After dancing the night away Anne and Sprig found a place to rest for the remainder of the night before continuing on their journey the next day. During their travels they ended up hitching a ride to a land that was truly surreal. It was almost like they had walked into an abstract painting, with their new surroundings being so unusual and distorted, with no definitive shapes to indicate even a tree or rock. It was a tough place to navigate or even try to comprehend really, but at least for the most part it seemed to be void of danger as far as they could tell.

Once they got through there they found themselves in another very strange place, it almost seemed like the land itself was alive and breathing, like they had just entered the inner workings of some living creature. This place, though maybe not quite as confusing as the previous land, seemed to be fraught with danger around every corner. Giant microbe-like organisms floating in the sky would swoop down and attack them, fields of grass-like tentacles would try to grab at them, holes in the ground would open up and try to swallow them whole. It was a miracle they were able to escape with their lives.

Then there was the bubbles. That's right, a land filled with bubbles of all shapes and sizes. Odd as it was it was at least a very fun and peaceful place to travel through. The duo found enjoyment in bouncing around on and even riding in some of the larger bubbles, but as fun as it was they couldn't stay for very long, as they had to continue their journey elsewhere.

At the moment they were currently traveling through yet another unusual landscape. This time it was a crystal forest, where everything was quite literally made out of crystal, the trees, the rocks, the animals, even the ground!

It was a beautiful place really, the golden light from setting sun glistening off of the crystalline forest as they traveled down a pathway between the trees.

They walked on a bit further until something in the distance caught Anne's attention.

"Hey, what's that over there?"

Sprig looked in the direction she was pointing to see something very tall up ahead. "I don't know." He replied, before they both started walking towards it. As they got closer they started to realize that it appeared to be a crystal tower that extended up into the sky as far as the eye could see, or at least until it was shrouded by clouds.

"Now that's a tall tower." Anne said while standing before it and gaping at just how massive and tall it was.

Unfortunately for them, they were so focused on what was before them that they weren't the least bit focused on what was above them. In the sky above them were two large crystal birds, circling overhead. How was it possible that they could fly with wings made of crystals, no one really knew, just another one of the strange mysteries of Paradox.

All of a sudden one of the birds swooped down and grabbed them each in its claws. Anne and Sprig both screamed as they were carried up into the sky until the creature flew through the clouds and leveled out over them. When the bird emerged from the top of the clouds however, both the frog girl and human boy stared in awe at what was in front of them.

It was the top of the gigantic crystal tower they had been looking at on the ground, but sitting atop the tower was a huge crystal castle!

"Woah." They both said as they stared at it in awe, the light of the setting sun glistening off of it, making it appear even more beautiful and magical. It almost made them forget about their current situation….almost until the other bird came swooping in and attacked the one holding them.

It tried to make a grab for what was being held in the first raptor's talons and soon the two animals began fighting. Amidst the aerial squabble, the first bird flew towards the castle, trying to flee from the one attacking it. But the second bird swooped at the first one again and this time made it drop the human and frog it had been holding. Thankfully it ended up dropping them onto the platform entranceway in front of the door to the castle.

As the two birds flew off, now more interested in battling each other rather than hunting the two friends, Anne and Sprig both shook their heads and looked up at what was no doubt one of the coolest places they'd ever seen.

"Wow, this place is amazing!" Sprig exclaimed, staring at it in awe.

"So, quick question, how are we supposed to get from here to the ground without killing ourselves?" Anne asked, looking down over the edge to see the ground hundreds of feet below.

"…Maybe we could just ask whoever lives here. I mean if someone actually does live here then I'm pretty sure they know how to get down." Sprig suggested, before they both walked over to the front door. He lifted his hand, ready to knock on the door.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Sprig and Anne quickly spun around, just in time to see the owner of the new voice land on the platform in front of them.

The creature before them sorta resembled a cross between a wolf and a dragon. Its fur was dark grey, and it had a spiky black mane. Its head and face were very wolf-like, with intense pale pinkish-white eyes and a black nose. Atop its head were red, deer-like antlers that had an almost crystalline appearance to them.

Its neck and body were long and serpent-like, standing on four legs with wolf-like paws, and a pair of bird-like wings on its back. The wings, like its fur, were mostly gray with dark red markings around the edges of the feathers. Its feathered tail was long and bushy, with a mixture of gray, black, and dark red feathers with some pretty fancy black and red markings.

The creature sported a look that was simultaneously elegant yet menacing. His voice when he spoke was raspy and slightly higher pitched. "…I don't want you scratching up my crystalline doors, after all, they were very expensive."

