The intro opens with Anne's hands on the Calamity Box, opening it. Light from inside the box shines brightly before it switches to a scene that shows Kenji, Anne, Sasha, and Marcy, looking inside. Suddenly there was a white light and everything when blank.
Kenji was on the ground when the light faded, covered in mud with Anne next to him. When he woke up, he looked shocked to see he was in Amphibia with Anne. The two friends stood up and looked at their surroundings in awe.
The camera then zoomed out and showed the entire world of Amphibia.
Tenohira ni kizama re teru
Tsugihagi no yona sono sen ni furete
The scene then changed to the town of Wartwood as the frog inhabitants go about their daily lives. As a pair of dragonflies fly past the camera, it followed them until stopping at the Plantar farmhouse while the sun was starting to rise in the sky.
When the camera changed to show the house's front door, Kenji and Anne stepped out from inside and out into the world. Ready to take on the day. But first, they ducked their heads under some dragonflies that passed them.
Hibiware sona atama to
Gurasu ga sasata kokoro de mae hashiru
The camera moves up to a window on the side of the house. Sprig opened the window with a telescope in hand. He looked through it at the horizon before slipping off the windowsill and started falling. Inside the house, Hop Pop was reading one of his books in his study when Sprig's falling and screaming made him look at his window. Down on the ground, Sprig had landed in Polly's bucket. His little sister responded by punching her brother in the butt. Sending him flying out of the bucket. She then dove back into her bucket of water.
Sprig landed on Anne's head, and the three of them smiled at one another. Then Sprig pointed at something. Kenji pulled out one of his Class Cards, and the friends rushed off into the unknown.
The scene changed to show Kenji, Anne, and Sprig hopping across multiple mushrooms that lit up when one of them landed on it.
Koware kake no sekai
Kuzure so o de memai
The next scene showed Anne, Sprig, and Kenji running for their lives from a giant chicken monster. Kenji summons a black steed from his Rider Card then gets the others on and gallops away faster from the giant poultry. The scene begins to break apart as red line spread across the screen.
The next scene showed Sprig, Anne, Kenji, Polly, and Hop Pop fishing together on a lily pad before it suddenly rose into the air. Underneath it was a giant fish that started swimming around as everyone started screaming. Kenji, however, started stabbing it with a white curved short sword. The scene to break apart like the scene before.
Another scene showed Sprig in a temple looking at something before Kenji and Anne came rushing down the stairs beside him. Anne picked him up as they ran away from a giant boulder that came crashing into the temple. And just like the last two scenes, it begins to break apart in red lines.
Karappo na karada de
Ibtsuna shikai
The next scene showed a red, dark area. Anne and Kenji had their backs together, and both having looks of determination. Anne raised her card: Alter Ego, and Kenji raised his card: Saber as the cards begin to glow.
Still, in the same scene, the viewer is suddenly pulled back to reveal that they were surrounded by dozens of twisted frog/toad/newt-like creatures and a giant snake crawling up from behind them. Towering over them and hissing.
Zokkuri to myako o utsu inochi no sen
Naifu de nazotte nobashite shimaetara
ne dareka oshiete Tsuki ga mierunara
The amphibian-like abominations started attacking as Kenji now armed with Balmung/Gram and Anne now armed with the Absolute Sword - Endless Three-Stage rushed towards the viewer. Smashing, slicing, and killing any twisted being that came at them. Just as the viewer watched them go past the camera on both sides, the Giant Snake lunged at the fleeing kids. Its mouth opens as it comes towards the camera before the viewer is in the blackness of the snake's mouth, but it didn't last long as Kenji swung his sword and cuts down the snake with one strike.
Kesenai de
mada kesenai de
The scene changed again to a split screen with the left side show Anne's photo of herself, Kenji, Sasha, and Marcy together being held in a gloved hand and on the right is an older man in his fifties with a grin on his face. A flash of light showed the man's face more and the infamous Toad Tower in the background.
Kienaide mada Kienaide
The final scene of the intro showed Kenji standing in the middle of a road looking at the Class Cards he has. He looked to his left and saw Anne walking over to him with a smile. Then Sprig came over to his right and jumped on Kenji's shoulders while Fou jumps on his head with a content smile on his face. Hop Pop and Polly walked/hopped over and joined the trio. The screen begins to pan downwards as it shows reflections not of the group but of legendary heroes of Earth's history.
The intro ends with the title of the story.
FATE / CALAMITY
Book 1: Amphibia
Chapter 10: Fated Shrub of Death
One day while hanging out inside the house, Kenji and Anne were asked to help the Plantars with a little family project they had going on. Making the family shrub, which was this world's version of a family tree. Fou, being the lovable little bugger, is sleeping on the couch.
"Thanks for helping us with this, guys," Sprig said as Kenji placed glue on the shrub and Anne set the next Plantar family member on it. "Making this a real drag."
"Oh, come on, Sprig, it's interesting to learn about your family," Kenji said as he placed down the bug-shaped glue bottle. "If it weren't for my family tree, I wouldn't have learned about my great grandfather being a fighter pilot."
"He was?" Anne asked.
"Oh yeah. Back in World War 2, great-grandpa Rico flew the F6F Hellcat, one of the greatest fighter planes of all time," Kenji said with a smile. He placed glue on another part of the shrub.
Anne placed the next family member on the glue before turning to Hop Pop. "You know, Hop Pop, back home we call this a family tree," she said.
"That's 'cause everyone in your world is crazy," Hop Pop said before read opening his book. "Now, where was I? Hmm. Oh, yes, Great Aunt Gertrude. She was a masterful dirt tiller. I mean, how cool is that?"
"Eh," said everyone else, not finding that to be all that interesting.
"Oh, and you can't forget second Cousin Alfred. He was the king!" Hop Pop exclaimed.
This got everyone's attention. "A king?" They asked.
"As in a royal king," asked Kenji.
"Nope! But he was the king of single-tiered irrigation systems," Hop Pop explained, showing them a picture of his cousin.
The excitement that was present in the kids disappeared as they groaned. "Yep, you lost me," Anne said.
"Our ancestors were boring!" Polly complained.
"Were they really all just farm frogs?" Sprig asked. "Where are the artists? The poets? The dreamers?"
"They never left the farm," Kenji said.
"'Just farm frogs?'" Hop Pop spoke with an offended frown. "Kids, the point of the shrub is to give you an appreciation for your past. The Plantar family has layers. You just have to know where to look."
"Layers, huh? Okay, then. Well, what's so special about her?" Anne asked, pointing to a rather young-looking female frog.
"Polliana? Oh, brace yourselves," Hop Pop said, with Polly becoming very interested. "She wasn't just any farmer. She was a turnip farmer!"
All the kids groaned. "And that turned off my excitement," Kenji said, setting down the glue and walking over to the couch with Anne as Fou got off before they sat down.
