A Fellow Human

"Steady, Bessie, steady. Good girl."

"You sure have gotten the hang, right Anne? To tell the truth, I still had doubts about letting you drive today."

"I told you, HP, I am a fast learner. Plus, after reading Bessie's history book thoroughly, I know exactly which commands to lead her wherever I need." Obliviously, she didn't share that she had some experience already, thanks to "borrowing" Bessie without Hop Pop's permission or knowledge.

"Please stop calling me HP-" the old frog replied, checking the fresh vegetables on the back of the snail, "Anyway, keep paying attention to the road. Today we have a lot of cabbages to sell."

"How about picking up Sasha and Marcy before going to the market?" Sprig suggested, "A couple extra hands could be useful."

"Actually, it would be three extra hands," James intervened, still leaning on Bessie's large shell and enjoying the ride. "If I remember correctly, Amelia went with Marcy earlier today."

"Oh, right!" Anne chuckled, "Today was the day she started with that training of hers. I almost pity her for getting entangled with Maddie's sisters."

"Well, she brought Polly with her, so she'll survive. Probably."

"And what about Jacob?" Hop Pop called out, "Do any of you two know where that lad is now?"

"Loggle called him earlier today, saying that he had a surprise for him." Anne answered, as Sprig chuckled by her side, "If I have to guess, he's probably yelling and moving as fast as he can right now."

"Yaah!" Jacob yelled, feeling the air on his face, his leg giving him more thrust forward. His behavior may have looked dangerous, even reckless to some of Wartwood's locals, but he couldn't care less. Since the fateful day he found himself stranded in an unfamiliar world, Jacob could once again experience one of her favorite experiences so far.

"Eat my dust!" he shouted as his skateboard passed over Toadstool's fancy snail, with Toadie as the driver.

"Public Menace! Monster and undisciplined too!"

Jacob laughed, pushing forward, ignoring Toadstool's laments behind him, as he got further and further away. He knew that upsetting the Mayor was not a good idea (as Hop Pop and Anne reminded him already) but considering all the shenanigans that fat toad did already, and how he kept to belittling them at every occasion, it was only fair that someone paid him back a little.

Under his feet, the skateboard was fulfilling his expectations: it was sturdy and flexible; and so long he kept providing thrust, the wooden wheels worked perfectly at speed retention.

"Good day, Mrs. Croaker!" he saluted as he passed to the left of the old frog's ladybug. "Have a good day!"

"You too, darling," she returned in kind. After Sprig and Anne told him about the frog's dislike for road rage, the boy tried to salute her every time they met on the road or around Wartwood. As far as he was concerned, there was nothing wrong with being a little daredevil around her, as long as you kept playing nice.

I guess it's one frog less hating and fearing us, the boy smirked on the inside. There are only… eighty frogs left? More? Less?

When will we be able to walk in broad daylight without having someone pointing fingers and looking scared at us?

"Ah! It's one of the monsters!" someone yelled, seeing him pass "And he's flying close to the ground too!"

Apparently, not today.

"Sasha," Felicia Sundew, owner of Felicia's Tea Shoppe, mom of Ivy Sundew and current employer/secret martial arts instructor of Sasha Waybright, said, "Come here, please."

"Huh-oh," Sasha gasped, as she stopped cleaning the leftover dishes, "What did I do this time?"

"I have no idea," Ivy replied to her side, "If I had to guess, mom found something you overlooked."

That stingy impossible frog, Sasha thought with irritation. Felicia's standards in the workplace were very high and almost impossible to follow. All it took was a small stain on one plate, a napkin folded in a haphazard way, or a table set up imperfectly, for her to have to redo the whole job all over again. Ever since she started working here, Sasha has lost count of how many tables she had had to redo because of a minor detail, or how many times she had had to redo the same napkins.

Yet, she never complained. This was because she, unlike Ivy, knew the truth behind such strict behaviors and Felicia's zero tolerance for the smallest mistake. Plus, she didn't want to admit defeat to Felicia.

After all, other martial arts masters were just as intransigent, and for a very specific reason: a move executed imperfectly, could undermine the entire fighting style.

Felicia had made her promise to not tell Ivy the truth, at least for now, and she had faith in her; thus, Sasha told her nothing. Yet, keeping the truth hidden was getting harder by the day.

"All right," the blonde girl said, walking out of the kitchen, "Let's hear what she has to say."

Felicia stood in silence, watching Sasha as she walked toward her. It was then that the girl saw an empty basket on the small table next to her, with only one small sweet left.

A Brownie.

"Sasha, I'd like to talk to you about the Brownies you brought today."

Mentally, the girl braced herself for the scolding, "Did the customers not like them?"

"On the contrary, they liked them too much! Many of them expressed the desire to taste them again...in the coming days."

Sasha opened her eyes wide as Felicia's expression turned into a smile, "And I know from reliable sources that they are your recipe."

"Well, not really mine: I just knew how to make them. Then it was Marcy and Maddie's father who cooked them, I brought them and-"

Of course, the Brownies were meant for Ivy and me only, but I got confused and served them by mistake.

"And could you get me more?"

"I think…maybe? I would need some ingredients, the proper items for preparing and cooking them, but theoretically-I could."

Felicia knew that tone of voice. "And what would you like to ask, in return?"

Sasha smiled "I want a percentage of the Brownies the customers pay for each day...and to learn a few more martial arts moves. In particular, I would like to learn more offensive moves during our next lesson."

"For the percentage, I can't promise anything for now. But for the rest...I know a couple of really vicious moves in combat."

"How vicious?"

"Enough to hurt an adult toad, armed and in armor."

Sasha's smile grew "We have a deal."

"Thank you for visiting Flour and Daughter's Bakery shop, and happy to help you!" Marcy said with a friendly smile. The female frog who had just bought bread and pancakes looked up at her and returned the smile, as she walked out of the shop.

I guess I'm making progress, Marcy thought as the shop's door closed once more.

"Marcy," Farine Flour, Maddie's father and shop's owner, peeked from the back, "How's it going?"

"I'm fine, mister Flour," the human girl replied in a happy tone, "So far no one has screamed as soon as they saw me, nor they tried to ask for a discount, thus-"

Farine watched in amusement as Marcy departed in another of her "preemptive apologies" speaking without stopping. It had been a couple of days since he had asked the human girl to man the counter while he worked in the backroom making new sandwiches and pastries to sell directly or to supply other stores in the area. It had been a bit difficult at first, but with some patience and attention the girl had gotten used to her task and now he had much more time to devote to his work.

