Chapter 16: Trip to the Archives/ Hiberday
AN: Hiberday replaces Snow Day
The Plantar family was on the road. "Now remember kids, the mountain pass will begin to melt in one week." Hop Pop said. "That means it's almost time to leave this valley and find where Anne and Marcy come from!"
"I'm not leaving until we find Sasha, but we can't forget our main goal, find others of our kind." Anne said.
"We can't skimp out on preparing for that." Marcy agreed.
"Excitement!" Sprig cheered.
"Sights!" Polly added.
"And do you know the best way to start a quest?" Hop Pop asked.
"Danger?" Sprig answered.
"Weapons?" was Polly's.
"Research!" Hop Pop answered.
"Yes!" Marcy cheered as the others groaned.
"Oh, come on gang!" Hop Pop scolded. "We'll never find the girls answers if we get bitten to death by a venomous snake fly! Or eaten to death by a camouflaged sod skank! Or crushed to death by a sand liger!"
"Okay, okay, okay!" Anne said. "Enough death already! I'm beginning to think everyone is obsessed."
"It's just the sad truth of the world Anne." Marcy sighed but cheered up when they got to their destination. "The town archives! So many books I haven't read!"
Sprig wasn't as happy. "Ug this place is dustier than Dusty's dust bin!"
"Who?" Polly asked.
"Come on. You know Dusty, local dust merchant, friendly, always smiling, sells dust."
"Oh! Yeah, yeah, right."
"While reading isn't my favorite thing, this could be a cool place to check out." Anne said.
"Enough chatter you four!" Hop Pop ordered. "Time to hit the books!"
"Wait!" Sprig yelled. "Wouldn't we be better off preparing by diving headfirst into deadly situations?"
"Huh. Maybe Sprig's right Hop Pop, research is overrated." Anne agreed.
"What?!" Marcy looked insulted.
"Overrated, eh?" Hop Pop asked. "How has diving into adventure been working out so far?"
Anne and Polly thought back to just the past few days on Anne's quest to find Sasha. "I can still smell that skunk juice." Polly said.
"Yeah, fair enough. Research it is." Anne said changing her mind.
"What? You're siding with Hop Pop?" Sprig couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"This trip is going to take us beyond the valley Sprig! Who knows what we'll run into out there! Ow!" Anne said hitting her head.
Sprig groaned as they went underground a found themselves in a massive library. "Ug the archives."
"This is the coolest place I've been to since we started leaving the farm!" Marcy gushed.
"Sure, it seems cool, until you realize all you do here is read other people's cool adventures!"
"Okay enough prattle." Hop Pop said. "We need to get a move on before we're locked in here."
"Uh come again?" Anne asked.
Hop Pop pointed to above the door. "The door to this place is set on a sunlight timer. It opens when the sun raises and deadlocks when the sun sets."
"Oh, I want to know how it works!" Marcy said. "This place just keeps getting cooler and cooler!"
As they went further in Sprig grumbled. "Boring old book smelling like dumb old words."
I heard that!" Marcy snapped. "You know how much I love to read! Boring? Dumb? Is that what you think of me?"
"No! Well… You could use…"
"I had enough of your attitude Sprig! I'm not speaking to you until you give me a proper apology!"
Sprig just made a face as Anne read a plaque under a portrait. "Mycroft Newtback. Archives founder. This structure, originally Newtback's home was turned into the town archive after he died violently attempting to travel beyond the valley." Everyone was silent for a second. "I'm going to hit those books."
"Uh, reading time." Polly seconded.
"Better get to it." Sprig said.
"Get my hands on those books." Hop Pop agreed.
"Let the learning begin." Marcy concluded as everyone split up. Marcy then set up a large pile of books. "Okay brain boost, time for a workout."
Elsewhere Hop Pop looked at a bookshelf. "Only Nature Facts, fair." He then saw to other volumes. "Well now hold on. Older than the Old Ways! Now this I got to read!" He grabbed them the first book and others.
Polly bounced around until she saw a bookshelf marked History of Weapon A-X. "Hot mama!"
Anne was in a corner reading Plants that eat you. "Ew."
Sprig came around with a face drawn on his hand. "Hi Anne. What'cha doing?"
"Get out of here bro."
"Oh, come on!" Sprig would not give up. "Anne!"
"Yeah Sprig?"
"Wouldn't be better if we found some plants to fight?"
"Nope. See if you can find a way to survive a tiger viper attack." Anne said handing him Snakes that eat you.