"Welp, as much as I'd love to help, not going to find any of my ancestors on your shrub, so…" Anne pulled out her phone, as did Kenji with Fou sitting on his lap. The two started playing games, with Anne playing a Tetris-like game called Slacker Stackers while Kenji plays Invade: Dark Stories.
"Don't have to be blood to be a Plantar, Anne," Hop Pop said.
"No, but you do have to be a master stacker to get to level 46. If I can just…" Anne tried to best the game, only to lose when the sudden death round began. She groaned. "Curse you, sudden death round! Why you so hard?"
"Isn't that kind of…" Kenji trailed off when his game suddenly started to become difficult and he tried to keep up with it, only to die a moment later. "Noooo!"
"Kids, this is based on nothing at all, but I'm almost certain that game will rot your brain!" Hop Pop said with a disapproving look.
"Hop Pop, video games are actually really beneficial and can improve your cognitive abilities," Kenji explained.
Hop Pop rolled his eyes, not believing the young boy and tried to place some glue on a name tag. However, nothing came out when he squeezed the bottle. "Uh-oh, looks like we're out of glue!"
"Does that mean we have to stop?" Sprig asked as he and his sister perked up with excitement.
"Can we do something fun now?" Polly asked.
"No fun till the shrub's done," Hop Pop said, walking towards the door. "Just going to run to the store really quick and get more glue. Be back in a jiffy." He opened the door and walked out with a hum. But then he quickly came back and pointed at the kids. "Don't go anywhere!"
When the door closed again, the frog kids let out groans. "Ah! You're lucky you're an outsider, Anne. Our family history is weak," Polly said.
"They didn't do anything weird. Or different. Or fun," Sprig complained.
"I'm sure some of them did something interesting," Kenji said as he continued playing his game.
"Oh sure." Sprig rolled his eyes, before jumping over on top of the fireplace and pointing to a frog painting that looked just like American Gothic. "I mean, look at this. Even this painting's making me feel depressed," he said, placing a hand on the center of the painting.
However, his hand pressed in that section of the painting and activated a mechanism within the walls. "What the... Whoa!" Sprig was knocked off the ledge of the fireplace when the painting turned on its side.
"Sprig!" Kenji exclaimed as he and Anne leaped off the couch.
"You broke the house!" Polly exclaimed.
The fireplace lifted into the ceiling and a dark secret passage opened up. Leading down into a dark hallway that looked to have not been traveled down in years. The passage looked to have been dug out of the earth, judging by the walls that were made from dirt, rocks, and the roots of trees and plants.
"Whoa," Kenji and Anne said together as they peered down into the darkness of the passageway.
"Oh, wow. This looks unsafe," Anne said. "We have to go down there!"
"Wait, what?!" Kenji said, looking at her like she was crazy. "You want to go down there?!"
"There could be treasure!" Sprig said with excitement.
"Or dead bodies! Let's do it!" Polly yelled.
"I don't know, guys. It looks really dangerous - just kidding, we're going down there!" Kenji said with a grin before he turns to Fou. "Fou, you stay here ok?"
"Fou!" the small creature said as he takes his spot again on the couch and falls back to sleep.
He grabbed a nearby lantern and the group started walking down into the secret passageway. However, just a little way into the underground staircase, the door suddenly closed behind them.
"Uh, did we just get locked in here?" Sprig asked.
Dropping the lantern, Kenji rushed over to the sealed door and tried pushing it open, but it wouldn't budge. "We're locked in!"
"Oh no. No, no, no!" Anne rushed over and tried banging on the stone entrance. "Help! Wait!"
"Let us out!" Sprig shouted.
Anne turned to Kenji and grabbed him by his shoulders. "What are we going to do!?" She asked, shaking him.
"Come on," said Polly, holding the lantern. "Let's just find another way out, you babies."
Anne and Sprig looked to Kenji, wondering what he wanted to do. "We can't just stay here. Let's go," he said.
The group kept close together as they ventured down into the hallway. Kenji pulled out his knife to defend them from anything that attacked while Anne held the lantern. They soon reached a chamber, and they were amazed by what they found in it. This was a laboratory with a large table, a workbench filled with shattered papers, and a shelf that had glass jars with strange objects in them.
"Whoa. You guys had a lab under your house?" Kenji asked, looking around in amazement as they explored the room.
Anne walked over to the shelf with Polly in her arm. She whipped her hand on the shelf, kicking up dust that got in her face. "Oh, there's dust everywhere," she commented.
"This place is amazing," said Sprig with wonder in his eyes. He walked over to one of the shelves and looked at all the glass jars. "Whoa!"
He jumped on the table and spotted a lever. "Oh, what this?" Sprig pulled the lever, and the table launched him up into the air. Kenji caught him before he could land on his head.
Sprig looked at a sign that said 'SCIENCE! More science'. "Wow!"
"Hey, why do you think the entrance was hidden like that?" Polly asked, looking at a jar.
"To keep it a secret, obviously," said Sprig, looking at some notes. "Who wouldn't want to steal this stuff?"
Kenji walked over to where Anne was. She tapped a glass jar, only for the vegetable inside it to turn and show its hideous face that made the Thai girl shudder. "Uh, me, me. I don't wanna steal this stuff," she said, pointing to herself.
"Yeah," said Kenji backing away from the shelf. "Whose lab is this anyway?"
"It says here this place belonged to Great Uncle Skip Plantar. He was a farmer and a brilliant scientist!" Sprig said, showing the others a picture of his and Polly's great uncle and some of his notes. One of them showed a pumpkin and a brain. "He experimented with all kinds of stuff. This is wild. I want to know more! Like, what does this do?" Sprig pulled a lever.
Everyone went stiff when they heard a mechanism activated. A gate on the far side of the room swung open, and two large arms made of entangled vines swung out and dug their claws into the floor. A glowing sound could be heard before a very large, mutated pumpkin came out of the cage. It had a short, thick stem and a large orange leaf protruding from the top of its head. It had two slits across its front resembling eyes and a large mouth cut in the shape similar to a jack-o-lantern's with green slime dribbling continuously from it.
The mutated pumpkin growled as it approached the kids, stopping a few feet from them. Kenji, Anne, Sprig, and Polly stared at it with wide eyes and jaws hanging as it breathed heavily.
"Whoa, mama," Polly said.
"Maybe it's harmless," Sprig said.
The mutant suddenly roared at them. The kids all screamed as it spread the green slime all over them. It raised its arm and swung at them with its claws, but the four jumped back and out of the way of the attack.
"Alright you pumpkin bastard, you ready to be made into a pie?!" Kenji yelled, pulling out his knife and getting ready to attack.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on a minute." Sprig quickly stopped him before turning towards the pumpkin. "There may be another way."
