A/N: Optional Soundtrack - You Say Run
You'll know when to play it.
Some Days Earlier…
Andrias swung with his beam sword at Sasha, forcing to fall backwards and roll out of the way. Grime dodge rolled under the swing, ending up on Andrias' right as he raised his hammer and struck him in the side, and then bringing it back down on his leg, forcing Andria's to bend the knee. The large newt king groaned painfully and retaliated by backhanding Grime, swatting him, and sending Grime flying backwards. Sasha ignited her swords again slashing a flaming "X" into the air and launching it straight for Andrias. The mad king used his beam sword and slashed down the middle, he struggled for a moment, but was able to cut through the flaming "X", but Sasha used that as an opening to come down with both blades to cut his head off. But Andrias jumped back at the last second, making her miss. The king spun around and tail whipped Sasha, throwing in the same direction as he did Grime.
"THE BOX, NO! I WON'T LOSE IT AGAIN!" Andrias bellowed.
Sasha found herself impacting hard against the wall, nearly knocking the wind out of her, but she managed to hang on to consciousness. Gotta get up! Got to…to stop him! Anne and Marcy! Move your ass for them! If anything, they need to–! Sasha turned her head to see if Marcy and Anne were gone yet, but she wished she hadn't.
Right at that moment she witnessed the horrible sight of her (ex?)girlfriend getting stabbed through the chest by Andrias' blade. Time seemed like it had grounded to a halt for her, her mind at war with itself as it tried to dismiss what she was seeing as dream or an illusion, but Sasha knew better.
Sasha shook her head as tears flowed from her eyes and down her face. With a desperate cry, Sasha shouted, "MARCY!"
The Taiwanese girl fell onto the ground, with the music box falling from her grasp and hitting the floor. As soon as it did, a blinding flash of light erupted from within the throne room, obscuring everything from sight as it poured out through the windows. When the light faded, the portal was gone, and the only thing left was the music box. There was a black scorch mark on the floor around it, and black smoke wafted out of the inside.
When Andrias managed to regain his sight, he looked around to see if maybe Anne and the Plantars were still there, but they weren't. However, the most important thing was that the Calamity Box was still here. The newt king looked between the box and Marcy's body, his right hand trembled a little, making his sword shake as well. For some reason he felt a stinging pain in his chest the longer he looked at her. Andrias bit his bottom lip as he reached out for the box, but he slowly found his hand drifting towards Marcy's body. But when he touched her, the wound he dealt her started to glow.
Andrias gently turned Marcy onto her back and that's when he saw the MetamorphRing Driver's filament glowing faintly. "I see…you're trying to keep her alive are you." Despite how he sounded, Andrias felt relieved to see this. The king snapped his fingers and summoned two of his Frobots to her side, he then used his finger to close the music box and take it into his hand. "She managed to open the portal. Well, no matter. So, long as we still have the box, everything will be alright. So, what about you two?"
Yunan and Olivia were stealthily trying to leave the throne room, with Yunan holding tight to Olivia's hand as she led her, but both of them stopped when they heard Andrias address them, and then that's when he turned to look directly at them.
"Are you two with me?" Andrias asked, although it had the undertones of an "or else" statement.
With little options opened to them, they did the only thing could do for now. Yunan stood at attention and saluted him, while Olivia curtsied.
"We're with you," said Olivia.
"Definitely with you!" Yunan stated, doing her best to not look nervous.
Andrias wasn't sure that he bought it, but fear was a powerful motivator. "Good, then I need you two to get Marcy to a rejuvenation tank, quickly."
"Sir…the tank…I don't think it'll work all that well for her. Marcy's biology is different from Amphibians," said Olivia.
"I'm aware, but her powers are keeping her alive for the time being, but they won't close the wound. The tank will stimulate cellular regeneration, close the wound, and heal the damage. It won't get rid of any lingering scars, but it will heal the damage. Now hurry! The glow from her Driver is fading fast," he ordered.
Sasha felt relieved to hear that Marcy was still alive, and every fiber of her being was screaming at her to rush Andrias now that his back was turned and was weakened. But she was in no better state, she barely had any energy left to transform right now, and if she did do anything, Andrias could just use Marcy as a hostage.
Grime must've sensed Sasha's intentions because he placed his hand on her shoulder and said, "There's nothing we can do for her, Sasha. You heard him, she's fading fast, and they apparently have the ability to heal her. Why he's willing to save her, I have no idea, but we shouldn't look a gift horsefly in the mouth here. For now, let's let them take her. I promise we'll find a way to come back and rescue her."
As much as she hated to admit it, Marcy's best chance of survival was to remain here in the castle. Any action now would just guarantee Marcy's death. Sasha sheathed her swords and said, "Alright…"
"Good, now let's move before someone–" As Grime turned to leave with Sasha, he found himself now staring at the barrel of a Frobot's blaster. The former captain of Toad Tower looked up and saw one of the dark robots now staring him down as it brandished two more laser cannons from its back.
Within seconds two more Frobots appeared and surrounded Grime and Sasha, forcing them back towards the window. Sasha and Grime looked about, trying to find a way out of this situation.
"So, what's the plan, Captain?" Sasha asked.
"I'm gonna have to toss you out the window," Grime whispered.
"Great!…Wait, the window?!"
Grime launched his tongue at Sasha, wrapped it around her body, and then – just as he said – tossed her right out the broken window. The former Toad Tower captain followed right after, jumping out and yelling triumphantly as he did so.
"HOLY CRUD! GRIME! ARE YOU EFFING INSANE?!" Sasha yelled.
"AH-HA! A FLAWLESS ESCAPE!" Grime yelled back.
"YEAH! GREAT! PERFECT PLAN! DID YOU HAVE A PLAN FOR AFTER YOU YEETED US OUT A WINDOW?!"
Grime went silent.
Sasha stared at him.
"IN HINDSIGHT, I REALLY SHOULD'VE THOUGHT THAT ONE THROUGH A BIT MORE!"
"YA THINK?!"
Thankfully, as if by providence, Joe Sparrow flew straight for them. The huge bird swiftly caught them in midair and screeched in victory for his save.
