The second time he was woken by a sharp jolt. He sprung to his feet, snarling at whatever had hurt him. He found himself staring into the cold, calculating eyes of some sort of lizard. The lizard had some sort of contraption in his hand, long and metal and sharp.

He backed away from the strange machine, his lips curled upwards. He still felt wrong, the feeling nearly overpowering him before he shoved it down once more, letting it pool and churn in his gut.

"Hello, earth child." The lizard spoke, his voice sent a wave of anger and fear surging through him. The lizard paused after that, as if waiting for a reaction.

He wasn't planning on moving anytime soon though, not until he was sure he could come out of an encounter with this lizard unscathed. Something that wasn't likely right now.

"You don't remember anything, do you?" The lizard asked, scanning him with an indifferent gaze. "I wonder if you can even understand me."

He gave a low growl at that, tail lashing from side to side.

"I'll take that as confirmation that you can understand me. At least that makes my job easier." The lizard, turned away, leaving his back exposed.

He took his chance, knowing instinctively that this lizard was bad news. He couldn't identify it, but he wanted the lizard gone before he could hurt anyone else. He leapt forwards, but the lizard turned back at the last moment, throwing him into the wall.

He saw stars, the world tilting dangerously. Before he could find his footing though, another stab of pain shot through him, traveling through his muscles in a wave, making his fur bristle with the intensity.

He let out a whimper, curling in on himself as he waited for his vision to clear.

"I suggest that you learn the rules quickly here. Do as your told, and you won't have to deal with this. It's quite simple, really." He hears the lizard clearly enough, he only saw fuzzy forms and vague colors though.

He can hear quiet footsteps fading, and the scrape of metal against stone before silence overtakes him.

Uncurling himself, he takes in his surroundings once more. He hadn't noticed the change, so focused on the lizard as he was, but the room he was in was substantially bigger than the last one, and had a metal gate blocking one entrance. He could only see more stone and other gates like his outside it, but at least it was something.

Once he can stand without shaking, he practically throws himself at the gate, gnawing at the metal bars with a ferocity that surprised even himself. He didn't stop though, even when his teeth started to ache and his mouth seemed to be permanently stained with the tang of metal.

If he was being honest, he'd rather be doing something that was useful than think about himself. He didn't want to think about his strange form. He didn't want to think about being trapped. He didn't want to think about the fact that his memory was fuzzy at best concerning anything before waking up in the first room. He didn't want to think about the utter revulsion he held for his new body. He knew the body had to be new, because this wasn't right, none of it was right.

He'll never forget his first time in the pit. He had been sitting, staring at the stone wall blankly, when the gate had suddenly opened of its own accord.

He bounded out, hoping and praying that it would lead him away from here. Instead, he was met with the high, circular walls of a pit. He was left staring up into the many seats, almost filled to the brim with various monsters.

They were shouting and yelling, shuffling around at his appearance. The sudden rush of noise made him whine, burying his head in his paws in a fruitless attempt to shut it all out. Screwing his eyes shut, he didn't move until the crowd quieted enough for him to hear another gate open.

He opened his eyes to see a cyclops looming on the other side of the pit, a mace in hand. He rose to his feet, pressing his tail against the wall as he followed the cyclops' movements. It was much, much taller than he was, reaching about halfway up the pit's walls. Her one eye glared at him, her simple tunic covered in tears and dried blood.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, may I present Belinda the terrible vs. the Earthling. Place your bets now." He recognized the lizard's voice, finding the familiar figure standing in the center of the crowd, a ring of empty seats surrounding him.

With that, the crowd erupted in noise once more. Monsters were clamoring over one another, shoving random coins and slips of paper forward.

"Two monsters. Only one will remain." The lizard spoke again, and the crowd instantly quieted. "Begin."

Belinda charged, raising her mace high as she prepared to crush him. Twisting left, he avoided the strike, bits of stone flying into his face as the mace hit the floor.

He ran, his stomach sinking when he saw that both gates were shut, locking him in here. Running past Belinda, he leapt forwards, claws scrambling to get a grip on the stone walls. He couldn't reach the edge though, and he fell onto the floor, gasping for air as his side slammed into the ground.