Sprig grumbled as he walked away. "Stupid books, stupid learning! Don't they want a real adventure?" Sprig saw the sunlight timer and got an idea.
"Yeeeees!" Polly said reading Daggers and where to put them.
Marcy had almost finished her stack. "Hold out a little a longer. More! I need more!"" Marcy was practically frothing at the mouth.
"Guys I'm scaring myself. This brain boost could have addictive side effects." Ghost Marcy said.
"Yeah, it looks like her head might explode." Ghost Anne agreed.
"Don't worry she'll be fine." The guardian reassured.
"Alright kids, time for a lunch break." Hop Pop said.
Marcy stopped and shook off a headache. "Yeah, that sounds good. Feed my body after I fed my brain."
"I'm actually glad you suggested this Hop Pop. I'm learning a ton about our terrifying world." Anne said.
"Did you guys know there are sixty weapons in the morning star family?" Polly asked.
Hop Pop turned to the door. "The door's shut! That's not right." He pulled on the door, but it wouldn't move. He then gasped "The lens is missing!"
"What? Who would do trap us in here?" Anne asked.
"And risk breaking the mechanism!" Marcy fumed.
Sprig coughed. "Maybe somebody is trying to prepare us. By forcing us to dive in. Me, I did it!"
"Sprig! No! I'm still not talking to you!" Marcy said.
"Have you lost your frog marbles? Put that piece back!" Anne asked.
"Guys! Reading the moldy old books isn't going to prepare us for squat!" Sprig said making Marcy growl. "What we need is a daring escape from old underground library!"
"What we need is you putting that piece back!" Hop Pop scolded.
"Yeah! Hand it over!" Polly ordered.
"Fine! Party poopers." Sprig looked in his pockets. "Uh, I know I have it." Sprig began walking. "Somewhere…" they all heard glass break as Sprig stepped on the lens.
"Well, that's not good."
"Grr! Sprig!" Anne yelled.
"Maybe I can fix it!" Sprig pulled the pieces together. "Ah ha! Good as new!" Sprig then sneezed scattering the pieces all over the room.
"Oh, come on!" Polly shouted.
"Seriously?" Anne asked while Marcy just groaned.
"All of you stop! Yelling at each other ain't fixing any of this!" Hop Pop said.
"So, what do we do?" Anne asked.
"Well, we wait for someone to visit the archives."
"Great idea! Hop Pop!" Marcy said. "With a place as amazing as this someone should come soon. A day, two at the most."
"Well, I checked the logs and the last time someone came here was… three years ago."
That was when they began banging at the door screaming for help. "Enough of this negativity!" Sprig said Hopping onto a chair. "Come on guys! This is our call to frogventure right here! Did you forget who we are? This gang has been through a lot, and we're going to make it through this too!" The others were feeling encouraged. "I mean we better, because if we don't, we'll be trapped here for weeks! No food, no water! Until they find our dehydrated mummified bodies clawing at the door!" then they were scared again. "Yeah, I probably could have ended that speech earlier."
"Let's just find a way out." Anne said.
"That's the spirit!"
First, they tried ramming the door with a lamp. Then they tried to dig their way out only to be attacked by giant killer worms. "Hey, I should have thought of this sooner." Hop Pop said using his reading glasses as a replacement lens. But the light reflecting off them started a fire.
"Save the books! Save the books!" Marcy screamed trying to stomp the fire out.
After they put it out Sprig realized how bad things really were. "So not good."
"I'm still not talking to you!" Marcy snapped.
"Ah! Why did they have to put the door on a stupid sunlight timer?" Polly screamed.
"That's it!" Anne said. "Light timer! Timer, sunlight, light, skylight!" She pointed up. "I bet we can get out through the skylight!"
"Yeah! That's a great idea Anne!" Spig cheered. The family built an unstable tower of books. Marcy was trying to give Anne a boost, but they almost fell. "You're almost there!" sprig said, his tongue holding a chair and the pile together.
"Don't fall! I won't catch you!" Polly said.
"That's totally okay! You're a baby." Anne answered.
"Just a little more…" Marcy said.
"Almost got it…" Anne said popping open the skylight and climbing up. "Yes! Haha!" She tried to get out put it was too tight. "Yeah no. Me and Marcy can't fit through. Hey I see Bessie! Bessie, Bessie, hey girl!" The snail turned and saw Anne. "Bessie! Get help! Get help! Come on girl" But Bessie became distracted by a butterfly. "No! No! Bessie get…No! Aw come on. Never mind. Good news guys! I can see the road from here! One of you three can go for help!"