"Oh….uh, sorry." Sprig said.

"It's fine, it's not everyday I get visitors. So what brings you to my humble abode?" He asked.

"Well, we didn't exactly mean to come here. A giant bird grabbed us and carried us up here. Now we don't really know how to get down." Anne explained.

"Hmm, yes, those birds can be quite pesky. And I can assume that neither of you can fly?"

The human and frog both shook their heads.

"Well, I can help you get back down to the ground, but for the time being perhaps you would like a tour of the castle? Few people ever get to see the inside of it." The creature offered.

"…That depends…you're not going to eat us are you?" Sprig asked.

"What, no! Of course not! What do I look like, some kind of monster?"

"Sorry, it's just the last person that invited us into their home tried to eat me." Anne explained.

"Well no need to worry, I promise I won't eat you guys and just to prove it, why don't I have my personal chef prepare a meal for the two of you and we can get to know each other better over dinner, how does that sound?" The creature asked.

Anne and Sprig looked at each other then back at him. As much as they were hesitant to trust a guy they just met, especially after the whole Maribel incident, they had to admit the offer was tempting, considering they had just ran out of food and had nothing to eat. Plus, they had to admit the castle did look pretty cool….

"Okay, I guess that'd be fine." Anne said.

"Splendid! By the way, I don't believe I have properly introduced myself. My name is Screech, it is a pleasure to meet you." The creature said, taking a regal bow.

"Oh, well, it's a pleasure to meet you too dude. I'm Anne, Anne Boonchuy." The blue frog said.

"And I'm Sprig Plantar, put'er there!" Sprig introduced himself enthusiastically, holding out his hand.

"Oh, uh…" Screech seemed a bit taken aback by the boy's enthusiasm, but shook his hand nonetheless, before inviting them into the castle.

The castle itself was just as impressive on the inside as it was on the outside. Everything was made entirely of crystal, even the furniture. One would think that might be uncomfortable, not to mention extremely expensive, but apparently Screech didn't seem to mind. Evidently he was very wealthy, which was why he was able to afford living in such a big, beautiful, and unique castle.

After giving the duo a tour of the place, he had his personal chef prepare a meal for them. When he told them they could ask for anything they wanted, they were skeptical. Surely they couldn't just ask for a pizza and then expect him to be able to make one, let alone even know what a pizza was.

Yet Anne gave it a shot nevertheless, and was admittedly surprised when he said "Sure, you've prepared that dish before, haven't you Quex?"

The chef nodded, then spoke to Screech in a language that Anne swore almost sounded like French.

"…He's asking you what kind of toppings you want." Screech said.

Anne and Sprig looked at one another before the frog girl asked. "What kind of toppings do you have?"


As it turns out, Quex made them each their own separate pizzas, since they both asked for completely different toppings. The individual portions were smaller than a regular pizza, but big enough to be a sizable meal all on its own. They were deep dish and the toppings on each one was different. Anne's had crab and lobster sprinkled with roasted peppers, whereas Sprig's had pineapple and crickets with mushrooms.

They both thought their pizzas were delicious and definitely probably the best thing they'd eaten in that world so far, though there wasn't much competition in that respect.

"So, how is it?" Screech asked as he watched the two of them dig in from his seat at the other end of the long crystal table. He himself, on the other hand, appeared to be dining on some rare form of blue steak.

"It's so good!" Anne said through a mouthful while Sprig nodded in agreement, taking another bite.

"Good, good. I do hope it's to your liking, I had that moovine cheese imported all the way from Dairyville." The creature said.

Anne didn't know what a moovine was and she was pretty sure she didn't want to know, but there was something else she was curious about.

"Dairyville?"

"It's where most dairy imports come from in this world. Expensive, but worth it if you can find your way to the town." Screech explained.

Interesting as that was, what he just said got her thinking about something…

"Hey, uh, you wouldn't by any chance know how to get to Paradizo, do you?" She asked.

"Well, of course I do."

The frog and human immediately dropped their pizza slices and stared at him, eyes wide and mouth's agape.

"You do?!" They exclaimed in unison.

"Yes, I do. I go there on business sometimes." The creature said.

"Can you tell us how to get there?" Sprig asked.

"I'll do you one better, I'll take you there myself, but only if you do me one little favor first." Screech replied.

"O-okay, what's the favor?" Anne asked, her nerves and excitement rising. She couldn't believe it, could this really be it? Their ticket to Paradizo?

"I've been having a little problem lately, a monster has been hanging around one of the estates I'm trying to sell, frightening off potential buyers. Based on what you've told me, you two are no strangers when it comes to dealing with monsters. So, get rid of the monster, and I will take you to Paradizo. Do we have a deal?"

