The voice of darkness

In Newtopia, Frobo had just finished delivering a bulk order of Hop Pop's California Avocados to various supermarkets all throughout the city. It was an initiative devised by Hop Pop inspired by the force known as 'Amazon' from the human world. Not only would Frobo deliver freshly grown fruit, but he would also teach farmers across Amphibia how to grow their own. Even though the temptation to be the sole avocado provider was strong, and being such would set Hop Pop up for life, he wasn't greedy. He had everything he ever wanted, a home, a family, and someone to share it all with. After taking receipt of a fair number of coins, Frobo left to return to the Plantar house. He opened up the front door to find the place empty.

"Task completed," Frobo announced, but still no-one came. If he were an organic being, he'd feel loneliness. Some part of him did. He scanned the entire house with his optical sensors, but still could not detect signs of sentient life anywhere. He exited the house, took to the skies, and used his enhanced long-range sensors to try and detect the Plantars. When that failed, he remotely tapped into one of Amphibia's last remaining orbital satellites from its ancient technological time. This yielded results.

"Plantars detected. Location: Forgotten Continent. Not good. Must pursue," Frobo commented and set off as fast as his propulsion jets could take him to the Forgotten Continent.

Meanwhile, Anne, Sprig, Polly, Hop Pop, Ivy, Sylvia, and Maddie all disembarked from the ship that brought them to the Forgotten Continent. The ship captain remained behind but said he couldn't wait longer than 12 hours. After that, he would set off, with or without them. Anne was just thankful to have her feet on dry land. After taking lots of deep, heavy breaths in an effort to alleviate the nausea that came from seasickness, she journeyed onward with the rest of the group. As they looked around, they could see signs of rudimentary settlements, though these had long since been abandoned. Anne noticed that some areas looked like Hop Pop's farm.

"Looks like whoever lived here grew fruit and vegetables," Anne observed. From the cultivated lands, various flora grew in all sorts of shapes and sizes, though Hop Pop had a few critiques to share.

"Badly, I might add. Judging from what I see here, the previous inhabitants probably couldn't tell what was edible and what wasn't. I mean, honestly, who grows flowers on the same land as your fruits?" Hop Pop reviewed his findings. Indeed, flowers of numerous colours were growing alongside fruit trees.

"You going to go into another farming lecture, HP? Because we are here on a mission," Polly reminded.

"I'm just saying, I could've taught whoever was here a thing or two about proper agriculture," Hop Pop rebutted.

"The Apes that were exiled here were not an agricultural society. If this elder attempted to teach them anything, it is likely they would've eaten him first," the Dark Master chimed in, but only Anne could hear his voice.

"Can we please get back to why we're here?" Maddie insisted.

"Oh yeah, right, where is this 'thing' your Dark Master wants so badly, Anne?" Sprig asked.

"Yeah, ask me like I know. So far, he hasn't been very helpful," Anne replied.

"I would've thought your time here would teach you a thing or two. The ancient Amphibians hid their technological prowess underground, or am I misreading your misadventure in the robot factory?" the Dark Master guided.

"An underground entrance? That's what we're looking for?" Anne pieced the puzzle together.

"It would be a start," the Dark Master hinted.

"Like that one?" Ivy pointed out a large door encased in a hill, like the entrance to the underground archive Anne and the Plantars visited one time, only much bigger.

"Jackpot," Anne and the Dark Master remarked together. They came to the door and found it locked, with a keypad on the left-hand side. A sensor on the top of the door scanned all present, then a computer voice spoke.

"Password required," the computer requested.

"Errrrrr…. open sesame," Sprig guessed, to no avail.

"Did you honestly think that would work?" Ivy chastised. Polly was getting impatient, as she so often did.

"Open, you piece of junk!" Polly demanded. Still, the door did not open. Hop Pop grabbed a nearby stick and tried to pry the door open, but the stick snapped in two while the door stayed firmly closed.

"Well, I'm out of ideas," Hop Pop stated. Maddie tried using her strongest corrosion potions. Ivy tried punching in random keys on the keypad, to which the computer repeatedly said 'access denied' and Sylvia frantically tried searching the immediate vicinity for clues, hoping beyond hope the password was written down somewhere.