Of course, that was not the only reason he had asked Marcy to take care of the customers. The real reason was that Marcy was cute.

When he had first met her, Farine had been suspicious, like everyone else. However, now Farine had discovered that Marcy, past her freakish physical appearance, had a friendly and enthusiastic personality that enthralled everyone who meet her. Many customers, who often came by only occasionally, had begun to buy bread and other products more often, just to see Marcy one more time. Plus, because she could sit behind the counter, she would not stumble again, as she usually did.

"How much did we sell today?"

"I made a complete list!" Marcy fixed, pulling out a piece of written paper, "So, Mrs. Croaker bought one large loaf of bread, one smaller loaf, and two pizzas. Since the large loaf costs four copper minds, the smaller loaf costs only one, and the small pizza individually cost-"

Quick and accurate at doing calculations, Maddie and her sisters like her, she has great enthusiasm and is pure adorable. At this rate, Hopediah may have a rival to adopt her.

"Nyanhyo! Banzai!"

"Banzai!" Three voices she knew echoed.

"What's going on back there?"

"I think Amelia is trying to illustrate some moves to the girls," Marcy said, lifting her head from her accounts for a moment, "I wonder how her..."training" is going."

"Bad. Very Bad." Maddie replied to her, re-entering at that moment, "I may not be an expert, but I doubt that whatever your friend is teaching them can be called a fighting style."

"Amelia is hardly an expert," Marcy chuckled, without elaborating, "but she has such good will and insisted on taking care of them."

"Oh yes, I have to admit that at least they are having fun," Maddie chuckled. "Marcy, I really think we can get into more advanced magic today."

"One that can be prepared with the cauldron?"

"No! I mean, not yet..." Maddie exchanged a worried look with her father. By mutual agreement, they had decided to keep Marcy away from the oven and the cauldron, at least as long as they could. "Excuse me, but magic is not an art that can be learned quickly. Before proceeding to the next stage, one must be fully aware of its potential. Do I have to remind you what happened - with Jacob and that flower?"

"Ah, please!" said Marcy, covering her face and visibly blushing. Her reaction was less violent than Sasha's (who axed the flower in question) but that did not make her embarrassment any less.

"Mars, Amelia!" the friendly voice of Anne called to them from outside. "Time to go!"

"My friends have come for me, Mr. Flour. With all due respect-"

"Go ahead, kiddo: Your shift is over now. Maddie, if you're done with your chores, you are free to go too."

Maddie thanked her father, as Amelia and Polly entered the room, Maddie's sisters Rosemary, Lavender, and Ginger with them. Amelia looked exhausted, her hair was dirty, and she had mud patches visible on her clothes. Yet, she appeared strangely happy and fulfilled, and so did all the involved pollywogs.

"So, Amelia-sama," Marcy turned a pity-filled gaze on her, "how did your first lesson go?"

"The girls have...much to learn," Amelia said, her right eye blinking nervously, "Still, I think we made a lot of progress today."

"Yeah, Maddie! We will become powerful fighters that no one can defeat!"

"We will build a dojo, and put the valley under our protection!"

"We will be Rosemary, Lavender, and Ginger, the Terrific Trio!"

"A-hem!" Polly grimaced at them.

Farine looked to the side, Maddie sighed, and Marcy covered her eyes with her hand. That they had learned something was beyond doubt. The real question was whether what they had learned was useful or not.

Assuming the latter.

"All right kiddos," Hop Pop said, parking Bessie "Let's get moving,"

"Let's split up the work: Anne, James, Jacob, you help Hop Pop unload the vegetables. Marcy, you and Amelia help Hop Pop at the counter-"

"And what do you do, Sasha? Besides giving us orders?"

"Jacob, I direct your work. It's necessary to function at its best!"

"No, you're just looking for an excuse to give orders and do nothing of effective."

"Listen you-"

"Guys, guys!" Hop Pop intervened, signaling for Jacob and Sasha to calm down, "No need to fight. Sasha, go help Marcy set up the booth; Jacob, you take care of unloading Bessie."

"Sure, Hop Pop," replied the boy glaring at Sasha, "I'm happy to help you...with some real work."

Sasha replied with a glare, but eventually walked toward the booth and quickly reached place at Marcy's side. Hop Pop snorted, but only out of weariness: if there was anything age had taught him, it was to know how to deal with children.

"Hey, Hop Pop," said James pointing to a spot just ahead, "What's that?"

A few steps away from the Plantar's stand, in a seldom-visited and usually empty area of the market, a large traveling wagon, pulled by a greenish snail, had stopped and some frogs were gathered around it. The cart was unmarked and almost anonymous. Yet, seeing it, Hop Pop smiled.

"It's the ambulate wagon of Joe, the traveling merchant! I guess he's come back to visit."

"Traveling merchant?"

"It's a peculiar job, Anne, but always welcome wherever he goes. Joe often travels between towns and small villages, selling what a certain town is lacking and buying what it's in abundance, and then reselling it where such a product is lacking."

"Gee, he must make good money!"

"Don't start daydreaming, Jacob: it also means living on the roads, not being able to make friends or a real family. Joe does it because it's his family business, but no one would ever do it by choice."

"He comes from a family of traveling merchants?"

"Yup. He took from his father, Jey-Jo, who took from his father, William, who took from his father-"

"This is what it means when they talk about "family business."

Sprig, who up to that point was helping Anne and Polly, was intrigued by those words. Personally, he had never met Joe the merchant before, but the fact that he was a traveling merchant attracted him.

"I wonder if he has any adventures to tell us."

"Oh, Joe always has adventures to tell," Hop Pop replied, "That's how he sells-there are frogs lining up just to hear his crazy stories."

"Can I go and see?"

Hop Pop looked at his grandson. The booth was not yet set up, but with the six humans helping him, Sprig's assistance was not as necessary as it used to be. And all in all, it was something quite healthy and danger-free compared to what Sprig usually did.

"All right, but don't stay away too long. And take Polly with you!"

"Yes!" shouted the tadpole, causing an envious look from more than one human.

As the two approached the carriage, Sprig quickly realized that something was wrong. The wagon, although standing firmly in the middle of the marketplace, did not appear to be set up for sales, nor did it have merchandise on display. On the side, there were two deep scratches, perhaps caused by passing a sharp rock at great speed.