Anne and Sprig looked at each other, smiled and nodded before turning back to the wealthy creature.

"Deal." They both said.


After being generously offered some extra rations to keep in their storage cube, they climbed up on Screech's back so he could fly them to the estate where the monster allegedly was. When they got there he flew past a large white mansion and landed in front of a small cave not too far away. The duo hopped off the creature's back and looked around.

"Here we are, the monster's lair." Screech said.

"…I don't see any monster." Sprig said.

"Oh, trust me, it'll come. Just be careful, this thing is very crafty and will attack anyone it sees…..So, good luck!" Screech said before flying off.

Anne rolled her eyes at him as he flew off, before both she and Sprig turned back towards the cave. "Okay, let's find this monster so we can get to Paradizo, return to normal, and find a way home!"

"Yeah!" The human boy shouted in agreement.

The two best friends then set off on the hunt. They decided it would be better to first scope the area rather than run blindly into the monster's lair. If they couldn't find it outside, only then would they risk entering its domain. They searched all around the premises, but had yet to see any signs of the beast. Then again, Screech hadn't really given them much of a description of it, so they weren't entirely sure what exactly they were looking for.

"What do you think this thing even looks like?" Sprig asked, pointing the flashlight on his phone around in various directions as he searched.

"I don't know, but that's all the more reason we should keep our guard up. Who knows what this thing is capable of or where it'll come from." Anne replied.

Mere seconds later, Anne noticed some movement out of the corner of her eye and turned to see a long black tentacle looming over her best friend.

"Sprig!" She shouted.

"Huh?" He asked, confused, before turning around and seeing it for himself.

"Ahhh!" He screamed as it tried to grab him, but Anne had already whipped the storage cube out of her pocket and retrieved her tennis racket. She smacked back the long tentacle before it could get Sprig and then watched as it retreated into a nearby bush.

A moment later, the creature it belonged to jumped out in front of them, and they both found themselves face to face with what looked like something straight out of horror movie.

The monster itself was quite a hideous and gruesome sight, with a large swollen head covered in bloodshot, light blue, pupils-less eyes. It had a huge mouth with several rows of needle thin razor sharp teeth, and a small body with long arms and legs with long claws attached to the end of each finger and toe.

Its skin was grey and rough looking, and covered in bumps and spikes in some places. Its body was so thin that its rib cage showed through, yet it had a hunched back that would split open to let several long tentacles emerge from it. Said tentacles would then lash out at the duo and try to grab them, and that's only if they managed to avoid those dagger-like claws as well.

Every time the tentacles came at Anne she would hit them back with her tennis racket. That's when the monster started slashing at her with its claws. She leaped over a long gray arm with long sharp claws attached to its hand as it slashed at her, missing as the agile blue frog was just too quick.

The monster then turned its attention back to the boy and lunged at him, but he quickly dodged its attack then whipped out his slingshot loaded with a mud ball and fired it directly at the monster's numerous eyes.

The monster stopped and wiped the mud off of the eyes that had been hit with it, and then let out an ear splitting shriek.

The duo both covered their ears at the sound. It was so loud and seemed to be rapidly rising and dropping into various pitches and frequencies, making it difficult for either one of them to tolerate.

As soon as it finished, the monster shot its tentacles at Sprig and grabbed him. He screamed as it dragged him closer, but Anne had recovered enough at that point to jump up into the air and bring her racket down on the beast's head.

It hissed in pain and let go of Sprig, rubbing its head tenderly, before unleashing yet another horrible screech.

"This isn't working, we need a plan!" Anne tried to yell over the noise.

"What!?" Sprig yelled back, having not heard a word she said.

Realizing he couldn't hear her through the noise and with his hands over his ears, she motioned with her head for him to follow her and the two ran off, away from the monster.

In Anne's mind she just wanted to find a place where they could regroup and come up with a better plan on how to deal with this shrieking beast. But unfortunately it wasn't long after they started running that the creature in question started following. They needed to lose it somehow, so when she spotted a somewhat obscured cave entrance she knew it might be their best bet.

"Sprig, think you can get it in the eyes again?" She asked.

"I can try." He replied before skidding to a halt and scooping up another ball of dirt and mud from the ground. He then fired it at the monster just as it was about to pounce on him, successfully covering most of its eyes mid pounce.

He quickly moved out of the way as the beast, unable to see very well, came crashing down. He and Anne hurriedly ran into the cave before it could wipe away the mud and come back to its senses.