He then hopped towards the pumpkin. "Sprig, don't go near it!" Kenji exclaimed.
"Dude, what are you doing?" Anne exclaimed.
"Yeah, that pumpkin will squash you," Polly said.
But Sprig approached the pumpkin, which noticed him. The little frog held up his arms to try and calm down the monster. "There, there. Easy does it," he said in a calm voice. The mutant growled and chomped its jaws.
But to the creature's surprise, Sprig shushed it and gave it a hug. "There, there, you beautiful, disgusting thing," he said as the monster smiled happily.
Kenji, Anne, and Polly watched the odd display of love with blank expressions. "What is happening?" Anne asked.
"I don't know, but I hate it," said Kenji.
"That's right, Mama Sprig is here," Sprig said motherly as the mutant chuckled. "Oh, you are horrible, horrible, sweet boy."
However, his expression changed, and he whispered. "Forgive me."
Sprig suddenly pushed the pumpkin back before jumping up. He grabbed onto the gate and brought it down onto the monster's head. Crushing it in an explosion of green slime. The mutant's arms twitched slightly before falling silent.
Kenji, Anne, and Polly approached the young frog, looking rather stunned at his actions. "Sprig, that...that ice cold man." Kenji said, a little startled by the frog having more mercy in killing the pumpkin
"Love is the cruelest weapon," explained Sprig.
"Agreed. Now let's get out of here before something else happens," Anne said.
But that's when the floor beneath them crack. Before they could react, the floor collapsed, and the four landed on the hard ground in another chamber. They all groaned in pain before sitting up.
"You guys, okay?" Anne asked, rubbing the back of her head.
"Yep," Kenji said, standing up.
"More or less," Polly said.
"Yeah... ow!" The lantern bounced off Sprig's head and landed in Polly's hands.
"Oh, cool, our lantern," she said before they noticed their new surroundings.
To their amazement, they had landed inside of an armory, with swords, axes, maces, shields, and various other melee weapons hanging from the walls. Polly's wides widened as she hopped around.
"This is heaven." She then gasped when she noticed a painting on the wall and hopped over to it.
The painting showed a rather familiar-looking female frog that was wearing battle armor and holding a sword. But under it was a plack that said Pollianna.
"This is the same Polliana from Hop Pop's shrub!" Polly exclaimed in amazement. "She wasn't just a turnip farmer. She was a turnt up warrior!"
"Wow," Kenji said as he looked around at all the weapons on the walls. However, he stopped when he noticed something on the wall. Something that caught his interest.
Walking over to the wall, Kenji approached a stop in front of the cabinet and was...a bit confused at what I saw. Inside the cabinet was a large grey broadsword, as tall as I was. Its pommel was capped by a skull and a blue sash was wrapped just above the handle and around the widest part of the blade, held together by what looked like nails. The edges of the blade were black, a sharp yet smooth contrast to the sword's grey. The top half of the sword looked fine and shiny, but the point of the blade and the area surrounding it were rusty and dirtied by what looked like dried-out bloodstains. But what was odd about it was that the longer I looked at the sword, the more I started to feel a sense of...unease. There was a cold aura around it that made my skin crawl, and I have no idea why I didn't take a step back. But nope, I just kept looking at it, seemingly entranced by its qualities. Next to it was a black sheath that fits perfectly for the sword.
Reaching out for the sword first, Kenji lifted it off the hangers. Its weight was perfect, and it was just the right size for Kenji.
"Now that's a sword," he said with a smile as he sheathed the sword and looped the scabbard's belt around his waist. After that happened, Kenji walked back over to Anne and Sprig with his new weapon.
"Hey, check it out. I found her diary," said Sprig, grabbing Pollianna's diary from a pile of junk.
The red frog opened it and the three friends looked inside of it as Polly played around with some of the weapons. "The Bogwater Wars of '48. The Western Toad invasion of '53. Man, she was in a lot of battles," Anne said, impressed.
"She was the coolest, most terrifying Plantar ever. Like me!" Polly said, holding a flail.
"Anything about this?" Kenji asked as he held up the new sword he got. Anne begins to look though the pages but couldn't find anything about it. This caused Kenji to sigh because he wanted to know the origin of this sword.
"Wow, we sure are learning a lot. I'd like to learn more. Like, hey, what does this do?" Sprig ran over and grabbed another lever before giving it a pull.
Suddenly, a suit of armor came to life and swung its axe at Sprig. Kenji sprang into action and blocked the ax with his sword and then sliced it in half. Cutting the armor in two before it broke apart.
But the lever didn't just do that. Down the hallway that led to the exit, the suits of armor lined the walls started chopping up and down their axes, as spears thrusted down from the ceiling. Then two giant mallets smashed into each other, before a large Pendulum of Death swung down and a pair of buzzsaw crossed the floor.
"Damnit, Sprig! Will you please stop pulling levers?" Anne exclaimed.
"Levers are for pulling, Anne!" Sprig yelled. They quickly dodged a large mace.
"Why would Pollianne install a death trap down here?" Kenji exclaimed.
Anne looked back at the diary and found the page that explains it. "Says here this is Polliana's training simulator," she said, not noticing a cluster of darts flying at her.
Kenji quickly got in front of her and used the flat side of his sword to block the darts. "Well, how do we turn it off," he asked, knocking the darts that stuck to his sword.
"The shut-off switch is by the exit on the other side," Anne said pointing to the switch, which would have been easy to get to it wasn't on the other said of the training simulator.
"Okay, we can do this," Sprig as he, Kenji, and Anne got ready to jump into the fray. "We just got to go very slowly-"
Polly suddenly burst past them while shouting and swinging her flail.
"POLLY!" The humans and red frog yelled.
But to their absolute astonishment, Polly ran through the course like it was nothing. Dodging all the obstacles and smashing all the suits of armor while laughing with maniacal glee. Kenji, Anne, and Sprig stared at her with wide eyes in complete and total bewilderment.
Once she was done, Polly went over to the switch and shut off the training course with her flail. "Well, that was intense," Anne said as she and the others joined the polliwog.
"Yeah, you were awesome, Polly," Kenji said.
"Thanks. So, you guys want to do it again?" Polly asked, reaching for the lever.
"Nope, nope, nope, nope." Kenji, Anne, and Sprig said as they grabbed Polly and hastily made their way out of the chamber.
They walked down the dugout tunnel with Anne holding the lantern and Kenji following behind her with his sword at the ready. It wouldn't be long before they came across another chamber.
"Oh, wow. Can you believe it? Another mysterious hidden chamber," Polly said, less then enthused by this one. This chamber was filled with maps, paintings, drawings, and game boxes that were placed in stacks around the room.
"Oh, cool! This place is filled with games and puzzles," Anne said as she looked at some of the games. Kenji sheathed his sword and picked up a game, which looked exactly like operation, but with frogs instead of humans.
