"You're so quiet today... Well, I mean, quieter than usual. Normally you'd tell me everything about our destination that you've been able to find out through your research so far..."

"Oh... I didn't know you would listen"

"Of course. Your knowledge can be extremely useful in assessing situations. So, are you alright? Don't say you get travel sick. Travel sick people are usually the worst companions..."

"Don't worry, I'm not travel sick. I'm just... worried, you might say. Thoughtful maybe..."

"Okay Marcy, spill it. We've got quite a while to fly before we reach the southern Toad Tower and this silence is driving me insane..."

"Hmm... Have I ever mentioned my friends before? That is, Anne and Sasha?"

"Yup"

"Well, Sasha is in Toad Tower... She's Captain Grime's second-in-command"

"She's gotta have some skills if she can impress THE legendary Captain Grime. I'm assuming you're pretty excited."

"Excited...yes. But I'm also scared"

"I'm pretty sure this is all going to go pretty smoothly-"

"No, I'm not talking about the meeting or the mission in general. It's... Sasha. Anne had told me that when she saw her again, she did something absolutely horrible to someone Anne was close to."

"How horrible are we talking about?"

"..."

"Oh... I think I understand. If so, I'll make sure she doesn't get too close to you."

"No!"

"But I thought-"

"Yunan, you've got your own mission with Grime. I'll can deal with Sasha once the joint briefing is over. It's no big deal"

"As you wish, Master Marcy."

"Thanks"

" Well, if you don't think you need my help, I hope you will at least accept a story from out of my past"

"A story? A backstory-like story?"

"Exactly."

"Uhhh, I love backstories"

"Well then..."

It was many years ago. I was a young Newt just joining the Newtopian army and the Sand Wars were about to break out. I should perhaps add that I had known long before this was going to happen. Almost my entire life, to be precise. Like someone or something told me my future to direct my life in a certain direction.

Knowing this, I had spent my entire childhood and adolescence training. I had no interest in friends or family, my only goal was to join the army as soon as possible. My father was very much against the idea of me in the army and would have preferred to send me to university as soon as I grew my legs. Luckily, I had a little brother who was more inclined towards my father's plans.

My mother, on the other hand, fully supported my plan, taught me strategies and tactics, as well as various martial arts. As a retired Colonel, she had seen a lot in her life and was very proud of me for following in her footsteps.

So, there I was. Private Yunan at the youngest possible age to be allowed to join the army. Well, not quite. My mother pulled some strings so I could get in two years earlier.

As I said, there I was. Quite proud to be able to wear a uniform for the first time. On the very first day, I and a few other new recruits were given a tour of the entire site, which ended in the dormitories. They were all dormitory rooms, but I was lucky enough to only get one roommate instead of, I don't know, four or five.

"Well well well... who do we have here?"

"Private Yunan uhh... Sir."

"No need to call me 'Sir'. I'm Ragnar, your new roommate"

Before you ask, yes, that's THE Ragnar.

"I'm not here to make friends."

"Of course not... Just here to serve the king blah blah blah"

"But... that..."

"See you later at the first training session, not-friend Yunan"

I don't think I need to mention how much I hated him. That smug smirk, his whole arrogant demeanor was soo... arrggghhh. That still pisses me off to this day...

Where was I? Oh yes, the first on-person-combat-training session... Luckily, I didn't have to see him during the first training session. Because I was so much younger, I had heard from many people how weak and frail I would be there. I'll never forget their faces after I've finished them off one after the other.

Later that evening, HE reappeared.

"I saw you beating them all up earlier... my respects"

"And where were you? I would have liked to hit you too"

"Oh... um... I was with... er with the Commander. Private lessons"

"Sure"

"Why are you so aggressive towards me anyway?"

"And why are you trying so hard to talk to me? I thought I made it clear that I'm not here looking for friends..."

"You're going to need some. In a squad, you have to trust each other"

"I don't need anyone"

If I remember correctly, I went straight to sleep afterwards. In the coming days and weeks, he tried again and again to establish contact with me and I have to admit that after a while I softened and we kind of became friends. Although we almost always insulted each other, we understood each other quite well. Only at the combat exercises he was never there. It wasn't until much later that I found out why.

Anyway, the months went by pretty quickly and due to my very good performance I was quickly promoted to commander of 12 soldiers, including Ragnar. I had made him my second in command, which didn't sit well with the rest, but who were they to question my orders.

We were doing survival training far north when we received a messenger with news that Newtopia was under attack and that we should return immediately.

And the closer we got to Newtopia, the stranger the whole atmosphere became. When we got a glimpse of the city itself, we saw part of the wall completely torn down. Also, the water outside of the city was completely gone. Everywhere was just... sand. You'd think that a sandstorm just hit the city from somewhere, but the atmosphere wasn't right for that.

We walked around the city together once, looking for a command post or something, but nothing.

"Ragnar, you take Jonas and Oliv to reconnaissance outside the city. See how far the sand has spread and report any enemy contact."

"Aye, Commander"

"The rest: Behind me and stay down. We're looking for a command post within the city."

So, we walked through the collapsed part of the wall and saw directly that the sand had almost half covered all the doors of the houses. Well, at least the ones that weren't destroyed by parts of the Wall. And there, too, it was dead quiet.

Our first clue was the barracks, but there was no one there. However, we saw that the armory was also empty, indicating an evacuation. Probably as well as the fact that on the way to the barracks the streets were deserted.

Our next stop was the palace. And the closer we got, the more signs of life we saw, until at some point we actually met the commanders.

And the closer we got the more activity we saw on the streets and we could also gradually hear some noise until we got to a fortified roadblock on the middle ring. However, instead of letting us through, the stationed soldiers did not move from their positions and blocked our path with drawn weapons.

"You there! Stop immediately!"

"Huh? I am Acting Troop Commander Yunan. We were on survival training in the north before General Mikoras ordered us back. Here are the orders."

"I said stop."

"But... That..."

"Get down on the ground! Check their necks"

So, we all got on our knees and a couple of the soldiers came up to us and they were looking for something on our necks. And after one of the soldiers said we were 'clean' we were let through and taken to General Mikoras. He was something like your predecessor.