"The family cheered. "See guys? How do you feel about diving in now?" Sprig asked.
"If I honest I do feel somewhat of a rush." Hop Pop said.
"We can do anything!" Polly yelled. Marcy just snubbed her nose to her brother.
Uh guys…" Anne said as she tried to go back in. "I'm stuck!"
"What?" Sprig said recoiling his tongue.
"I'm seriously stuck! Do something!"
"I got this!" Sprig said as he and Marcy tried to pull their sister out. But the thrashing toppled the books.
"Abandon ship!" Polly screamed as she, Marcy and Hop Pop leapt for safety.
"Uh what just happened?" Anne asked.
"Uh nothing, everything is fine."
"Sprig!"
"Okay, the books fell, and you're stuck and blocking our only way out."
"What?!"
"Don't worry, we'll rebuild the tower of books and get you down."
Anne then heard buzzing. "What's that sound?"
"Aaah! It's cicadas coming out to graze! Which is totally fine! If you stay super quiet, they should just go away."
"Oh! Like cicadas like the tasty little cicadas Mom put in her cookies? Or like … Oh my Frog! That's huge!" Anne screamed and a herd of giant cicadas came near.
"Too late."
To the cicadas, Anne bushy hair looked like another bush to eat. "I'm not food! I'm not food I'm not food! Get me the heck out of here!"
The frogs leapt up and tried to pull Anne down. "Hang in there Anne!" Hop Pop tried to reassure.
"I can't believe this! I tried to do things the right way! And now I'm going to die! Stuck in this stupid hole, and I'll never find Sasha or our homeland!"
"Homeland…home… That's it!" Sprig said. "This building used to be someone's home! Which means there was a bathroom!"
"Good thinking Sprig!" Hop Pop said.
"Bathroom, now? Can't you hold it?" Anne asked.
Polly knew where this was going. "If there was a bathroom then that also mean there were…"
"Pipes!" Sprig finished. "Marcy! I'm sorry! I shouldn't have said those things about books! Now please help me save our sister by helping me research!"
"Apology accepted little bro." Marcy said as they looked over books on layouts and floor plans.
"Here it is! The blueprints!"
"See? Research does help."
"And look here!" Hop Pop pointed. "This is where the bathroom used to be, behind that bookcase! We just need to break it down!"
"Wait!" Marcy screamed. She got to the bookcase's side and pushed it out of the way.
"Or that. But there's still the wall…"
Polly got a twin mourning star and smashed the wall. "War cry!"
"Yes!" Sprig cheered. "Don't worry Anne! I'm on my way!" Sprig crawled into a pipe.
"Sprig hurry up and help me!" Anne yelled as the bugs pulled at her hair.
A few minutes later Sprig kicked a cicada off Anne. "Yahoo!"
"What? Sprig? How did you get out?"
"I don't want to talk about." Sprig then rode the same cicada into the others chasing them off. "See ya later cicadas!"
"Thanks Sprig! That was a close one."
"I'm just glad you're okay."
"Me too." Hop Pop said.
"Yeah, so am I." Polly agreed. Both were sopping wet. "We couldn't wait so we took the pipes too."
"I've seen things!" Hop Pop said disturbed.
"Is everything okay up there?" Marcy yelled.
"Yeah Marcy! We did it!" Sprig shouted. "We dove into another adventure and escaped! I told you it would work."
Anne was having none of that. "We didn't dive in, you pushed us!"
"Yeah but…"
"No Sprig, listen. This trip out of the valley, it isn't just another adventure. It's my, Marcy's, and Sasha's chance to find our people! We can't mess this up!" Sprig was now felling guilty. "So, if that means doing a few things I don't like to help us get ready then…"
"Then that's what we'll do, together." Sprig hugged Anne.
"Oh, thanks bro…" then the ground around the skylight began to collapse and Ann and Sprig fell.
"We're okay!" Marcy yelled to Hop Pop and Polly. "I took shelter in the bathroom, and they landed on books!"
"Knowledge hurts." Sprig moaned.
Hiberday
Sasha was having another spar, this time with Fens as Grime watched. "That's right, don't just charge in, anticipate your opponent's next move." Grime said.
Sasha blocked Fens' attack with a regular sword and did a leg sweep. She pointed the sword at Fens face. "I win. Good match." Sasha offered her hand to help Fens up
"Yeah, sure." Fens got up on her own.
Sasha then turned to Grime. "Any word from my family?"
"Sadly no." Grime said. "But that special item you asked for should be here tomorrow."
Percy came running looking worried. "Uh, Captain Grime sir! We have a big problem!"