It was then that he saw Toadstool. He was standing next to the wagon, Toadie was at his side straining to write a report, Sheriff Buck Leatherleaf listening with a worried air. Between them, an adult frog of green complexion, sitting on the steps of the wagon, was telling something with obvious great sorrow.

"What happened?"

"Is that Joe? Why is he crying?"

"Don't you know?" One of the frogs answered them, "On his way here, he was attacked and assaulted: he managed to escape, but he lost all his goods."

"He was assaulted? By what?"

"By a monster, he says. Something... he never saw before."

Sprig and Polly exchanged a glance at each other as memories of a past day returned to their minds. The day when Wally had come screaming back to Wartwood, telling of strange monsters with bumps on their noses and long, spindly limbs. It was that tale (and the chance to prove himself) that had inspired Sprig to explore the woods, where he had met Anne, Marcy, Sasha and the others.

Now, both of them had a strange feeling of déjà-vu.

Taking advantage of being able to move nimbly around the adults, Sprig pushed forward, with Polly in his arms. Luckily, the adults were silently listening, so they could both hear the voices of Toadstool, Joe, and Leatherleaf as they spoke.

"...all lost! All my goods, my whole trading items inventory, abandoned in the roads! I'm bankrupt, finished!"

"You said it happened on the road to the north, the one that connects to the Northern Pass?"

"Yes. I had arrived just before the pass closed, and I wanted to go through Swamp Shiro, but some big mantis made me give up. So, I decided to go through Wartwood first."

"And the attack you suffered, where did it occur?"

"I have no idea: the road through the forest all looks the same, I only know that I had stopped for the night when it started to rain. I had locked myself in the wagon, when I heard a sound coming from outside, which was frightening the snail. I got up, looked outside...and there it was. A creature I had never seen before, so terrifying and frightening that it couldn't have been anything but a monster. I jumped up, and I fanned the snail to run away, to put as much distance as possible between me and that creature. I lost my whole load, and if I hadn't run away, I wouldn't have even saved my life!"

"One last question: this creature, this monster you saw - what did it look like?"

"The - the most inconceivable and horrible thing a frog could ever see. It had long, spindly arms and legs, a big, fur-covered head, eyes as big as plates, and a strange, monstrous lump in the middle of its face. Something I had never seen before."

Joe did not notice, but as he spoke, both Leatherleaf and Toadstool's eyes went wide, exchanging a look full of surprise. They knew of creatures with spindly limbs and bumps on their noses: there were six of them living in the town recently.

Sprig made to turn around, hurry back to the booth and warn the others, but before he could do so, a voice he knew well called to him.

"Sprig?" made Anne make her way through the crowd, "Hop Pop sent me to ask you-"

"Another monster!" Joe shouted as he saw Anne, covering his face with his arms, "It's just like the one that attacked me!"

Toadstool turned to Anne, a look full of fear in her eyes; Leatherleaf stood before Joe; the other frogs looked at Anne in silence, not saying a word.

"What."

"What is this?" asked Sasha angrily. For once, her irritation was understandable, considering the situation around them.

"We're just trying to ensure justice," replied Leatherleaf, squaring off questioningly at all six humans gathered in front of him, they in turn surrounded by the various residents of Wartwood. "The merchant Joe in question claims to have been attacked by a creature he has never seen before, and his description matches yours."

"Come on, Buck, I promised to keep an eye on them and be responsible for their behavior!" Hop Pop replied, posing as a defender of humans "None of them ever committed anything evil as long as I was keeping an eye on them."

For a moment, Hop Pop's words had the desired effect, and the crowd stepped back, doubtful: they might be suspicious of the humans, but the Plantars' honesty was known and established by all.

"What about when you weren't keeping an eye on them, Hopediah?" Toadstool retorted forcefully. "Who can assure you that one of them didn't wander off, in the middle of the night?"

"We sleep at night!" Anne retorted, trying to conceive the absurdity of the situation. They had almost gotten used to their life in Amphibia, and already some of Wartwood's frogs had stopped frightening themselves when they passed on the street. Why did this have to happen, to drive them back to square one?

"Besides, the attack happened miles from here," James intervened. "No human would be able to walk such a road and get back to Wartwood by morning, especially considering the countless dangers they might encounter."

"They might have taken the Plantars' snail and-"

"Don't be ridiculous! Do you think perhaps one of them would take Bessie and go for a ride without telling me, without my knowledge?"

Hop Pop did not see this, but behind him, Sasha and Anne exchanged a guilty look.

"Hopediah Plantar, we are not accusing you of anything. However, Joe himself claims to have been assaulted by a creature with spindly limbs and bumps in the middle of his face, and the only creatures that fit such a description- dwell with you since their arrival."

"But we may not be the only ones."

"Mar-Mar?"

"Neither I nor any of my friends committed the deed you say; however, I do not believe that Mr. Joe is lying. There is a third option, which none of us has so far considered: what if it were another human being?"

Marcy's words fell like a bolt from the blue: everyone present, human and frog (and Toadstool) alike paled, and squinted their eyes, as their brains processed Marcy's hypothesis that another human, not part of the six who had found refuge with the Plantars, might exist.

"Mars..."

"Are you serious?"

"Another human?"

"But how many can there be?"

"I thought there weren't others."

"Is that possible?"

Among the various humans, millions of thoughts ran: they, more than anyone else, knew that there were other humans, and therefore, the idea that another human being like them was in Amphibia was theoretically possible. Of course, so far, they had never met anyone else, but that proved nothing: considering how vast Amphibia was, if a human appeared anywhere but Wartwood, it would be weeks, perhaps sooner, before the boys could find out. Even more, if such humans had arrived outside the valley, and thus separated from the others for at least two months.

"Joe?"

"I - I don't know. I never saw the creature's face or any of its distinguishing marks. Therefore, I don't know if it was one of these creatures, or just one of their kind. However ... the beast's reasoning lines up."

"She is not a beast!" Sasha retorted lividly. Already when such insults struck her, she did not like it, but targeting Marbles?

If they were on Earth, she would have broken his face with a fist.

It was then that Toadstool nodded, "I think this...business, calls for a little discussion. Hopediah Plantar, you and your...guests, will you follow me?"

"What is this about, Toadstool?"

In response, the toad pointed to a spot not far away, where he had the humans gathered, surrounded by Joe, Leatherleaf, Toadie and the Plantars.