"General. Acting Troop Commander Yunan reporting as ordered"

"Very good... Aren't there more soldiers in your squad?"

"Yes, General. I had assigned three of my soldiers to reconnaissance."

"I see... With any luck, they'll be dead already"

"WHAT?"

"..."

"I have to apologize, General. I meant: How are my men dead?"

"I guess you haven't seen the enemy yet"

"That is correct, General."

"Hmm... Thing is, we have no idea who our enemy is either. We suspect it's some parasitic body-possessing hive intelligence."

"..."

"Have you seen the collapsed part of the wall with the sand lying all over the place? Everyone who lived in the houses surrounded by the sand is now part of the swarm. Men, women, children."

"What is responsible for the collapse of the wall?"

"Infected Barbari-ants have entered the wall through the ground and have severely weakened the structure from within. Luckily they were killed when the wall came down."

"Any idea why all of a sudden there is no activity anymore?"

But before the general could reply, the conversation was interrupted by approaching cries for help. It was Ragnar who had come back alone. The general and I ran to him at the roadblock, where the soldiers were already pinning him to the ground and examining his neck, as they had done to us before.

"Ragnar? Where are the others?"

"[breathing heavily] We... were... attacked. Something grabbed... Jonas and... Oliv by the legs... and dragged them… into the sand..."

"And what about you?"

"I... ran away... before those things could grab me..."

"WHAT? You let down your comrades?"

"If there was anything I could have done, I would have done it."

"YOU JUST RAN AWAY!"

"YEAH, OTHERWISE I WOULD BE DEAD NOW TOO"

Unfortunately, since we weren't alone, our... louder discussion was immediately interrupted. The general had sent Ragnar to the supply tent and pulled me aside.

"I understand that his action seems inappropriate for you, but in this situation, it could certainly be forgiven"

"Yes, General. How should we proceed then?"

"A few experts are studying the hive mind and how we can separate the drones from each other. And until they have a result, we must defend the upper ring at all costs."

"So, there isn't a counterattack strategy yet, General?"

"Negative."

Under other circumstances, General Mikoras would have sentenced me to the worst disciplinary service for my disrespectful tone and all my questions. But luckily for me, that was something he couldn't afford at the time. Most of his soldiers were either killed by the enemy or forcibly taken into the swarm. The surviving members of my team were deployed to defend the city, and the general had made me his advisor for my strategy suggestions. But while he appreciated my suggestions, he had invariably turned them down. All of them. Defense only. No counterattacks as long as the scientists have no way of freeing the individual drones from the swarm. After a few days I was increasingly frustrated with this inaction and I made one last attempt to convince the general. And if that didn't work, I would have taken somewhat more extreme measures.

"General Mikoras, I must ask you again to-"

"No."

"Could I at least-"

"No."

"..."

"Yunan, I'm getting fed up with your constant requests. Cut it out!"

"But I just want-"

"No. We have the best chance of survival if we hold this ring. The Toad Army will be here in a few days to support us."

"In a few days there won't be anyone here to support. Every day we're being pushed further back, and every day more soldiers and civilians are being forcibly drawn into this swarm... With each passing day we lose people while the opponent gains more and more. We can't wait for the scientists to find something..."

"Yes, but just running in and getting yourself killed is not an option"

"They can't kill me if they drop dead first"

"These are still residents of Newtopia you want to slaughter there, Yunan! Even if they have to work against us now"

"They WERE residents of Newtopia. And it's not just them either. There are sandworms, toads, barbari-ants, frogs and so on... Besides, I don't have to kill them all. Just enough until the swarm as a whole is no longer a threat."

"It's bad enough that you even think about attacking these people. But that you want to do it all alone borders on insane."

"I am willing to do what must be done, General."

"Even if I respect your attitude, I will never allow you to carry out a genocide. Single-handedly at that."

"But..."

"You're dismissed. I don't want to see you anymore today"

I already knew before I went to the general that this would not work, so plan B came into effect. And this one had exactly three possible outcomes: Either I would die, I would win but be sued and convicted on a number of grounds, or win and not be imprisoned. It goes without saying what I was hoping for. And I'm not dead.

But what was my plan exactly? Just rushing in and killing everything that moves was pretty much impossible. Even for me. In general, there were several hurdles in the way of an attack that should not be underestimated. No one knew how many drones were part of the hive mind. The drones only move underground and come out of the sand only to attack. Well, or if there's no more sand to move around in. And the last problem: All living things need food to survive, right? So, there should be some kind of base. But nobody knew the location. Well, nobody but me.

And before you ask how I knew that... Do you remember that vision I had as a kid of this very war? That's how.

But before I could do anything, I had to prepare a little bit. Mainly weapons. So, I had snuck into the weapon tent as if I was entitled to it.

The sheer quantity of swords, spears, bows, shields, daggers and so on was absolutely overwhelming. In the barracks, all weapons are usually spread out over several large rooms, but oh well.

Choosing a weapon was quite difficult, but at the same time surprisingly easy. I could rule out bows, slingshots and crossbows as ranged weapons right from the start. I also didn't know what to do with shields. While spears are good for close-ranged combat when opponents are some distance away, that's it if they get too close. Swords are better in that regard, but they're also a lot heavier. In addition, the swords were made using a standard process and were not individually tailored to the user for better efficiency. I've always considered daggers to be pretty tasteless, so they were out immediately.

But then I finally found a weapon that piqued my interest: a beautiful pair of retractable wrist-mount blades. It was almost a piece of art rather than a weapon. However, the pair I have today is a different one, made to fit my needs directly.

The next step was to let Ragnar in on my plan. I didn't want him to come with me, but I couldn't bear to just disappear without anyone knowing where I was going. In hindsight, that wasn't my smartest idea, but I was younger then. I'll get to why later.

"Ragnar? Ragnar, are you around here?"

"Yunan? How did you know that I'm here?"

"I asked Commander Blairc. He said you're on duty at the western roadblock today."

"Right. Erm... obviously... What are you doing here? Want to see how bored I am here?"

