Meeting a King

Athena blinked and rubbed her eyes as she stood in a flooded library. Was this a dream? She heard a low rumbling in the distance and started to shiver. She reached into her backpack and pulled out a green toad stuffie. Grime would keep her safe. She hugged him close to her chest and slowly started wading through the ankle high water. The rumbling got louder and she looked around as she tried to find the source. It sounded like… snoring?

She spotted what looked like a chess board at the far end of the library next to a large seated statue. The snoring only got louder as she made her way towards it. Her face lit up when she saw the pieces on the board. It looked like Flipwart and the board was already set. She clambered into a chair across from the statue and set her stuffie on the opposite side of the board.

"Your move first, Grime." Athena said cheerfully. She scanned the board and moved a piece for him. There was a sudden loud snort and the ground shook. Athena reached across the board and grabbed her stuffie again.

"Master Marcy?" An old deep voice asked hopefully. Athena's eyes widened as she realized what she presumed was a statue was starting to stir. A pair of white cloudy eyes looked around the room blindly.

"You know my Ma?" Athena asked, half scared and half curious. Andrias thought his heart nearly stopped.

"Andria?" He asked in a cracked voice.

"That's my sister." Athena said as she looked up and down the hulking newt. She chewed her lip as she took in his appearance. "Oh!" She said, clambering to her feet. "You must be King Andrias! Ma told me about you!" She couldn't help but stare. Her Ma had told her and her siblings all about their time in Amphibia. So was that where she was? She looked around. After a moment or two Andrias finally found his voice again.

"Master Marcy-" He shook his head. "-Your mother," He amended, "told you about me?" He got choked up as he thought about it. Giant tears were welling up in his eyes.

"Yeah, Ma told us about how she went to frog land and met a king and joined the Night Guard and fought a lot of bad guys." Athena said brightly. She flapped her hands excitedly. She always knew her Ma's stories were true. Her siblings had said they were just stories from Ma's webcomic but the way her Ma told the stories… They didn't sound made-up.

"Please excuse me." Andrias said as he wiped away the tears now rolling down his face.

"No, it's okay. Mom says it's okay to cry." Athena said as she walked over and patted his giant hand. Andrias sniffed and looked down blindly at where he thought she was.

"Thank you little Master." He chuckled as he pulled himself together. "Forgive me but I'm afraid I don't know your name."

"It's Athena." She said proudly. "Mæ̀ picked it."

"I see." Andrias said as he scratched his beard.

"Wait, you can?" Athena asked, confused. Andrias blinked.

"No, no. It's a figure of speech." He said waving a hand in front of his face. "I lost my eyesight years ago." He sighed.

"So what are you doing in here?" Athena asked as she looked around the flooded library.

"Waiting." Andrias said, looking up.

"For what?" Athena said as she followed his gaze. There were a couple of holes in the ceiling where light from outside streamed in. He looked back down in her general direction.

"For whatever happens next." He said cryptically. He closed his eyes and felt around for Barrel's hammer. It functioned as both his cane and guide as his body continued to deteriorate. He found it and gripped it tightly as he struggled to get to his feet. Several of his joints popped and cracked painfully as he stood up.

"Where are you going?" Athena asked as Andrias steadied himself.

"I was hoping you could bring me to your mother." Andrias asked as he stretched. "I'm very curious to hear how she got back and brought you with. I'm guessing some sort of portal or-"

"Ma didn't bring me here." Athena said, frowning. Andrias stopped stretching and furrowed his brow.

"Then who brought you here?" Andrias said, starting to look worried.

"No one." Athena said as she hugged her plushie close. "We found this box-"

"No…" Andrias whispered as Athena dived into the story of finding a mysterious puzzle box at summer camp. "W-what did it look like?" He asked urgently.

"Oh, uh, it had a bunch of these red orange eyes all over it." Athena said as she tried to recall it. Andrias clutched his chest. One of his last great sins was coming back to haunt him. He knew exactly what had brought her here.

"Little Master." Andrias said quickly as his heart began to race. "Where is the box now?" Athena shrugged then remembered he couldn't see.