The inside of the cave was dark, so dark that even Anne was struggling to see. Sprig activated the flashlight on his phone, but it wasn't long after that that they both saw some light up ahead.

The closer they got, the more light appeared until they finally came to the opening of a chamber within the cave, one that was filled with large crystals, many of which glowed in a bioluminescent light.

"Woah." They both said in unison, staring in awe at the almost magical scene before them.

"This place is beautiful." Anne said.

"It's amazing!" Sprig replied, before they continued walking amongst the crystals.

After a while, they came across some very large and tall crystals protruding from the ground. They approached them, realizing that they were so big that one could see their entire reflection in them, but the reflections they saw were not the ones they were expecting to see.

They stared wide eyed, gaping at the one shoed, brown skinned, human girl with leaves in her hair and the small, pink, hat wearing frog boy staring back at them.

For a moment, they both did a double take, looking down at themselves to see if they'd really somehow changed back. But as Anne glanced down at her hands she could see that they were still blue and froggy.

She was still a frog, but looking back up at her reflection it was still her human self. The same was true of Sprig, even though he was still human, the face in the mirror staring back at him was that of his original frog form.

"What the…?" Anne slowly lifted a hand, and realized that the Anne in the mirror followed her movements. She stepped forward, pressing her hand into the smooth crystal surface as her human reflection did the same, making it appear almost as if they were touching.

Meanwhile, Sprig stared down at his reflection, realizing just how much taller he was now than he used to be. As he stood before his froggy reflection it only came up to his stomach in height.

Despite the height difference though, as he stared at himself in the mirror, or well, what he used to look like anyway, he couldn't help but be reminded just how much he missed being his normal frog self.

"This is so surreal." Anne said as she stepped back, still staring at herself. She felt much the same way as Sprig, in the sense that she too missed her original human form, but after being a frog for almost three weeks now it was kinda surreal to see her human reflection staring back at her.

Then she noticed something.

"Wait, do I really have leaves in my hair?" She asked, noticing that little detail about her reflection, then started to feel around her hair until she pulled one of the leaves out.

"Seriously? Why does this keep happening?!" She said, before messing around with her hair trying to pull out all the leaves.

"I guess some things never change." Sprig chuckled, before turning his gaze back down to his own reflection.

Suddenly, they both heard a low rumbling growl and froze, slowly turning around to see the terrifying creature from before crouching on a nearby rock and staring straight at them. As the human-frog duo quickly whipped out their weapons and got into a fighting stance, the monster jumped down in front of them and stood at its full height, looming over them as it let out a horrific screech, its tentacles exploding from its back.

Anne and Sprig once again covered their ears and braced themselves for an attack…..but it never came. Instead, the monster stopped, its many eyes going wide as they fixated on something behind them. The creature then retracted its tentacles and slowly approached the giant crystals, completely ignoring the two kids it had been about to murder.

The frog girl and human boy both turned in confusion to see what exactly had drawn the monster's attention away from them, then gasped in shock at what they saw.

The monster was staring at its reflection in the crystal, the reflection of a beautiful, majestic creature! Its fur was pristine white, though it had a long flowing mane of pretty pastel colors. Its eyes were an intense yet beautiful sapphire blue and its canine-like nose a light shade of pink. Atop its head were magnificent blue antlers that almost appeared to be made of crystals themselves.

Its long serpent-like body was lean and fit. Its wings, like its fur, were mostly white with the tips of the feathers being the same pastel colors as its mane. Its feathered tail was long and bushy, sporting the same colors as its mane with almost peacock-like markings.

The monster reached out its hand and gently ran its claws over the image, which mirrored its movements. Its many eyes filled with tears, as did the two wolf-like eyes of the majestic creature in the mirror, as it stared into them.

"…I…I used to be beautiful…" It spoke for the first time, its voice quiet yet smooth and feminine, before the tears began to overflow.

The duo watched as the monster broke down in front of her reflection, tears streaming down her face as she cried. Sprig and Anne themselves, were at a bit of a loss for words. The monstrous creature that had been trying to kill them moments before, was now sobbing in front of a magical crystal that apparently showed one's true form.

Sprig realized that this could be their chance to take down this beast once and for all….but they couldn't do that. Though this creature had attacked them she was seemingly sentient, and hurting.

He and Anne looked at each other and he quickly realized that she was thinking the same thing. They both knew that they could risk losing their chances of getting to Paradizo if they didn't do what Screech had asked of them, but they also couldn't bring themselves to attack a creature in such a pitiful state.