"Ha! Well, that's lucky! Excellent work, George Sparrow," said Grime.
Joe Sparrow just gave him a look that said, "Really?"
Sasha glanced over her shoulder, towards the floating castle that loomed ominously behind them. "Anne…I hope you made it back home. Marcy…I will come back for you. I promise…"
Meanwhile, King Andrias watched all these events unfold from the window. His eyes narrowed at this turn of events. "So many loose ends, so little time." One of the Frobots flew up next to Andrias, as if by unspoken command. "Follow them and eliminate them."
The Frobot beeped in acknowledgment and flew off after them.
While Sasha and Grime flew on Joe Sparrow, they were treated to a bird's eye view of the defeated toad army getting rounded up by the Frobots. Things were not looking good, they thought they could rendezvous with their forces that were pushed out of the city, but it seemed like the metal frog robots were already busy neutralizing them.
"No! Our army has been captured!" Grime growled. "Looks like we'll have to take shelter somewhere and come up with a new strategy."
"Okay, but where do we even go? You're tower? Andrias will be expecting that. We can't go to any of the towers or else he might blow them up with that Death Star knock off beam cannon," said Sasha. "And…I'm sorry about Aldo."
Grime sighed. "It's fine. He was an old toad. I'm sure he would've rather have met his end on the battlefield like a true warrior, not sniped by some super weapon from far away like a coward. But you have a point. So, instead of going to places he'll expect, we'll just have to go someplace Andrias won't be expecting. George Sparrow, take us to Wartwood!"
*Chirp!*
("I'll take you there, but if you call me George one more time, I'm tossing you off my back.")
It took a whole day of flying through the night and into the afternoon, but Joe Sparrow eventually got them to Wartwood. The townsfolk were all gathering in town square, watching as Joe landed with Grime and Sasha dismounting.
"What in the Frog is going on?!" Mrs. Croaker asked.
"Why are you two here?" Stumpy asked.
"Is it just me or is the palace floating in the sky?!" Loggle asked.
"Where are the Plantars?! Where's Anne?!" Felicia asked.
"Where's Sprig?!" Ivy asked.
So many questions, so many hard questions at that, and Sasha didn't know where to begin to tell them. "What do we tell them?" she whispered.
"Not the truth. That's for sure," he whispered back.
Grime cleared his throat and began addressing the Wartwood residents.
"People of Wartwood, we have terrible news! The king has turned out to be a ruthless tyrant, and is in league with The Night, the one responsible for creating the creatures known as the Fallen!" Grime announced.
The crowd gasped, completely shocked by this revelation.
"Well, I never voted for him," Mrs. Croaker commented.
"Anne, Marcy, and the Plantars had to go on a daring mission, one that might allow us a way to defeat the king. But in the meantime, Anne sent us ahead in order to protect you fine frogs. Right, Sasha?" Grime asked as he patted her on the back.
Sasha started to sweat bullets when she heard Grime's lie. "There's no way they're gonna trust us just because we name-dropped Anne!"
"Not with that attitude they won't," Grime retorted.
"Oh, what a relief," Mrs. Croaker remarked.
"Classic Anne. Always lookin' out for us," said Stumpy.
Mayor Toadstool broke from the crowd and walked up to Sasha, with Toadie right behind him. He then reached out and shook Sasha's hand as he said, "Well that's wonderful. Rest easy tonight, folks, because Anne's girlfriend is here to watch over us!"
Everyone cheered thankfully for Sasha's arrival. But the moment Toadstool said the word "girlfriend", Sasha's heart sank.
Now that they were able to convince the Wartwood residents of their purpose here, Sasha and Grime headed to the Plantar farm. The sun was already setting, and Joe Sparrow flew off somewhere to rest. Grime opened the door to the Plantar home and placed Barrel's Warhammer into the umbrella holder as he entered the house.
"Okay. We'll lay low here, and in a day or two we'll ditch this crummy town and find a way to raise an army against Andrias," said Grime. "Dibs on Hop Pop's bed!"
Sasha looked down, staring at the divide between the house and the outside. It felt wrong just being this close to the house. This was the place where Anne lived for five months, where she lived happily with her found family. The same house that Sasha was invited into. But now, it felt so wrong just being here.
"Uh, you gonna come in or stand there and be weird?" Grime asked.
"I…I think I'll sleep in the barn," said Sasha as she walked away.
Sasha headed down the dirt path towards the barn, but she stopped when she saw the stone fence. Memories flashed through her mind of the night that she and Anne had their first kiss. Sasha couldn't help her right hand rising and brushing her lips with her fingertips. She could still feel Anne's lips upon hers, and the passion she felt when they made out. But like a splash of cold water, that memory was replaced with her battle against Anne, and the words her ex-girlfriend shouted when she got poisoned by someone she loved.
The blonde cheerleader shook her head and proceeded to the barn. When Sasha opened the door, she was surprised seeing Micro-Angelo. "Oh, a tiny snail." Then she heard Bessie make a noise. "And a bigger snail. Right. Almost forgot about you two. Well, don't mind me." Sasha continued inside and opened Bessie's stall door as she headed further back. "I'm just gonna sleep in the corner with the rest of the trash. It's all someone like me deserves…"
The battle was long and arduous, but it was over. Anne had returned to Amphibia, and when she did, she was angry. Sasha was not sure how, but somehow Anne had tapped into some kind of godly form of her Rider powers, and laid out the robot armies, the Fallen armies, Andrias, and The Night within mere moments of exiting the portal.
Sasha stood up and watched as Anne descended from the sky, looking at the destruction of the dark army, and Sasha smiled up at her. "Anne, you did it! You saved everyone!"
Anne shifted her fierce gaze on Sasha and growled. "You're still alive?"
"A…Anne?"
"I thought you would've been killed a long time ago. I was hoping to not see your face."
Sasha looked down in shame. "I know…I'm sorry…I'm sorry I broke your heart Anne…I'm sorry I hurt you. But I swear on my life, I will do whatever it takes make up for what I've done!"