"As you can well imagine, this is an - extremely awkward situation, for all of us-"

"Awkward? You subjected us to an impromptu tribunal!" Sasha looked at him with crooked eyes.

"I was trying to clear the air: Joe was accusing you, after all."

"Actually-"

"He wasn't accusing us!" Anne retorted firmly, "Did you not hear Marcy's explanation? Do you really believe that there can't be...other creatures like us out there?"

"Oh, I do believe it. And that's why, I want to make you a proposition."

"What kind of proposition?" asked Hop Pop, immediately interested.

Toadstool quickly ignored him, and instead focused on the humans "Listen: I do not know if what you suggested is true or not, but I don't want to stand still and do nothing while a dangerous ugly critters roams the countryside. No offense of course."

"None taken," Jacob replied in a sarcastic, offended tone.

"My offer is, I want you to scout in the area where Joe was attacked, and check his claims about the presence of another hummus. If you confirm it, you have to capture him, and bring him here."

"What?"

"Are you seriously asking us to work for you?"

"It's more problematic that it sounds: you may believe me or not, but I do actually care for the Wartwood citizens: who would I steal the money from if something would happen to them?"

"Wow, what an exemplary leader," Polly groaned.

"Look-"

"We accept." Sasha jerked up, all of sudden "We will go looking and checking if there is another human like we suspect."

"Sashy?"

"Well, I didn't see that coming."

Nevertheless, if you want us to do your dirty work for you, we expect at least for you to pay us back."

"What? That's preposterous! I'm not paying you beasts for something like this."

"You could still go looking out on your own-"

"Fine!" Toadstool yielded, grumbling "Ask Toadie: he will furnish you with everything you'll need, and I agree to pay you ten coppers each if you do this. But I want results."

"You will."

Toadstool walked away, with Joe, Toadie and Leatherleaf, leaving the Plantars and the human kids alone.

"Sasha, I am quite surprised," Anne said, looking at her friend, "I wasn't expecting for you to accept to work for Toadstool, even-"

"I don't care about that fat toad!" The blonde girl said, once she was sure and safe he could no longer hear her, "However, if there is the chance of another human trapped in this world, we have the duty to go check and bring them here."

Anne listened, finding herself in agreement. She still remembered the first days they spent in this world, in the forest, hiding from the large monstrous bugs, living in a wet cave, fearful and scared of everything around them. She remembered Sasha's glare as she checked to ensure no monstrous beast would come and harm them, Marcy's scared and fearful look, the spiders, the rain-

She shook her head, making those ugly thoughts go away. Yet, she imagined how her old self would have reacted if other humans arrived to help her and bring her somewhere safe.

Maybe she could help some scared and lone person, who ended up in this world like she did.

"Sasha, you're even more amazing!" Jacob said in surprise, "The old you would have never risked her life just to save some unknown person."

"I have not changed, Jacob: it's you who are still the same idiot! Listen: do you remember how… we ended up here?"

"Huh, yeah?" He asked, unsure what she was getting at.

"We were alone when that happened, thus if another human did end up in this place, that could only mean there is another way to go from Earth to Amphibia. And if we are lucky, and this other way still works, we could reverse it … and return home!"

Sasha's words lightened up a fire in the humans' eyelids: all of them ended in this world thanks to the music box that was opened by Anne on that playground. They ended up here together, and thus they had no way to know if someone else was in Amphibia too, so they assumed to be the only ones.

Until today. Now, there was the concrete possibility of another human being, from their world, ending up trapped in this place. Someone who wasn't there with them that evening. Someone who, in order to be here, had to use a different way.

The box no longer worked, and no matter how much they tried to learn, they still had no clue on how they could recharge it, or even what they could use to recharge it. Yet, what if there was an alternative? A different, still-working option to return home? A chance to go back to Earth…and to everything they were accustomed to?

Going back to regular human food, to milkshakes and burgers, to hot showers and running water?

Have Internet again and 5G at their disposal?

No more fear of being attacked by large carnivorous bugs?

"Well," Marcy said, the first of the group to speak, "That could be a possibility-"

"A possibility? Mars, this is a chance, a chance for being able to return to our world! We would no longer need to stay in this place! We could be home bytomorrow!"

Marcy looked aside. Somehow, as Jacob noticed, she didn't look very thrilled at the news.

"That's not a guarantee," the boy intervened, "First, we'd have to locate this other human and determinate if they're friendly; second, we'd have to learn how they ended up in Amphibia-"

"Jacob, what are you saying?" Sprig asked, "Don't you know how you ended up here?"

The boy recoiled, his eyes (and the other humans', as well) widening, as he tried to come up with a good-enough explanation, "Huh, not quite? I mean, it simply happened?"

"Huh, yeah?" The other humans shrugged, trying to work with him.

"Anyway!" Sasha rose, taking advantage Jacob's hesitation to move the spotlights to her, "My point is, this other human could have some hint, or even an idea on how to get us back. And even if they don't, we need to find him and help him as much as we can."

"Hey!" Hop Pop protested, "You aren't thinking about bringing it into the farm as well? It's a farm, not a bed-and-breakfast."

"Come on, HP: one person more or less is not going to make a difference."

"Anne, I told you: don't call me HP!"

Shortly after, the humans organized themselves for their "search-and-rescue" mission: Through Toadie, Toadstool provided them with a small amount of supplies, some iron weapons (a pair of swords and a pike, looking very old and unkempt) and pieces of various armor, which apparently had not seen real combat action in many, many years. In spite of this, their relative endurance (and a good coating of armor polish) convinced the humans to make use of them.

"OK girls!" said Jacob, securely securing the supplies on Bessie's back. "Supplies and other materials are well loaded. Even if we have to leave at full speed, we don't risk losing them on the way."

"And I got the location with Loggle's sextant and Amphibia's star map I was compiling. So even if we get lost, we won't have any trouble getting back here."

"James, are you sure you're holding the pike?" asked Anne, testing the weight of her own iron sword, "on loan" from Toadstool. "These seem much stronger, should we have any nasty surprises."

"I thank you for your thoughtfulness, Anne, but I'm fine. I'm not a particularly belligerent type, and we only have two of those swords. They look better on you and Sasha than on me."

"Your loss!" retorted Sasha to him, cleaving the air and cutting a few blades of tall grass, "This is a real weapon, not the woodchuck Amelia carries."

"Don't speak ill of my katana! Endurance counts for nothing without skill."