"Not quite. I... I'm going to leave town for a while"

"An offensive? Finally. Glad to hear the general is finally listening."

"..."

"...He did approve of that, didn't he?"

"..."

"Yunan?"

"Okay fine, he didn't. I'll do it alone before the whole town gets overrun"

"That's a death sentence"

"Maybe. But I'd rather die fighting than sit here and do nothing."

"I can't allow that"

"You won't stop me. You can't stop me"

"Where are you going anyways? Just get out of the hole in the city-wall and get yourself killed? Or worse yet assimilated?"

"Don't worry, I know exactly where to go"

"It's too dangerous. You shouldn't go"

"Joke's on you. I already know the location of their base"

"But... how?"

"Long story. But I have to go now, as long as I have the element of surprise on my side. Byee"

And before he could say anything else, I was already gone. I was pretty fast even back then.

My intermediate destination was first of all, the destroyed part of the wall. At that time the sand was already several meters high and almost completely covered several smaller houses. However, I couldn't rack my brains about it for too long, because before I even got close to the hole in the city wall, several hands had grabbed my legs, but thanks to my super-snazzy new retractable claws, they let go of me pretty quickly. They had tried several times to grab me in the sand, but I chopped their hands faster than they could grab them. Then several drones slowly crawled out of the sand and wanted to attack me head-on. I... think it's better if I don't go into detail about what I did with them, though. I'll just say this much: the sand has been given a new coat of paint over a fairly large area.

I can't remember how long it took me to- wait a minute, I didn't say exactly where I was going, did I? Doesn't matter. My destination was a quicksand pool. In my vision I saw several drones disappearing into it, which later reappeared in a hollow space, additionally to a few landmarks that I could use to pinpoint where I needed to go.

But the closer I got to my destination, the more drones got in my way. And the sand coloring went on and on and on. At least until I was standing at the edge of the quicksand pool. After that it got very quiet... There was no more movement in the sand around me, just a few bubbles of gas rising out of the quicksand that kept it moving. But everything else was quiet. No more drones were coming either, and I knew I was walking headfirst into a trap. However, I wouldn't be me if that stopped me from doing anything.

So, I jumped headfirst into the quicksand and the next thing I remember I found myself in a dimly lit place. Behind me was the quicksand that had curtained the entrance through which I presumably came through. And, no idea how that was possible, that was actually a source of light. What I could see of the room were several... pouches, you might say. Bundles maybe. Huge piles of supplies and resources, but nothing else. Well, almost nothing.

I actually expected hundreds or even thousands of drones to attack me to defend their base. I figured my vision had been a dead end and that this was just some sort of bait to lure me away from Newtopia. Sounds pretty arrogant, doesn't it? Yeah... Anyway...

I'd shouted a few threats into the void against my inner voice, not expecting a reply. But then suddenly I heard footsteps approaching, along with a red glow on the ground. A short time later there was this figure in front of me. With a huge faint red glowing mushroom on its head. Unfortunately, I couldn't see the figure the mushroom was sitting on. And then it started talking and the world stopped for a moment.

"I told you you shouldn't go!"

"... What?"

"I told you... you shouldn't go..."

"Ra- Ragnar? But... what... huh?"

Now imagine how speechless I was. Ragnar- whom I had seen at a roadblock in Newtopia not so long ago now stood before me. Not only was he, somehow, faster than me, he also has a huge red mushroom on his head that wasn't there before.

"I am up here"

"I'm just so confused... Why is there a mushroom on your head?"

"I am the mushroom"

"What? How?"

"You must have absolutely no idea- HEY! I said up here. Don't look in the eyes!"

"Now can you enlighten me as to what's going on here? How did you know where I..."

And that's when I knew it.

"You're the hive..."

"Not quite. There is no hive. There never was. Just...me"

"You?"

"Well, me and my children. The ones you just slaughtered so many of"

"I'm sorry, but I still can't get over the fact that I've been friends with a mushroom all along... How did you manage to hide yourself so well?"

"Seriously? You want to know that? I just told you that I'm more or less responsible for this war and you just want to know how I can change my appearance?"

"Yup. The rest can wait. Oh, and for your information: Our past friendship is the only reason you're not dead yet"

"Understood. Well, regarding my appearance, I can withdraw fully into my host body if I feel like it."

"So all of these neck checks were-"

"-useless, yeah."

"... So, you have children..."

"Before you ask, I sent them all away. After realizing where you were going, I immediately went to get the rest to safety."

"Okay, I see. What is the purpose of this war? What is your goal? ... And what is all this sand for?"

"I'm glad you haven't figured that out yourself. Shows that I did at least something right."

"So?"

"I want the city. I mean, I've got a family now. Do you think I want them all to be homeless? My plan was that I'd sink the whole city, along with all the residents to be hosts for my children."

"That was your plan? And you're giving up? Without a fight?"

"I know when I've lost"

"You're a coward, you know that? 'Ragnar the Wretched', that's how you'll be remembered"

"It doesn't matter. All that matters is that my children are safe."

"For now, at least"

"What?"

"Of course, I will try to track them down and wipe them out. Each of your children stole a life under duress. They will not escape their just punishment."

"Please. As your... friend, don't hurt them. Let them live their lives. They are the last of their kind."

There I was, in a dimly lit cave, with my former friend kneeling in supplication before me and I held my blades out to him, ready to end his life and struggling to either respect his last wish or not. I was torn between the vow I'd made and the friendship I'd come to appreciate, not counting the recent betrayal.

"Stand up!"

"What?"

"It's not my place to punish you. This war is over and if your kids don't cause problems, maybe I can forget they exist"

"Really?"

"I will arrest you now and take you back to Newtopia where you will be tried before the King for your crimes. For espionage, kidnapping, murder, collateral damage and so on."

"Thank you, my friend-"

"Don't thank me. I would rather see you dead"

It was by far the most unsatisfactory victory of my life. I could have killed him. Heck, I wanted to kill him. But despite knowing that he was responsible for so much suffering, taking so many lives, I couldn't. But the worst thing was actually this hypocrisy. I mean, even though it said he would do all this for his kids, he never did anything himself. He had sent his children forward for every attack… for every single attack, while he cowardly hid himself behind enemy borders.