He didn't have time to waste catching his breath though, Belinda was rushing towards him, mace at the ready. He tripped over his own paws in his attempt to dodge. He managed to avoid the brunt of the blow, but the mace still dug into his thigh and he howled.

Raging from the pain, he bared his fangs, turning to try and sink his teeth into Belinda's arm.

He was too slow though, and a course hand slapped him across his face, sending him to the ground once more.

He was on his feet in an instant this time, snarling as he backed away.

He didn't want to fight. He didn't want to hurt anyone. But he didn't want to die either. He had to survive. He had to live. He had, he had…

He had someone who was waiting for him, he realized. He froze, eyes wide. He could see her faint outline in his mind, hear her laugh, feel her touch on his skin.

A kick to his chest sent him flying, but he barely felt it.

She was alive, somewhere. She had to be waiting for him somewhere. Was she here?

He staggered to his feet, panting heavily. He needed to know if she was here, if that lizard had her in his clutches. He wouldn't lose here. Not now, not while she was still out there.

When Belinda charged him, swinging her mace, he ducked under the blow. Slipping behind Belinda, he jumped up on her back, pushing through the burning in his hind leg. His paws found a grip on Belinda's shoulders as she flailed around, trying to shake him off.

He lunged forward, snapping at the hand that held the mace. His teeth sank into flesh, and Belinda let out a cry of pain, dropping her weapon. Leaping off, he landed over the discarded weapon, snarling as Belinda cradled her injured hand.

"Give up." The words come as a surprise to him, a deep snarl that sounds unfamiliar and fitting all at once. He didn't have time to focus on it though, because Belinda looked like she's preparing to charge once more.

Lunging forward, he tilted his head as he rammed into Belinda's leg. His horn pierce through skin, and he can both see and feel the muddy brown blood that's dribbling down onto his face.

He leans back, Belinda giving another cry of pain as she collapsed to the ground. He limped over to her, climbing onto her chest as he growled, "It's over."

Belinda's eyes are shut tight, her face scrunched up as if she was waiting for the final blow.

He isn't here to kill though, so he looked to the crowd above, who have stayed oddly quiet throughout the fight. He can hear discontented grumbles rippling through them, and the lizard has a small frown.

"Earthling. It's you or her. There is no other option." The lizard's voice cut through the air, and Marco paused, realizing just what the implications of that were.

It was him or her. Her or him. They weren't going to let him go unless he, unless he…unless he killed her. He couldn't kill someone though. That wasn't right. That wasn't how he did things. It wasn't right to kill someone.

Lost in his head, he didn't notice the arm reaching up to grab his throat. He was lifted off the ground, struggling to pull air into his lungs as Belinda held him out in front of her.

He thrashed, his body desperate to find a way out. Panic started to set in as blackness started creeping into his vision. His paws were scrabbling for something, anything to latch onto. With one final struggle, he felt his claws connect with something soft, and Belinda dropped him with a wail.

He laid on the ground for a moment, relishing the fact that he could actually breath. He dragged himself to his feet, trying to keep the weight off his injured leg.

He looked up to see Belinda stumbling around, a hand pressed to her eye. Blood trickled through her fingers, and he started to feel sick.

Belinda tried to kill him, he knew that much. Oh god, he really had to go through with this, didn't he? Him or her. Her or him. No other options.

His body moved on its own, knocking Belinda over once more.

He didn't want this. He didn't want this. He didn't want this. His nose was running as his head moved downwards, jaws opening.

He couldn't die here. He had someone waiting for him. He couldn't abandon her. He couldn't leave her, not before seeing her face one more time. He didn't want this. But he couldn't avoid it either.

Tears ran down his cheeks as his teeth wrapped themselves around Belinda's throat. His eyes scanned frantically for something else to focus on other than the tang entering his mouth and the thrashing beneath him. They landed on the lizard eventually, and they didn't leave the lizard. Even as his grip tightened and the thrashing stopped, he never let his eyes leave the lizard's form.

The gate opens up on its own, and he flees into it, away from the horrible sight he left in the pit. Once he's alone, his stomach empties itself. At least it washed out the taste of blood.

Slinking away from the meager bits of food now decorating the floor, he curls up into a ball in the corner.

