Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

In an unknown location in the dense and dangerous forests of Amphibia, creatures live beneath it. Giant birds hunted smaller animals, insects large and small roamed in search of shelter or food, and unlucky amphibians tried to survive it all.

In this same forest, a strange and slender creature walked through the place for the tenth time that day.

Marcy grunted as she leapt from rock to rock, leaping onto solid ground and rolling to break her fall, before continuing to run. Try as she might, the pain in her muscles did nothing to distract her from the pain in her brain. Her head throbbed as she desperately tried to stay focused on the race.

A world full of people like her, even though they don't know who they are. The only faces she recognizes are a girl with fluffy brown hair and another with wavy yellow hair. Anne and Sasha. Her forever friends.

Marcy jumped toward a branch, grunting with effort as she tried to propel herself upward using only her arms.

A strong glow envelops her and her friends, separating them and sending them into an unknown and dangerous world.

Arriving at the top, Marcy started jumping from branch to branch until she reached a vine and went down there. She was about to let go of the vine and continue her run when an armored insect appeared, roared and attacked her.

Captured by the frogs and being treated like an animal. They discovered that she was smart when trying to save herself from a heron attack. Forced to work for the frogs and being treated like a slave.

As the insect advanced, Marcy growled and attacked as well, still holding onto the vine. Just as they were about to collide, she slipped under the insect, narrowly avoiding its horn, and launched herself onto a rock, jumping over the insect.

Hearing about the frogs who found a blonde human and wanted to capture her too. She tried to stop them and ended up being locked in a cell.

The movement of the vine hit the insect's legs, destabilizing it and causing it to fall on its back. That done, Marcy let go of the vine and pulled out her trusty weapon: a primitive-looking dagger with a petrified wood handle and blade, a large, strong, sharp piece of greenish exoskeleton.

Sasha practically ripped the doors off the cell she was in. She appeared with tears and a bright smile on her face, hugging her as if she didn't want them to be separated again.

The insect desperately tried to turn around, but Marcy quickly climbed onto it, her expression furious and not hesitating to look in her direction as she raised her dagger and brought it down with a war cry against the insect's body.

Sasha with a gloomy expression on her face, tightly holding a large personalized scythe in her hands. She barely had time to react before Sasha straightened her stance and lunged at her, scythe ready to cut her in half.

The insect gave one last roar, this time in pain, before going still, the blow having been coldly calculated to hit her vital organ and kill him quickly.

Marcy stood over the creature for a moment, breathing heavily and watching its bloodthirsty hands tighten around the dagger's hilt before slowly relaxing. She dropped the dagger and let out a rueful sigh as she lifted her gaze to the sky, a lost look on her face as she watched the clouds pass.

“Hey Marcy! Are you already better? Because I think we're going to…need…help…"

Marcy blinked, slowly turning to the male voice that had spoken to her. Percy had a half frightened look on his face, alternating between looking at the human, a blank expression with blood on her hands and armor, and the corpse of the large insect she was on top of.

Wordlessly, she retrieved her dagger, cleaned her weapon on the sheath, and stowed it away before stepping off the body. Unconsciously, Percy took a step back, more than intimidated by the actual presence the human was exuding as she slowly took a step toward her.

Luckily this didn't last long, as in the next step she accidentally ends up stepping on her cape, causing her to trip and fall on her face in the process.

That made Percy give a little laugh, relaxing as the other soldier approached, muttering something about her cloak. These strange spacings and changes in the creature's attitudes have become much more frequent since the fall of the Toad Tower, and he's still not sure if this was normal for his species or if something was up with the human. Still, it was a relief to him to know that she still had the bumbling side that had brought them together in the first place.

"...I'm sure the cloaks and the floor have something against me." She finished mumbling with a small irritated huff, turning to Percy with a small smile afterwards. “Anyway, yes, I'm fine! What did you say before, Percy? I don't hear right.”

"Oh yeah! We’re going to need your help with the captain!” He handed her a slightly crumpled paper, but it was impossible not to recognize Grime's face on that wanted pole.

"...Wait, is there a bounty on the captain's head?!" She screamed in disbelief, her gaze darting to the poster and Percy. “Does this have to do with the Toad Tower fall?” The toad nodded, Marcy felt her left eye twitch. “B-But why? If they don't want him in charge anymore, just get him out of office! Why give an order to eliminate him?!”

“We don't know, but honestly? Newtopia has always eliminated every possible weakness and flaw that your realm may have as far as I've heard..."

“Even if their own system is flawed?!” Marcy growled with a cruel gleam in her eyes. Percy didn't answer, just stepped back slightly, which made Marcy sigh and put the poster in her pocket. "Okay, sorry for blowing up... I guess I'm not as stable as I thought..."

"We can leave you alone for a little while longer if you want." The toad tried to calm the other soldier, but she just shook her head.

"No, it's ok... I think I can still help anyway."

Still worried, but trusting the tall soldier's words, Percy led the two through the forest. When they arrived at the place where they had decided to stay, an abandoned cabin in the middle of a clearing, Marcy noticed some things were a little different than before. Braddock was tending to some freshly planted flowers, the water wheel was fixed and some holes in the roof had been plugged. It still looked pretty old and abandoned, but not that it was going to fall apart like the first time they walked in.

How long had she been isolated in that forest? It didn't feel like more than a few days had passed, but she didn't think she could rely purely on her memory now.

A strong and warm hug. Arms gripping her so tightly it was impossible for her to run away even if she wanted to, which she didn't.
Those same arms were used to lift a curved, sharp blade against her, which she barely managed to dodge.
"Give up Marcy, you lost."

“Oh Marcy! Glad you arrived!” Braddock stood up and gave Marcy a little hug, which made Marcy shudder almost violently. “And you got stronger! You still look like a talking stick, but at least your arms are a little more defined!”

"You think? I still feel like I have weak nerdy arms…" Marcy whispered as she blushed, trying to see any difference in her arms as she approached the stream to wash up.

"You look great! I'm sure when the captain sees how Marcy turned out after her self-imposed training, he'll get back on the line and be the grumpy captain we love!" Percy yelled excitedly, Marcy grimaced at that comment and approached the cabin.

"We don't really need him to go back to who he was, you know?" Braddock told Percy, causing Marcy to stare at her curiously, opening the door. “We just need him to be active enough for us to get out of here and try to find a safe place.”

“What do you mean by… OH MY GOSH!!!”

Marcy can't help but take a step back in shock at the sight. The fearsome Captain Grime, the one who'd captured her and forced her to work for him, the one who'd managed to single-handedly beat a heron… Was currently slumped in a makeshift armchair watching something on her cell phone. His clothes were all dirty and ragged, a gangly gray beard was growing on his face, and a bunch of salty snacks were all over his big belly. He stuck out his tongue to catch the snacks of his belly, making a very weak attempt to reach for a can of dink before giving up, his good eye never straying from the tiny screen propped up in front of him.

Marcy blinked, then frantically rubbed her eyes before blinking again. That vision hadn't changed.

Slowly, she turned to the other two soldiers, who looked worried and upset, but not surprised.

OK.

Now she understood the problem.

"Percy, Braddock, did you bring my snacks?" Grime asked lazily, still not taking his eyes off her cell phone. He only shifted his gaze when a hand paused the video, coming across a disappointed-looking Marcy. “Oh, hello creature. Are you taller or is it just me?”

"What exactly are you doing, captain?" She turned off her cell phone and put it away, turning back to Grime, who only sprawled further in his place.

“Uh, watching before you take my fun? Which was pretty rude, by the way.” He held up his salty hands in a grabbing gesture, obviously asking for her cell phone back. Marcy completely ignored him as she tried to get some sense into his head.

“We should pack our bags, find a new, remote location. After that, I can let you watch it again.”

“Why should I leave here? I say this is a great place to stay, and the mountains make any trespassers difficult.”

“…Do you know that there is a reward named after you?”

“Yes, so what?”

"So what?! Isn't it obvious that it won't be long before people start hunting you? For all we know, someone might be on the way right now, and in a forest like this, you're going to be vulnerable! A skilled assassin or bounty hunter will have no trouble coming to such an open place!”

"OK. Let they come.”

"... OK?"

"Yes, OK."

“Captain, did you hear something I said?”

“Everything, unfortunately.”

"And you're REALLY just gonna sit here when you've got a bounty on your head??"

"Yeah."

"WHY????"

"Seems cool." The calm way Grime said that made the tall soldier look at him disapprovingly.

"...Okay, I give up..." Marcy turned around, with every intention of heading back into the woods and continuing what she was doing, which was anything that would distract her mind. However, both of her legs were suddenly caught, causing her to fall to the ground again.

“Please Marcy, you have to help us cheer up the captain!” Braddock pleaded, holding one of the tall soldier's legs with a worried expression. Percy was holding her other leg, looking like he was going to cry at any moment.

“Why me? I don't understand anything about social interactions!" Marcy screamed in exasperation, holding her sore nose with one hand, shaking slightly. "As far as I know, if someone doesn't want to do anything, then let them do nothing!"

"Doing nothing? Hello, I am growing a beard.” Grime complained as he pointed at said sloppy gray beard. Again, none of his soldiers seemed to hear or pay any attention to what he said.

“Then you don't need to talk to him. Just keep an eye on him and make sure nothing bad happens! Just until we bought enough groceries for the four of us! After that, you can go back to training and we'll try to have a pep talk with him! We just need it!” Braddock held Marcy's leg a little tighter, at which point she couldn't feel her legs anymore. "You are the best soldier we have right now, and I don't know if I can rely purely on the captain's current strength to protect him from any surprise attack."

"Hey, I may be a little out of shape, but I can still lick whoever Newtopia sends after me." Grime said with pride and arrogance. He tried to sit up and stretch to get the drink from his side again, but he gave up halfway and went back to lie down, lazily eating his snack. “Can someone give me that can? This snacks is really salty.”

Silence.

"...I won't leave his side, I promise." It was the tall soldier's reply to the other soldiers, who breathed a sigh of relief.

***

“Captain, you really should at least trim that beard. It's ridiculous.”

"Ridiculous? I want you to know, creature, that all great legendary warriors once had a great beard like this and created fear in the hearts of their enemies!”

"Yes... But I don't think that giant belly will help with the 'scare the enemies' part."

"Why, you... Wait, did you hear that?"

Marcy stopped, tilting her head slightly to the side, a whistle echoing, getting closer and closer. She dropped her incomplete wooden carving and turned her dagger in her hand, opening the cabin door slightly. In the distance, she saw someone approaching, a red newt with platinum blonde hair and armor with a red cape.

"Oh, crap... This doesn't look good..."

"And it's not." Grime nodded, having also moved towards the crack in the door. "That armor... She's a Newtopian military for sure."

“Great, and just when you're…like this.” The soldier said the last part with some contempt, causing Grime to turn to her with a pissed off expression. “Okay, I'll try to distract her, you'll go out the back doors in the meantime. If I'm lucky, as she's probably here for your head, she won't attack me unless she knows I'm helping you.”

Completely ignoring whatever the captain might say to her, she climbed out of the head and closed the door, stowing her dagger so it would be easy to take it out again. If she wanted to convince that newt that she wasn't a threat, it'll be easier if she's unarmed. She took a few steps forward before stopping, looking suspiciously at the intruder, who stopped whistling and watched her with a curious expression.

“Hello…Who exactly are you? And what are you doing here?” Marcy asked, trying for a slightly friendlier approach. The newt blinked and crossed her arms.

“All right, third time today. Let's do it!" The newt took a deep breath before introducing herself, “My name is General Yunan! Scourge of the Sand Wars! Defeater of Ragnar the Wretched! And the youngest newt to ever achieve the rank of General in the great Newtopian Army!!!” She said all this as she made increasingly dramatic poses, ending up doing a backflip and landing in the same spot. Which Marcy had to admit was impressive.

For a moment, Marcy didn't know how to react. While something like instinct told her to perform as excitedly as newt, the rest of her just thought all that drama was kind of unnecessary. So the only thing she did was blink, trying to process it all.

“And the reason I'm here, creature, is that I hear reports that my target is here. Grime, the most fiercest fighter in the colosseum! And I shall bring his head to Newtopia!” Yunan said with a fierce smile as she whipped out the blades of her glove and easily cut a tree, knocking it down and causing Marcy to swallow hard. To her surprise, shortly after this, Yunan stops making possessions and formally turns to the soldier, showing her the poster. “So, young creature, have you ever seen a toad like him?”

Again Marcy can only blink. From a cruel and fierce hunter to an extremely courteous warrior to a being probably strange to her. She had no idea who this Yunan was, but she hopes that this apparent instability is just a thing of pride she likes to flaunt and not a real mental issue.

Of mental instability, Marcy is enough.

As Marcy opened her mouth to deny it, the sound of someone falling caught their attention. They turned just in time to see Grime getting to his feet, grunting something about wanting more snacks later as he wiped his pants, apparently having jumped out the window. He stopped when he noticed the other two people staring at him.

"Uh... Hi?"

Marcy didn't hesitate to push Yunan away before running towards Grime, pulling him into the forest.

“I told you to take the back door! Why didn't you go through the back door?!" Marcy screamed as they both ran, trying desperately to get away from the General.

“What back door?! There's no back door in that place! Only windows on the front and side!” Grime yelled angrily, belching mid-sentence and struggling to keep up with the taller soldier in his current physique.

“And you thought jumping out the front window would be sneakier than the side window?!”

A few trees fell behind them, the sound of the blade and a half-manic laugh making it very clear who they were. The two looked at each other, sweating cold, before using everything they had in their legs to run faster. They found a small hill in front of them and Marcy didn't hesitate to jump, easily managing to climb with that momentum.

"Um... I think Braddock is right after all." she muttered. She heard grunts coming from below and came across Grime, looking like he was dying of exhaustion as he tried to climb.

"Just...Give me a minute..."

"...I still can't believe I'm doing this." She grabbed a nearby vine and tied it to a rock, giving the other end for Grime to hold before pushing the rock, bringing him up. She soon resumed running, much to Grime's dismay.

"Couldn't... Couldn't we take an easier route?" He complained, still panting. Marcy just rolled her eyes as they continued to run.

"Well, maybe if someone hadn't decided to stay locked in a place eating junk food, knowing his head had a price, you'd be in better shape!" She commented sarcastically. "Yikes! I started training after Toad Tower! Why didn't the 'almighty Captain Grime' do the same?" She said in a mocking tone as she spoke one of Grime's titles, pushing a branch out of the way, which made it hit the frog in the face.

"Grrr... ENOUGH!" he yelled, stopping running and pointing at the soldier in front of her, her back to him. "If you're going to scream about how I'm reacting to what happened, at least be honest about why you suddenly train so hard!"

"..." Marcy didn't say anything, a haunting look crossing her face. Her body began to tense and her head began to ache as fragments of a life passed unwillingly before her eyes.

A world with people like her. Earth, is the name. Blurred faces on everyone she'd ever seen, except for two girls.

“You think I don't know what you're doing? Do you think I haven't noticed that your sudden urge to train is just to distract you from the truth?”

Anne and Sasha. Her friends since forever. Her whole world is them. No matter where she is, as long as she's with them, she's home. But now she is in another world, not knowing how she got there or where they are. She lost her home.

“You're not upset because you were weak in a duel! You're upset because you snapped at your friend! You snapped, attack your friend, and lost! And now things between you will never be the same again!”

Captured by the toads and living in hell. Trying to defend Sasha from suffering the same fate as her and paid the price.

"Go ahead! Tell me I'm wrong! Tell me the 'real reason' for you to suddenly start training if before the mere thought of doing something physical made you nauseous! Tell me, creature!”

Sasha hugging her tightly with tears and a bright smile on her face. So warm, so safe. Marcy would give anything for them to stay like this forever.

“Or rather, tell me why! Why are you training so much? Why don't you go back to your friend?! Why do you insist so much on staying and protecting me when you obviously hate doing it?! ”

Sasha with a grim expression on her face, straightened her posture and advanced against her, scythe ready to cut her in half.
"Give up Marcy, you lost."

"WHY?!"

“BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW WHAT ELSE TO DO!!!!”

The force of her scream startled Grime, starting to feel a little apprehensive as Marcy turned around with a furious expression, tears threatening to spill into her eyes as she glared at him.

“You really want to know why!? I tell you why!” She took a step forward, and Grime unconsciously took a step back. “I have no idea who I am or where I came from! I don't even remember my original world! All I remember is a light that sent me to a strange and dangerous place, this world!” She swung her arms around, taking another step forward, causing Grime to step back again. “And I have no idea what happened or why it happened, and the only people who could possibly give me answers are two girls who are supposed to be my best friends! But one of them I don't remember anything other than looks, and the other I have such contradictory memories that I have no idea whether or not I can trust her!!!” By this point, her face was already wet, tears of pure frustration streaming from her eyes. "So yes! You are right! I am upset! I'm upset because I don't remember almost anything, I don't know what to do, and you, someone that I know will start treating me like dirt again, is the only person I know I CAN TRUST!!!!”

The last shriek of her speech made all the animals close by scared away. Marcy collapsed, panting as she tried desperately to hold back the tears that streamed down her face, feeling strangely lighter than before. Grime was momentarily frozen, still trying to process everything he'd heard.

“…Am I the only person you can trust?” Marcy nodded, sniffling a little. Grime ran a hand over the back of his neck, looking embarrassed. "Wow... No wonder you seem to have so much pent up anger..."

"No kidding..."

“AHA!” They both jumped, turning to General, who had easily caught up with the two of them in the midst of the soldier's outburst. “I see you decided to submit to Great General Yunan! Scourge of the Sand Wars! Defeater of Ragnar, the...!”

“Um…Miss Yunan? Could you not do this now?” Marcy politely interrupted, finishing wiping her tears. "I'm in the midst of an existential crisis, and I doubt I can memorize something that long right now."

“Oh! Sure! I'm sorry." Yunan cleared her throat, looking embarrassed. She straightened her back and took a deep breath. “All right, you washed-up slob, time to go! Let's go to Newtopia for your execution. And you too human! I must formally introduce you to the king before he places you under his protection.”

“...” Marcy blinked, slowly rising to her feet with her face turned towards Yunan, a suspicious gaze and a clenched fist. "... Sorry, what did you call me?"

“Uh, ‘Human’? That’s the name of your species, isn’t it?” Yunan asked confused, causing Marcy to take a step back.

"... You know what I am... Which means... That you know them..."

Sasha? No, it cannot be. She doesn't remember much about that day, but she knows that Sasha was with the frogs, probably living with them. Unless she's been to Newtopia these past few days, which is not unlikely, the general would only know about her from someone else. Anne. Was she Newtopia? From the way Yunan so casually and correctly spoke the name 'human', they must be close, which means Anne is probably high up there.

Does she happen to know about what happened at Toad Tower? Does she know that Marcy, or at least some creature similar to her, has been in that place as a prisoner? If she knows, does she think Marcy died when Toad Tower was destroyed?

... Does she even care?

A big smile with tears streaming down in relief.
"Come on, Mar-Mar... Let's go home."

“…What are they going to do to me?”

"What?"

“If I go, what are they going to do to me?” the human asked, her entire body tensing with each passing second.

A cold look in a grim expression.
"Give up Marcy, you lost."

“We'll take you to the king, of course! And over there..."

“Will they help me? Take care of me? Are they going to 'send us home'? Is that what you were going to say?!” With each word, Marcy takes a step forward, looking increasingly unsteady, her fist still tightly clenched. Both the General and Grime took a step back as the human took a deep breath, eyes fixed on the floor, her mind racing wildly on whatever shred of memory was available.

A warm embrace.

"...No...I can't do that again..."

A scythe raised against her.

"...I can't trust you."

Marcy suddenly threw sand at Yunan, having caught it as she stood up. Surprised, Yunan didn't have time to react and some sand fell into her eyes, blinding her long enough for Marcy to pull out her dagger and attack.

The human lunged at Yunan, who easily dodged and extended her claws, wanting to destroy the human's weapon and immobilize her as quickly as possible. Before she could, however, a battle cry came out of Grime's mouth and he too attacked, with a thick branch, striking the general's tail. Yunan grunted and attacked Grime, who narrowly parried with his makeshift weapon, but the branch was easily severed by the general's claw.

Yunan gave Grime a fierce smile that was quickly transformed into a frightened expression as she felt the human leap on top of her, locking her arms around her neck and blocking her airway. The general let out a soundless scream as she tried to pull it out, using her tail and hands to get free from that blow. But the human refused to let go, growling fiercely and squeezing as much as she could on the general's neck, whose vision was starting to blacken. In one last desperate attempt, she threw herself onto her back, finally causing Marcy to loosen her grip and free herself. She barely had to catch her breath, however, as Grime took the opportunity to pounce on her with a new branch he grabbed.

Marcy grunted in pain as she got to her feet, seeing Grime forcing the general to nearly the edge of the precipice. She looked around, finding her dagger a few feet away, next to a slender fallen branch. She stretched, ready to grab her dagger and get it over with...

Sasha's eyes widened before her expression darkened, advancing against her without any hesitation.

Marcy shivered, vision of her getting slightly hazy. Not. Not now.

Air being forced out of her lungs, gravity suddenly pulling her down, Sasha's hand inches from her face.

She closed her eyes in an attempt to stop the images in her head and ease her headache.

“...Hold on, please!”

... What?

A terrified expression was present on the blonde's face. Her hands desperately gripped her arm, the only thing keeping her from falling off the collapsing tower.

... What is it?

"I can't lose you again!"

This... This is a new memory...?

“…Hey, Sasha?”

... Or rather... Is that...?

"...I've always needed you..."

... The rest of that day?

""...But maybe you've never needed me."
"MARCY!!!"

Grime landed a blow that Yunan blocked, looking still out of breath but still very capable of fighting on. Grime gave a frustrated growl as a thin branch hit Yunan's legs, knocking her off balance, and the toad took advantage of it to push her, sending her falling over the cliff and straight into the river below.

Grime looked down, just in time to see Yunan leaning on a log that was also being washed away by the river. She shouted something at him, but he barely heard it under the roar of victory he gave. At the same time, Marcy stood up against that thin branch, her eyes unfocused, looking like her mind was elsewhere.

“...Captain?” The toad turned to the human, who had a lost expression. “…What happened that night?”

“Have I not already explained it to you, creature?” Grime crossed his arms and closed his eyes as he spoke. “I went to a village where there was a rebellion going on, and I captured its leader. The other blond creature appeared and demanded that I release him, and I said I would if she won over you. You fight and she won, but the tower started to fall because someone blew up the base. You were falling, she tried to catch you but failed, and Percy and Braddock stopped you from falling hard to the ground. The four of us have been on the run ever since.”

"..." She looked away, letting out a small sigh. As she imagined, this new memory didn't answer anything, it just made the blonde's attitudes even more confused. And the only perspective she had was of two cool but flighty soldiers and a grumpy captain who she was sure, deep down, were just as confused as she was about that day. "... I understand..."

"...Listen crea... Marcy." The human blinked, turning in shock to the captain. After all, this is the first time he's called her by her name. “We are both in an unfavorable situation, you with your memory fuzzy and I being hunted. And that, for some reason, makes us incapable of parting, as much as we hate it… So I want to make a deal with you.”

Grime uncrossed his arms, a smirk all too familiar to Marcy crossing her face.

“I'm tired of this, this whole system, and I want to overthrow the king and make us toads the new leaders of Amphibia. And I want you to help me with that.”

"Me?" She pointed at her own face, lost. “But why me?”

“You were always a very intelligent creature, and now you have shown the ferocity of a toad. I need someone like you as my right-hand man, to help me with the plans of conquest. And I don't trust any of those hollow heads from the other towers to have it.” He shrugged, still the smile on his face. “Of course, such a trip is a long one, and we will probably pass through several villages… where we will probably find your friends, or the way you got here.”

Marcy's eyes widened, as did Grime's smile. Slowly, he extended his hand to the human.

“So here's my deal: You help me dethrone the king and become the new king of Amphibia. In return, I'll help you uncover the truth and find a way to send the three of you back home. What do you think?"

Marcy stared at his hand for a moment. It was tempting, very tempting indeed, to just accept it without a second thought, but she had to be careful. Again, something like an instinct warned in her subconscious, recognizing a manipulative gesture when she saw it.

"...If I help you, will you promise not to hurt Sasha and Anne?"

"Sure, no problem."

"And when you're king, will you make sure you send the three of us to our original world?"

“The castle library is big, there is definitely something there. You can be assured that I will use every resource I receive to ensure this.”

"...Alright." Slowly, she took his hand, squeezing it. "...But I'll only warn you once..." A wild gleam appeared in the human's eyes, and Grime could almost swear that a faint green glow also appeared in the blink of an eye. "...If you betray me, or go back on your words, or even twist mine... I will ensure that the toads' reign becomes the shortest reign Amphibia has ever seen."

"I promise, on my toad honor." Grime didn't seem intimidated by her words, in fact, he seemed even more excited to see the human's ferocity. “Now let’s go back! I still need to finish this series before I get in shape so we can start our world conquest!”

He gave an excited little jump as he walked back to the cabin. Marcy watched him walk before taking something from her pocket, opposite where she kept the dagger. From there, she took a photo, frayed around the edges, with the image of her, Sasha and Anne together, posing for the photo. She gently ran her fingers over the image, closing her eyes in the process, for the first time letting her fragments of memory run wild on purpose.

A strong and warm hug.
A scythe ready to hit her.
"I can't lose you again!"
"...I always needed you...But maybe you never needed me."

"...I'm sorry, girls... I really want to... But I don't know if I can trust you right now."

She turned to the horizon, watching the sun slowly sink into the mountains, creating a mesmerizing effect of light and shadows.

“…But I really hope I can do it one day.”

Chapter Text

She wakes up with a bang.

She jumps in fright, bristling and letting out a confused grunt. The cave where she is starts to fall some rocks from above. She lets out another scared sound and runs to the entrance to escape.

A large predator was there banging hard in the cave.

The armored predator roars and tries to attack her, but she manages to dodge it and goes into the forest. She tries to run on all fours, but she has no balance, so she tries on her two hind legs. Her balance is strange, but she can run better this way, so she continues.

She hears the sound of the armored predator approaching, the animal is faster than her. She looks around for shelter, and sees a hole under a tree trunk. She jumps at it before the giant predator sees her, the sound of the beast's footsteps echoing for a while before it subsides, having lost its prey. She lets out a small, breathless sigh of relief, and looks at her front paws curiously.

No. Not paws. Hands.

This is what the human species calls these members. That's what she should call it too.

Because she is a human. A human named Marcy Wu.

Marcy blinks in confusion, how could she forget this so easily? About who she was? What was she? Could the sudden awakening, along with the panic and fear of being devoured, make her forget something so important?

...

Meh. It doesn't matter.

She is alive and remembers what she needs now. That's what matters.

And what she needs is to find her pack again.

Sasha. Her alpha. The strong and protective leader of her group. And Anne. Her Beta. The one who always looked after her so patiently. They are somewhere out there in this world they fell into. And she has to find them as quickly as she can. A pack is stronger when united, and Marcy is sure they will need to be strong to survive here.

Wherever ‘here’ is.

...

It doesn't matter. Not now.

What matters is that she finds her pack.

A muffled meow brought her out of her thoughts. Marcy looked to the side and saw yellow eyes glowing in the dark. She tensed for a moment, but when she got a better look at the creature, she couldn't help but stare at it in surprise.

Long, gray fur and white stripes, pointy ears, a permanent, silly smile on his face. The creature was adorable, and somehow familiar. The animal blinked, staring at Marcy with seemingly no thoughts in its head, but the way it stared at her made her realize that the animal was trying to figure out whether it was predator or prey.

Marcy blinked and crouched down, placing her chin on the floor so that her face was level with the small animal. Slowly, she stretched out an arm, leaving her hand slightly open, her wrist exposed in an obvious sign of non-threat. The animal gave a confused meow and tilted its head a little, neither of them making any movement until the animal began to approach, one paw at a time, towards Marcy's hand, sniffing curiously. As carefully as possible, Marcy slowly extended her palm, and the animal snuggled against it, giving a small purr of pleasure.

This made Marcy smile, now understanding why the little creature looked so familiar. She remembers that Anne has a baby cat very similar to this one at home, but with a long tail and only four legs instead of six. Still without making any sudden movements, she raised herself to a sitting position, all the while still stroking the animal, who only looked at her for a second before closing again and continuing to purr.

Marcy analyzed the little one meanwhile: tiny body and not very strong; no horns, carapace, or wings to advantage; sharp but small claws; it probably has fangs, but they must be similar to the claws it has. It must be just a puppy or a cub. Was it abandoned or did the mother just go hunting? And if the mother went hunting, will it be able to return?

Could it be that... Was the animal as alone as she was now?

Heavy footsteps echoed again in their small hiding place, leaving them both tense, especially the human who recognized that sound. Carefully, Marcy peeked outside and let out a small, frustrated growl: The great predator had returned, still looking aggressive from the way it was walking.

Marcy placed a hand on her chin, thoughtfully. She needed to find a way out, she had no doubt that if the armored predator found her, it would not hesitate to kill her. She's not sure why, but she was probably in the predator's territory or something. In that case, the best thing Marcy could do is take advantage of the moment when its back is turned so she can come out of hiding and run as far as her legs can carry her.

Looking outside again, she sees some tall bushes and trees lying on the ground, which could be used as a hiding place in her escape. It would also be better if her clothes matched the color of the environment, so she'll have to make some kind of improvised camouflage, placing some plants or something. Or she might use the skin of some animal to make clothes that are warmer and better suited to her unfamiliar environment. She would need to hunt, however, and that means creating weapons, preferably a short-range weapon and a long-range weapon, in case she needs to distract another predator or hunt prey from a distance.

But she can resolve all of this AFTER she gets out of this life or death situation.

Nodding to herself, Marcy lay down on the floor and rolled over a few times, slightly disguising her scent, and placed some roots on top of her hair before letting part of her head stick out of the hole.

She waited.

She doesn't know how long she stayed in that position, a few minutes or a whole hour, but she stayed still. The agony that always came when she was still for too long walked inside her, begging her to move or do something else, but she forced herself to ignore it. She remained still, hidden, her eyes never leaving the armored predator, waiting for the moment she could use it to her advantage.

That moment came when the great predator turned its back, banging its paws against a fallen tree, investigating whether there was something hidden there. Marcy began to come out of her hiding place, entering a large bush and camouflaging herself there. She managed to get a little further away from the armored predator, happiness rising in her chest at the fact that she was managing so well on her own. Her pack would be so proud of her.

And then the sound of a branch breaking echoed around the place, and everything went downhill.

Marcy almost jumped, had she been careless again? Did her clumsiness really attack her when she least needed it? She turned in fear towards the predator, fearing that she had unintentionally exposed her location, but quickly realized that its focus was not on her. But rather where the sound came from. From the same place where she was hiding.

A few meters away, the little cub was frozen outside the den, one of its paws perched on a broken branch.

The large predator roared, starting to charge towards the defenseless little cub, who still hadn't moved. The cub almost seemed resigned to its fate, closing its eyes and preparing itself for the devastating attack that the armored predator would certainly land on it.

Marcy has no idea at what point her body started to move.

She only knows that, when she realized it, she was already letting out a war cry, charging towards the armored predator with a sturdy branch in her hands.

Her cry made the large predator stop its advance and turn towards her, giving her the perfect chance to land a direct hit on its face. The armored predator roared, shaking its head in a daze, and Marcy took the opportunity to pick up the cub in her arms and run.

Her lungs were burning, along with her legs, but she refused to stop, especially as she heard the heavy footsteps of the armored predator behind her. She ran through the trees, trying to delay her pursuer, but the predator continued to destroy everything in its path using its horns, so it wasn't as effective as she wanted. Her head was desperately trying to find a solution to the problem when the cub suddenly bit her ear, pulling her out of her panic and making her lose her balance and fall to the ground.

Which also prevented her from continuing to run straight into a cliff.

Marcy was panting, her shaking body leaned slightly towards the edge, noting that the drop wasn't as high as it looked, but it definitely would have hurt a lot if she had fallen. The sound of the armored predator's footsteps grew louder, and the predator broke through the trees, turning towards Marcy and trying to hit her with its horn. She barely managed to dodge, but the armored predator quickly followed, ready to try and crush her with its paws.

Marcy didn't expect the cub to jump directly into the larger predator's face and start spidering it furiously. Much less the beast itself.

The great predator roared again, trying to shake its body in an attempt to shake off the attacking small creature. Its desperate movements ended up giving Marcy a good view of its body.

Marcy blinked.

The armored beast finally managed to free itself from the small creature and turned towards the human, who quickly advanced with another branch towards it and a fierce expression. Frightened, the great beast took a step back, narrowly escaping the blow, but Marcy advanced again, aiming for the front paws. The armored beast tried to attack her with its horn, breaking the weapon she used, but the only thing she did was pick up a rock and throw it at the beast's face, hitting one of its eyes.

Again, the beast took a step back, soon feeling the lack of solid ground as it did. The beast tried to attack her with its horn once again, but the small creature launched itself at the beast's face again, obstructing its vision and preventing it from seeing the human picking up another branch and advancing towards it.

Holding the branch horizontally, Marcy advanced, pushing the large beast back with all her strength. Finally losing its balance, the beast fell from the hill, hitting the ground hard and causing part of its armor to break. Marcy had also fallen, but ended up rolling down the hill instead of simply falling, softening her fall a little. She groaned in pain as she stood up, feeling every part of her body, especially her left leg, begging her to rest. But the fight is not over yet.

Marcy turned to the beast in time to see it managing to turn itself upside down again, its once strong and intimidating armor now full of small cracks and a few pieces missing. The beast appeared to be staggering, but still managed to stand, its now only good eye glaring at her furiously. She looked to the side quickly, making a small grunt before sitting down, meeting the beast's gaze with her own determined gaze.

She growled at its, a challenge.

The beetle charged forward, its horn aimed at her.

Her prey fell into her trap.

She waited until the last second to roll to the side, causing the beetle to plant its horn in the hill behind her, leaving it trapped. Her prey tried to move back, trying to get out, but the cub had already come running carrying something large in its mouth and handing it to Marcy. It was a piece of the beast's armor that had been broken off, shaped irregularly like a triangle and the size of her forearm. The perfect weapon.

With one last war cry, Marcy plunged her weapon into her prey's neck, straight into the soft, unprotected flesh of the strong armor.

The beetle roared one last time, its entire body spasming in pain, before going completely still.

Marcy stayed in that position for a few more seconds, wanting to make sure the beetle was no longer a threat, before taking a few staggering steps back and falling into a sitting position. Her entire body shook with pain and exhaustion, her breathing was labored and irregular and her heart felt like it would leave her chest at any moment. Every part of her being seemed ready to simply collapse, to give up on living, but her gaze was still focused on the body of the large beetle in front of her.

The big beetle she had killed.

She just took a creature's life.

...

...That's supposed to make her feel something? She feels like she should feel something, perhaps pity or satisfaction, but she feels nothing.

...

Does it really matter?

It tried to kill her, and she defended herself, killing its. Now she can use its body to her advantage, its armor as a weapon and its flesh for food.

This is the cycle of life. You kill to survive and are killed for the survival of other beings.

...

Yes, that makes sense.

In this case, she will be sure to take advantage of everything her prey can offer her without wasting anything.

Nodding to herself, Marcy turned to her little companion, who was currently gently licking the beetle's blood off of her, cleaning her. With a small smile, she caressed its with her other hand, feeling its purring grow stronger.

Or rather, they will take advantage of everything they can.

***

Marcy doesn't know how long she and Cub were wandering through the forest together, but it was long enough for Marcy to already have a long mental list of bad, dangerous, good and useful things that existed there. In alphabetic order.

Marcy was more surprised at being able to remember everything in order than at the length of the list.

Currently, she and Cub were walking, or rather, she was walking with Cub on her back. The spear of bone and wood was in her hands and her dagger made from that sharp piece of carapace at her waist. What she had covering her body wasn't exactly the armor of fur and carapaces she imagined, but it was still quite protective and comfortable. Marcy took a bite of her fruit and handed the rest to her companion, who quickly devoured it.

Funny, it had all the attributes of a carnivore, and yet it ate fruit.

Marcy won't argue, it's easier for her not to have to hunt animals every day to satisfy their hunger.

Cub suddenly stood up, which made Marcy duck. She knew that her little friend had much more acute senses than her, and she already knew that it was standing up like that because it had heard something. She stayed quiet, trying to hear what Cub had heard. The sound of leaves being crushed soon reached her ears, making Marcy cower even more, her spear ready in case the stranger attacked her.

Bipedal toads were walking in the forest, with metal armor on their wrinkled bodies and weapons in their hands, a group of five. Marcy avoided growling when she saw them, so as not to make any noise. She had seen a few of them while hunting, and had almost been seen by one of them. They were brutal and cruel hunters, even seeming to enjoy themselves when their prey fled in terror. Some of them were a little friendlier, she was sure she saw one of them happily sniffing the flowers at one point before following the group, but most were predators that she would be happy to avoid until she could find her pack.

The lead toad said something to his group in his deep voice, and they saluted before parting ways. Marcy took the opportunity to climb the nearest tree, trying to look where they were going without attracting attention. Before she could think of an escape route, Cub nibbled her ear and nodded toward the direction the toads came from. She looked at its confused, but it seemed quite insistent on going in that direction.

Marcy cautiously began heading in that direction, hopping from branch to branch, stopping and going quiet whenever a toad seemed to have heard her. She continued her little journey through the trees until they opened up into a clearing, where there seemed to be a small toad camp. It was currently practically empty, except for something in a strange cage in the middle of the camp.

Cub was more agitated, quickly getting off Marcy's shoulder and running towards the cage. Marcy let out a worried growl and also got down from the tree, running towards her little friend. Cub was almost scratching the cage, and Marcy looked closely at what was inside.

The creature looked like a large cat, with six legs instead of four. It had wings and an abdomen like an insect and its eyes also looked like one. The creature was injured, growling at Marcy as she approached. Marcy instantly crouched down, showing her palms to the strange creature in a non-aggressive gesture, and Cub meowed as well. Cat-Moth still seemed agitated, but it began to have some kind of conversation with Cub, as they were exchanging grunts and meows. Taking advantage of this, Marcy looked around, trying to find something she could use to free the creature.

The cell was made of iron, and the bars were tight enough that even she would have difficulty getting through, if she could get through at all. The door had an old lock, so maybe she could break it with a few hits with a rock. She had no idea why Cub wanted to save Mothcat, but she won't deny that she also wanted to help the defenseless animal.

That's when a toad appeared.

He seemed distracted as he walked, and only noticed something strange when he saw the three of them together. He looked like he wanted to scream, but Marcy was already halfway to hitting him with the opposite side of her spear blade, hitting him in the stomach and quickly moving behind them to hit him in the back of the head. The toad fell to the ground, a metallic clang sounding as him fell. She poked at he for a while before finding the source. Keys.

Marcy won't question it.

She approached the cage again, her hand without the key still open in a non-threatening gesture, and opened the door lock, which fell with a loud thud. Marcy soon walked away, staying crouched down while waiting for the Cat-Moth's reaction, who sniffed suspiciously at the door for a moment before slowly leaving. Its eyes were fixed on Marcy and Its movements were deliberate, so Marcy looked away in a gesture of trust, not looking at the animal even when it was in front of her, starting to smell her.

Cub approached, giving her a little meow, and she gently petted its. The Cat-Moth stopped and stared at her for a few more seconds before starting to walk, limping a little in its steps. Marcy looked for a few seconds and began to follow, a little curious as to why Cub was following the large animal.

Again, they entered the forest, walking through the large roots and dense undergrowth. They didn't walk for long before they tensed, their ears moving back. Marcy blinked and concentrated on her hearing as best she could. Her hearing was limited compared to her companions, but she could faintly hear a voice.

The deep voice of the leader toad.

Cat-Moth began to limp more quickly in a certain direction, Marcy followed its, worried because of the toads' voices. The creature reaches a hole in a tree, approaching with a delicacy that Marcy had not seen before.

That's when she hears a soft cry. One that was very familiar.

Marcy took a small step forward, to see what was inside.

Cub.

Many cubs.

Small creatures much like Cub lay there, harmless and defenseless. Cat-Moth, who was obviously their mother, licked each one gently before turning to Marcy, looking at her with an analytical look, but one that seemed blank to anyone who didn't know it.

The same look that Cub sometimes gave.

The sound of the toads was a little better than she could hear, and Marcy looks in that direction, but returns back to the small nest of beings like Cub. The mother, now sitting in a way that wouldn't worsen its injuries, continued to stare at her, occasionally glancing toward the sound of the heavy footsteps.

If they get this far, not only would she and Cat-Moth be caught, but the cubs too. And who knows what those toads would do to them. From the looks of Cat-Moth's injuries, it wouldn't be pretty.

...

Damn it.

She knows what she has to do.

Tears begin to threaten to fall from Marcy's eyes and she hugs Cub tightly. Cub looks at her with sad eyes, giving a worried meow, but Marcy gently shushes its, giving little comforting grunts. She tries a smile, but she knows it's a sad one, and gives its one last headbutt before gently extending Cub to the mother.

The Cat-Moth approaches Cub, sniffing its a few times, and then looking at Marcy, who stared back at its before looking away, purposely trying to make herself smaller than the mother. The mother continued to stare at her for another second before gently taking Cub by the neck and placing its between hers. This made the human breathe a sigh of relief and began to walk back to the frogs, knowing that Cub was accepted into that group. She hears Cub's call, and a quick glance behind her reveals Cub trying to catch up with her before Cat-Moth pulls its back to the nest.

Marcy takes a deep breath, feeling her hands shake, but she continues to move away from them, ignoring Cub's sad and almost desperate meow.

She was scared, of course she was scared. She's not sure if she could survive if she continued with this crazy, suicidal plan, but if she just stayed, everyone would be captured, maybe she and Cat-Moth would even be killed. And if she ran away with Cub, Cat-Moth would be killed while she protected the nest and the little defenseless cubs would be caught. And it's not like she could transport everyone away before the toads showed up, especially with Cat-Moth limping like that. It was a lose-lose situation for all of them.

She could at least reduce the amount of people who would lose. Or who would be the one to lose.

Memories came flooding back: Anne nursing her wounds; Sasha protecting her from other cruel humans; The two of them taking care of her even though she was unable to reciprocate.

Because they care about her. Even if sometimes they show it in strange or difficult to understand ways, Marcy knows that they do it because they care about her, and they try to show it in their own ways.

And just like them, Marcy cares about Cub and has her own way of showing it. She wants to find her pack again, but not at the price of something horrible happening to her little companion or a mother protecting its cubs.

Was she being irrational? Perhaps.

Was this too sentimental? Probably.

Was this a stupid idea? Oh, definitely!

She doesn't know what Sasha or Anne would think of the situation she's gotten herself into.

...

She wonders if Sasha and Anne would make the same decision as her.

...

Would they be worried, or proud of her?

...

Heh.

It doesn't matter anymore now.

She has already made up her mind.

She silently apologizes to her pack. She probably won't find them anytime soon.

She had something she needed to protect first. And she needed to be strong for them.

That's why when she reached the toads, some with weapons ready in their hands, a number impossible for her to defeat alone, Marcy didn't hesitate to roar and charged forward, hitting as many of them as possible, before running to the opposite side of her charges. Attracting all the toads to her.

Hours later, far away, with several toads passed out around her, being tightly restrained by the rest as they prepared to knock her out, Marcy couldn't help the savage smile on her face.

Her pack would definitely be very proud of her.

Chapter Text

In a distant swamp, surrounded by death and decay, stood the North Tower. And in this specific tower, toads from all over come together to discuss important matters with their Tower Captains.

That day, the place was full. Because on that day, the now deposed Captain of the South Tower called everyone to a meeting that promised to change the course of everyone's lives.

“So, the disgraced Captain Grime called this council meeting? Does anyone have any idea why?” Bufo, the Lord of the East Tower, asked in an arrogant tone.

“Maybe he wants to be surrounded by friends when he gets arrested.” Beatrix, the Lady of the West Tower said, with a mischievous smile. “What do you think, Aldo?”

Aldo, the Lord of the North Tower, did not respond. In fact, he didn't even seem to be breathing. This, along with his shriveled body, vines growing around he, and an insect passed through the holes where his eyes should have been gave he the appearance of a decaying corpse.

“...Is he sleeping or dead?” Bufo asked Beatrix after a few seconds of no response from the last captain. Beatriz shrugged.

“Definitely smells dead.” Her comment made the surrounding toads start laughing uncontrollably.

Marcy frowned from her hiding place behind the curtains.

“Wow... Now I understand where the Captain got all his dark humor from.” Marcy commented, turning to Percy and Braddock. “If these were my battle buddies that I met whenever we got together, I would be a little grumpy too.”

“Beatrix is worse. Since she is my sister, I would have to put up with her, even if we never had the same job.” Grime said as he approached the trio, an annoyed expression on his face. This generated surprised looks from the trio.

"WHAT?!"

"That's it! Stick a fork in us. We're done."

“Is there more than one of you? How the hell do you keep getting worse the more I know you?!”

The last comment made Grime growl at Marcy, who ignored him and looked again through the gap in the curtain at the tower captains.

“That said, if they're like you, they'll probably like the idea of taking the throne. Which could be a problem for us, because I doubt they won't just burn everything they see in their path if they take power.” The human turned to Grime again. “Are you sure you can convince them that following you is the best option, Captain?”

“In the worst case, I will have to invoked the sacred law of toad challenge to make a fight between the four of us, where the winner will be crowned the king.”

“And... Are you sure you can win?”

"... Perhaps."

Marcy didn't say anything, the simple raise of an eyebrow was enough for Grime to understand how little she trusted his words. That was enough for him to growl at her again.

“Well, do you have a better plan?” He grumbled, crossing his arms in defiance. For a moment, the human said nothing, meeting his gaze with hers, but she quickly looked away.

"... Yes, I have. I did do some research into your culture, after all.” She hugged herself, looking a little afraid. “...But I prefer to use this as a last resort in case you can't get them to listen to you. It could very well be our death if we fail.”

“Then we better not fail, Strategist.”

Marcy nodded submissively, the other two toads looked at her with worried expressions before Braddock poked Percy in the arm. He looked at her confused and she discreetly pointed to some bags near them.

“...Ooh! That reminds me...!" Percy quickly ran to the bag and started rummaging around for something. “I have one last touch for our outfits.” He grabbed a small painting kit and approached everyone, drawing the Toad Army symbol on the central part of their covers. “Now we really are a team!”

“...Thanks, Percy.” Marcy gave a small smile, which made Braddock and Percy smile widely. She raised her clenched fist to the sky, and the others quickly followed suit. “Now come on guys. We have an army to impress if we want this revolution to happen!”

***

Overall, the meeting went well. Marcy put in extra effort to look as extravagant as possible, turning off the lights in the room and making the lights focus only on Grime. As he began to speak, she reminded him discreetly to appeal to their memories of how the toads did all the hard work of maintaining order in Amphibia, how they were the strongest species of any in this world. She also made him appeal to the violent and proud nature of the toads, making him scream about what a great battle it would be, that the king's army would not simply surrender and that it would be an honor to live to fight for a conquest that would be remembered for centuries.

Toads are like barbarians, after all. They are incredibly strong and absolutely physically powerful beings, but their mentality is the same as that of a violent child. Promise fight, blood, honor and power, and they were excited as a dog at the sight of a juicy bone. It was no surprise that they agreed to the idea without hesitation.

It was a good surprise to learn that Captain Grime's real name was Grimothy, Marcy had to stop herself from laughing.

What wasn't good was seeing exactly what she imagined would happen: Bufo and Beatrix wanting to be the one to lead the revolution and be crowned the new king. They could always go to plan C if everything went wrong, though.

What was even worse was hearing from Beatrix that the king was currently with two humans in his castle, apparently preparing to leave in a few days for some mission the king wanted them to do.