"It is a wonder you survived as long as you had in this world when these people were your immediate company. Listen closely, I will only say it once," the Dark Master commented. Anne then approached the keypad and typed in a code.

"Access granted. Welcome, King Salamandron, it has been 1,825,000 days since your last login," the computer announced. The door then opened to reveal a staircase heading down.

"Anne, how did you know the code?" Hop Pop questioned.

"I didn't. He did," Anne answered, pointing at her head to reference the Dark Master.

"I'm getting a little worried about that, to be perfectly honest. With artifacts such as that amulet, there's a common correlation. The more talkative the thing inside gets, the stronger the bond between you, and thus, the harder that thing will be to remove," Maddie explained.

"I like that one. Well versed in the magical arts, even the dark spells most would restrict. She will make a fine example," the Dark Master praised.

"Let's just get down there, see what he wants and get it so we can all go home," Anne dismissed. She proceeded down the staircase, with everyone else following, all with mixed degrees of concern on their faces. The stairs sometimes spiralled, but they seemed to go on forever. Anne could only hope there was an elevator to take them back up, because she couldn't imagine climbing back the way they came.

Sasha, Marcy, Grime, Yunan, and their hidden stowaway Annie had arrived at the Forgotten Continent. They found a ship already docked there and surmised that this was the vessel Anne and whoever she was with had arrived on. They also spotted the ship's captain on deck, watching over the horizon. There were no signs of Anne anywhere. Needing answers, Grime approached the captain and proceeded into 'interrogation mode'.

"Are you in charge here?!" Grime half-asked, half-demanded.

"Who's asking?" the captain curtly replied, not taking too kindly to being accosted on his own ship.

"Grime, please! Your interview techniques leave a lot to be desired. Sorry about him. It's been a while since he was last on a mission. We come here seeking information on the human known as Anne Boonchuy," Yunan queried, having learned a thing or two about dealing with people from her wife Olivia.

"Is this supposed to be 'good cop, bad cop'? If so, you're terrible at it. Good cop speaks first, everyone knows that! I might've been able to tell you something, but after that rude introduction, it might've slipped my mind," the captain derided. Sasha was fast losing patience with this person.

"You wanna talk 'good cop, bad cop'? How about I play 'dangerously unstable cop' until either you spill your guts or I do!" Sasha menaced. Annie wanted to intervene, or even call her sister Sylvia to have her question the captain under her truth-touch spell, but any such action would break the perception-altering charm keeping her un-noticed. Thankfully, Marcy decided to step in and be the voice of reason.

"Forgive my friends. This has been difficult for them. We only wish to track Anne down and get the Eye of Gaul as far away from here as we possibly can. Anything you could tell us would be most helpful," Marcy requested, in a much more gentle tone.

"Well, since you put it like that, I can't impede on our common goals, since I too want to see that accursed object gone. She and her frog friends went that way," the captain pointed in the direction Anne and co were heading in.

"Thank you, captain," Marcy said gratefully, and she, Sasha, Grime, Yunan, and Annie left to travel in that general direction. They came across an open door embedded in a hill and figured that Anne must've ventured inside. Sasha didn't like this. It looked too similar to one of Andrias' factories she and her resistance fighters blew up in darker days. Her memories of leading that freedom fight were ones she tried to suppress. Annie was positively horrified. She knew from studying the ancient histories back at the Sanctum, that this was the entrance to the compound holding the Frozen Army. If it were freed, no world would be safe.

"Well, who goes in first?" Grime probed. Without hesitation, Marcy ventured inside, followed by Sasha, with Annie and Yunan bringing up the rear.

"You coming, Grimes?" Sasha called out.

"And here I was hoping to play 'frog, toad, newt' for the honour of being the vanguard," Grime pouted.

"With your one arm? You would have an unfair advantage," Sasha lightly teased as a means of calming his fears about going inside.

"Well, it's just… anything could be down there, and…" Grime meekly responded before finding himself on his own and hurrying down the endless flight of stairs to catch up to the others.

Anne, Sprig, Ivy, Polly, Hop Pop, Maddie, and Sylvia finally made it to the main chamber of the underground structure. As they walked, lights came on as if they were motion-powered. What they revealed was a vast array of what looked like giant capsules, with rows stretching miles wide, and berthed in a pit that Anne could not see the bottom of. Safe to say, she did not want to look over this edge.