"Is that why I always win when we duel?"

"You didn't win last time! Do you remember? We tied!"

"As it happens, we came to a draw after I had already cornered you on several occasions-"

Jacob ignored the new quarrel between Sasha and his cousin, preferring to focus on Marcy. The Taiwanese-American girl was leaning against Bessie's side, adding new notes and sketches to her already familiar journal."

"Marbles? Are you okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yes Jacob. All good."

Jacob was not fooled by the girl's words: he could see, behind her seemingly calm and carefree expression, a veil of sadness.

"Sasha, Anne?"

"What do you need, Jacob?"

"Can I, like, "kidnap" Marcy for a couple of minutes? There is something I would like to ask her, in private."

"What?"

"Suit yourself, but don't waste time." said Anne, giving a few more affectionate pats to Bessie, "We have to leave soon."

"Be sure to bring her back in one piece!" Sasha intervened, still involved in her clash with Amelia.

"Okay mom!"

"Don't call me mom!"

Jacob chuckled, escorting Marcy to a small clearing, far enough away from the farm. "So Marcy, what's eating you?"

The girl looked to the side. "Nothing, absolutely nothing. Why do you ask?"

"Because your face is an open book, and I can see your emotional turmoil. You act as your usual self, but there is a veil of sadness in your eyes. I know because I saw it, when Sasha suggested that we could go home right away."

Marcy opened her eyes wide, and made to answer, before Jacob preemptively shushed her.

"I brought you here, away from the others, because I want you to be honest with me, Mar-Mar. Whatever you're keeping for yourself, I want to know. Now you don't have to worry that Sasha, Anne or the others might find out. Please be honest: I promise not to say anything to others, no matter what it could be."

For a moment, Marcy felt a chill run down her body as Jacob silently stared at her. Could she really trust him? Ever since they had arrived, she had felt the need, the need for a friendly voice to confide in, to seek advice or support, to reveal what she had done.

Yet, would Jacob really understand her? Would he understand her, if she spoke, or would it destroy their friendship?

"Jacob, do you...promise not to tell anyone?"

In response, the boy kneeled in front of her, and automatically began to speak like a knight toward his lady.

"In the name of Anorakth the Omniscient, of Atrkhes the All-Seeing, and of the Protecting Eye of Peace, I, Jacob of Earth, do solemnly swear and promise to keep secret everything you will say to me, no matter how important or dangerous it might be."

"But-but this is the oath of the Followers of True Truth, in the Vagabondia Chronicles!"

"I know. That's why I used it."

Marcy smiled, amused but also moved by her friend's gesture. Silently, something in her moved, and her mouth began to speak.

"Jacob, the thing is...I don't want to return home. Not right now, at least."

"What do you mean?" asked the boy with an alarmed air. "You don't want to go back to Earth, and see your parents again? Your Chess Club friends, your relatives, your home?"

Marcy moved her lip. She couldn't tell him about her parents, not yet at least.

"The thing is...when we got here, it was like a dream come true, at least for me. You don't know how many times I dreamed of ending up in another world, a world of magic and fantastic creatures, where I could be an adventurer just as in Vagabondia Chronicles, Creatures and Caverns or War of the Warlocks. When we ended up here, in a world of talking frogs and other amazing creatures, I never felt so happy in my life! I know I shouldn't say this, but since we were here, I hoped - I hoped - that this adventure could last as long as it could!"

"Marcy, are you saying that, if by chance we found a way to go home already, you ... you wouldn't be happy about it?"

"I... don't know, that's the point! You, and Sasha, and Anne, you are right to want to go home, but me ... is it selfish to wish the adventure wouldn't end right away?"

Jacob took a step back as his mind analyzed the girl's words. A part of him understood, almost shared her thoughts. Getting to experience an epic adventure was the forbidden dream of many, and Marcy dreamt of being the heroine in a fantasy adventure, of unknown worlds and unknown creatures. Jacob too had similar desires in the past, and fancied being the hero, a brave and adventurous boy destined for great feats.

Yet now, he, Marcy and the others were stuck in another world for real; and the harsh reality was very different from their past innocent fantasies.

"Marbles," Jacob finally said, looking at her, "Believe me, it's a feeling I can understand - but do not share."

"What do you mean?"

"First of all, this is not a JRPG adventure, but the harsh, direct reality: on several occasions, we narrowly escaped death: remember the giant mantises? The kaiju-sized water snake? The tyrannosaur-sized tomato plant? The electric centipedes?"

"Well, those weren't so bad-"

"Marcy, they set your hair on fire, and you continued to catch fire at random times, for the rest of the day!"

"Unpleasant, but true."

"Believe me, Mars. I'm someone who loves adventuring too, but not when it's playing with your life or the lives of others. So far, we have always gotten away with it, but only by luck."

"And that's no good?"

"Mars, luck runs out sooner or later."

Marcy looked to the side, a nervous expression on her face. On this, Jacob was right: no adventure was worth seeing her best friends hurt ... or worse.

"Besides, don't you think about our parents?"

Marcy felt something tighten around her heart as her eyes focused on Jacob, shrouded in an unusual sadness.

"Do you remember your parents, Anne's parents, mine? It's been weeks since we got here. Unless time runs differently here in comparison to Earth, our parents will be looking for us. They probably called the police, put notices at school or in the newspapers... I can't even dare to try and imagine how my mom is feeling right now. Or yours."

Marcy felt a twinge in her legs, and fell to her knees as thousands of invisible knives cut through her heart, without mercy.

"At least, if someone, just one of us, had known the truth before this happened, we could have left a message, something to make them know we were fine, to reassure them and tell them we'd be able to return as soon as we could! Yet, we didn't. We had no way to know this would work for real. Thus, we are here, trapped in Amphibia, with no means to find a contact back to Earth. Every day we spend here is a day our families are forced to live with no news of what happened to us – or even that we are still ok. My dad often joked that I'd run away from home: what if he just thinks I did?"

Jacob was starting to fall for his own words, the despair of the situation ready to swallow him completely, before he felt Marcy's warm, gentle hand move to touch his.

"Jacob, I- I had no way-"

"Don't be sad on my behalf," the boy smiled again, seeing the girl's precious figure and finding again his humoristic escapist personality, "I'm just saying, we do not know how long it will take to find a way to return to Earth, but in the events we do, we can't simply ignore it. At least, some of us should go, and tell our families we are ok. Don't you agree?"