"And how did the story end?" Marcy asked, looking at General Yunan with wide, attentive and curious eyes.

"Well, when we got back Ragnar was tried and sentenced to death. And I had been promoted to general and my new title was born. 'General Yunan, Scourge of the Sand Wars, Defeater of Ragnar the Wretched, and the youngest newt to ever achieve the rank of general in the great Newtopian Army!' While I'm still very proud of this title to this day, I'm not quite as proud when I think about how I got it and what I had to do to get it ..."

"I think I understand..." Marcy says thoughtfully, "Even though I know that Sasha has done horrible things, I shouldn't give her up."

Yunan looks puzzled at Marcy. "That's actually not what... You know, if that's the lesson you're taking from my story, I won't disagree."

"What would you have recommended me then?"

"For not letting your judgment be clouded by the fact that you and Sasha used to be friends"

"-not 'used to'. We still are", Marcy corrected.

"Of course... pack up your things. We'll be there in a moment"

"Yes ma'am", Marcy salutes with a honest smile on her face, packing up all of the books, maps, stats, and schedules she had prepared for the meeting. "Where was Andrias during the war, anyway? You didn't mention him at all..." Marcy asks, holding one of books in her hand.

"This story ain't about him", Yunan explains, to which Marcy just shrugs.

While Yunan's story wasn't exactly the cheery one, it was good enough that Marcy's worries were completely dispelled and she was able to fully focus on the task at hand, along with the larger goal. It fills Yunan with pride that she was able to pass on some of her knowledge to Marcy. Because she mostly travels alone, she hardly ever comes into contact with other people and therefore doesn't really have any friends. She's all the more grateful for the company of this curious, clumsy human girl, the great Marcy Wu.

"You back there: put up those banners! You, put your chestplate on right side up! You there, get the good drinks from the basement! Sasha, you... Sasha? SASHA!"

The whole of Toad Tower is in a frenzy as Grime rushes everyone to get everything polished for the guests from Newtopia who are expected to be there today. For Grime, this is of the utmost importance, especially in the current situation.

"You called?" Sasha asked playfully as they headed down the stairs from their chambers to the entrance hall with Percy and Braddock.

"Where have you been?" Grime asks on the verge of an outburst.

"Oh, we partied together all last night. We were all soo stressed, something like this was really necessary", Sasha explains deeply relaxed.

"Tell me, Lieutenant, what day is it?" Grime asks in a sarcastic tone.

"Um, I dunno. Friday?" Sasha replies. The two toads that were hiding behind her look at each other, visibly nervous.

"Today the representatives from Newtopia arrive. They will be able to tell us if we can count on additional resources for the fight against this frog rebellion. And for that, this hellhole better not look like a hellhole."

"Well, I like this hell hole", Sasha throws in and the bile gradually boils over Grime.

"The Newtopian Elite are very outwardly conscious, so it would be quite appropriate if you TURNED UP ON TIME!"

"We're not that late"

"FOUR HOURS, SASHA!"

"Geez, okay. You don't have to yell like that... What do you want me to do?"

"YOU will gather all the paperwork we have, as well as the latest intelligence reports, from our dead mailbox..."

"All right, see you later", the good-humored Sasha says goodbye and went back up the stairs to her room.

"And you two...", Grime began, "you have exactly one hour to scrub the command center clean from top to bottom. I want to be able to eat right off the floor, understand? Good. Step away!"

Percy and Braddock turn to obey the command. He turns back around abruptly and all the toads in the room act all busy and ignorant and he exits, still in a crappy mood, and heads up the tower to the command center, deciding to let Sasha take over the rest of the preparations once she returns.

Usually, the dead mailbox is only half an hour away from Toad Tower and Sasha in most cases is even faster than that. But today something is different. More than an hour has passed and she hasn't returned yet.

'This girl is absolutely throwing everything out of the window today, too. Showing up late for duty, then this rebelliousness... Quite atypical for her...'

Grime's train of thought is suddenly cut short when there is a sudden knock at the door and Percy glimpses in.

"Captain Grime?" Percy asks, somewhat intimidated, still carried away by the captain's earlier outburst.

"WHAT?", Grime asks, annoyed, "Please tell me Sasha's back..."

"Um... So... um... Sasha isn't, but the... the representatives are about to arrive", Percy babbled.

"What?"

"Th- There..."

Percy pointed to one of the windows, whereupon Grime runs to it in a slight panic and sees a sparrow flying towards the tower.

"Damn Newtopian overpunctuality", he mutters. "Percy, how are the preparations coming along?"

"Um, the- the food for the banquet isn't ready yet. But... But everything else is up to your specifications."

"Must do"

Grime hustles past Percy, through a long hallway, down a sweeping spiral staircase, and sees many of its soldiers positioned at the large gate to the front yard, peering out through a crack.

He sighs at the utterly pathetic scene, all those toads standing just in front of the closed main gate, almost brawling to catch a glimpse through the crack to the outside.

'We are so going to lose this war'

"HEY!", Grime yells with all of his power, "YOU ARE SUCH A PATHETIC PILE. YOU'RE ALL RELEASED FOR THE DAY, WHILE OUR GUESTS ARE HERE! I DON'T WANT TO GET TO SEE ANY OF YOU TODAY!"

The crowd of downed soldiers dispersed and as soon as everyone had left the lobby, Grime walked to the large central gate, took one deep breath and opened it to welcome the representatives.

Over the last hour, he had been trying to prepare himself for the worst possible scenario: Hours of discussions with so-called strategists, wimpy newts who had never even seen a real weapon in their life. But this is still better than the alternative, because then he would have to ask his sister for help, and he's far too damn proud to do that.

"Nice speech. Hiding the more problematic soldiers to distract from the lousy condition of your troops..."