Anne raised an eyebrow as she said, "Huh, you swear on your life." The goddess warped to Sasha and thrust out her right hand, wrapping it around Sasha's throat as she lifted her into the air. "Does that mean you're willing to give your life?"
Sasha struggled against Anne's grip, but it was in vain. "A-Anne! P-Please! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
"NO! There's no more 'sorry'! I'm tired of being used! I'm tired of getting betrayed and manipulated! I'm sure once you've gotten everything you can out of me, you'd just toss me aside like a toy you lost interest in and move onto some other girl or boy!" Anne accused.
"NO! I would never do that!"
"And I thought you would change. I thought you would be better than this. But you know what? I was wrong! You're nothing but a monster deep down, Waybright. A broken little girl who has to get her way! Well, no more!"
Anne tightened her grip, and Sasha flailed more and more.
"I guess it's a good thing you did this before we took our relationship too far. I don't know if I could live with myself if we did something together and you backstabbed me," said Anne.
Sasha made croaking sounds as she tried to beg for forgiveness.
"Don't worry, I'll tell your parents that you died valiantly. Same for Marcy, once I find her, you'll both be going to the same place backstabbers like you belong!"
Anne raised her left hand and energy began to gather to it.
"Goodbye, Sash."
Sasha screamed as she awoke with a start. She panted and huffed, her eyes frantically looking around the room as if afraid she was about to see goddess Anne again. But then she realized it was a nightmare, and the only ones who were in the room were Bessie and Micro-Angelo, both of whom were staring at her with confusion and a bit of worry. Sasha groaned as she dragged her right hand down her face, getting rid of the sweat that had formed.
"Sorry, you two. Bad dream…"
Micro-Angelo scurried over to Sasha and made a chirping sound as he looked up at her.
"Look, go back to your mama, I'm not a good person to be around," said Sasha.
Micro-Angelo ignored her warning and hopped into Sasha's lap.
"Wha-What? Hey, please, just go back to her," Sasha ordered.
The small snail chirped and purred as he rubbed against her stomach.
Somehow that was enough for Sasha to finally break down as she hugged Micro-Angelo and bawled her eyes out in the barn.
"I'm such a fool! I such a stupid, idiotic fool! I messed up everything! I messed up the best thing in the world and for what?! Control?! I lost my best friends, the loves of my life! And now one of them is gone, hopefully she's back home, and the other…I…I don't even know if she's going to make it!" Sasha cried. "I'm such a loser…I don't deserve them…I never deserved them…I'm a monster…"
Bessie trilled sadly as she listened to Sasha's words. The large snail slithered over to the young blonde and scooted her to the middle of the stall. She then wrapped her body as closely as she could around Sasha, as if trying to hug her and offer comfort. Sasha leaned against Bessie's shell and continued to cry. It was several hours before sleep found Sasha again as she rested against Bessie, with Micro-Angelo still in her arms.
The roosters could be heard crowing as the sun rose on a brand-new day. The barn doors swung open and woke up Sasha, who was still half asleep as she dazedly glanced about the room.
"Who is it? Where am I? Of course, this is my natural hair color!"
"Rise and shine! I made worm waffles," said Grime as he entered the barn.
Sasha watched as he presented her with the aforementioned worm waffles, which were waffles with worms wiggling in them, and had a smiley face carved into them that was leaky syrup and giving the food an almost disturbing visage. "I'm not hungry," she said as she placed Micro-Angelo down on the ground next to Bessie.
"Look, I get that you feel guilty about tricking your girlfriends, and inadvertently helping the king get the music box. But you've got to get ahold of yourself." Grime ate the waffles and tossed the plate over his shoulder. "We need to be in fighting shape if we're going to take down Andrias and–!"
Suddenly, a honking sound interrupted Grime.
"What was that sound?!" Grime asked.
Sasha didn't answer as she drew her heron swords, Grime reached behind his back and grabbed the Warhammer, having it extend the shaft so that he could wield it with both hands. Grime and Sasha burst out of the barn, both wearing fierce expressions as they prepared to battle who or whatever it was that was waiting for them. In this case it was Mrs. Croaker with a pie.
"Ooh! I love an enthusiastic welcome," said Mrs. Croaker. "I just wanted to thank you again for watching over the town."
Sasha winced from the praise.
"Ooh! Boysenbug!" Grime cheered as he put away the Warhammer. "Gonna go inside and heat this bad boy up!"
Sasha watched as Grime walked off to do just that. She turned her attention back to Mrs. Croaker who waved her goodbye.
"I wasn't so sure about those two, Archie, but they turned out to be good eggs," she commented before getting onto her ladybug and driving away.
Sasha sighed; she had heard the of the term "kill 'em with kindness". And with the way she was feeling, she was starting to understand the meaning behind that term.
"Yoo-hoo!"
"Oh no…" Sasha moaned.
Wally came prancing onto the property, accordion in hand. "Any friend of Anne's is a friend of mine!"
"That's…touching, really. Look, I got to go," said Sasha.
"Yes, she's taught me many lessons." Wally continued. "Showing me the importance of honesty, being true to yourself, and the meaning of friendship."
Sasha kept wincing with each mention of Anne's traits, as if this frog was cutting into her with a rusty, jagged knife.
"I've been working on a song about it!" Wally stated. "Ooooooooooooohhhhhhh~"
"No!" Sasha quickly interrupted as she shoved a finger against Wally's mouth. "Can't right now. Very busy protecting the town for Anne and stuff!" she lied as she pushed Wally on his way. The blonde girl groaned loudly in frustration as she covered her face with her right hand. "I swear if one more country bumpkin– AAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"
Sasha shrieked when a plume of purple, sparkling smoke exploded in front of her. When the smoke cleared, it revealed Maddie, with lots of bread.
"Free bread, anyone?" Maddie asked.
"AAAH! Get away from me!" Sasha shouted as she ran back to the barn and slammed the doors behind her.