Grime moaned. "What is it, Percy?"
"Well, today is the second day in a row the temperature went bellow the toad line…"
"Hiberday." Sasha interrupted. She knew what it meant and began to worry for her family. "Will a toad disappear too?"
"So, this event will repeat for me." Ghost Sasha said.
"Wait something happened to you while I was protecting Wartwood during hiberday?" Ghost Anne asked.
"I didn't spend all my time in toad tower living it up or training. This was one of two big adventures I had before we had our… reunion."
"Excuse me?" Grime asked.
"Every Hiberday one townsperson disappears in Wartwood. Never to be seen again."
"No one ever asked us to help. I assure you my protégé, if the town knew we had an anti-hibernation potion we would have shared it."
"Anti-hibernation potion?"
"We receive it from Newtopia because every hiberday we of toad tower take half our forces to Widowers' Pass to defend the valley from the White Widowers."
"Sir!" Percy interrupted. "That bad news I was talking about… I checked our potion reserve and most of it was smashed by the herons!"
"What?!" Grimes yelled. "How many vials do we have left?"
"Three."
"No! This is a disaster!"
"Are these White Widowers bad?" Sasha asked.
"They are species of giant spiders that live in the mountains. They can't survive outside of freezing temperatures but on hiberday when the whole valley freezes, they swarm through the pass. If they breach the fort that we built there, hundreds of these beasts will devour not only us here in the tower but every town in the valley! And now we'll have to face the hoard with only three warriors."
"Four, my sisters and I are warm blooded. I don't need that potion."
"A small positive. Percy! Gather the troops for a prehiberday briefing!"
"Yes sir!" Percy saluted.
The toads were then split into two groups. "Why the split?" Sasha asked Fens.
"The potion is lethal if you take it two years in a row. The group I'm in are those who fought last year." The female toad explained.
"Troops! By now you've heard of our situation." Grime said. "I won't sugarcoat it; the odds are more against us than ever. Those of you can take the potion may wish to simply pass in hibernation." He looked to Sasha and remembered what he learned from her. "And I won't blame you. I only ask for two volunteers to fight by my side." All the toads who could take the potion stepped forward. "Thank you. I will take Braddock and Mire with us to the pass."
"You're in luck Sasha." Bog said from the staying crowd. "Mire couldn't join us last year due to an injury. You wouldn't know this but he's the best shot in the tower. You'll need him at the forts long ranged defenses."
"Come my protégé! We must prepare the forts defenses!"
The next morning at the Plantar house Anne could barely stay in her seat at the breakfast table. "Come on Marcy! I got have a large area to search today!"
"Be a little patient Anne." Hop Pop scolded. "Your sister is taking the time to make you breakfast."
"Here you go! Scrambled chicken fly eggs and beetle bacon." Marcy said with a smile.
Polly went straight for the beetle bacon. "Everyone loves bacon!"
Then Sprig came running from upstairs screaming. "Oh! I love bacon." Sprig said seeing on Hop Pop's plate before going back to screaming. "It's happening!"
"Are you sure it's happening?" Hop Pop asked.
"Dead sure."
"What are you…" Anne began but then she remembered what time of year it was. "Sorry Mar Mar, but we need to take breakfast to go!" Anne put her breakfast in a container.
"Hiberday." Marcy gasped.
"We need to sound the alarm!" Sprig said.
Hop Pop carried Sprig on his shoulders while he made a siren like sound all the way to the town square. "Now what's this all about?" Mayor Toadstool asked.
"Everyone! Listen up!" Sprig yelled. "Today is the third morning in a row where the temperature dipped below the frog line! Which means, hiberday is almost upon us."
"And we all know what that means." Hop Pop sighed.
"Possible goodbye Wally." One woman said.
"Possible goodbye." He replied.
"Possible goodbye Ivy." Felicia said giving her daughter a kiss.
"Possible goodbye Toadie." Toadstool said.
"Possible goodbye Archie." Mrs. Croaker told her pet spider.
"Possible goodbye Sprig." Hop Pop said.
"Possible goodbye Hop Pop." Sprig replied.
"Possible goodbye family." Polly cried.
"First Sasha and now…" Marcy muttered.
"And of course, Anne, Marcy." Hop Pop cried.
"No! Not this year!" Anne said.
"Whaat?" Sprig asked.
"You're kind of spitting on tradition here Anne." Hop Pop said.
"No one is going to disappear this year because Marcy and I aren't hiding in the basement anymore!" Anne shouted.