Grime was even more surprised when there were no wimpy newts in professor outfits standing in front of him, but rather the personification of 'One wrong look and she'll single-handedly rip out my other good eye'. The Newt standing immediately in front of him is wearing an unfamiliar dark silver Newtopian armor, along with a dark gray cape. On her chest hang various insignia that directly identify her as a General. She is obviously a big deal.

"So-so, you're the great Captain Grime, the fiercest fighter in the colosseum..."

"Correct!", Grime boasts proudly, "and you are...?"

"My name is General Yunan, Scourge of the Sand Wars, Defeater of Ragnar the Wretched, and the youngest newt to ever achieve the rank of general in the great Newtopian Army!"

"Impressive title. One question: to my knowledge, each division in the Newtopian military has its own designed armor and uniform, but I don't recognize yours. Which army do you lead?"

Instead of an answer, a broad grin spreads across General Yunan's face and her finely-sharpened, pointed teeth are revealed.

"I had an army once. They slowed me down."

"Ouuu-kay... Weren't you originally scheduled to be traveling with someone else?"

"Oh, yes, that's right. Where is... ugh, not again."

Curiously, Grime peers after the General as she runs to the stables. He can hear talking, but can't make out exactly what it is about. He raises an eyebrow as he sees her coming back out with another human.

"We have a mission to fulfill, remember?"

"But these beetles are soo cool. The stall keeper said one of these bugs can pull a weight of up to seven hundred kilograms, can you believe that?"

This new human seems entirely different from Sasha and her friend Anne, although all he knows about her is what Sasha had told him.

'This human is definitely not a warrior'

"Marcy, let me introduce you to... Captain Grime, leader of the Toad Army of the Southern Tower. Captain Grime, this is Master Marcy Wu, Chief Ranger of the Newtopian Knight Guard and the greatest strategist since King Andrias himself."

"Pleased to meet you. May I call you Grimsey?", the human asked expectantly with widened eyes and zero sense of personal space. Grime just growls in response and General Yunan pulls her away from him back to herself. "Oh, yeah, right. Personal space... Sorry"

Marcy rubs the back of her neck in embarrassment, but immediately forgot about her misstep when she peeks past Grime and catches a glimpse of the inside of the tower. She gasps heavily.

"Oh. My. Gosh... Toad architecture is soo cool. It's all so rustic and... improvised. Spikes on the structural pillars, torches shaped like burning skulls and... whoa... is that a chandelier made out of the arms of red mantises?"

The girl is running energetically all around the room, describing each and every little something with a seemingly unquenchable curiosity like nothing Grime has encountered before. He leans toward General Yunan, who is now beside him, also watching.

"Is she always like this?" he asks quietly.

"Yes."

"I see. Also, may I ask how you put up with her all the time, General?"

"No, you may not. Master Marcy is an outright mastermind, and her skills are remarkable...", Yunan tells him, while on the inside Marcy has just tripped over her own feet, affirming that she is alright. "But that comes at a cost that she herself may not necessarily be aware of. To everyone else around her, even more so."

"I understand, General.", Grime says and proceeds a bit louder "Now, if I may lead you both to the command center..."

Yunan lets out a single sharp whistle, catching Marcy's attention, before nodding her head in the direction of a door that Grime has headed for. Briefly disappointed, Marcy returns to Yunan and both of them are now heading to the command center and Marcy has to really pull herself together not to stop every few steps because she has found something new to admire and to study.

Once upstairs, the group enters the semi-circular room, in the center of which stands a massive oval-shaped table, surrounded in turn by a few unexpectedly elegant chairs. The walls to the right and left of the entrance are covered with charts and lists of names for collecting taxes and general maps of the region, as well as a few more detailed ones of various villages.

"Before we start... Captain Grime, I need all the records of tax collections from all the villages here in the valley for the last... let's say 30 years. Plus, every complaint you received about the Toad Army from the same time period. And, on top of that, I need all personal files you have on your army! For everyone."

Grime just stares wide-eyed at Marcy, rather surprised by the sudden change in her voice. It's as if he's now confronted by a completely different person, a person to be taken much more seriously.

"Captain Grime?!" Yunan asks after a few seconds, looking at him with her arms crossed.

"Oh, yeah, sure. Um... I don't have any of that", he replies to Marcy's request.

"WHAT?" she asks, alarmed.

"We're warriors. Soldiers... Not accountants."

Marcy sighs and props herself up on the table with both arms.

"I was afraid I was expecting too much... ", Marcy began, before her tone became drastically more positive again, "Fortunately, I've taken precautions. Here in my bag, I have... this."

She pulls out a rather large folder and drops it on the table.

"Since you can't show me how many coppers you take off the frogs so far in taxes, this way we can at least look at how much you pass on to Newtopia. Then we can at least get some rough estimates... I had also foreseen that you had no written complaints, but we will take care of that later. And as for your troops, I've had a list put together by the Toad Council, which they are requesting every year."

Perplexed, Grime stares at the huge mountain of paper now on the planning table and then looks up at General Yunan, who grins in amusement.

"Wait, you contacted the council?" as Grime asks in shock.

"Yes", Marcy replies dryly.

"I hope you at least didn't say anything about the situation I'm in at the moment ..."

"No, I didn't", Marcy replies, and Grime exhales in relief. "I didn't have to say anything. They already knew, and they've already preemptively denied you any support."

"Typical Beatrix", Grime snorts, "And it sure is taking forever to work through all this. Can't we just call in the Newtopian Army for support and just overrun the valley?"

Marcy gives Grime a judgmental look.

"Captain Grime, I've been here less than fifteen minutes and I already recognize fundamental and serious problems... Well, everywhere-"

Grime growls and states through clenched teeth "I didn't ask for someone to lecture me on how to do my job. Especially not, from a measly human who has no clue about life out here"

"Watch your tone, Grime. She works directly for the king, so she outranks you!", Yunan suddenly interjects and silence fills the room. Then, after a moment Grime says, tired of arguing

"I sincerely apologize for my disrespect... Master Marcy"

"Fantastic", Marcy started in a playful tone, "Also, if I might remind you, you asked for assistance in resolving this conflict... And here we are. Now, then, let's talk about the current situation in the valley."