"Just like science class," he said with an amused smirk.
"Let's see if we can find which Plantar this stuff belonged to," Anne said grabbing a book and sitting down as Kenji and the frog kids gathered around her. It showed a family that looked oddly like theirs, but with two key differences. The two Newts that were with them, both bearing a striking resemblance to Anne and Kenji with the way their hairs were.
"Emma the Newt and Vincent the Salamander? Honorary Plantars?" Kenji read before Anne flipped through some pages.
"Hey, check this out. They traveled all over the place, collected all this cool stuff, fell in love, got married, and settled with the Plantars. They weren't even frogs!" Anne said in amazement.
"Wow, so cool," Sprig said.
Kenji kneed down next to Anne and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Anne, do you realize what this means?" He spoke in a whisper.
"I guess even outsiders like us can be Plantars," Anne said.
"Oh, guys. Looks like you've solved the puzzle...of your own heart," Sprig said with sparkling eyes.
"Wow, thanks, buddy." Anne and Kenji hugged the red frog and each other.
"No, thank you, buddies," Sprig said, almost about to cry happily.
"Hey!" Polly yelled, breaking the moment of friendship with the more pressing matter at hand. "How about we solve the puzzle of getting the heck out of here!"
"Oh, we think the exit is that way," Anne said, pointing in the direction of the exit.
"Oh."
The four kids walked over to a strange-looking door. It didn't have any handles or looked like any door that they'd seen before. What it did have were square sections and square tiles with some having a different symbol.
"What kind of door is this?" Kenji asked, looking at it with a raised eyebrow.
"I don't know," Sprig said, before trying to push it open. However, it wouldn't budge. "It's locked."
Anne looked at the door and squinted her eyes. The design was strangely familiar, she just didn't know where she's seen it. "Maybe it's a puzzle we have to solve," guessed Kenji with his hand on the sword's pommel.
"Maybe I can smash it. Hiyah!" Polly swung her flail at the door, only for it to bounce off the surface. She didn't even leave a scratch. "Well, that didn't work."
"WE'RE GONNA DIE DOWN HERE!" Sprig yelled, jumping up and flailing his arms around.
"Wait a second," said Anne as she pulled out her phone. Opening the game that she was playing before, she held it up and gasped. "Kenji, you're right! This isn't just a door. It's a puzzle!"
"Think you can solve it?" Kenji asked.
"Definitely," she said, walking up to the door and cracking her knuckles. "All right, let's do this." With lightning-fast hands, Anne assembled the squares in the correct positions with ease. "There, I did it!"
There was a sudden rumbling as the chamber trembled violently. They looked up and saw spikes extending from the ceiling before it started slowly descending on the four.
"Sprig!" Kenji yelled accusingly.
"What?! I didn't pull a lever!" Sprig exclaimed, holding up his hands.
"Oh, no! I know what this is," Anne said in a panic as she glanced down at her phone's screen. "It's the sudden death round!"
Seeing more squares sliding down the surface of the door, Kenji quickly rushed over and started placing them in the right order. "Alright, let's do this," he said.
"What are you doing?" Anne asked.
"You couldn't finish the sudden death round, so we'll do it together," Kenji said urgently, prompting Anne to quickly join them. Together, they worked as one. Sliding the shapes into the correct order to save themselves and Sprig and Polly. The ceiling was almost upon them, breaking down the stacks of game boxes.
"Guys, no pressure, but we're going to die," Sprig said urgently as he held his sister.
"Almost... there!" Kenji and Anne exclaimed simultaneously as they placed the last piece of the puzzle in place together.
That's then the door finally opened.
"Woo hoo!" They cheered together.
"We did it! Take that, Hop Pop. Whose brain is rotten now, sucker?" Anne exclaimed as the ceiling was now upon them, making them bend their necks.
"Time to go!" Kenji grabbed her and jumped out of the chamber with Sprig and Polly before the ceiling crushed them.
Now safe and sound, the four of them breathed a sigh of relief. "We had your family history all wrong, guys," Anne said with a smile. "The Plantars weren't just farmers."
"Nope, they were twisted," said Sprig.
"More like demented!" Kenji exclaimed, having enough of the Plantar family's oddities and traps.
"Yeah, they were pretty cool," Polly said. "Now, can we finally find a way out of here?"
"Yeah," Sprig said, before noticing another lever hanging over his head. "And I think I know how…."
"Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope. So much nope!" Kenji, Anne, and Polly grabbed him and quickly walked away from the lever.
They walked down another dugout tunnel with Kenji holding the lantern and his sword at the ready as he took the lead. It wouldn't be long before they came across another chamber. However, this chamber was massive and empty. It almost looked like an underground coliseum
"Oh great, another hidden chamber…why am I not surprised." Kenji said, less then enthused by this one as looked around to see if anything was out of place. The young man kneels and picks up some dirt as if he was inspecting it. "Wait a minute this can't be right."
"What? What's not right Kenji?" Sprig asked as the others joined him, confusion on their face.
"This area looked recent dug up. The way you can tell is that the dirt here is very loose." Kenji said as he stands up to see if anything else was out of place.
"What do you mean?" Anne asked.
Before Kenji could answer her question, the area begins to rumble as the group was surrounded by a flash of bright light. As soon the light dies down, the humans and frog children stood in a wide stone courtyard that is a mile wide surrounded by tall walls. Standing on the other side of the group is a two story Chinese imperial palace that looked empty from both the inside and outside.
"Wait a moment…Are we back home?" Kenji said as he was looking around the area. He knows that this is a Chinese Palace, so Kenji thought that they could be in China and possibly can get back home in United States of America. After a few moments of silence, Kenji looked towards Anne, Sprig, and Polly were looking up towards the sky with shocked looks on their face. Kenji soon looked up as well and shared the same look as his friends. Above them is not a clear blue day or a starry black night but rather an endless void, where in every direction, there is a mix of iridescent colors. It was like looking through a kaleidoscope.
"Wh-What is this?!" Anne said in confusion of what is going on. Kenji was just as confused as her, but before he could say anything, his head began to ache in pain as he fell to his knees as he grips his head and grunts in pain from the sudden headache.
"KENJI!" Anne said as she and the frog kids went to him in concern for their friend. Kenji shudders for a moment before he looks up as his eyes flashed silver for a moment as he stood up and said something that confused the group.
"A Reality Marble."
"A what?" Anne asked in confusion of what her friend just said.
"This is a Reality Marble. This is a unique skill one that centers around the materialization and projection of one's inner world onto reality following the Thaumaturgical Theory World Egg." Kenji said as he rubs his head from the sudden info dump that he received as he was trying to think on how to get out of here with Anne, Sprig and Polly.
"…Say what now?" Sprig and Polly both said in confusion.