"Huh…yeah?"

"Plus, we do not know what kind of traveling device we could find: maybe we can find something that'd allow us to return here. If that happens, I have a couple of ideas in the event I ever plan to return to this slimy place."

"Like what?"

"Bringing some insecticide for mosquitoes, for example, or canned food, or some Earth-made hygienic items we'd desperately need right now. Don't tell my mom I ever said this, but now I crave for a bath."

Marcy chuckled, her own feeling and fears at bay "I believe that."

"Hey!"

(…)

"Ok, kiddos," Hop Pop said, Polly at Sprig to his side, "Take care of Bessie, and remember what you learned from the book."

"It's not fair!" Sprig lamented, with a grumpy face "Why Polly and I cannot go with them?!"

"Yeah, they might meet some large monstrous bugs! I want to fight them!"

"Yeah, that's one of the main reasons why you're staying here, where is safer-"

"Plus, there is a reason why it's preferable for this to be a human-only mission, Sprig."

"Anne?"

"We are going to look out for another human," the girl explained. "And we have no information on how they ended up here, or even what dangers they faced so far. Seeing human faces, they might feel relaxed, and be more trusting toward us."

"I don't understand what-"

"Sprig, you remember how you thought we were monsters, when we met for the first time? We even faced a mob. With torches and pitchforks."

"Ok, fair point."

"It's better if we try to keep the first contact as friendly as possible," James added, the next-to-last in sitting order on Bessie (with the last one being Amelia, due to having lost the quarrel with Sasha before), "Of course, if we find out they're friendly, we'll bring them here so you can make acquaintance too."

"You promise?" Sprig looked at them with eyes once again filled with gleam.

"I promise! Plus, if we do not return by today, you can come looking for us with Ivy and Maddie: I think you'd make quite a nice team."

"Well-"

"Wait, Wait!" A voice called for them, as the humans saw a familiar green frog running towards them.

"Mr. Joe," Sasha asked, looking at him "What brings you here?" Is he planning to accuse us once again?

"Toadstool told me he was sending you to look out for the beast who attacked me. The one who looks like, well, you."

"And?"

"I'd like to join you in this expedition."

"What." Amelia asked from the back "Why?"

"Yeah, dude," Jacob called out to him, "Weren't you scared of us before?"

"I still am," the frog said, almost apologetic "However, to tell the truth, I want to join your expedition for a simple reason. After I…escaped, that night, I lost most of my merchandise and items I planned to sell here in Wartwood, and without them, I am ruined. I was hoping that, if I could at least regain some of it, I'd have enough left to restart, and rebuild my business from the ground up."

Sasha shrugged, and looked at the others: she obviously didn't want him with them.

"Look, guy, we know you just want to get back some of your items, but-"

"We would gladly accept your assistance."

"What." Sasha said, looking at Marcy.

Jacob shrugged, looking at the merchant frog, "Just jump aboard, and get yourself comfy. It will be a long journey."

"Marbles?" Sasha asked undertone, looking at her friend.

"He can guide us to the exact place where the event happened, can't he? This would help us find the other humans. And if we help find some of his merchandise as well…he could offer us a reward."

Sasha smirked, "Now you're talking my language."

"We should be arriving any minute. Still … I guess I was wrong to be afraid of you: you creatures sure are kind and peaceful."

"Well, thanks for having noticed that," Sasha replied with sarcasm, "However, please, stop calling us creatures! We do have names!"

"Oh, yeah? And- what they are?"

"I'm Sasha Waybright, and these are my friends Anne Boonchuy and Marcy Wu."

"I'm Jacob, Jacob Matthews, and the one in the back is my cousin, Amelia."

"And I'm James Blueingham," James intervened, still looking through his sextant. "Are you certain we are almost arrived?"

"Oh, quite sure. The forest is looking quite similar to the one where I lost everything I had."

Thank frog, Anne groaned in her mind. As Bessie traveled forward, Joe the frog had been … overly talkative, asking questions about the humans or what kind of place they came from. Anne, alongside Sasha and the others, did try to reply to all his questions, but in the end, were unable to keep going and ended up directing all his questions toward the ever-enthusiastic and hyperactive Marcy, who was extremely happy to reply to all the questions the frog asked them.

Meanwhile, Jacob, Amelia and Sasha were a little too eager for this trip to end.

"Ok, guys," James spoke, checking the stars who were starting to appear in the sky above them. "I guess we are almost there."

"You think maybe our fellow human is close by? What if he's looking at us through the woods?"

"Nah, I doubt it Jacob" Sasha quickly replied, "If he ever saw us in here, he would have come forward to meet us."

"Unless of course, they are scared or suspicious of us. I mean, you remember when we ended up in Amphibia for the first time?"

"You mean when Marcy landed on you?"

"Sashy!" Marcy called out to her, trying to hide her embarrassment.

"Ok, two points: first, you landed all over James,"

"Without meaning it, of course!" The English boy quickly added.

"-and second, I meant when we had to discover first-hand about the large carnivorous bugs who live in this place. We had the luck to be together, but if I ended up alone, I'd have been scared to the bone!"

"You, scared to the bone?" Sasha chuckled, looking at Saint James Middle School's regular rebel troublemaker.

"Yes, just like yourself, the first time you saw that giant mantis!"

"This! This is the place!" Joe suddenly yelled, pointing to a small clearing among the bushes and surrounded by the trees. "It's here that thing appeared to me, but where is my merchandise?"

As Anne "parked" Bessie, the kids quickly divided in smaller groups to search the area: Marcy went with Jacob, while James partnered with Amelia and Sasha.

"Ok guys, we do not have much time and we have a large area to explore," Marcy explained. "Jacob, Anna-Banana and I will go south, while you guys check northward. Here, James, take this."

"What are they?"

"A couple of spells Maddie taught me, and that now I can produce on my own. These are smoke bombs, these are bugs repellent, and these mushrooms are - "

"Boom shrooms?" James asked, having heard of them from Polly

"No, they are stink shrooms! When you throw them, they should generate a stinky smell to repel any large bug or animal that may try to eat you!"

"Couldn't Maddie give you something useful for once," Sasha rolled her eyes. "Real Boom shrooms, or something that can actually hurt those predators?"

"She said we still have a long way to go before she can teach me spells involving such items.

Translation: Maddie doesn't feel safe with giving you some real explosive, Sasha sighed. It was understable, after all.