"What is this place?" Sprig wondered.

"Feels like a mausoleum or a crypt," Maddie supposed.

"Certainly not one of Andrias' factories," Ivy compared.

"Whatever it is, it's giving me the creeps. Let's just get what we were brought here for and go," Sylvia urged.

"That's a point, what are we here for?" Polly inquired.

"For that," the Dark Master responded. He pointed out a small pedestal to Anne. On top was a green sphere with yellow bands around it. The sphere was rotating as if it were powering something. Anne and the others did not notice it when they came in, but now that Anne had approached it, it felt like it had always been there.

"How come we could only see that now? How did we miss it?" Anne questioned.

"A simple perception-altering trick. Useful if you want anything or anyone to go un-noticed," the Dark Master explained.

"Pretty. What's it doing?" Hop Pop asked. He touched the pedestal, and a computer voice rang out across the underground complex.

"Realm lock online," the computer declared.

"OK, I know these are cryo-stasis chambers, but what's a realm lock?" came a voice Anne instantly recognised. She turned to see Marcy, Sasha, Grime, and Yunan had all followed her here. Grime and Yunan she could somewhat understand, but how did Sasha and Marcy get here, to Amphibia? Last Anne checked, they were still on Earth. However, any happy reunions would have to wait, as the Dark Master was getting impatient.

"We've come so far now, do not get distracted. Disengage the realm lock and I'll let you go," the Dark Master bargained.

"I don't even know how," Anne replied.

"The orb provides its power. Dislodge it and the realm lock will fall. Be sure to touch the orb only by its bands," the Dark Master instructed. However, Sasha had other ideas.

"Anne, we've been following you. Please, come with us. We can get you to this place your Guardian friend calls 'the Sanctum' and bring you to these things called 'Sentinels' that can heal you," Sasha pressed. This piqued Annie's interest. How much did Sasha know about her, the sisters, and their home?

"Sentinels? He mentioned them once or twice, said a girl that visited me called Annie was one. I still don't know what they are," Anne recalled. It was at this moment that Annie decided to do away with subterfuge, since the secret was already out.

"He's been speaking to you, hasn't he? I should've known he'd find a way to make his voice heard," Annie spoke out. This made everyone jump up with a start.

"Where did you come from?!" Grime questioned, only just now noticing Annie's presence, albeit still in her Amphibian disguise.

"What the- have you been following us this whole time?" Marcy probed.

"Must be perception alteration. He told me about that, too," Anne surmised.

"That's not all she's hiding. For starters, she's not really Amphibian," the Dark Master hinted.

"I can hear you as well, dark one! But yes, it is true. I am not Amphibian. This is just a disguise," Annie revealed. She then engulfed herself in a bright light, and in the place of a blue newt, suddenly appeared a humanoid girl, dressed in blue and with wings coming out of her back.

"OK, that I wasn't expecting," Yunan commented.

"Do all humans have wings?" Maddie inquired.

"No, I only look like a human. As the dark one has pointed out, I am a Sentinel, Chief of the Dragon Guard, liaison to the Court of Ancients, and I was sent here to retrieve Anne," Annie disclosed.

"Then don't let us stop you. Just let us come with, OK?" Sasha requested.

"I do apologise for the deception. My superiors and I thought it best that Amphibia's exposure to other-worldly beings be kept to a minimum, especially given recent events," Annie said remorsefully.

"We understand, Annie, was it? Can you please save my human grand-daughter?" Hop Pop pleaded.

"Of course we can, but I need you to step away from the realm lock. It's in place for a reason," Annie responded.

"But what does a realm lock do?" Marcy queried.

"It generates a field that inhibits inter-dimensional travel. That's why the Order couldn't get here themselves, why I couldn't get here without stowing away on your vessel, and why the Dark One needed Anne to travel here. Now please, come with me," Annie explained. Now the Dark Master was infuriated.

"This I will not allow!" the Dark Master bellowed. The amulet on Anne's chest glowed bright purple again, and Anne felt excruciating pain course throughout her body. It was as if her blood was on fire and tiny drills were boring into every bone of her body. She crumpled into a heap on the floor, screaming loudly wishing for the pain to end. Sasha and Marcy huddled around her.