"Yeah, I don't follow." Wally said just as confused as the other towns people.
"Anne and I are warm blooded, so we never needed to hibernate." Marcy explained. "This is a great idea!"
"It's true." Hop Pop said. "The first couple of years Birch, Willow, and I were very confused as to why the girls were as refreshed as the rest of us. But then Birch visited Dr. Lilyston. That's when we started to make them warm clothing, stocked the basement with food, and had them stay in the basement until one of us came to get them the next day."
"But now we can be your protectors!" Anne said.
The frogs of Wartwood felt something they never did during hiberday before, hope. "Plantars! Plantars! Plantars!"
"Wow girls. You've gone from town beasts to town protectors!" Sprig said. "Big fan of that narrative."
"Alright everyone, hiberday isn't until tomorrow." Hop Pop said. "So, everybody, meet back here tonight. Then the girls can guard all of us."
"We're gonna live!" Wally said.
"Thank goodness Anne and Marcy are here." Ivy breathed a sigh of relief.
"I'm going to burn my will!" one woman said.
"Marcy, Anne, are you two sure you're up for this?" Hop Pop asked. "Looking after the whole town is a lot of responsibility."
"Are you kidding? We got this!" Anne said.
"It's like our time in the outside world has been preparing us for this moment." Marcy agreed.
"I'm sure Sasha would feel the same way. All my senses feel heightened. It's like the whole world has slowed down and I'm totally aware of everything all around me! Ever feel like that, guys?"
"Right now! What about the rest of you?" Marcy and Anne looked down to see their family was already frozen.
"What the heck?" The Anne saw a single snowflake drift down. "This can't be good." Then a whole flurry of snow came down.
"On no! It started early!" Marcy screamed. "Everyone one is scattered everywhere!"
"How are we going to…?" Anne lifted Sprig with ease. "Oh, they're still very lite. Marcy, run home and get our warm clothes and meet me in town square. We got to round them up!"
Earlier at widowers' pass, Sasha and the toads were up since the crack of dawn preparing the defenses. Wearing fur under her armor Sasha looked up the narrow riven that lead to a frozen tunnel. "Okay, so the spiders take this pass because if they try to climb over the mountains hiberday would be over before they could make it to the valley. So why don't we just cave in the tunnel?"
"We've tried before but we've never reduced their number low enough to place boom shrooms in there safely." Braddock explained while she brought magazines of bolts for the fort's repeater crossbows.
"If only we could find the alpha male widower." Grime grumbled.
"Why are the called white widowers anyway?" Sasha asked.
"Most of them are male." Braddock said. "With food in the mountains scarce the few females, after they lay their eggs, will let their mates eat their heads while the rest of their body is saved for their young to eat after they hatch." That last part made her gulp.
"I heard of mothers sacrificing for their kids but…" Sasha shivered.
"With decoys set up at the unmanned crossbows and most ammunition ready the only thing left to do is to drink the potion." Grimes said. "Remember while it will last from now until hiberday is over the widowers will shoot out a fluid that can still freeze you. Sasha be careful, if it is cold enough to freeze a toad protected by the potion it will likely freeze you to death. Also, if it comes to hand to hand only use your power as a last resort."
"I understand."
"Good. Now, you two, drink with me."
Mire opened his face plate, and the three toads drank the orange potion and then made sour faces. "I swear it tastes worse every time!" Braddock gagged as a snowflake fell on her tongue. Then the whole fort was covered with snow as several hisses echoed out of the tunnel.
"It's starting now! We must hold them off until the thaw!" Grime yelled running to a crossbow. "Make every shot count! Here they come!"
The white widowers were as large as the spiders the toads used to pull their carts but as the name suggests they were white, more slender, with a red mark on their backs in the shape of an X. Sasha and the others got to the crossbows and began shooting. The spiders shot back with the liquid that where it hit looked like a combination of a web and a snowflake, but thankfully the decoys were working. As they fired Sasha said. "They will not get by this fort! I won't let them anywhere near Wartwood!"
Sometime later in Wartwood Anne gave a yawn as she and Marcy were surrounded by frozen frogs. "Hey, want to take a break?" Marcy asked.
"What? No!" Anne said.
"Come on Anne, a bored protector is a bad protector. We're out in the snow for the first time and since the first time we saw it you've always had these ideas on how to play in it."
"Marcy, we're thirteen now and doing an important job! Now isn't the time to play games!" Marcy responded by throwing a snowball at her.
"Ever since that dare, my younger self has been less and less inclined to having fun." Ghost Anne said. "She is more responsible like I wish I was back then but… I don't think it's worth the price."