Sasha panted as she pressed her back against the doors. She couldn't take this; it was all a lie. Lies, lies, and more lies. Was that all she could do? Was that all she was about? "How could I think that any of us could stay together with me in charge…I'm toxic as hell…I've driven them away…I thought I was a good friend, but I wasn't…What made me think that I'd ever be a good girlfriend?" She got off the barn doors and went back to Bessie and Micro-Angelo and sat down against Bessie's shell.
A couple of minutes later, Grime entered the barn again, but this time he had a bat hanging off his left arm. "Great news! I got a message from Beatrix!" The bat opened its wings and revealed a message in its mouth. Grime took the message and began reading it aloud. "She's underground with the toads that avoided capture. They've got weapons, soldiers, and fortification. We've got to join her!"
Sasha furrowed her brow as she said, "Why? So, we can come up with another cruddy plan that fails and ends up hurting the people we love?!"
"Yesh. No need to be a downer." The bat was happily munching on a strawberry. Grime looked down at him and saw that he finished it. "You want another strawberry, little guy? Yes, you do."
Sasha stood up as she confessed, "Look, I don't know. Maybe we're doing this all wrong. What I did…I thought it was right, but in the end, all I did was end up hurting Anne and Marcy. What if next time, we end up losing more than we're ready to give?!"
Suddenly, the barn shook.
"What is it this time?!" Sasha exclaimed. "Look, just take the muffins or cake or whatever else you – Oh…"
As Sasha opened the barn doors, she noticed a Frobot in the front yard, releasing a beam from its eyes that was scanning the house. That's when the metal frog turned around and spotted Sasha and Grime.
"It must've tracked us here," said Sasha.
"GO FOR THE LEGS!" Grime ordered.
"Oh, I'll take more than its legs!"
Sasha drew her pink heron sword as her eyes glowed magenta. The blonde teen dashed for the robot, the machine whipped out its laser cannon and began firing at her. Sasha conjured her flames around the sword's blade and slashed the air as she created a heat barrier to block the beams. Sasha kept running until she was halfway to it, and that's when she slid like a baseball player through its legs and slashed with her sword as she passed under it. When she stood up behind it, she slashed up, and then down before holding the weapon with both hands. The Frobot's legs suddenly severed, followed by its arms in a delayed reaction, making it fall over. Grime brandished the Warhammer and jumped into the air, preparing to bring it down on the Frobot's head.
{Signaling reinforcements.}
The Frobot's head opened and raised a small antenna right before Grime landed his finishing blow, crumbling the head and half the upper body of the robot.
"Damn thing was calling for help. There's probably a whole army of them on their way now," said Grime. "Let's pack up! We're getting out of here!"
Sasha shook her head in disbelief. "What?! We can't leave these frogs to face them on their own! They'll get slaughtered! What about that old lady who gave us a pie?"
Grime stood upon the body of the robot frog and looked down at his ward. "Lieutenant, these bumpkins will only slow us down! And if I'm being honest, that piecrust was soggy. I know it's harsh, but Wartwood is done for. We need to rejoin our forces and make plans for the coming war."
Sasha tightened her grip on her sword as she watched Grime begin to walk off. "No. No more. Enough with the plans and the schemes. I'm through with it all, Grime."
Grime stopped walking and turned around in shock about what he just heard her say. "What? But you love schemes! Lies, manipulation, backstabbing, it's, like, your thing! Since when have you cared?!"
"Since I saw the consequences…" she answered.
Grime sighed heavily. He knew this was related to what happened between her, Anne, and Marcy. While he was no expert in the ways of the heart, he knew that Sasha, a young girl who was very emotionally attached to them, and saw one of those friends get gravely injured, was going through a lot of things right now. Given how powerful and strong and cunning she was, Grime sometimes forgot that Sasha was just a teenage girl. But, right now, he needed his Lieutenant. War was on the horizon, a war that would engulf all of Amphibia and other worlds. And he needed Sasha to get her act together.
"Listen, Lieutenant, whatever you're dealing with, you need to confront it." Grime pointed his finger in Sasha's face, gaining her attention. "Go into that house and face what burdens you! Then when you got your head back on straight, come join me." Grime turned away from Sasha and began walking down the road, but stopped for a moment to say, "Please," before walking away.
Sasha sheathed her sword and turned her body in the direction of the Plantar house. Taking a deep breath, she walked towards it. Every step felt like she was walking through molasses, as if her body was trying to make her not go in there. Her mind flashed back to when Anne was blaring Loggins through her phone, and she, Anne, and Marcy danced together right here in the front yard. Forgetting all the troubles in the world around them and just getting lost in the dance and in each other.
She finally made it to the front door and opened it. Sasha looked down and raised her right foot, and after some struggle she managed to step over the divide and into the house. Once she had, Sasha made her way to the trapdoor, opened it, and made her descent into the basement, Anne's room. The place was just like Anne left it before they left for Newtopia. Some scattered clothing from her various outfits she mad, an ugly stuffed caterpillar plushie, her koala puzzle, and various other things.
Sasha could still feel Anne's presence in this room, even her scent was still lingering in the air. It had the simultaneous effect of making her happy and sad at the same time. Sasha looked down and noticed that she was stepping on a journal, Anne's journal. She had one of her own back home. Where she jotted down all her personal thoughts and feelings about what was going on in her life. Without thinking, Sasha picked it up and began thumbing through it. She stopped on the last entry, which was the night of the Battle of the Bands.
"I still can't believe this is real. Sasha, Marcy, and I are together. Like, together, together. A 'throuple'. Is that a word? Doesn't sound like it. Ah, whatever, it fits. I never knew I could feel this way for two people, let alone my two best friends. But honestly, I don't regret it. This feeling in my heart just keeps growing, and it's kinda scary, but at same time really exciting.
I don't know what kind of future we're gonna have when this is all over. It's almost scary to think about. I mean, I know there's no way our parents will approve of this relationship. Heck, most people wouldn't. But, at the same time, I feel like I don't care. Even if they were against it, I don't want to be apart from them.
You ever have that feeling like you didn't know something was missing in your life, but then that something finally makes itself known and now you can't imagine your life without it? That's what Sasha and Marcy are to me. And I felt it while we were playing together on that stage.