"Help her!" Sasha begged of Annie. She rushed over with her healing pouch, but the pain had subsided.

"Disengage the realm lock, now," the Dark Master coldly instructed.

"So you…. can….. conquer…. Amphibia again? You'll… have to… kill me," Anne weakly resolved.

"It seems I'm getting nowhere with you, but I wonder if your friends feel the same. Even the strongest of heroes breaks when their allies suffer," the Dark Master threatened. The amulet powered up again, and the severe pain engulfed Anne's body once again. Anne screamed in agony, hoping for the pain to end then and there, for the Dark Master to end her rather than de-activate the realm lock. Annie tried to help, but static electricity kept her back.

"Surely one of you wants to end her suffering!" the Dark Master echoed, this time for all to hear.

"No…. don't," Anne rebutted, but the words were hard to get out of her mouth through all the pain she was enduring. Marcy, however, couldn't take anymore and wrenched the orb from its place on the pedestal.

"Realm lock offline," the computer informed. Anne felt the pain subside once more, but she was still alive, but barely. Marcy dropped to her knees, the orb still in her hands and tears in her eyes. This would be one more thing she would have to tell her therapist about when she got home.

"Marcy, what did you do?" Sasha asked, while cradling a barely conscious Anne in her arms.

"What I had to," Marcy answered.

"And the Order commends you for it," came a voice only Anne recognised. Everyone turned to see a black-cloaked figure standing near the biggest capsule in the room.

"The what now?" Sasha rebuffed.

"Forgive me, some introductions are in order," the figure then dropped his hood to reveal a red-headed man with a peculiar-looking staff that had another of those orbs at the end of it, and pointed ears, which everyone found rather odd. "I am War Leader, Tactician-General of the Malefic Order," War Leader introduced.

"That's him, the one who gave me this," Anne notified, still weak from the pain. Sasha had now found an outlet for her rage.

"I don't care what you call yourself, what boy band you're front-lining for, or from what sci-fi convention you got those stupid ears from! Get out of here before I start cutting off fingers!" Sasha threatened.

"You're a feisty one. If it's any consolation, I do not condone the use of torture. It is a rather inefficient means of information extraction or coercion. Now, just let me do what I was assigned to do and I'll be on my way, once I retrieve the Eye, of course," War Leader reasoned.

"Hate to break it to you, pal, but we were sent here to make sure the Frozen Army stays on ice. Back away from the consoles, now!" Marcy ordered, pointing her crossbow at War Leader. Sasha gave Anne to Annie while she got up and drew her swords. Grime and Yunan readied their weapons as well. War Leader merely chuckled.

"As much as I would enjoy a bit of sparring practice, I'm on a schedule, and you may find this hard to believe, but my Master does not wish to see Amphibia subjugated again, and nor do I. It has earned its freedom. All we ask is that we be able to return these prisoners of war back home. Surely you can sympathise, Sasha, Marcy. After all, you were stuck here for months," War Leader responded.

"You're right, we do find that hard to believe," Sasha sassed. War Leader held up his hands.

"Fair enough. Why don't you hear it from my Master instead? He's eager to speak with you," War Leader indicated. He pointed towards Anne, who slowly started getting up, but she wasn't quite herself.

"Anne?" Sprig said curiously.

"That's not Anne," Maddie observed. Anne, or rather, Anne's body, started walking towards War Leader, then turned to face everyone else. Her eyes were glowing purple. Marcy recognised this from her own experience with the Core. Anne had been taken over.

"Hello, boys and girls. Welcome to a mirror into the ancient past," the Dark Master greeted using Anne's voice.

"You said you'd let Anne go if we de-activated the realm lock!" Sprig demanded.

"Oh, I fully intend to, but I wanted to get a good look at the opposition first, as well as speak to a faithful servant," the Dark Master assured. He then used Anne's body to address War Leader. "Free the King and his subjects. I'll keep these pests back," the Dark Master commanded.

"As you decree, my Lord," War Leader acknowledged. War Leader then inputted commands into the console. While Sasha, Marcy, and Annie tried to stop him, the Dark Master interposed Anne's body between them.