He doesn't sleep unless he has to after that. His dreams wouldn't stop reminding him of what a monster he was. He saw her face, tasted the grit and blood, felt her struggling against him, and it made him feel sick all over again.

He was terrible.

The same lizard kept coming back to talk to him. The lizard didn't enter the gate though, choosing to hover just outside it. Sometimes the lizard would forgo small talk, choosing instead to see what the limits of Marco's pain tolerance was, or how quickly he could dodge an arrow. He hated those times.

But he did end up learning a lot about the lizard from the one-sided conversations. Apparently, the lizard's title was just "The Lizard." He also heard that he was here for a purpose, for testing reasons, but that there were bigger plans in place. He never learned what they were though, the Lizard always stopped talking around then.

"One has to wonder," The Lizard said one day. "just what is it about the Butterfly family that makes them so special?"

He pauses at that, taking in the Lizard's words. Butterfly, it was a word that was familiar to him. Again, her image flashed across his mind, and he was left wondering what the connection was.

"Honestly, the only species across the entire multiverse that has access to such a wide array of magic. It's quite unfair in hindsight." The Lizard held out one of his hands, the one that was missing a finger. "They can destroy anything in their path, all thanks to that stone buried in your chest."

He looks down at his chest, peering at the stone in question. He couldn't understand how it could destroy anything. All it did was sit there.

"I have a feeling she already chose you as her escort. Shame she didn't take after her mother on that regard." The Lizard smirked at that, although it held only malice and fury. "Although, I must admit, it makes this much easier."

"What easier?" He rumbled, even knowing the Lizard couldn't understand him.

The lizard raised an eyebrow, but otherwise didn't respond to his question. They sat in silence for a bit, until the Lizard spoke up again.

"We have more in common than you think. She'll leave you for dead one day, they always do." With that, the Lizard turned and walked away, leaving him alone again.

No one came to see him besides for the Lizard; well, besides for the one time another monster visited him, shocking him once before leaving. That had been unusual.

He fought constantly though. They threw him into the pit as soon as he could walk with the injuries from the last fight.

He hated it, but he hated himself more for it. He despised how the fighting became a familiar, practiced motion, that he did only half-consciously. He hated the feeling of skin and flesh tearing underneath his claws and teeth. He hated the feeling of life bleeding out into the stone floor. He hated that he could kill without a second thought. Though, he never looked at his victims while he was doing it. He always kept his gaze on the Lizard, trying to imagine that instead of some innocent monster, he was tearing his way through the Lizard's throat.

Then one day, the door opened when it shouldn't have. He wasn't in any condition to fight and win. He lurked for a moment, trying to see if it was some sort of hallucination. He took a step forward when the gate stayed open though, slowly walking into the pit once more, mindful of his many, many injuries. He remembered the one time he had decided to try and stay inside his pen rather than leave. He had ended up with more injuries from that action than any fight thus far.

Still, he was pleasantly surprised when he saw just what was waiting for him.

It was her, he just knew it. He hadn't seen her before, and he knew this wasn't what she should look like, but it was a feeling in his gut, a surge of familiarity and security that couldn't be misplaced or misunderstood.

Her tail started to wag at the sight of him, and bubbles of joy rose up from his stomach. He tried to imitate the gesture, but his tail had been slashed by a monster the other day, and couldn't move much. Still, she seemed to understand what he was trying to do.

She ran over to him, stopping just shy of his nose.

"I know you." Her happy rumble caught him off guard. For a second, he feared he wouldn't be able to answer, he was so shocked.

Still, he managed to answer accordingly, "I know you too."

Her eyes lit up in joy at his response, and his own sense of happiness tripled at the sight. Then, she pressed her nose against his, and he was flooded with sensations and memories.

They were standing side by side, laughing together. They were fighting side by side, but without the bloodshed and the madness. They were dancing, surrounded by an ethereal red light. She was here. She was with him. She was still here. She was-

Star.

Her name came to him in a roar. Overpowering and deafening, but all he could listen to as he repeated it to himself.

He cracked his eyes open, expecting to be met by Star's muzzle, but saw a very different sight.

