cockpit.

“Beep.”

Putting the strange voice out of her mind, Star carefully began to nudge the ship forward. Slowly gliding over the ground, Star guided the ship through the hanger, lining up behind a row of other hovering fighters. Directed by the ground personnel, the spacecraft were marshalled to the entrance of the hanger-where, one by one, they emerged into the open air, loosed their throttles, and rocketed into the atmosphere.

As her turn approached, Star gritted her teeth, braced herself, and hit the throttle. Pushed back into her seat by the sudden acceleration, Star watched as the familiar hills and valleys of Mewni rapidly disappeared, leaving only the endless pink sky. Before long, that too faded, and Star was greeted once more by the dark, infinite expanse of space.

It was impossible not to marvel at the sight-but Star didn’t have long to stargaze. As the last fighter left Mewni’s atmosphere, the Star’s radio crackled to life, and the man she knew on Earth as Sensei began to speak. “This is Red Leader, dudes. All wings, report in.”

“Red Ten, standing by,” came the unmistakable voice of Ruberiot.

Next, it was Alfonso: “Red Seven, standing by.”

Then, Marco’s voice came over the radio. “Red Three, standing by.”

Star turned in her cockpit to look at her wingman, flying in formation only a dozen yards away. He was so close-and yet, so incredibly far. But still, they were together-no matter what came next.

Star snapped back to attention as Ferguson, “Red 6”, checked in, followed by Brittney (“Red Nine”), Tom (“Red Two”), and Kelly (“Red Eleven”).

Finally, Star keyed her mike. “Red Five, standing by.”

Then, as she switched off her mike and looked straight ahead, she saw it:

The Death Star.

From a distance, it appeared like a smooth, featureless sphere, floating harmlessly in space. But as the starfighters approached, it grew larger, larger, and larger-to the point that it filled the entirety of Star’s canopy.

The radio crackled on again. “Lock S-Foils in attack position,” Sensei ordered. Fumbling with the controls for a moment, Star held the ship steady as the wing split open and rotated apart, settling into a distinctive “X” shape.

Then, without warning, the X-Wing began to buck wildly. Clutching the stick, Star was able to keep the ship on course as the electronics momentarily fizzled in and out.

“We’re passing though the magnetic field!” Sensei shouted, his voice heavily distorted by the interference. “Hold tight!”

All the while, the Death Star continued to grow in size and scope. Details began to become visible, revealing complex patterns and structures stretched across its metallic surface far below. Its sheer scale seemed impossible-no mundane or even magical structure could possibly be this big!

But nevertheless, there it was.

“Look at the size of that thing!” Tom’s voice cut in over the radio, clearly filled with fear and awe. Star shared the sentiment-even now, she could see a dazzling array of lights twinkling along the shadowed surface, running in thin lines across the station. It reminded Star of pictures that Marco had shown her of the Earth at night-only now, it was a terrifying battlestation instead of the place she’d once called home.

“Cut the chatter Red Two!” Sensei ordered. “Accelerate to attack speed. This is it, dudes!”

The fighters accelerated once more, bearing down on the massive target in front of them as the flat shapes of Y-Wing bombers flew alongside.

“Red Leader, this is Gold Leader,” ‘King’ River began. “We’re starting for the target shaft now.”

“We’re in position.” Sensei replied. “I’m going to cut across the axis and try and draw their fire.”

Together, the X-Wing fighters rolled over and dived towards the Death Star’s surface. As they approached, Star gasped as hundreds of green bolts of energy erupted from below. Twisting the stick, she narrowly avoided a handful of shots as her X-Wing rolled left, and settled in behind Tom as their fighters roared over the station’s surface.

“Heavy fire, man!” Tom shouted, wiggling his fighter to avoid the incoming fire.

“I see it, stay low,” Sensei responded.

For a moment, Star was consumed with fear at the sheer immensity of the mission before them-but it quickly turned to rage. Down below, somewhere inside that station, were Toffee and Ludo-and Star was willing to do anything to pay them back for Glossaryck’s death.

“This is Red Five, I’m going in!” Star said. Switching on her guns, she tilted her stick down and pulled the trigger. A stream of red energy bolts erupted from her fighter and exploded against the Death Star’s surface, instantly triggering secondary detonations and sending massive clouds of debris shooting upwards into space.

“Star, pull up!” Marco shouted over the radio.

Realizing she was too low, Star pulled her stick back at the last second and flew straight through a debris field, narrowly avoiding a deadly impact against the surface.

To her right, Star could see Marco’s X-Wing approaching closely alongside, and she could see his worried face through the cockpit glass. “Are you alright?”