"Uh uh uh, you want to stop him, you have to go through Anne, and no-one wants to harm their bestie, now do they?!" the Dark Master goaded. They groaned, but stepped back, powerless to stop War Leader.

"Cryogenic stasis pod offline," the computer announced.

"Here he comes," the Dark Master said gleefully. The giant stasis pod suddenly popped open. From the clouds of steam, the group could make out a massive silhouette. As the steam dissipated, the silhouette took the form of a massive bipedal ape, with one eye missing and donning some rather imposing battle armour and face paint. The giant ape took one step before dropping to one knee. The Dark Master approached the ape.

"Easy, my friend. You have been sealed away for some time now," the Dark Master gently eased the ape back up.

"M-m-master, is that you?" the ape asked.

"Indeed. It has been a thousand years. Take your time," the Dark Master confirmed. After taking his first breaths in ages, the ape slowly rose to his feet. The Dark Master then turned back to the group. "May I introduce the King of Apes, Gaul," the Dark Master presented.

"That's Gaul?" Marcy exclaimed.

"I thought he was just a children's story," Yunan remarked.

"Children's stories don't make entrances like that," Hop Pop dismissed. Gaul then spotted Annie.

"Sentinel!" Gaul alerted. He drew his giant swords from the holsters on his back. Annie magically summoned her golden sword, but the Dark Master held Gaul back.

"You are still feeling the effects of hibernation sickness. There will come a time to wage war once again, but it is not now," the Dark Master cautioned. Gaul stepped back a pace, and Annie breathed a sigh of relief, but still had her sword in ready position.

"So, you gonna release Anne yet?" Maddie dared to ask.

"In time. It has been interesting looking through her memories. What a…. diverse group of characters she managed to rally around her…" the Dark Master surveyed the scene. The eyes turned to Sasha. "… the warrior haunted by the sound of her arguing parents…..". He then looked at Marcy. "…. the prodigy pining for one she knows she can never have,". The gaze then shifted to Sprig and Polly. "…. the orphan children who never knew the faces of their parents,". He then looked at Hop Pop. "… living with the elder who left them to die,". He then turned to Maddie. "….. the sorceress who flirts with the dark,". The look then shifted to Ivy. "….. the adventurer struggling to break free from Mother,". He then turned to Sylvia. "…. the widower rushing to reclaim what she lost,". Towards Grime. "….. the bully turned freedom fighter who wears the scars of battle,". Towards Yunan. "… the general nostalgic for past glories,". Finally, he gazed at Annie. "… and the Sentinel ignorant of the origins of her race," the Dark Master concluded.

"What do you know of my kind?!" Annie interrogated.

"More than you, it seems. What lies or omissions has the Court polluted your mind with these days? Shall I give you a history lesson?" the Dark Master offered. Marcy's mind then shifted to a rather odd statue. It was one of a dragon, and at its base were trinkets and candles. It almost looked like a shrine, but something Marcy remembered didn't make sense.

"Hold on, if the Apes were at war with the Dragon Kingdom, why do they worship one?" Marcy wondered. Annie thought that this was a very good point. The Dark Master chuckled when Marcy asked this.

"Yes, why indeed. Go on, 'Mar-Mar', use that brain of yours. Anne always did admire it," the Dark Master taunted. Marcy thought for a second, and realised what was happening.

"That would mean the Dark Master is…" Marcy hypothesised.

"… a dragon? Yes. The shrine isn't a perfect example of my veneration, but it does the job. I was one of the most powerful dragons of my age! I once presided over the First Dragon Empire, spanning multiple realms, asserting dragonkind's divine right to rule!" the Dark Master bragged. Annie was stunned at the revelation but managed to find her voice.

"N-no. The Court told us you were a dark magic wielder," Annie tried to deny the Dark Master's words.

"Indeed I was, but note that the Court omitted my species, out of shame, no doubt. After all, they couldn't have your kind knowing their worst enemy is one of them, seeing as how Sentinels are created to serve dragonkind, were they not?" the Dark Master responded.

"Wait, you guys are created and not born?" Sasha noted.

"Our kind are created from a spell using light magic. We're given powers and abilities by the Court and other Sentinels when we first emerge. Over time, we're trained and taught how to craft a magical weapon of our choice," Annie exposited.