Marcy tightly clenched her fists as she looked down, doing her best to suppress her pain and anger. They were together and weren't looking for her? Did they decide to move on without her and abandon her to this world? Marcy wanted to believe that was it, her fragmented memories remember the pain in her body as the blade of Sasha's scythe was close to her neck, a cruel coldness in her eyes as she stared at her, demanding that she give up because she lost.

On the other hand, she also remembered Sasha's warm embrace, her terrified face when Marcy slipped from her hand and fell from the tower. She had a faint memory of tanned hands tending to her injured knee, a voice both familiar and unfamiliar asking her to be more careful.

A part of Marcy believed that her friends had abandoned her. That they didn't care about her anymore and left her behind, so she wouldn't have to care about the consequences of her actions when the revolution ended and she could rub it in their faces that she was better off without them. The other part of her wondered if maybe this mission they are going to do for the king is actually some excuse they made to get the king's permission and help to search for her and find her.

Without answers, as she always was about this, the only thing Marcy did was close her eyes and ignore everything but now.

“Speaking of which, this whole thing is beginning to sound too risky.” Bufo said suddenly, thoughtfully. He soon pointed at the small group without any concern. "Guards! Arrest them!”

Some guards began to approach them, weapons ready in hand. Percy and Braddock hugged each other, scared, while Grime placed his hand on his sword, ready to fight and flee with his small squad.

“Oh, ‘too risky’? I didn’t know you were so fearful, Lord of the East Tower.”

As soon as these words echoed in the room, everything became silent.

Grime looked to the side in surprise, finding his Strategist looking directly at Bufo, an almost bored look. Bufo didn't react for a few seconds, then slowly his expression began to become an angry scowl.

"You said what?"

"You didn't understand? Wow, I really expected more from those leading the toads, but it seems like reality is always more disappointing than fiction.”

Barbarians. They are like Barbarians. Marcy kept repeating this to herself, somehow managing to appear not to be bothered by those gazes that pierced her like arrows while inside she was shaking like jelly. She could feel her heart racing in anxiety and her hands shaking slightly, so she crossed her arms in a casual gesture as she continued to speak.

“I said I expected more from the toads leaders. Here we are, proposing something incredible that will be remembered forever with songs and parties throughout Amphibia longer than ‘his’ story. A glorious fight like ‘his’, where in the end, you will reign supreme. A chance to finally get revenge for everything the king did you went through thanks to your history of non-reciprocal loyalty to the king. And you’re trying not to accept it because it’s ‘too risky’?” She shrugged, hoping no one noticed the slight tremor in her voice. “I must say, I am disappointed. I’m sure ‘he’ would be disappointed too.”

Pride, power, honor and loyalty. These are the foundations of toads society, their entire system is built around this. A toad that does not follow these principles is considered a bandit and traitor to its species, which is why even toads with 'pathetic' careers are still more respected than those who abandon this code. Marcy hoped she was pushing the right buttons to use this to her advantage.

At this point, Bufo really was red with fury, Beatrix didn't look happy either, and for a single moment, Marcy feared she had made a fatal mistake. It seems that they would really have to use plan C, Marcy is sure she could kill them both, but not both at the same time, she would need the Captain's help for that.

And then, a light hoarse laugh echoed from the chair above the two captains.

"Impressive. You have a fierce soldier on your side, Captain Grime.” Aldo suddenly commented, his voice even hoarser than his laugh. He leaned forward, breaking whatever vine was on his body. “Who is this ‘him’ you keep talking about?”

Somehow, Marcy managed to keep from screaming and jumping in fear. She was sure that the Lord of this tower was dead from how still he was, and even at this moment, she still couldn't see if he was breathing! Even so, Marcy tilted her face down to look at the leaders through her bangs of hair, invoking a false bravado that for some reason made her feel like she would have made Sasha proud.

“Who else would it be? I’m talking about the legendary Barrel the Brave.”

This caused a gasp of shock from everyone, including the captains. Grime's eyes widened to a point where Marcy was almost sure that if his blind eye had been fake, it would have fallen out. Percy and Braddock also looked almost horrified, and from the way they were hugging each other, she was pretty sure Percy was about to pass out.

“You-How dare you...!” Beatrix almost jumped out of her chair, looking ready to hit Marcy with the first thing she saw. “You have no right to call out his name!”

“I say nothing but the truth, and I know he would agree with me! The fact that none of you got his Warhammer is proof that none of you are worthy of his legacy!” Marcy roared with all her might, and the rest of it false bravado, at Beatrix. She almost flinched in shock, and Aldo's face began to contort into a half smile.

“And you believe you are worthy?”

“Not only do I believe it, I know it, and I will prove it to you.” She uncrossed her arms and placed her right fist on her chest. “We will bring Barrel's legendary Warhammer and prove that, as the only ones who carry on his legacy, we are the true leaders of the Toads! And we will show it tomorrow, without fear!”

***

“I’ve never been so scared as I was at that moment.”

"I imagined. Still, it was a nice speech, Strategist.” Grime commented, shifting his gaze from the map to the human.

Currently, their brave strategy-expert soldier was lying down, curled up in a fetal position, eyes wide in shock and her entire body shaking. Braddock was helping Grime navigate the Percy family's boat to locate the map he was given while Percy fanned Marcy with a cloth in an attempt to calm her.

“It sure was! For a moment, I actually believed everything you said and I felt kind of bad.” Braddock commented, approaching the human and giving her a small pat on the head, which made her shudder.

“‘Fake it until you make it’. I’m pretty sure that’s a human thing.” Marcy said, curled a little more, but the haunted look and tremor in her body disappeared. “... Turn a little more to the right, Captain. The hammer is a little further away than shown on the map.”

“How can you be sure? For all we know, this is nothing more than a tale for tadpoles!” The captain growled, turning to the human. She blinked slowly at him as she looked at him.

"I studied."

"AND?"

“The beast is real. Maybe exaggerated by legends, but it's real. If the beast is real, nothing prevents the hammer from being real too.” Marcy curled back again. "It'll probably be nothing more than a rusty warhammer at this point, but with the speech I gave, if we prove that the hammer was Barrel's Warhammer, the toads will have no choice but to follow us."

Grime snorted, but did as Marcy asked. Braddock sat next to the human, and Percy sat on the other side, moving his hands anxiously.

“So… The beast is… Real?” He asked nervously. Marcy waved, still in the fetal position.

“The creature is probably dead by now, but I believe it was a Narwhal Worm. I read that these creatures are giants, with natural armor on their bodies and capable of causing destruction simply by passing by, but they are generally peaceful in disposition. If the legend is true, it is quite possible that the creature was simply passing by, but its passage could destroy the village that Barrel protected, so he fought to the end to fulfill his duty as a warrior.” Slowly, Marcy rose to a sitting position, resting her arms on her knees, which were close to her chest. “Honestly… He’s impressive.”

“Huh?”

“Barrel. The creature he faced was probably bigger than a whale, and he was probably alone. And yet, even against all odds, even with everything around him saying it was impossible, he fought. He gave his life to protect a village that he probably didn't even know well, or maybe he knew well and that's why he sacrificed himself like this.” She lifted her gaze upward, watching the stars that were emerging. “No wonder he is so revered by you. He essentially embodies everything toads are proud to have and inspires anyone who listens to be like him.” She looked down. “It kind of makes me feel bad to use his name like that.”

Not only that, Marcy felt bad for Barrel himself as well. His name is a legend, his weapon is considered sacred, his last battle is his legacy that has become an inspiring story, and yet, no one really knows him. Marcy researched as much as possible, but she never found an answer to where he came from, as well as everything that existed before King Andrias took the throne. It's almost as if he was removed from the story on purpose, with only a single fragment of his memory able to persist, and that's because he did something that was essentially reckless and suicidal.

A part of Marcy was fascinated by his legend, wanting to know about him and what he did before his end and being bitter that no record existed before King Andrias. The other part of her wonders morbidly if he did it because he felt like he had nothing left to lose, and by sheer luck, his name wasn't erased from history like so many others before him were.

Again, unanswered questions. Again, Marcy ignores it and focuses on the present.

“... Maybe he would actually approve, in the end. You are right that many of us are no longer following the attributes he had.” Braddock said, getting a little closer to the human, but avoiding touching her arm. Percy did the same thing on the other side. “Maybe using the name like that is enough to get us back to being who we were supposed to be.” Braddock smiled and Marcy returned a small smile before returning to her previous blank expression, blocking her chaotic thoughts as much as she could. The three remained silent and enjoyed the trip.

"... We're here." Captain Grime said suddenly, the human took a deep breath and stood up, walking to the squad leader's side.

The four docked the boat as best they could on the small island they were on. Marcy frowned and stomped the floor a few times, looking uncomfortable as she did so. Braddock watched her and raised her eyebrow, Percy looked around a little worried and Grime grunted, turning to the human.

“Is there a problem, Strategist?"

“...There’s something wrong with this island.” She commented, looking for a few more seconds before moving forward and past the group. “Let's do this quickly. The sooner we find the hammer, the sooner we leave this place and return to the Lords.”

“Of course, if it really exists.” Grime grumbled, throwing his arms up in exasperation. “Even if it exists, we'll never find it...”

"Found it." Marcy and Percy said, pointing to something on their side.

Grime blinked, turning around. Indeed, a few meters to their side, appearing to be illuminated by the sky itself, was the warhammer. It was silver in color, with part of its head buried in the ground, with several webs around it, and it had several lines and symbols spread across it. Around its, there were some vines and skeletons, which made Marcy's hair stand on end.

"I don't believe it." Grime laughed in disbelief, approaching the hammer, his squad following behind. "It's real! Our ticket to revolution!”

“And no beast in sight! Maybe the beast really is dead like Marcy said! Could life actually be this easy for a change?” Percy asked himself excitedly, Marcy shivered.

“For some reason, I feel like we just waved red flags over our heads...” The human whispered to herself. She shook her head and approached Grime. “Well, Captain, it’s all yours.”

Grime grabbed the hammer and started to pull, but the hammer didn't even move, he grunted and tried again, still to no avail. Marcy hopes it's because the hammer is heavy and not that it actually has any 'only the chosen can use it' nonsense.

“A little help here?” He asked, still trying to pull. The rest of the small squad gathered around the hammer and pulled together. To Marcy's delight, the warhammer actually moved.

To her horror, so does the island.

The four ended up falling into the water, and quickly swam to their boat. They turned and watched with wide eyes as the island continued to rise until the face of a giant worm appeared and rose from the water, a mighty horn in front of its head, its colossal serpentine body creating waves that rocked the water around the boat. The creature, indeed an ancient Narwhal Worm, roared, the warhammer still firmly embedded in the back of its head.

“I knew we raised red flags...” Marcy murmured, still wide-eyed, staring at the creature.

“What a great way to go!” Unlike Marcy, Grime was excited about what had just happened, pointing his sword at the animal while laughing.

“M-Marcy! Captain! We have to leave!” Braddock screamed, almost desperately as the narwhal worm roared once more.

"I agree! Let’s run away now!” This time it was Percy, shaking from head to toe, and it wasn't because of the raging waves.

Marcy looked between the two, returning her gaze to the creature. It would be safer. Killing or running away from this creature will be the best option, perhaps it could even attract the narwhal worm to where the rest of the toads were, they could destroy this animal. Or then again, they could always go straight to plan C and eliminate the Lords to command the toads out of fear.

And yet...

This creature is in pain, alone and afraid. I can help.

... Some primitive voice with a strangely gentle and sentimental tone said to help.

Her eyes desperately roamed the region, absorbing as much of the scenery as possible and trying to convert it into a plan with a good degree of success. Her eyes fell to the ropes on the boat, as well as a stone arch that existed several meters away from them, and then back to the narwhal worm and the hammer on its head.

A fragment of an ancient memory resonated in her mind

Marcy's eyes glowed faintly green.

“Captain, I have a plan!” She shouted, starting to pick up the ropes that had been left on the boat. Grime turned around, still with his excited smile.

"Excellent! And what would it be, Strategist?”

Marcy didn't respond, she simply handed the dropped ropes to Percy and Braddock, who looked at her confused.

“Take as much rope as you can from the boat, use the chains if you need to! Be careful not to end up dismantling the boat, but tie all the ropes you can until they become a very large and thick rope, the biggest you can make!” She turned to Grime and pointed to the animal. “Captain, you and I are going to climb up that narwhal worm, got it?”

"Understood! This battle will be legendary!” He laughed and jumped into the water, starting to swim towards the most submerged part of the animal. Marcy turned to Percy and Braddock with a serious look.

“I know I'm asking a lot of you, but please trust me. After this, you will never have to fight again if you don’t want to.” She practically begged, the two toads looked at each other and, despite still being scared, nodded. Marcy reciprocated and threw herself into the water, following the captain.

The two swam until they reached the narwhal worm, quickly climbing until they were the animal armor was above the water. The two began to run towards the head, being careful not to slip and fall as they climbed as quickly as possible through the segments of their armor to reach their destination, time was essential for Marcy's plan to succeed.

As she expected, the animal ignored them and simply swam calmly ahead, sometimes letting out grunts that the primitive part of Marcy was sure were from pain. Narwhal Worms are peaceful, after all, and most of the catastrophes they caused were accidents due to their colossal size compared to other living creatures.

Once they reached the top, Marcy looked around and picked up a fallen vine nearby, tying one end of it until it became a lasso. It wasn't very strong, but it could probably handle what she wanted to do.

“Captain, tie the vine to its horn and make it turn left!” She shouted, throwing the lasso to Grime, who caught it without a hitch.

“You’re insane, Strategist! I knew there was a reason I started liking you!” He laughed again before swinging the lasso and throwing it at the animal's horn.

Firmly trapped, Grime began to pull hard in the opposite direction of where he wanted. This caused the animal to be forced to twist and as soon as the vine began to break, the narwhal worm was turning and heading straight for the stone arch at full speed. Marcy looked down, trying to find Percy or Braddock somewhere, worried that they wouldn't make it out in time or they'd run out of rope.

"MARCY!” A double scream echoed from the other side where she watched, as well as the sound of an object stabbing into the creature's carapace. The human turned around, a staff similar in appearance to the hammer was next to Grime, and tied around it was a tightly bound tangle of ropes and chains. Grime grabbed the rope and ran towards the human, who was now close to the hammer.

"And now?"

“We strapped on the warhammer as best we could and waited for the narwhal worm to pass by the stone arch.” She explained, starting to do just that, tying it up as best she could in a way that she knew wouldn't slip. “As we pass by, I want you to throw me over the arch and away from the hammer. With how tall this animal is, we'll be very close to the top, so the launch itself isn't difficult...”

“... But the launch time is. And we only have one chance.” Grime added, and Marcy nodded grimly. “...Very well, I’m counting on you, Marcy.”

The two positioned themselves, Marcy firmly holding the end they hadn't tied and Grime with his hands on her waist, ready to throw her, neither of them looked away from the arch that was getting closer and closer. Marcy's hands were shaking and sweating from nervousness, and she decided that she would ask Grime to order real gloves instead of these bandages on her hands as soon as they got back to the tower. Again, the fragments of past memories that inspired this plan resonated in her mind.

“Sorry Mar-Mar, but I doubt you can do that.”
“Oh come on Sash, let her try! Go there Marcy!”

The moment the part of the narwhal worm they were on passed by, Marcy roared.

"NOW!"

Grime threw her as high and far as she could, the human's body reaching halfway across the arch before she began to fall, making Grime's eyes widen in panic.

His mouth opened in surprise when he saw Marcy, not intimidated by that, take advantage of the momentum to climb the rest with her own hands, never letting the rope she was holding fall. He could swear her eyes were glowing a different color than before.

Without hesitation, as soon as she reached the top, she dropped down to the other side, pulling hard on the rope. Grime saw the rope tension until it reached the hammer, the creature still running at high speed ahead.

"WHAT?!"
“I agree with Sasha, how did you do that?! Neither Sasha nor I could lift this!”
“Ah, that's actually quite simple to do... Hey, that tickles! I read that in a high school textbook!”
“Isn’t this, like, three years in the future?”
"YES! And I found something fascinating and fun about lifting something heavy without much effort! I used it to help us!”
"What is it called?"
"Pulley!"
“Boring... But useful. Now we have a dog!”
"YEAH!"

And just like that, as simple as opening a can, the hammer came out of the creature.

***

“Last Toad Summit was all about improvements to Toad armor durability. This year, the R&D team gives you... Armor Customization!” A scientist toad explained to the tower leaders, pointing to his assistant. He turned around, showing that a duck and the words 'Toad Up' were drawn on the back of his armor.

The room erupted in excited applause.

“Oh, that duck looks nice.” Bufo commented, looking more than satisfied, while Beatrix continued to applaud. Aldo, as always, was as quiet as dead. As the toads continued to cheer, one of the toads looked out the window and gasped in shock.

“C-Captain! A nawhal worm is heading our way!” He shouted, catching everyone's attention. The creature's roar was echoed and before anyone could do anything, it began to slow down until it stopped in front of the tower, tilting its horn towards the large window behind the leaders.

The window was shattered with a blow.

The leaders turned, and came across Grime, a malicious smile on his face with a large warhammer resting on his shoulder, at his side, was the human and his other two toads soldiers. The human whistled, and the narwhal worm rose a little higher, letting the four of them gently descend from its horn. The four jumped, with Marcy lightly petting the animal's horn before doing so, and Grime went to the center of the room, raising the hammer for everyone to see.

“Behold! The legendary Barrel's Warhammer and the beast that protected it!” He shouted, pointing at the animal as soon as he finished speaking.

Marcy whistled again, in a slightly different way, and the narwhal worm straightened up and roared, then looked excitedly at Marcy like a puppy waiting for something. She waved to Percy and Braddock, and they grabbed a nearby barrel of food and threw it out the window. The narwhal worm opened its mouth and ate the entire barrel, looking satisfied, and Marcy made a movement with her hand, which made it lie down closest to the tower to doze off.

For a moment, the hall was silent, everyone present too shocked to react. Soon after, however, everyone started shouting and cheering enthusiastically, while the rest of Grime's squad stood by his side. Aldo raises his hand, silencing everyone, and he leans in, seeming to look into their souls even without eyes.

“We hereby grant you the support of all three towers for your rebellion.” He said smiling, seeming satisfied with the resolution. Marcy couldn't let a relieved sigh leave her mouth.

“Well, Strategist, I had my doubts, but we did it.” Grime expressed, clapping his hand on Marcy's back relatively gently for his standard.

"Yes! We did it, Marcy! We really are the best team in this world, aren’t we?” Braddock cheered, jumping in place with joy.

“I thought we were going to die at that moment, but we actually did it! I bet my parents will be proud of me when I tell them that!” Percy said, hugging Marcy and Braddock quickly, before starting to dance with Braddock in some victory dance they invented.

Marcy smiled a little at first, but her smile slowly faded from her face as she looked at the two of them. Observing the slightly dented armor they had, Percy's hat that was now missing a piece, the many light injuries they carried on their bodies. She looked at Grime, who also had several small wounds scattered across the unprotected parts of his body, an unmistakable tiredness hanging over his shoulders. She looked down at her own hands, the bandages she wore were a little burned on her palm where they had protected her from the worst of the rope's friction, but she still carried a few small cuts and burns on her fingers.

A injury she had on this adventure.

“...Captain.” Grime turned to Marcy, who was still looking at her own hands before turning to him. “I would like some gloves... And your permission to go out alone and distract Anne and Sasha from our revolution.”

"What?" This caught the attention of Braddock and Percy, who looked shocked by her request. Marcy avoided looking at them.

“And why do you want to do this, Strategist?” Was Grime's question, not sounding suspicious, just curious.

“The last time you tried to do something that could be considered threatening to the frogs, Sasha stopped you. One way or another, our revolution will end up reaching the frogs and the newts, and if Anne is anything like Sasha, I don't doubt they will both try to stop the revolution from happening if they find out about it.” She explained, still without looking away from the captain. “And given our last meeting with Sasha, if I show up with you guys, I doubt Sasha won't be suspicious of us. And if she doesn't listen to me, chances are Anne won't listen either. It will be better for everyone if I go to them alone to make sure they don't get in the way.”

Grime didn't say anything, just stared at her for a few seconds. She didn't change her expression.

Finally, he sighed.

"I see your logic, Strategist." He straightens up, placing one hand on his waist, the other still resting the hammer on his shoulder. "Very good. This will be your new mission, soldier: Go to those humans and distract them from our plans. You will leave tomorrow morning, so get ready.” Marcy saluted the captain before starting to leave the room. Percy and Braddock looked at each other before running over to the human.

“Marcy!” She stopped in front of the hall door, still without turning towards them. Percy took a step forward, hesitant to touch the human. “Marcy, why? I... I thought we were a team! I thought we would make this revolution together!”

“I already explained, Percy. It will be safer for our plans if I do this…” She glanced at them, and they could both see remorse in her gaze. “...It will be better for you if I leave.”

They couldn't say anything before Marcy closed the gates.

***

“Supplies?”

“In my backpack. Check.”

"Map?"

“In my belt pocket. Check.”

“Weapons?”

“I took a wrist crossbow and I still have my dagger. Check.”

“What about…”

“For the love of the Frog, Captain, I'm ready! Just give me the gloves I ask for and I’ll be gone!”

“You complained when I wasn't nice to my soldiers and now you complain when I'm trying? You are quite a demanding creature, Strategist.”

Marcy rolled her eyes, but continued to check and agree with the things Grime asked her. Making sure everything was ready, she packed her small backpack, hiding it under her cloak, and turned to the captain, who handed her a pair of leather gloves that covered her entire hand and reached the end of her forearm. She put them on and tucked her wrist crossbow into her right glove, right on top of her forearm.

She turned to Percy and Braddock, who looked like they were about to cry. Marcy hesitated for a moment before reaching out her hands and taking theirs. She shivered, but let them hold her hand tightly.

“Take good care of Woolly for me, okay?” She whispered, they both nodded firmly. They started to enter the tower, still crying, and Marcy turned to Grime. “Captain, promise me you will protect them. Even if it means taking them out of the army.”

“You want me to withdraw two of my best soldiers right when we are preparing for a revolution?” As soon as Grime asked that, he shivered, almost looking sick. "...I never thought I'd say that about Percy."

“They aren't soldiers. It's just people doing their best to survive. They are... Just like I once was.” She turned to where those two had entered, a pained expression on her face. “...And I don’t want them to break like I’m broken.”

“...I'll think about it.”

Marcy nodded, that was the best she could get from him. She turned around, taking a deep breath as she faced the terrifying nature that awaited her, ready to begin her mission.

“Marcy, wait.” She looked back, a little surprised by what the captain called her. He held out a strange and vaguely familiar metallic cylinder that fit perfectly in his hand. “Take this, it’s dangerous to go alone like this.”

She picked up the object, looking at it for a few seconds before giving it a slight spin on its shaft. The cylinder made a strange sound and extended until it became some kind of fighting stick, the same stick that Percy and Braddock had used to throw the rope. With a new sound, the writing on the staff lit up, similar to what Barrel's Warhammer does, but green instead of pink, and an energy blade appeared at the tip, becoming a spear.

“We have no idea where it came from other than it was near the hammer. Braddock thinks it was another weapon Barrel the Brave used.” Grime explained, watching Marcy take a few swings in the air with the new weapon. “Either way, it's a great weapon, and I believe it would be safer for you to have it on your mission.”

"... Thanks." She said, genuinely. Marcy turned in the opposite direction to before, and the spear once again shrunk until it became a cylinder, and she placed it on her belt. She turned back to the forest, hesitating for a few seconds. “...Be careful, Captain Grime.”

“...You too, My Fiercest Soldier.”

Chapter Text

This... It can't end like this.

I'm afraid so.

Give me one more chance! I can prove that things can be better!

If I do this, your very existence will be destroyed. Are you really willing to sacrifice your own being for something that may be impossible?

If it means one more chance for them to survive, then yes... I would do anything for them.

Very well.

Chapter Text

Pain.

Marcy's whole body hurt.

She gasped, her entire body shaking with effort, begging her to stop, but she kept taking it one step at a time. The darkness of the night hid her a little, but she was still sure that the frogs had seen her, and if they had, the trail of blood would be a good indication.

It doesn't matter. When she looked up, she knew she was in front of her goal.

A two-story house made of bricks and tree trunks, a large telescope in the top window. Hanging from the large trunk of the house, the letter P was drawn on a hanging wooden sign.

The house of the frogs that are with Sasha. Sasha's house. Her alpha.

Marcy grunted in pain and approached the door. Pulling out her dagger and with the last bit of strength she still had, she managed to break in and enter, crawling desperately to the center of the room.

Marcy heard a strong but friendly young female voice, but was unable to react before succumbing to unconsciousness.

***

By the time Marcy regained consciousness, she was looking at the ceiling of a house, her body was incredibly sore and she looked like she was on a couch. And she had a young yellow frog in a hat next to her with a wet cloth in her hands.

“Oh! You woke up!" She whispered, sounding both excited and suspicious. Marcy stared at her for a few seconds and tried to sit down, but the girl stopped her. "Stop! It will make your injuries worse if you continue like this.”

“Where... Where am I?” She asked, then closing her eyes as she let out a groan of pain. Her entire body felt like it had been bitten like a chew toy.

“You don't know? We’re at the Plantars’ house.” The young woman said, gently rubbing the cloth over Marcy's face. It was freezing, and it almost made Marcy shiver and back away, but she didn't have the energy for that. “I saw you breaking into the house and I was ready to fight, but you just passed out as soon as you entered... You were bleeding a lot. My mother managed to sew up the... worst injuries, but it's still not a good idea for you to move around that much.”

The Plantars' house. Sasha's house. Yes, Marcy vaguely remembers something like that. She was heading to Wartwood to meet her alpha per the Captain's orders to...

“... Sasha... Where... Where is she?” Again, Marcy tried to get up, but this time she couldn't even lift her head properly. Her entire body hurt, she felt so dizzy, and she was so confused.

“She and the Plantars aren’t here yet, but they’re probably on their way home.” A new voice responded, deeper and more knowing than the girl's, carrying a slight tone of inner strength, a prey that knows how to defend itself very well. Marcy opened her eyes slightly and saw the face of an older frog with orange hair watching her, looking worried.

“Sasha... I... I have to...”

The older frog gently silenced her with a cup of tea being placed in her mouth, and Marcy could do nothing but obey. The tea tasted a little bitter, but it was warm and familiar, and Marcy felt some of the pain ease. Soothing Leaves. Marcy had already eaten one with Cub before after a successful hunt.

“... Marcy, isn’t it? Sasha told me a little about you.” The older frog said, pushing the cup away when the tea was finished and placing her hand gently on her cheek. Marcy shuddered almost violently, and that made the frog move away, her expression even more worried. “Get some rest and try to regain your strength, okay? Don’t worry, your friend will arrive soon.”

Again, Marcy succumbed to unconsciousness.

***

A flash of green light appeared in the darkness, along with an echoing voice.

“Oh, Marcy... What happened to you?”

That voice.

“I should never have let you fall…”

Marcy recognized that voice.

"I am really sorry..."

Marcy wanted to say something, but again, darkness consumed her.

***

The first thing Marcy noticed, even with her eyes closed, was how sore her body was. It looked like she had decided to take on a giant praying mantis with her bare hands and wasn't sure if she had won or not.

Which begs the question: What the hell happened to her? All she remembers was leaving the North Tower with the mission to distract Sasha and Anne, and starting to enter the forest. After that... Nothing.

No. Not exactly nothing. She has fragments of memories of roars, trees, pain and blood, but nothing really concrete. Whatever she did, it was definitely quite dangerous and it's probably a miracle she's still alive.

The second thing she noticed was that, although her body was incredibly sore, the place where she was lying was very soft. Like a bed or sofa. It was a little small, but still comfortable.

The third thing she noticed was the lack of her armor...

...

SHE WAS WITHOUT HER ARMOR!!!

Marcy opened her eyes.

Sasha, who was in front of her, stared at her with wide eyes.

“...Sasha?”

“MARCY!”

Without hesitation, but so carefully it felt like she was holding glass, Sasha hugs Marcy.

Marcy shivered violently.

Oh...

It's... Warm.

Sasha hugging her tight with tears and a bright smile on her face. So warm, so safe. Marcy would give anything for them to stay like this forever.

Just like that day.

Marcy didn't even realize she was crying until she noticed how wet her face was. Slowly, still very shaky, she reciprocated, a sob escaping her body as the tears grew stronger. She felt Sasha's hand going to her hair, starting to caress her, and that made Marcy want to let go immediately, the sensation was too much. But she only held on tighter, biting her lip to stop a scream from leaving her mouth, but unable to stop the shaking or sobbing.

What was happening to her?

Marcy was ready to meet Sasha, she mentally prepared herself to see her and talk to her. She was ready to not only distract Sasha from the revolution, but also find answers to her questions. She was ready to talk to Sasha, make up some excuse that she had been looking for her all this time.

She didn't expect to burst into tears the moment she saw the blonde.

“It’s okay, Marcy. Everything is fine now." Sasha whispered in her ear, which only made the other human's tremors worse. A shiver different from what she was used to ran up her spine, it wasn't from fear but... "... It's okay now."

For a while, a few seconds or several minutes, neither of them let go of the other. The blonde kept whispering to Marcy that she was safe while gently rocking her from side to side. Meanwhile, the ravenette continued to cry silently into the embrace, her body never stopping shaking, a strange relief seeming to settle into her shoulders, despite everything around her still feeling too much to bear.

Eventually, Marcy recovered enough to walk away. Sasha hesitated, hugging her tighter for a moment, before also letting go with a dejected look on her face. Marcy looked away and noticed that she was only wearing a shirt and the shorts she was wearing underneath.

Which means her armor and her dagger are gone.

...

HER ARMOR AND DAGGER ARE GONE!

Panicking, Marcy looked around, trying to find her protection and her precious weapon. She quickly realized she was in some kind of dungeon due to the walls, but her mind was focused on finding her weapon.

“Marcy? What...?"

“My dagger! My armor! Where are my things?!” Marcy shouted, almost grabbing Sasha by the collar as she asked.

She obviously scared the blonde, but Marcy still ignored it in favor of looking for what she wanted. Finally, she found her equipment on a table on the other side of the dungeon, including her dagger. Marcy didn't hesitate to get up and run to her, completely ignoring the pain in her body, grabbing her weapon and holding it protectively to her chest. She checked her equipment, ensuring everything was in place before sighing in relief, finally looking at the blonde, slightly annoyed with herself for acting so pathetic and weak in front of someone she wasn't sure she could trust.

Sasha... She looked like she had just been punched by someone.

“...Mar...cy?”

“...Sasha.”

Silence falls in the room, and Marcy feels like she just did something very wrong. She didn't mean to freak out like that, but Marcy definitely feels safer with her equipment around than without it. She thought Sasha would understand, but considering she was currently without her scythe nearby, maybe she was wrong.

...Why wasn't she armed, but had left Marcy's things so close? Wasn't she afraid Marcy would attack her? Was she so confident of her strength that she didn't worry about her safety?

... Something inside Marcy says that's not it.

“Sasha! We need you at the plan meeting to—” A pink frog kicked the door suddenly, squealing excitedly as it jumped, stopping as it looked at Marcy.

The sudden noise caused Marcy to instantly go into combat pose, her vision becoming slightly blurred for a second due to the pain. The frog gave another cry, this time in surprise, and quickly pulled a slingshot from its hat. Marcy narrowed her eyes. The pain would definitely limit her movements, but if she could get closer...

“STOP!” Sasha ordered, standing in the middle of the two with her arms outstretched pointing at each one. Her gaze was serious and almost cold, and a familiar shiver ran down Marcy's spine, the same feeling when Captain stared at her intensely. “Drop your weapons, now!”

The ravenette human looked at her, for just a second, before obeying. The frog didn't, alternating between looking confused at Sasha and Marcy, and this only made the blonde human's gaze even more intense.

“Sprig. Drop it. End. Of. Discussion.”

The frog, Sprig, hesitated a moment longer before also putting away his weapon, still looking confused. Sasha took a deep breath and straightened up, turning towards the frog and leaving her back completely exposed to Marcy.

“How many times do we have to tell you to knock before you come in? From the amount of times Polly and I almost accidentally bit your head off with your input, I was sure you would have learned by now.” The blonde human commented, sounding upset and worried. Sprig rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed.

“I... forgot.”

"I noticed." Sasha sighed, running a hand over her face. She took another deep breath and held up a finger to Sprig in a silent request to wait, turning to Marcy. She quickly straightened her back, looking at the other human, who seemed to have a slightly softer, but still worried look. “Do you mind if I leave for a moment? My family needs help, but if it's what I think it is, then I'll be back soon.”

“…” For a moment, Marcy didn’t respond. She looked at the human for a few seconds in silence, quickly assessing her, before nodding. Sasha gave a small smile and approached Sprig, letting him jump on her shoulder before they both left, leaving the ravenette human behind.

...

What just happened?

Okay. Focus. One thing at a time.

First, her armor.

Marcy looked at her body, blinking in surprise when she noticed that she had some bandages and a strange black goo spread over the most injured parts of her. She gently ran her fingers over the spots, feeling a slight discomfort in them. Someone had probably tended to her injuries while she was unconscious for some reason.

Someone had seen perfectly how weak Marcy really was.

That simple thought almost made Marcy flee town, but she forced herself to calm down. She still had a mission to do, and if she was lucky, it was only Sasha and that frog who had seen how pathetic Marcy was. Maybe that's why the blonde human wasn't armed when she went to see Marcy, because she was sure she could beat her.

... There was still a part of Marcy that disagreed with that.

Either way, she couldn't let anyone else see her weaknesses, so Marcy quickly, but in a way that didn't irritate any wounds, donned her armor. She fixed everything and made sure nothing was hurting more than necessary before going to put on her pants, her cape and her goggles.

She stopped.

Those aren't the pants she wore.

And her glasses were broken, and her cape was torn.

Not totally out of salvation. The right side of the glasses was still completely fine and intact, but the left side had a top piece missing, with a crack running all the way to the bottom. The cover had a tear in the back on the left that went from the beginning of the drawing to the end of the cover. Both problems were easy things to replace or fix.

No, what worried her were three things:

The tear in her cape was almost clean and precise, meaning that whatever ripped it was probably a purposeful attack with something very sharp.

The strap on her glasses had a small white feather with faint red drops attached to it, a feather that hadn't been there before and that was hardly a decoration she would have attached.

She doesn't remember how she got any of them.

Marcy swallowed.

What exactly happened between her journey from the North Tower to Wartwood? Why was she even here in the first place? She vaguely remembers that she wanted to go straight to Newtopia to see if she could reach Anne or Sasha before they did whatever the job was with the king, and so she entered the nearby forest and...

... Tired... So... Tired...

Nothing.

Marcy closed her eyes and decided to ignore it for now. She'll have to find something to sew her cape back on, and maybe a replacement lens, but other than that, it looks like her armor is fine. She noticed a few dents in the places that matched where she felt sore, so whatever happened during her blackout, her armor protected her from the worst of it. One more reason to never take it off besides maintenance and cleaning.

She looked at the new pants in front of her and looked at her legs. From the way her left thigh was bandaged and sore and her right thigh was full of small cuts and bruises, she had the feeling that her old pants were beyond saving. Sasha or some frog that follows her must have decided to give her a new one so she wouldn't be left unprotected.

That was... Oddly nice of them. She wasn't sure if she was getting special treatment because she had connections with Sasha or simply frogs are friendlier to their captives than toads.

Marcy isn't even sure if she's a prisoner again or not, to be honest. She didn't have time to study frog culture to know that. She initially thought she was in some kind of dungeon, but from the bed and some dressers, it could simply be some kind of underground room.

Deciding to inquire about her stay or capture later, Marcy donned her new pants, getting the same treatment as her armor. It was more comfortable than the old one, which made Marcy a little less restricted in her movements. She nodded to herself, satisfied with her equipment, and decided not to put on her cape or glasses before checking the rest of her things.

Her bag wasn't in the room, the human wasn't sure if it was hidden or if she lost it along with her memory, but her utility belt, her hand crossbow, her dagger and her portable spear-staff were there. She put on her belt, ensuring everything that should be there was there, from the map to her precious photo, and quickly grabbed her dagger to examine it further.

The emerald exoskeleton blade was slightly dull, and small red stains were staining the ropes that connected the petrified wood handle. Marcy frowned, deciding for now to simply make sure the blade and handle were still firmly attached to each other, since she didn't have any sharpening stones. After that, she placed it on her waist and took out her hand crossbow. Apart from a small chip on one of the crossbow's ends and more small red stains, the hand crossbow was still in perfect condition. Marcy thought about putting it in her glove right away, but she remembered that Sasha might show up soon, and from the way she acted when Marcy ran to her things, she'd better not be fully armed if she wanted to have her trust, so she put it back on the dresser.

Lastly, she took out her spearstaff and made it extend, and she couldn't help but grimace slightly. The tip of her weapon, on the side where the energy blade appears, was filled with the same red as her other weapons, the subtle smell of copper invading her nostrils. She had definitely been fighting something, and since the blood was red and not blue, plus the feather in her glasses, the answer was obvious.

She had faced some bird from this world. She just hopes she killed her opponent, because if some strange bird invades the city looking for a second round, it will be very awkward having to explain it to Sasha or the frogs that follow her.

Satisfied with having solved part of the mystery, Marcy retracted her spearstaff again and placed it on the dresser, then sat down on the bed.

Now... What else should she do?

Sasha ordered her to stay because she needed to sort out something, so it's not like she could leave. And even if she disobeyed the order, she had no idea what was outside, she didn't really know the frogs' experience or the surroundings of where they live. Leaving would be suicide.

So she waited, looking around and waiting for the blonde human to appear. It had a small window that gave a little view of the outside, and a door on the opposite side of the room, as well as an old heater, so her theory of it being an underground room instead of a dungeon was gaining more traction. Some luminous mushrooms grew on the walls, giving some illumination to the room, which seemed to be between mid-afternoon and dusk. There were also some creeping plants that were growing in some cracks in the structure, and Marcy wondered if she could use some of them to clean her weapons.

Someone knocked on the door, Marcy instantly turned around.

“Mar-Mar? I'm going in."

Sasha opened the door, holding a small plate of food in one hand and a stool in the other. She went down the small staircase without even looking and closed the door, placing the stool next to the bed and the plate on top of the dresser, next to the weapons, before turning to the other human with an unreadable expression.

For a moment, neither of them said anything. They just watched each other silently, almost analyzing each other. Marcy's eyes unconsciously went to the blonde's arms and she had to use all her willpower to avoid reacting in any way.

Sasha... Has Sasha always been this muscular?

Marcy doubted it, she didn't exactly have a good memory of Sasha, but the photo she protectively carried in her pocket gave a good idea of ​​their physiques. Even with that coat that covered her in the photo, she was without a doubt the thinnest of the group, and slightly shorter than Anne. Anne had some muscles in her arms, but they were not very obvious and were still developing, like Marcy's own current arms. Sasha, on the other hand, had a very healthy physique, tallest of the group, but she had slightly less muscle than Anne.

But now? Even though she was in a relatively relaxed state, with her elbows resting on her knees, it was impossible not to notice the strength her arms carried. Every possible existing arm muscle was almost perfectly defined, Marcy is sure that if it were biologically possible, it would be as large as those of the Lords of the Towers. And it wasn't just her arms, it was a bit difficult due to her posture, but Marcy was sure that Sasha's legs are also very well defined and...

“My eyes are up here, Mar-Mar.”

Marcy blushed, realizing she was caught, and quickly straightened up, half expecting a lecture. To her surprise, Sasha only had a small, amused smile on her face.

“I know, impressive, right? I guess that’s what a diet of mostly fruits, vegetables and insects, working day and night on a farm and fighting giant insects every week does to you.” Sasha picked up a loaf of bread and handed it to Marcy. “Here, maggot bread. I guarantee the taste is better than the name.”

The ravenette human hesitantly took it and took a small bite. A rich flavor flooded her palate and Marcy did her best to keep from swallowing it all at once, a hunger she didn't even know she was feeling forcing itself to be acknowledged. She didn't know how much more of this she could have, so she tried to eat as slowly as her hunger allowed without trying to be picky.

She definitely hummed in appreciation, however, much to her embarrassment. And surprising her again, Sasha said nothing and just smiled, holding out another loaf of bread which Marcy was quick to accept this time. Again, there was silence for a while, this time a little more pleasant than the last, with Marcy eating and Sasha simply watching her, sliding a glass of water over to her after having devoured the second loaf before giving her another food.

...Funny, being watched so intensely usually made Marcy nervous, but she felt... Calm. Happy even. An unknown but pleasant sensation settling in her being.

"... Thanks." Marcy muttered after eating her fourth loaf, picking up a fifth soon after and biting into it. Sasha's smile diminished and Marcy stopped her movements, did she do something wrong? Maybe she shouldn't take something that wasn't offered.

“...Marcy, when was the last time you ate?” The blonde asked suddenly. Marcy blinked, a little surprised, and Sasha blinked too, looking just as surprised as Marcy. “Ah, my bad, it's just... Anne usually has to almost fight you to get you to eat a single packet of biscuits, but now....”

Marcy looked at the bread she held, slowly chewing what was in her mouth, trying to search her fragmented memory for something useful. Now that Sasha has spoken, she vaguely remembers being so focused on something that gentle but firm tanned hands forced her to eat something before going back to what she was doing. But that wasn't what Sasha asked. She tried to remember the last time she ate in her fragmented memory.

She gripped her bread a little tighter when she realized that she doesn't even remember if she ate anything before leaving the North Tower, much less how long it had been since leaving until now.

“...I...I don’t remember.” She confessed, looking away. “Honestly, I don't even remember how I got here. I…” Marcy hesitated, trying to think of some convincing lie. She decided to go with a half truth. “I just ran away from the toads as soon as I got the chance. I know I was running into a forest, but what happened between it's in the forest and it's here..."

“...I see...” Sasha rubbed her hands together, looking at the floor. “...Whatever happened couldn't have been pleasant. We arrived this morning, Ivy and Felicia were the ones who found you after you... Came in here...” She clasped her hands, a mixture of pain and disappointment on her face. “I saw how you were today and they said... That the day before yesterday, when you arrived, you were worse. They took care of the worst of your wounds, the ones that were still open at least, but you still lost a lot of blood... It's a miracle you're conscious so soon.”

“I’ve had worse days.”

For some reason, her attempt to lighten the mood only made Sasha look at her with a bit of horror. She quickly looked down and frowned, clenching her hands into tight fists.

“... You shouldn't have had a day like this at all...” Sasha closed her eyes tightly. “...I'm sorry Marcy, if I had been able to catch you in the tower, you...”

This made Marcy perk up a little. The tower. So Sasha actually tried to save her that day. She already imagined it from the fragments of memory she had and from what Captain explained, but hearing from Sasha's mouth that she actually tried to help her only made the hopeful part of her become more intense.

It didn't make her attitudes any less confusing, but at least it's a start. She could know the truth now, but she needs to approach the matter carefully. Sasha seemed just as affected about that day as she was, and despite everything, some part of Marcy really didn't want to hurt her.

"... What's done is done. There is nothing we can do to change that.” Marcy whispered, which made Sasha look back at her. “I... I can't say I enjoyed hanging out with the toads, but it probably wasn't as bad as it could have been.” She wasn't lying, she enjoyed the time she spent with Percy and Braddock, and even though she was technically still a prisoner, being Grime's Strategist was better than before. Fragments from that time still haunt her nightmares from time to time. “We can only do our best to make the most of the situations we find ourselves in... And try our best to make sure this doesn't happen again, right?”

“... Yes... You're right, Mar-mar. I'm pretty sure I know what game you got that phrase from, but you're absolutely right.” Sasha smiled softly, and Marcy felt her cheeks heat up.“You and Anne never cease to amaze me. In a way, I'm even proud of you both, even though I'm still worried and frustrated about what happened to you.”

“Did you find Anne?” It would be safer to feign ignorance. Sasha is already under the impression that Marcy ran away from the toads the first chance she got, so pretending she didn't know about them working for the king would be better. Sasha nodded.

“Yeah, she is in Newtopia now, but she will come soon. She is sorting out the last details with the king before we leave to recharge the Music Box.”

Marcy blinked.

"... Music Box?"

"Yes?"

“... Why do you want to recharge a music box?”

“...Because if the box brought us here, then can it send us back?”

Marcy froze.

Anne... Was there what brought everyone into this world? And it was... A music box?

... She feels like she read something about it somewhere.

“Did you… Did you find what brought us here?” Marcy asked, a bit of desperation leaking into her voice. If they really succeeded, if they found the reason for being here and a way to reverse it, things would become much simpler for the revolution! She just needed to distract the girls as much as possible, and once Grime took over, she could get the three of them back home herself!

Sasha... She looked at her strangely.

“Anne had the box this whole time. Makes sense, doesn't it? Since she was holding it when we were teleported. She practically never takes it out of her line of sight, as it is important to her in more ways than one.”

“O-Oh! Yeah! It makes perfect sense! It's our key to getting home, isn't it? It has to be well looked after to ensure it will work again.”

Something... Changed in Sasha's eyes. Marcy felt the familiar shiver of fear, that cruel coldness from when she faced her in the Tower was back. The blonde human adjusted herself in her seat, straightening her posture and crossing her arms, and the ravenette human almost flinched at that. Somehow, the toads' act of intimidation and defiance was much more effective on Sasha than coming from the toads themselves.

Marcy couldn't understand, what was happening? Why did Sasha change her attitude so suddenly? Did she say something wrong?

“...Marcy?”

“Y-Yes?”

Damn it. She stuttered.

“I'm going to ask you a question. And I want you to answer truthfully.”

"Yes ma'am."

“...That night, at the Toad Tower, we both ended up fighting for a reason. Do you remember which one it was?”

Marcy broke into a cold sweat.

What did the Captain say about that day? That he dared Sasha to fight her or something? It was something like that, wasn't it?

She opened her mouth to say that and...

“So what does it say? A fight to see who will get out of this Tower free. You and your frogs or our prisoner.”
"Lets do this!"
“M-Marcy? What..."
Sasha tried to get closer to her, but she quickly pointed the tip of her spear at the blonde, who widened her eyes.

Marcy's eyes widened.

“ If I have to fight you for my freedom, then so be it!” She felt her throat hurt as she roared, an almost savage stance as she held her weapon. “I won’t let anything, not even you, Sasha, get in my way!”
For a moment, the blonde just watched her with wide eyes, almost scared. But then, something changed, some kind of understanding flashed in her eyes and her face became a cold mask. She pulled out the scythe that was strapped to her back, twirling it in her hands for a second, before also getting into a combat pose.

Oh... Oh no...

One blow. She managed to survive well in the fight, but a single accurate blow to the legs was all she needed to end the fight.
She slammed her back against the ground, and when she looked up, a curved blade of red exoskeleton was inches from her throat. In front of her, Sasha had a grim expression, several small cuts on her arms, tightly holding the scythe.
“Give up Marcy, you lost.”

“I... I snapped.” Marcy looked down, wincing slightly out of embarrassment and the pain that surged through her head. “I was scared, and when Capi... When He said that if I won, I would be free... I freaked out. I didn't think about anything other than my freedom is so close...” Marcy closed her eyes. "... I am really sorry..."

Why now, of all moments, did she remember the rest of that day? Was it because the way Sasha's posture changed was so familiar that her mind finally connected what was missing? Was it because a part of her wanted to refuse to admit that perhaps she was responsible for Sasha's abrupt change in personality in her memory? Was it some other reason?

It doesn't matter. At least now she knew the truth. She was so thirsty for freedom that she was willing to hurt someone who was precious to her, so Sasha reacted to protect herself and those who follow her.

She was very wrong. It wasn't Sasha who wasn't a good friend, it was Marcy.

Silence reigned in the room for a while, Marcy was still too embarrassed to look at the blonde. Sasha must definitely be judging her now, wondering why she decided to be friends with someone as selfish as Marcy and regretting it bitterly. She will definitely tell Anne, and they will both leave her, whether in this world or when they return, and all because Marcy...