Star looked down at her cockpit display, and sighed with relief-she didn’t understand all of it, but for the most part it appeared to have escaped unscathed. “Thanks, Marco. I got a little cooked, but I’m okay.”

”Watch yourself!” Sensei shouted again. “There’s a lot of fire coming from the right side of that deflection tower.”

“We’re on it!” Marco replied. “Cover us, Ferguson!”

Together, Star, Marco, and another X-Wing dove towards a tall, thick, rectangular structure that jutted out of the Death Star’s surface. Holding down the trigger, Star could barely contain her glee as her lasers rippled across the tower’s surface. As the trio flew past, the tower exploded in a massive fireball, and the enemy fire immediately began to weaken.

Not everything was alright, however. To her left, Star noticed the other X-Wing smoking and dipping towards the Death Star’s surface-and through the cockpit glass, she could see Ferguson struggling with the controls.

“I’ve got a problem here.” Ferguson reported.

“Eject!” Marco shouted.

“I can hold it,” Ferguson replied calmly.

Marco was far from calm. “Pull up!”

“No, I’m al-AAGHH!”

To Star’s horror, the back of Ferguson’s X-Wing exploded, and within seconds the out-of-control remains plunged into the Death Star’s surface in a sickening fireball.

As her X-Wing sped away, Star gripped the controls tightly and stared straight ahead. What had she been thinking?! She couldn’t do this! Without realizing it, she’d sentenced herself and Marco to a certain-

“Star,” the quiet voice said again, “Trust your feelings.”

This time, Star recognized the voice. “Glossaryck?”

“Squad leaders, we’ve picked up a new group of signals.” The radio blared, breaking Star out of her trance. “Enemy fighters are coming your way.”

“My scopes are negative, I don’t see anything,” Tom reported.

“Pick up your visual scanning!” Sensei ordered. “Alright dudes, here they come!”

Star craned her neck and strained to look out of the canopy. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see a handful of specks of grey against the black background of space-and then, almost before she could react, the fighters were all over them.

Grabbing her stick, Star rolled and pulled up to avoid an incoming fighter, forcing the enemy pilot to overshoot and fly off. Then, to her horror, Star spotted a fighter diving on Marco’s X-Wing. “Marco,” she shouted, “There’s one on you!”

Marco’s X-Wing quickly began evading in response, though it did little to shake the bandit approaching from behind. “I can’t see it!” Marco shouted desperately.

“Hold on Marco, I’ll be right there!” Star said. Hitting her thrusters, she began to close in on the maneuvering attacker. It was instantly clear that the enemy pilot was entirely focused on attacking Marco-which gave the inexperienced Star a desperately needed opening.

Squeezing the trigger, she watched as a line of laser bolts sailed through space and impacted directly against the attacking fighter. The TIE quickly detonated into a cloud of debris, and Star instantly sighed with relief.

The feeling wouldn’t last long. Only moments after freeing Marco from his pursuer, Star looked back and realized she’d gained one of her own. Twisting the stick, she tried to roll and pull around again-but this time, the enemy fighter stuck with her through the turn. Before she could react further, the fighter fired a string of green bolts into her X-Wing, and the entire craft shuddered with the impact.

Panicking, Star looked down at the readouts below-but miraculously, the hit didn’t seem to do much damage.

“Star, you alright?”

“I’m hit, but not bad.” Star replied, and turned back in her seat to look at Pony Head’s position in the back of the craft-which, to her immediate concern, appeared to be smoking and sparking. “Pony, see what you can do back there.”

Before she could say anything more, the TIE fired again-though fortunately, Star was able to dodge just in time, pulling up and away from the Death Star’s surface.

“Someone get this guy off me!” she shouted into the mike.

“Marco,” she whispered, “Where are you…”

“I’m coming, Star!” Tom said back. “Hold on!”

Looking forwards, Star was startled to see another X-Wing hurtling towards her at high speed. Banking to the right just in time to avoid it, Star watched as the X-Wing immediately fired on and destroyed the pursuing TIE.

Once again, Star sighed with relief. “Thanks, Tom.”

“Red Leader, this is Gold Leader,” River announced, “We’re starting our attack run.”

Star’s heart leapt with joy. If anyone could take this battlestation out, Star thought, it was her father-and maybe, just maybe, there’s a chance we can all survive this after all.

As the trio of Y-Wings ducked into the narrow opening, Star and the rest of the X-Wings orbited overhead on lookout for additional enemy fighters. Nervous, Star constantly glanced back at the long trench, hoping for any glimpse of her father or his wingmen.

“The exhaust post is… …marked and locked in!” River announced. “There’s quite a lot of fire here! Men, switch power to front deflector screens.”

Star bit her lip and clutched the controls tightly, hanging onto every word of the radio chatter. “Come on dad… I know you can do it…”

“The guns… they’ve stopped!”