"Another one of my spells perverted. The Marauders of old were not created to serve, but to conquer!" the Dark Master recoiled in disgust.

"Marauders?" Annie questioned.

"How little you know. When I set about expanding my empire, I created magical beings not unlike yourselves and called them my Marauders. These generals would lead my armies and fight the battles where I couldn't be and would act as agents of my will. I even deployed them here, to Amphibia, and they were unstoppable," the Dark Master revelled in his past glory. Annie was once again lost for words, but Marcy was still thinking.

"I think I see a pattern here," Marcy guessed.

"No wonder Anne calls you the smart one. The Dragon Elders rose up against me. They formed the first Court of Ancients and used my own spell to create their own super-soldiers to combat my Marauders, only they called them Sentinels. If that wasn't bad enough, they also took the spell I used to split my mind and ripped my soul and power from my body, put them into objects, scattered them across the multiverse, and chained my physical form in the Realms Between for all eternity. How pathetic. They couldn't win in a straight-up fight, so they resorted to cheating," the Dark Master concluded his story.

"S-so, that means….." Annie began.

"….. that you and the rest of your kind were created using a spell of my own design," the Dark Master revealed. Annie dropped her golden sword out of shock. All sorts of thoughts were racing through her head. Had the Court been lying to her this whole time? Had they really used the Dark Master's own spells against him? Was he really a dragon? Throughout the Dark Master's speech, War Leader had been trying to unlock the stasis pods containing Gaul's army, but was having some trouble.

"What is going on with these controls?! Why can't I open these pods?!" War Leader vented. He then turned to see Frobo on the other end of the chamber interfacing with another set of controls.

"Override engaged," Frobo notified.

"Stop that thing!" the Dark Master ordered. Gaul and War Leader started to advance on Frobo, but the group stepped in to defend their robot friend.

"Enough! Give us Anne back NOW!" Sprig demanded.

"OK, how about this; I'll give back your friend if that automaton releases the Ape Army. A simple trade, I dare say. Or would you prefer I just dispose of her now?" the Dark Master bargained.

"No, don't! Frobo, release the locks," Sasha commanded. Frobo reluctantly disengaged his override, allowing War Leader to free Gaul's army. One by one, the rows of capsules burst open, releasing the captive apes.

"OK, you have what you want, now please, give Anne back to me. She's… my everything," Marcy pleaded.

"Yes, this vessel has served its purpose, although it is getting weaker. War Leader, take the amulet back to your Supreme Warlock. He will know what to do with it," the Dark Master obliged.

"My lord, one more thing. The Core's last host is a light-keeper. She is essential to your re-emergence. What are your plans for the others?" War Leader inquired. Marcy had more questions. What was a light-keeper? How did War Leader know she was one? Why was a light-keeper essential to the Dark Master's return?

"Is she now? Very well, spare the light-keeper Marcy. As for the others, the Ape Army hasn't eaten in a thousand years. They must be more than a little peckish. Bring the light-keeper to the Ape homeworld in one piece. You may kill the others," the Dark Master instructed.

"Yes, master," Gaul acknowledged. The amulet then slowly detached itself from Anne's chest and landed in War Leader's hand. Anne came back to her old self, although her energy had been severely drained.

"Marcy… I… love you…..too," was all Anne could say before collapsing onto the floor. Marcy retrieved her, and Sasha used this opportunity to try and go for War Leader, but Gaul grabbed her before she could make contact.

"Get your stinking paws off me, you damn dirty ape!" Sasha barked. Gaul then made for her throat.

"The Army can feast on your friends. I will look forward to devouring you myself!" Gaul menaced. Annie threw her sword at Gaul's arm like a boomerang. It clipped the arm holding Sasha, causing Gaul to let go. Sasha re-joined the others, who were surrounded by hungry apes.

"This is where we make our last stand, people," Grime braced himself for battle. Yunan readied her wrist blades, Maddie got out her best potions, Marcy loaded her crossbow, Sasha flourished her twin swords, Annie did the same with her golden blade, and Frobo deployed his various weaponry. But against this number of apes, the odds were not in their favour, especially with Gaul advancing on Marcy.

"Leave that one be! As for the others, meat's back on the menu, boys!" Gaul directed. As the apes surrounding them began licking their chops and pointing their swords, maces, axes and other weapons at them, Annie spotted the orb that powered the realm lock still on the floor.