I was afraid Sasha was going to stay out of the band, but she came in and played with us. I was so happy she was there; I could've kissed her! The whole thing was just AWESOME!
Anyway, we leave for Newtopia tomorrow. While we won't be leaving Amphibia, it'll be good to check in with our folks and let them know we're alive. It's not going to be an easy sell when we tell them we have to come back and fight against The Night and the Fallen. But we'll just have to try and convince them, and if not, well, we might just need come back no matter what they say. I mean, we can't just leave Amphibia defenseless, and if The Night is after the music box, then we need to defeat it before it can find a way to our world.
I'm so happy I trusted Sasha again. I always knew, even after everything that happened, we'd work it out. I…I love her. And I'm glad she and Marcy love me the same way."
Tears began to fall from Sasha's eyes and onto the pages of the journal. Her heart ached when she read those words, Anne trusted her, she loved her, and what did she do to repay that love and trust? She hurt Anne, she hurt the two girls she loved most and now, she wasn't sure if she was going to see them again.
"Oh Anne…I'm so sorry," she sobbed. "I shouldn't have tried so hard to be in control, again. In the end…where did it get me?"
She continued to cry, knowing that she was already the monster she wished not to become.
"No!" Sasha narrowed her eyes as a look of pure determination appeared on her visage. "That ends NOW! I wanna be someone better! Someone that deserves you! Someone who's worthy of your love! I know what I have to do."
It took some time, but Sasha managed to gather the Wartwood residents at the entrance to the town. Once assembled, Sasha had to do the hardest thing she had ever done, tell the truth.
"Listen up, everyone! I called you all here to tell you that…" Sasha tightened her fists, she had to do this. "…A robot army is on its way to destroy Wartwood!"
"What?! An army?!" Loggle exclaimed.
"How many are we talkin'?" Stumpy asked.
"What's a robot?" Mrs. Croaker asked.
"And that's not all…I lied to you about Anne sending us to protect the town. She's been zapped to another world and has no idea I'm even here! I'm not a hero, or guardian. I'm…I'm just a fraud, someone who hurt the people she loved."
The town gasped, again.
"But fraud or not, I'm going to do the right thing for once in my life!" Sasha drew her pink heron sword and held it in the air. "with my last breath, I'm going to do my duty as a Kamen Rider and defend this town!"
No sooner had she made that announcement did a huge metal object fall from the sky and crash land a yard away from the main entrance.
"Whoa, nelly!" Wally exclaimed.
"Present," said a pale pink frog girl.
"Shut up, Nelly!" Mrs. Croaker snapped.
Within seconds, the metal object began to transform until it was a huge frog, yellow frog robot. Sasha summoned her MetamorphRing Driver as she walked towards the robot, smirking the entire time.
"Huh, only one? Honestly, Andrias, I'm a little insulted," said Sasha.
The metal studs on the huge robot's shoulder pauldrons slid open, and from them it launched six smaller green colored objects. Within seconds it was revealed that it released smaller robots, each colored in various shades of green.
"Of course." Sasha's eyes glowed magenta as she tossed her sword into the air and cried out, "HENSHIN!"
Sasha pressed down on both hip devices as a dome of flames appeared around her. Within seconds, Sasha was transformed into Kamen Rider Bellona. The flame Rider reached up into the air and grabbed her heron sword, and upon grabbing it, flames wrapped around the weapon and transformed it into the Phoenix Wing. Bellona took a ready stance as she stared down the six robots before her.
"Bring it!"
Bellona dashed for the smaller robots, igniting her sword's blade as she cleaved through the first one, and then the second. The flame Rider smirked under her helmet, realizing that these robots weren't anything special if they could be destroyed this easily. And here I thought I was going to have to shift into Super Form to take them down, but these ones aren't any stronger than the ones that I fought at the castle. The big one might be the only one that's a challenge, though.
Bellona was about to ignore the small fry and attack the big one, but she was proven wrong when one of them launched itself at her, turning into a ball as it slammed against her chest. The impact made Bellona skid backwards on her heels, but before she could counterattack, another came at her with a blade arm and slashed her across the back, sending sparks flying from her armor. The smaller robots began blitzing her from different directions, causing damage to her armor.
Okay, that's my bad! I own that! I got overconfident! Bellona thought.
One of the bots charged up its left arm with electrical energy, while Bellona was getting blitzed, that robot rushed at her from and slammed its fist in the middle of her back. The electricity it generated surged along her body, making her armor release sparks everywhere. Another came at her from the front, striking her in the stomach with the same electrical energy. Bellona gritted her teeth as she tried to withstand it, she tried to reach for her hip device to switch into Aegis Form, but the electricity was having a paralyzing effect, keeping her locked in place.
The townspeople watched as Bellona was starting to get surrounded by the metal monsters, which were now launching their arms at her, wrapping up her body and keeping her in place while shocking her with their electrical attacks. They managed to bring Bellona to her knees, and once they did, the big robot opened its chest and revealed a long-barreled cannon.
No! C'mon! C'mon! Move Waybright! If I could just…just reach the button I could switch forms!
The big robot fired off its cannon, launching a smart missile that flew right for Bellona. The other robots that had Bellona pinned down did not bother to move, their directive was to pin down and incapacitate Bellona for the big one to destroy her. However, before the missile could hit its mark, Grime landed between the missile and Bellona. Using Barrel's Warhammer, the former captain of Toad Tower struck the missile like a baseball and sent it flying where it exploded harmlessly in the air.
"Sorry I'm late," said Grime.
"Grimesy!"
"I got to thinking, Beatrix may have weapons and soldiers, but do you know what she doesn't have?" Grime smashed the first two robots in front of Bellona, then swung again clearing a couple of more. Bellona leaned forward, allowing Grime to finish off the ones behind her, smashing them to pieces. "You, Lieutenant."
"Grimesy! You big softie!" Bellona stabbed her sword into the ground and grabbed Grime, picking up him easily as she gave him a hug.
"No! Wait! Stop! Let go of me!" he complained.