“Stabilize your read deflectors.” Star heard Mina Loveberry say. “Watch for enemy fighters.”

“Hold tight boys!” River shouted. “They’re coming in!”

Star’s heart froze in fear. Helpless to assist, all she could do was watch from afar in horror as an explosion erupted out of the trench in the distance.

“I can’t maneuver!” River shouted desperately.

In contrast, Mina’s voice was calm and stead. “Stay on target.”

“We’re too close!”

“Stay on target!”

“Loosen up, I-Aagghghh!”

Star’s heart stopped beating.

No. It was impossible. It couldn’t be

“Gold Five to Red Leader, this is Mina. Lost Dave, lost River.”

“I copy, Gold Five.” Sensei said solemnly.

“They came from behind-“

Mina’s broadcast was instantly cut off, and Star saw a final explosion in the distance.

“Red group, this is Red Leader,” Sensai said in a voice more tired and despondent than Star had ever heard. “Star, take Red Two and Three. Hold up here and wait for my signal to start your run.”

Unable to speak, and well aware of the futility of the gesture, Star nodded.

“Alright dudes, line up behind me. This is it!”

Sensei’s X-Wing snapped left and rolled out of formation, followed closely by Kelly and Ruberiot. Stationed above the trench, Star was once again helpless to do anything but sit and watch as her friends dove into the gap and began their attack run.

“We should be able to see it by now!” Ruberiot said.

“Never mind that, keep an eye out for those fighters!” Sensei shot back. “Red Five, can you see them from where you are?”

Star scanned the sky from her cockpit, trying to look for any movement. “I don’t think I see-“

Suddenly, she saw a glint of grey against grey diving into the trench, right on top of Sensei’s position. “They’re coming in!”

“I see them,” Kelly said.

“I’m in range, the target’s coming up.” Sensei reported. “Just hold them off for a few seconds!”

To Star’s horror, another explosion erupted out of the trench.

“I can’t hold them off!” Kelly shouted desperately.

If Sensei heard her, he gave no indication. “Almost there…”

“AAGGHHH!”

This time, Star looked away, unable to watch the massacre unfolding before her.

“Torpedo’s away!”

Star’s head snapped back up, and watched as Sensei’s X-Wing soared out of the trench, followed by a titanic explosion that rocked the battlestation’s surface. For a moment, Star thought he’d done it-but instead of the promised chain reaction, nothing else happened.

“It didn’t go in.” Sensei sadly reported. “It exploded on the surface.”

To her horror, Star could see a trio of fighters bearing down on Sensei. “Sensei, they’re right behind you! Turn to point… uh, just turn, and we’ll cover you!”

“Stay there, I just lost my starboard engine.” Sensei replied wearily. “Get set to make your attack run.”

“Sensei!” Star shouted. Helplessly, she could do nothing but watch as the fighters tore into the lone X-Wing. For a moment, it looked as though it might have been able to escape-but then, it began spiraling out of control, and exploded against the surface.

Star took a deep breath. “Tom, Marco, close it up. We’re going in at full throttle. That outta keep those fighters off our back.”

“We’re right with you, Star,” Tom said.

“Uh, Star, at that speed are we going to be able to pull out in time?”

Star laughed. “Don’t worry Marco, it’ll be just like Echo Creek back home.”

“What?”

Star rolled her fighter and dove down towards the trench, followed closely by Tom and Marco. Maneuvering past a flurry of laser fire from the surface, Star deftly slipped her X-Wing inside the trench and pushed her engines to full throttle. Clutching the controls with an iron grip, Star knew at these speeds, a single mistake would have immediate and deadly consequences-but, given the fates of the pilots before her, she also knew there wasn’t any other choice.

“We’ll stay back far enough to cover you,” Marco said.

“My scope shows the tower, but I can’t see the exhaust port!” Tom said. “Are you sure the computer can hit it?”

Star ignored him, and fiddled with the targeting computer. She’d used it once, during a simulator session with Marco, and she wasn’t quite sure how it worked. But letting the computer handle the shot sounded a lot better in Star’s mind then blindly firing at something she couldn’t see.

As the trio of fighters raced down the trench, the volume of fire coming towards them increased steadily, filling the air with green bolts of energy. It was a miracle they hadn’t been hit already, Star considered-but even as she did, the danger of the enemy fighters was paramount in her mind.

“Watch yourself!” Star said. “Increase speed to full throttle!”

“What about the exhaust port?” Tom asked.

Star nearly screamed in frustration. “You worry about those fighters, I’ll worry about the port!”

Then, the guns stopped firing. And, in that moment, Star knew he was here.