"Not today, Your Majesty," Annie quipped. She used her power to summon the orb to her and used it to teleport everyone bar Gaul and his army out of the complex.

At Newtopia, Olivia was waiting patiently for everyone to return safely. She had just addressed the Parliament about the situation, that Anne had returned, and with it, a portent of potential doom. The members had questions, and Olivia wished she had answers for them. She could sympathise with their position, given recent events, but she could not give answers when she had none herself. She stared out into the night sky from a high window.

"Olms, give me strength, and grant safe passage to those on this mission," Olivia wished. Suddenly, a bright light flashed in the middle of the room she was in, and when it faded, she saw Grime, Yunan, Sasha, Marcy, the Plantars, Frobo, and a girl, two frogs and a newt she had never seen before, but most distressing of all, she saw Anne, barely alive.

"What in frog's name happened over there?!" Olivia questioned.

"No time. Get Anne to a healer, quick!" Marcy said desperately.

"It's OK, I can fix this," Annie assured. They all got Anne to Marcy's room, lay her on the bed, and examined her closely.

"Life signs critical," Frobo reported.

"Clear the room, now. I need to work," Annie said urgently.

"Who in the blue blazes are you?" Olivia queried. Sasha guided her and everyone else out of the room.

"I'll explain later. Right now, we just need to let her do her job," Sasha answered. Once the door was closed, Sasha filled Olivia in about what happened on the Forgotten Continent, about Annie and the Sentinels, about the Eye being taken away, about Anne's condition, and most importantly, about the Frozen Army being freed. This left Olivia with more questions than answers, but she settled on the most important one.

"Is the Ape Army coming here?" Olivia asked grimly.

"Considering they're after me, I think that's a given," Marcy guessed.

"You? What could a bunch of savage barbarians want with you?" Olivia pressed.

"To be specific, the one who slipped Anne the amulet wants Marcy. The Apes just want to loot, pillage, and apparently eat people," Sasha clarified.

"That's…. comforting," Olivia replied.

"I recommend we put Newtopia on alert, Prime Minister. If the Ape Army comes here, it'll be for a fight," Yunan suggested.

"I'll alert the Parliament, and see to the evacuation of the citizens," Olivia resolved.

"I'll send a messenger to the outlying toad garrisons. With any luck, they should get here in time to help reinforce the outer defences," Grime added.

"I'll assemble the Parliamentary Guard to see to the interior defence," Yunan stated.

"Very good. The rest of you should stay here and watch over Anne," Olivia instructed. Sasha, Marcy, Frobo, the Plantars, Maddie, Ivy, and Sylvia nodded in agreement. Olivia left to oversee preparations. Annie then ventured outside after having worked Anne over.

"How is she?" Marcy probed.

"It would seem the Dark Master was telling the truth about him being a dragon, since he did this, and Sentinel powers are useless against dragon magic. I would take her to the Sanctum for the Court to heal, but Anne's body would not survive the trip," Annie relayed. This was not the answer anyone wanted to hear, but Annie felt that the truth needed to be said.

"Isn't there anything you can do?" Marcy pleaded. Annie thought of something. It was a long shot, but it was a possible solution.

"Maddie, do you have anything to counter-act curses in your repertoire?" Annie inquired.

"I've got pain relievers, but nothing to lift a curse of that magnitude, I'm afraid. If anything, it'll give Anne some restful sleep," Maddie offered.

"Give her something for post-possession trauma as well. It's a start, at least, and it should keep her stable until we can make the trip," Annie accepted Maddie's assistance. Maddie left to dispense her medicines.

"Or, if you like, we can be of help," came an unwelcome voice. Sasha, Marcy, Annie, and Frobo got their weapons out once more and turned to face War Leader, accompanied by another cloaked figure. Surprisingly, War Leader did not draw his weapon, and neither did his colleague. Quite the opposite, his hands were up, in an attempt to defuse the tensions.

"You got a lot of nerve showing your face here, pal!" Sasha raged.

"You've got ten seconds before I put one between your eyes!" Marcy seethed.