{Danger level elevated. Increasing deployment.}
The big yellow robot got on all fours as its back opened up. From there several holes appeared similar to the ones on its shoulder pads. Within seconds more of the green robots were jettisoned from its back until it spawned a small battalion. Bellona released Grime and got ahold of her sword again, while Grime readied his hammer.
"Thirty against two, eh?" Grime commented.
"I got overconfident last time, but I'm not going to let that happen a second time," said Bellona.
However, before either of them could make a move, Mrs. Croaker released a yelping war cry as she leaped over them and came down with both her fists onto the head of one of the robots, effectively sending it into a daze. Mrs. Croaker vaulted off the robot and landed on the ground, while Archie came up to it and spat up some acid venom, melting the robot instantly.
"Die robot scum!" Archie leapt into her arms, and she began petting him. "Good boy."
"What did I just see?"
"OI! BUGGER OFF!" Wally yelled as he charged into the small army of robots and began bashing them with the end of his accordion. Sending each one reeling back with his blows.
Toadstool took advantage of this and smashed his fist into one of them, using his toad given strength to his advantage as he punched another one, caving its head in.
Loggle jumped onto one of them and use his right hand to gouge out the eye of one of the robots as oil spewed from it as the robot shrieked.
Maddie entered the fray as she began throwing one curse pouch after the other at the robots, transforming them into random, harmless objects as she used her magic.
Ivy decided to put her Frog Kata to use as she leaped at one of the robots and kicked in the middle of its head, caving it in a bit. She used the momentum of that kick to spin around and landed another kick against the robot's chest, sending it careening into a few of its fellow robots. While Ivy was busy with that, another robot turned its arm into a blade and was preparing to skewer her, but Felicia acted quickly and chopped the robot's arm off with her bare hands. She grabbed that severed arm and impaled the same robot she cut it off from, and then took it out and threw it like a javelin into another one.
"No bleepin' way. The townspeople can kick ass?!"
"By Barrel's belly! They're deadlier than any soldier! Ugh, how close was I to getting the same treatment all those months ago?" Grime commented.
Toadstool smashed another of the robots and said, "We'll take care of the small fry!"
Ivy axe kicked another robot before hitting it with a double fist strike. "You take care of the big guy, Sasha!"
Bellona could feel her confidence growing, seeing the townspeople fight by her side, seeing them willingly trust her to protect them. It felt great. Just then, the MetamorphRing Driver ignited, and within seconds it shifted into the MetamorphRing TRI. "Wait, it changed?! I thought I had to change out of this form to do it. Whatever, not gonna question it!"
Grime moved aside as Bellona pressed down on both devices. Flames engulfed her body as a bright magenta light shined within the dome of flames. When the flames dissipated, Bellona had entered her Super Form, Invictus: Gladiator Mode. Bellona pressed her hand against the crystal filament and drew out her dual sided sword, Hyperion.
{Threat level: Moderate. Initiating countermeasure.}
"Wait, what did it just say?" Grime asked.
Suddenly, black ooze started to come out of the different parts of the robot. When she saw this, Bellona started to get a familiar feeling, a feeling that normally ever happened whenever there was a…
"No. EVERYONE! GET CLEAR! NOW!" Bellona ordered.
The Wartwood residents heard Bellona's order and retreated until they were behind the archway of the town entrance. The robot's body began to shift and change, and within seconds it was completely different. The black ooze had reformed most of the body. It no longer had the short stubby legs, they were now thick and strong, with metal claws at the ends. It still sported its big round body, but there were rows of spikes that ran vertically from the shoulders to the center of its body. Its shoulder pauldrons had yellow glowing nodes that shined with barely contained power, and its arms had metal plates along them, with its hands now having four long claws. The robot's head still had its glowing red eyes, but it now had a long fin, like a shark, in the middle of its head. Upon the center of its chest were thirteen glowing eyes, the symbol of The Night.
"Grime, stay back. We don't know what this thing can do," Bellona warned.
"I have this Warhammer, Sasha, I'll be fine," said Grime.
"No, until now, The Night's only transformed people and animals. This thing is part robot, which means its probably stronger than a normal Fallen since it doesn't have a flesh and blood body to limit its strength. Plus, we don't know what else it can do. Fall back and defend the townspeople, you're the last line of defense."
Grime didn't like it, but she was right. This was a new type of enemy, and neither of them knew what this thing was capable of. For now, Grime had to rely on Bellona's power to keep her safe in this battle.
"Don't you dare lose to this thing, Lieutenant," said Grime as he jumped back and retreated to the archway.
"Heh, Grimsey, losing is not an option for me."
Bellona's body erupted with flames as she charged for the Fallen robot, concentrating her power into the wing frills on her boots as she took off into the air, aiming for its head. The yellow nodes on the machine's shoulders disengaged and began floating around the robot Fallen, each one fired a beam straight at her. Bellona managed to dodge each of them, but one the beams managed to hit her in the shoulder. The attack stung through the armor, and when she looked, Bellona was surprised to see ice had formed on her armor.
"Ice?!" Bellona looked behind her and noticed that the spots where the beams hit on the ground had in fact frozen over. "No way…did Andrias make this thing specifically to fight me?!"
Bellona released more of her flames, melting the ice and freeing up her right arm. The flame Rider slashed the air in front of her, sending crescent waves of fire at the robot. The orbs floated towards the robot's front and created a cryo barrier that snuffed out flames before they could reach it. Bellona flipped in the air and landed on the ground, hard, shattering the ice as she ignited the flames around her body again and struck the earth with her blade. With a loud cry she slashed the ground, causing a blast of fiery energy to surge through the ground, making it crack as it drew closer to the robot.
The Fallen robot raised its right arm and smashed it into the earth, and within seconds a burst of cryo energy erupted, creating a wave of ice that surged along the same path as Bellona's attack. The two attacks met in the middle as a steam explosion took place, obscuring both fighters from view. But the robot's enhanced sensors allowed it to see, and while its arm was still in the ground, it sent out another wave of cryo energy through the ground.