"Basically, it's a power to create a world from a person's memories or what their soul reflects on from within." Kenji said as he looked towards the main palace to see if it was familiar to him. The area has no gates that would allow them leave this place, so that's a no-go.
"Wait, how in the world did you know this?" Anne said as she looked towards Kenji in confusion.
"One of the Servants from my cards told me about this." Kenji said as he looks around this Reality Marble to see if anything was different or out of place. "Originally, it was an ability specifically had by daemons as their Alien Common Sense but has since come to include the unique Bounded Fields possessed by many people, such as the greatest of magi who have made this ability available to use through a long time. As such, Reality Marbles represent the pinnacle of all Bounded Fields where the boundary line becomes the space itself."
"That is correct." A gentle voice spoke out as the group turn to where the voice spoke and where surprised to see a young woman with brilliant blonde hair, pale white skin reminiscent of a bisque doll, and both clothes and grace that were similarly picturesque of Chinese origin. Her most impressive feature was her eyes, blazing like fire, overflowing with strength and determination. A girl who seemed a year younger than Kenji and Anne, but her smile was the one thing that was unsettling to them. She is standing next to the Chinese palace doors. "Most imbeciles would still be trying to figure out what's going on, but you were able to figure it out in just a few minutes. I'm impress."
"Who are you?" Anne as the young girl looked towards her before she gave her that same chilling smile that she gave the whole group from before.
"Oh, where are my manners, I haven't introduced myself yet. I am Sima Yi of Zhongda with my Servant Class being Rider. It is a pleasure to finally meet you Anne Boonchuy, Kenji Richards, Sprig and Polly Plantar." The woman introduced herself towards the summoned group.
While the frog kids and Anne have no idea who this woman is, Kenji knew exactly who the Servant is. Sima Yi a military general, government official, and regent of the state of Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China, also known by the courtesy name Zhongda. A figure in both military matters and politics, as told by the Records of the Three Kingdoms and the likes. Posthumously revered as Emperor Xuan, he is ultimate victor of the Three Kingdoms Era.
Or this case she…
"Are you the one who brought us here?" Kenji asked as the female Servant just smirked him, confirming his suspicions.
"You are correct, and I want to see if you have any potential for the eventual battles that you and your friends will encounter." Sima Yi said as she steps back to allow the palace doors to open as the group begins to feel a powerful presence coming from the palace. "You stand before the General of Repetition: Lu Bu Fengxian! Servant Class: Berserker. Do your best to survive and keep me entertained."
(Play Dynasty Warriors 9 - THEME OF LU BU-DW EPIC MIX)
The human who came out of the palace has short red hair with red feathers on top of his head and white blank plain eyes. He wears a red Chinese general uniform including large armor and thick fur trimming at the collar and gloves. He appears strong and has a tall figure, his glittering armor reminiscent of a brave general. In his right hand is a two-handed halberd with golden edges. This is the God Force: The Five Soldiers of the War God, the True Name of the Houtengageki (Sky Piercer).
This is Lu Bu Fengxian: The General of Repetition of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He is an infamously treacherous military commander from the Three Kingdoms era. For two times he cut down his foster fathers, and to repeat the act of betrayal on countless occasions was an unbelievable act for the China that esteemed the Confucian morals. Still, his military exploits, deeds of arms are unmatched, and he was counted as one of the strongest in the world of the Three Kingdoms.
He betrayed Ding Yuan who appointed him to a high position and conspired with Demon Lord Dong Zhuo, who had grasped the central hegemony. But even Dong Zhuo was betrayed and assassinated. He betrayed Dong Zhuo because he was crazily in love with Diao Chan.
Lu Bu excelled at shooting on horseback, and because of this gift he was likened to the expert of the bow of the Han Dynasty: the "Flying General" Li Guang. The time when the hero of the Three Kingdoms Liu Bei, who Lu Bu called his sworn brother, was cornered by Yuan Shu's military commander, Ji Ling is a man of great influence and Lu Bu's ally. As he did not like the fight between the two, Lu Bu commanded for a halberd to be erected at the camp's gate 150 steeps away. Both the Earth and Heavens aligned in perfect harmony. It was said that the arrow he shot hit the target beautifully and Ji Ling withdrew his army. This event is later called Gate Halberd Shot.
After this, he wandered around Zhongyuan, going through many battles, but in the end was attacked and defeated by an opposing general, Cao Cao, due the betrayal of a subordinate. He was then executed.
Lu Bu's selfishness was strong, and he believed that there was no military commander in this world above himself, but it seems that he let his guard down towards the strategist Chen Gong, who made use of him "effectively" in his tactics until the end.
And now he stands before them as a Heroic Spirit of Madness: The Berserker.
"RAAAAAH!" Lu Bu roared as he raised his halberd towards the sky. As he roared, powerful bursts of shockwaves came from him causing the group to be pushed back. The group looked back to see the Berserker jumps from his original position and dives towards the group with his halberd forward. The group was quick enough to dodge the attack as the split up as the giant man landed where the group once stood.
Kenji and Anne were quick to use their Class Cards as Kenji uses Install with the Shielder Card while Anne does the same with the Alter Ego. After they did the transformation, Polly suddenly burst past them while shouting and swinging her flail. However, instead of landing a single hit, Lu Bu uses his weapon as it transforms a pair of giant spiked gauntlets as he caught the young polliwog's flail without any issue.
"Oh crud…" Polly said as the Berserker simply threw her away causing her to scream, but Sprig caught her in time before she hits the wall. Both Kenji and Anne charge towards Lu Bu. Anne engages in a small bout with Lu Bu as he shifts his weapon to a nine-ringed broadsword. When Lu Bu finds the opportunity to attack, Anne swaps places with Kenji, blocking Lu Bu's trajectory with his shield. Caught off-guard, Anne slides under Lu Bu's legs and bounds towards him. Kenji bounds towards Lu Bu too, and the pair inches in on him with a pincer attack. However, Lu Bu shifted his weapon to its original form then quickly strikes Anne and Kenji, knocking them off their feet.
Sprig with his slingshot and Polly with her flail tried their luck with their own attacks but unfortunately, they we're knocked back by the wind pressure of Lu Bu's weapon when he swung at them. Those two couldn't so much as hold a candle to this Servant in the state they're in.
The two humans get back up and continues their attack towards the Servant of Madness with quick slashes from Anne's nodachi and powerful heavy strikes from Kenji's shield. While this happens, Lu Bu uses his God Force weapon to its full potential as keeps transforming it into Spiked Gauntlets, Tonfas, a Nine-Ringed Broadsword, Chain Whips, and a Warhammer. When Kenji found the right moment, he draws the Sword of Strange Hangings from its sheath and slashes the mad Servant chests, causing a small stream of blood to erupt from his chest. After a few moments of silence, Lu Bu snarls as he jumped backwards as a powerful aura begins to emit from him. Kenji sensed something's wrong when Lu Bu raises his Halberd as the aura got thicker.