"Easy now, I came here to help, after all. I meant what I said in the prison chamber. I do not condone torture. It is one thing my master and I do not agree on. I had my colleague here, a gifted witch called Plague Bringer, whip this up to help lift your friend's curse," War Leader outlined. He then produced a vial of blue liquid. The cloaked figure beside him dropped her hood to reveal a green-haired woman much like War Leader, with the same pointed ears.

"And we're supposed to trust the potions of someone called 'Plague Bringer'?" Sasha rebutted.

"I may utilize all manner of bio-agents, but I can also heal as well as sicken, as your Sentinel friend should know. I am the Order's medic, after all. What is it you say, Marcy? Every raid team needs a healer?" Plague Bringer replied.

"And judging by War Leader's physique, I'm guessing he's the tank?" Marcy hypothesised.

"I direct the Order's battles. I plan our strategies. I identify our enemies and defeat them. No more than that," War Leader corrected.

"As we were saying, we'll give you this potion to heal Anne, and give the order for Gaul and his horde to leave this city alone. All we want in exchange is you, poppet," Plague Bringer negotiated while pointing at Marcy.

"Or we kill you both and take that vial from you," Sasha countered. Marcy was thinking in her head. She was running all possible scenarios of the siege of Newtopia by Gaul's apes. The outcomes were not favourable. Even with the help of some divine, unforeseen miracle, the city would at least be severely decimated, if not outright destroyed. Against her better judgment, Marcy lowered her crossbow.

"I want to see that it works, first," Marcy asserted. This took everyone by surprise.

"Marcy, what are you doing?!" Sasha responded.

"Fair enough. Plague Bringer, work your magic," War Leader directed.

"I like this one. She thinks she can play," Plague Bringer teased, but went to work on Anne. Annie and Maddie objected, but Marcy stood them down. Plague Bringer dispensed her potion into Anne's mouth, and slowly, but surely, the dark veins on Anne's body receded, and regained their original colour. Anne's breathing returned to normal, and she was sleeping soundly.

"Satisfied?" War Leader said.

"And your word that Gaul and his army will leave this city and its inhabitants alone on your order?" Marcy posed.

"On my honour," War Leader promised.

"What honour?" Sasha scoffed. Marcy then discarded her crossbow.

"Then, I agree to your terms," Marcy conceded.

"Marcy, don't," Annie pleaded.

"Now, now, she can speak for herself, Sentinel, and she has decided to place the safety of this city's populace ahead of her own. Again, commendable. We have an accord, light-keeper," War Leader agreed. He waved his staff and irons appeared on Marcy's wrists. Plague Bringer escorted her to the open door where a portal to the Ape homeworld was being maintained by one of their keys. Just then Olivia and Yunan arrived on the scene, having finished their tasks, and were horrified at what they were witnessing.

"Master Marcy! What is this?!" Olivia queried.

"It's fine, Minister Olivia. I know what I'm doing. Look after the place for me, will ya?" Marcy requested.

"Of course. I'll keep your room just as you left it," Olivia responded.

"If there's nothing else," War Leader interrupted.

"I fully expect Marcy to be given the rights afforded to prisoners of war as outlined by the Treaty of Warfang!" Annie demanded.

"I know the accords, Sentinel. I'll see to it personally that she is treated well, and no harm comes to her," War Leader assured. Both Marcy and War Leader disappeared through the magical doorway.

"Ta ta," Plague Bringer bad everyone farewell before venturing through herself. As they closed the door, Sasha rushed towards them, but the door closed before she could reach it, and when she opened it again, she found an empty closet where the portal once was and slammed the door in frustration and anger. With one of her friends severely weakened and the other taken to who-knows-where, Sasha felt like crying in despair. To add to her pain, Maddie emerged from the room where Anne was sleeping off the effects of the potion.

"She's asking for Marcy," Maddie informed. Now Sasha was struggling to come up with a way to tell Anne that Marcy was gone, and that she had no way to get her back.

Author's note: Now that the distractions are out of the way and I had some time off work, I could properly type up this chapter. It has been one I have been wanting to write for a while, where I unload more on the Dark Master and the origin of the Sentinel race. It has been in the planning stages since before I started this story. How will the Calamity Trio resolve this conflict? I have that planned out as well. The usual disclaimers, I own nothing. All properties belong to their respective owners. Enjoy.