In reality, she was like them. Someone who had been ripped away from everything she knew and loved, only to wake up in a strange new world and an even stranger new body.

The only difference was, they had each other.

Anne sighed and cautiously approached the crying beast. "…Are…are you okay?"

The creature in question paused in her sobbing and looked at her in shock. "….W-why are you talking to me? Can't you see that I'm a hideous, disgusting, monster?!"

"…Well, yeah….but that doesn't mean you're a monster on the inside. Maybe, deep down, you're just someone who's lost and hurting and needs someone to talk to." Anne said.

"Why do you care?" The creature asked, before looking at her own reflection. She sighed remorsefully. "The old me is gone."

"Are you sure? Maybe she's still in there somewhere." Anne said.

"No…she's not."

"...What if she-!"

"No! Don't you get it!? Even if that were true, it doesn't change anything! I….I'm still this…this horrifying abomination! And as much as I want my old life and body back, as much as I don't want people to see me as a monster, there's nothing I can do to change it." The creature said, tears streaming down her face from her many eyes.

"Well, if you don't want people to see you as a monster, then maybe start by not jumping out and attacking people for no reason." Sprig deadpanned.

She sniffled. "Look, I'm sorry I attacked you…..most of the people that have been coming around here lately have been trying to drive me away from my home, I guess I just automatically assumed you were among them."

The human and frog both felt a stab of guilt at that. That was exactly what they had been sent out there to do, but that was before they knew she wasn't just some mindless, people-eating, monster. Anne decided in that moment though, that it would be best not to tell her.

"Well, if people have been trying to drive you away from your home, don't you think there are better ways to handle the situation other than attacking them or scaring them off? Have you ever tried talking to them?" She suggested.

"…No…not really." The creature admitted. "But, it's not that simple…"

"I don't know, seems pretty simple to me." Sprig said.

"No, it's not! You don't get what it's like! People take so much as one look at me and either run away screaming or try to attack me before I can get so much as a word out! It doesn't matter what I try to say or do, people will always see me as this horrible ugly monster! Not that I would expect either of you to understand."

"…Actually…I do understand." Anne said.

The creature looked at her with surprise. "Huh."

"I get what it's like to be treated like a monster. For people to take one look at you and think you're some kind of hideous abomination! I've even had an angry mob come after me before, so believe me when I say I know how that feels…..But, over time, I was able to earn the trust and respect of those people and prove to them that I wasn't a monster. And in the end, they accepted me as one of their own."

A moment of silence reigned between them before it was broken. "…How?"

"Huh?" The teenage frog asked as she looked at the creature.

"…How did you do it, I mean. How did you get them to not see you as a monster?"

"Well, I guess by helping others and doing the right thing. I definitely made mistakes, don't get me wrong, but….when I defended the town and stood up for what was right, they had my back, and I think that's when they started seeing me differently." Anne said.

She received no response from the creature, so after another moment of silence she continued.

"I think one of your problems is that you're acting like a monster by scaring people away, but if you were nice to them instead and tried to work things out with them, then maybe eventually they'd start seeing you differently too." The blue frog explained.

The creature sighed. "I know, you're probably right….…I guess I act like a monster because that's what people treat me like, that's what I've become, and…it's all I'll ever be."

"But that's not true! Just because you were turned into a monster and people treat you that way doesn't mean you have to act that way! Why don't you try just being yourself for a change, regardless of what you look like or what people think of you." Anne said.

"I'm not even sure I know how to be myself anymore, I've been stuck in this wretched form for so long, I feel like I lost myself somewhere along the way. I don't think I could ever be the same again." The creature said.

"….Well, maybe you don't have to be the same as you were before, maybe you could just try being the you you are right now." Anne replied.

"What do you mean? The me I am right now is a monster."

"But is what you are really who you are? Who are you really? Wouldn't you rather strive to be the best version of yourself despite what's happened to you or how others treat you?" Anne asked.

"…..Maybe...I don't know…but thanks, it's kind of nice to actually talk to someone about this stuff for a change." The creature replied.

"Hey no problem. I'm Anne by the way."

"And my name's Sprig. What's yours?"

She gave them a small smile "Stardancer." She said, before looking at their reflections for a moment and then back at them.

"You're…you're each other's antipodes." She said, slightly shocked.

"Uhh, yeah, that's what we've been told at least." Sprig replied.

"It's amazing you two get along so well, most antipodes can't stand each other." Stardancer said.

"Of course we get along, we're Sprig and Anne." Anne said.

"Anne and Sprig." Sprig followed.

"Spranne against the world!" They both exclaimed while holding hands and striking a pose.