“...It's worse than I thought.”

Sasha's tone... It wasn't what Marcy expected. She expected anger, maybe disgust or disgust, but all she could feel was worry.

Humbly, Marcy lifted her gaze a little. That look of worry and horror was back on her face, her hands gripping arms so tightly that her fingertips were white.

“...Worse than you thought?”

“Your memory... If you don't remember that the Music Box was a sick gift from us to Anne, or that we fought in the Tower to distract the captain so you could have a chance to take him down and we all ran away... So it's worse than I thought.”

Marcy's brain stopped.

“...I...What?”

A roar echoing from outside brutally cut off the conversation.

Sasha's eyes widened, suddenly tense at the noise. She soon gave a light growl, getting up and running to the closet, pulling something out from behind it. Marcy held her breath.

The scythe with curved red exoskeleton looked as intimidating as it did in her memories.

She quickly ran to the door, stopping for a second to look at Marcy, a look that indicated the interrogation wasn't over, and left. Marcy hesitated for a second, still half in shock at the direction of the conversation, half in shock at the noise that interrupted everything.

...That roar...

Marcy recognized that roar.

A horrible sound echoed in her cell. It sounded like a bird sound, with the creepy tone turned up to 11. The captain appeared and started yelling at the soldier guarding her before the wall behind her exploded.
A large, terrible yellow eye stared at her through the hole.

She ran to the small vent in the wall so she could see outside. Her breathing and heartbeat stopped. It was still between the forest and the village as it approached, but that primal voice of Marcy's had not the slightest doubt.

...It found me...

The animal she faced had found her. One of its eyes was closed with a burnt cut. The same type of wound her spear leaves.

She fought a heron.

There was a small part of Marcy that was kicking herself with all the accomplishments she had today. First she discovers that she has no idea how she got here and that she had been fighting something, then she remembers that Sasha attacked her because she had attacked first, and then Sasha says that she had attacked because she wanted to defeat the Captain, and now she discovers that the 'something' she fought in the forest was a heron. What was happening today? Couldn't she get some rest for once in this world?

The rest of her focused on the humanoid figure with a scythe, discussing something with an old orange frog that looked like it was begging her for something before it moved away and ran towards the heron, sending all the other frogs running away and hiding.

Her head started to hurt.

“Now beat it. This swing is ours!” An teenager girl said rudely, sitting on a swing with another girl after kicking them both off the ride. Marcy felt tears start to form in her eyes, her friend Anne not unlike her.
“Not so fast, evildoers!” A new voice echoed in the park. Marcy turned around and came across a blonde girl on top of a slide. The glow of the sun behind her gave her a heroic air that made Marcy's eyes shine. “Leave those kids alone!”

...Sasha...

“Why do you still hang around these losers, Sasha? We are much better than them, I’m sure you understand.”
Marcy flinched slightly, her focus on the game she was seriously considering buying wavering. She looked to the side, noticing how Anne also shrank slightly, letting some of the ice cream drip onto the floor.
Sasha, on the other hand, just gave a bored look towards the other girl and her little group. Then she linked her arms with Anne and Marcy and began pulling them towards the counter to buy what they wanted.
“Well, since you think you’re so superior, then you guys don’t have to worry about showing up at my house this weekend.” She commented, looking back with a small mischievous smile. Marcy noticed out of the corner of her eye how shocked the other group looked. “After all, this will be a party between friends, and I don't like it when someone insults my best friends. I'm sure you understand.”

...She's always tried to look after everyone she cares about, hasn't she?

The cell she was in did nothing to stop Sasha, who practically ripped them off the wall. Marcy barely had time to react before she was hugged tightly by the blonde, her warmth and love making Marcy's eyes water as she reciprocated.
“It’s okay now, Marcy. Once we get out of here, everything will be fine.” Sasha pulled back just enough for Marcy to see her face. She had a big smile with tears flowing with relief. “Come on, Mar-Mar… Let’s go home.”

Marcy's consciousness wavered, a spark of green light flickering across her eyelids.

...
...
...

I won't let anyone hurt my pack anymore.

LEAVE MY ALPHA ALONE!!!

***

When Marcy regained consciousness, she was more painful than ever, sitting on a battlefield.

Marcy gasped in pain, placing her hand on her stomach, quickly realizing that part of it on the side was torn, blood oozing from the opening. 

She tried to stand up, but she could barely move her arms, only being able to realize that she was leaning on the creek bridge. The human took a deep breath to try to focus on something beyond her dizziness and shaky vision, beyond the pain in her side, beyond the feeling of something pounding in her head.

What... Just happened?

She didn't know, and she was starting to get genuinely mad about her sudden loss of memories.

She grunted once more, trying desperately to move, get up, scream, anything other than stay still, but she couldn't. Her entire body hurt, she felt dizzy and weak and her brain felt like it would explode at any moment.

A part of her wondered if she was dying and it almost made her cry, after everything that had happened, everything she had been through, was she really going to die in such a pathetic way? Hurt by something she didn't even know how it happened? Being so close to her answers but unable to discover the truth? With no memories of her world and trapped in a hostile and cruel place?

Marcy couldn't help but sob as tears pooled in her closed eyes.

“Marcy!”

Ah... That voice...

Marcy recognizes that voice...

She forced her eyes open again, finding Sasha's worried expression in front of her.

"You idiot! What possessed you to try to fight that heron like that? Especially when you are already injured! Do you want to die?!" Sasha basically screamed, kneeling next to her. Her hands hovered in the air for a second before pressing against the wound on her stomach, making Marcy wince. Sasha turned to someone out of Marcy's vision. “Maddie! Come here now! Marcy needs help!”

"I'm on my way!" A voice sounded a little far away, slightly hoarse and feminine. “Take off her armor! The potion needs to be directly applied to the wound!”

Marcy held Sasha's hands with the rest of her strength to stop her from moving.

“N... No... All of them... See that... I'm weak... Pathetic... useless... Get rid of me... I can't... My armor...” Marcy wasn't sure if she was being coherent or not. Sasha quickly turned to her, her expression becoming more worried.

"What? Marcy, no one is going to...”

She stopped. She looked at the worn armor. Where most of Marcy's injuries were hidden. She turned her gaze to Marcy, a mix of feelings reflected in her gaze.

That cold mask returned to her face.

“Sprig, help Maddie get the potions she needs. Polly, pick up her dropped weapons. Hop Pop, I need the first aid kit. Place it in front of my bedroom door and knock. Don’t go in.” She ordered, placing something in Marcy's mouth, which she involuntarily swallowed. She quickly picked up Marcy and began running home with the old orange frog, somehow doing so without moving the human in her arms too much.

Marcy couldn't help but shudder.

“I’m sorry, did I hurt you?” The blonde asked, not slowing down, but relaxing her cold mask a little.

“No…” Marcy gasped, shaking slightly but still pressing her face into Sasha's shoulder. “... Contact... Too much... Not used to it...”

The mask returned.

The orange frog opened the door and ran upstairs, while Sasha practically kicked the door to her room, where Marcy was before everything happened. Marcy noticed that she was a little more alert than before, and could take in her surroundings better. Was it because of that thing Sasha made her swallow?

Sasha gently placed her on the bed, running upstairs and grabbing two buckets, one with water and one without with some rags, the orange frog handing over the first aid kit before closing the door. Sasha placed the buckets next to the bed and went to the door again when there was a knock, the pink frog and a blue one delivering some vials and a bag, as well as a tadpole with her dagger and spear in portable form. The blue frog spoke something to Sasha, who nodded before closing the door and approaching Marcy again, placing everything she needed on the table and turning to the ravenette human and placing her hand on the opening of the armor, a question in her eyes.

Marcy hesitated...

A strong and warm hug.

...And then she relaxed, trusting the other human.

Sasha carefully removed her armor, discarding it immediately and carefully removed the rest of Marcy's clothes, taking a cloth and wetting it immediately. She gently wiped the cloth over the other human's body, cleaning mainly her wounds, removing most of the blood and dirt before wringing out the cloth and repeating the process. It was incredibly meticulous and precise, and at the same time quick and practical, which meant Sasha was used to doing something like this.

Marcy... Liked that feeling. Sasha's touch was constant, but it wasn't as oppressive as most of the other touches. It had the perfect balance between comfort and the electricity she felt whenever someone touched her. Marcy closed her eyes without realizing it, enjoying the sensation and feeling a tiredness that she hadn't noticed before settle on her shoulders.

“Try not to sleep.” Sasha said suddenly, making Marcy open her eyes. “This looks really bad, so please don’t sleep.”

“...I'll try...” Marcy whispered, trying to keep her eyes open. She watched as the blonde finished cleaning it, taking another cloth and opening one of the bottles, slowly pouring the shiny liquid into it. She felt her eyes getting heavier and said the first thing she knew would keep her awake: “What happened?”

Sasha spread the liquid on the cloth, looking at the worried brunette for a second before sighing.

“A heron appeared here in Wartwood. She had a wound in one of her eyes and was furious as she attacked everything.” She began to explain as she once again cleaned the other human with the cloth, this time just the wounds. Marcy felt a tingling, numb sensation there every time she did this. “I started to fight her to try to scare her away when you suddenly appeared and attacked. You climbed it until you reached one of the heron's wings, hitting it with a spear and your dagger. When the heron threw you, you managed to throw your spear and knock its down, and I finished the fight with my scythe. As soon as the fight ended I went to where you were thrown and here we are.”

Marcy hummed in recognition, trying in vain to remember it, but she had nothing on her mind. No. Not exactly nothing. She has fragments of memories of feathers, yellow, roars, screams, pain and blood, but nothing really concrete. Almost exactly the same as what happened when she was trying to remember how she got to the village.

“I… I don’t remember that.”

"I imagined. I’m not even sure if you were completely conscious or not.” Marcy turned around in confusion, and Sasha threw the rag into the other bucket again, looking at Marcy with an expression very similar to the other human's. “You looked kind of... Wild. You seemed to recognize me, but you didn't talk to me and you were just roaring and growling at the heron and even the way you moved was kind of strange..."

“Strange how?”

“...Beastly. As if some animal had possessed you, or you were impersonating one at that moment.”

This made Marcy's eyes widen. She vaguely remembers Percy commenting that she acted much more wildly when they first met. Marcy always assumed he meant it to the effect that she tried to fight her way out of capture, but if that was what Percy meant, then...

“My guess... Your somewhat messed up memory and what happened just now are related. Some kind of... Trauma-split personality or something. I’m pretty sure I saw something like that in a movie you showed us.”

The blonde took the bag, mixing it with the rest of the potion, creating a strange black goo. The same goo that Marcy had in her wounds before. She began to spread it carefully on the most injured parts, paying extra attention to her side, which made Marcy shiver again, this time in pain, her wound began to burn like fire. Sasha's words, however, managed to keep her focused on the conversation.

“You... Did you know there was something wrong with me? With my memory?” Sasha nodded, leaving her side and focusing on a nasty cut she had on her arm. "... How?"

The question made Sasha stop, taking a few deep breaths. She then gently took Marcy's hand and guided it to a specific spot, just above the back of her neck and behind her right ear, hidden in her hair.

A slight bulge that shouldn't be there was felt.

“Felicia was the one who took care of you when you showed up here. And as she tended to your wounds, she noticed this. A scar you definitely didn’t have on Earth.” Sasha explained, letting go of Marcy's hand and letting her feel the place. It didn't hurt, not exactly, but it gave an uncomfortable feeling whenever she ran her finger through it. “She said that although it is well healed, it was relatively recent and was probably a strong blow. She explained to me that it wasn't uncommon for amphibians to suffer from temporary amnesia or worse when hit here, and she wasn't sure if the same could happen to humans, but so I wouldn't be surprised if something strange happened to you or your memory.”

“...Oh.” It was Marcy's only reaction. What else could she say? What other reaction could anyone have to learning that your lost memory and whatever happened in the forest and in the fight against the heron was the result of an injury you didn't even know you had in your head?

Sasha didn't say anything, just smeared some more of that goo on Marcy's cheek, possibly covering some unknown wound she received in the fight. Once that was done, she took some bandages and wrapped them around her belly, perfectly covering her side, before going back to examining Marcy's body, alternating her gaze between the spots with the most goo and the remaining bandages. Marcy wasn't sure if she had enough to cover everything, and perhaps it's that very conclusion that's making Sasha hesitate a little.

“...Will I recover my memory?”

The room suddenly felt heavier at the question. Marcy flinched slightly, she didn't want to ask the question out loud

“I…” Sasha looked away, staring at the wall. "... I hope so. We’ve known each other since we were little, we can help you with that.” She was quiet for a moment before looking out of the corner of Marcy's eye. “...How much do you remember?”

“I…” This time, it was Marcy’s turn to look away guiltily. She could lie and say that most of her memory before Amphibia was fine, it was just her memory between coming here and the Tower that was really bad. But... “... I remember you and Anne, not much, but I remember that you two are very important and special to me. Sometimes I remember moments from our childhood, but only some parts. I vaguely remember being captured by the toads and our duel in the Tower... My clearest memories are times after the destruction of the Tower, but even it has some blank spaces every now and then, how I got here and the fight against the heron being one of them.”

“... I'm sorry... For not saving you in the Tower. For you having to suffer all this.”

“... Thank you... It's not... It's not okay. I'm not okay, but... I appreciate you trying. I don’t blame you.”

This was a truth that shocked Marcy inside, but she realized she was serious. She didn't blame Sasha, not anymore, not when she now knew why her memories of her in the beginning were so contradictory. It wasn't Sasha's fault, and even if it was, Marcy and the Captain were also to blame for what happened.

... Which reminds her...

“Sasha?” The blonde turned around. “...What really happened in the Tower? Did you say something about us fighting... to defeat Captain Grime?”

“Well, it’s kind of confusing and long.” Sasha crossed her arms again, and Marcy unconsciously followed the movement of her arms as she gestured. “The short version is that shenanigans happened around here and that toad came up, said something about rebellion, grabbed some of the townspeople, including my grandfather, and went back to Torre. I obviously went after him with the rest of the people, found you there and tried to get you out as quickly as possible, but you refused. You said you knew where that toad had left everyone and we followed you, we found all the residents, except my grandfather. We went up, and the toad was there, and he said he would only free my grandfather if I won his challenge.”

“...And I defied you when he said I would gain my freedom if I won. But apparently, I only accepted to trick him.” Marcy was definitely focused on the story, although her eyes were still fixed on the muscles in Sasha's arms. She didn't notice that Sasha noticed the look, but decided not to comment.

"Basically. You said as we climbed that most of the toads weren't that bad to deal with, but their captain would be a threat until we proved our strength, but even after that we should be careful.” The blonde paused for a moment, looking thoughtful and hesitant. “... You said the only reason he didn't kill you is because you drove away some herons that attacked the castle. He admired your courage, so he decided he would spare you and just leave you in prison for the rest of your life instead of killing you right then and there.”

Marcy couldn't help but grimace. Yeah, that sounds like Capitain back in the day. He's better about the 'being nice' thing, probably because Marcy was no longer a simple prisoner but part of his squad, but he's still a bit of an jerk and acts like a bully from time to time.

“So when he made the deal, you quickly accepted it, but gave me a little sign. It's... Kind of hard to explain.” Sasha made a slight movement with her fingers, and quickly closed it tightly before relaxing. "That. It was something Anne created for when we want to pull a prank without anyone understanding. It basically means ‘Distract while I push’.”

Marcy blinked.

“...So, the whole battle... Was it an attempt to distract the Captain... For one of us to push him?”

"Yup." Sasha snorted as she looked at Marcy, she was probably making a very strange face. “I know, saying it like that, it sounds silly. But I'm serious. When we fought, you were only focused on that toad, and you only let yourself fall when he was practically on your side. You had a crossbow, and when it fell you were subtly aiming in his direction. If you had gotten it right, it would have just been a matter of me hitting him myself and forcing him to surrender and we would have won...” Sasha's smile faded and she stared at the ground. “...But then, the base of the Tower exploded and everything started to fall and...”

“...You tried to catch me, but you couldn't. Per-Some toads were the ones who caught me and took me with them.” Marcy finished the story, and Sasha nodded.

Again, the room was silent. Sasha began placing the bandages on the places she believed needed the most protection while Marcy continued to let her thoughts flow. This... It was quite informative. This whole time, apparently, Sasha never betrayed Marcy and neither did Marcy betray Sasha, they were working together to deceive the Captain and escape from that place together.

...What exactly did it mean for her, then, to be willing to do the same thing with the same people, but in the opposite way?

“... Done.” The blonde walked away a little, handing the last bottle of potion to Marcy. “This will help you heal faster, but don't overdo it. Just one sip a day. And don’t even think about starting a fight again, or I’ll make sure it ends.”

Marcy nodded, looking at the potion for a second before taking a sip. It was a little bitter, but not bad. Its taste was slightly familiar, and for some reason it made her think of cats and moths.

Marcy placed the potion on the table and looked at her weapons, her dagger and spear were dirtier than before, but the wrist crossbow, her cape and her glasses were still in the same position as before, she must not have picked up any of them during her blackout. Her gaze fell on her worn armor, the tear on the side was very ugly and unlike the cape, it was irretrievable.

"... Is everything OK?"

“... I...” Marcy hugged herself, in a way that wouldn't bother any wounds. “...I don't feel very good without my armor...”

“Yeah, you said something about being weak and disposable without it.” The coldness had returned to Sasha's gaze. "What do you mean by that? I never hear of it here in Wartwood.”

“... For toads, having battle wounds is something to be proud of... Proof of their resilience and bravery... But the same cannot be said for a prisoner or a scar without a story.” She looked away. “Most of my injuries are from the time I spent in the Tower, and the others I don't know how they happened. And for the toads, this would be proof that I am weak, and weak beings are considered useless and therefore eliminated by the toads. So... I usually hide as much of my body as possible so that no one sees it.” She looked again at her destroyed armor. “And also... I feel good about it. I've hurt myself so many times because I had nothing to protect me, so wearing something that I know will protect me makes me feel... comfortable. Safe.”

“...Marcy, look at me.”

Marcy quickly complied, finding herself with Sasha's very close face. Marcy felt her cheeks heat up a little, getting even hotter when Sasha gently placed her hands on her cheeks.

“... I can't fix my past mistakes or yours. I can't go back in time to stop what happened in the Tower, and I can't ignore the results of it. I can't make your memory return suddenly and I can't magically cure all your pain. But I can guarantee that nothing like this will happen again.” Sasha placed her forehead against Marcy's, and she was sure she saw a faint pink glow in the other's eyes. “... I'm going to do everything I can so that nothing hurts you again. And if they hurt you, I will make them pay and regret ever touching you. I promise."

Marcy... She couldn't move. Her heart was racing, her mind felt like it was in a limbo between extremely frantic and completely frozen, and her breathing was erratic. Sasha had a soft and gentle expression, her touch felt almost heavenly on her face and her gaze was so warm and sweet that Marcy felt like she could look at them her whole life.

Sasha...

... Was Sasha always this beautiful?

Sooner than Marcy wanted, Sasha pulled away, moving her hands to the other human's shoulders.

“We will solve your memory problem, the three of us together. And I have something of yours that might help with that a little, something you gave me before our fight. But for now…” Gently, she pushed Marcy until she was completely lying down. “...After everything that happened, you need to get some rest. Try to sleep and tomorrow, after breakfast, we’ll continue this conversation, ok?”

Sasha walked away and grabbed a patched blanket from the closet, placing it over Marcy. She closed the bag and left it on the table, but took the buckets and bottles and started to leave the room, also taking the destroyed armor. Marcy was still too stunned to react, but she still tried.

“W-Where did you...”

“Don’t worry, I just need to make sure everyone is okay and return everything to where it belongs. When I get back, I’ll bring you more of that bread you liked.” Sasha opened the door and gave Marcy a wink. “See you soon, girlfriend!”

And then she left the room, leaving Marcy alone with her thoughts.

Thoughts that, where it was usually a fight with herself about what she was doing and the world around her, were now filled with the image of the blonde. Her hair, her voice, her perfume, her eyes, her lips.

...She wondered what it would feel like to touch her lips to Sasha's.

Marcy grabbed the nearest pillow and let out a muffled scream into it.

Chapter Text

The moment Marcy woke up, she was sure of one thing: It had worked.

Her hopeful madness had worked.

Marcy couldn't help but let out a disbelieving laugh. The playground she and her friends had been on was gone. Instead, she was in a lush forest, with bright green leaves and huge mushrooms scattered around. She was sure she saw a large dragonfly flying over the trees, big enough for her to be carried by the insect.

She had really done it. She was in another world with her friends!

“Anne! Sasha! Are you guys seeing this? This is incredible!”

Silence was her answer.

Marcy turned around, expecting to see her friends in shock or still unconscious from the trip. Instead, she only saw more forest around her. She was alone.

She was in another world without her friends.

“A-Anne? Sasha?” Marcy stood up carefully, shaking slightly as she looked around. Suddenly, the large, lush forest suddenly seemed oppressive and frightening. The quiet sounds of the forest now seemed ominous, the promise of a terrifying and cruel creature hiding somewhere looming over her shoulders.

Marcy swallowed hard, grabbing her journal and writing quickly as she leaned against a tree. She frantically began to write down everything around her, trying her best to absorb her surroundings before closing her journal and putting it away again.

Okay, she was alone. In an unfamiliar place. With unfamiliar creatures.

Marcy took a deep breath, trying to calm herself as she began to walk. This... This wasn't what she wanted, but she could make it work. If she was here, there was a good chance Anne and Sasha were here too. She just needed to find them! Who knows? Maybe this would be a blessing in disguise and when they met again, Marcy would be a completely different person! She would have grown, level up! She wouldn't be the clumsy, klutzy Marcy she used to be!

As she thought this, she tripped over a root.

Marcy screamed, trying to keep her balance and failing, making her fall off the cliff where she was. She rolled and ended up landing on top of something hard, which let out some kind of grunt.

The human staggered to her feet, only to be thrown abruptly to the side, as if she were on top of a raging bull. Marcy looked at what had knocked her down, only to go pale when she saw a large Japanese rhinoceros beetle in front of her. Its color was a little different from what she was used to, with its exoskeleton being a metallic green tone instead of brown or black.

The giant beetle let out a roar, which seemed to come straight from Jurassic Park, before lowering its horn, aiming at her and advancing. Marcy screeched, quickly dodging the attack as best she could and taking advantage of the beetle's horn getting stuck in the tree to escape. She ran for her life, occasionally looking back to see if that furious beetle had lost her.

It was because of this that she didn't notice the rock that was in her path, and she ended up tripping and falling directly into a small opening in the stone wall that was in front of her. She rolled a few times inside the hole before hitting her back and head hard against the wall.

The last thing she saw was a green light shining through her eyelids, consuming her senses.

***

When Marcy regained consciousness, she was in a cell.

She blinked, confused. Her entire body ached, her throat felt like it had been scratched from the inside, and for some reason, some part of her missed Domino and moths so much. Slowly, Marcy sat up, her head feeling like it was going to explode into a thousand pieces.

The sound of metal caught her attention. She turned around, finding a group of different and colorful types of armored bipedal toads, with swords and spears in their hands. They all had nervous expressions on their faces, standing outside the cell she was in.

“Um... Hello?” She said, trying to be friendly. She had no idea what was going on, but these bipedal toads had sharp weapons pointed at her, so she had better look as harmless as possible. The toads jumped in surprise.

“What the... You talk?” One of the toads asked, which made Marcy look surprised. His voice was a bit rough, but it definitely sounded like human language. She really didn't expect them to understand what she was saying, much less speak the same language as her. As much as she wanted to ask a lot of questions and come up with theories about it, she simply gave a small, uncomfortable laugh.

“Yes, you can be sure I can!” She replied, giving a small thumbs up as she spoke. The toads looked at each other again, still looking shocked, before they began whispering to each other. With their deep and naturally louder voices, it was easy for Marcy to hear.

“Is it just me or does the creature seem... More docile and intelligent?”

“It was probably hungry. I know I get wild when I’m hungry.”

“It tried to bite my arm off when I put food in it as soon as you released it in the cell!”

“It could have been really hungry...”

“Forget it. The creature can talk, so the captain can interrogate it at will.”

“Captain? Are you, like, a hunting party or something?” Marcy asked, perking up a bit at the possibility that she was with some kind of hunters of strange and dangerous creatures.

Her excitement diminished a bit when she realized that she fit in as a strange and potentially dangerous creature to them.

The toads jumped again, and one of them ran out of the room they were in. She tried to talk to the ones that remained, but all they did was get more tense and point their weapons at her. Marcy gave up soon after, deciding to curl up in a nearby corner and hug her knees.

That's when she realized that her clothes were different. She had been wearing her comfortable hoodie over her uniform when she fell into this world, but now, she was wearing some kind of primitive armor made of leather and exoskeleton plates over her uniform. The various gray strips in various parts of the armor to hold everything together made it very clear what had happened to her hoodie.

That's bizarre. She doesn't remember doing that.

What... What had happened when she fainted while fleeing against that beetle?

As she asked herself this question, the toad that had left returned, along with another. The new toad had a large scar across one of his eyes, running from where his eyebrows should have been to the bottom of his lips. His other eye seemed to glow green, the cape he wore somehow making him more intimidating than the other toads.

Marcy swallowed hard. If that didn’t give off the aura of ‘Big Bad Boss’, she had no idea what would.

“So, creature...” The scarred toad began, his voice sounding deeper and more serious than the others. “...Heard from my soldiers that you can talk, huh?”

“Um...” For a moment, Marcy was tempted not to say anything, but she knew it would be futile, so she timidly answered. “Yes... I can.”

“Wonderful.” The toad smiled, and Marcy couldn’t help the shiver that ran through her body. “Then we can begin the interrogation.”

***

It took about two weeks before the heron attacks. It was after that that everything went downhill.

Before that, things were relatively calm for Marcy. Sure, she was a prisoner that Captain Grime interrogated every day, sometimes more than once, wanting to know who she was and who sent her. He never accepted the answer that she was lost and wanted to go home.

It wasn't even a lie, at this point, Marcy was willing to go back to Earth if it meant reuniting with her friends. People she did her best to never even mention to Captain Grime.

But other than the continuous interrogation and the very bad food, which she ate anyway, things were calm for her. The unfamiliar and primitive armor she wore still looked strange on her, but some primitive voice inside her told her that it would be better to keep wearing it, if the opportunity to escape arose, she would be relatively protected. Fortunately, despite her hoodie being completely destroyed, she found her diary and pen in the only remaining pocket of her skirt, and took the opportunity to write down everything she could when her watch was lessened, usually when the guard was asleep or Percy showed up. He was an adorable toad who liked to see the drawings Marcy made, so he never told Captain Grime anything about the diary.

It was hard for Marcy not to babble about her friends to Percy, but she really couldn't risk it. As far as she knew, Captain Grime only knew about her existence and no one else's. She didn't know if her friends were in a dangerous situation like her or not, so she never even made him think that she wasn't alone.

She still liked talking to Percy, though, and he liked talking. Mostly about his hobbies and how much he wanted to make music and join a band or be a one-toad band instead of joining the army. Marcy told him that she had played drums before and was willing to help him with that if he wanted.

That day, Percy was demonstrating his chaotic talent with some drums when a horrible sound echoed through his cell. It sounded like a bird sound, with the creepy tone turned up to 11. Captain Grime appeared seconds later, along with another cool soldier named Braddock, and grabbed Percy by the collar.

"What do you think you're doing, soldier? Do you want us all to be killed!?” He growled, pushing Percy against the wall.

“What? What’s going on?” Marcy asked, a little worried by the way Captain Grime was talking. He turned to her with a growl, but before he could say anything, the scream from before returned, closer than the last.

The wall behind her exploded, startling everyone in the room. A huge beak was responsible for it. The beak retreated, debris from the holes almost everywhere in the cell, and Marcy came across a large, terrifying yellow eye staring at her through the hole, blue feathers around its eyes. A heron.

The heron roared again, seeming to move away a little, and Marcy realized that she was alone in the cell. Captain Grime must have taken Percy and Braddock to face the bird. Marcy turned to the handcuff that was attached to her foot, realizing that the debris had ended up destroying part of the chain. She looked at the broken chain and the bars of the cell. If she squeezed a little, she could probably get out.

Marcy looked at the entrance, trying to see or listen to know if there was anyone there. Aside from the screams of chaos outside, it seemed relatively clear, so she stood up, carefully getting past the bars and squirming as best she could, trying to find a back exit. In a tower like this, there must be something like that, right?

Her other two escape routes included sneaking through the chaos and trying to get out, or jumping out a window on the other side of the mess, and Marcy didn't much like either of them.

Panic was running rampant in the ranks, it was obvious that the army was not prepared for an attack. There were toads clutching their weapons and toads crying, terrified to fight. A part of Marcy felt a little guilty about everything that was happening to them, she was almost certain that some of them would not be able to come back. People were usually not at their best when they thought they were about to die, she had some experience of that from her games. On the other hand, they were so preoccupied with the invasion of the giant bird in front of them that they probably wouldn't notice the disappearance of the strange, skinny creature until it was too late. With the way her cell was, Marcy almost hoped they would think she had been eaten.

Marcy ran down the stairs, taking three steps at a time. She had just cleared the second floor and the courtyard was in view through the tower's embrasures. She could hear the roars of the heron and Captain Grime, as well as some panicked cries and screams from the soldiers, but she also saw long, hairy legs, probably from spiders. Even if there was no back exit, if she used a spider, she could climb out of there. She could do this. She could actually free herself.

And then a familiar desperate scream along with the sound of drums echoed in Marcy's ears, and it made her stop.

Percy.

Marcy looked back, to where the chaos and destruction existed, to where she knew the heron was attacking. To where Percy was. She looked again at the wagons, so close to where she was, just a few more meters and she could run away, have her freedom, try to find her friends and return home.

She took a step forward.

Percy screamed in panic once more.

She turned around and headed back to the tower.

There was a small, cold, pragmatic voice that had begun to gain voice in the last few weeks, whispering in her ear that what she was doing was idiotic. That she should be taking advantage of the chaos to run away and escape this nightmare, find the one she wanted so much and return home. And her rationality kind of agreed with that.

But both the rest of her and the primal voice in her head remembered Sasha's bravery and protective nature, Anne's kindness and determination, a strange creature that looked like Domino who had every reason to run away from her and yet had accompanied her and helped her until he was no longer able to for her own safety. What Percy had done while she was in the cell might not have been the same, but it didn't change the fact that he had been the nicest and sweetest toad she had ever met here, even offering her some fruit and keeping secrets for her. She couldn't let him be killed in such a cruel way when she knew she could do something to help.

This left Marcy with a single question: What did she know about herons that could be useful in this situation?

On Earth, they had few natural predators, like eagles or foxes that would devour their eggs. But considering how ridiculously large they were, Marcy was pretty sure that in Amphibia they were at the top of the food chain, or at least rarely hunted on purpose, like whales. That wasn’t very useful, honestly, so what else did she know about them?

Herons usually hunted alone, but they could sometimes come in pairs. They caught fish and small amphibians, often sitting motionless at the edge of shallow water before striking with the speed and accuracy of a sharpshooter. Sometimes they scavenged small mammals. They were carnivores, and…

Herons were one of the birds with a good sense of smell.

She had an idea.

Without hesitation, she frantically searched for the kitchen doors, which she luckily managed to find very close to the exit. Not wanting to question her luck, she quickly began to grab everything and every ingredient that had a strong odor or made her eyes tear up, mixing it all in a large pot and putting it in bags. She put a cloth over her face to protect from the worst of the smells, and considered that she had enough quantity and quality for what she wanted for the little time she had.

She grabbed all of her homemade 'stink bombs' and ran to where the chaos was happening. She could almost swear she saw Captain Grime in the middle of her desperate run, but she was essentially into her zone, only focused on loading her bombs and Percy's screams.

The gate was already open, so she had no trouble finding the heron, or herons in this case, since there were two of them. One of them was trying to peck some soldiers while the other had Percy in its beak, luckily the beak was holding the drum on its back and not him, who was holding on to the wall with his life.

“HEY, BIG BIRD!!! EAT THIS!!!” She screamed, throwing the homemade bomb directly at the beak of the heron holding Percy. The scent quickly invaded the heron’s nose and quickly released Percy, looking dazed and nauseous, drawing the attention of the other heron, who roared at her.

Don’t hesitate. If I hesitate, it’s death.

The gentle primal voice in her head strengthened her resolve. As the other heron attacked, Marcy managed to narrowly dodge it and quickly threw two more bombs at the heron’s beak, causing it to react the same way as the first, both of them looking more hesitant to attack. But this wasn’t over yet.

“BRADDOCK, SCREAM!! AS LOUD AS YOU CAN!!!” Marcy screamed, soon doing just that, still throwing the bombs as close to the herons’ beaks as possible. Braddock began to roar, swinging two swords at the same time as she advanced. Fortunately, the toads seemed to understand what they were doing, because they also began to roar and bang their weapons together, making a lot of noise.

Herons were predators, and like all predators, they hunt creatures they know they can hunt. If a prey doesn't run away or appears weak, and decides to roar and even charge at the predator, chances are the predator will decide it's not worth the effort and retreat. And that's exactly what the herons did.

Intimidated by both the horrible stench and the noise their prey were making, the herons decided to spread their wings and flee, flying as fast as they could away from there. Marcy was breathing heavily, her legs and arms shaking from the effort she had made, but she still turned to Percy, who had been by her side when everyone started roaring.

"Are... Are you okay?" She gasped shakily, trying to take a step forward, but almost collapsed. Luckily, both Percy and Braddock caught her before she fell to the ground, the adrenaline had worn off, so her legs could no longer support her without weight after all the effort she had made.

"Am I okay? You saved my life! Thank you Marcy!” He replied with a smile, hugging her with one arm.

“Everyone’s life, actually! It was amazing!” Braddock commented, also smiling. Marcy sighed in relief.

“That’s...”

“Creature!”

Marcy shivered, turning to Captain Grime who was walking towards her, a grimace on his face. He looked to where the herons had fled before and looked back at the human, some of the soldiers also approaching while whispering.

“So... Do you still think she’s hungry?”

“Maybe? It’s past lunchtime.”

“That creature is quite scary when it wants to be...”

“... So my soldiers weren’t just being useless idiots when they captured you like they usually are. You ARE a very fierce and intelligent creature.” Captain Grime commented, turning to her. He took two steps forward and stopped, both Braddock and Percy seeming to flinch as he looked at Marcy. “Luckily, you seem weakened enough that you’re not as dangerous as you could be. That could be useful.”

He pulled his sword from its sheath and pointed it at her. Marcy whimpered, feeling the two toads supporting her tense at their captain's movement.

“You have two options, creature. Considering the fact that you managed to drive off two herons even though you were weak, I’m sure you’ll be a big problem if you end up recovering completely.” Captain Grime pointed his blade at the top of the tower. “So, I could get rid of you here and now.” Then, he pointed his sword at the ground and got into a more relaxed pose. “Or you can work for me. Our control over Frog Valley is slowly waning, and your knowledge of fighting and weapons could be very useful, especially in strengthening our tower. Prove yourself invaluable and your safety will be assured. Once you regain your strength, I’m even willing to let you have a duel in exchange for your freedom, after all, I’m sure you’ll try to escape no matter what once you recover.”

Marcy hesitated, glancing at Captain Grime before looking around. Even if she wasn't tired, she doubted she would be able to run from all those toads; she wasn't as athletic as Anne and Sasha, although she had felt a bit stronger physically in the past few days. And even if she could, she wouldn't survive the wild alone...

I can survive. I just need to be careful, hunt, and find shelter for the night.

... She wasn't entirely sure if she would be able to survive in the wild with just that primitive voice. And then there was the problem of them being able to track her while she was running. There was no winning side for her. Marcy hung her head in defeat.

"... What do you want me to do?"

***

For the first time in her life, Marcy didn't like the fact that she was creative and intelligent.

She was sent to a new room, a little bigger than the one she was currently in. There were a few books in there, but mostly there were several metal plates and large pieces of wood, like a kind of forge without a furnace. Which was good for Marcy, since she was sure she would have burned herself using one. She had the same food rations as before and the right to go out into the yard for a few minutes once a day, unless it was to test a new weapon she had made, where she could stay as long as she wanted.

And that was the problem.

Captain Grime sort of forced her to create weapons and equipment for his soldiers at least once a week. If she didn't, she was sent to the Pain Room. Neither he nor his soldiers would hurt her, but she was placed in solitary confinement, which was essentially a metal locker, and forced to stay there for a while, sometimes days without food or water before being released to her normal cell. She tried to resist, but after the third time she was sent there and returned, she frantically began creating anything that could be useful just to avoid being confined again.

The fact that that cold, pragmatic voice was gaining more strength, to the point that its whispers were more understandable also worried her. The primitive voice didn't speak much, she only felt the echo of its voice when she was in danger, but never as loud as during the heron attack. But the other voice, not only were its whispers becoming louder, it was also more talkative than the original voice, always whispering that she should have run away when the chance arose while she was locked in solitary confinement.

Marcy wondered if she was slowly going mad or losing her sanity or if something else was happening to her, perhaps a side effect of the dimensional travel. She certainly hadn't had these voices before. She decided not to write that particular part down in her journal until she had more answers.

Against her will, she began to sketch specific cannons to be installed in the tower. It was the most massive ‘medieval’ weapon with the least destructive potential that she could imagine being made in that place, since large crossbows could be heavy, but still moved by their carts. Marcy needed to show something destructive that could be used against large birds and insects that tried to invade the place, but that would be difficult to move with the resources they have so that they wouldn’t start threatening the cities. Apparently, there were already cannons and large crossbows in this world, but apparently only in the center of the kingdom, since the only defense this tower had was its soldiers and its location.

It was a bit complicated to make equipment without being sure if they had everything they needed, Marcy had no idea if they had gunpowder or not, but Braddock demonstrating an explosive mushroom solved the problem. When Captain Grime saw the sketch she was making and heard the plan of how to do it, he quickly ordered some soldiers to create it and said that Marcy would supervise the creation. The fact that he also said she wouldn't be going to the Pain Room that week almost made Marcy cry and collapse in relief.

She had a few days off while the soldiers tried to replicate what were essentially turret cannons for the small towers around them. Still, Marcy was already mentally preparing herself for what else she could do to avoid being in solitary confinement again. She couldn't think of any weapon that didn't have the potential to be incredibly horrible or dangerous for the toads to use, so maybe something defensive? They had those battlements in the buildings, but maybe some really long iron spears would be useful in case another heron attack happened? Wouldn't that need a large crossbow to be used?

As she thought in the courtyard, she saw one of the toads approaching Captain Grime with his companions. Marcy barely paid attention until she noticed how injured they all looked, which made the human wonder what exactly happened on their trip. The red toad that seemed to be the leader showed something to Captain Grime and Marcy raised her head a little to see exactly what the toad was carrying. Her eyes widened.

It was a very familiar black shoe.

Sasha's shoe.

"This is from a creature that appeared in a town called Wartwood. The rumors are true, the frogs are creating a rebellion and have tamed a powerful creature to be their protector." The leader toad began to report, a grimace of pain on his face. Marcy noticed that he was unable to move one of his arms and the rest of the report explained why. "When we tried to collect the taxes that the people there owed, the creature attacked us with a scythe. We fought back, but the creature was very fast and strong, as well as relentless and cruel, it even managed to break my arm even after being wounded in the stomach. We were forced to retreat to call for reinforcements to deal with this situation.”

“A powerful and strong creature, isn’t it?” Captain Grime muttered, staring at the shoe for a few seconds before pointing at Marcy, who had looked away in time to avoid looking suspicious. “Did it look like her?”

The three toads turned and nearly jumped when they saw Marcy.

“What the…” The red toad shook his head, seeming to recover. “Yes, it looks like that, but it was blonde and taller. And stronger.”

“Hmm… It seems there are still more of these creatures out there…” Captain Grime crossed his arms, thoughtful. “We had a hard time capturing the creature, and we only managed to do so because it was weak, and even then, it was still able to repel two herons. Having one of these in the frogs’ possession could be very dangerous, especially if this new creature is healthy.” She turned to the toads who were building the cannon. “Change of plans! Stop everything you’re doing and get ready to travel! We need to capture this rebellion and its creature before they gain strength!”

The soldiers saluted before running, and Marcy felt her blood run cold.

Sasha. They're going after Sasha. Marcy knows she's strong and smart, but she won't be able to defeat an entire army on her own.

They're going to capture Sasha and make her their slave like they're doing to her.

Marcy gritted her teeth and looked around. If she did anything against the toads, she could suffer serious consequences, she knew that. On the other hand, if she did nothing, Sasha would definitely be taken away and forced to work like her. And unlike Marcy, Sasha doesn't back down from a fight, so she might either be able to convince everyone to free her or make Captain Grime decide to kill her for being a threat.

... Cannon...

Marcy kept her head down, letting Captain Grime walk past her. She calmly walked towards the ramp where the cannon was being built, resting on one of the ramp's supports, cutting some ropes. She waited for the army Captain Grime wanted to gather to gather in the courtyard, with their spiders ready to load the carts, neither of the soldiers were the two toads she cared about. It was only then that she spoke:

“I’m sorry...”

Her whisper made a few soldiers turn to her, including Captain Grime, and she looked up.

“...But I won’t let you touch her!”

And then, she cut the last rope of the support using a familiar green blade she found in her cell, destabilizing the ramp and sending the cannon rolling towards the soldiers as she walked away.

Chaos echoed in the tower, as several soldiers in the courtyard ended up being hit by the avalanche of heavy or sharp metal pieces, severely injuring many of them. Marcy hoped that none of them had actually been killed in this.

... Behind...

Marcy shivered and threw herself to the side, dodging a blow from the red toad from before. She grabbed a nearby iron bar and hit his injured arm, making him scream in pain and flinch, while she saw two other toads also advancing.

They're going to jump. I can't jump higher than them.

The human ducked at the same time the two toads jumped, making them hit some soldiers who were going to attack her from behind. Another soldier tried to attack her with his sword, but she rolled to the side and hit his legs, knocking him down.

She heard a roar, and turned to see Captain Grime descending from the sky to hit her, probably he made a big jump or something. Marcy dodged it by a hair, again swinging her iron bar to fight him, but this time it was no use, as he easily blocked and disarmed her, landing a strong punch in her stomach afterwards.

Marcy fell to the ground, gasping for breath, she could almost hear the voices talking to her, but the pain that came when Captain Grime kicked her stomach took all her attention away. She cried out in pain, tears beginning to pool in the corners of her eyes. She was roughly grabbed by the neck, met with a furious growl from Captain Grime.

“So, you really had the nerve to try to face us in this state?” He growled, his grip tightening. “We could have solved this the easiest way if you just submitted to me, but you had to get in the way, didn’t you?!”

Marcy gasped, the lack of air starting to make the edges of her vision darken, she was losing consciousness. And yet, she couldn’t help but give a small smile, with the mess and chaos she’d made, many of the soldiers were probably injured or would have to fix the tower, which would give Sasha more time to escape. And if they were too stubborn to go anyway, Marcy was sure she’d thinned their forces enough for Sasha and the townspeople to have a chance at winning. Either way…

“Game… Over…”

When she closed her eyelids, she saw a faint, familiar green light, but ignored it in favor of darkness.

Marcy passed out.

***

When Marcy woke up again, she was back in solitary confinement.

She half imagined that she would end up in this place again if Captain Grime didn't decide to kill her right then, but that didn't mean she was happy in that place. It was small, cold, with the only light being a small barred window that also kept her from suffocating to death.

As she always did, she knocked on the door a few times, hoping he would let go or something. As always, the door barely creaked, the only noise being his knocking. She usually screamed too, but she didn't have the energy to do that at that moment, and it was useless anyway, the only thing it did was make her throat drier and more sore.

With nothing else to do but wait, she took out her journal to write down everything that happened at that moment and her thoughts. It was still a miracle to her that none of the toads besides Percy had noticed that she had it in her pocket.

She really hoped that neither he nor Braddock had been hit by the avalanche of scrap.

She also hoped that Sasha and Anne were okay. She had done her best to give Sasha a chance to fight on equal terms, but she couldn't be sure if it would work or not.

Unconsciously, tears began to stream down her face as she thought about her friends. She had been such an idiot. Why had she thought that this stupid plan of sending them all to another world was a good idea? Was she really so desperate and needy that she actually thought that this was a good solution? Now she was here, paying for her stupid mistakes, unable to know if her friends had also ended up being victims of the cruelty or were in better conditions, she hoped it was the latter.

She didn't know how long she had spent in that place, it was impossible to tell from the small crack. She heard the sound of heavy footsteps, so she believed it was the toads, but she doubted they would let her go now. Sure enough, the sound grew farther and farther away until silence echoed again, and Marcy closed her eyes again. She was tired. Tired of making things up. Tired of lying. Tired of fighting. The teachers at her school had told her she could do whatever she wanted, but all she wanted was to do nothing.

How ironic, someone so many had so much faith could change the world would be killed and forgotten like just another prisoner in another world.

Marcy wasn’t sure if she had fallen asleep or not, but her consciousness returned when she heard footsteps again. These were different, though. They were lighter and faster, somewhat disorganized and without a specific rhythm like the heavy march of toads. She could also hear muffled sounds of several voices, different from what she was used to.

They were getting closer, and a voice echoed in the room.

“Hey, guys! Are you here?”

Marcy’s heart jumped.

It couldn’t be…

… Could it?

Slowly, she raised her head toward the opening of her cell, peering through it as she heard some muffled conversation behind the wooden gate. That familiar voice still echoed outside.

Marcy licked her cracked lips.

“… Sasha?”

The voices outside went silent.

And then…

“… Marcy?”

Marcy felt her eyes tear up.

“Sasha, is that really you?”

For a moment, there was silence.

And then the wooden door was brutally broken down.

Marcy felt her breath hitch as a tall, strong figure entered the room. The same school outfit she had, but pink instead of green, a coat tied around her waist. The brown boots and red exoskeleton scythe were new, but that face framed by blonde hair tied in a ponytail were unmistakable.

Sasha’s eyes widened as she met Marcy’s gaze, before she growled. Without any hesitation, she ran towards the cell she was in and hit the sides, probably the hinges of the door, dropped her weapon and practically ripped the door off the place. Marcy barely had time to react before she was hugged tightly by the blonde, and Marcy’s eyes let the tears flow as she hugged back.

Sasha's arms were holding her so tightly, hugging her as if she didn't want them to be separated again, that it was impossible for Marcy to run away even if she wanted to, which she didn't. Marcy would give anything for them to stay like this forever, a comfort she had been unable to have since she arrived in this world. She hadn't realized she was crying until she felt Sasha gently stroking her back, something Sasha always did to her and Anne whenever they were upset about something.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." Marcy stammered almost incoherently. She didn't know exactly what she was apologizing for, for bringing them into this world, for being unable to protect her from the toads, for being a terrible friend. She wasn't sure, she was just desperately apologizing.

"It's okay now, Marcy. None of this is your fault. When we get out of here, everything will be okay." Sasha whispered in her ear, hugging her a little tighter. She pulled away enough for Marcy to see her face. She had a big smile on her face, tears of relief streaming down her face. "Come on, Mar-Mar... Let's go home together."

Marcy sniffed and waved furiously, and Sasha's smile faded a bit, looking a little worried. She looked down at Marcy, looking increasingly concerned at how pale and thin Marcy looked.

“You don’t look well at all, Marcy.” Sasha looked away for a moment, before turning to the gate, which Marcy now noticed had several frogs of various sizes and colors looking at them. “Can any of you take Marcy to Wartwood? I think she’s going to need some medical attention.”

“What…?” Marcy grabbed Sasha’s hand, almost desperate. “But… But you said we’d both be back, didn’t you?” The other human turned to her, still worried.