Bellona readied herself to jump away but realized that Wartwood was right behind her. If she dodged now, that wave would hit the town. Bellona widened her stance and began twirling Hyperion around herself, creating blades of fire that she launched at the incoming wave. The blades slammed against the wave, but it seemed the robot was not deterred and kept pouring more of its power into the attack. Bellona growled fiercely as she ignited both ends of Hyperion. Using both of her hands, Bellona spun Hyperion in a circle until it was spinning so fast that it looked like a wheel of fire floating in the air.
The flame Rider brought both her hands together and then thrust them forward, sending a huge column of raging wildfire roaring towards the wave. The two attacks clashed again, creating a steam cloud that got bigger and bigger. However, the orbs that were launched from the robot flew in and began pelting the area that Bellona was with cryo energy beams. Bellona stood her ground as she kept up her attack, but each time the beam hit her, it stung and encased a different part of her body in ice. She wasn't going to stop, she had to keep going, she had to defeat this monster and protect the people of Wartwood like she promised.
That's when the robot added its other arm.
It smashed it into the earth and that's when it released bigger wave of cryo energy. Before Bellona could do a thing, the ice beams and wave crashed into her and completely engulfed her body. Within a matter of seconds, the ice crept along the ground and washed over Wartwood, making the residents instantly go into their hibernating states as they were all trapped in blocks of ice. Bellona did not escape the same fate as all her flames were snuffed out by the absolute cold of the robot Fallen's weapons. The glow of Bellona's eyes, war plume, spikes, armor, and wing frills had gone, even the glow of her MetamorphRing TRI was growing dim.
Is…Is this it…I'm going to die like this…? It's so cold…I'm sorry Anne, I tried to do one good thing, I tried to protect the town and people you cared about so much…but I couldn't…
"It's been awhile, Sasha Waybright."
Time slowed to a halt as the Magenta Spirit appeared before her.
You, you're back.
"Indeed I am. And it looks like things have gotten quite dire."
It's what I deserve. I've done horrible things to the two people I said I loved most in this world, but all I did was end up hurting them…I broke their hearts, and for what…? For control…?
"Control is an illusion, Sasha. There are things you can control, but there are also things you cannot control. Your actions, what you do, and how you feel are all within your control. But you can't control more than what's within your grasp."
I realize that…I realized it too late…
The Magenta Spirit passed through the ice block and looked at Bellona directly in the eyes. "Tell me, oh Avatar of Strength, do you know what true strength means?"
It means protecting those you love…It means never standing down against the things you know are wrong…It means knowing when to back down from a fight, and when to listen to others…It means opening your heart to others, even if you might end up getting hurt…
The Magenta Spirit, despite not possessing a mouth, seemed to smile at her. "You've grown much more since the last time I visited you. Love can do that. I sense heartache in you, Sasha, and a willingness to prove to the one you love and to yourself that you are someone worth loving."
Chains appeared around Bellona's body, and within seconds they shattered before her, the last of the chains.
"Your true power has been stolen from you. So, in order to make up for that loss, I will grant this form even more power, by giving up my astral form to empower you."
WHAT?! No! You can't do that! Look, I don't know who you really are, but you can't just sacrifice yourself for me!
"What I do, I do for the world I love. My time in this world has long since passed, it is time I joined the others in the beyond. So, my parting gift to you, is this pocket of power I've been holding onto."
The Magenta Spirit focused a ball of magenta light into both her hands and began floating closer to the Driver.
"Protect this world, Sasha Elizabeth Waybright. Protect your world and end the evil that we could not so long ago. The evil that we inadvertently had a hand in helping."
WAIT!
The Magenta Spirit pressed the sphere of light into the Driver, and the reaction was immediate. The Spirit faded away as the Driver came back to life. Magenta flames erupted from Bellona and roared out in all directions. A wave of heat washed over everything like a tidal wave and instantly melted the ice that had encased everything. The Wartwood residents and Grime broke out of their hibernation ice blocks and shook off their daze as they watched a pillar of magenta flames roar into the sky.
"Sasha…?" Grime whispered as he watched.
The pillar of flames suddenly changed into two flaming wings that grew smaller and smaller until they were now on the back of Bellona. Her armor had shifted to a lighter version from the previous Invictus Super Form. The chest plate now had the image of a crimson heron, and on either side of the heron's head were magenta crystals. There were flame-like glowing lines along the sides of the armor that formed her abs. The bulky shoulder pauldrons were now half circles from which the flame wings bellowed out from, and each one had three glowing horizontal lines. The gauntlets were gone, instead she had small gloves the covered the wrist and tops of her hands that were red and white. The glowing line patterns had changed, primarily on her arms and legs, and further at her legs were greave-like coverings similar to the gloves. Bellona's helmet no longer had the white mask, but instead now had a white face, with crimson around the sides made it appear like a Spartan helmet. There was a silver crest that ran from the middle of the forehead down the back of the helmet, and on either side was a vent. From the crest and vents an expulsion of energy was released, creating a long war plume ponytail that ran down her back and whipped back and forth behind her, hovering a few inches off the ground.
Bellona looked at herself, feeling a swelling of newfound power within her. Her form did change, but it looked more akin to an upgraded version of her Super Form, as opposed to how Anne looked when she achieved her Final Form. Still, she was grateful for this power, which was gifted to her by the Spirit. Power that was just bursting out of her and was looking to go wild.
"Yeah, that's it. Burst Gladiator Mode. I think you'd approve of the name, Marc," said Bellona as she stared up at the mechanized monster. "LET'S RUMBLE!"
The orbs released their icy blasts yet again, but before they could hit, Bellona swiftly dodged them, leaving behind a trail of embers. The flame Rider stopped for a moment, shocked at how much her speed had increased. The Fallen robot raised its right arm and fired a huge blast of cryo energy at her. Bellona saw the attack at the last second and raised her left arm, and the moment she did, a huge shield made of magenta flames was erected. The cryo beam struck against the flames, but unlike last time, they were not smothered, instead the ice beam evaporated upon contact. The metal monster cut off the attack, trying to understand what it just witnessed.