"I don't know." She said kicking her feet through the shallow water. "Troy or Andria might have it." She jumped as Andrias knelt down.

"Do you know where they are?" He asked desperately.

"N-no." Athena said as she squeezed her plushie close to her chest. Andrias could hear the quaver in her voice. He stood back up and took a calming breath. This was his mistake and he needed to fix it. Marcy would be depending on him to keep her children safe in such a scenario. "Am I in trouble?" Athena asked nervously.

"What? No, no." Andrias said, waving a giant hand.

"Cause Mom and Mæ̀ keep telling me to stick with my Troy and Andria, especially if we get separated from them or think we're lost." Athena said, chewing her lip. "And I-I haven't looked for them… yet." Andrias chuckled.

"That is quite alright little Master Athena. We can find them together." He said as he started tapping his cane around the flooded library. Athena nodded and stood beside him. She grabbed the hem of his cloak and held onto it as they made their way out of the old ruin. Athena shielded her eyes as they emerged into the bright sunlight. Andrias hummed softly to himself as they made their way towards the city gates to New Newtopia. He was lost in a whirlwind of thoughts.

"Ooo! Are we going into that city?" Athena asked excitedly as her eyes roamed over the glittering towers and pearly walls.

"Yes." Andrias said as they slowly made their way.

"Do General Yunan and Lady Olivia live there?" She asked eagerly as she started digging in her backpack for their plushies.

"No. I don't think so." Andrias said, frowning slightly as he thought about it. "They settled in Wartwood, though I believe Lady Olivia still makes visits every so often as part of her vows to protect and keep the land." He closed his eyes. He still had deep regrets for the wrongs he committed against them. He didn't think they ever truly forgave him and he didn't fault them for it. He didn't deserve any of the forgiveness he had been so freely given.

"Maybe if she's there she can help us find my brother and sister." Athena said as her eyes widened. "And then she can take us to see Grime and Sprig and Polly and Frobo and-" She rattled off an impressive list of names. Andrias raised his eyebrows.

"Your Ma told you about all of them?" He asked dumbfounded.

"Yup! But I don't know all their stories. Just what Ma told me and what she put in her comic." She said, proudly.

"You have quite the memory." Andrias remarked. She reminded him so much of Marcy he couldn't help but smile. It wasn't too much longer before they reached the gates. "Now Master Athena, I don't know how much your mother has told you about my past but-" He could hear the guards shouting urgently to one another. "-I might not be allowed to accompany you through the city. I hope that is okay."

"Wait, why not?" Athena asked worriedly as she tightened her grip on his cloak.

"Andrias!" A harsh voice spat as it approached. A fearsome looking troop of newt guards approached and barred their path in front of the gates. "You know well enough that you aren't welcome here." A captain snarled as he stepped forward. Athena shrunk back and Andrias looked down at her.

"It's alright little Master. You aren't the one in trouble." He said gently.

"Who are you-?" The newt demanded as he drew his sword. His eyes followed Andrias's gaze and he yelped when he saw the tiny human. "A human!" The troop collectively gasped as they spotted her. The captain nudged one of his soldiers who fumbled with a horn before quickly blowing it. More soldiers peered down from the walls as they hurried down.

"That's Master Marcy's kin!" The newts started whispering amongst themselves.

"Little Master." The newt captain said, approaching her and bowing deeply. "Forgive me for not noticing you sooner. I am Captain Rosales of the New Newtopia Night Guard."

"Hi." Athena said shyly as she continued to hide behind Andrias's cloak.

"May I have your name?" He asked, straightening up and peering over at her curiously.

"Athena." She mumbled quietly. The sudden crowd along with their chattering was overwhelming her. Andrias could pick up on her discomfort and cleared his throat.

"Perhaps we may continue introductions inside the city walls and with a smaller audience." He proposed. The newts all glared at him.

"You don't get to make demands like that." A soldier snapped at him.

"I apologize if it sounded like one. I was merely making a suggestion." Andrias said calmly. The newts looked to their captain who let out a heavy sigh and motioned for them to open the gates. He looked up at Andrias suspiciously before glancing back down at Athena.

"Please, follow me." He said turning his back on them and leading the way into the city.