“I’ll be back soon, but first I need to find the rest of the town that’s here.” The answer made Marcy blink in confusion, and Sasha gently placed her hand on Marcy’s shoulder. “Some toads from that tower showed up out of nowhere in town and kidnapped several people there, including a frog named Hop Pop. He’s a farmer frog who let me live in his house, and for some reason, the toads are confident that he’s the leader of some rebellion or something.”

“And now we’re here to save him and everyone else who was captured!” A pink frog cried, hopping around excitedly before approaching the two and extending his hand. “Hello! I’m Sprig Plantar, I'm Sasha’s bestie too! I guess that makes us ‘bestie-in-law’!”

“Does it?” Sasha asked almost coldly, but the affectionate way she smiled showed it was more of a joke than a cruel comment. The fact that Sprig chuckled and the blonde human’s smile widened a bit as she rolled her eyes only reinforced this. It made a small smile appear on Marcy’s face; it seemed Sasha really was in a better situation than she was.

“... If you’re looking for prisoners, this is the wrong place to be.” Marcy said, getting everyone’s attention. She swallowed hard, but began to explain. “This is the Pain Room, where soldiers and prisoners who have been here for a while are taken to be tortured in some way to make them submit to the tower captain. They don’t bring new people in because they might become resistant or completely break before the information is delivered.”

“A... Torture room?” Sasha looked back at Marcy, a spark of anger shining in her eyes. “Were they torturing you?” Marcy nodded shyly, Sasha looked away and took a deep breath, turning to a blue frog with one eye closed. “Wally, remember what I said about not doing anything reckless? I changed my mind, when we get out of here, you can blow this tower up.”

“Loud and clear!”

“So you know where they put the people from the town, Mar-Mar?” Marcy nodded and took a shaky step forward, almost losing her balance. Sasha caught her, looking worried again. “Hey, don’t try too hard. Just tell us where we’re going, you stay here or you go to Wartwood with someone.”

“No.” The firmness in her voice made even Marcy herself stunned for a second, before she shook her head. “I know this tower almost as well as any soldier here, maybe even more, from the traps to the plumbing in this place. I can guide you the safest route to where the newly arrived prisoners are kept.” She could at least help Sasha with this, the beginning of her attempt to make up for her friends for their idiotic mistakes.

“This is too risky, Mar-Mar, it would be best if you stayed or left already.”

“I’m not leaving without you.” Sasha’s gaze grew intense, a very familiar face that was a prelude to a very familiar sentence.

“Marcy, you will tell us the location of the prisoners and then go to Wartwood.” Sasha’s mouth opened, ready to say the familiar sentence, and it made Marcy growl.

“I CAN BE USEFUL, SO LET ME BE USEFUL!!!!!”

She turned fully to Sasha, and Marcy could have sworn the primal voice in her had said the same thing she had. Both the frogs and Sasha took a step back, Sasha especially looking shocked. She almost flinched at that, but kept her gaze fixed on the other human, almost daring her to finish her sentence.

For a moment, Sasha stared at her intently with furrowed brows.

Then, she sighed in defeat.

“…Okay.” Sasha moved closer to Marcy again and let her lean on her. “So where are we going?”

A part of Marcy was surprised that Sasha had given up so easily. The rest of her decided to start walking slowly up the stairs, supported by Sasha, while she thought about the best route to the prisoners’ location. She glanced at the grate of the plumbing.

“Down.”

***

The good news was that they had successfully sneaked into the room where the citizens were without alerting any frogs. They found several people, including a pink pollywog who quickly hugged Sasha and Sprig, who hugged back excitedly.

The bad news was that this Hop Pop was not inside the cell, which meant only one thing.

“They’re getting ready to execute him right now.” Marcy told her friend, grabbing a hand crossbow from one of the guards who had been knocked out.

She also found that primitive green blade that she felt somewhat familiar with, so she decided to keep it. She hesitated for a moment before handing her journal to Sasha, she looked at her in surprise before putting it in her pocket. It wasn’t the first time that one of her friends had held her journal for her, but it was the first time that she had been nervous about it. Probably due to what she had written in the last few weeks. With her pocket empty, she put the dagger in it and continued her explanation.

“If he’s not here, they consider him a great danger or a high-level traitor, and so they are quickly executed. I was lucky that the captain of this tower decided that I was more useful alive than dead, so I somehow avoided that fate.”

“But Hop Pop isn’t so lucky.” Sasha grunted, gripping her scythe tighter. “Do you know where that place is?”

“It’s right at the top of the tower, a platform where they throw people to their deaths. I don’t think it would be a good idea to take everyone there, so it would be best if the rest of the town returned home.”

“And you would go with them?” Sasha asked, almost mockingly. When Marcy simply stared at her, she sighed again. “I figured...” She turned to her frog friends. “Sprig, Polly, you guys come with me. We’re going to save Hop Pop!” They both shouted excitedly and she turned to the rest of the group. “And you guys, could you return home? It would be much better knowing that you’re safe.”

“Don’t worry Sasha, nothing will happen to us!” An old frog, Mrs. Croaker, if Marcy remembers correctly, said. The blonde human waved and turned along with her little friends, following Marcy through the hallways, she was now stable enough to run without help.

“So… Any tips on how to save Hop Pop from those toads’ clutches?” The pollywog, Polly, suddenly asked. Marcy’s face furrowed in thought.

“Most toads aren’t that bad, and the ones that are probably aren’t available after a… accident in the courtyard.” She hesitated to explain what exactly happened there, at least for now. “The main problem will be Captain Grime. He only respects strength, whether it’s brute or strategic, and as long as he doesn’t go down, the other toads will continue to obey his orders out of fear.”

“So, we face the boss and win?” Sasha asked, and the question brought a small smile to Marcy’s face.

“Yeah, basically.”

“Great. I like to talk, but sometimes I wish I could just use strength.”

“You’re going to need a lot of strength to fight. Do you think you have enough points in that attribute?”

“If I don’t, I’ll make sure they’re enough.”

Marcy laughed, belatedly realizing that it had been a long time since she’d laughed so freely like this. She didn't notice Sasha turning to her as she laughed, a small, proud smile on her face.

The amusement faded from Marcy's face when they reached the wooden doors in front of them, followed by the execution roof. She swallowed, a little hesitantly, turning to her friend for a second before pushing the doors open. Right in front of them, Captain Grime stood in the form of an orange frog, surrounded by a few soldiers, including Percy and Braddock, who looked at her in surprise.

“... Even after everything I've done, you still have the nerve to try to face me? I have to admire your courage, creature.” Captain Grime commented, turning to Marcy. She swallowed hard, but managed to compose herself enough when Sasha stepped forward.

“So you must be the Captain Grime of this tower, huh?” She frowned and crossed her arms. “Listen, I'm not in the best of moods after what your little bullies did to our town, so if you free Hop Pop from any absurd accusations of rebellion, I won't kick your ass. What do you say?”

“Heh, you’ve got some fierce fire just like Bog said.” Captain Grime smirked. “But are you sure you can try to threaten me like that when I have your people hostage?” He pointed to the courtyard.

Marcy cursed silently. Besides the large carnivorous plant that was right below where the prisoners and traitors were thrown, the townspeople were also there, surrounded by other soldiers. Marcy believed that without them it would be safer to face Captain Grime, but it seems that he had already expected something like this. The two frogs looked worried while Sasha gritted her teeth in frustration.

“But I like your courage and boldness. Therefore, I will give you a chance to prove yourself... Both of you.” He jumped, and stood on top of a large rock. “How about we settle this the toad-fashioned way?”

He snapped his fingers, and the toads that were there surrounded them with their shields. The four of them readied their weapons, preparing to fight against that army if necessary. She ignored the worried looks that Percy and Braddock were giving her.

“Trial by combat! If the blond creature wins, all the frogs will be free to return home, no harm, no foul...” Captain Grime shouted, his voice echoing throughout the tower, a cruel smile on his face. “...But if the dark-haired creature wins... She will be escorted to another city far from here, where she can be free.”

“What... Do you want me to fight Marcy?!” Sasha nearly growled, looking furious at the mere thought of doing something like that.

“Nothing fairer, I believe. None of my soldiers would be able to stand up to you on equal terms, but we have a prisoner who is just like you.” Captain Grime glanced at Marcy, before turning to Sasha again. “So what do you say? A fight to see who will get out of this Tower free. You and your frogs or our prisoner.”

Marcy couldn’t help but look at Captain Grime with some disgust, did he really think she would fight Sasha for a deal she knew he would never keep? He said he would allow her to fight for her freedom when she grew stronger, but in her rebellion in the courtyard he made it quite clear that he was trying to break her spirit so he could have her as his slave for the rest of her life. Even if they fought, it wouldn't matter which one of them won, in the end, Captain Grime would still be the victor on top of that rock...

... Which was very close to where the prisoners were thrown.

...

Without anyone noticing, her eyes glowed slightly.

“Let’s do this!” Her scream made Sasha turn to her with a shocked expression.

“M-Marcy? What…”

Sasha tried to approach her, but she quickly grabbed the spear from one of the nearby toads and pointed the tip of her spear at the blonde, who widened her eyes. Marcy hesitated for a moment, but channeled all her experience of roleplaying in Creatures and Caves into playing a desperate character.

“If I have to fight you for my freedom, then so be it!” Her throat hurt as she roared, her posture almost feral as she held the spear. Discreetly, she made a movement with her fingers and closed her hand before relaxing. “I won't let anything, not even you, Sasha, get in my way!”

For a moment, the blonde just watched her with wide eyes, and Marcy feared that she had not understood what she wanted to do. But then, her eyes gained a different spark, the understanding when she understood a plan, and she nodded slightly. She frowned her face in a serious expression and pulled out the scythe that was strapped to her back, twirling it in her hands for a second, before also entering a combat pose.

“Sprig, Polly, step back. I don’t want you to get hurt.” She whispered, the two frogs looked wary, but they did so, the toads letting them pass out of the circle.

The two began to circle each other, dragging the tips of their weapons on the ground. Marcy adjusted the crossbow on her back and quickly glanced at Captain Grime’s position, stopping where she thought was the best position. Sasha also stopped, looking a little worried.

She let her furious mask fall for a second, giving Sasha a comforting smile, before charging.

Marcy knew she didn’t really stand much of a chance against Sasha, but she was still surprised by the speed at which she reacted. She not only easily dodged the attack, but used the momentum to counterattack. She hadn’t used all her strength, Marcy was sure of that, but it still made Marcy’s arms tremble as she blocked with the spear.

They continued this impromptu dance for a few more seconds, each pretending to try to hit the other hard, but just waiting for the opportunity to arise. When Captain Grime leaned in a little closer to watch the fight, Marcy subtly waved and Sasha used the handle of her scythe to hit Marcy's legs, knocking her down.

She had expected some pain, but the pain that came as her back hit the ground was more than she had expected. She opened her eyes and Sasha carefully brought the scythe inches from her throat, the large curved blade of the red exoskeleton subtly hiding the fact that Marcy was drawing her crossbow. It was still visible to the circle, but it looked like she was trying to aim it at Sasha instead of someone else.

"Give up, Marcy, you lost," Sasha said in a monotone, her scythe ready to be used again.

If Sasha attacked those in Captain Grime's path, Marcy could shoot him and either he would fall, or Sasha could hit him hard enough to force him to surrender. She just needed to distract the surrounding soldiers, then maybe she would need to give a speech, maybe one of those long, dramatic ones from anime...

It was at that moment that the tower shook.

Everyone lost their balance, and soon after there were blue explosions all over the base of the tower. The same kind of explosion that boomshrooms made when activated.

“Oh, damn it! Wally’s bombs! How could I have forgotten about Wally’s bombs?!” Sasha screamed indignantly, the tremors getting worse as the tower slowly began to fall apart.

The soldiers began to run in panic, fleeing through the roof door, the stone where Captain Grime was standing ended up giving way and he fell. Percy and Braddock were about to leave when they turned to Marcy with conflicted looks.

“What are you two waiting for?! Run away already!!!” She shouted at them, they hesitated for a second before doing so.

“Marcy! We have to go too, now!” Sasha shouted, and Marcy tried to get up to run to her when the part where she was standing began to collapse.

Sasha’s eyes widened before her expression darkened, advancing towards her without any hesitation, even as the frogs screamed for her to get back. Marcy felt the air being forced out of her lungs during the fall, gravity suddenly pulling her down, while Sasha’s hand was inches from her face before firmly grabbing her hand.

“Gotcha! Hold on!” She screamed, managing to pull Marcy up a little before more pieces of the tower collapsed, making her lose her balance as well.

“SASHA!” Quickly, Sprig, Polly, and the orange frog, Hop Pop, grabbed Sasha’s legs. Sasha was still holding Marcy’s hand tightly, even though she was threatening to fall.

“It’s okay, Marcy! Just hold on, please!” Sasha said, a tone of desperation in her voice that Marcy had never heard before. “After everything you’ve been through, everything we’ve been through, things aren’t going to end this way! You can’t leave me like this! I can’t lose you again!”

Marcy looked at the three frogs who were so desperately trying to save Sasha, then at Sasha, who looked terrified, tears of frustration threatening to stream down her face. She could vaguely hear the voices of the people Sasha had come to rescue taking advantage of the chaos to escape.

Heh...

... She really was useless, wasn’t she?

She couldn’t plan properly, she couldn’t protect innocent people, she couldn’t take care of her friends, she couldn’t even make a good decision for her friends.

And yet, they were still willing to risk themselves for someone like her?

...

She really doesn't deserve them, does she?

“…Hey, Sasha?”

But for once, she could do something right by them.

“…I’ve always needed you…”

Marcy gave a shaky smile, tears welling up in her eyes as Sasha’s eyes widened in horror as she tried to hold on tighter, probably realizing exactly what she was going to do.

“…But maybe you've never needed me.”

And then, she let go of Sasha’s hand, letting gravity do the rest.

“MARCY!!!”

In her closed eyelids, she saw that same green light from before. And she accepted being carried away by it.

And when there was a chance to return to the darkness and regain consciousness, she remained huddled in the green light.

Chapter Text

When she woke up, it took her a few seconds to remember who she was.

Right. She's a human. Her name is Marcy Wu. She's trying to find her pack because they were separated when they crashed in this unfamiliar place.

Marcy shook her head to clear her thoughts, sitting up as she took in her surroundings. She was inside a hole in a tree trunk, probably having decided that this was a safe enough place to sleep.

She looked down at herself and blinked.

The improvised exoskeleton and cloth armor she had made disappeared, now she wore a gray metal armor and brown pants, with combat boots and a cool black cape on her back. On her hands were reddish brown gloves, with one of them a small wrist bow implanted. She also had a belt with a pocket and her blade, as well as some cylindrical metal object on it.

... This is new.

...

Well, it doesn't matter.

What matters is that she needs to find her pack soon, before those humanoid toads realize that she has escaped.

Her memory is a little fuzzy, but Marcy remembers having met Sasha again sometime after she had been captured. Her alpha tried to save her and the flock that had taken her in, but the place was unstable, and when Sasha was almost falling to save her, Marcy decided to prioritize the safety of her leader.

She didn't remember much of what happened during her time in captivity, but the look of fear and pain when Marcy released her was still fresh in her mind.

After that day, the one-eyed toad decided to use her abilities for his own benefit, and Marcy reluctantly followed him, not knowing where she was or how to find her pack. But she managed to outwit the one-eyed toad and now has everything she needs to survive, and even though she doesn't know exactly where her Anne is, she remembers where her Sasha is.

“You don’t look well at all, Marcy.” Her alpha turned her analytical gaze from Marcy for a moment, before turning to the gate, where several frogs of various sizes and colors were watching them. “Can any of you take Marcy to Wartwood? I think she’s going to need some medical attention.”

She was in a place called Wartwood…

“You have two options, creature. Considering the fact that you managed to drive off two herons even though you were weak, I’m sure you’ll be a big problem if you end up recovering completely.” The one-eyed toad pointed a sword at the top of the tower. “So, I could get rid of you here and now.” Then, he pointed his sword at the ground and stood in a more relaxed pose. “Or you can work for me. Our control over Frog Valley is slowly waning, and your knowledge of fighting and weapons could be very useful, especially in strengthening our tower. Prove yourself invaluable and your safety will be assured. Once you regain your strength, I’m even willing to let you have a duel in exchange for your freedom, after all, I’m sure you’ll try to escape no matter what once you recover.”

... Which was located in a region known as Frog Valley...

“And now we’re here to save him and everyone else who was captured!” A small pink frog cried out, jumping excitedly next to her leader before approaching the two and extending his hand. “Hello! I’m Sprig Plantar, I'm Sasha’s bestie too! I guess that makes us ‘bestie-in-law’!”

... And the surname of the flock that accepted her is called Plantar.

Marcy nodded to herself, satisfied with the information she had. She then examined everything she had, starting with the metal cylinder on her belt. She gave it a few curious pokes before giving it a gentle twist. To her surprise, it extended and glowed green, the downward-pointing tip creating a blade of green light that easily pierced the wood of the floor, the faint smell of something burning and the sound of dying embers appearing for a moment.

... Well, that's an interesting spear! And a very dangerous one! Marcy will have to be careful where she points this thing.

She twisted it in the opposite direction, causing the blade to disappear and the spear to return to its cylinder shape. She paused for a second, looking at the object from all angles, before grabbing both sides and giving it a gentle tug. Once again, the cylinder extended and glowed, but this time, no blade appeared, with both ends becoming slightly thicker than the rest of the staff. She gave it a slight spin and the tips reduced to normal size, the blade of light returning to the same place, and when she hit the same place in the middle of the staff three times, it returned to being a cylinder.

Then a pull turns it into a blunt weapon, a twist turns it into a bladed weapon and three taps in the middle returns it to portable form. Good to know.

Marcy put away her weapon and picked up her other weapon with a small sad smile on her face, her blade made from the piece of armor Cub had given her still standing firm and sharp. She couldn't help but hug her blade for a moment, wondering how her little companion was now, she hoped it was okay.

The human sighed, composing herself and putting the blade away again before searching in her belt pocket, stopping when she pulled something out.

It was an image of her with her pack.

...

... She misses them.

And she will do everything to find them again.

Marcy carefully put the image away and took out a folded piece of paper. When she unfolded it, she couldn't help but grunt excitedly. A map, kind of old, but with cardinal points, which is quite useful!

She stretched it out as best she could without damaging it, trying to find her way around. The land of this place looked like a lily pad, where right in the center there was a drawing of a castle surrounded by mountains, lakes, deserts and forests in every corner, with some drawings of cities and four towers scattered around the place. Marcy looked closely, trying to see if she could find this Frog Valley, but it was kind of difficult considering she didn't understand that language and didn't know what was written there.

Marcy sighed in frustration, closing her eyes and massaging her temples as she thought. Okay, knowing the name of the place where Sasha was was no use if she couldn't read and locate said place.

What else did she know about that place...?

She knew the name, she knew that those who live there are mainly frogs, and that it is apparently close to one of those towers, the tower where that one-eyed toad lived...

The Captain is the leader of the South Tower.

... And some voice, slightly trembling, but pretending to be cold and confident in Marcy said that he lived in the south.

The human opened her eyes, looking at the map again. Slowly, her hand moved to the bottom of the map, pointing to where there was a drawing of a tower surrounded by mountains almost right below the castle in the center. The only tower that existed in the south.

Okay, she had the location of her objective.

Now, all that was left was to locate herself...

I'm close to the North Tower, where Lord Aldo lives.

Marcy frowned, her finger began to move up the map until she reached a tower at the top of the map, surrounded by swamp and mountains, and near a volcano. Somehow, she could swear she came from here, but she was definitely in a forest.

What it means...

Her finger moved down a bit, stopping at a small opening between mountains, with drawings of trees and near what looked like a river.

... She was somewhere around here. And from where she was, she needed to go south.

Marcy carefully put away her map, climbing out of the tree hole and looking around. When she was sure there were no predators, she began to climb the tree, being careful not to slip or accidentally break the branch she was on. Finally, she made it to the top, with the sun rising on the horizon. She turned and pointed her right arm towards the sun.

That's east.

She stretched her other arm out to the other side, that's west. She looked ahead, to her north, where she could see the silhouette of something long in the distance, probably the tower she came from.

Which means...

Marcy turned, looking to where her back had been.

...That's south. That's where she should go.

Marcy nodded to herself and climbed down from the tree to prepare herself, never losing her bearings.

She was going back to her alpha and nothing was going to stop her.

***

Marcy had been traveling for a few days now, and surprisingly, everything had been relatively quiet. Probably because she knew where she was going instead of just randomly wandering around.

That and the fact that she was better at fighting.

Marcy wasn't sure how or why, but her body was stronger than she remembered it being when her skill with weapons was more perfect. She didn't just swing her spear and hope for the best, she could swing her weapon around her arm with confidence that she wouldn't hurt herself. Her aim had been good before, but now she had almost laser-like focus, impossible to miss the arrows she had activated with her handbow. And her dagger, which she rarely used now because she rarely needed to get that close to her target, was always used with precision to eliminate her prey or predator as quickly as possible.

It was almost as if her body had been trained to start being a personal killing machine. It was slightly unsettling.

...

It didn't matter how she got it, what mattered was that it was useful.

The bag she had on her back had extra food and a portable place for her to sleep, which meant that the first few days she didn't even need to hunt. And when her food ran out, it wasn't hard to pick up fruit or fish or hunt some prey to satisfy herself, she only needed to feed herself after all.

Her chest hurt every time she turned to give the leftovers to her furry companion, only to remember that she was alone.

She really hoped Cub was okay...

...

She couldn't get distracted now, this place wasn't safe.

It was while she was thinking about this that she heard a scream.

Marcy hesitated, for a second she thought about getting away from whatever was in that direction, but after hearing another scream of fear, she quickly ran in the direction of the sound. When the sound got louder, she pulled out her weapon and put it in the form of a fighting stick, crouching down to reduce the sound of her footsteps, going into a bush to get a sense of what was happening.

A strange animal was attacking a small group of frogs and salamanders, the creature looked like a strange mix between a lion and a scorpion. Its sharp fangs and claws, as well as its long tail with a stinger made it clear that it was a predator, even if Marcy hadn't seen it attacking. A very dangerous predator that would easily disembowel her with its natural weapons if she got in its way.

Marcy looked back at the small group, a frog was holding a baby in her arms while two young salamanders prepared to fight, even though they knew they would die.

The predator was too distracted by its prey in front of it to notice that something was behind it, and when it did, it was too late.

The predator roared in pain as it felt its tail being cut off, the stinger falling uselessly to its side. The creature turned to see who had dared to attack it, and was faced with the tip of an arrow coming towards it, hitting one of its eyes, which only made it roar even more. The human did not hesitate, advancing towards the predator and aiming to hit its head with the fighting stick, but the predator was quick to retreat, taking advantage of the fact that its dodge had made it fall behind its new target, it advanced with its claws extended.

The human knelt down and twirled her fighting stick.

The last thing her prey saw was a green blade piercing its skull.

Marcy staggered, even though the creature had died instantly with her surprise attack, the momentum the large animal had given its was enough to throw her off balance. Fortunately, her spear prevented the corpse from crushing her, and she quickly moved away, returning her weapon to its smaller form and turning to the small group.

The three looked scared, alternating between her and the corpse of her prey, one of them readied his weapon and pointed it at her, fearing an attack. Marcy looked at them for a moment before sitting cross-legged, tilting her head to one side.

The group stopped, obviously confused by the human's attitude.

"W... What is that creature?" The salamander that was still pointing his blade at her asked the others. The other salamander shrugged.

"I'm not sure, but... It seems pretty friendly to me." The other commented, which caused the one with the blade to turn sharply to his companion.

"Friendly?! It just killed a Scorpileo all by itself!!!”

“Yeah, but it didn’t do anything to us.”

Marcy chirped, drawing the attention of the flock. Carefully and without making any sudden movements, she pulled the map from her pocket and held it out, pushing it a little towards them, she chirped again and pointed to the map.

The flock was confused for a moment, and then the frog handed her baby to one of the salamanders and hesitantly approached the human. The latter did not react aggressively to her approach, just kept pointing at the map. Eventually, the frog stopped almost next to the human and looked at the map with a thoughtful look, alternating between the paper and Marcy's face.

"... Do you... want to know where you are?" Marcy trilled, nodding once. The frog blinked in surprise. "Do you understand me?" Once again, the human nodded, pointing to the map again. The frog seemed a little hesitant, but looked at the map carefully before pointing to a forest very close to the mountain where the tower that was their objective was. “We’re here, in the forest near the Southern Tower and the Ruins of Despair. If you continue on this path, you’ll soon reach Frog Valley.”

Marcy's head perked up, Frog Valley! So the southern tower really was close to Frog Valley, which meant it was close to Wartwood! She couldn't help but give a small excited grunt, leaning forward slightly as she carefully observed the place surrounded by mountains.

Just a little more and she could meet up with Sasha again.

Marcy picked up the map again and put it away, taking some mushrooms from her bag and handing them to the frog in thanks. The frog accepted the gift, and Marcy stood up to continue her journey through the forest, not noticing how the small flock watched her in confusion.

She looked at the nearest mountain, according to the map, if she followed a straight line, she would finally be able to reach the place she needed to go. She could also go around the mountain, but the frog said that the field near the mountain is called the Ruins of Despair, so Marcy believed it would be best to avoid a place with that name.

Marcy steeled her resolve as she prepared to climb. Nothing would stop her from reuniting with her alpha.

***

It was one night, when she arrived at the tower, that she finally encountered a major obstacle.

The climb was difficult, not only because of the climb itself, but also because she had to hide several times from predators more adapted to the place. She eventually managed to get across safely, despite having lost her bag on the way down to flying insects. There were no problems, however, she only had to hunt during the day and look for some shelter when night fell, nothing she hadn't done before.

At a certain point, a path seemed vaguely familiar to Marcy, so she started following that direction, and it took only a day for her to come across a familiar tower right in front of a cliff. The building was half-collapsed, with several broken walls and the tower itself leaning almost unnaturally, but somehow it was still standing, a few blue mushrooms were lying around, and something told Marcy not to touch it.

Marcy hesitated, taking a few steps forward to get a better look at the tower, her eyes scanning from the top, where she had fallen to protect her alpha, to the ground below and she couldn't help but shudder. If those gentle bipedal toads she had befriended hadn't caught her as she fell, she would be little more than a deformed pulp of flesh on the ground by now.

It was as she pondered her luck that she heard a sound.

A horrible sound echoed in her cell. It sounded like a bird sound, with the creepy tone turned up to 11.

A sound she recognized.

The human quickly ducked, hiding in the rubble, getting close enough to the opening to see outside. As she had imagined, two herons were walking near where she was, looking for something, possibly prey to eat. Unfortunately for Marcy, she was small enough to fit into that category.

Marcy gave a small frustrated growl, looking around to see if there was any way out of this situation. She couldn't stay here, the place was unstable and she had no idea how long the feathered creatures would stay. She could go into the forest and lose them there, but that would require a distraction to make those predators lose sight of her in the first place.

She looked at the predators, at the blue mushrooms and then back at the tower.

Marcy smiled mischievously.

The herons continued walking and looking for something to satisfy their hunger when they heard a roar. They both turned and saw a small creature skiing in front of a stone building, the small creature roared again, tapping its stick on a mushroom. The creature didn't seem to be their typical prey, but the flying predators still saw the opportunity for an easy dinner and quickly approached. The creature roared again and retreated to stay inside the structure, surrounded by the rocks, indeed easy prey, its beaks could easily destroy that protection.

When one of them approached to find its prey, however, a green blade was the last thing that eye saw before being blinded forever.

The first predator screamed in pain, quickly moving away from the tower, the other predator saw it and roared against the hole, only for Marcy to take advantage of the approach and jump on its beak. The flying predator shook hard, even trying to hit the tower, but the human didn't let go, waiting for the large bird to stop swinging so she could run over its head, down its long neck until reaching its back.

Once there, she didn't hesitate to stick her spear and blade in one of its wings. The predator she was on top of roared, trying to struggle to get rid of her, the human holding on tight where she was. The other feathered creature recovered, and after giving a furious roar, attacked her, Marcy managed to avoid being devoured at that moment, but her left leg was still caught by its fangs. The other predator pulled her by the leg and Marcy screamed in pain, but she didn't let go of her weapons, which caused them to be dragged by the wing of the one she was on, creating a horrible cut on it.

Still in pain, Marcy aimed her wrist bow at the shin of the heron that was holding her. The arrow stuck in the leg, distracting the predator enough to loosen its grip, and Marcy took the opportunity to throw herself against the nearest wall. The fall was painful, but the armor she was wearing protected her from the worst of the impact. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the mushroom she had hit start to blink faster.

Marcy rolled down the wall and threw herself on the other side, limping as fast as she could into the forest. The predators noticed this and prepared to follow her.

That was when the mushroom exploded, encouraging the others around it to do the same.

The explosions further damaged the already fragile structure of the tower, which began to collapse again, this time falling completely into the cliff. The feathered predator, blind in one eye, despaired, but managed to react quickly enough and escape by a hair's breadth. The creature's partner, however, unable to use one of its wings, ended up falling along with the structure, being buried by the rubble.

Marcy saw none of this, focused on running away from it all, ignoring the pain and the green light that threatened to consume her every time she blinked.

***

Pain.

Marcy's whole body hurt.

She gasped, her entire body shaking with effort, begging her to stop, but she kept taking it one step at a time. The darkness of the night hid her a little, but she was still sure that the frogs had seen her, and if they had, the trail of blood would be a good indication.

It doesn't matter. When she looked up, she knew she was in front of her goal.

A two-story house made of bricks and tree trunks, a large telescope in the top window. Hanging from the large trunk of the house, the letter P was drawn on a hanging wooden sign.

The house of the frogs that are with Sasha. Sasha's house. Her alpha.

Marcy grunted in pain and approached the door. Pulling out her dagger and with the last bit of strength she still had, she managed to break in and enter, crawling desperately to the center of the room.

Marcy heard a strong but friendly young female voice, but was unable to react before succumbing to unconsciousness.

***

By the time Marcy regained consciousness, she was looking at the ceiling of a house, her body was incredibly sore and she looked like she was on a couch. And she had a young yellow frog in a hat next to her with a wet cloth in her hands.

“Oh! You woke up!" She whispered, sounding both excited and suspicious. Marcy stared at her for a few seconds and tried to sit down, but the girl stopped her. "Stop! It will make your injuries worse if you continue like this.”

Marcy tried to communicate and ask where she was, closing her eyes as she let out a groan of pain. Her entire body ached from her escape plan from the flying predators.

“You don't know? We’re at the Plantars’ house.” The young woman said, gently rubbing the cloth over Marcy's face. It was freezing, and it almost made Marcy shiver and back away, but she didn't have the energy for that. “I saw you breaking into the house and I was ready to fight, but you just passed out as soon as you entered... You were bleeding a lot. My mother managed to sew up the... worst injuries, but it's still not a good idea for you to move around that much.”

The Plantars' house. Sasha's house. Yes, Marcy vaguely remembers something like that. She was heading to Wartwood to meet her alpha per the Captain's orders to...

Again, Marcy tried to communicate to find out about Sasha and tried to get up, but this time she couldn't even lift her head properly. Her entire body hurt, she felt so dizzy, and she was so weak.

“She and the Plantars aren’t here yet, but they’re probably on their way home.” A new voice responded, deeper and wiser than a child, carrying a slight tone of inner strength. Marcy opened her eyes slightly and saw the face of an older frog with orange hair watching her, looking worried.

Marcy tried to ask for Sasha, but the older frog gently silenced her with a cup of tea being placed in her mouth, and Marcy could do nothing but obey. The tea tasted a little bitter, but it was warm and familiar, and Marcy felt some of the pain ease. Soothing Leaves. Marcy had already eaten one with Cub before after a successful hunt.

“... Marcy, isn’t it? Sasha told me a little about you.” The older frog said, pushing the cup away when the tea was finished and placing her hand gently on her cheek. Marcy shuddered almost violently, and that made the frog move away, her expression even more worried. “Get some rest and try to regain your strength, okay? Don’t worry, your friend will arrive soon.”

Again, Marcy succumbed to unconsciousness.

***

A darkness appeared in the flash of green light, along with an echoing voice.

“Oh, Marcy... What happened to you?”

That voice.

“I should never have let you fall…”

Marcy recognized that voice.

"I am really sorry..."

Marcy wanted to say something, but she was too tired and again, the green light consumed her.

It took her a while to find the darkness again.

***

When Marcy woke up again, she heard the roar of a heron and the voice of her alpha.

Marcy shook her head, trying to focus. She looked around, realizing she was in some cozy underground cave, probably under a house. She saw her weapons on a table, next to the cloak and glasses she was wearing, and touched her chest, her armor still on her body.

The roar again caught her attention, and through a small opening in the wall, Marcy saw the surviving predator she had faced before close to where she was.

And right in front of the creature, her alpha was armed and ready to fight.

Marcy's eyes widened for a moment before she frowned, a furious hiss, coming from her throat. She was finally reunited with her leader, she will not let anyone else separate or hurt her pack, especially when she can help. Without hesitation, she picked up her spear and blade and walked out the wooden door, rushing outside, her body was still sore, but not as much as before, which made Marcy able to ignore the pain for now.

Outside was chaos, with several frogs of different colors running in fear of the feathered predator, she knows well how scary these predators are and none of them seem strong enough to fight against it. The human felt a bit of remorse, she wished she had never come across them, or that it hadn't followed her, but the only thing she can do to redeem herself is to drive away or knock down the feathered predator once and for all.

Marcy saw a familiar pink frog, but ignored it in favor of approaching the half-blind creature that tried to bite her alpha and cut off its beak. The creature roared in pain and its alpha turned to her, looking surprised.

"Marcy? What... What are you doing here?!" Sasha screamed, her grip on her curved blade loosening slightly. Marcy chirped, trying to communicate that she wouldn't let her face this creature alone, but the predator took advantage of the distraction to attack with its claws.

Marcy couldn't react in time, but her Sasha did, pulling her towards her as she threw herself backwards. The dodge kept them both from being crushed, but the tip of the claw went straight through Marcy's side, ripping through her armor and cutting into the flesh beneath. Marcy gasped in pain, clutching her side for a moment as she tried to regain her composure, her alpha quickly using her curved blade to cut off the feathered predator's foot, pushing it away.

The brunette human took advantage of their moment of distraction to look around. One of the houses had collapsed and created a slope that she could climb. Her plan worked well the first time, it should work again. She stood up, pressing her wound with one hand, and quickly climbed the place, roaring at Sasha to get her attention when she reached the top.

Her alpha turned to her and she took her spear and blade, pointing to a spot near the elevation where she was and the feathered predator with her head. Sasha seemed to hesitate for a moment, probably worried about her injury, but she did as Marcy asked, luring the half-blind creature to the spot.

When the predator was close enough, Marcy took a deep breath and launched herself.

The half-blind creature roared in pain when Marcy's two blades dug into its wing, shaking a little to try to get it off. Marcy tried to hold her ground, but when the creature spread its wing and used the momentum to throw her, she slipped, being thrown away, her blade still embedded in its wing.

Her spear was still in her hand, however, and her aim was better than ever.

She didn't notice her eyes glowing as she threw it with perfect precision at the heron's knee, the energy blade piercing and crossing the place, knocking the large bird down.

What she did notice was the pain as her body fell on top of the remains of a destroyed wooden and straw house.

For a moment, Marcy lay in the wreckage, trying to recover from the horrible pain that her body emitted. She knew she had overdone it, but she hadn't realized until now how much she had overdone it. But then, she heard the roar of her alpha, along with the sudden silence of the predator that was attacking, and she breathed a sigh of relief, it was over, her alpha had taken down the creature.

Marcy looked to the side, seeing a stream with a stone bridge, and began to crawl towards that point, it was the most visible place among all the wreckage, her alpha would easily see her in that place. When she got there, she sat down and used some of the water to clean some of the wound on her side, leaning her head against the stone structure, and looked up.

The stars were shining in the sky, a different feeling of humidity from her wound indicated that it would soon rain, the smell of grass gave it a special freshness.

It was peaceful.

Marcy couldn't remember having had such a peaceful moment since she arrived in this unfamiliar place.

She heard the sound of her alpha's hurried footsteps and smiled. Her alpha would probably scold her for doing something so reckless while she was injured, but Marcy didn't care about that.

What mattered was that her Sasha would find her and take care of her injuries, and when she was recovered, they would look for her Anne and her pack would be together again. Marcy closed her eyes in contentment and relaxed for the first time.

When the familiar green light appeared on her eyelids, she didn't fight this time and accepted being taken.

Chapter Text

Marcy’s foot tapped uncontrollably on the floor, her hands clasped together on her legs as she watched the clock tick by, like a prisoner waiting almost impatiently for their punishment to arrive.

A relatively accurate metaphor for her situation.

“Marcy?” A voice pulled the ravenette from her thoughts and she found Sasha watching her with an arched eyebrow. “…Are you okay?”

“Oh! I’m GREAT! I’m only a few hours away from seeing one of my best childhood friends, who I have very few memories of, despite her being someone I know well and is very important to me, and that’s entirely my fault! Everything is wonderful!” Marcy was sure her giant, unnatural smile wasn’t helping her case. That and the fact that she felt one of her eyes twitch.

Sasha blinked slowly, unimpressed.

“Right, stupid question.” She sighed, walking over to her friend and sitting down next to her, her bed was small, but big enough for them both to sit on. “Is there a specific reason or is it just the general memory loss thing?”

Marcy hesitated, her smile fading as she looked down. There was still some residual guilt about having deceived her friends, but currently…

“... I’m just worried about how she’ll react.” Marcy confessed, hugging herself and rubbing her arms. She still felt very uncomfortable without her armor, but the presence of her blonde friend eased the feeling. “You’re taking all this well because you were warned while I was unconscious that something was wrong with me, but Anne has no idea. And I remember that she always stopped anything dangerous from happening to me at home.” For some reason, Marcy remembered video games and zoo snakes. “... I just don’t want her to see me as a freak, or a strange weirdo who has the same face as her friend, or to feel sorry for me.”

“First, I think you’re giving me too much credit. I’m not ‘taking all this well’, I still feel very guilty about what happened to you.” Sasha sighed, placing a hand on the back of her neck. “I just know that regretting the past won’t do any good, it’s better to focus on helping you the best way I can. And second...” Slowly, Sasha placed a hand on Marcy’s shoulder. Marcy shivered, but didn’t back away, and Sasha took advantage of the silent acceptance to pull her into a side hug, making Marcy blush. “...Yes, things will be a little weird and maybe uncomfortable at first, but whether you act different or not, you’re still ours Marcy. We’re still your friends and always will be, and not even something like memory loss or being in another world can separate our bond.”

Sasha gave a soft smile, and the other human felt her heart skip a beat, her face turning redder as she looked down. The amount of willpower it took for her not to snuggle into the other’s lap or lean in to kiss the blonde was almost insane. She didn’t remember feeling anything like that in her vague memories of Sasha, so she couldn’t be sure if it was something recent or not.

“That said...” Sasha let go of her, crossing her arms. “... I think it would be better if we didn’t mention the fact that the three of us are in Amphibia because you knew that the Music Box could lead to other worlds. At least for now.”

That brought Marcy out of her reverie, turning to the blonde with her head slightly tilted.

“I’m not saying we hide it forever, just that we don’t say it for now.” The blonde ruffled her hair a little, looking thoughtful. “I’ll be honest, Marcy, there’s still a part of me that’s angry at you for what you decided to do. Like, sending us to another world like that? Even if you hadn’t imagined it would be so dangerous or that we couldn’t come back whenever we wanted, it was still kind of a dick move to make.”

Marcy nodded, she totally agreed with Sasha. She didn’t remember her parents or her life on Earth, but essentially kidnapping herself and her friends to another place because she was moving and she was afraid of being alone seemed like a bit of an extreme reaction. Then again, she didn’t remember what her life on Earth was like, and Sasha said there was a weird tension whenever she talked about her family, so she couldn’t be entirely sure that her life with them wasn’t bad enough that the move would be the final straw that made her decide to run away with the ones she cared about most.

The mixed feelings about her life on Earth only got more confusing when she remembered how loyal she had sounded about her friends and what she was currently doing.

“But whenever I think back to what happened to you, I feel like you were punished way more than you should have been. For me, all we have to do is find a way to get home and you can be considered 100% forgiven in my book. I can’t say the same about Anne, though, it was her birthday after all, and she’s always had the best family connection out of the three of us.” Sasha sighed, turning to her friend. “I just… I don’t want her to hate you now, especially when you need us the most and are working so hard to make up for your mistakes.”

That hurt. Sasha’s trust in her was so great that it was almost painful for her. Still, she decided to give her friend a small smile.

“If you say so…”

Sasha smiled again, and Marcy had to subtly bite the inside of her mouth hard to keep from squealing or blushing at the sight.

“Well, now that we’ve got that out of the way…” She stood up and walked to her locker, grabbing something from it and approaching it again. Marcy’s breath caught when she saw what she had in her hands. “…I think you’ll want this back.”

It was her armor, repaired.

“H-How did you...?” Marcy reached out, holding her armor as if it were glass, touching it from every possible angle. It was without a single dent or the terrible cut on the side, shining as if it were new. Sasha smiled as she watched her.

“There are a lot of different and special people here at Wartwood, it wasn’t too hard to ask one of them to fix it. You feel better wearing it, don’t you?” Marcy looked at Sasha in shock, and Sasha blinked at her. “I won’t make the same mistake I did in the past. If it’s important to you, it’s important to me, even if I don’t understand it.”

“...Thank you...” She whispered, hugging her armor tightly, a strong relief falling on her shoulders as she felt it in her arms. That soft and gentle smile of Sasha’s returned, as she felt the light blush on her cheeks.

“You’re welcome. Now, let’s get ready.”

They improvised a small barrier in the room so each of them would have their privacy while they got ready. Sasha had said she could borrow some of her own clothing if she wanted, but Marcy refused, preferring to wear her armor and combat gear, spending a relatively long time looking in a small mirror to make sure she looked presentable. She hadn't noticed before, but her hair was a bit longer than it had been in her vague memories on Earth; she would probably have to cut it soon, or maybe she could just grow it out altogether. Something to decide later.

When she put on her belt, her hand automatically went to put her dagger in it, but stopped before she could pick it up. It was going to be a reunion dinner among her friends and no one at this gathering was a toad, so the chances of a Volcakeno being made for the feast were slim to none; it was safe to leave her weapons on the counter.

She then decided to put some bandages on her arms to cover the healing gel. It wasn't as necessary for her to use it as it had been in the early days, but she still had a few spots on her arm and side that still needed special attention. Her armor would cover the wound on her torso, and the brown bandages could be disguised as a cosmetic part of her outfit.

She couldn't do anything about the gel on her cheek, though. The frog who had made the mixture, Maddie, said that the wound was superficial enough to heal without leaving a scar, but only if she applied the gel every day without fail. It could be worse, it looked less like she had hurt herself and decided to use a gel that accelerates healing and more like she had been playing with some equipment with grease and forgot to clean it properly.

She put on her gloves, her cape, and her glasses and looked at herself again in the mirror, running her hand through her hair to look presentable. When she felt satisfied, she nodded to herself and smiled, walking towards the makeshift barrier.

Sasha? I'm ready.”

“Great!” The blonde's voice came from the other side. “Give me another minute, I need to find something!”

The other human was quiet, looking around to the opposite side of the barrier. She stared at the glowing mushrooms, some part of her cataloging what species they were and how exactly they should function in this world. She let that part speak, it was rare to hear that almost incomprehensible murmur in her head, but it was always comforting to hear, even if she couldn't understand everything. It was probably some muffled memory of her researching something, Sasha said she loved learning about everything on Earth.

Sasha removed the barrier between them, Marcy turned to her and...

... Hmm. Curious.

Marcy didn't know she could spontaneously combust just on her face.

She was sure she was as red as Sasha's coat as she watched her. A pink blouse under a dark red coat and a dark skirt, along with flats, was already a sight that would have made Marcy short-circuit. But her leaving her blonde hair down with a small blue flower to decorate it?

A part of Marcy was proud that she hadn't simply fainted. Or had a nosebleed.

Sasha gave a smug smile and gently placed her hand on her friend's chin to close her mouth, which only after she did that she realized she was staring at her with her mouth wide open.

"I-I'M SORRY!!! I'M SO SORRY!!!! IT'S JUST-" Marcy hid her face in her hands, still feeling the furious blush on her face and ears. "... You look really pretty..."She wasn't sure if the blonde had heard her mumble, but the small laugh the other gave answered her question, making her blush even redder.

“Some things never change, after all...” Sasha commented, and Marcy looked at her shyly. “If you’re already like this with me, it’ll be fun when you and Anne meet again.”

She looked at Marcy’s cape and removed the pin with the Toad Army symbol, placing a flower similar to the one in her hair to act as a pin.

“There, now we’re ready for dinner.”

***

It was while everyone was arranging the couches that they heard the sound of a bird nearby.

Marcy obviously tensed up, getting ready to run to Sasha's room and grab her weapons, but she tripped and was grabbed by the blonde, who seemed quite calm.

"Wait, I think I know who that bird is." She placed her friend on the couch and headed towards the door, leaving. Marcy's foot began to unconsciously tap the floor in impatience as she looked at the door.

"Don't worry, Marcy." The little pink frog, Sprig, sat down next to her. He looked adorable with his suit and slicked-back hair, Marcy felt like hugging him like a plush toy. "That must just be Joe Sparrow arriving and bringing Anne."

"Joe Sparrow? That name sounds like something I would name if I had a bird." She commented, remembering Woolly and how she only named him that because she's pretty sure there's a caterpillar with that name.

The door opened again, and Sasha walked in with a giant scarred red newt and a young blue newt on her shoulder, both wearing elegant party clothes. And right next to them...

“Anne?”

Anne had her hair tied in a side ponytail and a beautiful blue dress with a Newtopian-style pattern, it suited her perfectly. She turned to Marcy, a wide smile breaking across her face.

“Marcy!!!”

Anne ran over to her and Marcy stood up to meet her on the way, both hugging each other tightly. Marcy shivered, the touch was still too much for her, but she managed to be friendly enough before pulling away. Anne looked at her friend with a smile and she couldn't help but do the same.

“... Do you... Want to help me build the castle?”

“Sure, that sounds fun! Oh! Mom said I need to be nice and introduce myself whenever I meet new friends. I'm Anne!

“... Marcy.”

Marcy closed her eyes and let the memory flow, her smile softening even as her head began to hurt. It wasn't as painful as it used to be, and lately, the memories that came back were sweet little moments like that. She liked that.

With her eyes closed, Marcy didn't see Anne look a little confused as she closed her eyes and stayed quiet for a while. Or that Sasha noticed it, knew what was happening, and decided to act before it created an awkward silence.

“Well, girls...” The blonde’s voice caught the attention of the two, who turned around. Sasha looked serious. “Looks like...” She then smiled widely as she opened her arms wide, light seemed to come directly from behind her. “... We’re all finally back together again!”

Anne shouted excitedly, Marcy’s smile widened, and the three hugged and jumped together.

The touch of the hug was an electricity that was almost pleasurable, despite the tingling all over her body. It was still a bit much for Marcy, but she kept doing it until her side started to hurt and she pulled away a little, touching the spot with a slight grimace.

“Oh, damn! I forgot about that.” Sasha turned to her, her hand hovering for a moment over Marcy’s shoulder, but lowering it when she noticed that she was still shivering slightly and she wasn’t sure if it was from pain or overstimulation. “If it starts to get too bad, I still have some potion.”

“Marcy!?” Unlike Sasha, who was just a little worried, Anne was worried and scared. She took a step forward and tried to touch her, but Sasha gently stopped her with her hand, which made Anne look at her strangely and simply turn to Marcy. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I just overdid it a little.” Marcy took a few deep breaths before straightening up, looking at the blonde. “Can I sit at the table outside?”