"Anyway!" Anne intervened, "I suggest we try to search for any place a human might consider taking as a temporal refuge; try to use Earth words."

"Like Internet, Wi-fi, Kentucky fried?"

"Good thinking Jacob, but I think we should keep ourselves to common words for all nations and countries."

"Any reason for that, James?"

"Look, we don't know anything about this human, whoever they might be. Who says they come from the same place as us? What if they simply come from, well, the remaining 90% of the world?"

"That's…actually a good point."

"OK, people, let's try to use only words on common knowledge, especially on the helping side. Remember that we are supposed to befriend them."

"Hey, where is that Joe going?"

The six humans turned at the same time to notice that Joe was now walking away, toward the forest.

"Where are you going? Aren't you going to stay here?"

"I cannot afford that," the frog replied, "My merchandise is gone, and I have to find it before it gets ruined!"

"We can help you with that!" Amelia nodded, "Just tell us what it looks like-"

"No, no. I mean, I would appreciate it if you could find and bring it to me. However, I cannot stay idle and wait: I have to go look for it too!"

The kids looked at each other: either he was the most courageous frog in the world, or he was the dumbest. Either way, it wasn't anything of their concern.

"Ok, just remember to scream if you end up meeting some large predator bug."

"I will, thank you!" He looked at them before rushing into the woods. Sasha turned to his friends.

"Let our search begin!" She said, as each them started in their respective direction.

"Hello? Arigato? Someone Isekai here? Don't be a baka, come outside!"

"Amelia, I think no one is understanding what you are saying," Sasha looked at her with a smirk

"What does that mean?" The would-be samurai sniped back.

"I think what Sasha says, is that there are probably just bugs on those rotten woods you are shouting at. And bugs cannot understand our language."

"Oh, well, I guess that makes sense. Sorry for misunderstanding you, Sash."

"Huh, sure, whatever" Sasha looked aside, while James approached her.

"Sasha!" James silently said to her, being careful for Amelia not to hear him, "What's gotten into you. You've been grumpy and obnoxious since we split up!"

"I'm always this way."

"Yeah, but now you're exaggerating it! What's wrong with you? I thought you'd be happy for the possibility we could return home."

"I am!" she replied, clearly offended by the boy's words. "It's just that…I am here, while Boonchuy and Marbles are alone far away!"

James stopped, as he realized the issue with Sasha: she was angry at not being with her friends.

"You miss them already?"

"Well, of course I do: we are best friends after all! And best friends always look out for each other and help each other."

"Sasha, are we not friends?"

The blonde girl stopped, and looked at him "James?"

"Is Amelia not your friend?"

"Well, of course she is!" Thought a very bothersome and difficult to deal every day-

"Is there any reason why you think spending time with both of us is a waste of your time?"

"I'm not saying that. It's just that – Marcy and Anne have been friends since we were seven, and if something should happen to them while I'm far and unable to help-"

James's face expression quickly returned friendly "I know, Sasha. I know that you are worried about them. However, I think you should put more trust in them. I mean, even if they do end up running into some large predator, can we trust them to survive and run long enough to allow us to go and rescue them?"

"Well, I do guess you're right-"

"Plus, they're not alone," intervened Amelia, walking back to them. "Jacob is with them."

A silence fell on the trio, as Sasha's eyes widened all of sudden, trying to run as James and Amelia held onto her.

"Sasha, Sasha, calm down!"

"I have to go and rescue them! That idiot is going to get them killed!"

"Waybright! My cousin may be an idiot, but he's not that much of a fool: what is the worst that can happen?"

(Back at the other group:)

"Well, we survived that giant Beetle."

"Barely, Jacob. Barely."

"Come on, Anne, we didn't mean to fight it, it attacked us!"

"That's because you went inside that cave to check out if our fellow lost human was there, even after Marbles- Marbles?"

Marcy was sitting on her own legs, her head down, and not emitting one sound. Immediately, Anne walked to her.

"Mar-mar, I know that it was a scary experience to face, but- "

Only then Anne realized Marcy was not frightened, or scared, or having a trauma. Instead, she had her journal in hands, and was adding new notes with gleam-filled eyes.

"-new interesting species, with features similar to Earth's rhinoceros. Unable to fly, but considering their behavior-"

"Mars?" Anne asked, exchanging a glance with Jacob.

"I guess her nerd side is much stronger than her own safety and instinct of self-preservation."

" I guess we'll both have to check on her, right?"

"Let's make a deal: if another abnormal critter attack us, I hold them off and try to gain time and leverage while you grab her and run as fast as you can."

"I can do that."

"Oh, sorry!" Marcy suddenly jerked up, as she realized she felt in her "Zone" once again, "I guess it was a very interesting specimen and-"

"Don't be embarrassed, Marblelade," Jacob chuckled. "The brave Jacob is here to protect you!"

"The brave Jacob?" Anne looked at him, nonplussed "Where the frog did that come from?"

"I started working as an adventurer." The boy simply replied, showing off a smug smile, "Loggle and several others pay me good coppers if I bring the rare items from the forest for their own use."

"Wait, you said, working as an adventurer? You found a job?"

"Huh, yeah?"

"Everything ok, Anna-Banana?"

Anne looked down, a look of dread in her eyes. Marcy got a job, Sasha got a job, and even Jacob got a job. Was she the only one left unemployed and thus, without a steady income of coppers?

"Frog, I guess I must try harder to find regular employment in Wartwood."

"Why?"

"Marbles, you and Sasha obtaining a job, I can understand. But, Jacob? Wow, this actually hurt!"

"Hey, I'm not that bad!" The male teenager protested.

"Come on, Anna-Banana. I got a job because of Maddie's father, and-"

"How much are you earning?"

"Huh, three coppers a day?"

"Mars, maybe it's better to stay silent for a little bit" Jacob patted her as Anne groaned in frustration.

The humans searched through the forest far and wide, trying to locate their fellow human friend, calling out Earth words and names, looking for every possible place a human would ever consider for their hideout, searching for hints or possible clues of humans presence in the area.

And yet, when the two groups returned to Bessie and met with each other, there were still six humans at all, not one more.

"So," Sasha asked as she looked at Jacob, Marcy and Anne, "did you have any luck?"

"I would say no," Jacob replied with a tired air, "We've inspected all the caves or possible shelters, but we haven't found anything human, or even vaguely humanoid."