"If you allow me, I would like to wait until the latest intelligence reports arrive"

"Alright", Marcy says in the very same tone of voice.

"Sasha should be back very soon..." says Grime slowly, watching Marcy's reactions to that with extreme precision. Too bad for Marcy, her poker face is as inscrutable as glass. Immediately, a slight panic rises in her and a smug grin emerges on Grime's face. At least until he remembers that General Yunan is also still in the room. In the meantime, she had moved to one of the windows and Grime hears from behind him a clicking, metallic sound that comes from her position. Sensing the impending danger, Grime attempts to somewhat de-escalate the situation that he had created.

"Listen, I know you're not just here because King Andrias ordered you here. You're here, obviously, pursuing your own interests as well. Am I right?"

Marcy, who has also calmed slightly by now, nods in response. He continues, "For the well-being of this meeting, I'm going to try to put aside my... prejudices... towards you and other Newtopian delegates in general. However, that can only be done if I know who I'm working with... Marcy, you're here because of Sasha."

Marcy is hesitant to respond, but eventually does find the right words, "I... I'm here to accomplish my mission. And yes, Sasha is a part of that. And it's also true that I miss her. But that will not affect the outcome of this mission."

"So, are we done? Are you satisfied, Grime?", Yunan suddenly asks with a stern and unamused tone.

Grime, on the other hand, bursts out laughing and Marcy just confusedly asks, "Huh? What was that now?"

Yunan sighs and explains, "Toad humor. Incomprehensible to other species and apparently not related to anything" and Grime still can't stop laughing.

"I don't get it", Marcy comments.

"Nobody does", Yunan adds.

After more than a minute of Grime not calming down, Marcy joins Yunan at the window, but while Yunan continues to watch Grime wheezing on the floor, Marcy quietly looks out the window, contemplating.

It has always been difficult for Marcy to understand other people's intentions when they are not clearly communicated. But so far, things have been going pretty well in Amphibia, compared to back on Earth. Especially considering that she has been managing most of the time without the support of Anne and Sasha. However, here she was proven once again that not everything in Amphibia could be all that great. But why 'once again'? Well, pretty much the same thing has happened a few times on Earth while in school. Mainly in classes where Anne and Sasha were not present from the beginning or were skipping classes. It was a physics class with Mr. Moltrian and he had made the whole class do a group assignment and without her best friends by her side, she was forced to deal with classmates who were, let's say, not that nice. At first, everyone had done their own assignments until this one other girl had noticeable trouble with the tasks. Marcy being Marcy had offered to help her, but that resulted in her doing all of the group's tasks all by herself, while the other girl had been talking loudly with the two boys in the group. Generally, this was not a problem for her as she always had good grades. However, for whom this was a problem was Mr. Moltrian, because for some reason he disliked Marcy. He had then picked on her about why she was the only one who would not participate in the group discussion. He gave her a ten-minute lecture on the importance of group work and that she would never get anywhere if she always did everything on her own. No one from the group, or even the class, had said anything in her defense or set the situation right. When Mr. Moltrian finished and went back to his teacher's desk, tears started to well up in Marcy's eyes. And instead of someone supporting her, the others in her group would start laughing about how she, of all people, had gotten shit on for this, and make fun of her for crying about it now. At that point she ran from the classroom crying several kilometers to her home and locked herself in her bedroom bursting into tears.

As of right now, she feels almost the same as she did back then. She had once again offered her help for something and in the end, she is laughed at. But thankfully, she's no longer that fragile girl she was back then. Now instead, she has made a decision.

"General Yunan, we are leaving!"

Yunan looks at Marcy with a raised eyebrow, but simply says simply, "Yes, Master Marcy."

Grime, who has been laughing loudly and non-stop now for over fifteen minutes, has now abruptly gone completely silent. He swallows heavily.

"No, you can't leave. We haven't even discussed anything yet", he argues as he gradually gets up from the floor and finds Marcy standing next to him, packing her belongings back up.

"You're right. And you don't seem to be able to look at this whole situation here with sufficient seriousness either. As a matter of fact, on the contrary, you've been laughing at me for the last ten-"

"Fifteen.", Yunan interjects.

"Thank you. Fifteen minutes straight of laughing at me, and I'm not interested in taking it without doing anything."

Grime stands dumbstruck as Marcy continues to pack as she proceeds, "I'm always in favor of a casual atmosphere but at some point, even I reach a limit. General Yunan, you may arrest him now!"

Grime is still trying to process what Marcy just told him, by then Yunan had his hands cuffed together behind his back even before he could think of attempting to struggle free.

"ARRESTED?" Grime now asks furiously, "FOR WHAT?"

Marcy takes a few steps toward him, leaning down.

"In the event that we are unable to complete our mission, we have orders to take you, Captain Grime, to Newtopia, where you will be held accountable by King Andrias himself."

At this point, there is no trace of Marcy's earlier good mood and harmlessness. The person now standing before Grime seems cold... but also broken.

Grime angrily growls while Marcy, with a seriously grave face, walks to the door and opens it. She turns to Yunan and orders her to carry Grime until suddenly she hears a dull thud from immediately in front of her.

Slowly, she turns back to her front and snaps her eyes open in shock as she sees who is standing in front of her.

"Mar-cy?" the blonde human girl asks in disbelief, raising a hand to Marcy's face. "Oh my... It's really you."

Feeling overjoyed, she throws herself into Marcy's arms, while Marcy herself takes a few more seconds to process her initial surprise before ultimately returning the hug. The coldness inside her vanishes as she holds her friend in her arms and buries her face deep into her shoulder.

Tears appear in both girls' eyes and they remain in that position for a while.

"Oh my god Marcy... I'm so happy to finally see you again. I really missed you so much."

Marcy squeezes her a little tighter and says softly "I missed you too" before the two girls break apart again and Marcy gasps. "Sasha... your- your eye..."

"Oh, that's... nothing. But just look at you, you look amazing. That uniform, gurl..."

A small smile forms on Marcy's face, briefly before Grime speaks up, clearing his throat loudly, getting Marcy and Sasha's attention.