A few minutes later Marcy had made snow sculpture the two of them. "What do you think?"
"Whatever." Anne said going back to her watch as the sculpture collapsed.
Going over to Mayor Toadstool and shaking him as Marcy tried to imitate his voice. "Hi, I'm Mayor Toadstool and if reelected I promise to take more of your money and eat more cricket nuggets."
Anne tried to suppress a laugh. "Marcy please stop messing around."
Marcy then used Loggle as a sled. "Come on Anne! You'll love it!"
"Marcy! Put him back!" Silently she did so as Anne fumed. "What is with you today? This is serious!" Anne yelled. Marcy threw another snowball. "Cut that out!" Yet another. "I said stop!"
"Make me!" Marcy said.
Anne had enough and tackled her sister and they both began rolling in the snow. "Why are you doing this?!"
"I want my sister back!" Marcy yelled.
"Why do you think I'm out there almost every day?"
"Not Sasha! You! You haven't been yourself since she disappeared! We hardly see you at home! You just get your chores done as quickly as you can and then your gone for most of the day!" Marcy pushed Anne off. "Do you even remember the last time you played with Sprig or Polly? Or the last time you had any fun?"
"I'm trying to be responsible! If I was then Sasha would be here! If I didn't come up with that stupid idea…"
"You're not the only one who feels she's to blame!" Marcy screamed with tears in her eyes. "If I never suggested going to the mayor in the first place you never would have thought of the dare! I feel like I lost both my sisters and it's all my fault!" Marcy then let her tears flow.
"She's been holding it in all this time." Ghost Marcy said.
Anne was taken aback. "Marcy… why didn't you tell me you felt this way before?" She hugged her sister as she began to cry too. "I'm sorry, I was so focused on getting one sister back I forgot my other sister must have been hurting too. Oh, my frog! Sprig and Polly! They might think I don't care about them anymore!"
"No Anne. We all know you love us. You've just been trying to make up for a mistake." Marcy wiped away her and Anne's tears.
"I'll… I'll try to make more time for the fam and for fun. We better get back; we still have a town to protect. Let's get back and do a head count, maybe try to make a game of it."
"It's okay. I've had my fun. Let's see Mr. Flour, Maddie, Rosemary, Lavender, Ginger…"
"We also got Tom, Soggy Joe, Jill, Cashmere the Soft, Hop Pop check, Sprig check, Polly check, Ivy… Polly!" Anne noticed Polly wasn't in her bucket.
"What! No! She can't be gone! Our fight! She must have been taken then! It's my fault we lost a sister again!" Marcy punched the snow.
"It's both our faults! If I didn't worry you like that… no! We are the town protectors! We are going to get her back!"
Marcy nodded. "Whatever took her left tracks in the snow. Let's follow them!"
Back at widowers pass the defenders had racked up a big body count but they were beginning to run low on ammunition. "How many more are there?" Sasha asked.
"Hard to tell." Grime said. "They're still pouring out of the tunnel."
Mire kept shooting as one of the widowers' sprays hit him, freezing him in place. "We just lost Mire!" Braddock yelled.
"He'll be fine once the thaw hits! Keep firing!" Grime ordered.
Sasha pulled down the lever to reload her bow, but it got stuck. "Crud! I'm jammed!"
Braddock saw another blast coming Sasha's way. "Sash, look out!" the female toad pushed here out of the way taking the hit for her.
"Braddock!"
Ghost Sasha kicked herself. "She probably saved my life and I just… I wish I could have made it up to her and Percy."
"I'll take her spot!"
But a volley of liquid came in. Grim and Sasha ducked behind the fort's wall. Whey they looked up, every crossbow was frozen. "Our defenses our finished." Grime grabbed Sasha and jumped off the fort into the snow below. "We have no choice but the fight them hand to claw." He drew his sword.
Sasha drew the sword she had been training with and drew a line in the snow. "Listen up, you frosty freaks! This line is as close as you'll ever get to my family!" The pair began to attack the spiders who rushed toward them eager for nonfrozen meat. They chopped and stabbed felling one widower after another but the tide of white bodies kept coming. "This isn't looking good."
"We need to find the alpha male! They won't fight us without the alpha!"
"How do we find him?"
"He'll be the largest and strongest of them." Grime said as a roar came out of the tunnel. The swarm parted as a widower the size of a heron's foot crawled out covered in scars bearing its fangs at the toad and human, venom and drool dripping off of them.
"I think we found the alpha." Sasha gulped.