"Oh crap…Guys get behind me!" Kenji said as the Anne, Sprig, and Polly quickly did what he said as they noticed the incoming attack as he did.
"RAAAAHHH!" The Servant of Madness roared as his weapons transforms into a bow and arrow. As Lu Bu draws his arrow, the aura was now as bright as a star. When he lets loose the arrow, it turns into a beam of pure energy. Kenji plants his feet to the ground as the beam his shield causing him and the group to be pushed back, but stops as Anne, Sprig, and Polly helps him by doing the same by digging deep into the ground to stop moving. While the beam might not hit them, it did split into multiple parts as it hits the area around them, causing mass destruction to the area.
When it was over the group was panting as they were on their knees as Anne and Kenji returns to their normal state as they looked towards the General of Repetition who looked at them with a blank look on his face. A clapping was heard as they turned to Sima Yi who was clapping her hands with a smile on her face.
(Stop Dynasty Warriors 9 - THEME OF LU BU-DW EPIC MIX)
"My my." Sima Yi said with a small smirk on her face. "Most would not be able to survive the Noble Phantasm of the God Force. Perhaps this won't be a boring event after all."
"…I got to ask. Why are you doing this?" Kenji asked the Female Servant who was watching from afar as he stands. "I've heard about you. Sima Yi. a prodigy in strategy. Chinese military general, politician, and regent of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China."
"Well, it's nice to see someone did their research," Sima Yi smirked towards the young man. "Though that's not so easy to come by. So, I must ask: Where'd you hear that?"
"Romance of the Three Kingdoms," Kenji said as he saw no harm in sharing this. "A 14th-century historical novel attributed to Luo Guanzhong. It is set in the turbulent years towards the end of the Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history, starting in 169 AD and ending with the reunification of the land in 280 AD by Western Jin. It ended with your kingdom wining in the end."
Sima Yi's eyes lit up in remembrance. "Ah, good times. But there's one thing that bothered me."
"What?"
"The aftermath of my death," Sima Yi spat, more than happy to share it with the young man. She knew the other human and the frog children were listening in. "My descendants are a complete embarrassment to the name of Zhongda. So, I decided to have more since my summoning to this world! Forget a life that I had! I wanted to create a new empire in this world! And if they would stand in my way, then I'd resort to the opposite to achieve my goals…"
Sima Yi smirked darkly as she covers the lower part of her face with her sleeve. "Because any opportunity to spit in the face of those who oppose me is one, I took delight in."
Kenji said nothing, he only stared in shock…Sima Yi… She will take it too far. She will ruin so many lives, all to spit in the faces of anyone who would oppose her. For what? An empire that would surpass her old one. What use for such a thing when you had nobody to be proud of you for it…?
This Servant was… Scum. Scum of the highest order.
'Only the vilest of scum can fall to the hands of an assassin.'
(Play Grand Battle Theme [Babylonia ver.] - Fate/Grand Order Zettai Majuu Sensen Babylonia OST)
"You'll never stop…" Kenji whispered as he stands up. His head turned down, his body shaking with rage.
"Oh? What's that boy?" Sima Yi said with a quirk of one of her eyebrows and smirk on her face. Anne and the frog kids were confused at what Kenji but for some reason they felt a…chill
"You'll never stop…" Kenji slowly pulled one of the Class Cards out from his pocket… The card bearing the image of a skull mask and two knives. It was glowing bright that seems to cause the new sword that Kenji obtain to do the same. "You will never stop… You are too far gone in your ways… You are monster…A cruel monster of the highest order… You will…"
"I'll what, boy?" Sima Yi asked rhetorically. "I'll never stop! I'm living the dream! I'm not going to stop until I've drained this world dry for my new empire! Lu Bu, deal with him."
"RAAAAH!" Lu Bu roared as he takes his stance as he was ready to attack once again.
"You are beyond redemption… You are set in your ways…" As he spoke, Kenji's voice began to change. Become deeper, stronger, older… Wiser. "And I shall…" Slowly, ever so slowly, Kenji looked up into the eyes of Lu Bu Fengxian…
Azure flames with silver lights at the center burned in those sockets.
"Sever! Thy! Head!" Kenji raised the golden card high into the air.
"Install Assassin!"
There was a flash of light…And all who stood there knew the presence of death.
That was the only thing that came to minds of Anne, Sprig, and Polly as what they saw where Kenji Richards stood.
What stood in his place now was the very incarnation of death itself. His main outfit consists of a thick purple and black helmet with a skull shaped visor, hiding his face behind it at almost all times and showing nothing but empty blue pupils. He wears a bulky purple and black cuirass with a skull on it, with eerie blue flames pouring out of the eyes. His plackart is designed to represent the ribs of a skeleton. He has large, durable faulds protecting his hips from damage, with a design that represents a skeletal hand wrapping around his waist. He has black and purple cuisses with glowing blue lines running through them, and spiked poleyns on his knees. He has extremely durable greaves protecting his shins, and thick sabatons protecting the boots he wears. He has large, skull shaped pauldrons on his shoulders with infernal blue flames coming from the eye sockets, black rerebraces, purple vambraces with large spikes and blue lines running through them, and purple spiked gauntlets. On his back is a seemingly ancient mantle, with a cape that looks just as old and worn. The broadsword that Kenji held now has the very feel of death it gave off made everyone in the vicinity freeze in fear
For her part, Anne stared at that blade with horror beyond belief, and her eyes fell to the mask that Kenji wore. No, that wasn't Kenji… That was Death itself!
For her part, Anne hadn't known what to think initially. Here someone was, a criminal. Just like her. His sins were minor like hers, but they were still sins. She looked at him… And for a moment, she saw someone else in his place. Someone she hated and feared more than anyone else in the world. More than Sasha, more than her own mother. The one she saw…
… Was herself.
Before she was transported to Amphibia, Anne begins to have flashbacks of her life back on Earth. She had a very standard life on Earth. When she was in kindergarten, she, and her friend Marcy Wu befriended Sasha Waybright after she (relatively) protected them from some bullies, then through Sasha she met and befriended the kind yet quiet boy Kenji and since, they grew up together. Anne had a complicated relationship with her mother due to her lazy nature and loud tendencies, but they still loved each other and at one point when she was little, Anne went on a trip to Thailand with her mom. Anne was also a lazy student in school, preferring to slack off rather than study and would often go to the mail to intercept her report card to keep her mom and Dad from finding out about her bad grades. Anne also went to Thai School to learn the language, but only learned enough to barely put a sentence of Thai together. Over time, her friendship with Sasha became toxic as one time Sasha encouraged Anne and Marcy to have a dance party on their school's roof and blow off a rehearsal for a medieval school play and when they were caught, Anne and surprisingly Kenji took the blame and said they were the masterminds and both of their parents grounded them for a month.