"What about your antipode, do you two get along?" The former frog asked.

Stardancer sighed. "No, not really."

"Why not?" He asked.

"Well for one thing, he's kind of a jerk. He's selfish, deceitful, arrogant, he only cares about himself and what he can get out of life, regardless of how it hurts others." She replied.

"Gee, he sounds awful." Anne said.

"He is, but he's so charming and cunning that most people don't see him that way, at least, not at first." Stardancer said, a scowl clearly evident on her lips, but as Anne studied her face she could see the pain hidden behind her many eyes, even in the eyes of her reflection.

"…He hurt you, didn't he?" Anne asked, concern and empathy clear in her voice.

"…He did, after I had finally found a nice cave to live in, he built his mansion right next door. I tried to be friendly and neighborly, but as usual people would take one look at me and run away screaming. I thought maybe, since he used to be the very creature I am now, that he might have shown me some sympathy or understanding, but instead he told me to get lost, find another hole to hide in! But I had no where else to go…so, I stayed. He's been trying to get rid of me ever since, he's even been suckering amateur monster hunters into trying to attack me or drive me away….or worse."

"Indeed."

Anne, Sprig, and Stardancer all turned to face the direction the voice had come from, to see Screech perched up on a nearby rock.

"But it appears my hunters aren't doing their job, so I think it's time I take matters into my own claws."He said, a low, menacing growl escaping his lips as he jumped down from his perch and stalked towards Stardancer.

He didn't get very far however, before Anne and Sprig stepped forward, their weapons raised.

"Leave her alone, Screech. Stardancer isn't a monster and she shouldn't have to put up with you pushing her around!" The teenager proclaimed.

"Yeah, so leave her alone, you big bully!" Sprig agreed.

"You little traitors are making a huge mistake, one that will not go unpunished!" Screech snarled before rearing back, ready to strike.

Then, to their absolute surprise, Stardancer stepped forward, standing in between them and Screech.

"No! I won't let you hurt them!"

"What do you think you're doing, you pathetic, worthless creature!?" Screech snapped.

"You know what Screech, I'm done with you pushing me around! You think you can bully and manipulate your way through life in order to get what you want, and if people don't give you what you want, you kill them! Or at the very least try to make their lives miserable! But guess what, I'm not playing your little game anymore! This is my territory and I'm going to fight for it!"

"Very well, I'll enjoy hanging your head on my trophy wall after I'm finished with you." He growled while getting into a fighting stance. Sprig and Anne noticed his reflection in the crystals and saw that it looked almost exactly like Stardancer's monster form, except his bloodshot eyes were the same pale pinkish white color that they were in his current form.

Standing across from each other, the two antipodes narrowed their eyes at one another as their reflections did the same.

Then, the battle began.

Screech leaped up into the air and came crashing down on Stardancer, pinning her to the ground. He quickly got off her though when she tried kicking his stomach with her feet, her nearly foot long claws threatening to gore him.

Once he was off of her she wasted no time slashing at him with the claws on her hands, scratching him across the snout as she did. This enraged him enough to snap at her arm and bite down on it. She cried out in pain but unleashed her tentacles. They shot at his face, wrapping around his snout and covering his eyes.

He let go of her and stumbled back, her tentacles releasing him in the process. He then ran at her full speed, antlers pointed forward with the intent to gore. But before he could reach her she let out another ear piercing screech.

He immediately skidded to a halt, covering his ears at the terrible sound. He used to be immune to it when he was a creepulon, he would even use it himself against his unfortunate victims, hence where he got his name. But evidently his now windwalker ears were not at all immune to the sound. In fact, his sensitive hearing made it all the more unbearable.

Covering their ears as well, the human-frog duo figured now might be a good time to make their escape and headed back to the cave entrance, fully confident in Stardancer's ability to handle herself against her corrupt antipode.

Once they were outside, they started making their way back to where they started.

"Do you really think Stardancer will be okay?" Sprig asked.

"Of course she will, there's no way Screech can handle that nasty scream of her's." Anne replied.

"I just can't believe he was so mean to her, to the point that he would try to kill us all!" Sprig said.

"I know right, he's such a jerk! And the worst part is that he tricked us into almost doing his bidding! I swear if I ever see his face again I'm gonna-woah!" Anne started, then let out a startled exclamation as she felt something grab her from behind and the ground suddenly disappeared from beneath her feet.

She looked over to her right to see that Sprig had been grabbed too, then looked up to see none other than the very face she would like to give a piece of her mind to.