Bellona saw the shield and after a few seconds the shield retracted until it was the size of a normal shield that floated a few inches off her left forearm. Smirking beneath her helmet, Bellona pressed her right hand against the MetamorphRing TRI and drew out Hyperion, but when she did, the blades were now pure magenta plasma energy that hummed as she twirled it around. With her weapons in hand, Bellona ignited her flame wings and took off into the air. The six floating orbs followed after her and began firing one cryo beam after the other, trying to freeze her in place like before, but they were having a hard time hitting with the boost in speed she received. And even when they did hit, the intense flames around Bellona made it impossible for the beams to even try and freeze her.
Bellona decided she had indulged those things long enough as she stopped in midair and flew right at them. The flame Rider raised Hyperion and slashed through one of them. It was easy, like a hot knife through butter. Once she had cleaved the orb, it exploded with a shower of evaporated ice. Bellona weaved around the cryo beams with all the grace and skill that a cheerleading captain like herself possessed, and with each weave and pass, Bellona slashed and cut until all of them were behind her. Within seconds, all the orbs exploded. Bellona dismissed her shield and sword and decided to give this big Fallen a taste of her fists instead.
"You're not worth my sword!" Bellona declared as she flew straight down for the robot.
The Fallen robot started firing condensed cryo blasts at her. But Bellona weaved and dodged each one as they exploded into ice crystals around her. One of them, it appeared, managed to hit her and capture the warrior inside of it. But the machine realized too late it was not her.
"I think I'll call that my Heat Mirage."
The robot looked down and saw that Bellona was now on the ground, the machine fired another, but when the beam hit, it turned out to be another of her Heat Mirages. The robot looked around, trying to find the real one with its sensor's, but each of the mirages had the same heat signature, making it impossible to tell the fake from the real one.
Taking advantage of its confusion, Bellona sped towards the robot and drop kicked it in the chest. A huge dent formed in the machine's chest as it was sent flying the other way. Bellona gave chase and interlocked both her fingers as she raised them up. Magenta flames ignited around her fists as she waited for the machine to get closer, and once she had; Bellona struck. The blow resounded like thunder as it sent the machine crashing back down to the ground, kicking up a huge cloud of dirt and dust around it. The machine managed to flip itself around and fired another beam, but instead of flying away, Bellona charged straight for the beam.
Bellona ignited her right fist as she punched straight through the beam, releasing a bellowing war cry the whole way down as she went straight into the barrel of the Fallen robot's arm. Within seconds she pierced through the other side, with the robot's arm exploding. The Fallen robot stumbled about, unsure what to do as his countermeasures were made to fight Bellona's original Super Form, not this new version.
"This is the end!"
The lines on Bellona's armor, along with her eyes, glowed bright as the flame wings roared to life. The flame Rider shot straight up into the air; a spiral of flames followed in her wake as she positioned herself in the middle of the sky. Those same flames wrapped around her body and turned her into a ball of fire that looked like a second sun was in the sky. The symbol of Bellona appeared around the orb and melded into it. With her power built up, Bellona extended her right leg forward and descended from the sky, appearing as a meteor.
"SOL BREAKER!"
The Fallen robot raised its remaining cannon to fire, but it was too late. Bellona struck the metal monster right in the middle of its head, melting right through it until she hit the ground below the Fallen robot. Upon making contact with the ground, a huge magenta heat dome exploded around the machine, burning it away to the point that not even ashes were left. After about ten seconds the heat dome broke down into magenta embers that danced around Bellona before disappearing completely and leaving her standing in the middle of the smoldering crater.
Bellona looked up into the sky and closed her eyes as she said, "Thank you, Spirit." The flame Rider flew out of the crater and made her way back to Wartwood where she landed a few feet from the entrance to the town. Bellona sighed as she released her transformation, returning her to civilian form before she fell onto her rear.
"Lieutenant!" Grime exclaimed.
"I'm okay, Grime," Sasha assured him. "Just gotta get used to that form."
The Wartwood residents walked up to Sasha, and all of them had appreciative smiles upon their faces.
"That was really somethin' young lady," said Mrs. Croaker. "I think Anne would be proud of what you did."
Sasha smiled at the old frog. "Thanks…but it's not enough. Look, I haven't told you guys the whole story about what happened at the palace." Sasha explained the rest of what went down in Newtopia, the coup attempt, her betrayal of Anne and Marcy, her fight with Anne, and of course everything else that transpired afterwards. "I'm no hero, I'm just someone who's trying to make up for all the mistakes she's made. I'm nothing to be proud of."
Mrs. Croaker patted Sasha on her left shoulder as she said, "You've said enough, deary. Actions speak louder than words."
"What?" Sasha asked surprised.
"You may've been a terrible person, Sasha," said Maddie, "but you were honest with us when you didn't have to be."
Ivy stepped up and added, "You stood up to that metal monster alone, with no idea if you were going to win or not, all just to protect us frogs!"
"Heh. Ya know, it really sounds like something Anne would've done. Chargin' in without knowing if she could fell her foe, but never giving up either way," Wally remarked as he cleaned his accordion.
Sasha teared up. Although she felt like she was a long way off from being even a tenth of the person that Anne was, it felt good to know that she did something that Anne might've been proud of. Heck, she was proud of herself. "I promise you. All of you, I'm through being the person I once was. And I want you to know, you can count on me." Sasha stood up and as a confident expression appeared on her face. "For real this time!"
The townspeople cheered for their new protector, but that still begged a question.
"So, what are we going to do now?" Mrs. Croaker asked.
The blonde teen glanced at Grime, and when she did, the former gladiator smirked confidently at her and nodded silently, as if saying, "This is your command, Lieutenant."
Emboldened by her captain's approval, Sasha furrowed her brow and said, "Now, we start fighting back!"
A/N: For those of you wondering, yes, I got the idea from Digimon Data Savers' Burst Mode. And it's modeled after ShineGreymon.
Also, for my Witch fans. There's a story that's a semi-canon/V-cinema story that features the Show Riders and Witch working together to defeat the evil of the Shocker Coven.
Kamen Rider Witch Special: The 14 Riders VS The Shocker Coven
Written by Multiverse Sentai
Edited by me