"Um..." Sasha begins, searching for appropriate words, "Grimsey, what's going on?"

Marcy was about to say something to Grime, when suddenly she turns back to Sasha and says, "Grimsey? Ha, I knew that would be a good nickname", before finally turning back to Grime with a more serious expression.

"Captain Grime, I'm going to make you an offer: We forget everything that happened here and start over from scratch. What do you think?"

"You say that as if I have a choice", Grime whines.

"Perfect. Yunan, you can untie him. For now…", Marcy orders, and General Yunan does just that. Sasha, on the other hand, watches the scene with great interest.

"I'd love to know what I just missed here".

"I'll tell you everything as soon as we're done here", Marcy whispers to Sasha.

"And what is all this? Oh, wait, you're from Newtopia- Marcy, you live in Newtopia?" Sasha asks dumbfounded in quick succession to which Marcy nods energetically.

"Yup. Work right for King Andrias", she says proudly.

"Wow and I thought I had a stellar career", Sasha says before giving her friend a gentle nudge with her shoulder.

"Can we get started now, please?" as Grime asks impatiently, "Lieutenant, you got the latest intel reports?"

"Oh, yeah..." Sasha says, picking up the wooden box she dropped by the door. "Here you go."

Grime opens the box and pulls out a few sheets of paper and runs over it loudly.

"'Small group of rebels captured...' 'Extensive interrogation failed to produce helpful information...' 'Awaiting further orders...' Perhaps a public execution would-"

"STOP!" shouted Marcy, "That's exactly the problem. You want to respond exclusively with force. That won't work and everyone will lose"

"Oh, they're just a few dozen rebels. What are they supposed to do" Grime says dismissively.

"No!", General Yunan interjects, "I was actually there not too long ago. There are hundreds of them. Grime, if you attack you will be overrun."

"Um, excuse me, but who are you again?" Sasha asks not really paying attention to what she just heard.

"My name is General Yunan, Scourge of the Sand Wars, Defeater of Ragnar the Wretched, and the youngest newt to ever achieve the rank of general in the great Newtopian Army!"

"Ou-kay, got it. Thanks", Sasha says flatly.

"Look, I'm here to find a working solution that avoids bloodshed as much as possible. And that means we're going to have to start from scratch. According to Yunan's report, the frogs complain of financial exploitation, violence and oppression by the Toads. According to Captain Grimes' request for help, a meeting was scheduled between you and the rebel leaders? Is that true?" Marcy asks skeptically.

"Grime... 'Request for help'? Seriously? You said this was just a screening or something like that... We're going to talk about that later", Sasha says reproachfully in a forced sounding whisper, "But yes, it was my idea and we had met with envoys from the Rebellion... It went... not great"

"With which results?", Yunan asks.

"We were given an ultimatum to get all the toads in the valley to treat the frogs better", Sasha explains.

"And when was that?", Marcy asks to which neither Sasha nor Grime answer. "I see... A start would be to release all captured rebels immediately and, unless there are serious reasons, not to take any more prisoners. Do you think that's feasible, Captain Grime?"

"Um... for sure. I just have to send the order..."

"Good, at the very least, that's a start. Another point: taxes. Since you don't keep records of how much money you take from the frogs, the most I can do is put in a word in Newtopia that maybe taxes will be reduced a bit. That way you'll have to take less-" Marcy suggests in her boundless naiveté.

"Yes. Or we could take a look at the regional governments and keep an eye out for corrupt officials in power", Yunan suggests instead.

"Oh, right. Corruption does still exist... Captain Grime, are you being corrupt?" Marcy asks, to which Yunan whispers to her "let me handle the corruption thing" and Marcy merely nods this off.

"Okay... what was the last point? ... ... Oh yeah, centuries of distrust and hatred between the two species. Spontaneously, I can't think of an approach for that. You?"

"Marce, I really like to see how ambitious you are, but you can't solve racism overnight. Well, or within twenty minutes."

"I know, but I have to at least try. I owe it to this place."

"Toad Tower?" Sasha asks skeptically.

"Amphibia. So much good has happened to me here, and as long as we are able to, I want to do as much good as I can. You should have seen Newtopia before I turned it all upside down. They say Rome wasn't built in a day, but I wasn't in the game back then."

In response to Marcy's stories, Sasha starts to look a little sad.

"Oh Sasha, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking before I was speaking again. I know it was less fun for you."

"Oh nonsense, it's great here. I have Grime, my own subordinates..."

But before Sasha can continue, Grime speaks up, "General, I think that's all we're accomplishing today. We should probably give these two some space", and leaves the room.

"Marcy, I'll wait by the stable", Yunan says, and she and Grime leave the room, which is now just Marcy and Sasha.

"Marcy, I-"

"Sasha, what-"

Both girls wanted to start talking at the same time, but interrupted each other.

"You first", Marcy says.

"Okay. I lied, it really sucked at times. Plus, I ran into Anne. She... did this to me", Sasha says, pointing to the scar that stretches all the way across her eye, "After what Grime told me, I was almost dead. I was in a coma for what felt like forever."

"I... know."

Sasha was extremely surprised by this answer.

"You... know? How?" she asked with a slightly suspicious undertone and Marcy took one deep breath.

"Anne told me"

Immediately after that, total silence filled the room while Sasha tried to process that.

"Anne... told you?" Sasha asks in a cracked voice. She takes a few steps back from the window where she and Marcy are standing towards the table to support herself on it. Marcy realizes that mentioning Anne was probably a big mistake. Marcy walks over to Sasha after a moment and lays a hand on her shoulder

"Sasha... I'm-"

But Sasha interrupts her directly, knocking Marcy's hand away with a shoulder wave.

"I should have known..."

"Should have known what?"

"That you were supporting Anne and you didn't care about me at all".

"What?" Marcy asks heartbroken, "What makes you think that?"

"Obviously you met with the rebellion first and then now you're just pretending that you care about bringing peace. You just want to sabotage us"

"Sasha, that- that's not true. I have no contact with the rebellion- wait, why do you think Anne has anything to do with the rebellion?"