Screech had swooped down and grabbed them each in his paws before flying up out of the crystal forest and into the night sky. He carried them back to the castle, where he flew through a big open window and landed inside, throwing the human and frog to the floor in the process.

Screech stalked up to them, looming over them as he spoke. "Did you two honestly think I'd let you escape?"

"I thought you were busy fighting a losing battle with Stardancer?" Anne said.

Screech growled. "I may have lost the battle, but that doesn't mean I'm going to let you two live."

"You know, you were a lot nicer to us earlier today, you even said you would take us to Paradizo." Sprig said.

Screech scoffed. "I said I would take you there if you got rid of the monster, which you didn't! Besides, I was never really going to take you to Paradizo, I just said that so you would do whatever I asked of you, but since you failed, you'll be paying the price!"

"You know what, Stardancer isn't the real monster here, it's you!" Anne exclaimed.

"My dear, I know!" He snapped at her, causing her to jump back out of pure instinct.

Suddenly he was hit in the face with a small rock.

"Hey fur-ball! Over here!" Sprig shouted, firing another rock at him.

Screech lunged at the boy, but he dodged it and hid behind a table. Unfortunately, being as the table was made of transparent crystal, it wasn't a very good hiding spot.

Screech approached the table, grabbed it with one paw, and threw it out of the way. The sound of crystal shattering like glass filled the opposite side of the room. Sprig didn't seem too shaken up by this though, instead he held his ground, slingshot at the ready.

Screech then raised a paw towards the boy, with the intent of ripping him to shreds. But before he could, Sprig ducked slightly as Anne suddenly came leaping out from behind him. She leaped from wall to wall, gaining speed and momentum with each bound, before jumping high into the air with her tennis racket in hand.

Before Screech could even react Anne smacked him in the face with it, hard. It was enough to make him stumble back and rub the part of his face that had been hit. He glared at her.

"So you want to play ruff, huh?" He said, before lunging and snapping at her again.

This time she leaped over his snout, then onto a nearby wall. Screech charged at the wall, antlers aimed at the frog, but Anne jumped out of the way right before he crashed into it, a large crack forming where he had hit it.

He pulled himself back up and growled at her, before spreading his wings and jumping up into the air.

He hovered there for a few seconds before diving at her, claws outstretched, ready to grab her.

Anne did not seem the least bit concerned about this though. Instead, she leaped up towards him and spring-boarded off of his head, taking him by surprise, before landing on the huge crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Having been watching the frog and not the swiftly approaching floor, he crashed to the ground as she watched from above.

Realizing he was getting nowhere with the teenage frog, he turned his attention back to the boy. Sprig looked up at his friend on the chandelier and it gave him an idea, but there was no time to think about that because Screech was barreling towards him, eyes full of murder.

He quickly bent down and picked up one of the crystal shards that was laying on the floor, one of the last remnants of the table he had been hiding behind earlier, and loaded his slingshot with it. He aimed and fired, the makeshift blade cutting through the air and slicing the beast's shoulder.

Screech stopped and grabbed his shoulder where it had been cut, hissing in pain. It wasn't a very deep gash, but it was bleeding and it might leave a scar. He turned his eyes back to the boy, even more angry now than before, but before he could do anything the blue frog jumped down from the chandelier and brought her tennis racket down on his head.

The wack to the head was enough to stun him for a moment, allowing Anne to jump back over to Sprig.

"He's pretty good, how're we supposed to beat him?" Anne asked, panting.

"I have an idea." Sprig replied, then whispered his plan to her. By the time he was finished Screech had seemingly recovered from his bump on the head. Understanding what she needed to do, Anne hopped away so they could set their plan in motion.

"Hey Screech!" The boy yelled, grabbing the windwalker's attention. "Na, na, na na na, you can't catch me!" He taunted the creature, blowing a raspberry at the end.

Immature as it was, it seemed to work perfectly as the enraged creature took off after Sprig as he ran down the hallway.

Screech chased Sprig all throughout the halls, pursuing him as relentlessly and aggressively as a red mountain mantis, before barreling back into the room where their fight had began. Sprig skidded to a halt when he reached a wall, then turned around to face Screech.

"This is where you will meet death, little boy." He growled, stalking ever closer.

Come on…

"Any last requests? Words? Or perhaps screams of terror?"

Just a little closer…

"No? Well then, let's get this over with, shall-"

"Now!" He shouted up to his froggy friend.

Anne used a crystal shard to slice through the rope holding up the chandelier like a knife, then leaped off of it as soon as it began to fall. Screech looked up just in time to see the chandelier before it came crashing down on his head.