In frog valley Anne and Marcy were having problems of their own. "Oh no! The tracks are gone! If only we had Sprig! He could sniff Polly out!" Anne moaned.
"If he could function in this cold." Marcy said. "Don't worry sis, I got this." Marcy used her brain boost. "The size of the tracks indicates a large animal… given the direction the tracks were going… counting for debris… it's destination would be…" she pushed back some plants. "That cave!"
"Of course, Polly would be a in creepy place like that." Anne said. The pair went inside, frog skeletons were scattered around the frozen cave. "You know, no mater how long I'm in the outside world I'll never get used to the piles of bones just lying around."
"There's Polly!" Marcy pointed up to their frozen baby sister. "Whatever took her stuck her on the roof to save her for later. Now how do we get her down?"
The something rustled from under the snow. "What was that?" Anne asked as whatever it was burrowed under the girls knocking them on their backsides. The giant weasel popped out bearing its fangs as it lunged at them. Marcy and Anne jumped out of the way. "That's what's been taking the frogs?" Anne pulled up a bone. "I'll keep it busy; you go get Polly!"
"Right!" Marcy said getting another bone as the weasel attacked Anne. Marcy couldn't stick to the ceiling like a frog, so she tried to jump and knock Polly down with the bone. When she couldn't reach Marcy looked around and saw a frog's skull. "Sorry about this." Marcy said to the skull as she threw it making a crack in the ice. Marcy threw the other bone knocking the tadpole down.
"Marcy! Look out!" Anne yelled as the weasel got between Marcy ad Polly. "Hey you furry freak get back here!" Anne then heard squeaking. "What the?" Anne pulled back some leaves that were affixed to the ceiling to find a nest with four hairless baby weasels. The mother ran to the nest and growled at Anne. "No way. You didn't kidnap Polly just to feed yourself, and if we take her the babies will starve."
"Their helpless, like how we were when Mom and Dad took us in." Marcy said. "What do we do?"
"I got it!" Anne pulled out her breakfast and laid it in front of the weasel. "Come on, please work." The mother sniffed the food and took it. "Polly was right, everyone loves bacon."
"Hey Anne! Marcy was holding Polly and had a large section of bark at her feet. "This can get us home fast, and it will be fun."
Anne leapt on and they rode it like a snowboard. She looked back at the mother feeding her young. "Now that's a protector."
Back at the pass the alpha was almost on them. "Why did the others stop?" Sasha asked as she held back the alpha's jaws with her sword.
"They know better than to get between the alpha and his meal." Grime answered jumping on top of the beast. "I've waited for this for years!" He stabbed it in the back.
Sasha slashed at the alpha's legs as it threw Grime off. It then kicked Sasha, but she got back up and went for the legs on the other side. The alpha tried to bite Sasha, but she anticipated and dodge, landing her hit and toppling the spider on its back. "Grime now!" The two warriors stabbed it in the heart, its legs curling as it made a final hiss. The next thing Sasha knew they were surrounded. "I thought you said they wouldn't attack us without their leader!"
Two spiders lunged as Grime dragged Sasha away. Then the two spiders were fighting each other! "Ha, ha! Their instincts have taken over! Without the alpha the older males are now fight for dominance while the young ones are retreating!" More spiders began biting and clawing each other. "It's a feeding frenzy!" After about twenty minutes there were only two widowers left Grime and Sasha attacked clearing the pass. "That and the kills we already made should have reduced their number low enough to safely blow the tunnel come spring. Four warriors against hundreds! What a way for the final battle of widower's pass to end!"
"I'm not waiting for spring." Sasha said her eyes glowing. She picked up a boulder. "My training with you has made me stronger, let's see by how much." Sasha threw the boulder into the tunnel hitting the ceiling with such force the whole thing began to collapse. "There… now those things will never… never threaten… my family." The already tired Sasha fell into the snow fast asleep.
"Rest my protégé you've earned it." Grime said as he carried her back to the fort.
"Used to think the toads just bullied the frogs in the valley." Ghost Anne said. "But facing that year after year, they really did protect them."
"Things are often more complicated than they first seem." Ghost Sasha agreed.
In the next day Wartwood Anne and Marcy watched the thermometer. "5, 4, 3, 2, 1!"
"Now comes the thaw!" Marcy cheered as the ice melted.
"Huh?" Hop Pop was surprised he wasn't at the road home.
"Woohoo!" Sprig leapt up out of the ice.
"Yeehaw!" Mrs. Croaker cheered.
"Yay!" Mr. Flour followed.