"Oh come on now, don't act so ignorant!", Sasha accuses her, "We both know Anne is leading the rebellion."

"N- No, that can't be"

"Oh, so now you're calling me a liar too?"

"No, of course not. I just mean Anne was in Newtopia for the last week. She just left a little while ago. There's no way she could lead a rebellion from there"

"Well great, it just keeps getting better and better. My two best friends spend a whole week together while I wasn't even invited."

"Sasha, I had no idea that you were here until Anne told me. Anne wasn't even sure you were alive after what she did to you", Marcy says in an attempt to comfort her friend.

"So, she told you what happened? Everything?" asks Sasha doubtfully.

"She told me everything. Both what you did and what she and Luz did. She also told me how much she was regretting what she had done"

"Good, she should."

"And... you?"

"What 'and me'?"

"Do you regret what you did?"

The way Marcy asks this question is clear of any kind of accusation or reluctance. Just concern. Concern for her friend's well-being. Unfortunately, Sasha is just too blinded to notice.

"Where did that Luz go anyway, huh? I'm sure she's with Anne, who has finally replaced me with her."

"Sasha, Anne didn't replace you. She misses you, just like I missed you. Even after what you did, she doesn't want to lose you. She cares a lot about you and-"

"Bullshit. She hates me. And so do you!"

Marcy can't believe what she's hearing. She doesn't know how to possibly respond.

"I... Sasha, I could never hate you... You are my friend"

"Then you are just as stupid as she is"

Marcy gasps and tears form in her eyes. In a broken voice she says

"Okay... If you see it like that... maybe I should leave"

"Yeah, maybe you should!"

"... But before I go, I want to say one more thing"

"WHAT?"

"We may have found a way to get home. It will take some time, but we might need your help later on"

Sasha doesn't respond to this and continues to just give Marcy the cold shoulder. Marcy continues

"I... will send you a message when it's time... It would be nice...if you could be there. If you want to"

Again, Sasha says nothing and Marcy makes her way to the door.

"Alright. Goodbye, Sasha. It... it was nice to see you again"

On her way down the stairs, Marcy runs into Grime, who immediately notices her teary eyes. He was about to say something, but Marcy spoke up first.

"Captain, General Yunan will be back in a few days. I will try to establish a new dialogue with the rebellion and act as a negotiator. Have you already given the order to release the captured rebels?"

"I have just sent the messengers with proper instructions. Um, may I ask-"

"No, you may not. Goodbye, Captain."

Without another word, Marcy continued down the stairs to the main hall and on through the front gate to the stables, where Yunan was already waiting for her.

"I suppose things didn't go well, did they?"

Increasingly unable to fight back her tears, she just shakes her head and a first sob escapes. Somewhat overwhelmed by the situation, Yunan looks slightly exasperated at Joe, who in turn holds Marcy close to him with one wing.

"Thanks Joe. We...we should go."

Marcy climbs onto Joe's back with Yunan, puts down her backpack and pulls out her diary. Joe lifts off the ground and meanwhile Marcy turns her gaze to the tower and sees Sasha standing at a window, blankly staring at her.

Once Joe is out of range, Yunan asks Marcy what exactly happened. And while she tells in detail how the conversation between her and Sasha went, it became increasingly difficult for her to speak and also needed increasingly longer breaks in which her tears just fell. Yunan had not dared to speak up while Marcy was talking. However, once she had finished and the sobbing had also lessened, Yunan began to speak.

"I know I'm probably the least qualified to find solutions to these kinds of problems, but it seems like your friend definitely needs help that you can't offer her, no matter how much you want to... But nonetheless, I'm very proud that you tried. You remember Ragnar? Nowadays, I wish I had acted differently back then and tried to help him rather than just turn him in."

"That... that's not really comparable at all..."

"Maybe not. But I nevertheless find that despite the circumstances, you were willing to offer your help to your friend."

Marcy is leaning on Yunan's shoulder.

"Thank you."

"... For what?"

"Just like that... Wait a minute, weren't we supposed to go to Wartwood?"

" I am flying to Wartwood. For you, I have something else in mind. A little surprise, if you will"

Marcy looks around in confusion as Yunan and Joe make their approach to land somewhere in the middle of nowhere.

"But what's supposed to be here? Here's just a dry-"

Marcy's eyes widen as Joe lands and a nearby vehicle shows up, previously covered by Joe's wing.

"ANNE!" Marcy screams with delight as she sees the Plantars' fwagon, which has stopped just in front of Joe. Anne jumps down from the wagon and runs to Joe, from whom Marcy is falling and is just barely caught by Anne.

"Oh Marcy, I missed you, but... what are you even doing out here?"

Instead of answering herself, General Yunan jumps down with Marcy's backpack from Joe and explains "It's been a messy day, she needs this. Master Marcy, I'll see you in Wartwood. I have some corruption cases to uncover".

"Yes, General", Marcy replies, who is still in Anne's arms, salutes. Yunan jumps back on Joe's back, takes off and flies toward the horizon.

"Anne?"

"Hmm?"

"You can let me down now"

"Oh, yeah. Of course", Anne agrees, blushing.

Suddenly Sprig, Polly and Maddie also appear from the fwagon and run up to Marcy, who joyfully gives the three of them a big hug.

"MAAAARCYYY!" the frogs exclaim.

"Aww, I missed you guys too... Where's Hop Pop?" asks Marcy.

Suddenly, the older frog gets out of the fwagon and asks in a sleepy tone, "Why did we stop? I told you we wouldn't stop for a break until sometime later"

"Hello Hop Pop" Marcy says with a smile on her face.

"Marcy? Oh wow... Okay, so I certainly was not expecting that", the old frog says, dumbfounded. Marcy and Anne giggle.

"I hope it would be okay if you let me ride with you the rest of the way..."

"Uh, but of course Marcy. It would be an honor to have you."

"Aww, thanks Hop Pop."

"Yeah HP, you're the best. Come on Mar-Mar, I'll show you around."

And so, the frogs and the two girls entered the fwagon, with Anne giving Marcy a rather detailed tour and Hop Pop taking the control for Bessie.