Then things went from bad to worse on her 16th birthday…
Sasha convinced Anne to ditch school and have fun at an arcade while bringing Kenji along for the ride as they came across him in the halls as he was heading to the restroom. When Anne tried to leave to go to celebrate her birthday back home with Kenji agreeing that they should go, Sasha strongarms her to blow it off and rob a music box from a thrift store, muck to Kenji's displeasure. That night, when Anne, Kenji, Sasha, and Marcy are at the park, Anne opens the music box, and they are suddenly transported away to Amphibia.
And now, here she was… Staring at Death itself standing in Kenji's place, with eyes of azure locked onto the form of Lu Bu Fengxian.
"Lu Bu…Sima Yi" The voice that came from beneath the mask was not Kenji's. It was a chilling voice. Despite the fact he didn't yell, he was still heard. Everyone heard him, even if they wished they hadn't. "From you past lives, thou sins are numerous. Thou hast plundered…Killed…Ruined life after life…No more shall you commit further sins…From the mountain abyss, I come, and only death do I bring. I am the Old Man of the Mountain, the First Hassan-I Sabbah!"
Death now known as the First Hassan hefted up that fearful blade with a single hand and began to walk. Nobody moved, nobody could move, as he was enshrouded in darkness with every step. Every single movement was just another sign of the end. The end that all shared, no matter what.
Finally, Lu Bu seemed to understand what was happening. He stepped back, lifting his bow, and firing a large arrow at the being clad in black armor.
The First Hassan didn't so much as flinch. The blast hit him square in the chest, but he just kept walking towards Lu Bu.
"Listen well…" He said… And they all heard it. Inexplicably, they all heard it.
The sound of a bell, ringing loudly in all their ears.
"RRAAAHHH!" Lu Bu roared as he draws another large arrow. He fired shot after shot from his transformed weapon, but The First Hassan took each one without so much as a single flinch. Those azure eyes stared at the Rouge Servant.
"The evening bell has tolled thy name…" He spoke… And suddenly he vanished from their sights. They could see him no longer as he was completely enveloped in shadows.
But Lu Bu Fengxian saw something. The entire world faded to black around him, he could behold nothing. The entire world was simply gone around him… And then he saw them.
Those terrifying, shining, eyes.
"The feathers foreshadow your death, and behead-," they all heard it. Death had come for Lu Bu Fengxian, and none could stop it.
Slice!
And once again, they saw the First Hassan. He stood there, blade lifted slightly off the ground, and he stared at Lu Bu. "Azrael," he intoned softly, stabbing his blade into the ground as both hands rested on the butt of the weapon. When this happened, white feathers seemed to appear around them as the skies now adapted a heavenly look from its original state that it was in. The bells from before still tolls.
'…?' Lu Bu thought… As his head slowly fell from his body. '…I see now…' His brain moved at lightspeed as it slowly began to fall. 'Fear, but no pain… Dread, but no suffering… Repentance, but no regrets…' A small smile came to his lips. 'You are terrifying warrior worthy of respect… Kenji Richards…'
Lu Bu Fengxian died, body slumping to the ground, his head landing upright beside him… The smile never leaving his face as his whole body disappears in golden lights.
(Stop Grand Battle Theme [Babylonia ver.] - Fate/Grand Order Zettai Majuu Sensen Babylonia OST)
There was silence… And then the First Hassan turned his gaze upon Sima Yi as he raised his sword towards her as the azure flames are getting intense. "I give thee only one chance," he told the young woman. "Release us from this place or will you be next, Sima Yi of Zhongda."
Sima Yi was quiet from this declaration before the girl soon gave off soft giggles before erupting into a hysterical laughter. After a few moments of this, the Female Servant stopped as she controls herself from her hysteria.
"Excellent! I knew with right push that you can go beyond what you can do, Kenji Richards! You are more amusing than most imbeciles that I have encountered. Very well, Grand Servant of the Assassins. I will grant your request." Sima Yi said as she claps her hands. At the very moment the whole area begins to distort. "Do you best in the battles to come and expect you and the Plantars to the same, Anne Boonchuy. Farewell."
At those words, the whole area is surrounded by a bright light that could have blinded the whole group. After a few moments, Anne, Sprig, and Polly returns to the chamber that they were in before. As the group looked around to see if they have returned to the very same area, the First Hassan turns towards Anne and the frog kids as he walked towards them. Anne, even though she's tired, stands in front of Sprig and Polly to protect them in case he would strike them down. However, the Grand Servant of Assassins simply stops in front of them and plants his sword into the ground like that of a cane
"Be at ease, Wielder of the Sapphire Calamity. I hath come in answer to thy summons of my Master: The Wielder of the Silver Calamity, Kenji Richards." The First Hassan said as the group was confused at what the Asssasin said.
"Wielder of the- What are you talking about? Who are you?" Anne asked as the First Hassan was silent as he raises his hand and noticed that he was about to disappear as he begins to shine.
"I don't have much time in this world so I cannot answer you. However, I would like to give you a warning of the things to come." The First Hassan said as he places his hand back on the pommel of the sword. "Heed me child of mankind and children of amphibians. Three storms will soon sweep upon this world."
"Three…" Anne said as the First Hassan continues talking.
"Empathize not with the hateful king; Celebrate not with the joyous friend; and sympathize not the enigmatic entity." The First Hassan said as his whole body begins to glow. "Remember always. 'Tis a fool's task to speak of man's way…to those who are broken by the past."
When he finished his warning, a sphere of light surrounds his body as the First Hassan returns to his card as Kenji stood where the Grand Assassin was. Kenji swayed for a moment before falling, however Anne is quick enough to catch him, but since she was exhausted herself, she landed on her rear as Kenji's head landed on her lap. Anne blushed a little at what just happened and saw the Frog Kids give her teasing looks.
After a few moments when Kenji awoke, he had been expecting his head to be resting on the cold hard ground and to be uncomfortable. He'd been expecting his muscles to be incredibly sore but still usable, so he could help Anne, Sprig, and Polly out of these caverns.
But instead, when his eyes opened, the first thing he noticed once his mind cleared was just how soft the ground felt, unnaturally soft. But pleasant, quite pleasant. He couldn't ever remember the ground being so pleasant to have his head on.
He was curious as to just why the ground felt so soft… But then he looked up and was subjected to the eyes of his friend, Anne. For the most part, her face was a little red but she had a small smile on her face that shows that she is glad that he's alright.
"Hey there, Kenji," Anne said to him. "Are you ok?"
Kenji stared at Anne with a blank expression, and then he did what any man would do if they got a lap pillow for the first time from his friend who is a beautiful woman.