“Sure, we’ll be there soon too, so grab a seat.” Marcy waved, ignoring the urge to salude, and walked out of the house to sit in one of the chairs, resting her head on her crossed arms on top of the table.

The cool air did wonders for her; she hadn’t realized how suffocated she was getting with all the contact until now. She relaxed a little, listening to the quiet of the night and muffled conversation coming from the house, but still alert for danger. She looked to the side and saw a large brown sparrow, with armor and a saddle on its back, being tended by the strange frog-robot Polly had named Frobo. It must be the Joe Sparrow that Sprig mentioned.

It took a while before everyone left the house and took a seat. Anne still had that slightly worried look on her face, but she sat in the chair next to Sasha, who was next to Marcy. Polly and the little blue newt sat on opposite sides of the table while Hop Pop, Sprig, and the red newt sat across from the humans.

“Well, enjoy, everyone.” Hop Pop said, everyone started to enjoy the food. A small part of Marcy felt a little sad when she realized that the maggot breads weren’t on the menu, she really liked that.

“These vegetables are really good, did you guys grow them?” The red newt asked Hop Pop, who puffed out his chest in pride.

“Yep, all of this was grown, harvested and prepared by us!”

“Gotta give it to Hop Pop. He knows his way around the kitchen.” Polly commented, the blue newt seemed excited as she poked at a slice of tomato.

“Aren’t tomatoes supposed to be carnivorous plants? How did you guys get that?” She asked, Sasha shrugged.

“There’s a tomato plant near here after some shenanigans that happened in the city. It was kind of hard to pick at first, but now, the plant lets me pick the fruits when they’re ripe without any problems.” She explained, taking a bite of the said fruit. Marcy learned that whenever Sasha says there were ‘shenanigans’, she means that ‘the story is too long and complicated and I don’t have time to explain everything now, ask me later for more details’. “We’ve had enough fights for her to know that the outcome is always the same, and it’s her choice whether the harvest will be resolved peacefully or not.”

That explains why Sasha showed up unharmed with a basket of tomatoes this morning. Marcy had spent some time theorizing how she had harvested without getting hurt, ranging from her being very lucky and finding a dead one to having killed one before it could react and take what it needed. She would deny to the end that she spent a good hour imagining Sasha taking on a tomato plant like an elegant warrior queen and had to nearly smother herself with a pillow to keep from screaming.

“Ha! Powerful and fierce as always, aren’t you Blondie?” The red newt laughed and slammed a hand on the table. Sasha simply gave a smug smile as she crossed her arms, one eyebrow raised as if to ask why she was surprised.

Marcy looked away, her cheeks red. Frog, she didn't remember it being this hard to keep her composure around the blonde.

“Oh! Where are my manners?” The red newt suddenly said, Marcy turned and she extended her hand to the human. “I’m Priscilla Paddock, but you can call me Priscilla the Killa. And this is my daughter, Pearl.” She pointed with her other hand to the young newt, who waved.

“Hello!”

“I’m Marcy, Marcy Wu.” She shook the newt’s hand, it was very strong, similar to a toad’s. The last part was said almost automatically and unconsciously. “You can call me Strategist.”

“Strategist, huh? A title for a specialist soldier. It makes sense.” Priscilla narrowed her eyes slightly as she stared at her. “You have the look of a soldier who has seen some not-so-nice things, after all.”

“Marcy? A soldier? That’s impossible.” Anne commented smiling, but it seemed slightly forced. “She’s a little too clumsy to hold anything sharp without stabbing herself in the process, there’s no way she’s a soldier.”

Ouch. That hurt.

She couldn’t help but frown as she looked at Anne. She had indeed hurt herself a few times unintentionally while getting used to her weapons, mainly how to use them without tripping or causing her cape to catch fire out of nowhere, but still! It was kind of mean what she had said.

In Anne’s defense, she realized her words and obviously didn’t mean to sound that way, because she quickly had an expression of guilt and remorse for her words.

“I don’t know, Anne. She certainly doesn’t have the mentality of a soldier…” Sasha commented, Anne frowned.

“No, she doesn’t, you’re just overreacting. Isn’t that right, Marcy?” Anne turned to Marcy, who stared at her for a second. She wasn’t sure what to use as proof that she was different without making her freak out the moment she acted…

Oh.

Marcy knows something she can use as proof without it being too scary. It was kind of embarrassing, but…

She was surrounded by her friends and their friends, and she trusted Sasha.

She looked at Sasha and nodded slightly, Sasha raised her eyebrow slightly in concern, but she stared at her. Sasha closed her eyes.

“Marcy.” She called out in an authoritative tone. Her body instinctively responded.

“Yes, Lieutenant!” She stood and saluted, waiting for the order. A second passed in silence, then another, and then Marcy fell back into her chair, hiding her red face in her hands. She heard the light laughter of the younger Plantars and Sasha, as well as the blonde's hand gently rubbing the back of her head in comfort.

It had been a complete and minor accident when they had discovered this after Sprig and her friend Ivy had tried to run away. Sasha had asked her to stay home in that tone of voice and Marcy had instantly saluted and called her lieutenant before obeying the order. That day had been incredibly unsettling for both parties, Sasha apologizing repeatedly for having done that to her and Marcy wondering what was happening to her, worried that she was becoming some kind of stooge like Toadie.

A few tests later, she had discovered that this only happened to Sasha, and only when she used that specific tone of voice. Sasha had started to avoid using that tone when asking Marcy for something, and only used it when she wanted to get her attention when she saw that she was doing something she shouldn't, usually for trying to train even though she hadn't yet recovered from her injuries.

The fact that whenever Sasha called her name in that tone, she would instantly drop her weapon and salute, no matter what movement or pose they were in before, eventually became hilarious to Sasha and the young Plantars and embarrassing to Marcy. She still remembers doing a complicated spear sequence when Sasha called her name and she threw her weapon away to salute, sending the spear flying and nearly hitting a one-eyed blue frog, who screamed that it was raining sharp twigs from the sky. Sasha laughed for almost a full minute before recovering and apologizing to both of them.

“... What... What was that?” Anne’s voice sounded worried, Marcy turned to her, who stared at her with wide eyes.

“I told you that Marcy had some shenanigans before we met again and now she has some problems that she would need our help with. This is one of them.” Sasha looked at Marcy, who took a deep breath and straightened up. She didn’t want to talk about it until after the dinner, but it was better to rip the band-aid off now.

“After the accident I had at Toad Tower, I ended up being forced to do military training and also... I ended up suffering from amnesia.”

For a moment, Anne didn’t seem to know what she was talking about, but then her eyes took on a tone of horror.

“Amnesia... You mean, memory loss?” One of her hands went to her mouth. “... You lost your memory?”

“All of them from Earth and some here, yes.” Marcy saw how devastated Anne looked and tried to lighten the situation. “But I’m recovering some memories! It’s possible that it’s temporary or reversible, so there’s no need to worry.”

“Marcy, when you say it like that, that’s when we worry.” The blonde said emotionlessly, and Marcy flinched slightly, that wasn’t her intention…

***

It took a while to calm things down, and dinner ended in silence, but Hop Pop managed to convince everyone to have a few rounds of games. The Plantar family's drawings were so bad and chaotic, Marcy has no idea how Priscilla correctly guessed that those four amoebas were a representation of a historical rebellion.

But then Sasha drew a tree and Sprig thought it was Toad Tower exploding, so maybe it was just a matter of being much more open-minded than usual. The Plantars wanted to say something else, but Sasha stopped them with a look, for some reason.

A few sequences later, with the amphibians impressed when she made an accurate drawing of a praying mantis fighting a toad, they began to tidy up the house. Marcy looked at Anne, who had been pretending to be normal since the revelation, walking hurriedly to the kitchen.

"Is everything okay, Miss Marcy?" Pearl asked, Marcy sighed.

"I'm just... I'm a little worried about Anne. The way she is now is exactly why I wanted to explain calmly after dinner.” She put her hand over her eyes. “And I don’t know how to solve this.”

“... Well, have you tried talking to her now?” The young newt asked, the human turned to her in curiosity. “Miss Anne usually tries to hide how she feels so as not to worry others, but she feels better after talking about what’s bothering her.”

Marcy paused for a second, looking at the entrance to the kitchen, was that all it took? Listening to her friend talk about how she felt? It sounded familiar to her, so maybe that’s what she usually did. She thanked the little newt and walked towards her other human friend.

Anne was washing the dishes, looking thoughtful. Marcy approached and began to dry the dishes. Her friend was startled by her sudden appearance, but said nothing. The two began to take care of the dishes in silence, and Marcy realized that Anne was starting to feel a little uncomfortable with that. What could she say?

“... Sergeant.”

Anne blinked, turning to her.

“What?”

“Your title. When I think of Sasha, some part of me thinks of the name Lieutenant, that’s why I sometimes call her that.” Marcy explained, not slowing down the cleaning. “Yours is Sergeant, that’s what I feel when I look at you.”

Anne stared at her a little longer before nodding, returning to cleaning. Once again, silence settled for a while, and Marcy felt her shoulders suspend a little in tension.

“... Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring up an uncomfortable subject...”

“No, it’s okay! I swear! It's just..." Anne sighed, a little dejected. "... It's a little hard for me to know that you don't remember me."

What?

"What?" The smallest human turned to her friend, still shocked by what she heard.

"You said you lost your memories of Earth, right? So you must have forgotten about me at some point and remembered a little when you met Sasha again, or Sasha explained about me to you." Anne gave a small, sad smile. "It's okay, you know a little about who I am and we can help with your memory, but... It's painful to know that someone you care so much about doesn't know who you are. I'm not blaming you for what happened, I would never do that! If I act a little strange with you, it's because of that, it's not your fault!"

Anne kept trying to explain herself, but Marcy wasn't listening. Anne... Did she think Marcy had forgotten her? One of her best and oldest friends thought she didn't remember her? One of the only faces she still recognized from the Toad Tower Incident? One of the only two reasons she knew she came from another world, the other being Sasha?

How could she forget the ones she cared about most in the entire universe, even for a moment?

“... Your name is Anne Savisa Boonchuy, daughter of On Oum Boonchuy and Brian Bee Boonchuy. You are the youngest of our group.” Marcy began to speak, catching Anne’s attention. “I sometimes call you Anna-Banana because there was a time when we were young that you loved yellow and would only dress in that color, looking like a cute banana with limbs.” Anne’s eyes widened with each word Marcy said, but she didn’t stop. “In your room there are a bunch of stars that we glued to look like the night sky when we have sleepovers at your house. As much as you love to eat spicy food, sometimes your stomach can’t handle it and there was a day when you got sick trying to prove that you didn’t have any problems.” Marcy felt her head start to hurt a little, but she didn’t stop mentioning things to Anne. “You love to dance and besides being very social, you are incredibly intelligent. You could pass school with high marks if you wanted to, but you have trouble finding the motivation and determination to do so. You were the one who reached out to me when I was making sandcastles and decided to be my friend and did the same with Sasha...”

Finally, the headache prevented Marcy from focusing. She stopped and leaned against the counter with her eyes closed, feeling Anne’s hands on her arm, and did her best not to shiver and push her friend away unintentionally.

“... I don’t remember a lot of things, Anne, I won’t deny it. There’s a void in my memory that’s a little scary...” Marcy turned to her friend with a serious expression, who was still looking at her with wide eyes, tears forming in them. She placed her hands on top of Anne’s. “... But I could never, ever forget you, Anne. You and Sasha are too precious to me for that to happen.”

Anne didn’t say anything, just hugged her with tears streaming down her eyes. Marcy shivered, but still returned the hug with a small smile, her friend’s touch becoming a very good sensation, if not a little intense. A familiar warmth welled up in Marcy's chest as she felt her friend's body press against hers, a small part of her wondering if if she gently pulled her face closer to meet her, they wouldn't end up leaning in and...

... Hmm. Well...

...That's not good...

***

When Marcy woke up in the middle of the night, pretending to go to the bathroom when a groggy Anne asked where she was going, she quietly slipped out of the house. She gave a quiet whistle and waited a moment.

A small bat appeared, and she held out her arm for it to land on. She petted the little animal and picked up the small paper it was carrying on its leg to read.

‘Strategist,

The army is having some planning issues, but we will be ready soon. Is your mission still progressing smoothly?

-Captain Grime.’

Marcy took out a small paper and wrote down her answer.

‘Captain,

The mission is still a success, no one suspects anything. Anne needs help with something and I will do my best to give the army a few extra days to get ready.

-Strategist Marcy.’

She carefully attached it to the bat’s paw and let the bat fly away, returning home and throwing the Captain’s message into the fire, letting the evidence burn to ashes.

Marcy locked the door and went back to bed.

***

“Alright, I have some good news and some bad news.”

Anne began to explain to everyone in the house. The couch wasn’t big enough for everyone, so Priscilla and Hop Pop were in chairs while the humans and young amphibians were on the couch. Anne was in front of them using a board from last night’s game, a drawing of some building with an arrow pointing to a jewel and a very simple representation of the continent they were on with some markings on it that she pointed out.

“The first good news is that Andrias found a way for us to reuse the power of the Music Box. He also said it was kind of dangerous, but it’s the only way for us to get back.” She said, pointing to the drawing. “It seems that each of the stones in the box can be charged by a specific temple, and each temple has three challenges to keep the ‘unworthy’ away. So if we find all the temples and recharge the stones, we can use dimensional travel again and get back home.”

“It seems simple enough...” Sasha commented, placing a hand on her chin. “...But rarely is anything truly ‘simple’ around here.”

“Yeah, and that’s our first problem.” Anne pointed to the simplistic map, to the two Xs she had marked. “We know roughly where the temples of two stones are, the blue and the pink, but we have no idea where the temple of the green one is.” Anne looked at the map and scratched the back of her head. “Supposedly, the green stone recharge should come first for some reason, but Andrias said that the sequence doesn’t matter so much as the end result.”

“So we’re going to skip the first temple?” Priscilla asked, and Anne simply sighed and nodded.

“At least we recharged the other two. Andrias said it’s possible that a charged gem can lead to another’s temple, so if that’s true, at best we recharge both gems and fly around until they react to something. If not, then we’ll have to rack our brains together to try to figure out the clue that was in the book, which is horrible and I wouldn’t recommend it.”

“A clue?” It was Sprig’s turn to ask.

“Yep, it was with these clues that we know where two temples are located. If you guys figure out the last one, we can do it in order.”

“And what were those clues?” Sprig started to jump up and down a little excitedly, making Anne smile.

“One of them was that the temple with the blue stone is ‘in a field white with storms’...” Anne pointed to the snowy mountain near where Marcy knew the East Tower was. “...And since that’s literally the only place with snow and constant storms, it was easy to locate. The temple of the pink stone is ‘on a raging scorching mountain’...” This time, she pointed to the volcano, near the North Tower. “... Which even I understood was a fancy way of saying ‘active volcano’, and the only known active volcano is this one, so it must be around here.”

“Well, so far they’ve been pretty easy to understand. What’s the clue about the green stone?” Hop Pop asked, and Anne grimaced, as if remembering something that deeply irritated her.

“... ‘Within a green sea of ​​luminescence and shadows’.”

The room went silent.

“... Sorry Anne, I think I misheard.” Sasha wiped her ear and leaned forward, forcing a smile. “Can you repeat that?”

“‘Within a green sea of ​​luminescence and shadows’.”

“... I hadn’t misheard...” The blonde looked shocked for a moment, but her expression quickly turned to anger. “What the hell kind of clue is that!? Why on Frog does the supposed first temple have a clue like that?!”

“‘Within a green sea of ​​luminescence and shadows’... It could be some forest, probably a famous one.” Pearl commented and Polly rolled her eyes.

“Of course, it’s not like we have dozens of famous forests...”

“That’s, like, half of all Amphibia!!!” Sprig almost shouted in disbelief, and Anne simply sighed as she nodded.

Marcy stared at the map while the rest discussed, placing a hand on her chin as she thought. She realized that the locations of the two temples kind of lined up with each other, as well as being close to the Toad Towers. If she were to follow that logic, then the other temple should be close to the South Tower or the West Tower, right? Unless it was located right in the middle of them, creating a sort of scalene triangle with the temples as its points.

That would mean that the temple with the green stone was closer than the others, but where? ‘Within a green sea of ​​luminescence and shadows’ definitely meant that the temple existed in a forest, which really didn’t help much, considering that the valley they were in was surrounded by at least two or three famous forests.

Marcy closed her eyes.

Why was the clue for this temple so vague? The others gave a location that was relatively simple to find by basic reasoning and elimination, but this specific clue sounded so broad that it was hard to point to just one place. Unless they were missing something.

‘Within a green sea of ​​luminescence and shadows.’...

...

...Why ‘luminescence’ and not simply ‘light’?

...Maybe... This specific exchange is the clue to knowing the location?

The ‘green sea’ obviously means forest, that’s what some newts in this world liked to call forests they didn’t know the name of, and this so-called forest is full of luminescence and shadow. The latter makes sense, the day and night cycle affects how and how much shadow there will be in the forest, but the first is strange.

‘Luminescence’ implies that it has nothing to do with the day and night cycle, and everything to do with some chemical or ionic reaction, but the trees in this world don’t have that. No matter how different this world is from Earth, many of the physical or biological logics there can be applied here, and there are no trees that are capable of doing something like that without being genetically modified. The closest thing to something that is luminescent and fixed are...

... Mushrooms. Bioluminescent mushrooms.

Mushrooms that can easily reach three meters or more in height in this world. Mushrooms that had little difficulty growing in harmony with various plants and trees here.

When Marcy opened her eyes to look at the map again and try to find some drawing that would serve as a denial or incentive for her logic, she realized that the room was silent. She blinked, confused, and looked to the side.

Sasha and Anne were watching her patiently. The blonde rested her face on one hand while the other human was behind the sofa, leaning on the back. They both smiled at her, making her blush.

“W-What is it?”

“Nothing, just waiting for our Sherlock Holmes to solve the case.” Anne commented, turning around to stand in front of Marcy. “You stared at the map for a long time, and then you were thoughtful for even longer.”

“We knew you were in the zone to solve the clue, so we waited for the verdict.” Sasha explained, leaning back against the couch. Sprig leaned forward to be visible behind the blonde.

“You weren’t moving, and I’m pretty sure you weren’t breathing for a moment either! It was amazing and scary at the same time!” His words made Marcy blush a little more. Sasha reached out and, when Marcy didn’t react, placed it on her arm.

“So, do you have any idea where the temple is?” Marcy looked back at the map.

“I… I think so… But I’d need to do some research first, and that might take a while.” She turned to Anne with a small smile. “For now, we can just do the temples we know roughly where they are. Then I can try to find the last one, maybe even research it in between trips.”

“Sure.” Anne nodded, approaching the board again. “In that case, we can move on to the second piece of good news: Since we know the general location of both temples and the order doesn’t matter, we can choose which one to go to first. We’ll just have to be careful because if we fail once, we won’t be able to enter again. So, mountain or volcano?”

Marcy looked at the map again. Considering how close it was to the North Tower, it would be best if they avoided the volcano for now; if they saw any suspicious movement while traveling to the temple, things would get very troublesome. Luckily, she didn’t need to say anything.

“I think it would be best if we just do the mountain.” Priscilla replied, crossing her arms. “On the volcano, the heat should make us dry out and wither, which means we’ll need to prepare and stock up on various items to help keep our moisture. On the mountain, we just need to wear warm clothes and we won’t go into instant hibernation, much simpler and faster.”

“The time we would use to get these items can also be used for Marcy to search the first temple.” Sasha nodded as she spoke, her hand still on Marcy’s arm. She definitely wasn't blushing. "I agree with Priscilla, we should do the mountain first. I think we have enough fur to make warm coats for everyone."

"Fur?" The armored human turned to her friend in confusion, the blonde nodded.

"From weasels."

"... Did you hunt a weasel?"

"No, it's just that Sasha's Giant Weasel babies finally got their spring fur, just like the mother weasel. So the fur from the snow fur is still scattered all over their barn." Marcy explained, leaving her other friend and the newts staring at her still confused.

"... Does Sasha have a pet weasel?"

"Shenanigans happens when the temperature here dropped."

***

The landing wasn't as smooth as they had hoped.

Joe Sparrow was carrying the three humans and five amphibians, Frobo was left to look after the house. They did have enough fur for a few coats, and Sasha had someone in the village make amphibian-sized coats, since they were more vulnerable. There was a bit of an argument among the squad because Priscilla thought it would be better if Anne and Marcy didn't take their armor because the cold weather might hurt them if they wore so much metal, which was more of a problem for Marcy than Anne. Eventually, Priscilla and Pearl convinced Anne to leave her armor with Joe, but not the cloak, which she used as a scarf. Sasha let Marcy wear the top half of the armor, as long as she wore warm coats and swapped her metal boots for snow boots.

They were then flying through the fields of Amphibia Arctic, trying to find any structure that looked strange in a place like that. When Anne said she had seen a stone arch, she had Joe land near it.

Right on top of a frozen lake.

Needless to say, its thin legs and sharp claws didn't have enough friction to keep it from slipping and sliding until it crashed into a nearby tree.

Marcy quickly climbed out of the pile of snow it was buried in, pulling as much of its head off as possible. She saw her friends doing the same and helping the buried amphibians, so she decided to help the large bird turn around and stabilize itself in a place where it wouldn't slip again.

"Come on guys, that's where I saw the stone arch." Anne pointed in a direction, half covered in fog. "The temple must be over there."

The squad started walking in that direction, the fog growing thicker for a moment before clearing, revealing exactly what Anne had seen. The stone arch was tall and long, looking like the base of a gate, a blue crystal glowing faintly in the center of the arch.

Words glowed blue across the top of the gate, Ancient Runes, if Marcy remembered correctly. Her head hurt a little, but she understood enough to know what was written there. Anne took out a small notebook with some letters and alternated between looking at the Ancient Runes and what was written in her notebook.

“‘J... Just... Just away’? No, that’s not it...” Anne was a little frustrated as she tried to read, Marcy felt sorry for her and read the runes carefully.

“‘Just beyond these snowy gates, a grueling perilious temple awaits’.” She translated, her squad turned to her.

“Can you understand what is written?” Sprig asked in surprise, Marcy nodded as she looked away from the arch, easing her pain.

“It shouldn’t be much different from the current writing, and all the little writing I managed to find there with the toads wasn’t in our language. I had to learn what each letter meant if I wanted to understand the contents of the books.” Grime and Braddock had been kind enough to help her catalog each letter and which one corresponded to the Earth letter. Luckily, the writing was similar to where she came from, she didn’t want to know how complicated it would be if it was something more like Chinese or something.

“What are you talking about? I can’t understand it and I’ve studied at the University of Newtopia.” Priscilla said, looking back at the runes with a slight frown. “This doesn’t look anything like the current writing.”

Marcy blinked, and turned back to the writing. Now that she stopped to look at it, it did indeed look a little different than what she was used to, different letters and sometimes abbreviated, but she could still read it as if it were written in her own language. She had no idea how.

Her head hurt every time she tried to read it, though, so she looked away.

“I... I'm not sure. I'm reading it like normal runes, but my head hurts a little when I try to think too much.” She confessed, massaging her temple. Sasha approached her.

“Maybe you've already researched something like this, but forgot? You said you usually get a headache when you remember something.” Her friend's comment made her think for a moment, but she quickly shook her head to keep from hyperfocusing again.

“Maybe, but for now, we should move on from this temple and recharge the gem.” Marcy noticed her friends looking at each other, Anne looking worried and Sasha resigned, but neither of them said anything and her squad entered through the stone archway to where the temple should be.

Only to find nothing.

“Could it be invisible?” Sprig stretched out his arms and tried in vain to touch something in the air, eventually falling face down on the ground as he leaned on nothing.

“Are temples supposed to be like this? A big empty field?” Pearl asked Anne, who simply blinked.

“I… I’m not sure. Andrias said that everything about temples was pretty vague, and the temple with the blue stone only mentions the word ‘heart’ a few times.”

“Okay. Are we looking for something heart-shaped?” Hop Pop asked as he made a heart with his hands.

“Maybe we have to rip someone’s heart!” Polly shouted excitedly at the thought of violence.

While everyone was thinking, a bird screeched past them, startling them. Sasha blinked in surprise as she watched the bird fly past the archway.

“Wait a minute… I know that bird!” Without hesitation, Sasha started following it, and the squad did the same.

They ran for a few minutes before finding a large stall with a few items available. A sign reading ‘Valeriana’s Mysterious Goods’ was boldly displayed at the entrance.

“Valeriana? Sasha, didn’t we meet her at the Bizarre Bazaar?” Sprig asked the blonde, who nodded with a serious expression.

“That must be what she meant by ‘we’ll meet again at some point in the future.’ She probably knew about the temples.”

“Wait, did you guys find someone who knew about the temples?!” Anne almost shouted the question at Sasha, who crossed her arms while waving her hand in a more or less sign.

“Maybe? I can’t be sure. She wasn’t exactly ‘Mrs. Very Clear With Words’ with us, always acting like she knew more than she let on. She said something about I shouldn’t be in that place and that it changed everything or something bizarre like that.” Sasha grumbled, her gaze still fixed on the tent. “But it’s possible, she’s kind of weird and creepy with all the suspicious knowledge she has somehow. Plus, she mentioned that she had traveled all over Amphibia, so it wouldn’t surprise me that ‘traveled all over Amphibia’ also included the temple we were looking for.”

“And when exactly does she come back?” Priscilla asked as she looked at the ‘out for lunch’ sign. Sasha shrugged.

“No idea. I still have no idea why she disappears like that for lunch.”

“Because it’s the most important meal of the day!”

The squad jumped at the sudden voice that came from behind them. When they turned around, they found a brown Newt with red eyes and white hair approaching with a skewer of insects in her hand. She had some yellow parts and didn’t seem to have one of her arms, her tail having a glove at the end, she also wore a black cloak half-patched with a brooch in the shape of a red hourglass.

“It’s been a while, creature.” The Newt, Valeriana, commented as she ate the last insect. “What brings you and your friends here? Do you by chance...” She threw the stick up, which began to grow and curve at one end until it became a kind of curved staff when it fell back into her hand, then pointed at them. “... Seek a temple to charge an ancient stone?"

“See? Weird and creepy.” Sasha commented, seeming not at all affected by the sudden appearance or the transformation of the staff.

“Oh, yes! You know about the stones?” Anne, already overcoming her shock, asked excitedly. Valeriana placed her staff on the ground, leaning it like a cane.

“Indeed.  But do you really think you are worthy?” She asked, narrowing her eyes. Marcy felt a shiver, it could have been her paranoia, but she could have sworn that the newt’s gaze was fixed on Anne.

“We wouldn’t be here if we didn’t believe, don’t you think?” Was Sasha’s answer, which seemed amusing to Valeriana, since she smiled.

“We shall see.”

It wasn’t Marcy’s imagination, she was really staring at Anne. Marcy wasn’t sure why or if the others noticed, but she didn’t care, she would keep an eye on that newt. She wouldn’t allow anyone to hurt her friends, so if this Valeriana proved to be a threat…

Well, by the state of her spear, it wouldn’t be the first time she had taken a life. And she would always have the tent behind her or the royal library to try to find clues about the temple.

***

“I am the last of an ancient Order. Our purpose was to study the sacred stones and temples.” Valeriana explained as she opened a map. Everyone was inside the tent, which looked like a cozy house with a fireplace.

“So, do you know where the temple is?” Was Marcy’s question, still focused on the hooded newt. So far, she hadn’t done anything too much, letting everyone enter her tent and starting explaining everything the moment they sat down. Still, Marcy was keeping an eye on her and she could tell that Sasha was too, for different reasons than hers.

“Indeed. And you possess the Music Box?” The newt asked, and Anne nodded excitedly.

“Sure do.” Anne took the Music Box from her backpack and presented it. Valeriana’s eyes seemed to shine for a moment.

“ After all these years, it has returned.” She held out her hands slightly, almost looking bewitched. “I should very much like to hold it.”

“Maybe next time.” Sasha commented, still not looking bothered. Anne seemed hesitant, and then put the box back.

“Yeah, I'd rather hold on to it.” Valeriana almost looked disappointed as she stood up.

“Suit yourself.” She walked over to some drawers and began rummaging through them. “I could not help but notice that none of the stones are charged. Is this your first temple?”

“Yeah, it was the first one we found where to find. We’ll find the other two soon.” Was the blonde’s response, Valeriana hummed.

“It really is different than it should be...” Marcy was sure the newt had muttered that, but before she could ask, Valeriana began speaking audibly. “To get to the temple, we must climb the freezing cliffs of Mount Mutu.” She turned, pulling on several furry coats. “The amphibians are already prepared for bad weather, but not you creatures. Leave your flimsy jackets and wear these caterpilar-wool coats instead.”

She threw three of them, two the size of a newt and another the size of a toad, or a relatively tall frog. Since she was the smallest of the squad, she wore the smallest coat, which reached her thighs, her pants would have to be enough to protect her legs from the cold.

As she thought about this, Anne approached her and wrapped her cloak around her waist, making Marcy look at her in surprise.

"You need this more than I do." She said with a small smile, Marcy looked away as she felt her face burn. Damn feelings.

“Since this temple is my responsibility, you all must do exactly as I say. Or else you can say goodbye to ever finding it. ” Valeriana crossed her ‘arms’ and glared at the squad with narrowed eyes. “Are we clear?”

“Clear!” The squad nodded. Hop Pop ran his hand over his Weasel coat and then the Caterpillar one Sasha was wearing before speaking.

“Clear and comfy!”

“Good. Follow me.” The newt started to leave the tent, with most of them following her. Anne stopped Sasha and Marcy from doing the same.

“Girls, something's not right about this lady..” Anne said to her friends, looking suspicious. “You also saw how she looked at the Music Box, didn’t you? Plus, she owns a parrot. Only bad guys own parrots. I speak from experience.”

Marcy nodded, she agreed with her friend’s opinion, maybe not the parrot part specifically, but everything else. That Valeriana was suspicious and didn't even try to hide it, and that's worrying. She has no idea what the newt wants with the box, but it can't be something good.

Sasha, on the other hand, blinked slowly.

"I won't say I don't understand why you said that, she really is kind of strange." She gently released her hand from Anne's grip. "But you don't have to worry, she's weird and enigmatic, but she's not a bad person, I know that."

"How are you sure?" Marcy asked, Sasha shrugged.

"There were shenanigans when Sprig and I went to the Bizzare Bazaar and it's only because of her that we're still here, and that was before she said those weird things to us. So I know she's not as bad as she could be."

"... You have to explain to us how you managed to get yourself into so much trouble."

"I'd like to know too, now come on, she won't wait for us."

***

“Quickly! I'd like to reach the temple in this century.” Valeriana shouted to the squad, who were having a bit of trouble climbing a specific part of the mountain. She rolled her eyes as she leaned on her staff. “How could adventurers so lazy ever except to conquer the temple?”

Anne gritted her teeth, and Marcy silently shared her frustration. It was still impressive that the newt could move in that difficult area, but if she lived there, it made sense. Priscilla had her daughter and Polly on her back, and both Sasha and Sprig helped Hop Pop when he needed momentum. Anne approached Marcy and helped her climb a relatively steep part of the mountain.

“Don’t listen to her guys, we’re almost there.” She commented, helping Priscilla this time who was having trouble stabilizing where they had stopped. Marcy heard a song echo quickly in the air, almost a whistle, before being replaced by an aggressive chant with a shadow close to them.

When they looked up, they found a red bird with four black eyes hovering a short distance from the squad, staring at them. It screamed again, and as the squad recoiled and screamed in surprise, Marcy couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, that almost incomprehensible murmur cataloging the bird.

“Is that... a cardinal?”

“Is it something bad?” Pearl asked quickly, Marcy tilted her head slightly.

“It shouldn't, they don't eat amphibians and they're not as territorial as other birds. So why is it here?”

The answer to Marcy's question came in the form of the cardinal lunging at her with its beak open to devour her, an attempt that was a complete failure, as Sasha, faster than anyone in the group, punched the bird very hard in the beak, making it recoil in pain. The cardinal screamed at Sasha and lunged again, who simply did the same and jumped on top of it, hanging onto it and holding its beak closed.

“I thought you said they didn’t eat amphibians!” Priscilla shouted, also jumping on the bird and grabbing its legs, making it lose its balance a little due to the sudden increase in weight.

“They shouldn’t!” Marcy shouted back, silently cursing herself for leaving her hand crossbow at the Plantars’ house, her spear could hit someone in her squad or her friends if she was reckless. She didn’t understand, cardinals didn’t eat amphibians or mammals, so why…

A primitive voice made her look again at what she was wearing, and suddenly, everything made sense.

“Sasha! Anne! Cardinals eat larvae and things like that! It wants our coats!!”

Sasha turned to her, which was enough for the bird to unbalance her and make her let go, falling straight to the base of the mountain.

Marcy’s heart stopped, for a second, she was back in the tower, everything was collapsing around her.

She barely noticed her body moving until she had already grabbed Sasha’s hand, supporting herself on the edge, the only thing that kept Sasha from collapsing completely in the tower, but it wouldn’t be enough, her hand was slipping, her friend would let go of her hand and she would fall and...

Sasha held her tightly, placing her other hand and her feet on the wall for support. The small pink and orange frog hands helped Marcy pull the blonde, who quickly climbed up without any problem. She was panting a little, looking at something behind Marcy as the sound of the cardinal grew quieter, before turning to her human friend and gently wiping something off Marcy's face. Something wet.

Tears.

Marcy didn't even realize she was crying until that moment, when she also realized she was having a hard time breathing, everything around her a little blurry. Shaking, she tried to hug herself to calm herself, but it only made her breathing and crying worse. She felt strong arms hugging her and she quickly reciprocated, desperately clutching her friend.

They stayed like that for a while before she felt another warm presence on her back, also hugging her, her tears finally subsiding. It took a while longer before she felt well enough to pull away, breathing deeply for a few more seconds before opening her eyes. Sasha stared at her in a mixture of guilt and recognition.

"... It was the memories of what happened in the Tower, wasn't it?"

Still not trusting her own voice, she nodded. Sasha hugged her once more before letting go, helping her stand up. When she did so, still with wobbly legs, she was greeted by another hug, this time from behind, and she turned to receive the hug from her other friend. When she pulled away, leaning on her friend to stand, she realized that something was missing.

“My coat? I threw it down there so the cardinal would stop attacking us.” Anne answered her question, shivering slightly. Marcy pulled the cloak around her waist and placed it on her shoulder, trying to protect her from the cold wind. Sasha approached with a worried look, also supporting Marcy.

“That was very reckless, Anne...”

“Indeed it was!” Valeriana suddenly shouted, making the squad jump in surprise. She pointed her staff at Anne, who was still shaking a little. “You think it wise that you abandoned your coat?”

“Well, I had to do something! I couldn’t leave my friends hanging from birds and cliffs!” Anne snapped, letting out a groan of pain as the newt slammed her staff into her head

“Impulsive! And defensive! Very unworthy qualities, I must say.” She then turned to Marcy, and her gaze seemed different from before. “The path will only get more complicated and difficult the higher we go, we not have time to take care of any problems while we go to the temple. If you don’t feel well, I suggest you go back and wait in my shop.”

Marcy frowned, she wanted to say that she was fine and that she could continue the journey, but she knew that she couldn’t. Her legs were still shaky and her voice had yet to return, not to mention that the movement she had made to save Sasha had stretched her still-not-fully-healed torso wound. It would be a miracle if she could climb any higher as she was.

“... I agree, Marcy.” Anne was the one who said, surprising the other human. “I don’t doubt you can do it, but you really don’t look well, you’re still very pale and panting.” She gave a small smile. “We can do that, you try to rest for now.”

“Don’t worry, everything will be fine, I promise.” Sasha commented, turning to the Plantars. “Can you take Marcy back to the cabin? To make sure she arrives safely and that she will rest properly as we asked instead of doing something else.” The last words she said as she turned to Marcy with an arched eyebrow, as if challenging her. Marcy wisely looked down.

“Leave it to me, Sash! I won’t let her do anything grand!” Sprig said proudly.

“I might as well take a rest too. That climb was too much for my back.” Hop Pop commented as he stretched his spine.

Polly didn’t say anything, just crossed her arms and pouted, obviously unhappy with the situation.

“Thanks, guys… And Marcy.” She looked up at the blonde again, who despite her harsh tone, smiled softly. “… You’re not being useless, you’re just tired from working so hard and hurt by things we’ve done in the past. Everyone deserves a break every now and then and that includes you.”

Marcy hesitated for a few more seconds before nodding, stepping back a little and being supported by Hop Pop. Sasha opened her coat and pulled Anne closer to her and share the coat, Marcy could have sworn she saw a slight blush on Anne’s face. Anne asked if Pearl wanted to come back too, but she was comfortable on her mother’s shoulder, so she declined. The squad split up and Marcy observed once more at Sasha and Anne climbing up a part of the mountain together before they looked back at her and waved, which she returned with a small smile.

Slowly, against her will, ignoring the part of her that wanted to prove she could be useful or not disposable, she and the Plantars made their way down the mountain to wait for the rest of the squad.

***

A few hours later, after everyone had gathered together again, Marcy severely reconsidered her judgment against Valeriana.

“So all this time, she was purposefully acting like a rude jerk towards us so that we would get mad at her… Because she was essentially the temple and was testing Anne to see if she was worthy of carrying the gem?”

“Basically.” Sasha nodded. The squad had stopped at a nearby village because most of them were hungry, and since the trip to Wartwood would be kind of long, they stopped to buy some food. The humans were waiting outside the village, updating their friend on what had happened, Anne also took the opportunity to put her armor back on. “I told you she wasn’t as bad as she looked and acted.”

“I still can’t believe we’ve been being tested ever since we found her! That’s kind of crazy!” Anne rested her head on one hand. “Do you think all temples are like this?”

“Maybe, or maybe the blue gem just has a different test than the others. You said the book about it used the word ‘heart’ a lot, didn’t you?” Anne nodded, and Marcy picked up a twig and began drawing on the ground. “It’s kind of hard to test someone’s heart and character with the same riddles every time, so maybe it was different because it requires a unique and specific challenge for each person trying to get through the temple.”

“Maybe.” Anne pulled the Music Box out of her backpack, the blue stone with its color restored and a ray of light of the same color coming out and pointing in some direction. “Valeriana said that, even though we skipped the first temple, we can use this light to guide us to the next temple and the next charged stone will do the same. We could try to find the temple with the green gem with this.”

“We could, but I think it would be better to get the pink as soon as we planned. We already know where it is, after all, we just don’t know the exact location.” Besides, Marcy thought to herself, the Toad Army is probably already preparing to march on Newtopia. She could focus more on finding her way home than distracting her friends.

“Yeah, you’re right. No need to rush.” The trio was quiet for a moment, waiting for the amphibians to return, before Anne turned to the blonde. “Hey, Sash... Are you okay? You’ve been kind of quiet and thoughtful since the temple.”

Sasha didn't speak for a second, her eyes half clouded as she looked away. She took a deep breath and straightened, a determined glint emerging in her eyes as she turned to them, even with a somewhat dejected expression.

“It's just that, after everything we've been through, especially in this temple... It made me realize that there's something I should have said a long time ago.” She took another deep breath, as if preparing herself for something. “I'm sorry.”

Marcy blinked in surprise, watching the blonde look away and run her hand over the back of her neck with a dejected expression. Anne tilted her head in confusion.

“Sorry for what? These temples seem to be focused on just one person, don't they? It's not your fault you couldn't help me in the end.” She said, and Marcy nodded in agreement. Sasha may not have been able to do much for what they said, but it didn't change the fact that she protected them from the cardinal and took care of Anne more than Marcy did.

“It's not about the temple... At least, not exactly.” Sasha sighed and turned back to face her friends. “I'm sorry for the way I treated you back on Earth.” Anne tensed, and so did Marcy. She still didn’t have many memories of Earth, and most of them were from when Sasha or Anne protected her, but Sasha had said that she wasn’t the best person in the world on Earth like she remembered. “I can't exactly say why, but at some point, it felt right for me to have full control over what we did. I thought I was protecting you guys... But now I know I was just being a control freak.”

“...I wouldn't use the term 'Control Freak', maybe just a little... Power-hungry?” Marcy cringed at her own choice of word, it was a very poor choice. Anne cringed too, but Sasha simply gave a small, humorous laugh.

“Of course, use whatever term you like.” Her expression turned serious again. “It doesn't change the fact that I ended up using and hurting you because of that attitude, directly or not. And being completely honest? I've always liked the person I am, but I think now that I know how to be what I like about myself and still be a good friend, I'm starting to really love being myself.”

Gently, hesitating for a second with Marcy, she took her friends’ hands, a small smile forming on her face as she watched her thumb caress the gloves the other humans wore. Marcy felt her face heat up, a slight shock circulating through her body from the light sensation she had in her hand.

“And I guarantee you that I will do everything to be my best version. For you, and for myself.”

Marcy’s heart raced as she looked at the blonde, her face with that gentle smile and the words she had spoken just now, making butterflies fly in her stomach. She was almost certain she heard a high-pitched squeal and a happy purr deep in her brain.

Anne placed her hand on top of Sasha’s with a small smile, her cheeks flushing slightly. The movement was enough to snap Marcy out of her stupor.

“I wasn't much better either. I should have tried to talk more about how I felt about doing certain things or not. 'Trying to impose my choices', as you say.” Marcy held her blonde friend’s hand tightly and looked away, feeling slightly guilty.

“I think…I should have listened to more people. Stop trying to be just the mediator and do something for me.” She commented, trying to ignore the irony of her own words with her current situation.

“I think we all got it wrong in the end, didn't we?” Sasha chuckled. “So, what do you think we try to be better from now on? So that something like that doesn't happen anymore.”

She looked at her friends with a warm smile and a kind gaze, and Marcy felt her blush grow again before nodding. Sasha laughed lightly and pulled them both into a hug, the usual electricity running through Marcy's body almost too much for her to handle, but she returned the affection that was being given to her as best she could...

... While trying to ignore the gigantic guilt and remorse that her conscience suddenly began to bear with those words.

Sasha had admitted that she hadn't been a good friend, that sometimes she purposely manipulated them because it was more convenient for her. That she had ignored her and Anne's will for her own sake and had no idea how they had put up with her for so long. Now she was trying to be better for all of them, and so far she was doing a wonderful job. Meanwhile, Marcy was manipulating them and using her knowledge and her situation to make her friends do what she wanted.

How, and when exactly, had things changed so much between them?

Marcy closed her eyes tightly, resting her head on the blonde's shoulder to prevent them from seeing her expression. Soon, Captain Grime would take over Newtopia. When he did, Marcy would take them back home ,and then, do everything she could to regain their friendship

And when they parted ways, just in time for the amphibians to return from their shopping trip, she swore that she wouldn't let anything happen to either of them.

***

At night, when everyone was asleep, Marcy left the house, being careful not to wake the newts sleeping in the living room. She looked around quickly before giving a quiet whistle. A small bat appeared and hung on her outstretched arm, she petted the little animal and read the paper tied to its paw.

‘Strategist,

We are almost done with everything, soon our army will begin moving towards the kingdom. Any updates needed?

-Captain Grime.’

Marcy took a small piece of paper and wrote down her answer.

‘Captain,

Anne and Sasha will soon be heading towards the volcano near the Tower. I suggest you move quickly and in small groups similar to the patrol so as not to arouse suspicion.

-Strategist Marcy.’

She attached it to the bat's paw and let it fly, returning to the house and locking the door before throwing the message into the fireplace, watching as it was consumed by the small flames. Then she went back down to the basement.

Sasha was sitting on the bed next to Anne, turning to her. Marcy managed to keep from reacting in surprise.

“Sorry, did I wake you?”

“No, I just noticed you weren’t here. Is something wrong?” Sasha asked as she yawned, still tired.

“No, I just had to use the bathroom.” Lying to the blonde hurt more than before, probably because of their conversation. Marcy went to her bed and lay down. “Good night, Sasha.”

“... Good night Mar-Mar.”

***

The volcano was as hot as she had imagined, but not at all suffocating as she had expected.

A few days after the temple of the blue stone, after some discussion and planning, a few bottles of water and anything that would retain moisture were the choices made to be taken in a bag and in Anne's backpack, or else they would have to carry several pieces of luggage. Sasha also got a typical Newtopian armor, with a special frame on the back that allowed her to put her scythe on it, but she completely ignored the ridiculous helmet. When everything was ready, they mounted the bird and flew towards the most active volcano in Amphibia, following the blue light to guide the right path.

"And, wha-bam!" As soon as they landed, better this time than the last, Anne raised the box a little, showing that the light was pointing directly at a strange structure on the mountain. As if reacting to the presence of the other stone, a pink glow began to appear and create a design similar to the stone gate of the last temple. "The entrance to the temple of the pink stone!"

The squad got off the bird, which had nestled down to rest, and approached the drawing. The words written in that strange language that Marcy could understand were there again. She knew she would get a headache again, but she still went to translate what it said.

And instantly raised her eyebrow in confusion and skepticism at what she understood.

“What's it say, Marcy? What's it say?!” The pink frog asked excitedly, tugging at her cape a little. Marcy blinked.

“This can’t be right...” She rubbed her eyes and tried to look again, this time with the glasses she wore on her head. The words didn’t change. “‘Lift to enter, brah.’?”

“... Like, figuratively or literally?” Sasha asked, Marcy could only shrug.

“Well, there’s only one way to find out.” Without hesitation, the red newt approached the drawing and placed her hands on a small opening that Marcy hadn’t noticed. She took a deep breath and pushed upward, the stone moving and creating an entrance that everyone could pass through. She took a step back as she wiped the sweat from her face with a smile.

Literally, then.

“Wow, good job, Priscilla!” The squad clapped, and Marcy was compelled to do the same.

“Alright, let's go crush this temple!” Anne ran excitedly into the temple, the group not hesitating to follow.

When they entered, the atmosphere was even hotter than outside, but still strangely easy to breathe. Maybe Amphibia’s volcanoes had some different property than Earth’s volcanoes that reduce the amount of heavy gases or something. They were surrounded by lava on both sides, the path being essentially a land bridge to the other side. Several giant statues of incredibly muscular amphibians decorated the place, supporting part of the ceiling and serving as decoration for what must be the main gate.

“Wow, It's hot in here...” Anne complained as she wiped the sweat from her face.

“Yeah, even though it’s a volcano...” Marcy also complained, trying in vain to wave her hands in her face to try to cool herself down.

“I told you to leave those capes at home, it’ll only make you hotter.” Sasha, unlike her friends, didn’t seem too bothered by the temperature even as she sweated a little. She looked back and jumped in fright. “WOW, are you guys okay?!”

Anne and Marcy also turned around and jumped in fright. Marcy knew they would get dehydrated from the heat of the place, but she didn’t imagine it would be so much. They were all wrinkled like raisins, looking like they had lost several pounds and were just skin and bones, even the newt had shrunk slightly and her arms looked like those of the humans.

“Just... A little dehydrated from the heat.” The orange frog coughed dryly. “We'll be alright.”

“I think we’ll... Need these bottles sooner than expected.” The red newt also coughed, everyone’s voices sounding a little hoarse.

Anne and Sasha grabbed a bottle from their backpacks, letting the amphibians distribute it among them to steady themselves and give them what was left to drink, then they walked back to the entrance. In the other room, there was an even narrower path in a lava lake with a single door on the other side of the bridge. A pink glow caught the group's attention and a stone chest surrounded by pink crystals sat in the corner of where it had been, a new phrase glowing in the empty space of the crystals and the chest.

“‘Whoa, there boss. Think you're strong to get across?’” Marcy translated, still a little unsure of how casual this temple seemed to be.

“Still being quite literal, huh?” Sasha asked without really needing the answer.

“I have a distinct feeling that this is the temple of strength.” Anne commented wryly with a neutral expression. The chest opened, revealing several medium-sized hammers of black metal.