Star was standing on two feet, a mop of messy hair sitting on top of her head and flowing down her back. She looked like she had in his memories, yet a million times better, because she was here in front of him.

Staring down at his own body, he found that he looked similar to Star save for a few differences. The red fabric covering his chest was a comforting weight, and he wished he could have known about this form before now. This felt right. This was how things were meant to be.

He was thrown off balance when Star rushed forward, wrapping her arms around him in a tight embrace.

"Thank you, Marco. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you." She whispered into his ear. "I remember you, I remember you."

"I'm so glad you're here Star. Thank you." Marco whispered back, wrapping his arms around her body. His mind wrapped itself around the name Star had given him. Marco. Marco. Marco. It fit him like a second skin. "I remember you too. I'm so happy."

"Well, as touching as this has been, it's time to break it up." The Lizards voice rang out over their embrace, cold, but a smug lilt to it none the less.

Wait. No, no, no. They hadn't even seen each other for that long. It couldn't be over. Not yet. It was too soon, he hadn't had enough time. He didn't think all the time in the universe would be enough, let alone these few moments.

Still, the Lizard slid a mask on as gas trickled in. Star took a step forward, looking like she was going to try and take down the Lizard from right where she stood.

The last thing Marco did before collapsing was reach out, hoping to at least touch her one time before they were separated.

He wakes up still having hands. He's in a new room, but her can only see bits of it because of the straps attaching him to the cold table he laid on.

He could hear the sound of stone scraping against stone, and saw shadows edging around him.

He paused as one of the shadows came into the light, where he could see it. It- she, looked like him, but she didn't look like Star. This one was taller than both Star and him, for one. For two, she was wearing the same clothes as the experimenters he had seen before.

His suspicions were only confirmed when the girl pulled out a small blade, one that they only ever used when they wanted to cut him open and look at his parts. He lurched up, fighting against the straps with all his might.

His new body didn't have the strength of his last one though, the straps stayed where they were and the blade edged closer. The girl was saying something, but he couldn't hear anything over the screaming in his head to get out, to escape, to run.

Something inside him shifted as the blade pressed against his skin, rippling out from his chest. He cried in pain as his body contorted, morphing and shifting around until he was free and standing on paws once again. With a snarl, he knocked over the girl first, snarling, "You are nothing like me, monster."

He turned his head at the sound of shouts in the distant, words like "gas" and "sedative" being thrown around. He knew they were going to try and contain him again, lunging forward, he snapped at the shadows, all who scrambled to get out of his way.

This was it, he might finally make it out of here. Only, there was no way out of the room. Every wall was sealed tight. He dashed from corner to corner, praying that he found something, anything to let him get out of this room.

His search only got more frantic as the same gas leaked from the ceiling. He took in a breath and held it as the gas neared. He couldn't be knocked out again, he couldn't be penned up again. He was so close, so close to escaping.

He let out the breath he had been holding with a puff, his lungs burning for air. Taking a shaky breath in, he gave the girl one last glance as he started to sink to the ground.

Strange, now it looked like the girl had scales and claws, possibly a tail.

They didn't take him back to the room after that. He was left in isolation again, save for the Lizard and the fighting.

The taste of blood had become a familiar tang, fighting more a motion than an action. He went through it without care now. A cycle of injuries and healing, save for the scars on his front legs. Those weren't from the pit or from his captors. It had surprised him how distracting the pain had been when he was wrapped in self-loathing.

The Lizard came by more often now though, sometimes simply standing outside the gate and staring out into the distance, lost in thought.

All Marco did in those times was shrink back into the farthest corner and nurse his wounds.

Freedom had come as a surprise. Star quite literally barged into his cell, stone aglow. It had been not too long after a particularly grueling fight against a pack of wolves, as the Lizard had called them. He had been covered in wounds, for a moment, he considered telling Star to leave him behind to escape on her own. But then she had healed a scratch, and he could only pause, a new word surfacing to his tongue at the sight.

"Magic." The word seemed to suit Star, but Marco couldn't keep the amazement out of his voice. "You can use it?"

"It comes from my stone. You can probably use it too." Star had already moved onto another scratch, this one on his shoulder. "Now let's get out of here."