He stumbled forward, colliding with the wall again before stumbling the other way and finally collapsing to the floor with a great thud. All was silent for a moment before Anne and Sprig cheered.

"That was amazing, nice job Sprig!"

"You're welcome, I can't believe it actually worked, I-!"

CRACK!

The sound pierced through the air, a low, deep, loud cracking sound. The second Anne saw the giant cracks forming on the opposite side of the room, she screamed.

"Sprig run!"

…It was too late.

As soon as the words left her mouth the entire side of the castle shattered, taking her best friend with it.

"SPRIG!" She bolted over to the edge of the shattered floor, looking down.

No…

Time slowed down in that moment as memories of a very similar incident flashed through her mind, freezing her in place. She remembered that feeling, the horror of watching her best friend drop….the gut-wrenching grief and pain of realizing what she'd just lost.…..her heart being consumed by a raging fire that would do anything to bring him back.…..

…Only this time, she didn't have any powers. Or a friend with a giant trained bird…

…This time all she could do was watch helplessly as her best friend fell to his inevitable death.

No…

….NO!

She couldn't let this happen, she WOULDN'T let this happen!

So, she took a deep breath….

And jumped.

Meanwhile Sprig was experiencing an all too familiar trauma as the sensation of the wind cutting against his face mixed with mortal terror and the promise of imminent death. His mind immediately flashed back to the day Andrias flung him from the castle window, where he plummeted thousands of feet and was certain he was going to die.

This was no different.

In fact it was worse. There was no one to save him this time. The moment he hit the ground that would be it, just like in every nightmare he'd ever had about that dreadful night. Only this time he wouldn't wake up…

Tears pricked at his eyes as his fear mixed with his past trauma and the reality of what was currently happening overwhelmed him. He almost squeezed his eyes shut, in a vain attempt to block it all out, but just as he was about to something above him caught his eye.

He looked up and recognized in utter shock and horror the small blue form that was rapidly descending towards him.

"Anne!? What are you doing!?" Sprig yelled as she neared him.

"I'm trying to save you!" She answered.

"Okay, how!?" He asked.

"I have no idea!" She admitted.

The two blinked at each other, then looked down at their rapid descent, before screaming and hugging each other.

Suddenly, a shadow crossed over them and they looked up to see a bunch of whale/manta ray-like creatures flying overhead.

An idea crossed Sprig's mind, one that could very well save their lives.

"Anne, shoot your tongue at one of those whale things!"

"What!?"

"If you can latch onto that thing with your tongue, we could use it to carry us to safety." Sprig explained.

"Yeah, but there's no way I can hit that, it's too far away!" The blue frog retorted.

"No it's not, you just need to focus and shoot your tongue out as far as you can." Sprig said.

"…Sprig….I-I can't-"

"Yes, you can. You can do this Anne!" He encouraged.

Anne still hesitated.

"I believe in you!….. Also, no pressure, but if you don't do this, we're gonna die!"

Anne turned her gaze back to the whale creatures. She sighed and took a deep breath. I can do this…She thought.

She aimed carefully, trying her best not to screw this up. With every passing second she only fell further from her target. She would only have one shot at this.

Her tongue launched out of her mouth faster and more forcefully than it ever had before, shooting upwards into the sky until the tip of it collided with the smooth underbelly of the creature.

Sprig quickly wrapped his arms around her and held on tight as they stopped falling and started being dragged across the sky by the massive beast.

It was definitely not a pleasant experience for poor Anne. The added weight of Sprig hanging onto her put a strain on her tongue, making it more difficult to hang on. But she didn't let go, knowing that if she did they would both plummet to their demise.

The manta ray/whale creatures all seemed to be traveling in the same direction, following one another almost like migrating birds. When the creature they were hanging onto flew low over a floating island, Anne released her tongue from it and the two dropped just several feet to the ground.

For a moment they just laid there, taking deep breaths and being immensely grateful to be alive. Anne's tongue was sore and sprawled out everywhere around her, but it was still better than the alternative.

Slowly, they lifted their heads and looked around. Seeing Anne and the state that her tongue was in, Sprig felt bad that he had pushed her to do that, but it had worked and despite her own doubts she had managed to pull it off, thus saving their lives yet again.

Now, the big question was, how were they going to get off of this island?


Meanwhile, inside a small cave, a monster stared at her reflection in the mirror. Most people saw her as something hideous, something horrific, something to be afraid of. And for the longest time, even she believed these things to be true about herself.

That was, until a little blue frog and her human friend came along and changed the way she saw herself. They made her realize that it didn't matter what people thought, because they only saw what was on the outside.

On the inside, she was still beautiful.