“Wonder what those are for.” The pink frog asked aloud. No sooner had the words left his mouth than a giant worm-like creature roared out of the lava, ready to try and devour the little pink frog.

Again, faster than any of them could react, Sasha grabbed one of the hammers, ran towards the little frog and slammed the hammer right into the creature's head, which quickly retreated into the lava. A second one appeared and seemed to bite something off of Sasha, but she also hammered its head and made it retreat. The squad watched as more of the creatures jumped down the dirt path to get to the other side of the lava lake, there were so many of them. Sasha looked down at the hammer she was holding and casually tossed it up before catching it.

"Yep, that weighs a ton. Not everyone is going to be able to carry that." She pulled the pink frog away from the edge and closer to the squad, looking at everyone. "Priscilla and I can carry that, you too Anne, but the others can't. So, here’s what we’re going to do: Priscilla goes in front and I’ll stay in the back, all of you stay close and let Anne hammer away at anything that escapes us both, okay?”

“I can’t use the hammer, but I can use my spear.” Marcy volunteered, her hand already reaching for her staff-spear.

“Wouldn’t that be cheating? They gave you the hammers for a reason, didn’t they?” The orange frog seemed a little wary as he questioned.

“Mom, Miss Anne and Sasha will each be taking a hammer, so we’re still following the temple rules.” Was the blue newt’s response, Sasha nodded in agreement and picked up a second hammer, easily spinning both in her hands. Marcy’s eyes were instinctively drawn to her arms.

“Then let’s go, hammer time!”

With that plan in place, it was easy to pass through the lava lake. Whenever a creature appeared, it would be hit by the hammer of whoever was leading or Sasha, and if they managed to avoid both, Anne and Marcy would finish off the enemy. Anne had difficulty moving the hammer very fast, but she still hit with almost as much force as the ones leading and protecting the squad. Besides, despite being immune to the burns her spear usually causes, a blow from her staff mode would stun them enough for Anne to finish the job.

In no time, they crossed the second gate, where they stopped to rest a bit. Anne grabbed a bottle for everyone to distribute and Sasha went to grab something from her side, starting what seemed like a frantic search before looking at the door and growling in anger.

“You okay, Sasha?” The pink pollywog asked, which made Sasha snort.

“That second worm stole my bag! The bottles I was supposed to carry now were melted in the lava!” She growled, Anne turned around worried.

“Wait, seriously?” She rummaged through her backpack, seeming to count the bottles, and then to the squad. “I don’t have many supplies in my backpack... And we can’t even retreat and try again later! Damn it!”

“I guess we have no choice but to move forward and be quick, then.” The red newt said, standing up next. The pink frog looked regretful.

“I’m sorry, Sasha. If I had paid attention…” Sasha gently ruffled his hat, silencing him.

“Hey, don’t worry, I should have noticed the bag was taken too. So how about we both take the blame so they cancel each other out?” She winked at the end, making the little frog laugh a little.

After the brief rest, they continued forward. The hallway was suffocating with a few more rivers of lava running down the walls, somehow almost as hot as the entrance. Marcy saw that some of the amphibians were starting to stagger, but she ignored it. Soon they would carry the jewel and they could go back to the swamp to cool off.

Finally, they reached the end of the hallway and opened the door, in the room was a gym-like weightlifting equipment made of stone. A closed door with a gem design was on the other side of the small room, and next to the equipment, a stone tablet that glowed as new runic words appeared. Marcy narrowed her eyes as she translated.

“‘Sup, bro'seph. Do you even lift?’” At this point, Marcy simply accepted the way the tests were written.

“Urg, that was the worst so far.” Sasha’s disappointed grimace was almost comical.

“It's not even trying anymore.” Anne’s completely emotionless face almost made Marcy laugh.

“Well, so far, all the tests have been pretty straightforward, so...” Sasha approached the equipment and lay down, placing both hands on the weight and, without any apparent difficulty, stood up.

The door glowed and opened.

“You know, with Sasha and Priscilla on our side, this temple was pretty easy.” The little pollywog commented as the squad moved forward.

“Well, to test someone’s strength, you usually don’t need anything too complicated. It’s muscles being tested, not brains.” Was the muscular newt’s response.

Finally, they reached what appeared to be the final room, a river of lava circling the room and a few of those muscular statues at the entrance. The center vaguely resembled a battle arena with some letters written on it. Marcy was tempted to translate when the door behind them closed, words glowing pink on it.

“‘You've definitely got skill, no doubt. But it's time you learn what strength is all about.’.” That made Marcy blink in surprise, for once it didn’t sound incredibly lazy or slack. This was probably the final test, and a serious one at that.

As she finished translating, the room began to shake. From the ceiling, a colossal creature fell into the arena, a creature that resembled a stone golem, with a physique similar to that of a warrior toad. Sharp or wide stone protrusions decorated its body while veins of lava pulsed, its eyes were glowing yellow and it wore an outfit that looked like a gymnast or a wrestler. It flexed its muscles before getting into a combat stance and calling the squad to battle with one hand.

“Okay, looks like the challenge has finally arrived.” Sasha placed her hand on the handle of her scythe, ready to pull. The rest of the squad did the same, no matter how big this golem was, it would be no match for an attack coming from all sides.

The golem then roared, and the floor of the room glowed pink. Suddenly, everyone fell to the ground, the weight of their bodies and objects becoming much heavier than they should have been.

“Wh... What's happening? It's like a heron decided to lie on top of me.” The red newt grunted, trying to get up.

“That thing has somehow increased the room's gravitational force.” Marcy replied in surprise, feeling her neck and shoulder hurt from the sudden increase in her cape.

“I can't get up.” The little frog tried desperately to move his body, only being able to move his hand. The other amphibians were no better.

“ Just sit tight. Us humans will handle this!” Anne exclaimed, doing her best to get up. Sasha had already gotten up and was taking a step forward.

“Anne, Marcy, take off those capes and the backpack! This will only make things worse for you.” She shouted, and even without that commanding voice, Marcy didn’t hesitate to obey, as did Anne.

Feeling a little lighter, the trio began to slowly approach the golem, which seemed to be laughing at them. It pulled pieces of the ground and rolled towards them as if they were bowling balls. They managed to dodge it, but Marcy ended up falling and struggling to get up, becoming an easy target for another stone ball. Sasha saved her, pulling the smaller human towards her as she rolled to the other side, escaping the blow.

“Are you okay?” She asked, stopping on top of her. As much as she wanted to, Marcy couldn’t help but blush at the proximity.

“Y-Yes, I’m fine!” She tried to get up, but couldn’t lift more than her head. She fell back to the ground. “No... I can’t get up. The gravity's too much.”

“Don't worry. Leave this to us.” Anne and Sasha continued moving forward, sweat running down their faces from the effort.

The golem jumped, making thick stalactites fall to the ground, towards the two advancing humans. They managed to dodge them all, but as soon as the deadly rain stopped, the golem roared again, and they fell to the ground, gravity getting a little stronger, but seemingly even more intense where the two were.

“It feels... Like my lungs are going to explode...” Anne gasped, unable to move another inch.

“Damn... We can't do this...” Sasha was still trying to move, her movement slow and unsteady. The golem took the opportunity to approach and pick up a thick stalactite, ready to use it as a club and hit them both.

“You're right. We can't...” Anne managed to turn to Sasha and smile. “... But you can. I believe in you.”

“What?”

“Anne's right, Sasha.” Marcy forced her lungs to work enough to speak. “If anyone can do this... It's you! You've always been able... To do what no one else has dared to try.”

“You’ve always inspired us, you’re fierce, you're brave, and most of all…” Trembling, Anne raised her hand to give Sasha a thumbs up. “… You never give up.”

Anne’s hand dropped and she was once again unable to move, for a moment, Sasha just stood still, staring at her with wide eyes.

Then she narrowed her eyes with determination.

“You’re right.” She started to stand up, much to the golem’s surprise, who took a step back as Sasha stood up completely. “I’ll never give up. Not today, not ever!”

She pulled her shoulder pads along with her gauntlets and threw them back, the weight of the increased gravity made everything fall to the ground and create a crater, making everyone’s eyes widen. Without hesitation, she did the same with the lower part of the armor, which fell near the pink frog and also destroyed the place by creating a small crater.

“How heavy was that armor?” He asked himself, still amazed.

Sasha pulled her scythe with enough force that the ground around her cracked, the increased gravity making the weapon heavier and more deadly than normal. She charged forward, and so did the golem, swinging it makeshift club, but Sasha easily used the momentum of the ground strike to jump on top of the weapon.

As the golem threw the weapon upward, she jumped, gripping her scythe tightly and spinning in the air once before landing with the blade ready to strike its.

Her scythe was already powerful and sharp, with the increased gravity, it was easy for the blade to go through the golem in a diagonal strike that cut from shoulder to waist. As Sasha landed on the ground behind its, it gave her a thumbs up before exploding, the gravity of the room quickly returning to normal.

Mary gasped slightly, relieved that her body no longer felt like a walking weight. She felt a little bad about not being useful again, but she ignored it in favor of standing up, grabbing her cloak, and approaching her blonde friend along with Anne, who was once again holstering her weapon behind her back. A small, ornate pillar appeared beside them, and the ceiling glowed pink as words appeared.

“‘Congrats, brah. You finally know what it takes to go the distance. For what is true strength without persistence.’” Marcy translated, Anne fumbled with the box a bit and pulled the jewel from the top, handing it to Sasha.

“Here, go ahead.”

Sasha smiled and nodded, taking the gem and placing it in the small hole in the center of the pillar. The stone glowed pink along with the floor, words similar to an incantation written around them. Marcy could have sworn she saw Sasha’s eyes glow the same color.

And then a small part of the bottom of the stone turned pink.

“... Is the charge usually this slow?” Marcy asked, noticing that the color was slowly rising and filling the stone, very slowly.

"Yup! At least, that’s exactly what happened when Valeriana charged the blue one. She said it was because these things are really old.” Anne shrugged, also observing the gem. “It shouldn’t take more than two or three minutes. Five at most.”

“If you say so…” Sasha looked around to try when her eyes widened in panic and she ran, passing by her friends.

The two turned and also widened their eyes at the sight. The amphibians looked even more withered than before, now they were actually able to see the outline of their skeletons, Sasha was desperately holding the orange frog.

“Anne, we need more water!” She shouted desperately, Anne rummaged through her backpack and let out a panicked groan.

“There’s no more! I-I think I gave the last one before I entered the room!” Anne gave Marcy the backpack and picked up her fallen cloak to try to shake the newts, but it didn't seem to have any effect. "W-What are we going to do?!"

Marcy bit her lower lip in thought, trying to think of a solution. The best thing would be to grab them all and take them back outside, but she wasn't sure if leaving now would interrupt the stone's charge or not. The risk seemed too much for her and she wasn't sure if she was willing to sacrifice the chance to return home for them.

Sasha decided for her. She saw the stone charged a little more than halfway, but not yet fully charged, and took it off the pillar. Marcy felt her heart stop for reasons completely different from normal.

"SASHA?! WHAT..."

"IT'S CHARGED ENOUGH!" She put the red newt on her back and picked up the blue newt in one arm, running straight to the entrance. "LET'S GO!!!"

Anne didn't hesitate, she grabbed the pink and orange frogs and quickly followed the blonde. Marcy wanted to hesitate, but Sasha's tone made her grab the pollywog and Anne's backpack and run as well. This was stupid! The gem was already almost charged! They could hold out a little longer in the heat if it meant the stone, the thing that would take them home, could be fully charged!

But as she thought about it, she saw how desperate her friends were and shook her head to dismiss that thought. No, Anne said it could take a few minutes, and it wouldn't be fair to sacrifice the lives of these amphibians who were helping the three of them, especially when most of them were young. Besides, the stone was more than half full, probably 70% or 80% charged, in the worst case scenario, they would only have a one-way trip to Earth until someone managed to fully charge it.

Strengthening her resolve and ignoring that pragmatic thought, she used all her strength to run as fast as she could while protectively holding the pollywog and the backpack.

***

After a desperate Joe flew to the nearest lake and unceremoniously threw all the amphibians into it, the humans sat near the edge while talking.

“So...” Sasha twirled the blue stone and the completely pink stone in her hand. It was releasing that beam of light that indicated the next temple. “... Can anyone see any difference between them?”

“... Actually, no.” Anne held out her hand and Sasha handed over the gems. The human warrior looked at both carefully. “They look exactly the same to me.”

She handed them to Marcy, who also looked closely. In fact, apart from the color, the two had no difference at all. No discoloration, no sparking, not even looking hotter or colder than normal. By all accounts, the pink gem seemed just as charged as the blue one.

“It definitely wasn’t charged like the other one, but it doesn’t look that way. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.” Carefully, she placed the gems in their proper places in the box, the pink beam of light still present. She pulled out the map and spread it on the ground. “I think that in the worst case scenario, once we return to Earth, the pink stone will run out of power again and someone will be forced to recharge it to use it again.”

“If that’s the case, I can let Andrias know what the tests will be so that whoever goes is already prepared. I don’t think that temple will change like the blue stone temple probably will.” Anne approached Marcy with a small smile, making the other blush. “So... What are you doing?”

“T-Triangulating where the stone seems to be taking us.” She shook her head to focus and looked up, seeing the position of the sun and then at the beam of light, she did some mental calculations and traced a line to a forest near Frog Valley. “When we get back to Wartwood, I’ll need to do some extra checking, but I’m pretty sure the temple of the green stone is around here, deep in a forest called Amygdala Woods.”

“I think I’ve heard that name before...” Sasha approached Marcy from the other side, and Marcy shivered and blushed again when she realized how close she was between her two friends. “Maddie said something about needing some mushroom from this forest to cast a spell, if I remember correctly.”

“I-It’s possible. This forest, it’s said that the mushrooms there have magical properties that make them grow very large and glow in the dark.” She pointed to the forest on the map again. “‘Within a green sea of ​​luminescence and shadows’, if ‘green sea’ is forest and ‘luminescence’ is a reference to something that can create its own light, this is the most likely location.”

“Okay, I’ll check on everyone and let them know that we probably already have the next location mapped out for us to go to.” Anne stood up, but Marcy pulled her back down to sit, wincing a little at the contact.

“Actually... I was thinking about asking them to stay in Wartwood this time.” That made the two humans stare at her with wide eyes. Marcy bit her lower lip. “Listen, I appreciate their help and everything they’ve done for us, but so far, every temple we’ve made has had something in the environment that was extremely deadly to them. The cold and heat bother us, and it can be dangerous if we're not careful, but not to the same extent as them. It could be the same in this temple, we're going to a forest, but maybe all the plants there have an appetite for amphibians, or are poisonous if they come into contact with their skin. Maybe there's even some fungus or something in the air that will turn them into zombies if they're not careful.”

For some reason, Sasha shivered and seemed very bothered by the last example.

“That's why I think it's best to ask them not to come with us. We prepared ourselves to face both temples, and even so, we almost lost it in this last one. And I'm not even sure if that will have consequences or not. I just... I don't want to risk our lives any more than we already are.” She finished her explanation, looking down.

None of what she had said was a lie, she genuinely didn't want them to go to the last temple, afraid that there was something in the environment that was as dangerous as the other two. And she knows that if she has to choose between them and the gem, she won't hesitate to choose the gem, so it would be safer for everyone if they stayed.

"Well, Polly will want my head, and Sprig will probably try to sneak in to follow us... But I think Hop Pop can help me with that." Sasha commented, stretching her legs.

"Yeah, and I think Pearl agrees with me when I say that Priscilla deserves a rest after today." Anne said as she observed the group, who seemed much better now, even regaining their usual height.

Marcy simply nodded, her eyes focusing on the pink gem.

She hoped that slight blink she had seen was all in her head.

***

Two days later, after some research and much discussion between the humans and the amphibians, they managed to convince the squad to split up and wait for them. They packed what was needed, food and water, and arranged their equipment. Anne said that Sasha could get a new set of armor if she wanted, but Sasha refused, saying that she felt comfortable with just the chestplate. The bird flew over Amygdala Wood and, as Marcy imagined, the beam of light directed them right into the middle of it. They made the bird land, and when they landed, they were amazed at the place.

Unlike the temple of the blue gem, which was the mountain itself, and the temple of the pink gem, where the most interesting things were the muscular statues, the temple of the green gem was structurally impressive. The place was tall, taller than the trees, divided into several segments where the top ended being thinner than the base, creating a pyramidal structure. A long stone staircase led them to the entrance, statues and structures shaped like brain mushrooms or frogs adorned the place, as well as giant frog faces where water flowed like a river.

An old memory tingled in the back of her head, the image of pyramids and ancient ceremonial sites flashed across her vision. She couldn't compare the temple in front of her with some of those structures she remembered.

"Well, we finally arrived at the temple of the green stone!" Anne exclaimed excitedly, turning to the girls. "It's said that this temple tests intelligence and, considering we were in a forest surrounded by brain-shaped mushrooms, it makes sense."

"If this is the temple of intelligence, we already know who's going to rock here, then." Sasha commented, giving Marcy a light shoulder nudge.

She smiled broadly. Finally, the chance to be useful, to prove her worth to her squad! She knows Sasha keeps saying there's no need to prove anything, but she can't help but think about it. And after two temples without being able to do anything other than cheer in the back row, she can finally do something for real.

“But seriously...” Sasha turned back to the temple and gave an appreciative whistle. “Now I understand why this temple should come first, it certainly leaves a strong impression and a buzz for the next ones.”

“Yeah, too bad the others don't do the same, but I guess it's kind of tricky to create something like this in the middle of ice or a lake of lava.” Anne clapped her hands on her cheeks and smiled. “Alright, girls, let's get this over with!”

They walked up the stairs until they reached a large gate with an ornate frog face on it. Opening it, they entered a large room covered in moss and a few mushrooms, but practically empty. They looked around, and Marcy was almost tempted to scrape the moss off the wall because it looked like it had some kind of design on it, when Anne accidentally stepped on a button on the floor. The room was suddenly lit up as the mushrooms on the wall began to glow. The wall in front of her had a gem-like design in the center, with a Rubik's cube on one side and floating tiles on the other. Green words began to glow at the bottom of the wall and Marcy began to translate.

“‘Keeper of the box, one strong of mind, three trials await, that will return the stones' shine.’” She said. When she finished the translation, the wall split in two, creating an entrance to a new room that the three entered without hesitation. The door closed as they entered the new room.

The room looked as empty as the previous one, with a few cobwebs in the corners of the walls. The new wall in front of them looked as ornate as the previous one, with a drawing of a brain or a frog, maybe both, in the center. They looked around for a few seconds before Anne let out a victorious cry.

“Hey, guess who found the puzzle?” She pointed to a Rubik’s cube in her hand. Soon after, she was surrounded by a green bubble that began to float in the room. The other two quickly approached.

“Anne, is everything okay?” Sasha asked, watching Anne slowly spin around inside the bubble.

“Yeah, I was just caught off guard.” She touched the bubble, it wasn't hard to get through, so she threw it to Marcy. "All yours, Marbles!"

Marcy easily caught it, then was enveloped by the same bubble as she began to float. Anne's bubble disappeared and she almost fell face down on the floor if Sasha hadn't caught her during the fall. Marcy looked at the cube carefully, if it weren't for the stone texture and the scattered pieces of some kind of design on its parts, it could pass for a normal Rubik's cube. She pressed the middle and realized that not only could she rotate the parts, but she could also slide and even push certain pieces out of the way, all without disassembling the item.

"Wow, this has a lot of combinations... But I should be able to solve it in a few minutes." She said confidently, making her first move and already planning the next ones.

Her friends' screams took her out of focus, Marcy looked up and saw both of them jumping closer to her as the middle of the room slid in a similar movement to the cube. Marcy instantly grimaced as she finally understood what this test was.

“What the hell was that?!” Sasha quickly stood up, looking suspiciously at where they were.

“It’s the test… The room must be connected to the cube, any movement I make will be reflected in the room.” Marcy explained, looking at the cube again with more intensity than before.

“So, what do we do? We need to do this, but I don’t want to fly around like I’m on the worst rollercoaster in history.” Anne was also looking suspiciously at the room, ready to jump at the slightest sign.

“... I have a plan, two actually.” Marcy leaned over to her friends. “One of you give the other a push and see if you can catch me. If you can, the other one will hold onto the first one’s leg, and that way you’ll be safe too.”

They nodded and Anne readied her hands, Sasha took off and jumped, reaching the bubble’s level. When she tried to touch, however, she wasn’t able to get past the bubble and fell back to the ground, this time it was Anne who stopped Sasha from getting hurt.

“We can't. I guess anything can get out, but nothing can get in.” The blonde said, and Marcy grimaced.

“I kind of figured that out, but I was hoping it wouldn’t be that...” She sighed, looking at the cube again. “Well, let’s do it the hard way, then. I’ll make the cube in parts and I’ll guide you to the places that won’t be affected by the movement. It’ll take a little longer, but as long as there’s no time limit, I can still solve it in a few minutes.”

“Okay! You can do it, Marbles!”

“Do what you need to do, Mar-Mar!

For the next few minutes, Marcy guided her friends as she also solved the cube. There were a few moments where they stumbled or almost got hit because Marcy had misdirected the cube, but finally, almost ten minutes later, she fit the final pieces together.

The eye designs on the cube lit up from all sides, as did the eyes on the design on the wall. Both the front and back walls opened, revealing the return path and the tunnel that would guide them to the next challenge. She was placed back on the ground by the bubble and placed back on the ground, approaching her friends.

“Are you all okay?”

“Yeah, don’t worry.” Anne gave a thumbs up, Sasha just nodded with a smile. Marcy couldn’t breathe a sigh of relief, at least none of them looked hurt.

“In that case, let’s keep going!” She turned and started up the stairs, still feeling a bit excited about finally being able to do something in the temple.

They climbed the stairs until they reached a new room at the top of it. Below them were several tiles of various colors, mostly blue and pink, with two being green.

“Oh, cool, a dance floor!” Anne cheered, accidentally kicking a stone and sending it crashing down onto the pink floor. A pillar of flames appeared and consumed the rock until nothing was left. “...Or maybe not.” Around them, on the bare part of the walls, words glowed green.

“‘A dangerous room. What to do? Don't be jealous of my hue.’.” Marcy translated thoughtfully. She picked up another stone and threw it at the blue part, a giant weapon fell from the ceiling and crushed it into pieces. “Okay, I think I get it.”

“Got what? That pink is death by flames and blue is death by crushing?” Sasha asked curiously.

“Not that... Well, that too, but I think I know what we should do.” She pointed to the two green tiles. “"Don't be jealous of my hue." It's a reference to green, the color of envy.” She threw another stone, aiming at the green one. It landed perfectly, but it didn’t move, she put her hand on her chin. “Maybe it needs more weight to work?” She prepared to jump, but was stopped by Sasha.

“Don’t you ever dare, you just healed from your injuries. Let Anne and I do this.” She made Marcy take a few steps back, who grimaced in response. Sasha turned to Anne with a small smile. “Rock, paper, scissors to see who can get the furthest?”

The two played, with Sasha winning, and both gained momentum before jumping. Marcy watched as they both landed almost in the center of the tiles, but lost their balance a little and briefly caught themselves on the tile in front of them before stepping back as quickly as possible. A pillar of flames appeared in front of Anne and a giant weapon fell in front of Sasha, both of them looking slightly pale as they watched the traps being activated before the tiles they were on sank a little.

Quickly, all the tiles began to turn green as well, deactivating the traps. Flames appeared on the torches in front of the door, which also opened and revealed another room, probably with more stairs. One appeared on Marcy’s side, allowing her to go down to the girls, who seemed to be cleaning their clothes. If they were hurt, they didn’t show it.

“I think I lost an eyebrow there.” Anne commented, touching her face to make sure they were still there.

“I think I lost my life for a second there.” It was Sasha’s turn, touching her chest. She shook her head and stabilized herself. “Come on, there’s only one more test left until we’re done.”

Indeed, in the room that opened, there was a spiral staircase that seemed to lead to the top of the temple, or at least to the level above where they were. The three began to climb, taking what seemed like a few minutes to climb until they finally reached the final room. On the door, a writing glowed in green, the final warning of the test.

“‘Few have the brains to make it to this door, but are you wise enough to solve what's in store?’.” Marcy translated, and took a deep breath to steady herself, entering the room without saying anything. She couldn’t hesitate, she couldn’t fail now, she would pass this test and the gems would be carried. She wouldn’t be a dead weight in this squad.

When they entered, the room was dimly lit, the only light being right above a table. A checkered table with pieces on one side. Marcy blinked.

“Is that chess?”

“I think it’s actually Flipwart.” The two humans turned to Anne, who stared back at them in confusion.

“What’s Flipwart?” Sasha asked, Anne putting her hand on her chin as she thought.

“How can I explain it… It’s like chess, only more complicated. I learned it back in Newtopia.” She explained as she approached the table, her friends following her. “Andrias and Olivia kicked my ass every time we played, but it was still fun. I’m not good at it, but I know all the basic and important rules of the game.”

“Can you explain it to me, then?” Was Marcy’s question. Anne nodded excitedly and spent the next few minutes explaining the basics of the game and all the rules she could remember. When the explanation was finished, Marcy nodded to herself. “It really does sound like chess on the hardest difficulty. Well, I'm still confident I can do it.”

She stood in front of the board and opened a drawer, taking out the wart to put it in place. The memories of the rules were still fresh in her head, and she was sure she was an ace at chess, so she believed her chances of winning were greater than those of her friends.

As soon as the pawn piece was placed, a hole appeared below Anne and she fell. Marcy's heart stopped for a moment.

“ANNE!!!”

Sasha and Marcy ran to where she was, startled. The lights in the room turned on and in front of them, a giant board appeared, with Anne suddenly appearing as a pawn next to them. She blinked in confusion for a moment and looked at her appearance.

“Uh... This never happened when I played before.”

“OH, COME ON!!! Don't tell me this is also part of the test!?” The blonde screamed indignantly, pointing with her hands at her trapped friend. Marcy bit her lower lip.

“I think so... And when I put the rest of the pieces in, you probably will too.” She replied, Sasha let out a frustrated groan. “Don’t worry, I’ll play it in a way that none of you end up getting hurt.”

“Okay... Just do it already.” Sasha crossed her arms and closed her eyes, preparing herself for what was about to happen.

Marcy walked back to the board, hesitating for a moment about which piece to place before first setting up the row with the center piece, hoping that this would lessen the chances of Sasha being used. When nothing happened, she placed the rest of the pawns in the front row. The giant board was all set up and tidy, but Sasha was still by her side. She opened her eyes and looked around in surprise.

“Hmm... Maybe it was done without waiting for more than two people?” She wondered. Before anyone could say anything, a hole appeared at Sasha’s feet and she fell. Marcy had to hold on tightly to the table to keep from reacting to that.

She looked at the giant board, waiting for the blonde to replace one of her pieces. To her surprise, she appeared on her opponent’s side, riding a stone crane with a knight’s lance. Green restraints appeared on Sasha and Anne’s arms, and they were unable to move freely.

“Great, that’s all we needed...” Sasha grumbled.

“At least you’re an important piece.” Anne commented.

Marcy frowned as she thought. Okay, this game was going to be a little more complicated than she imagined. Not only had Anne become a piece, but Sasha had also become an enemy piece, and she couldn’t afford to lose either of them. Marcy was actually glad she had made the amphibians stay home, it would be quite complicated playing something she had never played before like this, she didn't want to imagine the headache it would be if everyone had become pieces.

She made her move, moving a pawn other than Anne's forward to see how the temple would respond. Her pawn was eliminated, in an incredibly straightforward and almost unplanned way. Unless she had forgotten something, that seemed like a pretty amateurish response to her move.

She continued to play, taking the utmost care to move Anne out of the way of any attacks or to prevent her pieces from attacking Sasha. Occasionally she heard her friends scream, but they didn't seem too hurt, the damage probably came from the explosions when a piece near them was destroyed, so she continued her moves.

Finally, a few minutes later, she managed to lower the opposing side's defenses. Sure, more than half of their pieces were gone, but the other side only had two other pieces besides the wart, and the two humans were still fine, just tired and panting.

“Guys, I think I got it! This move should finish it!” She shouted excitedly, the humans sighing in relief. She picked up a piece, one of her archers, and placed it in front of the enemy’s central piece, the archer on the giant board preparing its attack. Finally, that test was over and she emerged victorious.

When the archer attacked, however, the wart jumped over the attack, grimacing as it mocked her. Marcy stared at everything without knowing how to react.

“What... Is this supposed to happen?” The blonde asked, turning to the warrior, who also seemed surprised.

“No, there is no rule that the archer cannot knock down the wart.”

“That means...” Marcy gasped, switching between the board she controlled and the giant. “The temple is cheating!!!”

“SERIOUSLY!? HOW MUCH MORE IS THIS LAST TEST GOING TO MESS WITH US?!” The blonde’s indignant scream did nothing to stop her from advancing on the warrior, her weapon ready to hit her hard.

Luckily Marcy noticed quickly and pulled the warrior out of the way. Unfortunately, the temple began to force the blonde to follow the warrior, seemingly determined to eliminate her from the game. Marcy grunted, trying to plan what to do while dodging the warrior’s attacks, she needed to think of something. It didn’t matter that the temple was cheating, she still had pieces and moves, she could win this stupid game anyway.

The temple was focused only on the warrior, she could use that to put another piece against the opponent and destroy the wart. She moved the warrior behind another pawn, and when the temple moved the blonde, she placed her rook next to the enemy wart, she only needed to move one more time and...

The scream of pain took her out of her focus.

She looked up, the blonde was holding the spear tightly over her head, seemingly doing everything she could to keep it from swinging. The pawn piece in front of the warrior had been destroyed, pieces scattered everywhere, one of those pieces seemed to have hit the warrior's arm, who was trying to hold the injury as best she could with her restraints.

Marcy hesitated, looking at her board. The warrior was hurt, but her armor must have protected her from the worst of the damage. If the blonde held her attack, she could move her rook to attack the wart, and even if the blonde couldn't stop it, the warrior is strong, she can take a hit and...

... And...

...

... What...

... What was she thinking?

... When did she stop thinking of them as nothing more than features? Weren't they her friends?

Was... Was she really willing to let her friend get hurt over a hypothesis? Over something she wasn't even sure would work? Why would she think of something like that?

Why...

...

... Why was she so willing to sacrifice lives like that?

She was willing to leave her squadmates in the heat, at risk of death, to carry the gem. She was willing to eliminate Valeriana because she found her suspicious. She was even ready to kill the Tower Lords if her plan didn't work.

Why was she thinking such cruel things?

Why should I care about their lives? They are just obstacles that can be useful to me.

That voice... That cold and pragmatic voice... It can't be hers.

This world has never done anything for me, everyone can disappear and it wouldn't make any difference. The only thing that matters is me.

No... That's not true...

No matter what happens to everyone, nothing will stand in the way. I will eliminate them all.

That can't be true...

Even if it's those two, if they stand between me and what I want...

I won't hesitate to eliminate them too.

THAT'S NOT TRUE!!!!

(In a dark place illuminated only by a green light, a sound of something breaking echoed.)

She may have been hurt, but that is no reason to be cruel to others. She may have been used and broken, but that does not mean she can use and break others. She may not be the same as before, but that does not mean she should be the exact opposite of what she was. That voice was not her!

(A figure looked into a distorted mirror, an image of herself with cruel and cold eyes was reflected. It almost seemed shocked to see the cracks in the mirror.)

She is not a cruel person, she is not a cold and calculating being, she is not someone without emotions and completely pragmatic. She is an idiot with no social skills who miraculously managed to survive a violent environment. She did not destroy everything she saw as an obstacle, she tried to find a solution and used force if there was no peaceful route. That was who she is!

(The figure growled, readying her fist. The reflection seemed resigned to her fate.)

I'M NOT A MURDER!!! I AM A SOLDIER!!!

(The mirror shattered into thousands of pieces, disappearing as if it had never existed. Near the light, a gentle beast and a broken young girl who had been sleeping stirred, as if waking from a deep sleep.)

Marcy opened her eyes. Sasha was losing strength and seemed about to attack Anne, who was still holding her injured arm. Her friends were in danger.

Marcy groaned, screw this test! If the gem's charge meant her friends getting hurt, then she would rather live in this world forever!

She knocked down her own wart, according to the rule Anne had said it meant giving up, but it didn't seem to have worked. She looked at the piece on the giant board, maybe that one should fall too. She pulled out her spear and put it in staff mode, jumping onto the board next. The board flashed red, but she ignored it to advance against her own piece, her archers tried to stop her attacks, but she gained momentum with her staff and jumped towards the wart, hitting it with all her strength and knocking it down. The piece writhed a few times before exploding.

All the pieces crumbled like sand, Sasha fell on her back, but quickly got up to check on Anne, Marcy did the same. She knelt down on the injured side and gently took hold of the arm, ignoring the urge to wince as she checked it out. There was a dent in the armor, and Marcy knew from experience that meant it would be bruised or swollen or both, but it would have definitely been worse if it weren’t for the armor.

“I’m fine, really. I’ve been in worse situations.” Anne tried to ease their concerns, but let them examine her arm. Sasha pulled off the armor and grimaced.

“Yup, it’s going to be bruised. Luckily it’s not an open wound, so applying the rest of Meddie’s potion tonight should be enough to have it looking good tomorrow.” She gave Anne a small smile and then turned to Marcy. “What about you, Mar-Mar? Are you okay?”

“I guess so… I feel like I just had a mental war with myself, though.” She massaged her head, feeling a little strange. Like she’d suddenly realized she’d been seeing everything blurry and had finally gotten a pair of prescription glasses to see properly. She wondered why.

“What about the test? Why did you give up like that?” Anne’s question made Marcy smile a little.

“Because it wasn’t worth letting you guys get hurt over it. I was so focused on what I could gain that I almost didn’t realize what I would have lost.” She hesitated for a second, but soon pulled her two friends and hugged them both at the same time. They both seemed unsure how to react, but quickly hugged back.

A strange noise appeared, along with a green glow. The girls separated to see several green arrows pointing to the exit, which made Marcy frown.

“I got it, temple! I wasn't smart enough to win, but I can find the exit, okay?!” She yelled at the walls, obviously not expecting any reaction. She helped her friends up and started to leave the place. “... I’m sorry I didn’t make it, by the way. I guess you’ll have to try this temple without me.”

“Hey, don’t worry. This temple was the only one that cheated in the last test, you almost made it. For a first timer, you were so good you looked like an expert!” Anne gently nudged her with her shoulder, making the human soldier smile and blush a little.

They left the temple, it was already dark outside. Marcy sighed, playing with the edge of her cape, she felt a little bad about having failed the test, but not as much as she thought she would. As she had said, it wasn't worth sacrificing her friends like that for the stone.

“Uh, girls? I think the temple wants us to continue.” Sasha's words took Marcy out of her thoughts. She looked at the ground and saw that the arrows were still pointing somewhere, they followed until they reached a small structure that looked like a bathroom, the inside seemed to glow.

“Wait a minute...” Marcy went to the door and opened it, sighing in admiration afterwards.

In the small structure there were some mushrooms scattered around, but more importantly, the walls and ceiling were all written with runes and glowing green designs. On the wall in front of them, a pillar appeared on the ground as writings illuminated a previously empty spot on the wall.

“Only the worthy will have the wisdom to choose whether it's more important to win, or have the humility to lose. A choice was made to save thy friends and, honestly, doesn't that make you a winner in the end?’” She translated, giving a small laugh at the end. “Why do I feel like the same person who wrote this made the pink stone temple?”

“Being weirdly casual out of nowhere? Yeah, I can see that.” Sasha commented, crossing her arms with a smile. Anne pulled out the box and handed the last gem to Marcy.

“Do the honors, Marcy.”

Marcy took the stone and placed it in the small hole in the pillar, the pillar glowed green, the writings seemed to glow together. She watched the gem gain a bit of color at the tip as it slowly began to fill in…

...I'm sorry for what's going to happen now.

... And suddenly, pain like she'd never felt before hit her head.

Marcy screamed, curling up on the floor as she felt like her head was about to explode. She thought she heard her friends scream her name, but the pain in her head was so intense that it was impossible to focus on anything else, green light shining brightly behind her eyelids.

What... What is this!? My head...!!

GYAAAAAAA!!! Make it stop!!!

IthurtsIthurtsIthurtsIthurtsIthurts

STOP!!!

Marcy passed out.

***

When she woke up again, she was staring at the ceiling of Sasha's room.

She blinked slowly, trying to reorient herself, her head was aching, as if she had had the worst migraine of her life. She sat up and looked at herself.

Her hands paws gloves were still on her, as was her clothes protection armor. The cape had been removed and she still felt a little exhausted tired weak. She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to reorient herself, to remember something.

Marcy Wu.

Her name was Marcy Wu.

Human.

She was a human.

Amphibia.

She was in a world called Amphibia.

And she is...

A young trying to fix her stupid mistakes.

A beast trying to find her pack.

A soldier trying to reduce the number of victims on her mission.

... A soldier.

Marcy shook her head a little, the pain fading until it was gone. She felt a little dizzy, but better than when she woke up.

What had happened? She remembered finding out that she hadn’t failed the test and was ready to carry the green gem, but nothing after that. Had something happened? Were they attacked by some creature? Was the charge actually a trap?

As she thought about this, the bedroom door opened and Anne stopped in the doorway, staring at Marcy with wide eyes. When Marcy raised her hand in a shaky greeting, Anne smiled broadly, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.

“SASHA, SHE WOKE UP!!!” She screamed outside the room before running to Marcy and hugging her. Marcy shivered in the hug, but accepted it and hugged her back, soon hearing hurried footsteps and another pair of arms hugging her.

“Damn it, Wu! You had us worried, you know?” Sasha mumbled tearfully, tightening her embrace.

“I’m sorry, I never meant to scare you...” Marcy swayed a little in the hug so the girls would let go. They sat down next to her, and she massaged her forehead. “What happened? I just remember being ready to charge the stone, and now I’m here. Did I have another blackout?”

“If it had just been a blackout, it would have been less scary.” The blonde took a deep breath, looking away to the floor. “You put the stone to charge and a few seconds later, you started screaming in pain while holding your head. We tried to ask what was wrong, but you passed out in our arms. So we picked you up and the stone and flew straight here. You've been asleep for a day now.”

“That... Is weird...” The human soldier frowned a little. “None of you suffered any side effects from the charge, why did this happen now?”

“I don't know, and honestly, I don't care.” Anne gently hugged her, Marcy felt her shiver and her face heat up. “I'm just glad you're okay.”

“Me too.” Sasha rested her head on her shoulder, and Marcy felt her whole body get warm.

She should probably ask about the box, shouldn't she? Ask if everything was okay, if the stone was fully loaded or if they stopped in the middle of the charge again, she should be worried about whether the object that could take them home was okay. Or maybe she should know when they were going to Newtopia, to let the Captain know and let him prepare for the rebellion.

But... She felt Anne's arms gently around her, her chin resting on her hair as she shook her head a little, giving it a light pat. She felt Sasha's hand on top of hers, her face hidden in her collarbone, her breath tickling her neck.

Marcy closed her eyes, feeling a smile appear on her burning face.

Her mission could take a little bit longer. She... Will going to enjoy this moment.

***

When they finally split up, they went upstairs to dinner with the Plantars and Paddocks, each chatting about something or asking for details about the temple that Marcy was excited to share. Halfway through dinner, Sasha asked everyone in the group if they could postpone their trip to Newtopia to participate in an event in town, a battle of the bands. It sounded like fun, so they all agreed and split into teams, with the Plantars already having a team and the Paddocks deciding to make a duo.

Anne said it would be cool if they could remake ‘Sasha and the Sharps’, and when Sprig asked what that was, Marcy discovered that they had already formed a band for fun before.

While Marcy, Sprig, Polly and Pearl were bombarded with stories about what the band was like and the songs they created, Sasha asked if they could sing anything other than their signature song, ‘Heartstomper’. Anne seemed a little surprised and asked why.

“I just don’t feel like this song fits me or us anymore.” She sighed, resting her face on her hand. “I’m trying to create a new one with a similar melody, but it’s not ready yet. How about we use a song you guys made?”

“Oh... Actually, I was thinking about asking about that.” Anne picked up a small notebook and turned the page to a specific sheet. “I call it ‘No Big Deal’, and it’s based on my time here. It’s not complete yet, but maybe with the help of you two and your experiences, we can finish it in time!”

“The least traumatic experience for me was facing a pair of herons, so I’m not sure I can be of much help.” Marcy said, a little embarrassed, Polly and Sprig almost pulled her by the collar in disbelief.

“You faced a pair of herons?!”

“Yeah, it was back when I was a prisoner in Toad Tower...” She stopped and blinked in confusion, scratching the back of her head. “... Or was it when I was coming to Wartwood?”

“It seems like your memory is starting to return without hurting you. That’s great, Mar-Mar!” Sasha smiled, and Marcy looked away with flushed cheeks. “Very well, then. Tomorrow we’ll review the lyrics and melody and rock the battle of the bands, what do you think?”

The excited scream of her friends was the answer.

***

In the middle of the night, Marcy woke up and stood up, hesitating for a moment to leave the room.

“...Marcy?”

She jumped, turning around and finding Sasha staring at her with a worried look. The two didn’t say anything for a moment, and then Sasha sighed.

“...Be careful when you go out, don’t lock yourself out.” Marcy nodded and opened the bedroom door, she took a step forward. “Marcy.” She stopped, turning her head to the blonde. “...If you’re having any problems, you know you can tell us and we can help you, right?”

“I know...” Marcy looked at the floor. “...But this is a problem I have to solve on my own.”

“...Good luck, then.”

Marcy left the room, being careful not to disturb Priscilla or Pearl who were sleeping in the living room as she left the house. She stopped outside for a moment before walking towards the fountain, sitting down there and letting the cool air clear her mind. Her eyes turned upwards, the red moon seeming to shine in the sky.

The moon barely illuminates the surroundings. It makes everything seem both beautiful and threatening at the same time.

On Earth, this phenomenon is called a Blood Moon, since the moon on Earth is usually white, not red!

Marcy frowned, for some reason, intrusive thoughts echoed like voices in her head. The primitive voice was not new, she had heard it before, but the lively and energetic one was, it reminded her a little of the incomprehensible murmurs from before. Fortunately, none of these voices were the cold and pragmatic ones that sounded like her from before, she had not heard them since the temple, so she did not feel bothered. It was even kind of relaxing.

A soft flapping of wings caught her attention, a small bat flying towards her. Marcy reached out and let it land on her, picking up a small piece of paper stuck in its paw.

‘Strategist,

Half of the army has already entered the city. We will begin the attack soon. Can we move on to the next stage?

-Captain Grime.’

Marcy hesitated, the short message reminding her exactly why she was here. To distract her friends, to prevent them from doing anything against the Toad Army, to make the Captain ascend the throne and command Amphibia. The plan involved simply bringing as many soldiers as possible inside the walls and then launching an attack when the rest of the army was outside, creating a sort of siege.

A lot of people would be hurt in this plan, especially civilians. At first she didn’t care, they were just obstacles and unfortunate victims for her plan. But now...

Marcy looked at the Plantars' house, remembering Hop Pop talking about a friend who lived in Newtopia. Sasha, Sprig and Polly telling their adventures in the city. Priscilla and Pearl commenting on their house and their neighbors. Anne, with a smile, excitedly explaining the place and how she was looking forward to showing her the city when they got there.

... The thought made her want to throw up.

She couldn't stop the rebellion anymore, no matter how much she wanted to. Everything was already ready, they were all already prepared, Marcy was too involved to run away with her tail between her legs. The rebellion would happen, whether she liked it or not...

Her gaze drifted to a house, where a witch was sleeping. A witch who had saved her life, who knew several curses and spells.

One who was developing a teleportation spell.

... But perhaps she could lessen the bloodshed.

Marcy took a small piece of paper and wrote down her answer.

‘Captain Grime,

I think I have found a way to get you directly to the king without the need for an all-out war. I will be in Newtopia shortly, meet me near a bridge where there is a golden statue of my friend Anne.

- Marcy Wu.’

Chapter Text

The ride on Joe's back to Newtopia had been uneventful. The landing, not so much.

Having to carry three humans, two frogs, two newts, a pollywog, and a frog robot, Marcy considered it a miracle that Joe had managed to get everyone to the gates before falling from the sky. When they hit the water, Frobo carried Joe and steadied him into a more comfortable position while the entire soaking wet group descended.

"Please tell me we're not adding any more members to this group..." Marcy practically begged, as much out of pity for the sparrow as for her butt. As warm as she was to have to squeeze in between her friends on the trip, being squeezed onto a wooden bench was anything but comfortable.

“Fortunately, I don’t think so.” Was Anne’s answer, wiping the excess water from her hair. She shook herself a little before turning to the group. “Alright, let’s go over the plan one more time! We were supposed to go straight to Andrias, but since Marcy has never been to Newtopia before, we’ll go in and do whatever we want for three hours before meeting at the castle entrance. From there, we’ll go to the king and I’ll explain everything that happened and that maybe the box might lose some of its power in the pink gem and how the temple works so they can recharge it if necessary. Is that okay?”

“Okay!”

Anne then turned to the gate and asked the guards to open it, and finally, they entered their final destination.

The city was as gigantic as she had been told, a certain air of nobility in the air even in the humblest parts. Sales stalls and stone statues decorated the roads, buildings and stairs made of smooth stones showed the shops or houses, with some newts patrolling with spears in hand.

Out of the corner of her eye, Marcy noticed a hooded figure in an alley, too tall to be a frog, but too wide to be a newt or an axolotl. She swallowed hard and continued to look ahead.

“Well, that was quite an adventure, don’t you think? It would be nice if we did this more often...” Anne commented, turning to her friends, looking oddly hopeful.

“Yeah, it was kind of nice...” Sasha looked at the Plantars with a small, soft smile. “...But honestly? I’m ready to go home, and if I do come back here, it’ll only be as a quick family visit. I’ve had more than enough near-death experiences to last me a lifetime.”

Oddly, Anne seemed a little uncertain about Sasha's answer, turning to Marcy next, who simply looked away. Some things in Amphibia were really cool, but Marcy couldn't wait to get it all over with and go to Earth to work on a way to recover her memories and friendship.

“Yeah... I guess you’re right...” The human warrior looked thoughtful for a moment, but shook her head and turned back to her friends with a smile. “Well, we have three hours to do whatever we want, where are we going first?”

“Actually, there’s a place around here I’d like to explore on my own first.” Marcy took a step back, adjusting her belt. “It might be a little boring and tedious for you guys, but I’ll try to make it as brief as possible. When I get back, we can do whatever you want.”

“Are you sure? We can try to accompany you if you want.”

“Thanks, Sasha, but... I’d rather do this alone.”

Sasha’s gaze narrowed slightly in suspicion, but Marcy simply started walking, giving the group a wave as she walked away. She walked a little and looked back, Polly seemed to be running from Hop Pop while Frobo watched them, Sasha was kneeling and talking something to Sprig before getting up and letting him jump on her shoulder, Anne was talking something to Priscilla and Pearl while gesturing excitedly. They seemed happy and excited as always.

This wouldn't last long.

Marcy closed her eyes and took a deep breath, continuing her walk to the location she had been told. She had never been to Newtopia before, but it wasn't hard to find the large golden statue pointing its sword in some direction in the shape of her friend. Nor was it hard to locate the shadowy hooded figure hidden in a nearby alley, seemingly surveying the place, which thankfully had few people.

Frowning slightly, Marcy put on her glasses and used the top of her cloak as a hood, approaching the figure through the shadows and without drawing attention. The figure turned to her as she approached and began walking down the alley again, she followed silently. The figure opened a nearby manhole and entered, she silently closed it as she passed, both of them walked a little further before stopping and raising their hoods.

"So, you said there was a way to usurp the king more easily. I admit we're a little skeptical about that, Strategist." Grime’s comment made her instinctively frown at him.

“You made me your Strategist for a reason, didn’t you? What good is a title if they won’t listen to what I say?” It was his turn to frown at her question.