"On the other hand, we have found a rhinoceros-shaped beetle, giant ant-lions, and flies that look like crows."

"It wasn't an empty search: I added new pages for my journal, and Jacob provided me with a piece of that rhinoceros beetle's armor."

"I ask that it be recorded that such a piece is due to the fact that the beetle attempted to charge us, only to hit a large rock!"

"What about you?" asked Anne as she looked at Sasha and the others, "Did you guys find anything?"

"Oh, yes!" replied the blond girl, looking at Amelia with a hostile look "Numerous bugs and assorted dangers for us too, thanks to this irresponsible one!"

"Hey!" Amelia protested, "You were the one who challenged me with your words!"

"I didn't tell you to get us killed!"

Amelia and Sasha began to fight again, and soon Jacob and Anne joined them, forcing James and Marcy to break up the fight.

"Guys, guys!" James shouted, "Calm down, calm down! This is no time to get into a fight!

"The other human!" suddenly shouted Marcy, pointing to a spot behind them. Immediately, the quarrel was immediately forgotten, the other five boys looked in the direction the girl was pointing. What they saw was both surprising - and disappointing.

"A tree?" said Amelia, the first of the group to react.

"It just looks like a dry old sapling."

"It is, Jacob," said Marcy sketching an image of the tree in her journal "It is the night light that, taken from a certain angle, makes said tree appear with a human-like figure. If our traveling merchant friend was camped here that night, he might have seen the little tree in a strange shape and..."

"... and so, as a fearful fellow not prone to investigate, he ran off in a hurry, losing his cargo. Who knows why, but I expected it." Said Sasha with a cynical air. "I guess there are no other humans in Amphibia, except us of course."

"So, no new friends."

"And no hope of finding an alternative method of getting home," Jacob concluded, exchanging a glance with Marcy. "I guess we're left with no other way but to try to figure out how to get that music box working again, and how to recharge it."

"I'm afraid so," the Taiwanese-American girl replied to him, unsure whether to feel relieved or disappointed "Don't worry, we'll find a way home!"

"For now, I'll settle for going back to the farm!" Sasha then said, climbing onto Bessie's back "Come on guys, let's get out of this damp and dangerous place."

"Wait a minute!" Intervened James, looking around, "What happened to our eyewitness? The merchant? Didn't you see him in the forest?"

"Neither seen nor heard." Replied Anne promptly, "And you?"

"Absolutely nothing! What could have happened to him?"

(…)

"So," Toadstool asked, his expression imperturbable, like always, "You didn't find another hummus."

"It was another human," Jacob replied "And not, there wasn't one: just a small dried-up tree that could be mistaken for a human in the wrong light."

"That Joe, he could have seen better the first time!" Toadstool grumbled. "I was afraid for nothing!"

"Yeah, and I was excited for nothing!" Sasha looked at him, "I guess on the same side."

"By the way, kids" Hop Pop asked, with Polly and Sprig to his side "Where did Joe go?"

"We haven't seen him again." Anne simply told them "He told us he wanted to look for his missing merchandise, but he never returned to Bessie. We tried to look for him, but he had simply… disappeared. I can only hope nothing bad happened to him-"

Far away from the clearing where the humans (plus Bessie) were gathering to return home, Joe the merchant, the green-skinned frog who started the whole mess, was now walking briskly toward a small hut, half-hidden among the trees, formerly the house of a small frog family who grew vegetables in self-consumption. They were the one who greeted him, some time ago, with a friendly smile and happy words.

Yet, the house had now a new master. His master.

Joe opened the hut's door, his neutral eyes, now devoid of any emotions, cold as he walked into the living room of the building. Here, sitting between two tall metallic figures on a makeshift throne, a third figure, dressed in armor and with a cape covering his back, a silver-lined crown on his head, busy gorging himself with some food. Coming down from the basement, Joe could hear the pleas of help from the hut's former owners, as they begged someone to come and save them from the chains they were currently entrapped.

A useless plea, as Joe knew: not only there was no one close enough to help them, but his master had been lenient already into taking them as his serfs.

"Prince Aiden," Joe said, in a robotic voice, kneeling on the floor.

"Infiltrator," the figure stopped eating and stood up, an evil smirk spreading all over his face, air puffing through his face bump. "Was your mission successful?"

"Indeed, my lord," the frog said, before his face opened, revealing himself not to be a living creature, but a machine. It immediately started to display some images it recorded during the time he spent with the other humans "As you ordered me, I have gathered all the information you asked me to bring you, of your fellow brethren."

"Do they have names?"

"The metal-haired one is called James, master," the robotic frog said in a monotonic voice. "The Viking calls himself Jacob, and affirm the Cipango warrior is his cousin, name's Amelia. The three girls are Anne, Marcy … and Sasha."

"Sasha, huh?" The blonde-haired boy looked over the recorded images of the girl "I guess she must come from the Emperor's court, and she sure does not look like a low-level courtesan. A real princess, true and true."

He already thought the three girls were beautiful, but now, after looking at the images his scout and explorer had brought to him he couldn't help but find them gorgeous, true beauties like the ones he used to frequent and fool with. Was this real desire that he felt, or was it just the fact these were the first human girls he saw in a thousand years?

It didn't matter. They were here, in Amphibia, with him: it was enough.

"The Viking boy sure looks quite energetic and powerful. I guess I could use him as an officer for my own army. I can say the same for his cousin: while I have no idea how a Viking could even get close to having a blood connection to such faraway places, she indubitably has extraordinary skills with her sword I could have need for her on my own plans. After all, every noble deserves a competent assassin and spymaster."

He laughed a little, before returning to look to the three humans who interested him the most: the girls who were called Anne, Marcy and Sasha.

The current embodiments of Hearth, Wit and Strength

"They don't look like they have the Box, and yet, Andrias said it must have returned to Amphibia by now. I guess this probably means either they hid it, or they simply didn't bring it with them for this mission. Yet, this is not an issue of mine for now: before the pass that separates the Valley from the rest of Amphibia melts, I will have more than enough time to prepare and meet them."

"The time for my reckoning is close: when it will be over, Andrias will be no more, and a new king will rule all over this land. A human king, not one of these beasts! Moreover, every king deserves his queen-"

He looked at the images of the girls, as his brain started to imagine proper noblewomen dresses all over them.

"Why shouldn't I have three?"

I remember you to leave a comment if you liked the chapter, and let me know your feedback: I LOVE reaading your comments, every time!