Darth Ludo.

Twisting in her seat, Star could see a trio of enemy fighters approaching rapidly from the rear. To her horror, she saw a burst of laser fire explode against Tom’s X-Wing, nearly sending it crashing into the side of the trench. But miraculously, Tom was able to hold on, and nursed his fighter back into position.

“I’m hit, I can’t stay with you!” Tom said.

Star nodded. “Get clear, Tom, you can’t do any more good back there!”

There was a moment of hesitation, and then Tom’s X-Wing pulled up and out of the trench. “Sorry!”

Star looked back again, and saw Marco’s X-Wing waving back and forth around the trench, trying desperately to avoid getting hit by the incoming fire.

“Hurry, Star, they’re coming in much faster this time. I can’t hold them!”

“Pony, try to increase the power!” Star said. Fiddling with the controls, she activated the targeting computer and watched as a large, bulky optical scope extended out from behind her seat and rotated in front of her head. But just as she was about to look through it, she heard Glossaryck’s voice again.

“Dip down, Star,” Glossaryck’s voice whispered. “Use everything you have!”

“Glossaryck, I don’t understand!” Star shouted. “Where are you? What’s going on?”

“Trust me,” the voice answered.

Star stared down at the targeting computer for a moment, then toggled it back. As the mechanism retracted back behind her seat, she gripped the controls with renewed determination.

“Dip dooooooown,” she whispered to herself.

“Star, you’ve turned off your targeting computer, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I’m alright.” Star replied confidently.

“Star,” Marco shouted, “They’re coming around again!”

A second after Marco’s warning, string of green lasers exploded against Star’s X-Wing. As Pony Head screamed, Star managed to keep the X-Wing stable, and barely avoided colliding against the wall. Looking back, Star saw that Pony Head’s metallic body had taken multiple hits, and was now silent and smoking. But there was nothing Star could do-she could only return to the controls and hope against hope that her friend would be alright.

As she did, the lead enemy fighter fired another burst, sailing just overhead Star’s cockpit. Instinctively, Star looked up and was nearly blinded by the green flashes-but in the distance, she also saw something else.

“YAHOOO!”

“WHAT?”

The Millennium Falcon flew directly over the trench, firing a stream of red lasers down into the enemy fighters. One exploded immediately in a shower of debris, forcing another to take evasive action-but it flew directly into the lead fighter, sending both of them careening out of control.

“You’re all clear, Star!” Jan shouted over the radio. “Now let’s blow this thing and go home!”

Star nodded, closed her eyes, and breathed.

The interior of the X-Wing’s cockpit was momentarily bathed in golden light. A second later, a pair of proton torpedoes flew out of the fighter, and sailed directly through the narrow exhaust port ahead.

As the light died down, Star took a gasp of air and pulled up as hard as she could. The X-Wing soared out of the trench, followed closely by Marco and the Millennium Falcon. Up ahead, Star could see Tom’s X-Wing and a surviving Y-Wing flying away as well, each of them trying to escape from the Death Star as quickly as possible.

And then, just as Star looked back at the battlestation, it disappeared in a massive, thunderous explosion.

The radio immediately filled with shrieks and cheers from the surviving pilots. “Great shot, Star!” Jan shouted, “That was one in a million!”

Star, for her part, could only slump back against her seat, exhausted, as Glossaryck’s voice spoke to her once more. “The Force will be with you, Star,” he said. “Always.”

And then, in spite of herself, Star fell asleep.

———-

“So, what’d you think?”

“Bwah?” Star replied groggily, opening her eyes. For a moment, she had no idea where she was-but as her mind kicked back into gear, she recognized she was sitting on the couch in the Diaz’s living room, wrapped in a thick blanket alongside Marco. Looking up, she saw what appeared to be the credits for a movie playing, though the only hint as to what it was were the words “DIRECTED BY GEORGE LUCAS”

“Ah jeez, you didn’t fall asleep, did you?” Marco said apologetically. “I’m sorry if you were bored, I should have-“

“No, Marco, it was great!” Star said. “I, uh, really liked it! All the… twists, and… turns… and the ending! It was good, yeah!” she finished lamely.

Marco’s face immediately brightened. “That’s great! Man, I can’t wait for you to see the next one-I don’t want to oversell it too much, but it’s prooobably my favorite. It’s got-oh, well, you’ll see!”

Happily, Marco leaped up off the couch and scrambled to the TV, where he began to fiddle with the ancient VHS player. Inserting a new cassette, he quickly ran back to the couch and snuggled up next to Star.

For a moment, Star fought to keep her eyes open as the words A Long Time Ago… drifted across the screen-but in spite of her efforts, she yawned, allowed her eyes to close, and fell asleep once more.