“I didn’t say I wouldn’t listen, I just don’t know how we’d be able to do that. The castle has a lot of security and it’s almost labyrinthine!” He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. “Then how could we get an entire squad inside without being noticed?”

“With this.”

Grime blinked, looking at the object the human had taken from the pouch on her belt.

“... This is a bag, Strategist.”

“Not just any bag.” She took a step back. “Don’t be scared.” She threw the bag behind him and thick purple smoke appeared at her feet. He heard a sound similar to an explosion and quickly the smoke disappeared, along with the human, making him blink in surprise. A tap on his shoulder made him turn quickly, the human now standing behind him with a neutral expression.

“How...”

“Magic. Is this a spell or a teleportation curse, I’m not sure yet. It’s kind of complicated, but essentially...” She pulled another bag from the pouch on her belt. “You sprinkle some of the powder on yourself and anyone else you want, and when that bag hits the ground, you and the people who had the powder on their skin will be transported to where the bag landed.” She tossed it up just once, afraid she’d drop it, before handing it to Grime. “If you put some on yourself and a small squad, I can throw this in the middle of the throne room, and you’ll all be taken there.”

“This... is very useful...” He was looking at the bag now as if it were gold. “... I don’t think you could get any more of them?”

“Just two, one for demonstration and this one. It’s hard to make and I couldn’t get any more.” She lied. Maddie said it wasn’t too complicated, as long as you already had some understanding of how magic and supernatural things worked in this world. When Marcy asked if she could make some for herself in case something happened on the trip, she was given four, and only because Maddie couldn't make more before the trip.

One for demonstration, one for the Toad Army, and the last two in case she needed an element of surprise or a quick escape with her friends.

“With this surprise attack, it won't be difficult to attack the castle. The toads will be victorious and a new kingdom of our own will be born!” He gave a low, satisfied laugh. Soon, the revolution will begin.

People might get hurt... Our pack will feel betrayed...

“...It's too late, isn't it?”

The soft question pulled Grime out of his reverie. He looked at the human, who was holding one of her arms tightly, her eyes fixed on the ground with a guilty expression.

“What?”

“... The revolution. The siege. The war... The innocent citizens living their lives. The guards who are just doing their job. The victims that will emerge when it all starts...” She looked up a little, her eyes almost tearing up. “... It’s too late to stop all this, isn’t it, Captain?”

Grime frowned again, for a moment he was ready to scream or laugh at the absurdity he had heard, but he quickly stopped. Sometimes, her intelligence and bravery were so great that he forgot that the creature was young and had never participated in any fight that didn’t involve her own survival. She had faced herons, but it was out of necessity for survival. She had fought a general, but because he was the only one she trusted who could keep her alive. She tamed the beast that protected Barrel's Warhammer, but because she thought it would be too cruel to kill it, she did it simply to get the Warhammer back.

She never raided villages to take gold from taxes that the frogs didn’t or couldn’t pay. She never hunted down bandits or revolutionaries and murdered them in cold blood, even as they begged for their lives. She never ended up losing everything and joining the gladiators, in the slim hope of becoming a great soldier at best, or ending up dying an honorable death in battle at worst.

She might be the best Strategist a toad could have, but she was still a young, rookie soldier who, despite everything, hadn’t yet been corrupted by the hard life.

“… Yes, it’s too late. There’s no turning back.”

Marcy simply closed her eyes tightly and, after a moment of silence, nodded.

For the first time in a long time, Grime felt remorse for his actions.

***

The castle had giant hallways and doors, and when the group finally passed through the door to the royal chamber, Marcy realized that it wasn't just to make a strong impression.

At the end of the room, sitting on a large throne, was the largest newt she had ever seen. As big as a two-story house, maybe even a little bigger, wearing purple armor with some parts missing in the shape of an X, perhaps from some ancient battle. He was blue in color, with white hair and beard, and a crown made of what looked like coral or a similar structure.

He was so large that Marcy almost didn't notice the ten guards scattered around the room, or the blue newt in an elegant dress who stood next to the staircase to the throne. She had never seen that newt before, but by the elegance in her posture, she must have been the Lady Olivia that Anne had sometimes commented on.

"My friends, wonderful to see you!" King Andrias rose excitedly from the throne. "I trust you were successful."

“Boom, baby!” Anne pulled the box from her backpack, the gems seeming to glow brighter than ever.

“The charged Music Box. Well done. Well done!” Andrias’ smile was so wide it was almost uncomfortable for Marcy. It could have been her paranoia, but it almost seemed to have a... manic tone to it. “Now, let's finally send you girls home.”

Andrias walked over and held out his hand for Anne to hand him the box. For some reason, the hairs on the back of Marcy’s neck stood on end at the sight of Anne about to place the box in the giant’s hand. Her paranoia was at an all-time high, something that almost sounded like a voice screaming at her not to let him touch the box.

She didn’t think as she equipped her hand crossbow and fired.

Andrias flinched and backed away a little as the arrow embedded itself in his palm, his finger hitting Anne’s hand and sending the box crashing down near Marcy, her group taking a step back in surprise. Everyone turned to her in shock as she pulled a bag from her belt, and she looked straight at her friends with a heavy expression.

“I’m really, really sorry.”

She threw it in the middle of the room, and for a moment, a purple smoke filled everyone's vision.

And then a war cry echoed from the smoke and Grime swung the hammer on the ground, making everyone lose their balance. Toad soldiers emerged from the smoke and easily immobilized the newt guards, who couldn't even react due to surprise.

From the time Marcy spent with the Plantars, she knew how fast Sasha reacted to danger, so she wasn't too surprised that the blonde quickly regained her balance and punched the first toad that tried to approach them. The others hesitated to advance and simply raised their shields in front of them, creating a division between the group and the king, preventing them from entering the fight as she asked Grime to order.

Grime tried to hammer the king, but he roared and advanced with all four limbs, making a charge that threw Grime against the nearby pillar. Marcy looked at the box and then at Andrias, advancing and picking up the box, holding it for a moment before shooting an arrow at the king, getting his attention. He turned to her in anger, only to widen his eyes in terror when he saw that Marcy was on the porch and looked ready to throw the box.

“Surrender, or I’ll throw the box.”

“MARCY, NO!!!” She heard Anne scream, but her gaze was focused purely on the king.

“You wouldn't. That's your only way home.” He growled, looking ready to keep fighting. If he didn’t surrender, his guards wouldn’t surrender, and the original plan would be forced into action.

Marcy said nothing, she simply threw the box and ran inside.

Andrias’ eyes widened in terror and he tried to run for the balcony, only for Grime to strike him hard on the ankle and knock him down. Quickly, Marcy threw a sack into her hand, and the box appeared unharmed in it, teleporting just before it hit the ground. She breathed a sigh of relief, watching as Grime stood over the fallen king and roared as a signal to the other toads, the sound of weapons clashing sounding from below.

“Soldiers of Newtopia!” He shouted, pointing his hammer at the king’s head. “Put down your arms this instant, or the next thing I smash will be your king's head!” Marcy heard the sound of blades slow to a stop, the newts having surrendered. “Excellent... OPEN THE GATES!!!”

She looked out over the balcony, where she could see some toads opening the gates, and further up the hills, the rest of the army was approaching. The way things were, the siege wouldn't be necessary, and the toads' conquest, although violent, would end without deaths. She wanted to be relieved, but as she watched some soldiers bring giant chains and thick ropes and begin escorting the king to the dungeon, she ended up glancing quickly at her group. She could only see Anne in that brief moment, but she looked so angry that she couldn't help but lower her head in guilt.

Grime walked to the throne and sat on it, placing the hammer in front of him, Marcy went to his right side, still with her head bowed.

"Well, frogs, say hello to the new rulers of Amphibia. Pretty hot, right?" He commented, proud of himself. He turned to Marcy, and the human could have sworn her gaze softened a little as he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “And I couldn’t have picked a better Strategist to help me.”

Hmm. That was new.

Marcy hadn’t known she could feel so much guilt, yet so much pride at the same time.

“…Marcy, are you with them?” Anne’s question made any pride that had risen in her disappear. She timidly raised her gaze, just enough to see the look of betrayal and fury in her friend’s eyes. “Did you…plan all of this?”

“...” Marcy looked away for a brief moment before sighing. “Yes. I did… Just like I had planned for all of us to come to this world.”

She heard gasps, and out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Grime also looked surprised. Marcy closed her eyes, she had known for a long time that when the revolution ended, their friendship would end with it, her sin would be too much for their friendship to bear, and the chances of them returning would be slim. She had manipulated her friends, used their friendship, and betrayed their trust.

The least they deserved was the truth.

“... I don’t remember it, but... I found in my journal, not just some things about my life on Earth... But a plan I created when I found the box.” She took a deep breath and looked up at her frien... At Anne and Sasha. They both looked shocked as they stared at her, Marcy knew it was for different reasons. Sasha more surprised, Anne more furious. “It seems that on your birthday, Anne, I had found a book that told about a box that allowed you to travel between worlds... And my parents told me they were moving because my father got a new job in another state. When I heard that, I panicked and ran, and I ended up finding the box. I had no idea if it would work, but it did, and we came here...” She gave a bitter laugh, pointing at them, the Plantars and Priscilla. “... A world where you two became better people, gained better friends, a better family. I gave all of this to you...” And then she pointed to herself with a wry smile. “...In exchange for this.”

“Marcy...”

“Was I stupid? I know. I have no idea what I was thinking at that moment! Maybe nothing!” She hit her head hard, ignoring the pain as she continued speaking. “And the worst part is that I can’t even be too mad at the girl I was, because when she had to choose between saving herself or one of you, she threw herself off a tower without thinking twice! She changed the world for you, endured hell for you, she died for you! She was a thousand times more loyal to you than I was... You deserve better than me.” She sniffed, realizing that tears were threatening to fall in the middle of her speech. “...But don’t worry, I’ll fix this, it’s what I do best.”

She took a deep breath to compose herself and picked up the box, carefully tracing one of the frog designs on it.

“I’ll find a way to send you to Earth... And I’ll stay here to make sure the toad kingdom is more fair than the newt kingdom.”

Any trace of anger that might have been on Sasha’s face disappeared.

“Mar… Cy?”

“It probably only has enough power for one trip, doesn’t it? And I have to serve the toads, I’m part of them after all.” Marcy gave a sad smile, looking back at the floor. “I’ll take good care of your friends when you go, don’t worry.”

“I think that’s enough monologue.” Her captain said suddenly. He pointed his hammer at the group. “Guards! Take them to the dungeon until their isolation room is ready!”

A few soldiers surrounded the group and began to guide and pull them out of the room. Marcy looked up at the group once more, the Plantars and Priscilla looked sad and confused, Anne’s expression alternated between fury and pain, seeming not to know which one to side with. She deserved this, any and all negative feelings they had about her were fair after what she did and said. Her gaze fell on Sasha…

...And she felt her heart stop.

Sasha’s expression… She wasn’t furious, or looking betrayed, or looking down on her. She looked sad, her eyebrows slightly drooping as she stared at her for a moment, and then she looked away, almost resigned.

...

... No. It wasn't sad.

Sasha... She was disappointed.

I... Did I do that? No... No! Why did I do that?! Anne, Sasha, I'm so sorry!!!

Marcy closed her eyes tightly, cringing a little as she felt her eyes sting. She kept her eyes closed until she heard the sound of the door closing.

Only then, when she felt her captain's hand on her shoulder, did she let herself fall to the floor and cry.

***

She doesn’t know how long she lay crying on the floor, but by the time she had gathered herself together enough, only Grime was in the room. She used her cloak to wipe her face, and then began to pick at the box in her hands without any desire.

“…So…” Grime coughed, looking uncomfortable. “…You found a way to get back home?” She nodded. “But you’re not going back home?” Another nod. “…Why?”

“…After what I did here, I doubt they’ll want to be around me again. And with no memories on Earth other than them, I have no real reason to go back.” She lifted her gaze slightly. “Besides, I’m sorry to say this, Captain, but I don’t think letting you guys rule without some sort of supervision, considering your thirst for power, would be a wise thing to do. You would make Amphibia’s political system even worse, destroy lives for fun, and encourage newts and frogs to join forces to do the same thing you did in a month at best, a week at worst.”

Grime opened his mouth to retort, paused for a moment, and then nodded, agreeing with the human.

“Then I’ll stay and stop it… And besides, I’m mainly your Strategist, right? Unless it’s a mission or you give up on the Toad Army forever, a soldier always sides with their captain, that’s the law of the toads.”

Grime frowned, watching as his Strategist resumed her relentless poking at the box. He looked around a bit and found a few fallen spears, probably from one of the defeated newt soldiers. He was thoughtful for a moment before his gaze fell on the human again.

Marcy didn’t react when Grime left her side, nor when he picked up a spear and seemed to be doing something on the ground. She did react, however, when she saw something approaching out of the corner of her eye, and reached for it, quickly realizing it was one of the newt guards’ spears. She looked up and noticed that her captain had drawn a large circle in the center of the room, with him in the middle with his arms crossed and a spear at his feet.

“Come.”

She raised an eyebrow, but approached anyway, only stopping when she was close to him and he picked up the spear from the ground.

“... Captain?”

“Fight me.”

“What?” She took a step back in surprise.

“One round. No time limit. The first one to knock the other out of the circle will be the winner.” He explained, pointing the spear at her.

“But... I... This...”

“That’s an order, Strategist.”

Marcy tensed for a moment, but narrowed her eyes and also got into a fighting stance. She didn't understand or have any idea what he wanted, but she would do it anyway.

The two slowly circled each other, eyes never leaving their opponent. Grime advanced first, quite agile for a guy his size, in a lunge. Marcy retaliated with the broad part of her spear, deflecting the attack and trying to counterattack with a cut to his back. He easily dodged to the side and tried to strike with the broad part of his spear, which Marcy also deflected.

For a while, the fight was evenly matched, it was essentially a dance between the two, each of them dodging the other's attack and trying to retaliate, only for that attack to be deflected and the other to counterattack. A dance of blades where the world was limited to that small space where they both existed, a space they wanted to reclaim for themselves. And then Grime landed a punch in her stomach.

Marcy gasped, kneeling on the ground as she tried to recover. Even with her armor, his punch was strong enough to knock the wind out of her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him raise his leg, ready to kick her.

Grinding her teeth, she ignored the pain and rolled to the side.

Grime lost his balance when his leg didn't hit its target, he tried to support himself with the spear, but Marcy slammed her weapon hard against his, making it stick in a tapestry on the wall. He turned to her in surprise, and she simply held her spear horizontally and charged, hitting his chest and pushing him close to the edge.

Without waiting for her opponent to recover, Marcy turned her body and, in an upward motion, slammed the bladeless part of the spear into his chin, throwing him out of the circle.

She won.

Marcy was a little out of breath, resting her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. She let the spear fall from her hands as she took a deep breath, straightening herself up. This was complicated, she knew her captain was good, he managed to fight with a twig against a general while he was out of shape after all, so being able to beat him in a fight made Marcy's chest swell with pride.

She heard a breathless laugh and saw Grime get up from the ground, still laughing a little as he massaged his chin.

“Impressive! I always knew you were a fierce and intelligent warrior!” He shouted excitedly, placing his hands on his hips.

“Uh, thanks...” She blinked, rubbing the back of her neck. “...But... Why did you suddenly ask for a fight?” Instead of explaining, he held out his hand.

“Your dagger.”

Still confused, Marcy carefully handed him her dagger. He took it gently and placed a hand on her shoulder, making her kneel, then pressed his thumb to the blade, making a small cut on his finger and a drop of blood appear. He pulled some of her hair up and touched her forehead with his cut finger, his blood staining her forehead. He pulled away and she hovered her hand where it was touched, still confused.

“What was all that about?”

“You are free.”

Marcy froze, she looked at the toad in front of her who had a satisfied smile, and then at the circle drawn on the ground. And suddenly, everything made sense.

That was not a friendly fight...

...That was an official duel for freedom.

It was a toad tradition that if a prisoner behaved and proved that they were not only no longer a threat, but also useful, they had the right to ask for a duel. Those who lost, if they continued to behave, would be given one more duel after a season had passed. Those who won the duel were given the right to leave, becoming free and with their criminal record erased.

Marcy looked up at Grime again, eyes wide.

“I... I don’t understand...”

“When you drove the herons away from my tower, I said that if you proved your worth, you would have the right to have a duel against me in exchange for your freedom.” He crossed his arms, still smiling. “This time, I kept my word.”

Marcy didn’t know how to react, her chest felt both light and free as a feather and heavy and suffocated. She could almost swear that the voices in her head were as shocked as she was, especially the excited one.

“... Captain...”

“I am no longer your captain, because you are no longer my prisoner, much less my Strategist. You are a creature who can do as you please now, no longer torn between opposing loyalties.” Gently, he placed his hand on her head, his smile softening. “You are free now, Marcy Wu.”

For a moment, the human didn't react at all, but then a single tear fell from her face. She sniffed a little, lowering her head, her entire body shaking as if she were crying, although no more tears fell. Grime moved away from her a little, letting the human try to calmly and at her own pace to compose herself. Finally, she raised her head and gave a small, trembling smile.

“... Thank you... Grime.”

“It was an honor to have you by my side, Marcy.”

She wiped her face on the cape as she stood up, Grime taking the opportunity to take a better look at the well-kept primitive dagger. Marcy took a deep breath and felt her shoulders relax a little, somehow, those simple words seemed to make her world a little lighter, more hopeful.

She still didn't believe she could recover back her friendship with the girls, but... Maybe, when this is all over, she'll be able to start over in some other way. If she got stuck in Amphibia, she could help the Plantars or live with Percy and Braddock, Grime had also released them from service, after all. If she went back to Earth, she would go to her parents, maybe invent an accident that made her lose most of her memory and that would explain her absence for so long. Maybe she could even get the girls to talk to her again, even if they weren't friends, they could still talk in the future, right?

As she thought about the possibilities besides serving the toads, Marcy's gaze fell on the spear next to the tapestry. She narrowed her eyes, the tapestry was a drawing of Andrias holding several creatures while being surrounded by nature and rainbows. It looked a little ugly and too narcissistic for Marcy's taste, but what really caught her attention was that the spear ended up creating a cut in the tapestry and she could swear there was something underneath.

Curious, she approached and lifted the opening made by the cut a little.

A drawing of a pile of bones was seen.

Marcy took a step back, startled, catching Grime's attention.

That... That wasn't real, was it? It was just the shadows coming from the cut making a grotesque drawing, that had to be it. She approached again and looked through the opening, the drawing of the pile of bones was still there, and Marcy could have sworn she saw fire there too.

Swallowing hard, Marcy grabbed the ends of the tapestry and pulled hard, bringing it down.

What she found made her blood run cold.

A drawing was on the wall. The silhouette of a being that looked like Andrias on the floor that was in flames, piles of skulls and amphibian bones below him. A castle floated above the bones, what looked like a cannon on top of the castle pointing at the Music Box, which released pink, green and blue rays into the earth. Some kind of technological equipment framed the scene, and the silhouettes of three gem-colored humanoids stood on top of the box, one of them with a flame on top of its head.

Somehow, though, it wasn't any of that that scared Marcy the most.

It was the six orange eyes that surrounded the box and the humanoid figures.

Piercing orange eyes stared at her and grabbed her face forcibly. She was scared, so scared.
She twitched in her chair, trying to get away. That thing was getting closer, she had to get away!
The helmet slowly descended until it fit on her head. No, please! Andrias, Yunan, Olivia, anyone! Help me!
Pain was the only thing she felt before she was locked in her own mind.

“Is that... the king?”

Grime’s question snapped Marcy out of her strange trance, whatever had appeared in her head disappearing as she came to her senses. She looked back at the painting, a discomfort tightening in her chest and brain.

“Yes, I... I’m sure it’s him.” Slowly, she touched the painting, as if she was afraid it would come to life and try to attack her. She turned to Grime, feeling cold sweat run down her face. “Is that what he’ll do if he has the box...?”

“If it is... it's a really good thing we stopped him.” He commented, also looking anxious.

A noise of metal coming from outside caught the duo’s attention. They looked at each other and ran to the nearby window, where they could see some people trying to remove the metal ramp that prevented the main gate from moving. Polly, Frobo and Priscilla. Meanwhile, on the wall, someone was trying to move the giant crank to close the gate. Sprig.

“Oh, no, no, no...” Marcy flinched slightly, a part of her was surprised that the group had managed to escape, but the rest of her just thought that this was bad, very, very, very bad! “The siege won’t work without the surprise attack! If they close the gates, the army won’t be able to enter and Andrias could return to power!”

“C'mon!”

Grime stepped back from the window and grabbed the hammer, leaving Marcy on his back before jumping out the window. His jump was impressive, managing to reach the wall and dig his claws into the wall, but it would still be a long way to climb, so Marcy took her last teleportation potion and sprinkled some on the two.

“Throw it up there!”

“So it wasn’t my imagination in the room, you were hiding more of these!”

“Yes, but this really is the last one, so don’t miss!”

Nodding, Grime threw it as hard as he could upwards, the potion landing right in the middle of the wall and the pair appeared next to Sprig. The little boy quickly noticed the two, pulling out his slingshot and pointing at them both.

“Stay back!” He shouted, Marcy raised her hands in surrender.

“Wait, don’t shoot! We don’t want to fight!” She tried to calm the situation, taking a single step back. “But please, Sprig, you have to stop closing the gates!”

“To let your army in? Yeah, no. I’m not that stupid!” Grime growled and took a menacing step forward, looking ready to fight. Marcy turned to tell him to calm down, but it was never possible.

Because when she turned around, she saw a furious blonde goddess behind Grime, stealing the hammer from his back and striking him.

Grime screamed in pain, falling to his knees on the ground. Sasha raised the hammer again, looking ready to hit him again, and Marcy quickly charged, making the blonde drop the hammer and both of them roll into the wall before separating. Grime retrieved the hammer, but Sprig also charged at him and they both fell inside the wall, hitting some structures before stopping on top of a house and starting to fight.

Marcy focused her attention on Sasha, she was next to the lever and had that neutral expression that always haunted her memories of Toad Tower. She had lessened the times she used that expression after they reunited in Wartwood, and seeing it again in such a tense moment, she couldn't help but feel a shiver run down her spine.

"Sasha, please, you have to listen to me! King Andrias, he's not who everyone thinks he is! There's something very wrong with him, he's dangerous and we can't let him return to power!" Marcy almost screamed, desperate for the blonde to at least listen to her.

The blonde didn't say or do anything, for a moment, Marcy feared that she would simply start pushing the lever, or worse, pull out her scythe and start fighting her. Her arms still ached from the duel for her freedom and Grime still had her dagger, she wasn't sure if she could win even using her special spear and her hand crossbow, and even if she could, she didn't want to hurt her.

But then, Sasha sighed.

"... At least I wasn't the only one."

The comment made Marcy blink.

“What?”

“Andrias. Something told me from the beginning that there was something wrong with him.” She explained, looking out at the city. “If you think so too, maybe it’s not just me being paranoid, then.”

Hope began to blossom in Marcy’s chest, maybe she could resolve this peacefully after all.

“So, can you please stop closing the gates?”

“No.”

The short, cold answer threw Marcy off track again.

“N-No?”

“No.” Sasha’s gaze seemed more intense as she spoke. “I don’t know what Andrias’ game is, but I don’t know yours either. Creating a giant army? Coupling the monarchy to seize power? Being the one who planned all this?” She sighed. “Marcy, I know you’re different, I am too, and so is Anne. And I know most of this is because of what happened to you, and I was giving you a chance that things weren't as bad as they seemed, but to do this?" She pointed at the approaching army. "I can't even recognize you anymore."

"I know! I know! I was an idiot! I messed up, Sasha, a lot of messed up things! But I'm trying to fix this! I swear!"

"Are you? Are you sure about this? Or are you just lying to me again?"

"Sasha..." Marcy swallowed hard, she didn't know what to say. She could try to keep talking, but Sasha was slowly pushing the lever with one hand, it wasn't much, but it was a clear indication that she was losing patience and would soon ignore her to continue what she and Sprig had started. Slowly, she pulled out her weapon and put it in fighting stick mode, she wouldn't win, but maybe she could delay the blonde enough for the army to enter. "... Step away from the lever. Please listen to me."

"... I did it, Marcy. Several times, here and in Wartwood. But now?” Sasha sighed and placed her hand on her scythe. “...I don’t know if I can forgive or trust you again.”

!!!

The weapon in her hands fell.

Sasha blinked in confusion, but Marcy didn't register it as her vision swam.

(Wrapped in a protective green light, a young opened her eyes in fright. Lying near the peaceful green light, a beast growled and woke. A different glow in the guiding green light caught the attention of a soldier walking in the darkness.)

Someone was calling her name, but her ears heard nothing but murmurs. Her hands held her head as the world blurred and her body refused to support its own weight and fell.

(The young looked around in confusion, unable to make sense of her surroundings and tried to move away. The beast bristled at its hair, sensing something was wrong, walking along the edges. The soldier frowned at the intensity of the light, but continued to advance towards its.)

Something was approaching, her body moving at an almost frantic pace against its will. Something was shaking her, but she didn't recognize what or who it was.

(Moving away from the light. At the edges of the light. Approaching the light. Eventually, three different beings with different births met. And when they did, they were startled.)

Someone was trying to say something, but it was too loud with a thousand voices talking, or too soft with two familiar voices shouting her name. Something was in her vision, but everything was too dark like the darkness of oblivion, or too bright shining emerald green. Something was touching her, but everything was too strong and metallic and cold like a robot's claws, or too tender and soft and warm like a person's skin.

(Because those three beings, so different in personality, birth and mentality...
...Shared the same face.)

Marcy passed out.

***

My head...

It hurts...

Why does it hurt so much?

She whimpered in pain, her entire body shaking with pain for reasons she couldn't remember. She remembered. Remember? A duel for her freedom and to protect the ones she loved. Her friends? They weren't friends anymore, but she still loved them and cared about them. Why weren't they friends anymore? Because she betrayed their trust and no longer deserves their friendship. But they are family, she loves them both. Yes, but after everything, they will no longer accept her as family or friend.

Her head felt like it was going to explode, it was so intense. The last time was in the temple of the green gem. She remembered the pain, it felt like she was being divided. Why did this happen? Is it normal? No, nothing like this happened in the other two.

Her body was being gently rocked, a body seemed to be carrying her. An amphibian? No, the body is warm. Anne? No, very warm, Anne is a little colder because of her armor. Sasha? She is strong and has a natural temperature that borders on fever.

She whimpered again, the pain seeming to get worse. She doesn't understand, who are these voices? Her name is Marcy. It's impossible, because her name is Marcy. But if she's Marcy and the others also say they're Marcy, then...

And suddenly, the pain was gone as everything fell into place.

Oh...
They... They're Marcy.
Marcy Wu.

Marcy opened her eyes.

She was met with Sasha's face looking straight ahead as she carried her, the gentle soft swing keeping her from hitting her face against Sasha's armor. Marcy tried to say something, but three different voices tried to do something and only a painful groan came out of her mouth. That, however, caught the blonde's attention.

"Marcy, you're awake!" She gave a small smile before looking worried. "Are you okay?"

Marcy wanted to say yes, I'm fine I'm not sure Something's wrong, but I'll be fine, but nothing but another pained groan escaped her lips. That seemed to make the blonde more worried.

"Marcy's awake?" Anne's voice echoed from beside Marcy and she saw her approaching from the side she could see. She had a serious expression, she didn't seem to know if she was angry or sad.

Anne!

You're here!

I'm so sorry.

Marcy closed her eyes and let out another painful groan. She didn't see the other two humans looking at each other worriedly.

Need to say something.

But who's going to say it?

...Can I?

“...I...” Her voice sounded hoarse, but it caught the attention of the other two humans again. “...I'm sorry... For everything...”

“Shhh, don’t force yourself, Marcy. We’ll find out what’s wrong and help you, I promise.” Sasha gently pressed her lips to her forehead, it was nice, a good feeling. “These sudden pains with fainting have something to do with the gem, right Anne?”

“It can only be, maybe the temple really is broken and Marcy ended up getting hurt because of it.” Anne gently placed her hand on Marcy’s cheek, the gloves were cold and sent a nice shiver through her body. “Maybe Andrias can help, he knows more about the box and the temples than I do.”

No, we can’t let him escape from prison

What? Why?

He’s not a good person! He wants to use the box to destroy the world!

Our pack is in danger!

Marcy squirmed a little in Sasha’s arms, wanting to get up, but her movements were lethargic and heavy. Three completely different sets of actions in the same body prevented her from moving properly. Sasha stopped moving and gently rested her chin on Marcy's head, as if to calm her down, not realizing that she was no longer in pain, but rather having difficulty controlling her own body.

Her body? Their body? She, they, she was no longer sure. She was Marcy, but the voices were also Marcy, so were they Marcy?

The sound of a door opening made her open her eyes again, and she noticed the king entering the room, approaching with the rest of the group and the general.

No, no, no!

Anne! Sasha!

Get away from them!!!

Marcy groaned, moving her fingers and hand, feeling how her body reacted. Still really heavy. She turned her head, seeing Anne talking to the king and presenting the box. She gritted her teeth and turned, startling Sasha into dropping her from her arms, drawing everyone's attention. The Plantars and Priscilla were close to them while the general was next to Grime, who had her wrists tied. She tried to stand up, her gaze focused on the box.

"Anne... Please... Don't do this..." She moaned, her head falling to the ground again. It was difficult to move, the automatic movements of her body to support herself were not affected, but everything else felt like she was back in the arena with increased gravity.

Get up, stand up, get ready. Responses so similar, but different enough that her body didn't know what to do.

She felt someone lift her and support her body, Sasha, who looked at her worriedly. She looked at Anne, who also looked worried.

“Anne... Are you sure?”

“... It’s okay, Marcy.” Anne whispered, a small, hesitant smile. “We’ll help you and then we’ll sort out everything that happened, okay?”

Marcy was helpless to do anything as Anne handed the box to the king.

“In good time, my dear.” The king said, straightening up with the box in his hand. “I know you don’t want to go now due to how your friend is, but let me tell you a little secret… There was a time when Newtopia was truly great, but that greatness was stolen from us.”

He began to tell them about an era before they were born, about how Newtopia was incredibly technologically advanced, but its power was stolen. He said that he had trusted the wrong people, people he believed to be his friends, and he blamed them, saying that they had betrayed him and stolen the box from him. That they had taken away the glory of his kingdom and now, after a thousand years, no one remembered their legacy or everything they had.

“But now, at long last, the box is back. And with its power, Newtopia will be returned to glory!” He exclaimed, clenching one of his fists.

“... Something isn't right...” Marcy felt Sasha tense as she muttered, and so did she, something bad was going to happen, she knew it, they all did.

Quick! Take control!

What? Why me?

You know more than us, you're more prepared to protect our pack.

I... I don't know how...

Just try! This... This is like controlling the same character with multiple people, isn't it? So if we react as little as possible while you make the main moves, it should be enough!

Quick, before it's too late! The giant salamander is going to do something!

... Okay...

Marcy gasped, blinking as she felt some of the oppressive weight lift off her shoulders. She moved her fingers and hand, it was kind of strange, as if she were moving underwater, her body still felt heavy, but not as much as before. Andrias continued speaking.

“For you see, my ancestors weren't frail explorers... They were glorious conquerors!” As soon as he said that, he stepped on a part of the ground and a pillar similar to the pillar that carried the jewels appeared. He placed the box on the pillar and the gems glowed, energy in pinks, blues and greens seeming to be absorbed by the pillar and directed towards the castle.

The windows of the castle shattered, electricity running through the walls as the ground began to shake. The movement caused everyone except the king to fall to the ground, Marcy realized through the shattered windows that they were rising, the castle rising from the ground and becoming a flying fortress, just like she had seen in the drawing.

Sprig approached a window, looking surprised at how high they were before running back inside. Robot frogs, similar to Frobo but with darker colors and more deadly equipment, flew in from the windows, their laser arms aimed at them.

Marcy gritted her teeth and stood up on her own, still heavy but manageable. Not in the mindset of a frightened young or a raging beast, but a cautious soldier. She approached the group, who had also risen to their feet, eyeing the robots surrounding them warily.

“I’m sorry, Anne, but I’m afraid you and your friends won’t be able to go home for quite some time. Wouldn't want you telling anyone about the coming invasion.” Andrias shook his finger, almost as if scolding a child. “Now that I have the box back, I can finish the work my ancestors started. From this castle, I will not only rule over this world, but all worlds!” He laughed maniacally, looking at everyone in the group as if they were insects. “And if you think you can stop me, I will demonstrate my power.”

He played a sequence on the box and the pillar glowed a little brighter. More energy seemed to be sent through the walls as a metallic sound echoed overhead. From a window, they saw a giant blue laser seemingly coming from the top of the castle towards what Marcy knew was the North Tower, a huge explosion erupted as the laser touched the ground, destroying everything in that place.

Grime screamed in horror, and for a moment, Marcy felt fear at the sight, but fury quickly consumed her inner soldier. She was free, but that Tower was special to her. It was where she met the only captain who had never despised her, where she and her squad managed to recover the legendary Warhammer from Barrel, where the beast Wolly had lived along with Percy and Braddock.

It was in that Tower that she began to create her path to freedom, and that damned tyrant destroyed it!

That bastard...! I asked Grime to spare him because I didn't want Anne to get hurt, but...

Thought he was a predator... But this thing... It's not an animal... It's a monster.

He's a threat, not just to Amphibia, but to all worlds!

“You... You're crazy! How could you do something so horrible?!” Priscilla screamed, almost as outraged as Marcy felt.

“If we can get that music box away from him, maybe we'll stand a fighting chance.” Hop Pop looked ready to fight, as did his grandchildren.

“No... It can't be...” Anne looked devastated, taking a shaky step forward. “Andrias, that's not what you told me. That... That wasn't part of the plan!”

Plan?

“Plan? What plan?” She asked, and Anne shivered a little, looking down at the floor in shame.

“... I...”

“Why the hesitation, Annie?” Andrias maliciously leaned toward Anne with a mocking smile. “If you don't tell them the truth, I will.” Anne took a step back in panic.

“Anne, what is he talking about?” Sasha asked directly, that cold and neutral mask on her face making Anne cringe.

“I... Andrias... When you decided to return to Wartwood, he made me a proposal.” She confessed, almost desperately. “He said that if we returned to the box, we could explore new worlds with him! Have new adventures and save lives in every new place we went! We would be the most famous heroines in all the worlds!”

“Wait, so... You wanted to... Do the same thing I did to you? Trap us on an adventure in another world against our will?” Marcy could hardly believe what she was hearing. This, this couldn’t be it, could it?

Anne... She...

We can’t get too mad, can we? We did the same. It would be hypocritical.

Yes, but it was a stupid hope of ours that we never imagined would happen! She knew! She knew from the beginning that it would work and she was willing to do it anyway!!!

Yeah, but...

“No! No, I would never do that!” Anne quickly denied, somehow sounding even more desperate. “I was going to tell you! I was going to ask if you would like to come with me on this journey!”

“Oh, really? When? When we arrived in Newtopia a few hours ago? When he took us home, but you stayed here? When you two decided to ignore our request in favor of traveling to a world other than Earth? WHEN, ANNE?!” She screamed, and Anne cringed in fear.

“I...”

“You know what’s worse for me? Not the fact that you planned to trap us in your adventure, but that even though you planned to do so, you had the audacity to get mad at me when I confessed everything!” Marcy took a furious step forward, and Anne cringed even more. “You were so angry, so furious, looking ready to rip my head off for betraying you, AND YOU WOULD HAVE DONE THE SAME THING!!!”

She took another strong step forward and Anne ended up tripping over her feet, falling backwards onto the ground. She had tears in her eyes as she looked at Marcy, who felt her entire body tremble with conflicting feelings in her mind, tears of frustration gathering in the corners of her eyes.

“...I... I just...” Anne looked down, small tears streaming down her face. “...You're right... I'm sorry...”

“Well, it’s a shame this happened.” Andrias suddenly commented sarcastically, making the two humans turn to him. “Still, I have to thank you, Anne. After all, without your help, I would never have been able to invade your world.”

Anne’s tears fell harder, she looked absolutely devastated, and Marcy’s young side quickly calmed the soldier’s fury to try to help her fallen friend. Andrias turned his back on everyone, walking towards the throne with his back straight as Marcy held out her hand for Anne to stand up.

And then a blond figure passed by the girls and hit the king’s heel with Barrel’s Warhammer.

Marcy’s eyes widened as Andrias let out a cry of pain and surprise, and turned furiously to look at who had attacked. Sasha moved a little away from the king and threw the hammer in Grime’s general direction, pulling the scythe from her back as she stood in a fighting stance in front of the king without hesitation. The general freed Grime from his ropes and he picked up the hammer again, the Plantars and Priscilla also prepared themselves, Anne wiped her tears and drew her sword. Marcy loaded her hand crossbow, she didn't know where her spear was, maybe still on the wall, but it didn't matter, she could still fight and support her group.

"I see I can't have fun with you here... Okay." Andrias turned and pulled a sword hilt from his belt, which created a giant blade of orange energy. The robot frogs at his command prepared their weapons. "Then I will finish you all now!"

"Leave them alone, you over-developed lizard!" And with that war cry, holding her personalized scythe, Sasha attacked the Tyrant King of Newtopia.

The robots began to attack the group, who were fighting them with some ease. The Plantars may not be fighters like the others, but they knew very well how to face deadly threats, and with Frobo's help, they easily destroyed their enemies. Grimes' hammer blows and Yunan's blades easily cut through any enemy robot that approached them, as did Priscilla's combat spear. No matter how many opponents, with the strength the group had, it wouldn't take long for them to reduce the number of enemy robotic frogs to zero.

We can beat these robots alone, Andrias will be more difficult.

We don't necessarily need to beat him in a fight, we just need to grab the box and get out of here.

Yeah, but he won't let that happen easily, we need to take him down, even if only for a moment.

Our alpha can do it, but not alone.

"ANNE!!" Anne turned to Marcy, whose arrow had just pierced one of the robots. “We'll take care of everything here, go help Sasha!”

Anne seemed to hesitate for a moment, but Marcy glared at her furiously, and she quickly did what the human soldier asked. She ran towards the king, who seemed to be having some difficulty hitting Sasha, and caused enough of a distraction for the blonde to land a good blow on his tail, making him kneel.

A robot attack distracted her from the confrontation, she rolled and dodged the laser that was shot at her. Her body was still a little heavy, but she quickly loaded her crossbow and aimed at a trio of robots that were nearby, eliminating one. Frobo appeared at her side with Polly on his shoulders and fired lasers through his eyes to eliminate the other, and when the third tried to retreat and load three cannons, Sprig threw mud at the cannons, the energy unable to escape causing the robot to explode.

Jeez, Sasha's found family is tough when they want to be!

A small smile appeared on Marcy's face, and her younger self had no idea how much shenanigans the Plantars and Sasha had been through.

"ENOUGH!" Andrias's shout seemed to shake the room. Before anyone could do anything, he slammed his sword into the ground, causing a shockwave that knocked everyone off balance and threw the two human girls away. Anne fell to the ground and Sasha slammed her back into the wall, both dropping their weapons.

The tyrant king gasped as he struggled to his feet, his balance seemingly shaken by the damage to his tail. Slowly, he began walking towards the blonde human. Marcy turned to try to help her, but Frobo and Polly were faster. Before Andrias could get too close, Frobo's mechanical arms wrapped around his limbs, preventing him from getting any closer.

"Stay away from our sister, you bruiser!" Polly screamed and Frobo tightened his grip on the king, doing his best to keep him away from Sasha.

Andrias growled and tried to punch them both, but Frobo knocked him back just in time, throwing him off balance again and missing. Furious, he swung his sword in a horizontal slash, and when Frobo dodged, he landed a punch that shattered it and sent its pieces flying across the room, eventually knocking Polly out of it, and Andrias prepared to stomp her to death.

Marcy stifled a scream as his foot came down, a cloud of smoke covering the room. Thankfully, when he lifted his foot, there was nothing but broken floorboards.

"What the-."

"Over here, you big bozo!" When he turned around, he found the little pink pollywog with a smug expression and a pair of legs that definitely hadn't been there a few seconds ago. "Guess who got legs... Woah!" She took an unsteady step back, still not fully accustomed to her new limbs.

"MY LITTLE BABY GOT LEGS!!" Hop Pop exclaimed happily.

"THIS IS WEIRD!!" It was Sprig's turn to exclaim uncomfortably.

By the time Andrias was about to react, Anne had recovered enough and sneaked up to stab his tail with her sword, creating a new wound. The human girl turned to the pollywog with a determined expression.

“Polly, get the box, quick! I don't know how long I can hold him!” Polly nodded before running, at a surprisingly high speed for someone who had just grown legs, towards the pedestal that held the Calamity Box.

Andrias roared before he managed to pull Anne off his tail and began to attack her aggressively with his sword, and she could only desperately dodge, fearing what would happen if that sword managed to stab her. Marcy shot a robot that was trying to attack Priscilla, freeing her to approach the fight between Anne and Andrias, protecting the human and helping to open up against the king.

When Polly managed to grab the box, the flying castle lost momentum and began to slowly fall. Andrias' attacks seemed to become more frantic and desperate, Marcy looked at the broken window with a thoughtful expression before turning to the young frog beside her.

"Sprig, did you learn how to fly Anne's bird?" Sprig blinked, not understanding the reason for the question, before answering.

"Er…sort of? I think I know enough not to fall from the sky to the ground."

"Close enough for me." She pulled him out of the way of a laser beam and they both used their weapons to destroy the robot that attacked them. "I want you to take Hop Pop, Polly, and the box and use Joe Sparrow to get out of here. Not too far away that Joe can't come back quickly for us, but enough for you guys to stay a good distance away from this lunatic. I'll take Frobo's head on the next trip, as long as his motherboard is intact, I think I can create a new body for him."

Protecting the Plantars is our priority now, even though they are tough, I don't think they have the energy to continue this fight.

The younger and older are more vulnerable in the fight for survival, after all.

Yeah, we owe this to Sasha, after everything we did to her... It's the least we can do...

Images from a few hours ago flashed through her mind, the revolution, her betrayal, Sasha's expression at what she did. Marcy quickly shook her head, now was not the time to let her mind wander. This is a war, either she focuses, or she and her friends die.

They don't need a guilt-ridden, and probably traumatized, teenager. Or a strong but uncontrolled beast driven by her feelings. They need a soldier with a quick mind to strategize. And that's what she's going to be.

"What are you waiting for? HURRY UP!" She yelled at Sprig, who jumped at the girl's sudden change of emotion, but quickly went to join his grandfather and younger sister in getting out of there.

Unfortunately for Marcy, the king moved away from his fight and soon noticed the three frogs reuniting, starting to run somewhere with the Calamity Box with them.

"THE BOX!!!" In a desperate attempt to retrieve that precious object, Andrias changed his grip on the sword and threw it towards the frogs. Hop Pop screamed and stood in front of his grandchildren, trying to protect them with his body.

A blond figure pushed the three out of the way before the sword hit its target.

The room suddenly went silent. Marcy felt her world collapse at the sight in front of her.

A few meters away from the Plantars, pinned to the wall by the flaming sword impaled in her chest, was Sasha.

No...

Sasha stared at the sword in shock, without any other reaction for a second, as if not even she could believe what she saw.

It can't be real...

Her breathing seemed to falter, trembling, her hand reached for the hilt of the sword, touching a spot that made the blade disappear and the hilt fall to the ground.

It's impossible...

And then...

Sasha...

With one last gasping breath, Sasha's knees finally gave way and she fell motionless to the ground.

***

No... No, no, no! This can't be happening!!! It should have been me, not her!

But you changed everything. Things haven't been the way they should have been since the beginning, and unfortunately, this is one of those things.

No... No, I can't accept this! I need to do something!

You've already done something, haven't you? You've sacrificed everything you had to try to make everything better. There's nothing left to do.

... Not everything. Not yet.

Not yet?

After all, I'm still here, not there, right?

...! You...!

... Hey, Guardian?

?

...Thank you, for being my friend.

***

She opened her eyes.

She could feel the power of the gemstones. If she crossed beyond this place, her memories would be temporarily sealed and she had no idea if they would return before or after the invasion. It was too risky.

But then again, what hadn't she done so far that wasn't risky?

She had already lost everything...

...She wouldn't let this girl lose everything too.

She touched the smooth surface. The blue star was sparking with fury from the hatred and pain in her heart, the green star was glowing in shock as her mind tried to make sense of what it saw, and the pink star was burning faintly as she tried to focus the healing on her body.

She focused on the green star. For a moment, she saw her creations united in a single mind, and then...

The surface cracked.

***

When Marcy opened her eyes, thoughts that hadn't existed before took over her body.

She looked ahead, Sasha, her pink star, lying on the ground with a serious wound. Behind the king, Anne, her blue star, was shaking with emotions that were too much for her. She touched her own face, tears falling freely on it, her chest tightening at the thought of losing one of her stars, her eternal soulmates.

She still had hope, though. If Sasha and her gemstone could synchronize, she could recover and return, Marcy just needed to have faith and hope that her pink star refused to stop burning.

As she thought this, Anne advanced on the king, climbing on his back and trying to slash his face. He managed to dodge enough for it to be only a superficial cut, taking a step back as Anne turned to him, her body shaking with barely contained rage. She growled like a wild animal, tears of fury streaming down her eyes. Her eyes, whose irises were now bright blue.

Her blue star was beyond raging.

“How dare you…” Anne took a step forward, tears falling even more heavily. “HOW DARE YOU DO THAT?!?!”

She let out a furious scream before slashing at him again with her sword, and Andrias activated his shield. The sword strikes bounced off the shield, but that didn't discourage Anne. On the contrary, it only made her more determined to hurt him, each strike slowly becoming stronger and faster than the last. The feelings that Marcy's head refused to process were taking over her entire being, and she lashed out with vengeful hatred.

"I TRUSTED YOU! I GAVE MY LOYALTY TO YOU, AND YOU USED ME!!!" Andrias was forced to take a few steps back by the intensity of the strikes, blue rays shooting out of the human girl's eyes. "YOU DECEIVED ME, MADE ME BETRAY MY FRIENDS AND TRIED TO DOMINATE MY WORLD!!! AND NOW I WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO APOLOGIZE OR REDEEMED WITH SASHA BECAUSE YOU TOOK HER AWAY FROM ME!!!!"

With that scream of fury, she raised her sword again, but this time the blow came from a spear that cut the king's arm. The tyrant king winced in pain, and when he tried to turn around, he was met by a hammer blow to his leg that threw him off balance. Marcy quickly realized this and focused on her raging blue star.

'Try attacking his injured arm, it will be easier to win if he can't move one of them.'

Anne stopped her blow for a second, probably confused by having heard her voice in her mind, before turning to anger and rage, attacking with Grime and Priscilla, this time aiming for the king's arms as she asked. With that done, Marcy grabbed Frobo's head, turned around, and destroyed with her arrows two robot frogs that were approaching the stunned Plantars. Marcy quickly approached them and knelt down to pick up the box, with her back to the frogs.

“…You three, continue with the escape plan, and take Frobo with you. Leave Joe Sparrow around so that Grime, Priscilla and Yunan can leave right away. I'm going to open the portal to get me, Anne and the box out of here.” She said in a completely neutral tone as she stood up, watching the battle, the king seemed to be leaning on his right leg rather than his left, this could be advantageous.

“But… Sasha…”

“There’s nothing we can do for her.” Marcy interrupted Sprig, who was now staring at her coldly due to her voice.

“Are you…Are you serious?! After everything that's happened, are you just going to leave her like that?” He shouted. “There has to be some way! Maybe if you use this magic box, it can..."