"Oh, thank goodness." Felicia said grateful to be alive.
"We're all here." Another frog said.
"We made it through the freeze!" Hop Pop said.
"Yay! I'm alive!" Polly exclaimed.
"Three cheers for Marcy and Anne! The best town protectors there are!"
But as the town cheered Anne and Marcy looked at each with guilt on their faces. "Hold it!" Anne said.
"I was a terrible town protector." Marcy said.
"We were." Anne corrected.
"But I'm the one who tried to get you to goof off."
"But then I yelled at you."
"And then we got into a fight, that almost got Polly eaten by a giant weasel!" They confessed to the crowd.
"Say what?!" Polly gasped.
"Ever since Sasha vanished, I tried to be the responsible one." Anne sighed. "But were both still irresponsible kids."
The frog looked at each other and then Hop Pop said. "Girls, you admitting that means you're more responsible than you think."
"Really?"
How?" Marcy asked.
"Yeah, if hadn't fessed up we never would have known anything happened." Hop Pop explained the town agreeing with him. "You two may not be perfect, but you've proved we can depend on you. And most importantly this is the first year no one disappeared!"
"All because of both of you!" Polly said.
"Happy hiberday everyone!"
"Yay! Anne and Marcy!" Polly cheered as the town joined her.
"Who wants breakfast? I beat you two are hungry!" Sprig said.
"Oh, thanks everyone." Anne said touched.
"And since we know what was taking everyone, we can set bait next year so the weasels will go for easier meals." Marcy added. "No will ever have to disappear again.
Later that day at toad tower Percy saw a wagon coming up to the tower. "They're back! Open the gate!" Percy ran down as the defenders came in giving Braddock a kiss. "We knew you succeed when we thawed."
"We did more than succeed." Braddock said. "Sasha sealed the tunnel! Those spiders won't be able to get into the valley now!"
"Everyone full assembly!" Grime ordered. Every toad gathered. "Sasha Plantar step forward." She did as Grim pulled a sword that was very familiar to her older self and friends.
"So, this is when you got your sword." Ghost Marcy said.
"Yes, and it was by my side until we got home." Ghost Sasha said.
"Kneel." Grime ordered which Sasha did. "Sasha Plantar, in recognition of your bravery and dedication in the face of the enemy, not only do I give you this blade, I also hereby grant you the rank of lieutenant and name you my second in command. With all the rights and responsibilities therein. Rise and be recognized." Grime tapped her shoulders with the sword and gave it to her.
Sasha stood up, turned to the crowd, and raised her new sword high. "As your lieutenant on this sword I make two solemn vows, one to all of you and the other to myself. First, that as long as I hold this position, I will protect this valley and those who call it home from all threats by your side!" All the toads cheered except for Bog. "And second, I will use this blade to carve out the hearts of the monsters that took my parents from me! That is why I had a heron as the guard, so I may never forget!" another round of cheers.
"Before it was just to remind of my first victory and the herons did look beautiful from a distance." Ghost Sasha said.
Sasha turned to Grime. "Captain, I wish to write a letter to my family telling them of these events."
"Of course, Lieutenant. Dismissed." Grime said.
"Captain, may I have a word… in private?" Bog asked. Grime had Bog join him in his office. "You made her your second in command?! Yes, she's strong, but she may start asking questions! At the very least you should burn her letters home!"
"I have seen Sasha's measure in battle. She can handle the job. More importantly she will need to be in a position of authority when we begin her sister's training."
"You still didn't answer me about the letters. Sir, I'm concerned the creature is making you soft!" Bog reached for the drawer with Sasha's letters, but Grime grabbed his arm and squeezed hard.
"Do not presume I am going soft just because I picked Sasha over you! If you imply that again I will have you sent to the pin room!" Grime then tossed Bog into the wall. "Now get out!"
As Bog left, he muttered. "I swear "Captain" if this girl becomes a problem, I'll be the one to fix it, permanently!"
In here room Sasha spoke as she wrote. "Dear Hop Pop, Anne, Marcy, Sprig, and Polly. I hope the family is all still there after hiberday. I've had a hard one, because of a potion they have the Grime, Braddock, and one other toad fought at my side as we faced more monsters than I could count, though I bet Marcy could. Thankfully no one was eaten, and I have now been named second in command of the tower! All through the battle all I could think about was that I had to protect you all. I am definitely getting stronger but still not a day goes by where I miss you and wish I was home. Hopefully I'll be getting your letters soon and they can make me feel at least a little better. Please be safe. Love Sasha."