'Is this…' Kenji thought joyfully as he experienced the legendary lap pillow for the first time. 'The legendary lap pillow! One of the greatest pleasures any man can experience. To receive even one is something other men can and will be jealous of. This is one of the greatest joys a man can experience!'
"Kenji… Are you crying?" Anne asked with concern as she saw tears streaking down his cheeks.
"I-I'm fine, Anne…" He told her. "J-Just got something in my eyes is all," he said, wiping his eyes clean of the joyful tears. He quickly reminded himself of just what he was going to be doing today, and any semblance of joy quickly faded from him.
That's right, they still need to get out of this place. Anne and Kenji stood up from the ground and headed towards the exit of this place with the frog kids who still had their teasing looks on their face.
"So Kenji…How did feel? Did you enjoy it?"
"Shut it, Sprig!"
"How about you Anne? Did YOU like it?"
"Knock it off Polly!"
When Hop Pop came back to the house, he was completely exhausted. One simple trip to the shop to grab some glue for the family shrub turned into a disaster when he tripped and spilled all of Loggle's glue all over himself. After what had to be hours of cleaning himself off, he was happy to be back home.
However, just after he stepped into the house, Fou was standing in front of the fireplace with a concerned look on his face. Hop Pop was about to walk to the creature and see what was wrong with the fireplace, the grandfather clock suddenly turned around in a complete turn, ejecting Kenji, Anne, and his grandkids out of the wall and onto the floor.
All four of them breathed heavily as Fou bolts towards Kenji as he takes his spot on the young mans shoulder before Anne noticed Hop Pop. "Hop Pop! We found those Plantar family layers you were talking about."
"Eh? Found them?" Hop Pop asked, pulling dried glue off his skin. "Kids, I wasn't being literal."
"Fou?"
"No, she's right!" Kenji said with a big grin on his face. "There's a bunch of secret chambers under the house and we explored them all."
"There was a moving fireplace," Anne added.
"Secret rooms!" Polly exclaimed.
"Crazy science lab," Sprig said.
"Family heirlooms!"
"New weapons!"
"Turnip with a face."
"Family's amazing!"
"Actually proud to be a Plantar."
"Games don't rot your brain!"
"I have this awesome sword!" Kenji said as he draws his sword.
"Fou!"
"Secret rooms? Full of Plantar family heirlooms?" Hop Pop exclaimed with wide eyes as a smile spread across his face. "Why, this is incredible! And most importantly, once again, I was right."
The kids rushed over to the family shrub and started getting back to work on it. However, this time, they wrote down everything that they learned in the chambers. "Our ancestors were the most amazing scientist, warrior, farmers ever!" Polly exclaimed.
"Everyone needs to know," Sprig said.
"Well, I want to see these rooms, too!" Hop Pop said.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on there, Hop Pop. That's not a good idea," Anne said.
"You can't go down there all by yourself," Kenji said. "They're full of traps and super hard but satisfying puzzles."
"Oh, and there was a pumpkin abomination! A real affront to nature," Sprig said. "I loved it! And then betrayed it." He said that last sentence in a dark tone.
Polly then commented: "No offense, but I'm not sure you could handle it."
Hop Pop laughed at them. "You have no idea what I can or can't handle. What do you say, Loggle? Up for another adventure?" He asked the axolotl, before turning around to reveal Loggle glued to his back.
"Absolutely...NOOOOOOOT!" Loggle screamed as he was carried away by Hop Pop running into the secret passage.
"Hop Pop, no!" Anne called out to him, but it was too late.
"Should we go help them?" Sprig asked, before ominous noises and the sounds of the two frogs screaming for help could be heard from down in the secret rooms.
"Yeah, probably," Polly said, pulling out her flail and swinging it around. Kenji pulled out his sword and led the charge back into the secret chambers.
"LEEROY JENKINS!" He shouted as the others followed him.
"FOU!"
As the whole group got Hop Pop and Loggle out the hidden chamber, they all agreed to seal up the chamber again so that no one else can enter that death trap again. After that the whole group went to sleep in their respective rooms. It was quiet for the first hour in Anne and Kenji's room until one of Kenji's Class cards shine as it begins to float. Fou woke up and see the Assassin Card as it enters Kenji's chest causing a small flash of light to surround his body as an Install begins to happen.
However, instead of his armored form, The First Hassan now takes the form of an old man covered with a black cloak with his hood up and is using a cane as he sits up from the bed. Fou gave off a soft growl, but stops as the First Hassan looked towards him and raises his hand towards the small creature. Fou sniffs his hands and notices that this old man is not a threat. So, Fou decided to sit down and see what is going to happen. The First Hassan taps his cane as three shadows begin to emerge from the First Hassans own shadow.
"Cursed Arm. I need to stay within the shadows of the family that hosts the Calamity Wielders and guard them from potential Servants."
The first shadow, the Cursed Arm, appearance is that of an extremely tall, slender, dark man with his right arm bandaged. His face is a skull resembling the mask with its skin and nose shaven off. "As you command." The Curse Arm said he disappears into the shadows to fulfill his king's command.
"Hundred Face. I need you to gather information as far as you can travel and return to me with anything that can be for our own benefit."
The second shadow, Hundred Faces, is in fact multiple bodies of Assassin can vary widely in age, gender, build, and style of dress, but in general, their hair appears purple, and their skin and clothing are nearly black. They wear the standard skull mask associated with the known Hassan of the other Grail Wars. The masks change as he changes personalities. The main one, a female with a long ponytail nodded as she and her multiple personalities sunk into the shadows and left the house to fulfill their kings command.
"Serenity. I need you to guard Anne Boonchuy. She may be able to handle one of her cards, but the dangers will get much worse in the future."
The third shadow, Serenity, is a young female assassin who wears a skull mask. Serenity's appearance is typical of those in her Assassin Order. Like all the other Hassans, she wears a black, form-fitting outfit and the traditional Hassan's skull mask. Her outfit is very similar to the one worn by Asako of the Hundred-Faced Hassan, her violet-colored hair being another trait they share. Unlike the Cursed Arm Hassan, Serenity never actually carved out her face as it was one of her greatest tools. Her "face" during infiltration missions is basically something created through the Shapeshift Skill, but her true "face" is her natural looks. Due to the nature of her assassination methods, she has natural looks. Her shapeshifting allows her to better refine her features to lure in her targets. "As you command, My King." Serenity said as she sunk into Anne Boonchuey's shadow to fulfill her kings command.
The First Hassan only sighed as his body begins to glow. "The rest is up to you...Kenji Richards." The Old Man of the Mountain said as a sphere of light surrounded him as he returns to his card as Kenji took his place. He stood for a moment before he falls back into his bed as he slept soundly though the night. Fou hops onto his chest and slept as well.