"I said there's nothing we can do." Marcy finally turned to them. Despite her neutral expression, she knew that her light green irises were filled with tears of pain and suffering, silently streaming down her face. "Unless her gemstone reacts to the damage it chosen one took, that was a fatal blow. By all means, Sasha…" She trailed off, holding back something that even she didn't know what it was. Maybe hopelessness. "...Sasha is dead..."

The numbness was fading, she realized, but she wasn't sure if it was a good or a bad thing. She could almost hear the voices of the other girls she shared her body with again, so it wouldn't be long before her control over her body would start to split again. When it was all over, they would need to talk about it. Marcy looked back at the fight, her theory was correct.

‘He is leaning more on his right leg than his left. Use it to your advantage.'

She directed that thought to Anne. Almost instantly, Anne stopped for a second before she started trying to cut the king's leg. With that done, she turned her attention back to the box, looking closely at the small crack between the places where the gemstones were.

This wasn't normal, the powers of the gemstones shouldn't be with them, not after the temples drained their powers to recharge them. Yet here she is, knowing full well that the gemstones had powers that were passed on to them when the three fell into this world, and that each of them had their own attribute and it was that attribute that awakened the gift that the gemstone gave to humans. And that these attributes were the reasons why the three temples are so different from each other, to adapt to the chosen one by the gemstone, and for the chosen one to adapt to their element.

She’s not sure if the temples are actually supposed to completely cut off the current holder’s connections to the gifts in the box, or if Andrias or some of his ancestors modified the temples to do something they weren’t supposed to, or something. What she does know is that somehow Marcy and Anne managed to reconnect with their gemstones when that crack appeared in the box after its strong impact with the wall, and that even though the connection is still weak and unstable, they are now able to access again a fragment of the gifts the Calamity Box gave them. She was just one last gift from the green gem to Marcy in an attempt to help her solve her problem, and if possible, reconnect with it to regain what is rightfully hers.

Marcy heard the Plantars ask something, but she was too focused on touching the box in the right places and sequences to pay attention. What she needed to do to activate the portal was running frantically through her head on a loop, she couldn’t forget or lose focus. A few taps here, a few taps there, turn the key here, touch the gemstones in the right order, and—

A white glow appeared in the air beside her, and slowly a portal began to appear, its edges glowing the same colors as the gemstones. Surprised gasps echoed as the portal tried to grow beyond a small fissure in the air, and Marcy bit her lower lip lightly, mentally begging for it to work.

‘Please work. Please work. Don't let Sasha's fall be in vain!’

Her prayers seemed to work as the portal began to grow to a reasonable size, but just as the human soldier began to hope, she heard Anne scream. She turned just in time to see Andrias holding her friend in one hand, running towards them and attacking with all the fury of an aggressive, giant-sized football player.

Andrias's blow knocked them several meters away from the growing portal, and caused Marcy to drop the box in her hands. Anne tried to free herself from the king's grip with more vigor, especially when she noticed that he was walking towards the Sprig with a murderous expression. The king raised his foot, ready to stomp on the young frog, and in a desperate attempt to save him, Marcy pulled him towards her as Andrias made the move.

She narrowly managed to save him from certain death, but unfortunately, because of the angle at which she pulled him, something else ended up being crushed instead. A pain Marcy couldn’t even describe echoed through her brain, her mind splitting once more. Reflexively, she turned to the source, wondering if she could minimize the damage.

And even though she couldn’t see the damage clearly, she knew that her right arm being crushed by the king’s boots wasn’t something she could easily fix.

SON OF A…

Language! But yeah, that hurts!

GYAAH! Our arm! OUR CROSSBOW!

Is it the weapon you’re worried about?! Our arm has been crushed!

“Look well, Anne. Pay close attention to this.” Andrias began with a growl, looking straight at the human knight in his hand, whose bright blue eyes were wide with terror as she stared helplessly at her friend pinned to the ground. Sprig was being held protectively by Marcy’s other arm, the young frog trembling in fear for the human. Marcy, on the other hand, despite the obvious pain in her expression, couldn’t help but stare at the king, her green eyes shining with defiance. “None of this would have happened if you just surrendered to me.”

Andrias pressed the human's arm harder.  Marcy squeezed her eyes shut, biting her lip to keep from screaming, no part of her wanting to give him the satisfaction.

"And now…”

He lifted his leg slightly, but not enough for Marcy to remove her arm.

“Look what you made me do.”

Without any mercy or hesitation, he suddenly stomped down on her arm, harder. Something snapped and this time the pain spoke louder and Marcy couldn't help but scream in agony. She heard Anne and Sprig scream along with her, one in despair and the other in fear. Marcy felt the pressure on her arm ease and she tried to brace herself, certain that he would step on her again, but he stood still, to her confusion.

That was when she felt her pink star burn again.

"No... It can't be..." The king's frightened whisper made Marcy open her eyes again, tears of agony streaming down her face, and she tried to turn her head to know what was happening.

The pink energy began to envelop Sasha, wrapping her like a protective layer, Sasha's fingers began to move.

Marcy's sigh had nothing to do with the pain she was feeling.

...Sasha?

It's working.

Working? What?

Her connection with the gemstone, this could save her life!

"...Sasha...?" Marcy heard Anne whisper in disbelief. She heard some footsteps moving away, probably because they had sensed the fallen girl's power. If the pain hadn't been so much, Marcy knew her eyes would be shining as she watched Sasha's left hand close and open twice, her hair starting to float.

She suddenly punched the ground, creating a small crater, repeating the same process with her other hand as she rose to a kneeling position, a flame surging and burning her chest. The energy around her began to take on a fire-like form, the very temperature of the room beginning to rise, along with the sudden increase in gravity.

Sasha's hair had taken on a reddish-pink color and also taken on a fiery look, the branch holding her ponytail had grown out into a star shape. She stood with her head down, the flame that had come from the hole that now existed in her armor gone out, showing a long burn in its final stages of healing.

She moved her arms back, and purple flames engulfed her hands. A growl began to come out of her throat, her voice taking on a second deeper, older tone.

“Leave them alone…” She lifted her gaze, pink eyes burning like two raging suns. “LEAVE. THEM. ALONE!!!"

Energy exploded from her body, decimating any frog-bots still close to her, and she disappeared from the king's sight. He could only gasp in terror before Sasha reappeared in front of him and punched him hard in the chest. His armor cracked, along with some of his rib bones, and he was flung across the room, dropping Anne in the moment of impact and freeing Marcy's arm.

Finally free, she allowed herself to shift into a fetal position as she whimpered in pain and clutched her crushed arm to her chest, ignoring her broken crossbow and the blood that now stained her clothes. Sprig and Anne sat beside her with their hands hovering in the air, unsure of what to do to help or ease the pain she was feeling.

Marcy felt Sasha's gaze and did her best to face her as well, trying her best to stay in a sitting position. Those flaming pink eyes watched the three of them intently, their expressions growing even more irritated at the sight of Marcy's blood and limp arm, the flames growing larger and the gravity heavier. She walked over to her cowering friend and grabbed her crushed arm, forcing the bones back into place and making her stifle a scream.

ARGH! What... What is she doing?!

Fixing it.

Fixing it?

She can't heal our arm if every bone is out of place.

One bone out of place would only make the situation worse.

The flames in Sasha's hand enveloped Marcy's arm, and she bit her lip again to keep from screaming, her green eyes glowing brighter as she focused on the fire, her power asking for permission to take that part of Sasha's power. When accepted, the purple flames took on a green hue and became weaker, but still completely enveloped her arm, stopping the bleeding and slowly closing the wounds. That done, Sasha gently released her arm, turning back towards Andrias, who was spitting blood from where he was kneeling, a mixture of fury and despair on his face as he faced the blonde.

“How... How can it be...? You should have lost your connection to the stones, you should be dead!” Sasha's only reaction was to growl, sounding even deeper than the first, and taking a step towards the tyrant king, who nearly lost his balance as fear took over his being. "F... FIRE!" At his command, the frog-bots started firing, with more of them still about to arrive due to the last command Andrias made using the box. Before they could get close to Sasha, however, she slammed both hands to the ground, the flames turning pink, and a wall of fire erupted between them, the robots' attacks being consumed as they touched it.

Marcy knew that the barrier was created to protect them and not her, since as soon as she made the barrier, she jumped and landed right among the robot frogs, some of whom were destroyed by the impact of the landing. She ignored them and went towards the tyrant king, who tried to defend himself with his shield, but to no avail as a single elbow strike from Sasha completely destroyed it. Wasting no time, she grabbed Andrias' arm and hurled him against the wall, which with the force of the blow ended up cracking and breaking, almost creating a hole.

Andrias shuddered in pain, and as he looked around, he realized that the hilt of his sword was close to him. He tried to reach out and try to fight back, but as soon as his fingers brushed the weapon, Sasha grabbed him by the injured tail, which made him scream in agony, and pulled him hard to throw him to the ground on the other side of the living room. The entire ground shook, causing some to lose their balance, and the tyrant king vomited blood. He tried to get up to do something, anything, only to be forced to remain on the ground by gravity that grew much stronger where he lay, the ground itself cracking with the weight it was being forced to bear. Sasha started to move closer, walking like a predator about to pounce on its prey.

Our alpha is strong and amazing, isn't she?

Oh, yeah.

Of course!

...

Wait... Are you blushing?

...

... I think the sight of Sasha kicking ass broke her. In a good way.

Meanwhile, Anne approached the nearest window and whistled outside, and quickly she heard the singing of her loyal bird close by, ready to take whoever fell. Without hesitating, she sent the warrior amphibians to jump for Joe Sparrow to take them away, Grime, Priscilla and Yunan quickly obeying her, not before Yunan gently ruffling Anne's hair. Marcy was about to ask them to leave soon so Joe could return and take the Plantars to safety when she noticed the portal began to spark, its size seeming to shrink slightly as it blinked.

The portal was failing.

“S-Sasha, Anne! The portal! We need to go now!" Marcy screamed as she got to her feet, the green flames starting to go out along with the fire barrier, leaving them vulnerable to the robot army. She notices Sasha stop her walk and Anne starts to approach before turning to the Plantars. “Quick, go with the others at Joe's back! Hopefully, you'll only have a kind of bumpy landing.”

"B-But what about the box?!" Hop Pop exclaimed, pointing to the box right behind the army that had started to gather near them. Anne quickly unsheathed her sword and slashed at those nearby, her irises sparking again.

“No time! We'll have to solve it when the time comes!" As much as Marcy wanted to argue, she knew Anne was right, especially when Marcy noticed new frog-bots arriving on the horizon, weapons ready to take down anyone who got in their way. They wouldn't be able to take on this army the way they were, and if they were really lucky, the crack in the box would prevent Andrias from making new portals or limit the amount.

Those in the room continued to try to surround the two girls, Anne grunted as she brandished her sword, being Marcy and the Plantars' current only defense considering Marcy's crossbow was completely destroyed and their other weapons were with Grime and, hopefully, on the wall. The human soldier looked back where the portal started to close, then back to where Joe was with the other three amphibians, where she also had some robots in the way, in addition to the ones that were quickly approaching by flying. If Anne managed to destroy those in the way, the Plantars would be safe to run, and then it would just be a matter of calling Sasha and the three of them could leave.

The room suddenly got hotter, and a flaming pink star decimated the robots in front of Anne. The two humans perked up with her appearance, with Sasha's powers, it would be easy to make way for both the Plantars and the box...

Before anyone could react, however, Sasha grabbed Anne's arm and threw her against the small group, who, thanks to the force of the blow, were also thrown back. Straight to the closing portal.

At that moment, for the humans, everything went slow motion.

Flaming pink eyes softened, a small satisfied smile appearing on her face.

Bright blue and green eyes widened in terror as they realized her friend's plan as they watched helplessly as she stood among the robots.

The young saw her world collapse again, the beast roared in panic, the soldier felt despair and the gift of calamity froze as she saw her pink star stay in another world, far from them.

Alone. By herself.

“SASHA!!!”

The portal's glow intensified, brightening the entire room and temporarily blinding anyone looking.

***

White.

For a while, white and silence was the only thing they saw and heard.

And right then, pain, loud noise, and the smell of smoke flooded them senses.

The three frogs and the two humans grunted, trying to get up into a sitting position, quickly noticing that they were on something metallic and warm.

When they looked back, they saw two adult humans and a baby behind glass, looking at them in shock. Even in shock, the man still took a picture of them with a cell phone.

It took two seconds for that information to be processed in the heads of the five.

Quickly they looked around. Cars of all kinds stopped in a traffic jam, some drivers even honking in frustration. Smoke filling the surrounding air. Signs and light poles on both sides of the road. Some trees, but still full of tall buildings as far as they could see.

"What the...?"

"Oh my frog..."

"What is this place?"

The humans had no more doubts.

They looked at each other, dark blue eyes meeting mismatched brown and green eyes.

In a single breath, the two whispered together:

"Home."

Chapter Text

...

Ha...

Hahaha!!!!

I can't believe this... Even after knowing and talking to you for over 10,000 years while you waited for this day... You still managed to surprise me!

Your determination to fix things and make things better for everyone is impressive.

... No... Not for everyone...

... The desire to make things better, for your friends.

That loyalty, that unbreakable will, that love you have for them... You would bend worlds to your will and change the universe itself for these two, and only for them.

Maybe you were right, you weren't a good choice as my successor.

...

... But without a shadow of a doubt, you are the best choice to change the course of history for the better. Where no death or sacrifice will be necessary.

I wish you good luck in your mission...

... And I want you to know it was an honor to be your friend for all these years.

Goodbye Marcy. And thank you.

Chapter Text

“Legs! Legs! Legs!”

Polly kept repeating this as she hopped around her family and friends, excited to finally grow her legs. Hop Pop and Sprig watched them all with wide eyes, Hop Pop with a bit of fear and Sprig delighted with it all. Walking in front of the group with her eyes on her phone was Anne, guiding everyone in some direction.

“Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!... What is this thing? What are these?” Sprig got distracted by a mailbox and opened it, pulling out the letters inside. His eyes widened when he saw a traffic light post and he latched onto it, starting to press the button on it. “Buttons! BUTTONS EVERYWHERE!!!” He screamed excitedly, seeing a small manhole and trying to jump into it, getting stuck. “HELP! This dungeon smells awful!”

“Careful, boy.  There's no telling what dangers lurk in this world. ” Hop Pop scolded him, pulling him out of the hole by his collar. Anne paused for a moment, to make sure she was on the right path, and then continued walking. “So what's our next move Anne? I mean, so much has happened. And what happened to Sasha, do you think she...”

“She’s fine, Hop Pop. She's just gotta be. You saw how she was kicking Andrias’ ass, she probably did it because she knew we couldn’t help her at the time.” Anne answered the orange frog’s implicit question. She looked back at her phone, at the photo she had taken with her friends before they left Wartwood. “And with her facing him and his army alone, one thing’s for sure… We gotta find a way back.”

“Yeah!”

“Alright!”

“Sounds like a plan.”

Anne gave a small smile, which faded as she glanced behind the frog family to the last person accompanying their group. Marcy had wrapped her cloak around her injured arm, creating a makeshift splint, and she walked silently, sometimes frowning or looking away before returning to focus. She hadn't said a word since they realized they were on Earth.

Honestly, Anne was getting a little worried about this. She had already been bothered in Amphibia, when she noticed that Marcy was no longer talking and discussing anything she found interesting like before. Sasha had been told that she would say what she thought if asked, and indeed, when Anne asked something that seemed to catch Marcy's attention, she would start telling her every detail about it, not as excited as before, but still happy to share what she knew. Now? Anne tried calling out to her a few times, but she didn't answer, looking incredibly lost in thought. It reminded her a little of before Amphibia, when she was so focused on a game that she forgot about the world around her, but it wasn't as cute as back then, she had never seen Marcy's face as stressed and confused as it was now.

Was she still upset about her stupid plan? Maybe. Anne had been really hypocritical with Marcy, getting mad at the older girl for doing something Anne was almost ready to do, she would have every reason to be mad at her. But it didn't seem like she was, she seemed to be thinking about something else, and whatever it was, it seemed to be very important. Maybe trying to remember some information from the box that could guide them back to Amphibia or something. Whatever it was, Anne wasn't going to mess with her focus, and she also needed to prepare for something important.

“But before we do any of that... First things first.” Anne stopped, causing the Plantars to bump into her as she turned to the house next to her.

A simple two-story house with blue siding and a brown roof. The ornate mailbox had its flag up, the basketball hoop still hung over the garage, the door leading to the small backyard was locked, the front door was exactly as she remembered.

“Anne, is this...?” Sprig took Anne’s hand as she felt tears well up in the corners of her eyes.

“My house... This is really happening... I'm gonna see my parents.” She hadn't realized how much she missed home until it was right in front of her. Suddenly her stupid plan seemed even more stupid, why on earth was she willing to travel between worlds when the only world she really wanted was this one?

“... How are we going to do this?” Marcy's sudden voice startled the group a little. Anne turned around with wide eyes, Marcy still had a strange expression, but she nodded towards the Plantars. “About them, about us, about Amphibia. They deserve to know. How are we going to explain everything?”

“Okay... you three should probably hide in here for the time being.” Anne opened one of the trash cans, it wasn’t the best or most comfortable place, but it was the only place they could safely hide in such a short amount of time. “I wanna ease them into all of this slowly. And when the time is right, I'll signal.” She mimicked the sound of a bird. “DO NOT come out until you hear that.”

The Plantars nodded, climbing into the cans and hiding, Anne placing Frobo’s head next to Polly. She looked at Marcy, who still seemed a little out of focus, but looked up and started to approach Anne’s house, before Anne gently stopped her.

“Marcy, wait. There are some things I don’t want to tell them, not right now at least.” She began to explain, looking away. “I'm not gonna tell them I plan to go back and stop Andrias. Or that Andrias betrayed us. Or what you did. Or what I did. Or what happened to Sasha. And not A WORD about our weird glowing powers!” She almost shouted the last part and then took a deep breath to steady herself. “Wow... There's a lot going on...”

“... It’s okay.” Anne looked up, Marcy had a small, comforting smile on her face, and she could have sworn her eyes were greener than before. “I know what it’s like to have something you don’t even know how to explain and have to hide it for a while to understand. I’m ready to take responsibility for my part, but I won’t say anything unless you say it first.”

"... Thanks."

Nodding, the two walked together to the door, Anne staring at the welcome carpet for a moment before taking a deep breath and knocking on the door. She waited a few seconds and knocked again, and a warm, familiar voice reached her ears.

“I’m coming, I’m coming.”

Anne swallowed back her tears as the door opened and her mother appeared. Wearing a comfortable blue sweater, white pants, bare feet inside the house, a bowl on her arm with some mixture being mixed. She looked the same as always, maybe with a few extra wrinkles, but exactly as she remembered. Tears once again welled up in her eyes.

“… Hi Mom.”

“… Hello, Mrs B.”

Her mother dropped the bowl in shock, tears welling up in her eyes. She didn't hesitate and pulled the two girls into a hug, Marcy seemed to freeze for a second, but soon returned it, the three of them crying silently in the embrace. Footsteps echoed in the house and a man peeked through the door.

“What was that noise? Everything OK?” Her father asked, his eyes widening when he realized who was at the door

“Dad!”

“Hello, Mr. B!”

“Anne?! Marcy?” Her father quickly walked over and pulled the three of them into a group hug, crying along with them. “Anne, you're back! You're safe, both of you!” He hugged a little tighter, only loosening enough for their cat, Domino, to rub against Anne's legs, happy to see her owner return.

“Domino! Come here, my precious baby!” Anne quickly picked her up and hugged her, the family standing together in a group hug for a moment before her mother pulled back a little to look at the girls.

“Where have you been? Are you OK? Are you hurt? Have you eaten? What’s with that outfit? What happened to your arm?” She began to ask worriedly, touching Anne’s armor and Marcy’s improvised splint.

“It's a really... Really long story.” Was Anne’s only response, turning to Marcy, who also had a confused smile.

She heard a bird flying nearby, and then a noise of something moving in the can. Horrified, she turned to the trash cans, and out of them, climbing out with some difficulty to the point of knocking over the trash, came Hop Pop.

Oh, no…

“And we're the Plantars! The lovable frog family Anne's told you all about!” he said, making a cute face right after.

“Hop Pop, that was not the signal!” Polly complained, which would have been nice, if she hadn’t also decided to come out and expose herself to scold him.

"Well, it sure sounded like the signal!"

“Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Anne's parents. The name's Sprig Plantar!" Sprig suddenly appeared on the balcony, puffing out his chest proudly as he pointed to himself. “Sasha’s best friend and walking, talking frog!” He saw a fly passing by and caught it with his tongue, striking a cute pose afterwards.

Anne slapped her hand to her face, not surprised that her father had fainted behind her.

“Wh... What...” She also wasn't surprised that her mother seemed to be torn between fainting and grabbing the first thing she could to use as a weapon.

“Just give me a few minutes and I’ll explain everything, I promise!” Anne assured, putting Domino down and supporting her father to place him on the living room couch. She turned to the Plantars with a fierce look. “And I guarantee they’ll behave in the meantime, won’t they?”

They swallowed hard and nodded quickly, probably only now realizing how much they had messed up the introductions. They followed her inside as Marcy closed the door and brought in her still dazed mother. Anne quickly laid her father down on the couch, wondering if they had enough notepads for her to explain everything. That was when she saw Marcy shudder as she placed her left hand on her head and suddenly remembered what Sasha had told her a few hours ago.

(“She just passed out while she was trying to convince me not to close the gates.” Sasha explained, carrying Marcy’s unconscious body in her arms. “It was exactly the same thing that happened at the temple, she held her head and started screaming before she passed out… Anne, she’s not okay, there’s something wrong with her!”)

“... Hey, Marbles, how about you get some rest?” She turned to Anne, who gave her a small smile. “I can explain everything important on my own and the Plantars can help me fill in some blanks. Go ahead, after what you’ve been through, you deserve it.”

Marcy stared at her for a few seconds with that vague look before nodding and walking slowly to her room. Anne watched her climb the stairs for a moment before turning to the Plantars for a second and then her parents, her father regaining consciousness and sitting on the couch.

This would be a long explanation…

***

When she got to her room, she sat on the bed for a second, taking a deep breath as she prepared herself. She lay down, a smile breaking out as she looked at the stars she and her friends had put up in Anne's room.

She closed her eyes, concentrated, and...

...Well, I'm surprised.

When she opened her eyes, she looked at her own face. Almost.

‘I didn’t think faking a headache would actually work.’ The human in the toad army uniform commented with her arms crossed and a vaguely surprised look.

It was striking how similar and different they were, almost like looking into a distorted mirror from one of those circus illusion halls. The girl in front of her wore reddish brown armor with pants of a similar tone, a red belt holding a bag and a gray cylinder, as well as the tunic beneath her armor, giving the illusion of being a skirt. She had green metallic boots and reddish gloves that covered her elbow, with a crossbow implanted in one of them, green fabrics tied to her muscular arms. A large dark gray cape and goggles with one of the lenses broken completed her attire, and that would have been enough to separate one from the other, but there was something else that set them apart.

The cut scars on her right cheek and the heavy bags under her eyes gave her the look of someone dangerous and constantly tired.

‘Well, Anne did seem worried about us while we were trying to talk on the ride here. It wasn’t hard to imagine that she thought we were still in pain or dazed after everything that happened.’ Was the human student’s response, looking down at herself.

She was still wearing the same clothes she had when she was transported to Amphibia, her school uniform with her green skirt, brown shoes, and her gray hoodie, without the school emblem. The main difference was that all of her clothes had a few rips here and there, giving her a more worn-out appearance than she originally had. She touched her face, but she couldn't feel any wounds or anything like that, so she didn't know how different her face was or wasn't from her body.

She looked around, at the almost completely empty place in a slightly greenish tone. Almost completely empty, because when she looked to her side, she saw the other two girls approaching.

One had a more wild, caveman-like appearance, and she didn't mean that in a pejorative sense. She wore armor that seemed to have been made in an improvised way, using green exoskeletons and fabrics to tie it all together over a blouse that looked a lot like a school uniform. Her skirt was blue with several scraps, as well as her brown shoes also had several fabrics tied together for protection. Besides the primitive-looking spear in her hand and the dagger at her waist, what caught the girl's attention the most was her long hair with branches and leaves and, mainly, her pointy teeth and feline eyes. Around her, three small insects flew peacefully and even landed on her.

The other one vaguely resembled the two armored humans, but in a way that made her seem less like a warrior class and more like a stealth class. Pink plate armor was worn over what also seemed to be the school uniform, a belt with a shell holding up her skirt with some patches on one side. Purple combat boots with brown straps and a furry top, as well as fingerless gloves and a blue cape with fluffy shoulder pads and another pink shell holding it in place only completed the look of an artificer/rogue. Her hairstyle and face were the most similar to the student's, the only difference being that the ranger girl had green eyes instead of brown. Compared to the other two, she wasn't as flashy on her own, just like the student.

What really caught this girl's attention wasn't her per se, but the strange green aura that emanated from her left hand, going towards the only object in this place. A gigantic stone door with the design of three humanoid beings in armor beneath three gems.

‘Great! Now that we’re all here, we can start our little meeting!’ The ranger said with a smile, clapping her hands together and rubbing them together eagerly. ‘Let’s start with something basic: We need nicknames.’

‘Nicknames? Because we have the same name?’ The wild girl asked, sitting down cross-legged. The ranger nodded.

‘Exactly. We can’t keep calling each other Marcy here, it would get confusing, and I don’t really like the idea of ​​calling myself Marcy #4 or something like that. Hence, nicknames!’ She waved her hands in excitement. ‘I already have a few ideas, like Starlight or Andromeda! You guys?’

‘Er... Strategist?’ The human from the army commented, cringing a little when all the others stared at her. ‘It was the only nickname I’ve ever had that didn’t have anything to do with our name! I never thought of that before!’

‘I could use a name from one of our favorite characters, like Cynthia!’ The student was almost jumping with excitement, countless characters she likes passing through... Her mind? Maybe? She’s still not sure how this place works.

‘Maybe, but I think it would be better if we didn’t use names of characters we know. We might end up confusing one with the other if we talk to someone outside and use the name.’ The ranger tapped her finger lightly on her lips, turning to the last of the group. ‘What about you, girl? Have you thought of a nickname you like?’

‘...’ For a moment, she didn’t respond, staring intently at each of the other girls, making the human army girl tense up. Finally, she took out her spear and pointed it at the student. ‘Young.’ Then at the army girl. ‘Soldier.’ At herself. ‘Beast.’ Finally, she looked at the ranger with a narrowed gaze, but finally said, ‘...Calamity.’

For a moment, no one spoke, still staring at the seated girl in confusion. And then, the army girl’s left eye twitched.

‘Did you... just name us, without our permission? Are you serious?!’ She growled angrily, clenching her hands into fists. The wild girl didn’t even blink.

‘Names are just fancy ways of saying “you”. You guys were taking too long, we’d be at this for hours if we let you all, and we have more important things to think about than a name.’ She explained calmly, pointing to herself next. ‘I’m more connected to nature than you, a predator, therefore, a Beast.’ She pointed to the army girl, who was in a mix of anger and surprise. ‘You served that one-eyed toad, called him leader even though he wasn’t your or our Alpha, were part of the group he calls the army. A Soldier.’ She pointed now to the student, who watched the discussion with wide eyes. ‘You have a strong heart, but not hardened by nature or the group you live in, still a cub. Still a Young.’ She turned to Ranger, who was watching everything calmly with a small smile. ‘You said it was the last gift in the box, which Sasha has already called the Music Box, or the Box of Calamity. And also...’ She narrowed her eyes a little. ‘...You’re not like us, but you’re all of us at the same time. Someone who can be sweet and innocent one moment, and a predator willing to rip off your own arm to get out of a trap and destroy your captor the next. Unpredictable and destructive, especially to your prey, like...’

‘…A Calamity?’ The ranger added, the wild girl nodded. The ranger closed her eyes for a moment, humming thoughtfully, before opening them again. ‘Okay, I see your point. For now, let’s use these nicknames, at least until we sort everything out and think of a new one ourselves, okay?’

The student, Young, nodded and clapped her hands on her cheeks to focus, she could really spend a few hours thinking of a nickname and they needed to focus on more important things. The army girl, Soldier, gave a small dissatisfied groan, but didn’t argue, she agreed that they needed to focus on other things. The wild girl, Beast, simply rested her hands on the ground behind her, stretching her legs and swinging them slightly, waiting for the meeting to finally begin.

‘Now, with that out of the way…’ The ranger, Calamity, snapped her fingers. Two chairs appeared next to Young and Soldier, as well as a tatami mat below Beast. A whiteboard also appeared behind Calamity, three colored humanoid silhouettes with arrows pointing to the three diamond-shaped stones, below the humans were drawings of three types of amphibians. Blue had a frog, pink had a toad and green had a newt. ‘… Let’s take it one step at a time. We know that all of this started when Anne opened the box and transported us to Amphibia, we also know that we are the only ones who have had this specific side effect, at least from what it seems. Neither Sasha or Anne appeared to suffer anything similar to us.’

‘We also seem to have very selective memories. I don’t know about you, but apart from Anne and Sasha, I don’t remember much from Earth, most of the things I know here are from the diary I read.’ Soldier added, resting her chin on one hand.

‘Apart from... Toad Tower, I have no memories of Amphibia.’ Young shivered involuntarily, the memories of the tower still haunting her even at that moment. Soldier hesitated for a second, and then gently placed her hand on her shoulder, in an attempt to comfort her.

‘I remember hunting a lot and looking for our pack, but not much else. It didn’t seem important to try to remember anything beyond them.’ Was Beast’s comment, her attention focusing on a small ladybug that flew around her. She extended her finger, smiling when the insect landed on her.

‘I know of your adventures, but I have no memories of my own. At least, I don’t think I do.’ Calamity tapped her head lightly with her knuckles. ‘I know nothing but the simplistic context of our situation to fulfill my mission and duty.’

‘And what is your duty?’

‘To protect the chosen of the gemstones, return the power that is rightfully yours, and destroy the Night Core.’ The three blinked blankly, and the ranger could only shrug. ‘I have no idea what the last one is either, but if I remember it, it must be something important that needs to be fought. Some kind of BBEG or something.’

‘OOOHHH!!! SO COOL!!!’ Somehow, Young’s smile grew even wider than usual.

‘I know, right? I kind of feel like a superhero on a secret mission...’ Calamity had a big smile just like Young’s as she put her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest. Before a new tangent could emerge, Soldier clapped her hands, catching the girls’ attention.

‘Back to the point, do you know what happened to us?’ Soldier asked Calamity directly, who scratched her cheek a little.

‘Yes, I have the context, but I don’t know if you’ll like the answer…’ She pointed to the drawing on the whiteboard. ‘From what I understand, when the girls were transported to Amphibia, the gemstones transferred their powers to each girl whose personality connected with their attribute. Anne, with her kindness and goodness, connected with the blue one, which symbolizes Heart. Sasha, with her defiant and persistent nature, connected with the pink one, which symbolizes Strength. And Marcy, being a nerd with a lot of intelligence and a desire to learn, connected with the green one, which symbolizes Wit… At least, that’s what was supposed to happen.’

'... What was 'supposed' to happen?'

'Yeah, it was supposed to happen, but... Something went wrong. I'm not sure, I don't know the context, but the connection of the gemstones got a little messed up when the girls were transported.' Calamity took a chalk, erased the amphibian drawings and changed their order, the frogs under the pink one, the newts under the blue one and the toads under the green one. 'Sasha got the pink stone, but took a fragment of the blue one, which made her fall near the frogs. Anne got the blue one, but took a fragment of the green one, which made her fall in the newt city. And Marcy got the green one, but took a fragment of the other two at once, and she ended up falling randomly somewhere in nature until she walked enough to be found by the toads.' She rested her chin on her hand in thoughtful pose. 'It seems that the overload of three gemstones in a single being is too much for a mortal body to bear for long, even if it's just a fragment, so, to protect its chosen one from dangers...'

She hesitated, but then she drew an arrow from the green humanoid to another corner of the board and drew four chibi faces with a nearby object. Young with a diary with a brain in the center, Soldier with a tower with a fist in the center, Beast with some kind of moth-cat with a heart in the center, and Calamity with the Music Box.

‘...The green stone kind of literally...broke and repaired Marcy’s mind almost instantly. And from the intentional cracks that were created, the power of the other two stones and the green stone itself were able to enter and personify themselves in Marcy’s mind in a form more manageable for a mortal body...as personalities.’

Silence. None of the other three girls reacted to that information, none of them knew how to react to that information. Suddenly, Soldier started laughing, not a happy laugh, but one in a tone that almost bordered on insanity.

‘So, you’re saying that all this time, I’ve just been living one lie after another? I was nothing like a prisoner with a fancy title, I lied to those I called friends, and now I find out that I’m not even really Marcy?!’ She almost screamed, frustrated tears threatening to spill from her eyes. Young quickly hugged her tightly, the other girl shivered at the contact, but did nothing to stop it. Beast tilted her head until it rested on the other girl’s lap, a frown on her face.

‘That’s a stupid question to ask, since the answer is an obvious no.’ The almost neutral way Calamity answered caught everyone’s attention. ‘Just because you were born a little differently and don’t have all the memories, doesn’t mean you’re not you. Your personality, your desires, your tastes, everything has been shaped by memories and desires that you have, that we all share in one way or another, unconsciously or not. By all means, you’re still Marcy Wu, just badly traumatized and blessed with the pink stone instead of the green one.’

‘Yeah, she’s right! Just because we’re kind of different from each other doesn’t mean we’re not the same person! I mean, Beast has almost the same focus as Marcy when she’s doing something she doesn’t like, and you keep doing the hand thing.’ She pointed to the raptor hands Soldier was currently making. ‘And I’m sure if I get up from here, I’ll find a way to trip over something, even though I’m practically empty.’ Gently, she intertwined her hands with the other girl’s, looking away with a slight blush. ‘And… After everything you’ve been through, you deserve something good. So even if you weren’t, I’d still call you Marcy.’ She looked down at the face resting on the other girl’s lap. ‘You two, of course.’

Beast gave a small smile as Soldier took a deep breath to calm herself, she looked down at their intertwined hands and looked away with a slight nod. Calamity walked over and gently placed her hands on the shoulders of the two armored girls, getting their attention.

‘I know it’s a lot to accept, but at least accept this. You are who you are, and rest assured, you are Marcy and always will be. And if you doubt it, the fact that you still existed even after the stones were charge is one of the many proofs of that.’ She knelt in front of the girls with a small smile. ‘Do you need a little time to absorb all of this?’

Soldier seemed hesitant to answer, but Beast simply nodded with a slight grunt, still with her head in the other girl’s lap. The other barely reacted, even when Young pulled her back into a hug, one of her hands stroking Beast’s head, who began to purr contentedly.

Calamity sat up, looking at the group hugging each other, something about seeing the three chosen ones of the stones, no matter how small their connection, hugging each other like that to help each other made her chest tighten. A strange mix of longing and affection bubbled up in her being. She noticed Beast's questioning look about not being in the hug, but ignored it in favor of just staying close to them, this wasn't about her after all. It didn't take long, less than two minutes, before Soldier sighed and pulled away from the hug, the group straightening and turning back to the board, Calamity stood up.

‘Better?’ The trio nodded, making the fourth’s smile widen a bit. ‘Great, then let’s move on to the next important topic…’ She looked to the side of the board and a new board appeared, this time with Marcy’s silhouette and chibi drawings of the four girls’ faces next to her head. ‘…What do we do now?’

‘What do we do now?’

‘Yeah, I mean, Anne gave us a basic three-step plan: Find a way back to Amphibia, defeat Andrias, and save Sasha.’ For each step she said, a drawing appeared on the opposite side of Marcy’s silhouette. A drawing of a portal, a Mini-Andrias lying on the ground with X’s over his eyes, and a little Marcy and Anne along with the Plantars running while carrying an exhausted-looking Sasha. Calamity frowned and drew the six orange eyes from the castle painting next to Andrias’ drawing to represent the other thing she needed to deal with. She didn’t know why, but she really, really hated that color for some reason. ‘I’m pretty sure we can destroy the Night Core at the same time we defeat Andrias, so it’ll be, like, the non-optional bonus part of the mission or part 2.5 of the plan or something.’ She pointed again at the silhouette and the four chibi faces. ‘But we still have one complication to this plan, and that’s us. The closest thing Earth has to something like us is DID, which isn't right, but it's not that different from what's happening to us. It's going to be a bit tricky trying to explain all of this to someone who has no idea about the stones or their powers.'

‘Do we need to tell anyone?’ Young’s question made everyone turn to her, her face turns red and she looked away, but continued her explanation. ‘Like you said, it won’t be worth explaining to anyone who doesn’t know about the stones or the box, which leaves the list as the people of Amphibia, Anne and Sasha, and maybe Anne’s parents. The people of Amphibia might just assume it’s a human thing like they usually do when we do something we like or are different from them. We need to save Sasha first before we have that conversation and... I don’t know...’ She sighed, cringing a little. ‘... I just don’t want to worry Anne any more than she already is. At least for now.’

‘Because we have something we don’t even know how to explain properly, and that’s why you want to hide it for a while until we fully understand it, right? Like Calamity told Anne.’ Young hesitated, but nodded, Soldier nodded too. ‘Fair enough. I also think it’s best if we leave this between us for now. Despite… the truth of our existence… It’s not the worst thing we’ve had in the last few months. We’ve even managed to live in harmony for quite some time.’

‘And when you guys get your powers back from the stones, there’s a good chance you’ll be able to create your own bodies if you don’t want to keep sharing like this!’

Silence. And then, in sync, the three seated girls turned sharply to the fourth.

‘WHAT?!?!?!?!’

Calamity jumped in surprise at the scream.

‘Oh… I… I didn’t say that?’

‘No?! You said we are Marcy blessed with other stones and moved on!’ Beast straightened up from her seat. ‘What do you mean by our own bodies? How can calamity stones do something like that?’

‘Well, fun fact! Despite its name, the stones do not necessarily bring calamity and destruction wherever they go, it is usually the case, but only because destroying is easier than building.’ The other began to explain, her index finger raised as if she were a teacher in an explanation she found interesting. ‘The stones are objects with unlimited powers, capable of doing essentially and virtually anything. Their only real limits are the fact that they are made for mortals and used by mortals and, therefore, are unable to use their full potential without destroying their bearer in the process. But they can do everything a mortal body could want, from enhancing their physical or mental abilities, creating any objects they want, or healing any wound that befalls them, even the most deadly ones!’

‘Which is what the pink gem did to Sasha.’ Soldier commented, crossing her arms as she thought about the implications. ‘And that’s what you and Sasha tried to do with our arm before we lost focus when we saw the portal closing.’

‘Yes. With Anne and Sasha’s help, you could probably create physical bodies, especially empty bodies.’ At the confused looks from the others, Calamity shrugged as she continued. ‘As I said, the only real limitation to the stones are mortals and the confines of the mortal realm. They have unlimited power for existence, and therefore, the only thing they do not know is what exists before the beginning, before birth, and what lies beyond the end, beyond death. The stones themselves cannot truly resurrect the dead or create life from nothing, they save lives on the verge of expiring and transfer an existing soul to another place.’ She clutched her chest, right where Sasha had been wounded. ‘If Sasha had died there, that would have been the end of her, and no connection to the stones would have helped.’

This made Young look down, Soldier gently pulling her into a side hug as she did the same. The vision of their friend being stabbed in the chest by the flaming sword would appear in their nightmares for a long time, they knew it.

‘But that didn’t happen.’ The calm way Beast said this made the two look at her. She crossed her legs again, a small smile on her face. ‘Our Alpha was strong enough to close the gates of death even though she was right in front of it. There’s no point in dwelling on things that didn’t happen.’

The two continued to stare at the wild girl with wide eyes, almost in awe. The ranger also looked at her in surprise before smiling gently.

‘Yeah… You’re right.’ She stared at the stone gate for a moment before coughing and turning back to the other girls. ‘Anyway, the fact is that, while I’m not entirely sure, there’s nothing stopping us, along with our friends, from being able to create different bodies for each of us and transfer our minds into these empty bodies. In the worst case scenario, instead of completely taking over the body and becoming quadruplets, we would possess an empty body like ghosts and be something similar to the undead, without the part about creating an apocalypse if we bite someone.’

‘Sounds fun! The part about the new bodies, not the apocalypse or possession!’ Young quickly cleared up the misunderstanding, causing Beast to snort in amusement.

‘Now, back to the main topic... What do we do now?’ Calamity pointed at Marcy’s silhouette again. ‘Are you all in favor of not telling anyone, not even Anne, about our situation until we’re used to it or being forced to explain it against our will?’ They all nodded. ‘Okay, then let’s get to the most practical part, our body. It's hard for everyone to control at the same time, especially with such different opinions, so I think it’s best to continue following the first model for now. The one where one of us takes control while the others avoid doing the same as much as possible, until we find a better way to fraternize.’

‘Prefer not to take over.’ Beast said, looking at her spear. ‘Earth is different from Amphibia, less quiet, but not as dangerous. It’s unnerving. I don’t want to overreact and stab a car because I mistook it for a Rhinoceros Beetle roaring, or kill a heron because I thought it was a baby Amphibian heron.’

‘... I’d rather not take control either.’ Soldier touched her own face, running her glove over the scar on her cheek. ‘Sasha and Anne tried to teach me, and I learned a little... But I’m still not sure if I can stay... Calm and at peace. Not without them by my side, at least. I don’t want to assume anything, but there’s a good chance I’ll reflexively try to attack people who touch us and aren’t our friends. I’m not used to that, after all.’ Beast once again placed her head on Soldier’s lap while Young leaned against her. She froze for a second before forcing herself to relax.

‘I guess that leaves the main control between me and Young for now, then?’ Calamity turned to the student, who nodded. ‘How about we take turns? One day with you and one with me, so each of us can spend quality time with our friend, while the other helps our other headmates relax.’

‘Sure! What do you think?’ She turned to the other girls, who nodded without hesitation.

‘In that case, I think the meeting is over for now. You can take control, or do you want me to take over and help Anne explain everything?’ Young hesitated, but took a deep breath and stood up.

‘No, I’ll do it. I have to take responsibility, don’t I?’ She gave a small, hesitant smile, which became more natural when the others stood up and placed their hands on her shoulders.

‘Don’t worry, we’re here to help you.’

‘We are a pack, after all. Even if it’s a different one, it doesn’t change the fact that we help each other.’

‘Anything, just ask.’

Young nodded more energetically, before closing her eyes, concentrating and…

... Marcy opened her eyes, staring up at the stars on Anne's bedroom ceiling.

She massaged her forehead as she sat up, grunting a little in pain as she accidentally leaned on her still-sore arm. She took off the makeshift splint and looked at her arm. A second-degree burn scar that ran from the middle of her hand to near her shoulder was present. Marcy wondered if she could heal it with the powers she had now.

I don't think so, our connection to the stones is too weak. And from the way Sasha still had a scar on her chest, it looks like our arm will stay like that for now.

That sucks, but I guess it could be worse.

A burn scar is better than amputation.

Marcy grimaced. It's already going to be hard enough explaining this to Mrs. and Mr. Boonchuy, and she doesn't even want to know how she's going to explain it to her parents without bringing up the whole traveling-to-another-world thing. Would they believe her if she said she tripped and fell on a stove with a high heat? Maybe, she's pretty clumsy after all.

She wondered if they moved without her. Probably. Her dad's new job started a few months ago.

...

... She wondered if they were worried or missed her.

She didn't like the fact that she was unsure about this.

Marcy felt her other parts about to try to comfort her when the door opened and Anne entered the room. She peeked in quickly, smiling when she saw Marcy awake, and sat down next to her, sighing heavily.

“So... did everything go well?”

“Better than I expected, I had to make up a story that an accident occurred when we opened the portal, which caused the Plantars to be taken with us instead of Sasha. I think they also believe it was this accident that caused you to get hurt.” Anne explained, pointing to her scarred arm. “By the way, are you better?”

“Yeah, it still hurts a little, but it’s more like I hit it hard somewhere than… You know.” She ran a finger over her arm, wincing a little at the contact. “My skin is really sensitive, though, I think I’ll need some burn ointment and something to wrap it in for now.”

Anne looked thoughtful for a second, before gently placing a kiss on her shoulder, close to the scar, but not touching it so as not to irritate the sensitive skin further. This made Marcy smile, it was cute that her friend still gave a kiss to soothe her wounds even after they had grown.

“And what about…” The brunette touched her own head with a worried expression.

We're fine now.

Definitely, right?

... Yes.

You're blushing again.

N-No! I'm not!!!

You wish you were in control of our body now to receive this affection, don't you?

SHUT UP!!!!!

Marcy snorted in amusement, causing Anne to tilt her head in confusion.

“Don’t worry, don’t worry! I’m better now, I promise.” She nodded nonchalantly. “So, about the conversation with your parents, did they accept the Plantar family well?”

“Not exactly well, but I managed to convince them that leaving the family that took care of Sasha for all this time in the hands of the government, who can dissect them and do cruel experiments on them, wasn’t a good idea.” Anne stretched, falling onto the bed next. “So, for now, we’re locked down. It could be worse, we can have some quarantine fun, Earth-style.”

“Ohhh, do you still have those games and consoles I gave you? There are some games I miss, and I think it would be fun to see the Plantars’ reaction to them!” Marcy almost jumped excitedly at the thought, before looking down at herself and sniffing her clothes, making a face afterwards. “After a shower, of course.”

“Oh, please! I’m lucky Olivia drew me a bath at the castle whenever I asked, but I miss a shower and running water!” Anne jumped up, holding out her hand for Marcy to take and do the same. “Go ahead and take it first, I’ll make sure the Plantars are comfortable and not freaking my parents out for a while. Call me when you’re done.”

“Okay!”

Anne left again and Marcy headed towards the closet, the part where Anne kept some of her and Sasha’s clothes for when they had sleepovers. A t-shirt with some C&C weapons on it, a pair of blue jeans, white socks, and underwear should be enough. She was going to go out in just those, but her gaze fell on a gray hoodie with zipper she had.

It looks nice, why don’t we wear it?

Marcy grabbed her hoodie too, it wasn't too warm after all.

Marcy went into the bathroom and looked for any burn ointment, but couldn't find any. She felt kind of bad about it, but she was going to ask the Boonchuys after her shower if they could buy her a burn ointment and a real arm splint.

She stood in front of the mirror and looked at herself. She was a little thinner despite still having baby cheeks, her arms were a little more defined, her eyes were now different colors, and her hair was definitely longer, reaching her shoulders and quite messy. She seriously considered cutting it back to its previous length, but she actually thought this hairstyle was cool, maybe she'd just ask Mrs. Boonchuy to trim the ends that were definitely tangled.

...

... Is everything okay?

Yeah, everything was fine, just...

... It seems weird, doesn't it?

...

It's our reflection, but... It doesn't feel like us. At the same time, it feels too much like us.

... Yeah.

The strength in her arms reminded her of her inner soldier. The new color in her eyes reminded her of her calamity side. The length of her hair reminded her of her inner beast. The shape of her face reminded her of her young side. She could see so many different people in that reflection before her.

And yet... She looked at that reflection and saw... Marcy Wu.

It all felt so, so wrong in a way that neither part of her could explain. And at the same time, everything felt so right that she didn't understand why she felt uncomfortable.

It was strange, but it felt... Nice.

She smiled, watching both of her eyes glow green as a simple thought crossed her new mind.

This is me. I'm Marcy Wu.

Pleased with herself, she turned away from the mirror, her right eye turning brown again, and moved to the bathroom to take a shower. She needed to finish taking care of the Plantars and let Anne do the same, but she would enjoy the shower for now.

(Unnoticed by the girls who had joined their thoughts at the moment, the stone door glowed and opened slightly before closing again.

The synchronization of its Holders sharing one body was perfect, but its master and co-creator still did not remember her purpose completely.

It was not yet time for the Gates of the Calamity Gemstones to open.)

Bonus: (Sometime, during lockdown at the Boonchuys' house)