His stone? It was responsible for the magic? Suddenly, a lot of the Lizard's words started to make sense. He stayed still, mulling over the idea that he could actually use magic with his stone as Star healed his injuries one by one. It didn't look like there was anything she had to say to activate her magic. But still, did it really just activate on its own? For some reason, that didn't make sense to him.

He didn't have time to figure out how magic worked, as Star healed the last injury, a deep tooth mark in his paw. A stab of guilt shot through him as he saw the edge of an old scar as he stood up, a mark made by his own teeth. He shook it off as he ran forward, pushing his excitement over the possibility of freedom to the forefront of his mind.

"You don't know how long I've been waiting for that."

The two of them ran through the long hallways of wherever they were trapped. They ran across monster after monster, and Marco tried his hardest to let Star take them out. He didn't feel much like fighting anything, not if he had a choice. He had enough fighting to last him two lifetimes.

Then the Lizard showed up. He was between them and freedom, Marco could see the light shining behind the Lizard's form. Small, but bright and real, right in front of him.

Whether or not he liked fighting or not, the Lizard was between him and his freedom, between Star's freedom. And now there weren't any bars or gas to keep the Lizard safe from his agony fueled rage. Marco could finally fight back against his captor.

Marco couldn't deny the satisfaction of feeling the Lizard's tail rip from his body. He spat it out immediately, the scales tasting like bile in his mouth.

The Lizard had thrown a sickle at him, which Marco avoided with practiced ease, but then he looked back, just to make sure it wouldn't come back. It was only for a second, but by the time he had turned back, Star was flying across the room.

Marco was running before Star even hit the ground. His paws were flying over the floor. He had to get between Star and the Lizard. He couldn't let her get hurt. He wouldn't let her get hurt.

He leapt over the Lizard, twisting midair to land facing him, a snarl ripping itself from his throat.

"You know, I can understand why you chose him as your escort. He certainly has a determination to him, if little else. Still, I was hoping for better from you Star." The Lizard kept walking forward calmly, mace in hand.

Marco planted his feet into the floor, tail brushing against Star's side as he snarled again in warning. He was prepared to do whatever it took to keep Star safe. So what if he was a mess? So what if he was a monster? So what? As long as Star was alive and free, what did it matter? As long as she was okay, he would be okay. Not like he had much left to live for anyways.

A fire started to burn in his chest, its heat coursing through his veins until his vision was tainted with orange, red, and green hues. Protect, protect, protect. The mantra played throughout his mind as the fire began to burn brighter and hotter.

"Do it, Marco. I know you want to." The Lizard had stopped, a smug smile on his face as he spread his arms out in a clear challenge.

The fire in Marco's bloodstream consumed him, the green tinting his eyes flaring up. Loosely, he felt himself take a step forward. Smoke was spreading out around him, its acrid flavor only a distant sensation.

Protect, protect, protect. The fire gave one final rush of power, a tiny green and black speck flying into the wall. The fire died, leaving Marco drained as the seconds seemed to tick by. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, the world exploded.

Fire and grit rained down around him, but he didn't have time to worry about that. He still had to ensure that Star was safe, or else this was all for nothing.

Thankfully, she stood easily enough, and she didn't seem disoriented or in pain. The two of them walked out of the burning hallway, into the outside world.

Marco squinted at the sunlight, its intensity blinding him for a moment. When he opened them though, he froze, his breath hissing in through his teeth at the sight.

The world was just so, so open, and wide, and vast, and borderless. The horizon's end was far off, as if it didn't even exist to begin with. Sure, there was little else surrounding them but stone, but Marco couldn't care less. A thin line of green was visible in the distance regardless.

"We're out Marco. We're out." Star whispered to him, taking a stepping ahead of him. The sun shone off her fur brilliantly, the sight leaving him breathless for a moment.

"What do we do now?" Marco stepped up to stand by her side, looking into Star's eyes as she bent down to heal the scratches on his side.

"Let's just run. Run until we can't see this place anymore." Star said, looking ahead into the distance.

"I'd be happy to." Marco smiled as Star began to jog forwards, joining her as their jog became a run, then a mad dash.

The wind in his face, the sun shining down on him, and Star by his side.